Into The Bleak Distance

[Vilka Pharro]

MALACHOR V

’Strike the metal too hard, and it will shatter; but weather it just enough, and it will bend, so you might shape it to your own ends, a crown fit for a princess.’

The Virulence shot from hyperspace. In an instant, the storm of white star-trails disintegrated, leaving only a sea of pin-pricks upon a black canvas of night. The cold chill of the void. Two burning eyes shot open; even from orbit, the unyielding darkness of Malachor V siezed Vilka’s heart, fast as the jaws of a Krayt Dragon, forever unyielding.

But such was the Dark Side, and all its passions- even to love was to hurt, in aching for all one could not have. A Jedi, indeed, would try to convince themselves it was not worth having; the strength of a Sith was to try and take it all the same. Vilka smiled with bared teeth at the thought.

The shuttle dove through the atmosphere with the scream of burning durasteel, the Force guiding its pilot, for all her rather questionable skill, from one blasted peak to the next, an unending granite darkness. The Trayus Laboratories. Vilka confessed she knew little of the woman, Vantai. Perhaps this was by design- the greatest evil is, after all, one disguised. Who, indeed, can defend against that which they cannot first percieve? The smiling face and blade would always best the blade alone.

She had to be drawing close now. In a desolate place such as Malachor, any structure, not to mention a laboratory, ought to stick out faster than a Hutt at the Galactic Games. Vilka brought the shuttle in for a sweeping descent, landing gear extending with a howl against the sweeping gales- there. Horizontal thrusters spat steam as she slowed above the landing pad, ramp extending onto a freezing walkway. How could a place be so hot and yet so cold?

A storm of black robes against the wind, she looked out to a bleak horizon. She grimaced. The darkness here, at Trayus Labs, it pulsed like a heart- now was the time to meet one’s maker, so to speak. Bend, she might- but never breaking.

 

[Onrai]

Vanessa's work was never truly done at the laboratory. Currently, she was running simulations on the capability of stacked gravity wells in creating true artificial singularities, along with furthering the concept of truly Force-powered weapons as had been developed in the Darkwhip. Modulation of beam weaponry was also being studied, along with Project Novaflare - the creation of something truly powerful beyond compare. She had just finished creating the holographic blueprints of the torpedo prototype before sensing a presence.

An unfamiliar presence.

It was likely just a Sith coming to visit, but still, Vanessa grew moderately apprehensive about the possibilities surrounding such circumstances. If it was an acolyte, perhaps she could be broken in and taught about Vanessa's own philosophy - the philosophy she hoped would help keep the Sith extant in the galaxy for as long as feasibly possible.

Outside, the doors would open up, as though they were waiting for Vilka. She would be guided to the main chamber, whose door did not open up. Though it would if she knocked nicely.

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

Vilka raised an eyebrow as the vast doors slid apart; mouth of darkness. A rather impersonal touch- she couldn’t help but be slightly amused. So be it. Braced against the wind, she strode across the catwalk and onwards, into the dark.

All her life, Vilka had associated the Dark Side with a certain corruption, a pestilence- and here, within the sterility of Trayus Labs, the low call in the back of her mind’s eye became a roar. It was painful almost to comprehend, this ravenous force, and yet her body ached to be closer, straining at the edges of her will.

”It’s quite improper to recieve your visitors in such fashion, Vantai.” She spoke absent-mindedly, pacing across the entrance hall with narrowed eyes. A test? Or sheer impudence? Even reaching out, into the Force, she could discern nothing; how, after all, could you find a single wave in the ocean? The Dark Side was continuous on Malachor, and to pick one trace from a thousand would take more skill than she possessed. But, if nothing else, why was she here? Even with the Force, she could find no purchase on the lowering doors, each faceless mass of glimmering durasteel standing unperturbed at her efforts. She stepped forwards a moment, placed her palm flat to the metal. Her face fell. ”Don’t you dare tell me it’s this. A groan escaped her lips.

Knock.

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

[Double Post]

 

[Onrai]

The knock on the door was just the response Vanessa was looking for. She hit a button concealed in the wall and the door would in fact open up, a smile crossing her face as she continued work on her myriad of projects. "See, that's what I appreciate. A willingness to use common manners instead of just trying to hack and slash your way through everything." She thought for a moment, as the door would close once Vilka had successfully entered the room.

