An Important Message from the Cult of Shadow

[Halomek]

GNN, the Galactic News Network, the most trusted source of information to the galaxy at large, was unheralded when it came to the sheer number of viewers it reached. From the Chancellors of the Republic to the Regents and Emperors of the Empire, all galactic rulers knew their speeches would have the greatest impact through the holocameras of GNN.

Which meant an entire galaxy responded in shock and alarm when the broadcast of the news network was suddenly replaced by the image of a figure seated upon an obsidian throne. Despite the room being well lit, no features were visible on the figure who sat comfortably upon the chair - save one. To most, he appeared simply as an ominous shadowy being except for a pair of glowing red eyes that appeared to burn with a fire all their own.

As the technicians of GNN frantically struggled to find a way to undo the pirate signal which had sliced through every firewall and layer of protection they had, the figure spoke. His voice was that of a rasp, but it held a commanding tone; one that couldn’t be ignored.

“Many of you probably already know who I am and the quick-witted among you have no doubt managed to guess at my identity. The rest of you, I’m sure, have heard my name spoken before, often as a curse or in whispered fear.” The figure took a moment to smile. His pointed teeth adding more distinction to his face. “Allow me to introduce myself to make it official: I am Sivter, Dark Master of the Cult of Shadow.”

“I’ve decided to speak with everyone today because I have a feeling you want what I want. You want an end to the constant fighting between the Light and the Dark.” Sivter touched the tips of his claws together contemplatively. “Well, the long wait is finally over. I’m here to tell you that the end is indeed in sight. You see, I’m a student of history. I know more about the conflicts of the past than most of you could possibly imagine. I came to the realization a long time ago that merely conquering this galaxy would achieve nothing.”

Sivter leaned forward a bit. “The Force is always seeking balance. With this balance in effect, the Light will never fully banish the Dark and the Dark will never extinguish the Light. The most powerful empires are destined to one day crumble and fall. The same fate awaits even the most utopian of societies. The Jedi and the Sith constantly war because neither side can accept that all their efforts are doomed to be pointless. Were I to merely conquer this galaxy, even my reign would one day pass away; be it upon my death or a million years hence.”

The Defel leaned back again as he rested his arms once more upon the throne. “How can we break this vicious cycle, you may well ask. The answer is simple: one must tip the scales so far in one direction that they break entirely. One side must completely and utterly dominate the other, only then will there be an end to this fighting.” Sivter smiled again. “I assure you, the victor has never been in doubt. Whereas the galaxy was once formed from darkness, so to will it return to its natural state.”

Sivter’s image was replaced by recordings of the Battle of Onderon as Jedi were cut down by cult members. His voice carried over the feed. “Even the Jedi, the celebrated champions of the Light, are no match for us.” The images changed to the massacre on Vorzyd V. “How can they prevail when the darkness is everywhere? When the most primal of one’s instincts is to serve the Dark?” The image changed again to the Battle of Necroa Prime as more Jedi were cut down by cult agents and ended upon the sight of Sivter laughing in triumph. “As should be clear by now, my power can’t be denied.”

The scene changed to once again show Sivter on his throne. “It is inevitable that the Cult of Shadow will prove victorious in my War of Darkness. Nothing can change the outcome now. I’m appearing before the people of the galaxy now simply to hasten the result; to give you a chance to submit to me willingly. All Sith, all Darksiders, join your forces with mine and assist me in crushing the Light. All Jedi, all Lightsiders, who have come to know the fallacy of their beliefs, join me and see the truth. All those who have had life spit upon them, join me and learn to shape your own destiny. All who want an end to this destructive conflict, join me now!”

“You need only profess your loyalty over the holonet and the cult will find you,” Sivter said reassuringly. “To do so is the only way you will survive this, for I will eradicate anyone left who does not submit.”

Sivter held up a clawed finger. “In one standard week’s time, I will appear before the galaxy again and choose a planet that has not professed loyalty to the cult to be wiped clean of all life, right down to the tiniest microbe. If this is a fate you wish to avoid, then I would suggest you make sure your planetary government does the smart thing and capitulates. And if they decide to defy me, then you should ask yourself if you’re comfortable with giving a bureaucrat, who only sees you as a number, control over your continued existence. If you aren’t, then you need to ask yourself what you’re going to do about it.”

“The Cult of Shadow can’t be stopped, but whether you choose to willfully deny that fact or not is a decision I leave to each and every one of you.” Sivter grinned again. “The Dark Side is freedom. I look forward to seeing the choices you make.”

And then the transmission ended.

OOC: Now the war really ramps up... Feel free to use this thread for character reactions.

[Balsa]

OOC:
Sorry, when I read Sivter's speech, I couldn't help but think how many times some Sith Lord had done nearly the same thing in the past. And since there's no OOC thread to comment on, I decided to go with an IC post.

And, if this comes off as being inflammatory, that wasn't my intention. This is just to give the viewpoint of the average citizen who's lived through decades of war and probably isn't all that interested.

Edit
Also, if you wipe out Dantooine, let me know. James will make an appearance.

IC:
James Collins led a simple life; his humble home on the plains of Dantooine reflected that. He was well into the later centuries of his existence, and the latter half of that life had been spent tending his farms and fields. His earlier years had been spent learning about the universe in the myriad of state sponsored schools. He had studied at some university on Coruscant, intending to become a historian or economist. But then the Clone Wars became reality, and he had been drafted into that terrible conflict. It was a life time ago, and that war had changed James Collins. He'd given up his aspirations to decipher the complexities of the galactic stock exchange or to pen some revealing and galaxy-changing history of the universe. Instead, he had settled on being a simple farmer.

