The Eternal Empire {SWSE, IC}

[Lentrax]

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away....

The Eternal Empire


From beyond the edge of the Galaxy,
from beyond the reaches of known space,
from the depths of darkness and nightmare,
the Sith have returned.

The conquered systems, under the brutal
occupation of the Sith, have begun spreading
the holy words of the leader of the Empire,
the ETERNAL EMPRESS.

The war has begun in earnest. Launching from
Imperial space, and into the heart of the Republic,
the forces of darkness have begun to threaten to
drown the Galaxy in darkness....

The Imperial cruiser Edge of Darkness flies through space, one ship among hundreds in orbit above Scarif. Scarif is an insignificant world in the scheme of the Emipire's plans, just one point among many of the Empress's plan to sow confusion in the ranks of the Republic. She believes that the Republic will try and trace the Empire back to where they came from in space. And so, in order to prevent them from discovering the true location of her Empire, she has begun the assault of the galaxy at six different points in Republic space. The attacks had been coordinated so that they occurred roughly simultaneously.

Scarif was not even the point of entry into the galaxy, just a convenience for them to take and absorb resources.

But it is widely believed that the Dark Council will soon bring the fleets together. Perhaps not into one massive fist to punch into Republic space, but to at least consolidate authority and maintain control over the war.

And so, the fleet over Scarif waits. Waits for commands from the Council, from the Empress. As other planets come under the banner of the Empire, this fleet awaits orders. And while it waits, some may seek to further their own ambitions....

The Edge of Darkness, being a Sith warship, has very little in the way of comforts. What little it has seems to lie solely with its commander, the Dark Lord Pralec. The seat is on the bridge where Pralec is able to sit in judgement over the crew of the Darkness. Heavy black robes and full face mask, very much in the style of the Eternal Empress except in its matte black coloration conceal the Dark Lord's form and figure. And so, as the fleet waits, Pralec waits, sitting in judgement. But not idly.

A lieutenant scurries along the bridge, datapad in one hand. The lieutenant bows to the Dark Lord and hands over the datapad she carries. Pralec takes the pad, reads its contents, and stands.

"Excellent. I will receive them in my meditation chamber."

"Of course, my lord," the lieutenant says, bowing as she turns and departs.

And so it is that you find yourself in a room on a Sith cruiser, lit only by the dim red glow of Sith holocrons. Then the illumination rises just enough to show that the Dark Lord is already seated on a dais before you.

"As I have summoned you, so have you come. This is good. All is proceeding as the Empress commands. And now, as she commands me, I will command you."

[Thundercracker]

Taro Bantari sat in the Sith chamber surrounded by the holocrons and waited for their commander to continue speaking. He had a snarky comment to make but he wasn’t about to tempt fate, so he kept quiet.

[RandomLunatic]

Derec paused at the door, taking in the sight. He'd seen Sith Lords before, certainly, but that was at rallies, parades, and other public appearances. He'd never been in the same room as one before. Being summoned like this could either spell doom-or fanatastic opportunity.

Swallowing the lump that had been in his throat since stepping off the turbovator, Derec approached to what he hoped was a respectful distance and bowed smartly. "I"m always ready to answer when duty calls. What is the Empress's will, Lord?"

[AvatarVecna]

"We are at your command, my lord." Jonah's eyes glance at the others in the room when he dares look away from the menacing figure who summoned them all. What purpose had brought them together, and why were they picked instead of some more suited to the type of work that involved reporting directly to a Sith Lord?

[Lentrax]

Taro Bantari sat in the Sith chamber surrounded by the holocrons and waited for their commander to continue speaking. He had a snarky comment to make but he wasn’t about to tempt fate, so he kept quiet.

"You dare sit before me? You think yourself my equal? Shall we see?" Darth Pralec's hand makes a motion toward their lightsaber.


Derec paused at the door, taking in the sight. He'd seen Sith Lords before, certainly, but that was at rallies, parades, and other public appearances. He'd never been in the same room as one before. Being summoned like this could either spell doom-or fanatastic opportunity.

Swallowing the lump that had been in his throat since stepping off the turbovator, Derec approached to what he hoped was a respectful distance and bowed smartly. "I"m always ready to answer when duty calls. What is the Empress's will, Lord?"


"We are at your command, my lord." Jonah's eyes glance at the others in the room when he dares look away from the menacing figure who summoned them all. What purpose had brought them together, and why were they picked instead of some more suited to the type of work that involved reporting directly to a Sith Lord?

"Indeed you are," Pralec says, irritation in the voice not quite masked by the vocal modulator.

"The Republic is weak. But they have had a long and gloried history of routing the previous Sith Empires in the past. This is in no small part due to the success of the Jedi." This last word spits itself out from the mask, as though the word itself conjures a foul taste to Pralec's mouth.

"Our first step in securing an advantage over these Jedi is to strike at their very hearts."

Pralec waves a hand and a holoprojector to your right hums to life, displaying a detailed view of a planet.

"This is the world of Panule. As far as the war effort is concerned, the planet is insignificant. It has little in the way of precious metals and minerals, and is only inhabited because of its nutrient rich soil."

You can hear the shift in the voice. A sadistic happiness begins to leech its way intot he tones of Pralec's words.

