Eralam
Character
Name: Though there is no official name, the Shards call it The Killing Field
Image Source
Classification: Barren plains
Location: Orax
Size: The Killing Field is a formerly grassy, hilly plain exactly 10 kilometers to a side.
Population: Only the dead
Demographics: 382,913 Shards died at this point, along with approximately 2.3 million organics
Points of Interest:
- The Wall- In the exact center of the Killing Field, there is a wall constructed from the bodies of Iron Knights. Each Iron Knight was (posthumously) crucified, their hands and feet welded to durasteel crosses. The wall forms a circle roughly 1 and a half kilometers around. Inside of the wall, the organics were laid to rest. The Iron Knights look inward, so they can see forevermore those that died to defeat them.
- Ilum's Last Stand- A patch of scorched earth in the northwest corner of the Killing Field, where Ilum, the Grandmaster of the Order of the Iron Knights, made her last stand. Legend has it that she fought a rearguard action so the surviving Shards could make it off the Killing Field, singlehandedly holding off wave after wave of attackers, until she was finally overwhelmed. A prodigious user of Absorb, she took in enough energy that when she was finally slain, her body erupted in a wave of nuclear fire that scrubbed the nothwestern corner of the Killing Field of all life down to the cellular level. To this day, it is still extremely radioactive, though curiously, the radiation abruptly stops at the edges of the blackened soil.
Description: The Killing Field was originally a monument built by the Shards to commemorate three centuries of peace and prosperity, a perfect 100 square kilometer patch of grassy plain that had been elevated from the surrounding landscape. It was a gift to the organics who had helped free their world from the clutches of Palpatine's Empire, an idyllic landscape on an otherwise rocky and barren world. It was crafted to resemble the best parts of worlds such as Naboo, Corellia, and Alderaan, a place where visiting organics could enjoy a taste of their homeworlds while visiting. Though permanent structures were forbidden, prefabricated structures that could be erected and removed in a day were made available.
After the event simply known as the Massacre, it became known as the Killing Field. Though grass still clings to life in some places, most of it is devoid of life. The former paradise is now a charred hellscape, pocked with craters and patches of blast glass, scars of the massive battle that took place there. The Killing Field is littered with the remains of fallen Shards, most of whom were not granted a proper burial.
Much of the Killing Field is actively hostile to life. Pockets of intense radiation or lingering chemicals can be found, and the northwestern corner can give an unprotected organic a lethal dose of radiation in a matter of minutes. What plant life remains is nearly unrecognizable, twisted and warped at the genetic level by the effects of the battle.
History: Historians will debate for centuries which species was hardest hit by the Gulag Plague. By sheer numbers, humans had the most casualties, but since they're far and away the most numerous species in the galaxy, the percentage killed was less than others. The Chiss were particularly hard hit; their isolated society and tendency to build closed cities on inhospitable worlds let the plague spread with abandon, and wiped out their empire as a result.
One species, however, never needed to suffer a single casualty: the Shard. Their inorganic cystalline form and droid bodies made them perfectly immune. Had they simply shut their borders and gone dark, their society would still be thriving today. Instead, they were nearly wiped out for the second time in a millennia.
After the massacre visited on them by the Empire, the Shard population divided into two main groups: the Shard Network, a covert organization led by the Iron Knight known as Eralam into the shadows, and the Iron Protectorate. The Iron Protectorate was the visible face of the Shard race for centuries. Led by Ilum, the Grandmaster of the Order of the Iron Knights, they sought peace and harmony with their organic neighbors. They believed that the key to prosperity was trust and cooperation rather than deceit and subterfuge.
Though the split was originally a philosophical one, Eralam and Ilum grew to deeply resent one another. Ilum had the greater powerbase, so Eralam was exiled and excommunicated from Orax, along with his followers. The Shard Network went underground, while the Iron Protectorate sought to turn Orax into a thriving ecumenopolis along the lines of Coruscant. They knew it would be a project that would last thousands of years, but Shards were good at the long game.
