Death Watch, despite its reputation and status as a de facto terrorist organization, had a sufficient number of supporters even among the "peaceful" population of Mandalore. This explained the capabilities of Death Watch operatives to act covertly even in territories that seemed to be fully controlled by the pacifist government.
Caches of ammunition and equipment, safe havens, and ready-to-fly transport could be found in almost every settlement of any size on the planet.
Bo-Katan took advantage of one of these havens after leaving the "hospitable" board of the Dawn Eagle.
She had to rethink much since that cursed day when that mad monster in the guise of a droid managed to capture her with shameful ease for a Kryze.
She was prepared for torture, but instead received quite comfortable living conditions. No pain or coercion... That's not what Bo-Katan expected when that strange mercenary entered her place of confinement. By his bearing and behavior, he was clearly a Mandalorian, but there were no clan symbols on his armor. The girl who was sheltered by the Nomads was with him. So, Kryze drew her logical conclusion that the mercenary served the Nomad clan. However, his subsequent visits and the conversations he initiated during the girl's brief confinement made Bo-Katan doubt her conclusions.
And everything turned out to be much more complicated than it seemed at first glance.
This is why Kryze now froze before the holocommunicator, gathering her courage before entering the subscriber's identifier.
And there was something to fear. Because, according to the information received, the one she was about to contact was extremely dangerous, had extensive connections, and could even influence the Republic Senate.
But the choice had already been made on the Dawn Eagle.
Gathering her resolve, Bo-Katan activated the communicator.
The connection was unusually long, indicating a complex encryption algorithm and multiple channel reconnections, which ruled out the possibility of tracking the subscriber or intercepting the signal.
Finally, the hologram of the interlocutor appeared above the communicator. However, Kryze could not make out his features, no matter how hard she tried. He seemed to be hidden by a shadow, as if light itself did not fall on his figure, concealed by a robe with a deep hood, allowing only the outlines to be seen.
The stranger said nothing, apparently waiting for the girl to speak first.
"I am Bo-Katan Kryze..." the Mandalorian began, but was interrupted by a deep, resonant male voice, imbued with a bone-chilling cold.
"I know who you are. Otherwise, this conversation would not have taken place at all. Don't waste my time and answer, what did Death Watch need from me, since you even managed to find a way to contact me?" the stranger said slowly.
His words carried no threat, but Bo-Katan still felt uneasy. Whoever was hiding under the hood evoked an almost instinctive fear. But the girl kept herself in check. She couldn't show weakness now.
So, taking a deep breath, the Mandalorian voiced in a firm voice the phrase that, she was sure just a few weeks ago, she would never utter.
"The Duchess of Mandalore, Satine Kryze... must die."
The girl almost flinched at her own words, but managed to keep herself in check.
The interlocutor's hologram leaned forward almost imperceptibly.
"Very interesting," the stranger in the hood drawled.
This was just the beginning. Bo-Katan had a very difficult conversation ahead of her.
Meanwhile, in the "Basilisk's Nest," representatives of the Mandalorian clans who disagreed with the current government's policies gathered again.
For the second time since arriving on Mandalore, Revan was present at a meeting of this magnitude. Again, he saw representatives of all clans that represented the opposition to the pacifist government. And they, in turn, were not too happy to see him.
And there were reasons for that. Revan could name at least two off the top of his head.
Firstly, everyone had already been informed of the meeting's purpose, and therefore told about the idea of keeping the Duchess in her post as head of government.
And secondly, they were supposed to dig up much more information about the mysterious Vaner Shan than at the first meeting. This meant that, in addition to connections with the Hutts, acquaintances with the Order had also surfaced. The meeting with Qui-Gon was supposed to confirm the latter. Although the Nomad clan ensured secrecy, it didn't prevent him from leaking information to allies and compatriots.
Revan preferred not to recall the small detail, like Vaner's indirect involvement in the "terrorist attack" on Concordia, after which the bill on cooperation with the Justice Corps gained momentum. And yet, this incident also spoke against him.
And all the guesses were confirmed immediately after a brief exchange of greetings.
"We should have guessed that nothing good would come of a deal with an outsider. Especially with someone who is so closely associated with the Hutts and Jetii," said the representative of the Rau clan.
"I'm more concerned about the plan our 'guest' is trying to impose on us," added a Mandalorian from the Eldar clan.
"Judging by the results of your 'activities,' you're more helping our opponents than keeping your word," the elder of the Ruck clan commented sarcastically, clearly hinting at the events on Concordia.
Judging by the mood of the other participants, all clans, except for the Nomads, held roughly the same opinion.
"I propose to give Vaner a chance to explain his plan and dispel our doubts," Sevrass said.
