Good news everyone! the final editing for the rest of OAC's chapters is complete! many thanks to those who continue to review, and please enjoy the next chapter! ~F
Chapter Twenty Three
Dark Realization
Veneficus raged at the new he received. The loss of the Star Forge was an unexpected blow, shielded from his view by the internal treachery by his closest advisors and servants. The poor fool that brought the Emperor the information after the tremor through the Force did not survive, his broken body being dumped into the sewers for Zychre to consume.
So much had been destroyed in that station's loss, and much of what Venefiucs had personally worked for in the early days of the Empire had just been rendered useless to him. He had spent much of the magic he had gained from both Voldemort and Dumbledore's deaths to bring back that ancient relic, magnifying the power of the Wild Force through the Elder Wand, and now it was gone.
But that was not all; as there had been artifacts stores aboard that station that none were allowed to know of, records and holocrons whose knowledge was now lost for all time outside of Veneficus himself.
The loyalty of the centaur High Prophet was also a blow against him, as the creature had been one of his oldest personal allies, who had not been recruited by his former Master, but Veneficus himself.
Luckily he had long ago removed the Scepter of Ragnos from that place, or else the powerful artifact might have been lost as well, and with it the massive store of Force energy that currently powered a defensive barrier over an ancient site that Veneficus had sought to conceal from the view of all others, even the most trusted of his servants.
However, now that the Star Forge was gone, and he knew that even the most hidden of things might not be safe, Veneficus had to make a difficult decision. Ought he abandon his previous designs and recover those items that were of great importance to himself, for the sake of magnifying his power further, and use them to make up the difference in what was lost to him?
Searching the future for guidance to a productive end, Veneficus could not see what his enemies were up to next, and it baffled him. They had managed to escape his view, blinding him in the rage at the loss of his factory, and the surprise that he had not sensed it coming.
Straining himself in the Force to see beyond his normal sight, something inside his physical body snapped, and Veneficus saw blood rolling down before his eyes. A vein had ruptured in his head, and while that typically was a death sentence to true mortals, Veneficus reveled in the pain and anger that it caused, and downed another vial of the Elixir of Life, casually banishing the blood from his skin and robes as the wound mended itself.
Casually glancing at his reflection, Veneficus noted that some ailments were starting to resist even the powerful magical elixir. The blackening of the veins of his face remained, and while they caused no pain, they added to a visage of fear and power that the Sith had gained. Like it or not, Veneficus had to accept that he was indeed dying as a far more rapid pace, and that he was on borrowed time with the Elixir, and it would not last forever.
There was little time for him to waste on such fruitless pursuits such as the Star Forge. He needed to find the key to immortality as swiftly as the secret allowed itself to be revealed.
Rising from his throne, the Sith Emperor set to work with what preparations he needed. There were many Sith Lords he had not interrogated, long lost ones that existed as bare whispers and mentions in the records he owned. Veneficus would need to travel back to where his mission first started, Krayiss Two and the secret vault of Darth Zeemar.
Now that the planet was lacking a High Prophet to control it, there would be little that would prevent the Emperor from slipping into the secret vault unnoticed and gathering what relics and information he had been required previously to leave behind.
Summoning his personal pilot to ready his shuttle, Veneficus went to a vault in the Coruscant Palace, and withdrew an ornate Sith Mask, the very same that he once wore long ago when he butchered an entire bank in the vain attempt to eliminate enemies that knew too much. Obscuring his face from the public would be needed until he succeeded in his quest now, but there had been many a Sith Lord that wore masks, this one in fact, including the infamous Darth Revan.
Departing swiftly once he had what he desired, Veneficus boarded his shuttle, and ordered for the man to take him to the coordinates indicated in the ship. He never allowed the pilot to actually know the location that they were heading toward, mostly just monitor the auto pilot and make sure that it functioned correctly.
After several hours of Hyperspace travel, the ship returned to normal space over the planet, flying between the two moons of the system to mask their approach. The pilot was watchful and made sure that the ship landed gracefully in the mountains as it ought to, and Veneficus commanded the man to refuel the ship while he went out, and that he would return soon.
