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44 A Young Girl's War Between the Stars 44 Naboo, 39 BBY/961 GSC.

"… and for her service to Naboo in discovering this threat and preventing the tragic death of Viceroy Nute Gunray, it is with great pride that, on behalf of our Queen, I do hereby award Jedi Padawan Tanya Mereel with the Purple Milla." Sheev smiled as he pinned the medal on the Jedi girl's formal robe, applause from the crowd gathered for this little show filling the room.

It had only taken a bit of persuasion to convince the queen to push back negotiations with Serenno for a day in order to put on an impromptu awards ceremony and soiree to improve morale and put everyone in a more relaxed mood before negotiations began. Practically everyone on Naboo loved a party, so it wasn't even particularly difficult to get approved. Nearby, Gunray looked uncomfortable even as he slowly clapped along with the rest of them.

The man looked like he would rather be practically anywhere else, but when he had crashed the party expecting to ambush the Serenno delegation with accusations of attempting to assassinate him only to find himself in the middle of an award ceremony, he hadn't been able to gracefully back out. Honestly, a little public humiliation was just what he deserved for interfering with Sheev's plans.

The white haired girl gave a short bow once Sheev was finished, before stepping back and retaking her place at her Master's side. That was when the music started and people began to mingle, either moving to speak with each other or heading to the table lined with food as servants moved through the crowd carrying drink trays. Sheev himself made his way over to speak with Dooku as the older Jedi was confronted by Gunray, the neimoidian radiating a smarmy, smug aura as he sneered at Dooku.

"So tell me, Count Dooku, how has Serenno's recovery been progressing, after that nasty business with that civil war and the pirates?" Dooku accepted a flute of champagne from a passing server and took a sip before answering as his Padawan wandered off, towards one of the tables with food. A sly smile pulled at his lips as the old human retorted, "Rather well, in fact.

The Republic's mishandling of the issue of my brother's civil war and secession from the Republic, and then the invasion of Serenno by pirates, has put their corruption and ineptitude on display for the rest of the galaxy to see. It is an issue that the other Mid- and Outer-Rim planets cannot ignore.

They are looking to Serenno as the example of how little the Republic cares about them and their problems and beginning to question whether it is worth it to continue sending tribute to Coruscant in the form of taxes and goods. We have already established strong ties with Mandalore, our neighbor on the Hydian Way, and our alliance will grow as those other territories look at their books and realize that we can all offer each other a better deal than the Republic ever could."

F rowning, Gunray asked, "Are you certain of your ability to guarantee trade between any such allies? I've heard you've been having some trouble getting goods in and out of the Serenno System…"" You mean after the Trade Federation told all of their allied traders to stop doing business on Serenno and you warned off the free traders under threat of 'piracy?'" Dooku asked, his tone entirely dry.

"I have no idea what you're talking about!" Gunray scoffed, putting on a good act of being insulted at the implication.

"If the Trade Federation no longer sends its traders, then it's because your system has been marked as too dangerous for them to pass through. I'm sure that trade would resume once you got the issue of the pirates in your system under control." He paused for a moment to let that sink in, before smirking and adding, "Of course, if you wanted to expedite resuming trade, I'm sure we can come to some arrangement. Our pilots and crews must be paid for the risk they take on, naturally.

Then there's the matter of insurance on your cargo. And as Serenno is no longer a member of the Republic, we would be taking on the risk of angering them by continuing to do business with you, so we must be compensated for our own risk. Consider it an investment in your future." Sending the neimoidian a very flat look, Dooku said, "And this surely has nothing to do with the sacanium deposits we've discovered and have since refused the Trade Federation exclusive mining and processing rights."

"Nothing of the sort!" Gunray fervently denied." Of course," Dooku murmured. He paused to take a drink and Sheev spoke into the momentary pause.

"Now gentlemen, I'm sure there's some mutually beneficial arrangement to be had from working together," he said, ever the voice of reason in his civilian persona.