Under Ilum's rule, the Iron Protectorate became a respected power in their corner of space. Though the Outer Rim was seen as a wild frontier by the Core, Orax became a bastion of civilization and enlightenment. The Natural Shards, those who remained a part of their original formations, were sought out by philosophers for their unique perspective on the universe. The mineral springs from which they formed became centers of learning, as carefully constructed universities that didn't interfere with the conditions that allowed them to form were built. Shard factories produced quality goods cheaply, as the Shards didn't require food, water, or sleep, and they could work in conditions that would kill organics. Vast hydroponic farms were built, providing a variety of foodstuffs for trade with nearby planets. It didn't take long for Orax to become a bustling hub of trade.
The Iron Knights, meanwhile, took on the role of the Jedi Order from which they originated. Knights traveled in pairs, mediating disputes, enforcing the law, and protecting the weak. Not bound by the strict adherence to the Light Side of the Force, they were a far more practical and pragmatic order than the Jedi, able to navigate the thornier situations that often arose in the Outer Rim with ease.
There was, however, an undercurrent of jealousy and resentment from certain corners who felt that the Iron Protectorate were growing too powerful. Their ability to provide quality goods at a fraction of the cost made them a threat to the various trade organizations who, despite the Shards' insistence that they wouldn't upend the market overnight, lived in constant fear that they would bring their carefully constructed demesnes crashing down. Criminal organizations outright hated the Iron Knights. Though the Knights were pragmatic enough to realize that they would never eradicate organized crime, they had a near pathological hatred of slavery, and would stamp it out whenever they could find it. Various religions in the area were appalled by the very notion of inorganic crystals being sentient, and viewed the existence of Iron Knights as heresy of the highest order. They pointed to the Jedi Order's decision to exile the original Iron Knights as proof of their beliefs. Military advisers were wary of the Iron Protectorate Fleet. Though small, it was the most technically advanced in the region, and it was said that a single Shard cruiser was worth a dozen Star Destroyers.
None the less, the various detractors were nothing more than a vocal minority, and Orax and the Iron Protectorate continued to prosper. The land that would become known as the Killing Field was commissioned and constructed as a monument to peaceful cooperation with organics, and was completed by the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Iron Protectorate. Though it bore no official name, as Shards weren't big on that sort of thing, it became informally known as Prosperity Field.
The Iron Protectorate looked to have a bright future ahead of it, right up until the Gulag Plague hit.
Upon hearing the first rumors of a devastating plague ravaging Chiss space, Ilum sent a task force of Iron Knights, along with a team of scientists, to the region to investigate. What they discovered was a disease unlike anything they had seen before. Fatality rates among infected were near 100%, and it was virulently infectious. Models showed that, when introduced into an unprotected population, 50% of the population could expect to contract it before sufficient measures were put into place to halt the spread. It was nearly impossible to tell who might be incubating the disease before the first symptoms appeared without invasive testing, and by that point, a single vector of infection could have spread the disease to dozens of others, who would in turn pass it along.
With typical Shard pragmatism, Ilum and her advisors concocted a plan to save as many lives as possible.
All organics on Orax were tested, by force if necessary. Because of the advanced warning, they were able to stop the plague spreading by isolating the infected and, after letting them put their affairs in order as best as they could, quietly euthanizing them. Most willingly accepted the easy way out after being confronted with the harsh reality of the virus, but a few resisted, and one managed to get word out on the Holonet. He painted an entirely false picture of an organic holocaust on Orax, where potential troublemakers were put down under the guise of preventing a fictitious disease, invented by the Shards to keep the population in check.
Again, Shard pragmatism saved the day, or so it would seem. Ilum presented her team's findings from Chiss space to the galaxy, most of whom were already aware of the dangers of the Gulag Plague by this point, even if they found the idea of an intragalactic pandemic laughable. And then, broadcast live, she ordered the whistleblower to be hooked up to a variety of medical devices that would monitor his every function, and let him die for the whole galaxy to see.
