Guardian of the Republic (Star Wars CYOA)
- Thread starter Oshha
- Start date
- Sci-Fi
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Possibly. As you say, it is in the future and I am pretty sure the Bad Batch don't come about until after Ninety-Nine's death as their official name seems to be a reference to him.
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4.6 (Coruscant Politicking) - Chapter Twenty-One
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Finding Senator Halle Burtoni proves to be no difficulty. While the Kaminoan senator is a newcomer to the Senate, she has wasted no time entrenching herself. Given how dependent the Republic has made its military on the clones produced by her people, there is no shortage of people who want to befriend the latest rising star in the Senate.
No, the difficult part is getting a meeting with her. The new Senator is quite busy these days and has a lot of demands on her time. While I had hoped to get a meeting with Burtoni the day after Loran's report on the clone armour, it ends up taking a couple of days. Still that isn't time wasted as I have plenty of other things to do on Coruscant in the meantime, but the delay rankles nonetheless.
As I am getting ready to go over, I find Aria waiting for me and my fellow Jedi clearly intends to intercept me on my way to the meeting.
"Aria," I greet her.
"General Shan," replies Aria, "I should go in your place."
"I beg your pardon?" I inquire, pausing at her unexpected words as I try to make meaning of them.
"I should go to Senator Burtoni as the representative of the 1st Republic Patriot Legion, not you," clarifies Aria, "You think that Senator Burtoni is nothing more than an opportunistic and greedy slaver who has no place in the Republic and uses the pretence of patriotism for selfish gain."
"Am I wrong?" I demand, "That woman is a monster who would enslave countless billions to make a pretty profit for her world."
"I agree completely and I am the better person to talk to someone like that," replies Aria, "Especially if we want to remain on civil terms with her and gain her agreement. Furthermore, I am better skilled at diplomacy than you are. Just your training was on the battlefield, mine was meeting rooms. This is my sort of expertise."
"Whoever needs to go requires enough knowledge of the proposal to convince the Kaminoans and answer their questions," I point out.
"And I was alongside you when Colonel Belen gave his report," easily answers Aria, "I won't pretend to be as knowledgeable as you on the subject, but I know enough for the purposes of this meeting."
"I should still be the one to do this," I argue.
"Ben, you told me yourself that we do not stand alone in our fight," says Aria as she gives me a look, "You do not need to do everything yourself. You can let others handle matters. Like how you let Commodore Thak handle day to day matters with the fleet and let the colonels do the same with their regiments. This is no different than that."
"That is true," I concede because Aria is right, "I still feel like I should be the one who handles an important matter like this."
"All those with a sense of responsibility do," simply states Aria, "Ultimately, I am the superior choice for this meeting and so I shall be going for the good of the Republic. You can take the opportunity to spend some time with Vyssa that isn't related to politics or war. Take her out somewhere nice for a meal or something."
"You know, sometimes it doesn't feel like there is a war going on," says Vyssa as we sit next to a window at a Corellian diner in Coruscant's upper city, "Not compared to how things are for us on the Outer Rim."
"In what way?" I ask as my padawan eats some of her spicy nerf sausage.
"Just we are getting ready for another fight when we are living on the fleet," says Vyssa as she waves her fork in the air, "Sure we sometimes take breaks between battles or relax stick around on a planet, but we are always getting ready for the next fight, organising after the last fight or already just fighting. Here on Coruscant, we got all this talk of war and everyone is going on about it, but they are just getting on with their lives. Nobody is getting ready for a fight or expecting to get invaded."
"That's both war and Coruscant for you," I tell her, "Life goes on if the fighting hasn't come to your world. Your daily life doesn't just pause because there are battles going on in other parts of the galaxy. And Coruscant is the capital. If it gets invaded, things have gone horribly wrong for the Republic and it will be apparent that a possible invasion is coming long before it arrives."
Or at least it should. Dooku and Grievous made a surprise invasion of Coruscant in the other timelines and there was the Sacking of Coruscant so long ago. Who knows what will happen in this war with the Sith secretly controlling both sides of it?
"It still feels like they have no idea of what they are talking about," mutters Vyssa, "I wish we could just leave Coruscant and its politics behind to go and do some actual fighting."
"You will get your wish soon enough," I tell her, "I can't say how soon it will be, but we will need to return to the frontlines in the near future. We just need time to rebuild and expand in addition to securing the foundations of a powerbase."
"Yeah, we need to make a counter balance for Palpy," agrees Vyssa, "Speaking of which, he is definitely what you saw in that vision given how things have been going since the war started."
"Indeed," I say before something occurs to me, "Speaking of which, how are you going with your plan to create an intelligence network?"
"Harder than I expected," admits Vyssa as she stares at her plate of sausages and spiceloaf, "I got some training at the Temple from a Shadow as an Initiate and I have a knack for the work, but I'm starting from scratch with basically zero experiences. I've have some contacts back on Indren, in the legion and I've been talking to some of my padawan friends, but that is about it. I've been making a bunch of Senate contacts now thanks to you, but those aren't intelligence contacts. Not yet anyway."
"I could help with that," I say, "Not directly, but Bothan Spynet owes me big time and it shouldn't be too hard to get-"
I cut myself off mid-sentence as I get warning through the Force. Summoning my lightsabers to my hands, I leap to my feet as my battle precognition warns me of the incoming blaster fire before the shooters have even fired the first shot. By the time they have opened fire, both of my blades are ignited and I am in a position to deflect them back.
The blaster bolts shatter the diner's window and those that don't miss me entirely, I deflect back at the attackers. Speaking of which, the shooters are a trio of individuals who have climbed out of an airspeeder. One humanoid individual in heavy armour with a handheld repeating blaster while the other two are a Bith and human, both wearing little to no armour while the former has a blaster rifle and the latter wields a pair of blaster pistols.
As Vyssa gets to her feet and ignites her own lightsaber, I jump through the window and into the street. The blaster fire doesn't let up and so I deflect some of it back at the shooters, trading a few hits to my beskar to accurately deflect some hits to my attackers. The armoured figure takes a couple hits to their chest, but remains standing, but their unarmoured companions are another matter.
The Bith takes a hit to the leg, dropping to one knee before a second deflected blaster bolt kills him as it strikes his chest. Meanwhile the human takes a blaster bolt to the face that sends him flying backwards even as the Bith topples over. Sending that they no longer have the element of surprise and both of their lackeys are down, the armoured figure switches from shooting to scrambling back into the airspeeder.
"Oh no, you don't," I say as I realise what my surviving attacker is up to and run forward.
As the airspeeder begins to climb into the air, I jump upon it. The driver tries to throw me off as they start to turn sideways, but I slash the rear engines with my lightsabers. The majority of its propulsion stutters and dies, the airspeeder begins to fall back to the ground before it even really gets going. The driver turns around, aiming her repeating blaster at me, but before they can pull the trigger, I slash the gun in two with a swish of my lightsaber.
"Surrender," I tell the armoured figure, pointing my primary lightsaber at her throat.
There is a moment of silence as me and the armoured figure stare each other down before the shooter raises her hands in defeat.
"Commander Fox," I say as I recognise the clone commander arriving on scene with a squad of Coruscant Guard shocktroopers, "It is good to see you again. I just wish it was under better circumstances."
"General Shan," replies the clone trooper as he steps out of the gunship he has arrived in, "We got reports of an armoured Jedi being attacked by gunmen. I presume that was you sir?"
"Yes," I confirm, indicating towards the Corellian diner, "My padawan and I were having dinner together when three individuals with blasters opened fire on us unprovoked. Two of them went down to deflected blaster fire and the third one surrendered after I disabled her vehicle and destroyed her weapon."
With that last sentence, I indicate towards the Rodian woman off to the side, where she has had her helmet removed and has been bound with improvised bindings from the Corellian diner. The owner was quite unamused to find his establishment being shot up and was more than happy to provide some materials to help keep the surviving perpetrator from escaping.
"Any idea who they are?" asks Commander Fox as he indicates for a couple of his men to arrest the Rodian.
"Bounty hunters most likely," I say, "Independent and opportunistic. If they had been agents belonging to one of the big names, they would have been more competent and better equipped. Any professional operation would not have tried something as unlikely to succeed as a driveby shooting on me."
"But there is a chance of them working for the Separatists?" inquires Commander Fox.
"Yes," I say after a moment's thought, "They could have been planning to kill me so they could collect the bounty on my head from the Separatists."
"Then I am going to arrest the criminal as a potential Separatist agent," says Commander Fox and I can feel his satisfaction though the Force even if his body language reveals nothing.
That might be worth investigating, but not today.
As Vyssa and I head back to the Freedom after our interrupted lunch out, I get someone trying to contact me on my comlink.
"General Shan here," I say as I answer the call.
"Colonel Belen here," replies Loren, "Just to let you know, I've got a couple Jedi here to speak with you and they are willing to wait until you show up to speak with them even if that takes a while."
"Interesting," I say as I try to think who these Jedi could be, "Got any names?"
"Jedi Master Rahm Kota and Jedi Knight Falon Grey," replies Loren, "Know them?"
Now that is definitely interesting. Both Rahm Kota and Falon Grey survived Order Sixty-Six with the former going on to become an important general for the Rebellion in its early history. At least in one of the timelines as I don't think he existed in the other. Falon Grey was Rahm Kota's padawan and the Kaminoans secretly made a couple of clones of him, one of which went Sith while the other went Jedi. Most interestingly is that Kota didn't trust the clone troopers though I can't tell if that was because he sensed something was wrong or because he was just a bigot.
It wouldn't be the first time that a Jedi Master has held views completely unfit for a Jedi. Pong Krell and Jorus C'baoth both come to mind as recent examples. And I ought to do something about Krell before that kriffer can do too much damage to the Republic.
"I know of them," I say, which is technically true, "Let them know that I am on my way back to the Freedom and I am interested in speaking with them. If they want to have a meeting with me now, they can come up to the Freedom and I'll talk with them when I get back."
"Will do, General," replies Loren dutifully before he ends the call.
"What was that about, Master?" ask Vyssa from beside me.
"Something good hopefully," I tell her, "Though I can't be certain."
The rest of the trip back passes quickly. I quiz Vyssa about some possible scenarios to see what she would do in them and we get a bunch of statues and cheerful greetings as we walk through the corridors of the Star Cruiser on our way to the meeting room where Kota and Grey are waiting for us.
