My Version of Star
Wars: Episode II : A prequel to a sequel?
(writer's note: I have absolutely no inside information, connections,
or any other things related to the actual script, story, or making of the
second chapter of the Star Wars saga. I am just an independently freelance
Filipino-American writer, and simply a Star Wars fan (like yourself, probably)
who thinks and speculates quite a bit about the story of Episode II, which
is scheduled to be released in 2002.)
Star Wars and all related characters are (c) Lucasfilm Ltd.
Introductory message:
I know that the story/script/play I've done may very well be way off
of what you'll actually see on the big screen in a couple of years or so,
but there's some good in that, actually. It means that by reading what
I've written, you won't be spoiling the truly wonderful experience you'll
have at the theatre. And, in a way, it's like you're getting two different
versions for the price of one, with this definitely being the free part
of the deal (though, if you truly like what I've done (and even if you
don't!), I hope you'll be kind enough to reward me by clicking on my sponsor's
ads along the way!).
My writing/creative abilities, I'd be the first to admit, are in a galaxy
far, far away from that of Lucas and company, and my knack for art is even
farther away. So compared to them, (and a lot of other people, I might
add!) I'm pretty much "Bantha fodder". So, please don't read the story
expecting to be blown away by my storytelling, for it would only raise
your expectations to unrealistic levels and probably sour your taste for
my story... just as some wise soul (I can't quite remember who. Ron Howard?)
advised you not to go to watch the Phantom Menace and expect to see a Titanicly
critic-appeasing film... don't expect to find a Lucas-quality piece of
work here, though try as I might. And no, Master Yoda, I cannot simply
"do, or do not" here. : )
But, there is one thing I, and many others, have noticed about the four
Star Wars movies already released, and that is, the uncanny knack for pulling
a major surprise seemingly out of nowhere. The Episode II story I've written
is firmly rooted to that foundation, so forgive me if the rest seems sketchy
at best, or even unimportant at times. In other words, my anticipation/speculation
of Episode II's "surprises" was my main motivation for doing this modest
work of fan fiction. I anticipate a surprise or two along the way, and
think that the movie will provide such, though maybe not the same as the
ones I'm predicting and telling of in my story. At the end, I'll provide
my personal explanation for why I believe those surprises will really take
place in the movie, or at the very least, sometime in the next two episodes.
For now, though, I hope you'll enjoy what I've put together, albeit
without the aid of an editor... and consider it as my small (and hopefully
sweet) treat to whet your appetite for the real thing, when it finally
comes along.
It is a time of uncertainty.
Chancellor Palpatine has aggressively
campaigned for the creation
of an absolute
position of power in
the Republic, which
has effectively divided
the Senate into two factions:
for and against the
election of an Emperor of the Republic.
Using underlying influences
and his vast resource of political power,
he has methodically
reduced the number of opposition
against his cause to
practically nil. But, in order to succeed,
the Chancellor must
gain the support of the representative of his own planet:
Queen Amidala, who had
inherited the position he vacated to become
Chancellor, and who
he is certain is strongly against the abolition of the democracy.
Little does Amidala
or anyone else know, however,
that Palpatine is secretly
organizing an massive military force,
with the aid of the
embattled Trade Federation, to stage a hostile takeover
in the event that he
cannot legally fulfill the creation of his Galactic Empire.
Meanwhile, Obi-Wan Kenobi
takes his apprentice, Anakin Skywalker,
to the Jedi Temple in
the hopes that he becomes a Jedi,
with the potential to
be the most powerful Jedi ever known...
Scene 1: the Chancellor's quarters,
Coruscant
(Chancellor Palpatine looks out the
window, as the Coruscant skyline of lights from the tall buildings and
moving vehicles in the air shines even in the dark of night. One of his
advisors stands by his side, also looking out)
Palpatine: I grow impatient, my
friend. My ambitions are begging for some form of resolution, and my will
to see it through is stronger than ever before. Do we have enough votes
in hand to call for an vote?
Advisor: No, Chancellor, not by
our last count. We need just one more vote in our favor, and perhaps more
than that just to be absolutely sure.
Palpatine: Are there any more we
could possibly turn to our side?