'It is also home to one of the Jedi's pet projects. The Agri-Corp. Where they send their Jedi rejects to learn to farm before sending them off to help grow food for the Republic. Because of this, it contains a status symbol of their dominance. A so-called Great Holocron."

The image shifts, flickering from the planet, to a large shape:
https://i.stack.imgur.com/Trl3k.gif

"This is the Great Holocron of the Agri-Corp. If you cannot being it to me, destroy it, and transmit its destruction via the HoloNet so the people of the Galaxy will lose hope. And more importantly, lose hope in the Jedi."

[Thundercracker]

Taro Bantari

“Just trying to make myself lower than you, m’lord,” Taro said as he kneeled instead.

After the briefing he had a lot of questions.

“How will we be getting in, sir?” he asked, “are there any rules of engagement?”

[Lentrax]

"There are several civilian ships we have captured for you to use to make your way to Panule."

"My only rule for your engagement is to not fail. This is war. And we will win. The Empress commands it."

[Thundercracker]

"There are several civilian ships we have captured for you to use to make your way to Panule."

"My only rule for your engagement is to not fail. This is war. And we will win. The Empress commands it."

Taro Bantari

“Thank you my lord, will we have any cover identities provided, or are we going as ourselves?” Taro asked.

[RandomLunatic]

"So would I be right in assuming we're not going to have any backup for this?" Derec asked. He studied the floating image carefully. "Do we have any intel on where they keep it, or how it's guarded? Just how big is this thing?" He scratched his head, trying to work out the logistics that would be involved in stealing it.

[Lentrax]

Taro Bantari

“Thank you my lord, will we have any cover identities provided, or are we going as ourselves?” Taro asked.

"Do whatever you wish to prepare. Establish whatever you can with Imperial Intelligence, if that is what you desire, I care not."


"So would I be right in assuming we're not going to have any backup for this?" Derec asked. He studied the floating image carefully. "Do we have any intel on where they keep it, or how it's guarded? Just how big is this thing?" He scratched his head, trying to work out the logistics that would be involved in stealing it.

"There will always be dissent. Light cannot exist without darkness to define it. Find that darkness and exploit it."

Pralec turns their head to look at the image of the holocron.

"The holocron has a diameter of one and a half meters. I do not know its weight, it is kept in an antigrav field. You may be able to use that field to aid you. But enough of this prattle. You have work to do."

Pralec turns their head to look at each of you through the mask they wear.

"Do not fail me. For the Empire!"

Pralec rises up a few centimeters from the dais and floats off into the darkness behind them.

[RandomLunatic]

Taking Pralec's last words as a dismissal, Derec said, "By your leave."

Once in the corridor outside the Lord's room, he said to the others, "Let's go find these ships."

[Thundercracker]

Taking Pralec's last words as a dismissal, Derec said, "By your leave."

Once in the corridor outside the Lord's room, he said to the others, "Let's go find these ships."

Taro Bantari

“Yeah,” Taro said, “we should find out if there’s a pilot assigned, too.”

[Lentrax]

You head to the Edge of Darkness's hangar deck. You see the usual assortment of Imperial ships, fighters of various classes in their maintenance stages, Row after row of droid fighters on their quick launch rails. Techs crawling up, on, over, under, and into every nook and cranny that you wouldn't think anyone actually ever looked at.

Also on the hangar deck are an assortment of ships that are very clearly not Imperial military. Ships of all shapes and sorts. From a sleek Naboo cruise ship, to a boxy ship from the Kuat drive yards, and even a Corellian cargo ship. The hangar chief tells you that you have been cleared to take any one of them that you wish. And he also, in no uncertain terms, informs you that there are no pilots to spare. If you want one of the ships, you will as he put it, "Fly the frekkin' drek outta here yerself."

[RandomLunatic]

After the surly chief had departed, Derec looked over the collection in front of them. "I'm infantry. I hope one of you knows something about ships."

[Thundercracker]

After the surly chief had departed, Derec looked over the collection in front of them. "I'm infantry. I hope one of you knows something about ships."

Taro Bantari

“I have some experience as a co-pilot, I can get us there in one piece, long as there isn’t any fighting,” Taro said.

[AvatarVecna]

"I'm right handy behind the wheel, personally, although a copilot would be great. No ace by far, but I've been in a dogfight here and there."

[RandomLunatic]

"Then we'll want a fast ship for a quick getaway when the deed is complete. Which of these is fastest?" Derec asked out loud, walking among the parked craft, with absolutely no idea how to determine which one fit his criteria.

[Thundercracker]

Taro took a look at the available ships and tried to get an idea of their capabilities and crew requirements.

[Lentrax]

The Naboo ship has the fewest crew requirements, but also has the least weaponry, and so it looks like it may be better suited to getting past Republic ships legitimately.

The Corellian ship looks like it has the most cargo capacity, but it requires a pilot and a copilot, it has some weaponry.

The Kuati ship looks like it is heavily armored, and is capable of taking an absolute beating.

[Thundercracker]

Taro Bantari

Taro communicates to the others what he knows about the ships.

"I say we take the Naboo ship," he said, "we're not going to get in and out by blasting our way through."

"We should stop by Intelligence before we go, too, so we can pick up a code word or a contact or something so we can at least get out of any friendly detentions," he added.

[RandomLunatic]

"Traveling in style. I like it," said Derec with a grin. "When we get done with intel, let's go see if the quartermaster can supply some nice duds to match the ship."