Vessik

Cipher 13

Sharok'vivi - Adopted Brother

> *"The Sith and The Empire: The Sith Empire. The concept fits together as a limb and a glove, yet the realities yield not the synergy to operate as a hand" - Vessik, while speaking to Lord Cayrus.*
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Vessik Klassa was the Grand Moff within the power-base, in command of Imperial Operations within the organisation. While his plans were certainly treasonous, Vessik had managed to gain the support of several Sith that he wished to remove from the seat of the organisation's power. However, after believing he had killed Darth Elídyr and then setting his plans into action, he was surprised to find that the Darth actually lived. Refusing to return Darth Elídyr's lightsaber, Vessik was taken hostage in the Darth's effort to negotiate with the Imperials for his lightsaber. However, when negotiations turned sour, Vessik was killed by Darth Elídyr. Several months after his death, Vessik was resurrected by Elídyr whom still sought to know the location of his lightsaber. Shortly after his resurrection, however, he fled the powerbase with his former division heads and then sought refuge on Tatooine. On Tatooine, Vessik and the division heads were met by a Jedi that led them to a powerbase named the Triumph's Conclave which they soon joined shortly afterwards.

## Biography (before The Empire's Triumph)

### Early Life and Dantooine

Born to Fralay and Braibry Klassa, Vessik's childhood was lived out upon a ranch on Dantooine. His father a huntsman and his mother a worker of the land, he was often encouraged to help them sustain a living. Throughout the early stages of his childhood, Vessik was content with life and often strived to enjoy the time that he spent with his parents. However, during his teen years, the intimacy Vessik shared with his parents began to dissolve, as his attitudes began to change: he was rather well spoken and up-tight although signs of cheerfulness remained. Despite this, he slowly began to grow embarrassed by his parents who often spoke with slurs and were never particularly serious, as a result he would often spend time on his own somewhat developing his own ideology and identity.

### Imperial Trade on Dantooine

During the time that he spent alone, Vessik often came across traders and tradesmen who would tell him stories of The Empire and The Republic. Taking some interest in these two factions, he used his time talking to those who sought trade, so that he might find out more of what he deemed his future. At the age of fifteen, Vessik divulged all of his interest into watching the endeavors of traders throughout their meetings with their factional trade partners, and through doing so encountered the first Imperials and Republicans that he ever would. Silently observing the actions and attitudes of both the Republicans and the Imperials, he chose the formality and structure of The Empire over the more relaxed Republic. He thought only of leaving Dantooine, yet could not bring himself to do so without any skills under his belt: as a result, he began to learn mechanical skills through any means that he could, whether it be the tradesmen he had become acquainted with or through the study of books and appliances within his own home. He spent the next two and a half years of his life studying such crafts.

### Leaving Dantooine

At the age of seventeen, Vessik had finally built up what he believed were enough skills to leave Dantooine and travel into Imperial Space. Alas, two problems remained: his lack of transport, and credits. With little care left for his family, he took just enough credits from them and began to seek the transport that would escort him off world. Luckily, he managed to find his benefactor trading within the plains of the planet; paying him enough credits, the Twi'lek smuggler promised to take Vessik to The Empire's capital world, Dromuund Kaas.

### Great Expectations

Upon reaching the Dromuund Kaas spaceport, the Twi'lek smuggler was arrested by Imperial authorities. Vessik quietly fled from the spaceport and set out for Kaas City. At the time, the path to the city was protected and not as overrun with beasts, providing him with some feeling of security and sanctuary while on the path to The Empire's capital.

### Finally Working

At last, Vessik had reached his desired destination: Kaas City. While many of city's tradesmen were wealthy, dishonesty was a common trait among the many merchants that scattered the vast city, thus he decided this against his current sense of morality: choosing instead to sign himself up for service within The Empire itself. The interview process was long and competitive, providing Vessik with his first real experience of the working world's formality. Becoming an idler for the two weeks before he received a reply to his application, he quickly began to become very short on funds, making him luckier still when he was accepted into a trainee program under Imperial Intelligence. Throughout the time he spent under the program, Vessik quickly picked up on many new skills within the art of mechanics and technology. Finally, he was brought under the employ of Imperial Intelligence under the designation of "Fixer 43". Up until this moment, Vessik had slowly began to admire the structure and order that The Empire possessed, and the endless nobility of the Imperial citizens.

### The Lost Mirialan

At the age of nineteen, Vessik received several messages from his parents; wishing to know where he had gone, Vessik ignored most of his parent's endless stream of messages. However, he became only slightly intrigued when he had learnt of a Mirialan child named Sharok'Vivi that had been adopted by his family on Dantooine. Dwelling little on it, he continued in his line of duty.

### Fixer 43, Ready For Duty

Vessik served as Fixer 43 for approximately three years, until he reached his late twenties. During this time, he was mostly stationed within the boundaries of Kaas City, with simple jobs, such as securing communication lines and making sure that power could run fluidly through the capital. While a Fixer, Vessik found himself solitary, finding nobody that he could truly deem a friend; regardless, he attempted to remain in a content silence throughout the experience.

### Hoth: Chiss Mishaps and Cybernetic Limbs

The time finally came when Vessik was sent off world for a mission. Sent to Hoth, accompanied by two Cipher Agents, his task was to successfully set up sensors on key points around the planet's surface. Despite the reason for such a

mission being unknown to him, he enthusiastically partook in a task he deemed worthy and important. Upon landing on the surface of Hoth, the breaching cold perturbed his enthusiasm and shook his form for the duration of the mission, yet he continued; thinking of the words: "Worthy and Important". Setting up the sensors was a simple task, yet out of nowhere, two shots were heard, along with two nearby thumps muffled by the snow. Entrenching himself within the heaps of snow and ice around him, he reached for the rifle of one of the dead Ciphers, successfully taking it, and then resting it upon the snow in front of him. Somehow, with little combat training, the ability to use such a weapon came to him automatically; he fired once through the crisp air, crippling one of the assailants. Firing several times more, he managed to frighten the final attacker from the scene. Despite his best effort's to keep the sensor up and running, it was hit by stray blaster fire, and exploded next to Vessik, causing him to pass out where he lay in the snow. Found by a patrolling unit, he was taken to a medical facility within a nearby outpost, still unconscious from the latest endeavour. When he awoke, he could taste Kolto and the area around his left foot had numbed. He shivered repeatedly, before being told of his rescue, and that he had lost his foot to the icy plains of Hoth. With a cybernetic replacement, it took him almost three weeks to learn to walk properly again, this time also spent out of work due to his unstable physical condition.

### Promoted

After he had recovered, Imperial Intelligence summoned him for a meeting, the purpose of such: unknown to him. He complied, travelling to The Citadel in Kaas City, where he proceeded to receive his new job as a field agent for the apparent expertise he showed on his mission to Hoth. Overjoyed, yet still moderately contained; twenty one year old Vessik was put through a six month training program, teaching him advanced skills with firearms and hand to hand combat. When asked for his weapon of choice, Vessik thought back to that moment on Hoth, remembering the planet's bitter embrace, and the weapon which he salvaged from the Cipher's corpse. In response, he confidently replied: "A sniper rifle.". Alas, one was not to hand; Vessik was encouraged to seek one best suiting himself, thus spent the next three weeks searching for one that he would deem: "Perfect"...

### Nar Shaddaa

Travelling to the Smuggler's Moon, Vessik sought out only one thing: the perfect weapon with which he could carry out his newly assigned field work. Upon reaching a wealthier area, The Promenade, he spent his time examining the various armaments that the regional merchants could provide him. Many passing faces greeted him, the bustling atmosphere somewhat enticing, yet he still felt alone upon this distant moon. After searching for several days, his search came to an end; finding a local weapons store named Feelin' Lucky, he entered to examine the shop's seemingly abundant wares. Upon entering the shop, he was greeted by a pair of siblings,

named Kaaita and Dendris Skirata. Although Dendris would mind his own business for the duration of Vessik's stay, his sister, Kaaita, aided Vessik in the selection of a rifle, and would then proceed to teach him how to use it properly. This carried on for a few days, while he payed for refuge within a hotel near the promenade. Finally, his lessons from Kaaita drew to a close and he left, both satisfied and with a greater goal in mind: his service towards The Empire and it's people.

