Something very peculiar began to happen all across Coruscant.
HoloTerminals began to short-circuit, their holographic projections becoming warped and unrecognizable. Loud static began to burst forth from their speakers, causing many passersby to clutch their ears in momentary agony before the sudden shrill siren quieted away to a low warble. It wasn't just the standard terminals on the streets or in public squares, but also private residences, businesses, and even the Alliance Senate complex itself. A massive cyberattack of near unequaled magnitude struck Coruscant all at once, from the highest borough to the lowest sub-level. All began attuned themselves to the same frequency, resisting all attempts to alter or change what they were broadcasting.
And for a moment, they broadcasted nothing. Only static, only crackling noise.
But then an image began to take shape, and as it took shape it drew the attention of any who could see it. For the image it was showing was one of the most recognizable faces in all of modern galactic history, infamous and loathed. Some gasped, but most were stunned into silence as the face of Darth Carnifex, Dark Lord and Twice-Emperor of the Sith, public enemy number one, loomed before them in frightening crisp resolution.
"Citizens of the Galactic Alliance," spoke the face with a booming, hypnotic luster. "And members of it's hallowed Senatorial institution. I am Darth Carnifex, Supreme Lord of all the Sith, and Sovereign of the Free and Independent Peoples of the Stygian Caldera. I broadcast to you now to elucidate each and every one of you of the recent events that have unfolded on and around Elom. Knights of the New Jedi Order, aided by the officers and enlisted of your own Defense Force, have engaged in the treacherous meddling and unlawful intervention against the Free and Independent Peoples. This flagrant violation of sovereignty was met with swift military reprisal, contained to the world of Elom and it's surrounding satellites. Though the conflict has mercifully abated, the eagerness and viciousness with which the New Jedi Order and the Alliance Defense Force had rushed into this conflict has given rise to both alarm and mistrust among the Free and Independent Peoples."
The message continued, "Is not the Galactic Alliance built upon law and order? Committed to peace and justice for all sovereign nations? I come before you now, the noble citizens of the Galactic Alliance, with a petition authored by the Free and Independent Peoples. We beseech you to holdfast to your obligations of peace, to remain steadfast to your ideals of justice and nobility. The Free and Independent Peoples do not seek conflict with the citizens of the Galactic Alliance, but nor do we invite the intervention of the New Jedi Order to enforce their own monastic morality upon those who simply wish to live free beyond their stifling egotism. The annals of peace may yet endure, so long as the Alliance does not stray beyond the margins of their own authority."
"We present you with this choice, Alliance," stated the Dark Lord, "Do not meddle in the affairs of the Outer Rim, henceforth it shall be a territory of Free and Independent Peoples. Should you keep true to this path, then peace will continue among your people, and your children and their children shall grow old and content knowing nothing of war. But should you stray from this noble path, and continue to impress your authority upon those beyond your borders, then war it shall be. And it shall be a terrible war, one which shall make you yearn for the days of the Brotherhood's barbarity. Remember this, citizens of the Galactic Alliance, and look to your Senators who will either draw you into war, or perpetuate your hard-fought peace. Farewell."
All the hijacked terminals returned to normal, the image of the Dark Lord's visage fading like a terrible dream.
