**Chapter 473**
**The Kuat Proposition**
**Kuat Shipyards – Orbital Ring, Fifth Section Meeting Room**
Jasmill Selanno paused in her monotonous pacing, stopping near the large transparisteel viewport that offered a breathtaking view of the planet Kuat below. White clouds drifted lazily across a small portion of the visible hemisphere, while the planet's surface displayed every shade of green imaginable. Despite its reputation as one of the galaxy's premier industrial powerhouses, Kuat itself remained remarkably pristine. All heavy manufacturing was concentrated on the vast orbital ring — the largest in the known galaxy — leaving the planet's surface for sprawling agricultural fields and dozens of luxurious resort towns built to provide rest and recreation for the millions of workers who toiled in the shipyards and factories above.
This was where Jasmill had arrived the day before. A decision was to be made here… one that could shape the future of the war.
Snorting softly, she resumed her "stroll" through the elegant hall of the Fifth Section Meeting Room. For several hours now, she had been waiting for the Kuat Shipyards Board to reach a decision on her competing project.
"Your concern is pointless," the calm voice of Lyra Blissex drifted from where the renowned starship designer sat in one of the comfortable chairs, legs crossed, reviewing schematics on a datapad.
Jasmill stopped again, turning toward her. "Do you think so?"
"Yes," Lyra replied without looking up. "The probability of a positive resolution to this matter is eighty percent. Onara won't miss this chance."
Jasmill Selanno sighed inwardly. *Calling the head of Kuat Shipyards — a stern and imperious fifty-year-old woman — by her first name is just like this girl.*
Collapsing tiredly into the next chair, Jasmill asked, "What makes you so sure?"
Lyra finally looked up from her datapad, her gaze becoming more meaningful. "Onara understands that we won't be able to take over the entire military contracting pie, even if we wanted to — which the Senate would never allow anyway. Our shipyards are currently booked for months… no, *years* in advance. We're already having to turn down civilian orders just to meet the Republic Navy and Army's demands. Therefore, we'll have to cede some contracts to third-party companies — at least to Sienar. In that case, it would be much better to accept your offer. No matter which project sees the light of day, the Kuat name will be among the developers of the new warship. So it won't matter who ultimately builds it."
Lyra smiled slightly, a spark of genuine excitement in her eyes. "And also… I myself am interested in participating in such a project. I have several ideas I've been itching to implement. Work on the Venator was interesting, but that's in the past. The Assertor project was completed long ago, and the first of the seven ships will soon be finished. So it turns out I have nothing better to do."
Jasmill's gaze automatically shifted to the orbital ring diagram displayed on the nearest projector. Section Eight — the vast, closed shipyards where the greatest vessels ever to emerge from Kuat's yards had been built: the Bellator-class dreadnoughts and the colossal Mandator-class. Now they were working on a new, ambitious project — the Mentor. It wasn't entirely new, just a significant redesign of an older concept, but it was ambitious enough to warrant its own name. According to the staff, the first ship in this series would be ready in just three weeks, with the remaining six completed within a year. Kuat couldn't afford to build huge numbers of ships, but they made up for it with sheer size and overwhelming firepower.
The two-and-a-half-kilometer-long "Liberators," the four-kilometer-long "Praetors," and the eight-kilometer-long "Mandators" had guarded Kuat for over a hundred years. But the recent threat posed by the Confederacy of Independent Systems required something even more powerful. Fortunately, with the outbreak of war, Kuat had managed to secure permission to repeal parts of the Ruusan Reformation, which had long limited the hyperdrive class and size of capital ships.
At that moment, the steward appeared at the doors of the Hall.
"You may come in."
Jasmill exchanged a quick glance with Lyra Blissex, then rose from her chair. The two women straightened their attire and stepped forward into the boardroom, where the future of Kuat Drive Yards — and perhaps the war itself — would be decided.