ADAS KALLIG

I had to admit that it was nice to do something elegant for a change. Fights were fun and all, but it was great to do something classy once a while.

My group and I were in the ballroom, in the mansion located in one of the wealthier districts of Coruscant. We were all wearing evening outfits and masks, taking part in the mascarade ball taking place there. I would like to say that these masks provided us some anonymity, but it would take a lot more to make Raksh, a three-meter tall beast, blend into the crowd. Of course the sensible solution to this problem would be to leave him on the ship, but I decided that taking him with us would be much more fun. And the little mask he was wearing, barely covering anything, looked quite hilarious to me.

We were attending this party because after my awkward meeting with Palpatine I was approached by some republic officer who invited us there. Apparently he represented a "certain group that would like to speak with me discreetly". It was quite easy to figure out what was going on. After all, I knew a military conspiracy when I saw it and I was all for it. They were always so interesting to watch.

We were assured that someone would find us during the party, so that we could talk, so I intended to have some fun while waiting for them to make a move. I decided to dance with Lana for a while, while letting my followers relax a little and enjoy themselves. From what I was able to see Leila and Raksh spent most of their time at the buffet, trying every kind of dish placed there, Satine tried to socialize a little, engaging masked guests to talk, while Maul was just standing broodily in the corner, just like he always did. In summary, everyone was having fun.

We were able to enjoy ourselves for about an hour, before me and Lana were approached by one of the servants working in the mansion. Time for a real party to start.

"Sir" He bowed lightly "Everything is ready. Would you like to follow me?"

"Of course," I replied. I summoned Satine, who was in the middle of the discussion with someone, to me. When she reached me, she, Lana and I followed the servant. I decided against taking Raksh, Leila and Maul with me. I was sure they would behave themselves appropriately, but they weren't as experienced and skilled in political maneuvers as me or Lana and Satine. They would feel uncomfortable during shady talks because of their lack of knowledge and I wouldn't do that to them. I was a good boss after all.

We were led to a small room on the second floor of the mansion, intentionally far from the party. After we were already seated and treated with drinks, the only thing left was to wait for the other side, as was proper. Waiting was a part of the tradition after all.

"So..." I said, excited to do my first military conspiracy since my awakening. "What do you think it will be? A proposition of the coup? Some infighting in the military? Jedi purge? I can't wait" The anticipation was killing me!

"We will know soon, relax" replied Lana, sitting calmly and drinking the offered drink with a small smile on her lips. She was quite relaxed for someone taking part in some sort of suspicious and likely treacherous meeting, but she took part in so many conspiracies in the past that she wouldn't worry about something like this.

"Wait, what?!" Exclaimed Satine, visibly panicked. Hmm, that was unexpected. I would have guessed she would have some experience in this matter. Though she probably always preferred to deal with her opposition head on, in a very Mandalorian fashion. "You never told us why we are here! Are we taking part in some sort of rebellion?!" She practically shouted, almost afraid. I didn't tell her? I guess she was right.

"Sorry, I forgot. The guy who was waiting for us before the Chancellor's office? He told me he was representing an "interested party". There is a good chance we are about to take part in some sort of military conspiracy. Fun, isn't it?" I said with a grin, hoping she would calm down, knowing the situation. This however wasn't a case as for some reason she started to hyperventilate, whispering something so herself, shaking. Weird.

As unexpected as it was, I decided to ignore it for a moment. After all, it was my first real political scheme since leaving my tomb and I intended to enjoy it to the fullest.

Someone knocked on the door. It opened, revealing several people in eventing outfits. I even recognized some of them, as they were the officers who attended my lecture. That should be fun.

"Apologies for taking so long" Said the man in the front, apparently their leader. He didn't wear a military uniform, but his posture and composure betrayed that he was someone quite used to giving orders and them being carried out. The fact that the other members of the group, officers themselves, treated him like their leader also told me he was probably someone quite important in the republic military. How exciting! "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin. I am happy to finally meet you, Darth Imperius"

How polite. I should probably respond in kind. Military traitors liked to keep decorum during these "schemes behind closed doors". It was part of the tradition after all.

