Not original

716 FNM (22 BBY)

Month 6

Coruscant, Chancellor's Office

Chancellor Palpatine

Today is a momentous occasion, one of the defining moments in my long and arduous campaign. The great game to win a thousand-year war against the Jedi and establishing myself as the sole dominant power in the galaxy..

After years of exerting relentless pressure on the Republic, the system had finally cracked. It had finally snapped the system across the Core and Outer Rim divide.

In the next few years, I would continue to manipulate and reshape this system as needed from my newfound power and influence within the political realm. It is only a matter of time before the Republic is transformed into a new Empire, but this would require careful planning and execution of numerous steps along the way.

I am nearly ready to consolidate the Core. And this conflict will give me the opportunity I need to strip the local militias and defense forces of their power and autonomy, and incorporate them into a unified Imperial Army and Navy. The same process will be applied to the minor forces that operate both within and outside of government control. In due time, even the judicial division will be abolished and absorbed into the Grand Army of the Republic..

The Outer Rim malcontents will eventually fall in line as well, though they may need to be convinced by force. I'm certain they will resist in some ways, depending on the situation, and it could be a hard sell to convince them to rely on the Republic for defense. No matter, the Separatist are stocked with enough callous and careless corporations, the local population will eventually welcome our protection..

They will eventually sell away their freedom, both theoretically and completely for the safety and prosperity of the Empire. The Core would be the new heart of my Empire and it requires resources. Obtaining those resources would require amendments to certain laws that I would be more than happy to help with..

Of course, those are things I would worry about in the future. Today is just a good day. The reports of the combat were not fully in yet and what exactly is happening is still unclear due to it still being an active warzone. The Grand Army had landed on Geonosis and assaulted the Separatist's Droid armies there. The Jedi army seemed to have disappeared and was in full retreat after the massacre at the arena, which is in line with the opening act I planned for this war.

If Geonosis remained an active droid production factory, the Separatists could amass such an army that they could theoretically take over the Republic. Of course, because it is such an important target, the Grand Army would make sure to keep Geonosis out of the Separatist's control even if that means that we are willing to spend as many clones as necessary. Should the Jedi fail to keep Geonosis and the Separatists start to encroach into Republic territory ahead of schedule, setbacks and victories could be engineered elsewhere to slow them down or free up enough troops to retake it.

I plan on slowly converting the Republic into an Empire over the course of the war. In time, the re-ordering and full exploitation of distant territories will be necessary for my projects. And then my Empire can expand to reclaim Separatists worlds en masse. While the current crimes of the Separatists are shocking to ordinary Coruscanti, Alderaanians, and Corellians, in the fullness of the galaxy, they are nothing. My Empire will eventually face the same security challenges as the Separatists, so it's in our interests to observe and learn. Eventually, the constant low-level conflict and large military apparatus necessary to ensure order and resource extraction will seem ordinary and unremarkable to the citizens of the Core. After all, the Hutt's have demonstrated the effectiveness of allowing perpetual, low-level conflict to continue as a method of retaining political power. So, I would rather have the Republic win eventually, but be transformed in the struggle into my Empire. That is the main plan, and then I could activate my trump card and have the political structure that kept the Republic in place completely removed with a single command.

The day I could launch that command will be wonderful, but that is for the future. For now, I bide my time and exercise patience, carefully constructing the trap that will ensnare my enemies beyond their wildest imagination. When they believe they have fully grasped my machinations, they will find themselves hopelessly caught, powerless to resist. I must use that moment to accomplish the thousand-year mission that the Dark Lord of the Sith Bane had set before the Rule of Two Sith - the destruction of the Jedi Order and bringing balance back to the Force under the control of the Sith.

It still amazes me how arrogant the Jedi really are. To think that they built their grand palace upon a Sith Shrine. I channeled the Dark Side energy emitted by the Shrine directly into the Jedi Temple, clouding their visions of what is to come. Some Jedi in distant lands may receive true divinations about what will befall the Order. However, the war and the conflict within the Senate will distract them long enough for my plan to come to fruition. And I knew that it would work because the Force itself is sending visions of the future, warning anyone who would listen of the tragedy that would befall on the Jedi. I regularly receive visions of the plan succeeding through the Dark Side and I'm sure the Jedi would have seen it too, had the Veil over the Temple not clouded their vision.

I have a certain gift for masking my presence in the Force, but even in a room with the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order, they couldn't sense the Dark Side within me. I take great pleasure at the thought of the Jedi's own arrogance as the reason for their downfall. They had become so accustomed to the Sith openly declaring war on them or hiding in the shadows like cowards, adhering to the outdated and ancient Sith ways. The Force technique of Buried Presence also played a large part in fooling the Jedi into believing I have no Force potential at all and not consider me a threat. All the Jedi would sense is a threat to the Order that they cannot see. They could not imagine that the source of their troubles was hiding in plain sight in front of them.

With a sigh and a stretch from sitting at my chair for several hours, I rose from my desk. Reports were still trickling in about the battle, but it seems that victory is leaning on the Republic's side. Of course, it didn't matter to me which side won, as I will be the ultimate victor either way. However, there is no reason for me to stay up to receive the exact details of the win immediately. Tomorrow, I had several speeches to give in the Senate about various subjects, most likely about this very conflict on Geonosis. I needed to be at my best for those speeches, so there is no better time than now to go get some sleep.

Walking away from my desk, I made my way to the elevator that would take me up to my personal quarters at the top of the Senate. There I would be able to sleep soundly, knowing that I am protected by the most advanced security measures in the galaxy. It would take an army to get through the layers of security I had in place, and even then, I doubted they would succeed. Only the Jedi could pose a real threat, but even then they have no reason to suspect at the moment.

