A projected image formed, one of a solar system as viewed from it outer edge. Before it lay two swiftly moving bodies, and what appeared to be another moving just beyond its edge. Past that an asteroid ring that split the system in half, sifting off a good portion of the systems yellow suns rays. Zooming back away from the system, the image showed a Seven planet system, a large gas giant becoming visible where once was a smaller planet on the horizon, showing itself to be a moon of the larger body. Of the entire system three planetoids alone shared a common humm among them.

The Bishop opened his eyes as he disconnected himself from the ships sensors, they had arrived at the edge of the Corvis Minor system at the time scheduled by the IDTech waystation for the Albarrio Sector. He could feel his two sister ships emerge beside him through the sensor net, modified Ghost class vessels designed for this mission specifically. A slight humm in his right ear signaled to him active communications between his sister ships, sending back the exact same frequancy he signaled his acceptance and began to proceed in system, his course set towards Corvis Minor Five.

Every motion felt familiar, every ships movement, every fire of a gravametric distortion was like a mere extension of his physical body as he felt the vessel motion around him. Alignment for a hyperspace jump in this system was a difficult procedure, he himself would have to deal with the massive gravwell of the Gas Giant itself combined with those of its many smaller moons. He could only imagine what his collegues were going through and what headaches that asteroid ring were cuasing them on their vectors. As the tail end of his ghost tiped down to bring his vessel in direct line with the moon, at a vector to escape most of the planets gravity, he initiated the hyperdrive to bring himself within overwhelming communications array distance of the planet.

A Brief History in Time

In the hight of the rebellion the Corvis Minor system both prospered and suffered under the rule of its Imperial govenor. While its people benifited from all the standard Imperial temperments, freedom would be at an all time low for many decades. Any free market system was crushed by the local govenor as a means to quell any rising black market that might have been developing in the systems asteroid ring. While an unsucessful tactic it did give a certain corporation enough room to form a monopoly over a great deal of products and services otherwise unrecieveable on the inhabited planets of the Corvis Minor system.

IDTech was that corporation, Its pleasure domes allowed the citizens of the Imperial controlled planets to delve into their own personal dreams while under the iron rule of the Imperial brigades. This went on without incident under the Imperials as it kept the local populations calm and under control whilst relatively happy, while also not costing them anything. This long term Imperial riegn coupled with IDTech relief fostered a long term good natured company relation with the local peoples. In the interviening time the Empire has long since abandoned the system, the republic having not yet taken the initiative to command here, IDTech has taken the means to supply the worlds with everything they need at greatly reduced prices than found anywhere else in the galaxy. Any Corvis Minor system could easily tell you the name of the CEO of IDTech becuase of the close relationship between the systems civilian government and the Corporation.

It was at the end of the Rebellion that Raktus had created the new persona for himself, one of the average man from the streets, beyond that of the Godhood known to that of his, the Daemun people. It was with this name he was associated with in all IDTech actions, it was his prefered way of business. The Corvis Minor system was an asset he held dear to him, not for its credit value, nor its closeness to the Corprate Sector, but for the ties he had created over the many many years with the people of the system itself. If the Daemun people ever had an adopted cousin, these would be them. Yet, they were sinners, all of them. Much too unclean to join the ranks of the Daemun people, and far too knew to understand what that ment. Yet Raktus was not a spiteful God, he would bring his choosen people into the light, free them from their past sins and raise them to the level above all others, he would create in them his choosen people and they would love him forever.

Three ships had been modified for the effort, to play on the old hatred of the Empire and its ilk. It pained him to be forced to trick his own people, but it was the only way to be sure to take every mind off of the changes being made for them, to them, around them. These peoples would be made whole as they should be, to the fullness of the Daemun people, yet not Daemun. These improved vessels were equiped to project a massive sensor mirrage, the stealth package being overhualed instead for a wave beam projector system. A system designed to fool other sensors in an area of effect, it wasnt a perfect technology, but it only had to work for a limited time in a limited area. The Empire was about to become more powerful and fearsome than it ever thought it could be, or wanted to be.

Taja Jade Raktus, Shadow Jedi Knight of OSJ, was practicing her combat technique when suddenly, there was a sharp pain in her right shoulder. Looking down, the point of a dagger protruded from wound and she screamed loudly.

Now, being 1 month pregnant, this was tramatic for her. She turned around to face her assailant as the dagger was ripped out of her shoulder.

It was none other than Empress Yoko Doment.

"Well, hello, Alicia dear. My, how youve grown. Glad to see you after all these years. Been searching a long time, you know."

"Mother. How did you find me?"

"It wasnt easy, you see, but I did it. Again. And now, you must die. But in time."

