A Meeting of Mindful Madness

[50H31]

Bastion.

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]


Such an odd name for a world. It was meant to be a fortress in war. Of course, to him, all worlds were hard targets, in a sense. Everything was a conflict of sorts. Politics was conflict of power, religion a contest of ideas. Perhaps today, that was why he was here. He was little known amongst the Primeval, but he had come for an audience with the Host lord herself. Ever since their meeting on Lorrd, he had sought to understand her methods and motives. Her reasoning, even if rooted in a different ideal than his own, could still be an aid to his own enlightenment. So, he entered the chamber, a few acolytes waiting outside. He nodded in a small bow.



"Greetings, Host Lord, and thank you for this audience," he said, his tone soft, and tranquil. He often sounded as if the galaxy itself was only a fleeting concern. Then again, even he only had a piece of his own knowledge--a portion of his desire. Maybe that was his reason here. To talk at length with some with a sense of purpose. Or maybe it was to carve out his own paradise--or find a new one. So many options were available, even if only portions of them were of real worth. Then again, maybe it was just a delusion of grandeur. Still, curiosity was one of his stronger suits. He adjusted his robes nonchalantly, and lifted his head towards her. "How are you this day?"

 

[Boethiah]

Droids were never the beings Anja thought they were, metal constructs with wiring and programming suited to various tasks and abilities. Yet, the ones that seemed more alive than the rest intrigued the Host Lord without a doubt. It was the way they progressed... It made it difficult to tell the difference between an artificial construct and a person of flesh like herself. Certainly there were some who would repress such thoughts, considering them as the tools they were intended to be.

Anja was different, she saw the droids as being no different than anyone else. Flesh and bone, metal and wire; what difference did it make? If one could believe, then they can be faithful. If one can be faithful, then they deserve to live just the same and would be respected of their capabilities no less. The droid before her was not a total stranger, they had been to several places together but for the very first time they'd have an opportunity to speak in private.

She smiled lightly at his question, an odd one, but a friendly one. "I am well this day, I hope the same can be said of you," she returned the pleasantry--something she did not do often. Perhaps it was just how he asked it, the genuine nature in his question that warranted such a response. Nonetheless, they weren't here to have small talk... He sought something of her. "You wished to meet with me, yes? You may speak freely."

[member="50H31"]

 

[50H31]

Organics were odd. They didn't often state the truth, they were prone to delusion as well as deception, and by most standards, many of them were quite mad. However, 50H31 actually liked dealing with them. he found them fascinating. Their ability to drift, to define their own operational parameters, they're ability to alter their paths in destiny, their belief in free will--it was an interesting case study in how things worked in the universe. He nodded politely as she grant him permission to push forward.


"Thank, you, Host Lord," he said, the sort of soft-spoken drone that tilted through a room rather than fight it. "I have been wondering since my admission into your force's ranks," he began simply, "What exactly is your goal? Your....vision," he said with a circling hand gesture, "is one that eludes me. It's obvious you sink to conquer a great portion of this galaxy, but what makes me curious is the primary motive. At the risk of sounding glib," he said, a slight drollness--or maybe it was just a servo humming--tempering his tone, "Why are you so eager to lay claim to these worlds? And odd question, to be assured, but one that has been processing in my mind for a while now."


It was an odd though, to be certain. But then, maybe it wasn't her purpose he was curious about, but merely the concept of purpose to organics in general. Their whims were odd and uncertain. But now he had the possibility to attain an answer--what helped an organic find purpose? Perhaps, in a sense, he could find purpose in the same way.

 

[Boethiah]

His questions, the inquiries of a non-organic mind, were ones Anja found rather clever--they were questions that required wise answers. Which meant they were good questions. It didn't take long for her to respond but even still, the Host Lord had to ponder for a moment on the subject; much like a droid calculated odds. "Each world is not our objective. We conquer not for territory nor power, but for resources," she began with that partial answer, to allow him to understand their nature as conquerors.

"Why we need these resources is a more complicated answer... Those who created us, and the means to create non-organics such as yourself, do not exist in plain sight. Why would someone so powerful wish to be surrounded by corruption and falsities? Our goal--The Primeval's goal--is to reconnect with the past, to retrace the steps of all life and bring us to a single standpoint; to unite under one cause and transcend." She gave the short version of a very long answer. An answer so long she couldn't possibly communicate it verbally in the length of a conversation. Rather, she expected followup questions which made it much easier.

