Siri, Ferus, Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Mace entered the inner office.
Palpatine stood by a grouping of chairs. Anakin thought he looked imposing in his simple robes of muted colors. His face looked pale and drawn, almost bloodless. Anakin imagined that the Chancellor's job robbed him of rest and outdoor activity. He was sacrificing his life in order to save the Senate from being overrun by those who would use it for their own ends.
"I am indebted to you for coming so promptly," Palpatine greeted them in the deep voice whose softness served to convey his power. "Please sit.
There is no time to lose."
He waited until the Jedi were all seated before sitting himself.
Palpatine shook his head, as if in deep thought. "I feel such sorrow for having to bring you here," he said. "I am ashamed of the Senate. There is a growing tide of anti-Jedi feeling and the best of us cannot seem to stop it. It is full of lies and half-truths, all twisted to fit an agenda."
Palpatine opened his palms in a gesture of helplessness. "I am at a loss to explain it, except to say that in a galaxy so mired in conflict some might turn to a scapegoat to further their own plans."
"Or deflect attention from those plans," Mace said.
"That is true, Master Windu," Palpatine said. "And wise. But what these plans are, I do not know."
"Is Sano Sauro behind this?" Obi-Wan asked. Senator Sauro was an enemy of the Jedi, and Omega had been his protcgc as a boy.
Palpatine shook his head. "Not this time. The leader of the anti-Jedi faction is a formerly obscure Senator from Nuralee. His name is Bog Divinian."
Obi-Wan started. Bog Divinian! He was married to Obi-Wan's good friend Astri Oddo, the daughter of Didi Oddo. Obi-Wan had met Bog on a mission during the Galactic Games. Bog was not yet a Senator at that time, but he had lied in his testimony to an official investigation in order to protect the Commerce Guild. Obi-Wan had no doubt then that Bog had the makings of a politician. He was not surprised to hear he had succeeded in his career. No doubt the gratitude of the powerful Commerce Guild had helped.
Obi-Wan glanced at Mace. Now he knew there was another reason he had been called to help.
"I know Bog Divinian," he said. "His wife is an old friend."
Palpatine looked relieved. "That is good news. I urge you to speak directly to him. Perhaps a personal appeal can help."
Obi-Wan doubted this was the case, but he inclined his head in agreement.
"I must inform you of a recent development," Palpatine said. "Roy Teda has arrived on Coruscant. I know that the Jedi were recently involved in the coup on his planet of Romin."
Obi-Wan felt this news pass like electricity between him and the other Jedi. Perhaps his idea about Omega being involved here wasn't so far- fetched.
"Teda has lost no time in joining the anti-Jedi faction, I'm afraid,"
Palpatine continued. "He's already given testimony that the Jedi were responsible for aiding the unlawful coup on his planet."
"Unfortunately this is technically true, though a misreading of events," Mace said, arching an eyebrow at Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan knew that Mace was still annoyed at him and Siri for aiding a coup without first consulting the Jedi Council.
But Teda's arrival on the planet could be good news, Obi-Wan thought.
It would give them a chance to observe him closely. Perhaps they could learn more about Omega. Teda was not a bright creature, and no doubt it would be possible to discover how he fit into Omega's larger plans.
"He has also claimed that the Jedi were responsible for a factory implosion on Falleen. He's managed to get the Falleen Senator quite upset about it." Chancellor Palpatine steepled his fingers and looked over them at the Jedi. "I'm afraid there is nothing I can do about this. There is just enough evidence in the charges to make them credible. Teda has the right to petition for asylum on Coruscant. It is up to the Jedi Council to refute the charges."
"Are the charges formal?" Mace asked, somewhat surprised.
"Yes. That is the reason for this meeting. There will be a hearing this afternoon. I suggest that a Jedi presence is needed."
Mace stood. "Master Kenobi will attend the hearing."
"He must," Palpatine said. "He has been called as a witness."
Once again, Obi-Wan inclined his head, but he seethed inwardly at the distraction. Just my luck, he thought. A meeting and a Senate hearing, all in the same day.
Omega could be in his grasp, but if he wasn't careful, he would spend all his time in meetings and hearings and never accomplish a thing.
Just like a Senator, Obi-Wan thought with an inward groan.
Chapter Seven
The hearing was held in a smaller meeting room at the Senate. It wasn't as big as the main chamber, but it held twenty tiers with seating for onlookers and pods for several hundred Senators. The room was packed with an overflow crowd. Senators, aides, HoloNet news correspondents, and curious Coruscant natives crowded the seats and the aisles in the tiers, and every pod was full.
Obi-Wan sat in a pod with Mace Windu, docked in a mid-level tier. "I'm surprised there is such a crowd for this hearing," he murmured to Mace.
"Usually meetings like this are so dull that no one attends."
"Note who is here," Mace said in a low tone. "The room is packed with Bog Divinian's supporters. I hear that one must obtain tickets to observe, and supporters of the Jedi were told there were no seats."
Obi-Wan watched as Bog Divinian leaned forward to call Roy Teda to the stand. Teda's pod floated forward.
"I greet you hello, fellow rulers, amazing Senators, all wonderful beings who love democracy and truth," Roy Teda said. "I, too, am a believer and a lover of the democratic principles of many voices, all saying the same thing."
Roy Teda began his testimony, and began to lie. Obi-Wan listened to the lies fall from his mouth. He was not surprised.
"I beseech you, Senators, rulers, fellow citizens of the galaxy," Teda concluded, spreading his arms. "Stop this outrageous outrage before it overtakes us completely! The Jedi came to my planet and secretly plotted in an underhanded way with an unlawful army to bring about the destruction of the elected government!"