Perception Is Reality [Kaine]

[Darth Athora]

In an undisclosed position somewhere in the Southern Systems, the Wraith Warden, personal command ship of Admiral Zahori Denko. It was here that the Admiral had planned, engineered, and supervised all of the Confederacy's naval campaigns since the Incursion threat had appeared. She watched their demise at her hands and continued to achieve victory's in the Confederacy's name many times after that.

But, there was something nagging at her. For several months, she watched the Confederacy grow complacent more and more each passing moment. And she idly stood by and watched and let it happen. She felt disgusted with herself. And then she realized that it was not her fault. Those who had called themselves leaders, viceroys, members of the Separatist Council had failed the Confederacy. She could feel their downfall approaching and would not be apart of it.

This is why she found herself in the location she was now. Zahori was expecting company. The droids on her ship were on high alert as there was an important visitor coming to the Wraith Warden. Zahori awaited the visitor inside the hangar with several battle droids at her sides as her guard detail. This was the turning point in her life. This is where she would begin her new chapter.


[member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

​

Southern Systems

The Harrower-class Dreadnought Pureblood listed idly between a pair of nebulae deep in the Southern Systems, several squadrons of TIE Fighters orbiting in patrol pattern around its dagger-like hull. It was one of the many Harrowers that had fallen into the New Sith Empire's hands following the collapse of the Resurgent Empire, and was currently in the process of being refitted in accordance with new Imperial designs courtesy of the Sith-Imperial Corps of Engineers.

But for now it served as the transport for the Dark Lord of the Sith to this secret rendezvous.

Opposite it was the Recusant II-class Star Destroyer Wraith Warden, command ship of Confederate Admiral Zahori Denko. It was specifically because of her that the Dark Lord found himself so far away from the Seat of the Empire. She had expressed disillusionment with the Confederacy of Independent Systems, and had beseeched him to meet with her in secret and turn her to the Empire's cause.

From the Pureblood's primary hangar emerged the Crestfallen flanked by a pair of Shadow Droids on a direct trajectory to the Wraith Warden's hangar bay. The ship would transmit the proper clearance codes for landing, and would nimbly settle in the hangar. Afterwards the boarding ramp would descend and the Dark Lord would emerged surrounded by a group of four Akguza Guards draped in white cloaks, a clear homage to the ancient Confederacy's MagnaGuards. All of them held collapsed electrostaffs.

Darth Carnifex would meet with whomever, or whatever, had been sent to greet him, and would waste no time in meeting with the esteemed Admiral face-to-face.

[member="Zahori Denko"]​

 

[Darth Athora]

Zahori knew better than to send a droid or confidante to greet the Dark Lord of the Sith on her ship. He made the strip all the way there for her, so she'd welcome him aboard herself for him. She walked several paces towards Darth Carnifex and stopped a few paces before him and bowed. "My Lord. First and foremost, I wish to thank you for making the journey this far away from your throne. I do hope you experienced no troubles on your way here. I know times for you and yours are occupied with the war with the Jedi. Their invasion of Mirial was absolutely unforgivable. You have my word that vengeance will be had."

After greeting the Dark Lord, she rose to her feet. "Please, follow me. I have a proposition for you that I would like to discuss in private." Zahori turned and walked towards a door at the end of the hangar. As she approached, the door would slide open and close once everyone had pass through. She continued down the corridor until she reached a double door. The two doors split apart, revealing a conference room with a table and several chairs surrounding the table. "Please, my Lord. Take a seat where you'd like." She waited for him to have a seat before taking hers at the head of the table. "We have much to discuss."

[member="Darth Carnifex"]​

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Indeed we do."

The Dark Lord silently weathered the bombardment of formalities put forward by the Confederate Admiral, his face set into a grim scowl as he turned to take his seat at the table. Though they could not have planned for it, but the chairs were unproportionate to the Sith Lord's muscular physiology. The chair creaked and whined as he lowered himself into it, and the Dark Lord had to assume a rather awkward and slightly discomforting stance as he hunched forward in the seat.

