Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
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Post by Dragus on Feb 15, 2023 10:25:23 GMT -8
Chang's beady eyes lingered on Valefor's outstretched claw for a moment, then he carefully extended his own paw, which seemed comically small when compared to the Sith's shockball mitt sized appendage. As they shook to seal the business pact, it was clear to the verminous shogun that if the Fabricator General wished it, he could have easily crushed every flexible bone in the ranat's paw into a fine powder. Fortunately he didn't, though that didn't stop the Doujikiri Yasutsna from growling in its scabbard on his hip, hissing acrid smoke from its guard that tickled the Verminlord's sensitive nose and caused his whiskers to twitch. While the ranat might have lacked the capacity to sense the malevolent currents of the fey permeating Valefor's aura, the same could not be said for the shard of Mortale sheathed at his side.Who could say what the soul bound katana sensed in Valefor? It was possible it recognized him as distant kin, or more likely, it identified him as a rival. Either way Chang had no intention of drawing it in the Sith's presence. When wielded, the blade had a way of overcoming the shogun's better sensibilities, which was another reason he relied so heavily on his paw-to-paw martial arts training.Though a fraction of the size, it was possible Valefor felt the thick calluses on his palm and gnarled fingers, before their hands pulled apart and once more the two stood face to face. Well, Chang was more level with Valefor's waist, but the Sith was looking down at him while he was looking up in turn, so essentially it was the same thing."Very good." Squeak! "Then our business for now is concluded. I shall have the sullustans sent down shortly." Squeak! Turning at the shoulder, the kimono clad rodent made to leave, when something gave him reason to pause. His back now turned to the towering winged technomancer, he looked back, appearing thoughtful."Allow me to offer a friendly bit of advice, as one who now has a vested interest in your success here." Squeak. "On approach to Hypori, the Rattus Norvegicus detected the sensor squeaks of Clan Rustrot coming from the southern pole of the planet. Were I you..." His beady orbs darted around the hangar, before resettling on Valefor. "...I would take this floating fortress and erase whatever fortification they've burrowed into from the face of the planet. Those tinker rats are all mad, and their leader Chief Warlock Engineseer Skaltera Brassclaw is no exception. His predecessor Ikrit Ironjaw nearly destroyed the underverse of Pzob with his Doom-Wheel of Spinning Destruction©, and would have succeeded too if not for the timely intervention of He-Who-Hungers and Far Squeaker Havonella. They may espouse their loyalty to the Great Devourer, and the Sith Eternal by extension, but they are driven by greed alone. Of all the vermin clans of Dragusblight, none are as covetous of technology as Clan Rustrot. It is only a matter of time before Brassclaw sets his mechanical sights on all you have accomplished here." Squeak!The political machinations of the vermin clans in the subterranean realm deep beneath the volcanic caldera of Tawntoom were as fractious and complex as those of the Republic senate. It was possible he was merely casting shade on a rival Verminlord. Of course, however unlikely, it was also possible he was telling the truth.
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 177
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Post by Valefor on Feb 16, 2023 17:19:25 GMT -8
Unlike many of his kin, Valefor was not much of a direct combatant. He could, when absolutely called upon, fight someone one on one. But his style was to maintain distance and use his magic to deal with foes. So it was already something of a given he had little intention of ever engaging Chang in hand to hand combat, but the calluses of the ranat's hands helped further dissuade any such considerations.
The acrid smoke that emanated from the sword at the Verminlord's hip, however, did not phase him much. He recognised such work and was far less afraid of it since he knew how to deal with such weapons.
As Chang declared their business concluded ad advised the Sullustans would be sent down shortly, Valefor gave a nod of his head in agreement, watching the Ranat start to leave before stopping. He crossed his arms over his chest and studied Chang as the Verminlord delivered a warning about those whom Dragus had deposited upon the far side of the world Let them try, they will find themselves outmatched by anything I make in due time. But, if this Clan Rustrat poses such a threat, you have my leave to deal with them personally if you feel such a need...
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Chang Fang
Member
"A credit for your thoughts?"
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Affiliation: Black Fang/Sith Eternal
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Post by Chang Fang on Feb 17, 2023 7:12:19 GMT -8
Chang ran a paw through his beard, stroking his fu-manchu styled whiskers before offering Valefor a smirk. "Perhaps. The laws of Dragusblight prevent my Clan from taking direct action against Clan Rustrot, as the last time that happened it kicked off the War of the Rat, but I suppose Chief Brassclaw is long overdue a midnight visit from one of my Shadow Squeaks. I shall certainly consider it." Turning completely, he performed a parting bow to the Fabricator General. "I'll be in touch." Squeak!
With their current business concluded, the Shogun casually returned to the ramp of his peregrine-class star yacht 'Fuscipes' and boarded the ship. The two hench-vermin bedecked in stolen goods returned to the cockpit of their Fang-class starfighters. Shortly thereafter the Fuscipes left the confines of the Felstorm's hangar with its fighter escort and headed back towards the open void. Along the way, word was sent to the Rattus Norvegicus in orbit to begin transferring the sullustan slaves to the surface.
Believe it or not, when the slaves arrived, they did so in reasonable condition. This was because the Black Fang viewed them as a product, the same as SoroSuubs weapons or Valefor's droids, which meant they had been fed, bathed, and clothed. This was considered unusual among those that served the Sith Eternal, or at least those that been an active participant in any of the red tithes conducted by the Dark Apothecary. Usually the slave meat was loaded into the Covenant of Blood's hold as tightly as they could be packed, with no concern given towards their welfare or longevity. On those harrowing journeys, usually about half the number died from disease or illness before they arrived at their intended destinations. Chang had no sympathy for the chattel, slavery was a part of his culture after all, but he had a mind for credits and credit acquisition. No one would purchase a rusting ship if they had a choice, so why would they want a malnourished and half dead slave? That's how he saw it. The Black Fang transports only lingered long enough for the exchange before returning to the Rattus Norvegicus.