### The Next 3 Years - Agent

For the next three years of his life, up until the age of 24, Vessik served as a field agent for Imperial Intelligence. After encountering many missions, his combat skills began to increase greatly and his overall experience of the Empire had grown to live up to his expectations. Devoted and skilled, he obediently complied to the Empire's will and commit himself to the role of agent. One notable mission that he took part in, was the slaughter of a colony on Mindor; finding themselves in Republic Space during the Cold War period, the Empire sent an attache of troops to slaughter a colony of Chagrian pacifists on the planet of Mindor. In order to maintain the mission's secrecy, Vessik was charged with the jamming of communications, placing himself atop a spire to do so. On this mission, he ensured that the Republic were not to hear of the attack until it was too late: making him one of the reasons for the mission's success.

### After Mindor - Cipher 13

Prior to the successful undertaking of Mindor, Vessik was once again promoted: this time to the rank of Cipher. Designated Cipher 13, Vessik endured his first encounter with a Sith Lord, much to his own dismay. The Sith's name was unknown to him, yet he needed not a name to harbour the hatred for this such Sith. Upon being assigned as a bodyguard to said Sith Lord, he witnessed the true face of The Sith Empire, built upon the slavery of the Imperial's he had so devoted himself to. At the time, very little respect was shown even to The Keeper of Imperial Intelligence. Slowly, his grudge for these ignorant beings grew, his opinion forming that the Sith were useless, refusing to utilize their power for nothing more than petty displays of power and the inherent slavery of The Empire and its people. Regardless of this, Vessik currently possessed no power to act against the Sith, and had very little intent to do so; creating a new goal, he wished to climb the hierarchy of The Empire to a position where he could command, for the good of The Empire, and its people.

### Life as Cipher 13 - The Next 5 Years

For a year of his career as Cipher 13, Vessik served as the loyal bodyguard to this Sith Lord, dispelling any issues that he was commanded to. However, despite this loyalty: Vessik was loyal to The Empire, thus when given the order gunned down the Sith Lord without hesitation. Towards Sith and Non-Imperials, he always felt some form of ruthlessness, caring not for their lives yet when Imperials' were concerned, he made his best efforts to make sure lives were not unnecessarily wasted. For the next three years, he served as a double agent within a large crime organisation; slowly and ruthlessly killing all of those targeted. Over the course of the three years he had killed thirty four of the organisation's officials, twenty two of which he tortured immensely before doing so, almost for his own

pleasure it would seem. In the final year of his life designated as Cipher 13, Vessik was stationed as part of a military presence on Alderaan. Unaware of why he received such a mission, yet again, he blindly obeyed. Little happened during his stay on Alderaan, despite the altering of some files and similar activities.

### Reevaluation, Resignation and Reassignment

After his time on Alderaan, Vessik began to question his own position within the Empire. His attitude had now become pure formality and his life a matter of business. Nothing more could be done for the people of the Empire as a Cipher, he had only removed one Sith from the Empire and had no authority where he currently stood. At the age of twenty nine, he resigned from Imperial Intelligence, instead deciding to enlist himself within the military in an attempt to climb the hierarchical ladder there.

### The Military

Throughout his time in the military, Vessik began to grow less and less attached to those around him, slowly divulging into a natural melancholy that would persist behind his forefront of formality. Granted the starting rank of Seargent due to his extensive skills in combat and tactical logistics, Vessik began to slowly climb the ladder of Military strength for the next ten years of his life. After three years Vessik had reached the position of Lieutenant and after four more had reached the position of Major. He began to see the influence he could have within The Empire, yet he desired more, for the Sith would still show him little respect, the respect that he believed he deserved. With little time to waste, Vessik dedicated all of his time to pushing himself further and further to reach this final goal, so that he might protect The Empire and its people, however foolish a desire it was. At last, within the tenth year of his military service Vessik was promoted to Grand Moff, after his services in the many battles he had commanded over: seventeen battles won, and and only three lost under his command as Major, thus was his promotion received.

### Transferred

Within several months of receiving the title of Grand Moff, Vessik received a request of transfer to a power-base dedicated to the protection of The Empire. Having been crushed by The Eternal Empire already, the power-base was the first line of defense against anymore attacks, enticed by this, he seized the opportunity and took the first shuttle to Dromuund Kaas that was available....

## Biography (The Empire's Triumph)

### The Transfer

Upon reaching the headquarters of The Empire's Triumph, Vessik was greeted and introduced to the power-base by Darth Tartorian. Although resentful, for Tartorian was a Sith, he willingly served within the first line of defense for The Empire, assigned as head of the Military Division within the power-base.

### Time on Dromuund Kaas

During his time on Dromuund Kaas, he gradually became acquainted with more and more figures of authority, and likewise for those beneath him. One notable person he met, was none other than the Apprentice of Darth Tartorian: Elídyr. Meeting Elídyr was a somewhat frustrating experience; finding the obnoxious apprentice harassing a recently employed Chiss Agent. The Apprentice demanded a joke from the Chiss, and somewhat symbolized the hate that Vessik had harboured for Sith.

Prior to his initial introduction to the power-base, Vessik was provided with an office and did all that he could to ensure that the base operated to full capacities: assigning an Elite Six to serve under his direct command. Despite the title of the group, only four were ever enlisted: Avrin Halles, Kaaita Skirata, Rezmae and Yossarian (the aforementioned Chiss Agent). Vessik, would often hold meetings with his Elite Six on a bi-daily basis, in which he would discuss with them both the security and the effectiveness of the power-base as a whole.

After settling in as an official of the power-base, Vessik once showed an outburst of what he believed of the Sith, before Darth Tartorian himself! Yelling of the Sith's ignorance and useless position within the Empire. Much to his dismay, he was soon demoted to the rank of Lieutenant and would remain as such until he could prove himself loyal to Darth Tartorian and his cause. Prior to this, Elídyr was the bearer of the news of demotion, and also took the chance to abuse his position and mistreat the demoted Vessik. Sharing a dislike for the Sith with Vessik, Agent Avrin Halles took the security footage of the room and sent it to Darth Tartorian, resulting in the punishment of Elídyr, yet Vessik would still have to work towards receiving back his title of Grand Moff.

Within time, Vessik had managed to re obtain his rank of Grand Moff, and the power-base began to operate at steadily increasing levels of efficiency. Despite his seemingly good work, Vessik was never the most popular within the power-base, notably so when a Sith Apprentice attempted to murder him within the base's grounds. Narrowly surviving the surprising encounter, Vessik ordered the apprentice subdued and then executed. Much to his dismay, he was not permitted to deliver the execution himself, thus commanded the Lieutenant Rezmae to carry it out. By the end of the day, the apprentice was executed and a disaster averted.

Despite recent disputes with Tartorian's apprentice, Elídyr, an unlikely alliance was formed. Unaware of the purpose of such an alliance, Vessik agreed in the name of the power-base's efficiency. The alliance promised Vessik protection, yet the benefit for Elídyr remained forever unknown; good was made on this promise, despite Vessik's first expectations, when Grehiko, the apprentice of Elídyr, was assigned as protection to him. Regardless of such promises, Vessik's views on Elídyr remained both curious and highly cautious.

### Hoth - One Step Too Far

#### A Promising Introduction

While researching possible improvements to capital within the power-base, the Lieutenant Rezmae approached Vessik; telling him of possible ways to enhance the resources at the base's disposal. Eager to improve the strength of the Empire's first line of defense, Vessik listened carefully to all that she said, pondering over every small detail and implication. Told of a line of factories on the surface of Hoth, he had decided a planetary invasion would be required to secure them, for a recent unity of the Talz tribes had lead to the planet being dictated by savages and animals. For the successful reclamation of these factories, the surrounding Talz would need to be bombarded from the planet's orbit before a strike force could be sent in to secure the factories and surrounding grounds; necessary were locations viable for sensory equipment, so that bombardments could be coordinated with the highest chances of success. Upon deciding all of this, he shortly arranged a mission for the Elite Six that he would also attend. The Elite Six were to seek locations in which sensors could be established, and this was to be done within a week of his decision....

