Appetite for Construction

[Siyndacha Aerin]

- [member="Jared Ovmar"] -​

​

LOCATION​

Mondder Spaceport​

City of Mondder​

Etti IV​

​

The feel of flesh against her own had become more of a need than it had before, and so it had instituted a fair level of comfort with the emotions it pulled out of her. Who'd have thought that it would take another woman to make such things okay? Now that very woman was being tutored in the ways of the Force by the very man that tutored her. Really, it couldn't possibly be a better set-up. It had become easier for them to see each other (which was still important, even if what they had was hardly exclusive), and in this way life was about as good as it could be expected to be, but there was just one problem: that life kept dragging her away from her one true love; professional love, for clarification - droids.

They'd been her pets, friends, and confidants, her relationship with each one never fully understood by any being of flesh and bone. They allowed her to care for them, and didn't object when she, in her ways, wanted to make them better and give them more. They supported her, in their ways, in her goals when those called 'family' did not. She couldn't be without them, and yet, life conspired to have its own plans for her, different from her own. No, that could not, would not happen, and it was why Siyndacha Karolle Aerin was here on Etti IV, the last stop in the information-gathering escapade that had begun with the realisation that merely being employed by a manufacturer was not enough when the landscape kept shifting. The foothold of merely working for another wasn't strong enough when the will of life itself seemed to be stronger.

The girl from Cularin would exercise control in all things, even over her own destiny. She would grab life by its hair, by the scalp, and make it submit to her plans. It would set its eyes on whatever she wished. Today? That gaze was to be set on the ancient, still-surviving corporation of Cybot Galactica. Of course, there were some things that could never be controlled - for example, her stomach grumbling as she disembarked from the transport, and made her way out dressed fairly appropriately for the hot climate (which had been meteorologically calm, as of late) with her one suitcase and one shoulder bag, to flag down a cab. It could be said that lately, her ambitions had been as big as her appetite.

She always had a huge appetite.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

Cybot Galactica.

For eons it had been a household name for service droids and the like, it had competed with fellow Droid Giant Industrial Automaton for decades for control over the droid manufacture market in the Galaxy. Neither of them had been particularly successful in their endeavours though, their niches had been filled and going out of their way to ingross in each other’s markets had been more difficult than expected.

Of course in the end it mattered little, the Gulag Plague swept in and out of the Galaxy leaving it a disaster zone with people fighting over simple, basic resources like water, food… stuff that mattered. Droids weren’t on anyone’s mind that point, besides at that point? Most workers were probably dead or worse, governments had fallen into shambles: Anarchy Reigned.

A few centuries had passed since the Dark Ages, yet C-Galactica hadn’t been able to reconquer its former glory anymore than its old rival I-Automaton. Some say the stifling competition of the likes of Hegemonic Automaton (formerly known as Cestus Cybernetics), Czerka, Santhe and Baktoid had made sure the market was so saturated that it was almost impossible to earn a scrap of money.

Didn’t mean people weren’t trying though.

Was this one girl running ‘round town asking questions.

Quickest way to get hurt on Etti IV, if you didn’t know where to point them.

When the girl with the long, difficult name waved her hand around for a cab, a different man walked up next to her and started waving his hand too. Sometimes… you gotta take control over a situation, forget the dices, fate rolling - just do what ya gotta do and hope it turns out fine.

‘Miss Aerin.’ Jared Ovmar stated with a smug smile. ‘Looking for some information, are we?’

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

It wouldn't be right to say she jumped, but there was a definite freeze, a clenching of the muscles in her shoulders, arms, and jaw, when a voice - vague in familiarity - called her by proper conventions of name, and needled the entire purpose of her setting foot on this planet in the first place. She lowered her arm, muscles relaxing with a outward breath, and flicked her head to the side to look on him with silver-blue eyes, some surprise evident on her pale visage.

"How did you..."

She hadn't yet started asking around having just arrived, and the almost-asked question sought to address that - but she knew as soon as the question started coming out of her mouth that someone who so clearly stood out as she did, nosing around other similar companies (such as Industrial Automaton, on Nubia) had the likelihood of being noticed. That being known, she ceased to question the matter, and moved on. Sindy blinked, a vaguely bemused smile and one-note laugh following.

"...Mister Ovmar, of all the people to run into."

Not that she knew him well, but she'd hardly been expecting to see him again after that brief meeting on Coruscant, so many months ago - a meeting that left her with questions, despite its briefness. Since then many things had changed, at least for her. She continued on, answering the question.

"Not looking right at this very moment, no," she corrected, turning to him a little more, "Hunger strikes... but what are you doing here, at the other end of the galaxy?"

