Moe, Larry and Curly [Krag, Kaine and Ashin]

[Darth Vulcanus]

This mission was...disturbing to say the least. Krag didn't have an in-depth knowledge of what was going to happen while they were in Fringe space, but he did know that the Fringe was ruled by a pack of weaklings who were too weak to protect their titles as Dark Lord. When Krag was first summoned by Emperor Kaine to accompany him to Fringe space, Krag assumed that it was in order to bring a fleet to their capital world and turn the surface to glass. Unfortunately, Krag soon learned that they were simply going to the Fringe space to meet with their pitiful leader on some planet he had never heard of. Sabarene was the name of the planet and it was apparently just about as well known as Gratos, which wasn't well known outside of the high echelon of planetary and faction governments.

Krag would have said no, if it weren't for the fact that angering Kaine could end up ruining all the plans he had for the future. So, here he was, sitting in the passenger bay of an Imperial shuttle that was descending down to the planned meeting area on the surface of the planet. The beast of the Sith was sitting quietly beside Kaine, he wore no top as the Graug usually did when he did not have armor on, but had a very militaristic Sith robe covering the bottom half of his body. He still had his Spire Forge armor in a case beside his seat, but he felt no need to put it on at the moment so he kept it there.

"Why are we meeting with these pathetic traitors of the Empire?" Krag growled impatiently to @[member="Kaine Zambrano"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Kaine glanced over at the hulking Sith situated in the passenger seat of the shuttle after he had questioned why they were going to meet with Lady Varanin. "Because they may prove useful to us, Krag. They are essential to my plans, and we must accept them as a necessary component... for now." He chuckled and let his gaze slowly fall back on the darkness of space disappear around them as they descended into the atmosphere of Sabarene. They were met with a large expanse of desert stretching out before them, with mountain ranges carving up the desert into valleys of sand and rock. Kaine had seen many worlds like it before, and there seemed to be nothing special about this world at all. However; Ashin herself had requested Kaine come and visit her on this world himself, and so he had come along with Krag. The shuttle rocketed over a nearby mountain range, revealing a village situated in the valley below, and Kaine's senses revealed to him that this was the meeting location.

Kaine angled the shuttle down to a steady landing on the outskirts of the village, and lowered the boarding ramp once they had settled. "Come Lord Krag, it's time to meet these 'traitors'." With that Kaine unbuckled himself from the seat, and made his way to the aft section of the shuttle, and descended down the ramp into the blazing heat of Sabarene. Luckily Kaine had learned to regulate his body temperature through the Force, and thus he didn't even break a sweat in his traditional Sith garb. Together, the Emperor of the Sith and the Warchief of the Imperial Graug Clan made their way into the village.

@[member="Krag"] @[member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

@Krag @Kaine Zambrano

The planet Sabarene orbited two stars, with a third white dwarf distant in the equation. Its days varied in length, some as short as eight standard hours. The population of two hundred thousand was mostly free P'w'eck, former slaves of the Ssi-Ruuvi Imperium. They lived in nomadic villages.

This particular village preached the downfall of Ashin Varanin, as if she was a god or a demon. And so, when Kaine and Krag approached the village, they found Ashin surrounded by bodies of adult P'w'eck. She sat on her heels with the sword Winterlight across her knees. Behind her, sand began to gather, the dunes themselves coming alive to swell and crest and break above the village, wash it down into the depths of the desert.

By the time the Emperor and his right-hand monster reached her, the village had vanished utterly, and she remained sitting on the sand. She wore formal armor of glossy red scales, apparently useless, and her hair was bound in a long braid.

"Your Majesty," said the Dark Lord of the Sith without a hint of mockery, "welcome to Sabarene."

 

[Darth Vulcanus]

@[member="Ashin Varanin"] @[member="Kaine Zambrano"]

Krag snorted at Kaine's words but said no more as the shuttle landed on the desert landscape of the planet. As the ramp opened up, Krag felt the rush of dry heat and desert air. He groaned in displeasure, he hated dry heat almost as much as he hated the cold and even in his cursed form he couldn't help but feel the same spite he did for dry heats as when he had his normal hide. As Kaine stood up and beckoned him outside, Krag rolled his eyes and stood with him to go see this so called 'useful asset' they were supposed to meeting.

