Private Interview with a vampi....dragon?

[Ulrich]

Puppet shows are something of a dead art. Every so often someone will, of course, dredge them up as a novelty, or as part of cultural revival. My interest in such matters caused me to search up performances on the holonet. Everything from the low Punch and Judy shows of old Urth to the high Echani martial romances. The puppeteer must be cognizant no only of his own body but the manner in which his movements effect the marionette. Should the puppet jerk or twist in a manner more fitting of one in the thralls of possession then the spell would be broken. Earlier this week I took the first steps towards my own mastery of the manikin. My partner in this venture was the ghost of a human girl by the name of Cecily. It had been her body that I had been practicing with. Animating and moving corpses, was of course, one of the basic tricks of the necromancer. I could do it easily, but actually having my psyche inhabit one such body was a different prospect entirely.

My initial attempts to possess Cecily's body had been ... poor to say the least. Despite being almost perfectly preserved, and with no signs of rot or rigor mortis I found moving in a hominid shape to be very difficult. When I did manage to walk it looked unnatural at best, and downright unnerving at worst. This was completely counterproductive to my aims, after all the reason why I was using a borrowed body was so I might go to Coruscant without enduring the perils that might befall me should I make an appearance in person. In the end I settled for letting Cecily herself take charge of the body, while I rode around as a passenger in her psyche. The girl had lived in it for nearly thirteen years after all, she could be counted on knowing how to use it well.

My real body was situated on the planet Chiron, where I meditated in my mountain keep. I had sent Cecily on a flight from Chirion to Coruscant , something that she had enjoyed immensely. After losing her life at the hands of a Mandalorian bounty hunter, who who was carrying out a hit on her family, she was eager to experience the joy of returning to the flesh. Though my sorcery I would allow her to walk among the living again for a time, and in return she would help me carry out a few errands. One of these errands was going to meet a young woman by the name of Deena Mott. Miss Mott was a journalist, and something of a firebrand if what I heard was true. She had made a name for herself by not giving in to pressure and even putting her personal safety and career on the line if it meant getting a story out there.

I had contacted Deena via the holonet. To do so I had used my credentials as a professor of thanatology and history that I had earned at Coruscant university. While I had achieved these positions via distance and through a false identity, I had still earned my titles legitimately, and even been part of research expeditions with more open minded colleagues. I had introduced myself as Dr Wagner and mentioned that I had a story that would shed new light on one of the major factions of the galaxy. Why had I done this? Because I felt it was time to finally get my peoples story out into the open. It was time for the galaxy at large to see the Mandalorians for the monsters they were. Let their romantic image of daring soldiers and dashing rogues be crushed under the weight of truth. If Deena had half the respect for truth that I had heard she would be the perfect person to relay my tale.

So I waited as Cecily walked through the bustling streets of Coruscant. Wearing a bright blue tshirt under a zipped up hoodie matched with a skirt and leggings and a small backpack she could be any schoolgirl out enjoying her weekend. Her blonde hair and light blue eyes sparkling with of the innocence of youth. The hole from the slug that had ripped through her guts, ending her life, was neatly sewn shut and hidden beneath her clothes. Her body temperature would be cool to the touch but it was a relatively chilly day and there were various near-human races whose standard body heat was far cooler than that of urthlings.

Soon enough she had found the building in which Deena made her home. Getting past the doorman with little trouble Cecily made for the elevator and pressed the button that took her to the floor where Deena's apartment was located. A few seconds more and the elevator had made it to the floor. Cecily whistled to herself as she walked down the corridor checking numbers as she went. And there it was. Raising a hand Cecily knocked politely before speaking.

"Excuse me , Miss Mott? My name is Cecily Orris. I'm here on behalf of Professor Wagner. He set up a meeting to talk to you a little while ago. He can't make it in person, but he sent me along with a holoprojector so you could still do your interview. "

Deena Mott

 

[Deena Mott]

"Where is he?"

