The Shadow of Intent

[Yawgmoth The Devourer]

"Plot us a course for the core. Let's not keep the Knight-General waiting." Captain Torres commanded as he took his chair on the bridge of the Bravant. Around him the crew got to work preparing the ship for hyperspace. In the viewport the last mists of atmosphere were peeling back to reveal the inky, star studded blanket of space. Once orbit was left behind they would make their way to the core and deliver their freshly captured prisoners.

"This'll be quite the feather in your cap, Torres, but we still need to make our check in on Corellia before we head to the core." The man beside him spoke at last. Torres grimaced but did not remove his eyes from the viewport. The pale faced Imperial Knight was not much to look at. A weak chin, raven hair, shallow eyes, and chapped lips. He looked like something brought back to life. Simply looking at the man was enough to send a shiver down your spines. The Imperial Knights were suppose to be a more prestigious bunch, like that Baastian fellow. This one felt like a reject.

"I believe it'll do wonders for both our careers, Wendale. You cannot possibly be in good standing with the Knight-General if you are being shuttled off to the edge of our territory to hunt rumors. This seems more the task of his lap dog Sturkov than a fine and... upstanding gentleman such as yourself. Very well, to Corellia then. Make the calculations."

"Sir, we're picking up a strange energy pattern."

They were safely out of orbit now, leaving the planet increasingly behind as they redirected for the change in course. The cadet didn't look up from his console as the crewman beside him leaned over and looked at the readout. "Odd. It looks like a hyperspace signature."

Wendale managed to become stiffer as he turned back to Torres. "Raise shields!"

The space outside alongside the Bravant was suddenly filled with the red splashed hull of another ship. All across the bridge men jumped into action, frantically dancing their fingers across their consoles. The air became filled with the frantic situation updates.

"We're under fire!"
"Arquitens-Class Light Cruiser."
"Shields are taking a beating."
"Identified as the Queen of Blades."
"Redirecting power from port deflector shields to starboard."
"Returning fire!"
"Ion missiles detected. Impact!"
"Shields are failing."
"Weapons systems failing."
"Engines failing."

In a matter of moments he had gone from preparing for his promotion speech to being dead in space, a lifeless ship with every single system failing from the surprise attack. "Call for reinforcements!"

"Communications array is unresponsive. The enemy ship is pulling closer."

"Prepare for boarding." Torres' voice took a firmer quality than it exhibited in the moments just previous. The quiver was gone as he reached for his standard issue sidearm and double checked the energy pack for optimal performance. "Wendale go meet our guests. They will think twice once they see an Imperial Knight." The pale man nodded his head and disappeared from the bridge. What few troops they had aboard the ship were being mustered to the access port that no doubt a boarding umbilical was snaking toward even as they spoke.

[Yawgmoth The Devourer]

The umbilical stretched out on the other side of the airlock. My armor is fitted, my mask locked in place, my weapons loaded. I am ready. At my back my men prepare. Armored. Heavily armed. Their masks match my own. A sea of white and black. They are ready. The airlock connects. The system acknowledges with a chirp and the flashing of light. I am filled with excitement. Eager, for what is to come. We head into the umbilical, the soft structure wide enough for three abreast, but I take the lead alone. Dataspike in hand, I fit it into the opposite door and it cracks, popping open noisily as the difference in atmosphere mix.

As I step over the threshold I am greeted with a familiar sight. A blue robe, black armor, and the brilliant white energy beam of a lightsabre. An Imperial Knight. He stands defiantly, his blade held in front of him like a candle against the night. Behind him I see the white helmets of stormtroopers standing at attention, weapons half raised. A half dozen of them at most. Peeking around corners and support beams are unarmored crewmen. My own fill in behind me, lining up against the wall, staring down the Imperial Knight. He speaks, he tells us to lower our weapons and return to our ship. He threatens to kill us if we do not, but I cut him short. My arms raise, the stout barreled weapons coming to bare like the cannons of a ship of yore. I see the realization in his eyes. He knows what they are.

They are not blasters.

The slugthrowers go off in my hands, the recoil shaking my body. One round from each. The Knight moves his lightsabre instinctively to intercept but he cannot stop the spray of metal pellets that exit my shotgun. The sabre stops the blunt of the blast, incinerating the projectiles, but not the edges. They bypass, going around the white blade, and into his body. His armor is shredded, and his body beneath it. He begins to fall, the lightsabre slipping from his hands. On cue the men at my back lob grenades, a mix of stun and smoke grenade. I duck and roll as the first goes off, shrouding my movement as the Imperials open fire. I come back up beside a trooper, smashing him across the helmet with the barrel of my right while my left presses against his stomach as the impact bends him back, revealing the space between his chest and leg armor. The weapon goes off. I am disappointed that I cannot feel the blood that has splashed across my armor.

