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It's only been a day since the meeting with General Pepper and already a representative was chosen and requesting to dock onto the Harrower. Kharr granted the request as soon as the shuttle landed into the Hangar Bay. An entire battalion of Troopers was ready for anything after receiving the news of their Lord's brush with death. All of them were at the ready to eliminate any threat to their Sith Lord.

Out from the shuttle came a pudgy hog male. "I am the representative of my government here to speak with your leader!" His words did not breached the language barrier that was quite clear between the representative and the Troopers when no response was given. The hog was getting rather nervous and beginning to sweat bullets. Someone else entered the Hangar Bay.

"Salutations and welcome to my ship! Isn't she a beauty? Forgive my men; they do not speak the same language as your people. Only I and a protocol Droid can speak the same language." Kharr walked past the blast doors, not wearing his usual black robe garment. Today, he was wearing a custom-made armor made of Mandalorian iron that could be clearly seen. The breastplate, the armor, and shoulder pads displayed a clear color scheme and design for aesthetic purposes.

The Swine realized that someone was speaking Cornerian. This one could only guess that it was the commander the hog then putting up a very jovial face and tried walking towards Kharr, only to be confronted by a number of Troopers aiming their blasters at the swine. He had been moving a little too quickly; once more he was beginning to feel nervous and began to think that coming here was a bad idea.

Kharr walked over to the captain of the small battalion of Troopers and pointed to his guest. "I've been informed that this one is unarmed and unaccompanied just as I was. If he does something foolish just send a cleanup team." He had spoken in basic words, informing his men as he then waved towards the Swine to follow him into the depths of his ship.

After a long walk of silence Kharr led his guests into a large immaculate dining room with a number of beautiful statues and holographic murals. A feast fit for royalty was set out, along with golden plates and silverware, right next to a large beast and different varieties of cooked primitive alien life forms.

"I had this meal prepared for your arrival. I hope everything is to your satisfaction. If not, I will understand and give this meal to my troops. They need the morale boost," Kharr said to his guests. He made his way to the end of the table and then used the force to pick up a number of selected items to go onto his plate.

As tempting as it was to try new and exotic foods, especially for the strong pallet of the hog, his duties to being a representative came first. He moved towards Kharr. "Forgive my rudeness. I do find the food intriguing and very enticing, but I would like to go ahead and get straight to business if it would be all the same to you," the hog said very politely. He did not intend to act rudely to his host.

With only a cold straight expression, Kharr nodded his head agreeing with his guest. "You want the sample. I would presume that would be the case. Do you have something that guarantees that your scientists won't tinker with it and make duplicates?" He had brought previous demands for something that would protect the production and possible distribution rights of Bacta. He looked toward the wall. Using the force, he opened a secret compartment and pulled out a fresh canister of Bacta.

The hog pulled out a small digital document. With the push of the button a small holographic display showed everything that Kharr wanted to see. Between learning the language of the system, he also took the time to learn the alphabet. Speech between the two different species was quite similar to one another, but the writing was not even close to Galactic basic.

"Thank you. I can hand this to you with absolute certainty that potential profits will not be stolen from me. Now with this unpleasantness aside, is there anything else that you would like to discuss that could be more profitable for yourself?" Kharr could sense some greed within the hog as he brought a cup of wine to his lips.

The hog was flabbergasted. Sure, he was thinking of maybe negotiating with the alien if there was any potential profit he could cash in on. But it seemed like the rumors about the commander of this alien fleet were true. "So you're a psychic after all. Well, either way I would like to cash in on your little franchise business with this little miracle wonder that you have," he said as he grabbed hold of the canister with the transparent fluid inside it.

"Twenty-five percent of all profits in exchange for helping me get more involved in your system and possibly citizenship. I don't want to impose as an illegal alien in your government's eyes, including your own citizens. This would also help my image in your system so I wouldn't be just some random mercenary offering his services in exchange for a large amount of credits given by your government, which I will not ask for. In exchange for tax exemptions, I want the right to have at least a few different properties as well as full claim on ownership rights of Spoils of War. That includes factories and Venom Warships," Kharr said.

Kharr told the hog what percentage of profit he'll be receiving as well as what the Sith Lord wanted from providing his services, as well as having some property to establish some headquarters-a base of operation of some kind. On top of that, the Sith Lord wanted a place where his own crew can blow off steam when they are not on duty.

If the hog wasn't already surprised that this alien had read his intentions, he was even more surprised by the list of demands following the large chunk of profit going straight to him. With a warm smile, he started rubbing his head, put the canister to the side, and then started rubbing his hands together. He could already imagine the large number of credits in his own account. "Most of your demands can be easily done. As for the rest, the government council would have to discuss it face-to-face with you. There are still some questions that remain unanswered about you; such as, what are the Jedi? And what are the Sith in particular? How do they fair to each other? I'm not going to ask for the information now but the council will want to know eventually. With that said, I don't think there's anything much I can do for you right now. Unless, there are other requirements that you wish to add to your current list of demands?" It was clear enough that the hog was a typical greedy bureaucrat but he could be quite useful to Kharr when the time comes for it.

Staring into the glass of wine for a moment and thinking what else he could possibly ask for, Kharr replied, "There's nothing that I would like to add at the present moment. Perhaps later on I will add additional demands, possibly during talks with your government. Until then, I'll notify you whenever I am in need of your services." Kharr took another sip from the wine glass.

With a greedy grin, the hog took the sample and made his way back to his shuttle leaving the Sith Lord to his thoughts and his meal.

A few days passed.

The militia was on high alert. General Pepper had increased security after learning about his failure during the first contact with Kharr. He had taken great lengths to grab only those who he truly trusted to oversee security details and having them indirectly communicate with him if there were any sudden changes. He entrusted Cameron's judgment on who would be appropriate to protect the Government Bureau building. He even contacted Star Fox, did a few rounds in the areas surrounding the government bureau's airspace, and instructed Fox McCloud and the members of his team that were up in the air to shoot down anyone who approached without clearance. As for the ground, he personally requested Krystal along with Miyu and Fay. He normally would have never given the feminine cast of the Star Fox team the task to go ahead and oversee the council chambers. He only did so because he wanted Krystal to look into Kharr. When he contacted the Star Fox team he made sure to have a private line indirectly to the blue vixen and told her of a secret mission. But he could only trust her not to inform Fox McCloud or the others. If he knew anything about Mr. McCloud, it's that he is quite overprotective of his own comrades at times. But the old Bloodhound knows that young Tod only acts protective since the loss of his own family and treats all the members of his team as family. It would pain his own heart if Fox found out it would damaged the relationship that General pepper has with him.

