SWtCW: A Question of Loyalty pt.3

Surface of Naboo, Theed, Royal Palace

The speed with which the guards had conveyed Padme and Captain Typho to the palace was surprising to say the least. However Padme suspected that there was a lot of pressure upon everyone surrounding the Queen if what Colonel Panaka had implied was true. She truly hoped it was not. She could not imagine her long time friend and now Queen turning against the Republic. Their speeder came to a halt in the vehicle port, their STAP escorts proceeding onwards to conduct whatever other duties were required of them.
Typho looked at Padme uncertainly.
“Are you sure this is a good idea? If my uncle is right—“
“—we hardly have a choice.” Padme interjected. “And if Colonel Panaka is correct in his insinuations then we have much greater things than our own safety to consider.”
Captain Typho swallowed and nodded, putting a cautionary hand on Padme's shoulder as she made to exit the speeder.
“Be careful.”
She smiled at him reassuringly.
“I assure you Captain, I can take care of myself.”
She, the Captain and Threepio exited the speeder and were led into the palace by a cordon of guards ostensibly there was an honor guard though Padme had the distinct feeling they were as much to make sure she didn't talk to anyone as to convey her briskly to the Queen.
As their entourage arrived outside the throne room a voice called out.
“Senator Amidala!”
Padme and her guards all turned to see the Governor of Naboo, Sio Bibble, coming towards them. The elderly statesmen looked no less distinguished than when he had served on Padme's own council during her rule as Queen. And no less forceful as he glared down the guards who tried to bar his path. A staunch pacifist he may be, Padme mused, but he knew how to compel others to do his bidding.
“What are you doing here?” he inquired urgently in a hushed tone as he reached her.
“Colonel Panaka asked me to appeal to the Queen on his behalf.”
The Governor of Naboo frowned, his beard and mustache quivering nervously.
“You must be careful here Senator, things are not as tranquil as they should be in the Palace.”
Padme nodded. “I have been warned. Thank you for your concern Governor, now if you'll excuse me, the Queen is waiting for me.”
The Governor nodded politely and turned to leave, seeming to find something else to occupy his time as he walked off purposefully.
“Just you.” cautioned the Sergeant of the Guard as Padme approached the door to the throne room with Typho and Threepio.
“I am responsible for the Senator's safety.” Typho said angrily.
“And we are charged with the safety of the Queen.” replied the Sergeant of the Guard haughtily. “The Senator will be safe in the Queen's presence.”
Padme put a cautionary arm on Typho.
“We are among friends Captain, please do not cause a scene.”
Typho hesitated but nodded curtly as Padme was ushered inside the throne room and the door was closed behind her.
Queen Jamillia stood by the window overlooking the green grasslands beyond Theed, her back to Padme as she approached. Padme noted that there appeared to be no others in the room with them as the Queen turned to her and smiled, her face bedecked in the traditional white and black makeup of the Naboo Royal House.
“Padme, it is so good to see you again!” Jamillia said as she came forwards to greet Padme who bowed courteously.
“Your Majesty.” she replied respectfully. “Thank you for seeing me on such short notice.”
The Queen's smile remained in place though she didn't fail to catch the slight lilt in Padme's voice which made the apparent gratitude sound accusatory.
“I am sorry that I had you whisked here so rudely, but you must understand that it is quite distressing when my Senator goes to visit with a man under house arrest before paying her respects to the her sovereign.”
Padme inclined her head. “My apologies your Majesty, I did not mean to show you any disrespect. However it was a message from Colonel Panaka that brought me home, I owed him the courtesy of a visit before any other business could take precedence.”
Queen Jamillia's smile faltered slightly as she studied Padme.
“Message? The Colonel is not permitted to send messages.”
“Nevertheless, he sent one, and having spoken with him he has brought up some troubling...rumors.”
Jamillia's posture stiffened slightly as her voice cooled.
“What rumors?”
“That you have Separatist sympathies.” Padme said flatly. “And are planning to break with the Gungans...violently.”
Jamillia looked at Padme for a moment before she laughed.
“Oh Padme don't tell me that you've paid heed to these horrid rumors! They are just the grumblings of dissidents within the palace who resent Naboo's neutrality.”
“Naboo is not a true neutral.” Padme pointed out. “We've not joined the Council of Neutral Systems though we do provide a safe haven for refugees on both sides of the conflict.”
Jamillia nodded. “This is true, but how long before the Republic forces us to do more than voice our objection to the war?”
Padme frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“I have heard news that he intends to ask the gungans for help in forming an aquatic auxiliary to supplement the Grand Army of the Republic on waterworlds like Dac and Kamino.” Jamillia's eyes flashed. “Imagine it Padme, thousands of gungans trained in interstellar war, and what happens when they come back to Naboo? What if they are not content with Naboo as it is and seek to change the natural order of things? What then? Will Palpatine back his people over his soldiers?”
“I've heard no such thing.” Padme said, wondering if Jar Jar had heard anything about these rumors. It was true that being amphibious did give the gungans a certain predilection for aquatic warfare but they certainly had not put their weight behind the sort of action that Jamillia was describing.
“In any case, if something like that did occur, the gungans are our allies. Senator Binks is a good friend of mine and he has never expressed or given me reason to suspect that he or his people harbors any animosity towards Naboo's human population.”
Jamillia's smile was indulgent as she looked at Padme.
“Do you want to take the chance? If Palpatine does train and arm them, how long before they can restart the wars?”
Padme balked. “You can't be serious. The gungans suffered just as much as we did during the wars. Why would they start them again?”
“Perhaps they are jealous of our success.” the Queen said.
“Preposterous,” Padme asserted. “They're proud of their own accomplishments. You know that as well as I do, they've already colonized two of Naboo's moons without our aid. Why would they be jealous of us?”
Shrugging her shoulders dismissively, the Queen turned from Padme.
“It hardly matters, I do not trust Palpatine to not raise the gungans as a modern interplanetary army, and so will act accordingly.”
Padme stopped and looked at the Queen in disbelief.
“So it is true. You are asking the Separatists for help. That is why Panaka and the others have been confined.”
“They challenged my decision as Queen of Naboo.” Jamillia replied. “Their duty is to serve at the Throne's behest, not challenge its rulings.”
“It is also the duty of the Throne to listen to the advice of its servants.” countered Padme. “How can you even think of taking help from the Separatists? Have you forgotten what the Trade Federation did ten years ago?”
“I understand your misgivings,” Jamillia said gently, her voice seemingly reassuring. “And I have assurances from Count Dooku that no members of the Trade Federation will be allowed on Naboo.”
“And you trust Count Dooku?” Padme countered, wondering whose word she trusted less, Palpatine's or Dooku's.
“I am sorry that you cannot see that I am doing what must be done.” the Queen said lamentably. “Guards!”
At her call, the doors to the throne room opened and the Sergeant of the Guard as well as several other guards entered the chamber.
“Please escort Senator Amidala and her companions to the guest quarters. Assure that they remain there and are not harmed.”
“At once your Majesty.” the Sergeant of the Guard said.
Typho looked at Padme in alarm but she glared at him forcefully, making sure that the overprotective Captain didn't do anything foolish. She didn't want the blood of their fellow Naboo on either of their hands.
“Oh dear oh dear.” Threepio remarked forlornly as the threesome was led from the throne room to the guest quarters.

