Hello everyone Spartanr981 here with a new story for all those bored out of their minds stuck at home waiting out this virus.

No idea on the schedule for releases for this story though they will likely be sporadic.

Massive shout out to 0D for going through this chapter before it was released!

As always all rights belong to the authors and creators, Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling and Star Wars is the property of Disney... somehow. (Still can't believe that happened!)

Anyways on with the story!

Zakuul, Unknown Regions. 25 BBY, 1994 A.D.

Zakuul, a world of oceans and swamps. Yet, also home to several advanced cities, the greatest among these being the capital city sometimes known as The Spire.

The Spire was a bright, shining metropolis of gold and metal that reached up into the sky, well into the atmosphere itself, it radiated outwards from the Spire upon which the Throne sat atop its peak above even the atmosphere of the planet.

The planet was once, thousands of years ago, the capital of the Eternal Empire. An Empire built by the Sith Lord Vitiate, better known as the Sith Emperor, to create terror and discord across the entire Galaxy. It took an alliance of the two greatest galactic powers of the time: the True Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic, in order to bring down the Eternal Empire after it ravaged the entire Galaxy.

Upon its defeat, its military was confiscated and its once massive fleets were brought under the control of the Eternal Alliance which would eventually collapse taking the automated Eternal Fleet with it. Since that time it had disappeared into the annals of history, forgotten by all, apart from those who still wished to learn the history of the Galaxy.

That was until four years ago.

A boy appeared on the planet, overturning everything. Reigniting the people of Zakuul's dream to once again conquer the stars. Though he was treated with derision and outright laughter upon arrival, he quickly established himself to be far advanced beyond his age, intelligent, ruthless and charismatic. He rallied them under his banner after storming the bastion of the corrupt Council of Zakuul that oversaw the governing of the planet.

Upon the destruction of the Council, he took control of the planet and began a series of reforms across the world that stabilised the entire government and brought back prosperity to the people by ending the corruption within most of the government, cementing his place as the leader of Zakuul and earning their loyalty.

A period of rapid change began after that, the people were militarized and expansion into the surrounding regions began. The moons of the planet were permanently colonized and orbital shipyards were brought out of mothball or built and put into position around the two moons, beginning construction of ships - their designs given to them by their new ruler. Some were old designs form the age when the Eternal Empire stood tall amongst the other powers of the Galaxy whilst others were blueprints of warships that had never been seen before, stolen from the private databanks of Kuat Drive Yards in a daring heist and improved on by the Empire's Research and Development Bureau.

As new ships were pumped out of these shipyards they were manned by the fresh marines, pilots, droids and officers of the newly founded Eternal Fleet who began to expand into the surrounding space using long since mapped out secret Hyperspace Lanes. Their expansion was rapid and they spread through the Unknown Regions almost completely unopposed, encountering only minor resistance from smuggler groups or criminal organisations who had established bases away from "civilized" space. They made extra care when encountering such groups to block off their escape, it would be bad to have them escape back into the known Galaxy and report their existence before they were ready. No one knew what the plan the newly crowned Emperor had for the rest of the Galaxy but his orders had been clear - their existence would not leak back into the Galaxy and, by the Force, would they see that order through. The task of keeping the Empire a secret from the rest of the Galaxy was given to the newly founded Imperial Intelligence, formed from ex-Bounty Hunters, Zakuul military personnel and ex-mercenaries. It was an incredible challenge to keep the Empire a secret, even in the dark regions of the Galaxy and rumours of a growing power existed, whispered in cantinas in the Outer Rim.

So it was that the Eternal Empire expanded unimpeded by the powers in the rest of the Galaxy, free to take control of the uncontested Unknown Regions.

The more the Empire expanded, the greater their production output became as they snapped up planet after planet, converting their natural resources into ships, buildings and vehicles for the Imperial war machine.

Any species encountered was first approached diplomatically, though most meetings would quickly break down, the vast majority of species in this area of the Galaxy were incredibly dangerous and violent to outsiders. These were the hardest and most difficult enemies the Empire had encountered in their entire expansion campaign.

It wasn't unusual for these highly aggressive alien species to attack without warning, sometimes during the diplomatic meetings (if they even managed to arrange one before being attacked, that is) and the Reborn Eternal Empire would quickly find themselves under assault from all sides.

Fighting was brutal and savage, taking place in fast paced and desperate space battles between Starfighters and small Corvettes and other support ships with the more powerful Frigates, Destroyers, Dreadnaughts and Star Destroyers acting as support.

It wasn't odd for the fighting to then reach planet-side, with battle erupting between indigenous natives and the Imperial Military. The superior technology and firepower of the Empire's troops proved pivotal in these engagements, allowing the foreign power to dominate over the locals who possessed intimate knowledge of the planets and landscape they were fighting on. These battles were often close quarters and incredibly violent. The natives unwilling to surrender, either far too proud or far too warlike and violent to even contemplate such a thing even in the face of utter defeat.

The Ssi-ruuvi Imperium and the Vagaari Empire were both examples of powerful forces within the Unknown Regions that came into contact with the Empire and went to blows with the budding regime, both civilisations were well known in this section of the Galaxy for their brutality and savagery.

The Ssi-ruuvi Imperium were greatly xenophobic as a species and hated outsiders. They attacked the Imperial Envoys the moment they came in range of their weapon systems, putting them in direct conflict with the Empire from the get go, a brutal but quick war ensued between the two factions. One that ended with the Imperium's utter defeat as the superior firepower of the Empire's Navy overwhelmed the technologically stagnant Ssi-ruuvi.

