The crippled sleeper ship Hispania arrived in Omicron Alpha almost 794 years ago. Its passengers named the nearby planet they settled on "Malta". A harsh place of acidic oceans, grey skies and vast plains covered in a species of tall, thin razor sharp orange grass. They later learned that the grass could be rendered into a narcotic substance, that they called Cardamine.
Eventually the Outcasts, as they came to think of themselves began limited exploration of their system. As pilots wandered farther and farther afield in search of resources, many became seriously ill. Upon planetfall, the crews mysteriously recovered.
Doctors were baffled. By chance, they made a genetic scan of a critically ill pilot and made a startling discovery. His genetic codes had been altered. Outcast DNA contained strands identical to that of the orange grasses that covered the plane from which Cardamine was derived. Trace amounts were present in everything on the planet, from the air they breathed to the water they drank. Once pilots made lengthier journeys away from Malta, their bodies went into shock, followed by death.
The Outcasts were now truly separated from the rest of humanity, changed so that they could never expand beyond the planet on which they had landed. Over time, Cardamine refinement and dismemberment became more advanced and thus simplified. By the year 200, from the smallest fighter craft to the largest ships available had Cardamine pumped through the vents at a constant speed and pressure to ensure nobody ever felt the effects of Cardamine withdrawal. Special filtration ensured only a mixture of Oxygen and Cardamine was present, of which would automatically switch off and provide a secondary backup should the slightest contamination be detected.
Regardless; much like air, food or water, a source or "top up" of Cardamine was required for all travel beyond any Maltese controlled station or ship.
Early reports of exploration highlighted unidentified glowing alien craft observing from afar. Never getting close, but always present. They would later to be known as Nomads or more fondly "spirits" were very aware of the Outcasts chosen home world and were largely left alone to their own devices. It was only much later when the "newly landed" Maltese began building exploration, transportation and warships of their own that the Nomads began to interact more. They wanted to know who and what these strange creatures were inhabiting their space, their source of Cardamine. Interactions were brief and peaceful, largely taken for granted that these creatures were everywhere across all the houses which were later discovered in the seventh century. It would become abundantly clear that the Nomads were peaceful only toward the Outcasts and their own kind. After seeing the destruction and creation they were capable of which far outweighed anything mankind could replicate, the head of the Maltese population ruled that these "spirits" were to be left alone, not approached and most certainly not attacked. It was always unclear as to exactly why the Spirits did not wipe out the Maltese settlers from day one, however it was thought to be because of the genetic mutation induced from generations of Cardamine usage, a toll or right of passing paid by thousands of lives to learn a lesson of self discipline and humility.
As time continued, the Outcasts found that harvesting, refining and exporting the very substance which imprisoned them to Malta and their cardamine-pumped stations was the key to taking over the common Sirian and getting filthy rich in the process. Cardamine itself offered multiple health benefits, even to adult first time users such as clearing cancer and other life threatening conditions in just a few doses, but at a terrible cost. From just the first or second use, the user is hooked to a regular supply without which their body would fall into shock, diabetic-like fits followed by death if not supplied with more Cardamine.
The drug sold itself to the wealthy in Liberty and was to become the first house to succumb to the drug. The Liberty Navy and Security forces fought hard to stop the importation of the product, but as capitalism and demand often goes, even seized shipments eventually made their way into the hands of Liberty's elite as their lives quite literally depended on it. The "high" felt from the drug raised alertness although nothing on the level of a Maltese-born citizen.
The inconceivable wealth brought in from the disgusting trade brought the Outcasts to the top of the food chain in the underground world, allowing the import of luxury items and the best building materials. The highest order of Dons at the time sought about building Corsica Shipyard along with multiple other Maltese stations to build increasingly more terrifyingly effective warships, primarily used to fight their lost Corsair brethren along with anyone else who stood in their way.
As the centuries rolled by, three groups became fierce allies; The Lane Hackers, Golden Chrysanthemum's and Liberty Rogues, whilst Junkers took an indirect partnership in assisting with the peddling of the wretched substance for pure profit.
Apart from the usual foes and house militaries, Cryer was a name which sparked anger to anyone who had a stake in the Cardamine market. Atka station is the only place the counter-Cardamine drug named "Stabline" was produced. Although it would never be a long term solution or replacement for Cardamine, it could sustain anyone who used it for a significant amount of time without needing the real substance. Stabline however, did not offer any of the advantages of Cardamine itself, and was also rumoured to chemically castrate it's users. A rumour no doubly made up by those with shares in any form of Cardamine trade.
Excited hauliers of all shapes and sizes from all over Sirius began peddling the drug from Junker distribution points or Malta itself to wherever it could be sold for profit which lead to a huge demand. The issue faced by the native Maltese was there wasn't enough workers to meet the demand, which paved way to one of the most brutal underground human trafficking movements known to Sirian history. Cardamine was exported out, whilst those who had hit rock bottom in the criminal world would be shipped back to Malta as slaves to work the fields. Funded by the drug which sold itself, the chain reaction took off like wild fire for hauliers gaining huge profits in both directions of travel. For centuries more the practise continued whilst groups like the Colonial Republic, Independent Miners guild and just about any faction on the legal side of the law found themselves fighting to stop.