I need to ensure that I am protected from the Jedi, but I do hope they won't try anything for at least a few years. I want to have time to play my cards and accomplish what I need to do without needing to deal with them directly.

I shed my senatorial attire and slipped into a nightgown. As I prepared for bed, I focused on letting go of all my worries and concerns, allowing myself to enter a trance-like state that would help me fall asleep with ease.

The key to a restful night's sleep is to be completely relaxed and unburdened by thoughts of the future. Unfortunately, this method of going to sleep can make one more receptive to the Force and allow me to see things that the Force wants me to see.

As I lay there, completely relaxed and ready to drift off into sleep, an explosion jolted me awake. Confused, I sat up immediately, wondering what was happening. As I looked around, I quickly realized that I am no longer in the Senate Chambers, but I had no idea where I am.

My body is half-sunk into the mud of some unknown planet, surrounded by churned-up gunk that is as disgusting as it is unfamiliar. But the mud is not the only thing around me; there were also corpses and bodies of humans in strange uniforms, their helmets displaying the agony they experienced in their final moments as they held onto their shattered limbs.

I lay there in the mud, distracted by the chaos and violence around me. Explosions continued to sound in the distance, and the ground shook as blasts shattered the bodies of the dead and dying. The mud itself is tainted red by the blood of this battlefield and it is clear that this is a massacre - two sides trying to destroy each other and failing miserably.

As a Sith Lord, I am gifted with the ability of Force Visions, so I immediately recognized what was happening. I am still in my Senate Chambers, asleep, but I am being granted a vision of some kind. It wasn't impossible for this to happen, but it's rare. Usually, I had to use a bit of Sith alchemy to produce a vision. But now, the Dark Side is calling to me, showing me something that it wanted me to see.

But why this battlefield in particular? Is it a warning of some kind? As I looked at the bodies, I realized that the weapons they were carrying are ancient and most definitely not blasters, as they use actual wood in their construction which is only done by those in the Outer Rim nowadays. The surrounding bodies are also different as there are copious amounts of blood through puncture holes reminiscent of slugthrowers and not the burnt holes that indicated blaster wounds. This vision is not merely a coincidence. The Dark Side is trying to tell me something, and I have to find out what it is.

Could this be a vision of the past? Is this allegory with the Civil War I would unleash, creating such a battlefield somewhere? Perhaps there would be a Civil War on a planet that did not have access to the Tibanna gas that blaster technology relied on to function, resulting in the necessity of using slugthrower rifles, such as these. But then why is the Force showing this to me?

If you ask a question, sometimes the Force will answer, and in this case the answer is laughter - crazed laughter, almost giggling with a touch of insanity. Looking around, I didn't see at first where it was coming from. All I saw was another wave of infantry coming out of a trench not too far from my bed, grimly standing up and heading forward into gunfire that started to pick up from the other direction. The snap and cracks of the slugthrowers are so intense that I ducked purely on instinct and I crouched low on my knees. I knew this is a vision, but I wasn't going to take my chances, not all Force visions are equally safe. However, looking up is the right choice. As in my upward glance, I finally found the source of the mad laughter.

Standing in mid-air is a shadowed figure. A short figure, maybe someone five feet tall, laughing as the battle played out on the ground below. Above, other figures floated around with glowing blades, attacking each other. They may have been a representation of the Jedi, but I couldn't tell for sure. What I could tell is that the figure floating directly above me, controlling this battlefield, had eyes aglow with gold light. Sith eyes, seeming to be enthralled by the battlefield with pure delight, as if they were controlling it.

It all clicked then. The Force is trying to show me a powerful Dark side user would arise from this conflict. Whether they would be a rival or a potential ally it is hard to say, but it was intriguing nonetheless. Is this a warning from the Dark Side, telling me that a true Sith warrior would come forward? If so, I must be ready to recruit and bring this potential Dark side into my sphere of influence or eliminate them before they could become a rival.

Having a real Sith on my side would satisfy my future prospects. Dooku, though useful, is not to be trusted entirely. He is a former Jedi, he is the only one in any position to destabilize my plans, and I could still see some desire for goodness in him. Moreover, he is getting old and his power is diminishing, it is very likely he will only last another decade. Anakin, my other prospective apprentice, is also a Jedi, which posed the same problem. I needed a Sith like my former apprentice, Maul, who I had trained personally without any Jedi teachings to be a counteracting influence. He had been a true warrior and a perfect example of what the older Sith were capable of. He was the kind of Sith that my master had deemed harmless to him in this era of the Sith.

As the vision began to fade, I came to the decision that I must find out who this shadowed figure is and determine if they are a threat to my plans or a possible gift from the Dark Side. Whoever they were, they must be brought under my control, either through the Separatists or the Republic. No one must be left outside my control, otherwise, an unknown factor could upset my plans, and I had worked too long for those plans to be jeopardized.

Amidala Estates, Naboo

Tanya Kryze

How did things spiral out of control? Why did it have to happen while I am away from Coruscant? Where the hell did this Clone Army even come from? Those were among the many questions rampaging through my mind, now that we have the time to regroup and rest on Naboo.

The Battle of Geonosis had been fought, and thankfully we managed to avoid taking any more steps deeper into the conflict. I had observed a large portion of the battle from the command center and had been impressed by the effectiveness of the Clone Army, but horrified by the ineffectiveness of their leadership.