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 177
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Post by Valefor on Mar 13, 2023 18:29:38 GMT -8
His business with Chang concluded, Valefor was able to turn his attention back to his work. Overseers saw to the distribution and assigning of Sullustans to various work crews. They would initially all be run through the same jobs, those that showed promise and loyalty to the Fabricator-General and the Eternal cause would then be promoted. Team leaders would be chosen and eventually a Sullustan or two might even see their luck rise to the rank of Overseer themselves. Those that fell short, however, would soon find themselves within the slave pens aboard the Felstorm. The Prowler Program was always in need of alpha pilots to trial the process on after all
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 177
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Post by Valefor on Mar 25, 2023 4:49:16 GMT -8
The Forge glowed red hot as the perfect balance of fuel and oxygen was introduced and mixed together in the combustion chamber. Valefor was bare chested, preferring to not let anything get in the way of the work he was about to do. With a pair of tongs he shifted a piece of metal from the forge as it glowed between a yellow and white hot temperature. He shifted the piece to the anvil where he struck the piece with the hammer in his right hand, flattening the metal and beginning the process of forming it to shape. As the heat left and the metal became less malleable, he placed the piece back into the Forge and drew another piece out and repeated the process.
Through research and access to materials granted thanks to his position as Fabricator-General of the Dark Forge, Valefor had been able to procure the proper materials needed for the forging of his Gauntlet. While it seemed an odd thing to do, given he was skilled in some of the alchemical, certain materials were much more conducive to changes. Those he had chosen fell into that category and would allow him to change their structure to be lightsaber resistant, lighter in weight, and conductive to magic flows to enhance his powers.
The process was relatively monotonous as the metal was heated in the Forge and brought up to temperature, followed by moving the metal to the Anvil to manipulate into shape, and then moved back to the Forge. The hours passed by almost unnoticed, save for by the progress made upon the plates that were forged into shape.
The sun was a couple hours past its pinnacle within the sky of Hypori when the last of the forging work was completed and Valefor moved to grinding the pieces closer to their final dimensions. He kept track of each piece, laying them all out on a table in the shape they would eventually form.
Once the grinding was done, he took up a number of detail tools to inscribe within the metal the necessary runes. A small flow of magic ebbed forth from Valefor into the metal to empower the runes. Once the patterns were done, he moved into fitting everything together with rivets. He checked the fit of each piece as it came together to make sure it was still correct.
As the sun was reaching its zenith, the Gauntlet was assembled but was not yet complete. He adjusted the controls on the Forge and placed the Gauntlet into the chamber for one final heat. The metal was brought up to a dull red glow, before being removed and let to cool in the air for a couple cycles. This relaxed the material after the stress of the previous steps.It was in this state, that he was best able to focus his powers upon rearranging the metal at an atomic level. He ran the metal through a final heat, checking and making sure the changes he wanted were in place, before pulling the Gauntlet from the Forge and submerging it within a container of oil nearby.
The liquid bubbled and boiled as the metal was rapidly, but safely, cooled and the final structure of the Gauntlet was set in place. Valefor pulled his new Amulet from the oil and set it upon the Anvil where he could admire his handiwork. It was still missing 6 crucial elements, but the Gauntlet was completed. Already it would have a small effect upon his powers, but it paled in comparison to his plans for its completion
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
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Post by Dragus on Apr 16, 2023 8:49:45 GMT -8
Descending from the sky like a black beetle, a svelte-class Imperial shuttle extended its insectile mechanical landing gear from its underside and landed on the junk strewn surface of Hypori's southern continent. The boarding ramp lowered with a hydraulic hiss, allowing the arbiters of evil to disembark. Emerging from the dark interior of the shuttle was the scaled scourge himself, the Dark Apothecary of the Sith Eternal, Dragus. The black scaled barabel was garbed in an ornate cloak of black rishii feathers painstakingly plucked from several specimens of his mutant Storm Crows, replete with a rishii skull cap that he wore on top of his scaly snout. The dreaded Hungering One carried a staff of alchemized Sith iron etched with hannite black script that seemed designed to mislead the eyes of the reader, causing any prolonged attempt to translate the vile language into madness. The staffs serpent head held in its jaws a massive orb of meltmassif ore, perfectly spherical and brimming with stored arcane power. The ocular sphere held in its fangs contained the stolen spiritual essence of countless victims from a myriad of different worlds. The orb crackled with barely contained ethereal energy, bleeding a foul acrid mist along with elicited shrieks of the phantoms trapped within its core. This staff he held in his left claw, thumping the spear shaped butt end on the ground like a leaf bladed walking stick.In his right claw he carried the black mace he had forged in the fires of Mt. Tawntoom, the Exsanguinator. The Sith alchemized maul projected a terrible aura of dismay and carnage, its flanged edges quite literally thirsting for innocent blood, while its dark core hungered for souls. Even carrying the dread weapon for a short period of time placed an incredible strain on the Hungering One, who had to fortify his powerful reptilian frame with the corrupt energies of the malevolent fey just to wield it. The mace growled in his grip, expelling a wasting miasma around its head that seemed an extension of the Famine Lord's terrible appetite. Forks of Force Lightning jumped between the staff and the mace as Dragus marched off the ship, a dozen amulets strung around his neck chiming in the polluted breeze emanating out of the toxic caldera known as the Heap. His overlong tail curled behind the devilish draconian, whipping the serrated tail-spike that capped its scaly end around like a scorpions stinger, glistening wet with freshly applied poison.Accompanying the Great Devourer were four Wraith-Rats, shadow phantoms conjured into reality by Sith sorcery to serve the whims of