Planet Kyushu

DIAMETER: 13,820 km.

MASS: 5.98 x 10e24 kg.

TERRAIN: Terrestrial

TEMPERATURE: -38°C to 40°C

ESCAPE VELOCITY: 11.99 km/sec

The planet Kyushu was first surveyed in 65 AS by the Kusari explorer Isao Yoshida with colonists from New Tokyo landing on the planet later that same year. Although Kyushu is severely lacking in mineral resources, it does possess a near perfect climate for rice farming, and sports the largest land masses of any inhabited world in Kusari, all of which are eminently suited for agriculture.

Gradually the planet evolved into a world focused on basic food production and today effectively feeds the majority of Kusari. However, the Kyushu farmers face increasing competition from Synth Foods whose products are becoming more popular among the Kusari youth. This has caused the demand and price for the naturally grown foods to fall, and living standards on Kyushu have declined in parallel. This has given rise to the ultra-nationalist Farmers Alliance terrorist group who viciously target any Synth Foods transports they come across.

During the reclaiming of the Tau-29 gate in 823 AS and the subsequent return of the Emperor, planet Kyushu quickly descended into a political nightmare, causing great disturbance for the Republican government. The KNF retreated closer to the defensive lines around the planet, allowing contact between the now Imperial aligned Kusari Intelligence, Farmers' Alliance, and the Imperial Kusari Navy, eventually resulting in a coordinated takeover of the planet triggered by an attack upon the defending battleship Nagumo.

In 825 AS the civil war that had divided the Kusari nation came to a peaceful conclusion. Though the changes made as a result of the accords are still being assimilated by the populace, planet Kyushu has been returned to the jurisdiction of the Kusari State Police who now must struggle with a world reeling from the political upheaval.

## Bribes & Missions Offered

* Border World Exports
* Gateway Shipping
* Kishiro Technologies
* Samura Industries
* Farmers Alliance

## News

Battleship Matsumoto and its task force remain in the Kyushu system to protect the fragile transports from vultures among the Blood Dragons or Golden Chrysanthemums. Some Farmer's Alliance vessels have even been glimpsed to patrol the routes left largely unnoticed by the wider Naval blockade of the system, and have subsequently been given some leniency by Naval Forces and State Police patrols.
While the relief effort is now well underway, criticism has been leveled at Samura for the prioritisation of rebuilding profitable farming infrastructure over the care of the local populations. Spokespeople for the company have repeatedly assured that displaced victims of the storms that continue to ravage the planet are being cared for to the best of their abilities, but that supplies are strained and not all communities are yet able to be reached.

Partially as a result of the geological activity, the equatorial monsoon season produced some of the strongest tropical storms ever recorded on Kyushu since its colonisation. These storms devastated the world's agricultural sector as they blew through the most fertile tropical lowlands, destroying as much as 20%% of the planet's annual crop yield, on top of damage to infrastructure and tragic loss of human life.
Many rural communities are reported to be struggling, with some farming communities still remaining flooded ghost towns even a month after the worst of the storms abated, though smaller-scale tempests still rage around the equator. A Samura spokesperson outlined the company's intent to restore the planet and its communities to full productivity by the middle of next year, despite the ongoing circumstance.

Immediately upon learning of this, Battleship Matsumoto and its battlegroup were redeployed from Hokkaido, and within two days were poised and ready to face this new threat. Only a short few hours later, a patrol of fighters reported a warship with the transponder reading Battleship Matsuda operating in the relative open, heading for but not yet reaching the relative safety of the Seiran Dust Cloud.
Matsumoto itself departed with its escort to confront the Chrysanthemum battleship, close to the edge of the nebula. Within minutes of it coming into sensor range, bomber and fighter squadrons from both sides closed in and opening salvos were exchanged between the battleships. It didn't take long before the KNF's preparation was shown to be well worthwhile; their superior numbers whittled down or otherwise preoccupied the Chrysanthemum's fighter force leaving a variety of openings in the Matsuda's defensive cover for KNF bombers to exploit.
While the Matsumoto was withstanding a heavy beating from the guns of its older sister, it was plain that the Matsuda was slowly being whittled away as its shields began to fail and the very same engine design flaws that had rendered it immobile in KNF service were now exploited by bomber wings to once again cripple the warship.
After several more minutes, the Matsuda's escape pods began to eject from the ailing battleship, picked up by Chrysanthemum fighters as they fled deeper into the Seiran dust cloud. It didn't take long thereafter for the ship's powercore to falter and fail completely, culminating in a vast explosion that reportedly almost turned night to day on the dark side of Planet Kyushu, if only for a split second.
Matsumoto itself sustained moderate damage in the engagement, relatively untouched by Chrysanthemum bombers however still suffering the ill effects of Matsuda's anti-capital weaponry. Despite its damage, it remains deployed in the Kyushu system to continue the blockade of the cardamine trade and to serve as a show of force to any who would challenge the might of the Emperor.

While this troubling trend is observed throughout the Sirius colonies, Liberty is bearing the brunt of the crisis among the four major Houses. Remarkably, even Rheinland, where historical data indicated low Cardamine consumption, has witnessed a notable rise in medical cases linked to the illicit narcotic. Experts postulate that the extensive black market responsible for Cardamine distribution might be facing a shortage, or worse, that Outcast factions deliberately curtail the supply to bolster demand. Regrettably, no law enforcement agency has been available for comment on these concerns.
The long-standing debate over Cardamine's controversial nature, juxtaposing its euphoric and purported medicinal qualities with the genetic alterations it inflicts upon long-term users, continues to echo. A key point of contention revolves around the plight of innocent consumers caught in this crisis. Yet, according to independent polls, a substantial majority of our viewers maintains that the substance must remain banned.
In response to this escalating crisis, Cryer Pharmaceuticals has announced a forthcoming press conference. During the event, the company intends to unveil plans for an expanded production of Stabiline, their touted "wonder drug". This announcement promises affordable access to Stabiline for all patients grappling with Cardamine withdrawal, sparking a remarkable 15%% surge in Cryer Pharmaceuticals' stock following the revelation.

