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Rescue the Farmboy:
Prequels Changes

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The Phantom Menace Sequence of Events

Cast of Characters:

In 968 (Ruusan Reformation), battles had already broken out as systems declared their independence to the Galactic Republic and use battle droids to support the decision or to force other systems to do the same. Two Separatists systems blockaded Naboo to force it to leave the Old Republic, thinking they could cower the fourteen-year-old Queen with their droid forces. Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi were sent to Naboo to see the military force against Naboo and mediate a peace if possible. The Separatists delegation tried to kill them instead and they made their way down to the planet. The Gungan native Jar Jar Binks guided them to his people in the underwater city of Otoh Gunga at great risk to himself.

The leader of Gungans, Boss Nass, initially refused to have anything to do with the problems of the Naboo on the surface but was persuaded to lend transportation to Theed only if Obi-Wan Kenobi stayed behind to protect them from the Separatist threat and maybe negotiate for Republic acknowledgment after the blockade was dealt with. Obi-Wan agreed to be the diplomacy hostage and did remarkable work on the Gungans grievances as well as aiding the evacuation of the city when the battle droids attack.

Qui-Gon and Jar Jar continued to Theed, saved the Queen, and traveled with her as her ship runs the blockade. R2-D2 repaired the ship to allow it to make an emergency landing on Tatooine. Qui-Gon, Jar Jar, and Padmé (Queen Amidala in disguise as one of her handmaidens) headed into Mos Espa to find the part they need and met Anakin Skywalker, the fourteen year old slave of the junk seller. Anakin is extremely gifted in the Force and smitten by Padmé. Watto had just sold off Shmi Skywalker (Anakin’s mother), is losing more funds from betting on pod races, and Anakin consistently loses in Watto’s pod because Anakin’s piloting is the only thing that belongs to him. He offered the pod racer he built and his skills to Padmé so she can continue to Coruscant. Qui-Gon—intrigued by Anakin’s potential and the dreams he has about freeing the slaves—manipulated the bet with Watto, so when Anakin won the Boonta Eve Classic of 968, he also won his freedom.

Anakin joined the group to learn what Qui-Gon is offering to teach him about the Force. They are attacked by another Force user (Darth Maul) in Mos Espa, but they escape him and Tatooine. Senator Palpatine of the Chommell Sector greeted them on Coruscant, offered sanctuary, and advice on how to navigate the Senate. Queen Amidala in turns offered sanctuary to Anakin for his service. He thanked her as Padmé, but is confident that the Jedi thing will work out.

The Jedi Council is beyond exasperated with Qui-Gon. Jedi have been dying in these Separatists skirmishes, and he left his apprentice in a battle zone! It doesn’t matter that Obi-Wan is ready to be knighted. And then he presents this boy—far too old—for training. Absolutely not. Qui-Gon pointed out that Anakin’s raw talent makes him a target to a Dark Side user like the one who attacked them. He must be trained. Absolutely not, is the Jedi Council’s verdict, go work on getting Obi-Wan back. Qui-Gon vowed to train the boy without their blessing.

Queen Amidala’s appeal to the Senate doesn’t have the reaction she hopes for. The Trade Federation—the source of the droid armies—disputed her testimony. She took Senator Palpatine’s advice and called for a vote of no confidence in the current Supreme Chancellor. This event still doesn’t give help for Naboo, and she decided to go back to Naboo and appeal to the Gungans, inspired by Jar Jar’s offhand comment about the Gungan army. Qui-Gon and Anakin return with them to get Obi-Wan back, but Qui-Gon is giving Anakin his first lessons in the Force (actual lessons, not just the watch what I do from the film).

They run the blockade again and found the Gungans and Obi-Wan had evacuated to the Sacred Lands on Naboo. Padmé drops her handmaiden ruse as she begged for help. Boss Nass, softened by Obi-Wan and annoyed at the battle droids, agreed to help. The Battle of Naboo began. The mysterious Force user from Tatooine is also in the Theed Palace Complex. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan separate to deal with the Dark Sider. Anakin joined the pilots with Artoo to disrupt the droid control ship in orbit. Padmé and her security force continued to the Separatists leaders on planet.

