Give us a blindfold, give us a blade...

[Ali Hadrix]

Supreme Commander Ali Hadrix sat on a small ottoman with her elbows resting on her knees, looking out through the large window of her office in Iritsa, the capital city of Chazwa; the capital planet of the Galactic Republic.
She had decisions to make, and quickly. New vessels were needed to bolster the fleet, and Ali knew exactly what she wanted. It would take funds from a number of worlds that remained members of the Republic, but she knew they'd be worth their salt.
Whether or not the owner would sell, particularly in light of the recent attempted regime change at the hands of the former Prime Minister Genevieve Lasedri. Many corporate allies had been seized and held practically hostage by the government until primary control had been wrested from Lasedri, for the time being. The woman had a large following, and whilst Ali had never known her as a person, she'd grown to trust Lasedri as a leader. Clearly, such an act had been a mistake, though Ali had no way of knowing at the time.
Now the Galactic Republic was split, not necessarily down the middle, but divided at the heights of its government nonetheless. Ali was fighting the other half of the Republic now, and had already decided to take her leave once order was restored.
CSAF was how she intended on making a difference, and she'd already gathered the personnel she needed. Ali would spend the next two years tucked away on Carida with the recruits she'd managed to scrape together, grinding and training until every shred of knowledge she had to give was engraved on the hearts of her Commandos.
But first she had to attend to the Republic's needs. Spies and scouts had gathered enough information to suggest an impending attack on one or more Republic worlds, and Ali intended to see that those worlds were well defended.

[member=Taeli Raaf]​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Ali Hadrix"]

While Taeli couldn't meet with the woman in person, she was busy in the Outer Rim and forming up other plans with her compatriots, she did look over the message from Supreme Commander Hadrix. The woman had been an ally of Lasedri's in the government ... but Taeli wondered on the stance of the Supreme Commander in the current crisis. Well, she could find out for herself and then decide what exactly the woman wanted and if she could be trusted to not be in league with Lasedri and her clone forces.

A moment later, a blue hologram of Taeli appeared in the office of the Supreme Commander.

"Supreme Commander Hadrix, you wanted to speak with me?" she asked. "I do hope this isn't a plea to aid Lasedri with her coup, because you'd be wasting your breath and time. Now, if you're siding with the resistance to her takeover ... then we can talk."

 

[Ali Hadrix]

As the woman appeared in Ali's office, the Commander allowed an expression of relief and reprieve show in her features as she turned to face the hologram. "Raaf, thank goodness..." She began, nodding fervently at the other woman's inquiries. "I understand, entirely. And I assure you that the military is committed to ending the atrocities caused by our false leader and restoring the rule of law to the Republic." Ali held her hands opened and shrugged slightly from her seat. "I can't prove to you our loyalty, but I can convey to you our need. The Republic Navy is flagging under this schism Lasedri has caused, and our intelligence assets tell us attacks are being prepared by newly arisen enemies. Barter with me, Raaf, and I promise you a swift end to Lasedri's reign of falsehood."

[member=Taeli Raaf]​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Ali Hadrix"]

"I see," she said simply, thinking about it. She knew that the corporation forces were preparing strikes on Cartao to eliminate the cloning facilities there and they were also fortifying the Roche system as a great many interests, Aurora Industries included, lay in that system. She wondered what exactly the Supreme Commander was looking for ... as she had her own ideas as well.

"What exactly are you looking to purchase?" she finally asked. "I'm honestly looking for a more permanent sponsorship for Aurora by the Republic military so this might be a larger deal than you initially planned. So you tell me what you're after ... and we will see, fair enough?"

 

[Ali Hadrix]

Ali nodded. "Plenty fair. Make good on our Navy, and I'll see to it that we keep you around." Ali omitted the fact that she planned on vacating the position she held, dissolving any guarantee that her replacement would honor their contracts. It was hardly a loss for Raaf, however, whom would merely have to renegotiate with whomever took Ali's place. And it's not as if Ali would be getting her ships for free. "I need Bastions." She said bluntly. "Condensed force to augment our standing fleets. I need power, Raaf. Unadulterated strength."

