very long.”
Admiral Bell leaned forward in her chair. “Are you saying that higher prices on comlinks will provoke a revolt?”
Salm shook his head. “Not exactly. You’ve seen reports coming out of Ciutric. Krennel is offering his realm as a safe, peaceful, and stable place where anyone is welcome to make a home and prosper. Taking Liinade Three will makethe Hegemony a little less prosperous and will take away one of his more attractive worlds.”
Wedge reached out and tapped the golden trio of trade routes connected to Liinade’s blue-green ball. The name of each of the worlds to which the routes were connected flashed up in a little box. “Sure, Ciutric might seem like a nice place to go, but Vrosynri Eight or Corvis Minor? Before reading the briefing files on Krennel’s realm, I never even heard of them, and what I’ve read doesn’t make them seem like the sorts of places I’d want to retire to.”
“I agree, General Antilles, but once we’ve cut those worlds off from the main part of the Hegemony, they will be vulnerable. The fear of our coming and taking them might provoke revolts that preclude the need for invasion.”
Ackbar held his hands up. “Your points are well taken, everyone. The shortages will be difficult for Krennel to conceal if he is determined to use mass media to make his people believe Liinade Three has not fallen. Washing away one of his worlds will provide the biggest shock for his people, while shortages will become a constant reminder of it.”
Salm brushed a hand over his mustache. “And while Wedge is a bit disdainful of Corvis Minor and Vrosynri Eight, those two worlds have tight trading ties to Liinade Three. By taking it, we make the two of them more likely to fall.”
The Duros Admiral nodded slowly. “Neither of those worlds is very stable and could be taken with a small force, if Krennel decides not to defend them.”
Wedge sat back in his chair. “How much do we know about Krennel’s intelligence operations in the New Republic? I may be overly concerned because of breaches concerning Rogue Squadron …”
Salm nodded. “If it is true that Ysanne Isard still lives, she could be activating hidden intelligence agents. Nothing we do is safe.”
Ackbar pressed his hands to the tabletop and leaned forward. “Concern for security is important. As of yet, we have no evidence linking this supposed sighting of Isardwith Krennel, but we do know they had a limited history together concerning Sate Pestage’s murder. We would be foolish to suppose they have no way of communicating with each other, or that they would not be willing to work together for their mutual benefit. Our operation will be planned with the tightest security we can manage, of course, but we have to accept that it might be compromised. We will hit hard and establish acceptable loss parameters to judge our success or lack thereof.”
Ackbar’s words sent a shiver down Wedge’s spine. Intellectually, he understood exactly what the Admiral was saying. In any military operation the strategists had to decide how much expenditure of hardware and supplies and personnel was justified in attaining their goal. With material and munitions, the costing could be done on a credit basis: by comparing the industries on the world to be taken with how much it would cost to get them, they could determine if taking a world was feasible in an economic sense. The New Republic would either gain from the operation, or at the very least deny credits and resources to Krennel, which was also a positive benefit.
When it came to people, though, cost-accounting didn’t work. Acceptable losses were more of a political point. The losses the Rebellion suffered in destroying the first Death Star were hideous, but considered well worth it when compared to what the Death Star would do to other worlds. The Death Star’s threat meant that any level of sacrifice, any body count, was acceptable, and no one, not even Wedge, doubted for a
Admiral Bell leaned forward in her chair. “Are you saying that higher prices on comlinks will provoke a revolt?”
Salm shook his head. “Not exactly. You’ve seen reports coming out of Ciutric. Krennel is offering his realm as a safe, peaceful, and stable place where anyone is welcome to make a home and prosper. Taking Liinade Three will makethe Hegemony a little less prosperous and will take away one of his more attractive worlds.”
Wedge reached out and tapped the golden trio of trade routes connected to Liinade’s blue-green ball. The name of each of the worlds to which the routes were connected flashed up in a little box. “Sure, Ciutric might seem like a nice place to go, but Vrosynri Eight or Corvis Minor? Before reading the briefing files on Krennel’s realm, I never even heard of them, and what I’ve read doesn’t make them seem like the sorts of places I’d want to retire to.”
“I agree, General Antilles, but once we’ve cut those worlds off from the main part of the Hegemony, they will be vulnerable. The fear of our coming and taking them might provoke revolts that preclude the need for invasion.”
Ackbar held his hands up. “Your points are well taken, everyone. The shortages will be difficult for Krennel to conceal if he is determined to use mass media to make his people believe Liinade Three has not fallen. Washing away one of his worlds will provide the biggest shock for his people, while shortages will become a constant reminder of it.”
Salm brushed a hand over his mustache. “And while Wedge is a bit disdainful of Corvis Minor and Vrosynri Eight, those two worlds have tight trading ties to Liinade Three. By taking it, we make the two of them more likely to fall.”
The Duros Admiral nodded slowly. “Neither of those worlds is very stable and could be taken with a small force, if Krennel decides not to defend them.”
Wedge sat back in his chair. “How much do we know about Krennel’s intelligence operations in the New Republic? I may be overly concerned because of breaches concerning Rogue Squadron …”
Salm nodded. “If it is true that Ysanne Isard still lives, she could be activating hidden intelligence agents. Nothing we do is safe.”
Ackbar pressed his hands to the tabletop and leaned forward. “Concern for security is important. As of yet, we have no evidence linking this supposed sighting of Isardwith Krennel, but we do know they had a limited history together concerning Sate Pestage’s murder. We would be foolish to suppose they have no way of communicating with each other, or that they would not be willing to work together for their mutual benefit. Our operation will be planned with the tightest security we can manage, of course, but we have to accept that it might be compromised. We will hit hard and establish acceptable loss parameters to judge our success or lack thereof.”
Ackbar’s words sent a shiver down Wedge’s spine. Intellectually, he understood exactly what the Admiral was saying. In any military operation the strategists had to decide how much expenditure of hardware and supplies and personnel was justified in attaining their goal. With material and munitions, the costing could be done on a credit basis: by comparing the industries on the world to be taken with how much it would cost to get them, they could determine if taking a world was feasible in an economic sense. The New Republic would either gain from the operation, or at the very least deny credits and resources to Krennel, which was also a positive benefit.
When it came to people, though, cost-accounting didn’t work. Acceptable losses were more of a political point. The losses the Rebellion suffered in destroying the first Death Star were hideous, but considered well worth it when compared to what the Death Star would do to other worlds. The Death Star’s threat meant that any level of sacrifice, any body count, was acceptable, and no one, not even Wedge, doubted for a
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