Darth Maul killed Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan killed Darth Maul, Anakin got past the defenses of the droid control ship and blew it up, and Queen Amidala arrested the leaders who invaded Naboo. Qui-Gon’s dying words makes Obi-Wan promise to continue Anakin’s training as a Jedi.

The Jedi Council arrived on Naboo along with the Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, newly voted. They knighted Obi-Wan for his defeat of a Sith and reluctantly agreed to Anakin’s training of a Jedi Knight because Naboo is clamoring for their hero to get what he wants and Palpatine is leaning on them to do it.

Attack of the Clones Sequence of Events

Cast of Characters

In 973, an assassination attempt was made on the new Senator of the Chommell sector and killed her security decoy on the day of the vote for the Military Creation Act (5:16). Chancellor Palpatine canceled the vote despite Senator Padmé Amidala making it to the session, and asked for the Jedi Order to assign a Jedi to protect Padmé and find the source of the assassinations. The Jedi Order assigned Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker to this mission. Padmé was glad to see them again, but furious about how this assassination attempt was affecting her attempts to bring the war to an end. She made herself bait to draw the assassin out, with Anakin’s approval and Obi-Wan’s unawareness. Following the assassin gives them a clue and they learn it is a pair of assassins.

Chancellor Palpatine suggested splitting up, and the Jedi Council agreed it’s more efficient. Padmé’s security forces traveled in her shuttle with a decoy. Anakin and Padmé were sent to hide on Naboo while Obi-Wan investigates. Padmé was furious about missing the Senate session (in person networking is important) and how this was delaying the vote on the Military Creation Act. Anakin was torn because Obi-Wan is surely going into danger and needs him but he wants to spend more time with Padmé.

Obi-Wan, while tracing down the toxic dart, heard that the shuttle was sabotaged and forced to land on Alderaan. No loss of life, but now Bail Organa was looped into the need-to-know list.

Anakin and Padmé spend their travel time on the liner catching up. Details Anakin slowly reveals during their Naboo time: he hasn’t told Obi-Wan or the Jedi Council about his enslavement. They won’t do anything about slavery in the Outer Rim, nor will they approve of his traveling back to Tatooine. That Anakin wants to is proof that Anakin isn’t properly letting go of his past. He and the Chancellor talk on a regular basis, usually about the Separatists movement and how that crisis is keeping him from getting slavery enforcement through the Senate. At least Padmé got an addendum to a bill passed to not check if refugees are escaping slaves and return them to the Hutts or other slavers. Padmé’s surprised he’s been following politics. Anakin: “Not all of it, just about slavery and what you do.” Anakin does not talk about his dreams, though Padmé observes he has horrible ones.

They landed on Naboo and go straight to Padmé’s parents. The plan was to stay with them, but Queen Jamillia comms for a meeting sooner than Padmé anticipated but after the dinner party of awkward. The Queen told them about the attack on Padmé’s security forces. It was no longer safe to stay with her family. They relocated to Varykino, set up through the Palace.

Obi-Wan met with Dexter Jettster and learned about Kamino. His investigation discovered it is missing from the Jedi Library. Master Jocasta Nu checked into the database and discovered deliberate tampering dating from ten years earlier. She informed the council while Obi-Wan went to look in person at what Kamino is trying to hide.

Anakin’s attempts to woo Padmé were awkward and she shut them down hard for both their sakes (see Byzantium’s Shores-Fixing the Prequels Attack of the Clones part eight). She went for a night swim, ran into Anakin trying to meditate, and assassins attacked them. Anakin used the Force to choke the last one to save her. He has had enough of this. They are going to a planet where he can see the assassins coming. Padmé doesn’t argue with him (see Byzantium’s Shores-Fixing the Prequels Attack of the Clones part nine).

