One Vision, One Purpose (Maelion/Doll)

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Maelion Liates"]



There was a true phalanx of holocameras waiting when Moira Skaldi, accompanied by a spokesman of the government of Loronar, entered the press conference hall. Journalists were like vampires, always on the spot when there was a good story to suck the blood out of it, especially if there was a tragedy involved. Bad news were good news after all. Nothing was better for the ratings of a news agency than a bit of controversy.



A burly Ithorian camerman stood in the background, recording everything so that it would be live for the viewers. Of course, given all the dramatic, earth-shattering events that were shaking the Galaxy - the tragedy of Druckenwell and the never-ending calls to donate money to solve the biggest humanitarian crisis in ages, the One Sith's unceasing onslaught upon the Republic or the latest raunchy pics of this or that famous actress - it was quite possible that the news would go under. If that were the case then Moira would not care much. Archangel thrived in the shadows and in secrecy.



Nonetheless, there was a time and place for that. Just as there was a time for presenting an urbane, friendly and above all human face to the public. Not everything could be accomplished by death charging all opposition like some battering ram.



"Greetings, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the Ministry of Industry I am pleased to announce that the bidding for the shipyards of the defunct Loronar Corporation are over. After giving the matter considerable thought and vetting each company carefully, it has been decided to award the contract to...Archangel Research and Design," the spokesman announced with an air of drama. It was an election year and the cabinet wanted to be reelected. Judicious use of bribes was always a compelling argument.



"I know there might be some voices of dissent to awarding it to a foreign corporation, but we have reached an amicable agreement that will guarantee productivity, secure the jobs of countless citizens and their families and ensure a return to normalcy. The investigation into the savage terrorist attack that shocked our nation is still ongoing and it would be wrong to trespass on the work of the security services. Archangel has promised us their full support. Ms. Nalia Alderana, co-director of Archangel, will say a few words on behalf of her company."



'Nalia Alderana' looked into the holocameras, poised, confident, though appropriately serious given the gravity of the situation. "Thank you. We welcome the chance to not only expand our business on Loronar, but bring back stability to the lives of citizens who, through no fault of their own, found their livelihood in jeopardy after savage terrorists struck. I will go on record and pledge that Archangel will honour any prior agreement made with the unions. Our takeover will necessitate changes, but at every step we will listen and not dictate. This planet was struck by a terrible tragedy, now is the time to move forward. Equally we will expect the very best from our employees. Efficiency and productivity. Already we have several designs in the pipeline for droid controlled ships to be designed on Loronar. Likewise we will be building a factory on this planet for the production of droid tanks, artillery etc. I welcome any questions."



One journalist, a brown skinned woman dressed in an elegant suit held up her hand. "Khalisat Al-Jilani, Westurland News. You make bold promises, Ms. Alderana, but is it not a fact that Archangel was a subsidiary of Baktoid? We've all heard of the terrible war crimes perpetrated on Druckenwell. The Protectorate has blacklisted your parent company for bringing the shipyards down. With such a past, how can we in good conscience trust the management of our shipyard, the pride of our planet, to your company?"



Someone else might have lost their composure but Moira simply let the gadfly speak, even looked somewhat contrite as she stared into the camera. "They key word is past, Ms. Al-Jilani. It's true that we started as a subsidiary of theirs. We knew nothing about killswitches installed in their products, all of our designs are made exclusively by us. Our debts have long since been repaid and after hearing of the terrible crimes on Druckenwell we immediately broke with them. Even now Archangel worker droids and HRDs are providing disaster relief on that planet, working day and night alongside Protectorate clean-up crews, free of charge. Our company believes in corporate social responsibility and it is in this spirit that shall determine our policy on Loronar. As a matter of fact, we welcome any journalist who would like to visit our office on Corellia to get an idea of how we do things. We pride ourselves on our transparency...and efficiency."



Oh, the dramatic irony. Deadpan droids were truly the best.



Another journalist demanded her attention, raising a delicate hand with long pianist fingers. "Maerys Cadalthor, GNN," pretty as a picture, the beautifully dressed Eldorai had been specifically placed amongst the group. No one except Moira would know that she had been enteched. That her bones were made of metal and her heart as hot as a furnace. "Allegiations of corruption, impropriety, even affiliation with criminal elements on part of the board of Loronar have come to light. What can you say to this and how will this affect your policy now that you control their shipyards?"



