Lara is now the Chancellor of the Galactic Free Systems, still wearing Mandalorian armor beneath her robes of office. The galaxy is fragile. Fear of Jedi and centralized power grows again. Pirates and warlords rise. Lara's mission is to build peace not through war, but through trust. The first test of this vision brings her to Naboo, where Queen Jade leads a wounded, distrustful people.
The fires outside have burned low. quiet now, save for the wind through broken glass.
Lara stands before queen jade. no armor between them now. no senate. no war machines. just words. Queen jade watches her for a long moment. then speaks, soft, steady.
Strong and firm a voice like water smoothing stone. queen jade once, we trusted men with crowns. Once, we trusted warriors with sabers. Both made many promises of peace. Both have bought us ruin. you come here in hopes of my trust senior yet you're wrapped in. mandaloria dressed like a soldier, chancellor's how do you expect me to trust some I can not see? Lara does not flinch. She looks at her own hands. scarred. Steady. Lara because I remember what it is to lose everything. because I remember what it takes to make the choice. My armor serves no purpose now, only as a reminder of my past.
Queen jade's gaze softens. not with weakness with understanding. queen jade there is no peace without risk. no trust without pain. no future without faith in strangers. very well, chancellor. Let this be our first step. but understand this you do not rebuild trust with promises. only with time. only with truth. Lara nods. Lara then I will give you both. outside, dawn breaks. small, tired people begin again.Please sit, let's talk as if we were friends, what future do you truly see with Naboo? With the galaxy is tired of rulers. tired of wars dressed in different flags. Lara I don't want to rule. I serve only to restore what was lost.
Restoring peace between the galaxy how it was before the wars. Tell me Queen Jade do you remember the story of the Jedi? There were guardians not soldiers, not conquerors who stood between people and darkness? Queen Jade stares, yes I've heard of them. A redic of the past, those stories only end in blood.
Lara, they failed. because they forgot what they were meant to be. But failure isn't the end. I want to rebuild them. not as warriors. not as generals. as protectors. as teachers. as keepers of peace… bound not to a senate or a throne, but to the people alone. queen jade and how will your new jedi be different? Truly? Lara they will be. because they will remember pain. they will remember hunger. they will be taught not how to fight… but why to fight. for life. for hope. for light. Queen jade it's a fragile dream. Lara The strongest things are born fragile. I need places like Naboo. places that still believe peace is worth fighting for. Queen jade then you'll have us. not because we trust easily… but because we must hope again. They stand together, watching the ruined city in silence.
lara pauses, her gaze distant memories flickering in her eyes like stars in a dark sky. lara
there are stories… old ones, buried beneath the dust of time. of people who tried to fight the darkness before us. Like Lorenzo, a man who walked the razor's edge between light and shadow. He wasn't perfect. far from it. but he chose to stand against the empire when it mattered most. He paid the highest price, but his sacrifice wasn't in vain. She breathes deeply, voice steady but low. Queen jade listens, eyes reflecting the weight of those legacies. Lara, their stories aren't legends to worship. They're reminders that even in the darkest nights, flawed people can kindle light. and that light… that's what we need to carry forward. (Lara looks at jade, conviction burning) our jedi won't be flawless mythic heroes. they'll be survivors. fighters shaped by loss, driven by hope. We honor those who came before by learning from their pain… and by building something better.
The chamber falls silent as Lara's footsteps fade. Beneath the shattered archway, the figure of queen jade remains seated but the truth shimmers beneath the surface. Slowly, the regal facade dissolves, flesh melting like wax, revealing the cruel, twisted face of Victoria the witch who wears the dead queen's mask.
victoria (in a voice cold and ancient, echoing darth bane's menace): the real queen jade has been dead these many years... her light extinguished by time and treachery. (she lets out a dark, humorless laugh) yet the galaxy clings to shadows and lies to illusions of hope. As long as they believe she lives, I will hold this throne… (her eyes flash with dark fire)
for the senate tightens its grip, blind and desperate. their plans play into our hands. The sovereigns may fall, but the darkness festers... and from it, we will rise. from the shadows steps a tall figure, cloaked and imposing Blacken Death. former inquisitor of the pale father. His double-bladed lightsaber hums low, red and black intertwining, as his eyes flicker with shifting forms.
Victoria (smiling coldly) our meeting with Lara was... enlightening. Her hope is fragile, but stubborn. The senate tightens its grasp. their false order suffocates the galaxy. we must be patient. Blacken Death. (his voice silky, dangerous): patience, yes. but action must begin in silence. the new jedi will not suspect the serpent in their midst. I will take the guise of a young padawan jsepi of tatooine. victoria (raising an eyebrow): a child? surely lara will see through such a trick. Blacken Death. (chuckling darkly): she will see only what she wishes to see, innocence. desperation. a symbol of new beginnings. and in that trust, we will plant the seed of corruption. jsepi will be her shadow, her student, and when the time is right... the sith will rise from the ashes. victoria (nodding, eyes gleaming): the galaxy will bow not to a throne, but to fear itself. Our enemies believe they fight darkness. but they fight only the shadows we choose to reveal. Blacken Death. (extending his hand): then let the next act begin. the fire dims, the chamber falls into deeper darkness. Outside, the stars glimmer cold and distant galaxies on the edge of a storm.