Honestly it wasn't the first time someone tried to duck an interview with Denna, that was usually tip off that something was off. The last person who did so was a Gran who spearheaded a large fraud at Malastare where he and some rich CEOs inflated their earnings to maintain their stock price. Denna found out by convincing the Vice President to do an internal audit while continuing to collect proof through interviews with anonymous employees and even managed to "persuade" one of the ringleaders to fess up. The Gran thought it was going to be some puff piece that could help his image but as soon as he found out it was Denna, he tried to back out. His fate was already sealed though since Denna ran a expose section on the Holonet about the shady dealings the Gran had with his business.

The Gran was sentenced to 25 years in GA prison for the Galaxywide fraud but not without leaving a few of his "friends" to "deal" with Denna. She didn't mind having enemies though, to her it was a sign of being a successful journalist. If you're not being threatened then you aren't doing your job, most "journalists" now and days are just paid shills to the establishment where they get paid millions of credits to regurgitate propaganda for their respective faction. Denna? Well there was a reason why she went independent. Now here was Denna sitting in her apartment awaiting an interview but the man didn't bother to come instead, Denna heard a knock on her door and she came up to open it.

"Well if he couldn't make it," Denna rolled her eyes. "A simple Holocall would've sufficed, we could've set the necessary precautions for the interview." She sighed. "But set it up on my table." Denna quickly ran over to hastily remove the papers that cluttered the table. She was one messy girl, something that she kinda took pride in. Denna was often busy perusing leads she just loved keeping busy.

"Big guy can't even make a promise to come here on time as well," Denna said chuckling. "He's about an hour late."

Ulrich

 

[Ulrich]

As Cecil was allowed into the room I was able to get a look at Denna. Average height for a human with dark hair that might be considered brown or black depending on the light. Other humans would probably consider her to be quite attractive. She was also quite young. That made sense, the galaxy hadn't had time to grind the fire out of her spirit just yet. I wanted someone like that to tell my story. Someone who wouldn't just shrug and say that life was a queen to everyone. There wasn't much that could be done about my particular plight, but the spirits were angry. My ancestors wanted someone to tell of what happened and I was the only one who could give them voice. Deena could take that voice and amplify it a thousand, no a million fold. To all the corners of the galaxy.

As Cecily went and placed the holoprojector on the table, I broke my mental connection with the small revenant, returning my consciousness back to my body. Before me was the twin of the machine I had given to Cecily which I activated with a touch from one of my foreclaws. On the table in front of Deena a projection of my body along with the surrounding environment would be displayed in blue flickering light. What she would see was an image that nearly every child across the galaxy had at one time or other been exposed to one form of media or another - a dragon. Wings , scales horns and claws one of the grandest apex predators that the galaxy had ever produced. Nature (or was it the gods?) had gifted me with natural abilities strong enough to tear a rancor to shreds without the need for any fashioned weapon. Yet despite this appearance I was no unthinking beast, far from it. That was what lay at the heart of the tragedy I was about to relay. Opening my mouth I began to address the young journalist.

"Good afternoon Miss Mott. I must apologize for not managing to make this particular meeting in person. However as you can see travel to places such as Coruscant is somewhat difficult to me given my circumstances. I am as I have previously introduced myself to you Professor Wagner alma mater of the university of Coruscant which I believe you are also an alumni of. As you may ascertain I received my qualifications via correspondence instead of on site learning. Please feel free to dispense with formalities however and simply call me Ulrich."

I took a short breath before continuing on with my introduction.

"In the interests of an open and honest dialogue I shall disclose several things before we continue. The first of these is that I am a member of the Sith Order. I know that we have a poor reputation among the populace and in many cases this is deserved. I have my reasons for joining and would be happy to expand upon them to you should you wish to know why as part of our interview. Second is that aside from the obvious problems of simply not fitting into your apartment I have powerful enemies who would be perfectly fine with taking you out in an attempt on my life. Again, I can expand on this at length during our interview if you so desire. Lastly , while you may be put off by my appearance, I ask you to view this as an opportunity. My situation is something of a unique one, and I can offer a tale that may drastically alter the universe's perception of one of the great political forces in the galaxy today."

