Feron-4 Surface – One Day After the Village's "Destruction"
General Grievous stomped through ash and debris.
Metal limbs clanked against stone and dust. The charred remains of huts lay scattered across the basin — bodies half-incinerated, energy cores ruptured from inside.
Grievous kneeled and picked up a fractured artificial skull.
Not organic. Not droid-standard.
Something in-between.
"Too clean," he muttered. "Too deliberate."
Behind him, Separatist recon units scoured the terrain. They found no central power core, no command center, and no trace of the signal Dooku had intercepted.
Grievous raised his clawed hand, slamming it down into the cracked soil.
"Cowards hiding in the dark."
Deep Below – Kael Watches
In the earth beneath Feron-4, nearly a kilometer below the surface, Kael observed the feed from a concealed lens embedded in the cliffside.
"Grievous has a temper. Good."
Tessara-1 stood beside him, feeding silent battle-readiness commands to the defense drones stationed in the mountain shafts.
"What if they go deeper?" she asked.
Kael didn't answer.
Instead, he turned and spoke a System command aloud:
"Initiate Doctrine Protocol."
System Alert: Empire Doctrine Selection Unlocked
Your actions have reached critical mass. The soul of your empire must now take form. Select a Doctrine. This choice is irreversible.
1. Doctrine of Control
+30% loyalty gain from conquered populations
+20% unit effectiveness when suppressing rebellion
-10% research speed
Public executions and forced compliance define your empire
2. Doctrine of Ascendancy
+25% tech development and faster system evolution
+15% population morale for non-Force-sensitive species
-15% combat effectiveness early on
You rise through ideas, not fear—at first
3. Doctrine of the Damned(LOCKED: REQUIREMENT — "The Eraser" title)
+100% experience from killing Force users
+30% resistance to mind-affecting Force abilities
All units gain 5% passive Force corruption immunity
Your Empire thrives in the shadows of forgotten gods
-> Unlock condition met. Doctrine of the Damned AVAILABLE.
Kael did not hesitate.
"Doctrine of the Damned."
System Notification: Doctrine Accepted
Your Empire will rise not in light or darkness—but in the shadow between.Fear, worship, and memory will be your weapons.
Empire Title Unlocked: The Obsidian Empire
Empire Trait: Echo of the Forgotten
Your actions cannot be sensed by Jedi precognition
Rumors and legends about your empire spread twice as fast
First strike against any Force-wielding faction deals double morale damage
Republic Space – Denor Cluster
An unmarked freighter entered the atmosphere of Denor IV, a mid-tier Republic mining world on the edge of the galactic map.
Inside, three disguised operatives exited the ship, presenting as traveling engineers. They were Kael's agents—part of the freshly launched Obsidian Listening Network.
In a rented hab module, they activated a spiderweb of quantum sensors and passive Force fluctuations monitors.
It began recording every whisper, every ship, every Jedi pulse that passed through the sector.
And then they waited.
Jedi Temple, Coruscant – Jedi High Council
Yoda sat in the meditation chamber, still as stone.
Beside him, Mace Windu frowned.
"It's not a disturbance," he said slowly. "It's the opposite. A… silence."
Yoda's eyes opened.
"Void in the Force, there is. Soundless. Emotionless. Feeds on nothing. Leaves nothing."
Obi-Wan entered, summoned.
"The Outer Rim again?"
Windu nodded. "Something is building out there. But no vision can reach it. No timeline includes it. Like it… doesn't belong."
Obi-Wan whispered:
"Then we send someone who walks between paths."
Deep Space – Count Dooku's Command Deck
Dooku studied Grievous' report.
"No survivors. No infrastructure. Just a world pretending to matter."
He narrowed his eyes.
"Or a world pretending not to matter."
He reached out with the Force again… but felt nothing.
"Something watches us."
He closed his eyes.
And finally, whispered:
"You are not Jedi. You are not Sith.But I will find you."
Kael's Chamber – Feron-4 Core Vault
Kael stood alone.
The walls hummed faintly with quantum activity.
A new system unlock flickered before his eyes.
[Massive Construction: Skybreaker Projector – Now Available]
Effect: Creates artificial gravitational rift generators—weaponizable planetary disruption
Prerequisite: Complete Lament Engine Interface
And beneath it, one final prompt:
New Empire Tier Unlocked: Phase I – Shadow Sovereignty
Expand to 3 worlds
Develop 5 unique military units
Capture or kill a Force-sensitive of Jedi rank or higher
Kael's eyes gleamed.
"Time to accelerate."