"I'll say this, it's a lot better layout than your old ship." Anakin told his new wife as they came into the starkly elegant main cabin of her Amabassorial yacht.
"Is that faint praise I hear?" Master Qui-Gon asked with a lift of his heavy brows.
"It's just I'm not used to being a passenger." Anakin answered. 'Or a husband, or a civilian.' he added to himself. It was all going to take some getting used to.
Of course His master heard the unspoken thought as clearly as the words out loud and smiled reassuringly. "You are starting a new life, Anakin, there is bound to be some disorientation at first."
Padme put an arm around his waist and squeezed. "We're in the same boat, darling. I have to get used to not being a queen." she grimaced fetchingly. "It feels so odd - not to have a thousand worries knocking at my mind every time I get a chance to think."
"Enjoy it while you can, Padme." said Obi-Wan drily, "Anakin will give you plenty to worry about - just give him time."
"Thanks a lot, brother!" Anakin snorted.
Padme laughed and steered her husband to a padded seat set into the wall before taking her own place in the big chair behind the desk. The Master and Obi-Wan were already strapped into the seats on either side of the narrow tongue of an onyx topped conference table, and the five handmaidens occupied the rest of the seats. Anakin noted Sabe had got the one next to Obi-Wan. Accident or design?
The deck quivered and swayed under their feet as the ship lifted off and continued to tip and turn as they maneuvered their way through Coruscant's busy skies. Finally the light by the door went from gold to blue, meaning they were out of the atmosphere.
"Master Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, have you been shown your cabins?" Padme asked as everybody un-strapped .
"Not yet." the Master answered.
"I'll show them, my lady." Sabe said quickly.
Dimples twinkled as Padme smiled at her best friend. "You do that." then deepened as she looked up at her husband. "I know what you want to see!"
The flight deck was larger than that of the last royal yacht Anakin had been on with five stations. "pilot, co-pilot, navigator and comscan," Captain Stanis said, pointing them out, then put her hands on the back of the chair facing the fifth station, to the left and just behind the chief pilot. "And this controls our shields." She smiled at Anakin. We've learned a few things since the Invasion; while our ambassadorial transports still have no offensive weaponry the 'Silver Shadow' here is equipped with a destroyer class shield generator and projectors outlining her entire hull."
"Wow." said Anakin, genuinely impressed.
"And we have two hyperdrive units, either one capable of boosting the ship to warp on its own." the captain finished.
Anakin grinned. "If the old ship had had that I'd have never have met her ladyship here."
"Oh we'd have found a way." Padme corrected. "It was the will of the Force, as Master Qui-Gon says."
"Here's our escort." said the co-pilot.
Looking out the ports Anakin saw six v-wing fighters emblazoned with the broken circle swoop into formation around them. He groped for his comlink but of course he didn't carry one any more. He turned to the comscan officer. "Please open a frequency." he said, remembering just in time not to phrase it as an order.
"Frequency open."
"Red Leader to Red Two. You guys are in for one long, claustrophobic trip."
"We don't get claustrophobia remember?" His second's voice boomed back cheerfully. "Don't worry about us, Red Leader, we can do three days easy. Now the Excarga raid, that was tough."
Anakin shuddered. "Don't remind me." ten days in a cockpit was a bit much even for a Jedi pilot! "Well have fun, men. If you need anything just call."
"Thanks, Commander, give our regards to her ladyship."
Anakin nodded for the comscan to close the frequency and turned back to Padme.
She was frowning a little. "They will be all right out there?"
"Sure." he reassured her. "Like Red Two said, three days is easy. They'll sleep most of the way and watch the holonet for the rest. It'll be like a vacation for them."
"Still, three days in a fighter is no fun." she protested. "I sure didn't enjoy it!"
"You get used to it." Anakin shrugged. "It's not like they haven't done this before, and on lots longer trips too. Don't worry, hon, they'll do fine."
Padme's sleeping cabin was nearly three times the size of a standard stateroom and much more luxurious. She sat in the huge bed, knees pulled up and arms resting on top of them, watching Anakin undress.
"Ani? Do you like the clothes I picked out for you?" she asked suddenly.
He looked at her in surprise then held out the tunic he'd just taken off for a long look. It was a simple dark blue decorated by a single stripe of golden brown brocade. "Yeah," he said at last, "yeah, I think I do." he gave her a grin over the tunic. "I was a little scared to tell the truth, I've seen how the men dress on Naboo! But the things you got me are fine, comfortable and not too flashy."
She smiled. "I'm glad you like them. They're a little drab, but they suit you." her smile widened. "I want to show off what a handsome husband I've got!"
"Nobody's going to look at me when they have you to look at." he answered crawling into bed.
She giggled, settling into his arms. "The women'll look - and I want you to dazzle them!"
Anakin opened his mouth to answer and a crackle came from the comset followed by the worried voice of Captain Stanis. "Commander? I'm sorry to disturb you, but I thought you should know. We've just lost radio contact with Red Squadron."
Anakin sat bolt upright, warrior's instincts quivering. "What?"
"As near as we can tell from eyeball scan they're just fine, but our comscan system is down."
Anakin threw aside the coverlet. "I'll be right up."
Padme quickly got out the other side of the bed. "Oh, Ani, it can't be anything serious can it?"
"I don't know." He answered grimly, tying his robe. "But I've got a very bad feeling about this."
