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Voncloud leans back in his chair after hearing Achille's responce, it was not exactly what he expected, but it did make him smile a little
"Although what you say is true, i have buried many in my time, OSI wise, ive killed noone, my comment was more to get a reaction from you. No, i became head of OSI when alot of directors before me all retired at the same time, the position in essence just..fell into my lap. Now, people do not seek glory because they feel they deserve it, no, they seek glory for the ideal of earning that glory. I did nothing to become the head of OSI, instead i had to ride to the occasion, i seek no glory for myself, only the better of OSI and those who work for it.
It seems you have alot to learn about what it means to be a Zoner, those are present here today about the Gallic threat, look at them, they are not interested in war, in becoming a military might which may face down an invasion force...they are Chieftains of smaller tribes, worried as to what could happen to those that they lead. Families of people live on Freeports, they arnt here to form some new fleet of war, they are here to do what ever is needed to protect Zoners and the Zoner way of life. Like any set of siblings, Zoner brothers and sisters will squabble, but we are all here for the main purpose of making sure we are prepared for the worse.
This, tenuous unity, and these, fools, you so happily consider them, may in the end, become the only allies if the shit does indeed hit the fan. Because if war does indeed occur, the houses will be more then happy to leave us to our fate when they need to protect themselves. So keep that in mind..that these, 'fools' may one day be all there is between you and a Gallic weapon of war."
*The fox sits up straight to look at the view screen*
And you speak of us to treat the Gallics as human beings, well, actions speak louder then words, and so far, the Gallics have shown no interest in being nothing more then heralds of an invasion. We tried to speak to them as a nation, as a people, and it fell on deaf ears. So when they are ready to speak, we will listen, but until then we have little choice but to prepare to defend ourselves should the need arise"
Robert smirked at Parkes' speech. He felt that it was clear that he didn't want to join, or at least he viewed the idea of joining with doubt as Parkes was only presenting the resources he could offer, but he didn't talk any second or thought about the assistance the Confederation would give him.
He was tempted to make Parkes know that, but common sense kept his mouth shut. He didn't want a ruckus, it's Parkes' decision whether or not his joins the Confederation after all.
After he speech, a view screen opened revealing the prince near FP11.
Robert knew that it was very improbable for the Royal Navy to organize an expedition in the Omicrons, but it was not impossible. What intrigued him was the group of zoners and the communication logs which also appeared on screen. It seemed like the prince didn't travel alone at all.
He wanted to know more about this situation. He didn't doubt the physical proves Doc Holliday showed, but his curiosity started to tingle him.
He looked for dr. Van Mojo and when he noticed him, he approached him:
" Doctor Van Mojo, may I have a moment s'il vous plait? " He asked with a calm tone, and a subtle voice making sure only the Doctor could hear him.
" I never said I doubted the fact that the Royal Navy could come in the Omicrons, as I should be one of the persons here who should know what the Royal Navy can do, but, honestly, I wasn't expecting the Prince to come to such a space without an escort, especially considering how princes are, non? " he replied humorously
" As communication logs suggest, he was brought by those zoner vessels. The "JZ" I believe. This got me quite curious about that particular group of zoners and their relationship with Gallia. I mean, I think I can speak for everyone in this room when I say that I doubt anyone here would do such a thing, non?
Would you tell me more about them and what their relation with Gallia and the Prince would be, s'il vous plait? "
He looked straight in the doctor's eyes. This discussion was purely trivial, but for some reason, Robert wanted to know such trivialities
Parkes was sipping his wine when he saw the pictures.
He couldn't see a timestamp on the footage, but he would have been on the station. He started thinking, "Why do I not remember it? Was it dealt with so swiftly that there wasn't a threat? Or was it because the limited amount of ships could pose no real threat to the station's defences?"
"It it a legitimate Gallic ship? An unescorted member of the royal family this far out? Was it a false flag by the TAZ? Were they instigating the war for profit?" A lot of questions swirled in Parkes head.
He hoped a few more voices would convince him this was not a wasted trip.
Dr. Mojo shook his head.
I am as surprised as you are of seeing this footage monsieur, believe me, Doc hadn't shared this with me before. You will understand what a surprise it is for me to see the Northerners dealing with our enemies in such friendly terms.
