Prologue: Keeper of the Plague

[Karl Valten]

In the endless millennia of warfare for the control of the galaxy every form of destructive weapon imaginable has been seen. Massive fleets of warships of the olden days laying siege against each other over vast distances with archaic projectiles, the evolution of energy weapons capable of cutting swathes through even the heaviest armor, great armies clashing in close quarters, tiny devices that could cause unimaginable destruction the rise of the Jedi and the Sith with their laser-swords and the ability to cut through anything and the force, armies of clones grown in vats, and then the Imperium. And with the Imperium came the ultimate weapon, a battle station with the ability to destroy entire planets in one fell assault.

Yet with these great and terrible means of death and devastation one aspect has always been overlooked. Disease and plague have ever been the plight of the denizens of the galaxy and biological warfare is not unknown. But never has such an agent been deployed as a primary means of attack. Unknown to nearly all living beings the Emperor Palpatine, rule of the Galactic Empire, had commissioned a top secret project.

At the head of this deed, the Emperor charged General Evir Derricotte. A headquarters, which would eventually become known as the Emperor's Storehouse, was established for Derricote in a secret research facility on an uncharted asteroid in the deep core, hidden from any and all prying eyes. Derricote, a savant in biological concoctions, began developing viruses of unfathomable power. Through experimentation and the terrible screams of his test subjects, Derricotte developed enough viruses to wipe out all known races in the galaxy. Even a virus to annihilate the human race, a disease Palpatine himself considered too deadly and terrible to be used.

When Derricote's work was complete, Palpatine ordered that all the viruses remain stored in the secret asteroid depot and had the storehouse's coordinates removed from the Imperial archives to hide its location. With his death the location has been entirely lost.

Until a single soul in the galaxy happened across the terrible secret.

[Valeria Tur'ilian]

The utterly surreal world phased around her, as though all the people and incandescent scenery were stuck on warp drive; she, in slow motion. Coruscant night was one of the most miraculous sights she had ever beheld and yet, the illustrious fauna daunted her. Truly, most species had gained, over very little time, the utmost disgust and loathing a creature of her nature could provide. As she passed a human, which she found particularly deplorable, she found herself imagining all the beautiful ways she could tear it apart. They were so plentiful, spread throughout the galaxy like an infestation of roaches; but, that was all the more reason to specialize in disguising herself as one. Shapeshifters were few, she was considered a professional when it came to the uniquely brutal jobs she took. For the first time in a while, however, Valeria was here for pleasure rather than business.

Many events had led up to her being here, strolling toward High Town; a place she had once swore never to venture. Dried blood still stuck to her completely black attire, which was scant as per usual, and untamed mass of ebony curls. Lightning hued eyes, cold as Hoth, stared obstinately forward and a gloved hands idly swung at her sides. Her confident stride had turned into something more of a trudge, her booted feet still fell silent against the ferrocrete walkway. Verily, she had not been herself since she had taken a vacation from Onderon; family fun rarely had her in the best of moods. But, once her plan was set into motion, all would be well again.

If she could but find a way to enter the Grand Inquisitor’s private home in the fancy district without being seen; security was tight, the district was the humble abode to many of Coruscant’s finer aristocrats. Slinking into the shadows, like the Tuk’ata of Korriban upon sensing prey close at hand, she waited for the slim woman who had been traveling several meters behind her to pass. In an instant, she took in every last detail of her appearance; smells and mannerism were of little importance.

With barely a sound, she launched herself from the shadows and slung an arm around the young woman’s slender neck. A resounding snap reverberated throughout the complex; a common sound considering they weren’t too far from some of the casinos and nightclubs. Slinging the woman to the ground, safely tucked within a web of shadows, Valeria managed a malicious smile. Black hair drew up into a brown hued bun, violet eyes faded to a dull grey, and her frame lessened until she was a mirror image of the dead human at her feet. Changing clothes and removing the items from the lifeless corpse, she moved into the light.