With that I had said my piece. It might seem crazy to some. My story was after all one built on one improbability after the other. It wasn't a glorious one, and I myself was far from a glorious individual. If Deena wished to see me as a monster so be it as long as her journalistic spirit was strong enough to carry my tale to the ears of the people. But there are monsters, and there are monsters, the ones that I wished to speak to her of were those whose monstrousness was hidden behind a façade of beskar and honor.

Deena Mott

 

[Deena Mott]

Wiping the many papers and SpiceStick butts from her couch, Denna sat down chuckling at the mess she made. She spent the day researching articles and reading into conspiracies to the point where she forgot to clean up. Even though Cecily wasn't exactly that mysterious man she met at the Holonet, it was rather unprofessional for her to see that Denna practically lived in a pigsty. Hell, some shrinks would probably say that Denna was a hoarder which was a lie. She was just a very messy person who often forgets to clean on occasion. "Sorry about the mess Cecily," Denna said getting out her small notebook and pencil.

Compared to many Journalists, Denna was pretty old school to the point of primitive. In an age where writing can be done in a matter of milliseconds, Denna chose to write in a notebook. Yet Denna didn't mind writing in fact she liked wring in a notebook, it just immerses her more in her work. Besides all of Denna's questions were written into the book. Denna made and sold Notebooks on the Holonet she surprisingly turned in a profit which she used the Credits to buy her own ship. It was a small used Corellian YT-1300 light freighter which she bought from some Er'Kit Smuggler on the Darknet. He was fresh off Prison for breaking and entering and assault with a deadly weapon and wanted to start a new life. It was one of many stories that Denna heard over the years, even though she believed that criminals can be reformed many go back. The ship was in good condition and had some mods like AI controlled turrets. Pretty sweet considering Denna wasn't exactly an expert pilot.

"Right," Denna snorted leaning against the chair and opening her notebook analyzing her questions. "Let's get this show-"

Cecily activated the Holoprojector revealing not a man..... but a Dragon. Denna nearly dropped her pencil seeing the Dragon staring at her almost sending shivers down her spine. "Started," she finished in a whisper.

The Dragon whom Denna thought was Professor Wagner called himself Ulrich which Denna tried but failed to speak. One of the few times that words had failed her. "So what is this?" Denna said leaning forward a bit. "Is this what? Your virtual avatar? It ain't uncommon to see people hack in and replace their image with an avatar."

V-streamers do it all the time, usually in the form of oversexualized Twileaks and of course when one looks behind the curtain, it's usually a fat, balding man. Denna almost laughed at that thought, perhaps the Professor was actually some fat, balding man behind a intimidating Dragon yet what he said shut Denna up immediately.

"The Sith Empire?!" Denna said incredulously. "I gotta say I'm not surprise to see that some of you guys survived considering you all are the Cockroaches of the Galaxy. Yet how do I know that you're a Sith? Lots of people around claim to be Sith Lords only to turn out to be cult leaders."

Then again the Sith were cult as well.

"In any case," Denna snapped. "If you think this is some puff piece then you got your head stuck up your ass."

Part of Denna did wonder though why would the Sith emerge this early? It would be interesting to see what they were up to. Even if the Sith were notorious liars, Denna was confident in her ability to tell if they're lying.

"But try me," Denna said looking at her notebook. "Why are you here? What are the Sith doing now that the Brotherhood of the Maw has quickly supplanted you all as supreme Dark Siders?"

Ulrich

 

[Ulrich]

I didn't need to be a force user to sense the incredulity and doubt in her voice. That was natural, after all I was making some extraordinary claims. Her distaste for the Sith was also understandable. In the past the Sith had taken actions which normal men and women would find abhorrent. But it was where fate had placed me as, for better or worse, the hand of providence had set me on the left hand path. The fact that Deena wasn't simply going to accept me at face value was well and good. I was going to be honest here , even brutally honest if she really wished to know certain things. I would tell her that it was in part the actions of Darth Carnifex that had inspired me into the fold for the Sith. I would tell her how I had rent flesh and bone with my talons and scoured flesh with energy and fire. And I would do these things again for my safety and for the chance that my kind might one day have a future. Deena wasn't a sycophant, nor did I want her to be be one. Scour my testimony as you will and you will not find it lacking.

