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- Friends for Life
- The Cronian Revolution
- The Megacorporations and the UCA
- Kato Energy
- Developments on Cronus
- A Shining City
- Tragedy Strikes
- The Aftermath
- The Rise of Gabriel
Friends
for Life
Sanjuro and Toshiro Makabe were orphaned
at an early age and ended up at a military academy
on the colony world upon which they were born. At
the academy, they befriended two sisters, Kura and
Kathryn, daughters of Commodore Nathaniel Akkaraju,
stationed there with his family. They also befriended
Baku Ogata, a scrawny runt of a kid who was often
the victim of bullies.
Sanjuro, who was younger than his
brother, was successful at whatever he attempted
to do. He was also popular, for he was a smart,
spunky kid with a lot of bravado and a good sense
of humor. Toshiro, tormented by their parents' deaths,
was more cunning and deliberate than his brother,
but he was also quiet and difficult to get to know.
As any child would, Toshiro resented his brother's
facility with people and social situations. More
importantly, he resented the favoritism Sanjuro
earned simply by being so damned likable.
Kura and Sanjuro had a love/hate relationship.
They thrived on teasing and abusing each other,
but it was merely an elaborate, naïve form
of flirtation. Eventually, as pretty much everybody
who knew them had predicted from early on, they
became lovers.
Shortly after the friends graduated, Commodore
Akkaraju's wife died in an attack on the colony.
The situation was complicated. He knew she was in
danger, but his orders were to remain at his post.
He asked for a replacement to cover for him while
he went to find her, but the request was denied.
Rather than disobeying orders, he stood by his post,
even when his daughters found him and pleaded with
him to go. When his wife died in the attack, Akkaraju
swallowed his shame and grief. Kura railed against
him, calling him a murderer and a coward. He let
her have her say without defending himself or trying
to calm her, for it was his duty as a father.
Kathryn, meanwhile, coped with the situation very
differently. She knew that her father could have
done nothing except get himself killed as well,
so she never blamed him. But the implications of
the military career she was about to enter suddenly
crystalized. She vowed never to use a weapon against
another human being and arranged to enter a non-combatant
position in the UCASF so that she could still be
with her friends.
For his courage and commitment during the attack
on the colony, Akkaraju was given command of the
UCASF Leviathan, the flagship of the UCA, and promoted
to admiral. That the defining moment of his career
should also be such a defining moment in his personal
life drove him to pursue his duty to the UCA even
more religiously.
Meanwhile, with the beginning of the Cronian Revolution,
Admiral Akkaraju was sent to Cronus by UCASF high
command.
The
Cronian Revolution
At first glance, Cronus (technically 46CronusD,
the fourth planet in the nearly dead Cronus system)
seems like an unlikely place to play such a critical
role in the future of humanity. It is a hostile,
barren world with a poisonous atmosphere, incessant
volcanic and seismic activity, and an unexceptional
collection of minerals easily mined from hundreds
of thousands of more accessible asteroids and moons,
not to mention the handful of human-colonized worlds.
However, when a deep space probe sent to the system
to collect scientific data for cataloging purposes
detected chemically compelling organic material
in soil samples, the United Corporate Authority
(UCA) was formed by three dominant megacorporations
(Andra Biomechanics, Armacham Technology Corporation,
and Shogo Industries) and a jointly funded manned
expedition was launched.
That early venture found rich deposits of the organic
material, dubbed kato for the probe that discovered
it (the Shogo DSP Katoki).
It would be over a decade before the benefits of
kato energy would become apparent and interstellar
travel would change forever...
The Megacorporations
& the UCA
Each of the megacorporations contributing to the
Cronus expedition had a vested interest in the mission
at hand. Andra Biomechanics, founded in Moscow in
the early 21st century by Natalya Andropov, a renowned
researcher on the Human Genome Project, grew to
specialize in a variety of genetic engineering,
cybernetic, and mechanical engineering interests.
Their products included medical bioengineering technologies,
cybernetically assisted prosthetics, and even anthropomorphic
mobile engineering vehicles (MEVs) used in construction,
mining (terrestrial and otherwise), and demolition.
