A Game of Chess
by Kayarde
Four weeks after he and Anakin returned from Naboo Obi-Wan walked through the hallways of the senate wondering why the Supreme Chancellor wanted to talk to him of all Jedi. There were a lot Jedi who were more important than him yet Palpatine had asked for him specifically.
The Chancellor's secretary announced him and Obi-Wan was led into the office of the most powerful man in the galaxy. He hid his nervousness behind an expression of neutrality. Palpatine watched the traffic that flew past his window when the young Jedi entered. He turned around and greeted his guest. "Knight Kenobi, how good of you to come."
Obi-Wan bowed in respect. "Thank you for your invitation, Chancellor."
"Please have a seat." He pointed to a sitting area in a corner of the room. "May I offer you some refreshments?"
"No, thank you." The young man sat down on the edge of the chair his body somewhat tense.
"I asked you to come here so I could thank you personally for the service you did for my planet by slaying that monster." Palpatine pretended not to notice the slight wince at the mention of Darth Maul and the memories it brought up. "So thank you for saving my planet."
Obi-Wan suppressed the urge to squirm. "I was just doing my duty as a Jedi." An uncomfortable silence permeated the room.
His gaze fell on a chessboard on the coffee table between them. Palpatine noticed. "This is a very old game called chess. Unfortunately this match was interrupted. Nowadays only old men like myself play it anymore. You know how to play as well?"
Obi-Wan nodded.
"Are you good?" Obi-Wan asked with renewed interest in the politician as he contemplated the pieces and their position.
Palpatine smiled. "Well it's been some time since someone defeated me."
The Jedi turned the board around to look at it from a different angle. "Who was your opponent in this game?"
"Senator Ambrer. Why?" The chancellor was confused.
"And you played white and it was Ambrer's turn?"
"Yes."
"Then perhaps it was good that you were interrupted." Obi-Wan pointed to a black knight. "If he moved this piece he would have defeated you in another six moves."
The chancellor was taken aback. Ambrer had wanted to move the queen before the interruption. Palpatine's victory had been all but sure and now this Jedi barely into knighthood would have turned the game around in a handful of moves. It didn't outright anger him but it annoyed Palpatine greatly.
The young Jedi blushed with shame. His mouth had run away before he had comprehended what he had just said. "I'm sorry, Chancellor." Obi-Wan felt that the conversation didn't go the direction Palpatine wanted it to go so he decided it would be a good point to leave. He rose from his chair. "Thank you for giving me some of your precious time."
"I wish you a pleasant day, Chancellor." Obi-Wan bowed politely which was mirrored by Palpatine with a nod of his head who still stared at the board.
The Jedi had nearly reached the door when the chancellor called out. "Knight Kenobi, would you care for a match?"
He froze mid-step. In Obi-Wan's mind his dislike for politicians battled with his desire for a good chess match. His desire won but barely. "Not today. Anakin should've just finished his classes and it's nearly time for dinner. But how about tomorrow at noon during the senate's lunch break?"
Palpatine's eyes lit up. It's been some time since he had had a worthy opponent. And he had the feeling that this Jedi would provide him with the challenge he craved. "It would be my pleasure."
During the morning session of the senate Palpatine felt a form of giddy anticipation and at the same time he questioned his sanity. His late Master Darth Plagueis had warned him when the Sith master had taught his apprentice how to play chess. One should never play against an enemy because the way you play chess tells a lot about yourself, knowledge you wouldn't want your enemies to possess. And all Jedi were enemies of the Sith by definition.
Originally he had sent for Kenobi to gauge the knight's potential as an interim apprentice before young Anakin would be old enough. Two sentences into the conversation the other day and the Force told the Sith master that turning Kenobi to the Dark Side was next to impossible.
So if he thought this through logically he had no reason to invite Kenobi back into his office. But it had been some time since someone had shown the potential to challenge him on an intellectual level. He just couldn't resist the temptation of proving that he was better.