I knew it had been a thousand years since a war had been waged in this galaxy. Knowing that fact intellectually and watching a Jedi charge across an open battlefield with his lightsaber in front of hundreds of clones was a different matter altogether. Only about a quarter or so of the soldiers made it through the droid fire and that really hammered home that the Jedi had no idea how to command an army. The Jedi may have led armies in the past but the millennia of peace have eroded their institutional knowledge to nothing.

The only reason that the Clone Army had even won is not because of the Jedi or my Mandalorian mercenaries, who were not integrated enough to help reduce casualties significantly. No, the victory was due to surprise and the Fog of War. The factions in control of the droid armies surrendered or withdrew from the battle once they realized they didn't know what they were dealing with and panicked. While I can understand that these commanders have likely only ever faced Outer Rim pirates and had never faced off against an actual near peer army. Usually, it is a good idea to pull back and reassess the situation when getting tangled in a combat with unknown forces. However, straight up surrendering or fleeing the battle entirely is an incredibly stupid move. Geonosis is one of the primary droid-producing factories in the galaxy therefore it is an incredibly important strategic location and losing it would be a significant setback for the Separatists going forward.

There are other droid-producing factories in the Outer Rim, but they lack the resources or the labor to ramp up production and substitute for even a fraction of the lost capacity on Geonosis. They would likely only maintain the current level of production to replace their own battlefield losses, but their overall capacity is fixed and there won't be new factories anytime soon. If they ever only fought a defensive war, that might be sufficient. However, if they wanted to win, they would need to go on the offensive and that means significantly more droids.

Most of the fighting concluded on the first day, though there were still some occupation duties still ongoing and a few holdouts to clear out over the weekend. Right now, the situation is relatively under control, which meant I could finally return to Coruscant. However, I might be recalled to Mandalore to answer for my involvement in this situation. Hopefully only because I am now an unfortunate witness to the opening acts of the war. It's a mess, and I am going to have to deal with it over the coming months. I know war is a messy business, but it's even worse if both sides continue to act like it's an 18th-century battlefield using 20th-century guns, the only winners would be the faction that produced the most soldiers. Under those conditions the droids would obviously win by a landslide as clones needed a decade to grow compared to manufacturing a hundred droids every minute from an assembly line.

However, that is not my immediate concern. Thankfully, my problems are much less galactic in nature. Before we had left Geonosis, I had asked Vai and the remaining mercenaries to stop by the wreckage of our ship, the Ratio, to retrieve all the important items that had been left aboard the wreckage. The Lancer was barely held together by its superstructure, but it was still stable enough for us to gather all our belongings and mark them for pickup. Mandal Hypernautics had promised to repair it for me and bring it to Mandalore once it's fixed.

I'm not sure if the ship can be fully repaired or not, if they can't fix it, I said that it would be fine if they scrap it to recoup some of my losses.

After handling that situation, we loaded up on the Crusader cargo ship and headed to Naboo with Vai and her men. We made a stop at Tatooine to pick up Padme's ship before delivering it to Naboo where I left White Silver and the remnants of her mercenaries to rest and recuperate. After their shore leave, I left Vai instructions to return to Gargon and wait for contracts related to the war with the Separatists in some form or way. From what I've seen, Mandalorian soldiers commanding the clones had been more successful than the ones working with the Jedi. No doubt that they would be given contracts for command positions fairly soon once word spread that Jedi aren't qualified to command the Clone Army. However, White Silver would not be taking a direct contract to work for the Republic after this point.

There is a big difference between accepting occasional payments through subordinates and directly working with the Republic, which would make White Silver an enemy of the Separatists. I want to avoid that, as it could draw the Separatists into the political arena of the Mandalorian sector, something that I'm sure Aunt Satine would prefer to avoid.

Currently, my guards and I are resting in Padme's estate. She invited us to stay here while we waited for a transport ship to be available to take us back to Coruscant. As a senator, she had the right to ask the Republic army to transport her directly back to Coruscant and get a head start on politics, but she hadn't done so. It seemed like it's mostly due to our friendship.

Speaking of friends, it seemed that Anakin had been too overconfident and had rushed at Dooku, who was a much better duelist with decades of experience. As a result, Anakin has lost his hand and is staying with Padme on medical leave. Fortunately, since Jedi used lightsabers, the wound was immediately cauterized, preventing him from bleeding out. Nonetheless, he had to undergo cybernetic surgery to replace his wrist and hand, so he was now resting in another part of the house.

When I get the chance, I am going to have a talk with Anakin about the importance of being prepared and recognizing when you're outmatched. He had made a tactical mistake by believing that he could win a one-on-one fight with a Jedi Master, and the wounds he sustained when he arrived here indicated that he couldn't pull it off.

Naboo is likely to become a front in this war, considering how far rimward it was located. At the very least, it could be a transport hub. However, as of this moment it is a safe haven, so everyone had a chance to recover.

Despite the fact that the galaxy is currently at war, the mood at the estate is rather relaxed. Ordo and Kastel are playing Sabacc on the dining room table. Mok is looking up various information online. Captain Struc is sleeping on a couch in the guest area of this particular part of the estate. And Ms. Morson is humming a tune while cooking a sandwich for herself over on the stove evidenced by the warm smell of toasting bread and cooked meat filling the air. However, I suspected that future conversations would increasingly turn towards the war as the days went on, so I tried to treasure this moment of peace while I could.

That's the problem with war, once it starts, it doesn't matter how many good feelings one may have towards the other side. As the conflict drags on and more pain and suffering are inflicted on each side, the hatred would build. Eventually, it becomes inevitable that one side must emerge as the victor.

