Warning! Spoilers ahead for Darth Vader #3
Darth Vader is on a quest for the truth. In the latest series from Marvel Comics and writer Greg Pak, the Dark Lord wants to know the specifics of his wife’s final moments before she died. Thus far, his journey has taken him to the planet of Coruscant, and now to Naboo. Along the way, he comes face to face with Sabé, former handmaiden to Padmé as her decoy, thanks to her striking resemblance to the former queen and senator of Naboo. Together they form an alliance to discover the truth, and Vader also learns in the most recent issue that his wife inspired a movement and secret order with a singular mission.
Vader first went to Coruscant to investigate Padmé’s old apartment. Upon finding that there were security footage tapes missing, Vader traces their source to the one who took them: Sabé. Not knowing who he truly was before he became Vader, Sabé agrees to take Vader to Naboo, where she hid the tapes that were encrypted. Upon arriving to Naboo, they go to the Naberrie family lake retreat (where Anakin Skywalker professed his love to Padmé) and meet Captains Typho and Torna, associates of Sabé, themselves also former agents of Padmé. Together, they travel underwater in a bongo sub to a facility hidden within the depths of Naboo.
After finding the tapes, Vader commands his droid to decrypt the tapes so that they might discover its secrets. However, what they find instead is a recording of Sabé, Typho, Torna, and others assembled in Padmé’s apartment. They are seen making a pact, calling themselves the Amidalans, a group of Padmé’s agents, and followers who truly loved her. As a secret order, they declare their mission to be simple.
It’s revealed that the tapes themselves were merely bait to bring Vader to this location. Typho says that the last time she saw Padmé was when she was leaving for Mustafar to find the Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker. When they learned that Vader had built his castle and base of operations there, they put two and two together…sort of. They believe that Vader killed both Padmé and Anakin, not realizing that Vader is what Anakin has become. It doesn’t really matter though, as Vader confirms their accusations and suspicions, his own perspective being that he did indeed “kill” Anakin Skywalker that day.
The issue then ends with the Amidalans activating a lure device, calling down a massive Sando Aqua Monster (as seen in The Phantom Menace) to consume them all, with the Sabé, Typho, and Torna looking prepared to die in service of fulfilling their mission. While fans know that Vader will somehow escape the maw of the Sando, it will be interesting to see if any of the Amidalans survive, and whether or not they’ll learn the truth about Darth Vader’s true identity. In any case, the mere fact the Padmé was such an influential and beloved figure as to inspire a whole secret order dedicated to avenging her death is amazing, and a true testament to what a strong character she was when alive in the Star Wars Universe.
