CHAPTER 1: PADMÉ AMIDALA

Ashnenvisk, Bothawui-4

16:01:08 GrS

154 days before the formation of the Empire

"Senator, the Supreme Chancellor is not in his office right now. He is currently occupied with other matters elsewhere. If you wish to speak with him, I can—HEY STOP HER!"

Two of Palpatine's Red Guards, standing at either side of the turbolift doors, held out their force pikes, blocking Padmé's path.

All of Padmé's diplomatic and professional bearing had vanished. Padmé felt absolutely livid.

To say that Padmé and Palpatine were politically opposed to one another would be an understatement. It was not even three months after becoming Senator, that Padmé found herself in the Senate opposition. There were many things the Supreme Chancellor had done over the last thirteen years that angered her, infuriated her even. What he was now allowing to happen to Anakin's Padawan Ahsoka Tano, however, was on a whole new level.

Just a day prior, while Padmé was still returning from Selonia, Ahsoka had been blamed for the Jedi Temple bombing. Rather than allowing the Jedi Order to handle Ahsoka's trial, as was the normal procedure, the Supreme Chancellor had turned the whole ordeal into a witch hunt.

After he and Admiral Tarkin pressured the Jedi Order to expel Ahsoka, she was turned over to the Senate to stand trial.

"Let me through!" Padmé yelled.

She resisted the urge to fight the Red Guard and try to push her way through. No, that will look childish.

The guard on the right raised his gauntlet, tapping the side of his helmet as if to answer a call.

"No sir, she is—uh, very well sir. Understood," the guard muttered onto the comm, then withdrew his force-pike. He looked down at Padmé, causing her reflection to appear in the center of his black visor. "You're cleared."

Without a word, the other Red Guard pulled his force-pike back and pressed the turbolift open button.

That was easy, Padmé thought, stepping inside and trying to look as officious and calm as possible.

As the turbolift ascended towards the Supreme Chancellor's executive office, the brightly-lit night-time cityscape became visible through the transparent walls. Through the wall in front of her, she could see the bright spotlights of the Republic Center for Military Operations, where Ahsoka was being held.

She took a sharp inhalation of breath, feeling a rush of dread at Ahsoka's plight.

Calm down. I am just here to discuss this. There are things Palpatine could do which need to be discussed… Discussed—No, we are beyond discussion. This is outrageous. Absolutely—

Jumping in startlement, Padmé gasped.

The turbolift doors opened, and the bustling scene unfolding in the foyer outside of Palpatine's office was completely beyond Padmé's ken. She had very obviously interrupted something important.

Something extremely… What in the blazes is this?!

A dozen figures stood in the hallway, all wearing matching black cloaks. All had cowls over their heads obscuring their faces. Some also wore creepy silver masks that looked like something from a horror HoloDrama.

"What the—whoa!" Padmé yelled in alarm a thirteenth hooded figure stepped out from the side of the turbolift. "Oh… It's you?"

A pale face with deathly gray eyes stared out from beneath a shadowy cowl. Sly Moore was not wearing her characteristic Umbaran shadow cloak tonight.

"The Chancellor is ready for you, Senator."

While Sly Moore's words were polite, the tone sounded positively threatening. The tone someone would use as a warning to trespassers. A dreadful chill ran down Padmé's spine.

Nodding and ducking her head, Padmé walked as quickly as she could through the crowd, trying to avoid eye contact with anyone.

The Senator had not only been to seedy places all over the Galaxy, but also to meetings on Separatist strongholds, and active conflict zones. She had met some of the most despicable beings in the universe—Nute Gunray, Poggle the Lesser, and even Count Dooku. At numerous points in her life, Padmé had also found herself needing to deflect the romantic advances of strangers and creeps.

Whatever was happening here, however, felt far more foreboding than any other experience in her life. A dozen very dark and unsettling stares cut into her soul as she dashed onto the red carpeted floor of Palpatine's office.

"Your grace, I must admit, I really was not prepared to see you this evening."

"It's…" Padme started, then her mouth went dry. She looked up, gazing in the direction the Chancellor's deceptively kind voice was coming from.

Like all of the beings in the hallway, Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine wore a black hood over his face. The tip of his nose and cheeks were barely visible in the light. When he changed his posture, sitting up straighter, Padmé could see a yellow glint in his eyes.

