Ascension
The Imperial News Service began its empire-wide broadcast of a historic breaking news event. The coverage began with a description of the historical events which had occurred in the past year. The vast majority of the hundreds of trillions of Imperial citizens across the over twenty five hundred worlds of the Sith Empire watched this report. This news would affect all of their lives.
The live news broadcast was picked up and retransmitted for all of the thousands of trillions across the galaxy. Citizens, peasants, and other denizens in Hutt space, Galactic Republic space, Mandalorian space, Chiss Ascendancy space, and the tens of thousands of other territories and independent worlds scattered throughout the entire known populated areas of the galaxy were all able to watch the events unfolding in the Sith Empire, if it held their interest to watch, that is.
This year was proving to be a very big news year, with so many historical events happening within a few months of each other. The news anchor began his report normally enough.
"When it was discovered that Supreme Chancellor Leontyne Saresh had abandoned – to extinction – the entire population of the doomed world, Makeb, she became the subject of intense public condemnation. The supreme chancellor barely scraped by two votes of no confidence, and barely kept her government together in the aftermath."
Now came the melodrama as pride oozed from every word he read from the holo-prompter.
"The Sith Empire, however, heroically made a huge effort to rescue the Makebis!" but his tone became sorrowful as he continued reading, "Tragically, of the seven millions needing evacuation, three millions had died. The Sith Empire also lost many thousands of shuttles and dropships, and their Imperial military crews, involved in the rescue, when the planet finally exploded, creating a ring of asteroids around its parent star."
Shaking his head sorrowfully, contempt edged into his tone.
"If Supreme Chancellor Saresh and her cold-hearted Galactic Republic Navy commanders had acted when the Makebi government first asked them for rescue – when there was plenty of time to save everyone – it is very likely that all seven millions could have been saved!
"How could so much evil exist in one heart?" the news anchor asked, plaintively and in disbelief, but then exuded pride as he said, "If it were not for the quick thinking, and for the great desire to do good, on the parts of Darth Nox and Darth Marr, with the backing of the Dark Council, all seven millions would have perished."
This news event, however, was going to be far bigger than any of those previous events. It was the biggest news since the announcement of Emperor Vitiate's death.
The image of the news reader was replaced with a holographic video of a happy and industrious people, working hard constructing buildings, building roads, planting trees and other vegetation. There were images of men, and a few women, hard at work in a durasteel foundry recycling thousands of tons of scrap durasteel.
In the background, the newscaster continued reading from the prompter.
"The survivors of Makeb's destruction are hard at work, building a new settlement on a far flung, untamed world of the Empire. Through their hard work and dedication, they show their gratitude and their newfound loyalty and love for the Sith Empire. These people have become a treasure for the Sith Empire, a treasure that the unsympathetic and uncaring Galactic Republic surely do not deserve!"
The holographic scene changed to a top down view of several city blocks with scores of structures in varying stages of construction. The tallest building was going to be no taller than four stories high. In the scene were many construction cranes and hundreds of workers busily moving about with tools and materials, a few even had construction droids in tow.
As the imaging drone reduced its altitude, the scene began to focus on the work being done to build the roads and sidewalks of the new city under construction. The two inch thick durasteel plate sections of the roads, and the half inch thick plate sections of the sidewalks, were being laid in place by construction droids and then welded into place by skilled men and women. The weld seems were then ground flush to the work and the surfaces smoothed and polished by the droids, making the sections appear as though they were one continuous piece.
The drone moved up the unfinished road to a section where cast sections of resicrete tunnels and vaults had been lowered into deep and wide trenches before being joined to the other sections, getting waterproofed and then buried in clay dirt and topped off with a compacted layer of gravel. Shortly afterwards, this work would be overlaid with the durasteel plates of the new road and sidewalks.
In the resicrete tunnels and vaults the sewage, water, power, and data lines would all be installed after the roads were done. Access to the tunnel network would be gained via utility yards which were located every two or three kilometers.
In the background of the holographic video, the news reader had been speaking.
