The First Rebellion

19 BBY
Confederate Parliament, Raxulon
The grandest immutable hallways of the Confederacy was contaminated by blind panic. The once distinguished and capable senators from all over the Confederacy of Independent Systems, collided with one another in the hallways as their aides followed quickly beside them, updating them with information from their holographic comlinks. The only saving grace for the members of Parliament was that they were all heading toward the same direction, that of the Congressional Assembly.

The Confederate Parliament had been jostled from their homes in the various member worlds that they represent to be told that the war has taken a grave turn for the worse. The Faction Leaders had invoked Article 17 A-PSSF of the War Powers Act established in 22 BBY to call an emergency session on Raxus; attendance is mandatory. All strategic evaluations placed the course of the war in the Confederacy's favour and the Senators, hopeful in their eventual victory, resigned themselves to their home planets to spend the final, closing years of the war with their families.
Now, with Count Dooku assassinated and the Republic reorganising into a militant state centred around an autocrat, the Confederacy found their leadership decapitated. To make matters worse, the Separatist Council, in a move that sparked outrage, appear to have decreed that the Clone Wars was over, shutting down the battle droids with a blanket command paralysing the armed forces.
Perhaps a partial reason for the haste in convening is that Raxus, as of this morning, is almost completely undefended. It would only be a matter of time before the Imperial Navy closes in on the nascent capital, obliterating the planet from orbit, surely to make an example of the final bastion of Separatist leadership to all worlds that still support its cause.

Lux Bonteri caught up with a familiar-looking Leyakian some distance ahead of him. An astromech droid clung to the young boy's heels like a loyal Corellian hound. "Senator Bluss!" He shouted rushing up to his side and finessing a holo-projector from his left pocket. "There's something you should see."
The Leyakian didn't dismiss him outright out of respect for his mother, but he did fire back with an angry retort, "What could possibly be so important, Bonteri?! Are you not yet enduring the circumstances of our situation?" By Bluss's healthy orange hue seems to have faded into a crippled kind of amber, he obviously hasn't slept since he received the news.
"It's important," Bonteri insisted activating the holoprojector to reveal the stalwart image of Count Dooku. "I was looking through my mother's things and found this message. It looks like she only got halfway through before she was…" Bonteri's voice trailed off, his eyes seeming distant.

"Murdered?" Said Bluss, a hint of sympathy creaking into his voice.

"Yes, that." Lux carried on, his mood swinging away from grief to that of urgency, "It seemed all too real, too convenient. Maybe it's the Force but, Count Dooku knew he was going to be killed," at that suggestion, Bluss's aide raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

By responded, "What do you mean? He was killed in the attack on Coruscant! How could he have possibly figured that he could be killed? It was only the most well-defended Republic planet in the galaxy!" The sarcasm poisoned his voice.

"Just listen to me!" Bonteri protested, the pair nearing the Assembly room now. "Count Dooku was looking into the Chancellor shortly before he died. That man has been playing the Republic and us for fools! The Chancellor ordered the Jedi to kill him before he could do anything about it." He was torn, advocating for the man who he suspected of killing his mother sickened him, but the contents of that message was too significant to ignore.

"That's all very concerning, but we're about to clash sabres with this Empire in the coming days and we have no army," Bluss scowled but he seemed intrigued. "What exactly do you expect of me?" The two had entered the doors, about to part ways into opposite sides of the chamber. By Bluss slowed his pace but, he wasn't about to block the way for his colleagues, so he gestured impatiently at Bonteri to finish.

Bonteri straightened, appearing as sympathetic as he could before saying in almost a whisper, "I need allies. They'll never listen to a junior Senator. I need you to consider taking R5 here and presenting my findings to Parliament. We have much at stake, but the Senate needs to hear this." R5 beeped cordially, making his way over to the astounded Leyakian.

The elder senator nodded sagely, patting the astromech on its metal dome before saying, "Well alright Lux. Out of respect for Count Dooku and your mother, I will put whatever conspiracy is on this droid out to the Floor. It only makes sense to pay homage to the founder of our movement and I doubt anyone else has anything substantially prepared."

