Chapter 53

I woke up early the next morning, put the final finishing touches on my report and delivered it directly into the hands of a bemused Obi-Wan. He was less than enthused though when I told him that Padme had requested me to accompany her to Alderaan. I couldn't tell him the full story, as the Jedi Temple was an open book to Palpatine at the moment. That any Force Vision was possible would be a big red flag to the Sith Lord.

"Oh very well, since we have your report and it's a senator making the request," he said, pocketing the datapad into his robes.

"Thank you, Master Kenobi," I bowed with a smile.

"Do give Senator Amidala my regards."

"I will."

I donned my M8 Aegis, grabbed my single luggage bag and met HK, who had grabbed an automated public taxi for our use.

Thankfully I could use my Jedi credentials to allow it to travel into the lower altitudes of the Senatorial district and land on one of the large temporary repulsor platforms that was occasionally raised into the air to allow senators to board and land starships without having to leave the district.

Landed on this one was a Nubian J-type Diplomatic Barge that was assigned by the Naboo government for Padme's use. Like all products from Theed Palace Space Vessel Engineering, it was an incredibly beautiful starship that made me want to buy one just as a 'hangar queen' - to sit there, safe and simply be admired.

It was an extremely wide design, nearly 91 meters in width, most of that being shaped wings, with two engine nacelles mounted on either side of the main hull. It featured a skin entirely plated in energy resistant, shimmering chromium. The wide wings weren't just for aerodynamics in case of engine failure in an atmosphere, but featured four recharge and linking points for N1 starfighters that allowed the J-Type to carry those fighters through hyperspace.

For further defense, the ship had monstrously strong shields for its size, a full military ECM suite, and dual hyperdrive cores for redundancy that pushed it to a 0.7 speed rating, letting it outrun nearly anything in the galaxy. Our trip to Alderaan would just be under twenty-six hours as a result.

"Commentary: It could use some guns of its own," HK let out a mock sniff from his vocal processor.

"I think it's pretty," M8 declared.

"Resignation: Of course, you would," he said as the taxi landed.

HK and M8 had so far had a very ambivalent relationship, as they were both still getting to know one another. HK had initially felt quite sorry for my power armor's intelligence, as M8 would be getting to know the 'disgusting inner workings of meatbags' very well.

M8 didn't consider organics 'disgusting', her entire purpose was to protect me and help me. One big part of that was monitoring my vitals, overall health, including regulating temperature and disposing of my bodily waste. Yes, I could even go to the 'toilet' in my armor. So far from considering organics with the derisive term of 'meatbags', she found our workings 'rather fascinating', the complete opposite of HK.

M8 was too young in her development for full opinions on complex topics, so was rather childlike in most things. She considered HK simply 'rude' and the only thing she truly disliked at the moment was anyone who would potentially 'harm her mistress'.

We disembarked from the taxi and were met by Captain Typho, who made a final scan and weapons check before we were allowed to board the Barge, which I learned had the name; King Jafan.

The interior was as sleek, luxurious and hi-tech as I would expect of a ship bearing the name of the first true monarch of all Naboo, who had united the old city-states of the planet through will and force of arms, ushering in their Great Era of Peace.

It had a full crew of five manning the major ship functions, including five guards from the RNSF.

We were shown to one of the four diplomatic quarters, which was again stupendously luxurious to cater to even the most snobbish head of state or diplomat.

I got out of M8 and redressed into my much more comfortable Hapan attire.

I had barely done that when I spotted through the small window of the suite that the King Jafan was moving. It had already begun its take-off cycle and began powering through the air to gain altitude.

I hadn't felt a thing. No vibration, engine noises, whines, nothing.

Given the sensitivity of my montrals, that was bloody amazing.

"Statement: The sound and vibration dampening systems are quite impressive, Master. Conclusion: No doubt to prevent complaints from political meatbags with egos that could crack planets."

"That's the idea," said Padme, whose face twitched with amusement from the main door to the suite.

"Morning Padme," I bowed reflexively.

She tutted at me in disapproval before stepping forward to give me a hug. "I trust you had no problems from the Jedi Council accompanying me?"

"No, I bring fond regards from Master Kenobi."

"Thank you. It would be nice if he could visit in person at some point. Queen Neeyutnee has a standing order that I must try to get him to visit Naboo. She hopes she can get a state banquet off the ground in his honor."

"Which is precisely what Master Kenobi is hoping to avoid," I chuckled in amusement.

"I tried to explain that Jedi don't like those sorts of things, but she has her mind set on it."

"It's not like the Naboo elect flighty queens, after all," I teased her.

"No, they do not," Padme said primly. "Now, you've had breakfast?" I nodded. "Good, then you can join me for a nice chat over a board of Dejarik."

"Uh," I winced, feeling rather put on the spot. "Sorry, I don't know how to play."

Padme was rather taken aback. "You? Miss I-coordinate-entire-fleets-of-starships-in-battle, don't know dejarik?"

"It's not exactly required learning in either the Jedi Academy or in command school, Padme. I just haven't had the time."

It wasn't as if dejarik had any relevance at even a tactical level to battles in space between fleets and ships. Yes, it could probably teach modes of lateral thinking and working within unit limitations, but that was really it.

"Well, then I will teach you," she said firmly, grabbed me by the hand and led me out of the suite.

"Yes, ma'am."