"The brave survivors of the ill-fated world, Makeb, have innate in them the spirit of true Imperials as evidenced by their hard work and drive. Their desire to fit in with the Sith Empire is inspirational. Jannas Haimes was at the scene earlier in the week for this prerecorded interview."
The drone imager, showing the massive construction project, stopped in front of a few men and a woman field reporter.
"Jannas Haimes here with our special guest, Shalim Avesta, the former ruling governor of Makeb." With the introductions out of the way, Jannas turned to Shalim, "Master Avesta, can you tell us what it's like? What was your transition like, from your former way of life to Imperial life?"
Viewing the holographic image of the former governor of a dead world, one could see the change in expression, from a dark and somber one, to an energized and hopeful one.
At the time of the interview, Shalim had thought the reporter was going to ask him to describe what it was like to live through the end of the world. Instead, she asked him a thoughtful question. He was pleasantly surprised by it, as were the trillions of viewers of this holo-cast all across the galaxy.
"We lived good comfortable lives, but all of that was destroyed by the irresponsible mining practices of the Hutt Cartel. I'll never forgive them. Now our lives are hard and demanding."
Jannas instantly regretted her question and became quite uncomfortable. She began to worry that she was about to be involved in a major media disaster. At the time of the recording, the interview was also conducted live for a local news outlet on Taris. She couldn't stop the interview.
"On Makeb, we were blessed with easy prosperity, put in a little effort and get a lot in return. It was a good life. However, this experience has revealed to us how soft we were. It revealed to us why it was so easy for the Hutts to conquer us.
"It revealed to us how weak and dependent we were on others for our own security," Shalim went on to say, to the field reporter's enormous relief. "It was why Supreme Chancellor Leontyne Saresh could so easily blackmail us into joining the Republic.
"When Darth Nox, the dark councilor…," a text caption appeared below Shalim Avesta's image, Interview previously recorded, "came to us, offering weapons, to fight for our freedom, no strings attached, we jumped at the offer. We learned, how costly and how precious freedom was. We had no power, so we could not gain freedom. Darth Nox gave us power with those weapons, and we gained our freedom at the cost of our blood and our tears, but we gained our freedom with our own hands. It was the first time, in Makeb's history, that my people earned the right to have freedom.
"Then we found out the world was about to destroy itself," Shalim shook his head at the terrible memory of those terrifying days before adding, "Thanks to Darth Nox, Darth Marr, and the Dark Council, we are here, building a new life for ourselves. However, we especially owe our lives to the quick thinking and quick action of Darth Nox. It is also thanks to him that our eyes had been opened to how pathetically weak we were.
"We are no longer soft and weak, like we were on Makeb. Everything we gain for ourselves, here on ***," the planet's name had been censored from the previously recorded interview, "is gained from hard work. What we gain through the power of our own efforts, we guard and protect fiercely. It is a way of doing things that we have learned from the Sith Empire, a very important and valuable lesson learned by a once meek and weak people.
"We work hard to earn our Imperial citizenship. We are prepared to fight to keep what we gain. The Sith Empire has taught us the value of power and of strength."
"Thank you for your powerful words, Master Shalim Avesta!" Jannas Haimes said, smiling broadly, "The example of your people should be an inspiration for others of what can be earned and achieved through hard work, perseverance, and a fierce determination to fight for what's yours." The field reporter, smiling, turned to face the drone and announced, "And that ends this brief interview. Thank you for watching."
The drone then rapidly ascended, regaining its top down view of the massive construction of a decent sized town. As the broadcast anchor resumed his live reading from the prompter, the top down view slowly swept outward towards the horizon. Beyond the obviously young forest, at the edge of the new town under construction, off in the great distance was the hazy and faint silhouette of what appeared to be massive urban structures, torn and dangerously tilting in odd angles.
The vista was replaced with the holographic image of the news anchor.
