Chapter Two:
Dark Reactivation
The Outer Rim planet of Bolvi'livia, located in the Eastern Reaches, a haven for assassins and pirates. Covered in grassy fields, lush lakes and palm tree forests with many towns, it was the perfect getaway planet. In the town of Ril, a tall figure in metallic armor stood at a desk in a bar, sipping Arivian Wine.
This was Jz'okuz-Lior'vous, a Dowutin warrior.
Jz'okuz was a hired assassin, a Bounty Hunter and a military veteran, having seen action during the Clone Wars. He remembered the day he volunteered for service shortly after the Battle of Geonosis, pledging himself to the Separatist army and catching the eye of Count Dooku.
Two years into the war, Jz'okuz was summoned to The Works on Coruscant, where he met him for the first time, the Dark Lord who would go on to become known as The Emperor; Sheeve Palpatine, known by some as Darth Sidious. Palpatine saw great prowess in Jz'okuz and made him one of his top assassins.
Trained by the Sith's best agents, having learned lightsaber combat and many other forms of combat, Jz'okuz soon rose to become one of Palpatine's top agents next to Oochi of Bestoon.
During his service and his years of training in combat, training for his missions, Jz'okuz would undergo cybernetic enhancements until 85% of his body was replaced with cybernetics from his organs to his limbs.
Following the end of the Clone War and the rise of the Empire, Jz'okuz would embark on missions, hunting insurgents and aiding efforts by Imperial forces in hunting down surviving Jedi.
Now, after many missions, Jz'okuz waited for his next assignment. It had been years since his last mission, a good couple of months since his last meeting with the Emperor. During their previous meeting, the Sith Lord told Jz'okuz he was one of his most crucial assets to date.
He remembered meeting him in The Works, where they first met all those years ago, meeting in secret with only a handful of Stormtroopers and Guards surrounding them.
It was a dark evening; fog had filled the sky and Jz'okuz had been wondering what assignments Palpatine had for him now. There weren't many Jedi left, even the insurgents were being handled by the might of the Imperial army.
"Remember this well, Assassin..." Palpatine told Jz'okuz, "...Treachery is the way of the Sith, the apprentice is known to betray the master at any point. Vader has been loyal to me for all these years, carrying out my will.
"As someone who planned the ascension of the Empire for a decade, I have many plans, especially in the event of Lord Vader's betrayal... and you are crucial to my Contingency.
"Operation Cinder is the plan in place in the event of my demise, if I fall, then the Empire does not deserve to continue onward and my Imperials will be instructed to destroy anything and everything including the worlds that have shown loyalty to the Empire for years.
"In the event of Vader's treachery, you will know when to serve my will. Do you understand, Assassin Jz'okuz?"
"Yes, Lord Sidious..." Jz'okuz said.
He still remembered the meeting even after all these months as he made himself at home among the assassins, bounty hunters and pirates on Bolvi'livia, enjoying a slightly quiet life, waiting until Imperial command or other parties had need of his services again.
"Another drink of Voodika!" Jz'okuz called to the bartender.
The bartender, a skinny human of thirty years old, passed the tall cyborg Dowutin another bottle of Voodika after he finished sipping his Arivian Wine.
The Dowutin sipped his drink, his eyes often glancing around the bar, observing the pirates and assassins helping themselves to their drinks and meals without a care in the universe.
Jz'okuz sat down at an unoccupied table, sipping the rest of his drink, and gazing out the window at the ships flying over the town. He turned towards the holographic projector close by, a Holo-Net broadcast was in progress with the Holo-Net host reporting on an ongoing insurgency in the Jal'lok system.
However, that was not the only news the Holo-Net was reporting for long.
The projection soon changed and the visage of the Death Star II appeared, a bar staff member turned up the volume and the lively mood shifted as the station exploded and the reporter announced; "The Rebel Alliance has destroyed the Second Death Star, marking another devastating defeat for the Galactic Empire...