"Oh I hardly profess to being a Sith Lord. In truth I am barely removed from my days as an acolyte, and even then this promotion was self given in the chaos during the fall of the Shaper's regime. While I can't prove that what I'm projecting isn't simply a digital façade I can perhaps offer some proof that my claims of being a darkside practitioner are true. Cecily if you will please show Miss Mott what killed you. Also Miss Mott please don't do anything rash and attack Cecily. She really is just an innocent girl whose future was stolen by someone whose warped code of honor placed his profit over her life"

There was a sad smile on Cecily's face as her hands went to her tshirt and began to lift it up. She had been enjoying her day as a normal teenager walking around Coruscant and taking in the simple joys of life. That was over now. Our spirits persist eternal, but mages are not gods, not even a necromancer can grant true resurrection. Just above Cecily's navel was the site of the slug wound. It was a brutal thing, a ragged hole that tore right through her skin and guts to emerge from the other side. Dead as she was it did not drip with blood and ichor, but simply showed the grey stillness of inanimate organs. It was not the body of a living person. I allowed Deena a moment to take this in before continuing.

"As you can see Cecily here is a revenant. That means that, unlike a zombie who lacks identify and simply follows orders, she is the soul of a departed person who through magical means has been allowed to reanimate the body she once left. I think that should be enough to prove the veracity of at least one of my claims. As to your question regarding what the Sith are doing at the moment I am not privy to the higher echelons of power, but I can say that our new leader is a man by the name of Telis. Much like Cecily here, he is also among the ranks of the undead, though he is one of the Sangnir, or as you might more commonly know them vampires. My communications with him have been brief, but from what I have gleaned he is, as many of his ilk, a conqueror like the boyars and voivodes of old Urth. I suspect that Telis and by extension Sith as a whole shall spread his condition of undeath out across the galaxy. "

I raised my claw to scratch at my chin before continuing.

"As to the purpose of this interview. I wish to share my history as, well as the history of my species. I doubt you, or for that matter the vast majority of the galaxy's populace has ever heard of us. I'm not a Duinuogwuin by the way . Though we are closely related, my kind were not nearly as fortunate as our cousins. It's not a pleasant tale. But I think you are the sort of person who would prefer even a sordid truth over saccharine lies."

Deena Mott

 

[Deena Mott]

Things just got a hell of a lot stranger.

Not that Deena was accustomed to strange in her line of work it was natural to expect the unusual if one is to practice real journalism. However the Sith usually take strange to a whole new level. Denna's dark eyes shifted to the young woman who gave her a sad smile, hard to believe that Cecily was actually a zombie. Denna was completely fooled by her innocent demeanor, but it lead to even more questions something that Denna felt uncomfortable asking but she wouldn't be a journalist if she shied away from asking the hard questions.

"Interesting species," Denna responding quickly beginning to write some notes in her notebook. "Scientists hypothesized that there are billions of unclassified species especially in the unknown regions."

Denna tried her best not to lash out at Ulrich for having a once living teenager under his control. "Don't worry about me about attacking Cecily Ulrich," she said her tone full of ice. "I'm more repulsed at the fact that you're using a woman's corpse to do your bidding. I'm sorry but it's things like this is why the Sith are heavily disliked in the galaxy."

Objectivity was hard to achieve when a person is inheritably biased, Denna likes to think of herself as open minded but given what Ulrich had just revealed it was sickening to see the poor girl be this Dragon's puppet. "I'll give you this," Denna sighed. "At least your honest well at least so far."

And that was damned by faint praise.