My men open fire. They are prepared. Infrared lenses in their masks give them vision in the smoke, and those not felled by the stun grenades are quickly dispatched. The smoke clears, leaving a coating of corpses upon the floor. My men are no exception. The dead and wounded are returned to the Queen. The Imperial Knight is still alive. I hover over him. His arms and legs are destroyed, but his soul is still strong. With a snap of my fingers he is dragged away, and from the floor I collect his lightsabre. I look it over a moment before sticking it into my coat. It was nothing special. Standard Imperial Issue. Boring.

We spread out from the airlock. The Bravant is not a large vessel, and we know where we are going. Two groups. Aldritch takes one to the tail of ship and I take the second toward the brig. There is some resistance along the way, but with their security force butchered and the Imperial Knight disabled they have little else to resist with. I know my enemy. I have studied them in preparation. They will fortify the bridge where narrow access points will get them overlapping fields of fire and a highly defensible position. It's a shame I have no intention of meeting them. Instead we head for the holding cells. A smarter opponent would have realized what we came for, but the Empress' dogs were no better than banthas. The warden stands a lone sentinel over his watch. I let him die a warrior's death, a blaster in hand. With a nod of my head a crewman darts in the doorway, kneels, and takes a shot, hitting the warden in the gut and dropping him. His weapon discharges aimlessly as he goes down.

Inside the cells are two young men. They cower in the corner, their bruised and bloody faces masks of horror. The locks stood no chance against my shotgun as I blew it into oblivion. Stepping into the cell I evaluated the children. They do not look like much, but they are the most important thing on this ship. Holstering my weapons, I bend and offer them my hands, and I assure them with words.

"I am here to save you. Come. We must get away before the fleet arrives. Let me get you where you belong; to Ossus."

[Yawgmoth The Devourer]

"Give me a report. NOW!"

"Sir, the invaders are retreating."
"They have cleared out of the brig and engine rooms."
"I'm getting no response from those sections. All crew presumed dead."
"The Queen of Blades has detached. It's leaving."

"Get somebody out there to repair the communications array. Anyone. We need to signal for help. I don't care if you have to wave out the viewport. Somebody find Wendale's corpse. I want the Knight-General himself to know what a failure he was. Sweet the ship for anyone left behind, and make sure to check on the prisoners. Empress willing they didn't take them. Maybe we can salvage this hutt schutta of a mess aft-"

---

The red blossoms of fire filled the dark void of space. One moment the Bravant laid crippled but defiantly alive, and the next it was a star shining brightly in the sky for a moment before disappearing into darkness. Poetic, maybe? I would not know. I am no poet. Perhaps I will dedicate the last hundred years of my life to composing all that I have seen into poem. Yes. That would be the ideal way to spend my final years. A record of all that I have accomplished, to either be despised and hated or to inspire the generations that follow. Only those with their hands on the helms of the galaxy can determine how I am remembered. All I can do is try to give them something worth remembering.

Retreating from the viewport, I left the commotion of the bridge behind. They did not need me to plot our escape vector. I trusted in the abilities of my crew. My new guests, on the other hand, were shaken up and frightened. I had no intention to leave them unattended. I wasted no time moving into the war room beside the bridge. The room was too small for my liking, and rarely used, but today it hosted the two young boys. They sat in chairs, staring listlessly until I entered; at which point they jumped in fright. Not surprising, considering my fearsome appearance. However, little did they know that my mask was far more appealing that my real face.

Taking the seat at the head of the table I reached up and pulled free my mask and pulled back my hood. The white cover was placed on the tabletop. I could see the look of surprise turned disgust in their faces. My gaunt, gray face and sunken eyes did not meet the galactic standard of beauty. Among my own species I am considered attractive, but to outsiders I am the very image of an insidious nightmare. The children looked ready to flee, but the only door was located behind me. There was nowhere to go.

"You can relax. You are safe."

"What about the Empire? Won't they come for us?"

A warming smile crept across my face, but to them it may as well have been a threat as my sharp teeth were revealed. "No. I have dealt with them. Explosive charges placed in the engines and throughout the ship have seen to that. There is little that remains. No evidence for the Empire to follow. You are safe."

"You said you're taking us to Ossus? Where's that?"

"Ossus is across the galaxy in Alliance territory. It is the new home of the Jeedai."

"The Jedi? Those are just stories."
"Yeah. My gran told me stories about them."

"I assure you they are quite real. It is because they are real that the Empire captured you. You see, you two can use the force."

