Warfront: Operation Stormline

[Sarias]

Pre-window Stage

After the Pentarchy was summoned by the Dark Lords and their answer was given, internal deliberations and several war plans presented would see War Plan: Irdwi Trnika take shape: To covertly sabotage, influence and disrupt the planet’s local and corporate stability under the guise of disgruntled workers, firebrands and locals reeling from the crafted unrest. Yet even in these initial preparations the smallest mistakes could leave cracks.

• Infiltration of Haeltor Haulers on Pollus (daughter-company of Haeltor Maritime) and insertion of an H.I.D agent disguised through alchemical means. This would come to serve as the Powerbase’s primary mode of transportation and insight into corporate shipping lanes.
  
• A crew capable of convincing forgeries was hired, known as the Corridor Crawlers
  
• Firearms modified with Republic parts, sourced through methods used by insurgents on Alsolun to easily arm local firebrands, and frame the Republic
  
• Serena Kael, a news anchor of 30 years from Kesmere On Edge, was recruited with blackmail on Haeltor Maritime. The blackmail was recovered from an associate of hers before the Republic could dispose of the evidence.
  
• Local slicer gang lead by the Muun Varlo, and a fixer by the name of Ithis Korr with formerly Republic ties. The two would come to function as intermediaries for local unrest and monitoring networks.
  

Most importantly the forward operations base in Khelmar’s Rise was secured - a condemned hab block near the outskirts of Khelmar’s Rise.

In efforts of remote scouting and information gathering, The Republic’s eyes were cast to the Kesmere Spine - sparking the Republic’s own unseen hunt for what later would disrupt Tertiary Kesmere’s very way of life.

Landfall


Amongst unmarked freighters the insertion teams deployed, bearing witness to the splendor of the capital city of Vethar’s Reach with its skyscrapers and interconnected waterways, passing over unassuming coastal villagers before making landfall at Khelmar’s Rise. Listening devices, planted cameras and foot traffic in disguises swiftly saw the city become the playground for sith and imperial alike. Within the confines of the re-fitted habblock, the force could flow freely to a limited degree - a sorcerous spell of concealment safeguarding them from any jedi that may pass close. Needing constant feeding of power, it served a much needed safeguard.

Ambrosia

Spoiler: Ironback Rumours

Rumour has it…

...A decade ago the Ironbacks were hunted to near extinction, their oils used for machinery and high-cold resistance making them ideal for starships. For years did the sheen of the Ironback's scaled backs not  reflect Tertiary Kesmere's pale sun. But now? Pilots speak of coming in low over kelp seas and they've seen broad shadows rolling beneath the waves again. Dockhands on the ocean rig, Solan Towers, claim to have heard resonant calls of the whales vibrating through the hulls at night. A pair of juveniles were even spotted breaching beyond the waves near Khelmar's Rise - the first pair of calves seen in nearly a decade.

For the struggling local guilds and businesses its become a fragile kind of hope. Not of things getting brighter, but of balance being restored a bit to their hands in a world wracked by encroaching mega-corporations. If the Ironbacks truly are rebounding, it means the sea still lives...and perhaps Tertiary Kesmere can find a future that doesn't bleed it dry.

The first strike to the hearts of the locals came in the slaughter of local, nearly extinct whales called Ironbacks, who’s numbers had dwindled under corporate greed. It had been marked a target through research done prior to deployment. Splitting in two one team discreetly sabotaged a large off-shore rig known as Solan’s Towers, owned by Oriyn Prospecting, arriving there via the whales themselves. The gruesome deaths were pinned on the corporate structure, while the second team secured a survey boat for later strikes on the Capital city. The first media campaigns was sparked from this, fueling propaganda and damage control…

A signal from the ship, managed moments before death, would cast a light on the shadows the powerbase relied upon..

