Private Dead Gods, Butcher Kings, And Starborn Devils Oh My!

[Domina Prime]

Jutrand, Capital World of the Sith

Darth Carnifex | Darth Empyrean​

She was meaner than the demons around her, those teeth are sharper, those claws were finer, and with design perfected the strange creature felt the demons around her seemed like fakes...imitators.

But among the demons were gods, gods who with a snap of their fingers caused the world to dance. The galaxy to step to the rhythm of their own song. It was curious their influence, their power...their might. The xeno found herself wondering if such divinity could ever find its way to her. If one day the gods would speak into her ear and reveal to her the path of gold.

Thing was Dima never did learn how to dance. So she always missed the steps~

Running, always running, always making sure her feet were moving because she was always so tense always so anxious that there was some shadowy beast waiting to bite her. It was instinct, as natural as eating, and so it was something she had never questioned. It was who she was, in all her doubtful glory. She could never change that part about her. She was certain of that now, and it was something she'd never fully come to terms with. Why was she like this?

And now she was in the so called devils den, expecting at any moment to be bitten by some lingering serpent slithering about in the dark. But the longer she remained here, on this world, among these...beings. She saw no teeth, no claws, no design of a man nor a god that caught her admiration. Just...various humanoids.

Lessers~

She did not understand it, the logic of it. Such small, flimsy lifeforms sauntering about as if they meant business. She had never seen a human as anything more than blood, meat and frail bones to pick her teeth with.

She would need to reassess this notion. Clearly there was something she had missed, something critical that allowed them to exist as the dominant lifeform in the galaxy. But in all her study of their species and all her observations she still couldn't quite put a claw on it. But in this moment perhaps she should be focusing on other things. One moment she could be at odds with herself, and then in the same breath got about life like everything was at least 'normal'. Nothing was normal, nothing would ever be normal. Not in here, with these people, and this smell that permeated her nostrils.

This was not a normal place no...but at the same time, Domina Prime did not qualify as 'normal' either. In fact, those many alien eyes stared almost tiredly at a small, steaming cup of tea as she held it within her sharp hands.

"Are you certain this is...wise? Meeting with the Butcher King again? Don't you remember what happened last time?!" A voice quipped beside her, pulling her back into the moment as her many eyes swam around the waiting room of the banking facility. She had not been received by the host yet, and the longer she waited the more her teeth ached and her claws became agitated.

"Hm? What? Butcher who?" Dima quipped, lifting one of her four arms to drag her claws along the scales of her neck as if she were scratching a rash that had developed. "I am here to receive what was promised and i was promised clarity~" The xeno mused innocently, the title of 'Butcher King' flying far over her head as the droid just stared in disbelief.

"Zambrano, Kaine? Hello? You could not have forgotten that qu- CLARITY? OF WHAT!?" The droid barked.

"Ohhh, God-King Carni?" The xeno quipped with her five eyes lighting up at the mention of the name 'Kaine'. "And clarity of this ones design! Dimas purpose! Certainly they must know what Dima was made for?" She mused, gesturing to herself before tracing her claws over the table beside her.

"Carni? You...you call him that? Yo-you still don't know who he is do you?" The droid asked, Dima nodding without a second thought, followed by a shaking of her head when the droid asked the second question. "Dima i don't think...they are going to help you understand why you are the way you are. They are more likely to use you, for being like you are~" X9 tried to explain. Much to his dismay Dima did not seem to register the warning.

"The godlings have very tall names~" She explained, gesturing with her four arms dramatically as if to convey the message. "So Dima makes their names small, and then Dima remembers them much easier~" She cooed, the azure devil causing the droid to look at Dima, then at the office where she waited to be summoned, then back to the alien again.

"Ok, i understand but...just this once, to be safe. Don't. Do. That~" The droid warned, causing Dima to make a face from behind her helmet.

"...Is someone going to stop me?" She asked. "If not why should i?"

It was an honest question, not meant to be malicious. If no one was going to stop her she saw no reason to cease her behavior, and this brought the droid great dread.

"Oh come on! Quit being such an imp you are among the civilized now! You can't just go around giving kings, queens and nobility 'nicknames' because you can't say their names!" The droid argued, causing the xenos tail to swish and rattle violently in agitation.

"Then their names shouldn't be so stupid like their faces~" The woman mused childishly while sticking up her nose at the droid as if leaving the conversation there.

The droid, giving up now just floated away. "She's dead, yep, definitely dead. I did my best, i really did. 'Keep her out of trouble' they said, 'its easy just keep an eye on her' they said." X9 murmured, leaving Dima to her own devices.