"The what?"
"What's a force?"

"It's a special force in the galaxy that only some can manipulate. Surely you have noticed that you are special? Anything strange or overly coincidental ever happen to you?"

"I... I think Gil moved some stuff just by thinkin' about it. Sometimes when I get angry I can hear voices. Everyone yellin' at me at once."
"I weren't nothing. It just kind of moved by itself."

"Yes, that's it exactly. The power of the force is incredible. The Jeedai will show you. It'll take us a few days to reach Ossus. You should sleep. You'll need your strength for the journey."

"Gee thanks a lot Mister..."

"Yawgmoth. Call me Yawgmoth."

[Yawgmoth The Devourer]

"Come children. Dinner is served."

The teenagers came scampering into the dining hall. The long table that could seat my entire crew was empty save for the head of the table, my place, and the two adjacent seats. Taking my seat I motioned for the other two to do the same. It had only been a day. A deep sleep cycle had been enough to rekindle the boys' spirits. With the siege of the Bravant over me and my crew had shed our black raiding gear, the skulls and armor, and replaced it with more mundane clothing that was less terrifying to the boys. I myself was adorned the burgundy, charcoals, and dark oranges of my native planet. Thick layers that overlapped and ran down my long figure. Rich fabrics and exquisite patterns.

"I had the galley prepare a very special meal for you." I said and with two long, seemingly delicate fingers I plucked a small silver bell from it's place next to the salt and pepper and rang it once. From the adjacent room came three crewmen, each bearing a covered silver platters. One was placed in front of my young guests and myself, and the covers removed to reveal a single steak cut of meat. No garnish. No side dishes. Anything else would contract from the rare dish that was being served. My only other desire was furfilled immediately as a four crewman entered and filled my glass from a dusty bottle. A fine Tanaab red wine plundered from the hold of a luxury liner. It was said to have been found in the ruins of an old Sith fortress. It was a perfect pairing.

The boys eye their meat apprehensively, poking at it with their utensils. No doubt they have never had such well prepared meat. My galley chefs were no slouches. I required the best, especially when it came to my own meals. They squealed a bit when the meat bled. "It is cooked rare." I told them. "To keep the meat juicy and delicious. In the reaches of space it is difficult to get a hold of fresh meat; and this is incredibly fresh." I chuckled a bit at my own joke as I carefully selected the proper fork from the three at my left and pair it with a knife from my right. I cut into the meat. My hands trembled with excitement as I lifted it to my lips and passed it passed the rows of sharp teeth.

It was an explosion of flavor. As always. Such an interesting flavor. Different than the major meat stables in the galaxy. Nerf veal came close, but it could not compare. This meal had a special connotation that underlined the whole experience and made the taste, quite frankly, secondary. Reaching for my glass I combined the flavors in a beautiful accent within my mouth. The children likewise reached for their glasses of milk. Not such a fine pairing, but I would be remiss if I allowed such youth to drink. No. I needed them to have their senses. They chatted among themselves about how the meat was weird but good. Never did they stop chewing.

The meal ended almost as quickly as it started. I could feel the meat inside me. I could feel my body drawing nutrients from it. I felt more powerful, as I did every time I ingested it. The boys were looking at me.

"What kind of meat was that Mister Yawgmoth? It was so good. I ain't never had anything but frozen nerf nuggets 'fore."

"Do you remember that man, the one with the dark hair and scar?"

"The mean man who took us away? The one with the laser sword?"

"Yes, that one. That was him. You ate him. You see, he was a Knight of the Imperial Throne and a force user. By eating him we have acquired his strength and power. Your force powers will grow stronger and perhaps some day I will manifest my own. With your powers increased you will make fine meals yourself for me one day. No. You are not going to Ossus." The bell was rung again, this time twice, and from every door into the hall marched in armed crewmen who positioned themselves at the doors and behind the boys, laying hands on their shoulders. The older one struggled, the first looked confused.

"I enjoyed our time together, and for one of you it does not end yet. Take Gil to the brig. I want him fattened up. There is hardly any meat on his bones. Take Brett to my bed chambers. He is to only be served the remains of the Knight. Let us see if his powers will grow. Perhaps he will make the best meal of them all."

Sitting back in my chair I continued to sip my wine as the boys were pulled from the table. They screamed to each other and cursed my name. The older one was dragged to the brig, where he would be fed a diet to bulk him up, to produce more meat when he was finally slaughtered. The younger one on the other hand was to become my plaything until I grew bored of him. They never lasted long. A pity. At least this one would enhance my force powers if I choose to eat him. Yes. This was a good catch. Clearly the will of the force is with me. All I need is more sacrifices. The power is within my reach.