Panic ensued.
The Iron Protectorate's enemies publicly condemned the act as a cruel execution, and their euthanasia program as inhumane and unethical, despite quietly pursuing their own versions. When the Iron Protectorate halted all incoming traffic, to the point of destroying several ships that tried to land without permission, their enemies spun up a fantastical tale of a war being waged against organics by the evil Shards.
Ilum knew that war was inevitable by this point, her enemies had whipped the general population in the planets surrounding the Protectorate into a frenzy bordering on fanaticism. She knew it was only a matter of time before they attacked, and that they'd bring the Gulag Plague with them. If she was going to save as much of the organic population of Orax as possible, there was only one solution: evacuation.
The organics were given two choices: make their way offworld on their own and take their chances with the plague, or move to a virgin world and start a colony. The Protectorate had isolated a planet as a garden world long ago, and it was a perfect candidate for a colony. All those who wanted to were sent free of charge, with equipment and supplies enough to start a primitive colony. They were ordered to destroy all comms and Holonet nodes, lest they be tempted to spread the word and, in the process, bring the Plague with them. What happened to that colony is unknown. Its location was purged from all records, and they weren't left with any means of communicating with the outside world. Perhaps they survive to this day.
Meanwhile, Orax prepared for war.
Ilum did not want to indiscriminately invade the Protectorate's neighbors and preemptively wipe them off the map, though it was easily within the realm of possibility. All it would take was a few asteroids of sufficient magnitude, accelerated near lightspeed towards their planets. Though that would guarantee the survival of her race in the short term, it would almost certainly turn a galaxy in the throes of madness against them.
Instead, she ordered their world to be fortified and made ready to welcome the attackers.
It was a brilliant plan, and one that might have worked if not for one key factor: organics are not logical.
Instead of building up their armies to match the technological might of the Shards, the coalition formed from the Iron Protectorate's enemies took a different route. They spread the rumor that the Shards had a cure, and that they were hiding it from them. After a few days of strategically denying it, they eventually confirmed that yes, the Shards did have a cure, and that they would procure it in the name of the people. Anyone who volunteered to go would have their sick family members cured. All they had to do was fight.
Millions of volunteers applied immediately. Most were given little more than a blaster rifle and just enough ammunition to fire a few shots before being killed. Those with military experience were given slightly better weapons, and for good measure, highly trained and heavily armed commandos were inserted into the throngs of volunteers as they boarded commandeered freighters and headed for Orax.
The massive armada of civilian ships, each claiming to be loaded with refugees, took Ilum off guard. She could blow away a single ship or even a military fleet, no problem, but there were thousands of the things, and they were all packed with what she thought were refugees. She ordered them to land in Prosperity Field.
In what would have probably been one of the galaxies greatest humanitarian efforts under different, more honest circumstances, Shards worked tirelessly for three days to get all the ships landed. They threw up prefabricated shelters, cleared landing sites, and kept a constant stream of ships landing, unloading, and then clearing off to the planet's plentiful spaceports. Over five million people made it safely to Prosperity Field, with no major accidents.
On the third day, they attacked.
Commando teams hiding in the ships that were redirected to the spaceports had infiltrated and sabotaged Orax's defenses. The beleaguered Shards had devoted almost all of their resources to coordinating the mass landing, and were caught offguard as most of their heavy weaponry was eliminated in one fell swoop. The commandos had had nearly free range of the planet and had gone more or less unopposed. What's worse, not only did they manage to disable the weapons, they managed to disable public transportation as well. Privately owned vehicles on Orax were a rarity, and without public transportation, the only way to really get from place to place was on foot.
The "refugees", meanwhile, had stashed their weapons in crates of supplies that the Shards had been too busy to search. Those with the training quickly took charge and organized attacks on the Shard personnel on the field, quickly wiping them out without suffering casualties of their own.
