![[-]](https://www.horuset.com/images/igame/collapse.png "[-]")
A short history of the KrathBy Rhave Vipion
![[Image: 1144962462fullres.jpg]](https://neverwintervault.org/sites/neverwintervault.org/files/project/23243/images/1144962462fullres.jpg)
Fig 1: A depiction of a Krath Warrior in battle.1
The purpose of this history is to illustrate that even when not aligned to the Sith fully, the dark side thrives in a dozen lesser cults across the galaxy. It is the natural way of things and these organisations can be utilised by the true Sith as weapons, even as we must see them for what they are: Disposable. We might choose to weaponize them, exploit them or destroy them if they grow beyond what purposes we have assigned to them. In addition this history is meant to show the history of the Krath, not the whole Great Sith War. As such I will be omitting much that happened that does not directly affect our story. The three figures this account is meant to follow specifically are Aleema Keto, Satal Keto and Ulic Qel-Droma from the point of his infiltration of the Krath until his alleged severing from the force.
The Krath were a Sith offshoot cult, formed nearly five hundred years ago on the deep core world of Empress Teta. The cult got its name from an Evil Magician God from children’s fairy tales, clearly one that made a strong impression upon the founders, a pair of Tetan Aristocrats, Satal and Aleema Keto. These cousins were the children of the rulers of Teta and as bored children do they sought to rebel against their family in the most petty of ways. This changed to a more real ambition when one or both of them was first exposed to the ways of the Dark Side, given lessons about the Great Hyperspace war and taught the philosophies of the Sith by the spirit of Freedon Nadd.
A former Jedi Master who had turned to the dark side and fallen in battle some additional five hundred years before Keto’s time, Nadd had lingered in this reality as a spirit long after his natural death and began to teach both Keto children Sith Sorcery. Quickly progressing, both Ketos returned to Teta and arranged a coup, capturing their rulers and slaughtering them, seizing disputed control of the world in the name of the Krath. There was minor resistance but as with all Sith who meet such from those who lack the force, their inherent supremacy allowed them to quickly crush such internal rebellion on all worlds in their system bar Koros Major.
Following this the Republic and Jedi sought to intervene on Teta, assembling a force to bolster the rebels on Koros Major, leading to the battle of that world in the space above it. It is here where the first well documented case of the Krath’s sheer power was seen. Like the dread masters centuries later, the Ketos were capable of creating illusions and fear on a scale to influence who fleets of foes. Monsters long dead would seem to strike into the republic fleet, leading to disarray and chaos as CZ-133 Chaos Starfighters ripped into their forces. A Jedi was finally able to penetrate the illusions later in the battle, but it was far too late and the Republic task force was forced to flee from the Teta system.
The Jedi now sensed the Dark Side more strongly than before, confirming to them the presence of the Sith influence upon the Krath. They fled in fear to the world of Deneba, assembling a conclave of Jedi to discuss the ongoing threat to the Republic. Satal Keto was clever, however and as the fleet had retreated he had inserted one of his own ships into their number. The conclave had many noted speakers, but the two most important for this history are Ulic Qel-Droma and Nomi Sunrider. Qel-Droma is supposed to have stated a desire to infiltrate and destroy the Krath from within, despite being warned of the dangers of corruption via the dark side by his master, Arca Jeth. In truth it was likely Qel-Droma had been close to turning for some time, as he had shown great aptitude and skill for a Jedi and sought to prove himself even more capable and powerful.
It is here where Satal struck, his hidden warship unleashing swarms of the most famous weapon of the Krath upon the Jedi, Krath War Droids. These are wonderful, potent weapons, above and beyond the standard battle droid. They are designed to fight Jedi on even terms and were proved very apt at this. A second prong to the attack was revealed at this moment as well, for Krath spies on Denoba had sabotaged their servant droids to strike as the war droids rained down in escape pods on the world. The result was a slaughter. Many hundreds of Jedi died in one fell swoop, including Arca Jeth who as mentioned above was master to Qel-Droma and was a member of the Jedi council. His long and illustrious career included fighting the Naddists on Onderon where he was captured and tortured, fighting droids throughout the galaxy in the Great Droid Revolution and dozens of other so called successes. With the benefit of hindsight, Jeth was a failure of a Jedi. His successes aesthetic at best and every time he came against a master of the Dark Side he was crushed and humiliated. A simple blaster bolt to the back ended his life as his pupils watched on, powerless to stop it. The droids did their job well, thinning and weakening the Jedi numbers ahead of what else was to come.