"Master Kota, Knight Grey," I greet the two men as I enter the room with Vyssa trailing behind, "Thank you for being patient with me. I hope I didn't make you wait too long."
Both of them are wearing traditional Jedi robes and while Falon Grey looks to be about the same age as myself or Aria, I'm mildly startled to see Rahm Kota without silver hair. Oh, it is starting to grey, but for the most part, Master Kota's hair is still brown for the most part if a dark brown compared to the light brown of his former padawan.
"It was no imposition," replies Kota as I take a seat opposite them, "We were the ones who wanted to speak with you after all."
"So I heard," I say, "I'm free to hear what you've got to say."
"I will get straight to the point then," says Kota, "I don't trust the Kaminoan or their clone troopers so I want to get in on your non-clone military project. I could put together my own unit on my own, but having looked into it, I've decided that my best option is to ask you for help given your existing connections and funding. Especially since the worst case is just that you say no and I have to go back to doing it on my own."
"You want to get me to form another legion and place it under your command," I conclude, grasping what Kota has in mind.
"Ideally one for myself and one for Falon," says Kota, "I would be willing to obey your orders in exchange for command since it is your venture and you have proven yourself to be a capable commander so I have no issue following your orders. I also have some experience at leading an army myself though none of that experience is recent as it has been decades. I have also made sure to train Falon in how to properly lead troops."
"I am open to the idea, but I am curious as to why you don't want to lead clone troops?" I inquire, wondering just why these two are opposed to taking command of clone units.
"I don't trust them," says Kota, "Not the clones and not their makers. It isn't well known, but eight years ago when Falon was still my padawan, he got severely injured and we went to the nearest inhabited world for treatment, which happened to be Kamino. The Kaminoans did a good job of healing up Falon, but there was something off about them. Nothing I could point to, but the Force told me not to trust them so I don't."
"That explains about the Kaminoans, but what about the clones themselves?" I ask. "What is your issue with them?"
"Beyond the fact that they were created by the Kaminoans?" inquires Kota and when I nod, he continues, "I don't trust them. Them being made to be totally obedient and lack independence? Something is wrong about that and that isn't the sort of soldier fit for a Jedi."
"The Force is telling us that something is wrong with them and to not trust the Kaminoans," adds Grey, "That part about the total obedience, it sticks with my and my master as something wrong."
That sounds fair. The Kaminoans are not to be trusted and the clones do either have brainwashing or mind control chips to ensure that they obey orders to kill the Jedi. He is different to what I remember, but what I remember about Kota in the Clone Wars comes from Imperial sources so it isn't surprising that they are wrong about him.
"That sounds reasonable, Master" says Vyssa from beside me, "I mean the Kaminoans are doing things behind the backs of the Jedi and the clones are, well, you know."
"Alright, Master Kota, Knight Grey," I say with a sigh as both of the other Jedi turn interested looks on my padawan, "One last thing. The clones are victims of whatever plot is going on, not willing parts of it."
"You know what is going on?" asks Kota sharply.
"I have some idea, but no proof," I tell him, "I am certain that this war was brought about by the manipulations of the Sith and they have a hand in the creation of the clone army. I don't think the Kaminoans are actively working with the Sith, but they are selfish, greedy slavers who are not to be trusted. Again, the clones are victims and at worse they are unwitting pawns as they are slave child-soldiers. They have no choice, no rights and the oldest of them are only ten. How they are currently being used is slavery, but everyone seems to be willing to ignore that if it means winning the war or pretending that we aren't doing anything grossly immoral."
"Your point?" asks Kota as he leans back, but his tone isn't a hostile one and I don't sense any hostility from him through the Force.
"I don't tolerate any bigotry in my forces and that applies with the clones," I continue as we stare at each other, "If you want to be part of my legions, no discriminating against the clones or treating them as lesser. A true Jedi wouldn't do that, but unfortunately we have several individuals in the Order who are unfit to call themselves Jedi and some of them are able to make it masterhood. You don't have to command them into battle, but you have to be willing to work with them and treat them with respect."
"I understand and I can work with that," agrees Kota easily, "As you say, it is only how a Jedi is expected to act."
"Knight Grey?" I inquire as I turn to the other Jedi.
"I am more than happy to agree to such terms," answers Grey without hesitation.
"Alright, I am willing to give a provisional agreement to your proposal," I tell them, "Now let's discuss the details"
We finally get to have Ben and Rahm Kota meeting. I've changed Rahm's personality a bit or at least his motivations for not wanting the clones because while it works with the clone troopers we get in the films, his rejection of the clone troopers is pretty unJedi of him when you take it into account with how the clones are shown in the Clone Wars series. Because of this, I've kept him benign rightfully trustworthy of the clones, but rather than him accurately guessing just how mindless obedience they are, he is sensing something to do with their relation to Order 66.
In any case, he doesn't become an arsehole and he will be signing up with Ben rather than putting together a militia on his own. Also his former padawan who has only recently been knighted will be joining him.
With Senator Burtoni, I was going to have her and Ben have a meeting, but then I realised that Ben would be a terrible choice while Aria would be a much better choice so she goes instead of him. It also gives me a chance to show Ben isn't perfect by, well, you get to read it for yourselves.
Beyond that, a bit of screentime with Vyssa and another bounty hunter attack on Ben.
Please point out any spelling or grammar mistakes that you spot. Please quote them in the thread and explain what you think is wrong so I know what you are referring to.
No, the difficult part is getting a meeting with her. The new Senator is quite busy these days and has a lot of demands on her time. While I had hoped to get a meeting with Burtoni the day after Loran's report on the clone armour, it ends up taking a couple of days. Still that isn't time wasted as I have plenty of other things to do on Coruscant in the meantime, but the delay rankles nonetheless.
As I am getting ready to go over, I find Aria waiting for me and my fellow Jedi clearly intends to intercept me on my way to the meeting.
"Aria," I greet her.
"General Shan," replies Aria, "I should go in your place."
"I beg your pardon?" I inquire, pausing at her unexpected words as I try to make meaning of them.
"I should go to Senator Burtoni as the representative of the 1st Republic Patriot Legion, not you," clarifies Aria, "You think that Senator Burtoni is nothing more than an opportunistic and greedy slaver who has no place in the Republic and uses the pretence of patriotism for selfish gain."
"Am I wrong?" I demand, "That woman is a monster who would enslave countless billions to make a pretty profit for her world."
"I agree completely and I am the better person to talk to someone like that," replies Aria, "Especially if we want to remain on civil terms with her and gain her agreement. Furthermore, I am better skilled at diplomacy than you are. Just your training was on the battlefield, mine was meeting rooms. This is my sort of expertise."
"Whoever needs to go requires enough knowledge of the proposal to convince the Kaminoans and answer their questions," I point out.
"And I was alongside you when Colonel Belen gave his report," easily answers Aria, "I won't pretend to be as knowledgeable as you on the subject, but I know enough for the purposes of this meeting."
"I should still be the one to do this," I argue.
"Ben, you told me yourself that we do not stand alone in our fight," says Aria as she gives me a look, "You do not need to do everything yourself. You can let others handle matters. Like how you let Commodore Thak handle day to day matters with the fleet and let the colonels do the same with their regiments. This is no different than that."
"That is true," I concede because Aria is right, "I still feel like I should be the one who handles an important matter like this."
"All those with a sense of responsibility do," simply states Aria, "Ultimately, I am the superior choice for this meeting and so I shall be going for the good of the Republic. You can take the opportunity to spend some time with Vyssa that isn't related to politics or war. Take her out somewhere nice for a meal or something."
***
"You know, sometimes it doesn't feel like there is a war going on," says Vyssa as we sit next to a window at a Corellian diner in Coruscant's upper city, "Not compared to how things are for us on the Outer Rim."
"In what way?" I ask as my padawan eats some of her spicy nerf sausage.
"Just we are getting ready for another fight when we are living on the fleet," says Vyssa as she waves her fork in the air, "Sure we sometimes take breaks between battles or relax stick around on a planet, but we are always getting ready for the next fight, organising after the last fight or already just fighting. Here on Coruscant, we got all this talk of war and everyone is going on about it, but they are just getting on with their lives. Nobody is getting ready for a fight or expecting to get invaded."
"That's both war and Coruscant for you," I tell her, "Life goes on if the fighting hasn't come to your world. Your daily life doesn't just pause because there are battles going on in other parts of the galaxy. And Coruscant is the capital. If it gets invaded, things have gone horribly wrong for the Republic and it will be apparent that a possible invasion is coming long before it arrives."
Or at least it should. Dooku and Grievous made a surprise invasion of Coruscant in the other timelines and there was the Sacking of Coruscant so long ago. Who knows what will happen in this war with the Sith secretly controlling both sides of it?
"It still feels like they have no idea of what they are talking about," mutters Vyssa, "I wish we could just leave Coruscant and its politics behind to go and do some actual fighting."
"You will get your wish soon enough," I tell her, "I can't say how soon it will be, but we will need to return to the frontlines in the near future. We just need time to rebuild and expand in addition to securing the foundations of a powerbase."
"Yeah, we need to make a counter balance for Palpy," agrees Vyssa, "Speaking of which, he is definitely what you saw in that vision given how things have been going since the war started."
"Indeed," I say before something occurs to me, "Speaking of which, how are you going with your plan to create an intelligence network?"
"Harder than I expected," admits Vyssa as she stares at her plate of sausages and spiceloaf, "I got some training at the Temple from a Shadow as an Initiate and I have a knack for the work, but I'm starting from scratch with basically zero experiences. I've have some contacts back on Indren, in the legion and I've been talking to some of my padawan friends, but that is about it. I've been making a bunch of Senate contacts now thanks to you, but those aren't intelligence contacts. Not yet anyway."
"I could help with that," I say, "Not directly, but Bothan Spynet owes me big time and it shouldn't be too hard to get-"
I cut myself off mid-sentence as I get warning through the Force. Summoning my lightsabers to my hands, I leap to my feet as my battle precognition warns me of the incoming blaster fire before the shooters have even fired the first shot. By the time they have opened fire, both of my blades are ignited and I am in a position to deflect them back.
The blaster bolts shatter the diner's window and those that don't miss me entirely, I deflect back at the attackers. Speaking of which, the shooters are a trio of individuals who have climbed out of an airspeeder. One humanoid individual in heavy armour with a handheld repeating blaster while the other two are a Bith and human, both wearing little to no armour while the former has a blaster rifle and the latter wields a pair of blaster pistols.
