Reunion

Aries was expecting to be escorted to the bridge of the ship, but he was surprised to find himself in front of an unexceptional door to whatever room Lord Kallig had taken residence in. Flanked by the black clad guards, one of them said a few words into his helmet communicator quietly in a strange dialect Aries did not understand. Before he could even wrap his head around the dialect however, the door slid open, revealing what looked to be a small med-bay. In the corner of the room lay a man hooked onto what appeared to be some form of breathing apparatus, flanked by two more of the black clad guards.

Aries, ushered forwards by the guards, took a few nervous steps forward before Lord Kallig spoke.

"Harry Potter… or is Aries Black now? No matter… I have waited a while to meet you, young one." Lord Kallig's voice was raspy, almost mechanical due to the breathing apparatus. It made Aries even more nervous. "Don't be afraid, young Aries. We are family, after all" He continued.

Aries took a nervous breath before speaking, trying to remember some of the niceties he had picked up from the children born of noble houses.

"It is an honour to meet you, Lord Kallig." He made a half bow as he spoke. After all, he was now a Lord himself, no need to lower himself too far. "I must say I am still quite… shocked at all of this."

Lord Kallig let out a laugh which quickly deteriorated into a cough, before speaking again.

"I have no doubt you are, Aries. I will do my very best to explain what I can to you, however I do not have much time. I am not long for this life, as you can probably tell. I have been informed by Captain Talis that he has given you a brief overview of the Empire, our beliefs and views. This will save me quite a bit of time, however there will be so much more for you to learn in the future. So, I will start with who I am."

Lord Kallig took a deep breath before continuing his speech.

"I am formally known as Lord Drexel Kallig, Sith Lord and Lord Protector of the Imperial Remnant. Yes, Remnant." He added at Aries' confused look. "Ever since the Death of the Emperor, the Empire has fractured into different Warlord states, as you have already been informed. The largest and most 'legitimate' faction remaining of the Empire. Or at least I was, until I fell ill. Now, even the Remnants are warring amongst themselves." He gave a sad shake of his head.

Aries looked thoughtful, trying his hardest to process all of the information. "But why?" He asked. "Why fight amongst themselves?"

Lord Kallig raised a scarred eyebrow. "Power, my lad. It is all about control and power. Now, I shall continue."

He hacked up another cough before speaking again. "Years ago, I had come here to your planet to scout ahead for what would have been an invasion. Imagine my surprise when I came across an entire world with an abundance of force users- Yes, force users." He said, watching Aries' face full of confusion. "What you would call magic. The force here on this planet has… evolved, for lack of a better term. It has evolved in ways we never thought possible, however with that evolution I have also seen it diminish in other ways. Did you know, a Sith Lord once used the force to cause a supernova? I doubt any of your 'Wizard' friends could cause something like that." Aries could not help but hear disdain in the Lord's voice when he spoke of Wizards.

Aries swallowed a lump in his throat before asking the million dollar question.

"But what do I have to do with it? How are we related?"

At this, Lord Kallig gave his first real smile, but it was interrupted by another bout of coughing.

"You do not know much about your Grandparents, do you?"

Aries shook his head, so the Lord continued.

"The marriage between your Grandfather, Charlus Potter and your Grandmother, Dorea Potter-Nee Black, was not a happy one, contrary to popular belief. It was a means to an end, a political alliance. They displayed a happy couple to the outside world, and whilst they did not hate each other by any means, they were unhappy. Your Grandfather took a lover in secret, and so your Grandmother Dorea did the same when she found out. I'm sorry to say it young man, but your Father, James, was never Charlus' son. He was mine."

Aries' jaw dropped, and he began shaking his head in disbelief. "It can't be. I took the inheritance test at Gringotts, I used to be the heir to the Potter title before it was declared extinct, and only those of Potter blood can be declared the heir."

Lord Kallig snorted with amusement at this before speaking. "Dorea Black was one of the finest Witches of her time, you really think she would overlook that? James was blood adopted, his blood passed to you. They can say what they like about your sorcery, it certainly has its perks." The old Lord looked rather impressed even as he told the story.

Aries simply could not find the words to describe how he was feeling, it was just too much. He fell back into one of the desk chairs behind him, staring at the floor.