Advisor: Not that I know of. We
have practically used all our knowledge of political corruption and scandals
just to get to where we are at the moment. Alderaan is very much against
the notion. Malastare has too many issues to deal with. The percentage
required is simply too steep for the concept of having an Emperor, Chancellor.
Palpatine: There is one other option
you've failed to mention, my old friend. A very strong option, and one
I initially thought I would not need to resort to.
Advisor: (raises eyebrows) You can't
possibly mean?
(a figure in the shadows is seen,
and comes forward)
Scene 2: Throne Room, Theed
Palace, Naboo
(Queen Amidala, seated on her throne
and flanked by her handmaidens, confers with her council before her)
Governor: Your highness, do you
really think the Chancellor's campaign is corrupt? That is incredible.
Amidala: I don't know, Governor.
But I do know that his timing, and the circumstances, are questionable.
Governor: What do you mean?
Amidala: The more I think of it,
it seems that he used the situation of our planet's invasion by the Federation
to get himself elected as Chancellor. He said it himself, that he would
get a strong sympathy vote. He used the death and suffering of our people
for his gain! Now, in a matter of a few years, he suddenly wants to become
absolute ruler of the Republic?
Governor: You don't know that for
certain, that is all purely speculation. In fact, you of all people
have benefited the most from his election, by becoming both ruler and representative
of Naboo.
Panaka: I was there when it happened,
your highness, and I could not see nor sense anything unusual in his behavior.
Amidala: Captain, quite often you
will not find something when you are not looking for it.
Panaka: (shaking his head) Nevertheless,
I cannot say. And I was with him the entire time when the nomination took
place. It was legitimate, as far as the Senate's procedures indicate, and
he did seem to be as sincere as you would expect.
Amidala: Still... the senate has
called for a session to vote, and I will surely vote against his bid to
become Emperor. And, I am certain that in time, you will begin to see things
as I do. I just have a feeling about this... although I dearly hope
that I am wrong.
Governor: I do hope so, your highness. It will take some time for the
planet to recover, and for a defiant act like this to take place surely
will not help. We may not have any choice, for the sake of our people.
Do what you must, for the good of our people. And be careful, your highness.
(Queen looks down, and walks away, escorted by her handmaidens, Captain
Panaka, and some royal guards)
Scene 3: Trade Federation's
Super Battleship, in space
(Jarkko, highest ranked official of
the Trade Federation, oversees operations on his battleship. He
stands somewhat in the middle of the hangar. In the place of what normally
is an array of spacecraft and battle droids is a group of large containers
attended to by a skeleton crew of droids, open at their tops, and steaming
hot. A Neimodian aide then appears by his side.)
Viceroy: The work before us is finished, and yet we have no idea what
will become of all of it.
Aide: Viceroy, you have an incoming transmission.
Viceroy: Who is it?
Aide: Lord Sidious, I believe.
Viceroy: (breathes deeply, and walks over to a nearby console, accompanied
by aide) I have not the slightest idea of what happened to Viceroy Gunray
after the invasion of Naboo, but I have a feeling my path goes toward an
even darker fate if we're not careful. I hope we will be well compensated
for all of this, it doesn't come without a price.
Aide: But do we have a choice, sir?
(Viceroy shakes his head, just as the hooded figure of Darth Sidious
appears in the holographic transmission)
Sidious: Are the containers in working order, Viceroy?
Viceroy: Yes, my lord. They are ready and at your disposal.
Sidious: Good! Very good. I will be sending the cargo to your ship
very soon.
Viceroy: How many, my lord?
Sidious: More than two million.
(transmission ceases)
Aide: (stunned) Is he serious?
Viceroy: I do not know, but we must do our best to follow the lord's
wishes. If not, who knows what will happen to us then?
(a cargo container in the hanger open slightly, revealing the white
helmets of "storm troopers")
Scene 4: Jedi Temple, Coruscant
(Obi-Wan Kenobi presents himself before the Jedi Council, headed by Yoda
and Mace Windu)
Obi-Wan: Council, with your permission, I've come to present Anakin
Skywalker to you, to face the trials.
(Council members look at each other, with looks of surprise on their
faces, but not saying a word. Obi-Wan doesn't know what to make of their
reaction)
Obi-Wan: Is there something wrong?
