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Jackson’s brow tilted a little. “Disregarding for a moment how that might needlessly complicate all of our lives... why do you want this? What do you stand to gain from shining a light on our operations?”

“Me?” said Jacobson, pausing a moment as if he had genuinely not even considered that question, which must’ve surely been a facade. “Well... um... hmm. I suppose if things go smoothly, like I am hoping they will, then the credit for it all might be traced back to me, but that’s really neither here nor there. Especially because one should never assume that things will go smoothly. In fact, this may very well blow up in my face and cause me no end of political trouble.”

Now Jackson was truly confused. “I’m even less certain of your motives, now. Which is not something I can abide, Senator.”

Jacobson held up both hands and bowed his head a little. “I understand. Fair is fair. But I am not sure how to explain my motives here without coming across as an over-eager, self-righteous fool. Or a liar. So...” He scratched his chin. “I suppose I should just stop trying and let you think what you will.”

Jackson just waited.

“This war of yours,” the man went on, “it’s a rare one. A truly... just one. That’s not something that can often be said. The world is messy, and typically, there are many reasonable arguments to be found on both sides of any given conflict. Or at least, that’s the modern way of thinking that we Intarians have bought into.”

Ah. Finally, Jackson was starting to get the picture.

“If we could show the people the truth of this fight, of the brave men and women involved in it, and of the justness of your cause, then I think popular sentiment about Intarian neutrality could begin to shift in favor of intervention. And then we could bring things to a swift conclusion. For the sake of all Eloa.”

Jackson’s gaze drifted away from the other man, but he still nodded with a degree of understanding. Truthfully, such an offer was not something he should refuse, regardless of how he might feel about the circumstances of its arrival. Whether Jacobson was being truthful about his intentions or not almost didn’t matter, if it meant that full Intarian backing was on the table.

The only thing giving him pause was the fact that it was already a bit late in the game for this kind of thing. Would such support be necessary? Hell, would it even arrive in time?