Private If You Can't Beat Them... [Roble Manufacturing™ & Dashiell Retrofit™]

[Balun Dashiell]

IF YOU CAN'T BEAT THEM...
ROBLE MANUFACTURING™ & DASHIELL RETROFIT™
LOCATION: The Morningstar, Astrahus-class Keepstar Station
TAGS: Alban Roble

Balun's S-91x Pegasus Starfighter
BB-Series "Chip" Astromech

A Jack of all Trades, Master of None.

That was essentially Balun Dashiell, trying to keep up with a lifestyle jam-packed with more obligations than he could handle in a single cycle. In most cases nowadays, Tharan Zeren Kai would be attending business and corporate meetings, serving as the acting CEO of Dashiell Retrofit™ in Balun's absence, manning the helm of operations. Tharan had been contracted during a time of great burnout, where the revelation had struck that Balun had bitten off far more than he could chew.

However, Balun still retained ownership, creative oversight, and the final say on everything within his control, and there were special circumstances in which, as today, a more personal approach was deemed necessary. Roble Manufacturing™ had captured his interest while he was pursuing the creation of a new series of Naval Armada for the High Republic. By comparison, Balun's company was dwarfed in both competence and size, yet, having proven itself capable of taking on military and government contracts in the past, Balun now looked to the future with a touch of personal bias influencing his path.

The problem with working for a governing body of power that not only oversaw the Jedi Order you belonged to, but also faithfully believed in and were willing to put your life on the line for, brought a certain desire and need for quality products that Balun hoped would elevate his company and outperform anything Dashiell Retrofit™ had previously been commissioned for. The lines of personal and professional boundaries weren't just being blurred here, but he reluctantly knew with a painful certainty that if it weren't for Tharan being the face of the company these days, he might well risk a good deal of bad PR were his motivations brought to the spotlight of the corporate business world.

Nonetheless, he was adamant about his vision and contributing to a cause that he truly believed in. What Dashiell Retrofit™ lacked, however, was custom technology lines that would adequately complement the vessel his research and development team was presently working on back on Mahina, the moon of Mnemosyne, where his newest asset had been set into motion.

He had reached out across the holonet, taking a wild stab in the dark and hoping for a positive outcome. Much to his pleasant surprise, Alban Roble had responded with an invitation to meet and discuss Balun's proposition aboard The Morningstar, presumably the base of headquarters for the man's corporate giant. Leaving no time to spare, Balun had opted to take Chip along for the ride, choosing a more subtle of his personal transports and endeavouring to arrive in a timely fashion.

Nilven system, The Outer Rim Territories.​

The droid's sharp whistle in the ears of the pilot awoke Balun with a start. He had fallen asleep at some point throughout the faster-than-light travel, and his astromech friend had been kind enough not to disturb him until nearing the point of re-entry into deep space, the coordinates that had been provided to him by Mr Roble lining up with their current trajectory as the automated systems prepared to pull power from the ship's Hyperspace Drive at the operators command.

"Yuh, I'm up. I'm awake, sorry," Balun muttered into the headset as he adjusted his posture, sitting upright in the cockpit and hazily glancing over the diagnostic terminal on his right, reassuring himself for the sake of peace of mind that nothing had changed in the ship's status. "Wind her down, Chip. Pull us out and open a channel as soon as we're in range. I want them with a clear line to see us coming" Balun quickly spoke through the mouthpiece, a sleek microphone attached by the left earpiece.

Exhaustion was a part of Balun's everyday life, a fact he stubbornly rejected with a heavy diet of caffeine and the occasional stimulant when the situation required it. In this particular case, he had access to neither of those things within the single-manned cockpit and thus resorted to clumsily wiping the sleep from his eyes and giving himself a silent, desperate shake of his head in an attempt to hasten his awareness.

"Attention Morningstar Station, this is Balun Dashiell of Dashiell Retrofit, currently on approach vector VX-771. Requesting permission to dock. Transmitting IFF Tags accordingly. Over," Balun spoke, the transmission being fed across to the Station ahead of their visual contact, ensuring Roble Manufacturing ample time to pick up on their trajectory and execute the appropriate scans before permitting entry.

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Alban Roble]

M A G N A T E
Morningstar Station, Wild Space
​

Tag: Balun Dashiell

The ignorant -- so, most of the galaxy -- would describe the Morningstar Station as the once Fondor-based starshipwright magnate's pinnacle achievement, his magnum opus. Alban Roble knew better. For over two decades, he had secluded himself more and more to the outermost fringes of the known galaxy, not for the achievement of this space station. That was what the galaxy would think. Roble himself still had time to show the cards up his sleeve.

