Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars
Oh god! I just re-read the previous chapter and noticed a bunch of awful typos! I am so sorry, I'll fix them as soon as I can.
Also, sorry for the long wait and extra sorry for the mess this chapter is, I tried and I failed.
"I want the document to be able to unite what is left of the empire under the name of a legal ruler. Future of this galaxy and thousands, if not millions, of lives depend on it." He stated bluntly expressing his fears.
"What do you mean by that?" She was curious and was there a hint of being taken aback by his response? Pellaeon wasn't sure but recognised this as his chance to persuade this woman to hand over the document.
"Now that the operation Shadow Hand is over, and rather disastrously so, the power struggle has escalated to the brink of mass destruction. The war-lords are at each others throats and the civilians are the ones to pay the prize.
If it turns into slaughter the New Republic may take up action and the war will start anew. The empire might be brought together by a common enemy and thousands, if not millions, will lose their lives during the useless campaign." Pellaeon stopped for a while to check if she was following his train of thought. As she nodded thoughtfully he continued:
"To prevent this, we need a ruler. We need this anarchy to end. Someone Palpatine himself chose to take the reins and lead us into a better future. The rise to power will not be bloodless I admit that, but at least it will most likely have less disastrous consequences than the alternative.
This way we will have the chance to make peace treaty with the New Republic and have a chance of rebuilding our government and making sure that the children of empire get to grow in safety. This is my, and my allies, vision of the future." He ended his speech and waited for her answer.
"A noble goal admiral, but the heir may not be what you wish for." the woman finally said. Her voice was apologetic as if she truly was despaired of the vision not coming true.
In her eyes there was a look Pellaeon had seen many times in the eyes of his mother during the clone wars; the same heartbreaking sadness every time she, a mother, heard of children loosing their lives and suffer because of the decisions the higher-ups made.
"The heir, you know who it is. Give me the document so that I know if it is possible for the empire to be saved." And yet Pellaeon braced himself for what was to come. He knew, like Thrawn he had guessed who the heir most likely was and yet he was hopeful, this was their only chance to rescued what was left of the empire.
"It is not often I have heard of imperial officer so ready to embrace change in order to protect the civilians, not just focusing on the war. You truly are a remarkable man admiral Pellaeon. And I believe in your sincerity on this matter. I believe you truly just want what is best for the people." She stood up and went to a window. For a while she stared at the darkness and then sighed:
"This wasn't part of the plan, I was supposed to find out why you're so set on finding out all this and persuade you to back off, if that didn't work my husband would order you to back off."
Pellaeon was confused and tried to understand what he was hearing. So the woman wasn't alone in this, that much he had already guessed.
"You say that you have allies, can you not rule as a council?" The woman continued seeking an alternative solution.
"We are not enough to bend the rest to our will. We need an emperor to make our efforts count."
"That's what I was afraid you would say."
There were answers he wanted that she wouldn't give and he was beginning to get irritated. All the stress and frustration of past months crushing down on him at that moment. He was so close to the journey's end, so close! And she was making it harder to reach on purpose. Did she not understand what was at stake?
"Now, I guess you could just drop the act and tell me what I want to know. Starting with your name and followed by the heir's." He said rising his voice frustrated. He realised his tone was too harsh as Panaka drew his pistol and pointed it at him. Was he actually playing a bodyguard?
"Don't!" The woman ordered sharply and her guard put down the blaster. Then she studied the admiral for a second and seemed to make a decision.
"You must understand that what you are about to learn from now on must stay secret! If you speak of this your life will face an untimely end."
"My lady, is this wise?" Panaka asked.
"Probably not", was her answer.
Pellaeon did not like being threatened, but something told him that even if the woman did not look dangerous she had someone, not just a Moff for her protector but someone dangerous backing her up.
"I do not care who the heir is as long as he is capable of using his head and seeing that continuing the war is pointless and a waste of time, lives and resources."
"Even if the heir is a former rebel? And not just any rebel, but Luke Skywalker?" She asked tiredly confirming Pellaeon's, and Thrawn's for the matter, suspicions.
