Several hours later they were stood in the Senator's apartment, waiting for Palpatine to return with the news on who had been elected Chancellor. Travien watched Padmé pace up and down the room as she agonised over what was happening. He knew that he had a decision to make and it was not on that he enjoyed making but there was no other option, He would tell Padmé everything as soon as they were away from Coruscant. There were other matters he had to attend to as well though.

Padmé walked up to one of the large windows and looked out over Coruscant and the setting sun in the sky. It killed Travien to see her this remorseful especially when there was nothing that he could have done about it. He watched Jar Jar walk up to her,

"Yousa thinkin' yousa people gonna die?" he asked,

She shook her head forlornly, "I don't know." She said.

"Gungans get pated too, huh?" he asked sadly. Travien's mood just kept plummeting as he heard her reply,

"I hope not."

"Gungans not goin' without a fight. Weesa warriors, weesa having grand army. That's why you no likin' us meesa thinks."

Travien's eye shot up to look at the Gungan and Padmé turned to him, "An army? Now an army I can work with." He said. Padmé nodded and Travien could see hope coming back into her eyes. He would have to make some sacrifices but it would be worth it.

They were just about to continue speaking when Captain Panaka spoke up, "Your highness." He called breathlessly as he ran in, "Your highness. Senator Palpatine has been nominated to succeed Valorum as Supreme Chancellor." He said grinning. This infuriated Travien who remained silent,

"A surprise but a welcome one to be sure." He saw that the Queen was not interested, "Your Majesty, if elected I promise to put an end to corruption." Travien butted in,

"Save the campaign speeches, Senator. How does this help Naboo?" he demanded. Palpatine stuttered for a moment, quickly getting irritated with the way this young man kept changing the playing field. Padmé cut over their argument,

"Who else has been nominated?" she asked Panaka.

Bail Antilles of Alderaan and Ainlee Teem of Malastare." He replied,

"I feel confident that our situation will create a strong sympathy vote for us. I will be Chancellor your majesty."

Travien almost snarled as Padmé spoke to Palpatine, "I fear by the time you have controlled the Bureaucrats that there will be nothing left of our people and our way of life."

"I understand your concern your majesty, but what can we do. The Trade Federation is currently in possession of our planet."

Padmé replied slowly, "Senator, this is your arena; I feel I must return to mine. We are going back to Naboo."

"G…Go back. Your majesty, be realistic, they will force you to sign the treaty!"

Travien butted in, "There is no treaty. It will not be signed." They all turned to him and saw a vicious grin on his face, "Captain, you heard the Queen, please inform our pilots that we will be leaving as soon as possible." Panaka nodded reluctantly and left the room. Padmé smiled at him,

"I assume that you are already planning something." She said playfully,

Travien nodded, "I don't have nearly as much time as I would like but I do have some plans." She nodded,

"Very well, let us leave." They heard Palpatine calling out behind them but ignored him as they left.

Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn stood before the Jedi Council for the second time in as many days. In this case Qui-Gon was nervous. He knew that this would be where the council decided the fate of Anakin. It was hard enough the they had not allowed Shmi to be present for this as she was still living on the Queen's cruiser. Mace just looked resigned,

"The Force is strong with him," said Mundi,

"He is to be trained then?" asked Qui-Gon

"No, he will not be trained." Said Mace with finality,

"No? But surely you can sense it, he is the Chosen One." Claimed Qui-Gon almost desperately,

Mace shook his head, "He is too old."

Yoda nodded, "Clouded this boy's future is."

Qui-Gon huffed, "Very well, then I take Anakin as my Padawan learner."

Mundi raised an eyebrow, "You already have a padawan, it impossible to take two."

Mace nodded, "The Code forbids it."

Qui-Gon shrugged, "Obi-Wan is ready to take the trials. He is headstrong and has much to learn of the living force but there is little more he can learn from me."

"I am ready Masters." Interrupted Obi-Wan.

"Our own Council we will keep on who is ready, padawan."

Anakin just nodded, "That's alright Master Qui-Gon. Travien said he would train me if the council refused anyway." They all stared at the boy and suddenly Qui-Gon understood the sheer brilliance of Travien's plan, he had endeared himself to the boy and rather actually fight the Jedi for him he relied on the Jedi to push Anakin to him of their own accord. He knew that the council had been set up from the instant that Anakin had been freed.

Yoda nodded as if he too realised what had happened, "Young Skywalker's fate will be decided later."

Mace leaned forward, "Now is not the time for this. The Senate is electing a new Chancellor, Queen Amidala is returning to Naboo and we have at least two Sith Lords running around unchecked. Her returning to Naboo will put pressure on the Trade Federation and could cause the situation to escalate."

Ki-Adi-Mundi nodded, "And draw out the Queen's attacker." He continued,

Mace agreed, "You will go with the Queen to Naboo and see if you can discover the entity of this supposed Sith. This may be what we need to deal with the Sith."

Yoda nodded his agreement, "May the Force be with you."

Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan knew that they were dismissed and bowed, "May the Force be with you, Masters."