Nobody quite knows why the leadership of the largest Maltese controlling cartel and Maltese Navy faded away in around 817-818AS, but Cardamine flowed along the centuries old pre-defined routes regardless, as well established drugs sell themselves whilst there was no shortage of fresh slaves for Malta.
Smaller cartels slowly got bigger and took over the leadership roles of the primary cartel which has stood since the very beginning of Maltese history. Slaves, ultimately their integration into Maltese society over time were also the answer to one of Cardamine's more ugly faces, the low birth rate. Those who became slaves and were shipped to Malta were often Cardamine users already, so when they ultimately produced children after living and working on the planet their children would often be removed from the slaves families and raised as Maltese from birth. This had become a regular occurrence since the evil trade began.
In 831AS, the Slave Revolt fuelled by the Colonial Republic, now renamed "The Crayter Republic" fell into full force. It's unknown for exactly how long the revolt took for the Outcast dons of the age to regain control, but Crayter ships withdrew within a week of first entry liberating more slaves than they could count. The dazzling numbers of cardamine-hungry refugee's now became one of Crayter's biggest mistakes. They had untold numbers of hungry, angry people liberated from Malta; all of which from unsavoury backgrounds prior to being slaves now had the much larger problem of looming death due to Cardamine withdrawal. With no way to feed, house or supply Cardamine for the freed slaves, many were dumped onto Freeport Ten where they were quickly picked up by Outcasts to face harsher conditions than before.
Vin Chenzo himself had disappeared as the most public face of the largest cartel and Maltese Navy around 818AS to engage fully with his personal research projects, he'd been all but forgotten to the depths of time. When he'd left, the Maltese Navy was strong, boasting multiple Ranseur's, Sarissa's, shipyards and countless destroyers along with swarms of cartels boasting what they all thought to be "the best pilots in the galaxy". One thing was for sure, the Malta Chenzo has returned to a decade later left him in sheer dismay, shock and anger.
What had happened? Who was responsible for this level of Maltese decay? Chenzo quickly went back and saw to his personal estate on Malta. Rules dictated by the don himself and his peer's was that no singular cartel was to have ownership of more than a third of Malta's most fertile soil. After being briefed by his estate manager, it would appear that against all odds Granja Justa was not only fully operational, but also played a vital role in re-gaining control over the planet after the slave revolt. The slaves on this plantation were subject to a keen set of rules which after a time of service, granted their freedom. As such, this had carried the voice of the people who stood to fight for Malta's benefit. Due the conditions planet side and the Dons who'd suffered an embarrassing loss of control; Chenzo's estate manager "Lucky" had no choice but to lie and declare all slaves working on Granja Justa were actually free Maltese, granted so by birth or service from the old line of Don's.
Given the sheer state of chaos the planet was in, no fight or drama alongside no drop in the production of Cardamine for export from this plantation; nobody batted an eyelid and those in power sought to regain their losses whilst openly accepting freely handed over ready-to-ship cardamine.
Chenzo's next horror was realising that the Corsairs had taken advantage of the Outcasts bad fete with the slave revolt. They'd actually gone ahead and taken Freeport Nine for their own. This was bad news for everyone in the sector, not just the Outcasts. Chenzo knew that at this point the current pathetic might of the Maltese nation was no match to directly assault the freeport alone, so be began to hatch a plan.
Whilst immediately launching construction of new stations within Maltese space, he sought together a unlikely allied partnership between the Core and disgruntled Zoners who wanted to fight but couldn't rally themselves. In doing so, he launched the catalyst for the first joined assault on Freeport Nine, destroying the biodomes and damaging the station which had a significant impact on Corsair food production, also totally destroying the Corsair Battleship Vis, only losing a single destroyer making one of the largest Maltese campaign victories in the last decade.
It was in this moment that the Cryer's Atka station was left undefended as Corsairs called resources back to try and save the freeport. The Outcast, Core and Zoner alliance held to wreck multiple Corsair cruisers but as time went on, the undefended Atka station was all too alluring of a target to the collective Maltese Dons, who in the knowledge of the Maltese capable fighting force required to sustain open combat, looked to withdraw from Theta to strike a decisive blow on Atka station, marking another serious Maltese victory.
Chenzo was from a different era of Maltese history to those in power today. He held historic value, honour and facts above all other priority. It was after a partial falling out over the Spirits and a totally misguided young lady within Maltese society he had to once again take the bull by the horns if Malta was to survive. In the spirit of the original founding Maltese Cartel and Maltese Navy, The Old Guard was born.
The returned don gathered names which lingered of which he knew to be made of the same muster, hold the same values of old, know genuine Maltese history and together; resources and knowledge were combined to re-vamp the entire Maltese structure in the hope of returning to former glory. The first stage was re-assembling the damaged Cardamine network. Chenzo suspected there was more than meets the eye than just the slave revolt. There was far too large of a coincidence of timing between a slave revolt, a direct attack on Outcasts generational supply chain to Liberty and the falling of Freeport Nine to the Corsairs.
Guarding Maltese interests, Historic & Future
// Making the thread so it exists, part of the checklist.
PLEASE NOBODY ELSE POST HERE UNTIL AT LEAST EVERYTHING IS WRITTEN IN IT'S FINAL FORM WITH BBCODING ETC.
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