Chapter IV

Chapter IV

 

“No, tell him I’m still waiting. In fact, I’ve been waiting for three days,” she sighed in frustration.

“I will pass the message on, Senator…” the receptionist hesitated.

“Amidala. Padme Amidala. You should see me all over your transmission logs,” Padme threw her hands in the air.

“Very well Senator Amidaily. I will tell the Grand Centurion you were looking for him,” the prissy, human receptionist flashed a much-practiced smile.

“Yeah, I bet you will,” Padme said angrily before shutting down her terminal.

She sat back in her chair before staring out her window at the pristine, snow-capped mountains just beyond the city of Aldera. In the distance, she could make out the tourists riding up the hover lifts to the top of one of the mountains before they could enjoy their choice of rides down to the bottom again.

Tourism had quickly become one of the chief industries on Alderaan. With other worlds being raided during what the Holo-net had dubbed the “Clone Wars”, people from across the galaxy flocked to her world.

Soldiers, sailors, and pilots of all ranks had come to enjoy shore leave on a paradise. Fleet Admiral Chodun had visited Crevasse City and re-affirmed that it was one of the Twenty Wonders of the Galaxy. Families came to get away from it all and live a fantasy life they once had before the war started. The unspoiled countryside attracted a flurry of new businesses to the planet catering to every whim and desire that anyone could want.

Everywhere she walked, vendors had merchandise capitalizing on the Clone Wars. Armbands featuring the slogan “Remember Coruscant” and “I support G.C.P.” were the latest craze to sweep the planet.

Padme wanted to enjoy it all. Her planet was thriving, her home was finally going in the direction she wanted it to go, and she couldn’t afford to take even a handful of moments to revel in the transformation.

The only drawback had been the mandatory ID checks that Republic Enforcement Squads were performing on any citizen deemed “suspicious”. The required curfews were equally frustrating, but the government was determined to keep the war at bay and terror in check. Padme wanted to fight these restrictions, but ending the war would end the constraints on the people as well as save lives.

Right now, all Padme wanted was for the person who helped her in the past to just acknowledge her existence. She was well aware that the Grand Centurion of the Galactic Republic was busy trying to end the Clone Wars, but she thought that everything they had gone through together would merit at least an acknowledgment.

“Let’s see. We have a man in power that is avoiding you, refusing to answer your questions, and not helping in any way. Does this sound familiar?” Khian asked, twirling his favorite vibroblade, Alanna, in his hand.

“Even Tarkin was kind enough to be arrogant to my face,” Padme blew a tuft of hair out of her face.

“So now what does the great investigator do?” Khian asked.

“She does what she has done before. I can ignore the baseless ramblings of a dissident who attends committee meetings just to get his kicks,” she said.

“He rambles like a Rodian, but I ain’t heard much of Remmick’s ramblings lately. Where has that bug been hiding?” Khian asked.

Padme hesitated. “It’s funny you should ask. He stopped bombarding my office with calls. There are no more chanting protests outside my door. He has missed the last two meetings including the vote to extend the curfew. I thought for sure if Remmick would be squawking at any meeting, it would have been that one,” she stood up and leaned forward on her desk.

“Could be his ramblings weren’t so baseless,” Khian offered.

“Oh please, you don’t really think there is a vast conspiracy to silence any opposition to the war. That the corporations are really double dealing to the Republic and the rebels? This would go so far beyond even the craziest of theories,” Padme said.

“Maybe that is why it might be true. No one can believe it because it is too unbelievable,” Khian slid the weapon into a hilt attached to his thigh.

“So I am supposed to believe that half a dozen corporations with millions of employees spread across numerous star systems are selling weapons to rebels with zero leaks to the media?” Padme asked.

Khian stood, tossed a digital tablet in her direction before leaning on the opposite side of her desk. “Then how are the rebels so well armed? They just captured the Space City of Numidia. They attacked with a fleet of warships, not just a flotilla or a squadron. They hit us with forty-one capital ships and this was not their usual hit-and-run. They broke from their MO and invaded.”

“I agree it has to be coming from somewhere,” Padme replied.

“And what about the dissidents? We’ve both seen the reports of protests across the Republic’s Outer Rim being brutally put down,” Khian continued.

“Those were rioters, not protests. They were looting, pillaging, and causing chaos. I don’t see the R.E.S. snatching citizens from their beds in the middle of the night because they’re not thrilled with how the war is going,” Padme leaned in a little further.

“Were they really looting? Or is that what the Palpatine news network is telling us? And you don’t think the R.E.S. is really doing mandatory ID checks on only ‘suspicious’ people?” Khian countered.

“Are you saying Palpatine is ordering the abduction of rabble rousers?” Padme asked, her eyes locked on the captivating green eyes of her bodyguard.