Spoiler: Media Response

Following the incident at Solan Towers, many of the planetary and sector news stations were reporting live from the scene, several hours after Horuset forces covertly caused an ecological disaster. Plumes of noxious smoke on the horizon, and carcasses of the once loved Ironbacks washed up to shore; spoiling not just the morning, but the hearts and minds of all who perceived it; perhaps forever…Several news crews and stations were broadcasting the aftermath; but there was a buzz about the holonet when one Ithis Korr turned up to the coast and began speaking; filling the airwaves.

“You’re watching Vethar Public Broadcast Network and here’s our correspondent with the latest…”

The images cut to a clean-shaven brown haired man with scarring all over the left side of his face, speaking before a scrum of reporters covering the story.

“-- Just as with Kesheli 17, they are calling this an accident! They told you it was safe, that the platform was reinforced, regulated, inspected– now look, look at the water! Look at the sheen drifting across the tide, the nets coming up fouled. Look at the smoke rising where profit outweighed precaution!”

“This was not an accident. It was a decision. To defer maintenance, to cut oversight, to trust that if something failed it would fail quietly— I refuse.”

“My brother perished in the crane crisis, and I nearly did too. They silenced me, the Rigworkers Collective- but enough is enough. When do we come first? – We’re meant to swallow their statement and return to work? The ocean does not forget. And neither should we.”

“I’m calling for a 48 hour mooring of all craft and for a full inquiry to be opened. - How many warnings were filed, Ironback sightings– How many engineers raised concerns? They will blame the wildlife, weather, fate– but do not let them. Do not let them blame the wind, or those that were here centuries before they were!”

“They have poisoned the water that feeds your children, they gambled with livelihoods that were not theirs to wager! Someone must answer! We were silent last time, but no more. The system is straining. Greed rapes our planet and we sit by and allow it! — If this was incompetence, someone must answer. If this was greed, or corruption, someone must fall…”

The image ceases and moves back to the studio, showing a near mortified anchor who paused before continuing her coverage.

"You’re watching VPBN with Ayla Jrinder. – As you can see, this story is already touching the hearts of many and threatens to open up more than just old wounds. — That was Ithis Korr,  speaking to reporters off the coast of Solan Towers following the events of last night. Korr was a former worker on the Kesheli 17 Orbital Crane and brother to the martyred Jorral Korr who supposedly raised concerns ahead of the orbital disaster that lead to widespread tension. We'll bring you more over the next few hours and likely days to come…”

It seemed that some of the contacts that Horuset had made were beginning to capitalise and act as perhaps expected. What could be done to ensure their future compliance?

Hysteria

Spoiler: Growing Unrest

The Vethar's Public Broadcast Network channel sprang to life; their jingle signalling their top of the hour segment. The animations roll and reveal their presenter for the day, a hardened woman of several years given her stern features; complimented by a streak of white in her greying hair. Locally, she was known to be the ball-breaker, to be brought in when the going got tough, or narratives needed spin.


"You're watching the top of the hour with Vera Vossk here on VPBN. - Tensions in the coastal regions continues to build, following the tragic accident at Solan Towers four nights ago. With the clean-up operation officially underway by KessDyne crews, crowds of eco-warriors have taken to protesting on the beachhead in what looks to be reverence of a rare breed of whales."

The image cuts, depicting exactly that. It then shifts to images of Ithis Korr giving his rousing speech; cut and edited; including several of his lines: "--The platform was reinforced, regulated, inspected--", it then cuts to images of the Ironbacks: "They have poisoned the water that feeds your children," before returning to his angered, scarred, features, "--Someone must answer. -- Someone must fall!"  gave the broadcast, before returning to an almost humoured and judgemental look to the camera, as though unimpressed or playing him down.

"Calling for protests once more, that there was the man whose brother was found to be posthumously responsible for the orbital crane crisis at Kesheli 17, which was confirmed to have claimed the lives of 147 Tertiary Kesmereans with many more still missing. --  Civic Council officials state that Ithis Korr's history as an agitator and a Rigworkers Collective union rep is a concern with one official stating that 'it would be damaging to the prosperity of all if Mr Korr resorted to some environmentally-minded terrorism in order to advance his political career'."

