Coruscant was an artificial jewel, an entire planet buried under millennia of metal and crystal. Air traffic streams crisscrossed like rivers of liquid light between skyscrapers that scraped the exosphere. It was the center of the galaxy, the Republic's pulsating heart. And to Kaelen, it felt like the most claustrophobic place he'd seen in both his lives.
A trillion people, or maybe ten, stacked in a glorified beehive. Everyone rushing, everyone with their own agendas. It's the definition of a chaotic system. And at the center of it all, the Senate. The place where honesty and good intentions come to die. Can't wait.
They landed on a platform reserved for dignitaries. An older man, with a kind face and paternal eyes, awaited them with a small entourage: Senator Palpatine of Naboo. He approached them, his face a mask of deep concern and relief.
"Your Majesty," he said in a soft, soothing voice, bowing to the decoy queen, Sabé. "What a relief to see you safe." Then his eyes fell on Padmé, dressed as a simple handmaiden. "And you, young Padmé, I'm glad you're well."
Kaelen stood a step behind Padmé, now with the newly minted title of "Special Technical Advisor." He observed Palpatine. On the surface, he was everything a struggling politician could wish for: empathetic, powerful, and on their side. But the 12% of Rick Sanchez's brain now humming in Kaelen's skull didn't see the man. He saw the data.
Analyzing... Microexpressions. A 0.2-second twitch in the orbicularis oculi, inconsistent with a genuine Duchenne smile. Speech pattern: uses inclusive pronouns like "we" to generate false camaraderie. Posture: slightly leaning forward, a predator's tactic to appear non-threatening. This guy isn't concerned. He's delighted. This crisis is the best thing that's ever happened to him.
"May I present Engineer Kaelen Ror," Padmé said, pulling Kaelen from his analysis. "His innovations were... crucial to our escape."
Palpatine offered Kaelen a warm smile. "A hero of Naboo, then. The Republic owes you much."
"Just doing my job, Senator," Kaelen replied with an easy smile that didn't reach his eyes. And you're doing yours, which seems to be puppeteering the whole galaxy.
Unveiling the Strings
They were settled into a lavish apartment overlooking the endless city. Padmé, now in her true identity among them, paced back and forth, frustrated.
"The Senate is too slow!" she exclaimed, her hands clenched into fists. "Chancellor Valorum is bound by bureaucracy and committees! While we debate, my people suffer."
Palpatine's plan, to propose a Vote of No Confidence against Chancellor Valorum, sounded like the wrong move to me. It's like trying to put out a fire by demolishing the fire station. It's a distraction.
"He's not the problem," I told her, leaning back into an absurdly comfortable couch. "He's a symptom of the problem. And Palpatine knows it."
Padmé stopped and looked at me. "What do you mean? The Senator is our greatest ally here."
Ah, sweet innocence. It's almost adorable. "I mean I'd trust him about as much as I'd trust a Hutt to babysit my wallet. Let me take a look."
"A look at what?" she asked, confused.
"Everything," I replied, pulling out a datapad. "Senate records, trade subsidy reports, Senator's office comms logs. I need your authorization to 'optimize Naboo's network security.'" I winked. "Standard security protocol, of course."
She hesitated for a second, but her frustration and the trust she'd placed in me won out. She gave me the access codes.
That's when I put my new 2% to work. Data manipulation and encryption. For a normal engineer, it would be a weeks-long task. For me, it was now like reading a book. The Senate network's code was a mess of patches and backdoors. Palpatine's encryption was more sophisticated, but it followed a logical pattern. And anything that follows a pattern can be broken.
I ignored the superficial data. I looked for the shadows, the connections that shouldn't exist. I cross-referenced Trade Federation records with subsidies Palpatine had quietly supported. I analyzed voting patterns of senators from key systems who had suddenly become hostile to Valorum. And I found the thread.
Palpatine wasn't leaving a breadcrumb trail. He was weaving a web.
The Unmasking
Kaelen called Padmé into the room where he'd been working. The datapad screen displayed a complex flow chart connecting names, corporations, and political votes.
"I can't prove he orchestrated the blockade," Kaelen began, his tone unusually serious. "Whoever is behind this is a ghost. But I can prove who benefits from every second this continues."
He pointed to Palpatine's name at the center of the diagram. "Look. He publicly supports Valorum, but votes for procedures that stall him. He calls for aid for Naboo, but his allies block sanctions against the Federation. Every move he makes, every speech he gives, is designed to do two things: make Valorum look weak and incompetent, and make himself look like the only possible savior."
He pulled up another screen, full of projections. "If the vote of no confidence succeeds, Valorum falls. And who's the most likely candidate to replace him, buoyed by a wave of sympathy from his own planet's crisis? Him."
Padmé's face had gone pale. She was a brilliant politician; she saw the power plays. But she had seen Palpatine as a mentor, a father figure. Kaelen was showing her that figure was a facade.
"He's not on your side, Padmé," Kaelen said softly, but with brutal finality. "He's using your suffering and your people's suffering as a ladder to power."
Padmé stood silent for a long moment, staring at the diagram, the pieces clicking into place in her mind with horrifying clarity. The trust she had placed in the Senator shattered. The frustration she felt transformed into a cold, determined anger.
"Jar Jar," she said suddenly, her voice firm.
The Gungan, who had been idly tinkering nearby, startled. "Mesa?"
"You will notify the Senate that Her Majesty the Queen is returning to Naboo to resolve this herself," she ordered. Then she turned to Kaelen. "We can't win this game. The rules are rigged."
"It's the smartest move you can make," Kaelen confirmed. "Fight on a battlefield you choose, not his."
Padmé looked at him, and the gratitude in her eyes was now deeper, mingled with the weight of the betrayal she had just uncovered. "Prepare the ship, Kaelen. And prepare your tricks." Her voice left no room for doubt. "We're going to need them. We're going home."