Epiloge Supplements

Milky Way Galaxy
Alpha Quadrant
Earth
Paris

"Senator Amidala, your shuttle departs in fifteen minutes."

Padme made sure all her possessions were properly packed before she began making her way to the shuttle that would take her aboard the ship taking her back home. She wished things had gone as well as she could have hoped but truth was she was disappointed. Not so much in what happened in the Council Chambers as she pled her case but herself. As much as she wanted to argue that she believed she was doing the right thing when going to Geonosis to help Obi-Wan, she could admit that she hadn't taken the Federation and the dangers of drawing it along with the Milky Way Galaxy into the Clone Wars.

Here she was, preaching about trying to bring peace and doing the right thing and she might as well have admitted to throwing the rules and wishes of others aside to suit her own agenda.

"Senator."

Padme turned to the door to her suite and was surprised to see who had spoken. "Sarek. What brings you here?"

"I had heard you were returning to your galaxy and wondered if you would be open to an escort." Sarek stated.

Padme raised an eyebrow. "Thank but I have security for that."

"Escorts do not always rely on security." Sarek replied. "A simple walk between friends can provide more security than any guards."

Padme looked surprised. "I didn't know I would still be considered a friend, given how the Federation Council is unhappy with me."

"It is not so much unhappiness then being worried of being drawn into a war so far away and trying to mitigate the circumstances." Sarek replied, walking into the suite. "You are still bothered by what was said in the council chambers."

"I am." Padme sighed. "I just…I felt like little girl being scolded in front an entire class even though my intentions were good."

"And they would be considered good." Sarek replied, making Padme look at him.

"That's the impression I got there." Padme stated. "Ambassador, I know that what I and Master Skywalker did reflected badly on the Naboo as a whole but I couldn't sit by and do nothing."

"No one had asked you to simply do nothing but sometimes, taking action can be more dangerous than standing aside and trusting others to try." Sarek replied. "Senator, would I be so bold as to make a personal view of mine known to you?"

Padme raised an eyebrow, looking surprised and slightly interested. "You may."

"From my observation, you have taken a greater deal of responsibility than someone your age is meant to be burdened with. You were exposed to service and politics to your father at a very young age and from that point forward, you have assumed adult like duties before you even reached adulthood, even becoming ruler of an entire planet." Sarek stated. "You essentially closed the door on your childhood before it was even close to being over. You joined the Apprentice Legislature at eight years of age, you become Queen of your planet at fourteen years of age and immediately after your terms ended, you became Senator for your planet in not just the Senate but also in applying for Naboo's membership. From my experience with humans, while that can be seen as remarkable, it can also lead develop an unrealistic sense of responsibility and easily overlook certain dangers."

Padme shifted a bit. "You think I assumed too much responsibility. I couldn't say no when the Queen requested to take over as Senator." She turned away. "It was too important."

"Many things can be considered equally important. Not even on Vulcan would a child be expected to take on so much responsibility. Your responsibilities have isolated you from your agemates and that can miss out much needed development." Sarek stated.

Padme was quite for a moment before she sighed. "You sound just like my father. He was against me becoming Senator."

"I don't intend to imply you should not have become Senator. I only state from my own personal observations that taking these responsibilities might become too much for you bear eventually." Sarek replied. "Though I will admit, I possibly might have similarities to your father on the ground that I opposed my son Spock's decision to enlist Starfleet. It has only been recent that I consider that my judgement had been in error. His shipmates are of good character."

Padme slowly turned around to face Sarek. "And what would you have done in my place, Sarek? What could you have done to stop an intergalactic war?"

"I would logically consider the outcome of whether or not my efforts would achieve any results. It might be difficult to understand, Senator but given the political situation between the Republic and Confederacy, war was likely the logical outcome." Sarek answered.

"Logical? How can you war would be a logical outcome? People are dying now." Padme protested.

