On the Gavel's Edge

[Amaya Cardei]

​

​

BASTION...
IMPERIAL PALACE

An interruption from the day to day operations has occurred. An emergency meeting - members of the Ruling Council having been summoned from all parts of the Empire. Whether in attendance personally or via holo, their presence was required. Events having unfolded aaround the galaxy now drew the attention of the Sith Empire. On the line was not just the future of the Empire but perhaps the galaxy at large, whatever was to be discussed on this day - was significant enough to draw a meeting of such importance. Even as they gathered around the central meeting table, one could hear the footsteps of the Empresses.

Indeed even they were drawn to such a meeting, it was something that they could not ignore. Salara looked over her shoulder toward Invicta and their children not too far behind them. "Should have seen this day coming," Salara retorted beneath her breath. A scoff from the energy vampire was all the Epicanthix woman needed.

"Here, hopefully our husband is already here..."

[member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Darth Prazutis"] | [member="Kor Vexen"] | [member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Darth Voracitos"] | [member="Kaalia Pavanos"] | [member="Zazrael Lux"] | [member="Darth Athora"] | [member="Invicta Zambrano"] | [member="Izaszh Zambrano"] | @Ruling Council

 

[Izaszh Zambrano]

Already in the room stood the lithe, statuesque, flame-haired, Epicanthix-like form of the mother of the the Emperor's personal spies. Arms crossed, mouth a thin line, eyes, ears, senses ever watchful. Only when two of her sister wives entered the room, their children in tow - her own were off doing the Emperor's bidding, deceiving and gathering as they were raised to do - did a hint of a cheshire turn of her mouth appear. Still, it did not lift her from the catlike drape of her chest and lazily crossed arms over the top of their husband's seat at the table. A grand thing it was, this chair.

"Invicta, Salara," her mouth reassumed that thin line, Iza electing to ignore the sardonic tone, "you would have known this day was to come if you had but asked."

It was her way, her purpose of being, to know. Between the fruit of her loins and the many operatives of the Empire, she was granted a certain prescience that bordered on prophecy that she otherwise had little talent for outside of conflict. She took an oft-perverse joy in all of it.

"A sister's privilege."

One of them, anyway. Her burnt-orange gaze observed and exploited every nook and cranny of their bodies passing into the room, with a surreptitiously lustful gaze. Yes, other privileges. Later, perhaps.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

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​

Matters on the edge of civilization had demanded the Emperor's attention, light-years away from the center of Imperial power. He stood now upon a decrepit world, shorn of beauty and life by his hand, by his will. Ash fell from the skies in choking clumps, accumulating around the hem of his robe only to be brushed away by some inane menial. With a huff of breath, the menial recoiled back as the impact from the Emperor's boot planted firmly in their abdomen sent them sprawling back. It limped away out of sight to die in darkness, blood oozing from its mouth as its body cavity began to fill with the viscous substance.

"We've established a connection with Bastion, Supreme Excellency."

The technicians who had constructed the holo-projector moved as if in a perpetual state of discomfort, the muscles in the arms constricting as primordial fear ran rampant amongst the synapses of their brains. Even here they could feel the bite of the Emperor's power, when all battle became a distant memory. The echo of violence cast its terrible pall, wrapping around the broad muscular shoulders of the Dark Lord of the Sith like a tattered shawl.

"Vacate."

The word was like an avalanche, spurring the technicians into action as they were at last granted reprieve from his petrifying presence. Only after they had all left did the Emperor move, one foot falling in front of the other as he neared the machine, his fingers now meticulously passing over the buttons upon the activator panel. Cerulean blue light enveloped his being, capturing his likeness and catapulting it across the immeasurable gulf of space and time to the throne world of his implacable Empire.

He would appear before them, gargantuan and imposing, his face marred by scars both faded and fresh. Mismatched eyes scared down from above, absorbing the gathering that had presented themselves before him today.

Minister Sakarbaal, his face concealed behind a mechanized helmet, stood near the projector. Grand Doctor Vitra Zyn stood somewhere off to his left, and Korrit Zuthrix to hers. Many others would be in attendance as well, the Emperor's cherished wives, their children, the leading members of the Sith Brotherhood, and the other leaders of his Dark Council. Like him, some would appear as holograms transmitted from distant worlds in the Empire, but many more had either made the arduous journey to the Imperial Capital or were fortunate enough to be planetside when the call was given.

