Another Day in Paradise

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px][Mygeeto][/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]There were several planets in the Galaxy that were experiencing a modern Age of Ice, but the more prominent of them surely were Hoth, Dromund Kaas (these days) and Mygeeto. Years before the Gulag it had been a colony, InterGalactic Banking Clan had keenly exploited the planet for its resources, and now there was a lone Sith Lord climbing the wall of this rock-face, exploring the surface of the world for… things.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]This thing was a surface of two-fold, one was the opportunity for Eridium Industrial to set-up shop here and start mining for valuable minerals and resources, the other side was muddied though. Officially there was nothing of else of worth here, unofficially… there wasn’t anything either, but the Sith Lord didn’t know that.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It all began with the acquisition of Palpatine’s lightsabers, inherently he didn’t have any experience with neither psychometry nor flow-walking, but while the later was a considerable skill in the Force which costed quite some money to acquire for hire, the other… was also an inherent racial trait in a small percentage of a certain species.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]A fact which could be used by Sith Lords with deep pockets and even bigger ambitions, and it so happened that Ovmar was one of them. Some time ago the Sith Lord wished to enter the fold of the One Sith, more in an attempt to consolidate power and make push them into this direction instead of the other one, but didn’t want to ruin his outward reputation, enter the creation of special clone bodies, engineered for him in secret labs. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It so happened that one of the genetical templates of which the clone was based, was a Kiffar.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]And so it came to be that the next time Darth Carach held those lightsabers in his hand he was able to start reading their history, not very deeply, or accurately of course. It still took training, and lots of it to become accomplished with such a thing. But eventually he managed to take a peek in the past and more importantly catch a glimpse of the man who had, seemingly, trained Darth Sidious. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]A Muun. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]This Muun had a particular name, as a Sith? He was called Darth Plagueis, but as a Muun, a respectable banker and businessman? He had been known to the world as Hego Damask.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]At least, until Darth Sidious attempted to rid the world from the name and the name behind the name. After all those consecutive years and Palpatine’s attempts to expunge the known records there weren’t many hints on Damask, without the lightsabers it would have been impossible, there wouldn’t have been any frame of reference.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]That said, even with the lightsabers it was hard to pinpoint the locations and assets, with all the time that has passed, with all those interests wrapped around in other complicated plots… well let’s just say that even a year after Damask’s death it would have been almost impossible to actually figure out where his assets were. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The easiest way would be to scoop out Muunilinst - Damask had been a Muun, so it only made sense some part of his assets were tied up there, records, holdings, things like that. There was only a slight problem with that.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Before the Gulag, before the Clone Wars Muunilinst had been known as a closed-off world where outsiders weren’t exactly shunned as much as politely turned away. You had to be immensely wealthy, influential and usually a combination of both to get your foot between the door - getting access to restricted records? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Forget about it. This xenophobia only increased after the Plague, of course folks could still set foot on the planet, and do some minor business with the Muuns. But getting access to old, old, old relics of records of the ol’ time of yore? Impossible. [/SIZE]Ovmar would need to start digging in their minds, start subjugating them and turn them into mindless cronies which brought its own problems, and the last thing the Sith Lord wanted to do was create more problems.

Problems usually garnered attention, which was something he was trying to avoid right now.

