"Jocelyne!" Jersey was quite angry. "Go back to your room! This is not your business!"

The girl didn't move. "Is this a case of national security that could put the entire population of Odaria at risk?"

Jersey was amazed by her daughter's behavior. It was the first time he'd felt her tongue so sharp. "Yes, it is…"

"And am I part of the Odaria population?"

"Of course…"

"Then I'm really afraid that this is a business that concerns me all right. It concerns everyone, actually"Jocelyne said as she entered the room completely. "And given the way the conversation is going, I would say it is my duty to point out that you are all wrong"

Jersey was pissed off at her daughter's temper, but the other heads of the household were shocked. For a backward-minded nation like Odaria it was already absurd to think that a son would talk to his father like that in public, let alone a daughter. "You should discipline your daughter, Markus" Kimber murmured looking sideways at Jocelyne.

"I can assure you that he discipline me. However, she also taught me that in some negotiations an aggressive attitude is worth more than a friendly one, like a high caliber man like you will surely know" she replied without any second thoughts.

"Get out of here, little girl. This is no business for a woman" Mosley growled, and many nodded in favor of him.

"No, no, let her talk" Kimber stopped them. "I'm curious to see where she will go. Come on, Miss Jersey, enlighten us: why would we be doing everything wrong?"

"Because you assume that it is possible to reach an agreement with the dinosaurs that will allow you to safeguard your business. I am sorry to inform you that this is not the case. Haven't you listened carefully to what that 'Sobek' was saying in the video? Why do you think he decided to attack us?". Jocelyne assumed a reproachful expression. "Your activities in the colony are destroying their environment. What the dinosaurs want is to get their land back, but not in the sense of a territory. They don't care about borders on maps, I bet they don't even know what they are. When they say they want their land back, they mean they want their forest back as it once was. Do you really believe that they will allow you to continue activities that help destroy it?"

Kimber felt anger build up inside him. Not so much because of Jocelyne's tone, but more because her arguments made more than sense. Thinking about it carefully, he couldn't help but admit that she was right. "They talked about wanting to coexist with us" he pointed out.

"Coexistence, exactly. Not supremacy on our part" Jocelyne replied. "The word 'coexistence' doesn't mean that we will be able to do what we want and like and they will let us do it. It means that we will respect their spaces and they will respect ours. With our factories, our oil wells, and everything else, we would do nothing but poison the plants, poison the air, make the earth sterile and diminish their living space. This is not coexistence, this is a pathetic hope that the dinosaurs will leave things as they are, but it won't. Go ahead and ask them to let you use the mines or extract the oil. They will laugh in your face"

"So what do you expect us to do? What do we allow ourselves to be trampled on?" Mosley asked furiously. "Is this what you think we should do, little girl?"

"I have a name, gentleman. Please call me with it" Jocelyne growled as her eyes narrowed menacingly.

Most of the men gathered at the table burst out laughing. It was clear that they didn't take it seriously. "That little girl will end up hanged" someone whispered in the ear of another. "That is the typical temperament of women who end up hanging from a rope".

Mosley laughed. "Oh, sure, forgive me. So I rephrase the question: 'Miss Jersey', your brilliant plan would be to give up all our activities and throw our economy to the wind?"

"Said in this way, it seems almost as brilliant as sending almost all of our army to fight an enemy of which we have no information, condemning them to a ruinous defeat. No, perhaps this last idea was even more brilliant" was Jocelyne's dry reply, accompanied by a mocking smile.

The laughter stopped immediately. Now the men's frown was furrowed, especially Mosley's. After all, there was no worse insult to men of power than reminding them of their failure. "Silly little..." Mosley began, starting to get up from his chair as if he was thinking of running over to Jocelyne and strangling her. Jersey, sensing the danger, tried to get up in his turn, but Kimber preceded them both: "ENOUGH! I've seen enough noises for today. Miss Jersey, I hope you didn't come here just to demoralize us; I guess you are smart enough to understand that now I wish, no… I PRETEND to know how you plan to resolve this crisis".

Even though he despised Jocelyne for her behavior and her attitude, Kimber was certainly no fool. A fool would not have become the richest man in the nation. And as such, he knew that so far Jocelyne had only said the right things, and that therefore it was possible that he could provide a decent solution. At the moment, it was their best hope.

"Mr.Kimber, with all due respect, you will not really expect that a minor, even a woman, can know such things!" Mosley protested.

"This will be verified immediately"

"Mr.Kimber, we're not playing with monopoly money here!"

