Star Wars_ Labyrinth of Evil Part 10

But then, Dooku had kept some secrets to himself. Just in case.

Manipulation of the sort that had gone into the transformation of Grievous went to the heart of what it meant to be a Sith - - if, indeed, the words heart and Sith could be used together. The essence of the dark side lay in a willingness to use any means possible to arrive at a desired end - - which, in the case of Lord Sidious, meant a galaxy brought under the dominion of a single, brilliant mind. The current war had been the result of a thousand years of careful planning by the Sith - - generations of bequeathing knowledge of the dark side from mentor to apprentice. Rarely more than two in each generation, from Darth Bane forward, Master and apprentice would devote themselves to harnessing the strength that flowed from the dark side, and to making the most of every opportunity to allow darkness to wax. Facilitating war, murder, corruption, injustice, and avarice when - and wherever possible.

a.n.a.logous to introducing a covert malignancy to the body politic of the Republic, then monitoring its spread from one organ to another until the ma.s.s reached such size that it began to disrupt vital systems...

The Sith had learned from their own internecine struggles that systems were often brought down from within when power became their reason for being. The greater the threat to that power, the tighter the threatened would cling.

That had been the case with the Jedi Order. For two hundred years before the coming of Darth Sidious the power of the dark side had been gaining strength, and yet the Jedi had made only minimal efforts to thwart it.

The Sith were pleased by the fact that the Jedi, too, had been allowed to grow so powerful, because, in the end, their sense of ent.i.tlement would blind them to what was occurring in their midst.

So, let them be placed on a pedestal. Let them grow soft and set in their ways. Let them forget that good and evil coexist. Let them look no farther than their vaunted Temple, so that they would fail to see the proverbial forest for the trees. And, by all means, let them grow possessive of the power they had gained, so that they might be that much easier to topple.

Not that all of them were blind, of course. Many Jedi were aware of the changes, the drift toward darkness.

None, perhaps, more than aged Yoda.

But the Masters who made up the Jedi Council were enslaved to the inevitability of that drift. Instead of attempting to get to the root of the coming darkness, they merely did their best to contain it. They waited for the Chosen One to be born, mistakenly believing that only he or she would be capable of restoring balance. Such was the danger of prophecy. It was into such times that Dooku had been born, placed because of a strong connection to the Force among an Order that had grown complacent, self-involved, arrogant about the power they wielded in the name of the Republic. Turning a blind eye to injustices the Republic had little interest in eradicating, because of profitable deals forged among those who held the reins of command.

While midi-chlorians determined to some degree a Jedi's ability to use the Force, other inherited characteristics also played a part - - notwithstanding the Temple's best efforts to eradicate them. Having hailed from n.o.bility and great wealth, Dooku yearned for prestige. Even as a youngster, he had been obsessed with learning all he could about the Sith and the dark side of the Force. He had toed the Jedi line; become the Temple's most agile swordmaster and instructor.

And yet the makings of his eventual transformation had been there from the start. Without the Jedi ever realizing it, Dooku had been as disruptive to the Order as would be a young boy raised in slavery on Tatooine. His discontent had continued to grow and fester; his frustration with the Republic Senate, with ineffectual Supreme Chancellor Valorum, with the shortsightedness of the Jedi Council members themselves.

A Trade Federation blockade of Naboo, rumors of a Chosen One found on a desert world, the death of Qui-Gon Jinn at the hands of a Sith... How could the Council members not see what was happening? How could they continue to claim that the dark side obscured all?

Dooku had said as much to anyone who would listen. He wore his discontent on the sleeve of his robes. Though they hadn't enjoyed the smoothest of student-teacher relations.h.i.+ps, he and Yoda had spoken openly of the portents. But Yoda was living proof of a conservatism that came with extended life. Dooku's true confidant had been Master Sifo-Dyas, who, while also disturbed by what was occurring, was too weak to take action.

The Battle of Naboo had revealed that the Sith were back in the open, and that a Sith Lord was at work somewhere. The Sith Lord: the one born with the power needed to take the final step.

Dooku had given thought to seeking him out, perhaps killing him. But even what little faith he placed in the prophecy was enough to raise doubt that the death of a Sith could halt the advance of the dark side. Another would come, and another. As it happened, there had been no need to hunt for Sidious, for it was Sidious who had approached him.

Sidious's boldness surprised him at first, but it hadn't taken long for Dooku to become fascinated by the Sith. Instead of a lightsaber duel to the death, there had been much discussion, and a gradual understanding that their separate visions for how the galaxy might be rescued from depravity were not so different after all.

But partners.h.i.+p with a Sith didn't make one a Sith. As the Jedi arts had to be taught, so, too, did the power of the dark side. And so began his long apprentices.h.i.+p. The Jedi warned that anger was the quickest path to the dark side, but anger was nothing more than raw emotion. To know the dark side one had to be willing to rise above all morality, to throw love and compa.s.sion aside, and to do whatever was necessary to bring about the vision of a world brought under control - - even if that meant taking lives.

