Start with a core cabin

Chapter 1245 Seeds of Dissatisfaction (I am curled up in the quilt and rolling around)

Although Palpatine's negotiation with Duanmu Huai was somewhat unpleasant, he was more concerned about the situation of the Independent Federation. Duanmu Huai did not inform Palpatine about his use of Colossus-class weapons, so the latter believed that the most important thing at the moment was to suppress and eliminate the Independent Federation as quickly as possible and to capture its leaders. Only in this way could Palpatine establish complete prestige and prepare to transform the entire Galactic Republic into the Galactic Empire.

  So he ordered Wilhuff Tarkin as the commander to lead the fleet to the capital of the Independent Federation as quickly as possible, and take advantage of the opponent's current internal emptiness to capture it in one fell swoop!

As a powerful military commander of the Galactic Republic, Wilhuff naturally accepted the task without hesitation, and then he led the fleet directly to Neimoidia.

"Report to the commander, we have arrived at the designated system."

"very good."

Hearing the answer from his subordinate, Wilhuff Tarkin nodded. He was a middle-aged man with a thin face and sharp eyes like a bird. Wilhuff was standing on the bridge, staring around like a falcon. Although he had learned from Palpatine that the fleet of the Independent Federation had been completely destroyed, as a qualified soldier, Wilhuff still maintained the necessary vigilance.

"What are the results of the investigation?"

"No sign of the fleet, sir."

"Very good, connect me to the Independent Federation."

Wilhuff, who gave the order, stood straight, staring at the Neimoidia planet in front of him, pondering and calculating the next battle strategy. The reason why he chose to persuade them to surrender was not because of his chivalry, but because he tried to use this method to hit the morale of the Independent Federation, so that when he and others invaded, the resistance they encountered would be reduced. Of course, considering the threat of the robot army of the Independent Federation, this is still a problem that needs attention...

"Report sir."

Just then, the voice of the subordinates was heard.

"Why, is it connected already?"

"No, this..."

In response to Wilhuff's questioning, his subordinates looked a little strange.

"We have received no contact from Neimoidia, and the messages we sent seem to have gone unanswered."

"……………What?"

Hearing his subordinate's answer, Wilhuff couldn't help but wonder if there was something wrong with his ears.

"you sure?"

"Yes, sir. We even initiated communication on the public channel, but there was no response. We also monitored the communication with Neimudea, but found that the entire communication network of Neimudea was silent, as if..."

Having said this, the subordinate couldn't help but pause.

“…It’s as if there is no one on this planet at all.”

It must be said that this made Wilhuff feel extremely absurd. Neimoidia was not only the capital of the Independent Federation, but also the core planet of the Trade Union. Even if it was not a wartime, it had to handle countless commercial information from various galaxies. How could there be no news?

"Scan the entire planet."

"Yes, sir."

Wilhuff gave the order again, and then quickly reported back.

"Report to the commander, there is no sign of life on this planet..."

“Is there something wrong with the sensor?”

  Upon hearing his subordinates' report, Wilhuff's first reaction was this: Are you kidding me? Such a large and prosperous planet, and you're telling me there's no sign of life? Are you kidding me?

"The sensor was tested and no abnormalities were found. It may be that there is a problem with the program... or there is some interference on the ground..."

Even the soldiers responsible for operating the sensors themselves began to doubt their lives. After all, this was simply too incredible and hard to imagine.

“………………Send troops to attack and occupy the capital of Neimoidia. Report any problems immediately!”

Wilhuff thought about it for a while, and finally gave the order. There must be something wrong when things are abnormal. The current situation on the planet Neimudea can be considered abnormal. It is certain that the Independent Federation may have some conspiracy. But no matter what the other party's conspiracy is, at least we have to send someone to check the situation.

  Although the planet Neimudea is now like an empty city with its gates wide open, and looks suspicious no matter how you look at it, it is impossible to just go back like this!

Let’s send someone to see what’s going on first!

Soon, under Wilhuff's command, several clone troopers rushed into the atmosphere in shuttles and landed towards the capital of Neimoidia.

Along the way, the commander of the clone army also kept in touch with Wilhuff. After all, considering that the other party might have used some means of isolating communication, Wilhuff asked the commander of the clone army to report to him no matter what happened along the way.

"Report, we have arrived at the capital of Neimoidia... The air defense facilities here are not activated. Yes, there are almost no signs of human activity in the entire city."

Standing on the edge of the transport plane, the clone commander held a gun in one hand and stared around.

"There are no signs of attack. There is a certain amount of neutron contamination warning, but it is not fatal... It is likely some kind of leak..."

"We are about to reach the Governor's Palace without being attacked."

Listening to the report from the commander of the clone army, Wilhuff's expression remained unchanged, but he was getting more and more panicked inside. What on earth was this Independent Federation doing? What conspiracy did they have?

