God Save the Queen: Chapter 8 (Patreon)

Chapter 8: Paths Less Traveled

I stood over the still form of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

He still lived, though he’d woken only briefly in the day since he’d been recovered from the Trade Federation command ship.

At the moment, he lay in a bacta bath, submerged from the waist down in liquid as delicate droid instruments attached to his medical bed ensured that there were no complications in the new prosthetic legs that had been installed just below his knee.

They were placeholders; Even in the frantic aftermath of the battle, amid a nearly twenty-four-hour legislative session, I’d managed to pass a resolution to supply the young Jedi with the finest artificial legs on the market. They would be paid for and delivered by the end of the week.

When your world had just been ‘donated’ twenty-five Lucrehulks, an arm and a leg didn’t seem so expensive.

A leg and a leg, whatever.

“My Queen,” I felt Sabé nudge me in the side. “The Death Watch is here to retrieve their leader’s remains.”

I nodded, pulling my eyes away from the slumbering Jedi. “I’ll be right out. Please prepare his effects as well.” Sabé nodded.

Bo Katan met me just outside the medical wing. ”Your Majesty.” She dipped her head, helmet resting against her hip.

“Commander.” I replied. After we’d seized the Trade Federation’s control ship and decisively won the battle of Naboo, news of Pre Vizsla’s demise had become known in short order. Bo Katan had taken the reins of Death Watch mostly unopposed.

There may have been an honor duel that she won handily after the battle, but I would make no statements about that.

Sabé emerged from the medical wing a moment after me, along with two hovering stretchers. One was for Vizsla’s armor and weapons. The other was for the man himself.

Bo Katan sucked in a breath as his body floated gently out into the hall. The Royal Embalmer had prepared the body and wrapped it in an unadorned black robe of silk. I saw Bo Katan’s eyes lingering on the clean lightSabér cuts on the corpse’s middle and neck. The Deathwatch had asked us to leave the body as unchanged as possible.

I’d thought the news of their leader’s death would cause more discomfort as well, but apparently the fact that Obi-Wan had received crippling wounds, and the fact that Vizsla was publicly credited with the victory was enough for Death Watch.

“I’d seen the security footage, but even still.” She shook her head. At the snap of her fingers, the two Mando’ade accompanying her stepped forward to take control of the stretchers. For her part, Katan picked up the so-called Dark Sabér. She weighed it in her grip before clipping it onto her belt. “You have my gratitude, Queen of Naboo, for returning his arms and armor as you said you would.”

“You delivered to me my homeworld.” I lowered my head slightly. “Honor is best when paired with gratitude.”

The woman raised an eyebrow. “Well said.” She looked at her former leader, green eyes inscrutable. “To think, Pre, that you’d lead us to victory halfway across the galaxy, but you wouldn’t make it to the end.”

I waited in silence for a moment, before speaking. “This need not be an ending.”

Bo Katan’s gaze returned, sharp as an owl’s. “What are you suggesting?”

I stepped to the side, letting the stretchers hover out of the way as I looked towards the vaulted windows on the far side of the hall. Beneath us sprawled the city of Theed, in all its glory.

“Death Watch is an army without a world. Naboo is a world without an army.”

“We have a home world, Queen of Naboo.” Bo Katan’s face settled into a scowl. “And I will not abandon my leader’s cause before his body has even been laid to rest.”

I tilted my head. “I thought that being Mando’ade meant more than being from a nation, a world, or a people,” I said. “That it was instead a truth written in the skin you choose to wear.”

She lifted her chin. “That is our way.” Her voice was challenging, as if asking me to attack her directly.

“I am not asking you to surrender your cause, or compromise for even a moment.” I waved towards the window. “Instead, I am offering you a different path to those ambitions.”

“And what?” Bo Katan spread her arms. “You think all of your peace-loving artisans would let us set up shop in your backyard?”

I smiled. So we weren’t ‘fools’ any longer.

