Private Trial by Shadows

[Marlon Sularen]

T R I A L_B Y_S H A D O W S

FINAL DAWN
PROJECT APOCALYPSE

When Marlon Sularen first joined the Brotherhood of the Maw, he had done so with two goals in mind : To conquer the Core Worlds and the Deep Core and to get his revenge against all those who had wronged him, past, present and in the future. However the Second Great Hyperspace War had ended in disaster for the Maw long ago and now Sularen was right back where he started, with the exception of having his own little powerbase once more, which itself had grown stagnant. From O'reen, the High Regent silently watched as the galaxy moved on with his adversaries slipping away from his righteous retribution as they had done countless times before.

As a new year began across the galaxy, Sularen became determined to end this cycle of stagnation and decline once and for all, seeking to take what had long been denied from him and finally get his long-awaited revenge. Already throughout the Second Great Hyperspace War and after, the High Regent had established connections with various individuals, organizations and factions which once utilized at it's full potential would grant Sularen the proper conditions he needed to propel himself forwards in galactic politics once more, but to a greater extent then ever before. Already tensions had risen once more across the Tingel Arm as new conflicts and factions emerged, while some of his foes in the Outer Rim were experiencing stagnation and decline. Opportunities had once more presented themselves to Sularen and now was the perfect time to strike, to make his first moves and secure his rise to power once and for all after so many false beginnings.

However, if Sularen was to accomplish his great ambitions he would need an inner circle of individuals who could be trusted and would be reliable, which would facilitate the execution of any plans and schemes the High Regent had in mind. Among the many individuals whom the High Regent had considered was Himm'vaun'merek also known as Vaun, who had first appeared on his radar after he was recommended by Kenth Berik as his replacement when he ended his mercenary contract with Sularen a while back. According to Berik he was a skilled naval officer and logistician, which if proven true would make him extremely valuable in Sularen's future endeavors. However even though he had under the Final Dawn for a while since Csilla, Sularen sought to determine whether he was trust-worthy and capable enough to join his inner-circle and thus he had summoned him with a task in mind, one that if he was as skilled as Berik had once said would prove to be an easy one for Vaun.

Thus, calmly seated within his office located within the Grand Palace on Fort Maximus, Sularen waited for Vaun's arrival his eyes filled with anticipation and resolved as the first step of his ambitious plan would soon begin setting the stage for his inevitable resurgence.

Tags | Himm'vaun'merek ​

 

[Himm'vaun'merek]

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Location: Oreen
Objective: Project Apocalypse
Tags: Marlon Sularen

The sound of the Chiss' footfalls rung out through the halls of the Grand Palace, breaking the eery silence that had filled the place. Vaun walked past silent sentries and palace staff as a he navigated his way through the palace. Once upon a time he had been a stranger to these halls, a lowly Maw slave driver elevated above the rest of the rabble. From the slave pits of Gehinnom to the Grand Palace of O'reen, all things considered he had done well for himself, Vaun was now a ranking Officer in the Dawn. Yet he still hungered for more.

He had guessed up a list of reasons for todays meetings, the Chiss knew it was something out of the ordinary. His previous exposure to the High Regent usually involved at least four other ranking officers or head supervisors. Sularen needed something, something only Vaun could give him. It mattered little if this was a test or not, he would make sure whatever task he was delegated would be completed, the Dawn was his life now. The other factions in the galaxy were weak and clung onto a dying past, he had no place among them.

He stopped before two Raptor SuperCommandos posted outside Sularen's office. "The High Regent expects me." his voice crass and sharp. One of the SuperCommandos turned to look down at the Chiss, glaring intently at him. Vaun returned the glare but before he could say anymore the doors slid open. His attention was turned back into the office. Wiping his grim expression, a sly smile instead took its place. "High Regent." He said offering a slight bow. "I am at your disposal."

 

[Marlon Sularen]

T R I A L_B Y_S H A D O W S

FINAL DAWN
PROJECT APOCALYPSE

As Vaun would enter Sularen's Office, he would find the High Regent patiently seated behind his desk, his hands clasped right on the table with his personal aide Colonel Rackham standing behind him to his right. After the Chiss Officer had greeted him with a bow, Sularen proceeded to speak in turn offering some pleasantries to his Chiss Subordinate. "Thank you for joining me, Captain." he began, speaking in a professional and formal tone. "Please take a seat we have much to discuss." Sularen said, motioning for Vaun to take a seat directly in front of him to begin their summit.

Once Vaun would proceed to take his seat, Sularen gestured towards Rackham. "Colonel, if you may." Sularen said. As ordered, Colonel Rackham would produce a single holopuck sliding it towards the Chiss Offier. Upon activation, the holopuck would proceed to display a female Chiss individual with long black hair and wearing a white Imperial uniform. "This is Vel'alari, a former officer of the CEDF who fled Chiss Space with a cadre of Chiss officers loyal to her and with the support of remnants of the Core Imperial Confederation, formed a small Imperial splinter faction that was once based on Bilbringi before they abandoned it sometime ago during the Second Great Hyperspace War." Sularen explained. "As a former member of the CEDF yourself i'm sure you must be somewhat familiar with her due to her past record in the CEDF."