His farm was quite simple, a conscious effort on his part when he had mustered out of the Republic Army. Gone were the distractions of an intergalactic civilization; he'd opted to keep his focus on the here and now. He had no droids, preferring to tend his machinery and fields personally. He had a family once, but his wife had passed on and his children had grown to pursue their destinies. He was fine with that; they were doing well, and every so often they'd come and visit.

That was the one concession he had made, though. He had kept a simple computer with a connection to the holonet and galactic news networks. It was a necessity, loathe he was to admit. His kids and grandchildren couldn't send messages to him if he wasn't connected, right? The computer and display were new, recent gifts from his son, who was some engineer at some corporation. James wasn't a stranger to technology, but he was still a bit uncomfortable with this most recent item. (He had asked his son how something was able to be transmitted at real-time if the distance was hundreds of light years. His son, scientist as he was, used some technojargon, as if that explained everything.)

As it were, he was in his dining room, heating up a mug of caf in preparation for the long day of harvest. James had started to develop a habit of flipping on the monitor and listen into the Galactic News Network. The network was far from biased, but it was overall the best source for intergalactic news, he had decided. GNN was talking about some new fluctuation in the economic market when the image suddenly flickered and was replaced with some shadow figure.

Intrigued, James watched and listened as the mysterious figure spoke of aspirations to plunge the galaxy into darkness under his rule. (He was reminded of that Emperor Palpatine figure.) After several minutes, the figure made his ultimatum, something about destroying a world, and then the image disappeared to be replaced with GNN's technical difficulties screen.

James Collins sat on his chair for a moment before chuckling. His chuckles turned to laughter as he kept replaying Sivter's message in his mind. Two sentences stood out: You see, I’m a student of history. I know more about the conflicts of the past than most of you could possibly imagine.

"Oh, Mr. Sivter," James said to no one as he stood and headed towards the kitchen. "You truly are a student of history." Eons ago the Sith had gone on their little rampage to conquer the galaxy, Palpatine had done the same, and this Sivter was now trying his bid. "Mr. Sivter," James said, half hoping this Cult of Shadow Master could hear him, "you really should study history better. It's been tried so many times. You should have included a 'too long; didn't listen' version: I'm here to repeat history and fail."

With that, James Collins laughed once more, found his work gloves, and head out to his barn, not all that interested in what was happening light-years away.

[Beorht]

Temple of the Current
Ossus

The last of the leaders closed the door behind her. Ember narrowed his eyes. "Play it again, please."

The holoprojector in the council room stuttered and went back. These were tough folks, survivors, but he could sense the fear. Most of them had lived through the Dark Years. Some had seen the start of the Jedi Purge.

"It's my thought," he said, in the silence after Sivter finished, "that he means to do far more than Palpatine ever did. Palpatine kept social structure more or less intact; he wanted to rule. I've spoken with Cultists on occasion, some of them very high-ranking. It's my belief that Sivter wants the galaxy to burn.

"Join him if you will, but remember - this is love of oblivion we're talking about. My Master used to talk about this. Nothing sane, nothing remotely reasonable, a mindset that's very difficult to understand if you haven't experienced it. There will be no compromises, no second thoughts or chances. Sivter will not stop destroying until there is nothing left to destroy. No ally, in the end, will be left alive." A thought struck him. "My Masters were Lyn-Char and La-Reia Beorht; theirs was Quinis Asanis, a fallen Jedi Master of the Old Republic. He told them once about a long-dead Sith Lord named Nihilus, who consumed entire worlds - who would have kept destroying until he was literally the only life left, if he was even life at all. This is not the same, but I think the parallel is instructive."


Bast Castle
Vjun

Ald Sorosel - 'Darth Sarastro' - exchanged glances with the tiny, ugly spider/snail on the floor beside him. "What do you think, Feak?"

"Me?" the Croke spat. "I think Velok's going to have kittens. He'll want to kill Sivter more than he's ever wanted anything. Obscurus was an appetizer."

"Yeah. Yeah, I guess he will." A pause. "Think we'll lose any of our people?"

"Suluul, maybe. Jasto. Saan's too smart."

"Jasto would be a problem. Even Suluul knows about the Pen."

"Eh, we'll make sure," Feak said. "We'll make sure..."


Shang Ra'la
Trevel'ka Orbit
Jade Empire
Unknown Regions

Halla watched the replay with her arm around Braily. Behind their couch, Karak Ror and Dejaa Dite projected a unified sense of 'embittered-old-soldier'.

"We can't sit back like we did in Ghosthammer," she whispered into her husband's ear. "We have to commit."


Unknown Regions

Siriss Cortann laughed very, very hard.

"All right, my Blazing Chain friends. You heard the man. Let's get moving."

[Halomek]

OOC: No problem, Balsa. Sivter is actually kind of counting on people not believing him.

Dantooine is too remote to make an effective demonstration, but don't worry, we'll deal with your Rebel friends - wait... what?

If you need an OOC, we can use the Cult of Shadow one, here: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=8526

[Cadden]

Testria

Darth Trayus looked at the holorecording, knowing full well that Sivter excluded no one in his message. He clenched his fist together, as the rage built up. Yes, the Nomad Soul whispered to him, allow the anger to consume you... feed on it... grow in power. Your time is coming, Darth Trayus... you will have your revenge.

