Planet Crete

DIAMETER: 17,609 km.

MASS: 7.02 x 10e24 kg.

TERRAIN: Terrestrial

TEMPERATURE: -2°C to 41°C

ESCAPE VELOCITY: 14.01 km/sec

The ancestors of the Corsairs were survivors of the crippled Sleeper Ship Hispania, who used the vessel's escape pods to land on Crete in 35 AS. Those settlers found themselves on a harsh, rocky world that was ill suited to human colonisation or the crops brought from Sol. The Corsairs scratched out a bleak existence for four centuries, suffering many famines that threatened to eradicate their shrinking population. Through these hardships, the Corsairs would develop a strong, insular self-identity that separated them from the other Houses. In 450 AS, that insular world changed.

An exploratory expedition headed by Franz Schulman - financed by Daumann and the Rheinland government - stumbled into the system while mapping the far reaches of the Walker Nebula. Crete's desperate inhabitants, sensing a historic opportunity, attacked the landing party en masse. They killed all save Schulman, whom they took hostage to gain control of the orbiting mother ship Schiller. Once they had secured the ship and all of its technologies, they were outraged. The Schiller's databases indicated that the Houses had made no attempt to locate the Hispania or its survivors. Suspicion that the other Houses were behind the sabotage of the Hispania turned into hatred, and with a renewed determination, the sons and daughters of Crete took to the stars again.

No one is entirely sure who first nicknamed them the "Corsairs," recalling the ancient pirate clans of the Mediterranean, but the name came into popular use among the Houses sometime around 500 AS. The Corsairs began attacking unprotected outposts and ships, plundering whatever supplies and equipment they could lay their hands on, before escaping through one of their secret Jump Holes. The systematic expansion of the Houses into the Omega Border Worlds further fueled the Corsairs, dramatically increasing the quantity and variety of accessible goods. This in turn allowed them to build stronger ships and weapons and grow their population.

The final chapter began in the sixth century AS, when an enterprising, well-armed Liberty freelancer named Jim Bown made his way to Omicron Gamma. He brought Consumer Goods and Food to trade, but the Corsairs could offer little but Artifacts. A year later, he returned. Those trinkets were all the rage with the elite of Manhattan. He saw a great business opportunity if they could set up a viable trade route to Liberty. The Corsairs were on their way. They grew rapidly in size and sophistication as they built up the Artifact trade. The primary smuggling route now goes north to Sigma-19, where Artifacts are traded with the Hogosha onboard the Hawaii. They have also opened up a route into Rheinland via Freeport 8 in Sigma 15. In the west the Corsairs invaded Bretonia in order to reach the Junker's Trafalgar Base in New London.

In recent years, tensions between the Corsairs and local Zoners have steadily grown. This is caused partially by Bounty Hunters using nearby Freeports to attack the Corsairs' home system, but also concerns that Zoner colonies on Pygar would compete for Freeport 9's Food exports to Crete. Crete currently has a population the planet can barely support, with regional famines a commonplace occurrence if crops fail. The Corsairs attempted to resolve Crete's Food insecurity in 831 AS by seizing control of Freeport 9 and its biodomes, although this has also severed their access to Zoner markets for other essential goods such as Fertilisers and Pharmaceuticals.

## News

They cowardly waited for our forces to be dispersed between various theaters, the latest one being the Outcast return to Omicron Theta, and took advantage of our inability to crush them like the pests they are.
Special orders were relayed to Battleship Delos in Theta to coordinate additional patrols in the Amarus Cloud to interfere with their shipments of Gammu materials as much as possible.

The Elders have authorised the deployment of elements of the Omicron Gamma defence fleet to respond to the Outcast invasion and secure our borders. These elite fighters are more than a match for the drug-addled Outcasts and will hold the line until the Northern and Southern Fleets complete their assignments in Dresden and Dublin.
The Battleship Delos has been dispatched to the system to coordinate our counter-attack and avenge the loss of the Fes. The Elders have announced that a great honor will be bestowed upon the pilots responsible for the destruction of the Outcast Battlecruiser Augusta.

