Kamino – The Vanishing of a Ghost
The stormy oceans of Kamino roared as a flash of thunder lit the skies.
Inside Tipoca City, alarms screamed.
Dr. Shepard—material scientist, clone engineer, and Kamino's most closely guarded secret—was gone.
His private wing was breached. Guards incapacitated. Doors melted shut with cutting plasma. Not even the facility's internal sensors detected the escape in time.
But one camera—deep in a lower corridor—captured a flicker of truth: Separatist strike units, cloaked in reflective field gear, had infiltrated the city, neutralized the defenses, and extracted Shepard without a sound.
The raid had taken seven minutes.
And just like that… he vanished.
Kaminoan Outcry – A Republic Held Hostage
By morning, Prime Minister Lama Su sent a formal transmission to Coruscant.
"Dr. Shepard is the only one capable of stabilizing the advanced clone template. Without him, future batches will begin to deteriorate within months. His knowledge of growth acceleration protocols is irreplaceable."
In other words:No Shepard, no elite clones.
The clones were the Republic's entire army. Without them, they would be overrun.
Panic spread through the Senate.
Palpatine's Directive – Rescue At All Costs
Chancellor Palpatine, calm as ever, summoned the Jedi High Council. His words were measured—but absolute.
"This scientist is a strategic asset to the Republic. If he is not returned, we may lose this war before it truly begins."
He ordered Jedi-led extraction teams to scour Separatist territories. Intelligence was funneled directly from the Chancellor's office—some real, some planted, all designed to buy time.
He didn't care where Shepard was.
He only needed to keep the illusion alive.
"The war has not yet reached its peak," he confided to Mas Amedda. "But some tools… are still useful."
Senate Chambers – Silence Falls on Peace
In the midst of the chaos, Senator Padmé Amidala rose once again.
She called for investigation, not invasion.
She questioned why clone production had become so centralized under one man.
"Have we become so desperate that we place the fate of trillions on the shoulders of one scientist? There must be alternatives. Negotiation is still possible—"
But the chamber erupted in hostile shouting.
Senators from Kuat, Fondor, Eriadu, and even Alderaan silenced her with accusations of naivety and sabotage.
Some whispered that she had conflicted loyalties.
The next day… her microphone failed to activate.Her access to speaking time was revoked.
The voice of peace was silenced.
Emergency Powers Expanded Again
With fear rising, Palpatine called for a second expansion of emergency powers.
This time, the Senate barely hesitated.
"We must increase production."
"Kuat Drive Yards, Corellian Engineering, and Sienar Systems must triple output."
"All weapons of war are to be prioritized. Droids, starships, tanks, walkers…"
Palpatine gave them unrestricted military funding from newly established war bonds and seized trade tariffs. Factories flared to life. Labor was drafted en masse. Thousands of planets were pulled into the machine.
The Republic would no longer wait.
It would build.
Elsewhere – The Truth of the Kidnapping
In the heart of the Outer Rim, inside an asteroid base above the molten planet Vharzun, Shepard opened his eyes.
He was not bound.
Not bruised. Not drugged.
But his surroundings were clear—Separatist, and well-resourced.
Before him stood Asajj Ventress, flanked by MagnaGuards.
"You're important. Too important to kill," she said smoothly. "But make no mistake… you're here because someone wants you quiet."
Shepard only smiled faintly.
"You have no idea what you've just invited into your base."
What they didn't know was that Shepard had orchestrated his own kidnapping.
It was time to disappear from public eyes.
To let the Republic panic.To let the war swell.To let the Jedi waste time chasing shadows.
And meanwhile?
He would vanish into the dark.