"Interesting day for having a council meeting! And by the smell of it, we might get some heavy rain." An old Hare walked up right next to the old Bloodhound just to greet his old friend.

Pepper looked over and saw his old friend and then looked back up to the sky expecting the shuttle. "Been far too long. If you had aced that exam back at the academy it would be you in this position, not me. Instead, you decided to go gallivanting throughout the systems with James. Of course, those times were much simpler. There was no Venom or Andross." He started to reminisce about how his job was much easier back in the past. As he could remember, it was his first role as general of the militia as well as the same person that had overseen Andross' banishment and witnessed the formation of Venom.

A hearty laugh escaped the old Hare. "If only we could change the past. I know simple times could have resumed. Hell, but I'd probably still be with my wife and watch my only child grow up. But we can at least learn from our mistakes." Pepper truly meant his words. At times, he wished he could change things such as the fate of James or the relationship with his wife or other mistakes he had made in his past. But he can stand proudly that he helped steer Fox McCloud on the right path as the team's advisor and father figure to everyone. He may have lost out on fatherhood from his own idiotic mistakes but he can still perform the same role for everyone here on the team-except for Falco. He can think of nothing more than showing the back of his hand to the back of that avian youngster's punk-head, especially whenever his beak keeps on flapping.

"Perhaps after everything is said and done. I can clear out my afternoon and we can resume our old poker game just for this one occasion," Pepper suggested. The thought of doing something that would be considered normal and not dealing with a powerful alien had taken some of the stress off of him.

Peppy shook his head to the disappointment of his friend. "I'm afraid not. As much as I would love to go ahead and make you owe me a thousand more credits, my old friend, I have some other jobs to do with the team. I've got to oversee a few upgrades on the Great Fox. From what I've heard there's a more powerful ship out there. I want to make sure the team has all the protection they need just in case we have to pull out "the old Girl." he heard rumors that a new Fleet has appeared out of nowhere with strong capable defenses and offensive capabilities. Being the overly cautious Hare, he was here already discussing matters with Fox. He wanted to keep everyone on their toes well before the team was given this task safeguarding the Government Bureau building.

A few moments later, both the old Hare and the Bloodhound soon witnessed the Fury interceptor class warship beginning to move past a few thick clouds as it descended to the landing deck. Fox McCloud and both Felco and Slippy moved to intercept.

"Unknown ship! You're entering a restricted airspace. Either turn away or send clearance, or you will be blasted out of the sky. I repeat-send clearance or turn away. This is your first and only warning!" Fox said in a serious tone on all frequencies, just to make sure the sleek looking ship got the message. Less than a second later he received a holographic document showing clearance for the type of ship entering the airspace. "Your clearance has checked out. You may proceed to the landing pad. Any deviation and I've been ordered to shoot you down. There will be no warning shots." He sent out the second message. He had a bad feeling about all this.

"This ship has some interesting designs. It's definitely alien. Venom is unimaginative when it comes to making a ship like this. It makes me think of a small blade." Falco voiced his opinion of the ship's design almost to the point that he actually admired it. As if he personally wanted to take it for a test drive just to see how capable a ship that size could be.

Meanwhile, Slippy was using his own custom sensors to begin scanning the ship. It surprised him that his scanners couldn't penetrate the protective shields around it. They prevented his efforts to get a better understanding of the technology as well as figure out the possibility of defeating what seemed to be a less maneuverable ship compared to their R-wings. "Interesting design or not, I can't scan them. They have some sort of defense barrier strong enough to keep my scanners from getting through their hull." The inventive Toad sounded a little dejected. It's been some time making his sensors top-of-the-line even getting his own father to help him, only to find out there is a ship out there in the universe that can block his advanced scanners.

"Instead of tinkering with your sensors you should have trained more so we don't have to rush behind your tail and save you every time someone tries to follow you in a dog fight," Falco commented to him. As he know the current R-wings work perfectly fine. He did some modifications but mostly to improve on the weapon systems and exhaust engine output to increase the speed, even though these particular fighter models are considered dated compared to the newer R-wings Gen-2 models.

"You shouldn't be so nasty to your fellow teammates. Slippy is trying to do his best with every small improvement on his own fighter. It's not like you haven't done your own tinkering feather-head." Krystal chimes in a comment every time she hears that hotheaded avian speak. She always feels the need to give him a migraine or focuses her abilities enough to give him a nosebleed. But deep underneath she knows there's more to it than his arrogant attitude and his sometimes harsh words. Words which culminated with a deep guilt that Falco keeps buried underneath the surface of his subconscious. She could always probe his mind and see what he's hiding but after spending time among other non-psychic people, she learned not to probe people's minds without their permission. She had learned that the hard way when she probed into Fox's consciousness and found out a little more than she was bargaining for. The thought of it had reminded her of something. "Hey Fox! I forgot to ask, how was your date with Miss Phoenix and..." She stopped in mid-sentence. She could see the feelings and a little bit of a thought pattern that McLeod was thinking at the present moment. It was more than she was expecting.

Miyu looked over at Krystal, seeing her blush for a bit, causing the feline to grin ear-to-ear. "Go ahead, tell us what you picked up from our leader's head. Surely the team would like to know the juicy details," she said over the comms. The only feeling she got was Krystal pulling up her hands and making the universal hand sign that symbolized adult activity. "Oh my! I guess our leader is truly a real Tod." She started laughing. Falco joined in on the laughter.

The only one that was not amused was Fox. He would go on ahead and scold Krystal for butting in on his private thoughts. And more than that, going into his private memories on his last date which wasn't bad. Hell, it was the most exhilarating thing he had done for the last few weeks; ever since he got back with Fara after the events of Dinosaur Planet. Of course, he couldn't be truly mad at the blue vixen since it was she who actually advised him to go after his first crush during his early Academy days. What he took to heart since developing a relationship with Krystal wasn't just problematic for most mercenary teams but it would definitely have crippled the efficiency. He's more than happy just being her friend, almost to the point where he would consider her a wise sister. "Hey, I know at times you can accidentally poke around in other people's heads, even though you may not intentionally mean to read my thoughts and look into my memories. But please, I don't want my private activities to become public team knowledge. Especially the more private parts and as for your question, our date nights have been good."

