Home.
He was finally home. Fifteen thousand standard years alone. He could finally see his sisters and brothers again. He could finally kiss his wife again. He would be reunited with his family.
Lucifer Samael Arrhenius smiled as he felt the Eclipse drop out of hyperspace. The first thing he had to do was find his sister, Amreil. He knew one thing: If his plan was to work, he needed his entire family on his side. If Amreil supported him, he knew everyone else would.
But, he was also loyal to the Empire. After all, he did initiate Emxit, the bill that finalized the Imperial departure from the Galactic Federation Triumvirate. That was one of the most important things he had ever done. The Triumvirate truly took advantage of the Empire. His great, great, great, great granddaughter, Empress Marasiah Fel never should have joined. The Empire had suffered for seventy years under Triumvirate, so had the galaxy. But the Empire, along with over half of the galaxy, was back under Celestial control. But anyways, he couldn't just look out for himself, he had to do something that would benefit the Empire. Either set up trade routes, or take full control.
Okay, now he was in a sarlacc pit of thought. The late Empress Fel was his four times great granddaughter. The Force truly did have a sense of humor. His vacation to Tatooine caused so many bad things to happen in the galaxy. Fascinating how all things come full circle. He influenced Sheeve Palpatine to create the First Galactic Empire. Then, Lucifer' grandson, Luke Skywalker brought an end to that glorious Empire. It fell into disrepair, it was led by many fools (Except for Grand Admiral Thrawn and a few others). Luke then forced the Moff council to take Jagged Fel as their Chief of State, Jagged then fell in love with Lucifer's great granddaughter: Jaina Solo. Shortly after that, Fel assumed the title of Emperor and the Galactic Empire reorganized into the Fel Empire.
The Empire flourished under Fel rule. Until the Sith Coup. Sith Lord Darth Kryat attempted to overthrow Roan Fel– his great great great grandson. And he halfway succeeded. The imperials that were still loyal to Roan, the Galactic Alliance Remnant, and the New Jedi Order all banded together to defeat Kryat. It worked, but Roan fell to the dark side in the process. He was then promptly killed.
Then, Lucifer's great, great, great, great granddaughter, Marasiah Fel became the empress. In the aftermath of the second imperial civil war, the Empire underwent yet another reorganization: the Triumvirate. The Galactic Alliance, The Fel Empire, and the New Jedi Order all combined into one. Marasiah ruled for the next fifty years.
Eventually, towards the end of her rule, she met Lucifer. Slowly He managed to sweet talk her into giving up her throne to him.
Full circle. Lucifer loved symmetry. Under Celestial rule, the Imperial Knights were disbanded, the Triumvirate was disbanded, and the Empire regained its former glory. Once Lucifer became the Emperor, the Empire underwent yet another reorganization: The Final Galactic Empire.
Lucifer rebuilt the Imperial military, he brought the Kuat Drive Yards back under imperial control. He reseparated the Stormtrooper corp. from the Navy, and he disbanded the Imperial Knights (as he didn't believe in a state sponsored religion). He issued an executive order approving spending of over eighty trillion credits researching new technologies to modernize the Navy. He spent seventy trillion on new star destroyers, including the new Imperial III class, the Sovereign class, and the Eclipse class. He brought back many very successful on-ground military vehicles too, such as the AT-TE. He also brought back the LA-AT. Both important vehicles that never should have been discontinued.
Lucifer also started a massive deregulation of almost all industries. In the triumvirate, for every two regulations that were passed, 5 were abolished. Under Celestial rule, for every two regulations passed, eleven were abolished. This deregulation sparked massive job growth. Unemployment was now at six percent.
Lucifer reestablished the Imperial Senate. The original two-thousand senators did not adequately represent the citizens of the Empire, so he upped that number to ten-thousand senators. Though, in his most honest opinion, even that is pushing it, considering that the Empire has over twenty-three trillion citizens. But, any more Senators and the senate wouldn't ever get anything done.
Celestial rule truly brought the Empire back into relevancy.
He shifted into a human form and stormed out of his room. "Prepare my shuttle." He said to no one in particular. "I'm going to the surface alone"
An officer immediately ran to get his ship ready. It only took fifteen minutes to prepare it, and two hours later, he landed on a large island off the coast of a small continent.
