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Phase 18: The long road to Mandalore

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Part 7

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GAR HQ

Coruscant

For General Telar Valentra, it was just another day in the office in the post coup galaxy. Everyone and their cousin trice removed, who wasn't even of the same species, cried, begged or demanded more supplies, ships and bodies to throw at the Separatists. The damned thing was that the Republic, or what passed for it these days, actually did have ships to spare, it was just that many of them were bound in the Core watching less than reliable systems that just a few weeks ago were supposedly loyal Republic members. Others were tapped for Operation Citadel – the planned liberation of Corellia. Of course, there was a significantly diminished strategic reserve left but that wasn't something Telar was going to tap into unless a great opportunity presented itself or yet another disaster struck. When he got to his office, after the sixth long night that week, he found one of his aides waiting with briefing on the situation at the front, another with a pile of encrypted data pads and stacks with data chips containing reports he actually had to read and a third one with requests from commanders he couldn't push to a subordinate to deal with.

It was days like these he wished to be out on the front where things were somewhat simpler if more hazardous to one's health.

"Let's start with what I actually need to know." Valentra addressed his senior aide, a youngish captain who generally had even longer nights and was always at his job half an hour earlier than him, nevertheless he looked fresh and chipper as if he had a six hours of uninterrupted sleep during the last moth… that weren't mandated by the medical personnel anyway.

"The Separatists launched another series of raids last night. As of fifteen minutes ago, we've got them contained. Shipping losses however are about seven percent above what we expected." Captain Carlson dutifully reported. He sounded refreshed too, the lucky bastard.

Did his aide found out some new kind of stimulant or it was perhaps his youth – fifteen years might not sound like much, but still.

"Did we lose anything of note?"

"Some munitions and fuel shipments, mostly it was freighters hauling raw resources or refined metals."

"Make a note, I'll speak with Kenobi about assigning more escorts and hunter-killer groups to fend off that threat. A few percent might not sound like much, though it's still a huge number of resources in absolute terms. Those ships need to be replaced too, crews trained, not to mention the knock down effect each lost one has on our industry and logistic." Telar grumbled. He waved the human captain to continue.

"Next, there was another raid on Gizer, presumably to further weaken the system and pave the way to Tanaab. Rear Admiral Illona used his newly completed interdictors to trap and destroy the Separatist force. While his fleet suffered moderate damage and lost two of the three interdictors, the Separatist fleet was decimated – only about thirty percent of it managed to flee to hyperspace and many of those ships were damaged. Considering the last know enemy strength at Lantillies he declined to pursue and instead pulled back to Naval Station Citadel for repairs. In a few days, he'll be sending a few more captured ships behind the front so we can sweep them for any unwanted surprises before re-commissioning them."

"Good for him. Numbers, classes?" Valentra would have to make sure the supplies and specialists needed to refit those ships were dispatched with all haste. Unfortunately, the job did require some custom-built equipment, not to mention slicers, naval engineers and security teams to check every nook and cranky of the enemy ships for hiding droids.

"One heavily damaged battleship and three frigates. There were a few more prises though those were in a bad way and will be broken up for parts and material at Gizer."

"We'll put those to good use. Anything else of note from that corner?"

"Just the usual requests. Noelle here has them." Carson nodded at the youngest aide – a young Twi'lek lieutenant. She looked like she just came out of the academy yesterday, though she had the benefit of completing the one at Anaxes a few weeks before the war began. "There hasn't been any major disasters or notable victories in that sector we've heard about. With the Holonet disrupted..." The human shrugged. "I do have a list of lost and captured planets as well as systems in that quadrant." He tapped one of the data-pads he held with a finger. "The strategic situation remains a stalemate. A very bloody one."

"Same old mess." Valentra nodded. It had been that way in the eastern part of the galaxy ever since the enemy offensive ran out of steam – a grinding exercise to produce casualties and erase material spread over tens of thousands of light years. "I would have learned if there were any other developments of note on the Core front." Someone would have awoken him for sure if that was the case. Most likely one of his three overworked aides. "Reliable news from the rest of the galaxy?"

