Greetings esteemed Elders of the great Corsair nation.
I am honored by the invitation to speak and will attempt--though most likely unsuccessfully--to be brief. The appointment by myself of Captain Green Hawk to the position of Adjudicator was expressly to send a message to lawfuls and unlawfuls throughout Sirius. Many have accused of us of trying to "empire build" but as the esteemed Elders here are aware, building an empire of Junkers would be akin to creating an army of cats. They just aren't going to march in formation no matter how much you try to get them to. You will also notice the absence of any "vast Junker fleets darkening the suns of Sirius" as many have feared and you will note that no "back room deals" have been made giving one faction precedence over another at the other's expense. As always, we prize and understand the need for neutrality. We are about business and military and political actions are only forthcoming from us when business vital to Junker independence is at stake.
Adjudicator Green Hawks appointment was a popular action--approved off by Junkers throughout Sirius. He has defended Junker pilots under attack from the Wild and defended Yanagi from predatory bounty hunter capital ships. You will note the bounty hunter ID'd as *BH* no longer is seen in Sigma-13. It was Junker and Corsair coordination that made this a reality. Adjudicator Green Hawk also formed the "Poor Pilots Fund" and has helped Junker and Corsair pilots alike who have started at the bottom work their way up to profitability. All these things preceded his invitation to accept the appointment as adjudicator and he has fulfilled the position admirably.
The position of Yanagi Depot allows the possibility of Blood Dragon, Corsair, Golden Chrysanthemum and of course Junker adjudicatorship. My appointment of Captain Green Hawk was an acknowledgment that the faction showing the most balance and maturity and ability in dealing with Yanagi was--and is--the Corsairs. By granting this position to the Corsairs, you are given the chance to demonstrate through Adjudicator Green Hawk's oversight how respected and prized our relationship with Corsairs is and should remain. The Golden Chrysanthemums have been simply good trade partners. This is in our own best interests as we of course desire to be able to conduct business in Kusari--hopefully openly one day. The Blood Dragons -- and especially of late -- have been erratic and unpredictable in their actions towards us. Our relationship with them has always been one of shaky balance. Of course, a Junker could have received the appointment but the message I wished sent was that our trade partners who have kept good relationships with us are as much a part of Junker society as our own citizens. What would Junkers be without the friendship of the Corsairs? Your allowance of our neutrality and appreciation of our position and shrewd insight into practical business practice have made our relationship stable and dependable and has enriched all Junkers throughout Sirius. Adjudicator Green Hawks appointment is an acknowledgment of trust and respect towards all Corsairs and a sign that you are not merely "a faction doing business with us" but a part of our very livelihood. There are not many non-Junkers who could be received in such a position, yet of those to be found, the first of them was a Corsair. I hope you can see this as the honor it is. Adjudicator Green Hawk's responsibilities are simply to protect Junkers and the depot at Yanagi and to enforce and administer our neutrality there within the 2km limit. he of course will deal with people's who are not favorably inclined towards the Corsairs but has this not been the benefit of meeting at Junker bases all along? All parties are able to know they will be treated equally with no interference given in what happens after they leave. Adjudicator Green Hawk simply is given the opportunity to show all the groups of Sirius that a Corsair is skilled not only in war and business but in understanding and self control. How that must grate on the nerves of those who are less restrained and respectful! Again, it gives a public demonstration of your people's stature. It also sends a message to lawfuls that we are not ashamed to work with the great people of the Corsair nation and that we are not afraid of our association with them. In time perhaps, our openness will serve as an example to all of Sirius that Corsairs are as much a noble house as any of the "houses" that press their rule on their own peoples and others.
And finally, we can not avoid that in neutrality we will be required to deal with all sides--that is our place and function. To the shrewd having influence in such a position can only be advantageous. It is regrettable that the Hogosha have nationalized abject hatred of us but it is precisely because we have dealt with groups considered criminal in Kusari that we have been given this reputation by them there. As to the Blood Dragons? We are not nor have ever been staunch allies with them and in fact have only a few dealings with one another, resupplying at bases on occasion. Blood Dragons have often been as prone to attack Junker traffic as they have any any other and this is something we bear because we understand in the end, there is a middle ground of mutual advantage that we need to co-exist. What is this advantage we gain from the Blood Dragons you will no doubt ask? One thing and one thing alone...the potential to gain an ally in the greatest threat that exists to Junkers and indeed all of Sirius -- and they are on the front line of it with us --though they have yet to fully realize it. The threat are the Wild. Human beings genetically altered not by mere cardamine but by an alien infestation. Aliens with the full desire and no hesitancy to kill all human life. Imagine esteemed Elders the outrage one would feel to see Corsair men and women and even children in their primes turned into twisted caricatures with no will of their own anymore and slavishly doing the bidding of a blue jellied creature not created by God but engineered by aliens who never knew of evolved humanity. Trapped in time and programmed with unchangeable goals, these creatures will never stop until they are stopped. And the Wild are the portal for the Nomads into every society in Sirius. The fact that they are relatively quiescent at present belies their programmed instinct to destroy us all when the opportunity is presented. Our intelligence and operations have shown that Wild activity in proximity to Yanagi has exponentially increased. our trade routes through Tohoku and reconnaissances there indicate that this may be the very goal of the Wild--under direction of Nomads--for their next area of expansion. Then we all will deal with Wild present in Kusari and Rheinland again.
I know these facts are not unknown to and unappreciated by you --for it is no mere happenstance you have aided the Order. We see the same threat. Our position covers all of Sirius and what we are seeing concerns us greatly. the Corsairs cannot of course work with allies of their enemies even with such concerns--but we can. Our interest in relations to continue with the Blood Dragons is to be able to share intelligence on Wild and Nomad expansion. We need to travel their spaces to do this. This is no threat to the Corsairs.
Adjudicator Green Hawk now has a vote and voice in our assemblies and can speak their not only for the Yanagi Junker's interests butt also for teh Corsairs. All of this strengthens the your position.
That is the clear and precise of it. I hope it has satisfied your questions but I am available now to answer any others you may have.
![[Image: Tink_Shadow.png]](http://junkers.worldstrider.info/images/Tink_Shadow.png)