Young Kenobi was punctual as clockwork. Palpatine's aide announced the Jedi two minutes before noon. He asked her to bring them a pot of tea and then that she should enjoy her lunch.
"Knight Kenobi, thank you for coming. How nice of you to indulge in this old man." They sat down at the chancellor's coffee table playing with his antique ivory and ebony set. It was beautifully carved by hand. One piece was probably worth more than anything Obi-Wan owned as a Jedi.
Obi-Wan smiled slightly. "It is my pleasure. As you said yesterday it is difficult to find an opponent, any opponent, these days let alone someone who really appreciates the game."
"The guest gets to choose the side." Palpatine smiled as if he had just given his favourite nephew a really special gift when he turned, not entirely subtle, the white pieces to the Jedi.
Obi-Wan grinned when he turned the board around with a confident move. "I prefer playing black."
Palpatine was surprised. "Then I believe I have the first move." A lot of players preferred playing white because of the slight advantage one gained from moving first. Even if it turned out that defeating Kenobi would be as easy as playing against a random senator at least his opponent was a bit more interesting.
"How did young Anakin settle in in the Jedi temple?" Palpatine asked shortly after they had begun the match.
Obi-Wan moved a bishop and then sighed. "It is a difficult transition for him. He is after all already nine years old. He is already set in his ways."
"He must also miss his mother." The chancellor stated as he made his move. "Separating him from her after everything he went through is rather cruel in my eyes. The bond between a mother and her child is rather special, is it not?"
The young knight looked confused. "I wouldn't know. I never met my mother."
Their match turned out to be one of the most intense and challenging games Palpatine ever played. He won but he had had to work for his victory. They would have a rematch in a few days and the Sith Lord was really looking forward to this. And oh the ammunition Kenobi had unknowingly provided for turning young Anakin, it was just exquisite.
They were once again in the early stages of a chess game when Palpatine began a conversation. "You know I have done some research on the Jedi when I was younger and there is a line in your code I always wondered about. May I ask you about its interpretation?"
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. "I'm might not be the best option when it comes to by the book interpretations of the code but you're going to ask anyway. So what is it?" He moved a pawn to intercept a bishop from threatening his queen.
"`There is no emotion, there is peace.´ and `There is no passion, there is serenity.´ Does that mean you are forbidden to feel emotions?"
"That is a common misunderstanding of the non-Jedi. We feel emotions like the rest of the galaxy we just don't let them rule us. I don't know how to describe it to someone who isn't Force sensitive." Obi-Wan rested his chin on his hand as he contemplated the chess board. The feeling of hair on his face was still new to him.
"For me personally it is like this: When the Sith killed my Master I was so angry this anger filled all of my thoughts. I lost focus and before I knew it I was dangling by my fingertips above an abyss. I released the anger into the Force and could think clearly again. But the Sith needed to die for the safety of Naboo. I reached into the Force and it answered my call. Through it I found the strength I needed to protect the people of the planet, to do what needed to be done. With the desire to protect the planet and the people and the Force to back me up I gained victory over the anger driven Sith. The Force broke the chains my emotions bound me with and it freed me." He moved a knight.
Palpatine was taken aback. There was a moment of silence before he used a bishop to take a pawn of Obi-Wan's. "So would you say that protecting people is what drives you, is it your passion?"
The Jedi thought for a moment. His fingers played absentmindedly with a captured white rock. "Yes. As I said I'm not a model Jedi." Then he smiled ironically. "But don't tell the council it might ruin my chance of ever achieving mastery."
Palpatine answered with a conspiratorial smile of his own. "Don't worry they won't hear it from me."
He turned his gaze back on the board but his mind was somewhere else. Had Kenobi just rehearsed the Sith Code? Through passion I gain strength, through strength I gain power, through power I gain victory, through victory my chains are broken, the Force will free me. Yes he had, in a twisted sort of way. Then how was it possible that he was so disgustingly bright in the Force?
They weren't keeping count but they had about the same number of victories and defeats to their name. They were equals in the game. While the political situation deteriorated around them their frequent matches provided a regularity both enjoyed.
