In the Days of Yore

[Atiniir Starrider]

[member="Darian Beviin"]

A long time ago (really just 22 years give or take) in a galaxy far far away (But really just a few parsecs away, on Mandalore)...

Kal Starrider was excited. Very excited. He hadn't been this excited since he'd completed his verd'goten ceremony seven years ago, and for good reason. Today, he'd be getting the Mandalorian armor he'd wear for the rest of his life.

Right now, he wore a very basic set, consisting of just the metal plates, a helmet with standard electronic gear, and a vibroblade gauntlet. It was not designed to be a walking arsenal that most people saw Mandalorians wearing, because it was designed to be discarded or recycled as soon as its owner grew out of it, as Kal finally had at twenty years of age. Kal had been wearing similar sets since he was thirteen years old.

After landing on Mandalore, Kal made his way to an armor shop that he recongized and stepped inside. He pulled off his helmet and waved to the owner.

"Su'cuy'gar, friend," he said, "I am here to, very proudly, place an order."

 

[Ardasz Verd]

Artus was a practical man.

His brow had accumulated a thick layer of soot and sweat, but he did not bother to wipe away the grime, Instead, it caked there and created a makeshift barrier, one that would help to prevent further imposition by bodily fluids toward his eyes while he worked. A pair of treated googles had drawn a Smithy's tan line around his eyes, which gauged the youth pensively as he spoke to place an order. "Dar'ika," his voice boomed back toward the forge as he maintained eye contact with the youth who's armor lacked the battle hardened luster of proper Beskar'gam. "Mhi ganar ash'ad ti'mhi!"

"Ack!" the younger boy, no older than eleven, cried out from somewhere behind the counter. The clatter of metal across the floor resounded through the shop, but Artus only shook his head. "M-morutar!" Darian called out as he stumbled into the room, careful to shut the door to the Forge behind him. "N'eparavu takisit, buir," he murmured as he cast his eyes toward the floor. "Gar ganuure..."

"Nevermind that," his father held up a hand to dismiss the idle conversation and folded his arms as he nodded toward the new customer. "Me'copaani, vod?" he asked the young man as he assessed his kit. It could have been anything, from a proper beskad to something more grandiose, like a full set of armor. The problem was that beskar was not easy to come by, and what he had in stock would be pricey, even for a fellow Mando. Without saying that outright, Artus would allow the boy to at least plead his case.

The worst that he could do was say no.

"Your 'gam," Darian said strangely as he looked over the young man's ragtag assortment of gear. "It's, ah..."

"Dar'ika." Artus stared hard at the boy, who fell quickly silent.

He slipped both hands from the specially designed mitts that prevented his hands from burning as he worked the forge. Weary, calloused, yet strong hands emerged and Artus reached up to stroke his goatee. "As I was saying, how may we help you?"

[member="Atiniir Starrider"]

 

[Atiniir Starrider]

[member="Darian Beviin"]

"Well, it's time I got some real armor, fit for a real warrior, not this cast-off stuff," Kal said, indicating his own armor. He reached into a pouch on his belt and pulled out a small palm-sized datapad. He tapped the screen with his thumb until he found the list he had assembled the previous day, after several days of careful consideration. The list was the features of the armor he desired. His father and other warriors of his clan had assisted in providing sensible suggestions, and Kal had taken a good look at the kits of previous warriors of the Starrider bloodline to provide more. The list was as follows:

Beskar construction
Full HUD suite
Vibroblade gauntlet
Flame projector
Dart launcher
Grapple line
Jetpack

"I need a set of full battle armor protecting the chest, lower arms, lower legs, pelvis, head, and neck with these additional specifications," Kal said, extending the hand with the datapad, "I will pay with a funds transfer when the armor is complete."

OOC: here is the armor codex post. The second vibroblade and magnetic holsters were added by Atiniir and are not a part of the original set.

 

[Ardasz Verd]

"Of course," Artus grunted as the man produced a datapad and toggled a screen full of information. Standard stuff as far as Mandalorian kits went. He'd seen multiple customization options over the years, and nothing really struck him as too fancy in this boy's loadout. "I can gut it and leave room for you to any after market work later, if you'd like. No one likes to be married to one decision for life when it comes to armor, 'lek?"

The elder Beviin smirked slightly, but Darian knew the truth of it. Of all the Beroya'se who frequented his father's shop, he knew about five who made the mistake of telling Artus they were fine with slaved weapons. While it made them slightly sturdier by adjoining them to the beskar framework, it also meant that to get a new weapon installed would require the creation of an entirely new piece of armor. It wasn't very cost effective, and there was a finite amount of beskar in the known galaxy.

"Dar'ika, stoke the forge and prep the smelter." The younger boy snapped to it and whirred, through the door in a matter of seconds. "Good kid. He's honest, like his mother. Too honest sometimes, though." Artus glanced toward Starrider and scrawled out a list in basic.

"I can give you the names of a few folk over at MandalMotors who could run you a price on Jetpacks and fuel. As far as the weapons tech goes, I can manage to get them all in one place over a few days time, but all of that is secondary. The only real work I'm doing aside from the smithery is installation, synch, and optimization. Once the internal computers are online and green lighted, your armor will be good to go."

He slid the list toward the man and lowered his voice a fraction. "If you want full beskar and not a watered down batch, I'll need you to bring some that you found on your own. Otherwise, we're going to have to use an alloy- still strong stuff, stronger than aruteii metal by five thousand years. I just can't stretch what I have for a full suit."

He gestured toward the workbench. "Beyond that, you're welcome to sit with me as I calibrate the HUD kit. I have my own way of doing it, and I think you'd benefit from being able to repair it if it ever went down or got compromised."

