Author's Notes: I hope you guys like this.... Oh and by the way, feedback is very, very welcome.
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'On the defensive, no one wins; it is simply to keep from losing. On the offense all lose, as in the winning something must be sacrificed. It is when those that battle use the Force and allow its ordained conclusion, that all win.'
Senator Palpatine remained aloof as the vote commenced in the senate
chamber. His name was on the list for those being considered for the
vacating Supreme Chancellor position. It seemed that the vote was pulling
in his favor, as many that might have voted for Bail Antilles of Alderaan,
had after rounds of debates, turned into his camp. In his mind, it was only
a matter of time until his true plans could come to fruition. In the
spectator area of the Senate chamber, he could sense that his apprentice
stood ready to leave to begin the preordained plan upon the announcement of
Palpatine's election.
Far below the towering, sometimes inhuman, spires of the planet-city, Corsucant, there existed a new type of technology. The technology dealt with the most precious type of matter in the Universe, life itself, and the ability to copy it perfectly. An army of vast numbers. An army that would be indefeatable, and completely replaceable. Palpatine's apprentice, Darth Maul, was to descend into the depths of Corsucant immediately following the election to begin the final stages of the production. It was on Darth Maul' s genetic code that the warriors were based, creating a humanoid with incredible ability to channel and use the Force.
Palpatine's thoughts changed to think about the tiny planet of Naboo that had made all of this possible. His position, the call for the vote, the ease with which he moved through the ranks were all owed to his home planet. He had hoped that upon his election to use Naboo as the capital, but its position on the outside of the galaxy made the move not a good one. But that could be dealt with after his plan worked. Ah yes, he thought, a plan with a two edged blade; one, to place himself in power and strengthen the Republic under one solid rule using the Force as a driving point, and two, to defeat and crush the Jedi. After all, it was not advisable to allow the order to flourish if they would only serve to fight against him. Besides, the fools only served the Light side of the Force, not willing to feel the full power that the Dark side offered. He had no time for those that chose to remain willingly ignorant. No, a central empire under his rule would be strong and united, ending all of these squabbling feuds.
The lights in the practice room on the Republic 7 was darkened to allow those within to not be assaulted by external stimuli, but still provided ample lighting to see. Qui-Gon's eyes had long since adjusted to the darkness, and he watched his two students closely. The orders that he had given to the tow of them had consisted of one, no bloodshed, and two, use as many of the skills as they could that they had learned. So far, the results had been surprising. The two were at a draw. Neither one would win more than one duel with the other, before the other would defeat the winner the next round. It was something that he had not expected: Padme to keep even with Obi-Wan. He watched as the former leapt high into the air, performing a perfect flip with a half-twist, keeping her sabre within parry length of the opponent. Obi-Wan swung as soon as the girl had hit the ground and the swing was deflected.
The girl's practice shirt slid up in the front as she leapt into the air doing a back flip. Qui-Gon found his eyes locked on the girl's torso as the material crept up her skin. He quickly shook his head as if to clear it as the material shifted again, falling lower. His soft curse at himself for his weakness echoed in the small room. Such as it had been for the last four standard lunar cycles, he found himself wondering about the girl as she became a woman in front of his eyes. He hoped to clear his mind of her by keeping her on the ship while Obi-Wan and he went on their various diplomatic missions. But he found the distance confusing him even more.
A beep from the wall drew his attention and he listened attentively to the voice on the other end informing him that they were approaching Alderaan. Qui-Gon voiced his ascension and with a final look at his two charges, left for the bridge.
As the door shut behind him, the two apprentices escalated their play. As Padme swung her sabre in a low arc toward Obi-Wan, a box from the side flew at her feet. Without looking, she jumped and swung her sabre at the same time. A shirt that Obi-Wan had brought in with him was suddenly flung at his face before Padme landed. The combination of the three occurrences created enough of a diversion that she soon had Obi-Wan without his weapon. When he pulled the shirt from his face, Padme stood in front of him with a sabre in his face. "Do you yield?" she asked, placing a hand on her waist.
"This round." He murmured, wiping his brow with the cloth. She reached down to pull him up and was caught off balance as he pulled her down next to him. "Would you sit for just a moment?" he asked irritably.
