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The Jedi were real? This article is part of the history of The Dark Brotherhood and isn't part of current events.
Please do not remove this tag or the contents. These articles exist for historic purposes.
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In 39 ABY, the Shadow Academy Society was absorbed into the broader Aurora Collegium of Sciences. Those members dedicated to scouring the galaxy for artifacts of power found a new home within the covert sphere of the Collegium’s Wayfinder Society.
This article will preserve the history of the Shadow Academy Society from its inception to its evolution into what some branded the “Imperial Reclamation Society.” For its present state, society rank structure and rewards, see: Aurora Collegium of Sciences.
History of the Shadow Academy Society
The Shadow Academy has always been a fount of knowledge. However, much of its wealth remained untapped for years as ambitious students were often eager to leave its halls once they’d achieved enough competency to effectively integrate with their own units. As a solution to this problem, Headmaster Solari approached Grand Master Muz Ashen with an idea to attract the attention of all members of the Brotherhood – from the Initiate to the Elder – back to the Academy.
A Beginning
Solari’s work, blueprinted by former Headmaster Taigikori Aybara Dupar, culminated in the creation of the Shadow Academy Society. In 32 ABY, after a long period working in absolute secrecy, the foundations of the Shadow Academy Society were laid. The most prominent and successful former students of the Academy began receiving invitations to be initiated within this new society. Each person was assigned a special rank that both indicated their current level of knowledge and determined their access to the secrets of the Academy.
In the same year, an attempt by Grand Master Ashen to re-create the Rite of Obscuration ended with the desolation of the Antei System. While much was saved, many artifacts and other valuable items stored on Antei and at the Academy on Lyspair were either destroyed or deemed unretrievable. This and previous losses would prompt a shift in the fledgling society in the years to come.
A New Purpose
Once the Brotherhood established a new home on Arx in 35 ABY, the Dark Council resolved to task the Shadow Academy Society with a new purpose: scouring the galaxy for fresh sources of knowledge and items that would bring power to the Brotherhood.
This shift in the society’s mission saw it branded the Imperial Reclamation Society. With Headmaster Daniel “Seraphol” Stephens now at the helm, the society found a place to secure its most valuable artifacts in the Shadow Academy’s new facilities on Uskil. The society’s operatives also began utilizing the Nesolat, a military defense platform orbiting Arx, as a checkpoint to both catalogue and approve the movement of artifacts between the Clans and the Dark Council.
Seraphol assigned the younger students of the Academy to research items of value to the Dark Council. The older students who had gained trustworthiness were sent out to scout and collect items of value, map extensions of hyperspace routes, or explore regions of Unknown Space. Those who proved themselves to have a vast amount of intelligence and who had shown the utmost loyalty to the Brotherhood were tasked with collecting items of extreme value and power and granted access to portions of the Academy’s archives secured from other members.
Acquisitions
In 36 ABY, Shadow Academy Society operative Vance Kordall was captured by Shikari huntresses while on a mission to Ulmatra to acquire an artifact of interest to both the Dark Council and their enemies. Kordall’s rescue led to the discovery of the Meridian Prime space station – a Collective base used to hold valuable prisoners and Technocratic Guild experiments – where Brotherhood agents were able to deal a decisive blow to the Collective and ultimately recover the artifact for further study.
Since recovering from the torture he endured in Collective captivity, Privateer Vance Kordall – though forever a free spirit – has found himself leading the society’s acquisitions teams. Rumor has it that his prominence may have something to do with the “genuine copy” of Veris Hydan's research on the World Between Worlds he delivered to the Shadow Academy’s Master Archivist, Madame Curator Deandria Clery, just prior to the outbreak of Discord between the Brotherhood and its potential new allies in 37 ABY.
Leadership
The Shadow Academy Society operated under the authority of the current Headmaster. However, the society’s daily operations were supervised by the leaders of its three branches.
The Master Archives were overseen by Adept Deandria Clery. Eminent Aviana Starstrider was the leader of the Vanguard, with oversight over the Academy’s small fleet, including the Gullbrina and the Snekkja. Acquisitions were run by Privateer Vance Kordall.
Operations
The Shadow Academy has always been associated with preserving knowledge, educating the Brotherhood’s initiates and providing even its Elders with the resources needed to mine the history of the galaxy or the depths of the Force. Still, it is often perceived as only a teaching institute, though the truth is much deeper.
Behind the facade of the Imperial Reclamation Society, the Shadow Academy Society conducted countless operations to obtain various holocrons, artifacts and other valuable objects that may prove beneficial for the Brotherhood. Behind closed doors, its most competent and trusted members were also responsible for putting that knowledge to use through various means, including such tasks as conducting secret, often twisted experiments on living beings for the Dark Council.