Chapter 123: A Building Crisis
*Warning - Chapters 122-126 were all published together. Returning Readers, make sure you're picking up the story from where you left off :-).
Chapter 123: A Building Crisis
– Naboo – 23.6 BBY –
Padmé was pensive as she and Queen Réillata considered the facts. Between her own observations of the Senate, the privileged information she’d gotten from Izuku, and more that had been discovered by the Queen’s efforts, the outcome of the growing crisis was becoming painfully clear. Despite all her own could do, despite all the Peace Party attempted, and despite the Jedi doing their impressive best to slow the rush of events…
“There’s going to be a war. There are too many powerful people on both sides that have already committed to it. The flash point has yet to be determined, and the Jedi might well hold it off for a couple of years yet, but the Separatist movement already has too much backing and too much military power waiting in the wings. Given the Republic’s own quiet ship buildup, there’s no way they’ll just let all those worlds go, either. Even ignoring the insult of losing five percent or more of the Republic at once, a lot of the worlds involved are either staggeringly wealthy or control resources the Core needs badly.”
Sighing, Padmé nodded along with her sovereign’s conclusion. While she was technically the senator for all thirty-six Republic systems of the Chommell sector, there was a reason that four of the last five senators had been from Naboo. Despite their relative isolationism, Naboo was arguably the wealthiest and most prominent world in the sector. Of the other thirty-five other Republic member worlds, only Chommell Minor came close to the same level of affluence, and the one non-Naboo senator in recent decades had been from that world. There might be another 40,000 ‘settled dependencies’ in the overall sector, but that included everything from moons, to single-asteroid mines, to tiny homesteads of a half dozen people. The number sounded impressive, but the reality was that their sector of the Mid Rim was somewhat sparsely populated. Only the 36 Republic member worlds really mattered, and of them, Naboo was currently by far the most prominent and influential.
Which is why Padmé was here.
Queen Réillata wasn’t technically her boss, but she was the next best thing to it. She, at the very least, represented the single most important government in the sector. Which also happened to be Padmé’s homeworld. Fair or not, the Queen of Naboo was the most able to influence policy for the sector. Not that Padmé honestly minded that. Réillata didn’t agree with her on everything, but they generally had a similar mind toward policy, and the older woman was another keen intellect to bounce the political situation off of. Unfortunately, they both shared the current analysis of what was happening.
“Which means I can’t oppose the new Military Creation Act the way I instinctively want to. If I didn’t know about the Trade Federation’s secret buildup, or Kuat’s for that matter, I would be justified in calling it an unnecessary escalation. As it is, with war all but completely inevitable…”
The Queen nodded grimly.
“True. Yet, even if you can’t responsibly fight against it, you can still push for alterations to the legislation. The current version is nonsensical, little more than a massive budget splash without providing hard guidelines for what that budget will be used on. The tiny bit of framework that does exist only claims expenditures for hardware. There’s no provision for raising an officer core to handle the new fleets, even. That’s something that’s even more time-consuming than building the ships, and the current military academies in the Core certainly don’t turn out enough officers. If we can’t stop the bill, we can at least make the damn thing make sense.”
Padmé nodded. When she’d gotten past the reflex to just say ‘no’ to creating a military at all and started looking into the nuts and bolts of the bill…the damn thing was possibly the worst written piece of pseudo-legislation she’d ever see. It was like someone had been actively trying to make it as vague as possible. Which, of course, is almost certainly what had happened. After all, groups like Kuat were already building the ships which would be needed, but outlining that fact in the legislation text would give the game away, as it were.
Still, while she could understand why the powers pushing for it had tried to obfuscate things, that only made sense to a point. Not including provisions for now to raise and pay the manpower required for a new military was the height of abject stupidity. It was also, thankfully, an almost pathetically easy attack vector to pump the brakes a bit and force the Warhawks to come to the table and be reasonable if they wanted the bill to pass.