Ageira disputed this finding in their own press release, calling EFL 'fantasists' and countering that their own scientists had narrowed the cause to a rare 'hypernova' stellar event that originated outside the Sirius sector. Both corporations claim that network-wide hardware safeguards have been implemented that would prevent a similar occurrence in the future. Independent researchers have sharply criticized the corporate announcements, accusing both of self-interested misdirection.
Professor Sophia Nagel from Heisenberg Research Station called EFL's accusation 'incoherent' and the hypernova explanation 'nonsense' that did not explain the characteristics of the 'Blackout Pulse'. Despite multiple different Pulse recordings being widely disseminated across the neural net, public efforts have so far failed to triangulate its source.

It remains to be seen how this united Farmers Alliance will impact affairs on the wider stage, with the security forces of both Houses already strained by their fair share of crime and dissidence.

Rear-Admiral Kato Masanori confirmed the broad facts of what happened but declined to comment further on the details which have surfaced from Samura sources.
Samura spokesperson Pak Daewon said this morning that "The terrorist group known as the Blood Dragons launched a devastating and violent attack on Camp Oku in the early hours of the night. They proceeded to slaughter their way through the camp, targeting our unarmed civilian personnel as well as our security detail. Our employees went above and beyond their calling in those stressful hours fighting against these barbarians."
Samura has since requested that the Kusari government deploy more forces to Tomioka to finally evict the Blood Dragons from their positions. It has also requested that a special licence be given to Samura to expand its security detail further making it more comparable to a military arm than corporate security.
There has so far been no official comment from the Kusari government at this time in regards to the situation on Tomioka or for what Samura has asked for.

## Rumors

* This planet is known as the garden planet of Kusari. We have been growing rice here since 65 AS, when the first settlers arrived. Samura has organized the farmers into collectives to make Food production more efficient. Recent advances in technology have seen increased food production here, and Kyushu looks set to take back some of the ground they lost to Synth Foods in recent years.

* The Blood Dragons are becoming bolder by the day here. They are even growing heedless of the military presence. Their attacks range all over the system, but they focus upon Samura's research facility and Kyushu food shipments.

* The Kusari police usually operate only in the eastern half of Kyushu. We keep a watch on the Trade Lanes and Jump Gates leading into New Tokyo, and the military keeps an eye on the half of the system that leads from Kusari space into the Border Worlds.

* The police patrols that originate from the Kyushu planet cover the two dust clouds on the eastern half of the system. I fly a patrol that skirts the Seiran Dust Fields. The men in the other patrol wing keep an eye on activity going on in the Hayate Dust Fields.

* As farming technology has improved, the added efficiency has left many of the Kyushu youth with little or nothing in the way of jobs. We lose many of them to jobs in New Tokyo or Shikoku. Often times these youngsters will never return. I don't expect things will get better soon. The government is more inclined to cooperate with foreign companies. I tell you people are only going to get angrier here in Kyushu.

* The Hogosha don't really bother anyone in this system; they are usually just passing through. We can't divert manpower from the really dangerous criminals to see that Hogosha activity is one hundred percent legal. We let them slide a bit.

* Though this system has limited resources, its proximity to the barrier makes it valuable because of the possible Commodities that can be exported into the Border Worlds. Many planners believe that this system is the gateway to Kusari expansion in the barrier. We were on track to dominate the Taus, then Gallia happened.

* Much of our time is devoted to rerouting Gaijin from this system into Shikoku. The populace of Kyushu does not look well upon foreign business entering the system, or any part of Kusari for that matter. This system is the home to the Farmers Alliance, after all.

* The Food grown here is shipped to every system in Kusari space and into the Border Worlds. Oxygen and Water produced here is shipped to every base in the system. Samura is the heart of this system and Kyushu feeds Kusari.

* The Farmers Alliance focuses its attacks on foreigners' commodities moving through Shikoku, especially those produced by Synth Foods, who undermines the hard work that we the farmers do. The Alliance has also been known to make accidental attacks on Kishiro shipping convoys moving through the system. How unfortunate for Kishiro, to think I used to have some sympathy for them. Not anymore, not after their betrayal of our Emperor and our people.

* If you would care to cross the Border Worlds, there is business you might conduct for us in Freeport 6. They send us the Spaceship Crews for R&D, in return we take them Consumer Goods and other basic supplies.

* Kyushu is the recipient of Luxury Goods, Side Arms, and Engine Components from New Tokyo. These fine products are sent here to keep the people of Kyushu satisfied, armed, and on the move.

* Samura saw that this system was a perfect opportunity to really break into the Food market. We grow the finest Foods in all of Kusari in Shikoku. When the government offered us incentives to relocate investments here, we jumped at the chance.

* Fertilizers make their way here from Shinkaku in the Border Worlds. In return we send them H-Fuel. It is a very beneficial relationship.

* The Bio-Neural Processors we are shipping in from Gallia will give us new inroads to the technology market. Perhaps you could be a link in that chain?

*NOTE: Page generated on the 28/10/2023 at 17:59:46 UTC*