Sitakapa. Imperial frontier colony.
That was my home. Is my home. It's been a long time since I've seen it. Today I go home, but it will be bittersweet. I'll be called a traitor, but I know where my heart lies. But let me tell you my story.
Home Sweet Home
Sitakapa 8 A is one of the jewels of Imperial frontier colonisation. You wouldn't guess it since they never bothered to give it a name. But the only name it ever needed for me was Home. It's a bit chilly, barely ever getting over 0°C, but there's no shortage of unique and delicious arctic vegetation, and the hardy beasts who survive the harsh cold make for tasty steaks and warm clothes. An agricultural gem, and one I took to exploiting early. The guys mining out at Celcius Orbital were always keen for a taste of home, and their mining operations were a great export back home. This route gave me a pretty penny, and was the backbone of my early career as a Commander.
Then the pirates came. The Mac Og Silver Mafia would often go raiding into Sitakapa, although they'd do it under the cover of working with their Syndicate buddies in Sitakapa. They had a go at me sometimes, but luckily my trading days also earned me some decent guns for my Cobra. Sometimes I'd send them running, othertimes it was a lucky escape, but they never quite got there with me. Eventually, the military got involved.
Pirate Skirmishes
It started out with bringing in some goods for them to help fight the pirates. Remember, we're just a frontier backwater. There's a few Imperial Navy stationed here, and they do a good job working with the local militia, but it's not enough to fight off pirates who run a whole system off the back of slave mining and blood money. Luckily, my encounters with them also got me wise to their ways. Keep a low enough profile, and pirates won't realise those battle weapons you just bought off them are going straight to the navy who's going to give them a right kicking. This earned me some credits, and some reputation, getting me the title of Knight. Then things got serious.
"There's a federal outpost in Mac Og, Harness Dock. We don't know how they do it, but even though the pirates are the law, they give that place a good, wide berth. We want you to get cozy with the Feds, let them know you want to be their friend. You'll need somewhere to run when you kill one of their leaders."
Yup. From just a trader to an assassin. By now, I'd switched the Cobra out for a Viper, it was quicker at getting in and out of the pirate headquarters at Amis Dock, and good for getting out of a scrap. But assassination? This was far from my bag, but the pirate raids in Sitakapa were getting worse. They were hitting closer to my home, so I had no choice.
"Target the powerplant, and get the hell out." Good advice, because my target was in an Anaconda. I'd learned how to dodge these guys,, but to get in a proper firefight was the scariest thing ever. Started out well enough, kept my distance and whittled it's shields down, keeping clear of it's main batteries and my shields holding out against it's point defences. Then two more vipers showed. I couldn't keep range with two vipers on my tail. Shields went down so I went in the guts, smashing the powerplant with everything I had. No idea how, but after that first pass, the ship was wrecked. I don't really remember the details, because those vipers wanted blood. My canopy went, oxygen gone and hull integrity at 20%. Thank god the feds were on my side when I eventually limped back with less than a minute of oxygen left.
War Drums
And so I became Lord. I started making connections within the Pilots Federation, and soon my fellow Commanders and I had become the bane of the Mac Og Silver Mafia. The next few months were bloody, and as more raids into Mafia territory came back with success, so too went up my rank among the Imperial Navy. All this time, Sitakapa was strengthening, and news of the fighting at Mac Og had started to hit home. Eventually, I was promoted to Earl, just in time for the orders to come through. The Sitakapa Empire League was ready to invade the system and finally put the pirates to dirt. The League had negotiated billets with the Feds at Harness Dock, who wanted rid of the pirates as much as us. After several months of destabilisation operations, it finally happened. War.
Slaves at Amis Dock had begun to rise up against their masters, independent corporations were abandoning their payments to the Mafia's protection rackets in favour of the security offered by Imperial forces. Finally, the time to strike was here. The Imperial Homeworlds sent the Majestic Class Interdictor Trasken Duval to spearhead the campaign, and I was at the front of the fighting.
After a week of constant fighting, we won. Sitakapa Empire League seized control of Amis Dock. The pirates had nowhere to run. It was over.
A Higher Power Calls
After the success of the campaign and hearing of my part, I got a message from the Imperial Core Systems. Senator Denton Patreus had heard of my instrumental role in the efforts to secure Mac Og, and had a position for me in his forces. Rumour was that things were going to start getting intense in the core systems. No longer just in it for the profit, my heart was bound to service to the Empire. Although sad to leave my homeworld, I knew it was for a greater good. Over the coming months I would fight the forces of Hudson, Winters and Delaine. I would engage in the politics of espionage and sabotage with the other Imperial powers. I would quell criminal activities in the neighbouring systems of LHS 3921 and LTT 9104. All was for the greater good of the Empire.
