Eclipse
Part 41 - One Truth, One Hate
The Republic was in a state of excitement - they had heard the Chancellor's bill and they liked it. Its clauses contained enough tantalising promises to make them blind enough to the man's blatant ambition - but they trusted him. He had one of those faces and such an urbane manner. Better the devil you know than the devil you don't, anyway.
This bill promised such a shake-up in the democracy that it was unprecedented in scale - the Republic had hardly changed in makeup for centuries, so the majority of the senate thought it was about time that someone dusted off the cobwebs and changed the scenery a little.
Besides, even if this Empire appeared to have just one absolute ruler, there was no chance in him being able to rule alone - of course the senate would be able to control him. In essence, they had decided to hire this Chancellor for a little longer, so that he could be the promising face of the 'new order' - he'd done a fine job so far, and the people would no doubt unite beneath the kind of stability he promised. But it was all just show - he could never rule alone.
One of the most promising features of this bill was the fact that it disbanded the Jedi - this had long been wanted by the upper-classes, in particular. These Knights had lost their worth some time ago now and had since become as ornamental as this 'Emperor' would soon be - the fact was that it would be much easier to maintain one man in an incredulous position than it was to maintain ten thousand knights and a temple in theirs.
Yes, the constituency liked this. Or they at least were led to believe they did.
To top this off, Count Dooku had apparently been found! This all but signalled the end of the wars, did it not? They had the Separatist leader. He was to be sternly dealt with, they were told, and a show was to be made, along the veranda leading up to the Senate, of any further traitors captured. No one quite knew what this meant, but it was an encouraging promise all the same.
The Senate would soon vote on the bill, and then all that was left would be to institute it all.
Master Yoda was playing host to Bail Organa, who, returning from his homeworld to attend the senate's discussion of this Imperial Doctrine, had wasted no time in rushing to Master Yoda to relate and to discuss this news.
"Master Yoda," he said quietly, hands clasped at the small of his back as he paced beside the diminutive Jedi through the empty, cavernous halls of the temple, "The senate has long been deteriorating, we have all known this, but things have gone too far this time. The Chancellor is listening to the masses and exciting many with this ludicrous new bill. It looks likely that it will be passed, though... There is not enough resistance. Master Yoda, I can't give my name to this, but what else can I do? It does promise a stronger Republic - or 'Empire' as it has been denoted - yet this comes at your expense, and at the expense of much else. I fear our very freedom is at stake - we cannot allow any man to have undisputed power."
Yoda listened patiently to all this with nods and sighs, hobbling along with his cane.
"I can do nothing but warn you," Organa added, "I have no idea what he wishes to do with you, but -"
"Scapegoats have the Jedi become," Yoda said plainly, "Persecuted. Downtrodden. What a price for loyalty we pay." He smiled weakly up at Bail and slowed to a halt, resting heavily upon his gnarled staff; "Trouble me greatly this does. The Sith's hand in it there undoubtedly is."
"But why would they choose Palpatine? There are so many others in the senate who might more fittingly fill the role of an Emperor - a puppet emperor - if this is what the Sith want."
Yoda frowned to himself and thought on this; "A clever man, the Sith Master must be. A clever man also is Chancellor Palpatine." He mulled on this longer, imparting very few of his thoughts to Bail.
"Then what shall we do?" Organa asked.
Yoda looked up. "Caution, Senator," he said sternly, "Care we must take. Our every move being watched it is. More subtle we must be."
"Your entire Order is in danger…" Bail continued, lowering himself to his haunches and looking at Yoda imploringly, "Are you telling me that, no matter what is decided for you, your people will be safe? The war's failings are being laid at your feet, not mine or any of the senator's. You will be targeted, attacked, I fear even murdered, if possible… I cannot allow some of my greatest allies to fall foul to such horrors."
"Vengeful are the people," Yoda nodded as though he knew that what Bail claimed could easily become reality, "But not yet out of the picture are we."
