The Foundry
Deck 12
Ciaran stood over the console at the heart of the Foundry, continuing to stare at it like she'd been doing for the past...minutes? She didn't really remember how long it had been since she got here as her thoughts had been occupied by the power now in her hands.
It would be so easy. All she would have to do is press a few buttons and get a proper supply chain set up and then...that would be it. She could simply build up a massive army of droids, weaken both the Republic and Separatists, and then crush them both with a nigh-unending droid army. Or maybe even plant sleeper armies throughout the galaxy by shipping out droids from it to the CIS and other buyers before activating them and having them lay waste to most of her enemies in one fell swoop. The only trick would be protecting the Foundry itself but she would have a fleet to protect it in the early stages, then after planets started surrendering they could supply ships to the defense fleet.
It would be so easy. She wouldn't have to hide from Sidious or
anyone once she unleashed the full potential of the Foundry. Cheriss could easily create designs that would make the exterminator droids Revan designed seem weak by comparison, to say nothing of the conventional plans she had access to - an entire army of BXs and CB-3s would be just as effective and wouldn't require redesigns. And she wouldn't have to stop at the known galaxy either - once that was pacified she could easily send the unending droid armies into the Unknown Regions. The Ascendancy, Mnggal-Mnggal, no matter what was out there they would simply be drowned in numbers. The galaxy would be
hers.
It would be so easy...all she had to do was-
"/\|\\|/\//////!"
Ciaran launched herself backwards and ignited the Moonlight Blade as Nihilus appeared before her, readying herself to -
"Is something wrong, Lady Ciaran?"
Ciaran blinked, seeing that the room in front of her was completely empty before turning off the Moonlight Blade and facing a visibly concerned Thrawn. "It's...it's nothing. You needed something?"
"Yes, but we should not speak about it here," Thrawn replied, looking around - and to Ciaran's worry he seemed visibly unnerved by his surroundings.
After the two of them walked out of the main chamber and into the corridors, Thrawn spoke again. "I don't know how you feel about this station, but I have come to the conclusion that neither of us can be fully entrusted with it."
Ciaran turned to face Thrawn, face neutral. "Why do you say that
you yourself can't be trusted with it?"
"Because I can imagine what can be done with it - and until recently I was fully prepared to use it until I stepped back and considered the consequences. An effectively autonomous station capable of creating entire armies from raw materials alone, and that is specifically designed to locate and retrieve those resources..." He shook his head. "I was examining the schematics in the Foundry's databanks for the drones meant to collect raw materials from the surrounding asteroid field. They were hyperspace-capable...and I could not confirm whether or not they were originally designed like that, but it would not surprise me if the station automatically redesigned its resource collection drones."
He glanced around. "The Foundry...it may seem like a production facility but after studying its functions and considering what would result from activating it I came to an alarming conclusion: This station is a
weapon designed to destroy the galaxy as we know it, and a far more insidious one than any number of
Devastations. As far as I am aware it does not compel its owner to use it through the Force or any manipulation on its part, but should it be fully activated there would be no end to the blood that would spilled by both its armies and the conflicts it would generate through its existence alone. All it has to do is..."
"Show its owner that using it is
easier. Safer," Ciaran quietly said. "Don't worry about loyalty, this station and the forces it builds answer to you alone. Don't worry about logistics, this station will do that for you. Don't worry about strategy, you can just overwhelm your opponents with numbers. All you have to do is
want - but once you start using it for war, there's no turning back. It's just too valuable an asset to ignore. Like you said, it may not draw on the Force but it doesn't need the Force to tempt you..." Ciaran shuddered slightly, remembering her sudden glimpse of Nihilus. "...I think I agree. We'll create a defensive force for security reasons, but then..." She looked at Thrawn. "We need to implement some failsafe.
One person alone should not be able to control this station. Even
the two of us should not have absolute control over this place."
"We share that authority with others, then," Thrawn commented. "And the only way this station would be activated is if all of them agreed. So who-"
"I already know - all of the High Council."
"...I suppose it was a foolish question," Thrawn replied.
"No, it's one that has to be asked. The Foundry should only become fully operational if we
absolutely have no other options - and I trust them enough to be able to say 'no' if they really have to."
"Individual codes for each of them that they must each keep to themselves no matter what," Thrawn said to himself. "But what if one of us dies, and takes their code with them when we need it most...? Much as we might wish otherwise, I fear that we must make it a simple majority," he said, having finished his train of thought.
