Summary: We see how instrumental Sabé is in the coming battle.

Author's Notes: There were a few things I didn't quite understand in Episode I. The first being was if the Trade Federation ship's shields were powerful enough to stop any attack from the Naboo fighters, why the heck didn't Anakin get either fried or bounce off when he flew into the docking bay? And the other, more important thing was Maul's stupid death. How could someone as well trained as he was just watch as Obi-Wan flipped over him and let himself get sliced like that? I found that really hard to swallow. So, I try to explain both issues with this chapter. The explanations themselves might not be that great, but at least I tried. Again, this hasn't been beta'd, so please be gentle.

Again, if you've taken the time to read, please be kind enough to review or critique. Thank you.


Collapsing like a sack of old bones, Sabé painfully fell to the ground. She lay there for several long moments, breathing hard. Slowly, she brought her hands to her face and grimaced at the savaged ruins they had become. Although her fingers were unscathed, the rest of her hands had most of their skin ripped off, still bleeding freely from many cuts. Taking some of what remained of her robes, she wrapped them around her hands.

Outside, the sounds of battle could still be heard. Sabé caught sight of the flight of steps leading up to what she guessed was the bridge. More good could be possibly done up there than out there with the marauding battle droids.

Sabé stood up…and quickly fell right back to the ground. A wave of nausea from long hours being strung up, as well as the blood loss from her wrists, temporarily dazed her. Spots clouded her vision and she felt the almost overwhelming urge to sleep. Just as her eyes started to flutter, she brought her fist back and slammed it on to the deck. Sabé gasped as jolts of pain shocked her back into consciousness. Getting a hold of herself, she started crawling towards the stairs.

oOoOo

Darth Maul stood there, head bowed, centering himself for the battle he'd trained for his whole life. From where he stood he could hear the sounds of battle on the other side of the hangar doors. Amidala and her guards were overpowering the droids and hijacking the fighters. They were of no importance. All that mattered was defeating the Jedi. Even from here he could sense their presence.

He'd waited for a challenge like this fight for years, so much so that every fiber of his body ached to begin. There was absolutely no doubt in his mind as to the inevitability of the outcome: he would win. All that mattered was the manner in which the two Jedi would fall. He sensed them approaching and held his breath.

The hangar doors opened.

Maul slowly raised his cowled head, glaring at the incoming group. Not surprisingly, the Queen was right at the front of the crowd, which abruptly stopped at his presence. For the barest fraction of a second, Maul locked eyes with the woman, seeing right through her. Her eyes widened and her gaze shifted from a mixture of fear, shock and understanding.

She knows, Maul thought. She knows or at least suspects that I am the one responsible for the disappearance of her decoy.

The Queen narrowed her eyes and Maul could sense the waves of uncertain anger directed towards him. He took it all in and reveled in it. His gaze flashed ever so slightly in mild amusement, giving confirmation to the Queen's unspoken questions. Then, adding insult to injury, Maul casually dismissed the woman and raised his gaze to take in his true target.

"We'll handle this," the taller of the two Jedi said, confidently walking to the front.

The Queen appeared to pause for a second before resolutely turning and leading the others away. "We'll take the long way," she told them.

Maul lowered his cowl and let slip his robes to the floor. Unclipping his lightsaber, he brandished it before him, igniting one crimson blade and then the other. The Jedi followed suit with theirs as well.

Growling in feral anticipation, Darth Maul leapt into battle.

oOoOo

Grunting, Sabé heaved herself onto the bridge. Breathing heavily and wiping a sweaty brow with a bloody hand, she took stock of everything around her. Circular in construction, the bridge sported controls and equipment that looked extremely state of the art. A single control chair sat upright at the front of the bridge and facing a large display screen. Dragging herself over, she pulled herself up and into the seat.

Small spots flashed before her eyes, but Sabé took a steadying breath and focused hard on what was before her. Most of the controls looked standard enough, though a few appeared locked out. Still, this was nothing she could not handle, thanks to Captain Panaka and his starship flight lessons.

Engines and navigation weren't quite what she needed now but an outside view of the battle would help in taking stock of the situation. A press of a button and the main scanners were brought online. The main viewscreen before her lit up and she could see the main palace in the background, smoke and blaster fire seen and heard in the distance.