Obi-Wan found Kamino and the clone army they have created for the Jedi. He took the tour, met Jango and Boba Fett, and comms back home with the results of the investigation. Jango Fett fought and fled rather than come along quietly and Obi-Wan gave chase.

Padmé’s a little surprised to end up back on Tatooine but it made sense once she thought about it. They landed in Mos Eisley instead of Mos Espa and Anakin took her to a selling cooperative for water and produce. He’s looking for a moisture farmer named Lars and claims to owe him something. The merchant told them the Lars homestead is outside of Anchorhead on the Great Chott salt flat and made an offhand compliment about Madame Lars.

Padmé held her questions until they are back aboard their shuttle and Anakin admitted that Watto sold his mother before Padmé came to Tatooine while running from the Separatists. He must make sure she’s okay and see if Lars is amiable to freeing her. He had been saving his allowance from the Jedi Order and earnings from swoop races; he can make a good offer. Padmé intuitively leapt to that his nightmares are about his mother. Padmé: “We should have came straight here instead of Naboo. Of course I’d help you find your mother.”

They landed at the Lars homestead. Cliegg Lars greeted Anakin, guessing that he is Shmi’s son and introduced him to his step-brother Owen and Owen’s intended Beru Whitesun. He explained that he had freed Shmi and they married. They had gone to tell Anakin after they heard he won his freedom, but Watto told them he had left with a Jedi. Shmi wasn’t there; she was captured by Tusken Raiders about the same time Anakin’s dreams started. Cliegg Lars took a force of thirty farmers after them, but only four of them survived, Cliegg lost his leg in the trap and skirmish. Anakin refused to give up on his mother and headed out after her, leaving Padmé with his newly discovered family.

Obi-Wan followed Jango Fett to Geonosis. He stumbled onto a meeting of Separatists joining forces under Count Dooku’s leadership, and that the new battle droid army outnumbered all available planetary security and judicial forces by 100 to 1. He managed to get a message off to Anakin because Coruscant was too far away before he was captured.

Anakin found his mother in a Tusken Raider village, but she died in his arms. He tapped into his rage to reach the Dark Side of the Force and slaughtered the entire village. He returned to the Lars homestead with Shmi’s body. While the others made the preparations for the funeral, the droids gave Padmé the message from Obi-Wan because Anakin has hidden himself. She approved for Artoo to rely it to the Jedi Council, especially when it ends with Obi-Wan being attacked. She found Anakin in the homestead’s garage and helped Anakin deal with his emotions.

After the funeral, they said good-bye to the Lars. Cliegg gave Threepio back to Anakin. Padmé had already set in a course for Geonosis to rescue Obi-Wan and confront the Separatist threat against her. Anakin fell in with her plan because he can’t bear to lose Obi-Wan right after losing his mother.

Meanwhile on Coruscant, the political crisis had come to a head. The Jedi Council had informed Chancellor Palpatine of the clone army and what Obi-Wan reported having witnessed. Bail Organa argued for Jedi intervention but numbers don’t exist even if the Jedi were in the business of starting wars. Eventually the idea to grant the Supreme Chancellor emergency powers to activate the clone army was mentioned. Representative Jar Jar Binks, substituting for Padmé while she is hiding, introduced the measure to the Senate and the motion carries with the Jedi co-opted to lead the troops of the Grand Army of the Republic. Yoda and Mace divided up the tasks: going to Geonosis and collecting the clone army.

Count Dooku visited Obi-Wan, told the Jedi the truth, and left Obi-Wan there when he doesn’t join Dooku’s plan.

Anakin and Padmé sneaked into a droid assembly factory and nearly got themselves killed before they were captured and taken to see Count Dooku. Padmé argued for Obi-Wan’s release, Dooku argued for Naboo joining their Alliance instead of the Republic (see Byzantium’s Shores-Fixing the Prequels Attack of the Clones part twelve). They were taken to the same arena to be executed before an audience along with Obi-Wan. Padmé declared her love for Anakin as they were escorted out.

