Tw: Violence?
~Rex~
"Good news, Rex," Anakin told him. "Padmé's back!"
Rex straightened, putting down the datapad he had been working on. "She is?"
Anakin nodded. "She told me she took a few days off and forgot to let me know."
Rex frowned, his forehead creasing. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure." Anakin tilted his head, looking at Rex in consideration. "Why do you seem so confused?"
Rex shook his head, lips thinning as he pasted on a smile. "No reason, sir. I'm just as relieved as you are that she's okay."
He was bewildered.
He saw Ranov'la get kidnapped by Lucian, so unless she somehow returned and failed to let him know, Padmé had returned.
Rex muttered an excuse and exited, rushing to the Senate building as quickly as he could. He nearly sprinted to Padmé's quarters, eager to who would be in the room.
"Rex. Is something the matter?"
Rex stood in the doorway for a moment, his mouth dry and adrenaline pumping through him. He opened and closed his fists as they rested at his sides before slipping his helmet off and pinning it to his side. "Who are you?"
She cocked her head, a small smile spreading across her face as if they were having a cheery conversation. "Rex? What do you mean by that?"
"I know Senator Amidala had a decoy take her place." Rex squeezed his eyes shut. "You're not her. Your hair is too straight. You're slightly taller than her. And the biggest hint is that you're not wobbling in those heels."
"Rex-"
"So who are you? Are you Senator Amidala, or the decoy?" Rex cut her off.
The smile slipped off her face and she motioned for Rex to step into the room. He did so, and she swiftly shut the door behind him, ushering him to the couch.
"I am the decoy."
"Ranov'la?" Rex softly said, confusion rising in him.
Had he been wrong?
Was this her?
"Huh?"
His heart sunk as he realized that this wasn't Ranov'la. "Who are you?" Rex asked.
"I am Dormé, handmaiden to Senator Amidala. I was sent in her stead, since the decoy has disappeared. I am needed back with the others urgently, so you need to tell me what you know of the runaway decoy."
"She didn't run away!" Rex raised his voice slightly before turning his head away. "She didn't run away."
Dormé studied him for a moment, her eyes scanning the way he stared at the scratch on the wall. "Then what did happen? We need to find her quickly. I am needed back with the others."
Rex ran his fingers along the mark on the wall. "She tripped in heels one time and fell over, scratching her bracelet along it, causing a mark."
Dormé patiently waited for him to stop reminiscing, clasping her hands in front of her.
Rex lifted his gaze to her with a heavy sigh. "She was kidnapped."
~Ranov'la~
Great.
Just great.
She had gotten kidnapped from her kidnapper.
Ranov'la stared up at the Zabrak that had captured her, watching as he scanned the streets before dashing forwards, dragging her along. He gripped the hood of the cloak he had thrown over her.
"Where are you taking me?" Ranov'la demanded, digging her heels into the ground.
He didn't reply, simply gave another tug that made her stumble and continued running. She glared up at him, hoping that her eyes would somehow drill into his skull and he would keel over.
They eventually stopped in a hanger, and Ranov'la was roughy shoved toward a ship with a lowered set of stairs that led to the entrance .
"Savage, is this her?" A red Zabrak asked as he glided down the steps.
Savage ripped the hood off her head, revealing her face. "Yes, Maul. Brother, what do we do with her?"
Maul smiled, revealing rows of pointed teeth. "We use her as bait for Kenobi. I will finally have my revenge!"
"You think he's going to rescue me?" Ranov'la hopefully asked.
"He's going to try. Then I will cut his legs from his body and see how he likes it!" Maul sinisterly said.
Ranov'la was pushed into a corner, arms bound behind her back. Savage followed Maul outside to declare to the world that they had captured Senator Amidala.
~Rex~
"You have a message from General Skywalker."
Rex glanced up at the messager clone, wrinkling his forehead in confusion. "What is it?"
"He says he needs to see you and that it's urgent."
Rex sighed and followed him to an almost empty briefing room, the only other person being Anakin. The clone shuffled away, and as soon as he was out of ear shot, Anakin asked, "Are you having an affair with my wife?"
Rex's eyes widened and he took a step back. "Excuse me?"
