One Path Chapter 39--Awakening
Title:Awakening
Author: Lionchilde
Summary: "There are those of us, including your wife, who fear that when the war is over, we'll have another fight on our hands," Bail reminded him.
Rating: PG
Length: Around 3200 words
Category:Gen
Pairings/Characters: Obidala
A/N: One Path Chapter 39. Set during an alternate RotS.
Awakening
Padme woke as Obi Wan entered the room. He murmured a quiet apology and didn't turn on the lights. She closed her eyes again, sleepily listening to the rustle of his clothing as he undressed for bed. A few minutes later, he slid under the covers on the other side of the bed and curled his arms around her, gently pulling her back against his chest. A smile curved her lips as his cheek settled against her shoulder, but she sensed his restlessness almost immediately.
"What's wrong?" she whispered.
"He was asking me about telling Anakin," explained Obi Wan.
"We're going to have to tell him eventually," she sighed.
"I know. Just--not right now," he said.
"Are you sure?" she asked.
"I don't like, keeping it from him, Padme," Obi Wan replied. "We don't have secrets from each other. But he is so often unstable already. The war is a great strain on him--"
"On everyone," she pointed out.
"Yes, but more so on Anakin. There is too much at stake. His fear for you could push him…too far," he finished.
She knew, though, that it wasn't what he had been about to say. She closed our eyes again and sighed. "I was dreaming about Tatooine."
"A nightmare?" he tensed against her back.
"No, it was a good dream," she shook her head. "All of us there together. Ani was telling the twins about the day that you and Anakin took him to meet Dexter Jettster. You and Owen were at the table arguing about vaporators."
"Vaporators!" he laughed. "Well, that would never happen."
"Why not?" she smiled.
"I don't know the first thing about moisture farming. I wouldn't dare tell your friend Owen his own trade," he said.
"You knew enough in the dream," she replied. "I think we stayed there or something. Or maybe we went back after the Battle of Naboo."
"You gave up being Queen?" his voice rose slightly in surprise.
"Why shouldn't I? You gave up being a Jedi for me," she reminded him.
"My darling," his lips softly brushed her shoulder. "I would give up anything for you. Even my own life."
"Don't say such things," she chided around a sudden ache in her throat.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you," he apologized.
Padme shook her head. "I guess I'm just being overly emotional, Obi Wan. I'm sorry."
"Well. You do have an excuse to be emotional," he chuckled. "What else happened in the dream?"
"Anakin and Qui-Gon came for dinner," she explained.
"Qui-Gon was alive?" he asked.
"He was Anakin's Master. They landed in these odd fighters. They weren't Jedi Starfighters…something else, but I can't remember. Luke and Leia ran out to meet them, and Anakin picked them up and swung them around in his arms and told them to go wake up Artoo, the same way I used to do with Pooja and Ryoo. Then you and Ani both bowed to Qui-Gon, and everybody went inside for dinner. You'll never guess what we had," she laughed.
Her laughter was infectious. "Fried nerfsteak and pickled Garto eggs."
"The Skywalker Special," she nodded.
His arms tightened around her, and Padme felt him begin to shake with mirth. He pressed his face into her shoulder, trying to stifle his amusement, but it was no use. Her own composure melted as he gave in, and she surrendered to a fit of giggles. It was several minutes before either of them could speak again, and when they did, Padme's voice had turned quiet, wistful.
"Do you think we could go there when the war is over?" she asked.
"You want me to be a moisture farmer?" he teased.
"No, of course not. But I did promise Beru that I would visit. And I'm sure she'd like to know that the comlink story had a happy ending," she said.
"When the war is over, we'll do whatever you like. Go wherever you want," he promised.
"All I want is for us to be together," she murmured, closing her eyes again.
"Always," he told her softly.
***
The sound of the door chime woke both Padme and Obi Wan late that night. She fumbled with the covers, struggling to sit up, but felt his hand slip onto her shoulder. He kissed her neck gently, his voice still thick with sleep as he murmured into her skin, "Stay here, I'll see who it is."
