Ask Eriadu - Food

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The camp was busy. They could all hear it through the flaps of their tent. Outside, countless people milled around, hungry and desperate. They needed clean water. They needed shelter. And, most of all, they needed some proper food. The Jedi had brought what they could, food fresh from the Temple and whatever rations they could scrounge together... but the Order's logistics were focused around the feeding of a small group of people on one Outer Rim planet. The feeding of a whole city was a little beyond what they were capable of.

It was up to them to arrange some proper supplies. Seeing the hungry, shell-shocked people lining up around the tents outside, Nara knew that the sooner they'd arrange it, the better. Not that it was proving to be an easy task. She was face to face with a protocol droid that'd turned up a little while before, looking decidedly angry.

"... and you tell that Hutt that if he tries sending his sleazy deal over again, I'll force that fa..." she continued to say, anger laced in her voice before she took a deep breath. Peace. Emotion, yet peace, she thought to herself. That stupid mantra kicking in again. What good would angering the Hutt do now? Nara just rolled her eyes and shook her head. "No."

With that, she turned back towards the central table that'd been set up. A holo-map that'd been set up of the city... or what was left of it. Her master was already out trying to fix the water supply. Some of the other padawans she knew were arranging better shelter. It was down to her, the Miralan and the Twi'lek padawans that she'd met weeks before at the Temple, to get their hands on some food shipments.

"Okay, so, the Hutt is a no-go option. Unless we fancy selling half the refugees off into slavery." She shook her head, more at the stupidity of offering that to a bunch of Jedi. "So... we can try and talk to the other cities again, but they're being really stingy with what they have. Plenty of people playing it close." She drummed her fingers on the table, staring at the map. "We need to get ahold of someone from one of the agri-worlds for something permanent, but in the mean time..." she sighed, looking down at the floor.

"In the mean time, we've got who-knows-how-many refugees out there and basically no food. We've gotta get something from on-planet or a bunch of these guys are gonna die."

@Eden @TRook
 

Giran Latt

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Giran rubbed his bleary eyes. He'd only been able to sleep a couple of hours as they'd been negotiating with the hutts most of the night. Of course, that had all come to nothing letting the refugees work off their debt was, as Nara put it, essentially slavery. He'd wished the hutts had at least put that on the table the previous evening so he could have caught a few extra hours sleep.
"Hutts..." Giran grumbled under his breathe.

He turned to look at his partners in this endeavour. Young Nara looked about ready to rip off the droids arms and beat him till he was scrap. Giran hid a small chuckle behind a cough. Giran quite liked her righteous anger, Of course this wasn't really the Jedi way but he couldn't help but share in her indignation. They'd met a few weeks ago in a study group of all things and he hoped she could consider him a friend now. The other Padawan was Hirani, she reminded Giran of what he though the old master Rey would've been like: cunning, smart and kind. She was in the study group too and had also previously done some training with him under master Oren and well they'd seemed like a good team then. Giran smiled, these were good people, they could get this done.

"In the mean time, we've got who-knows-how-many refugees out there and basically no food. We've gotta get something from on-planet or a bunch of these guys are gonna die."

It was true, he'd walked around the camp the previous day providing healing to any and all who needed it but you couldn't heal starvation. The people needed to eat but the other cities had, as of yet, only sent token food shipments. Nothing on the scale that was needed. It was a lesson that no matter how wide the universe was global politics would always be at play. He just wished so many hadn't had to die for him to learn it.

"The Hutts are out like you said but I'm sure the other cities can be persuaded." Giran said stifling yawns
"What we need to figure out is why they're holding out on us... Is it political? Are they worried they'll need it if there's an aftershock? Or are they just greedy nerf herders?"


Giran thought it most likely the latter. People were remarkably blasé about matters when it didn't effect them directly. He'd recently watched a Hutt condemn an entire level to a disease just because it'd be easier to clean up after... Well he was a Hutt he supposed.

"Our other options are we go straight to source of production and ask them personally, if we could figure out some kind of deal with the local farmers we might be able to get enough food? Of course this creates its own problems. I doubt the other cities would appreciate us going behind their backs... Could always call that droid back, maybe slavery isn't thatttttt bad..." Giran joked

He leaned against the holotable. Today was going to be a long day.
 