Still, the starshipwright did appreciate initiative. The galaxy, for the most part, had grown stale for his tastes. That had been part of the reason to isolate himself from politics, from the antics of the Core. It had been a prescient move, considering the political state of the Core Worlds right now, and Alban was safe to conduct business and run his company with little interruption. All things considered, Roble was more than happy to entertain a Jedi who wanted to do business. He found it almost amusing. A special visitor would be a welcome break from the monotony of Project Clarity.

As soon as the Jedi hailed the station, he would be greeted by the Morningstar's automated traffic control systems. Immediately upon following the coordinates that Alban had provided, Dashiell's ship had been tagged and tracked through the artificial hyperlanes created by Roble Manufacturing's s-thread boosters. Though it might not appear, Dashiell's ship was constrained the moment it entered the coordinates into its nav-computer. It was not done so for nefarious purposes, but the security of the station was of the utmost priority for the company; after all, unrestricted access would quickly lead to unwelcome visitors.

Dashiel's ship would be guided not towards the public hangar bays of the Morningstar Starport, but to the Executive Hangar Bays, where a private berth would be awaiting the Jedi's ship. Alban Roble was not an inhospitable guest. Just outside of the hangar bay, in a quiet, wide, carpet-lined terminal hallway, the unassuming executive would await his guest himself.

​

 

[Balun Dashiell]

IF YOU CAN'T BEAT THEM...
ROBLE MANUFACTURING™ & DASHIELL RETROFIT™
LOCATION: The Morningstar, Astrahus-class Keepstar Station
TAGS: Alban Roble

Balun's S-91x Pegasus Starfighter
BB-Series "Chip" Astromech
​

Balun sat back as he realised his ship was being guided into the hangar, somewhat enjoying the ease of an automated landing as the Station had seemingly tractored him in; all he needed to do was hit the landing struts and then power her down once she had touched solid ground.

For a starfighter, the S-91x was quite sizeable, able to hold a pilot and two co-pilots if need be, yet today the canopy would open, simply revealing the lone Jedi as he stood, placing a foot against the hull, then dropping down casually to the durasteel floor.

Behind him, his BB-Model Astromech initiated the droids departure, disappearing from the top of the craft and dropping out a hatch that slid open underneath with something of a comical whirl, Balun often finding it a bit of a laugh every time, save for today where business remained at the forefront of his mind, and meeting a man of Alban Roble 's stature required a tad more formal ettequette.

Despite his status and role as a Jedi, Balun approached looking every part the Spacer. Once upon a time, this was his preferred getup prior to reaffirming his dedication to the Jedi Path, but he had walked several paths in his short life thus far, and had learned enough to know that Jedi Robes weren't particularly encouraging when meeting with a man of technical brilliance such as Balun believed Roble to be. Instead, he felt much at home in the comfortable yet durable attire best fit for travel.

Hopefully Roble wasn't expecting a three-piece suit...

Surprise and appreciation both shone in the smile he offered as he recognised the man awaiting him and his droid, Mr Roble himself having come to meet him on the Hangar floor, whereas he easily could have sent an assistant. It seemed he was just as eager, or perhaps more curious than anything, but interested nonetheless, to meet with Balun and discuss the younger man's ideas for potential cooperation in their line of work.

"Mr Roble, I presume?" Balun greeted him, reaching out to offer the man a shake of his hand whilst formally introducing himself, "Balun Dashiell, thank you kindly for agreeing to meet with me, and at such a location too. Your Station is quite the marvel on the way in".

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Alban Roble]

M A G N A T E
Morningstar Station, Wild Space
​

Tag: Balun Dashiell

Alban eyed his Jedi guest as he entered from the hangar bay. He had that plucky, easy-going nature that was one of the two common traits that Alban had found to be prevalent among those of his order. He was also quite young for an executive. Alban privately wondered if the Jedi had inherited his business, as he had. He would be in no position to judge.

"Mr Roble, I presume?" Balun greeted him, reaching out to offer the man a shake of his hand whilst formally introducing himself, "Balun Dashiell, thank you kindly for agreeing to meet with me, and at such a location too. Your Station is quite the marvel on the way in".