The next significant event was Qel-Droma’s arrival upon Teta, as in his grief and rage he had decided alone to infiltrate the Krath. He was quickly discovered, captured and tortured by the Ketos and now nearly mad with fury he struck down Satal in a rage, being turned to the dark side and made co-ruler of the Krath by Aleema who took him as a lover, if more salacious retellings are to be believed. Sunrider, who had not heard from Qel-Droma in some time, arranged a fleet of Republic warships to strike at Teta to allow her time to search for him, but by now he was lost to her. He struck at her with Sorcery, forcing her to flee for the Republic once again, her fleet broken once more in the system.
![[Image: 6898503-3869484783-aleem.jpg]](https://comicvine.gamespot.com/a/uploads/scale_small/11117/111173561/6898503-3869484783-aleem.jpg)
Fig 2: Aleema Keto using her magics.2
And now we move towards the apex of this cult and introduce yet another player familiar to those who study Sith History: Exar Kun, Dark Lord of the Sith, who was another apprentice to the spirit of Freedon Nadd on Onderon and the eventual destroyer of his very spirit. Kun had been aware of the Krath for some time, yet sought to bring all Dark Sided knowledge in the galaxy under his banner. He arrived on Teta, quickly finding Qel-Droma and Keta and fighting the former in a ferocious lightsaber duel. Their contest was enough to attract the attention of the spirit of Marka Ragnos, who manifested before them and decreed both were true Sith and their passions had the strength to conquer the galaxy. He named Kun as Dark Lord and Qel-Droma as Kun’s foremost apprentice among the Sith.
It is at this point the Krath cult began to take on a more religious aspect, with many of the lower level members actively encouraged to worship the Sith Lords. Records from the time make mention of the use of the words “Holy” and “Divine” being used in relation to blessed armour or weapons. It is likely that these were in fact alchemically created, but for the average member there was no difference between Sith Magic or divinity.
This ascension of the Krath Cult into the Sith (For if historical records are to be believed, Aleema also claimed the title) marks the beginning of their true heights of power. Qel-Droma was on Teta when a Mandalorian invasion of the world under Mandalore the Indomitable came. Challenging Mandalore to single combat, the Sith Lord quickly defeated him and forced him to swear his army to the Sith cause. For nearly six months the alliance of Kun’s Sith Acolytes (mostly former Jedi he had turned), Krath, Mandalorian and a dozen other smaller factions we do not have time for here proved nigh on invincible and they began to conquer significant chunks of the Galaxy under the banner of the Brotherhood of the Sith.
However, here we must come to another realisation. Qel-Droma was powerful, it is undeniable, but he was not invincible. As so many Sith do he repeatedly sought to bite off more than he could chew. Coruscant has proven over the millenia a hard world for the Sith to hold simply due to its sheer depth and size. A world of trillions, not just billions it has millions of kilometres of tunnels under the surface and a depth in places of over a hundred kilometres. As such it has proven more akin to conquering a hundred worlds at once rather than merely one. It is here that a newly captured fleet of Foerosti warships and the combined might of all our Sith Players would strike, seeking to conquer and dominate the Republic Capital.
Kun was noted as being reluctant to strike at this world, whereas Qel-Droma and the Mandalorians who served him sought to bring death and destruction down upon the capital. An arrangement was seemingly reached however, where Kun’s forces would not take part and the mission began. Qel-Droma relayed false intelligence to Republic forces that he was about to strike at an important shipyard, Kemplex IX and successfully lured a great deal of republic forces away from the core. As such when his fleet arrived Coruscant was barely defended, only the skeleton of the usual forces remaining to maintain order upon the world. It was here that Qel-Droma played for his ultimate goal. A strike force was assembled to hit at the central Republic command centre, seeking to decapitate all the armies of the Republic in one fell swoop. It is noted this is yet another opportunity that Keto used to demonstrate her power to the galaxy. There are holos of snakes and demons seemingly ripping through the flesh of enemy forces as her mastery of Sorcery was once again shown.
