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| - “You can’t win,” Nju said as he walked along the curved table, his lightsaber extended down either side of him. “Give in now, there is no escape.” “If giving in means joining you,” Padmé replied, pacing opposite him, “then I would rather die.” Nju shook his head with no more emotion than when he had instructed her and was pointing out her feet were all wrong for the fifth kata. “I tried to save you, Padmé,” he said sadly, “I truly did, but if you won’t save yourself I have no choice.” He leapt at her, blue blades spinning in a deadly unity. But Padmé merely swerved out of his way, dropping to the floor in a smooth roll before getting back to her feet. She brought her lightsaber up to clash against his. The blows went back and forward, the attack switching on Nju’s part from the left and the right as they fought along the table towards the large window at the back of the room. Padmé could feel herself tiring, and a part of her was saying that Nju was right. She couldn’t win, she had known that from the start but how could she have thought to outlast him? She might have the ability, but this was nothing compared to the vast experience Nju possessed. She, like the Loyalists, was beaten before she had started fighting. But he hadn't beaten her yet, she was still fighting, still deflecting his attacks and able to return them with some of her own. And she would continue fighting, because she was a Jedi. She rushed him suddenly, blocking his lightsabers with her own blade and knocking off the table with her shoulder. He responded but she fought back, forcing him away from the table. Nju attacked her, extending his lightsaber either side of him and closing in slowly. But Padmé surprised him. Instead of going for his exposed torso as he expected, she attacked one of his weapons. Cutting off the top of one of the hilts and extinguishing the blade. For a moment Nju stopped, he stared at the defective lightsaber. “Impressive,” he commented with a nod, “most impressive.” “You’ll find I'm full of surprises,” Padmé replied, circling so her back was to the window. “I’m sure I will,” he taunted, discarding the broken weapon and using his free hand to throw Padmé against the window. Her head collided painfully with the glass, she slid slowly to the floor gasping for air. Blindly, she felt for her dropped lightsaber. “It is a great shame that you know too much,” Nu said sadly, using the Force to throw one of the statues against the window. The glass exploded, showering over Padmé and cutting her hands and face. The chilling wind outside sent it further into the room, yet none of it touched Renust Nju. The broken shards passed him like water flowing around a rock. He walked towards her, his boots crunching the broken glass. For a moment he stood over her, staring at her with bitter disappointment. Then he grabbed her hair and pulled Padmé to her feet, slapping her face a few times so she stared at him. “Master Nju…” her voice was fearful and childlike, her eyes wide. Without a word he shoved her outside. In the cabin of the red diplomatic cruiser, Mace Windu leaned against the wall his eyes focused on the floor. He could have been setting off for an ordinary mission. A simple dispute between two systems, an election that had gone awry on a Mid-Rim world…anything other than what they were about to do. On board with him were two hundred Jedi, some of the finest and youngest in the Order. While the official stance was ‘rescue mission’ he knew, just as some of the others on board did, that this could be a move that would bring the galaxy into war. A thought that was somewhat alien to him. “Mace, we’re clearing hyperspace,” said a soft female voice. Mace looked up to see his former Padawan and fellow Council member Depa Billaba. If she was having a better time of accepting what was going on she hid it well. “Any transmissions?” he asked her. Renust Nju had gone ahead to see what the situation was, they hadn’t heard from him yet. “Nothing,” she told him, “not from Nju or from the planet. No communications.” “That doesn’t sound good,” he said, walking to the cockpit with her following. “No transmissions?” He asked the pilot. “Nothing?” “No communications of any kind, Master Windu,” the pilot said in a surprised voice. “Transmissions are jammed, or appear to be.” “Get as low as you can to the city,” the Jedi Master ordered. “But whatever you do, don’t land.” “Yes sir,” the pilot replied, but Mace was already on his way out. “Why do I get the impression that this is going to end up as one of your stories?” Depa asked dryly as they walked to where the other Jedi were waiting. “Perhaps,” Mace shrugged. “But I need to say a few words, at least.” It was with great reluctance that he had left Kenobi and Skywalker. Dooku wanted nothing better than to show the Jedi once and for all whose side he was truly on and why, but Sidious had counselled patience and Dooku knew better than to disobey. Yet there was nothing to be concerned about, everything was proceeding as it should. Skywalker had foolishly wandered into the trap as Sidious had said he would and the Jedi were sure to follow them here. By the time they did arrive Dooku planned to be far enough away to direct the entire procedure. The next part was to completely surround the planet so there was no escape. Or appeared to be. “Your shuttle is still waiting.” Kanesh came into step beside him. “I still must say that I don’t agree with this operation.” “Now, now,” Dooku