The Vagaari Empire was another enemy encountered during this expansion. Though they proved a far more powerful and dangerous foe than the Ssi-ruuvi. They were a species whose entire culture was based around slavery and conquest. They practiced an absolutely vile military tactic - they utilized 'living shields'. Slaves kept in a transparisteel bubble on the hull of the ships causing Imperial forces, unwilling to fire on the hostages, a great deal of problems. They had to be very careful when engaging Vagaari forces, lest they end up killing the hostages in engagements.

It was slow going but they did manage to push back the Vagaari, ship by ship, space station by space station.

It was not a campaign that the High Council of Zakuul or the Emperor were proud of, it was in fact probably the darkest days in the short history of the budding Empire. The genocides, whilst necessary, were not something that the Emperor celebrated but instead bore with a resigned steely understanding that these species would never negotiate and it was the final option when all other paths had failed.

But it was necessary, the Unknown Regions were an incredibly dangerous place to live. All types of spatial anomalies existed within, black holes and other gravitational anomalies made Hyperspace travel incredibly difficult with defined Hyperspace Lanes being few and far between, obstacles and gravitational anomalies filled the empty space, any knowledge of navigable Lanes was jealously guarded by those who had discovered or cleared them. That was, of course, discounting the roaming bands of pirates that had become so powerful in this isolated corner of the Galaxy that they reigned as local Warlords, along with other criminals that prayed on any unlucky enough to wander into this area of space unprepared.

To bring order to this dangerous and unexplored region required a firm hand and hardened discipline. Slowly but surely, the Empire would accomplish this goal, pushing 'north' further and further into the Unknown Regions, discovering worlds not even the first iteration of the Eternal Empire had in their archives. Though there were still planets and areas within that remained unexplored by the Empire, the way to them too dangerous for even the Eternal Empire's navigators and probes to map easily.

Pushing the Vagaari 'north', they encountered another powerful force in the Unknown Regions, one just like the Empire.

The Chiss Ascendancy.

The Chiss, whilst much more open to dialogue, were still xenophobic like most other species in the area but the Empire were able to form a diplomatic accord with the blue skinned race, an accord that swung much more in the favour of the Empire. The Empire by this point had come to dominate a large part of the Unknown Regions and had a force of arms that far outstripped the Ascendancy, who whilst much older than the Empire would likely be destroyed by the Empire if they came to blows.

In the end the Ascendancy would keep its autonomy but would swear its loyalty to the Empire, becoming a vassal state.

All the while the rest of the Galaxy remained blissfully ignorant of the growing power hidden form their sight, neither the Jedi from their bastion of the Light on Coruscant or the Sith hidden from sight, manipulating things from the shadows, noticed the new player who prepared to take the Galactic stage.

Though that time was yet to come and in the meantime the Emperor was preoccupied by his search, what the supreme ruler of the Eternal Empire was looking for remained a mystery to all but his closest confidants. Most whispered that he was looking for some kind of alien device, a superweapon that would change the course of Galactic history or a powerful artefact that would revolutionize the technology of the already advanced Empire. It didn't matter to most, they just knew that whatever it was would change the Galaxy.

The Spire, Zakuul City, Zakuul, Unknown Regions.

Mitth'raw'nuruodo, better known to species other than the Chiss as Thrawn, stood silently with his eyes closed in contemplation as the space elevator moved upwards at a steady but rapid pace, his back straight as an arrow and his hands clasped behind his back. The man stood in his crisp pressed white uniform, it was something he was proud to wear. One of the few things the man let himself feel proud about.

Thrawn was the very definition of the term 'military man', he behaved in a manner as if he was born for a role in the military, finding a balance between the rigidity of military life and the creativity required to truly survive and thrive in such a dangerous and volatile place as a battlefield.

The Chiss was a pragmatist to his core, a man driven by logic and reason, not his emotions, willing to perform acts that could be considered 'disdainful' where necessary in order to prevent greater disasters. He did not believe himself to be 'evil', Thrawn was after all not a man who truly believed in such concepts. Instead, all he cared about were the results of his assignments.

Four years ago, before the arrival of the Empire, Thrawn had performed one such act, destroying the Outbound Flight. A Starship that was heading to the very edges of the Galaxy in order to discover and treat with new species there and discover further secrets of the Universe by exploring the boundaries of the Galaxy itself.

Unknown to them though the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious, through his servant Kinman Doriana, had ordered the destruction of the ship in order to prevent their discovery of the Extragalactic threat that was the Far Outsiders, though, unknown to the Chiss, this was more because the secret Sith Lord didn't want any interference from them during his conquest of the Galaxy, rather than out of concern for the devastation they would wreck on the Galaxy. Thrawn was put in contact with the Dark Lord, a man who the Chiss Captain found…interesting, there was something distinctly off about the man that the well trained Chiss could sense even through the hood of his cloak but what it was he knew not nor did he dwell on it, he had a job to do and that was all that mattered.

Thrawn had first attempted to stop the ship diplomatically but when that broke down he crushed the ship with his own fleet, killing all Jedi on board.

The discovery of the Eternal Empire proved to be a boon for the Chiss soldier. His career in the Defence Force had stagnated, he was deemed too aggressive by many of his contemporaries as well as the Aristocracy. His tactics were too aggressive for the Chiss doctrine in warfare, his tendency to launch pre-emptive strikes against enemies of the Chiss was not looked at positively by his brethren and many began to distance themselves from him.

When the Empire was discovered by the Ascendancy, Thrawn was one of the first to investigate the new power in the Unknown Region.

It attracted him; a powerful, expansionist and militaristic monarchy.

He was one of the Chiss who advocated a peace treaty and merger between his people and Eternal Empire. Hoping that with the assistance of this new power his own people could fight and survive the coming threat of the Far Outsiders.

