Darth Azazel

"Darkness is the natural state of the entire universe. It is all-knowing, all-encompassing. The light will not shine forever; one day it will burn itself out. My darkness, however, any darkness, is everlasting and never expires. Now, you may fight what you believe to be evil, fight it until you have worn body, mind, and soul down to mere dust, or...you may embrace it, clasp it close to your heart, and experience power and knowledge beyond your comprehension. The choice is yours."

- Darth Azazel

Darth Azazel, also known as Kuro Kas' Zorn, was an extraordinarily powerful and astute Sith Lord. Born in prelude years to the, he was raised and educated by the notorious pirate organization known as the Sand Kings, following the death of his parents at the hands of the very man who would become his adoptive father. After his rite of passage with the Sand Kings, Kuro discovered his immense Force-sensitivity and subsequently sought-after what he believed to be his destiny; to plunge the galaxy into chaos and then reconstruct it from the ashes according to his own convoluted and twisted design. Questing to master his own power first and gain experience, however, Kuro joined the and rapidly ascended the ranks, becoming the youngest Captain in the Imperial Navy.

During his short career with the Imperial Navy, Kuro became a seasoned combat veteran and saw heavy action against the, battling the insurgent force on and above such planets as , , , , and. He was praised and admired for his use of novel tactics, charismatic ability to lead and his strong devotion to the laws and ethics of the Empire. Kuro quickly became disgusted with the conflict, however, and arranged to disappear during a small skirmish above prior to the.

After staging his death, Kuro traveled across the galaxy, seeking out a particular Jedi Master, one Broca Nu, who he believed had escaped. By a stroke of luck, it was not Kuro who found his quarry, but his quarry who found him; the Jedi had happened to be attempting to arrange transport at a cantina were Kuro himself stopped to rest. Perceiving the incredible power within the young man, Nu was somewhat quick to agree to his request for training and assistance in 'fleeing' the Empire. After relocating to a remote camp on, Nu began to instruct Kuro in the principles and ancient combat arts of the Jedi Order, to which the young man took to with great devotion and eagerness. By 8 ABY, Kuro had mastered everything he believed the Jedi Master could teach him and so abandoned him much in the same way he had left the Navy.

Following his defection from his Master, Kuro again disappeared for a short period, resurfacing in 11 ABY among the employ of Grammaton Technologies, among the ranks of the various elites working on the companie's covert supersoldier project. With his considerable military experience and capable leadership abilities, Kuro was appointed commander of the project and head of training for the company's 'special children'. By 16 ABY, Kuro had amassed 200,000 trained and active units, each completely loyal to him due to his indoctrination efforts, and, with this formidable army behind him, staged a coup, murdered each of Grammaton's ranking executives, and assumed leadership of the megacorporation. Following his successful arrogation of power, Kuro declared himself Darth Azazel, Dark Lord of the Sith. As Azazel, Kuro continued to grow his troops and assemble his fleet, while gathering resources. In 22 ABY, Azazel declared war on all non-Ash'rak species and finally brought his forces out of hiding in a massive surprise attack across the galaxy. With warriors superior to any ordinary troops and a massive arsenal of weapons and warships, Kuro was largely successful in his atrocious quest for several years, and wrought incredible destruction.

In 30 ABY, however, Azazel was killed when, ironically, one of his best apprentices shot him in the heart with a bullet laced with the very virus he had concocted to destroy the remainder of his enemies in a single and swift blow.

Early Life
"Only the strong survive...the weak are left behind to become the dust of history. Always remember that."

- Azazel to Marek Crow

Personality and traits
"A Sith is power's synonym, and now I shall wield mine to it's broadest extent. Let every being taste my wrath for I will allow no sanction, no quarter."

- Darth Azazel

Darth Azazel was an undeniably sociopathic and evil being; he was insensible to pain and morality, and was obsessed with overthrowing the indigenous populations of the galaxy and replacing them with his own superior creations. Despite his militant desposition, however, he could fabricate an emotional personality to fit his situation at once, allowing him to blend in with those he despised and essentially become invisible.

