Open Task Cultural Domination

[Véhemen]

From: Darth Véhemen
To: Governors of Perfidious
Subject: Cultural Domination

Governors,

The Dominion has grown in population and wealth, yet prestige continues to elude us. We remain, in many respects, a backwater on the fringes of the Empire, lacking a distinct cultural identity or meaningful influence. That will change.

To that end, I am prepared to fund the development of cultural institutions across our worlds. Below is a list of projects I am willing to support with Dominion resources, provided the Governors can demonstrate a clear and compelling vision for what they intend to build.

This task does not require your personal involvement. You are to commission Sith and Operatives to develop these proposals on your behalf. Ensure they are rewarded appropriately for their efforts.

Once you have prepared a defined concept for your chosen institution, along with supporting materials that reflect its character and purpose, I will review your submission and determine whether it merits investment.

You would be wise to pursue distinct institutions for each world. Duplication will dilute their value. Whether you coordinate your efforts or compete for my favour is your concern.

- V -

Institution Type	Description
Botanical Gardens	A vast, meticulously designed garden complex featuring exotic flora, grand promenades, ornamental lakes, and monumental sculptures.
Citadel of Culture	A monumental multipurpose cultural complex combining exhibition, performance, and educational spaces.
Colossal Museum	A massive museum complex with expansive galleries for exhibitions and cultural displays.
Grand Amphitheatre	A colossal open-air and domed venue for large-scale ceremonies, festivals, and public performances.
Grand Archives	A vast fortified library and archive complex for preserving knowledge and historical records.
Grand Opera House	A majestic, large-scale venue for operas, musical performances, and grand spectacles.
Grand Symphony Hall	A premier concert venue for symphonies, orchestral performances, and musical events.
Hall of Ascendant Art	An opulent art museum and sculpture atrium dedicated to visual arts and monumental works.
Imperial Gardens	A garden estate with majestic avenues, reflective pools and dramatic Sith-inspired statuary. A place of beauty and quiet power.
Imperial Theatre	A vast theatre complex for dramatic productions, live performances, and public ceremonies.
Pantheon of Heroes	A grand memorial hall featuring statues, monuments, and spaces for ceremonial gatherings.

Spoiler: OOC Notes

• There is no time limit on this task per se, it will continue until the Dark Lord grows bored, or every world has an institution.
• Each world may only have one institution, save Zula IV, which may have two as the Dominion's capital.
• Governors may contribute a vision and direction, but any submissions must be made by Sith or Operatives. This task is to encourage cooperation, meetings and rewarding the underlings. It is not intended as a solo experience.
• Multiple worlds can build the same thing, but if multiple are built it will diminish the cultural value of each one and thus the influence contribution. But hey, tensions between Lords is good.
• In terms of what you need to submit below for consideration, that really depends on the concept. If you are proposing an Opera House, perhaps a slice of an Opera could be written. Gardens, maybe a selection of nice plants with pictures or a map of its layout etc. There is no firm rule, but quality matters.
• Names can be changed according to your will, the type is just intended to give a sense of scale and prestige.
• Please make your choice appropriate to your world!

 

[Zazriel]

Dark Lord,

I present the proposal for a Botanical Gardens on Verdantia in Little Sister from Sith Skoni'ulatla, to commemorate its transition to an agricultural settlement and as place of outstanding beauty within the belt.

The Verdantia Xenobotanical Gardens will have six areas;

1. A section dedicated to poisonous plants shaped like a spider, six legs, each an individual section named after one of the lines of the Sith Code. Such plants will include the Emcerbaps from Verdanis, Trandoshan Fingers from Zyxar, Yruki's Toe and Beaded Crown from Zula IV. Other additions, albeit not poisonous, might include Razorvine or Fangflowers and anything else deemed suitable.
   
   
2. A section dedicated to show off the different plants of the Zula Dominion. It will showcase a range of flora for example a section for Acid Caskets, Throne Thief, and Winter's Kiss from Zula IV.
   
   
3. A section dedicated for plants that grow in cold environments, such as the beautiful moss from Niyir and Silver Mountain Flowers and Twin Glimmer from Zula IV.
   
