Building For The Future

[Via Dolorosa]

With the datapad in her hands, she scrolled through specs and designs of the frigate class warship, nodding occasionally. Half of what she was reading was unfamiliar to her, while the other half she understood perfectly. Since forming her own corporation, Taobh Dorcha Industries, she had delegated some of her free time learning about ship and weapon creation. It was quite different than erecting buildings and structures, something she was well versed in, but she found quite a bit of satisfaction in broadening her horizons.​

​

"I'm no expert in these matters," she said to the lead engineer on the project as she continued to look through the datapad. "But I do have alot of experience aboard warships. To me, this design shows that the warship will be quite slow and very limited in it's agility."​

​

"Yes, this true," the male Bothan engineer replied. "However, we have decided to surrender speed and maneuverability in favour of better armaments, defense, and communications. As you can see, Mi'lady, ground forces can be coordinated from ship's command centre allowing the ground force commanders to focus solely on achieving their objectives in the event of heavy fighting. And that is just one feature."​

​

The Sith Lady gave the engineer a sideways glance before returning to the datapad. Her left eyebrow arched when she came across an interesting feature designed into the ship. She turned the datapad toward the Bothan with her left index finger on the text.​

​

"A meditation chamber," she said with a questioning undertone in her voice.​

​

"Ah yes. My team and myself felt that such a chamber would be welcomed by the Force wielders who are aboard the starship. I'm not familiar with the meditation techniques of the Sith and Je....what I have experienced is that some can use this chamber to enhance certain Force abilities such as Battle Meditation. I felt this would be something useful to you and your fellow Force wielders."​

​

"You and your team should be commended for your initiative. I will be bringing in others to assist in the development of this warship but you will still have a say in what is needed and what is not. Dismissed."​

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She turned to a small balding male with white tufts of hair situated on each side of his head and handed him the datapad. Slivk Mor was once a slaved engineer in the hands of Jempa the Hutt. Darth Venefica had 'persuaded' the Hutt to sell the aging man to her. Now, the old man was indebted to the Sith Lady. ​

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"Contact [member="Isis Varida"] and have her join us at the facility. Once that task has been completed, see to it personally that everything she needs or asks for is taken care."​

​

With a polite bow of his head, Slivk Mor scurried away.​

 

[Isis Varida]

[member="Darth Venefica"]

This was a surprise, sitting in her small office the engineer and well whatever else one of the benefits of cloning and literally having endless lives is you get to keep your previous knowledge of medical training, work on zeltros and several other locations. She had taken some small things while moving about in her seat behind the desk. The message sending for her was enough as she rose up and climbed out of the closet sized area shaking herself to a relaxed stance. Her fingers were moving over the wrist datapad as she accessed the server of the company getting some designs they could sell and a list of what they had. Slowly though she got on the shuttle heading towards the meeting location to work with this woman from another company.. not to bad. She had helped with Domino for her projects and every time there was some success well it brought credits in and that shined favorably on her. Sliding from her pocket some hard candy the Liran also had her medical bag just in case. Now it was all about the trip there and being in a carrack allowed her to show off the ship before someone who might be able to buy them for their own use.

 

[Darth Veles]

Casually strolling through the facility like an aimlessly wandering ghost, the Sith Lord had earned many surprised and confused looks of the workers who have never seen him before; each immediately broke eye contact and quickened their pace to get as far away from the Sith as possible. Everyone knew of the senseless bestiality of the One Sith, executions for merely daring to speak to the “benevolent” overlords and their murderous rabble. Staying loyal and keeping one’s head low did not guarantee survival anymore, which greatly increased fear of the population – it was only a matter of time before it escalated into a massive uprising.

Casting the gloomy thoughts away, the amphibious assassin set his mind on the task at hand. Coming from the race of one of the greatest spaceship builders in the galaxy did not guarantee each Mon Calamari knew how to build a ship – which was Avreet’s case. The Sith Lord left the work to professionals who have studied the subject, greatly respecting their work and dedication.

