[Bounty Hunter Wars] - 01(44)
“I speak better,” said Xizor, “when the Emperor keeps a tight leash on his underlings.” His voice rasped in his throat; when he swallowed, he tasted his own blood. “But the quality of those who serve my lord is exactly that on which I need to speak.” His slit-pupiled gaze took in Vader and the Emperor. “You have both spoken of the fools who
serve the Empire; necessary fools, but
fools nonetheless. Do you think the situation is going to get any better, especially now that the Rebellion courts all those with an independent streak to their natures?”
A sneer sounded in Vader’s voice. “They seal their fates with their ‘independent’ natures, as you describe them. The Rebels will be crushed.”
“Undoubtedly so,” said Xizor. “But that day
of triumph is dekyed by the Emperor’s own power. That seems a riddle, but it is one that can be solved by those with eyes to see.”
“Go on.” The Emperor gestured toward Xizor. “You have my full attention. Make sure you use it well.”
He had prepared for this moment; the words were already chosen. He had only to speak them. And then await the outcome of his gamble.
“As I said: The problem is with those who serve you.” Xizor pointed to the high transparisteel windows behind the throne, with their vista of limitless stars. “On all the worlds that are within your grasp, those who resist your power will be crushed; Lord Vader speaks the truth about that. But what does that leave you? Fools such as the Imperial admirals; fools who cannot even recognize the existence of the Force. If they are not fools before they enter your service, they become so soon after. How can it be otherwise? Your power annihilates their will, their capacity to judge and make decisions, their ability to operate on their own. Not everyone in the galaxy has a nature as strong as mine or Lord Vader’s.”
“This is true,” said Emperor Palpatine. “And it is not a matter that has gone unnoticed by me. I see those who have gone over to the side of the Rebellion, and I recognize their strengths. It is a cruel waste to destroy them, no matter how necessary that might be.” His voice dropped, low and musing. “How much better it would be if they could be brought over to our side… .”
Xizor concealed a shiver of disgust. As far-reaching as his own ambitions were, they paled by comparison to Palpatine’s. There was something in the withered figure that didn’t want just to control the galaxy’s sentient creatures, but to consume them the way a greedy Hutt swallowed its wriggling food. The small and weak ones will go first, thought Xizor. And then someday it’ll be the turn of Vader and me. That would be the reward for their loyalty. To be consumed last …
Survival as well as ambition had dictated the cre ation of Black Sun. The Rebels were brave idiots to openly oppose the Emperor’s might; for himself, Xizor had already decided that an existence in the shadows, the darkness in which criminals always wrapped themselves, was preferable to the Empire’s insatiable appetite.
“There are those,” said Xizor, “who would prefer death rather than serve the Empire.”
Palpatine gave a small shrug. “So be it.”
“But in the meantime you must deal with those whom you do command. And many of those are-let us be realistic about this, my lord-not of the first caliber. Some were born fools, others achieved idiocy through their own efforts, but many of the rest simply had their minds and spirits obliterated by your power.” Xizor unfolded his arms so he could spread his hands apart, palms outward. “Fear is an effective motivator, but it is also a corrosive one. It has an effect inside those who suffer it-“
“Are you one of those, Xizor?”
He shook his head. “Since I do not fear death, I do not
fear that which might cause it. I fear your disapproval, my lord.” Another lie. “If your displeasure is sufficient cause for my death, then I will have earned that fate.”
“You haven’t displeased me,” said the Emperor. “Yet. Continue.”
“Not many of your servants, my lord, would risk your anger by telling you what you need to know. If some call me rash”-he glanced over at Vader-“you nevertheless might come to value my excess of courage. For this is the truth: That which makes you powerful, that makes sentient creatures into tools in your hands, is the same thing that makes those tools weak and ineffective. It is an unavoidable concomitant of great power. There are those that I command, though not at a scale comparable to you, and I can see it in their eyes. And if you wish to crush the Rebellion, you will need the strongest possible forces at your call. I have contacts, spies that I have planted within the Alliance, and they have informed me of both the Rebels’ plans and their determination to achieve them. They’ll stop at nothing to achieve your overthrow; that’s how insane their hunger for freedom is.” He understood how the Rebels felt; if he hadn’t cast his lot in with Black Sun, he could easily have joined the Alliance. “You will win, of course, my lord; power such as yours always wins. But not without cunning, and not without the services of your underlings. And that’s where the problem lies. The more overwhelming the control that you establish over your empire, and as more and more of the universe’s sentient creatures come under your domin ion, the more you risk losing the very elements you need to complete your galaxy-wide hegemony and defend it from the small but growing forces of the Rebellion.”