Private Close Encounters of the Profitable Kind

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Val Tessalisk was almost lost like a kid in a candy store, but it didn't take him long to snap back to reality. The MandalArms facilities tended to have that affect on some people, and it wasn't every day that a member of the public was allowed inside. Yet Val had done her a favour by not cashing in on her and instead found it to be more profitable to work for her, which was very smart.

And he was proving to be a great friend as well.

Lori looked to the crude drawing rendered to be almost childlike once it was reformatted from 2D to 3D. She nodded at his suggestion to smooth out the frame by punching in a few keys. Almost like magic the holoprojection seemed to fix itself to make it appear as a more sleeker design.

"Is the barrel width good enough? Or would you like it bigger?"

 

[Val Tessalisk]

Val snickered childishly at that phrase, but cleared his throat and got his thoughts back on track.

"The barrel width is fine. It'll be chambered in 15mm ammo, so the current width is ideal. Let's throw in an optic rail and foldable iron sights so I can throw on a scope if need be. Let's make the wood something exotic, you know, for style points?"

Val looked back at the holographic protection and tapped a few keys. Immediately, the spine of the weapon formed a sleek optic rail.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori snickered a little as well, now realizing the double-meaning that her words took on. It had been a while since she was around someone with a crude sense of humour, but not something that she'd take offence to.

Val Tessalisk gave his imput on added features and overall stock of the weapon. He needed something stern that wouldn't break, especially if it's tossed around or even struck by blasterfire or dagger. He'd need to be able to use it as a blunt force object if need be.

"How about Commenori oak? It's sturdy as anything and has a unique grain to it that when sanded and polished looks amazing. I know of many doors carved from the stuff in my Mom's old Palace that survived the attack from the Sith during the short siege of the world."

 

[Val Tessalisk]

Val listened to Loreena Arenais-Valhoun describe the wood material she suggested to furnish the weapon with. He was particularly impressed by the wood surviving a Sith siege; this Commenori oak had to be some pretty tough stuff. If it looked nice but also had a practical function, then he was all for it. He wasn't planning on being too rough with his new toy, but the idea of using a materiel that could withstand the rough-and-tumble of combat as well as turning the weapon into a bludgeoning tool was reassuring. On the thought of close quarters combat, a bulb lit up in Val's head that was rather unorthodox.

"Hmm...what do you think of this?" Val said as he punched in a few keys on the HoloTable.

Within moments, a serrated bayonet fizzled into existence just below the weapon's barrel with an accompanying mounting lug. The handle of the bayonet also seemed to sport a circular cross-rivet that implies the blade could be folded into the gun barrel when not in use.

"It's really old school, but I don't think anybody these days will be expecting you to be packing one of these bad boys on your weapon. Could come in really handy in a pinch?"

Val figured that this would give him a sort of "element of surprise", as an unsuspecting enemy likely wouldn't anticipate the sudden unsheathing of such an outdated but none-the-less deadly attachment. He thought maybe they could somehow work in a switch or lever to automatically deploy the bayonet, rather than having to manually rotate it out from under the barrel.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori watched as a new feature was added to the item. She rotated the image so that she could see it from every angle. And then she manipulated it so that she could see the blade retract and extract.

"Wicked...I think that'd work out very well!" She grinned at Val Tessalisk as she peered up from his design. "It'd do quite well in close combat. Especially in a ship raid. I love it!"

She could already see it now, Val fighting Imperial solders, pirates, mercs and hunters with the slugthrower in the corridors of a ship and gaining the upper hand on them due to the primitive nature of the weapon. It was beautiful to imagine.

 

[Val Tessalisk]

Val nodded his head and grinned, happy that he had his new friend's approval. He personally couldn't wait to get his hands on the slugthtower and break it in at a firing range. He'd only used a couple before throughout his life, largely due to the scarcity of this weapon type. Usually they were a lot smaller than his design and as a result he had a bit of trouble using them. This was one of the main reasons for "up-sizing" this design for comfort when using. He'd imagine Loreena Arenais-Valhoun 's would be scaled to properly allow for human use.

" Well, I think we got the design just about perfect. Anything else can probably be added on later as aftermarket parts or something. So how long is it gonna take to fabricate her?"

Val inquired as he rubbed his chin.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

"Hmmmm....."

Lori started punching in some keys on the keypad. The slugthrower's design was shrunk down to a corner of the display while numerous files and graphs came into view. Most of it probably seemed like gibberish to most, yet she knew how to read it.

"I think that it should be ready by the end of the day. Did you want to watch some of the process? And what are you going to name her?" She quickly sent off the design that Val Tessalisk made to the manufacturing and 3D printing area of the facility. Everything was state-of-the-art of course. Her predecessor wouldn't have it any other way.

 

[Val Tessalisk]

Val was visibly caught off guard by the idea of naming the weapon. He had one name immediately come to mind, and just then he could feel the energy from his Kyber-krystal necklace begin to come to life. He stood still and silent for a moment, before saying only a name.

