This Is Our Rebellion

MICHELLE YEOH // have you met MON MOTHMA yet? SHE is a FIFTY year old CIS WOMAN HUMAN. they’re originally from CHANDRILA and now show loyalty to THE REBELLION. they are best known for being a FORMER SENATOR AND LEADER OF THE REBELLION, and i hear they’re pretty COMPASSIONATE yet also CAUTIOUS at times; i hope they survive the galactic civil war. (Devin, 22, EST, He/Him/His)

open starter

Location: Naboo

Upon waking up in a strange place that he didn’t remember his death, it was a garden and he only could think of one person who knew that he liked the peace and quiet of a garden. His first thought was to search and find his old student. First, he needed to catch up on the news of what has happened over the years. It didn’t take him long to find a holo-computer and to catch up on the news. He frowned as it explained why he was brought back, though he did wonder if it was time of the prophecy or maybe it was fulfilled already. 

A presence of someone coming into his space, but he doesn’t really know who it is. Not wanting to startle the person or make any sudden moves. “It’s alright you can come up to me, I won’t hurt you.” He said calmly, still studying the current news and some of the old news. He wasn’t harmless, but he had no ill intentions to hurt others either.

@galacticsopens

  Mon Mothma was on Naboo, she had meetings with the Queen, they had been discussing what Naboo could do to help with the New Republic. She had finished them and was now strolling about the gardens and statuary of the planet, finding it such a serene and beautiful place, Theed being such a different planetary capital than Hanna City. The last she had expected was to stumble on a jedi whom she had thought passed long ago. Another face that was now returned.

Chuckling when she was told that he would not harm her, “Trust me, I believe you will not harm me.” Approaching the man, she hummed trying to remember his name. He was the master of Bail’s friend, Obi Wan she remembered that. “You are a Jedi are you not? Obi Wan’s master? I am Mon Mothma, Chancellor of the New Republic.”

.

the history of the republic was long and colored in the thousands of years that it reigned and it was concerning to thing that lina soh was the last chancellor that they had who had truly done their job –– although palpatine and valorum had not, she was disturbed to think that it had been two hundred years without, not forty or so. expansion had been bold and necessary, she knew that well from the queen that had ruled before her and the rule of isolation that she had preferred. given all that occurred in the outer rim, its people needed the assistance of the republic, even if those in power there currently would not have liked it. “we’ll certainly have our hands full,” she remarked with a nod of her head. that was an understatement.

padmé nodded her head, although she was already well aware of the work that the rebellion was doing against the empire. “setting up a new court system will have to be a priority.” the only issue was that there were too many things that needed to be prioritized, truthfully. it was not just fixing the horrors of the empire, but of the old republic, of what had allowed palpatine to take over in the way he had. not all of it was solely because of his manipulative abilities. “the outer rim has always been a special area of interest for me. with naboo being in the mid-rim and not the core worlds, it may assist me in being able to talk to governing bodies on outer rim planets. with your approval, i would like to take a lead in attempting to bring in senators from those planets. while the empire may not have been as severe, they may not have any motivation to commit to a new republic.”

   “It must be, along with setting up a way to make sure there is peace within the New Republic, and setting up elections, and finishing this constitution.” on sighed and then chuckled rubbing the temple of her head. “I believed being a Senator during wartime was a lot of work, Padme. Being the Chancellor during war time of a brand new government is far more work than I could have ever imagined.” Taking Padme’s hand, and giving it a friendly squeeze. “But I am glad to have you here at my side every step of the way in the forming of this new government.” 

When Padme began to speak of her connections with the mid-rim and the outer rim planets and how she could help secure their joining of the New Republic, Mon Mothma nodded. “Yes, of course, I will happily bestow that task upon you. We need people who know how to commune with these areas, with these planets, and with these people to be the one there speaking to them. I have found over all of this that, every voice can make massive waves. Your voice has always been one of the most moving, I have had the pleasure of working with. I will forever be indebted to you, my friend.” Once it was safe for her to, Mon certainly planned to visit more planets across the galaxy. She wanted to be a leader for all people, and that meant be accessible to all people.  “I think we all owe you a debt of gratitude.” 