Sparks began to form around his hand as the room around him began to shake in a malevolent fury. You were weak the last time you faced him, the spirit continued, but, through me, you have grown stronger, and have accumulated unimaginable power. Use it... show your defiance for the creature known as Sivter... let him come to you, so that you can destroy him. Of course. Bait. Why go to the Defel, when he could make the Defel come to him? Open defiance was the best way to wage war against the Cult of Shadow. But he would need to do it unhindered. It was time to accelerate his plans. "Roghehk," he spoke to the shadows, as the room came still, and the forming lightning around his fist died out. The Noghri stepped forward. "It is time. You know what to do."

Roghehk bowed. "Your will be done, my lord," and just as gracefully as he appeared, he was once again gone. Trayus dwelled on the matter at hand. It was now only a matter of time before he could exact his revenge.

[Balsa]

OOC:
Hey, he's not a Rebel! James Collins is a farmer!

I really wanted to include "Simpson's did it!" from South Park, but it wouldn't fit in the Star Wars setting.

Okay, I'll use the CoS OOC thread. No more spamming this!

[corsos]

Admiral Gregory Dreskul watched the broadcast from the bridge of the Insidious with the rest of his crew. When the figure finished there was absolute silence on the bridge of the ship. After all, the Insidious had been tasked with tracking down the base of the Cult and location of Sivter and they had met with very few successes. Delth had provided the only tangible results, the deaths of two of Sivter's lieutenants.

"Kinda reminds me of someone that Damascus would have kept as a pet!" Helmsmen Thompson shouted from the pit, and the bridge erupted in laughter. That group had been through a lot together, from the Battle of Corellia to the war against the Xen Chi, and the final battle at Chil'a'Chin. They had seen everything before, and had always managed to get out intact. There was no doubt Sivter and the Cult were a serious threat, and there wasn't one person on the ship that didn't that threat, but sometimes levity was the only was to deal with dire news.

The laughter was cut short when Lieutenant Carter yelled out. "Incoming message Admiral Dreskul, priority one from Coruscant."

"In my office."

Dreskul walked off the bridge and took a deep breath. Dealing with Thrawn was always a challenge, and no doubt this would be much more of a reprimand than a friendly call. Dreskul was naval intelligence and was tasked to deal with Sivter. This sort of message and threat with no warning would not go over well at Command, and rightfully so.

Clearing his throat, Dresku straightened his uniform and activated the connection. Grand Admiral Thrawn's translucent blue image appeared immediately and Dreskul saluted.

"Sir."

"What did I just watch Admiral?"

"Our analysts say there is a 97.2% chance that the broadcast is legitimate and the figure is actually Sivter. We achieved near perfect voice match from prior recordings."

"And what capability, Admiral, could Sivter possibly have that could destroy a planet?"

"We don't know sir." Dreskul said.

"And his possible location?"

"Unknown sir."

"Do you have anything useful to tell me Admiral, that we can use to deter this Sith Lord?"

"Commander Ardin, and Jedi Master Kalja Leidias encountered members of the Cult on Chandrila sir. They killed one of Sivter's top lieutenants."

"Do you have a report?"

"We are enroute Sir. We should be arriving within two hours. Captain Hastos reported Commander Ardin suffered serious injuries and barely survived. He is undergoing extensive bacta treatments."

"When you arrive and he is able, return to Coruscant immediately with both of them. Do you understand me, Admiral?"

"Yes sir."

Thrawn's image disappeared and Dreskul let out the breath he hadnt even realized that he was holding in.

[kashus_Draith]

Citadel
Council Chambers

Octavius Rol sat quietly for a moment after the image of Sivter cut out. The entire Council chamber was quiet as they waited for a response from their elected chairman.

Rol let out a long breath as he stared at the present council members. As he spoke, his voice showed signs of irritation. “Those holo feeds from Necroa showed Brotherhood soldiers. People will start asking questions about us, but that isn’t what bothers me most,” Octavius sat back in his chair as he looked around the room. “What weapon does Sivter have that would allow him to destroy an entire world?”

“He has the Necromonus.” Reickhoff spoke up.

“Yes, the Necromonus has that ability, but something he said set it off that he was alluding to something different than the Necromonus. He said he will wipe clean of all life on a planet even to the tiniest microbe. What else does he possibly have that can do that?”

(OOC: Are you referring to the Necromonus Halomek or are you thinking of something else?)

[Halomek]

OOC: This is something else. It's all outlined pretty cleanly here: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=8331&start=0

[Jagtai]

Sith Space

Darth Kabal looked at the monitor in front of him. Darth Invide and Lord Kast both turned their heads to look at him. Kast spoke first.
"Master?"

Kabal continued to look at the monitor, as he replied:

"Yes?"
"What do we do?"

Kabal turned on the spot and stared at the Sith Lord.

"What do we do? What do we do?! We are Sith! We do not bow before a pretender like Sivter! I want the Blackguards training doubled. If this Sivter comes, I shall personally rip his tongue from his throat and hang him in it!"

With that exclamation, Darth Kabal left the room, his cape flowing behind him and the air filled with rage...