Windu: You present your apprentice to the council under the most unusual
of circumstances. You've trained him away from the Jedi Temple, in Naboo
no less. No jedi has ever been trained away from the Jedi Temple.
Council member: The mystery of his midichlorian count still has the
council confounded.
Yoda: And only a jedi knight you are. A master jedi's teachings a padawan
requires to be adequately trained.
Obi-Wan: Permission to speak freely, Master Yoda.
(Yoda nods, Windu stares intently)
Obi-Wan: He has the physical skills to take on the trials, I have no
doubt of that. His spirit is undying, his focus is seemingly unbreakable.
But there is something he needs to experience, only what the trials can
introduce to him. One can be trained only to a certain degree, the rest
he has to be able to learn on his own. I feel that he has reached that
point. There is no more he can learn from me.
Windu: It does not sound like you have a lot of confidence in young
Skywalker. Although that may be understandable, since the council made
an exception with you to bypass the actual trials.
Yoda: But pass the trials, do you think he can?
Obi-Wan: (pauses briefly, as if to think about it for one last time)
He is ready, and I believe he is capable.
Yoda: (sighs) Very well, face the trials he will.
(Obi-Wan bows, and then leaves the chamber)
Scene 5: Queen Amidala's quarters, Coruscant
(Queen's guards let Anakin Skywalker enter the quarters, as one of her
handmaidens, Rabe', leaves the quarters)
Anakin: I've come to say good bye for now, I'll be away to be passing
the jedi trials.
Amidala: (smiling slightly) Your overconfidence may be your undoing.
Be mindful of that.
Anakin: There's no way I can't easily pass those trials. Believe me.
Amidala: (raising an eyebrow) Can you defeat Obi-Wan in a duel?
Anakin: (laughing) The jedi arts have passed him by, really. All I
can say is that when we do practice against each other, I try to keep it
close and make him look good, just so that he wouldn't quit training me.
He is awful, I can't believe he was once Qui-Gon's apprentice.
Amidala: Maybe he thinks of you in that way as well. Maybe he holds
back only to keep you from stopping.
Anakin: (smirks) Well then, next time I won't hold anything back on
him. Just so that I can keep you from saying anything too nice about my
master.
(Anakin blows a kiss to the Queen, and then exits the Queen's quarters,
as the Queen sighs. Rabe' reenters the quarters right after Anakin exits.)
Rabe': Is something wrong, your highness?
Amidala: (pauses briefly) Nothing, Rabe'. Not now. Just inform the
Captain that I am ready to go to the Senate now.
Scene 6: Entrance to the Jedi Temple, Coruscant
Anakin: Hello?
(Anakin walks in, looking for any signs of life. The temple appears
to be deserted.)
Anakin: There's something familiar here, but something I haven't felt
in a long time.
(Suddenly, Watto appears from the shadows, fluttering his wings, and
flies towards Anakin slowly. Watto holds a thin chain in one hand, a small
round device in the other.)
Watto: (speaking in Tatooine dialect) Mmmm, it has been a long
time, my slave.
Anakin: (speaking in Tatooine dialect as well) It has been a long time.
You forget, I am no longer your slave.
Watto: It doesn't matter, you will always be my slave.
Anakin: No. Have you come here just to remind me of my past?
Watto: No, I have come here to show you something. Something that will
surely interest you.
(Watto pulls on the chain hard, and out of the shadows, Shmi Skywalker,
Anakin's mother, appears, her neck tied to the end of the chain)
Anakin: Mom!
Shmi: Anny!
Watto: I know you miss your mother dearly, how long has it been since
you left us? I am in need of money, how about you buy your mother from
me? I will even accept Republic credits! Your mother's freedom for the
low price of 400,000 Republic credits?
Anakin: (gritting his teeth) I don't have any credits, give me some
time and I will try to get the credits for you.
Watto: (laughing) We have to be going now. I know someone else around
here who might want to buy her from me if you can't! (laughs heartily,
again)
Anakin: No!
Shmi: No Anny, don't!
(Anakin quickly draws his lightsaber, revealing a dark blue blade,
and quickly cuts Watto in half. He grunts shortly, and falls to the floor
in two pieces. The device in his hand falls out, and starts to shine a
red light. Then, his mother explodes from her chest, the locator in her
body being detonated by the round device having left Watto's hand. Anakin
looks around, stunned and shocked, then he goes to look at Watto's body.