Tags | Himm'vaun'merek ​

 

[Himm'vaun'merek]

​

Location: Oreen
Objective: Project Apocalypse
Tags: Marlon Sularen

The Chiss officer offered the Colonel nothing more than a stare, the sly smile still plastered across his face. He promptly took his seat, his posture slackened as he relaxed in his chair. Talk quickly began and Vaun's eyes narrowed on the holopuck that slid across the table. The image that appeared revealed a Chiss in a white officer uniform bearing the rank of Grand Admiral. He leaned forward and his eyes widened but the Chiss quickly caught himself staring in amusement and returned to his usual facial expression.

It was no mistake who it was and he listened as the High Regent spoke of the mark, Grand Admiral Vel'alari. He knew of the Chiss Admiral who had set up her fiefdom in the core but of course he knew of the Admiral well back from his times in the Colonial Phalanx. The heroes of the CEDF were lauded across Chiss space as they beat back raids of pirates and other horrors of the Unknown Regions. And he remembered keenly when she deserted with her cadre of goons when the Chiss were embroiled with internal conflict.

But it wasn't as if Vaun held anything against her for this, he himself had abandoned his people in the pursuit of power when Csilla was torn asunder. It simply made things much more flavourful.

He looked up to the High regent and spoke. "I had heard the tale of this woman from your mercenary, about your days in the Shadow Association, about her eventual betrayal." he gently grabbed the holopuck and pulled it closer, studying the details of her face. "Shame she couldn't see the bigger picture, losing out on her fleet was a blow. Then again that's the thing with these Warlords from those early days, only concerned about clinging onto the past they came from, not the clean and pure slate that the Dawn provides."

He leaned back into his chair and clasped his hands together. "I take it we're not here for a history lesson on old friends and enemies my lord." his tone changed to being far more serious.

 

[Marlon Sularen]

T R I A L_B Y_S H A D O W S

FINAL DAWN
PROJECT APOCALYPSE

As Vaun spoke about Vel'alari, Sularen couldn't help but think about his past history with the Chiss Admiral. About how they established this and sought to further collaborate with one another to support each other and strengthen one another, only for Vel'alari to betray him when he needed her the most going as far as working with the Alliance's Strategic Intelligence Agency to attempt to have him assassinated. She had chosen self-preservation and her own selfish ambitions over Loyalty and Cooperation, a trait Sularen would find amongst many Imperials he would deal with throughout the Second Great Hyperspace War.

Vel'alari's betrayal was amongst one of many betrayals and humiliations that Sularen had suffered throughout the past decades, which prevented him from taking his rightful place amongst the stars. She along with other Imperials such as Julius Haskler and Vandar Tarkin had actively worked to isolate him and prevent him from further building up his power in order to advance their selfish agendas but now that the Old Empire was gone, they no longer had the luxury of being shielded by it and thus now it was Sularen's turn to isolate them but this time he would make sure that they would never be able to rise to challenge him again and Vaun would be the key to this plan.

"You are correct in that assessment Captain. But sometimes it is important to understand your past before moving into the future." Sularen said in response "Vel'alari was a part of the Imperial Old Guard comprised of stubborn, arrogant and pompous Imperials who believed that they had the right to dictate what was Imperial and what was not and who fit in the criteria." Sularen proclaimed, his tone slowly revealing a hint of contempt and hatred towards the Old Guard. "To them it didn't matter what your beliefs were or what you identified as. As long as you did not meet the criteria of what they believed was Imperial they would cast you out and isolate you, deem you as un-Imperial and make sure you will never be able to establish yourself. But today, their days are numbered and only a handful of them are left"

After pausing for a while, Sularen returned to a more calm tone having finished his rant about his former rivals. "My spies have recently come across rumors of Vel'alari's imminent return and that while her exact whereabouts are unknown as of now, she is currently building a new army and fleet to spearhead her return to galactic politics." Sularen stated. "This is where you would come in. I have zero intention of simply waiting for Vel'alari to return and once more try to undermine my position in the galaxy and as such i want you to find where she is building up her forces and pre-emptively dismantle her support network before moving in to track her down and annihilate her army and fleet in order to end Vel'alari's ambitions before she could even make a move."

Tags | Himm'vaun'merek ​

 

[Himm'vaun'merek]

​

Location: Oreen
Objective: Project Apocalypse
Tags: Marlon Sularen

He pondered on Sularen's words on understanding the past. What Vaun knew was that him in the past was weak, that his naivety allowed him to bear witness to collapse after collapse of those who claimed to be able to protect Chiss Space. Who he was is dead and it was much better this way, those Warlords who teetered on the edge of the Dawn should've purged themselves in the same way, instead choosing to fade into obscurity and out of relevance.

"The old guard are dead or gone now, only we remain." he said softly as Sularen lamented on his failures in uniting those disparate warlords. He leaned back further in his chair and away from the hologram of Vel'al'ari. He studied her face from a distance, the stern stubbornness of an Imperial mixed with the cool calculating persona that embodied the Chiss. This dichotomy would be her downfall.

As Sularen explained her return to the wider galaxy the tattooed Chiss allowed himself to smile. Since Csilla he had run into so few of his fellow Chiss, he'd savour any conversation with those who'd view him as a traitor for siding with the Maw.

"Point me in the direction of the good Admiral and I'll rip apart anything you tell me to." he said before turning back to Sularen. "What information have you got on her? And more importantly what assets can we spare to use against the Admiral? I have no doubt if she's in the vulnerable preparation phase of rebuilding her micro-Empire she'll overreact to anything she deems a threat to her progress."