[Mir]

In Orbit of Ogriand
OOD-3

Sarithe Sha'rn-Muir turned and looked at her husband. The Duke of the House of Muir sat in the command chair of OOD-3, musing to himself as he considered what he had just seen on the vid channel. He and his wife had been making a routine check up on the OOD stations, reinforced in importance now after what had happened with Simmons' at Arvis Prime. The Botham female smiled when she saw her husband's trademark employment of the use of silence. She walked over to him and placed a furred paw on his arm. "Well?" She asked.

"Well what?"

"What do you think?"

"I think the Jedi could use Erik, if he was alive." Tej said.

"Yes, well, do you think the Jedi and the rest of the galaxy will need our assistance?" She asked.

"Possibly, if not probably." The leader of one of, if not the greatest Bothan house of spies, replied. "We have our own problems to deal with. I do not want this Arvis situation getting out of hand while we attempt to help the galaxy with Sivter. Furthermore, we have to prepare for what the Bahkran told us." He added.

"There are only so many hours in the day, and only so many tools of war that can be created, Tej."

"And only so many lives I can sacrifice." The Bothan lifted his paw and ran it over his hair. "Something must be done." He said. He turned to Fury, the man in charge of the ground forces of the Muir, who was standing nearby. "Has Roken gotten in touch with us yet?"

"No, though given his last report, he should have reached Onderon a short while ago."

"Get a channel to him." Tej replied before turning to one of the Bothans near Sarithe. "Inform the Spynet that we have work to do. If we're going to help, we're going to help the way we always have. Information is the key to victory."

"Shall I reach out to Oremin?" The female Bothan agent asked.

Tej didn't doubt that Kasr would have a field day with this. He and the leader of the shadowy organization called Oremin knew each other. Tej respected the man for what he was, a master of the spy world. Not a peerless master, but a master nonetheless. If he could guess Kasr's actions, and, he thought with a smile, how interesting things would have been if Kasr and he could properly guess the other's actions, Oremin would have some kind of answer to Sivter's message. He only had his prior knowledge of interaction with Kasr to go on, but he had a feeling he knew what it might be. Kasr would take care of what Kasr would take care of, and he would do it well. Tej's primary concern was with Ogriand and with the Muir. Once he felt that his sector and his territories were properly protected, then he would move onwards. Hopefully it wouldn't take long. Sivter's message had been clear.

Time, as it almost always was, was of the essence.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

On board the Foreboding

Joshua Karn watched the video once more before looking away. He was in his personal quarters on board his vessel, the Foreboding. They were currently traveling through hyperspace, towards Lukros. Tatya'veronsis sat on one of the chairs in his room, quiet, allowing her master to think. Ishama, I could use your help right now, old friend. There is too much going on. I do not think the Bahkran thought of this. It is too...too much. Karn was in his own thoughts, and Tatya cleared her throat, softly. He looked up at the Twi'lek woman. "This would be easier if we had managed to keep Derek with us."

Tatya's eyes looked away for a moment, going distant, as she thought of the human Jedi Knight. "Yes, it would have. Unfortunately, that did not happen." She said.

Karn smiled to himself, in his thoughts.

"We must prepare.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Somewhere

The video finished.

And Zohmaj Hauc smiled.

[SmokeMare]

Darius Malakai was busy absorbing the spirits of long death Sith Masters and Dark Jedi on Ambria when the holo-net image flickered into his chamber. He paid it little attention and chuckled softly, rasping slightly with mirth at what Sivter was trying to do...

He would help Sivter, helping Sivter helped him, but he would not swear allegience to him and he would not be too disappointed when the Defel met his demise...

He had not bowed his head to Marka Ragnos or Darth Bane , he would not bow his head to the leader of the Cult of Shadow, remarkable though Sivters power was, Darius Malakai had sensed more powerful, sinister forces at large in the galaxy, still like him, gathering their power.

Sivter was basking in glory, trying to get the galaxy to kneel before him - Malakai secretly suspected that this was a last ditch attempt to avert his fate....

[Halomek]

Kalja Leidias was quiet as Sivter made his speech to the galaxy. It seemed like every time she turned around, the Cult of Shadow was finding new ways to make things worse. The Jedi needed her now more than ever. Once Delth was healed, there was no question that it would be time to go back.

Thankfully she had a week. She knew Sivter well enough to except him to keep to the schedule he set for himself. Why he needed to wait a week, she didn’t know, but at least it would give them time to prepare…

***

Rowen Halomek watched the transmission with no small amount of concern as it played over the vidscreen. He glanced over at his squadmates in Halo Squadron who were watching it with him in the modest bar aboard the ship. None of them had much of an expression except a subtle tension around the eyes, or a grim lock of the mouth.

All of them, that was, except for Jeg Feniv, the squadron’s second in command under Rowen. Jeg just smirked as he raised his glass to the screen in a mock toast. “And may you develop mange while you’re at it, you psycho shadow.”

That elicited a few chuckles and broke the tension. Rowen just shook his head in mild exasperation. “Just because you’re going to outlive us all doesn’t mean you should take Sivter lightly - not after what he’s done.”

“It’s probably colder than Hoth in that fancy throne room of his because he’s sucked up all the hot air,” Jeg shot back with a laugh. “I know he’s dangerous, but I’d say the little jerk has finally slipped up. Once he tells us where he’s going to be, it’s all over for him and his cult.”

Rowen just gave him a look.

“Look, Rowen,” Jeg said a little more seriously, “the New Republic was built on miracles, and we personally triumphed over a lot of crap that should have killed us, not the least of which were the Death Stars at Endor and Corellia. What could a bunch of guys in fancy bathrobes have that’s worse than those things?”