My only experience with dejarik up until that point was literally the few scenes from media I had seen in another life. Even in the Corusca galaxy, it wasn't a game that had been played on Shili, by either my parents or in the village. In the Jedi Temple, such games for younglings were not promoted at all. My quest for knowledge on the Force and my training took priority. The little free time and hobbies I had was devoted to pod racing and the only 'board game' I knew was pazaak.

So, as the King Jafan, entered hyperspace Padme began her instruction.

A tap on the control panel caused the circular holoboard table to come to life with all manner of holographic creatures, currently all standing at the edge of the board. Each creature had their own idle animations, which were very diverse; from swaying in some non-existent breeze, arguing with each other with animalistic growls, whilst others were munching on food messily.

I recognized some of these creatures, as they actually existed on different planets of the Mid and Outer Rim, whilst others were mythical, from a variety of cultures. Whoever had first invented dejarik certainly hadn't been culturally biased when it came time to pick which creatures to include.

"Let's begin with the board," Padme gestured. "It's circular and there are three gradually shrinking circles inside the boundary, the outer and middle circles are divided into twelve alternately colored spaces. The inner circle is only divided into four spaces. The first important rule to note, no creature may move through or jump over this inner circle."

"Simulating impassable terrain," I nodded in understanding.

"Correct, let's begin with a basic opening setup." She tapped on her controls. The creatures vanished and reappeared in a configuration that I struggled to make sense of, though I noted that one group of them had gained a red hue, whilst other a blue hue. "The first thing to understand is that each creature belongs to a class. The first are Brutes, the Mantellian Savrip is the blue side's brute and the Kintan Strider is the red side's brute. They are the only creatures that have to be deployed in the middle circle, they can't start anywhere else. The rest of the creatures, it doesn't matter, they just have to start around the brute."

"So why do the brutes need to be there?"

"It has to do with how it can move and its attacks," she answered eagerly. "I'll get to that. Another rule, the youngest player always moves first."

I blinked as my mind tried to digest that. "Really? Not Red first or Blue first?"

"No, in age, the youngest player always moves first, so you in this case."

"All right."

"Now the thing to keep in mind is that, in dejarik, an attack and movement are considered separate, creatures move in different patterns and where they can attack is also different. However, the Brutes are the exception to this. They are the most powerful piece on the board, they can move and attack in any direction, but only one block adjacent.

"This is also the reason it has to start in this circle, because it has a special move. If a brute is standing on the outer circle, it can move backward and reappear on the opposite side of the board. However, it cannot be an attack, it's just a movement."

Padme advanced the holopieces to demonstrate.

"Got it," I nodded.

"Next, we have the Predator class, represented by the K'lor'slug for blue, and Ng'ok for red. The Predator can move two spaces left or right and one space forward or back, they can also jump over other pieces. It attacks in a Mern shape." That would be L shape for English "Then we have the Guardians, Molator for the blue team and Monnok for the red. They move one space forward or back, and move in a Mern to the left and right. They attack two spaces to the right and left only.

"The final class is the Scout. Ghhhk for the blues and Houjix for the red. They can move two spaces in any direction. It can attack one space forward or backward. It's also special in that it can attack before or after moving in the same turn, but it can only do so once, no chaining attacks."

"Okay, understandable," I said as my mind started making sense of the whirlwind of complexity that was possible with a ruleset like this.

"This is just the most basic form of dejarik, there are other forms of the game, where the creatures have individual statistics based on offense, defense and movement, they move differently and the board has different rules, but let's start slow."

I laughed. "Okay, kiddy version for me, let's go."

What followed was that Padme predictably whipped my ass.

Even if I cheated and used Prescience to predict what she was going to do, (which felt like being a bad sport), I was just too inexperienced with the game to make any use of knowing that.

The conversation we were having over the game also didn't help matters.

"If only Naboo's experience with the Trade Federation blockade was so…" she trailed off and shook her head. "That was unworthy of me."

"Yes, the circumstances were different, Padme. The Federation would've had to actually pay the cost in blood if they wanted to invade Pantora. A cost they were unwilling to bear, so it stayed an orbital blockade."

"But the Naboo Blockade was about more than just money," she said bitterly, moving her Molator piece to take my Monnok. "Ever since you spoke of the state of things, I've been thinking about those events. It all makes so much more sense now. The enemy was behind it all, using it for his own ambition and schemes."

I used my scout Houjix to messily stomp her Molator to death. "Naboo was the final piece in a much larger machination, Padme. A greater one that's scope is measured by at least two centuries. You know by now how the enemy works. The Outer Rim and Mid Rim to a lesser extent has been slowly driven into a corner via carefully weaponized economics and policies of the Republic. From a certain point of view, you could say they've been at the controls for quite a long time, but because no one is so long lived, they can't see the 'big picture'. Those who are long lived and might be able to make the connections are few and far between. They usually are wise enough to also stay out of politics and so have no power to change or impede the enemy anyway."

"And now we're sitting with a galactic war and all the ills and consequences it brings." Her K'lor'slug jumped over her own Mantellian Savrup to catch my Kintan Strider. I groaned briefly in frustration at having missed that play.

"Such as the refugees."

She nodded, "The intelligence that's crossed my desk is not easy to stomach. The systems and planets this war is being fought in naturally lose a lot of infrastructure and jobs. People are losing the means to care for their families or they simply fear for their own lives, they either flee into the wilderness or if they can afford it, get transport offworld to try and start a new life at the next port or deeper into the core worlds. There are also criminal syndicates preying upon the refugees, offering them transport to destinations of their choice but in the process robbing them until they barely have the clothes on their backs."

