After Padmé had cried for a while, the seven Ewoks had guided her to their tree top dwelling. She seemed to be friendly, and they sensed that she needed some place to stay. Throughout the night she cried out, "Anakin." The ewoks did not know what this meant since they did not understand her language, but they did their best to comfort her.

Padmé cried herself to sleep as night fell on Endor and what sleep she had was uneasy. She kept dreaming of Anakin facing a heavily armored Sith Lord while her stepfather laughed in the background. In every dream, the black armored Sith killed Anakin before turning on her. She was in the middle of one of these nightmares when a sharp tapping sound woke her.

She looked around for the sound expecting to find an ewok, but she saw a large staff. Holding the staff was an elderly gentleman cloaked in a heavy black cloak that hid some of his wrinkled figures.

"Who are you?" Padmé asked the aged man.

"A humble traveler my dear, I stopped on this planet for a rest. I was wondering if you could get me something to drink?" The man replied in a raspy voice.

Padmé frowned slightly, "I'm sorry. I do not live here, so I don't know where anything is. I do not know where the creatures are that live her." Padmé glanced around for some sign of the ewoks, but they seemed to have disappeared. Then her frown dissolved as she thought about what the stranger had said and she asked, "You are a traveler? Do you have transport?"

The elderly man sat down and pulled out a shurra fruit and a knife. He began cutting the fruit into pieces as he spoke, "Yes milady, it is resting a few meters from here." He smiled as the woman continued to glance around for a sign of the ewoks. He had seen them depart earlier, leaving him uninterrupted in his task.

Padmé eyes widened in happiness as she said, "I need transport to Coruscant. I have been stranded here. Can you help me?"

The man smiled, stretching the wrinkles on his face, "Yes, milady. I was planning on going to Coruscant myself. You are welcome to join me."

Padmé smiled with elation, "Thank you so much."

"You are most welcome, milady. Would you like a piece of shurra fruit?" The man offered.

Padmé was not really hungry since she was anxious to return to Coruscant. However, she did not want to be rude to this man who was going to help her so she accepted the fruit. "Thank you, this is my favorite dessert," She stated before taking a bite of the fruit.

The cloaked man smiled evilly as he watched Padmé swallow. He could sense the potion taking its effects on her.

"Oh!" Padmé stated and held a hand out against one of the walls of the Ewok dwelling trying to steady herself. "I don't feel so good. I feel dizzy. I…I…" However, before she could finish she collapsed to the ground. Palpatine cackled as he watched his stepdaughter fall to the floor and called upon the Force once more asking who was the most powerful being in the galaxy. When he was shown images of himself, his cackles turned maniacal and he shouted, "Ultimate power!" Then with a swish of his cloak, he turned from Padmé's fallen form and returned to his ship.

Anakin sensed that something terrible had happened when he landed his starfighter next to a mysterious ship. As he climbed out of his cockpit he saw a dark figure approaching from the distance. He called upon the Force and could tell that this was the dark presence he had sensed earlier and quickly walked toward it.

The dark man was slightly surprised to see Anakin when the young Jedi stepped up to him, but he recovered as he said, "How may I help you sir?"

"Where is Padmé?" Anakin demanded, not falling for the wrinkled man's deception.

"Who?" Palpatine played dumb.

"Do not play with me, I am a Jedi. What have you done with her?"

"Nothing that you can fix, sir." Palpatine replied with a smile.

Anakin ignited his cerulean lightsaber in response and shouted, "What have you done with her!"

"Good Anakin, I can feel your anger. It gives you focus, makes you stronger. Give into your hate." The man replied as he discreetly pulled out his own lightsaber.

"How do you know who I am?" Anakin asked.

Palpatine put on a mock pitying voice as he replied, "It pains me that you do not recognize me, old friend." Then he ignited his ruby lightsaber and held it out ready for attack.

Realization dawned on Anakin as he replied, "Palpatine! You are a Sith Lord!"

"Yes, my friend." He replied with a cackle.

"What have you done with Padmé?" Anakin shouted once more.

Palpatine continued to cackle as he said, "You are too late. She is dead!"

"No!" Anakin screamed, a look of horror on his face.

Palpatine smiled at Anakin's response. "Yes, and your feeble skills cannot help her. If you want to bring her back, you must join me. Join the dark side, and gain the power to save her."

Tears fell from Anakin's eyes as he mourned the death of his love. "No, never!"

"It is your destiny." Palpatine stated as he tried to woo the young Jedi. The Force had told him he was the most powerful man in the galaxy. Anakin would join him or die.

"No!"

"So be it, Jedi." Palpatine replied in frustration and then ran to attack the young man.

Blue and red blades met in a flash of blinding light as Anakin deflected Palpatine's attack. Then the young man started his own series of attacks, violently swinging at his lover's murderer. Palpatine successfully deflected all of these blows, spinning and swinging his lightsaber with expert skill.

After fifteen minutes of fighting, the battle was a stalemate with neither Anakin nor Palpatine conceding. The two fighters moved deeper into the woods as they continued to attack each other. Above them, seven Ewoks who had come home to find that their houseguest was dead watched the ensuing battle.

"You cannot defeat me!" Palpatine growled as he blocked another attack. "I am the ultimate power in the galaxy." He then started another violent round of attacks against Anakin and backed the young Jedi into a large tree.

Palpatine smiled as he held his lightsaber to Anakin's throat and said, "Now young Skywalker you will… Ow!" A rock hit Palpatine's head before he could finish his sentence.

"Yub yub!" All the ewoks said in unison, and then threw more rocks at the Sith Lord.

The Sith Lord used the Force to deflect the falling rocks, but he was so distracted that he did not have time to deflect a blow from Anakin's lightsaber. Cheers from the ewoks sounded as Anakin sliced off the Sith Lord's head. However, Anakin paid them no mind as he ran through the woods in the direction that Palpatine had come, searching for Padmé. He silently prayed that what the Sith Lord had told him was a lie.