Expanding Markets, Episode II: Solar Powered Boogaloo

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DEVARON

The Devaronian Army had a tradition. Not necessarily one of military excellence or honor in combat, but a tradition of being wildly advanced and confident in the face of battle. Since its inception, the government of Devaron had made it top priority to keep their arms, armor, and armaments as advanced as possible. In addition to consisting of organic personnel, the Devaronian army also employed a large amount of battle droids.

Now, with Hegemonic Automaton on the scene, they were ready to phase out the older droids of their ranks and replace them with the advanced machines that comprised the Talos Series.

"The Talos Series of combat droids are, without question, the single most advanced line of combat droids currently available on the market." Zothustro explained to the assembled panel of high-ranking military personnel.

"The TA1 excels in the role of front line infantry. You will not find a more intelligent and capable droid on the market. Excellent armor, agility, and the processing power of the J2 Droid Brain ensures this. Those who cast doubt over the usefulness of droids over trained and experienced organic personnel will have a run for their money after observing the TA1 in combat."

"Heavily armed and armored, the TA2 is ideal for fire support and drawing enemy weapons fire. Thanks to its heavy armor and weapons, the TA2 can dish out just as much firepower as it can take. The droid certainly looks unintelligent in demeanor, given its hulking appearance, but it still uses the J2 Droid Brain, making it vastly more intelligent than other droids you may have been offered."

"Last but not least we have the TA3 Tactical Droid. The latest tactical droid to be introduced to the market, the TA3 is programmed with an unparalleled understanding of tactics and strategy. If at any point you find yourself in short supply of competent officers, the TA3 is a cheap and incredibly effective replacement."

Following the rest of the presentation, Zothustro and the panel relocated to a remote area outside of the military base. From here, the live demonstration of the battle droids would take place. It was nothing to get excited about. The area had been set up as a small skirmishing field, like a paintball arena or some such. A squad of TA1s were pit against a platoon of B1 and B2 Battle Droids. Needless to say, the TA1s cleaned house without any real effort. Once the Droidekas were deployed, however, they incurred some casualties and were forced to withdraw. A temporary set back, as once the TA2 entered the field, the droidekas were eliminated in quick succession.

It was quite the impressive display. It got even better when BX-Series Commando Droids were deployed against the small Talos-Series team. Intense melee fighting broke out among them and the TA1, while the TA2 deftly crushed any enemy droids that came near it. All in all, the demonstration concluded with minimal casualties for the Talos-Series team, while virtually all of the Baktoid products had been destroyed beyond all repair. Zothustro personally hoped they would be recycled. Electronic waste was hazardous to the environment, after all.

Needless to say, he left Devaron with the contract he sought. The Devaronians had also expressed interest in the upcoming Mehrunes-Series Droid Walkers, and so insisted to be provided with them as well once they entered production. And who was Zothustro to tell them no?

 

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ATZERRI

Atzerri was a borderline lawless world, only having as much government as necessary to stave off total chaos. It wreaked of Anarcho-Capitalism, crime, and high export-import levels. Naturally, it was the perfect place to market security droids to, seeing as the police were an unreliable friend at best. No doubt the larger trade barons and the like would want to fortify their own warehouses with cutting edge droids to better protect their cargo. Either that or they would ruthlessly raid one another now that they had more disposable combat personnel at their command. Zothustro didn't really like the sound of that, but Tyrin had told him it would all work out well. Besides, if it was droids fighting other droids, there'd surely be no harm done in the long run. Not to mention they'd need to start buying replacements as hostilities continued.

"The droids Hegemonic Automaton produces are top quality and affordable. This is not a deal very many of you are able to pass up on." Zothustro pitched to the assembled CEOs and crime lords. Crime lords. Oy vey.

"They do not tire, question, or require wages. Nor are they susceptible to bribery and other activities that could lead to espionage. They are the perfect security guards, not to mention the uncanny intelligence and problem solving capabilities they have."