A contact on the screen showed something very large in orbit. She focused on it and punched it up on the screen. There, as big as life was a Trade Federation Droid Control Ship, with dozens, if not scores, of smaller fighter craft flying all around it.

The scanner's computers already locked on and two detailed schematics appeared on a smaller screen, one of a Naboo Starfighter and the other of what appeared to be a droid fighter of sorts.

One after the other, the attacking ships let loose with blaster cannons and proton torpedoes, but any and all fire simply bounced off the Control Ship's deflector shield. Sabé caught one starfighter flying like a crazed mynock through the hordes of Federation fighters. It didn't appear to be fighting, simply avoiding as many of the ships as it could. Surprisingly, it didn't get hit. The same couldn't be said for two other fighters, which winked out from existence on the screen, blasted away by turbolasers.

Painfully, her hands clenched in frustration. Her people were out there fighting and dying for their homeworld and here she was watching it all like it was a Holonet movie! Desperately, she tried to find whatever other functions the control panel was capable of doing. Her eyes passed over a small screen and almost dismissed it, had it not had a small three-dimensional diagram of the Federation battleship.

Curious, Sabé touched the screen and instantly it grew larger. Contextual menus appeared here and there pointing to portions of the ship. One in particular caught her attention since it indicated the current status of the battleship's shields. Her eyes narrowed as she read the options on the list and then widened at one particular entry.

If she read this right, it looked like this program shut down the droid control ship's shields. Without a second thought, she tried activating it. A small window appeared, demanding a password. Sabé cursed. Of course it would never be that easy.

Wasting no more time, she started typing like mad, once again silently thanking Captain Panaka for his classes on computer security and slicing.

oOoOo

Darth Maul was in his truest form. All the rigorous training he'd endured, all the pain, all the indoctrination by Lord Sidious…all led to this very moment. His practiced eye could tell that the taller, older Jedi was the more experienced fighter but that the younger one brought more of the energy to the fight. He darted between the two of them, sometimes focusing on one, other times fighting both at the same time. Skillfully he fought the Jedi, keeping them off-balance so that they couldn't coordinate their attacks.

He drew them into some form of massive power station deep within the bowels of the palace. The crimson double-sided lightsaber twirled between the two Jedi, keeping them at a distance. Maul suddenly lunged at the older Jedi, who parried his jab to his heart. The younger one then made a quick swipe for Maul's head, but the Sith easily blocked it and then savagely forced the blue blade down, temporarily putting the Jedi off of balance. With a quick twist of his body, Maul slammed the sole of his boot into the Padawan's face, sending him tumbling over the edge of the walkway.

The bearded Jedi, moving so fast he surprised even Maul, batted away the red blade and got close enough to slam his elbow into Maul's chest and then backhand him over the edge as well. With controlled agility, he gracefully fell to the lower level, only having the breath knocked out of him.

The Jedi was at him in a second but Maul snap-kicked him in the back, knocking him off balance. He then jumped up and started moving back towards a passage with glowing red partitions between them. Fighting defensively, Maul lured the aggressive Jedi further in. At the last moment, the red gateways parted and both continued to fight within the corridor. A solid, glowing red curtain abruptly sliced the air between and around them.

Jedi and Sith warily looked from one another to the sizzling energy partitions all around them. The tip of one of Maul's sabers touched the glowing energy, which crackled a bit but held firm. Maul shut off his weapon with the Jedi doing the same. Heart pumping from the fight, Maul paced and glared as the Jedi kneeled and began to meditate. Movement caught his eye and he looked up to see the younger Padawan, having recovered, also caught between partitions. Maul smiled wickedly at him, letting him know that he hadn't forgotten about him. The man stared stonily back.

oOoOo

Another Naboo fighter winked out of existence.

"Dammit!"

Sabé cursed as she furiously typed away. The security protocols were getting hard to bypass. Bandaged, bloodied hands did not help. Finally, she found a small crack in the system code and sliced in. Before any other safeguards popped up, she painfully slammed her finger down on a single button.

On screen, the grid representing the deflector screen crackled and then actually shut down for a second. A single fighter, flying uncontrollably, slipped past and dived headlong into one of the launch bays. The deflector screens promptly flared up and came back online.

Sabé grunted in frustration as she tried the command once again, but found it locked for good. On screen, the fighting continued but none of the Naboo fighters had had a chance to shoot through the temporary gap in the shields.