Bail sighed and returned to his feet. "Just please remain wary, Master Yoda. Be ready to escape this capital when you can… I fear it will not be safe for many of us much longer." He bit his lip and with much reluctance confessed, "If you do not agree to whatever terms the senate imposes for you and your Order, I will have no power to protect you."
"Give in to the Chancellor's demands, we shall not," Yoda countered with a determination that surprised Organa, "Never accept, shall we, Palpatine's elevation to Emperor."
"That will smack of treason, Master Yoda - you shall be destroyed!"
Yoda nodded his head sadly. "Come what may, Senator."
The Alderaanian shook his head. "Master Yoda, I shall not be able to help you…"
"For your concern, I thank you, Senator," Yoda went on, his aura returning to that more kindly one that he was both well known and liked for, "But powerless are you. The Jedi's problem is this, and remain that it shall . Upon yourself do not take any blame."
Bail looked downwards and exhaled a breath of defeat - the Jedi corps had their honour, and it looked like nothing would take that away from them, even to the last. "As you wish, Master Yoda," he muttered. He bowed to the noble Jedi then made his way out of the temple with a heavy, unsettled heart. Master Yoda, meanwhile, simply shook his head and hobbled on, back to his apartment.
In orbit of the capital, meanwhile, the black-clad Assassin was staring out at the twinkling lights of the planet down below from aboard his craft. His ship was currently hovering in the darkness on the shadow-side of Coruscant - if the dark side of the planet could even be called such, for never was the gleaming heart of the Republic ever in complete darkness; its lights always glittered, making allusions to it being a jewel well justified.
He folded his arms, leaning in the crook of a window upon the bridge whilst his silent clone troopers manned the consoles all around him. After a long morning of silence, a console to the right finally began to bleep. The Assassin cast his eyes around as a clone trooper saw to the disturbance. The soldier then turned to the Assassin and said, "We have leave to land now, sir."
The Assassin smirked beneath his dark wrappings. "Excellent," he said, "Take us in."
Padmé was in a light doze, still lying upon Serenn's shoulder, when she felt his hand nudge her and, raising her face, she saw that the black-clad Assassin was stood outside their cell. She and the Count both slowly got to their feet as they soon realised that the Assassin was deactivating the force-field that kept them imprisoned.
With a dull hum, the field fizzled out and the man glared at his two captives, sauntering across the threshold up to them.
He glanced at Padmé, giving her a brief unassuming look, but his mood shifted like the incoming of a sudden tempest as he then glared at Serenn. He halted before the Count with a swagger that oozed of an undeniable hatred, so Serenn, naturally, rose his head a little and gave the unknown a glare in return, facing the silent challenge and holding out.
Padmé hung back a little, watching an electrical friction fizzle between them unlike anything she had ever seen before. Well, almost anything…
It was then, without warning, that the Assassin flung his head forward and butted Serenn across his countenance. The Count barked, stumbling back with a hand to his face, but was given no time to recover as the Assassin then went on to fling his fist into Dooku's stomach, before swinging a kick at his shins. The Count dropped to the floor, blood dripping from his nose, and he would have felt the edge of another kick if Padmé hadn't leapt between him and the Assassin and ordered the man to stop.
The Assassin glared at Padmé for some time. The way she looked at him was strange, and he hadn't expected it at all. It seemed even stranger to Padmé, though, when his eventual reaction was to simply take a step back and laugh.
Waving his hand, the stranger then turned about and strut out of the cell. "Handcuff the old man," he said as he went, then disappeared from view. A group of clone troopers now came in and, forcing Serenn back to his feet and shackling his wrists, then escorted them both out.
They were led out into the Coruscant night, into a small shuttle, and arrived not long after at the Galactic Senate.
The senate halls themselves were deserted by the time Padmé and Serenn were marched along them by their clone convoy. It was past midnight on the capital, and no one but the odd droid seemed to litter the bare, wide halls. The two looked particularly dishevelled in comparison to the fine carpets and statuettes along the corridors, their clothes torn and muddy, their faces and hands more so.
Padmé looked about herself warily - it was eerie being here when so few others were, but, for that matter, she wondered why they even were here. She wasn't an expert on procedure when it came to arresting fugitives, but she was sure a visit to the senate was not top on the list.