"Thinking outside of the box is the reason the Sith will thrive while the Jedi will fall. The Jedi are so insistent on maintaining their ancient dogma that it's all they know. They can't adapt, nor can they consider the benefits of change." She ceased for a moment before choosing to proceed onwards. "That said, I've been looking for Sith who are willing to perhaps change their way of doing things... just a tidbit." She replied.

"Let's begin this with a bit of consideration. What garners loyalty?"

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

"Common manners? Perhaps we have different understandings of ettiquette." For such talk of cordiality, her host was hardly undistracted by her work, in place of her guests. "A rather impersonal way to greet new arrivals, Vantai. Though I have heard you are not impartial to touches of mystery." In truth, she had little interest in such common courtesies, as they stood alone. Often, however, such things were a mark of discipline and education besides. Vilka knew she was a noble no longer, but some old habits were hard to drop. If the brutality of Sith training was to be believed, however, there would be no better a time to unlearn such things, she supposed with a hollow smile

She strode to greet the figure. Contrary to her expectations, the Sith seemed to show few physical signs of Dark Side corruption. In sufficiently powerful individuals, she supposed, that was often a mark of its own. Too many ignored the supreme might of deception, indeed one of a true Sith's closest allies, and one of the sharpest tools of conversion for a troubled Jedi, better still. Vilka knew her own black-garbed appearance did little to benefit this end, but it was a mark of ancient tradition, and raw fear was but not the secondmost friend of a Sith, if nothing else.

"Loyalty? A shield of the foolish." She grinned, gaunt features twisting to reveal a set of pointed teeth. "To tether yourself so unshakably to another is to make yourself truly vulnerable. It is a trait best left to the Jedi, and exploited to our own gains, I think." A hollow giggle escaped that jagged mouth.

"Even to a Master- especially to a Master, such an exposing bond is... imprudent."

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Onrai]

"Don't take it personally, Vilka." She replied. "I used to be a lot closer with people right off the bat, but that's changed." She said. "Two decades of self-exile in the outer reaches of the Unknown Regions will do that to you." She said. "As for touches of mystery - let's just say I've seen and know of things the average Sith does not know anything about." Vanessa concluded her work on one of the consoles before looking at Vilka as she approached the woman in question.

"Words of a child. Loyalty, feigned or legitimate, is the reason the Sith Empire exists as it does today. Loyalty is a building block of order - it is when treachery arises that chaos disrupts that order. I know you are too young to know about the story of the last Sith Empire, but I was there, and I witnessed a treacherous and disruptive struggle for power crack our territory to the core as the Republic, the Fel Imperium, and every other galactic power sought to siphon away our territory and resources. It was only through the loyalty of multiple Sith and Imperial officers that ever a sliver of our territory remained. Before then, I was like other Sith, but it was after that moment that I realized instilling loyalty, both to the individuals within the Sith Empire and to the Empire itself, were critical to maintaining our grip on the territory we now control, and, in the future, spreading our influence across the galaxy."

"And loyalty cannot be instilled through fear. Not fear alone, at least. The moment that they no longer fear you, those who serve you will rise up against you and destroy everything you have built. No. Sometimes certain... beneficial actions may be required to ensure it. For example, I have the loyalty of tens of thousands of Dark Troopers because I gave them the opportunity to get out of being crippled husks torn down by war and instead rebuilt their bodies so they could serve the Empire they loved once more. They would be fools to become disloyal to the person responsible for making them what they are now."

She looked at Vilka with a piercing gaze. "Do you understand now?"

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

Vilka wasn't inclined to disbelieve her. For meek appearances, the Dark Side encircled and enthroned her in a sphere of dark rays, pulsing and corrupted mass that shook with every cold heart-beat. Her fingers twitched as she reached out to sense it, Vanessa; the eye of this great and terrible storm.