"The happenings on Makeb was not the end of the history making events to rock the galaxy. The Sith Empire was also struck with tragic and devastatingly heart rending news, when it was confirmed that the criminally depraved Jedi Order had sent assassins to murder our dearly loved and revered emperor. The Emperor was a very powerful, wise, and benevolent ruler, who reigned all of one thousand three hundred and sixty two years, until our foul enemies in the vile Jedi Order assassinated him.
"Again, recently, the depraved Jedi and the wicked Galactic Republic struck at the Sith Empire, when they attacked and defiled the holy world of Korriban. Yet, once again, it was Darth Nox who led the charge to rid our holy Sith world of those vile defilers! The defilers were swiftly and severely punished for their brazenly vile acts of desecration of the holy Temple of The Sith!
"This was immediately followed by a quick punitive counter offensive that saw the Sith Empire strip the corrupt Galactic Republic of a hundred and twenty star systems and their worlds, bringing our enemies to their knees!
"Which brings us to today. Another galaxy changing event is upon us. This time, it is a happy occasion that proves to all of the enemies of the Sith Empire that we stand in solidarity, ever united as our powerful and wise Dark Council elects and elevates one of their own to the throne!"
The holographic image of the news anchor was replaced with images from the red desert world of Korriban. The rare close up images of the mountain sized pyramid was the central focus of the panoramic view.
"Today, galactic history is made as we observe the coronation of our newest emperor. Darth Nox shall ascend the seven hundred meter ramp and be met at the top by the other members of the Dark Council. At the top of the ramp is the Imperial Throne where our newly elevated emperor shall make a statement officially commencing his rule over the Sith Empire."
The Imperial newscaster continued reading from the prompter, reporting on inane facts and statistics, going over historical events, filling in the time, as hand painted images of ancient Sith lords, ancient carvings, and other historical items were shown alternating with the live images of the massive red pyramid.
The live broadcast was threatening to become a boring history lecture, until a thin bright red column of smoke began to issue from the bottom left corner of the temple grounds, in the live shot. The giant toppled obelisks had been moved to the sides of the complex as the first step in their repair.
"The ceremony has begun!" the news anchor announced, excitedly, before calmly adding, "I will describe the events in the ceremony as they occur."
In the vast open courtyard, before the massive pyramid, a huge formation of men and women, Humans and Sith Pureblood, two thousand strong, stood facing the pyramid and the bottom of the long broad ramp. It was the same ramp upon which ten thousand Republic soldiers had been executed, five hundred at a time a couple of months before. The men and women were dressed in plain, cheap quality clothing. Every last one of them had a slave collar securely attached to the backs of their necks.
Suddenly, the two thousand slaves dropped to their hands and knees, bowing towards the massive Sith temple and academy. The holographic image zoomed in on a lone figure who rose to his feet. The slave, a male Sith Pureblood, began to march towards the bottom of the ramp.
At the bottom of the ramp a Sith lord approached the slave, stopping his approach. The slave bent to his hands and knees, whereupon the Sith lord removed the slave collar.
The freed slave rose to his feet again, and began to climb the ramp. He walked into a small tent, becoming obscured from view. A few moments later, the former slave reemerged, walking out from the opposite end of the tent, in fine clothing, continuing his march up the ramp.
As he ascended the ramp, he pointed, seemingly at random, at individuals standing at either side of the ramp. These individuals, who lined the sides of the ramp, began to simulate the act of work, while others lay on their backs, as though slain.
The taskmaster walked into another tent. After a short time, he emerged dressed in red and black medium grade, flexible armor. Again, he walked up the ramp, this time, swinging a lightsaber. Random individuals in battle armor, lining both sides of the ramp, lay down as though slain in battle, while others, turned their backs, simulating the act of fleeing.
He deactivated the lightsaber, handing it to an attendant waiting a few paces outside of the next tent. The armor-clad Sith entered the tent. This time there was no delay, immediately after the red and black armor-clad Sith lord had entered, out emerged another Sith lord in the famous and recognizable trademark sharp black and brilliant yellow medium grade, flexible armor.