Hiranikorssa

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Hirani had stared hollowly at the dark horizon, dark-purple bags lining her amber eyes, before turning inside to join Giran. She never liked the notion of negotiating with Hutts—not that she often liked anything to do with Hutts. Their proposal led pretty much nowhere, and she didn't get a wink of sleep because of it. In retrospect, the Padawan thought, they should not have been surprised that the Hutts were the first to offer assistance... Hirani may have had strong words for their kind, but she could not deny their eye for opportunity. The people of Eriadu were in need, and in need arises the opportunity for power. Thus, while the Hutt's original offer was supposed to seem appealing, the deal kept changing through the night, and, by the early morning, all three Padawans were exhausted.

In the back of her mind, she overheard Nara going off at the protocol droid outside—not for the first time that evening. The chuckle let out by Giran did not go unnoticed by Hirani, either, and she let herself smile for the first time since arriving on Eriadu, exchanging a knowing glance with the Mirialan. They made a good team, the three of them. All different in their own ways. Nara's passion was undeniable, and despite her training, she could not help but admire it.

Nara reentered their encampment, and joined Giran and Hirani around the holotable. Outside, first streamers of dawn had finally lit up the morning haze, as a protocol droid shuffled away, signaling the failure of their first negotiation. It didn't matter. They had to find another way. Her eyes scrolled over the holotable once more, the cogs in her mind turning. There had to be another way...

"We need to get ahold of someone from one of the agri-worlds for something permanent, but in the mean time... In the mean time, we've got who-knows-how-many refugees out there and basically no food. We've gotta get something from on-planet or a bunch of these guys are gonna die."

Hirani nodded in agreement, still deep in thought. It was a mighty weight to carry, but their three pairs of shoulders could bear it, together. They had to. They had no other choice. A near-silence had thickened in the air after Nara's comment, and Giran was the one to break it.

"If we could figure out some kind of deal with the local farmers, we might be able to get enough food? Of course this creates its own problems. I doubt the other cities would appreciate us going behind their backs..."

"I must agree, they more than likely wouldn't. Still, we must consider that as an option."

She paused, and let the air fill with the distant chittering of insects, before continuing.

"The train of thought I'm having—" Hirani yawned, and stretched her arms out for a few moments, unable to help herself, "—that I'm having is, we haven't yet considered non agricultural food. Synth-food, I mean. Sure, organic meals are the most sustainable long term, but what if... Well, Eriadu isn't at war, so what if we got in contact with the planetary military? Any rations—any polystarch, veg-meat or protein cubes they can spare would surely be a welcome sight."

Once more she would pause, to let it sink in, before continuing on with what she'd come up with.

"And if we can't get to the farmers, are there any independent synth-food producers on Eriadu? Or companies that make nourishment synthesizers? Perhaps, if we could convince a company of a future with many long-term consumers, they would in turn be comfortable making the initial investment—helping provide for these people, until they can pay for the food themselves?"

It was their best shot to get as much help as they possibly could, from as many places as they possibly could. They may have had little food, but they probably had even less time.

[ @TRook @Charndley ]
 

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Nara was quickly discovering that she became two things under pressure: angry, and focused. Spending the night backsliding and firing back arguments with some slimy Hutt's droid left her feeling plenty of both, if only for the very selfish reason that she needed to get some sleep at some point. But every hour spent sleeping was an hour that the rations were running towards nothing and a closer point to starvation.

Giran and Hirani discussed different options. She nodded when Hirani agreed that the other cities wouldn't appreciate them heading to the farmers behind their backs.

"Plus, probably still likely that the farmers are hoarding some stuff for themselves, just in case things get worse. At that point, we'd probably have to march in there and just take it by force. Or charm. I'd leave that to you two though," she said. Nara wasn't exactly winning any decorum or debate contests.

However, when Hirani mentioned synth food, Nara nearly slapped her own head. How hadn't she thought of that? "That's... a really good idea. Especially the producers." Nara tapped on the table a little, their map of the local part of Eriadu glowing in certain new areas. "The Eriadu Defense Force has... had some difficulties but they'd be our first ask. Might be that they can't spare much but it can't hurt."

Nara tapped a couple more things, pulling out the datapad from her bag and checking some things. "Okay, so, it looks like the largest producer of synth-food on the planet is... Rimma NutriSynth, runs off the trade route through here." She passed the datapad over the table, the screen showing various bits of detail and logos, full of corporate speak that probably meant little to the three padawans. "According to this they had plenty of locations around the planet... including a couple of factories in and around the city. If we find out where, we might be able to salvage something from there too."