“I think that many of my people have had their place in the galaxy upended. They will be looking for answers with the same determination that we Naboo are so famous for.”

She gave me a long look, then shook her head and shrugged. “Fine. You carried yourself well enough. I’ll hear your offer.”

“Here are the finer details.” I held out a data chit. “The specifics can be worked out between us, but I will be giving a formal address to the Nubian parliament in two days’ time. I will need to know your answer by then.”

She nodded, worrying her lip. “Speaking of things you need to know,” she pulled another data chit off of her belt and traded it with mine, “I would have led with this, but then you started talking about causes.”

I eyed her warily. “What happened?”

“The Sith escaped.”

“I thought he was dead.”

Bo Katan grimaced. “So did we.”

I plugged the chit into my comm without another word. Even prepared, my face went blank as I saw Darth Maul rise from a pile of scrap metal and bodies in the bed of a transport. He staggered to his feet, then attacked the two Mandalorians pilots like a wild animal, killing them both.

The footage cut out a moment after he took control of the ship.

“I attempted to reach you as soon as I was made aware,” Katan said.

I bit off a curse. “I was occupied with matters of state. Still, my thanks for bringing this to me directly. This is not something we can delegate.”

“Hit the bantha in the head there, your majesty.”

I pocketed the chit. “I will inform the Jedi personally.” Inside though, I was still struggling to parse this information. Maul had survived this time?

Was that the price I paid for saving Qui-Gon’s life? Maul alive and Obi-Wan crippled?

I pushed the thought away with a grimace. “Do you have any idea where he went?”

“We put fighters in pursuit the moment the transport missed its check in, but they lost his trail when he switched to a stealthed ship and fled into hyperspace. Didn’t even try to steal the beskar.”

I let out a long breath. “It seems that every silver lining has a dark cloud indeed.”

Bo Katan’s gaze tracked to Vizsla’s corpse. “Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

I stared at my blank comm for a few moments before pocketing it. “All the more reason for my offer,” I said. “You have my frequency once you’ve made your decision.”

The Mando took my dismissal for what it was, leaving with her guard in tow. With the last of our duties to Death Watch discharged for the time being, I turned to Sabé. “Get me Qui-Gon, as soon as possible without revealing that it is urgent.”

She bowed. “My Queen… is it wise to offer the Death Watch a permanent home here?”

I walked past her and into the nearest empty office as Sabé dispatched several messages on her comm.

“This battle has proven that we need allies,” I said. “We have the men and the will, but we need the knowledge and the materiel both to protect ourselves. When it comes to fighting a war…” I waved my hand. “Is there anyone left in the galaxy that remembers more of conflict than the Mandaorians?”

She thought that over for a second, then nodded, following me into the office and closing the door with a soft hiss. “It seems our troubles are not yet over.”

“Not remotely…” I sat down on a chair with a sigh, setting my commlink on the smooth wood of the desk. “I thought things were supposed to be easy after defeating the Trade Federation.”

Sabé settled into a chair next to me. “Before we had but one enemy, and one course of action.”

“Now it’s anything but.” I sighed. Still, I was used to being surrounded by enemies on all sides. “How long will Master Jinn take?”

“I indicated that you wished to speak with him, but not that it was urgent.” She gave me a questioning look.

I massaged my brow. “The Sith has already fled the system. I’ll not have a lone Jedi gallivanting after him and leaving both his padawans on Naboo. What was he doing?”

She checked her data pad. “He has a visitor from the Jedi Temple?”

“Really?” I lifted my head. “How did someone get here so fast?” I shook my head. “Never mind, I’ve already taken my break. What else is on the docket?”

“Your break was brooding over that Jedi, my queen,” Sabé said. When I raised an eyebrow at her, she looked away. “I hardly think that counts as rest, but if you must have something to do before the Jedi arrives, Kuat has asked to speak with you yet again.”

I snorted. “Which house this time?”

“The Kuat of Kuat herself wishes to speak with you at your convenience.”

