Beloved Monster (Story previously begun on Tears of An Angel)

Shameless up!

 

Well, I can see the stormclouds looming on the horizon. It's just not fair! Yet, at the same time, I have a sort of twisted excitement to see what's coming next; what is going to really turn Anakin to the Dark Side. Maybe I have my own little dark side. I'm interested to see what you've planned next!

 

O, Belle... Well, you know my boss thinks that now I'm working on some translation about computer hardware, networking items and other boring technical stuff... He is "almost" right , since it's partly about "shielding" (he-he-he ) and some Force...
I tend to forget my RL priorities, when I find a good story... Now I'm sitting and grinning, Force help me!
Your characterization about Palpatine- I like it. And my favorite sentence in your story, so far, in one of the earlier posts, when Anakin speaks to Jabba- wow, Lord Vader is certainly there!

 

I'm baaack! Heh...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anakin found war anything but exciting or romantic... Well, at least not romantic and the exciting part had little to do with enjoyment and more with keeping body and soul intact. The Mandalorians gave no quarter to the populations of the worlds they conquered, killing those who resisted and enslaving those who didn't. Bail Organa had made Obi-Wan a General in the Alderaanian army, while he'd conferred the rank of Colonel on Anakin, along with leadership of squadron of fighters.

Despite the danger, Anakin derived a heady sort of pleasure from piloting a Alderaanian fighter against the Mandalorian junques. Alderaan had a reputation for agile, powerful fighter ships who could run circles around most other vessels in their class. The Mandalorian fighters tended toward heavy armament and poor handling in tight spaces.

Six months into the war, he'd managed to lose only two of his squadron while accruing a battle record unmatched in history. During the infrequent lulls in fighting, he spent his time planetside on Alderaan. He found the place exquisite and the people remarkably friendly. Whenever they found out he not only was a Jedi, but fighting alongside Alderaanian troops he received offers of food, lodging and tours of the locale.

He tried to refuse politely, but often he gave in, not wishing to offend them. As he sat beside the close-knit families, his heart and mind continually returned to Naboo and his wife. He'd had little chance to contact her and had resorted to writing instead of trying to send coded messages. She'd responded in kind, sending a lock of her hair in one, enclosed inside of a locket on a chain. The last time she'd written she told him how she missed him and hoped he would have some time to come home for a short furlough.

That had been a month before and since then he'd heard nothing from her. As he sat in his cabin on the Mon Calamari cruiser, he played with the locket, worrying that things had gotten bad on Naboo. He'd heard the scuttlebutt around the ship that many of the smaller systems had suffered from supply lines being cut and he knew Naboo relied on off world supplies a great deal.

He weighed the risks of contacting Amidala via holo and decided what he had to say held more import than the possiblity of detection. Not wanting to give away the ship's coordinates, he went to the hangar bay and climbed into his fighter.

"Sir?" One of the mechanics had approached as Anakin strapped in and put his helmet on.

"Just going out for a short scouting run, Sergeant. Should be back within the hour."

"Aye, sir," the man responded.

Anakin lifted off, then sped away from the cruiser in the general direction of Naboo. First, he decided he would contact Amidala through their link.

*Am... I need to talk to you.*

Silence...then faintly, from a great distance. *Ani! I need you. Where are you?*

*Just above Ord Mandell, love. I'm going to try to contact you on the holonet.*

*Hurry, Ani. Things are awful here.*

He grimaced, wanting to fly directly to Naboo and not return to the cruiser. Yet he knew they needed him as well. Force, but he hated this! With a curse, he turned back to the cruiser to contact Obi-Wan and then speak to the Mon Calamari Admiral. Bail Organa might never forgive him if he just left and indeed, he had promised to stay as long as they required his services.

Helmet under his arm, Anakin strode across the deck toward the comm room. Admiral Rashad hailed him from the bridge, then moved to join him.

"Colonel, you seem disturbed. Have you discovered further Mandalorian troop movements?" The Admiral's protruberant eyes studied him and Anakin sensed the Calamari's anxiety. The last battle had left the cruiser with numerous damaged areas requiring Ord Mandell's repair facilities.

"I'm not certain, sir. You know I have ties to Naboo. I have contacted my wife and she has indicated some sort of trouble in the system. Do I have your permission to make a transmission there to ascertain t

 

Yes, things are beginning to get really interesting for Ani and Ami. That poor couple! Looking foward to reading what you've got coming up.

 

Yes, me too! I love this..MORE!!!

aa

 

Yes... sorry no replies lately -- I'm watching with great interest here!

 

I hate you Palpatine! I hate you!!!!!
Poor Ani and Ami... She's just waiting, trusting Ani- when he is back, miraculously everything will be all right again... I don't really know if she is lucky because she doesn't know the future...

 

How sad! I wish I could think that Ani's going to save the day, but I know he's not. Very interesting, though...I look forward to more!

