Light of the Jedi(38)
Chancellor Soh had plans for many Great Works, extending from infrastructure to culture—the Republic Fair, the ongoing construction of comm relays throughout the galaxy, cracking the code on bacta cultivation, negotiation of a new treaty between the Quarren and Mon Calamari, all sorts of innovations technological and otherwise—but the Starlight Beacon, and the other planned stations of the Beacon network…they were how she would be remembered. The greatest of the Great Works, bringing the Republic out from the Core and making it truly a galactic entity.
It was all hugely expensive, though, in both credits and political capital. Even in an era of enlightenment and peace, when trade flourished and the coffers were relatively full, there were those who preferred the status quo. Their view: Certainly, things were good now, but they could always turn bad, and why spend credits now you might need then? The Republic was huge, and creating complete consensus was impossible. A group of three people might all face the same problem and find three utterly different solutions—multiply that by trillions and it gave some sense of what it was like to run a galactic government. But Lina had done it, not by making promises she had no intention of keeping, or making threats, or abusing the power of her office. She had simply done her best to show the worlds of the Republic what they might be if they all came together. How much better things could be. How unique this moment was in history, and how they needed to seize it and move forward and, ideally, extend it so the many generations to come could know the peace and prosperity they all now enjoyed.
The Starlight Beacon symbolized everything she wanted for the Republic, and every member of the Senate knew it. If it succeeded, the rest became that much easier. If it failed…
“I will not jeopardize lives,” the chancellor said, “but you all know how important it is, for many reasons, that the Starlight Beacon dedication ceremony takes place as currently scheduled.”
Jora Malli spoke, her tone milder than before—this was a question to which she had an answer.
“I was just at Starlight. It’s finished, but for perhaps a bit of polishing and cleanup,” she said. “A short delay shouldn’t have much impact on the schedule.”
She gestured at Avar.
“Master Kriss was there recently as well, just before the Legacy Run disaster, for the inspection tour, reviewing the Jedi quarter. How did it seem to you?”
“As you say, Master Malli,” she answered, “I’m not an expert, but Administrator Tennem explicitly said Starlight Beacon could hold its dedication ceremony as scheduled. If not for the blockade, the last little touches would be complete in a few weeks from now. She does not seem the type to exaggerate.”
“All right, then,” Lina said. “Let’s figure this out. I have questions.”
She lifted her hand and started to tick them off on her fingers, one by one.
“How many fragments remain of the Legacy Run? Do any of them contain survivors, and if so, is there a chance those people could be rescued? They’re all Republic citizens, and if we can save them, we must.
“Is there a way to predict where any remaining Emergences might happen? And most important…”
She closed her hand into a fist.
“…what actually happened, and why? Is hyperspace safe, or is this all just getting started?”
No one responded. They all knew better than to speculate.
“I am asking all of you to find out. You represent administrators, politicians, the security forces, and of course the Jedi. Some of you were present at the Legacy Run disaster. Between you, there should be more than enough skill and connections to determine what happened and prevent it from happening again. The resources of the Republic and all the authority of my office are available to you. Create any teams you like, draft anyone you think might be useful. The Starlight Beacon is due to open in thirty days. I would like to use the occasion to celebrate a Republic triumph over adversity. I do not wish to open that station while a huge swath of the galaxy is locked down, underscoring the Republic’s inability to keep its citizens safe. Use the Starlight Beacon dedication as your deadline. Figure this out, my friends. I believe you can.”
Chancellor Lina Soh reached out to either side, burying her hands in the fur of Matari and Voru, taking comfort in their warmth and presence. She looked up above the tree line, to the very peak of Umate just twenty meters above. Once, the mountain must have dominated this part of the planet, the queen of the entire Manarai range. Now it was just a small chunk of stone poking up from the surface of a world that had utterly swallowed it up, dwarfed by everything around it.
Umate remained, though, the benefit of a choice made generation after generation to preserve the mountain even in this attenuated form. Lina Soh appreciated that—the way societies could choose heritage over progress, represented here in living stone.
But to the chancellor, Umate had a second meaning. A symbolism she would never voice, never speak aloud, as it went against the general spirit of optimism and hope and possibility that was a cornerstone of her government and indeed, the Republic itself.
That meaning was this: There was nothing so big it could not be swallowed up. Nothing so strong it could not be humbled. Nothing so tall it could not be made small. Not a mountain, and not the Republic.
“I am not prone to dire pronouncements,” the chancellor said, still looking at Umate’s peak, “but if this continues to get worse, and we somehow lose the ability to travel through hyperspace, all of this ends. There will be no more Republic.”