"Several protests are scheduled to occur today across several locations; these are linked to a rise in anti-industrial sentiment being spread by malign actors, the official states, referencing a holonet broadcast that is being 'investigated for its intent to -incite violence-.' - Mr Korr has put himself in the limelight, but has refused to comment on the destruction of a secondary powerstation in Khelmer's Rise tied to local unrest. Engineers there claim that although it was secondary, the load-bearing capacity of the power grid has been -significantly reduced- and may lead to the loss of services throughout the next couple of days...

A notable change in coverage and style...

"We're now talking to Doctor Swanns, a doctor and founding member behind the charity foundation 'The Ironbackers' that's been running for the past three years. - Doctor, welcome into the studio..." During the remainder of the interview, footage is included of the doctor helping locals in Khelmer's Rise; then again in another coastal city. Notably, Swann uses the phrase: "We bring a little light against the darkness." as if it was her tagline, or perhaps it was something more.

Before the next strike an investigation into luring out potential jedi were launched, lightsaber parts circulated dismantled around markets until there was a bite: A bombshell of a woman escaping on a speeder, planted tracker trailing her partway that would see a hidden S.I.S base uncovered, and from it two things learned:

A Jedi shadow cell known as ‘Open Arms’ was already planetside…and a Thranta-class Corvette was on-route.

The powerbase continued with greater haste into the Capital City of Vethar’s Reach, slicing into the broadcast network of VPBN for later sabotage and targeting firebombing on key structural targets - local protests used to cover up dismantling the air traffic of the capital and destruction of PDF barracks.

From the streets locals had gone missing, only soothed slightly by the presence of a Republic-backed outreach headed by Doctor Swanns.

The Republic’s response to it all was swift and devastating - having learned enough of the local array, in one blinding strike it robbed the Horuset Powerbase access to local relays and networks, swirling the PR campaign back around.

Spoiler: News Broadcast from VPBN

Another broadcast from the VPBN is received, a different news anchor speaking:

"Breaking news out of Khelmar's Rise. - Local PDF forces alongside Republic intelligence have tracked and traced hostile activities linked with terrorist movements to an old Holonet relay on the settlement's edge." The footage moves to the bombed out holonet relay, where  the Muun, Varlo, and his gang had aided Horuset unknowingly; now effectively a crater.

"Local PDF Commander Vilar Jlis delivered a scathing statement, let's take a look..." It moves to the images of a uniformed Ishi Tib.

"Tonight, the local detachment of Vethari Watch, alongside the men and women of the Republic, have taken decisive action against the eco-terrorists holed up in a disused Holonet Relay tower north of Khelmar's Rise. After Republic personnel confirmed data streams routing through this particular node, and that hostile agents were within; we took the decision to strike back against what was an organised cell linked to the violence of the capital. We suspect four agents of chaos to be amongst the rubble; with no civilian casualties. - To those that would destroy our way of life; this is a stark reminder of what awaits you. Rules based order exists to protect us all; vigilantes will not be tolerated; and terrorists will be obliterated."

Onlookers of the powerbase couldn't help but feel that the stakes had just risen; that the gauntlet had been thrown down. A valuable asset to their ongoing propaganda campaign, lost? Why? - At least the powerbase hadn't chosen to man the station with their own…

Theusia



Streets grew emptier, air traffic all but stalled and the Republic began to sniff around the doorstep of Khelmar’s Rise, but the forces of the Empire moved swiftly in quickly fading shadows: Managing to uproot a member of the Shadow Cell, slaying him in the process and confirming ties to Doctor Swanns and the ‘Ironbackers’.

With little time left to pursue the good Doctor, attentions turned to striking the corporate heart directly: The Pollus Shipping Director Sen'jira Kravax, second-only to Haeltor Maritime’s Fleet Operations Council. Planetside for vital negotiations a press conference was arranged for. There the Horuset Powerbase met her with ignited protests, walking amongst the crowds. Arriving with jedi protection and Republic soldiers would prove not to be enough, with Director Kravax’ death marked an act of violent protesters.

