So what's the situation with the equipment?"
"You see, we're being sent to Jabiim urgently, and you have what we need. By the way—what can you boast about? What equipment samples do you have? I haven't been particularly well informed..."
"What are you interested in?"
"Well, some new 'Juggernauts'..."
"Oh, you mean the A6 heavy assault armored tank—Juggernaut?" Jasmill asked.
"Exactly." The Jedi nodded.
"It's an excellent machine, a modification of the well-proven A5 series. By the way—there they are." She nodded toward a column of vehiclesrolling onto the airfield. "Are you taking them too?"
"Yes."
"And over there, in the distance—are thoseSPHAs?"
"You're right, Jasmill. That's exactly what they are."
"What was it that you didn't like about them?" she asked.
Meanwhile the transport ships were slowly down to the landing pad; ramps dropped and unloading began.
"What are you talking about? The equipment is fine—excellent, even—but not for Jabiim," the Jedi said, answering her unspoken thought. "Dirt. Terrible dirt. And there aren't suitable targets for them there."
"Then our wheeled armored vehicles are an excellent choice." Jasmill gestured toward the wheeled behemoths rolling off the ramps.
"So what's the story with the new modification?"
"The new armored vehicle is an improved and enlarged version of the A5. It's exactly twice the size. Fifty meters long, thirty-one meters tall, and twenty meters wide. Crew complement: twenty clones, eight of whom are gunners. Troop capacity: fifty fully armed soldiers plus thirty tons of additional cargo, or three hundred soldiers with five tons of cargo. Speed: up to 100 kilometers per hour, with a maximum of 160. Range: thirtythousand kilometers. Armor is far superior to the previous model. Armament: one heavy and one rapid-fire laser cannon, two anti-personnel laser cannons, and two twin light blaster cannons. Additionally, there are two universal launchers, each with seventeen grenade rounds and four missiles. Ammunition reserves amount to forty-two missiles and grenade rounds per launcher."
"Impressive," the Jedi said, placing his palm against his forehead as he watched the convoy. His Togruta companion moved a little closer, her head tilted back in obvious admiration.
Of course, the new model has wheels that are fourteen metres high. The largest vehicles in GAR — only SPHA surpass them in size.
"Our designers did well," Jasmill continued. "The new three-segment wheel, with independent suspension for each element, gives excellent stability. The interior is divided into three decks, and there's an infirmary stocked with medicines and three medical droids. General, how many vehicles do you need?"
"I'll take all sixty."
"Ahem—okay. What else are you interested in?"
"Do you have AT-XTs?"
"Those walkers? Yes—one hundred and fifty units. Production has already started, so soon there will be plenty."
"I'll take... one hundred and twenty units."
"Anything else?"
"Repulsor tanks?"
"No, unfortunately, they'll only arrive in a week. But we do have a new development—the AT-AT." Jasmill nodded toward a distant ship from which a new batch of walkers was being unloaded.
"No, thank you," the Jedi abruptly declined.
"What's wrong with them?"
"I'm not saying the concept isn't attractive, but the armor is a little thin, and their stability needs work. Again—the mud. They'll get stuck."
"General, a small request: take a few copies. I need your report. The previous one was very good." Jasmill went all in.
"Seriously?"
"Yes. Lira Blissex herself liked your comments."
"That's..." The Jedi frowned, trying to remember.
"Yes—she's the designer for the new ship, the Venator-class."
"Okay. I'll take a dozen of your AT-ATs. Let's see what they're worth."
"When can I expect your report?"
"I'm afraid it'll take some time. It's war, after all."
"I can wait," Jasmill said, accepting the answer.
***
For the next six hours I was as busy as a bee. Equipment, new parts and units, materials and cargo arrived in an unending stream. And soon ships began landing. The first, oddly enough, was the Marat. An hour later came the Akagi. The Shinano was due next. Basically, we managed to repair everything we could in two days ourselves, at the shipyards, only the damaged armour plates and plating were replaced.
After consulting with Blam, we decided to load as much as possible onto the Juggernauts to speed up unloading. The A5s would carry the landing parties to establish immediate perimeters after touchdown; the A6s would haul materials for our base and other supplies. However, I ordered one vehicle left unloaded—I had an idea for it. Yes, three hundred tonnes per vehicle is not that much, but with sixty of them that's almost eighteen thousand tons. Anything that didn't fit—like defensive turrets—would be placed on gravplatforms.
Next we needed to finalize details with Ragnos. Ahsoka and I boarded our flagship. A satisfied Zabrak greeted us on the bridge.
"General. I see you're getting ready." Ragnos nodded toward the neat rows of equipment.
"Oh yes. Get ready. As soon as the Shinano arrives, start loading immediately."
"How are we going to distribute all this?"
"We're already loading some of the small containers onto the corvettes. The Pelta frigate will arrive soon and will be converted into a hospital ship. We'll split the rest evenly. Load twenty A6s and thirty A5s onto each Acclamator. Next, twenty AT-TEs. Then divide a dozen AT-ATs equally among the ships, and distribute the remaining small items—TX-130 and the like—across the fleet. Infantry: sixteen regiments and four separate battalions. Plus several thousand tonnes of cargo in addition to what we couldn't fit into the vehicles or onto the gravity platforms. Droids—combat and repair—too. Each ship will carry ten companies; two more companies will be assigned to the Marat. Form ground parties from the repair crews—two hundred DUMs per ship."
"Yes, sir."
"Captain, have you calculated our course?"
"Yes, General." The captain motioned us to a nearby tactical screen. A schematic image of our sector appeared. "So, our course is as follows," he said, tracing a thin red line. "First we follow the Parlemian route, then we turn off at this junction, and through this corridor we reach the central section of the FT-17 route, which leads to the Jabiim system."
"How long will that take?"
"Seventeen hours, General. We'll need to zigzag to minimize detection by enemy sensors."
"That's acceptable. By the way, Captain, I have a suggestion, but I'd like your advice."
"I'm listening, General..."