As Vyssa gets to her feet and ignites her own lightsaber, I jump through the window and into the street. The blaster fire doesn't let up and so I deflect some of it back at the shooters, trading a few hits to my beskar to accurately deflect some hits to my attackers. The armoured figure takes a couple hits to their chest, but remains standing, but their unarmoured companions are another matter.
The Bith takes a hit to the leg, dropping to one knee before a second deflected blaster bolt kills him as it strikes his chest. Meanwhile the human takes a blaster bolt to the face that sends him flying backwards even as the Bith topples over. Sending that they no longer have the element of surprise and both of their lackeys are down, the armoured figure switches from shooting to scrambling back into the airspeeder.
"Oh no, you don't," I say as I realise what my surviving attacker is up to and run forward.
As the airspeeder begins to climb into the air, I jump upon it. The driver tries to throw me off as they start to turn sideways, but I slash the rear engines with my lightsabers. The majority of its propulsion stutters and dies, the airspeeder begins to fall back to the ground before it even really gets going. The driver turns around, aiming her repeating blaster at me, but before they can pull the trigger, I slash the gun in two with a swish of my lightsaber.
"Surrender," I tell the armoured figure, pointing my primary lightsaber at her throat.
There is a moment of silence as me and the armoured figure stare each other down before the shooter raises her hands in defeat.
***
"Commander Fox," I say as I recognise the clone commander arriving on scene with a squad of Coruscant Guard shocktroopers, "It is good to see you again. I just wish it was under better circumstances."
"General Shan," replies the clone trooper as he steps out of the gunship he has arrived in, "We got reports of an armoured Jedi being attacked by gunmen. I presume that was you sir?"
"Yes," I confirm, indicating towards the Corellian diner, "My padawan and I were having dinner together when three individuals with blasters opened fire on us unprovoked. Two of them went down to deflected blaster fire and the third one surrendered after I disabled her vehicle and destroyed her weapon."
With that last sentence, I indicate towards the Rodian woman off to the side, where she has had her helmet removed and has been bound with improvised bindings from the Corellian diner. The owner was quite unamused to find his establishment being shot up and was more than happy to provide some materials to help keep the surviving perpetrator from escaping.
"Any idea who they are?" asks Commander Fox as he indicates for a couple of his men to arrest the Rodian.
"Bounty hunters most likely," I say, "Independent and opportunistic. If they had been agents belonging to one of the big names, they would have been more competent and better equipped. Any professional operation would not have tried something as unlikely to succeed as a driveby shooting on me."
"But there is a chance of them working for the Separatists?" inquires Commander Fox.
"Yes," I say after a moment's thought, "They could have been planning to kill me so they could collect the bounty on my head from the Separatists."
"Then I am going to arrest the criminal as a potential Separatist agent," says Commander Fox and I can feel his satisfaction though the Force even if his body language reveals nothing.
That might be worth investigating, but not today.
***
As Vyssa and I head back to the Freedom after our interrupted lunch out, I get someone trying to contact me on my comlink.
"General Shan here," I say as I answer the call.
"Colonel Belen here," replies Loren, "Just to let you know, I've got a couple Jedi here to speak with you and they are willing to wait until you show up to speak with them even if that takes a while."
"Interesting," I say as I try to think who these Jedi could be, "Got any names?"
"Jedi Master Rahm Kota and Jedi Knight Falon Grey," replies Loren, "Know them?"
Now that is definitely interesting. Both Rahm Kota and Falon Grey survived Order Sixty-Six with the former going on to become an important general for the Rebellion in its early history. At least in one of the timelines as I don't think he existed in the other. Falon Grey was Rahm Kota's padawan and the Kaminoans secretly made a couple of clones of him, one of which went Sith while the other went Jedi. Most interestingly is that Kota didn't trust the clone troopers though I can't tell if that was because he sensed something was wrong or because he was just a bigot.
It wouldn't be the first time that a Jedi Master has held views completely unfit for a Jedi. Pong Krell and Jorus C'baoth both come to mind as recent examples. And I ought to do something about Krell before that kriffer can do too much damage to the Republic.
"I know of them," I say, which is technically true, "Let them know that I am on my way back to the Freedom and I am interested in speaking with them. If they want to have a meeting with me now, they can come up to the Freedom and I'll talk with them when I get back."
"Will do, General," replies Loren dutifully before he ends the call.
"What was that about, Master?" ask Vyssa from beside me.
"Something good hopefully," I tell her, "Though I can't be certain."
The rest of the trip back passes quickly. I quiz Vyssa about some possible scenarios to see what she would do in them and we get a bunch of statues and cheerful greetings as we walk through the corridors of the Star Cruiser on our way to the meeting room where Kota and Grey are waiting for us.
"Master Kota, Knight Grey," I greet the two men as I enter the room with Vyssa trailing behind, "Thank you for being patient with me. I hope I didn't make you wait too long."
Both of them are wearing traditional Jedi robes and while Falon Grey looks to be about the same age as myself or Aria, I'm mildly startled to see Rahm Kota without silver hair. Oh, it is starting to grey, but for the most part, Master Kota's hair is still brown for the most part if a dark brown compared to the light brown of his former padawan.
"It was no imposition," replies Kota as I take a seat opposite them, "We were the ones who wanted to speak with you after all."
"So I heard," I say, "I'm free to hear what you've got to say."
"I will get straight to the point then," says Kota, "I don't trust the Kaminoan or their clone troopers so I want to get in on your non-clone military project. I could put together my own unit on my own, but having looked into it, I've decided that my best option is to ask you for help given your existing connections and funding. Especially since the worst case is just that you say no and I have to go back to doing it on my own."
"You want to get me to form another legion and place it under your command," I conclude, grasping what Kota has in mind.
"Ideally one for myself and one for Falon," says Kota, "I would be willing to obey your orders in exchange for command since it is your venture and you have proven yourself to be a capable commander so I have no issue following your orders. I also have some experience at leading an army myself though none of that experience is recent as it has been decades. I have also made sure to train Falon in how to properly lead troops."
"I am open to the idea, but I am curious as to why you don't want to lead clone troops?" I inquire, wondering just why these two are opposed to taking command of clone units.
"I don't trust them," says Kota, "Not the clones and not their makers. It isn't well known, but eight years ago when Falon was still my padawan, he got severely injured and we went to the nearest inhabited world for treatment, which happened to be Kamino. The Kaminoans did a good job of healing up Falon, but there was something off about them. Nothing I could point to, but the Force told me not to trust them so I don't."
"That explains about the Kaminoans, but what about the clones themselves?" I ask. "What is your issue with them?"
"Beyond the fact that they were created by the Kaminoans?" inquires Kota and when I nod, he continues, "I don't trust them. Them being made to be totally obedient and lack independence? Something is wrong about that and that isn't the sort of soldier fit for a Jedi."
"The Force is telling us that something is wrong with them and to not trust the Kaminoans," adds Grey, "That part about the total obedience, it sticks with my and my master as something wrong."
That sounds fair. The Kaminoans are not to be trusted and the clones do either have brainwashing or mind control chips to ensure that they obey orders to kill the Jedi. He is different to what I remember, but what I remember about Kota in the Clone Wars comes from Imperial sources so it isn't surprising that they are wrong about him.
"That sounds reasonable, Master" says Vyssa from beside me, "I mean the Kaminoans are doing things behind the backs of the Jedi and the clones are, well, you know."
"Alright, Master Kota, Knight Grey," I say with a sigh as both of the other Jedi turn interested looks on my padawan, "One last thing. The clones are victims of whatever plot is going on, not willing parts of it."
"You know what is going on?" asks Kota sharply.
"I have some idea, but no proof," I tell him, "I am certain that this war was brought about by the manipulations of the Sith and they have a hand in the creation of the clone army. I don't think the Kaminoans are actively working with the Sith, but they are selfish, greedy slavers who are not to be trusted. Again, the clones are victims and at worse they are unwitting pawns as they are slave child-soldiers. They have no choice, no rights and the oldest of them are only ten. How they are currently being used is slavery, but everyone seems to be willing to ignore that if it means winning the war or pretending that we aren't doing anything grossly immoral."
"Your point?" asks Kota as he leans back, but his tone isn't a hostile one and I don't sense any hostility from him through the Force.
"I don't tolerate any bigotry in my forces and that applies with the clones," I continue as we stare at each other, "If you want to be part of my legions, no discriminating against the clones or treating them as lesser. A true Jedi wouldn't do that, but unfortunately we have several individuals in the Order who are unfit to call themselves Jedi and some of them are able to make it masterhood. You don't have to command them into battle, but you have to be willing to work with them and treat them with respect."
"I understand and I can work with that," agrees Kota easily, "As you say, it is only how a Jedi is expected to act."
"Knight Grey?" I inquire as I turn to the other Jedi.
"I am more than happy to agree to such terms," answers Grey without hesitation.
"Alright, I am willing to give a provisional agreement to your proposal," I tell them, "Now let's discuss the details"
***
We finally get to have Ben and Rahm Kota meeting. I've changed Rahm's personality a bit or at least his motivations for not wanting the clones because while it works with the clone troopers we get in the films, his rejection of the clone troopers is pretty unJedi of him when you take it into account with how the clones are shown in the Clone Wars series. Because of this, I've kept him benign rightfully trustworthy of the clones, but rather than him accurately guessing just how mindless obedience they are, he is sensing something to do with their relation to Order 66.
In any case, he doesn't become an arsehole and he will be signing up with Ben rather than putting together a militia on his own. Also his former padawan who has only recently been knighted will be joining him.
With Senator Burtoni, I was going to have her and Ben have a meeting, but then I realised that Ben would be a terrible choice while Aria would be a much better choice so she goes instead of him. It also gives me a chance to show Ben isn't perfect by, well, you get to read it for yourselves.
Beyond that, a bit of screentime with Vyssa and another bounty hunter attack on Ben.
Please point out any spelling or grammar mistakes that you spot. Please quote them in the thread and explain what you think is wrong so I know what you are referring to.
- Location
- Florida
GALEN MARIK!!!
With this reveal, I'm truly hoping our overpowered Force-user exists in this timeline. That's one of the few things I hate about Disney Canon. They retconned Starkiller/Galen Marik (along with his role in the creation of the Rebellion) out of existence.