“Filth… disgusting… I hope you’re in hell…” She muttered, whisking herself in the direction of the droid positioned at the district’s entrance. Immediately she was recognized as one of the local elites; she flashed an identification card, then entered. He’d be coming along soon enough, this Grand Inquisitor; the bait she had set was more than appetizing enough. She made short work of sneaking into his expensive home and decided she’d wait on the most comfortable piece of furniture she could find in the dark.

[Karl Valten]

Well, well, well. Surely an interesting night would grow from such a strange day; a claim not to be taken lightly in the life of the Grand Inquisitor as of late. The taste of change wove eerily through the air and hung heavily in the warrens of the Citadel. It was a taint that disturbed many Inquisitors. Living in a world where the preservation of order, stability, and utmost loyalty by any means necessary dictated existence and the faintest whisper of alteration was snuffed out lest it be heard, change embodied terror. Even more yet that the unsettling aura stemmed from the Citadel itself.

Yet this night he felt a different tingle of foreboding…coupled with the electrifying shivers of excitement. Words burned brightly in his mind, words that he had not dared believe would ever be seen again. Yet all the scouring and analysis of the Inqusitoriate’s artificial intelligence had proved it beyond a doubt. The small unassuming datapad and the smattering of notes it contained were truly written by perhaps on of the most brilliant men to have served the Empire.

Such an intriguing font of knowledge appearing from thin air did drown in him in a haze of suspicion. Though no trace of the individual that slipped the datapad onto the secretary’s desk could be found. Agents had been sent out searching to no avail and even a search of the Inquisitorial database could only label the individual as four years deceased.

The Inquisitoriate had a saying, “If knowledge is power, then to be unknown is to be invincible.” Now Karl was faced with a mysterious benefactor that could not be traced…invincible and invisible to the Grand Inquisitor; something that never happened. A wary eye would have to be kept, though he did feel a measure of respect from one shadowy wraith to another.

For the while, however, it would be best to retreat and delve more into the data contained in the small computer now tucked into a pocket. The Empire rewarded its subjects well, and none more so than those who were only superseded by the Emperor himself. Valten had received, to his chagrin in truth, an estate of considerable value. Though it did have its purposes, especially when it came to concealing things of…delicate nature. Things that it would be better not to have catalogued by the omniscient and immortal archives of the Citadel.

Ignoring the masses of ignorant cattle claiming the title of ‘aristocrat’, Karl entered his private domain away from the Inquisitoriate. Meandering towards his destination, a strange sensation began to grow at the back of his mind, and quite a familiar one now that old memories came back.

He paused at an exquisitely carved chamber door, taking note of the light shimmering through the threshold. An almost respectful smile darted across his darkened features and the Grand Inquisitor calmly pushed the door open, making no move to conceal his entry.

“Enjoying ourselves are we?”

[Valeria Tur'ilian]

“Ooooh…. you have no idea!”

Valeria mewled from the spot she had chosen at the very center of the Grand Inquisitor’s capacious mattress. Her calves were bent upward and her flat stomach pressed into the downy sheets spread beneath her. She had not yet shifted back into her usual form; most of the effects of her position were probably lost. It wasn’t like she could help herself. Leaning her chin into her upturned palms, she settled a furtive gaze upon him and wiggled her booted feet in an almost childish manner.

She hadn’t expected him to arrive so soon; Valeria could barely contain her excitement or maintain the repugnant form she had assumed earlier that evening. For one brief moment, her form trembled as each nerve ending strained to control her base urges. One step closer to her goals; yet, this man was the loose cannon that could tear asunder all she had worked toward.

Massive claws began to shred through the fragile human skin she had chosen to shroud the true fiend she was; serrated fangs were flashed as a lengthy tongue came to flick across the inevitably plumping lips. A feral sound was the only warning her victim was afforded and then she was bounding from the sheets. All manners of material scattered; torn bits of clothing from her hasty transfiguration and whatever had fallen beneath her claws.

