Jungle Fever [TSE Dominion of Florn]

[Taeli Raaf]

Objective 4 - BYOO
Establish a Spaarti Creations operation on the planet

She absolutely adored this planet. Oh yes, there was so much here to interest her. It almost reminded her of Valrar, although where that planet had slowly become one of the most deadly to visit because of the vast amounts of Sithspawn on it, this one... oh this one. To even have a prayer of surviving, one needed hyper-accelerated reflexes to survive an encounter with the beasts of the jungle. Or the Force. Or, in the case of what they were doing today, a nice controlled orbital bombardment to clear a space in the jungle.

Fires still raged nearby, but where Taeli and her workers stood was charred and devoid of life while fire control ships attempted to stem the damage to this section of the jungle. A perimeter had been established, particle shields and advanced auto-turrets that would deal with anything that might come creeping back in while they worked.

Spaarti Creations might be ramping up their clone soldier program, but Taeli wanted... something more. Besides the facility on Amaltanna that was overseeing Project GHOUL, she wanted a more commercial venture for cloning wildlife. Florn was perfect for that, with all the dangerous predators on the world that were ripe to being cloned and experimented on.

"Pre-fabrications are being deployed, permanent structures will be built after," one worker was informing her. "Should not take long, my Lady.

"And the shipment of cloning equipment will be here within a fortnight, my Lady," Ce Perlo also stated. "If all goes according to plan, the facility will be at partial operational status then, and then fully a week after."

"Excellent, we will need to tighten the defensive perimeter more," Taeli replied. "Advanced war droid patrols, more shielding and turrets. Anything you can think of, spare no expense."

"My Lady, there is one thing I wanted to discuss with you... privately," Ce muttered. "About Project TITAN and NEMESIS."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Another beast was felled, the smoking corpse coming to crash down right at the Emperor's feet. With deft caution, he stepped over the body, the hem of his robe soaked through with blood and the muck of the jungle. The head's up display in the Emperor's helmet indicated that they were less than a kilometer out from the World Engine, which was evident in the surrounding environment. The foliage had been warped beyond all recognition, massive trees and vines obscured gargantuan caverns that wound several miles deep into the planet's crust. Some of the vegetation had even become weaponized, with several members of the Emperor's expedition falling victim to fungal spores that induced rapid necrosis in organic tissue.

After that, the Emperor had decreed that all members of his group would wear their hermetically sealed helmets. He was no exception.

En route to the Engine they had encountered several signs of intelligent native life, but it was unlike anything they had seen before. The rampant vegetation before them was only the beginning of the Engine's destructive power over the region, with several species of plant having achieved some semblance of hive sentience. All at once the party was beset by living trees, vines and branches whipping out to strike at the members of the expedition nearest to the thick foliage. Some soldiers were dragged into the underbrush and were never seen again, their grisly screams of agony the only indication as to their fate.

Immediately the Emperor requested several flamers be brought up to clear the path, cleansing spouts of fire rending a mighty conflagration through the forest which seemed to writhe in response. More and more of the living plants struck out to attack, but they were repelled through the combined use of the flamers and the Emperor's power over the Dark Side of the Force. Crimson electricity sprung from his gloved fingers, dancing across the jungle and spread unnatural flame from tree to tree.

Even after several harrowing attacks by the native life, each one more ferocious than the last, the Emperor only had one command to give to his soldiers; "Forward."

[member="Darth Prazutis"]​

 

[Ari Zanareth]

Objective: BYOO: Cement Relations- Secretly Acquire some business.
Location: Lamproid Counsel Structure

The Lamproids hemmed and hawed, clicked and clacked. Even now they were distrustful.

Force Guide me.....​

Ari breathed a bit deeper as she rose from her bow, using a quick twist of will and malice to probe the circle. Invisible tendrils stretched from her mind to theirs, seeking those with the weakest. For it was those she would convince.

But not by force.

They would be intercepted, made to think that these were their own ideas.

"Already the Emperor has sent Lord Mythos, Ari of the Zannareth. What makes you think we should listen to you."

Ari smiled and clasped both hands behind her back.