As they reached a lift shaft, the Republic troops handed the two over to the scarlet senate guards, an elite division of soldiers seen as of late to haunt the Chancellor's abode. Dooku and Padmé said nothing and peacefully passed from one convoy to the next, stepping into the lift with the four red guards and travelling silently up to the higher floors.
Padmé looked between the mysterious soldiers with unease - they were very intimidating. She had seen them several times before, yet it was only now that she had begun to pay any real attention to them. She could see hints of the old Senate Guard in the design of their suits, but these red sentinels were faceless, their visages hidden behind impassive masks.
The lift plodded to a halt and both Padmé and the Count were then escorted by the sentry through yet more empty halls. Further troubled by this, she lowered her voice so that Serenn alone could hear her and muttered, "It's so quiet…"
He glanced at her, his eyes heavy beneath the hooded lids; "Indeed," he rasped.
She looked at him uncertainly. "Are you all right?"
He scoffed, a weak smile perking up on his face; she could tell that something was bothering him and that he was simply astounded by the sheer fact she cared to ask.
"Serenn?" she pushed on.
Padmé hadn't realised that her voice had risen in volume and one of the Royal Guards suddenly thrust his electro pike at her leg; she squealed as it sent a jolt of electricity up through her ankle and she doubled up in pain. "Silence!" the guard shouted, but Serenn rounded on him in the blink of an eye and stepped between him and Padmé.
"There's no need for that," he snarled at the sentinel.
Dooku's eyes were reflected back at him in the guard's visor, yet the Count continued to hold his ground even as the guard in question raised his pike beneath his chin; "Get back in line, you scum," the sentinel hissed, before he thrust his pike at Dooku's chest and this time sent a visible electrical charge surging over him. It was Serenn's turn to drop to the floor and feel the agony that this weapon inflicted, and he roared out in pain, clawing at his chest, until the anguish eventually subsided and he regained control of himself.
The guard gestured brusquely for Dooku to get back on his feet; "You will do as you are told whilst in our custody," he continued.
Padmé helped Serenn up, but he brushed her off as though her aid offended him. "We've made no struggle so far, we've given you no grief," he snapped, tossing his long hair out of his eyes and glaring at the party, "Can you not return the favour?"
Padmé felt the lead guard might be sneering back at them - he somehow had that air about him, though nothing could be seen beneath the red cloak and helmet. His only response was to thrust his hand ahead of them, though, before he simply snapped, "Move." And the party continued on its way.
Refusing to risk talking to Dooku again, Padmé conceded to the guards' wishes and walked in silence, listening to the swish of their heavy robes, the jingle of their weapons and the stomping of their feet as they went. They passed through hallway after hallway, went up lift after lift, and ascended stair after stair… until they came to a sudden halt.
The guards parted and rallied behind the Senator and the Separatist, and a pair of doors opened unto a final hallway before them. Dooku looked unsurprised and Padmé was unsettled - she knew exactly where this corridor led, having travelled down it many-a-time before, but was far from bolstered by this prospect.
"Our master awaits you," the leading guard stated, breaking through Padmé's reverie and gesturing his pike toward the far door.
There was a sense of unease all around them, emanating most strongly from the Count himself, and something told Padmé that he was privy to something she wasn't. They both looked at the head guard, then at each other, before, as one, they stepped forward and embarked upon the final stretch of their journey.
The doors shut with an air of finality behind them and left them alone in the void.
"This heads to the Chancellor's office," Padmé said, still keeping her voice down as though some ethereal force imposed itself upon her.
Serenn looked down at her, seeming most reluctant to get into any form of conversation, and walked on in silence until they reached the final doorway. They then halted together, both having fears as to what exactly they were to face on the other side, and Serenn took this opportunity to impart to her a few final words. "Padmé," he said, "Things have been happening in this galaxy for a long time that you are unaware of, and that you possibly don't even comprehend." He paused, kneading his temples and shaking his head with a heavy sigh. "I am not the man to explain them to you, nor do I have any wish to. All I ask of you is to understand that I am very, very sorry. It does not compensate for anything, but it is all I can offer you right now."