Stepping onto the world, Veneficus could sense the turmoil that was taking place in the settled part of the planet, far from this location and filled with Dark Adepts and other Imperial civilians that did not know why their leader and most of their defense fleet had vanished without a trace.
Entering the crag between the rocks, Veneficus entered the hidden tomb-like vault that resided therein. Darth Zeemar had prepared this place for a long time, making sure to hide it deep in the Sith Core worlds so that no others would find it unless he so desired it.
Within the vault, rows upon rows of ancient texts and scrolls dating back to the dawn of the Sith Order sat, dust growing upon them and their parchments unable to withstand even being moved from the vault. Veneficus had read them all, and knew much regarding the most ancient of Sith from them, but he recalled a specific name being mentioned in one of the newer, relatively speaking. There were also a great deal of items that had been added by Veneficus himself, and he would be taking one of those back with him, feeling that the added power would be needed in due time.
Sifting through the dusty and crumbling parchment, Veneficus searched long for the small scrap of information he had passed over so many years ago. Soon, after pulling an entire shelf down on top of what he was already looking through, he found it. The briefest mention of a powerful Sith that had caught the attention of Marka Ragnos, who somehow had survived all the way through the reign of Naga Sadow. This unknown figure had ot be the key.
"Marka Ragnos I summon you…" Veneficus intoned, spinning the jewel on his ring, the most prized possession he owned, apart from the Philosopher's Stone itself.
The shade, already endeared to Veneficus and utterly loyal to the survival of the Sith had no choice but to appear. "You have called for me, little Emperor?" the Sith Hybrid asked.
"I read here of a young sith you yourself rose up from his squalor and named… who is this one?" Veneficus requested, "I need to know, for I suspect there might be a lead to my path of immortality."
The shade, already knowing the mind of Veneficus and what he was requesting nodded, "He was a headstrong and powerful killer… he was Tenebrae, and I renamed him Lord Vitiate… that is all that I know regarding the one you seek."
"A name is all I need…" Veneficus replied, smirking as he allowed the greatest of Sith Lords before himself fade back into the netherworld.
Spinning the little stone once more, Veneficus gathered the power of the Dark Side to him. This would be a wild shade, and if he knew anything regarding the spirits of dead Sith, it would likely desire very much to return to life through the current Emperor.
"Lord Vitiate, known as Tenebrae, I summon you!" Veneficus commanded to the darkness.
For a long time there was silence, before another shade manifested itself in the room.
"What manner of Sith art is this, that you can summon me from the realm of the dead?" the shade demanded.
"Something far greater than you ever hoped or dreamed of…" Veneficus replied, outright refusing to tell any of his skill and mastery over the dead. "I hear that you had the means to cheat death for hundreds if not thousands of years…"
"As much good as it did in the end, defeated by outlanders and Jedi heroes…" the Sith shade responded, the grim face set like stone.
"I demand of you the secret of immortality, so that I might rule the Empire forever!" Veneficus said commandingly.
"From one Eternal Emperor to another, I can see that you will need my skills, and soon…" the former Sith Emperor, known by many names and faces replied, laughing at the need behind his mortal counterpart.
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Euka was quite enjoying her mock role as High Prophet of Korriban. There had been a small bout of challenge when the rest of the local council of the planet met with her. She assured them all she was acting on orders from Zhar, who was still High Prophet over the planet as well as Supreme Prophet of Dromund Kaas. That had settled them, and they fell in line with her sham, although Euka could tell that they all were hoping to placate her into revealing who if any of them were considered to take the place of Zhar on Korriban.
Meanwhile, candidate after candidate were brought before her, obeying her every whim in order to try and please her into selecting them as 'her' apprentice. However, both her eyes and the Force itself were ready keeping her passive, waiting as each and every one were passed over, angry and dejected at losing the opportunity of a lifetime, or so they thought.
That was until the fiftieth or so candidate entered, the Force singing around him like a wildfire. The Duros was taller than average, with shimmering green skin that rippled with muscle. He was a true brute after the likes of Fury the Marauder to be sure, but possessing a keener and more sinister mind.
"And you are?" Euka said, maintaining an air of aloofness as she languished casually on Zhar's throne in the Korriban council chamber.
