Emerius Valek

Emerius Valek was born into an aristocratic family on the world of Serenno in 3666 BBY. Emerius was the middle son in the family and quickly came to realize the odds stacked against him in the event of succession. Neither the prodigal heir nor the favorite child, he distanced himself from his family. He immersed himself in his private studies and took interest in the family business. At a young age, he realized he was different than the other children he played with and as a rising businessmen. His charm was backed by an unknown force. Everywhere he went people tended to love him and listen to him.

His uncle dispatched him to a local council conducted by merchant guilds and nobles in the D'Astan Sector. His brokering of a deal that vastly benefited his family over some of the other Great Houses of Serenno was widely noticed and a subject of ire. Rumors of Force sensitivity spread after a failed assassination attempt on him that resulted in the death of his youngest brother.

It was decided as a speeder accident but rumors of sabotage funded by the Houses Palerma and Teramo fluctuated freely. The scandal garnered remote display on the HoloNet and the Jedi Order took notice of his survival. Debris from the explosion, diverted away from Emerius by an invisible force. His father informed him the Jedi were en route to Serenno to retrieve him to join the Order. With his older brother still in line as heir to the house, Emerius's father had no reason to refuse them.

Emerius fled under the cover of night and stowed away upon an Imperial freighter originally bound for Lianna. The freighter experienced an engine malfunction and was forced to stop along the Gordian Reach. The stowaway was discovered and taken into Imperial custody.

### Apprenticeship (3647 BBY)

The Inquisitors uncovered his true identity and recognized his strength in the Force sending him to Korriban to become a Sith or die trying. With no choice, Emerius resigned himself to make do with mere survival. His beginnings on Korriban were rocky. He had lived the life of nobility and was not accustomed to the hardship of life as an acolyte. Refusing to be cast aside as weak, he pushed himself perhaps beyond his limits and remained a top student, garnering the attention of many Sith. His free time not spent training were reserved for the Academy's archives, skimming through millennia of history and deciphering texts written in the old tongue.

His progress in the Trials attracted the attention of Darth Arctis himself. Following the completion of his Trials, Emerius Valek become the apprentice of Darth Arctis and worked closely with the other Sith that operated within the Sphere of Ancient Knowledge.

### Lord of the Sith (3645 BBY)

Within two years, his work and analysis of ancient texts that provided military advantages during the Cold War earned him the title of Lord of the Sith. He continued to work closely with his Master, Darth Arctis until his sudden mysterious death in 3641 BBY.

The cause of his death was never uncovered by Emerius knew his successor, Darth Thanaton was clearly involved. With the outbreak of open war between the Empire and Republic once more. Emerius distanced himself from Thanaton and led expeditions across the galaxy with the Imperial Reclamation Service to uncover lost artifacts of power. Emerius was on the other side of the galaxy when Thanaton fell at the hands of the mysterious individual known as Darth Nox after losing the Kaggath.

Emerius returned to his homeworld under threat of a Republic counterattack after Darth Malgus's forces had invaded the system circa 3660 BBY. He was tasked to govern the Imperial-controlled world and summarily executed the previous planetary governor during a public ceremony that marked the transference of power. Lord Emerius Valek spoke to the crowds and encouraged unity with the Empire and condemned the actions of those that plotted in the shadows with the Republic. Serenno had grown richer than ever but some nobles resented the brutal actions of the Empire and the fiercely enforced tariffs in their sector. His success in maintaining control of the D'Astan sector led to his promotion to Dark Lord of the Sith by Darth Nox.

### Darth (3638 BBY)

Emerius ruled over Serenno for the remainder of the war and only returned to Dromund Kaas at the behest of the new Sith Empress. Emerius returned to a shadow of the Empire he had left behind and his sleep was plagued with visions of the complete destruction of the Sith at an unknown threat.

After reaching out to his allies and contacts over the next few years, Emerius saw the threat of the Alliance to the Empire and retreated to Athiss, an ancient world still in the heart of the Empire. His forces remained dormant for years biding their time. The Force had revealed the truth and Empress Acina perished during the Battle of Iokath in pursuit of a superweapon.

The Empire fractured into hundreds of warring states headed by Sith seeking to carve themselves a piece of the spoils. Darth Emerius waited patiently for five more years before gathering his forces and striking at the heart of the old Empire. He declared himself the Supreme Dark Lord of the Sith and Sith'ari after destroying a massive fleet of rogue Sith with the help of Grand Admiral Jubei-yagyu.

He peacefully captured the defenseless world of Dromund Kaas and declared a resurgent Empire, calling publicly on all of the remaining warlords he hadn't kill to return to the Imperial capital and bend the knee. Darth Emerius secured the entire Esstran sector and sought after renewing the Imperial war machine after casting aside fierce regulations imposed by the Eternal Empire of Zakuul.

As Archon of the Empire, Darth Emerius led the Empire into a vicious conquest of the surrounding sectors. Desperate to stop the advance of the reborn Empire, the Republic negotiated a peace treaty preventing further Imperial incursion into the Inner Rim. This treaty essentially cut off the entire Outer Rim from Republic reinforcements and led to a general attitude of resentment and ire towards the Core Worlds from occupants of the Outer Rim. Many worlds peaceably annexed into the Empire and others grudgingly under threat of open invasion from the Mandalorian clans hungry for battle. The treaty came as a surprise with success so close at hand but the Archon was wary of the Alliance's strength and needed time to evaluate the threat posed by the Alliance and the Republic together if they were to join forces.

Onderon and Dxun were allowed to remain loyal to the Republic but were cut off from aid and only allowed to trade with the Republic. A military presence aside from a systemic security force was outlawed in the treaty. Onderon had a role to play in the war to come when aggression began again between the Empire and the Republic. With the borders of Imperial territory pushing into the vastly unknown Transitory Mists, skirmishes along the border broke out between Republic forces and Imperials. The surviving Republic forces disappeared into the Mists and the wreckage of the fleet was revealed by Imperial probes sent into the Mists. One by one the probes lost connection to Imperial Intelligence and the Archon was left to deliberate on what action to take. Whatever resided inside the Mists was clearly a potential threat to the security of the Empire.