As they approached the village, Krag could smell the scent of death on the air, it was strong and potent and to Krag it was like the fragrance of a field of flowers. Soon enough, a figure came into view that had such a potent darkside aura that Krag almost purred at its presence. The figure sat on the ground, a sword in its lap and a scattering of bodies around her. Well, Krag could easily say that this was already more exciting than he had imagined it would be. Nothing said fun like a diplomatic talk starting off with bodies and the scent of blood on the air.

As they approached, Krag heard the woman greet Emperor Kaine and he snorted at the fact that he was not recognized, "You must be the witch who was dethroned from her place as Empress, that would explain why you don't show the proper respect to a Sith Lord."

 

[Ashin Varanin]

Ashin rose fluidly and sheathed Winterlight. "A pity you weren't there for my reign, Lord Krag, to know what you're talking about. I was always able to find a good use for animals. But whatever I call myself in public, however the Sith Empire or the galaxy know me, I am the Dark Lord of the Sith. I took Moridin's throne, forcibly removed him from Keldabe, did the same at Void Station. But the man who fired on me when I was about to win us the battle of Roche? Voracitos? I had already beaten him, when he was empowered with the full force of Darth Apparatus himself. Then came Tyrin Ardik -- defeated by Mikhail Shorn, who was once my bodyguard. Then came Arcis, who has served me for years. Then came Kaine, who I have defeated and repelled before. Granted, of course, the man before me has grown as Emperor, and I consider him an equal."

Deliberately, she turned her back, and the last of the P'w'eck bodies slipped beneath the sand. "I have no designs on the Imperial throne. I gave the Empire its greatest period of expansion, and I happily took the opportunity to start over, without the damaged goods of previous administrations. But make no mistake, Lord Krag -- I am the Dark Lord of the Sith. I took that title by force, guile, guts, and violence, and nobody has yet managed to take it from me. If anyone does, it will probably be Kaine. He knows this; perhaps that's why he's come, though I think we share enough common enemies that we're no threat to each other, more useful to each other alive than dead."

The sands grew still, and she turned back to them. "Will Sabarene suit your purposes, Kaine?"
@[member="Kaine Zambrano"] @[member="Krag"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"It does, Ashin. Desolate and scarcely populated, it will be perfect." He chuckled when Ashin hearkened back to a time that seemed to distantly long ago, back before Kaine had even reached the rank of Master in the Dark Side of the Force. A simpler time, most likely, a time when the Galaxy was crowded with fools who wanted their own slice of the intergalactic pie. "I am pleased by your flattery, Ashin, and if I recall correctly our last bout ended in a draw. Although, you did give me a reminder of your power..." He then gestured to the mangled right side of his face, where the flesh had been permanently mutilated to reveal the white bone underneath. He wore that damage with pride, and has not once ever tried to hide it from anyone, not even his own daughter. "I would have thought you'd taken the title Dark Lady of the Sith, Ashin. The ancient Sith Lumiya wore that title before she was killed."

@[member="Ashin Varanin"] @[member="Krag"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

"Much as I respect Lumiya's legacy and teachings, she often thought of herself as the female version of Dark Vader, and defined herself in relation to him, perhaps without meaning to. But XoXaan and Sorzus Syn called themselves Sith Lords, and each aspired to call herself Dark Lord of the Sith. Like them, I don't define myself in relation to anyone, and I'm a 'female version' of nothing. I am what I am."

 

[Darth Vulcanus]

@[member="Ashin Varanin"] @[member="Kaine Zambrano"]

Krag snorted at Ashin's words, he was not one to be taken back by history. No, Krag was a beast of sight and he cared little for what power people said they had only what power they proved they had. It wasn't until Kaine pointed out that his face scarring had been as a result of a duel with Ashin that the Graug second guessed his prior judgment, perhaps this woman was more than a proper challenge. The darkside certainly surrounded her and she was defiantly powerful in it, but such things had rarely had effect on Krag's judgments before.

Watching as the last of the bodies slipped out of sight, Krag growled impatiently. He was completely unsure of why he had been dragged out to this dry planet or why he should even care as to what Ashin had to say. However, Krag had to admit that he felt much of the Sith's latest Emperors had failed to run the Empire as it should be run. The rising of Lussk to the throne was a complete embarrassment to himself and the Sith at large, how could an Empire be taken seriously when their leaders had to be handed a title? If what Ashin said was true, that she had killed to take her place, then that was something Krag could respect her for just as he respected Kaine for his proper overthrowing of Lussk.