I thought Sheev's eyes were blue. Convincing herself it was a trick of the light, Padmé took a deep breath.

"Chancellor," she gulped.

"Senator Amidala," Palpatine said with a nod of acknowledgement. "One never knows exactly what one may stumble upon, when one barges into somewhere uninvited."

Padmé continued looking into his eyes, which remained a perturbing yellow. Maybe he is wearing contacts? What is going on? Maybe it's a political society—perhaps a university fraternity Palpatine still belongs to. Whoa—Wait, those people outside feel like creeps. Maybe it's something weirder… Something deviant and sexual.

She began thinking more strategically, would the Senate entrust a man who partakes in such things after hours with so many beings? This is dirt. I have dirt on the Supreme Chancellor who wears a black cloak and consorts with other black cloak-wearers. I can use this. Allow the Jedi Order to try Ahsoka. Allow Anakin to find more evidence exonerating her, or I tell the whole Galaxy about this.

"My apologies Chancellor," Padmé finally said. "I didn't realize you were…" Unable to think of any word to describe whatever it was she had interrupted, she finally uttered the word, "indisposed."

In the shadows, a smirk curled in the corner of Palpatine's mouth.

That smirk. Definitely something sexual is going on. "But this is urgent," Padmé insisted, taking a deep breath. "Anakin considers you to be a friend—"

"A father even," Palpatine interrupted with another nod of agreement.

In the context of everything else happening, this comment infuriated her. "Yes, I just don't understand, how could you do this to Ahsoka? How could you do this to him?"

"The evidence against Ahsoka is overwhelming," Palpatine sighed despondently, waving a hand from the sleeve of his black robes. "I am afraid my hands are tied. I too, am deeply concerned about the Togruta. Yet, I am far more concerned about the impact this will have on Anakin, whom we both care deeply about."

You could have done more. You don't even care. The night before Ahsoka's trial you are doing whatever the hell this is. You nasty tyrannical WEASEL!

"YOU SEEM TO HAVE AN AWFUL LOT OF TIME FOR THEM!" Padmé blurted out in an angry yell, gesturing back towards the cloaked figures in the doorway. "I am… I am sorry. I didn't mean to shout."

"You seem very distressed," Palpatine said gravely. "Might I offer you a glass of Toniray to calm the nerves?" The Supreme Chancellor dug through the top drawer of his desk, then brandished a large transparent bottle of bright blue liquid.

Before Padmé could answer, Sly Moore's voice sneered from the open doorway.

"My Lord, you cannot offer her any wine. Think of the baby!"

"Wha—what?" Padmé gasped.

While Padmé had a rough knowledge of Galactic history, she had no training or education on the topic of Sith or Sith culture. The fact someone was referring to the Supreme Chancellor as a 'Lord' Padmé could only assume had something to do with these dark cloaks. She suspected it was a sadomasochistic title of some sort.

Yet, that title was the least of her concerns. Padmé was, indeed, three months pregnant. The only beings in the Galaxy who knew of it aside from Pontiff Maxiron Agolerga, who officiated the wedding, were Gregar Typho, her handmaidens, Artoo and Threepio, and Jar Jar Binks.

The only way the Umbaran could have known she was pregnant, is if someone else told her. If someone else told her, then rumors were already circulating.

"Oh right you are," Palpatine said warmly to Sly Moore. "Apologies Senator, I had forgotten about your… Predicament." The Supreme Chancellor sat up straighter, looking above Padmé's head. "Shut the door and give us some privacy."

"Yes, my Lord," Sly Moore said stiffly.

From the sound of automatic doors crisply closing, Padmé knew that now there would be no more interruptions.

Palpatine leaned forward, close enough for Padmé to see a regretful expression on his face. "Sincerest apologies, m'lady. I should have congratulated you sooner, but I did not want the whole Senate to know about an out-of-wedlock—"

"Who told you?" Padmé asked shakily. "Did you—did you scan me?!"

"I know many things…" Palpatine said ominously. "Fortunately for you, we both care deeply about Anakin Skywalker…" His voice trailed off ponderously, then added finally, "and his Togruta apprentice."

The fact Palpatine was referring to Ahsoka by her species struck Padmé as odd, even speciesist, but as exposed as she felt, there was no way she would push the issue.

"Then what are we going to do?" Padmé implored. She began thinking of potential trades in exchange for Ahsoka receiving fair treatment.

