| Battleship Kokura
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- If you ask me, we shouldn't trust the Chrysanthemums with any more than basic patrol duties, and certainly with nothing larger than a gunboat. They've already proven their worth, and it is sorely lacking.
- The Matsuda's loss was a waste. The Togos are undoubtedly powerful and should be treated with reverence, but they have nothing on a far more modern design like the Chrysanthemums had and completely squandered at the beck and call of their Outcast masters. All it's done is make an already-uphill battle just that little bit steeper, and that's not even touching the fact that we're having to put our own warship at risk here to cover for the Chrysanthemum's screw up.
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| Ainu Depot
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- We use Ainu as our forward base from which to launch attacks into Kyushu. The jump hole lies just south of us here. Our favorite targets are the Samura transports, at least if the police aren't around. On occasion, we have made assaults on the Nansei Research Center, but that is risky with the KNF so close by. We want to go deeper into Tau-53, but it is dark and dangerous for everyone. We will stalk some Samura transports and see where they are going first.
- The Naval Forces have been trying to aggressively expand Kusari's sphere of influence into the Taus. While there hasn't been any major push so far, they recently tried their hand in deploying an expeditionary force. Normally this would have been a matter the Outcasts handled themselves, but the recent conflict seems to have taken a toll on them. They called on us for aid in reopening Kyushu and relieving its otherwise ironclad blockade, this brought us into repeated skirmishes with the Naval Forces, which eventually escalated with the loss of the Matsuda. It's not a loss we can recover from, but with Kyushu's arteries once again open for smugglers, we've at least made something of this sacrifice.
- The Blood Dragons can land nowhere in Kusari space, so we must come here to purchase our supplies from the Golden C. girls. They are all drug addicts, which we do not approve of, but they share the passion for a new Kusari, so we help them fight the evil Samura.
- Our base is in Chugoku, through the jump hole in the Kayo Cloud. If you want to bring us supplies, there is good money to be made. We especially need food and reactor fuel like MOX.
- Many Naval Forces fighters have been lost recently in skirmishes with the Blood Dragons. Due to the low visibility and difficult conditions in the cloud, some weapons could still remain on the ships in some of the more remote locations.
- The Golden Chrysanthemums believe that one of them will be the next Emperor -- excuse me, Empress of Kusari. Some time ago, I heard a rumor that they had a Kyushu girl back in a corner of the living quarters and they were teaching her everything she needed to know to run the country. She was supposedly 7 years old at the time. I wonder what became of her.
- This ship is something else. Did you see the engines? And the guns? This thing is fast, and it hits like a bag of rice.
- We use Kyushu to access Shikoku, where many of our sisters and brothers are held unjustly in Fuchu prison by the government henchmen of Samura. The new government is not inclined to release them, but we stand a much better chance of a prisoner exchange. Kishiro seems to care more for kidnapped Samura employees then Samura does!
- This is the fastest route for us to access Kyushu and Shikoku, but we must cross the Gap and dodge the military patrols in the Kayo Cloud. It has been a difficult battle, but I believe we will be victorious soon. Samura and the military abandoned the absurd notion of a gate to Chugoku, and have linked it to the dark clouds of Tau-53 instead.
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| Kyoto Base
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- We have been far too accommodating of the Chrysanthemums and their madness, and I'm not alone in believing this. First they act as if some child that they seek to indoctrinate is fit to rule Kusari, and now they throw themselves into the fray for their distant "allies" - the Outcasts. The only thing these women want is the wholesale damnation of our House and its people. I once believed we shared some things in common about the path forward, but I'm no longer that naive.
- The Blood Dragons believe that for Kusari to change, the tight relationship between the bureaucrats, Samura, and the Hogosha must end. We have amassed enough damning evidence against our three enemies to sway the next election in favor of our supporters. The changes made by the new government shall work to our advantage, even if they want to keep radical voices from speaking out.