They also did early research and development of
mobile combat armor (MCAs) and armaments.
Shogo Industries, a Japanese conglomerate, had
interests ranging from technology to publishing
to the manufacture of children's clothing. With
the advent of MEVs and MCAs, Shogo decided to offer
their own highly advanced line of giant mechanized
suits. Their designs were well received both for
functionality and aesthetics. They also distinguished
themselves for space-based product lines and microcomputer
technology.
Armacham Technology Corporation got its start with
the manufacture of commercial satellites and ground-based
communication systems. Eventually, they would expand
to encompass civilian and military vehicle manufacture,
musical equipment, security systems, and, predictably
enough, MEV and MCA technologies. Their MCAs (they
discontinued their MEV lines after some early experiments)
immediately caught the attention of the private
sector and various military organizations alike.
Sleeker and sexier than the offerings of their competitors,
Armacham's MCAs were and still are considered the
most striking MCAs available. Of course, form without
function is useless, and Armacham delivers there
as well. While not as rugged as Andra MCAs or as
sophisticated as Shogo MCAs, Armacham's designs
are reliable and hardy.
The UCA, originally intended as a joint venture
that would ensure the continued profitability and
expansion of the three organizations that founded
it, took on a life of its own almost immediately.
With its status as the primary regulatory agency
for interstellar commerce, the UCA quickly swelled
into an unwieldy bureaucracy. It was only after
dissociating itself from its progenitors that it
was able to restructure itself and become more efficient,
simultaneously forming the United Corporate Authority
Security Force (UCASF), which would soon become
the dominant military power in existence. Within
a decade, it was involved in the manufacture of
deep space vessels, aircraft, ground-based vehicles,
and MCAs. While the UCA's early entries in the MCA
market were poorly received, subsequent models,
especially the Defender and Enforcer, rank as some
of the best MCAs available.
Kato
Energy
What makes kato especially enticing and useful
is its unique chemical composition. Being of an
organic nature, kato at first seemed comparable
to petroleum-a vestigial remnant of ancient indigenous
life. On further examination, however, it was discovered
that kato is actually alive in some sense, although
no more sentient than algae.
The importance of kato derives from its reaction
to high temperatures. When burned, kato passes through
several stages of recomposition before losing its
volatility. Each of these stages produces an impressive
amount of energy, but it's what happens at the subatomic
level that proves the most beneficial.
In the course of its chemical breakdown, kato emits
a tachyon field that can be harnessed to allow an
object (such as a vehicle) contained within the
field to tunnel (i.e. move from one place to another
without passing through each increment of space
in between), thereby travelling at superluminal
speeds. Space travel without kato energy would be
like walking from New York to Los Angeles versus
flying there in a Concorde. As you can imagine,
interplanetary travel without kato energy is entirely
impractical.
Developments
on Cronus
The population of Cronus grew steadily and rapidly,
even when the first underground colony, Avernus,
was devastated by a series of powerful earthquakes
that led to a mass migration to the burgeoning city
of Maritropa.
Avernus, although abandoned, continued an eerie
quasi-life of its own, for its geothermal energy
supply still pumped life through the city, powering
streetlamps, heating ducts, atmospheric processors,
hydroponic farms, and condensation collectors. Those
few who had chosen to remain behind were able to
sustain themselves with a minimal amount of maintenance
and repair.
Many of these holdouts (dubbed stragglers) were
former miners driven to psychological breakdown
by the pressures of long hours, horrible working
conditions, and long-term exposure to raw kato residue,
which had been demonstrated to have a corrosive
effect on unprotected flesh even in particulate
form, leading to respiratory ailments, skin rashes,
and even blindness. Though the term "straggler"
was originally aimed at those who had remained in
Avernus, it eventually grew to encompass anyone
displaying these characteristics.
A
Shining City
Maritropa, unlike its ailing sister city, was
intended from its incorporation to be a sparkling
metropolis that afforded all the accustomed luxuries
of other, comparatively vital colony worlds to its
diverse inhabitants. The vast, snaking reinforced
cavern system that housed Maritropa flourished with
greenery, artificial light, and cosmopolitan life.