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]This brought us back to Mygeeto and the rock-face the Sith Lord was trying to climb, it was almost as if the Force brought him to this exact moment, the Darkside tugging him along in a merry goosechase just to give him exactly what he had wished for. (but perhaps not what he actually wanted, the Force was a funny thing like that.) [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]But at the moment we aren’t there just yet, don’t worry, we will get ‘ere soon.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The Sith Lord coughed, breath escaping his mouth and almost immediately the liquid in the air froze up in little, crystals, right about now he wished he had brought a thicker coat with him, to say it was cold was an understatement. The Force sustained him though, it burned, coursed through his veins, giving warmth to his weary limbs and making the climb just a touch more bearable.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]For a few moment this went on, his hands and feet slowly placing themselves in shallow crevices in the wall, steadily making more process as the time went by. But it was then that the Force finally decided to come around and say hi to our Sith Lord, and not in a pleasant way, ice - weakened from sunshine - gave away when Ovmar’s hand tried to apply pressure in an attempt to climb further. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]From there it only became worse, a crack appeared and a huge section of the ice broke off, falling down back to the surface of the planet and with it… the Sith Lord hanging onto it.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]You’d think that Jared Ovmar was screaming his lungs out this entire time, pissing his breeches or perhaps a combination of the two, far from the truth really. It seemed that a life distanced from the more negative aspects of death (such as the eternal quality of it) made him devoid of true fear in the face of imminent departure. Had you been able to see his face, it would have shown annoyance more than anything else, before it was replaced with resignation.[/SIZE]

​

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Instead of trying to do anything to stop it, the Sith Lord channeled to the Force to blunt the pain that was soon to come.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]As his body crashed into the surface, pieces of ice impaling him into the ground and his bones broken there was one thing one could say.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Even crucitorn wasn’t that good.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px][Drifting Upon The Current][/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Men like Janus always spoke with astonishment about techniques like Transfer Essence, functional immortality he liked to call it, and to a degree he was right of course, through this technique a Sith Lord could find himself escaping death numerous times. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]But there is always a but, isn’t there? There is always a ‘though’, a ‘yet’, a ‘however’ to the story which paints the seemingly legendary skill into a less agreeable accomplishment. [/SIZE]The ‘but’ in this story was quite simple and could be best illustrated by describing what happened after the Sith Lord found himself impaled and crushed by thousands of sharp crystals, freezing to death as he waited for death to finally come knocking and release him from this torment.

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]As his spirit slowly and agonizingly left his corporeal form, Jared experienced a tug in his peripheral vision, had he been in the possession of a mouth he probably would have tried to sigh, as it stood he could only follow the trails of the river as it brought him Elsewhere.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Eyes opened themselves to Chaos. Blue fire permeating the area, burning everything it touched, a countless horde of Sith Lords tortured by their past sins. In the distance slow, hulking forms could be seen, gargantuan in their stature they wore chains with mountains at the end of them, they would struggle to pull those mountains for an eternity. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Perhaps it was a metaphysical manifestation of our sins, locked under key, always following us and bearing us down with its weight.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Behind him he could hear a cough, which prompted Jared to turn around and look, and there was Palpatine, still endlessly murmuring the words: “Unlimited Power.” over and over and over again. In an attempt to convince himself that he had made the right choices in life? one could only guess.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Surrounding him where blueish silhouettes, seven in total. Jedi Spirits who had committed their further existence to making sure Darth Sidious, otherwise known as Emperor Palpatine, would never be able to escape the Netherworld and start a new reign of terror in the Galaxy. Most of them were faded away by now, reduced to spiritual residue, energy with only one goal, two were still left in a slightly more humanoid form.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]...and one of them was glaring at Jared right now. Ovmar had come to call this particular Jedi grumpy, because… well… you gather why. They had met years ago, back when the Sith Lord had first dabbled into the art of Transfer Essence - the glum look of satisfaction on the Jedi’s face, the sudden twist in confusion towards outrage when he realized that Ovmar wasn’t actually trapped in here? It had been great.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Grumpy broke eye-contact, looking back to Palpatine, before resuming his glare at Jared.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]They both knew that if he repurposed his vigil to Ovmar, Palpatine might overpower the rest of the spirits and unleash fiery hell on the Galaxy again, especially in this crazed state of his. Power unrestricted by reason, ratio or responsibility, wouldn’t be a pretty thing… Grumpy seemed to have the same notion, and so he nodded to Ovmar, a sign of resignation, before going back to his vigil and standing watch over the true menace.