“Remmick is an ideal rabble rouser and where is he now?” Khian also leaned in, refusing to break the stare her liquid blue eyes held.

“How should I know? I can’t keep track of every single citizen!” Padme leaned in until they were inches apart.

“Then what can you do apart from whining?” Khian pressed.

“Unlike some people, I don’t shoot first and ask questions later!” Padme countered.

“I don’t even like using blasters!” Khian replied, his voice rising.

“I know that!” Padme said angrily, but she couldn’t look away from him.

“Then what are we even arguing about?” Khian shouted.

Padme hesitated, her mind going completely blank.

“I don’t know!” Padme shouted back, determined to say something.

They were both breathing heavily. Khian’s cologne mingled with her perfume and their eyes could not break apart. Padme had been used to looking into his bright, green eyes, but this was different. His eyes now held a warmth that she had been yearning for, a kindness she had sought, and a tenderness she had been looking for. She closed her eyes and leaned in a little further. Padme’s heart pounded in her chest.

“Senator? I’m sorry, but Viceroy Organa is back from Coruscant and would like to set up a lunch meeting with you at the Orbital Mansion. Shall I clear your afternoon tomorrow?” Padme’s Chief of Staff shattered the moment.

Khian went back to pacing in front of the window. Padme smoothed her hair and pressed a key on the intercom.

“Apologize to the senator and ask him if we can meet sometime next week. I have a feeling tomorrow won’t be good for me,” Padme answered.

Khian cleared his throat. “I need to review the security arrangements for your town hall meeting tomorrow.”

“Khian,” she said, but he kept walking.

“Khian, please,” she said and he stopped within a step of the door.

“If you would check with some of your ‘associates’ regarding Mr. Remmick, I would appreciate it,” she said.

“I’ll do anything you ask. But if I may, I don’t think Palpatine will ever respond. You’re chasing a comet with an airspeeder,” and he left the office.

“Alone again,” Padme sighed to herself and stared out her office window at the snow-capped mountains beyond the city.

Padme became lost in her thoughts as her eyes glazed over at seeing the numerous people soaring down the various ski slopes. She wanted to be there and she didn’t want to go alone.

The intercom buzzed on her desk. “Senator, you have a transmission from Coruscant.”

“Uh huh, that’s great, Khian,” she murmured.

“Senator? Khian left almost an hour ago,” her Chief of Staff said.

Had she spent an hour daydreaming like a schoolgirl? Padme shook her head to get back to reality. Finally, Grand Centurion Palpatine had responded to her multiple messages. She activated her holo-imager and instead, Jedi Master Yoda’s face smiled at her.

The flicker of disappointment on her face was enough to make the learned Jedi cock his head to one side.

“I’m sorry,” she began and resumed her smile. “I was expecting someone else.”

“Expect many things, people do,” Yoda said. “Pleasant also, the un-expected can be.”

Padme’s expression softened. “You’re right, of course. It is very good to see you again, Master Jedi. What can a humble senator do for you?”

“More than you know,” Yoda smiled. “Discovered the rebellion’s plot, you did. Help to end it, you can.”

————————–

His polished boots clicked loudly on the floor, completely disregarding the silence ordinance on this level. Ethan was already breaking protocol on so many levels that one more infraction would make no difference. The Jedi clones who flanked him as they walked down the dimly lit hallway eyed him with contempt.

“He will not be verrrry happy to see you,” Clone Windu said.

“A Sith and happiness go together like a Hutt and a bath,” Ethan retorted as they turned a corner.

“I don’t know why he uses a brrrrroken toy like you,” Clone Kenobi spat.

Ethan whirled around and felt the anger rise within him. “I may have been broken, but I’m not a jealous test-tube freak who has limited ability at best and has never known the true power of the Force.”

There was a tense silence before they resumed walking to their destination.

Two clone Yodas stood on either side of the standard looking door. They both looked up at Ethan and ignited their lightsabers.

“Belong herrrre, you don’t,” one of the Yodas said. The other Yoda twitched for a handful of moments before resuming its normal state.

Ethan sighed. It was amazing how the clones that he had brought into existence could have become so impertinent and arrogant. It didn’t seem that long ago that Ethan had been directly responsible for the creation of over two thousand Jedi clones that were now ripping through the galaxy.

“You don’t belong in existence. Why don’t you go levitate something or find another equally mundane task? I have business here and I will be heard from. Now either you will fetch your master from behind that door or I will put you back in the petri dish I formed you from,” Ethan snarled.

“You meant, ‘our master’,” a cold voice said from behind them all.

Ethan whirled around, but all four of the clones instantly dropped to one knee. The Yodas extinguished their lightsabers and bowed their heads.

Ethan remained standing.