"Report sir!"

At this moment, suddenly, the voice of the clone commander came to Wilhuff's ears again, making his heart beat faster.

"What? Were you attacked?"

“No… Sir, I, I don’t know how to say it… The targets are already… all dead.” “…………………………???”

Upon hearing the clone commander's report, Wilhuff was confused.

"What do you mean? What do you mean the targets are all dead?"

"It's just... all of them are dead, including the guards. We also found the bodies of the Governor of the Trade Federation and the leaders of the Banking Guild and the Technology Guild."

"All dead? How did they die? Were they killed by someone?"

"No...I can't say for sure..."

Looking at the corpses in front of him, the clone commander's tone was a little nervous. As a soldier, he had participated in many battles and had seen many dead bodies. However, these corpses still made the clone commander feel an indescribable fear.

"They seem to have died in extreme pain, most likely from some kind of poisonous gas..."

As he spoke, the clone commander sent back a video, and in the video, it can be clearly seen that in the command room of the Neimoidian Governor's Mansion, there are corpses lying all over the floor. Among them is the Governor of the Trade Union. Each of them has wide eyes, distorted expressions, full of fear, and his hands are tightly grasping his neck or face, as if he has seen something unimaginable and terrifying, and was frightened to death!

"this……………"

Even Wilhuff frowned slightly at this moment.

"What's going on? Why did this happen? Find the survivors immediately and ask them about the situation!"

"There are no survivors... all life is dead."

"life?"

"Yes... Look."

Soon, in the video, you can see that the surrounding trees have dried up and turned black, and there are even insects and corpses of some small animals and birds on the ground. When the video camera zooms out, you can see that the entire street is littered with corpses.

"Where's the robot? Go find a robot and ask about the situation!"

  Wilhuff issued another order. After all, in this star field, robots have become a necessity for all civilizations, like household appliances. If it was some kind of poison gas, then the robots would not be affected, not to mention that the Trade Union itself has created a large number of robot armies, so they should be able to find some clues!

"Reporting to the commander, all the robots have... stopped functioning. We tried to repair them, but found that their internal circuits have been completely destroyed and cannot be repaired at all."

"this…………………"

Faced with the reports coming again and again, Wilhuff was completely stunned.

This is completely different from what I expected!

  What should we do now?

"………………………Connect with Chancellor Palpatine."

There is no other way. What else can I do? I will give back first.

Soon, Wilhuff connected with Chancellor Palpatine and reported the situation here. After listening to Wilhuff's report, Palpatine's expression twitched slightly, and then returned to normal.

"I understand, Commander Wilhuff."

"Then Speaker, next we shall..."

"The plan remains unchanged. We will completely occupy the entire Neimoidia planet. At the same time, we will declare that the Independent Federation has been completely defeated and demand that other affiliated star systems surrender immediately."

"……………yes."

Although Wilhuff thought the order was a bit strange, he still obeyed it obediently. After all, in this strange situation... He felt that even if it was him, it would be difficult to come up with any other solution.

At least for now, although there is a certain amount of neutron radiation on this planet, it is not fatal. As for what exactly happened here... Wilhuff has a feeling that even the dead people from the Trade Federation themselves don't know what the situation is.

"…………………"

After closing the communication, Palpatine's originally calm expression suddenly turned gloomy. He stared at the table in front of him, tapping his fingers.

Although Wilhuff did not find any useful information, Palpatine could confirm that it must be the work of the Inquisition. After all, he still remembered that when he talked to Duanmu Huai before, the other party said that all those aliens should be exterminated. At that time, Palpatine thought that the Inquisition might be too fanatical. After all, how could it be so easy to exterminate a race?

He believed that he was on a more realistic and rational basis, so he did not agree with the Inquisition's request. After all, Palpatine knew that the Galactic Republic did not have the ability to carry out a large-scale cleansing of aliens, and that doing so might cause dissatisfaction and resistance from other originally neutral or even submissive races.

The result... ... the court really has this ability? !

Just kidding! !

At this moment, Palpatine's face was about to turn black. He knew that the Inquisition was powerful. But at that time, Palpatine did not particularly regard the Inquisition as a threat. However, when the Inquisition showed that they had the power to easily wipe out all life on a planet, Palpatine had to be afraid.

This also made him feel extremely uneasy. After all, Palpatine was scheming to become the ruler of the entire Galactic Republic. In addition to being a Sith who wanted to eliminate the Jedi for revenge, he also had a strong desire for power and control. But now, he suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

What if I became the Speaker of the Galactic Republic? What if I became the Emperor of the Galactic Empire?

  Doesn't he have to do whatever the court tells him to do?

So what is the difference between this emperor and a puppet?

Thinking of this, Palpatine clenched his teeth tightly.

We must think of a way...