#### A Snowy Search

> "The air's bitter embrace welcomed me once more, taunting and jeering at me..." -Vessik pondering over his return to Hoth.
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Meeting the Elite Six at an outpost on the surface of Hoth, Vessik launched the mission to seek sensor locations. First stepping out into the snow, he recognised the bitterly cold embrace of the planet, his personality somewhat changing for the duration of their stay, rendering him often silent, as he would glance at his cybernetic foot every now and again. The mission started with a long trek through the planet's icy plains, but it was not long until resistance was met in the form of Talz tribesmen. Gunning the Talz down, the group descended into an icy cave in search of evidence of the Talz' takeover; finding very many Talz and a few Imperial corpses, the group searched for hours before finally returning to the surface. A beacon was set upon the top of the cave as the group moved on in search for another worthy sensor location. Trudging through the seemingly endless snow plains of Hoth, the group came across the second location for a sensor, simply atop a hill amid a nucleated Talz settlement; sneaking past any possible resistance, the group managed to establish a beacon atop the hill without being spotted. Proceeding to search for the third and final site in which a sensor could be placed, the Elite Six found themselves atop a ridge which overlooked a larger Talz settlement that sat upon the top of another cave. When the group saw the vast amount of Talz that littered the site, Vessik decided it would be best to send only two who would sneak into the camp and place a beacon. As a result, Kaaita Skirata and Avrin Halles were sent to the camp, while Vessik and the Lieutenant Rezmae remained on the ridge awaiting the task's completion. An hour or so passed before the two returned, yet little conversation occurred between Vessik and Lieutenant Rezmae. Upon the return of the Kaaita Skirata and Avrin Halles, the Lieutenant Rezmae warned the group of an approaching threat in the form of the Talz chieftain. Bigger than the other Talz in the approaching escort, the chieftain clearly stood out from the rest; "It must have heard of the attacks!" the Lieutenant Rezmae exclaimed as Vessik calmly observed the movements of the escort down the scope of his sniper rifle.

Keeping his rifle lined perfectly with the chieftain's head, he continued to watch patiently, before pulling the trigger. The shot hit the chieftain in the eye, sending it crashing to the ground and painting the surrounding snow red. Despite Vessik's best efforts at killing the creature, it forcefully pushed itself from the ground and sent attackers in the direction of the Elite Six. With no other business upon the planet, the group fled and returned to the spaceport, running the majority of the previously covered distance. After the success of the mission, Vessik and the others boarded a ship that was headed for Dromuund Kaas.

#### A Due Sacrifice

Upon their return to Dromuund Kaas, preparations were to be made within the Intelligence department, which would send a unit of Fixers and Ciphers to establish the sensory equipment in the decided locations. Despite this, a major threat still lived: the Talz chieftain, not only this, but also the very little information the power-base had on the Talz strength could be a possible downfall. In order to deal with both of these problems, Vessik and the Lieutenant Rezmae returned to Hoth, this time accompanied by the Admiral of the time, Alextyl, in order to search for more information regarding the Talz occupation. Returning to the previously discovered ridge, the trio scouted out for any sign of the Talz chieftain. With no direct indicator to the chieftain's presence, information was yet to be gathered, and with no better alternative than an insider within the tribe's grounds. Bravely volunteering herself, the Lieutenant Rezmae put herself through an injury even prior to her mission: cutting open her arm in order to store a data recorder beneath her own flesh. Beyond this, the Lieutenant allowed herself to be taken hostage in order to force herself into a position from which she could extract as much reconnaissance based information as possible. Her final request being that her wedding ring be delivered to her wife, Vessik set out for Nar Shaddaa in search of Rezmae's wife, with little knowledge that she was married to a Mandalorian.....

#### Married to a Mandalorian

In search of the Lieutenant Rezmae's wife, a woman named Líbbie, Vessik traveled to Nar Shaddaa to honor her request. Told that she could be found mostly in the Slippery Slopes Cantina, on the Lower Promenade, he enters the bar somewhat curious as to the visual identity of the Lieutenant's wife. Asking around for half an hour, Vessik finds little more information than the often used title of: "Woman in white". Leaving the Slippery Slopes, he then begins to watch his surrounding area within the Lower Promenade, making sure he recognises anybody matching the aforementioned description. With no success in the next thirty minutes, he began to reenter the bar, only to walk into the Mandalorian, whom was leaving herself.

Approaching, he noticed her fully white beskar and her heavy armaments. After telling the woman of her wife's mission and request, the now apparent Mandalorian took the data pad tracking Rezmae from Vessik and left, calling upon her "Vode" to aid her in the rescue of her wife. Regretting his decision to travel to Nar Shaddaa, Vessik returns to Dromuund Kaas and assembles a rescue team in order to beat the Mandalorians in the race for the Lieutenant Rezmae.....

#### A Failed Rescue

> "But a bloodbath, satisfying the wants and needs of those glory seeking barbarians...." - Vessik ,expressing his disgust towards the Mandalorians after the failed rescue of Lieutenant Rezmae.
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After assembling a team consisting of himself, Avrin Halles, Kaaita Skirata and a Private named Bryan; Vessik and the group boarded a ship, bound towards Hoth. Arriving on Hoth and hurrying towards the outpost's exit, the group stumbled upon none other that Líbbie and her "Vode". Agreeing to assist each other on the fight to rescuing Rezmae, both groups set out on a slow journey towards the place in which she was being held. Although unaware as to why the Mandalorians would accept their help, Vessik needed theirs in order to pinpoint the exact location of the Lieutenant, thus used the group to his own ends throughout the duration of their makeshift alliance.

The large group fought their way through all Talz resistance, killing many that stood in their way while suffering only a few wounds. His cybernetic foot suffering from exposed wiring after being scalded by stray blaster fire, Vessik remained at the back of these skirmishes and used the time to observe the Mandalorian battle prowess and strategies. Little was noted upon, for little did they do- most of the path was cleared by the Private he had brought along with him. The repetitive notion of killing continued, only until the large cohort reached a cave, bringing their path to a dead-end. Within this cave was the beaten and bloodied Rezmae, unconscious yet still breathing the cold air of the planet; Líbbie rushed to her side immediately in order to comfort and support her, while the remaining members of the group stood by and watched - noticing an imminently approaching snowstorm....

While the snowstorm raged, the Imperials and Mandalorians were forced to remain together within this cave for several hours awaiting a time in which it was safe to leave. During this time very little occurred but idle conversation between one of the Mandalorians and Avrin Halles. All was calm, and uneasily friendly. Despite the docile nature of the wait, hostility seemed just around the corner: and so it was.....

After the snowstorm had died down, preparations were being made for each of the groups to leave the cave and be on their own way after the endeavours of the rescue. One last obstacle remained: the Lieutenant. Threatening to destroy the data the Lieutenant had collected should Vessik not provide payment for their help and allow them to take the Lieutenant, the Mandalorians began to make demands followed up by sincere threats. Not willing to lose the Lieutenant's resourcefulness within the power-base, and attempting to prove that The Empire were not so weak as to be threatened, Vessik argued with the Mandalorians for a while before a forceful conclusion was made. Attaching a bomb to the data collection device, one of the Mandalorians threw the device back to him, holding onto what Vessik believed were the detonation controls as Libbie left with her wife in her arms. Believing it was a manual detonation that would only be triggered should he be seen, Vessik slowly tailed the group while making sure he was not seen by anyone. Although his tailing was successful, his original evaluation was not; the bomb was a detonation through proximity, a detonation automatically occurring at a set time - should the bomb be too far away then it would not detonate, however if in range it would. Being in the detonation range, Vessik heard a beeping and felt a vibration on his belt. Taking the device in his left hand, he attempted to throw it away. Alas, his attempts were in vain. Detonating, the device exploded and destroyed his right hand in the process; falling back down into the snow, he was then carried back to the ship by Avrin Halles.

#### Terms and Conditions

On returning to Dromuund Kaas, Vessik was immediately sent to the medical bay and provided with assistance and a replacement for his lost right hand. In his condition, he was sent a private message by Libbie. The message explained the terms of Rezmae's employment, demanding that full reports of the power-base's activity be sent to her on a regular basis and should this not be done, Vessik would be killed. Unable to respond, he placed his next couple of weeks in the hands of the medical bay staff.

### The Medical Bay

For the next two weeks, Vessik remained in the medical bay of the power-base's Headquarters on Dromuund Kaas, recuperating from his injuries that he sustained on the mission to Hoth. While in the medical bay, numerous gatherings occurred, from which he learned of the continuous absence of the Lieutenant Rezmae and of the ignorance of many of those beneath him.

One of the moments he can oddly remember, was that of when an engineer spent her time fixing Vessik's damaged cybernetic foot. Sparks leaking from the exposed wiring, it was about time that somebody came to fix the blaster struck cybernetic replacement for his left foot; little conversation occurred while his foot was being mended, yet the experience for some reason remained within his memory for a long time.

