Movie Plot: Anthony Albanese attempts to become Australian dictator after a China-US war in early 2025 but it does not go to plan! Eventually, Peter Dutton becomes prime minister with the same goals as Albanese.

Characters at time of the War:

Prime Minister Albanese; Defence Minister Marles; Foreign Affairs Minister Wong; Treasurer Chalmers; Attorney-General Dreyfus; PM’s Chief-of-Staff Gartrell; Secretary of Department of PM&C Davis; Secretary of Treasury Kennedy; Minister of Defence Industry and Capability Delivery Conroy Luke Gosling; Tanya Plibersek; Mike Burgess of ASIO. Journalists Greg Sheridan, David Speers, Cameron Stewart and Nick McKenzie. Premiers: NSW Minns, Vic Allan, Qld Miles, WA Cook, Tas Rockliff, SA Malinauskas.

New Characters in Parts 5 to 9:

Prime Minister Peter Dutton; Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Birmingham; Treasurer Angus Taylor, Defence Minister Andrew Hastie; Attorney-General Michaella Cash; Minister of Immigration Dan Tehan; Minister for Citizenship Dave Sharma; Journalists Paul Kelly and Michelle Gratton; Australian Federal Police (AFP) Commissioner Reece Kershaw. Alex Ryvchin of the Council of Australian Jewry. Davis has been sacked as Secretary of the Department of PM&C and Minns has swapped political sides and been appointed Secretary in his place. Burgess has been sacked as head of ASIO and Minns has also secretly been appointed to this position.

Scene 78: Prime Minister’s Office

PM Dutton is meeting with Minns – who is both Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and the secret head of ASIO.

Dutton: “I do worry that some of our public servants are not really with us on China – and AUKUS! But, at this stage, your idea of taking their passports would cause more problems than it is worth. To justify it we would need an example of a senior public servant who has gone overseas and caused problems for Australia.”

Minns: “I understand. I will put it back in the drawer until we need it.”

Dutton: “On the issue of this Jo Tarnawsky. Marles’s wife is now saying that she paid to have this Broker organization to have Marles killed.”

Minns: “She is going feral! There is no useful evidence on who was operating the drone that hit Marles. And if our information about The Broker is true, it is not cheap to get them to do something.”

Dutton: “Besides, it all makes Marles seem to be a victim of some domestic squabble. We want him to be a victim of the Chinese!”

Minns: “Tarnawsky won’t help us on this. I understand that Sue Chrysanthou has convinced her that she can get some huge sum by suing Marles’ wife.”

Dutton: “How? Does she have much money?”

Minns: “No. But, there seems to be an idea that the Commonwealth had some work-place responsibility to protect Tarnawsky from the accusations.”

Dutton: “By his wife? After he is dead? How does that work?”

Minns: “Not sure, but remember what happened with Brittany Higgins. Strange things happen.”

Dutton: “But unlike with Albanese, I will not – in no way — be approving such a payment.”

Minns: “Once this is clear, Tarnawsky might be prepared to listen more to us on the Chinese issue.”

Scene 79: Public Service Office

Alex Ryvchin of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry is meeting with Dave Sharma.

Ryvchin: “What went wrong?”

Sharma: “I don’t know. I said any High Court judge except Jayne Jagot. I said her name several times and said it must not be her.”

Ryvchin: “Maybe The Broker just did not like you and decided to go after the one person you did not want! My friends in Israel are very unhappy. A lot of money paid to kill our best friend on the High Court.”

Sharma: “Shit! Oh, my god! No!”

Ryvchin: “What? What is it?”

Sharma: “I just realized something. I told you that my conversations with The Broker were a little strange. Like I was talking to AI generated speech. I did not name any other High Court judge. I just said anyone except Jagot – many times! What if this thing – whatever it is – the focussed on Jagot’s name. And she then became the target.”

Ryvchin; “Is it possible? If its AI it should understand.”

Sharma: “Maybe not. Is there someone in Israel that you can talk to about this Broker? They have good intelligence souces.”

Ryvchin: “I will try”

Sharma: “In any case, we can now get Jillian Segal onto the High Court.”

Scene 80: Prime Minister’s Office

Dutton is meeting with Minns and Sharma

Minns: “Things are going well. Michaella (Cash) will seen announce appointment of Jillian Segal to High Court, and Dave has appointed Jo Tarnawsky as Secretary his department to replace Jeni Whalan. She has agreed to drop her defamation case against Marles’s wife – who we will now all say is a nut-case.”

Dutton: “And we can now get on with the story about a Chinese connection to Marles’s death?”

Minns: “Yes.”