Although without much enthusiasm, the clan leaders agreed with the proposal of the Nomad clan leader and gave Revan the floor.
"Well, we are waiting for explanations. A month has passed since our meeting, and all you've come up with is doing nothing? Leaving Mandalore in Kryze's hands?" the representative of the Rau clan once again said.
Revan smiled under his mask. The Mandalorians had a very poor understanding of galactic politics, but nevertheless, they now most resembled a gathering of senators arguing about new tariffs on agricultural products.
However, the Clan Council's reaction was quite expected. And the former Jedi was ready for the discussion.
"Esteemed council members, as you rightly noted, I plan to leave Mandalore in Duchess Satine's hands. However..." Revan had to wait for the disapproving murmur to subside, "However, this does not mean that the pacifists will remain in power."
"Explain," the representative of the Eldar clan said, preventing further arguments from starting.
"In accordance with my plan, the pacifist representatives will step down from power and lose public support. Their place will be taken by the opposition. A civil war will not have time to break out, as Death Watch will be liquidated as quickly and effectively as possible," Revan said insinuatingly, subconsciously calling upon the Force for help.
"What about Kryze? She is a staunch supporter of the pacifists, and we find it hard to believe that she can change her views," said a Mandalorian from the Ruck clan.
"In that case, you don't know your Duchess well," Revan replied calmly.
Angry shouts in Mandalorian were heard from all sides. Some were more restrained and merely shook their heads disapprovingly.
Sevrass Nomad reacted more calmly than the others, saying only one word with a smirk: "Insolent."
"Mandalorians are accustomed to viewing their opponents from the perspective of physical strength and military potential, completely forgetting about psychology," Revan said loudly enough for even those who were still not calm to hear.
" 'A Sith would strike at the psyche first,' " the former dark lord smirked to himself.
"Satine Kryze is attached to her clan and, first and foremost, to her younger sister," Revan continued.
"There has been no information about Bo-Katan Kryze for several years," someone from the audience shouted.
"That's not entirely true," the representative of the Eldar clan objected, "Just yesterday I received a report that a woman, matching the description of the Duchess's younger sister, was spotted near the spaceport in Keldabe."
"And we're only finding out about this now?" the Mandalorian from the Ruck clan exclaimed indignantly.
"The information needed to be verified."
"This changes a lot," said the representative of the Buro clan, who had been silent until now.
Revan briefly noted that previously this clan was represented by a girl who was quite negatively disposed towards Tyra. Apparently, something had changed in the clan after that meeting. Or was it normal practice to change representatives from time to time?
The former Jedi looked closely at the assembly and noticed that, indeed, some clans had sent different people this time. Under the armor, this was not immediately noticeable, but the movements and how they felt through the Force were different.
In addition, besides the representatives of the major clans, Revan was able to recognize loners this time. Either they were without a clan, or they were the sole representatives of their lineage. There were few of them, only three. They sat separately from the clan members and did not participate in the discussion. Tyra, for some reason, had not warned about such a peculiarity of the meeting. Revan decided that he should clarify later why.
"But why Kryze specifically?" asked the representative of the Rau clan, "Wouldn't it be more rational to support the true Mandalore, instead of the Duchess who tramples traditions?"
"Are you talking about Jango, brother?" Eldar inquired.
"Yes. After Jaster's death, Jango Fett was chosen as the new Mandalore. And I believe we should support him."
"But does Jango himself want that?" Sevrass Nomad objected.
"Yes, Nomad is right. There's been no news from Fett for over a year," the representative of the Buro clan supported Tyra's mentor.
"And he didn't respond to our call when our families were taken hostage," someone from the non-clan members, speaking for the first time since the beginning of the meeting, added.
"He didn't have to," the elder of Ruck snorted in response.
"A Mandalore who doesn't care about the fate of his people..." Nomad shook his head.
"If he were here, he would be called to account," the elder of the Eldar clan replied diplomatically to the unspoken accusations, "However, he is not here, and I remind you that he was elected in accordance with traditions. We cannot simply ignore this fact."
"Traditions are not enshrined in the normative documents of Mandalore as a state within the Republic. And the Senate will simply not take them into account," Revan reminded, cutting off the argument.
"How dare you..." someone from the audience hissed.
"I dare," Revan continued confidently, "At the moment, your people are not in a position to put traditions above common sense. The Senate and the Jedi Order have already scorched your worlds once. If you don't want a repeat, you have to play by their rules. That's why I was called. To find a way to achieve your goals without provoking the Republic. And it is the fastest and safest option for a change of power that I propose."
Despite the general dissatisfaction, Revan's words were heeded, and he continued.