Sagging back in the pilot's chair, she put her head to her hands. One fighter had somehow gotten through, but what could it possibly do against a ship as large as that?

A scanner beeped and she looked up to see security footage of the Queen, Captain Panaka and several guards surrounded by Battle and Destroyer Droids. Her heart leapt to her throat as she watched the Queen quickly size up the situation and then slowly drop her weapon to the floor. The other guards reluctantly followed.

The uprising had failed.

It was over.

Everything that Sabé had endured – all that she'd suffered through came flooding back to her. She'd done her job beautifully, but the Queen was now captured and would almost certainly be forced to sign the treaty.

Fighting back bitter tears, Sabé placed her head in her hands as shudders of grief wracked through her body.

oOoOo

"Noooo!"

Darth Maul smiled grimly as the body of the old Jedi Master fell like an old sack to the floor. The screams of his young apprentice made Maul's spirits soar like never before. One thousand years of the Sith hiding in plain sight had come to an end with this one death – the first of many, Maul thought. Lord Sidious would be pleased.

He regarded the crazy, grief-stricken eyes of the Padawan, so close yet so far from his fallen master. A few moments more before the barrier parted was all that remained for the young man to die. Savage anger wafted from the grieving man and Maul reveled in it.

That's it Jedi, he thought grimly. There is no peace, there is nothing but emotion. Maul could sense a sliver of the dark side inside the man and knew he would do lose control in the fight.

The energy field parted and the Jedi flew at him. Savagely he attacked with no quarter given. Maul expected no less. Unexpectedly, the Jedi brought down his lightsaber and swiftly drove it upwards, cleaving Maul's weapon in half. The Sith warrior fell backwards from a well-placed thrust kick to his chest. Maul flipped, regained his footing and continued the duel. Both sabers clashed and crackled so fast, both seemed like a blur.

At one momentary pause in the battle, the Jedi overextended himself and Maul, seeing his opening, push forward, making the other lose his footing. A sudden Force Push sent the man flying backwards until he fell into a mining pit in the very center of the room.

Maul, breathing hard, couldn't begin to hide the exultation that shimmered through his body. Two Jedi dead by his hands for his master – the barest beginnings of revenge for the Sith Order. His foe's weapon lay near the edge of the pit. When Maul walked over to pick it up, he frowned as he glanced down the pit. The young Jedi hadn't died, but held on to a small protrusion on the pit wall for dear life.

Maul almost sent another wave of the Force to be done with it, but paused. A lifetime of hating the Jedi order made him want to see the dangling Jedi suffer just a little longer. Maul slid his foot forward and casually knocked the Jedi's lightsaber into the pit, enjoying the look of despair on the man.

oOoOo

An urgent beeping brought Sabé out of her despairing reverie and she looked up again to see more scenes from the security cameras spread out across the palace. Another small group of guards was moving across the palace, avoiding droid patrols when possible. If they weren't captured yet, then there was still hope. But it was who was leading them that made Sabé sit up and take notice.

Cordé!

Face painted and fitted with clothing suited for battle, the third Queen decoy led the men on a circuitous route towards the throne room. Sabé knew that Cordé had needed more training, but she must have been hastily pressed into the role given the fact that the first decoy – her – had already been taken. Another security screen showed Padme and her group being escorted directly towards Viceroy Gunray, who looked disgustingly satisfied with the situation.

Looking from one screen to the other, Sabé instantly knew that Cordé would not make it in time. The Trade Federation had locked down many routes to and from the throne room. But the handmaiden knew that whatever the Trade Federation tried to lock up, this ship certainly had a way of opening. Sabé found it ironic that she could now open all those routes from the console of this ship. Gratified, she watched as 'the Queen' and her guards mowed down the few battle droids around and surprised the Viceroy with her appearance. The surviving guards ran after the supposed Queen, leaving the Viceroy relatively unprotected.

Suddenly, all the security screens Sabé was watching went white with interference. She tried one button, then another, but found the panel unresponsive.

On a far, dark corner of the bridge, a tiny camera had come alive and was currently focused directly on her. Many light years away, on another world, a similar screen showed the woman trying to access the controls. A single, well-manicured finger, already pressing one button, slid over, flipped a protective screen over, and decisively pressed a red button.

Back on the ship, Sabé reared back as buttons started pressing down by themselves. Large portions of the control panel began to systematically shut down; data cores were systematically being wiped of information.

