Private Messe Noire (Taeli)

[Darth Carnifex]

Starfighters banked down and around a towering stone spire, the empty wastes of Ziost stretching out below like a faded gray tapestry. Much of Ziost had been rendered barren in the preceding wars of the Sith, the once gleaming world of magic and marble reduced to a dust-strewn wasteland. It had fallen to the Ashlans in those intervening years since the fall of the Sith Empire, it's grand mausoleums painted over by the golden hawk. But that had all changed now, the Sith had returned and they had not been idle. Even now, the world was changing.

Great canyons and pits had been dug deep into the earth, excavating thousands and thousands of years of ancient Sith history. Great, monstrous facilities of heartless metal now wound deep through the planet's surface, dug deep like corkscrews. From the air, they appeared no more than gaping wounds, massive trenches torn by the hand of some tyrannical titan. The world had been scarred forever. Out of the largest of the pits emerged a massive star destroyer, horrifying black metal draped across a corrugated skeleton, engines burning with a bright unnatural glow. It pivoted in the air, turned it's nose towards the heavens, and charged through the clouds and into the endless void of space.

The Dark Lord could see all of this from the spire jutting out from the land, black and gnarled like a blasted hearth, as though a sword had been driven through Ziost's heart. When the Sith had returned to the Holy Worlds, they'd had to fight to drive the heretics from Dromund Kaas and Korriban, but not from Ziost. Those that still called the wastes home had done the work for them, rising up and casting down the Ashlan oppressors before the Sith fleet had even arrived. Most of the Ashlans had been killed, displayed in a gruesome fashion to appease the Sith as they landed, but not all of them.

One sat at the Dark Lord's side even now, slashed clothing hanging loose from their emaciated body. The shackles around their wrists and ankles weighed them down, they couldn't move their limbs if they tried; though it was not because the shackles were too heavy, they were just too weak. The Dark Lord fed off their essence, drawing it into His body with a mere gesture. He sampled their suffering, devoured their life force bit by bit, savoring each morsel. Soon this one would expire and be discarded like the others. But there were more, there were always more.

"She's arrived." The adjutant knelt solemnly, pressing their forehead against the floor in total submission. The Dark Lord didn't even look at them, He instead pulled another strand of vitae from the husk at His feet and smiled. "Good, send her up."

Taeli Raaf ​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Ziost

It had been her domain during the time of the Sith Empire, a world she had turned into a place for learning the intricacies of sorcery and alchemy. A world that had proven its resilience during the Third Imperial Civil War when it withstood multiple invasions from the forces of the New Imperials and the Galactic Alliance. Part of that had been born from the ritual she and her sorcerers had unleashed into the atmosphere of the planet, rendering any bearing the touch of the light into creatures of darkness. Her Sorzus Academy had continued in secret, shielded by a stealth field of her own design, but to keep the place secret had meant allowing any other influence to fade away besides loyalty of the survivors.

That ritual had faded in time, and when the Sith Empire fully collapsed, the Ashlan crusaders had first quarantined the world and then slowly constrained the dark side powers... but they could not break it completely. The Lady of Secrets had seen to that, and now with their return to the Holy Worlds, she intended to fully bring her influence to bear on the ancient planet.

To see what it had become... as her shuttle approached the spire where her oldest ally awaited her, saddened the Sith Lady. The glass plains around the ruins of Adasta from the orbital bombardments, the scars wrought by both Ashlans and zealous Sith looking to carve out what they could... it would all be changed in time.

Landing, she walked out onto the ashy wastes once again and was led by servants of the Twice Emperor to where he waited, the Dark Lord of the Holy Worlds feasting on a surviving Ashlan that had been recently captured. She pulled back the hood of her dark purple and black robes, shaking out her hair as she did and as purple eyes looked towards Kaine.

"It is good to see you once again, my old friend."

Darth Carnifex

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The Dark Lord turned, a smile drawn demurely over His austere features. Spreading His arms wide, He welcomed the Lady of Secrets into His presence.

"Ah, Lady Raaf, always a tremendous pleasure to set eyes upon you once more."