Padme laughed as she shut off her sabre and got comfortable against the wall behind her. Her tank shirt that Obi-Wan had lent her, and the baggy pants that she always wore when practicing were soaked with sweat. She felt the exhaustion in her limbs, and had been aware of its presence for some time, but her mind controlled her need for rest by relying on the Force for strength. She sighed as she pulled at the gathering of hair on the back of her head. "We should start again soon."
"He has left, Padme. We can rest for a moment." Obi-Wan leaned back on his elbows. " We have been at this for 3 kiloparsecs, you know. Any real fight that would take this long would be a draw and we would need to retreat."
"I know, but I like being tested, Ben."
"Have pity on me, Padme." Obi-Wan grinned. "I am your superior in age, you know."
"Only by ten seasons." She stated cheekily.
"Quiet, urchin." He added with a smile. "Qui-Gon is impressed with you."
"Why? I had most of these skills in the battle arts before I came into contact with the two of you…"
"But you have honed them, Padme. It is a credit that you are able to do all that you do. Qui-Gon knows this."
"Good, then he should let me accompany you next planet fall." She sighed leaning back to stare at the ceiling.
"He is protecting you, Padme." Obi-Wan answered quietly. "He does know that you need to use your skills, but he knows that he has to protect you. I feel confusion in him."
"It must be from that last mission that I accompanied the two of you- Oceanius." Padme sighed. "That was four standard lunar cycles ago, though. I know that I feel the confusion in him, too. And I don't know what to do to alleviate it."
"Keep performing like this and he will have no argument to keep you away." Obi-Wan looked at her out of the corner of his eye.
Padme was quiet for a moment before slowly standing to her feet. "Ben, do we have any other droids to fight against, here? That way I can give you a rest and I can practice."
Obi-Wan nodded and pulled his wrist comlink out. After pushing several buttons, he lowered his hand. "It will be here in a moment, Padme."
Padme stretched. Balancing herself on one leg, she grabbed the other behind her head. Obi-Wan grinned as if he knew something that she didn't. "What?" she asked, testily.
"The droid is going to be hard for you, but I think you will like it." He answered, gathering his materials; "I'll go into the observation area, call if you need anything."
Padme nodded and began other exercises. The door behind her opened and shut as the droid entered into the room. She slowly turned to face her new opponent, and that was when the seven hells of Naboo broke loose.
Qui-Gon was half way back to the practice room when he heard a blood-curdling scream. Instantly, he recognized the voice as Padme's, although the pain and panic in it was almost inhuman. He immediately tried to search her mind, as he took the last corner towards the practice room at a dead sprint. He did not know what to expect when the door opened, but he did know that Obi-Wan standing one meter away from her with his sabre lit and standing at ready against an unknown attacker was definitely not it.
"Padawan." Qui-Gon's terse shout came as he entered the room.
"I do not know, Master." Obi-Wan's eyes were wide. "I have seen no one."
Qui-Gon approached Padme, huddled on the floor with her sabre lit in her small hand. As he neared, the girl began to blindly swing the weapon. It was a panicky, jerky movement aimed at hurting not protecting. It prevented him from getting to her.
"Padme." He said, quietly. "Draca, what is it?"
"Stay away." She growled. "Stay away or I'll send you back from where you came in pieces."
Qui-Gon looked to Obi-Wan who shrugged. The elder man nodded towards her weapon and Obi-Wan instantly knew what he was expected to do. The younger Jedi approached the girl quickly, engaging her weapon with his own, fighting back her graceless swings. Obi-Wan, even with his years of experience over her was hard pressed to keep her under control. However, when the girl's wrist extended to its full distance, Qui-Gon used the Force to pluck the sabre from her grasp. Once it was safely in his hand, he flicked it off. Silence replaced the hissing of the sabres, though, as Qui-Gon finally neared the girl he could hear her whispering to herself.
"Father. Father. Father. Father." Padme was shaking with each word that was uttered.
Qui-Gon knelt in front of the girl, silently assessing her state. Tears fell from her wide, unblinking brown eyes; her face was flushed, reddened with horror. He could not read her, he couldn't get at her mind, because the pain was so intense. All he could gather was that she was experiencing some form of severe mental anguish. Obi-Wan could, from what the elder Jedi saw, feel the pain also, as the younger man gasped.