"Just another aspect of the war the enemy is using," I said wearily, rubbing my forehead.

Padme sat back and scowled at the dejarik board as my Ng'ok took her K'lor'slug. I hated seeing that expression on her face. "Even if this conference produces the ideal results I want, all it amounts to is throwing water on a fire that's already burned a building down."

"That may be," I admitted. "But if it makes a difference in the life of a single person, then it'll be worth it. Upon any single life, may the future hinge and potentially change everything."

Padme smiled and placed a hand on my shoulder. "I'm supposed to be the older, wiser one and here you are, trying to cheer me up."

"It wouldn't be a good idea to have the one chairing this conference be lost to despair, now would it?"

"No, it wouldn't. Another game?"

"Why not? Got to at least beat you once on this trip."

"You're welcome to try, Ahsoka," she smirked with a challenging stare.

"There is no try."

The best spot on the King Jafan for an exterior view was on the small bridge of the diplomatic barge. Thankfully the five crewmen and women working here didn't object to my presence. On the contrary, they were all in the RNSF and knew that I had saved their world from becoming ground zero of a new outbreak of the Blue Shadow virus. The co-pilot even came forward and asked me to sign my signature onto a flimsi, so he could later etch it onto a replica lightsaber.

Signatures by themselves in the Corusca Galaxy didn't mean much in proving anything, unless they were backed up by the DNA encoding and were proven authentic by an expert. He wasn't asking for that, just the 'image' of my signature would be enough. That there were lightsaber replicas as a niche hobby industry at all on Naboo was something of a revelation. The Jedi Order as a rule didn't like civilian museums displaying Jedi artifacts or even making replicas and it was the primary reason the Order had an Explorer division. If people wanted to see the history or artifacts of the Jedi Order - they could freely go on a guided tour of the Temple itself.

The problem was the opportunity and monetary cost of travel to Coruscant was more than some people could afford, so on distant civilized worlds, museums tried their best to satisfy demand and it was another reason that Jedi Chapterhouses existed.

The rolling tunnel of hyperspace fractured and streaked into stars before even those stars seemingly vanished, all thanks to the reflected light coming from the jewel of a planet that had appeared in front of me.

A blue-green orb streaked with white cloud formations. It was as if some painter had come along and decided to make the most aesthetically pleasing weather formations a permanent thing.

The vast bodies of water, snow capped mountains that begged to be skied down, the ancient palaces and estates of old Alderaanian Houses, meticulously preserved by those same families over thousands of years. Hills blanketed with grassland that rivaled Naboo. The gentle thranta, domesticated or wild, gliding through the air with keen wails that echoed through the air. Muskwoods as far as the eye could see in some places. Starblossoms displaying their beauty for only that brief period of time when the celestial alignments were perfect. The two billion souls who called this place home; their loves, their losses, their art, their imperfections…

It was at this point that I realized I had started using Farsight to actually see all this.

I wanted to nearly break down and weep.

Many were those in another life, who had witnessed the callous destruction of this world with such contemptuous ease and had it etched onto their hearts, because it reminded them how their own small little world was under threat of nuclear annihilation and how easy it would be for 'Alderaan' to happen to a similar wonderfully beautiful world.

Seeing this vision of Alderaan, made it all the more visceral and was tearing at my heart.

The death of this world in the future, would be a giant bell struck, to wake up the galaxy to at last see the darkness and apathy that had engulfed it.

It showed that the Empire did not care where a planet was; Core, Mid Rim, Outer Rim. If you disobeyed, if you rebelled, if you did anything that was considered undesirable, your planet would be blown to dust.

It was the rally cry of the Rebellion, the true gust of wind it needed in its sails to truly become a threat to the Empire.

Now, as if I didn't need more motivation to prevent the Imperial Order from being established, here it was.

"Are you all right, Ahsoka?"

Padme's concerned voice pulled me back and I looked back and smiled at her briefly, patting her hand reassuringly as she had touched my bicep to gain my attention. I also swiped at an errant tear from my left eye.

"Fine, I'm fine. This is my first visit to Alderaan. For someone with my perception, it's difficult not to be moved by not just this place's beauty but its… history."

I looked into her eyes pointedly as I said that and she nodded that she understood my subtext somewhat. She knew I saw the future, so at least that I had seen something that was causing my grief.

I took in what she was wearing at this point and wished irrationally that the Jedi had a formalized outfit that wasn't just fancy tunics, long boots and robes.

It was a threaded, white and gold silk-like dress, that stretched to her ankles, but was cut to expose her left leg with each step. Around her waist was a half-corset/half-belt of sorts, it didn't need to pull in anything and was just there to show off an intricate leather design, as well as delicately emphasizing her bust. The neckline plunged enough to show just a touch of cleavage. The dress continued to cover her shoulders with thin pauldrons that flared outward to almost cover her elbows, hung from there and covering her back was a flighty soft cloak. The cherry on top of this wondrous outfit, was the detached collar/choker hybrid with an elegant jewel hanging from it.

Gah, can this woman dress imperfectly for once in her life, I thought in fond exasperation. It felt almost like a crime to be standing next to her in my standard Hapan Jedi outfit.

"Come, we're about to land. I'm sure Bail will be thrilled to hear his world's beauty was able to reduce a Jedi to tears."

"Oh please don't, Padme," I groaned in embarrassment.

She laughed pleasantly and led me to the rear of the ship, HK and the rest of the RNSF security detail was already waiting.

I spent the descent through the atmosphere further taking in the beauty of the planet with Farsight as the ship approached the capital city, Aldera.

