When Padme and Anakin are sent on a mission for the Senate, little do they know that Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi has been sent to the same world to hunt a Dark Jedi. A revelation in the middle of combat leads Obi-Wan to discover something about Padme before even she knows it.

“The Rule of Two” was originally conceived around two things; what would happen if Obi-Wan Kenobi found out that Padme was pregnant before Padme herself did? How might that affect his relationship with Anakin? Not from any “Obidala” romance perspective, but simply from the awareness that Anakin loves Padme and that she is now pregnant with what Obi-Wan assumes is another man's child – how would the Jedi Master think that might affect his former Padawan?

The second thing was simply the central action sequence – Obi-Wan Kenobi doing what he does best while Padme opens herself up to him and allows him to, basically, use her body as a Force-driven flesh-puppet to hold Anakin's lightsaber.

Of course, the story has grown from those two initial inspirations in quite a different direction. The character of the Dark Jedi Usaki Ketsubo Daikatana has grown from a simple plot McGuffin into a well-rounded character who, like Elizabeth and the “dark” Susan of The Elizabeth Trilogy, has allowed me to explore the negative consequences of feminism and the gender revolt. Usaki has, in fact, taken on a life of her own, and the desire to explore her character more (and to address what I personally see as weaknesses in the official canon) has lead to the story “Compassion”.

Additionally, Anakin's impetuous nature and his tendency to rush off without proper planning (not to mention his simple, undeniable inability to get things right) have also appeared in the story; especially when counterpointed with Obi-Wan Kenobi's simple brilliance.

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