The starshipwright magnate returned the handshake politely. His grip was firm, but every moment betrayed the calculations going on in the background of his mind, the fluidity of each movement measured, calibrated. Alban gave off more machine than man. "I am glad you admire it. It makes the credits spent building it worth it," he said with a slight upturn of his lip. He was not without a sense of humor.

He turned down the corridor, expecting the Jedi to follow him. The BB-series droid's whir distracted Alban, like the droning of a spacefly, but he pushed that aside. Out of the window of the walkway, the splendid view of Eventide City presented itself. The open-air facility was illuminated by artificial panning yet magnificent, with gleaming chrome and white buildings rising high as multi-level parwkays intersected and wove between them. It was obviously constructed by one singular mind, not an urban hellscape overdominated by competing interests like most urban centers of the galaxy. Alban wanted every inch of Morningstar Station to be perfect.

"Tell me about yourself, Balun," Alban said aside to his guest as they walked, addressing the Jedi as if they were long friends. Roble was well-versed on his guest, but he was interested to see if the dossier was missing anything. They would be nearing the private transport to the Ascension Reception, the access point for the administrative sector of the station. Fortunately for Alban, after that, it was only a turbolift away from the VIP section of the starport.

​

 

[Balun Dashiell]

IF YOU CAN'T BEAT THEM...
ROBLE MANUFACTURING™ & DASHIELL RETROFIT™
LOCATION: The Morningstar, Astrahus-class Keepstar Station
TAGS: Alban Roble

BB-Series "Chip" Astromech
​

Balun Dashiell followed alongside Alban Roble , letting him lead the way a little whilst Bale himself enjoyed the sights of the vast Space-Station, following through the corridors and taking every opportunity to glance out the nearby viewports, and smile to the odd crewmember passing them by. Chip followed behind them, rolling smoothly along the clean durasteel floors of the station, only a short distance behind them. The little astromech was quiet for the most part, save for when they passed other droids, when it gave a cheerful whistle or a series of beeps and clicks in greeting.

Alban proceeded to ask about Balun, something of a personal manner of speaking that genuinely gladdened the young Jedi. Speaking personally, opening up the relationship between two people, especially when business was the purpose of their meeting. It relaxed the climate between them and allowed for more casual, easygoing discussion. A show of friendship between colleagues in a competitive industry.

"Where to start?" Balun asked rhetorically, soon giving a soft chuckle as he considered the question. He didn't want to give his life story and potentially overwhelm the man, so he just stuck to the important parts, trying to keep it as brief as possible; "I was raised in the New Jedi Order, an Orphan until I left at fifteen and was discovered by my father, Judah Dashiell , at seventeen. I served in both the Alliance and the Tingel Arm Coalition before joining the Royal Naboo Republic, which we now know as the High Republic" he paused, letting his words settle with the man.

"Dashiell Retrofit is a smaller company compared to many, yours included. I started it as a bid to enter the corporate sector, encouraged by my father and brother, both businessmen. I'm the only Force-User in the family, and I wished to follow in their footsteps, given that I spent half my life not knowing who they were. Something of a black sheep when the time came", Balun grinned at his own expense, speaking plainly about the initial motivations for his company's startup. He had the skills, but had never taken on such a formal, high-risk business enterprise until studying his father over the first year and feeling the need to have more in common with his own flesh and blood.

"Recently, I've inherited House Arenais assets from my Mother. It's opened up for some greater possibilities for my company, especially with Mahina Ship Yards, situated on the moon of Mnemosyne just beyond the Republic sphere," He explained before gesturing to Alban, his expression turning to one of intrigue; "Is there anything specific you want to know?"

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Alban Roble]

M A G N A T E
Morningstar Station, Wild Space
​

Tag: Balun Dashiell

Alban listened without interruption as the Jedi spoke of his past while the two made their way down the corridor. Some people were more than eager to talk about themselves, and Alban was more than happy to listen. He himself was the more reserved type, extravagant only when necessary, otherwise calculated. And he found that he learned more about people from listening to them talk than what they said, particularly.

Mahina Shipyards. That was the piece that interested him most. The Arenais inheritance was a matter of public record; Roble already knew the broad shape of it. But a working shipyard spoke to something more ambitious. The acquisition had made rounds in the holomedia, Alban could remember. And above all, the fact that a Jedi had stepped into the corporate sphere still intrigued him. He thought their order was built on principles of detachment and asceticism.