If I had to compare it to any one place on old Earth, it was like New Zealand's most picturesque locations, stretched across an entire planet.

Even the city, as nestled as it was among mountains that Bob Ross could spend a lifetime painting, had architecture with organic and rounded shaping to make it seem like it belonged there naturally and didn't impugn or take away from the natural beauty.

Finally the King Jafan touched down on an exterior landing pad of what looked to be a government building that belonged to the Alderaanian Parliament.

"Final checks, pressure equalized… security scans complete," announced Captain Typho, staring into a holo-readout from his vambrace. "Lowering ramp."

The ship broke its seals and I breathed the planet's natural and fresh air. The moment the ramp confirmed its lock, Padme led the way, with Typho to her right, myself and HK to her left, whilst the rest of the RNSF security contingent followed.

Waiting for us was Bail Prestor Organa, or otherwise known as His Serene Highness, Prince Bail Organa, First Chairman and Viceroy of Alderaan. At his side was his wife, Queen Breha Organa. Talk about a power couple. Bail was a Jimmy Smits given a slightly different spin, whilst Breha was another beauty that could stand right next to Padme in terms of looks. Breha had a slightly stronger jawline with piercing brown eyes and long black hair.

Following the royal couple was another familiar face I recognized… a younger Mon Mothma.

If there was one figure of the future I both admired and despised, then it was the current senator for Chandrila.

She would be one of primary reasons the Rebellion would succeed on a political and moral level and the reestablishment of the Republic, then absolutely bungle it all up with her compromises in the name of peace at any price and nostalgia for a return to the idealistic 'High' Republic. Planting the seeds of what would potentially either destroy and nearly cripple the New Republic before even a generation had properly passed.

"Padme," Bail said graciously, smiling at seeing his good friend again.

"Bail, it's so good to see you," she extended her hand and they fondly joined hands, "Breha." As they were both 'queens', Breha being an active one, whilst Padme retained the social status of one, there was no curtseying or bowing and the two women hugged each other with smiles.

"Padme, it's so good to have you back on Alderaan," Breha smiled. "You still owe me an thranta ride."

"I haven't forgotten," Padme said primly with mischief twinkling in her eyes. "Bail, I just want to thank you for hosting this conference. Dealing with the refugees of this war needs to be one of our highest priorities."

"Absolutely," he affirmed sincerely. "Your presence here will certainly sway hearts and minds to support your initiative in parliament. Come, we will show you to your quarters."

I gave a brief look behind me to check that worker droids were offloading luggage and the RNSF detail was already spread out with macrobinoculars and other scanners at the perimeter, checking for snipers.

HK and I hurried along, just a few meters behind all the VIPs as we all entered the building. The Alderaanian royal couple naturally had their own security detail, consisting seemingly of just four armed and armored guards who stayed on the flanks. I could sense the attention of at least a dozen more, who stayed out of sight completely in adjoining rooms.

"HK, you've got the itinerary, what's your opinion?" I spoke softly.

"Objection: Master, you might as well ask an artist what another artist is going to paint."

"I know, but all art involves a common element to some degree. Now stop making me flog this metaphor further and answer the question."

"Evaluation: I see three avenues of attack. Firstly, in close. This would require the reprogramming of a common, normally overlooked device to be lethal in some manner. That is assuming the meatbag assassin has the required skills to slice through the security in this building or possess the infiltration skills to do the deed on site. The use of a changeling would also greatly facilitate this."

"Padme and RNSF have gone to considerable lengths to prevent changeling infiltration, you can downgrade that in your threat matrix."

The measures taken were quite impressive and rather simple. Every member of her security and staff were required to step into a scanning booth every six hours, that had been installed on her ships and in her apartment on Coruscant. The booth not only did remote scanning to sniff out changelings but also did a small blood sampling. The results were then sent immediately via encrypted hyperspace back to three independent locations back on Naboo and to a nearby sleeper RNSF security team that constantly shadowed Padme. In theory, even if the entire household had been replaced by clawdites, the sleeper team would be able to step in and resolve the situation. They even solved the problem of assassination by some or other exotic deadly creepy crawly, but placing and hiding high resolution life sign sensors in her apartment, the kind you'd normally only find in a lab.

"Acquiescence: Very well, Master. Cautionary: Such measures among the Alderani are not present. Further evaluation: Attack from distance. A straightforward sniper shot on the target, made more complicated by the fact that the various venues this conference will take place in are indoors and not entirely large spaces. This would mean infiltration skills and technology for the assassin to gain entry to this building."

"What is your evaluation of building security?"

"Answer: Adequate to high, but with vulnerabilities I could easily exploit. Explanation: The current state of the art detection technologies are currently superior to the technology used to shield and subvert from them. This building does not contain such a high standard due to the expense and inefficiency of meatbag bureaucratic organization. Conclusion: A well equipped and funded assassin would find no problems infiltrating this building, master."

I nodded as we turned a corner and started walking down a long curving hallway, decorated with patterned black and white carpeting that looked to be in imitation of some animal camouflage. "What else?"

"Answer: Indirect attack. This would involve disguising an explosive into a device or furniture that the target would be using at some point."

"You'd think a government building like this would have sensors to detect that."

"Clarification: They do, but again, the sensors are not state of the art, master."

"So an assassin with good enough backing can make it through."

"Affirmative: Yes, Master."

I switched to speaking English, "That narrows down the list of whoever ordered the hit somewhat, but not enough. There's still the matter of the assassin herself."

