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Roppentheomjer, commonly known as Roppen, was a Gallifreyan scientist who served with Omega during the initial attempts at manipulating black holes for time travel. Though he was seen as a natural successor after Omega's disappearance, he instead took a position as Lead Scientist at the Time Lord Academy's Lost Laboratory, during which time he created a device called the Eye of Discord, which was later recreated as the galaxy-destroying weapon known as the Moment.
Biography
Early in his career, Roppen served with Omega, one of Gallifrey's great founders, in the initial attempts at manipulating black holes to unlock time travel technology. After Omega disappeared, Roppen was expected to be the natural successor to the legendary stellar manipulator. Instead, he took a position as Lead Scientist at the Time Lord Academy's Lost Laboratory, so named for its many brilliant personnel who hid away there from unwanted attention and Gallifrey's wars against the Racnoss and Vampires.
Roppen had no interest in politics and never attended council meetings, although he was permitted to do so. Instead, he studied what he had learned about the powers controlling the Eye of Harmony and attempted to reverse them. By applying the effect of retrogressive solicitation used in early TARDISes into these forces, he created a device that was simultaneously astounding and terrible: the Eye of Discord. At first, nobody was the military application of his new discovery, but after the High Council's edict requiring all scientific breakthroughs to be submitted to the War Council for assessement, they quickly saw its potential for a terrible weapon.
Roppen then dismantled his device, used a sentient computer virus to destroy all record of his work, and left the Academy to take up a solitary life in the Mountains of Solace and Solitude. Although the War Council was furious at his actions and demanded he be arrested, Lord President Rassilon quickly interceded and instructed that no warrant against Roppen would be issued while he was president. He then issued an Executive Order granting Roppen clemency for any so-called crimes committed by destroying the device.
When in the midst of a conflict with the Nestene Consciousness, Rassilon's closest aide, Sektay ,suggested he convince Roppen to re-engineer his device. Believing it to be a fruitful suggestion, Rassilon travelled into the Mountains to meet with Roppen. When Rassilon arrived, he was surprised to see the Lord President. Although Roppen expected the War Council would attempt to bring him back in the fold, he did not expect Rassilon to come in person. Rassilon successfully Rassilon persuaded him to reconfigure the Eye of Discord into a new device, one which he dubbed the "Galaxy Eater". Roppen did so, only on the conditions that it be precisely to his specifications and that it would only be used once. (PROSE: Pandoric's Box)