The three of them managed to defeat the animals sent into the arena and destroyer droids were sent in next. Jedi Master Mace Windu arrived with a Jedi force to rescue them, but Count Dooku orderd more battle droids to fight, beginning the Battle of Geonosis. The Jedi in turn were rescued by the Grand Army of the Republic that decisively won the Battle of Geonosis, though the leadership of the Confederacy of Independent Systems escaped. Anakin Skywalker lost his arm in the fighting.

Anakin escorted Padmé back to Naboo, ostensibly for her to recover before the next Senate session, but they took the opportunity to marry before his duties to the new phase of the war begin.

Revenge of the Sith Sequence of Events

Cast of Characters

In 976 on the 17th Day of the 2nd Month, Senator Padmé Amidala put out a news release announcing that she has decided to have a child via donor while continuing her duties as Chommell Sector’s senator. “This is my personal hope for the future peace of the galaxy and the Republic.”

The war arrives in Coruscant’s orbit on the 14th day of the 5th Month when General Grevious brought his forces to Coruscant and kidnapped Chancellor Palpatine sparking the Battle of Coruscant between the Republic Army and planetary security forces’ defense. Obi-Wan and Anakin, chasing Grevious from the Outer Rim, rescue the Chancellor from Grevious’ battle cruiser. Count Dooku revealed himself and was defeated and killed by Anakin in a lightsaber duel. Then Anakin manages to safely land the crashing ship and keep Palpatine and Obi-Wan and Artoo alive in the process. Grevious escapes.

Padmé is part of the crowd that greets the heroes and Palpatine when they return. Anakin is upset to see her and not hiding it very well, but both Padmé and Obi-Wan put it down to the ordeal they just went through. Obi-Wan compliments Padmé on her impending motherhood before ducking out of the accolades to meet with Windu and Yoda. Padmé escorts Anakin to the rest of the politicians and the reporters.

Windu and Yoda give Obi-Wan an update on the hunt for Sidious. The trail led straight to the Chancellor’s Office but Palpatine’s kidnapping interrupted the search. The latest amendment to the Security Act places the Jedi Council under the control of the Office of the Supreme Chancellor; Windu believes this gives the Chancellor the power to disband the Jedi Order and is convinced Sidious is Palpatine and wants to act. Yoda wants proof before they act. Obi-Wan’s compromise is to focus the Jedi on hunting General Grevious (who escaped from the crashing ship) to provoke a reaction from Sidious.

Padmé and Anakin finally reach Padmé’s apartment only to be interrupted by Bail Organa’s comm. Queen Breha had contacted him about the installation of a governor and a full regiment of clone troopers on Alderaan as the result of the Sector Governance Decree. Padmé and Bail make an appointment to discuss it tomorrow.

Anakin is antsy and annoyed by all the politics. First time he has seen Padmé in almost eight months and he wants an answer to why she chose a donor for her child. Padmé calls him a di’kut as lovingly as she can. He’s the father. She had to say something as the pregnancy became obvious and she will not be the reason he’s kicked out of the Order or have her own career ruined by the scandal of having disgraced a Jedi Knight much less the Hero with No Fear. Plus she likes the power Anakin wields.

Anakin, now that he knows he will be a father, is overjoyed by the news and is ready to leave the Jedi Order and raise the baby with Padmé. Padmé reminds him that the war isn’t over yet, even with Count Dooku’s death and General Skywalker still has a duty to the Republic and the Jedi Order. Anakin agrees to wait until Grevious is finally stopped and the war ended. They head to bed, but Anakin ends up not sleeping through the night. A horrible nightmare of Padmé dying in childbirth wakes him. Padmé finds him after she wakes and they talk about the medical pregnancy checks. She has been insisting on keeping the baby’s sex a surprise and only having the medical droid give her healthy or unhealthy results and everything has been healthy. “Can’t you tell that with the Force?” Anakin tells her that it’s considered rude to just scan people with the Force. They go back to bed, and Anakin reluctantly falls asleep.