“I thought the Kuat of Kuat was a man.”

Sabé glanced down at her pad. “He was.”

I hummed. It wasn’t every day that the leader of a Midrim planet like Naboo was waited on by a coreworld power, but then, most of the time that power hadn’t lost massive face by defaulting on an incredibly lucrative trade alliance. Just like Brian had once said, it was all about rep.

I sighed. “And if the Mandos will be our knowledge, the KDY can provide materiel,” I said. “I doubt this offer will last for long. Put my hair up, Sabé?”

Time to send more butterflies out into the galaxy.

“At once, My Queen.” My handmaiden quickly tied my long brown hair into something suitably ceremonial that still looked practical enough for a queen who’d just unseated a foreign occupying force. “Should Master Jinn arrive before you are finished, I shall inform him that you are busy.”

“And after calling him to talk to me, too.” I rolled my eyes. “I’m sure he’ll have a great time poking fun at me for that.”

For her part, Sabé just smiled and set up the call, pinging my encrypted comm off of the desk’s computer.

In less than a few short minutes, I was face to face with a holo of the current leader of House Kuat.

“Lady Kuat.” I inclined my head as I took in my counterpart. “You have my condolences on behalf of your predecessor.”

The woman narrowed her eyes. She looked maybe a decade older than me, though with the correct treatments it was hard to tell. The woman had almond eyes and ocher skin, all framed by pencil straight hair. The kind of face you expected to see on an advertising holo.

“The previous Lord Kuat has simply stepped down,” she said.

“I’m certain he has.” I smiled. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?”

Her gaze sharpened even more. “The Kuat of Kuat was wrong.”

I tilted my head, placing my palm on my cheek. “Oh? About what, I wonder.”

“The previous Kuat of Kuat was misinformed,” she said. “Our house was fed false information through multiple trusted channels. We believed, based on credible reports from both the Trade Federation and the Banking Clans, that Naboo was attempting to use a false ‘blockade’ to renege on its trade agreements with the help of the Federation.”

There were a lot of things I could choose to say in the face of that utter nonsense. Instead I just raised a brow.

For nearly a minute, neither of us spoke. Unfortunately for her, I was used to silence, even without a swarm to push my emotions into.

In the end, she blinked first. “I wished to express my house’s desire to mend old divides, and look forward towards new, mutually supportive relationships.”

“Mutually supportive.” I tasted the words. “I shall have to remember that phrase.” Of course, there was a limit to how far I could push someone like the leader of the Kuat, even if she was motivated by selfish greed rather than any genuine remorse. “And what form would this…mutually supportive relationship take?”

“Kuat Drive Yards is a lucrative market for Naboo plasma,” she offered. Her expression was still guarded, and for good reason. “House Kuat is willing to offer generous business incentives and offset the transport fees with our own fleet.”

So, their informants were bought off by the Banking Clans, and now Kuat had a choice between eating crow, or losing their access to Naboo plasma entirely, and after they’d been enjoying it at such a discount before they broke their promises.

“Hmm.” I drummed my fingers against the desk. They clearly didn’t know how many Lucrehulks we’d seized from the Trade Federation if they were offering to use their own fleet. That gave me a bargaining position, and I intended to use it. “Traditionally, if one wishes to mend a relationship, the start by making amends.”

I saw her visibly chew on that statement for a short moment, mulling it over with what information she had access to. The news of the Trade Federation’s ignoble defeat should have spread across the galaxy by now, along with a sworn statement from Nute Gunray apologizing for the ‘heinous’ and ‘unprovoked’ attack on the sovereign world of Naboo. That being said, the details were anything but clear. No doubt Kuat wondered just how Naboo defeated the Federation, and how much it had cost us, hence the lowball offer.

Within a standard week, the news of Death Watch would no doubt leak, but we’d seized all of the vessels they’d boarded, and were ‘detaining’ anyone who’d seen the Mando’ade for a few more days. That was the extent of my wiggle room.

