Chương 228: V.3-C.26│Battle I│
"Interesting..." Palpatine has discovered some interesting things that is currently happening within the galaxy.
Specifically in regards to the Yuuzhan Vong and their moves within the galaxy.
It all started with the Yuuzhan Vong announcing themselves unintentionally through their actions. From what Palpatine could tell, the Yuuzhan Vong didn't exactly want to expose themselves so soon, and instead wanted to start taking over some territory secretly at first.
It was the only thing they could do as of this moment after all, not including other things they could have done that is.
No, they needed a way to sustain themselves and start building up their armies faster than what was planned. So, they started to look towards areas that were both contested and had high densities of agriculture.
Especially agriworlds where entire planets are the most important part for their sustainment, and then after resources came the need to destroy machinery.
Yuuzhan Vong culture was centered around sacrifice and their gods, although warriors in particular were centered on the philosophy of pain. They tended to glorify pain; not as a motive for action, but rather as a state of living.
This was because they believed that, just like their gods had sacrificed their bodies to create the galaxy, the Yuuzhan Vong themselves were to sacrifice parts of their body for a greater purpose.
As such, they believed that, by remaking their own bodies, they were becoming closer to their deities. While this was the case, they never maimed their bodies in a manner that would permanently hinder their ability to function.
This resulted in individual Yuuzhan Vong having mottling or scarring, and sweeping tattoos.
The more elite individuals were even known to graft organs from other creatures into their bodies. Devotional practices to the gods called for bloodletting at prayer times. Shamed Ones were forbidden from attending religious ceremonies.
The Yuuzhan Vong made sure to continue such practices for themselves, where alot of their men at arms, from received reports, had organs from other species from this galaxy grafted into them.
Palpatine is most interested in them, just as he was interested in Anakin for his unique nature, where the Yuuzhan Vong were also an academic interest as well. Of course, he saw the Yuuzhan Vong as more of a threat than he ever did the Chosen One.
Something that he is coming to regret more and more as time passes.
As a Yuuzhan Vong grew more successful in their life, they began the process of sacrificing body parts and replacing them with organs from another creature, thus enhancing their abilities.
This was done so during the Escalatier Ceremony, where an engineered organism related to an Implanter began to make cuts and incisions, and place the implants. At times, the implant was accepted into the body and the Yuuzhan Vong was promoted to a higher rank.
However, there were occasions where the implant failed to be accepted into the body. This resulted either in death or the individual becoming a derided Shamed One.
Such failures were believed to have been the work of the Yuuzhan Vong gods, though there were times that such a happenstance was due to the failure of the Shaper in charge of the Escalation ceremony.
Palpatine had made use of these shamed ones efficiently as he could to try and extract information from them, as the Yuuzhan Vong focused their efforts against himself and others in this conflict. The Yuuzhan Vong had excluded the Empyrean territories outside of their current view point, something with which Palpatine disliked.
He needed more and more distractions, not only for the Jedi, Empyrean and other forces working against him. He also wanted to distract the Yuuzhan Vong as well, and what better way than turning his enemy into an ally.
'My enemies enemy is my ally...' Palpatine thought to himself as every so often people would come into his new headquarters of his Empire. The Jedi Temple now remodeled for himself and his own desires, reveling in the destruction of the Jedi.
Palpatine has also discovered more and more interesting things about the Yuuzhan Vong and how he could use these things to his advantage. He is already aware of their hate for technology not like their own, but he needed more to convince these beings.
Family was noted as being a strong element within their society. A member of the Yuuzhan Vong was typically associated with a family group, known typically as a Domain.
Some Domains were more powerful than others. In addition to this family structure, the Yuuzhan Vong also employed a caste based system which included respective castes for warriors, shapers, priests, intendants and workers. Love affairs between two different castes was considered forbidden. In fact, domain loyalties ran deep, and went far beyond simple likes or dislikes.
There were a series of ritual statements that a Yuuzhan Vong was required to utter as part of protocol from a member of lower ranks to a member of a higher rank.
While this was the case, members of one caste were not obligated to salute a superior from another caste, which was the case with intendants to higher ranking members of the warrior caste.
Yuuzhan Vong children were raised in caste-specific crèches by designated caretakers, and likely did not know their biological parents until they were older. Their crèche parents named them. Deformed children were killed at birth, but, if the deformity was mild enough the child was spared.
A useful survival trait for these children in order to live through such a harsh and competitive environment was paranoia. Twin births were uncommon events; only a handful of cases were known to the New Republic, in which each was thought to be a portent of a great event.
In each case, one twin killed the other as a prelude to a great destiny. Funeral processions were typically carried out in a way that did not preserve the dead, and Yuuzhan Vong mortuaries often consisted of Yuuzhan Vong mourners who met with assigned priests.
During such conditions, priests were involved in removing various body parts of the dead in order to dedicate them to the various gods.
His Empire and the Yuuzhan Vong had some elements that were common to one another. These included the need for strict discipline and the obedience to one's superior officer.
However, at the time of the invasion, it was believed that their ultimate goals were completely different, with the Yuuzhan Vong desiring to change the way of life of the inhabitants of the galaxy.
One of their goals was the destruction and removal of all forms of manufactured technology, which is one of the key strengths of this current Empire, but the Galactic Empire is not the strongest in this aspect. The strongest would be considered the Empyrean.
This great belief in discipline and obedience in one's superiors meant that subordinates never contradicted their leaders; they were capable of subverting or altering the will of their commanders, but did not point out errors in that will.