Extremely intelligent and charismatic, Azazel possessed almost preternatural knowledge, yet was exceedingly arrogant, which resulted in a degree of carelessness and an inability to recognize his own failures. , he was able to converse easily with scientists and intellectuals, though few others were able to keep up with him. Azazel was typically a withdrawn and quiet man, but could be remarkbly polite and charming when necessary. He was a master of manipulation and deception, able to bend the will of others to his designs with very little aid from the Force, and was a expert at orchestrating elaborate schemes and coverstories.

Azazel was very cautious as well, and would not revel himself or attack unless he felt he could succeed and/or overpower his opponent(s); however, if he became infuriated, Azazel could rapidly become almost animalistic and aggressive. He was also not adverse to fleeing if a engagement went badly for him. This made him a very perilous and vexing foe to the very few that managed to survive his wrath. He was a perfectionist as well, a trait he enforced into the psychology of his creations, and constantly sought to better himself by fixing any perceived weaknesses, be they mental, spiritual, or physical. Though typically egocentric, Azazel possesssed a twisted love and affection for his creations, and would go to great lengths to protect them and insure that they were properly and effectively educated and trained. This showed a sympathetic side to his personality; mercy that no others in his path enjoyed.

Even greater than Azazel's desire to remake the galaxy was his desire to achieve immortality. His ultimate fear was to die and be cast aside 'into the madness of oblivion', and thus he devoted a prominent amount of his energy, studies, and resources to the pursuit of eternal life. Aside from the obvious benefit of living forever, he also knew the necrotic effect possessing such massive power in the Dark Side could bring to an ordinary body. Azazel often demonstrated a morbid and cynical sense of humor as well, typically laughing at the expense of others, but also capable of laughing at himself despite his usually narcissistic demeanour.

Force Knowledge
"I have experimented and pushed the boundaries of the Force to degrees beyond your comprehension, little Jedi."

- Azazel to

Darth Azazel was born with an astounding connection to the Force and a natural gift for manipulating it's energies. Azazel's competencey with telekinesis was particularly formidable; he could levitate entire buildings as a child and possessed enough delicate control to surgically slice through objects, materials, and biological matter. As an adult, Azazel had developed his control to the point were he could propel himself through an atmosphere at supersonic velocities, fast enough to cross an entire continent in minutes. Azazel was also well-versed in multiple Force techniques, from the common to the obscure. He specialized majorly in aspects of stealth and psychological manipulation, and as such very few were even aware of him unless he chose to reveal himself. His proficiency with masking both his power and his presence were powerful enough to fool even immensely strong Force-sensitives. Similar to his personality, he would tend to rely on combative abilities as a last resort, but this made him no less dangerous in a duel or battle. Azazel developed his skill with mental control to the point were he could confuse individuals without effort, and wipe-out memories or twist minds to his will by merely concentrating. Azazel also held a dominion over his troops which be referred to as indoctrination. This gave him complete control over the minds of his warriors and enabled him to communicate with them over vast distances without technological assistance, but allowed them to act independently and think freely, while being frantically loyal to him.

Azazel's dark side abilities included a wide range of techniques that covered both Dark Jedi and Sith teachings. However, he wasn't content to simply learn a power or technique and would study each ability thoroughly and experiment in different ways to use it, so as to take his opponents off-guard. Many times this allowed him to invent new ways to use an established power, such as being able to direct where his would spread instead of firing it in a straight line.

Despite his ingenuity with using established powers, or perhaps due in part to it, Azazel worked over the course of his life to develop entirely new abilities. Through his impressive intelligence and knowledge, he was the first known Sith to use the following:Pain Strike, Spirit Assimilation, and Self Teleportation. Throughout the years of the Purging, he also began to experiment with, and by the time of his death could walk backwards and forwards through time at will.

Azazel usually kept his full power suppressed. Aside from allowing him to avoid detection by other Force-users, it also become a matter of necessity throughout his adult life. Azazel's power in the Force was in fact so immense that, if not suppressed, his body would began rotting due to the incredibly intense energies coursing through him.