"Why? Why, Mama."

"Because you are your sisters were a mistake. I didnt want any 4 of you, yet I accpeted them all. All but you. I knew someday that you will take my place as Empress, and I refused to let that happen, which is why you must die. That, and for carrying an abomination you call a child."

"Leave my baby out of this."

"No, thanks. Id rather both of you die."

"You know, when Raktus finds out what has happened to us, he will kill you. That is, if you are not put to death first."

"I dont care what happens to me, just so long as you and that....thing....you are carrying is dead. Thats all that matters."

Muttering an angry cry, Jade swings hard with her left fist, decking her mother hard enough to break her jawbone.

Yoko gets up fights back, swinging her saber at Jade, who quickly blocks by igniting her own double black blades. She swings upwards, opening a cut on her mothers arm.

Just as her mother strikes the killing blow, she sits bolt upright in her bed, sweaty hair clinging to her forehead.

"Oh, my God. Mama is coming for me. Shes gonna kill us both. I have to leave before she finds me here. But in the morning."

She lays down and goes back to sleep.



Jade dreamed....


She was sixteen. It's a summer evening, and the stars overhead shine dimly through the smoke of countless chimneys. The city below reeks, but her father sees that the palace is swept and cleaned and garnished with incense. In the courtyard, grooms tend to the horses after the last messengers of the day have arrived, and the cooks and scullery boys start to gather the ingredients of tomorrow's meals for slow cooking.

She walks along an upper hallway to the family chapel, where the archbishop waits for her and her confession. She does not like Archishop Monfreid, and never has. From the moment she began to form impressions of people, she thought of him as a hole where a soul should be. His march to power has not changed that. As she studied rhetoric and poetry, she learned of mystics who regard themselves as vessels through which devine light pours. Monfreid is like that, except that within him there is no light. He sees himself as nothing, but he also sees the world as nothing but himself. She suspects that his vision of heaven is himself, endlessly repeated.

Though most ignore it, the archbishop is more secretive than any other clergyman. He will not come out during the day, and quotes strange mixtures of passages from the Empire about evil under the sun. He meets with others only at night, and almost always in darkness. Jade has tried to warn her father that their confessor is up to no good, but her father remains awestruck by having an important cleric pay attention to him. Perhaps there is something more sinister at work, too; she suspects many things but cannot yet prove them.

She enters the chapel. The decorations have changed. The altar cloth is now pure black. The stained glass windows are purely red, and they seem to be wet, as if some force held liquid in place. The walls shine with reflections of scenes Jade does not recognize, though her older self knows that they are moments of faith and doubt from later years. The Archbishop does not wait in the confessional booth. Instead, he stands as if for a sermon. When she enters, he motions for her to shut the door.

"Child." he says in that grating tone, "what are the great laws?"

"To love my father, the Emperor, with all my heart, and to love my neighbor as myself." she speaks with reverence toward the laws, even though she despises the Archbishop's use of 'child'. She is not a child. and she will show him a woman's understanding.

The candles begin to flicker out as he lectures her. "What is the duty of the child to its parents?"

"To honor them, that their days may be long in the land that the Empire has given them."

A red glow kindles somewhere near the ceiling. She can see that the redness in the windows is in fact flowing, steaming off as it leaves the frames. Monfreid drones on. "And what is the duty of the bride?"

"To foresake her home and cleave her bridegroom, to become one flesh."

"That is correct." The red glow is now clearly coming from a hole in the ceiling, a single light in the darkness. The chapel smells of musty upturned earth. The Archbishop seems to loom larger in front of her. "You have forsaken your parents. I have drawn you out of that world. I am your father, and yet you do not cleave to me, nor do you respect me. What are the wages of sin?"

She is lying in a coffin. Things scrabble all around her. She feels her flesh crackle, and smells corruption within her. "Death."

"That is correct. The wages of sin are death. You are in disobedience of the God's holy plan."

She only barely manages to draw breath and whisper, "How do I know?"

"You have never seen the Gods, and you never will. You see their chosen ministers on Dameo, of whom I am one. I tell you what the Gods wills are, and you obey. If I were to stray from the path, the Gods would judge me and you would know. But as you see, they have crowned my work with success." The coffin opens, and she finds herself standing in the basement of the great cathedral in Dameo City. The moon passes by an open window....and again....and again, faster and faster. Trophies accumulate. Defeated enemies come in to prostrate themselves at the Archbishop's feet. He grows fatter and meaner. "The Gods reward my payment of the ultimate price."

She struggles to answer, but cannot now find air.