The Zoners seem to have prevented this previously by importing Fertilizers from the Houses. Similarly, Crete, Leon and Cadiz are facing a shortage of Pharmaceuticals, complicating the treatment of our casualties. The Zoners now refuse to sell us these goods, so we must look elsewhere to obtain what we need.
The Elders have decreed that the raiding fleets are to redouble their efforts in Cambridge, and make new inroads into the Frankfurt system. Petra Base in Sigma 15 is to be reinforced, and the Fertilizer convoys from Planet Holstein treated as priority targets.
The Corsairs have always prized strength, and we have the strength to take what we need from the weak. Prosperity is there to be seized.

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.

The death of Juan Garcia was but the latest in a line of killings by the Bounty Hunters Guild, abetted by the Zoners who provide them with safe harbor. The Elders have decided: no more. One opportunity was offered for the Zoners to make amends for their transgressions, and instead they chose to ignore our reasonable demands. Last night, Freeport 9 was boarded and the station administration placed under arrest.
From this day forward, the biodomes will provide exclusively for the Corsairs, and the docking bays will admit only those we allow. Fortunately, our ancient enemies the Outcasts appear to be preoccupied with a self-inflicted revolt on their poisonous planet. By the time they turn their focus back to the Omicrons, we will be secure in our conquest.

Professor Nagel and her team are certain the Pulse originated from outside Sirius, but are otherwise no closer to identifying its source or mitigating a future Blackout event. "Following the Blackout, we began to see immediate signs of jump hole destabilization in multiple different regions, with many ultimately falling out of phase alignment altogether", she commented. The dramatic upending of Sirius' jump hole network has already prompted many groups to abandon stations and withdraw from systems that appear to risk being cut off.
While months-long trips between the stars are possible thanks to the Liberty Engine and many centuries of innovation, few ships are designed or provisioned to make such arduous journeys. Those who were displaced by Sirius' redrawn map hope that system connections will return, while adventurers and explorers rush to discover new routes.

For decades the Zoners of Freeport 9 have kept themselves safe from Corsair reprisals by offering useful services, with their biodomes providing Crete with respite from the famines that once ravished it. Despite this, outrage has swept Omicron Gamma after a flight of Hunters killed Commander Juan Garcia, before retreating back to the No Fire Zones of Omicron Theta.
The Council of Elders have ordered the administrator of Freeport 9 to attend Planet Crete to hear their demands. Elder Garcia has vowed that the station's halls would "run red with blood" unless the Zoners turned over all BHG aboard the Freeport. The Zoners are yet to respond, likely trying to anticipate how the Corsairs will react.

The Corsairs see the Pygar colony as a direct competitor for the region's scarce resources, with Elder Garcia warning that there would be "dire consequences" should Freeport 9's biodomes reduce or divert their exports to Planet Crete. Whispers of alien ruins and Artifacts discovered below Pygar's surface may also antagonize the Corsairs, who rely on the Artifact trade as a source of wealth. The hardship of Pygar's extreme conditions and the uneasy relationship with the Corsairs has already led many colonists to consider a return to the now liberated Gran Canaria.

In his later years, Montoya would act as a steadying hand on the Council of Elders, counseling against rash decisions and reckless action. The Council has since inducted Elder Rosita Garcia to their number. As she commemorated the launch of the Battlecruiser Santander, she declared that "Sirius shall be set alight as a pyre in Montoya's honor". The Santander and its squadrons have been dispatched to pillage Bretonia.

"The standing Navy of the Corsair Empire as well as its irregular raiders must do everything within their means to break existing stalemates or make progress. The enemies of Crete have grown arrogant and take for granted that Corsair offensives have lost their steam, this is an assessment which must be proved woefully wrong."
In response to these express instructions, activity across every Corsair installation has intensified to levels that suggest substantial mobilization.