The only time such conflicts could be prevented is when there's a major power that could interfere, and unfortunately, the Galactic Republic is that major power and it was about to have a civil war. Finally, once the evening shadows grew long and the last of the sunset faded, I moved away from my empty cup of caf and cozy chair I've been brooding in the living room area.

I stepped out into a hallway of the estate and started moving towards Padme's room, wanting to talk to her about her stance on the political situation with the clones. Along the way, I walked past a mirror and glanced at my reflection. I'm going to need to start dyeing my hair again, the roots were showing true. Shaking my hair out of my eyes, I resumed my way to Padme's room. I would also need to inform Senator Merrik what happened, since it is technically his responsibility as Senator to be kept aware of and develop solutions to political problems. But more importantly, we needed to get ahead of the holonet with a consistent narrative from the Mandalorian government in the Senate.

Clones are an unprecedented topic, I don't believe there are any laws regarding their creation or legal status. There are laws about droids, mainly because of fears of uprisings, but for clones? What are clones? They are biological and as far as I am aware, they have never received any judicial scrutiny.

At times like this, I longed for my days as an aerial mage. At least there, I had a clear objective of winning the war and didn't have to unravel the politics and legal status of clones. Hell, looking through it with my 21st-century perspective, I wonder why this is even considered legal in the first place. If they don't get paid and they are still living beings, aren't they effectively slaves?

For now, I knocked on the door of Padme's part of the beach house and waited for a moment. Hopefully she would be able to help me figure out the best way to reason about the situation.

The door opens and Anakin is standing there, half-dressed with his new gold arm in place and with the dopiest dumbass smile I think I had ever seen on his face. I felt a part of me scream out in absolute terror as my brain put two and four together to get a six.

"Ah - Hi Tanya, what are you doing here?" Anakin smiled, and it somehow seemed intended to distract and disarm what I was actually feeling.

"I'm here to talk with Padme, this is her room, correct?" I tried to keep the disturbance out of my voice.

"Yeah, you're in the right place. She'll be right here in a moment, she's just getting her stuff together."

"Ah huh, are you still guarding Padme for the Jedi? I thought you were officially off that task, now that everything had been revealed." I said with narrowed eyes.

"Oh yeah, yeah, I'm still doing that. Just doing my part as part of the Jedi Order." Some part of that is a lie, I'm certain.

"Ah huh," I said, still giving him a deadpan look before I added, "that's strange. I thought that considering you lost your hand, you would have been given some time off to recover first. Where did she get you to sleep, anyway?"

"On the couch." he said, which made me tilt my head to the side to look past him, seeing said couch had no linens or pillows. Straightening my head, I resolved that my worst fear is correct, that Padme and this idiot were both idiots about doing activities that would make them targets for universal karma.

"Whatever, when Padme is ready, let her know that I visited. I want to have a conversation with her at some point tomorrow about this whole clone situation. As in what their status within the Republic is."

"What do you mean?" he said, tilting his head to the side of it, "They're people aren't they? "

"That's what I hope they are." I said with a nod before adding, "But politically I don't know yet. Are they getting paid for serving the Republic? If they're not getting paid, does that make them slaves?" I can see Anakin wincing at my statement. Likely because it reminded him of his former life as a slave. After a brief pause I continued, "A slave army doesn't exactly make us the good guys in this conflict, so I would hope not. But the fact remains that they are a copy of an individual many times over, so they may be considered biological droids."

"That's stupid," Anakin said, shaking his head in disagreement, "they're people, I can feel them in the Force. Each clone is a distinct and different individual. They may have the same face and have very similar feelings in the Force, but they're each individually different, that I can assure you of."

I blinked as I looked at him with a raised eyebrow at his confident answer. It took me by surprise, and Anakin really shouldn't be capable of surprising me anymore.

"Hmm, that's something we can use." I said, I'll definitely add that to my statements when I start talking about this with fellow representatives and senators. We could lean on the Jedi's established authority on morality to push the clones' individuality to the forefront of the debate. I tapped my chin with my hand as I thought about that.

Anakin stared at me, looking like he wanted to say something, then instead he sighed and the tension left him. "Hey uh, next time you see White Silver again, thank her for me would you?"

That raised an eyebrow, "Sure, why?"

"According to Owen, uh, my adopted brother, the armor they purchased helped save my mother's life. The armor they bought was sold at a big discount, from one of White Silver's military outfitters' on Tatooine. So in a roundabout way, White Silver helped save my mom, and I owe her one for that."

"Huh, small galaxy." I said, rubbing my chin again before saying, "I'll do that. Have a good night, Anakin and don't overexert yourself. You just got a brand-new arm, we don't want to damage it too quickly."

"Sure, goodnight Tanya." Anakin chuckled awkwardly as I turned and started walking back to my room. I tried not to imagine what was probably about to happen in their quarters.

Consular-class cruiser "Invincible", Hyperspace En-route to Coruscant

Wilhuff Tarkin

As I looked at the news of the forthcoming war, I admit, I did not expect the Jedi to be the source of the surprise. The Jedi had sprung their great reveal, a Clone Army made in secret under the Republic's very noses. I created plans with the expectations that we were in for a long haul on building an army and eventually having to fight our way into the Outer Rim, perhaps a decade of war at the minimum.

Now the Republic has an army dropped on their lap, an army that I knew nothing about. I have served in various military campaigns throughout my life, and none of them had quite the information blackout that the Clone Army has around it. Not only was its existence hidden to such a degree that no one knew about it, but the logistic train and transport fleet are also hidden. At least, I assume such things exist! I have yet to receive any communications even hinting at their location or command structure. Instead, I am currently serving in the capacity to try and militarize the fleet around my homeworld of Eriadu to turn it into a fully-capable Republic military fleet and all my work is somewhat challenged by this new, secret Clone Army. Poor intelligence kills just as well as any turbolaser.