When the merger began over one and a half years ago, Thrawn was one of the first to leave the Chiss Defence Force, who were already working on marginalising him, and sign up to become a part of the Eternal Fleet.

Under the Chiss military academy's teachings he had been limited in a way that felt distinctly distasteful to the incredibly intelligent man, yet when he was fast tracked through the Imperial Academy he felt he'd found a place he could truly excel. Within three months he had graduated ahead of all his peers, thanks to a mixture of prior military experience and sheer, brute intellect. He was the first Chiss to enter Imperial service and the moment he took the reins of his first ship his teachers knew it was only the beginning of his meteoric rise through the ranks.

That really wasn't far from the truth, the Chiss had risen through the ranks at an absolutely staggering rate. Winning every battle he ever fought in with stunning displays of tactics and courage. His subordinates grew to love him as a commander, more than willing to ignore his alien heritage in the face of not only his tactical brilliance but also his treatment of his soldiers. The Chiss took time out of his busy schedule to walk amongst his own troops, forming a bond with them beyond that of other Imperial officers.

From the captain of a small ship, all the way up to the highest position in the Eternal Fleet, the man had maintained a single minded goal to support both the Ascendancy and the Empire in order to ready them for the inevitable fight with the Far Outsiders or anyone else who threatened the Empire

All his endless hours of hard work and hard won victories had culminated in his current position.

Grand Admiral.

The highest position within the newly founded Eternal Fleet.

Its Commander-in-chief. A position he took great pride in, he had found his place in the Empire and sworn his loyalty to the Emperor and his cause, for as long as the Chiss people were not harmed.

He felt the elevator grind to a halt, the Inertial Compensators stopping them from being turned to paste by the G-forces created by the machine. The Artificial gravity Generators were calibrated to imitate the gravity of Zakuul itself so no difference could be felt even as high above the planet's surface as they were.

Opening his eyes, the red orbs seeming to glow slightly even in the well-lit elevator, the Chiss took stock of his surroundings. The elevator was one of only two units, limiting the amount of traffic but also slowing down any potential invasion forces.

Next to him was a woman dressed in a form fitting Thermoguard Body Glove that was airtight and insulated as well as invisible to infrared. Over the Body Glove was an armour made of beskar, a metal unique to the Mandalorian people. The armour was painted a pitch black colour with gold accents along its edges. The woman herself was, at least to Thrawn's eyes, beautiful by human standards. A lithe figure, brimming with compacted muscles, soft feminine features and red hair that reached her shoulders gave her a strikingly beautiful visage. Though her sharp cold hazel eyes showed the ruthless and dangerous woman that was reflected in her armour rather than her physical appearance.

Shae Vizsla, the head of the Shadow Division, a group of Mandalorian and Mandalorian trained operatives who worked as the Empire's principal Special Operations Division. They were the best non-Force Sensitive soldiers the Empire could field.

Vizsla herself was a woman Thrawn knew very little about, she had been loyal to the Emperor even before his arrival on Zakuul, having come with him on his arrival to the planet. His research into her background pointed to her being a member of Clan Vizsla of the Mandalorians or, more accurately, the younger sister of the current Clan Head Pre Vizsla, the leader of the radical Mandalorian splinter group Death Watch and wielder of the legendary Darksaber.

Despite his lack of background information on her, Thrawn trusted and respected her as much as he trusted and respected anyone in the service of their Emperor. She was loyal and incredibly skilled, with a ruthless and tactical mind that made her perfect for her job as the head of such an organization. It also helped that she was one of the few that had the ear of the Emperor himself.

Though the informal way she ran her operation sometimes grated on him, oh, during missions and mission prep no one ran a tighter ship than her but otherwise off missions she could be incredibly aggravating to the Chiss Admiral.

Neither spoke to the other as the magnetically sealed (too much unnecessary info) door opened with a hiss of pressurized air.

Both Chiss and Mandalorian were on the move the moment the doors opened, walking through the hallway, ignoring the few Knights of Zakuul that stood to attention and saluted as they passed. Each Knight was decked out in an advanced form fitting armour made of what looked to be a hundred individual metal plates of a white colour with gold edging to each plate, over which they wore a Jedi style white cloak with black outlines along its trim. Each wielded a collapsible Lightsaber Pike as their main choice of weapon and, like the ancient Knights of Zakuul once did, they swore their loyalty to the Eternal Throne directly rather than an order of Force-Users. Each one had some degree of Force-Sensitivity and was gathered from the worlds captured by the Empire or born on Zakuul, the Jedi did not often come out this far to the edge of the Galaxy and so often missed Force-Sensitive children in the Unknown Regions, giving the Knights of White and Black a decent recruitment pool, though their numbers were still very low in comparison to the Order.

Moving through the corridors, they arrived in front of an ornate set of doors inlayed with gold leaf that glowed in the artificial light, the doors let out a hiss as they approached, the four Knights in front of it moving to the side and saluting as they got closer.

The door opened revealing the throne room, it was less of a traditional throne room seen in the ancient texts of primitive societies and instead a massive globe of Transparisteel, reinforced with curved struts of Durasteel that ran from the bottom of the construct, where the massive ball was attached to the tower, up to the top of the sphere.

There was a platform made of metal in the centre of the sphere, it was a circular dais with a flight of stairs leading up to its centre. Upon which stood the symbol of the Empire.

The Eternal Throne.

The Eternal Throne had stood there for thousands upon thousands of years, a symbol of the might Zakuul once wielded. Power that allowed them to conquer the entire Galaxy.

Both Mandalorian and Chiss entered the throne room, passing the twelve Knights who stood tall and proud on each side of the path to the throne. Thrawn took a chance to glance out the windows, Zakuul could be seen below, a mixture of green swamp and inconceivably massive circles of light glowing from the planet's surface - the planet's megacities could be seen even from space.

