Jedi Insurgency 150

Three days had passed since Corvus had inadvertently fulfilled his promise to Boss Nass. Crosshair’s actions had been filmed, and were trending all across the holonet. 

The death of a Senator in such a brutal manner had been a galvanizing action, one that had the Gungans up in arms. Even the Human population on Naboo-perennial artists obsessed with peace-were clamoring for war. As a planet full of rich cultural exports, many famous actors, influencers, and media types, the death of Jar Jar had an impact much larger than one might expect. History's about his war exploits became commonplace, and many short-form videos discussed a theory that Palpatine had coerced Jar Jar into calling for the vote of no confidence that saw the old man ascend to Emperor. 

Of course, Corvus couldn't help but dip his own fingers into the chaos, and had subtly manipulated many of these content creators with the subtle persuasion of [Mind Trick]. It was nothing insidious, simply a little push. To have these people discard their fear of being canceled, and share their true thoughts on the matter. 

Besides that, he had also held another interview-like he had on Eriadu-and discussed the tragic deaths that had occurred on Naboo as of late. Conveniently, he had Jax & Yon upload the footage of his healing acts to be played side-by-side on the screen whilst he spoke to the journalist. 

Taking advantage of Jar Jar's demise like this made him feel dirty, and even somewhat bitter. War was a disgusting fact of life. Even the ‘good guys’ in WW2 had moments where they took no prisoners, and murdered men who surrendered in cold blood. As the leader, it was particularly difficult when his subordinates went above and beyond to complete the mission. He could sense that Hunter was fudging the truth-the clone commando never spoke an outright lie, and didn't trigger his Jedi Shadow ability that detected falsehoods-but Hunter had tread dangerously close to his bottomline. 

That being said, Corvus was unwilling to punish them for what had transpired. They were his day one recruits. Besides the boys, he trusted no one more. Going through hell and back with a man you would gladly raise a pint for in salute wasn't someone he was willing to so readily dismiss. Earlier that week, CF-99 had followed him to confront a horror from a bygone era. There was no hesitation or fear in their step, and in fact, they had placed great trust and confidence in him. Corvus was honored to lead such men, to share in such loyalty and brotherhood. Sometimes brothers mucked it up, but ‘The Boys’ was a sacred bond between men. To break all ties, or harshly punish them for an act that ultimately benefited him went against his ethos. 

That being said, the manner of Jar Jar's death had created some suspicion from Obi-Wan, and their parting had been on suspect terms. There was no ill will between one another, but the bearded Jedi Master had seemed to distance himself somewhat. Corvus wasn't bent out of shape by this or anything. Disagreements were healthy, and normal. Rome wasn't built in a day, and reforming the Jedi would take time. Honestly, he was fortunate that Kenobi didn't outright brand him as a traitor, or try to kill him. 

Corvus's [Jedi Master Low] was overpowered compared to 95% of the organisms in the galaxy, but against the man who definitively defeated suitless Vader, there wasn't much he could do to guarantee victory. Against such a defensive minded foe, he'd be better off running away, or overwhelming him with numbers (or a higher level). 

As for Senator Amidala, her return to politics had been extraordinary. Beautiful, soft spoken, and possessing a bleeding heart that resonated with the poor and downtrodden-despite being a literal former Queen and 1%er-she was everything that a people weary with war could ask for. The pacifists, and anti-war coalitions swiftly rallied behind her return. The holonet was abuzz with her speeches, and risqué films from her days when she was fighting in the Geonosian arena. 

Naturally, he had avoided that vile tongued woman like the plague. In any big tent party, there would be those who repelled one another, and the young woman's diehard pacifistic ideals were not suitable given reality. In practice, Corvus could get behind ‘peace for all.’ In fact, that was his goal. But a peace backed by rhetoric was doomed to ultimately collapse. As ugly a truth as it was, the fist was the ultimate peacekeeper. Jedi, for all their sermons, and annoying monologues, were warrior-monks. The central rite of passage for every Jedi youth, was the construction of a lightsaber. Corvus preferred to speak softly-as yelling or shouting over others was for idiots who couldn't get their point across-and to also carry a big stick. Only when the other guy thinks ‘I can't take him’ can law & order be enforced. 

Therefore, Corvus had decided he would deal with the Senator as little as he could. From what he could tell, the feeling was mutual. 

Ultimately, the campaign to Naboo had concluded, meeting, and in some cases, exceeding his expectations. 

Primarily, the food issue for Eriadu and the surrounding systems under Jedi/CIS joint control had been solved. Secondly, the move to snub Palpatine politically had been achieved spectacularly. Padmé had been the subject of dozens of assassination attempts, each one of them initiated by that old prune. And yet, here she was, full of health. The one weakness that Vader had was now returned to life. Furthermore, as a central figure from his home planet, Palpatine had practically been required to address her return. 

Corvus had tuned in to a special hearing just to watch the bastard praise Padmé, and watch as he urged her back to the Senate, where she could work for the betterment of the people! Honestly, he kind of begrudgingly respected Palpatine, like how one would respect a competent enemy. The dude was a workhorse, and to the people, this act of humility was quite endearing. Public sentiment was in his favor, and many commentators were amping up this reunion like the meeting of a heartbroken grandfather reuniting with his missing granddaughter. 