chastened, “sacrifices must be made if we are to prevail.” “That’s what you keep telling me,” Kanesh replied as they boarded the ship, “it’s not working.” Dooku bowed his head to get through the low doorway. The droid pilot retracted the ramp and powered up the engines. On the floor below where Dooku had left them, they found a group of guards and technicians focused around a door. To judge by their frantic efforts they weren't getting anywhere. “What’s going on?” Obi-Wan asked. “The Senators have been locked in,” one of the guards said, nodding to the door. “We can’t get through, it’s magnetically sealed and so are all the walls.” “Where’s Padmé?” Anakin blurted out. Obi-Wan glanced sharply at Anakin, there would be a better time for questions like this. He got out his lightsaber. “Stand back,” he said, igniting the blade and sinking it into the lock. The Loyalists were gathered in Nalanda’s apartment, clustered in small groups and talking quietly. By the far window Nalanda sat with Bail Organa, saying nothing and not meeting his gaze. “What’s that?” she asked suddenly. A small glowing hole had started to appear in the middle of the door, the hole was growing longer until it melted the lock. Several had turned to watch this. “That's a Jedi lightsaber,” murmured Orn Free Taa, “they’re cutting through.” Nalanda was about to protest but sure enough she saw a glimmer of the blue blade and the lock came away. They hastened towards the doors as they opened. The senators whispered to each other as they glanced at their rescuers, but Nalanda merely smiled as she noticed Obi-Wan and Anakin walk forward. “We’ve come to get all of you out of here,” Obi-Wan said, raising his voice to silence those who were speaking. “There’s more Jedi on the way, which may help as they mean to trap us all here.” As the politicians followed Obi-Wan into the corridor, Anakin went to Nalanda. “Where’s Padmé?” he asked her. “I don’t know, Anakin,” Nalanda told him as they walked out. “She left a few hours ago to see to something, I haven’t seen her. Don’t worry,” she added as she noticed Anakin’s face. “She’ll be quite all right.” Anakin didn’t look reassured. Padmé collapsed against the cold metal floor outside, the wind scoring her face. But the moment Nju turned away she was on her feet, her lightsaber flying to her hands, the green blade arcing towards his throat. Nju blocked her blow, pushing her lightsaber back so the two blades intermingled. Padmé strained with the effort, Nju pushed further until both blades were close to her. “It ends here,” Nju breathed. He hurled Padmé back with the Force and caught her lightsaber as she dropped it. She slid back from him, then got to her feet in a Jedi fighting stance but completely unarmed. A Jedi is never unarmed, she reminded herself. “Give up now while you can, Padmé,” Nju snarled. “Last stands make good stories, but it’s pretty pathetic if it happens to you. I should know.” Is there clue there? Padmé wondered. Is he hinting of what had happened to him? Of what had made him turn? She dismissed the thought quickly. “You’re going to have to kill me,” she said, “but I don’t think you can.” It was stupid and she knew it, but she was hoping against all hope that not all the Jedi had been driven out of him. “I intend to.” He deactivated his own lightsaber and replaced it on his belt, hers he waved menacingly before he raised it high. Quickly he brought the green blade down on her, but Padmé rolled aside at the last moment and got to her feet. He attacked her again and she dodged, diving for the metal then rolling up onto one knee. “Enough!” He exploded, extending his free hand towards Padmé. Tendrils of blue lightning emerged from his fingertips, Padmé was thrown back with the force of it and silently writhing in pain. Biting her lip to keep from crying out. “Hurts, doesn’t it?” Nju stayed the lighting for a moment, watching as the pain overtook her, her lightsaber still in his hand. “That was how I was made to learn when I first discovered the truth.” The lightning came again, this time Padmé tried to deflect it with the Force but that only last for a moment. Padmé let out a scream, she had never known such pain, she could feel it entering her flesh, flooding her veins, burning her from the inside out. “And now, little Jedi,” Nju murmured, holding the lightsaber over her. “You will die, and by your own blade.” Padmé was too weak to resist, even to move out of his way was too much effort. But she noticed something in the sky that made her smile, gritting her teeth with the effort she raised her right hand to point where it was. “Look!” The word was quietly spoken, but it was enough to make Nju turn. A Republic diplomatic ship was approaching the city. He ground his teeth as he realised the inevitable, he couldn’t kill her now. There was little enough time to explain to Windu and the others what he had been doing all this time. Savagely he turned back to Padmé, she knew what he was. But would anyone believe her? A sly smile crossed his lips; it was a fate better than death. With the barest of movements he sliced of Padmé’s right hand. She screamed and clutched at the cauterised stump, tears streaming from her eyes. “Why?” she shrieked at him, still not understanding his treachery. “Why have you done this?” “I have done what must be done,” Nju replied coolly, “you are merely an abstraction.” And with that he left her, running downstairs to await the others.
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