"Chieftain, may I call you Chieftain?," She asked, with a disarming grin.

"Grrrrrrrr. She reeks of lies."

Fear. They're trying to hide that their afraid? Interesting......​

"Silence! Let her speak."

​

Now I have you.​

She drove those tendrils deep, flowing her own thoughts into the Cheif Lamproids, bombarding him with whatever images of credits and shiny trinkets she could imagine. His eyes glazed a tiny amount, pupils dilating just enough fro her to recognize her effectiveness on those beady little eyes.

"As I said before Chieftain I am merely a Diplomat and representative of my holding company. The Sith Empire by it's martial nature is naturally a good match to you and your warriors. An outlet for aggression, a proper marshaling and training doctrine, a way for the Lamproid to expand their influence."

The Chieftain nodded, scratching his chin with one of his claws.

"Naturally on the other side of that coin, you cannot survive on the intergalactic stage based solely upon the power of your warriors nor your contribution to the empire. You'll want something for your people other than the general Governor that will be installed and the Civilization you know is coming for your homes. So we offer you a choice. Zannareth holdings has ties to the Inter-Galactic Banking Clan and a dozen other organizations."

A lie, but he's buying it.​

"We're offering to build up your infrastructure. Roads, houses, ship-yards, fortifications. Whatever it is you desire. We supply the loan, maybe link you up with a few contractors, and you say........"

She paused, acting as if she was mulling over something trivial to ask.

In a shrewd voice, she delivered her closing line.

"Offer us ten percent in return on that loan bill over thirty years, and first rights to Mining and Lumber."

Now the contest was on.

She intensified her mental attack.

In business and trading she found that the first one to break the silence, was often the one that lost the upper hand....

 

[The Amalgam]

Objective: 3

"And heeeere we are!" The pirate said, leading the false weapons merchant into a sterile white demonstration room. The Amalgam paused at the surroundings. The demonstration room was squarish, lined with various statue of Alderaani origin. The Amalgam knew this because she had studied art before becoming what she was now. Long before becoming an evangelist of the Dark had even been a notion to her. She didn't study art these days. She had too much else to focus on. Like her fatal flaw.

Luxury leather seats were arranged on one side of the room, a transparisteel viewport overlooking the Oort Cloud outside. The shapeshifter spotted a number of wealthy looking men and women already seated. She saw also saw soldiers. Some had the various liveries of Rebel Alliance but that could mean anything: Special Forces teams used fake patches and identification marks all the time for high risk black ops: She was here doing the exact same thing after all. That said, it wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility that those actually were rebel soldiers, and they were here to get an edge. Doubly important to kill everyone, then.

The Amalgam sweapt her current golden locks away from her current face, her gold dress swishing in the air as she took a seat, crossing her legs and waiting patiently, eyes carefully observing everything and everyone. Multiple soldiers wielding shotguns. Little chance for disruption without getting buckshot from twelve different directions.

Force Horror and then Lightning would get about half of them...but that still left too many variables. She decided to be patient, let it play out, get an idea of pirate resources. And their backers.

"Welcome, all of you, to The Shadowport of Lost Souls." The Pirate that had escorted her spoke, pacing around in his black armor, a decal of a ghost under a bedsheet with two eyeholes saying 'BOO' in large, cursive font on his chest plate's right pectoral.

"Everything you've heard about these Nerve implants are true...twitch reflexes enough to threaten even a Jedi's vaunted Soresu with the right blaster...though frankly if you're using a blaster to fight a Jedi, it was nice knowing you..." he joked.

This got a chuckle out of the other guests. The Amalgam didn't laugh. That bastard on Korriban had been fast.. Even going at her own max speed in a fight, it had barely been enough to fend off that pistol.

"What are the side effects?"

"You need an exceptionally hardy individual. Someone whose body can handle the improved reflexes. Occasional migraines. Advisable to get regular checks on the implant itself, so there's no risk of damage to the nervous system.

