Labor And Materials (Dev-Thread)

[Lex-El]

[member="Zothustro Quill"]

Coruscant
Blas-Tech Headquarters
Cade Lee's Office

Fingertips met on the edge of his desk, and the man in glasses looked at the comm-display in front of him. With a flick of his mind, he spun the chair around to take advantage of the view. The One Sith now ruled this world, but none dared mess with his corporation. They knew who he really was, and he was helping fund their little escapades. So as the Republic faltered in it's capital, Blas-Tech was resurgent even as it armed both sides. Thankfully secret factories and unmarked weapons were the means with which he masked how open he was to any side with credits. Smoke still billowed from some destroyed buildings, and the Jedi Temple was thankfully gone from the view of his office. Oh, if only I had gone out and participated. Cavill hadn't, he had been dressed as Cade Lee securing more deals and designing what he needed help with at the moment.

Again, he spun around and put his Force-silencing ring back on. All his senses left him, and he rubbed his temples momentarily before placing the call to the company he currently needed. There was a certain mineral he needed to acquire from a world he had permission to be on, but he didn't have the workforce for it. Money wasn't an issue, so he placed the call to get a durable work force to handle Mustafar as well as construct what he would need mass-produced soon. It wouldn't come cheap, but Cade was ready to invest heavily to reap the large financial award later. His headache cleared, and he pressed the button.

Cade could only hope that Cestus Cybernetics was agreeable.

 

[Ugoto Chivaro]

CESTUS SYSTEM, ORD CESTUS
CESTUS CYBERNETICS HEADQUARTERS

There were few instances wherein Zothustro Quill received holocalls. Most of the time it was people trying to sell him something. The rest of the time it was a wrong number. Looking at the caller ID, this was clearly the wrong number of the century. [member="Cade Lee "]from BlasTech. What bizarre, parallel galaxy had Zothustro woken up in that he was important enough to be receiving calls from the virtual king of the arms manufacturing industry? He heard humans often pinched themselves to make sure they weren't dreaming, but that was just another weird thing they did so he refrained from doing it. He shifted in his office chair instead. The movement from that would be enough to wake him if he were dreaming, right?

Nothing happened, so he went on to plan B.

"<< Cade Lee is calling. >>" Zothustro said, looking up from the holo-communicator built into his desk and at Hannibal. "<< How do I look? >>"

"Like a mutant X'Ting in a ratty cloak. Same as usual, but it won't show up on the hologram, so you're good." Hannibal replied.

If this were a dream, Hannibal probably would have said something complimentary as opposed to being a wise-ass like he was usually inclined to do. Ergo, this was not a dream, but an actual call from Cade freaking Lee. Hannibal had neglected to realize exactly who Zothustro had said was calling him up until the next moment.

"Wait, who did you say-"

"<< I must take this. >>"

Zothustro tapped the answer button, and a holographic bust of Cade Lee popped up on the desk. Likewise, a holographic bust of Zothustro would pop up before Cade Lee as well. Hannibal was thankfully excluded from Cade Lee's vision. Zothustro had no idea how holograms worked or exactly how instantaneous communication could take place in this manner, but he was never one to question the exact mechanics of the galaxy. Especially when they were probably leading up to a very profitable business arrangement.

"<< This is Zothustro Quill, CEO of Cestus Cybernetics. >>" The X'Ting introduced himself, chittering away while the translator on the clasp of his cloak did the real talking. In a mechanical monotone, no less. "<< To what do I owe the pleasure, Mr. Lee? >>"

 

[Lex-El]

[member="Zothustro Quill"]

Sitting in his office, he pressed the button to send the call. Silence took over his office for a moment, and then finally the signal was being sent. It took some time for the lines to meet up, this was interstellar communication after all. A much smarter man had come up with the means with which people could communicate from light years apart and it could all be neatly synchronized. Someone else had taken said technology and made it so mundane and normal that he could merely dial a number at his desk and his very visage could be projected in real-time to said person, and vice versa. As expected, the transmission finally went through as his call was accepted. Well feth, that took longer than I expected. Cade wasn't used to waiting on anyone, especially not under his other name. If I knew I'd have to wait like this, I'd have just shown up without my ring or glasses and negotiated my terms with them. The brutal thought crossed his mind for a moment before finally the image of X'ting finally appeared before him.

Guess I don't have to gut him, he mused.

Pleasantries were just that, pleasant. Cade was used to this song and dance, so he cut right to the chase. "I need to outsource my mining and labor operations for the foreseeable future. It's come to my attention that I'm losing money paying for labor, when I could just automize most of it. Most of the materials I need are in rather dangerous locations, and I have a massive project on the horizon that I need a new work force for." A map appeared on their holo-screens, so they could both view exactly what Cade was presently looking at. At first it was the whole galaxy, then a cluster got highlighted, then it zoomed in on the Omega Protectorate space.