Watto's head then blows up in a small but smoke-filled explosion, to reveal
Anakin's own face in Watto's head.)
(Yoda, Windu, several other members of the Jedi council, and Obi-Wan
walk into the room, looking over the "debris")
Obi-Wan: What happened here?
Windu: What happened here is the result of Skywalker's trial.
Obi-Wan (looking stunned): So this was the trial?
Anakin (angrily): You mean, you didn't know that yourself? How could
you train me without knowing what the trials are all about?
Yoda (before Obi-Wan can respond): How to get past the trials matters
not. Different for each jedi the trials are.
Windu: What is important is your overwhelming feelings for your mother.
Yoda: Learn you must how to control your feelings.
Anakin: How could you use that against me? No one should ever have
to deal with that!
Yoda: Only a true Jedi, with the force as his ally can it be overcome.
Windu: That is why we train at a young age. To keep our most uncontrollable
emotions from being used against us.
Yoda: Very strong the emotional bond between child and parent is. Still
more training do you require.
(Anakin fights back tears, looks confused, then runs out of the Jedi
temple without saying a word)
Yoda (grunts): Why to train Skywalker we did not want, now you know.
Impossible to focus when blood ties are present, it is.
Obi-Wan: I do not think that was fair. Anakin was right, no one should
ever have to face that.
Yoda: Fair, life is not. Face that in reality, he may need to.
(Obi-Wan looks over the council members present, then leaves to follow
Anakin)
Scene 7: Outside of the Jedi Temple, Coruscant
(Obi-Wan catches up to Anakin, who was walking quickly away from the temple)
Obi-Wan: Where are you going, Anakin?
Anakin: (stops, fights back tears) I don't know! They were right in
the first place, I shouldn't have even tried to become a Jedi, it was all
just some silly dream.
Obi-Wan: (frowns) Master Qui-Gon believed in you, right?
(Anakin nods)
Obi-Wan: And I certainly believed in you. That is why I decided to
train you. And I still believe in you, Anakin, don't give up. You must
not give up, ever.
Anakin (pauses): Well, just leave me alone right now, all right? I
need to be alone.
(Anakin walks away quickly, leaving Obi-Wan with a puzzled look on
his face)
Scene 8: Trade Federation's Super Battleship, in space, orbiting
Coruscant
(Viceroy converses with the holographic image of Darth Sidious)
Viceroy: The work is almost complete, my master.
Sidious: Excellent, viceroy. I will be sending more to you shortly.
That is why I asked for you to come to Coruscant.
Viceroy: But my lord, we are almost out of materials.
Sidious: (frowns) Then, we will just have to send some more of that
as well.
(transmission ceases, then Viceroy turns to Aide)
Viceroy: What does he plan to do, invade Coruscant? I think he would
need three times as many as he is asking for.
Scene 9: Coruscant Plaza, near the Jedi Temple and the Republic
Senate Building
(Anakin walks around, aimlessly in a secluded part of the plaza, where
there are no other people around)
Anakin: (to himself, sighing) I should never have left home. This was
all such a big mistake.
(Suddenly, the ghostly figure of Qui-Gon Jinn appears before Anakin)
Anakin: Qui-Gon! Sir!
Qui-Gon (smiling): My, Anny, how much you've grown. You are on the
verge of becoming a great Jedi knight.
Anakin: You should tell that to the Jedi Council. They don't seem to
think so.
Qui-Gon: They just do not know it. Forget the council, and tell me
what you think.
Anakin: I think I'm good enough to be a Jedi, but the council is using
certain "things" against me.
Qui-Gon: The council is wise, Anakin. They know that you must be able
to overcome certain "things", and they must see that you are capable, otherwise
they would have given up on you already. Don't you think so?
Anakin: Okay, master, sir.
Qui-Gon: Remember, the situation is not always as it seems. And be
wary, for you cannot sense all danger through the force.
(Qui-Gon disappears)
Anakin (to himself, sighing): I didn't even get a chance to tell him
how much I miss him, almost as much as my mother. And how things would
be so different if he were still here. Oh well, I guess he must already
know that.