Nara thought a little, sucking on her bottom lip as she stared up at the top of the tent. "Okay, how's this: we contact the company and the military, see what they can offer us. Military might be generous if they've got spare rations but I think the company is our best bet. Especially if they've got stocks and equipment we can... salvage. Y'know, for the greater good." Had to assure everyone that they weren't discussing salvaging for no reason. "We contact them, then we get our action-plan together."

"How does that sound?"


Thought we might want to roll to see how cooperative both groups might be, and especially how much help the military can actually give.

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Giran Latt

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Synth food eh, it wasn't a bad idea. Giran had eaten alot of it at his time in the academy. It was packed with nutrients and calories, it tasted like rancor dung but these people didn't need a gourmet meal. Plus, Rimma was a local company and would probably be far more likely to feel sympathy for these refugees than the hutts had. They were still a private company though. Private companies, in Giran's experience, did nothing for free.

The military on the other hand was a bureaucratic mess. They should already be here handing out supplies and, to their credit, Giran had spotted a few already but it seemed more of a token force than anything useful. They should have the supplies though. A planetary defence force should, in theory, have cache's of rations in case of siege or blockade. The real question is if, in the last hundred years of peace, these supplies had 'gone missing'.

"They both seem like they could work, if we can get the defence force to get some of their surplus rations that'd be enough at least for a few weeks maybe even months" Giran nodded.
"I think Rimma are our biggest asset though, if we can get them onside these people can eat indefinitely. The only real question is what are both of them going to want and can we afford it?"


He smiled at everyone at the table. This small amount of progress felt incredible after the previous nights slog.
 

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Hirani was quite proud of the plan the sleep-deprived three had so quickly formed. Especially after those seemingly endless hours of haggling a protocol droid to haggle a Hutt to haggle his protocol droid a little bit more diplomatically. She exhaled, nodding in agreement with all that Nara said.

"The only real question is what are both of them going to want and can we afford it?"

"We just have to make this look good on them. RimmaSynth, I mean. We have to sell them the idea. Sell them how good they'll look to the hungry, not to mention the rest of the galaxy, when they rescue all these disaster-stuck people out of what looks like the goodness of their hearts. That's a gamble of the kind big business people might just be willing to go for: not only does it mean the chance for big publicity, but also many, many long-term return customers. A massive opportunity for profitable business, and saving lives in the process."

She began to pace around the tent, speaking freely, as the thoughts came to her: "As for the Military, we know they're already spread a little thin, but as you say, if we can tap into their surplus, that would be best for the future of Eriadu. I'm thinking we contact the Eriadu Defense Force first, via Hologram, making the case that, as war does not appear particularly near, the surplus rations would be best spent on keeping these people alive. At very least until further, more consistent food supplies can be sourced. We just need to work out how to get in touch..."

After stopping her pacing and returning to the HoloTable, she prodded the datapad, and, via the HoloNet, opened a public file with various tidbits information the Eriadu Defense Force. The holographic interface fuzzed with blue, and along with the others, the Twi'lek began digging for a point of contact.

[ @TRook @Charndley ]
 

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Nara nodded at the suggestions as they came, agreeing with what they were saying. They seemed to have come to some sort of consensus, at least. RimmaSynth were the obvious, better choice for the long term but might have a cost. The Defense Force was more of a long-shot but had short-term potential.

"Yeah. We can try and convince RimmaSynth's... CEO? Is that what they call them?" Nara asked with a look of confusion on her face. She was starting to feel that she might be a little ill-equipped for dealing with the structures and worlds of private enterprise, but hey. "Or whoever we can find. Not sure how convincing I'll be... but desperate times, right?" Hirani was right though, their best shot was convincing them that it'd be in their best interest and be good PR.

One thing Nara was learning was that Jedi just seemed to do this a lot. Flying by the seat of your pants, desperately searching for any solution to every crisis that the galaxy could throw at them. It was tiring and exhilarating all at once.

