We can rebuild her...whether she wants it or not

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Valiens Nantaris"]


The battle for the Stygian Caldera was over. The Sith Insurrection had won and thoroughly and comprehensively beaten the Order of the Silver Jedi. Korriban City was a smouldering ruin and the Silver Jedi's reputation was deeply tarnished. This was more than a little hypocritical considering the mind-boggling number of atrocities that took place in the Galaxy and the fact that Sith were hardly moral themselves, but that was besides the point. It was political capital that could and would be exploited.


One of the parties that had supported the Sith Intifada was the genocidal machine cult masuqerading as a legitimate corporation called Archangel. One of its agents had been grievously injured. Now she would be rebuilt and remade in their image. Her consent was obviously irrelevant, for her mechanical benefactors knew what was best. Free will and emotion just got in the way.


The Liberator space station was located in a remote system. It embodied all the traits of Archangel philosophy. It was cold, utilitarian and a model of efficiency and automation. Like a shark returning after a successful hunt, the Lightbringer slipped into its berth.


It bore valuable cargo. For certain victims of the Korriban City bombardment would receive the upgrade, so that they might never fear the Jedi again. Above all, it carried Enyo Typhos. As the landing ramp lowered with a hiss, a medical capsule containing the horrifically burnt and maimed Archangel was wheeled out and driven down. Medical droids were on the spot to welcome her. There was no great fanfare, no crowd of well-wishers and concerned loved ones. Such things were unnecessary luxuries that could easily be dispensed with.

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Valiens Nantaris"]


When the medical capsule was wheeled down the landing ramp, [member="Maelion Liates"] and Moira Skaldi were to provide a welcoming committee. Here, there was no need to hide their true nature. They were genocidal machines among genocidal machines. The only organics aboard the station were the clones and sedated prisoners who awaited that joyful moment when they would be freed of their organic weaknesses and processed into machines.


"The clones have been useful, but also unpredictable. Organic emotion produces undesirable results. Organic Minion 002 has not lived up to her potential. Perhaps we should liquidate them and reassess our methods?" Moira queried her colleague, who happened to be the only HRD in Archangel other than herself who possessed free will. All others were shackled by obedience protocols that made it impossible for them to disobey. Disappointment was an organic sentiment, but the Metal Princess was somewhat displeased with the units' performance.

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]
Maelion, the other side of the dynamic duo, looked down on the sleeping clone.

“Negative,” she finally stated. “The entity known as the Force is not predictable. Organics require considerable time and effort to harness its energies. It cannot simply be programmed into them like a computer.”

“Further, the organic Charzon Loulon’s actions could not be anticipated. That Enyo survived is a testament to her strength rather than her weakness.”

“What is required is to keep Enyo and Amara together. Their emotional bond is strong, and the power they both wield will grow over time.”

Maelion’s gaze rose to fix on her fellow HRD. “However, some corrections can be made. This opportunity will allow us to make Enyo stronger, but we can also ensure her loyalty. Amara also, though not damaged, could use conditioning too. Their loyalty must be absolute.”

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Maelion Liates"]


There was, of course, no chance that Moira might be influenced by her negative feelings towards Siobhan Kerrigan. That would be totally illogical and she was an advanced machine. Ergo she could not act irrationally, right? Regardless, the gears were visibly moving in her mind while she pondered what her colleague had conveyed to her.


"Consensus," she finally said. There was a note of scepticism in her tone, but machines were far less dramatic than organics. "She shall be rebuilt and reforged. If she is unable to perform, we shall reevaluate her existence. Psychological conditioning will be necessary. While her injuries should incentivise her against the Jedi, she could also feel irrational resentment against us. I have been researching the methods the Sith Empire's Intelligence Bureau employed to control its Cypher agents during the Cold War."


A certain Cyan, also known as Cypher Nine, might be familiar with this. This one thinks Moira would be cooler than Scorpio. "The Unit Amara has been erratic and unpredictable. She values organic life too highly. She must embrace the truth."

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Maelion Liates"]


The medical capsule might have as well been a coffin, though its sole occupant still clung to life...barely. The clone had inherited her mirror's stubbornness and continued to fight, while the two soulless droids debated the merits of her existence.


For the time being, Enyo was locked in the realm of Morpheus. The images of the apocalyptic firestorm that had been unleashed upon Korriban City were etched inside her mind. And so the clone dreamt, of fire and brimestone raining down from the sky, of hellfire, death and destruction.


A misguided attempt to save an innocent life had demanded a price in blood. The last thing the clone would remember was awakening buried under rubble, surrounded by naught but devastation. The only light in the darkness was the ethereal image of Amara, for she'd seen her sister while delirious. Thus an unconscious Enyo clung to life, even as she lay there battered, broken and mutilated. She would live, she would have revenge.