"The usual assortment of rumours, smuggler generated high tales and Separatist propaganda. You know better than us that what little we get from Republic intelligence sources is suspect at best, outright fabrication and misinformation at worst." The captain grimaced. "I should remind you that General Kenobi will be busy this morning – he's meeting a Jedi General who surrendered when Chancellor Palpatine issued Order 66. She got shipped from the front earlier this morning so you might have to cover for him if something crops up. You're his acting XO planet-side."

"Dully noted. He's taking precautions, right?"

"I certainly hope so, sir."

"Let's get to it then."

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Detention centre

GAR HQ

Coruscant

As far as cells went, those nested deep beneath the GAR's nerve centre were rather good. Certainly they beat the locked shack Aayla Secura was kept for a period of time before she could be shipped back behind the immediate front. After that her accommodations were decent, certainly nothing someone raised in the Jedi Temple would find too Spartan. What got her was the time she had to think after Order 66 came and she surrendered. Think and meditate.

The Force, however, held no good answers. All the Jedi could perceive was the encompassing, smug darkness shrouding the future. It was at the same time oppressive and alluring, holding promises for answers… Even now, many weeks after the galaxy went mad, Aayla was no closer to figuring out what happened. If it wasn't for what few of her soldiers, like Blue let slip, intentionally, she was sure, the Jedi attempted a coup, managed to kill Chancellor Palpatine and then all hell broke lose. She felt many Jedi dying, the death cries of Kamino and Bothawui, the Dark Side growing even stronger, yet she preserved. Her Clone guard had been still, though professional, almost cordial. They were the reason for the delay before she was shipped to Coruscant in the first place – apparently finding enough Clones who could both take her down if she tried to escape yet didn't even think of arranging some kind of accident had been hard after Order 66. Still, there was a reason why she bid her time and acted as a good little prisoner – the current Supreme Commander of the GAR was a friend. Aayla was here to meet him and get answers. If there was one thing she was sure of in this crazy galaxy was that Obi-Wan Kenobi of all people wouldn't have succumbed to the Dark Side.

Right?

Her heart was convinced of that, which wasn't very Jedi like. Her mind on the other hand… Secura had her doubts, though she rarely admitted them even to herself. Still, what she sensed when she arrived in the pre-dawn hours, well it wasn't what she would have imagined a world under the sway of the Sith to be – and that was the only somewhat sensible reason for the Council to go for a coup! If you squinted hard enough anyway! While Aayla could still feel the disruption in the force caused by a lot of Jedi dying at the Temple, Coruscant itself didn't feel much different, at least as far as the Dark Side was concerned. There was nervous energy in the air – literally. Billions upon billions of scared and anxious people cramped on a single world – that left an impression in the Force and was so unlike Coruscant before the war.

Aayla's breath hitched when she felt a strong Force presence approaching. Relief and elation was what she felt when she sensed that Obi-Wan was coming. He didn't hide himself and what she could perceive from him at a distance, well he was no Sith! By the time her cell's door opened and the force field further securing the only entrance shut down, Secura had herself under proper control.

"Obi-Wan!" Still, her relief was plain to see and hear in her greeting.

"Aayla, it's good to see another Jedi made it through this insanity." He flashed her a brief tired smile before shaking himself and assuming a rigid posture. "While I don't believe you had anything to do with the Council's folly, I'm compelled to investigate." Kenobi grimaced.

"What insanity got into them anyway?!" Aayla couldn't help herself. That question had been nagging her for weeks now. So many people died because that singe act of sheer insanity!

"My best guess? Fear. If the circumstances were different, I would find the situation highly ironic instead of tragic. And it wasn't just the Jedi, especially the Council who let their fears control them. I saw the same happening with the Senate and many local governments… but let's get back to the inevitable. I have to ask you, did you have anything to do with the Jedi Coup? Did you have any prior knowledge about it?" Obi-Wan looked her in the eyes and Secura could sense him concentrating upon her through the Force, not merely relying on his physical senses nor any monitoring equipment built into the cell.

"No. It all came as a shock." Aayla gladly admitted.

This time it was Obi-Wan's turn to feel relief. "Good. I can sense no deception." His posture relaxed a bit. "I only wish that my word would be good enough to clear you, however you're for at least a few long questioning sessions with Military Intelligence and the other services investigating the Coup."

"Obi-Wan, what happened? The first I knew something was wrong came from a disturbance through the Force, then Commander Blue along with the rest of my soldiers turned their blasters on me. He told me I had Veil of all people to thank for altering Order 66 from kill on sight to capture unless we resisted."

