So this is Padmé’s planet, Anakin thought as he sloshed through the swamp after Jar Jar. It’s very wet. The patches of open water were even stranger than the grass-covered hillocks and the tall trees all around. He’d never seen so much water in all his life. Even the air was thick with damp. It felt like breathing soup. Cold soup.
Jar Jar stopped at last under a stand of trees that looked, to Anakin, like every other stand of trees they had passed. “Dissen it,” he said, and made an odd chattering noise.
Gungan guards materialized out of the mist, riding creatures like giant, wingless birds. They took the group farther into the swamp, to the ruins of a huge building. Massive heads, carved of stone, stood among the ruins. Everything was half-buried in weeds and muck; some of the heads had sunk up to their eyes in the swamp.
More Gungans appeared all around. Several of them stood on top of one of the heads; from the way they dressed, Anakin could tell they were important. One stepped forward and looked down at the group. “Jar Jar,” he said, “yousa paying dis time. Who’s da uss-en others?”
The Naboo Queen stepped forward. Padmé, Captain Panaka, and the two Jedi took up positions behind her. Since Anakin had been told to stay near Qui-Gon, he stepped up beside them. This is great, he thought. I can see everything!
“I am Queen Amidala of the Naboo,” the Queen said to the Gungans. “I come before you in peace.”
The head Gungan snorted. “Naboo biggen. Yousa bringen da Mackineeks. Day busten uss-en omm. Yousa all bombad. Yousa all die’n, mesa tink.”
Captain Panaka looked around nervously as the Gungan guards lowered their electropoles. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan were still relaxed, though. If they weren’t worried, Anakin wasn’t, either. They must have a plan.
The Queen seemed as uneasy as Captain Panaka, but she continued, “We wish to form an alliance—”
“Your Honor!”
Anakin’s head whipped around. That was Padmé! Why is she interrupting the Queen?
The head Gungan seemed just as puzzled as Anakin. “Whosa dis?” he demanded as Padmé came forward to stand next to the Queen.
“I am Queen Amidala,” Padmé said with dignity. She pointed at the royally dressed girl beside her and went on, “This is my decoy, my protection…my loyal bodyguard.”
Anakin stared, openmouthed. Padmé is the Queen? She can’t be the Queen!
“I am sorry for my deception,” Padmé continued, “but under the circumstances, it has become necessary to protect myself.” She paused and looked up at the Gungans. “The Trade Federation has destroyed all that we have worked so hard to build. You are in hiding; my people are in camps. I ask you to help us.” She hesitated. “No, I beg you to help us.”
Padmé dropped to her knees in front of the Gungans. Captain Panaka and his troops gasped, but she ignored them. “We are your humble servants,” Padmé told the Gungan Council. “Our fate is in your hands.”
Slowly, Captain Panaka and his men also knelt. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan exchanged glances, then went down on one knee. Anakin joined them, still feeling stunned. Padmé is the Queen of Naboo?
After a moment, the head Gungan began to laugh. “Yousa no tinken yousa greater den da Gungans!” he said. “Mesa like dis. Maybe wesa bein friends.”
Padmé and her troops rose to their feet, smiling. Automatically, Anakin imitated them, but he was hardly aware of what he was doing. His eyes were fixed on Padmé—Queen Amidala. She’s Queen Amidala, not Padmé. She won’t have time to talk to me anymore. He felt hollow, the way he had when he left his mother on Tatooine. Even Qui-Gon’s comforting hand on his shoulder didn’t help. She’s a Queen, and I’m not even going to be a Jedi. I should never have left home.
After a brief talk with the Gungan leaders, Amidala sent Captain Panaka out to discover what had been happening on Naboo. Meanwhile, she consulted the Gungan generals. By the time Panaka returned, they had come up with a plan.
“What is the situation?” Amidala asked Captain Panaka as he joined the group.
“Almost everyone is in camps,” Panaka replied. “A few hundred police and guards have formed an underground movement. I brought as many of the leaders as I could. The Federation’s army is much larger than we thought. And much stronger.” He hesitated. “Your Highness, this is a battle I do not think we can win.”
