Padme slammed her hands down on the desk. Her body was silhouetted by the early morning sun streaming in through the window behind her. Hairs fell out of their place and dangled in front of her face as she leaned over the reports that she had been given. She knew that they were missing something- they had to be. No one would just kidnap one of the republic's greatest generals without good cause. Especially on Coruscant. She knew that who- or whatever they were dealing with knew what they were doing. They knew how to fight against Jedi, and well too, if the report was correct.

"My Lady," Dorme began. "You should take a break from all of this. Reading the same papers over and over won't help you at this point."

Padme looked up at her handmaiden and sighed. "Something seems off Dorme. I can just tell." Padme said. "According witness reports, Anakin was taken within the first 10 minutes of the attack. Which meant that they were also efficient at what they did." Dorme was quiet, her eyes narrowed. Padme knew that she also found this suspicious. There was no way Anakin would go down without a fight, unless he was completely outmatched.

"I think that you're right, but there isn't much that you can do about it now." Dorme replied softly. "3PO, what time is the hearing at?" She asked the droid standing by the window.

"It is as 1200 standard time" 3PO responded. "You have 3 hours and 27 minutes until the hearing will begin. May I suggest that you take a break, Mistress Padme?"

Padme sighed "Maybe you guys are right." She turned off the data pads that she was reading and stood up straight. She ran her hands through her messed up hair, pushing the stray hairs that fell out of place back.

"I can tell that you're still thinking about this." Drome said with a slight smile. "Why don't I draw you a bath to help you calm down before the senate hearing later today?

Padme's shoulders visibly slumped- whether if it was from exhaustion or relief to take a break, Dorme didn't know.

"That sounds like a great idea, thank you Dorme."

Ahsoka and Master Kenobi stood at the doors to the lift that would take them up to the council chambers. She had never seen Master Kenobi pace before- or do anything really that indicated his current state of anxiety, but she was currently watching him pace back and forth while they waited in silence. Usually, Ahsoka didn't mind the silence that would fall between them occasionally. It was usually a content silence. This was tense; Ahsoka could sense Master Kenobi's shields leaking, and was feeling the worry, fear, and anger that were slipping out on occasion. Maybe if she had slept the night before, she would also have enough energy to pace around as well, but she spent the whole night tossing and turning instead.

What had happened just kept replaying in her head, but each time it did, she could always think of something that she could have don't differently- should have done differently, and then maybe Anakin would still be here with them. A dark part of herself sneered at her, and laughed each time she though of something new she could have done to prevent this. She took a deep breath and tried to clear her mind. Trying to focus on something else, she listened to the constant tapping sound of Master Kenobi's boots hitting the floor, or the scent of the temple- which always smelled like old paper scrolls to her. The lift made a soft groaning noise, and the doors opened. The pair stepped inside, and watched the doors close.

Master Kenobi straightened out his tunic, ran his hands through his hair, took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. It was comforting to know that no matter what rank someone held, that they were all shaken up by what had happened. They rode in silence. Ahsoka would steal glances of Master Kenobi, saw the dark circles under his eyes, the way his mouth was set in a thin line, and the way his hands were clenched at his sides. As they neared the top floor where the council met, he looked back at her. They shared a small smile and a nod. Trying to encourage each other, but the reality was that neither of them was sure what was going to happen next.

The doors of the lift opened, and the pair walked out. Master Kenobi walked forward to take his seat on the council, and Ahsoka stood back by the entrance, waiting to be called forward.

"Begin, we shall." Master Yoda said. The center of the chambers lit up with the faces of senators, police and the chancellor. Everyone looked grim, tired, and worn out. Ahsoka tightened her shields as the meeting began. She couldn't afford to show emotion. Not now anyway.

The first thing that Anakin noticed when he woke up again was the cold. Then came the pain. His entire body felt like it was on fire, despite the fact that he was shivering. It felt as if fire was coursing through his veins, burning his body from the inside out, yet the outside part remained freezing. He laid there for a few moments, trying to gather his bearings. The room was mostly dark, except for light that was seeping through the holes and cracks in the cell door. He tried to sit up, but his vision began to spin, and his body only began to hurt even more.

"We all know why we are gathered here today." Master Windu began. "Officer, if you would please." The police officer sitting next to Padme stood up and began to read his report. Ahsoka was nodding along to herself with what he was saying. They didn't miss anything as far as she could tell, and the officer even had more witness accounts than Ahsoka was expecting.