"Undina"

He said in an almost drone-like fashion, seemingly lost in his own thoughts. He quickly snapped back to reality and chuckled.

"Nice name, right?" he said nudging Loreena Arenais-Valhoun on the shoulder with his elbow, trying to recover from his awkward silence moments ago. He took one final look at his magnum opus before the computer sent the file off to be made physical. He was very much interested to see the kinds of printing and manufacturing techniques they used here.

"Let's go have a look at it while it cooks, shall we? And you guys wouldn't happen to carry Clone Wars-era DC-15s would you? I don't plan on using it, but I want to start a collection once I get a ship and I can store them on." Val inquired.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

"Undina..." Lori repeated the name to see how it rolled off the tongue. Then she grinned up at Val Tessalisk . "I like it! It works!"

She led him over to the manufacturing floor where all of the 'magic' happened. First came the printing of the various moulds, followed by the pouring of the metals within them. Each component was done separately. The wooden pieces were carved in another section of the floor, where the buzzsaws and dremels were heard. It was fun to watch, if someone was interested in that sort of thing, which the two of them really were.

"I think that there could be some floating around in the archives. You're going to become a collector, are ya? Wicked!"

 

[Val Tessalisk]

Val took time to observe all the happening inside the manufacturing area. Machines hissed and whirred, liquid poured, and sparks flew as the factory was in full production. Soon enough, his creation would be among the countless others assembled here, and he couldn't wait to see it all come together.

"So this is where the fun stuff is made huh? Pretty impressive" Val said as he took another look around.

Val grinned to himself at Loreena Arenais-Valhoun 's suggestion that some relics of the past might be housed around here. It would save him the time and credits of having to browse the HoloNet or other....less-reputable....sellers in order to acquire some of the firearms on his wishlist. He was no stranger to dealing in Black Markets though, and he's half-embarrassed to admit a considerable amount of his credits went into procuring things from it. However he no longer had the money to spend, and had to be smarter about where he got his supplies. That's why he was here in the first place, right?

"So while she's cooking, what else can you tell me about our pal Red? As soon as the rifle's finished I'd like to get this hunt underway" Val inquired.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori nodded as she grinned to Val Tessalisk . This was where the magic happened indeed. Although it might be boring to some, the pair of them loved weapons enough and watching just how they are produced was fascinating. Some people treated weapons as merely a tool, but for these two they meant a whole lot more.

She watched the slugthrower's progress, even while she spoke to Val about Subject 73 Red . "He pretends to have morals, but I don't think that he does. Why else would he participate in an attack on my wedding at a theme park? He stood up for and worked for an Imperial government that branded me as a terrorist. Yet also works for the Jedi? He has an adoreable pitdroid named Pitt. I know that he likes me and doesn't agree with Red. Maybe he doesn't even want to be owned by him anymore, I don't know. I could certainly use him if that was the case.

He has a lot of weapons and his own means of travel. But I'm not sure of the exact details. But as I've said before, you can try using me as bait if you'd like. If that'll make it all easier."

 

[Val Tessalisk]

"Is that all? Preferred fighting style, favorite weapons, stuff like that? Val replied to Loreena Arenais-Valhoun as he watched the Slugthrower come into being.

Most of this he already knew from their earlier conversation on the Jaster's Delight. He still intended to use Lori as bait as she suggested. However he would prefer a bit more information if possible so he can be prepared to the fullest extent to capture Red alive without him or Lori being killed in the process. He paid little attention to the tibit about the droid, as he felt it wasn't as big of a priority as Red himself. If the opportunity arose, he supposed he could capture the droid by disabling it with some kind of EMP pulse and tagging it with a retraining bolt.

"We can still use the bait plan like we discussed earlier, but I'd like to have a bit more intel on the guy so he doesn't throw any curveballs our way, ya know?"

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

"I'm not sure of his fighting style. He uses grenades, guns. He's a super soldier, genetically modified. His moral compass shifts gears from time to time. I don't know if that means that he's crazy, or what?..."

Lori didn't quite know what to expect when it came to Red. One moment they were friends and working together. But the next he was calling her a terrorist and siding with an evil Empire against her. And then he helped to attack her wedding, which was such a bizarre event. It was brazen and bold, most especially as it was in the middle of Silver Jedi space. Somehow the attacking ships managed to get into Silver Jedi space undetected. Either that or they were 'let in'.

She slipped out of her thoughts, returning her attention back to Val Tessalisk . "I don't expect anything less than curveballs. It's hard to figure out how he thinks. Just as people can't quite figure me out either. We both act on impulse."

 

[Val Tessalisk]

"Well as long as he doesn't bring a portable starship cannon or something, I think I should be fine."

Val noticed the moment of silence from Loreena Arenais-Valhoun as she was lost in her own thoughts, and opted to give her a moment to recollect herself. Once she did, Val chuckled out loud at the comment of her and Red acting impulsively.