"Yeah, well," One of the crime lords, a portly Weequay, warbled. "I heard Baktoid put a punch of kill switches in their droids. Had to sell off all my robots, and now I can't even get 'em back 'cause the company's on thin ice or whatever. Who's to say you bunch've weirdos haven't done that too?"

"Hegemonic Automaton lacks the paranoia or genocidal tendencies of Baktoid." Zothustro smoothly responded. "You are free to peruse the internal workings of any of our droids. You will find that no kill switches exist, as we would never infringe upon our customer's right to sound security in such a manner. Once droids are purchased, they become your droids. To put a backdoor in that would allow us to shut down any droid for any reason is simply unethical and terrible for business."

Though, speaking of ethics, it did dawn on Zothustro that he was marketing this to a freaking crime lord. Probably a drug peddler and extortionist. The Protectorate cracked down on human traffickers the hardest, so Zothustro didn't expect that of this man or anyone else here. Profits were a lot tidier and the work was much safer in other industries. Besides, who bought slaves any more? Now that Hegemonic Automaton was here, such things would be totally unnecessary.

It took quite some time, but Zothustro was pleased when he managed to snag the majority of those attending as buyers. Hegemonic Automaton would supplement their private militias and security forces, no questions asked. Even better, some of the more enterprising traders expressed interest in having Hegemonic Automaton's civilian products on their shelves. Clearly, there was never a missed opportunity for Zothustro. When all was said and done, the X'Ting departed the planet with another solid customer base.

 

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LOHOPA II

The mining guilds of Lohopa II had always been given a generous amount of autonomy. Generally, they ran their own mines on the desolate planet and the communities that sprung up around them. It was a peaceful planet, moreso than others, up until recently. Pirates and roving bands of criminals had taken to harassing some of the settlements. What Lohopa's mining cartels needed were security. People security wouldn't do, as they didn't have the funds to permanently hire some PMC. Not to mention that the residents, while hardy, had no idea how to use weapons of any kind. Already the mining cartels were losing money to the raiders. They needed a fast solution before what little corporate order existed on the planet vanished.

"The booming voice of the TA2 is enough to strike fear into the heart of most enemies, not to mention the guns or anything."

Zothustro led the nervous Aqualish representative to the row of TA2s standing vigil on the landing pad. They were impressive droids, to say the least. They towered above the two aliens, standing perfectly still as they awaited orders.

"If it is rabble you're dealing with, the TA2 is arguably your best bet for defense. They make excellent deterrent on their own. I can't imagine some paltry raiders will be able to stand up to them."

Later, after Zothustro had left and the mining guild was still coming to a decision, the town Zothustro had stationed the five TA2s in came under siege. It was a brief raid, with only minor injuries sustained to the townsfolk and surrounding buildings. The raiders were not so lucky. They entered the town quickly, mounted on speederbikes. They hadn't been expecting the droids, and subsequently a number of them crashed into the TA2s themselves. This did little more than agitate the robots, which proceed to open fire.

Only lightly armed and with no protection afforded by their speeder bikes, it was a proper slaughter. Wreckage and corpses still littered the streets from where they had tried to quickly maneuver to get the jump on the TA2s. Tactics like that didn't work in narrow streets, though, and so the raiders had either been smashed off their bikes or shot to death. A few of them made to flee, only to be struck in their backs by grenades and killed in the ensuing explosions. Following this development, the mining guilds of Lohopa II found themselves a returning customer of Hegemonic Automaton.

 

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CORELLIA

It takes a lot to keep farming businesses in good operation. They needed advanced technology, lots of logistics, and an even greater amount of laborers. Corellia was a highly developed planet, so finding people willing to work the farms and become skilled at it was somewhat difficult. That, and most of the manual laborers generally preferred to slave away at the shipyards as opposed to some stupid plants. The farming magnates of Corellia had nothing to worry about now, of course. Zothustro Quill and Hegemonic Automaton were here to resolve their labor crisis.

