Luke_Skywalker wrote:
Hekar looks at the young diplomat, Umrak's body movements are very telling, even without the Force, it is obvious that these beings desire something.
"Prime Minister, what exactly is it that you want from the republic at this time? What can we do for you?"
The Prime Minister grins slightly and clears his throat.
"Well, there is something the Republic - you - can do for me," he says, pointing his finger at each of the Jedi entourage. He raises his hand and waves to one of the guards at the back of the room. The guard lingers a moment while someone outside the hallway approaches and hands him a data disc. He then goes and loads it into a computer terminal and a 3-D image appears above the table. It is a holographic image of what appears to be an advanced style of warship.
"What I am about to tell you must not leave this room. This is the Alpha Class IV, a prototype design for a new fleet of warships unlike anything the galaxy has seen before. It is our most heavily guarded secret, only the people in this room and a few trusted political leaders know of its existence."
"Let me be perfectly clear, ambassadors; this is NOT a holographic drawing," he adds after a brief pause. "What you are looking at is a real-time image of the ship in space at a secret shipyard construction site. The ship was prepped and readied for launch as we sat down to begin conversations."
He turns to the Senator, who picks up where the Prime Minister leaves off. "Just this morning, our intelligence division picked up a transmission emanating from a remote sector of space. The transmission was brief, but clear. So far, we haven't shared this information with anyone."
He nods again to the guard still standing at the terminal, who then pushes a few buttons. An image of a man's face that the Jedi instantly recognize as Count Dooku appears before them.
"The meeting will begin in two days, my lord," Dooku says. There is a slight pause.
"I believe a consensus can be reached. The Droid factory is already operational, and once the others have seen what we've done, they will pledge their support."
Another pause, this one slightly longer.
"It shall be done, master," Dooku says at last. The transmission ends.
The Prime Minister speaks again. "We've been unable to track the other end of the transmission, and we have no idea who Dooku was speaking to. However, we are sending the Goliath to Geonosis to try to determine more about what is occurring there."
He turns to Hekar. "You asked what it is I want, young Jedi," he says. "I want the Republic's pledge they will fund construction of these warships to take part in the coming war. You heard Dooku: the Droid factory is already up and running. When the Senate learns of this, there will be no hesitation. There will be war, and we intend to see that this planet not only
profits, but survives," he says as he nods to Umrak.
"We know, as you do, that Taramus Frill is a staging world for incursions into Republic territory. What better way to appease our people than to show them that we will be the ones building the ships that will defend not only this world, but countless thousands of others? They will stop rioting when they know the Clone army will protect them."
He then turns to the Senator. "I think a recess is in order, don't you? The Jedi probably want to contact their leaders on Coruscant."
The senator nods in agreement. "That would probably be wise, Prime Minister. We can reconvene this afternoon."