“Jealousy is the path to chaos.”

THE RISE OF CLOVIS
War profiteers! In times of war, credits are the fuel
that fund all operations. Senator Amidala is sent to
Scipio to resolve matters between the Republic and
the InterGalactic Banking Clan. Here she is reunited
with Rush Clovis – a once-close friend, but now a
known traitor to the Republic. When Clovis reveals
corruption at the core of the Banking Clan, Senator
Amidala helps him steal vital files that may uncover
the full extent of the plot. Anakin Skywalker is sent
to rescue the Senator, and escort the information back
to Coruscant, leaving the Banking Clan in chaos….

Rush Clovis, Padmé Amidala, and Anakin Skywalker have escaped to Coruscant with proof of the InterGalactic Banking Clan’s deception. On Scipio, the Core Five tells Nix Card that Anakin Skywalker should never have been allowed to leave with the Senator and that any further disruption to their plans will be blamed on him. The board’s leader, Clu Lesser, tells the group that Clovis will need details of their accounts and the files. Card retreats to his quarters, where he contacts Darth Sidious, who tells him their plan can proceed and assures him that he will be protected.

On Coruscant, Yoda meets the ship’s arrival with four Senate Guards to escort them to the Chancellor’s office. Clovis pleads his case before Chancellor Palpatine, Senator Bail Organa, and several members of the Jedi High Council. Organa is skeptical of Clovis, given his past betrayal, but Clovis assures them his only concern is the integrity of the banks. The files show that large amounts of credits have been transferred to private accounts, leaving the bank void of capital. Padmé vouches for Clovis, and the Chancellor requests she work closely with Clovis to investigate the scheme. Anakin begs, then demands Padmé not take the assignment, but she insists he must trust her.

Sidious contacts Count Dooku, telling him he must once again recruit Clovis. The Sith Master intends to make him the head of the Banking Clan but orders Dooku to entrap him to do their bidding once elevated.

Obi-Wan Kenobi visits Anakin to discuss his and Yoda’s concerns that his judgments concerning Clovis are “clouded.” After attending the opera together, Clovis shows Amidala that the files show that the Separatists have not been paying interest on their loans, but the Banking Clan is lending credits to the Republic that it does not have. As they share a meal, Clovis tells her how he rose to such heights in the Banking Clan: his father was a human advisor to a Muun banker, and when he died in a shuttle accident when his son was twelve, Clovis was adopted and raised by the Muun as his child. He thanks Padmé for trusting him but questions her about her relationship with Anakin, which she denies. As Clovis tries to kiss her, Anakin enters the room and chokes Clovis with the Force. As he draws his lightsaber, Clovis challenges him to fight without his “Jedi tricks,” the two engage in a vicious hand-to-hand fight as Padmé begs them to stop. As he beats Clovis, Anakin realizes what he is doing and stops the fight. Captain Typho enters the room, and Clovis tells him they were attacked and that Skywalker had saved him.

As Clovis leaves to be treated for his wounds, Anakin apologizes for his attack on Clovis, but Padmé tells him that their relationship is based on lies and secrecy, and his lack of trust in her means she no longer feels safe. She says they should not see each other again for a while. The 2-1B-series medical droid treating Clovis brings him a message from Count Dooku: the Confederacy will pay the interest on their loans, give Clovis the details of the secret Muun accounts, and support his elevation to leader of the Banking Clan.

Senator Nix Card announces to the Chancellor that the Muun government has arrested the heads of the Banking Clan for corruption. With the endorsement of the Chancellor and the Separatist government to become the new leader of the banks, Clovis faces a hostile Senate where he pleads his case and presents the evidence of the Banking Clan’s corruption. The Senate is convinced, and a majority votes for Clovis to take control of the IGBC. Afterward, Anakin finds Palpatine and two Republic Senate Commandos and warns Palpatine that Clovis is not to be trusted. Although he acknowledges Anakin’s concerns, the Chancellor cites his “private confidence” in Clovis and says they might not have yet unearthed something. With that, the two depart the Senate.