Padmé shook her head in return, completely confused by everything that was going on. She wanted to say something, but she couldn't find the words, so watched mutely as Serenn, with the resolve of a man who wants to get it all over with, waved his hand at the doors before them and commanded them to open. They did so and the Chancellor's office loomed ahead.
Obi-Wan was flanked by Tarkin and his cronies as their convoy dropped out of lightspeed and the pleasant vision of Naboo formed before them, small and unassuming in the dark reaches of the Outer Rim. The Jedi Knight shook his head, wondering what it was about this blasted planet that kept drawing them back here; "Well, ladies and gentlemen," he said, "We have a job to do. Let's do it."
He turned, looking across every set of eyes on the bridge. "I speak to you as a General, not a Jedi. We lost this planet due to our own lack of foresight before - we now have an opportunity to right these wrongs. Let's make it as quick and as painless as possible."
He paced across the bridge and stood around the holo-map again. "Have all pilots man their ships. The first wave is to go in and judge what we're up against. We then can prepare for the full onslaught, which I shall lead."
He looked to a man on Tarkin's left. "Deploy the First Wave, commander," he said, then fell silent. The order was soon fulfilled, and the Republic fighters were to be seen gliding out in formation to the blue-and-green orb that the Trade Federation held strong.
It was one big trap - everyone knew it - and it had taken Obi-Wan one Hell of an argument to sway the militia to take on this mission and to liberate Naboo, a planet too many felt had been given one too many chances as it was. They had argued in force against it - whilst they were being occupied here, who knew what General Grievous was up to- but General Kenobi had had no choice, and the Mortal Militia eventually saw things his way. People could not be allowed to be sacrificed whilst the Republic Army waited for the next appearance of the Droid General.
Terrible things were beginning to happen now all over the place because of that monster. Kit Fisto and his army had been all but decimated far out at Toola, and word had it that a recent skirmish in the Zhar system had left Yarael Poof amongst the casualties. Adi Gallia was still on the go near Riflor, but things weren't looking good, especially as it was practically impossible for the Republic to continue restocking its army with men and machines at the current rate it was losing them. All anyone could do was to pray for some salvation from this madness…
The Droid General was up to more than no good, and if the Republic didn't look lively soon, they were going to suffer a horrendous defeat. Grievous was currently staring out from his flagship at the Republic's most precious jewel and its most valued treasure - the galactic capital of Coruscant. He was just far enough out of range to remain unnoticed for the time being. Soon, though, he was going to launch his most ambitious sortie and attempt to take Coruscant for himself. His attack force was all but ready and the Republic were far too occupied elsewhere to be too large a threat as of yet. He was well aware that, once the alarm was raised, that the Republic would not be long in rushing back to defend their capital, but he only needed enough time to get onto the surface. The rest of the war he had no qualms in fighting out here, in the space around the capital itself. It would be fun.
"Are we ready?" he asked Po Nudo, the Aqualish senator who, following the Separatist victory at Toola, had not long ago joined the General aboard his flagship.
"Whenever you are, General," he replied with an obsequious, low bow, "Tikkes's army is now in position, as are Shu Mai's and our other factions."
Grievous nodded and turned to leave the bridge - this was it.
The lonely lightsabre-chimes sang a mournful tune as he paced away, and he hissed in his wake, "Commence stage one, senator."
Nudo bowed again. "At once, General."
Back at the Chancellery, Padmé hooked her arm round Serenn's elbow and together they crossed the precipice and walked over the brooding, blood red carpet, before halting at the dais at the far end of the chamber. The chair behind the desk rotated, and Palpatine's cold, blue eyes greeted them. "Welcome my friends. I've been waiting for you," he said, before he sat back and studied the two with mild interest, "My, my, you have been through the wars, haven't you?" He suddenly chuckled to himself, "Oh, you must forgive my terrible pun… how insensitive of me." He then laughed heartily; it was one of those aristocratic chortles that was better placed at a cocktail party than in a dictator's office.