This time, the individual emerging from the tent was actually Emperor Noxsious. He was met by six Sith lords, the actual remaining members of the Dark Council.
The Dark Council, in two columns of three and dressed in somber colors, led the brilliantly armored Noxious up the ramp to the wide veranda and to a dais and a throne mounted on the dais. The dark emperor of dark lords ascended the dais and turned about and stood before the throne. Noxsious spoke.
"I began a slave, born to slaves. As a slave, I was strong, and I ruled over other slaves.
"My power was recognized, and I became Sith. I led others, bringing greatness to the Empire. I battled and destroyed the enemies of the Empire, bringing glory to both the Empire and to myself.
"I ascended the Dark Council. My influence and my tenacity has brought much needed reforms to the Empire, heaping greatness upon glory for the Empire. Now, I ascend the Imperial Throne. I shall rule with wisdom, with power, enforcing the principles which have made the Empire the great meritocracy that has allowed me to rise, from slave to emperor.
"Unlike the long ruling Emperor Vitiate who kept the deep knowledge and secrets of The Force to himself, I will share the knowledge I have gained.
"Emperor Vitiate kept power by ruling over an Empire of the weak. I shall rule over the strong and the powerful.
"I will share, with those who are worthy, the knowledge that I hold. Knowledge shall be the new currency of power among the Sith and shall lead to our domination of the galaxy!"
The Six remaining dark lords of the Dark Council turned to face Nox on the Imperial Dais. Darth Rictus, who was elected to announce the new emperor, spoke.
"Darth Nox, having proved beyond doubt, his right to rule over the Dark Council, his right to dominate the Dark Council, and his right to ascend above the Dark Council, is elevated and is now Noxsious, Emperor of The Sith!"
With that, the Dark Councilors all knelt before Emperor Noxsious, and he assumed his seat on the Imperial Throne.
The Imperial newscaster, his voice cracking with emotion, announced, "We now have a new emperor who will – who will rule over us, and who will lead us to ever increasing greatness. Our new emperor, whose name is pronounced Nox-sious, is only the third Sith Emperor in all Imperial history," he said, with wonderment in his tone.
"The line of succession began with Marka Ragnos, the first Emperor of The Sith, who ruled for over a hundred years. Naga Sadow ruled the Sith Empire after Marka Ragnos' death, with great wisdom and power, but he could not claim the title of Emperor of The Sith, because Ludo Kressh, his greatest rival, and also a powerful ruler in his own right, continued to challenge him for the Imperial seat.
"Vitiate succeeded Marka Ragnos as the second Emperor of The Sith, after the death of Naga Sadow, and had reigned for over one thousand three hundred years, before we were robbed of his wise and benevolent rule by the vile Jedi."
The news anchor spat out that last part, as though saying Jedi left a foul taste in his mouth. He recovered his composure, and continued the history lesson.
"Over the centuries, the title was simplified, from Emperor of The Sith, to Sith Emperor, or Emperor. After those vile Jedi murdered Emperor Vitiate, Emperor Noxsious has become only the third Sith lord, in the Empire's long history, to ascend the throne and to take the title of Sith Emperor. Also, we heard Darth Rictus use the ancient title, Emperor of The Sith," the news reader said, completing his statement as a question, "perhaps reviving the ancient title?"
As the news anchor read his lines, the holographic scene coming from Korriban began to zoom out. The trillions of viewers, in the comfort of their homes or in starships in transit all across the galaxy, were able to see that the two thousand slaves, had actually moved away from the bottom of the ramp, further down the courtyard of the temple complex, to make room for the military formations which had taken their place at the foot of the ramp. The imaging drone zoomed in on the formation of slaves and found that the spot vacated by the freed slave was still vacant.
The imaging drone moved its focus from the slaves to the military formation. The military formation consisted of two thousand Imperial service men and women, both human and alien, arranged in phalanxes of a hundred troops each.