"I'll try and pull up some names we can get to, points of contact for RimmaSynth,"
Nara said, tapping her fingers on the HoloTable. "Might be that they ask us to go meet them at their HQ but it isn't that far." Nara bit her lip as the table threw up name after name after name. Myriad job titles listed in some labyrinthine tangle of corporate structure. Her eyes scanned over some, seemingly in Aurebesh but they might as well have been Shyriiwook for all Nara could understand. Assistant Chief Quality Control Officer, Resources and Logistics Deputy Manager, Assistant to the Assistant to the Vice President (Eriadu Sales), Vice President of Sales (Sector Trade)...

"This... might take a while. Sorry."

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Giran watched the two girls get to work trawling through the holonet and felt like a bit of a spare part. Hirani had the military sorted and Nara seemed to be struggling through Rimma's hierarchy. There was actually precious little he could do to help.

"I'm going to... Prep a shuttle." Giran muttered
trying to find something to do.

He sent a message to the pilot who'd brought them to the planet and got a frustratingly quick reply. Looks like their pilot was at a loose end too.

"Well that's all ready whenever..." Giran grumbled.

Looking for something to do he pulled up some news articles on the CEO of the Rimma NutriSynth. There were a few articles on their stocks before the disaster which seemed to be in decline but not drastically. Then he found what he was looking for, a personal piece on the CEO herself.

Helena Rimmalat was in her late fifties and had a reputation for being a cutthroat negotiater and shrewd business women. She'd had a scandal the previous year for bribing some notable politicians. None of the charges against her had stuck but it had hurt her reputation. If this article was anything to go by the public were convinced of her guilt. It even went after her personal life, insinuating she had an 'intimate relationship' with a Hutt and that was how she'd made Rimma so successful. He hated this type of 'journalism' but showed Nara anyway.

"It could be useful"

Next he started researching the Eriadu defence force. He found precious little. All there was was a few articles they were mentioned in in passing. He supposed that was normal, the galaxy had been at peace for a hundred years now so they'd not been needed. He was still surprised at the complete lack of coverage of them though.

"Sorry Hirani it seems I haven't got much for you on the military, they've been keeping a low profile for a while now."

He sat on the holotable disrupting the image it was displaying and kept browsing the news for anything useful. Hopefully he could be useful today.
 

Hiranikorssa

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It was then that Hir'anikorssa felt a slight tug at her cloak. Turning around to see what it was, the Twi'lek's eyes fell upon a little boy. Human. He looked to be about six years old, and had black dust smudged into his shirt, as well as into his grubby cheeks and messy brown hair.

"Uhm… Excuse me? Master Jedi?" The boy's soft falsetto shook a little as he spoke, and Hirani absolutely could not bring herself to correct him on the point of her rank. He was far too adorable for that. And by her own admission, she could not help but like the sound of Hir'anikorssa, Jedi Master.

"Yeah, mister?" She said back, playfully, slowly kneeling down to talk to him at eye level. Why was this little boy up so early?

He continued, a little less shakily. "Well... Mama is really sad because we're run out of food, and- and, Uncle Brig said you Jedi Masters were rescuing people back at home with a magical person called Theeforce... Can you ask your magic friend to get us lots of food, um, please?"

Her first impulse was to ignore everything the little boy had to say, as he was entirely too cute for her limited attention span to handle. Nonetheless, the Jedi retroactively pieced together what he'd said, and tried to wrap her head around it. Other Jedi had been sent out to rescue any survivors of the earthquake, so that part made some sense, and the 'magical friend' he had described was most certainly a very confused (yet very adorable) misinterpretation of the Force.

Before Hirani could answer his question, though, a human woman peeked into their tent. It didn't take long at all for anyone to piece together the obvious: it was the boy's mother, and by the was she was panting, she'd probably been looking for him everywhere.

"Tilcce! Get away from her!" The woman took her son by the hand and pulled him towards the opening of the tent. Her eyes were wide, and she trembled as she yanked her son away.

Something was very wrong.

"I assure you, he was no bother..." Hirani stood back up, brow furrowed at the outburst. No answer came but the flapping of the tent's entrance, as the mother fled in fear, child tight in hand.

She could not help but sense what the boy had said—his mother was heartbroken, she had lost all hope. They were out of food, and as far as anyone knew, a shipment large enough for the entire city would take several weeks—if not months—to arrive from offworld. If nothing changed soon, starvation would come to their entire city, and death to everyone she loved. All they had were three Padawans, and bad odds. But there was something more than that: something horrific embedded in the woman's mind. Why would she consider a mere seventeen year-old a threat to her son? The Jedi had shown no signs of aggression, so what was that fire in the mother's soul? Perhaps the grief had driven her mad.