"And where are my manners?" he went on, wafting his hands airily about himself, "I am sorry, my Lord. You'll no longer need those."
Padmé's brow furrowed as she watched the Chancellor merely incline his head toward Serenn. The next thing she heard, causing her to spring away from the Count, was Dooku's handcuffs drop, with a numbed clunk, onto the carpet below.
She glared back at the Chancellor - so it was true. He was a master of the Force.
Serenn rubbed his wrists, seeming on edge. He felt lost without his lightsabre by his side - he'd never been without a lightsabre in his life.
"So, here we are," Palpatine mused, getting to his feet and rubbing his hands together, "The Chancellor and his two favourite political protagonists." He laughed under his breath, coming down the steps toward them; "The Charismatic Separatist and the infamous Queen from Naboo." He halted in front of the two and looked between them again. "Oh, what a pair you two have made!" - he reached out and patted Serenn on the shoulder - "Good show, old boy. Well done."
Padmé suddenly felt that she had lost the plot. She took a small step backward and waited until Serenn's eyes turned back on her. When they did, the signs were not good; he looked more remorseful than he had ever done so before in his life, and that meant something. His shoulders were sagging and his noble demeanour was all but gone.
"Have you enjoyed your time with Tyranus here?" Palpatine then asked Padmé, looking at her as though she were a mere conquest, not a person at all.
She dismissed this as one of the many emerging facets of Palpatine's unpleasant character, and just exchanged glances with Serenn again; he really wasn't sending her good signals. "'Tyranus'?" she asked, swallowing hard.
Palpatine laughed - that laugh stung Padmé to the core, making her feel as though she had been incredibly stupid and missed something crucial to this whole affair. Again, she looked to Serenn for answers, but she only met his down-turned gaze as he once more refused to meet her eyes.
"Yes, seek your answers from him. He has them all," Palpatine teased, walking round behind the young Nubian and placing a hand on her shoulder.
Padmé gasped in anguish - she thought she had been in agony when Serenn, all that time ago, and sent sensations of coldness and despair through her body as he touched her, but that had been nothing next to the deathly touch of the Chancellor. The sensation of it was so terrible that it almost drove her into paralysis. She shuddered, striving to stay in control of herself, as she felt the man run his fingers across her shoulder, over her nape, then back down the other shoulder, where he let them rest. He then gripped into her flesh tightly.
She cried out, arrows of ice tearing through her veins.
"Tch, tch, tch," the Sith Master murmured, releasing her from this Hell a moment later and pacing away, "You have been a bad girl, haven't you, my lady?"
She hugged herself, her body shivering uncontrollably, and looked to Dooku again. She wondered why he hadn't started toward Palpatine, or rose any objections to any of this, but he was still looking down, utterly despondent and crestfallen. This miserable show only served to unnerve her even more.
"Poor Anakin…" Palpatine mused, drawing their attention back onto him; Padmé saw that he was looking at her in particular. "After all he has done for you," the man went on, "This is how you repay him."
It was all too clear that he knew what had been going on, about all the humiliating and terrifying things that had happened to her, as well as something of her almost contented state these past few months. She swallowed in shame, glancing down.
"Tell me, I'm curious," the Chancellor continued, moving again to her side, "How do you feel about this man?" He opened his hand toward Dooku and looked to Padmé for her response, whilst she looked at Serenn in turn then back to the Chancellor again, saying nothing.
"Do you love him?" Palpatine asked.
She looked away another time, and he went on, "Do you hate him? He's done some unsightly things to you, hasn't he?"
Padmé silently concurred, her heart heavy.
"But he is a charismatic man," the Chancellor went on, giving the remorseful Count a cold smile, "And intelligent, no doubt, though he doesn't always use his head. But anyway, it is little wonder that he deceived you so easily."
"'Deceived'?" she spluttered, glaring again at the Chancellor.
"Oh my, yes," he nodded, seeming to be enjoying himself, "Isn't that so, Tyranus?"
