Beginnings of Pride

[Taeli Raaf]

Adding the suggested hyperdrive modifications and additions, Taeli mulled over whether to answer Circe's questions. It wouldn't hurt too much in the long run, she determined.

"Taeli," she replied to answer the first question, "and we lost roughly half of our personnel, but you'd be amazed what this sort of crisis can do for recruitment if one is clever enough. For instance, I lost half my staff in Krayt, but instead of going to pieces, I immediately began searching for more workers and technicians to keep output at just slightly under optimal levels. People want reassurances that the government will do what it can to keep them safe, and the Sith have people doing what we can for them. I even founded a subsidiary to keep food and water resources flowing on Coruscant to stop any shortages."

It was all about using a crisis to your advantage, and the Sith were certainly doing that.

[member="Enigma"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

"Such is fair enough, Taeli, but you must be having issues with rebellions and the mass loss of territory, not to mention the loss of manpower and the sacrificing of civilian industry for more military personnel." Such never did turn out the way it was supposed to when civilians were sacrificed to bolster the military. "Still, the Dark Side does seem to have helped bolster things. I personally have supplemented the lack of workers through the use of droids."

With that said, she couldn't see much else to really do in order to help the design be pushed further along. "Now, about those TIE Detonators... I'd like you to come with me and examine them once they're delivered to the hangar my ship is in. Perhaps you'll be inspired to design a similar drone for the One Sith."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Of course, I'm pushing to invest in more industrial jobs right now, try and get people to think about other things at least," Taeli said, nodding and closing down the projection of the Star Destroyer. It seemed to be reaching the point where it was almost ready for fabrication and development, but that could wait a little longer. Transmitting the current designs to Circe, as agreed, Taeli also sent a message to her engineers to move the TIE Detonators out of their storage space and to the hanger Circe specified.

"The drones will be waiting for us at your hanger, Miss Savan," she said with a smile. "And I can't say an idea or two might strike me while we look over them. My brain is always racing with new ideas. Lead on, ma'am."

It was always nice to do business in a professional way and actually get results, and Taeli always liked to show she was honest in her business dealings as long as her opposite number didn't try and double-cross her.

[member="Enigma"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

Circe did precisely as the woman suggested, leading the Sith Lord to the hangar bay. And what awaited her there? Well, TIE Detonators, of course. "I remember back when these were new... When I had territory in the Sith Empire, I would pack Ranator-class Star Destroyers full of these things in order to unleash them on any invaders. It was successful against the Fel Imperium, but the Empire had been lost by then. There are probably millions of these things floating around everywhere. I'm not sure how much of the Sith Empire's fleets the One Sith got, but they should certainly use these all up, even if only as training drones."

Some scaffolding was brought over as they walked up to the top of the ship. Circe tore a panel off, exposing a droid brain within, which she carefully lifted out of its mount. "We'll likely be designing a similar droid brain for what we're working on. Training pilots with target drones instead of simulations has been proven to increase pilot capabilities a good ten to twenty percent. Detonators are fast and hard to hit. Not to mention heavily shielded, though their hulls leave a lot to be desired. Perfect for advanced training."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Enigma"]

"I was still in school, completely unaware of my Force Sensitivity, back then," Taeli replied, climbing the scaffolding. "But I see your point, I don't like mothballing useful tech, even if its older now. And more advanced training is always good, especially in the current climate. We need as many experienced pilots and forces as possible, and that's not just the Sith. That's for everyone to take to heart."

Looking over the droid brain, she noted where different parts of the programming would be. She had branched the company into droid making and had been trying to familiarize with droid processors and such. Still, an idea was already bubbling into her head just by looking at the droid brain but she would log it away for later.

"So are these satisfactory for your needs, Miss Savan?" she asked with a smile.

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

"And now here you are. Sith Lady, Darth Arcanix, in charge of operating and managing the One Sith's powerful manufacturing company. Quite a change of pace from where you were a couple decades ago." She sighed. "I suppose younger and up-and-coming Sith Lords view individuals like me as outdated, something to be purged or otherwise eradicated to prevent the new blood from being tainted." Arcanix seemed nice, but Circe was curious to see the attitude of the woman inside the business shell.