"I bet they were more than just good. Perhaps even the best for the last few months, since every opportunity you get you spend more time hanging out with Fara hanging out then the villa." Falco started laughing even more now knowing the reasons why he sees less of the team leader at the private villa outside the city.

Peppy had an embarrassed look on his face. Not only could he hear the subject matter of their conversation, but so did Pepper; even though the Bloodhound tried to act like he wasn't listening, fighting the urge to chuckle off at the side. "All of you - stop acting like young Academy freshmen. The alien ship is almost here. Can't you all act professional just for today, instead of acting like unruly teenagers!" The angry Hare blast his booming voice on the comms, wanting to end the conversation right there and then. It's in this moment that he begin to think back. Perhaps he should have taken the role as leader. He would definitely make sure everyone acted on their best behavior, but too little too late he thought to himself. He switched off the communicator on his wrist only because he didn't want to hear them bellyache when he has to lay down the hammer as the team's father figure.

After that, the communications were switched off. The old Bloodhound laughed his ass off. "To be young again and filled with youth. I can still remember your old nickname, Peppy the love bunny of the academy!" He continued to laugh. Bringing back that ancient memory made the old Hare embarrassed, even more so than he already was. But Pepper quickly ended the laughter, wiping his eyes that were beginning to water from the intense laughter. He reached over to pat his friend on the shoulder. He knew this was quite embarrassing and very inappropriate, but with all honesty he needed it. It did more than just set his nerves at ease. It actually made him more relaxed and less stressed over the situation.

Kharr's ship arrived at the very second that it was expected to arrive. Both the Bloodhound and the Hare examined the ship closely, admiring the sleek design and the unusual solar panels that were on the edges of the ship. As soon as it had landed a hatch opened up, creating a small ramp. A small company of Sith commandos marched out of the ship and lined up almost like in a royal procession and stood at attention. As soon as the Lord began to walk down the ramp, small jets of steam from the hydraulics gave him an unworldly appearance. His Mandalorian armor was colored crimson with black outlines of Sith writing across the breastplate and helmet.

"Greetings General Pepper. I see the welcoming portion of this little meeting is less warm since the last time we had to interact with each other. Either that or you doubt your men could truly harm me. Or are you trying to make up for your previous failure?" Kharr said with seriousness. His voice carried a condescending tone, poking at what happened the last time they met when he had put himself under the General's care. But not this time; he's come prepared. This time his hand-picked commandos would have to wait outside of the meetings, but at a moment's notice he could call them in to extract him and return him back to the fleet.

Peppy didn't like the tone from this individual, yet he didn't allow his personal feelings to conflict with the current objective. The objective was to guard and provide protection for him, even though he would rather go ahead and show what he could assume was a young alien male, perhaps now older than Fox, some manners or at least not point at previous failures or loss.

"If you come with me, I'll take you where the council will be convening. This is where they will discuss further and negotiate with your demands." Pepper could already see the small trap Kharr had laid out for himself. It would soon be known if he would prove himself incompetent in front of this alien again or just the opposite. He could maintain his temper after the small display of humor had kept his spirits and stronger emotions in check.

It was surprising to Kharr; the Bloodhound didn't react to him in a negative fashion. The Bloodhound did get slightly irritated but managed to suppress his deeper feelings, thus adding another mental note about what type of individual Pepper is. Now he knew how to reject him in case of future conflicts that might result in fighting ship-to-ship in the Grand Theater of space. Not responding for being ignored, he followed behind the General with his commandos following closely behind.

After Peppy told the team to act like professionals Krystal took up the more serious role for the job. As for the feline of their little group, she was still acting a little playful as well as talking about what she was planning on doing once the mission was over. Out of all the members of Star Fox, Miyu would have to be the most wild of the bunch going as far as to talk about her adult exploits openly with no shame at all. She got a few blushes from Fay and the blue Vixen. She turned off the communicator figuring that the feline wouldn't shut up and would continue to act less than professional. Of course the wildcat used to be head of a female gang and caused some trouble for both the Militia and Venom until joining the team. Much of that Wildcat still remained as far Krystal knows. She found this rather refreshing compared to most serious individuals that she had seen ever since she came here to this planet.

In an instant the joy that she was feeling felt like it was being sucked out of the Vixen body and any semblance of warmth was replaced with a bitter cold and a strong emotion of anger, fear, hate and strong passion. It felt like a tsunami of indescribable power. Krystal turned to face down the hall trying to figure out what was moving towards her. She gripped on her staff tightly as the fur on the back of her neck began standing up and her tail began to frizzle. She could feel a great deal of anxiety as her body began to shake and then she saw General Pepper. She wondering what the source of this void of darkness is. Never had she felt such an abyss that felt like a nexus of raw power; not since she had been taken in by wizard on Dinosaur Planet when she first arrived. She had to leave her home world while it was in the midst of being destroyed, but the feeling was different. The one that she called Master, who trained her in some aspects of her natural gifts felt more like a nurturing light. This was the opposite. She had no idea how to respond to this. It was as if at any moment she could get attacked and she would have no ability to defend herself, even if she moved far more quickly in this strange alien thing perfectly shielded behind armor. But the armor hid nothing. She could see and sense everything and she feared that she would be sensed as well. A deep instinctive desire that she now has is just to run away, but her loyalty and pride prevented her from standing there and enduring this unusual feeling. She just stared until the individual walked past her. Once the walking abyss was gone she let out a sigh, almost like she was holding her breath the whole time in between Miyu and Fay. So now Krystal was affected. Never have they seen her looking distressed or even fearful-never.