"Jol Tugno, High Prophet…" the Duros said, bowing slightly. Euka noted that it was far shallower than any of the previous candidates. This one suspected something, and it pleased her.
Still, she would go through the standard tests just to be sure if this was indeed the one that she sought. Gesturing to a large set of ornamental stones set tastefully into plinths.
"Lift them, and move them to the plinths there on the other side of the room," she ordered, pointing then to an identical set of plinths across the room. It was a basic task, but it required lots of concentration, and that would allow Euka to ask questions of each candidate as they moved the stones.
The Duros nodded, obeying just as the countless other had before him and reached out with one hand. The first three of various sizes lifted slowly into the air and began to move. Euka waited for the stones to be halfway across the room before she asked her first question.
"What do you feel regarding the Emperor's rule of the Galaxy?" she asked pointedly, and watched for the reaction.
She had seen all manner of results from this line of questions. The most common was that her victim would momentarily lose control of the stones, usually recovering before they crashed to the ground, but otherwise being taken off guard by the casual mention of the Emperor and how he had managed the Galaxy up to this point.
It had proved to be the best method of disqualifying candidates Euka had found. Those that had had their ability with the Force empowered by thoughts of the Emperor were completely unviable for her and Zhar's plans, and therefore easily sent away with neutral words about not being what Euka sought in an apprentice.
This Duros however, merely stilled the stones he was holding as he considered the question. "I never knew the Emperor personally, nor have I ever seen him, so I cannot have an opinion on his methods of control over us," he said, before setting the first stone he had chosen into its mirror plinth.
"Would you say that the methods of our government are perfectly reasonable for every member of the Empire?" Euka asked again, when the next, much larger stone had lifted from its plinth.
That got a reaction. The stone dipped heavily, and Euka smirked. The Duros slipped in his neutral mask, and she got a full view of the utter rage and anger that lay beneath. "The Empire destroyed my community, took me from my family, and killed them all as I was whisked away to serve them on this forsaken hole. I would not say that at all…"
Whatever response or punishment the young Adept was thinking Euka would throw at him, he was clearly surprised that it didn't come. Euka was smirking widely as she beckoned for him to proceed with his task. But she was not even close to finished with her questions. The pure anger regarding the Empire and its lesser rulers completely in line with her and Zhar's ideals, and would work perfectly to aid them fully.
"Would you flee?" she asked, as the Duros was about to lift another stone.
The Duros froze, clearly wondering what madness she was thinking in asking that question. Euka said nothing more, waiting expectantly for an answer. Turning away, the Dark Adept said softly, "Yes, I'd leave at the first chance…"
He went to start lifting the next stone, and Euka pressed down with the Force, preventing the stone from rising. Jol turned to look at her as Euka stood and stepped down from the raised chair. "I have made my choice. We have similar ends in mind Jol Tugno. You, I, and my Master will do great things…"
"I… what?" the Duros said, confused.
"You didn't honestly think I was really the High Prophet of Korriban did you? Zhar lives, and is Supreme Prophet, and why would I give up the chance to take on that greater seat for the backwater wasteland here?" Euka said darkly, matching the hidden anger that the Duros had revealed earlier.
"I had something of a suspicion…" the male replied, clearly on edge for some sort of final test that Euka might spring on him.
"Your judgment is correct then…" Euka said, smirking at the man's confusion, "I suppose congratulations are in order. You are worthy of being Supreme Prophet Zhar's second apprentice…"
"So I'm to be your rival?" Jol asked, rightful fearful of the prospect.
"No," Euka assured the Duros, "You are to take over duties for him in preparation to become High Prophet of Korriban, while I will continue to serve until I rise to the rank of Supreme Prophet myself…"
There was distrust in the Duros' voice, but eventually he calmed somewhat, "I see, so all this was to set up a series of challenges to find the right candidate for the position. And I presume I passed."
"First out of over fifty candidates," Euka added, stroking the male's ego just slightly. "But we haven't time to really care further regarding this world. You will have plenty of time to ask the Supreme Prophet your questions directly, but for now keep you peace and let us depart."
Without even paying attention to the Duros from that point, Euka departed. From the sound of the heavy footsteps she knew he was following, and that was all she cared about. Finding her shuttle prepped and fueled just as she had requested, she boarded swiftly and ordered the pilot to depart the tomb-world and head for the Imperial Capital of Dromund Kaas.
