Chapter 6 - Wheels Within Wheels
"Emperor Vader really intends to arrest Nix?" Bail asked Tarkin, still incredulous that the same man who murdered Mas Amedda on day one of his reign over the galaxy would stay his hand against the individual who seemed to be behind the attack on the Jedi Temple.
"Indeed. Despite your beliefs, Senators, Lord Vader is interested in establishing peace across the galaxy." Mon Mothma and Organa started to raise their voices in opposition, but Tarkin held up a hand to forestall the debate. "I am aware of your views. But do consider that effective governance can come at the tip of a sword. Lightsaber in this instance, I suppose." The Grand Moff ran a hand through his hair, which was beginning to turn gray and thin into a widows peak. Not a surprise, given the last few years of work under Palpatine and now with the mysterious Darth Vader's arrival. Tarkin and the Sith Lord had their own little confrontation, but when the literal and metaphorical dust settled, they'd found themselves of similar minds on the correct direction to take the infant Empire. So, Wilhuff Tarkin became the right hand of Emperor Vader and head of the Imperial Military.
"You think there'll be peace when Vader is ruling with his iron fist?"
Tarkin rolled his eyes. Now that he was dealing with the political class on a regular basis he'd come to sympathize with his superior's disdain and hostility towards them. Especially the iconoclasts. "Senator, what did the people of Alderaan eat for breakfast?"
"Wha- I don't understand?"
"What did they eat?"
"Are you sane, Tarkin!? How would I know!?"
"Indeed. Nor do I know. Nor do I care to know or dictate that matter. Control is a matter of degree. Neither myself or the Emperor intend to spell out every waking hour for the galaxy. Is it really so atrocious to have a functional empire, rather than a bloated corrupt republic? Are the old ways really best for the citizens? Will 'democracy' fill their bellies and keep their children safe? I'm not asking you to decide now, I only want you to think about the possibility that there is a way forward. It's why I wanted you to be here."
Mothma and Organa weren't convinced, not by a long shot, but the Grand Moff gave them food for thought, if nothing else.
Before they could speak up, one of Tarkin's subordinates shot from his seat in front of a console. "Sir! The Emperor's team went dark! All communications are down!"
"Back up comms?"
"Same, they've dropped off the map."
"Lord Vader, This is Tarkin, requesting status!"
No response. All they heard was the deafening, echoing, sound of static.
Switching channels to his own units, Tarkin relayed orders. "Close the net, I repeat, close the net. We have Code Null. Code Null is in effect! GO!"
"Code Null?" Mothma asked.
"An emergency situation. It means Lord Vader is cut off from the outside world. I don't know what Nix is playing at, but if anything happens to Vader, I can only imagine the chaos we'll need to contain. If we can.
###
Kshhhhhh
Vader looked at the heavy blast doors that slammed down behind him. He was cut off from the Stormtroopers and his Imperial Guard. Beyond that, his comms were down. No doubt the same was true for his team. Keeping them in the dark would be the basics of basics. Tarkin would be mobilizing on his end, pushing the containment teams to tighten the noose, but that did little to help the Sith Lord. He was alone in the belly of the beast. No help, no backup, no assistance.
No one to see or hear him.
No one to report what happened to the Senate.
No holovids.
One of his drones was back on the other side of the blast doors. The other, formerly hovering at his shoulder, sparked and sputtered before crashing to the floor. Vader glanced at it for a moment before turning, striding down the corridor towards whatever Nix Card had in store for him.
Kshhhhhh
He removed the lightsaber from his belt and activated it, the angry phosphoric glow lighting the dark passage. The heavy durasteel footsteps clanged out a staccato as the cyborg emperor stomped towards the end of the hall. Each heavy footfall punctuating a beat of simmering anger behind the black eyes of Vader's atrocious mask. "Do not think you can hide from me, Nix." Saying so, Vader switched to thermal imaging. Not that it was needed. The Force alone was enough to let him reach out and sense the presences of two life forms.