Rowen took a drink before sighing. “You really should know better than to ask that kind of question by now, Jeg.”

***

From the security of his quarters in the Anubis Complex above planet Oremin, Reng Kasr watched the transmission with a neutral expression. He already had people analyzing it for any clues that might reveal anything new about the Cult of Shadow, but he wasn’t counting on them finding anything. Kasr’s people were the best, but Sivter was not someone who was careless with any kind of information. The fact that the Cult of Shadow could be so large and yet be virtually impossible to find spoke volumes on that.

What concerned him most was Sivter’s claim to be able to wipe out an entire world despite nothing so far indicating he had that capability. Still, all the intel Oremin had on the Defel showed that he wasn’t someone who made empty boasts, so it was best to assume that either Sivter had the power to accomplish it or he felt he did. To compound the issue, Sivter apparently didn’t think anyone was capable of stopping him, or he wouldn’t have announced his intentions.

It was tempting to chalk that up to the madness and egotism of the typical Force-user - especially the typical Darksider - but Kasr wouldn’t make that assumption. Until he saw signs of Sivter slipping, Kasr had to believe that Sivter knew full well what was coming. That meant that whatever he was going to use to wipe out the planet would be capable of wiping out whatever defenses were used to try and protect it as well.

It was a trap; the worst kind of trap; the kind that didn’t give you any choice about being caught…

[Cazzik]

Jedi Vessel; En Route to Mandalorian Space

Jedi Master Cazzik Wyn frowned as he watched the broadcast. Wyn himself had once been a Dark Master that had hunted the Jedi down with a vengeance. He had allied himself with the Galactic Empire, Sith Lords, and other Dark Jedi. He had eventually clawed his way back from the taint that was the Dark Side and redeemed himself in the eyes of the Jedi Order by becoming one of its greatest warriors. Out of all the Jedi Knights there were few that understood their enemy as well as he did. This declaration of victory, of complete annihilation to his adversaries by Sivter would go underestimated by some in his very order. But not by him. Cazzik had never faced the Dark Master before, but he knew this threat was not one to be taken lightly.

Master Trec Thul's voice came from behind him. "First the Sith destroyed the City of the Jedi. Now this ultimatum from the Cult of Shadow. It seems our enemies are amassing on the horizon, my friend."

Cazzik nodded grimly. "It would appear so."



The Knightfall; Location Unknown

The image of Sivter vanished from the holoprojector and Darth Caedus felt his eyes narrow beneath his mask. This self proclaimed Dark Master had dared to challenge all that did not submit to him. He believed himself to be all powerful.....even more so than the Sith. Caedus had been, to this point, denied the opportunity to make his presence known in the galaxy. His master did not want to move against their enemies just yet. It was a decision that constantly gnawed at the back of Caedus' mind. As he felt the unrest well up in him the voice of Lord Terris echoed through his psyche.

Remember your place, Lord Caedus. Allow Sivter to do what he will. Allow the galaxy to focus their efforts on him. We are the shadow that no one notices. For now. Your time will come.

Caedus bowed his head. "Yes, my master."

[coronhorn]

Devon Vos watched the recording of the message that his intelligence people had sent down, he'd asked why they'd created a physical copy instead of sending it to his personal terminal and the tech mentioned something about it possibly having some form of malicious code embedded in it. He'd smirked at that, it would have been a bold ploy even for the Defel, but he knew it was still a wise move and prudent security measure,

"Have we had any more luck with the sub-net encryption?"

The tech shook his head in a negative fashion,

"Very well." he spoke handing the vid-screen back to the young man who disappeared back into the hallway.

"Who was that?" the woman in his bunk next to him asked, "Sounded like a poor imitation of Palatine."

"That Sara was someone far more dangerous than Darth Sidious ever pretended to be."

"Why is that?"

"Because the Emperor wanted control, Sivter just wants to watch it all burn."

"Oh."

"Yes." Devon smirked as he killed the lights in the room...

[Mandalore_The_Uniter]

CEO's Office, Interplanetary Trade Organization Headquarters, Eden Prime, Outer Rim

The Office Decoration always seemed a Little Much to Commander Jow'an Ceries, but what he was focused on right now was the Sith Lord on the Holo-transmission. "What do you think Commander?" The Soft Spoken Voice of the CEO called to him from Behind the Moderately Sized wood desk.

The CEO was a petite woman with Black Hair and Grey eyes, she looked to be around 43, and had a Hard edge to her eyes.

"I think we should do something." Jow'an said finally, "We can't let him destroy a planet."

"Agreed." The CEO said, Lacing Her Fingers together "What do you Suggest Commander?"

"I could lead a force to Onderon, and join up with the Jedi." He said, Putting his helmet on

"Very well Commander." The Ceo said, looking into the Commander's Reflective Visor "Gather your Force, and leave as soon as you are Able."


with that, the Commander walked out of the Office's doors.

[Darkheyr]

Bast Castle
Vjun

The room the young Trandoshan entered had been put to use only recently - as a personal study and quarters of sorts, by a woman he knew only as Delana Saan, one of the newer members of their little group. It showed the bizarre mix many Sith studies or libraries did - ancient tomes and scrolls made of a variety of materials, resting next to modern datapads and computer terminal. One of the tomes seemed to be the centre of Delana Saans attention, together with a small datapad she held in her hand.