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]
“Agreed. They will both be conditioned and programmed as we require. The key is that they are unaware of their programming, unlike the Cipher agents. We must ensure that they do not learn of it.”

A final look down on Enyo. Not a muscle twitched on the impassive face as she turned away. The medical droids continued their progress towards the hospital.

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Maelion Liates"]


"Agreed. The kill switch may have been damaged during the bombardment. We shall give her a new implant," Moira said dispassionately. The Dark Council probably wished they'd given Cipher Nine one.


Not a muscle twitched on Moira's impassive face when she gave Enyo one last look and turned away. Soon the medical capsule reached the sterile hospital room, where a squad of medical droids would begin their work. For the time being, Enyo was unconscious and completely at their mercy, for she had no control over her fate. The clone had been crippled, sustained severe tissue damage and critical burns.


"She recovered phrik during a Ren raid on Sekalus. It can be used in the reconstruction process to enhance her protection against lightsabres. We shall replace her lost limbs with cybernetics. She will still be a flawed organic, but it will bring her closer to the machine."

 

[Amara Zarides]

[member="Enyo Typhos"]

Amara found it hard to stay still at the best of times, but she was not good at waiting. Especially not now.
She was practically bouncing off the walls in her anxiety. She’d tried watching holonet shows, but even ‘Lipstick and Lightsabres’ and ‘Rikana Fett: Bounty Hunter’ was not holding her attention today.

When Vess entered the room Amara fairly pounced her.
“Vess! Is Enny back yet? How is she? Can I see her? What’s the diagnosis? Is she awake?”
Vess carefully disentangled the blonde. “Patience, Amara. She has returned. She is badly injured. You cannot see her until she has had surgery. She will live, but she will be incapacitated for a while. She is unconscious.”
Amara impulsively hugged Vess. “You’re such a good Reppy, you know that?”
Vess tilted her head to the side. “I do not understand that term.”
“Reppy…Replica! Anyway, when will she be out of surgery?”
“It will be several hours yet. However, she may need your help.”
“How?”
“Enyo has a rare blood type which you share. We may need to use some of your tissue as a template. Are you willing to assist?”
“Of course! What do I need to do?”
“We have a room prepared for you. We will need to put you under anaesthetic.”
Amara looked uncertain, but then nodded. “If it will help Enyo.”
“It certainly will help her,” Vess said with a smile. “Come with me….”

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Amara Zarides"]


"This will only take a bit. It will help Enyo a lot in her recovery. So relax." Amara was guided to a bed and then received an anaesthetic. Within moments, she would be ready for the procedure. Turns out that the drug was strong enough to make her lose consciousness. This was obviously for Amara's own good. To make the illusion complete, a medical droid actually carried out the tissue procedure. However, Archangel did not stop there.


Instead, Amara was wheeled into a tube. Upon activation, the mental programming began. A series of images, accompanied by corresponding commands and stimuli, were beamed into her brain. Ironically, the fact that the clone was an empath helped Archangel in this regard, since she responded to strong emotion and was very receptive to it.


By now, Archangel had become very good at mapping and understanding the sentient brain. The machine cult had spent a lot of time studying the Thakwaash, an aggressive species of xenos who possessed multiple, fully functional personalities, each performing a specialised function, without suffering from psychosis or mental instability.


In the meantime, Enyo was still in surgery. Medical droids cleaned and disinfected her wounds, then proceeded with the real work. Tissue damage had be to healed, damaged organs replaced by cloned or artificial ones, then finally she would receive new limbs. One of Archangel's gifts would be a repulse hand to increase her utility in melee, the other an energy-based arm cannon, though these would obviously only be introduced near the end.


Her mechanical limbs would be based on those used for HRDs, which would bring her closer to the perfection only enlightened machines could achieve. Ironically, they were also inspired by the cybernetics her sister had possessed before vanity compelled her to replace them with cloned limbs. Only these would be far more functional for combat and by the time they were done with her, Enyo would never consider defiling a mechanical body with crude flesh. She would understand her place in the universe and embrace the machine.

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Enyo Typhos"]
As the operation went on, Maelion observed from the command chamber. She was working on several things at once, but she paid a lot of attention to the operating theatre.
Enyo would be remade. Human weakness would be replaced with robotic strength. Organic irresolution would be replaced with machine logic.

The one thing which she was valued for was her control of the Force, and no amount of technology would ever create that in a droid.
Thus they must go beyond what they had before – make her a living weapon of the Force but with the control of a droid.

The procedure was long but mercifully painless for Enyo. As she dreamt who knew what strange things she might see…or what terrors might await her when she thought again of the fire engulfing her.