For all its self-imposed glory, Maritropa wasn't
the utopia it pretended to be, though. The lower
sectors of the city eventually began to fall into
disrepair as the aristocracy moved to the Canopy
Section, a series of buildings suspended from the
cavern ceiling. Using a material called Stion™
(developed by Armacham) which becomes highly tensile
when charged with an electrical current, engineers
devised a support structure with a tremendous load-bearing
capacity. The view from the slums affords an ironic
perspective of the hierarchical structure of Maritropan
society.
By the time the revolution began in earnest, the
Cronian Mining Consortium (CMC)-the governing body
on the planet-had long been eager for autonomy from
the UCA and various corporate interests. The importance
of kato energy gave the CMC a powerful bargaining
chip offset only by Cronus' military insignificance.
So the CMC began bolstering its military in secret,
aided by a covert treaty with Andra Biomechanics.
The UCA was aware of the buildup, of course, but
Akkaraju was instructed not to interfere for reasons
that were not shared with him. Unfortunately, Akkaraju's
superiors had apparently underestimated the extent
of the CMC's efforts. A sizable mercenary fleet
arrived in the system a mere two standard hours
before the CMC officially proclaimed its independence
and issued its terms. The UCA was hit unprepared
and forced to retreat from Cronus' high orbit under
heavy fire.
For the next 18 months, the UCA executed a series
of covert operations designed to undermine the Cronian
resistance by removing key individuals. Although
the overall success rate of these missions was marginal
at best, the plan eventually succeeded and the Cronians
agreed to negotiate an accord.
It was around this time that a terrorist group
calling themselves the Fallen surfaced. Their initial
attacks were designed to undermine UCA faith in
the CMC and, indeed, delayed the treaty process
by several months. Once the existence of the terrorists
was established, the CMC requested UCA assistance
in rounding up the faction.
Tragedy
Strikes
Sanjuro, who by this time had earned the rank
of Commander, led his squad-consisting of Toshiro,
Baku, and Kura-on a mission into Avernus in search
of a Fallen leader, acting on intelligence obtained
during a raid in Maritropa. The mission ended with
Toshiro, Kura, and Baku missing and presumed dead.
Following is a transcript from the subsequent investigation:
CDR BROWN: You state
in your report that you were fired upon, and I
quote, by an "incredibly powerful energy
weapon"-
CDR MAKABE: That's
correct.
CDR BROWN: And the
next thing you remember, you awoke on the ground
in your MCA, your camera systems malfunctioning…
CDR MAKABE: Yeah.
Look, we've been through all this before.
CDR BROWN: This is
standard procedure, Commander. And so what happened
next? CDR MAKABE: As I stated
previously, I heard some kind of weird chanting.
CDR BROWN: Which you
identified as Commander Makabe. Uh, that would
be your brother. CDR MAKABE: It sounded
like him, but I couldn't see very well, so I wasn't
sure. CDR BROWN: And that
was when you opened fire on Commander Akkaraju.
CDR MAKABE: I didn't
"open fire" on her. I thought she was
an Assassin. I heard movement and spun around.
She must've been leaning forward, getting up,
'cause I couldn't see her head. She looked like
an Assassin.
CDR BROWN: The Shogo
Assassin MCA is a far cry from a UCA Enforcer,
Commander Makabe. I find it hard to believe you
could confuse the two. CDR MAKABE: I told
you, my display was damaged…
CDR BROWN: And you
fired without thinking, without considering the
consequences. CDR MAKABE: Yes.
CDR BROWN: Did Commander
Akkaraju return fire? CDR MAKABE: No.
CDR BROWN: And yet
you continued to- CDR MAKABE: I turned,
I saw an Assassin, and I fired. It wasn't…
I didn't know it was her.
CDR BROWN: So you
stated. CDR MAKABE: I was
in love with her. I'm not in the habit of shooting
people I care about.
CDR BROWN: Your attitude
during this interview will be noted, Commander.