This was exactly why The Amalgam had never messed around with cybernetics: They caused more problems than they solved. Plus if the damn thing gets damaged it could start doing stuff it was not supposed to. While she didn't dismiss them entirely, depending on what they did, she had watched a man die from a Gordulan Reaction System that his body simply could not handle in the long run. His painful death had been amusing to her, however. Small little bonuses like that were among the many reasons she enjoyed her job.

"I'm not sure I like the exhorbitant prices you're charging for these devices." A nautolan man in gold finery spoke in a cross manner.

"Mr. Nemoo, I assure you, the implants are worth every credit. But of course, such devices are strictly regulated...more well known implants might provide cost-effective measures, but few will be able to match this implant in terms of sheer improvement. Plus, all those inconvenient, pesky medical records from accredited physicians leaving a paper trail..." the Pirate answered in an affable manner, hands behind his back as he marched around the demonstration room.

"Do you even have genuine doctors to oversee these procedures?" An Arkanian woman with straight black hair and a black dress asked from her seat, arms folded across her chest.

"But of course. Granted, most of them lost their medical license for some reason or another. Left an instrument in someone, or being drunk one day or being an undiagnosed sociopath, but I promise you, its been made very clear to all of them they will be horrifically tortured if they screw up here like they did out there. Our surgeries are very safe and clean as a result. We run our docs the Tarkin way!" the Pirate answered with great joviality. And then a fair skinned man of slim build, with brown hair and blue eyes in a black, athlete's body glove walked in. The man was followed by three armored pirates carrying crossbows.

"Ah, here's Wallace!" The Pirate spoke happily, leading him to stand in the middle of the room. The guards armed with crossbows stood across from Wallace.

"Wallace here had the implant installed three weeks before. Now he's able to do this..."

The Pirate gave the signal and the others fired all at once at Wallace's chest.

The Amalgam saw that same speed from Wallace as that man on Korriban. His hand shot out so fast she could barely follow, knocking all three aside with the right timing. This drew murmurs from the other buyers.

The Amalgam raised her hand. "Yes?" her host asked.

"I won't deny, that's pretty impressive..." she said casually. "But the one small problem is that the people we will be installing these in won't be prancing around in bodygloves. Some will be wearing light but restrictive armor. Unless you are willing to go practically naked into battle, you'll never get the most out of the implant on that level."

"Yeah, but its damn useful still in a gunfight all the same. Think of how fast you can pull the trigger on multiple targets with the improved reaction time. And besides, its not like your operatives have to dress restrictive. Ambushes were invented for a reason."

The others seemed to have made up their mind.

"I'll need to confer with my clients." Mr. Nemoo spoke. "But I think you've got my attention."

The Pirate smiled under his helmet. Sometimes a simple, to the point demonstration paid dividends.

"Excellent! And what of you, Miss Lister?" The Pirate asked.

The Amalgam pretended to be on the fence for a moment before answering. "Okay. A hundred surgeries."

The Pirate rubbed his hands together, out of place in the whiter-than-white room. The others all eventually nodded in agreement.

"Well, I see we are all of an accord. My men will escort you to the guest quarters for the duration of your stay. I must strongly advise against leaving said quarters until we finish preparations for payment transfer. The men in this place have orders to shoot trespassers on sight."

The Amalgam started to stand with the others while the guards filed in, all armed with shotguns. The guards gestured, and they were all led out of the room to the guest section.

The Amalgam was already plotting the death of the other buyers. Just had to meet with her inside man first...

 

[Tabigarashu Madara]

Hirou beamed up at Cerbera at the compliment about their jacket.

"Thank you!" Came the little voice. "Tai Fa had it made, just for me!"

The last time they had worn it, they had been called pretty too. Hirou was very pleased with the jacket indeed.

"The scarf you are wearing is lovely," they responded in kind. "It looks very soft!"

Now, the question or walking or riding was an easy one. The distances in facilities like this for short legs was usually excessive, Hirou had found. While they could keep up with the too-bigs, it was awfully energy consuming and not very dignified. There were times that didn't matter but moments like this, they had learned it was better to be seen as dignified rather than 'cute'.

There wasn't much they could do to remedy that due to their size and general inclinations, but not scampering along at someone's feet generally helped.