Hirani sensed a word, a bright, red thought ringing out in her mind, as if spoken by the woman herself.

Monsters.

Then, another voice. While the first word came to her directly from the woman's mind, this voice, she felt, was guidance from Kika'lekki herself.

This terror is not hers alone. The galaxy trembles, little one.

Horror gripped at her heart as she suddenly felt the full depth of what had happened. The Twi'lek had feared it was coming—she had a lingering sense that the time of peace for the Jedi could not last forever, that something truly dark was on the horizon. But not now. No. No. Her body froze still as it all came washing over her, and she was not sure how long she stood there, but by the time she moved out of the tent, the woman and little Tilcce were long gone. . . .

 

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The reaction of the child's mother was was abrupt and loud that it interrupted Nara from her searching. She looked over, seeing Hirani trying to deal with it. All she'd done is talk to the poor kid, what was the problem? Unless something was happening whilst they were on the planet, trying to help people. She did feel a little apprehension and worry around them suddenly. A little bit of danger tingling around the edges of the environment.

Standing here and worrying about what people think gets us nowhere, though. And like us or hate us, they're gonna starve without us. Actions would have to speak louder than words, unfortunately.

She took a look at the article that Giran had sent her. It was good to have an actual name for the CEO, finally... but even someone as spiky and blunt as Nara would have bristled at the idea of presenting that information to her.

"I don't think I'll mention that one to her, just in case.." Nara joked, smirking at her friend as she fired off messages to anyone senior she could find. Just asking for a meeting.

She tried every combination of address she could get after that, firing them off to any random combination of CEO@RimmaSynth, ChiefExec@RimmaSynth, HelenaRimmalat@RimmaSynth, HRimmalat@RimmaSynth. It took a while. Long enough for Nara to start thinking that growing and raising a crop would be quicker, when the datapad buzzed and winked with excitement.

Nara threw the feed onto the main screen, as the CEO herself appeared in a short video message. She looked a damn sight more tired and frustrated than she had on the picture Giran had showed her earlier.

"Greetings, Ms Allam. Imagine my surprise to receive a message from a Jedi today. Imagine my surprise to have my entire executive board receive a message from a Jedi today." Nara tried, and failed, to stop herself from blushing. "Nonetheless, I am aware of the presence of the Order on the planet and I believe that we could help each other. If you can, please bring you and your 'colleagues' to our HQ. With some luck, we can move towards an adequate, sensible and productive conclusion to your situation." She smiled as the message ended, reminding Nara of a particularly sharp-toothed creature she'd once seen in the Jedi Library.

"Guess we got a use for that shuttle. We might be outta our depth with a CEO though... I'm gonna see if I can bring in some extra help," Nara explained, tapping the location of the HQ down before reaching her master on the comms.


@TRook @TWD26

Apologies for the amount of time this thread was stagnating. Eden requested the next post for Hirani's super speech, but unfortunately had to deal with some IRL issues and has not come back yet. After agreement with TRook, TWD is subbing Oren in.
 

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Oren stepped into the scene where the three padawans had been, his pants had been slit on the side, from his bout with a Mudhorn the day prior, and his boots and Jedi robes had been covered in a thick layer of mud, and he most likely smelled like he had crawled out of a trash compactor, but that didn't matter right now.

"Kept you waiting huh?" He'd say with a slight wink as he approached the group, and towards the message that Nara had played on the datapad. Meeting with a bunch of executives were out of the question, and not something they could afford to do right now. "I don't believe we have enough time, for such a travel arrangement." He'd say in a gentle tone, "But, your actions are enough to put us on a good start. Use the Datapad and call in to the Company."

He would wait for his student to begin to do so so before he started to speak, "I am Jedi Knight, Oren Zapan, I'd ask that you please forgive my look..I recently just cleaned up the water supply that was infecting the crops and any clean drinking water supply that your planet had." He'd fold his hands behind his back, "I'm afraid that we don't have time to come to you, but we assure you that I speak for the order, when I say that your company's help would greatly turn the tide of this disaster, and the..publicity that your company would receive for such contributions would be..seen as favorable by the galactic community." He'd smile softly, as he waited for the woman's response.