She settled back against the pillows, shivering, and pulled the blankets closer as the warmth of his body withdrew. Obi Wan quickly dressed and strode out of the bedroom. He found the overhead lights already on and raised his right hand to his face, squinting in the sudden, harsh glare. Once his eyes began to adjust, he saw that Threepio was already leading Bail Organa to the couch.
"I'm sorry to wake you," the Senator said, scrubbing his own face tiredly and stifling a yawn.
"It's all right," Obi Wan shook his head automatically.
He moved toward the couch as well, and by the time he reached it, Padme had appeared in their bedroom doorway. Pulling her robe around her shoulders, she rubbed her eyes sleepily and made her way over to them. Threepio was still hovering nearby, and she turned to the droid as she lowered herself onto the couch beside Obi Wan.
"Threepio, bring some caf for our guest," she said softly.
"Oh, right away, mistress," said the droid, tottering his way into the kitchen.
"I would have come earlier," Bail apologized again. "I had to make sure I wasn't being watched."
"Watched?" repeated Padme.
"By whom?" Obi Wan wanted to know.
In response, Bail leaned forward, pulling a holocube from his pocket. He slid it into the recessed projector slot in the table and sat back again, templing his fingers. He waited silently as the Kenobis read through the report. They did so, frowning, and by the time they both finished, Obi Wan's hand had moved onto his wife's shoulder. Padme was pale, her face pinched and drawn with worry. The former Jedi's expression was grim.
"Thank you, Bail," he said quietly.
"The Jedi still have friends in the Senate," Bail's lips quirked slightly.
"For now," Padme murmured. They all knew that, even among those Senators who opposed Palaptine's policies and were supportive of their efforts to induce him to surrender his executive powers, many now distrusted the Jedi Order.
"Do you think the amendment will pass?" Obi Wan asked her.
She closed her eyes. Her answer was a silent nod, and her hand moved to cover his, gently squeezing his fingers.
He ran his free hand over his face. "Then I had better go to the temple now. Speak with Masters Windu and Yoda."
"I'll walk out with you," offered Bail, retrieving the holocube. "I have a few more stops to make tonight."
"We should rally everyone we can before the proposal is made," Padme told her colleague.
He nodded, "Tomorrow."
"Here," she agreed. "It's safer than the offices."
Bail gave another nod, and Obi Wan leaned forward, his right hand moving to touch his wife's jaw. He turned her face toward his and gently kissed her. "I love you."
"I love you," she smiled.
The two men left the apartment, and neither spoke as they turned up the hall toward the turbo lift. Bail seemed lost in his thoughts, one hand pressed pensively over his mouth. Obi Wan's own mind was already focusing on the discussion ahead of him, weighing possible reactions, testing the Force in search of direction. Bail paused just before they reached the lift, and his hand came down on the general's shoulder in a silent request for him to wait. Obi Wan turned.
"Have you given any thought to what you'll do when the war is over?" Bail asked.
Obi Wan's eyebrow rose at the question. "Padme and I intend to go back to Naboo. We're both going to retire from public life. Raise our family."
"There are those of us, including your wife, who fear that when the war is over, we'll have another fight on our hands," Bail reminded him.
"But that fight is going to take place on the Senate floor. I promise you, Padme has no intention of leaving until it's over," said Obi Wan.
"It may begin on the Senate floor," allowed Bail. "But I begin to suspect that it won't stay there. Others do as well. There is a place for you and your family on Alderaan, Obi Wan. If you want it."
"What are you asking me, Bail?" Obi Wan's eyes widened as he regarded his friend.
"I don't believe in armed resistance. I never have. I'm not a Separatist, Obi Wan. You know that. But things are…changing. Times are changing. We all may have to change with them, or the Republic may be lost," Bail said.
"Lost!" Obi Wan repeated in disbelief.
"You haven't been here," Bail reminded him calmly. "The Chancellor carves away chunks of our freedom and bandages them with little scraps of security. Coruscant itself exists under what is practically martial law. In many ways, Palpatine already rules the galaxy."
"It's that bad?" Obi Wan asked, still only half willing to believe it. "Why hasn't Padme told me?"
