Populate The Second Conclave | TSC Populate of Empty Hex

[Tamsin Starfall]

Theme: Pulse of Darkness
Equipment: Twin Omens | Multi-Tool | Stars Enchained | Mind Crown
TAGS: Vestra Tane | Mercy | Arris Windrun | Srina Talon | Meliant | Lysander von Ascania | Darth Amaymon | Kyber | More

The devil in Tamsin smirked as Vestra Tane opened with starting a fight or proclaiming titles. It had many titles, none of which would matter in the here and now. Now that a council was officially announced she could add councilor among them. Councilor of what though had yet to be determined. As Vestra went on to put the victory of the covenant simply, The demon doubt the remnants of the Maw that had become the Empire were fully washed away they were a stain that never seemed to stay dead much like her.

Her sights then turned to a knew comer Kyber as they presented their cybernetic abominations. The Demon looking through Tamsin's eyes said nothing but looked over the creatures with interest. It reminded her on some level of the hells she and those she had allied herself with had unleashed on so many worlds. Yet her thoughts were cut short by the one they called Mercy .

"Chaos is our greatest advantage, my fellow Lords, my Knights. Whatever proposals you have for us today, keep that in mind. Do not let yourself be drawn into the allure of order, of formalized authority, that is my main suggestion for now."

Orange rings shimmered around the edges of those dark eyes as those words were spoken. Chaos she could bring them, but would they like it, could they handle weight of what the demon could do. Yet the thought of the destruction and carnage it bring the Galaxy was cut short.

"Some of us have already put together a plan. ISB kept an extensive record of former Alliance officers. Discharged, retired, imprisoned, deserters... What have you. Apparently, scouted for recruitment to replace the Imperial losses at Atrisia. I recommend picking up where the Empire left off and building ourselves a navy."

They wanted Chaos and a military, military required order and structure. It seemed like a contradiction of ideals. The Maw had pulled it off but it was a very delicate balance that did have a supreme authority of order held in belief of higher powers. Minds controlled by a unshakable faith, that was how systems of order and chaos could comingle and remain unpredictable.

"Empress Teta has a strong history Naval contributions. I am sure their libraries are filled with tactics and strategies. Plus, they enacted conscription during the Dark Empires Reign so a good portion of their populace is military trained."

It was clear as Tamsin's eyes lit up into a bright burning orange color that this was no longer Tamsin speaking.

"The downside is we will have to deal with the Noble houses there, which I can do if you allow me too. Also, there is Anaxes people are well versed in Naval combat as they have protected the Perlemian Trade Route for generations again, you will be dealing with stubborn nobles."

Maybe it was time to go meet with the old ex-inlaws descendants on Anaxes the Demon thought to itself. Though it wouldn't be as gratifying as if she was wearing her own skin suit instead of this imitation of her.

"I suppose you could also search Byss, for recruits though not sure how many of the old timers are still in the land of living since that Quantum Bomb incident. I can help with the Navy recruiting and other diplomatic issues on Empress Teta all I ask is that I can also use the world of Kuar for scientific research. It has a low population and no resources of much value."

 

[Meliant]

Mercy Vestra Tane Arris Windrun Lysander von Ascania Naniti Tamsin Starfall Darth Amaymon Riffraff Ranat Srina Talon Milla Kyber​

Finally landing on Meliant he nodded respectfully and blurted out. "Now that is a nice chair."

Meliant kicked his feet up onto the table, "Thank you. It was the Emperor's favorite, and now," he giggled like a hole of the ass variety, "It's this Emperor's favorite."​

​

Vestra Tane called the council to order and the time to discuss the provenance of Meliant's furniture passed quietly into history. Now was the time for political discourse.​

"Chaos is our greatest advantage, my fellow Lords, my Knights. Whatever proposals you have for us today, keep that in mind. Do not let yourself be drawn into the allure of order, of formalized authority, that is my main suggestion for now."

"I recommend picking up where the Empire left off and building ourselves a navy."

Incredible - they were already at an impasse and they didn't even realize it. Starfall rattled off some trivia about Empress Teta, Byss, Kuar. All fine and dandy as long as the council knew what they would inevitably become. Big fleets required big governments to support them.​

​

"If you people..." Meliant paused, reflected, then said, "...If we people want to field anything larger than a tugboat, then we're not getting it done without 'formalized authority.' Tens of thousands of screaming, hungry mouths on a single star destroyer. You want twenty of them and to keep playing it fast and loose? Forget it. This goes one way or the other."​

​

 

[Adean Castor]

TAG: Milla | Riffraff Ranat
NEARBY: Various

Adean's brow furrowed as she considered her approach to the wreckage of the Siegemother, already questioning the reality of her plan. Would navigating the wreckage, risking further explosions or shifting debris as the crash site further settled, be worth the chance of memory files left intact? And on the other hand, would there be another opportunity? By the stars, she wanted to explore the wreckage while she seemed to have it to herself.

A particularly nasty-sounding crash that shook the durasteel beneath her saw the Epicanthix quickly changing her mind. Nope. Not worth it. She could think of about 45 other things to better pass the time.

The dark-haired woman's trek back to the palace mixed purpose with wandering, just enough that any onlookers would mistake her retreat for a task completed. Emerald eyes took in each shift in the landscape, each passerby, seldom making eye contact and being very particular about how she avoided it.