"Jango Fett may be the chosen Mandalore three times over, but how much support will he get from ordinary citizens? Who, besides the clans that supported Jaster, knows about his election? Has he helped many after receiving the title?" the former Jedi began to ask questions, "Satine Kryze, on the other hand, has become the face of the New Mandalore, was elected by the people, and receives support from the Senate. In the galactic political arena, she is the legitimate head of Mandalore's government. Her overthrow will be considered a state coup and will inevitably attract the attention of the Senate and the Jedi."
"However, a change in the Duchess's political course will be considered ordinary reforms, right?" the head of the Eldar clan guessed.
"Correct," Revan nodded.
"And what about Death Watch? They're unlikely to let us pull off such a move," someone from the audience asked.
"And our kinsmen! What about the hostages? Didn't you promise to free them? Where's the result?" the Mandalorian from the Ruck clan joined the concerns.
Revan had expected this question. He had paid close attention to the search for hostages while preparing the plan to reform Mandalore. Unfortunately, Bo-Katan knew nothing about Vizsla's dark dealings. The head of Death Watch, knowing the Hutts, understood perfectly that his deputy would not like it. Not that he was afraid of her... No, Revan was sure that Vizsla could easily do without the younger Kryze. As well as eliminate her if necessary. However, according to her own words, the girl was supported by many members of Death Watch and their secret supporters. And her loss could weaken the organization, which would move Pre Vizsla further away from his plan to seize power.
This is why, as Maul managed to find out, after capturing Bo-Katan, Death Watch, instead of lying low, began to show too much activity. Its agents contacted all their contacts in an attempt to find the missing Kryze. Which only made the Zabrak's job easier. It was much easier to track a worried Death Watch, whose agents had become careless.
HK's mistake had another unexpected and useful consequence.
Returning to the question of hostages. Information about the first group had already been found. A timely intercepted transmission from one of the secret Death Watch hideouts discovered by Maul and a bit of "decryption magic" from R2, and Revan had the coordinates of an old asteroid base where several missing families were held.
However, it was necessary to free not one group, but all at once, so that Death Watch would not have time to react. And therefore, Revan was waiting for his new agent to find information about the remaining hostages.
"In the next few days, I will have the coordinates, and I will need help to free everyone at once," the former Jedi announced.
Of course, the assembly immediately demanded details. New questions arose one after another. Sevrass Nomad began to fear that Revan wouldn't last long. However, the process of negotiating with the clan leaders did not seem to burden him at all. The former Jedi used his extensive experience as a diplomat to skillfully navigate sharp corners, reveal only part of the truth, and present facts, and sometimes outright speculation, only from a favorable angle.
For a full three hours, the disputes among the Clan Council members did not cease, but Revan managed to convince them to follow the prepared plan, only part of which he disclosed to the Mandalorians, and to be ready for unexpected events.
The clans didn't need to know everything. It would only create unnecessary questions and problems. As the ancient sages said: much knowledge, many sorrows.
"Perhaps I haven't felt such tension at a meeting since the conflict between Jaster and Vizsla," Sevrass shared his thoughts as he and Revan left the Basilisk's Nest and headed by aerocar to one of the parks in Keldabe, where the former Jedi had another equally important meeting planned.
"Compared to the Jedi Council sessions, it wasn't too bad," Revan shrugged.
"I'll take your word for it. So, what now?"
"Now? We wait for Death Watch's move. Soon they will try to eliminate the Duchess, but with her current guard, this will not be possible. However, it will show Satine how shaky her position is."
"Just because of one assassination attempt?" Nomad clarified.
"Oh, no. It will only be the first pebble that causes a real avalanche. Mandalore will plunge into chaos for several weeks, and the task of the allied clans will be to protect ordinary citizens."
"Is this necessary? After all, it will essentially be a real civil war..."
"In miniature," Revan agreed, "But this way we can avoid a full-scale war. I will show Kryze the reality beyond the serene world of her pacifist ideals and force her to accept the truth."
"And what if she doesn't want to accept the truth? Or renounce her beliefs?"
"There's always a chance of failure, but we have several stacked cards on our side," Revan smirked.
"And which ones?"
"Blood and love," the former Jedi replied curtly.
"What?"
"You'll see."
"Do you always hide your plans even from allies?"
" 'From them first and foremost,' " Revan thought to himself, but said something else aloud, "Excessive trust, unfortunately, always leads to sad consequences. I've learned that personally. There's a very small circle of those I can trust completely. Everyone else will have to accept that some things they don't need to know."
"I don't like being led around," Nomad was clearly displeased with this answer.
"Nobody likes it, but sometimes you have to."
They flew to their destination in silence.
Revan understood that by playing like this with his allies, he was walking a fine line, but there was no other way. Any other option did not guarantee success or was so drawn out in time that its result would be of no use to anyone. He had to take risks... especially when his opponent was a Sith... and perhaps more than one.