Looking further he could see a few more massive towers rising into the atmosphere, though none reached the height of the Spire.

In space a few of the numerous space stations that dotted the system could be seen orbiting the planet. They were used for docking purposes as well as fighter hangars and around those were Gun Emplacements, their Turbolasers primed and ready to fire almost instantly. The entire planet was ready to mobilise at a moment's notice.

From his vantage point, Thrawn could see the traffic of civilian vessels travelling to and from the planet going about their business.

He could also see a portion of the might of the Eternal Fleet floating in orbit, four massive wedge shaped Resurgent-Class Star Destroyers in formation, ready to unleash their might should the capital of the Empire come under attack. These massive starships were some of the strongest the Empire could field, the original design of the Star Destroyer taken as part of a dossier of designs stolen from the Kuat Drive Yards by the Emperor. More accurately, they were the Empire's improved design of one of the ships taken from that dossier. At nearly 3,000 meters in length they were one of the largest ships currently in active service in the entire Galaxy and each boasted a truly awesome array of Turbolasers and Lasercannons though they were incredibly expensive and difficult to make which is why there were only a total of twelve currently active in the Empire's navy.

Arrayed around the massive three thousand meter long Star Destroyers were thirty smaller but still incredibly deadly Harrower-Class Dreadnoughts, ships that once served as the backbone of the True Sith Empire during the Great Galactic War three thousand years ago. Their designs had been examined extensively by the Empire's shipbuilders and engineers and had been updated with brand new improved Shield Generators, Turbolasers, Sublight Engines, Reactors and Hyperdrives. This had led to the hull of the ship being expanded from its previous near 800 meter length to a new 1,200 meter length.

The Centurion-class Battlecruiser, a ship active during the Dark War and the Jedi Civil War, could also be seen in the fleet. An ancient design once used by Darth Revan and the Sith Triumvirate during the period of time known as the Old Sith Wars.

Darting between these massive capitals ships were starfighters and smaller ships, Raider-class Corvettes and the larger Vigil-class Corvettes flew between these Capital Ships patrolling and acting as escorts to the large Battlegroup.

Zeta-class Cargo Shuttles, Chi Class Dropships and the Eternal Empire's three winged shuttles ferried munitions and supplies between orbital Space Stations and different Capital Ships.

As he approached the dais, he moved his gaze from the windows and looked up as he knelt in allegiance to his Emperor.

There he sat, the man who had united the Unknown Regions. A boy when he took control of Zakuul now grown into a young man, he wore the same armour the first Emperor of Zakuul once did; Armoured boots and black cloth trousers along with a set of white, black and gold ornate carved armour over his torso, in the centre of which was an open jawed beast carved into the chest plate under which he wore a long sleeved garment made of a thick white material with white vambraces around his lower arms.

Over this entire ensemble he wore a black mantle with white metal plates on its shoulders that connected to the armour on his torso, covered his shoulders and had two long strips down its back that ran to his knees.

He had a rather aristocratic features, high cheek bones and pale skin. A full head of pitch black midnight hair that contrasted with his pale skin giving him a striking appearance. He was lounging upon his Throne, his eyes closed in thought.

Although he would most certainly be classified as handsome by human standards and his clothes expensive and incredibly well made, fitting right in amongst Coruscant's elite, neither of these were the first thing Thrawn noticed about being in the Emperor's presence.

It was his power.

Thrawn had heard mentions of the Jedi and the power they wielded, the Force, long before he met the Emperor or came into contact with the Eternal Empire but he had never truly believed in its existence nor its might until he met the Emperor. The aura of tightly controlled might that could almost be felt by Thrawn was unlike anything he had ever encountered and could only be something beyond the explainable.

He had met many people of all walks of life. Some, like himself could naturally produce an intimidating aura that cowered subordinates and enemies alike. Yet he had never felt one as heavy as the one the Emperor seemed to produce just by sitting there.

Whilst not truly unleashing his power and in fact restraining it, the Emperor produced an aura of power, one that seemed both oppressive and tranquillike the surface of a lake. It was incredibly disconcerting to the Chiss who prided himself on reading others.

In truth, it was only after meeting the Emperor in person that Thrawn had become firm in his decision to join the Empire, the man was charismatic, greatly so. He lead by example and inspired his people to improve and advance every day. He was someone who, whilst perhaps not as tactically brilliant as Thrawn himself, had the personal power, charisma and empathy mixed with harshness needed to be a ruler.

"Rise my friends." The voice of the Emperor resounded out through the room and both Thrawn and Shae rose to their feet. Shae had a grin on her face whilst Thrawn remained stoic.

"You know you do not have to kneel to me." The Emperor said with a note of exasperation in his voice.

Shae's grin only got wider, "Yes but it pisses you off, so…" She trailed off with a hint of teasing in her voice. It was behaviour that went counter to their august positions but they had been close for many years, so the teasing nature of their relationship was ignored even by the stoic Thrawn.

"Humph." Came the voice from the Emperor as his eyes opened. They were a deep green colour with a strange purple ring around the edges of the iris, orbs so powerful they seemed to almost glow with an inner light. The contrasting two colours unlike anything the Chiss had ever seen in any human.

Sitting up the Emperor looked at his two companions before waving his hand, an amused and warm tone in his voice. "You finished with your fun yet, Shae?

The woman grinned. "Nah, it's always amusing annoying you!"

The Emperor let out a small laugh as she continued. "Besides it pisses off blue over there when I don't treat you with the proper respect." She said as she waved her hand in Thrawn's direction, the Chiss looking decidedly uncomfortable about the level of informality being exchanged.