The next day, Anakin goes to the Jedi Temple while Padmé heads to her various meetings. Palpatine insisted on being her first meeting of the day and offers her breakfast in his office. He has a mission for Padmé, one he is sure she can accomplish. With Dooku dead and Grevious soon sure to be, the Separatists will no longer have a cohesive military strategy. Padmé can approach the systems and conglomerates and discuss concession so they can end the war and return peacefully to the Republic. Padmé accepts the mission and asks for Anakin as her Jedi bodyguard. Palpatine demurs with how the Jedi are the public face of the war and offers some clone troopers instead. Padmé points out those optics are equally bad so she will use her Naboo security forces that have kept her safe her whole political career.

Padmé then meets with Bail, Mon Mothma, and the other Senators leery of Palpatine’s power grabs. Padmé agrees to sign the petition but cannot champion it in the Senate because of her own mission to end the war. Bail is suspicious of this overture and why a committee wasn’t formed to approach the Separatists. Padmé gives her suspicions voice that her mission is farce that will come to nothing, and also suggests approaching the Jedi Council over Palpatine’s orchestrations. Mon Mothma points out that the Jedi Order now obeys the Chancellor not the Senate, so they cannot trust them if their fears come to pass. The meeting ends with Fang Zar agreeing to spearhead the petition in the Senate while Bail and Mothma make other plans in secret that they hope they never have to use.

Anakin’s morning was not that productive. He researched Jedi visions and healing techniques in the library but doesn’t learn anything new. He met with Yoda to talk about the visions, but was so vague over what he saw Yoda concluded that he must be having visions of Obi-Wan’s death and counseled Anakin accordingly. He leaves the Jedi Master to find the Chancellor has requested his presence and sent his private shuttle to the Temple to collect him. Obi-Wan points out the power play and warns Anakin of the strained dynamics between Palpatine and the Jedi Council. At their meeting, Palpatine confides in Anakin about his troubles with the Jedi Council and appoints Anakin to be his personal representative on the Council.

Anakin heads straight to Padmé’s apartment after that meeting and finds everybody there in preparation for Padmé’s mission. Captain Gregar Typho asks if the mission parameters have changed to give Padmé a Jedi bodyguard after all and Anakin truthfully tells him that he hadn’t been given a mission. Padmé soon gets Anakin alone and explained what her mission is and all the precautions and yes, the medical droid is already on board her ship. Anakin doesn’t like this with the nightmare he just had, but she insists that this is a necessary mission for diplomacy and if she hasn’t made any headway before her pregnancy sabbatical arrives, Palpatine will have to find someone else to do it.

Anakin sees them off, returns to the Temple, and is awoken by the same nightmare again. He is more determined to get access to the information that might be able to save Padmé if he had the rank of Jedi Master.

The Jedi Council meets and begrudgingly accepts Anakin’s appointment but do not grant him the title Jedi Master with it. Anakin’s lack of sleep is not helping him control his emotions and Obi-Wan calms him down. The meeting continues to make war plans. Anakin’s new place is here on Coruscant protecting the Chancellor and representing his interest in the Jedi Council. Yoda will take a battalion of clone troopers to Kashyyyk.

After the Council meeting ends, Obi-Wan talks to Anakin off-the-record that the Council needs Anakin to spy on Palpatine in order to find the Sith Lord. Anakin is confused and upset that the Jedi Council is acting like Palpatine said they would and is asking for his disloyalty. Obi-Wan is unhappy with the situation as well, and tries to explain to Yoda and Windu that they may have damaged the fragile trust Anakin had in them for the greater good. Yoda and Windu don’t understand.

Padmé’s first stop on her peace tour is Raxus. The Separatist Senators that will speak to her reveal that they will not enter into discussions again without the Separatist Council and they are not on planet. She finds a clue that the Council had gone to Murkhana, so she follows after them despite no desire to ever see Nute Gunray again.