Amidala smiled. “The battle is a diversion. The Gungans will draw the droid army away from the cities. We can enter the city using the secret passages on the waterfall side. Once we get to the main entrance, Captain Panaka will create a diversion so that we can enter the palace and capture the viceroy. Without him, they will be lost and confused.”
She turned to Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, who had stayed silently with her ever since she had revealed her true identity. “What do you think, Master Jedi?”
“The viceroy will be well guarded,” Qui-Gon pointed out.
“The difficulty is getting into the throne room,” Captain Panaka said. “Once we’re inside, we shouldn’t have a problem.”
“Many Gungans may be killed,” Qui-Gon said, looking at Boss Nass.
The Gungan leader shrugged. “Wesa ready to do are-sa part.”
“We will send what pilots we have to knock out the Droid Control Ship that is orbiting the planet,” Amidala assured him. “If we can get past their ray shields, we can sever their communications, and the droids will be helpless.” It was my idea to bring Gungans into this; the least I can do is keep them all from dying, she thought.
“A well-conceived plan,” Qui-Gon said, nodding. “However, there’s great risk. The weapons on your fighters may not penetrate the shields on the Control Ship.”
“And if the viceroy escapes, Your Highness, he will return with another droid army,” Obi-Wan added.
Amidala put her chin up. “That is why we must not fail to get the viceroy,” she told them. “Everything depends on it.”
The Trade Federation viceroy does not look happy, thought Darth Maul. But then, reporting bad news to Darth Sidious was enough to make anyone unhappy. At least his master did not seem disturbed by the news that the Queen had returned to gather an army.
“She is more foolish than I thought,” was all that Darth Sidious said when Nute Gunray finished his report.
“We are sending all available troops to meet this army of hers,” Gunray said. “It appears to be made up of primitives. We do not expect much resistance.”
Darth Maul stirred. “I feel there is more to this, my master,” he said, ignoring the dark look Nute Gunray gave him. “The two Jedi may be using the Queen for their own purposes.”
“The Jedi cannot become involved,” Sidious said dismissively. “They can only protect the Queen. Even Qui-Gon Jinn will not break that covenant.” He paused, considering. “This will work to our advantage.”
“I have your approval to proceed then, my lord?” Nute Gunray asked nervously.
“Proceed,” said Darth Sidious. His mouth curled into a small smile below his dark hood. “Wipe them out. All of them.”
The Gungan army began its march before dawn. Amidala left shortly afterward with the little group of Naboo guards, fighter pilots, and repair droids that Captain Panaka had assembled. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan came with her, and so did Anakin Skywalker. She had abandoned her Padmé disguise completely and wore the burgundy battle uniform of the Naboo rulers.
She led her troops through the passages behind the waterfall and into the city. The streets were silent and empty. Looking at them, Amidala’s lips tightened angrily. This city belongs to my people, and the Trade Federation has taken it away from them. I was right to come back.
Near the main hangar, the little group split up. Captain Panaka took most of the guards and slipped around to the far side of the plaza, while Amidala, the Jedi, and the pilots slipped closer to the hangar door. As they took up their positions, Amidala saw Qui-Gon lean toward Anakin.
“Once we get inside, Annie, you find a safe place to hide,” the Jedi ordered. “And stay there.”
> “Sure,” Anakin said, a little too casually.
Qui-Gon gave him a stern look. “And stay there!”
Amidala hoped the boy would listen. She would never forgive herself if anything happened to Anakin.…Something moved in the shadows on the far side of the plaza, behind the Trade Federation tanks. Captain Panaka was in position. Raising a small laser light, she signaled to him. A moment later, his troops opened fire on the tanks.
Battle droids and tanks headed for the far side of the plaza, leaving the door to the main hangar clear. Amidala and her forces ran into the hangar and began firing at the battle droids inside. True to their orders, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon did not attack the droids directly. They used their lightsabers only to deflect laser bolts that were aimed at Queen Amidala. But, Amidala noticed, every shot they deflected bounced back and hit a battle droid. The two Jedi were destroying more droids than all the rest of her people put together.
“Get to your ships!” Amidala commanded, and the pilots and their repair droids ran for the starfighters. Anakin! Where’s Anakin? She blasted another battle droid into fragments of bone-white metal. I hope he found somewhere safe, the way Qui-Gon told him to.