Grumbling a farewell that he would remain in contact, Nomad dropped Revan off at the agreed-upon location and flew away.
The former Jedi then headed to the park, where he was supposed to be met.
"Qui-Gon," he greeted the Jin, who was hiding in the shade of a sprawling tree.
"Revan," the Jedi nodded in return.
Besides the representative of the Order, his apprentice was also supposed to be nearby, which was clearly felt in the Force. Obi-Wan was still bad at hiding his presence. And, of course, their protected object. Duchess Satine, whom Revan had arranged to meet on behalf of Vaana.
"How good is your apprentice with foresight?" the former Jedi asked Jin, who did not expect such a question.
"Quite good," Qui-Gon said suspiciously, "Are you...?"
"An attack on the Duchess will happen soon," Revan interrupted him.
"That's why you wanted to meet her? To warn her?"
"In part," the former Jedi nodded, telling a half-truth.
"Why else?"
"To deliver a message from her sister."
"Bo-Katan? Is she still on Mandalore?"
"Yes, and she has important information..."
The conversation was interrupted by the sound of a lightsaber activating nearby. Revan clearly felt a wave of anxiety echo through the Force. And then a flash of pain...
The source of these phantom sensations was Kenobi. Something had happened that alarmed him... and injured him.
Jin and Revan simultaneously rushed to the source of the noise, where they found Obi-Wan shielding Duchess Satine from someone's targeted blaster fire. The shooter was very skilled, managing to hit the Jedi by some miracle, as evidenced by the scorched wound on the padawan's leg. However, to the latter's credit, other shots were skillfully deflected by the lightsaber.
Before Jin could approach his apprentice, new attackers appeared from several sides. All in identical armor, characteristic of Mandalorians, and armed with blasters.
"Qui-Gon, be careful!" Revan warned, shielding his ally from a sudden attack.
A blaster bolt, deftly deflected by a silver blade, struck the shooter himself.
"Die, Jedi scum!" came from under the helmet of one of the opponents.
Jin caught the thrown grenade with the Force in mid-flight and returned it to the sender, eliminating three attackers at once.
Revan, with lightning speed, dealt with the quartet that had flanked them from the opposite side.
The last opponent went to Kenobi, who, even with an injured leg, managed to protect the Duchess and deal with a very skilled enemy who decided to use a melee weapon instead of blasters.
However, it was too early to relax. Whoever had started the attack, firing from a distance, still posed a threat, as he hastened to remind them with a new shot that almost hit Kryze's head. Fortunately, Kenobi's foresight was indeed in order.
"Oh, spirits of the ancestors, it's the Death Watch!" Satine exclaimed in shock, pointing to the symbols on the blue armor of the attackers.
"Get the Duchess out of here!" Revan ordered, "I'll deal with the rest."
"Are you sure?" Qui-Gon asked.
"Yes. Leave."
"Alright. But what about the meeting?"
"We'll postpone it to a safer place. I'll contact you," Revan said as he headed towards the shooter, who, apparently sensing danger, ceased fire and hurried to escape.
The Jedi led Kryze out of the park, while Revan continued the pursuit... but found only a wrecked speeder with a charred corpse in Mandalorian armor. A long-range blaster rifle lay nearby.
Tucking his lightsaber to his belt, Revan hurried to leave the scene before the arrival of law enforcement.
That evening, a small gathering took place aboard the Eagle... to review the results of the little performance.
"HK, didn't I ask you to just play the shooter?" Revan asked with a hint of displeasure in his voice.
"Affirmative," the assassin droid replied.
"A simple shooter. Organic. Not a high-class killer!"
"Offended explanation: Master, I acted in accordance with instructions, limiting my effectiveness to ten percent," the droid began to justify himself.
"Limited so much that a ricochet pierced the padawan's knee?"
"Embarrassed explanation: The anti-gifted protocol activated, Master... I overestimated the Jedi bag of meat, and the first series of shots hit the target."
Revan wearily rubbed his temples.
"Good thing it wasn't the head."
"Offended: I wasn't aiming for the head, Master."
"Praise the Force!"
"Looks like you're having fun here," a voice came from the entrance to the mess hall.
Revan and HK turned around. A Mandalorian woman in dark gray armor without clan symbols entered the room. The former Jedi had sensed her approach long ago. And credit where credit is due, the girl moved almost silently. Almost like Tyra.
"Bo-Katan," Revan greeted the Mandalorian with a nod, "How did it go?"
"Not easy."
"Did he believe it?"
"Apparently so," the girl nodded, sitting in one of the free chairs.
"Then we still have a lot of work to do," Revan said with a smirk.
Everything was going according to plan.