"It does not matter, maybe it is even better for us to have an emperor who saw the war and devastation it caused first handedly. Though I had hoped that my guess for his identity was incorrect."
"Exactly, Luke Skywalker is not someone you want as your ruler."
"On the contrary, I may have wished differently but he may be just what we need." Pellaeon was reconsidering his earlier conclusions. Skywalker might not be that bad. A jedi instead of a sith could be the contrast they needed to proof their different agenda. It was risky, but maybe it would be worth of it?: "That is, if the document, which I have yet to see, states your claim of him as the heir, true."
"You will drive the galaxy at war! There is no way the Imperials will accept a rebel, a jedi as their emperor. Thousands may lose their lives in the fighting!"
"And even more will die if we don't have an emperor soon! The empire is falling apart, we are already at the brink of civil war." Pellaeon reasoned his decision. Yes, Skywalker would probably cause masses to have a cardiac arrest, but he really was getting desperate. The empire would crumble the second the rest of the high-ups noticed that Palpatine wouldn't be coming back.
"What if he refuses?" Padme asked trying to regain her composure.
"Then he will doom us all."
Piett, Luke and Anakin were in the next room surveying over a monitor showing the room Padme was meeting Pellaeon.
Mara had been with them until they had decided it to be better for her to be stationed outside Padme's livingroom incase her conversation with Pellaeon got more heated again. Anakin had almost went and ripped the admiral in pieces when he had started to shout at Padme. So, as a precaution Mara, who at the moment was in more control of herself than the two jedi in the other room, had went to stand guard.
"When considering the rumours stating the empire ready go up in a super nova due the bickering and fights between the leaders, it is not that much of a surprise really that he is ready to hand the throne to a former rebel", Piett analysed the situation: "They need a leader to keep the strings in one hands."
"I really don't have a choice do I? If the situation truly is that bad I can not refuse the throne", Luke said defeated.
"You don't have to", Anakin said: "I caused this mess and will be the one to suffer the consequences."
"And what good will that be? As if Darth Vader would be more welcomed as the emperor in the eyes of the galaxy than me." Luke argued back.
"Luke, there are still people just like Isard out there, trying to be the next emperor or the empress. We can not let them have a chance to get the throne. I at least would know my enemies." Anakin tried to reason his son: "Besides, you need to rebuild the jedi order."
"And you need to build a new life! This is your one chance to happiness and peace! Let them think you're dead and you can live quietly for the rest of your life without getting all tangled up to the troubles of the galaxy."
"If my opinion counts", Piett interrupted; "We do need a new emperor, just not either of you if it can be avoided." His statement only put even more fuel to the flames of a rather heated discussion. As the three of them argued so did the former queen and the admiral on the screen.
"Will you two just listen for a minute?" Luke asked trying to put end for the argument: "This is the only..."
"No it isn't", Mara interrupted his thoughts through their bond. Anakin watched as a look of horror rose on Luke's face and he suddenly burst out of the room.
Mara had been listening behind the door. This was getting out of hand. Padme wasn't making any progress and the three men in the other room were also arguing. And what arguments they were! Everyone was right and yet none were at the same track with the other.
Padme was right, a rebel emperor could be a disaster.
Pellaeon was right, they needed a ruler named by Palpatine.
Anakin was right, an emperor with first-hand experience of the imperial court would be essential.
Luke was right, Anakin couldn't be the emperor, not with all the hatred there was towards him.
And Pellaeon was right, neither of the Skywalker's was a good choice.
She just wished there was something she could do about the situation. But she was an assassin, a former imperial turned smuggler turned grudgingly accepted member of the New Republic and a future Mrs... Skywalker.
She took a deep breath and decided: to hell with the plan, time to improvise and end this farce.
"The emperor chose him! There is no other way!" Pellaeon raised his voice and Panaka drew his pistol again. The Moff opened his mouth to say something as the door blew open revealing a red-headed woman.
"Mara Jade?" Pellaeon was surprised. What was she doing here? He narrowed his eyes; it was not coincidence for her to be here.