"Query: Have you divined anything through the Force, Master?" replied HK in kind.

"Now that I'm here on Alderaan, yes. A female, a species I'm not entirely certain of, will have to research. She also has someone in support, maybe working the tech angle. They work well together, and have a friendly rapport with each other, probably long term partners."

We reached a door at this point, which smoothly parted for the VIPs, beyond which was an elegant, well appointed living room with open couches and a truly pristine windowed view of a mountain range. It was luxurious, but not ostentatious.

Inside though, Queen Breha turned to face me before she took her seat. "Pardon me, Padawan…?"

I stepped forward and bowed appropriately, "Padawan Ahsoka Tano. Yes, Serene Highness?"

"Forgive me, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. A consequence of courtly life, I'm afraid, so I have very good hearing. I also have an affinity for languages and I'm not familiar with that last one you used."

"I'd be very surprised if you did, highness. It is an ancient tongue, very old, I can't even really give you a date. This makes it an ideal language to converse in a potentially unsecure location or when you can't be sure if you're under surveillance."

"Remarkably useful then and a pity that I can't really ask to learn it from you. It sounds… unrefined yet strangely as if it could also be beautiful."

"It can be, it lends itself to rhyme and poetry, though I'm afraid I don't know any or have had the time to write any in it."

"Perhaps one day then, if you feel comfortable about it, you can teach me?" Breha smiled and sat down next to her husband.

"Very well, highness."

"HK, full sweep of these quarters, then begin ranging outward. I'll continue divining while keeping watch here."

"Agreement: Very well, Master."

For the next hour or so, the four VIPs mingled and chatted about every subject that you could care to name. They scrupulously avoided any topic related to the war, and were probably saving that for later during a more appropriate setting. The bond and friendship I was sensing between Padme, Bail and Breha, neatly explained how one day the couple would in another timeline, raise Leia Organa Skywalker with such devotion and love.

I could also sense Breha's own problem with conceiving children, now that I looked closely and it was unfortunately something that would require rather extensive genetic sculpting to fix or making use of some form of Artificial Womb tech. That such options were not done when they were clearly available spoke to some form of bias or personal choice against the technology. It might be that any such children wouldn't be considered true heirs to the Alderaanian throne.

My explorations of the probability lines continued until at last I had a piece of the puzzle I was looking for - a location.

"Captain Typho, how familiar are you with the parliament?"

"I've done security for the senator here before, when she was still queen, why do you ask?"

"I have a probable location; long oval room, tiered seating, eight long desks on either side of a central aisle with space for four seats, all leading towards a raised desk with five chairs, on the back wall a mural painting with a regal figure holding a large basin of water."

He nodded in understanding, "I think I know the place, padawan. It sounds like the Panteer Hall, where the parliament usually holds general consultation meetings with Prince Organa. It is on the itinerary as one of the locations where Senator Amidala is due to give a speech tonight."

"Thank you."

I carefully approached the back of Padme's couch. "Senator, a word, please."

She looked at me and after a moment of scrutiny excused herself from Mon Mothma's conversation.

"What is it, Ahsoka?" She asked once we were out of earshot on the other side of the room.

"I have a location for the assassination. I want to check it out, but neither Captain Typho nor I want to leave you out of our sight."

She sighed with a mild smile at us both. "Very well. I'll go make my excuses with Bail."

We didn't go directly to Panteer Hall, in case the would-be assassins were tapped into surveillance. Instead, we simply walked through the different venues and rooms of Padme's itinerary, as if we were just conducting a routine final security sweep.

It gave me a nice tour of the Alderaani Parliament in the process, a building that dated back to the war against the Sith Brotherhood. There were even a few murals on the walls depicting the triumphant marches of the Army of Light across Alderaan. The artist was quite good, if a little over-the-top in his color choices and I highly doubted that the Jedi leading the army actually radiated light like that literally.

When we finally entered the hall, I was hit with both deja vu and feeling the probability lines seemingly crystalizing in front of me.

It was very hard to compartmentalize my emotions of horror and shock at seeing Padme take a blaster bolt to the chest. It was putting blinkers on my sight, fixing my gaze, threatening to cut me off from seeing other possibilities and perhaps even the true danger was not the sniper. I pushed to see beyond that harrowing moment.

I nearly fell into a loop of frustration and anger at myself for not being able to move past it.

Accept it and move on.

How could I accept this? This was the death of Padme! The mother of Luke and Leia Skywalker! My best friend! The wife of Anakin! The woman…

Accept it and move on!

Don't be ridiculous.

I cast off my anger as the two major sides of me battled in mind and heart.

"Ahsoka?" Padme's voice pulled my attention back outward, even as the battle continued.

I let the useless stupid annoyance at the interruption pass through me.

"Yes, this is it."

My Farsight cast a wide net as my perception moved through every nook and cranny the place had. Once I was satisfied I had a proper mental map of the place, I turned around and gestured for the two to follow me. I found a blind spot in the hallway surveillance and made a few hand signals to Typho.

He nodded and pulled out a small device that he activated, which let out a high chirp as it began jamming.

Padme raised an eyebrow at the precaution, "They're actually watching?"

"Yes. The building's surveillance has been subverted. We're in a blind spot so we can speak freely."

"What did you sense?"

"A blaster bolt will hit you in the upper left chest area, the angle seems to indicate a high elevation. Most likely coming from a maintenance catwalk that is up there."

"Then we will be waiting for them," Typho said determinedly.