## Rumors

* The second year after planetfall we ran out of Food. The family leaders gathered together and decided upon a course of action. The Ventru line was chosen, and they gave themselves up to be butchered. Every Corsair is a Ventru, though the line no longer lives, they are a part of us all.

* The first outsider accepted by the Corsairs was a freelancer named John Bown. He fought several of our best pilots when he entered the system, so he was able to pass. He left with a cargo bay full of Artifacts, and that is when trade began. Our economy flourished, allowing us to feed more of our people.

* The Artifacts that end up in Manhattan usually pass through Bretonia's market first. We export Alien Artifacts to the Junker base Trafalgar. I don't suppose there would be anything to stop you from doing the same.

* If you hear of any rumors of slavery within the Empire, be sure to bring it to my investigators' attention. We will track them down and get to the bottom of the matter, I assure you. I believe all such rumors to be paranoid chatter or Hessian inspired lies, but it is my duty to pursue them all until the purity of the Corsair way of life is evident to all of Sirius.

* There were Artifacts all over Crete at one time. Most of those have been sold now, but we still find Artifacts in the Malvadas and Napo Clouds. Any Corsair could have many of the alien trinkets, but they have no function and are therefore meaningless, except for trade. Let some other fool spend his money on them.

* The supplies we use to run our bases are either stolen or purchased with the money we make from selling stolen goods. The Construction Machinery here is almost all stolen.

* Many think our rites of initiation are barbaric, but we can't feed, clothe, and train every Corsair born. The initiation keeps our population problems in check. At the age of sixteen every Corsair must fly into the radioactive Malvadas Cloud in an unshielded ship and return with an Artifact. Some return as they left, others become sterile, and the rest die.

* The Zoners at Freeport 5 and Freeport 9 have access to many of the supplies we use at this base. In exchange for the Oxygen and Water we have in abundance here we are able to get all manner of goods.

* There is a legend that a secret Jump Hole lies at the center of the Graveyard of the Innocents in the Malvada Cloud. A young Corsair completing his adulthood initiation rites stumbled across it while trying to find his Artifact. He entered it and emerged in an uncharted system. Strange alien ships soon appeared in the distance, and he fled for his life back to known territory. Few people believe the story.

* Corsairs have the purest hearts and are the most fair minded citizens in all of Sirius, I declare! We shall crush the despicable slave trade and its wicked promoters wherever we find them. I have heard far too many rumors of this practice existing at remote Corsair installations. Personally, I do not believe them. The Etna Six were an aberration brought on by extended exposure to Outcasts within the Etna battle zone. Such greed and casual disregard for humanity is totally foreign to the average Corsair.

* The Corsairs are consolidated into family lines that are brought together and strengthened by marriage. Our society is a closed one; we do not wish to dilute our blood with the seeds of weaker men. It is possible to fly with the Corsairs and to be trusted by us, but an outsider will never marry into the families of Crete.

* The proximity of our base Cadiz to the Trade Lanes and Bretonian space makes it a primary source of stolen goods for the Corsairs. H-Fuel, Pharmaceuticals, and Polymers are frequently shipped here from that base.

* We traveled to Sirius on a sleeper ship like everyone else. Our ship, the *Hispania*, fell victim to sabotage en route. We were forced to abandon her and make our way through the void. We found this planet with barely enough supplies to feed half of us. Few crops would grow in these infertile sands, and our numbers dwindled to almost nothing.

* The Artifacts we trade in Yanagi more than pay for the Side Arms, Consumer Goods, and Fertilizers that we bring to this base on our return.

* The Malvada Nube serves as the key adult initiation ritual within the close families of the Corsairs. Young pilots must fly a stripped ship into the cloud, find an Artifact, and return safely to Crete. Almost 30% never return. The radiation levels are high, and it is rumored that there are strange beings that guard the best areas. By tradition, a lost trainee's ship and body are never recovered, just left as a reminder to future generations of failure's cost.

*NOTE: Page generated on the 28/10/2023 at 17:59:45 UTC*