Travien saw Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon approach the landing pad with Anakin, who was conspicuously not wearing Jedi robes. Travien fought hard not to grin and then remembered exactly what he was planning. That wiped the grin off of his face quite easily as he walked up to the two, interrupting the Jedi's argument,

"Do I assume then that the council has once again proven their collective stupidity?" he asked Qui-Gon,

Obi-Wan bristled indignantly but Qui-Gon cut him off, "You knew what they were going to do." He stated flatly, "Did you have a vision?"

Travien smiled slightly, "Master Jinn, when a man insists upon shoving his head up his arse, I don't need a vision to tell you that he will wear his hair as a hat. I knew what they would do because they are the Jedi Council. They're nothing if not predictable." He stated happily,

Qui-Gon nodded resignedly, "What will you do?"

Travien shrugged, "I'll teach Anakin the basics, touching the Force and meditating, or I'll get the handmaidens to do it. Either way, he'll need it."

Qui-Gon narrowed his eyes, "What are you planning?" he asked.

Travien huffed, "Don't ask and I'll not lie to you." They nodded and Obi-Wan proceeded onboard. Anakin waited with Qui-Gon and Travien,

"I don't want to be any trouble Qui-Gon, sir." Qui-Gon kneeled in front of Anakin and smiled,

"You will not be any trouble Anakin. I am not allowed to teach you, but I want you to watch very carefully, understand?" Anakin nodded and Travien spoke up,

"Listen kid, I can't teach you anything, if I do it could ruin your chances of being a Jedi. What I will do is ask one of the Handmaidens to give you a basic introduction to the Force, okay?" Anakin nodded enthusiastically. "Good, go on into the ship then." Qui-Gon and Travien watched him go.

Qui-Gon looked at Travien, "Why do I get the feeling that you are doing something you shouldn't be doing?"

Travien shrugged, "You're probably right. Padmé's likely going to tear me apart before we get to Naboo but I really have no choice in this, not if I want her to survive."

Qui-Gon frowned, "What do you mean, survive?"

Travien snorted, "You can see what is happening here. This attack isn't just against Naboo. A good portion of the Sith's efforts have gone into attacking Padmé directly. This attack will fail and ego will demand that they try again eventually." He sighed, "I will not allow her to die before her natural time, Jedi. The galaxy be damned I will not let them hurt her."

Qui-Gon nodded, "You do actually love her. Everything I was ever taught say it's impossible but you have fallen in love, haven't you?"

Travien nodded and smirked, "Yes, I have."

"What of the will of the Force?" questioned Qui-Gon

Travien shrugged, "If the Force wants her to die then it can kill me first. Beyond that, remember you're a Jedi and you serve the Force, I'm a Sith and I serve…well I serve me and Padmé. Now let's get onboard before they leave without us." Qui-Gon nodded and they went up the boarding ramp, followed by R2 and Jar Jar.

As they entered the ship Travien turned to Qui-Gon, "Do me a favour, will you?" Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow, "Keep Padmé busy and in the throne room until I arrive." Qui-Gon nodded,

"I will try."

Travien nodded as the ramp closed behind them and walked to the cockpit,

"Hi Ric, got something I need your help with."

Ric Ollie frowned, "What's that, sir?"

He programmed a set of co-ordinates into the navi-computer, "I need you to take us to these co-ordinates before heading back to Naboo."

Ric shook his head, "I need to know why first sir, I have orders from the Queen."

"Shit!" swore Travien, "Look, you know we're going back to Naboo, right?" the pilot nodded, "Good. We are going to need a lot more firepower and help than we have with us. Even if the Queen manages to recruit help on the planet I need more people covering her back than we currently have. I have a supply base at those co-ordinates; it's one I've been preparing or a while."

Ric frowned again, "Are you saying that you knew this invasion was coming?"

Travien shook his head, "No, Ric but it's not paranoia if they really are out to get you. I need you to lock the navi-computer once we're on our way, the Jedi certainly aren't going to be happy with our destination."

Ric nodded, "Alright, you've never led us wrong before, so I'll trust you. You can explain this to the Queen."

Travien nodded, "On my way there now, just give me time for one transmission before we jump to hyperspace, okay?" Ric nodded and Travien left the room, heading towards the communications room.

Travien walked over to the long range communicator and typed in the appropriate frequencies, channels and passwords when a familiar body appeared in the holocam,

"Statement: Greetings Travien. Are you well?"

Travien smiled, "That I am, brother. I need you to prepare for my arrival by de-activating the field. Can you do that?" he asked.

"Condescending statement: Easily little brother, surely there is something else that you require?" he asked,

Travien nodded, "Yeah, there is. I need you to start production. We'll arrive at your position in twenty four hours, I need as many HK-51 droids, fully armed and armoured, as you can produce in that time. I sent the schematics for what I need in my last transmission earlier today. I need them to be ready for the possibility of large scale combat. I also need as many small arms as you can rustle up."

"Statement: You make it sound as if you are going to war, little brother."

Travien snorted, "No, brother, just a skirmish. We're fighting the droid army of the Trade Federation. It has a droid control ship, you know what that means."

The droid nodded, "Disappointed statement: The battle droids are all linked together with no real intelligence."

