Chapter 45

Jial's fleet was seen above Mustafar with the wreckage of several ships before them. Several corvettes had been destroyed as they tried to flee from the might of the Yautja fleet but none had been able to escape. There was only a single ship that remained but it was completely disabled. 

A holographic image appeared in front of Jial where an injured man was sitting in a seat, wearing luxurious clothes. 

"Lord Jial. Let me go and I will not say a word about this to the rest of the organization," the man begged to be spared. Although he knew about the conflict between the Black Sun and Yautja, he had yet to take part in it. He only cared about profit and war with the Yautja would bring none to the Black Sun. 

"You are a Vigos. How can I spare you when I plan to wipe out the Black Sun Syndicate?" Jial asked from beneath his mask

"You must be mad!" the Vigos shouted. "The Black Sun has a history dating back to the early Republic. Do you truly think you can..."

"I know I can," Jial interrupted. "We already killed 3 of you 4 years ago. And that was when we were much weaker."

The Vigos began to curse his luck. He had never thought that Jial would be the first to launch an offensive nor would he do it on Mustafar. This was the planet that provided the least amount of profit for the Black Sun. They mainly used it for resources.

"I have a family, Lord Jial. Please. I will take them and never appear before you," the man pleaded once more

"Open fire," Jial ordered his fleet while still on the comms

The fleet of ships began to fire round after round of lasers into the corvette. With its shields down and engine destroyed, it stood no chance of surviving. It did not even last a minute before the ship was destroyed. 

"Target eliminated," one of the commanders reported

"Good. Start with the plan. Half the fleet needs to get into the defensive formation while the other half goes to the planned spot. Get ready to counter-attack anyone that comes," Jial ordered them, ready for the response that the Black Sun would give. He had spared the Vigos for so long that they would send more for him to eliminate. 

The ships began to get closer to Mustafar before they turned around and formed a defensive formation. While they all got into position, Jial boarded the Phantom before heading down to the surface of the planet. The Black Sun was not his primary or even his secondary goal for coming to Mustafar. They were barely the third. He came to the planet for business.

Jial landed on the planet's capital to speak with the leader of the Mustafarians.

"Greetings, Lord Jial. We never expected to see such a show," the tall Mustafarian explained. He was the leader of one of the larger mining operations on the planet. 

"Sorry about that. I had to deal with them since they had been interfering with my business for a while. You understand?" Jial asked with a smile, brushing past the entire incident. The pair began to walk down the pathway while bubbles of lava exploded around them. 

"Of course. We could use more business partners like you who are so direct."

"The Techno Union would also appreciate your business. We have heard that you haven't been able to sell off more than 20% of your stock. If you go into business with us, we can help you get that up to at least 70. We will also cover all transportation costs," Jial proposed

The numerous materials that the Mustafarians were able to extract from their planet were unbelievable. The types of materials they had been able to find from the magma were impressive. 

"If you can truly do that, we would be very interested. How does a 5-year agreement sound to test the waters?" the creature offered.

"Sounds perfect. Let's iron out some of the details," Jial went into the building and stayed there for a few hours to discuss the various ores that they were able to provide. While he was discussing numbers, his fleet was taking out the reinforcements that the Black Sun had sent. 

Both sides appeared evenly matched before the second half of Jial's fleet appeared out of hyperspace, creating a pincer attack. With their back and front being assaulted, the Black Sun fleet was unable to flee or properly fight back. Their fleet was quickly decimated without ever being able to warn their allies of the trap they had fallen into. 

Mira laughed to herself when she saw the Black Sun desperately trying to run away but unable to escape. After they had finished off the job, she called down to Jial to report her success.

"Master, the fleet has been handled. We lost a few fighters and a corvette but besides that, it was one-sided," Mira reported their casualties. 

"Good. Send a transmission to the Techno Union to let them know I secured the deal," Jial told her while he boarded the Phantom. But instead of flying back up to the fleet, he flew to a different part of the planet. He flew down over to some ancient Jedi ruins that a group of Force-sensitive individuals currently occupied. 

Jial landed next to the temple, only to be greeted by a dozen individuals in black clothing, all of them carrying red lightsabers. Each of their faces was covered by a black mask.

These were the Blackguard. They were an organization that did not believe in the Light or Dark Side of the Force, using both to increase their abilities. They also lacked a desire for power, mainly desiring knowledge. Members would venture all across the Galaxy to learn about various Force Powers and knowledge from different traditions and groups. After the Jedi and Sith, they had the largest collection of knowledge related to the Force.

A man walked to the front wearing a black cloak but having no mask covering his face like the rest of them did. This was the Kursk, leader of the Blackguard. 

"Hello, traveler. What brings you to our little home?" the man asked politely. He sensed no hostility from Jial so he decided to show courtesy to him

"Hello, Lord Kursk. My name is Jial, leader of the Yautja. I came here hoping to recruit you and your people," Jial stated his intentions. 

He had read about the Blackguard in the Telos and Great Holocrons. They were left alone for the most part due to not having any intention of getting involved in the conflicts of others but Jial wanted them to join under him. They had knowledge that Jial did not have access to as well as an incredible intelligence network that was very useful to him. 

"We have heard of your name for years but we heard that you never left Yautja Prime. We have truly received a gift by being the first people you have visited," the Kursk flattered Jial while also showing that they had been paying attention to him. 

"You deserve it," Jial spoke kindly to them before pulling out the Telos Holocron. "I assume you know what this is from your years of research. Join me and you can study it freely."

The Blackguard members almost lost their composure when they saw the object in his hands. They had of course heard of the Telos Holocron before. It had the knowledge of ten thousand Sith Lords. 

The Kursk wanted to immediately accept the offer. The Telos Holocron and Great Holocron were the greatest treasures that the Blackguard could have. But he knew better than to accept without first discussing it with the rest of his people. He also knew that he would no longer be the leader of the Blackguard if he accepted which made him hesitate in deciding. 

"I must thank you for your offer, Lord Jial. Must we answer immediately?"

"Not at all. I'll give you 3 months to respond," Jial put the Telos Holocron back in his pouch, tearing it away from the other's view. "But I have other matters that I must attend to. Let us discuss more at a later date."

"That is no problem. We wish you safe travels," the Kursk gave a slight bow

Jial nodded and began walking back to his ship before he stopped to look back at the Kursk. 

"By the way. What is your name?"

"San'zii," the man responded

"I see," was all Jial said before he turned around once more to get back on the Phantom. He knew that they would accept his offer. They could not resist the temptation.