Up until now, there was nothing linking Darth Veles to this mysterious Covenant of the Black Rose, a group of female “Sith”. Being very much a male, the Mon Calamari had paid little attention to them in the past years, knowing no more than the occasional rumour and gossip passing around. That all changed with his beloved Sith Witch’s mention of this little cult. The old Togruta hated the One Sith even more than her amphibious apprentice, preferring the solitary life of an exile rather than suffering amongst the masses of Dark Jedi lusting for her knowledge and wisdom. They’d receive none of it; Sith knowledge belonged to none other than the last two Sith in the galaxy.

As such, Grima’s decision to be associated with the Covenant weighted heavily on her former student’s mind – had she witnessed hope for the Sith in this strange group, seeing their glorious future in one of her visions? Or did they present nothing more than a mean to survive? The Covenant’s connection to the One Sith continued to trouble Veles’ soul, chaining it in doubt, as a branch couldn’t have been from a different kind of wood than the tree. What Veles did not doubt was Zarrah’s great wisdom, her experience and power to predict the future. The wise woman’s words still rang in his ears as the Mon Cal decided to take action and see this group for himself, prepare it for Her arrival!

[member="Darth Venefica"] [member="Isis Varida"]

 

[Grima Volitu]

Life in exile had been more than just boring. It karking sucked! But the decision of exile was more than just a choice but one borne out of necessity. The galaxy, the Sith Order, and everything in between was just wrong. Horribly wrong! From her self-imposed exiled world, very little in the way of news got passed her. More importantly, her beloved Sith Order had undergone radical changes. Changes were not always a good thing. For one, this false Sith Order that chose to follow the code of Darth Krayt, fools, who believed that all Sith were created equal. The mere though of equality among Sith was an abomination. A disease. A plague. A nightmare that all dead Sith Lords would share together. From the shuttle she resided in she could hear the moans and cries from their bellowing.

She pushed away all the negative thoughts and focused on the now. It was the now that she could fix. The disease and plague she would cull later. But first things first, she had to see for her self what this Covenant of the Black Rose was all about. Through her connections, and she had many, she heard they were an all female organization but their goals and destiny was yet unclear to the Togruta witch. Would they too, like this false Sith Order, be another subject of her wrath. Her anger. Her culling. Only time would tell.

She exited the shuttle without waiting for the ramp to make it's final stop. One thing she had learned during her time in exile that the galaxy waited for no one. But she was not just a no one. She was Grima Volitu, aka Darth Zarrah. If the galaxy could wait for one individual it would surely wait for her.

A guard dressed in the traditional armour of a stormtrooper raised a hand to halt her advance. Darth Zarrah rewarded her with a smile, and gently pushed her aside with her mind. The Togruta didn't travel half across the galaxy to be hampered by a front and line soldier. She entered the facility and felt the familiar signature of a friend she had not spoken with in years.

"Avreet."

The simple name that spilled from her mouth was enough to send countless memories flooding back into her. A lone tear threatened to betray her and like everything about her, she claimed victory over weakness.

A bald looking male brushed against her and reaching out with a hand, she gripped the man's shoulder stopping his advance.

"I seek the owner of this facility."

The bald male looked her up and down before answering, "Darth Venefica. You want Darth Venefica." And then he scurried off.

"Darth Venefica"


[member="Darth Venefica"] [member="Isis Varida"] [member="Darth Veles"]

 

[Via Dolorosa]

Darth Venefica stood on a platform that overlooked the facilities main shipayard, her eyes moving right and left as they tracked the movements of the employees. Since taking over the company, she had installed a new purpose into the workers. Lack of interest for their jobs and a lack of productivity had plagued the company under the previous owner's regime; but that was all history now. With new bonuses and incentives to entice the employees, the company was flourishing under her thumb; churning out major profits at a record pace.​

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"You have a visitor, Lady Venefica," a male, scratchy voice spoke of her wrist com link.​

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"Is it the engineer I sent for," came her reply.​

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"No, mi'lady. But she is quite interested in meeting you."​

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A small sigh escaped her lips. The construction of the warship was on a tight schedule and she really had no time to entertain guests. However, if this visitor was hell bent on meeting her then she would delegate some of her time to her visitor.​

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"Send her up....and check on the status of the engineer I requested."​