(Anakin then senses something happening nearby, at the entrance to
the Senate building, then starts running)
Scene 10: Entrance to the Senate Building, Coruscant
(Chancellor Palpatine, escorted by a number of armed guards, tries to make
his entrance into the Senate building. But a large protest mob blocks the
entrance, while shouting out cries against him and his proposal of an Imperial
form of government)
Guard: Chancellor, are you sure you want us to go through?
Palpatine: Yes, of course. This is a very important session, one I
surely cannot afford to be absent from.
Guard: Chancellor, you may be endangering your very life! Some of those
protestors may be armed and willing to kill you. Are you sure you want
to go through?
(Anakin arrives on the scene)
Anakin: Chancellor, may I help?
Palpatine: Anakin Skywalker! It is so good to see you once again.
Guard: The Chancellor needs to enter the Senate building, but those
people are not cooperating.
Anakin: Allow me to deal with them.
(Anakin then steps forward, in front of the Chancellor and his guards,
and between them and the mob)
Anakin: What is the problem here?
Protestor: Palpatine is the problem, Jedi! Do you want him to become
your absolute ruler?
Anakin: That is a matter for the Senate to decide, that is why you
must let him pass through.
Protestor: We will not let him through! We cannot let that happen!
He is evil, can you not see that, Jedi?
Anakin: I only see that perhaps you are.
Scene 11: Coruscant Plaza
(Queen Amidala, escorted by Captain Panaka and two guards, on her way to
the Senate building, accidentally meets Obi-Wan Kenobi in the plaza)
Obi-Wan (bows): Your highness.
Amidala: Please, Obi-Wan Kenobi. (smiles, and gestures to Obi-Wan upwards
with her hand) I believe we are far past the level of exchanging formalities.
Obi-Wan (turns towards the Senate building entrance, and looks with
seriousness on his face): I'm sorry your highness, but I must be going
now. My presence is badly needed elsewhere.
(Obi-Wan runs towards the Senate building entrance, as the Queen looks
on, curious to find out why Obi-Wan ran towards the Senate building entrance.
The Queen and her entourage follow, but at a much slower, easier pace)
Scene 12: Entrance to the Senate Building
Anakin: I'll warn you for the last time, sir. Please, back off and allow
the Chancellor to enter.
Protestor: Oh yeah? You think you're so powerful, Jedi?
(Obi-Wan gets within eyeshot of the Senate building conflict. The protestor
draws a blaster from a holster hidden under his vest. Anakin draws his
lightsaber, and swings it hard and fast in the direction of the protestor.
The lightsaber cuts the blaster in half, barely missing the protestor's
hand. Palpatine looks surprised, then pleased at Anakin's display of force.)
Palpatine: Excellent work, young Skywalker. I am confident we will
have no problem entering the Senate building now.
(Palpatine and his guards walk forward, led my Anakin, keeping his
lightsaber armed and in front of him, as the protest mob silently parts
to make way for the group to pass through. Obi-Wan looks on, and appears
disgusted at what he has seen. He then walks away, and meets Queen Amidala
and her entourage again as they make their way to the Senate building)
Amidala: What happened, Obi-Wan?
Obi-Wan: (pauses) Nothing, your highness. I must be going.
Amidala: Tell me what it is that troubles you.
Obi-Wan: Nothing that I can speak of, I'm afraid.
Amidala: Then, I would like to ask for your services as a protector.
This is a very special, and tense session of the Senate, and I would be
grateful if you would lend me your presence. As a bodyguard, and as a friend
of course.
Obi-Wan (thinks over the Queen's proposal for a moment): Very well
then, your highness, it would be my honor to serve and protect you. (smiles
slightly) I would be grateful to.
(Obi-Wan leads the Queen and her entourage into the Senate building,
amidst loud applause and cheers from the protest mob)
Mob (chanting simultaneously): Long live the Queen! Long live the Republic!
Scene 13: Jedi Council Chambers, Coruscant
(The seated Jedi council discusses matters concerning Anakin)
Yoda: Much uncertainty I sense in the boy's future. Grave danger I
sense as well.
Windu: I agree, and the entire council concurs. But what can we do?
What should we do?
Yoda: Nothing there is that we can do. Observe for now we must.