"Councilors, colleagues, family," began the Emperor, "This session of the Dark Council has been convened to discuss a matter of irrefutable importance." There was a pause, a moment to gather the assembled attention onto him. "I speak of course, of the Mandalorians..."

 

[Salara Zambrano]

"I did not want to ask," Salara admitted to Izaszh.

The hues of orange turned away from Salara. The Epicanthix had watched the Mandalorians from afar listened to the many meetings, heard the reports. She knew, they all knew it was approaching. The Galaxy had turned on the Mandalorians and in turn the Mandalorians had not held up much of a case for themselves in so far as the Galaxy was concerned. It now came to rest on the shoulders of the Sith Empire as to what direction they would take. Evidence would be presented from the Military, and Intelligence along with the observations from the Saaraishash. No doubt agents of the Shadow Hand would have found what was necessary - to do what they as an Empire needed to do.

Would the Sith Empire continue to fight these battles for their allies? The Dark Council had gathered to discuss such matters.

[member="Izaszh Zambrano"] | [member="Invicta Zambrano"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Darth Prazutis"]

 

[Darth Prazutis]

As the session of the Dark Council was convened across the vastness of space, as top cabinet officials from the Sith Empire's government, military, and the Sith Brotherhood assembled, a shimmering blue hologram appeared. The towering visage of the Shadow Hand appeared beside the Emperor at the head of the gathering. Matters far and wide across the empire drew the concerns of the Shadow Hand, matters of pivotal importance to them and those critical enough to draw the eye of the Imperial Throne. But not even distance would interrupt his connection, his position in the Sith Empire.

An immortal never forgets.

There were those among them who might've or just weren't around during the brutal wars between the Mandalorian Clans and the Old Sith Empire. They wouldn't remember what the mandalorians had done to the Sith, how they so boldly brought the empire down with a apocalyptic strike on the capital of Dromund Kaas, a blow so crippling it wiped out life and brought an ice age that lasted for decades, until they returned to the world. Even while the new Mandalorian Empire under the secret enslaved Mandalore Ra Vizsla the Undying became one of their closest allies, when some might've let old hatreds fall to the wayside, the Lord of Lies did not. He was an immortal with a photographic memory and an immortal never forgets. They remained faithful allies all of this time but now? Now while the galaxies nations closed in on the United Clans of Mandalore, the mandalorians and their Mand'alor were content to sit idly by and allow the Sith Empire to fight their battles for them. Obroa Skai, Tanaab, Azure. The Triumvir [member="Taeli Raaf"], the Shadow Hand Darth Prazutis, and the Sith Emperor [member="Darth Carnifex"] took to the field to fight for their allies. But where was Mand'alor? When Darth Metus issued a challenge across the plains of Tanaab, the silence the Vicelord was met with in return was deafening. The United Clans were weak and they'd grown complacent with their alliance, they were content to use the Sith Empire as its crutch to fight their enemies for them.

But the Sith Empire didn't defend weaklings and beat dogs, they destroyed them.

An immortal never forgets.

"The United Clans of Mandalore have grown weak and complacent. For three consecutive invasions they have been content to sit idly by expecting us to fight their battles for them. Where is Clan Cadera? Where is Mand'alor? They expect us to defend them, to protect them." added the Shadow Hand.

"We must act. Remember the past. Remember Dromund Kaas."​

​

[member="Salara Zambrano"] | [member="Izaszh Zambrano"]​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

And so the wheel continued to turn, she thought. If she was honest with herself, Taeli had known the time was coming when the Sith would grow tired of the Mandalorians. The ruling clans had started to atrophy, their once glorious skills in combat and warfare seemingly diminished. Others were clamoring for the chance to take power, the clans and houses that had exiled themselves into Sith territory after the coronation of Yasha as Mand'alor and the schism that had occurred then.

Sith forces had fought and bled for the Mandalorians during the recent battles between them and the other galactic powers, but... and Taeli had noticed during her own excursion to help protect Obroa-Skai, the Mandalorians had not been as engaged as they once were. The fire had gone out of their warrior hearts, or so it would appear. This meeting was not a surprise, given how the Emperor and his Shadow Hand viewed weakness and the past incidents that even now stained the memories of those who remembered.