They were ultimately highly skilled warriors who never retreated in the face of defeat, as they feared this would insult their gods. While this was largely the case, it was known that certain Yuuzhan Vong were capable of cowardly actions. For actions like this, they became Shamed Ones.
Yuuzhan Vong beliefs highly influenced their actions and personality. According to their religion, life was suffering, and death was the ultimate release from that suffering. As such, the Yuuzhan Vong felt that nothing could be learned unless it was purchased in pain, and were resigned to and willingly went to their deaths.
Some amongst their race, such as Domain Shai, went as far as to inflict pain on themselves to the point that they enjoyed it. Such groups felt that the infliction of pain was a means of earning the favor of their deities.
Furthermore, it was believed that the greatest glory was death in battle. This fixation on death varied depending on the circumstances, as dying in the cold void between galaxies was considered a disgraceful death.
Consequently, this meant that most Yuuzhan Vong fought to the death and thus also meant that other empires had very few opportunities of exploring the extragalactic aliens' organic warships.
In addition, the priests claimed that they did not ask of others what they themselves did not accomplish, meaning that they equally sacrificed their own numbers as well as 'infidels.' This was an act of service to their deities, who were believed to have sacrificed their body parts in order to create all of existence.
The species also greatly believed in honor, with that subject ranking quite high in the beliefs of certain members of the race. Even under interrogations, the word of a Yuuzhan Vong was high, and, if they promised respite to their victims for revealing information, they typically kept their word.
Furthermore, the denial of the right to honorable combat was seen as a disrespectful act, worthy of scorn from the warrior caste. In fact, warriors would even consider a single worthy opponent of fighting a single Yuuzhan Vong warrior at a time worthy of respect in regard to their bravery as well as their fighting skills.
There also existed a similar concept to the Wookiee Life debt, which was known as Us-hrok. This was a display that showed eternal gratitude and loyalty to another for something they had done, and meant that the Yuuzhan Vong in question would fight to the death on that person's behalf.
In regards to food, the Yuuzhan Vong held no great joy of eating and thus felt indifferent about gastronomic tastes. The only exception of this was if the enjoyment came from an event such as the slaying of a great beast during a ritual.
Now the most important part was what the Yuuzhan Vong would do during times of war. Of course the Yuuzhan Vong would fight during this conflict, but it would seem that if Palpatine manages to make them see the Empyrean as a worthy opponent it would change everything happening now.
The psychology of the Yuuzhan Vong during wartime engagements was based around attack, and involved the use of high levels of aggression. This made them dangerous, though at times their actions were somewhat predictable. The Yuuzhan Vong were often encouraged by an enemy's resistance to them and tended to see such foes as being worthy of fighting.
The Empire would just have to not resist, and instead embrace what the Jedi do instead, as loathe as Palpatine may be to admit it, the diplomatic and peaceful approach is the only thing that would help him here.
It makes it all the more easier as well that he is but a simple, ordinary old man with not physical prowess whatsoever and instead pointing towards the very powerful opponents of the Empyrean would create an incentive to work together with him. He could also fake claims of destroying technology as well.
Internally, the Yuuzhan Vong greatly believed in the concept of competition as a means of breeding strength. They also believed deeply in the concept of revenge, and had no reservations to the use of aggressive emotions, unlike the Jedi.
This often meant that the Yuuzhan Vong engaged in suicide attacks or ritual suicides when facing defeat in order to attain glory, which was a source of pride of the warrior caste. This aggressive and warlike nature meant that they did not have any concept of peace or remorse. In their language, peace meant the willing submission to a conqueror.
'This is something I could agree with these savages...' Palpatine thought to himself, but still held a certain level of derision over these creatures, for he never considered them truly sentient beings.
They didn't even hold a presence within the Force, so of course he didn't even consider them properly living.
Furthermore, within their society, the use of profanities meant that the individual in question was capable of calling out a blood challenge to his opponent; the two would fight in a battle to the death.
In addition, the use of particular insulting words, such as calling the other a 'fool,' meant that the wounded party was perfectly within their rights and even expected by their comrades to kill their opponent. This meant that an attack on a Yuuzhan Vong's pride was the grounds for demanding satisfaction, which was also capable of being accepted as a sacrifice to their gods.
Again, Palpatine could see so many flaws within the culture and society of the Yuuzhan Vong that could be used against them and benefit himself.
The Yuuzhan Vong had a fanatical hatred of machines, believing them to be abominations and an affront to their gods. According to their beliefs at the time of the Invasion, they believed that combustion, the creation of fire through a machine, was the first abomination.
This was because the Yuuzhan Vong believed deeply in life, but also felt that all life ended as in the wild; one type of lifeform was eaten by another, who in turn was devoured by another predator until it died, which replenished the ecosystem.
This meant that death was prevalent constantly, but allowed new life to grow while machines did not die, meaning that they were capable of replacing organic life, which was something the Yuuzhan Vong would never allow.
'Pathetic. They are not even living beings themselves...' Palpatine may not be a believer in alot of things, but he did have a certain amount of faith himself. In the power of the Force and his own power that is and his trust within his capabilities also leads to him trusting his senses.
On more than one occasion, his Force senses has helped him out immensely.
Just as they should now as well. "Bring them in." Palpatine gestured in his office towards someone, whom immediately seemed fearful.
"Y-Yes sir!" The person didn't question Palpatine's orders and instead went out to greet the guests.
In walked the Yuuzhan Vong.
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