​

[member="Isis Varida"] l [member="Darth Veles"] l [member="Darth Zarrah"]​

 

[Isis Varida]

[member="Darth Venefica"] [member="Darth Zarrah"] [member="Darth Veles"]

The ship came out as Isis was showing the message, the meeting she had ready to go while bringing her wrist pad and palm holo before securing the visible stal-11 for the guards who saw her. She looked at the troopers while they were bringing her towards the sith with an armed escort. Her engineers suit tight with belt and tools while her coat was over her shoulders with pockets full of candy before she was entering a room and standing there. The Liran's hand went along the ridges on her head before she was pulling out a lollipop and unwrapping it with it between her lips while she crossed her arms whistling. "Pretty nice place you have here."

 

[Darth Veles]

“Grima.”

His lips automatically muttered something without their owner even realizing it.

His body shook for no apparent reason, heart started to beat faster than before in anticipation of something. A strange sensation encompassing both excitement and joy washed over him, an overpowering feeling that automatically sent tears into the Mon Cal’s big eyes. It took a few seconds before the realization hit him. There was something powerful in the Force, or, rather, someone. The very same being responsible for Avreet Zatarus achieving his Sith status. Even as Avreet closed his eyes, taking several deep breaths to calm down and stop his heart from exploding, the familiar presence in the Force did not diminish.

Reaching out through the vast sea of the Force, following the bond between himself and the Togruta, Avreet inevitably sensed his former Master, the amphibious man’s presence gently brushing against the red-skinned Sith Lady’s. She was close, so very close it forced the Mon Cal Sith to forego all he had planned, immediately departing from his current whereabouts as he headed in the direction of [member="Darth Zarrah"]’s presence, completely ignoring the surprised gazes of a few workers he had startled by the sudden movement.

Soon enough, his physical form as well as the master assassin’s signature vanished and he travelled through the corridors entirely unnoticed, closing on the Togruta’s position. There was no doubt she’d feel him – not through the Force, but with her horns that gave all of her race the ability to feel the world in a manner similar to echolocation. The steel and sterile walls of the facility could not separate Avreet from Grima, nothing in the galaxy could achieve that. No guards and patrols keeping order within made a move against the invisible phantom strolling through the areas they were supposed to guard.

Avreet also had someone to protect.

The cold, grey surroundings greatly contrasted with the Togruta’s smooth skin coloured in crimson. The mere sight of her perfection robbed Avreet of breath, his cloak of shadows fell down and the assassin’s neutral presence in the Force has been revealed in its true form. He gulped.

“Grima.”

This time it was him consciously saying her name.

Two steps closer to stand right in front of her took all his self-control to resist the urge to hug the woman in a tight, loving embrace. Instead of that, he gently took her petite hand into his, bringing it up and delivering it a soft kiss.

“It is a surprise finding you here, my lady. I hope you don’t mind if I accompany you.”

Needless to say, he did not trust [member="Darth Venefica"]. Not at all. Leaving Grima alone with one of the Dark Lord’s Voices was unimaginable, a crime even! He had to ensure nothing happened to the greatest woman, the greatest of all Sith. Ensuring Zarrah's safety became Avreet's top priority, knowing the "Sith" from the swamps of Dagobath to be as tricky as the most slippery of snakes. And ten times as deadly.

[member="Isis Varida"]

 

[Grima Volitu]

She walked in the center between two lightly armed guards. In her youth she would have been offended by the idea she needed a babysitter to lead her along. After seeing much of this facility and what was occurring all around her she understood the need for tight security and her escort. She posed no threat to this Darth Venefica but the Sith Lady was smart enough not to allow just anyone to go walking through her facility unchecked and unknown. Caution was something Zarrah could appreciate.

While the small party drew closer to their destination she felt the familiar presence of an old Apprentice. Since most of her former pupils where either dead or simply vanished that left only one. Avreet. Dear, sweet Avreet. She abruptly stopped walking earning simultaneous sour looks from the guards when they too stopped. One of them began to speak and she willed him to silence.

"Don't worry ladies, I'm not looking to cause a disturbance."

