The sight of Alessa made Doc feel warm. It had been too long since they had embraced but now wasn't the time. "Professor Samson, it is good to see you again. Taking a quick look around, he softly whispered in her ear, "You have idea." He then stood back straight and motioned to the tables, "Do enjoy the food that my daughter prepared and have a drink." Pouring himself a seltzer, Doc made his way to the front of the room where a podium stood. Looking out, he began to wonder just what he had gotten himself into. He had no idea that this many people would be interested let alone attend. Emiko was busy keeping food on the tables while one of his men stood by the door. It was time to call things to order. He would back brief any late arrivals.
"Good day to all of you and welcome to my home," he began. "I want to by thanking my lovely daughter, Emiko, for coming home to provide you with some food."
She would do no more than smile to her father.
"But I want to thank all of you for caring enough to come here. We have representatives from all of the major powers in and around Omega 49 as well as the Bretonians." He placed his hands on either side of the podium as he scanned back and forth over all present to acknowledge everyone.
"For many of you, I am sure this is not easy," he continued. "Decades of tensions are within these walls held in check by only minutes of restraint. I would say that is a huge compliment to you all. With many of you I have both differed and agreed but have done each respectfully. I believe that we can do that here and now without resorting to violence. Tombstone was built as a house of peace in research and medicine and it continues to do both. I hope that today we can come to a peaceful resolve and who knows, some old rivalries may find some resolve as well."
"Now for the reason I called this conference. To make a long story short, I returned home several days ago only to find a Bretonian battleship in our system. To say that I was shocked is an understatement. I took it upon myself to investigate and eventually dock on the ship. I gave them what I had left in H-fuel and oxygen in my transport and shared a drink and a few hands of cards with some of the crew. It was then that I learned of the ships intent in the system as evidenced by this recording."
"To establish an Armed Forces presence in Omega 49 and to annex Gran Canaria." He then looked towards the Bretonian delegation with a look of respect. "Respectfully, I find this a very wreckless idea. Why? As with no fire zones around Freeports, we keep this system as no fire as possible. When foreign warships enter those spaces and loiter, they often attract unwanted attention. I see the same thing here. Gallic patrols have been spotted in Dublin. That said, they will no doubt find their way here and to see their enemy in our home system will no doubt bring unwanted attention. While I personally have no tensions with the Gallic Royals as I am sure some here do not either, we do not want to find ourselves caught in a conflict or dragged into one that is not of our doing. This brings me to my next point.
He then puts up a copy of the Port Jackson Treaty signed many years before. "This is the only copy of this document that I have but it is genuine."
Port Jackson Treaty
1. The Port Jackson settlement, and surrounding area of 80 square kilometers, shall be leased from the Council of Zoners (hereafter referred to as the Council) for a period of not less than 10 (ten) years, during which time it shall be under the administration of Borderworld Exports (hereafter referred to as Bowex).
2. Throughout the duration of the aforementioned lease, Bowex transport vessels, and Bowex-owned escorts of bomber-class or smaller, shall be permitted passage through the Omega-49 system for the purpose of carrying refugees and necessary supplies (excluding heavy weapons) to the Port Jackson settlement, and that Bowex shall be permitted to defend said transports in the event that they come under hostile action.
3. The United Kingdom of Bretonia shall not call into dispute the Council's sovereignty over either the Omega-49 system or Planet Gran Canaria, nor will vessels of the Royal Bretonian Armed Forces enter the Omega-49 system without the express approval of the Council.
4. Bowex shall initially pay a sum of 100 million Sirius Standard Credits to the Council, and pay a sum of 30 million Sirius Standard Credits on a Monthly basis as payment for use of the aforementioned parcel of land.
5. The above agreement will be subject to renegotiation and renewal every 10 (ten) years from the date it becomes active.
6. Boderworld Exports, their Agents, and the Bretonian Crown will rescind and relinquish all claims and filings with the Sirius Astronomical Union regarding the name "Planet Sydney", and will henceforth recognize and acknowledge the Planet's rightful name of "Planet Gran Canaria".
Signed
X - Council of Zoners
X - Bowex Board of Directors, On behalf of the Bretonian Crown
"Granted, there is no more Zoner council but I have heard of no requests to enter the system. Currently, the Omicron Supply Industries are legal administrators of the system. Gentlemen, the presence of that ship is, in my opinion, a violation of line three of this agreement. Mind you, I have consistently and will continue to provide medical care to the many Bretonians of Port Jackson."
He leaned back a bit and softly smiled as he spoke of his next bit, "Many of those people came as refugee children, children whose trust that I earned over the years, often took as my own and watched them grow up. If it is them that you are concerned with, do not be. My people will look after them until the last one is repatriated home. Out of respect and safety not just for them but for us all, I would ask that that ship leave our space. My fear and that of others here is that it will attract the unwanted presence of the Gallic fleet. Gran Canaria is a largely peaceful, solemn world and we desire to keep it that way. Mind you, Sirs, that this is not an attack on Bretonia. What this is is a presentation of some fact and some genuine concern."
Taking a sip of his seltzer, he continued in addressing the others. "I am sure others here would just assume occupy our world in order to protect it. Others still, no doubt, will keep ships in the area for the same reason. I personally fear the Zoner population again being caught in the middle, being forced to pick sides and being vilified for either doing or not doing so. If any one of you had to sign as many death certificates and inform many a parent, spouse or child of a loved one who will not be coming home, you may think differently. It is the one part of my job that I hate more than any other."
He began scanning the room as he was looking for the delegation from Omicron Supply Industries. He hadn't seen him yet. "Hm, Mr. Mendes must not be here yet."
He then looked back to the Bretonian delegation. "I will give you a chance to respond and I will ask the others to give you the respect to do so."