[19BBY]
[House of Wisdom, Executive Security Solutions City-ship/Capital-class Warship Stormcrow {II}, Sululluub Asteroid Field, Sullust System, Brema Sector, Outer Rim Territories]
I'd opted for the old fashioned, primitive as many would say, look for my library section. Yes it was a veneer over the modern armoured hull around it, and the 'librarians' simple droids in robes, but it felt right to me as I walked through the completed section with Ventress by my side. Currently the only other living person allowed inside, even if the physical copies of books on the shelves were merely copies of the originals and the ones on the drives nothing overly dangerous in my opinion. The partial, sorted part at least, remains of the Library of Ossus, my collected downloads from the Jedi Library, and accumulated purchases over the years after my leaving of the Order.
Not that many of these texts would be on the approved reading list of the Temple of course...even if the dangerous texts and holocrons were secured elsewhere. I was willing to offer access as promised to many texts, and Asajj and her two 'sisters' had given over various copies of their tribes texts to add to the collection, so with downtime it was best to try build good habits like reading. Or at least reading and meditating on more than a few garbled 'How to be an angry emo!' by Sith Lord Stabby-stab the Third as introduced to her by Dooku. It was a start as they say, just like the collection itself was a start of a hopefully far more extensive one somewhere down the line.
"Your spoils, hmm?"
"The results of...dynamic research and archaeology in some cases I'll admit, but much of it is just a matter of using military grade data-collation systems to monitor certain sales and auctions. With the Temple on Coruscant destroyed, well, let us say I intend as extensive library as possible to grow my abilities in the Force. Yours too of course while we are in partnership, as always remember that knowledge is power, even if some knowledge is more valuable than other texts. Though I must say the Book of Law and the Book of Shadows have been rather interesting reads, Wild Power too even if I am not the intended audience"
"Hmph, yes, though combat chassis's on the librarian droids seems somewhat overkill"
I shrugged "Anybody tries stealing my books, or destroying them...well, they shall suffer if they manage to get here and expect it defenceless"
It was also a test-bed for the currently in production Librarian and Custodian one-off build, and very expensive, droids to handle my City-ships collection. Something the worsening of the war, and my involvement in that, had made little time, and funds, available for. Finance had gotten complicated with Coruscant essentially a separate entity despite my current allies alliance with them; even the fact we'd most of our accounts well outside the Core merely meant we had a stronger starting position relative to others rather than the true war-fighting security I'd like. Credits had other things to be spent on after all, as did my time.
"Yes, I do believe you'd do such, Warlord and Vengeful Librarian all rolled into one" she drawled back as we stopped and I took down the desired books from the shelves. I shrugged, letting out a sigh as she took the texts into her hands. Historical reading on the times of the dangerous, dangerous, ghost Sith running about the galaxy from both perspectives; even if the Imperial side of the argument were hard come by. At least outside of Hutt space and a few collectors the Jedi Order had viewed as dangerously 'sympathetic' to the Sith and Imperial criticisms of the Jedi and Republic of the time.
"Closer to the truth than I'd like Asajj" I replied, taking down another text into my own hands to read later as she glanced at me "The Republic is crumbling, and now is the time for the possibility of rising high, or being utterly destroyed. No straight forward payments for Coruscant, and for the foreseeable future our financial side is going to be an ad-hoc affair, based on the crude trade protection fees that we setup. We are warlords now Asajj, just ones pretending to be civilized as that has the greatest long term rewards"
She chuckled, an amused sound "Ah, he finally admits what his loyalty to the Republic means"
I gave a snort at that "I AM loyal to the Republic my dear, very much so the ideals of it. But there are several 'Republics' right now, and they all represent their own particular brand of what they see the Republic turn into in the future. I'm not arrogant, or foolish, enough to deny they'll have valid reasons for those views, nor deny they have skills and motivation to try make it happen. Nor that all the members of the Board of Directors running this operation have the same motivations and goals as me"
"Command then"
"That only gets you so far Asajj, the iron handed tyrant. I'm the youngest of the Board, yet I'm Captain-General because I do listen to them and follow their advice. You need a team around you, which is why Jurdan is Fleet Commander right now and allowing us several hours to study the Force and grow our powers, something the Sith and Jedi in these tales often forgot. Largely because they were control-freak micro-managers, along with a tendency of the Empire randomly kill competent field commanders because...Falling to the Dark Side and turning into imbeciles"
She nodded, frowning "Except for a few such as this Darth Imperious"
"Yes, which is why it's important to know our enemy" I replied "Still, even if we find nothing the simple fact of studying the conflict should give some useful hints as to fighting this one. Research like this helped me in finding out where the Malachor system was after all. Unfortunately I lack so much of what I'd like; the actual Imperial texts from that time, but we'll just have to soldier on without"
"Hmm, and if you were I, what would your path to power be oh wise youngling?"
