Padmé crouched down, sweeping the wooden planks. Her back was aching. She had been doing this for what felt like hours. The nautolan was checking for her from time to time and she had received more shocks than she could count.
She sighed. At the first day she hadn't lifted a finger, promising herself that she never would be forced into labor. But the Twi'Lek's words had proven to be right. Everyone was tamed eventually. The shock collar was just too much to bear.
Nuha had told Padmé about her own beginning. She had told her how sooner or later everyone's goal was only to avoid the pain, no matter what. Padmé still didn't accept her fate. She would fight. That was what she said.
Nuha only looked at her in pity whenever Padmé promised things like that. The nautolan returned. He looked down at Padmé with disgust like he always did. She tried to ignore him and just continued sweeping.
He smirked down at her. "Well done, feisty one.", he whiffed. "You won't get a shock now. That's how easy it is." Padmé pulled a grimace so that he wouldn't see it. She admitted to herself that she had been broken a little bit.
Why else would she do as she was told? Padmé frowned. "Stand up.", the nautolan ordered. Padmé did so, slowly. "You are done here. You can already follow simple orders. You will join the others being shipped tomorrow."
She turned pale. All her hopes that Obi Wan might come popped like a bubble. She nodded with a spreading numb feeling. The nautolan smiled his greasy smile.
She turned away again, crouching down but his fishy hand landed on her shoulder. "Go back to the tent.", he commanded before leaving her alone. Padmé cursed herself on the way. She wished she had been less obedient.
Although that was what she had been trying from the beginning, it just didn't work out. The shocks had tamed her without her even noticing. Padmé made her way back to the tent. Nuha was already there.
"The shipping is tomorrow.", she said. Padmé nodded. "I know. I'm going." Nuha's eyes widened. "Really? I'm glad I don't have to go alone." Padmé smiled.
She had been thinking about saying goodbye, it was a relief that she would at least have Nuha by her side. Nuha put a hand on Padmé's shoulder. "We'll manage together, Padmé.", she promised.
Ahsoka sat in the middle of the room. She wasn't used to being the responsible and arranging one. Obi Wan had been on board with her idea almost immediately, since it meant that Vader would stay away from Padmé for now.
Vader was harder to convince. "You're supposed to be dead, what if someone sees you?", he said. "No one will. I'm good at that, remember?" "How will you even get off the ship alone. You just want to walk through the hangar?"
Ahsoka shook her head. "I don't know. Is there some sort of second exit?" Vader just stared at her. "You could dress like a stormtrooper.", Obi Wan suggested. Ahsoka pulled a grimace. "Have you ever tried to get Montrals under a helmet?"
Vader suppressed a little chuckle. "Alright. What about someone without helmet. Perhaps a pilot? Your face isn't very prominent.", Obi Wan suggested. Vader shook his head. "Humans only. There's not a single exception on the entire ship."
Obi Wan frowned. "So what now?", he then asked, somewhat defeated. Ahsoka shrugged. "You're the mastermind, remember?", she said with a smile. She really couldn't think of any solution.
"If you sneak into a ship, there'd be an unregistered launch. They have to see how someone enters the ship first.", Vader stated. Ahsoka grunted in frustration. Obi Wan remained silent, thinking.
"How about this? You sneak onto the ship and Vader tells the responsible ones that he has started some sort of auto pilot to deliver goods or something like that.", he said. Ahsoka looked at Vader, waiting for a reply.
He nodded slowly. "That might work. We're expecting bacta from Thyferra, you could make a detour to pick it up. No one would know that someone had been on the ship." Obi Wan froze as Vader named the planet, but said didn't notice.
Ahsoka grinned. "Great. I'll start today." Vader agreed. "Yes you should. The sooner the better." His hands clenched to fists. Ahsoka frowned. Vader was obviously expecting the worst. Ahsoka expected Padmé to be fine.
She was probably very upset about losing the children, but other than that fine. Ahsoka smiled. She couldn't wait to see the family reunited at last. She had a feeling that everything would be just right.