"No, you will not," I retorted. "It is not merely enough to stop this one attack. We need to find and stop the person who started all this."

"You intend to use the senator as bait," he snapped, though he was professional enough to keep his anger impressively moderated.

"That is entirely up to the senator," I folded my arms and glared at him. "The attack I'm seeing is too simple. There is more to this than just a sniper."

"Ahsoka," Padme put a hand on my arm and looked at me pointedly. "Please explain for those of us not attuned to the Force."

"I can sense that there's more than what I'm seeing. These assassins are not inexperienced or unprofessional. I know I'm seeing a blinkered point of view."

Typho frowned for a moment, "So, you think that the sniper attack is too amateurish for the caliber of assassin you're seeing in your vision?"

"That's one way to put it," I said with frustration.

"Are you sure you're not just overestimating things, Ahsoka?" Padme asked gently. "Simplicity has a value of its own. I've been trained from a young age in counter-assassination and the greatest thing that we fear is not the professionals, but rather the simple, disgruntled, chaotic gunman, who everyone overlooks."

"The problem here is that I sense the sponsor for this hit is not someone to take lightly at all. They definitely aren't some random thug off the street."

"All right, Ahsoka, so what would you have Captain Typho do?"

Accept it and move on!

Padme was shot… her body fell… yes…

…I…

…I accept this truth.

The Force bond materialized in my heart.

The moment came and I felt like I wanted to facepalm myself through my blasted thick skull. Peace settled on the battlefield that was my heart and mind…

"This is what we're going to do."

Panteer Hall was filled to the brim with members of the Alderani Parliament; assistants, staffers and security from the RNSF and Alderaan Security. A constant low level din hung in the air as everyone whispered and muttered about their own affairs and also about the coming speech from Padme.

Prince Bail Organa stood from his central seat on the raised desk and instant silence fell on the hall.

"Greetings to all members of the parliament and honored guests. I welcome you all to this keynote speech and hope it will bring clarity and understanding. Thus far today, we've had smaller gatherings and given the opportunity for many of you to have your say on the challenges that face us. Both myself, Queen Breha and senior ministers have attended as many of these as possible and heard your concerns. Now comes the time to address them. As the conflict that divides our galaxy escalates. We cannot lose perspective on the value of life and the price of freedom. No one knows this better than the distinguished senator, Padme Amidala of Naboo. I now turn the floor over to her."

Padme stood from her seat to the left of the prince and stepped forward to a raised podium.

"Thank you, Prince Organa. I wanted to first thank you all for coming. This is a cause that is very important to me. I can remember after the blockade and invasion of my homeworld, so many lives were thrown into chaos. True, in the grand scale of things, it was a small conflict and there was only one battle fought in that occupation. However, just that single battle caused great destruction. Thousands of Naboo were forced from their homes. Naboo security forces suffered heavy casualties doing their duty. Even Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn was lost.

"And now I find myself party to a full scale galactic war and witness to a Republic that has split itself in half. There are now hundreds of Naboos across the galaxy on an even greater scale, with battles fought across entire planets. Space in the frontline systems is littered with the wreckage of ships that clog up navigation. People are fleeing wherever they can, to restart their lives in the hopes that the chaos will not catch up with them again."

I leaned down slowly next to the prone cloaked figure who was slowly taking her aim through the vent grill. I could see through her scope that she was taking aim right at Padme's heart.

The sniper took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger.

She frowned as nothing happened. Then tried to squeeze it again, only to find that the trigger wouldn't pull at all.

"Rumi, what's happening? You were supposed to take the shot." The voice in the sniper's ear hissed.

"Gun's jammed."

"What? Impossible!"

"You think I don't know that. I serviced this thing just this morning. Go with the backup plan."

"Client's not gonna be happy about this, Rumi."

"Well, he wanted her dead. She'll be dead. Now it will just have to be a closed casket."

I carefully pushed along the Force Bond.

Padme immediately threw herself backward with all the speed she could muster, along with a bit of help from me.

In the next moment, a domed blue shield sprung to life around the podium, and a moment later the shrapnel spitter inside detonated.

I could sense the stunned disbelief from Rumi the sniper and her partner over their comlink as they took in weeks of careful infiltration work evaporating in smoke and chaos. Thankfully, HK's modified personal shield had worked as he said it would, to turn the cleverly disguised shrapnel spitter in the podium into a useless lightshow.

The shield burnt itself out in a few seconds due the ad-hoc modification, but it had done its job.

The RNSF and ASF swarmed onto the stage, doing a well drilled routine, carrying shields and blasters to form a wall of bodies to protect Bail and Padme. There were screams and shouts of fright as the ministers and staffers tried to run at first but were blocked by more security personnel taking charge of the evacuation, to make sure people weren't trampled.

"Rumi! What… what… argh… ow, put me down, who… what are you?"

"Answer: I am designation HK-47, assassin droid. Sincere Statement: Thank you for the challenge of tracing you. Pleading request: My master only gave me permission to kill you if you resisted or tried to escape. Please resist."

Bloody droid.

I relaxed the Force Perception on Rumi's mind and her very sensitive Frenk nose picked up on my scent immediately.

She froze and I felt her emotions skyrocket with alarm and fear. I also felt her next intent.

"Don't move," I said softly.

She naturally didn't listen and reached for a blaster pistol with quite impressive speed, whirling her adroit, flexible body around from a prone position to try to get a bead on me.

My TK grabbed her bodily, ripping the blaster from her hand and sending it skidding down the catwalk.