Oh, someone was in good form it seemed "Build up your allies during this conflict, learn what you can, and then return to Rattatak with our, my, support, and establish yourself as Sith Lady, or Queen, or Princess...whatever you want to call yourself and rule in the manner of the Jedi Lords of old. Turn that disaster of a world into something you can be proud of, and more importantly gets you a chair at the rulers table by dint of being a planetary ruler and, hopefully, a war hero. Hells, use your links with the Nightsisters to help you, or train up your minions, or successors...get a family, live the life, get the happiness you think you deserve"
"Heh, I'm unsure if you are mocking me or being serious. We shall see what the Force provides"
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[19BBY]
[Grand Army of the Republic Headquarters, Galactic City, Coruscant, The Core]
Arnold Durant, Commissioner of the Coruscant Security Force, sat listening idly as the Alsakan Senator was sworn in Acting Supreme Chancellor in the secondary backup Senate facilities in the Undercity. Not that it showed any sign of that fact; the background was even more gaudy and pretentious as the now destroyed Senate Buildings, if somewhat old-fashioned looking. As annoying as the Senator was, as stuck-up as he was, Alsakan throwing its support behind the Provisional Government of the Republic, formerly the Committee of Republic Defence and Safety, ensured they weren't defeated outright.
Failing to capture the Supreme Chancellor would have been a problem anyway...failing to capture him after discovering he was actually a secret Jedi was an utter disaster. Corellia, because kriffing Corellia, had turned against them as expected, but with the former Supreme Chancellor fled and now ensconced in Kuat the hyperlanes towards the Galactic South were largely cut now. Unfortunate as the traitorous forces of the Supreme Chancellor along one, the Corellians astride the Corellian run and getting increasingly militant about the situation. Thankfully it wasn't his area of expertise and responsibility; he merely had the job of dealing with aftermath of the Coup, and three atom-splitter detonations set off by the Jedi most likely.
"The Announcement went well Commissioner, did it not?"
Durant smiled back faintly at General Tagge as she entered the command bunker "Indeed General, pre-recorded...with Paplatine gone we don't have to play around with security procedures. Everything was pre-recorded, but it looks live, so the populace should be happy"
"At least it is some positive news..." Gentis, Headmaster of the Republic Military Academy and now Head of the Republic General Staff replied sitting across him, listening to the speech "...as our effort to break the blockade at Fedalle got bloody"
Durant glanced at the general leader of their group "Refused stand down orders?"
"Yes, and reinforcements from Kuat jumped in a after a few hours later. I just got word of victory..." Gentis waved his right hand side to side "...but it might as well not be. Yes we hold the system, but I'd hope to take control without a bloodbath in the process"
General Tagge sighed "You're too optimistic my friend. We'll count it as a success, and despite that situation the Tarkin's are at least playing sabacc with us as allies rather than enemies for the moment. And, problems aside, the northern hyperlanes are largely uncontested, and Seppie raids turned back. It will be long, hard, fight, but it's one we can win with Alsakan, Rendilli, and Anaxes shipyards on board. One has to admit we'll have to play defensive for some time..."
Durant shook his head at that "Don't get too optimist. We're still putting down Clone legions on Ord Mantell, and I'm shipping out a division to help deal with the ones on Ixtlar in the next few days. Chandrilla looks firmly in the Corellian camp as well...and astride a major hyperlane"
"It also lacks a major fleet to contest those lanes.." Tagge point out, then sighing "...but I admit there are issues. Ohnaka going rogue for one, Noune looking like it's trying to copy Eriadu for a second"
Gentis shook his head "Ohnaka I could care less about as long as his fleet continues to ravage the Seppies rather than our trade routes. He's a distraction, and that serves us. The same as Grandmast Yoda being confirmed on Kahyyyk...it's some else's problem for now, and more importantly appears to be attracting what looks to be a major Separatist offensive"
Durant gave a snort at that "Amazing how useful GAR Intelligence has become after a planetary civil war and bit of house-cleaning"
"True, true, if anger inducing I'm afraid to say" Gentis murmured before sighing and looking at Arnold Durant, tapping at the holo-display "And the situation with building the case against the Jedi?"
He shook his head in response "Treason and the like? We're *still* decontaminating the Financial and Temple Districts...they were bombs specifically targeted under structures you know? So it's similar to Palplatine, he was Senator, AND had a strange rise to power, so we *know* he was a crook and involved in shady deals. We could just never prove it. So we still can't. But we can charge them with a host of Youngling Abuse, and Parental Abduction laws along with Conspiracy without much trouble. Yes, yes, Jedi exemptions, but we're in charge now and that means Coruscanti law trumps all those silly religious exemptions they were given. Bastards threw children at us when we tried to arrest them...I can't forgive them for the footage I saw of it. Kriffing throwing younglings with energy swords at Special Operations Droids...kriffing monsters, we lost hundreds of good men and women taking those younglings alive"
"Yes, and we're letting the whole galaxy see what we overthrew with such things..." Gentis agreed nodding "...as several systems have been all too happy to roll in behind one Jedi or another. After seeing the interrogations of prisoners it's very clear most had no idea what was going on, but..."
The older man let out a breath "It's frightening to see that level of brainwashing and power in one person. Spirits help us I used to look up to them"
Durant nodded "I know, but thats what happens when traitors manage to infiltrate the upper echelons of any organisation. Thankfully some of those that left that Order, or the younger ones, Padawans as they call'em have shown equal revulsion once we showed them the evidence. No younglings are getting combat training on my watch, but we're hoping to have a few adults willing to fighting for the Republic in the coming cylcle..."
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