Hi everyone! Sorry it's been so long! I know it has been awhile, but great things are coming! We will have another update tomorrow, and after that a chapter with some great battle scenes and humor and all that. Oh yeah, and Obi-Wan.

Enjoy the chapter!

~Marina

Chapter 19

As soon as Skywalker was gone, Palpatine cancelled the order to bring up Firor's information.

Part of him was glad Firor was dead, even though it placed a slight hiccup in his plans.

It was fitting that Skywalker had ended the life of the bounty hunter who had twice let him down. Not only that, Anakin had performed his act of revenge in much the same way Palpatine would have done himself.

The Jedi seemed to be coming even closer to taking on the role of a Sith apprentice. A smile involuntarily spread its way across his face.

It didn't matter whether Ahsoka Tano lived or not; his plans would still pay out in the end. If, for whatever reason, Anakin still refused to turn to the Dark Side of the Force, his children would always work nicely as back-up.

If only his own…

Palpatine sighed aloud, removing the thought from his head.

There was no longer any chance of that.

His biggest issue now would be trying to keep Senator Amidala alive long enough to know for sure whether or not Skywalker would turn to the Dark Side of his own accord.

Perhaps he could harvest the children ahead of time and incubate them, separate from their mother…no that would be too complicated. If there was anything he had learned during his early days as a politician, it was that simple plans had the greatest probability of actually working in the end.

He still remembered the days before his career had begun, when he had first discovered the teachings and power of the Sith. His parents had been strict—paranoid, even—about many things, but Holonet content was not one of them. He was so grateful for the liberties they had allowed him, even as a child, to explore the most far-fetched concepts through readings and viewing materials. When he first found a document of actual Sith ideology and origin, he'd thought at first it was even too dark for his parents to approve, and hid it from them for weeks before he finally realized—they really didn't care.

His exploration had only progressed from there, until he began experimenting with the Dark Side of the Force on his own. His powers grew as, outwardly, he did what every young Nubian aristocrat was expected to do. Palpatine joined the political realm and became an accomplished speaker who could get nearly anything he wanted. People listened to him. He learned to back up lies (necessary in politics, of course) with the things citizens wanted to hear and how to wheedle money out of banks and corporations with interest in his projects.

By the time he was in his thirties, he knew what his commitment to the Dark Side was leading him to do. He was to become the first true Sith Lord to reign over the galaxy in a thousand years, reinstating the simultaneous terror and freedom that had made him what he was all across the universe.

He was so close to it now! His powers had multiplied beyond his wildest imaginings, especially now that he was closing in on the end of his manipulations for ultimate authority. The only thing he still needed was his Padawan, the second Sith Lord who would command the galaxy under him.

For he was dedicated to the Rule of Two. There must always be a Master and an apprentice; no more, and no less.

"Commander, present yourself in my office, please," he spoke into his private comlink.

This particular comlink had actually been designed by Skywalker years ago, customized to suit the Chancellor's ever-growing need for secrecy. Anakin had built it so that it automatically erased all call records as they were ended. There was no possible way a transmission made via this comlink could be traced by an enemy.

Anakin had trusted him considerably as a teenager, and he hoped that that trust had not diminished over the years. But, there was no way of guaranteeing that kind of solid reliance, and precautions had to be made.

Within minutes there was a knock at his door.

"Come in," he called to the clone Commander, leader of what was formerly General Krell's legion of troops. Palpatine had purposely made certain that the angry, scarred members of Krell's had replaced Anakin's former set of troops, the 501'st. Captain Rex and the others had grown far too close to their Jedi General to be trusted with the job he intended to give this Commander.

The door slid open and shut behind the single clone soldier, dressed for action with helmet and blaster. The Chancellor motioned for him to remove his helmet.

"Come closer to my desk, Commander. There is a top-secret matter I wish to discuss with you, though if I am not mistaken, you learned something of it years ago during your battle training."

The Commander's eyes went wide. He'd never expected the Chancellor of the Galactic Republic to put such confidence in him. "I assure you of maximum security, Sir," he saluted, after removing his helmet as the Chancellor had indicated.

"It was I who assigned you to work with General Skywalker," Palpatine said carefully, pretending to be relaxed as he arranged some non-important papers on his desk. "Tell me—what do you know of Order 66?"

"It designates action against Jedi-related treason, Sir!" he exclaimed, furrowing his brow, under which a long, white scar ran above his right eye.

"Very good, you were well-trained," the Chancellor's buttery voice mumbled, out of habit rather than purpose. "I have reason to believe that Skywalker should be under close watch for treason. He has recently indicated some alarming…disloyalties…toward my authority and I would feel best if he were carefully observed by a capable officer such as yourself."

"General Skywalker, Sir?" the clone said incredulously.

"Act like a soldier, Sir—these are the remarkable occasions you were trained for," Palpatine replied irritably. The clone stiffened at the correction. "Yes, it was Skywalker I referred to. See to it that your men are on highest alert while working with him. Your Machibo trip, as I take it you have already realized, has been canceled. I am sending Skywalker and yourself to a more private location for a controversial mission. If Skywalker begins to waver in his intentions, notify me immediately. And if another Republic citizen—Jedi, Senator, or anyone else—appears and sees your doings, shoot them on sight."

Soberly, the clone lifted a gloved hand to his temple. "Yes, Sir."

Palpatine smiled in satisfaction. "Then you are dismissed."

"Thank you, Sir."

He waited until the clone had left to check the room for bugs, using the Force. The closer they got to the end, the more worried he became that something would unexpectedly show up to hijack his plan. He had waited and worked over fifty years for this.

At last, satisfied that no one had heard their conversation or the one he'd had with Anakin, Palpatine sat down and leaned back in his chair.

Most of the plan was up to Anakin now, other than a few details with Grievous…

After a moment, he made up his mind and reached for a holotransmitter to check up on the status of the Separatist General.

Replies to Reviews:

5851—He really should. He really, really should. But, nope!

Scottusa1: Maybe it is a bit too thick! I'm trying to show that Anakin is still a little out of it from being poisoned, so he doesn't notice it as well as he should. Hopefully this chapter explains more of Palpatine's intents.

ErinKenobi2893: Oh, I love Captain America! Ahem. So anyway, thank you so much! And you know it, Palpatine has separate plans for everyone Anakin depends on to be taken out, and it started with the attack on Ahsoka.

See y'all in tomorrow's update! Please R+R!