Graceful but utterly powerful legs plunged forward and locked against either side of his hips. The momentum behind the sudden offense caused them both to crash, in the respective direction, toward the nearest wall. There was a resounding thud as flesh collided with expensive plaster and then another animalistic noise. Dark, thick, and untamed curls bounced in both of their gazes.

“You’ll just have to forgive me. I’m just so excited about meeting you…” She breathed, flexing a writhing hand that rested threateningly close to his jugular.

[Karl Valten]

Karl Valten had seen the worst evils that existed in life…and had committed atrocities far more terrible than even those. But the sight of an aristocratic, one of his neighbors to say the least, sprawled out on his bed like some saucy wench was something the Grand Inquisitor never once expected to see in his life. Which in his mind then begged the question, how the frack did she even get into his house.

But before he could come to any conclusions, his newfound sultry guest gave him every answer he would need concerning that particular oddity. Valten watched with fascination as her skin pulsed and shifted and changed. It was as if watching some perverted contortionist performance; the display was…..enamoring.

Distracted, the Grand Inquisitor did not truly grasp the reality that this new thing that had morphed before his eyes possessed extremely large claws and razor canines until the furred beast flew directly towards him.

Now a normal human’s reaction time is roughly peaked around three hundred milliseconds. Though Valten may be human, the man was far above normal. To the Grand Inquisitor the beast moved as if swimming through syrup. He saw he the muscles flexed as powerful legs propelled her…it…from the bed, he saw as the ears move pressed against the skull, he saw the mischievous glint in the glowing orange eyes, he saw as the front paws reached out towards him so painfully slow…..and kept a keen eye on the claws that never unsheathed.

A dark smirk quirked at the corners of Valten’s mouth as he simply stood in place. The flying creature connected hard and the pair roughly pitched into the wall behind Valten……….and suddenly the Grand Inquisitor found himself pinned by a wild eyed girl.

Karl coughed once, casually raising a hand to brush hers away from his throat… “A pleasure I’m sure.” …and tossed aside a piece of a torn brassier. “I am quite curious as to what could possibly merit such an entrance…” The Inquisitor brushed an annoying strand of her hair away from his face, grazing her bare shoulder in the process. “…and bring a Gurlanin to my humble sanctuary.”

[Valeria Tur'ilian]

"So... you got the datapad I left for you..." She purred directly into his ear. After he had wiped away her hand, as if disgusted with the thought of being touched by her, the anything but fragile appendage alighted upon his broad shoulder. Mischief twinkled in her violet eyes and her other hand came up to rest upon the other shoulder; better supporting her rather suggestive position affixed to his waist. Naturally, this was no way to have a serious conversation.

So, with a heavy heart, she developed a sleek plan to remove herself from his unwilling embrace. Pouting down at him prettily, she steadily began to move up by pressing down with her muscular thighs. Then, pressing off rather briskly, but not before dangling her ample chest in his view, she landed gracefully on the floor.

"What did you think about that?" She murmured, bending forward but managing to keep her back completely straight. Her hot breath grazed the cloth covering his thighs as she boredly attended a loosened strap on her shoe. Righting herself, the top of her head nearly grazing him, she grinned.

"The data, I mean."

[Karl Valten]

THIS was the one who had dropped that cryptic little gem! The Grand Inquisitor found himself at a loss for words. Half distracted by a very prurient woman bent on giving him a show worthy of the carnal houses. And half distracted by the utter disbelief this harlot could possibly have procured top-secret documents long lost….and deposit them in his office, in the Citadel of all places, without anyone knowing. Even a shapeshifter with a mind such as hers should not have been capable of the feat.

True or not, this still left a strange, unclothed woman nearly salivating over him. A position that Valten very much did not appreciate being in given the circumstances.

“What do I think?”

Valten did not recoil from the closeness she was forcing on him. Instead the Inquisitor sat up, brining himself much nearer. Her eyes twitched slyly at the intimate position she was in with him. And then he pressed a hand against her well-endowed bosom and gave her rough shove that sent her tumbling back.