"Padawan Tano, does this report sound correct to you?" Master Windu asked her Ahsoka was taken aback that he would ask her that, but then again, she was the only other member of the order that was present when the attack happened.

"Yes, it does." She said

"Do you know of anyone that would want to do this to your Master?"

"No, I don't." She said softly.

The nausea was overwhelming, the pain was overwhelming, his situation was overwhelming. Anakin tried to take a few deep breaths to combat everything he was feeling. In and out, just like how his Master had taught him. In and out. But that didn't work. Anakin rolled over onto his side and threw up what little left he had in his stomach. He hadn't eaten since the attack on the diner, so it was mostly just painful dry heaves. The bile burned in his throat as he heaved again, and the noise he was making alerted the guards outside his door that he was awake.

"Senator Amidala, if you would please read the senate's decisions." The chancellor said in a smooth voice.

Padme cleared her throat and stood up. "The galactic senate has reviewed the evidence brought forward by the Jedi council and the senate police. We have come to the conclusion that whoever is responsible for this attack has dealt with Jedi before, due to the efficiency of their plan. According to the police reports, Anakin Skywalker was taken within the first 10 minutes of the attack. This leaves little doubt for us to think that this was not a planned attack. The senate believes that someone aligned with the separatists is involved in the attack, and we believe that would explain why General Skywalker was taken." She took a deep breath and sat down again. Ahsoka locked eyes with Master Kenobi- he was hard to read now, but she was sure that he saw something in his eyes that she couldn't quite place. She knew he thought that Maul was behind this. The issue would be getting the rest of the council, the senate, and the chancellor to listen to him.

"He is awake, my lord." One of the guards said to Maul. The former sith smiled, but there was no light, no joy in his eyes.

"Excellent. Bring him to the doctor." The guard bowed and left to go get Anakin. When he approached the cell door again, he nodded at the other guard, and he opened the door. Moving quickly, they walked in and grabbed Anakin by each of his elbows. His head lolled and he tried to resist.

"It seems as though the venom has already begun to work." One of the guards said as they began to drag him down the hallway. "But according to the doctor, it wasn't a lethal dose."

"You mean this dose wasn't lethal. We can't speak about the others yet." The other guard said.

"This all sounds very reasonable." Master Kenobi said after Padme was finished. "However, I have a suggestion to pose to the room. I believe that Maul is behind this. This is something that I think that he would do, something that he had been meaning to do for a while."

"We had only known that Maul had survived within the last few months, which is when you last encountered him." Master Windu said while looking at Master Kenobi. "What makes you think this was his doing?"

"It was too clean. Maul was trained by the sith from a young age. He knows how to take down a Jedi without a problem."

"I agree." The chancellor said, shocking everyone in the room. "We know that Maul is capable of surviving feats that others wouldn't. We also know that he is a known Jedi killer."

"Not to mention, his drive for revenge." Master Kenobi said. "I think this sounds exactly like something that he would do."

"If revenge is what he wanted, why didn't he take you instead?" Master Mundi asked. Master Kenobi became tense. Ahsoka saw his shoulders tighten, his posture change.

"Because that would have been too easy."

The guards dragged Anakin down the hall, and then stopped. He tried to lift his head up, but didn't have the strength. He heard a door creak open, and light flooded his vision. He closed his eyes and tried to look away, but he was dragged into the room. The guards then threw him on top of a metal table, and strapped him down. Anakin tried to turn his head away from the light, but couldn't move his body. He heard the guards walk away and then he was alone.

"Do we have any other ideas for a lead on this case?" Padme asked. The council members looked around- Ahsoka noticed that they all looked slightly lost.

"It seems that we do not." Master Kenobi said, a slight smile on his face. Ahsoka could feel some of his joy- finally they were going to start looking for Anakin.

"Do we know where we should begin to look?" The chancellor asked. Everyone shook their heads.

"We do know that Maul is working with neither the republic or the separatists. I think we should look at neutral systems first, because it would be easier for him to hide there." Master Plo said.

"Begin looking we should. Up to you, this is, Obi-Wan." Master Yoda said. "And you, Padawan Tano."

After some period of time, Anakin heard footsteps. They were getting louder, and closer. He opened his eyes and turned his head. There was someone's waist there, and a toolbelt. Various tools and pockets were strapped on to it. That isn't what surprised him though. It was the Mandalorian blaster strapped to this persons' belt is what he found interesting. Cold hands gripped his face and forced him to look upward. A human face looked back, have covered by a surgeon's mask.

"You know" A voice said from underneath the mask. "I've always wanted to have a Jedi as my patient."