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]For a few moments he stayed transfixed in the same spot, his eyes wandering over the scenery, noting the distinct amount of Sith Lords trundling across the planes, it was a reminder to the cost of being who they were. Even unlimited power couldn’t always stop the reckoning, couldn’t stop an eternity spent amongst the hungry, cold eyes of these mongrels, tortured endlessly by blue flames and hellish nightmares.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It was during this musing that the Sith Lord felt a familiar pulling sensation, he looked up into the pitch-black sky and nodded to himself. Time to go and with that the soul of Ovmar found itself being yanked away into the dark night, back to the safety of one of his secret facilities scattered around the Galaxy with a clone waiting for him to possess.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Or at least, that had been the general idea, but as he swam (metaphorically speaking of course, it’s kind of hard to really describe the sensation of your spirit travelling through the currents of the Force itself, for the purpose of transferring the idea, swimming would have to do for now.) through the River he noted a distinct lack of coherence in his travel.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Usually, the Sith Lord would at least get a sense of where he was going, a vague idea which of the corners of the Galaxy he would be transported, with the place being determined by the place of death. Ovmar had died on Mygeeto, Mandalorian Space, which meant that - depending on perspective - the closest facility would be located either on Lianna or perhaps-- no, no. It had to be Lianna.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]And yet he was getting the sensation that he wasn’t heading to Lianna, not even the general direction of that specific world. Instead… he seemed to be going back, back to My-- what the hell was going on here?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Once again it was proven that the Force was not in fact a button, a mechanism or some sort of device with an on and off-button. Sometimes things got awkward, sometimes 1+1 didn’t necessarily equal to 2, sometimes… the rules just didn’t really matter anymore. What else would you expect from an all-pervasive Force that gave the strong the ability to fly, conjure up storms with their mind, teleport all over the place or destroy planets with a flick of the wrist? (Perhaps one was exaggerating slightly, but you gather the gist of the matter.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The Essence of the Sith Lord, otherwise known as Jared Ovmar flew through the Galaxy, passed the Planet of Mygeeto, did a 45 degree turn to the right and eventually screeched to a halt in front of Muunilinst?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Through the eyes of an incorporeal being the planet looked corrupted to its very core. Not too surprising when the world had made its wealth through corporate greed and deceit, and yet… there was something else. Some form of darkness that only permeated from places with sheer power in the Darkside, places like Korriban and Dagobah. What was Muunilinst doing with such a signature…[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]And more importantly, why the feth was he racing towards it with the speed of a TIE interceptor.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Jared cursed, this didn’t look too good.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px][Our Mutual Friend][/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Being thrown into a new body wasn’t a pleasant experience on the best of days, but somehow the feeling was worse on this particular one. Shouldn’t have been surprised though, it didn’t matter if you did this for the first, third or fourtieth time, it was always painful, always agonizing - not too surprising when you considered that your very soul was being stretched to its limit in an attempt to escape the prison of the Nether itself. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Yet, after a short, but hellish trip, bliss would come over you, the realization would dawn that once again you managed to dodge the proverbial bullet, that once again… you were able to return to the land of the Living.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It made things easier most of the time, and yet there was something that nagged at me, told me that things weren’t -right-, weren’t how they were supposed to be. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The first sign was when I realized I couldn’t move my new limbs, as I attempted to raise my arm it felt heavy, unnaturally so, and opening my eyes I could only see darkness.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Which clearly wasn’t right.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]My cloning facilities were hidden away in the Galaxy, few if any knew of their existence or their locations, it was better that way. Back in the day Palpatine lost everything, because his clone bodies were all destroyed by the Jedi and the New Republic, hardly something I wanted to experience myself. So they were secret, but that didn’t equal to medieval levels of technology. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Right about now the stasis pod should open, lights should slowly undim themselves to allow my new eyes to ease into the transition of being used, after years of sitting in stasis.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Yet nothing of the sort happened, on the contrary: I was feeling strange. Yes, strange was a very broad term and could mean anything and everything, I am aware of this and yet I cannot describe it any better than that in one word. Strange. My limbs seemed… taller than usual, I could somehow feel my… hearts? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Something had definitely gone wrong, my clones had been perfect in the anatomical sense of the word, all organs were placed where they belonged and they definitely didn’t have multiple blood-pumping central organs. [/SIZE]I sent a mental probe down my nerves, trying to get at least a faint sense of what was happening, the answer came back to me too soon - this wasn’t my body, this wasn’t Jared Ovmar.

