“You are formidable,” Sidious said at last, “but you are not a one-being army, and I’ve not spent years training you only to have you sacrifice yourself. When I bestowed upon you the title of
Maul lowered his head, displaying his crown of sharp-tipped horns in their red-and-black field. “Master. As long as those who do derive the joy and satisfaction I would.”
“We shall see, my apprentice. But until then, there are matters we need to attend to.”
He motioned for Maul to stand and follow him to the holoprojector table and transmission grid — the same ones the Gran had left behind decades before, but fully modernized and enhanced.
“Stand out of view of the cams,” Sidious said, indicating a place. “For now, we want to keep you in reserve.”
“But—”
“Be patient. You will have a part to play in this.”
Sidious settled into a high-backed chair that wrapped around him like a throne and had a remote control built into one of the arms, his thoughts set aswirl by what he was about to do. Had Plagueis felt the enormity of the moment on Naboo all those years before when he had revealed his true self; removed, for the first time, the mask he wore in public? As empowering as it might have been, had the moment also been tainted by a kind of nostalgia; the loss of something so personal, so defining? What had been secret would never be secret again …
The comm caught Viceroy Nute Gunray in the midst of eating, and without the ear-flapped tiara and ornate azurestone collar that made him look like a jester. “Greetings, Viceroy,” Sidious said.
The nictitating membranes of the Neimoidian’s crimson eyes went into spasm, and his mottled muzzle twitched. “What? What? This is a secure address. How did you—”
“Don’t bother attempting to trace the origin of this communication,” Sidious said, while Gunray’s tapered gray fingers flew across the keypad of his holotable. “A trace will only lead you in circles and waste what limited time we have.”
“How dare you intrude—”
“Recently, I sent you a gift. A red-spotted pylat.”
Gunray stared. “You? You sent it?”
“I trust you had sense enough to have it scanned for monitoring devices.”
Gunray whirled to look at something off cam; probably the crested bird itself. “Of course I did. What was your purpose in sending it?” His accent elongated the words and softened the
“Consider it a token of my appreciation for the unrewarded work you have done for the Trade Federation. The directorate fails to recognize your contributions.”
“They — that is, I … Why are you hiding inside the cowl of your cloak?”
“It is the clothing of my Order, Viceroy.”
“You are a cleric?”
“Do I seem a holy man to you?”
Gunray’s expression soured. “I demand to see your face.”
“You have yet to earn the privilege of seeing me.”
“Privilege? Who do you think you are?”
“Are you certain you want to know?”
“I
Sidious’s smile barely escaped the cowl. “Even better, then. I am a Sith Lord.”
“Sith Lord?” Gunray repeated.
The response came from deep inside him, from the center of his true being. “You have permission to refer to me as Darth Sidious.”
“I’ve not heard of Darth Sidious.”
“Ah, but now that you have, our partnership is forged.”
Gunray shook his head. “I am not looking for a partner.”
Sidious showed some of his face. “Don’t pretend to be content with your position in the Trade Federation, or that you are without aspirations. We are now partners in the future.”
Gunray made a hissing sound. “This is a joke. The Sith have been extinct for a thousand years.”
“That’s precisely what the Republic and the Jedi Order would like you to believe, but we never disappeared. Through the centuries we have taken up just causes and revealed ourselves to select beings like yourself.”
Gunray sat back in his chair. “I don’t understand. Why me?”
“You and I share an avid interest in where the Republic is headed, and I have deemed it time that we begin to work in concert.”
“I won’t be part of any covert schemes.”
“Truly?” Sidious said. “Do you think that out of millions of influential beings I would choose you without knowing you inside and out? I realize that your voracious desires stem from the cruel conditions of your upbringing — you and your fellow grubs in ruthless competition for limited supplies of fungus. But I understand. We are all shaped by our infantile desires, our longing for affection and attention, our fears of death. And judging by how far you have come, it’s clear that you were unrivaled and continue to be. Your years in the Senate, for example. The clandestine meetings in the Claus Building, the Follin Restaurant in the Crimson Corridor, the funds you diverted to Pax Teem and Aks Moe, the secret dealings with Damask Holdings, the assassination of Vidar Kim—”
“Enough! Enough! Do you mean to blackmail me?”
Sidious delayed his reply. “Perhaps you didn’t hear me when I spoke of a partnership.”
“I heard you. Now tell me what you want of me.”
“Nothing more than your cooperation. I will bring about great changes for you, and in exchange you will do the same for me.”
Gunray looked worried. “You claim to be a Dark Lord. But how do I know that you are? How do I know you have any ability to help me?”
“I found you a rare bird.”
“That hardly validates your claim.”
Sidious nodded. “I understand your skepticism. I could, of course, demonstrate my powers. But I’m reluctant to convince you in that way.”
Gunray sniffed. “I haven’t time for this—”
“Is the pylat nearby?”
“Just behind me,” Gunray allowed.
“Show me.”
Gunray widened the scope of the holotable’s cams to include the bird, perched in a cage that was little more than a circle of precious metal, crowned with a stasis field generator.
“I was concerned, when I extracted him from the jungle habitat, that he would die,” Sidious said. “And yet he appears to be at home in his new environment.”
“His songs suggest as much,” Gunray replied.
“What if I told you that I could reach across space and time and strangle him where he perches?”
Gunray was aghast. “You couldn’t. I doubt that even a Jedi—”
“Are you challenging me, Viceroy?”
“Yes,” he said abruptly; then, just as quickly: “No — wait!”
Sidious shifted in the chair. “You value the bird — this symbol of wealth.”
“I am the envy of my peers for possessing it.”
“Would not actual wealth generate even greater envy?”
Gunray grew flustered. “How can I answer, when I know that you might strangle me should I refuse you?”