It did not escape Sith Lord's notice but he was being sensed by that blue Vixen he had passed up before coming here. Within the small span of a few days he studied the so-called mercenary team, Star Fox and all of its members, including the great beauty and potential ace pilot, Krystal. Everything that he had heard gave him a small indication that she may be force-sensitive but after feeling her presence there's no doubt in his mind that she is sensitive. The light side of the force was present within her but not on the scale of a Jedi. However, he will keep her on a watch list. If she proves to be a problem for his own plans and, if he has to, he will eliminate her without question. Yet another idea popped in his head. Instead of just destroying her, he could convert her into the dark side of the force, which would be a difficult task and could have the possibilities of backfiring. How fickle the force can be in such devilish planning.

At the end of the corridor several rows of guards from the militia had fortified the entrance to the council chamber. General Pepper gave his clearance ID. The guard stepped aside and opened up the blast-proof doors. Inside, the chamber was quite a spacious place, imperfectly illuminated along with several numbers of holographic projectors that could be used when putting on display information of certain importance. There, facing towards the entrance of the chamber, stood the council with all four members in attendance including the Hog from earlier. Leaving a small opening in between Hog and a female Snow Leopard, General Pepper quickly moved into position in his proper place. As he was the commander of the militia and a member of the council, it comes to security for the Home World and the small colonies outside the Lylat system.

"I never figured you as a council member, General. But regardless, we're here to discuss and negotiate. I take it that all of you would be much more comfortable without my helmet on. Just as much as I have left my commandos outside as they are following my instructions." He had stated the obvious right before removing his helmet and revealing Kharr's Sith eyes as well as his pale complexion.

A few of the council members were quite uneasy about the appearance. Not only did the alien look similar to Cornerian Apes, but his eyes had the looks of a lupine making the humanoid alien look even more bizarre. Breaking away from the stare for a moment as the head of the council the Leopard female cleared her throat. "I am head of the council. You are here before us to have your demands fulfilled in exchange for a medical resource that you have the capabilities of reproducing. You are being given the small documentation that prevents our scientists from openly reproducing the sample that you have provided. Is there anything else that needs to be added?" she said while looking down at the alien that was standing before her.

Nodding his head and smirking, Kharr had more to say than the demands he had requested. "I do. I want to be your private Army. Before you say anything, has General Pepper informed you about how compromised the militia really is, and how damaging it would be to your own security?"

The council for a moment looked towards General Pepper for a moment before one of them spoke up. Lupin male asked, "What does he mean by compromise? Is there some information that you forgot or neglected to tell us General and senior security overseer?" The Lupin spoke very sternly, wanting to know.

He was hoping to hold back this information and inform the council after everything was said and done. He spent some time purging individuals that had suspicious activities of late but it seemed that Pepper had no choice but to go ahead and reveal the information now. "We have a number of sleeper cells within the militia itself. Thanks to the efforts of our esteemed invited guest here, they had interrogated and laid down a long list of individuals in high-ranking positions that seem to answer to an unknown central cell figure. The current details are quite sketchy at best, but our investigation has proven the individuals that we have now arrested to being spies and possibly saboteurs." He openly admitted already that he could feel how the council was going to reprimand him later in his failure to communicate the situation. It wasn't an easy subject to go ahead and openly say even with one member that they could be more merciful, as all the council members were stern and harsh both with words and power plays. And right now, a power-play was moved against him.

After a moment, the attention was switched back onto Kharr. He had a smile on his face. Seeing how he truly legitimized the point about how the militia could be taken down, at this moment the alarming information. "So what are your thoughts on a private military? I won't charge much. Hell, I won't even barely charge at all, as I would only ask for this large tax exemption for the small business and enterprise I plan on doing on your Planet."

"I do approve a large tax exemption in exchange for a military force that doesn't cost us one quarter of our government spending. Even though most of our spending goes into a mercenary team, there are small in numbers and they cannot take on an entire planet controlled by Venom without further assistance by the militia itself or by other Rogue agencies like Star Wolf." Hog presented his point of view to the council. Many of them look like they agreed but still they had a look of uncertainty, and not easily swayed.

On the opposite side of the Hog, a Toad was punching in a number of keys and began showing a small display of the Bloodhound that was recovered from Kharr's care. "From our own analysis, this substance that you call Bacta, and as you described in an official scientific report, had accelerated the healing process to the point that the subject no longer needed to be inside. The only side effect was a sweet taste and smell that didn't last long. As for the fresh uncorrupted sample that he had provided. We have found that it matches as he described. It's universally usable for all species including insects which seem to have a much faster regenerative affect. This is the only form of technology that could be used in medicine that he currently possess. Also, we would like to know the military technology that he currently possess if possible." The Toad had given his report and analysis on the miracle substance and put on a number of displays including the molecular structure of Bacta.

"Indeed, there is much more to that little fluid. This is just the tip of the medical technology I possess. A person who has suffered an injury and is paralyzed from the neck down, needs just a small needle-well, not small. One small injection can get that person up and walking again. Plus there is some regenerative technology as in regenerating lost limbs, cellular regeneration, organ cloning, and so much more. As for the military technology, I can only provide that so long as an agreement is to be made separately. As I arrived on your planet I noticed some key things all of you could benefit from." Kharr answered the Toad's question and added more as he could see that he now had them in the palm of his hand. All of the council members except for the General, but in his mind the general was inconsequential for this meeting.

"We'll elaborate on the keys that would be beneficial to us and what you will require in exchange," the head of the council said sternly. She had a great deal of disbelief that such impossible medical technology could actually be possible. Also, she wondered what type of military technology would be provided.

Pulling out a disk from a compartment on Kharr's armor, he pushed the central ring of the disc putting on a small display bracket for connecting it to the holographic projection in the room. It began showing military technology, planetary ion cannons, planetary shields, and other real tools of war. "I came from an Empire that is now fallen but yet also had a thousand years worth of free time developing military technology. It was only at the head of my own government that my home, my Empire, had completely collapsed from a foreign aggressor who had led to the downfall which led me here."

The word downfall reminded the council about a number of things that they got from Pepper's report which did reach their ears and eyes. "Speaking of which, who are the Jedi? And what is the Republic, and your Empire and Sith?" the Snow Leopard asked. She was deeply curious as well to determine whether or not if she would be on board to sign with someone who was defeated who could bring their own enemies to their world.

