The Conduit

Only the dead have seen the end of war. This aphorism is only halfway true; though, as even those who survive can witness it. And those who do are changed forever; idealists become cynics, able bodies are scarred forever, and stable minds slowly crack from the horrors they've witnessed. While every veteran of past wars are no strangers to these, a handful of members are on another level already.

A level where they lash out at enemies not many deal with.

## Conduit in the Club

Patriot Patrol, a Unionist-affiliated newspaper, happens to be just one of the of the stragglers in the civil war of American journalism against the Continental publications, where columnists and cartoonists in both sides regularly churn out pro-Allied and anti-Allied articles at each other, vying for the title of who best represents the interests of Americans. One of their most provocative cartoons, however, tackle the average Network clubber; portraying him as an impotent and acne-stricken adolescent with a cardboard box for armor and a large dipper as a helmet, boasting about how he's going to "catch them bigfoots n' cryptids" with his malfunctioning deer rifle. While meant to jokingly portray the Network as a motley crew of incompetent simpletons who know little about who they're facing, the other political cartoon about the Conduit says otherwise.

On another panel is an artist's rendition of a man in what appears to be a homebrew jumble of a blue Legion helm with purple PK gear below, barely hiding a hammer and sickle symbol inside his shirt, implying his true allegiance. Aiming his ADK-45 at an innocent Unionist soldier whose arms are raised, he interrogates him so he can divulge national secrets under the threat of torture by the hands of his 'comrades'. The caption in the bottom presents a frightening image of the 'soldier' - far from a freedom fighter and nearer to a 'conduit' for communist subversion to disrupt orderly American living. While the two cartoons share too many differences to represent the same organization, one thing is certain for these who oppose them.

The left hand that holds the rifle should be just as feared as the right hand that holds the truth.

## No Entry, No Exit

*"God has smiled upon you this day*
*The fate of all nations in your hands*

*And blessed be the soldiers we,*

*who fight with all our bravery*

'*til only the righteous stand.*

*You see the distant flames, they bellow in the night.*

*You fight in all our names for what we know is right.*

*And when you all get shot and cannot carry on*

*Though you die, The Conduit lives on."*

- Scribbled in a note found in a ransacked Clubhouse
No entrance.

The sign plastered in the gates of a certain Allied research facility restricted only to its own scientists and engineers. A sign that indicates the impediment of the free flow of information, intentionally withholding the wonders of science to the common man for some unknown agenda. Also a sign that is usually ignored by the fighters of the Conduit, usually supporting their weaker brothers to infiltrate that laboratory owned by the world body they used to fight for the first place. Whatever reason they claim that led them to flock to the Network, they certainly did not forget to take their military expertise with them on the way.

As stated, almost every fighter of the Conduit are not just simply picked off the streets like one would pick clubbers off of their houses. This fact is not without good reason; the clubbers themselves (usually recruited from well to do households with a surplus of free time in this world) know nothing more about protecting themselves than Unionist drills, and even then the populace in Unionist neighborhoods universally frown upon such bizarre hobbies such as 'truth seeking'. For one to join up with the Conduit, however, the prerequisites for membership are mostly just a reasonable period of military experience, a fierce determination in seeking out the secrets of this world, and near-total obedience to the Third Eye and their closest council of confidantes. Fortunately, due to past, present and future world events, there will not be a shortage of people meeting these criteria for a long time.

An average Conduit soldier`s history isn't actually different from his is counterparts in other armies before and today. They either join the army either via conscription or voluntary enlistment depending on where he lives. They go to boot camp, get drilled into shape, instilled a sense of obedience to their superiors and a love of whatever country or concept the army stands for. In wartime, they and their comrades are sent to the fields pressed to attack the enemy, culminating in them dying for their nation, or letting the other bastards die for theirs first. Many of those who do survive are honorably discharged and typically go home with a badge of prestige and a worldview that is challenged forever. But for the soldiers with the Conduit, that is where the similarities end.