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"Master!" Nara said happily, smiling at him as he approached. Oh good. I'm not meant for dealing with CEOs. I can deal with slicers, spicers, slavers and all sorts of general scum, but the high and mighty of the Galaxy? No chance.

She pulled her face a little at his dismissal of her idea, but he had a point. People were starving right there and then. They needed an arrangement for food, yesterday. She tapped the datapad and pulled up the communication line she'd set up. Hooking the pad into the larger screen, she watched as the blankness fizzed into the pixel-y mess of a commscreen as it focused into view.

"Ah. I was expecting Ms. Allam... who I am presuming is the young lady stood beside you. Your daughter?" the CEO asked as she peered through a pair of lenses. "Or your... whatever charming word your people have for an apprentice? Oh, do excuse me, where are my manners?" She spoke casually and quickly, with a small smile. Nara didn't trust it a bit.

"Helena Rimmalat, CEO of RimmaSynth Inc., it is a distinct pleasure to speak to you." Her thin fingers slipped together as she leaned forwards. "Now, unfortunately my company was not spared in the recent disaster. We've lost some of our stock, as well as several warehouses and production line facilities. Off-world supply lines are cut, it's a dangerous time all around. You may be right, Mr. Zapan, that my company may receive some goodwill, though I'm not sure I should trust one of the Jedi in how to handle relations with the rest of the galaxy." She said it in such a firm, casual and viper-sharp way that Nara couldn't help but be both impressed, and ready to punch her. Her fist balled up under the table as she frowned hard.


@TWD26
 

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The Jedi knight wasn't trying to be dismissive, and hopefully Nara hadn't taken it the wrong way. If she had questions about why he made the decision he did, he would be happy to explain it to her, but before he could get a word off, the image of the holopad would flicker alive. The woman seemed a staunch and sharp individual, well this should be fun, she reminds me of Master Iruth heh... A soft smile would form on the aging knight as he thought back to a bygone era.

Oren would wrap his arm around Nara, as he nodded, "This is Padawan Nara Allam, she is also my daughter," he'd say with a slight pulsing on his face, "I assumed as much, based on the sheer destruction that this planet has suffered at the hands of this terrible devastation." He'd sigh as he bowed his head slightly, "I understand your concerns and that rations are short, and I don't want you to think that I know better about relations than your people..I've made plenty of mistakes in my life, but I've tried to make it a call to action that in times of needs, I will be a better man than I was prior, and provide the best help that I can." He would take a heavy breath as he gulped slightly, "If you can spare at least a few boxes of food, it would give us a start, but I understand if you cannot."

He felt the tension form Nara through her shoulders, and the Jedi Master would firmly echo his words through the force towards her. Calm yourself, I understand your anger..but it won't get us anywhere in this situation.

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The CEO smiled at the sight of both of them, even as Nara blushed at Oren's closeness. Get off me, Jedi-Dad, not in front of the CEO snake.

"Ah, the resemblance is... uncanny," Helena joked, looking over the both of them as she listened to Oren's plea. Stone-faced, without much to say. It was nearly impossible to read her. Whatever she did to get to the top of her company, she was clearly excellent at it.

"Well, you certainly make an earnest plea. I am quite sure that my company can spare a few boxes of food. Consider it a charitable donation by myself. We can arrange a shuttle to bring the boxes over to your charming little camp," she said, tapping her fingers on a pad next to her.

It was something, at least. Not nearly enough, Nara thought. It was time. Nara breathed in deep, summoning everything she had. Not just the Force, but every tiny scrap of patience, diplomacy and empathy she'd learned under Oren's teachings.

"Ms. Rimmalat, if you could possibly spare any more than that, it'd help us a whole lot. We have so many scared, panicked people here. They've lost their homes. Their lives. Without food, there's going to be a lot more death and a lot more chaos."

"Yes, Ms. Allam, I'm quite aware of what happens when people don't have something to eat.." the CEO began to say, which was rather like she was daring Nara to shout at her. Her face twitched slightly, like she might break and tell the CEO where she could shove it, but...