As soon as the hangar door opened, Anakin ducked sideways underneath one of the fighters. It made a good hiding place for the first few minutes, but then the pilots swung up into their ships, and the ships began to take off. Anakin looked around for a better spot to hide, and Artoo-Detoo whistled at him from the rear of a nearby starfighter. Quickly, Anakin glanced around. All the pilots had ships already; this one wouldn’t be going anywhere. He ran over and climbed into the cockpit.
After a moment the firing lessened. Cautiously, Anakin peeked over the edge of the cockpit. Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, and Padmé—Queen Amidala. She’s Queen Amidala—were heading for the exit with the rest of the Naboo guards. “Hey!” Anakin called. “Wait for me!”
“No, Annie, you stay there,” Qui-Gon said as Anakin started to climb out of the fighter. “Stay right where you are.”
“But I—”
“Stay in that cockpit,” Qui-Gon commanded, and turned back to join the troops.
The hangar door opened. Standing in the doorway was a dark, hooded figure. The Queen’s troops scattered. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon stepped forward, tossing their cloaks aside. “We’ll handle this,” Qui-Gon said.
The menacing figure in the doorway also threw his cloak aside. Anakin gasped. The man’s face was completely covered by a red-and-black tattoo, and instead of hair, short horns protruded from his head. As the Jedi lit their lightsabers, the newcomer pulled out one of his own. When he lit it, red bars of light appeared at both ends. A two-sided lightsaber. Anakin stared. The tattooed man grinned fiercely and attacked the Jedi.
Behind Anakin, Artoo whistled urgently. Anakin looked around. Six wheel droids had rolled into the far side of the hangar. As he watched, they rose into their battle positions and began firing at Pad—Queen Amidala. “Oh, no!” Anakin said. “We have to do something, Artoo!”
Artoo whistled, and the ship’s systems came on. “Great idea!” Anakin said. “Let’s see…” He turned the ship to point toward the droids and studied the controls. They were different from the ones Ric Olié had shown him on the Royal Starship, but only a little different. Where’s the trigger? He pressed a button, and the ship shook. Ooops, wrong one. Maybe this one? He tried again, and this time the lasers fired. The explosion wiped out two of the destroyer droids. “Yeah, all right! Droid blaster!”
Anakin looked back over his shoulder. The Jedi and the man with the double lightsaber were engaged in a fierce battle in the middle of the hangar. They paid no attention to the Queen and her troops, who ran quickly out a door on the far side. She’s safe!
With Amidala gone, the wheel droids fired at Anakin. Shields up! Shields up! Frantically, Anakin thumbed switches, trying to remember Ric Olié’s instructions. Always on the right—shields are always on the right…
Suddenly, the ship began moving. Rapidly. Artoo beeped.
“I know we’re moving!” Anakin shouted back. “I’ll shut the energy drive down.” If I can figure out which switch it is…that one there, that’s the last one I pushed. He pressed the button again, hoping it would shut the engine off. Instead, the fighter picked up speed. It headed out of the hangar as if it had a mind of its own. Artoo beeped worriedly.
“I’m not doing anything!” Anakin cried as the ship left the city behind and arrowed toward space.
The Gungan army made a grand sight. Hundreds of armored warriors carrying electropoles rode wingless, birdlike kaadu. Hundreds more marched along on foot. Behind them, heavy, reptilian fambaas trudged steadily forward, carrying the Gungan shield generators. Ammunition wagons carried energy balls that glowed blue through their plasma skins. Now that they were out of the swamp, the long lines of warriors and equipment were easy to see as they crossed the rolling plains.
Jar Jar was not enjoying any of it. He had fallen off his kaadu several times already, and nearly poked one of the other Gungans with his electropole. And his armor was very uncomfortable. Mesa not goody warrior, mesa think. But Boss Nass had decided to make him one of the Gungan generals. Now Jar Jar was stuck in the forefront of the Gungan army with General Ceel and the other Gungan leaders. Mesa not liking this.
Someone shouted. Jar Jar looked up and saw a row of enormous tanks drawn up on a low ridge in front of the army. Oie boie. Now wesa starting.
“Energize the shields!” called General Ceel.