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
He hasn't been born yet I'm afraid. It is about three years before his canonical date of birth and that is plenty of time for Galen to be butterflied away.
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
He actively avoids thinking about those to avoid suffering an existential crisis.
clonezero
Is it a bad thing if my t read list keeps growing?
He can still end up being born with the excuse "The Force Will It".
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4.7 (Coruscant Politicking) - Chapter Twenty-Two
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"And so you just agreed to it," says Aria primly as she sits opposite me.
"Rahm Kota is one of the most experienced and capable commanders in the Jedi Order as of right now," I reply, "And he was going to do it on his own if I refused him so I figured I might as well get someone of his calibre working for me."
"I shall defer to your judgement then," says Aria, "Do we have the funding for it?"
"With our expanded budget, most certainly," I assure her.
Between my meeting with Rahm Kota and Falon Grey and this current meeting with Aria, I made sure to do some quick budget checks on if we could afford three or four legions. The idea would have been unthinkable, but with all of the budget being thrown my way since the war broke out, it is very well possible.
The answer turns out to be yes, but I would be pushing it. I have gone from a few billion credits to about thirty billion credits in terms of dependable funding, but when you are paying for a major military force, that is pushing it.
The upfront costs of all the equipment and ships is actually one of the lower parts of the projected expenses. It is paying for everyone that is the issue. Paying for four legions and their associated fleets for five years would cost somewhere around the ballpark twenty-three billion credits and that figure could go as high as twenty-five billion or as low as twenty billion. And that will take up the majority of my current budget, leaving me with about seven billion left over.
Putting a billion credits aside for emergency expenses such as replacing gear lost in battle, that would leave me with about six billion to pay for equipment, vehicles and warships. A new legion costs about half a billion to outfit and since I already have one, that is another one and a half billion spent.
Thankfully the warships are cheaper as most of their associated costs go to paying salaries, supplies and maintenance with the upfront cost of buying one being only a small part of the expense of operating a warship for an extended period.
The Liberty-class Star Cruisers are the most expensive warships, costing a hundred million credits for each one and if I want nine of those, it will cost me close to another billion credits at nine hundred million credits. Meanwhile the Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruisers are about as disportionately cheap in credits as they are disportionately costly in crew so I can get those for seven million and two hundred thousand per a warship. A dozen of those is eighty-six million, four hundred thousand credits and that would be a real bargain if they didn't require so much crew, even with extensive usage of slave circuitry.
While it was a different matter in the past, Hammerhead-class Cruisers cost four million credits per warship these days and that makes it a hundred and forty-four million credits if I want to get thirty-six of them. And since I want a dozen each for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th legions, I do want thirty-six of them.
The DP20 Frigates are a bit costlier even with my CEC discount as I am still paying four million, three hundred and twenty thousand credits for each one. If each of the new legions gets a dozen of them, that is one hundred and fifty-fifty million credits, five hundred and twenty million in total.
And all of that is just a bit shy of one billion, four hundred million credits and doesn't match the upfront costs of the ground forces. On the other hand, that is just the warships and not the starfighters. Unfortunately, I can't do the starfighter math yet because we haven't got a final price from for the Liberator-class Starfighters yet, but putting another couple of billion aside for paying for the starfighters, both the starfighters themselves and any upkeep for the next five years, including the pilot.
All of that leaves me with about a billion left over, which can be put into the emergency funds category. That end result is four legions is affordable, but it cuts it somewhat close. Personally, I am not worried about the cost as my biggest concern is trained personnel. We took heavy losses at Geonosis and even without those casualties, using the 1st Republic Patriot Legion as a core for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Republic Patriot Legions is going to gut the 1st.
We can get replacements easily enough, but those new recruits aren't going to be as good as the people they are placing. At least I have three months to get the Republic Patriot Legions into fighting shape since that is how long the Dreadnoughts are going to take.
I will probably have to spend some time on the front lines or undertake some other missions in the meantime though. I can't afford to just sit back and not get involved in the fighting for three months, even if it means going into battle without my army at my back.
"It will be cutting things a little close," I concede as Aria gives me a look.
"I trust you to know what you are doing," says Aria, "Do you have left over funds for a propaganda network? An anti-COMPOR if you will?"
That is a good idea and one I've been meaning to get around to. Still, it is probably best if Aria does it because she is better skilled for that sort of thing and I already have a lot on my plate. Running a propaganda network is something that I am probably best off leaving to someone else who I can trust. Such as Aria.
"A billion?" I offer, knowing it isn't much for that sort of work, at least not on the scale that Aria is planning, "Sorry that I don't have more to spare. I'm spending most of our budget on military things and as I said, we are cutting things close with another three legions."
"It will have to do," says Aria, "I can also work with my Senate contacts and I am sure that I can get Taala to help me out. Just earmark me some funds and I can work with that."
"I'll speak with Finance about it when I next get the chance," I promise her, "Now unless you have anything else in mind, I need to go and inform my senatorial supporters of my new plans and place orders for the additional warships."
While I don't get to speak with everyone right away, those I am able to personally inform take the news gracefully. Senator Bu expresses support for me expanding my forces so proactively while Senator Basmirk of Carida is downright pleased for the chance to send more academy graduates my way. Senator Tills lets me know that King Yos has approved my original order with construction having already begun before informing that there should be no issue with tripling the order if I am good for the credits.
I am on my way to speak with Senator Tashi about my order with Rendili StarDrive when I find myself intercepted by Vice Chancellor Mas Amedda as the Chagrian man approaches me in the corridors of the Senate Dome, flanked by a pair of Senate Guards.
"General Shan," greets Vice Chancellor Amedda, "May I have a moment of your time?"
"Of course though I am on my way to speak with Senator Tashi about business so it will have to be quick," I tell him, just wondering what Palpatine's lackey wants with me.
"It shouldn't take long," Vice Chancellor Amedda assures me, "His Excellency would like a quick word with you."
"I see," I say neutrally as I try to get my brief spike of momentary panic under control.
It was bound to happen eventually given our respective positions, but that doesn't mean I am not greatly concerned about putting myself in the same room as someone who I not only know is a Sith Lord, but a Sith Lord who is more powerful than I am. On the other hand, Sidious should have no way of knowing that I know about him.
That's right, he shouldn't know that I know so he must want this meeting for something else. Something he does know and should be able to take action over as Supreme Chancellor. Perhaps the Militarist coalition I am building or it could be that I am building up a non-clone military force for the Republic.
"In that case, if you could follow me, Master Jedi," says the Vice Chancellor before turning around and walking off.
For a moment, I hesitate as I wonder if there is someway out of this situation. But there is not, not without snubbing the Chancellor for good reason and that is something I ought to avoid doing if possible. I don't need to give Sidious any advantages over me if I can help it.
Deciding that I need to go along with this for now, I follow after Vice Chancellor Amedda and his Senate Guards. The Chargrian leads me to the hangar where we take a shuttle over to the Executive Building and I take the opportunity to calm myself. There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. Those are what I need, to clap down on my internal turmoil and face Palpatine in a calm and collected manner. I can't allow fear to drive me and I need to figure out what sort of persona I am going to show the Supreme Chancellor.
I cannot pretend to be a loyal supporter as not only am I not cut out for that sort of game, but I have been actively and openly rallying the Militarists against him. I have my opposition to him clear, but the extent of it has to still be unknown. What can I publicly express my...ah, the clones. Slave army of child soldiers that the Chancellor has authorised, yes, I can use that to explain my hostility towards Palpatine. And he won't suspect that I know he is a kriffing Sith Lord.
There is no emotion, there is peace.
Let's see...unethical clone army, loyal opposition and allegiance to the Republic not the Chancellor. I can work with that and it isn't like the man will be expecting anything different. I doubt he will move against me overtly as the Supreme Chancellor, not when he can do so as the man behind the Separatists. As Chancellor Palpatine, he might try to have COMPOR slander me or go after me politically, but I have allies to help me with that.
No, I have to worry about assassins and bad intel reports. That is what he does with troublesome Jedi and military commanders if I remember correctly. He sends bounty hunters and commando teams after us or he uses his position as mastermind behind both sides to send me to my death at the hands of the droid army.
At least Vyssa isn't here. I wouldn't want to have this meeting with her involved. She might be a smart cookie, but she is still a padawan, my padawan, and I want her as far away as Sidious as I can keep her.
There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony.
As the shuttle lands at the Executive Dome, I make a call to one of my own shuttles. Under the watchful eye of Mas Amedda, I tell the pilot to get to the Executive Dome and be ready to pick me up. While I am sure that Palpatine will offer transport back to the Senate Dome to avoid looking bad, I don't want to be dependent on him for a speedy exit. And I want the option to make an exit on my own terms as well.
"This way, General Shan," says Vice Chancellor Amedda as he walks off, not bothering to wait for a response as he just expects me to follow.
For a moment, I hesitate as I consider disobeying that order to make a point, but in the end, I decide it isn't worth it. I let the Vice Chancellor lead me to the Chancellor's office, where Palpatine himself is waiting for me.
"Ah, General Shan," says Sidious in kindly tones as he spots me entering his office, "Please come in and thank you for agreeing to meet with me on such short notice."
"You are the Supreme Chancellor," I say neutrally, "That means your schedule is much busier than mine though I don't want to take too long with this impromptu meeting."
It feels oddly normal. No stench of the Dark Side, no creeping unease, no disturbance to put me on edge. Just a nice ordinary room.
"Good, good," says the Chancellor, "If it isn't too much trouble, I would like to know why you have turned down a clone command. I understand you have your own forces, but the Republic needs a general like you on the frontlines."
Ah, so that is what this meeting is about. As a Jedi Knight, I got offered command of a clone trooper legion upon arriving at Coruscant as did Aria, but both of us turned the offer down. I want to help the clones, but I need to know more about their situation first and I am not poking about that situation until I have secured a steady position from which to do so.
Apparently Sidious doesn't approve of that and whatever reason, he wants me to lead clones into battle. Which means I have done the right thing by refusing. At least for now.
"I will take to the frontlines," I promises the Chancellor, "I have no issue working alongside the clones, but right now I cannot accept clone command in good conscience. I am sure that you have already heard by now, but I consider the clone troopers to be enslaved child-soldiers and I refuse to be a party to that when alternatives exist."
