AN: Just to make it clear, I recently played Jedi: Fallen Order and so the lightsaber Percy is using here is based on Cal's end game saber in that it can do single bladed mode, double bladed mode, and split into duel wielding mode. Not to mention a few other little surprises I added for it. Those other tricks and where Percy got it will be explained along the way. Once I get all the saber customizations I'll likely work on getting an image for what I picture his saber to look like, but I just wanted to give everyone at least a base idea.

The Force of Fire

Chapter 3

-Percy-

"Morning Panaka." Percy grinned as he walked up the steps of the palace, his adopted daughter Marris happily riding on his shoulders, the captain of the guard nodding to them easily.

"Morning Percy," the soldier chuckled, "serving as the steed for our lovely Naboo princess?"

"As always." Percy sighed dramatically as Marris giggled at the running joke the palace staff had.

"Come on, Padme had the cook make the little princess' favorite." Panaka slapped his shoulder with a chuckle as they walked inside "And while we're there I wanna talk about our next training run, we could use another engineer."

"Hey, you got me to Mustafar, don't worry about it." Percy chuckled, silently thanking Hephaestus for all the powers he'd acquired after the adoption. Turns out that having an instinctive and magical ability to understand technology was quite useful in a galaxy as scientifically and technologically dependent as this one.

"You know, I still have no clue why you even wanted to go to a lava ridden death planet." Panaka shot him a side look, silently asking a question.

"Just a little project I've been working on." Percy smiled amused as Marris bounced on his shoulders, "You'll see eventually."

"I could always just bribe Marris." Panaka shot a glance to the little Zabrak on Percy's shoulders.

"Daddy will show you eventually." Marris giggled while the guard captain grumbled in mock irritation. Up in the sky, Percy could vaguely make out the shapes of the closer Trade Federation ships in atmosphere.

"No word yet on negotiations to stop the blockade?" Percy asked with a frown, having felt on edge since the damn blockade had started.

"None." Panaka clearly felt the same as they walked through the halls, "Although apparently two Jedi are being sent to handle the matter." Before Percy could respond, or make a remark about the cult like order, he felt the ground shake and heard the sounds of heavy artillery. Rushing out a window, they saw attack ships descending to the ground, all bearing the Federation's mark.

"We need to get to Padme, now!" Percy held Marris close as he and Panaka took off running, passing frantic and panicking people in the various halls. Getting to Padme's chambers, they found Percy's best friend there with her hand maidens and Thane Bibble.

"Percy!" Padme rushed over and embraced him in relief, "Marris!"

"Captain, what's going on out there?" Thane Bible focused on the soldier at Percy's side instead, "We heard weapons fire, so I had the queen sequestered here for safety."

"The Federation." Panaka spat, "It's not just a blockade anymore, it's an invasion!"

"Padme, we need to move." Percy took his friend's hand, "Now!"

"Wait, I have an idea." Panaka stepped forward and pulled aside Padme and one of her handmaidens, "Thalissa, can you don the Queen's robe and ceremonial makeup? You both look similar enough that with the makeup on we can pass you off as the Queen as some extra protection."

"What?! No!" Padme gaped at the thought of using a body double, "I won't send a friend out to die in my place!"

"Your majesty, I'm willing to do this." Thalissa spoke up insistently, frowning at the Naboo Queen "What do I need to Captain?"

"Follow me." Panaka nodded to her gratefully "We'll get you into the Queen's garb. Percy, stay with Padme. Once Thalissa is in the throne room I'll smuggle Padme to Coruscant. Percy, I need you to keep an eye on Padme and keep her safe during this."

"Nobody will touch her." Percy swore, holding Padme and Marris close, a silent stern look from Panaka and Bibble managing to keep Padme from protesting aloud again.

"A Federation ship is landing outside the palace!" a frantic handmaiden called out as the group moved faster to set up the disguise. The small amount of palace guards Panaka and Padme had been able to get set up over the protests of the Advisory Council, who tended to do far much more than just advise, were forced to surrender as the large number of droid soldiers barged in along with the Neimoidian trade federation leaders.

"Alright, let's move." Panaka stepped forward with Thalissa disguised as Padme in the queen's garb, Padme herself wearing casual clothes like the rest of the Handmaidens. Opening the door to the chambers, they started to move down the hall, planning to split up when they had an opening to get Padme to the hangar.

"The Queen's chambers are just down here." The voice of Hela Branders, Music Advisor from Padme's Advisory council accompanied by the familiar sounds of droid marching.