"I should take a picture of her, so that I can ask around if I don't find her.", Ahsoka said. Vader nodded. "Good idea. You can access the imperial archive. And take a communicator too." Ahsoka clipped the device onto her belt.
"All set.", she smiled. "But be careful, alright?", Vader said. Ahsoka only nodded. "I'll see you around. And both of you, behave." She gave the two men a strict glance before heading for the door.
Padmé smirked. "I was so happy when I was with him, Padmé.", Nuha said while a dreamy grin spread on her face. "I can relate.", Padmé only replied. "What's his name?", she asked.
"Thral Cyd. He is a mandalorian, but he left the planet when the empire took over. We met on Taris about twenty months ago." Nuha's smile disappeared slowly, she was obviously thinking about her loss. Padmé put a hand on her shoulder.
"Maybe they'll ship us to where he is too. Perhaps, you'll see him tomorrow." Nuha's smile returned. "You may be right. Thanks Padmé. And even if not, at least we'll get out of this hellhole." Padmé shrugged.
"Who knows how things are there. And I hoped to stay here longer actually." Nuha's eyes widened. "Why would you want to stay here?"
"A jedi knows that I live on Thyferra. He came to look after me only about a week ago. I thought he might come back." "A jedi?", Nuha asked. "Who?" "Obi Wan Kenobi. He was a council member." Nuha nodded.
"I know master Kenobi, but I had no idea he was one of the survivors. Do you know where he is now?" Padmé shrugged. "Hiding out with all the other jedi. They're hiding together somewhere, but I don't know where that is."
Nuha just stared at her. "I never would have thought so many survived. And he just told you that?" Padmé nodded. "We're friends. He was one of the jedi that freed Naboo fifteen years ago." Nuha nodded.
"I remember that. You were queen when it happened, weren't you?" "I was.", Padmé confirmed. "But weren't we just talking about you?" Nuha smiled sheepishly. "I guess your life is just more interesting." Padmé shook her head.
"Nonsense. You're a surviving jedi, I'm just some politician." Nuha opened her mouth but Padmé continued with a smirk. "Were you born on Mirial?", she asked. Nuha shrugged.
"Who remembers where they were born? I guess I was but I can't recall anything before the jedi order. They took me there as soon as I could talk. They say jedi training cant start soon enough." Padmé's heart dropped.
She wished she had given her children to Obi Wan when he wanted to take them. The outcome would have been the same for her, but they wouldn't have ended up in the hands of the sith.
"That's why Obi Wan came to me.", Padmé said. "He wanted to take my children to the jedi." Nuha's mouth clapped open. "Are they master Skywalker's?" Padmé gave her a slightly offended look.
"Of course they are. They were born on the very day he died." Nuha pulled a grimace. "Doesn't sound like the most pleasant day." Padmé chuckled bitterly. "It definitely wasn't. I have nightmares about it a lot."
A sick feeling crawled into Padmé's chest as she remembered the ghostlike hands around her neck, that pushed the air out of her lungs. A shiver ran down her back. "I don't really enjoy the memory." Nuha's eyes were filled with pity.
"Was he killed by Vader and the Stormtroopers?" Padmé shook her head. "He died before Vader even appeared. It was Obi Wan who killed him. Anakin had turned to the dark side." Nuha gasped. "No way! Anakin Skywalker turned to the dark side?"
Padmé nodded unable to speak. "I don't know why and how. He kept repeating that he did it only for me." "Somewhat...romantic.", Nuha said, clearly not knowing how to react. Padmé sighed.
"I wish I could see him again. And ask him for an explanation. I know there has to be a good one. I know him. And whatever he has done on the last day of his life, he was always Anakin Skywalker within."
Ahsoka finally rushed into the ship. She made it. If anyone saw her, it would be over. She examined the controls of the cockpit, trying to understand how to use what was spread before her. She recognized the imperial technology.