   
4. A section on the polar opposite, for plants that grow in hot environments. Examples of this would be Lokk Pads, Geraniona and Bfef from Ixarum, Ederon from Zula IV and the tropical trees of Denedre Prime.
   
   
5. A section dedicated to many different plants with Gloamfern from Yankun and Midnight Lantern from Zyxar, the bioluminescence highlighting the focal point of the room; a sculpted effigy.
   
   
6. The effigy, whos visage can be decided by you, will also possess flora growing on and around it.
   
   
7. Finally, a wild path which encompasses the botanical gardens for leisurely strolls. This will feature a few additions unseen in the other areas such as Dedash Trees from Damolla, Fluted Kloo and Pillow Berry Bushes from Zula IV etc...

There was more to Sith Skoni'ulatla's proposal, but I have trimmed down the fat, as well as excluded some alien suggestions for flora. I will include it below, as well as concept designs for the botanical gardens.

Please note if approved; I will hire an actual architect to refine these rudimentary scrawls.

- Lord Zazriel

Spoiler: Original Proposal

I have written it like the below. I think you will like to refine it because your Basic is better.

There will be six areas. The first that visitors will see is the entrance hall, Sith statue, and indoor gardens. This will have multiple levels for viewing plants, buying things, and eating food. There will be plants all around the walkways as well as a dark room where bioluminescent plants like gloamfern from Yankun and midnight lantern from Zyxar can be seen properly. In the middle of the building going all the way through it and out of a hole in the roof there will be a big statue of a Sith with different colour plants to make the colours of the lightsaber and robes.

Visitors can go through the entrance hall to a path with three ways. At the crossing they will see two areas with plants only from the Dominion. These two areas will have plants with specific colours so the subtle variations look very beautiful. One area will have acid caskets, throne thief, blue and purple duumosa, and winter's kiss. These are all blue and purple. In the other there should be orange, red and yellow duumosa and silver mountain flowers.

If visitors turn left they can go to a building made of glass built to look like fire. Inside there will be plants from hot planets and big scenery to make it look like the visitors have gone to a different planet. This will be similar in the other buildings too. Here there be be lokk pads, geraniona and bfef from Ixarum, Ederon from Zula IV, and desert nettle from E'ronoh as well as others.

If visitors go ahead they can go to a building which looks like a spider, though it has six legs which are actually separate enclosures, one for each line of the Sith code. Here there will be embercaps from Verdanis, carnivorous plants from Ikthara, yruki's toe and beaded crown from Zula IV. There will also be razorvine and fangflowers, which are not poisonous but are dangerous.

If visitors turn right they can go to a building made of glass built to look like ice. Inside will be plants from cold planets and places and scenery which matches it. There will be moss from Niyir and silver mountain flowers, snow roses, and twin glimmer from Zula IV. Twin glimmer is very rare so it will bring many visitors.

The last area is a big path all the way around the gardens which will be designed to look wild, like visitors are walking through a forest. Dedash trees from Damolla can be used a lot here because they are very big and will hide the path from the rest of the buildings so it looks wild from the inside. Mushrooms like the climbing steps from Zula IV can be kept on the trees or on the ground. There will be many other trees but it will look good to represent the Dominion with the dedash.

- Skoni'ultla

Spoiler: Concept Designs

Spoiler: OOC Credit:

*All images were drawn by our own Skoni.

 

[Leyrah]

Master,

The following proposal was also created by the current favoured, Sith Skoni'ulatla, for a Grand Museum to be built on Yankun.

The design showcases a building with three sides overarching horns holding a transparisteel dome, with each floor containing different exhibitions and showcasing of both the Sith, and most importantly, the Zula Dominion's rise. The centered structure in the midst of it will provide not just stability, but a way to traverse the different showcases. It is designed with the idea of size, space, and to make a grand impression before one even enters.

Visitors will be able to see in both directions (up and down) if they get close to the edge, so that they are able to see all the way down at the right positions. At a hundred or so meters tall, it would make for a grand view of all of Yankun's capital as much as it would add to the city itself. The history of the Dominion is all about conquest, domination, and strength - so it is only right the very building meant to showcase it is also equally imposing.

