Apologies for the delay.
Wake, wash, dress. The job of Supreme Chancellor was not an easy one, but a little bit of scheduling went a long way. Awake by five, in his office by six, Palpatine had his statement ready and sent to the news channel by 7:30, plenty of time for the anchor to publish his speech in the 8:00 news.
This was the moment, the big one, the lucky shot. No more subterfuge, no more mind games. As of this moment, Palpatine could openly push his agenda. The stage was set, and Palpatine was confident he knew the ending.
"This morning, we received an official statement from the Office of the Supreme Chancellor. Once more, the careful work of our teams and the people who risk their jobs for the truth have forced the Republic Government to respond to a scandal they would rather cover up. What follows is the complete and unedited statement from the highest office in the galaxy."
The screen faded, switching from the overly bright colors of the morning news anchor to the muted reds of the Chancellor's office. Palpatine was sitting behind his desk, the eternal movement of Coruscant's traffic made up the backdrop.
"Good people of the Republic; I come before you as a humble civil servant, begging for your assistance. Yesterday, in an act that can only be considered a move of aggression against the Republic's security and way of life, the Jedi Council recalled every active Jedi to the Temple here on Coruscant. This petulant, immature move shows how much the Jedi Council truly cares about the Republican people.
Right now, GAR forces are struggling throughout the galaxy to simply defend Republic space. Without the Jedi, we cannot hold our ground, let alone take aggressive action against the true enemies of the Republic, the Confederacy. In four short days, the Jedi Order will be tried in the Senate for crimes against humanity, including abuse of power, unlawful manhunts, and treason. I ask this of you, the people who it is my duty to protect. If you care for the Republic, if you want a safe galaxy for your children, if you want the Jedi Order brought to justice, tell your planet's Senator to vote against the Jedi in four days time. I cannot fight the external threats to the Republic when the internal ones threaten our very survival. Help me help Senator McDellum of Corellia, the courageous man who stood against the status quo to reveal the corruption hiding in our midst. Unity is survival. Until the Order accepts that, our very existence is at stake. This is Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, defender of a free Republic, signing off."
After holochannel 3 aired his statement, Palpatine's office was both physically and electronically assaulted by every major news service in the Republic, and a couple in the Confederacy. For the first time since she had been hired, Palpatine's secretary finally needed to exercise her ability to hire an army of Public Relations employees. In the 'war room', Palpatine was meeting with his secretary and the Senate Head of PR, dealing with potential problems before they could mature.
A young aide, clearly nervous to interrupt the Chancellor, bravely made his way to where Palpatine was operating his side of affairs. "Sir- Sir, there's a man trying to see you waiting in your office."
"I thought I directed you to turn away all visitors." Palpatine said, turning to face the aide. His face held the same expression reserved for annoyances caused by small insects.
"You- You did sir, but he insisted on seeing you."
"Can you at least tell me the name of the man who has rattled you so badly you have ignored my direct order?"
"He's a Jedi, sir. Anakin Skywalker. He said it was important."
Palpatine lost a shade of color. "Why would he, at a time like this..." Palpatine turned away from the confused aide. "I must go, take note of proceedings for me." Clearly unnerved, Palpatine left his war room to meet with the Hero With No Fear.
Anakin Skywalker relaxed, not even being in the highest office in the galaxy could tame his infamous informality. Skywalker had a special relationship with Palpatine. Years ago, Naboo enacted programs to bring money and reform to the planet of Tatooine. Largely considered to be the backside of the galaxy, most people were too scared or embarrassed to try to help. Despite good intentions, the naive Queen of Naboo wasn't prepared for the soullessness of the planet, her advisors as lost as she was.
On a campaign for public awareness of himself, Palpatine had joined the party going to Tatooine, along with the famous Jedi Knights Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi. A wise choice, as the Queen refused to even step foot on the planet, forcing Palpatine to pick up the pieces as the Senator of Naboo. While on a tour of the housing district in some forgettable city, Palpatine noticed Anakin. Everyone else showed contempt or even fear towards the interlopers, but Anakin showed curiosity.