[member="50H31"]

 

[50H31]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]


Five-oh gave the Host Lord's words a great deal of consideration. Resources over territory. Strategy over glory. A tactician at heart, he could understand the choice of targets. But her motive, that was still a rather tricky point of effort. He would have raised an eyebrow if he had one at this point. Of all the weapons in his arsenal, the one that truly made him dangerous was freedom. Most tactical droids had no such luxury. Still he coudl ask questions, and plan accordingly. Maybe his queries were about makign plans for the future. "A reasonable desire. Competition for resources is part of the business of life, after all," he msued in resposne to her discussion, waiting for her to continue.


Ironically, the Host Lord discussed an interest in the past. And a goal of transcendence. A different kind than his vision of divinity, but still, not without meaning. "So, then. You seek the past inorder to alter the future. Knowledge and power....to you they are but components of the truth. Fascinating," he said with a smirk. "It apepars we are less separate than I supposed. You see, I seek a form of ascendance myself," he said solemnly. He gestured with his hands, as if imploring the ceiling and the sky they were under to bear witness to his ideals. "Some would say that my existence is an anomalous malfunction--an accident, deviated form the intent of my creators," he said, illustrating his "defective" status.


"However, be it by dumb luck or the same Forces that many of you using the Force purport to be present in this universe," he said softly, "I have been made free. Through technology and alteration, I have expanded past my original operational parameters, and become something--Someone--wholly new. I have....evolved," he said, raising a fist and looking down into it, opening his palm. If eh had the face for it, he would have smiled. "Like you, I seek for lost answers. Our predecessors--organic and mechanical--held many secrets, both of your methods of force magic, and my own technological existence. Plagues, wars, and history itself have buried much. Tell me, Host Lord--what truth do you hope to find while looking through the past? Do you believe it will change you? Alter your destiny?"

 

[Boethiah]

"I seek to truly know how we were made, and if this is even where we came from. Who is to say our origins are not far from this galaxy?" It was a curious question, and after the arrival of the Vong it was not one uncommonly unasked after that point. Still what is known of the Vong galaxy is that they destroyed everything before arriving, and that is why they stay; because they have no where else to go.

Yet it is proof that life outside of this galaxy exists. If one galaxy was found, it was not illogical to suggest that many others carried intelligent--even advanced--life of its own. Some see this theory as a threat, a worry that another invader will attack again. Others see it as the future, to be able to travel outside of the galaxy and settle the universe rather than a very small spec of existence.

Everyone fights over one thing that is incomparable to the grander existence that eludes us all.

[member="50H31"]

 

[50H31]

Fiver-oh considered this line of curiosity. Extra-galactic life occurred, as did extra-galactic technology, supposedly. The Vong weren't the only things believed to come from extra-galactic sources. It's know tat the Gree integrated technology from unknown sources....to say nothing of the myths of other, older empires. He nodded. "Admittedly. This universe is large, and there are things outside this galaxy, even outside the force, that have lived and died and altered history," he said, almost optimistically. "Perhaps, then, there is much to be learned, not only from what was, but what cane be done with what is," he mused out loud, his hands waving slightly in the dim light. "Tell me, Host Lord, have you ever heard of the Silentium? They were, supposedly, a legendary bunch of extragalactic explorers. Some sort of powerful, technologically advanced beings. What many would call a species of droids, supposedly," he said with a nod.



"Perhaps, then," he continued, "There is a chance for me to find my own answers while helping you find yours. There is a mutual interest, then," he said, saying the sort of thing most people wouldn't ever say out loud. "Forgive my arrogance, but as someone who has been called to aid you a few times, I think it was important of me to seek answers about those I'm working with and for," he said with a nod. "If I am to follow the Primeval, even as a pilgrim to my own faith, I must note and acknowledge what others do and desire, after all. Even if your answers are not my answers, they are still answers that should be heard, and reflected upon, by your colleagues," he said softly. He wasn't a devout member of the Primeval's endorsed religion. He was, if anything, a rather mercenary droid with a rather straightforward outlook. What brought him more knowledge and power, that was what would bring him to bear upon this galaxy. Or maybe it would just be a flicker in the interminably long life of a very strange droid. Hard to say.





[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]