Taking a moderate position with her considerable power bloc, demanding that provisions for handling the long-term pay of an army, which would be an ongoing cost for the entire existence of the military? That would signal on one side that she’d be willing to help those that wanted the bill to pass to get it through, while pointing out to those resisting it that they should be demanding an explanation for how the military would continue to fund itself after its creation. Creating a military was expensive, yes. But keeping one going was worse. That had, in fact, been why the previous Republic military had been dismantled and the Judiciary Forces repeatedly downsize. Payroll and logistics were a constant ongoing drain to the Republic’s finances that needed to be justified over the long term. Which, given that politicians were rarely long-term thinkers, explained a lot about the current state of things.
The fact that poking those specific holes would encourage a more defense-minded military, with more reasonable expenditures, soothed her conscience. Forcing the Warhawks to explain to the fiscally conservative members of the senate how they would raise and pay an army would control the size and shape of the result. Beefing up nodal defenses and building defensive stations against aggression was only sensible if the Separatists really were planning to launch a war. But restricting how large they could go while getting the people who weren’t eager for new taxes onboard? That would at least limit the military size to something that wouldn’t easily allow the Republic to become the aggressors.
Come to think of it…
“We might also want to look into establishing some moral limitations into law. I’m not at all sure what is still on the books as far as War Crime law goes. Treatment of prisoners, rules against orbital bombardment of garden worlds, neutrality of medical ships, that sort of thing. I know such laws existed during the High Republic, and the League specifically made them part of their charter…but I think they went by the wayside for the Republic during the New Sith Wars. I’m unsure about what, if anything, is still on the books.”
The Queen looks startled at that, then serious as she considered the implications. She pursed her lips and nodded.
“Definitely. Even a lot of the Warhawks will likely back reinstating those if they’ve lapsed. No one sane wants orbital bombardment of garden worlds to make a return to common practice. I’ll order what currently is on the book, and what used to be, looked into by the staff. While they do that, however, we need to discuss something else. Specifically, the fact that my term limits are coming up. Given what we suspect is coming, we may want to combine our efforts to put a thumb on the scales of the next election here on Naboo, to make sure we don’t get a pacifist who will try and undo our defensive projects right at a time we might desperately need them.”
Padmé frowned unhappily at that but couldn’t disagree. She’d chosen not to try and influence the election after hers, feeling it would be an abuse of power. But she couldn’t deny how potentially disastrous it would be to get the wrong sort of Queen right when a major galactic war was about to kick off. Feeling like she had a frightening understanding of just how the current system of nepotism and good-old-boy networks might have originally started with the best of intentions, she nevertheless engaged in discussing the upcoming elections.
Even if she did feel a bit dirty about it…
… … …
– Raxus Secundus – 23.5 BBY –
The various representatives of galactic powers in the room, including the heads of the Trade Federation, Banking Clan, Commerce Guild, and Techno Union, sat for a moment in silence. Others present included a number of influential sector senators, or representatives from particularly wealthy individual worlds. Finally, the one who had called them all here, Count Dooku of Serreno, spoke into the silence.
“So there you have it, gentlemen. The Republic Senate has killed the Financial Reform Act, despite the cheering response to my own Raxus Address, as it is now being called. I believe the only recourse left to any of us is to officially come together. To create a new Confederacy of Independent Systems, and secede from the Republic together. If any one of our worlds were to do so alone, the Republic would punish us. But by standing together we can create a bulwark too great for them to dismantle.”
Bec Lawise, Senator for the Maldrood Sector, was the first to lean forward and respond.
“I think we are all interested, Count. There remain…questions, however. Such as how we could expect to make this stick, particularly with the Republic trying to reform their military. Even if the Military Creation Act is still stalled, just the revitalization done to the ORD systems in response to the League of Free Stars and their Crusade against the Hutts is enough to be concerning. Many of the Core Worlds have their own potent fleets, as well. Many of which have been not-so-quietly expanding beyond the strict limits of the Russan agreements.”
The statement got a dignified nod from the Count, who easily fielded the implied question. The man was a puppet asking it on his behalf, after all. A few of the groups here weren’t exactly popular with the greater collection of worlds he’d put together. Time to emphasize why they should get along despite that.