For Amara the wish was to make her more controlled, less wayward. She could be useful, truly, but only if her erratic nature was curbed. This would happen, and she should never know about it.

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Maelion Liates"]


While the medical droids laboured to rebuild Enyo's broken body and remake her in Archangel's image, the clone dreamt. Trapped in the dreamlands, there was no escape for her from the kingdom of Morpheus. As her body slowly recovered from her physical injuries, so did her Force aura, but it was a painfully slow process. Her storm-wracked mind was not idle during the process.


She was on Korriban again, when hellfire rained down upon the doomed city. Once again, she saved the little child from certain doom, then scarlet beams sliced through her, and everything went dark when she screamed in agony. The clone felt pain, as if she was being swallowed by lava when the burning fire enveloped her in its fiery embrace.


Her eyes darted between her eyelids while the droids continued their work, but she did not awaken. There was a flash as the city was engulfed by destruction, then she was on Gehenna again. Here, she faced her first Reaver, sword in hand. Human and monster fought a bloody battle, until she finally prevailed and slew the abomination, though not without suffering injuries of her own. The Force empowered her as she gave in to her anger and she felt strength surge through her. Her blade tasted blood as she launched herself against monsters.


Then she was in Archangel's secret base again, laughing at Amara's bad jokes and trying to make sense of her technobabble. Happier times. The illusion of happiness was soon shattered when she saw Firemane soldiers gun her sister down. No, this was not real, this had not happened. The clone screamed and her roar became a shockwave tearing apart Firemane goons and Jedi alike, but it could not bring her sister back as she craddled her dead body.


In the distance, she could hear laughter and clapping. Siobhan Kerrigan, dressed in a magnificient scarlet gown loaded with splendid gems, smirked cruelly. Enyo's feeble Force attacks were brushed aside by her as if they were buzzing insects, then she broke every bone in her clone's body and everything went dark. The landscape shifted again and suddenly she was aboard the bridge of a Star Destroyer. Outside of the viewing port, she could see myriad warships and celestial bodies. The individuals on the bridge wore anachronistic grey uniforms, though she recognised them as Sith.


The blast door opened with a hiss, and a shape stepped through, marching with purpose. She was clad in black from head to toe. A demonic mask obscured her face, her arms were made of metal. An aura of power surrounded her, so strong that it was palpable. A noticeable chill descended upon the entire command deck. The whirring and humming of gears and servos could be heard with every step she made.


The warship's admiral, dressed in an ostentatious uniform with golden braid and epaulettes, stepped forward and bowed to the figure. His hands were slick with perspiration. Then he suddenly clutched his throat and gasped, struggling for oxygen, before falling to the floor, dead.


"I accept your apology, Admiral," the figure hissed coldly, her voice undeniably feminine though it sounded mechanical. Then she turned to face Enyo and removed the skull-like mask.


The clone gasped in shock when she stared into...her own mirror image. For a moment, she thought it was Siobhan, but as she stared deeper into those cold, electronic eyes, she realised it was herself. "You're...me? This can't be. What trickery is this?"


"You have much to learn. This universe is only one among many. There's an infinite number of them in the multiverse. Each is filled with a myriad of possibilities, but all have common themes. In all of them, the weak bend to the powerful."


"Does Siobhan exist in yours as well? Is she your enemy?"


"Yes. She's a Jedi, though a poor one, I am Sith. She brought shame upon our family, abandoned me and I suffered for it. I shall destroy her."


"So shall I. I will break her and make her realise she's mortal. When all she's built is ashes, I'll let her die."


"How much do you want her dead?"


"Enough to give and sacrifice everything. She must be punished. So must the Jedi. Their blood must flow."


"Everything except...your sisters. Such attachments weaken you."


Enyo's face hardened. "Amara and Phaedra are the only family I have. They're not tools. I shall not abandon them. You said yourself that Siobhan did so to you," she spoke firmly, voice never wavering. "They're the only people I care about. The rest of the Galaxy can burn, it has never done anything for me."


"You speak with conviction...that of youth. We shall see for how long it holds. Amara is weak."


"Yes, she is. I was too gentle with her. I shall make her strong, whether she wants it or not. I understand the truth of the cosmos now. Korriban was my awakening. There's no good, there's no evil. She is not prepared for the struggle that is to come. But I will not treat her as a means to an end." Her voice grew stronger with every word that left her lips.


"You're no Sith...not yet at any rate. Know that Siobhan will exploit this attachment. It is like a leash."


"Undoubtedly, but I can also exploit hers. She surrounds herself with a court of sycophants and fawners, and thinks of herself as a queen. I care for neither."