"Sounds like if things had turned out different, you two would be the best of friends!" he said in an overtly sarcastic tone as to not offend her.

Even though he tried to make his sarcasm as obvious as possible, he still felt that she might take some offense to that. He knew all about Red's crimes by now, or at least the ones Lori felt comfortable sharing. Val had no doubt that someone like Red had all sorts of skeletons in his closet, and Lori probably wasn't even the first one he's personally slighted. For that reason, he knew not to underestimate Red, as the guy probably didn't gain his reputation by looking or talking tough.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori laughed as Val Tessalisk goofily suggested that Red bring a starship cannon or something to defend himself in a fight. Now that would be funny! However she was certain that the slugthrower would be quicker and easier to use, thereby giving Val the advantage.

As he then commented on her and Red being best friends, Lori gave him a bit of a small smile to go along with a shrug of her shoulders. "We were friends once. We even helped eachother out from time to time. However he took to believe the Eternal Empire's propaganda against me and turned on me. I still don't know who ultimately was responsible in co-ordinating the attack on my wedding, but he didn't refuse to help theor efforts in doing so. That sealed his betrayal." Lori clenched her jaw for a moment as she thought of the horrors of that day. "There's no going back from that."

She wasn't offended by what Val had said. Not in the slightest. What it did was offer her up the opportunity to explain more about her motivation behind this hunt.

 

[Val Tessalisk]

Val raised a brow upon hearing that Red and Loreena Arenais-Valhoun were once friends.

"Oh...uh. Well that's definitely not the kind of thing I expected to hear from you. You know, especially after hearing how much you hate the guy. Though I suppose after that kind of betrayal, I'd hate someone's guts too."

Val thought to himself about the whole thing. It would explain why Lori wanted Red alive instead of a Red Smear on the walls. However just because she wanted him captured for interrogation doesn't mean it's coming from some vestigial sense of friendship; she could easily grease him after the fact, something he wouldn't mind letting her do as a form of closure.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

"He attacked my wedding. On Mnemosyne. Him and a bunch of others. I don't know who led the attack, but he was a part of it. A lot of innocent people died that day. And still no one has been punished for it."

Lori chewed the inside of her cheek a little. At first she had thought that surviving the attack and leaving the Rebellion efforts would have ended the attacks against her. But it didn't. Her husband was dead too.

At least things seemed to be slowing down. However she wasn't about to step into Eternal Empire space for a loooooooong time. Not even to chase Red. That was what she had Val Tessalisk for.

"If he gets killed when you try to capture him, I wouldn't be mad at you for that. There might be reasons that he wouldn't want to be captured alive."

 

[Val Tessalisk]

"Weeeeeell I was going to try and take him in alive. I figured you would want to get a few licks in and squeeze whatever information you want out of him. Who knows what kind of stuff he has insider access to that could help your cause, you know?" Val shrugged

Someone like Red probably knew to keep his lips sealed during an interrogation and likely wouldn't spill his secrets, at least not without some "convincing". Fortunately, Val was someone who was very good at "convincing" people to talk; hell, he could make them sing. Loreena Arenais-Valhoun saw a bit of that when they first met, during Val's bar brawl that he soundly won.

"Still, if you're that indifferent as to what happens to our pal Red, I won't pull any punches" Val winked confidently at Lori.

He looked back at the machine fabricating the Slugthrower; The smell of industry in the air began to intensify with the odor of singed wood, heated metal and grease. He had a feeling that the weapon was nearing it's final stages of completion.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Val Tessalisk was right. There could be information that she could gain from Red. But then again, could she trust it? The man was an experiment once. Who knows what kinds of tortures that he was bred to endure? Those kinds of people were dangerous.

Lori grinned as he told her that he could take Red out without holding any punches, and that brought her towards thinking about just what it was that she was up to. Could it be classified as vengeance? Or as survival? What sort of spin would the propaganda take on this if it got out? Or worse yet, if they had failed? Lori had to think about these sorts of things. Her family name didn't exactly make her a nobody....

With a shake of her head, she brought herself back to the present. "You know, Val...I think that I'd love to see you fight in a tournament some day. I bet you'd be the best!"

 

[Val Tessalisk]

Val looked at Loreena Arenais-Valhoun with a hit of surprise.

"What, like a Gladiator or something?" he replied.

Val had never thought of gladiatorial combat, even in his long, long life. Or maybe he had, and he had just forgotten completely. Either way his natural strength and resilience would make him a pretty formidable opponent, maybe almost too good. He'd wager that he'd end up breaking so many fighters that they resort to having him fight big droids or some scary critter from some backwater planet nobody wants to talk about. Either way, the idea was interesting.

"Now that you mention it, fighting in an arena with ye-oldie weapons and chariots does sound pretty fun..." Val said softly. Val smiled and struck a swordfighter's pose.

"Huaahhh!" he bellowed.

"Eeeey? Whaddya think??" Val chuckled, asking Lori.