"So your leader Telis," Denna said continuing to write in her book. "Who is he? Is a high ranking Sith who happened to take over after the leadership collapsed? What is he aiming to do differently to ensure that the Sith Empire will not crumble as it once did during the Stygan Campaign?"

Ulrich

 

[Ulrich]

More questions regarding Telis. Well if that was my price to pay for a hearing then I guess I would be obliged to provide what little I did know. To be fair this wasn't an awful lot. It is after all rather hard to betray secrets that one doesn't possess in the first place.

"You are eager to tap a source for all its worth Miss Mott. I shall offer what I know on the subject, but I do hope you will indulge me with some degree of reciprocation when it comes to taking down the details of my story. What I understand of Telis is that unlike Shaper, who was an ancient entity far removed from humanity, and Prazutis who was a true scion of the sith regime, Telis began his life here on this very planet of Coruscant. His early years were that of a successful businessman and entrepreneur. This allows a sort of familiarity with the way both the Galactic Alliance and the Jedi operate which will allow him to better formulate ways to better survive in our fallen state. Let me also reiterate he is a vampire lord. You will have watched enough holodramas to know that the whampir are extremely difficult to kill and are capable of producing legions of lesser servants through their blood. Telis's very blood allows him to create armies of superhuman killers ready to take to the battlefield"

Deena's comments and tone about my use of Cecily as my emissary were sadly expected. Jedi moral philosophy combined with the fact that many undead were quite hostile to the living brought about a negative view of my art on most 'civilized' worlds.

"I understand that to an outside observer ,especially one who has grown up within the Jedi's paradigm, my choice of emissary may seem grotesque and possibly tyrannical. Cecily isn't my slave, and any bidding she does for me is of her own volition. She is what I might describe as a kindred spirit, if you forgive the pun, for her circumstances in some ways mirror my own."

Feeling a stiffness in my wings I stretched them allowing the breeze to catch the membranes before I spoke on.

"You mentioned the outer rim in conjunction with my species. That couldn't be further from the mark. In fact my people originate from one of Coruscant's closest neighbors, the planet Basilisk. Of course at present it is little more than a barren rock devoid of life, but it wasn't always as such. We Basiliskans are old as a species, incredibly old. While the timeline of events is difficult to place exactly I suspect that we were contemporaries of the Rakatan empire. What is known is that we along with our cousins the Duinigouin we were some of the earliest species to achieve space travel which is why we show up through the galaxy in the mythology of so many races , yours included of course. Another little known detail is that our interbreeding with the Duinigouin produced the hybrid offspring that could be termed 'lesser dragons'. Yes the Krayt of Tatooine are a remnant of our legacy as are the wyverns of Arkania. We were always genetically unstable and so this interbreeding produced many children who lacked higher functions and were little more than animals. The Kadri'Ra are to my knowledge the only exception to this, but they are aren't particularly relevant to this tale. Families are known to bicker and fight and so war came about between the Basiliskans and the Duinigouin. To put it bluntly we lost. Retreating back to our home-world in a much diminished state, we spent millennia trying to recoup our losses."

I paused to take a breath. Hopefully this would be enough to hook her. This part of the tale had an almost quaint and mythlike quality to it. Dragons spreading throughout the galaxy and doing battle with each other. It was the sort of thing that legends were made of. Well from here on things took a much darker turn. There were no heroes or knights in shining armor to be found in the latter half of this history.

Deena Mott

 

[Deena Mott]

All this ancient entities and Force magic has often gone over Denna's head. If there was one area that she was weak in, was lore between the Jedi and the Sith. They operated on a different plane from the rest of the people with the Force and all that supernatural stuff they keep talking about. While the Sith Empire was soundly defeated in the Stygan Campaign, it came at a cost to the New Jedi Order's image. Public opinion has turned against the Jedi with hundreds of polling sites from the Holonet viewing the Jedi with an unfavorable opinion.