But somewhere along the line, it appears Qel-Droma and Kun became of no further use to her. Orders to retreat were given to Krath and Mandalorian forces whilst Qel-Droma was still in battle and in the very command centre he had sought to destroy he was subdued by a dozen Jedi Knights. Keto appears to have taken this opportunity to firmly reestablish her control of the Krath and as they fled into hyperspace for Empress Teta. In the coming days and weeks she set about instituting a purge of all who were not perfectly loyal to herself above all others.
Qel-Droma was quickly brought to trial before the Senate, and all smart money was upon his sentencing to a quick death, something that had not been given as a sentence to a Jedi in living memory. The supreme chancellor himself was to sit as judge and jury over this case and he listened as the prosecution made their case. Dozens of charges were read out to the assembled senate and then Qel-Droma in turn gave an impassioned speech in which he pointed to the many flaws of the Republic. He gave the Brotherhood of the Sith as the only true way towards a galactic golden age. It is noted here that his own brother, a Jedi who had not joined his cause, attempted to intervene and claim this proved he was insane and should be spared death. This was quickly rendered moot by Qel-Droma rebuking him and his cause.
![[Image: BzqamyY.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/BzqamyY.jpg)
Fig 3: Part of a concurrant political cartoon depicting Uliq Qel Droma's refusal to recognise senate authority3
Another voice would then be heard in the senate chamber, Exar Kun. The Dark Lord of the Sith had arrived to free his anointed apprentice. I will skip over the majority of his actions in this document, as they do not relate to the Krath themselves, but they are well worth seeking out if one desires to see a true Sith Master at work. Spells powerful enough to dominate and kill a mind, mass paralysis and the slaying of yet another Jedi Master in single combat prove once again the sheer potency of the Dark Side. For our story what matters is Exar Kun removed his apprentice from Senate hands and in the process dealt many deadly blows to the Republic including the execution of a supreme chancellor.
On his way to Yavin Four (One of Kun’s many strongholds) Mandalore informed Qel-Droma of Keto’s betrayal and her subsequent actions to purge his loyalists from the Krath. Enraged, Qel-Droma began to plot his revenge. The combined brotherhood of the Sith forces would begin numerous campaigns in this time. The Mandalorian armies would split in half, striking Ottega, Iridonia, Abron, Thisspias, and dozens of other worlds between its two forks. The Krath charged up the Perlemian Trade Route and won battles in the Chazwa system and the Taanab system. Working with the Mandalorians they struck at the worlds of Gizer and Onderon, capturing both. Further attacks would be made against the Belasco system, the New Apsolon system, the Randon system, the Circarpous system, the Attahox system, Nixor, Daalang, Lannik, Bothawui, Manda, Ando, Herdessa and Rodia. For those who know their galactic geography, the whole operation effectively cut the eastern galaxy in half, separating the Republic from the eastern outer-rim and Hutt Space.
I rush through these as Keto and Qel-Droma were not strongly involved in these campaigns, instead Qel-Droma officially focusing on the capture of Kemplex IX in the Auril sector. Unofficially however both Sith Master and Apprentice had seen Aleema for who she was when she betrayed Qel-Droma and were seeking a way to eliminate her without losing the Krath. An answer came when an ancient superweapon was uncovered on Yavin 4, Naga Sadow’s ancient starship capable of causing stars to go supernova. Under the guise of a new mission (for she did not know they knew of her betrayal), this was given to Keto and she was instructed to use it on the Cron Cluster (the local cluster of stars to Kemplex IX) as a way to ward off the Jedi from the nearby world of Ossus. They neglected however, to mention the ship would not protect her from the effects of such an explosion, nor that it had been modified to cause a chain reaction of supernovae, each more deadly than the last.
