Author's note: I have to start this chapter on a solemn note. RIP, James Earl Jones, dead at the age of 93. You lived a long, fulfilling life, and you were a big mark on many of our childhoods, including mine. Either as Vader, Mufasa, or another character of yours, you've been there in the darkest times. Your legacy with live on for decades to come. Rest easy, James, Carrie, Sebastian, Peter, etc, may the Force be with you all always.

Feel free to join my Discord server: . disc ord. gg /3b3B xdHQKG (delete the spaces). You can talk about whatever you want in there. SW and RDR channels are in there as well.

Chapter 17

Darth Sidious breathed, his muscles tensed, opening his eyes as his chest pulsated.

It occurred to him how risky that was. The mere fact that the quite appetizing attack on Naboo distorted the Jedi's vision, blinding them further, was gleeful.

Switching from Sing to Maul's initial intent was to give the girl false hopes, while Sidious subtly planted seeds inside of her for him to control.

Of course, it wasn't that difficult. The girl was a broken spirit, the result of a lifetime of bad breaks. She had not chosen bounty hunting as a profession; it had chosen her. Sing's death wasn't entirely meaningless, however, for she'd done the Sith a great service.

Now, the duel provided Sidious with great insight into Luke Skywalker.

The Force cooperated with Skywalker, and he cooperated with it. Another manifestation of the Force retaliating against the Sith with the extermination of the Sith and the eradication of the Dark Side.

Beyond that, Luke Skywalker fits the description of a title long passed. A title thought to be discarded so many years ago.

A Jedi Lord.

An abandoned sect of Jedi Knights indicting to assist worlds left unprotected by the Galactic Republic became honored that the citizens of the worlds they protected gave them castles and manors from which they conducted their operations.

Founding castles and manors as their formal residences, these Lords constructed a hereditary system, passing down their titles to their descendants for several generations. The peaceful regions of space maintained as symbols of the light in the ever so "despicable" darkness, and even Coruscant and the Galactic Senate was monitored by Jedi Supreme Chancellors, inspired by the even further ancient Biel Ductavis. During that time, the Jedi High Council argued directly with the Jedi Grand Council, which consisted of Lords from across the galaxy.

Following the High Council's woeful failed attempt to raise Jedi Master Skere Kaan as the Order's new hope, Lord Hoth gathered the banners of the Grand Council and formulated the Army of Light. Unleashing a huge force of Jedi Knights, Seneschal Hoth was proclaimed by the final Grand Council to dominate the Army and its seven legions. In a decades-long hunt, Lord Hoth led his legions across Sith-controlled space to do battle with Lord Kaan. Republic forces followed the Jedi for leadership and independence and after ten years of fighting, the war culminated on Ruusan. Ensnared in a devastating campaign on the planet, the Army of Light was virtually decimated along with the Brotherhood of Darkness when the Sith released the horrors of a thought bomb.

With the Brotherhood conquered, the Republic allowed the Ruusan reforms within the Senate and demilitarized the Army of Light. Surviving Lords and other veterans of the Army were shunned by the mainstream Order and the Grand Council was broken apart. Gatherings such as the Corellian Jedi and the Teppo Paladins were some of the last remnants of the Jedi Lords to survive the Reformation period.

How could Sidious have been so blind?

The answer to the Force's countermeasure against the Grand Plan stood before him. It was like a dragon. And yet, it was familiar. A son of the Light. But it was only him. A warrior. No Master to chain him. No codes to restrict him.

The Vergence of the Force... Luke Skywalker.

And he was here to stay.

If Skywalker saw through his Chancellor Palpatine's performance, what else did he know? Did he know where his Sith Holocrons were possessed? Did he know where all the bodies were buried? Did he know about his secret facilities? Could he barge in with a bunch of Jedi and apprehend them? Would that be Sidious's path now? Depending on his backup contingencies where he wouldn't rise to the position of Emperor?