I hovered her in mid air in a vitruvian man pose and started to rip every device she had from her body.

"Argh, no! Let-"

Her jaw clamped shut as I was forced to take control of it as well. She had a small dart launcher secreted away in that wide mouth, including a number of tiny devices in her teeth, one of which was a suicide tool.

"I apologize for the pain you're about to feel. I'm not exactly skilled enough yet to juggle healing abilities and TK at the same time and do a good job of it."

I raised a hand to aid my focus and twitched a finger. Rumi started moaning in pain behind her shut mouth.

"Easy, easy, just a few more moments… there we go."

I opened her mouth and out came the tooth in question as she gargled in pain on the blood leaking from the void where it had been.

I let it fall to the floor and also hovered the pooled blood out so she wouldn't choke on it. My curiosity wouldn't leave me alone so I spared a bit of concentration on making sense of the suicide tooth. There was definitely electronics in there…

My back shuddered in horror as I realized just how this suicide tooth did its job. This wasn't the messy quick death of a lethal chemical. Nothing so primitive. It was a neural depolarizer. She set this off and it would cause instant death via the zeroing of every neuron in her brain and nervous system. She'd literally become a lifeless 'meatbag'.

That she even had this form of suicide implanted spoke of either an extremely committed individual to never betray a client or someone desperate to never experience capture or torture in any way and take her secrets with her.

My comlink chimed for attention.

"Yes, HK?"

"Reporting: Mission success, Master. I have the meatbag partner of the assassin. Hopeful query: Can I help with the interrogation, Master?"

"No, stick to the plan HK and deliver him to Alderani Security without any harm. They will want to know how their security was breached."

"Disappointed Obeyance: Very well, Master. Signing you off."

Rumi was rather frantic at this point and her eyes were twitching in every direction desperately. Her fear was growing greater with each moment I held her like this. It was generally natural for anyone to feel that way when held like this, but this was something else. I sensed that I was practically stomping on a past trauma at the moment.

I pulled out two sets of mag binders and secured both her hands and feet together, before letting her down hog-tied on the floor.

The instant she had voluntary control of her mouth and body, she started swearing and cursing me in a completely unfamiliar language with a rather impressive vitriol. Then she even tried mixing spit and blood together to nail me in the face.

The disgusting globule stopped in mid air and I made a bit of a show, flicking my fingers to send it off to the side to splatter against the wall.

"Now that that's out of your system, perhaps we can talk like civilized beings. We both had a job to do. You failed, end of story. Your partner is in custody. Either you or he will talk eventually. Alderaan doesn't have the death penalty, which is rather fortunate in this case, because I don't think death scares you at all. What Alderaan does have, is life imprisonment and given you played with a shrapnel spitter within arms reach of Prince Organa, the Alderani will make that life imprisonment in solitary confinement." Given that her fear level spiked again at the mere thought, my hunch was correct. "So Rumi, I'll ask once and if you answer truthfully, I will do everything in my power to make sure your sentence is reduced if you cooperate. Do you understand?"

Her fear turned to anger and she glared at me. "Yes, and my answer is no."

"The hard way it is then," I sighed in disappointment as running footsteps reached my montrals.

Captain Typho and two RNSF security men appeared around the corner of the catwalk, blasters in hand.

"Padawan Tano," he said in relief. "This her?"

I nodded, "Be careful with this one, don't give her an inch. I had to remove a suicide implant."

He gestured and Rumi was picked up and awkwardly carried by his subordinates.

"Understood, we'll take every precaution, we have a lot of questions for her."

It was a few hours later and almost midnight, local time.

I had delayed the natural onset of sleep and approached the door to Padme's quarters with the kind of dread that was somehow worse than the thought of facing Sidious himself in a lightsaber duel.

My hand tapped on the chime button and I heard it resonate inside.

The doors opened and I walked carefully inside only to find no one inside the living room. My eyes were drawn to the balcony though and Padme was standing outside, gazing at the beautiful view of the surrounding mountain ranges bathed with moonlight and starlight. She was wearing an elegant silk-like sleeping gown and nursing some sort of beverage, idly twirling it as she also hugged herself.

"Please join me, Ahsoka."

I let my fear and dread go, letting it pass through me. It was very difficult to do for some reason.

With a fortifying deep breath I walked forward and outside into the pleasantly cool and fresh air.

I ended up leaning on the balcony railing and my eyes were unable to resist drinking in the wondrous natural view.

Alderaan was naturally beautiful even at night.

I heard her take a sip of something that my nose was telling me was fruity and sweet. "Ahsoka, what is this?" Her gentle, encouraging tone made it even worse. She should be angry, but she wasn't.

"What you're experiencing… Padme… is a Force Bond - with me."

"I… you mean, that's why when I think about you hard enough I can feel what you're feeling?"

"Yes," I laughed ruefully. "Figures something that is generally considered to be impossible happens to me."

"I don't understand, why do the Jedi think that this can't happen?"

"Everything in their own experience of the Force says so, but even the Jedi can't claim to be all knowing about what the Force can and can't do. What arrogance to even think that way. An orthodox Jedi would say that a Force Bond is impossible with someone who does not fall into the category of 'Force Sensitive'."

"I see… I think," she said, I felt her puzzlement acutely. "So what actually is a Force Bond?"

"It's the building of a bridge between islands on the sea that is the Force." I winced at the explanation, but Padme was not a Jedi who had been studying the Force for years. It was the best metaphor I could make up on the spot. "You knew it was me at the door without even thinking about it, letting me in when I could've been yet another assassin."