Growing confusion visible on her face. “What do you mean, not many Jedi left?” Riyo knew things were different now, but what could have possibly happened to the Jedi? They were such a strong force, she couldn’t imagine something could have caused their near extinction. It just seemed so unlikely, they were prepared for anything, weren’t they? “What is Order 66?”

   When Riyo asked what had happened to the Jedi, and that she had no idea what Order 66 was, Mon’s hand slowly came up to her chest, debating the best way to tell her friend what had transpired. “Perhaps we should sit down before I go into the details of what you have missed.” Gently she guided Riyo back to the couch that sat in her office. She sat thinking for a few moments on how best to word the tragedy that had occured. 

“The Chancellor, he turned out to be a very, very evil man. Most of what I know, I only know because of my connections and from confidential reports from my intelligence officers. The clone troopers, they....they were forced to turn on the Jedi at the end of the Clone Wars. It was so unexpected, and there were so many of them...they overwhelmed the Jedi...it was a mass extermination only a handful of them had survived. We were told that they had become enemy of the states, that they had been behind the Clone Wars and tried to assassinate Palpatine. He declared an empire, me and a few other like minded Senators eventually created the Rebellion, we are now at the tail end of that war.” 

.

padmé remembered vividly what it had been like to be the young queen of naboo. the trade federation blockade had come so early into her career and many had believed that she was ill-prepared for such a thing, and in many ways, she supposed there was some truth to it. but whatever naivety had been left inside of the fourteen year old monarch had been died, and instead restructured into careful, practical idealism that she still practiced to the day. but she had been utterly disillusioned with the senate and how it worked. that had resurfaced again when her queen had asked her to serve naboo as a senator, when she had gone through orientation and the first weeks of her service. it had been frustrating and slow, too much of a game to master as opposed to a body of action. allowing things to do that again would have been a huge mistake. 

“they turned many of their own on themselves. they practically did part of our job.” she was not sure if she meant that as a member of the rebellion, or as a soon-to-be member of the new republic’s senate, but regardless, it was the truth. although their military was still a force to be reckoned with, the sole reason that they had lasted as long as they had, as far as she could see… it was all crashing down, even without rebellion intervention. “that will also allow a new body to focus more specifically on the true offenders, without getting bogged down. hopefully this time, it can happen without multiple mistrials.” nute gunray’s trials had lasted for so long. it had been nothing shy of infuriating. “i would be happy to help reach out for new senators in order to strength the new republic. perhaps that’s something that i can do for you, as the official paperwork is finalized.”

   “It is errors like that that we must keep capitalizing off of. Only those who benefitted from it could actually say they loved the empire, others fell into line out of fear, or because they saw no other alternative. We are now that alternative, the rebellion, this republic I want it to be a spark of hope that leads to an era of expansion and development and unity, not seen since Supreme Chancellor Lina Soh. As she said, we are all the Republic. Democracy, only works if it works for everyone, and as we have said, we need to fix the problems that caused it to stop working.” Mon had spoken up, she had worked against Palpatine during the last days before the empire, she had helped form the Delegation of 2,000. Yet still, she felt a burden of not having done enough. Everything she did now was what she saw as her penance to ease that burden on her. When Padme spoke of mistrials nad being able to focus on the true offenders Mon nodded. Right now they were still in war, but there would come a time where there would be peace and people would rightly want restitution. 

“Our intelligence agencies are gathering reports on the worst of the empire, those who need swift trials, whose crimes are well known and abundant and then those who deserve a better chance at getting to stand defend themselves, and their actions. While I do not enjoy the idea of some not getting a more drawn out trial I understand the sentiment that this will give them doors to escape justice by either escaping our grasp, or somehow finding people willing to forgive them for a crime it might not be theirs to forgive for.” Mon also did not like inserting herself too far into military matters. While she was the Commander in Chief of their forces, she did not want to impose her will over evry proceeding, especially when there were those who were better informed on these matters that held a different opinion then her. Smiling when Padme made her offer, Mon nodded. “Yes, that would be splendid. I would greatly appreciate that help from you, and I know how persuasive you can be when fighting as a voice for democracy.” 