With that, they separated. Bluss took a seat on the far end of the aisle, gazing pensively at the rest of his colleagues. In spite of the cacophony, the diverse members of the Separatist Parliament summoned the dignity to find their seats in an orderly fashion. It did hardly enough to silence them, however, as the scene of the Confederate legislature erupted into panicked half-shouting and accusations. The major leaders of the Senate factions took charge, with Voe Atell on one side and Kerch Kushi, Mina Bonteri's successor, on the other. They glared at one another as is traditional, but they could not exactly express their bitter hatred for one another beyond this infernal noise.

Ordinarily, the Congressional Leader would assume the Chair, but ever since the death of Bec Lawise, that spot had remained empty. With both him and Count Dooku gone, there was no one to preside over Parliament, no one to smack their gavel and tame the outrage. Bluss tried to narrow his focus against the indefatigable chaos, concentrating on what Dooku was trying to say through R5's holoprojector. As the supercilious Count spoke, his meaning becomes clear, Bluss grew more stunned.

The Senator seized the initiative, ordering R5 to deposit a microphone into his hand as he approached the Chair. He tapped into the system's audio broadcast array and screamed. "There will be order in this Parliament!" His shouting, punctuated by the brief feedback of the sound projectors, quieted the room. The Assembly stared back at him, the shock still registered on their faces. Bluss's own face heated up as he cursed himself for this gross demonstration of parliamentary conduct. He sought to justify it through the circumstances but imposing himself as Speaker of the Assembly is politically questionable at best and grounds for removal at worst.

Though, why should he worry? There were no battle droids to remove him from the Chair if they decided to punish him for his outburst. He defaulted to all his training and expertise as a politician to mask his apprehension and immediately launched into a fiery tirade. "Is this Parliament so broken and fractious that it resembles the Republic in its inability to draft effective legislation? Now more than ever we must make a decision. I inquire the members of Parliament, does it have a solution for the events that have transpired?" Bluss paused, receiving no response but the silence of bitten tounges and prideful sneers.

Voe Atell spoke first, the leader of the War Faction has always been the headstrong one. "The only solution would be to reform some sort of defence! The tyranny of the Republic knows no bounds proclaiming this so-called Empire. I understand that the Opposition may find it detestable, but the only course of action we can reasonably take is to expand the powers of the military and begin the mass conscription of organic soldiers!"

Her comments elicited nothing but hisses from the Peace Faction. Conscription would be suicide for the Separatist war effort, in their eyes. The utilisation of droids has always been touted as propaganda by the Confederacy. They accused their opponents in the Republic for putting organic life in danger, forcing a slave army of clones and a monastic order of peacekeepers to fight. Atell's comments didn't exactly draw out unilateral praise from her allies however, they mostly sat still nodding politely. After all, organic soldiers are far more expensive to maintain than your average B1 battle droid. A raise in taxes has always been met with harsh criticism from the representatives of Confederate planets.

Kushi angrily retorted across from her, "Now you would place Confederate lives on the line in pursuit of desperate warfare. When will the Majority learn that our citizens have already been rationing for years to support the war effort? Now we have to give up our crops to sate the billions of soldiers required to repel the Imperial dogs." He shook his head as appalled at the logic of his colleague and rose to speak once more. "What we must a consider is a formal peace treaty with Palpatine on Coruscant, the sooner we act, the better terms we may be able to negotiate."

That suggestion was met with similar opposition. With an Empire in power, it is no guarantee that they would even accept anything other than complete and total surrender. The opportunity is there, for it is virtually impossible now for the Confederacy to negotiate from a position of power. Without Dooku and the droid armies, they lose most of their leverage.

"You wish to give up everything we fight for!" Effervesced a voice from the Majority, motivating the rest of the Assembly to shout in overlapping voices once more.

"Order! Order!" Bluss exclaimed, finding the gavel underneath the Chair's desk and rapping it several times on the wood. "While I would insist on some sort of compromise, the time required to deliberate is unacceptable. I request to present Parliament with an alternative, if the Faction leaders are willing." He caught the eye of Lux Bonteri in the crowd, the boy beckoning him to continue as non-verbally as he can. Bluss obliged him, accepting the Faction leaders' reluctant yield of the floor to him, manoeuvring to the centre of the room, arriving at the designated podium where he ordered the R5 unit to tap into the presentation array's holographic interface.