"So, Admiral Denko, you've extracted a great deal of my time to get me all the way out here. What would a member of the Confederate Admiralty want with someone as unscrupulous as the leader of the New Sith Empire?"

[member="Zahori Denko"]​

 

[Darth Athora]

Zahori crossed her legs beneath the table and cleared her throat before speaking. "I am grateful for you coming here, my Lord. Truly." she started. "I wish to discuss the current situation with the Confederacy and how I see the future playing out. Currently, affairs within and without the Confederacy have proven to be ... less than favorable for me. I shall not bore you with the details, my Lord. What I am trying to say is that before the Confederacy implodes upon itself, I'd much rather find myself elsewhere in the galaxy when it does. The Sith Empire, to be exact." Zahori adjusted her posture a bit and gathered her hair and pushed it behind her ears. "I offer my services as an Admiral to your Empire, my Lord. I do not know if you've heard of my achievements, most notably against the Incursion threat, but I assure you that I'd be one of your greatest assets should you have me."

[member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The Dark Lord listened, silently and politely.

When the Admiral finished he steepled his fingers, his molten eyes boring directly into Zahori's own. "I once considered Isley Verd like a son, did you know that?" A son by marriage, not truly one possessing his own divine blood. "I had tried to foster a sense of vision in the boy, to nudge him in the direction of destiny. Somewhere along the way he strayed from the path to pursue his own short-sided ambitions, such as the Confederacy."

It had forced Carnifex to look to others to fulfill the destiny he had foreseen, first [member="Vilaz Munin"], and now [member="Ra Vizsla"].

"Let his Confederacy rot, your talents are best served actually being put to use, Admiral Denko. The Sith Empire is on the rise, dozens of systems have already bent the knee. The Silver Jedi flinch in fear and lash out irrationally as their oppressive hold on the Tingel Arm evaporates. The Mandalorians are tearing themselves apart. My Empire is poised to become the greatest civilization in the galaxy, and I will share with you this glory if you would only kneel and swear fealty to the Empire."

[member="Zahori Denko"]​

 

[Darth Athora]

A grin gleamed on Zahori's face as she stood from the table and walked over towards the Dark Lord. She stood before him, looking him in his pale visage before dropping to a knee and bowing her head. "My Lord Carnifex. I, Zahori Denko, swear to you my life. My destiny is yours to control. My mind is yours to mold. I shall be your weapon against all your enemies domestic and and abroad. Under your powerful rule, I will see this galaxy fall and be reborn in your image. Long live the Dark Lord! Long live the Empire!"

[member="Darth Carnifex"]​

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Good, he was pleased.

He too rose to loom over Denko as she fell to one knee, her head bowed as she delivered her oath of loyalty and service to the Empire. With a gesture he bid her rise, "Stand tall, Admiral Denko, for you are now a warrior of the Sith Empire. Through you, Order and Peace will return to the Tingel Arm, and perhaps the rest of the galaxy as well. Return to the Confederacy for the time being, and assemble those forces loyal to you and you alone. Bring them to Agamar at the edge of Imperial Space, it is there that you will be welcomed into the Empire."

[member="Zahori Denko"]​

 

[Darth Athora]

Zahori rose to her feet and had a grin on her face. "It will be done, my Lord. I'll gather who and what I can without arising suspicion and meet you at Agamar." She gestured towards the door and would lead the Emperor out of the conference room and back to his shuttle. Once he would make his leave, she would return to the bridge of her ship and order the return to Geonosis where she'd speak with those who followed her.

"I've brought you all here so that we may speak of the future. As we've spoken about before, the Confederacy is lost. I have secured our way to safety. To the Sith Empire. If you still trust me and follow me, we leave in a few days. If not, then speak now." Commander Uvkithis nodded at Zahori, signaling he was prepared to follow her. One by one, the rest of those followed in kind, signaling their allegiance to Zahori. "Good. You have 4 days to gather what you can. We will meet back here when the time comes to leave. Speak to no one except those you trust about this. Dismissed."


[member="Darth Carnifex"]