 

Oh, it just gets worse, I'm sorry to say, but then, you all knew that...right?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He arrived in the Dagobah system, right above Naboo, in less than three days. To make that kind of time, he'd pushed himself and his ship to the breaking point. Twice he'd been forced to go planetside for more fuel and an hour or two of sleep. Then he'd climb back in the cockpit and race off toward Naboo again.

As he approached, he took in the clutter of Mandalorian ships in orbit around the planet. He waited for a challenge, but none came, which worried him more than if they'd targeted him. The closer he got to the atmosphere, the more apparent the reason for the lack of concern with his presence.

The glow of fires pierced the heavy black clouds above the surface. Naboo burned and Anakin had no doubt the Mandalorians had put the torch to it. Water still glimmered occasionally through the murk, but the fire continued to rage across Gungan jungle and Naboo plains alike. He set course for Theed, terrified for Amidala and the others.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I take it young Skywalker has arrived?" Sidious' image asked the Mandalorian general.

"His ship entered Naboo space not twenty minutes ago, my Lord. As you commanded, we have not engaged him."

Sidious gave a cold smile. "Indeed. Proceed as we've discussed previously. Is the Queen in custody?"

"Yes, my Lord. My troops have disposed of the rest of the Naboo and Gungan populace as you wished. All excepting the Queen's own attendants... We're holding them to ensure her cooperation."

"Very well, General. Keep me posted on Skywalker's actions." The holograph faded to nothing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Flames enveloped Theed, the buildings in ruins, the handmaidens' quarters in the palace with one wall gone as if an ion cannon had taken it out. Anakin landed his fighter in the deserted square, then hopped out and ran toward the palace. He didn't sense Obi-Wan and the others anywhere and in desperation, he sought Amidala.

Her sorrow reached him first and he knew she hadn't been able to save her people, human or Gungan. An awful anger filled him, making him want to kill every Mandalorian he came across, regardless of the danger to himself or anyone else. In a blind rage, he pounded down the palace's wrecked and empty hallways, lightsaber drawn. He felt her presence close by and began poking his head into every tiny room throughout the place.

*I'm here, Ani. Down in the toward the generators...*

The haze cleared from his eyes and with a conscious effort, he spread out his Force sense, seeking his wife. There... Sprinting down the partially broken staircase, he moved without further hesistation to her location. Vengence could wait for the moment.

As he came around the last landing, a group of Mandalorian soldiers moved to intercept him. Despite his Jedi training, Anakin spared no thought for his actions as he sliced through them with his weapon. Behind them, through the closed door, his wife and her handmaidens awaited and nothing, not man nor machine would keep him from them.

"Stand back, Am. I'm going to burn through the door," he shouted, then proceeded to cut through the lock. It fell off in a single molten piece and the door swung open to reveal the women huddled against the opposite wall.

Amidala ran to him, clutching him as if he might disappear before her eyes. "I couldn't save them, Ani... None of them. My people... They're all dead... My planet's dead. Why?" she wept.

He couldn't answer her, for he understood no better than she did the Mandalorian's actions. All he could do was hold her and plan on how he would escape with her and the others.

"Sio Bibble?" he asked.

"They murdered him first, Ani. He tried to reason with them when my negotiations failed. He said they didn't respect a woman ruler. That a man would have better luck. But he didn't. They cut him down without so much as a word." She bit back another sob. "He posed no threat to them. Unarmed and elderly, how in the

 

Another shameless up!

 

I'm a lurker extraordinaire, but I'm popping out from underneath my rock just long enough to let you know I've loved your fic.

More, soon, please!!

 

Glad you're enjoying it. Started out as an off the cuff thing and has grown to immense proportions. Depending on how things go, perhaps I might archive it somewhere really neat...like JG's Vader's Mask. What do you think, JG? If I incorporate some of the Vader part of it, would it be okay there?

 

Here's a bit more toward the story....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They made their way toward the palace hangar bay, not certain if any of the ships had survived the Mandalorian attack. Anakin felt greatly disturbed at Sabé's pronouncement. How could they have been betrayed? And by whom? He set aside those disturbing thoughts and set about finding a way to get Amidala and her four remaining handmaidens off of Naboo.

His luck held out. A small shuttle nestled in one corner of the bay, untouched among the wreckage of less fortunate fighters and the Queen's Nubian. From the one corridor, a familiar whistle brought smiles to the group's faces.

"R2! You're safe," Amidala exclaimed.

The droid wheeled toward them, a string of beeps, chortles and other mechanical noises bursting from him. While Anakin might not actually understand R2, he got the sense he had something important to tell them. He wished he had brought 3PO along instead of leaving him on Coruscant.

"Come on, let's get you out of here," Anakin told Amidala, then ushered her into the shuttle. "Can you pilot this thing?"

She gave him a disgusted look. "Of course. I may not be the hot shot ace you are, but I know my way around a cockpit."