For the better part of a half a century they'd been steadfast allies, their bond unbreakable by time or circumstance. Even when others had turned their back on the Butcher King, Taeli Raaf had never severed their vows of alliance and mutual cooperation. And their pact had brought forth such bounty. The destruction of the first Galactic Alliance, the discovery of Mortis, the breach into the Wellspring of the Force, and uncountable more. Never before had a union between two Sith led to so much.

"I hope the journey wasn't too arduous. Much of the space around the Holy Worlds has been pacified, but every so often a new insurgency arises amongst the scattered Ashlan holdouts. We've been clearing out their nests, but they're such tenacious insects. Their corruption runs deep, but our hold on these worlds runs deeper."

He bade Taeli join Him at the window, to stand and witness all that transpired below. Much had changed to Ziost since they last ruled, undoubtedly not in the way the Lady of Secrets desired; but such wants had to be tempered by reality.

Taeli Raaf ​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Nothing too arduous, Lord Carnifex," she replied, joining him at the windows of the spire and looking out over the wastes. "I was already on Amaltanna when your missive arrived, and the crusade's remnants, zealous thought they are, have been loath to attack seemingly unaffiliated shuttles and transports. A weakness that could be exploited in the future I believe, especially as they attempt to hold planets that have long sworn allegiance to the Sith."

Terraforming would be needed to repair the damage done to the world below, and perhaps some of the more... unique alchemy some within her power base were developing for planetary molding. It would be an interesting test case at least, and she had already theorized that the dark side powers of Ziost, only barely contained by the Ashlans, would be receptive to such efforts.

"I am pleased to see that the bonding and molding process with the body has worked so well over the past years since our foray into the Wellspring. Your strength has returned to you, old friend."

Each had sought... unnatural methods to prolong their bodies and strength, and for anyone that looked upon her, only by reputation and how long she had been active in the galaxy would betray her true age. A woman seemingly in her early 40s stood where someone in their mid to late 80s should be, none of her appearance betraying the age. What her former wife had attempted, she had perfected over the years. Time would not ravage the Lady of Secrets easily.

"The Cauldron is almost ready as well," she added.

All of the stolen power from the Wellspring had to go somewhere, and it had taken several years to create a vessel that could contain such pure Force energies. A single drop, she had theorized with Kaine, guided by the will of a powerful Force user, could reshape and alter in never-before-seen ways or even indefinitely grant one the ability to escape the ravages of time as they were testing with their new elixir.

Darth Carnifex

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"It pleases me that you were not harassed in your travels, old friend. Not that I feared for your safety, but thankful that you did not need to unnecessarily exert yourself."

Long had Kaine Zambrano and Taeli Raaf been devout allies in the Dark Side, their collaboration spanning many decades. It had been a fortuitous chance that the two of them had come to their first agreement. Darth Carnifex, then known as Darth Vornskr, had been seeking to undermine the Jedi Order with which the Sith had been at war with for many years. Taeli Raaf needed only a nominal amount of convincing, for she had her own reasons to want to see the Jedi burn. Her sister, Corvus, had been a leading member of the Jedi Council. But, the Council used her, and when all was said and done they discarded her and acted as though she never existed.

Together, they brought low the Jedi Order and fractured it into a thousand pieces. Now, the New Jedi Order had arisen to replace it, and the pieces were being reassembled. The old way of breaking the Jedi could not be replicated, Raaf's actions were like a proton torpedo; destructive but incapable of being used once spent. The Brotherhood of the Maw had sought to break the Jedi through violence, but had fallen short of the mark and been destroyed in turn. A new way was needed, a new vision.

"I have been meditating in Mortis, Taeli. Ruminating on the galaxy and our place in it. The Jedi gather in strength again, as do the Sith, but we are leagues apart; separated by many star systems. What is to be done to again bring the Jedi Order to their knees? What weapons must be honed, what plans must be enacted? Do we break the wheel? Or let it spin again?"

