ME: I've always wondered why the Republic didn't really use battle droids. I mean seriously, teenage Padawans not old enough to drink or marry plus vat-grown slaves but no droids? They even used them for police work on Coruscant!
But I digress; here's the first chapter.
"This is unsustainable," Senator Bail Prestor Organa, Chairman of the Senate Security Committee, began. He glanced at his fellow legislators. "Fellow Senators, we're relying on clones grown for the sole purpose of war and death that take ten years to become combat ready-and even now some only nine years of age are popping up in the Army. In addition, Padawans not old enough to drink are serving as Commanders-and there have been proposals made to disband the Jedi Service Corps due to increasing rates of attrition."
Kaminoan Senator Halle Burtoni shook her head before taking a sip of wine. "I understand your concerns Senator Organa, but non-clones are simply inferior as infantry soldiers as shown repeatedly in this war and those before it. A few months of training is nothing compared to years. If you wish, I can recommend to the cloners that they cut training by one year-eighteen-year olds are physically fit for combat, although I warn you there may be a small decline in quality."
Just as the old woman finished speaking two Jedi walked in. One was Master Rahm Kota, best known for his disdain for clone troopers and creation of an all-volunteer military force. The other was an eccentric Aleena named Kazadan Paratus, a tech enthusiast that had unfortunately lost most of his troops and was forced to create his own makeshift droids to fight the Confederacy.
"You're early General Kota," said Senator Padme Amidala.
"Barely," he gruffly replied. He then turned to Paratus. "Mind if I speak first?"
"Not at all Master Kota."
"Thank you Kazadan." With that the older man took a deep breath and addressed the Security Committee.
"Senators, there are a large number of reasons the use of clones should be discontinued and production ended immediately."
"For starters, they are incredibly vulnerable to specified biological and chemical attack. There have been repeated attempts by Separatist scientists to develop a nano-virus specifically targeting the Fett genome. With a diverse, all-volunteer force, it'd be at best impractical to use viral agents on Republic troops considering the Confederacy would expose their own soldiers and citizens to non-specified agents."
"Second, they cost too much. Can the Republic really sustain itself financially with having to pay for vat-grown soldiers over the course of a decade? I think not. The Academies at Corulag and Carida are more then capable of producing superior soldiers in a few months, compared to the years it takes to grow a clone."
"Therefore, I conclude that clones are ill-suited to defend the Republic and we should shift back to regular organic soldiers."
"Thank you General Kota," Organa replied, taking a sip of water. "General Paratus?"
The other General stood up and coughed. "I find both clones and non-clones as well as my fellow Jedi to be valiant defenders of the Republic, but bravery and selfless alone cannot protect the Galaxy. Therefore, I propose we produce the Advanced Recon Commando droid, or ARC droid for short to supplement both clone troopers and non-clone units like Master Kota's troops."
Paratus pushed a few buttons on the hologram projector, and an image of the ARC droid appeared. It resembled an elite clone commando, but it was distinctly mechanical. One word described it; intimidating.
Organa glanced at the other Senators. Burtoni, naturally, shook her head in disapproval, obviously despising the thought of a droid reducing orders for Kamino. Padme appeared to be distrustful of the hologram, most likely as a result of the Trade Federation invasion of Naboo.
"Go on General."
"Arakyd Industry's nicknamed the prototype Aurek Zero. We based the design off the clone commando's Katarn-class armor. The ARC droid is equipped with deflector shields, enabling it to take more damage then both conventional infantry and the CIS's standard battle droids. Standard weaponry includes a pair of vibro blades integrated into the forearms. In addition, two modified DC-Fifteen-S sidearms give Aurek the ability to neutralize two threats simultaneously."
ME: How was that guys? Any suggestions?
What should Aurek's personality be like? Who should he be assigned to (Anakin/Ahsoka and Rex, 501st? Obi-Wan and Cody, 212th?)