​

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Jutrand - Capital of the Sith Order
Palace of the Triumvirate
5 Months Before The Jiaasjen Purge​

It wasn't often that Darth Carnifex found Himself on Jutrand, despite being one-third of the ruling body that governed the Sith Order. He preferred the sanctuary of Malsheem to any celestial body, especially one that He was obligated to share with His tentative 'allies'. The Kainate held a good presence on Jutrand, as befitting their standing among the Eternalists and the Tsis'kaar, their banners flew in tandem with those of the other factions. They had their own embassy as well, a fortress with high walls and easily defendable battlements.

The crowning jewel of Jutrand was the Triumviral Palace, a towering edifice of burnished steel and glimmering spires that rose taller than any other nearby structure; a pillar, a monument to the superiority of the Sith. Darth Carnifex stalked the halls, His cloak trailing behind Him in a wide fan as attendants and guards shadowed His every move. Even at its most deserted, the Palace was a never-ending hive of activity and noise. Much had to be done to hold together the disparate factions of the Sith Order, to maintain some semblance of a unified bureaucracy, though cooperation was achieved only through excruciating effort.

A new figure stepped out from the shadows to join the Dark Lord's entourage, their body shimmering from one form to the next as they spoke. "She's been spotting nearing the Palace, an escort has been dispatched to guide her as you've instructed. A droid follows along with her, shall it be permitted?" The Dark Lord merely waved His ascent, "Let it be permitted, but see that she does not stray." The shimmering figure bowed with one hand over their chest, and then they were gone.

In the meantime, a large hall had been procured for this meeting. Not only to contain Darth Carnifex and His esteemed guest, but another member of the Triumvirate as well. Oft at odds, Darth Carnifex and Darth Empyrean were not yet above sharing the same room together. The fact that Darth Ophidia , another member of the ruling Triumvirate, was not present might have appeared to some as an intentional slight, but neither Darth Carnifex nor Darth Empyrean held the delusion that Darth Ophidia would be unaware of the meeting, nor what transpired within it.

As the popular adage went, 'There were snakes slithering in the walls'.

The doors to the meeting chamber opened at Darth Carnifex's approach, the towering monarch sweeping into the room with a great flourish of His cloak. Few had yet arrived, as He'd come early, but they would all be coming soon. With a twist of His wrist, Darth Carnifex removed the clasp anchoring His cloak around His shoulders, letting the long curtain of fabric fall to the ground behind Him. A small group of attendants were there to quickly bundle it up and removed it from sight.

Beneath His cloak, the Dark Lord wore a banded leather sleeveless jerkin affixed with a long tabard sinched at His waist, with matching tails cascading down between His legs from both the front and the back. The front of the tabard was displayed with the symbol of His house, the ever leering Eye of Solomon, while the back held the Kainate crest in brilliant red and gold. Both of His uncovered arms were covered with black geometric tattoos, each one shimmering with latent Dark Side magic. Metal bracers were affixed to either forearm, also glinting with a magical aura.

He looked around, noting that everything had been arranged according to His design. He then turned to face the door, awaiting the other's arrivals.

Darth Empyrean | Domina Prime ​

 

[Darth Empyrean]

Conquests and planetary administration had become his life - between plots to subvert control of the Order to his own. Fighting against the Snake and Butcher in all but open combat had been a nuisance, but it was an open agreement to ensure their conflict did not open a weakness others could exploit. Now, the Order stood in open war with the nearly all of its neighbors - as the Mandalorians moved to defend the Kathol Rift, the RTL attempted to secure the Rimma Trade Lane, and various defensive pacts based on both ideology and desperation rose to stop their conquest. It would matter little.​

​

His secretary, a Sith Knight of good renown for their intelligence more than their strength, guided him through the days motions - eventually leading him to the doors of the meeting room. A new arrival, recommended by Darth Carnifex , wished to see them. Were it not for Carnifex's recommendation, Empyrean may not have ordained them with such a visit - he rarely met with those who were not Sith, but the Kainite messengers had insisted.​

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So he entered from a side door into the hall, nodding towards Carnifex as he found a seat near the end of the table - one of the three seats of the Triumvirate. He sat with nothing before him, as servants offered Carnifex simple wines and cheeses. A token of luxury, of offering, as was Empyrean's duty to ensure so long as the Lords of the Sith came to his world to govern the Order.​