Each floor will showcase different wings with different exhibitions, some to the Sith rise in the Dominion, to Republic defeats and wrongdoings. Others still will provide the people with the history of your control of the worlds, and what has been created to better their lives. Most importantly, it will showcase the grander truth that the opera you are building and creating will tell, to truly hammer home what the Dominion was always meant to be.

The separations of the different floors will include sections of each planet and each of the most noteworthy Sith Lords by your will with rotating exhibitions for each, so that it never grows stale. The one standing exhibition will be the top floor, where the story of our very own Dark Lord will be told, as it is meant to be shown in all its grandeur: not just a conqueror, but a saviour.

The far less boring matter is that the building can be extended downwards, which it will for the less interesting parts of museum handling: staff quarters, storage, restorations, and the likes. I will have the Sith and Operatives of the powerbase sent out to collect from the Dominion so that we may tell our story in the light it was meant to be told.

Lord Sendahl

Spoiler: Original Proposal

Hello my lord. I have thought more about the museum. With the way I have designed it, I want the impression to be size and space. If it is big enough then each level can be enclosed with glass. Visitors will see in both directions, because there will be glass on both sides of each level, so they can see all the way up and down. If it is this big then it will be more than one hundred metres tall, so from the ground as visitors approach it will be very imposing. The almost-black metal will be very imposing also. From the small rooms at the top of the horns visitors can see the whole museum and all the way to the ground. Inside the main levels it will be very open because of the glass walls so it will feel open as well. You can see in the drawing the way I have designed the levels, with the floor and walls made of metal and the walls of glass, with exhibits for the wings in the centre of the corridor going all the way around in sections.

I have drawn how the lift can go underground so that the art and exhibits can be taken down for maintenance. I do not know enough about how it works but I have drawn rooms of different sizes for storage and maintenance. The lift will need to be wide enough to hold trolleys for the exhibits. This will mean that more visitors can go up at one time also.

I have thought about the wings. I do not know if the Dark Lord has told you about his opera but he wants it to say that the creation of the Dominion was destiny and not only a product of creation. The wings can tell the same story so it is reinforced. The first level can be about the worlds of the Dominion before they were conquered and show the bad things the Republic did or things that were wrong with the planets. The second level can be about the fight against the Republic and the conquest of the planets. The third level can be about the improvements made to the planets. All three levels can be separated for each planet.

The level for the Dark Lord can be on top of the third level, up the lift again. It should be shaped like a triangle with curved sides, so it is like a spike. It can have things to show the improvements he has made to the planets so visitors can think he is not just a conqueror.

Each level can have small sections for the temporary exhibits you wanted, in between some of the sections for the planets. I do not know where these artifacts and exhibits will come from, they will have to be found or taken from museums that already exist. Maybe it can be a task for the powerbase to find things for the first two levels?

I think you will want to write all this in your words because your Basic is better, Lord Zazriel did the same.

- Skoni'ulatla

Spoiler: Concept Designs

 

[Tiln'anar]

Dark Lord,

I present the following submissions surrounding an Imperial Theatre Complex intended to be situated in Damollas. The building concept itself was submitted by Sith Rer'ren and is predominantly her design, though also received input from Sith Skoni'ulatla during the conceptualization process. My apprentice, Sith Koror, has submitted a four act play; originally as an opera though it was reformated so as not to compete with your impending Opera House.

The Imperial Theatre of Damolla

The complex is built on an artificial plaza, enabling visibility within the city center of Damollas. This elevation allows for space for shopping beneath the theater, along with housing staff facilities, staging workshops, rehearsal studios, speeder parking, etcetera. It also allows for hotels housing cast, crew, and attending audience members in various lodgings both within the theater itself, and within the elevated plaza. Within the theater itself are several cantinas, the largest of which is the primary location for the wealthy to congregate and converse. Additional louge spaces are to be constructed for those with access and privilege, along with a gallery on the eastern wing, and an outdoor stage on the western wing.

Five total stages are planned within the complex itself:

1. An open air stage for summer festivals, concerts, or drama.
2. A thrust stage designed for fashion shows, dramatic performances, or musical performances that will benefit from the format.
3. An arena stage with 360 degree seating to host ballroom dance competitions, orchestral performances, or dramatic productions that suit the form.
4. A traditional mainstage fit for drama, orchestra, and other viable productions.
5. A chamber stage to host lectures, symposiums, or live court proceedings.

