War intensity escalated across the galaxy with mechanical precision. The Republic's industrial sectors were now fully engaged, and Kamino's accelerated clone production fed directly into frontline battlegroups. New assault vessels launched weekly from Core shipyards, while medical frigates could barely keep pace with casualty transports. Dozens of neutral worlds were forced into alignment as combat spilled into trade routes and agricultural systems that had once been untouched.
Whole sectors burned under overlapping campaigns. The Hydian Way became a contested artery of logistics. The slice between the Core and Mid Rim devolved into a grinding zone of fleet battles, sieges, and planetary bombings. The Senate chamber grew increasingly hostile and divided as casualty lists were read out daily.
Within this furnace, one figure became the Republic's favored blade.
Anakin Skywalker's performance across theaters was undeniable. On Cato Neimoidia, his spearhead landings shattered bridge fortifications and forced Separatist armor into retreat within hours. On Praesitlyn, his starfighter command annihilated droid squadrons and broke orbital blockade lines. Reports circulated of Skywalker navigating minefields, breaching fortress walls, and piloting damaged fighters through impossible maneuvers. Other Jedi acted as generals; Skywalker acted as a weapon.
Troopers spoke of him with functional respect.
"He ends battles fast."
"Saves our people more than he saves himself."
"Doesn't freeze. Doesn't flinch."
Commanders noted his aggression, but they could not deny that his presence shortened campaigns, reduced clone casualty ratios, and delivered strategic victories.
On the HoloNet, propaganda broadcasts labeled him a "Hero of the Republic." Senators applauded his achievements during session reports. Admirals requested his deployment whenever major offensives stalled.
Anakin did not question the attention. He only desired the next fight.
While the galaxy celebrated its champion, the Chancellor watched events unfold from the privacy of his office. Palpatine reviewed updated fleet movements, Senate briefings, Jedi deployment logs, and intelligence summaries with silent calculation.
His self-dialogue remained measured.
The war is progressing as intended. The Senate demands security. The Republic grants me authority. The Jedi exhaust themselves commanding battalions instead of questioning causality.
He analyzed Separatist counterattacks with clinical detachment.
The Techno Union's fleets retreat through the Atravis Sector. The Commerce Guild abandons Mid Rim holdings. Grievous is compelled to concentrate forces rather than scatter them. Every node compresses toward predictable end-states.
He observed Anakin's rising fame with particular interest.
A symbol. A pivot. A necessary vector for transition.
When alone, Palpatine permitted the smallest indulgence of anticipation.
Soon the Jedi will stand with fewer allies. Soon the Senate will stand with fewer doubts. Soon the war's conclusion will arrive by necessity not persuasion.
His expression never changed when advisors entered the room.
Across Separatist territories, the situation deteriorated with equal clarity. Without Count Dooku's political leadership and battlefield presence, the Council members grew paranoid and disunified. Strategic directives from Grievous lacked subtlety: mass offensives, scorched-earth withdrawals, and concentrated strikes. They bought temporary space, but not stability.
San Hill monitored Confederate bank reserves and watched them shrink under sustained fleet losses.
Shu Mai complained that ore extraction worlds were being bombed into slag before they could evacuate assets.
Wat Tambor argued that new droid batches could not reach frontline commanders without being intercepted.
Nute Gunray pointed to each defeat as proof that the Republic sought annihilation rather than negotiation.
Their territories began collapsing inward. Entire Outer Rim sectors were abandoned, Mid Rim strongholds crumbled under coordinated Republic sieges, and hyperspace corridors were reclaimed. Trade Federation supply lines grew desperate, relying on hidden depots and emergency production hubs to keep Grievous' armies functional.
Separatist propaganda labeled these withdrawals "strategic realignments." The truth was simpler: the Confederacy was being pushed toward the far edge of the galaxy, forced from offensive war into defensive survival.
Grievous issued orders with mechanical rage.
"All forces consolidate to Fortress Worlds. Deploy fleets to deny Republic entry. Destroy infrastructure if retreat becomes inevitable."
His command kept the Confederacy alive, but only barely. The Republic's industrial machine continued to accelerate, and Jedi-led campaigns spearheaded every major advance.
The war was entering its critical phase. The galaxy could feel it. Senators could feel it. Generals could feel it. Even the average civilian understood that the end-state was no longer hypothetical, only inevitable.
What shape that end-state would take remained unseen by all but one.