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"I came on your word, Darth Carnifex. I hope this... Domina Prime does not dissapoint.", he said, leaning back in his seat. The enchanments built into his chair began to draw his dark energy and pain away, allowing him a semblence of presentability to the average person. Leave only that it helped clear his mind of his grevious wounds that hurt him even now - though he would not admit it.​

 

[Domina Prime]

"To evolve beyond her darkness she devoured the stars for their light~"
​

Ever the noblelady, The Prime carried herself with an easy grace despite her fleeting energy. Confident, yet unassuming. Strong but not bold. Beneath that fine helm rows of chittering teeth and hypnotically focused optics, a rare sight to behold, and one might guess that this was the Xeno without the mask, no prey to lure, no soldiers to dominate, only forceborn for her to finally see up close and personal in a moment free of savage carnage and gruesome assimilation.

No this encounter was a willing one, and a long time coming.

The impish mind of the xeno had in a way adapted in anticipation for this moment. And truthfully without an enemy to dominate, consume and imitate the strange lifeform found itself...empty. And that was how he felt - or rather did not feel - for much of the time. Her moments of precious delight and endearing yet chaotic behavior might have appeared touching to a casual observer, or an eager audience expecting of course that since Dima cares for her moments of emotional assimilation and imitation. But while said audience might begin to see the Prime, unsettling design notwithstanding, as a good 'ole softy, a romantic, or even just a lady with normal if not childish emotions, and this is simply not the case.

The truth was, Dimas moments were just that, moments. Moments that were only shared with individuals worthy of specific sequences of social imitation when they were together. The rest of the time was filled with the typical day to day emptiness, as was the existence of a hivemind without a hive. Emotions were a hazard that was better gone to some...most, especially so deep in the heart of the darkborn where dread and anxiety reigned supreme in the minds of nearly every living creature...a rather unhealthy environment for a hive lifeform that replicated the emotional and social environment the longer they were allowed to adapt. And so she did what she could to rid herself of such trinkets as empathy or morality during the times of war. Especially for the...'lesser lifeforms', although perhaps her time among single minded organisms had done more to change her than originally thought. And while most humanoids viewed the mysterious alien creature as bizzare and unmistakably dangerous most tended to question the true intelligence of the lifeform...painted as a primitive creature wearing the veneer of civility Dima often felt the sheepskin slipping the longer it rotted on her hide .


Dima might be sociable, might even be friendly. She took a concerned interest in the affairs of things that had nothing to do with her, a meticulous mental phonebook of her acquaintances and valued ones. Many of her strange yet endearing qualities made Dima a generally pleasant fellow when not spoiled by bouts of extreme violence. And she always smiled, too! But despite these niceties, everyone, including said audience, would be wise to remember that Dima, despite her radiant personality, isn't a very good person.

Not unlike present company!

Seated among their comforters, the god-kings themselves. In all their divinity, a display each one of those alien eyes made sure to take careful study of.

It was awkward wasn't it? How was one to carry themselves among gods? In any other moment, she would have considered them prey, a challenging hunt to sharpen her instincts upon but these days Dima began to wonder if there was further value in their kind than simply being meat. She could kneel, cower...those who wanted to be gods like them probably would, they'd do anything to kiss the ring. To have their own...

But the Prime? Power was never the goal, it was always perfection. And with a delicate gesture the lower arms of the alien woman drifted alongside the fabric of her violet dress, sweeping it aside partially along with her cloak to expose her central form. Her upper arms separately reached upward, unlatching the strangely designed Mandalorian helm designed to contain the unique anatomy of her skull. Neither of them wore such things, so for once, on this occasion among those the hiveborn considered equal, if not greater than herself she showed them her face.

Tucking the helm beneath her upper arm while her lower pair folded neatly behind her back, five illuminated azurite eyes twisted and swarmed over each of the individuals across the table. Oh at long last she could see them with her own eyes, the glory of their god given flesh and form. Something she could admire, even if the existence of their god confused the xeno on a base, primitive level. Darkened lips peeled back into a impish grin, her ivory mane and strange, tendril-like lekku spilling out messily into the fur pelt upon her shoulders as Dima whistled in delight. Her two side eyes watching Darth Carnifex while the other pair of eyes dilated to fine pins while drawing focus upon Darth Empyrean .

Her central eye telegraphed its behavior, zipping and twisting along the room like a digital scanner, even rolling back into her skull in an unsettling manner as if to examine all around her even through her own skull before returning frontward moments later.