However, I also have to deal with the developing situation around my home system and stellar sector as some of the neighboring systems in our sector were already on their way to declaring independence. Others were sending mixed messages to their neighbors and the Senate, claiming they were not really going to do it, meanwhile intelligence and public financial statements told otherwise.

As a result, I am trying to build a fortress and shipyard, a rallying point for loyal Republic forces in the region, in the inevitable event of a revolt. We might need a fallback point if the Separatists began seizing the transit lanes in the sector. Without intelligence, a strong defensive position is the best I could provide for the Republic. But I knew it would not be enough, we would need to fight for our sector sooner or later.

Any conflict in our sector is likely to be several months off, or given the secrecy involved, maybe not until next year. For now, I am heading to Coruscant to meet with Chancellor Palpatine. I am not an officer in the Republic Military, thus I am merely acting in my authority as governor of Eriadu. I needed an official rank and military authority to have my fleet to officially be part of the Republic Navy. Palpatine had promised as much in our last meeting, pending the passage of the Military Creation Act. Now that it has passed, I have many soldiers and officers ready to integrate into the Republic Navy.

I tore my gaze away from the window overlooking space and headed back through the main bridge section to my office at the back. I took a seat and began poring over the latest reports from the Battle of Geonosis, trying to get a better sense of how the droids had fared against the clones, and vice versa. There is much to learn from these battles and I am determined to gather as much information as possible to better form my strategies in the future.

In my final meeting with Count Dooku, only a few months ago, he had tried to convince me of the necessity of Eriadu joining the CIS. He had tried to coax me at first, presenting the Separatists as a natural counterbalance for good and Eriadu at the mercy of the Core, while being so far in the Outer Rim. Eriadu's workforce of billions is necessary for much of the mining and industrial capacity of this part of the galaxy, this much is true. But after the Naboo Crisis, the Trade Federation's decline has been our gain. When I refused Dooku's niceties, he abandoned persuasion for threats, presenting the CIS as fait accompli and that I needed to face reality and acknowledge the new government. I was not fooled, such an argument was merely a bluff. The implicit threat indicated that Dooku believed he could not win without subtracting large forces, namely Eriadu's capabilities, from the Republic's defense force.

I wondered now, given this new intelligence about the Republic's secret military, how Count Dooku thought this current situation with the clones would play out. In my final meeting with Dooku, after I had rejected his offer the final time, he hinted darkly at the Republic having a secret military force. At the time, I had discounted his parting comments as an idle threat to mislead me. A final threat I had discounted as more of his bluffs. Now it seemed I was the one who needed to reconsider what I knew.

The Jedi Order's mysterious ways needed to be brought in line. No independent organizations should be allowed to create armies without the direct consent of the Republic, let alone the Chancellor. Who knows what they were ultimately built for and what goals the Jedi had. Sure, they could serve well in the form of protecting the Republic, but a weapon that could be turned against our enemies could also be turned against ourselves if we didn't have full control over it.

I pulled up what little of the after action reports I had access to about the Battle of Geonosis and started looking over it. The losses had been rather astounding; it is fairly evident that the Jedi did not know how to use this army. This resulted in around a third of the troops deployed being dead or wounded and a quarter of the equipment sent had been destroyed. If any theater commander had a similar performance, a court-martial would be the least of his worries. The little good news is that their Navy is still in good order, we would need those ships to respond to Separatist invasions into Republic space. But at this very moment, I would describe this operation as a costly victory.

The Separatists had lost a major droid foundry planet, and hopefully with it, the majority of the droids during the fighting. To be fair, at least someone appeared to have had a brain in their skull when they began that landing, as a large contingent of mercenaries from Mandalore showed up. I was of two minds on that subject. On one hand, they were mercenaries, sell-swords, unreliable at best, and useful only in extreme situations. On the other hand, their loyalties are towards those that paid them the most.

This wasn't an extreme situation, yet they have chosen to be useful. But who's to say they would be useful or on our side in the future? In my opinion, using mercenaries in the future would be unwise. They tend to be loyal towards the highest bidder and who's to say their honor would prevent them from switching sides mid-conflict? Centralizing the army as much as possible and avoiding mercenary entanglements should be the focus of the Republic's army. Mercenary, skilled warriors might be useful for a single battle, but they could switch sides at any moment, making them untrustworthy.

However, I must admit that the mercenaries had helped the army achieve this campaign with somewhat fewer losses. The clone formations without a Mandalorian attaché had quite different statistics, in which a handful were completely depleted, as in they were destroyed down to the last soldier. There was quite a possibility that it could have been much worse than the numbers I am seeing. Maybe not in a military aspect, but these Mandalorians could be used in a training aspect. They did have a history of warfare going back well before the Old Republic and they were the only people to have had active space conflicts in the last twenty years. Purchasing their experience and using them as training units could help improve these clones or at least help improve the teamwork between the clones and the Jedi. After all, it had worked once already, by accident.

One name in particular seemed to stand out in the reports from the battle of Geonosis. An individual I had met previously, on Coruscant, in Chancellor Palpatine's office. Tanya Kryze, the young Mandalorian Representative.