"You see? Your own body knows your sin. Come, let me show you what should have been." Again, she steps from the coffin But now she steps to his side. The tribute comes for her as well as him. She feels the power of enemies chosen for destruction coursing in her veins, proving her fresh power. As her master's power grows, she grows with it. In time, she strides across the New City as its dark queen, reaping an endless harvest of blood and sorrow as she serves her master in his quest to punish all sin and create the New SummerWind on Dameo.

She feels herself within that other self, but it is a lie. SHe tries to tear off the mask, but cannot. Gradually, she forces herself out through the lie's pores, one drop at a time. In the end, after countless years of effort, she draws herself up out of a black puddle and watches the lie's barren husk collaspe. "I reject you."

Everything---people and building alike---ooze and crumble as did her lie. Soon, she and her master stand on a featureless plain, ankle-deep in dust. "Do you? Tell me, daughter of my blood, what is it you reject?"

"You. Your schemes. Everything about you. Whatever you are, I am not. Whatever you do, I will stop you." She is so young, she knows in the dream, and has no idea what she's promising. But she knows, in the dream, that she will spend nine hundred years trying to live up to those words.

"Tell me of your schemes."

"I....you....the throne....the ships....the colony...." Her thoughts mash together. None achieves complete expression. She stammers in frustration and anger.

"You see? You rebel not against me, but against your image of me. You do not see that you are my child in truth, the image of my soul. You do my will as I do the God's wills. You are just like me." He smiles at her. "Everything you have ever done serves me. Everything you are serves me. When the great trial comes, you will stand confirmed as my worhy heir." In violation of the great curse, Monfreid suddenly appears reflected in all mirrors that had sprung up unnoticed. The source of the reflections reaches out to touch her, his hands tracing the lines of her horrified face. In the mirrors, his hands leave behind a faint impression, which takes on clarity and definition: it is his own image.

Jade woke with a scream. The words 'child in truth' echoed out from under the bed. She jumped up and ran into the bathroom, pressing blood-sweaty hands against the mirror, which, of course, showed nothing. Blood dripped down into the sink, forming letter after letter as it swirled away. "Child in truth." Gradually, she emerged more fully into wakefullness, and the manifestations settled down.

The Radi, she realized, had been goading itself into activity, and she took calm slow measures to subdue it again. She could feel the press of daylight outside. Fearful of attack, she calmed herself and conducted a lengthy probe of her psyche.

In the end, she found no trace of manipulation. But though she lay almost stupefied with the agony of daytime wakefulness, she could sleep not again that day.



Two Days Later . . . .


Jade had entered Angelique's room more than an hour before, and obsevered quietly as part of the shadows. She hoped to use the pilot for the rest of her search, and needed to see how the woman dealt with adversity. Persy's servant told her and the master of the house about Angelique's show of resistance and crumbling; Jade found it a little disappointing, but then there were uses for very malleable people as well as more stubborn ones.

Angelique woke from a tearful slumber shortly after midnight. Her aura radiated fear leavened with encouraging traces of anger. Jade watched as the pilot took careful stock of her possessions, spreading around everything pointed (keys, nail file, a small knife, jeweler's screwdriver) into seperate pockets for possible use as a weapon. Then Angelique made a second pass to check for loose pocket flaps and anything else that might make a convenient grabbing point, turning her collar in, tucking in pants. Jade recognized the movements of experience, and wondered just where the pilot had done her dirty fighting. Once she was secure in herself, Angelique examined the room carefully. She didnt touch the door or windows, but felt around them and examined them from various angles, looking for security measures and any exploitable weakness. All of this passed in what was, for a mortal, remarkable quiet.

After marking two complete passes through her room, and spot checks several more times at key points, Angelique sat down on the bed to wait for whatever came next. Jade continued to watch as Angelique pursued a variety of tasks which kept her lightly occupied but not too heavily distracted: buffing and trimming nails, putting her hair up in a close braid, unraveling the bedspread's hem and checking for concealed layers. Jade saw the anger in Angelique's aura glow, crowding out other emotions, and watched as fatigue dimmed it all. When the moment seemed right, Jade drew herself out of the shadows.

Angelique didnt speak. She clutched her scissors and knife and charged. Jade put her hands out, each one seizing one of Angelique's and forcing the woman down to her knees with simple twists. "I will speak with you."

The woman continued to struggle, Jade noticed with a certain admiration. "I will speak with you," she said again.

"Youre going to kill me. Get it over with."

"When I decide you should die, you will die promptly. In the meantime, will you listen?"

"You want my soul, and its not yours. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will . . ."

"Stop that." Jade spoke with the tone of command, and the curse dried up in Angelique's mouth. Nothing she tried to repeat for casting curses could take form. Other words were fine, only the curses to cast were denied her.