She leaned in as she staged whispered. "Just you wait, after this he'll just go and give me another lecture on decorum."

Thrawn looked at the woman next to him, she was a veteran warrior who adhered to a strict code of honour but she was also a woman who liked to push the buttons of others just to piss them off. "That is because you should show proper behaviour in front of our Emperor. You are the head of one of the most powerful forces in the Empire, you should behave like it."

Shae just shrugged. "I do when it matters, otherwise I wouldn't be the leader of the Mandalorians." She still had the same teasing smile on her face but there was a hint of steel in her tone, she didn't like her honour and ability being questioned, ever. She was a Mandalorian and their honour was everything to them.

Thrawn knew when to pursue a topic and when to retreat so he kept his mouth shut next to the incredibly dangerous woman.

The Emperor just smiled at the banter, there was a camaraderie between his closest supporters, mixed with just a hint of competition, that kept them on their toes, just as he liked it. He stood up, bringing the attention back to himself, before the argument could dissolve any further. "I think it's about time we get going don't you?"

The smile on the Mandalorian's face disappeared as she straightened up and nodded seriously. Both waited as the Emperor stood, walking down from the dais and led them both from the room.

They turned down a few corridors and arrived at a spacious room with a table arrayed in the centre. The Emperor sat at the head of the table whilst his two subordinates took their own seats, with a tap on a datapad built into the table, a Holoprojector in the roof came to life materializing the images of other figures into the chairs around the table. Each one flickering with the blue light of the holo projection.

In one of the seats was a clean shaven thirty year old man with dark unkempt hair and equally dark eyes that peered at the other people in the room with a certain level of arrogance in them. He wore black boots and black pants along with a black overcoat with gold edging to it, a lit cigar in his mouth which he puffed on quietly. The uniform of the officers of the Imperial Army.

He was Roy Mustang, the Chief of the Imperial Army.

At first glance an arrogant and insolent man but it was nothing more than a façade. Designed to make others underestimate him, people became sloppy if they thought their enemy was stupid after all. He was the former leader of a successful mercenary band who had been betrayed by his own men and sold into slavery before he was rescued at the very beginning of the Eternal Empire's expansion. Joining the military in order to repay the debt owed, the man rose through the ranks thanks to his bravery and success on the battlefield. He was loyal to the Empire and the Emperor for he not only believed in their ideals but also in repaying the debt for rescuing him from a life of slavery. He commanded the mixed forces of sentients and advanced droids that formed the backbone of the Imperial Army.

Next to him was a woman sitting with a relaxed air about her, even in the hologram she could be seen lounging in her chair. She wore a black cloak that covered even her face. The only reason one could tell her gender was the tight body fitting armour she wore under her cloak that occasionally peaked out from between her cloak.

She had no name, well no name that was given to any of the members of the Council with only the Emperor himself knowing her actual identity. To everyone else she was simply the Shadow, Director of Imperial Intelligence.

On the other side of the table was a two meter tall being covered in fur with both reptilian and avian qualities to its look, a beak like mouth and white fur on its head made it distinctly not human as a pair of sharp blue eyes gazed at the other people in the room. He was a Talortai, an incredibly long lived species that were all to a an extent Force-Sensitive, though surprisingly enough none of them had ever become either Jedi or Sith. Why this was remained a secret to all outside the Talortai themselves.

This was Urai Fen the personnel bodyguard and leader of the Twilight Regiment, the shadows of the Emperor.

He was with the Emperor before his ascension to power just like Shae Vizsla, in fact the Mandalorian and the Talortai had been associates, Urai Fen having long since connected himself with the ancient Mandalorian Clans, they fit into his long held beliefs concerning honour and battle. He had devoted himself to the path of the warrior and lived by a strict code of honour.

He was a close friend of the Emperor and one he could call a confidante. Loyal to the Emperor to a fault, Fen would never balk from his duties and would often act as the Emperor's representative amongst the planets that made up the Empire and leader of one of a crack division of the Empire's elites, a mixture of Force-Sensitives and highly trained shock troopers. He was currently on a very special mission, ordered by the Emperor himself.

Next to the alien was another human, a woman wearing a form fitting white military uniform consisting of a white jacket with gold trim that fit her curvaceous body and a pair of pants, hanging over one shoulder was a black cape. On her waist she proudly showed a glittering silver Lightsaber. She had deep black hair that was wrapped up in a ponytail that fell down her back and deep blue eyes that, whilst not as powerful as the Emperor's, still radiated a sense of power and martial might even through the hologram.

Celeste Morne, Grandmaster of the Knights of Zakuul also known as the Order of White and Black or the Radiant Knights.

She was a former Jedi Shadow that had been put into a stasis chamber over four thousand years ago during the Old Sith Wars in order to protect the galaxy from the effects of a the Muur Talisman, an ancient Sith artefact that possessed her. In order to stop her she ordered those with her to seal her away so she could never bring harm to the Galaxy in the way the Sith she so detested did. It had taken a great deal of effort on the part of the Emperor to strip her of the spirit of the Sith Lord Muur who attempted to consume her.

Partially out of thanks and partially because she believed that the current Jedi Order had lost its way she joined the Knights of White and Gold, inspired by their Code, settling down roots in this new budding Force Order. The Knights of Zakuul (along with the Emperor) practiced the old Je'daii Code along with a strict code of honour and loyalty, something she could appreciate. She had quickly rose through the ranks thanks to her natural skill, experience and power in the Force until she stood as the Grandmaster and one of the most loyal soldiers in the Emperor's forces, for she had sworn her eternal loyalty to her new lord, the Emperor.