- We prefer to attack installations and Samura-owned transports rather than raid foreign shipping, which does not help our cause. Unfortunately, sometimes we must obtain supplies. The Golden Chrysanthemums are not nearly as discriminating, which has created a publicity problem for us, since they are perceived by the press as our allies.
- One day we hope to return to Tokyo victorious after almost five centuries in hiding. What victory means nowdays is perhaps uncertain. The new government is more influenced by Kishiro, and doing away with Samura's influence was seen as a major victory for us. But then the unthinkable happened, and the Kusari people were misled into doing away with our noble tradition of the monarchy. I think we are seeing a clear grab for power by corporate interests. It disgusts me to watch Kishiro strip away Kusari's heritage like this. There are many Dragons who think like I do, and will be ill-inclined to grant Kishiro ships mercy when they cross our path!
- The GMG has been invaluable in providing financial assistance and training to the Blood Dragons. At first they were reluctant, but once the government forced them to pay a reparation tax for the 80-Years Wars, they changed their minds. We expect that as long as Samura remains a thorn in the side of the GMG, they shall keep supporting us. For certain, we shall not rest until any chance of Samura returning to power is quashed forever.
- We coordinate all our attacks in Kusari space from here. There are jump holes to Honshu and Hokkaido just south of our base here. From Hokkaido, we can access Kyushu and Shikoku. You can reach Tokyo using either route.
- There has been a palpable shift in the balance of power at play across the Colonies. I can't account for the reasons why this has happened, but I've been able to observe peculiarities, most notably the scarcity of Outcasts in Kusari, and the newfound boldness of the Naval Forces. While part of me rejoices that the Outcasts are seemingly no longer in a position to operate here with any significance, the other is burdened by concern for what Samura's lackeys must be planning.
- Welcome to the end of the world. I hope you brought supplies with you. We always need Food and Pharmaceuticals. Gold and Hessian Tears are also prized. Be sure to bring your weapon with you - an unarmed warrior does not garner much respect in this bar.
- The Golden Chrysanthemums are a bit unorthodox in their methods, but share our vision of a new Kusari. We do not espouse their heavy use of Cardamine, however. That drug is evil, and will prove their undoing.
- We have been far too accommodating of the Chrysanthemums and their madness, and I'm not alone in believing this. First they act as if some child that they seek to indoctrinate is fit to rule Kusari, and now they throw themselves into the fray for their distant "allies" - the Outcasts. The only thing these women want is the wholesale damnation of our House and its people. I once believed we shared some things in common about the path forward, but I'm no longer that naive.
- The GMG has trained us in many nebula fighting tactics that they learned during the 80-Years War. This is why we can fly circles around the Kusari Naval Forces in Hokkaido. Nansei is a different story. The Research Station is very protected and difficult to attack in the style to which we are accustomed.
- The battle of the Chugoku Gate has been a long and bloody one. We have lost many of our warriors to the Naval Forces. But they are tiring, while we grow stronger every day with new recruits from the disenchanted youth of Kusari, yearning for a better future for our people. And what was the result? The last act of Samura before they lost control of the government was to connect the gate somewhere else. Samura weakens Kusari for its own gain with this deceptive act. Whether it be war against their neighbours, or resisting our calls for change, Samura is contemptible in every respect.
- Many Naval Forces fighters have been lost recently in skirmishes with the Blood Dragons. Due to the low visibility and difficult conditions in the cloud, some weapons could still remain on the ships in some of the more remote locations.
- The Fugaku was lost in a raid on the Kansai Research Center within the Hiyo Cloud. The fighter became entangled in the mine field during the attack, and the pilot was killed. It eventually drifted off into the cloud. No one has seen it since.
- Samura's plan was to open Hokkaido to gas mining in order to compete with the GMG, a partner whom they have exploited for centuries. I assure you that Hokkaido will not be a good place for Samura to do business for many years to come. The GMG will make sure of that.
