Citing your Sources

[Valik]

A bit weary from travel Valik groggily left his ship, setting foot upon the Epicanthix world of Panatha. The last time he'd set foot here he had business with the planet's ruler, a former Sith Emperor who fashioned himself as a "God-King". Foolishly egotistical, but he supposed most great Sith were. When a man was extremely talented overconfidence sometimes bred into self-fulfilling prophecy. Quite simply one was more likely to become the best if they wouldn't accept second place. Or they'd die along the way biting off more than they could chew.

In any case, Valik was here for the same reason he was last, to procure some information for an upcoming project. He'd actually been granted use of the God-Kings Apothecary, but never used the public docks when he was doing so. His open appearance was a message that he wished to meet with the God-King again, and to Panatha Port Security's credit, not a message that went unnoticed, as a burly Epicanthix security guard closed in on him quickly.

Not one to waste time Valik didn't bother speaking with him, only handing the man his lightsaber, confirming he wouldn't be needing weapons where he was going. He suspected the Epicanthix would get the message and relay it as Valik walked towards the the God-King's palace. He'd be there soon, but walked slowly enough that Kaine would still have quite a bit advanced warning to his arrival. Chuckling softly as he walked along he wondered if the man was still sitting upon a black iron throne, filling the decadent desires many men dreamed of.

[member="Darth Vornskr"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Most of the time the great Emperor (Former King, former God-King, etc etc etc) of Panatha would greet his guests from atop his black iron throne, but today was different. The Emperor was instead laid out upon a cold gurney as a pair of doctors overlooked his failing body, studying and analyzing the corruption brought upon him by years of Dark Side abuse. His body was slowly becoming more and more frail with each passing day, but it was still quite an impressive body to look out despite this, one that had been built upon years of physical training alongside the inborn muscularity all Epicanthix were gifted with. "Milord, the corruption is expanding rapidly to an extent we had not predicted, your body is being consumed by the power you wield. It's only a matter of ti-" The Doctor's words were cut off as a telekinetic hand wrapped it's fingers around his neck, and crushed it.

The Emperor was tired of all of these doctors telling him what he already knew, and before the other doctor could suffer the same fate he was dismissed by the irritated Emperor. Sighing, Kaine slid off of the gurney and quickly redressed in a set of black silk clothes covered by a maroon cloak, and quickly departed the hospital wing of his castle to head up to the antechamber leading to the throne room, where his guest would be waiting. Once the Emperor entered the chamber where Warren Valik was kept, he met him with a respectfully nod and a firm handshake. "It pleases me to see you again, Lord Valik. What brings to my home this time?"

[member="Valik"]

 

[Valik]

Though the body of [member="Darth Vornskr"] was fading it was not yet at a point where it was extremely apparent, and Valik, while an associate of sorts with the man once known as Kaine Zambrano, he wasn't well enough acquainted to be able to tell the man was a degrading. So as the planet's ruler greeted him and shook his hand Valik tried to match his grip, albeit unsuccessfully due to the lack of the strength that the twiggish scientist possessed, but a confident handshake was given nonetheless.

"More research I must admit. I'm compiling a sort of, dissertation on Alchemy as a whole since the recolonization of the Galaxy after the 400 years Darkness. I have intimate knowledge of all of my creations of course, but I was hoping to examine the works of others, see what methods they've used and achievements they've wrought. I'd be willing to do some work for you in return for allowing me to examine any of your creations you might have lying about the palace." Valik explained, wasting no time and getting straight down to business. Their last exchange was a profitable one from both sides, and he expected this encounter to follow suit. The only real question was, what would Vornskr want this time?

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"An admirable endeavor, Lord Valik. Luckily for you I have such a artifact you could inspect." He waved for Warren to follow him farther into the castle, more specifically to Kaine's personal armory, which borders on the Apothecarium and the entryway into the dungeons down below. The chunk of metal hitting metal could be heard as they passed through a balcony overlooking the Graug-section of the castle grounds, where the brutish creatures were hard at work constantly forging weapons and armor for Kaine's personal guard. While these Graug did not have a large understanding of the complicated art of Sith Alchemy, they were fortunately aided by Vanr Warlocks, who had an understanding of Sith Alchemy and Sith Magic. The winged near-humans would hover nearby as the Graug worked, and would imbue their magics into the forging process.

Anger and hatred were deeply woven into the weapons and armor they created, each piece forged in the Dark Side, making those that wielded them dangerous foes. However; they were nothing compared to what the Emperor himself created, which included his personal suit of armor that hung upon a stand at the far end of his personal armory. Most of it was phrik plates salvaged from old 'HYDRA' commando armor, reforged and pieced together with all of Kaine's passions, and even his own blood. Next to the suit of armor was an amulet forged in the fires of Aza'zoth by Kaine and Rave, and had both of their signatures intertwined within the artifact. "I admit I have not created much, but these are two of my most finest works. Perhaps they will be what you are looking for?"