Oh, Sheev Palpatine had plenty of allies who could turn most of the public against the Jedi, blaming them for what happened to Naboo even. If they sprang a move against the Chancellor, one of those contingency plans would fall into activation. Dead men's switch; some implanted a decade or longer ago. Those that have been modified to suit Sidious's needs. Funnily enough, Plagueis never noticed that part.

But that would be so unsatisfying, and quite frankly, not the approach that Sidious would prefer.

While Palpatine could theoretically lead the future secessionist movement and was capable of spinning things in a way to make his switching sides believable, that'd be a last resort. It was just that would take a lot of hard work compared to reorganizing the Republic from within. He'd needed to get proper leverage against Skywalker.

If it were temporary, it wouldn't be impactful, but better than relying on nothing.

He had to at least ensure that Skywalker couldn't find information that could be incriminating.

Oh no, he could take care of those secret locations and find new ones.

Bombs should do the job well.

Besides, Palpatine had been working a lot lately.

A few hours of sleep while things resolve themselves wouldn't arouse suspicion.

Now, it was time for Darth Sidious to eliminate Plagueis...

Kenobi failed.

Fear drove into Padmé's heart as she watched the youngest Jedi drop in a heap of fire on the ground. By some miracle, Kenobi did stop the flames from coming in, but that didn't mean that their luck was truly intact.

Pieces of molten shrapnel and a few thin geysers of flames spurted through Kenobi's strange barrier. Nabooians screamed and collapsed to the ground, scythed down by unlucky hits, others impacted by the debris and falling.

It would be a miracle that the Jedi Padawan survived.

The Jedi Master strained, his concentration faltering, not only at Kenobi's fate but also at all of these people. It was rumored that the Jedi could feel death through the Force and it could break their concentration.

Padmé's fear went to her parents and sister. Were they alright? Why would the Trade Federation do this? What had Naboo done to them to deserve this? Would she even see them again?

"Queen Amidala! This palace is going to be burnt to hell!" Someone shouted.

The flames came closer and closer...

Until it...

Stopped?

How?

What happened?

"Luke..."

The word left Padmé's mouth at the sight of the dark-robed man.

And instantly, her spirits brightened, For some reason, that man soothed every concern, and made the galaxy feel a lot brighter. He filled a part of her that was just lost. In reality, it was lost when the Republic made it clear that they weren't going to help her. One singular word. Hope.

Luke Skywalker walked right through the palace. The ambers lurked, having just threatened to spread, and came to a halt, as if students obeying a command issued.

Regardless, they would live.

Luke Skywalker would make sure of that.

Jinn collapsed but managed to stay conscious, sweating. The palace didn't waver. Skywalker reinforced his energy, possibly, preventing his assistance from being necessary. And suddenly, the flames drew in. Skywalker should have been burnt alive, just as Kenobi was. Should have been reduced to a rolling mess on the floor. But the resolution of whatever he was doing dragged the lava in one by one.

And the flames were gone, but the carnage it wrought wasn't.

Luke...

It had always been Luke...

He was their hero. Her hero.

Jinn crawled up to his Padawan, his hands shooting around the boy. Those who had minor injuries were looking out and sighing in relief that their unexpected savior arrived earlier.

Sabé...

Rabé...

Eirtaé...

They were alright. Having been behind her. Sabé even jumped on her, saving her from a blast. Padmé recalled numbly.

Her Captain survived, but he looked terrible. The man was hit directly in the debris, like most, but he gripped his chest. He looked like it was hell for him to even walk; his teeth were bared, but he managed to stand.

The "Symbol Of Hope" led them outside, his hand extended in the air. Jinn collected his burnt Padawan and followed behind the survivors, who took as many bodies as possible.

When she saw the burnt city, she couldn't help but gasp. Buildings collapsed all around. The city was not the semblance of hope and harmony but destruction and death. The death toll must be a disaster.

The palace was pushed away as all of them exited, and the few wounded coughed or doubled over.

"Kark, this is another Time of Suffering," Rabé swore.