"Oh joy, oh how marvelous! How exciting it just makes your bones itch, yes?" The alien greeted, beginning to wander around the room with her mind doing about the same, leaning in and peering out of the windows with an almost childish curiosity as that elongated tail slithered and rattled in a almost fiendish delight. "Such fancy accommodations. Truly 'civilized' isn't it?" She mused, dragging a claw along a curtain almost like a strange alien cat.

"Focus, and etiquette, Domina Prime~" A voice quietly reminded while levitating over the creatures shoulder.

The Prime suddenly straightened, gesturing with a motion of her head and a chitter of azure, crystalline teeth lining the cheeks of the Prime. Returning to the table and tracing her sharpened fingertips along the material before plucking a block of cheese from the bowl on the table while her ears perked and swiveled like radar dishes aside her skull.

"Emn, strange~" She referred to the cheese, one of her many alien tongues dabbing across its surface before the aliens face twisted in an expression of displeasure. "Mmn...but yes of course, but first, i just have to know." Her five eyes narrowed their focus on the forceborn gods before her, distracted she just dropped the cheese she had just dragged her tongue on back onto the rest of the other cheese pieces. "When i was small, in the place with blinding white walls. Did you mean it?" The hiveborn stared all five of her eyes at Carnifex. "You said the words once, back then. When they wanted to exterminate me. That there were things...only i could do. If only i was allowed to grow~" tongues slithered between the teeth along her cheeks as she imagined it. Being part of a collective hivemind again. "I've grown now, yes?" She questioned with an almost predatory purr.

Perhaps it was a long time coming, the shedding of the sheep skin.

A lack of cruelty doesn't disqualify you from being a monster. Her evil was not done frequently, nor was it done carelessly. It was not a passionate evil, it was not a sadistic evil. The Prime only did evil things when it was logical and beneficial to do them. But lately even that was starting to change. Dima felt as if she was shedding more than just her skin...shedding the thing he used to be. Slowly she could feel herself becoming more hideous and unrecognizable from the prized TITAN Lifeform she once was. She stayed true to her ideals though, and no matter how far she might fall she knows she could never betray her cutting edge instinct and divine design.

And then her many eyes finalized on Empyrean.

"And i am not familiar with you young god, do you share the love of your creator with Carni? If so, that must mean the spark of divinity is in your blood yes? Bizarre thing isn't it? The right to be godborn?" Dima addressed innocently as she slowly lifted her three arms, her fourth keeping her helm tucked away as she gestured towards herself. "This one is Prime! But Dimas name is Dima, yes?" The alien introduced herself as only a hive could among gods. Her curiosity of the divinity in the room clear in her almost giddy delight among them despite the clear peril.

Peril for all~

​

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"You will find her most interesting, Darth Empyrean."

In a break from Darth Carnifex's even monotone dictation, emphasis was placed on the word 'Darth'. As they were still opposed ideologically within the Sith Order, but had not yet come to marshal arms against one another, the pair often sought to levy as many barbs as they could without devolving into open hostilities. Carnifex often seized on Empyrean's fixation on titles, chiefly his desire to be referred to by the honorific Darth whenever addressed.

Carnifex applying pressure to that word and that word alone sent a clear message, one that Darth Empyrean would not miss.

Nonetheless, in that space after Carnifex's words the doors opened up. Carnifex turned to face the door, dark eyes watching the Netherbeing enter the chamber like a cautious predator. All the instincts that the Sith had assumed for themselves were concentrated in DIMA's essence and form, wholly embodied in organic lethality. She was perfectly engineered to kill, perfectly equipped, perfectly suited for bloodshed and mayhem. Carnifex had seen it firsthand.

"Welcome DIMA, it's a great pleasure to see you again. This is my colleague, Darth Empyrean." Carnifex casually gestured Empyrean's way, but did not turn to look at him. His eyes were always on DIMA, never leaving her. He'd learned the value of persistent observation during their last meeting, when they had tested each other's mettle with fist and blade. He knew that she possessed many hidden appendages, which could emerge faster than the mind could comprehend.

She too fixed on Him as well, her digits absently toying with the refreshments that had been arrayed for their benefit. Long ago, His mind recalled, she had been little more than a feral adolescence on TITAN Station, locked away behind triple-reinforced glasteel and impervium-strengthened durasteel walls. He'd come to visit her occasionally, when His mind was not preoccupied with Empire or His other ventures. He had always been intrigued by the bioluminescent creature, valuing her unwavering ferocity and killing instinct.