“What,” Kuat began, “did you have in mind?”

“Preferential access to KDY ship building facilities.”

Her eyes lit up with greed. “I can certainly make our ship breakers available—”

“Not breakers,” I interrupted, smiling at her annoyance. “Naboo is interested in buying ships, and we will be willing to pay in plasma at market rates.”

The Kuat of Kuat was remarkably less interested in that offer. “Ship building queues are determined years in advance, I’m afraid. Of course, we have many vessels that could be made available at a discounted price, if one were to pay directly in plasma.”

I held back a snort. Naboo didn’t need more pleasure vessels, and our new fleet of Lucrehulks obviated the need for overpriced transport ships.

“Then I suppose I will be resuming my talks with the Mon’Cal and Corelian shipyards.”

‘Talks’ was putting it generously. One of the first things the Parliament had approved was the formation of Nubian Orbital Defense Force, and we’d sent out several feelers. That was about it.

Still, the threat of losing all access to Naboo Plasma, which we’d been selling to Kuat at very friendly rates prior to the blockade, was enough to prompt a response. “Perhaps some… exceptions might be made, in order to make amends for past mistakes.”

“How kind of you.”

“What types of ships would you be interested in producing, your majesty?”

I smiled. “Nothing too onerous. starfighters and corvettes mostly.” I waved my hand. “The largest ship we would be interested in producing would be a frigate.”

The woman sucked her lip, the first tic I’d seen. I could see her internal dilemma. On one hand, those classes of ships would be easy to ‘find some room’ for; on the other, they were far from the most lucrative. A properly optimized starfighter production line could churn out snub fighters at absurdly cheap rates.

“You have captured several Lucrehulks then, and you intend to turn them into carriers.” The woman snorted.

I shrugged. I guess she hadn’t been made Kuat of Kuat for nothing.

“A marginally better plan than welding on turbolasers and calling them ‘battleships’,” she said. “But only marginally. I assure you that purpose-built KDY carriers will outperform such vessels at every metric.”

Every metric except how many fighters they could hold. Most of the Lucrehulks has been packed to the brim with Vulture Droids. I could imagine how much more effective they might be if their cargo were N-1 Nubian Starfighters armed with proton torpedoes.

“Your offer is most generous,” I said. “However, Naboo finds herself rich in starfighter pilots; therefore, that is the production we seek to augment at the moment.”

I didn’t intend to spill our military philosophy over my holocomm, but the Ruusan reforms had a curious blind spot when it came to starfighters; perhaps because you couldn’t use them to glass a planet, which had happened more than once during the Sith Wars. I didn’t know the first thing about capital ship construction, but Naboo already had starfighters capable of disabling even battlecruisers.

It didn’t hurt that our starfighter pilots were being hailed as heroes for their part in the boarding action, and we were seeing record numbers of applicants to the Starfighter Corps. That the Death Watch was most experienced with light vessels and fighters as well formed a happy coincidence.

Of course, none of that would matter unless we could secure enough fighters to train and equip all of our pilots.

At length, the Kuat of Kuat sighed. “Kuat Drive Yards will be able to supply as many of such vessels as Naboo is able to pay for.”

I clapped my hands. “How wonderful. I shall have my offices send a proposal once we have reviewed counteroffers from other capable shipyards.”

A flicker of cold indignation crossed her face. “You would impugn our reputation in such a way?”

I modeled my features into a mask of mild surprise. “Of course not,” I said, leaning forward towards the holo. “I simply do not wish to be… misinformed.”

We made eye contact through the flickering blue of the holocall.

“House Kuat will await your proposal for a reasonable period of time.”

She ended the call.

I leaned back in my chair. “That’s all I asked for.” In this life and the last. “For people to be reasonable.”

To my side, Sabé rose. “I shall draft a proposal for the Parliament.”

I sighed, rubbing my face. “Make sure to send it through the new Orbital Command…”

“My Queen, for all intents and purposes, you are the command.”

I blinked at that.