"It has been reported that Emperor Palpatine, the Empire's leader, is dead. Reports indicate that Rebel agents boarded the station during the battle and assassinated the Emperor despite the Royal Guard's best efforts to protect their leader! It is currently unknown who will succeed the late Palpatine..."
Everyone in the room gasped, some just raised their glasses with delight and proclaimed, "To the Rebel Alliance!"
Jz'okuz set down his drink, processing the news, his mind reeling with shock. Emperor Palpatine, Darth Sidious, was dead at the hands of the Rebels. No, that was impossible, the station had a shield generator on the Moon of Endor, making it impossible for the Rebels to stage that kind of mission.
That part had to be propaganda, but something had happened.
Just as he was thinking about the matter, he heard a pinging in his pocket. The enhanced assassin reached in and brought out his transponder, seeing an image of the Imperial insignia followed by the symbol of the Sith.
Then he heard a rhythmic beeping and quickly finished his drink, the Dowutin left a tab at the table and made his way outside, moving to a secure location.
With nobody around to watch, he brought out his holographic communicator and clicked to respond. A holographic image of Emperor Palpatine appeared, resembling how he was the last time the assassin had seen him before the events at Endor had gone down.
"Assassin..." Sidious said, "If you are hearing this, I have been betrayed. Treachery is the way of the Sith, but I had no plan to be succeeded for I would be ruler forever. Do what must be done, treachery cannot go unpunished.
"Carry out my will and remind those that my power can never be extinguished. My apprentice Darth Vader has betrayed me, go and punish him for his transaction. Let the enemies of the Empire suffer for their insolence, put them in their place, make Vader realize his folly.
"Preserve the legacy of the Sith, my legacy cannot be forgotten. The Dark Side is strength, crush the traitors who took the life of the Empire's leader. You are my Soldier of the Sith, the Iron Hand of The Emperor, the Assassin of the Shadows. Remember my will and serve your Emperor!"
He listened to his master's words, letting them resonate in his mind. Jz'okuz closed his eyes, collecting his thoughts, then he opened his eyes and stepped out of the alley.
The Dowutin walked through the town and headed to his ship, the Sith's Blade, which he'd piloted since the rise of the Empire. Jz'okuz smiled, he was ready for his mission.
"It will be done, My Lord." He said, echoing the Clone Commanders in the final hours of the Clone War when they had been commanded to attack the Jedi. Jz'okuz brought out a dark cylinder from his belt and tapped a red button, activating a red blade. After so long, the time had finally come!
Exogol, a desolate world hidden deep within the Unknown Regions. However, it was much more. The planet had a strong connection to the Dark Side, hosting the Citadel of the Sith.
While Morriband was the home-world of the Sith, Exogol was chosen by the ancient Sith Lords as a sanctuary in the event they couldn't regroup on Morriband should their enemies know of it.
And know of it, their enemies did. However, there were many planets throughout the Galaxy where the Sith had set up their shrines and their many seats of power, Exogol was no exception.
Deep within the Citadel, masked cultists toiled, operating the machinery within. Eerie lights glowed as humanoid beings grew within vats filled with liquid, many of them sharing an identical face.
Not further off, sparks flew as construction crews worked on a new line of Imperial-class warships, ones that would carry enough firepower to destroy a planet akin to the Death Star's super laser.
Within the Citadel, within the cloning chambers, a being awakened and emerged from the vat. The cultists attended to the newly awakened figure, draping him in dark robes. The being coughed and opened his eyes, his milky white eyes, and raised gnarly rotting fingers.
Seeing the newly awakened being was unable to move, the cultists prepared the Ommin Harness, attaching him to it and preparing the I.V. tubes. Within the broken corporeal form, his spirit resided, breathing life into the clone body.
Lightning illuminated the figure's face as he spoke, his followers all turning to face him, facing their lord and master; "Lord Vader has betrayed us, but we will gather our strength. When the time has come, a new Empire will rise!"
Emperor Palpatine, Darth Sidious, had used the power of the Dark Side to cheat death, transferring his mind to a new Clone body, but at a cost as the body had been ill prepared…