"I'll give you the short version until I can give you a more detailed story." Kharr took a moment to figure out how best to explain it as the force was difficult to explain. To most who didn't know about it, it was even worse to those who were completely oblivious to the affairs in between the opposing factions of the Sith Empire and the Republic. He would do his best to give his version on the two opposing sides including Jedi and Sith. "The Republic is as old as a number of systems close to their capital world Coruscant, along with the surrounding planet areas that were called the Core worlds. They banded together to create an organization that would help best defend themselves as well as discuss how the Galaxy should be run, including imposing laws and taxes insecure with the aid of the Jedi." He took a small dramatic pause before getting the nod to continue, making it seem like it was a difficult subject for him to explain learning the sympathies of the council.

"The Jedi are an ancient organization that is far older than the Republic itself with their extreme belief of this attachment, lack of emotions and passions, and a well-known group of baby snatchers." He made sure to bring out great emphasis on the words baby snatchers which had taken the council by surprise.

One council member, the Lupine male, stood up from his seat. "Hold up! The Jedi snatches babies and does what with them? Tell me!" By the demanding tone and a small hint of fear, they could be sensed by the Sith Lord, There's no doubt in his mind that this Lupin is a parent.

Trying his best to not to laugh at his own brilliance at securing his hold on the council further, Kharr started to explain the baby snatching process. "Young individuals that are called force-sensitives or younglings have unusual gifts like no other. They are taken after a few months, if not immediately, after birth into the Jedi Order. They know nothing of their parents nor do they know of their origins. They are brainwashed into believing that the Jedi serves the people. The thing is they should serve the people and there is no choice. They hide the truth through shadows of lies. They say they're peacekeepers, yet they wield instruments of war as well as commanded. They're more likely to just simply take a child from a mother who is enslaved instead of freeing the mother and taking both mother and child together leaving a helpless mother to die without knowing what would happen to her own child."

The Lupin had a shocked expression on his face. After getting the vivid details of how the Jedi operated, his jaw was hanging loose almost like it was broken. He fell into his seat just staring blankly. There were things about his own family, his own children, and he could just imagine if his children had such gifts what these Jedi were after them stealing away his precious children. He would most likely fight tooth-and-nail in an effort to keep his children safe.

Everyone on the council had the same exact mind of the one council member including Pepper. Never had the Bloodhound heard of an organization that would steal children to become whatever this Jedi Order was hoping to create, which also raised another question. What are the Sith and what is the Empire?

"Let's move on to the Sith. I do not want to hear any more of the Jedi. I do not think I can stomach it any further," the Snow Leopard said, looking rather disgusted at such a vile group of individuals.

At this very moment, Kharr had planted a seed of distrust towards the Jedi. Now if they ever showed up, the council will have no desire to communicate with a Jedi as most of the facts were true. Yet there is more to be said. "The Sith is just as old as the Jedi, if not a little younger. For comparison a group of like-minded individuals, part of the Jedi Order, was banished for practicing an unusual ability that went against the Jedi code which only happened after the great schism. The hundred years of darkness defeated my founders, exiled into the void of space to starve in the remote parts of the Galaxy only to make fertile ground. The Sith home world of Korriban, a beautiful world with great warriors and greater abilities and many gifts for hundreds if not thousands of years. The former Jedi had reconstructed a new code and taking the name of the species of the world that they found themselves on. Sith had became more powerful and bracing their emotions ignoring the old codes and taking on their own different forms of morals. The difference between individual to individual but like many good things it all came to an end as a republic. Spies found the small paradise and soon war was inevitable and with the Jedi leading it they had lived the deaths of many Sith natives. It became known as the Sith Holocaust. Men, women, and children were slaughtered like animals by the Jedi. Those few who survived escaped in wild space and headed for a thousand years only to return to retaliate to take back their home world and submit their place in the galaxy as a force to be reckoned with. A force to be recognized; a force that will retaliate aggression of injustices of the past as I was there during the sacking of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant as a Sith acolyte. I was only recently welcome into the Sith order and soon climbed the ladder rank and became a Sith Lord. The Lord title is given to the most skilled. Our grand and honorable order and I couldn't say anything greater about the Empire as well as the Sith, as it was the Empire that had freed me from slavery from pirates. The Republic allows you to roam free. As for the Empire they do not allow pirates to roam freely within their space. "After explaining the Sith order he could see the expressions on their faces, especially when he mentioned the Sith Holocaust. Another true fact about the flaws of the Jedi Order and no doubt lies they had told themselves that there was no other choice.

The council was frozen in shock. Taking this opportunity, Kharr tried to act like he was deeply pained in speaking of history by looking vulnerable. What had gotten the council's attention? Even General Pepper saw this. He was intimidated and even fearful of this alien being, but now he could truly see a creature that has gone through a lot that had nothing and became something only to have it all ripped away by the same system of Galactic government to allow a heinous genocidal organization such as the Jedi to roam freely along with criminal elements.

Standing up, the Snow Leopard took in a deep breath and focused her thoughts as she closed her eyes, then mentally counted in her head for a second before speaking again. "Of this information that you have given to us and seeing how it's putting a strain on you, we will not ask any more questions. Give us a moment to speak amongst ourselves before we make any further decisions."

Kharr was doing a small bow with his head. He left the chamber and put his helmet on. He made sure to switch off the audio filter as he laughed maniacally for a moment. To everyone else it looked like he was trembling. They could be interpreted anyway fearful sorrow but anyone who was that foolish to believe realized he was overjoyed that he had done what would be considered impossible for most Sith. To hang the Jedi as the ultimate force of evil in the galaxy, even though evil is just a point of view. The truth that he had provided what effect and be placed in the minds of generations of these people even if it meant Jedi would appear out of nowhere. The truth of the matter is they cannot help but to acknowledge many of the facts as truth. What better way to control others by telling the truth and avoiding the other truth that could easily backfire.

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"Come again when you get off of that alien that you just saw," Fox inquired, making sure he heard her clearly.

The blue Vixen felt stressed, trying to put into words what she felt rather than what she sensed. "Just imagine a void of darkness would be the closest comparison to what I felt. It was nothing but true darkness within this alien thing patch and powerful passions and emotions, something I have yet to ever feel in someone. It was a walking Nexus. I think it noticed me before it took a turn. It stopped for a moment almost like it could sense me," she explained. Her legs were trembling along with her arms. Her fur was standing on end. She's never felt this way ever, not even during the time that she had spent on Dinosaur Planet. Not even after she regained her freedom from being crystallized.