"She doesn't want to burden you," said Bail. "Besides, dealing with the greedy, grasping fools in the Senate and Chancellor Palpatine's incessant maneuvering for power are her way of safeguarding the Republic. Fighting the Separatists is yours. But it may not be that way much longer. Both of you may have to keep fighting--fighting Palpatine."
Obi Wan closed his eyes. "If and when it comes to that…I will do everything I can to help. But there is something I must ask you to do for me."
"Of course," agreed the Senator.
"This amendment will give Palpatine control of the Jedi Council itself. If that happens, the Jedi Order will be subject to the Chancellor's direct authority. We suspect that the Sith Lord we have been looking for may, in fact, be part of Palpatine's staff. Controlling him. The Jedi are my family's only protection should I be discovered acting in military opposition to him," said Obi Wan.
Bail reached forward, gripping the general's arm tightly. "Padme and the children will be safe on Alderaan. I promise you that."
***
Obi Wan sat silently between the two Jedi Masters, once again in Yoda's quarters. The sense of peace and security that he had felt here earlier today was gone now. Now the room was full of tension and worry. Bail had entrusted him with the holocube before their parted, and the blue holoprojected report now floated between them. The air crackled with charged silence as they absorbed its implications.
"The Chancellor's goal in this--unclear to me it is. Though nominally in command of the Council, the Senate may place him, the Jedi he cannot control. Moral, our authority has always been; much more than merely legal. Simply follow orders, Jedi do not!" declared Yoda.
"I don't think he intends to control the Jedi," Mace said. "By placing the Jedi Council under the control of the Office of the Supreme Chancellor, this amendment will give him the constitutional authority to disband the Order itself."
"Surely you cannot believe this is his intention, Master," Obi Wan murmured.
"His intention?" Mace said darkly. "Perhaps not. But his intentions are irrelevant; all that matters now is the intent of the Sith Lord who has our government in his grip. And the Jedi Order may be all that stands between him and galactic domination. What do you think he will do?"
"Authority to disband the Jedi, the Senate would never grant," Yoda shook his head.
"The Senate will vote to grant exactly that. With this amendment," Mace replied.
"The implications of this, they must not comprehend!" protested Yoda.
"It no longer matters what they comprehend. They know where the power is," said Mace.
"But even disbanded, even without legal authority, still Jedi we would be. Jedi Knights served the Force long before there was a Galactic Republic, and serve it we will when this Republic is but dust," Yoda reminded him.
"Master Yoda, that day may be coming sooner than any of us think. That day may be today," Mace warned, looking toward Obi Wan in a tacit plea for support.
"We don't know what the Sith Lord's plans may be," Obi Wan began, "but we can be certain that Palpatine is not to be trusted. This draft resolution is not the product of some overzealous Senator; we may be sure Palpatine wrote it himself and passed it along to someone he controls--to make it look like the Senate is once more 'forcing him to reluctantly accept extra powers in the name of security. Senator Organa and I are afraid that they will continue to do so until one day he's 'forced to reluctantly accept' dictatorship for life!"
"I am convinced this is the next step in a plot aimed directly at the heart of the Jedi," Mace added. "This is a move toward our destruction. The Dark Side of the Force surrounds the Chancellor."
"As it has surrounded and cloaked the Separatists since even before the war began. If the Chancellor is being influenced through the Dark Side, this whole war may have been, from the beginning, a plot by the Sith to destroy the Jedi Order," Obi Wan continued the thought.
"Speculation!" interrupted Yoda, pounding the floor with his gimer stick for emphasis. "On theories such as these we cannot rely. Proof we need. Proof!
"Proof may be a luxury we cannot afford. We must be ready to act!" Windu declared, and Obi Wan saw a dangerous gleam in the Jedi's eye as he finished the statement.
"Act?" he asked mildly. Despite the conversation that he had just had with Bail, he was not convinced that such drastic measures were needed--not yet. He hoped, in fact, that they would not be at all.
"He cannot be allowed to move against the Order. He cannot be allowed to prolong the war needlessly. Too many Jedi have died already. He is dismantling the Republic itself! I have seen life outside the Republic; so have you, Obi Wan. Slavery. Torture. Endless war." Mace's face took on a haunted shadow. "I have seen it in Nar Shaddaa, and I saw it on Haruun Kal. I saw what it did to Depa, and to Sora Bulq. Whatever its flaws, the Republic is our sole hope for justice, and for peace. It is our only defense against the Dark. Palpatine may be about to do what the Separatists cannot: bring down the Republic. If he tries, he must be removed from office."