Finally next to the Emperor was sitting a human, one who looked to be in his fifties with blue coloured hair that looked green even in the blue light of the hologram, he had orange coloured eyes with a sharp focused look in them. He was wearing a military uniform of a white colour with a gold and black cape hanging around his neck and going down one shoulder. At his waist a Lightsaber could be seen attached to his belt.

This man was Jeremiah Gottwald and he held perhaps the second most exalted position in the entire Empire.

He was the High Justice of the Eternal Empire.

In essence he was the second in command of the entire Empire, he held the greatest amount of power next to the Emperor and ruled in his place when His Majesty was absent. The position of High Justice held immense power as the overseer of the Imperial Army, the Eternal Fleet and the Knights of Zakuul. He maintained the day to day running of all three and it was to him that the leaders of the three branches of the Imperial war machine reported to before he presented their work to the Emperor himself. For this, the man was chosen not only for his wisdom and skill both on and off the battlefield but also for his unwavering loyalty to the Empire and its Emperor. He had been the first noble and Force wielding citizen of Zakuul to bend the knee, he claimed to have seen the Emperor's coming in a vision from the Force and knew of the changes he would bring to the planet.

As the Emperor sat down in his chair everyone stood up and bowed to their ruler, even the laid back Shadow and the arrogant Mustang. None of them dared to disrespect their leader a young man they all greatly respected.

"Your Majesty!" They all said as they bowed to him.

He nodded and said. "At ease, my friends."

Turning to Shadow he said. "You are the one who requested this meeting but first does anyone else have anything to report?"

Looks were exchanged and Thrawn answered first. "The Eternal Fleet is active at its full capabilities, all Fleets and Task Forces are currently deployed across the Empire. The First and Second Fleets are currently engaged in fighting on the boarder of Ascendancy space with remnants of the Vagaari Empire whilst the Third Fleet along with Task Forces of the Fourth Fleet are engaging large groups of Pirates attacking our less protected worlds in an effort to extort them for slaves and resources. The fighting is slow but they have not encountered any insurmountable resistance and are slowly pushing them back, though their hit and run tactics are proving to be somewhat frustrating. The rest of the Fourth and Fifth Fleets are patrolling our borders or assisting in the expansion of the Empire."

The Emperor nodded and looked at Shae who shrugged. "Most of my teams are currently active attached to different battlegroups of the Imperial Army. The remaining teams are ready to move at a moment's notice."

He nodded and looked to the Chief of the Imperial Army who responded. "My forces are spread out maintaining order upon the worlds of the Empire. We are stretched somewhat thin in some places but there have been relatively few riots on the populated planets of the Empire."

The Grandmaster went next. "Recruitment of Force-Sensitives is going steady, a mixture of babies given to the Knights by parents in order to improve their talents or children who are drafted in once they have grown somewhat. It is not quite at the level I am happy with but it is enough for the moment anyway."

The Emperor nodded well aware of the problem Celeste was having, it was rare to find a Force-Sensitive child out here undetected by the Jedi and unlike the Jedi order the Knights did not take children from their parents forcibly instead they would be drafted when they grew up, unfortunately this meant that filling their ranks at the moment when many of their Initiates were still young was difficult and the Knights only had their ranks increase at a very slow rate for the time being.

Urai Fen spoke up next, getting the attention of everyone in the room. "I am currently en route to the Volik System and reports indicate that the Sith Cult known as the Apex Society is heading there."

Shadow spoke up with a surprised tone to her voice. "That wouldn't be the Sith Cult formed from bored nobles would it?" No one was surprised by her knowledge of the somewhat obscure group, it was her job after all to know such things.

Urai Fen nodded and she frowned. "I admit I have very little information gathered on them but from the basic information I could gleam form their organisation they're not exactly a danger. More arrogant foolish nobles with dreams of Galactic conquest using the power of the Dark Side than anything else." There was a certain note of revulsion (in her tone as she spoke about the Society, they weren't considered important by the Empire and in fact the only reason they had even appeared on their radar was their badly executed investigations into Sith Artefacts in the Unknown Regions. Of course they likely believed that everything they did was covert but none of them were trained in intelligence gathering and were about as subtle in their investigation as a rampaging Rancor.

"Yes that is true but the reason I have deployed Urai was because of the lead the Society has picked up." spoke up the Emperor.

"What would that be Your Majesty?" Shadow asked respectfully though still somewhat insistently, she didn't like feeling left out about intelligence. It was her job after all to know the goings on of the Empire in order to better safeguard it.

"There are rumours they have located the mask of Darth Nihilus." Came his grim faced response.

Whilst most in the room did not know of the importance of that statement and didn't show any significant reaction both of the Force-Sensitives in the council reacted with shocked horror as they understood, even vaguely, what that meant.

"Truly?" Asked Celeste as she stared at the Talortai with a laser like intensity, she had a right to be worried, Nihilus was one of the most twisted Sith Lords in all of recorded history, anything that once belonged to him would be worthy of note and most certainly his mask would not only be valuable to anyone involved with the Dark Side but also incredibly dangerous.

"Yes." Was the Talortai's gruff response.

Roy waved his hand languidly and asked. "Sorry if this makes me sound like a country bumpkin but what exactly is the problem with this bunch of stuck up noble children possessing a mask?"

"Darth Nihilus was one of the worst Dark Lords of the Sith in history, a man afflicted with a condition that meant he craved Force Energy like a spice addict craves their fix, in his pursuit of this energy he drained the Force and life of every living thing he encountered even going as far as to devour all life on an entire planet. For this he was named the Lord of Hunger." Gottwald answered grimly. That disgusted almost every man and woman at the table, some of them at the table would easily be described as ruthless and pragmatic but the almost senseless actions of the ancient Sith Lord was more than enough to stir a sense of revulsion and disgust in all of them.