"I wish that was true," says the Chancellor in that kindly grandfather sort of way of his that I now know to be false, "It is unfortunate, but the clone army is the only way that the Republic stands a chance of fighting this war. Without them, we would be overwhelmed. The High Council and the rest of the Jedi see this and accept this unfortunate necessity."
"I am not like the rest of the Order," I retort, resisting the urge to snap as there is no emotion, there is peace and I need to be at peace to handle dealing with this Sith Lord, "I will not accept slavery in any form as a neccessary evil, epsecially when I have better options at my disposal."
"Unfortunately, but your position is understandable and I must aluad you for sticking to your principles without shying away from your duty," says the Chancellor as he gives me an understanding smile, "I won't take you away from your other commitments any longer."
As I walk back to the shuttle bay, I can't help, but wonder if Sidious was trying to convince me not to take a clone command and if so, why the kriff would he want that?
This chapter we got some finance, some logistics and some Palpatine. With the first bit, a lot of the larger estimates for ongoing upkeep are guesstimated and not set in hard numbers so don't ask me for how I calculated the numbers or for exact details. I am deliberately being vague and what you need to know is just the rough numbers as more detail than Ben needs to pay a lot of upkeep is unnecessary. That said, finance and funding will be a concern for the story and an ongoing sub-plot as Ben needs credits to pay for everything and he wants something other than private backing in the Senate
With Palpatine, this is the first time that he and Ben have met, both on-screen and in-universe as before now, he hasn't been important enough for Ben to have personally met him. Try to take a guess at what Palp was trying to achieve as while I know what it is, Ben does not. I also try to show Ben's panic and minor internal freakout at an unexpected meeting with Palpatine.
Please point out any spelling or grammar mistakes that you spot. Please quote them in the thread and explain what you think is wrong so I know what you are referring to.
"Rahm Kota is one of the most experienced and capable commanders in the Jedi Order as of right now," I reply, "And he was going to do it on his own if I refused him so I figured I might as well get someone of his calibre working for me."
"I shall defer to your judgement then," says Aria, "Do we have the funding for it?"
"With our expanded budget, most certainly," I assure her.
Between my meeting with Rahm Kota and Falon Grey and this current meeting with Aria, I made sure to do some quick budget checks on if we could afford three or four legions. The idea would have been unthinkable, but with all of the budget being thrown my way since the war broke out, it is very well possible.
The answer turns out to be yes, but I would be pushing it. I have gone from a few billion credits to about thirty billion credits in terms of dependable funding, but when you are paying for a major military force, that is pushing it.
The upfront costs of all the equipment and ships is actually one of the lower parts of the projected expenses. It is paying for everyone that is the issue. Paying for four legions and their associated fleets for five years would cost somewhere around the ballpark twenty-three billion credits and that figure could go as high as twenty-five billion or as low as twenty billion. And that will take up the majority of my current budget, leaving me with about seven billion left over.
Putting a billion credits aside for emergency expenses such as replacing gear lost in battle, that would leave me with about six billion to pay for equipment, vehicles and warships. A new legion costs about half a billion to outfit and since I already have one, that is another one and a half billion spent.
Thankfully the warships are cheaper as most of their associated costs go to paying salaries, supplies and maintenance with the upfront cost of buying one being only a small part of the expense of operating a warship for an extended period.
The Liberty-class Star Cruisers are the most expensive warships, costing a hundred million credits for each one and if I want nine of those, it will cost me close to another billion credits at nine hundred million credits. Meanwhile the Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruisers are about as disportionately cheap in credits as they are disportionately costly in crew so I can get those for seven million and two hundred thousand per a warship. A dozen of those is eighty-six million, four hundred thousand credits and that would be a real bargain if they didn't require so much crew, even with extensive usage of slave circuitry.
While it was a different matter in the past, Hammerhead-class Cruisers cost four million credits per warship these days and that makes it a hundred and forty-four million credits if I want to get thirty-six of them. And since I want a dozen each for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th legions, I do want thirty-six of them.
The DP20 Frigates are a bit costlier even with my CEC discount as I am still paying four million, three hundred and twenty thousand credits for each one. If each of the new legions gets a dozen of them, that is one hundred and fifty-fifty million credits, five hundred and twenty million in total.
And all of that is just a bit shy of one billion, four hundred million credits and doesn't match the upfront costs of the ground forces. On the other hand, that is just the warships and not the starfighters. Unfortunately, I can't do the starfighter math yet because we haven't got a final price from for the Liberator-class Starfighters yet, but putting another couple of billion aside for paying for the starfighters, both the starfighters themselves and any upkeep for the next five years, including the pilot.
All of that leaves me with about a billion left over, which can be put into the emergency funds category. That end result is four legions is affordable, but it cuts it somewhat close. Personally, I am not worried about the cost as my biggest concern is trained personnel. We took heavy losses at Geonosis and even without those casualties, using the 1st Republic Patriot Legion as a core for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Republic Patriot Legions is going to gut the 1st.
We can get replacements easily enough, but those new recruits aren't going to be as good as the people they are placing. At least I have three months to get the Republic Patriot Legions into fighting shape since that is how long the Dreadnoughts are going to take.
I will probably have to spend some time on the front lines or undertake some other missions in the meantime though. I can't afford to just sit back and not get involved in the fighting for three months, even if it means going into battle without my army at my back.
"It will be cutting things a little close," I concede as Aria gives me a look.
"I trust you to know what you are doing," says Aria, "Do you have left over funds for a propaganda network? An anti-COMPOR if you will?"
That is a good idea and one I've been meaning to get around to. Still, it is probably best if Aria does it because she is better skilled for that sort of thing and I already have a lot on my plate. Running a propaganda network is something that I am probably best off leaving to someone else who I can trust. Such as Aria.
"A billion?" I offer, knowing it isn't much for that sort of work, at least not on the scale that Aria is planning, "Sorry that I don't have more to spare. I'm spending most of our budget on military things and as I said, we are cutting things close with another three legions."
"It will have to do," says Aria, "I can also work with my Senate contacts and I am sure that I can get Taala to help me out. Just earmark me some funds and I can work with that."
"I'll speak with Finance about it when I next get the chance," I promise her, "Now unless you have anything else in mind, I need to go and inform my senatorial supporters of my new plans and place orders for the additional warships."
***
While I don't get to speak with everyone right away, those I am able to personally inform take the news gracefully. Senator Bu expresses support for me expanding my forces so proactively while Senator Basmirk of Carida is downright pleased for the chance to send more academy graduates my way. Senator Tills lets me know that King Yos has approved my original order with construction having already begun before informing that there should be no issue with tripling the order if I am good for the credits.
I am on my way to speak with Senator Tashi about my order with Rendili StarDrive when I find myself intercepted by Vice Chancellor Mas Amedda as the Chagrian man approaches me in the corridors of the Senate Dome, flanked by a pair of Senate Guards.
"General Shan," greets Vice Chancellor Amedda, "May I have a moment of your time?"
"Of course though I am on my way to speak with Senator Tashi about business so it will have to be quick," I tell him, just wondering what Palpatine's lackey wants with me.
"It shouldn't take long," Vice Chancellor Amedda assures me, "His Excellency would like a quick word with you."
"I see," I say neutrally as I try to get my brief spike of momentary panic under control.
It was bound to happen eventually given our respective positions, but that doesn't mean I am not greatly concerned about putting myself in the same room as someone who I not only know is a Sith Lord, but a Sith Lord who is more powerful than I am. On the other hand, Sidious should have no way of knowing that I know about him.
That's right, he shouldn't know that I know so he must want this meeting for something else. Something he does know and should be able to take action over as Supreme Chancellor. Perhaps the Militarist coalition I am building or it could be that I am building up a non-clone military force for the Republic.
"In that case, if you could follow me, Master Jedi," says the Vice Chancellor before turning around and walking off.
For a moment, I hesitate as I wonder if there is someway out of this situation. But there is not, not without snubbing the Chancellor for good reason and that is something I ought to avoid doing if possible. I don't need to give Sidious any advantages over me if I can help it.
Deciding that I need to go along with this for now, I follow after Vice Chancellor Amedda and his Senate Guards. The Chargrian leads me to the hangar where we take a shuttle over to the Executive Building and I take the opportunity to calm myself. There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. Those are what I need, to clap down on my internal turmoil and face Palpatine in a calm and collected manner. I can't allow fear to drive me and I need to figure out what sort of persona I am going to show the Supreme Chancellor.
I cannot pretend to be a loyal supporter as not only am I not cut out for that sort of game, but I have been actively and openly rallying the Militarists against him. I have my opposition to him clear, but the extent of it has to still be unknown. What can I publicly express my...ah, the clones. Slave army of child soldiers that the Chancellor has authorised, yes, I can use that to explain my hostility towards Palpatine. And he won't suspect that I know he is a kriffing Sith Lord.
There is no emotion, there is peace.
Let's see...unethical clone army, loyal opposition and allegiance to the Republic not the Chancellor. I can work with that and it isn't like the man will be expecting anything different. I doubt he will move against me overtly as the Supreme Chancellor, not when he can do so as the man behind the Separatists. As Chancellor Palpatine, he might try to have COMPOR slander me or go after me politically, but I have allies to help me with that.
No, I have to worry about assassins and bad intel reports. That is what he does with troublesome Jedi and military commanders if I remember correctly. He sends bounty hunters and commando teams after us or he uses his position as mastermind behind both sides to send me to my death at the hands of the droid army.
At least Vyssa isn't here. I wouldn't want to have this meeting with her involved. She might be a smart cookie, but she is still a padawan, my padawan, and I want her as far away as Sidious as I can keep her.
There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony.
As the shuttle lands at the Executive Dome, I make a call to one of my own shuttles. Under the watchful eye of Mas Amedda, I tell the pilot to get to the Executive Dome and be ready to pick me up. While I am sure that Palpatine will offer transport back to the Senate Dome to avoid looking bad, I don't want to be dependent on him for a speedy exit. And I want the option to make an exit on my own terms as well.
"This way, General Shan," says Vice Chancellor Amedda as he walks off, not bothering to wait for a response as he just expects me to follow.
For a moment, I hesitate as I consider disobeying that order to make a point, but in the end, I decide it isn't worth it. I let the Vice Chancellor lead me to the Chancellor's office, where Palpatine himself is waiting for me.
"Ah, General Shan," says Sidious in kindly tones as he spots me entering his office, "Please come in and thank you for agreeing to meet with me on such short notice."
