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The Vory may support the government in the end if it suits their needs. In the eastern UCAS many vor have direct or indirect connections to American military veterans, mainly Euro Wars refugees and expatriates. It would be useful to replicate the depth of their connections and infl uence in the Red Army. Of course, the Yakuza will probably side with whomever the Japanacorps back.>
Red Anya>
None of that sounds very “offensive” to me. Where are the increased spacefl ights to restore the orbital arsenal? Who is doing the clandestine and covert collection of atmospherics and making other battlefi eld preparations? Not in the UCAS, but in Denver and northern California and Aztlan, and even Essen or Caerleon? If the UCAS is serious, they’d be recruiting or drafting recruits or at least hiring contractors for those missions if there is still reticence at drawing the ire of the Sioux and rest of the NAN. I’ve seen offensives, and this isn’t one. This is bureaucratic masturbation.>
Black Mamba>
Keep reading.>
PistonsOne of the largest benefi ciaries of the Military Recover Act has been Esprit, which is owned by Dassault, and ultimately Aztechnology. Despite their past confl icts, Ghostwalker’s actions have pushed the UCAS to the verge of becoming the Azzies’ next closest ally in North America aft er the Algonkian-Manitou Council. Perhaps even stranger though is that Ghostwalker’s decisions since his return have frustrated the Sioux, especially as the Zone Defense Force continues to make incursions deeper into the territory bordering the Front Range. If the UCAS ever took direct action against the dragon, the shortest route to Denver goes right through the Sioux, so diplomats and spies are now engaged in a fl urry of activity to plan for all sorts of contingencies. Meanwhile, Atlanta is stuck in the middle between its historical allies and enemies and the desire to simply be rid of Sirrurg by any means necessary, even if those include cooperating with Aztlan. It would also be wise to note that the megacorp that Angela Colloton is closest to is Renraku, which already had one incident last year where one of their missiles “accidentally” veered off course towards the suspected dragon clutch in Madagascar.
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That’s the beauty of dealing with a political foe who spent most of her adult life as a professional soldier. She’s predictable.>
PicadorTh ere is plenty of military activity to focus on, but most of you aren’t crazy enough to fi ght armies (right, Kane?). What is of note, especially as it relates to the dragons, is the Dragonslayer himself. Secretary Despain has a symbolic association to his nickname that is almost certain to come into play if this escalates. Th e cover story that the sobriquet is a reference to the ubiquitous Ares cargo helicopter is slowly eroding under the truth that he killed a real feathered serpent, as Thorn acknowledged in Conspiracy Th eories. He is the other half of the military’s National Command Authority, but killing the feathered serpent makes him a target by those dragons who would respond to any violence against dragons with a violence response from their own. Despain is the most powerful and visible metahuman with a dragon kill
THE DRAGONSLAYER
Posted by: Kay St. Irregular and Pistons
In case it wasn’t obvious, the UCAS has taken its own side in this “dragon divide,” acting as if all the dragons are opposition forces. Interestingly, Angela Colloton’s anti-dragon stance has put her in the same boat as several neighbors, including (interestingly enough) Aztlan and some of the NAN. Her opposition to Ghostwalker in particular may be the only thing that is keeping them from each other’s throats.
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To paraphrase an old Afghan warlord, “First we kill the dragons. Then we kill each other.”>
ThornIn DeeCee, Angela Colloton has quickly become one of the most visible opponents of all dragonkind alongside the Azzie leaders. She despises dragons, Ghostwalker above all, and sees them as a threat to the safety of the UCAS and its people. She resents Ghostwalker’s actions (along with the peripheral help proff ered by Hestaby and Aden) that almost destroyed Washington last year. His return could bring dire results for her politically, and with tensions still high within the NAN and along the UCAS’s borders in spite of their mutual mistrust of Ghostwalker, she could be the Commander in Chief who steers the UCAS into another Great Ghost Dance War with some or all of the NAN.
That’s where things in DeeCee stand as Colloton has turned to Secretary of Defense Despain and her magical security advisor, General Miller, to put the UCAS military on the off ensive. Having spent decades on a defensive posture focused increasingly on internal crises, Colloton may be forced to act if this confl ict continues to grow out of control, even though she spent most of her two terms playing down the GOP’s expansionist “Reunifi cation” platform. Th e Army has already re-tasked units and is accelerating the integration of Th aumaturgical Corps magicians into frontline and combat support units, and they are pushing readiness in state National and Metroplex Guard units and even state defense forces. Special emphasis is being put on those units in states around DeeCee and Chicagoland, and Seattle—those with experience in dealing with unconventional threats.
