Post by Apillis on Dec 29, 2013 22:32:21 GMT -5
Shannon was silent for a trice, in that moment her gaze behind her visor went from Mandalore and Geronimo to the basilisk then back to them. In the next moment she removed her helm and tucked it between her left side and elbow as she stood. While her pride in her people cannot be overstated, Shannon at her core was a strategist, forcing herself to look at things realistically. And her concerns number in the many, perhaps Mandalore was aware of the great wall of opposition that has been built up before them, but Shannon felt it needed to be voiced and out in the open amongst the leading figureheads of their people. For they need to be addressed and planned immediately.
"Having our coveted war mounts once again will certainly be record worthy event made possibly back sacking and reclaiming Gargon", Shannon's eyes then shifted back to the basilisk, "We cannot maintain this war for very long. We need to think long term... we need to sever ourselves from the Sith--undo the treaty made by the last Mandalore. They will bleed us for their own gain as they have always done in the past. It... is a twisted irony in a way... But while we mock and look condescendingly upon the Republic for being over-inflated laboring entity scarcely able to hold itself together... We have been in the same disposition since our devastating loss in the Mandalorian War. The great... Neo-Crusade... it was our greatest triumph and most crippling defeat--not just martially but culturally.
"We are being eroded on three fronts. When we reclaim our systems, we will be stretched thin, more so as the Republic as much as we like to brush off their soldiery as being inferior to us--they don't need to superior in strength just numbers as they have in the past. Even as diminished as they are--it is naive to believe they will ignore us to focus purely on the Sith--we are a handful of systems--they are culmination of hundreds--there's no avoiding that hurdle. Simultaneously--the Sith will be demanding our men and women to spill blood for their own war--that will bleed us even more figuratively and literally. And lastly and most impotantly, culturally, since the Neo-Crusade there are disorganized clans--clans who have sullied themselves by inflating their numbers by accepting near any cur that can hold a blaster and wants to shoot Republic soldiers--in effect bring in criminals, vagabonds, stim-junkies and any other assortment of the dregs of the galaxy into their fold just to boast the size of their clan. These clans bleed our culture. On this current path... we may never recover from this sort of bloodletting, and they are not things that can be addressed all at once. Each need their own reckoning."
Shannon sighed heavily as she approached the great war mount. Her gaze thoughtful and contemplative as she stared as if looking at more than just the basilisk but attempting to envision it and its possible future given the situation of the Mando'ade in their complete context and reality, "Even if we bring back our war mounts to height of their former glory, and our fleets and armies back to the height of their strength--it still will not be enough.", with another sigh Shannon clarified, "At the height of their Empire roughly fifteen hundred years ago the Sith managed to cripple the Republic so much so the Sith were able to strike at the Core Worlds which included Coruscant. But do you know how many Jedi it took to aid their armies to repel a Sith forces empowered by Naga Sadow's 'magics'? Only four. Just four Jedi. And while some of us may scoff at that as it took far more Jedi to rid us from Republic worlds... we must bear in mind--our greatest feat was the grand Neo-Crusade of the Mandalorian War... and we never even breached the Inner Rim worlds... And our strength is a small fraction of what was then."
Her tone remained the same throughout as she spoke, one of contemplative analytical concern, like a strategist looking over the mapped out war front and seeing only severe problems at every junction; and that is not too far off from her current disposition. She was not one to lie to herself, nor kid herself out of her pride in being Mandalorian and that of her people--she will not blind herself like what many Mandalorians do by pumping themselves up with their perceived superiority as soldiers. Again, as mentioned, she is a strategist at her core, and any strategist worth their salt looks at the totality of the situation of not just their opposition but their own and measures the issues of their own forces with an uncompromising eye.
