The desert wind carried more than heat that morning.
It carried ships.
Kael saw them from the tower — two black freighters cutting across the sky, matte plating reflecting the sun in thin streaks. Their shape wasn't Republic, and they bore no visible insignia.
But he recognized the build.
Independent mercenaries. Outer Rim traders. Smugglers.
He allowed them to land.
The perimeter wall was now 70% complete — a ring of jagged stone and metal that sliced the horizon in sharp teeth. Kael had fortified its gates with reprogrammed turrets scavenged from an old droid carrier. No one came or left without his permission.
The ships hissed as they settled outside the wall. Sand billowed around them like cloaks. The ramps dropped.
Out stepped four beings.
Two humans. One Rodian. One hulking Trandoshan with scarred armor and a repeater slung over his back.
Kael met them in the outer square, flanked by his Shadowguard. Their new uniforms — bone-plated with red cloth markings — gave the mercenaries pause.
The Trandoshan sniffed. "Didn't expect to find a kingdom out here."
Kael's voice was level. "That's because you weren't looking for one."
The mercenary leader, a woman named Vessa Jax, stepped forward. Her eyes scanned Kael's face, but couldn't read him. She was used to warlords and thugs, not strategists.
"We came for salvage," she said. "Caught some encrypted pings off a relay two clicks east. Thought we'd find scrap. Or corpses."
Kael smiled faintly.
"You found both."
Terms of Blood and Credits
Inside the stone hall Kael had designated as a command chamber, they discussed trade.
Vessa wanted metal. Power cells. Information.
Kael wanted maps. Star charts. Data logs.
He knew the Outer Rim. But not precisely. His Earth knowledge blurred at the edges — a mix of Canon, Legends, and what fans theorized. Real galactic maps? That was gold.
They struck a temporary deal.
Vessa's crew would leave behind a small data core and a navigation AI. In return, Kael gave them two tons of refined ore and one of the slaver wrecks as scrap.
Kael knew they'd talk. Whispers would spread. That was intentional.
The galaxy needed to wonder who ruled this dead world.
But Vessa made a mistake.
She tried to hire one of Kael's villagers before she left.
The man — Kael barely remembered his name — was a water hauler. Weak-minded. Starved for freedom. He took the credits and planned to stow away with Vessa's crew.
He didn't make it past the gate.
The Shadowguard found him. Dragged him back.
And Kael made everyone watch.
The First Purge
The man knelt before the village square, wrists bound, bloodied from the drag.
Kael stood above him on a carved stone platform, his red saber humming low.
"I offer you protection," Kael said to the crowd. "I give you structure. Order. Purpose. And some of you still think freedom is more valuable than loyalty?"
He looked down at the prisoner.
"You are not just a traitor," Kael said. "You are a threat. To the system. To everything we build."
The man whimpered something, but Kael didn't listen.
The blade flashed once.
The head dropped.
The body twitched.
Silence followed — deep, consuming silence.
[System Update: First Civil Execution Performed]
+100 XP
+1 Fear Point (Local)
Kingdom Trait Gained: "Iron Rule" (Minor) – +10% Loyalty Retention, -5% Population Growth Rate
[Population: 188]
Kael turned to face the villagers.
"I will not ask for loyalty," he said, voice like thunder. "I will take it."
They fell to their knees.
Tensions Beneath the Dust
That night, Kael meditated in the ruins beyond the walls. The Force around him shimmered — not as light or dark, but something cold and aware.
He saw visions.
Ships burning.
Temples falling.
His bloodline rising from the ashes of empires.
And someone else.
A woman.
Masked.
Watching him through the Force.
Not Jedi. Not Sith.
Something worse.
Back in the village, Dareth approached him.
"Commander," he said, "we found something during excavation under the temple ruin."
Kael opened his eyes.
"What?"
"A vault. Sealed. Ancient tech. Could be Sith… or older."
Kael's mouth curled into a grin.
"Show me."