He coughed slightly, and she glanced over at him. Stepping forward, he handed her a datacard. "Holonet recording. You might want to see it."
Nodding a thanks, she inserted the card into the terminal, and started playback, silently watching, listening to the Defels announcement.

Then, she chuckled.

Next, she laughed, long and loud, for quite some moments before her laughter died down to a soft chuckle again. She retrieved the card, handing it back to the trandoshan, and shook her head before expressing her only comment.

"Fool."

*** *** ***

Council of Lords
Kartan - Unknown Regions

As the guards opened the door, the massive whiphid stepped through. On his back hung a long, double-handed blade covered in furs - rather unusual for a republic ambassador, but he knew what disrespect it would have been to his host in Tarkan-Thur, who had it made specifically for him, were he not to carry it. He had kept the heavy robes in republic colours however, despite many Kartanin suggesting armour to go with his sword. They respected that greatly, too. He was getting the knack of the feline warriors, slowly, but he was.
Still, he hadn't yet achieved his aim of speaking with the Voica - the religious leaders of their species - despite being on their homeworld for months now. Thus, when he spotted one of them within the Council Hall, accompanied by a pair of temple guards, he fought hard to suppress his surprise.
He stopped to raise his fist to his chest, bowing slightly in front of the gray-haired Kartanin. "Voica, I am honoured by your presence."

The Voica returned the greeting, but puzzling enough did not continue the conversation after that, instead gesturing towards High Lord H'ay. The greeting was yet again repeated before the High Lord turned towards the large viewscreen at the far side of the room. "We received this via the galactic holonet. A general broadcast that interrupted the normal signal."

The whiphid's mouth went dry as he watched the footage accompanying Sivters message. Vorzyd, Onderon, and another world he didn't recognize. Does he truly have this power? Or is it mere arrogance? He wasn't certain. Not considering the Cults past action.

High Lord H'ay spoke again. "We have prepared long range communications in the adjoining chamber. You'll like wish to talk with your superiors."

He nodded. "Thank you, my lord. He started to turn.

"Ambassador Salran." He stopped. "You should know we will be contacting the Confederacy and the Jade Empire to discuss the possibility of intervention."

He nodded again.

"I understand. Strength and Honour, Milords."

He was led out.

[Halomek]

Thrumming, inspirational, and vaguely patriotic music plays across the screen as the giant black letters of G, N, and N fly down in bold print. A booming voice announces: “This is GNN, the galaxy’s most respected source for news.”

The logo and the music fade to reveal a Sakiyan with dark blue skin behind the news desk, wearing an expensive suit; his large bald head and pointy ears typical of his species. In a baritone voice he introduced himself. “Greetings, I am Semaj Obrom. We join our galaxy tonight in a state of crisis. It’s now been one week since Sivter’s chilling announcement to the galaxy. As our viewers may recall, he declared that he would appear again and declare which planet he would, quote: ‘wipe clean of all life’.”

“Experts from around the galaxy at first declared that Sivter and his Cult of Shadow were simple terrorists, soon to be crushed.” Obrom’s voice grew grim. “The massacre of Vorzyd V changed that image forever. Terrorists, yes. Simple, no. I first brought you that story and the images of the citizens of Vorzyd V turning on each other are as chilling today as when we first broadcast them.”

“Since then the Cult of Shadow has struck with virtual impunity wherever they appear before vanishing and largely eluding capture. Those few members in custody either die from an as yet unexplained phenomena or know so little as to be useless to authorities.” Obrom shifted his gaze to look at another camera. “And what of the man behind the madness? Sivter. What do we know about him?”

Obrom paused for effect before answering the question: “Virtually nothing. Other than his many crimes, his past is as shadowy as his very appearance. Although it is claimed that he was born on Af’El, the government there can offer no records of any Defel listed under Sivter’s name. In addition, no reliable sources can be found, or have come forward, to tell us anything about him before he arrived on the galactic scene. Few who are known to have encountered the self-proclaimed Dark Master are still alive today. Of those handful, none could be reached for an interview.”

“Indeed, it isn’t even known how Sivter learned to use the Force, but he is considered, by many accounts, to be one of the most powerful Force-users alive. It is confirmed that he personally killed Jedi Council member Faarel Blackthorne during the Battle of Onderon.” Obrom was somber. “If that wasn’t proof enough, the footage we’ve seen of some of the Dark Lords who swear loyalty to him give silent testament to just how powerful Sivter must be to control them.”

Obrom turned to face the center camera. “Can he be stopped? We here at GNN are doing our part. The management would like me to take the time and assure our viewers that our holofeed won’t be sliced again. We’ve spared no expense in hiring the best to make sure that it is as secure as possible. The Galactic New Network won’t be a party to-”

Obrom’s words and image were suddenly cut off with a burst of static and replaced by an all too familiar image of Sivter sitting on his obsidian throne. His dry, rasping laugh was heard first. “Cute,” Sivter proclaimed, “but pointless. Worry not, loyal viewers, we won’t be interrupted until I’ve had my say.”

Sivter looked directly at the camera, his red eyes burning with an inner flame. “I’d like to clear up a misconception before I get to what I know you all are tuned in for. The supposed report GNN ran earlier this week about Darksiders, and the Cult of Shadow in particular, was nothing more than a pathetic attempt to put you at ease about how real my threat is. Their supposed ‘expert’ was an amateur at best. Perhaps next time GNN will actually try contacting the source. I’ll correct the biggest fallacy of their report right now: the Cult of Shadow hasn’t recruited mere hundreds, we’ve recruited millions.” Sivter smiled. “It’s a big galaxy and we are everywhere.”

