Star Wars Destiny Chronicles: Imperial Warlords -- Legacy of Palpatine

LEGACY OF PALPATINE

    When the throne of the Galactic Empire was vacated, many tried to claim it for themselves, with little to no success. However, some Imperials refused to believe their beloved Emperor had perished and instead attempted to assert the belief that His Imperial Majesty lived on. Most of these claims were simply to benefit their perpetrator in an attempt to seize the throne for themselves, but some were genuine. Regardless of his ultimate fate, the legacy of Palpatine was a major factor in guiding the future of the Empire after Endor.

Her Imperial Majesty

    Records of His Imperial Majesty's heritage are scarce to say the least. Sixty years before the Clone Wars, House Palpatine was recognized as one of Naboo's most ancient families, although it was not as prominent as some of the other houses. However, by the time of Sheev Palpatine's final term as Supreme Chancellor, all traces of the family's existence had been erased. Only those old enough to have remembered the ancient House knew of it and they had been sworn to secrecy.

    As those closest to Palpatine -- such as Magister Hego Damask -- knew, all direct relatives of the future Emperor had been murdered at Sheev's own hand, from his parents to his siblings. However, even though Palpatine inherited all of his family's assets, his was not the only claim to such inheritance. Behind his family's back, Sheev's father Cosinga had had an extramarital affair with the sister of a Naboo aristocrat. This adulterous union had spawned a child, who was quickly whisked away from Naboo when word spread of Cosinga Palpatine's death, fearing that Bon Tapalo, Naboo's recently elected monarch and opponent to Cosinga and his mistress' brother, had been the one behind his death and would soon go after all of his enemies.

    Traveling closer to the Core, the child grew up in relative seclusion, eventually having a family of their own. Eventually, sixty years after the House Palpatine massacre, Ederlathh Pallopides was born as the remote great-niece of Emperor Sheev Palpatine. The Emperor was aware of this relation and, rather than see her as a potential threat to his rule, believed she would prove a valuable asset in years to come. However, whatever plans he had for her failed to come to fruition when he was vanquished during the Battle of Endor.

    During the power vacuum that ensued, young Pallopides fell under the wing of Admiral Betl Oxtroe. In 7 ABY, three years after her great-uncle's demise, Pallopides was brought to the New Republic's attention as Admiral Oxtroe presented them with a proposition: the Empire would be reformed into a constitutional monarchy with Pallopides as its Empress. However, Ederlathh would only be a symbolic figurehead, with New Republic authorities acting as Imperial Advisors and thus placing the Empire under joint Imperial-Republic rule.

    Before the New Republic could reach a decision regarding this proposal, Admiral Oxtroe was murdered by a Noghri assassin, presumably sent by Grand Admiral Thrawn. As such, Oxtroe's dream of a New Galactic Empire fell through and Pallopides fell back into obscurity. Her current status and whereabouts remain unknown; some think she may have fallen victim to Darth Vorath's machinations, as he desired to remove any chance of Palpatine returning or those loyal to him posing a threat to the Sith. In reality, the great-niece of His Imperial Majesty lives on in seclusion, her plans -- if any -- unknown.

Son of Palpatine

    Pallopides was not the first to claim heritage to the Emperor, although she was the first legitimate one. Two years prior to Admiral Oxtroe's proposition, a three-eyed man emerged from the spice mines of Kessel with the bold claim that he was the son of Palpatine himself.

    Before Trioculus entered the stage, there had been rumors of the Emperor spawning a three-eyed mutant son. However, Trioculus was not this child but rather the result of an experiment. Growing up an abusive life on Kessel, Trioculus had attained the title of Lord Overseer and fallen in league with Grand Moff Bertroff Hissa, who saw an opportunity in the wake of Palpatine's death. Using Trioculus as a figurehead, Hissa and his fellow Grand Moffs sought to retain their power by touting Trioculus' alleged heritage.

    However, many Imperials were doubtful of Trioculus' claim, chief among them the false Supreme Prophet Kadann, head of Emperor Sate Pestage's Church of the Dark Side. Kadann maintained that the "true" Emperor, according to his visions, wore the fabled glove of Darth Vader and used its dark side energies to rule the galaxy. Hoping to win the support of Kadann and other irresolute Imperials, Trioculus sought out the glove of Darth Vader and retrieved it from the debris of the second Death Star.

    Unfortunately for Trioculus, he was unable to control the glove, powered by a Sith amulet, and he ended up creating a fake glove that he wore instead. Despite this, Kadann did not give his blessing until he forced Trioculus to admit that he was not in fact the son of Palpatine. Once Trioculus had dropped the facade, Kadann named him Emperor.

   By this time, Director Ysanne Isard of Imperial Intelligence had taken control of the central Imperial faction. As many Imperials had begun to flock to Trioculus both due to his claim and because so many Grand Moffs and Grand Admirals were backing him, Isard realized she needed him out of the picture before he could threaten her own claim to the throne. With the help of spies planted within Trioculus' faction, Isard was able to leak crucial data to the New Republic (anonymously, of course), allowing them to be aware of his plots well in advance.

    In due time, the New Republic was able to defeat Trioculus and his empire. The false Kadann was killed by Grand Admiral Afsheen Makati and the Church of the Dark Side collapsed as a result. As for the rumors of Palpatine's mutant son... during the "Trioculus affair," the New Republic was made aware of the existence of a man named Triclops, who had been kept prisoner on Kessel by Trioculus. Upon further investigation, it was theorized that Triclops was born from an experiment that implicated Palpatine's genetics, thus making him the "true" son of the Emperor. 

    Triclops' current whereabouts remain unknown, having escaped captivity into the dense jungles of Yavin 4, never to be seen again....

The Emperor Lives

    Beyond familial connections, some Imperials attempted to take control of the Empire by perpetuating the claim that Palpatine had not in fact perished at Endor and instead lived on, albeit weak and unable to return to public view.

    Among the earliest of these claims was Governor Adelhard, who locked down the Anoat sector and isolated his people from news of what had went down at Endor. With the help of an insurgent network led by a nameless smuggler, the New Republic was able to disperse the Iron Blockade and drive the Imperials out of the sector.

    Similarly, Captain Lerr Duvat of the Star Destroyer Torment dismissed the news as Rebel propaganda and acted on the order to commence Operation: Cinder as if it was straight from the Emperor's mouth. Whether or not the message Duvat received had indeed been a posthumous command from the Emperor remains uncertain. Ultimately, the Rebels were able to put a stop to Operation: Cinder before it could destroy Naboo, Palpatine's planet of birth.

    Six years after Endor, there was the clone Emperor that emerged to take control of the scattered Imperial forces. Of course, this had all been part of a Sith plot in an attempt to weed out Palpatine loyalists and eliminate them, preventing them from opposing Darth Vorath. When the Dark Empire was defeated in 11 ABY, most of its forces retreated to Ord Cantrell. However, some rogue elements still remained. 

    Among these were four members of the Emperor's Royal Guard, who used a hologram of their departed master to rally dissenters who had not fallen in with the Dark Empire or the Sith. Known as the Second Imperium, this faction maintained secrecy for a time, hiding from the Sith's notice. Among its recruits was a disillusioned Dark Jedi named Brakiss, whom was put in charge of the Imperium's Shadow Academy. In 23 ABY, the Second Imperium made its move against the New Jedi Order. However, it wasn't long before Brakiss realized that the "Emperor" was nothing but a hoax and decided to turn against the Royal Guards who had deceived him, executing three of them before destroying the Shadow Academy, taking himself with it.