Chapter Text
Primeday, Coruscant, Coruscant Guard Barrack, 0730, seven hundred days after Geonosis.
Fox was In his personal chamber, nursing a cup of boiling black caff thinking about last night conversation.
He had made a promise to get Justice for Fives and uncover Palpatine's plan. If he has one, but he wasn’t going to going in without a plan.
Time to draft said Plan.
He used his Buy’ce to be sure there was no mic or hidden camera in the chamber, besides the one that he knew of. He took a flimsi sheet, a pen, and innocently turned in his seat, making it look like he was thinking, when he was back behind the camera and was sure that nobody would see what he was writing he began to write.
Operation objectives:
Discover why I killed Fives.
Investigate the inhibitor chip.
Discover if Fives was telling the truth about the conspiracy.
Discover if the Chancellor is linked to it.
If anything, illegal is discovered, leak it to the Senate for appropriate measures.
Possible opponent:
Count Dooku: Leader of the CSI, has assembled the several parts of the CSI by himself and declared secession from the Republic, was a Jedi before. Sith traditions mention that there is always an apprentice and a master, which one is Dooku?
Possible outcome:
Best outcome: Dooku is exactly as he said and keep the separatist together by sheer force of will, his death will result in the fallout of the separatist alliance.
Worst outcome: Dooku wants the keep the Republic in a civil war (why?)
(Fox couldn’t be more thankful that he hacked the Jedi temple archive and communication, paranoia toward Jetii was one of the things the Cuy'val Dar had drilled into them.)
Chancellor Palpatine: head of the Republic and the GAR, concentrate power since the start of the war, responsible for the divide of our troop and the actual stalemate.
Possible outcome :
-best: the chancellor is incapable of formulating battle strategy and is genuine in his intention to protect democracy and will surrender exceptional power once the war over
-worst: the Chancellor is either Dooku puppet or puppet master, in either case, is a force-sensitive to treat with extreme caution
Jedi order: generals of the GAR, bar too few exceptions, incompetent in military matters, some of them disregard clones, and living being.
Possible outcome:
Best: the Jedi time's as peacemakers have diminished their skills as generals, and their arrogance comes from their power, but they stay completely loyal to the republic.
Worst: the Jedi incompetence is their way to sabotage the war and make the CSI win. They intend to take control/destroy the republic. (ex: Pong Krell)
(Thanks the force for the Jetii hubris, a Venator bridge, was no place to discuss a traitor motivation)
To not forget: order 65 and 66 are here for this kind of situation, don’t hesitate to trigger them if necessary.
Things to do:
Find a way to hide thought and intention to force users in case of worst outcome. (ask Alpha ARCs or underground for advice)
Find a safe space and time window to work on this operation. (easy)
Find ways to not have the operation be linked to the guard. (easy)
Find specialists to investigate inhibitor chip, gather blackmail on them for leverage (hard)
Hack Chancellor computer and mic his office (hard)
Gather blackmail on the chairman and the security council for levity if needed to trigger order 65. (easy)
Gather blackmail on the chancellor for levity if needed to trigger order 66. (hard)
Find allies in the senate In case of the situation need it (easy) Gather blackmail on them If levity is needed (ideal target: Organa, Mon Mothma, Amidala, Chuchi)
Neutralize possible adversary within the senate. (most dangerous senator: Amidala, Organa, Mon Mothma, Bonteri)
Fox sighed, and reread the flimsy, several theory sprung in his mind, but he disregarded them for now, acting with a preconception of the situation was never good. It was going to be a hard operation, but he got to do it, at least for his brothers.
He checked the watch on his HUD, he had two minutes before his day as Senior Commander of the 65th Legion began.
Well, let’s try to not be late.
He got up from his chair locked his bedroom door and headed toward his office in the centre of the Guard precinct.
Each of the guard he passed across saluted at his passage, he made a point to return the salute each time. He was a hard and demanding commander who asked only the best from the men under his command, but that didn’t mean he saw them as pawns, they were his vod’e and the best-trained cops and bodyguard of the galaxy, they deserved respect.
Beside a leader who didn’t show respect to his men was a dead man walking.
As he entered the big open space that served as the office, he was welcomed by a young and beautiful Twi’lek woman.
“Commander,” she said handing him a cup of black caf and a meat sandwich.
“S ur’ar Paslani, yesterday date went well?”" answered Fox taking the boiling cup and the sandwich.