"If you would not mind, a ride would be very nice indeed," the Nezumi said with a little bit of relief.

With Cerbera's outstretched hand, they scampered up (that was never dignified, but you worked with what you had and didn't worry about the rest), coming to perch on her shoulder. Hirou paused there, giving everything a look around from this vantage- always so different than the view from the floor. Since the early days of knowing [member="Vulgrim Blackwell"], they had gotten far more comfortable with the heights of various sentient shoulders, and the change in view point was no longer alarming or frightening.

The pair started walked (well, Cerbera did, Hirou perched), the two Saaraishash agents falling in behind them.

"I am here, as you know, to take a look over this project," Hirou said, getting down to business. "It is.... of great interest, which I am sure you understand. A living ship of this size and scope? I admit that I simply believe that it is possible, without understanding the how's and why's."

This sort of science was outside of the scope of Hirou's recent studies.

[member="Cerbera"]

 

[Darian Helsic]

@Mythos @Adrian Vandiir

Darian remained for the most part silent, he didn't smoke anymore. He didn't really do anything of the sort anymore, a drink every now and then but nothing else. The Empire's obedient lap dog kept his body in good shape as to more effectively kill their enemies when the time came, can't do that if he was killing himself. He raised nothing, of course, they could do as they please.

Darian had remained mainly with humanoids for much of his time in the military, but had more than enough experience with aliens during his time marauding on Phaeda. Interesting creatures they were, considering their military potential even more so. He finally broke the silence, being about as cold as usual.

"It would be interesting to see them in a more, close, environment."

There was only show much simple visuals could show about a unit.

 

[Jairus Starvald]

[member="Tabigarashu Madara"]

Cerbera smiled warmly.

Now that was a compliment that almost made her bloom up, because truly it was a rare compliment. Oh, she got enough praise and compliments when it came to her work. The creation and manipulation of things for this end and that. When she created another beast, another construct or when her manipulations somehow managed to pull off this or that, but her fashion style? Few people deemed it necessary to compliment her for the effort put into it.

She didn't blame them.

"Thank you, Hirou darling, you have no idea how much that means." Truly. He skittered up across her offered hand and then up her arm, before settling comfortably on her shoulder. It took some time to get used to the additional weight on one side of her shoulder, before the stride became confident and relaxed again.

"How does it look from there, I wonder, everything must be so... large to you. The size of a room, yes, but also the size of a whole planet before you. How do you handle that, if I may ask?" It was a fascinating perspective for Cerbera. Absolutely fascinating. "Oh. Would you be interested to hear more about it then?" Interested. If Hirou was simply here to do their job, than Cerbera wouldn't impose upon their patience and become... passionate about it.

But if they were interested...

Well, then everything was up in the air, no?

 

[AMCO]

Objective I: Add more cogs to the Sith-Imperial war machine.
Allies: [member="Mythos"] & [member="Darian Helsic"] | Major Vobrot (NPC)
Post Nr. IV

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Special training, playing on their strengths in the fields of ambush tactics while compensating for the difficulty they would experience when piloting conventional vehicles. Good, very good. They were fearsome beings indeed, and would undoubtedly outperform humans on a regular battlefield, but that did not mean it was not better to double up on their strengths. After all, the Sith Empire's legions were vast and could afford specialisation beyond that of smaller armies.

Yes, it would be interesting to see how this combination of natural gifts and training played out in practice, especially since many of those so trained would have plenty of experience hunting deadly prey in the pernicious jungles of this world. Still, he hardly possessed the skills to effectively lead a force this size... of any size, really. A slight smile. He was, however, quite adept at commandeering assistance.

"That sounds like a lovely opportunity, Lord Mythos. I would be delighted to command a unit... alongside my friend here, of course." At that, he patted Zabrak on the shoulder, completely disregarding the fact that he hadn't heard of, let alone met, the man before this assignment. Completely disregarding the fact that the Major had not had the chance to confirm or deny his interest in such an exercise. Not that such thoughts occurred to the young Knight, no, despite his typically amiable conduct he had never been one to care overly much about the opinions of most non-force users.