The Sector Governance Act… Maybe I can compromise on that. No—It is absolutely insane to allow Republic military leaders to control the local governments of planets and take control of the economy. Bail Organa would never forgive me—I would…

"Maybe…" Padmé gulped. "Maybe I could—"

"Senator Amidala, what makes you think I am asking for something? I just told you we are on the same side here," Palpatine said exasperatedly. "My hands are tied. The Jedi have already expelled Ahsoka from the Order. The only possible way to interrupt the process now is for me to pardon her."

Padmé closed her eyes in anguish. And that would set the whole Galaxy against the Jedi.

"But alas," Palpatine said in a mock-tragic tone. "If a charming young opposition Senator were to represent Ahsoka on the stand, perhaps she could convince me of Ahsoka's innocence."

"Re—really?" Padmé stammered. "I only have two years of legal training. This—"

"You can be quite convincing," Palpatine reassured warmly, his tone contrasting oddly with his foreboding appearance. "If the evidence against Ahsoka truly is insufficient, I am sure you can convince me of that."

"An acquittal?" Padmé gasped. "The politics… There would be riots in the street."

Palpatine nodded. "It is just the risk we shall have to take. Now, you have a defense to prepare, and I have other matters to attend to. I bid you a good evening."

"Have a good evening, Chancellor," Padmé sighed, standing up from the chair.

I hope Anakin will find some evidence exonerating her, Padmé thought. Otherwise, things will get messy. People will view Ahsoka's innocence as a technicality…

What neither Padmé nor most of the Jedi Order were thinking about, however, was the failed attempt to get Bothan SpyNet data earlier in the week.

o.o.o.o.o

Sheev Palpatine

Through the tinted window, the gleaming lights of the Jedi Temple were visible from several kilometers away.

A year ago, Sidious would not have dared host this gathering in the Republic Executive Building. In fact, it was only after several intervals of Sith magic, one spell building upon the other over the years, that the Jedi had become so blind.

"Nebs nu Jedainok jenjontûkût," chanted Sidious.

"Nebs nu Jedainok jenjontûkût," chanted the thirteen other cloaked figures.

On a third chant, Sidious could feel the darkside energy webs extend beyond the Republic Executive Building, zig-zagging invisibly through the speeder lanes, taking a downward dive into the base of the Jedi Temple.

When the process was finished, Sidious could once again see a structure most Jedi knew nothing about: The Shrine in the Depths. It was a Temple of the Sith built more than 5,000 years ago. In their own hubris the Jedi built the Great Temple right on top of it, capped it off and nullified the darkside objects within—or so they thought.

A smile formed on Sidious's shadowy face.

"Nebs nu Jedainok jenjontûkût."

Now burned in the dark lord's mind was a vision of an ominous green glow emanating from the Shrine in the Depths. The image became more powerful until Sidious could no longer see his surroundings in his office, he felt entirely present at the Shrine.

"Nebs nu Jedainok jenjontûkût."

From a tall obsidian obelisk at the center of the shrine's pedestal, ethereal green tendrils extended upwards. As their distance from the Sith shrine increased, they faded into a dimmer and dimmer green until, by the time they reached the Jedi Temple's detention block, they were no longer visible.

But the dark side web was still strong. It continued, unseen, writhing through the hallways and up the staircases and turbolifts. The web twirled through the aquatic levels of the Jedi Temple as easily as it did through air, dulling the senses of the Mon Calamari, Quarren, Gungan, and other aquatic Jedi. It then extended up through the crèche, into the quarters of Padwans, and onwards into the quarters of Jedi Knights and Masters.

From there, it continued its skyward journey, all the way to the highest peaks of the Jedi Temple—the Towers of First Knowledge, Reassignment Council, Reconciliation, and the Chambers of the Jedi High Council. Every Jedi sleeping on Coruscant from Yoda, to the Padawans, to the younglings and infants, to the imprisoned Jedi and ex-Jedi prisoners was clouded. Their senses dulled.

Clouds everything, the dark side does. Sidious cackled gleefully as the chanting continued. No, not everything you fool. Only the Jedi.

Sidious raised both hands, signaling a cessation to the chanting. His acolytes, all of them at least weakly sensitive to the force, quieted down at once.

"Once more the ritual is complete. I will summon you all again if I sense the Force clouding beginning to fade."

Sly Moore dropped to her knees, bowing her head in prostration. "Ashota Jen'arottoi!"

