Darkness in Light (Animus)

[Ultimatum]

​

Mustafar, a planet consumed in the destructive power of fire and lava. In a poetic sense, a planet in a constant state of rebirth. After all, that is what lava is, new life. Or, at least, that is what it is supposed to be. On most planets lava will cool and eventually become the basis of a new portion of life. Here instead, lava remained hot, molten, and always burning away what life there was. Yet, even in this destructive whirlwind of force, there was a thriving community of organic life. How this had come about, not many actually knew. The planet was valuable even in its dangerous state. The metals and crystals hidden in plain sight were so numerous that there was little fear of it running out.

Yet that is what Ultimatum was worried about. Through events, not a few of which had been preplanned, he had gained control of the planet. His current seat of power was the Progenitor Facility, though most people assumed it was the government building in the largest city on the planet. The facility was his sanctum, hidden beyond most people's gaze. It had never housed an organic, the only actual visitor had been a Shard. He had worked hard to set up a governmental system that would hold under stress of the conflicting species.

Now, he wasn't at the facility right now. He was outside the spaceport, avoiding attention in his vehicle. He had gotten set up a meeting with a Sith, a first in his memory. He looked forward to meeting, he would have a real reason to expand work on the planet and begin to help one of the larger galactic factions.

[member="Animus Malgus"]

 

[Mythos]

Animus Arrived through the world of Mustafar for the first time... Immediately Animus thought this world Uninhabitable... But the contacts of his deceased father lead him to this world far beyond the established borders of his Faction.
Still flexing his muscles and powers learned in the Sith Academy which he was to head straight back to, Animus now had a mission... a meeting with a powerful and wise being that if the stories were true... was the Key to Animus' Project.

Seeing the docking bay elevated on a platform next to a waterfall of Magma Animus pulled in the star fighter and activated the descension thrusters... he wanted to make a good entrance and maintain an image of Civility.
Upon the ships docking the Hatch of his Nabooian fighter opened and Animus... in all his Would be splendor stepped out.

"This world.... is oddly beautiful... i can't think of a sith who would not fall in love with this place..."

Animus Noted a small floating droid... A message perhaps? Coordinates of the meeting location? Animus Gestured to the Droid to approach.

 

[Mythos]

The Droid Approached Animus alone and activated an Automated Response systems.

"Lord Ultimatum is currently not at the Facility" The droid Beeped

"Interesting... Should i await for his arrival inside the Mustafarian Facility or meet him in an Undisclosed Location on or off planet? "

The Droid Computed for a response and in the Mean time Animus Took in the... Breathtaking scenery...

"This will do.... this will do..."

 

[Ultimatum]

The droid's response came a moment later, "There is a vehicle waiting your arrival. It will take you to the meeting location."

It was a direct command from Ultimatum, though he avoided sending an actual holo or message from himself. He had found it necessary to use mediators when planning a meeting, too often had his droids damaged or destroyed by apparent enemies. He didn't expect betrayal. He didn't know if his reputation was known to the Sith. So far he had kept most of his works more covert so as to avoid drawing attention to this red marble of a world. He would never say that it was home, it wasn't, but he had grown attached to the people.

He did wonder what the Sith was like, for the most part until recently he had tried to avoid Sith. They weren't any worse than other organics in his mind, it was simply that he had found their presence to mostly be destructive, historically. He hoped that he could work peacefully as possible with them, but it was a question of whether they wanted to cooperate peacefully or if they would eventually turn on him. He had assumed that there would be a Sith hostility against him at some point, it seemed inevitable. The question at this point was if it was worth it, gaining favor with them now might hold back the future that he wanted to avoid.

So that was why he was here, sitting in the vehicle that would be the same one the Sith would be taking. This would be their first meeting and the actual business would be conducted at his facility. It was a matter of security and who could or could not be trusted.

[member="Animus Malgus"]

 

[Mythos]

Animus Followed the Droids instructions and followed him towards a Large yet... Hard to spot Mustafarian Vehicle.
Large and with Technology Animus could not exactly pin point the vehicle was in all accounts impressive... Animus could only hope the creator of such a device was equally impressive.
Stepping inside the Vehicle and sitting in the chair appointed to him by the helpful droid he waved the droid away and sat back eyeing the surrounding of the vehicle... And the Machine Sitting Across to him. He had never seen absolutely anything like it. Up until a few moments ago Animus thought he could not possibly be impressed.... But he was.

"I thank you for your time and Hospitality... one could get attached to a planet such as this... your reputation precedes you."