 

[Mythos]

[member="Darian Helsic"]

"Soldiers are always welcome in the front lines." Mythos said finally before giving the holographic plan of the night infiltration course over to the Sith Knight and the command centre in the capital. As a command centre for the operation the native stealth fleet would hover over outside orbit and command the ground task forces as they ventured through the night bog. Mythos held his first regiment of Anubians, the scouts who already had Alliance blood after Thyferra to go in with him as their lead. The objective was simple enough; it would start as a march with full battle equipment over fifteen miles of jungle, then infiltrate an encampment filled with troops and eliminate them all.

Mythos had set up real machineblaster nests that had a shallow dip and a fixed aim, the soldiers would have to navigate crawling or die. The Legion in this case carried stun blasters to simulate the pain of a real blaster shot, same with thermal detonators and every other type of real weapon. Their training armour was a relic from the Dominion, meant to clamp down on a limb when shot making it immobile and unusable.

The beasts of the wild were meant to be part of the challenge, each soldier was allowed to carry with him a single blade of his choosing, Mythos' Anubians carried with them Kopesh Vibroblades in their back from Ankhyptian Duranium. Each unit would have their own area of operations and would act as each others oppositions, then switch. These past months had been gruelling for every side involved, the Anubian forces in particular had diseases due to the swamp more heavily than the other races. Still they carried on, each day a new training routine and scenario prepared.

Luckily for each soldier involved Mythos had commissioned the entire legion to be able to see in the darkness no matter the race, every soldier was equipped with night vision devices and leaders with thermal vision and even x-ray vision. Mythos lead a team of sixteen Anubians, wearing the same armor as his Nubian Strike force through the swamp, he shouldered his trademark battlerifle from rfac and his lightsabers.

The march was uneventful but his mission was specialized, they were to link up with the Sith Knight forces. Mythos sent out a beacon to his location through his encrypted datapad on his armour. The swamp turned into a tropical jungle, thick and dense, very hard to navigate stealthily during the day. The Anubians made good time, their size and blades made quick work of vines and trees in the forest.

The monsters in the Jungle, mutated by the world engine were rare in these parts, but one came through to their party to it's doom, the Lightsabers of Mythos cutting it down as it came from the woodline. They did not march together, instead in a wedge like formation through the forest with rifles high and the tools they needed in their back as well as supplies. The entire operation was planned and executed in less than three days, all the data and inmput of all these trainings places in Mythos' holocron of World Building.

Above the shadow of the forest descended the monstrous magnus, hovering above the mountains as a sleeping giant.

"This is specter. We are two clicks away"

[member="Adrian Vandiir"]

 

[Tabigarashu Madara]

"Well," Hirou said thoughtfully. Reaching up with their back leg, they scratched their ear contemplatively before settling in again. The Nezumi was small, didn't weight much, but they were careful in their movements to not make their presence overly onerous on the person carrying them.

"Yes, everything seems very big, because it is very big," they said carefully, mulling over the words. "But when the Nezumi are together in our own ships and cities, everything seems normal. I suspect it's all very much a matter of perspective. I must seem very small to you, but I feel perfectly normal. You seem very big to me, but I assume that feels 'normal' to you in turn."

Hirou cocked their head to the side, blinking small dark eyes.

"Of course I am interested!" The Nezumi squeaked, ears flicking to reinforce that (though Hirou was accustomed to other people not understanding the depth of Nezumi body language).

They were always interested in the things other people were interested in. There was always something to learn, something to discover, but most especially..... they liked the interest itself. People were their purest, truest selves when they talked about the things they were passionate about, and Hirou appreciated that all on its own.

[member="Cerbera"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

[member="Tabigarashu Madara"]

It didn't take long before the scenery before them changed.

The shift was subtle at first. Grass losing its grassy texture, slowly being replaced here and there with something more... crimson. Then before them large fleshy walls appeared, they shivered in anticipation as Cerbera approached before slowly pulling back just a bit. As if they were an orifice reacting to external stimuli to pave their entry. Inside the atmosphere was different. It was more humid, warmer, Cerbera seemed to relax a bit against that warmth and wetness.