"Of course," answered Carnifex, "They only wished to constrain you, wanted to keep you bottled up in that place. An abnormality, a curiosity, something to be poked and prodded, and then discarded when they grew too fearful of you. Perhaps they were right to fear you, little remains of your prison other than wreckage and ruin. I always saw differently, I knew that you were destined for so much more. You have not yet disappointed me, DIMA, you never will."

Domina Prime | Darth Empyrean ​

 

[Darth Empyrean]

It seemed communication was not this creature's strong suit, bordering completely incoherent. Share the love of your creator with Carni? In my blood? Did she imply that they were related, that divinity was a matter of bloodlines? Judging by the rampant failures of the Zambrano family outside of Carnifex, he imagined that was not exactly a guarantee. Still, challenging them on something incoherently misunderstood was probably not proactive, so he simply ignored the question. Ignored the slight Carnifex had tried to impose - he did use the title afterall.​

​

"You need a translator.", he said openly, firmly. He motioned to the other that entered with Domina Prime - bringing them forward with a slight tug of the Force.​

​

"Speak for them."​

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Then he turned back to them.​

​

"Greetings, Dima. As Darth Carnifex has mentioned, I am Darth Empyrean - idol of the Eternals. I am not aware of where you were, or who are you are, so I will ask simply and straight - what are you here for now?"​

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Darth Carnifex​

 

[Domina Prime]

"A deal with the devil is a deal with me, that deal is forever as long as you breathe~"


Darth Carnifex | Darth Empyrean ​

"Oh, oh-ho! Whew, hang on now~ The words are like honey but they come from a demon king?" The xeno questioned with a almost sickly sway. "That won't cut it young god, that won't do it just won't do at all. I've grown beyond such flattering now. My mind is much bigger now~" Dima chirped gesturing as to the size of her mental with her four hands in front of her, also sticking her nose up for a long moment before scoffing quietly. "But much love and kisses~" She mused devilishly before flicking her tail dismissively, especially when the mention of a translator was brought up, Causing the strange lifeform to roll all five of her strange, exotic eyes. "God-King that cannot understand plainspeak? Disappointing, and i practiced the whole way here~" The xeno spoke bluntly in return, gesturing with a passive wave of her claws for the droid as the pull of the force drifted the assistant droid X9 forward.

"A-o-oh my. G-greetings, Darth Empyrean! Idol of the Mighty Eternals! I apologize for the...strange mannerisms of my Prime, it has been a long trip and she is tired." They tried.

"Restless really, excited. Or at least i was, but the godling would rather speak to you~ Go on, tell him what i want. Why i'm here." The aliens voice rang in the back, X9 twisting around quickly and glaring the xeno down with a look before twisting just as quickly back around to face the divine ruler.

"Well, you see, its...complicated. Domina Prime, came...with...a proposition of sorts?" The droid began, trying to string the correct words together to convey the will of the strange nether lifeform standing across from them. X9 glanced in Dimas direction, and the Prime merely rolled their wrist with a bored expression as her many eyes stared out the window now. The civilization she stood among riling her building ambitions as those pupils dilated to dinner plates and her shining pupils flared in focus.

The droid was on their own now.

"Simply? An alliance, between her kind and yours." The droid stated, no longer bothering with long winded explanations or complex phrases. "It may be difficult to see it...understand it. But she is a hivemind...but unlike any your kind have ever known. In this part of the cosmos, there exist a small amount of creatures similar to herself. You are wise, i am certain you are aware of the original designers of a once mighty planet destroying weapon? By the Geonosians? Before they were reduced to...well, whatever they are now~" The droid levitated over towards Dima now, as if the gesture towards her. "It is Primes will, to unite and cultivate hiveborn species. And to use her...unique gifts from the nether to do things that are only within her power to do. Things she has agreed to leverage to your advantage."

"Just like your kind, there are things only i can do. I wanted to come to a understanding relationship between hive and godborn. An alliance, and if possible, a friendship. But friendship is a strong word, your kind only respect power...so a relationship of mutual power them?" Dima interrupted now, clawed finger running across the table in a sharp squeal. "But we all know what happened to the Geonosians yes? It would be nice, if that could be avoided. But i don't know...single minded organisms have always feared what they don't understand. I can't hold it against you, its easier to think of oneself instead of others as a whole. It must be dreadful, to wear a crown as a independent mind, an individual. Never knowing when someone with a knife is an enemy or someone saying sweet things into your ear~" Dima mused honestly, her time as a single mind honestly dreadful and quite anxious. But their kind had adapted for it, grown for it...learned to thrive in environments where everything was an unknown. Even the intentions of those closest to them..."It is within my blood i think, to do many things. Things only a hiveborn prime can do, things that can advance your reach. Your influence...your permanence." Her words were...if one could tell, slowly becoming more complex...more precise...more 'civilized'. The lekku hidden in the mane of her hair slithered outward, practically flailing the tendrils strangely in the direction of the two of them. Almost as if she were adapting her speech based on their own words, words she had remembered from her past. Stringing them together on the fly as if to advance her imitation methods. "Dead worlds? Hive can make them live again. Living worlds? In a single night, hive could just...make a world stay silent, in its sleep." She mused, the droid X9 nodding in agreement.