"Removed?" Obi Wan said, hoping he could bring a touch of clarity to the discussion, remind his weary friend exactly what it was they were discussing. "You mean, arrested?"
Yoda shook his head. "To a dark place, this line of thought will lead us. Great care, we must take."
"The Republic is civilization. It's the only one we have," Mace argued, and the two powerful Jedi locked gazes. "We must be prepared for radical action. It is our duty."
"Master Windu. Mace," Obi Wan said slowly. "You're talking about treason. We must tread carefully."
"I'm not afraid of words, Obi Wan! If it's treason, then so be it. I would do this right now, if I had the Council's support. The real treason would be failure to act!" Mace insisted.
"Such an act, destroy the Jedi Order it could," Yoda said. "Lost the trust of the public, we have already--"
"No disrespect, Master Yoda, but that's a politician's argument. We can't let public opinion stop us from doing what's right," interrupted Mace.
"Convinced it is right, I am not," Yoda replied severely. "Working behind the scenes we should be, to uncover Lord Sidious! To move against Palpatine while the Sith still exist--this may be part of the Sith plan itself, to turn the Senate and the public against the Jedi! So that we are not only disbanded, but outlawed."
Mace was half out of his seat. "To wait gives the Sith the advantage--"
"Have the advantage already, they do!" Yoda declared, jabbing the gimer stick toward the younger Master. "Increase their advantage we will, if in haste we act!"
"Masters, Masters, please," Obi Wan called. He looked from one to the other and inclined his head respectfully. "Perhaps there is a middle way."
"Ah, of course: Kenobi the Negotiator," Mace Windu collapsed against the back of his chair with a rueful smile. "I should have guessed. That is why you asked for this meeting, isn't it? To mediate our differences. If you can."
"So sure of your skills you are?" Yoda folded his fists around the head of his stick. "Easy to negotiate, this matter is not!"
Obi Wan kept his head down. "It seems to me that Palpatine himself has given us an opening. He has said--both to you, Master Windu, and in the holonet address he gave following his rescue--that General Grievous is the true obstacle to peace. Let us forget about the rest of the Separatist leadership, for now. Let Nute Gunray and San Hill and the rest run wherever they like, while we put every available Jedi and all of our agents--the whole of Republic Intelligence, if we can--to work on locating Grievous himself. This will force the hand of the Sith Lord; he will know that Grievous cannot elude our full efforts for long, once we devote ourselves exclusively to his capture. It will draw Sidious out; he will have to make some sort of move, if he wishes the war to continue."
"If?" Mace repeated. "The war has been a Sith operation from the beginning, with Dooku on one side and Sidious on the other--it has always been a plot aimed at the Jedi. To bleed us dry of our youngest and best. To make us into something we were never intended to be. I had the truth in my hands years ago--back on Haruun Kal, in the first months of the war. I had it, but I did not understand how right I was."
"Seen glimpses of this truth, we all have," Yoda said sadly. "Our arrogance it is, which has stopped us from fully opening our eyes."
"Until now," Obi Wan corrected gently. "We understand now the goal of the Sith Lord, we know his tactics, and we know where to look for him. His actions will reveal him. He cannot escape us. He will not escape us."
Yoda and Mace frowned at each other for another moment, then both of them turned to Obi Wan and inclined their heads.
"Seen to the heart of the matter, young Kenobi has," Yoda decided.
Mace nodded. "Yoda and I will remain on Coruscant, monitoring Palpatine's advisers and lackeys; we'll move against Sidious the instant he is revealed. But who will capture Grievous? I have fought him blade-to-blade. He is more than a match for most Jedi."
"We'll worry about that once we find him," Obi Wan said, and a smile touched his lips as, for the first time he actually became aware of his former teacher's presence in the room. "If I listen hard enough, I can almost hear Qui-Gon reminding me that until the possible becomes actual, it is only a distraction."