"I've heard about these allegations and if true they are grave. Just as disturbing as those that the One Sith - a malignant evil - were behind this attack. However, I'm sure you understand I cannot comment on mere hearsay. We must remember innocent lives were lost in this attack. The truth is something for the security services to determine. But Archangel will fully cooperate with them. Security is a major concern. It will be significantly tightened and all personnel working aboard the orbital station will be vetted. The temporary shortfall in profits will be a small price to pay and more than made up for in the future."



"Hermann Weise, Die Alternative. What do you have to say to allegations that your company has promoted militarism and warmongering? That you sell death machines to anyone who will pay and that the last thing you want is a peaceful Galaxy?"



"I dismiss these claims," this made a couple journalists laugh. "As the old saying goes, if you want peace prepare for war. I'd say that our droid designs make our clients, all of whom are carefully vetted, a lot safer. Safer from terrorists, Sith and other menaces. They are a technology of peace. As a matter of fact, I'd go so far as to say that we would make war more humane. Every battle droid built means that one boy or girl more will not have to leave home and fight in the trenches. Moreover, machines are not cruel."



"Marius Elagabalus, Daily Star. Forgive me if this question is too personal, but is it true that you and Ms. Anna Comnena are lovers? Will the wedding bells on our planet toll soon?" This question caused an outburst of laughter among several journalists and some security guards.



Moira gave an impression of looking amused and chuckled slightly. "I assume this idea was inspired by the Firemane couple. I am sorry to disappoint but we are merely good friends. Who have a close working relationship and share a common vision: To create the best, the most lifelike HRDs imaginable and spread them across the Galaxy. Science moves on and we want to be motors of progress. I am confident that we will accomplish this."

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] [member="Maelion Liates"]

Cameras and press conferences were simply not the sort of thing that Doll found herself up to participating in. For one fact the former Loronar construct felt fairly paranoid in case there was a reporter or journalist she had met earlier on during her work for the Loronar Corporation at some point. If there was one they may have begun to wonder why she would follow so diligently after Archangel's directors. Perhaps the purchase of Loronar's assets could explain things, but it felt too soon if anyone were to recognize her and start probing problematically. In addition there were much better uses of her time, such as evaluating the state of the shipyards under Loronar's control.

After all, as a former Loronar representative and overall employee she had seen the state of the shipyards on several occasions. It made sense for her to see if they were in the same proper maintained state after she left the company since Archangel would soon be acquiring them and putting them to use. She did not bother with an escort either, an organic guide would merely slow down the progress of her inspection of the yards. She could check things much quicker and organic explanations and promises could be off the mark. She already had the algorithms from Dominus on Loronar's updated security so she had access to everything, and as a higher up of Archangel she had the pass to be there.

There were several vessels in the drydocks for repairs or in the midst of construction, a few of them even looked like a few of the experimental projects the company had still been working on back when she had been in their employ. The organics moved slowly, but then again they were trying to mold these creations to fit the specific needs of other organics and they had to ensure they had a market or they would lose the profits. It didn't surprise her they were taking them slow. Nonetheless Doll duly noted them to have their production altered for greater efficiency and hastened production once they got a majority of the workers on the stations enteched.

Speaking of which once Archangel did get down to enteching the dock workers they would likely need to ensure they were all entechd through the new process. Loronar's shipyards were a well known production facility, and they were located in the Core as well. While not as reknown as Kuat Drives or Sienar Systems they were definitely a place well visited all the same. A single force user wandering by would note something off if they detected no human essences with many human looking beings wandering about. They would likely have to live out normal human lives as well to avoid drawing suspicion by never leaving, even if that would greatly boost production. Assuming the directors wanted to entech the workers at all. It would ensure their loyalty and increase production by a small percent, but since they couldn't well automate the facility itself without raising cries from Loronar's Government over the loss of local jobs, and enteching everyone and working them to the fullest would entail exposure, the most they could do is entech the workers and have them stay on task and increase efficiency but allow them to live out life normally or pretend to do so to keep nosy force users or overly curious onlookers at bay.

Still, that was again only if absolutely necessary, perhaps they could get by just enteching a few, but then if they could do it why not since it would save the trouble of enteching the others later in the path towards the age of steel. Doll's eyes recorded everything she saw as she evaluated, planned, pondered, and considered every aspect of the products and the situation of the workers. There were a few ship designs that could use improvement in addition to what was already on the market and in their experimental phase. And there were also a number of other designs Doll have downloaded from her original departure and seen blueprints of after requesting Dominus show her anything new she had missed. All of them could and would be useful for Archangel's designs. There were at least three that the HRD believed would find high praise in the growing market place.