The approach to the complex itself boasts various water features along with statues detailing patrons of the arts within the Dominion.

Concept images are attached.

Spoiler: Concept Images

Spoiler: Proposal Communications

Lord Nar,

Sith Lati has contacted me with intention to work together on this theater. I will accept, if only because it will make the effort more efficient and potentially produce results for you more quickly.

I propose a theatre which, itself, is more of a 'Theatrical Estate', composed of multiple buildings containing multiple stages. This will allow a multitude of shows to run at the same time, but also give performers the ability to rehearse their shows within the estate itself - they can accommodate themselves within (at a fee, of course) and mingle with guests in members cantinas and such like. This would also allow you to run an annual festival at the estate, in which amatuear and professional shows can run across the multiple stages on offer and any nearby hotels in the viscinity will find an annual boom in revenue that can be taxed for your wider infrastructure.

While there will be space to house dozens of traditional stages of all shapes and sizes, the estate's 'grand' stages will be composed of:-
- An arena stage, 360 degree seating to host ballroom dance competitions, figure skating competitions (provided there was budget to install an ice rink beneath the floor that can be lifted upon a turbolift), orchestral performances and other similar arrangements
- A thrust stage, designed for fashion shows, dramatic performance or musical performance
- A traditional stage designed for all the classics. Musical performnance, dramatic performance, comedy, orchestral performance, etc.
- A 'chamber stage', which I have somewhat designed on my own, allowing the estate to host lecture, symposium, or live court preceedings if necessary. Perhaps even a live sentencing and execution? Please find images of all attached.

Force serve,
Sith Rer'ren

---

Lord Nar,

I have an updated concept of the theatre. This has been redrawn to situate the theatre atop an artificial hill to lift it and give it presence and visibility within the city. It features a central outdoor stage for summer festivals, concerts or dramas. It still keeps the internal stages, each tower featuring a "grand stage", made up of the drawings shown prior.

The artificial hill houses staff facilities, staging workshops, rehearsal studios, speeder parking, etc. There will be space for multiple cantinas, and hotels housing cast, crew and attending audience members in varying lodgings across the towers and the artificial hill itself.

This design has more visibility than others, features the outdoor stage designed by Sith Lati, but also enables, as we said before, a boom to local tourism industry, and an annual theatre festival will raise an abundance of credits for the planet to use.

I believe it captures your need for a visibly striking and Imperial architecture, while maximising its profitability for the city. It will also provide enough staging and resources to make Damolla the center of dramatic art in the sector.

I hope this satisfies.

Sith Rer'ren

---

Lord Nar,

Please find revisions.

I have reinvisioned the interior stages to better accommodate space, seating and aesthetic.

I have taken my original return prior to taking on board Sith Lati's considerations and raised it upon an artificial plaza to enable more visibility within the city center. This allows for space for shopping beneath the theatre, as well as a gallery on the eastern wing and the outdoor stage on the western wing.

Inside will be found the cantina, find the attached visualisation. This will be the main place for the wealthy to congregate and converse - additional cantinas can be housed with plenty of space for those without access. In addition, there will be lounge spaces for those with access and privilege.

The stages will consist of the open air stage, thrust stage for concerts of contemporary music or applicable theatre performances that will benefit from the form. There will be an arena stage for performances requiring 360 degree view, and a traditional mainstage fit for drama, orchestra and others.

Within the theatre and beneath it will be plenty of space for accommodation, both for workers, crew members, cast, and attendees able to afford the space. The water features on the approach remain and the grounds are embellish with further statues detailing the patrons of arts the Powerbase holds - yourself, for example, Lord Arazhar and Darth Véhemen, as well as any applicable domuun members from the citizenship.

Force serve,
Sith Rer'ren

The Edge of Empire

Attached is the play Sith Koror conceptualized, adapted from the original opera; one of many potential dramatic productions to be played within the Imperial Theatre of Damolla.