Word Count: 2094

"This is the Daemun vessel you shall refer to as Inheritance of Soul, we have been sent on behalf of the IDTech Corporation to warn you of iminent Imperial danger. If you would excuse our abruptness, we do require each of our three vessels to park in stationary orbits over each inhabited planet of this system with which to better monitor this threat as it approaches."

He hated the galactic standard of communication, it messed with his head sometimes, words were so inadequate when compared to the proccess of pure thought when it came to conveying a message. Then there was always at least a few seconds of silence, time to comprehend if anyone indeed recieve the message, it had been sent broadband to fully encompass the system. It was part of the plan, to alert the civilian population to an on coming threat, cuase mass hysterics and all that jazz. Keep the peoples minds off their true buisness here, it seemed relatively easy enough.

"I repeat, this is the Daemun vessel Inheritance of Soul, sent on behalf of IDTech, to warn you of danger, please respond."

Average humanoids were so damn inconvienent when it came to... well, when it came to just about anything. Slower, weaker and less comunicative all around. Even now, two messages sent and still no governmental response, no militant readiness, what if their had been another Imperial incursion? No doubt this was the system that had been captured by them so long ago, He could hardly figure on how Raktus found these people so special...

"Uhm, Inheritance of Soul? This is the second Trimphite to the System Govenor, I appologize for our slowness, this entire system has been on a communications blackout inexplicably for some time now, we frankly wernt aware there were any transmissions being sent until just now... Did you say IDTech?"

"Yes, we are being sponsored by the IDTech Corporation to assist this system in its defense against probable Imperial Invasion"

Another long puase proceeded this interlude as well, fairly disappointing, he could only hope this systems inhabitants didnt retard the whole intelligence web with their lack of sense

"Is Heir Raktus still CEO?"

What was this? These people were acting more like a collective child rather than a submissive governing body of planets. If what their briefing had been completely correct than it would be right to assume Raktus would be the only man these people could trust politicaly, but to say such a thing, on an open channel, was idiocy.

"Yes, Heir Raktus is still CEO of IDTech" He said in a low condeseding tone of voice, unbecoming of one of his rank, "He sent us on this mission personally."

"Then consider yourselves to have free reign over all space in the Corvis Minor system, If Heir Raktus trusted you enough to send you here, then we trust you enough to welcome you with open arms."

He could sense the humor being transmitted across the intelligence web from his two other collegues. Trust was a high comodity to give away, especially to someone who hasnt ever even visited the system before.

"Very well then, we shall move into a triangular hold orbit over each planet to synchronize our orbits with each other, after this is complete we shall inform you of the imminent danger this system is facing from our likewise enemy."

[i]He could honestly call The New Order enemy, not becuase he held some deep seated hatred for them, in fact he granted to them absolutely no Ill will. The Intelligence web told him The New Order was his enemy, thus it was so, He new it came from the Taj Daemun himself, his god like persona overode the web itself with his overiding directives, and this was one of them. TNO = Enemy

As his ship settled into the upper limits of the atmosphere he could sense to nano compartments across the ship opening to the planet, its Assembler contents slowly pouring out into the high carbon oxygen mix. It was a calculated bunch, the hull had just enough of the buggers that half could burn away in the atmosphere and still function to completion. The plan was that each assembler would build one copy of itself until a set number of them were planetside. After this number had been reached the true mission began for these micro machines. Slowly they would change the peoples to become more Daemun, infiltrating their brains to give them a small connection to the Intelligence web, not a conscious connection, but one that would feed them with enough information to direct their actions to those they deemed needed. This of course would lead to the Daemun reconstruction of this entire civilization.

Of course, step one still needed to be accomplished, and that ment that the general populace needed to have their minds taken off the problem at hand. The coming Imperial Invasion would accomplish that enough, but not just any invasion would do, this would have to be big, unavoidable, watchable.

Dameo City Docking Bay, Dameo

Jade paced around the ship, admiring it from all sides. It was a marvel. A bit under 41 meters long, painted a smooth black with "Black Dragon Empire" picked out in red with an unusual emboss effect, the ship seemed a creature from a world wholly other than Dameo City. It looked, frankly, like a holodrama prop.

Her colleagues were widly jealous of the whole thing and Jade was loving it. She carefully refrained from outright denying any of their guesses, from spice smugglers to IDTech pleasure droids. Guia, the borderline schizophrenic, happily riffed on "BDE" with a tale of returning occult books to the Dukes so that the cardinals could perform the rites necessary to choose the next Empress correctly. Jade very nearly managed to keep a straight face even for that one.