[member="Valik"]

 

[Valik]

Valik smiled as the Epicanthix noted his approval and compliance. After the man's wave he followed the Panathan farther into the castle, heading past the Apothecarium and the entryway to the Palace's prisons. The constant ring of hammer smacking hot metal could be heard as huge, primitive beast-men were hard at work, smithing weapons and armor, presumably for Kaine's forces. Along their sides were slighter winged men, the Vanr. The older Sithspawn race worked alongside, handling more precise work to imbue the blades with a darker energy. While Valik wasn't a stronger man compared to most Sith Lords he could feel his environment well enough as the malice and ire hung in the room like an unseen fog. Finally they arrived at the Emperor's Work, a set of armor and a Sith Amulet. As Kaine confessed he hadn't been the prolific alchemist Valik only smiled. He didn't need many creations, just one, two at most. This would do just fine.

"This is exactly what I am looking for." He said, obviously pleased. "I don't need to keep them, and I won't damage them or alter them in anyways, just need a little to examine them." He clarified, making sure it was known he wasn't trying to cause trouble. "What can I offer you in return?" He asked, getting to business. After all, nothing in this world was free.

[member="Darth Vornskr"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Kaine mulled Valik's question over for a moment or so in his head before coming to a conclusion, and quickly turned to one of the containers in the private armory and looking through it's contents. Once he finally found what he was looking for did he return to Valik, a clothed bundle resting gently in his hands. He presented the bundle before the Sith Lord, and uncovered what lay hidden within, which just so happened to be a pair of Mandalorian Crushgaunts. He had retrieved these powerful weapons from a Mandalorian he had slain on a field of battle long ago, ((Objective: Perform a mining operation, a raid, an excavation, or steal to obtain Mandalorian Iron Ore from any of the following planets: Mandalore, Concordia –OR— inflict a devastating defeat on a Mandalorian character and have them verify it. http://starwarsrp.net/topic/23427-the-end-of-the-demon/)) and had kept them locked up for a special occasion. It seemed like a great coincidence that Valik had shown up at this moment to see his works of alchemy, "These, as you know, are Mandalorian crushgaunts. What I desire is to imbue these gauntlets with Sith amulets to augment my power in the Dark Side of the Force."

Do you think that can be accomplished?"

[member="Valik"]

 

[Valik]

Valik let out a small chuckle, not stifling his amusement, but being careful not to laugh so much as to sound disrespectful.

"Anything can be accomplish with proper talent and resources." He responded, both agreeing to the deal and declaring his skill. "Is there any particular skill you wish to bolster?" He asked curiously, wondering if the emperor wanted a concentrated boost to one skill or a more generalized boost to everything.

[member="Darth Vornskr"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Kaine once again fell into a state of silent contemplation, his mind working on uncovering the perfect answer to Valik's question concerning the augmentation of the crushgaunts. Finally he found the answer after a solid minute of internal debating, "Besides increasing my power in the Dark Side, I desire the crushgaunts to enhance my physical strength so that I may crush any enemy that would dare oppose me. Do this for me, and I will eternally be grateful. You have done much for me, and I count you among some of my greatest allies, Warren Valik." He meant it too, and there were not many who shared that list.

[member="Valik"]

 

[Valik]

Valik pondered the man's reply for a moment. He was hoping that the Epicanthix had a certain ability or power he wished to be stronger in, but he could still run with a more general idea. Increase power in the Force could be done by creating a nexus with the item, an admittedly longer process that would take a while, and he wasn't quite sure if he wanted to just give those away in any case. Or perhaps he could make the gauntlet draw power from the Force around Kaine, allowing him a sort of 'battery' to help power him. That . . . that would do just fine, and after a recent excursion with a new test subject he had just the idea on how to get it done.

"I'll be back here in two hours to change the Crushgaunts. I have an idea of what I'm going to do to them, but I'll need to gather some data from my ship first. I'll use the apothecary once again and I expect to be uninterrupted. I trust that should be suitable?"

[member="Darth Vornskr"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"None shall dare disturb you from your work, lest they wish to face my wrath." The Emperor said with a movement of his arms, each one going from his chest to his sides in a sort of welcoming gesture, perhaps meaning that he would embrace them with his fury, or maybe it was for flare and had no underlying meaning other than that. Most likely the latter, but I digress. "I shall anxiously await your return, Lord Valik. When you return, the apothecarium will be all yours."

[member="Valik"]

 

[Valik]

"Excellent" Valik replied before heading back to his ship. Once he got there he looked around through various datapads, looking for an old experiment he'd ran on a man with quite the curious ability. Once he managed to find the data he glanced over it, looking to make sure he had records on the effects, the placebo, and how it affected the man and his target. It was thorough data, one Valik had spent a lot of time examining for another project of his. One that would bring the galaxy in awe, but that was for another time, another story. Today he had to improve crushgaunts, so he'd improve crushgaunts.