Padmé looked at Dooku, but he looked far from amused - he'd hung his head and seemed to flinch at the very sight of the Chancellor, at the sound of his very voice.
"Friends, are you?" Padmé inquired, glancing between them both.
"No, merely comrades," Palpatine returned, "Or so I thought."
Dooku swallowed and finally met the Chancellor's gaze with his own.
Padmé looked desperately between them both time and again, seeking that piece of the puzzle she had so disastrously misplaced. "You're not comrades, though… you've been on opposing sides of the war for months!"
"So naïve!" Palpatine smiled.
"It can't be true! How could it be? The Jedi would know! They'd sense it!"
"Just like they sensed the Sith had returned ten years ago…?"
Padmé had never felt more unsettled by a smile before - she wished the Chancellor would stop doing it; "What? What are you talking about?"
"You haven't guessed?" he teased, continuing to prowl about the chamber like a restless predator, his leering eyes filled with a malicious glee, "Oh, how I was mistaken to have once thought you intelligent."
"Stop it, my lord," Dooku growled between gritted teeth, giving the Chancellor a harsh glare. "There's no need for this."
Palpatine wasn't quite so amused by Serenn's lack of respect, and his features paled, creating an impassive yet somehow menacing milieu. "My, my… in bad humour, are we, Tyranus?"
Padmé shook her head. "'Tyranus'?" she repeated, looking to Serenn yet again for answers.
"Oh, my dear, hasn't he told you?"
Padmé glared back at Palpatine now. "Told me what?"
"Would you like to tell her, my boy?"
"What in the Force's name is going on?" she yelled, rounding on Dooku, who looked like he was swinging between a towering rage and a withdrawn depression within.
"He wasn't lying about the Sith Lord in the senate," Palpatine drawled for him.
Padmé was back looking at Palpatine again. "So you are ?"
"The Sith Master, yes. Pity no one else really picked up on the fact, but I should be content with the blindness of those Jedi fools."
Padmé shook her head. "You sick, twisted… you-"
Palpatine laughed, sprawling back in his chair and seeming to appear twenty years younger; "Oh, if this is the abuse I warrant, what have you got in store for Tyranus, here?"
"'Tyranus'?"
Padmé glared at the Chancellor, trying to read between the lines, trying to see beyond this name of 'Tyranus'.
"Yes, he told you that a Sith Lord controlled the senate," Palpatine laughed, his mouth stretching wide with a twisted hilarity as he strove to contain himself, "He never told you that a Sith Lord controlled the Separatists, too!"
The whole world, every day of the past few months under Dooku's wing, came crashing down on Padmé's soul; "What?" she gasped.
Dooku had frozen.
No one made any comments so, numb with horror, she turned once more on Serenn and asked, "Is this true?"
"Of course it is," Palpatine grimaced, rising back to his feet. "What a team we make, Lord Tyranus! What fools were the Jedi to think that only one side of their war might be affected by the Sith! What fools!"
Once again, Padmé felt she were back at square one. This terrible man she had almost given herself to trust, despite everything, had played her for an absolute fool after all. Why had she ever thought that he could change? "You…" she stuttered at the Count, backing away from him in disgust, "You're the second Sith, aren't you? You turned me from the Republic, from the institution suffering under one Sith, only to lead me into the nest of the other - your nest! You, you-"
"Oh, words escape her, Tyranus," Palpatine smirked, stepping beside him and giving him an outwardly friendly pat on the shoulder.
Padmé glowered at him, tears of rage filling her eyes and a dark emptiness infesting her heart; she had been doomed from the start if both sides of the war were, in effect, the same.
"And just when she'd been starting to trust you," Palpatine added in a hushed tone.
Dooku glanced at him, brow contracted, and master and apprentice stared at one another. After a moment, the Chancellor withdrew his gaze and paced away, saying, "But enough's enough. It is time to move on."
He clicked his fingers and, emerging from the shadows, completely hidden up until now, came the Assassin. He walked up to the Chancellor and placed Dooku's lightsabre in his Master's grasp, before he then bowed and backed away once more into the gloom. Padmé eyed the tall, dark stranger again, looking into those eyes with a feeling of foreboding.