"Damnit!" Panaka cursed, knowing they were on a straight corridor and too far down to turn back.

"Move faster." the distinctive accent of the Neimoidian carried down as the next group was coming closer and closer to rounding the corner ahead, "I want that stupid woman now. Kill anyone else that gets in our way." At hearing that threat, Marris began to clutch at Padme and whimper, tears brimming up in her eyes as Percy felt his rage bubbling up. Hela Branders was a traitor to his best friend and that Neimoidian wanted to kill his daughter!

"There she is!" Hela rounded the corner first, pointing at the group and clearly spotting the large eye-catching headpiece of the Queen's garb first, "She-!" anything else the woman was going to say was cut off as Percy shot forward, his fist meeting the woman's face as he started punching savagely. He was only able to get off a few punches before the droids pulled him off harshly, their blasters aimed at him and, more importantly, the girls kept him from tearing the droids apart. Either way though, now the traitor's face was swollen, her vision would be off, and Percy was positive he had given her a concussion meaning she would have a damn hard time being able to tell that Padme and Thalissa had swapped places.

"What are you waiting for, shoot him! Shoot all of them but the queen!" the Neimoidian ordered the droids who sadly outnumbered and outgunned their group at the present moment.

"No!" Thalissa shouted, pulling a gun from her robe and pointing it to her own head, "If you harm any of them I'll kill myself. Good luck using me for what your plans are if I'm dead." The room was tense at that threat as Percy could feel Padme's urge to throttle her friend for the bold action.

"Very well, Queen Amidala." The Neimoidian seemed more amused than anything else, "Then I'm sure you'll be more than willing to comply with our terms." Snapping his fingers, the scaled alien pointed at group of loyal Nabooians as Percy was shoved back to them, "Round them up, take their blasters, and take them to the nearest camp. The Viceroy will dictate the terms of our new 'treaty' once he arrives."

"Roger roger." The droid nodded, shoving Percy in the back with the blaster, "Move it!"

"I will sign no treaty." Thalissa scowled as the group was marched through the palace courtyard towards whatever prison camp the Federation was setting up.

"Now your Majesty, be reasonable." The slimy Neimoidian smirked as he reached out to pluck at Marris' hair, Percy's little girl whimpering and trying not to cry as the man sneered down at her and a droid had a gun aimed at her at all times, "We wouldn't want any of your people like this precious child to be hurt for your stubbornness would we? How could you sleep at night with their deaths and suffering on your conscience?"

"I could ask the same to you Hela." Thane Bibble glared at the traitorous Music Advisor, "What did it cost for you to sell out your planet? Betray your duties as an advisor to the throne?"

"Oh stuff it, you pompous old fool." The now mostly blind traitor spat, glaring at a spot noticeably over Bibble's shoulder "Ever since your beloved Queen Amidala took the throne I could tell she was trying to get rid of me! Wanting more guards, more military. She never appreciated the role my position played for our planet! I'm fully aware she was planning to replace me with some military dog on the council."

"We were planning to add a new seat, not replace one you stupid woman!" Bibble looked ready to tear out his beard but stopped talking when a droid struck the back of his head with the butt of a blaster.

"Quit talking." The robotic soldier ordered as they approached an arch, having to stop as Bibble was sprawled on the ground from the strike.

"What's over there?" another droid demanded as a pair of robed men leapt down from the arch, a Gungan following suit after them, the glowing blades in their hands doing a pretty good job at implying them to be Jedi. Seeing the droid contingent all looking to the new threat, Percy reacted. Knocking away the blaster in the hands of the closest droid, Percy blasted the metal being away with a simply blunt force push, one of the few abilities he had managed to figure out for himself since being sent here. Tossing the liberated blaster to Panaka, Percy reached into his jacket and pulled out the project he had teased Panaka about and activated his own lightsaber, the fiery orange glow standing out as he swung it, carving through every droid in his path to get to the bastard that had dared to threaten his friend and make his daughter cry.

"A Jedi?!" the spineless being fell to his knees, whimpering and pleading as Percy destroyed his guards, "Please I'll do anything! Spare me-!" the pleases were easily cut off along with the man's head with a single swing of his sword, the corpse actually burning as molten magma dripped from the wound. The main threat gone, as Percy could tell the actual Jedi had just finished the last droid and Panaka was dealing with the traitor Hela, Percy deactivated his weapon before pulling Padme and Marris into his arms, thanking both the gods and the Force that they were alright.

AN: For those wanting details on Percy's lightsaber, you'll get them in the next chapter.