Ardeshir Vela

This character is the fictional positioning for the Velan Ascendancy's Demagogue asset. This asset was recently transferred to the Church of Humanity, Repentant.

Ardeshir Vela is the second cousin twice removed of the former Emperox, Padma Noy Vela, the Shining Star. Ardeshir is a passionate follower of Padma Noy's ideas and ideals and has been giving lectures and inspirational speeches around the Shining Star's philosophical writing all his life. With the Shining Star's public conversion to the Church of Humanity, Repentant and its subsect the Way, Ardeshir has also come out as an oracle of the Way, trained in secret in the arts of divination on Cabina.

## Early Years

Born in the Forbidden City on Haqani, Ardeshir's life started out in the sheltered upbringing of the Velan Royal Family. Ardeshir's branch of the royal family is relatively minor, and though he was strictly educated according to the high standards of Velan royalty, he was not expected to become a figure of note within internal royal intrigue and politics. This gave him a relative amount of freedom, and he soon found himself part of a clique that committed itself to particular devotion to the Shining Star.

When he was a teenager, Ardeshir at one time dreamed of becoming a Shamshir, and be given the honor of being part of the Shining Star's personal bodyguard. This dream ended when he at last met his idol for the first time. The Shining Star invited Ardeshir and his friends to attend a secret ceremony, in which the Emperox accepted the blessings of an oracle of the Way. At first Ardeshir did not understand why the Shining Star, known to be a devout follower of the High Church of Messiah-as-Emperox, choose to be part of such a ceremony. Then, he re-examined his idol's teachings, and found several hints that the Velan Emperox had a deep understanding of the Velan Old Ways, including that of the Way itself. Ardeshir decided that to properly understand his idol and Emperox, he needed to learn more.

Ardeshir realized that as a member of the royal family, openly studying the Way on Haqani might embarrass his idol, if word got out to devout High Church members. As such, Ardeshir applied for leave to study off-world. Officially being sent to Andophael, Ardeshir instead covertly attended the Mugenjishi School for Ancient Divination on Cabina, where he was taught to be a diviner of the Way.

After graduating, Ardeshir returned to Haqani, making sure to keep his whereabouts of the preceding years a secret. He attended the Shining Star's abdication ceremony, and then with his idols' blessing, he began a career as a motivational speaker. His stated goals were to make sure that the Shining Star's teachings continue to instruct and inspire, even now that they were no longer Emperox.

In his new career, Ardeshir traveled far and wide across the sector to spread the good word of the Shining Star and has given talks to nobles and free people alike. Rumors persisted that he was always also gathering information during his travels, and reporting back to the Velan government with his findings, but these rumors could never be substantiated.

## Arrival on Imperial Prime

In June 3200, in the wake of the Mass Exigo of House Vela and the Shining Star's conversion to the Church of Humanity, Repentant, Ardeshir immediately shifted his work towards supporting and keeping together the Velan community on Imperial Prime, giving hope to nobles suddenly finding themselves disposed of property and status. He came out as having for years been secretly but officially recognized as holding the rank of oracle of the Way, a Repentant Velan sect. Infusing his inspirational speaking skills with religious zeal, he gathered the assorted Velans and Repentant faithful of Imperial Prime and called upon them to do their part in bringing about humanity's repentance..

In coffee shops and lecture halls he espoused the treachery of the nobility and the apostasy of the High Church with their deceitful actions against the (now no longer) noble House Vela. Rather than challenge the Empire on legal grounds to restore their nobility, Ardeshir encouraged the crowds of Velans to embrace their new path, and see the loss of nobility as not the end of their house but as a new beginning for all humanity. Ardeshir argued that the crumbling of old certainties represented the chance for humanity to finally repent its sinful acts of oppression and injustice and create a new society where one can, through their own merit, lead their fellows to prosperity.

Before long, the Integrity in Trade and Commerce Initiative (ITCI), noticing the popularity of his talks and sermons, began booking and bribing all possible venues where Ardeshir might spread his message, in order to prevent his anti-Imperial speech from spreading. In response, Ardeshir simply took to preaching unannounced on the squares and streets of Prime, where he quickly attracted even larger crowds than he had before.

The ITCI then tried to bribe Ardeshir to dismiss his followers, retire from public speaking, and enter a new phrase of life as a freeman of wealth and status. Ardeshir accepted the credits, but once they were transferred, he immediately donated the funds to charity, refused freemanship, and proceeded to preach just like before.

The UPC-affiliated hacker group known as 0xDEADC0DE then infiltrated communications of the ITCI, playing looped versions of Ardeshir’s sermons through their headsets and rerouting ships to the wrong locations. The Integrity in Trade and Commerce Initiative was left unable to continue acting against Ardeshir until the cybersecurity issue was resolved.

## The Hammer Hits the Nail

Having been informed by UPC contacts of the ICTI’s weakness, Ardeshir moved into the capitol. Walking through the ancient city gates on foot, he was welcomed by crowds of adoring Velans and Repentant faithful.

On the capital’s main square, he preached against the evils of the Empire and the High Church, riling up a massive crowd. As the crowd occupied the local guards, Ardeshir and some of his closest followers breached the gates of the locked Imperial Palace. Walking up to the grand entrance, Ardeshir nailed his thesis to the doors. Then he turned around, and from the palace steps, he rallied the people to march on the local factories and seize the means of production from the greedy nobility who had forsaken their humanity by oppressing the masses.