Really, she'd had no reason to even bother keeping up with the life and times of a man she barely knew, no matter how nice or well behaved he'd been in that first impression... even so, it helped her initial opinion of him, which in turn made sustaining a new conversation with him in the first place possible.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

...and so it was that the Lord Ovmar finally found a woman who hadn’t actually ever heard of him before, who hadn’t known his face, name or rank just by looking at him. It was a sobering thought for the slightly hubris-filled Sith Lord, but he took it all in strides and instead gave her a small bow and just the hint of the lazy grin that he seemed to throw at all women he came across in one capacity or another.

“Business, my dear. I hold interests on Etti and so when I heard about your mighty quest I decided to drop in a metaphorical call.”

Then he raised his hand, as if to stop her from saying anything, before he was finished.

“But please, if you have need of some food- we can talk business later. I know this lovely restaurant nearby, if I may?”

The Sith Lord, not Sith Lord offered his hand then in a gesture of: ‘Would you follow me.’, close-by an eccentric looking limo stood there and awaited them at their leisure.

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

Business. Interests on Etti. - she noted these words, adding them to her limited knowledge about this man, who had the Force wrapped about him and a certain swagger that she could find many comparable examples of in her memory... but that wasn't the point of why she was here. She could pick over his personality later, when he wasn't right there; it was a personal feat, to not (as she had once been told) 'shine such a bright and cold light on the flaws of others'. It wasn't the only side-effect of her preference for mechanical companions.

She was curious but... later, yes. Well, better than eating alone!

"I'd be glad," she said, accepting the offered hand, and following to the somewhat strange-looking limo. Really, you could gather some things about a man by his vehicle, whether he drove it or not. What it was that she should gather from this vehicle were a few things, all of which she could entertain later on. "This is my first time on Etti, so I must admit some anxiety about the unfamiliarity of this place."

An anxiety that was, of course, not crippling. She didn't go anywhere completely blind if she could help it, and often read up some information about her destination before departure. Now that she thought of it, the humidity and the act of going for food did draw some parallels to the day she'd met Token, thought she doubted that meant anything at all.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

As said before the limo was eccentric, it grabbed all attention and refused to let it go, which implied things. Many things, but let’s focus on the two foremost things that it could very well imply.

First of all, Lord Ovmar simply didn’t have any taste and liked to roll ‘round town in fleshy, neon colors, mixed with ludicrous fur and all that crap and yet… that clashed.

It clashed with his otherwise quite sober and stylish attire, it clashed with the way he looked at the world in a simple, relaxed and elegant manner. There was the second implication which could exist.

Pre-determined.

The limo was a way to draw away attention from him, to give out an illusion of grandeur and create expectations. Expectations which would be crushed the moment the Sith Lord arrived at the negotiation table.

Or perhaps he simply didn’t have any taste.

The trip was short, filled with a pleasant silence as both contemplated their own thoughts without trying to wave meaningless banter and filler into the room when the time wasn’t met yet.

Until they stopped and Ovmar got out, holding the door open for the girl and having one hand extended to help her out.

‘My Lady, we have arrived.’

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

The short journey was quiet, and yes, it did give her time to mull over the few thoughts she'd gathered since he'd politely interrupted her party of one, the conclusions of which she neatly filed away in her head. A small alteration of her very cursory opinion of the man occurred, an indifferent change, at that. In essence, that opinion remained fairly similar to what it had been before she arrived on this world: he was polite and infused with a well-known swagger.

That was all. Things could change, of course, the more he opened his mouth to let words slip out of it. The vehicle stopped, and shortly thereafter they were disembarking, her taking his offered hand and stepping out into the humidity of Etti IV once again, shoulder bag where it was meant to hang, while the suitcase lay solitary in the boot of the limo.

"So we have, my lord," she said in kind while looking to him, a wry, perhaps curious smile curving her lips, "though I'm uncertain as to where we have arrived to. Pardon me, but I find this world and its amenities entirely unfamiliar."

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

‘La Femme de la Croix, my dear. It’s the place to be in the higher circles of the Corporate Sector Cabal, if you will- fairly hard to get into without waiting a few months for your place in line to come up.’ the Sith Lord said in a matter of a fact-tone, while giving a sign to the invisible driver, who took it as permission to find a proper parking spot and which revealed Zelda, the droid assistant which Oryen had gifted to him a few years ago. The girl still didn’t have her mindwiped, instead Ovmar opted to upgrade her storage all the time.

She had turned into quite the assistant for the busy-body Sith Lord Extraordinaire, and now she was following them with Sindy’s bag trolling behind her.