“Now, I realize that not all of you are as eager as those who joined the winning side last week, but fear not, because I will provide you with a duracrete example of the folly of defying me.” He held up one index finger. “In another standard week’s time, I will attack a planet and wipe it clean of all life as promised. I’ve chosen a world that will provide a suitable example of the power I have at my command: a vital Core world known as Alsakan.”

“You may wonder why I’m giving the galaxy a week to prepare for my coming.” Sivter smiled again. “The answer is simple: because I want you to prepare. I’ve already demonstrated the ineffectiveness of the Jedi and their allies, but perhaps you people still believe in the power of your militaries? At Alsakan, I will remove that last shred of hope you cling to. Throw everything you can at me.”

His smile became even wider. “Oh yes, to all those skeptical government leaders and military commanders who think I’m bluffing, I’d like to mention that I’m not being metaphorical: when I say I will attack Alsakan, I mean I will personally be there; mind, body, and spirit. You’ll never have a better chance at stopping me, so I suggest you at least try to make the most of it if you expect the people to still believe in that perceived power and security you think you wield.” He shrugged indifferently. “Or don’t - let the people of Alsakan be slaughtered. As I said before, the Dark Side is freedom, so the choice is yours.”

He leaned back in his throne. “I fully expect people to be skeptical of my claims, so consider this your chance to call my bluff – if I am indeed bluffing. One week; I look forward to it.”

The image faded out and then was replaced with Obrom behind the news desk. He looked stunned for a moment before regaining his composure with a clearing of his throat. “You heard it here first. The Cult of Shadow claims it will attack and destroy the planet of Alsakan in one standard week’s time. GNN will endeavor to keep you up to date with this story as it develops. Good night.”

OOC: Posted here for people to post their reactions...

[TalRaimi]

Two sets of almond shaped eyes glared at the all too familiar figure of Sivter as he made his proclamation. Once the broadcast had come to an end, Reave Hevren-Leidias reached out one long fingered hand and shut the holonet feed down, plunging the small lounge of the light freighter Temperance into a foreboding silence.

“He could be bluffing,” a husky voice finally broke the quiet.

Reave glanced up at his sister sitting across from him and simply shook his head. “When have you ever known Sivter to bluff?”

Morwenna Hevren-Leidias let out a long sigh. “Point,” she wearily conceded.

While not as familiar with the Master of the Cult of Shadow as the rest of their adopted family, both Reave and Morwenna had run into Sivter once before, Morwenna having even worked with him… or perhaps more specifically, for him, given the circumstances. That however was before she had met her then, estranged brother, and she had left her association with both the dark side and Sivter far behind. Or so she had thought.

“It’s impossible,” she threw her arms up in exasperation, “Even for Sivter! The whole galaxy’s going to surround Alsakan with an impenetrable wall of warships, there’s no way he could destroy the planet!”

Deep down Reave wished he could share his sister’s sense optimism. But he couldn’t.

Optimism? Come now, let’s call it what it is, delusion!

“He could release a virus, there would be nothing even the grandest fleet could do to guard against that,” Reave pointed out. “Or perhaps he has a forth Death Star?”

Morwenna’s shoulders slumped, she knew Reave was right. Yet there had been something in his tone of voice that she picked up on. “But you don’t think so?”

Reave shook his head. “No, Sivter wants a military force there for a reason. Sure, he could have a virus, or a super weapon, but I have this nagging feeling he intends to defeat whatever we put in front of him militarily.”

“Reave, that’s crazy. Sure, it’s possible the Cult has millions of followers, but there’s no way he could mass such a sizable military force without someone noticing!”

“You’re right,” Reave spread his hands out, “And yet I still can’t shake the feeling that’s what he intends to do.”

Silence once again fell across the two Jedi, a shroud as shadowy and depressing as the Dark Side itself. Weeks ago Reave and Morwenna had left the Temple on a mission to find out what had happened to their parents, so far that mission had drawn a blank, yet while they had been away much had happened in the war with Sivter. Too much.

“I have to go back,” Reave announced. “You can bet Kalja’s going to be at Askalan, and Tulsar too. I won’t let them face Sivter alone.”

“We have to go back,” Morwenna gently corrected him, forcing a smile onto her normally stern features.

“Then it’s decided,” he rose from his chair and headed to the Temperance’s cockpit. “I’ll set a course for Onderon.”

[SmokeMare]

Malakai watched the broadcast with vague interest, Sivters doings in the galaxy were not really his concern at this time, he had too much to do to get involved in them. However everything Sivter was doing was furthering his cause - and that was a good thing. He thought briefly about contacting the Defel and offering some assistance, but thought better of it - Sivter seemed to have things in hand and was probably too self-assured to accept help even if he did need it...

Malakai tried to meditate on Alsakan for a moment, could this be the climatic end, he had so clearly seen - looming forwards for Sivter, snapping at the Defels heels? It was difficult to tell, the future was clouded on the outcome of this fourthcoming event, he would wait and see, in the meantime - he had important work to do.

[corsos]

Dresul turned off the holoprojector in his office after Sivter concluded his announcement, and looked to Delth. "Only a fool would tell the galaxy where to go to stop him."