"I'd recommend you develop a similar type of drone." She held the droid brain in her hands before linking it to her datapad. "Base code seems robust, but I'll need to tinker with it a bit, make sure things go the way they're supposed to with this new design."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"I would disagree," she said with a smile. "I think psychotic and overly sadistic Sith need to be purged, or at least shown some moderation in their . . . extra activities. I respect the old guard, such as yourself, as you all are a wealth of knowledge to learn from and seek out advice from if you're willing to give it and we have something of equal value to make your time valuable. So no, I don't think Sith like you should be purged and replaced by younger Lords and Ladies to keep themselves from being tainted. I'm one of those young Ladies, just turned 28, but here I am having a civil meeting with you and happy to have your expertise."

Looking at the drone, she was definitely thinking of something along those lines, something a little more modern and not based off the TIE series, but a drone like this could be useful.

"A drone would be interesting," she said quietly, tapping her finger against her chin as Circe examined the droid brain. "Would certainly help in combat situations, and training as you've pointed out."

[member="Enigma"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

"And here I am, looking only a few years younger than you." She chuckled. "I'm nearly twice your age, which is certainly the most irony." She looked at the droid brain, thinking over past events. "You mentioning psychotic and overly sadistic Sith reminds me of a woman - and I use that term loosely - named Shinju Ayasha. Also reminds me of one of the Zambrano kids who had a taste for sentient flesh. Tried to convert one of my daughters to that sort of thing... Good thing she isn't around anymore."

She smiled. "The respect you've shown me is most admirable, and in return, you certainly have mine. Id be glad to teach your beautiful self a thing or two... after all, I haven't had some fun training someone in years." The quality of students had a nasty habit of varying consistently, not consistently varying. If it had been the latter, training would've been far simpler.

She looked down at the brain before placing it onto a nearby table. "I'd like to show you the four main programming systems that this droid craft will utilize in the field."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"I'd take whatever training you'd wish to impart, of course," Taeli replied, bowing at the woman. "Perhaps once we have concluded business and all that."

The chance to learn from one of the more famous and powerful Sith was something Taeli would be crazy to pass up, and it played right into her . . . addiction to knowledge. Her master was a bit busy lately, so Taeli needed to supplement whatever tidbits she got there with other lessons from equally powerful Sith. Respect and manners always helped to open doors it seemed.

"Show away, Miss Savan," she said, pulling out a datapad to observe and jot down notes. "I'm curious about how you plan to have these systems to interact while in the field."

[member="Enigma"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

Circe activated the droid brain, and streams of code showed up, running across the screen of the datapad. "Well... The original TIE Detonator utilized only two sets of programming - kamikaze and training. It was used, along with Fragmentor-class drones, to mimic escorting fighters and whatnot. No real capabilities aside from that. For the design I'm working on, a quartet of different modes will be utilized. There will of course be a basic training mode, in order to get new pilots comfortable with engaging the drone. I also intend to have an advanced training mode, a sort of dogfight mode that the droid brain can utilize to engage trainees in mock dogfights with the best capabilities possible."

She paused, opening up the files containing the kamikaze code. "The code for suicidal behavior will likely remain almost the same, with some modifications due to the drone's unique shape. I've also considered having it fire its laser cannons constantly until impact, in order to increase the chances of a secondary coupling-based explosion. The rapid laser fire should also help weaken the shielding in the immediate area by approximately five percent, to further increase penetration chances."

"As well, we're considering its use as a remote scout, something the TIE Hound used to do back in the day. Being that it's a drone, it can far more easily escape enemy assault than a pilot could."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Enigma"]

"Fascinating," Taeli said, examining the code. It was certainly a touch outdated, and would need upgrading as the Sith Lord beside her said, but she could see the appeal of what the woman was aiming for. An advanced scout with kamikaze capabilities would certainly be something Taeli would be interested in developing eventually.

"I would imagine you would need a carrier of some sort to act as a mother ship for whatever drones you have planned, unless they have hyperdrives?" she said, making mental notes in her head. "Also, what sort of explosives would be contained within such a drone, baradium, or something a bit more . . . unstable?"

Already her mind was wondering if an anti-matter core would be useful for such a thing.