Miyu put her hand on Krystal's back. She was literally concerned for her friend and never seen her this afraid. As long as she had known the blue Vixen she would have made a small joke to try to break the tension but it would seem ill time for such a thing.

After hearing all that and seeing how Krystal was affected, Fox would normally go ahead and request Krystal to go ahead and just leave her post. But this is a high-paying operation and it was also a personal request from General Pepper. The last thing he wanted was to hurt Star Fox's reputation. "All right, new orders! If you see that fellow, try to get some distance from it. You should not try to use any of your powers on it Krystal. If it is as you say, then no doubt it has some sort of defensive measures for anyone trying to probe its mind." He made sure his orders were quite stern but it was out of concern. He hates to imagine what he'll do if that alien did hurt Krystal, his closest friend. Even if it does damage the reputation of the Star Fox, he'll make sure whoever hurts his friends pays dearly.

"Copy that. I'll keep my distance even if you wasn't going to request it." Krystal was honest. She didn't even want to be within a hundred paces of that chaotic Nexus hatred and pain.

Peppy was listening into the conversation. After turning on his communicator he was taking mental notes from the team psychic and placing Kharr as a high risk potential into the great Fox's computer. He continued to listen into the conversation if there were any more details that could be gathered up. The old Hare had positioned himself into the security room after his old friend headed off to the council chamber. He thought as much as to put himself somewhere where he could do most of the observation including the events that are happening. He went into the council chamber and listened to the discussions. After hearing the small story of the Sith and Jedi he wasn't too convinced of such a story like that. Anyone could make up some sort of dramatic story in an effort to earn favor.

"Excuse me, Peppy sir?" the Labradoodle approached the Hare.

Looking over at the Labradoodle and seeing that he had a datapad, "Something you picked up on the scans or radar?" Peppy asked.

The Labradoodle nodded his head, tapping the screen. It had been showing an anomaly in the upper atmosphere. "We just picked this up. It's an unusual set of particles. We're still trying to analyze it. We've already contacted the science division to see if they were conducting any form at atmospheric experiments. Currently they are telling us nothing but they have no experiments scheduled for today. We need to contact the head of the science division but they're in council at the moment with the others," he informed.

"Recontact the science division. Have them do a spatial analysis of the particles. They're building up in the atmosphere. Tell them to set their scanners for any tachyon particles as well," Peppy ordered after handing back the datapad. He moved over to look at the screen that showed the particles. Pushing a few buttons to do his own analysis, he can only hope and pray but this is just a normal phenomenon and what he could only guess.

Labradoodle quickly approached back to the Hare. "The science division is detecting tachyon particles in the space around the upper atmosphere. It is being warped. They can't appropriately identify it at this time.... is there something wrong?" he asked.

Bringing his wrist communicator up, the Peppy began to broadcast a message to Fox and the others including General Pepper indirectly. "Venom is commencing an attack. The same tactic from five years ago. It seems like they rebuilt it again."

In the council chamber General Pepper was rather embarrassed and surprised to hear the voice of his friends while he was discussing things with the council but he recognized the importance the information. He couldn't respond; not after the discussions were finished.

"Copy that Peppy." Fox switched his R-wing to full combat mode. "Alright everyone, you heard the big man. Venom is probably going to send entire division troops and some spiders. And most likely some sort of large weapon platform of some kind." He went by memory. Last time a teleportation attack had occurred, of course there was a competent leader in Venom to employ this tactic more masterfully.

The teen ace pilot rolled his eyes at the thought of Venom deploying the old tactic. It didn't work last time so who says it's going to work this time. "Andross failed at this old tactic and the old bastard is dead now. I wonder what the hell his nephew are planning on doing unless he plans on eliminating the heads of Corneria since everyone's gathering up in one spot now." Falco had given his comment and taking a blind guess at what the Emperor of Venom could have planned.

"You may be right, Falco. But besides that, we need to stop them at all cost unless we want to have an Intergalactic incident." To be frank, Fox worries Venom about what caused the destruction of the Lylat system along with the neighbor in Colony systems that also called itself Lylat.

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Kharr felt a spine-chilling sensation run up his back and a cold sensation in his chest. It was a disturbance within the force itself making his body physically react. He had almost forgotten this type of sensation. The last time he had the sensation was when an assassin was trying to kill him back in the Sith Empire when another fellow Sith Lord wanted to remove him from his position. It was much different compared to the failed attempts with a shuttle. It felt like a more avoidable death. This one felt more akin to certainty. If not, immediate action would be taken.

Unmuting his helmet and pushing the button on his helmet to communicate with a pilot on his interceptor. "Pilot begin preparation for take-off. I may have to take my leave early. Also, have all weapon systems charged and missiles prepped just in case." He had ended communications without getting an explanation of why. He began preparation for his departure, looking towards his Troopers. As he thinks about

if rallying them to his defense so his departure would go much smoother.

The door to the council chamber opened up and General Pepper stepped out. "The council has made their decision. You will be....."

"I'm afraid I have to make my departure from here. Something has alerted to me that this place is not safe for me. Therefore, I must take my leave," Kharr interrupted. As he could see the surprised expression on the Bloodhound's face before even hearing the decision from the council.

Angered with the interruption and the dismissal so abruptly, General Pepper allowed his anger to get the better of him as he grabbed hold of Kharr's shoulder and pulled him back for a moment to look his helmet visor. "Do not dismiss me like that or you'll find yourself with less jobs and tasks." For the first time in a decade he had to raise his voice in anger. Never had he allowed his composure to falter.

This had surprised Kharr. It had been a long while since he was manhandled. He had made sure to raise his hands to signal his Troopers not to fire their blasters that were now trained on the Bloodhound. "Forgive me, General. It's just that I felt something that is in the midst, a danger which threatens my very existence." He explained why he was quick to try to leave, not wanting to be caught in some dangerous situation that he could just as well avoid.