The week without Padmé has not been good for Anakin. Every time he falls asleep, the nightmare of her dying in childbirth wakes him up. He cannot access the materials he is convinced would save her, and he cannot discuss it with anyone. Palpatine invites him to a performance at the Galaxies Opera House. Once there, Anakin is told that Grevious has been tracked to the Utapau system. Palpatine also throws in seeds of doubt about the Jedi Council and picks up on how Anakin’s faith in them is further shaken. He shares the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise with Anakin, who is tempted by learning the power to stop death.

Anakin relays the information about Grevious at the next Jedi Council meeting, but Palpatine’s suggestion that Anakin go after the General is shot down and Obi-Wan is nominated for the task. Yoda attends the Council Meeting by holo-comm and returned to the battle preparations on Kashyyyk. Anakin has a heartfelt talk with Obi-Wan as he walks his former master to the transport, and his exhaustion makes him more candid than he usually was. Obi-Wan counsels more rest and patience. The Sith Lord will reveal himself soon and Obi-Wan will personally see that he and Anakin get a vacation with Padmé on Naboo once peace was restored. “I’ll go visit the Gungans again. No invasion this time; it’ll be fun.”

Murkhana is another dead end for the Separatist Council, but the trail leads to Ukio next. Padmé didn’t find them on Ukio but finds a clue that they have headed to Utapau, which was a Neutral System and that meant the Separatists had invaded it. Captain Typho points out that the route would take them past Naboo and suggests stopping to see her family and Queen Apailana. Padmé refuses to take the side trip. There will be plenty of time to see her family during her pregnancy sabbatical. Right now Utapau deserves justice.

Obi-Wan finds Grevious on Utapau and they battle. Obi-Wan successfully defeats the cyborg general with a blaster. Meanwhile on Coruscant, Palpatine reveals his identity as Darth Sidious to Anakin, who informs Windu. Windu instructs him to wait at the Temple while Windu took three other Jedi Masters to arrest Palpatine. Anakin cannot let the Jedi kill the only one with the knowledge to save Padmé, the man he has only known as a friend, and follows them to Palpatine’s office. He finds Windu and Palpatine locked in a duel, the other Jedi Masters slain. Windu actually gained the upper hand but refuses to listen to Anakin’s plea for letting Palpatine stand trial.

Anakin disarms Windu by cutting of his sword arm, and Palpatine blasts the Jedi out the window with Force lightning. Palpatine cajoles Anakin’s service in exchange for saving Padmé’s life and then sends Darth Vader to cleanse the Jedi Temple of the traitors to the Republic. Once Anakin and the 501st Legion are on their way, Palpatine issued Order 66 to all the clone troopers.

As soon as the order is received, clone troopers slaughter their Jedi Generals and Commanders. Yoda sensed the danger in the Force while also feeling all the death of the other Jedi and beheads the clones attempting to sneak up on him. Tarfful and Chewbacca help Yoda escape the planet.

The 212th Attack Battalion turns on their Jedi General, but Obi-Wan evades their killing attempts and escapes Utapau in General Grevious’ snub-fighter.

Bail Organa flew his airspeeder to the burning Jedi Temple to discover what was happening and is stopped from entering by clone troopers. He witnesses the clone troopers kill a Jedi Padawan and barely escapes with his life. He takes off in his ship, Tantive IV, to save any Jedi they could find.

Padmé’s ship arrives in the Utapau system. Dormé and Captain Typho are on the bridge as conflicting messages come in: a plea for help and a warning that the Jedi are traitors to the Republic. A Separatist snub-fighter was being chased by slower Nu-class attack shuttles. Dormé recognizes Obi-Wan Kenobi’s voice giving the plea for help and shifts their ship to reach the snub-fighter. Captain Typho objects, fights Dormé to gain control of the ship, and lets slip that Palpatine has other plans for Padmé that the Jedi won’t be able to stop. His blaster shoots Dormé in her stomach, but Padmé’s blast kills him. Padmé guides the ship to intercept Obi-Wan’s and instructs Threepio to work the airlock. Only then can she focus on the dying Dormé who begs for her Queen’s forgiveness for missing Captain Typho’s treachery. Padmé comforts her as she dies and then jumps the ship to hyperspace once Threepio announces Obi-Wan was on board.

