Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just created my own little AU sandbox to play in that has become known as the Forever Destined series, a universe where things did not go so horribly wrong for Anakin and Padme.
AN: Here's part 9! Thanks for all the great reviews! Enjoy and let me know what you think!
Part 9/?
Riley clutched Padme's limp form close and glared daggers at the witch sisters.
"You better move out of the way if you know what's good for you," Riley growled. He was in no mood for this, for Padme desperately needed medical attention.
"You're the one that better watch yourself, scoundrel or you and your pretty daughter are dead," Rianna threatened.
"You're stupider than you look if you believe that," Jenna said, as she ignited her light saber.
"Jenna's right," Leia added, as she ignited hers.
"Because everyone that has threatened or hurt our Mother today is dead or soon will be," Luke continued, as he joined his sisters by igniting his blade.
"You stupid brats are no match for our spells," Roxanna snarled.
"We'll see if you still say that in five minutes," Jenna called, as she howled in battle cry. Roxanna screamed, as the young girl threw all her weight into her and toppled her to the ground. Riley drew his Sentry blaster and pointed it at Rianna.
"Jenna's gonna rip her head off so if you and your sis want to live, then you'll surrender," Riley said, trying to reason with her.
"Surrender this," Rianna hissed, as she created a lightning spell and hurled it at the twins. Luke and Leia caught the attack with their blades and struggled in a deadlock with the evil witch. Jenna wrestled with Roxanna, who had managed to knock her light saber out of her hand.
"I'm going to kill you, you little brat!" Roxanna screamed psychotically. Jenna cried out, as Roxanna kicked her feet into her chest and knocked her onto her back. The red haired witch was on her in an instant and wrapped her hands around Jenna's slender neck.
"Die…" Roxanna hissed, as she squeezed. Jenna used the Force and her light saber flew into her hand. She ignited it and the blade extended right through her chest. Her eyes went wide and she went stiff. Jenna threw her off, extracting the blade, as she took her final breath.
"Roxanna…you killed my sister!" Rianna screamed, as she intensified the attack. Jenna joined her siblings and took some of the pressure off their blades with her own. Riley looked down at Padme and heard her whimper in pain. He clenched his teeth, his jaw lined with determination, as he raised his blaster. With expert precision and aim, he pumped three blaster bolts into the evil witch, whose rage had blinded her. Her spell died instantly, as she did and her body thudded to the ground. Luke, Leia, and Jenna extinguished their blades.
"Come on, we need to get your Mom to Kimberly," Riley said, as they continued on their way.
While Anakin battled the young, reincarnated Palpatine, Yan, Qui-Gon, and Obi-Wan battled the elder Sith that was proving she was no slouch when it came to light saber combat. Ysanne thrust her light saber up in a vicious uppercut, knocking Obi-Wan back and then brought it down on Qui-Gon. Father and son double teamed her, but as it was well know, a Sith never fought fairly. Suddenly, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan were holding their throats, as she Force choked them. She tossed them away, slamming Qui-Gon hard into the far wall and throwing Obi-Wan into the comm console. He hit it hard and rolled onto the floor. Neither got back up, leaving the aging Count to face her alone.
"He's not going to win this one," Ysanne taunted, referring to Anakin, as their blades deadlocked.
"You are foolish to think that, since you know what he is capable of," Yan replied. Ysanne only smirked, further unnerving the Count.
"I'm no fool. I know that he will defeat my grandson, especially now that his bond with his meddlesome wench has been restored. I knew it would likely be the outcome all along. That's why I devised a fail safe to ensure not only the demise of you entire family, but Naboo as well…even if it means my own death as well," Ysanne taunted. Yan frowned.
"What are you talking about?" Yan demanded. Ysanne grinned evilly like a Nexu.
"I knew her meddlesome scoundrel of a father and her brats would rescue her, so the moment they freed her, it tripped a sensor on the reactor…and initiated the self destruct sequence. It was tripped twenty-three minutes ago and only thirty-seven minutes remain. Even if you somehow manage to get them off in time, the Death Star is too close to Naboo. It will be destroyed in the blast! And once there are no more Skywalkers…evil will reign! The Jedi will be doomed without the Chosen One and the Republic will crumble! Even if I die today…I've already won!" Ysanne cackled. Yan was stunned…but he also knew exactly what had to be done in order to save his entire family and Naboo.