Spoiler: The Edge of Empire

Link to the Edge of Empire Script

Spoiler: Proposal Communications

Master,

I am well aware of your desire for an Imperial Theatre complex for Damolla, and as you know I have gave my interest in creating an opera for the Dark Lord, whilst the Dark Lord found that the opera was not the theme that he wished, it may be able to be to your liking to either remain as an opera or to be adapted to a play. I shall attach it to this comm.

Force serve,
Sith Koror
---

Master,

Please find attached my initial draft of the play, I have made the amendments that you initially requested, and the character of Malrec has been renamed.

Force serve,
Sith Koror

- Lord Nar

 

[Calian Tarr]

Dark Lord,

attached is the creation myth opera that retells the tale of how the Dominion is a cosmic inevitability, based on your orders.

Spoiler: Zula Ascendant

ZULA ASCENDANT

TIME AND PLACE:
Somewhere in the cold and cruel void, long, long ago during the time of creation.

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

THE WITNESS: (bass) the cosmic observer, who has been there since time immemorial.
LUMINA: (soprano) an aspect of Light, blessed with potential but cursed with indecision
ZULA: (baritone) an aspect of Shadow, headstrong architect of creation

Spoiler: SCENE I: THE VOID

[The stage is black. A singular, oily and pale egg, nearly translucent, sits in the darkness. An annoying, low tone emanates from it. The WITNESS enters slowly, circling around it.]

THE WITNESS (recitative)
Behold; the Egg!
It floats. It always has.
In a forgotten corner of the void,
Where no star yet burned,
Where the galaxy's light had not yet reached,
The Egg, by its lonesome.

[Stops to peer at it]

I have been watching for… how long?
Time has no meaning here, of course,
Which makes the waiting SPECTACULARLY boring.

[Aria starts: slow and droning]

THE WITNESS (aria: "Eternal Vigil")
Eon upon eon,
The void and I,
And this INSUFFERABLE egg,
Which does nothing,
Produces nothing,
Suggests nothing,
And yet…

[Music shifts, a tremor in the strings]

And yet… I cannot look away.
For within it writhes the unbearable:
Every star that might ignite in this forsaken edge,
Every world that could take form in this darkness,
Every possibility for this corner of space,
Crushed into a shell no thicker than a thought.

[Leans closer and whispers]

Chaos, trapped.
Potential, strangled.
Everything and nothing,
Locked in an egg, that will not break.

[Steps back and sighs]

Exciting, yes?

[The egg slowly begins to glow from within, the faint sounds of cracks accompanying it.The WITNESS notices and straightens himself out.]

THE WITNESS (recitative, quickening)
Wait.
Wait.
Is that…?
Oh.
Oh, no.
Oh, finally!

[A crack of light splits the egg, the rays of light cutting through the darkness like blades. The orchestra surges.]

Spoiler: SCENE II: THE CRACKING

[The egg finally splits with a loud shatter, the shell breaking apart into a thousand shards of glass, each reflecting the light they once contained. Two figures emerge from the halves of the egg: LUMINA, covered in a radiant light, and ZULA, cloaked in shadow. Both are like disoriented newborns.]

LUMINA (confused and soft)
Where… what… I am… light?

ZULA (steady and certain)
I am shadow.

THE WITNESS (dryly, to the audience)
And so it begins.

[LUMINA looks around, overwhelmed. ZULA immediately starts examining the void that surrounds them.]

Spoiler: SCENE III: LUMINA'S ARIA — "The Infinity of Choices"

[LUMINA begins to weave both light and song in the vast emptiness of the void, but every trail of thought ends in a spiral, hesitation, or doubling back.]

LUMINA
I am light… Or should I be radiance?
No, luminescence! Or perhaps incandescence?
I could be the glow of dawn,
Or the blaze of noon,
Or the soft shimmer of dusk,
Or all three at once,
Or none,
Or…

[She gestures, and a thousand stars flicker into existence around her, then vanish.]

I see every star I could ignite,
Every constellation I could create,
But which one? Which one?!
They are all so beautiful,
All so perfect,
All equally valid,
And I…

[Frustrated, her voice cracks]

I cannot choose!

To choose one is to murder all the others,
To carve reality from infinite dream,
And I- I cannot bear it.

[Overwhelmed, she falls to her knees. The stars swirl chaotically around her.]