As such when she was set upon in her ship by Jedi Ships, she trusted their word that the weapon would allow her to destroy the Jedi pursuers. It is only in these last moments will she have realised her betrayal as each of nearly a dozen stars would explode in turn. Thus died the second of the founders of the Krath, who despite her great power would not foresee a betrayal for her betrayal and was not in the end a match for the true dark lords. Her end was in a way glorious, the explosions devastating many hundreds of nearby worlds including Ossus and the Kemplex IX space station.
![[Image: W7XPRIA.png]](https://i.imgur.com/W7XPRIA.png)
Fig 4: The Cron Supernova4
The Jedi on Ossus saw the supernovae occur and would quickly be driven to fear, as Kun had hoped. They fled with as much of their temple as they could carry but a few remained to attempt to load their ships with the Jedi Archives. Kun and Qel-Droma there struck again, the Jedi already weakened by dozens of attacks from Kun’s various acolytes. He sought to take all the Jedi had gained from the Sith over the centuries and return it to Sith hands. Qel-Droma as well came with him but here too he failed. He was found by his Jedi brother, quickly cutting him down and then being subdued by Jedi once again. It is alleged in several sources that his very connection to the force was destroyed by the Jedi this time, as to render him no longer a threat. Here we leave him. Ulic Qel-Droma was shot by a smuggler several years later, no longer any more than a wretch begging on some long forgotten world. With him died the last significant member of the Krath.
The Krath would live on after their deaths, briefly serving Kun but would not ever reach the heights it had under both Ketos and Qel-Droma. It was all but crushed several months later above the world of New Cov and Boonta by the Republic fleet. A few more months later the last of their fleet was destroyed and scattered where it began, above the seven worlds of Empress Teta.
It does in fact still exist today in the shadows and I encountered one sect of it upon Onderon recently who thought, like their mistress, they could stand up to the power of the Sith. Like their mistress they were sorely mistaken. The modern Krath are little more than primitives, hoarding small amounts of knowledge and glory from centuries past but lacking the power to understand or use it. From a sect that once believed it could rival the Sith, this is an ignominious fate but not undeserved. It was always a parasite on the true Sith, using their knowledge but lacking the skill to create new power. Nevertheless it should not be discarded entirely. Under a strong guiding hand perhaps these cultists could be made once more to serve the Sith, wherever they might be hiding.
OOC picture credits
1 Source: https://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn...th-warrior
2 https://comicvine.gamespot.com/aleema-keto/4005-64267/
3 https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Trial_o..._Qel-Droma
4 https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Cron_Supernova/Legends
The purpose of this history is to illustrate that even when not aligned to the Sith fully, the dark side thrives in a dozen lesser cults across the galaxy. It is the natural way of things and these organisations can be utilised by the true Sith as weapons, even as we must see them for what they are: Disposable. We might choose to weaponize them, exploit them or destroy them if they grow beyond what purposes we have assigned to them. In addition this history is meant to show the history of the Krath, not the whole Great Sith War. As such I will be omitting much that happened that does not directly affect our story. The three figures this account is meant to follow specifically are Aleema Keto, Satal Keto and Ulic Qel-Droma from the point of his infiltration of the Krath until his alleged severing from the force.
The Krath were a Sith offshoot cult, formed nearly five hundred years ago on the deep core world of Empress Teta. The cult got its name from an Evil Magician God from children’s fairy tales, clearly one that made a strong impression upon the founders, a pair of Tetan Aristocrats, Satal and Aleema Keto. These cousins were the children of the rulers of Teta and as bored children do they sought to rebel against their family in the most petty of ways. This changed to a more real ambition when one or both of them was first exposed to the ways of the Dark Side, given lessons about the Great Hyperspace war and taught the philosophies of the Sith by the spirit of Freedon Nadd.
A former Jedi Master who had turned to the dark side and fallen in battle some additional five hundred years before Keto’s time, Nadd had lingered in this reality as a spirit long after his natural death and began to teach both Keto children Sith Sorcery. Quickly progressing, both Ketos returned to Teta and arranged a coup, capturing their rulers and slaughtering them, seizing disputed control of the world in the name of the Krath. There was minor resistance but as with all Sith who meet such from those who lack the force, their inherent supremacy allowed them to quickly crush such internal rebellion on all worlds in their system bar Koros Major.