While in the medical bay, Vessik was unable to respond to two major events within the power-base's operating status. These events were the mental breakdown and death of the Lieutenant Rezmae, and the bombing of the Dromuund Kaas headquarters.

### A Lieutenant's Breakdown

While still in the medical bay, Vessik was unaware that the following occured, and was only to find out after he had recovered from the bombing of the power-base headquarters on Dromuund Kaas.

    Still suffering from the mission on Hoth, Rezmae had returned to work and visited Vessik within the medical bay. He did not respond, yet a strategist within the Military division spoke on his behalf. Threatening the Lieutenant's children, the strategist spoke of removing Líbbie from the grasp of life, somewhat in vengeance for the now incomplete-able campaign that would have followed the rescue of Hoth. Unable to take much more, the Lieutenant suffered a mental breakdown; killing the strategist on the spot and then forty nine more Imperials and three Sith that would attempt to stop her escape from Dromuund Kaas. After reaching the spaceport all seemed clear and her escape seemed imminent, yet an Imperial hired bounty hunter fired on her, blasting open her throat and sending her flying to the floor. Placed under medical care for the next couple weeks, the Lieutenant was due an execution. Despite this, the Lieutenant died after her lungs had collapsed in the medical bay.

### The Bombing

Yet again, Vessik remained in the medical bay throughout the occurrence of the following.

Upon discovering the formation of the power-base, The Eternal Empire spent weeks upon weeks learning of the power-base's primary headquarters. Once the location of the Dromuund Kaas headquarters had been discovered, a bombing run was sent to eliminate the power-base and it's leaders. Under heavy sedation while the bombing occurred, Vessik was extracted from the medical bay by members of his own military division, and was then sent to the flagship of Darth Tartorian, the Wanderer, for the remaining time of his medical treatment.

Once the original headquarters had been destroyed, Darth Tartorian and his Apprentice, Elídyr, sent themselves on the search for a new headquarters in a location less obvious to The Eternal Empire.

### The Wanderer

After the bombing of the original headquarters, and his transfer to The Wanderer, Vessik remained within the ship's medical bay for another week overcoming various illnesses he had contracted from his weakness. After his treatment had ended, Vessik was promoted to head of Imperial Operations after the power-base accepted the enrollment of more Sith, and was briefed on the death of the Lieutenant Rezmae - showing more concern for a loss of a good resource than that of a woman. Upon hearing this news, The Elite Six was officially disbanded by him and a new divisional system was created. Promoting two former members of The Elite Six, Kaaita Skirata and Avrin Halles, to Admiral and Keeper respectively, and an experienced soldier within his ranks, Mayreri Velandri, to General; the three divisions were now under new management. After appointing the new heads of divisions, Vessik then spent the majority of his time serving upon The Wanderer, finding new ways to maximise efficiency and increase the strength of the power-base.

### Intimate Relations

Gradually the new division heads grew closer and closer together, apparent by the increasingly often social meetings they would harbour aboard the ship after work hours had concluded. One notable thing that had sprung from this was the now developing love between Avrin Halles and Kaaita Skirata. Learning of this new attachment when the pair shared a kiss upon the bridge of The Wanderer, Vessik at first viewed it as a distraction from the work that the pair should have been doing. Late one night, Vessik intruded upon one of their social gatherings, claiming that he would turn off the security cameras for an hour and allow the pair to do what they wished within the Intelligence Office for an hour, however this was only on the terms that their relationship was suppressed within the pivotal working hours of the day. Telling the couple that he had turned off the cameras, when in fact he hadn't, he allowed them to conduct their business as they wished. Watching through the holocameras, he witnessed a sexual embrace between the pair and recorded the entire endeavour as leverage should their loyalty come to question. By his side were both Mayreri Velandri and a naval marine. Returning to Vessik earlier than expected, the couple discovered what they believed to be the naval recruit spying on them. Furious due to this, Avrin Halles ordered the naval marine to be arrested and detained until a suitable punishment could be put in place; injecting the marine with a numbing drug that would inhibit the use of his leg, Avrin Halles observed as the marine struggled limping around the bridge of the ship. Unfortunately for Vessik, his attempts at limiting their work time affection was a failure and may have further encouraged the marriage of Avrin Halles and Kaaita Skirata.

### Mandalorians and Nar Shaddaa

#### Plans for Revenge

Outraged by the death of the Lieutenant, and the loss of important data, Vessik held the Mandalorian clan Kih'Oyubat as directly responsible for the malcontent that had occurred within his ranks. Believing that the key to removing them as a nuisance was to eliminate them entirely, Vessik established a plan which he believed would lead to the removal of such a threat as Kih'Oyubat. The plan consisted of a raid on a common location for many members of the clan, the Slippery Slopes Cantina. Members of the power-base were to disguise themselves a newly formed local gang named the Gundark Gunners and perform a large raid upon the cantina in which they would attempt to arrest the Mandalorians for execution.

#### The Gundark Gunners

> "Because fuck you!" - Lord Elídyr, addressing Vessik about his face.
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After a reputation had been spread under the name of The Gundark Gunners, the many attending members of the power-base boarded a shuttle en-route to the promenade. Notable attendees included: Kaaita Skirata, Avrin Halles, Lord Grehiko, Darth Elídyr and Mayreri Velandri. All disguised as low-life thugs, the Imperials and Sith all awaited the perfect moment to storm the cantina. While final preparations had to be made, the fake gang discovered an old warehouse in which they decided to stay for the duration of the mission. Sending Avrin Halles on a mission to disable security devices, Vessik and everyone else remained within this warehouse. Not willing to break cover, even within the warehouse, many conversations occurred within the group, many of which were nonpunishable due to the required cover. One such conversation occurred between Vessik and the then Lord Elídyr; asking of why the Lord hid his face, Vessik was met with an unsavoury response.

#### An Admiral's Memory

As it so happened, the warehouse in which the gang remained was the remains of the shop in which Kaaita Skirata used to work with her brother, Dendris Skirata. The very same shop in which Kaaita Skirata taught Vessik how to use a sniper rifle, he too recognised it upon their arrival within the shop. Greatly worried as to why the shop was in it's current state, Kaaita discovered a holorecording stored within a hollow training dummy. Playing the recording, she learned of an attack on her shop conducted by Mandalorians of Clan Skirata. A final message played at the end of the recording, in which a member of Clan Skirata explained the situation and what they wanted for Dendris' safe return. Learning of his imprisonment within a Mandalorian camp on Dromuund Kaas, the Admiral hereby vowed she would return her brother to her side.

#### Failed Assault

Upon receiving the signal from Avrin Halles, Vessik ordered the beginning of the assault upon the Slippery Slopes Cantina. Not taken seriously by many of the cantina's patrons, the Mandalorian residents soon recognised The Gundark Gunners as servants of The Empire's Triumph. Realising they had been recognised, Vessik ordered an on the spot execution of Libbíe and her Vode. A raging gunfight broke out and furniture was upturned to accommodate for a lack of cover on either side; two Sith patrons became involved on the side of the Mandalorians, only to be removed from the situation by Lord Elídyr and Grehiko. Warned by Avrin Halles of incoming Cartel intervention, Vessik then ordered a full retreat from the Slippery Slopes and towards a more remote slums district below the promenade. Setting up a defensive position within the slums district, the Imperials awaited the Mandalorians that had been spotted following them....

#### Suicide

> "No one else.... no more death...." - Libbíe's final words, after her kamikaze attack.
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While hauled up in the slums district, time appeared to crawl slowly around the beaten back Imperials. No sign of local disturbances could be seen, neither Mandalorian nor Cartel. A moderate amount of time passed in which the Imperials began to offer their last words to their friends and colleagues, yet Vessik remained silent and on the watch for any upcoming ambush. After this time had passed, Libbíe was spotted approaching - alone. Prepared to hear what she had to say, Vessik armed himself and approached her, asking her of what she sought. Little an answer did he get from her before she turned all of he personal arsenal upon the entrenched Imperials; missiles flew and blaster fire scorched the surroundings as Libbíe

committed herself to a Kamikaze attack. Mowed down by the combined firepower of fifteen Imperials, the now dying Libbíe was approached by a female Mandalorian. Listening to their conversation, Vessik learned of Libbíe's wish for no more conflict, her final words: "No one else.... No more death....". Passing away, black smoke congealed above her pure white Beskar as Vessik called upon a shuttle to conclude their mission and return them to the Wanderer.