EYES SHIFTED TO THE FLOOR, Riyo began trying to process the information given. “How strange …” She managed to say softly before bringing her gaze back up to meet the eyes of her friend.  After accepting one of the snacks provided with a grateful smile, her demeanor fades back to seriousness. “If it’s to do with the force, can’t the Jedi do something to get to the bottom of it? They know and understand it much better than any of us do … they must be able to come to some sort of a conclusion.”

   Mon herself only took a small amount of food off the tray provided, along with pouring herself a glass of water. She found that she worked better if she ate smaller amounts during the day, she didn’t feel as tired after a light meal. It was no help considering her work often made her tired on its own. Humming when she was asked about the Jedi, Mon nodded. “There are not many Jedi left, and the ones that are, well I have not been able to sit down with them yet.” Moving a hand to her chest, “Are you not aware of what happened to the Jedi, Riyo? Were you blipped here from a time before Order 66?” 

RIYO ALWAYS DID ADMIRE how eloquently Mon was able to express her thoughts. Something she’d always hoped she would be equally skilled in. “When you say so many lost faces are really just coming back home, do you mean …” she pauses as she considers the thoughts now swarming in her head. “Do you mean that several of us are … misplaced?” She couldn’t think of a better word, misplaced was just the one that felt most fitting. It was another relief, really, that it were a larger group of people than just her and her friend who had found themselves at the center of this strange phenomena. “I suppose my main question, really, is … how?” It’s not a simple question with a simple answer, and Riyo knows this. But at least she could try to work through the possibilities without feeling like she was losing her grip …

   Nodding her head at the question. Many of her friends who had died, or who she thought had died were suddenly returning. “Yes, there are a few people who have been lost to various ways or who I had assumed were gone are coming back. I am of course very happy over this fact, but it is a great.....a great mystery.” When she was asked how, Mon let out a gentle sigh before shrugging her shoulders. How.......now that was the question everyone wanted the answer to regarding these returns. “I unfortunately have no idea how they are coming back. Nobody does, no one in New Republic Intelligence, or from what I understand Imperial Intelligence either. I want to believe it is the force though, attempting to repair the damages that the deceased Emperor has caused.” Smiling as a tray came in with a few options in food and drinks came in. “Ah, here are those refreshments, please help yourself.” 

sometimes padmé wondered how things would have been different if the queen had not immediately asked her to serve as a senator for naboo –– if spending time on tatooine and working toward freeing slaves there would have pushed her to be more proactive on such matters, or given her another leg up when debating with her fellow senators. she did not regret the work that she had done in the senate, or the decisions made. even if the transportation committee that she had been on had not been the most… exciting, growing the connection that she had with bail and mon had been invaluable down the road. it had taught her the importance of learning how to play the game. but now, playing it would no longer do. they had to change it. “a moving role is a powerful statement.” she remarked. “it will force senators who live in their bubble out of it.” after all, there would still be some. there was perhaps unavoidable. “you’re going to be a natural for this role.” but regardless, her role would be temporary. it would have to be a powerful years to set a precedent.

the defections didn’t surprise her given what she had already heard from her role in the rebellion, nodding her head in understanding. offering mercy was the only sane thing that they could do to foot soldiers who had been doing nothing more than trying to survive. but to extend the same to high-ranked officials… no, that wasn’t something that could be afforded. “from my understanding, operation cinder has forced a lot of them to question orders. but i doubt many will feel safe to come to the rebellion or new republic until the empire has truly died.” that was a day that could not come soon enough. she still did not know if she had the strength to bring anakin’s life to an end if it would come to that –– terrified by the possibility that it would, but wanting nothing more than to keep that burden away from her children. “wonderful. with so many planets wanting away from the empire, it should not be difficult to fill a new senate, especially after the mistake of dissolving an imperial senate.” even if at best, it had been for show.