"...Yeah, I guess so."
"On a...
slightly less-galaxy changing note, Miss Sair has informed me that she is taking up residence within this station effective immediately," Thrawn causally said, causing Ciaran to groan and facepalm.
"Yeah, that
does sound about right, this place
is Droid Central after all..."
(Activating the Foundry is now available as a last-resort option for the Palpatine assassination. Thanks to the Foundry's raw production capabilities and Cheriss' willingness to use its systems in ways that its designers probably never intended, her "Culmination of a Dream" action now has a reduced cost and only takes one turn.)
Excerpt from Report #84392: Palpatine Counter-Action Report VI (Submitted by Central Command, Compiled by Thrawn):
If nothing else, we have a weapon of last resort to use against Palpatine. That puts us in a far stronger position than before, but we must be sure that it stays as a
last resort.
Aside from that we've made significant inroads with the Republic military thanks to our connections with Yularen, stalled out the "Jedi Acts" to a significant degree, and in general made Palpatine's goals that much more difficult. That being said I am almost certain there will be a significant response soon - be wary.
Do not get overconfident.
Currently Available Significant Assets:
Abyss Watchers:
Agent Teams: Force-trained commando units. While skilled against conventional targets, Palpatine himself is likely far out of their reach. Still, with five Walkers on hand, Sair's new devices, and their clear talent in asymmetrical warfare they are a valuable asset nonetheless.
Abysswalkers: At this point we have enough Walkers skilled in a large enough variety of fields for me to actively consider them an asset in their own right. While their abilities may be varied each could potentially play a key role in the battle to come
Oracle Fleet: Between Sienar's modifications to the Oracle itself and the now military-grade fleet supporting it, the Oracle Fleet is a powerful asset for any endeavors we undertake in space.
Invisible Hand: Now that it is capable of leading a fleet on its own, the
Invisible Hand is a powerful vessel in its own right. Though it is merely a single ship, even if Sienar's refit has made it far more dangerous than any others of its class.
Arkanian Legacy: If push comes to shove we will likely be able to encourage the Arkanians to provide the ship's services for whatever ends.
Chu'unthor: As a warship its value is rather limited. I doubt it would be useful in a battle, but given its sheer size and past history it may be able to serve as a potential evacuation vessel for the Jedi if things become truly desperate.
Decimators: Prototype heavy tanks, viable as a desperation tactic for a possible full-scale assault of some variety.
SSS: We have an in at the Senate with them and with the additional training they've been given they should be able to hold the line until potential reinforcements arrive.
Tyro: Skilled in the Blazing Chains enough that he might be a viable asset, but I question how effective he'll be against Palpatine himself or potential acolytes. Still, I've heard that he is still striving to improve himself even now, so he has hardly lost his skill.
The Silencer: A skilled warrior to be sure, and with ysalamiri support he would be deadly to any Force-using opponents. Now that he is formally registered as a clone trooper he would be a much more effective infiltrator.
Grievous: Now that we have ysalamiri, Greivous' leadership capabilities and prowess as a warrior will be a valuable asset.
Thrawn: While I admit ysalamiri would be helpful in direct combat I'm sure you understand I would be far better as an overall commander.
Asajj: One of the two people we can reliably trust to possibly confront Palpatine himself if necessary; given her continued increase in abilities she stands a far better chance against Palpatine.
Ciaran: My previous comments on your abilities stand.
HK-47: Between his refurbished frame and Miss Sair's upgrades, HK-47 is now a quite useful weapon in our arsenal. I am uncertain as to whether he could kill Palpatine on his own, but if his record against Force users in his prime is any indication he is quite a valuable asset.
Jango Fett: Having the
Mand'alor present gives us quite a bit of pull with the Mandalorian Guardians, to say nothing about his connections to other Mandalorian mercenaries/recluses/what have you or the capabilities of his partner Zam Wessel. Of course he will have ysalamiri support when the time comes.
The Foundry: Our weapon of last resort. If all else fails, we can use the production capabilities of the station to simply drown Palpatine in an unending droid army. However I cannot stress enough that this will cause considerable instability and conflict in the galaxy should it be fully utilized.
Senate:
Anti-Palpatine Coalition: Consisting of Senators such as Mon Mothma, Padme Amidala, Bail Organa, and so on, with our aid they are now a significant force within the Senate. While Palpatine still has considerable influence within it, the coalition is now far more capable of stalling any of his measures and providing potential political stability in the aftermath of our mission.