Taking in a few deep breaths and letting go he glanced over to see the Troopers, with their weapons aimed at him, quickly lower their weapons without being commanded. "I'm sorry. Normally I have my anger in check. Perhaps it's the stress of everything." Pepper had apologized, taking in a few more breaths to make sure his head was completely cleared before continuing the conversation. "You're right to be following your instincts. If you sense danger, we have a dangerous situation. I've already informed the council that we're dealing with a small invasion force and the council has seen fit to give you permission to bring your fleet in for this one operation as a means to test your strength and your ability to repel this enemy. But know this-any damages to civilian property or harm to any of the citizens will be received as a black mark on your clean track record from here on." He explained the current situation as well as the ratification of collateral damage.

"I understand. I'll call in my fleet as soon as I get to my interceptor. my Fleet should deal with the fighters or whatever frigates and battleships they need to bring to the table. As for myself and a few others, I'll deal with the ground forces. No doubt an invasion would also have some ground forces in the attempt to secure key locations." Kharr told the general how he was going to go about this invasion force with himself leading the ground defense, leaving both his fighters and fleet to deal with anything in the air.

The General nodded his head, agreeing with him and allowing him to leave.

Heading back to his ship, Kharr could hear the small comment from one of his Troopers about how lucky the General was. These Troopers are well aware of what would happen if someone did that to a Sith Lord in the Empire. One of them made a crackling sound to simulate lightning. Normally the Sith Lord would have done just that, but in this situation more civilized approaches must be taken.

Within the neighboring unmarked system, the fleet that was positioned there was waiting for their Master's call. A communication officer picked up a message, encoded and decoded it, and brought it straight to the captain. "Captain Omadest, a message from our Lord. He requests the fleet to move to his current coordinates and be prepared for battle." The communication officer had a Holo pad that contained the encrypted message.

Taking a moment to examine it, making sure it wasn't a false communication, which would be difficult given the current surrounding alien technology which is less advanced than their own technology. Seeing how the codes match by current regulations when encoded messages were sent. he looked over to the helm officer. "Prepare to jump into light-speed," he ordered as he then looked at the communication officer. "Send a message to the other ships to prepare to jump into light-speed and prep for battle," he ordered once more. After that he stood right in front of the viewports on the deck with his hands behind his back waiting to see hyperspace.

Soon the ship went into hyperspace along with the other ships. Within 30 minutes they exited out of hyperspace into real space.

"Find and lock onto Darth Kharr's current coordinates on the planet. No doubt our Lord is engaged in battle or is about to engage in battle. We'll send in a standard number of fighters, then probe the enemy's defenses, and test the enemy's offensive abilities against our fighters. Anything larger than a fighter will be engaged also. Begin preparation. Descend our troop transports on the planet surface to reinforce our Lord." The captain had given the tall list of orders and like clockwork the communication officer relayed the message throughout the capital ship along with the other four ships.

Peppy watched the space radar as five distinct unknown ships entered the system and began to slowly enter the planet's atmosphere. They were using the security satellites but acted as the planetary defense network when it came down to uninvited guests such as large battle fleets of ships. Most of them were being deactivated remotely. There's only one other person that he could think of that could remotely deactivate them and that was his old friend, Pepper.

The old Hare looked at the communication officer. "You, open up a channel. I want to know who and what are our uninvited guests here," he ordered. An officer is working communication. They did not protest as they quickly open up a line and all frequencies of the incoming ship.

After a few moments the communication line was established and on the screen was a middle-aged human wearing a great outfit and a cap. Standing right next to him looked like some sort of Droid.

"Are you with Kharr, the alien that's visiting us currently?" Pepper tried to inquire.

A Droid began translating basic to Captain Omadest then he started speaking in Galactic basic which was translated. "We were summoned to provide assistance in an effort to repel the invasion. There are few large fleets of ships," a Droid translated word for word.

It was quite reassuring to the old Hare. Venom wasn't getting reinforcements from space compared to just simply opening up another portal. "You may proceed. No doubt, you were ordered not to harm any civilian areas." He had made sure the council's orders did not get forgotten or may have gotten lost in communication or translation.

The Droid translated in the captain speak once more. "We've been debriefed on the details of the operation through an encrypted message. I minimize the amount of collateral damage that will happen but no guarantees if the enemy forces us to make necessary attacks."

Not liking the sound of that, Peppy was about to stand firmly on the council's orders and make sure those words were clear to heard before communications cut off. Letting out an annoyed Huff, he only crossed his arms in hopes the council hadn't made a mistake.

Up in the air, Fox got a message from General Pepper. "You're going to be reinforced with a great number of fighters of unknown design. Normally I wouldn't order this, but I would like you to engage their maneuverability defenses and weapons layout. This type of operation is off the books. There's 1 million credits worth if the job is done." This may be the first time Fox was ever ordered to gather up Intel on known enemy fighters with a big hefty price tag behind it. And knowing the General for many years, he knows better not to question the General, especially when he's this serious.

"We'll gather up whatever what we can and deliver it to you in hand as soon as possible." Fox's communication with the General was cut off. He was flying in formation with his team and already a few Venom Fighters started coming through the portal at him and his two wingmen. They would begin to engage and start destroying the fighters.

The ace pilot Falco had taken down four Venom Fighters at the same time with his lasers while Slippy tested out his new hell missiles. The launch is a single missile and it breaks off into some more missiles and hits 10 other targets.

The Toad let out a Yahoo! "My new missiles work and it seems like I'm taking out more than Falco this time without getting shot down," he boasts as he dodges incoming fire from one Venom fighter and another, going back and forth, and dancing in the sky, showing his improved flight skills. It was enough to get Falco's attention when he heard the comment as well as seen it.

"Yeah right, tadpole. But you can't beat my score and you think that's fancy flying? Watch this!" Falco goes into a large swarm event, enemy fighters dodging them. A few that were pursuing him crashed into their own fellow Venom Fighters, as well as going out and taking out a few dozen squadrons of Fighters. "Top that, tadpole!" he said mockingly.

Slippy was too busy to notice that he had taken out at least four carriers with his new missiles. As he was dodging several missiles and redirecting them back to where they came from, displaying the skills of an ace pilot. "I'm sorry I was too busy destroying carriers and dodging missiles and having them redirected back to the ship where they came from, and then watching that same ship burning in flames for their efforts," he countered Falco's words.