News from home was sporadic. I heard the Edmund Mahon's forces edged closer to my homeworld, but at the 11th hour, forces belonging to Zemina Torval had secured space around Sitakapa. I have no love for Zemina, her ways are dated and her motives paper thin, but at least the glory of the Empire would be maintained in my homeworld. I would continue to serve Patreus, in the knowledge that the Empire would prosper, and my home would be safe.
A turn of events
Service with Patreus was good, and the Senator looked after me. Then the news hit. The assassination of Emperor Hengist Duval was dead, and not days later, talk of the assassin being part of Patreus' ranks. With a clouded mind, I turned to thoughts of home. It had been a long time since I'd heard anything from friends or family. I was reminded of how isolated we felt out there. I sought some specific info and my longing for home turned to shock.
Under Zemina Torval's rule, the place had gone to the dogs. While the Empire league still maintained in-principle control of the system, it was all but overrun by pirates under the banner of the Syndicate, most likely bolstered by the remnants of the Silver Mafia. Much to my surprise, they too had begun to make a comeback in Mac Og. Zemina's influence over the system and the dire consequences were intolerable. By now I held the title of King amongst the Imperial forces, and demanded action from Patreus' forces. But these demands were met with revulsion. To directly strike at Zemina would be "politically inconvenient" for Patreus, especially given the circumstances around the Emperors death. I was furious.
And so I defect
Today, shrouded in secrecy, I have moved all my assets from my posting in Atfero back to my home of Sitakapa. But an Imperial King striking at Zemina's forces would have far reaching consequences for the Empire I hold close to my heart, as much as I find her influence over my home unacceptable. Remembering Mahon's forces once held an interest in the region, I now head for their territory. With it, I bring my knowledge of Imperial tactics and forces, and a thirst to eject Zemina from Sitakapa, my home. But despite the rampant crime, Sitakapa is still an Imperial colony. And with that, I'll be seen as a traitor. While I may fly the flag of Mahon and his Alliance, I'll still bleed the blood of the Empire when cut, and won't rest until Zemina is removed from Sitakapa, and proper Imperial glory restored to the jewel of the frontier.
That was my home. Is my home. It's been a long time since I've seen it. Today I go home, but it will be bittersweet. I'll be called a traitor, but I know where my heart lies. But let me tell you my story.
Home Sweet Home
Sitakapa 8 A is one of the jewels of Imperial frontier colonisation. You wouldn't guess it since they never bothered to give it a name. But the only name it ever needed for me was Home. It's a bit chilly, barely ever getting over 0°C, but there's no shortage of unique and delicious arctic vegetation, and the hardy beasts who survive the harsh cold make for tasty steaks and warm clothes. An agricultural gem, and one I took to exploiting early. The guys mining out at Celcius Orbital were always keen for a taste of home, and their mining operations were a great export back home. This route gave me a pretty penny, and was the backbone of my early career as a Commander.
Then the pirates came. The Mac Og Silver Mafia would often go raiding into Sitakapa, although they'd do it under the cover of working with their Syndicate buddies in Sitakapa. They had a go at me sometimes, but luckily my trading days also earned me some decent guns for my Cobra. Sometimes I'd send them running, othertimes it was a lucky escape, but they never quite got there with me. Eventually, the military got involved.
Pirate Skirmishes
It started out with bringing in some goods for them to help fight the pirates. Remember, we're just a frontier backwater. There's a few Imperial Navy stationed here, and they do a good job working with the local militia, but it's not enough to fight off pirates who run a whole system off the back of slave mining and blood money. Luckily, my encounters with them also got me wise to their ways. Keep a low enough profile, and pirates won't realise those battle weapons you just bought off them are going straight to the navy who's going to give them a right kicking. This earned me some credits, and some reputation, getting me the title of Knight. Then things got serious.
"There's a federal outpost in Mac Og, Harness Dock. We don't know how they do it, but even though the pirates are the law, they give that place a good, wide berth. We want you to get cozy with the Feds, let them know you want to be their friend. You'll need somewhere to run when you kill one of their leaders."
Yup. From just a trader to an assassin. By now, I'd switched the Cobra out for a Viper, it was quicker at getting in and out of the pirate headquarters at Amis Dock, and good for getting out of a scrap. But assassination? This was far from my bag, but the pirate raids in Sitakapa were getting worse. They were hitting closer to my home, so I had no choice.