She would inform the directors of her specific findings when she saw them later on.

 

[Maelion Liates]

Whilst [member="Moira Skaldi"] courted the journalists and [member="Doll Crux"] undertook some secret investigations, Maelion Liates was conducting her own planning.

The question that Doll was asking herself came in sharp focus for Maelion. What to do with the workers and factories they now employed?
The first impulse was of course to process all the organics and turn the planet’s shipyards into a new utopia of iron and steel. And yet…such a move would be dangerous. HRDs were good, but they simply could not replace spouses with perfect replicas. What then, processing all the families? But droid children could not grow, oddities and concern would develop. To process even some of the workers would open a Pandora’s Box of issues. They would be discovered very quickly.

No, the better move, Maelion decided, was to stack management roles with ‘new employees’ as part of a ‘reshuffle’. Old employees would be let go whilst HRDs from outside would fill their roles. This would be the best of both worlds, as they would not have existing families and affiliations to cause concern, and they would march to the beat of Archangel’s drum. The organic workers, in time, would be replaced, but not yet.

She also had found something very interesting in the Loronar files, something she would share with Moira when the time came. Something which might be the key to everything….

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Maelion Liates"]


The interview continued for a while along the aforementioned lines then it was finally concluded. Of course, scepticism would remain and, as Moira knew, the media could easily change tune. Today they might be eating out of Archangel's hand, the next they would pounce upon it. After all, bad news were the best news. But they had room to operate for now. As a matter of fact, there would be even more once certain information about impropriety on the part of Loronar was leaked.



"I thank you for your time, ladies and gentlemen. If any future questions arise...Archangel will practice an open door policy," she said warmly, giving the Government spokesman a firm handshake before departing from the meeting room, her high heels clacking upon the shining floor. Outside a shuttle awaited her on the landing pad. Once a Loronar craft, it already bore the logo of Archangel, and so she boarded it, with the shuttle taking off into the sky and towards the shipyard.


Openness indeed. One day Archangel would be very open about everything. On the day when it could take off the mask and eradicate the plague that was organic life. It was a cancer upon this Galaxy and they would cut it out, eventually.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] [member="Maelion Liates"]

Everything appeared to be functioning as it should from what Doll could remember during her time as one of Loronar's loyal HRDs. The vessels being put together were indeed being constructed correctly and with professional precision for a company bearing the slogan "All the finest, all the first." Still there were of course some issues. Organics after all couldn't perform every task perfectly and with the speed and efficiency a droid could. However, all the same the margin of error from perfection was small. Technically even if Archangel HRDs were doing the organics work it wouldn't be 100% perfect either, better yes, but nothing was perfect. Not even if dedicated machines for tasks did their parts, there was always going to be at least a .000001% chance, far smaller in fact, the point being nothing ever, EVER, was perfection. There was always that quirk in the galaxy that could happen. Doll would never question something malfunctioning ever, even if it was expected never to do so and a million other products were fine. The only question would be how, when, and where.

Enough about the quantum theories of absolutes though, the work was going along ok. Doll noted the areas where improvement could be achieved with minor interference and turned down and avoided any requests from workers and management about needing a guide or authorization. The time was winding down to when the directors would be finished with their own work and be arriving on the main station the shipyards consisted of. With that in mind Doll made her way to the hanger bay where their shuttles would be touching down on. She wondered if there would be the chief yard supervisor and any other major management for the docks waiting for them, maybe even workers waiting to glimpse their new bosses.

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] [member="Doll Crux"]
When Moira arrived in their private meeting room on the station, Maelion was already prepared. She did not engage in small-talk. Rather, she cut straight to the chase.
“I have located something of interest. Loronar were mining a small planet in an uninhabited system. It is rich in minerals and ores, especially copper. Interestingly, it has caves and caverns under the surface. I believe that we could establish a powerful base here, using the raw materials of the planet and using droids as the staff we could create an independent armoury using our and Loronar’s designs. This planet is ideally placed, and can serve as an additional processing plant as well. The planet is uninhabitable for organics, but will not deter machines if properly prepared.”