He knew that deep down, Palpatine must be malding, but damn if he wasn't a political genius! That said, yet another blackhole-like wave of Darkside energy had come from Coruscant. Alarmingly, it seemed that the return of Plagueis had resulted in Palpatine taking a drastic action. He could only imagine, and dread at the power that the Sith Lord wielded now. Frankly speaking, he didn't know if reaching max level would be enough to take the ‘most powerful Sith of all time’ down. At least, he didn't think he could brute force the old man down with stats or strictly System learned abilities. By learning things outside of his System, and honing esoteric Force abilities, perhaps he could discover an outside the box approach to achieve victory. 

So long as he drew breath, there was hope. Tython was still on his list of places to visit, and he was certain that the opportunities to learn would be extraordinary. As someone who didn't limit themselves to that ‘saber monkey’ mentality, he would never limit himself to only one method of attack. How stupid would he have to be, to think that all he had to do was reach max level, then do something silly like engage old Palpy in a 1v1 lightning hands duel? That might work in a game, but only an idiot would attempt such a thing. 

No. To win the war for the galaxy, it was much more reliable to be slow and methodical. Taking planets, accumulating men, resources, and influence. This was what mattered. Even if he should somehow kill Palpatine right this instant, the galaxy would still be at war, and a thousand competing interests would strive for the throne. Real life wasn't a place where killing the enemy Emperor was an instant win button. Star Wars Legends already showed what kind of hot mess the galaxy had developed into after the Battle of Yavin. Dozens of factions emerged, and the ‘New Republic’ was just as corrupt as its older counterpart. Defeating Palpatine was certainly a major milestone, but winning the peace was just as important. 

A typical saber monkey would probably hole up on Tython for 20 years, and remain low-key until they had the confidence to one-shot Palpatine. That or wait for Luke to make a move. 

Corvus was unwilling to watch the innocent people of the galaxy suffer. Furthermore, he had to prepare for a Vong invasion. He quite literally had no time to spare! 

Which is why, instead of going to Tython, he was, at this very moment, piloting the Falcon through hyperspace towards Tatooine! 

He had given his word to the Falleen criminal, Prince Xizor, that he would elevate him to become the leader of the Black Suns. The man was slimy, and essentially filled the role of Jeff Bezos in Star Wars. A shipping magnet trillionaire, he had his hands in every sector of business, held high level contacts, bribed thousands of politicians, and was aware of almost everything taking place in the galaxy. Ensuring the continued service of such a valuable minion was incredibly important to both the war, and the post peace. 

People would always find a way to use illicit substances, or act outside the law. By controlling Xizor-sort of like how Japan ‘controlled’ the Yakuza-he could prune the more dangerous elements from the galaxy, and finally put an end to mass slavery. 

His trip this time to Tatooine, was to eliminate Xizor’s rivals, and to damage the Hutt cartel. In fact, Jax, Yon, and CF-99 were not with him right now, as they had been sent off on missions of their own. One man could not do everything, and he was grateful for their trust and friendship. Their aid in eliminating the other rivals would save him time, otherwise, Corvus would be acting like some gimped game character, chasing one target after another in an endless quest. 

For the time being, he was solo. 

As the largest slave owners in the galaxy, it was easy to hate on the Hutts. And then, when you took a closer look at their generational wealth-Hutts were long lived bastards who regularly reached 1,000 years+-they became even juicier targets. 

Purging Xizor’s rivals was a good excuse to finally do what the Jedi were too scared to do. For thousands of generations, these corpulent slimes have squeezed the people of everything they ever had. Eliminating the Grans-and placing them into work camps-had been but a taste of the pain he would bring to the Hutts. Their cartel had put people into debts that they couldn't pay back, abducted billions across the millennia, if not trillions. With no Sith Lord or Force Sensitives protecting them, Corvus had decided that they were ripe for some ‘Jedi freedom.’ 

Call it a war crime, but there were some groups in this galaxy, like the Sith or Rakatans, that went against everything a peace loving man stood for. Woe be to the foe who struck down the weak & innocent when strong men did not fear such flimsy things as ancient treaties, and the law! 

As the Falcon rocketed into the Tatooine system, Corvus looked out at that planet filled with sand, and suffering, and breathed in their painfilled sobs. 

He recalled Jabba using Princess Leia, of that hopeful boy that had once dreamed of soaring the stars as a pilot who lost his family to brutal violence of that child who once had the power to destroy the Sith, but slowly turned when his mother was raped and murdered.

For countless generations, this world had been the sight of tragedy. 

No longer! 

He would do what the Jedi, and even Vader never dared do. 

The Force pulsed with approval, the Light & Dark swirled around him, and an aura of a wrothful protector cloaked his form. 

~~~~~~

AN: Bit of a recap chapter, but it had to be done, otherwise we'd spend another ch or 2 on Naboo. The next couple chapters will be pretty fun, as we have a run in with everyone's favorite space pirate~