"You are the Supreme Chancellor," I say neutrally, "That means your schedule is much busier than mine though I don't want to take too long with this impromptu meeting."
It feels oddly normal. No stench of the Dark Side, no creeping unease, no disturbance to put me on edge. Just a nice ordinary room.
"Good, good," says the Chancellor, "If it isn't too much trouble, I would like to know why you have turned down a clone command. I understand you have your own forces, but the Republic needs a general like you on the frontlines."
Ah, so that is what this meeting is about. As a Jedi Knight, I got offered command of a clone trooper legion upon arriving at Coruscant as did Aria, but both of us turned the offer down. I want to help the clones, but I need to know more about their situation first and I am not poking about that situation until I have secured a steady position from which to do so.
Apparently Sidious doesn't approve of that and whatever reason, he wants me to lead clones into battle. Which means I have done the right thing by refusing. At least for now.
"I will take to the frontlines," I promises the Chancellor, "I have no issue working alongside the clones, but right now I cannot accept clone command in good conscience. I am sure that you have already heard by now, but I consider the clone troopers to be enslaved child-soldiers and I refuse to be a party to that when alternatives exist."
"I wish that was true," says the Chancellor in that kindly grandfather sort of way of his that I now know to be false, "It is unfortunate, but the clone army is the only way that the Republic stands a chance of fighting this war. Without them, we would be overwhelmed. The High Council and the rest of the Jedi see this and accept this unfortunate necessity."
"I am not like the rest of the Order," I retort, resisting the urge to snap as there is no emotion, there is peace and I need to be at peace to handle dealing with this Sith Lord, "I will not accept slavery in any form as a neccessary evil, epsecially when I have better options at my disposal."
"Unfortunately, but your position is understandable and I must aluad you for sticking to your principles without shying away from your duty," says the Chancellor as he gives me an understanding smile, "I won't take you away from your other commitments any longer."
As I walk back to the shuttle bay, I can't help, but wonder if Sidious was trying to convince me not to take a clone command and if so, why the kriff would he want that?
***
This chapter we got some finance, some logistics and some Palpatine. With the first bit, a lot of the larger estimates for ongoing upkeep are guesstimated and not set in hard numbers so don't ask me for how I calculated the numbers or for exact details. I am deliberately being vague and what you need to know is just the rough numbers as more detail than Ben needs to pay a lot of upkeep is unnecessary. That said, finance and funding will be a concern for the story and an ongoing sub-plot as Ben needs credits to pay for everything and he wants something other than private backing in the Senate
With Palpatine, this is the first time that he and Ben have met, both on-screen and in-universe as before now, he hasn't been important enough for Ben to have personally met him. Try to take a guess at what Palp was trying to achieve as while I know what it is, Ben does not. I also try to show Ben's panic and minor internal freakout at an unexpected meeting with Palpatine.
Please point out any spelling or grammar mistakes that you spot. Please quote them in the thread and explain what you think is wrong so I know what you are referring to.
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- Location
- England
That sentence sort of died all of a sudden.
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Fixed. Thanks for catching that.
So I feel Sidious is going to use Ben and his Legions as an example why clones are better solution to fighting the Separatists then normal troops.
Propably by manipulating both sides to give the Jedai with clone armies few nice looking and low casualties wins while sending Ben in a meatgrinder that he will ultimetly lose.
This way he destroys Ben reputation as the best General destroying his support and crippling the growing Senate Coalition that opposes him, makes the clones look better compared to Ben troops and massacres the only real forces that are outside his direct control and if Ben dies during it all the better.
Propably by manipulating both sides to give the Jedai with clone armies few nice looking and low casualties wins while sending Ben in a meatgrinder that he will ultimetly lose.
This way he destroys Ben reputation as the best General destroying his support and crippling the growing Senate Coalition that opposes him, makes the clones look better compared to Ben troops and massacres the only real forces that are outside his direct control and if Ben dies during it all the better.
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kelgar04
Knight Watcher
- Location
- Here and no were
Makes sense he would want to force Ben into a blender along with the other Patriot Legions since if they keep winning then the give more impetus to a clone military Sidious will also probably feed intel to Sep commanders as well here he can along with giving Ben false intel. He will also go after Ben's allies in the senate as well most likely as well maybe assassination and discrediting them where he can as well hit him from both ends both politically and military.
Hmm there maybe an opportunity in someways given if he could insert some false information which the Sith could feedback too the Seps then could maybe lure them into a trap a time or two before that window closes.
edit: As to the meeting I imagine that Sidious probably wanted to Gauge Ben as well mainly to take an intial measure of him. Since I imagine the Sith lord probably wasn't all that aware of Ben until now.
Hmm there maybe an opportunity in someways given if he could insert some false information which the Sith could feedback too the Seps then could maybe lure them into a trap a time or two before that window closes.
edit: As to the meeting I imagine that Sidious probably wanted to Gauge Ben as well mainly to take an intial measure of him. Since I imagine the Sith lord probably wasn't all that aware of Ben until now.
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Well, Ben knowing who the real enemy is gives him huge advantage above everyone else when it comes to planning and preparring.
He is alert and knows about Sidious modus operandi so he already expects to be fed 'accidentaily' false intel and to be send in traps and ambushes.
So the most logical thing he should do is to completly disregard intel from official sources and only use information from his own, trusted intel operations and agents and eighter compeltly ignore or just treat as suggestions evey order or plan send to him from GAR.
He can't trust the GAR to not screw him over because of Sidious and his flunkies so he will propably work more like an independant allied force then a part of Republic Military.
So the missions and plans how to execute them will be decided by him and his command staff.
He is alert and knows about Sidious modus operandi so he already expects to be fed 'accidentaily' false intel and to be send in traps and ambushes.
So the most logical thing he should do is to completly disregard intel from official sources and only use information from his own, trusted intel operations and agents and eighter compeltly ignore or just treat as suggestions evey order or plan send to him from GAR.
He can't trust the GAR to not screw him over because of Sidious and his flunkies so he will propably work more like an independant allied force then a part of Republic Military.
So the missions and plans how to execute them will be decided by him and his command staff.
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
No. Unless I find an image that particularly fits my mental image, I use descriptions over images.
kelgar04
Knight Watcher
- Location
- Here and no were
Aye that is the best move.
Though right off the bat for intel I imagine that Ben could get a good base fo SIGINT going before HUMINT. I mean when he hits a system I imagine his ships pick up countless channels both secured and unsecured he grabs a few protocol droids, analysts along with some people who have a knack for solving problems along with the required equipment he could get a large amount of local intel outside of the republic's main agencies own SIGINT groups at least in his local area of operation.
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
He could have, but he has chosen not to. He wants to get his own power base in order before he starts poking that problem.
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
There will be clones showing up again and regularly appearing in this fic because it is set in the Clone Wars. Also Palpatine isn't going to pick a fight over Ben right now. He is just one Jedi who has only just placed themselves on Sidious' radar and Ben hasn't done enough yet for Sidious to deem him as something more than an irritating annoyance. It makes no sense for him to expand his political capita on one minor Jedi when he is looking to amass his power to become emperor.
4.8 (Coruscant Politicking) - Chapter Twenty-Three
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"We have some good news, General Shan," says Senator Tashi of Rendili once the expected greetings and pleasantries have been exchanged, "I have heard back from the Arch-Provost and Rendili StarDrive is more than capable of producing Katana-style Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruisers. It is a bit more pricey at eight million credits per warship, but it is well worth the cost as the crew cost is reduced to an eighth of what it would be otherwise."
Okay, that bit of extra pricing is going to be costly, but I can afford to spend an additional ten million on a dozen Dreadnoughts to keep the crew requirements done to a manageable level.
"And since you have proven interested in making use of extensive automation, the Arch-Provost had our research teams look into the possibility of installing slave-rigs on a Hammerhead-class Cruiser," continues Senator Tashi, sounding quite pleased with herself, "While not as efficient as what we have for the Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruiser, it is entirely possible to reduce the crew of a Hammerhead-class Cruiser via automation, reducing the crew requirements from three hundred to merely one hundred and we can do so with only a slight increase in cost at two hundred thousand credits."
I can see what Senator Tashi is driving at and she isn't wrong as that does sound appealing to me. Reducing the crew costs per warship by two thirds will let me triple how many Hammerheads I can field with only a slight increase in cost. Instead of adding thirty-six Hammerheads to my forces, I could get over a hundred at only a slightly higher cost. It gets a bit pricer than you consider paying for three times as many starfighter squadrons, but still well within what I have put aside for the emergency budget.
"By paying four million, two hundred thousand credits per warship instead of just four million per warship, I get a Hammerhead-class Cruiser with a crew requirement of one hundred instead of three hundred?" I inquire, just to make sure that I am understanding what the Rendili Senator is offering.
"That would be correct," confirms Senator Tashi, smiling like a tooka who brought the convor home, "I take it that you are interested in increasing your order?"
Yes, I certainly am and we both know it.
"A dozen Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruisers and a hundred and eight Hammerhead-class Cruisers," I tell her, "Give me a chance to let my finance people know and then get in touch with them."
"Of course, General."
After tripling my order for the DP20 Frigates, I am left to think about how to organise things going forward. I used to just have a single legion, a trio of capital ships, two scores of escorts and a few hundred starfighters. Now I am looking at having four legions, a dozen heavy capital ships, a dozen light capital ships, seven mobile bases and close to two hundred escorts alongside between two thousand and twelve thousand starfighters.
My budget has mainly increased, but I have equally increased my costs to match. I will need to start securing some additional funding outside the Senate to be on the safe side financially. Beyond that, the biggest concern is the new manpower requirements as I am going to be stretching my current force to fit something four times its size.
In that regard, the long construction times of the Mon Calamari star cruisers will be something of a blessing as the most crew intensive new warships will only need to be crewed once I have built my new forces. By that point, I should have more than enough experienced personnel to crew the star cruisers as they come off the production lines.
Fortunately I should get a good number of well-trained recruits from the various military academies so I'm not going to have completely raw recruits. Nonetheless, I'm going to take it easy for the first few months just so I can get my forces bloodied whilst keeping them alive.
But for the next few months, I need to figure out the composition of my current warships and I believe that I have it. The 3rd and 4th Republic Patriot Legions will be simple as each will have a quartet of Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruisers, a dozen Corellian Gunships and three squadrons of twelve Hammerhead-class Cruisers. Enough space for all of their ground forces and hangar bays for four hundred eighty starfighters. The 2nd Republic Legion will have a similar set of warships except I'll reassign one of the Hammerhead squadrons to 1st Legion and in exchange I will give Aria the Liberty as her flagship.
