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his head ridged and ruffled at the sides like the curly hair of a young girl, and with dark, shadowed eyes and a black mask over the
lower portion of his face.
"The Senators are anxious and afraid, and believe that no vote will ever be more important than this one now before them."
"And this way or that, much mending must you do," said Master Yoda, the smallest in physical stature, but a Jedi Master who
stood tall against anyone in the galaxy. Yoda's huge eyes blinked slowly and his tremendous ears swiveled subtly, showing, for
those who knew him, that he was deep in thought, giving this situation his utmost attention. "Unseen is much that is here," he said,
and he closed his eyes in contemplation.
"I don't know how much longer I can hold off the vote, my friends," Palpatine explained. "And I fear that delay on this definitive
issue might well erode the Republic through attrition. More and more star systems are joining the separatists."
Mace Windu, a pillar of strength even among the Jedi, nodded his understanding of the dilemma. "And yet, when the vote is
done, if the losers do break away-"
"I will not let this Republic that has stood for a thousand years be split in two!" Palpatine declared, slamming a fist determinedly
on his desk. "My negotiations will not fail!" Mace Windu held his calm, keeping his rich voice even and controlled. "But if they
do, you must realize there aren't enough Jedi to protect the Republic. We are keepers of the peace, not soldiers."
Palpatine took a few steadying breaths, trying to digest it all. "Master Yoda," he said, and he waited for the greenish-skinned Jedi
to regard him.
"Do you really think it will come to war?"
Again Yoda closed his eyes. "Worse than war, I fear," he said. "Much worse."
"What?" an alarmed Palpatine asked.
"Master Yoda, what do you sense?" Mace Windu prompted.
"Impossible to see, the future is," the small Jedi Master replied, his great orbs still looking inward. "The dark side clouds every-
thing. But this I am sure of. . ." He popped open his eyes and stared hard at Palpatine.
"Do their duty, the Jedi will."
A brief look of confusion came over the Supreme Chancellor, but before he could begin to respond to Yoda, a hologram ap-
peared on his desk, the image of Dar Wac, one of his aides. "The loyalist committee has arrived, my Lord," said Dar Wac, in Hut-
tese.
"Send them in."
The hologram disappeared and Palpatine rose, along with the seated Jedi, to properly greet the distinguished visitors. They came
in two groups, Senator Padme Amidala walking with Captain Typho, Jar Jar Binks, her handmaiden Dorme, and majordomo Mas
 16
Amedda, followed by two other Senators, Bail Organa of Alderaan and Horox Ryyder.
Everyone moved to exchange pleasant greetings, and Yoda pointedly tapped Padme with his small cane.
"With you, the Force is strong, young Senator," the Jedi Master told her.
"Your tragedy on the landing platform, terrible. To see you alive brings warm feelings to my heart."
"Thank you, Master Yoda," she replied. "Do you have any idea who was behind this attack?"
Her question had everyone in the room turning to regard her and Yoda directly.
Mace Windu cleared his throat and stepped forward. "Senator, we have nothing definitive, but our intelligence points to disgrun-
tled spice miners on the moons of Naboo."
Padme looked to Captain Typho, who shook his head, having no answers. They had both witnessed the frustration of those spice
miners back on Naboo, but those demonstrations seemed a long way from the tragedy that had occurred on the landing platform
here on Coruscant. Releasing Typho from her gaze, she stared hard at Mace Windu, wondering if it would be wise to voice her
hunch at this time. She knew the controversy she might stir, knew the blatant illogical ring to her claim, but still . . .
"I do not wish to disagree," she said, "but I think that Count Dooku was behind it."
A stir of surprise rippled about the room, and the four Jedi Masters exchanged looks that ranged from astonishment to disapprov-
al.
"You know, M'Lady," Mace said in his resonant and calm voice, "Count Dooku was once a Jedi. He wouldn't assassinate anyone.
It's not in his character."
"He is a political idealist," Ki-Adi-Mundi, the fourth of the Jedi contingent, added. "Not a murderer." With his great domed head,
the Cerean Jedi Master stood taller than anyone in the room, and the ridged flaps at the side of his pensive face added a measure of
introspection to his imposing physical form.
Master Yoda tapped his cane, drawing attention to himself, and that alone exerted a calming influence over the increasingly tense
mood. "In dark times, nothing is what it appears to be," the diminutive figure remarked.
"But the fact remains, Senator, in grave danger you are."
Supreme Chancellor Palpatine gave a dramatic sigh and walked over to the window, staring out at the Coruscant dawn. "Master
Jedi," he said, "may I suggest that the Senator be placed under the protection of your graces?"
"Do you think that a wise use of our limited resources at this stressful time?" Senator Bail Organa was quick to interject, stroking
his well- trimmed black goatee. "Thousands of systems have gone over fully to the separatists, and many more may soon join them.
The Jedi are our-"
"Chancellor," Padme interrupted, "if I may comment. I do not believe the-"
"Situation is that serious," Palpatine finished for her. "No, but I do, Senator."
"Chancellor, please!" she pleaded. "I do not want any more guards!" Palpatine stared at her as would an overprotective father, a
look that Padme might have viewed as condescending from any other man. "I realize all too well that additional security might be
disruptive for you," he began, and he paused, and then a look came over him as if he had just struck upon a logical and acceptable
compromise. "But perhaps someone you are familiar with, an old friend." Smiling cleverly, Palpatine looked to Mace Windu and
Yoda. "Master Kenobi?" he finished with a nod, and his smile only widened when Mace Windu nodded back.
"That's possible," the Jedi confirmed. "He has just returned from a border dispute on Ansion."
"You must remember him, M'Lady," Palpatine said, grinning as if it was a done deal. "He watched over you during the blockade
conflict."
"This is not necessary, Chancellor," Padme said determinedly, but Palpatine didn't relinquish his grin in the least, showing clear-
ly that he knew well how to defeat the independent Senator's argument.
"Do it for me, M'Lady. Please. I will rest easier. We had a big scare today. The thought of losing you is unbearable."
Several times, Amidala started to respond, but how could she possibly say anything to deny the Supreme Chancellor's expressed
concern? She gave a great defeated sigh, and the Jedi rose and turned to leave.
"I will have Obi-Wan report to you immediately, M'Lady," Mace Windu informed her.
As he passed, Yoda leaned in close to Padme and whispered so that only she could hear, "Too little about yourself you worry,
Senator, and too much about politics. Be mindful of your danger, Padme. Accept our help."
They all left the room, and Padme Amidala stared at the door and the flanking guards for a long while.
Behind her, at the back of his office, Chancellor Palpatine watched them all.
"It troubles me to hear Count Dooku's name mentioned in such a manner, Master," Mace said to Yoda as the Jedi made their
way back to their Council chamber. "And from one as esteemed as Senator Amidala. Any mistrust of Jedi, or even former Jedi, in
times such as these can be disastrous."
"Deny Dooku's involvement in the separatist movement, we cannot," Yoda reminded him. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]