Hidden Order Saga

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The **Hidden Order Saga** is a mission series that tells the story of a secretive criminal organization known as the Hidden Order, and its elite agents known as the Knights of the Syndicate.

## Premise

In the underground world of organized crime, one association secretly controlled many of the transactions between gangs and criminal organizations; the Hidden Order. This organization operated in the shadows, pulling the strings of various criminal enterprises all over the world.

No one knew how this syndicate was structured or who was in charge, but it was rumored that they had agents infiltrating every major crime organization, from the Italian Mafia to the Japanese Yakuza. They were said to be ruthless and efficient, always one step ahead of the law. The syndicate's power was absolute, and no one dared to cross them. Those who did quickly found themselves on the receiving end of their wrath. But despite their power, the Hidden Order remained covert, their existence known only to a select few.

When the Hidden Order needs to carry out a duty, they employ their agents: The Knights of the Syndicate. These were the elite agents who carried out the orders of the Syndicate and were known for their brutal efficiency.

### Act 1 Synopsis

The team of agents who trained under Marshal Fischer successfully completed their Knight Selection Examination, earning their elite status as a Knight team, Monochrome. As they stepped into their esteemed roles, they undertook a series of dangerous and intricate operations, which, despite appearing innocuous on the surface, were anything but. One of these missions in particular involved the transport of old Soviet WMDs during a sale with an eastern insurgent force.

Their work took a dramatic turn when Marshal Fischer fell victim to a poison attack, prompting the Monochrome team to pursue potential leads on the perpetrator. In an unexpected turn of events, they found themselves stranded and seemingly deserted in a foreign nation, betrayed by the very Marshal they had served under.

Their quest for truth led them to Marshal Fischer's secluded island in the Baltic Sea. There, they uncovered a shocking truth—Fischer hadn't abandoned them. Instead, he too had been a victim of an elaborate set-up.

United once again, Monochrome and Fischer joined forces against a menacing threat: a Soviet-era sleeper death squad seeking a WMD that Monochrome once dealt with in an earlier operation.

### Act 2 Synopsis

In the wake of a brutal battle on Fischer's private island, Marshals Fischer and Kirsch had identified a promising business venture in the Caribbean—the trade of gold. With global attention directed towards the blood diamond crisis in Africa, the illegal gold and silver industry was largely ignored. This provided Monochrome the chance to oversee gold transportation and transactions, a venture that promised less violence and significantly higher profits.

Their operations took a drastic turn when one of their regular buyers, Aurelio De Luca, was assassinated outside his Las Vegas business during a meeting with the Monochrome agents. This incident indicated that the team had unwittingly become part of a far more significant scheme.

In their pursuit of the attackers, an organization identified as Astra, the team traced the assailants to an island in the Arabian Sea. The pursuit ended in a tragedy, with a team member losing their life in a building explosion. In the aftermath, they discovered a stunning truth: the gold they had sold to De Luca was not ordinary gold. It was Elbekian Gold, an ancient and extremely rare variant that had an almost supernatural ability to allure people.

With the knowledge that the remaining Elbekian Gold was still undiscovered and that Astra intended to find it, Monochrome shifted their strategy. Their operations involved artifact theft and rescuing a kidnapped scientist, who held the key to finding the gold. During these operations, they unearthed an even darker reality: Astra Inc. was merely a façade for a far more sinister criminal organization, the Yaga Order. The Dogfighter, a leading figure of the Yaga, had plans to use the mesmerizing properties of the Elbekian Gold to instigate a global war, hoping to seize power amidst the chaos.

Recognizing the imminent threat, the Knights of Monochrome rushed back to the Caribbean, the supposed hiding place of the Elbekian Gold. Their mission was clear: find and neutralize the gold before the Yaga Order could exploit it to bring about global destruction.

## Operations

### Act 1

* Chapter 1: Earning Rank: A small group of agents employed by the Order are on their final Knight selection examination. Their job is to terminate Vitaly Bazarov, leader of a Russian gang formerly under contract with the Order.
* Chapter 2: La Pincha: The newly knighted Monochrome team is dispatched to Punta Castillo, a Caribbean micro-nation, to aid in a botched transaction between a local gang and an Eastern European insurgency.
* Chapter 3: Hornet's Nest: After John Meredith, a recently signed contract holder, is captured by the FBI due to an anonymous tip, Monochrome are dispatched to recover him whilst sending a stark message to the agency to stay away from the Order and its affairs.
* Chapter 4: Venom Dog: When Marshal Fischer is nearly poisoned by a rare neurotoxin used in an assassination on Charlie Gurolla, Monochrome is forced to track down and kidnap the leader of a Chinese Pharmaceutical company responsible for making the chemical.
* Chapter 5: Flatline: After betraying the Monochrome agents during the botched capture operation weeks earlier, the team attempts to track down Marshal Fischer at his island in the Baltic Sea. While searching through the bunker of his home, they discover that Fischer's betrayal was to protect the team and the Order from an even bigger threat.

### Act 2

* Chapter 6: Small Blind: The Monochrome agents visit Aurelio De Luca, a gold distributor, to ensure a smooth transaction after a recent shipment. Their mission takes an unexpected turn when they must retrieve a stolen gold ingot from the local police station, only to find themselves under attack by unknown assailants.
* Chapter 7: Tailwind: After learning their assailants' company had been operating outside the US since their dissolution in the 90s, Monochrome tracked Astra to a tumultuous island in the Arabian Sea. The team went on the offensive to learn why they were targeted, and what made the gold that was stolen so special.
* Chapter 8: Permafrost: The agents discover that Astra had already been establishing bases in the Arctic Circle looking for the shipwreck of the HDMS Thunderbird which had allegedly contained the gold the team was looking for. With the support of the Russian Armed Forces on Astra's side, the agents needed to locate and intercept their search and find the wreck themselves.
* Chapter 9: Carrot and Stick: In order to rescue researcher Jack Thorpe from the Yaga to get the location of the Elbekian gold, the Hidden Order manipulates the US Government to start a war in Sierra Leone. Under the cover of the US troops fighting with Yaga-backed insurgents, Monochrome is able to slip into the country and capture Thorpe to get them to the gold before the Dogfighter has the chance.
* Chapter 10: Final Call: After returning to the Punta Castillo archipelago, the Knights of Monochrome arrive on Isla Fortuna to find the missing Elbekian gold in a massive temple. But as the agents locate and open the chambers, they are rendered unconscious by a nerve agent as The Dogfighter swoops in to steal the gold.

## Related Stories

### Hidden Order: Darkcell

Following a 1 year time skip after the last chapter of the second act, the Hidden Order: Darkcell story picks up. The landscape has shifted significantly: Monochrome has disbanded, and the Syndicate's activities are now public knowledge. Amidst these changes, the HACKSAW Knight Team uncovers a startling development — Astra Inc., once a front for Kevin Lopez's clandestine operations, is showing signs of activity again. However, the Syndicate's newfound high-profile status prevents them from pursuing this lead directly. To navigate this challenge, they opt to enlist a modest, Los Angeles-based heist crew to investigate Astra Inc. and gather the needed intelligence.