This is a farce. Zarr Varceal folded her arms, iron grey eyes looking out past the large plasteel viewport that dominated the front wall of the command bridge of the "Pellaeons Peace". Ensigns and operators moved about busying themselves preparying the ship. In truth most of them were new recruits, fresh out of the Academy and eager to prove themselves. Untried and unready. Zarr almost envied them. They were so naïve, they actually believed that "new life and new civilizations' drivel that the recruiters spouted. No doubt they saw this, the 1st Imperial Exploratory and Colonization Taskforce, as a prime opportunity to do just that. They didn't realize the truth.

They were heading into the dead end of space, right into some unknown, untouched probably hostile and undoubtedly alien galaxy. So far from Imperial space, any thought of a career had all but vanished. She had climbed the ranks, fighting to better than the male pilots, simply because they thought that she, the daughter of one of the Counts of Sorenno , was nothing more than a spoiled brat of a girl that would cry as soon as she got a skinned knee. Yet, just like her captain she had graduated top of her class. Her captain...

She could say she loved him. She had loved him from the day when he, unlike the other had treated her equally; just as hard, no more, no less. Once, when she had complained to him about her treatment by one of the more sexist instructors, he had simply looked at her, scowling. " How weak are you that you need to assign blame to others for your own failures? If you fail, its because you are weak. And the weak get eaten."

She snapped out of her reverie when she heard the snap-hiss of the bridge entrance doors and stood at attention. "Captain on deck." Those who weren't immediately occupied snapped to attention, the newer ones stumbling a bit. She turned and there he was, walking briskly with his eyes on a data-pad. He looked as he always did, to her; strikingly handsome and slightly dangerous , with a brooding look. Except this day he seemed to be brooding more than usual. As he approached her, she saluted. "Something bothering you sir?" He stopped, his eyes still on the data pad. "I have been promoted ," he said slowly, "to Vice Admiral.

Vice Admiral? "Sir, thats great news! But you don't seem very happy about it."

"Happy?" He looked up from the data-pad. "I'm inexperienced, " he stated matter-of-factly. I've been bumped up two ranks, practically without reason. The captains will resent me. And if something happens to the Admiral...I".

"You're scared you wont be able to handle the responsibility." He nodded hesitantly. "Sir, if the Admiral thinks your good enough for the job, then you are. No question." For the first time in a long time, she saw his face flicker with emotion as a slight smile formed on his lips. "If you say so Captain, then it must be true." She smiled back at him, before realizing what he'd said. "Captain? Sir?" "Yes, Captain." He handed the data-pad to her." The last ship to join the fleet, besides the five Acclamtor II's for the colonists, is an Imperator class, the Stalwart Shield. You're being given command over it. That data-pad contains your orders as well as a crew roster. You are to report there immediately." He saluted. "Good luck, Captain Varceal."

She saluted back, eyes slightly blurry." Thank you sir. Good luck to you too." As she left to gather her personal thing from her quarters, she thought to herself, Maybe it wont be so bad after all.

Asa Soto didn't count when he exercised. Instead, he preferred simply to think as he pulled himself up and down with one hand on the iron bar and stand that stood at the corner of his personal quarters. He didn't particularly like to exercise, but as a soldier, he had to keep himself sharp.

A blade. The Empires blade.

Now it seemed he might be more than just a blade. Vice Admiral. Three days ago he been given this rank, and with it more power than he had ever handled before. And three days ago the Admiral had called him to his flagship and conference room, introducing him to a few of the captains: Di Ti, a blue skinned Twi-lek with a mech arm and a milky blind left eye ; Dutac, a Quarren who'd lost a few tentacles due to a scuffle with a con man posing as an Imperial Knight; Lev, a native of Bastion who was a loyal as he was men were, according to Seitei, the most trustworthy men in the taskforce and if anything ever happened and he needed help, these men were the ones to go to. And then the three Imperial Knights had walked in.

They were armored in what all Knights were;blood red armor over a black bodysuit similar to those used in pilots suits. All three were human and all three were pale white with silver, green, and pale blue eyes. Pale blue was the oldest, and the other two were younger, close to Asa's own age. The oldest stepped forward, his white hair and short beard at odds with his striking red armor.

The Admiral had risen from the conference table and introduced them as well. The oldest was Master Knight Rikke Zeal and green eyes and silver eyes were Apprentice Knights Raceal and Lanon. They were to accompany the fleet and provide their expertise. Rikke had been strange, his eyes focusing on Asa with an odd look as he stroked his beard.

Rikke. He knew the name The Master Knight who had dared to question the Emperor and the Moff Council. Details had been sketchy, but what had been known was that he had advocated the orbital bombardment of Korriban and other planets in the old Sith sector. Whats more, he was part of the bloc of hardliners who had cried for the invasion of Hutt space. Of course the Council had blocked all of this and Rikke had disappeared from the grid. They claimed that the policy of the Empire was now 'Victory Without War' and that they wouldn't invade another "states" space.

Asa dropped from the pull-up bar. He wasn't convinced. The Hutt's were gangsters and he had at least three ships full of colonists who were either fleeing Hutt bounties, Hutt debts, and some of the remaining Evocii escaping the Hutt polcy of extermination. No, the Moff's had another reason and he had a theory.

The Sith. Supposedly they were all but gone and yet there were rumors that Sith were talking to the Moffs. Why else would the Moffs refuse to raze Sith space, yet be always so ready to destroy everyone else. As if that weren't enough the Jedi were experimenting on Ossus...

He shook his head. Force-users. All they ever did was fuck up the order of things. The Sith in particular. But..

The Sith were gone. Evil had been destroyed. Purged from the Empire.

And yet you are still here, kinslayer

He had done his duty. He killed his traitorous father and brother. I am the blade of the Empire. He fell to his bed, with a slight sheen of sweat on his body. He had no regrets. None. And as he drifted off to a fitful sleep, he almost convinced himself that it was true.

bloody hands, bloody hands. The blood stained hands of the Laibon.

0940,Imperial Standard Military Tine, Location: Unknown, outside of Known Space

Asa woke with a start as the alarms klaxons on the ship sounded off. He leapt from his bed, his body cold from dried sweat and quickly retrieved his uniform from the desk near his bed and pulled it on. His comlink was sounding off and he lifted it, hooking the earpiece to his ear. "Soto here, whats the situation?"

An oddly calm voice answered. " A spacial anomaly has appeared and currently has this ship, along with the rest of the fleet, in its grip. I suggest you hurry to the bridge sir; it seems most urgent. With that the connection cut.

Of course, Asa thought as he left his quarters and hurried down the hallway to the bridge. Only that new Chiss commander turned captain of mine. Felka.