“she was a bit too full of herself but good with his tongue, explained Paslani while following Fox as he walked toward his office.
"How was your night out?” she asked.
“Drank, got in a fight with the golden boys of the 501st, finished the night by sharing a drink with ARCs. Pretty tame night all thing considered”. answered Fox
“And I’m supporting COMPOR, deadpanned his assistant, one day I shall take you to a nice quiet bar”.
“I don’t have enough lekku for your taste Pas’ika ”, said Fox while composing the thirty-digit code to open his office.
He entered his office, crashed on the chair, removed his Buy’ce took a bit of his sandwich before drinking one long sip of his coffee.
Paslani took a second to look at her datapad before giving the briefing of the day
“So, we got thirty drunk clones and two padawans in sobering cells. Here are the documents to release them, don’t worry their CO had been contacted. Four domestics murders and five robberies, our help had been asked on two of those case. We got firefight in the lower levels, sixty-four dead, CSF investigating, I’m giving them two days before they ask our help, four cases of aggression against clones, the dik’ute are in cells awaiting your decision. Senator Free Ta, Chuchi and Mothma are requesting guard security detail, I can ask Thire to deal with the request if you want, and Senator Amidala has invited you to lunch, anytime you want during the week, she is pretty insistent”.
Fox listened, memorized, and digested all the info he got before taking his decisions.
“Ask Thorn to affect one squad to each of the cases we got, also tell him to get a platoon to study the firefight and be ready at a moment notice. Transfer the aggression case to the tribunal, tell them to be quick with it, I don’t want the Guard to be dragged into a court battle. Ask Stone to look into Free Ta request and give me the document to validate the security detail to Chuchi and Mothma and tell Amidala I will be free for tomorrow lunch, take it or leave.”
Paslani handed him the document he asked for, which he signed in plus of the release order for the clones and padawan of the sobering cells.
“Anything else?”, Fox asked.
Paslani eyed the mountain of paperwork waiting right next to his computer.
“No sorry, good luck with the paperwork, anything I can get you?”
“Bring me a caff in two hours and sent me captain Watcher in three, please”.
Paslani nodded and headed toward the door, before hesitating and saying
“I wasn’t asking you on a date, I was just asking as a friend”.
Fox froze for a split second, his mind not able to understand.
“Thanks, Pas’ika , I will consider it”.
Paslani offered him a little smile before exiting the office.
Fox spent the next hour completing his paperwork with the speed of someone with augmented intelligence and the force of habit. It was still a long and exhausting task, but he had known what he signed for when he became commander of the Guard.
Fox finally put down the last sheet of flimsy, an order to purchase Tibana gas magazine for the Guard.
The commander sighed and put the caf cup to his lips, only for remarking that it was empty.
He had 40 minutes before Paslani came with another mountain of paperwork and a cup of caf. Time to do so real Guard job.
He put on his Buy’ce, positioned himself like he was deep in thought, contacted the clones in guard duty in the senate via private channels and listened to their report for twenty minutes. Nothing worth remembering to expect for the fact that the Bothan senator seemed to be aware of the classified deployment of the 259th regiment...
259th…. Airborne regiment commanded by Commander Barl, sent to the assault of Sarenna in the Mid Rim, the 79th infantry regiment, commanded by CC-9612 is in the sector, they just got out of the defence of Alaoria. If the high command gives a good excuse it could work.
In a m atter of second Fox sent the audio files of the Bothan senator discussion with one aide of banking clan representant to ARC Captain Maze of the operation special brigade, with the message: leak it to Zey.
The ten next minutes were passed reviewing the tape of the mics that were placed in some senators office.
As usual, Free Ta was more interested in bending twi’lek on his desk rather than working. Another piece to the mountain of blackmail he had on him. On the other hand, it seemed Organa was liking mon Cal opera at full blast when receiving guest, too bad the mics were equipped with sound filtration technology.
Organa was discussing how to stop or delay the last chancellor bill with the Mandalorian senator.
Fox snickered, a pacifist Mandalorian in the senate, what next? the Jedi organizing sexual orgy in their council chamber?
Finally, Fox spent the next ten minutes thinking about his plan for the chip, he needed to ask an ARC to teach him their mind covering trick. Fordo and his men were off-planet for next month, the Nulls reported everything to Skirata, and it was better to not get “Kal ‘Buir” in the loop, for now, Aven and Myles didn’t trust him, so that left Maze.