Travien nodded, "Yep, now I have to justify myself to the love of my life little brother, I'll see you tomorrow. Wish me luck."

"Reassuring Statement: Good Luck little brother." The signal cut and Travien chuckled quietly to himself, "I'd love to know where he picked up reassurances from."

"So would I, better yet I would love to know what the hell you think you're doing?" said the angry voice of Padmé from behind him and he felt the jump of the ship going into Hyperspace. He gulped,

"I don't suppose you'll be willing to let me explain in private, will you?"

Padmé nodded, glaring at him angrily, "My quarters, now." She said icily.

Travien nodded solemnly and walked to her quarters, Padmé trailing angrily behind him. They entered her quarters and the door hissed shut. She had apparently taken the time to remove the make-up and apparel as she was dressed as a handmaiden,

"What the hell is going on?" she hissed.

Travien looked at her far more calmly than he felt, "Where would you like me to begin?"

Padmé considered for a moment, "Coruscant, what happened on Coruscant. You were distracted and political. You're only like that when you need to manipulate someone, and I think that the someone you needed to manipulate was me!" she hissed,

Travien nodded and waved for her to sit down, "You're right, but hear my point of view first, okay?" She nodded slowly, still angry with him, "Valorum wasn't doing any good. If the Trade federation could get away with invading a planet then he was useless as a leader, which is the only reason I consented to this plan. Valorum needed to go. I tried to prevent this by presenting the evidence but there was only so much I could do without preparation and on a foreign battlefield."

Padmé nodded, "I agree, but why is this a problem? I was the one who called for the vote."

Travien took a deep breath, "The man most likely to replace him believes himself to be the Dark Lord of the Sith."

Padmé snorted, "The Dark Lord, but the only person you spoke to was…no, no I will not believe that. I will not accept that the man Naboo has trusted to represent them would do that to us!" she spat.

Travien shrugged, "Padmé, I give you free access to my mind for a reason. By and large Sith are not to be trusted, it is dangerous. I have no intention of betraying you, which is why you are free to poke around so long as it isn't presents that you're looking for. I have no physical proof. I spent most of my time there guaranteeing your safety. I didn't want to let him assume control of the Republic but it was better than the alternative."

Padmé just glared at him, "What was the alternative?"

"I saw two possible options. One is where we accepted the commission and Naboo and our way of life was destroyed before we could be vindicated and our people saved. The second was that we were punished for attempting to re-take the planet. I know that Sidious will not allow either of those to happen."

Padmé huffed angrily, "So to keep the Republic intact you've handed it over to a Sith Lord?!"

Travien nodded calmly, "A Sith Lord who is more than aware that he is still alive because he is useful to me, a man who knows that his threat against you has put him on very thin ice." He started to get slightly irritable, "Look, you wanted to be neutral, fine. I accept that and I am happy with it, but you have to understand that Sith like him do not conform to your idea of civilized. He wants one thing, to rule the galaxy, okay. I want that too but I want you by my side when I do that so I'm willing to compromise, okay?"

Padmé sighed, "Fine, so Palpatine is in fact Darth Sidious, why didn't you do anything about him?"

Travien shrugged, "Anyone else and I would have but Palpatine has the same protections as I do. He's done nothing that is traceably wrong. The Senate will not understand what it means that he is a Sith Lord, what they will see is that one Force sensitive murdered another and hand me over to the Jedi. Then I'm dead and can no longer help anyone."

Padmé sighed, "Just…just keep an eye on him, alright? I don't want to have to go through with your plans of building an Empire."

Travien nodded, "I have quite a few plans actually that are going to need a lot of work. Even if I don't end up building an Empire I'm going to be busy. I think you'll appreciate it."

She nodded, "Fine, now about that holo-transmission. Where exactly are we headed and how, I gave Captain Ollie strict orders." She demanded,

"And I explained to Captain Ollie that you were headed into enemy territory with few guards and even fewer effective weapons. We are currently on our way to pick up some more."

"Where from?" asked Padmé with a hint of steel in her voice,

Travien grinned, "We are headed to the Star Forge."

Padmé frowned, "The Forge isn't active, is it?"

Travien nodded, "I sent the activation codes when we landed on Coruscant. I had the Forge building construction droids for when we remove the Trade Federation, there is bound to be damage after all."

Padmé smiled, "Thank you. What are you building to help us?"

"Mostly small arms, but as many battle droids as we can carry. They're far superior to the Trade Federation battle droids." He answered,

"How do you know that?" asked Padmé,

"Simple," answered the young Sith, "They're designed to be assassin droids." Padmé gaped at him for a second before shaking her head,

"I don't like that you went over my authority to do this." She said,

Travien shrugged, "My job is to protect you by any means necessary. If that means I occasionally have to piss you off then so be it. I prefer to think that I'm doing something right if you're still alive though." She nodded and they began meditating rather than get into anything else. They knew they would have to sleep soon and after that would be the Star Forge, so they didn't really have time for anything. Travien thought briefly about getting the Handmaidens to begin Anakin's training but decided the last thing he needed was to open himself up to the Force and then wind up in the Forge.