"Viceroy, it's obvious that Serenno has the mining and refining situation well in hand. I'm afraid that ship has sailed and you've missed your opportunity. Further pressure on your part will only push Serenno further away and ensure they're unwilling to do business with you."

"Tch," the neimoidian made an annoyed sound, before slurping at his own drink—imported Chandrilan Squig. It was something Sheev had never acquired a taste for. Aside from the worm-like eel being disgusting to look at, the drink stank and tasted absolutely revolting, leaving behind a greasy mouthfeel and upsetting his stomach in a way that had lingered for hours afterwards the one time he had tried even a sip. He much preferred the soothing taste of Nabooian wine.

Looking away from the green man slurping down the eel, Sheev turned to Dooku.

"And Count, while I'm sure Serenno is doing fine for itself, it could do better, couldn't it? I understand wanting to stand on principle, but the Trade Federation's position as the trade gateway to the rest of the galaxy is hard to argue. If they want sacanium, why not allow them to purchase it like any other buyer—and in so doing, guarantee Serenno's ports are filled with goods from all over the rest of the galaxy?

You can try to build up your own trade fleet and protect them, but it will take years to approach even a tenth of what the Trade Federation offers now." Seeing the two of them considering it, Sheev allowed a smile to show on his face. Perhaps his and his Master's initial plan wasn't entirely unsalvageable. If he could plant the idea of Dooku's separatists or whatever they were going to call themselves joining forces with the Trade Federation out of necessity, then the Republic would have a single enemy.

The unified threat would force the Jedi to commit to war sooner, leading to them being crushed sooner. On the other hand, things weren't entirely in place yet. The Trade Federation's droid army wasn't up to the numbers Sheev would like, to pose a genuine threat. That sacanium would be very nice to have, to make those improved battle droids. Then there was the matter of a Grand Army for the Republic.

He was looking into cloning, since the Republic would be squeamish to draft their own citizens—especially from the Core worlds—but he couldn't have any clone army's origins traced back to him. He had been in talks with Kamino, but those talks had broken down for some reason. Sheev had a feeling that someone had beaten him to the punch in making some large order of clones, but was unsure why they would. He would have to send someone to investigate.

In the meantime, he needed to find another supplier of clones, willing to program, train, chip, or find another way to make them ultimately be loyal to no one but himself. Regardless of which way things went, if he could stall things for a bit longer that would be for the best. The longer he could delay an open war, the longer he and his Master would have time to prepare.

And if that meant putting Gunray and Dooku in a room and convincing them it was in their best interests to cooperate in the short term, then so be it. A thrill of danger in the Force drew Sheev's attention, but he didn't look. Instead, he smiled at Dooku, who turned his head to his right first—looking behind Gunray. Sheev then allowed himself to look. A very ordinary looking human woman was approaching the Viceroy, holding an active holocom in her left hand—the display turned off.

But that wasn't the source of the danger. No, that came from behind her, in the form of a red skinned, white haired young Padawan stalking quickly and quietly through the crowd—a pulse in the Force around her causing people to ignore her presence and remain calm as she hurried past them.

"Viceroy! There's a call—" That was as far as the woman got, before Tanya pounced. She swung and, at the last second, the familiar sound of a lightsaber activating filled the room—along with the white-silver glow of her blade. Sheev watched as the woman's head spun through the air, landing with a thump on top of one of the platters of food on the nearest table. The room panicked as multiple people screamed—only for a wave of calm to roll over the room and cut the panicking crowd off before it could truly build.

The lightsaber shut off as the Padawan held up her hand. Staring open-mouthed, fear rolled off of Gunray as he met the girl's eyes and saw what Sheev had seen the night before." It's okay, everyone!" the girl called, tucking her lightsaber away and kneeling as she began to inspect the body. Sheev might have missed it in the commotion, but the way the Force around the girl and the body twisted with such precision caught his attention. His eyes told him one story—that she was patting the woman down for weapons.