There was a pause before Lord Kallig spoke again, his raspy voice much softer than before.

"For what it is worth, I am sorry. It was not my wish to upset you, I simply wished for you to have the truth, and to reunite with my Grandson before I pass." The Lord attempted a sympathetic look under all of the machinery allowing him to breath, however Aries could not see it.

After another pause, Aries began to speak. "I am glad you came to find me… It is nice to have a living family member, even if it is only for a short while." Aries grimaced at his own words, looking up to see Lord Kallig eyeing him carefully.

The bedridden man coughed and stared up at the ceiling before speaking. "It is also my wish that everything that is mine, passes to you, and that you follow in my footsteps, and help the Empire in its time of need. At the incredulous look on Aries' face, he quickly continued. "You have more power than you can imagine, young Aries. You are not alone in this. This ship and its crew are some of the most loyal souls you will ever find, especially in the state the Empire currently is. They will follow you, as my Grandson. This ship has served as my flagship for a longtime, as has its Captain. Listen to his advice, he is a smart one."

Aries took the time to process the complete overload of information and instructions before asking one of the questions he had been bursting to ask since boarding the shuttle.

"The Captain told me that you had people on standby to obliviate the people who saw the shuttle on Privet Drive, who are they?"

Lord Kallig gave a small smirk before gesturing for one of the guards to hand him a small device. He gestured again, this time at Aries to approach, which he did with a look of interest. The old man typed a few things into what appeared to be a communications device of sorts before placing it back down. "One of them shall be joining us momentarily."

Momentarily was an understatement, as before he even finished the word, the door slid open to reveal a tall man dressed in black robes along with a breastplate, shin guards & bracers, all in black.

"Lord Kallig, how may I be of service?" The man's voice was deep, yet rich.

The old Lord gestured to Aries. "Rykker, meet my Grandson, Lord Aries Black." The tall man turned to face Aries and gave a short bow. "My Lord." Aries simply nodded and gave a nervous "Hello" before turning back to Kallig, who began to explain.

"During my time on Earth, I studied what I could about what you call magic. It was enough for me to learn quite a bit, and yet I could never make use of a wand. I am still to this day unsure as to the why, but no matter. However, I did have men and women that could use them. So, I made it a point to gather together what few force sensitives I could find, and taught them what I could about both the force and magic, although they are one and the same, just… different, in ways we cannot understand. I must say, they have been extremely useful." Lord Kallig gave a grin under his breathing apparatus.

"They shall also now serve you, as my heir. My advice to you, Aries, would be to finish your education here on Earth, and use your new resources to help rid yourself of that pesky Dark Lord we have heard so much about. If I were in my prime, I would have dealt with him myself, however…" He gestured to himself, as if the breathing apparatus needed pointing out. "In my prime, he would have been nothing but an insect on the bottom of my boot. The same can be said for you, once you train both in the ways of your own magic, and the ways of the Sith. I can already sense the Dark Side in you, young Aries. It gathers, desperate to escape. Your anger, your fear… they fuel you!"

Aries took a step back, looking shocked. "Dark Side?! Wait, I'm not going to be like Voldemort! The whole point is that he is evil!"

Lord Kallig sent him a frown. "Do I seem evil to you lad?" The young Lord Black gave a small and hesitant shake of the head, so he continued. "The Dark side is not an automatic ticket to being an evil mastermind. It is a tool to use to bend things to your will. It is who you are as a person that makes you evil or good, not the tools you use. Some say the Empire is evil, well you know what I say? Bollocks, as your Grandmother was fond of saying. The Empire helped a lot more people than it hindered, and I'll stand by that statement till the day I die."

Aries looked even more shocked at the outburst, but allowed himself to think on what had been said. Did using a dark power make him evil, or was it the intent? The more he thought about it, the more obvious it became. Just because muggle police and soldiers had guns, it didn't make them evil. They used them as tools.

"I… think I understand. I will do it." He began. He needed power. Power to defeat Voldemort, power to protect his friends. Power to one day build and protect a family of his own. "I will do as you instruct, Lord Kallig."