"Give us a year!" X9 boldly rang to keep Dima from saying anything more bizarre. "Sponsor her and the growth of her first 'project' for just a galactic standard year. Give her an opportunity to show you things you may have never seen, give you things you never knew you wanted or needed. And then you can make your decision, rather to make Prime and hive another enemy among your vast list of them. Or a valued, irreplaceable ally and asset, as few of those as your kind possess~ And she is no fool, she understands weakness is its own provocation. And lack of order and cooperation only cause conflict. Better to be on the side of strength and power in her eyes than on the side of sheep and mice."

"Speaking of weakness being its own provocation. Geonosis would be a fine foundation for assimilation. Their infrastructure is already in place, i just need their queen and hatchery~" Dima mused innocently in the background. "I hear their queen make thrall using 'worms' of sorts. Disgusting, such practices give hive a bad name. There are less damaging ways to convert single minds to a collective idea~" Dima rambled on before shifting her gaze back and forth over the two. "And of course in return for such...benevolence i might not be apposed to say...aiding in Darkborn conflicts, providing exotic and new alien technologies as i cultivate them and other things blah, blah blah~" She flicked her claws dismissively now finishing her piece as the droid looked between Dima and then the Rulers before returning its focus back to Darth Empyrean.

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[Darth Carnifex]

Carnifex was silent as DIMA explained her plan, a plan that was reiterated in much more succinct words by her companion droid. It was a proposal that He'd come to anticipate, hence why He'd arranged this meeting between them. To have the support of one Triumvir was impressive, but to have the support of two was oft unheard of. If Empyrean could be convinced to co-sponsor DIMA's ambitions, then it would be all the more easy to aid in the proliferation of her hivemind.

Something the Dark Lord of the Kainate was eager to see.

He did doubt that Empyrean would be persuaded by His own words, even speaking in support of DIMA at this moment may harden the Corpse-God against the proposal. He'd watch to see what Empyrean's reactions were, to see where pressure could best be levied. That was how this game was played, a game of wits and knives, where one wrong step could be lethal. It greatly reminded Him of His homeworld Panatha, a world that was now only in memory. Its jungles were vicious and violent, but the Epicanthix people were honed by it, strengthened by it, and were among the greatest warriors in the galaxy because of it.

His eyes never left DIMA, but His awareness was split between her and Empyrean.

What would be the next move?

Domina Prime | Darth Empyrean ​

 

[Darth Empyrean]

Empyrean listened to the proposal, of creating a hive mind of her own design from the genetic makeup and personage of the Geonosians. A request for us to raid their world, bring a portion of them into the fold, he imagined, and leaving her the duty of spreading among them. A stranger come for a deal with the backing of Carnifex - who made this more complicated. A hive mind that proliferates freely can be a dangerous thing, he should know - he had one tied to his holocron, constantly feeding him the life and times of major governments around the galaxy.​

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It would be a simple thing to turn DIMA against the Order, but it would be odd for Carnifex to ask him instead of Ophidia if that was indeed his goal. Likely, he simply had found a promising candidate with her, but the danger came in their history. If she became influential, she would likely align with his ideals should blows come to fruition.​

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"I can give you a world, and I can give you the beginnings of a people.", he said simply.​

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"But I have questions. Concerns."​

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"First, your helmet. It appears mandalorian in design - and I am not so foolish as to support our enemies in our borders. What is your relationship to them?"​

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"Second, your proliferation. How would your hive spread, is it infectious like Blackwing, or slower and more controlled? Were I to demand population controls and limits on how far you could spread your hive, would you be opposed?"​

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"Last, what you've offered me. Technology, creations, these things interest me only slightly. A hive mind is good, but Sith have always been the leaders of technology in the galaxy - It is not something we desperately need. Numbers, however, are important. Soldiers, conquests. I would need the promise of vassalage so long as you exist within our Order."​

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Darth Carnifex // Domina Prime​