That left a shiver down every Nabooian's spine. The Time of Suffering was brutal and lasted around 200 years until General Jafan united the city-states through his will and military might, ending the conflict eight hundred years ago. She wondered what he would have thought about all of this if he were still alive. Thousands of people had died. Her over-dependence on the Republic now backfired.

A Starfighter landed at the foot of the palace. Fortunately, the air forces seemed to be neutralized. Given no more battles were charging at them, it was safe to assume that the battle was over. Naboo, and especially Theed, would be forever changed after this.

Jedi Master Adi Galla jumped out, cradling a figure in her arms.

"I need a medic to check over my Padawan. Please!" she pleaded, her knees buckling slightly.

"Sure, let me see." Despite the traumatic event they had been through, Yané was able to keep her composure and move over.

Gallia lowered Tachi to the ground. Padmé looked at the right side of the woman's face, and she grimaced at the sight. Its lower side was maimed and burnt. She wouldn't be surprised if her jaw was broken.

She pulled out a backup scanner she had in her possession and checked over her. Yané nodded and looked up.

"How is she?" Gallia asked, concern in her tone.

Yané nodded with a slight shiver. "Broken jaw, multiple fractured vertebrae, concussion, and she'll have nasty permanent scarring, but otherwise she'll be alright."

Well, damn. She supposed that she had been extremely lucky. At least, more lucky than Jedi Kenobi. The wounds they had shouldn't be salvageable by human standards. Guess that was what happened when one clung to last-minute miracles, given how Theed looked.

"We have some good news, Queen Amidala..." Lieutenant Typho stated, nodding into his comm.

"My parents and sister, where are they?" Padmé asked, unable to stay in control any longer. She needed her family. Oh! Please! Please! Say what they were alive.

"They've been found," the guard stated.

Her eyes widened. "Are the-"

"They're alive. They were found six minutes before the explosions." The guard replied solemnly.

Despite the relieving news, tears threatened to spill from her eyes. She had done everything she was supposed to do, but her efforts weren't enough.

Commotion persisted. Once all of the survivors and the dead were recovered, the palace - 'conveniently' - fell over, into the bottomless abyss below.

Padmé was able to walk over to the distant stairs, not wanting anyone to see her cry. Only when she'd gotten away, she was able to slump over and collapse, burying her head in her hands and releasing aching sobs.

They left her alone.

A hand placed itself on her arm. She looked up to see Luke, his eyes staring down at her with compassion and sympathy.

"I'm so sorry, Padmé."

Now, Padmé couldn't resist the urge to stand up and wrap her arms around Luke. Luke accepted the embrace, wrapping his arms around her.

Her face dropped when she spotted the way Luke looked at her. "What is it?"

Luke managed a smile, his eyes speaking volumes as they stopped embracing. "... Ask me again sometime."

Padmé's lips curled in wonder, but she didn't press.

"You need to mourn," he enforced. "You can't let your emotions destroy you."

She sniffled, "They're all gone. It's my fault. I had a duty."

"You did what you felt was best, Padmé," Luke replied sympathetically, his hands shooting through her brown hair soothingly.

She buried her head against his chest and cried until her tears passed. Her face hurt. Everything was burning. Even with the knowledge of her family being alive, she just couldn't be weak right now. The shame of that, along with everything else, combined into one.

But she managed. Somehow, she knew that more headaches were to come. Naboo had to rebuild. She couldn't run from her responsibilities, tempting as they were, and she would start here.

"You know," she swallowed and continued, "there was another similar incident on Malastare, some years before the blockade of Naboo. The Corporate Alliance tried to blockade this planet, again in "protest", but that time the Republic acted decisively and simply destroyed the offending blockading fleet."

Luke nodded. "Now, you see it. The blockade was completely illegal, but the Republic is too inept, corrupt, and feeble to intervene. Naboo and the accompanying Chommell sector are members of the Republic, with your own Senator. So is the Trade Federation, although not a planet as a large corporation, they have their seat in the Senate. Both are "equals", though neither of you has authority over the other."