Then Zarrah saw him. Avreet in all his shining glory had appeared before her. He had changed much since her eyes looked on him. He also had changed in the Force since she was picking up strong signals from him. In her absence he had done well for himself. She gave him a slight nod when he took her hand in his.

"Not at all. I came here to lend some assistance to the one that calls herself Darth Venefica. My wisdom does not exceed into ship building but I'm sure this is something useful this old woman can do."

Zarrah began walking forcing the two guards to catch up to her. At last they finally stood in the presence of the facilities owner. Zarrah extended one of her hands out to the woman saying, "I am Darth Zarrah. How can I be of assistance to you?"


[member="Darth Venefica"] [member="Isis Varida"] [member="Darth Veles"]

 

[Darth Timoris]

Melori arrived at the party late. A planet needed to be taken, so she'd obliged. Gratos this time...probably. Her thigh was still sore from where the Dark Jedi's saber had entered it - but apart from a slight limp, she was fine. Pain was a powerful motivator, as was lost pride - still her Achilles heel.

So disembarking from her ship - the only decent thing she'd gained from her eldest sister (apart from the training. And the credits. And the volume of datafiles. And the manuscripts for use when she reached the rank of Sith Lord. And the memories to use Teras Kasi. And...well maybe some other stuff, but essentially she'd received nothing) she set about finding her Master. All she had was a location, she she grabbed the nearest person in a uniform and demanded to be taken to Darth Venefica.

As Melori trudged the corridors looking for her Master, she wondered what the odds were that the first person she found just happened to be here to fix the drink dispenser. Anyway, she'd find her soon enough. All she needed to do was keep looking.

Surely...

[member="Darth Zarrah"] | [member="Darth Veles"] | [member="Isis Varida"] | [member="Darth Venefica"]

 

[Via Dolorosa]

Darth Venefica was not only disrupted by one guest, buy by a trio of them. Lord Veles she briefly knew. The Togruta and the blue skinned girl, who turned out to be the engineer she requested, where unknown to her. It seemed that her attention was being quartered on four fronts, with the last piece of the puzzle in the distance in the form of her Apprentice. The Sith Lady began to laugh. ​

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"Forgive me for my laughter. It is uncommon for me to entertain so many guests at once," she said trying to prioritize in her mind who to address first.​

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"Dr. Varida.....I believe I have something for you to look at. Your expertise in ship design is second o none."​

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Darth Venefica handed the blue-skinned engineer her datapad. The specs, designs, the layout, and everything to the minute detail was on the datapad. Turning her focus to Lord Veles, who appeared to be glowing as he stood next to the female Togruta, she mentally wondered why he was here. Then it dawned on her that he was a Mon Calamari, a species that was renowned for their ship building craftsmanship.​

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"Lord Veles....I'm alittle surprised to see you here. I hope you haven't come to kill someone I know," she said waving her hand to dismiss her words, "Is true what they say....your species are master hip barriers?"​

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The last word to Lord Veles barely cleared her lips when she noticed the Togruta staring at here.​

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"And you my dear...must be Darth Zarrah. However, Lord Veles has mentioned you so frequently that I feel as though I know you. What brings you here?​

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"Ah Apprentice....just in time. Have you met the others?"​

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[member="Darth Timoris"] l [member="Darth Zarrah"] l [member="Darth Veles"] l [member="Isis Varida"]​

 

[Darth Veles]

The joyful moment of reunion lasted only for a short while, no more than a few seconds, both of them knew no amount of time would be long enough to share all their stories that happened when their paths separated and went their own way up until now. The two friends needed to properly catch up, discuss everything imaginable, enjoy each other’s presence, but such thing required a more intimate place, just for the two of them to share. Losing no more time, the amphibious assassin soundlessly paced right beside the red-skinned Togruta, his eyes occasionally finding a way to feast on the woman’s grace and beauty. Grima always carried herself with such elegance, the horns on her head further underlining her majestic appearance. Almost like a crown.

The rightful queen walked through the facility, her knight in shining armour making her company.