One was a sputtering candle, practically sick with fear. The other held itself steady. No fear, no uncertainty. Then there were the droids. Although they didn't show themselves through the Force like a living being, between Vader's techno-prosthetics and his power in the Dark Side, they revealed themselves all the same. IG Lancers and a healthy contingent of MagnaGuards. Vader felt almost disappointed at how closely he'd predicted the course of this operation.
"What did I do to you!?" Nix shouted as he stepped out of hiding. Past the end of the hall, in a wide room tangled with pipes, the guts of computer systems, and structural supports Nix Card, his compliment of security droids, and a figure in a wide brimmed hat waited for the Sith emperor.
"Nothing," Vader said. "You are a cat's paw, a sacrifice. I used you, prodded you, and you did as I foresaw. Now, it is time you served your purpose for my Empire."
Nix's eyes went wide. "Kill him!" he ordered and the droids twitched and collapsed.
"W-what?" Nix said in a small, quiet voice.
The figure in the hat, Cad Bane, stepped out of the shadows holding a small remote. "Sorry, Card. Can't have you killing the boss."
###
Days ago, during the attack on Vader's office at the former Jedi Temple
Vader stood over Cad Bane, looking down on the bounty hunter. Without moving a single finger, the blaster's of every dead enemy lifted into the air and slowly turned towards his Stormtroopers and Imperial Guards.
The metal plating he'd raised flattened back into the floor, leaving all except Tarkin exposed. The Sith turned and watched as every single one of them fell to the storm of fire that shredded them before they even realized what was happening. When the dust settled, only Vader, Cad Bane, and Tarkin remained alive.
"Well done, Bane," Vader said, turning on the bounty hunter and walking back to Tarkin. "Be at ease, Grand Moff. The cameras are disabled and no sound will ever leave this room."
"You arranged this?" Tarkin asked, looking at the bodies of the Troopers slaughtered by Vader.
"If you have a suggestion to better draw out our enemies, speak."
Tarkin's mind raced, but in truth, this was brilliant. "What will happen to them?" he wondered, pointing at bodies of the men Vader slaughtered.
"They will be given appropriate burials and their families compensated. I will personally speak at the funerals and promise to hunt down those responsible."
Tarkin was forced to admit, it was good. Opposition to Vader's plans would be tarred by association with the assault and the Emperor himself looked all the better for it. A warrior fighting for the people against corruption that refused to give up its power, even to the point of staging an attack on the Jedi Temple. No matter what it was now, people still thought of it in those terms, and the assault against it bordered on blasphemy. It would hit the heartstrings.
"Bane," Vader said. "Ensure you're available for anyone who might see this and seek you out. I want as many caught in this trap as possible.
"Not a problem. You're paying more than the separatists ever did. I guess that's what happens when you control the purse strings to the galaxy," the Durosian smiled.
The Sith lifted a hand towards the crashed air bus and speeder. "Prepare yourself." Without another word he sent both vehicles out the window in pieces as the Force tore them apart. Bane ran and leapt out a breath after, twisting in mid air to fire at the wall behind Vader, putting on a show for the reporters.
###
Vader's gloved hand grasped Nix Card by the face and the Muun could feel his mind slip away as the Dark Side assaulted him.
"You were part of the rebellion against The Galactic Empire and a traitor! You sent assassins to kill me because I was a threat to your profits."
"No, I worked for the good of the Republic!"
The Dark Side pounded against Card's mind. "You tried to kill me, just as you did… Padme Amadala…"
Vader's grip tightened and Nix Card felt the micro fissures race across his skull. The Force beat against the Muun's will, slowly beating down any resistance.
"Do not try to resist me, Muun. You are a rebel and a traitor." The black glove dug deeper into Card's skin, and he heard the grinding of bone on bone. Between the pain and the mental assault, the IGBC leader slowly slipped further and further under the Emperor's control. "You orchestrated the attack on the Imperial Palace because Vader was a threat to your profits."
"I… I… Vader was a threat to our profits from the Clone Wars. Had to get rid of him."
Darth Vader pushed harder, corrupting Card's mind, breaking it.