Anakin laughed. "I'm joking. I know you wouldn't do that. But I did have a question for you about her."
Rex pressed a hand to his chest, letting out a breath of relief. "Then ask, sir."
"Obi-wan revived a comm message from someone who claimed to have Padmé. It's clearly not her, meaning that someone completely random is being held hostage," Anakin told him. "Have you heard something about that?"
"Of course not, sir," Rex lied.
Anakin studied him for a moment. "You seem anxious, Rex. Your aura is stressed. Are you lying?"
Rex's expression hardened. "Of course not."
Anakin crossed his arms. "Padmé also told me you went to visit her. She said seemed upset. Has something been bothering you lately?"
"No."
Anakin narrowed his eyes. "Rex, are you sure? I could help you with whatever you've been dealing with."
Rex nodded. "I'm sure." He chewed the inside of his cheek for a second before saying, "Actually, I was wondering if I could speak with Master Kenobi. Do you know where he is?"
Anakin raised a brow, arms falling to his sides. "Is that it? You don't have anything else to say?"
"That's it." Rex smiled slightly, trying to put Anakin at ease.
"He's at the Jedi temple. Can you get there on your own?" Anakin sighed in defeat.
"I'll manage. I'll be back in time for dinner." Rex jogged away.
Anakin shook his head as he watched Rex go, muttering to himself, "Something's up with him."
"General Kenobi!" Rex shouted, catching up to the Jedi Master.
Obi-wan turned, robes shifting with his movement. "Yes, Rex? Is something wrong? Did Anakin set something on fire again?"
"I need some advice," Rex admitted.
Obi-wan hummed, motioning for Rex to walk by his side. "Tell me all about it."
Rex chewed the inside of his mouth as he made his decision. "It's about a girl-"
Obi-wan held up his hand. "I am not the one you should speak with about this. I have very little experience in that field. Might I recommend speaking to Wolfe instead? I do believe he's on Coruscant..."
Rex's face flushed. "Not like that!"
Obi-wan smiled sheepishly. "Continue then. I apologize for interrupting."
"It's about a girl who got kidnapped in front of me, and no one else knows she's gone. No one will notice she's gone because she was pretending to be someone else, but now there's someone else. What do I do?" Rex finally explained the scenario to someone and instantly felt guilt and relief.
Obi-wan stroked his bread. "This does sound like quite the situation."
Rex hesitated before adding, "And I think she got kidnapped from her kidnapper? I'm not clear on that and I'm just going off rumours for that part."
"What are your options?" Obi-wan questioned.
"I have no idea," Rex confessed.
"You could report her kidnapping," Obi-wan suggested.
"That would put someone else at risk," Rex said, thinking of Dormé.
"Find her yourself?" Obi-wan guided Rex outside to a meditation garden. They sat on a bench together with long grass surrounding them.
"Where would I even begin?" Rex countered.
"Forget you ever saw it happen. Forget she existed
"Ok," Rex agreed.
And Ranovla was never found, and died alone in Maul's basement.
Lmao jk.
"No offence, sir, but that isn't what a good person would do," Rex replied, frowning.
Obi-wan smiled, wrinkled forming around his eyes. "I knew you'd say that. You're a good man, Rex. I hope you know that."
"What should I do then?" Rex asked, pushing past the pride he felt.
Obi-wan stoked his beard, deep in thought. "That, I cannot tell you. I'm unsure of the right path here, but I can tell you that I trust you. I'm sure you'll make the best choice you can."
Rex looked up at Obi-wan. "I don't know what to do, though. I have no idea of what step to take next."
"I'm sorry, Rex, but I don't know either." Obi-wan gave Rex a pitying look. "Perhaps if you come back later, I will think of something, but for now, I do not know."
Rex bowed his head. "Thank you anyways. Uh, please don't tell anyone about this. Someone's life could be endangered if this gets out."
Obi-wan patted Rex's back comfortingly. "I'm glad you trusted me enough to confide in me. Rest assured that I will not utter a word of this to anyone."
And with that, Rex knew what he had to do.
"Thank you again!" Rex said as he dashed away.
Obi-wan looked puzzled. "No problem."
Sorry for all the POV changes, I hope it wasn't confusing.