~oOo~
"Do you see that castle in the distance?" Lucifer asked the pilot.
"Yes sir, do you want to land next to it?"
"No, there seems to be a village around it. I don't want to draw any more attention than necessary. Land a kilometer or two away from it."
"Alright," said the pilot as he veered to the right towards a field. He landed.
"Thank you," said Lucifer. "Now take this ship back to the Eclipse. Tell the Admiral to put all troops on standby.
The pilot gave a confused look. "Do it." ordered Lucifer.
"Okay," the pilot said. Lucifer stepped off of the shuttle and it took off and headed back to the ship.
Two wings sprouted out of Lucifer's back and he took off towards the city. He immediately put his wings away when he landed. He hadn't been here for millenia so he didn't know what the norm was. He looked around and saw a cart of donuts, he took two and headed towards the castle. People looked warily at him as he strode down the street. He ignored them. He probably should have put different clothing on, his royal robes did draw more attention than he would have liked. But he didn't care enough to change. After all, what could happen to him? Not much.
He reached the castle to find the drawbridge already down. Perfect. He walked right in. The guards made a feeble attempt to stop him. But as soon as they took a step they flew right into the nearest wall and collapsed. He continued walking. He got into the courtyard where there were even more guards. They attempted to block his path. He let them. "Stop" yelled one of the guards.
Lucifer did so, "Hello darlings, I am looking for the leader of these lands. Who rules around here? A King? An Emperor? A Tzar?"
"Who are you?" Asked that same guard.
"Oh. Right. Sorry, my name is Lucifer Arrhenius. I am here to set up new trade routes."
"Trade routes, eh? Where is your invitation?"
"An invitation?" Lucifer paused. "I don't have one."
"Well aren't going to let you see the General without one."
Lucifer thought about this, "A general is your ruler? I must say, I wasn't expecting that." He thought some more. "Ah, I see. The real ruler died and the general took over. Is that right?" the guards didn't answer. "Well, I know that military leaders tend not to like such political positions. I guess I'll just have to help out a little, now won't I?"
"If you don't have an invitation, then leave."
"Invitation, invitation, invitation. You are narrow minded, aren't you? Get out of my way." Lucifer made to push through the guards, but they drew their swords.
Lucifer sighed. He slowly waved his hand in front of himself. "You will take me to the General immediately." The guards lowered their swords as a glazed look washed over their faces.
"I will take you to the General immediately," said the first guard.
"Excellent," said Lucifer as he clasped his hands together. "Please, lead the way."
~oOo~
In the Throne Room, the General sat hunched over his desk. Paperwork. He hated paperwork. He also hated being in charge. And he hated the late king for leaving him in charge. He was a military leader, not a fucking ruler. The late King never should have gone to that final battle. He had warned the King of the risk, but the King insisted on going, and, in the end, the King had indeed been killed. After the King's death, the leadership of Hybern had fallen on him. Ruling an entire country didn't suit him.
Paperwork seemed to be all he had time for. He didn't understand how other rulers did it. He just couldn't. There was a knock at the door, "Come in." he called.
Aguard walked in followed by a man dressed in strange robes. "General," Said the guard. "This here is Lucifer Arrhenius, he wishes to set up new trade routes."
"Thank you." Said the general as he motioned for Lucifer to come closer. "Please go back to your post."
"Yes sir," the guard turned around to leave.
The general looked at Lucifer. "So, Lucifer, you wish to set up trade routes. What land are you from?"
"Well General, I am from a Land I am sure you've never heard of:The Final Galactic Empire."
"I certainly haven't heard of this Empire. Which continent is it on?"
Lucifer chuckled, "Funny you should ask. Actually, it isn't on any of the continents. Hel, it isn't even on this planet."
The General looked confused, "What is that supposed to mean?"
"It means you're relieved of duty, General."
"Excuse me?
"Hybern is now under imperial rule." Lucifer held his hand out toward the General. "The crown, if you will."
"No," said the General. Then he made a foolish decision. "Guards!" Ten guards came rushing in. "Cease this man." Two of them stepped toward Lucifer. They took five steps and found they could no longer move. "What are you waiting for? Cease him."