He-Who-Hungers. With one foot in the living realm and the other in chaos, these creatures hungered for life energy, desperate to sate their endless thirst. Former ranat Far-Squeakers, the Wraiths wore tattered shadowsilk robes and had eyes of arcane light. They had claws and fangs made of shadow, and wielded sorcerous fellblades crafted in the corpse fires of the hellforge on sacred Pzob. The kris blade were imbued with darkside energy and coated in alchemical poison of their master's own devising. Joining these dark figures were robe wearing Dark Missionaries, galandans that had been altered through the Famine Lord's witchery, blessed by the Eye's cursed sight with tongues of fire. The rotten sulphuric stench of dark sorcery wafted off of each of these warped madmen, who flocked to the Famine Lord's side. A dozen in total, the Dark Missionaries formed a half circle with Dragus at its centre as the thirteenth number, a holy number among the cults.In orbit above, two Tagge Battlecruisers transitioned from lightspeed above the planet. Both were part of the Albion Sector Defense Fleet, part of the Greater Roon Remnant that dominated this region of space. Though both vessels were based off the same model, the two ships couldn't have been further apart in appearance. Where the Imperious was an exemplary expression of Imperial power and quadrasteel, the Terentatek was a monstrous beast covered in a a fleshy carpet of space barnacles, appearing more space creature than space ship. The two warships squared off just outside of orbit, their crews given different deceitful information that declared either vessel a traitor to the Supreme One. They opened fire upon one another, filling the sky above Hypori with terrible lances of crimson turbolaser fire that scorched the atmosphere thundered the heavens. Both battlecruisers sped towards one another, unleashing squadrons of TIE Fighters that swarmed over either ship like a plague of locusts.From the surface atop the peak of the trash mountain known as the Heap, the Great Devourer and his coven of sorcerers began to channel the insidious currents of the fey, warped by the fury in orbit above, easily lending the cabal the might of the darkside to bolster their spell. The Dark Missionaries began to chant in Pzobian black speech, uttering cursed syllables and words of malefic power that weakened the dimensional barrier and allowed the vile magics they wielded to flow more easily. Leading the spell like an orchestra conductor in front of a symphony, the Famine Lord manipulated the dark currents to bolster his unnatural appetite for life force energy, extending his terrible hungering aura all the way to the borders of space. The fury and desire for bloodshed was a brilliant beacon to his astral serpent form, that leached each and every expired life in the battle above before it could transcend to the next plane of existence.Aboard the Terentatek, Vermin Lord Skeer Grimspine, ordered the demonic dreadnought to perform the rarely seen and almost always poorly advised Drago Maneuver. Perhaps drunk on power or his judgment was simply impared by a heavy indulgence in narcotic spice, the mad-rat master of Clan Skrittlespike didn't think twice about ordering his crew to hyperspace jump into the Imperious. As the two Tagge's continued to exchange fire, the Terentatek leapt forwards at devestating speeds, rapidly accelerating to lightspeed as it slammed into the other Tagge. A brilliant expanding flash of light was birthed as both ships exploded in a massive fireball, erupting in orbit in a iris searing blast that rained down a shower of metal debris on the planet below.Beneath the scene of destruction, Dragus and his cabal siphoned the death energy from the dying crews of both ships before it could slip through their ethereal claws. Performing the black rite, the Blood Wyrm and his amplifiers altered the course of the fey currents to redirect the escaping souls into a dark crystal buried in the trash mountain beneath their clawed feet. Amethyst light matching the rakatan implant that had replaced He-Who-Hungers left eye poured from the sky like a sorcerous bolt of lightning, striking the peak of the Heap and filling the core of the container below with stolen life force. Smoke poured off his scales as he completed channeling the last of the electric currents, his scales practically brimming with fleeting dark power. The gemstone in his eye flared brightly before dimming, leaving the black scaled barabel staring up at the sky as flaming metal debris began to rain down from above."It iz done." Hissed the demonic drake. "Let uz retire inssside to prepare the next rite while we weather the ssstorm of fire." Around him the missionaries that had aided in the rerouting of life energy had been affected by their part in the spell. Their bodies were more emaciated than before, thinning to the point where their joints jutted out like sharpened studs of bone, their faces withered to appear as ghouls with black teeth set in rotten gums. Their eyes though, they pulsed with arcane light, glowing as mottes of witch-fire. The spell had eaten much of who they were, leaving them somewhat as barren as the Wraith-Rats that flocked to the deranged Dark Apothecary's side.As the highly polluted southern half of the planet weathered a storm of flaming debris from orbit, Dragus and his coven entered the Heap to prepare the next stages of his plan. Chief Warlock Enginseer Skaltera Brassclaw eagerly awaited them.
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
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Post by Dragus on Apr 16, 2023 18:18:54 GMT -8
Deep beneath a towering heap of rusting trash that was currently engulfed in flames spread by burning orbital debris from two destroyed Tagge Battlecruisers, in the heart of the garbage mountain known affectionally by ranat Clan Rustrot as the Heap, the dreaded dark lord of Famine stood before a massive amethyst shard of raw kaibur. The rotting affect of decay had seeped into the living crystals core, corrupting it as the land had become corrupted by pollution and industrial negligence, transforming the Force imbued stone into something dark and angry. Cloaked in charcoal coloured rishii feathers, the devilish drake spread his lips into a hungry grin, displaying the forest of razor sharp incisors that inhabited his powerful jaws. Those gleaming fangs dripped with steaming ropes of hot salivation, filling the air with the rank stench of spoiled meat. Dragus reached forwards and placed a claw against the crystal, opening his minds eye to the shard of kaibur's spirit. It was a caged thing, angry and eager to escape its prison. He prayed upon these emotions, projecting an image of the stone rising from the depths and ascending to the heavens, raised by the might of He-Who-Hungers. The amethyst stone began to bleed red from where his talons had touched it, as though the mere contact with such a vile figure could corrupt such a pure fragment of the Force.