"If the Z3 Labor Droid were just like any other mundane droid, it certainly wouldn't have seen any use by the BlasTech Corporation." Zothustro explained, clicking the device in his hand so his keynote would shift to the next slide. A dazzling side-by-side comparison of two charts. One noticably indicated higher productivity.

"Better yet, if the Z3 Labor Droid was just like any other droid, there would not have been a substantial markup in productivity at the Mirkanite mine they were sent to once BlasTech took it over."

There was a muttering among the attendees. Mirkanite was very dangerous to mine. That was to be expected considering it was solely found on one of the galaxy's most dangerous molten planets. Zothustro had a feeling they would react in such a way. They likely suspected that many Z3 Droids had been lost to accidents and other dangers associated with mining. They were just droids, after all. They wouldn't be smart enough to avoid danger and work carefully. If they couldn't handle mining, they'd probably break themselves trying to farm as well. Ultimately it would just be a money sink, buying more and more droids to replace the broken ones.

This couldn't have been farther from the truth. Zothustro hit the next slide to exemplify this.

"Finally, you will also note that the number of accidents has actually reduced drastically with the removal of all organic personnel from the facility."

Those mutterings ended very quickly. When the presentation ended a short while later, Zothustro would be walking away with still more customers for Hegemonic Automaton's products.

 

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BESTINE

Hegemonic Automaton didn't want to just build the ships of the people of Bestine, but repair them as well. The Z5 would be adequate for this role alongside the Z3. To this end, Zothustro Quill would be visiting the planet's shipyards to make deals with some of the smaller-time shipbuilders of the region. There had been quite a few labor disputes recently. Apparently a large amount of employees weren't getting the benefits they wanted or the raises they were promised. This prompted striking and sit-ins, which also led to higher production time, which led to being bad for business.

Fortunately, droids did not engage in strikes or join labor unions. Well, if they were maintained properly, that is. Z3s were observed to have this behavior if they went too long without a memory wipe. This wasn't the topic of discussion, though. The topic of discussion was "let me sell you these automated workers you don't have to pay so you can safely fire all your whiny old employees." Zothustro was sympathetic towards the strikers, really. His heart bled for them. But Zothustro was here to sell robots, so tough on them for making it easier for him.

"Really, it is no mere coincidence that every enterprise a host of Z3s are introduced to experiences dramatic increases in profits and production. It's also no coincidence that facilities which have Z5s working maintenance experience fewer break-downs. I should also add that droids do not need training, nor do they need lengthy lunch breaks or demand compensation for injuries sustained."

"Well, this would assume our droids frequently damage themselves in the workplace. I can assure you right now, if they survived the mirkanite mines on Mustafar with no issues..."

The cat was in the bag with this one. Or rather, the Star Wars equivalent to a cat. A nexu? That was more of a large cat than one applicable to the phrase. Whatever the proper thing to say was, it was eventually settled that the shipbuilders of Bestine would be procuring their laborers from a more reliable source. A source that didn't cause workplace disruptions. There would probably be a big political stink about this, not to mention the economic consequences of all those now unemployed workers.

Hegemonic Automaton's business was the only thing Zothustro was being paid to care about, though, so the X'Ting determined to flush all thoughts and sympathies of the blue-collar men he contributed to being shafted from his mind.

 

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FONDOR

Thankfully the labor climate on Fondor wasn't nearly as precarious as it had been on Bestine. Perhaps the Fondorians wouldn't be as desperate to buy Hegemonic Droids, but they would be a valuable planet to tap into nonetheless. Hegemonic Automaton's former majority shareholder and still-acting lead designer was a Fondorian, funnily enough. But Hannibal had been on the lamb from the planet ever since getting caught up in some nasty business associated with the formative years of the Protectorate. Now he was getting ready to sell droids to the place. Everything had come full circle. Kind of. In a certain way. Not really. Whatever, that wasn't the point. The point was that Zothustro was here to make some more damn money so Mr. Janus could continue to contribute to his rich person's alliance or whatever it was.