   “Exactly, that is my greatest hope with this decision, to make statements, powerful, radical ones. And to force the rich and the powerful out of their comfort zones. So that it is very clear from day one, that the New Republic is nothing like the empire or its predecessor. This will be a government for all people, not just those with the means to lobby us directly.” Smiling softly when she was told that she was going to be a natural for this role. It was not a role she had never planned to step into, and certainly wasn’t a role she wanted. Mon did not crave power, or authority over others, yet here she was acting Chancellor of the New Republic, leader of the former Rebellion. The office she inhabited was going to need its own reforms, so that something like what took place with Palpatine never happened again. Strict term limits, and strict powers on the exact authority of this office. 

“Operation Cinder was a massive calamity on the part of the empire, I have no idea why they would turn their own weapons against those who remained loyal to them. I knew it was capable of great evil but.......evil and stupidity are very different concepts.” She nodded when her friend mentioned many being afraid to defect until the empire was entirely gone. “Either defect or simply go back to the life they knew before it. Regardless, as long as they lay down their arms and they are not responsible for mass tragedies this new government will not seek them out.” Nodding her head in agreement. “We will also need some form of legitimate leadership to help guide us through what are going to be chaotic times. The more senators we have, the better, and easier that will be.” 

FINALLY, A FAMILIAR FACE. A smile grew across her lips as she returned the hug offered by her old friend. Relief settled in - she wasn’t the only one who seemed to be misplaced in time. Her questions could finally be answered; well, at least, finally be UNDERSTOOD. It would be foolish to assume that there were answers for this … unique situation. At least she now had someone to try to work with on coming to the conclusion.

“I hadn’t realized I would be here either,” she half-joked in response. “It truly is wonderful to see you again, Mon.”  She had been so blindsided by her new environment that she hadn’t even realized how hungry she was. Or how tired. “Oh - yes, actually, if you don’t mind. Can I … ask you something?”

   “The force, and our paths seem to have quite a few people in places that they did not expect to be, and yet I find myself more and more relieved that so many faces who seem lost, are really just coming back home.” Nodding when she was told that she would be in the mood for something, Mon smiled again. “I don’t mind at all, I’ll have them bring up lunch.” Pressing a few buttons on a pad before setting it down, she nodded once again when she was asked if a question could be asked of her. “Of course, Riyo, feel free to ask me anything you must. I will try to answer anything you ask as best I can,  I want to help in anyway I can. It is the least I can do for a friend.” 

a deep breath pulled in through her nose nad her head nodded in agreement. trying to preserve the republic had cost nearly all of the lives of their delegation, miraculous that mon mothma had managed to survive as long as she had –- yet she was incredibly grateful for it, that at least one of them would not be quite so bamboozled by their change in time like she and bail were. it gave more strength and stability to their work. “exactly. the outer rim has already struggled with so much that the old republic was powerless against. if we cannot work with them, i fear that we will find ourselves in the same position.” one that was too costly to fall into again. the old republic had stood for a thousand years, and they needed to rebuild one that would withstand the same. another war could not be allowed to tear apart all that they had spent their lives working toward.

“yes, i will.” it wasn’t official yet, but it would be soon. naboo was full of innocent people who had suffered, who had their entire lives changed permanently by the mark that palpatine had left on her planet and her people. she hadn’t known it at the time, but even she had been a pawn in his game at the beginning, though she had become more trouble than he would have ever been able to predict. “thank you, mon, i appreciate it. i have hope that with palpatine out of the picture… perhaps there is room to reason with lord vader.” no matter how dangerous it was. “how are the articles on building a new senate coming along? you know that i am happy and able to help you in whatever way you need, no matter how dull or clerical the task may be.”