Fox sighed, he and Maze knew each other well, since Kamino, and have a close and efficient working relationship with him. But Maze was a stuck-up bastard with too much democratic ideals in his head.
Ironically, that made him one of the best men of the GAR.
Fox sent a private message asking him if he was free to grab a drink sometimes.
The best way to bail Maze out was a promise to eat with him.
As he sent his message Paslani barged in his office, a boiling cup of caf in one hand and at least a hundred sheet of paperwork to do.
“Perfect Timing Pas’ika , I was finally a having a moment of peace,” said Fox.
“I know you too much to feel guilty” deadpanned the Twi’lek while handing him a coffee cup and dropping on his desk the paperwork.
“Senator Chuchi called, she, and I quote her, kindly requested an appointment with Commander Fox”.
“hmmm tell her I have lunch with senator Amidala tomorrow, I can see her an hour before, during or after, her choice”.
“will do, you finished that paperwork?”
“ lek ”
“Great, I will be taking it for you then, good luck boss”.
Fox resumed doing paperwork for the next hour, part of his mind wandered why senator Chuchi and Amidala, two notorious anti-war senators wanted to see him? Fox hoped it wasn’t related to Fives.
After one hour Paslani entered the office followed by captain watcher.
Captain watcher was one of the new ARC officer, trained by Alpha, he was commanding one of the four company of the sentinel battalion of the guard. They were the clone tasked with patrolling the senate building and escorting his occupant.
“Thank Paslani, I would take it from here. Said Fox, you can enter captain.”
Watcher entered the office and saluted.
“Commander” he said.
“At ease, captain” Fox said rising from his chair.
Watcher relaxed and Fox came to stand at arm's length of the captain.
“As you know. a class of first grade of war orphan had been given the privilege to spent an evening inside the senate building with the supreme chancellor newt week. I want one of your platoons and you to be the security detail of the class for the evening. You will be coordinating with the senate guard for this operation, ask Paslani for the comm details.” Fox explained with his cold and efficient voice used for briefing.
Watcher showed no reaction to the double bad news, the 65th and the Senate guard had a best tense working relationship and were outright hostile outside of work hour. To add salt to the injury Fox was leaving Watcher to deal with children, most clones were uncomfortable at best with children.
“Understood Sir, answered Watcher, may I ask why my men and I are punished like this?”
Fox chuckled.
“Your company got a dream assignment last week, it’s your turn to take on the shitty one”.
“Seem fair, said Watcher, I will contact the blue di’kute as soon as possible, anything else commander?”
“No that will be all" said Fox while switching to a private channel before changing his mind.
Sending Watcher on some private mission while there was still the risk of the chancellor being force-sensitive wasn’t a good idea.
If Watcher saw the opening of the private channel, he didn’t say a thing, the captain saluted and exited the office.
Fox had still one hour before his lunch break and the afternoon duty.
Time to do paperwork, oh joy.
As soon as he began attacking the bane of his existence, he got a message from Maze saying Dex dinner, 1230 at best, my threat.
Great, hopefully, he would be able to attack the next part of his plan soon. Fox commed the captain of the stand-by company of the investigation regiment, Company Strill and asked him to discreetly surround Dex Dinner between 1200 and 1300 and be ready to track and arrest every patron if Fox asked.
At 1159 Fox got up, exited his office, and walked in direction of the BARC jet bike hangar.
“Leaving your office for Lunch, asked Paslani, are your sick commander?”
“Yeah, I got a meeting with a vod in town”.
“Alert the press, Paslani snickered, Commander stick in the ass Fox is going to see a friend for lunch”.
“You know that disrespected of your CO could get you to martial court? «asked Fox who know exactly Paslani answer.
“I’m a civi worker, not a military, and we’re off duty, I can snarck at you all I want without repercussion”.
“When was your last mandatory fitness and self-defence test?” asked Fox.
Each civi working for the guard was under obligation to take a regular self-defence class and fitness test, the clones charged of training and evaluate them were chosen by the senior commander of the guard.
Paslani paled.
“you wouldn’t dare”.
“watch me, 0800 in the guard gym, miss Amersu” said Fox before leaving toward the Hanger, leaving behind a furious looking twi’lek.
The ride to Dex cantina was quick, Fox knew enough safe shortcut to avoid any traffic or control checkpoint if the situation asked. He saluted the squad of Strill company that he saw, they were enjoying a lunch of Corellian sandwich, before heading toward the cantina.