"And Sivter's no fool, or we would have found him by now." Delth said. "Why take so much care in concealing your intentions, power and location for years only to reveal your carefully laid plans out for the entire galaxy to see?"

"Because he wants the amassed fleets of the galaxy there to make whatever he has planned work." Dreskul said.

"Precisely." Delth said. "We can't fall into that trap."

"But we don't have a choice." Dreskul said.

"What do you mean?" Delth asked.

"His plan is genius really, and calculated to gauge our response perfectly." Dreskul said. "We have no choice to confront him there, because if we don't he will simply slip back into the shadows. I've been throwing every intelligence resource at my disposal at this problem for the last six months, and nothing. Not even a whisper. Agents, both Imperial and contracted, are disappearing every time they come across anything resembling a solid lead. We cannot pass up this opportunity to trap him and end this, and he knows it. If we let him escape Alaskan, who knows when our next opportunity would be? And if we are seen to let this happen by the galaxy, the entire military establishment will lose respect within the Galactic Empire. Grand Admiral Thrawn cannot afford that with the Moffs pressing him from all sides. We have to do this, and Sivter knows it."

"Then we need to out maneuver him, figure out something that he hasn't thought of and wouldn't expect." Delth said.

"You got it Commander. It's time we figured out what that something is."

[Vox]

Somewhere in the galaxy.

Bob Sacamano had no idea a Sith Lord had just threatened the very place he had chosen as a family vacation destination this year. To be completely honest he didn't care. He stapled another cover sheet on yet another TPS Report and continued to count down the hours till his vacation began. Two more hours till my vacation starts...

[Halomek]

OOC: Now that I have a computer again, let’s get this moving…

IC: Shortly after the Battle of Alsakan

Despite the best efforts of GNN to keep Sivter out of their signal, the Dark Master of the Cult of Shadow seemed to effortlessly break their encryption again to make his announcement. Viewers across the galaxy watched their screens as the Defel spoke to them in his by now familiar raspy voice.

“Another promise fulfilled,” Sivter said with a grin. “The planet Alsakan is no more than a barren and lifeless rock. Your governments did their best to try and stop me, but as I predicted, their efforts were worse than useless. Don’t believe me, then observe…”

Sivter’s face was replaced by footage of the Charon forces decimating the fleet over Alsakan and ravaging the planet. He continued speaking over the scenes of carnage and death. “Those ships you see filling the battlefield are the Charon, the very same creatures spoken of as hushed rumors and stories to frighten small children. As you can see, they are myth no longer. They serve the Cult of Shadow.”

Sivter’s face replaced the footage. “There is no stopping me. In my previous transmission I gave you the option of swearing your allegiance to me. I offer you one last chance to submit. Failure to do so will result in your complete destruction. From now until my dominion is complete, the Charon will show up at any planet that hasn’t sworn fealty to the Cult of Shadow and destroy it. You need but proclaim your loyalty through a holonet message and you will be spared. There will be no chance to save yourself if the Charon show up before you’ve completed this simple act of supplication.”

The Defel smiled. “I fully expect there will still be fools who resist the idea of serving me. Rest assured that they will be destroyed as all others who oppose me, but if you don’t want to share the fate of such boneheaded leaders, I suggest that the people take action and depose them. I believe the time has come to ask yourselves who you believe in more, your weak and ineffective governments, or the Cult of Shadow, who has delivered on every promise made. It’s your choice.”

The screen faded as Sivter delivered one last statement: “Choose wisely. I wouldn’t count on any more warnings about where we strike next.”

OOC: As always, reactions can be posted here.

[Halomek]

After nearly a week of the Charon appearing without warning and eradicating whatever planet was unfortunate enough to be in their path, Sivter unexpectedly appeared to the viewers of the galaxy once more over the GNN broadcast signal. He was seated, as per his other broadcasts, on a throne built from some kind of ebony stone.

“Greetings,” he said with a smile. “You’re doomed.”

“By the day, by the hour, planets flock to join the Cult of Shadow and the populations of hundreds more struggle to overthrow the governments that keep them from doing the same. There have been no victories against the Charon. No one can stand against their might…” He made a fist with one clawed hand. “No one can stand against my might.”

“And yet still some of you persist in believing I can be stopped,” he continued. “You believe this in spite of no evidence to the contrary. Perhaps you believe it because your governments are still standing and putting on a façade of being functional. I assure you that this is because I haven’t felt the need to destroy them outright, but the time has come at last to remove your last shred of hope.”

He held up an index finger. “In one day’s time, twenty-four standard hours from now, the Charon will arrive at Mon Calamari and proceed to do what they do best. This is your moment of truth, New Republic. Will you stand against me or will you flee and reveal your promises of strength and stability to be a lie? Will you admit, by your own actions, whether you’re truly capable of protecting your citizens, or that you can’t even protect yourself?”

“And because I believe in giving power to the people, I will periodically broadcast the status of your senators and leaders and whether they remain on the planet or not. We’ll see whether these representatives of the best the Republic has to offer truly believe in the strength of their government…” he grinned again, “…or if those inspirational speeches they like to make are all hot air. You’ll see their true faces.”

“Of course you have a chance to prevent your destruction, Mon Calamari,” Sivter added. “Simply overthrow the Republic and declare you allegiance to the Cult of Shadow. That’s all it takes.”

With that the transmission cut off, restoring the normal GNN signal…

OOC: We’re down to the wire now, people…