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Maelion Liates"]


Moira likewise did not waste with pointless small talk such as saying something along the lines of 'good job'. Or complimenting Maelion on her hair and perfect nails. This was not that sort of corporation. "Consensus. The access to minerals and ores will also make us less dependent upon Saelari Mining. Likewise we shall have a processing plant closer to our offices in civilised space without attracting attention. Ms. Crux is reviewing Loronar designs. Some of them may be of utility for fortifying the base against intruders. I have assessed your proposal regarding the organic personnel of Loronar and agree. When the time is right...we can dispense with them all, but not yet. The same leaks about impropriety on the part of Loronar's board can easily tarr the shipyard management to serve as an additional justifcation for a reshuffle."

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] [member="Maelion Liates"]

Doll made her way as quickly as she could to where the others were meeting. Making it just in time for the tail end of Maelion's report and the whole of Moira's approval for it. "I have indeed encountered several designs while conducting my evaluation and inspection of the station. Many of Loronar's ground base projects and personal droid works are on hold because of the devastation of their headquarters and board of directors. However, as the shipyards are more independent by extension of being facilitated up here, much of their work has continued unimpeded. We can easily get the majority of the stalled work up again once direction is set once more. I also noted whatever instances I could of improvement to the production process while I walked around. There are several new large ship designs and a planetary defense project I believe will be of use for Archangel once we can get things underway once more."

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Moira Skaldi"]

“Agreed. Production must be activated with all speed. We are agreed then. We will bring in specialised workers and supervisors to replace certain organic roles which are vital. We will then continue to accelerate production and automation, eventually removing the organic workforce. We should also outfit a team to investigate this planet and rid of it of any organic controllers. The planet can then be used as a base for our operations.”
That was all fairly straightforward.

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Maelion Liates"]


"I shall a team to investigate and pave the way for the construction of a base," Moira responded. Specifically send some HRDs that were best kept out of the limelight now after the Loronar action. Sure it had all been covert and secrecy had been preserved, but it was best not to take too many chances. "Elaborate on these designs, Ms Crux." No time for socialising and smalltalk in this company!

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] [member="Maelion Liates"]

Nodding at the remarks made by Maelion, Doll realized she ought to elaborate on those designs she supposed. To her it just meant getting them done, but then again she could see why the director would wish to know in more detail. "Of course. Many are already existing Loronar products one can find in their market listings. Including droid patrol vessels and cargo carriers among other things. However, they were developing a new form of organized fleet including a Frigate or Cruiser design with supporting Corvettes as well. Aside from those there was also a planetary defense cannon of note. Seeing as Loronar has already developed their own planetary turbolaser cannon, I assume they wished to make a new design with more efficiency and cost effective. Such a device would be useful for fortifying worlds to keep away captial ships."

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Doll Crux"]
[member="Moira Skaldi"]

“The new world we will set up a base on can have some concealed batteries of such weapons. If any unauthorised vessels attempts to discover us, we can rapidly destroy them.”
“Are those warships ready to be designed? Can we put them into production?”
The new shipyards would provide crucial manufacturing potential, and also allow them to create warships capable of both defending Archangel and selling on to others.

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Maelion Liates"], [member="Doll Crux"]


"If these war ships can be put into production that will be of utility. Our focus will remain on HRDs, but we can put them on the market for clients," Moira spoke. Fully droid controlled and maintained warships would find appeal in certain circles. No chance of pesky mutiny or slacking on the job there. Perhaps Shadow might even be interested. Come to think of it, it might be time to visit Anaxes again to have a 'chat' with Aurelia Saelari. It was time to 'help' the Republic. Of course, all Archangel ships would be crewed by droids...with hidden protocols.


"Likewise we may construct a second, better-armed vessel to supplement the Lightbringer. For piracy activities, raids on convoys to get organic materiel. Equally we should replace the Baktoid fighters with our own designs." Especially in the light of Baktoid's apparent penchant for putting killswitches in everything they made. It reminded Moira of the behaviour of a typical holovid 'supervillain'. She ran calculations, then sent a transmission to the unit she had designated for the assignment on the Loronar planet. All the relevant details were transmitted via electronic communication, no face-to-face meeting or verbal communication needed.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Maelion Liates"] [member="Moira Skaldi"]

"Yes that sounds like a perfect use for these devices." Technically it went without saying as Doll nodded her head toward the director and her fellow HRD. Yet, all the same the former Loronar construct couldn't help admiring the practical use of the defense cannons so quickly after the existence of the weapons' discover. The question about the warships being ready for production was also something Doll was pleased about. "The warships final programming and system layouts need some finalizing, but aside from those hiccups they would be ready to put into production soon enough. As for starfighters to replace the Baktoid units I can take a look at the files again for anything suitable and if need be place it as a priority directive to work on director."

