Ten Thousand Years of Peace

[Tanomas Graf]

B A S T I O N​

8 5 0 A B Y​

​

The sound of wood striking against the floor signaled the aged form of one Tanomas Graf, cane in hand, striding comfortably into the Dark Lord's chambers accompanied by two Imperial sovereign protectors, both strong in their respective sides of the Force, who stopped behind at a distance away while the Grand Moff continued until he stood before [member="Darth Carnifex"].

With his cane held firmly in his right hand and his left, which had the entire fore-arm replaced with a cybernetic version, held over his torso; the Imperial leader would give a small, but respectful bow to the Sith.

"Lord Carnifex." The Imperator began, staring the Sith Lord straight in his eyes with unwavering confidence "I am most pleased that you accepted my audience. The Galactic Empire wishes to formally create diplomatic ties with the Sith Empire."

He paused, choosing his words carefully "Our ancestral empires, when it comes down to it, were both created by the Sith, yours being more ancient than my own. But we retain ideologies, we only know one truth:"

"Order must be restored to our Galaxy."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The Dark Lord's chambers were exquisitely furbished, art lining the walls and the busts of great ancient Sith cradled upon pedestals of black marble. The room exuded the Dark Side of the Force, chilling the air and instilling a sense of intense dread in the weak willed.

But he knew that [member="Tanomas Graf"] was the farthest thing from weak willed.

Carnifex wore rather simple garments for this meeting, his trademark crimson armorweave cloak and some simple linen vestments consisting of a tunic and trousers with a leather belt and boots. It was slightly amusing to the Dark Lord, as last he checked he was almost a decade older than the wizened Imperator yet he looked many years younger. As it turned out the benefits of having an inexhaustible supply of clone bodies included a perpetual youthful appearance with each transference.

"Indeed, order must be restored to the galaxy. We have seen what happens in its absence, and we know the names of those who seek its opposite. The Alliance and the Jedi are a hideous blight upon the galaxy, and I agree that only through a united front can they be fully wiped from existence. But what is it that you seek, Grand Moff? Your band calls themselves 'Galactic', a concerning misnomer."

 

[Tanomas Graf]

The Grand Moff remained as stoic as ever, but something did change; his lips curled slightly upwards, reminiscent of a smirk, before reverting to their neutral state.

"Stay on topic, Lord. I did not come here to seek your approval on the naming conventions of my 'band'. You quarrel with the Alliance but you sit on the complete other side of the galaxy, your precious Reach in the midst of 'bending the knee' towards the insufferable Order who was, under my impression, your friend." Graf stabbed, concealed defiance in his eyes instead of fear.

"The Empire, my Empire, has proven its ability to be anywhere in the Galaxy at any time while your forces have not. What I offer is simple, I offer the ability to strike at the Alliance, I offer you peace of mind while the Sith can remain in the Tingel Arm on their crusade against the Dominion. With the war between them and the First Order drying up, the time to strike has presented itself. I offer you an alliance against the Alliance, at a price." The old man did not skip a beat, pacing in front of the Sith Lord before stopping and facing him once more.

[member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

He laughed, "There are many things you do not understand, Grand Moff. But that is neither here nor there."

He reached forward to wrap his fingers around the stem of a reservoir glass that had been sitting idly on the table nearby, his other hand gently removing the slotted spoon upon which a cube of sugar had been slowly dripping into the cloudy emerald drink ever since [member="Tanomas Graf"] had been granted entrance. The sugar had all but disappeared by now, and the Dark Lord flicked several remaining droplets of water from the fountain into the drink before closing the faucet and sliding the spoon into a specialized pouch attached to the device.

He took a tentative sip of the drink, and found the liquid perfectly mixed to his liking. "It is true that we harbor no love for the Alliance, they stand against Order itself. But if I am to endear my people to an alliance with yours, I must ensure that we have your word that in the coming wars against the Dominion and the Silver Jedi we can rely on your Empire to stand side-by-side against the enemies of Imperialism. Likewise we will send supplementary forces to aid you against the Alliance."

"I assume that such terms are agreeable?"