Outer Rim – Overan SystemShepard's Hidden World
The world of Overan was no longer silent.
Dawn rose over blackened mountains as fleets of industrial transports roared through crimson skies. Mining drills bored into vast mountain chains, unearthing veins of conductive ore, hypercrystals, and deep-rock energy cells. Dozens of automated refineries, humming with magnetic smelters and nanite flow regulators, turned raw minerals into polished materials faster than any known industry in the Republic.
Overan had awakened.
The orbital shipyards—massive rings of dark alloy and ancient Rakatan framework—now flickered with power. Though still in reconstruction, their skeletal frames now supported gravity fields, drydock systems, and scaffold arrays.
Shepard watched the progress from a high overlook in Facility Zero, arms folded as robotic arms and nanite rivers snaked through the air like silver lightning.
The standard construction droids were numerous—thousands purchased from black-market shipbreakers and corrupt mid-rim suppliers. But they were slow.
So Shepard used what only he could: his nanites.
By command, they flowed from his hands or reservoirs in his facility, disintegrating rock, metal, and abandoned debris—then reconstructing it, molecule by molecule, into ship plating, hull structures, energy relays, or fabrication arms.
The nanites did not weld. They wove.
With the designs stolen from the Kuat Drive Yards and Techno Union, obtained months ago by one of his undercover operatives—a clone built to mimic a logistics technician—Shepard now possessed blueprints for dozens of military-grade ships: freighters, frigates, light cruisers, escort carriers, even corvette-class destroyers.
He had everything he needed.
Soon, his fleet would take shape.
Meanwhile… In the Dune Sea of Tatooine
The Royal Starship of Naboo sat quietly on the edge of Mos Espa, hidden within the fringes of the city. Inside, systems were powered down to avoid unwanted attention.
The hyperdrive was fried, and replacement parts couldn't be found easily—or legally.
Qui-Gon Jinn, along with Padmé, Jar Jar Binks, and R2-D2, ventured into the market streets of Mos Espa in search of the parts needed to escape.
They arrived at a dusty junk shop owned by Watto, a gruff Toydarian with flapping wings and a keen sense for profit.
Qui-Gon stepped forward calmly. "We need parts for a Nubian class J-type 327."
Watto's eyes narrowed. "Republic ship, eh? Nubian parts are expensive. Whatta you got?"
"Republic credits," Qui-Gon replied, producing a pouch.
Watto waved his hand dismissively. "Republic credits? They're no good out here. I need something more real."
The Jedi tried a subtle hand wave. "Credits will do fine."
Watto snarled. "No, they won't! Mind tricks don't work on me. Only money."
Thwarted, Qui-Gon left with the others to regroup—but fate had other plans.
A sandstorm was coming.
As the winds picked up and the air darkened, a young slave boy approached them in the street.
"Hi! You're from the Republic, right?"
The boy introduced himself as Anakin Skywalker.
"I'm a pilot… and a builder. You can come to my place 'til the storm's over," he offered, smiling brightly.
Padmé hesitated, but Qui-Gon nodded. "Lead the way."
Anakin Skywalker's Home
The group took shelter in the humble home of Shmi and Anakin Skywalker. The contrast between the polished halls of Naboo and this dusty Tatooine hut could not be more profound.
As the storm raged outside, Anakin sat with Padmé and Jar Jar, speaking openly and curiously.
"Are you a Jedi?" he asked Qui-Gon suddenly.
The Jedi Master raised an eyebrow. "Why do you ask?"
"I saw your laser sword. Only Jedi carry those," Anakin said with confidence. "I saw one… once. I think I could be a Jedi, too. I'm good at fixing things… building things. I even built a podracer."
Padmé smiled. "You're quite the inventor."
Qui-Gon, curious, studied the boy. There was something unusual about him. A clarity. A presence.
Later, Qui-Gon whispered to Shmi in private. "Who was the boy's father?"
"There was none," she said quietly. "I carried him… I gave birth… I can't explain what happened."
Back on Overan
Shepard paced slowly across the reinforced catwalk of the primary shipyard ring, watching his new hulls take shape.
His flagship would be next—a design of his own, not Rakatan, not Republic. A ghost-class warship, with stealth armor, ion-dispersal shields, nanite auto-repair fields, and a mobile command suite. The ship would bear no registry. No allegiance.
It would be his voice in the void.
He turned to his console, flicking through intelligence.
Reports of Jedi on Tatooine.
Trade Federation forces pulling back from Naboo.
The first ripples of something larger.
"I need to accelerate," Shepard muttered. "The war's tempo is rising."
He keyed in a private command.
Begin Phase Two – Nanite Integration Fleet Core Units. Prepare Command AI. Authorize Seraph field upgrades.
As the order pulsed into the system, Shepard closed his eyes.
While the Republic looked to Jedi prophecies and Sith shadows...
He would build the future with steel, data, and blood.