"Silence! Go ahead, Miss Jersey"

Jocelyne looked at Mosley with a triumphant smile, which further angered the man, who however did not protest further. "The situation is actually in our favor at the moment. Even if unknowingly, the NMWA did us a favor" she began to explain. "Right now, most of our stocks of oil, gas, timber and so on are stored in the colony's warehouses. From the satellite photos, we know that they have not yet been shot down, so it is logical to assume that the content is intact. However, we cannot recover them. Without those stocks, our economy will collapse in a matter of months, but if we get them back we could keep the country stable for a few years. By forcing us to send an ambassador to us, the NMWA has allowed us to negotiate a peace that is beneficial to us. The mere fact that the dinosaurs want to negotiate means that they are not sure that they can openly challenge us; this turns in our favor. A fairly talkative ambassador could convince them that to keep the peace for a long time it will not be enough simply to free the hostages, but also to deliver the supplies. Dinosaurs don't need them, so they're unlikely to refuse; indeed, they are likely to accept, since by helping us stabilize our economy they will prevent any unrest from affecting them. Once we have those stocks, we will be able to maintain Odaria's current condition for three, four, maybe even five years. Which gives us all the time necessary to launch a large-scale economic plan"

Mosley and some of his friends were still frowning, and probably weren't even listening to Jocelyne's words, but the rest of the men gathered in the room were not of the same opinion. Augustus himself, despite her initial contempt, now seemed prey to the girl's words. "As you well know, we live in a time when humanity is hungry for energy. On the two main continents, resources are practically exhausted. This has been our wealth, because here in Maakanar, on the other hand, resources are still abundant; we focused on the forest because it was the simplest goal to obtain energy sources, such as oil, coal, natural gas, etc. However, the forest is no longer a viable plan now, so we will use the years at our disposal to create an alternative energy system. We will build a large plant in our area that will exploit alternative forms of energy, such as solar, wind, geothermal and water, and then resell it to foreign countries at a high price. This will allow us to replace the profits from oil, gas and coal. Furthermore, as we will no longer be able to use oil and wood to create plastic and paper, we will also build a huge recycling center and offer ourselves to the NMWA to help solve the waste problem in other countries, obviously for a fee. Not only will we fully recover the costs, but we could use the construction of these plants as both internal and external propaganda. Internal, because they will give work to many unemployed, making us gain support among the population; external, because we will be able to exploit the fact that we were one of the first countries to take the path of clean energy and intensive waste disposal as a means of getting the NMWA to lift its punitive sanctions. In practice, all of you will not just stay rich, but you will become even more disgustingly rich"

Silence fell in the room as Jocelyne finished her speech. The girl said nothing more and she just crossed her arms and smiled in an accomplice way. Jocelyne knew that she had won: after all, nothing beats capitalism like capitalism itself. The best way to get a rich man to do as she told him was to assure him that he would get richer.

And indeed, even the most reluctant had begun to reflect on Jocelyne's proposal as soon as she had mentioned the money. Normally no one would have taken into consideration the words of a woman, but in the face of the prospect of resolving the crisis and coming out of it even stronger than before, the minds of those present had changed. Mosley himself, despite his misogyny, was considering the proposal. "The idea is good" he admitted, "but it is unlikely that other nations will sit and watch. Since they too will lose their main energy sources, they will start designing plants like us"

"True, but it will take years just to decide on the project. Let us not forget that after several years from the beginning of this crisis they still have not established their colonies on the continent, even if they aimed to do so. With their major projects completely invalidated and the prospect of a global crisis due to the dinosaurs, we can easily beat them and monopolize the market" Jocelyne replied.

Jersey looked at her daughter with pride. Even though he was angry at how she had dealt with the other family heads, and also worried about what the consequences of her might be, he couldn't hide the deep satisfaction he had for Jocelyne. He could say that he had raised her daughter well.

Kimber rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then said: "Miss Jersey, despite your inappropriate attitude, I can only admit that yours is the best proposal that has been presented to this table so far. However, do you realize that it is based on the dinosaurs agreeing to supply us with the colony's resources?"

"I realize it, yes"

"And what makes you think they will accept? Maybe stocks mean nothing to them, but they could always refuse out of spite against us. After all, we waged war against them. Why are you so sure it will be possible to come to terms with them?"

"Because it is clear that the dinosaurs don't want a war. Despite their superb arsenal and their strong war strategy, they don't want to challenge us. Otherwise, they would not have offered us peace three times. And since they too want peace, like us, we can make them understand the benefits that accepting our proposal will bring. A good ambassador could make him understand that without those supplies Odaria will break apart from the inside, which will create various factions that may seek revenge on the dinosaurs. On the contrary, handing over the supplies to us will ensure the stability of the country and thus maintain a lasting peace. With the right oratory, the dinosaurs will be convinced"

"In conclusion, the success of this plan is based on the fact that the ambassador we will send is an excellent speaker and has a strong ability to convince people, even when they are clearly adverse to him"

"Put it simply, yes"

"Very good. I would say I have heard enough" Kimber said, and then turned to the head of the Jersey family: "Markus, with your permission, I would like your daughter to be our ambassador"

Jocelyne's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open at those words. But hers wasn't her worst reaction though: Markus Jersey literally spat out the wine he was drinking. "What!? Why?" the man exclaimed.

"It seems obvious to me: because your daughter fits perfectly with the description of the person we should send that she has provided" Kimber replied in a calm voice.

The other men gathered were as surprised as Jocelyne and her father. They certainly did not expect the richest man in the nation to come up with such a proposal! "Mr.Kimber, this is a matter of national security!" Mosley pointed out. "Are you really proposing to put our future in the hands of a little girl?"