Angry, but none of the anger was directed at her. Padmé didn't grimace, not when a hand was softly placed over her shoulder.

"All of those people..." Padmé began to speak, "every single one of them! Dead! Democracy was supposed to solve the problem!"

"I understand."

"You don't!"

"I do. Believe it or not, Queen Amidala, I prefer democracy too. Too many deaths are on my hands as it is, and I imagine more would come."

Padmé looked up at him, struck by the new side of a composed Jedi Master. "Do you want to talk about it?"

How quickly the roles changed. He gulped, his eyes shot to the ground. How could this be the same man who exploded at that slaver on Tatooine?

"I killed... millions of people."

She gasped. She knew it wasn't right to judge him without hearing his side of the story. Never could she imagine someone so good and kind-hearted as a murderer. "Why?" She asked, knowing there had to be more.

"It was a planet killer." he answered, keeping his face directed to the ground. Amidala frowned in confusion when he elaborated. "Had possessed the ability to annihilate planets."

Oh? When he put it that way... If such a thing ever came to this galaxy... Padmé couldn't help but feel thankful.

"My friends tried to tell me that it was the right thing to do. But... it was hard. I know death was part of the war. I know I saved billions more. But I-at the time, I laughed at their deaths. But later, when it set in, I felt sick. It's always there. It hasn't left me, and it's been years now." The Jedi answered. "I'm a monster."

"You're not a monster." Padmé insisted furiously.

"I..."

She tightened her embrace, "You're not."

"To those people, I am," Luke answered, his eyes shadowed with guilt and shame. "I separated children from parents. Parents from children. Families. Lives "25,800 enemy troopers, 27,048 officers, 774,576 crew, 378,685 support staff, and that's not counting the droids." he continued quietly. "I'll never forget how many."

She wanted to help him, but how could she help someone when she couldn't help herself?

Luke looked down in guilt and closed his eyes. Slowly, his eyes hardened... "The point I'm trying to make is that war, Your Highness, distorts a perspective. A few thousand years ago, such a thing would have never been allowed. If a corporation invaded a Republic member? The military and Jedi Order wouldn't have stood idly by and allowed it."

"I have been taught that the Senate and Republic would help us!" Her contained bubble didn't last. "But they haven't done anything! Maybe! Just maybe! This could have been avoided!"

"I'm afraid that what you've been educated in is wishful thinking and the wants of a simple galaxy... "

"You're right..." She sulked. There was no point in denying it anymore. "I wonder if the Senate actually elected someone already, or are they coming up with excuses after excuses about why they couldn't do it?! The Senate... they have the Judicial forces in strength soon enough, but they wouldn't send them!" She bit her lip. What was she to do now? Naboo was, had been, a peaceful world. The same was true for their allies. They lacked the strength to contest the Trade Federation's blockade military...

On their flight from Naboo, during the brief trip on Tatooine and while going to Coruscant, she had been persuaded that the Senate especially would save the day, only for Palpatine and Luke both to be proven right. A cruel lie, everything she'd been taught to believe. Most people here who survived would need cybernetics. They would be in hospitals for months if the fleets got here in time after recorded messages were sent out. She tried to make herself believe in finding a peaceful way to resolve the crisis and looked at how that turned out.

Luke sighed and lowered his head before he looked up. "I have several ideas. You may consider them wrong, but they will help Naboo, despite how long they would take."

Uneasiness formed in her gut, but she continued, to her quiet surprise, without hesitation...

"What are your ideas?" The least he deserved was for her to listen; she would listen. Naboo wouldn't be attacked, never again. Not without heavy resistance at least.

If there was one person she trusted the most, it was Luke Skywalker.

For all those people who are asking if Luke/Padmé will become a thing, the answer is a firm FUCK NO. Not every male and female who talks and laughs with each other or feels a connection to another will instantly lead to romantic love. I'm not even going to get into all the reasons why Luke/Padmé is DISGUSTING; nevertheless, that slash won't happen. They will/do have a brother-sister connection.