- The Golden Chrysanthemums are becoming too close to the Outcasts. The allure of Cardamine is seductive, but deadly. If you use too much of it, irreversible physiological changes occur in our body. You are no longer truly human. That is the curse of the Outcasts.
- Our movement is very old, dating back to the Sakura Coup in 321 AS. On that fateful day the Shogun Hideyoshi was toppled by the military, which was backed by Samura. Our ancestors were the Shogun's royal guards. They fought bravely but fled the palace when it was clear that Samura had won the day. The Blood Dragons were thus born, a group dedicated to cleansing the cancer of Samura from Kusari once and for all.
- Samura has revealed new systems they intend to exploit. Tau-53 is a dark, dangerous nebula with only limited scope for operations. The real gem is Tottori. Those Farmers think they will have an easy life out on the edge of Kusari space. We will make sure they feel the Dragon's claw even out there.
- Things are more complicated than they seem in Kusari. Under Samura rule, we were considered nothing more than nothing more than common criminals trying to destroy the Kusari way of life. Now the new government demands that we lay down our arms before they will consider our demands. The government is mistaken. Many of our secret friends in the government have quietly amassed power in the shadow of the corrupt bureaucrats that feast at Samura's table. Our day will arrive soon.
- We hoped to find a new master who can break the curse of Kusari corruption and stagnation and once again bring our nation to glory. But the more things change, the more they stay the same. Without a Kusari monarch for the people to look up to, what do people turn to for inspiration? The new government speaks of 'free-enterprise' and other corporate drivel. This government will have our people worshipping money like they do in Liberty, and I want no part of it!
- There has been a palpable shift in the balance of power at play across the Colonies. I can't account for the reasons why this has happened, but I've been able to observe peculiarities, most notably the scarcity of Outcasts in Kusari, and the newfound boldness of the Naval Forces. While part of me rejoices that the Outcasts are seemingly no longer in a position to operate here with any significance, the other is burdened by concern for what Samura's lackeys must be planning.
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| Ryukyu Base
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- I've made a few runs as far as Honshu over Okinawa, to the new Hikone base in the south of the system. The route is safe enough until you leave the GMG controlled zone. After that, you can expect trouble. Farmers Alliance ships on the lookout for Synth Food ships, Kusari Police ships near the lane and gate, and Corsairs looking for easy targets. Luckily, that stretch of space isn't very long.
- The Order maintains a small presence on this base, to help coordinate their efforts to prevent the spread of the Nomads into Kusari. They've been forced to scale back operations after their main base on Toledo was annihilated, but still do what they can. In Kusari, we are usually the muscle behind their eyes.
- The arrival of Battleship Sado complicates things for us. No doubt those Navy fools believe we're out to take Heaven's Gate for ourselves. While it would certainly be a grand victory for the Blood Dragons, we simply do not have the men to hold such a large facility, so attempting to seize it would be folly. Instead, these Navy fools come looking for us, and end up giving the Nomads more ships and men each day.
- One of the riskier things to do as a freighter pilot is to join a raider flight tasked to seize specific cargo. Freighters are slower and less maneuverable, so they're usually the first ships being targeted by escorts. Still, sometimes we have little choice. The Blood Dragons do not have many ways to acquire specific supplies, so we must take as much as we can in a single, swift strike. Samura is a good, if unwilling, source.
- We see Golden Chrysantemum smugglers moving from Okinawa to Hokkaido every now and then. We cover them when we can, but once they leave the nebula they are very vulnerable until they reach the Hokkaido hole. Sadly, not all of them make it.
- One of the simplest runs for me is the one between Okinawa and Chugoku. It passes straight by this base, which gives you a chance to make repairs if you got hit. Artifacts seized from the Hogosha are studied at Sendai, so we bring them there. We usually take H-Fuel back, which is easy enough to get in Okinawa.
- Surveillance and strikes on Heaven's Gate are one of the most dangerous tasks a Blood Dragon can be assigned to. We all know the threat the Nomads pose. They set the houses on eachother once already. With Samura rotting out the soul of Kusari, and the Nomads trying to rot out the body, it sometimes feels as if we are all that is left to defend our home.
