Chương 205: V.3-C.3│Chaos III│
"Yes, well... Now that we are all gathered here, I think that we could start to get onto the right foot? Don't you think?" Palpatine had a smile on his face, as his aged and wrinkled face showed an expression that one could describe as either malicious, predatory or magnanimous.
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"Thank you for welcoming us here, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine." One of the representatives said, but they were not like the ones from before.
In fact, Palpatine had all of the representatives replaced with others that he can for sure know are under his control. If he allowed those unstable elements to continue on their path, they would have eventually messed his own plans up.
Some would say that he could foresee the future, but that was untrue as he didn't foresee the future, but instead made sure to eliminate elements that would influence what direction he wants to in. If there was a person that would hinder his plans majorly, then he would just have them killed.
If there was an organization that would chip away at what he was working towards, he would have their leadership replaced, fully loyal to himself. The fastest and easiest way to get loyalty out of others is to use money, but that is weak.
Money is a weak source of binding, so Palpatine needed something else over those he has control over. Some sort of leverage...
"Yes, yes. It is good to have you all here for peaceful discourse. I feel, just as many others feel, that the fighting between the Republic and Separatists has to end." Palpatine replied, his voice for all to hear. 'It has to end, for I must end the Jedi, become an emperor, and then go after the Empyrean.' Palpatine had big plans and desires.
The Empyrean was becoming too big of a threat for him to continue to forestall and allow the war to continue. It would be detrimental, for he had discovered that the Empyrean's territory was only expanding during the short conflict known as the Clone Wars.
It would seem that Anakin, through becoming the leader of a massive galactic power has brought peace to the not so peaceful Republic.
Funny that it was Anakin's actions that brought more peace to the Republic, even though indirectly then what the Jedi had managed to achieve themselves. Not that the Jedi haven't done great things, but they had failed to maintain the peace and stay as peacekeepers but they couldn't even do that.
"Now, if everyone would settle down. I do believe we may have some things for us to discuss..." Palpatine then started to talk about many things.
Things that included what was going to happen from now on, whether or not the Separatists would be absorbed back into the Republic or not. What types or terms of negotiations would happen, as while it was true people didn't want to fight, there needed to be something that they would gain.
People are inherently greedy, because it is something natural for one to want more, as when it comes to anything that could have a price tag put on it, there is never enough. More, more, more, more, more.
Feed the beast, and that beast is the Senate, or the Senate members that are looking to benefit from the negotiations, whether this be because they were the ones harmed directly or indirectly from the war. There are also others that wanted to benefit simply because the war was ending and the spoils went towards the victor.
Something that was never established and this type of ending could be considered a white peace. A white peace is a type of peace treaty where nations agree to a cessation of hostilities and a return to the pre-war situation. No territory changes hands, no money is exchanged, and no cores are given up by either side in the peace treaty.
Technically this is what happened, but the Separatists new leadership was more than willing to give up and rejoin the Republic. Palpatine had made sure of it, while not directly involved he had specifically looked for the people that are most suitable for him.
Those that are most agreeable to situations, that while wouldn't benefit them, they would be obedient. Soon enough, Palpatine would allow the original leadership to take charge again, as the current ones are pawns...
'Unfortunate, the loss of the Trade Federation is...' Palpatine liked the Federation, especially since they were so loyal to him in the Republic, and not only that but loyal to him as someone under the new Separatists movement indirectly as well.
'I will destroy the Empyrean.' Palpatine made this promise for what felt like the thousandth time, as he really wanted the Empyrean to fail. Then there is the 'Chosen One' of the Jedi, but it seemed like he wasn't the Chosen One for them after all.
In fact, Sidious was growing a fear of the Empyrean and who could possibly be behind it proper. He would never recognize Anakin Skywalker as the true leadership, for while he has done some things, it wouldn't be enough for Palpatine.
Most of the things that happened had to be directed by someone else, and while he still had spies within the Empyrean before Anakin's takeover, he was able to tell that someone else was directing things behind the scenes.
The Empress of the time, Shmi Skywalker, was like a puppet and Palpatine still hadn't discovered who it is. It couldn't be Anakin, for he was someone learning under the Jedi and he was young when he first came.
From what Sidious understood, Anakin Skywalker was but a child, 9 years of age. It is ridiculous to think he was that intelligent already and had the forethought to think of everything, even so far to even recognize him as a Sith Lord.
He had fooled the Jedi, so he most certainly had fooled the child as well. Sidious both believed and didn't that Anakin is the Chosen One, because Anakin didn't adhere to the Jedi. He also didn't seem to have anything else of much power, and also seemed to be manipulated.
The talks within the Senate of course was long, long and hard thought out was the demands, terms and everything else made by the Separatists. Even though the current Separatists leaders were but pawns for Palpatine, they had still taken on the mantle of leadership not knowing they were pawns. They all believed that they were making peace with the Republic and finally having their criticism heard.