Palpatine sends Darth Vader on his next assignment: to kill the Separatist Council that is hiding on Mustafar. Vader leaves and Palpatine sets aside the Sith ritual elements that created the nightmare that Darth Sidious poured into Anakin Skywalker for the past two weeks. Once the altar work space is clear, he begins setting down elements for a new ritual.

Tantive IV intercepts Yoda’s ship off of Kashyyyk, and Bail Organa tells the Jedi Grand Master what has happened at the Temple and how the HoloNet is reporting that it was the aftermath of an attempted coup by the Jedi Order. They send a comm to Padmé, but since she is in hyperspace they are forced to leave it as a message. They head to Utapau as Obi-Wan’s last location.

Darth Vader and Artoo reach Mustafar, and Vader slaughters the Separatist Council.

Obi-Wan is reeling from the repercussions in the Force from all the death and the treachery of the clone troopers and Padmé’s security chief. He pulls himself together to stow the dead for burial for Padmé. Padmé is worried sick over what has happened to Anakin with all this death Obi-Wan has sensed. Obi-Wan is more worried about her ship being identified as helping a fugitive. They pause in the next system, the uninhabited Dagobah, to catch up on the news. They get Bail’s message that Yoda is safe, Mon Mothma sent the recording of the Senate capitulating to Palpatine’s switch to an Empire and news that the signatories of the Petition of 2000 have been arrested already.

Anakin comms Padmé next and tells her he is fine, the war is over, and to meet him on Mustafar. Padmé agrees, but has a bad feeling over how her husband has acted in the comm. Obi-Wan is equally disturbed. They land at the mining facility on Mustafar. Anakin and Artoo meet Padmé on the landing pad, while Obi-Wan hangs back in the ship.

Anakin is drunk on the power of the Dark Side: he ended the war, the Jedi Order cannot threaten their family any longer, and the Empire will put the galaxy to rights. Padmé sees how Palpatine set the Clone Wars in motion and points out that their family’s safety depends on a Sith Lord who orchestrated the deaths of billions.

Anakin waves that objection aside; their family safety depends on Padmé’s rule of the galaxy. Of course they can’t trust Palpatine, so Anakin will take him out and she will take the throne! Padmé refuses this plan. “I will not let you set me up as a tyrant in his place, Anakin!”

Obi-Wan chose that time to intervene, and he and Anakin begin to duel. The Sith ritual begins to affect Padmé and she cannot get either Anakin or Obi-Wan’s attention. Artoo and Threepio help her into the ship. The mining facility exploded and Anakin is caught in the blast. Obi-Wan evades it, rescuing Anakin’s lightsaber, and takes off in Padmé’s ship. The medical droid yells to get Padmé to a medcenter because she is dying, so they lay a course to Polis Massa. Obi-Wan feels the Dark Side at work, but has no idea what it is doing. Padmé manages to tell Obi-Wan the choices of baby names, but dies before they reach Polis Massa, and the medical droid keeps life support on her body to keep the babies alive.

Threepio sends a message to Bail of their current location while Obi-Wan rushes Padmé’s body into the surgery center. The twins (”What, twins?!”) are born via C-section and plopped into gestational chambers to stabilize on 24th Day of the 5th Month. Obi-Wan names them Luke and Leia according to Padmé’s wishes and waits for their survival.

Palpatine arrives at Mustafar and finds what of Darth Vader survived the explosion. The medcenter on the capital ship is prepared with the life support suit and surgery to put him into it begins immediately.

Yoda and Bail arrive at Polis Massa, and both grow dismayed over how Anakin fell and Padmé’s fate. Yoda sees fault in how he shepherded the Jedi Order to fight the Sith tactics of the last war, and letting the too old boy into the Order to begin with. Obi-Wan was reckless in how he trained Anakin. The twins are released from the gestational chambers with clean bills of health. Bail offers to take Leia—he and his wife have been planning to adopt a girl—and the droids. Yoda declares he will go into exile until the Force declares him needed, and that Obi-Wan should take Luke and correct the mistakes he made with the father.