They had a match shortly before Obi-Wan flew to Kamino, a victory for Palpatine. The next time after that was three months into the Clone Wars and Obi-Wan finally got a one week leave of absence. The second the Jedi entered his office the chancellor noticed the change the younger man had gone through. He wore armour over his robes and he had a wary look in his eyes. But the change that stood out most was the way he played.
Obi-Wan moved his pieces with a mixture of ruthlessness and worry that was new. Palpatine noticed that he thought longer about sacrificing a piece yet he did it more often than before. Obi-Wan made moves he wouldn't even have considered a few months earlier. As if he saw the pieces as the soldiers he led into battle but realized the need to sacrifice them for the sake of victory far more often. He did what needed to be done to achieve his goal. Palpatine wasn't sure if he was elated or horrified by the change.
Palpatine was so surprised by the change in strategy that it turned into the most brutal defeat he had faced since Darth Plagueis had introduced him to the game. Staring at the board and then at the Jedi he leaned back and wheezed. "That was the most brutal defeat I suffered since I was taught chess."
Obi-Wan huffed. "You give me too much credit."
Palpatine threw a mock glare in the direction of the Jedi. "Just for once seize your humbleness and accept a compliment. I don't give them often, Master Kenobi."
"That's not what Anakin tells me. According to him you shower him with praise and that practically inflates his ego." There was a biting undertone in Obi-Wan's voice.
"Yes well he is an exceptional young man."
"That he is. But arrogance on the battlefield is as deadly as enemy blaster fire. He is overconfident in his abilities. It leads to him taking unnecessary risks. Sometimes I have the feeling that he believes that he is invulnerable and those are the most dangerous moments. Please keep your praise down or give him your compliments with a bit of warning. I just want to get him home in one piece."
Palpatine contemplated the Jedi knight across the table for a moment. There was some merit to his arguments. Anakin's reckless attitude had cost him his right arm on Geonosis. Perhaps he should consider Kenobi's plea. After all the Sith would like to take on an apprentice that didn't miss anymore limbs.
"So what events on the political stage did I miss while I was Ventress' guest." Kenobi asked at the height of one game. The Jedi still looked worn out from his ordeal at Ventress' hands. The bags under his eyes were prominent and he still had bandages around his arms hiding the multiple cuts she had inflicted on him.
"Didn't the council tell you?" Palpatine asked as he absentmindedly moved a bishop. On the inside he was seething. How dare Dooku's little pet assassin lay a hand on his chess partner. It would be so hard to find another one who challenged his abilities.
Obi-Wan snorted. "Oh they got me up to date on the war effort as soon as I was well enough to comprehend their words. They might have mentioned in a sub-clause that I got my mastery and am now required to sit through council sessions. But apart from that nothing."
Palpatine smiled, only Obi-Wan would manage to mention his promotion to the high council in a sub-clause, the council themselves probably had held some kind of grand ceremony announcing it.
"Congratulations." The Jedi gave him the look that Anakin had often described and had often cursed to the high heavens. Apparently it always got the boy back in line. Of course it wouldn't work on a Sith Lord. The Chancellor laughed. It felt weird to laugh. What was his justification again for playing chess with Obi-Wan Kenobi. Right, intel that would help turning Anakin. Yet sometimes it felt as if he genuinely enjoyed the Jedi's company and vice versa. Sometimes he even dared to call it friendship, a real one.
"So let me think..." Palpatine started observing the board as he waited for Obi-Wan to make his move. "There was another unsuccessful attempt on Senator Amidala's life, there was a successful one on Senator Dnik, the Banking Clan granted us another credit to horrendous interests all the while pretending they are doing us a favour and the senate burdened me with more emergency powers." He sighed as if he literally felt the heavy weight.
Obi-Wan gave the chancellor an amused look. "If you try to tell me that you don't enjoy having this kind of power I'm afraid I have to call you a liar." Decisively he moved his knight forward.