It was such a mammalian thing to do. Zothustro never quite understood their type. What with their facial expressions and soft exterior. It didn't even make sense.

Alright, focus.

"The shipyards of Fondor have always been the preeminent yards of the Protectorate. There is very little to be done that can improve upon this. Except, of course, investing in droid labor, courtesy of Hegemonic Automaton. You'll find that the shipbuilders of Bestine have already made similar investments and have seen marked improvements in their ships. A sufficient amount of Z3 Labor Droids and Z5 Maintenance Droids will see you producing ships at an increased pace. Couple in some Z4 Cargo Loading Droids to move materials and I anticipate even greater improvement."

The Fondorians were a naturally intelligent people. They required a great deal more convincing than that. Zothustro did his best to work his natural insectoid charisma, but ultimately he knew the only way to get their money would be raw data. Thankfully he wasn't wanting for that. Ultimately with the data he scavenged off of Mustafar's mirkanite mine, Bestine, and other customers in Mandalorian space would be what swayed him. Satisfied that the manual laborers of the Zenithar series would be more than sufficient to get what they wanted out of life, the Fondorians accepted his proposition.

Good thing that was settled.

 

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POLIS MASSA

"Given that other Polis Massans were the ones who helped us design these droids, I believe it is a high time they saw use here." Zothustro continued his marketing binge.

This was really getting tiresome, but at least this was his last stop in marketing labor droids. Then he only had three more planets to go to market the more luxury-based models. After that was over, he could maybe go home to Ord Cestus and take a well-deserved break. Zothustro didn't even recall working this hard when Hannibal was in charge. Things were much more laid-back. That wasn't good for expansion and profit accumulation, though. This was. Hegemonic was going to ingrain itself in parts of Protectorate space.

One planet at a time.

The original focus was the upper half of Protectorate space. From there, they would trickle down to other planets. Polis Massa was a bit out of the way, but Hegemonic Automaton needed a good focal point to market its Stendarr-Series Medical Droids to the Omegans. What better focal point than an asteroid field home to some of the brightest medical minds in the Protectorate? It was a no-brainer. And so that brought Zothustro here to sell things to the gentle, aquatic creatures.

"We've conducted a number of tests and trials. All in all, Stendarr droids experience lower mortality rates in surgeries and other risky operations. Many of them wound up on Druckenwell after that catastrophe, saving countless lives. I imagine they'll be put to better use here than anywhere else."

For all their medical expertise, the Polis Massans weren't all that business minded. They just wanted the latest and greatest in medical droids. No convincing or extravagant sales pitches needed. Thankfully that was exactly what they were getting. There would be no swindling on behalf of Zothustro- not ever.

 

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DURO, KOORIVAR, YAG'DHUL

Zothustro was seated by himself at the table. He was alone on the shuttle, save for the droid serving as his pilot. The sales initiative in Protectorate space had worked without any notable errors. In the coming days, Hegemonic Automaton would further ingrain itself into the Protectorate. Strong presences on the planets he had visited would inevitably lead to more customers from systems he didn't finish. From here, it would be prudent to visit both the newly formed Abrion Systems Authority and the territories held by the Moross Crusaders. Hopefully that would not rouse any ire from the Omegans. Then again, they were happy to do business with BlasTech, despite that company arming nearly every faction that happened to rise.

A hologram sprung to life on the table, revealing the austere visage of Darth Janus. As usual, the Umbaran looked about as emotionally invested as a toaster oven.

"I received your message. You are finished with your task?"

Zothustro nodded, seeing as he was now a very tired insect. "Yes. I finished my last meeting with the retailers from Duro, Koorivar, and Yag'Dhul. They will be buying our more civilian models as well as some of the medical droids."

"And the other planets?"

"All taken care off."

"Excellent work. Very well done. We'll discuss this more when you return to Ord Cestus. After that, I'm sure you've earned some vacation time."

From the severity of the ache in Zothustro's bones, the X'Ting was inclined to agree.