His senses told an entirely different story—as she slipped something into the woman's sleeve, before matching her physical movements to those of the extremely complex illusion over the top of the woman and then dispelled it."' Okay?!' In what world is killing my bodyguard okay?!" Gunray shrieked, glaring at the girl." That would be true, Viceroy," the girl paused, before coming to the woman's right sleeve and pulling out a vibro-knife.

S he held it up by two fingers for everyone to see, before dropping it on the woman's chest. As she did, another wave of emotion backed by the Force rolled off of the girl and into the crowd—sincerity and trust. The effect was immediate as people jumped ahead to the conclusion she led them to.

"If this was your bodyguard. As you can see, it was not. I'm afraid your bodyguard was replaced by a clawdite assassin—the very same assassin I pursued yesterday, in fact." The head on the table floated up into the air, revealing not a human woman's face but the very recognizable green skinned features of a clawdite." I just saved your life, Viceroy. Again." The Viceroy stared at the Padawan. The Padawan stared back.

Around them, people murmured quietly as they took in the spectacle—but it seemed the majority of them had believed the evidence of their own eyes and were already whispering that the Padawan was a hero twice over now. Even Master Dooku was silent, waiting to see how the Viceroy would react. As he watched, doubt settled across the Viceroy's expression.

The possibility that his own shapeshifting body double had been replaced with another shapeshifter, sent to assassinate him took root—not completely, but enough for him to question. Sheev had to hand it to her—the girl was good. If he didn't know the truth, if he hadn't seen and sensed what she had done, he would have believed her. That ability to pull the wool over the eyes of an entire crowd, to manipulate them so effectively by deceiving their senses and playing with their emotions at the right moment…

she was wasted on the Jedi! Finally, Gunray caved to public opinion and his own paranoia. He nodded to the girl.

"Then it seems thanks are in order."

"You're welcome," she nodded, standing up as Naboo police came pouring into the building, weapons drawn. Sheev smiled, holding up both hands for their attention.

"As you can see, everything is under control. The Jedi merely found and dealt with an assassin making an attempt on the Viceroy's life." One of the police, his rank insignia marking him as a sergeant, started giving out orders to start questioning witnesses and have a team come in to collect the body. One of them led the Viceroy away, while another motioned for Sheev to follow. He did, while keeping an eye on what was going on with Dooku and his apprentice.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The sergeant turned his attention on the Jedi.

"Which one of you did this?"

"Senator, could you—" the officer with him began, only for Sheev to hold up a hand, signaling for the officer to be silent.

"That would be me," Ms. Mereel confirmed.

"I'll need you to surrender your weapons and come with us." Dooku stepped in, clearing his throat.

"While I'm sure my Padawan would be happy to answer any questions you have right here, I am afraid that she will not be turning over her weapons, nor will she be accompanying you."

"Your Padawan just killed someone, and until we can determine the facts of the matter, we're going to need to detain her. We're also grounding your ships, in case some emergency calls you away from the planet any time soon."

"You don't need to do that," Dooku shook his head, and Sheev felt just the slightest change in the Force, barely a ripple as the man used Mind Trick.

"I am sure that you can release her into my custody." The sergeant started to nod, before reaching up to his ear. A frown crossed his face and he opened his mouth, only for the earpiece in his ear to pop out and crumple in on itself, before falling to the floor.

"Forget what you just heard," Ms. Mereel ordered, and this time it was not a mere suggestion—what she used was more akin to a hammer blow to the head. That was not the Jedi's Mind Trick. No, if anything, it was closer to outright mind control. If the Jedi saw her using that, they would immediately label her as a fallen, Dark Jedi at best. The fact that Dooku said nothing, didn't even react as though this was something he was both aware of and tacitly approved of, was telling.

It was proof that these two may be more open to manipulation and corruption to the dark side than his wildest dreams.

"Unfortunately, I have already left and you don't know where I've gone."

"…Right," the man nodded, before turning away to go speak to one of his men. Dooku sighed, before shaking his head.