Stepping away, he turned his snout towards the cybernetically augmented vermin lord, Chief Warlock Enginseer Skaltera Brassclaw. The alloy plated rodent nodded upon receiving the signal, then sent word by way of quickly scurrying gutter-runners to wake the ship up. Sinister shrieking klaxons sounded as rodent men scurried and scampered over one another in a mad rush to get to their stations. Mutants fought with monsters and all manner of disorder took place as the vile denizens of the filthy metallic palace said goodbye to their former anchor. You see, the mountaun of trash was not entirely all garbage. It would seem at some point a Lucrehulk-class battleship had been dumped there, upon more debris had been piled until the vessel had been completely covered. It was only through ranat curiosity to explore all tunnels and dark corners that the battleship was discovered, completely intact, though in need of some serious maintenance and repairs. For months the tinker rats and rubber suited warlock enginseers utilized the mysteries of dark science to restore and improve the vessel. Pens for beasts had been set up across the Ring, while the Core Ship had been altered to the Dark Apothecary's specifications. Dragus released the dark heart of kaibur at the heart of the ship, feeling the deck rumble under his feet talons as the vessel came to life.
"Clear it away with the gunz." Snarled the Hungering One at the bridge rats, all cast in a purple glow as the crystal stood at the centre of the bridge. It crackled with electrical discharges. Dragus' hungering avatar poured from his body like a swarm of black flies, attempting to leech some of the soul energy being shed from the unstable crystal. He felt invigorated as the borrowed energy flowed throughout his hollow core and briefly filled him, before he turned that energy into telekinetic power. Every available and stationed weapon on the slowly rising Lucrehulk began to light up red, firing a thunderous cascade of hot laser that shredded apart the rotting metallic layer of refuse that had built on top of it. Dragus cracked the top of a potion stopped and quickly imbibed the liquid, belching a sour note before wiping the backside of his claw against the chin of his snout. As the potion boiled his insides, he used the crystals power to raise the battleship up through the mountain above. He strained as though the weight was held on his shoulders, slowing crushing him. But his hate was strong, enhanced by the crystal, and his potion was already beginning to have an affect. He felt drunk, but strong. The mountain bulged and then budged as he forced it up and apart. The guns did the rest.
Rising like a cursed phoenix from a hellish dimension of decay, the Lucrehulk shredded apart the Heap and blasted into the sky, scattering debris that spilled from above it as it shed the remains of Clan Rustrot's former home. Now they would live aboard the new flagship of the Famine Lord, known to the Sith Eternal as the Dark Apothecary. Dragus already had a name for this beast of a ship, he wrote it across the kaibur crystal with a claw dipped in blood. The Haemonculus Occulori, home of the Pater Mutatis and an instrument of his marvelous mastery of the alchemical arts. In truth it was something of a traveling circus. All manner of beast and brute were to reside in its halls, bred to be ruthless and changed to be deadlier in all aspects. It was a holy place meant only for true believers. Dragus touched the crystal again, this time opening it to his telepathic connection to something he could never escape. He opened it to the Eye. The kaibur crystal screamed a terrible cry that bled into the aether and caused every creature on the ship to writhe around in agony. After a moment it stopped, the crystal submitted against the unconquerable Will and bowed before it. The shard blared a fiery orange with a jet black iris down the center that peered into every soul on the bridge.
A bloody grin spread across the Great Devourer's reptilian features as he eased off the telekinetic burden until he back to resting, feeling exhausted but at the same time pleased by the result. The Eye glared wickedly at Dragus, and he stared back, and whatever exchange took place was wordless. Then after a moment had passed, the crystal calmed and returned to its previous amethyst shade. All trace of the otherworldly power that had briefly possessed it were gone. The black scaled barabel turned from the crystal to examine his work station. The bridge was also a part of his grand alchemy lab, one interfacing system, though many of its systems were secret. It was time to create the sea leviathan. His crowing achievement, far greater even than the mighty Doomslither. And that creature could control the weather. This would be some of his finest work to date, and this new ship would help him complete it. "To Kamino." He hissed at the helms-rat.
Still trailing some debris into orbit with it, the newly christened Haemonculus Occulori rose into space and departed the planet's naturally formed gravity well. It carried with it now the former inhabitants of the Heap. The ship was now home to Clan Rustrot, and of course the sorcerous cabal of the Dark Apothecary. His demon shadow rats, his wraiths he called them, lingered always in the darkest corners. They hissed sometimes to make their presence known, before flashing kris daggers glistening wet with Dragus' special blend poison, extra spicy. From here he could spread his art to the galaxy. But first... The dread vessel accelerated in a flash as it jumped to lightspeed, entering a hyperspace wormhole on the way to Kamino. The only sign remaining that the Heap was once inhabited was the still running industrial systems that continued to churn toxic waste into the atmosphere and spill out into its oceans.