Following this the Republic and Jedi sought to intervene on Teta, assembling a force to bolster the rebels on Koros Major, leading to the battle of that world in the space above it. It is here where the first well documented case of the Krath’s sheer power was seen. Like the dread masters centuries later, the Ketos were capable of creating illusions and fear on a scale to influence who fleets of foes. Monsters long dead would seem to strike into the republic fleet, leading to disarray and chaos as CZ-133 Chaos Starfighters ripped into their forces. A Jedi was finally able to penetrate the illusions later in the battle, but it was far too late and the Republic task force was forced to flee from the Teta system.
The Jedi now sensed the Dark Side more strongly than before, confirming to them the presence of the Sith influence upon the Krath. They fled in fear to the world of Deneba, assembling a conclave of Jedi to discuss the ongoing threat to the Republic. Satal Keto was clever, however and as the fleet had retreated he had inserted one of his own ships into their number. The conclave had many noted speakers, but the two most important for this history are Ulic Qel-Droma and Nomi Sunrider. Qel-Droma is supposed to have stated a desire to infiltrate and destroy the Krath from within, despite being warned of the dangers of corruption via the dark side by his master, Arca Jeth. In truth it was likely Qel-Droma had been close to turning for some time, as he had shown great aptitude and skill for a Jedi and sought to prove himself even more capable and powerful.
It is here where Satal struck, his hidden warship unleashing swarms of the most famous weapon of the Krath upon the Jedi, Krath War Droids. These are wonderful, potent weapons, above and beyond the standard battle droid. They are designed to fight Jedi on even terms and were proved very apt at this. A second prong to the attack was revealed at this moment as well, for Krath spies on Denoba had sabotaged their servant droids to strike as the war droids rained down in escape pods on the world. The result was a slaughter. Many hundreds of Jedi died in one fell swoop, including Arca Jeth who as mentioned above was master to Qel-Droma and was a member of the Jedi council. His long and illustrious career included fighting the Naddists on Onderon where he was captured and tortured, fighting droids throughout the galaxy in the Great Droid Revolution and dozens of other so called successes. With the benefit of hindsight, Jeth was a failure of a Jedi. His successes aesthetic at best and every time he came against a master of the Dark Side he was crushed and humiliated. A simple blaster bolt to the back ended his life as his pupils watched on, powerless to stop it. The droids did their job well, thinning and weakening the Jedi numbers ahead of what else was to come.
The next significant event was Qel-Droma’s arrival upon Teta, as in his grief and rage he had decided alone to infiltrate the Krath. He was quickly discovered, captured and tortured by the Ketos and now nearly mad with fury he struck down Satal in a rage, being turned to the dark side and made co-ruler of the Krath by Aleema who took him as a lover, if more salacious retellings are to be believed. Sunrider, who had not heard from Qel-Droma in some time, arranged a fleet of Republic warships to strike at Teta to allow her time to search for him, but by now he was lost to her. He struck at her with Sorcery, forcing her to flee for the Republic once again, her fleet broken once more in the system.
And now we move towards the apex of this cult and introduce yet another player familiar to those who study Sith History: Exar Kun, Dark Lord of the Sith, who was another apprentice to the spirit of Freedon Nadd on Onderon and the eventual destroyer of his very spirit. Kun had been aware of the Krath for some time, yet sought to bring all Dark Sided knowledge in the galaxy under his banner. He arrived on Teta, quickly finding Qel-Droma and Keta and fighting the former in a ferocious lightsaber duel. Their contest was enough to attract the attention of the spirit of Marka Ragnos, who manifested before them and decreed both were true Sith and their passions had the strength to conquer the galaxy. He named Kun as Dark Lord and Qel-Droma as Kun’s foremost apprentice among the Sith.
It is at this point the Krath cult began to take on a more religious aspect, with many of the lower level members actively encouraged to worship the Sith Lords. Records from the time make mention of the use of the words “Holy” and “Divine” being used in relation to blessed armour or weapons. It is likely that these were in fact alchemically created, but for the average member there was no difference between Sith Magic or divinity.