The Imperial Army, was represented by the officers in their black officer's uniforms, and the enlisted in their highly polished, black heavy infantry armor. The thousand soldiers stood in a huge rectangular block, made up of hundred man phalanxes. The Imperial Army stood on one side of a gap as wide as the ancient stone ramp at the bottom of the pyramid.
On the other side of the gap, the Imperial Navy was represented by another rectangular block of a thousand naval soldiers, also made up of phalanxes. The naval officers uniforms were the same style, cut and fit as their Army counterparts, however, their uniforms were charcoal grey in color. The naval soldiers were dressed in cloth uniforms that were a lighter shade of grey.
A grand formation of military bands stood behind the Army and Navy formations. They played three military marches, two of which were very rarely played, The Emperor's Call to Glory, and the Dark Council's Hymn, followed by the well known Imperial Anthem.
At the end of the Imperial Anthem, the holographic image zoomed in again on the newly ascended Sith Emperor who rose from his throne and began to descend his dais and then made his way into the temple entrance behind his throne. The throne and dais were replicas of the ones at the top of the pyramid in the Dark Council chamber.
The dark councilors rose to their feet and formed into two columns of three, this time following the Emperor into the temple. When the procession of powerful Sith lords and their emperor were out of view, inside the temple, the military bands began to play various military marches and patriotic hymns, which were much more familiar to the average Imperial citizen than The Emperor's Call to Glory and the Dark Council's Hymn.
At the signal of one of the council members, the holographic broadcast was turned off. There was no need for any of them to listen to Imperial military marches. Emperor Noxsious had left the stage.
The lights brightened in the hotel conference room, where they met. The traditional Jedi Council chamber lay in ruinous rubble in the valley to the south. A subdued atmosphere dominated the Jedi, as they witnessed a renewed and resurgent Sith Empire blossom despite the Galactic Republic's and the Jedi Order's best efforts. Worst of all, the dark lord who ascended the throne was the former Darth Nox, now Emperor Noxsious.
"You heard his pledge. It is as Master Kendii Noh had said," Jedi Grand Master Satele Shan said to her peers on the Jedi Council.
"What can we do?" Sahn Ho asked, "The Supreme Chancellor is set on ending the war, and reports are coming in that Imperial forces are restricting themselves to the contested planets. They aren't expanding their operations. That, in itself, is a signal that they, too, are prepared to end hostilities."
"We cannot allow him to share that dark knowledge," Jedi Master, Deran Soo said "We'll end up with more than just a dominating Sith Empire. We'll end up with an era dominated by darkness and marked by great acts of evil. The suffering will be like nothing anyone has seen since the ancientest of times."
"The Infinite Empire?" Viira Saatahni asked, knowing that's exactly what the male Zabrak meant.
Gnost-Dural, a Kel Dor male, swept his eyes across the conference table at his fellow councilors, looking at their pensive faces.
He sighed before telling them, "Of the forty six Jedi that we've sent out, on two separate strike teams, only two have survived, one from each strike team. One survived the madness imposed on the minds of the Jedi who'd faced Vitiate, and the other survived the brutal massacre of twenty nine Jedi and two hundred thousand Republic ground forces, including forty thousand prisoners of war on Korriban, at the hands of Noxsious."
"Jedi Knight Ciiru Nomuro is still wrestling with the Dark Side influence with which he'd been afflicted by Vitiate," Jedi Master Gnost-Dural said calmly, "and Jedi Knight Jeras Rendon Cal, barely escaped with his life, and upon his successful return to us, reports to us that the new emperor will end up being much worse for the galaxy."
"Now I'm hearing the beginnings of talk that will necessarily lead to the logical conclusion," Gnost-Dural used air quotes, "that we must form yet another strike team with the apparent goal of assassinating Emperor Noxsious."
The Kel Dorian looked around the conference room, booked for this meeting, at his fellow councilors. He could see the doubts clouding their faces.
"One:" Gnost-Dural began his list, pointing out hard truths, "the Jedi Council must be prepared to sacrifice the lives of more of our precious dedicated adherents. This time, somewhere on the order of a hundred Jedi. Emperor Noxsious' security will be very tight. He's on the lookout for assassins, not only from within, but also from outside of the Sith Empire.