On a whim, or luck, or even fate, Palpatine invited Anakin to ride with him. Anakin was smart, happy, and after some testing after a streak of perfect holodice, strong in the Force. Palpatine's career had just started, he didn't have the time or the energy to train a young boy to be a man, not while on the path to becoming Supreme Chancellor. Hoping the boy would remain strong, Palpatine bribed Qui-Gon Jinn. The Jedi Order didn't just take an acolyte, the process of acceptance was the pinnacle of bureaucracy, taking years to complete. Most Jedi didn't join by such undistinguished ways, a 'sponsor' would pay the way, offering a large donation to the Order. Coincidentally, an applicant would be 'randomly' chosen for priority membership. Qui-Gon died in the Naboo Protest later that year, one of the victims of the bomber Ian Penther, but Obi-Wan honored the deal, getting Anakin into the Order, then taking the lad as his own Padawan.
Idle flashes from the past, the present was much more exciting. After all, it isn't every day a flustered Chancellor dropped everything to meet you.
"Anakin, how wonderful to see you!" Palpatine said. "You should have called ahead, I nearly ended the career of a promising young aide."
Palpatine was right, he should have called ahead, but sometimes a little subterfuge was enjoyable. "Soory, Andan, I wanted to keep this off the books. Obi-Wan watches me, being a Council member has its perks if you're a snoop."
"And where does Obi-Wan think you are?"
"A delicious restaurant by the name of Dex's Diner."
"I'm not sure I want to know how you obtained knowledge of such a place. Tell me, what was so important you delved into cloak and dagger for our meeting?"
Anakin's face sharpened. "You can't keep poking the Order, they're going to bite if you keep up this crusade."
Palpatine sighed. "You know as well as I do that the Order is a bloated mess. All I wish to do is cut out the politics, let the Order focus on being Jedi instead of bureaucrats. Think of what you could do in the war if taking a Padawan wasn't mandatory."
The battlefield was no place for a youngling, even one as gifted as Ahsoka. Anakin didn't consider beings expendable, he never sent his Padawan on suicide missions, unlike some Jedi. Andan was right, but being a politician, he never took a stance he couldn't be right on. "That's not the point, the Order will retaliate, you're going to ruin yourself."
"The Jedi Order hasn't 'retaliated' against something for over a thousand years; I do not believe they will start now." Palpatine countered.
"At least tell me you have an exit strategy."
Andan laughed, not a polite politician's laugh, but one of genuine amusement. "This isn't a warzone, Anakin. Politics is a difficult arena but never a bloody one. You should worry more on your own exit strategy."
"What do you mean?" Anakin asked.
"if the Order is as dangerous as you presume, how will you get out Unless you plan to join this alleged retaliation?"
"What? Never! The Order needs reform, I just don't think you can pull it off."
"Have a little faith, Anakin. I know what I'm doing."
Anakin smirked. "You know what? I think I will get a strategy together. It'll be me saving your butt, then chanting 'I told you so' as we get off Coruscant."
"How amusing. Get back to the Temple, before anyone notices how long it takes you to 'eat' at a diner."
"I'm going, but watch your back, ok? I don't want to attend another funeral for the Supreme Chancellor."
"Everything will be fine, Anakin, don't worry."
Anakin left, leaving Palpatine to wonder just how much of a threat the Jedi Order could possible pose. Sure the Order was made of warriors, but what do warriors know of politics? Even the Order's diplomats had difficulty navigating the finer points of Republic law. The Jedi are fighting in his arena, and Palpatine was a master politician. No amount of 'Force' could teach you to avoid political gaffes. By the end of this week, the Jedi Order would be no more, instead becoming a branch of the Republic government. The first Order of business would be restricting the Council's considerable hold on the Jedi. Let the most powerful Jedi actually do things, instead of sitting around in their comfortable Temple.
The walk back to the temple was a meditative one. Anakin agreed with his oldest friend on the Order, but it wasn't easy to accept change. For all the talk about 'discipline', a Jedi had remarkable freedom. Unless it had something to do with the Council or Chancellor, Anakin could do whatever he wanted. On paper, an end to Jedi corruption and bloat sounded good, but in reality, being above the law was fun. It wasn't so much a matter of breaking the law, but that a Jedi wasn't restricted in his movements. If Anakin wanted to join the third assault on Geonosis, he could. No need to requisition an order transfer, or send in a flight plan. If a Jedi commanded a fleet, he could pretty much go wherever he wanted on the front lines. The exceptions were the fleets around Kamino and Coruscant.