“That, my friends, is why the Techno Union and Trade Federation in particular are present here today. Both have seen their interests being unfairly restricted by the Republic, and are willing to supply Droid Armies and Droid-supported Fleets for defense purposes. Something which will ensure that the Republic is unable to simply squash us with its own bloated weight.”
There was a shift among the group as he calmly delivered that statement. No doubt many or most of those present had been either already aware of the buildup to some degree, or suspicious it existed. Yet, hearing it confirmed made it far more real. The debate and questions would, of course, continue for some time. But the Count could already tell he had most of them. As for those few he had yet to convince? Well, at little bit of subtle Force would bring them into line easily enough…
… … …
– Coruscant – 23.4 BBY –
“Damn it. Why the hell did someone like Dooku have to pop up right now and pull the entire successionist movement together. The man was polarizing even as a Jedi, let alone now.”
His Serene Highness, Prince Bail Prestor Organa, First Chairman and Viceroy of Alderaan, whose formal name and title were entirely too long for his own liking, was the one who had given voice to the thought. Around him were other members of the Loyalist Committee, all of them equally dedicated to preventing the Republic from fracturing. Each of those seated in the comfortable meeting lounge represented still more senators through their own connections, a collective that cross the usual party lines. The total collection created one of the core power blocs, the Loyalists, who were opposing the unconstitutional succession of various systems from the Republic.
There wasn’t any provision for leaving the Republic once you joined it, for some very good reasons. Not least of which was that many of those systems now trying to leave were smack in the middle of the Republic. Simply letting them leave was, all of them felt, fundamentally out of the question. Doing so would disrupt major trade lanes, potentially even the breaking critical connections along the six major superlanes. The incredibly well-scouted Corellian Run, Corellian Trade Spine, Hydian Way, Perlemian Trade Route, and Rimma Trade Run. Those six routes carried something like seventy percent of all trade within the Republic, and had been scouted by the Republic at incredible expense.
The idea of letting some idiot in charge of a single world along one of them disrupt such a lane by leaving the Republic was utterly out of the question. Doubly so when many of those supporting Dooku’s new ‘Confederacy of Independent Systems’ were the exact sort of corrupt merchant powers and megacorprations that would attempt to put a toll on use of the routes. The loss of resources worlds in the Outer Rim would also be bad, of course. But, in reality, it was the risk to the superlanes and the hypercomm network both that were utterly unacceptable. Creating and maintaining such systems were fundamental reasons that the Republic existed at all.
“While I agree with the sentiment, what’s done is done. Systems are formalizing their withdraw by the hundreds to join his movement, soon to be the thousands. The question is how we go about stopping it. There has to still be away, short of war. And if not…than we may need to subtly bolster the militarists’ position.”
Darsanna, Senator of Glee Anselm, had been the one to voice the response, though several others around the table were nodding at what he’d said. Though a few others looked unhappy with the latter part of his statement. The unhappiest of them, Mon Mothma, spoke up next.
“We can’t let it come to that. Fighting over critical worlds would be even more disruptive than them leaving peacefully. We have to find some way to bring them back to the negotiating table.”
Bail shook his head, frowning as he reluctantly spoke up with a bit more information.
“I’m afraid it might be too late for that. My contacts among the Jedi, along with some information Senator Amidala passed on to me, gives a rather strong indication that several groups were already arming heavily even before the declaration. She had proof that the Trade Federation was both building battle droids in bulk numbers…and converting some of their Lucrehulk fleet into battleships. They wouldn’t be doing either if they weren’t seriously preparing for a fight.”
Several people around the table looked stricken…but a few others did not. Curiously, the most silent of them all was one of their number who was normally the most bombastic. Orn Free Taa had a great deal of influence in the Outer Rim, where many of the Separatists worlds were concentrated. Yet, he’d been quieter than usual in the last few months, making moves that Bail wouldn’t have expected from the overweight Twi’lek. He knew it had something to do with the League of Free Worlds, but what it was and why the man was doing whatever it was, he had no idea.