Then it finally stopped on Mustafar.

"There is a mineral there, called Mirkanite that I need. It's much more cost effective to get droids to do this sort of work, and they don't require rest or sleep. So what do you think?" The feed went back to Mr. Lee's face as he leaned back in his chair. "I'll give you a sizable sum up front for any development costs you may need to overcome, as well as a nice investment for your company. If you can do this properly, and on time, I'll consider extending this relationship to all of my companies all across the galaxy and attach your growth to mine." Cade let his words end there, he was offering independent expansion and a large client.

"Ball is in your court."

 

[Ugoto Chivaro]

CESTUS SYSTEM, ORD CESTUS
CESTUS CYBERNETICS HEADQUARTERS

Zothustro listened intently, largely because they dove straight into business with absolutely no pleasantries. Zothustro guessed this was how people did business in the core. Unless it was just a human thing as well, in which case it was inexplicable to the X'Ting. Antennae twitched in gleeful anticipation as Cade Lee rattled off what he needed without so much as a "hey, how are ya." This would, no doubt, turn out to be a huge contract. Even better was the publicity this could generate for Cestus. If BlasTech was using Z3s for heavy labor because they wanted it done to perfection, the galaxy would surely follow.

It had been on the to-do list for Cestus to break into Protectorate space. So far they had acquired permission to be there, soon their distribution center would be fully functional and the contract with Arceneau Trade updated. Selling droids en masse to BlasTech for an operation on Mustafar would give them ample reputation with the Mustafarians. They could spread to the rest of the Protectorate from there. Oh, this was good! Maybe after he sealed this deal, he'd be treated with a little more respect from the rest of the X'Ting community, instead of being repeatedly spurred for his peculiar appearance.

Well, he could hope anyway.

Cade mentioned something about balls and courts. That didn't make any sense to Zothustro in this context. Why was a ball being brought to trial? Had it committed some grievous offense? Was that even possible for a ball? Balls were hardly sapient. There could be no real reason to bring one to court. Zothustro puzzled over why he would bring one to his court, if any at all. He wasn't even a lawyer or a judicial official. Why would he have a court? Humans seemed to have a really hard time making sense, so Zothustro just ignored it and agreed.

"<< This is a large deal you've offered. You will want Z3s for the labor, Z4s to move freight and materials, and Z5s to help with maintenance. All with the appropriate environmental shielding. Cestus can provide all of these things. >>" Zothustro explained. "<< How many of each unit would you like to purchase? >>"

 

[Lex-El]

"I'm going to need all those in the thousands, this will be a massive undertaking. The Mirkanite is highly dangerous to get to, and I need a large supply for the project I will be undertaking." Cade pulled up a few datapads to look over the notes he had received from the consultants he had hired. It was always best to look at other ventures in similiar fields to make sure he wouldn't be shafted when it came time to pay. A few figures laid there for him to study, so he perused them for but a moment before finally looking back up at the holo-projection on the other side of his desk. "What will you need as far as an upfront advance from my company? I do wish to make this as quick as possible, for the designs require Mirkanite to even go into the prototype stage."

Mr. Lee put his datapad down, and clasped his hands as he leaned forward.

"If you aren't adequately equipped to handle my needs, tell me now and I'll make sure you never have to worry about that problem ever again. This project requires all deadlines be hit, they are mandatory. Failure of your company will look poorly on the galactic stage, and your success will only vault you further up the corporate ladder." Various backroom deals in the Tion cluster required this project go off without a hitch, and his company's future was riding on this project. If [member="Zothustro Quill"] couldn't fulfill his order, he'd have to go look elsewhere. It wouldn't be ideal, but Blas-Tech was almost at a disadvantage in the negotiations due to how much their future rested on Cestus ability to perform.

This time, he didn't have a corny, human reference ready.

 

[Ugoto Chivaro]

CESTUS SYSTEM, ORD CESTUS
CESTUS CYBERNETICS HEADQUARTERS

Mirkanite? That sounded like something he should know about. Then again, Zothustro dealt with droids, not with raw materials. He could look it up later. It was evidently valuable enough to warrant large scale mining on a planet as dangerous as Mustafar. Seeing as Cade wanted it, it was probably something that could be weaponized. Whatever it was didn't matter so much as the fact that he was about to sell thousands upon thousands of droids. Which prompted Zothustro to start thinking about whether or not he could actually produce such an extraordinary amount of droids in the first place. Not even the planets he was marketing to in Mandalorian space had purchased that many as of yet.

"<< If my knowledge of our current production facilities is correct, we should have no problem fulfilling this order. Fully configured, our largest plant on Ord Cestus can produce over one thousand droids in single Cestian day. >>" Zothustro explained. "<< Shipping them should not take any longer than expected. As is policy for any order of over one hundred units, all we really need is a down payment and the proper documentation. >>"

Cade was right, failure would look horrendous on the galactic stage. It was good then that he had not even the slightest concern of such a thing happening. Outside of industrial espionage, he was in total confidence of Cestus' ability to produce exactly what BlasTech wanted. This would be the first time Cestus' factories would be operating at maximum capacity. Hopefully it wouldn't be the last.

