Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain - The Wizard of Oz
The Forge thrummed with the mechanical heartbeat of machinery as factories churned out items and weaponry while further in the bowels of the planet the Morgue continued to produce Necrotroopers for the Union's needs as more fresh converts were spawned from illegally acquired cloning vats. Everyday the Forge grew a little bigger, a little more complex as its facilities slowly engulfed the entire dead planet the Union had established its secret headquarters at. It could have been considered a feat of engineering but no one would ever know about it if the Union had anything to say about it. The sprawling factory world remained hidden away in the Deep Core in close proximity to the black hole that would now devour it in a century or so. Enough time for the Union to pillage every last resource it could from it before a new Forge had to be established somewhere else. Prospective worlds were already catalogued due to Union paranoia about discovery as the organization had thus far managed to remain in the galaxy's shadows, lurking in the gutters and filth of the many civilized worlds via its many criminal connections.
For a time business had been going well on almost all fronts as the corporations under Union influence continued to prosper with no obvious connection to their hidden puppet master. The galaxy was, to the great disappointment of several individuals on the Committee, stable with little visible war as the Coalition seemed unable to fight now, tearing at itself internally while the Black Dragon Empire sat within its claimed territory unmolested. Other governments went about their business, either left alone or ignored by the Empire. It was an environment for growth though at the same time it also ment greater law enforcement which irritated the criminal elements of the Union's leadership. Perhaps that was the problem though, the peace was lasting too long, the galaxy was in stagnation. Stagnation benefitted no one, especially those individuals who made profit from far less savory occupations. Growth was necessary, change was necessary, war was necessary. Growth was visible, yet the other factors did not. Change nor war seemed to exist in the galaxy, both such vital elements of the chaos of civilzation which allowed it to advance...
Estro Sabrino sat back in his white uniform style suit and examined a map of the galaxy, disappointed with the progress of it. The Coalition remained simply that, a coalition with apparently no central leadership to rally it anymore. The Empire sat over vast swaths of territory, bloated with conquest and having not fought a true war for some time now having established itself at the top of the food chain. The Corporate Sector looked like a tantilizing target for expansion of Union operations yet there seemed no reason to do so. The Union had created a vast spiderweb of governments, crime syndicates, businesses, and terrorists. All tools at its disposal which meant that they were at the personal disposal of Sabrino since it was his will that directed the Committee and the Union together. It was all that he had left, his former life shattered to pieces with the fall of the Jutraalian Empire. It had all collapsed but from it, Estro had risen from the shattered government and created something unique, something powerful in its own right.
Rumors had spread more at the Union's permission than anything else that there was in fact something sinister lurking in the galaxy's underworld, pulling the strings. Few would have imagined the scope to which the Union operated because so many saw only the front, the small, petty syndicates that gnawed at eachother when they could all the time trying to avoid being caught by law enforcement. Such competition was not only allowed within the Union, but even encouraged to ensure that no one would ever notice a connection. Now though, the time was growing close where the name Union would be known, even if only to those higher up in the hierarchy of the governments. Brutus Nogoth had played his role well even if perhaps unintentionally on his own part at times. The Union supplied his organization which in turn stirred up such chaos and panic that everyone was far too focused on Nogoth and his Galactic Liberation Front to even imagine there was something bigger behind it. Mindless fanaticism combined with explosives seemed the perfect distraction.
Sabrino's eye narrowed slightly as he entered a command and most of the distinctions faded away from the galaxy save for the Empire's holdings. Change was necessary for both the galaxy and the Union to advance. War was even more necessary since the irritating cold war that existed now was inhibiting the Union from taking contracts and jobs for payment to carry out certain deals. Assassinations and political manipulation were always necessary and still demanded though for more internal reasons. The Empire was creating a problem for Sabrino. It created nothing but stagnation in its current state. It was too powerful apparently for governments to challenge and others were simply too weak or unwilling to do anything about it though whispers of a resurging Rebellion had recently reached Sabrino's ears. He wasn't sure whether they were true or not but he also knew they were probably far too moralistic to contract the Union's services. At the same time though, a democracy was far more easier to corrupt than the Empire was... perhaps there would be some gain in utterly shattering the status quo.
But for that to happen, the Union needed to do something that could be the beginning of a new era and the end of the old. The Empire's time had been well spent, consolidating its hold over worlds but now this era of dominance was useless, unnecessary. The Empire was too authoritarian and thus too restricting for the Union's needs. However, unlike Brutus Nogoth and the Galactic Liberation Front, Sabrino needed something more permanent, something that would affect the galaxy for years to come. Sabrino reached out and typed in more orders, causing the display to shift again this time to a prestine, blue and green world. To any human it probably looked like paradise surrounded by a ring. The only thing that seemed out of place was that very ring. It was one of the Wonders of the Galaxy, the oribtal shipyards of Kuat. No other world had such vast arrays established for production. Such massive facilities seemed so very tempting to seize for the Union's own uses but Sabrino was not stupid. The Empire had far too much military might behind it to challenge it for such a valuable world, however that didn't mean the Union could not still put it to use. However, for any plan to be formulated, the Union would need to gather information which would be far easier to do than any other operation that might be carried out later. Infiltration needed to begin immediately...
Sabrino activated his comlink. There were orders to that needed to be given.