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Slavers
The more heartless of Sirius's denizens who traffic in the lives of their fellow humans are known as Slavers. Few will deal with such men, and fewer still would help them. However, they are often seen working with the Outcasts.
Description
Modern Slavers are focused on one of two things- either the transport of slaves from the markets in Liberty, or the acquisition of new slaves from spacefaring transports; most notably those of Orbital Spa and Cruise. They are cast out of society for their crimes, and many organizations frown on them if not shoot them on sight. Being a slaver is not an easy choice, for only the most heartless, cruel, or desperate can bring themselves to send other humans to the razor fields of Planet Malta or the laboratories of Atka Research Station. It is, however, quite a lucrative business- and so long as it is, Slavers will survive any attempts to remove them.
History
Slavers have existed since mankind learned that they could use other humans to work or fight for them. Even "cultured" civilizations like the Egyptians or Greeks made extensive use of slave labor, and would acquire their slaves from either conquests or people willing to sell others into slavery for profit. After the fall of Rome, few civilized areas put their captives into slavery, but the slave trade continued. In the Americas, it blossomed; reliant now on Slavers in Africa more than conquered territories (although subjugated tribes still found themselves working in plantations). As the years passed, slavery was slowly abolished throughout the industrial world, and was almost removed from the world. However, there would always be societies desiring domination over their fellow man, and slavery continued in native tribes and in the unstable military governments of Central America and Africa. Little is known of the presence of slavery as mankind expanded throughout the system, or during the war between the Alliance and the Coalition. During the early, fertile years of the colonies of Sirius, there was no need for slaves- resources were plentiful, and the idealistic societies could hardly comprehend that there would be a need to oppress their fellow man much less a desire.
Not all of the colonies, however, were so blessed. The Outcasts, chained to Planet Malta by the effects of cardamine addiction, found it difficult to travel about the stars in any large numbers due to the vast labor requirements for cardamine harvest. Working the orange grasses of Malta was very slow if proper precautions were met, and very dangerous to the limited population of the Outcasts. They needed a way to harvest more cardamine without risking the precious resource of population; and found it just as early societies on Earth had. By employing prisoners taken on their expeditions to work the fields, they could vastly increase production without risking any of their own, and thus concentrate on other pursuits- like culture, technology, and conquest. As the Outcasts expanded throughout Sirius, others learned of their need for slaves- and thus the slave trade began in Sirius as it had on Earth.
Slavers now have more customers than just the Outcasts, though. In recent years, Daumann Heavy Construction has seen the profit increases possible with questionable labor being sent into the deadly fields of Omega-11. Even the Gas Miners Guild has realized that to retain their power, the plutonium mines in Okinawa would be vastly more efficient with such labor- although they are more generous than most other consumers. Numerous other groups of less noble intentions have also found uses for spare population that won't be missed, including Cryer Pharmaceuticals, the Consortium, and the Zoners of Freeport XV. The LPI are rumored to have begun capitalizing on this market, and some suspect that the accounting troubles of the LPI Sugarland prison facility are more than accidental.
The increase in the slave trade has not occurred without resistance, though- in addition to House police and military forces, the Colonial Remnant, Bounty Hunters Guild, The Order and Sirius Coalition Revolutionary Army have all taken stands against slavery.