Augmented Physiology
"Azazel is a obsessive perfectionist. He is not indulged by mere power in the Force, but must possess unmatchable power in all things."

- Broca Nu

Through Alchemy, Azazel had meliorated and enhanced his physical abilities and mental capacity to levels that nearly matched his great power in the Force. He possessed an amended metabolism and a perfected physiology which granted him an immunity to the degenerative effects of time, phenomenal physical and mental capabilities, and the ability to regenerate from extreme injury almost instantaneously. Azazel frequently claimed these abilities to be a direct result of his inherent evolutionary superiority, but were in reality only a result of his extraordinary mastery of and genetics.

Azazel possessed incredible strength and endurance; he could perform spectacular leaps and struck his opponents with tremendous force, though his children could physically overpower him. Much of the damage Azazel persisted through would have crushed a normal person; however, he would simply shrug the blows off and continue to pursue the death of his enemy. Additionally, he appeared to have a remarkably high tolerance for pain, as several instances had seen him sporting wounds such as severed limbs and splintered bones while expressing not the slightest anguish.

Azazel also boasted astonishing speed and agility; his acrobatic maneuvers made him extremely diffcult to hit, and he was even capable of twisting his body at velocities immediate enough to evade blaster bolts and projectiles. He was observed to have difficulty dodging very rapid fire however, such as that from a repeating blaster. When he was encircling and springing around his opponent, Azazel could rain down blows and strikes from his blade while proving an amazingly elusive target.

When combined with his speed and agility, Azazel's reflexes became an unmatchable attribute. A great deal more acute than those of a normal human, his reflexes allowed him to attack an opponent from multiple directions and befuddle them. The typical soldiers that Azazel confronted on the battlefield were rapidly cut-down; only Force-sensitives, with much experience, were able to even come close to challenging him in close quarters.

Combative Abilities
"A lightsaber is a powerful weapon, nothing more, and only a fool trusts his life to a weapon."

- Darth Azazel

Azazel preferred to avoid fighting when possible, and he would often give an opponent the chance to flee so long as it would not interfere with his plans. At first, this was due to his focus on science and Force abilities rather than swordmanship, but even after attaining mastery with his blade, Azazel retained his former perference. Though he possessed enough power and talent to literally butcher lesser foes with very little effort, he did not view most opponents as worthy of his time and energy to destroy.

Lightsaber Forms
When he began analyzing the lightsaber and blade-to-blade combat, Azazel was impressed with several forms, but instead of selecting a less complicated form, he chose to focus on the second form of lightsaber combat,. Azazel's calm and patient disposition, combined with his intelligence and careful approach to most situations, served him well in learning the subtle and precise....

UNDER WORK

Lightsabers
"Azazel always has something up his sleeves."

- Broca Nu

Azazel used a variety of different lightsabers throughout his life. However, his distinctive saber was comprised of a single-bladed hilt of standard length; constructed from and sporting several customizations and additional features over the standard style, the blade bore the appearence of a ceremonial weapon, yet was designed for sustained combat in the worst possible conditions. Aside from it's appearance, Azazel's lightsaber also differed from the standard single-blade with a optional dual-phase function. This allowed Azazel to catch his opponents off guard by suddenly increasing the length, width, or strength of his blade, causing confusion and over/under compensation from his opponents, which gave him a strong advantage against his enemies; however, Masters such as Broca Nu and Luke Skywalker were able to dual him even with such a formidable weapon, albeit with added effort.

In addition to it's dual-phase design, Azazel added a new feature to his saber which allowed him to adjust the light spectrum of his blade. Using this, he could make his blade visible only in the ultraviolet spectrum, tune it to the visible spectrum (where it would appear crimson), or go all the way into infrared. Not only did this allow him to create what was, in effect, an invisible blade, but also allowed him to deceive his opponents into thinking his lightsaber was weakening by putting the tuner at a halfway point. The saber was also waterproof, allowing Azazel to wade through water and other liquids without fear of shorting out his weapon.

In addition to his primary weapon, Azazel was known to keep back-up sabers on his person as well, of the single-bladed variety, both for use in emergencies and to take an opponent by surprise.