Obi-Wan was in a dark mood as he sat down opposite of Palpatine playing black again. They were approaching the final stages of the match when the chancellor asked him about the reason for his sorrow.
"It's just. When I got back from the last campaign a friend of mine died on the battlefield. Nobody told me, I just saw her name on the list of the KIA. She had a Padawan and the girl was devastated." Obi-Wan looked out of the window. "I makes me wonder who will be the next one. What if it's Anakin's name I'm reading the next time? It is so easy to die. One stray shot and all is over."
"You both have survived the war so far." Palpatine stated.
"So it seems. But considering all the Dark Acolytes, fallen Jedi and Sith I've been facing the Sith master wants to change that. They are after me more than any other Jedi even council members so I guess I'm a thorn in his side. I'm not sure whether I should be worried or flattered." A humourless smile played on Obi-Wan's lips.
Oh, but Palpatine had no wish to end Obi-Wan's life. It was largely through the Jedi's efforts that the Republic was winning this war. Never mind that Palpatine played both sides but without Kenobi and Skywalker the CIS would have the advantage. Then the young man was a direct connection to Anakin and the information the chancellor had gotten through him would make it easy to turn the boy. And, Palpatine smirked at the thought; it would take too much effort to find a new capable chess partner. That alone was a worthy reason for keeping the Jedi around.
"What I heard from Anakin these encounters have done wonders to your fighting ability." Palpatine said moving a pawn.
Obi-Wan shook his head and stared at the board in thought. He felt as if the game was about to become a lost cause really soon. "I'm hardly the only one. Ever since this conflict started the fighting abilities of individual Jedi increased exponentially. It has proved that we have become stagnant during the last thousand years. When the Sith were beaten we Jedi sat back while the Sith worked tirelessly in the shadows plotting our downfall. And I believe that they will succeed. It is just a question on how this Fall is going to look like. Most members of the council believe that they are using the Separatists to kill us off."
"Something tells me you think different." The chancellor wanted to know Obi-Wan's theory on the war and the Sith conspiracy. So far the rumors he had heard from within the Jedi order weren't even coming close.
Obi-Wan leaned back, his right hand rested on his beard but his eyes never left the board. "Let me use an example. During my childhood and youth using the Force to interrogate a prisoner was downright forbidden and would land you on probation at the very least, during my knighthood it got you a lengthy lecture from the council, during the first few months of the Clone Wars it was frowned upon but more often than not deemed necessary, now after I gained my mastery Force interrogation is the norm and it's taught to the padawans." He eyed his black queen which stood in a precarious position.
After moving his pawn Palpatine interlaced his fingers beneath his chin. Their game would end soon. It was a pity. With the war going on they could no longer predict when there would be a rematch. "Ah I see where you are going with this. The morals of the Jedi order, the ones they prided themselves for, are deteriorating." That was an interesting and new idea. If one thought it through... there were certain possibilities.
"Yes the rest of the council believes our Fall will be swift and brutal but the way I see it, it is happening right in this moment. It is a slow subtle descend into darkness. We are becoming what we swore to defeat and most of them don't even notice." Obi-Wan sighed and made his move.
This was the first game since the Declaration of the Empire and it was so boring. "It seems I've caught your most powerful piece, Master Kenobi." The new Emperor stated as he twirled the black queen between his fingers. And he had in more ways than one. He had turned the Jedi's precious Chosen One into a Sith.
The Jedi's shoulders slumped forward in a defeated gesture.
The Sith Lord narrowed his eyes as he observed the prisoner. The once pristine tunic was torn and still displayed the stains of battle. His hair and beard in disarray. Yet when the clones had brought him in with his hands bound behind his back Obi-Wan had been a picture of dignity and grace. Now that they were alone the mask had fallen, in front of the Sith Lord of all people.
"Yes you did." Obi-Wan sat in his chair staring blankly at the chessboard.
"The clones..." Obi-Wan breathed barely audible. "Were they always meant to turn on the Jedi?"