In these efforts the Sith had given themselves away however, and time to escape before the Republic fleet locked off escape paths, or the Shadow Cell descended upon them, was running short…

Extraction


A constant presence of Republic Soldiers had arrived to Khelmar’s Rise by the day of extraction, streets growing quiet by early evening and a deafening silence hung over the Powerbase’s head. Quietly supplied was shipped off in select batches or destroyed if not vital - leaving an emptied husk of a base, as they made way to Vethar’s Reach via the stolen survey ocean vessel. In the escape, Republic fighters and a blinding sensation of the light arrived to Khelmar’s Rise - a reminder of just how close discovery had been.

Their target? The Republic’s Sensor Array that had come online - a vital tool in their reinforcing efforts of the planet. Using the last connections protests rung out across the city, spreading the Republic’s attentions and leaving a gap to be exploited. Slaughtering their way through Republic defences and arriving Jedi reinforcements, Horuset left no witnesses upon abandoning the Surface - leaving in their wake suffering, brimstone and ash.

Their escape was aided by targeted damaging of the Thranta-class in orbit, and causing mass panic using the previously planted transmitter on VPBN’s broadcast network. Using the recruited reporter Serana Kael, she exposed the truth behind the Kesheli-17 incident.

Spoiler: VPBNs initial broadcast

The esteemed news anchor; Vera Vossk, returns to the airwaves. She is announced by the full length and serious jingle that belonged to the VPBN corporation, indicating a breaking news story of great consequence; a la Hugh Edwards and Glizzy II's death.

"Good evening. I'm Vera Vossk and this is VPBN's round-the-clock broadcast. - Tonight: Republic Forces have come under attack following widespread protests across Vethar's Reach. A relay station that was built and funded by the Civic Council has been completely destroyed exactly one week before it was to be operational; the relay, which would have helped support local economic growth through thousands of jobs, whilst aiding the Republic military maneuvers in the sector, has been targeted by yet more terrorist-------"

Spoiler: Hijacked Transmission

After a sharp, ear-splitting ping of static to capture the attention of a tensed world already on the brink in these last 2 weeks of chaos....silence greeted them on the screen. Then names - names so many knew. For the memorial held all these names - the victims of the Kesheli-17 incident, often mentioned in the pst broadcasts....now ran across the screens of the VPBN's own frequency


"They said it was the fault of the Kesheli Rigworker's Collective. They said they felt our sorrow, as their relief fund was filled with the credits of the rich and outsiders...but they did not speak the truth. The truth is dangerous to them - it shows their -true- colours".

The names would continue to run in the background, all 143 of them on repeat as a middle-aged woman with greying hair came into view - a plain background, holding the microphone as natural as if she had been born with it. The voice snappy, attention grabbing...a voice Tertiary Kesmere had not heard for over a year, as that -jingle- ran on air once more.

"This is Serana Kael, keeping Kesmere on the Edge. For 30 years I reported to your screens, until we asked too many questions of the corporations, and the Republic that lines their pockets. They want to protect you...so closely the truth is -choked-"

Across the screen what appeared to be internal maintenance logs ran across the screen - showing Civic Council approved accelerated production priority for Haeltor Maritime Convoys. The rigworkers had not been on active slowdowns, but had been repeatedly pushed to accelerate their work to meet Haeltor demands and contracts.

"A year ago I asked the corporations this, and we got shut down. But we never forgot - so I ask again: "How Much Is a Worker's Worth to the Republic?"

"This was Serana Kael - Keeping Kesmere...and the liars, on Edge"

The intel would continue to run over the channels for minutes, before cutting to a 'stand by' stock image.

Then what happened?

I will refer you to our State of the Galaxy for further details, but safe to say Tertiary Kesmere shall never quite be the same, and the Republic will have to re-think their approach if they wish to stomp out the ever-marching boots of the Empire’s Conquest…