"That could have been handled better."

"It could have," the girl murmured, before glancing over towards Gunray.

"But I believe our message has been successfully delivered and received."

"Quite," Dooku murmured.

"Go on now. You should make yourself scarce for a while. I'll take care of things here." The girl nodded and left, not for the exit but for a set of stairs leading up—likely intending to bypass the police watching the entrance entirely. Turning back to the officer, Sheev smiled.

"My apologies. What were you asking?"

"Could you describe what happened?"

"Of course." That night, Sheev observed the girl while they all spoke and ate. The frustration was gone and while she was still very much like a predator, it was one which had fed recently—sated and content for the moment. Eventually, they retired for the night and Sheev spent some time in his secure office, taking care of Sith business. Arranging the fall of a galaxy spanning government required a surprising amount of work. Managing his double life as Sheev and Darth Sidious.

Taking care of anything his master Darth Plagueis required of him. Advising one group of senators, investors, and other influential individuals within the Republic as Sheev and then doing the same for other groups and individuals within the Trade Federation and other factions as Sidious.

Sorting through all of the potential problems before him and deciding which of those required some friendly or not so friendly words from one of his identities, which required bribes or other financial aid, which ones needed an assassin or team of assassins to quietly disappear them, and which required the blunt instrument that was Maul to make a very loud but veiled statement. It was late by the time he finished and left the secure room.

His senses showed Dooku in his guest room meditating, while Tanya was out in the courtyard beside the small pond there doing the same. He allowed himself a brief smirk as he turned down the hall to walk to the courtyard. Smoothing his face out into a neutral expression, Sheev stopped at the entrance and observed the girl for a few moments. She sat with her legs folded under her in front of the pond, slowly thumbing a set of black and white beads through one hand.

The beads themselves were each imbued with the Force and Sheev could feel every movement of them this close and the way they affected the Force within and around her—shifting between light and dark with every bead in a way that he had never seen before. Curious, he studied the odd phenomena and slowly determined that she had somehow separated the light and dark aspects of the Force within herself. The sheer level of control was mind-boggling. Ms. Mereel was a true prodigy.

It would be all the more satisfying then to give her that little nudge, show her that true strength lie in the dark side alone and the light was a weakness to be purged. He made sure his footsteps were loud enough to hear as he slowly walked into the courtyard, making his way over to a bench near where the girl sat, before taking a seat himself and watching the fish move lazily beneath the water. After a moment he said, "I like to come out here to clear my mind."

"It's peaceful," Tanya nodded.

"Yes, well, I'm sorry that your visit to Naboo has been a bit more exciting than I'm sure you would have preferred." A quiet, amused sound escaped her as she cracked one silver-blue eye open briefly.

"Quite the opposite. I would much rather run down a potential assassin than play around at politics. I understand the necessity of it, but that doesn't mean I enjoy it."" Ahh," Sheev hummed, smiling.

"I see. A woman of action, then." T he red girl frowned, opening her eyes fully to regard him before shaking her head.

"You make it sound like I enjoy conflict." She paused, then nodded.

"Perhaps I do. But that's not to say that I don't enjoy peace and quiet. I just dislike the dog and pony show of political theater. Some politics are fine, enjoyable even. Social events, parties, and the like are not to my taste."" Understandable. However, it would give you a poor impression of our lovely planet if most of your experiences here are tied up in either heroics or boring 'political theater,'" he chuckled.

"Why don't I arrange a tour of the Royal Academy? There are several promising potential candidates for our next king or queen in the Legislative Youth Program who are near your own age—all very mature, I promise. I'm sure they would love to meet a Jedi and this would be an opportunity to make an impression on them and cultivate alliances with the future leaders of Naboo. Perhaps even make some friends. I believe there is a concert being put on at the concert hall tomorrow or the next day as well."

Tanya considered for a moment before nodding once.

"I'll speak with Master Dooku and I'll go visit if I'm not needed for anything."