The courtier at the front of the restaurant gave a bow to both the Lord and the… Lady, gesturing them inside without even asking for any identification. It seemed the Sith Lord was quite a familiar presence here.

They were guided to their seats, Ovmar pulling the girl’s chair out for her to sit in, before allowing himself to be seated himself.

A waiter came over with a stoic look and asked of them.

‘What would it be today, my Lord Ovmar?’

‘The Lady first, Betrand, I am still not entirely sure.’

‘Of course, my Lord.’ before giving Sindy a questioning look.

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

She nodded once the name of the place had been given, and its significance. She'd been in such places before, many times over the years of her childhood and beyond; a common occurrence with her father's family while her Papa, her grandfather, had shown her the more modest side of life that as a Jedi he had been more than accustomed to... and in truth, she had never shown a preference for either. Rather, she embraced both with a large degree of equality. Both ways had their pros and cons, and their uses.

When the waiter showed up immediately after she had been seated, she showed no surprise at not being kept waiting, but at the same time, had barely had time to consider what she would like to eat. She looked to Bertrand, and gave him a short smile.

"A glass of water to start with, please. I'll need more time to come to a decision, otherwise."

With that, she looked to the man across the table from her, wondering if he had made up his mind.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

‘Confit de Canard, with a bordeaux rouge, please.’ it came fluently, pronouncing the exotic name- few people would even recognize the streetrat slash thug sitting in a beautiful, expensive restaurant sipping from wine and doing all manners of pretentious things.

Some would call it selling out, Ovmar called it growing up. There was a time of going back to the basics, enjoying the rough line that the Galaxy had to offer and there were times when you could feel the thrill of a well-made, expensive dish.

Didn’t exactly make the matters worse when a cute girl was sitting in front of you, nah… only made it better.

The waiter went off to take care of the order, leaving both of ‘em alone for the meanwhile.

And so the Sith Lord gave the girl a pleasant smile and waited for her to make up her mind, or... ask him for advice.

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

After a few more moments of perusing the menu, she had her mind made up and signified as such by placing the menu on the tabletop and placing her hands one on top of the other on top of the menu, and settling her silver-blue-eyed attentions once again on the man across the table from her. She gave him a thin smile, before launching into words.

"So, Lord Ovmar," oh, she emphasized that, well within her ability and right to tease just a little - she had grown up with Lords and Ladies, businessmen and lawyers, and... well, there was no need to continue along that vein, "what is it you're in the business of doing..."

Her eyes remained steadily, patiently on him.

"...and why is it my nosing around is of more interest to you than anyone else's? It can't possibly be said that we have anything more than a passing acquaintance between ourselves."

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

‘I am in the business of doing business, my Lady.’ the Sith Lord replied smoothly, avoiding a direct answer to her question. What was there to say? That he was a Sith Lord who spend most of his days weaving webs and taking advantage of situations that spun out of control? That his days were filled with hunting artifacts and ancient knowledge, to protect them from the plantweed of the world? Perhaps that he was a philanthropist, billionaire, playboy?

She already knew that, or think she did.

Finally their dinner arrived, but Jared simply studied the woman in front of him. She didn’t seem all that timid now, the slightly amusing, but very much socially awkward girl had changed into a confident woman who didn’t accept the surface answers.

So he played it frank with her. ‘I represent interests who are very deeply involved in the inner-workings of the corporate world, my own interest was piqued when I found you questioning the current state of one of the top ancient droid creators of the Galaxy.’

Ovmar shrugged.

‘So I decided to take a break and see what you have to offer.’

What she had to offer, as if she was on a job interview and the progression of it would mean success in her search, or leaving the planet with her tail between her legs. What hubris would one such as him possess to merely suggest he held so much power?

But Jared merely grinned after his sentence, that disarming grin that seemed to be one-part smugness, two-part charm and rounded off with just enough silliness that you might forgive him for the eccentricity he displayed every once in a while.

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

Dinner did come - she had ordered in the intervening time, but what she ordered was inconsequential, unimportant in comparison to the company she held and the turn of their discussion. Doors opened, doors closed. What she thought she wanted (a deeper connection to her Echani heritage, training to follow in the footsteps of the man that had raised her) was no-where near what she truly desired. She wasn't certain she could set aside the things and people she had become attached to for the sake of doing what was good and right. Never had her life felt better than it had since she had met that blonde with whom she so often shared a bed, never had she been happier than when she was surrounded by metal and circuit.

And never had she been in such control.

Minutes passed, his words long succeeded by the silence of her considerations, her fingers laced together in support of her chin, a slow and confident smile pulling her lips upward and outward, an uncontrolled return to the grin he presented. Silver-blue eyes regarded that face again, heralding her response.