Attending via holo, busy as she was on Amaltanna completing Project Aura, she remained silent for the moment as the Shadow Hand and Emperor spoke. She didn't need the Force to know where the discussions were going to end, that was a bygone conclusion. Conquest and war were what fueled the Sith Empire, and sure they might occasionally utilize diplomacy and subtler tactics to expand their influence, but the Sith desired the domination of all things. Soon enough the Mandalorians would know this lesson too. A pity, she thought, that after all that effort and diplomacy that result in the alliance, and the acquisition of Dathomir, the Mandalorians had not really lived up to their end of the bargain besides the former Warmaster Australis.

That reminded her, she still had his arm... maybe she would make use of that...

[member="Darth Prazutis"] [member="Salara Zambrano"] [member="Darth Carnifex"] [member="Izaszh Zambrano"] [member="Sith Muse"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Our enemies press in through Mandalorian space." The Emperor said, with a great measure of finality. There was no question as to what would happen should the Jedi and their lapdogs manage to break through the bulwark the Mandalorians had formed between the Empire and the Jedi. His image flickered out of existence, to be swiftly replaced by a holographic map of the sectors afflicted by Jedi and Confederate incursion. From the astrography depicted, it was clear that the Mandalorians threatened to be torn in twain and lose a great deal of their territory to the Northbound invaders.

"If this continues," the Emperor's voice reverberated through the room, "Then all that we have bled for will be in jeopardy, all that we have set in motion. From my contacts within the Mandalorian High Command, it is apparent that the Alors have disowned the Mand'alor and have moved to replace her with someone more malleable to their whims. It is the first sign of a government spiraling into destruction, which we cannot allow to happen."

The map morphed, showing the Sith-Mandalorian border from Dathomir to Vjun and the proximity of the Mandalorian capital of Mandalore. "To ensure that we do not lose our grip on Mandalore, we must assume direct control of the territory. What I am proposing to you, my Dark Council, is an assault directed at the Mandalorian heartland. It is clear that the Mandalorians have lost their bite, we must intervene to secure our interests."

[member="Darth Prazutis"] [member="Salara Zambrano"] [member="Taeli Raaf"] [member="Izaszh Zambrano"] [member="Sith Muse"]​

 

[Amaya Cardei]

Flickers of blue silhouttes lined parts of the chamber. Those who could not attend in person each one held their silence, mulling over the information presented to them. Lord Admiral Raaf was one of the few who had been able to attend in person. She had seen the reports, read some - skimmed most when it came to the incursions into Mandalorian space. It was only now as she heard the evidence that she brought a few up to read on the datascreen of her tablet. Her heart sank, she wondered a moment, if they perhaps should have intervened earlier? Mandalorians were a fierce warrior culture and yet here they were reeling from territorial loss after territorial loss.

Lord Admiral Raaf cast a sidelong glance at some of her counterparts. Brows raised as the question lingered in the air, and as she settled in her seat with the knowledge of what they were about to do. Betrayal at every level, until this point the Sith Empire had been an ally of the Mandalorians. Helping them in every battle, and yet - in every battle the Mandalorians could not be motivated to fight these battles. If they could not fight in earnest for their territory, then perhaps it was time to reconsider the alliance. The Galidraani shifted in her seat and flipped through the reports one more time, a hand across the data screen, she took in the presented information - disheartened at what she was seeing.

Not so long ago the Mandalorians were able to help her, they had been a great power in the Galaxy.

It was with a heavy heart that Lord Admiral Raaf cast her vote in favor of invading the Mandalorian heartlands.

[member="Darth Prazutis"] | [member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Izaszh Zambrano"] | [member="Zazrael Lux"] | [member="Kaalia Pavanos"] | [member="Kor Vexen"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Invicta Zambrano"] | [member="Darth Voracitos"] | [member="Darth Athora"]

 

[Constantinius Zambrano]

"I agree wholeheartedly, father.", Constantinius's powerful voice spoke as he entered the room, his audibly powered boots announcing the return of this prodigal son to the imperial fold. He strode across the chamber, moving to take position beside his mother, Izaszh. "The clans of Mandalore have lost their bite. They supposedly hold highly their warrior traditions, yet their ranks have been beset by weakness and corruption. They are assailed by many foes, yet instead of fighting to the bitter end as they should, they retreat like wounded dogs."