CDR MAKABE: Is that
was this is? An interview? Seems more like an
interrogation to me.
CDR BROWN: At what
point did your brother strike you? CDR MAKABE: Right
after I shot Kura. He blindsided me and knocked
me down.
CDR BROWN: Did he
say anything? CDR MAKABE: Just whatever
he was chanting. It sounded like gibberish to
me.
CDR BROWN: What happened
next? CDR MAKABE: Toshiro
was about to shoot me when the tremor hit. The
ground gave way and they were just gone, just
like that. All of them.
CDR BROWN: And what
did you do at that point? CDR MAKABE: I stood
at the edge of the chasm, wishing I could see
better.
CDR BROWN: Wasn't
it dangerous to approach the chasm with your MCA's
visual system impaired? CDR MAKABE: I didn't
care.
CDR BROWN: But- CDR MAKABE: Three
of the most important people in my life…
they were just gone, Commander. Just gone.
The
Aftermath
Sanjuro, still reeling from the Avernus tragedy,
was placed on probation for "inability to perform
his duties in a professional, responsible manner
due to severe psychological stress sustained in
combat." He was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic
Stress Disorder (PTSD) and required to attend regular
physical and psychological evaluations.
He spent most of his free time with Kathryn, who
helped him cope with what had happened even as he
helped her manage her own grief. In time, what had
begun as mutual comfort turned into romance. Kathryn,
who had always harbored deep affection for Sanjuro,
understood that his feelings for her were rooted
more in a desperate sort of need than in actual
romantic love, but she hoped that time would soften
his grief and allow him to love her.
The Rise
of Gabriel
The Fallen, meanwhile, grew stronger and more
organized. Military intelligence attributed the
transformation to a new leader elected to replace
Ivan Isarevich, who was killed in the Avernus incident.
The new leader, known only as Gabriel, rallied the
historically fragmented Fallen into a fighting force
capable of posing a serious threat to the CMC.
Following is an extract from a public statement
issued by Gabriel to the population of Cronus and
the various interests in orbit around her:
"We, the fallen children of earth, our ancestral
home, are the rightful heirs and stewards of Coth.
We will tolerate no further exploitation of her
bounty, no further taking of her gifts. Those who
oppose the will of Coth shall be expunged. Those
who leave will do so with our blessing. Those who
remain will perish."
Final proof of the Fallen's viability came mere
hours after they seized a remote but well defended
CMC geological station. The CMC's military fragmented,
nearly a third of its soldiers declaring loyalty
to Gabriel and the Fallen.
The ensuing chaos presented a variety of opportunities
and problems for the UCA. Akkaraju's prime directive
was to recapture Cronus for the UCA, thereby ensuring
the continued harvest of kato. The UCA and CMC had
been on the verge of compromise that wasn't especially
satisfying to either party but at least provided
a foundation upon which to build.
With the CMC hobbled by its own partial collapse
and a fanatical army preparing a massive and potentially
apocalyptic assault on Maritropa, the situation
had changed dramatically in a short amount of time.
Neither the UCA nor the CMC considered abandoning
Cronus (or Coth, as the Fallen called it) a palatable
option. But the CMC was no longer capable of defending
itself. They could hold out for a while, but ultimately
they would fall. Their predicament afforded the
UCA a certain amount of leverage.
The UCA, meanwhile, might be able to intervene
and overcome the Fallen, but the battle for Cronus
would take a heavy toll and might lead to a less
than desirable outcome considering the obvious fanaticism
and newfound discipline of the Fallen's legions.
Akkaraju's recommendation to the UCA high command
was simple: eliminate Gabriel by any means necessary
and watch as the Fallen crumble. After all, the
admiral asserted, it was Gabriel who had united
the terrorists into a fighting force. Likewise,
it was his charisma that had lured a third of the
Cronian militia away from the CMC. How he had spread
his influence so thoroughly was unknown, but its
effects were self-evident. He was the key.
The plan was authorized without discussion and
the details left in Akkaraju's hands. He had only
to decide who to send. He chose Sanjuro.
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