#### Clearing Up and Debriefing

Sustaining many injuries within the mission, the Imperials of The Empire's Triumph returned to the sanctuary of The Wanderer. Only one thing was achieved from the mission: no more Mandalorian interference prior to the death of Libbíé. Little time did the debrief take before Vessik allowed his staff to leave and get some rest. Returning to his office after the debriefing, he found none other than Grehiko waiting for him; with whom he had an interesting discussion on morality. After the death of the Lieutenant Rezmae and then the death of her wife, Líbbie, the first steps were taken towards Vessik's depression.

### Hacking - A Memento of The Keeper's Past

#### An Anonymous Intruder

Throughout his time on The Wanderer, Vessik had grown to believe that the ship's existence was unknown to the Galaxy, and as such he liked it. Despite this, one such incident caused a large stir among the crew of The Wanderer. Several days after it had happened, Kaaita Skirata made Vessik aware of a hacking attempt that had occurred; with no direct suspect, the ship was placed under brief lockdown while the anonymous intruder could be sourced out. Largely concerned by this intrusion, he took the matter to the Keeper Avrin Halles, whom learned of the hackers identity within a matter of moments. None other than Avrin Halles' former mentor whom sold Avrin's siblings to the Sith, a mission was drawn up to find and execute the man responsible...

#### The Depths of Nar Shaddaa

> "Perhaps the past holds more, forms more of the people we are now." - Vessik, speaking to Grehiko shortly after Nar Shaddaa.
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Narrowing down his mentor's location, Avrin Halles requested the aid of both the then General Mayreri and Grand Moff Vessik for assistance in his vendetta. Complying, the three entered a shuttle together and set the co-ordinates for the Shadow Town of Nar Shaddaa. Quietly making their way towards the shop in which the mentor resided, the group at last discovered the soon to be resting place of Avrin's former teacher. Requesting that Mayreri enter the above air vents and that Vessik stand watch outside, Avrin Halles entered the shop to confront the perpetrator of the power-base's mainframe. While the Keeper attempted to break down the moral barriers of his former mentor, Vessik entered the shop and hid among a row of bacta tanks as to get a better view of how the Keeper would handle the situation. A deadly firefight broke out between the former mentor and student, one in which Vessik carefully analysed the combat prowess of Avrin Halles. The fight eventually led it's way outside, upon where Avrin Halles finally knocked down his mentor with barrages of blaster fire. Seeking vengeance for the loss of his siblings, Avrin Halles slowly and brutally slit the throat of his former mentor; bringing an end to the hacking scandal.

### Cold War

#### The Spy Game

Disagreements began to arise between the Sith half and Imperial half of the power-base, so much so that distrust began to appear at all the seams of their fragile alliance. Two prominent figures within opposite sides of the power-base, Grand Moff Vessik and Lord Elídyr, invested in the use of spies to ensure neither side was plotting against the other. The first spy in use was none other than the General Mayreri Velandri, blackmailed into spying on the Imperials otherwise Elídyr would feast on her flesh. For a while did this spy remain, until the Keeper managed to reveal her task at the hands of a question won in a bet. Frustrated by this impertinence, Vessik prepared three spies of his own.....

#### The Grand Moff's Bluff

Three spies were recruited from Sith operations by Vessik, all of which were only to be used by him in an attempt to bluff the Lord Elídyr into revealing any more spies he may posses within the Imperial ranks. Approaching the Lord upfront with the information that he knew the identity of the spy, Vessik proposed a trade: the identities of his own spies for confirmation of the General's activities as a spy. Successful in this endeavour, it would seem that no spies remained, however that proved to be irrelevant upon his journey to Yavin 4 - where he sought to tell his spies that he had abandoned them.

#### Yavin 4 Detainment

Taking a shuttle from The Wanderer and onto the surface of Yavin 4. Entering the Sith sanctuary on the planet's surface, a certain chill lingered within the air, one which he could never quite identify. Discovering that his former spy, Lord Cayrus, was being held prisoner, Vessik soon began to question him on why. Alas, it was a setup. Lord Tareenil, Lord Sal'anor and several of their apprentices approached the now helpless Vessik and saw to his arrest. Complying to his arrest at the command of Lord Elídyr, Vessik was then questioned repeatedly by Lord Sal'anor and Tareenil. The Lords proceeded to question him on both his motives and actions. Luckily for him, Tareenil saw worthy intent in Vessik's motives; releasing him, she then warned him of "something big" soon to occur aboard The Wanderer.

#### Hostile Takeover

> *"How could you do this to me, Vessssik!" - yelled by Lord Elídyr towards Vessik, while he remained imprisoned.*
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Returning to the Wanderer, he pondered over the "something big" that he had been warned of previously. Perhaps his indefinite detainment, or even execution? Deciding upon the latter, he approached Admiral Kaaita Skirata to pass on his position should any harm come to him. A day passed, upon which Vessik left his office and headed to the bridge for one last view of the stars before he would finally be executed. By now he had plunged further into depression and accepted the fate that he viewed as inevitable. However, aboard the bridge he discovered Darth Tartorian and an entourage of Sith, stood among his own division heads and many other Imperials. These were to be his final moments, or so he thought. Accused of high treason by Darth Tartorian, Vessik was abused by the other Sith after defending his innocence, and imprisoned aboard The Wanderer along with the rest of his division heads: Kaaita Skirata, Avrin Halles, and Mayreri Velandri. Several days passed through which he endured great torment and humiliation at the hands of these Sith, growing ever more hateful towards their kind, and falling further and further into the seemingly endless well of depression. Growing paler and weaker while losing the will to live, Vessik was approached by the Apprentice Grehiko, promising that he would attempt to help him in any way that he could. Unable to say much in response, he once again returned to the endless gloom that his mind cast upon him. Although losing the will to live, he would not kneel nor die to feed the Sith's satisfaction; obstinately refusing the pass away even after being beaten by his former spy Lord Cayrus. Another day had passed, and Lord Elídyr approached his cell seemingly mad after all that had happened. Yelling of a high betrayal that Vessik had committed, Elídyr then summoned him to Yavin 4 where a meeting would be held with Darth Tartorian himself.....

#### Settling Differences

Upon being escorted to Yavin 4 by Lord Tareenil, Vessik pondered over his redirected fate, obediently following the Twi'lek sith as she led him deep into a cave found hidden on the grounds of the sanctuary. The cave's air was humid, and droplets of water dripped from the cave ceiling on occasion. The air of the cave seemed to carry a heavy darkness about it, which he found to be almost suffocating. Delving further into the depths of the cave, the pair finally crossed a large atrium; built into the cave's structure, the room contained a round table and many padded chairs, seemingly a meeting room of some sort. Stood within the room was Darth Tartorian, who soon requested that Vessik and Tareenil be seated and that they place their weapons upon the glowing surface of the table. Waiting several minutes before the arrival of Lord Elídyr and the Apprentice Grehiko, an air of tension hung within the room as the Twi'lek Sith and Vessik offered disdainful looks to one another. With the arrival of Lord Elídyr and Apprentice Grehiko, the meeting henceforth commenced. Lasting for several hours, the meeting outlined the issues between Grand Moff Vessik and Lord Elídyr; after solutions to these issues had been presented, the meeting ended with Elídyr being sent to Oricon as a punishment and Vessik sent to Alderaan for rehabilitation. After Grehiko was promoted to the status of Lord, he lead Vessik from the meeting accompanied by Lord Tareenil. Moving towards the shuttle pad, the escort was briefly interrupted by a frustrated Lord Tareenil; throwing Vessik into a wall after channeling force energy through the palm of her hand, she soon left and headed back to Darth Tartorian. Harboured in the sanctuaries medical bay, he was visited by Lord Grehiko day by day, until he was finally transported to Alderaan for rehabilitation.

### Rehabilitation on a Distant World

Having been sent to Alderaan, Vessik was somewhat dragged along the path to the rehabilitation center; caring not to walk nor to the escort with his relocation. All that mattered to him had been lost, his position and dignity stripped from him by the Sith. His life was now nothing more than a burden to him; physically and mentally broken, Vessik endured many weeks of tormenting solitude while suicide became somewhat of an inviting prospect, the only thing preventing him from doing so was the desire to not give the Sith the satisfaction of knowing he had killed himself. Little of note occurred during his rehab, but he certainly returned to sanity changed. After physically and mentally recovering from his depression, Vessik was hailed to the palace of House Thul by Darth Tartorian himself....