Karl stood to his feet, wiping his hand against the fabric of his uniform as if trying to remove some taint.

“I think you are absolutely mad."

[Valeria Tur'ilian]

Valeria over dramatized the fall, plastering the back of her palm against her cast back forehead and wilting like a rose before his cold dismissal. She adored it when they played rough; in truth, it really brought out the beast in her. Just as the upper portion of her back seemed destined to smack against the ground, her other hand shot out and flattened against the floor. The strength of her arm, suddenly rippling with bulky muscle, propelled her up and over with the tumble and she sailed gracefully across the room. When her hand left its braced position, her nails sliced a jagged gash into the flooring.

His bed squealed beneath her sudden presence.

"You don't... know the half of it..." Her voice, during the previous bit of the conversation, had been flighty and playful. Now, a disturbing gruffness shoved that aspect aside. Unabashedly situated with her boots on his fancy sheets, she leered at him before shifting her feet forward. Plunking down on the mattress, she cleared her throat.

"Derricote's journal... will be the first piece I move forward into this game. You can believe me or not, I'll not dally while you sum up a prognosis. Make no mistake, I have plans of my own, human."

[Karl Valten]

A display as such may well could have been considered graceful, but the severe lack of clothing just made it……interesting to the Grand Inquisitor. Valten traced the gouges in his expensive flooring with his eyes, meeting Valeria’s gaze with a raised brow.

He shook his head and purposely turned his back, almost challenging the woma…..thing…..suggestively perched on his bed. A slight change in her voice stepped her little game up a notch, familiar venom crept into the silky succubus charm. Out of her sight Valten grin as he moved towards a dresser, his ears focused on every sound. She had no idea what she was trying to toy with.

“You think I care what plans you have?”

A drawer creaked as it was pulled open. Valten turned, leaning against the edge of the hardwood dresser with a bath robe in his hand.

“Information isn’t free, stop trying to play a game that you will lose. Tell me what you have and what you want. I’ll decide if it’s worth the price and me time.”

[Valeria Tur'ilian]

Valeria leveled an emotionless stare upon him, her mouth setting into a straight line. She was silent and an awkward tension simmered, causing the temperature to rise within the room. Hands, made up of writhing flesh that couldn't hold a single color or form, pressed into the muscle of her bare legs. Slowly, rigidly rising to her feet, she dragged her gaze away from him.

Then, a sinister smile quirked her lips; the expression elevated into a virulent grin, then into something indistinguishable. Perhaps something like a crocodile's smile, all teeth and pure malicious intent. Her thighs grazed one another as she approached him, one hand gingerly caressing the skin of her hip and drifting downward.

"I never lose..." She growled, her fingers gliding across the bathrobe clasped in his hand. "Then again, I've never met a man quite like you. Don't be short with me, I promise not to be unreasonable. In turn, you'll have what you want..."

Valeria looked away from him, her smile somewhat more tame. "However, if you're really not interested I'm sure there are plenty of other factions dying to know the exact coordinates of the Emperor's Storehouse."

[Gavrilo Krass]

*Post deleted per request*

[Karl Valten]

Valten frowned, just what was this woman trying to accomplish? It was disgusting really, for her to think that she could wrap an Inquisitor around her fingers like...without naming any price even.

“Reasonable?” Valten laughed with a no light hint of disdain. “If you want to make a deal with the Inquisitoriate you are sorely missing a few details.”

The Grand Inquisitor roughly thrust the bathrobe into her chest, putting some distance between him and such filth. “Prancing around like some cheap street harlot won’t get you anything with us, for instance.”

He turned around to open another drawer in the dresser and began shuffling through its contents.

“Decency and respect go a long distance; you break into my home, assault me, and do nothing but degrade yourself and throw demands about left and right…”

Even though he could not see his sultry guest, Valten could feel the waves of annoyance and imagine her eyes rolling behind his back as he lectured. People of her personality never seemed to listen or care about the customs of those with even a shred of civility.

“…ultimatums will only make others less willing to work with you.”