There are some veterans who have witnessed things any other soldier would ignore to continue on with his duty. A group of ex-Allied soldiers in WWII report that they've spotted unexplained flashes of light in the sky the day before the disappearance of the 101st and the 82nd Airborne Divisions. Survivors of shipwrecks recount on how their vessels were attacked by tentacled beings still unidentified as of today. Even some ACIN agents have begun to notice the strange trend of events being recorded today, most notably how there was reportedly no plot to assassinate President Kennedy at the time. Naturally, these witnesses related it to some of their compatriots who were more open-minded that didn't reply back with sarcastic comments on their mental health, and were surprised when they heard about their colleagues having strange experiences of their own. This spurred their drive to search for the answers, asking their other comrades about their bizarre stories and actively seeking out information from any sources available. Unfortunately, their investigations were all for naught, leading to them mostly retiring from service just to continue. For some, all they achieved was to be reassigned to other duties, some being discharged early (with complete benefits), coerced to complete secrecy or disappearing in 'accidents.'.

While a few just gave up their searches and continued on with their lives, many of these disenfranchised soldiers eventually met up with each other through mailing lists and HAM radios. Finding common ground in their beliefs, they slowly grew suspicion for their own commanders who seem to be more concerned with whatever they're hiding from their soldiers than the soldiers themselves. News of civilians dying and vanishing who have apparently discovered something they're not supposed to have reached their ears, and that is when they decided to break away from their former units. Bringing like-minded colleagues with them, they formed their own militias specifically dedicated in hunting for the truth. Those who own HAM radios are contacted, and tasked to bring the inconvenient truths to the greater numbers of ignorant people while the militias themselves took part in uncovering evidence for a certain conspiracy whether by investigation or interrogation. For all their efforts, they have only gathered a minimal amount of evidence, but it was not until the end of WWIII they reached a breakthrough.

Post-war, their biggest captive audience was none other than America herself. Recent actions made by the Allies there have completely damaged their credibility with the Americans, with the 'Truth Salad Philosophy' station continuing the agitate the newborn Confederacy more against the 'euroimperialists'. Johannes Herzog's own 'Lone Gunmen' have been one of the fiercest militias ever faced by PKs, and numerous Allied laboratories have faced countless infiltration attempts by "Truthers for Roswell" operatives. Even better, a figure known as the 'Third Eye' has launched a message through every airwave they can reach to, calling for other disenfranchised soldiers throughout America and the world to flock to their Network for Truth Seekers. So far, their efforts have been successful, with Czech conscripts defecting to the European Network branches with documents of 'soldier men transforming into monkey men' and the odd Australian browncoat evading bounty hunters sent after him for attempting to disclose gravametric secrets. When enough soldiers have joined, some more influential ones have called for all independent militias to merge under one paramilitary force under the Network's banners: The Conduit, named as they shall be the channels where freed information flows through into the minds of the unenlightened.

Possessing more experiences with firearms and tactics than the average cryptid chaser, it was not until the Inner Circle's resolution for the Conduit to be *the* premier special forces of the Network. Weapons aren't that hard to acquire; many veterans brought their firearms with them to the Network, and friendly used car sales tend to hide guns at their products' trunks. Neither was the who's who of leadership that difficult to come up with; those who have the most experience and respectability tend to rise up their ranks (see the Hardfists) or have the most votes. And with these at hand, the Conduit charges through the final gate that only has one sign:

No exit.

## Physical Removal

As the name goes, it is the Conduit's duty to safeguard the pipes and tubes in which the Universe's hidden secrets and truths are channeled through. If any obstacle exists in that flow of information, they have to remove it by force regardless whether the impediment responsible is an individual, an army or a government itself. When not launching raids against research centers or command outposts, burly, ex-military types serve as armed resistance for cryptozoologists on the hunt yet again in West Africa for creatures mainstream biologists seem to have missed. Some of these squads are tasked with assisting more armed clubhouses in assaulting identified Reservist barracks, while others form duos with P.I.s, even going so far as to take aim for them while they rummage through garbage cans for fear of a surprise terror drone inside. ACIN has even come to the conclusion that the Conduit is one of the only things that allow the Network to be a credible threat, a testament to the latter two's symbiotic relationship with each other.

Although they are primarily comprised of veterans and defectors from armed forces worldwide, the Clenched Fist is well aware of how the Conduit is outgunned, outmatched, outnumbered in the midst of their foes' special forces. The clubbies they have to babysit are naïve when it comes to the basic art of warfare, and the Conduit themselves are not viewed as replaceable (at least not in the way other armies perceive their own). Learning on the mistakes their predecessors "Truth Militias" made which led to their arrests and deaths, Herzog introduced a radical military style, intending to transform his troops into America's most unconventional and dangerous fighters since Continental minutemen.