"Ashota Jen'arottoi!" ["Victory to the Lord of the Sith!"] chanted twelve other cloaked figures, dropping too to their knees.

"Ashotottoi." ["To victory,"] Sidious hissed, taking in the sight of his followers.

It was a small group—as large as could safely meet without attracting too much attention. In the near future, the Sith Lord had no doubt that he would be able to preside over much larger gatherings, even at the Jedi Temple itself.

Or rather, his new Imperial Palace.

The Sith Lord raised both hands, beckoning for his followers to stand. "Rise."

Heads still bowed in obedience, the thirteen cloaked figures stood up.

"As the end nears, we must remain ever vigilant," Sidious cautioned.

"Yes, my Lord," they chanted.

Sensing Sly Moore smirk, he frowned. What could possibly be so amusing? No, I don't have time…

"There will be no further recruitment for the time being. I trust you all to keep this secret, under pain of death. For now, leave me."

Without a word, all thirteen cloaked figures turned towards the door, walking slowly from Sidious's office. One of them stopped and turned around.

Sidious knew it was Sly Moore before he could see her face.
She approached the desk as the rest of the Acolytes of the Beyond filed out. Both sets of turbolift doors hissed open.

"There are things I must attend to," Sidious said, waving his hand dismissively.

Rather than leaving or apologizing, Sly Moore smirked lustfully, waited for the turbolift doors to close and for the others to depart.

"What is it?!" Sidious spat.

Sidious usually tolerated things from her; things which the Dark Lord would not tolerate from anyone else—least of all any of his apprentices. While the Sith Lord would never admit it, she was his equal in intelligence and cunning, although far more cautious than he was.

Far too cautious to ever be a proper Sith. Fortunate for her.

He certainly valued her counsel, even when he was not in any mood for intimacy. Yet, now was not the time. It was already well past midnight, and Sidious needed to make a HoloCall to Pantora in four minutes.

"You enjoy it don't you," Sly Moore said, asking a question of her own rather than answering his. She walked around the desk and ran her long white fingers over the Sith Lord's hood.

"I enjoy what?" Sidious asked. He sensed that, whatever the Umbaran was going to say next, he wouldn't like the answer.

"What just transpired between you and Padmé. You didn't need to let her into your office. For a moment I thought you were about to recruit her. Give me some competition," she seethed with jealousy. "Force me to learn to share my Lord with someone else. I didn't like it."

"Of course I wasn't going to do that," Sidious muttered, shaking his head. "She's a daft, foolish young woman." The Sith Lord looked angrily into Sly Moore's eyes.

"No… Of course not," Sly Moore pressed her lips together in a pout. "Instead, you enjoy exposing yourself to your opponents… It's exhibitionism," she explained, beaming with delight as she dared to pull down the Sith Lord's hood. Without asking permission, she ran her fingers through the Sith Lord's graying brown hair, playfully petting him.

"I saw you do it to Yoda too, just before the war…" she whispered, rubbing the Sith Lord's shoulders as she stepped behind his chair. "You asked the green little toad, when he was standing in front of us, if he sensed a war was coming. For a moment, I was terrified. I thought you were going to reveal us! Your whole plan could have been undone… Oh! Don't worry," she whispered in his ear, causing Sidious's spine to tingle. "I find it very… Attractive. It's brave, reckless—far more daring than a meek being such as I could ever hope to be."

Sidious's eyes went wide. It was true that, for all of his life, he had been exceptionally reckless.

For a time he had reined it in under Plagueis's careful watch, but after disposing of the Muun he had apparently allowed himself to become once again complacent in his self-discipline.

Perhaps I did allow Padmé in, just so she could see me as I really am. She was helpless to comprehend it. When Jedi tell me that the dark side clouds their visions of the future I find it most appealing… My art… He looked around his office. A Sith vase even… How many Jedi have walked right past it without asking a question? Twenty? Fifty? A hundred? Am I really this foolish? This reckless? Only their immense stupidity has saved me from discovery!

Grabbing both of Sidious's hands and placing them on her breasts, Sly Moore interrupted Sidious's thoughts. "Oh, your recklessness… It's so rebellious!" she gasped. "I exist to serve you!"

"Rebellious," Sidious said in an incredulously icy tone, rising to his feet. "Rebellious," he repeated, spitting the word with venom. The gall to assume anything I do now could be considered rebellious.