"Perhaps." She said, eyes narrowing, mouth parted slightly. "But where does the line fall between treachery and rightful succession, the pragmatic deposition of the weak? This has advanced the Sith for millenia, and I see little evidence of its end here, now. I don't doubt your experience, nor the scars you've earned." She looked Vantai over, once, with a smirk. "Or, should I say, the scars you've hidden. Yet do they not blind you, perhaps, in unwarranted caution? Loyalty to a cause and loyalty to an individual are two disparate ideas; the first builds great empires, and the second so often fells them. What I see described here is the former, and not the latter."

"Yes, your dark troopers are loyal to you- but not so certainly to the Sith, yes? As long as you are an ally to the Sith this is a boon to us- but should your views grow questionable, your mind wracked with misjudgment, then surely all that you have done is lead tens of thousands of men against us? You made them, indeed. But it is who you made them for that will be the true test of their loyalty, as I see it- for the Sith, or for yourself." Her eyes softened as she met Vantai's steely gaze once again. "If the question you are asking me is will I betray you, then my answer is no. Because you serve the Sith, and I serve the Sith, and as long as we each find our own place in this triad of allegiances... I see no reason to break it. Should one person, you or I, sway, alas? Who can know. Perhaps our loyalty is just a measure of our inability to make such shifts from the natural orders."

"Who can know." She shrugged, amber stare hardening again. "Is that satisfactory?"

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Onrai]

"On a line that's far too narrow, I'm afraid." Vanessa said. "Most Sith are loathe to splinter even the tiniest fragment of their assets off in order to provide their apprentices with opportunity. Blame the culture of backstabbing." She replied. "The Sith in various forms have been exterminated time after time. What originally existed as "Sith" have long since been exterminated by the Light, only for people to come across their ruins and rebuild the Sith around their own personal interpretation of what was. The lineage dating back millennia died with Caedus." She concluded.

"If you're questioning whether the Dark Troopers are loyal to the Empire - they are. I programmed the machines to be loyal to them, and their fleshy compatriots were all taken from Imperial veterans who wished to return to the battlefield to serve the Sith cause once more. That said, while your answer was not necessarily what I had hoped for, it is... satisfactory." She concluded, offering a hand. "I believe the term is 'let's shake on it,' if I recall."

That was a suitable means of beginning their work together, she assumed.

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

”Yes, too often the onus is on the individual, or the vague notion- too rarely it is upon the Force, for that brings fear to the soft hearts of the feeble and wretched. It seems best kept behind smoke and mirrors, alas.” Indeed, to Vilka’s eyes there was no greater injustice. The masses cowed by fear, driven from faith in true power by mere inabiity to sense it. For too long had the Sith, true Sith, been relegated to the shadows. Now, it could not be denied- the world was changing.

Even in Vantai’s labs, at the bleeding edge of dark technology, things were changing at last. The galactic stasis of millenia, thawing as systems swapped from hand to hand. Now was the game of games, kings, queens, and pawns, and all the stars to be played for.

But enough of this talk. Vilka stepped forwards with a cold smile and shook Vantai’s hand with pale and skeletal fingers. ”Excellent. To benefit of every party, Sith included.” She grinned drily. Once more, there it rose, demon from the water- something was off about Vantai, even just to the touch. She shuddered internally, showing no weakness, and withdrew.

”So- where shall we begin? Master.”

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Onrai]

"Project Novaflare." She replied.

Turning about, she motioned to a holographic representation of the Sun Crusher. "I acquired the data from the Maw Installation computer cores regarding Imperial superweapon technology. That, and the designs of ancient superweapons as well. While I was unable to replicate the technology of the resonance torpedo, I believe there is another way to create a destructive, sun-altering weapon. By providing immense amounts of hydrogen to a star with adequate gravitational pull, it is possible for us to make a star go nova. Not supernova, mind you, but nova. The issue, of course, is adequately compressing enough hydrogen into a torpedo to create such a nova, but I believe I have a way to do this, especially with the acquisition of the former Alliance fleet."

She motioned to a hologram that explained. "Gravity well generators are capable of emulating the gravitational pull of a stellar body at a certain point in space. They can even direct their resulting gravity well to a focused point in space. By gathering numerous gravity well generators together and focusing them in a ring around a point in space, it is possible to emulate the gravitational effects of a hyperdense object, such as a neutron star or black hole - which in theory would compress the hydrogen to a near-infinitesimal degree. Enough for this hydrogen to fit within a dot. That is where we need to start. And once we finish this project - we'll be capable of affecting entire star systems."