"I wouldn't recommend it," said Lucifer. "It wouldn't be good for your health." he released the guards. Despite his warning, those two and three more guards came forward to apprehend him. They made it just about eight steps before they collapsed in terrible pain, as their backs had been broken. "Now General, these guards will be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of their worthless little lives. That wouldn't have happened had you just given me the crown. Now, fork it over." The General refused again.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
The bitching and moaning of the guards stopped. Their necks had snapped. Now, the General had fear in his eyes. Five guards had just been killed in front of him and nobody had even lifted a damned finger. Worse yet, it seemed to have been a single human that had caused it. A human. Yes, the General was definitely afraid.
"Come now," said Lucifer. "You and I both know you hate ruling. You know you aren't qualified. Just give me the crown."
The General knew it would be in his own best interests to give up command. After all, he knew Lucifer was correct. He was about to do just that, but then he heard the King's voice in his head, Don't do it. Remove him from my kingdom. He stupidly listened.
"No." The General got up from his desk and drew his sword. "Leave this castle."
Lucifer looked at the sword, "Fascinating choice. Not a wise choice, but fascinating nonetheless." he lifted his arms and faced his palms toward the sword. Red-white lightning shot out of his fingertips and hit that sword. The sword bounced back and hit the General square in the chest. He stumbled back. Lucifer walked forward and the lightning increased in intensity. It traveled down the sword and into the general's arm and through his body. He attempted to scream, but the electricity prevented his muscles from moving.
Pain. That was all the General knew at that moment. Such pain he had never felt in his entire life. He was sure he would die. He saw the remaining guards leave, also terrified. It was at that moment, out of self preservation, that the General decided to hand over the kingdom.
Lucifer seemed to sense this because he stopped his volly of lightning. "Have you something to say?"
"Yes," Choked out the General, almost crying. "The kingdom is yours." And he handed over the crown.
Lucifer accepted the crown and placed it on his head. He walked over to the General, grabbed his arm, and pulled him to his feet. "Sorry about that," said Lucifer. "I haven't had sex in fifteen millenia." he patted the General on the shoulder and walked over to the desk. "You know, it would have been a lot less painful had you just given me the crown the first time I asked. Anyway, your first order of business is to evacuate the city. To have four days, I suggest you get moving."
"Y-y-yes sir," said the General. The General ran out of the room. Yes, he would evacuate the city. That seemed best. He would also gather an army. He knew that was what it would take to defeat him. He had to work fast. He knew the hybernian citizens would suffer under his rule. He began scheming even before he left the throne room. But what he didn't know, was that Lucfer was reading his thoughts like a fucking book.
~oOo~
Lucifer walked over to the desk and sat down. That was easier than it should have been. He thought. He looked at all the paperwork on the desk. This General should have had a secretary. He pulled out his commlink and called the Admiral. "Yes?" asked the Admiral.
"Admiral, I have good news." replied Lucifer happily. "I have gained control of one country on this planet. Don't ask how. Inform Commander Stakato that he can begin deploying the troops and artillery. The capital city is being evacuated, so that means all non- essential personelle can come down to the surface. I'm sure they're all tired of being on those star destroyers. Oh, and bring down one of those prefabricated garrison bases. I'm curious as to their effectiveness."
"That is good news, your Excellency. Active your homing beacon and we should begin arriving within the day."
"Thank you, Admiral." said Lucifer, and he disconnected the call.
There were so many things that Lucifer had to do. Things like setting up an intelligence agency, setting up factories and supply chains. He definitely needed new currency for Hybern. They needed electrical systems. Just a lot of bringing Hybern up to date.
The last time he was here was over one-hundred fifty years ago. Just after the Ones were killed. He brought the Dagger of Mortis here so Amriel could protect it. More Celestial death was a risk that he couldn't take. Their population was dangerously low, just about one million. It used to be over three billion. The only time that he had wished that he hadn't brought it here was about fifty years after that, when Abeloth had escaped the Maw Cluster. That dagger would have so much of a difference during that time. He hoped that nothing had changed too drastically in the past century and a half. If something had changed, well, he would have to reexamine his plan.