This ascension of the Krath Cult into the Sith (For if historical records are to be believed, Aleema also claimed the title) marks the beginning of their true heights of power. Qel-Droma was on Teta when a Mandalorian invasion of the world under Mandalore the Indomitable came. Challenging Mandalore to single combat, the Sith Lord quickly defeated him and forced him to swear his army to the Sith cause. For nearly six months the alliance of Kun’s Sith Acolytes (mostly former Jedi he had turned), Krath, Mandalorian and a dozen other smaller factions we do not have time for here proved nigh on invincible and they began to conquer significant chunks of the Galaxy under the banner of the Brotherhood of the Sith.
However, here we must come to another realisation. Qel-Droma was powerful, it is undeniable, but he was not invincible. As so many Sith do he repeatedly sought to bite off more than he could chew. Coruscant has proven over the millenia a hard world for the Sith to hold simply due to its sheer depth and size. A world of trillions, not just billions it has millions of kilometres of tunnels under the surface and a depth in places of over a hundred kilometres. As such it has proven more akin to conquering a hundred worlds at once rather than merely one. It is here that a newly captured fleet of Foerosti warships and the combined might of all our Sith Players would strike, seeking to conquer and dominate the Republic Capital.
Kun was noted as being reluctant to strike at this world, whereas Qel-Droma and the Mandalorians who served him sought to bring death and destruction down upon the capital. An arrangement was seemingly reached however, where Kun’s forces would not take part and the mission began. Qel-Droma relayed false intelligence to Republic forces that he was about to strike at an important shipyard, Kemplex IX and successfully lured a great deal of republic forces away from the core. As such when his fleet arrived Coruscant was barely defended, only the skeleton of the usual forces remaining to maintain order upon the world. It was here that Qel-Droma played for his ultimate goal. A strike force was assembled to hit at the central Republic command centre, seeking to decapitate all the armies of the Republic in one fell swoop. It is noted this is yet another opportunity that Keto used to demonstrate her power to the galaxy. There are holos of snakes and demons seemingly ripping through the flesh of enemy forces as her mastery of Sorcery was once again shown.
But somewhere along the line, it appears Qel-Droma and Kun became of no further use to her. Orders to retreat were given to Krath and Mandalorian forces whilst Qel-Droma was still in battle and in the very command centre he had sought to destroy he was subdued by a dozen Jedi Knights. Keto appears to have taken this opportunity to firmly reestablish her control of the Krath and as they fled into hyperspace for Empress Teta. In the coming days and weeks she set about instituting a purge of all who were not perfectly loyal to herself above all others.
Qel-Droma was quickly brought to trial before the Senate, and all smart money was upon his sentencing to a quick death, something that had not been given as a sentence to a Jedi in living memory. The supreme chancellor himself was to sit as judge and jury over this case and he listened as the prosecution made their case. Dozens of charges were read out to the assembled senate and then Qel-Droma in turn gave an impassioned speech in which he pointed to the many flaws of the Republic. He gave the Brotherhood of the Sith as the only true way towards a galactic golden age. It is noted here that his own brother, a Jedi who had not joined his cause, attempted to intervene and claim this proved he was insane and should be spared death. This was quickly rendered moot by Qel-Droma rebuking him and his cause.
Another voice would then be heard in the senate chamber, Exar Kun. The Dark Lord of the Sith had arrived to free his anointed apprentice. I will skip over the majority of his actions in this document, as they do not relate to the Krath themselves, but they are well worth seeking out if one desires to see a true Sith Master at work. Spells powerful enough to dominate and kill a mind, mass paralysis and the slaying of yet another Jedi Master in single combat prove once again the sheer potency of the Dark Side. For our story what matters is Exar Kun removed his apprentice from Senate hands and in the process dealt many deadly blows to the Republic including the execution of a supreme chancellor.