Krag was about to remark on these thoughts when Ashin inquired into the planet and the needs of Kaine and that's when Krag's last straw was drawn "I care little for what you decide to call yourself, I care only for why I have been brought to this planet." turning to Kaine, Krag growled with growing anger and impatience, "Why have I been summoned her with you, Lord Zambrano?"

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Fair enough, Ashin." He said with a shrug to Ashin's reasoning on why she didn't decide to take the female version of the title. Kaine glanced at Krag, a mixture of annoyance and dark humor crossing his features for a moment before he spoke. "You are here, Lord Krag, because I require your Graug for a very specific task." He gestured at the nearby mountain range to the north, "I required this world because it is a barren world, devoid of civilization and settlements except for these isolated villages. I will have you and your Graug to build a compound within those mountain ranges, the largest you've ever constructed. It will be our sanctuary, a place of solitude far from the prying eyes of the Republic and the Protectorate. Ashin is one of our allies, despite the bad blood of our histories in the past, but we must put aside our differences for now to ensure the survival of our people. The construction of this compound will work towards that."

@[member="Krag"] @[member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Darth Vulcanus]

@[member="Kaine Zambrano"] @[member="Ashin Varanin"]

Krag gave both of the Sith Lords a crooked look, his eyes glancing back and forth between them for a few moments as he thought about the Emperor's words. What was he planning that he wanted such a complex built? The survival of their people? Krag was not the smartest of creatures but he was not a complete imbecile. Kaine knew something that he didn't and Krag had a feeling that the Sith's Empire was going to face some trouble very soon. Krag looked to the mountain ranges, his eyes studying them with the eye of an architect. Yes, the mountains would make a fine place to build the tunnels, but it would take millions of Graug and thousands of war beasts to do it in a timely manner and even then it would still take months.

Krag, ignoring the suspicious request in favor for focusing on what the Graug could gain from it, spoke to Kaine and Ashin, "My people are experts in creating tunnel networks, but hollowing mountain ranges will take much more manpower than I have available in Sith Space." turning to Kaine, "I can build us the greatest hollow the galaxy has ever seen, but I will need something from you first."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Would the Graug of Gratos flock to you for this task, or would they need a form of persuasion?" If the Graug of Gratos could be rallied to their cause, then Kaine would have a fighting force that would cause those Republic dogs to flee at the mere sight of them. Kaine didn't know very much about the Graug culture, but he suspected that Krag would have to do something to gain the respect of the warrior species. "What do you require of me, Lord Krag?"

@[member="Ashin Varanin"] @[member="Krag"]

 

[Darth Vulcanus]

It was obvious that Kaine did not know anything about Gragu culture, but that was to be expected. Krag had never talked extensively about Gratos and the planet was so secluded that no one knew much of anything about it, the Graug not included. "We, Graug, pride ourselves on war and whenever there is a leader the drones will follow him. The warriors will follow me only as long as I serve the will of the Horde Mother, but she has refused to do what is needed for too long and will never agree to send our forces to this planet." with a slight pause, Krag looked deep into Kaine's eyes, "My brothers also hold too much power and attempting to seize it from them would cost us a lengthy civil war. They and the Horde mother must all die at once and with no other leadership, the lessers of the Graug will flock to me as their only source of leadership. The can be done easily, but I will require Sith ships to transport my people off of the planet and fend off the Dread Father's forces. The Pirate scum were forced to the moon of Gratos after the cleansing war and will not pass by the chance to retake Gratos and exterminate the Imperial Clan."

@[member="Kaine Zambrano"] @[member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Then I believe we know our mission now, to kill the Horde Mother and your brothers all at once. There will be enough ships for you to transport all of your people off world, and added protection to keep the Dread Father at bay until you escape. If you would like to aid us in this, Ashin, your help would be most welcome." He said with an indifferent shrug towards Ashin, he didn't care if she wanted to help with that part or not, she had done magnificently with the planet, and he was grateful for it.

@[member="Krag"] @[member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

@[member="Kaine Zambrano"] @[member="Krag"]

"I would," she said frankly, "but I don't have the time. Between the Protectorate, the Confederacy, the Republic, and the Atrisians, I'm at loose ends. Consider my presence a mark of my respect."

A vessel approached over the horizon, her Peregrine.

"Good luck, Kaine."