Heading to the Apothecary he found it just as the Panathan Lord had promised, well stocked in materials, but critically lacking in sentients. Just how he preferred it. The crushgaunts were left on a table for him to enhance to the Panathan Lord's specifications. Taking out his notes on the Stennes Shifter he'd met in the past he examined the data from the man's blood sample, how his body reacted when the Stennes consumed the Force being exerted around it. After a while of comparing notes he believed he found a way to instill the property into the gloves. It wouldn't be a consistent boost in power, but it would help him more as he fought more people and more powerful people, and would also manifest as a small defensive ability against people using the Force against him.

It took a few hours of hard concentration and instillation through alchemy to instill the ability unto the gauntlets, but he believed he had done it. He needed only to make sure that the it worked at intended. So he put on the right gauntlet and put out a small display of lightning with his left hand, before shifting the flow of energy from his left to his right. The lightning reached a little farther, yet he hadn't put more energy from one hand to the other. Excellent. He then did the same with the left gauntlet, pouring out electricity from his naked right hand, then from his gauntlet wearing right, paying close attention how far the lightning stretched from either hand. After that was done he tried a test with neither hand equipped, then both, still carefully observing the length and power of the action during each attempt. It seemed that Valik's creation worked.

Leaving the apothecary he headed to one of the servents prowling the halls.

"Please inform the Emperor his gauntlets are ready and I will meet him at the armory" He said, and then headed over to the Forge he'd been escorted to earlier, awaiting [member="Darth Vornskr"]'s return.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The Emperor arrived swiftly, anxious to see what Valik had created for him, and what it could do. He was flanked by his most trusted warriors, the High-Praetorian Guards Xander and Baleric, both of whom had been with the Sith Lord since the 'HYDRA' program. Both of them wore black plastoid armor reminiscent of the Shadow Guard's armor during the time of the Galactic Empire under Palpatine. Each wielded an elongated lightsaber pike, both unlit at the moment, but each Praetorian thumbed the activation trigger anxiously. They were bred on war and violence, but had taught to reserve their urges for when they were required, but lately there had not been a reason for them to let loose their anger. Emperor Zambrano himself was dressed in the same garb as before, and with a billowing of his maroon cloak he approached Valik.

"It is done then? Very good, my dear friend, Lord Valik. Your payments are always most appreciated."

[member="Valik"]

 

[Valik]

Valik handed over the crushgaunts to the Panathan Emperor.

"These gauntlets absorb the energy of the Force around them and channel them into whatever you choose to do with them. Making attacks on you less effective and attacks against others more effective. Of course, someone using the Force to power them isn't necessary, as every living creature exerts the Force, but naturally being around more powerful individuals or more active Force users will make it more potent." He explained. It wasn't exactly what the man had asked for, but it was quite the powerful effect nonetheless.

"I trust this will be satisfactory?"

[member="Darth Vornskr"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"It will suffice."

Kaine took the gauntlets from Valik's grip, studying them slowly over before he slipped each one over his hands, flexing his fingers individually. "Expert work, as always my friend. I cannot wait to test their combat capabilities against a Force User, perhaps a Jedi. Yes, most likely a Jedi..." He could feel the power coursing through the gauntlets, the enhancements Valik imbued into the beskar absorbing the Force from the surroundings and channeling it into delicious energy. "Mhmmm, yes. You have provided me ample payment, you may continue with your studies of my artifacts, Lord Valik."

[member="Valik"]

 

[Valik]

The Panathan Emperor gave him a few contradictory statements, first a back-handed 'good enough' then a compliment on his work. He supposed it didn't matter in the end, as the Panathan Emperor still allowed him access to that which he came here for.

"Happy hunting then Kaine." He said, noting the man's penchant for hunting Jedi. Despite any differences the two might have had in philosophy they could all agree less Jedi in the galaxy was a benefit. Those who coddled the weak only made the galaxy weaker by default. A good culling would go a long way. In any case, he wasn't here to discuss the Jedi or their removal, so he gave the man a curt nod and headed into the armory, finding the Panathan's personal armory, still filled with the armor and Amulet. Picking up the amulet he grabbed it for but a moment, travelling back in time and seeing it's creation, forged by Kaine and Rave, then it's history and use afterwards. Once he had seen what he needed he placed it back into the armory, then put a hand on the armor, viewing it's history in quite the same way. It seemed the armor had been with Kaine for quite a while, and had many stories to tell, but Valik only needed one. It's creation. Once he had gotten that he let his hand free and left the armory. Psychometry was a beautiful, beautiful thing, and it have given Valik everything he needed.