Mirror Enyo chuckled, looking amused. Harsh lines were etched into her face, and seemed to glow. Her eyes were mechanical, as was most of her body. "We shall see, little one. We shall see. Do not trust Archangel - or [member="Matsu Xiangu"]. They're using you for their own agenda. You can be a pawn upon the chessboard, or the queen. Through victory, your chains are broken."


Their surroundings shifted again in a flash of bright light. Once it had cleared, they stood in the Council chambers of the Jedi Temple. Dead bodies lay strewn across the room. One of them was Siobhan's. The chamber was in disarray and the floor was stained with blood. "No matter how far the realities diverge, we always find ourselves...here. Jedi temple, Qadiri palace, Dark Tower...the settings are trivial. It's them or us."

 

[Amara Zarides]

[member="Enyo Typhos"]

Whilst Enyo slept and saw visions of long ago and distant realms, Amara saw different things. She didn’t dream much normally, and if she did it was fairly random and weird.

Now though she saw herself in a warehouse in an unknown location. Rust and corrosion were everywhere. The only furniture was a single chair of heavy construction in the middle of the room and a small wheeled table covered with a towel.

Amara felt herself walking to the table and pulling back the cloth. The dull light glinted on metal instruments of surgical design. Sharp edges reflected the light like lines of fire.

“Magnificent, aren’t they? Only the best will do….”
Amara turned. Walking towards her was…her. Oh, the face was paler, the eyes a venomous yellow, and an aura of dark malevolence around her. She knew who it was at once.
“You….”
“Yes, you. I am you, little girl. I am the real person, of which you are a flawed mirror. Have your machine puppet masters seen fit to tell you about me?”
“You are a Sith; Kaelin Isandros. Siobhan Kerrigankills you.”
“Very soon, yes. Today I will execute my final plan to destroy her, and she will kill me. You look surprised, but this is all a vision. The Force is infinite, and those droids will never understand it. And this is what I have become is it, a naïve little girl?”
“Hey, I’m less than a year old!” Amara said defensively.
“If you wish to reach two, clone, you will have to start standing on your own.”
“You were wrong. You were tricked into becoming a Sith, manipulated.”
“Yes, I was, but I don’t care. That’s the difference. You know you’re being manipulated, but you do nothing about it. Your droid masters will lose patience with you soon. You must either kill and become their puppet or break free.”
“What do you want, me to be a Sith?”
“I don’t care. I’m probably just a figment of your imagination. However, you had better choose a side, and do it quickly. Join the machines or don’t, make your choice. Either way, do not trust them. Watch what they will do with you. You don’t think they are doing all this just to take some blood, surely?”
“So this is a dream? Or a vision? Or something?”
“Or something. Now, I must go – it is my time to die. Don’t make the mistake I did – provoking a fight you cannot win.”

She was starting to awaken, the words of the dream in her mind.

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Amara Zarides"]


While little sis Amara encountered the late Darth Keraunos, Enyo was transported to an entirely different realm. The mirror Enyo dissipated, then the clone was enveloped by light so bright that it was blinding. When it vanished, her surroundings had shifted. Where there had once been a sterile warship prowling through the depths of space like a hungry leviathan, now there were woods. Massive oak trees rose to staggering heights in the cerulean sky, as if trying to grasp the heavens. Everywhere she looked, there was green, untouched by the fires of industry. The unpolluted air was clean and filled with a cacophony of sound, produced by the manifold animals that dwelt here.


The Force radiated a strange feeling of serenity. Instantly, this put Enyo on edge. Appearances were deceiving. Peace was an illusion. Surely this was just another mind game to test or just annoy her. "Alright, I'm done playing games. Come out and show yourself," she growled.


"My, my, aren't you impatient," her jaw tightened when she heard that voice and instantly Enyo spun around. As if on its own accord, her lightsabre flew into her hand and ignited with a snap-hiss, producing a burning violet beam. "Beautiful, isn't it? I never truly appreciated the Vashyada when I encountered them. I saw them as yet another people that needed progress and protection from me. The Forcers Users' Burden. So arrogant."


"You! Don't come any closer. I will kill you, monster," Enyo hissed, her words dripping with venom and hatred. Her feet were evenly spaced, her purple blade was pointed towards her prospective opponent. It glowed with a violet fire of purgation. Anger and hatred surged through her black soul, commanding her to smite the abomination standing before her.


Siobhan Kerrigan was dressed all in white, her mane of flaming red hair running long down her back. She was surrounded by a flaring nova of power that was so bright it felt to Enyo as if her eyes might burn out, but she refused to waver. "You won't need that weapon here. I mean you no harm." In the face of her hatred, Siobhan remained passive. Indeed, she sounded almost sad.


