Star Wars: The Old Republic- Conflicting Elements

by Barrobroadcaster

Emotional Impact

Korriban Sith Academy, Office of Darth Karux

Darth Karux sat in his desk with a bored expression on his face as Lahk replayed the holorecording. He saw a crowd of strange, multicolored creatures on four legs, some of them appparently airborne. If the agent Karux had sent to keep an eye on Lahk hadn't slapped the recorder to his chest he wouldn't have any information regarding the events on Voss at all. Karux trusted his own kind more than he trusted the Sith, despite that Kess didn't have any affinity with the Force. It was clear now that he was right to put more faith in his agent.

He looked at the small four-legged creatures. He found them... disgusting. Were they naked? Savages, he thought. Multi-colored savages with strange powers. He didn't think they were threatening but yet another in a growing number of annoyances around him, though not related to the red one holding the recording. Karux was a Chiss and a proud one at that. His house was one of the ones leading the Chiss Ascendancy at the moment, a fact that made him feel a bit superior to even the average Sith. Other civilizations had been conquered by the Empire but the Emperor recognized the strength of the Chiss. His own strength had soon been recognized along with his affinity to the Force, which is how he quickly became a member of the Dark Council.

The galaxy didn't need any more weak nuisances. The Chiss would soon rule the Empire on their own and these inferior red skinned creatures would be extinct. Their race was almost exterminated by the Republic. If only they'd finished their job, he wouldn't have to deal with them now. He was sick of dealing with other inferior races like the Sith. The Sith may have been strong as a race but the Chiss were intelligent, refined. The Ascendancy was perfect and pure, the Sith would someday serve as the blunt instruments for Chiss masterminds. The galaxy needed purity and order if it was to survive and Karux would see to it that it did. "You claim these creatures are a threat?" he asked Lahk.

"Yes my lord. These creatures don't appear to have any affinity with the Force but they posess powers that rival that of some Force-users." Lahk said. "They don't appear to be hostile. It's been two rotations since the portal was opened and they've made no threats, shown no agression." Karux said. While the prospect of a new dimension to conquer was intriguing, he would prefer to crush the Republic first. He was disappointed Lahk had failed to apprehend the child of the two Voss councilors. Voss could've already been in Imperial hands and they would've been in a much better position to deal with the situation.

"My lord, it's the mere presence of that world that is the problem. Their power is outside that of the Force. We must find a way to control these creatures or find a way to neutralize them." Lahk said. He was correct but Karux hadn't sinced anything threatening from the holorecording. If these creatures were indeed a threat, they would be dealt with. Kess had informed him of his inability to kill the Jedi, the troopers or the Voss. In any other circumstance, Lahk would already be dead. But right now, the information he posessed outweighed his incompetence. He was sure he was exaggerating the capabilities of these creatures to save him from further disgrace.

"You are most correct Lord Lahk. Assemble my fleet. We depart for Voss." "My lord, what about the treaty?" "The treaty does not cover extra-galactic threats and from what you have told me the Voss are in disarray. We will deal with this new threat and gain a foothold on new territory for the Empire both in this galaxy and another one." Lord Lahk looked concerned but knew enough not to say anything further. He quickly turned around and headed off to assemble Karux's forces.

Coruscant, Senate Tower Audience chamber

"An entirely new galaxy?" General Tethra asked. "Yes. I told the Voss to show me a world of peave and that is the one we saw. One of the creatures confirmed it. They even healed the wounds of the initiate that the Sith attacked." Brazon explained to the Senate's investigation commity. He'd been examined, detoxified, scrubbed clean and even checked by the Jedi to make sure he wasn't a biohazard threat. After several hours, he'd been cleared to speak with a group of Senators, Jedi Masters, Republic officials and at the back of the crowd, his own superiors in the Republic military.