Momentarily, she thought of the poor fools that were waiting for the passed over chance to prove themselves to her. The Force twined in annoyance that she would dispute her choice at this point, and she settled herself that the candidate that she had chosen was the ideal selection.
She hoped that the Duros had the stomach to handle what was to come however, as the subtle vibrations of fear and anticipation wafting off Jol might prove to be his, and by extension her and Zhar's, undoing.
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Lord Fury couldn't contain his rage, even so long after being dismissed from the presence of Diábolis. The action of the Sith Lord more than affirmed the speculation of the Marauder that the Devaronian had something to hide, especially from anyone with loyalties tied back to the Emperor. Unfortunately, now that he was sent away, there was no possible way for him to discover the truth, nor would he dare bring the allegation to the Emperor without proof.
Instead, he had yet another assignment to act the part of an enforcer and brute, and he was growing quite sick of the role that he had been assigned. Deep in his meditations, Fury let his mind drift back to the source from which he placed all blame regarding his life: Zhar Quelmok.
From what he had learned through the secret channels of the higher figures in the Empire, Zhar was now the Supreme Prophet of the Dark Side, and the thought of his most hated enemy achieving so much set Fury's blood boiling even further.
He was sorely tempted to abandon all that he was assigned to do, and finally achieve the revenge that he had secretly sought for the longest time, that of killing Zhar Quelmok. The anger and desire for that goal was strong, and it took a great deal of control for Fury to tame his rage. He would not have the opportunity unless he was summoned to Dromund Kaas itself.
Till then, there was little to do but follow the instructions he was given, suppress a world that was trying to depart from the Empire altogether, clearly from rebel influence, and Fury knew that only blood and death would sate him for a time.
Calamity could sense the turmoil in Fury just as easily, the troll being powerfully gifted in sensing the emotions of others. It was a strange empathy that allowed the beast to become even more dangerous of a rampaging creature, literally feasting off the fear and anger of his enemies. Fury was rather pleased that they had discovered the key Force gift that the creature possessed, as that seemed to solve the issue of the lumbering nature of the troll's sheer size and bulk.
As their shuttle started from the cruiser toward the planet of their target, Fury could see the fires from orbit as the Imperial center of the planet was burning. There would be blood and to spare in revenge for the defiance that this world had expressed.
The shuttle landed in a heavily populated square, a rallying point where the last of the Empire's troops had retreated to await reinforcements. Fury stalked slowly down the ramp, sweeping the area and finding them completely surrounded by the anger and rebellious folly of the native populace.
"My Lord, are we glad that you've arrived." A nearby trooper, the last remaining officer in charge, said.
"I suppose that that is the case," Fury said dismissively. He could not be bothered with such simpering when there were so many enemies to slay. "You'll take your forces and push back to the Imperial command center. I refuse to allow such technology fall into the hands of the rebels."
"But sir, that location is overrun. We'll never… ack!"
Lifting the fool by the throat with his mechanical hand, Fury turned slowly to look at the soldier, who was already graying as blood was denied entry to his brain, "I do not care if you or your forces survive, I want to draw out my prey, and you are the perfect bait… understand…" he said slowly.
The officer could not reply, but the fear in his eyes was a clear indication, and Fury tossed him hard to the ground. Coughing and sputtering, the man scrambled away, and the troopers backed away slowly from Fury. Successfully cowed into obedience, Fury knew that they would do as he wished, and soon enough he would have exact locations for his wrath to be unleashed.
As the troops moved out, the expected ambush started. The rebels were fools to think that simply popping out of their cover and raining down blaster bolts would be enough to protect them. Gesturing at the closest position, Fury smirked as his elite Wrathguard fired a rocket at the location.
The high balcony exploded, and Fury ordered his personal forces to spread out, and eliminate all resistance, before leaping on top of the roof of the closest building. His sabers flared to life in his hands, and he started running alongside the moving bait.
From his higher vantage, he was able to easily see where the knots of rebels were cowardly hiding, taking stray shots at the line of running troopers, and slowly whittling them down.