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Moira Skaldi"]

“Finding a substitute for the Baktoid units is a high priority. The units as they are, are unusable, placing us in danger of attack. However, the fighters designed by Baktoid were useful and require only small tweaks in performance for our sake. We are not attempting to match large capital ships or fleets yet, only raiders and pirates,” Maelion advised. There would come a time of course when Archangel would rise and challenge the powers of the galaxy…but that time was not just yet.

“It is important that vessels we design not be marked so they can be recognised as belonging to us. Suggest we set up a separate base specifically to house these raiders so they are not observed returning to our own bases. Perhaps shell companies could help facilitate ‘sales’ of ships to avoid suspicion.”

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Maelion Liates"], [member="Doll Crux"]


"Agreed. Arrangements will be made." After all, it would be bad for public relations if Archangel was known to perform slave raiding. Somehow this seemed to upset organics, though they themselves did it quite frequently. "I have come across some potentially useful experimental Loronar projects. Namely the Needle starfighter, powered by mineral based life forms called Tsils that served as the core component for a Centrally Controlled Independent Replicant that controlled multipla automatons via central computers and instant communication through programming crystals. The fighters were armed with laser cannons and according to the files capable of slowly demolishing larger capital ships since the batteries found it difficult to target them due to them being essentially robotic cylinders. The project was abandoned due to Jedi meddling, though it appears this board wanted to recreate it before it was eliminated. Unfortunately, the Tsil homeworld is characterised by electrical storms."


While she spoke the pertinent information that she had found, including schematics and such, were transmitted to Maelion. Apparently the Tsils had also played a role in what was called a synthdroid project.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] [member="Maelion Liates"]

Doll listened intently to her fellow HRDs as they discussed the need for a unidentified raiding party group. It wouldn't be difficult to stage, especially with control of the paper trails and files. The problem would be maybe designing particular brands of ships specifically for those tasks and then having a separate number of products for the public market. The mention of the Needle droid fighters then, by Moira, was a perfect thought. Doll of course new of the design, it being an older product of Loronar's, though long off the market. "The Needle Fighters would likely make excellent replacements for the Baktoid ships we are utilizing. The problem would be acquiring Tsils from Nam Choris quietly. It isn't exactly a world welcoming to technology. Its electrical storms would be bad for any machine sent there, and any organic might not be able to be trusted. A pleasant fact, tsils were also used in synthdroids, Loronar's first attempt to enter the human replica droid market with a new angle. While far less independent they were cheaper and simpler to maintain in large quantities. They were discontinued in the end around the same time as the Needles. Still, they would make excellent replacements concerning the Baktoid issue."

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]
[member="Doll Crux"]

“The electrical storms will be dangerous to any machine which lands, and also to any craft attempting to land. This is a significant issue. There are two possible solutions; either to develop countermeasures to the lightning, or to hire organic mercenaries to undertake the mission for us. The second option is more hazardous and is not suggested. The first is problematic though. Do you have any suggestions how this might be achieved?” Maelion asked.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] [member="Maelion Liates"]

At Maelion's question Doll began computing the various possibilities, none at all simple or easy for Archangel to really do. "If I may suggest director, it would perhaps simply be the best solution to specifically create an HRD unit with insulation coating or equip a unit with a personal shield unit specifically designed against electrical damage. Such used to be quite common in old times for both organics and machines during the Mandolorian and Jedi Civil Wars. It wouldn't last forever, but the units need only stay on Nom Choris long enough to gather enough tsils to load up their ship. A single freighter could collect several hundred of the small crystals, more than plenty for us to create enough units to replace the baktoid fighters."

 

[Maelion Liates]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Moira Skaldi"]
"It is possible this might be done. However, the shielding would have to be specially designed to resist electrical interference, yet not to overload and droid inside it. Perhaps a large portable energy shield, covering half a dozen metres in diameter could suffice here. This would provide protection for several units whilst allowing for a large power capacity. If the power cells could be designed to draw power from the lightning to strengthen itself, this might also be to our advantage."