He marveled at how Darth Maul seemed to emerge from the darkness itself. The gold in his eyes glimmered like smoldering coals.

Ethan wanted to say something. He had this immediate urge to apologize for any wrong he might have done to this force of evil. Fear began to encroach upon him. A great weight descended on Ethan’s chest and settled there.

“You said for my clones to fetch ‘your master’ when you really meant ‘our master’, didn’t you Ethan? Or are you offering me your resignation?” Darth Maul asked.

An icy lump began to form in Ethan Organa’s throat. He tried to swallow, but couldn’t. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead as the Dark Lord of the Sith stepped closer. He almost seemed to bring the darkness of the hallway with him.

“I offer my apologies, my Lord. I wish to continue to serve you as I always have,” the Crown Prince of Alderaan slowly dropped to one knee.

Darth Maul walked up to the kneeling Ethan and looked his red and black face down at him. One of the small Yoda clones began to twitch uncontrollably. His head whipped side to side and he began mumbling incoherently. Darth Maul’s ended the creature’s genetic suffering in one swift motion with his lightsaber still hanging from his belt.

“Rise Ethan, we have much to discuss.”

Ethan felt a tremendous weight lifted from his chest as he stood and walked behind the Dark Lord of the Sith. They went through the door, but before it closed behind them, Ethan threw a smug look back at the waiting clones as they picked up the body of their fallen brother.

“It’s a pity they live much shorter lives than the cloned troopers due to genetic flaws. We only have enough left to cause widespread terror for a short while or use them all in one magnificent battle,” Darth Maul observed. He looked at Ethan as if he remembered he was there.

“Despite your brash disrespect for my wishes, I have great plans for you,” Darth Maul said as they entered a wide, circular room.

The room was brightly lit and contained absolutely no furniture with the exception of a console off to one side. Darth Maul walked to that console and activated it. The room’s lighting quickly dimmed and a holo-image of a massive installation filled the room.

“Great plans indeed. My master needs to accelerate the war and because I cannot be in two places at once, you are needed to serve once again.”

“It is my pleasure to serve. Is this my destination?” Ethan asked, pointing at the hologram of the planet hovering in the room.

“You must let the will of the Force determine where its exact location is. This was a place long feared by many. With your work and the work of your clones, it will be feared once more,” Darth Maul said.

“Where will you be?” Ethan asked before he could stop himself.

The room seemed to darken without the lights dimming.

“I have an old business partner to get reacquainted with. That is all you need to be concerned with,” Darth Maul growled.

“I am only concerned for your safety, my Lord,” Ethan said.

His master saw through his half-truth. “You are only concerned with yourself and making yourself superior to the clones that must accompany you.”

Ethan chewed on his lower lip.

Darth Maul’s eyes narrowed. “They are your own creations, Ethan. If the Jedi learn of this planet as well, they will send their knights to secure it. Their protection will be necessary.”

“It wouldn’t be necessary if you would fulfill your end of the bargain,” Ethan said, but his breath caught in his throat.

“I see,” Darth Maul said in a quiet voice that dripped with death. His eyes locked on Ethan. “You believe me to be untrustworthy.”

“Would you prefer to return to the life I found you in? Constantly looking over your shoulder, on the run from the Jedi Order? Always wondering when your father might learn of what had happened to you? Fearful of what the Jedi Council would do when they got their hands on you once again?” Darth Maul asked in that same quiet voice. It was a voice that held a warning for Ethan.

“I am always grateful for what you have done, my Lord. I simply meant that I delivered the clones to you. I am just waiting to be restored so that I might serve you better,” Ethan hoped this calculated risk would pay off.

“The Force is not a light switch. You can’t earn enough points and cash them in to get the Force back. You will be rejoined with the Force when you are worthy,” Darth Maul said.

“How many clones will you send with me?” Ethan asked.

“Twelve,” Darth Maul replied.

“That should hold off the Jedi Order for all of sixty seconds,” Ethan scoffed.

Darth Maul’s eyes narrowed. “I used five hundred of your clones for something that was necessary to all of our fortunes. Having them aid you instead would have done nothing to speed your search in any way. When you determine the exact location of this planet, then will you have the reinforcements needed to hold it.”

Ethan stood back and stared at the rotating planet. It seemed like a peaceful world; beautiful, but not extraordinary. He felt that this planet held the key to his destiny. On this world, he would become one with the Force. When he did rejoin the Force, every Jedi in the Order would feel his pain, his father would feel his wrath, and even Darth Maul would understand why he was the Daetan.

And then entire galaxy would learn what fear truly is.

—————————

“Master! MASTER!” Anakin was shaking Obi-Wan Kenobi by both shoulders, but he got no response. He went from his friend to Master Ki-Adi-Mundi, but also got no response.