Author: Lionchilde
Summary: "There are those of us, including your wife, who fear that when the war is over, we'll have another fight on our hands," Bail reminded him.
Rating: PG
Length: Around 3200 words
Category:Gen
Pairings/Characters: Obidala
A/N: One Path Chapter 39. Set during an alternate RotS.
Awakening
Padme woke as Obi Wan entered the room. He murmured a quiet apology and didn't turn on the lights. She closed her eyes again, sleepily listening to the rustle of his clothing as he undressed for bed. A few minutes later, he slid under the covers on the other side of the bed and curled his arms around her, gently pulling her back against his chest. A smile curved her lips as his cheek settled against her shoulder, but she sensed his restlessness almost immediately.
"What's wrong?" she whispered.
"He was asking me about telling Anakin," explained Obi Wan.
"We're going to have to tell him eventually," she sighed.
"I know. Just--not right now," he said.
"Are you sure?" she asked.
"I don't like, keeping it from him, Padme," Obi Wan replied. "We don't have secrets from each other. But he is so often unstable already. The war is a great strain on him--"
"On everyone," she pointed out.
"Yes, but more so on Anakin. There is too much at stake. His fear for you could push him…too far," he finished.
She knew, though, that it wasn't what he had been about to say. She closed our eyes again and sighed. "I was dreaming about Tatooine."
"A nightmare?" he tensed against her back.
"No, it was a good dream," she shook her head. "All of us there together. Ani was telling the twins about the day that you and Anakin took him to meet Dexter Jettster. You and Owen were at the table arguing about vaporators."
"Vaporators!" he laughed. "Well, that would never happen."
"Why not?" she smiled.
"I don't know the first thing about moisture farming. I wouldn't dare tell your friend Owen his own trade," he said.
"You knew enough in the dream," she replied. "I think we stayed there or something. Or maybe we went back after the Battle of Naboo."
"You gave up being Queen?" his voice rose slightly in surprise.
"Why shouldn't I? You gave up being a Jedi for me," she reminded him.
"My darling," his lips softly brushed her shoulder. "I would give up anything for you. Even my own life."
"Don't say such things," she chided around a sudden ache in her throat.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you," he apologized.
Padme shook her head. "I guess I'm just being overly emotional, Obi Wan. I'm sorry."
"Well. You do have an excuse to be emotional," he chuckled. "What else happened in the dream?"
"Anakin and Qui-Gon came for dinner," she explained.
"Qui-Gon was alive?" he asked.
"He was Anakin's Master. They landed in these odd fighters. They weren't Jedi Starfighters…something else, but I can't remember. Luke and Leia ran out to meet them, and Anakin picked them up and swung them around in his arms and told them to go wake up Artoo, the same way I used to do with Pooja and Ryoo. Then you and Ani both bowed to Qui-Gon, and everybody went inside for dinner. You'll never guess what we had," she laughed.
Her laughter was infectious. "Fried nerfsteak and pickled Garto eggs."
"The Skywalker Special," she nodded.
His arms tightened around her, and Padme felt him begin to shake with mirth. He pressed his face into her shoulder, trying to stifle his amusement, but it was no use. Her own composure melted as he gave in, and she surrendered to a fit of giggles. It was several minutes before either of them could speak again, and when they did, Padme's voice had turned quiet, wistful.
"Do you think we could go there when the war is over?" she asked.
"You want me to be a moisture farmer?" he teased.
"No, of course not. But I did promise Beru that I would visit. And I'm sure she'd like to know that the comlink story had a happy ending," she said.
"When the war is over, we'll do whatever you like. Go wherever you want," he promised.
"All I want is for us to be together," she murmured, closing her eyes again.
"Always," he told her softly.
***
The sound of the door chime woke both Padme and Obi Wan late that night. She fumbled with the covers, struggling to sit up, but felt his hand slip onto her shoulder. He kissed her neck gently, his voice still thick with sleep as he murmured into her skin, "Stay here, I'll see who it is."