The plant in her, really.

"Oh, no, darling. You do not seem small to me at all." Cerbera murmured as her fingers slowly tracked lines across the walls. They seemed to enjoy that, making soft noises of delight in return. "In fact, your soul is bright and your mind open. You may be one of the giants of this age if properly encouraged."

The clear interest in their voice made Cerbera hum in happiness.

"I am an alchemist, Hirou, that means I change the nature of things. Make them.... better.... more interesting to some. But I have found that the greater my understanding becomes, the more understanding I need. Does that make sense to you?" The more questions were answered, the more answers she wanted. "In truth this creation of mine isn't about destruction. About mayhem. I don't intend to use it to conquer worlds, even if the small-minded, beg your pardon for the word choice, would see it in that light."

"It is a harvester. It devours, yes, eats, but what it consumes is preserved for study and for perfection."

 

[Vestille Thumahra]

Vestille Thumahra​

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World Engine Exclusion Zone, Florn​

Objective II: Enter The Zone, Defuse The World Engine​

​

Green was replaced with black and red.

So far, the 12th had made considerable process in their advance since they began their incursion into the exclusion zone, burning away the jungle and its inhabitants alike with the supporting elements simply mopping up whatever remained. Of course, as it stood, the denizens that Colonel and his men had encountered were nothing more than small critters transformed by the dark corruption of the World Engine but that was not to last. Although the method of burning away the jungle that lay ahead and removing the advantage that the native predators held so dear had indeed leveled the playing field and removed the possibility of a potential swift and sudden death that the jungles of Florn was notorious for, the odds were still against them. The beasts that had lived previously had been lethal enough and now? They were corrupted by Sith technology, potentially raising the potential of facing apex and hyper-lethal predators by at least one hundred percent.

In short, Vestille and his men were walking into a death trap of corrupted creatures. That was not the only thing.

The deeper the 12th had gone, the more the corruption of the World Engine fed into their Commanding Officer. Vestille, having kept silent about the events that transpired on Nathema had only made him more secretive and isolationist than he already was. The beast liked to worm its way into the world whenever the darkness snuffed out the light, feeding and basking in the freedom that had been granted to it, allowing its essence of power ebb through the Colonel and allow him to harness it; allowing him to become addicted and perhaps even dependent upon it's release the more time dragged on with every time it occurred ticking down on the doomsday clock. It was here on Florn, however, in the range of the World Engine that fed the beast the direct power it craved, more than any consumption of the fallen could ever provide, the pull towards the engine itself drawing the Colonel and the beast alike towards it, alluring them both with its ceaseless end of volatile power. The Colonel, caught in internal turmoil, kept silent for most of the journey alongside the men under his command; only offering orders when they were absolutely needed.

The deeper they went, the more it felt as if the jungle's dangers went from bad to worse. They were waiting, it seemed, waiting for the right moment to leap fourth and strike. It was only a matter of time.

 

[Darian Helsic]

@Mythos @Adrian Vandiir

Darian truly relished the chance to go and carry his LMG again, they weren’t allowing him to carry it in with all the other commanders. Well, the upper command nonsense, the other Majors and Sith. Darian wasn’t one to ever be unarmed though, he simply carried one of his pistols. How could you not carry a Blaster on you, what if an assassin appeared; Darian never truly went and lost some of the Marauder mindset, and carry a gun or weapon at all times was exactly one bit of it.

Stubborn man he was, but Darian’s marauder mindset didn’t mean much bad for the Empire. No, it was a fine tool to be used.

And so, he went out with these soldiers to see this test in action. They would be given the full treatment of Major Helsic, and Major Helsic’s “treatment” was always considered...unenjoyable...he expected perfection when he went to work on training, you needed to be able to put on a show for everyone. Humorously he was infinitely more lax in the chaos of battle, it was just that. Chaos, you can’t expect
perfection then.

“Keep on moving! And remember, if anything in the trees move: shoot it!”