With a burst of the Force, Fury threw himself to the next roof, where a group of six rebels were focused completely on the bait. By the time they turned and noticed his arrival, three were already dead and in pieces.
The fourth got a pair of shots off before Fury took his left hand, right forearm, and head in a savage flurry of strikes. The final three tried to flee, but Fury hurled his sabers, skewering two as he grasped the last through the Force, holding the being aloft as he stepped closer. Pulling the being closer, he took great pleasure in crushing the neck with his mechanical hand.
Retrieving his sabers swiftly after that, he searched for his next target. Even as Fury leapt from roof to roof, he spotted Calamity barreling through barricades and building walls alike, following the scent of the rebels as well as his own premonitions in the Force, wading into their secure locations like a thunderclap.
The rebels eagerly fled from before the massive troll, which allowed the marksmen of his Wrathguard to pick them off one by one as they ran. Fury found himself somewhat bored as he laid waste to the next high nest of rebels.
Where was the challenge? What he would give for a Jedi to manifest themselves and fight him, so he could feel the true rush of battle overtake him. As it was this was merely an exercise in control and precision, and that was not the sort of thrill that he sought.
A rebel threw a grenade at Fury, and with a lazy wave of his hand he banished it back into the sniper's cover, silencing the scream with the massive explosion.
He started to walk toward the next group of hidden troopers, who spotted him coming and rose up out of their cover with a pair of missile launchers. The lead trooper started shooting, while the other two fired a pair of rockets at Fury.
Batting aside the blaster bolts, fury deflected both of the missiles with the Force, but did not notice the third who had fired a moment after. The missile caught him in the chest, and he knew his armor would hold, but shrapnel flew upward into his face, causing a searing pain to shoot through his body.
Angry now, he pulled the force around him and caused the extra rockets around the group of rebels to detonate prematurely, annihilating their position. Fury could tell his hair had been all but incinerated, and there would be a deal of scarring on his lower face and jaw, but there was no time to fall back and get medical treatment.
Suppressing the pain with the Force, he pushed onward, taking out another three groups of rebels that were harassing the Imperial troops he had sent ahead as bait.
They had almost arrived at the entrance to the Imperial Command Center, and Fury could see from the building tops that it was just as infested with enemy troops as he had been told. Leaping down to the street level, Fury found the company and halted them before they burst into the open of the heavy guarded site.
Ignoring the reactions to his visage, Fury addressed the lead officer, who was also sporting a bandage on his arm where he had been hit.
"The Wrathguard will take point, I want all of you to infiltrate the Command Center and lock it down so we can trap the rebels inside. My apprentice and I will be herding them all into the base while you do so, so I urge stealth as your objective."
"U…understood…" the man replied, trying hard to look Fury in the eye and not take in the rest of the Marauder's face.
Calamity arrived with the Wrathguard at that point, and Fury related the plan swiftly to them, ordering snipers to take up strategic positions around the Command Center. He would have a side entrance cleared while a large attack happened at the primary entrance by his elite soldiers, his apprentice, and he himself.
Once they were all in position, he led the charge into the square, batting aside the horde of blaster shots that came at them from the troopers that blocked the way. Most of the rebels did exactly as Fury had suspected, and fled inside to the presumed cover of the Command Center.
Cutting down the few fools that remained, Fury plunged his saber into the door controls, forcing the blast doors to seal themselves. "Fan out, seal the other entrances, I limit their means of escape to one, then we'll break inside." He ordered.
Calamity took part of the troops around to the left, and Fury led the rest to the right. One by one, they found all the side entrances as they worked their way around the building, sealing them shut and slaughtering any being still outside the structure.
Finally, when they met Calamity once more on the far side of the building, Fury left a squad of his Wrathguard to protect the now only entrance and exit on the ground floor of the building, and they started inside.
He would eliminate this petty resistance quickly, Fury told himself, and then he would focus his sights on a more worthy target.
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Severus did not like the idea of making use of Shade's information, now that he knew the origin of the Zabini clone, but he and Granger had come to the agreement that to spread that information around would be most unwise, and therefore he couldn't in good conscience just ignore the request for the man's assistance in their next venture.