She settled back against the pillows, shivering, and pulled the blankets closer as the warmth of his body withdrew. Obi Wan quickly dressed and strode out of the bedroom. He found the overhead lights already on and raised his right hand to his face, squinting in the sudden, harsh glare. Once his eyes began to adjust, he saw that Threepio was already leading Bail Organa to the couch.
"I'm sorry to wake you," the Senator said, scrubbing his own face tiredly and stifling a yawn.
"It's all right," Obi Wan shook his head automatically.
He moved toward the couch as well, and by the time he reached it, Padme had appeared in their bedroom doorway. Pulling her robe around her shoulders, she rubbed her eyes sleepily and made her way over to them. Threepio was still hovering nearby, and she turned to the droid as she lowered herself onto the couch beside Obi Wan.
"Threepio, bring some caf for our guest," she said softly.
"Oh, right away, mistress," said the droid, tottering his way into the kitchen.
"I would have come earlier," Bail apologized again. "I had to make sure I wasn't being watched."
"Watched?" repeated Padme.
"By whom?" Obi Wan wanted to know.
In response, Bail leaned forward, pulling a holocube from his pocket. He slid it into the recessed projector slot in the table and sat back again, templing his fingers. He waited silently as the Kenobis read through the report. They did so, frowning, and by the time they both finished, Obi Wan's hand had moved onto his wife's shoulder. Padme was pale, her face pinched and drawn with worry. The former Jedi's expression was grim.
"Thank you, Bail," he said quietly.
"The Jedi still have friends in the Senate," Bail's lips quirked slightly.
"For now," Padme murmured. They all knew that, even among those Senators who opposed Palaptine's policies and were supportive of their efforts to induce him to surrender his executive powers, many now distrusted the Jedi Order.
"Do you think the amendment will pass?" Obi Wan asked her.
She closed her eyes. Her answer was a silent nod, and her hand moved to cover his, gently squeezing his fingers.
He ran his free hand over his face. "Then I had better go to the temple now. Speak with Masters Windu and Yoda."
"I'll walk out with you," offered Bail, retrieving the holocube. "I have a few more stops to make tonight."
"We should rally everyone we can before the proposal is made," Padme told her colleague.
He nodded, "Tomorrow."
"Here," she agreed. "It's safer than the offices."
Bail gave another nod, and Obi Wan leaned forward, his right hand moving to touch his wife's jaw. He turned her face toward his and gently kissed her. "I love you."
"I love you," she smiled.
The two men left the apartment, and neither spoke as they turned up the hall toward the turbo lift. Bail seemed lost in his thoughts, one hand pressed pensively over his mouth. Obi Wan's own mind was already focusing on the discussion ahead of him, weighing possible reactions, testing the Force in search of direction. Bail paused just before they reached the lift, and his hand came down on the general's shoulder in a silent request for him to wait. Obi Wan turned.
"Have you given any thought to what you'll do when the war is over?" Bail asked.
Obi Wan's eyebrow rose at the question. "Padme and I intend to go back to Naboo. We're both going to retire from public life. Raise our family."
"There are those of us, including your wife, who fear that when the war is over, we'll have another fight on our hands," Bail reminded him.
"But that fight is going to take place on the Senate floor. I promise you, Padme has no intention of leaving until it's over," said Obi Wan.
"It may begin on the Senate floor," allowed Bail. "But I begin to suspect that it won't stay there. Others do as well. There is a place for you and your family on Alderaan, Obi Wan. If you want it."
"What are you asking me, Bail?" Obi Wan's eyes widened as he regarded his friend.
"I don't believe in armed resistance. I never have. I'm not a Separatist, Obi Wan. You know that. But things are…changing. Times are changing. We all may have to change with them, or the Republic may be lost," Bail said.
"Lost!" Obi Wan repeated in disbelief.
"You haven't been here," Bail reminded him calmly. "The Chancellor carves away chunks of our freedom and bandages them with little scraps of security. Coruscant itself exists under what is practically martial law. In many ways, Palpatine already rules the galaxy."
"It's that bad?" Obi Wan asked, still only half willing to believe it. "Why hasn't Padme told me?"