She had only watched Vader flying a TIE fighter once, it had to be enough. She requested departure mutely, she was pretending to be an autopilot from now on. She waited full of tension, until a green light blinked on her control panel.
It worked. Vader had permitted the autopilot to depart. Ahsoka started to take off. It didn't take long until she made sense of the controls and managed the ship sufficiently.
As soon as she had left the reach of the executors surveillance systems, she unclipped the transmitter from her belt and set it on the right frequency.
The images of Vader and Obi Wan stood upon its surface. "I'm en route to Thyferra to pick up the bacta. Obi Wan, you can send me the coordinates now." Obi Wan nodded and typed the right numbers into the panel on the holo table.
Ahsoka received the destination on the fighter's navigator. "Alright, I got them. I'll be back in no time." "Be careful, Ahsoka. And good luck.", Vader said before their holos disappeared again. Ahsoka smiled and gripped the steering unit.
She would grab the bacta and Padmé too. Everyone would be happy and reunited. Ahsoka grinned as she advanced towards Thyferra. This wouldn't be hard.
Padmé was probably living all by her own, melancholically and Ahsoka would be the savior to bring her back to her husband and children. This remembered her of the clone wars, where she had done simple good things like that almost every day.
Padmé gulped as she saw how the ferry landed. It was an old and rusty ship, and it made sounds that let her doubt it would fly in the first place. There was no way that the vehicle was fit for interstellar travel.
Nuha obviously had the same thoughts as she stood next to Padmé and the ship lowered in front of them. "We're flying in that?", she murmured. Padmé sighed.
In her imagination, Obi Wan came jumping out of the shadows in any moment and freed all the slaves, but she had a feeling, no one would come. "They did that plenty times before, right?", Padmé said with a knot in her throat.
Nuha only looked at the ferry full of doubt. It's doors opened with a screech that almost hurt the ears. "Get in everyone!", the fat Twi'Lek barked. "We don't have all day!", he added. Padmé rolled her eyes before going towards the ship.
Nuha followed her very hesitantly. "We don't really have another option, have we?", Padmé grumbled before entering the ship. She sat down on the floor that seemed to fall apart and left countless wires and fuses uncovered.
Nuha sat down beside her. "This is the worst.", she murmured before she folded her legs. Many others entered the screeching ship until it was filled completely. Padmé noticed that the nautolan hopped on as well.
But he obviously didn't stay with them. He went through a tiny transition at one side. In the short moment in which the door opened, Padmé could see a large passenger room, filled with more or less proper seats.
She rolled her eyes. They could have let them sit without a problem, it was just about principle. The ship rumbled as it left the ground. "That's it with my one hope on rescue.", she sighed before leaning onto the ship's wall. Nuha frowned.
"Would he have come?" Padmé shrugged. "He would have tried to take my children again, that's when he would have noticed." "That reminds me. Where are your children now? They usually take kids here too, but you came alone."
Padmé looked down. "They were taken by the empire before I was captured." Nuha gasped. "The Emperor has Anakin Skywalker's children? We're doomed." Padmé nodded. "But at least they're not here. They're just two." Nuha frowned.
"That's your opinion as a mother, but trust me when I tell you it would have been better if they were here now. They're going to be sith. They're going to be just like Vader when they grow up." Padmé nodded.
"I know that. I'm just trying to be optimistic." Nuha put a hand on Padmé's shoulder. "It's going to be alright, Padmé. If there really is a group of jedi left, they will defeat the empire and free your children."
Padmé looked up to Nuha bitterly. "There were many jedi two years ago. Most of them were killed by mere clones, the survivors had no chance against Vader. Why would it be different this time?"
"I don't know why. But they're gathering strength right now, aren't they?" Padmé shook her head. "They're hiding because they don't think they would stand a chance." Nuha frowned. "Where did your optimism go all of the sudden?"
Padmé remained silent for a bit, staring into the air. Then, slowly her tears began to run down her face, one by one.