Taeli Raaf ​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She allowed silence to meet His questions, a contemplative moment as she considered her response. The New Jedi Order and the current Galactic Alliance had sufficiently rebuilt themselves from the Second Great Hyperspace War and were expanding their influence over world near and far from their borders. The Sith themselves were rebuilding, growing their strength in two parts of the galaxy, but it had been more haphazard. The struggle with the Tsis'Karr, the silent jockeying between Kaine and Empyrean, and even the zeal of the new generation had held the Sith back with infighting.

To bring down the New Jedi Order and the Alliance that protected them in this way would be much different than in previous eras. The Brotherhood of the Maw had tried to destroy them outright and had even, if sloppily, tried to replicate the feat she and Kaine had unleashed on the first iteration of both of their opponents. Neither had worked, and she had even warned Fossk that they wouldn't before the war was unleashed in earnest, and yet he had not listened.

New solutions would be needed, new tests and observations of the Jedi and major players.

"We will have time to consolidate and observe our enemies. The Senate approved the declaration of war upon the Mandalorians just a few days ago. The Alliance and Jedi will have their main focus in the southeast after the events on Ryloth."

There would be a pleased tone to her voice as she mentioned the news. She had, of course, voted in the affirmative for the war in her guise. Not merely because it would help the Sith, but because in her opinion there was only one good type of Mandalorian. One that was no longer among the living.

Darth Carnifex

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Good, that is good. Our enemies will bleed one another, while our forces are fresh and fortified."

He'd been keeping a close eye on the antagonisms between the Galactic Alliance and the Mandalorian Clans, ever vigilant for points of tension to exacerbate into open conflict. The moment that Jedi got herself detained by the Mandalorians, a thousand dictates flew from the Malsheem to agents laced through Alliance space. Provocateurs and agitators that would enflame prejudices, disseminate false information, and disrupt local governances through a variety of means. Anything to draw the people of the Alliance further into eager war. Now it had born fruit.

Carnifex pivoted slightly towards Taeli, half facing her and half facing the viewport. "There is another thing. I met with Empyrean on Jutrand days ago, and we discussed several points of issue within the Order. As it becomes advantageous to do so, the Jedi will be lured towards the Caldera and dragged into a protracted war of attrition to further weaken their numbers. I have ensured that their hammer will fall the hardest upon worlds like Thule, which house individuals seeking to upset the established structure of our nascent Empire. Either the Jedi will wipe them out, or weed their numbers so thinly that destroying them will be child's play."

In the wake of Ophidia's renewed treachery, Empyrean had pivoted more towards the man who he'd once considered his bitterest rival. But such was the way of the Sith, alliances oft came and went, fronts ever shifting as the balance of power teetered and tottered one way or the other. But despite all of that, Carnifex remained an ever present fixture in the Order.

Eternal.

Unyielding.

"Some of my own followers have been allowed to align with the malcontents on Thule, to paint a clearer picture of what it is we're dealing with. What are your thoughts?"

Taeli Raaf ​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Modernization is required though," she remarked. Much of the technology used by many of the factions in the galaxy were starting to show age, some having been commissioned even before the Second Great Hyperspace War. To truly take advantage of the conflict about to erupt between the Alliance and Mandalorians, a full overhaul and expansion of their forces and technology would be needed. With their resources and influence, that shouldn't be much of a problem, but it was required.

She turned her head, an eyebrow raised in curiosity and amusement.

"Yes, our younger generation of Sith seem restless, don't they?" she said. She had heard rumblings of this Golden Covenant basing itself out of Thule and its leader. That the Emperor and Kaine were subtly guiding the Jedi to hit those worlds aligned with the Covenant as an attempt to contain the Sith spoke some of how both Sith Lords regarded this faction. Kaine installing some of his own in that power base meant he was interested in what they might be up to, but wanted to control how it might evolve.

"This Golden Covenant could become an issue, in time, but they need to demonstrate their ability to grow the Empire first, to actually enact some of their proposals."

If the Covenant could conquer worlds or gain influence within the Order, then they could become a problem for the established power players. It would not be the first movement to build quick momentum before collapsing from one issue or another. This one, centered on this new Lord Nwul, would be highly reliant on his charisma and power to hold it together. Otherwise, they could their support one by one. Luring the Jedi to hit their worlds of influence first near the Caldera could prove to be a double-edged sword.

