Padmé struggled to wake up. What had happened? She was meeting with the Chancellor, then… she stilled. The Chancellor had attacked her.

She'd put up a fight, she knew, but he'd quickly overpowered her. He'd resorted to some sort of… no. He'd pulled Lightning out of thin air and thrown it at her. Only Sith could do that.

She tried to hide that she was awake, taking in all she could without opening her eyes. She was laying down on a couch, though she was still wearing the senatorial robes she'd had on when she met with Palpatine. She could tell that her hidden blaster was gone, as was the dagger disguised as part of her headdress. She could feel a slight vibration through the couch that told her she was on a ship in hyperspace.

Her arms were lose, as were her legs. She opened her eyes and looked around. She was in a nice, though small, room. It was decorated in a Nubian style.

She sat up and took a better look at the room. Yes, it was definitely a Nubian vessel, she could tell by the way the walls curved. And while it was decorated in the Nubian style most popular around the southern mountains, it was darker than what she was used to. Red and black where most from the south preferred greens and blues.

This was Palpatine's vessel. She took a deep breath. Now she understood why Anakin had warned her not to trust anyone, why he and Obi-Wan hadn't wanted to explain their suspicions. It was almost treasonous, until and unless someone had proof.

Padmé nodded tightly. She didn't know how long she had been out, or how long she had before Palpatine returned. She had to get up and search for a weapon, or a way out.

Resolutely, she stood up. She swayed for a moment, and gripped the edge of the couch to keep her balance. Right then. She'd been unconscious for a while. Carefully, she began to walk, always keeping a hand on the wall, or the furniture.

It really was nice furniture. She wasn't surprised. She knew Palpatine had good taste, so it made sense that he had outfitted his personal ship well.

She narrowed her eyes and focused on the door. There had to be a way to get it open. She wasn't going to take getting kidnapped by a Sith Lord sitting down. She'd get out, she'd get a blaster, and then she'd shoot him in the head.

The vibrations suddenly changed- they had come out of hyperspace. Good. She'd have a better chance at escaping on a planet. And where ever they were, it couldn't be too far away from Coruscant. She leaned over and tried to pry the cover panel off the controls. She knew how to override almost all Nubian vessels, and she knew she could open the doors on this one.

The engine pitch and vibration changed again. Palpatine, or whoever he had flying this ship had set the engines to standby. They hadn't landed. They were either drifting in space, or orbiting a planet.

She scowled and backed away from the door. And just in time. She was just far enough away from the door that it didn't look like she had been messing with the mechanism when the door opened.

Palpatine eyed her for a moment before chuckling. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. There was something off about his laughter now. "You were trying to open the door, Senator Amidala," he said.

She did everything she could not to shudder. His voice was different, too. It was no longer the kind, if stressed voice she had always heard from him. Now, it dripped with evil. She raised her head. "So what if I was?" she snapped. "You have no right to attack me or kidnap me."

He chuckled again. "Oh, perhaps not legally," he agreed. "But, my dear, you must understand that I am above the law. I am more than any law made by lesser beings."

She couldn't contain a snort. "Sith think highly of themselves, don't they?" she said.

His gaze darkened. "So you know."

"I figured it out when you tried to electrocute me!" she snapped.

"Oh, that was simply to get you to stop resisting," Palpatine said. "If you hadn't tried to fight back, I would have simply knocked you out."

She glared at him. He chuckled. "Oh, my dear, you are truly perfect. It's such a shame you know who I am. Until I have what I want, I cannot allow you to go free."

She refused to let him intimidate her. Even if he frightened her now, she was still Padmé Amidala, and she would not be cowed. "I'll escape, and then I'll ruin you," she gritted out.

He simply smiled. "Oh, my dear Amidala, you're mistaken. You may leave, someday. But you will be the consort of my apprentice when you do, and you will be willing to help us in our plans."

"I thought Anakin killed your apprentice," she parried. She didn't like what he was saying at all, but she was not going to show it.

Palpatine smiled thinly. "I know," he said. "But I'll have another soon enough. And I know you'll join with him."

She flattened her lips but didn't reply. There was no way she'd ever "join with" any Sith Apprentice.

He tilted his head. "Not even if it's Anakin?" he asked.

Her eyes widened. "Anakin will never join you!" she snapped.

He shook his head ruefully. "Yes, he will," he said. "Anakin will be a wonderful apprentice, and with him I will finally take the Revenge our Order has been working toward." He smiled slowly. "The Jedi will die," he said. "The Republic will be destroyed. The Empire will be born. And you, my dear, will be right by our side, helping us with every victory."

"You're insane," she breathed out.

"No," Palpatine said. He shook his head. "I am not. But for now…" he gestured, and she was pushed back into the couch. "I have a ship to land, and I can't have you interfering. Sleep, Senator Amidala, and wake after I put the cuffs and gag on."

No matter how hard she fought it, she couldn't stop her eyes from closing.

Yes, Palpatine is being a little erratic, and his plans don't exactly match the ones he was thinking of earlier. In addition to everything falling apart on him, he's a bit of a liar (like the Pacific Ocean is a bit wet, I suppose).