Jedi:
Currently almost all (see notes) Jedi Order candidates barring our contacts within the Sentinels are deemed too unreliable; should they receive the information about Palpatine's Sith Lord status they likely would act rashly and get themselves killed or cause catastrophic political fallout - to say nothing about potentially igniting more internal strife given recent events. We should continue to look outside the Order for any potential allies.
Jedi Sentinels: Given their actions in Operation Excision, we can confirm that they will act against the wishes of the Council if they deem it necessary. That pragmatism makes them both useful and far easier to manipulate. Of course, we need to be sure that they do not learn
too much, but if they deal with a loose end for us then that would hardly be an issue.
Ahsoka Tano: While not a formal member of the Order she is still a capable leader and skilled combatant despite her young age. (I know what you are probably thinking, and I assure you that I am entirely unbiased in that regard.)
I will leave it to your discretion on how to interact with the Corellian and Tython Jedi.
Republic Military:
Kal Skirata: Skirata's deserter network is still going strong, and our nano-droids have ensured that any troopers that have joined him do not have the biochips implanted within them. To say nothing of our sabotage on Kamino. Between them, the Null ARCs, and the potential assistance of Miss Tur-Mukan they are a strong asset in our favor. I am somewhat uncertain as to Ovolot's usefulness in the long term, but I cannot deny that her ability to produce an antigen to FG36 is well worth it.
501st Legion: One of the most prominent groups in the Republic military and that has been at the front of many key battles during the war. Having them on our side is not only excellent for having more numbers but the propaganda value cannot be denied either.
Wullf Yularen: While his skills as an admiral are impressive, the real coup with him is the amount of access he has to Republic intelligence networks as well as a long list of private contacts. To say nothing of him taking the initiative with his own subversion operations.
Confederacy of Independent Systems:
Count Dooku: I honestly cannot believe that you managed to get through to him. I also question whether he is that reliable, but you have been reassuring me that is the case. At any rate the only major factor preventing him from becoming a more active asset is Quinlan Vos.
Council of Neutral Space:
CNS Military: Now that the local military has proper support, funding, and command structure, they can assist in not only stabilizing Council space in the event of a collapse of the Republic government, but if push comes to shove we may be able to use them as support against Palpatine. Possibly.
CNS "Government": With the completion of the assembly hall on Taris and the fact that many prominent CNS leaders have begun meeting there to discuss mutual defense pacts and the like, it is now clear that should the Republic collapse in its entirety we will be able to build up a legitimate government in that situation.
Bothan Spynet: The Bothans are certainly considered to be the best spies and intel gatherers in the galaxy for a reason; simply look at our own Master Terrek for proof. While relaying Palpatine's true identity to them is far too risky, they certainly have enough intelligence and the willingness to share it with us (for a price) to consider their contributions worthwhile.
Other:
Seti Ashgad: He is now acting as a shadow leader for the Anti-Palpatine Coalition and is doing what he can to support them. He is also helping direct Incom's movement of materiel from Fresia to Taris.
Talesan Fry's Codebreaker: A remarkable device to be sure. Simply having it around will be of incredible use for both our long-term operations as well as getting more reliable data during our main operation - and even if it is destroyed we can now have the man himself build a new one.
Ysalamiri: While I have already discussed them to some extent earlier, I cannot overstate just how vital these will be given that they can repel the Force. Negating the abilities of any acolytes of Palpatine and potentially Palpatine himself makes them an incredibly valuable asset.
Blackguard: Having them around as potential allies will be quite useful, and their enthusiasm at finding new Force abilities to study even more useful still.
We should be wary. Now that we are beginning to show our hand Palpatine has all the more reason to treat us as a much more serious threat.
Current Probability Of Successfully Neutralizing Palpatine: 14%
(Note: Probability Calculation omitted use of the Foundry as per request of Thrawn, probability of success presumed to be considerably higher should the Foundry be fully activated)
AN: I know some people are probably going to be mad at me (er...again, man I am not making a lot of friends right now
) because of the Foundry thing, but to be honest using it for any reason barring building prototypes or the like...well...it's gonna end poorly for the rest of the galaxy. It may not be as flashy as a Death Star but the Foundry is easily capable of causing infinitely more casualties in its own way.
Not to worry though, the Rumor Mill will return to the proper amounts of Fun that you lot have been waiting for. Some
things are going to be happening now that we are entirely off the rails of mainline canon at this point...