She isn't a senator like Senator Padme Amidala, who had also been there. There is no legitimate political justification for a Mandalorian Representative to be negotiating with an Outer Rim territory outside the Republic, like Geonosis. Yet there she was, and because of her presence, the Mandalorians had shown up. It was a curious coincidence. Could there be some sort of connection between this Representative and the Mandalorian mercenaries? Perhaps something more firm than just a shared sector of origin. I needed to read the reports more closely and look into this. I had to wonder if Mandalore is shedding its pacifist disguise and viewing this situation as a way to unleash its old and ancient aggression. If Mandalore's aggression could be harnessed and its abilities used to retrain and rebuild the Republic's military, these mercenaries might be very useful. Palpatine would want to hear of this potential tool.

Coruscant, Senate Building

Vice-Chair Amedda

And thus the war had begun, I looked out across the surface of Coruscant as various military units were being shuffled off transports onto the planet. These were new arrivals from Kamino, the cloning homeworld that had produced these troops, and among them are the survivors of the Battle on Geonosis. It is a show of force to have all these forces here instead of deploying them directly to the battlefields, but it was also a show of pride. By showcasing all these troops marching across the square in front of the Senate, we were demonstrating to the galaxy that we had the strength to defend the Republic. I had to give it to Sidious - he knew what he was doing when he was putting together a show. It is quite impressive. All the other senators on every balcony looked quite stunned and unsure of what future lay ahead of them. Hopefully, they would come around to signing on with the new order that needed to be created. If this government were to stand, the Galactic Republic must unite into a solid, unified force to defeat the Separatists and anything else that would ever come after the Republic.

A political organization needed to replace the Republic, and if it happened to be a Sith Empire, so be it. We needed a strong, central government, and it's not like it would be anything like the old Empire. That Empire had failed because the leadership was not united. In practice, hundreds of Sith with competing ideologies on how to structure the galaxy. There would be just one, maybe two: Palpatine and whichever apprentice he eventually took. With proper management of their proclivities and purposes, I doubt most people in the galaxy would even realize that they had such a Force wielder sitting above them.

Of course, the Jedi are going to be a problem, but Palpatine assured me he has a plan in place to deal with them, so I left it up to him. My part in this plan is to ensure that the government bureaucracy is made to be efficient and kept continuity. I needed to make sure that the central government is the absolute authority. After all this was over, I would be the second most powerful person in the galaxy. No doubt the Supreme Chancellor would elevate himself, but I would still retain control over the Senate. As long as I stayed out of his way, I would have a long time to extend that control. And maybe one day, I'd witness Palpatine make a mistake, then I'd be the most powerful person in the galaxy.

But that is an issue for the future. It is amazing watching these clones, these soldiers march; they were all in time and sync. The first Republican army to step foot on Coruscant in nearly a thousand years, and they were already this well-trained.

I have already begun working on building up a large section of military contractors and other organizations to supply this new army in preparation for this coming conflict. The Separatist crisis is over and now the Galactic Civil War has begun. We have the tools at our disposal to ensure our victory; it is just a matter of how long it would take for all the tools to be ready.

Absentmindedly, I chuckled, thinking back to the first days after Palpatine took office. Before he had made that move, I had been in the process of trying to remove the remaining powers of the Chancellor. Not because I wanted the government to lose its ability to do what was necessary, but because I did not believe Chancellor Valorum had the power to properly centralize the government. I had been slowly shifting the powers that normally fell into his domain solely into either the Senate or my hands. I would have preferred to have all the power in my hands, but there was only so much I could do as a Vice-Chancellor.

It hadn't worked out in the long term. Palpatine's vote of no confidence had used my attempts to weaken Valorum to put himself into power. I had considered trying to do the same with him, but quickly realized he was a better public figure than I am. My attempts to try and improve the situation in the Separatist crisis were a prime example of how I was unready to be the leader for the Republic. I had been accused of narcissism, simply for including my visage in propaganda meant to gather supporters and loyalists to the Republic side in the Outer Rim. A narcissist, for goodness sakes! I'm no narcissist; I was just good at my job.

In any case, this army would be upgraded over the coming years, and no doubt we would have to purchase more troops as time went on, but it was a good start. With this, we would be able to hold onto some of the better equipment that would come into service. Once everything was settled and the Separatists had been destroyed, we would keep it around. Specifically, keep it around to remind everyone of the cost of rebellion. Of course, we would also have access to the remnants of the droid army as well, which would be useful in police work, that was for sure.

Shaking my head, I turned to leave. I had seen enough. Soon, this army would be deployed. A portion of them would be detached to stay on as a personal protection, while the rest would find themselves in a battlefield of droids on Separatists' worlds. My battlefield is here, though. I am organizing the loyalists to support this army in every way possible so that we could build a solid foundation that would keep this government in power.

Punworcca-class interstellar sloop, en route to Bakura, Wild Space

Count Dooku

I did not expect the Jedi to discover the clones so soon. I thought Jango Fett would have informed me if there were signs of the Republic's awareness of the clones. Thankfully this whole conflict had burst into existence as we planned it would, even if it was ahead of schedule. Unfortunately, because the plan launched ahead of schedule, adjustments will need to be made going forward now that hostilities have begun.

Perhaps the early start is for the best, as now I can move on to the next stage of the plan - trying to draw the Jedi away from the old Jedi Order and into my new Order that I would build out here with the Separatists. It would take time, but it wouldn't be impossible. There are plenty of Jedi who were disturbed with the methods the Jedi Order had taken over the last thousand years. Numerous chances for Jedi to defect to my side as they would prefer to work with me over the existing Jedi Order that is obviously growing too attached to the Republic. The fate of the Jedi who chose to side with the Republic had already been decided. But that was not for them to know.