So I will hold them all,
Cherish them all,
Perfect and untouched,
Forever.

[She freezes, paralyzed by indecision. The stars hang suspended, beautiful but useless.]

THE WITNESS (steps forward, and observes)
And there she remains.
Infinite potential:
Yet paralyzed by indecision.

[Turns to ZULA, who has been quietly watching.]

But him…

Spoiler: SCENE IV: ZULA'S ARIA — "The First Cut"

[ZULA steps forward towards the chaos that lingers. Unlike LUMINA's hesitance, his movement is intentional. He surveys the void with interest.]

ZULA
I am the shadow,
space between stars,
The silence after the last breath,
The boundary that says: here, and not there.

[He raises a hand. The void responds: a single line of darkness cuts through the chaos of LUMINA's stars, organizing them like clockwork.]

She dreams of every possibility,
But I choose one.

[The music shifts. Rhythmic and decisive.]

ZULA (aria proper)
To create is not to birth infinitely,
But to slaughter: kill the "maybe", to make the "certainty"
I am the knife,
The edge,
and the will that says: this shall be, and this shall not.

[During his song, a structure begins to form: stars set along the lines he draws, settling into their rightful positions in this corner of space.]

I do not ask permission.
I do not mourn the “what ifs”.
I see this void, this abandoned corner,
And I divide it.

Light from dark,
Order from chaos,
Form from dream.

[He gestures, and worlds begin to take shape among the orderly stars.]

Here, in this space: Zula,
The seat, the center, the apex of will.
From this world, all lines of power radiate.

Here: Damolla,
Where order brings abundance without cruelty,
Where the willing thrive beneath the care of the structure.

Here: Zyxar,
Abundant, fertile, bleeding green despite its scars,
The proof that order can be generous.

[His voice darkens slightly]

And here: Tobrade,
Cold, unforgiving, forge of necessity.
Where hands shape steel and steel shapes destiny.
Not all worlds are kind.
But all worlds have their place.

[He turns toward LUMINA, who watches him, frozen.]

She would hold every star in her hands,
Love them all equally,
And birth nothing.

But I…
I will build.

[The music swells as this sector of space forms around him: both ordered and purposeful.]

I am not cruel:
I am necessary.

Without me, there is only her endless light,
Beautiful,
Perfect,
But utterly still.

I am the hand that shapes,
The voice that commands,
The shadow that gives the light meaning.

[ZULA is now stood at the center of the newly-formed corner of the galaxy, calm and certain.]

And so the structure that must be
Was carved into the stars.

[The music lingers on a deep note. THE WITNESS steps forward.]

Spoiler: SCENE V: THE DUET — "Lumina's Lament, Zula's Zeal"

[LUMINA finally moves, stepping toward ZULA. Her voice is wounded, pleading.]

LUMINA
But you have killed them:
All the stars I did not choose,
All the worlds that will never be,
You have carved them away,
Cast them into shadow…

ZULA (interrupting, calm)
I have given them form!

LUMINA
You have given them limits!

ZULA
Yes.

[They begin a duet, LUMINA's melody spiraling and chaotic, ZULA's steady and grounded.]

LUMINA
What right have you to choose?
To say “this, and not that”?
To silence infinite song,
For the sake of a single note?

ZULA
The right of the only one willing to act:
You held every song in your throat,
And sang nothing.

LUMINA
I sang everything…

ZULA
You sang silence.

[LUMINA drops her head. She knows he’s right.]

ZULA (continuing, almost gently)
I do not deny your beauty.
I do not scorn your light.
But without me,
You are only potential:
Unborn,
Unlived,
A dream the void will never wake from.

[He extends a hand toward her.]

Let me give you form.

LUMINA (softly, resigned)
And if I refuse?

ZULA
You already have.
That is why I exist.

[The music shifts. LUMINA's melody fades into the background. ZULA's theme becomes dominant.]

THE WITNESS (stepping between them, narrating)
And so the Light withdrew,
Not defeated,
But undone by her own perfection.

She remains,
A glow at the edges of these worlds,
Beautiful,
Unmoving,
Eternal.

[LUMINA drifts to the edge of the stage, still radiant but static, her stars frozen around her.]