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Post by Professor Arachnus on Jul 29, 2023 4:47:38 GMT -8
Beneath black clouds belched from churning carbon rimed smoke stacks, the droid foundries of Hypori were an industrial hell-scape of moving conveyor belts, molten iron, and shooting sparks. Soot stained GRZ-6B wreckers droids lumbered amongst the detritus and ash, feeding ravenous fusion furnaces with delicious scrap to be smelted and recycled into useful alloys, picking apart the bones from a ship graveyard dating all the way back to the Clone Wars.Massive treaded Civil-Industrial I-C2 droids tirelessly rolled across the desolate windswept landscape of the planet, assisted by Z7 series units on tracks of their own, stripping derelicts of any useful materials with plasma torches and fusion cutters. The mobile processing furnaces of the I-C2s meant manufacturing need never cease, as parts and materials were continually churned out and carted back to the pulsating heart of the foundries by repulsors trains running along magnetic rails.All this material was fed into the hungering maw of the Dark Forge, a foul creation that was as much a product of sorcery as it was science, continuously pumping out a steady volume of feral war droids and vehicles to serve in the great galactic scouring. At its core the forge was in reality a hateful artificial intelligence shackled by the malevolent magical might of the Demon of Hypori, hand coded by Valefor's own manicured claws, based off an ancient rakata design he had found in a tome the Dark Apothecary had donated to the Nullus Beacon library. The odd volume had mostly been a jumble of random claw scratches inked in virgins blood and written on vellum harvested from the backs of the most devoted hannite priests serving within the Black Temple of Pzob, but when he had come across the page containing the diagram, it had practically jumped off the page as though eager to be free of the mad ramblings that threatened to drown it in religious conjecture. The result was a machine capable of producing the vast war materials the Sith Eternal required to bring a new black age to the Outer Rim, one that not only hungered for minerals and ore, but something far more sinister as well.Wreathed in carcinogens and heavy metals, morbidly majestic C-9979s glided towards burnished durasteel landing fields as they returned from their ill intentioned journey. The long modular wings of the frigate refits were jammed full with recently harvested slave meat from Ryloth, Rishi, and Eriadu. With hulls appropriately painted red, these bearers of the red-tithe were an essential component to keeping the foundries running, carrying not only fleshling chattel to toil on the assembly lines but also the blood sacrifice demanded by the Dark Forge.Swarms of scurrying arachnids sheathed in nightmarish steel emerged from every shadow and darkened crevice in the facility, gathering before the first of the ships as the ramps lowered and unsympathetic ISD-12s with electrical shock appendages shepherded the miserable masses towards a conveyor belt wide enough to carry an Acclamator, lined on either side by crackling unstable ray shields that occasionally unleashed discharges of electrical current that cooked slaves in their piss soaked boots. Hundreds of fleshlings were goaded onto the moving conveyor, too weak and emaciated from the deprivations they had endured within the holds of the first prototypes of the Dark Fleet. It was only as those closest to the end of the conveyor realized their destination that the teaming masses began to try and run back the way they came, only to find the way cut off by an energy barrier that snapped to life before them. The conveyor began to move, ending in the massive mulching rectangular toothed maw of the Dark Forge, its furnace roaring in anticipation.With each new blood sacrifice received, the black fires burned a little brighter, flash cooking fleshlings to ash as their souls became fodder for the forge. On the other end of the foundries where materials were produced, the first of the Dark Fleet rolled off the assembly line...
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
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Post by Dragus on Aug 30, 2023 8:13:36 GMT -8
At some unspecified point in time... A deep space transmission was beamed to Valefor's private communication channel in his lair on Hypori. The data packet contained audio as well as a full three dimensional holographic rendering of a familiar figure in a cloak of black rishii feathers with half a bird skull resting atop a black scaled snout. Two mismatched eyes set in dark sockets glared at the holo-projector, one a multi-faceted gem of amethyst hue, the other a hateful red orb of simmering intensity. The draconian appeared to be lounging on some sort of disturbing armoire heinously rendered through alchemy for it appeared to be formed from a fusion of living flesh, writhing beneath his pricking talons in utter agony. For his part the Dark Apothecary seemed in good spirits, grinning like the twisted terrorsaur he was as he peered forwards, raising a glass water pipe to his snout to form a seal, before inhaling a deep toke of some mind altering substance.:: Let me know when we're rolling, Squeakerz. I'd like to appear az lordly az posssible when addresssing the Fabricator General. :: Some verminous squeaking could be heard in the background. :: We're already on? Cursez... :: There was a pause as the villainous velociraptor put away his alchemy enhanced bong and leaned forwards in his seat. :: "Valefor, come in. Tiz I, your friendly neighbourhood Sssith alchemissst, Draguz. I mussst ssspeak with you on a matter mossst urgent. ::Valefor
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 177
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Post by Valefor on Aug 30, 2023 17:21:10 GMT -8
Four stones adorned the Eternus Caestus, each one having granted access to new powers, whilst further enhancing his existing powers and abilities. Two stones remained to be collected, one upon Coruscant and another within orbit of Endor. To assist with collecting the latter of the two, the Felstorm was being fitted with a chamber to contain the Force Nexus. Meanwhile, time was being allowed for the civil war upon Coruscant to die down before access was much more easily possible. To fill in the time presented by both situations, Valefor was busy working away on research. The Overseers had proven a valuable Prototype stage for a much different project. But the time was slowly drawing near to move from the Null-Variant to an Alpha-Variant.