On his way to Yavin Four (One of Kun’s many strongholds) Mandalore informed Qel-Droma of Keto’s betrayal and her subsequent actions to purge his loyalists from the Krath. Enraged, Qel-Droma began to plot his revenge. The combined brotherhood of the Sith forces would begin numerous campaigns in this time. The Mandalorian armies would split in half, striking Ottega, Iridonia, Abron, Thisspias, and dozens of other worlds between its two forks. The Krath charged up the Perlemian Trade Route and won battles in the Chazwa system and the Taanab system. Working with the Mandalorians they struck at the worlds of Gizer and Onderon, capturing both. Further attacks would be made against the Belasco system, the New Apsolon system, the Randon system, the Circarpous system, the Attahox system, Nixor, Daalang, Lannik, Bothawui, Manda, Ando, Herdessa and Rodia. For those who know their galactic geography, the whole operation effectively cut the eastern galaxy in half, separating the Republic from the eastern outer-rim and Hutt Space.
I rush through these as Keto and Qel-Droma were not strongly involved in these campaigns, instead Qel-Droma officially focusing on the capture of Kemplex IX in the Auril sector. Unofficially however both Sith Master and Apprentice had seen Aleema for who she was when she betrayed Qel-Droma and were seeking a way to eliminate her without losing the Krath. An answer came when an ancient superweapon was uncovered on Yavin 4, Naga Sadow’s ancient starship capable of causing stars to go supernova. Under the guise of a new mission (for she did not know they knew of her betrayal), this was given to Keto and she was instructed to use it on the Cron Cluster (the local cluster of stars to Kemplex IX) as a way to ward off the Jedi from the nearby world of Ossus. They neglected however, to mention the ship would not protect her from the effects of such an explosion, nor that it had been modified to cause a chain reaction of supernovae, each more deadly than the last.
As such when she was set upon in her ship by Jedi Ships, she trusted their word that the weapon would allow her to destroy the Jedi pursuers. It is only in these last moments will she have realised her betrayal as each of nearly a dozen stars would explode in turn. Thus died the second of the founders of the Krath, who despite her great power would not foresee a betrayal for her betrayal and was not in the end a match for the true dark lords. Her end was in a way glorious, the explosions devastating many hundreds of nearby worlds including Ossus and the Kemplex IX space station.
The Jedi on Ossus saw the supernovae occur and would quickly be driven to fear, as Kun had hoped. They fled with as much of their temple as they could carry but a few remained to attempt to load their ships with the Jedi Archives. Kun and Qel-Droma there struck again, the Jedi already weakened by dozens of attacks from Kun’s various acolytes. He sought to take all the Jedi had gained from the Sith over the centuries and return it to Sith hands. Qel-Droma as well came with him but here too he failed. He was found by his Jedi brother, quickly cutting him down and then being subdued by Jedi once again. It is alleged in several sources that his very connection to the force was destroyed by the Jedi this time, as to render him no longer a threat. Here we leave him. Ulic Qel-Droma was shot by a smuggler several years later, no longer any more than a wretch begging on some long forgotten world. With him died the last significant member of the Krath.
The Krath would live on after their deaths, briefly serving Kun but would not ever reach the heights it had under both Ketos and Qel-Droma. It was all but crushed several months later above the world of New Cov and Boonta by the Republic fleet. A few more months later the last of their fleet was destroyed and scattered where it began, above the seven worlds of Empress Teta.
It does in fact still exist today in the shadows and I encountered one sect of it upon Onderon recently who thought, like their mistress, they could stand up to the power of the Sith. Like their mistress they were sorely mistaken. The modern Krath are little more than primitives, hoarding small amounts of knowledge and glory from centuries past but lacking the power to understand or use it. From a sect that once believed it could rival the Sith, this is an ignominious fate but not undeserved. It was always a parasite on the true Sith, using their knowledge but lacking the skill to create new power. Nevertheless it should not be discarded entirely. Under a strong guiding hand perhaps these cultists could be made once more to serve the Sith, wherever they might be hiding.
OOC picture credits
1 Source: https://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn...th-warrior
2 https://comicvine.gamespot.com/aleema-keto/4005-64267/
3 https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Trial_o..._Qel-Droma
4 https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Cron_Supernova/Legends
Spoiler: I will not use dumb signatures.
![[Image: Pt8wZnn.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Pt8wZnn.png)