But the Dark:
Ah, the Dark built.

Spoiler: SCENE VI: FINALE — "The Inevitability"

[ZULA stands at the center of the orderly worlds he has created. LUMINA remains at the edge, luminous but still. THE WITNESS moves downstage, addressing the void itself.]

THE WITNESS (recitative)
And so it was written;
Though no hand held the pen.
And so it was fated;
Though no oracle spoke the words.

[Gestures to the galaxy]

Behold: the structure that must be!
Not born of conquest,
Not seized by force,
But always meant to be.

[The music swells: ZULA’s theme intertwines with fragments of LUMINA's, but his theme dominates.]

THE WITNESS (aria: "The Shape of What Must Be")
The egg was not the beginning.
It was never the beginning.
Before the egg, there was chaos.
Unbearable, unsustainable,
A shrieking void that could not hold itself.

[The galaxy pulses with light and shadow]

The egg was the universe's answer:
Contain it.
Compress it.
Let it ripen.

And when it broke;
When Lumina spilled forth with her infinite light,
When Zula emerged with his singular will:
The galaxy did not choose between them.

[Steps toward ZULA]

It required him.

ZULA (joining, his voice steady and certain)
For only the Dark can draw the line,
Can say: here the star ignites, here it does not.
Here the world turns, here it falls still.
Here power flows, and here it is commanded.

THE WITNESS
Order is not kind.
Order does not ask.
But without it;

[Gestures to LUMINA]

There is only her:
Light without shadow,
Choice without decision,
Beauty without form.

LUMINA (softly, from the edge, almost a whisper)
I am still here…

THE WITNESS
Yes.
You are.

[Turns back to the audience]

And that is the secret:
The Light does not vanish.
It simply… waits.
Radiant and patient,
For the Dark to give it shape.

ZULA (stepping forward, powerful)
I am not a tyrant:
I am the answer!
The galaxy screamed for meaning,
And I carved it from the void.

Zula, Gambor, Zyxar, Tobrade;
Each a pillar,
Each a necessity,
Each a stone in the foundation
Of what must be.

[The full orchestra swells: ZULA’s theme becomes grand and triumphant. LUMINA's motif is woven into it.]

ZULA, THE WITNESS (together)
This order is not an empire.
It is the shape of things.
Not built by hands,
But by necessity.
Not imposed by will,
But by the silence of those who could not choose.

[THE WITNESS steps forward one last time, alone]

THE WITNESS (final recitative, quiet)
And so the myth is complete.
The egg has cracked.
The Light has faded into background glow.
The Dark has carved the stars into meaning.

[Pauses, looks at the galaxy]

Was it always going to be this way?

[Turns to the audience, a slight smile]

Does it matter?
It is this way.

[The music holds a long, resonant chord. ZULA stands at the center of his orderly galaxy. LUMINA glows softly at the periphery. THE WITNESS regards them both.]

THE WITNESS (spoken, almost to himself)
Exciting, yes?

[Blackout. The chords fade into silence.]


END.

Sith Tarr

 

[Zaca Vintaka]

Dark Lord,

I have given my opera a title. I hope 'threads of fate' pleases you. The opera is attached, as instructed.

- Sith Zaca Vintaka

Spoiler: Threads of fate

Orchestra composed of:
String set
Woodwinds set
Brass set
Percussion and harps set
----
The story takes us back to the very start, the beginning of the galaxy. Or rather, the start of a specific part of the galaxy, what was to become the Zula dominion, then unnamed. The scene starts with one known as the fateweaver, sat midst a projection of stars behind her. Clad in purple threads, the woodwinds set brings her entry to life, slow, low and mystical. Her makeup is stars glowing silver and gold, illuminating the darkness, revealing that she was there even before the galaxy around her came to life. She carries a translucent spool of fate which she will weave. The silence aside from the orchestra is deliberate, the fateweaver looking through the galaxy, looking to execute her purpose.