 

[Lex-El]

[member="Zothustro Quill"]

"How about I just go ahead and double that down payment?" Cade grew silent as he pulled up various bank accounts, while checking his funds. That warm feeling in his stomach was the comfort of all the zeros that the rest of the galaxy couldn't fathom. His quarterly bonus was more than some systems set their security budgets for the entire year, and he did revel in that amount of wealth. It was one form of true power that he possessed, and the smile that crossed his face was genuine. That moment of pleasure at looking at his throw away accounts was quickly squashed as he shifted to look at some of the actual business accounts. Various systems housed parts of the companies wealth, and none knew the other banks that held the coffers of an arms maker. It was good business, but it sure was a pain to shift through all the menu's while on a call with an X'ting. There it is, he thought as he pulled up the new accounts that had been made for this project specificially. Investors had thrown a ton of credits at the project, now was time to spend it.

"How's this sound? I'll go ahead and double that down payment, and you just forward whatever extra credits or materials you will need from me in the future. Does that sound agreeable Mr. Quill?" The amount flashed on their respective holo-screens before Cade went ahead and pressed send. The transfer process was instant, or as instant as it could be across the galaxy.

"Now that that business has been handled, I'll need security for all my facilities as well. Can you handle that or do I need to look elsewhere?"

 

[Ugoto Chivaro]

CESTUS SYSTEM, ORD CESTUS
CESTUS CYBERNETICS HEADQUARTERS

[member="Cade Lee "]was a generous man. Then again, he could afford it. Zothustro had spent the last several decades (up until Cestus was founded) counting half-creds and squatting in a decaying estate. Now things were better, but he would never dream of conducting business like Cade did. Not even if Cestus rocketed to the top tomorrow. It was a tough habit to break, but he'd rather have too much unspent funds rather than not enough. There was no telling what could happen in the future. It was better to keep enough money to cover the profit lost in, say, a factory meltdown or something equally unfortunate.

"<< This is more than agreeable. >>" Zothustro said. Thankfully it didn't sound as over-eager through the translation device. "<< Cestus can cover security as well, though it is far from our specialty. >>"

Cestus maintained its own security crews at its factories, which were mostly SC1 Droids and a few other X'Ting officers. Zothustro simply did not trust any third party to handle the security of his factories and prevent any acts of industrial espionage. Cestus' security forces were not elite, but they were trustworthy. No backstabbing would be taking place here at any point.

 

[Lex-El]

[member="Zothustro Quill"]

"I'll make sure to blend my forces with yours, I just needed to make sure there would be some protection for my investment." Cade needed this to go perfectly, without any hitches. One set back or attack on his plants while he was mining these materials would set his company back for years. "I trust that this is in capable hands, if you need anything else from me personally this is the number to reach me at." It was the truth, Cade Lee or the other man behind the glasses would pick that line up at any time. Rave Merrill herself was prone to calling it at the wrong time. "If this goes well I'd like to enter into a longer relationship with our companies, and develop more integrated pieces of technology."

Cade went to end the call before remembering one thing.

"There is also this group of venture capitalists gathering in the Tion sector, you should really move your business in that direction. I'll throw your company's name around in our next meeting, I look forward to more fruitful discussions Mr. Quill. Cade Lee out."

When the call ended, he left to head towards his next meeting to set up the prototypes.

 

[Ugoto Chivaro]

CESTUS SYSTEM, ORD CESTUS
CESTUS CYBERNETICS HEADQUARTERS

Zothustro nodded, all too sympathetic for the desire for unparalleled security. Doubling their efforts would ensure much greater protection against any hippies or eco-terrorists trying to upset the unstoppable march of corporate expansion. Then again, Mustafar was not a pretty, green planet. Eco-terrorists and environmentalists were somewhat less upset with the exploitation of near-inhospitable lava planets for whatever reason.

"<< I appreciate that. I shall have my people call your people. >>"

With that, the call ended. When Cade's hologram vanished, Zothustro could more clearly see the astonished face of Hannibal Oryen. Hannibal had vocalized his thoughts on Zothustro's capacity for corporate leadership several times throughout their relationship, though mostly when he was thought the X'Ting wasn't around. Most of it amounted to his praise for his technical skills, but often it ended with the Fondorian expressing his concern that an ugly bug wouldn't be able to smooth over any business deals with any other CEOs. Appearances matter and all that.

"Wow. Looks like-"
"<< Get out of my office. >>"
"Right-o."

The meeting adjourned, Hannibal took his leave of the X'Ting with the same haste he left all of his business meetings. Zothustro had a lot of work to handle now. Better to leave him to it.