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]This was… something else, every fiber in my being wanted to freak out right now, like humans were prone to do, give into the emotions and throw a temper tantrum, because the Force hadn’t done what it was supposed to do.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Immediately I put that little screaming child in a box and put a lid on it, its examination would have to wait for another time, because something else came up in my mind. I was wounded, a stabbing wound, aimed for the heart, but glanced of the ribs into the thick of the meat. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Not deadly, unless no attention was being paid to it, which explained why I was feeling so tired and sluggish, my essence was desperately trying to curb the mortification of the flesh and blunt the wound from spilling too much of my new body’s blood.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]When I drew air a raspy cough escaped my lips, liquid entered my lungs and I knew that things were getting complicated real fast. The cough did a second thing, it caused movement in the room I was in, my current prospects sank to a new low when I realized there was someone else in the room, probably the killer. Amateur, of course, you didn’t let your victim off with a non-lethal blow and then sit around waiting for him to actually die, sadistic sure, but not smart.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]He spoke then, I pictured him with a grin on his lips, seemed he was fairly amused at what was happening right now. Couldn’t really share his smug attitude at all of this, and yet I listened to what he had to say.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]“Still not dead, Hill? Tonith will be pleased to know your suffering has extended to such a degree.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]So not only an amateur and sadistic, but also very, very, very stupid. What kind of self-respecting assassin would actually divulge the name of his contracteur to the mark himself? I couldn’t help but sigh, which attracted another few painful coughs as a result, I couldn’t speak and my body was badly injured, but that didn’t mean I was helpless.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Far from it, in contrast to women like Varanin and men like Cavill? I didn’t need my body to do some damage, I could simply… do this. Almost as an afterthought my essence wrapped itself around the mind of the amateur hitman and pressed against his being, cracks appeared in his mind as it slowly was being crushed into submission, a heavy thunk signaled him falling to the ground and the stuttering moans underlined the pain he was currently in.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]A voice appeared in his mind, one he had to serve, one he had to protect in every way possible, for it was his new Master.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]“Medical Droid.” [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It was not so much a request, or a command as much as a statement of desire, coming from a man who was used to being obeyed without question. The lights had went out from the would-be murderer, the grin of amusement slacked into a non-committal slack expression you would usually find on a cow, or perhaps a slave beaten-down and broken to behave more as a tool than anything else.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]He left the room in a hurry, not wanting to disappoint his Master with his first task, the assassin wasn’t gone for very long though, not two minutes had passed before he returned with an [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6666666666667px]S1 Medical Droid[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6666666666667px], made possible by Hegemonic Automaton and Darth Janus.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Seems like Janus just saved my life, indirectly, he’s gonna frown for an hour straight when I tell him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]While the droid did what medical droids did, I beckoned for the assassin to approach me, which he did with some trepidation in his movement, I guess that even mind frakked to a large degree he still had the basics of self-preservation. Not that I was going to kill him, or anything as unsubtle as that - he was still useful to me, he knew the lay of the land here.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]This accidents could turn out as a blessing, posing as a Muun I might just have gotten a straight ticket to the InterGalactic Banking Clan and with it to all the resources and knowledge I need.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘Your name.’[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘Pors, Master. Pors Tonith.’[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘You are going to tell me everything you know.’[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px][Plots Within Plots][/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]My friends, perhaps it’s better to call them associates, they like to accuse me of plotting. Not in the regular sense of the word though, we are Sith Lords - it kinda goes with the job description. No, they are saying I do it too much, that I am losing perspective on what life’s about, that my intricate web spinning with plots, within plots, within plots just takes it one step too far. It’s a regular complaint, one that I am used to by now.