   There had been so much that the old republic had been willing to overlook towards the end, all sorts of struggles, poverty, hunger, mass levels of homelessness in the Outer Rim. Senators of worlds where their people were perishing lived in opulent homes, and wore the finest silks. Either completely ignorant to what was happening on their homeworld, or simply did not care it was taking place. Thoughts, images, and having knowledge like that made it seem so clear why so many flocked to Count Dooku and the Separatist at such a rate. “To help build a working relationship with them, I plan on asking many of the Senators they send here to Chandrila to serve as my top advisors. Also in my capacity as Chancellor I plan on going to as many planets as often as I can. The head of the galactic government should not be a stationary being. Neither should a galactic government.” A soft smile forming on her face, “I imagine Rodia, or Tatooine would have been paid much more attention if Orn Free Taa or Toonbuck Toora ever had to serve there instead of on Coruscant all the time.” 

Her smile growing when Padme confirmed she would be serving as the Senator of Naboo. She was glad that her friend would be here on Chandrila more often. Mon knew she was going to need her, and Bail, and so many others if they were going to make this work. No one person should be able to steer a ship of this magnitude by itself. They had seen the horrific reasons of why. “Of course, Padme. I can only hope that without him everyone in the empire can begin to see more clearly. The New Republic Intelligence Director shared with me that they expect a good deal of defections soon. I can only that that is true. I plan on pardoning anyone who defects that did not commit atrocities or know about the worst aspects of the empire. We cannot punish ordinary men and women who had no other choice but to serve.” When she was asked how the the new senate articles were coming she sighed softly. “They are coming along, that is all I can say. We have what seems to be a legion of historians, legal experts, and linguists working on them. I simply and overseeing their work, and stepping in when disagreements arise.” 

“Riyo, it is so good to see you again. I didn’t realize to be expecting you here on Chandrilla. Though I will admit, I am so happy to see you here, is there anything I can get you? Any food or something to drink?” 

padmé hoped that everything mon said was true. the intelligence was pointing in that direction, the empire crumbling despite the fact that they were holding on with everything that they could while simultaneously, somehow, destroying everything that they had. operation: cinder had been just as deadly to the empire’s people as it had innocents. “enormous goals for us to conquer,” she remarked, taking in a deep breath through her nose before giving her a nod of head. “but i agree with all of them, of course. we can take the flaws of the old republic and learn from them.” they had to. everything that the clone wars had ended in had to be worth something. such tragedy needed a reason.

“i’ve spoken with the queen, and i know that naboo will be one of them shortly. i’m also aware of who she’d like to be the senator to represent her home. naboo… feels as though it has much to apologize for, because it is palpatine’s home.” but it’s people had also suffered greatly because of him. their entire way of life had been changed. naboo’s people were exceptionally private –– prior to the empire, they had not even required their people to register with the government. that had changed. mon’s worry about confronting vader didn’t surprise her. she didn’t know the truth, and couldn’t. it was a risk padmé couldn’t take. “i am. i know that my ideas have always seemed mad, but they are not without reason.”

   “It is like what I said so many years ago, we are not separatist trying to leave the republic, we are loyalists trying to preserve democracy in the republic.” Of course, that republic was gone, and it had been for quite a bit of time. They now had the ashes of an empire to deal with. “The Separatist Movement revealed a harsh many truths about the system we so believed in, we must take some of the things they had felt seceding over if we are to ever prevent such an event taking place again. The Mid Rim, and the Outer Rim cannot be allowed to feel voiceless in this New Republic.” It was Mon’s greatest hope that all of this, the Clone Wars, this rebellion, that it all lead to a strong, lasting peace where everyone had the ability to flourish and thrive. A soft smile sitting on her face when her friend mentioned the Queen of Naboo wanting to join the New Republic. 

“I have no doubts that whomever Naboo’s new senator is they will do everything they can for the Chommell Sector, and it’s people. Naboo however, has nothing to apologize for. Absolutely nothing. Naboo was just as much a victim of his manipulations as everyone else was. He played us all, and by the time we realized what he was it was too late.” The whole galaxy had suffered at the hands of Palpatine. Everyone had been a piece on his chessboard. Even Mon Mothma had been a pawn at times during the Clone Wars, the only thing the galaxy could begin to do now was heal, and repair the ruptures that the tyrant had caused. Giving her friend a nod, when she said that it may have seemed mad but she was not without reason. If she was sure this would work then Mon would trust her. “Then you have my full support with any efforts you make.” 