"Obi-Wan…Qui-Gon…wake up…WAKE UP NOW!" he called to them silently through the Force.
Ferus and Serra cut down more droids, as they came to the entrance of the docking bay. Suddenly, the structure shuddered slightly and they stopped to look up.
"Do you feel that?" he asked. She nodded.
"It's Anakin's powers. They're erupting. They must have rescued Padme," Serra replied. As she said that, they rounded the corner.
"We were getting worried," Ferus said.
"A couple of those witches slowed us down, but they won't be bothering us again," Riley said.
"Let's get her to Kimberly," Serra said, as they took her onto the ship where Kimberly was waiting with Shane, Marcus, Queen Rayna, Callista, and Sav. Padme whimpered, as she was gently placed on the med table.
"Oh Mom…" Kimberly said, as she started examining her injuries.
"She's gonna be okay, right?" Riley asked. Kimberly nodded.
"I just need to put her in a healing trance first. Then I'll be able to proceed with treating her injuries," she said, as she put her hand on Padme's forehead. She stilled and began the process. As Kimberly began treating her Mother's wounds, the healing trance caused another vision in Padme's subconscious, but this one was very different from the previous ones…
Padme's vision
Padme looked around and recognized her setting immediately. She was outside her Grandmother Winama's old mansion in Theed. She looked down at her hands, noticing they were transparent, like she wasn't really there. She was only seeing what the Force wanted her to see. Compelled to follow its lead, she went inside the house, finding the decorations and furnishings different from how she remembered. She walked into the family room and saw an elderly woman sitting by the fire with a young girl, probably no older than fourteen. And then she recognized the woman from holos she had seen in her family history album. She was her great great Grandmother, Penelope Winama and the girl was undoubtedly her young Grandmother, Leia Winama.
Padme was a little confused. Why was the Force showing her this? Usually her visions were actually Padmia's memories, but seeing this was like she was seeing one of her Grandmother's memories. And if that was true, then there had to be a very good reason. And she was about to find out what that was.
"Come here and sit down Leia," the old woman called. Padme was struck by how much her grandmother resembled herself as a young woman and she listened intently.
"What it is Grandmother?" Leia asked.
"There is something of great importance that I need to give to you. It has been passed down in our family for generations," Penelope said, as she pulled a very old looking leather bound journal from the drawer next to her and handed it to her granddaughter. Padme gasped.
"What is this?" Leia asked, as she opened in, finding it to be in the ancient language of her people, a language that only a few dozen people still knew.
"It is the diary of our ancestor. Her name was Padmia and she was the first Queen of Naboo. I want you to read it and know this story well. And someday, you will pass it along to your granddaughter, such is the tradition in our family," Penelope instructed.
"What is the story about?" Leia asked. Penelope smiled.
"That is something you must find out for yourself," she replied.
"But…I don't even know the ancient script that well," Leia said.
"Then you must continue to study it. I know it is a difficult language to decipher, almost like codes more than words. But believe me when I say, once you read the history, I think you'll agree that the work was well worth it," Penelope said. Leia nodded and took her words to heart, vowing to follow her grandmother's wishes.
Padme whimpered, as she started to come around.
"It's okay Mom…just lay still. You're going to be fine," she heard her middle daughter's voice tell her.
"Anakin…" she whispered, as she fell back into the healing trance.
"Why did she wake up?" Riley asked.
"I don't know, but she'll be fine Grandpa, I promise," Kimberly said. Riley nodded and sat beside his daughter, holding her hand, as Kimberly continued to assess her injuries and treat them.
Anakin matched the Sith Lord blow for blow with renewed strength and adrenaline. He hadn't been doing so well about twenty minutes ago. But now that his bond with Padme was re-established, he could draw more on his mystical powers again. While his beloved angel could become his greatest weakness, which had just been proven, she was by far his greatest strength, as well. And Palpatine's new puppet was about to find that out.
"So you've got your second wind. It doesn't matter, you know. I will still defeat you and then I'll reign supreme," Palpatine taunted through the visage of his twisted Grandson.