She was visibly startled at the realization, "Now that I think about it… you're right."

"That's just one tangible benefit of a bond. The mental training exercises I gave you to resist the enemy has also helped you to gain a greater awareness of your own mind." I restlessly fiddled with the railing. "A bond like this exists usually between master and padawan."

"You mean, you have this with Anakin?" Padme asked in alarm. I sensed her instantly realizing the implications of this and her embarrassment rising.

"Correct, and yes, I generally know when you both are 'hitting the sheets', distance or sound proofing is not an issue. Please don't think either Anakin and I are intentionally sharing or peeking. A bond, like any door, can be shut and locked and he does both when you're together."

"That's… that's a relief, I must admit."

"Yes. Now you must make a decision, Padme. I created this Bond intentionally in the process of admitting my own feelings for you to myself. If I did not do this, if I did not accept why I was feeling such horror at your death, I would've been blinded to the probability of that shrapnel spitter. I would've saved you from a sniper shot only to lose you to their backup plan." Could the earth just swallow me up now and put me out of my misery? "If you so desire, I will sever the bond."

The silence that fell after my confession felt like a mini-black hole had just popped up behind me. I turned my attention firmly away from Padme's bond, not wanting to see or feel anything at the moment.

Her soft hand on my left shoulder was the last thing I expected, but I felt it nevertheless. "What would that do to you?" she asked softly.

"The bond is fresh, new, if I sever it now the consequences would be… not as dire. You would not find me a pleasant person to be around for a few days, maybe a week. I would be utterly indifferent to you."

"And our friendship would…" She was unable to find the words.

"In this case, it might survive, with time."

"I don't like the sound of that 'might'," she said.

"Bonds are two way lanes, Padme. If one side doesn't want it, then it must be dealt with, regardless of feelings or perceived injury. It is the burden I bear from this gift and I bear it gladly, because of the consequences of not doing so…"

"So you would bear this sacrifice for me? You would break your own heart?"

"Yes."

"Ahsoka, you are young, I still well remember what I was like at your age…" I opened the bond and briefly 'blasted' her with the unfiltered truth and feelings. Her eyes widened in understanding, she put a hand to her chest and almost stumbled back. "I apologize… I was going to make light…"

I closed the 'door' on the bond and waved off her apology. "Don't worry. I get that 'you are still young' thing a lot. I'm used to it. For anyone Force Sensitive, the breaking of a feeling is not done lightly."

She stepped closer, her hand on my shoulder… again. "This is not an easy decision, Ahsoka."

"It shouldn't be."

"So you and Anakin have this? You really can just send feelings to each other?"

"We can hold full conversations."

"Could we?"

"In time maybe, at the moment…" I opened the bond and sent, "Only I can send thoughts to you." She flinched and was clearly startled at perceiving a voice in her own head that wasn't her own. "With further training and strengthening your connection to the Force, you may be able to send thoughts back."

"That's possible?" she asked in amazement.

"Yes, though it will require you to undertake training from a Matukai master, which by itself isn't certain. They're a nomadic order of Force adepts, who solely use their own bodies to channel the Force. Even beginning to know where to look for them is troublesome at best."

"And something I don't have the time for."

I nodded and looked back at her as she stared up at the stars in thought. "There is something else you should also keep in mind."

"What?"

"You realize that you have an infinitely stronger bond with Anakin?"

She blinked and looked rather stupefied for a moment, as if she couldn't believe she hadn't seen it before. I saw her mind briefly reeling as she perceived yet another set of external feelings. My proximity and guidance was helping a lot.

"Is that… Anakin?"

I probed down my own bond with Anakin just a bit to get awareness of his circumstances. My mouth twitched in amusement, Oh this was going to be hilarious. "Yes."

She arched an intrigued eyebrow at me, an involuntary smile slowly dawning on her face. "Are you feeling… mischievous?"

"Close, yes, I am. I want you to listen to me very carefully. I'm going to give you an instruction, do not think about it, don't dismiss it, don't reason it, just do it. Understand? It'll help if you go through that mind clearing visualization I taught you."

"All right," she took a deep breath in and out. Her thoughts faded until all I could see was just the small flicker of her awareness, like a tiny candle in the darkness. "Ready."

"What's Anakin doing right now?" I blurted out with speed.

"Reading a datapad in a field tent, drinking a bottle of water, which he just spilt all over himself for some reason," she said instantly, going crosseyed and wincing as her mind rebelled against the strange foreign input.

I couldn't help it and laughed merrily despite the circumstances. "Well done, Padme. With my help, you just pranked him across thousands of light years. He's probably going to be very grumpy with us both, and he's realizing that I just figured out how to crystallize your bond with him and make you aware of it."

I plunged down my own bond, sending him a warning.

She frowned, "You did something there?"

"Correct, I warned him to not try anything across the bond. Anakin is very powerful and he might hurt you, your mind needs time to adapt."

She sighed, "That was amazing, Ahsoka, and again, I thank you, but…"

I nodded, sensing her intentions, "I'll give you time and privacy. It's been a long day, we'll speak in the morning, you can tell me your decision then."

"Thank you," she said with feeling, squeezing my shoulder.

I left her quarters, strangely feeling like some great intangible weight was gone. It was as if I had thrown off chains that had been binding me. This wasn't passion of the flesh, far from it, this was a love I didn't have a word for yet. Whatever her decision, I would bear it and if necessary bear the pain, my own mind and heart wouldn't stand for anything less.

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