Lord Kallig allowed another broad smile to plaster over his face. "Call me Grandfather, Aries. Now, as I have already stated, I do not have long left. However, I have left several holocrons aboard this ship for you to take with you when you return planet side, along with plenty of reading material. One of my chief advisors is also aboard the ship, however you shall have to meet him at a later date. He will advise you in all things political, and teach you the intricacies and ways of the Empire." The Lord took a deep breath, let out another wracking cough, and continued his speech.

"With everything that we have seen and heard from your world, I believe it is high time we stopped hiding ourselves. At least, from the magical world. The 'muggles' as you call them can wait. When you return to Earth, you shall do so with an armed escort. My guards" He gestured to the black clad guards in the room. "Shall be your guards, upon my death. A detachment of Stormtroopers, Naval attaches & Officers will also make planetfall alongside Rykker. They shall take residence in the Black Family home, however the name and number of it escape my memory… I know you have been there, as have I, however I cannot recall…"

Aries looked confused for a moment before it came to him. "It's under the fidelius charm! Only the secret keeper can pass on the location, usually through a scrap of paper!"

Lord Kallig looked surprised for a moment before nodding, looking impressed.

"Not bad, not bad at all. If only we had the knowledge of it before, it could have saved the Empire a lot of hassle… but no matter. You must obtain another scrap of paper with the address, and allow only the group descending planetside with you to read it."

Aries kept silent for a moment, before looking thoughtful. After a few minutes, he asked another million dollar question. "What about the Order Of The Phoenix? And the Headmaster?"

Lord Kallig snorted derisively, before breaking down into another coughing fit. When he eventually recovered, he began to rant.

"That useless sack of nerf turds? He is nothing compared to the Dark Side. He is simply a very learned old man who has hoarded knowledge all of his life. You, my heir, shall surpass him in all ways. As for his so called 'Order Of The Phoenix' just how much use are they? Have they killed any of the Death Eaters yet?"

Aries gave a noncommittal shrug. He doubted it personally, with their stun and capture policy.

Lord Kallig gave him a knowing look. "You see the problem, don't you? They can't come after you later on if they are in the ground. No doubt Dumbledore will wish to continue using the Black Family home as Headquarters for his little band. Allow it, if only to gather information. You will have your guards and advisors there to assist should your Headmaster become too heavy handed."

Aries gave an understanding nod before noticing a spatter of blood on the inside of the breathing apparatus. Getting up and moving to the old Lord in concern, he noticed more blood running down his chin."

"My time has come, it would seem." rasped the dying man. "We got to you just in time, thank the force. I am glad I got to meet you, my Grandson. I am proud of the young man you have become, despite what you have suffered. I shall attempt to watch from wherever I go, to see you rise to greatness…"

The old man grasped Aries' hand as tight as he could, which wasn't very tight considering the man's condition, before releasing it with his last word and gave off another coughing fit, this time with much more blood spattering into the breathing apparatus, before laying still, his hand falling limp.

For a brief time, Aries had met a direct family member, who seemed to care for him. And just as fast, he was gone. Tears ran freely down his face, before he rubbed his eyes and cheeks in a vain attempt to dry them.

His Grandfather, Lord Drexel Kallig, was dead. He turned to face the room at large, and was surprised to see both the black clad guards and Rykker, all on bended knee with heads bowed, not to the corpse of his Grandfather, but to him. He remained in shock until Rykkers voice shattered the silence.

"What are your orders, my Lord?"

Aries pondered on what Lord Kallig had instructed him, before dishing out the instructions in what he hoped to be an authoritative voice. "Gather up everything my Grandfather spoke of, the holocrons, the reading material, anything of use. And prepare shuttles for everyone making the descent along with supplies."

The Guards all rose and went off, apparently to go and fulfil the orders. He looked to Rykker, who remained on bended knee. "Rykker, gather those of you who can perform the obliviate spell. Shuttles landing in the streets of London will cause quite the commotion and a lot of people will need their memories wiped." Rykker rose, bowed his head once more, and left the room.

Aries turned to the body of his now dead Grandfather, and spotted a strange cylinder item attached to the Lord's belt. Deciding to take a look, he detached it from the belt and looked it up and down, curious as to what it was. Spotting a button, he delicately pressed it, upon which a crimson blade of what appeared to be plasma burst out, turning it into a sword.

Aries could not help but give what might appear to some as an evil grin, his face bathed in crimson light.