They felt as if they were changing something, when in fact they were but it wasn't a change that they would expect.
"My friends! I think it is finally time that we begin the signing of this treaty!" Palpatine called out as everything seemed to be going exactly to his plans. While he may not have even needed to be here, he still was to put on a show that he is the one in control, the one in charge of the Republic.
He could have used his current emergency powers to just veto and allow the conflict to end, but that wasn't what he wanted. Doing that would send the wrong message to the Separatists, because they fully believed themselves to be the good guys.
So too did the Republic fully believe themselves to be the good guys as well.
When it comes to things like this however, to war, there is no good or bad guys, just the winners and the losers. Even when it comes to this white peace, the Separatists would still be considered the losers, for they were the ones that had started this conflict, but they were the ones to come and end it.
It doesn't matter if you benefited the most, like actually benefited the most for the Republic had one in the end. Whatever terms and agreements that were being made were not actually good agreements or terms.
In the eyes of the public, they would only see that the Separatists had come to them and had begged for them to end the war. This is the most important aspect, the people.
The Confederacy of Independent Systems, also known as the Confederacy, the CIS, the Separatist Confederacy, the Separatist Alliance, the Separatist State, the New Order, the pro-secessionists; or colloquially as the Separatists, Seps, or Sepies, was the government and separatist movement led by Darth Sidious and his apprentice Count Dooku.
Formed by various planetary and sectorial governments, as well as some mega-corporations, that declared intentions to leave the Galactic Republic, refusing to comply with its excessive taxation and corruption in the Senate during the Separatist Crisis.
So that was what was given, the excessive taxation was lessened for those a part of the Separatists movement, and then there was the corruption of the Senate. Something that was easily covered up by taking control of media companies and leveraging ones control and power to destroy them into reporting what one wants.
In the decades prior to the Clone Wars, the Republic was seen by many as a failing government, plagued by corruption and mindless bureaucracy that stifled the voices of many constituents represented in the Galactic Senate.
Secession grew during the period following the Invasion of Naboo, and the commerce guilds and trading corporations became disillusioned with the Republic after the law was passed to place taxation on all trade routes to outlying star systems.
Into this critical situation stepped Count Dooku, a former Jedi Master who had become disillusioned with the Republic and the Jedi Order that served it.
This charismatic figure stirred up anti-Republic sentiments on many worlds, paving the way for a rebellion against the government. A loose affiliation of separatists was formed, with Dooku at their head, pushing for a new government to take the place of the stagnant Republic.
Eventually, this Separatist movement established itself as the Confederacy of Independent Systems, a body formally opposed to the Galactic Republic.
The members of the CIS included the Corporate Alliance, Trade Federation, Commerce Guild, InterGalactic Banking Clan and the Techno Union.
Although the Republic recognized that many of its member worlds were in rebellion, it refused to formally acknowledge the existence of the CIS as their common government, deeming that doing so would legitimize it.
Now, that didn't matter, or it did for Palpatine had also been quick to the trigger and instead of calling the Separatists another governmental body, the terms of the agreement within the treaty included that they may never say that they were.
This is important for Sidious since it means the difference between night and day, because acknowledging the sovereignty of someone or something else would only increase that persons or governments influence and power.
The Separatists never would have won the war effort and Sidious had made sure that the puppet leaders knew this. He implanted the idea that they would always lose, for they would as many of their victories and defeats had been manipulated by himself.
Sidious was close now, and he would make today be the day he becomes the emperor. He had waited long enough, as he had the support and had everything prepared to allow himself this position.
The Jedi had no chance of standing up against him, for he had too many things under himself and that wasn't even considering that many of the Jedi were leaving constantly at this point. With or without the permission of those within the Order, people were still leaving.
'I have the Empyreans current emperor to thank for that...' Sidious hated and loved that Anakin's departure played a massive roll in the Jedi's fall.
The terms from the Republic to the Separatists was that the corporations that made up the Confederacy were Imperialized and assimilated into the Imperial war machine, and most of the Separatist worlds were absorbed into the Empire, with many prominent races of the Confederacy enslaved, while others, such as the Trandoshans, allied themselves with the Empire.
That is right, Empire, for Sidious was about to reform the Republic. He could have done so a long time ago, but now he was ready to get on with things and would not be afraid of the retaliation of the Jedi.
Or even the retaliation of the public as well, since he had also been pumping out propaganda throughout the Republic. They could not go against his power right from the start, and whatever change the Republic had of ever staying a Republic and free, was long gone.
Once he was elected the Supreme Chancellor it would be, was and is all down hill from there.
"And now! Please sign here!" Sidious called out, in some excitement but there seemed to be some disturbance within the Senate building.
"Stop right there!" A voice called out and multiple people within were confused as even the citizens watching the live stream of this peace treaty meeting were also confused. "I, Count Dooku and leader of the Separatists do not approve of this!"
It would seem that things have just changed for the worst... for Sidious that is.
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