“It is under direct command of the Queen, after all. In fact, some of the more conservative members of Parliament have even voiced some concerns about the overcentralization of power.”

I snorted. “You’d think they’d wait at least a week.” I rubbed my eyes again. “Make sure to have our own shipwrights approve designs at least. Is Qui-Gon here?”

“He is waiting outside, My Queen.”

“Great.” I pushed myself up to my feet. “Let’s not keep him waiting.”

Sabé opened the door with a wave of my hand, allowing Qui-Gon to step into the somewhat spacious office, with Anakin and Artoo following behind him.

“Hello there little Ani, Artoo.” I gave the Jedi master a polite nod before patting both the boy and the droid on the head. Artoo whirred happily, but Anakin just pouted up at me.

“I’m not little.”

I gave a tired chuckle. “No matter how big you get, you’ll always be little Ani to me.” He pouted harder, but I brushed it off. “How is your mother?”

Anakin glanced up at Qui-Gon, but the man merely smiled.

“She’s… happy!” Anakin said. “Thanks for helping her get an apartment and stuff. Greedo owned our houses back on Tatooine, so she’s still getting used to it, but I can tell she likes it.”

I nodded. It was easy to forget that this was the kid who built a podracer at nine years old. Frighteningly intelligent didn’t begin to cover it. “I’m sure she’d love to see you. You can visit her whenever Master Qui-Gon allows.”

The Jedi chuckled. “Not when the order allows?”

I raised an eyebrow at him. “And does the order know he’s been spending time with his mother?”

Qui-Gon inclined his head.

“A ruler after my own heart,” came a voice from the hallway. I blinked because the man sounded almost familiar.

I turned to Qui-Gon, about to ask after his guest, when a tall man with a close-cropped beard stepped into the doorframe. “Forgive me for eavesdropping, your highness, but I felt it unpolitic to remain concealed any longer.”

“Count Dooku?”

The words left my mouth before I could process what I was saying, but there he was, in the flesh. There was more black in his beard than I remembered from the films, but that hawklike nose was unmistakable. I barely even noticed the understated but clearly expensive robes he wore. Instead, all I could think about was that I’d clearly overplayed my hand, and now Sideous had sent this man to kill us all. How foolish, to think I could be a better person than—

“I see that my reputation precedes me,” Dooku said. “I apologize for not announcing my presence upon my arrival, but I felt that the last thing Naboo needed was a foreign dignitary to entertain.”

“You’d be right.” My mouth continued on autopilot as I frantically tried to rally my thoughts, wracking my brain from what I actually knew about Count Dooku from my education in this life. “Still, it’s quite a shock that the Count of… Serenno is suddenly here on Naboo.”

“I was in Coruscant, in truth,” he replied. “I had hoped to catch my apprentice before he returned to Naboo, only to arrive after he’d already departed.”

“Apprentice?”

“Please, your majesty, allow me to introduce Master Dooku.” Qui-Gon bowed his head in respect. “This man taught me when I was a padawan learner.” He turned to Anakin. “When we first met, I was scarcely older than you are now.”

Anakin blinked up at the count. “So you’re a… double master?” He breathed. “Wizard.”

“I no longer believe I qualify for that title.” Despite his words, Dooku smiled down at his one day killer. It was surreal. “I left the Jedi Order some time ago.”

“Why would anyone leave the Jedi?”

The old man’s smile grew sad. “A conversation for another time. But where are my manners, your majesty.” He turned towards me. “As the Count of Serenno, please allow me to extend my gratitude for your gracious welcome, even if you did not know I was nobility at the time.”

“We are pleased by your thanks.” The diplomacy was a port in the storm. “As the ruler of Naboo, we bid you enjoy your stay, and hope it is fruitful.”

“There.” He smiled, eyes crinkling in the exact same way as Qui-Gon’s. “Now that the formalities are taken care of, I wish to extend my own thanks, not as one ruler to another, but as a man.”

I blinked at that, still off balance.