"These creatures seem to posess powers outside that of the Force." Zequill said. He held his head down again. "Outside the Force... how is that possible?" one of the Jedi asked. "It seems their dimension contains a power outside of the Force. They've constructed some sort of energy shield with it that now surrounds the portal to their world." Zequill continued. "We must investigate this at once, perhaps even open up diplomatic relations with them. This power could be the key to defeating the Sith!" General Tethra announced. Brazon bristled at the very idea. "With respect ma'am, I don't think involving these innocents is a good idea." The Jedi agreed with him. "He's right. Involving these beings goes against every moral we stand for." Zequill said, his head still bowed.

"We understand that getting them mixed up in our conflict isn't the right idea but we're forgetting one thing." Everyone in the room turned to General Tethra. "The Sith know about this new world. It's only a matter of time before they respond."
"Senator, we're already too late. Latest reports from SIS." Commander Carwin said, entering the room with a datapad. "A Sith fleet is en route to Voss." "Can they break through that shield?" someone in the room asked. "Wether they can or not, they're going to try. Commander, you're the most experienced with the Voss. I'm redeploying Donair Squadron back to Voss immediately. Master Zequill, gather as many Knights as you can and get them to Voss. Buy all the time you can. Your priority is to slow the Sith down so we can get the Republic fleet in position." "Yes sir." the Jedi said, lifting his head. "We may need to negotiate with these creatures after all but it is critical we stop the Sith from invading another world." Decades ago the Republic had been caught off guard when the Empire invaded the Outer Rim. This time, they were prepared and would do everything they could to stop them from conquering another defenseless world. Everyone in the room moved with purpose. The line was drawn and it was time to stand.

Imperial Dark Destroyer-class vessel Venomous, Voss low orbit

Darth Karux was disturbed by the readings on the display or rather the lack of readings. The visuals showed a pink bubble on the surface of Voss just outside the capital city but scans showed nothing but the remains of the building around it. No power readings were detected, no thermal or electrical. He sensed nothing in the Force. The only thing that showed it there was his own eyes. That was deeply concerning. It seemed Lahk had been correct; this world, its inhabitants and the powers they posessed were entirely outside of the Force. But not outside weapons range.

"Open fire." Karux ordered. The batteries on his flagship unleashed a flurry of lasers at the strange translucent dome. The sky lit up over Voss as energy cascaded down to its surface. The ground around the bubble was vaporized and a cloud of dust filled the air but cleared quickly. Karux clenched his jaw when he saw the bubble unscathed by the assault. "Again!" he announced. He was not going to be outdone by four legged savages. "Coordinate fire with the Razer and the Punisher!! Fire!" His cruiser's barrage was joined by fire from two of the four frigates in his formation. The air burned over the capital city as craters erupted around the small bubble. The dust settled again. Karux scowled as the shield remained, shimmering on the surface.

"Magnify.", he annoucned to his visual sensor operator. The viewscreen on the console before him showed the pink shield. He scanned it for any structural weakness. On one of the sides he noticed a small pin prick of white. A crack. "Target that fracture. Tactical, transmit our data to the fleet. All batteries target those coordinates and open fire!!" he shouted at the viewscreen. The fleet unleashed a third volley on small energy shield in the middle of the valley of craters that was created by the first blasts. This time, the beams focused on one spot. The skies exploded with fire and light washed over the area. The pink shield shattered like glass.

Reconciled Spacial Anamoly "Ponyvoss", Equestrian side

"Fallback! Fallback!" Shining Armor shouted through the portal. The Royal Gaurds came through in droves, thankfully his shield spell was strong enough to repel the first attack or they would've been vaporized. He'd exhausted a lot of his energy trying to keep the shield from breaking, he wasn't able to reform it on this side yet. His troops fled in terror when they saw the shield fracture. He had to marshall them and get word to Canterlot for reinforcements. It was up to him and his men to hold the line.

Reconciled Spacial Anamoly "Ponyvoss", Voss side

Imperial shocktroops marched on the portal. Lord Lahk walked beside Darth Karux in the formation. Darth Karux didn't even blink as they both approached the rift, followed by the platoon of Karux's best soldiers, mostly Chiss. Lord Lahk felt a cold trickle of fear run through the Force but he couldn't tell if it was coming from him or anyone else in the formation. They stepped through the portal.