Windu: We must tell Obi-Wan to keep a close watch over him then.
Yoda: No, that we should not have him do.
(Windu raises an eyebrow)
Council member: Why not? He is Anakin's instructor, Anakin is his apprentice,
they are close to each other.
Yoda: More to this there is I suspect. Obi-Wan a part of it is, and
a third person as well.
Windu: How do you know?
Yoda: Sense it I do, but not through the force. But determine its reality
I cannot. Summon we must another. One I sense who knows more than anyone
else does.
(Yoda closes his eyes)
Scene 14: Republic Senate Hall, Coruscant
(Chancellor Palpatine, two guards, his aide, and Anakin Skywalker are all
at the Chancellor's podium, positioned in the middle of the Senate hall.
As Queen Amidala, Panaka, two guards, and Obi-Wan step onto the Naboo Senate
podium, Obi-Wan senses a familiar presence, and looks towards the Chancellor's
podium, surprised to see Anakin there)
Obi-Wan: What is he doing there?
Panaka: Who?
Obi-Wan (pointing to the Chancellor's podium): Anakin.
(Queen Amidala looks to the Chancellor's podium to confirm Obi-Wan's
statement, then looks down, visibly distressed)
Panaka: Is something wrong, your highness?
Amidala: A rather urgent matter. (speaks into the podium microphone)
Permission to be heard, Chancellor.
Palpatine: Permission is granted to the representative of the system
of Naboo to be heard.
(The Queen's podium moves forward, in front of the Chancellor's podium.
Anakin looks, and sees Obi-Wan on the Queen's podium, surprised to see
him there. He continues to stare at Obi-Wan while Obi-Wan looks elsewhere.)
Amidala: Chancellor Palpatine, and the honorable representatives of
the Republic, I would like to request for a continuance.
(mumbled words and expressions are heard throughout the hall)
Palpatine: And, what is the reason, your highness? This session has
already been postponed several times, and due to its importance it must
be held now.
Amidala: I must confer with counsel, regarding my vote. This is an
important matter, but one that can be resolved within a short period of
time.
Palpatine (thinks over the Queen's request for a few moments): Very
well, the continuance is granted. Session will resume in the evening.
(Senate representatives leave their podiums, including Naboo's)
Palpatine (whispering to aide): This is unexpected, but may make things
much easier for us.
Anakin: Chancellor, I must be going.
Palpatine: Going? To where, my young knight?
Anakin (sighs): I wish I knew, sir.
Palpatine: Would you like to stay here? As my bodyguard? In these times
I definitely have good use for one with power and not afraid to use it.
Anakin: I... I don't know, Chancellor. I don't think I am allowed to
be hired by anyone.
Palpatine: Well, the offer still stands nevertheless. In the meantime,
you have full use of my facilities should you need them.
(The podium moves against the wall's opening designated for the Chancellor,
and a shadowy figure appears)
Palpatine: And, I have something to tell you, something you will probably
find most informative, and intriguing.
(the shadow disguised figure walks forward towards and onto the Chancellor's
podium)
Scene 15: Jedi Council Chambers, Jedi Temple, Coruscant
(the ghostly figure of Qui-Gon Jinn appears, standing in the middle of
the Jedi council)
Qui-Gon: Is this summoning not in conflict with the Jedi code, master?
Windu: From our point of view, we have little choice. The council is
at an impasse with the matter of young Anakin Skywalker.
Yoda: Very hard to see the truth is. Your assistance the council needs.
Qui-Gon (pauses): Very well then. What is it you need?
Windu: We need to know if you maintained any kind of contact with your
former apprentice while he was training Skywalker on Naboo.
Qui-Gon: I did...
Yoda: Know more, we must.
Scene 16: Outside of the Senate Building, Coruscant
(protestors stand just outside of the building entrance)
Lead Protestor: We are strong in our resolve. Wait until the accursed
Palpatine shows his face again, and we will have our way, Jedi or no Jedi.
Protestor: One Jedi won't be enough to stop us all!
(from out of the sky, the bounty hunter Boba Fett lands in the middle
of the protest mob, clearing a landing area with the heat of his jetpack.