As the headache receded over time and she drew closer to the palace doors, she could hear the murmurings of discussion inside. It seemed only right that she get closer, if only to satisfy curiosity's call. Her gaze lingered on a particularly shiny speeder, only featuring some minor dents, near the entrance, before her feet carried on toward a conveniently open door.

"Oh, I see," The whispered words were for no one other than the presence without presence as she caught the last few seconds of dialogue between the seated fellows, a mixture of interest and recognition coloring the breathed syllables. It wasn't that difficult to clock what she'd inadvertently walked in on. And while a small part of her beckoned at the urge to step in with grandiose claims, if only to see if perhaps this council could be made to have a seat for one more, Adean kept her head down.

Well, not actually down. Mid-level, focused on her datapad as she strolled further from the entrance at a pace that left no room to question if she belonged. For even if she hadn't before entering this room, she surely did now.

 

[Eurydice]

"V-Vairn, wait! That isn't necess…"

Eurydice wasn't certain why she trailed off. Perhaps she was used to her own will, meek as it was, being superseded by those of others.

It was the Sith way, after all.

Varin's hold eased when she asked after his eye. Eurydice exhaled suddenly; she hadn't realized she'd been holding her breath. The officer slunk away, and the girl found herself frowning

"I'm…sorry to hear that." And she was. "This life seems intent on stripping everything from us," she added quietly.

Maybe that wasn't the right thing to say, and she said nothing more.

A shadow slithered over the ridges and dips in the high ceiling before slipping down to Eurydice's shoulder. The dark, wispy mass solidified into the form of a black bird. He spread his wings a let out a single caw.

"This is Gaspar," she murmured a soft introduction. Fingers gave the bird a gentle scratch beneath his beak. "He found the room that used to be the archives but…cannot tell what state it is in."

Gaspar's pitch-black eyes observed Varin with an intent, avian curiosity.

Varin Mortifer

 

[Arris Windrun]

Mercy Vestra Tane Meliant Darth Amaymon Srina Talon Tamsin Starfall Lysander von Ascania Naniti Riffraff Ranat Kyber Adean Castor Milla (GOD IF I FORGOT YOU IT WAS NOT PERSONAL)

"If you people..." Meliant paused, reflected, then said, "...If we people want to field anything larger than a tugboat, then we're not getting it done without 'formalized authority.' Tens of thousands of screaming, hungry mouths on a single star destroyer. You want twenty of them and to keep playing it fast and loose? Forget it. This goes one way or the other."

Arris was... picking up what the Emperor of Coruscant was putting down...

It was an odd realization, actually. For the fighter's instincts were starting to bleed into the realm of galactic politics and policymaking. Few knew this, perhaps, but Arris Windrun was (as they say) terminally on the HoloNet. In this chaotic hellhole of a galaxy, her holo consumption and discourse were often on politics, culture, society, crises. Things like that. Not only pirated fight feeds and other forms of content.

Suffice it to say, she really understood the subtext going on in everything Meliant said. Which was honestly incredible, given that whenever he yapped, it was actually difficult to tell how much of it was meaningful conversation versus some ill-timed joke.

"I think..." Arris looked around. "I think we're missing one incredible detail, yeah?" She began.

"All these worlds have governments. They might not be in the best of shape," especially after certain planetary governors and garrisons went and carried out horrifying purge orders. "But they're there.... Maybe shut down, without budget, or even administration. But the box and all the parts are there, yeah?"

Chaos be damned. She was coming up with an idea.

"Entire armies have been built and trained on the back of bounty hunter and mercenary consultants. Entire skyscrapers have been built by throwing a shitton of credits at cobbled together consultants and contractors... Can't we... Can't we just do the same thing for an administrative government?"

Weren't there megacorporations with think tanks and sociopathic visions, just waiting and ready to go privatize government? Weren't there corrupt politicians dreaming of the day that all that red tape fell through and they could begin their crony dictatorships?

And wasn't the fear of Sith reprisal - wasn't greed and powerlust a grand motivator to make sure all these things fell into place?

She honestly wondered.

 

[Varin Mortifer]

He gently waved off her apology, Varin felt as if it was not really needed. The simple gesture seemed to bring to light just how much had changed in him since their first meeting. The more he spent time with The Covenant, the more of himself he seemed to lose, or perhaps even find. Bit by bit more of his father seemed to fill in the cracks. He had started to grow ruthless, callous and even cruel.

“On the contrary, Eurydice. I had gained much when I lost my eye. I learned more about myself in that split moment than months of soul searching could have given me.”

Weakness had started to purge from him since that night he had lost his eye. He learned that hesitation would bring him death next time, there was no more room for it. Slowly without realising it he started killing away his feelings of mercy, or even the feeling of giving others a chance of walking away.

The coalition of blackened smoke seemed to appear in the shape of a black avian creature, small but intelligent. Its small caw caught his attention as it looked at him with eyes that could calculate. He watched her gently scratch the underside of his beak and Varin’s head slightly tilted.

“Interesting....Gaspar, a lovely name for such a creature.”

He slowly let out his hand, inviting the crow over to his hand.

“You take control of smoke now? Or is this some other form of sorcery?”

He looked back at Eurydice, then back to some of the slaves that began to slack off. He motioned for one of his Nagai troops to approach.

“Keep an eye on the workers, make sure they keep up tempo. The temple cannot fall behind on schedule.”