Breaking his right hand from her grip, he reached out to her throat, holding his hand a few centimeters from her neck.

"I do not not have time to entertain you and your psycho-babble tonight!" he hissed, pinching his fingers together and applying pressure to the Umbaran's trachea. He did not know what fresh insanity had come over the normally collected Moore, but these affronts to his authority and power as a Dark Lord of the Sith would not stand.

She collapsed to her knees, shaking her head as tears welled up in her eyes.

"Do not think, for a moment, that just because we have shared a bed means you know my motives," he added in a dangerous warning.

"I am—I am sorry my Lord," Sly Moore croaked fearfully. "I cannot truly know your motives. I can only speculate… I am sorry I—krrk!"

Sidious locked his jaw, baring his teeth in an evil smile. "Go on speculating then. But do not waste my time!"

For a brief moment, the Sith Lord considered strangling her right there for her impudence. The Umbaran knew far too much for her own good, but there was no one else in the Galaxy he could have these discussions with. Unlike Dooku or Maul, she was irreplaceable.

Releasing her, Sidious moved towards the holoprojector in his study, floating like a dark shadow across the floor.

"Thank you," Sly Moore croaked, gasping for aid. "I am sorry, my Lord," she added, staggering after him.

"Wait for me here!" Palpatine hissed, standing in the doorway as he glared at her.

"Yes, my Lord," Sly Moore sighed, collapsing wearily onto the carpet.

Without feeling one shred of remorse, the twisted Sith Lord disappeared behind his doors. His devoted acolyte gasped for breath, recovering on the floor outside.

Isolated in the darkened study, Sidious stepped onto the Holoprojector platform to obtain something that was an ever-growing obsession. A motive far more driving than his narcissistic reckless impulse to show off.

Knowledge towards immortality.

Whether the Galaxy knew it needed an immortal overlord, Sidious was driven to escape death and fill that role.

Any cost for that end was insubstantial.

"Kagi, report," Sidious said the moment the holopresence of his most-trusted Clone operative appeared, illuminating the darkened study.

Kagi snapped to attention, gray and tan covert ops armor shifted blue by the projector. "My Lord, I have made contact with the ringleader. He is ready to modify the data—"

"I am principally interested in the transfer of essence," Sidious said, stepping closer to the holoprojector. "The sheer volume of data obscures what I seek. Can he, or can he not filter out the rest of the SpyNet data?"

"Yes, my Lord," Kagi nodded. "The Bothans claim they have already done as you requested, transferring most of the files on Consciousness transfer into a folder. They don't have any information on presently-transferred Bothans. They claim that this information was deleted before they received the packets."

Sidious frowned for a moment, pondering the matter. It was possible that these Bothan defectors still felt some loyalty to their SpyNet comrades, and did not want to sell any deeply-embedded agents out to the Republic. It was also equally possible they wanted to use it for leverage to save their own feckless hides should he decide to dispose of them at some point.

But there was something more the Dark Lord could sense. He was all but certain Kagi's efforts would fail.

"Is something bothering you, my Lord?"

"There are so many parties who all seem to be interested in this data. Too many."

"I will not fail you, my Lord," Kagi said solemnly.

"Yes, you will," Sidious insisted as he waved his hand dismissively. "But, I sense that in failure, we will learn something disturbing… Threatening even. The efforts on Pantora will amount to naught. I will have to accept what little information I can pry from

their cold dead hands after I set foot on Bothawui."

"Well, uh…" Kagi stammered disconcertedly. "I—I suppose I will apologize for my failure in advance then."

Sidious frowned as a tremor rippled through the Dark Side. "There is no need, Captain. What we learn from this failure may give us an opportunity worth the loss."


AN:

The Sith Conlang created by Ben Grossblatt is fairly incomplete. I used what little there was on it in the Sith chants for this chapter, only creating one verb: nebs 'to cloud.' One area I used a bit of my own creativity for was nouns ending in vowels.

Grossblatt hasn't said what happens to Sith nouns ending in vowels, as he has only inflected nouns ending in consonants for case. I assume that the vowels elide, so Jen'ari→Jen'ar-ottoi 'Sith Lord-DAT,' and ashota→ashot-ottoi but it could be the case that Sith allows for vowel hiatus, or that nouns ending in vowels are exceptions with their own unique dative case marker.