However, such research and work was rather suddenly and rudely interrupted as a holo-call was passed through to his lab and the Dark Apothecary appeared out of thin air. He rolled his eyes a little, before opening a line back. His own form returning in three dimensional projection, without revealing any of his surroundings :: What, pray tell, does the Dark Apothecary have need of the Fabricator General for? :: While he didn't exactly have anything on or pressing right now, but Dragus had a tendency of getting himself and those associated with him in troubule. The least Valefor could do was ascertain the Lizard Lords intentions
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
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Post by Dragus on Aug 31, 2023 4:26:19 GMT -8
:: Ah, Valefor. :: Hissed the saurian Sith with a serpentine grin, exposing a mouthful of fangs stained pink from the latest morsel to tease his insatiable appetite. :: I won't wassste your time with sssmall talk. You of all our brethren under the Eternal flag underssstand the ceaselesss demandz placed on thossse of uz with geniuz. No, I'll cut ssstraight to the point. ::Leaning forwards, the transparent blue holographic projection of the Dark Apothecary appeared to be fiddling with some sort of controls, altering the display so that his reptilian form shrunk to half the size and now shared the stage with an image of a purrgil star whale.:: You may not be aware of thiz but ssstudying the migratory patternz of purrgil haz long been a hobby of mine. :: Nerd. :: They were the original ssstar-farerz of the galaxy, the firssst to traverssse the lightssspeed dimensssion of hyperssspace. They are a fassscinating speciez, that even to thiz day we know very little about. Recently my daughter Wart and I went on expedition for the creaturez out by the Ghossst Nebula, a heavily irradiated hellssscape home to unfathomable thingz. You'd like it, I think. While there we tagged a number of the creaturez with tracking devicez. I have done ssso in the passst with little successs, even usssing highly sssophisticated technical massster-crafted devicez pieced together by our Director, Lady Assstera. :: He shook his beaked bedecked snout. :: Az fate would have it, I've been able to track them az far az the Pzobian nebula, but never beyond. I can tell by their heading that they are sssomehow traversssing the intergalactic void, but az sssoon az they leave the sssystem we lossse all contact. :: A leathery creak sounded as his lips curled further upwards into an impossible smile that stretched well beyond the borders of his scaled visage. There was a hungry gleam to his bloody eye. :: That waz of courssse, until now. ::He altered the image again, replacing the purrgil with what appeared to be fist sized talisman crafted from Sith spun gold in the shape of a Morriban scarab.:: Where ssscience failz, alchemy succeedz. Usssing my Eye blesssed brilliance I crafted a Force imbued tracker, not ssso disssimilar to a Sssith wayfinder, an planted it on one of the ssstudied specimenz. Az usssual I waz able to follow their migration to the Pzobian nebula, and then...beyond. I dissscovered a dropping off point, az it were. ::
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
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Post by Valefor on Aug 31, 2023 16:57:58 GMT -8
It was certainly a refreshing admission from Dragus that he was going to skip the small talk. Their interactions had been few and far between, but directness was not a commonality. He sat patiently then as the display changed to include a Purrgil. A species Valefor was familiar with, but far from an expert on. However, Dargus seemed to be something of a self-professed expert and had been trying to track them for some time. On another console he brought up a map of the galaxy and zoomed in upon the Ghost Nebula and the Pzobian Nebula. It must have taken the Dark Apothecary quite the humbling to work with Lady Astera. It wasn't that she was not good at what she did, more that Dragus seemed to carry himself above the rest of the Council.
It was perhaps why Valefor had no real desire to seek a seat upon it. The dynamics and power struggles were, to be quite frank, annoyances and distractions. It was certainly true that by not being on the Council he was something of a target, which had created its own troubles. But the Forge Worlds had more than proved their worth and kept those above him placated.
Regardless of all that, it sounded like Dragus had finally seen the error of his way and turned to alchemical means by which to track these migrating Purrgil. Though even then they still seemed to have a dropping off point beyond which the Space Whales could not be tracked further. A curiosity for sure. Tapping some controls, the galaxy and its many companions appeared through the video link surrounding Valefor I'm surprised you didn't just start out with an alchemical option... Regardless, this... dropping off point... I presume you believe them making a jump to one of the companion galaxies? Or somewhere else? I suspect you have some need of my help to reach what ever destination it is you suspect these Whales are headed for? Something gave him a feeling that this was going to involve the Felstorm and the Space Whale known as Shemona. He distantly remembered her appearance at Dromund Kaas in the company of Purrgils
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
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Post by Dragus on Sept 5, 2023 7:31:17 GMT -8
:: Precisssely! :: Exclaimed the drake, elated by his academic peers quick comprehension of the facts presented and the accurate conclusion he had drawn. :: I knew you would underssstand. Imagine it Valefor, a whole new galaxy full of untapped potential and posssibility. Ssstrange new worldz and unknown speciez to ssstudy, a whole hossst of ingredientz with which to work. It iz an alchemistz wet dream. :: Streams of steaming salivation seeped from between his incisors, spilling over his lips to soil his holographically projected garb. :: And the Sssith Eternal shall reach it firssst. ::All of that was true of course, though in terms of a purely motivating factor, it was entirely secondary. Project Infinity was not at all proceeding as planned. With Dragusblight on the verge of falling to the spider menace, the Dark Apothecary had been forced to call upon the combined forces of Pzob to staunch the arachnid tide. A temporary fix at best. Unless he found the gateway on Kamino soon, even the might of the Eye's chosen would not be enough to stop the galaxy from being overrun. In the event of that, it was prudent to have an escape plan.:: Unfortunately crosssing the intergalactic void iz easssier sssaid than done. Thiz won't be like traveling from Rishi to Kamino. :: Altering the projection again, the lecherous lizard opened a star chart of the galaxy, depicting the K749 system. A straight radiant line stretched from the nebula out into the vast emptiness beyond, past the light of stars to somewhere unknown. :: In order to reach thiz great dissstance will require a ship or device capable of immenssse ssspeed, far greater than anything we currently have available. I have a prototype hyperdrive theoretically capable of reaching sssuch speedz... :: He was referring to his hell-drive, a blending of dark science and the arcane, reliant on a specially produced alchemical fuel created from the blood of infant charon. Unfortunately the device along with his star courier, the Grimblade, had been destroyed when Dragus had escaped Otherspace. He could of course recreate it, but... :: ...however, it requirez vassst amountz of Anti-Force energy to operate, which would diffussse far too quickly ssso clossse to a world az sssaturated in the darkssside az Pzob. :::: That's why he turned to me. :: Remarked a frigid female voice as equally cruel as the drake was repugnant. The hologram shifted again as the SE Director of Advanced Technology appeared split screen beside the Dark Apothecary, garbed in a blend of Sith robes over the uniform of an Imperial science officer. :: Alchemy and sorcery serve their purpose, I suppose, but let's not forget they are both forms of science yet to be fully understood. It is fortunate my fellow councilor was wise enough to include me in this venture. I know how we can reach this far off destination. ::Once more the image changed, this time depicting a blue-print for a massive hyperspace ring. :: I call it... :: She smirked. :: ...the Eye of Astera. ::
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
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Post by Valefor on Sept 10, 2023 18:23:07 GMT -8
His assumptions about the direction this conversation was going to take were about to be proven wrong. Things had certainly started off well, with the typical talk and excitement about a new galaxy filled with countless possibilities for conquest and research. But as the matter of reaching said galaxy came up, the image of Darth Astera suddenly appeared upon the call. IT certainly was like Dragus to socially ambush someone like this, so it was a good thing Valefor had chosen his earlier remarks carefully.