Some quick research by Denna showed the answers were obvious: The people in the Galactic Alliance were tired of being pulled in to a war that has nothing to do with them. She echoed those sentiments as well, it seems that where the Jedi go the Dark Side always follows them. War after war for control of the Force or something like that, there's a reason why religion and government are kept separate. Yet the Jedi finds their way into political affairs and with it, their baggage. Jacen Nimdok article on the NJO's war crimes was the nail in the coffin for the Jedi. Now a growing amount of the public just wants them to go away or at the very least take their fight against the Sith elsewhere.

"Unsurprising that the Sith live among us considering the history of Sith Infiltrators," Denna murmured scribbling more notes in her little book. "I've watched a lot vids regarding Vampires, you gonna tell me to wear a necklace of Garlic and keep a wooden stake close at all times?"

Honestly the more she found out about the Sith, the more Denna thought they were just a bunch of weirdoes. It would be amusing if they weren't a bunch of bloodthirsty maniacs. "So is Telis planning to create an army from these superhumans?" Denna asked. "I mean, we know little of the Sith and the Jedi are reluctant to share any information about them. What I do know is that many Sith love to experiment and push nature to its limits? Do you think Telis will do the same thing?"

Honestly it was still disturbing that Cecily was still being used but Denna did her best to bite her tongue and focus on the task at hand. "So your kind came from the Core Worlds?" Denna frowned. "Well I guess sometimes the more mysterious things happen right under noses. Have you tried contacting the Galactic Alliance or even the CIS?"

These Dragons could be interesting allies for either of them that's for sure.

Ulrich

 

[Ulrich]

This had become something of a dance. I was loyal to the Sith insofar as their goals intersected with my own. But I needed to give Deena something that would allow her to assuage her conscience that she wasn't simply acting as the instrument of an enemy power. I had to answer her without betraying my cause. Well, I would give what I could.

" Garlic is indeed a repellant, though depending on the breed of vampire it's effectiveness varies greatly. Stakes - or crossbow bolts for that matter are useful in that they paralyze the whampir when lodged through the heart, but don't actually kill it. What you really want though is decapitation followed by burning or failing that total incineration. Flamethrowers and incendiary grenades are perhaps your best bet. I do believe that Telis will create hybrids and experiment with both the art of Sith alchemy to create monsters, as well as those spawned from his own blood. But I think that the Galactic alliance dodged a bullet in that the Shapers reign was cut so short. Creating new life and manipulating living organisms was his raison d'etre and whatever he might have fashioned would likely have made Tellis's efforts seem quaint in comparison. "

Now it was time for the story to get a little bit more personal. I cooled my temper trying not to let venom seep into my voice as I spoke.

"I have considered making contact with the Galactic Alliance before and if my plans come to fruition I may well take you up on that suggestion. As for the CIS that is completely out of the question, due to their housing the Mandalorian diaspora and Mandalorian presence within their military. The reason behind this will become apparent as you hear how my tale ends. "

My claws dug into the stone of the keep that I had chosen as my own. The spirits became agitated as my hatred started to manifest them. If there were anyone present they would feel the temperature drop while ghostly whispers , moans and gibbering could be heard just on the cusp of perception.

"My people were in a weakened state. Much diminished from out past battles. Oh in a one to one conflict we were still vastly superior to most species and our technology was cutting edge for the age. But compared to other species we were few in number. We have long long lifespans and our mating process was slow and seldom. So when the Mandalorians arrived, we were vastly outnumbered. For every one of us there were 300 of them. No matter how we tried to repel the invaders they would not be dissuaded. The invading force emerged victorious and to the aggressor went the spoils. Our treasures were sacked , our machines stolen and worst of all our people were forced into slavery.

What followed next is perhaps one of the most brutal processes in galactic history. Noting our size , strength and capacity for flight the Mandalorians decided to use my people as living war machines. To do this they tortured , beat , starved and conditioned through pain. Sentient beings were treated as worse than cattle. Eugenics programmes broke every taboo among civilized society in order to breed aggression and compliance. Combat drugs were tested along with other methods of imprinting pavlovian and otherwise. And eventually over the course of a millennia this constant hell of torture , starvation and psychological abuse we lost the ability to think as rational beings.