"Just as bad as- as bad as Amadala. War is good for profit. Peace is bad for the stock price…"
"You worked with Senators to bring back the Republic because it was easier to corrupt, didn't you?" Vader pressed, using his command of the Force to push the suggestion deep into the Muun's subconscious mind. "You wanted to ensure the corrupt Senators would retain their power."
"Yes. Easier to control." Nix Card said as his higher functions slipped away. "Easy to bend the politicians to our will. False flags, terrorists, lies to bring in more investments into the war machine…"
"And the Empire was in your way. I was in your way."
"Vader was a problem. If we brought back the old Republic… business as usual."
Vader released his grip and the Muun dropped to the floor, in a deep, black dreamless sleep.
"It is done."
"Impressive."
"The weak minded fall easily to the Power of the Force," Vader said bluntly. Have you been contacted?"
"I can barely go a day without at least a few conspiracies against you starting," Bane said. "But none of them involve Organa or Mothma. Those two are as goody-goody as their reputation suggests, it seems." Cad Bane rested his hands on the butt of his blasters and looked at Vader from under the brim of his hat. Ever since his employment under the Sith Lord began, the bounty hunter was making money hand over fist. Billing both the Empire and the dupes dumb enough to try and stab the Sith in the back meant a double profit for the bounty hunter. "Any Jedi still alive might want a piece of you, though. Can't tell you much about that if they use the same tricks you just pulled.
Bane nodded towards Nix Card, who was drooling on the floor. Vader broke his mind so completely it was up in the air if the Muun would ever recover. Not that it mattered. As long as he could testify before the Senate. Or at least authorities the Senate would trust.
"Inform your contacts," Vader told Bane. "We shall see how the bugs scurry after their money supply is cut off." After a moment the Sith spoke again. "And reactivate the droids." His lightsaber ignited, bathing the black mask in a harsh red glow.
"You sure, boss? These things ain't toys."
Vader's free hand clenched into a fist.
"Right, stress relief or something." Cad Bane ducked into a vent shaft as he reactivated the droids. The bounty hunter vanished to carry out his own business as IG Lancer's leveled their weapons and the MagnaGuards turned towards Vader.
###
Kshhhhhh
"Mission successful."
Tarkin's command post burst into action when Vader's voice crackled over the comms. His team managed to break through the blast doors only to find the Emperor already stood alone in the ruined deep works of the IGBC building. Droids all bore the marks of lightsaber damage and Nix Card was captured. No other organics remained, confirming Vader's information that Card worked alone to secure personal wealth through chaos in both the Clone Wars and the early days of the Galactic Empire.
When Card was questioned by the Senate, he revealed everything. His involvement in seeking out the bounty hunter Cad Bane, the attack on the Jedi Temple turned Imperial Palace. Attempts on Vader's life. Everything. Going all the way back to the Clone Wars and the Hostage Crisis, Nix Card admitted to all of it, even the attempt of Senator Padme Amadala's life.
As a popular Senator and friend to many, that last charge rankled a great deal of feather's amongst the populace. In particular Senator's from Naboo, both Gungan and Human, called for a harsh look at anyone suspected of subterfuge against the new Galactic Empire. So loved were Amidala and Anakin Skywalker, the Muun people and IGBC became suspects in their disappearance and death. Particularly Skywalker, a Jedi close to the former Queen of Naboo. More than a few political families from the planet knew of the romantic connection between Padme and the Knight. Enough that the IGBC was caught between a rock and a hard place.
To save themselves, they turned over everything to the Senate. It became known as the last great victory of the Clone Wars, won by Vader's own hand.
Celebrations took place across the Core Worlds.
In fact, the merry making was so grand, a minor military action involving a Jedi, wielding a blue lightsaber, went entirely unnoticed at the ragged edge of the Outer Rim.
Author notes:
Forum in my profile for those so inclined.
Out of curiosity, how would you, Dear Reader, feel about your own President, Prime Minister, Premier, Monarch, or whatever you have openly killing corrupt politicians?