Reconciled Spacial Anamoly "Ponyvoss, Equestrian side

Darth Karux stepped through first and drew both of his lightsabers, both of them pulsed purple. Lahk drew his own red lightsaber and stood at his side. Kess stepped through along with the rest of the formation and they began to fan out, taking flanking positions on either side of the portal. He surveyed this new world. Colorful, primitive, disorderly. This wasn't a conquest, this was a training excercise. He stepped toward the small town he saw before him.

The formation continued to march to the buildings only a few meters away. Darth Karux reached out and tried to feel the dark side of the Force. But he felt... nothing. It seemed Lahk had been correct; this entire world is absent of the Force. No matter. He didn't need the Force to tear these pathetic primitives apart. The plan was simple: make the official decree, if there was resistance(and there always was) eliminate it, if not, round up the locals and secure them for transport to the nearest reeducation center or prison as situation warranted. Both he and Lahk deactivated their lightsabers. No sense wasting energy.

They were near the entrance to town when Darth Karux started to feel something in the pit of his stomach. He ignored it and continued on. The sensation didn't abate, it was like a stone in his gut. It started spreading, his arms began to feel numb. Was this some sort of biological attack? Lahk had passed biohazard screening and the air was clean and breathable. He looked over to Lahk. Lahk seemed to be sweating and breathing heavily as he marched. Both their movements began to slow as the troopers continued to march past them.

Karux started to... feel. Unbeknownst to him and most other Sith, he had been using the dark side to supress and control his emotions, to channel them into power using the Force. But now that it was gone, all those bundled up feelings came rushing through him like a burst dam, flooding his entire body with the pain of guilt, sorrow, envy, shame, anger, fear. Without the Force, he couldn't control them and they began eating away at his strength.

The world around Karux became fuzzy. He became lightheaded and it got harder to breath. What was happening to him? Lahk got down on one knee and seemed to be in no better condition. Karux got down on both knees and placed his hands on the ground, trying to steady himself. Are you all right sir?" one of the troopers asked, a couple of them stopping to help. "No... I... I don't..." Lahk gasped, his breathing laboured. "Call... call for a medevac... I can't..." Karux was finally overwhelmed by his own emotions and collapsed into a heap on the ground just outside Ponyville. He stared up at the stars, still concious but unable to move his muscles. He didn't recognize any of the constellations. He missed home. For the first time since becoming a Sith, he thought of his family. How he'd been forced to murder them as part of his final trial in his own home. His parents... his baby brother. Tears ran down his cheeks as he remembered the last time he ever felt happy.

Kess didn't know what was happening to the two Sith behind her and she wasn't planning on staying to find out. She had her own mission to accomplish from Imperial Intelligence. The Emperor had been informed of this new world and wanted it as his own very quickly. Darth Karux's attack may have been a tad premature but it made no difference. It was another world and all worlds bowed to the Emperor. Kess's own failure to kill the Voss initiate was a black mark on her otherwise spotless record. She slipped away from the group and activated her stealth field generator. She was not going to fail again.

Comments

[smoers06]

Talak: Imperial Intelligence, I've dealt with those guys before. Far to uptight, never even let their operatives have a drink every once in a while.
Interogative: Why would it matter what beverages the meatbags prefer as long as they die when we blast them?
Talak: Simple HK. Maybe this Kess is just lonely. Maybe she just needs a drink and s shoulder to cry on. But mostly a drink.
Right, why don't you go meet her Talak, I'm sure you'll hit it off.
Talak: Really?
NO

[Cobrawolf_Meiji2012]

The Sith Invade Equestria! Pinkie Pie does Invasion Party! Sith turned to Cupcakes!

[Barrobroadcaster]

1544740>>1544664 Czerka Corporation would like to remind all travelers that Equestria is off-limits to all those except for the science team aboard the U.S.S Grissom. Wait, did I say Equestria or Genisis?

[smoers06]

1544808

Talak: Psh, Czerka can say whatever they want. I'm a Smuggler, it's my job to get into places I'm not allowed!