Criminal Group

## General

This section will detail some of the Criminal factions found within the Skylus and Halius Quadrants. While pirates found within the Skylus Quadrant are dangerous, their numbers are lower due to the presence of the navies of the established nations, as well as I.N.L.E.D.. Most pirate groups keep only well hidden hideouts within the Skylus Quadrant, keeping their main bases and forces within the Halius Quadrant where they can exist with relative impunity, preying on smaller nations, and merchants braving the Halius Quadrant, or working as mercenaries. While the established nations and I.N.L.E.D. work to purge the pirates from their territories, most acknowledge that it is only an exercise in control, keeping the pirate menace from getting out of hand, since there will always be pirates, bandits, and other unsavory groups within a nations border's, no matter what they do.

## Shadow Serpents

Their name is much more than just a catchy phrase. Their recently revealed origin has been very controversial in the Caledonian Kingdom, to a point where the group itself has earned some incredible notoriety. Pirates, bandits and smugglers had been plaguing the kingdom for some time. More than a thorn to their side, they were literal caltrops under the feet of the merchants. Despite I.N.L.E.D.'s effort to bring them down, the market for criminal activities simply was too lucrative for crooked men not to take the mantle of their fallen comrades. Prisons were full and the state was, overall, losing far too many resources over these incidents. Project Shadow Serpent was born to mend the problem. Composed of ex-military members falsely sent into prison to give them a certain criminal renown, along with a planned prison escape, the newfound criminal syndicate was to take over criminality from the inside and regulate it, bring it outside and far from major outposts.

It was a critical success. To a point where even the Caledonian Kingdom lost track of the criminals. A few rogue groups would spout here and there, but without a direct membership with Shadow Serpent, they were silently and rapidly dealt with an efficiency proper to the ex-caledonian military officers. Years passed, however, and the project soon began to fester from the inside. Some of the leading members wanted to take their newly powerful syndicate into to caledonian space. The undercover military personnel could hardly contain these rogue elements. Slowly, the syndicate seeped back into civilization. Until their attack that is. A wedding crashed by an overwhelming military display from the group. Every single ex-military's corpses had been strapped to the hull of the attack drones. The ransom they demanded was paid and the group escaped back into the shadows. To this day, the group has remained elusive, and impossible to track down, though they often clash with Caledonian forces.

## Blood Raiders

War. War is, for the blood raiders, a beautiful event. Nothing drives the blood of these scoundrel as much as the feeling of having seven pursuit ships right at their rear with half a functioning reactor. Call them masochists if you will, they've managed to do much, MUCH more than other similar groups with much less resources. Originally military, the group defected when the Akkadians started writing accords for the peace of a certain disputed sector, judged too valuable to lose over the course of full-on war. The blood raiders were outraged by the decision and accused the Caledonian empire of befuddling their kingdom and the rulers of their empire to succumb to the Caledonian bureaucratic magic. The group is in no way disloyal to the emperor. They simply believe that he's grown weary and that he needs to see the strength of his men and woman. The defectors battle any and all, living on scraps of their won battles and resources pillaged from whatever is in their way. Always on the move, the Akkadian military has been unable to put a finger on the single fleet it is composed of and any actions against them are often turned into bloody and costly ambushes against them.

Still, they preach to the emperor. Whenever a battlefield arises, and the Akkadian doesn't seem to fare well, the red specters of their ships appear out of nowhere, laying complete and utter destruction to both Caledonian and Akkadian forces. They urge the emperor to purge weakness from their ranks, to skim the thin blood and to accept only the worthiest warriors in their ranks. An unreasonable demand made by notorious kinslayers.

## Angel Cartel

The Angel Cartel is the single largest pirate group in the Halius Quadrant, with many bases along the border zones of the Caledonian Kingdom and Akkadian Imperium. Consisting of peoples from both nations, the group holds considerable power, so much so that groups like Shadow Serpents work for the Angels.

Since the Angel's serve a purpose of keeping the various pirate groups under control and from getting out of hand, the established empires only make token efforts to hunt them down.

The Angels also have close ties to the Raven Syndicate that rules Sarumn, and is considered one of the Syndicate's valued customers.

## Guristas

The Guristas as a particularly vicious and extremist pirate group within the former-Solarasi territory. Known for their extreme hatred of the old Solarasi government, and of other governments, they are among the most despised and hated of the Skylus pirate groups. It is fortunate that they are also the smallest of the groups, so other than small raids, the Guristas are fortunately unable to mount large scale raids, as the other pirate groups also routinely attempt to hunt down the Guristas.

## Raven Syndicate

The Ravens still remember the day when the lights went out. Millions and millions of laborers, engineers, security guards and child watched in unison as the engines of their so-called 'Employer' roared away in the distance. War had taken its toll. Full evacuations, too costly. A sacrifice wiped from the medias, a whole strand of civilization left to asphyxiate, starve or worse for what the empires would call a 'Tragedy' once their bullshit had been put to light. Thing is, there are no stronger survivalists than those who lose all sense of purposes. One man stood up with the help of a notorious smuggling company, The Ravens. Every single civilian ship in functioning order had been requisitioned and sent to the outer rims of their quadrants, where war still was taking place. Like vultures, they ripped destroyed aircrafts to shred, picking all that they needed. Hydroponics equipment, generators, functional ships, armament and more. Not all the ships made it back on these first runs, but those who did became kings. Every single pilot in the flock had the right to be called a Raven, a member of their organization.

Farms were built. Outposts were repaired and lives were saved. Never, in the known universe, have criminals been so strongly endorsed. To mutter against a raven in Raven territory was akin to social suicide. The various raven ships scour their claimed territory, claiming taxes and due services in exchange for protection and patronage. The ravens are still, to this day, in charge of maintaining the community. They scavenge battlefield debris in search of anything useful, trade with independent communities, protect their territories with all they have and, when the times are hard, salvage their inhabited outposts for recycling.​

The Raven's are better known as the Raven Syndicate, and their territory is centered around the ancient Kran'raethi mining station of Sarumn.

They are led by the enigmatic and ruthless man known as the Lord of Ravens.