That should suffice until the nine star cruisers come online and when they do, I'll reorganise based on what warships we still have at the time.
The second biggest problem right now has been getting enough starfighters for all of the legion's warships. Before the Battle of Geonosis, my forces had five hundred, sixty-eight upgraded Z-95 Headhunters and the fighting at Geonosis and Indren since then has cost us a hundred, twenty-three of those. And not only are we down by over twenty percent of our starfighters, I need to bring our total numbers up to almost two thousand starfighters.
The issue itself isn't getting a starfighter as the market is plentiful with starfighters. No, the problem is getting some good starfighters and especially so now that the war has broken out. Everyone from sector forces to the new Republic Navy to independent groups like my own unit are trying to get their hands on quality starfighters for the upcoming war.
Still, it is a relatively minor issue since even as demand comes up, there won't be a shortage of supply. Starfighters are too cheap and quick to build for the market to run dry and worse comes to the worse, I'll just have to wait a month or two to get my hands on some good starfighters.
Wol's plans for the Liberator-class Starfighter are promising, but it will take time for the factories to get up and running, let alone start producing the starfighter. Z-95s are still a good choice, but the Republic has been contracting Incom to make starfighters for its navy. The Aurek-class Starfighter is a good choice, but that design remains pricey enough that it is just a backup plan.
The Dagger-class by Sienar is cheap, but only good if cheap is the only thing you are interested in and I would refuse to put my pilots into that deathtrap. Likewise with the Dianaga-class Starfighter and the MorningStar Assault Starfighter as all three designs are cheap, but lacking with the latter two having weak hulls, poor targeting computers and low mobility. The CloakShape relies too much on durability while lacking shields for me to get some and Cutlass-9 Patrol Fighter has good upgradability that doesn't off-set the poor maneuverability and fragile hull not to mention that its producer has sided with the Separatists.
The Freefall-class Starfighter is more of a bomber than a starfighter, but it is a good enough design that I would consider supplementing my forces with it. Still, it is large enough that calling it a starfighter is something of a misnomer and I'm leery of how well it will fare against agile droid starfighters. Not to mention that it requires a crew of four to be effective when most starfighters only need a single pilot. The Toscan 8-Q would be an acceptable design if it wasn't for how much it costs, especially when you want to upgrade it as the designers intended it to be.
In the end, I'm going to stick to the Z-95 Headhunter where I can and start supplementing with Aurek-class Starfighters. The Aurek is produced by Rendili StarDrive these days as one of its products to its Outer Rim customers so I can turn to them for the starfighter and it would make for a good interceptor. It works well with the Z-95 Headhunter for as the legion's dogfighter and the Aurek-class as an interceptor with the Z-95 ultimately being replaced by the Liberator-class. Hopefully I can get my hands on enough of each in the near-future, but if I have to, I'll bite the bolt and get some Toscan 8-Qs or grab some CloakShapes and slap some shield generators on them.
Just as I begin to write up some instructions, my comlink begins to blink as I get a call from Wol.
"General Shan here," I say as I answer it, "What is it, Commodore Thak?"
"I just got another interesting opportunity, General" replies Wol, sounding cheerfully pleased with himself, "Have you heard of the BTL-B Y-Wing by Koensayr Manufacturing?"
Why yes, I do know about the Y-Wing though admittedly it is thanks to those otherworldly memories. I don't know all of the various types, but since it has no number in it, the BTL-B is the variant used in the Clone Wars. Which makes sense. A solid bomber that was good enough continued to see use long after it became outdated before finally being replaced following the end of the Galactic Civil War.
If Wol has got the chance to get some, our forces could make use of some good bombers.
"I have," I answer, "But I expected the Republic Navy to claim the Y-Wings for themselves."
"They are," confirms Wol, "But there is debate amongst High Command that is causing some delays in their acquisition. I have some contacts and if you can spend fifty million credits, I can get us thirty-two squadrons of them. That is three hundred, eight-four individual starfighters. I'm not sure what you think of the design, but-"
Yeah, I am not going to turn down the chance to get thirty-two squadrons of Y-Wings.
"I'll take them," I interrupt Wol, "You have my approval and I don't want to let this opportunity pass us by."
Some Y-Wings will definitely help with the starfighter issue.
"I believe I see the shape of his plan in regards to you," says the holocron gatekeeper of Meetra Surik as I attend one of my private lessons with her in my personal quarters.
"You do?" I inquire as I pause my meditation to stare at her.
"He wishes to discredit and eliminate you," says the gatekeeper, "You are a capable leader, you have gained fame as a war hero and are actively opposing him even if he doesn't know the full extent. Darth Sidious wishes you to avoid taking a clone command so he can set up you and your forces to be destroyed by the enemy. You will be dead and unable to act against him with your fame and forces while the idea of using non-clone forces will suffer a blow when your attempt at it fails."
"How did you figure that out?" I ask as it makes sense.
Sidious wasn't trying to convince me to take up a clone command despite claiming he was. He wanted me to reject the request and deliberately choose his words to that effect.
"I know Sith, I know politicians and I know manipulators," states the gatekeeper, "It is the sort of plan that someone like Revan would have come up with, back when he had fallen to the Dark Side. He did something similar towards the end of the war, where he used his authority to send those he knew would not follow him down his dark path to their deaths. He may have been trying to achieve other goals such as trying to figure out your personality or how you would fit into his goals, but I lack the insight to determine whether or not he was doing that."
"I see," I say, "Any suggestions on how to counter it?"
"Keep yourself and your forces alive," answers the gatekeeper, "It seems obvious, but Sidious cannot discredit you if you don't fall for one of his traps. And beware that he is trying to lead you to your death. Confirm any information he supplies you with for yourself and try to avoid giving him accurate information about your current status. Beyond that, trust in the Force. If you stay true to the path of the Light, the Force will keep you safe if you let it."
"Thank you, Master Surik," I thank her.
"That is why I and this holocron were created," says the gatekeeper simply, "To teach those that would serve the Light and to keep the Sith from destroying the Republic and the Jedi. I am glad to have the chance to carry out that duty. Just keep in mind that I am not infallible and I may be wrong. None of the Sith manipulators I knew were as sadistic or cruel as you have described Darth Sidious as being."
"I shall keep that in mind," I told her before sighing, "There is no simple answer that solves a big problem like this."
"There never is," agrees the gatekeeper as she returns to our lesson, "Now, let the energy flow over you and into the Force. Do not think about it, just do it lest you have to actively keep up the effect in the middle of a battle. The Force is an energy field that permeates all life in the universe and you must let the energy striking you become part of the energy field that is the Force. In doing so, it is transformed into something else and the harm done to you is lessened if not outright nullified."
"Of course, Master Surik," I say before returning to my meditation as I learn one of the ancient techniques that the Jedi Order forgot during the New Sith War and have yet to recover.
A few things in this update. Ben is able to get Katana-style Dreadnoughts from Rendili for reduced crew costs and he is able to similarly automated Hammerhead-class Cruisers. This is because I noticed that it is entirely valid upgraded to the Hammerhead-class Cruiser under the RPG rules, by paying 200,000 Credits and using up the spare emplacement point to get Advanced Slave Circuits to reduce the crew requirements from 300 to 100. This is perfect for Ben because it lets him triple the number of Hammerheads he can afford with only a relatively slight increase in cost.
Beyond that, starfighter issues as Ben is quadrupling his starfighter forces before you take into account the Lucrehulks. Most of the pre-Clone Wars starfighters are either crappy, but cheap or decent, but expensive with none really being good. The closest I would say to that is the Z-95 Headhunter, but that still isn't as good as Clone Wars-era and later starfighters, at least not without some somewhat costly upgrades.
While Ben waits for the Liberator-class Starfighters to begin production, he is going for the Z-95 Headhunters he can get his hands on, some Y-Wings before the Republic snatches them all up and filling any gaps with the Aurek-class Starfighter. The Aurek-class is a great starfighter if it wasn't so costly, but since it gets produced and used up until the Clone Wars, I've decided people have figured out how to lower the cost from what it originally was. So I've applied the same cost reduction to it that I gave the Hammerhead and now the Aurek-class has gone down to affordable if still pricey costs.
As for the last bit, the Meetra Surik holocron gatekeeper has figured out Palpatine's plan from the previous update or at least she has a good idea of what it might be. Between dealing with Revan, G0-T0, Kreia, the Jedi High Council and other manipulators and schemers in her era, Meetra Surik would be good at sussing out Sith machinations. As for what she is currently teaching Ben, it is Energy Resistance because that is a basic, but useful Force power.
Please point out any spelling or grammar mistakes that you spot. Please quote them in the thread and explain what you think is wrong so I know what you are referring to.
Okay, that bit of extra pricing is going to be costly, but I can afford to spend an additional ten million on a dozen Dreadnoughts to keep the crew requirements done to a manageable level.
"And since you have proven interested in making use of extensive automation, the Arch-Provost had our research teams look into the possibility of installing slave-rigs on a Hammerhead-class Cruiser," continues Senator Tashi, sounding quite pleased with herself, "While not as efficient as what we have for the Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruiser, it is entirely possible to reduce the crew of a Hammerhead-class Cruiser via automation, reducing the crew requirements from three hundred to merely one hundred and we can do so with only a slight increase in cost at two hundred thousand credits."
I can see what Senator Tashi is driving at and she isn't wrong as that does sound appealing to me. Reducing the crew costs per warship by two thirds will let me triple how many Hammerheads I can field with only a slight increase in cost. Instead of adding thirty-six Hammerheads to my forces, I could get over a hundred at only a slightly higher cost. It gets a bit pricer than you consider paying for three times as many starfighter squadrons, but still well within what I have put aside for the emergency budget.
"By paying four million, two hundred thousand credits per warship instead of just four million per warship, I get a Hammerhead-class Cruiser with a crew requirement of one hundred instead of three hundred?" I inquire, just to make sure that I am understanding what the Rendili Senator is offering.
"That would be correct," confirms Senator Tashi, smiling like a tooka who brought the convor home, "I take it that you are interested in increasing your order?"
Yes, I certainly am and we both know it.