The Nagai gave him a nod, then started barking orders at the slaves, encouraging them to move faster.

“So the archives still exist here then?”

His good eye that used to maintain a dark brown color now seemed to remain in a fiery orange state as it peered back to her.

“Perhaps he could guide us there? We can take a look, I can offer you security.”

He smiled lightly.

“Gaspar can even lead the way.”

He gently stroked a finger over the back of Gaspar’s head, smoke wisping from Varin’s back like living tendrils keeping watch behind him.

“On the way there you can tell me of how your adventures have fared since the last time we met? I’d love to hear your stories.”

Eurydice​

 

[Darth Amaymon]

Tags: Vestra Tane Mercy Tamsin Starfall Lysander von Ascania Srina Talon Kyber Riffraff Ranat Adean Castor Milla
​

Weight shifted back and forth in his primal position. As the proceedings officially began and ideas were being voiced aloud, Amaymon reflected on his ongoing observations. Measuring and weighing the gravity of the various sith lords and ladies of this council and yet as he did his eyes shifted to the ground were remnants of pebbles remained. They were small, insignificant in size and greatly dwarfed by the titans hands, yet alone fingers yet they remained.

The holograms glow caused him to squint.

Casually the titan collected more in his hand. The cloak of years, decades, centuries and millenniums fluttered by with each passing syllable and sentence. He felt old. Older than he would of liked, if there was such a thing and its source was the topics of conversation. Where others experienced discussions, Kezeroth, heard patterns and saw symbols behind a consensus reality. Not to mention the slowness of it.

Sith politics. Amazing how little the concept changed over the first millennium of his existence. That was just its nature. Other foundations added on was more noise. Though this specific council was beginning to annoy him and for one reason. Lack of conviction. There was a flicker of light that flashed, it was followed by the subtle impact of pebble landing on the other side of the table. Again it occurred and then again and again. Over and over. Hunched over making Hutt ball field goals with a scowl.

"If you people..." Meliant paused, reflected, then said, "...If we people want to field anything larger than a tugboat, then we're not getting it done without 'formalized authority.' Tens of thousands of screaming, hungry mouths on a single star destroyer. You want twenty of them and to keep playing it fast and loose? Forget it. This goes one way or the other."

"I think..." Arris looked around. "I think we're missing one incredible detail, yeah?" She began.

"All these worlds have governments. They might not be in the best of shape," especially after certain planetary governors and garrisons went and carried out horrifying purge orders. "But they're there.... Maybe shut down, without budget, or even administration. But the box and all the parts are there, yeah?"

Chaos be damned. She was coming up with an idea.

"Entire armies have been built and trained on the back of bounty hunter and mercenary consultants. Entire skyscrapers have been built by throwing a shitton of credits at cobbled together consultants and contractors... Can't we... Can't we just do the same thing for an administrative government?"

"Your thinking is too... linear." He said bluntly with a slight delay on the last phrase. Pausing to toss another pebble just to see the image distort again. " The Covanent already has fleets. Soldiers. Formalized authorities. " Another pebble was let loose before the rest in his hand fell to the ground. " You just cant see how to incentivize them. Mistaking control for power. You're too busy trying to control them."

"Power is all that matters." His scowl shifted into a wide toothy smile. " Give the right people power and the Covenant will be given everything it needs. And I know how." He ended, just waiting to be asked.

​

 

[Darth Apophion]

OBJECTIVE TWO
​

It would soon be written in the chronicles of the Sith, in ink made of blood and ash, of a new era for the galaxy. Titles would be given in measured cadence, each one wrapped in the illusion of permanence. The crowns of empires fall and shatter upon the earth. False kings would lift these crowns with eager hands, polishing them, renaming them, and bestowing them on those untested by the fires that forged them. Wardens, governors, protectors, councilors. In the end, Courscant would continue to glimmer in the night, and the skylanes still would be filled with traffic.

In the distant past, during the Golden Age of the Sith, the Sith Lords of old did not concern themselves with the comforts of Core worlds. They forged a domain on unforgiving worlds, places where only the strong could survive and endure.

Deep in the bowels of the palace district, Apophion pondered as he went through the Empire's intelligence files. The control chamber was circular in shape and utilitarian in nature. Conduits and lines were crudely bolted to the wall and thrummed with life. A hololithic projector rose from the floor, made of plain steel. Apophion turned and moved to the central terminal, still clean by those who cared for it, and believed the Empire would never end. As he approached, it awkwardly came to life, as if the station was not expecting to reawaken again.

Apophion looked at the screen. Encrypted and classified directories. Surveillance networks, NOC-lists, blacksite inventories, contingency plans, counterinsurgency projections. He began to delete all of it. The action required little to no spectacle. With the quick movement of his hand, entire directories of the Empire's Intelligence collapsed into nothingness. Deep-cover assets ceased to exist. Surveillance grids dissolved. Top secret weapon development plans vanished in cascading failures of light. Apophion was unfazed by his own actions.

The final intelligence directory flickered and died, leaving the vault hollow and strangely serene. Yet Apophion lingered a little longer. Holdouts still fought in barricaded blocks of the city planet. He very much planned to find them.

 

[Vestra Tane]

Tags: Meliant | Arris Windrun | Mercy | Tamsin Starfall | Darth Amaymon | Srina Talon | Kyber | Riffraff Ranat | Adean Castor | Milla | ANYONE ELSE I MISSED​

Vestra didn't have Arris's terminally-online political savvy. She didn't have Mercy's charisma.