- All of us know what we are up against. If there is no chance of rescue after your craft is disabled, Blood Dragon pilots will make the final sacrifice to prevent the enemy from subverting us. Naval Forces pilots do not have this devotion, so they often end up adding to the threat. It may seem barbaric, but we will destroy their lifepods if we cannot take them with us, to prevent that from happening.
- The Nomad weapons are very powerful, so watch out if you come under attack. Their energy signature is unmistakable. However, their infested pilots are not as skillful as ours. Some of our scientists suggest that operating human-built ships is difficult for them - perhaps even unnatural. It's one of the few advantages we have against them.
- I usually patrol the borders of the nebula. Rules of engagement are very simple in this system - anything that isn't a confirmed friendly, is to be dispatched immediately. I've been lucky so far. The infested Kusari on Heaven's Gate tend to probe the nebula, and when we meet their scouts, tough fights usually ensue. Our ships are more maneuverable, but theirs have stronger firepower.
- The arrival of Sado has been both a blessing and a curse. While the Naval Forces patrols only actively seek us out, they have diverted the attention of the Nomad infestation in Heaven's Gate. This gives us more freedom to seize the initiative, to strike when and where we choose.
- Welcome to Ryukyu. It's not much to look at, but this is a very important outpost for us. It defends one of the paths into Chugoku, maintains the supply lines to Sendai, and keeps watch on the infested Heaven's Gate.
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| Noshima Freeport
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- I should like to thank whomever came up with the idea of conducting business here. It is profitable for everyone involved. The Corsairs benefit from having a place where they can sell their Artifacts with relative ease. The Hogosha benefit from having easy access to them. Orbital Spa benefits from the safety that dealing with both groups offers - especially when the Outcasts try something. The only ones left pouting are the GMG, but they have themselves to thank for that.
- Last week I was out in the Hime Ocean. A couple of friends and I were out boating, not really paying attention to where we were going. All of the sudden we were surrounded by a bunch of Samura patrol ships telling us we were in a restricted area. We tried to apologize but they didn't listen, just rushed us back to the spaceport and kicked us off-planet permanently. Permanently! I tell you, they are hiding something. Something dangerous... Or lucrative.
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| Battleship Matsuda
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- The Golden Chrysanthemums believe that one of them will be the next Emperor -- excuse me, Empress of Kusari. Some time ago, I heard a rumor that they had a Kyushu girl back in a corner of the living quarters and they were teaching her everything she needed to know to run the country. She was supposedly 7 years old at the time. I wonder what became of her.
- This ship is something else. Did you see the engines? And the guns? This thing is fast, and it hits like a bag of rice.
- The Blood Dragons can land nowhere in Kusari space, so we must come here to purchase our supplies from the Golden C. girls. They are all drug addicts, which we do not approve of, but they share the passion for a new Kusari, so we help them fight the evil Samura.
- We use Kyushu to access Shikoku, where many of our sisters and brothers are held unjustly in Fuchu prison by the government henchmen of Samura. The new government is not inclined to release them, but we stand a much better chance of a prisoner exchange. Kishiro seems to care more for kidnapped Samura employees then Samura does!
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| Sendai Research Complex
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- Okinawa was colonized in 692 AS, four years after the initial Blood Dragon scouts penetrated via the Honshu jumphole that the Matsuda guards today. Even then, this system wasn't entirely safe; the Mintaka field was as explosive then as it is today, and several of our scouts were lost where scanners did not function properly. Naturally, any salvagers would have encountered the same dangers - it's conceivable that wrecks over a century old yet drift in the mire.
- We captured a bounty hunter called Luke Grafton out in the Kofu Cloud recently. He was in bad shape when we brought him in, with multiple internal injuries and several broken bones, but he survived. I was always lead to believe that all bounty hunters were ex-criminal gaijin who were only in it for profit, but Grafton seems to be a well-educated idealist who joined to fight crime and injustice. If all humans believed in freedom and justice like he does, we wouldn't be having to fight them in the first place.
