VOICE » liberty is not dead yet

[officio]

Everyone who came to this planet in a drop shuttle, please listen. My name is Padmé Amidala, I am a former senator of the Galactic Senate. I know that means little to many of you... but there are people out there who want me dead. [ She pauses in her speech, her voice clear and calm. ] I am telling you this because I will not hide who I am, or what I know.

By now, you all know what we are facing, here. And until we can establish a connection to those who are out there, get the comms on the ship to work... in order for all of us to survive, we need to work together.

[ Another pause in the speech, for a speech it is -- it doesn't matter she isn't standing in her seat in the Senate, speaking to the Senators, arguing in favour of peace; she is arguing now, too, for what she believes. And she believes in unity. ]

I understand many of you will think you can't trust those you don't know, but down here, we only have each other. If we want to live until we get a chance to get out of here, back to those we've been taken from, our best chance is to combine our resources, our strengths.

Daryl was right. No one should leave the city without alerting at least someone else. Moreover, we need to know exactly who were on the ship, what you can do. If you want to hide your identity, I understand -- but don't hide what you can do for others. We are not each other's enemies... don't make the mistake of acting like we are.

[ It sounds like the end, but she has one more thing to say: ] I will be outside the hotel. Please come to see me, tell me only your name if nothing else. So we know at least how many of us are here.

[ The last sentence is softer than the rest, pleading when the speech itself was certain, carrying the sense of authority someone has when they're used to speaking like this, trying to convince people to see things the way she does. But the last bit is her asking, hoping that people will at the very least do that much. So no one ever goes missing without anyone knowing they should be there. ]

( ooc: open for action as well for everyone who wants to come to talk to her in person! )

Comments

[officio]

[ she bites her lip and says nothing, judges quietly the way his voice seems louder, rougher than usual. this... is something else. something other than whatever has made him a wanted man in the empire's eyes.

her upcoming speech about how she admits who she is because if she lies, that means she can't expect anyone else to be honest either is deterred by what he says last, making her blink in confusion. ]

I do what I must. But... the Rebels? There is a rebellion? [ "already?" her tone implies. how can that be? how would have organized something like that in such a short time? ]

[pilot]

[ if anything was going to get him quiet. han stares at her like she grew a second head. ]

Yeah, there's a rebellion. What war have you been fighting?

[officio]

[ she can't understand any of this, staring back at him equally astonished. ]

The Clone Wars. What did you think I meant? This... rebellion? [ no, he must be wrong. there is no rebellion... not yet. though she can't deny that if she were still in coruscant, that she and bail organa wouldn't have started one. ]

[pilot]

[ his jaw hangs open before han clicks it shut. he steps away, arms falling to his sides. ]

The Clone Wars ended twenty years ago.

[officio]

[ she, meanwhile, looks like the entire base of her world just dropped away. ]

Twenty years? But... that can't be. I was there when the Republic was turned into the Empire. I was there when the Jedi order... [ she trails off, swallowing harshly. it seems a lifetime ago that she watched the jedi temple burn. ] It's only been a few weeks.

[ a few weeks, which makes it a mere few days before the dropship arrived here. ]

[pilot]

So was I. Except I was ten. [ and on a different planet in a different system but. details. ]

The Emperor dissolved the Senate. Your position doesn't exist anymore, Senator. To call yourself one is to tell everyone where you stand.

[ and whose enemy she claims to be. han shakes his head. what she's talking about is impossible. in theory, carbon freezing could preserve organics almost indefinitely. in practice, he'd never heard of anyone in hibernation twenty years. ]

[officio]

So somehow... we ended up on the same ship, you from the future and I from the past.

[ it's impossible. and yet, here they stand, proof that it is anything but. ]

I know what it does. [ but there is something else she knows and he doesn't: it's not her position that puts her in most danger, it's her name. ] But I won't hide who I am. If the Empire finds me because of it... so be it.

[ at least it might give her a chance... to see anakin. to make him see. ]

[pilot]

[ his eye roll is a powerful thing, involving turning not only his head but also his body away from her in an I cannot gesture that needs no translation. ]

How is it that I always end up with the self-sacrificing idealists? This is the princess all over again.

[ not that he can talk what with giving out his name. but the empire had already found him. found him, used him and sold him like chattel to lure his friend to danger. he'd prefer to be found again. han will take down a few with him. ]

[officio]

[ too bad that only seems to amuse her. ] The princess?

[ her voice is light, curious. ] I used to be a queen. [ so maybe it's a royalty requirement. ]

[pilot]

[ with his luck…nope. can't even try to contest that. ]

Oh. Great. It's Leia in twenty years.

[officio]

[ she pauses at the name, of course -- but maybe... maybe. it could be a coincidence. she's not about to ask him outright if he perhaps means her daughter. ]

I was very young when I ruled... too young. But whether you're a princess, a queen or a senator... it is all about wanting the best for your people. For everyone. That's what I want for all of us here, too.