[member=Taeli Raaf]​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Ali Hadrix"]

"We currently have two Bastions docked and completed at our yards on Saleucami," Taeli said. "I'm sure, since you're asking about them, you've seen their technical specs in our advertisement about them. I would be willing to sell the two we have to the Republic ... but that's not big enough for what I have in mind. On top of the two Bastions, I would want a long term contract with the Republic to supply ships and other such materials to the military. You can select which ships would be included in this contract, even request ships to be developed, and we would provide them to the Republic navy for as long as the military desires them ... but it would need to be long term for me."

It would be advantageous to both sides, Taeli would gain a long term business arrangement and fill a supply role to the military and the military would gain access to a plethora of ships and strength they desperately needed in these troubled times. It helped her case that most major ship manufacturers were not currently involved with the Republic and most major shipyards were outside Republic control. They would need her shipyards.

 

[Ali Hadrix]

Ali didn't have any time to negotiate, the Navy's strength needed to be bolstered immediately. "As long as the quality of your product doesn't change, we can readily offer you contracts to a laundry list of the most commonly needed unit types. We have crews on standby to take charge of the Bastions, though if you have training personnel that would be willing to remain for a time on board, we would be much appreciative." Ali turned to her desk and unlocked her datatablet with a thumb swipe, then began reading from the list of additional vehicles they would need. When she was finished, Ali locked the tablet screen and glanced back at the holographic woman before her. "If this is a list you can fulfill readily, Miss Raaf, our representatives can meet to discuss and finalize legal proceedings for your contracts."

[member=Taeli Raaf]​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Ali Hadrix"]

"Your crews are free to take possession of the two Bastions once the credits transfer for their purchase," Taeli said. "As for the others, we have eight shipyards working around the clock to develop and produce ships. Whatever you have in mind, we can meet your expectations and make sure quality stays at top notch. So what is the list?"

 

[Ali Hadrix]

Ali transmitted the list from her datatablet to the holocommunicator with the swipe of a finger. "Modest, I hope you'll find." Ali half-joked, somewhat worried that Aurora's production might not be capable of meeting the Republic's current needs. On the list, was nearly half of Aurora's known production vessels.
1 - Jocasta-class Corvettes
6 - Elytra-class Fast Frigates
10 - Sentinel-class Patrol Frigates
5 - PulseFlare Heavy Cannon Cruisers
2 - Bastion-Class Star Destroyers
All outfitted with White-Noise Holo and Com Transmitters

Ali had already acquired the T-70 X-wings and BTL-S10 K-wing Assault Bombers she needed months in advance. What they lacked in fleet strength they would certainly match in fighter power. Ali looked at Raaf intently through the holo-connection. "Is this an order you can fulfill, Miss Raaf?"

[member=Taeli Raaf]​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Ali Hadrix"]

"Easily done," Taeli stated. "Now I just need the necessary funds transferred, which is going to be a lot, and the Republic will once again have a ship provider for the military ... and some powerful long-range vessels at that."

It was always nice to see that a pragmatic person was still Supreme Commander, even with all of this chaos in the Republic. There was going to be consequences for months to come for the actions of the last few days ... and they still weren't out of the woods yet when it came to things. Cartao was her next destination after all.

 

[Ali Hadrix]

Ali nodded and offered Taeli her thanks. "The Republic will survive...all of this. And we thank your assistance in securing its future." She wished Raaf well and ended the communication before sending a communique to the Republic's military procurement division liaison with the order and authorization codes for the funds transfer.

[member=Taeli Raaf]​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

And with that, Taeli had just secured a very long and significant contract with the Republic for Aurora Industries. Jaxson would be notified to be awaiting payment for a large initial order from the Republic military, and that they would be providing other things to the Republic. Smiling to herself just a bit, she leaned back in her chair and started going over reports from Project Galvani.