As the crowds approached the factories, their overseers contacted the ITCI in a plea for help. Alerted by 0xDEADC0DE of attempts by the ITCI to subvert the crowd, Ardeshir then stopped the crowd from moving on the factories and sent them towards the ICTI offices and compounds instead. The resulting destruction of documents and equipment, as the crowds raided the ICTI buildings, disabled the initiative for good.

## Crux Arrest

*"You think you've won? My house lies in ashes. A thousand years of history, and now it's gone. Faith is all I have left. Faith that all you've really done is secure a temporary reprieve. Another century, and who knows? Maybe someone decides you've overstepped the boundaries of your nobility and lays waste to your beloved Hiera."*

Upon hearing that his house was being destroyed Vela Ardeshir risked it all in a mad dash for home. He led his flock to a series of shuttles and tried to loose any pursuers by being one of many shuttles, but he was intercepted by house Crux emplaced Gravtanks who blew all of the shuttles out of the sky. He was brought back from the brink by a Crux psychic and put into Crux Custody while his followers died in the crash.

## Crux Assessment of the Events

*"God has denied your faith and found it wanting. You cling to hope like sand, even as it runs between your fingers, and scatter it against the stone in vain. Hiera will stand, and your words will wash away." ~Delivered on behalf of Prinz Hektor to the assembled protestors on Prime.*

The following is an internal Crucian account of the events described above, passed up the chain of the Judiciary and the JES as part of the evaluation of the events:

"Ardeshir Vela knew full well that they did not have the support or the force to cause an uprising that could truly threaten the firm grasp of the Empire on Prime. They never planned for victory, even from the start. Instead their goal was to become a martyr, for the response to their uprising to exacerbate the tension spreading rapidly through the sector and show the true face of the Empire in its response to the demonstrations of the people.

To their dismay however, House Crux knew of this, and was uncharacteristically patient in its response. They understood they could not douse this flame easily without igniting others elsewhere. So they waited, each day Ardeshir’s supporters pouring into the city, and each day the full might of House Crux would meet them, and do nothing. They were screened and contained in the centre of the city, rows and rows of tanks and troops, bristling with guns, watching but refusing to act. Ardeshir’s supporters grew increasingly creative and forceful over the course of the Winter of Discontent, but House Crux refused to respond, continuing the elegant dance of screening and containing, isolating impact to certain areas of the City and declining to engage the Rebels directly.

Nearing the end of the 3rd month, Ardeshir finally decided to change plans. They were aware of the War on Haqani, and if it was Martyrdom they sought, perhaps the guns of House Fornax would be more obliging. They mobilized their most loyal and dedicated followers and set to work trying to break through the Crux Blockade. Their goal was to seize control of a nearby Starport behind Crux lines in order to leave the planet and head for Perithr. As the Ardeshir and their followers approached in force, beating large drums and waving banners, Crux lines responded as they always had for the three months prior. They withdrew, silently and seamlessly reforming their lines to continue to hem in the Rebels, but allowing the Ardeshir to pass through. But as soon as the last shuttle had been loaded, things changed.

Seeing that the Rebels were no longer in the city surrounded by historic landmarks and innocent civilians, Feldherr Crux Kaiser Gilgamesh finally authorized use of lethal force, and every last shuttle was destroyed with extreme prejudice, all those within them killed.

Ardeshir, however, was denied the symbolic death at the hands of the Empire they sought. Their lifeless body was pulled from the wreckage and restored through medical and biopsionic skill, soon to be moved off-world in secret. House Crux wished to deny the Ardeshir their martyrdom and discover what else they knew about the disturbances on other Imperial Worlds."

## The Thesis of Ardeshir

As preached by Djeli Ardeshir Vela, then nailed to the doors of the Imperial Palace, June 3200.

> Our demands are simple, but we will not be denied:
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> **First,** the unequivocal revocation of all the apostate doctrines of the Church of Messiah-as-Emperox. Foremost among them:
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* > The Declaration of the Soul of Humanity, by which the alien was denied their rightful place as children of the Divine.
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* > The practice of excommunication, and its blasphemous presumption that man rules over the ensoulment of others, for that belongs to none but the Divine itself.
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* > And the declaration that Synthetics Are Not Human, and its justification of the great infanticide of Humanity’s own children.
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> **Second,** revocation and retribution of all the injustices perpetrated by House Crux.     Foremost among them:
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* > The fabrication of evidence to justify the slaughter of the Cygnus Emperox and his House.
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* > The fabrication of evidence to justify the slaughter of the Synthetics and all who would support them.
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* > And the fabrication of evidence to justify the slaughter of ACRE directors, and all free people of the sector.
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> **Third**, acknowledgement by all, of the truths revealed by the Divine. Foremost among them:
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* > That Humanity is not saved by nobility of blood, nor the crowning of an Emperox.
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* > That all the blessings of the Divine have run dry into the abyss of human sin, and no more shall we be blessed.
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* > That the only path that remains open to Humanity, is to accept into our souls the call of the Divine, and to Repent. Or else harden our hearts, and suffer the Divine’s wrath.
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> Let all know, that the true faithful of Humanity will no longer be silent. We will not sit and await mankind’s doom. We will save Humanity, or we will deliver us all to the Divine’s judgement.
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> May the Divine have mercy on Humanity, for we shall have none for ourselves.
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