### A Grand Moff Returns

Approaching the palace of House Thul, he began to ponder over many things although one certainty remained: he was to get his job back. Meeting Darth Tartorian again was different from that which he expected, the Darth was even welcoming to him; little time did the meeting last for before Vessik had been reassigned to his position aboard The Wanderer. Returning to The Wanderer itself struck him as somewhat daunting, for many of his recent memories, within the past seven or so years, had been lost. Re-acquainting himself with the staff aboard The Wanderer, he spent several days trying to readjust after all that had happened. After returning after all that had happened, Vessik had returned dead inside; with little more than his obedience and devotion to The Empire he served as a drone with only one goal: maximizing the efficiency of the power-base. Cold and bitter towards all those around him, the staff needed a while to get used to the new Grand Moff Vessik.

### Conflicting Interests

After the disappearance of Darth Tartorian, power struggles began to erupt within the power-base: the now Darth Elídyr had returned from Oricon changed and as the leader of the power-base, much to the disdain of many that served him. After all that had happened between Darth Elídyr and himself, this came as a hardship to Vessik yet he treated it as nothing more than an occupational grievance, and thus did not allow it to come between him and his duty. Despite this however, several powerful and power-hungry Sith came to the Grand Moff seeking his support against The Empire's Triumph's new leader....

#### Lord Grehiko

Approaching Vessik in his office, seeming both exhausted and short of patience, Grehiko walked up to him while dragging a chair across the floor of his office. Speaking of many things that he disliked in his master, he sought out Vessik's help in standing against Elídyr should push come to shove. After hearing claims that Elídyr was a madman concerned only with his own position, Vessik gladly accepted the request for his aid. Not only did he request Vessik's assistance, but deeper manipulation began to occur; wishing for Vessik to follow his own ideals with devotion, and that he would become more independent in his strive to protect The Empire. Warning him of the past, and reacquainting Vessik with several of his forgotten memories, Grehiko carefully forged an impression into the Grand Moff's mind. After Lord Grehiko had finally left, Vessik contemplated on what he had said. The meeting certainly changed him, strengthening his devotion to The Empire and furthermore the lengths to which he was willing to go to ensure it's safety. This also refueled the hate which he harboured for the Sith kind.....

#### Darth Elídyr

A day after he had spoken to Lord Grehiko, he was then summoned by Darth Elídyr himself. This time however, Elídyr explained to Vessik how he wanted him to be. Punching Vessik in the face, the Darth requested that he become more compassionate towards his staff and regain the courage that he used to hold, the courage he possessed that would allow him to stand against even a Lord of the Sith. A feud had been evident between both the Sith that had approached him, seeing as both flattered him and sought his support in their conversations with him. After the spontaneous meeting had drawn to a close, Vessik once again spent several hours in his office considering what had been said. Mixing both the devotion to his ideals, and the courage and compassion, requested by both Lord Grehiko and Darth Elídyr, Vessik developed a plan that would seek to remove the Sith from their seat of authority within the power-base....

#### Lord Maevae

Two days following his conversation with Darth Elídyr, Vessik was approached by but another Sith. Already frustrated by the power plays of the Sith, the moment he saw Lord Maevae approach him he knew but one thing: she would be the first to go. As charismatic as the Lord was, Vessik's deep-rooted bias against the Sith prevented him from being swayed by her persuasive techniques. Claiming that she fought for what was best for The Empire, she very nearly appealed to Vessik in her case yet one issue remained: they were all the same, every Sith seemed to follow the same base desire for power regardless of the cause they stand for. Attempting to gain her trust, Vessik said he would consider her terms while attempting to find any evidence that he could factor against her. He could find nothing but the holo-recordings of the bridge where she addressed him, but that seemed to be enough. She left him content with what he had, and a feeling of vindication burning within his soul. Although he viewed vengeance as foolish, in his eyes the Sith must not have been left in power of such an important front. Hurrying to Darth Elídyr when the opportunity arose, Vessik revealed Lord Maevae's treachery for which she was punished by execution. With the first step of his plan complete, he began to feel a sense of righteousness in that what he was doing and also began to feel somewhat unstoppable. With but one Sith removed from the power-struggle, several more remained before he could claim the power-base for his own and truly maximise defensive potential unhindered......

### Trialed for Murder

#### False Accusations

Shortly after the death of Lord Maevae, Vessik was approached by yet another Sith! This time, however, was different from the last. Accusing Vessik of murder and treason against his Sith superiors, Lord Malaghast sought out his peaceful surrender. The murdered Sith was none other than Lord Sal'anor, the council's current Master of War. Upon requesting evidence of his involvement, he was provided with a holo-recording of Lord Sal'anor's final words before his death at the hands of an explosion: implicating Vessik in his murder. Outraged by this, he threatened to turn The Wanderer's automated defenses on Lord Malaghast which lead to some unfortunate circumstances including the alchemical alteration of a young marine's mind to obey the very word of his new Sith master: Lord Malaghast. Before any violence could occur, Darth Elídyr interrupted the situation by simply scheduling Vessik's execution for seven days from then. With only seven days to prove his innocence lest he be executed, Vessik placed high priority on ensuring he survived the endeavour.

#### Desperate Measures

Unfortunately, the terminal containing the recorded file was deep in The Council's cave on Yavin 4. Assembling a team assigned to the protection of a slicer, Vessik lead a mission to infiltrate the cave and steal the required files. Very little occurred during their trek across the Sanctuary grounds as the area seemed fairly empty, however one Sith managed to gather the attention of the group. A scholar going by the name of Sepehri stood between them and their goal. However, this scholar was a coward and threw down his weapon before he was even asked. After receiving several threats from Vessik and his party, the scholar followed them with little hesitation while muttering nonsense of Sith prophecies. Finally they reached the cave, the humid air dampening all of their garments. Sending off the slicer to receive the required files, Vessik then managed to recruit the scholar into his own ranks. Little more was needed before a large roaring was heard overhead, signalling that their intrusion had been noticed. Retreating, the group boarded a shuttle in order to return to The Wanderer. Upon returning to The Wanderer, the group quickly began to decode the file and its previous tampering; discovering that words said were not actually "Moff" yet something else, another team was then assembled (consisting of Lieutenant Mayreri, Private Bliki and himself) that was to be sent to the house of Lord Sal'anor, where he was found to have been murdered.....

#### The Final Pieces

Secretly breaking onto the cordoned scene of Sal'anor's murder, his house, the group carefully examined everything in the room. Finding the corpse of Lord Sal'anor impaled by a spear and lodged into the wall, the group were careful to take as many pictures as possible, for such a feat would be physically impossible for Vessik. The apartment's windows had been destroyed in the explosion and the place was generally a mess, all that remained were a few tables and the remains of an astromech droid that was seemingly damaged in the explosion. Fleeing from the scene with the memory chasis of the droid, the group returned to The Wanderer and processed the visual recordings that the droid would have taken. After some time, it was discovered that it was actually Lord Sal'anor's apprentice who was responsible for the murder; the imagery depicted the apprentice using The Force to throw Lord Sal'anor into the wall, shortly followed by a large spear. Although the motives to the murder were unknown, this was enough to shift the blame from Vessik thus he spent the next two days preparing for his trial....

#### The Allusive Trial

After spending the week preparing his case for the trial at the hands of the Sith, Vessik was disappointed to discover that his trial had been dropped and branded "a waste of time". Frustrated by how he had wasted his own time on the endeavour, he returned to work to make sure that everything was still operating perfectly.

### Operation Shadow-Theft (Hoth)

#### Atmospheric Assault

The stage was set to steal a Zakuulan stealth field generator in order to augment The Wanderer. Having prepared the mission to every tiny detail, Commander Kaaita Halles lead the mission that began aboard the bridge of The Wanderer. The wait was short, and within the time predicted the Zakuulan freighter had risen into Hoth's atmosphere. Taking no chances, the Commander ordered The Wanderer to be lowered into Hoth's atmosphere and then sent several waves of starfighters to attack the vessel. The white atmosphere became plastered with orange and black as the Zakuulan Vessel managed to destroy all of the star-fighters sent towards it; the only possible solution now was to turn The Wanderer's turbolasers upon this vessel. After successfully striking the vessel's engines, a large ground force was assembled to claim the wreckage, and the stealth field generator, for their own. Notable members of the ground force included Keeper Avrin Halles, Commander Kaaita Halles, Lieutenant Mayreri Velandri, Admiral Vessik and Darth Elídyr themselves.