He immediately draws his rifle and points it to the protestors in front
of him, as the protestors in back of him draw their own weapons and point
them towards him)
Fett: Freeze.
Protestor: Oh yeah? You're greatly outnumbered and surrounded, my masked
friend.
Lead Protestor: Are you here to serve the Chancellor's bidding?
(Boba Fett touches a button on his armpiece, and a large number of
armed battle droids and droidekas move in quickly to surround the mob)
Lead Battle Droid: Hands up.
Fett: The Trade Federation would be most pleased to have you as their
guests.
(the mob, outnumbered, all put their hands up, and are led towards
a nearby cargo craft. Upon reaching the craft, the mob discovers that the
ship is filled almost completely by other people, criminal-looking, and
of various races. After the mob is led into the ship, it takes off into
space)
Scene 17: Jedi Council Chambers, Jedi Temple, Coruscant
(Queen Amidala, and Obi-Wan, walk into the chambers, leaving the escorts
behind at the door)
Windu: The timing of your appearance here is uncanny.
Obi-Wan: With your permission, council, the Queen would like to have
a word with you.
Council member: Very well.
(Obi-Wan steps back)
Amidala: Honorable Jedi council, I must have a word with you concerning
one of your own, Anakin Skywalker.
Yoda: Skywalker?
Amidala: Yes. I would like to know why you have sent him to protect
Chancellor Palpatine.
Yoda: Our own assignments we make. But send him to protect the Chancellor,
we did not.
Windu: He must have volunteered his service to the Chancellor. By our
code, though, he should not be allowed to at his level.
Amidala (fights back tears): Very well then, thank you.
(Queen Amidala starts to walk away, towards the door)
Yoda: Strong feelings you have for Skywalker, hmmm?
(Obi-Wan's facial expression changes, to a more serious one, and looks
at Queen Amidala)
Windu: The Jedi as a whole are not allowed to be any more than the
protectors of peace and order in the galaxy.
Yoda: Know that, you must. Attached to individuals we cannot be. Depend
on it the order of the galaxy does.
(Queen Amidala, close to tears, silently nods)
Windu: Please excuse us, your highness, but we would like to have a
word in private with Obi-Wan Kenobi.
(Obi-Wan switches his attention from the Queen, who walks towards the
door and out, and to the council)
Obi-Wan: What is it, my masters?
Yoda: Know full well the code you do. Broken it freely and willingly
you have.
Obi-Wan: What?
Council member: You know what we speak of.
Windu: Skywalker may have been your apprentice, but his mistake was
a direct result of yours.
Obi-Wan: What are you talking about?
Yoda: Deny it you cannot. Leave Naboo properly to train Skywalker you
could not. Strong feelings you have for the Queen.
Obi-Wan (sighs, looks down): Yes, master. I cannot deny that.
Windu: Considering that, as of now, you are dismissed from the Jedi
ranks.
Obi-Wan (looking shocked): Yes, master.
(to be continued, hopefully within a week from today (February 17, 2000)
The first surprise I've speculated on and revealed here (and perhaps
the biggest surprise of all) is that a love triangle will exist or did
exist, between Anakin (obvious), Amidala (just as obvious), and Obi-Wan
(the shocker!). Why do I think this will happen? Episode I coyly kept Obi-Wan
and the Queen apart most of, if not all the time, as much as possible.
A set-up for the big surprise, perhaps? Another reason, one to think
of for you Episode IV: A New Hope fans: how does Amidala's daughter, with
her mother (probably!?) long passed away know that she could call on a
certain old man named Obi-Wan (not "Ben" as everyone else seems to know
him as) Kenobi to help her? There must've been more to the two than just
a royalty-protector relationship, in my opinion. Lastly, check out that
look that Obi-Wan has at the end of Episode I, during the celebrations
(if you don't have the video yet, you can see it in his TV commercial if
you can get the file), he looks towards Queen Amidala with a look, I don't
know how to describe it. I've seen that look before, and it seems to mean
that either he sees the Queen as a threat to his apprentice Anakin, or,
maybe without the white makeup on her face, he finally "discovers" the
Queen after all that frenetic time trying to keep his and everyone else's
head from getting blown off, and starts to develop feelings, beautiful
and strong a leader as she is. Guess which interpretation I think is "the"
one?