[member="Ultimatum"]

 

[Ultimatum]

"You are most welcome. Thank you, this place has its allures. I hope your trip was comfortable and that security didn't give you any trouble." He chose his words carefully, he did not want to give the illusion of him being a person who could be flattered into something. He wasn't, however he had learned that some of the pride that he spoke with about this planet was often seen by organics to be a weak point.

He sent an order through his programs to Legion, the droid driving the vehicle. Well, driving wasn't truly the right term, it was more like overseeing. The vehicle could drive itself, as had a droid brain built in, but Ultimatum liked to have Legion keeping an eye on it. He had to keep an eye on Legion though, as the droid had a schizophrenic personality that jumped quite harshly between sadistic and overly polite. He didn't blame the droid, after all it was Ultimatum's fault. An accident during a transfer of programs had left the droid a little unique in that regard.

He looked the Sith up and down, he seemed young and was probably not as powerful as Sith that Ultimatum had met in the past. Though it was difficult to tell, some Sith were prodigies while others had little more than friends in high places. He wondered where this Sith fell in that.

[member="Animus Malgus"]

 

[Mythos]

"My Apologies, i have not Introduced myself. I am Animus Malgus, i am a.. Student" Animus said removing his coat and placing his blade by his side. He Was well versed in political negotiations and mercantile talk by his father. Business... as usual. Animus truly thought this exceedingly necessary for any Sith....He valued allies and family values kept allies close at all times.
"I am looking for a... bi parternish relationship. In the ends of... Technological advancements of various kinds. As mentioned by some of my more trustworthy muun associates, Mustafar was mentioned. Before any other i contacted you Master Ultimatum" Animus said as he eyed the massive machine before him. Truly, he was interesting... he could sense anger within him, a desire to kill, to maim, to womb... Animus smiled Pleasantly at this musing as his pause before continuing Gazing into the window of Space...
"The matter how how and what our mind can construct manufacture or... profit.." Animus shot him a glance "Is entirely up to us... i am more than capable of acquiring any special equipment you will require." This machine could kill him... he knew that at least most. But this was too good a chance to pass up also, he was intrigued at what he could accomplish with an ally as... Unique... as Ultimatum

[member="Ultimatum"]

 

[Ultimatum]

Ultimatum nodded as he listened, looking out the window in a near universal sign of thoughtfulness. It wasn't much of a view through the reinforced transparisteel, lava flowing from the old volcano that was the source of his metal and in fact the lifeblood of the planet's industrial industry. Not only that volcano, but in actuality all volcanoes on this world spewed forth a mixture of metal and rock. In its refined form the metal was nothing overly noteworthy, it was about as strong as most shipgrade metals and was used just as that.

He was quiet for a moment, thinking of how this would work out. He couldn't tell what was right. If he were an organic it could have been called having... cold feet? Ultimatum wasn't the best at those terms. Because he was a droid he called the process reevaluation. That sounded more apt to Ultimatum, though it might had meant the same thing, they were words he understood. At last he stated, "I believe that we may work together. The ride will be short. Once we arrive at my facility we can go over the location."

Ultimatum heard the sound of the engines slowing. They would be stopping at the facility in a few moments.

[member="Animus Malgus"]

 

[Mythos]

Animus Smiled upon The Mechanical Lord's declaration. "Excellent" Animus Proclaimed in a hushed tone for both to hear as he joined Ultimatums gaze outside the transparisteel and the Furnace of fire that was Mustafar.
As the Vehicle reached a halt Animus stood next to Ultimatum Gazing at the Outside of the window.

Animus appeared to be quite diminutive Next to the Machine, and Ultimatum was by all means intimidating but for some reason Animus Felt akin to the Lord of Mustafar. Indeed it could be said he... enjoyed the company.

"Not another world like it... at least as far as i have seen." The fires of the Mustafar seemed to lick the very edge of the window as he smiled "It's like the Planet itself in enraged in a fit of fury every waking moment" Animus Flared a smirk not parting his gaze from the fire.


[member="Ultimatum"]

 

[Ultimatum]

"Yes." He didn't continue to say, "This is the beauty of the planet. It is destruction incarnate, a hell in life. More than that, it is always bright, yet always dark. The light from the lava, the destruction. The darkness, a result of the light." It was one of the few times that he had had that poetic feeling.

He walked towards a rock outcropping, the somewhat hidden entrance to the facility. The doors slid open, as if they were automatic, but they were in fact controlled by Ultimatum's commands. He allowed [member="Animus Malgus"] to step in first, then followed. The inside of the facility was a mere five degrees beneath the outside temperature. The droids that worked quietly in the building were not highly susceptible to heat, thus they didn't require much cooling. In fact, the temperature was only lowered for the convenience of organics that might visit.