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

"I doubt antimatter charges would fit..." She thought over the situation a bit more, considering the potential options with a smile. "Baradium-based explosive charges should provide an ample amount of force within the main cargo bay." She considered things carefully, showing the slightest bit of interest in the SIth Lord herself. "The Protectorate already utilizes a cocktail of carrier-class starships. I doubt they'll need anything new to use these from. Just retrofit the ships with drone equipment and bam. Drone carrier filled with dozens of missiles."

Such seemed simple enough, all things considered - The drones would prove to be exceptionally capable in combat, moreso than lighter and faster craft, anyways.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Makes sense," Taeli replied with a small smile. Perhaps it was high time to start developing more anti-matter equipment, because she had a feeling that it would be useful eventually in the future. "The Protectorate does love its navy, and having these would be an immense advantage during battle. No loss of life, massive amounts of damage, and essentially you could bypass shields with these because they are a physical strike like a mass driver or hypervelocity shot."

"I suppose they would also be more cost effective, in a short and long term if produced in a massive quantity," she continued, idly twirling a strand of hair around her finger in thought. "I would almost say you're encouraging me to design something myself with the ideas that are blossoming in my head. Perhaps after Project Pride is in production."

[member="Enigma"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

"Precisely... Though we'll soon see exactly who they end up being used against. The Protectorate has, to say the least, a relatively isolationist policy, though it would certainly seem to be anti-Sith. I'm merely here because there's a bigger threat - the last thing I need is for my company stuff to be razed for a third time. First the Confederacy, then the Abrions... Not again."

She sighed, recollecting the consistent trial and error. She was making technology for the good guys, though, right? They didn't have any reason to harm her - unless they were really the bad guys, disposing of minions when they felt they were no longer useful. Everyone seemed to have tossed the rumors of "Ewok Genocide" and other nonsense out the window, and she appreciated being accepted - albeit not under her true pseudonym.

"I would be willing to make a deal later down the line, of course, with giving you access to copies of the updated source code for your own training drones."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"That's very generous of you to even suggest an offer of such in the future," Taeli replied, smiling. "I feel like this has been a rather fruitful day, and the beginnings of an interesting partnership perhaps, even if secret. If ever you need assistance, you need only send a message and if you wish to continue helping me with Project Pride, I'd greatly appreciate it, Miss Savan."

She certainly wasn't like what the rumors spoke of the woman known as Circe Savan, she was much more . . . grounded right now. She supposed almost being killed several times and having your company razed to the ground twice was certainly a wake-up call. She couldn't blame her in the slightest though.

[member="Enigma"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

"I'm not one to leave a project unfinished, Taeli. That's never been how I do things. I'll continue working with you until the first of the ships has been completed." That seemed reasonable enough, and would give her more than enough time to continue examining the ship as it was assembled. Her findings wold prove to be most useful in the event of another attempted purge. Not to mention she had the reputation of being someone who followed things through, and the last thing she wanted was to sully that with this... intriguing specimen.

"I suppose I don't have to tell you to contact me again once things have progressed to a further stage you need my assistance on, do I?" The woman did have her contact information, after all, and she really wanted to work with the woman again.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Of course, I would be happy to work with you once again, Miss Savan," Taeli stated, nodding with a smile. "I shall contact you again once we have a sufficiently secure area to begin construction and we may begin that stage of the operation. I must say I'm glad you're not one to walk away from a project half finished, my mother taught me a long time ago to make sure every project was finished."

She actually rather hoped they could work together on many more things in the future, the woman was fascinating and if half the stories about her were true . . . well Taeli would love the opportunity to learn from her. What a surprise that might be for Alex if she found out Taeli had learned a thing or two from the successful Sith.

[member="Enigma"]

 

[Onrai]

[member="Darth Arcanix"]

"Such sounds like a good plan, Taeli. I'm eager to see what sort of private location you'll find for the construction of these magnificent warships. This vessel could become the bastion of a renaissance in Star Destroyer design." Such would hopefully be true, considering the copious amount of features placed within it. Perhaps it would prove to be successful enough that the Protectorate would request a ship of similar design and capabilities.

As she turned to leave, her datapad filled with the code from the TIE Detonator's droid brain, which she had left on a nearby table, she smirked. This sort of partnership was too good to pass up. Not to mention that Arcanix seemed to be quite the glutton for knowledge, something she found exceptionally exploitable. But she didn't want to be too rough with the girl...

That made it far less fun.