"Two: we have to convince Supreme Chancellor Saresh to – again – supply a regiment of commandos and a corps of heavy infantry, supported by two divisions of medium and heavy war droids, and artillery droids. I seriously doubt that she will give us those and jeopardize the peace she is seeking to work out with the Sith Empire.
"Three: we, the Jedi Council and the Galactic Republic, must be prepared for the war to continue and to expand beyond the one hundred and twenty star systems currently involved.
"And finally, four: we must be prepared for such a backlash from the common citizens, not only of the Sith Empire but of the Republic as well. There will be such a great outcry for the banishment or arrest of the members of the Jedi Order from Republic worlds."
Gnost-Dural fell silent a moment to let those points sink in, looking at dour expressions on the faces of his peers.
"We, here, will be fine on Tython," Gnost-Dural said, "but what of the Jedi who are also Republic citizens with relatives and homes in the Republic worlds? Of course they could come to Tython, but they will lose their homes and homeworlds – if they aren't arrested instead.
The Kel Dor Jedi Master elaborated.
"The people are tired of war. They are tired of the destruction the Sith have brought on us all. Now a chance for peace is at hand. The Supreme Chancellor craves peace. The Sith are willing to grant her peace, naturally with strings attached.
"If we assassinate the Sith's new Emperor, it will have the effect of voiding any opportunities there may have been to end the violence and destruction. Everyone will blame us for it. The common people will blame us, the Imperial government will, and you can wager that Saresh and her government will feed us to the Sith, to appease them – even if she did quietly help us with covert operations to isolate and to kill Noxsious."
"It seems that each time we kill one of their emperors things become worse," Jedi Master Gorma Jaahn, a Twi'lek said, smiling crookedly at his dark humor, and adding, "Perhaps we should quit while we're ahead."
Gnost-Dural's argument against sending a strike team after Noxsious was a strong one. However, Jedi Master Deran Soo quickly countered.
"If the Jedi Order must be banished and go into hiding, then let us find habitable worlds to hide the Order for a few centuries while we wait for the anger to die down," the male Zabrak said, quite seriously.
Bela Kiwiiks had been silent during the whole proceedings and spoke for the first time.
"Sending assassins and raid forces after him might endanger any prospects for peace, as has been pointed out by Jedi Master Gnost-Dural. So, what if we draw him out instead? If he went to a place of danger and got himself killed in the process, no one would hardly be able to blame anyone else but him. Don't you agree?"
"What sort of bait will work to lure an emperor out of his throne room?" Jedi Master Gorma Jaahn asked, in another attempt at dry humor.
Emperor Noxsious sat behind his desk in his stateroom aboard his Fury-class Interceptor. The Imperial warship, made into his personal interstellar transport, was on its third day in hyperspace, taking Noxsious from Korriban to Dromund Kaas.
Virulous knelt before him, in front of his desk. She was furious, but kept her feelings hidden from Noxsious. The emperor had just told her that while he was going to elevate her to the Dark Council, it would not be to the Sphere of Ancient Knowledge. Noxsious had opted to retain control of that sphere of influence.
"I know you are disappointed, Darth Virulous, but I promise to give you access to certain areas of knowledge that I will not reveal to the others," he told his former apprentice, "You will see how valuable the level of access I will grant you is."
"Thank you, Dark Emperor," Virulous replied to Noxsious. She consoled herself, thinking, "It will be better than nothing, and I can always try to ask for greater access."
"There is one last thing, Darth Virulous," Noxsious said.
"Yes, Dark Emperor?"
"The boy. I want you to watch over him. As emperor, he can no longer serve as my apprentice. Send him on missions so that he'll become stronger, gain a name for himself, that sort of thing. Remember, however, do not teach him anymore Force techniques. Let him serve you. Reward him for his service with anything you wish, but not with knowledge."