Barely even paying attention to the Inquisitor’s words, Valeria instead turned the attention on the robe clutch in her hands. And with her mind focused on trying to use the garment to play with the Inquisitor even more; she did not see the first strike.

In a blink of an eye, Valten had snapped a kick into her mid-section that caused the alien to double in half, crashing to the floor. And before her mind could adjust to the attack, a violent grip on her hair smashed her head against the bed frame.

However the Gurlanin fortitude in her blood meant that the pain and disorientation quickly faded. Valten saw the anger in her eyes as the pupils began to focus again, but he did not give her the chance react.

Putting the disruptor that he had taken from the drawer to her head his voice grew cold and sharp as a steel blade. “Get it through your head, little girl, that I do not play games. You would not have come to us if you did not desperately need something from us that these other factions of yours could supply……NOW…..”

Valten pulled back, allowing the icy touch feel of death to leave her skin. “Perhaps we can discuss this like civilized sentients?”

[Valeria Tur'ilian]

Were it anyone else, they'd have been dead before those vexatious hands had even grazed her skin; however, it wouldn't do to have the Grand Inquisitor being found in a gory pile so early in the game. So, for the sake of all the plans she had laid down, she held her explosive temper in check as the man proceeded to bash her face into the framework of his bed. She allowed her abdomen, which had tightened with intuition before his blow, to loosen and the air to once again fill her lungs to capacity.

Civilized, indeed.

Exhaling softly, an eerie growl simmering just beneath the release of oxygen, she rolled her vibrant eyes toward him. The cold metal of his weapon daunted her very little and she sucked in another breath, allowing an even more menacing snarl to escape her lips.

"Civilized...? You've got the wrong girl, human." The weapon left her head, which was unsurprisingly left without bruising. Vast tufts of fur cascaded down her limbs, the color of coal, and jagged nails broke through the human disguise she had assembled to entice him. There was no point, the man was clearly a cold fish that didn't know how to properly treat a lady.

The only thing left uncovered by the thick fur was her face, which leered up at him insolently. Swaying to her feet, she ran a clawed hand over her abdomen as if to brush away the prolonged landing of a harmless fly.

"I want five million untraceable credits wired to the ghost account listed under the files I gave you. After this is done, I'll tell you where you can find the navigation pod that will lead you to the storehouse. I'll take half now, half later..."

[Karl Valten]

Aha, there it was now. For the first time in her presence Valten grinned. It was a haunting thing, with the transformation of his ‘guest’ into her true form, powerful, threatening, and far more beautiful than that sultry thing before, Valten transformed as well.

“Oh yes, this is much better” The Grand Inquisitor’s laugh shifted into something akin to hidden insanity. “Yes, now...NOW... we can talk.”

Every aspect of civility and formality drained from his posture, a soulless amusement crept into his eyes, and an aura of controlled madness exuded from him. This was a true Inquisitor, deadly, sadistic, and manipulative, not the heroic façade put on to please the masses. This was the true Karl Valten, just as he now looked on the true Gurlanin before him.

“Heheheh. Money?! That’s all you want?” The high Coruscanti accent completely vanished. “Money, money...yes I can get you that.”

Valten turned from the clawed and fanged alien standing taller than himself, gesturing towards the wall. A mechanical whir later and a section slid aside revealing a holonet transceiver behind. Valten placed his back to the machine, a wicked smile still on his face.

“Oh, you’re lying of course…” With a sickening SNAP-CLICK A data spike shot from the transceiver, imbedding itself at the base of Valten’s neck. Like magic the holo-projector flared to life and began racing through data faster than the eye could comprehend. “…but I don’t think I really care.”

In a flash, the hologram ceased its lightning fast flickering, finally displaying an account number perfectly matching the one so conveniently listed on the datapad…a displaying a deposit of two and a half million credits.

“Not such a ghost account is it? Perhaps we can chat a bit longer about this information of yours?” Valten raised an eyebrow and the balance ticked up another million credits.