"So you have hunted the mask of this Dark Lord of the Sith to the Volik System, to destroy it." Stated Shae as she looked at the alien across from her.

"Yes, whilst usually against the destruction of artefacts, even those of the Dark Side, the mask of Darth Nihilus is one that must be destroyed. It is simply too dangerous to keep intact. The Lord of Hunger was more monster than man, a Sith so drowned in his own ravenous hunger that he was unable to pursue anything else other than the cannibalism of life."

The Emperor nodded before turning his green and purple eyes towards his Director of Intelligence once more effectively ending that line of discussion. "What information do you have for us concerning the rest of the Galaxy?"

Shadow looked around the room before looking at something out of view as she began to read off of what was likely a datapad. "Imperial intelligence continues expanding our spy network into Republic space though progress is slower than I personally would like, however in order to maintain as much integrity of the spy network as possible it was necessary for a slower but more methodical expansion to take place. Imperial Agents are making good progress infiltrating many different planets in the Core and Mid-Rim and expanding our influence across the galaxy, they have also been instructed to redirect the Republic's gaze away from the Unknown Regions and have been successful at stopping several close calls that would have alerted the Republic to our presence here before we were ready."

She took a deep breath before continuing. "Corruption still runs rampant through the Senate and has in fact seemed to have gotten even worse. Many planets, especially in the Outer-Rim, are being exploited or left utterly defenceless against Pirates, raiders and criminal syndicates, some even funded by the Hutt Cartels themselves. The amount of tension in the Galaxy and the Senate has only increased and is reaching a near breaking point, I honestly don't know what will happen but something soon is going to break." She said grimly.

Eyebrows rose from the people around the table as the Emperor leaned forward. "She speaks the truth, I can feel it through the Force, war is coming to the Galaxy, a conflict the likes of which hasn't been seen in a thousand years is on the horizon and we must be ready for it." Looks were exchanged as the nodded, their eyes firm. The Empire had become a home to every man and woman in the room, they would all lay down their lives in defence of it if that was what was asked of them.

The Commander and Chief of the Army looked at his Emperor and asked. "Your Majesty, you mean Civil War?"

Shadow was the one who responded. "Yes Mustang, it seems that way. There are rumours, rumours that someone is offering the systems oppressed under Republic rule or left high and dry by the Senate a shot at independence. The Trade Federation, Techno Union and several other galactic conglomerates seem to be showing signs of supporting this cause."

"Who is that person?" asked Thrawn, a note of curiosity in his tone, a man who could do such a thing was definitely one of note for him and the Empire to keep an eye on.

"The last member of the Lost Twenty, former Jedi Master and now Count of Serenno, Dooku." She replied.

"Any reason why he has taken these actions? What has spurred this behaviour on?" asked Thrawn once more.

"Unknown." She shrugged in response. "His reasons remain shrouded, as do his intentions, whether he plans to wage a Civil War against the Republic or not remains to be seen." There was a note of frustration in her tone of voice as she finished.

"What of the Jedi?" asked the Emperor, once more gaining the attention of the room even as a flash of disdain crossed his face at the mention of the Order.

"They remain as ignorant as always, still crushing their own power by restricting their use of emotions. They seem to have lost sight of any higher purpose they once followed, blinded has their vision become, they have well and truly become nothing more than the Senate's lapdogs, their personal enforcers. So marred in politics have they become that in many cases they act as nothing more than high class free bodyguards for Senators, not that it is surprising they are still feeling the effects of the Ruusan Reformations even after a thousand years. No longer do the Jedi serve the Republic as an ally and guardian but instead as a part of its military and Judicial Forces." Her lip curled in disdain at the found it beyond amusing that an order that declared itself peacekeepers now spent most of its time enforcing the rules laid down by a corrupt government, often times unknowingly assisting in the oppression of those they had been tasked to protect. In her opinion, the Jedi Order was nothing but a pale shadow of its former self, the current Order was insular, closed-minded and quick to judge, having been reduced to nothing more than an imitation of the Order her Emperor had spoken of in reverence, the one that had clashed with the Dark Jedi and Sith Lords of the Old Sith Wars and halted the advance of the True Sith Empire during the Great Galactic War, as well as brought an end to the machinations of the Sith Emperor as he sought to destroy all life in the Galaxy. Even the Jedi who fought during the New Sith Wars and were nearly brought to ruin when the Republic itself was on the brink of total collapse were worthy of more respect than the arrogant Jedi of this age.

"What is their position on the Count's actions?" Gottwald asked as he leaned forward in his seat.

"They are either unaware of his actions or they have decided to take a wait and see policy, which is the truth is currently unknown. My agents weren't able to get close enough to learn more."

"What of their Chosen One?" The Emperor asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Anakin Skywalker? He remains the Padawan of Jedi Knight Obi Wan Kenobi. He continues to advance at a phenomenal rate considering all the extra obstacles the Masters have thrown his way in an attempt to 'humble' him. Because of this as far as our agents could observe and the information they could gather, he has expressed a certain level of arrogance which is ironic considering it is because of the Jedi's spouting of the Prophecy that he would bring balance to the Force that he has become that way."

The Emperor let out a snort as if he found that thought amusing though what or why he found it funny he didn't say. Looking at her once more he asked. "What of the Sith?"

This got the full attention of the room once more this was, after all, the most important part of the meeting. The fact that the Republic was corrupt was something widely known to even those who lived outside of Republic controlled space. The fact that someone was stringing along the planets who were dissatisfied with the Republic was concerning but not an immediate issue nor was it one that couldn't play into the hands of the Empire, if they played their cards right, and the inaction and indecisiveness of the Jedi Order was nothing new. No, the most dangerous galactic player in the 'game' was the Order of the Sith Lords. Staying in the shadows over the centuries they had spread their influence and power across the entire Galaxy corrupting the Republic from the inside right under the nose of the Jedi Order.