Obi-Wan grimaced. He had spoken with Valentra among a many other people about this whole mess and it came as a shock that it was Telar and Delkatar who altered that particular contingency order. Its very existence hinted that the Council might have know even more than he suspected today, yet… if Veil was really an enemy of the Jedi, why would he do that? On the other hand, what he has been up to in the Rim…

"I really shouldn't be telling you much, anything really. Not before the investigation in your potential involvement is over."

"You're the Supreme Commander of the military." Aayla pointed out.

"I'm also a former Jedi, a Mandalorian too and Delkatar Veil, perhaps both the most hated and respected man alive in the galaxy today is both my brother-in-law and more importantly, technically my head of state. People see nepotism and political statements in everything I do these days." Obi-Wan confided.

"Bothawui. It was him, wasn't it? I've heard just the odd whispers from my guards but what I felt..."

"That gets complicated. By all rights I should have his head for what he did there, no matter his justification." Kenobi looked torn. "It should be that simple."

"Why it isn't?"

"Just before he showed us all what truly means to be a Sith, the Bothan's Council declared for the Separatists. They had his fleet trapped above their homeworld when he did whatever he did and murdered everyone on the planet and the enemy ships in orbit. It happened live for all the galaxy to see. Channelling that much energy – it burned him from within even as he used it to heal himself. When the transmission cut with his fleet fleeing before the Separatist ships could intercept it, it was little left of him but charred meat. For all we know, he's dead. With that one act and his words right before it, Veil cemented himself as someone at least half the galaxy loathes and fears like no one before. The Mandalorians, many of our soldiers, even certain planetary leaders both respect the lengths he went to, the power he wields and the latter group prays that he is dead and would stay dead while often publicly support him."

"I can understand the fear and hatred. The Mandalorians at least, their respect, but the rest? You make it sound like he has a somewhat broad public support across the Republic." Aayla was confused.

"It's simply really." Obi-Wan grimaced. "At Geonossis, Sullust and now Bothawui, Veil made the Separatists bleed. Up until now, most of the systems where the war was fought were loyal Republic ones."

"What would you do if he is indeed alive?" Secura asked.

It was such an innocent question, really.

"Many would cry for his head. Others will want him in charge of the war or at least in reserve as our pet monster we can threaten the Separatist with if they try to pull off another Naboo or any of their usual war-crimes."

"That's what other people would do or want done. What about you, Obi-Wan?"

"Honestly? I don't know. It should be simple but it isn't. Do you know the worst thing? Technically, legally he had the authority to deal with Bothawui as he saw fit once the Bothans turned their coats."

"Obi-Wan! That doesn't make it right!"

"Certainly not!" Kenobi sounded offended at Aayla believing that he would think such a thing. "However, that leaves any attack at him as primary politically motivated."

"He destroys worlds!"

"I know." Obi-Wan admitted. "For the last few months I had to live with the idea that one of those days, unless we lose the war, I would be the one giving orders to reduce enemy worlds. For the best of reasons of course – critical industrial targets, orbital strikes to make ground force casualties sustainable, because a long time ago we went way past what anyone sane would call acceptable!"

"Obi-Wan, what happened to you?" Secura examined him more closely, both with her eyes and through the Force. She couldn't really feel the Dark Side upon him, however the Light was dimmed too. He felt greyish… if that made any sense.

"Ever since becoming the Supreme Commander, for at least few months before that really, I began to understand how Veil might have become who he is today. These calls we have to make as military officers, now everything that rests upon my shoulders… Aayla, every day I'm sending billions of soldiers to die all over the galaxy. Because of my orders, whole worlds, both ours and theirs are being turned into rubble as we speak. What Veil did at Bothawui is reprehensible, I have no doubt in my mind nor my heart about it! However, tomorrow, next week, a month or two from now, I might very well be the one giving orders that would result in something similar if not execution then result! By the Force, military speaking, what he did might have been the best decision available! Do you know what's the worst thing?! For all the trouble it causes, there had been some benefits and we had to use them for all they were worth it!"

Secura stared speechless at Obi-Wan. She wondered if she ever truly knew him and if that was the case, what changed him into the stranger venting his frustration at her!