Council of the Corsair Elders

[worldstrider]

Talk is indeed cheap Elder. Let's cut to the chase then...

We can sit on aloof thrones and bluster about how pure and noble our intents and methods are but the fact is what works, works and what doesn't, doesn't.

Yes--we are MORE than aware of the consequences of Nomad infestation and the risk of associating with those who associate with them. What is NOT public knowledge and must not leave these chambers is that from the Junker Guards party's inception--the forerunner of the Junker Congress we have been taking radical steps to prepare for a worst case scenario.

If you have experience with pilot training you will know that the number one cause of pilot's losing confidence and initiative in combat is not superior firepower or numbers of the enemy...it is lack of knowledge.

As Junkers, we don't have the luxury of sitting behind battle fleets with scores of allies to help us. We have had to survive with our wits and that is done by having knowledge.

You want to be ignorant? Sit on a throne and ignore the enemy. Pretend their activities and actions are not necessary to know and understand. Isolate yourself from them and pay no heed to how they think, what they feel and what they want and do.

We do not have that luxury. You have your battle fleets, skilled pilots and pride. We have centuries of adapting to changing circumstances without losing ourselves to them. There is no house our ships cannot dock in. No place we cannot easily go. This did not happen by stupidity or ignorance it happened because we can press ourselves beyond our own view and see how others see things. isolation does not gain that ability.

Here is what we have--and the fact that it has remained undetected and unknown should gain your attention.
We have surveilled the home systems of the Phantoms and Nomads. We have watched the order and their operations and learned from their tactics. We have infiltrated bases in Liberty's Alaska and are aware of every action that occurs there. We have discovered, recovered and reverse engineered alien technologies. We have allied with the harvesters when even the Zoners feared them and we posses weapons that can defeat them. We have created an extensive DNA catalog of every Junker and genetic profiles of every population center in Sirius. We have captured and experimented on hundreds of Nomads and Wild and taken down their most powerful ships on more than one occasion.

We have done all of this unknown and unseen and without asking you or the Outcasts or Liberty or the Order for one iota of help or assistance. If war with the Nomads came today, we are prepared. If it comes next week we are even more prepared. If you are afraid of Nomad infestation then pray to your God that you don't have to fight them--because then you will have to deal with it whether you like it or not. The last conversation I had with a Corsair pilot about Nomads was, "Don't antagonize them as it provokes them to come."

Why do you think I appointed a Corsair instead of an Outcast at the hub of Wild activity in Sirius? We are not stupid or ignorant and are already aware of some Outcasts affection for these inhuman creatures. We are forming bulwarks and aligning allies on the chance such a conflict comes. My concern is for Junker citizens to live in safety--politics are only a means to an end. They mean nothing in and of themselves. We are not pursuing power or glory or competing for recognition--we are doing the quiet dirty work that no one else in Sirius wants to do--what we have always done. You fight your war against the Outcasts and they against you for your own reasons. Nomads have nothing to do with why your conflict began. That isn't our concern or business. But the threat of Nomads is all of our concern and you are quite correct a house divided against itself cannot stand. You know the history of the Nomad war. They came to set one side against another so they would destroy and weaken themselves. We will use every ally, every tool, every method at our disposal to stop that from happening again. Our relationship with the Outcasts keeps us close to their actions. If they suffer a complete societal infestation we will be the first to know--and you would need to know that then.

Adjudicator Green Hawk does not have to grab a sword and slay Hogosha in their beds. He simply can inform them of the consequences of aggression and not defend them should they press it on Yanagi. If the Corsairs should back the Hogosha in a war against Junkers then he simply can resign. Working cooperatively is what will defeat any attempt by the Nomads to take over. We have concentrated on the Wild most specifically as these are the agents Nomads would stealthily use first. So while we dance about details the Junker view is simple. Nomads are a threat bigger than politics and someone should do something about it. We are.

I am not at liberty to discuss what actions we are taking privately but our study of Nomads and the Wild is more extensive than any other being undertaken in Sirius. We seek to increase knowledge in order to be more prepared for battle. Yanagi is a front line. Do you wish to withdraw from it? We will not.

As always we have shared concerns and interests...these are what we should concentrate on.

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