This was the second time that Noxsious had told her not to teach the youth anything. She realized that the Dark Emperor had a plan for the boy, although she could not even make an educated guess at what that might be.
"I will look after him, Dark Emperor," she promised.
"That is all," Noxsious told his subject. Then realizing that she would probably want to make requests of him, asked in a magnanimous tone, "What requests have you for me? What wish do you have that I can grant?"
"Has the dark emperor decided about children?" Virulous felt her face flush with the thrill of having bared her deepest desire. She lifted her head to look Noxsious in the eye.
Her heart raced when she saw tenderness in the emperor's eyes, but then regret and sadness clouded over the tenderness.
"Our children will become my greatest weakness. My enemies will target them to get at me. The pain and agony of losing my children is something I do not wish to bear again," Noxsious told her with deep sadness.
She lowered her head, greatly disappointed, nodding acknowledgment of the truth of the Emperor's words, but then he broke her heart.
"I thought I could make you my consort, but if I did that, it would create a new precedent that has never before existed. There has never before been an empress seated at the side of her emperor nor has there ever been a royal consort," Noxsious said, trying to gently end their relationship, "It would create a position of power between the Dark Council and the Throne, making a new power dynamic that has never been tested before."
"You've never been afraid to challenge the norms of Sith traditions before," Virulous said, through her clenched jaw, her great disappointment plainly evident. Fighting back her tears, but failing, she added, "You become Emperor and suddenly the norms are overwhelming to you."
Noxsious was brought up short. He wanted to reply just as snarkily, but instead held his tongue, not wishing to intimidate her into silence.
"I must be careful. I am now the Emperor."
"I have strong words to say about that, but I will not allow you to provoke me," Noxsious said, rather stiffly, but then added, pleadingly, "This is difficult for me, too.
"Stability on the Dark Council depends on all members having equal standing in the eyes of the Emperor. I cannot have you sit on the Dark Council and be my consort. It would result in you having more power over the others, and that would mean an unstable balance of power on the Dark Council."
Virulous realized that Noxsious had been struggling to find a balance between his desire to continue their relationship and his need to give her power to rule as his ally on the Dark Council, but his search for a solution had ended in failure.
In the end he was faced with a choice. He could rule over the Dark Council and the Sith Empire, or he could pursue the passion in his heart, maintaining their romance, knowing that it would lead to a deterioration to his grip on power.
An idea came to her.
"Vitiate had his Voice, his Wrath, and his Hand. These Sith Lords were the direct servants of the former emperor and exercised great power over the Dark Council," she said, then asked, "Could I not be your Hand? Then there would be no one to question why you have also declared me your consort."
Virulous became greatly annoyed when Noxsious suddenly burst into a fit of laughter, which he tried, in vain, to suppress.
"If you think my idea is a bad one, then say so," Virulous said, greatly miffed, adding, "You don't need to laugh in my face, Dark Emperor."
Noxsious, trying to cover his laughter with his hand, and having lost all of his Imperial dignity, gave in to his mirth, replying between merry chuckles, "The Dark Council will accuse me of pleasuring myself with The Hand."
Nox immediately exploded into another round of laughter after voicing the joke. Virulous, taken greatly by surprise, also burst into laughter. Still kneeling, she covered her face with both of her hands as she, too, had become overcome with laughter.
A short while later, the two recovered their composure.
"Perhaps The Voice, or some other title, might be a better choice, I think," Noxsious said, barely containing his mirth.
"Yes, Dark Emperor, I think that might be for the best," Virulous replied, dangerously close to giggling.
"I so wish to have children with you, my dear Virulous!" Noxsious said, with feeling, then adding in caution, "However, they will never be hereditary heirs to the throne. Our children must have the power to take the throne for himself or herself, and we must protect them with everything we have."
Listening to his words, Virulous realized how strongly Noxsious felt about being deserving of the right to rule. His kids were definitely not going to get a free ride in life.
"Your children shall be strong, my lord," she told him, "They shall not shame you."
Noxsious smiled, pleased, nodding his approval.
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