As she futilely continued to stop the system shut down, she began to notice a slight vibration beneath her bare feet. Had she been wearing footwear she might not have noticed it, but it was enough for her to pause in her actions and cock her head. The vibrations began to grow more pronounced and it was now that a slight whine was just beginning to register in her hearing. As it grew louder it set Sabé's teeth on edge.

A cold pit began to form in her stomach. The classes in starship flight had included maintenance and repair. One class dealt with stressed engines after having a ship caught in a tractor beam. Pushing sub-light engines too far could cause them irreparable damage, or worse, detonation. Although the indicators were blown away, the sound was now infinitely recognizable:

The engines were slowly being overloaded.

In a frenzy, Sabé looked everywhere for something to use to stop the build-up. Near her seat was a toolkit on the floor. Opening it, she found a rather large and heavy hydrospanner. With nothing to lose she hefted the tool, arched it over her head, and slammed it onto the console with a great eruption of sparks. Delicate and expensive components shattered and flew everywhere. Smoke and the smell of ozone filled the cockpit. Power and energy arced everywhere from short circuits.

One holdover security protocol, still not affected by the shutdown, took notice of the system-wide malfunctions and immediately sent an emergency comlink transmission requesting instructions. Unfortunately, due to the power surges and arcing, the feedback sent through the transmission beam increased its power by a factor of ten.

oOoOo

Maul was furious.

He swiped at the edges with his remaining lightsaber and watched the sparks rain down on the hanging Jedi, who stubbornly hung on. The Sith Lord decided to end it right here and now. He started to raise his hand for one final push when the Force suddenly flared within the Jedi. Frowning, Maul caught sight of the dead Jedi Master's lightsaber twitching and instantly knew what was coming. Calming himself, he prepared to strike at just the right moment. This would be a kill worth remembering.

Time slowed down.

The Jedi surged upwards from the shaft in an explosion of Force power. The lightsaber leapt towards the Jedi, while Maul raised his lightsaber to cut down the Jedi in mid-flight.

Without warning, his wrist communicator vibrated violently. Power crackled through the glove and over the entire side of his body, contracting almost every muscle and making it impossible to move. Dumbfounded, Maul could only impotently watch as the Jedi's outstretched hand grabbed the flying lightsaber as he flipped over him, igniting it on the way. His feet barely on the floor, the Jedi swung the saber with all his might.

Time resumed.

With a violent gasp, the Sith Lord watched blood mist and boil away from his midsection. Eyes widening in utter disbelief, Maul found himself unable to feel below his waist. He took a step backwards…and plummeted into the shaft.

The last image he had before everything went black was that of the triumphant Jedi watching him as he receded further and further away.

oOoOo

Coughing and cursing, Sabé covered her ears as the high-pitched scream of the engines rose to painful levels. A deep rumbling from the rear of the craft made everything shake uncontrollably. Sirens and warning lights flashed and keened, adding to the already chaotic scene.

I've only got a minute, she thought.

Dropping the useless 'spanner, she threw herself from the chair to the floor. Clawing and crawling her way to the access stairway. She didn't even stop as she slid painfully down the metal steps, bruises and lacerations adding to her already battered body.

At the bottom, she looked around, barely noticing the heat building up in the area. In the dim light, she found what she was looking for. Parked near the entrance, a small U-shaped swoop bike with a powerful rear engine, floated on a repulsorlift. Scrabbling forward, Sabé pulled herself up onto the seat.

Switches were thrown and the sleek bike powered up in no time. Sabé had no way of opening the rear hatch, so she pulled on a trigger on the handle. Twin small but potent blasters popped out on either side of the bike and sent three successive blasts shooting forth.

At the third barrage, the doors exploded outward. Instantaneously, Sabé punched the accelerator. Heedless of the flaming shrapnel still burning and falling around, she streaked with a roar of engines out of the ship.

Air whipping her hair crazily behind her and tears running past her eyes, Sabé flew blindly for exactly two seconds. A massive explosion thundered everywhere behind her, sending a blast of searing air slamming into her. The bike suddenly buckled as the shockwave threw it forward. Losing her grip, Sabé found herself carried up and out by the still powerful wave of hot gas and fire.

Smoke, flames and wreckage flew by her field of vision.

Then blue skies and green fields.

Sabé closed her eyes.

Then she felt sharp, intense pain…and then she felt nothing.

-Continued-