He wasn't the only one. They ran into Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon in the passage, both fully dressed.
"What is it?" the younger Master demanded.
"I don't know yet." Anakin turned to Qui-Gon. "Master, could I borrow your comlink?" Silently he handed it over. "Red Leader to Red Two, do you read?"
"We read you, Commander." Red Two responded, audibly relieved.
"Report. What's going on?"
"I wish I knew. All comscan systems are down, massive interference. Good thing you still have that Jedi comlink of yours."
"I don't, this is Master Qui-Gon's. Keep up your visual scanning, I think we're about to be attacked."
"Will do."
"What?" Padme burst out in horror as Anakin clicked off. "That's impossible. The war is over."
"With the enemy leadership and much of their fleet still unaccounted for." Obi-Wan reminded her.
Anakin didn't answer at all, just headed determinedly for the turbo-lift to the flight deck.
Captain Stanis was glad to see them, even though Anakin, Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon and Padme filled the small control center almost to bursting. "I don't know what's going on, Commander Skywalker, but I don't like it."
"Me neither." the comlink whistled. "Skywalker."
"Incoming, Red Leader, a whole lot of fighters."
Anakin moved forward to peer through the port. "I see them." without turning. "No offense, Captain Stanis, but I'm taking over piloting.
"Go ahead." she said feelingly. "I'm glad you're here, Commander."
"Do I get a vote?" Obi-Wan asked.
"No." he answered slipping into the pilot's seat. "You take the shields."
Captain Stanis displaced her co-pilot who moved back to the navigator's station. Qui-Gon went to assist the comscan officer, still struggling gamely with her ineffective equipment.
Padme hung on to the back of the pilot's chair, eyes straining as she tried to make the glittering dots hurtling towards them focus into ships.
The clone's eyes were better. "Tri-Fighters. Thirty or more."
"Get out of here." Anakin ordered. "Try to get clear of this interference and call for help."
"Will do." The v-wings peeled off, scattering and a few of the oncoming droid tri-fighters broke formation to pursue.
"Commander, we're unarmed." Captain Stanis reminded him.
"I know, but five to one odds are just too high. We've still got those destroyer rated shields and I know a few tricks." he looked over his shoulder. "Padme strap in somewhere.
She nodded and went back to the tiny crew lounge just aft but left the door open so she could hear what was going on.
"Hang on everybody." Anakin sent the ship into a wing over, dropping abruptly beneath the plane of the attackers. Stomachs twisted and tried to crawl up esophaguses.
Master Qui-Gon not only kept his footing but seemed entirely unperturbed, still working on the comscan. Captain Stanis clutched at the arms of her chair. "Commander, this ship wasn't designed for combat maneuvers!"
"I know." was all he answered, eyes intent on the swarm of droid fighters diving down upon them.
"They're opening fire." Obi-Wan said with his usual calm. The ship quivered. "fifteen hits, no damages." he glanced up. "Good shields."
"That's what I'm counting on." Anakin said and pushed his joystick forward into a powered climb.
"Please tell me you're not going to ram!" Obi-Wan exclaimed.
"You got a better idea?"
Four tri-fighters failed to dodge in time, immolating themselves and leaving charred marks on the satiny silver hull.
Captain Stanis was speechless. Obi-Wan of course was not. "Nice going." he said coolly disapproving. "Four down, sixteen to go and we've lot all projectors on the port wing."
"I'll keep that in mind, General." Anakin threw the ship into a spin right through the thickest part of the enemy formation, smashing tri-fighters with the pinwheeling wings.
"Don't bother." said Obi-Wan as the ship stabilized. "We've lost the port wing and one engine."
Captain Stanis looked out the port at the sparking stub and winced, then checked her dials and became very busy. "Shutting down remaining engine before it overloads."
"You do that." Anakin said a little absently. The remaining fighters stood off at a distance from the wounded ship.
"They're firing missiles." Obi-Wan reported calmly.
'They surely are. Let's give them back shall we?" Anakin accelerated towards the nearest fighter, missiles following like lost children, overtook it and pulled up. Fighter and two missiles intersected and died in flaming glory.
"Still got three on our tail." said Obi-Wan.
"I know, I know!" the ship ducked, veered, spun and wove through a series of fabulous evasive maneuvers. One missile became so confused in collided with another immolating both. Then the surviving missile suddenly disintegrated surrounding the Silver Shadow with a cloud of little metal globes that settled onto the hull and broke apart revealing a bevy of spidery little droids which started ripping up the glittering chrome plating with some of their arms and digging into the exposed circuitry with the others.
"What the - Obi-Wan, do something!"
"I'm trying." the general snapped. Shields were no use of course, so he deployed the ship's cohort of maintenance droids. It was an unequal contest; the unarmed and unarmored droids were quickly sawed to pieces by the attackers who then resumed their demolition of the ship.
Lights flashed red on every board. Anakin pushed back the pilot's chair. "Come on, we'll go out and take them on ourselves -"
"Anakin," Qui-Gon interrupted, "look."
A ship was dopplering out of hyperspace practically on top of them. The Master identified it before it stopped scintillating. "A recusant class destroyer."
"Okay." said Obi-Wan. "Now we're in trouble."
Qui-Gon's eyes gleamed. "No." he corrected. "They are in trouble. Little do they know how much."
His two Padawans grinned dangerously.