by Jude Watson
Astri waited, her eyes drinking in the sight of her son.
"You can leave Bog. The Jedi will offer you protection."
She was already shaking her head. "He will find me. He will win." She turned. "You don't understand, Obi-Wan. He's not as stupid as he appears.
He is cunning. I didn't realize… I didn't know… the lengths he would go. He got one taste of power, and it corrupted him. He has aligned himself with the worst in the galaxy. It started so softly. A favor for the Commerce Guild. Then another. And soon he was approached by another Senator — "
"Sano Sauro."
"Yes. He sold his honor. Well, the honor I thought he had. And now there is someone else, someone so powerful he does not say his name."
"Granta Omega. And with Omega, Jenna Zan Arbor. Did you know that?"
Astri looked away. "Yes. I knew that. And still I did nothing."
He slipped his hand into her cold one and squeezed it briefly. "You were alone. Now you are not. You still have me."
"Bog was never a strong man," she said. "How strange it is to fear him now."
She reached into the pocket of her tunic and handed several disks to Obi-Wan.
"What is this?"
"Bog's data recorder. For his memoirs." She made a face. "I copied them secretly. He says it only keeps a record of meetings, but that's not true. He is too vain to hide what he thinks of as his accomplishments.
There might be something on these."
Obi-Wan slipped them into his tunic. "You didn't know I had brought Lune and Didi here. Why did you bring the disks?"
"I've been carrying them with me. Seeing you, I felt so guilty, going along with Bog. I thought, there must be a way to help somehow. Bog is involved in something terrible. It is more than scheming against the Jedi in the Senate. There is some kind of plot, a takeover that will net him more power. He can't resist boasting to me. Soon we'll be able to afford whatever we want. A luxury cruiser for our trips to Nuralee. A villa by the Sea of Translucency on Dremulae."
"Dremulae?"
"Yes, he saw an image of the perfect spot, he said."
Yes, Obi-Wan thought, in Omega's safe house.
"He has these grand plans. And he's questioned me closely about the details of what will take place during the Relief Fund ceremony. I was on the planning committee. I can't imagine what that means."
"I can," Obi-Wan said. "Astri, I promise you, after today you will not have to worry about Bog Divinian."
She looked up into his face. Something came over her, some jolt of courage or certainty, and she nodded. "Thank you, old friend."
"And now," Obi-Wan said in a lighter tone, "it is time to greet your son. I think he's almost out of cakes."
Chapter Fifteen
Everything was in place. Secret security milled in the crowd. There were infrared sensors on the gravsled with the treasury. Extra guards in the Core Bank itself. Droids buzzed overhead as thick as flies.
Obi-Wan stood to the side. In his ear was an earpiece in which Bog Divinian's voice droned on. Bog's recordings were filled with the dullest details, from when he took a tea break to the compliment paid him by the visiting ruler of Teevan. Obi-Wan noted that he even planned how late to be for the Senate hearing on the anti-Jedi petition. Six minutes. Short enough so that no one would be offended, long enough to demonstrate his importance, Obi-Wan guessed.
None of the information was useful, and none of it was valuable, including Bog's insights into Senate politics. Still, Obi-Wan continued to listen. He had given a copy to Tyro, but he wanted to hear for himself.
The speeches on the platform were only slightly more interesting. One Senator after another came up and thanked the others and Palpatine, even while managing to convey that it was through his or her own early support that the idea really took off.
In his ear, Bog worked on a speech. Obi-Wan could even hear his footsteps as he paced.
In this time of great grief and sorrow.
No. In this perilous time, we look to a leader who can take us from strong to stronger…
No, that's not quite the tone. More… leaderlike. Now only one of us can lead us through the valley of fear to the mountaintop of solidarity…
Obi-Wan switched off the recorder. Chancellor Palpatine was speaking, which meant the ceremony was almost over.
"I accept this treasury on behalf of the Senate, and thank all the generous worlds that contributed," Palpatine said, with one hand on the armored repulsorlift wagon that held the glittering gold boxes of vertex.
"This is the dawn of a new age. An age where help will arrive when and where it is most needed. Thank you all."
Palpatine, at least, had learned the value of brevity and modesty, Obi-Wan noted.
He watched as the Supreme Chancellor stepped back and entered his personal transport. He sped off toward the Senate. The others Senators followed. There was a debate to attend.
The Blue and Red Guards, Palpatine's personal guards, slowly guided the vehicle to the great open doors of the vault of the Core Bank. Obi-Wan felt a murmur go through the crowd. Dex was right. There was nothing like a huge fortune to cause beings to swoon.
And still there was no sign of trouble. Obi-Wan saw Siri through the crowd. She shrugged. Anakin had his gaze fixed on the vault.
Obi-Wan's comlink signaled. It was Tyro. "Anything?" Obi-Wan asked.