"Entire armies have been built and trained on the back of bounty hunter and mercenary consultants. Entire skyscrapers have been built by throwing a shitton of credits at cobbled together consultants and contractors... Can't we... Can't we just do the same thing for an administrative government?"

But what she did have was a finely-tuned instinct for extortion.

"Back when I ran with the syndicates," Vestra gestured with a vague what she said sort of series of hand motions towards Arris, then leaned back in her seat, lounging, thoughtful. "The cushiest gig you could get was protection. Show up with the muscle, take your cut of whatever you're protecting, string up anyone stupid enough to try anything...big enough guns, you can run the whole Galaxy like that, if you want."

Lean, predatory, efficient - that was how this whole thing oughta run, at least as Vestra saw it. Let the gangs and the corps rule their planets however they liked, so long as the credits and the guns kept flowing, and they remembered who they answered to. The Sith had wars to wage, and minds to liberate.

"Don't think many of us give a chit about writing infrastructure code, anyway."

 

[Riffraff Ranat]

Tags: Milla | Adean Castor
Nearby to Conclave Happenings​

Unaware that some punk had just wrecked her new speeder, Riffraff was plenty distracted by the goings on in the meeting room. Already the various ruffians, wizards, and warriors were posturing for their place both metaphorically and literally.

For her part, the purple ranat was content to watch from the sidelines. She angled always to be just near enough to interesting happenings, but never too close that she couldn't extract herself in one piece at any given moment.

"Knights and Masters of the Covenant, we have butchered the Empire like an animal, and now we ask ourselves - what are we doing with the bones?"

Riffraff leaned back against the wall that was keeping her company, clawed hand reaching into one of her many overall pockets to fish out a pack of STAR CRISPS ™ so she could begin munching on them.

Slitted orange eyes slid to behold someone walking with absentminded purpose, a dichotomy she knew so well given how often she embodied it for her various confidence games and odd jobs. One long, fluffy ear turned in the direction of a different person that seemed to "casually" approaching.

Interesting.

Riffraff remained where she was, popping a few crisps into her mouth at a time. Suddenly a decision came to her as the person carrying a datapad, one didn't recognize tech she'd yet serviced for the Covenant, came level with where she leaned.

The ranat let out a quick, sharp, but not terribly obtrusive whistle. Distinct enough to grab attention but nothing too loud to bother the presiding lords and ladies running their important pie slicing contest.

Those orange eyes were ready to collect the gaze of Adean Castor and Riffraff waved a hand to call her over. Out of her periphery she, with one ear still turned, the ranat stayed wary of the approaching girl.

 

[Kirie]

Location: Coruscant Sith Temple
Tag: Anet Raine | Nilira Vornix

Anet fell to her knees, blood pooling from her torso and something completely unexplainable in her eyes, and it gave Kirie a rush she had never felt before. Did she like this feeling? She couldn't face the answer, so she pushed the thought aside. Instead, she tilted her head to look Anet in the eyes. The Force still swirled all about her. Undirected the current flowed across her body making strands of her hair stand on end, and raced back out of her fingers and toes, or dripped down onto Anet to congeal around her spreading wound. So hungry, so thick she could almost see it.

She heard the echo of the primal scream and instantly she reached out to grab at its source. The rivulets of energy at her command snapped to attention and gripped the last fleeing vestiges of the spirit and shredded it into raw energy that joined the maelstrom inside of her chest. Her eyes shone with gold. Anet's skin looked cold and bloodless, even through her bluish pallor.

Kirie's senses sharpened the instant before the saber ignited, and she jerked her head back so that the bladetip sizzled half a hand's length from her face. She looked at it down her nose, her eyes sliding down its length to admire the way the weapon sent crimson shadows dancing across Anet's face. It was not lost on Kirie that Anet had created it defending her.

"How... do you want to live?"

The words rang through her head just like her own had, loud enough to rattle her teeth. Kirie smiled grimly as she recalled the excursion, what Anet had told her in the depths of the Library, bleeding as she did now.

"As a Sith."

The saber still wavering in front of her, Kirie placed a foot on Anet's sternum, and simply pushed her over.

Which was when the control collar they had put on her activated.

Kirie's muscles contracted instantly and she folded, falling hard against the hard stone and writhing in silent agony. The pulse lasted perhaps ten seconds, but by the time she was able to think again she was covered in a sheen of sweat and had bitten the inside of her cheek hard enough to bleed. Worse, her concentration on the Force had broken, and the euphoric whirlwind of energy had faded to the usual background hum that permeated the temple. Kirie sighed, and struggled to her feet.

She looked around, eyes diverting around the figure of Anet, and peered up the hall, where another person was lurking.

'Nilira.' Kirie signed, her droid interpreting and repeating in a voice that echoed along the now-quiet hallway. 'Go help her.'

Kirie turned without another word, and walked away.

 

[Anet Raine]

Kirie | Nilira Vornix

How devoted was she...

Anet had ignored everything else about the situation. She felt profoundly seen when KIrie's gaze lowered to meet hers in the lightsaber's glow. When the brunette smiled, so did Anet, with eyes wild and wide. Then, she felt the woman's words in her mind.

"As a Sith."

