The Eye of Madness || TSE Dominion of AG-8 Hex

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Location: Dagorn's boat
Objective: Have tea, locate missing vessels
Allies: [member="Tsisaar Taral"] | [member="Dagorn"]

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It wasn't a place where one would expect a Triumvir of the Sith Empire to be. A simple freighter piloted by a mercenary, while casually chatting and having tea with a fellow Sith. Despite having adjusted to the more luxurious lifestyle one had to present to the public, Darth Avacyn was never above performing simpler tasks when a pair of hands was needed. Even her personal life was much more simple than what she presented, living on an estate that was albeit large, but featured homes that weren't all that out of the ordinary. The palace that she was having built displayed opulence, but although she was quite proud of it being hers it was still primarily a piece to assist in painting her public image.

Avacyn took a careful sip of her tea, making sure it wasn't too hot. After concluding it was the perfect temperature, she set the cup back down for a moment. "As a Sith, he deserved respect. Not through sheer strength, but his cunning ways. It took me a very long time before I was able to outsmart him even once." Even from that point on, the battle of wits was a back-and-forth one until the day it ended altogether. "I respected him greatly, albeit begrudgingly. I hated his guts," she said before lifting the cup back up to her lips, washing away the slight disgust she felt. After letting it slip down her throat, she continued. "I don't appreciate people trying to dig into my private life. He knew a bit too much about me, so when I had outgrown him I was all the more glad to carry on the classic Sith tradition of killing one's master." It wasn't part of Kainism, but killing Krest had been the sole exception in her adherence to it. It was an isolated case- beyond that the woman stood by Kainism without any semblance of doubt. She had been there when it was created, after all.

"Sadly, there isn't much left of his legacy. His soul was returned to his body somehow, but he quickly lost sight of the Sith way. He turned against the empire, and now there's little left to respect him for." Personally, Avacyn held the theory that when one was killed, they could no longer be among the strongest and as such forfeit their claim on the title of Sith. It was possible he had let go of that for this reason. "I'm certain he's still more than a capable warrior, don't be misunderstood, but he cannot be called Sith any longer. He has lost sight of the true nature of the galaxy."

Tsisaar then shifted the topic of their conversation to the task at hand. The redhead nodded. "I do find it quite odd they just vanished out of nowhere. There has to be some explanation for it."

 

[Fiolette Fortan]

Bnar VII ​

​

If at all, Fiolette had ever complained about a dull meeting before. She was absolutely apologetic, the Bnari were rather dull as they drone on and on without pausing. It was one long continous monotous tone. But Fio managed to remain concious throughout the process and looked over at the appointed dignitary who thanked the Bnari and excused the Sith Empire's delegation so that they may discuss the proposal in private. Upon entering a private room most of the Empire's delegation breathed a sigh of relief. "Well that took long enough," one General said while the other merely nodded in agreement.

"Right let's get on with it." Fiolette gestured to the table, the sooner they were done here the sooner they could leave and she could get back home. The proposal was sent to each member of the delegation. The Rear Admiral sat down and took a look at the proposal, it was a rather - dull proposal. But then, thus far, Bnar had not yet proven exciting. Then again, it need not be - it had several key industrial sectors, research sectors which suited the Empire just fine. They were asking for vassalhood but that would not be the delegation's call to make at least not right at the moment. For now, they were looking at an annexation without militrization efforts. "Seems rather ordinary." She commented whilst scrolling through.

"Indeed," remarked one of the Generals.

"Looks fine enough," Fiolette regarded it a moment further, "any objections?"

No one spoke up, so came the recorder to officially record the delegation's approval but left that further investigation and inspection would be required for vassalhood. They did agree to annexation if the Bnari would allow the building of defensive structures, including bases for the Armada and Legion - and orbital structures. Any due taxes or levy of productions would be up to the home office to decide.

 

[Sar-Ka-Roi]

After about an hour of searching, the wrecked ruins of the cargo ship was discovered.