Dooku was an eager student, and yet Sidious had continued to hold him at arm's length. Perhaps he had been working with other potential replacements for his earlier apprentice, the savage Darth Maul, who, in fact, had been nothing more than a minion, like Asajj Ventress and General Grievous. Sidious had recognized in Dooku the makings of a true accomplice - - an equal from the other camp, already trained in the Jedi arts, a master duelist, a political visionary. But he needed to gauge the depth of Dooku's commitment. One of your former confidants at the Jedi Temple has perceived the coming change, Sidious had told him. This one has contacted a group of cloners, regarding the creation of an army for the Republic. The order for the army can stand, for we will be able to make use of that army someday. But Master Sifo-Dyas cannot stand, for the Jedi cannot learn about the army until we are prepared to have them learn of it.

And so with the murder of Sifo-Dyas, Dooku had embraced the dark side fully, and Sidious had conferred on him the t.i.tle Darth Tyra.n.u.s. His final act before leaving the Jedi Order was to erase all mentions of Kamino from the Jedi archives.

Then, as Tyra.n.u.s, he had found Fett on Bogg 4; had instructed the Mandalorian to deliver himself to Kamino; and had arranged for payments to be made to the cloners through circuitous routes...

Ten years pa.s.sed. Under its new Supreme Chancellor, the Republic recovered somewhat, then grew more corrupt and beset with problems than before. As best they could, Sidious and Tyra.n.u.s helped things along.

Sidious had the ability to see deep into the future, but there was always the unexpected. With the power of the dark side, however, came flexibility.

Having traced Fett to Kamino, Obi-Wan Ken.o.bi had turned up on Geonosis.

All at once, here was Qui-Gon Jinn's former Padawan, right under Dooku's nose. But when he had informed Sidious of Obi-Wan's presence, Sidious had only said, Allow events to play out, Darth Tyra.n.u.s. For our plans are unfolding exactly as I have foreseen. The Force is very much with us.

And now, a new wrinkle: as a result of Nute Gunray's blunder at Cato Neimoidia, the Republic and the Jedi had chanced on a possible way to trace the whereabouts of Sidious and expose him. The mechno-chair's exceptional transceiver - - and others like it - - had been created for Sidious by a host of beings, a few of whom were still alive. And if agents of the Republic - - or the Jedi, for that matter - - were clever and persistent enough, they could succeed in learning more about Sidious than he would want anyone to learn...

He had to be informed, Dooku thought. Or did he? For a heartbeat he hesitated, imagining the power that could be his. Then he went directly to the hyperwave transmitter Sidious had given him, and began his transmission.

23.

Mace Windu couldn't recall a visit to the Supreme Chancellor's chambers in the Senate Office Building when his attention hadn't been drawn to Palpatine's curious and somehow unsettling collection of quasi-religious statuary. On one occasion, picking up on Mace's interest, Palpatine had offered lengthy and enthusiastic accounts of when and how he had come by some of the pieces. Acquired at an auction on Commenor; procured after many years and at great expense from a Corellian dealer in antiquities; salvaged from an ancient temple discovered on a moon of the gas giant Yavin; a gift from the Theed Council of Naboo; another gift from that world's Gungans...

Just now Mace's eyes were on a small bronzium statue Palpatine had once identified as Wapoe, the mythical artisan demiG.o.d of disguise.

"I'm relieved that you contacted me, Master Jedi," the Supreme Chancellor was saying from the far side of his expansive desk. "As I was about to contact you on a matter of some gravity."

"Then speak of your matter first, we will," Yoda said.

He was seated for a change, atop a cus.h.i.+oned chair that made him appear even smaller than he was. Mace was at Yoda's left hand, sitting with legs widely spread, forearms resting on his knees.

Palpatine touched his steepled fingers to his lower lip, then inhaled and sat back in his throne of a chair.

"This is rather awkward, Master Yoda, but I suspect that the matter I have in mind is the very one that brought you and Master Windu here. By that I mean Belderone."

Yoda compressed his lips. "Fail you, your intuition doesn't. About Belderone, much to say, we have."

Palpatine smiled without showing his teeth.

"Well, then, suppose I begin by saying that I was most pleased to learn of our recent victory there. I only wish I had been informed of your plans before the fact."

"We had no time to corroborate the intelligence we received," Mace said without hesitation. "We thought it best to commit as few Republic s.h.i.+ps as could be spared. It was essentially a Jedi operation."

"A Jedi operation," Palpatine said slowly. "And by all accounts you, that is, the Jedi, were successful in routing General Grievous's forces."

"A rout it was not," Yoda said. "To hypers.p.a.ce Grievous fled. But protecting the Separatist leaders, he was."

"I see. And now?"

Mace leaned forward. "Wait for him to resurface, and strike again."

Palpatine regarded him.

