Ok, here's the next chapter! If you read this, please review and tell me what you thin. I live on reviews!

Also, if anyone likes Vader fanfics, please read I Am Me, a fanfic about Vader and his three children. It's a good story, I encourage you to check it out. If you read that, then please review!

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Chapter 2

"Master Sifo-Dyas was killed almost ten years ago," Obi-Wan explained.

Lama looked down. "Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that. But I'm sure he would have been proud of the army we've built for him."

Serena was shocked, as was Obi-Wan. "The army?" he repeated.

Lama nodded. "Yes, a clone army. And, I must say, one of the finest we've ever created."

"Tell me, Prime Minister, when my Master first contacted you about the army, did he say who it was for?" Obi-Wan asked.

Lama nodded in assent. "Of course he did. This army is for the Republic." Serena stared at him. "But you must be anxious to inspect the units for yourself," he continued.

Obi-Wan glanced at Serena again. "That's why I'm here," he said, playing along with the situation. The two Jedi and Lama Su rose and walked toward the door.

A water speeder docked at the island landing platform. Anakin and Padme disembarked the water speeder at the base of a lodge rising on the beautiful island in the middle of the lake. Anakin and Padme walked up the terrace overlooking a lovely garden, and stopped at the balustrade. Padme looked out across the garden to the shimmering lake and the mountains rising beyond, while Anakin looked at her.

"When I was in Level Three, we used to come here for school retreat," Padme said. "See that island? We used to swim there every day. I love the water."

"I do too," Anakin agreed. "I guess it comes from growing up on a desert planet."

Padme suddenly became aware that Anakin was looking at her. "...We used to lie on the sand and let the sun dry us... and try to guess the names of the birds singing," she continued.

"I don't like sand," Anakin put in. "It's coarse and rough and irritating, and it gets everywhere. Not like here. Here everything's soft... and smooth..." He touched her arm. Padme had become receptive to the way he looked at her but was nervous.

"There was a very old man who lived on the island," she said shakily. "He used to make glass out of sand - and vases and necklaces out of the glass. They were magical."

Anakin looked into her eyes. "Everything here is magical," he stated softly.

"You could look into the glass and see the water," Padme continued. "The way it ripples and moves. It looked so real... but it wasn't."

"Sometimes, when you believe something to be real, it becomes real," Anakin replied, and they looked into each other's eyes.

"I used to think if you looked too deeply into glass, you would lose yourself," Padme finished.

Anakin looked deeply at her. "I think it's true..." He leaned down and kissed her, and she didn't resist. She finally came to her senses and pulled away. "No, I shouldn't have done that," she said, looking down.

Anakin was ashamed. "I'm sorry. When I'm around you, my mind is no longer my own," he replied, looking at her.

"No!" she exclaimed, and he was surprised. She looked down again. "It's just that... I'm not ready yet... I don't know how I feel."

He smiled. "That's all right, Padme," he said gently, "I won't rush anything."

The tour of the clones went through a classroom filled with identical young boy clones.

"We take great pride in our combat education and training programs," Lama said, "This group was created about five years ago." They stopped to look at them.

"You mentioned growth acceleration..." Obi-Wan said.

Su nodded. "Oh yes, it's essential. Otherwise, a mature clone would take a lifetime to grow. Now, we can do it in half the time. Those items you saw on the parade ground were started ten years ago, when Sifo-Dyas first placed the order, and they're already mature."

He conducted Obi-Wan and Serena, who had her hand in the crook of Obi-Wan arm, through a large eating area. Taun We followed as they walked by hundreds of clones who looked exactly alike, all about twenty years old, dressed in black and red. They were seated at tables, eating.

"You'll find they are totally obedient, taking any order without question," Lama continued. "We modified their genetic structure to make them less independent than the original host."

"And who was the original host?" Serena inquired curiously.

"A bounty hunter called Jango Fett," Su replied. "We felt a Jedi would be the perfect choice, but Sifo-Dyas hand-picked Jango Fett himself."

Serena thought that suspicious. A Jedi picking a bounty hunter? That didn't make sense. But she kept silent.

"And where is this bounty hunter now?" Obi-Wan questioned.

"Oh, we keep him here," Lama said.

The tour continued through a long corridor filled with narrow, transparent tubes into which clones were climbing. Once in the tube, the clone went to sleep.

"Apart from his pay, which is considerable, Fett demanded only one thing - an unaltered clone for himself," Lama said. "Curious, isn't it?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "Unaltered?" he said.

"Pure genetic replication," Lama said, "No tampering with the structure to make it more docile... and no growth acceleration."

Obi-Wan was silent for a minute. "I would very much like to meet this Jango Fett," he said suddenly, and looked at Serena.

"I would be most happy to arrange it for you," Taun We spoke up.

The tour came out onto a balcony. Below was a huge parade ground. Thousands of clone troopers, faces covered by helmets, were marching and drilling in formations of several hundred.

Lama beamed. "Magnificent, aren't they?" he said proudly.