Setting aside the fact that, despite our titles as Queen and Count, we were closer to equal standing than anything else, there was also the fact that, “I’m… not sure what you are thanking me for.”

He stroked his beard. “When I heard that Qui-Gon had been dispatched to Naboo, I feared that the worst might come to pass. I have since learned the entire sordid tale of this farcical blockade, and in my eyes, your own excellent planning played no small part in keeping both Qui-Gon and his apprentice alive.”

I shook my head. “Obi-Wan was all but crippled. If I’d—”

Dooku raised a hand. “I understand the doubts that plague you, your Majesty. Heavy lies the crown, and your own rule, short as it has been, came with no shortage of troubles.”

Despite myself, the words struck a chord with me. It helped me tamp down on my own confusion. I couldn’t even imagine how twisted my thoughts would be if I’d been actually invested in the Star Wars films back on Bet.

“Thus, believe my words when I say that I am most grateful that the lives of more Jedi have not been wasted by a callous republic in a fracturing galaxy.”

“Wasted?”

The Count and I both glanced over at Anakin. The once slave looked at us both with wide eyes. For a moment, I thought about sending him away. But I was still a teenager myself, and as stubborn in this life as in my last.

So instead I said, “Remember how ‘wizard’ it was when you realized I was the Queen?” The boy nodded. “It looks a lot different now, doesn’t it?”

He shrugged. “It looks hard.” He glanced up at me through his messy bangs. “Still wizard, though.”

I laughed despite myself. “It is hard. So is being a Jedi.” I looked at the two Jedi masters in the room. “I know little enough about it, but even still, I know it will test you in ways you never even considered.” I sighed. “I know being a Queen has done that to me.”

Anakin stood silently for a few moments. Then, Qui-Gon placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “We will discuss this more later. For now, simply consider the Queen’s words.”

“Yes, master.”

“Now then,” Count Dooku straightened himself, “I have a few material matters I wish to discuss with her majesty.”

I felt my lips quirking up into a smile. Another critical negotiation, when I already felt tired and strung out from the last two?

There was no rest for the wicked. “Sabé?”

“I shall have a tea set sent up to the nearest stateroom. Shall I send word to the councilors?”

I eyed Count Dooku, but as a consummate statesman, he left that decision entirely to me. “Just inform them that I am meeting with Count Dooku of Serenno. I get the feeling that we will want to speak first, before bringing concerted agreements to Parliament.”

The Count smiled. “That would be most agreeable, your Majesty.”

Sabé bowed low, leading our party back out into the hall. As we walked past Obi-Wan’s room, Dooku began by saying, “First off, should you need any assistance in Obi-Wan’s recovery, I shall provide it from my own funds.”

I nodded. “Naboo is already committed to fully restoring his wounds; I accept your aid on our behalf.” I glanced at Qui-Gon. “Master Jinn, what is to happen to your padawan?”

“Once he acclimates to his prosthetics, I know he will be ready to take his knight trials.” Qui-Gon sighed. “But I worry all the same.”

“Worry about what?”

“That he will not know.”

Count Dooku placed a hand on Qui-Gon’s shoulder. “I shall be here for him if he needs it.”

Qui-Gon nodded. “Thank you, master.”

Ahead of us, Sabé opened the doors to the nearest stateroom with a bow. “This way, my Queen, Count Dooku of Serrano.”

“This is where we part ways for now, Qui-Gon,” Dooku said. He gave Anakin a serious look. “You are free to seek me out as well, youngling.”

“…Okay.”

With that, our party split, leaving me with Sabé, Dooku, and of course, Artoo. I patted the little droid once again as it came wheeling back with a tray of drinks balanced on his little dome.

“Sabé,” I said quietly. “I think I’ll be staying with my family tonight, instead of the Royal Apartments.”

“I shall inform the guards.” She smiled. “It is about time you got a good night’s sleep, my Queen.”

“After this,” I said, “I think I’ll need it.”