The guy who flew it inthat afternoon, now, he was part of the scene: a burly, bearded Corellian, maybe 50 years old, with tattoos for service in two wars and (if Jade was reading the symbols correctly) at least two volunteer efforts in other people's wars. If he were to change out that spiffy flight suit and ito jeans or overalls, he could vanish into the crowd at the closest cantina and nobody would ever find him again. Apart from his height, maybe. Jade was used to pilots being taller than she--at 5 foot 10, she was usually at the bottom of any conversation. But this guy was big, well over 3 inches or so above her. She wondered if he'd been a basketball player.


EDIT: Will add more later....

Corvis Minor 4

A small poking sensation tumbled against his side, shrugging it off he rolled over, facing off the edge of his small cot still half asleep. Coming again harder he waved his arm backward iratated, yet still asleep, unwilling to wake. It was his day off, finally, he was going to enjoy it in the manner he felt was best, asleep. This time the blow came straight to his midback, obviously an elbow placed in just the right spot to cuase the most "wake up" pain it could.

"Johnas, you ignorant prick, get the hell outta bed this moment"

No she just didnt... Gripping the edge of the cot he rolled over, glaring at the stout woman with a fire in his eyes. How dare she do this to him on his day off! Rolling his body so that his leg swung over the side of the bed he reached for his prosthetic cane to lift himself up with

"Woman, you had best make some distance between you and myself lest I crush your skull with this cane of mine!"

Shrieking back she pushed herself up against the wall as he approached menacingly.

"NO! I merely... Look!"

Gesturing to the small holopad in the corner of the room he saw what she ment as he hobbled past her. The news had been evidently covering some new attraction to the Corvis system, an attraction from the old IDTech associates. They always seemed like nice enough people, but something in the back of his mind always didnt trust them for some reason. Though he had heard what the corporation had done for his parents in the past, and he could respect that, trust between Corporation and consumer.

"Get me the phone you wench, I wanna know whats happening"

The phone rang, it was an archiac system of communication, but it was affordable and the government checks didnt really pay so much to get the good luxarys. ring ring ring. The local holostation obviously needed better attendants, else they were all busy with this new development.

"TRAG 1107, How may I help you?"

"Connect me to department 997, Francis Macron"

"Hold please"

If anyone could tell him the whole story, Francis could, he was the most informed low level person he knew in the station, and besides, he was free. Not pay by the minute like that cheap whore of a holostation. The government was dirt poor, and they were damn sure to let the people know that en charge.

"Macron here, what can I do for you?"

"Hey Macron, its me Johnas, what can you tell me man?"

"About..."

"What the hell do you mean about? What else could I be talking about??"

"Oh, the ship thing, well you see..."

Holovid Network - Corvis 4

A short seemingly plain woman sat before the screen in a manner and apperance of that of a reporter still trying to make it big in a buisiness they have no chance in.

"And thus was the scene earlier today as the IDTech representative emerged from his transport to meet with Corvis Minor Fours elected government and become its advisor in times ahead. We have all heard the transmission made earlier by this vessel and anticipate full assistance from our friends from the past. Our Full confidence is with you IDTech, dont let us down.

In other news, Senator John..."

__________________________________________

[i]waving about, he met the crowd head on, he could see the attraction the gods had to mass witness if they were anything like this. Quickly he abolished the thought from his head, not for his thoughts at all. He smiled broadly as he felt the cameras on him, best to make the most of it, he would be here a fairly long while setting the stage as the nanos did their work on the population. These were the moments that mattered and would be looked upon for referance in the coming years, on operations such as this.

Under the imposed threat of Imperial invasion, and his ship still projecting its sensor illusions the governement would play into the palm of his hand. Fear had this power on the weak mind, none new this principal better than, ironicaly, the leader of the old empire itself, old Palp had it going on. His advisory status would carry on to real equivalent here, until finally they would be merely plug ins to the Black Dragon Empire.

Closing his eyes he connected to the intelligence web, uploading through his vessels transmitter straight to Dameo. The word had to be given to continue, his compatriots would be doing the same thing as theirs were completed as well. This is when he learned of the Ganath encounter and inwardly sighed, such a small operation and so massively bungled. He should not have expected less from the Goddess of Hell, she wouldnt bat an eye at the death of billions. It was a sad day for the Taj's worshippers, but then again, it was a good day for all of the empire itself. What times these were to live in indeed.

He opened his eyes as mere moments had passed and his grin returned, facing right toward the cameras he noded gently. No doubt these people had no idea what came next, and had they, they would have likely fought him, even though it was more than just for their best. He could only grin, smile ands watch as things changed, it was more than slightly humourus. This was his time, and he knew it.