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A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

[The starry sky appears in the background, but the opening crawl never begins.]

[Suddenly, we shift to a man sitting in a comfortable chair in a dark room.]

[This is SIO BIBBLE, a mysterious old man, an esteemed historian for the GALACTIC ALLIANCE. He is of no relation to the man of the same name from Naboo, of course. But he is no ordinary historian; he studies the 5th dimension; alternate universes, where even one decision can radically change the entire fate of the Galaxy.]

SIO BIBBLE: Our Galaxy's foundation dates back tens of thousands of years, when our alien oppressors died off, and we gained the abilities of hyperspace travel, allowing us to traverse the stars at speeds much faster than light, and allowing the many forms of sentient to mingle with each other. But imagine a land where the oppressors' technology was never inherited, because they never existed. Imagine if hyperspace technology was not available until each species developed it on its own. What would such a Galaxy be like? I have uncovered a universe just like it, and it is magnificent. According to it, life in our Galaxy would be something like this…

A Star Destroyer passed overhead. It was not a combat vessel- merely a starfighter carrier, but a sight to behold nonetheless, for the Alderaanians at least. Any sign of troops returning home to the colonies was a grand one; it meant loved ones coming back, and it could have meant that the war between the Humans and the Duros was dying down, in which case peace could return to humanity! Bail watched out the window as his citizens gathered and cheered at the cruiser, which was beginning to land near the parade of people and probably about to launch its stunt ships. He secretly hoped that all troops were returning to their homes, no matter if it was due to peace, victory, or even retreat, but it was a far-fetched idea, as President Valorum and the United States {The global government of Coruscant, much like the Galactic Alliance is to our Galaxy, except just over Humanity. –Ed. Bibble} leaders seemed to have no intention of ending this war until they took every single planet that the Duros held. But everyone can dream…

Boom.

All went silent as a shockwave ripped through the city and obliterated all in its path. The mayor of Alderaan fell to the ground, and could only gaze at the spinning floor, a sharp ringing noise piercing his ears. Moments passed, but they felt like hours to him. The air grew more and more noxious, and all Bail could do was close his eyes and pass…. out…

HOLONET NEWS NETWORK- COLONIAL EDITION- Reporting Live at Alderaan's capital city, Skywalker Ranch, on November 2nd, 361, at 7:07 AM. This is Aayla Secura, field reporter for CHNN. Just twelve hours ago, Mandalorian Terrorists set off a Star Destroyer ((Carrier Class- Model Year 357, ID #4131025612)) that was filled to the brim with thousands of explosive proton bombs right in the middle of the city. As you can see from behind me, the damage is severe; not a single building is left standing, not even the City Hall. Mayor Antilles's status is unconfirmed, but he is thought to have been killed, as several unidentified bodies have been retrieved from the City Hall. A list of confirmed dead and injured is on the main page. ((LINK)) Nothing is certain yet, but more details of this disaster will be unveiled as time goes on. Ciao.

Now Bail Antilles was awake, safely hidden in his underground bunker. He sighed as he viewed images of the city-wide carnage, feeling beyond hopeless. These pirates called Mandalorians had been attacking the Northern colonies for years now, and had even established their own faux-government, but Alderaan was a Central Colony; one of Humanity's 13 most important planets! The United Coruscanti government {the main Superpower state on Coruscant; a mega-sized confederation that had twice as many settlements on alien worlds than all other nations combined. –Ed. Bibble} could never stand for this! But they would, Bail had a feeling.

The Human-Duros War had been fiercely fought for forever, it seemed like; about half a century. It started in 313, and would probably continue for many more. The United Coruscanti Militia wouldn't devote any large number of troops to anything other than the war effort, and the Mandalorian Pirates took advantage of that. Now the Middle Colonies were feeling the effects of the long drawn-out conflict, and it could easily reach Coruscant itself in a decade or less.

"Sir?" Aide Helix asked. "Mayor Antilles. According to the news broadcasts, the entire populous believes… Well, that you're dead. Sir. Umm, if it's alright with you, I would very much like to announce that the reports of your deaths were, umm, greatly exaggerated. Then, uh, we could probably get straight to the rebuilding process, so that this crisis-"

"No," The Alderaanian mayor interrupted. "From now on, I AM dead."

Helix was obviously baffled and distraught by this declaration, and took several moments before he was able to stutter out, "B-But… Sir! I… What? Uh… Sir… I… I… I will not assist you in any suicidal halluc-"

Once again, Bail interrupted, saying, "No, I need to be considered dead for what I am about to do. You can be Mayor from now on."

The Aide reluctantly asked the all-important question: "Umm… If… I…. Uh… Dare I ask…? But… What, uh, what are you about to… do? Sir." There was no reply. Silence filled the bunker. Finally, Bail spoke.

"I'm going to gather an army," he replied. "and we're going to destroy the Mandalorians, once and for all."