Blissful euphoria. Shone on her face brighter than the blade, and in the Force, radiating hotter. Everything Anet wanted for her was tied to those words.

Despite the severe wound that threatened to end her life barring rather immediate intervention, the half-pantoran sighed with existential relief and surrendered to Kirie's foot - had Anet even the strength - and fell backwards without resistance. Her lightsaber remained ignited, hilt clasped in hand, and held across her chest. The plasmic blade rested so close to her cheek that it began to singe her flesh, until finally the acolyte allowed its recoil.

Kirie fell to the ground beside her, and Anet, open to her in the Force, felt an echo of the woman's pain.

"Good," Anet thought. "Don't fight it. Let that be your power, too."

At the end of it all, they were both rudimentary creatures, born of the universe, and theirs was the path to greatness.

She recalled wisdom contained in a holocron. They belonged to a long-dead woman, and so she repeated them, the very words that set Anet Raine out to become a Sith.

Loud enough so Kirie might hear as she writhed, then got up to walk away, Anet spoke.

"The Force is our Servant and our Master. Our Teacher and our Companion. A Weapon and a Tool."

She took a deep breath, reveling in their shared moment of transcendental pain.

"Know it... and you know the Universe."

So, the question must be asked again. How devoted was she...

"Together, Kirie Corsell! We will master it together!"

Anet turned to the side and coughed up more blood. There in the corner where Kirie called to a shadow, she saw her.

 

[Meliant]

Mercy Arris Windrun Vestra Tane Darth Amaymon​

"You just cant see how to incentivize them. Mistaking control for power. You're too busy trying to control them."

"Pah!" Meliant scoffed. What was the point of power if it didn't come pre-packaged with control, unlimited control? ​

​

Maybe some people enjoyed wielding the Force for shits and giggles, but Meliant wanted to boss people around. He wanted riches and infamy and respect. If the incredible power of the Force was not leveraged for anything other than those lofty aims, then it was power wasted.​

"Give the right people power and the Covenant will be given everything it needs. And I know how."

Meliant canted his head one way. "Will it involve chucking pebbles?"​

​

 

[Nilira Vornix]

Tag: Kirie Anet Raine

An eyebrow raised when Kirie used her name. And the other eyebrow raised when she had realised what Kirie had said. About her wanting to live as a Sith. Disappointing. Vastly disappointing. Neriah would not have approved of that. Unfortunately, Neriah was long "dead" by this point. Replaced by Nilira, who at the end of the day, ultimately didn't care what people lived as. Life was saved for those who were people. She was not. She was a simple tool.

A tool did their purpose and what they were asked for, as she put her datapad away, stepping over towards both Kirie and Anet, watching as the Traitor started to walk down the corridor. She was like the rest of them. There had been a belief, a belief that had died with Neriah, that Kirie could be better than those she had surrounded herself with. Yet it seemed otherwise. Kirie was like the rest of them. How quaint. That would be something to be recorded for later thought, yet her eyes flicked down to Anet.

"...How am I meant to be helping you? Am I ending your pain?"

Her hand went to her lightsaber at that. The main way she knew to end someone's pain was to kill them. The technique on how to heal someone was lost on her now. It had been something that Neriah knew how to do. How to save lives. Yet she had died. And so Nilira filled that void, and she didn't have the passion or power to be able to heal anymore. Nor to destroy, as Lightning no longer came to her.

"Or am I meant to stop the bleeding?"

That would involve more pain. Cauterising with her lightsaber. It wouldn't fix much of the internal damage, but it would at least prevent the external bleeding.

​

 

[Tamsin Starfall]

Theme: Pulse of Darkness
Equipment: Twin Omens | Multi-Tool | Stars Enchained | Mind Crown
TAGS: Vestra Tane | Mercy | Arris Windrun | Srina Talon | Meliant | Lysander von Ascania | Darth Amaymon | Kyber | More

"Chaos and Order, Power and Control, Fear and Loyalty. Children playing warlords on the galactic playground." She said it to herself expecting no one to be listening as they prattled on around her about nonsense. God how she wished she had her old meat suit and not this inferior one she had to wear for the time being.

"Fear by having the biggest Gun is a paper-thin wall that only holds people in place until they find someone with a nuke. Fear is the cheapest glue on the market to hold something together. Though it can be a good starting place, it won't last."

Even as the words rolled off the demon's tongue it disgusted her giving wisdom, she felt almost dirty like one of those Jedi people.

"If you want structure and Chaos where you don't have to write the code and laws. Then you need to win the minds of the people, so they build it for you. So, they will want to defend whatever this is to become. You can do this in many ways religion, shame charities, and hell even a puppet republic where they think they have a voice. Give people something to believe in, the illusion of freedom, or the illusion of safety for them and their families. All three and people will flock to you as gods and build everything for you."

Granted you could just through credits at the people too, the demon thought to itself. Because wealth also gave people those things. People worshiped the credit, it bought them freedom, and kept them safety. The whole point was you had to give people something, then they would be willing to die for it. The wealth part of Vestra's plan was sound but the fear of the biggest gun was where they split. Arris had the more correct viewpoint in the demon's eyes, though it wasn't just the government you had to hand out credits too, it was far more individualistic like Vestra's viewpoint seemed to be.

"Call them Sith Independent worlds, give the people and government credits. Let them Govern themselves with the sith as a guiding hand when needed. Give them the delusion of freedom and the credits. That way you have at least two of the three things you need. With that they will build the armies for you to defend what they believe is theirs. All it will require from the leaders of the sith is diplomacy, occasional use of intimidation, and well credits."