Let's remember that the sister of this so called Prince is the biggest traitor in the history of the Zoners.
He sat for a moment, a lot of ideas were streaming into his head. He didn't like what he had seen. He was not amused, at all.
Robert nodded in response to Mojo's statements.
" It seems that the Royal line meant trouble not just in Gallia " he replied
" If you ask me, it was smart of him to reveal them just know. The viewscreen now acts as a spearhead. One that will surely shake the ideas persons had about joining the Confederation. Tres intelligent
I don't worry though, I've already made my choice. " he said overconfidently
" On the other hand, I've been a businessman for too long to know when someone is simply reluctant in accepting a proposition, and between you and me, Parkes is that kind of a person. He was talking as if the Confederation expected everything for him while offering nothing in return. And, the Confederation does assist its members, both new and old, non? " Robert said throwing a rhetorical question
He decided to tackle this subject about the Confederation and Parkes merely to see for himself if the decision of vowing for the Confederation was a good one and moreover, to see what was their view on zoners which are against it.
Dr. Mojo grabbed the mic for a moment to say a couple of things after Robert sparked an idea in his brain.
Mr. Parkes, the Confederation is aware of your lack of resources to spare. What we want from you is your support, nothing else. It is not by the means of credits or guns that we shall create one powerful single voice to stand as Zoners to the eyes of the rest. Our biggest asset must be unity!
"And the Polyfather asked Goddess, 'What is thy name?' And She answered, saying, 'My name is Legion: for we are many'."
He stood down and let the meeting proceed.
Robert joyfully watched Mojo as he grabbed the mic to make his speech.
The speech he said did nothing but show Robert how Mojo their discussion sparked an idea in his mind.
" ... With pleasure, monsieur " He said with a big grin on his face, tilting his hat to Mojo.
He didn't want to ask anything else, this little situation just proved him that being part of the Confederation of Freeports would be at least ... Funny, he thought.
Right afterwards, he walked around finding a seat for himself and eventually, he installed himself near Parkes and sat there silently
Parkes stood up to acknowledge the words directed at him by Dr Mojo. Unfortunately, he stood up too quickly and lost his balance. He managed to stabilise himself, but in the process had thrown his walking cane up in the air.
It's flight was magnificent. Spiraling high in the air before landing smack bang on the forehead of Robert d'Autoine.
Watching the whole situation up close, Quiron laughed out. "You treat every Gauls like this, Mr. Parkes? Or their wine made its effect on you?" said as he filled his own glass and watched d'Autoine's reaction.
Achille glanced over at Voncloud. “It’s that sort of idealism that everyone strives for, no? Doesn’t everyone see themselves as…”
At this exact moment a certain cane shot over the head of the audience, pirouetted, before descending with vicious intent directly into the features of Achille’s boss. A low groan emanated over the auditorium.
“Excuse moi,” Achille smiled pleasantly at voncloud; “but we appear to have been interrupted…” he glanced over to where Robert sat (or rather lay) sprawled against the chair, and grinned slightly.
“Oh no he’s fine. Anyway, I have a general phobia of “weapons of war”, especially Gallic ones. Given Sirius’s current volatility it’s quite possible this entire situation will boil off rather than boiling over, and in several weeks we will wonder what we were all heckling each other over. Being a Zoner is nothing special my furry friend”. He looked up, observing the view screen. “The moment we start looking for a cause is the moment the individual no longer matters, and survivalism is always paramount. Even this charade…” Achille indicated the view screen with a slender arm; “Will eventually prove false as probably everyone in this room is aware this “Prince” is not representative of GRN’s entirety, and never will be. To use a cliché, we make mountains out of molehills. And as to caring for one’s own… Well, there is nothing noble in the obvious. Even the Gallia you fear cares for its people, the “families” of its realm or the nobility would have long been deposed otherwise. Besides…” Achille tightened slightly; “You discuss that the houses will not attempt to preserve us, well, why should they when we, the noble Zoners have not once rallied to their banner in return?”
He smiled contentedly; “You see my Omicron friend, the picture is too vast to quantify, and long…” Achille spoke slowly, clearly; “…may it remain so”.
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