   Mon Mothma is not the type of person who often gets envious. She usually is very happy for those around her, especially when they are making major achievements. One thing she was envious of was during the Rebellion, and even now, the inability to fight herself. Mon understands that her loss would be a blow to the Rebellion/New Republic, but there are many days she wished she could fight alongside the other members of the Alliance. During the Battle of Endor, she would have given anything to be with Admiral Ackbar on the bridge of Home One. 

.

a nod of her head followed mon’s words in understanding, though she had not actually lived through it herself –– it was merely important that the galaxy at large thought that she did, even if there were some cases that could not be avoided. but she had been thorough in educating herself, trying to learn as much as she could through the imperial propaganda that had been spread throughout the galaxy. she was lucky to have many close to her that knew the truth. “well, i think we’ve always been good at doing controversial work, haven’t we?” a smile warmed the curve of her lips. “but we’ve never let it stop us before, and we certainly won’t let it stop us now. there’s more at stake than ever.” she had always cared about the galaxy at large, even if there had been suspicions when she had first started her term as a senator due to the upheaval of the chancellor years before. but now with luke and leia… she needed to fix this.

“perhaps we will balance each other now,” she offered up. the story that she had produced to explain her being alive, of course, indicated nothing more than pure caution. padmé had made her choice to protect her child from the empire, had foreseen their intent to murder her and narrowly escaped. but caution had never been in her nature. that would come out now, back into the political limelight without any hesitation to cause problems. “are you aware of what happened during the emperor’s masquerade?” a beat passed. “i intend on confronting darth vader about his new… stance.” if there was anyone in the new republic who would have stood a chance, who might be able to escape what would have been otherwise certain death in defying him so openly, it was her. that was a position that demanded to be taken advantage of.

   Mon laughed when Padme mentioned them having always been being good at controversial work. There was a considerable amount of truth to her statement. The things they did during the Clone Wars, and Mon during the Age of the Empire, it was amazing that they were both here, sitting together after it all. “There is more than ever before. With Palpatine being gone, the Empire is crippled. No one will be negotiating in bad faith, and there is no puppet master manipulating everything. We can actually achieve peace, true peace for once in a long time. And then we can make sure nothing like the Clone Wars, or this Empire ever happens again. We can build a Republic that works, for hopefully another thousand years, and one that does not decay from corruption and greed.” It was incredibly idealistic, she knew, but Mon still believed that it was achievable, she had to. 

“That is my hope, that all of us together again, we will be able to work in unison to truly mold, and build a strong New Republic. I think we’ll be more than capable of such a form of government. I’ve already been receiving so many requests to join our New Republic.” When Mon was asked about the masquerade and the events that had taken place at them she nodded her head. Unfortunately, she was all too aware of what had transpired. The return of Darth Vader was not something she had been anticipating. Hopefully, it would prove not to be too detrimental to the work of the New Republic. When her friend stated her intention of confronting him, Mon paused for a moment. “Are you sure that would be safe? I would hate to see any harm come to you, especially when so many need you now.” 

That was why she now found herself meeting with her long time friend, Bail Organa. They had to address the other event that took place at the Masquerade. The return of Darth Vader, and his plans to take back over the Empire. He had been believed to be dead, but like so many others who were returning from the otherside they now had to face Vader once again. Under Amedda and Rax the Empire was weak and lacked a strong, central vision with Vader back the Empire could begin to make moves to solidify their strength, and the war could become much more aggressive once again. Smiling when she saw Bail, she embraced. before they took their seats. “Bail, my friend, you must know why I had to come in person. The return of Darth Vader, I can’t imagine anyone foresaw it. I imagine we will have harder days ahead of us now because of it, and we must prepare.”