Dutton: “What about Jagot?”

Minns: “Well, we still do not know who planted the bomb. Sharma wants to make an Iranian connection, saying that she was recognized as a strong supporter of Israel.”

Dutton: “No. We must keep the focus on China. The Americans are so quite now on AUKUS. Rudd is continually doing the rounds in Washington but cannot get a clear sense on anything.”

Minns: “Hastie is not helping on all this. As Defence Minister he should be out in front pushing AUKUS, but he is now starting to be persuaded that we need to divert funds to the army and air-force. More missiles, more drones etc.”

Dutton: “Who is he listening to?”

Minns: “Gavin Reynolds for one! As armed forces chief of intelligence he only saw Hastie once a week or so and it was about operational issues rather than policy. But as Border Force commander he is meeting almost daily with Dan Tehan about migration. And Tehan is still angry that you took Citizenship from him and left him only with the Department of Migration.”

Dutton: “I suppose he is also angry that I tried to get him take Defence Industry and Capability when he really wanted Defence.”

Minns: “But he has now formed a sort of axis-of-convenience with Hastie. I think Birmingham is with them to some degree.”

Scene 81: Press Gallery

Michelle Gratton: “Nick McKenzie may have overreached himself. Minns can’t be head of ASIO at the same time as Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.”

Greg Sheridan: “Why not? There is nothing in the constitution – or in any legislation that I know of – which says it is not possible.”

David Speers: “OK. But he has gone too far in the implied linking of Minns to the murder of Jagot with The Broker.”

Cameron Stewart: “I agree. He is compromising national security. McKenzie might end up being killed himself.”

Scene 82: Public Service Office

Minns is meeting with Sharma

Minns: “Fuckin McKenzie! His articles are causing trouble. I’d love to kill him. I have not told anyone, but The Broker did contact me but I ignored it.”

Sharma: “What did it – or they – say?”

Minns: “You really want to know? Offered to kill Jayne Jagot!”

Sharma: “Why you?”

Minns: “I don’t know how this thing works. Even ASIO don’t know. But whatever it is – or they are – it’s totally dangerous. So, someone else must have taken up the offer.”

Sharma: “Maybe ….”

Minns looks at Sharma for a moment before asking: “Did it contact you?”

Sharma: “Yes. But Jagot was not the target.”

Minns: “What do you mean?”

Sharma: “I said anyone – any High Court Judge – except Jagot.”

Minns: “Wow! You did that? What went wrong?”

Sharma: “I don’t know. Alex Ryvchin is trying to get the Israelis to find out more about this Broker.”

Minns: “Why him?”

Sharma: “He put up the money!”

Minns: “Strange that McKenzie identified me! Who is he talking to? The Broker?”

Sharma: “I’m sure it is a machine. An AI algorithm! Its better to deal with humans.”

Minns: “Just on that point. The algorithm didn’t plant the bomb. There must be a human element somewhere. Dutton says he knows a few impoverished ex-policemen from his days on Queensland force. He hasn’t said directly but I sensed that he meant that they could be used on someone if necessary.

Sharma: “Like McKenzie?”

Scene 83: Prime Minister’s Office

Dutton in meeting with Cash and Minns

Dutton: “The challenges to the suspension of elections rolls on. Will they get to the High Court before Segal is there?”

Cash: “No Chance!

Dutton: “Three other things. The first is Wong. Does ASIO have anything to tie her to the Chinese?”

Minns: “Nothing! I am finding it a bit hard to get a lot of information inside ASIO. I have access to all documents, but I feel that some people just do not want to cooperate with me. I ask questions and get precise answers, but anything more is never volunteered.”

Dutton: “Nick Mckenzie has become a problem for us. What is the best thing to do?”

Cash: “Well he has identified the head of ASIO, which can be considered illegal. The problem is that if he is prosecuted it will only confirm his story. I think that there is still a lot of scepticism about it. Best to do nothing.”

Dutton: “What about Chinese?”

Cash: “The draft banning of some Chinese symbols is ready. It has not been easy because we have so few Chinese speakers. We have thus stuck to the obvious where links with Xi Jinping or Chinese organizations can be implied.”

Dutton: “And confiscating Chinese property in Australia?”

Cash: “It is also difficult. But, I am told The Treasury is working on some lists of property. Angus Taylor is not very happy, but I understand that it is progressing.”

Minns: “Yes. Kennedy is also not happy, I am making sure that he is keeping me informed.”

After Cash leaves the office, Minns remains with Dutton.

Minns: “Peter, you once mentioned that you had former friends in the Queensland police force who now need work. Are they expensive?”

Dutton: “I will check!”