Her eyes then slowly turned towards Darth Amaymon and then Meliant.

"One of you speaks of power like they have none. One of you speaks of control when they have yet to gain leverage. Both come with time and this is day Zero of holding the core. You are delusional if you think the covenant has either at the moment, we need to prove we can do something with what we have gained first before either of those things are on the table for discussion. "

 

[Arris Windrun]

Meliant Tamsin Starfall Darth Amaymon Mercy Vestra Tane Kyber

The cyborg's attention turned to Vestra Tane as she tacked onto what Arris had said. She took it as an agreement.

Then, her attention turned to Tamsin, who shared another vision. One that seemed skeptical of the two Triumvirs vision. She spoke of indoctrination, plain and simple, as far as Windrun absorbed it. It reminded her a lot of Mercy's graspborn, which she absolutely detested. Creeps. The whole lot. Though when the conversation turned to money, her interest was finally piqued. Wasn't that what they had been alluding to already? Maybe from a different perspective, of course.

But Arris felt there was a mistaken presumption. That chaos and structure were antithetical. Which, as far as she was concerned, was never the case. The Talusian underworld, where she grew up, was a dysfunctional system at its core. Chaos was aplenty, but there were instincts, habits, and needs everyone was forced to fall back on.

"You are delusional if you think the covenant has either at the moment, we need to prove we can do something with what we have gained first before either of those things are on the table for discussion. "

However, here was where Arris utterly disagreed. She leaned forward.

"We destroyed the Empire in a single campaign with the spoils of Tapani. I don't think anyone lacks 'proof' of what we can do with our gains.

She gestured to the walls of the room.

"Step outside and smell the chemical fire. Shit sucks. These worlds are exhausted from war. No Jedi is knocking on our door. No rebels, no resistance; ISB took care of that. But you're right about one thing - give people credits and freedom to spend it, and they won't think twice about where it comes from."

"Power is all that matters." His scowl shifted into a wide toothy smile. " Give the right people power and the Covenant will be given everything it needs. And I know how." He ended, just waiting to be asked.

Her attention turned to Amaymom, who brought it back to power, and Arris leaned back in her seat. Meliant already asked that he elaborate in his way, so she waited.

 

[Mercy]

Meliant Tamsin Starfall Darth Amaymon Vestra Tane Kyber Arris Windrun

She drew out her pipe as they talked.

Herbs were stuffed in, neutral ones this time around, not the Force-deadening herbs that Arris had noticed she was smoking up above Coruscant. Even Mercy was wise enough to see that smoking a pipe that took away their connection of the Force would not be received well by the collection of Sith gathered here today.

They might think she was mocking them or worse, believe she was trying to kill them.

So no, it was simply a nice blend.

But Mercy listened as she drew from the pipe. They made good points, all of them, really. That is what was annoying about her current position. She had to see the views from every perspective. Not just her own perspective. She couldn't just say 'this is how it will be done' and then force them to follow her will.

It would defeat the purpose of the Covenant. She might as well have just invaded the Core with her Graspborn if her desire had been a collection of sycophants that followed her every whim.

And they wished to build something better here than the Empire that came before.

"Don't think many of us give a chit about writing infrastructure code, anyway."

"Sith that wish to write infrastructure regulations and control sanction regimes. Who see themselves as governors or executives have no place among us." Mercy's eyes rested on the helmet of her Meliant . His throne antic still irked her, but she pushed it down. Meliant was loyal, Meliant was a critical player in this game, without Meliant they may not have been sitting here now.

She reminded herself of all this.

"We sit on the largest concentration of wealth, infrastructure, manufacturing capacity and trade in the Galaxy. I refuse to accept that we should manage that as middle management. Let that fall to others. We wish for armies, ships, to further our conquests. We require money for this. Fine. We send a message to those hungry and ambitious. Come to us with your wealth. Buy into this project of ours and you may do as you please. Buy a space port, buy a city, buy a fucking planet, I do not care."

Eyes glanced from one player to the other through the haze of smoke.

"You govern with our permission. Every transaction you make, we get a cut. You step out of line, we tear your head off. But be a good player in the game and you can make more money than the Muuns, because we don't care what you do as long as the tribute keeps flowing up towards us."

She stretched and shrugged.

"Then we can build our armies and navies without having to sit and pretend we care how to interpret the Law or the execution thereof."

 

[Eurydice]

​

An eye for…growth. Eurydice didn't comment on that. The thought of him suffering unsettled her almost as much as the thought of what he might've gained.

She prayed that whatever changes came for him, that Varin did not lose his kindness.

Gaspar examined the outstretched hand with all of the intelligence afforded to a corvid. He tilted his head to the side, curious, and tapped one of Varin's fingers with his beak.

Eurydice smiled. Just a little. Just a faintly perceptible twitch of her lips, before it fell away.

"Gaspar is a sithspawn," she explained softly. "He is a dathomiri raven spliced with genetic material from smoke demon. My aim was to…"

Her voice trailed, perhaps thinking better of what she was going to say. "He cannot consume in the way that they do, but he can disperse his body into particles, like smoke. I see what he sees."

Above all, he kept her from being hopelessly lonely. Eurydice glanced to the Nagai troops, all pale skin and dark hair. He commanded soldiers now?