"A little girl who offered a better proposal than all the men gathered here. Yes" Kimber replied without lifting an eyebrow.

Mosley bit his lip. "Mr.Kimber, I also think that adopting the solution proposed by… Miss Jersey is our best option. But to send her into enemy territory, to deal with the dinosaurs in person… do we want to put the country's future in the hands of a fourteen-year-old girl? I don't deny that you are a little genius, but..."

"That's right, Mr.Mosley, Miss Jersey is a little genius. However, she is even more than that. She is the creator of this superfine plan and therefore she knows its parts in detail, and consequently she has a better chance of convincing the dinosaurs. In addition, she has a strong temperament, suitable for being able to get the better of a negotiation. Finally, she has already shown that she has a lot of courage, since I'm sure she is smart enough to understand that if her proposal was unsatisfactory it would not have ended well for her, yet she still chose to take the risk" Kimber replied. "Unless one of you knows someone else with all these characteristics, then we can only agree that Miss Jersey is our best choice. With the permission of her father, of course"

Mosley found no way to counter those claims. The same was true for many others present. However, Jersey was certainly not about to let his daughter take any chances. "I strongly object! I risked losing my daughter two years ago, I won't risk a second time!"

"Right, I forgot that. Another proof that Miss Jersey is the best candidate for the role of ambassador. Two years ago she should have died in that forest, yet she was saved by a dinosaur, an event that everyone considered impossible. Apparently, she has some influence over them" Kimber said. The event he remembered was obviously the one in which Sobek, still in the Spinosaurus superior stadium, rescued Jocelyne and cared for her in the forest for more than a week.

That memory left a doubt in Jocelyne's heart. She had originally thought about backing out, but now she… what if she really was the right person for that role? After all, it was she who had organized the plan, it was she who had convinced everyone to follow it... she had shown considerable oratory and strategic skills... moreover, she had managed to defeat the fear of Odaria's leaders, almost mythological figures in the eyes of the ordinary people, so why should she be afraid of dinosaurs begging for peace?

Furthermore, if she had been the ambassador she would have met the dinosaur that she had saved her years before, and she would have been able to talk to him...

"I don't care! I will not let my daughter go among that group of monsters!" Markus Jersey yelled. "You will have to pass over my corpse if you want to send it over there!"

"Father" Jocelyne interrupted. "I want to go"

Markus Jersey turned abruptly to her daughter with wide eyes. "Are you crazy? Those creatures wiped out our entire army!"

"Our army went there to fight. I'm going there to negotiate" Jocelyne replied.

"Jocelyne, stop this. You have already proved your skills. You don't have to prove anything!" Jersey retorted.

"And in fact I don't want to prove anything! I'm protecting the interests of the nation, our family and, consequently, mine too!" Jocelyne answered. "Mr.Kimber is right. I am the best person for this task. It is my duty as a citizen of this nation to accept the role of ambassador!"

"I don't care! You don't move from here!" Jersey roared. Now he was really screaming.

"Father, I know you are afraid, but you cannot continue to keep me locked up here! Do you think these four walls will protect me when the nation capitulates?" Jocelyne exclaimed. "If this negotiation fails, our economy will be destroyed. Whit who do you think the people will be angry with when they have nothing left to eat? At best I will see you and my mother hanging from a pike and spend the rest of my days earning my bread as a street prostitute, because all our family assets will be lost! What scares you most, a group of dinosaurs who have repeatedly reiterated that they only want peace, or the enraged people who will want nothing more than to eradicate the rich as soon as things start to go wrong, and that we cannot stop now that the is our army destroyed?"

Jocelyne walked over and looked her father straight in the eye. "I'm fourteen now. Despite the fact that you like it or not, I have to start taking care of our family, especially now that we are facing an unprecedented crisis. I will not oppose your will, but I ask you to trust me. I would never ask you to sit and do nothing while what you care about falls apart; why are you asking me now?"

Silence fell again in the room, for the umpteenth time. No one seemed willing to intervene in the diatribe between father and daughter; on the contrary, they seemed quite amused. "I have to correct myself: that girl will not end up hanged" whispered the person that had spoken before, always in the ear of his friend. "It is more likely that the man who marries her will end up hanging from a rope"

Jersey held Jocelyne's gaze for nearly a minute, then closed her eyes and turned her head away. "All right. If you want to go, go ahead. But know that you and I will have a little speech afterwards"

"Since we've got your approval, let's put the proposal to a vote" Kimber said, immediately catching the ball. "Who is in favor of making Miss Jersey our ambassador?"

Most of them raised their hand; only a few abstained from voting. Jocelyne frowned: she knew that the only reason why she didn't get the total approval of those men was because she was a woman. If she had been a boy, no one would have had any objections from the beginning, indeed they would have praised her. But never let those rich assholes admit their misogyny was wrong.

"I would say the choice is clear. Miss Jersey, you will be our ambassador" Kimber said. "We place our trust in you. I trust you will not disappoint us"

Despite the man's slightly hostile tone, Jocelyne couldn't help but feel a wave of pride and satisfaction invade her heart.