Slowly the orchestra builds, ever so slightly. The silence breaks as the planets within the Dominion take to the stage. The individuals representing the planets are clad in dresses befitting what the planets are currently known for. Straps of cloth off their clothing with various colours represent the climate and what the planets are currently known for, the planets shifting through the space the stage represents. As if lost they trickle over the stage, looking for purpose within the vast embrace of space. The fateweaver sings a beckoning song, her song drawing each individual planet close to her, turn after turn. With every planet she wraps her spool, her fate, around the planet, intrinsically linking them to one another. The chaos, the looking for purpose, gradually fades between the planets as their linked nature becomes more clear to the planets themselves. The music shifts from its mysterious nature to something warmer, a tone that is just right. The scene cuts, the planets linking their hands and moving off the stage. Before the scene fully fades though, menacing laughter breaks through with a blue saber.

As the background changes, so does the music. The brass set kicks in as the perspective of the play changes. The one taking the stage represents the Dark Lord himself, though his is a journey. We witness the start on Korriban, the tomb world represented by the projected background. Surrounded by tombs, he easily avoids a variety of traps set up within. Despite his ease of managing the traps, the surroundings, the opposition he faces within the tomb, within song he laments the purpose of such empty tombs. Only for the song to take something proud, to become something powerful, bright and strong, alongside the orchestra kicking in in full force as the Dark Lord recovers a piece of a tablet. The tablet whispers something of fate, pushing the Fateweaver back into the play, emerging from the shadows. She whispers of purpose, of being the one to nudge history into the place it should be in, to become the uniter of worlds. His response is song, accepting a new purpose, to retrieve the second part of the tablet and find these worlds yearning for unison. The scene cuts.

The planets return to the stage. They show a connected nature, though their movements aren’t synchronized yet. Their dancing, tumbling, searching, seeking, shows a fate that is yet to be attained. And as they themselves look and fail to find one another to unite themselves under one banner, a new player, as the percussion and flute together make for an ominous arrival, takes to the stage. A blue saber ignites, revealing the rotten republic. The destruction he engages in is systematic, under feigned freedom. The blue saber cuts through the woven fate, dismantling the connections between the planets with a variety of weapons. Flames being spewed at the verdant worlds, poison being dropped into the wells, explosions disintegrating the metals. With every planet being struck down the background projects the befitting appearance of the planet. The planets fall like leaves in Autumn, slowly starting to wither with their intended purpose being withheld. The scene cuts as the orchestra falls to soft, solemn tones, heralding the ‘demise’ at the hand of the republic.

The Dark Lord returns to the screen, combing through a verdant world, an overgrown tomb. He is filled with purpose and his journey has been long, shown by his movements being slightly slower than before. Yet still he moves with deftness, avoids traps by nature and dispatches of the wretched beings guarding the tomb and its treasures. The music is hopeful and adventurous, filled with purpose. Side paths of the tomb show glittering gold, jewels as far as the eyes can see. However the Dark Lord doesn’t stop, not giving into baser instincts of greed, for the true prize awaits him deeper within the tomb. A tentacled fiend is dispatched with ease, falling away to show the second part of the tablet he has spent so long looking for. With the acquisition of the second tablet the Fateweaver emerges from thin air, taking to the stage. She only nudges the Dark Lord forward though, her voice pleading, tone sorrowful as she practically begs the Dark Lord to restore the planets to their rightful fate. The music is as sorrowful as the fateweaver’s tones as the scene cuts.

Battle. The scene cuts in to glorious conclusion. The music is soft, building suspense, the Dark Lord wandering through the galaxy and nearing the planets woven together by fate. Upon a beautiful scenery of stars, the final battle unfolds. Chaos against unity. So called ‘freedom’ against purpose and fate. The orchestra builds and builds as the scene evolves, blue lightsaber clashing against red. Filled with purpose and fate, the Dark Lord clashes and builds the strings back between the planets with his free hand. The galaxy, fate itself, answers his call, the transparent threads whirling back into a stronger bond between the planets. And as fate is woven back together it strengthens, in turn answering to the unison predestined to have come to pass. The planets whirl with life, their dance no longer lost yet filled with purpose and unity. Together they rally behind the Dark Lord and the red saber, falling into rightful unity over chaos. As it should, chaos buckles. Unity triumphs in a glorious crescendo of song and instrument, the blue lightsaber snuffed out, the planets united as one, under one banner.

The scene cuts and the opera comes to a conclusion.