"Yes" At this point it probably would be reasonable to interrupt the match. Obi-Wan was with his thoughts somewhere else. Palpatine stood up and pulled a folder from a cupboard beneath his desk. He handed the report with the clones' contingency orders to the Jedi. He no longer had the need to hide these documents. He had won.
The younger man started shaking when he read over Order 66 and Palpatine laid a steadying hand on the Jedi's shoulder.
"Why? Why does the Jedi order still exist then?" It was a credit to how well Obi-Wan knew Palpatine and his overall intelligence that he didn't ask how it was possible. The Jedi master could connect the dots on his own.
"Is it? Is it still the Jedi order?"
Obi-Wan looked up in shock. No they were no longer the pure light siders they once were. At best the order as a whole was grey. Sidious smiled there were other reasons why he kept them around. Some of them Obi-Wan had elaborated. In a way Kenobi was the savior of the order because he convinced him that keeping them around would be useful. "I had to purge their ranks through. Quite a few masters and a handful of knights were found guilty of treason."
"Is there anyone left of the council?"
Every Jedi older than fifteen had been arrested and was tested for his or her suitability to serve in the Empire, anyone younger had been put under house arrest in the temple. After all the Jedi had their uses. They might not be the best choice as military commanders, one exception was sitting across the table, but they were decent diplomats and protectors. But the council had to go, they were the essence of the Jedi Code and we're unlikely to change their ways. He had no use for them. "No. You are the last one."
"Then why am I not dead yet?"
That was a good question.
"I have a proposition for you and I hope you will accept." If he didn't Palpatine would be forced to kill the man across from him and what a waste that would be. Obi-Wan was a competent and intelligent man someone Palpatine actually trusted. The Emperor handed the Jedi a piece of paper.
Obi-Wan read through it and stared at Palpatine with surprise.
The Sith Lord just smiled.
"I am curious. How long have you suspected that I am the Sith master?" Sidious asked. He and his new Grand Vizier sat in the Room of Thousand Fountains playing a game of chess. Younglings splashed in one of the nearby pools but held respectful distance to the two most powerful men in the galaxy. Anakin alias Darth Vader was off crushing the remnants of the Confederacy and some ailing rebel cells. But they weren't any real threats. Having the Negotiator as a Grand Vizier prevented them from even forming (he talked them out of it).
"Now that would be cheating. Not as long as I would have liked yet longer than the rest of the galaxy." Obi-Wan moved a pawn.
That was a half-answer so typical for Obi-Wan. Sheev laid a hand on his chin eyes moving from piece to piece. "Yet you never told the Jedi Council of your suspicion. Why?" The question was underlined by the slight click of a knight moving into place capturing the pawn.
The vizier chuckled. "Sheev, we've been playing chess for over a decade. I know how you strategize. The contingency plans for your contingency plans have contingency plans. I may stand a chance against you when I know all the pieces you have but back then I didn't know what you had up your sleeve." He moved another pawn.
"I see." The Emperor turned the captured black queen over in his hands. "And you plan a sacrifice six moves ahead preventing my contingency plan to take place. You make your opponent do what you want him to do so you can achieve your goal." He moved his knight again. "So what was your goal when you kept your suspicions to yourself?"
Obi-Wan smiled when a Nautolan girl ran past, nodding in their direction with respect. "I indulged in my passion, in protecting people." He moved a bishop preventing the Dark Lord from checking his king simultaneously checking Sheev's king.
Sheev Palpatine the Dark Lord of the Sith and the first Galactic Emperor laughed as he observed the alive and lively Jedi in his service and tipped his king. "Well played, Obi-Wan, well played indeed."
AN: Star Wars isn't mine.
I hope this makes sense. Like with most of my other ideas this just jumped on me. I wrote it in one sitting and did little editing (I would need some time away from it before I read it again to spot errors but I wanted it out). If you find grave grammatical errors please inform me.
The story was inspired by a passage in the 8th chapter of Chasing Redemption by Estora and the essay The Sith-Code for Non-Psychos by Allronix on AO3.
I hope you enjoyed it and have a nice day.