An entirely neutral expression spread over his face, the Mon Cal was not willing to have everyone know of what kind of passion burned within his heart. Definitely not when a Sith Lady awaited them, one of the many who would use the strong relationship between the Torguta Sith and her old apprentice against them. Many gazes followed them closely as the duo marched through the facility towards Venefica’s office. Frowning slightly, the Mon Cal put on a frown and gulped when he spotted the monster from swamps and another gentlebeing. The Sith Lord offered [member="Isis Varida"] a courtly smile with a nod, and turned his focus towards the other women, wary of Venefica still.

[member="Darth Venefica"]’s burst of laughter for no apparent reason made Avreet cringe before he shot [member="Darth Zarrah"] a glance, the look in his eyes very much summing up all his thoughts. The spark in his orbs was gone way before Venefica addressed him, to which he responded with than the same smile he had already offered Dr. Varida.

“Do not worry, lady Venefica. I am not here to deliver any message from your enemies. Instead of sending someone you know to the Void, my purpose here is to assist you with the operation. Although, I am afraid, I am a better messenger than I am a ship engineer.” He spoke politely, softly, as always.

Memories of his dogfight with Mandalorians on Teta still carried a bitter taste of humiliation and loss. He had underestimated them, but who would have expected starfighters made out of baskar, completely invisible to the naked eye and undetectable on radars, an ysalamiri in each of them? The ship he had commanded back then stood no chance against two of these small beasts. Perhaps if he shared the experience with...

Another familiar signature made an appearance. [member="Darth Timoris"]. Blinking, the Sith Lord's smile vanished as his head slowly started to turn, then stopped and focused on the swamp Sith again, the smile back as if it never left his lips.

 

[Isis Varida]

[member="Darth Veles"] [member="Darth Venefica"] [member="Darth Timoris"] [member="Darth Zarrah"]

Isis looked at the other sith who arrived while she remained passive, her hand going to the datapad and she was looking over the details of the ship the woman wanted to make while she was bringing her datapad up. "I'll look it over and here a list of Damorian products we are offering, as yet there are no prices set. We're working to get Damorian Manufacturing back to a name but first have to reinvigorate peoples interests." Which works out great for some people who need ships cause trade over credits. "From the looks of it, this will be doable, we might be able to give you some of the new anti fighter weapons we have been working on. Though credits while important is not as valuable as some of the things you ladies have access to. My engineers need something to handle lightsabers, people seem to like attacking everyone when they board and training new engineers is hard."

 

[Darth Timoris]

Melori nodded to her Master. She had met some of them before - time was an odd concept sometimes. And clearly she had upset the Mon Cal some time in the past or the future - but she was here for the Sisterhood, not to make friends.

So she took up a spot near her Master. Almost beside her but slightly behind her. In her shadow. It was a metaphorical and literal positioning. She may be a Sith Knight but she was also Venefica's Apprentice - and would always see herself as such.

So she waited and listened, prepared to give advice when requested and listening and learning the rest of the time. She had a lot to learn still. Less so her use of the Force, more her use of power, of politics. Of managing situations and people. So she kept her counsel for now and waited dutifully.

[member="Isis Varida"] | [member="Darth Veles"] | [member="Darth Venefica"] | [member="Darth Zarrah"]

 

[Grima Volitu]

Zarrah looked over at Veles briefly before turning back to address this awkwardly dressed woman. "Like I said when I introduced myself. I'm hear to assist you. I have some knowledge on how ships are built. Very limited knowledge. More knowledge than being a simple errand girl."

Zarrah needed to work on her social skills. Life in exile had stolen her ability to interact with others. The words she spoke to Venefica sounded harsh even to her ears. Making apologies was not in the Togruta's nature. The harsh toned words were spoken and they would just move on from there. Zarrah wanted to help. Not make more enemies.

"I noticed on my way through the facility that you have several projects ongoing." The words she spoke sounding more sociable. "If you would be so kind to pointe me in the right direction maybe I can help you. As a bonus I'll the Veles with me. I could use a messenger."

Zarrah turned to look at Veles a second time. The look on her face meant she didn't like the idea of him self-delegating the role of messenger.


[member="Darth Venefica"] [member="Darth Veles"] [member="Isis Varida"] [member="Darth Timoris"]