Independent Republic of Alberta [IRA]

[Ata]

[font=Palatino Linotype]The Beginnings

It was the year 814 when Caine Tarban, captain of the LSF cruiser Halifax, was betrayed by the Liberty corrupt government. He was ordered to report to Alaska to test a new weapon. That weapon was something of alien origins; something that mankind never saw; not even in the Nomad War from 801 A.S.

Captain Caine was assured that everything runs safely. The reality was different. His time in command of Halifax had to end. He accumulated too much information and they considered him to be a danger for Liberty. He accepted the mission but he sent most of the crew to the escape pods just before they started the tests. "Just in case something goes wrong. There's no reason to risk the whole crew" he said. With the crew in the escape pods, ready to launch, he began the test. Everything went fine till he fired with the weapon. A huge fire started on board of the Halifax and Caine ordered the launch of the escape pods. Soon after that, explosions started to shake the decks of the cruiser and Caine observed that those explosions had nothing to do with the fire since they appeared in the other side of the ship. He then decided to run a full scan for "foreign devices". He found explosives all over the lower decks and he found simple solution to deactivate them. He loaded an EMP bomb and fired it inside the Halifax. The electromagnetic blast deactivated all the electronic devices, including the primary ones. Now, the ship was drifting in Alaska. The last of his crew members died in the fire or survived and now they were his trusted comrades.

Five soldiers on a Cruiser in a system "patrolled" by aliens, Order agents, LSF and Liberty navy that wanted them dead. Lucky them, the first to find them were their friends. A repair ship commanded by Catalina Cruz and a full wing of LSF light fighters were on their way to repair an LSF installation but they found the Halifax. Catalina and Caine knew each other since they were students at West Point. After explaining what happened, they started to repair the cruiser. Catalina became the Caine's XO and the rogue LSF group was growing. One of the LSF fighters that was escorting the reapir ship decided not to be part of this but offered them five hours to leave the area before reporting the incident.

The Halifax managed to jump to Ellesmere and with the help of their anti-scanner devices they managed to jump to Oita. Then, in Illinois, they fooled the LPI officials and managed to run to Colorado and from there to Galileo. Searching for a place to hide, they found the Jumphole to Cassini and met the Rogues. They managed to make them to listen to their story and won a worthy friend. The rogues took them to Freeport 14, in Yukon and even offered help in fixing their ships.

[font=Palatino Linotype]How it came to life

Since then, Caine and his men stayed hidden on the Freeport but some recent events offered them the opportunity to take a stand against the Liberty Government. In 817 AS, a large strike took place on Red Deer Station. The LPI personnel was dissatisfied with working conditions and wages decrease. Caine offered them and alternative and almost half of the station, mostly the young LPI officers and other workers followed his advice. They became rogues and before the navy came to the station, they were gone. Reports about Caine started to appear and the LSF as on full alert. But something happened and they understood that their effort was in vain. Caine chose to address the nation and, his message was broadcasted all over the NeuralNet.

Libertonians! My brothers! It is time to make a stand. It's time live in a real democratic state. It is time for James Powell to resign. It is your time. People from Liberty! Help us fight against this corrupt government. Three years ago, I was working for them and I'm not proud of this. But they attempt to assassinate me and my crew helped me to open my eyes. It is time for you to know the truth. After the Nomad War, LSF started to work on a secret project, hoping to design weapons, using alien technology. Of course, you will say that those are all rumors and that you've heard them before. The problem is that they never managed to build those weapons and they sacrificed thousands of pilots and ships testing prototypes.

You ask yourself why they started to decrease your wages? It's quite simple. They need money for that project. So I ask you, people of Liberty. Stand up against the corruption! If you want this, together, we will win!

Those were the exact words of Caine Tarban. Soon after that, more strikes started to appear in the systems with low navy influence. Yukon, Alberta and even Ontario became animated by this message. The battleship Ottawa was attacked by Xenos almost every day. Workers from Hamilton base started to go to Freeport 14 and got recruited in what soon became a popular movement. Seeing what was happening in those systems, the Liberty Rogues decided to maintain their friendship and offered Caine docking rights on Fort McMurray. Now, Caine had a base, several fighters and the support of the masses. He decided to declare the independence of Alberta and its border systems, Yukon and Ontario. he named the newly formed state:

The [color=#FFFFFF]Independent Republic of Alberta

They soon started negotiations with the Lane Hackers and obtained docking rights on Cochrane Depot. Also, the rogues offered them ships and equipment. Catalina found some studies about Planet Edmonton. The planet could sustain life, even if it had rather harsh temperatures, bases could be built on the planet's surface. Hearing about this, Caine understood that IRA had a real future. He then looked to the economic side of this newly formed republic. The mining exploration on Huron was a very important source of income and he made that one of his major objectives.

[font=Palatino Linotype]Present days

Now, IRA is growing bigger day by day, fighting the Liberty Navy and the LSF and winning. It is expected that Caine will make an announcement regarding the declaration of independence.

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