"The next few days should be nothing but private meetings with interested parties. I'm sure he can spare you," Sheev chuckled, waving a hand dismissively.

"Now," he nodded at the beads in the girl's hands as she flicked another of them with a quiet click, "if you don't mind my asking, where did you get those? It's rare to see a Jedi actually particularly religiously devout." Tanya's lip curled for a brief moment and Sheev almost cackled at the sheer disgust packed into that one expression. Her face smoothed out in the next second and she flipped the entire loop up and over her head, slipping them under her robes.

He caught a brief glimpse of something silver and about the size of a pocket watch on the end before she tucked that away beneath her robe as well.

"They're not prayer beads, they're meditation beads. I found them on a mission some time ago. They're very old. Possibly older than the Jedi." S heev nodded, humming.

"A piece of history, then. Are you a collector?" The girl shrugged.

"Only if something catches my interest."

"Well then. I have quite the collection of artifacts myself. Would you like to see?" he offered. At the girl's dubious look, he smiled and added, "Several of them are quite old. Relics from ancient wars. Jedi artifacts."" That sounds interesting," she finally agreed. Seeing he had her attention, Sheev stood and gestured for her to follow.

"No time like the present, then." Tanya stood and followed as he led her through the estate, to his public collection of artifacts. The lights turned on as they entered the room and he gestured over the room itself.

"What do you think?" The red girl hummed, moving into the room and looking around. Sheev remained silent as he felt her actively using the Force to sense everything—immediately bypassing the gaudier pieces on display and moving towards the back, where the more interesting parts of this particular collection were located. Pausing in front of a piece of armor that looked and felt like silk but was actually cortosis spun into delicate threads, she reached out and touched it." That was found at the site of a battle.

It was analyzed and determined to be made of pure cortosis. Not particularly physically resilient, but excellent at disrupting energy weapons. Something like this would typically be worn under heavier armor, such as that on the next display over," Sheev explained as he came up behind her." If I recall correctly, the Mandalorians also used cortosis weave beneath their armor, during the time of their various Crusades."

"Interesting," Tanya murmured, before moving on. Eventually, she stopped in front of anther display—this one a pair of swords, one with faintly glowing blue runes down its blade, the other nearly identical except in red. Sheev chuckled.

"Ah, you have a keen eye. Those are force-imbued swords from the time of the Force Wars, some twenty-thousand years ago. They were used by ancient Force users, before the invention of the lightsaber. These two were recovered at the site of a battle, their wielders having died on each other's blades—though the seller I purchased them from assured me there was a deeper story there.

That the wielder of the red blade was a woman and, the way the two skeletons were found suggests that they had embraced at the end, suggesting a particularly tragic tale of two lovers separated by a war and reunited in death."" Or it could have just been how they fell," Tanya shook her head.

"Of course. But the story behind it makes them more valuable," Sheev pointed out, and the girl nodded.

"Of course, these are just what I show to the public." Tanya turned and raised one white eyebrow.

"Oh? More interesting?"

"Oh yes," Sheev chuckled.

"Much more." Moving to the back of the room, he pushed in a panel on the wall and tapped in a code. A moment later, a section of the wall slid back and then to the side, revealing a much smaller room beyond, which lit up as they stepped inside.

"These are much more valuable. Not things I would show to just any guest. But I don't believe I have to worry about a Jedi attempting to rob me," he laughed. The girl cast her gaze over the room as she stepped inside. Pausing before a black and red chalice with four sharp wings along the outside, Sheev said, "I haven't been able to verify its providence, but this chalice is believed to be an incense burner once used in ancient Jedi meditation rituals."" Not Jedi.

It's t he wrong aesthetic," Tanya shook her head, and Sheev felt her reaching out to it with the Force.

"And it has faint traces of dark side Force energy on it. Nothing dangerous, but definitely not Jedi."

"Oh dear," Sheev murmured. As a test to see how she would react, he asked, "Should I have it destroyed, then?"" Hm?" she looked up from the chalice with a frown.