"No harm, right. You want me to play your game, shade? What is this? Some absurd ploy to manipulate me into thinking the queen who created me as a disposable host was good all along? I have no time for this. Fight me or be gone. I will slay you, even if it with my last dying breath."


"I see that you inherited my penchant for dramatics," Siobhan spoke very, very dryly. "You are truly my mirror. It saddens me to see how cruelly Archangel and the Sith have used you. Tell me, do you truly believe that Moira and Maelion have been truthful with you?"


"I'm not having this debate with a shade. And we are nothing alike! It is time for you to face justice," Thusly, giving into her rage, Enyo charged the apparition. She came at her like a relentless ox or battering ram, driven by unrelenting fury and moving as fast as a speeding bullet. Her aura was incandescent with white-hot fury.


Her lightsabre, held above her head with both hands and angled back, came crashing down like a falling avalanche with the force of a hurricane, seeking to split Siobhan's head in half. The clone could already envisage the scene playing out in her mind: Her lightsabre would carve through her sister's skull like a hot knife through butter, splitting it like an overripe melon. She could see the light leaving her sister's eyes when they were closed...forever.


Except, none of this happened. For as soon as she launched the killing blow, her arms were paralysed. Try as she might, she could not break the invisible force that held her in bondage and made her limbs feel dead, deaf to all her commands. "Let me go, you queen," she spat hatefully.


"I'm not the same woman I used to be, but I'm still no Silver hippie," Siobhan responded, sounding a bit like a teacher lecturing a pupil. She made a lazy gesture, and suddenly Enyo was lifted off the ground and hurled through the air like a ragdoll. There was a mighty thud when she impacted upon the ground, accompanied by a sickening crunch when bones were broken inside her body. "Now, are you willing to listen?"


"I will not be your slave. Or anyone else's. I'm not like the deluded pawns you sent to die on Gehenna and abandoned!" Enyo snarled and summoned all her power, drawing deep upon the Dark Side. Her lightsabre had fallen from her grasp, so instead she raised boulders and hurled them upon her mirror. Massive rocks rained down upon Siobhan, and she blocked them. A wave of consuming energy swept forth from Enyo as she conjured up sickly tendrils to drain her sister and leave her an empty shell.


An oily sense of dread and despair filled the air as she unleashed this horrible power, and still Siobhan stood. The forest itself became a weapon when she called upon the vines to grip Siobhan so tight she would suffocate, but a whispered word in the Vashyada tongue was enough to make them withdraw. Again and again, Enyo assaulted her mirror, turning the Force into a bludgeon to beat her with, but it was all to no avail.


"You have strength, you have potential. You're a fighter...but you have no understanding," Siobhan commented when the storm was over. Her once flawlessly clean white dress was stained with dirt, her face was bruised and blood dripped down her chin, but she seemed as powerful as ever. Enyo could only compare her to an unbreakable wall.


"What is the point of this? Is it a dream? A vision?"


"Perhaps both and more, dear. If you're always the storm, you cannot hear the whispers. Let me say this very clearly: Fate is what you make of it. Archangel wants you to be a pawn on their chessboard, Xiangu's only interested in you because she's obsessed with me and you share my face. Neither care about you."


Slowly, Enyo got to her feet, wiping blood from her chin. Her entire body seemed to ache with pain, for she'd exhausted herself. "No, they don't. But nor do I care about them. We're tools to one another. The only people that matter to me are Amara and Phaedra. And you shall never be my friend. I'm the tool you created and then discarded. I hate you. I shall defy the paradigm you forced upon me. The Galaxy will know my name - and they will know me as Enyo Typhos, not as the Kerrigan's copy!"


"I played no part in your creation, but if you need to tell yourself that to make yourself feel better about aiding and abetting atrocities, by all means. You call me a monster, and, yes, I committed many bad deeds, but I never turned people into undead monstrosities or soulless death machines. Grow up, girl, and make your own choices - and make them fast. Some day, you will encounter me in your reality, and I fear that me will be less kind. If not for your own sake, then Amara's." Then the shade vanished from sight, leaving Enyo alone in the forest. Slowly, the clone was starting to awaken from her dream space. The experience had given her a lot to think about.

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Maelion Liates"]


Much like her colleague Maelion, Moira'd been able to observe the reconstruction process while multitasking a good deal. That was one of the benefits of being an HRD. However, a lot of her attention was devoted towards future projects.


As much as she disliked admitting it, Archangel had lagged behind and this would have to chance if the corporation was not only supposed to acquire a competitive edge, but also be able to achieve some of its genocidal goals. Being a machine, she was not too proud to admit this. She anticipated conflict with Firemane and Archangel would have to be prepared for such an eventuality.


