No Government is Without Weapons. [Darth Ignus]

[Aithne Charr]

Aboard the Demeter, Over Surron​

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Solan had figured that it was about time to expand a bit, and it was easy to try and sell to a group he was a part of. As far as contracts came, these were probably the easiest to sign and achieve but also a less formal affair. Hell, he had invited [member="Darth Ignus"] up to the weaponless cruiser for some drinks while he talked over the fine points of a deal. In truth, he was pushing it more than it had been suggested, mostly due to his own wishing to use his own products. Of course, he could just buy them from himself whenever he wished for their use, but it was easier just to get a contract settled and a steady flow into the government he supported.​

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Either way, he sat in one of the garden domes that were scattered all over the Demeter. It was a Botanical Research ship primarily, one that he used to develop plants which suited his purposes in both combats and out of it, but also in order to develop poisons that could be used as tea leaves. It was something he told few people and only one purpose of the ship. The other as its Diplomatic purpose. Without any offensive weapons, the ship housed several gardens with tables and a created a star filled sky around them at all times. It was a place for peaceful talks and negotiations, something he much rather preferred to the theater of warfare.​

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The garden around them, though, was a well kept one. With numerous places to sit and talk, or simply observe the scenes around them and the stares which pushed through the dome above. It wasn't exactly the most spectacular sight, dim lights being the only source of light for much of the garden, the overhead lights off. Solan preferred to look out to the stars rather than see a mass of bright lights above, it reminded him of home, where he was surrounded by others and could talk to the Captain of his guard without anything on his mind.​

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He sat alone for now, though, drinking from a glass with some whiskey in it. He was waiting for Ignus to arrive so that they could talk things over and discuss how the flow of resources will work. He expected small investments right now, nothing large when it came to the frequency of ships being provided, but droids were something the Sith might be curious in, and droids were something he had a multitude of at his hands.​

 

[Mr. OOC]

A RAL lanced through space, ascending rapidly from the planet below. The summons for a conversation with his fellow Triad member was not something that he could ignore. Not that he had a reason to, either. The small, but spritely fast, shuttle craft approached the larger Demeter, and requested docking clearance, which it was summarily granted. It flew into the hangar, with Leos looking out at the ship for his first real glimpse of it. It really was rather interesting to look at. Not something he'd want to fly around in himself, but he could see the appeal it would have to those of a lighter persuasion, those drawn inherently to life.

When the ship landed, Leos left it. He was ushered through the ship to one of the garden domes. Upon entering, he paused for a moment to take in the plant life. It was unusual to him to see plants in space, but he could think of worse places to be. He walked around until he found Solan sipping on some drink in a glass that he could only deduce was either whiskey or rum based on how much was in the glass and the color.

"Drinking before I even arrive?"

He smirked and moved to take a seat across from him.

"Interesting ship. Not everyday you find plants growing on one."

[member="Solan Charr"]

 

[Aithne Charr]

Solan's eyes turned on the man and with them his body turned to face Ignus, sitting up and nodding.

"Can't always wait for everyone, otherwise that would make for a long evening."

He watched the man take a seat before nodding off to a nearby officer to get another glass for Ignus if he needed it, if not it would be there just sitting. Solan was more interested in talking about the reason he had brought Ignus up here and away from the world below. There was still much to do after the events earlier in the month, something that he would need to let the Sith continue to sort out while he watched the Sith from far off. He wasn't fully ready to trust a Sith, but thus far there had been no signs of a complete need to worry.

"Oh yes... the ship. Well, to tell you the truth it was supposed to replace the Infernus as the flagship of Kesh's navy, that was until I had joined up in this little organization. I figured, though, its uses were far more needed here, having a ship whose combat efficiency was non-existent, yet could host a political meeting without worry of danger... well that was something that was necessary for our path. Which is why I called for you to come here..."

He reached down with his free hand, grabbing a datapad and setting it on the table.

"We have your resources at Ignus Black if I am remembering the name correctly. But the use of one company for our resources is dangerous, and it so happens that before you had brought me along, I was in the process of securing factories and shipyards on Kesh to ensure the creation of a state-funded company, one that could sell to an Imperial faction in the far galactic south. I am sure I need not explain that buy, but I am a Business man, and I also want to ensure the governments I aid and fight for have tech that is dependable." He paused so that his rant could be digested.

"So instead of recommending we sign on an external company this early, the secondary company we use is my own. Of course, I'm not pushing this without your thoughts and suggestions on price cuts, the freedom of trade, and exclusiveness of products. I simply want your thoughts before we dive in and talk more about this little idea I had. My own company is only capable of producing droids, ship, and vehicles at this time as it is."

 

[Mr. OOC]

"It's always good to have diplomatic ships."

He waved away the offered drink. It was one of those things about Leos, he didn't drink alcohol. Never had and never would. Water would always be his preferred choice of beverage. That said, it was fine if someone drank around him. It wasn't as if that bothered him or anything. Regardless, he was more interested in the ship than he was in the drinking anyway. Kind of large for a diplomatic vessel, but the lack of weapons made up for that. It would be hard for anyone to justify attacking such a ship, and it would be easy for the Reformation to justify their actions if they did. He'd leave the diplomatic efforts to others.

Solan brought up his company and he nodded his head. This was a business meeting then. He'd sort of expected that anyway.

"I actually own two companies, but I'm keeping one public for the time being. Maintains continued income which they can use to develop further tech for us."