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]But every single time they voice it, I look at them with just the right amount of confusion and contemplation, before I say: “What plots? You are overestimating how much I have going on.” Of course this is just a subtle attempt to remove myself from the subject at hand, because… they are right. I do plot too much, the intricate webs of mine are starting to control the way I see the world, if you are wondering how I look at it right now; it’s akin to a simple chess board and there are either players or pawns, never both.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]I can’t help it though, it’s the way I am, the way I have been molded by the various situations and outcomes of life. Can a mole be blamed for always digging holes? Can a vulture really be blamed for always seeking new bodies to scavenge? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Can a schemer really blamed for realizing new schemes over and over again? I think not, and at this point in time I get the feeling that it’s out of my hands anyway. I had only been looking out for Muunilinst in a slightly professional capacity, every self-respecting Sith Lord would have tried to find an ‘in’, but I had never suspected that I would find one.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Then I die and get resurrected into the corpse of a just-assassinated Muun, and receive the would-be murderer on a golden plate to be used as one of the first pawns of this particular game. Now tell me the Force didn’t have at least partially a hand in this, too many coincidences, too many surprises and lucky in’s. The Current was guiding my hand here, this I was sure of.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]To get back to the matter at hand.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Tonith had told me much about Muunilinst and the workings of the InterGalactic Banking Clan. First of all, the murderer is a cousin of the current chairman - you would think it strange that a Tonith is ruling the Clan once again, after 800 years of darkness and all.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]But apparently this had a very good reason.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]You see, the Muuns had always loved keeping records of everything, and when I say everything I really mean it. Identities, transactions, holdings, possessions, trademarks: you name it and they are probably keeping a record of it somewhere. So the story of the Gulag Plague is really a simple one, a sickness swept over the Galaxy and disrupted everything. It ended civilizations and set us back hundreds, if not thousands of years back on the technological ladder.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Muunilinst wasn’t very different in this regard, except… their xenophobia. They didn’t like having other species set foot on their actual planet, which would explain the gargantuan station orbiting the world where most, if not all, of the trading between the Muuns and the outside world happened. So there was a bufferzone, most Muuns were always secluded on their own planet, which meant that they had time, time to figure out a plan of action.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Honestly, to cut to the chase, it didn’t work out. It really never does though, so they shouldn’t feel too bad. Few if any people survived from those days around and so there wasn’t any need to be ashamed. That said, their records were safeguarded, the Plague wasn’t some mythical thing that corrupted everything in its path, it was an organical plague and most of the technological wonders were lost because of anarchy, destruction on a wide-scale as civilizations waged far for the few resources still left behind, until even they lost the fight.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Said records were still there, safeguarded by the Muuns refusal to participate in the killing of their own and acceptance in that the Galaxy was currently very committed to ending all of their lives. In the end when the plague finished it course and the new fledgling nations rose up from the ashes the first the Muuns did was gain access to the old records, records with names, credit histories… you know everything that they found so fascinating.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]So what they did, the predecessors of the Muuns that we can find this day, was adopt the names of the ancient Muuns of yore. Take their names, and the identities of their families - and through it they managed to keep the cultural heritage somewhat alive.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]So Tonith wasn’t actually the Tonith of yore, he was simply the descendant of a random Muun who decided to take up the name and… simply wing with it. Which was more impressive than you would think, he still managed (with the other Muuns) to rebuilt Muunilinst into a rich and prosperous planet, and after that his family members managed to reestablish the Clan and assume the chairman’s position.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]When you put it like that you gotta show some measure of respect to them.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]So Tonith told me all of this and he told me more, Palpatine had erased most of the old records. But there were ancient ones, papers, data chips which were still operational to this day and who might just have the information that I needed, when I asked him if he knew of any Damasks he only looked at me strangely and had to shake his head.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Apparently not all the names had been taken, perhaps the ancient feud between the two Houses had been inherited by the progenitor of the current Tonith family.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]At any rate, Pors would have to return to the chairman in a few hours, reporting on the deed, no doubt. Pors would come, and I will be there with him, through the Chairman I will be able to gather the information I need to take hold of the old holdings of Damask, and through them?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Knowledge.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