But who was really at fault? The Council cared more about this silly case in the Senate than they should have. It would have been a simple matter for a Jedi to go and explain what happened, instead of stonewalling the Senate with a Guard. Jedi didn't become Guards to talk politics, and while Davros was a good Guard, he was an awful diplomat. But what about the Chancellor? Why would he push so incredibly hard? Financial sanctions are a low blow, even for a politician. And beside that, who pushes an agenda for major military change in the middle of a war? Why couldn't this have waited until the Confederacy was defeated. Anakin saw the way things were going, it was only a matter of time before the CIS was in ruins. Reports against the Jedi, legitimate ones, were submitted by the day to the Senate, Palpatine could have chosen any of them to push his campaign, instead he set things off now.
Technically, McDellum started this, but the Coreillian was a bleeding heart. Someone let the report through the Senate filter, otherwise McDellum would have never seen it. Who was really at fault? The Council hadn't made a straight decision in decades, but Palpatine had capitalized on a war for more power. Nobody was right in this scenario, nobody could win. The Council would just keep being corrupt without Palpatine's involvement, and Palpatine was just doing this for power, he didn't care whether the Jedi Order was corrupt or not, only that the Order was on his side.
Not all the Jedi were corrupt, Knights and Padawans were usually still pure. It wasn't until the Council promoted a Jedi to Master that the rot set in, or maybe the rot came before the promotion. Anakin didn't want to think about that. Anakin had seen war. He grew up with war. When two sides fought, the people that got hurt were the ones who didn't have a stake in either side. The Knights would get hurt in this, the Padawans set adrift. Anakin would bet money that some day in the future each Jedi will have to pick a side, and that scared him.
Anakin wasn't the only one enjoying the beautiful day, several families were among the businessmen hurrying about their schedules. One couple approaching Anakin had a smiling young boy with them. Families loved Jedi, to the normal family in the Republic, a Jedi was the 'good guy', kids were always told to find a Jedi if they were lost or needed help. But when Anakin started to make his way over to the family, the parents started whispering, then the mother grabbed her son's hand, directing him away from Anakin, all while staring daggers at Anakin.
This isn't right, people are supposed to love us.
Jedi were supposed to be the good guys. What good was independence if no one trusted you? It started with families, but distrust never stops at families. All it takes is enough voters to be unhappy with a situation for the politicians to get in on the actions. No one else could see this, of course. The Council didn't leave their Temple unless it was for Council agenda, and even then they never interacted with the public. Why would they? Coruscantis don't interact with the Coruscant Land Ant. The Council didn't care about anyone but the Jedi, and anything but power.
Things were just too constricting. Anakin didn't want the Council to destroy the Jedi's reputation, but what could he do? The only way to change the Order is to sit on the Council, and the only way to get on the Council is for the whole Council to vote you in. The leadership of the Order controls the leaders. Palpatine's option wasn't much better, bureaucracy would lead the Order instead of Jedi, People who have no idea the needs or specialties of Jedi would command Jedi into potentially disastrous situations.
No one could win this, no option was acceptable. Anakin didn't want to be caught in either side at the end of this. What's worse, to be hated or to be useless? Anakin wasn't sure which was worse, and he had run out of time to figure it our, the steps of the Temple suddenly appearing before him, breaking him out of his contemplation.
"Welcome back, Master." Ahsoka said, coming to meet him. "How was Dex's?"
"Dirty and greasy." He replied. "Tasted like home."
Ahsoka smiled, a full, bright smile out of place in the subdued halls of those touched by the war. Ahsoka always had a light temperament. "Master Obi-Wan is waiting for you in the arboretum."
"Thanks, Snips." Anakin said.
Ahsoka was always bright and happy… even during battle. Maybe that wasn't natural, people don't just smile all the time. Maybe Snips wasn't as healthy as Anakin thought she was. Grief was as helathy as joy, in the right amount. Anakin made a mental note to have a healer look over Ahsoka. Obi-Wan, however, was a trickier problem. Anakin's old Master rarely talked to him face-to-face anymore. The life of a Council member was a busy one. Which could only mean Kenobi wanted to see him on Council business. Anakin wasn't a fool, and the timing of this visit was too coincidental to be about anything other than his visit with Palpatine.