He grinned at her, pride at her accomplishments overshadowing, for a brief moment, the horrible situation they had found themselves in. Anakin glanced back at the other women, who settled themselves into the seats and began to strap in, then joined his wife at the front of the shuttle.

"I need to stay behind, Am. Someone has to look for other survivors. There has to be somebody else who found a hiding place..."

Amidala put her hand over his. "Yes, love... I understand, though I wish I could keep you by my side." She leaned forward to give him a press her mouth lightly to his.

The touch of her lips against his flooded him with violent need. They'd been married such a short time when he had to leave her and months had passed since he'd held her. With a groan, he pulled her into his arms, covering her face and neck with kisses. She melted against him, responding with equal passion, until the sound of distant cannon fire dragged them from their ardor. Reluctantly, they broke apart, aching and miserable with thwarted desire and the loss of their safe haven.

"Go to Coruscant, Am. You'll be safe there. If I find anyone else... When Obi-Wan and Bail Organa get here, they'll have the means to evacuate any other survivors." He gave her face a gentle caress. "I'll cover your escape in my fighter, then I come back and start my search."

"Take care, beloved. I couldn't stand it if I lost you, too," she murmured, pressing her cheek against his palm.

He made his way back to the square, fired up his fighter, then hovered near the hangar bay's entrance. A few minutes later the shuttle sped through the opening and toward space, Anakin's fighter close behind. Once again, no challenge, but Anakin didn't leave the ship carrying its precious cargo until they went into hyperspace. Her last message to him had filled him with the determination to make the Mandalorians pay.

"Come back to me, love. You're all I have left now."

He sped back to the planet, skimming the surface, his sensors seeking any sign of life. Clusters of Mandalorian troops greeted him with bursts of blaster fire as he flew past. He moved toward the Gungan jungle, toward the sanctuary Jar-Jar had shown them years ago.

Spirals of oily black smoke rose from the place. As he drew closer he saw Gungan bodies among the shattered statuary and vegetation, strewn like limp dolls and a child's playing blocks across the ground. A lump rose in his throat. Annoying as Jar-Jar had been, Anakin never would have wished such an end for these people.

He landed in a clearing and set off on foot toward the destruction. Reaching out with the Force, he tried to find any flicker of life. Nothing met his senses...not Gungan, nor any animal life. What had possessed the Mandalorians to obliterate all living creatures on Naboo? Other

 

I love this story... is it going into the post-EpIII era (assuming that epIII ends with the birth of the twins)? (Yay, I'm liking the trend of nice, sprawling, long stories!) VM is all post-epIII, or at least stories that cross over with the post-epIII timeline. I think it fits in the PG13 rating; the explicit scenes are poetically done.

Two other sites are A21's "Moons of Iego" at http://www.geocities.com/anakin_and_amidala/anakinamidala.htm

and ami-padme's "Anakin Skywalker Homepage" at
http://fan.starwars.com/anakinhomepage/

 

Darth RL, the sworn nemesis to fanfic writers... sorry about your headache Belle; hope it lifts up soon!

Looking forward to your next post...

 

Yes, indeed, it will go past Ep. III. I plan to not only show how he became the cyborg Vader, but how he helped Sidious/Palpatine destroy the Jedi. I plan on having a scene where Obi-Wan helps Yoda escape to the small planet in the Dagobah system, then confronts his ex-pupil about the path he's taken, leading to the volcano scene. Then, he'll help Amidala hid the twins, just before...well, if I tell then it won't be a surprise, will it? hehehe Once he's the Vader we've come to hate/love, I'll get more into his psych and his gradual withdrawal from humanity with the loss of all he's known in the past.

 

AAck!! that evil Palpatine! Oh, I can barely stand it! Having said that...I look forward to more!

 

Most cool. Looking forward to it. (The problem with half the real-world fiction out there today is that it has no scope to it!)

 

Working this weekend...will try to get more up tomorrow. Up!

 

When on another thread I asked what would give us solace in the end of Ep. III, you answered that their children... But here- Palpi has some evil plans for Luke and Leia too... Anyway, I trust you Belle!

 

Sorry to be so remiss... been slaving away over my new web site. Will try to get something up soon (having similar problems with writing that JG and Skysong have on the Penitent thread). If you have time, check out my new pages: http://elaine-robson.tripod.com/bellesbayou/

 

Belle, your new page is really beautiful! Very romantic. I just checked "flyfishing" too- I had no idea what it could be... I know what "fly" is, I have some idea about fishing- but together...

 

Hehehe (ducks head in embarrassment). That was one page I never got around to changing from the original template. Ooops! Heh... If you go back, it's changed to what it was supposed to be... Links to places like Gala's Vader's Mask, DMEB, etc. I'm also (when I get time) going to post this entire story there (with some cleaning up). Thanks for the kind words, Lady Z.

 

Up!

Saw the link to your site on the DVEB, Belle-- I said it there, but I'll say it here too: nice job.