"You have no idea what you're dealing with or how much trouble you're really in," Anakin taunted back. Palpatine snarled, as their blades met in a series of strikes and parries that were so fast, Jayden, who was looking on, almost couldn't see them. Anakin knew that the Sith plan to cut him off from Padme was to make sure he couldn't call on his enhanced powers. And for the most part, during that time, they had been right. He knew that he could have still called on his powers, but with his bond with Padme being blocked, he had felt drained and sluggish, bogged down by his worry for her safety. His powers were still available to him and always were, for they were a part of him. But they were at their strongest and best when her heart was touching his and her light was filling him up. It was by far the most mystical of bonds there ever was and incomprehensible to most. And this Sith was about to find out why all the evil beings had never stood a chance against him and why the same would be true for him as well.
Obi-Wan groaned and slowly struggled to get his bearings. The right side of his face tingled, having made contact with the console during his trip to the floor. Qui-Gon helped him up and they looked on, as Yan battled Ysanne.
"Listen to me carefully, both of you," Yan said silently to them through the Force.
"Ysanne as triggered the self destruct sequence and we only have thirty-three minutes left. She knows she's beaten, but she plans on having the last laugh by trapping us here and destroying Naboo in the blast. Anakin is close to finishing off Palpatine. I want you to move this space station far enough away from Naboo, get Anakin and Jayden, and get to the docking bay," Yan instructed.
"Father…what about you?" Qui-Gon asked.
"Once I'm finished with Ysanne, I'll be right behind you," he replied. They nodded and went to the main console on a platform, just above the main bridge where Anakin fought Palpatine below. Yan and Ysanne remained engaged in their duel in the adjoining control room.
"Now, to find a place to take us," Obi-Wan said, as they consulted the star map.
"Here," Qui-Gon pointed.
"It's only half a parsec south and in completely open space," Qui-Gon said. Obi-Wan input the coordinates and engaged hyperspace. Now, they just needed to get Anakin, Jayden, Yan, and themselves to the docking bay in the next twenty minutes.
Ysanne dueled furiously with the elder Jedi Grand Master. She happened to look out one of the view windows as she turned and noticed the stars streaking by. She then noticed Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan at the console and snarled.
"NO…you meddlesome fools!" she screamed, as she prepared to unleash Force lightning on them. But Yan anticipated this and used the Force to close the control room door. The Force lightning hit the door and fried the panel, locking them in.
"You fool…we're trapped now!" she exclaimed.
"I know," he replied knowingly.
"You'll pay for this!" she screamed, as she attacked and their duel continued.
Anakin's eyes flashed with gold fire, as he drew on his maximum powers.
"You never truly had a chance and that's because you're pure evil. And as long as your kind exists, I or someone like me will be there to stop you," Anakin said, as his blazing white blade now pulsed with gold tendrils of fire. Palpatine's eyes bled with yellow fury and he roared angrily, bringing his blade down on Anakin, but his crystal shattered upon contact and he gaped in horror.
"NOOOOO!" he screamed in rage, as he unleashed Force lightning in massive proportions, as a last ditch effort. The eruption of lightning blew Jayden back and he took cover behind one of the consoles. Anakin's blade absorbed the lightning and sent it back at him, along with his golden fire. The Sith slammed back into the view window, now flailing in agony and engulfed by golden flames. The view window cracked and broke open. He screamed, as he was sucked out into the black death of space. The open view window blew a violent vortex like wind through the bridge. Jayden pulled himself up on the console and activated the blast window, shutting the wind of space out.
Palpatine's pawn was dead and it was for good this time. Anakin would see to that. Twenty years of Sith planning and genetic engineering to resurrect the great Lord Sidious had been a waste and the galaxy had the Chosen One to thank for saving it from certain destruction.
"You did it and Mom is okay too, I can feel it!" Jayden said. Anakin patted him on the shoulder.
"Yeah and it's time for us to get out of here," Anakin said.
"More than you know," Obi-Wan replied.
"What do you mean?" Anakin asked.
"We managed to move the Death Star a safe distance from Naboo, for Ysanne activated the self destruct sequence as soon as Riley and the children rescued Padme, because she knew it would be all over then. She planned to take Naboo out along with the rest of us, including herself," Qui-Gon said.