He was almost intentionally loud, he wanted to draw the attention of the beasts in this great rainforest, to test the mettle of this Soldiers when the shooting got started, though he wished these were pirates, thugs, or marauders. They were marvelous to test guns on, and they actually shot back, but such is life. He was content unleashing a hail of bolts into the forest occasionally when a beast made it’s move. He was content. His forces had been spread out, he wanted to see how they operated on a smaller scale rather than one organized march, he expected them to do fine. Damn good Soldiers.

In due time, he heard the other Commanding Officer’s message.

“This is Major Helsic, five clicks out. Shall we come in for support?”

He couldn’t help but smile under his helmet, it reminded him of the bloody nonsense of Commenor.

 

[Darian Helsic]

ACCIDENTAL POST

 

[Tabigarashu Madara]

Hirou looked around, eyes dark and curious, ears flicking at this and that. When she said they weren't *small*, the little Nezumi chuckled.

"I am small, however. Compared to the rest of the galaxy most certainly. Small is not, after all, a bad thing or a failing. I am proud of my size! It has been a very good thing, many many times. And sometimes less so, like when people with very large feet are not careful when they walk," they joked.

The comment had been kindly meant, and Hirou took it with that intention, but it was important to clarify too. Small was not a statement of value after all.

Good things, did in fact, come in small packages.

Even talking, their eyes were on the view around them. It was fascinating. A little concerning, but not in a bad way, just in a way. Hirou wasn't certain if they could describe it better than that, and decided they would try for when they gave their report to [member="Darth Saarai"]. The living, breathing entity that they had entered was just that..... very, very much alive.

"I do understand," they said with a nod, head tilting to one side. It was said with an emphasis that coupled it with truth, rather than simple social reaction. Hirou was slowly starting to look deeper into all manner of things- it had started with a book, a simple gift from [member="Velok the Younger"]. But it had lit a small flame that Hirou hadn't even realized had been part of them before that.

"How does it.... preserve what it consumes?" Curiosity and confusion there.

[member="Cerbera"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

[member="Tabigarashu Madara"]

Few people truly understood.

They saw a weapon of destruction and tried to use it in the only way they understood. Blowing away this city, subjugating that planet, all of which was all good and well but what was the true point behind it? It didn't really matter in the greater scheme of things, did it? Didn't actually change anything if a planet belonged to these people or those. It was just branding, just a coat of paint with no meaning behind it. But knowledge... now knowledge was universal.

"There are many ways of preserving things in my experience, Hirou." She replied as they settled into an elevator. It looked more like a vein slowly being drained downwards by momentum and gravity than something like a hyper-lift.

"Thoughts, DNA, genetics and feelings... they are just patterns at the end of the day. Sequences fit in a specific order and all coming together for a specific meaning. If you know how? You can preserve that for eternity and then some.."

That didn't answer his question though.

"I will show you once we are in my lab, yes?" All in good time as far as Cerbera was concerned. Sometimes you just needed to be a little bit of a showboat. It was more fun that way. "Do you have any experience with alchemy or the Force in general?" She curiously asked as they stepped out of the elevator and into a different passage way. Here the walls... they beat in a rhythm. Like a heart beat, like blood slowly flowing through the thin layers.

Perhaps a little disturbing.

 

[Ari Zanareth]

Objective: BYOO: Cement Relations- Secretly Acquire some business.
Location: Lamproid Counsel Structure

Alas what she tought would be an easy negotiation now took a turn for the worst. Her advisor's standing by, the Lamproids grew angry perhaps even hysterical at the mention of her corporate tax.

"How dare you Ari of the Zannareth, even believe that perhaps we could..."

He trailed off baring his teeth.

Ari smirked, marking him for later execution and nodded.

"Well then perhaps you need time to consider Chieftain?"

Her aide whispered something in her ear which she disregarded. She knew already whom among the counsel was a problem. And whom she'd pay a special visit to that night.

"Yes I think that is best."

She bowed again, showing all proper courtesy.

"Then by your leave."

And then they departed.