The Spires of Harnaidan
[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Muunilinst[/SIZE]
[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]IGBC HQ[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Harnaidan’s spires are widely considered as a treasure. Its elegance and dignified appearance a parallel to their creatures, a shout-out if you will, so it was only ironic that the spires had been destroyed twice (perhaps even more, but even those two were cloaked under the shadow of history). Once during the Clone Wars, they had been rebuilt shortly after only to be destroyed once again during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Pretty unlucky, common perception dictated.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]At any rate, once again they had been rebuilt, stronger, more beautiful and extravagant, probably as a sign to the Galaxy that Muunilinst was still and would always be the planet of commerce, capitalism and above all credits. That nothing would be able to keep them down, and it seemed to have worked to a degree.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The meeting between the Chairman and his cousin was starting in a few minutes, unknown to former I was already in the room at hand. Cloaked in the Current they wouldn’t realize I was actually here, and in the meanwhile I’d silently influence both of them so I could start the actual work after the pleasantries were done.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It didn’t take long for the elderly Muun to walk into his office, he sat in his chair and started writing some non-descript things on paper.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Probably a contract or two.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Soon after Pars entered the office, his gaze swept to the corner, my corner, before returning to his Uncle. Who seemed pre-occupied with the paperwork, for a few minutes it went on like this. The Muun pretending to be busy, trying to make the other one sweat, insulting to a degree, cunning to another one. But I didn’t have all day for them to stand around postering, so I nudged the Chairman, who quickly looked up and around him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Noticing only his cousin he coughed, straightened his attire and then nodded for him to sit down.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘Cousin, good, good. You are well I hope?’ probably codified and meaning something along the lines of ‘Did you feth up, or is our problem gone and disposed of?’ Pars was like peace itself now, mostly because I was projecting an aura of calmness on him - he was becoming my agent, and they would act professionally even if they didn’t want to.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘Well enough, Uncle. There were a few… complications.’ he replied with a little shrug.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Uncle’s eyes widened themselves and then grew suspicious, it seemed that even now Muuns had issues with trust, perhaps for the best too. The man took some time to get a grip on himself, before finally asking the obvious question.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘What happened?’[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Security cams, if any, went on a loop.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Listening devices would only record static.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]In the corner of the office a figure appeared, his hand reached out and touched the back of the head of the old Muun. A voice spoke in his mind.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘I happened.’[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Darkness followed.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Tonith Senior had much to show and tell. Clan secrets, blackmail material, who to pressure and who to coax, where the real money flowed and what the profitable enterprises currently where. How the Clan operated, publically and privately, who their partners were, but more importantly… he showed me the way into the old archives.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]This was only the beginning though.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]I had come for the Archives, but this was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up. Taking indirect control over the InterGalactic Banking Clan would be influence that one such as I could scarcely simply forget. I probably didn’t even need it, probably had enough power without ‘em… but where is the fun in moderation? A compulsion was placed over Tonith Senior, and then he was sent out to old archives to find me my pot of Gold.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Damask Holdings, and all that it had held before the ancient Muun Sith Lord had been slain by the Lightning of his Sith Apprentice. The commands had been made simple enough, take the original records, bring it here, destroy the records and make a list of all the people who would be aware of said destruction. It was important to cover my tracks, at the moment nobody knew about the Archives themselves, few even knew about Damask and the holdings.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Destroy the old records, mindwipe the people who were aware of their existence, and make sure all traces were gone. That would ensure security and minimize the risks of anyone trying to track ‘em down, or even connect them to a certain Jared Ovmar operating in the Galaxy.