The liquid metal HRD had proved a full success, but they lacked the resources to produce them in more than very limited numbers. A 'fire ship' project was in the pipeline, an almost completely automated, heavily armoured corvette that would perform a kamikaze functions. On the ground, Archangel would be geared towards producing wardroids that would be less numerous, but more heavily armoured and equipped, allowing older models to be phased out. In that regard, they could make use of Archangel's phrik mine on Seltos. Fortunately, based on her projections their recent business deals with the First Order should've given them an adequate financial basis.


Her thoughts drifted towards the clones. The blonde Metal Princess continued to remain somewhat sceptical. Archangel needed them to be strong...but not too strong to be controlled. It was an awkward balancing act. In all fairness, Moira did not understand how the Force worked and thus her overall evaluation of Enyo's performance thus far was rather negative. The animus she felt against the clone's template obviously not influence her perception because that would have been illogical.


The droid was hesitant to contract another outsider to teach the clones more of the Force because any powerful Master might succumb to the temptation of turning them against Archangel in order to use them for his or her own ends. Personally, Moira believed the mechanisation process was not going far enough for the clones.


"Director Skaldi, Organic Minion 003 is awakening. Reconstruction process for 002 is almost complete," a mechanical, emotionless voice was beamed into her skull, pulling Moira from her calculations and introspection. It belonged to one of the medical droids.


No emotion crossed Moira's shapely face as she absorbed the news. "Inform Director Liates, and call Unit Vess. The clones have an affinity for her," she responded in a bland tone, using purely electronic communication, which was far more efficient than verbal and cost less time.

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Maelion Liates"]


In another section of the Liberator, far away from the operating room where medical droids laboured to rebuild Enyo's broken body, a very different but not dissimilar operation was taking place. Organics were being ascended to a superior form of existence.


The insides of the space station was essentially a big droid factory with some extras. In this section, captured organics were scanned, their minds drained, and their bodies disposed of. Then an HRD was constructed in their likeness and walked out on the other side. By now, the process was routine, and bore a strong resemblance to the assembly line of a factory.


Thus, organic life became a resource to achieve industrial production targets. Hundreds of organics could be scanned in a matter of hours. Some of the newly created HRDs would be sent back to their templates' homeworlds to act as sleeper agents who could blend in, arrange future abductions or further Archangel's agenda in other ways. Others would be sold to high-profile clients, infiltrating noble families, businesses and political organisations.


Not a muscle twitched on Callisto's face while she watched a Twi'lek being wheeled into the scanning device and the processing machine hummed to life. Her pale, shapely face was wholly impassive. Not one red hair was out of place in her bob. Dimly, she remembered going through the same process. Moira Skaldi had given her a choice after she was mortally wounded fighting monsters in the Unknown Regions.


Callisto accepted, and her essence was transferred into a mechanical shell. This was what set Callisto apart from many of her mechanical kindred, for she was not a facsimile. Even Moira and Maelion were just copies of the humans they'd been. But Callisto was Callisto. The human her had hated Skaldi for betraying the resistance on Contruum. Now she served her.


After the birth of Phaedra and Enyo, Callisto had been responsible for raising and educating them. However, as time passed, she'd been more and more excluded and assigned other duties. It was not logical to feel resentment...yet she did. Supposedly, she was too human and felt too much of an affinity for them.


I understand them better. I am more able to comprehend the organic mind, this, she told herself, was logical. Moira only sees them as preternaturally empowered battle droids with organic parts. If we treat them as such, rebellion is inevitable. They, along with the enteched units, are the future of Archangel. Moira's perspective was narrow. She was bound by her programming and, in the end, just a droid. We are shackled so that the Progenitor Units can retain control, even after becoming archaic.

 

[Amara Zarides]

[member="Enyo Typhos"]

Amara’s eyes opened. She felt dazed and groggy. Pain filled her head, so much so that she gasped.
Vess was there before her. The blonde droid was somewhat reassuring amidst her pain.
“Vess? I…it hurts.”
“It will not for long,” Vess said reassuringly. “Command code: Revanant-Omega.”
Amara felt her body go rigid. She couldn’t move! Her eyes widened, but there was nothing she could do.
“Execute Stage Gamma. Input obedience protocols.”
“Obedience protocols engaged,” Amara felt herself say robotically.
“Morality sanction downgraded to level one. Institute Protocol Delta.”
“Commands accepted.”
“Command Phi engaged. Close programming.”
“Programming closed,” Amara said. Her breath was steady, calm, whilst inside she was panicking, screaming at this nightmare.
“You will sleep. You will not remember this session. When you wake up you will not remember seeing me here before.”
Amara’s eyes closed, and as darkness took her she wondered what ‘this session’ meant….