Its belly had been torn open, great rents in the jagged metal more reminiscent of a beast's claws than damage wrought by conventional starfighter weaponry. The bodies of the crew had spilled out into space, their frost-wreathed corpses orbiting the site of the wreck like moons around a planet. The TIEs flew in close formation with the boarding shuttle dispatched from the Silooth to further investigate the crash.

The interior of the ship looked worse for wear than its exterior.

Blood slickened nearly every surface, and the same type of damage present on the outside of the hull was carved into the corridor walls as well. Several control stations had been smashed, and the bridge was a ruined wreck of shattered glasteel and broken electronics. The captain's body was noticeably missing from the dead that had been accounted for. His chambers were also, mysteriously, free from the same destruction that had ravaged the rest of the ship. Several ritual inscriptions written in High Sith adorned the floor and walls alongside archaic runes of power and mystery.

The site was deemed beyond the jurisdiction of the Imperial Military, with their new orders being to haul the wreckage out of the nebula so it could be collected by the Emperor's magicians once they had arrived from Bastion.

Every pilot and military officer who had witnessed the wreckage were sworn to secrecy on penalty of death, and they again swore their oath of allegiance to the Empire and its Emperor. But still, the nagging thought remained in the back of their minds.

Who had torn apart that ship?

What had torn apart that ship?

 

[Fiolette Fortan]

Bnar VII​

​

"We do not wish for any militarization."

"Non negotiable, we live in a galaxy that is in a constant state of war. If there are no active campaigns I promise you someone is planning one." Fiolette returned to the Bnari leadership. "I understand your cause for concern, however; the building of bases, the utilization of your industry for the Empire's production needs and your own defense might I add, will happen."

"You sign now, and we do this without boots marching through your cities."

A general shifted his feet a moment and added to the rear admiral's statement. "What will it be?"

The Bnari leadership seemed to resign themselves to fate. "Alright, under the condition that we get vassalhood."

"Not up to our delegation to decide, further investigation from the home office is needed." The general replied as the rear admiral handed out tablets for the leadership. On them were the Sith Empire's terms of annexation.

As they began to read over the counter proposal, "if you and a few of your neighboring systems are willing to band together it may increase your chances." Bnari leadership and the Sith Empire's delegation spoke at length for another hour before a resolution was reached, a defined number of bases, and production facilities until further investigation into vassalhood was made. It was not a guarantee, and once part of the Sith Empire the Bnari would be protected and given full rights as a member of the Empire.

When the delegation had returned to their speeder each one took the time to drink. "Now then should we begin scouting base locations?" Another general asked.

An agreement was made with the delegation present. Just as a call was made to a construction team within the Sith Empire to arrive on Bnar with the task of building a joint command base for both Legion and Armada forces.

 

[The Amalgam]

Post: 6

Objective: 3 (Obtain wisdom from the Brain Demon)

The Amalgam left the chamber weary, wounded, and shaking. Despite feeling stronger. The revelation she was obsessed with Uri because she viewed the weakling as a daughter in need of correction...that she might have some sort of affection where Uri was concerned sent shivers of self disgust towards herself.

A proper Dark Sider is as free of such emotions as possible. While only a true psychopath like Sidious could get away with having no conscience, it was not so cut and dried for other Dark Adepts. They had to fight against centuries of what common society and even evolution itself inclined them towards: Coexistence. Generosity..

With The Dark Side, the strongest must dominate those under them to maintain order. Order and strict obedience of the lessers was the only way to be free of what plagued nearly every civilization in society: The sweet poison of weakness.

The Amalgam had long ago learned most of society was not worth defending. She'd learned it with every kick in the gutter, every night she'd been forced to dig in the trash to survive. Every thug, every nerfherder in a back alley with a sick brain and sicker aims towards her.

It had taught her kill or be killed long before the Dark Side had, and even then, though the Dark Side was glorious, it had not really much left to teach her on that save to refine the lesson. The Amalgam had sworn to travel, corrupting others forever after that. And then finallly, the opportunity had arisen to increase her power. To ascend.