The fambaas plodded forward, each carrying a large generator. Red rays shot out of the generators toward a large dishlike amplifier carried by another fambaa. The amplifier spread the rays out into a protective umbrella, completely covering the Gungan army.
It was just in time. The Trade Federation tanks opened fire just as the energy shield was completed. Jar Jar and the Gungans around him cheered as the shield absorbed the blasts.
The tanks stopped firing and moved aside. Giant transports moved forward. Their doors opened, and racks of battle droids unfolded. The Gungan army went silent, watching the thousands of droids assemble and march toward them.
At General Ceel’s command, the line of Gungans threw their electropoles like spears, knocking over some droids and shorting out others. Jar Jar didn’t see whether his actually hit anything, but he hoped it had. With their poles gone, some of the Gungans used slingshots to throw balls of energy at the droids. Others loaded larger gobs of energy goo into mortars that fired into the center of the mob of battle droids.
Jar Jar charged forward as the battle droids reached the energy shield. The next few minutes were very confused, with droids firing and Gungans firing back. Somehow, Jar Jar found himself tangled in the remains of a half-destroyed battle droid. Its blaster was still firing, so Jar Jar tried to keep it pointed at the other droids while he worked himself free; he was a general, after all, so he’d better not shoot any of his own troops.
When he got untangled at last, he looked up and saw wheel droids rolling out of the transports toward the battle. Hundreds of wheel droids. Thissen very, very bad, he thought.
Then the wheel droids attacked.
Obi-Wan had never been in such a lightsaber battle before. So this is a Sith Lord, he thought fleetingly as he dodged and leaped. It was taking every skill he knew just to stay alive. The Sith Lord seemed to cloud Obi-Wan’s use of the Force, making it hard to sense his opponent’s moves and counter them in time.
Slowly, the Sith Lord forced Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan back. Out of the hangar and down a long hall they fought, then on into the Theed power generator plant. The Sith Lord leaped from one service catwalk to another, and the two Jedi followed. Qui-Gon was in the lead now, taking the brunt of the attacks. The narrow bridge gave them little room to maneuver. Obi-Wan tried to close in on their opponent, but the Sith Lord twisted and kicked him off the catwalk.
The bridge just below was out of reach. Obi-Wan fell several levels before he landed on another ramp. He looked up, searching fo
r the quickest way to get back to the fight. His Master and the Sith Lord had moved farther along the catwalk. As he watched, Qui-Gon knocked the Sith off the bridge.
The Sith Lord landed heavily two levels down. Qui-Gon leaped after him, but the Sith picked himself up and backed through a small doorway. Obi-Wan ran forward as Qui-Gon darted after their opponent. As he reached the door, a series of laser walls went up all along the hallway on the other side—deadly force fields designed to keep unauthorized people and droids out of the area. Obi-Wan peered down the corridor. There were four laser walls between him and Qui-Gon, and five between Obi-Wan and the Sith Lord.
Through the sheets of laser fire, Obi-Wan saw Qui-Gon calmly sit and begin to meditate. He tried not to think about just how badly his Master might need that rest. After the fight on Tatooine, Qui-Gon had been nearly exhausted. Impatiently, Obi-Wan paced along the edge of the laser wall. It would go down again in a minute or two, and the fight would begin again. The Sith Lord can’t get much farther; there shouldn’t be anything at the end of this hall except a melting pit. I’ll be able to catch up as soon as the laser walls go down.
He refused to consider what might happen if he didn’t.
The palace was full of battle droids. Amidala and her troops blasted several groups of them, but there always seemed to be more. “We don’t have time for this!” she cried in frustration as they came around a corner to find more battle droids.
“Let’s try outside,” Captain Panaka said. Turning, he shot out one of the windows. Amidala, Panaka, and about half the troops climbed through; the others, and the Queen’s handmaidens, stayed in the hall to hold off the battle droids.
The Trade Federation didn’t seem to be watching the outside of the palace. Amidala and her forces fired cables from their ascension guns and hauled themselves up. It was a little tricky, but much easier than fighting off hordes of battle droids. In a few minutes, they had reached the level of the throne room. Panaka shot out another window, and Amidala and the others climbed through into a hallway. The door to the throne room was at the far end. We’ve almost made it.…
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace Page 10