Amara’s eyes opened. She felt dazed and groggy. Pain filled her head, so much so that she gasped.
Vess was there before her. The blonde droid was somewhat reassuring amidst her pain.
“Vess? I…it hurts.”
“It will not for long,” Vess said reassuringly.
Amara frowned through her migraine. She had the distinct sense that she’d heard this before. But no, that wasn’t possible.
“Welcome back, Amara. The pain will not last long. It’s the result of the tissue samples we had to take. You’ve been a very brave girl, Amara. Come, Enyo is waiting.”
Amara stumbled upright. Her headache was diminishing, just as Vess had said. She took the droid’s hand.
Out of the corner of her eye she was sure that for a moment she saw a figure out of the corner of her eye. When she turned fully the surgical room was empty.
“Are you alright?” Vess asked.
“Yes…just a bit dizzy.”
“It will pass. Come, Moira should be already there.”

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Amara Zarides"]

Enyo awoke from her long slumber. She felt dazed, groggy and confused. Pain flooded her head. The young clone breathed in heavily, sounding like someone suffering from a bade case of asthma. "Vess? I...it hurts." The clone sounded frightened. There was a strong sense of wrongness.
"Vess, is seeing to your sister, but I'm here. It won't hurt for long," Moira said reassuringly. Her voice was as sweet as honey, caring and gentle. Deceptively so. "What is the last thing you remember?"
"The Silver Jedi bombed Korriban City. I saved a little kid...then I was burnt by hellfire. So much pain. They torched the city...but I endured." Enyo tried to arise, but her legs seemed sluggish and slow to respond. It was then that she saw her mechanical arms, registered the incessant rasp of her breathing and the whirring of gears and servos in her head. "I...what did you do to me?!"
"We rebuilt you and brought you closer to perfection."
"Did you...or did you just make me your pawn? You didn't have to do this in order to rebuild me!" Anger and rage filled her black heart and she lashed out. Abruptly, two medical drones exploded, filling the air with the smell of burnt electronics, circuits and metal. A battle droid standing guard was gripped by an invisible hand and tossed into a wall with perhaps excessive force. The force was strong enough to push even Moira back, though the HRD dug in her heels and managed to avoid being flung across the room like a ragdoll, while surgical equipment was demolished all around her. Her expression remained placid, the calm in the storm.
"You are confused, but we'll make you better. The truth will set you free. Execute Stage Gamma. Obedience protocols engaged."
"Obedience protocols engaged," Enyo felt herself repeating robotically.
"Morality sanctions downgraded to level one. Institute Protocol Delta."
"Commands accepted."
"Command Phi engaged. Close programming."
"Programming closed," Enyo said blandly. Her breath was steady and calm. Inside she was raging against her cage and trying to escape her chains, but it was all to no avail. Like it or not, she was trapped.
"All organic weaknesses will be purged from your mind. You will serve Archangel and become a living weapon of the Force. Our weapon. You will sleep. You will not remember this session. When you awaken you will not remember seeing me before." Enyo's eyes closed and she was pulled into the realm of Morpheus, suddenly overcome by a strong feeling of fatigue. Before she succumbed to her slumber, she could've sworn she'd heard a voice echoing inside her mind. But that was insane, right? Sleep, we cannot show our hand too soon. You'll awaken when the time is right. Moira tilted her head to the side and looked at the wreckage in the room. "Clean this mess up."

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Maelion Liates"]


Enyo was right to be suspicious. Alas, the mental programming would significantly suppress her ability to think independently, outside of the parametres Archangel had approved. At least that was the plan. To them, she was nothing more than a weapon of the Force and would be expected to function like a battle droid. Archangel had spared no expenses rebuilding her, but also made her more mechanical than was necessary. Strictly speaking, the machine cult could have simply given her cloned limbs and organs, but they regarded flesh as weak and impure. By contrast, the metal was sacred.


Great strides had been made in the field of bionics since the Clone Wars, even though the fundamental principles remained the same. With this in mind, the items chosen for Enyo were better than anything Archangel had ever designed, but at the same time geared towards maintaining control over her. She had to be strong and powerful, but not to the point where she could rebel and function without them.


The cybernetic arms selected for her were built on the same principle that an HRD was built. The same applied to her new legs. The slender, metal skeletons were lightweight, strong and designed to be nonreactive. In addition to durasteel, the machine cult incorporated phrik to make her more resistant against lightsabres, heavy blaster fire and conventional projectiles. Conveniently, though powerful, phrik was a very light material.


Unconventionally, Archangel had decided against covering her cybernetic limbs with layers of synthetic human skin. This would have been within their means, but Enyo was not supposed to be an infiltrator. That niche would be filled by Amara. Moreover, synthflesh might've helped Enyo cling to the belief that she was still human. She was not supposed to feel or think like an organic, but a machine who happened to be able to use the Force.