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Soon enough the old Tonith had returned, with the records and the list of people who had access to them. Everything in me wished to immerse myself into the papers, find out what Damask had owned and where, figure out this particular puzzle and come out on top. But there were times of play, and there were times when you simply needed to do what had to be done.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]So I ordered him to send all the people over who had access to the records and were currently on the planet, which was most of them - the rest would have to follow on a later moment.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]***[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The following couple of hours were spent cleaning the minds of the knowledgeable, all traces of Damask was removed, replaced by more relevant information. The removal of the records by the Chairman had been removed too, the records of the access et cetera, et cetera.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Nothing had been overlooked, people had been screened, to make sure no backups existed and that all was secure and above all private.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Soon after that, when the sun had settled itself beyond the horizon and night had set in the Sith Lord was finally done and ready to proceed with the following step. With an air of theatrics and the slightest sense of dramatics, he opened the specific record book and what he saw there…[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It raised his eyebrows, it made him grin his grin and finally he managed to utter.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]‘Oh… this is good, very good.’[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Muunilinst[/SIZE]
[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Western Sea, Aborah[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Somewhere on the Western Sea floated an island, forgotten throughout the years and hidden away in more recent times. It was called Aborah by the native Muuns, and for many years in a time more ancient than these it had been the private island of Clan Damask. It was here that the family usually had lived, where its grand manor had stood and more importantly… where Darth Plagueis had spent many of his years experimenting with ancient techniques, aided by repositories of knowledge and ill-fated laboratories.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Few people realized that Abora was actually less of an island and more of a dormant smoker, a geographical entity underneath which lay a number of interconnected lava tubes - remnants of a violent and more vulcanic time, no doubt. It were these tubes that had granted the ‘island’ its beautiful and above all warm springs that had brought the Damask Clan so much solace during times of cold.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]A lone transport flew from the capital of Muunilinst towards Aborah, the distance shortening itself by the second and yet the Sith Lord inside of the shuttle almost couldn’t contain his anxiety and desire. Today was the day, and who had guessed it would all turn out so well? If he had known he simply had to be impaled by a fecking glacier to get to this moment? He probably would have done it sooner.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Well… perhaps not that soon, Jared thought with just the appropriate amount of grimace on his expression. Sure, he had survived, sure he was content with that, but it was a pretty painful experience and only the mad and the sadomasochistic really enjoyed such experiences.[/SIZE]

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Honestly, Jared still wasn’t quite sure why all of this had happened. Why had he been pulled into the dying body of an old Muun, a Hill for all intents and purposes, and been set on the path to these Archives? Why hadn’t he simply been pulled into the embrace of one of his clones who were scattered across the Galaxy? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It started to look more and more as if there was an invisible hand guiding him along a path, and Jared didn’t enjoy that sensation one bit. Throughout his tenure as a Sith Lord there had always been that simple and comforting knowledge that -he- was the one pulling the strings, the one with all the answers and power to make things happen just as he had planned him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The fact that someone could be leading him to… what? a trap? It didn’t sit well for him and if this person was even able to manipulate the trajectory of his Essence Transfer path? That was even worse, only the most powerful would have been able to do that - and with all of that said and done… how would they have known about his interests in Darth Plagueis? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]In Damask Holdings? His attempts to gauge out the information needed had all been done low-key, had all been privately coaxed out of the lightsaber of Darth Sidious and a subtle touch here and there by his own agents.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]So either his agents were compromised, his mind was or this was all a huge coincidence. Jared didn’t believe in coincidence, he refused to accept that the sanctity of his mind had somehow been breached and… this left the Sith Lord with only one option, again an impossibility. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]His men were the best of the best, they wouldn’t have been broken easily and even if they had been broken… he would have known, wouldn’t he?[/SIZE]