[b]Long Ago, In a Galaxy Far Away[/b]

"Falling out of warp in five... four... three..."

"Prepare for realspace emersion!"

"One!"

The burgeoning [url=http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2010/077/2/6/Inkwell_Leviathan_by_Ubermonster.jpg]craft[/url] of ethereal metal wrenched itself back into reality at the furthest fringes of the galaxy, where the accumulated light of billions of stars pulsed brightly behind it. The shadow of the [i]Leviathan[/i] was cast into the dark depths of intergalactic space, where only the distant twinkle neighboring galaxies illuminated the void. A keen eye could make out the shape of Andromeda, the largest galaxy in the local cluster, twenty million light years away. Though there was something closer that glowed dully, quite unlike the keen pinpricks of brilliance that were stars. Whatever this thing was, it was powerful; its energy reading surpassed that of a supernova, despite being on the size of a smallish space station.

Such a small anomaly would be overlooked by most galactic empires, their sensors unable to detect an object of such miniscule scale at such a great range. The crew of the [i]Leviathan[/i], however, thrived on such anomalies. Their precisely-tuned sensors were designed to pick up on that which others ignored. Space pirates in this day and age were able to get by without such equipment, as well as a great deal of tenacity. The latter of which had been mostly important. This anomaly was not only powerful, it was [i]mobile[/i], hurtling through space at sublight speeds. They had plotted its course through intergalactic space upon detecting it, and planned this point to be its closest approximation to their galaxy.

Sure enough, there it was, hurtling through the void like a comet from hell. The [i]Leviathan[/i] deployed its tractor field, a multi-purpose tool designed to either stop enemy projectiles, or steal enemy cargo, directly before where the anomaly was predicted to pass before them. The crew held their breath in anticipation, awaiting the capture of this thing, or the failure thereof. Then, faster than they could comprehend, the anomaly struck the field, rocking the entire ship. The lights flickered, the power drain of the tractor field threatening to shut down the entire ship. It shuddered and groaned from exertion, but the ship held, as did the field. And the strange thing caught in it.

The [url=http://marktedin.com/Concept%20Pages/MTG_C_HedronCryst4.jpg]object[/url], clearly some manner of arcane, alien ruin, was larger than they had predicted. It was not the entire thing that was approximately space-station sized, merely only its glowing core. The entirety was far larger, easily eclipsing the [i]Leviathan[/i]. Battered and broken by eons of spaceflight, the anomalous ruin held together by unknown means, most likely the power source deep within it, which threatened to overload the ship's sensors.

A [url=http://archive.wizards.com/mtg/images/daily/arcana/147_full.jpg]squattish creature[/url] at the ship's controls tapped at them wildly, amazed by the readings from their capture. "Captain, we've secured the anomaly. Should we send probes to investigate?"

The [url=http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_4zTeX8tgIvE/Sw1iJi3cDOI/AAAAAAAAABA/byC00a9uwf4/s1600/td30_tezSplash.jpg]captain[/url] of the [i]Leviathan[/i], a renowned and reviled plunderer and war-criminal, infamous across the galaxy, rubbed his beard thoughtfully with his organic hand. "No. Prepare a boarding party. Whatever this thing is, it's special. And I want to experience it firsthand."

Their [url=https://ronspencer.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/exodus-thopter-token-copy.jpg]boarding craft[/url] was prepared in minutes, the Captain choosing his [url=http://archive.wizards.com/magic/images/mtgcom/wallpapers/Wallpaper_wher1b3b_esper_1280.jpg]most trusted crewmates[/url] to accompany him. They sailed directly into the open core of the anomaly, soon enough finding that the labyrinthine structure [url=http://tappedout.net/s/img/QM/145.jpg]within[/url] was far larger than they anticipated. Even so, they traced the tremendous energy signature to deep within the core of the structure, flying steadily through the cavernous ruins.

The Captain barked orders all the while, some to his crew, most to those still on the [i]Leviathan[/i]. "Do we have the translation matrix running?"

[i]"I've started on the runes on the exterior. 'The least of gods shall rule over the greatest of mortals, and death shall reign over all.' Something to that tune, anyway."[/i]

The Captain liked the sound of that. "Any word on the composition?"

[i]"Carbon dating is still processing. Considering this shouldn't take more than ten minutes, my guess is that this thing is older than we can measure."[/i]

The Captain [i]really[/i] liked the sound of that.

Eventually the caverns narrowed, and the boarding craft could no longer fit through them, and so the boarding party proceeded in exosuits. Quickly, caverns became hallways, and artificial gravity flooded the chambers. The party's instruments detected an atmosphere, but the elemental composition was mostly unknown. None risked removing their exosuits. Even so, the energy readings were growing stronger, as it seemed they were growing closer. All of this so far had just been structure around the actual power source. Could the energy of a supernova actually be contained in something small enough to fit in here.

They soon had their answer. At the end of the hall, the maze ended abruptly, with their [url=http://archive.wizards.com/mtg/images/daily/arcana/396_b43xpvqqqz.jpg]goal[/url] clearly visible. It didn't look like much, but all of them could feel the power of this artifact in their etherite augmentations. The entire room thrummed with energy, and the pirates were awed into silence. Something so mighty and so ancient could not be crafted by any being they knew of. The creator of this thing was merely the first mystery; why had they made it? What purpose did it serve?

Finally [url=http://archive.wizards.com/mtg/images/daily/ld/ld13_Sphinx_Sovereign.jpg]Sha'ruu[/url], the masked and winged genius that padded behind them on his metal paws, spoke up, "Well, Veldal? We've found this impossible thing. What do you want with it?"

The Captain of the [i]Leviathan[/i], Veldal Kalen, grinned and spoke, "Have you ever heard, Sharry, old girl?" He clenched his etherite hand, electricity arcing up the length of his augmentation. "To make an omelette, you need to crack a few eggs."