The fact of the matter was that Shade had given them quite a lot and taken many risks to help them, and would be the only one of the rebellion to be able to find out the location of each magi-tech based fleet at any given time.
Opening the small room that had been turned into a holding chamber for the operative, Severus glanced at the man with equal measures of disdain and distrust. "I take it my help is needed," the man replied, looking perfectly peaceful, sitting cross-legged on the floor in the center of the room.
Severus merely grunted as he jerked his head for the man to follow. Stepping aside for the clone to gather his helmet and armor, Severus kept his wand out and in hand at all times, just in case.
"I do hope that eventually you will learn to trust me again, Professor," the clone said, and the strange way that the voice implied a level of familiarity grated on Severus' nerves.
"Do not speak to me that way again," Severus hissed, and the clone closed his eyes, understanding what had transpired.
"If I may in due time be given the ability to explain, I would like you to understand why I out of all my brothers and fellow clones rebelled against the Emperor, and the horrors that each of us endured, all the way back to the original." He said slowly, but Severus turned away.
He did not want to hear any concocted story that was meant to play upon their emotions, especially about one of his former students, and one that was indeed most foolish to believe that he alone could have any sort of connection with a monster that Potter turned out to truly be.
Those were times that Severus would very much like to completely forget, and dredging up those old wounds would serve nothing but to endanger them all as Severus was distracted by the conflicting emotions that they brought. Quelling them with a practiced mantra of Occlumency, Severus spoke. "just hurry up, the others wish to know if you will get the information they desire, and while none of them know your true identity, we have need of your particular ability to slip into Imperial areas undetected."
"I understand," Shade said, slipping his helmet back on and turning to face Severus, "I am ready," he said.
Severus eyed the man once, just to make sure everything was in place and nothing amiss. Nodding when he was satisfied, Severus led Shade back to the conference room where Ms. Granger awaited.
The meeting had ended shortly after he departed, but it was likely that they would hold a second to transfer what information Shade could relate to Bakura, and shade would be permitted to be present and say his piece.
Hermione looked just as suspicious of the man as Severus felt, but they turned to face him nonetheless. "We wish for you to get us the detailed routes and stop offs for the Imperial fleet…" Hermione said by way of introduction to the idea.
"That is a tall order," Shade replied, "I presume you want some specific ships and not a comprehensive report of every single vessel in the Imperial Navy?"
"Yes," the Director replied, "all those fleets that are operated by a Magi-Tech styled command cruiser, so that we may tap into their beacons and track them, as we go about eliminating them one by one, or else capture them for our own use."
"That…" Shade said, "is actually the most brilliant strategy I've ever heard. Using your mastery over that tech, as the creator, would be an impressive advantage over them. Although you would need engineers present at each capture or destruction to make sure that everything went according to plan."
"Can you do it or not?" Granger interrupted, clearly uncaring about the man's opinion regarding the strategy.
"Most certainly, but it'll take time to find them all, especially if the admirals or higher ranked officials went to any length to hide them…" Shade said finally.
"You will do this, and send us as much as you can as quickly as you find it, starting with those fleets closest to us." Director Granger commanded, and Shade nodded in reply.
"As you wish, but I do recommend that you allow me to help strategize each fleet's attack. I will also have the ability to gather information about the leaders and officers aboard each fleet, and give you detailed strategies how to counter the preferred style of warfare each favors."
Granger frowned, but Severus knew that it was an offer they could not refuse. "Do it, we will be in touch as soon as you locate the first batch of fleets." She said, and Severus set the Operative's equipment, as well as the command signal for his own ship on a table next to them.
"I will not fail you," Shade said as he took them up and departed.
"Did he even suspect?" Granger asked once the man was out of the room.
"Not even for a moment," Severus replied, smirking slightly. It had been all too easy to plant a tracking beacon on the man. Now they would know where he went and exactly how he went about collecting his information. Severus' personal bet was that the Zabini clone still had access to his armor as a former Arcanamach guard, and used that official status to his advantage, but he could be wrong.
The face of Blaise Zabini was probably mysterious enough in the empire to allow him anonymity, but he wasn't sure what the strategy would be. At the least they were going to be aware of it if the man betrayed them, and that was sufficient for him at the time being.