I was born a throwback. A freak of nature whose genetics resembled my distant ancestors more than my contemporizes. My early days were a blur of training , abuse and fear. I didn't understand why those around me couldn't think like I did. Why they couldn't speak the language of our captors. And I would likely have died if my force talent didn't manifest and I was able to speak to the spirits of my long departed forebears. Lagartoz War Dragons was what the Mandalorians had named us. And in the case of those around me it was true. They lacked any higher intelligence. How I escaped was something that still haunts me to this day. "

I took a breath. Keeping calm. Controlling my emotions before they ripped out out of me in eldritch energy.

" In addition to inquiring about Telis you should also be asking about a woman named Alea Fal'sig. She's the quartermaster for the Mandalorian enclaves. She knows the history of her people and what they have done. But she's proud of their accomplishments and under her yoke my people still toil as slaves. Telis may be a threat to the Galactic Allianc,e but think about what potential this monster Alea has within her. The Mandalorians did this to us and tried their best to cover up their crimes. Who else could they target next ?"

Deena Mott

 

[Deena Mott]

It seemed that Ulrich wanted Denna to hear about the story about his species. She had to admit it was interesting even if he was associated with the Sith though Ulrich keeps insisting he doesn't know much about their plans. Denna was always taught to keep a skeptical mind and given the suspicious setup Denna was still skeptical about his ties to the Sith. Though Denna kept that close to herself, "so the Mandolorians," Denna asked scribbling in her notebook. "Were the reason that your kind has been wiped out and enslaved? Interesting, have you thought about gathering the rest of your people and decide to take the fight back to the Mandalorians? What future do you see for your species?"

Ulrich's kind were in a way tragic and Denna can see why Ulrich would go to the Sith. The Mandalorians were a proud warrior race and would do anything to advance themselves. There was a reason afterall that they align with more seedy organizations. Fight makes right and all that chit, but with a supposedly peace loving Galactic Alliance, it contradicts their tradition. "The Dragons are stuff of legends," Denna said. "I've read all about them when I was a girl. It's amazing that I'm seeing one.... well kind of." Her eyes darted to Cecily. "It's a shame what happened to them."

Well at least Denna said that last bit without sarcasm. Still the fact that Denna could have a lead on the scattered Sith Lords could be a big story that she can blow open. She just need more information "so this Alea huh?" Denna asked. "Do you have any proof of her treachery? If I'm gonna run this story, I'm going to have to get some leads here."

Accusations were one thing but accusations with evidence is what separates a good journalist from a tabloid one. Hopefully Ulrich got the deets.

Ulrich

 

[Ulrich]

Deena wished for proof. That was an entirely reasonable request. It was a good thing that I had come prepared.

"Alas Miss Mott regarding my plans with my species I am in many ways a freak aberration. I know of no others of my kind who are currently alive have the mental capacity of animals or the severely disabled. Imagine if you will that your people , humans were put into cages and tortured for centuries until you regressed to the state of monkeys. The only way that I can see a way forward for my people is if I make one. Somehow I need to break them free of their bondage and find a way to either grant sapience to those who are alive or make sure that the future generation is born like I am instead of their bestial parents. That is why I have joined the Sith. They are the only ones I know of who will readily make war on the Mandalorian threat."

Touching a claw to part of the holoprojector I transmitted data through to Deena.

"Were that Alea was stupid enough to leave signed confession to her people's misdeeds. But I believe I can provide more than enough evidence to convince you of the veracity of my story without such an obvious admission. Accusations of atrocities and genocide are after all serious matters. With any luck it will prove as influential as Professor Nimdoks seminal piece regarding the Jedi's crimes. Now if you will take a look at the data packet I sent through you should be able to see four pieces of evidence.

The first of these is the data ripped from the Mandalorian bounty boards on the holonet. Feel free to inspect the original holosite at your own leisure later on to confirm the veracity. The Mandalorains have placed a bounty for my assassination even going as far as to post a photograph of me. This should confirm that I do in fact exist and am not simply a hologram façade for a human. Notice that no reasons for my death has been given. If the Mandalorians had nothing to hide they would surely make a list of my crimes for all to see.