"That speech he's practicing… did you get to that yet? Any impressions?"
"He needs a speechwriter."
"Yes, it's awful, but did you get the subject?"
"No, I couldn't figure out what he was talking about. It didn't make sense."
"That's what worries me."
Obi-Wan watched the Guards move into the building. "So what's your point?"
"Well, what's his point, that's the question. Obi-Wan, this may be off-base, but…"
Obi-Wan noticed that one of the Blue Guards had a torn hem. Unusual for these guards. They took their position as personal guards to Palpatine seriously.
Torn hem. Blue thread.
"Later, Tyro." Obi-Wan snapped his comlink shut and vaulted through the crowd. Anakin caught his movement.
"The guards!" he bellowed.
And then they were all moving — Anakin, Siri, Ferus, as the durasteel doors began to slide shut on the vault.
Obi-Wan leaped. He slammed against the vault door, then squeezed himself inside, nearly leaving his foot behind as the door clanged shut.
Anakin was above him, timing his own leap to slither through the doors as they closed.
Obi-Wan landed on the floor and tackled the Blue Guard in front of him. The helmet was knocked off, and he looked into the face of Roper Slam.
"Not you again!" Slam groaned.
Anakin tackled the next guard. It was Slam's sidekick, Valadon.
"This was supposed to be easy!" Slam yelped.
Valadon struggled to release herself from Anakin's grip. "What happened to that Zone? We weren't supposed to meet any resistance!"
"We've been double-crossed," Slam said. He didn't struggle with Obi- Wan. He sat cross-legged on the floor, then tried to rip off the robe in angry frustration.
Siri and Ferus ran in through the interior door of the vault, followed by anxious-looking officials and part of the security force.
"It's all right," Obi-Wan said. "You can take them into custody."
"There wasn't even an attempt to hit the water system," Siri said.
"You see? Double-crossed," Slam said, slumping down.
"Another two minutes and we would have been out of here with the vertex," Valadon said.
"Everything depends on minutes, Val," Slam said. "We live and die on minutes."
Minutes, Obi-Wan thought.
Bog is going to be six minutes late for the debate.
To make himself more important? Or was there another reason?
Now only one of us can lead us through the valley of fear to the mountaintop of solidarity..
It doesn't make sense.
That's what worries me…
The truth blazed a path inside his brain. Bog was practicing a nominating speech. A speech he would deliver sometime today.
The heist was yet another diversion.
The nominating speech was for Sano Sauro to take over as Supreme Chancellor.
The real mission was to assassinate Supreme Chancellor Palpatine.
Chapter Sixteen
Anakin's head whipped around. One moment Obi-Wan was there, standing over Roper Slam, and the next, he was gone.
Anakin whirled and charged out the door of the vault, into the Core Bank building itself. He was just in time to see his Master racing out the front door.
Anakin put on a burst of speed. Obi-Wan was doing three things at once. He leaped over four chatting security officers straight onto an unattended swoop, even while he slipped his comlink out of his belt and spoke rapidly into it. At the same time, he started the swoop engine.
Anakin jumped onto an empty swoop and revved the engine, lifting into the sky just as a security officer yelled, "Hey!"
Within seconds, he had caught up to his Master.
"What's up?" Anakin asked easily, even though they were going the wrong way down a space lane.
Obi-Wan went into a screeching dive to avoid a crowded airbus. When Anakin caught up, he said, "I think Omega's real goal is to use the Zone at the Senate and assassinate Palpatine. I've already tried to call Senate security, but I can't get through. All of security is caught up in the ceremony."
"Which is probably what he's counting on. We'd better hurry, then."
Anakin pushed the speed on his swoop. Obi-Wan did the same.
They looped, dove, and flew flat-out, dipping out of the space lane to do some highly illegal flying over the pedestrian walkways leading to the Senate. Obi-Wan leaped off the swoop as it was still flying and held out a hand, using the Force to guide it to a safe stop. Anakin followed.
They ran into the Senate building, past the enormous statues. As he ran, Obi-Wan contacted Siri and told her what he suspected., "I'll contact Master Windu and head to the Senate. We'll need backup.
The head of security is here, I'll talk to him."
"Do what you can." Obi-Wan shoved his comlink into his belt.
"How do you think they'll do it?" Anakin asked as they ran along the elevated walkway leading to Palpatine's private office.
"They'll use the Zone to impair the opposition Senators. They will have figured out a way to target them somehow, maybe by inviting them to the meeting first. That's why Bog is going to be late. Then they'll call for a vote and oust the Jedi Order. In the meantime, they'll assassinate Palpatine."
"So they will have eliminated Jedi interference and Palpatine in one day," Anakin said.
"And Sano Sauro will be Supreme Chancellor."