They continued with their little contest of who would be the best and with each and every daring feat, the two became more and more dangerous. They continued to increase the stakes to the point where Fox had to intervene. "You two knuckleheads, knock it off or you'll both get shot down! This isn't a contest and you shouldn't destroy too many of the fighters. We need to leave some for our guest in the air." No sooner than he said that, he and his team see the large swarm of Supremacy fighters.

Many of the fighters began swarming over carriers and transports with rapid-fire laser cannon shots, moving at incredible speeds. A random laser hit one of the fighters and did very little to no damage as it continued the rundown. Several of the fighters and a few of the maneuvers' attack patterns even impressed Falco. A few of the different flying death-defying stunts went beyond his own ability to attempt without risking his own beak.

Everything that was going on was being recorded. As soon as Fox had seen the fighters he immediately pushed record on his cockpit and used his deep analysis scanner on a few of the fighters. He got the readout on the specs of the fighters. All the readouts were beyond his ability to comprehend on the technical scale. Perhaps he let Slippy look at it after he got enough data. He sent it straight to the Great Fox that began to move into position in defense at the Government Bureau building. They were using more advanced scanners to try to get a readout on the five ships that just entered the atmosphere.

On the ground, the militia was already prepared to defend the Government Bureau building as a small battalion was marching towards them and made some fortifications to defend themselves from laser fire. A reddish dark blur jumped over them and a white color is right in front of them. It was the strange alien but they were informed that a few of them had a small chance to see the security feed but only got glimpses of the armored. Never the face, as for the security feed of the council. What's required for high-ranking security personnel are those who are given access. It was something that the small-time security force had no chance of actually getting access to. The next surprising thing was gray armored troopers forming up behind them, pointing their weapons past small openings the security. They didn't think anything of it but one thing was concerning. Why is the alien standing right in front of them, instead of behind them where it's safe?

The sound of marching feet and the buzzing sound of hover tanks fills the air. Kharr can feel the desire. Conquest, destruction, death, the natural emotions of the battlefield coming from the enemy fueling his power. Holding out his hand, he grabs hold of his lightsaber and ignites it a black blade. Plasma buzzes in the air right before a storm rolls in and begins showering down droplets of water hitting the blade, making hissing sounds. That was drowned out with the sound of marching becoming louder and louder until the Venom Ground Forces were there.

He pointed his black lightsaber at the army that stood before him right before taking form 7 Vaapad. It's starting to move at blinding speed into the Venom ranks cutting hundreds of soldiers at a time. The sound of his lightsaber cleaved through the largest lizards to a small Apes. He had dodged weapon fire instead of using other defensive forms not wanting to break from the form that the key was already embedded himself into at the current moment. Except for one tank shot that he deflected back at the tank right back down its muzzle, making the tank explode from the inside then continuing onward to cut down anyone that stood in his way or anyone that looked like Venom.

The militia security couldn't believe what they were seeing. A single individual was leaving an entire mountain of bodies within seconds. As soon as he engaged many of them began to question could they ever have a chance to defeat such an enemy? Or for that matter, what can those soldiers in armor do if they ever became enemies? Many of them shudder at the thought and try to not think of it as they keep their weapons trained on anyone who got too close or may have gotten past the rampaging alien that was slaughtering any Venom soldier that got too close to it.

Krystal's team came out of the entrance of the Government Bureau building to see if they were needed at the entrance, but what they saw was more than what one of her teammates could handle. Looking over, Fay brought herself to the side, vomited at the site of watching soldiers being cut down, a few of them even being beheaded. It made the canine sick to her stomach.

"Fay, you need to head inside. This is not a type of battlefield I think you can handle at the moment and this is not a request, it's an order!" Krystal commanded as she continued to watch the carnage.

The canine did not refuse as she headed inside, possibly to look for Peppy to assist him in any way she could.

The only other one that was indifferent on this level of carnage besides Krystal was Miyu. Once a member of the feline female gang, just one hair away from being considered marauders or pirates, she had seen her fair share of carnage. When she was just a new blood in the gang and the current gang leader did things that were quite questionable, before she became leader of the Gang, and then only disbanding it for the good of everyone including many of the gang members that she still keeps in contact. Watching this level of death had brought back some bad memories.

Continuing with the massacre, Kharr could hardly believe this was an actual Army. Only a few of them actually managed to get small hairline, have a shot of actually hitting his armor. Dare he say if he allowed one of them to hit him he would doubt their pathetic weapons? Whatever harms him, thanks to the Mandalorian iron, mostly composed of his entire armor set making him virtually invulnerable. Or at least resistant to most laser and blaster fire. A few tanks begin to form up and began to lock onto him instead of dodging or deflecting. He only extended his hand with an open palm then he pushed five tanks cross the battlefield like they were nothing. It was quite entertaining for a little while now. It had become tedious and boring slaughtering weaklings. At least his troop transports were now landing to finish up what he had started.

Within the next hour the remaining Venom forces surrendered with very little to no collateral damage, other than a few ships from the enemy side crashing into a few civilian buildings that were already evacuated.

Back in the council chamber, Kharr had removed his helmet, and his armor was filled with grime from small explosions that he had caused on the battlefield while he was mowing down enemy forces. The security feed seemed to have recorded his actions as the council themselves were watching his physical fleet destruction, many of them were shocked to see how quick and how precise a human could move.

"Admiring my fleet it would seem that's just the tip of the iceberg of what I'm capable of. And if I truly went all out it would be even more destruction. Let this be proof of my abilities and my dedication to help protect you all in exchange for what I desire, as you already all know," Kharr said with confidence, highly doubting anyone can match his ability in combat.

None of them looked like they disagreed or disapproved. They were the enemy after all and the ground forces that just came were the final push that had made Venom surrender. "As head of the council, your request has been approved. You shall receive your tax exemption and the lots of land that you require to build whatever is required for you," the Snow Leopard declared, as well as ending the meeting.

The Sith Lord makes his way to his interceptor, feeling accomplished. To establish a foothold now he just needs a foundry, a shipyard engine, and to rebuild the Empire anew as emperor. Just the words alone made him laugh underneath his helmet. He had made sure to push the mute button on his helmet so he could laugh in private. He heads off for his interceptor. A new dawn has risen for him, a new Darkness rises with it.

To be continued