"The pleasure is all mine," I replied. "I was quite surprised to receive the invitation to this event. But what would an important republic officer like you want from a humble sith lord like myself?" We both knew that it would be something shady and very immoral, but it was just how the game was played. Like I said, there were certain rules about how to conduct yourself during the "Treason Meeting". They were unofficial rules though. I think. I would have to check later if there wasn't any official rulebook, as it would come quite handy.

"Please don't sell yourself so short, Lord Kallig. You recently became quite an influential person in the republic. I was quite interested in meeting you, as you are so... different from the other force users I was able to observe so far" Oh! There was some distaste in his voice when talking about force users, most likely Jedi if I were to guess. How interesting! "I was even able to attend your lecture, to see what kind of man you are. I must say that what you said about the Sith empire and its military was quite...intriguing" I really liked where it was going. He was about to say something positively treacherous. I really missed it.

"I see, and did listening to my lecture lead to any interesting reflections?" I said, feigning indifference. Say it! Say some treacherous line about a new order or need of change!

"Your description of the sith empire's military made me realize that the Republic can be quite… inadequate in some aspects. Its general corruption and the fact that its military is held back by meaningless ethical concerns and religious fanatics preaching about peace made me think that maybe some things need to change. Academically speaking of course" Jackpot! That was what I was talking about! I looked at my companions, hoping to see their reactions.

Lana had a sharp grin on her face, enjoying this situation just like I did. I knew she would like it, so I wasn't surprised. On the other hand Satine was watching me and Tarkin with shock, apparently unable to comprehend what she was seeing. It was weird as I already told her what to expect. Sometimes she can be so weird.

"Of course, of course. All this talk is theoretical. But why would these revelations lead you to me?" I asked, quite interested in his answer. I needed to be sure if he wanted to follow me as his new boss or he just wanted to get my help in overthrowing the Chancellor. Because it was the latter, I would have to refuse. Palpatine just agreed to fund the Sith academy. Staging the coup could make him change his mind!

"I just wanted to inform you that if you were to...expand your operations, you will find many friends in the republic army. We know that officers in the Sith empire were more...free in their actions and we would like to support such practices" he gave me a cold smile.

"I am happy to have the support of such distinguished individuals" I responded with a similar smile. It was so fun to indirectly talk about them betraying the republic so that these officers could commit more war crimes! These were the proper empire values and I intended to cultivate them "I have a feeling we will be seeing each other quite often. I think we need someone who could manage the communication between our two groups. That's why I would like to introduce Lana Beniko. I am sure she would be thrilled to receive this task"

I pointed at Lana, making everyone look at her. She grinned.

DARTH PLAGUEIS

He was flying through the void, full of rage. He was doing it for days, maybe even weeks without any choice in that matter. As a Sith ghost, he wasn't able to move freely through the galaxy on his own, like Jedi spirits did. He needed an anchor to exist on the physical plane and that anchor, Sheev Palpatine, decided to just cut himself off, throwing him into space! The only thing that was keeping Hego from returning to the force was the unimaginable amounts of rage he was feeling, fueling his existence.

That disappointment of the apprentice, Darth Sidious, destroyed everything! A thousand years of plans and he decided to abandon it, just like that! He couldn't even describe how much he hated that pathetic worm. He would have his revenge! He would make Palpatine live in agony for years, begging for death!

These thoughts were the only thing that kept him going, as he was travelling through the stars. Eventually his journey came to the end however, as he landed on some unknown planet. He was only able to glimpse that it consisted almost exclusively of the ocean, before he landed in some sort of building. Everything was white. He didn't expect that, as he became too used to the blackness of the void, making him confused for a while. When he was finally able to focus, he looked around, trying to find out where he was.

He was in some sort of laboratory. It was full of machinery and chemicals, as well as some tubes with human infants inside. Not something he expected to see. There were many scientists in the room, working and talking among each other, unaware of Hego's presence. They were all aliens. They had very long necks and grey skin…

Hego looked around. White room, human infants, grey aliens with long necks. He knew where he was. It was Kamino, more precisely a cloning facility.

He thought about his situation for a second.

He grinned maniacally.