Thousands of years before the formation of the Old Galactic Republic, the Kwa species
of Dathomir travelled across the galaxy through Infinity Gates, which allowed for instant
travel to other worlds.
In service to the Celestials, a mysterious and powerful species of cosmic architects,
the Kwa were good natured and generous, using their knowledge and advanced technology to
teach less developed civilization.
Yet their kindness was eventually betrayed when they visited Rakata Prime, homeworld
to a fellow, though far less advanced servant species of the Celestials.
Learning that the Rakatans had great force potential, the Kwa eagerly mentored them,
only to for their teachings to be abused and exploited.
An aggressive, warlike and cannablistic people who ate their enemies, the Rakatans ignored
the Kwa’s emphasis on balance in the force, instead focusing entirely on the dark side,
infusing it into their technology, which could feed on the negative emotions of those nearby.
Expanding beyond their planet, the Rakatans engaged in a campaign of conquest, creating
the Infinite Empire through brutal violence and subjugation, enslaving the species defeated.
Though they plotted against each other and competed for authority, Rakatan hierarchy
was largely respected, with an Over-Predor at the top while Predors served as imperial
overseers, and sub-predors commanders.
Treating their slaves with callous disregard, many were chained to Rakatan ships so the
dark side technology could slowly feed off their negative energy.
However, occasionally a force sensitive slave could stand out from the rest and be chosen
as a force hounds, trained as a highly skilled tracker and enforcer.
Seeking to break free from the limitations of their space faring technology, the Empire
tried to use Infinity Gates but were denied access by the Kwa, who now realized the Rakatans
were out of control.
Going to war, Kwa forces were soundly defeated, their homeworld conquered, and civilization
devastated, but they nevertheless held the enemy off long enough to destroy or hide the
last of their infinity gates, including the one on Rakata Prime, preventing the Empire
from acquiring this potentially dangerous technology.
Seeking alternative means to conquer the galaxy, the Empire built the Star Forge, an automated
factory producing ships and war materials, powered by a combination of energy from stars
and the dark side of the force.
By around 28000 BBY, the Empire defeated their greatest rivals including the Kwa of Dathomir,
the Gree Enclave and even their former Celestial masters to become the greatest superpower
in the galaxy.
They also defeated the mighty World Razer, a terrifying creature said to have consumed
a thousand worlds, keeping it on Belsavis which became a prison planet housing many
of their enemies.
Among the many to name themselves enemies of the Empire, the Esh-ka were among the most
dangerous, a species of aggressive warriors which conquered half the galaxy and even attacked
the Empire, openly challenging their dominance.
Responding with a massive military fleet, the Empire nearly exterminated the Esh-ka,
leaving those that remained in stasis on Belsavis.
Continuing to expand, the Empire travelled to Korriban in 27700 BBY, and feigned friendship,
teaching the great Sith King Adas to create a holocron, only to then launch a full scale
invasion.
For a time, the Rakatan warlord Soa reigned over Korriban, but Adas refused to surrender
and rallied the Sith people to rebel and drive the Empire from the planet.
Although the King did not survive the campaign, his holocron was preserved and passed down
through the generations.
As for Soa, a legendary warlord said to have ruled a thousand worlds, he eventually became
too great a threat, leading his own people to lock him away in the Eternity Vault of
Belsavis, alongside his Infernal Council of Sith traitors who helped him govern Korriban.
Expanding into the Galactic Core, the Empire conquered a many worlds including Coruscant,
reaching the height of their power by 25,793 BBY, when Predor Skal’nas attacked Tython,
homeworld of the Je’daii order, a mixed species force wielding people who trained
in both the light and dark sides, maintaining a balance between them.
Due to volatile hyperspace lanes in the core, finding the exact location of Tython was nearly
impossible, and so the Rakatan Predor Skal’nas sent his slave Xesh, a highly skilled force
hound, to lead the way and infiltrate the Je’daii order, so he might later betray
them and ensure Rakatan victory.
After Xesh completed his mission and the invasion was well under way, his master Skal’nas
performed a ritual which sent a dark side wave so powerful it blinded all jedaii seers
on Tython and blocked their connection to the force.
On the verge of defeat, the Jedaii Order found the key to victory in an ancient holocron
left behind by A'nang of the Kwa species, who explained that the Rakatans must be stopped
from obtaining the Infinity Gate buried on Tython.
Using an ancient defence system, the Je’daii seer Tasha Ryo sacrificed herself to activate
Tho Yor ships which unleashed a flurry of fire, destroying the Rakatan fleet and ending
the invasion while Skal’nas was betrayed and killed by his hound Xesh.
Despite this failure, the Rakatans spread across the galaxy, deeply impacting the development
of many planets and peoples, like the installation of a terraforming computer on Kashyyyk which
malfunctioned, causing their Wroshyr trees to grow abnormally large, the introduction
of a Rancor to Gamorr, creating a figure of myth within their history, or the invasion
of Tatooine by Predor Skal’nas, who turned it from a lush jungle world to a desert wasteland.
Yet even after thousands of years extending their reach as far as possible, the Infinite
Empire inevitably entered a period of decline due to a fundamental flaw infused within their
dark side technology, as it not only drained the energy of captive slaves, but also any
Raktans nearby, creating a deeply volatile and paranoid population which turned on itself
in viscous civil wars, while conquered slave species rebelled against their masters.
Making matter worse, a terrible plague struck the Rakatans, severing their connection to
the force, weakening them substantially until 25,200 BBY when the Empire collapsed and its
people retreated to Rakata Prime.
As war continued between their surviving factions, they devastated their homeworld, destroying
cities and breaking apart continents, until the planet consisted of small islands populated
by primitive tribes with no memory of their glorious past.
All save for the Elder faction, descended from the Rakatan priest caste, which preserved
their history.
A reviled people remembered as violent slavers, the Rakatans and their Infinite Empire played
an important and consequential role in galactic history, with their knowledge and technology
influencing many future events, including the rise of Darth Revan who used the Star
Forge during the Jedi civil war nearly 20 000 years after its creation.
In the wake of their retreat to Lehon, the Hutt Empire of the Outer Rim and Galactic
Republic of the Core rose to supremacy, becoming long lasting superpowers which ruled the galaxy
for thousands of years to come.