Taking pages from his Dead 6 training (and consequently, training with the American militia), the Clenched Fist believes that conventional tactics will more likely end up end up as suicide missions. True to his nature of operations, Conduit soldiers are molded to be formidable combatants alone as well as with their teammates. Squad leaders are allowed to shriek their own orders when deemed necessary, trustworthy enough to be allowed leadership when Herzog is busy at another front. 'Independent' inventors are encouraged to design and tinker with their dream creations, so ramshackle and bizarre that the Conduit's untested vehicles are jokingly named as the 'Tier XS' when sighted by Allied commanders in battle. However, the smug, mocking demeanor in those peacekeepers' faces soon reshape into grimaces of fear as those ramshackle, bizarre metal boxes suddenly become towering artillery pieces launching 16.5 inch shells accompanied by slowly-descending heavy lift helicopters raining down V2 missiles onto the dumbstruck victims. Even those who survive and attempt to get away will not be safe, as farragoes of tank parts and gallimaufries of military gear open fire with canister shots and ADK-45 rounds at those on the run, HEAT rockets locked onto vehicles and helicopters they think will secure them from such bullets.

Thus, the Conduit's military doctrine chiefly consists of the most essential factor in the Clenched Fist's eyes: pushing through the enemy's flanks, hoping to thin their numbers and enough and retreat with little to no casualties.

### The Gatekeepers

Notwithstanding a rather standard hierarchy of command, it cannot be said that a Conduit detachment functions exactly like its fellow squadrons. Organizing commandos, operators, and other specialists in a myriad of tasks into units that serve particular functions, those many battalions in the Conduit provide indispensable succor to their less-military-inclined brothers and sisters in Clubhouses.

### The Lone Gunmen

Formerly the "Accompanied Gunmen" under the command of ex-Capt. Johannes Herzog when he was with the West German reservists, the Lone Gunmen still retain their ferocity and finesse that they were known for in WWIII. With stringent requirements for membership such as being the *crème de la crème* of their respective clubhouse or militia, each up-and-coming Gunman, for example, must be able to take down five reservists and three peacekeepers without being severely wounded. Once inducted into the task force, they are assigned operations no clubbie is capable of; breaching through bases, working behind enemy lines to provide covering fire for Network infiltrators to do their thing. Often rushing into the fray only when the situation calls for them, the Gunmen equip themselves with premier weapons and gear for such dangerous missions. But in their infrequent appearances, the sight of one Gunman fighting with his weaker brothers are enough to bolster the morale of the entire respective clubhouse, two or three of them instill a greater sense of vigor enough to take on a reservist platoon, and an entire cell will be confident to face PKs directly with an entire section of Gunmen.

### Revolver Nation

Once a veritable subculture of firearms and recreational drugs enthusiasts within a subculture of top-secret documents and barely-functional 'truth serums', the situation affecting the Revolver Nation today can be accurately described as a 'succession crisis'. With Eric's status yet remains to be seen in wake of Operation: Fullerocalypse, and the Firebrand hiding as a fugitive in the Truth Bastion, Tim desires to shift the Nation's focus into further anarchism while completely erasing any legacy the previous two had in the movement. With his new-found support from the 'Bloodied Hands' militia, they now serves as the #1 kill team of the Conduit, assassinating troublesome officials, and as back-line cleanup crew; raining down fire behind those who attempt to flee first. Today, however, Tim is steering the group into further violence, going so far as to incite riots, torch down public establishments, shoot up civilians and blame other factions for their misdeeds, in order to achieve Tim's pipe dream of overthrowing every government in the world.

## NEMO

*"fsyndicate"*

- Sprawlestia's forum signature
When Agostino met his fate at the monowire whip of a satyr, little did the Syndicate know that so did NEMO's flimsy veneer of a moral high ground. Under Sprawlestia's management, the revitalized Brutus-visaged cyber-vandals found a new front to press on with their battle - the Network. Now, the NEMO make up the core of the Inner Circle's premier intelligence gatherers, mining into valuable data whether they are from top-secret folders, encrypted AURA servers or in the minds of those they interrogate by any methods they have in their disposal. By all means, they are the most blatantly criminal elements the organization ever had; resorting to blackmail, frameup, bribery, extortion, character assassination, torture, kidnapping, theft and destruction of property, death threats (and even acting on those) and passing off margarine as real butter in Iowa.

#### Know Everythings

  **Vehicles**
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  **Conduit**
  **Buildings**
  **Detailed Information**