When Count Dooku's translucent silhouette manifested in the centre of the room, Bluss was relieved to discover that he still had enough charm, enough effectual leadership associated with his person, that it alleviated the tension in the room enough so that the members of Parliament forgot to find something to be outraged about. His job was done, so he resigned himself to the podium, leaning at the slightest angle to express his inward exasperation with the whole thing.

Count Dooku's typical stern countenance drew no objections as the message began, "Most exalted members of the Parliament of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, I beseech your attention. If this message is being played before you, then I have perished." Dooku spoke with ceremonially broad, but conservative in the number of gesticulations to help convey his words. "It is with great disdain that I elucidate upon this Parliament that Chancellor Palpatine is a Sith Lord."

The Assembly held its breath but remained quiet. Some bore a confused expression, others of dread.

Dooku continued, "This alias, Sheev Palpatine, is a Sith deception constructed to rise to power under the noses of the Republic. It was this Darth Sidious that orchestrated the first blockade of Naboo, forcing our government to separate under the pressure of rising tensions. It was Palpatine that supported the likes of Nute Gunray to helm the Trade Federation, and I have reason to believe that he has corrupted the entirety of the Separatist Council in his schemes. My discoveries, my divinations into the Force as a former Jedi have revealed a sickness that has infected the leadership of the Confederacy's corporate sponsors. Sidious's corruption ran deep in the Republic, slowly they undermined their democratic institutions by granting more and more emergency powers to the Office of the Supreme Chancellor, exerting influence over the Republic. For the Separatist Alliance, the Sith have made us all out for fools, restraining our war effort, overruling our assaults so that the war can continue. The prevention of a swift victory was crucial in enabling our sides to weaken each other, to draw out the desperation of the people into pledging their support to the Chancellor."

Dooku's expression was grim and dark, Bluss was used to him speaking so impassionately before Parliament, but to see his mood become so severe was alien to him. It only continued from there, "If I have died, in this attack on Coruscant, it is because Palpatine has corrupted a Jedi in the order: Anakin Skywalker. Subverting the ideas of the Jedi Code, he will be coerced to slay me, should he be given the opportunity. If I know the Sith, they would likely have already begun tying up loose ends. Sideous may have already sent his agent of darkness to destroy the Separatist Council, forcing a ceasefire by arresting the battle droids with the shutdown command. I predict, that with his control over the armies of the Republic, that he will use the clones to turn on the Jedi, manufacturing a coup d'etat to justify his wanton murder."

The Count spat fiercely at that as his tone grew even harsher, "This dark lord is responsible for the deaths of countless innocents, for the destruction of entire worlds, and for the subversion of truth and democratic values. I refuse to be a pawn in his games. We are a legitimate government, we do not bend the knee to the insignificant quandaries of farcical religious organisations like the Sith. Ancient feuds between the Dark Side and the Light have no place among the sensibilities of the common man. The people should not have to stand for this diversion, should not have to lie down and accept the manipulation that has clouded the minds of the Galactic Senate. Within this message is a countermanding order to reverse the effects of the shutdown command. I ask this parliament to use it and continue the struggle. Furthermore, confronted with the existential threat of annihilation, I move to distance myself from any resemblance of the Chancellor, in that, I would pursue restoring power to the Civilian Government and terminating the War Powers Act afforded to the seat of the Head-of-State. Additionally, to prevent this abuse of powers from occurring again, the Bylaws of Independent Systems must be modified to form a stronger constitution. One that respects the rule-of-law, restores confidence in the government and prevents the rise of tyranny through resilient systems of checks and balances. The central amendment shall be the dissolving of the Separatist Council and the division of the Executive into a Cabinet of Ministers formed around the government of the Chairman."

He elaborated, "I would appoint the young senator, Lux Bonteri, as the first to serve in this office." The statement derived some muted protest from portions in the Assembly.

"I recommend that Parliament form an oversight committee to partially nationalise our corporate sponsors in order to make certain that the Sith are no longer able to control them for the remainder of the war. The Head of State shall be relegated to ceremony and iconography, tied to the noble houses of Serenno. After me, my successor is rightfully Adan Dooku, living in exile on Alderaan. Consider discreetly contacting Senator Bail Organa; he is the most likely of the Senators in the Republic to form a shadow government against Palpatine. My formal resolution is encoded in this message, and I graciously request the review of Parliament."