They raced into Palpatine's outer office. Sly Moore gazed at them forbiddingly, her pale eyes showing her disapproval. "Not another emergency meeting. The Supreme Chancellor is busy."
"This is life or death," Obi-Wan told her.
She hesitated a fraction of an instant. "He has already gone to the Jedi vote in the Senate. He took the South Corridor!" she shouted after them as they ran.
They raced down the hallways. They couldn't be too late. They couldn't let Omega win.
Ahead they saw Palpatine walking. Obi-Wan skidded up to him and pushed him into an empty meeting room. When he touched his arm, he was shocked at how thin the Supreme Chancellor was. Yet his arm was like a braiding of durasteel, ropy and strong. Something clanged along Obi-Wan's nerves, some feeling, some instinct that made him want to recoil. He felt dread well up in him, and he wondered if he was too late, after all. Perhaps there was something he had not seen. Was he missing something? Obi-Wan felt suddenly confused.
"Master Kenobi, what is it?" Palpatine asked. He had moved his arm away quickly and was now adjusting the high collar on his cloak.
"An assassination plot against you, Supreme Chancellor," Obi-Wan said.
"Granta Omega is behind it. I am sure of it. Sano Sauro would be nominated by Bog Divinian as your successor."
Palpatine thought this over. A small smile crossed his thin, bloodless lips. "Of course. That would be the inevitable next step."
"You don't seem very concerned about your potential assassination,"
Anakin said.
Palpatine waved a hand. "My personal safety ceased to be an issue the moment I took on this position."
An odd thing to say, Obi-Wan thought, for a man who had developed his own security force, the Red Guard, whose masked members used force pikes as weapons.
"I'll order a lockdown," Palpatine said. "That means every door will open only with a retinal scan."
"Omega and Zan Arbor are probably already in the building," Obi-Wan said. "My guess is that Teda got them past security."
"I have monitors on the water system," Palpatine said. "There are no reports of sabotage."
"I advise you to shut down the entire system," Obi-Wan said. "We can't take a chance."
Palpatine hesitated. Then he got out his comlink, notified Mas Amedda, and gave the order.
"And now I will go to the assembly," he said.
"But Supreme Chancellor, you can't," Obi-Wan argued.
"But Master Kenobi, I must," Palpatine said softly. For the first time in his acquaintance with the Supreme Chancellor, Anakin sensed something underneath his composure — just a hint of anger, striking as fast as a serpent, and then gone.
A red light began to glow on Palpatine's comlink.
"The most serious alert," he murmured, and accessed it. He listened for a moment, then shut it down.
"It could be nothing. A valve in a water tunnel won't function. They wouldn't have noticed it, but when they shut down the water system, the valve came up as non-functioning."
"Where?"
Palpatine gave him the coordinates, and Obi-Wan turned to Anakin.
"Stay with the Chancellor."
"But Master — "
"Anakin, stay! Don't leave him!" Obi-Wan's order floated back to Anakin as his Master ran off.
Chapter Seventeen
Stay.
Obi-Wan was off to face Granta Omega, and Anakin was now just a bodyguard.
Palpatine's pale gaze studied him.
"You can go."
"I can't disobey my Master. I can't leave you alone." "If I call my Red Guard they can be here in three minutes. Less."
"It would not matter," Anakin said miserably. "Obi-Wan told me to stay."
"Well, let us walk, then. I am scheduled to preside over the vote on Senator Divinian's proposal."
"But my Master told you not to go."
"True. But unlike you, I do not have to obey an order of caution."
Caution. Obi-Wan's caution drove Anakin crazy.
"The work of the Senate goes on," Palpatine continued as they began to walk. "To keep going on, no matter what the obstacles — that is what a leader must do. I have learned, Anakin, over the course of my political career, one important thing: I cannot let anyone get in the way of my service. In the beginning, I doubted myself. Who am I, I asked myself, to decide fates, to make rulings? Then the answer came to me. I must do it because there is no one else who can do it better." Palpatine chuckled.
"Oh, I'm not saying I'm keeping the Republic together single-handedly. But fate has thrust me into this position — and I would be untrue to myself as well as the galaxy if I did not utilize everything I have and everything I am in order to succeed at it."
Palpatine's serenity was almost eerie. It was as though, Anakin thought suddenly, Palpatine was above this, looking down. As though criminals like Granta Omega were merely toys to be observed. Where did he get that confidence? Anakin was reaching out blindly, trying to probe the Supreme Chancellor, but his powers were not that developed. He kept meeting a wall.
"What I wish," Palpatine said, "is that you will realize this one day, too. That it is right to use every means at your disposal. I'm sure you
r Master would agree."
Anakin had his doubts. He saw Siri and Ferus pounding down the hallway.
"Ah," Palpatine said. "Reinforcements."
Siri halted in front of them. "Where is Obi-Wan?" "There was a security breach and he went to check it out," Anakin explained.