As others began to speak, voicing their own ideas and adding any information they might have, most of them realized that they weren’t going to get much sleep tonight. The Count and his rabble rousing had pushed things forward in a way that couldn’t be so easily taken back as mere words, and it was up to them to figure out what to do about it…
… … …
– LIS Headquarters, Tythe – 23.3 BBY –
Figrun Aharo was a very tired Bith.
Admittedly, he was largely a satisfied one as well, given that he’d seen his life’s work toward the eradication of slavery take massive strides forward that he couldn’t have imagined possible a decade ago. The axiom that ‘no good deed goes unpunished’ had certainly struck hard in his case, however, leaving him somehow in charge of a galactic-scale intelligence network. One that wasn’t just focused on slavery, but was a major organ of a new galactic power. He didn’t regret that, given what it had allowed him to become a part of, but it was a hell of a long way from his days as part of the Underground Hyperlane.
None of which changed the fact that he was approaching exhaustion, pulled in too many directions at once, trying to build up both an internal and external intelligence net on such a scale. The fact that his ultimate boss had a useful but exasperating ability to practically stumble his way into critical and galaxy-view-shattering revelations did not, in fact, help his state of mind. Unfortunately, as he and his people had rolled up as much of the networks connected to ‘The Prophets of the Darkside,’ it had only confirmed his own growing suspicions.
The Sith, whoever they were behind their false names, were very obviously pushing the galaxy toward full scale war by antagonizing and prodding both sides of the current crisis in their galactic neighbor. Very likely, they’d been doing so for centuries, making Figrun seriously question how much of the corruption since the Ruusan Reformation was corrupt, greedy, and incompetent politics…and how much had been intentionally created by malice.
It was not a comfortable thought.
Nor was the fact that following the trails and patterns from those networks had revealed some light penetration of their own space by those same groups. Already, he’d had to authorize a deniable operation to eliminate a front-runner in the elections on a former Hutt world, now that he had definitive proof in his hands that the man was a puppet for someone in the Republic. The proof wouldn’t hold up in a court system they barely even had yet, forcing him to handle the matter in a distasteful way that he knew he could never let his ultimate boss find out about. As good as Midoriya was as a leader, as shockingly pragmatic as he could be in a lot of ways, such political assassinations would never be something he’d authorize if he knew about them.
Just like the well-intentioned idiot-savant would likely hand over his own authority if he thought the League had become stable enough. Thankfully, the near-worship the massive populations of ex-slaves had for the man meant it would never be possible, whatever their hero clearly hoped. No, even without Figrun putting his finger on the scale, it was likely that the League would be led dynastically for at least a century or two. Assuming, of course, one of his lovers eventually had a kid.
That wasn’t critical just yet, and his closest pair in Secura and Hatsume both presented issues there. Of very different kinds, admittedly. Jedi entanglements on one side, crazy on the other. Eventually, he’d need an heir, though. Possibly via the Ambassador? Her Handmaiden would be better, Sabé being of a more practical basic personality. But the Ambassador was more prominent on the political side of things, and would make for a better visible power couple. Ah well, time would tell, and there was no need to push for it just yet. Better the Ambassador be over her stint as a Senator first, anyway, before he considered pressuring his ultimate boss to secure a legacy.
For now, he needed to get back to trying to sort out the clusterfuck that was going on with the Republic and its separatist faction. Count Dooku was particularly suspicious, in light of these Dark Side idiots having at least one fallen Jedi among their numbers. He would need to work on increasing their penetration of the various factions that made up this ‘new’ movement, to see if he could prove those suspicions correct…
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A/N 1: Here we see some different perspectives on the Separatist Crisis as it really gets rolling. Dooku's Raxsus address would originally have happened in 24 BBY, but got delayed here by the Hutt Crusade drawing too much attention. Likewise, a few people have changed positions, or shuffled where they stand. Padme is the most obvious, not a part of the Peace Party this time and also not on the Loyalist Committee.