Regardless, his focus then turned to the projected image of the hyperspace ring, his mind already at work determining the scale of the thing. His estimates definitely put it far larger than any Hyperspace Ring he'd seen before. He raised his right hand up to idly scratch at his chin and the tentacles sprouting from it as he studied the blueprint further. It was, ambitious to say the least It's a pleasure to see you Lady Astera... So I'm guessing my part to play in all of this, is that you need the industrial might of the Forge Worlds to construct this Mechanical Monstrosity? He worked some controls causing the blueprint to expand onto the larger projector so he could examine it in better detail. They could deploy the new B1 Worker Droids as a labour force and one of the new Overseers would be perfect to co-ordinate efforts. Years worth of work could be done in weeks or months. It would just come down to whether he trusted Dragus and Astera enough to be onboard, since it was a high likelihood that they were keeping this project secret until they had yielded successful results. Though, there was also the fact they were both Councillors and he was not, meaning his leverage in this matter was a lot less significant than theirs
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
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Post by Dragus on Sept 11, 2023 6:56:43 GMT -8
:: Indeed. :: Acknowledged Astera. :: Hypori has a long history of serving as the manufacturing site for several important projects. The Zann Consortium used it to mass produce the Droideka Mark II and Crusader-class Corvette, Emperor Palpatine built his Cosinga-class Heavy Corvette there, and if we go even further back, it was the site of Project Celestial Power that led to the eventual construction of the Death Star. Without question Hypori has the resources and manufacturing capabilities to see this project through to completion. :: Tapping a gloved finger on a data pad her holographic form was holding, the Director changed the projection to the next set of slides, this time bringing up the Quintad Orbital Manufacturing yards at Eriadu. :: Due to Darth Xitan's recent acquisition of Eriadu, we now have access to the orbital shipyards there. They would perhaps be better suited to a assembling something of this size; however, the yards are currently being utilized to construct the Sith Eternal's new sector fleet. Our new Allegiance-class Battlecruiser, the Vitiate, is already nearing completion. I've designed the Hyperspace Ring to attach to the Vitiate in the same way rings of the past carried Delta-7B Aethersprite-class light interceptors... :: Her lip curled in distaste at the aforementioned Jedi starfighter. :: ...though obviously on a far grander scale. ::
:: Ordinarily I wouldn't trussst a construction project of thiz ssscale and magnitude to anyone but Chief Ssskaltera Brasssclaw and hiz warlock enginseerz... :: Interjected the lisping lizard. :: ...but sssadly, Clan Russstrot iz occupied with another top sssecret project that requirez all the ranat denizenz of Dragusssblight working in conjunction with one another. ::
:: Dragusblight? :: Responded Astera with a raised brow, before shaking her head dismissively. There was hardly a Sith in all Eternal space that hadn't heard the Dark Apothecary's tall tales of a subterranean city of ranats living beneath the surface of the volcanic caldera of Mt. Tawntwoom, though like the Director most chalked it up as more of his typical nonsense. :: Regardless, we do indeed require the mechanical might of the Forge Worlds under your direct command. According to my research there are three derelict Subjugator-class heavy cruisers located across the surface of Hypori, held in reserve by the Separatist Alliance after the destruction of the Malevolence during the events of the Clone Wars. I've developed instructions to refurbish and install their hyperdrive units in the Ring once its superstructure has been assembled. ::
:: The Ring containz hangar ssspace for 144 starfighterz and additional sssupport craft, of which I have no doubt will be needed for the initial expedition. :: The slippery serpent slid his forked tongue over his glistening fangs, before raising a steaming cup of boiled spiders blood to his lips and taking a suckling sip. :: My Nu-Jakez will provide sssecurity aboard the Ring itssself while a newly formed Order of Sssith Knightz az decreed by the Sssupreme One will be ssstationed aboard the Vitiate, to carry the Eternal'z messsage of darknesss to the furthessst cornerz of the universsse. ::
:: You may wish to negotiate your reward for aiding in this venture with Lord Vullor, but know Fabricator General that the Council has decided to give you first claim on any planets discovered in this new galaxy. :: Beside her, the Dark Apothecary spit a mouthful of blood at the holo-projector lens, briefly distorting the image as wet beads seemed to rain in front of their holographic forms. Clearly the Great Devourer was surprised by that proclamation. :: Well, let'z not be too hasssty, my dear... :: :: No. Silence yourself, Wyrm. The Supreme Leader has already approved the decision. :: :: Very well... :: He acceded with some reluctance. :: ...but I ssstill ressserve the right to ssstudy any indigenouz speciez we find on sssaid worldz. :: :: We shall speak on the matter. :: Deflected Astera with an eye roll.
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
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Post by Valefor on Sept 13, 2023 16:48:07 GMT -8
Valefor continued to move around there holoprojection as Astera spoke, before changing the view to that of the shipyards over Eriadu. As it turned out, there wasn't secrecy so much as their primary shipyard of choice was already busy building a new fleet. Meanwhile Dragus' plague rats seemed to be engaged in work elsewhere. He vaguely remembered the name Brassclaw, given the Rustrot Clan had briefly taken shelter upon the far side of Hypori for a time. Chang Fang had advised the Crimson Lord to remove or otherwise eliminate the Ranat Clan during his visit. The last he had seen of the clan, was when Dragus had raised his capital ship.