#### Seeking The Crash Sight

The ground force assembled at an outpost on the planet's surface, soon to be greeted and briefed by Commander

Kaaita Skirata. After the briefing the force headed out into the vast icy plains of Hoth, this had become somewhat routine to Vessik by now, in search of the crashed vessel. Hours passed as they trekked through the seemingly endless mounds of snow towards the crash sight although a buzzing enthusiasm seemed to remain within the party, much to Vessik's surprise as he found this mission almost disdainful. Finally reaching the wreckage, the ground force discovered that they were not alone....

#### Fighting Over Wreckage

Several Zakuulan troop transports flew by overhead as the ground force ran quickly for cover from prying eyes. Finding a point upon the top of a hill, covered by the debris of a previously crashed frigate, the group found themselves to be direly outnumbered and outgunned. Several tens of footmen and Zakuul Knights patrolled the area, searching for their downed vessel. Temporarily taking control of the mission, Vessik commanded that the ground force split into three groups. One group, lead by Commander Kaaita Halles, was to search for and retrieve the stealth field generator. The next group, lead by Lieutenant Mayreri Velandri, was to hunt the surrounding area for any isolated Zakuul and use the element of surprise to eliminate them from any further conflict. The final group, lead by the Keeper Avrin Halles, was to cover the reclamation party as they sought out the stealth field generator. However, while this was a sound plan, if they were to be discovered then their location would be swarmed, thus a distraction was needed for the main bulk of the Zakuul forces. Vessik and Darth Elídyr were to serve as this distraction, using all of their combat skills to hold on to the attention of as many Zakuul as possible so that the others could complete their mission. With the groups decided, they all set out to their designated locations; Vessik and Darth Elídyr headed straight for the landing sight of the Zakuul troop transports.....

#### The Ultimate Betrayal

For Vessik, their journey felt longer than it actually was. Despite his excellent combat capabilities, and the Force imbued prowess that a Darth possessed on the battlefield, they were severely outnumbered and one wrong move could mean the death of both of them. This thought lingered for a while until the pair finally reached the first transport. Engaging on the Zakuul forces, Darth Elídyr leaped to a Zakuul Knight while Vessik dealt with the the eight footmen that accompanied the Knight. Providing as much cover fire as he could for the Darth, Vessik had managed to gun down four of the eight footmen until his treasonous idealism kicked in to his system: this was the perfect time, only he and Grehiko stood in his way now. Knowing that killing Darth Elídyr here would deprive Grehiko of the tradition and thus make him appear weak, Vessik turned his sniper rifle on the saber-locked Darth Elídyr. After a split second of hesitation, Vessik fired two shots: one striking Darth Elídyr in the back and the second burning its way through the Knight's skull. Killing all of the remaining footmen, Vessik then approached the Darth that now lay in the snow. Requesting that Vessik take his lightsaber to Lord Azath, Darth Elídyr was then left to freeze to death in the snow. Despite his idealistic belief, this brought genuine sorrow to him and the idea that from here he could only press forward more than he had before; he had killed one he considered a friend, that loss should not be in vain. Distraught, Vessik fired one round into his own side and then wearily walked back to the reassembling ground force. Before he had injured himself, he feared that he had too little over the supposed death of Darth Elídyr, thus kept two reasons running through his mind for shooting himself: 1) To make it appear as if he had sustained injury within the engagement, as to make it feasible that the Darth had died. 2) Afraid that he would feel nothing over the death of a friend, he inflicted such an injury to feel some sort of pain over the matter. Despite this, the reassembled ground force returned to The Wanderer aboard a shuttle after finding the stealth field generator.

#### A Waste of Time

After returning to The Wanderer, it was soon discovered that the stealth field generator was too damaged to be used to augment the powerbase's flagship. Frustrated further by this, Vessik dropped his sniper rifle upon the bridge of The Wander and simply left it there, heading back towards his office with Darth Elídyr's lightsaber clutched within his cybernetic hand.

### The Self Proclaimed Darth

Soon after the events of Operation Shadow Theft, Vessik approached Lord Grehiko, whom he found meditating outside of his former cell in the detention area. The conversation divulged into an exchange of political insults and arguments, eventually leading to Grehiko proclaiming himself a Darth. Physically beaten by Grehiko, Vessik made no effort to retaliate but to await the response of his staff instead. He had in fact managed to make Darth Grehiko appear weak, and as a result a proposition was made. Vessik soon swore allegiance to one Sith that he respected, and temporarily abandoned his plans of treason; going as far as to withdraw from the treasonous dealings he made with the division heads. Perhaps, this leadership would be better......

## Personality and Attitudes

### Adolescence

After the age of thirteen, Vessik became very detached from his his family; often abandoning their ranch to go off on his own and ponder over his own identity and ideology. Rather melancholy within his youth, Vessik simply spent his time with a developing idealistic mind and the thirst for knowledge of useful skills he might be able to use sometime in the future.

### Enlisting with the Empire

When Vessik enlisted with the Empire, he was in awe with everything around him. It was one of the first times he had truly felt happy since his teen years, although the sensation was somewhat unsettling due to the dominating appearance of Dromuund Kaas' infrastructure. Feeling an innate patriotism and enthusiasm to serve the people of the Empire, he dedicated all of it's time to it. He had very little of a personality at this stage, but was rather content within his position in The Empire.

### Cipher 13

During his life under the designation "Cipher 13", Vessik began to see and commit atrocities he didn't view as within a human's moral capabilities. Yet this was the way he best served the Empire, and as a result he would attempt to detach himself emotionally from his job, allowing him to remain calm and uneasily cold while on his missions. Vessik even went as far to generate a rather sadistic side to him while enlisted in Imperial Intelligence, a sadistic nature that would stay with him for years to come.

### Grand Moff: Early Stages of the Powerbase

When starting in The Empire's Triumph, Vessik maintained an outlook that he had the power to make a difference to The Empire and it's people. By now, Vessik despised Sith for their very nature, yet found some form of odd respect within the figurehead of Darth Tartorian. Calm in his demeanour, compassionate towards his staff, cold in his strategies and willing to stand against the word of Darth Tartorian; Vessik was certainly an effective leader, yet also managed to gain some unwanted attention.

### Cold War Depression

During the Cold War between the Imperial and Sith halfs for the power-base, Vessik's mental state began to deteriorate rapidly as he plunged ever deeper into the realms of depression. Who could he trust? Elídyr whom had set spies loose within his division? His staff whom could be spying against him? The very Sith that were manipulating him to their own ends?! So many questions unanswered, and a developing reckless attitude that would endanger both himself and staff began to develop. Now caring very little for his staff, Vessik would make attempt to make a final stand against Lord Elídyr before his full mental deterioration.

### A Grand Moff Returns

Having returned from his rehabilitation on Alderaan, Vessik was but a hollow shell of what he once was. A colder and more decisive leader, Vessik maneuvered his pieces to best serve his "sith masters". He cared not what they thought of him nor what he thought of them, only an innate desire to serve The Empire remained and thus this was the only way he could do so. Cold and reckless, Vessik lost interest in all else but his work as he buried his life in the day to day commotion aboard The Wanderer.

### Reinvented

Angered by the Sith's attempt to manipulate him in their bid for power, Vessik became the best of both of what Elídyr and Grehiko requested of him. Becoming devoted to his ideals, doing anything he could to achieve them, Vessik's thoughts and plans became treasonous in his increasing belief that the Sith would only run the Empire and the power-base into the ground. Also, he returned to his compassionate nature, and re-obtained the courage to stand against a Dark Lord of the Sith. He became truly dangerous as he broke down the Sith's rank through careful manipulation of events and the betrayal of many of the high ranking Sith within the organisation. Some even went as to say that he was becoming like a Sith within his political manner.

### Resurrected

After he was resurrected, Vessik had nothing. No position. No power. What more could he do now? Stripped of everything that gave him some sort of heading to his cause of ridding The Empire of the Sith, this meant that he could no longer carry out his life-long cause. For a while prior to his resurrection Vessik felt helpless and became very grumpy and forlorn while also willing to share his tales of woe with those that asked. While he sought to find some meaning in his new and miserable life there was very little that he could do with all of the outside influences on his mind and being, thus he devoted himself to a new goal: ridding the galaxy, and himself, of Elídyr and Darth Tartorian. Until it could be achieved, revenge was his new calling.