"We only have about twenty minutes to get off this bloody contraption and it will take us ten to get to the docking bay," Obi-Wan added. Anakin nodded.
"Let's get Grandfather, finish Ysanne off and get out of here then," Anakin said, as they went to the control room and he pressed the door opener. But the door didn't open. Anakin pounded on it and called through it.
"Grandfather!" Anakin called.
"It won't open!" Jayden cried.
"Oh yes it will," Anakin said, as he thrust his blade through the door. Jayden, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon joined, as they all worked as quickly as possible to melt through the door.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Ysanne was slowly gaining the upper hand and Yan was slowing. But he had long prepared for this day and knew what the outcome would be. He had prepared for this day for years and had made sure his family would be well taken care of. He knew they would grieve for him, but this was his destiny.
"You're slowing down, old man," Ysanne sneered.
"Then strike me down and I shall become more powerful than you can imagine," Yan replied cryptically.
"I'll be glad to, though all you'll become then is a distant memory," Ysanne hissed, as she parried his blade. She saw Anakin break down the rest of the melted door and smirked evilly, preparing to strike the Count down.
"They'll never make it in time now, not when I'm still standing in their way," Ysanne sneered.
"Not if I take us both out of the equation," he retorted. Ignoring his cryptic statement, as she swung her blade around and right before their eyes, Yan withdrew his weapon, holding it straight up and down. She swiped her crimson blade straight through him and as he died, he vanished into the Force, leaving only his cloak and weapon behind, as they fell harmlessly to the floor.
"NO!" they all exclaimed. Qui-Gon ignited his blade and descended upon Ysanne. She never saw him coming, as he slew her with a clean swipe of his blade and avenged his father in one fell swoop. Ysanne's head rolled to the floor, disconnected from her body, which also fell to the floor.
"Grandfather…" Anakin said, as he fell to his knees. Obi-Wan knelt beside him and put his hand on his shoulder.
"We have to go now," he said, even as tears welled in all their eyes.
"Obi-Wan is right…you all must go now. There is not a minute to lose," Yan's voice called to them from the realm of the Force.
"Father…" Qui-Gon sobbed.
"Go my son. Everything falls to you now. In my place, you are the patriarch of our family and they are in good hands with you. But you must get everyone off the Death Star now or you will all be lost," Yan instructed.
"He's right. This whole place is going to up soon," Obi-Wan said, as they stood up.
"Let's go," Qui-Gon said, as he took his father's abandoned weapon and clipped it to his belt. They left quickly for the lift without another word. Their grieving was temporarily on hold, as they hurried to join their loved ones and escape the doomed space station.
Padme whimpered and her eyes fluttered open.
"Anakin…" she called, as she looked around, trying to focus her vision.
"I'm here sweetness and Anakin is on his way," Riley said, as he helped her slowly sit up.
"Easy honey," he warned. Padme saw four of her children wiping tears from their cheeks.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"We lost Yan, sweetness. The kids felt it through the Force," Riley explained. Padme gasped and started to get up.
"Easy baby girl," he said, as he helped her up. Padme moved to the bench and sat between her girls, as she began comforting her kids and cried with them. She could only imagine how hurt her husband was, as well as Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon. As she thought that, she saw the three of them and her youngest son burst hurriedly onto the ship.
"Everyone strap in. This place is going to explode in just a few minutes. Luke, let's go," Anakin said, as he headed for the cockpit. Luke scrubbed his face with his sleeve and followed his Father to the cockpit.
They all strapped in and Anakin maneuvered the ship away and only moments after he engaged hyperspace, the Death Star exploded in a brilliant array of fire. Anakin brought the ship out of hyperspace, just a few minutes later, and started the descent to Naboo. They would land and go straight to the Marina, ignoring the Holonet that was probably waiting for them, and head for the Lake Country. There, the grieving process would begin. As a family, the next few days would be spent grieving. They would call for the rest of their family on Coruscant and have them come to Naboo. Elana would be crushed by the news and there was much to be done despite their grief. Yan Dooku had died a hero and he would be honored with a proper funeral ceremony and tribute to his life. And then, there was the matter of his last Will and Testament, which he had always expressed was to be read to his loved ones upon his death. They would grieve, but they would honor his passing and then begin the healing on many levels.