While he had not had many, or any, organic visitors, he had prepared the subterranean building in case. The droids that worked in the building, there were no organic workers, in almost complete silence. The only consistent sound was the footfalls of metal men. It was perfect for thought, if he wasn't connected to the entire system. Unlike in the physical, over the computer systems there was constant chatter, droids reporting this or that had been complete and they were moving onto project x or y.

 

[Mythos]

Animus walked inside the Facility in amazement, taking mental notes of everything he saw. The Planet, was an insane heat, and the inside was not much of an improvement, but Animus Shrugged off the heat. He was too enthralled by the sight of the Complex, Droids working in constant motion and the clanking of metal feet was music to his ears. This would definitely do nicely.
"The light Within the Darkness... yes... i think i know exactly of what you speak" Animus said acknowledging what [member="Ultimatum"] had to say about the planet but also adding in how the Dark Side of the Force, worked in that very way.
Animus Walked towards droids who were working on what seemed to be a large ship of some sort.
"For what i have in mind... we will first need a place to work and design... I think Mustafar is ideal. Although This planet is far beyond the Domain of the Sith, for what we can Accomplish for now, it will do." It would do... Animus knew, if anyone in the Universe could build the Cortan Blade. It was Him, the Machine who now Towered before him.
"This" Animus Handed him a Data Card. "Is the Cortan Blade, Blueprints i myself designed , everyone who has laid eyes on this Blueprint is now dead." Animus Smiled meaning the remark not a threat but as a gesture of trust. As to say, I trust you with what the eyes of no Organic creature or Machine had laid eyes upon.
"It is my wish that with the completion of the Cortan Blade with your help, i can use it not only to enhance my abilities to explore the known galaxy and cause havoc , but also as a testament to the ability of what we can accomplish. "

Animus Paused fixing his gaze in a prideful posture on Ultimatum to let his words sink in then continued

"First of course, i will need your assessment on the blueprints and a list of materials you will need among other things. "
Animus Now paces around the Facility, measuring it, evaluating its size, its capacity of cargo, its personnel count... all these things would factor in to the final result.

 

[Ultimatum]

Ultimatum listened intently. He was surprised that a threat might be used, but then he thought that it was possibly not a threat, but in fact a rare thing, a sign of trust. Few people threatened a droid and even fewer showed genuine trust. The fact that a Sith was willing to share the secrets to his scheme for power was sign enough to Ultimatum that he was trusted. He wondered what this Cortan Blade would be. Apparently something to enhance Force powers, yet he wondered if it were a ship. That would have made sense, after all a droid making Force weapons or other such was a ridiculous idea.

He pulled out a physical floor plan of the facility. It was actually quite a small building, nothing larger than a small fighter was meant to be built here. There had been extenuating circumstances in which there had been larger, but for the most part the rule was followed. Whatever this new project was, it would require another facility to build. He would not have a project Sith, Jedi, Republic, Empire related in his main facility. He held to a neutral standing and didn't want to have the people endangered by a single facility. Thus this new work area would have to be covert, more so than even this one. His first true 'black' facility, as the organics called it.

"Let us see what is needed and I will see what can be done." He spoke quietly.

[member="Animus Malgus"]

 

[Mythos]

Animus Smiled seeing Ultimatus intrigue of the Cortan Blade and the Workshop. The Cortan Blade, as Ultimatum would see, is an Infiltrator Class Starfighter designed my Animu Malgus himself. There would be no ship in the Galaxy like it, not even close.
"I am glad to have you look into it Ultimatum" Animus smiled and Bowed putting his hood and cloth back on. "Your planet, your Facility and your Hospitality has been remarkable. Our next meeting i hope, will be even more fruitful" With that Animus Bowed again in a sign that the meetings discussion has been done and dealt with.
"With your Permission i will take my leave, but i will leave you the contacts for my ship and long distance Telecoms for any information you might have" Animus Kept his low bow, traditional upon speaking to superiors, which in this case, being Ultimatus Home. He was.

 

[Ultimatum]

Ultimatum bowed as well, not as low, partially due to being less limber than an organic. He replied, "It has been a pleasure. Take care."

He then turned his attention to the Cortan Blade, an interesting ship. It definitely would require a larger facility. He would get to work on it immediately. He sent a few orders through the programs that assembled a team of droids to begin work, once he had decided upon the location. He already had some of the parameters: it had to be away from settlements, subterranean, and had to be near a lava source. There was a particularly good location, lots of open ground but the heat there was higher due to its proximity to the volcano. Most people didn't go near and the amount of metal in the area made sensor readings not trustworthy. Perfect for a 'black' site.

[member="Animus Malgus"]