- That gaijin bounty hunter Luke Grafton really earned his nickname! When we engaged his lone vessel, we outnumbered him by eleven to one. He took out four of us before we finally crippled his vessel. The unusual thing is, most bounty hunters that we encounter tend to fire on our escape pods rather than risk us being rescued by our own, but Grafton let them be. It seems that not all bounty hunters are honourless scum.
- We've had an alien biology division aboard Sendai for over half a century. Though the Blood Dragons own and operate this base, we have a surprisingly large contingent of Chrysanthemums here; many were educated and trained as brilliant scientists and the work in xenobiology and xenoarchaeology we offer is the only alternative to a life of crime due to the corrupt, Samura-backed government.
- An over-eager Hogosha pathfinder entered the Kofu cloud several weeks ago, striking out on his own to look for this base. It appears that luck is with the foolish, as the pilot penetrated to Sendai's very perimeter. At that point, however, his good fortune left him, as he was lamed by a shot from our automatic defences and then hunted down by a fighter wing. We decided to leave the wreck in place, as a warning to others; it lies to the southeast.
- I miss my wife. She is back on Kyoto base, working in maintenance on Blood Dragon fighters. I spend six month shifts out here onboard Sendai and while I enjoy my work, I wish she could be here with me. She comes to visit once every few months , but the journey through Kusari is dangerous. I wouldn't know what I would do if she were killed or sent to Fuchu prison.
- Bounty Hunters - the scourge of Sirius has begun to encroach upon Kusari. It sickens me to think of how these lice-ridden dogs penetrate all that was once tranquil and peaceful - even now, they taint Okinawa, and are so audacious as to be sighted here in Kofu from time to time.
- Samura's not present in person in Okinawa, but their pathetic lackeys, the Hogosha, have a base here - somewhere in the Hasuda asteroid field - and constantly attempt to find Sendai in a misguided bid to displace us from the system. The Hogosha are amateurs, their vessels weak, their pilots inferior. Perhaps they can kill the occasional Chrysanthemum, though even there, they're outmatched, but never a Dragon.
- It is well-known that there were once Order here at Sendai; Order scientists were crucial to the efforts of the Blood Dragons in not only monitoring the actions of the late Governor Tekagi, but also in unravelling the gruesome secret behind his vile actions. No Order researchers remain aboard Sendai these days, however, and they won't be returning, they've allied themselves with our foes, the Corsairs, in the Edge Worlds.
- Noriko Sato, a fighter ace of the Chrysanthemums, frequently docks here. She's a credit to her sisters; there's many a Dragon that could learn something from her. The Naval Forces have placed a sizeable bounty on her head - well-merited - but she's escaped or destroyed all pursuers to date. I doubt she'll ever be caught; she's far too agile and alert.
- While the Dragons fight for freedom and independence, the keiretsu grow fat off the back-breaking labor of innocent citizens; the government's steeped in bribes and does nothing. The sacred duty of liberation therefore falls to us; we shall cleanse Kusari of the stain of dishonour that harks back to the Hideyoshi shogunate, when the Empire's rightful leader was betrayed and executed by Samura henchmen.
- There has been troubling news out of Tohoku lately. Nomad activity is increasing, and we have reason to believe that Tekagi's Arch is inhabited once more. Our forward base at Ryukyu has been reactivated and patrols sent out. Perhaps we will be able to stop the problem before it becomes too severe this time.
- A Libertonian Bounty Hunter, Luke Grafton, was shot down and subsequently taken prisoner towards Kofu's western edge yesterday morning. I saw Grafton when he was brought in; I'd expected a crude, loud-mouthed boor, but encountered an honourable foe, courteous in defeat. As far as I know, he's being treated for his various injuries; his ship was swallowed by the dust cloud, and may yet retain some of its equipment.
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