The arboretum was quiet. Trees of all kinds ringed the large area, carefully obstructing the view of anything manmade, making the area seem larger than it actually was. A soft corner, lush with various groundcover plants, connected directly to the Medical wing, was occupied by shell-shocked Jedi, being tended to by a patient healer. The sheer amount of plants calmed those that could touch the Force, helping to block out the often smothering sense of the billions of people on Coruscant. Careful not to disturb the group, Anakin headed deeper into the foliage, aiming for one of the many private alcoves kept clear for Jedi use. Many came to the arboretum, for study, conversation, or meditation. The alcoves gave the illusion of solitude for those that wished for it.
"It's been a while." Anakin said, stepping into the soft green clearing. He sat on the stone bench opposite of Kenobi's.
"Yes it has, the schedule of a Council member and the Hero With No Fear rarely coincide." Obi-Wan replied, a hint of smile on his face.
"What did you want to talk about? Last I checked, my comm is still working fine. I'm guessing this is too sensitive for normal channels? Maybe an interrogation of sorts? It would be a pain if the Council turned the Jedi against them as well as the populace." Anakin was upset, and wasn't trying to hide it.
"Anakin, there's no reason to be like that. The Council has always exercised discretion on sensitive matters."
"And just what is so sensitive that you couldn't contact me on my public, traceable comm that any Jedi can see the logs for?"
"The Chancellor is a dangerous man, your ties to him worry us."
"'Us' is it now? You changed, Obi-Wan. You used to be different, the Council changed you, clouded your vision."
"My vision has never been more clear. The Council can not afford to focus only on the now, we need to look out for and protect the Order in the long term."
"The long term? Are you even hearing yourself? We were on Dathomir, we could have gone to the Inquiry and explained our actions. Instead the Council drags the order through the dirt!" Anakin's tone was sharp, but quiet. He had no intention of disturbing the patients nearby. "I see the way parents guide their children away from me, you would do, if you every left the Council Chamber. Kids are afraid of us, parents pull their children inside until I pass. Boys don't ask me for autographs anymore. Girls don't give me flowers. I didn't become a Jedi to be feared, I did it to protect the innocent, and right now the innocent are terrified of us." Anakin stood up.
"Wait just a moment, Anakin." Obi-Wan pleaded.
"No more waiting, the council is as manipulative as the Senate is. None of you care about what the Order is supposed to be. No more, I'm resigning, effective immediately. Do I get to keep my lightsaber?"
"Hold on, you're being rash, Anakin."
"I said, am I allowed to keep my lightsaber, Master Obi-Wan?"
The weight of the situation finally hit Obi-Wan. He seemed to age before Anakin's eyes. "Yes, yes of course. I… I wish you well, old friend."
"May the Force be with you." Anakin said, leaving before Kenobi could reply.
There was no going back, leaving the Order was the ultimate separation between a Jedi and the Order. There was no way to fix things, a Jedi that left was gone for good. Anakin never felt more free, no longer would the Council direct him like a drone, no more would Palpatine try to prove the Order needed changing. It was all moot now.
Standing on the steps of the Temple, Anakin took a moment to savor his surroundings. Beings who left the Order weren't exactly allowed to come back for old time's sake, Anakin wanted to savor the last moments of his life as a Jedi. Protestors crowded the courtyard, troopers patrolled the barrier between the Temple and the crowd, news reporters filmed it all.
"Master." Ahsoka called after him. "What happened with Master Kenobi? I could sense you from across the Temple."
Anakin turned to face his soon-to-be former Padawan. "I'm not your Master anymore, Ahsoka. I resigned from the Order."
Anakin could sense her confusion. "But, we were going to fix the Order, together."
"The Order is too set in its ways for internal change." Anakin said, trying to console the girl. "I can't sit around and watch anymore. I need to do this."
"Where will you go? You aren't going to defect are you?" Anakin could see fear in Ahsoka's eyes.
"Of course not! I love the Republic."
"Just not the Jedi?" Ahsoka countered, hurt poisoning her words.
"I love the Jedi too, Snips, just not the Order."
"I hope you don't regret this, goodbye, Anakin." She said sharply, turning to leave.
Anakin almost called out. But he reconsidered. Ahsoka wouldn't listen right now, she would take offense to any offer to leave with him. Anakin hoped Ahsoka would find her way eventually. The exit was a gauntlet of reporters. Steeling himself for the confrontation, Anakin didn't look back.
"Master, have you read news?"
"I do not require Republic propaganda and sensationalism, the force tells me what I need to know."
"Should I arrange a meeting for Anakin?"
"No, Skywalker will come to us, we need only wait. Return to your duties, Ventress."
"As you command, Count Dooku."