Yoda departs first, only telling Obi-Wan that his destination was Dagobah. They find a shuttle with a hyperdrive for Obi-Wan and Luke, and Obi-Wan tells Bail they will go to Tatooine and he will send details later should Bail need to send Leia to him for training. Tantive IV takes Padmé’s ship, and the bodies of Padmé, Dormé, and Captain Typho back to Naboo before bringing his new daughter home to Alderaan. Artoo saves Threepio’s memories before the protocol droid is wiped, and hacks the droid maintenance system to make it say he has had one too.

The population of Naboo, both Gungan and Naboo, are devastated over Padmé’s death and organize the largest funeral procession the planet had ever hosted in its entire history. The new Emperor’s investigation into her death soon lays blame on the same Jedi coup that attacked him.

Obi-Wan and Luke make it safely to Tatooine, Obi-Wan figuring that something on this planet will give him answers to why Anakin fell and later thanking the Force when Darth Vader is revealed to be alive somehow because Anakin will never return to this planet. But his grief and fears overwhelm him; how can he avoid failing Luke like he had failed Anakin? So he turns Luke over to Anakin’s family still on Tatooine that Padmé had told him about. Owen and Beru Lars are willing to adopt their step-nephew, but Jedi are being hunted. Luke must never know for his own safety. Obi-Wan agrees with this edict, and keeps watch over the boy from afar.

Anakin is awake through out his entire surgery, hearing Padmé screaming along with his own. The pain finally subsides to a manageable level once the life support suit is sealed shut. Palpatine greets him at the end and has such a surge of malicious glee to tell him that Padmé died and the baby died with her that it dawns on Anakin that Darth Sidious never intended to save her. It’s kind of hard to miss with Padmé screaming that she isn’t dead, she’s here, and Palpatine planned this. “And no, Anakin, you are not crazy; it’s really me. Do you know what happened to Dormé? Of course not, you weren’t there!”

Eventually, after researching in the materials that the Jedi Council had locked away, Anakin and Padmé figure out that Palpatine had done a Sith ritual to put her life essence into Anakin but somehow her consciousness came along too. They vow to use this new political power that Palpatine has endowed upon his apprentice to utterly destroy what Palpatine created and restore the Republic! Anakin: “Not good enough, the Republic was hopelessly corrupt and did nothing to stop slavery or the war.” Padmé: “Fine, build a better government that stops those things.”

Darth Vader has direct command of the 501st Legion, which nicknames themselves “Vader’s Fist” and changes the armor to sport a black gauntlet and forearm bracer on the right arm. He rescued a few Kaminoan cloners from the genocide Palpatine unleashed on them and in exchange they had to correct the accelerated aging and chips in all clone troopers. Clone troopers transfer into Vader’s service as soon as they can in order to avail themselves of this treatment and train future cadets. Vader also chooses the best of the stormtrooper cadets upon graduation and puts them through further training to get them clone trooper acceptable levels.

A sizable portion of the Imperial Navy is also under Vader’s direct command despite how many admirals and captains loyal only to the Emperor Palpatine keeps inserting into its command track. Those ships have earned the nickname “Death Squadron” on behalf of how they deal with the enemy and how Vader clears out the command ranks. Noghri Death Commandos were discovered while tracking what happened during a Clone Wars battle and the inhabitants of Honoghr slew the heavily-armed stormtroopers with few casualties on their side. Vader offered environmental aid in return for their service. The Empire seeded the planet with continuous poison to keep the population enslaved. Vader discovered this deception, and brought secret aid to clean more farmland, ensuring that even Noghri serving other commanders are loyal to Vader first.

The political side of the Empire is spread throughout the Moffs and governors who are loyal to Palpatine first. Vader’s lack of a home sector to sway governors and Moffs has slowed his gathering respect that is visible in Court. Most of them do fear the sway Vader holds in the military forces.

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