The Order of Sith Lords also known as the Banite Sith Order was perhaps the one group active in Republic space that could pose a significant threat to the Empire and its position. It was the most recent iteration of the ancient Sith Order and, unlike its predecessors, it was far smaller than the ancient powerful Sith Empires that had risen to challenge the Republic thousands of years ago, consisting of only two official Sith Lords at a time, a Master and an Apprentice. This way they were able to remain completely under the vision of the Jedi who believed the Sith extinguished a thousand years ago when the Brotherhood of Darkness was defeated at the last battle of Ruusan.

Shadow took a deep breath before she began. "Whilst my agents investigated the records kept in the Republic database and the Holonet, they found a few hints of their continued existence but nothing of any substance. It was only with the attack on the Queen, now Senator, of Naboo, Amidala, by the Sith known as Darth Maul that we were able to confirm their survival. Though from the records we have been able to gather about him as well as the psyche evaluation on the Zabrak it is clear that he was the Apprentice and not the Master. Our investigation indicated that the Sith had clear goals on Naboo and it is our belief that they not only had a vested interest in the blockade but in fact orchestrated it. Further investigation has revealed that the amount of corruption and back room dealings has increased drastically since the Naboo Blockade and it is our belief that this has been linked to the emergence of the Sith from hiding."

The Emperor nodded, these were all things he himself had concluded back when he had felt the presence of the Sith Lord when he revealed himself to the Galaxy.

His Director of Imperial Intelligence continued onwards. "We conducted a more in depth investigation into both the Sith Maul and the events around the Naboo Crisis. Our investigation into the Zabrak revealed that he was taken from Dathomir itself though when is not entirely clear. We have not made contact with the Nightsisters without your express permission so have halted that line of investigation. Our other investigation into the Senate had to be done slowly and very covertly but we found that when our slicers managed to get into what records they could undetected they found far too much information missing for it to be anything other than a cover up. Furthermore, Republic Intelligence haven't investigated any of the lost data which would surely be their prerogative when large amounts of data have been deleted with no explanation. Only someone incredibly high up in the Republic Government could have gotten rid of those files and called off Republic Intelligence, it has to be someone in the Chancellor's Office."

She finished before she looked in the direction of the Grand Admiral who had raised a delicate eyebrow in her direction. "That, of course, coincides with the information given to us by our Grand Admiral pertaining to the figure who introduced himself as Darth Sidious during the incident involving the Outbound Flight."

Thrawn nodded and started speaking, taking over from Shadow "The man who introduced himself to me as Kinman Doriana was a close advisor of the Chancellor leading us to believe that the Sith have infiltrated the highest echelons of the Republic."

The Emperor nodded, that was concerning. The amount of damage the Sith could do with influence from the Chancellor's Office was almost incalculable. He looked at his Director of Imperial Intelligence and asked. "What of the Chancellor, he remains shrouded to me whenever I look into the Force in order to search for the Sith."

Shadow sighed and bit her lower lip as she looked down at a datapad in her hand. "We are currently unsure, there is no current direct evidence that he is the Sith in question but it is very likely that he is, at least, associated with the Sith Order."

He nodded as he closed his eyes seeming lost in thought before he addressed Shadow "Continue to expand the network of agents in the Republic."

She bowed and said. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Looking at Thrawn he said. "As for you Thrawn, continue the expansion of the Eternal Fleet, war is coming and we must be ready for it."

Thrawn bowed and said. "Yes, Your Majesty."

He then addressed Mustang. "The same with the Army."

He bowed and said. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Turning to the woman who had been mostly silent during the meeting he said. "Celeste, continue your work with the Knights, expand the Order as quickly as possible but remember to maintain the same level of discipline and skill."

"Yes, Your Majesty." She bowed.

He finally turned to Gottwald and said. "You'll need to prepare the Economy for full scale war."

He nodded and said "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Shae, prepare your forces, make sure they are ready for when they are called upon."

The Mandalorian nodded and said. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Finally he turned to the last member of the council. "Fen, continue your mission to the Volik System, retrieve the mask and bring it to me, I shall destroy it."

"Yes, Your Majesty." He said as he bowed, an arm diagonally crossed over his chest.

"Good, you are all dismissed." With that he tapped the datapad on the table turning off the Holograms before he turned and walked out without addressing either of the two left in the room.

He made his way back to the Throne Room though did not sit back down in the Eternal Throne, instead he looked out into the void, his fleet hanging there in space around the planet.

Harry James Potter the second 'Dragon' and Emperor of Zakuul and ruler of the revived Eternal Empire, second master of Bendu and the Padawan and Apprentice of the Prodigal Knight and Dark Lord of the Sith Revan looked out at his Empire and couldn't help the smile that crossed his face.

It had been a long road to reach this point, a difficult and hard battle to establish not only his place in the Galaxy, but also the creation of his Empire.

The road that had led him to this point filled him with a sense of wonder and loss. An unwavering love and an endless rage along with an unbreakable will that would see him last out all his enemies.

'Just you wait, my dear Flower, I will return to you.' He smiled as he felt an incredibly faint return along the Force Bond he shared with the woman who meant the world to him. As he thought of her his eyes hardened into chips of emerald ice. He would return to her no matter what it would take!

That's the first chapter, now I know some people will be on my case for using Anime characters in a Star Wars X Harry Potter story, if you can't stomach it then I can't help though I do promise they will be the only ones.

As for everyone else, please like and review!