"Is there anything specific you want to know?"

At the end of the corridor awaited them a luxury speeder, the driver in front with tilted windows, the back open by a door swung upwards. It was sleek, the interior upholstered in grey leather, its overall design understated but refined. Alban gestured for his guest to enter ahead of him, then settled in across from him as the doors sealed shut with a soft, pressurised click. As the speeder took off, Eventide City slipped into motion behind the tinted transparisteel viewports. The chrome towers and their interwoven parkways caught the artificial light in long, clean lines as the speeder carried them toward the Ascension Reception, by design the singular point of entry into the administrative headquarters of Roble Manufacturing.

"No," Alban said simply, softly, not unkindly but in a sort of indifferent way. Having waited several minutes since his guest asked, he would leave his tone up for interpretation. He was looking out the viewports before turning towards the Jedi. The speeder began to settle down at the promenade of Reception, which for anyone else would be a presumptuous landing point, but Alban owned the place. "What do you wish to know of me?"

​

 

[Balun Dashiell]

IF YOU CAN'T BEAT THEM...
ROBLE MANUFACTURING™ & DASHIELL RETROFIT™
LOCATION: The Morningstar, Astrahus-class Keepstar Station
TAGS: Alban Roble

BB-Series "Chip" Astromech
​

As their speeder took them ever closer on their way towards the Ascension Reception, and the promenade quickly came into view from the rear of the vehicle, Balun Dashiell had been allowed to take in the sheer scope of the Morningstar's scope and beauty. What areas of the facility that the Jedi had seen in his short time so far could have fit comfortably within the likes of Coruscant's more refined sectors of the metropolis.

Alban Roble didn't have much to say in response to Balun's self-explanation. Perhaps he went a little overboard, but he had assumed that being associated with the Jedi Order of the High Republic, as well as the Dashiell Family, would have raised an eyebrow or two for the Executive, and wished to come across as transparent should Mr Roble agree to do business together in the future.

"Well, I must say that I'm curious about your thoughts on the prospect of working with Dashiell Retrofit. Or more specifically, myself, given my association with the Jedi and the High Republic?" Balun voiced curiously, airing his thoughts honestly to his host.

To many, politics might not matter at all; business was strictly that. One of the first things Judah Dashiell mentioned to Balun when Balun voiced a desire to get into the corporate universe was to be mindful of his affiliations and business dealings and their potential for bias. Simply put, not dealing with the Imperials because he was associated with the Republic, or dealing with the Sith Order because he was a Jedi. To view business as black and white, decisions between success and failure, profit and loss.

"My current and future ambition is aimed towards assisting in the expansion of the High Republic Fleet. They have the need, and the credits".

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Alban Roble]

M A G N A T E
Morningstar Station, Wild Space
​

Tag: Balun Dashiell

"Well, I must say that I'm curious about your thoughts on the prospect of working with Dashiell Retrofit. Or more specifically, myself, given my association with the Jedi and the High Republic? My current and future ambition is aimed towards assisting in the expansion of the High Republic Fleet. They have the need, and the credits".

Alban considered the Jedi's question as their speeder landed on the promenade. It stretched for some twenty spaces ahead of them, lined with cultivated shrubberies and trees. The speeder doors hinged open to admit a waft of fresh air inside. The station's oxygen scrubbers were of the highest quality, with bioengineered photosynthesis reactors that produced oxygen fresher than the natural atmosphere. The last to have entered the speeder, Alban exited first before his guest, politely waiting for the Jedi to exit before moving forward.

"Out of principle, Roble Manufacturing hardly ever refuses a customer who can pay," Alban said as they walked along. Several employees moved back and forth between the Reception and the wider Eventide City, but given how exclusive Ascension was, there was little heavy traffic. There were no visible security measures outside. The entire Station was so heavily controlled and monitored that there was little need for regular guard postings. The entire city would seem impossibly peaceful. "I can assure you, if the company were not interested in business with the High Republic, you wouldn't be here, Master Jedi. Although it does intrigue me that one of such an ascetic religion would at the same time lead such a.. industrial, militarized company."

He paused as they reached the reception doorway, transparisteel doors sliding noiselessly open to admit them into reception. "Welcome to Ascention Reception," a cool, female robotic voice announced. Curiously, there was the same lack of guards as outside. Alban walked towards the end where several turbolifts stood. Automatically, his biosignature was identified, and a door slid open. "After you," he said with a smile.

​