### Revenge

Vessik had achieved his revenge against Elídyr, and now only Darth Tartorian remained. The chance of a new life was coming closer to him, and thus he became willing to try new things; he became more respectful towards The Republic and people in general, less miserable and more willing to attempt social interaction with other people. While it was not a massive change, it was something.

## Skills and Weaknesses (Feats)

### Intense Training

Vessik was trained as a Fixer, Cipher, and was given military training as well. As such, he is a highly proficient in: hand to hand combat, melee weapons, enhanced weapons skills, and remaining out of sight and gathering information.

### Experienced Officer

After working for nineteen years and climbing the ranks all the way to Grand Moff, Vessik certainly possessed a lot of experience. As such he is increasingly persuasive and takes, quite bluntly, takes no shit from people.

### Sadistic

Vessik enjoys the pain of other people and as such may go to greater lengths in order to cause such, this is a pleasure that may even affect the manner in which he conducts himself and may even cause him to become disinterested and easier to decieve.

### Resurrected

Vessik is kept alive by Dread Magic and as such his organs and body do not operate as they should. This makes him immune to death by drowning, falling, blaster fire, and stabbing. It will take incredibly high levels of injury to kill him due to this.

### His Bane

Due to his hate towards Sith he may become more reckless when fighting them. Even though he is trained and even has experience in killing them, he may become reckless and lose focus to all else but killing an opponent of Sith nature.

### Robotic Limbs

When striking people with his cybernetic limbs the damage may be increased due to the high metallic strength and no pain traits of these implants.

## Relations

### Darth Tartorian

Vessik thought very little of him when he first met Darth Tartorian, trying not to align himself too much with the Sith that held all the power. However, Vessik grew to view Darth Tartorian as responsible and a fair and capable leader. Developing some respect for him, Vessik obediently worked beneath Darth Tartorian's command as he somewhat trusted his leadership.

Post resurrection, Vessik endured terrible nightmares of Darth Tartorian and the chaos that he may ensue upon both his mind and the galaxy. Vessik now hated Darth Tartorian and also refused to use his title when referring to him henceforth, and as such now made Darth Tartorian his main target for revenge.

### Elídyr

When he first met Elídyr, Vessik viewed him as nothing more than an obnoxious brat and the very epitome of why he despised the Sith. Present as Elídyr progressed to the position of Darth and leader of the power-base, Vessik witnessed as the Sith became more of a friend to him than any other within the organisation. He trusted him, yet was still wary of his actions. However, when the time came that he saw Darth Elídyr as a madman unfit to rule, he cast their friendship aside in order to gun him down during a mission on Hoth. This moment was painful to him, the first he had considered a friend within years of his service. Feeling great sorrow at the supposed death of Elídyr, he was unable to honor the dying mans last wish and as a result kept hold of Elídyr's lightsaber for sentimental reasons.

His torturer. His bane. His old friend. Vessik now not only despised Elídyr for the resurrection that he agreed to but also possessed an innate fear for the walking corpse, a fear that he could not source out a reason for. In his main goal of revenge Elídyr was to be his secondary target.

The very bastard that did all of this to him was ripped apart by the combined power of his blaster rifle and Darwel Cord's voice! He watched as his revenge came in the form of spewing green blood and the exposed rib cage of his former friend. He felt some sort of foreclosure, as if he was coming closer to something...... yet another remained.

### Grehiko

At first, Vessik showed a lot of intrigue into Grehiko's character, somewhat out of boredom and also through genuine curiosity. He was like no other Sith that he had known, thus he too was deemed worthy of respect by Vessik. Vessik viewed Grehiko as intelligent and wise, and generally trusted his judgement until the very end.

Upon finding Grehiko in the outpost of the Triumph's Conclave, Vessik was wary and quite frankly felt some notion of disrespect pushed upon him by Grehiko's starting action of ignoring him for some time. In order to force a conversation, Vessik approached the somewhat changed Grehiko and conversed about finding a new life. While Vessik was somewhat unable to find a reason as for which he would live, he managed to come up with a new goal of revenge so that he might purge himself of negative influences and thus take Grehiko's advice from then on.

### Avrin Halles

At first Vessik did not care much for the "John Smith" that was introduced to him. However, upon learning of Avrin's capabilities was very glad to have him within his service. He trusted Avrin with his most secret tasks, and also with those that required the most skill to pull off. At times though, Vessik felt disapproval towards Avrin's forms of punishment as they at times damaged the working efficiency of the power-base. Overall, Vessik viewed Avrin as a highly capable agent whom he gladly bestowed his trust upon, despite several things that he disliked within Avrin's character; such as his tendency for drinking, and his allowance of his relationship with Kaaita Halles to on occasion get in the way of his work.

Vessik had not much spoken to Avrin Halles after he was resurrected, but is pleased that he decided to work under the Triumph's Conclave.

### Kaaita Skirata

Vessik was unsure what to think of Kaaita, viewing her as a jolly and fair of sorts. He viewed her manner as friendly and too relaxed when working with her subordinates, which he believed would damage the effectiveness of the power-base if she kept it up. Despite this, he recognised Kaaita's capabilities as a Commander, both strategically and in combat, somewhat leaving her with her informal nature as he new that she would provide him with the results he wanted.

Upon her decision to leave the powerbase and join the organisation known as the Triumph's Conclave Vessik showed a few outward signs of gratitude.

### Mayreri Velandri

At the time that he met her, Vessik thought nothing of her: just another soldier. However, as Mayreri began to develop her position within the power-base, she was soon promoted to the rank of General. Vessik viewed her as loyal and trustworthy, as well as a fully capable soldier and strategist. Her loyalty would eventually fall into question however, when she agreed to spy for Lord Elídyr, somewhat sparking the Cold War between the Sith and Imperials of the organisation. It took a while for Vessik to regain his trust of Mayreri, yet he believed that she had learnt her lesson when she confessed and thus was lenient with his punishment.

As with the other division heads, Vessik was pleased that Mayreri Velandri decided to join the Triumph's Conclave.

### Sharok'Vivi

Vessik had no standing relationship with Sharok'vivi; after being sent messages from his parents about the Mirialan child he had mostly ignored them and thus never truly knew him. However, just before his death, Vessik considered all of that which he regretted, which seemed massively odd to him. Regardless, he continued in this line of thought, one such thing being that he had not put any effort into befriending the lost child when he may have needed it most.

Even after joining the Triumph's Conclave Vessik was still unable to meet it's leader, Sharok'Vivi, despite his instant wish to do so upon hearing the familiar name.

### Siviala L'kor

Vessik was somewhat unsure what he should think of Siviala L'kor, however he does know that no matter how much he might grumble on she will never understand that which he formerly devoted himself to. At first he found her an annoyance, yet as his time increased in the Triumph's Conclave he began to view this Jedi as tolerable. However, when she did not understand the need to kill Darth Tartorian and Elídyr he felt a mixture of annoyance and pity: firstly, annoyance for what they had done to him, and secondly, pity for the manner in which Siviala L'kor knew not of the chaos and suffering the pair may ensue.

In a conversation with Siviala L'kor, Vessik came to the realisation that not only the Sith who ruled The Empire were corrupt, but that the corruption and tyranny had seeped through those beaten by the Sith's taint and had become the very foundation of The Empire.

Vessik became somewhat dependent on Siviala L'kor; even though he was very grateful for everything she was doing for him despite him not understanding why she did it, yet he would not yet call her a friend.

### Isakale Sunburris

Perhaps Vessik would feel offended by her harsh words and attitude towards him should he have been living, yet in his resurrected state he cared not for what she had to say and nor how she conducted herself.

## Facts and Trivia

-While he was still living, Vessik was a collector of potted plants; many of which were displayed quite proudly in his office.

-Unable to bare completely losing Elídyr, Vessik kept hold of the Sith's lightsaber and stowed it away within his desk in his office.

-Vessik often took pleasure in the pain of other people.

-Vessik had not once formed a romantic attachment with another being.

-When sleeping, Vessik could not stand the feeling of his metallic hand thus slept in a manner that would limit the contact of his inorganic hand from the rest of his body.

-Although he did not know why, he felt an unease around Nautolans and Sullustans.

-Upon the right of his chest, Vessik has tattooed the skull of the Mythosaur: the main emblem of the Mandalorians. He required it on one of his mission as Cipher 13, in which he was transformed into ex-Mandalorian mercenary Weda Krize.

-Vessik can speak only Galactic Basic, sometimes pretending that he could understand other languages in order to make himself appear more distinguished.

-Vessik, after he was resurrected, became incapable of drowning.