Obi-Wan approached his friend and mentor and laid a hand on his arm. Qui-Gon shook his head, "No, Padawan, I don't know what it is that bothers her so. I feel pain, as you do?" When the younger man nodded, he continued. "We will have to calm her and find out what is wrong. Any suggestions?"
Obi-Wan gaped at his Master. "We cannot reach her mind?" Before Qui-Gon could answer, he continued. "No, I know that we cannot. She is so crazed at the moment; it would be impossible to get her to calm down with only a touch, also. I don't know…"
The other man was silent for a moment, studying his friend. With a shake of his head that sent his graying hair twisting on his neck, he uttered: " I don't either, my young friend. Let's let her tell us what it is she needs."
Obi-Wan sat down on one side of the girl, while Qui-Gon eased to the floor directly in front of her. With gentle care, he raised his hand to stroke her hair. At first, Padme fought his caresses, struggling to rise. He held her shoulders easily, as the sorrow and the exhaustion from many hours of practicing had made her pliable. Once she settled, he lifted her chin with his finger, cupping it in his palm as the youthful face rose to meet his. "Padme?" he asked gently.
She was silent. Her stare seemed to look through him, as though he did not exist.
He gripped her chin a little harder, tilting his face down to meet her eyes more fully. "Padme." When she continued to be silent, he said louder. "Come, Draca, is that any way to treat your teacher?"
Her eyes flickered and then she turned her head a little. "Master?"
"That's it, Padme." Qui-Gon sat forward. He knew that her response to his question was an ingrained response to his reprimanding her. "What is my name?"
Her full lips were not closed as she sat there looking at him. He could feel the coolness of her tears as they fell on his hand. She opened and closed her mouth silently and whispered, "Master."
"No, Padme." His voice grew deeper. "Not my title. Who am I? What is my name?"
"Master," Obi-Wan, asked quietly, "Why are you…"
"She needs to be grounded. I cannot help her if she cannot connect with me." Qui-Gon answered, quietly as he met his student's eyes. "Padme?"
"Qui-Gon." The whisper was so low, that neither man heard it clearly. But it was progress.
"Yes, Padme." He sighed. "That's right. Qui-Gon."
Her tears began to fall harder. "Qui-Gon…I'm sorry."
"Sorry? Whatever for?" he asked, holding her chin with gentleness now. "Why are you sorry?"
"My training…Obi-Wan…feelings."
Qui-Gon hung his head. "We will deal with that later, little one. But we need to deal with this now. Can you tell me…"
She began to shake her head violently, fighting to remove herself from his hand. "No, I… No! I won't. I can't. I…"
"Listen, shh." Qui-Gon sat forward to get directly into her face. "Quiet now. Nothing can hurt you. You can, Padme."
She laughed maniacally through her tears, allowing Obi-Wan if not Qui-Gon to sigh with relief. She was coming back to herself. "No, Master….I do not think that I can tell you. The images are so…they are jumbled; I only recall parts not the whole."
"I can help you." He sighed lowly. "We can…join, it's called dreamsharing. I can see your images and your feelings."
"I don't want to relive it, Qui-Gon." She said quietly resting her hand on his under her chin. "I cannot remember it clearly now, but I know that I do not want to relive it. It's that time…the time with…why I can't…Obi-Wan.."
"I know." Obi-Wan spoke quietly, allowing Padme to turn and look at him.
"There is so much pain," she said, splitting her time between both men, "If I buried it the first time, I do not want…"
Padme fell silent as Qui-Gon anchored her face toward his. "You must find these memories, Padme. You must confront them. If you don't, the pain and the anger will only grow and I would fear for your ability to remain on this path. Once you leave this path, neither Obi-Wan, nor I, nor Mace, for that matter, can help you to return." She seemed wavering, so he tilted his forehead against hers and met her eyes. "I'll be there with you, Padme. I promise."
Obi-Wan nodded, "We'll both be there."
Padme sighed and nodded hesitantly, "Yes, all right, I'll do as you say, Qui-Gon. Help me to find these memories."