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

Vilka had oft considered herself worldly, or at least experienced, for an acolyte, cunning in her way; yet now, even she was taken aback. "A... superweapon?"

Technology, exceeding its own limits like a snake eating its tail; ouroborous of excesses. What good was an advancement, if it ruined the hands that had given it life? Why bite the hands that fed? Perhaps Vantai was a darker presence than she had first recognised, even despite the corruption her deceptive appearances bore. To become the very hand of death required a strong will, indeed. Perhaps it even overcame what a Sith should be prepared to do; what good were passions if you turned them to ash? To break the chains of mortality, and yet return to a world in flames? Vilka could not fully comprehend the notion.

"Entire star systems?" Her mind raced; all that talk of the Sith, of loyalties. Perhaps she now saw to what end it had all been. "Where, then, do we begin?"

The hands of death, indeed.

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Onrai]

“Arguably no.” She said. “This weapon does not destroy a star system. It will however radically alter the system by causing the star to go nova, potentially resulting in drastic climate change, mass blindness, or a variety of other things. The result will be a system filled with plenty of deuterium and tritium from the coronal mass ejection from the star’s core, which can be mined by gas miners.”

She thought for a moment. “This weapon was originally something I considered using on the Alliance, but now that they’re dead, I don’t see the design being useful for the Sith. That said... there may be someone to use this against. The current iteration of the weapon requires a specific type of star - a white dwarf - to function. Conveniently one of our enemies, who the Mandalorians are currently engaged in war with, happens to have such a star in their system - but first a test on a more neutral system will suffice. We will have to first test the forging mechanism for this.”

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

"Nova, supernova. I'm no scientist; I trust in the Force alone." She grinned. "I shall entrust such things to you. Either way, it hardly sounds benign, whatever the miners might think. Mass blindness or not." Giggling, she circled the hologram with eager eyes. Power in data, indeed, but there were more elegant solutions, she felt. "Republic, Mandalorians; they all misunderstand the nature of the galaxy. The war, Vanessa- it rages on, with their peace or without. With your star-killer, or without. The war beyond blasters, beyond lightsabers, beyond even the powers at our fingers. The war unshared. Within. Truly, what will your weapon do to change this? Mass blindness or not," Even Vilka could not restrain a smile at the thought. "To what end, lies all this trickery?"

Perhaps her mind was closed, and still to open. Alas, she could not but feel that she was right- that these technological terrors and mechanical means of massacre were little but distractions in the undying conflict of the Force. To kill a million was one thing- but, it seemed to her, how many wars had ended with one death? Or, better yet, one crushed spirit. Bloodshed, in such a case, was a waste. Blood was but a barrier.

The true weaknesses were of the mind.

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Onrai]

"Harming an entire system is greater than harming a planet alone." She replied. "Whatever cripples our enemies and assists our goals is beneficial. Effectively sterilizing an entire planet is hardly something to be viewed as negative." Vanessa said. "Besides, perhaps we could make it more destructive somehow. I doubt the resulting shockwave of gas will destroy a ship, but it should certainly cause critical damage to the systems of any vessel caught within the explosion."

That was the idea, at least.

"The Alliance and her many similar aspects across the galaxy are foolish and will never accept the truth. Which is unfortunately why such measures are required. Even with the Jedi Grandmaster revealed to be nothing but a liar, they still survive like pests. Pests that must be wiped out."

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

"If you say it, then I must believe it is so. I suppose it is the most ancient of axioms- if a beast breaks its leg, and is made lame, the natural course thereupon is to put it down. Farm animals, to freedom-fighters, to Jedi knights, it is all the same, I think. The particulars of the science are in your hands; if it must be, then I am an instrument of this greater power. We are all chained to the Dark Side- bondage to another, I suppose, is little but superficial."