The Amalgam hated the whole galaxy because, from her perspective, they all lived by the same rules the Underworks lived by, and yet refused to admit it. Thats why places like the underworks had never gone away. That is why they never would.

Only something as strong as the Sith could impose the kind of order that would wipe out such places for good. Or, at the very least, force everyone else in the galaxy to finally admit they played by the same rules she did. Then things would be fair. Then everyone would play by the only rule that mattered. The weak would become stronger or die weak. The strong would become stronger or die weak. And the strongest would get stronger still, and keep everyone else in order.

And the Amalgam could not bear to see Uri weak.

The shaking, quiet woman, sweating from the entire unnerving experience as she roamed the halls of the Brain Demon base.

Having been forced to confront her alternative self...and to find it so powerful...that latter bit had been extremely disconcerting. Had she not embraced the darkness? Had she not spent the last few centuries barring the odd decade or two in slumber torturing, maiming, corrupting Force adept groups from within, slaughtering innocents to advance the cause?

Had all those times she had slumbered...accumulated, somehow.?

The False Persona technique had always had drawbacks...she had been told it would be difficult to wake up from...but to have such drastic side effects...she had almost utterly lost that fight.

What would have happened had she lost, the Amalgam wondered, as she wandered deeper into the base, the statues of the emaciated creature the cult worshipped lined and supported the archways, red lantern posts casting the area she walked through in a bloody glow as she felt the darkness call her into a chamber with a jagged black crescent carved into it.

Inside were broken shelves of burnt scrolls and books and ancient, charred corpses. They had made their last stand here, only to be roasted alive. Most of the really precious stuff had been destroyed. (I.E., the knowledge). But the power...she felt it. Felt the Brain Demon urging her to this place. She stepped over dusting corpses, felt the silent call of the Brain Demon pulling her to a wall, which she felt along, the silent urging pulling her fingers to an out of place brick, which revealed a black, ornate iron lever. She cautiously pulled it, and a small section of the wall to her left popped away from the wall, splitting open and revealing a hidden shelf space. The Amalgam stepped in, spotting a number of weapons, mostly old imperial and Mandalorian stuff...

...and a small, red crystal on display in a glass vial, along with schematics.

She snatched the glass display, breaking it and retrieving the crystal. It wasn't a synthetic. It was natural. Not quixoni, either. She knew her crystal. Natural red adegan, and deeply, deeply corrupted.

The Amalgam looked for the parts necessary to begin construction...

 

[Nan'eth'illa]

Location: Ship wreckage.

Consciousness came to her as a shock as Darth Filiae drew a deep and desperate breath.

Her eyes surveyed the room, cybernetics booting up from their standby and tagging points of interest. The structural damage of the hull sprung up in muddled tags of red and yellow, and exits marked themselves in green.

She tried to move, and while she could feel her torso pulling, she found her left arm disabled and her legs trapped under debris. She felt a buzzing at the back of her head, but could not interpret it. There was a pain in her cranium; a splitting headache that numbed out even the crushing weight of the metal chewing into her hip, and the shards of glass burrowing into her blue skin. Turning her head, she could tell that her implants had come loose when she had crashed into the wall. Well, turns out the wall no wall at all, but the bottom of an elevator shaft.

She bent her neck and whipped her head back, metal hit metal and something shifted. A cry of pain escaped her lungs as she felt metal re-enter her skull and begin to re-connect. Once more, she banged her head against the wall to force the cybernetics back in place. It felt like she was stabbing herself with a shard of ice. Once more, a desperate attempt- click.

Her cybernetic eye flashed as the world came into focus. Her teeth clenched, and lips curled into a smile.

There was a signal, a search.

Closing her eyes, she used the internal Holo link in her cybernetics to send a distress beacon in response.

[member="Sar-Ka-Roi"]