"No. It's harmless. The sword outside is more dangerous." Sheev chuckled, grinning internally.

"That's good to hear. What do you think of this one?" he asked, leading her to the back of the room, presenting a massive, rough cut red crystal suspended on a pedestal. The crystal pulsed with a soft red-orange glow, as though it had a heartbeat of its own.

"The Great Crystal of Aantonaii." The red girl tilted her head, studying it curiously.

"What does it do?"" As far as everyone who has examined it can tell, that's it. It glows. It's apparently similar to the natural kyber crystals you Jedi use in your lightsabers." Tanya moved closer, probing the crystal with the Force as she studied it.

"It's definitely dark. It doesn't seem overtly dangerous, however. Maybe it was used as the focus of a ritual or meditation, or something?" Shaking her head, she glanced back at Sheev.

"You probably shouldn't show this one to other visiting Jedi. It might be alarming to the more traditionalist among their number."

"Yes, I wouldn't want to alarm anyone," Sheev chuckled.

"Come, let me show you my favorite…" Watching the girl as he showed her around, Sheev could sense her interest. As cautious as she was, it was hard for her to hide in the face of such interesting artifacts—especially when he showed off what he knew to be a Sith holocron, specifically one of Darth Bane's many such holocrons. Though he claimed ignorance as to what it was, he had studied it extensively in his years. It was one of the very first artifacts he had found, in fact—before his Master Plagueis found him.

It was essentially a primer for how to be a Sith—with basics from meditation, to harnessing the Force, to the Rule of Two. After that, he called an end to the little guided tour, citing the need to rest to prepare for the long day tomorrow. The girl went on her way and Sheev hid an insidious smile at the blatant curiosity practically rolling off of her. It seemed the girl was just as hungry for power as any other Sith or prospective Sith—all he needed was to feed that curiosity, that thirst for knowledge of hers.

A scrap here. A hint there. Yes, he saw how he could turn her now. I will contact her later, once they leave. Share my concerns about rumors of potentially dangerous, dark artifacts being found. I'm certain my contacts can find more than one worth liberating from the Hutts or other less deserving hands—or perhaps even plant them with other problems and let her natural proclivity to solve such matters in a more permanent manner sort out those problems for me.

A concerned word from Senator Palpatine will send her after them to secure them against someone using them recklessly and harming themselves and others. As a Jedi, she would feel responsible for making sure that such artifacts don't fall into the wrong hands. But her curiosity will lead her to study them, then to seek more. Until eventually, I will have a firm ally on my side and I can do away with the deception.

Dooku, on the other hand, is going to be much more difficult to persuade—but all the more useful if I can get him on our side, I believe. Satisfied for the moment that things were as well as could be expected, he made his way back to his bedroom, making a mental note to put one of his contacts on finding an artifact to send the girl after some time soon. As he went, he considered what to tell his Master and what to keep to himself.

If he could somehow point the girl, or perhaps her and Dooku, at his Master and have them eliminate Plagueis then perhaps that would convince the Jedi not to move to multiple temples as it seemed they were preparing to do. Having the Jedi all in one convenient place when it came time to sweep them off the board had been part of his Master's plan. With them moving away from Coruscant for the most part, that would make it more difficult to eliminate them when the time came.

But if he could sacrifice a Sith or two, they would at least believe that the threat he and his Master were beginning to hear whispers about from their Jedi contacts had been dealt with—leaving them blind to the coming danger. And with Dooku and Tanya to replace Plagueis and Maul for a time, until he was ready to eliminate them, since there could in the end be only one … No. Not yet. My Master hasn't quite outlived his usefulness yet. Soon, perhaps. Once the war begins. Not before.

With those thoughts and potential plans for the future swirling through his mind, Sheev laid himself down to rest, sure in the knowledge that he would soon have two new pawns and he would be able to remove his Master and claim Darth Plagueis's place— no, to take his place as the one true Sith.