With no significant weapons or defenses, Ilum knew the battle was lost before it even began. She ordered the evacuation of all nonessential Shards, and called for any and all volunteers who were willing to fight to head to Prosperity Field to stem the tide of howling organics.
Had they had time to organize, the battle would have likely gone differently. Even an unarmed Shard is more than a match for a dozen organics, simply because their mechanical bodies grant them greater strength and durability. There was no time, however. Though the raised field was surrounded by 100 meter sheer drops on all sides, the northwestern corner featured a stairway over 300 meters wide, a colossus of engineering that had served as the primary entrance and exit for those visiting the field on foot. It was large enough to drain Prosperity Field in a matter of hours, and since one of the primary spaceports, an absolute necessity for the evacuation effort was in walking distance, it was imperative that the threat be contained as long as possible.
382,913 Shards, working together, could have scoured the field of life in less than an hour. Instead, they arrived in a trickle. Most of them were unarmed; Ilum had not encouraged private ownership of weapons on Orax, arguing that their military would be more than sufficient to defend against all comers. If they had access to ships, they could have landed all across the field, wreaking havoc all throughout the enemy. But all the ships were commandeered for the evacuation effort. A few managed to scale the sides, using whatever means they had at their disposal, but it wasn't enough.
The unarmed Shards that made it past the hail of blasterfire plowed into the masses, killing or maiming on average five to ten before being overwhelmed by sheer numbers. Iron Knights lasted longer, some taking out hundreds, but they too eventually fell, and their bodies were carted to the center. The leader of the organics, whose name has been lost to time, had something special in mind for them.
For nearly a week, Shards threw themselves at the defensive line formed at the top of the stairs. Many of them had ran nearly nonstop from hundreds of miles away. Finally, on the sixth day, Ilum herself led over 100 Iron Knights to the top of the steps. They fought like demons, slaying tens of thousands of invaders, pushing them off the northwest corner altogether.
Just when it looked like the tide was turning, the enemy fleet arrived.
The refugees were little more than a distraction, a means of keeping the Shards off balance and on the defensive while they built up their might. With the Shard fleet scattered to the winds by the evacuation effort, they entered the system unopposed and rained turbolaser fire down on the Iron Knights. Most fell immediately, unable to withstand the onslaught. Ilum, through some combination of skill and divine intervention, survived, and continued fighting for an hour and a half. Finally, however, a lucky blaster bolt broke through and destroyed her right leg. Unable to move, she opened herself to the Force, submerging herself completely within it. Bolt after bolt, both turbolaser and blaster, poured into her and vanished, Absorbed and transmuted into raw energy. Finally, she could take no more, and her crystalline body exploded.
The blast was so violent, it shattered the very bonds that held her atoms together, searing her corner of the field with radiation. To this day, any organic who steps foot on the blackened crater that serves as her tombstone can expect to receive a lethal dose of radiation in moments.
The final evacuation ship made it off planet shortly after Ilum's death. Her sacrifice caught the enemy fleet off guard long enough for the single ship to run the gauntlet and escape. Most of the evacuees were assimilated into Eralam's Shard Network. No one speaks of the Massacre, or even of Ilum's last stand. The topic is taboo, to the point of becoming a collectively repressed memory.
As for the invaders, well, their eventual fate was lost to the 400 years of darkness. We know they constructed The Wall from the bodies of the Iron Knights at some point, and burned their dead in massive funeral pyres inside of it. What happened after that was a mystery. After the massacre, Eralam took advantage of the four centuries of chaos to destroy as many records of Orax is possible. It no longer appears on star charts, and the location is a closely guarded secret.
Intent: I've created this sub for two reasons. Firstly, for the competition. I've never been able to resist a good challenge. But mostly, it's because I've had this backstory for the Shards building in my head ever since I came to Chaos; their history, how they ended up in their current state, so on and so forth. The basics for the Killing Field have been in my head for a while now, but it just occured to me when I read the contest info that the Gulag Plague was the perfect trigger for the events that would take place there on Orax.
Links: N/A