"Tell me," she began, the words slipping plain and unapologetic, "what do you know about Mechu-Deru?"

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

It had not arrived as a surprise to the Sith Lord that their conversation had taken this turn. All things put aside Jared was still a mentalist in his very being, which meant that exchanging conversation with him? Was as much verbally as that which was not uttered.

He could almost see the strange mechanical turns her mind was making while their conversation prolonged and their food was half-eaten and cold.

Many things were noted, but one thing pleased him more than anything else. Her desire for control, for it was the same guilty pleasure that had led him throughout his entire life and made him in the man he was today.

'A dangerous question, miss Aerin.' there was a distinct teasing note within his speaking patterns, mixed with a bit of an eager edge perhaps. 'Are you sure you are ready for such a path?'

The Sith Lord leaned back, food, drinks, the entire room forgotten as his icy blue eyes studied hers. No secrets here.

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

At his tease-laced words there was a sharp nasal intake of air, indicative of amusement. Though the corners of her mouth remained upward and positive, the centre pursed for a slim slice of time as fingers retrieved a stemmed glass still holding a few mouthfuls of wine, swirling it idly. Her head turned to look on it, slender neck twisting in the act, and she took a slow sip, savouring it on her tongue before passing it on, swallowing. Eyes returned to him.

"Mister Ovmar," the glass was returned to the tabletop, fingers retreating to lace with their counterparts, "readiness is hardly the pertinent question; I have been flirting with such things since I was a child. I have always had an affinity for machines and an... innate ability to understand and sway them."

One eyebrow slipped upward.

"Where, might I ask, is the danger?"

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

Ah... the dangers, where to start, where to start. Truthfully, there ain't all that many dangers when was dabbling in Mechu-Deru exclusively, that was the real issue though.

It never ended there, vitae, alchemization, the slow blending of humans and machines. The slow decline of your humanity, until at the very end you are a simple meticulous humanoid machine bend on enslaving the human race.

But who really cared about those kind of issues? Not this Sith Lord, no Jared Ovmar had never been a cautious man and it would take Rave's demise to give him some needed perspective.

That wouldn't happen for some time yet though.

And so.

'Nothing all too concerning." the Sith Lord replied smoothly. "A thirst of knowledge that can never be sated, mostly.'

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

Satisfied with the answer to her question, which was most rhetorical, she settled back into the chair and left her hands in her lap. Her eyes never did leave him after that.

"Well, learning is lifelong," she mused, "and more productive if it is not aimless, hm?"

So, he was useful in ways she hadn't expected. Hardly a bad thing. It must have been some sight, her in a cute dress and discussing much while verbalising little. Her paleness, the innocence her way of dress broadcasted, made her appear to be some being of goodness and light. Truth be told, she had never understood being any way other than exactly as she was. Why would anyone bother?

"Such a thirst would go far beyond my intent for being here, I imagine... but that hardly seems like a problem, in my mind."

She had always wondered if there was more to it. Now she had to know.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Siyndacha Aerin"]

'I could not agree more.' An agreement followed by a light shrug. Worry was not a quality Jared possessed, even with all that had happened and all that he had been through, his main strength and weakness was the inability to worry about maybe's and probably's.

Not yet at the very least.

'There is a man...' the Sith Lord finally said, drawing out the inevitable conclusion for as long as possible.

Theatrics might be another weakness and strength.

'An associate of sorts, eccentric man I concede and perhaps a little extreme. But he could tell you all you need to know and perhaps even more.'

 

[Siyndacha Aerin]

[member="Jared Ovmar"]

He started, trailing off, drawing out... and drawing her in. Information was a craving and to know it was being withheld could be near-torture. When he finally divulged beyond 'there is a man...' she noticed she'd been holding a breath, and slowly let it out along with his words.

"I would like that," and that was the truth.

She smiled, cordial, appreciative. This was something she'd been meaning to do for a long while and the man that was supposedly her master could offer no help for such things, and very little for anything else - so concerned was he with the trappings of royalty and the resurrection of his long-dead wife. If that was the Light... well, what could she really say?

 

[Arage Bao]

An accepting nod and that was that. They would spend some more time together, enjoy their food and simply exchange more conversation between the two of them.

The night was fine, splendid and Ovmar learned much about the future apprentice, tiny nuggets of knowledge tugged away for future use perhaps.

In the end they parted with the promise that she would meet her new Master soon, followed by a warning that the first meeting might come across as... unorthodox.

Getting kidnapped wasn't an ordinary thing in the grand scheme of things, neither was sneaking into her room at night and simply wait for her to wake up.

Maybe he wouldn't be all too weird about it, that really depended on the other Sith Lord's mood.