Surface of Ohma-D'un, former Gungan Colony

Jar Jar stepped off the bongo, setting foot on the marshy ground and looking around at the surface of the desolated moon. He remembered the mission he and Obi-Wan had undertaken a decade ago to start the colony and create a thriving ecosystem here for the newly arrived gungan colonists. It had takne over two years of hard work and Obi-Wan and Ani had only stayed for the first eight months before being called away on other duties, leaving Jar Jar to oversee the colonizing of the moon's as it was transformed from a barren marshland to a thriving mimicry of the swamps of Naboo.
Looking around at the destroyed gungan settlement he remembered the long conversation that had bordered on argument he'd had with his wife about moving to the colony to show that it was safe. She hadn't wanted to leave Otah Gunga, but Jar Jar had been insistent, pointing out that as the first boss of the colony he had a duty to live on Ohma-D'un and so she and their newborn child had come with him once the colony was established.
Over the years, both as the boss of the colony and as senator for the gungans, she had come to love their new home, and their daughter had been the light of their life. She had refused to follow him to Coruscant when Boss Nass had assigned him as the senatorial representative but Jar Jar hadn't faulted her. He hadn't wanted to leave either. He should have spent the time he had here with his family instead of arguing in a cold chamber of strangers for a galaxy he didn't care about. He knelt down in the slushy ground and touched the dead plant life.
He should have been here.
Clenching his fist, his eye stalks retracting as his eyes scrunched shut he let out a wet sob as he collapsed to his knees in the muck.
The moon wasn't completely dead, the ecosystem he'd helped create still survived elsewhere, but the colony itself was dead and gone. He knew there was talk of restarting it on another part of the moon that was unpolluted by the Separatist poisons. Even though said poisons had faded in the intervening months since the attack, no one wanted to rebuild on the site of the destroyed colony...there were too many memories here for everyone, especially Jar Jar.
The sound of engines took his attention away from his grief as he turned and looked up to see a Naboo Attack Cruiser flying in low over the colony. He watched as the ship settled down a short distance from his bongo, frowning slightly. He wondered if he should have brought a weapon with him, but it was too late to worry about that now. The cruiser's ramp lowered and two naboo, a man and a woman, disembarked and came towards him.
“Senator Binks,” the woman said.
Jar Jar looked at her for a moment, blinking slowly as he gazed at what appeared to be a living likeness of Padme Amidala.
“Hello Miss Sabe.” he said. “What'n yousa doin' here?”
Sabe inclined her head. “You need to come with us, now.”
Jar Jar stiffened, he didn't like the handmaiden's tone and glanced at the man with her.
“Who'n yousa?”
“Captain Gavyn Sykes Senator, my ship escorted you to the planet.”
Looking back to Sabe, Jar Jar canted his head.
“Why'n yousa needin' mesa to be goin' with yousa?”
“Senator Amidala has been arrested by the Queen.” Sabe said. “We need your help to free her.”
Jar Jar raised himself up in surprise.
“Miss Padme arrested? Why?”
“We'll explain more on the way.” Captain Sykes said. “Please come with us.”
Jar Jar canted his head to one side questioningly.
“Yousa could'n be freein' her. Whysa you needin' mesa?”
The handmaiden and the Captain exchanged glances.
“Colonel Panaka says we need you.” Sabe said cautiously. “He says the RNSF can't be seen to directly remove the Queen.”
Jar Jar's eyestalks wavered in alarm. Remove the Queen? Just how badly had Padme's meeting with the Queen gone?