"Who did you dispatch to monitor them, and what is the bait for the Jedi that you and Empyrean decided on?"

Darth Carnifex

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"I dispatched Lord Xyrah to monitor them, he's professed an interest in the covenant and wished to ingratiate himself in their power structure. I have transcripts of every interaction between Lord Xyrah and Lord Nwul, as well as descriptions and sonic maps of their dwellings, detailed images of their servants, accounts of the dispositions of those who follow the covenant's vision, and a comprehensive list of their financial, industrial, and military capabilities."

Before the Dark Lord of the Kainate became who He was today, He had a celebrated career in intelligence and covert military operations. Before that, He was someone private investors could rely on to see a uncooperative government destabilized or even toppled completely. That life seemed so removed from the life He led now, but those roots had never been forgotten. His investigation into the Golden Covenant was meticulous and exhaustive, and while Lord Xyrah was the principle agent in information recovery; he was not the only one.

"After Ophidia's perfidy, I will no longer leave anything to chance. These visionaries must be watched closely, and if need be; destroyed before they have a chance to find the limits of their power. The integrity of the Order must be safeguarded from those who would twist or distort it's purity." Undoubtedly, His words would bait someone like Alisteri Haxim ( Darth Strosius ) into anger, but the young lord believed himself to be the sole arbiter of purity among the Order. His delusions were so far inconsequential, his following was small if not devoted, but not enough to pose a threat at the moment. Should that change, then the Dark Lord would have to commit more serious actions to monitoring Alisteri and his ilk.

Carnifex cast a wary glance in Taeli's direction, an expression that she would pick up on immediately. She knew this face well, it was the face the Dark Lord made when He was in possession of knowledge that He knew that Taeli would vehemently disagree with. "You will not like the means that have been agreed upon, Taeli. Though, it is more Empyrean's design than mine own. A plague of undeath will be driven coreward, forcing the Jedi to respond to the outbreak and divert resources towards the worlds of our choosing. That is the trap."

Taeli Raaf ​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Xyrah?" it would be her only response at first as he revealed the identity of his agent among the Covenant. They had encountered each other before, a few times, and she had always found the effeminate male to be an odd choice to be such a close follower of Kaine's. Then again, she supposed, she remembered Cyrax and Kaine's control over him. Xyrah she felt was too deeply entrenched in the past, too obsessed with trying to keep long obsolete technology relevant. But, if they were providing information for them, then she would bare such eccentricities so they could keep control of the game.

"Momentum will determine their fate," she said. "They do not strike me, thus far, as having the patience that Ophidia had in building her network and her chance at seizing power. If the rumors I've heard of this Lord Nwul are true, then he has cheated his way to strength, but then you have firsthand knowledge of his abilities. If he falters, if his promises cannot be kept, his movement will collapse and be primed for consolidation into one of our power bases."

Purity of the Order was an odd concept for her, considering her own beliefs about the Sith. The past traditions and Sith should be respected, maybe even revered, but the constant evolution was what kept them strong, kept their enemies guessing in what form the Sith might reappear in. Knowledge was key to such evolution, and discovery could only be achieved through experimentation. Such a pursuit would almost necessitate purity being a secondary or tertiary thought. But then, Kaine knew her thoughts on such. It was but one thing that had led to their alliance and its longevity. Their successes were only possible by building upon what came before, but not restricting it to same paths.

She caught the wary look forming on his though, and her eyes started to narrow. She did indeed know that look well, and it almost always accompanied news she would... dislike.

And her eyes narrowed further as he spoke of a plague of undead to sweep Coreward.

"It would not be Caedes' undead on Korriban. A Holy World wouldn't be risked so soon after recapture," she murmured, parsing it out. Her eyes became slits. "Odacer-Faustin."

Of course, it would be the Sickness, the Hunger, Blackwing. Whatever name it was called. The legacy of Darth Drear. Oh yes, Empyrean would know full well her thoughts on such a plan. Her anger would billow out of her like ripples upon a still body of water, amethyst temporarily shifting to amber.