With a piercing gaze of sincerity only given more weight by the tone in her voice, "Mandalore... we need to start planning beyond just this war--we need to start planning larger scale if we are ever to survive. And that will be made impossible the more tied to the Sith Empire we become to supplement their own lacking forces, and there is no doubt they will seek to use us as a shield to cushion the full brunt of the force of the Republic when they finally get organized enough to move on the Sith... and it will happen, eventually. We need to plan ahead of this--beyond the Sith, leave them to their own fate. Otherwise we will be stuck in our hobbled situation."
"Having our coveted war mounts once again will certainly be record worthy event made possibly back sacking and reclaiming Gargon", Shannon's eyes then shifted back to the basilisk, "We cannot maintain this war for very long. We need to think long term... we need to sever ourselves from the Sith--undo the treaty made by the last Mandalore. They will bleed us for their own gain as they have always done in the past. It... is a twisted irony in a way... But while we mock and look condescendingly upon the Republic for being over-inflated laboring entity scarcely able to hold itself together... We have been in the same disposition since our devastating loss in the Mandalorian War. The great... Neo-Crusade... it was our greatest triumph and most crippling defeat--not just martially but culturally.
"We are being eroded on three fronts. When we reclaim our systems, we will be stretched thin, more so as the Republic as much as we like to brush off their soldiery as being inferior to us--they don't need to superior in strength just numbers as they have in the past. Even as diminished as they are--it is naive to believe they will ignore us to focus purely on the Sith--we are a handful of systems--they are culmination of hundreds--there's no avoiding that hurdle. Simultaneously--the Sith will be demanding our men and women to spill blood for their own war--that will bleed us even more figuratively and literally. And lastly and most impotantly, culturally, since the Neo-Crusade there are disorganized clans--clans who have sullied themselves by inflating their numbers by accepting near any cur that can hold a blaster and wants to shoot Republic soldiers--in effect bring in criminals, vagabonds, stim-junkies and any other assortment of the dregs of the galaxy into their fold just to boast the size of their clan. These clans bleed our culture. On this current path... we may never recover from this sort of bloodletting, and they are not things that can be addressed all at once. Each need their own reckoning."
Shannon sighed heavily as she approached the great war mount. Her gaze thoughtful and contemplative as she stared as if looking at more than just the basilisk but attempting to envision it and its possible future given the situation of the Mando'ade in their complete context and reality, "Even if we bring back our war mounts to height of their former glory, and our fleets and armies back to the height of their strength--it still will not be enough.", with another sigh Shannon clarified, "At the height of their Empire roughly fifteen hundred years ago the Sith managed to cripple the Republic so much so the Sith were able to strike at the Core Worlds which included Coruscant. But do you know how many Jedi it took to aid their armies to repel a Sith forces empowered by Naga Sadow's 'magics'? Only four. Just four Jedi. And while some of us may scoff at that as it took far more Jedi to rid us from Republic worlds... we must bear in mind--our greatest feat was the grand Neo-Crusade of the Mandalorian War... and we never even breached the Inner Rim worlds... And our strength is a small fraction of what was then."
Her tone remained the same throughout as she spoke, one of contemplative analytical concern, like a strategist looking over the mapped out war front and seeing only severe problems at every junction; and that is not too far off from her current disposition. She was not one to lie to herself, nor kid herself out of her pride in being Mandalorian and that of her people--she will not blind herself like what many Mandalorians do by pumping themselves up with their perceived superiority as soldiers. Again, as mentioned, she is a strategist at her core, and any strategist worth their salt looks at the totality of the situation of not just their opposition but their own and measures the issues of their own forces with an uncompromising eye.
With a piercing gaze of sincerity only given more weight by the tone in her voice, "Mandalore... we need to start planning beyond just this war--we need to start planning larger scale if we are ever to survive. And that will be made impossible the more tied to the Sith Empire we become to supplement their own lacking forces, and there is no doubt they will seek to use us as a shield to cushion the full brunt of the force of the Republic when they finally get organized enough to move on the Sith... and it will happen, eventually. We need to plan ahead of this--beyond the Sith, leave them to their own fate. Otherwise we will be stuck in our hobbled situation."