gray matter. | POE DAMERON

PROLOGUE

The human bowed lowly, clasping his hands together. His golden, piercing gaze landed on Snoke and the two cybernetic implants on each side of his tan forehead glowed with an azure light. He smiled with a slight maniacal flourish, revealing a row of perfectly white teeth. Before the Empire's fall, Doctor Kerrius Nuvlo had been the leading scientist in their cybernetic labs division. Creating specialized tech, both droids and weapons, was his priority during the war. He had a slight 'mad scientist' air to him and would frequently experiment his new devilish creations on live test subjects, giggling happily despite their screams and pleas for help. He may look the part of a scrawny, helpless genius, but make no mistake. The man was downright dangerous.

Which made him the perfect candidate to create Snoke's monster.

"Supreme Leader," He greeted simply, though one could notice the excitement in his voice, "Shall we begin?"

Snoke gave a light tilt of his head, another smirk growing on his lips, "I am eager to see what you have done with my task, Doctor Nuvlo. I trust I won't be disappointed."

The last statement held a dangerous edge to his voice, knowing full well that if something went wrong, Nuvlo would pay dearly. The good Doctor's nerves began to heighten, but he maintained an air of confidence around himself.

"Of course, sir," His voice remained steady, "I know you will be pleased with our product."

"I will be the judge of that, Doctor," Snoke leaned back in his seat, an amused look on his face as he sensed the man's nervousness, and waved a hand in a lazy manner.

"As you wish," Nuvlo gestured in front of him and the lights dimmed in the research lab as he turned to the viewports and grasped his hands behind his back.

"I have to admit," He started, "When you came to me with this...project, I was quite intrigued with how it would work. As you know, combining both organic and cybernetic technology in this fashion has never been done before and there were a couple of kinks needed to be worked out-"

Nuvlo had begun to ramble again, but one sharp look from Snoke was enough to get him back on track. He cleared his throat, resisting the urge to tug at the collar of his turtleneck, before finally turning back to the task at hand.

"Anyway," He pressed a button on a command remote and the viewports glitched before revealing the actual work taking place behind the sterilized room. Kaminoans gathered around a medical bed hovering two feet off the ground, each one wearing a surgical mask.

Snoke leaned forward ever so slightly to catch a glimpse of the figure laying on the pristine white cushions.

"Thanks to the DNA sample you so graciously provided and the Kaminoans state-of-the-art cloning technology, I was able to completely recreate the individual's features that you requested," Nuvlo watched the Supreme Leader's reaction closely, gauging his response.

He gave nothing away, already knowing that the cloning techniques the Kaminoans used were formidable. Snoke was not interested in that aspect of the project, he was much more intrigued by the cybernetic one.

"And of course, with my cybernetic expertise and the research we acquired from Galen Erso's laboratory on kyber crystals, we were able to construct exactly what you requested," He pushed another button, turning the bed and leaning the headrest upwards so that Snoke had a perfect view.

"I give you," He said with an air of pomp and circumstance, flipping a switch on his control board, "ELL-1."

A shock was administered to her via the several wires connected to her chest and arms. There was a pause, as if everyone was holding their breath. And then her artificial lungs filled with air. A mechanical heart beat, like the steady beat of a drum, could be heard from the monitor as well.

While Snoke did not say anything, inside he was marveling at just how well the Kaminoans had done their job. With long, pale blonde locks and irises the color of silver, she was the spitting image of the young woman he had fathered all those lifetimes ago. When he was a different man.

Now, she was simply a tool, a weapon to be used for his own personal gain.

"Complete with all five enhanced senses and the latest in artificial organic technology, she's pre-programmed with the newest combat techniques and fluent in over a million forms of communication, allowing her to blend in to her surroundings, whatever culture or society that may be," Nuvlo continued, "And as you requested, she can learn anything you wish to teach her. Whether that be intergalactic customs, human biology, or simply what to call you."

Snoke nodded appreciatively as ELL-1 stood up from the bed, dressed scantily in white gauze covering up the most essential areas. Her gaze landed on the Kaminoans flitting about her, detaching wires and machines. She took a shaky first step, almost tripping and falling, before her metal joints corrected themselves and she began walking around the room.

"The kyber crystal that you provided has allowed her to project an artificial presence in the Force, something that has previously been impossible for mechanical life," Nuvlo's chest seemed to puff out in proudness as he talked smugly about his creation.

"Yes," Snoke agreed absentmindedly, closing his eyes and reaching out into the Force to her.

Suddenly her eyes opened wide as she felt the cold tendrils of his mind connect with the crimson kyber crystal inside of her own. She turned, her eyes landing on him, or where she thought he would be behind the one-way glass windows. A smile slowly grew on his face, one devoid of light or happiness. But filled with cruelty and malice.

Yes, she would do nicely.

"Tell me Doctor," Snoke kept his gaze on her, "Does she have the capacity for emotion?"

Nuvlo furrowed his dark eyebrows and frowned, "You did not request that sir, so I'm afraid I did not add that feature. But I can if you'd like me-"

"No," Snoke cut him off sharply, "I was simply curious Doctor."

"Very well, sir," He responded quietly, an eyebrow raising in silent question, "Would you like me to continue with the presentation or should I just have the information sent to your datapad?"

He waved another hand in reply, "The datapad will do just fine Doctor. I must say, I look forward to seeing her in action. Hopefully, she does not disappoint."

Nuvlo paled at his threatening words but gave a tight-lipped smile.

"I assure you sir, she will not."

Snoke leaned forward, his azure orbs meeting her own stormy, grey ones.

"We shall see."

A/N: Hope you guys are enjoying the story so far! Updates will be super sporadic as I have other stories I'm working on as well as the stresses of college, but hopefully I can update in a timely manner! As always, please vote and comment if you enjoyed!