"It is regrettable but in the last ten years, I and many of my colleagues have noticed a troubling situation with your galaxy. The majority of the people you call Separatists are composed of worlds that have been neglected by the Republic for various illogical reasons while the Core worlds have enjoyed a stable and somewhat materialistic lifestyle. Many worlds were victims to abuse and were not treated as most inner Rim worlds were." Sarek explained. "I also should point out that the majority of the Core Worlds are human worlds while the majority of the Outer Rim worlds that now support the Confederacy are non-human. Worlds that have been subject to xenophobia behavior."

Padme shifted uncomfortably as she listened.

"Breaking away and trying to create their government is a logical outcome, given that they do not believe the Republic can be trusted to represent their best interests. It does not help that many in your Senate have demonized them simply for protesting the taxations of trade routes in the Outer Rim that the Core Worlds benefited from. Even if they had been preparing for war, given what the reports from the crew of the Enterprise have stated, the Jedi and by extension the Republic provoked them into declaring full scale war." Sarek continued, much to Padme's shock. "Master Kenobi was caught on their world, convicted of spying on them and you and Master Skywalker were found guilty of espionage and later tried to arrest or kill the leaders."

"We had to stop them. They were going to declare war anyway." Padme argued.

"Yes, and if things had been allowed to play out differently, they could have failed." Sarek pointed out, much to Padme's surprise. "Building up an army is not a crime. The Federation has Starfleet, while a not a military organization, it can still be considered as they are trained to fight and prepare for war. The Separatists were within their rights to build an army to protect themselves. Would it not have been more logical to contact their own Senate and inform them of the situation before you arrived on Geonosis?"

"I…" Padme paused but shook her head. "Even if I had, they would have still executed me and the Jedi. Their senate would have been bogged in debates."

"So, you claim to know what a certain group of people will do because they do not agree with your political views? Are you sure that there would not have been protests from the Confederacy worlds, arguing that executing three political prisoners without their knowledge would make them afraid that the Republic would declare war on them." Sarek questioned. "If Count Dooku and his council had been informed that their senate was executing you and the Jedi for espionage, are you sure they would not have argued to hold the executions until such time you would not be questioned for your reasons?"

"Ambassador, with respect I understand what you trying to tell me, but I know that the only way the war could have been stopped is if Count Dooku and the Separatist leaders were arrested." Padme stated and sighed.

"I am not convinced it would have been that simple, not when the Separatists had the strong beliefs that the Republic had failed them. Such actions would only prove to them that the Republic would be intolerant of them trying to form their own alliance of systems, especially now that everyone knows of the Republic's apparent clone army." Sarek replied. "This is why the Federation's Prime Directive exists and why we cannot simply overlook this matter just as Naboo was about to admitted into the Federation. It sets a dangerous precedence for all of us. We cannot simply rush into matters we do not agree or we risk making things worse."

Padme decided to end the argument, feeling a headache was coming from it. She wanted to believe that her actions were not wrong, and that the Republic would not be so cruel as apparently the Separatists have been painting it. Sarek's logic and his own sense of wisdom made it hard to argue and she feared that continuing to argue with him would only make her doubt herself.

And doubt the decisions she has made.

"Ambassador Sarek." Both Padme and Sarek turned to the door to see two men in a Starfleet full dress uniforms at the door. "Our apologies. We were told you would be here, and the door was left open."

"It is of no trouble." Sarek gestured to Padme. "Senator, may I introduce Fleet Admiral Morrow and Lance Cartwright."

"Senator." Cartwright nodded to Padme who nodded back. "I'm afraid we've come with bad news, Ambassador. An emergency session has been called in the Council and the Enterprise is involved."

Padme perked up while Sarek remained composed. "Something has happened."

"Ambassador," Morrow took a deep breath. "I am sorry to report that the Enterprise suffered heavily casualties in what should have been a mere training cruise. Among those causalities was Captain Spock."

Padme gasped, hands reaching up and covering her mouth while Sarek…

Sarek closed his eyes and seemingly remained calm but as he opened his eyes he held a hard gaze on the two men. "Tell me what happened."