The majority of the droid army had already escaped Geonosis long before the invasion, so I am considering that I may have made a mistake in not recalling that retreat order. So many commanders had been in fear of what was happening that they hadn't really considered the fact that the Republic's forces are inferior, both in leadership and in quantity. If we had made a stand on Geonosis, we could have done considerable damage to the Clone Army that the Republic had unleashed.

In any case, I am on my way to Bakura to reestablish the Separatist High Command there. I have also contacted my agents to find the officers that fled Geonosis to regroup on Bakura so that we can organize a chain of command as well as distribute our forces as necessary to combat the Republic.

It would take time, that much was certain. The Republic would certainly use their victory to launch further assaults on any planets they suspected of supporting the rebellion. Thus, my need to quickly organize forces and find commanders I could trust to lead them. While I have many corporate commanders, they were often focused on their own goals and entirely too independent. I needed to increase the number of trustworthy, loyal commanders I have at my disposal. I had already taken on an apprentice of sorts in Ventress, as well as another potential student, Grievous, who is not skilled in the Force. What's more, I had also taken on a Chiss woman into my service, but I am uncertain whether she would be enough to achieve the victories needed to push the Republic back. Three trustworthy commanders were too few. I would have to build my assets, but that would take time – and time is something I did not have in abundance.

However, I managed to duel with Master Yoda on equal footing and had defeated the so-called "Chosen One" in single combat. That would surely shake the confidence of the Jedi Order, and members of the Order would want answers. Those answers might lead them to switching sides. Beyond that, there were alternate methods to acquire agents.

The bravado and bravery shown by the Representative of Mandalore had made me reconsider Bariss Zotho's offer regarding cloning the girl. The Jango Fett clones are relatively successful in their mission. They enabled the Jedi to have a chance of victory, which would cement the Republic's decision to enter the war.

Using clones against clones seemed a reasonable tactic and I could already imagine how successful someone of her stature could be if they had been raised into the Force instead of taught much later. It is an intriguing idea and I am already in the process of having a clone of myself created. The clone could step in for me in certain situations, but I thought it may be too dangerous for myself to have an exact replica of myself walking around.

This is a war after all and it is a game between me and Palpatine to reshape the Republic into an Empire. In this great game, if Palpatine is faced with a choice between the Empire or myself, I knew that the Empire would win out. Accidents happen as it were. I have backup plans not only to protect myself, but to give me agents who are trustworthy in case I need to remove Palpatine as a player in this game. There would be an Empire by the end of this conflict, that much is certain. The only choices that mattered were who the players would be at the end.

Mandalore, Sundari Palace

Satine Kryze

'So war has come.' I thought as I looked over the recently arrived reports of the multitude of battles taking place in the Outer Rim. The reports are weeks out of date and slow in arriving due to the restricted diplomatic relay channel Mandalore was assigned. Our embassy in Coruscant has faithfully transmitted the full reports anyway, and so we waited for the contents. It is painstaking and in the meantime the holonet news reporting is grim. I hoped that the Republic would find some way to prevent the war, but they had failed. Now Mandalore is caught in the middle between the Republic and this new Confederacy which is a dangerous position. Our best move to minimize the deaths of our citizens is to establish our neutrality and provide both sides with enough incentives and threats to respect the neutrality. This would become easier if we had more resources or allies, more neutrals interested in a new peaceful status quo.

I needed to get in contact with Senator Merrik and tell him to try and find as many allies as possible. Perhaps we could build some sort of league of neutral worlds that didn't want to be involved in all this fighting. If we could form some sort of third faction, it might allow us to stay firmly out of this conflict.

I held out hope that we could still prevent the war, but the chances of success were slim. Walking back to peace would first require the two sides to acknowledge the other as a legitimate authority or when one side crushed the other. Shaking my head, I leaned back against my throne and wondered what I could have done to prevent it. Officially, Mandalore had taken a neutral stance in the Separatist conflict, but I couldn't help but wonder if there was some way I could have pushed the sides to come to an agreement and avoid this outcome.

I shook my head, realizing that dwelling on the past would do me no good. Now, I needed to focus on the present and protecting those I cared about. The people of Mandalore are going to be on the front lines of this conflict. Not only are we caught in between the two sides, but Mandalorians who lived outside the sector would likely be conscripted or volunteer to fight in other sectors on both sides as well. Many Mandalorians called foreign worlds their home, and they would certainly defend whichever side their sector chose, be it the Republic or the Separatists.

One solution might be to declare the Mandalore sector a neutral refuge to Mandalorians fleeing the conflict, but I wouldn't allow Mandalore to be drawn into the fighting outside of the sector. Senator Merrik would need to investigate the possibility of creating some sort of diplomatic corridor open for refugees who want to return to Mandalore. I have been reflecting on the old banishments that had expelled people out of the Mandalorian sector to begin with. I regretted some of the decisions from those days. However, if Mandalorian refugees considered our sector as a safe haven where they could live, maybe they would want to return. Not all Mandalorians would be interested in peace or safety though, it was part of the ancient ways to be at war. Nothing but a way of determining which group was better at playing the game of natural selection and deciding who was the most superior people in the galaxy.

My thoughts were interrupted with a knock on my door. I set down the report in my hand and said, "Come in." The door opened as Royal Guard Captain Rau came in with his helmet under his arm and gave a salute.

He paused and visibly gulped. "My Duchess, I have two things I would like to talk to you about." I didn't see him look concerned often, but he is quite out of sorts.

Nodding in permission, I said, "Go on Captain, tell me what concerns you."

He cringed a bit at that, "Well let's start with the bit of news. I've recently been informed that Princess Tanya was involved in the Battle of Geonosis to some extent. Tanya appears to have been drawn into it, as she was involved in what appears to be a last minute diplomatic effort to prevent the outbreak of the war. It all seems to be related to why the former Mand'alor has taken up residence on the planet."