"She doesn't want to burden you," said Bail. "Besides, dealing with the greedy, grasping fools in the Senate and Chancellor Palpatine's incessant maneuvering for power are her way of safeguarding the Republic. Fighting the Separatists is yours. But it may not be that way much longer. Both of you may have to keep fighting--fighting Palpatine."
Obi Wan closed his eyes. "If and when it comes to that…I will do everything I can to help. But there is something I must ask you to do for me."
"Of course," agreed the Senator.
"This amendment will give Palpatine control of the Jedi Council itself. If that happens, the Jedi Order will be subject to the Chancellor's direct authority. We suspect that the Sith Lord we have been looking for may, in fact, be part of Palpatine's staff. Controlling him. The Jedi are my family's only protection should I be discovered acting in military opposition to him," said Obi Wan.
Bail reached forward, gripping the general's arm tightly. "Padme and the children will be safe on Alderaan. I promise you that."
***
Obi Wan sat silently between the two Jedi Masters, once again in Yoda's quarters. The sense of peace and security that he had felt here earlier today was gone now. Now the room was full of tension and worry. Bail had entrusted him with the holocube before their parted, and the blue holoprojected report now floated between them. The air crackled with charged silence as they absorbed its implications.
"The Chancellor's goal in this--unclear to me it is. Though nominally in command of the Council, the Senate may place him, the Jedi he cannot control. Moral, our authority has always been; much more than merely legal. Simply follow orders, Jedi do not!" declared Yoda.
"I don't think he intends to control the Jedi," Mace said. "By placing the Jedi Council under the control of the Office of the Supreme Chancellor, this amendment will give him the constitutional authority to disband the Order itself."
"Surely you cannot believe this is his intention, Master," Obi Wan murmured.
"His intention?" Mace said darkly. "Perhaps not. But his intentions are irrelevant; all that matters now is the intent of the Sith Lord who has our government in his grip. And the Jedi Order may be all that stands between him and galactic domination. What do you think he will do?"
"Authority to disband the Jedi, the Senate would never grant," Yoda shook his head.
"The Senate will vote to grant exactly that. With this amendment," Mace replied.
"The implications of this, they must not comprehend!" protested Yoda.
"It no longer matters what they comprehend. They know where the power is," said Mace.
"But even disbanded, even without legal authority, still Jedi we would be. Jedi Knights served the Force long before there was a Galactic Republic, and serve it we will when this Republic is but dust," Yoda reminded him.
"Master Yoda, that day may be coming sooner than any of us think. That day may be today," Mace warned, looking toward Obi Wan in a tacit plea for support.
"We don't know what the Sith Lord's plans may be," Obi Wan began, "but we can be certain that Palpatine is not to be trusted. This draft resolution is not the product of some overzealous Senator; we may be sure Palpatine wrote it himself and passed it along to someone he controls--to make it look like the Senate is once more 'forcing him to reluctantly accept extra powers in the name of security. Senator Organa and I are afraid that they will continue to do so until one day he's 'forced to reluctantly accept' dictatorship for life!"
"I am convinced this is the next step in a plot aimed directly at the heart of the Jedi," Mace added. "This is a move toward our destruction. The Dark Side of the Force surrounds the Chancellor."
"As it has surrounded and cloaked the Separatists since even before the war began. If the Chancellor is being influenced through the Dark Side, this whole war may have been, from the beginning, a plot by the Sith to destroy the Jedi Order," Obi Wan continued the thought.
"Speculation!" interrupted Yoda, pounding the floor with his gimer stick for emphasis. "On theories such as these we cannot rely. Proof we need. Proof!
"Proof may be a luxury we cannot afford. We must be ready to act!" Windu declared, and Obi Wan saw a dangerous gleam in the Jedi's eye as he finished the statement.
"Act?" he asked mildly. Despite the conversation that he had just had with Bail, he was not convinced that such drastic measures were needed--not yet. He hoped, in fact, that they would not be at all.
"He cannot be allowed to move against the Order. He cannot be allowed to prolong the war needlessly. Too many Jedi have died already. He is dismantling the Republic itself! I have seen life outside the Republic; so have you, Obi Wan. Slavery. Torture. Endless war." Mace's face took on a haunted shadow. "I have seen it in Nar Shaddaa, and I saw it on Haruun Kal. I saw what it did to Depa, and to Sora Bulq. Whatever its flaws, the Republic is our sole hope for justice, and for peace. It is our only defense against the Dark. Palpatine may be about to do what the Separatists cannot: bring down the Republic. If he tries, he must be removed from office."
