So this chapter is the first of a few canon-divergent storylines, and mostly just me wanting all my lovely little smols to interact. Not only that, I was giving some thought into how would the Empire react after the Wrath defects and commits treason? And this was the result.

(Sorry it's so short.)
(Also, bounty hunter storyline spoilers.)

Chapter Six: Repercussions

Dromund Kaas

Darth Marr had always preferred his office in the Sith Sanctum to the one on Korriban. Perhaps it was simply an overall preference to Dromund Kaas; he liked the rain. And at least on Dromund Kaas he did not find sand in odd crevices in his armor, and he was not surrounded by insolent acolytes and their obsequious overseers. Though, at least on Korriban he felt slightly removed from Sith politics. And, hardly a year into the War now, there were many. Barely more than a month ago Darth Baras had betrayed and killed his long-time apprentice (though there were whispers through the galaxy that she was not, after all, dead and was actively pursuing her former master's demise) around the same time that Darth Thanaton's private library had been invaded by an up-and-coming Lord, one of the slave inquisitors from Korriban, and now the two were locked in a passive-aggressive power struggle. Not only that, but there was already talk of dismantling Imperial Intelligence (the organization's latest operations had grown more enigmatic and there were certain Dark Councilors who were not so keen on such secrecy in the Empire) and the Mandalorians had grown even more restless than usual after three bounty hunters were murdered by Republic agents on Nar Shaddaa. Every day it seemed as if his Empire was crumbling around him, and more and more Marr wished to simply escape and not address the issues plaguing it. It was then that Korriban became a welcome respite.

But he could not return to Korriban now. No, there was work to be done.

It had been near two weeks since the Emperor's Wrath had defected and betrayed the Empire, joined the Jedi. At Marr's behest the Council tried desperately to cover up the 'incident' initially but it hadn't taken long before news reached the public. He remembered yesterday's holo-newscasts, discussing the Sith-turned-Jedi-turned-Sith-turned-Jedi and how she had seduced Scourge (the stories were intentionally sparse on details on if the said seduction had been mental or physical) into rejecting the Dark Side and the Empire, aligning with the Republic. They made her into anti-Republic propaganda, when only weeks before she had been the Empire's shining glory, the prodigal daughter returned to them. The situation only added to Marr's constant stress and he stalked through the Sanctum with more fierceness than he intended. He was due to meet one of those restless Mandalorians in his office, to see if she could… handle the Scourge issue.

A sigh escaped his lips as he entered his office, and the door slid shut behind him. He was sending a mercenary after the Emperor's Wrath. If she was successful (and that was highly unlikely, even with her skills) what would they do with Scourge? Execute him for his betrayal? Force him to spy on the Jedi? Imprison him for the rest of his days? It was such a delicate situation and Marr wasn't certain on how to proceed. But he had the Dark Council fussing over it, and the public demanding something be done. So he was getting something done.

The door slid open and in walked a tall, yellow Twi'lek woman with blueish Mandalorian armor, twin blasters on her hips, and an impish smile. Behind her stood an equally tall blonde young man, yet he was more serious than the Twi'lek. Her smirk turned into a grin and she stepped forward, hands on her hips. "Hey there, Marr," she said, his name rolling off her tongue like honey, and he sighed.

"Grand Champion."

She gave a soft laugh. "That's old news, Darthy. I go by Republic's Most Wanted now. It's got a better ring to it."

Marr bit back another sigh. This Twi'lek, the Empire's foremost mercenary, was infamous for her snarky, teasing attitude, especially to high-up Sith and Imperials, and Marr knew it would only be a matter of time before her disposition got to him. But, he reminded himself with a sigh, nothing good could come from killing her for her insubordination - not now, at least. He needed her. "I see."

"But you can call me Mala."

He gave a curt nod. "I am aware Darth Tormen contacted you a few weeks ago, regarding the incident on Nar Shaddaa."

She sighed wearily. "We just got back from Belsavis, hunting some bigshot smuggler Tormen said we needed out. This blasted Houk kept getting in my way and it took weeks ."

"I see."

Her blue eyes found his with a mischievous gleam and the smirk returned. "But I'm guessing you don't particularly care, right?"

"Indeed."

"All righty." She perched herself on the edge of his desk, even after his audible sigh. "So who's the target?"

Marr waited a moment to reply, choosing his words carefully. "You are not familiar with neutralizing targets quietly."

"Depends on the price."

"Oh, you will be rewarded handsomely. If you succeed."

"Now I'm intrigued. So who is it?"

He sighed slightly. "This information and the situation surrounding it is precarious. You must apprehend your target with caution."

"Caution?"

"You cannot barge in and just shoot everything."

"Hey, you're payin'. Whatever you want, boss."

"Good. And you may only inform those you have to."

"Holy Void," Mala said. "This is getting crazy. Who is this guy?"

Marr brought up a holopicture of Scourge and heard the mercenary laugh softly.

"So the Sith can't control their own, and they have to hire me to clean up their mess." She looked back at her companion with a grin, a soft laugh in her voice. "Should we feel honored, Torian?"

Marr sighed heavily. "I will admit - your skills are next to none. But if you do not succeed - "

"Lemme guess - you'll kill me."

"Precisely."

"Well, no worries then." She stood to her full height with a smirk. "I never fail."

"I will contact you with further instructions. And I assume it goes without saying but this is far more important than Tormen's task."

She shrugged. "Meh, I never liked Tormen anyway." And then she left a few minutes later, left Marr to the peace and quiet of his office. After ensuring the door was locked he removed his mask and sighed heavily, running his hand down his face. He was nearing his sixty-second year and the more the days went on the more he felt it. The stress and exhaustion and old age were settling in his bones like lead. With any luck they could resolve this Scourge situation quickly and without issues.

Lately, though, Marr had not been so lucky.