Obi-Wan nodded slowly, but Serena was disturbed greatly. Something about this wasn't right at all.

"Will you be staying overnight, Master Jedi?" Taun We questioned them.

The two Jedi glanced at each other. "Oh, yes, if that's all right with you," Obi-Wan assented.

"Of course," the Kaminoian replied, "We will have a bedroom ready for you at once. Tomorrow I will take you to see Jango Fett, after breakfast. You are welcome to tour the city if you like."

"Thank you," Serena said, bowing.

The four continued their walk through the clone facility.

Meanwhile, Padme and Anakin were in the middle of an idyllic hilly meadow, its lush grasses sprinkled with flowers. At a distance, a herd of shaaks grazed contentedly. Beyond was the shimmering expanse of the lake. Several other lakes stretched to the horizon, and the warm air was full of little floating puffballs. They sat on the grass, in a playful, coy mood, talking. Padme was picking flowers. "I don't know..." she smiled, looking down.

"Sure you do..." Anakin persisted, "you just don't want to tell me."

Padme looked at him. "Are you going to use one of your Jedi mind tricks on me?" she said teasingly.

Anakin snorted. "They only work on the weak-minded. You are anything BUT weak-minded."

Padme sighed. "All right... I was twelve. His name was Palo. We were both in the Legislative Youth Program. He was a few years older then I... very cute... dark curly hair...
dreamy eyes."

Anakin was jealous. "All right, I get the picture..." he interrupted. "Whatever happened
to him?"

Padme shrugged. "I went into public service. He went on to become an artist."

"Maybe he was the smart one."

Padme looked at him. "You really don't like politicians, do you?"

Anakin thought for a minute. "I like two or three, but I'm not really sure about one of them." He smiled. "I don't think the system works."

"How would you have it work?"

"We need a system where the politicians sit down and discuss the problem, agree what's in the best interests of all the people, and then do it."

"That is exactly what we do. The trouble is that people don't always agree. In fact, they hardly ever do," Padme replied.

"Then they should be made to."

"By whom? Who's going to make them?"

"I don't know. Someone."

"You?"

"Of course not me."

"But someone."

Anakin nodded. "Someone wise."

"That sounds an awful lot like a dictatorship to me," Padme responded.

A mischievous little grin creeped across his face. "Well, if it works..." he said. Padme stared at Anakin. He looked back at her, straight faced, but couldn't hold back a smile.

"You're making fun of me!" Padme accused him.

Anakin was sarcastic. "Oh no, I'd be much too frightened to tease a Senator," he joked.

"You're so bad!" Padme exclaimed. She picked up a piece of fruit and threw it at him, and he caught it. Padme threw two more pieces of fruit, and he caught them as well. "You're always so serious," he said.

Padme was incredulous. "I'm so serious!" she echoed.

Anakin then started to juggle the fruit. Padme laughed and threw more fruit at him. He managed to juggle them too until there were too many, and he lost control and ducked, letting food fall on his head. They both laughed.

After an interesting dinner, Obi-Wan and Serena were led to their bedroom by Taun We. "I hope you will find your room suitable," she said, walking into the room.

The two followed her, looking around them. "It looks... comfortable," Serena finally said. It looks exactly like any other part of the city I've seen so far. White, white, and more white.

"Thank you for all your hospitality," Obi-Wan said gratefully, nodding to Taun We.

"Of course, Master Jedi," She replied, and left the room. "If you need anything, just press the button next your bed."

Serena took off her cloak and sat on the bed with a sigh. "Finally, I can get off my feet," she said, slipping off her boots. She then lay down on the bed, which was very comfortable. "This is nice," she said thoughfully.

"I'll take the floor, then," Obi-Wan put in, and pulled off his shirt.

Serena stared at him. Oh. My. Gosh.

"Uh... Serena..." Obi-Wan began, raising an eyebrow. "Coruscant to Serena, do you roger?"

She shook her head and blushed, embarrassed. "What? Oh, sorry about that, guess I spaced out." She hopped onto her feet and looked down as she hurried past him into the bathroom.

He shrugged and took a pillow from the bed.

Serena finished brushing her teeth and slipped into a nightgown they had lent her. It was white (not a real shocker), and was quite clingy to her figure. It had spaghetti straps and only went down her to low thighs. She sighed again and walked out to find Obi-Wan making a bed for himself on the ground. "Oh, Ben, we can share a bed, I mean, it's not a big deal," she stated.

He turned around, and whatever he was about to say died on his lips.

"But... if you don't want to, then that's OK too," she continued, walking to the bed.

"Uh..." he shook himself out of his reverie. "Sorry about that. But I wouldn't want to impose on your space or anything."

"You wouldn't be," she insisted, "Come on, you need a good night's sleep, too. Just don't try anything funny and we're good to go."

He smiled a cheezy grin. "Very well, milady," he said, and hopped into the other side of the bed, Force grabbing his pillow. Serena turned off the lights and got into her side, pulling the covers over her. This is going to be a looong night...

Obi-Wan was thinking the same thing.

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