Islay Base

CLASS: Portnahaven

GRAVITY: Complete

DOCKING: Yes

AMENITIES: Yes

CREW: 325

Soon after tourists began to arrive in Edinburgh in 690 AS, Cambridge scientists voiced their concern over the enormous ecological damage that even the most regulated visits could inflict on the planet. Almost from birth Cambridgers had drilled into them the stories of how New London and Leeds were blighted, so they tended to be very environmentally sensitive. A few of the younger and more militant scientists studying Planet Gaia actually went so far as to begin a campaign to sabotage tourist transports in an effort to discourage visits, but with little effect.

Once Cobalt was discovered on Gaia in 740, BMM began to lobby for the need to establish a mining base there. What had been a quiet, bloodless campaign of active resistance blossomed into full-fledged conflict. Graffiti with slogans such as "GAIA WILL NOT BLEED" were spotted soon after. The eco-terrorist movement had begun.

Eventually any plans to mine the surface of Gaia were dropped -- mostly out of fear that it might cut into the burgeoning tourist industry -- but the Gaians had already broadened their horizons by an influx of radical elements from Cambridge who sought a ban on terraforming technologies. Planetform, Inc. was the natural target. What emerged was a militant terrorist group philosophically opposed to the exploitation of planets, and terraforming in particular. The group enjoyed considerable popular support on Cambridge, funded by the efforts of the legitimate arm of the Gaians called the Green Front.

While the Gaians and the eco-terrorist movement as a whole have made little progress outside of Bretonian space, Green Front propaganda is a common sight in Bretonia. Green Front commentators are often present on the news, and unlike the Mollys, a certain amount of tolerance for them exists in the government from those disinclined to antagonize their Cambridge connections. Over the years, the movement has broadened considerably until the majority of its sympathizers are environmentally conscious individuals from throughout Bretonia.

The sole Gaian base in Edinburgh lies deep within the Islay Ice Cloud at the northeastern edge of the system. With the invasion of the Gallic Navy and the subsequent withdrawal of Planetform and the Bretonian Armed Forces from the system, activity at the Gaian base had decreased significantly.

To say that the hasty settlement and fortification of Gaia itself by the badly battered Enclave has incited panic and fury in the Gaian movement is a significant understatement. The population onboard Islay has skyrocketed and currently outpaces efforts to further hollow out its parent asteroid for more living room. Indeed, activity at other suspected Gaian strongholds has dwindled as many members of their movement have "come home" to defend their unifying ward. Bretonia's opinion of Enclave soldiers and noncombatants could scarcely be lower and as such, the movement needs not concern itself with the methods used against their foe.

Islay has also become host to a number of groups and organizations volunteering their capabilities against the Enclave as the "front line" against its last redoubt - Most numerously among them the Maquis. Aside from increasing the security measures of the base's munitions, some among the Gaians have reservations against their increasing presence in the region, particularly concerning their penchant for collateral damage should their particular brand of terrorism become more commonplace on Gaia itself.

## News

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.

## Rumors

* I intend to continue the fight against the corrupt BMM and Planetform with renewed vigor. Right now is the time to bring those despicable organizations to their knees. They treat everything as exploitable. Starsystems, planets... Even people! Go visit Planet Leeds if you don't believe me. But take a gas mask with you if you do. And a rifle.

* These Gallic newcomers... I just don't know what to think about them. On the one hand they've put a permanent stopper in both Planetform and Orbital's expoitation of Gaia, but on the other hand, they might turn around and do exactly the same thing! If that happens, we'll need to be ready for it.

* Our hope is that one day the corrupt leadership of BMM and Planetform will be exposed for the greedy, shortsighted people they are. They have squandered our national heritage and future after eight hundred years of unregulated industrialization. Leeds is a dead world thanks to their efforts. New London might well follow in it's wake. But not Gaia, not while our movement is still alive.

* I almost lost hope for this system, and for the Gaian cause itself. Was nearly ready to take my Falcon out and make my way to the Crons to live with the Zoners. But with the Enclave extinct and Edinburgh a little closer to what it was before the war, there is hope.

* The new status quo in Edinburgh is nowhere near perfect, but the population of Gaia has decreased rapidly with more leaving voluntarily, or being murdered, daily.

* Leeds is our greatest example of the ruin that mankind can wreck upon nature -- the sheer destructiveness of pure exploitation. It is also the home of the Stokes Smelter, where Terraforming Gases used to be produced. Now that Gallia has seized it, there isn't much of a point in us going there anymore. Stokes is shut down, LD-14 is a wreck, and the toxic planet is being invaded. It is ironic that Bretonia and Gallia fight over what is essentially a dump.

* Gallia did a number on the Bretonian people. Sure, they kept saying it's the government they were after, and that line fooled some people. BMM, Bowex, Planetform and the Queen's government are all corrupt to the core and that led some people to the Gauls. The Gauls were an unknown. But better the enemy you know.

* Never thought I'd see the day that the Shetland was evicted from this system. Although I'm not exactly certain if what's taken it's place will be any better in the long run. At least in the short run, expeditions to Gaia will be a thing of the past. That'll give the planetary ecosystem some time to recover.

* This area has always been hectic for us. It's crazy out there, and if you don't have friends with you then you're as good as dead. Good thing you're with us though. Just don't expect to be told where Faroe is, not unless you've done some serious work for us.

* We have information indicating that the centuries-long terraforming operations run by Planetform will never succeed. A top secret government report obtained by the Green Front asserts that the planets will lose their nascent atmospheres within several hundred years of completion of the process due to uncontrolled outgassing. Planets without a natural atmosphere just don't have the density to retain one. Planetform is selling a bill of goods, and Bretonia knows this. But if Liberty also knew, the lawsuits would bankrupt Planetform and cripple Bretonia's economy, so that report stayed buried.

* Tau-31 is an important sector for the Gaians. Though terraforming operations on Harris are almost complete, they still need Alien Organisms from the Edge Nebula. The Organisms are crucial in speeding up the terraforming process, thereby making it more economically viable. Destroying any transport with those organisms will slow Planetform down. The longer their operation, the more costly. It will cause other governments to think twice about terraforming expenses!

* Terraforming gases are a high-priority target for Gaian attack. They used to be produced at Stokes, but Gallia has put a stop to that. Now Planetform is making newer, more toxic variants at their facility in Poole. We strike at them as often as we can, but it is a dangerous run because of our inability to hide for some stretches of travel through Poole. Usually, only our best pilots make that trip.

* I'm not sure what to do right now, and I think many fellow Gaians feel the same. The loss of Lewis was hard on us. I'm worried what these newcomers will do with Gaia once they establish themselves here. Heaven forbid they try to colonize the planet!

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