He inspected the assembled council members with his gaze, before addressing them all politely. "There is only one course of action that is logical, esteemed members of this dark council. The Emperor, my father, speaks truth. Mandalore MUST be brought to heel. The weak clans that rule it must be cast aside, and replaced with clans more capable in the defense of their territories and more amiable to our own interests. The clans of Mandalore must be made to serve the Empire, for the good of all."

[member="Darth Carnifex"]
[member="Darth Prazutis"]
[member="Taeli Raaf"]
[member="Izaszh Zambrano"]
[member="Zazrael Lux"]
[member="Kaalia Pavanos"]
[member="Kor Vexen"]
[member="Invicta Zambrano"]
[member="Darth Voracitos"]
[member="Darth Athora"]

 

[Darth Ophidia]

[member="Darth Carnifex"] [member="Darth Prazutis"] [member="Taeli Raaf"] [member="Sith Muse"] [member="Izaszh Zambrano"] [member="Salara Zambrano"] [member="Constantinius Zambrano"]

Darth Ophidia was usually one to listen and not speak, not outside of closed doors anyhow, and as she approached to say her words, it was as though she had only now materialised into the world. Her face shrouded under the wide hood, casting her ashen face in shadow that left only the burning irises of her unblinking eyes wholly visible. She had taken just one step forward, purposefully letting the heel of her boot click against the floor.

"Dark Lord, this action is overdue."

She cast a glance at the blonde newcomer, another child of the Zambrano. She did not look at him with any favour, but with the eyes of someone who had just smelled something foul in his direction.

"When the Galactic Alliance insulted us we burned the galaxy's main source of bacta and supplanted it with our own." "When the Zatitsis sought to usurp us, we drove them from their homes and chased them across the galaxy until they fell apart." "Wherever we have been challenged, we have left a message that the Sith Empire sees them and that nothing is beyond our reach." "And the Mandalorians have offered us plenty of insult."

She let her eyes glide over the faces of the council, and settled last on the hologram of the Emperor himself.

"Hang the Alors and burn Sundari to the ground." "Spare the other cities if you must, but make no mistake; the Mandalorians will not rest well in captivity unless they are thoroughly defeated."

She had told Carnifex before that she had preferred it if they had crushed the Mandalorians after the Red Coronation. Had they struck sooner, she knew, she could have employed her deal with Ronan Vizsla to set a blaze on Mandalore before they even knew the Sith were there. She could still do so, and she would, but it would be all the more difficult now.

 

[Darth Voracitos]

Voracitos was present, yet despite unarguably the being with the most noticeable width, seemed in some way... off. The flesh of the Sith Lord observed the room, his furtive eyes darting about as they often did while his body rested in all of its rotundity. Yet despite the burning passion of the atmosphere in the room, a maelstrom of strong emotions, Voracitos exuded a peculiar calmness around him, as if he could not be bothered by the events transpiring around him... at least to an untrained eye. One familiar with his mannerism might notice that the Sith Lord was actually relishing quietly in the dramatic politics of the Sith and Imperials surrounding him... yet one that was too familiar with who Voracitos was... might see through the facade.

What went on within the mind behind the flesh, seemed to be... vacant. Or perhaps, inactive would be more appropriate. A set of eyes who saw and remembered, but that were not actively used. Certain common gestures perhaps used once too many times too often, particular facial expressions staying in a particular place for too long or too short a time. In other words, yes, the Sith Lord Darth Voracitos was present for the meeting of the minds of the Imperial Government... but the Chaos-God of Gluttony, was far away from these mundane concerns. The true Voracitos, Voracitos Prime, was too busy building his own hellish universe to be directly or deeply concerned by a petty war the Emperor frivolously set into motion, as if by a whim. Voracitos remembered a time when his petty whims were met, but did not miss them. These days, his whims were anything but petty, and by the power of Chaos they would be done at any cost.

[member="Darth Carnifex"], [member="Darth Prazutis"], [member="Taeli Raaf"], [member="Sith Muse"], [member="Izaszh Zambrano"], [member="Salara Zambrano"], [member="Constantinius Zambrano"], [member="Darth Ophidia"]