He knew Prythian had seven courts, he knew that there was a wall separating the humans from the abominations and the demons, and he knew there were three territories on the main continent. Other than that, he didn't really know all that much.
Damn. his entire plan relied on that one piece of information. That wall. This was the most rigid plan he had ever made. And he had made some damn rigid plans. If that wall was down, he was screwed. At that moment, he realized that he had a shitty plan. As soon as he realized that, he contacted the Admiral and told him to dispatch probe droids, and connect them to his datapad.
He looked at the paperwork on the desk. Damn, the General did all this by himself? He should have had a secretary. His respect for the general just went way up, and he made a mental note to bring a droid to clean up this mess.
He took out his canteen and took a sip.
~oOo~
One Week Later
"So," said Admiral Epstien over a hologram. "What are we going to do about this rebellion?"
"Well," responded Captain Farrell. "I would probably close the ports, as to minimize the risk of aid coming and/or our presence becoming known."
"How is that going to stop the rebellion?" asked Epstien.
"Simple," said Lucifer. "It won't. But it will minimize casualties on our side."
"What's to stop them from just storming the beaches?" Epstein argued.
"Nothing," said Farrell. "If a distress call never gets out, no help will show up. It's that simple."
"That makes sense," said Epstien. "But just in case, I think we should patrol the coast."
"That would take a lot of resources." Said Lucifer
"My lord," said Farrell. "One star destroyer has the potential to conquer an entire star system. We have fifteen destroyers and four dreadnoughts. I don't think it would use that many resources."
"That is a fair point," said Lucifer. He clapped his hands. "Alright then. I believe it's settled then. Admiral, inform Commander Stakato of these matters. We will patrol the border, and close the ports. We will also destroy any and all ships that arrive."
Both the Captain's and Admiral's mouth dropped slightly at that command. "Destroy all ships?" asked the Captain. "Even the ones bringing supplies?"
Lucifer looked him dead in the eyes. "Yes."
"May I ask why?" asked the Admiral.
"The countries that the ships originated from. When they notice that the ships don't come back, they will likely come to investigate. Of course they are definitely pirates to take into consideration, so it could take a bit for them to notice. But when they do, and when the investigations begin, they will send messengers. We will kill those messeng–"
The Captain interrupted, "why would we kill the messengers?"
"You interrupted me," responded Lucifer. "I was about to explain it. The leaders of those countries will likely consider that war. We want that. We will defeat them easily. Then we will take over those countries. And slowly assert imperial rule over this system."
"Why wouldn't we just go with a frontal assault?" asked the Captain.
"Because this is my home," said Lucifer. "I wish to protect it."
The captain looked confused. "But you come from Naboo. How is this your home?"
Lucifer looked at Admiral Epstien, "would you like to tell him?"
"Not really."
"Well, in that case, I am what they call: a celestial. Celestials originate in this galaxy."
"Bullshit." said Farrell.
"No it isn't," said Epstien.
"Prove it."
"Okay," said Lucifer and the two largest wings sprouted from his back. The Captain stumbled back out of shock.
"Fucken shit." Said Farrell. "Well now I've seen everything."
"Only you and Epstien know who I am. Consider it an honor."
Farrell was speechless. He had seen winged species before, but he hadn't ever seen them sprout from somebody's back. He was scared. Never before had he ever been so scared. He quickly walked over to Lucifer's desk and poured himself a drink. "You don't mind do you?" Lucifer shrugged. He downed it in one go. "So, you're a celestial. Do you– like– have any special powers or something?"
"How do you mean?"
"Are you like omnipotent or something?"
"No, but damn close to it. I am omniscient though. But I don't use it. I like surprises. It makes me feel free."
"Okay, um– I'm–" Farrell sighed. "This is really awkward for me. I don't really know what to think of this information. Um– I'm gonna leave." and he did leave. But not before downing another drink.
"And I thought I reacted poorly," said Epstien after Farrell had left.
"Consider this," said Lucifer. "You weren't entirely sober when I showed you. He was. He reacted appropriately." He also went over to the desk and poured a drink. He poured one for Epstien also. "Come, we have much to do in order to integrate this land entirely into the Empire."