Vilka had of course heard of the fall of the Alliance, though she had not truly been privy to it. Indeed it was shockingly recent, but still during the days where she walked the stars alone, lost and wretched thing. Then she had found the Sith, and the meaning of the Dark. Politics still seemed a superfluous complication of such things, however essential others deemed them. "The Jedi Grandmaster, a liar? Indeed, I would say all Jedi are victims of their own treachery- I confess you will have to explain the particulars to me." She grinned.

"Now- if you will point me in the right direction, then I will act. What must we do, in the matter of practicalities?"

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Onrai]

"You have forgotten a key component of the process." She replied. "If a beast breaks its leg, you attempt to heal it first in order to gain more use out of it. If it fails to heal to a state where you can gain use of it, putting it down is the rational option. Do not senselessly waste something like that, however." Vanessa elaborated. "As for bondage..." She shuddered a bit. "You're giving me flashbacks of a most infamous Sith. An abomination of desolation, something that should never have existed, or at the very least should have been eradicated from the face of the fething galaxy a long time ago." She shuddered again as the reminder of Shinju popped into her head. "Dammit."

She motioned to a holographic image of a roughly spherical object. "I want you to copy this and duplicate it until there are at least sixty four of these arranged in a circular pattern around a central point. Just use copy and paste." She said. "Assist me in this technological endeavour, and we can focus on the more esoteric side of things - the Force side."

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

 

[Vilka Pharro]

"First, you assess the wound. See if it is worth healing. You should know as well as anyone- it is easier to destroy than create. Why waste the energy, after all?" Vilka's smile was humourless. "But this Sith; I hate to press you-" Her voice betrayed no such empathy. "I'd be most eager to hear more. Anything that begins with 'abomination of desolation' really must be of import, don't you think?" She felt assured that touching even what appeared to be a nerve was not so unwise, in her present company. Vantai had proven herself as level-headed as any thus far, at least in Sith terms- she'd been nothing short of gracious, in fact. It was curious, in its way, Vilka thought. Perhaps she wore more masks than was laid plain. Hatred, and murder- she saw little evidence herein. But perhaps she simply wasn't meant to.

"Sixty-four? Why, Vantai, surely a protocol droid can do that. Quite menial, don't you think? Besides... I'm not certain I quite know my way around such technology to actually... do that." Her fingers hovered over the datapad, uncertain. One or two stray taps seemed to lead her in the right direction, thankfully- her life, thus far, had thankfully spared her from many of the intricacies of modern advancement. She felt like something of a luddite at the thought. Perhaps her pride was misplaced. Regardless- the Force side.

There was the key.

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Vilka Pharro"]

"I thought this was to be preassumed." She said. "And I assure you, this Sith is of no import. She is the culmination of a series of failed genetic lineages that have amalgamated themselves into a humanoid beast not fit to exist within civilized society. So rarely do I have such contempt for the mutant - after all, one's genetic lineage in this day and age does not prevent them from achieving greatness. Yet I cannot tolerate her existence as a culmination of everything truly vile in a construct." Vanessa shivered. "No, this isn't something to be approved of. It's actually quite sickening."

Vanessa continued to watch. "...you haven't used a datapad before, have you?"

 

[Vilka Pharro]

Vilka had not anticipated such raw hatred from the woman, and yet could not explain why. This was a Sith Lord, after all. Perhaps she had after all been beguiled by her seeming calm. "No import? As I see it, she sounds quite remarkable. Such a hapless wretch, the purest and yet most corrupted abomination. Perhaps you blind yourself with your hatred, and fail to enslave it, if you will forgive my righteousness, Master." One day, perhaps, she would like to meet such an awful soul. A walking nexus of darkness; or so it sounded. Perhaps Vantai simply saw too little of this particular truth, blinded by the red mists of rage. "Sickening is a word most oft-spoken by Jedi, I should think. To degrade what they call abhorrence, and we ought champion as the flag-bearer progress. It is our place to invite the wretched, that we might exploit what volatile hatred festers within them."

"And... no. On my homeworld, princesses weren't much expected to use datapads. Nor, for that matter, am I certain we had invented such things yet. More committed to toil and slavery, I should think." It darkened her heart to think of such things. But that was why they were so useful.

[member="Vanessa Vantai"]