"Yes, I remember him." I said with a nod, though learning that former Mand'alor is currently staying at Mandalore is just as pleasing to learn about as finding out that Tanya had somehow been involved in a battle again. "How was she involved, exactly?"

"Princess Tanya was making a diplomatic visit to Geonosis which then ended up having to fight to escape the planet as the invasion began. At least that is what the information I have acquired so far says. We will need to talk to her to find out more."

"I'll make sure to have her summoned back then." I said with a nod. I couldn't let my girl be involved in such a situation without me knowing the full picture. "What is the other thing you wanted to ask me about?"

"I would like to take a leave of absence."

I raised an eyebrow and leaned forward, wondering aloud, "Oh? Any particular reason why you would request a leave of absence, Captain Rau? Is there something on your mind?"

"To put it plainly Duchess, although I agree that the Mandalore sector as a whole should stay out of this conflict, many planets are going to be abused by governments within Separatist's control. I've been paying attention to the news, and I would like to offer my services to the Republic for the continuity of this war as a pilot. There's a lot more people who I can help protect out there in the Republic than I can here at home, Duchess."

That is unexpected, but I shouldn't be too surprised. One of the reasons I trusted him with such sensitive matters is due to his integrity. Nodding my head, I said, "You have my permission to do as you ask, after you have sent out the messages to have Tanya return. She must answer for what she has been getting up to over the last month." I decided that if Rau wanted to volunteer and fight for the Republic as an individual, that would benefit Mandalore. Perhaps our volunteers would help the Republic retain a favorable view of Mandalore.

"Of course, my Duchess." he said, with a bow.

"Good luck and I hope you return safely."

"I will do my duty, my Duchess" He left eagerly, bowing once more and quickly striding out of the room.

As I sat back, I wondered what the war would bring for Mandalore. Obviously, we would have more people like Captain Rau volunteering, believing that they could do good for the Republic or maybe the CIS and that would be a problem. But even more importantly, there would be a lot more people that would be pushed out of their homes across the Galaxy, hundreds of thousands of refugees and there was little Mandalore could do on that matter.

There may be one or two planets we could declare a refugee safe haven, but we just didn't have the housing, food, or resources for a fraction of what was to come. Yet another reason to build a league of neutrality. I would have to talk to Senator Merrik about this as well as a few more of the governors of the larger planets and moons under my control.

The only thing I could do now is to activate the Mandalorian Self-Defence Force. Tanya designed it for just this sort of occasion, but to actually need it is a fearful thing. The galaxy is turning upside down and we would need defenders again. It was something I had hoped Mandalore would have passed the need for, but at least Tanya hadn't let that hope blind me. We would be prepared; the SDF would be put into action, and if someone broke the neutrality of our sector, we would defend ourselves. I just had to hope that no one would breach that line and we could live out our lives peacefully.

This war would be a testing ground for my dreams. Is the opportunity of a peaceful Mandalore possible or will we regress back to a more primitive time, one where we bashed each other over the head with clubs to prove who was superior? Only time will tell and I will fight hard for that peace.

I also have to punish Tanya again for her actions. She couldn't be allowed to gallivant and get involved in military activities as White Silver without my permission. Hopefully, her explanation would satisfy my worry and disappointment. I am sorely tempted to restrict her to Mandalore for a year, both as a punishment and for her safety. If she had been participating in military activities behind my back, then what else had she been involved in? And why had she gone against my orders? Did she do it as Tanya or as White Silver? I had made it clear that she needed to clear any activities as White Silver with me, and yet, I had a feeling she had been playing with loopholes.

Ruined City, Unknown World, Wild Space

Durge

For hundreds of years, I was without sun, nothing but my own mind to draw upon. That's how long I had been buried under a mountain of cement, slowly but surely freeing myself and growing angrier at the people who shoved me into this hell.

And today, I felt something I hadn't felt in a long time. I had grown quite a lot of room since I've been trapped down here - enough room to maneuver and dig. Finally, I punctured through the ceiling material and there was a fresh breeze of air. I am nearly out, nearly free of this hell that the Mandalorians of a thousand years ago had buried me in. Soon, I would be out of this hole and be able to bring my vengeance down upon all Mandalorians. I would not let their evil culture continue. I would butcher, murder, and commit genocide upon them to remove them all from existence. Of course, I would need funding to do this, and it would be kind of hard to pull off without some kind of ship and support. Hopefully, there were a few juicy wars still fighting out there. From what I could recall from when I was shoved in here, the Sith and the Jedi were going at it, and the Mandalorians had sided with the Jedi. So not only was I well-trained on how to fight Mandalorians, I am also well-trained in fighting Jedi. And knowing them, they would have started another war since the time I've been down here, and war would grant me opportunities.

All I need to do is to be free of this pit. Once that is accomplished, the galaxy would once again know my rage. I would tear through whatever armies stood in my way of achieving my goal of destroying all Mandalorians. As a mercenary, I would do anything for enough money. Though my personal goal of destroying the Mandalorians is at the top of my list, assuming that the political landscape is somewhat similar to how I left things. Mandalore would be allied with the Jedi. Where the Jedi were, there were enemies willing to pay a good price for someone to kill them. I could do both.

Setting my mind to it, I began to dig again, my muscles shifting themselves easily into whatever shape was needed to rip at the concrete keeping me trapped. It would not be much longer, two maybe, three days at worst depending if there is anything on top of my grave. But I would be out, and I would kill the Mandalorians.