Crossing his arms over his chest, he tilted his head to the side and regarded the neutral counterpart. What he said his company could do would certainly be beneficial to them, and already exceeded what Ignus Black could do. Droids and vehicles were outside of the range of both of his companies, but both of them would be useful to supplement their fighting force. Given the avenue they were going to be taking with a lot of their ships, a droid fighting force would be beneficial.

"I'm not opposed to setting something up with your company, Solan. I don't think Teynara would be either. We need all the forces we can get and droids would be useful, especially now when we don't have extensive manpower. What kind of droids do you have available?"

[member="Solan Charr"]

 

[Aithne Charr]

[member="Darth Ignus"]


He listened to the man answers him and he smiled as he mentioned the need for diplomatic ships.

He agreed that the ship was a bit large, but the secondary purpose of the ship was something he didn't quickly tell people. If they knew he developed the growth of new plants on the ship for various reasons including different toxins which he could hide as tea leaves, something most people know Solan for offering his guests and those around him... well it would quickly lose a lot of trust he had gained over the years, especially those that he drank the beverage with.

But the Diplomatic aspects were another plus. Considering the ship was outfitted with the best shields and engines he could find, it was unlikely that anyone would be able to down the ship easily, allowing for them to escape those who weren't quite so quick to lend Solan's their ear.

"Two? That surprises me and I must say that you do a good job at keeping the other one under wraps, so much so you have my curiosity... but I suppose I should answer you first on what we produce. Currently, our stocks are low, and the development team is more focused on the spacecraft we need to get out of production seeing as our current buyers are always interested in new technologies with a unique twist that come with them. As well as plans to buy designs are under way but that is for another time. The current droids we have are these three models, the Striker, Jericho, and Hyperion with a fourth, the Screecher, in development now and should be released soon enough for use by our customers."

 

[Mr. OOC]

"It's kept secret so that people can't find it and I always have something to draw upon. Even in the darkest of times it may be of use to us."

Ignus Black was an unknown entity. Their fleet of defensive ships had only left their stationing point once, and they'd been hidden in deep space that one time. They hadn't been called upon, so they likely remained unknowns. This was appropriate. Leos didn't want the fleet forces to become known, as he intended to keep them largely as a back up for whatever might happen. Plus they defended Crakull, just in case some idiot came along and decided to mess with the locals. The facility there was also fortified, so anyone attempting such a thing would find it difficult to actually succeed in taking the facility.

Solan presented the information on several series of droids, and Leos leaned forward to take a closer look. Considering they lacked the manpower to field a full army, and they were unlikely to get such a thing from Surron alone, droids would be a needed to maintain the bulk of their fighting force. Each of those presented had their merits, surely. They would do for the time being. The artillery droid and the Screecher would probably become mainstays of the Reformation forces. That kind of artillery would be invaluable on the battlefield.

"You can furnish all of these sufficiently to man a small army?"

He tapped fingers against his leg.

"I can definitely see us ordering many of them. The Hyperion and Screecher will probably be mainstays of our forces so long as we continue to buy them. Eventually we'll replace the bulk of the droid forces with flesh and blood variety. They can be much more independent on the battlefield. Still, this will help us now, and that's what we need."

[member="Solan Charr"]

 

[Aithne Charr]

"I see... well then i shall not press the issue as to this second company of yours. Now with that in mind i suppose we should return to the thought of these droids and ships... the former which has caught your eyes. I can easily produce enough of these for a small army, especially considering the reach of while a small presence for now, a rather small one. But i would be able to much more quickly produce these if allowed to create a factory on one of the nearby uninhabited solar bodies. This would allow me to quickly produce and secure your stock without any effort on my part. This is of course assuming that you are perfectly ok with my construction of such a place."

He was not insisting, no if the man did not want any factories from Keshiri Industries on the planet, then that could be discarded. But strategically, it would be far easier for him to set up production here where he could ship the droids right off the production lines and into combat. He wondered if the man would be interested in more than just those considering what he had in mind, and he was sure after some time the craft he could produce would be capable of giving him the opportunity to further expand his business.

"As for the Screecher and the Hyperion. they are rather destructive creations, but when supplemented into a force who is without ears or fear of being blown away without so much as a warning... well I am sure you already see the prospects. But considering your decision is likely already made up, then i must ask one more thing. You mention the replacement of those forces with the Flesh and Blood variety, something I can understand but I must point out that you would have at that point the droids laying around, what do you plan to do with them after?"

 

[Mr. OOC]

"Producing a factory creates jobs. Doing so on an uninhabited planetary body harms no one. I see no downside to that. I wouldn't suggest putting it on Surron itself, but one of the nearby worlds would be good. I'd prefer we only construct clean facilities on the Capitol if we can."

It just made sense, really. They already had facilities for ship construction, and the shipyards above the world were progressing as well. Building anything down on the planet would create pollution issues. Putting a factory on a nearby uninhabited world would make it so the pollution wasn't an issue. Additionally, it would be in proximity to their main power base, but kept off from it so that it could continue to produce even if they came under attack. It was smart planning. Thinking ahead to the inevitability of someone attacking them was what would likely save them in the end. Preparedness was key, and Leos liked to be prepared for essentially every outcome.

"We'll still use them then. I think it's in our interest to have flesh and blood soldiers on the front lines for the sake of them being identifiable, and for people to believe they can be reasonable, sensible. Droids can be programmed to be such, but most people will find them cold and heartless, for obvious reason. Flesh and blood soldiers create a better image for us."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small datapad that he started typing on.

"You can only have so many flesh and blood soldiers. It's proportional to your populace. Supplementing them with droids will create a larger army than we could otherwise field."

[member="Solan Charr"]