She nodded to Gaspar, and the bird took wing, gliding soundless against the highest reaches of the temple walls. "The room that they used to be in, does. I've no idea what state it's in, or if there's anything useful to be had."

As the pair followed after Gaspar, Eurydice slipped her hands into the wide sleeves of her robe. Varin's friendly, continued interest was new to her. She wondered if it was genuine, or if he'd wanted something of her.

As Nefaron had said, all the other Sith were just as terrible as him, if not worse. At least he was honest about the monster that he was.

"Much has changed since we last saw one another," she admitted, quiet as a mouse. "If you wish to…tell me what has kept you busy, then I will listen."

It was oddly phrased, but her attempt at being kind and receptive.

Varin Mortifer

 

[Darth Amaymon]

"If you want structure and Chaos where you don't have to write the code and laws. Then you need to win the minds of the people, so they build it for you. So, they will want to defend whatever this is to become. You can do this in many ways religion, shame charities, and hell even a puppet republic where they think they have a voice. Give people something to believe in, the illusion of freedom, or the illusion of safety for them and their families. All three and people will flock to you as gods and build everything for you."
...
"Call them Sith Independent worlds, give the people and government credits. Let them Govern themselves with the sith as a guiding hand when needed. Give them the delusion of freedom and the credits. That way you have at least two of the three things you need. With that they will build the armies for you to defend what they believe is theirs. All it will require from the leaders of the sith is diplomacy, occasional use of intimidation, and well credits."
...
Her eyes then slowly turned towards Darth Amaymon and then Meliant.

"One of you speaks of power like they have none. One of you speaks of control when they have yet to gain leverage. Both come with time and this is day Zero of holding the core. You are delusional if you think the covenant has either at the moment, we need to prove we can do something with what we have gained first before either of those things are on the table for discussion. "

The red titans attention perked up at the sith lady Tamsin Starfall by her words. His brow furrowed at the very idea of belief being used in such a manner and yet still his attention was recognition in the right direction mechanism. Just not like how Tamsin was imagining it so far. A for her comment about control and leverage, he could only chuckle to himself at the remark. You shall see. You shall see.

Meliant canted his head one way. "Will it involve chucking pebbles?"

Amaymon mimicked the metal mans body language with his own head cant and mouthed the word " Yes." Giving him a simple answer for the time being as the conversation continued briefly, but the titans eyes grew wider with excitement!

The others contined.

However, here was where Arris utterly disagreed. She leaned forward.

"We destroyed the Empire in a single campaign with the spoils of Tapani. I don't think anyone lacks 'proof' of what we can do with our gains.

She gestured to the walls of the room.

"Step outside and smell the chemical fire. Shit sucks. These worlds are exhausted from war. No Jedi is knocking on our door. No rebels, no resistance; ISB took care of that. But you're right about one thing - give people credits and freedom to spend it, and they won't think twice about where it comes from."

Her attention turned to Amaymom, who brought it back to power, and Arris leaned back in her seat. Meliant already asked that he elaborate in his way, so she waited.

Amaymon gestured a hand at Arris after what was stated aloud and then cast a look over to Tamsin with a arrogant grin. That was when Mercy added to the discussion and as she spoke Amaymon found the only example he was ever need. She had unknowingly gave him everything he wanted.

"Sith that wish to write infrastructure regulations and control sanction regimes. Who see themselves as governors or executives have no place among us." Mercy's eyes rested on the helmet of her Meliant .
...
She reminded herself of all this.
...
"We sit on the largest concentration of wealth, infrastructure, manufacturing capacity and trade in the Galaxy. I refuse to accept that we should manage that as middle management. Let that fall to others. We wish for armies, ships, to further our conquests. We require money for this. Fine. We send a message to those hungry and ambitious. Come to us with your wealth. Buy into this project of ours and you may do as you please. Buy a space port, buy a city, buy a fucking planet, I do not care."

" If you want religion and rigid belief then take your arse back behind the blackwall!" Some spit projected out of his maw as he spoke like a rabid dog. " We start with the impoverished, the scum and desperate. Empower the people! Give them a taste of their desires. The things they never had and they will want more!!" Amaymon's sulfuric eyes flashed faintly and something in the room shifted. There was a manifestation of light, it lasted the duration of a blink and then another spoke across the hall.

It was Amaymon, but not the Amaymon still squatting down. Oh no. This phantom Amaymon was something else and yet very much the same. Its appearence not of the ethers but flesh. Effecting the environment and blurring the boundries of the physical and metaphysical." Even here in this council, it is happening." The phantom of Darth Amaymon approached with foot steps that shook the flooring slightly and positioned himself adjacent to Triumvirs themselves. " Like the wretches thousands of levels below us. We are desperate, wanting more, our desires and ambitions do not align. They cannot! This ambiguity can be shaped to the Covenants advantage and it is has the same pattern of this council. Does not being here make you feel elevated? If it does not then why did this one," A red finger shot to Meliant to use him as an example. " Make a show of entering the council chambers? We are made to believe that this council aligns with our interests, that we have power, whatever we believe that is... and so here we are."

There was another flash in the room a change on the currents of the force and the squatting figure of the Darth Amaymon, the thought to be original was no more. In his stead now squatted a exact duplicate of Mercy , this phantom Mercy even sounded like the woman and it begged the question. If Darth Amaymon was never here then who was? Where was Amaymon really? The phantom Mercy continued where the other phantom left off.