"In the meantime we'll start seeding various worlds closer to the Imperial core with spies and lookouts to monitor fleet movements and high profile targets," he said, pulling up a map of the Galaxy and pointing at key planets.
"Dromund Kaas would be ideal, but I get the feeling it wouldn't be the safest choice at the time being, and I do not feel safe sending any to Coruscant or Korriban," Hermione said, ticking off the most prominent worlds of the Empire.
Severus nodded, having come to that conclusion as well, "then one of the worlds with high traffic that is near to the Imperial cluster I think…" he said, narrowing the view of the projector to that section of the Galaxy.
It would take time for them to prep for this attack, which gave the Zabini clone time to do whatever it was that he was planning. Severus' only concern was whether he would going to have to hunt down and kill the clone or not, in the event of betrayal.
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Diábolis smirked as he read the swift communication from his spy in the rebels. The fools were already preparing to attack the fleets of the empire, just as he had hoped. It would be all to easy to prepare his trap and snatch a mage-born out of the battle. Quickly looking through the records and navigations plans that he as the apprentice of the Emperor was permitted to view, it was appallingly easy to determine which fleet they would attack first.
The forces occupying Mygeeto were slothful and lazy, and the fact that they hadn't been downgraded to non-wartime weaponry would prove their undoing as an Imperial world. The rebels would strike there to liberate the ships for their own cause, and it was there that his trap would be set.
A quick, encoded message to Kelrek would ensure that the man would depart as soon as he was commanded, and Diábolis could focus on the rest of his spy's message.
Additional to their planned attacks, the rebels would starting spying efforts among the chief planets of the Empire, close to but not on any world that held a particularly powerful individual, such as the Emperor or the Supreme Prophet. It was amusing that they hadn't learned yet of the massive reordering that was taking place in the Dark Council.
Diábolis guessed that they might be bolder once they realized that this was the case, and while his spy was not able to reveal his extra knowledge for fear of outing himself as a counter spy, it would be useful for them to learn of the Empire's weakness as soon as possible.
He would make sure to declassify a few tidbits, not much to cause any alerts from those on Coruscant, but enough that anyone looking for something could find the truth.
In the midst of all his plots, Diábolis started to wonder if this was the same method and thought process that his master had gone through when overthrowing the previous Sith Master. And if that was the case, why did Veneficus stop being so perfectly manipulative and started to rely completely on power and the strength of others.
Perhaps that was just another sign that it was far past the time for the Emperor to step aside and allow Diábolis his chance at glory and power. The clear need for patience was nearly unbearable, but the Devaronian Sith Lord was planning to savor every moment when his revenge finally boiled to a head.
Long had he harbored his hatred for Veneficus, over every terrible and cruel act that went about breaking him of his former life and reforging him into a perfect weapon for the Sith. With stark realization, Diábolis thought of the strange cycle that must have existed since the time of Darth Bane, that the Sith perpetually abused and subjected their apprentices to greater depravity than they themselves had gone through, steadily finding and increasing the power of the next generation of Sith.
It was a self defeating system, and the fact that they had already achieved the goals of the Sith so soon after the Rule of Two's initiation, it ought to have shown the weakness of the Jedi and the strength of the Dark Side, but it hadn't.
For Diábolis, he felt that the Jedi and those still loyal to them had simply gone to ground, and that the true meaning of destroying the Jedi had to be on a more base level. The people of the Galaxy had to fear and hate the Jedi just as they now did the Sith. Any group or person that achieved more power than those around them gained a level of contempt, and Veneficus was no different.
If anything he had just magnified that hatred to the point where even those who had been most loyal were breaking away and departing from his plans and counsels. Diábolis was starting to become disillusioned from the idea that an Empire comprised of Force wielders was a set model for the rule of the Galaxy, and started in his own mind to form a new plan and idea to truly take command of the Galaxy.
To rule through sheer force of arms was one thing, but if he could magnify the power of the Force through himself, he might be able to rule the Galaxy through sheer willpower alone, commanding the Force to slaughter his enemies from worlds away and in essence being a single man army in regards to maintaining the order of the Galaxy as he so pleased. That would be true power, and something that Veneficus would need to be destroyed in order to achieve.