Palpatine, meanwhile, looked over Serenn's lightsabre and turned it over several times in his palm; "I always liked your style, Lord Tyranus. There was always an essence of nostalgia about it, of the glorious 'old days', as one might call them." He ran a finger down the curved hilt, "So elegant, so beautiful, and yet -" He tossed it back at the man and Serenn caught it "- so obsolete."
Serenn stared back at his Master, a rising sense of dismay filling his heart.
"And just like you are now obsolete to the Jedi and the new era," the Sith Master explained, "I feel that young Padmé here has also become obsolete, and has outlived her service to us. So, Lord Tyranus, I think it would be wise to put her out of her misery."
The Chancellor's eyes flared at Padmé and, with a waft of his hand, he sent her tumbling over onto the floor. "Kill her," he commanded.
Padmé gasped and felt her stomach flip.
Serenn, as of yet, hadn't made a move - he was still gripping his 'sabre between his hands, his larynx bobbing up and down as he swallowed convulsively. Thoughts swirled through his mind in a hectic blizzard, and he could scarcely bring himself to concentrate. That was until his brown eyes met the blue ones of the Assassin, and there he found his ground.
Padmé didn't realise it at first, but she soon noticed that Serenn and the Assassin were eyeing one-another up quite darkly, as if daring the other to make the next move, to take the next step.
Palpatine moved between them both though, breaking their stare and casting upon each a contemplative glance, before he then slowly retreated across his office to retake his seat, and from there waited for the show to continue, his hands curled loosely over the arms of his throne and his countenance grave.
The silent sparring match having been ended, Dooku moved his glance onto Padmé; he was breathing unsteadily and his eyes were glassy.
"Well, get a move on!" came the Chancellor's sharp command from across the room, causing the Count to close his eyes in a futile desire for more time; "After all you've done to her, this should prove little challenge. See it as… an act of 'mercy'."
The word 'mercy' was spoken in such a way that Padmé felt that the Chancellor found the mere allusion to such a thing ridiculous. She unthinkingly began to drag herself back across the scarlet carpet, hoping that this was a bad dream, and sought some way to escape.
Serenn continued to watch her, but still made no move. He looked again to the Assassin, who had folded his arms and now stood in the most conceited manner possible, waiting for him to act. Driven by this, the Count's face suddenly cast itself into a look of dark resolution, one which frightened Padmé because she knew she had seen it before…
"Behave young lady. You know that I can't abide vain strugglers…"
'Please, no…' Padmé prayed over and over in her mind as she watched Dooku march toward her with such determination she could think this meant nothing but death. She had sworn she would never fear death, but this was just so awful - and again she asked herself how she could ever have possibly believed that this man would change, how had she ever even thought that it was possible…?
She looked across now to the aloof Assassin and her eyes pleaded with him to intervene, to stop the Count and to save her life. He shifted in a way that made it seem that he may actually help her, but, glancing at the Chancellor's countenance, he soon changed his mind, and held his ground. And no sooner had she turned back than was Dooku already stood over her, raising the hilt of his weapon behind his head before he pushed the activation button and brought his wicked red blade to life. Their eyes then met in this final moment of fate, but even though this moment lasted little longer than a second, it was long enough for Padmé to see something in the Serenn's gaze, a flicker of something she couldn't quite pinpoint…
Then, with a sudden swoosh, he plunged his blade down toward her.
She turned away and closed her eyes. The red blade was but an inch from her skin - she could feel the heat- until it vanished as quickly as it had come. Peeling open her eyes just in time, she watched in disbelief as Dooku veered about, with the dexterity of a younger warrior, and flung his weapon, with all his might, across the room toward the Sith Master!
Time slowed at this critical moment for her, as, in awe, she watched the lightsabre cart-wheel through the air like an immense boomerang, just one great, whirling vortex of fatal, red energy, and all heading straight for the Chancellor! Neither Padmé or Dooku, not even the Assassin himself, could then do anything but hold their breaths…
TBC…