"A dozen Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruisers and a hundred and eight Hammerhead-class Cruisers," I tell her, "Give me a chance to let my finance people know and then get in touch with them."
"Of course, General."
***
After tripling my order for the DP20 Frigates, I am left to think about how to organise things going forward. I used to just have a single legion, a trio of capital ships, two scores of escorts and a few hundred starfighters. Now I am looking at having four legions, a dozen heavy capital ships, a dozen light capital ships, seven mobile bases and close to two hundred escorts alongside between two thousand and twelve thousand starfighters.
My budget has mainly increased, but I have equally increased my costs to match. I will need to start securing some additional funding outside the Senate to be on the safe side financially. Beyond that, the biggest concern is the new manpower requirements as I am going to be stretching my current force to fit something four times its size.
In that regard, the long construction times of the Mon Calamari star cruisers will be something of a blessing as the most crew intensive new warships will only need to be crewed once I have built my new forces. By that point, I should have more than enough experienced personnel to crew the star cruisers as they come off the production lines.
Fortunately I should get a good number of well-trained recruits from the various military academies so I'm not going to have completely raw recruits. Nonetheless, I'm going to take it easy for the first few months just so I can get my forces bloodied whilst keeping them alive.
But for the next few months, I need to figure out the composition of my current warships and I believe that I have it. The 3rd and 4th Republic Patriot Legions will be simple as each will have a quartet of Dreadnought-class Heavy Cruisers, a dozen Corellian Gunships and three squadrons of twelve Hammerhead-class Cruisers. Enough space for all of their ground forces and hangar bays for four hundred eighty starfighters. The 2nd Republic Legion will have a similar set of warships except I'll reassign one of the Hammerhead squadrons to 1st Legion and in exchange I will give Aria the Liberty as her flagship.
That should suffice until the nine star cruisers come online and when they do, I'll reorganise based on what warships we still have at the time.
The second biggest problem right now has been getting enough starfighters for all of the legion's warships. Before the Battle of Geonosis, my forces had five hundred, sixty-eight upgraded Z-95 Headhunters and the fighting at Geonosis and Indren since then has cost us a hundred, twenty-three of those. And not only are we down by over twenty percent of our starfighters, I need to bring our total numbers up to almost two thousand starfighters.
The issue itself isn't getting a starfighter as the market is plentiful with starfighters. No, the problem is getting some good starfighters and especially so now that the war has broken out. Everyone from sector forces to the new Republic Navy to independent groups like my own unit are trying to get their hands on quality starfighters for the upcoming war.
Still, it is a relatively minor issue since even as demand comes up, there won't be a shortage of supply. Starfighters are too cheap and quick to build for the market to run dry and worse comes to the worse, I'll just have to wait a month or two to get my hands on some good starfighters.
Wol's plans for the Liberator-class Starfighter are promising, but it will take time for the factories to get up and running, let alone start producing the starfighter. Z-95s are still a good choice, but the Republic has been contracting Incom to make starfighters for its navy. The Aurek-class Starfighter is a good choice, but that design remains pricey enough that it is just a backup plan.
The Dagger-class by Sienar is cheap, but only good if cheap is the only thing you are interested in and I would refuse to put my pilots into that deathtrap. Likewise with the Dianaga-class Starfighter and the MorningStar Assault Starfighter as all three designs are cheap, but lacking with the latter two having weak hulls, poor targeting computers and low mobility. The CloakShape relies too much on durability while lacking shields for me to get some and Cutlass-9 Patrol Fighter has good upgradability that doesn't off-set the poor maneuverability and fragile hull not to mention that its producer has sided with the Separatists.
The Freefall-class Starfighter is more of a bomber than a starfighter, but it is a good enough design that I would consider supplementing my forces with it. Still, it is large enough that calling it a starfighter is something of a misnomer and I'm leery of how well it will fare against agile droid starfighters. Not to mention that it requires a crew of four to be effective when most starfighters only need a single pilot. The Toscan 8-Q would be an acceptable design if it wasn't for how much it costs, especially when you want to upgrade it as the designers intended it to be.
In the end, I'm going to stick to the Z-95 Headhunter where I can and start supplementing with Aurek-class Starfighters. The Aurek is produced by Rendili StarDrive these days as one of its products to its Outer Rim customers so I can turn to them for the starfighter and it would make for a good interceptor. It works well with the Z-95 Headhunter for as the legion's dogfighter and the Aurek-class as an interceptor with the Z-95 ultimately being replaced by the Liberator-class. Hopefully I can get my hands on enough of each in the near-future, but if I have to, I'll bite the bolt and get some Toscan 8-Qs or grab some CloakShapes and slap some shield generators on them.
Just as I begin to write up some instructions, my comlink begins to blink as I get a call from Wol.
"General Shan here," I say as I answer it, "What is it, Commodore Thak?"
"I just got another interesting opportunity, General" replies Wol, sounding cheerfully pleased with himself, "Have you heard of the BTL-B Y-Wing by Koensayr Manufacturing?"
Why yes, I do know about the Y-Wing though admittedly it is thanks to those otherworldly memories. I don't know all of the various types, but since it has no number in it, the BTL-B is the variant used in the Clone Wars. Which makes sense. A solid bomber that was good enough continued to see use long after it became outdated before finally being replaced following the end of the Galactic Civil War.
If Wol has got the chance to get some, our forces could make use of some good bombers.
"I have," I answer, "But I expected the Republic Navy to claim the Y-Wings for themselves."
"They are," confirms Wol, "But there is debate amongst High Command that is causing some delays in their acquisition. I have some contacts and if you can spend fifty million credits, I can get us thirty-two squadrons of them. That is three hundred, eight-four individual starfighters. I'm not sure what you think of the design, but-"
Yeah, I am not going to turn down the chance to get thirty-two squadrons of Y-Wings.
"I'll take them," I interrupt Wol, "You have my approval and I don't want to let this opportunity pass us by."
Some Y-Wings will definitely help with the starfighter issue.
***
"I believe I see the shape of his plan in regards to you," says the holocron gatekeeper of Meetra Surik as I attend one of my private lessons with her in my personal quarters.
"You do?" I inquire as I pause my meditation to stare at her.
"He wishes to discredit and eliminate you," says the gatekeeper, "You are a capable leader, you have gained fame as a war hero and are actively opposing him even if he doesn't know the full extent. Darth Sidious wishes you to avoid taking a clone command so he can set up you and your forces to be destroyed by the enemy. You will be dead and unable to act against him with your fame and forces while the idea of using non-clone forces will suffer a blow when your attempt at it fails."
"How did you figure that out?" I ask as it makes sense.
Sidious wasn't trying to convince me to take up a clone command despite claiming he was. He wanted me to reject the request and deliberately choose his words to that effect.
"I know Sith, I know politicians and I know manipulators," states the gatekeeper, "It is the sort of plan that someone like Revan would have come up with, back when he had fallen to the Dark Side. He did something similar towards the end of the war, where he used his authority to send those he knew would not follow him down his dark path to their deaths. He may have been trying to achieve other goals such as trying to figure out your personality or how you would fit into his goals, but I lack the insight to determine whether or not he was doing that."
"I see," I say, "Any suggestions on how to counter it?"
"Keep yourself and your forces alive," answers the gatekeeper, "It seems obvious, but Sidious cannot discredit you if you don't fall for one of his traps. And beware that he is trying to lead you to your death. Confirm any information he supplies you with for yourself and try to avoid giving him accurate information about your current status. Beyond that, trust in the Force. If you stay true to the path of the Light, the Force will keep you safe if you let it."
"Thank you, Master Surik," I thank her.
"That is why I and this holocron were created," says the gatekeeper simply, "To teach those that would serve the Light and to keep the Sith from destroying the Republic and the Jedi. I am glad to have the chance to carry out that duty. Just keep in mind that I am not infallible and I may be wrong. None of the Sith manipulators I knew were as sadistic or cruel as you have described Darth Sidious as being."
"I shall keep that in mind," I told her before sighing, "There is no simple answer that solves a big problem like this."
"There never is," agrees the gatekeeper as she returns to our lesson, "Now, let the energy flow over you and into the Force. Do not think about it, just do it lest you have to actively keep up the effect in the middle of a battle. The Force is an energy field that permeates all life in the universe and you must let the energy striking you become part of the energy field that is the Force. In doing so, it is transformed into something else and the harm done to you is lessened if not outright nullified."
"Of course, Master Surik," I say before returning to my meditation as I learn one of the ancient techniques that the Jedi Order forgot during the New Sith War and have yet to recover.
***
A few things in this update. Ben is able to get Katana-style Dreadnoughts from Rendili for reduced crew costs and he is able to similarly automated Hammerhead-class Cruisers. This is because I noticed that it is entirely valid upgraded to the Hammerhead-class Cruiser under the RPG rules, by paying 200,000 Credits and using up the spare emplacement point to get Advanced Slave Circuits to reduce the crew requirements from 300 to 100. This is perfect for Ben because it lets him triple the number of Hammerheads he can afford with only a relatively slight increase in cost.
Beyond that, starfighter issues as Ben is quadrupling his starfighter forces before you take into account the Lucrehulks. Most of the pre-Clone Wars starfighters are either crappy, but cheap or decent, but expensive with none really being good. The closest I would say to that is the Z-95 Headhunter, but that still isn't as good as Clone Wars-era and later starfighters, at least not without some somewhat costly upgrades.
While Ben waits for the Liberator-class Starfighters to begin production, he is going for the Z-95 Headhunters he can get his hands on, some Y-Wings before the Republic snatches them all up and filling any gaps with the Aurek-class Starfighter. The Aurek-class is a great starfighter if it wasn't so costly, but since it gets produced and used up until the Clone Wars, I've decided people have figured out how to lower the cost from what it originally was. So I've applied the same cost reduction to it that I gave the Hammerhead and now the Aurek-class has gone down to affordable if still pricey costs.
As for the last bit, the Meetra Surik holocron gatekeeper has figured out Palpatine's plan from the previous update or at least she has a good idea of what it might be. Between dealing with Revan, G0-T0, Kreia, the Jedi High Council and other manipulators and schemers in her era, Meetra Surik would be good at sussing out Sith machinations. As for what she is currently teaching Ben, it is Energy Resistance because that is a basic, but useful Force power.
Please point out any spelling or grammar mistakes that you spot. Please quote them in the thread and explain what you think is wrong so I know what you are referring to.
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Thanks for the work you have already done.