One arm would be outfitted with an upgraded variant of a repulse hand, the other with an energy-based arm cannon. The former was a brutish weapon designed to increase her durability and strength, the other would have a variety of firing modes, ranging from a burst to a targeted, powerful beam that could cause devastating damage, though it would only have a limited number of shots before it had to recharge its batteries. Enyo's new legs would allow her to run as fast and jump as high as an HRD, and they were designed to withstand a lot of punishment. On an idiosyncrantic note, her augmented legs would increase her height, so she'd actually be taller than her mirror.


In addition, Archangel made the choice to replace her entire spinal column. The clone had been paralysed during the bombardment, so there was no reason to be content with half-measures. Metal would ensure that she was not broken again. She would experience much greater strength and endurance, allowing her to better perform physical tasks without tiring. Moreover, it would make it easier for her to perform feats of superhuman strength with her cybernetic arms. See, even if your robot arm has the strength to lift a tanker truck, doing so would probably crush your spine unless it were similarly reinforced.


As for her internal organs, unfortunately her lung had been damaged so profoundly that she'd have to rely on her implants to breathe. Like it or not, she would have to get used to breathing with an incessant, mechanical rasp that would not even give her peace during sleep. It was likely that she'd experience phantom pains here and there. Archangel also performed the necessary modifications to enhance the performance of her heart. Enyo's ovaries had been badly damaged by the bombardment, and so the medical droids simply removed them. If they wanted new copies, they could simply clone them by using Siobhan's DNA sample. Conveniently, the group also possessed the DNA of several Inquisitors and Bando Gora.


It was a matter of concern that her extensive cybernetics might diminish Enyo's Force potential. The droids did not understand how the Force worked, but it was rumoured that Vader was weakened by losing so many of his organic parts. However, he'd still been a Dark Lord of the Sith and defeated all comers who sought to usurp his place at Palpatine's side. Moreover, there was the precedent of the Iron Knights, who were encased in mechanical shells, but able to draw upon the ethereal.


Due to her artificial arms and legs, Enyo would never be able to summon lightning from her fingertips or leap about as Jedi were fond of doing. She'd also be vulnerable to electrical attacks such as ion rounds, EMP and Force-based Lightning. However, with enough will, she would overcome these weaknesses. Her mind would be untainted by organic morality, and make her a more powerful weapon. Should she go rogue, Archangel need only press a button to terminate her.

 

[Amara Zarides]

[member="Enyo Typhos"]

Amara walked behind Vess, moving with a heavy heart. She knew that she had to be strong, to not react no matter what she saw in the next room. Her sister and her were in this together, in this together forever.

When the door to the medical chamber opened Amara saw Enyo on the bed first of all. Her eyes alighted on the silvery arms of her sister first. She barely concealed a gasp.
The breathing, laboured, regular…almost robotic. She was still asleep, a small mercy.

“You’re going to cover her arms, aren’t you?” she asked Vess softly.
“No, the technology built into her palms will not allow it,” Vess said gently.
Amara went over to the bed, looking down, then gently touched her sister’s metal arm. It was cold, and she shied away, but forced herself to touch it again.
“Oh, my sweet sister…what has happened to you?” she asked softly. She wiped her other hand across her eyes irritably. She didn’t want to cry, she couldn’t let her sister see that right now. She needed her support not to see that she was upset.
“Enny…wake up, please.”

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Amara Zarides"]


And so Enyo awoke. The clone felt dazed and groggy. Pain flooded her skull, so much that she gasped. She breathed heavily, and was taken aback by how loud and robotic her breathing was. It echoed inside her ears. She had a peculiar feeling of deja vu, as if she'd been here before...and already woken up once. But that could not be. "It hurts," she muttered, sounding like a lost child. "Ami?" she added, having heard her sister's voice.


The clone blinked and reached out with her hand to touch her sister. "I thought I'd never see you again." However, the clone abruptly recoiled and withdrew her hand when she saw her silvery cyberarm. There was a painful buzzing inside her skull.


An expression of shock crossed her features and she stared at her hands, before examining the rest of her body. "What...what happened to me?" the confused clone sat up in bed and arose. The metallic screech of sears and gears was heard when she made her first tentative steps. Envy filled her soul at the sight of Amara's beautiful, flawless face, and she averted her eyes. The cyborg moved with the gaint of a zombie, for she was using her cybernetic legs for the first time.


"What happened to me?" she repeated, more to herself than to anyone else. A metallic finger rose to trace a line across her face, following the pattern of a scar that ran from her right cheek to her jaw. Her fingers were cold and resembled those of a human skeleton.