Later in her assigned quarters she mulled over the days events with a glass of wine in hand. the counsel was rather receptive save a few figures. She smirked, imagining the night to come. come total darkness she;d slip her handlers and the companies cronies and pay a special visit to the dissenters themselves. Carnifex had said it best, martial prowess was power. Perhaps not directly, but all those whom observed the Emperor came to know it.

A former Antarian Ranger turned Sith was no different. She;d exact her vengeance, but only at the pinnacle of night.

"Advisor,"

"Yes Ma'am."

"Leave me for the evening."

The advisor. smirked, knowing full well her secret savagery nodded.

"Will you require a anything else Ma'am."

"Yes.... see to it no one enters nor disturbes my quarters."

She took a sip of her wine, glancing at her chrono.

"Perhaps for the next several hours."

Her advisor bowed.

"As you wish it M'lady."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Objective 4 - BYOO
Establish a Spaarti Creations operation on the planet

"What would you like to discuss, Ce?" Taeli asked once both of them were in the temporary office... well it was more of an upgraded tent than anything else right now, but it offered them privacy from the workers outside and the security team further securing the perimeter. Aurora security droids had been deployed, including a small squad of Harbinger and Herald droids. Apparently, even in the brief time, two members of the security team that had been setting up sonic defenses had disappeared, likely dead.

"Perhaps we might secure some of these implants for our own work?" Ce said. "I'm sure an enhanced version would do wonders for our work on NEMESIS, and our technicians could figure out a use for one in our TITAN program."

"An excellent suggestion," Taeli said. "See to it that we obtain some. I know some of our forces were dealing some smugglers or pirates that were selling some."

"Of course, my Lady."

 

[AMCO]

Objective I: Add more cogs to the Sith-Imperial war machine.
Allies: [member="Mythos"] & [member="Darian Helsic"] | Major Vobrot (NPC)
Post Nr. V

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Fifteen miles of jungle, complete with swamp-like environments, dense vegetation, and dire beasts able to rend through even combat armour. Not to mention tests with a risk of death and the strain of constant alertness. Truly, there was nothing pleasant about this exercise, at least for most of those involved.

Through it all, the unit had performed excellently, the Lamproids keeping any of the other soldiers from being eaten alive by the wildlife, though there were a few close calls. Through it all, the Major had kept a close eye on the unit's performance, not once uttering any complaints of his own. Through it all, Adrian had been enjoying the finest amenities found on the planet, and some imported specifically for him.

Of course, the young Knight had not been entirely absent; by modifying the chassis of one of his cybernetic Sithspawn bodyguards, he had been able to "remotely lead from the front", though the actual struggle had been left to his subordinates and more athletic Sith. There was something to be said about sweating and bleeding alongside the common soldiery, or so they said. Adrian, for one, had never seen the appeal. Of course, the unit was likely better off with most of the decisions being repeatedly delegated to Major Vobrot, but that was not something the Corellian was particularly likely to admit out loud.

"Copy that. This is eidolon, my unit is two point six clicks out. No hostile contact." Smiling contently, he leaned backwards in the comfortable seat, eyes roving over the grid of complex holograms that surrounded him.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

A beam of energy arced through the air, skewering a flying monstrosity through the body and sending it plummeting down to the ground. The fighting had only grown more ferocious as they neared the World Engine, with only seconds of interlude before the next conflict arose. The entrance to the World Engine was blocked by a wall of writhing plant matter around which swarmed a hive of winged insectoid monsters with pincers too large for their bodies and stingers dripping with acidic venom. Vollied fire and suppressing gouts of flame drove most of them away from the entrance as the expedition advanced, and the Emperor's lightsaber took care of the ones bold enough to charge the lines.

While most of the group held off the monsters and other creatures at the entrance to the engine, a small team of demolitions experts cut their way into the engine's antechamber and began to plant several powerful sequencer charges that had been specifically overclocked and overladen with powerful explosive compounds that had a greater yield than the typical charge. Utilizing high-grade cloaking devices, the team snuck around the easily accessible parts of the engine's interior, priming each charge to simultaneously go off when the sonic frequency was given.

Only a few more minutes...

Then they could blow the damned engine out into the stratosphere, and claim Florn for the Empire!