The message was nearing its end now, with Count Dooku waving away a droid who sought to inform him about the Coruscant Invasion Fleet becoming underway. "We began a movement some years ago to defy the tyranny of the Republic. To us, they were insufferable in their bureaucracy, while our trade was suffocated by the Republic's refusal to police the hyperlanes for pirates, their Senators continued to bicker over their salaries. Our people starved from the apathy and avarice of Coruscant all the while demanding more taxes, more fines, more regulations. We answered with this Confederacy, with a grand resistance that was more than just a political statement or difference in policy, but a movement, an identity and a willingness to fight tyranny. If we must fight this next war against the Sith alone, we shall do that too."

Count Dooku outstretched his hand, seeming to look every single Senator in the eye as he infused them with hope, arming them with the convictions they would need to continue weathering the storm ahead. "Long live the Separatist Alliance," he said finally, the message winking off along with his holographic representation on the Floor.

The Parliament was silent for once, seeming unsure of how to react to Dooku's message until one of the more fervent Senators rose up in his seat and shouted, "Long Live the Separatist Alliance!" His comrades soon joined him in a series of patriotic hoots and cheers, rousing the other Senators to match them. The entire Assembly once again trembled with the roar of its delegates, this time not screaming in a panic and arguing amongst each other, but instead in unison, in solidarity with the Confederate cause.

Bluss tried to get word in, speaking over the rising chorus of chanting and courageous rhetoric, "According to the Bylaws of Independent Systems," he struggled. "A voice vote is required! All in favour of reactivating droid forces say, Aye!"

"AYE!" Came the response from virtually all of Parliament. It was rare that they were ever unanimous on something.

"All opposed say, Nay!" commanded Bluss as the Assembly grew more and more rambunctious. Bluss didn't hear anything even resembling a nay, whether it was the noise or not, he could not tell. "The Ayes have it!" he proclaimed.

Bluss proceeded with the next vote, this time making sure to quiet the Senators, "Order! Order! I say, order in this Parliament. All for deliberation in the amending of the Bylaws of Independent Systems in accordance with the late Count Dooku's resolution say, Aye!"

"Aye!" said one Senator.

"Aye!" said another, though less enthusiastically.

"All opposed say, Nay!"

"Nay!" echoed a few senators, mostly from the diehards in the Peace Faction.

"The Ayes have it," Bluss announced pridefully, relieved at having successfully presided over a vote in Separatist Parliament. Though he did begin feeling a sense of errant conservatism that made him second guess himself. Should they have acted so rashly? He shook his head, dismissing it from his mind, if they didn't act now, while emotions ran hot, they would never have the motivation to act in their own defence. He caught Lux in the crowd again, noticing that he wore the same bewildered expression.

19 BBY

Kachirho Beach, Kashyyyk

41st Elite Corps Clone Trooper CT-6642 "Sav" meandered lackadaisically on the beachfront with the rest of his platoon. The light was beginning to break through the heavy cloud cover and he could make out the shapes of the other retrieval parties further along the shoreline. His unit was ordered to break down Separatist equipment and haul them onto transports to be melted down. Droids, tanks, even crashed Vultures littered the coarse sands of Kachirho as he cursed to himself underneath his helmet about the monumental task of cutting down all of that equipment into manageable chunks to fit onto the gunships.

Damn Seppies always got to bring heavy blaster fodder. I thought B1's were supposed to be light?

Sav was trying to finesse his fusion cutter into removing the right tread of a Snail Tank. Separating it from the main body wasn't as easy as welding it back on again. The engineer was specialised in putting things together, not taking them apart. A fact that he sometimes frequently shared to his very annoyed and very stressed Lieutenant. he couldn't complain too much though, it was either this or looking for and somehow detaining the greatest Jedi master in existence. He wasn't about to get cut up today by a lightsaber, he figured.

"Hey, Sav, check it out!" The clone turned to look at his platoon heavy weapons specialist, Trooper Dex. He was standing next to a battle droid he was about to decommission. He went all rigid, pointed his DC-15A blaster in the air, giving a bad impression of a B1 model, "Roger, roger."

"You know Dex, they say imitation is a form of flattery, so it's nice that you're getting so affectionate with something almost as dumb as you are!" Sav said, the sarcastic twinkle in his voice snuffed out when that same B1 raised its blaster rifle and shot his friend dead, straight through his helmet.