Secondly I present photographic evidence of Mandalorian use of 'Lagartoz War Dragons' - those members of my species who have had the wits brutalized from them.

Pictured here is a Mandalorian warrior clad in beskar complete with lance and his 'slave' behind him. One of the pieces of technology that my people pioneered that the Mandalorians still use is the Basilisk war droid.

Note the nonhuman anatomy and composition and that the very name betrays its origins. My final piece of evidence is something that only you yourself can follow up Miss Mott. Call it part of investigative journalism if you like. Despite being so infrequently visited the planet Basilisk is extremely close to your home of Coruscant. With a fine ship you may be able to reach it in an afternoon. I am certain that ruins and relics from my people's civilization still remain to tell the story of what we once were. With that said if you have any more questions I shall answer them to the best of my ability."

Deena Mott

 

[Deena Mott]

Denna's datapad immediately detected an upload curious Denna's eyes shifted towards the pad her eyebrows raising up in surprise. "So," Denna muttered. "This is all of the info you have Aela huh?" she asked. "I'll take a look at it later."

This interview has taken some interesting twists and turns, hell it gave Denna some big scoops to go by. The Sith Empire trying to reemerge from the ashes was unsurprising. The people do need to know about their whereabouts and what they're planning. For now though, Denna focused on Ulrich and the images he was displaying on the Holoprojector. "Interesting," Denna said continuing to scribble in her notebook. "The Mandalorians treated your kind like tools of war. Given their affinity for warfare, it does give them a not so progressive view over people who the consider weak. It's also the reason why they became Bounty Hutners."

Denna frowned at the Bounty Hunter board. "This is from the Madalorian Enclave," Denna remarked. "They've been making some noise lately as the CIS's lapdogs. I'm a CIS citizen myself so I'm pretty plugged in on the deets."

Madalorian space, honor bound meat heads who would shoot first and ask questions never. Unless you showed them some credits, the CIS and Mandos have come to a truce and now they are working together. Funny how life works. "Well for one do you plan on taking revenge on the Madalorians for treating you like slaves?"

Ulrich

 

[Ulrich]

I don't have to think long to answer Deena's question.

"Yes Miss Mott I'm not ashamed to admit my plans in that regard. Though you may find them to be abhorrent I suspect they are the only measures that I can take to protect myself and what others of my kind may come after. I plan to carry out an total extermination of the Mandalorian's on a cultural level. Every adherent of their ideology wiped clean from the face of the galaxy. And while I doubt you will agree with me I feel that I will be doing the galaxy a public service. Many view the Sith as the ultimate foe of the civilized peoples of the galaxy. It is true that as a rule they have been brutal even to the extreme with totalitarian empires rising and falling. But the Sith are also seers ,scholars and magistrates who can excel in the study of arcane knowledge and the building of empires as easily as taking to the battlefield. The Mandalorians on the other hand are myopically focused on one thing - violence.

To the Mandalorians violence is not a means to an end but an end itself. They even destroy the things that they claim to hold dear. If you do not believe me look to the mythosaur. While it plays an important role in the culture and mythology with the Mando adopting it as their totem their entire species is extinct thanks to the 'attentions' of the Madalorian horde. So yes Miss Mott I plan to kill them all down to a man. Of course I also hope to liberate my people and give them back the gift of sapience. How exactly that will be managed is still undecided but alchemy and genetic manipulation have both wrought wonders before. Finally if I succeed I will likely take my own life in a remote place far from the eyes of the public. If my people are indeed restored they don't need a warlord such as myself casting a shadow over them. There is enough violence and misery in this galaxy as it is. I want the new children of basilisk to be researchers , artists , mechanics , architects and yes even journalists."

I had spoken my piece. If Deena had any more questions for me I would answer them. As to whether this ever saw the light of day in an article that was up to Deena herself.

Deena Mott