" But what if the desperate and the scum in our territories did not know who empowered them, what if they only knew if they upset established institutions then they would get what would receive a path toward what they desire most. A tangible one. It wouldn't fucking matter then where it comes from. Only that they get what they want. And once you get something you like you have the desire to protect it. Leave the source anonymous, undefined and allow the people to believe in whatever they choose gave them their desires and they will fight for it whoever or whatever that is. The Covenant would control everything and nothing at the same. Ownership without ownership." Phantom Mercy ended as Phantom Amaymon began to circle the chamber, round and round the table he went changing into the forms of each council member at random sequences. He spoke as them, walked as them and yet the he was not.

A collective of tones and voices collaborated for what was said next. " It is for this very reason I have already begun this process." Finally the phantom of Darth Amaymon found its original state and stopped right behind Meliant. Giant red hands resting on the would-be Emperors throne, clutching the symbolic object rather greedily. " Sometimes a small pebble can cause a rather large ripple. Heheh." He chuckled and added. "Nice chair."

MEANWHILE...

SOMEWHERE IN THE UNDERCITY OF CORUSCANT:

They never arrived in any way Kerrick could see. One moment he was alone with the quiet hum of the undercity, the next there was someone standing there. Not a person. Just a tall, thin shape that seemed to exist in the corner of his vision no matter where he looked. It asked him one simple question. What do you desire? Kerrick didn't laugh. He didn't run. He was too tired for either. He told it the truth. He wanted Varn dead. The shape did not grant him strength. It did not fill him with courage. It only showed him things. Where Varn walked when he thought no one watched. When he was alone. Where he was weakest. When Kerrick looked down, there was a weapon resting beside him. Old. Scarred. Real. When he looked back up, the shape was gone. He followed what he had been shown. He waited. He acted. And afterward, when his hands would not stop shaking, he found a small symbol scratched into the wall near where it had first appeared. He did not remember it being there before.
....
She had stopped trying to stand hours ago. Hunger had taken that from her. She lay curled against the cold metal wall, drifting in and out of shallow sleep. When she opened her eyes, something was standing nearby. It did not move closer. It did not threaten her. It only asked, softly, What do you desire? Her answer barely left her lips. Food. That was all. The shape lingered for a moment, then disappeared. She thought she had imagined it. Time passed. She did not know how much. Then it returned. It set sealed ration packs beside her. Enough to last days. Maybe longer. It did not speak again. It left a small marking carved into the rusted wall and was gone. She stared at the food for a long time before touching it, afraid it might disappear if she moved too quickly.
....
The mechanic had spent his entire life fixing things that belonged to other people. He had never owned anything worth keeping. When the shape appeared, he didn't question it. He only listened. What do you desire? it asked. He told it he wanted a way out. Not escape. Just more. More than scraps. More than survival. The shape showed him a terminal he had passed a hundred times without noticing. It showed him which access codes still worked. Which security routes had gaps. Which doors had been forgotten. It left a symbol beside the screen and vanished. The mechanic stared at the terminal for a long time before reaching out to touch it. No one stopped him.

Others saw them too. Always the same, yet always different. They never forced anyone to act. They never gave orders. They only asked the question. What do you desire? And they listened. They showed people what they needed to see. An opportunity. A weakness. A moment. Sometimes they left weapons. Sometimes food. Sometimes nothing at all but knowledge. And always, they left symbols. No one agreed on what the symbols meant. Some believed they were blessings. Others thought they were warnings. But people began to watch for them.

To hope for them.

Tags: Vestra Tane Srina Talon Meliant Arris Windrun Tamsin Starfall Kyber @Whoever else

 

[Varin Mortifer]

He watched as the crow tilted its head, nibbling at his finger tips, a soft smirk appeared on Varin's face.

“Sithspawn have so many admirable uses. Loyal creatures once you bring them under your wing, and dedicated to service.”

He gently ran his finger under Gaspar's beak, giving a very light scratch. As he pulled back he summoned a small cloud of smoke, a silhouette of the same creature but nowhere near as detailed, and its sentience was limited to Varin's imagination.

“You have been blessed by such a fascinating specimen.”

He stood up, the smoke dissipating from his hand as he looked down at her.

“I adopted a Tuk'ata pup, and she will not stop eating, but she is also hitting rapid growth. Count yourself lucky your sithspawn does not require food.”

He watched as the creature took flight, a silent drone keeping watch over the area around them, then his attention slowly came back to Eurydice.

She did not give him much detail on her stories, perhaps there wasn't much that had happened, or she was hiding details he would not pry for. She then asked for details on his end.

“Hills and valleys.”

He spoke softly.

“Some days were easier than others, and some days were…painful. But over all it has been busy. I haven't really had any time for myself.”

He thought for a moment.

“I lost my eye trying to protect someone. For the longest time until that point I did not know if I was capable of such a thing. Some lessons you learn are written in ink, the harsher more apparent lessons however, are written in blood.”

He thought for a moment before coming back to the discovery of the archives.

“Well, we will not know unless we open it. As a deal I will let you have first dibs on a few items that you find. If there is anything. But, if I feel it is more useful to the Covenant, I will have to keep it.”

He gently held out his hand to shake.

“Any counter offers I will keep in consideration.”

Eurydice​