"Target the powerplant, and get the hell out." Good advice, because my target was in an Anaconda. I'd learned how to dodge these guys,, but to get in a proper firefight was the scariest thing ever. Started out well enough, kept my distance and whittled it's shields down, keeping clear of it's main batteries and my shields holding out against it's point defences. Then two more vipers showed. I couldn't keep range with two vipers on my tail. Shields went down so I went in the guts, smashing the powerplant with everything I had. No idea how, but after that first pass, the ship was wrecked. I don't really remember the details, because those vipers wanted blood. My canopy went, oxygen gone and hull integrity at 20%. Thank god the feds were on my side when I eventually limped back with less than a minute of oxygen left.
War Drums
And so I became Lord. I started making connections within the Pilots Federation, and soon my fellow Commanders and I had become the bane of the Mac Og Silver Mafia. The next few months were bloody, and as more raids into Mafia territory came back with success, so too went up my rank among the Imperial Navy. All this time, Sitakapa was strengthening, and news of the fighting at Mac Og had started to hit home. Eventually, I was promoted to Earl, just in time for the orders to come through. The Sitakapa Empire League was ready to invade the system and finally put the pirates to dirt. The League had negotiated billets with the Feds at Harness Dock, who wanted rid of the pirates as much as us. After several months of destabilisation operations, it finally happened. War.
Slaves at Amis Dock had begun to rise up against their masters, independent corporations were abandoning their payments to the Mafia's protection rackets in favour of the security offered by Imperial forces. Finally, the time to strike was here. The Imperial Homeworlds sent the Majestic Class Interdictor Trasken Duval to spearhead the campaign, and I was at the front of the fighting.
After a week of constant fighting, we won. Sitakapa Empire League seized control of Amis Dock. The pirates had nowhere to run. It was over.
A Higher Power Calls
After the success of the campaign and hearing of my part, I got a message from the Imperial Core Systems. Senator Denton Patreus had heard of my instrumental role in the efforts to secure Mac Og, and had a position for me in his forces. Rumour was that things were going to start getting intense in the core systems. No longer just in it for the profit, my heart was bound to service to the Empire. Although sad to leave my homeworld, I knew it was for a greater good. Over the coming months I would fight the forces of Hudson, Winters and Delaine. I would engage in the politics of espionage and sabotage with the other Imperial powers. I would quell criminal activities in the neighbouring systems of LHS 3921 and LTT 9104. All was for the greater good of the Empire.
News from home was sporadic. I heard the Edmund Mahon's forces edged closer to my homeworld, but at the 11th hour, forces belonging to Zemina Torval had secured space around Sitakapa. I have no love for Zemina, her ways are dated and her motives paper thin, but at least the glory of the Empire would be maintained in my homeworld. I would continue to serve Patreus, in the knowledge that the Empire would prosper, and my home would be safe.
A turn of events
Service with Patreus was good, and the Senator looked after me. Then the news hit. The assassination of Emperor Hengist Duval was dead, and not days later, talk of the assassin being part of Patreus' ranks. With a clouded mind, I turned to thoughts of home. It had been a long time since I'd heard anything from friends or family. I was reminded of how isolated we felt out there. I sought some specific info and my longing for home turned to shock.
Under Zemina Torval's rule, the place had gone to the dogs. While the Empire league still maintained in-principle control of the system, it was all but overrun by pirates under the banner of the Syndicate, most likely bolstered by the remnants of the Silver Mafia. Much to my surprise, they too had begun to make a comeback in Mac Og. Zemina's influence over the system and the dire consequences were intolerable. By now I held the title of King amongst the Imperial forces, and demanded action from Patreus' forces. But these demands were met with revulsion. To directly strike at Zemina would be "politically inconvenient" for Patreus, especially given the circumstances around the Emperors death. I was furious.
And so I defect
Today, shrouded in secrecy, I have moved all my assets from my posting in Atfero back to my home of Sitakapa. But an Imperial King striking at Zemina's forces would have far reaching consequences for the Empire I hold close to my heart, as much as I find her influence over my home unacceptable. Remembering Mahon's forces once held an interest in the region, I now head for their territory. With it, I bring my knowledge of Imperial tactics and forces, and a thirst to eject Zemina from Sitakapa, my home. But despite the rampant crime, Sitakapa is still an Imperial colony. And with that, I'll be seen as a traitor. While I may fly the flag of Mahon and his Alliance, I'll still bleed the blood of the Empire when cut, and won't rest until Zemina is removed from Sitakapa, and proper Imperial glory restored to the jewel of the frontier.