[member="Atiniir Starrider"]

 

[Atiniir Starrider]

[member="Darian Beviin"]
"I'm afraid I don't have any on me specifically, but I can call in some favors, and maybe secure some," Kal said, taking a seat. He replaced his helmet and activated the ancient touch-method communicator. He spoke for a few minutes, then turned to the smith.

"Good news," he said, "A buddy of mine says he can get us a good supply from a recent mining op."

 

[Ardasz Verd]

Artus grunted and gave a nod. "That will work," he replied. Though he was a man of few words, the Beviin was renown for his ability to follow through. The sound of smelting metal began to churn on the other side of the wall as young Darian prepared the flames of hell for shaping Mandalorian Iron. "It's going to take some time to start the basic frame. Chest plate, shoulders, and leg plates will be first, and then I'll handle the helmet. The HUD suite won't take too long to program."

Beviin took out a small sheet of transparisteel from his desk, the initial layer which would be overlain with crystal and wired with an unseen matrix. The latticework allowed for electronics on a microscopic scale to be integrated- which was the groundwork for a Head's Up Display. For now though, he scratched a layout across the sheet that would indicate the points at which he would cut the metal. "You wanted the traditional visor, 'lek?" His gaze traveled over the young man and tapped the piece he was working on. "If you don't mind that, I'll get to work right now."

Darian peeked through the door and called out. "I have the smelter at heat level," the boy informed his father, "did you want me to dip some beskar, or wait for you, pa?"

"Go ahead and start the process," Artus called back. "Make sure you use the gloves, and be steady. Drop the duranium in with it and start mixing an alloy with a denser composition."

The younger apprentice nodded. "You got it!"

[member="Atiniir Starrider"]

 

[Atiniir Starrider]

[member="Darian Beviin"]
"Yes, traditional definitely," Atiniir said, "It wouldn't be Mandalorian armor without the classic T-visor."

Atiniir found a chair and sta down to watch the construction of his armor. It was absolutely fascinating.

 

[Ardasz Verd]

Artus laughed aloud at that. "True enough, I suppose." It was hard to argue with that logic. The T-visor was a tried, true, and efficient design that offered a decent window of vision and maximized protection to the head. He etched the design and began to carve out the frame. After several moments, he overlaid the lattice and applied a thin layer of gel adhesive to bond the components together. It took several hours to properly calibrate and bring a HUD up to snuff, but he had plenty of time for that.

Darian had already started in the other room, evinced by the loud sound of sloshing, liquidstate metal that boiled and spat. "Be careful back there," Artus called, "The heat's too high."
"How can you tell from in there?" the inquisitive voice called back.

"If you can hear it, it's too hot. If I can hear it, it's way too hot." Several obscenities flowed forth from beyond the wall, but Artus went back to work and grabbed a multitool from his desk. "He's a good kid," the Beviin struck up conversation as he worked. "One day, he might even be worth something as verd for Clan Beviin. For now, he's still a bit green." The smile on the aging man's face was evident when it concerned his son. Like any good Mandalorian, he was fiercely proud of his family. "His mother died when he was young. Sickness got her, and there was nothing we could do. He wasn't old enough to remember her, but osik, he's got her eyes."

Artus shook his head. "Sorry, talking helps the process go by quicker."

[member="Atiniir Starrider"]

 

[Atiniir Starrider]

[member="Darian Beviin"]
Atiniir chuckled at the exchange between father and son. He remembered when he was that young.

"No problem," he said, "I have a tendency to ramble myself."

 

[Ardasz Verd]

Artus chuckled, then continued to talk back and forth with the man long into the evening hours. By the time the T-visor was finished, he had gone over the specifics about how the HUD would work and explained the verbal and physical commands that could be used in lieu of hand motions or button presses. It was practical to be able to cycle through information by moving an eye one way or the other, or flipping to a new window simply by blinking. It was even more useful in situations that required the wearer to remain stationary. After that, he motioned for Atiniir to join him and Darian in the back, where the metals were already steadily blending together. Smelting was one of the more difficult parts of the forging process, and the younger Beviin had a deceptively good handle on the skill already. Artus was more than a bit pleased with his son's progress, though he did not indicate it aloud.

He slid both hands into large mitts and grappled with the smithing tongs to peel some of the metal away from the heat, whereupon he dripped it carefully onto the work area. "Most buy'ce will fit over a man's head regardless of how small or large it is, but the best ones fit perfectly. Want me to work the metal around your head?"

"Dad, careful, he might take your seriously." Darian chuckled at his father's morose humor, but Artus knew better than to press the issue beyond that. He scolded the boy for ruining his good fun, then turned back to Starrider.

"In all serious, Dar'ika will take your measurements, and I will fold the metal to specifications. You don't have to remain here for the whole process, because the heat is a bit unbearable if you're not used to it and you're not in the proper garb. Feel free to wait up front."

[member="Atiniir Starrider"]

 

[Atiniir Starrider]

[member="Darian Beviin"]
"I'll do that," Kal said, presenting himself to be measured. The excitement in his voice was unmistakable. Fainlly, after years of waiting, his personal armor was nearing completion! He was so excited he thought he was going to pop.

 

[Atiniir Starrider]

After giving his measurements, Kal waited for the armorsmith to finish. When he finally did, Kal wasted no time in putting it on. The armor was steel grey, a blank slate for personalization. It fit Kal like a second skin. He'd never felt more proud in all his life. Now, he was truly a Mandalorian warrior. He felt invincible, like he could take on the whole galaxy and not get scratched.

"Look out, anybody dumb enough to stand in my way," he said, "Kal Starrider just reached a whole new level of awesome."