"Might I be informed of your intelligence next time? Didn't you and I have this discussion after Master Yoda was thought to have been killed at Ithor?" Before Mace could respond, he continued: "You see, the problem here is one of appearances. While I can appreciate the need to keep secret some intelligence, many in the Senate do not. In the instance of Belderone - - and largely because it const.i.tuted a Republic victory - - I was able to allay the fear of certain Senators that the Jedi are taking the war into their own hands, and are no longer accountable for their actions."

Mace's nostrils flared. "We can't allow the Senate to go on dictating the course of the war."

Yoda nodded, sagely. "Miring the Jedi in uncertainty, some of the Senate's decisions are."

He looked askance at Palpatine.

"A matter of appearances, this is."

Mace made it emphatic. "We're not rogues."

Palpatine spread his hands in a gesture of appeas.e.m.e.nt.

"Of course you're not. Nothing could be farther from the truth. But, as I say... Well, if nothing else, the Senate at least needs to believe that it is being kept informed - - particularly in light of the extraordinary powers it has granted this office."

He sat straighter in the chair.

"Not a day pa.s.ses that I am not subjected to suspicion, accusations, suggestions of ulterior motive. And, I will tell you, the suspicions do not end here, in this office. They extend to the role of the Jedi in the war. Master Jedi, we cannot, under any circ.u.mstances, be perceived as being in collusion."

Yoda frowned. "In collusion we must be, if victory the goal remains."

Palpatine smiled tolerantly.

"Master Yoda, far be it from me to lecture someone of your vast experience on the nature of politics. But the truth of the matter is that with the war now exiled to the Outer Rim, we must be judicious about the campaigns we undertake, and about the targets to which we a.s.sign our forces. If a lasting peace is ever to be achieved when this madness concludes, each and every act from this point forward must be handled with utmost delicacy."

He shook his head.

"Many worlds, loyal to the Republic, circ.u.mstance forced us to sacrifice.

Others that joined the Separatists may wish to return to the Republic.

These aren't matters with which I wish to burden the Jedi. But they are the province of this office, and I need to place them first and foremost."

"The lessons learned from a thousand years of serving the Republic aren't entirely lost on us," Mace said strongly. "The Jedi Council is fully aware of such concerns."

Palpatine took the rebuke in stride.

"Excellent. Then we can move on to other matters."

Mace and Yoda waited.

"May I inquire as to how the Jedi learned of Grievous's plan to attack Belderone?"

"A hyperwave transceiver that belonged to Viceroy Gunray was seized at Cato Neimoidia," Mace explained. "The device allowed Intelligence to decipher the Separatist code. A message transmitted by General Grievous to Viceroy Gunray regarding Belderone was monitored, and we acted on it."

Palpatine was staring at him in disbelief.

"We have the ability to listen in on Separatist transmissions?"

"Unlikely," Yoda said. "After Belderone."

Palpatine considered it, then frowned.

"For Belderone you forfeited the ability to continue monitoring the Separatists."

He took a breath, and the frown ebbed.

"Had I been included in this matter, I would have made the same choice.

But I must add, Master Jedi, that I am greatly displeased about having been circ.u.mvented. Why wasn't I told? Am I to infer from this that you no longer trust me?"

"No," Yoda almost barked. "But into this office, come and go many. Our own counsel we kept."

Palpatine's face took on sudden color.

"And yet you continue to place full trust in those around you? Do you realize how some might respond to that, when many of your Order have deliberately absented themselves from the war, and some have even gone over to the Separatist side?"

"A decade old, such reproaches are, Supreme Chancellor."

"I fear you delude yourself in this instance, Master Yoda, if you believe that the pa.s.sage of time makes thosereproaches' any less valid to your critics."

This is getting out of control, Mace thought. He calmed himself before speaking.

"There's a more important reason for your not being informed about the transceiver."

Now Palpatine waited.

"It contained a stored message - - a message transmitted to Viceroy Gunray from Darth Sidious."

Palpatine's broad forehead wrinkled in uncertainty.

"Sidious. I know the name..."

"Dooku's Sith Master, Sidious is. Learned of him on Geonosis, Master Ken.o.bi did. But eluded us, proof of him has."

"Now I recall," Palpatine said. "Obi-Wan was told that this Sidious had somehow infiltrated the Senate."

"Dismissed that, we have. But lying about Sidious, Dooku wasn't."

Palpatine swiveled his chair toward the room's immense curved window, the panorama of Coruscant.

"Another Sith."

Turning back to Yoda, he said: "Forgive me, but why is this of such great concern?"

"Carefully balanced this war has been. Republic victories, Separatist victories... In prolonging it, a part the Sith may play."

Again, Palpatine paused to consider Yoda's words.

"I think I begin to understand the reasons for your secrecy. The Jedi are attempting to expose Sidious."

"In pursuit of clues, we are."

"Might the capture of Sidious end the war?"