PLEASE CONTINUE TO CHECK MY PROFILE PAGE FOR NEWS ON THIS STORY!

Entry XV

"Battle Plans and Preparations"

By the time Qui-Gon and I joined the Queen and Gungan leaders, Captain Panaka was already striding off with a few of his men. Amidala had sent him on a mission to learn what had been taking place on Naboo since their absence. Boss Nass gave orders to his generals who in turn passed the information on to their troops; Gungan sentries were assigned to various lookout stations; runners were sent out to collect even more who could still fight.

Amidst it all, during one unhurried moment of silence, a loud, angry stomach grumbled its dissatisfaction. For a moment I thought it was mine—I had just started on the road of adolescent growth spurts when Qui-Gon took me as his apprentice and it had been rather common for my empty stomach to make its presence known, even during the not-so-convenient times. Qui-Gon glanced at me quickly and I shook my head.

It wasn't me.

So if it wasn't me, then that meant—

Anakin turned a deep shade of crimson as numerous pairs of eyes turned to peer in his direction. "Sorry?" he ventured, his grimy hands resting lightly on the fabric that covered his abdomen. Despite everything going on, Padmé Amidala smiled at the boy. She turned to Boss Nass and, seeing his own mirth, let her grin grow larger.

A short time later found all of the Naboo party that was present to be well fed with content bellies. Qui-Gon and myself had only taken enough so as not to offend our "hosts." The food was a valuable resource that would have a better purpose serving those who really needed it. That was the Jedi way of handling such things.

Now knowing when we would get another chance to eat or rest after the planning ended, Master and I both downed the bland contents of two of the protein capsules hanging on our belts. I couldn't help grimace at the taste: no matter how many times I'd been forced to rely on them as my only source of nourishment over the years, I still hadn't gotten used to them. I was beginning to wonder if I ever would.

Our group of rebels was moved from the swamps to the edge of the grassy plains where the Queen planned to hold her greatest attack. If I looked hard enough, I almost imagined I could see the gleaming rooftops of Theed in the distance.

For a long time my master and I did nothing but stand by the Queen as she mulled further over the plan she had started way back on Coruscant. The droid R2-D2, now proving to be one of Amidala's most trusted confidants, also rested nearby. I would not be surprised if the rest of Padmé Amidala's plan was contained in that little silver and blue dome.

I was surprised at how well Anakin did in the beginning, but eventually the waiting turned out to be too much for him. Qui-Gon gave him the errand of standing near the main Gungan lookout and relaying messages back and forth between the sentries and leaders. For a moment I imagined a touch of envy seeped from the back of my mind to the forefront: how many times when I had been his age, or even older, had I wished I could leave whatever dull scenarioI was involved in to go do something a bit more…stimulating? More than once, I knew that much for a fact. But as soon as the envy arrived it disappeared. Did it really matter? My greatest ambition, my most important dream in life had always been to be a Jedi. Standing next to Qui-Gon Jinn at that moment, immersed in the company of Naboo's leaders whom had been hostile enemies not too long ago, I sensed that the completion of that dream was just around the corner. It was a bittersweet realization, one that I'm not entirely sure I was prepared for, and had I known just how close it was, I may—no, I would have asked for time to rewind. I would have asked to go back in time, to be returned to the Monument, to Bandomeer, to Telos, Gala, Melida/Daan, or any of the other numerous places I'd been to during my life beside Master. Just so long as I didn't have to go forward, to the future, that damnable limbo I always seemed to be stuck in, because there was something deadly licking at my perceptions of the unifying Force that I didn't have the time or the skill to decipher at the moment.

The sound of Anakin shouting as he ran towards us garnered everyone's attention. "They're here!" he exclaimed enthusiastically, and like a magnet was drawn to Qui-Gon's side. It didn't bother me like it would have a few days ago. Could it be I was maturing?

Nah, not me.

In the distance, three older model land speeders came to a screeching halt; the sight of more Naboo approaching bolstered the hope of those who were nearby watching. A few pilots ran to the new arrivals to see what they could do; Panaka made his way over to us as quickly as he could through the rush of bodies. I did not see Jono among the retreating pilots.

Oddly enough, as Qui-Gon acknowledged Captain Panaka's presence, I discovered the boy had taken a place next to me. Without truly being aware of it I tightened my shields. During such a hostile time as this, I would not run the risk of having an errant, untrained Force-user cutting into my mind for a second time. Mimicking Master, my hands disappeared into the wide sleeves of my cloak and the game face was put into play.

It was time to take up the role of perfect Padawan again.

Could any less be expected of me?

No, never. I would follow my master's word until my dying day, or the end of the galaxy, whichever came first.

Oh, the irony...

To be continued in Part 2...

Wow...talk about short. You don't have to complain to me about it, because I hate this small part just as much as you do. But...here's the deal:

I still haven't had time to write Entry XVII. Entry XVI is now typed and proofed and ready to be posted, but because I only have two entries that can be posted and I don't see myself being able to write Entry XVII and have it ready for posting in three weeks time, I have decided to break the two entries that I do have ready into parts. These parts will still be posted once a week, ususally on Sundays. There will be a Sunday in two weeks time that I won't be able to post on (in that case, look for the next part to be posted Monday). I hate leaving everyone hanging, but I figured some of the story would be better than none at all. What I would really like is to be able to watch RotS again, because that is what convinced me to finish this story in the first place.

To give me some ideas, let me know what you, the reader, would like to see/read in the Duel of the Fates entry. Also, tell me how far you would like me to carry the story. Currently I'm planning on taking it to Obi's return to the Jedi Temple and describing a bit of his new life.

That's all for now. I apologize for the wait and for this new, aggravating way of posting the story, but I thought this was the best way to resolve the matter for the time being. Until next week, MTFBWY!

--Marie K.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO CHECK MY PROFILE PAGE FOR NEWS ON THIS STORY!