"If Luke Skywalker had a wife, who was notoriously a former servant of Palpatine's, could she take over the throne in his stead?" She asked ignoring his surprise. What ever he had expected this wasn't it. What did she mean?
"Mara! Don't!" Luke Skywalker appeared beside her. What was he doing here?
"Come on Luke! You can't take the throne nor can he. The consequences would be far too dire. But I can, I was one of Palpatine's personal assassin's, his Hand. And I am known to the galaxy as such. It would not be that much of a stretch for the story to be named as his heir aswell would it?"
"Mara please reconsider this", Padme said.
"Padme, you know I'm right. This could actually work, all it needs is the ceremony and his written permission and I actually do have a legal right for the throne."
Pellaeon was staring at the commotion. He had not expected something like this. He got the picture but how had things turned into this? Last time he checked Jade was seeking to kill Skywalker.
"Excuse us for a second will you admiral?" a man he did not recognize that had just stepped through the doors practically ordered him in a form of question. He looked rather annoyed over the situation. "Panaka, take him to the next room."
"Follow me", Panaka stated briskly and led him out of the room. What in the name of Tarkin's cheekbones just happened? He asked himself as he was led to another room.
First he meets this odd woman, then he is confirmed that the next emperor is a rebel hero, then he drift's into a pointless argument and is interrupted by Jade who gets interrupted by Skywalker and then he is practically thrown out of the room. The navy was a good teacher but nothing could've prepared him to this day.
He took a deep breath as Panaka left him into nearly identical room to the previous one, just with different colors. Time to regain his composure and act like an admiral of the imperial navy and not some lowly spacepirate.
"It would seem that our plan backfired big time, wouldn't it?" Pellaeon turned around to meet the man occupying one of the plush chairs in the room and shutting down a monitor. He couldn't believe his eyes, this day just kept on getting better: "Oh, and my congratulations on your promotion, admiral." The impossible man continued.
" You died! Went down with the... no... this is impossible!... unless...the footage..."
His mind flashed back to the day Thrawn died, the footage of Endor frozen on screen. It hadn't been randomly stopped, the picture had bothered him and now he remembered. Executor would never have the laser's protecting the bridge aimed like that! Thrawn must have noticed the same thing but not had the time to write it down before he met his end:
"...was forged... It wasn't the Executor was it!" Of all shocks Pellaeon had received during these few hours this was the biggest. Green navy uniform, admiral's plates, grayed hair, sunken eyes... Before him was no other than lord Vader's right-hand officer, admiral Piett himself.
"As if Thrawn didn't already at least suspect it."
"How? Why?" Wait, this was the missing piece in Thrawn's puzzle! Executor was probably near by, a huge part of the Death Squad was missing, what if it was here aswell? In Chommel sector? A fleet including most of the capablest officers and fighter pilots? And if they were able to hide a fleet that big, hiding individuals like baron Fel and his family would be a small feat. But would they be here? What did that woman have to do with admiral Piett?
"Not important. But what is important is this question; can you be trusted? Will you remain silent of what will happen next? Will you keep these people secret and their identities hidden? And what will you do about miss Jade's plan of her taking over the empire?"
Pellaeon just started him. So Jade was going to marry Skywalker? Interesting, to say the least.
Jade... Emperor's hand, raised in the court, Palaptine's eyes and ears in the galaxy, probably aware of every secret there had been in the empire.
She had defected, acted against Thrawn's campaign. But not directly had she? Her actions had been mostly against C'baoth which wasn't that much of a loss really. Yes, she had infiltrated Chimaera and broken Karrde out of prison, but only because Thrawn had deceived her.
And even though Palpatine had managed pretty well in making alien races and women seem weaker and meaningless, Jade was by no means to be perceived weak. Not with her training and with Force on her side. And she would be a lot easier to accept as the empress than Skywalker as the emperor.
"It could actually work." Pellaeon stated and Piett nodded his approval.
Characters are apparently ooc's again but bear with me.
I am not sure of how long it will take update again.
Let me know what you think:)