"It can't be controlled, Kaine. For almost five thousand years, the Sith and other dark siders have tried to tame Drear's mistake and every time it fails. It thrives when it touches the dark side, becomes more virulent. If a Sith became infected, they would be lost swiftly no matter how strong they are. There are reasons I placed such stringent restrictions upon even experimentation with it."

Beyond the chamber, it would appear as though the environment of Ziost could sense her and reacted in kind. Rain started to sheet against the viewport and lightning crackled in the sky as a storm brewed up. The planet, marked by her magic, knew its mistress.

"It should be left in the ice... no, it should be glassed from orbit and put that planet out of its misery and wipe that failed experiment from the galaxy for the last time," she hissed. "To unearth it as a weapon against the Jedi is folly." She took a breath, calming herself. "Besides, it won't be as dramatic a weapon or trap as one would think. I've taken steps, years ago and with the help of Danger, to mitigate any outbreaks and I will take even more to eradicate it if it comes to that, plan to trap the Jedi or not."

A vaccine had been developed by Spaarti and distributed by one of the companies under the ATC umbrella. If she had to, that vaccine would be immensely upgraded and distributed everywhere. She would not allow such an uncontrollable weapon by unleashed on a galaxy that might harm her children.

Darth Carnifex

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Yes, the Sickness."

He knew that she would react this way, and understood her anger well. He could not fault her for it, for it was well-founded. He too found it distasteful that the Sickness was being unearthed once more, to again be set loose upon the galaxy. But this was Darth Empyrean's design, not His own, and thus He would let the Corpse-God do as He wished. So long as it was contained to waylaying the Jedi, then He could care little, but He would nonetheless keep an intensely close watch on the whole affair.

"Such is the mind of Empyrean bent, Taeli. I do not believe it will work as intended, there are too many variables." He idly rubbed His facial hair, a gesture He always did when He was preparing to exposit on ideas He'd been formulating on. "I, on the other hand, have been scouring ancient records recovered from the Jedi Archives and other libraries across the galaxy. I found some particularly interesting passages about the Nihil, those ancient marauders from the Old Republic. Apparently, they used devices called Stormseeds to completely isolate entire galactic sectors, ruling them in spite of the Republic's enmity. With some time, I believe we could manufacture our own Stormseeds just how they were in the past."

There was a devious glint in His eye, "We draw the Jedi to us, they will not send all of their knights at the same time. Undoubtedly, they will come in waves. We engage the first wave, but as the second wave approaches up the hyperlanes. We spring our trap." He did not directly state what this trap was, but through context clues Taeli would figure out that it involved activating the Stormseeds to completely bisect the major hyperlanes, isolating the first wave and forcing any subsequent force to go the long way around.

Taeli Raaf ​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

No, it certainly would not work as intended. She would make sure of that. The folly of Drear would be eradicated as a threat to anyone if she had her way... and she would in this matter, the Emperor unleashing this plan or not. She turned her attention once more out the window to Ziost, pondering what she might do before he spoke again.

"Now this idea is more intriguing," she replied as Kaine exposited on his ideas for replicating this ancient technology and his possible plans for it. She did remember coming across vague mentions of such technology during her time as a Jedi, both in the archives and as Grand Marshal of the first New Jedi Order. Much of the sectors they had isolated had been in the southern Rim, territory that the first Galactic Alliance had claimed along with their allies the Outer Rim Coalition.

"We would need to discover how the Stormseeds were undone before attempting the same so we could avoid such flaws in our own designs," she answered. "If I recall, their occlusion zone once reached as far as the Seswenna Sector and was threating to envelop Eriadu, and we both know that space is no longer obstructed. We might need to fund some adventurers to find the answers for us... anonymously so as to avoid tipping off anyone to such a plan. But the idea has merit."

It could be used to completely protect the Caldera, or even possibly expand it. And such disruption of the major hyperlanes and sectors would make their other project more useful as well.

"It would dovetail well with the research in Gree space," she continued.

Darth Carnifex