"With respect," Nara said, trying to control her voice as much as possible, "are you? There are people here who've lost everything and everyone. Who don't know if they're going to live past tomorrow. Who are looking out for any sign of hope or help. We've done what we can. We can heal the sick, help protect them from further harm, start organising relief but we can't create food out of nothing. Your company is our best hope. And we can't pay you money for it, but every single one of those refugees and every single Ranger, Jedi and government official working here will... will know that in the end, it was your company that stopped them from starving and held them all back from the brink."

Nara blinked as she bit her lip, trying to sort out the words in her head. "Just whatever else you can spare, please." I will get on my knees and beg you if I have to. "I know your food can keep for a while, but... who knows when the supply lines will come back up, or when people here might be able to afford your food again? It'd be much better to help."


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Oren Zapan

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Oren would peer towards Nara as she carried herself through the discussion, a soft smile on his lips as his mechanical hand curled into her shoulder. He felt a sense of pride sweep over his spine as he took a deep long look at her growing mind, spirit, and body. She was becoming a strong young woman who carried a fire and passion he only wished he had when he was her age.

He thought back to Ajan Kloss and the swamps, her prickly attitude and her sometimes crude remarks about subjects. But, here speaking with this woman, she showed a tact that he hadn't seen her display ever before. She's learning, but from me...I don't bloody know. He'd peer back towards the screen, letting Nara plead her case.

"I don't believe I can put it in better words," he'd grin, as he peered towards the young girl, "Than what my Padawan had just stated. We need your help, please consider it."

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I feel like I should be able to reach through the screen and punch her. Shake her around a little. Maybe grab her by the pants, shake her upside down, see how many rations could fall out. But Nara kept those thoughts locked away, deep in her head. Though if you knew her well, you coulda seen how she felt in the slight downturn of her lips, or the way her knuckles clenched as she gripped onto the end of the table. She'd managed to keep hold of her temper.

Helena stared at the two of them thoughtfully. Was she touched by the display of parental pride, or civic-minded duty from such a young person? Who could say. She hadn't clawed her way to leading a major planetary corporation without learning when to hold back what she was thinking.

"Well. That was certainly quite a speech," she said to them both, with a hint of amusement in her clipped voice. Oh for... dammit. She's just going to laugh at me. Great.

Helena tapped her fingers on her desk, like she was thinking. There was an uncomfortable silence. Enough for Nara to start getting more annoyed. Get on with it then, you kr...

"You make a compelling case. Very well. I will make arrangements for a larger portion of our stock to be distributed." Helena looked over at one of her screens. "We will need to coordinate how exactly the pallets will get to you, and other places in the city, but I'm sure the other authorities can take care of the details with my people." She looked back towards the two of them with a small smile.

"This is a one-time act of mercy and charity. I would be eternally grateful if you could make that clear to the planetary government too. The next delivery will come at a cost. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to draft a press release about RimmaSynth's unexpected act of charity and patriotism," she told them both, the grin widening. She cracked her knuckles gently, anticipating the thrill of the corporate rush. "Jedi," she dismissed with a nod, before closing the connection.

Nara waited for a couple of seconds before turning to Oren, looking up at him. "Did we just do that? I will never, ever understand how companies like that work. Never."


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Oren Zapan

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The Jedi peered towards the CEO, waiting to hear her response. He expected her to decline their offer and to send them on their very way, stuck with an improbable task. But, even her words defied his expectations, and the near-human felt his face flush red with excitement and relief. "Madam," he'd bow his head gracefully, "The people of this city will know the kindness that you showed today, and I'm sure that this act of charity will not go unnoticed."

He'd watch as the screen flickered to a close and the call ended. Even if the CEO was doing it to make more money in the long term, it would buy them enough time to find a long term solution to this major problem, and he knew that the Jedi and the Survivors would be able to figure something out.

"You did well today, I wouldn't have thought to call a CEO of a major company," a small smirk would form on the aging Knight's face, "I am curious as to how you even found their number, but I imagine you kids are far better with technology than I ever was." He'd clasp her shoulder as he began to walk towards the center of the camp, "We have some good news to present to everyone, and a certain padawan deserves the recognition for helping secure these food banks."

She was becoming a strong girl, and he was proud of everything she was becoming, "You're an excellent Jedi, and you make me proud to be your Master." Not wanting to make the moment too sentimental, he would quickly follow up, "But, you still have a lot to do, pallets to account for and shippers to talk to, so let's get to it!"

/END Thread
 
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