Whatever was occurring within Dragusblight, was all the more fortuitous for the Forge Master. His focus however turned toward making note of what additional requirements would be needed and any production they would need to organise. When at last the conversation was handed back to him, he was already marking down notes on a holo screen Eriadu and Dragusblight's loss is my gain... Send through the blueprints and the instructions you have for the hyperdrive removals. If you have any preference for starfighters, be sure to include those notes. The Dark Forge will set its focus upon this task and this task alone. It should take a couple of months at most. I'll keep my reward from Lord Vullor in mind. Fear not Lord Dragus, I don't need to turn an entire galaxy into Forge Worlds, as enticing an idea as that is... As tempting a thought as it was, they would need raw materials as well and some worlds were better off as mining operations to feed the Forges raw materials and some organic life would be necessary. Everything had its use, even in a mechanically dominated society Was there anything else, Director?
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
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Post by Dragus on Sept 13, 2023 18:46:00 GMT -8
:: There is. :: Admitted Astera bluntly, looking over her shoulder at the holographic projection of the Dark Apothecary, who sometime between his last spoken word had found an ewok and was now playing with the creature in his lap. :: Although it is entirely dependant on Lord Dragus' progress. ::Hearing his name snapped the lecherous lizard's attention back to the matter at hand. His mouthful of freakish fangs stretched beyond the physical borders of his sinister scaled snout in an impossible smile, while he held the squirming teddy bear to his chest with a claw, prickling its belly with his talons as it squealed in his grip.:: Everything iz proceeding according to plan, my sssweet winter rossse. :: He hissed confidently, his talon tips now drawing beads of dark blood from the struggling ewok's fuzzy belly. Slithering from around his backside, the black scaled barabel's overlong fifth appendage coiled around the fearful celestial descendent in his lap, freeing his claw so that he could bring it to his lips and run his forked tongue over the freshly spilled beads of vitae. :: The Night Lord iz cracking Kesssel az we ssspeak. Sssoon we will have accesss to all the coaxium we need to fuel the Eye..." ...of Astera. Not to be mistaken for another Eye he was quite partial to. :: I have developed a formula to enhance the natural propertiez of the hyperfuel, creating a far more efficient reaction capable of producing unparalleled ssspeed. Once we have accesss to the minez we can begin refining it at once, though I will require asssistance extracting the raw coaxium. :::: What of the slaves? :: The Director questioned with a raised brow. :: Can they not be utilized for that purpose? :: :: Dead. :: He said plainly, with a dismissive shrug of his feather swathed shoulders, to which Darth Astera immediately balked. :: Already?! :: Dragus averted eye contact, suddenly finding the grout caught beneath his claws a far more useful occupation of his attention. :: Well, not yet, but they will be shortly. :: He shook his snout from side to side. :: I apologize, darling, but I require their life esssence for another time dependant project. The current fortuitouz alignment of the starz won't occur again for at leassst another century... :::: I don't want to hear it. :: She held up a hand to silence him, channeling her anger into a telekinetic hold that temporarily wired the Dark Apothecary's yammering snout shut. As Dragus struggled to mumble in the background, the Director adopted a more composed expression as she once more addressed the Fabricator General. :: Lord Valefor, given your recent conquest of Geonosis, perhaps one of the hives could be put to work extracting the fuel we require? The Geonosians are known for their industrious nature. ::
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
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Post by Valefor on Sept 14, 2023 19:03:23 GMT -8
He should have known there would be more, especially given that Dragus was involved in this matter. The Dark Apothecary certainly was a genius and had crafted quite the menagerie of creatures, but such genius came with quite the Madness. Tasks that should have otherwise been straight forward almost always seemed to take a turn. Such was the case here as Astera and Dragus discussed the matter of taking control of Kessel for Coaxium mining purposes to fuel the Eye of Astera.
Although he shared in Astera's frustration, he did well to not let it show beyond a raising of his bony eyebrow. He composed his own features as Astera addressed him, asking after use of the Geonosians to replace the slave labour force that Dragus had already slaughtered or would soon be slaughtering. The Necronids had grown over the last few months under the watchful eye of Zevene, his bastard-daughter having birthed hundreds, if not thousands, of children. With the growth of the Hive, she'd birthed Daughters of her own to help oversee the Necro Forge and expand the Necronid Hive further Fear not Lady Astera, I will see that it is done. The Thalos Hive should be able to handle it. I'll hand delivery them myself... If anything further comes up, do not hesitate to reach out. I trust you have much to discuss with your fellow Council Member... There was undoubtedly as discussion about to occur, one best facilitated by his lack of presence within the call. He gave a wave to the Dark Apothecary Until next time...
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Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
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Post by Dragus on Sept 15, 2023 8:51:01 GMT -8
Summoning a measure of his own arcane might, the reprehensible reptilian managed to break free of Astera's telekinetic vice-grip long enough to wave a claw and reply. :: Toodaloo. :: Next to him the Director rolled her eyes and spun her chair around to face the Dark Apothecary. It was quite clear she was about to verbally berate the despicable drake, as her mouth opened wide as if to shout, when the transmission finally winked out.
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Valefor
The Sith Eternal
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Post by Valefor on Sept 17, 2023 19:22:35 GMT -8
Within hours of the call ending, the blueprints and hyperdrive extraction methods had been received and passed onto Overseer Shameful Occurrence. From there, the plans were passed on to the Dark Forge and the massive production lines began to turn their focus to producing the various components to construct the Eye of Astera. The hordes of droids tasked with material collection from the long dead hulks of old Separatist ships were quickly turned to task. The Subjugator-class heavy cruisers were focused upon first, since work would need to be done to salvage their Hyperdrives, so it only made sense to scrap their hulls first. Anything that could not be sourced here, was flown in by C-9979's of the Black Fleet.
About the same time production was ramping up, the Felstorm took off toward orbit to meet with a couple Scourge-class Destroyers, Marr-Class Devastators, and C-9979 Modular Frigates. A decent escort for transplanting a Necronid Queen from Geonosis to Kessel. As soon as the ships gathered together, they were gone in several flashes of light
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