"Removed?" Obi Wan said, hoping he could bring a touch of clarity to the discussion, remind his weary friend exactly what it was they were discussing. "You mean, arrested?"
Yoda shook his head. "To a dark place, this line of thought will lead us. Great care, we must take."
"The Republic is civilization. It's the only one we have," Mace argued, and the two powerful Jedi locked gazes. "We must be prepared for radical action. It is our duty."
"Master Windu. Mace," Obi Wan said slowly. "You're talking about treason. We must tread carefully."
"I'm not afraid of words, Obi Wan! If it's treason, then so be it. I would do this right now, if I had the Council's support. The real treason would be failure to act!" Mace insisted.
"Such an act, destroy the Jedi Order it could," Yoda said. "Lost the trust of the public, we have already--"
"No disrespect, Master Yoda, but that's a politician's argument. We can't let public opinion stop us from doing what's right," interrupted Mace.
"Convinced it is right, I am not," Yoda replied severely. "Working behind the scenes we should be, to uncover Lord Sidious! To move against Palpatine while the Sith still exist--this may be part of the Sith plan itself, to turn the Senate and the public against the Jedi! So that we are not only disbanded, but outlawed."
Mace was half out of his seat. "To wait gives the Sith the advantage--"
"Have the advantage already, they do!" Yoda declared, jabbing the gimer stick toward the younger Master. "Increase their advantage we will, if in haste we act!"
"Masters, Masters, please," Obi Wan called. He looked from one to the other and inclined his head respectfully. "Perhaps there is a middle way."
"Ah, of course: Kenobi the Negotiator," Mace Windu collapsed against the back of his chair with a rueful smile. "I should have guessed. That is why you asked for this meeting, isn't it? To mediate our differences. If you can."
"So sure of your skills you are?" Yoda folded his fists around the head of his stick. "Easy to negotiate, this matter is not!"
Obi Wan kept his head down. "It seems to me that Palpatine himself has given us an opening. He has said--both to you, Master Windu, and in the holonet address he gave following his rescue--that General Grievous is the true obstacle to peace. Let us forget about the rest of the Separatist leadership, for now. Let Nute Gunray and San Hill and the rest run wherever they like, while we put every available Jedi and all of our agents--the whole of Republic Intelligence, if we can--to work on locating Grievous himself. This will force the hand of the Sith Lord; he will know that Grievous cannot elude our full efforts for long, once we devote ourselves exclusively to his capture. It will draw Sidious out; he will have to make some sort of move, if he wishes the war to continue."
"If?" Mace repeated. "The war has been a Sith operation from the beginning, with Dooku on one side and Sidious on the other--it has always been a plot aimed at the Jedi. To bleed us dry of our youngest and best. To make us into something we were never intended to be. I had the truth in my hands years ago--back on Haruun Kal, in the first months of the war. I had it, but I did not understand how right I was."
"Seen glimpses of this truth, we all have," Yoda said sadly. "Our arrogance it is, which has stopped us from fully opening our eyes."
"Until now," Obi Wan corrected gently. "We understand now the goal of the Sith Lord, we know his tactics, and we know where to look for him. His actions will reveal him. He cannot escape us. He will not escape us."
Yoda and Mace frowned at each other for another moment, then both of them turned to Obi Wan and inclined their heads.
"Seen to the heart of the matter, young Kenobi has," Yoda decided.
Mace nodded. "Yoda and I will remain on Coruscant, monitoring Palpatine's advisers and lackeys; we'll move against Sidious the instant he is revealed. But who will capture Grievous? I have fought him blade-to-blade. He is more than a match for most Jedi."
"We'll worry about that once we find him," Obi Wan said, and a smile touched his lips as, for the first time he actually became aware of his former teacher's presence in the room. "If I listen hard enough, I can almost hear Qui-Gon reminding me that until the possible becomes actual, it is only a distraction."