“How deep of a meditation can you be in to ignore this?” Anakin asked as the cave shuddered with the force of another set of explosions.

“Wha…what’s going on?” Obi-Wan asked as he blinked himself out of his meditation.

“If I knew that, I probably wouldn’t be this panicked,” Anakin said as he helped his master to his feet.

“Calm yourself, Anakin. We will accomplish nothing by giving in to fear of the unknown,” Obi-Wan said and he closed his eyes.

A moment later, his eyes flashed open in alarm. “There’s an orbital bombardment. I can’t believe I’d see the day when someone would dare attack a Jedi planet. I have no doubt that some landing craft will be arriving shortly,” Obi-Wan said.

Anakin also closed his eyes and stretched out with the Force. “Master, why would they send troops down here? If the rebels wanted to obliterate this cave, so why not just do it from orbit?”

“They cannot be truly certain of this temple’s total destruction unless they have boots on the ground to confirm it. They want this hallowed place wiped from history,” Ki-Adi-Mundi stared at the cave’s ceiling.

“But why?” Anakin asked.

“The why is not important. Stopping it from happening is what matters,” the Jedi Master replied.

Another set of explosions rocked the cave.

“Master, I don’t think we will stop anything if we’re sealed in here,” Anakin said and they rushed out of the small chamber and back into the Grand Crystal Chamber.

Obi-Wan and Ki-Adi-Mundi hesitated when they saw how the cave had suffered from the attack. Light poured in from several holes that had been blasted from the bombardment. Where there had once been simple and beautiful crystalline formations of blue and green now lay brittle fragments. They were now dull and listless by the hell of war that had been brought to Illum.

Anakin sensed the briefest flash of outrage from Obi-Wan. He looked back to see his master standing beside Ki-Adi-Mundi. The Jedi Master was cradling a crystal in his hands before looking to the sky.

“Masters, we need to get back to the surface and find out what is going on,” Anakin urged. He placed a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder.

Obi-Wan nodded to his friend and extended a hand to Ki-Adi-Mundi. The crystal fell from the Council member’s hands and shattered on the stone floor. He nodded grimly to Obi-Wan and then to Anakin. Together, they raced out of the cavern.

—————————–

Khian never left anything to chance. That being said, he double-checked his equipment before embarking on a mission that Padme wouldn’t quite approve of.

The time they had spent together had been extraordinary. Khian stomached boring meetings with squawking bureaucrats just so he could state Padme’s position and race back to see her and deliver his report. She had been grateful and every moment they spent discussing politics had brought them closer together.

There had only been one or two meetings that Padme vehemently insisted she handle herself and Khian agreed. All that mattered was that she saw that Khian was making her happy as well as keeping her safe.

As he walked down the avenue, the cheery decorations and numerous street vendors catering to tourists brightened his heart. Before, he would have been suspicious of them and held each of them with contempt as they waved “Remember Coruscant” memorabilia at him.

Today, the music and the brightly colored lights and streamers warmed him. He knew it had nothing to do with them, it was all Padme. The world itself seemed to glow just by thinking about her smile.

It was the height of the Regent’s Festival in Aldera and more people had flocked here than ever before to escape the misery of the war. It made the local businesses go the extra mile to oblige the masses with lights, streamers, banners, and musical groups around every corner.

Khian wanted to embrace it all. He wanted to join in with the revelers, but when a kid with sandy colored hair brushed past him, Khian’s mind snapped into focus.

From the very beginning, he liked Anakin. When he held Padme hostage during his interview to get the position of being her bodyguard, it was Anakin that dared make a move to free her. The other paid security stiffs were frozen. At least the kid had guts.

Since then, he had really warmed to Anakin. Keeping sane while being around a few thousand Jedi would have been nearly impossible for most people, but this guy was different. He still held his sense of humor. He smiled, joked, laughed, and seemed to enjoy himself regardless of his sterile surroundings.

Now, as Khian pushed through excited tourists who chanted “Remember Coruscant”, his mind was troubled. He wanted to give Anakin the benefit of the doubt. After all, Sith were legendary liars and twisters of words. Whatever they were talking about might have been playful banter. Khian himself had been known to trade a few quips with people trying to kill him.

The digital tablet in his bag beeped. Khian ducked into a side-alley away from the vendors and the cheering masses. He frowned when he saw what the tablet displayed.

The program he was using was painfully slow in figuring out what Darth Maul and Anakin were discussing. He only had twelve percent of the conversation deciphered, barely one word in ten. But two pieces of text struck him.

            “Jedi will restrict”

            “Ability is being wasted”

Khian leaned back against a wall. So far it wasn’t anything too serious. True, this raised more than a few red flags within him, but there was more of the program to see.

There was still time for Anakin to redeem himself.