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This is a prime opportunity for any and all business, from espionage to simple smuggling and hijacking. This buildup attracts profi teers within the corps and the underworld as well as those parties already trying to study or manipulate the defense establishment for their own ends.>
Kane>
He makes a good point. I don’t see any Luciano-style patriots throwing their support behind the UCAS anytime soon. The Cutters could go either way, depending on how this plays out. Of course, the Ancients aren’t exactly known for their support of anything draconic, but they have no dog in this fi ght.>
Riser>
Their masters do.ECHOING
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to his name. Killing him seems like a priority for certain great dragons such as Sirrurg and Alamais.
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Killing Azzie-loving Yankees sounds like a good time to me. Depends on whether DeeCee really is in bed with those godforsaken fucks. Maybe I can get the Free Marines on my side, or if Colloton is siding with the Azzies, the whole damn Corps.>
Kane>
What’s that supposed to mean, the whole Corps? Hard Exit, you were a Marine. What does he mean?>
Netcat>
I see.>
NetcatThat shouldn’t be a big deal. DeeCee has only been the destination for public and clandestine visits by a half dozen great dragons in the last year. If Sirrurg wants to burn down the Pentagon, no one can realistically see even the thousands private and government soldiers and security personnel surrounding DeeCee stopping him, especially aft er the attacks on Albuquerque and Odessa. But that is part of a bigger problem: Th ere are tons of guns and thousands of defense personnel, but no one is actually in charge, and the pushback and confl icts are gumming up the works. DeeCee is not only a city of political intrigue, but it also hosts a convergence of mystical and historical conspiracies that are directly tied to recent events.
Th e Pentagon has always been a vipers’ nest, and there are now runs within the building on the pro-Despain side, on the dragons’ side, and on the side of third-party opportunists just trying to make some money or increase their own power. Yes, there are dragons and pseudo-draconic entities, e.g. the Draco Foundation, that are inside the Pentagon and the rest of the government, including the White House. Returned offi cers who served in the ZDF are under suspicion and confl icted because some of them did indeed swear magical oaths to Ghostwalker. No one knows what that means—are they potential sleepers? Will briefi ng the Defense Intelligence Agency cause one of them to burst into fl ames for breaking that Oath, meaning potential sources will need to go up and spend the rest of their lives in orbit with Orbital DK and her new friend? While the Black Lodge and New Revolution play their own games, and Aegis recruits any runner with half a brain to satisfy the increased demand for their services, shadowrunners are poised to take on especially sensitive political jobs. For example, the Church of the Dragon Reborn is a perfectly legitimate religious organization in DeeCee. It is also a known front for Ghostwalker’s espionage and political machinations. Th e FBI has historically supported investigations of religious groups thanks to the Universal Brotherhood, but what they are lacking is raw manpower. Th ey also still encounter interference on especially secret programs such as the Shades, who are shedim operatives who are working for the Defense Security Agency and have political cover from on high.
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That reminds me. One of my sources saw General Miller, who among other things seems to know about the Shades, meet with Johnny Spinrad as he was passing through Seattle. Unfortunately, the source didn’t speak Portuguese or record it to run throughECHOING
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been on a charm off ensive to exploit the fact that he and Daviar are no longer together.
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It’s not for a lack of trying on the dragons’ part to infi ltrate the group, but they’ve never been successful.>
Winterhawk>
Confi rmation bias. When you have a prime suspect, you start to look only at evidence that supports that suspicion. Everyone was quick to jump on the idea that Ghostwalker or his agents extracted those drakes after his return because that explanation fi t the assumption. Do the actual facts back that up?>
Hard ExitTh e fl ip side of this confl ict has been even more indirect and subtle. There has been a growing barrage of criticism of Hestaby because of her actions in Dubai, support for her political opposition in the Tír has increased since she resigned her seat on the Council of Princes, and key assets and investments are being attacked by Saeder-Krupp. The most significant blow Daviar has delivered to Hestaby, however, is a sin of omission when the Draco Foundation’s trustee selection committee did not off er the Orange Queen an invitation to serve on the board of trustees, but instead off ered it to Masaru, who immediately accepted; Alexis Glimmerscale, representing the Children of the Dragon; and Dr. Kristine Martin (also known as KAM), the Genesis Consortium Chief Bioethics Offi cer. As I’ve learned from my sources, Hestaby took this as a personal insult given her public statements of esteem for Dunkelzahn and desire to continue his legacy.
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The committee was able to keep the decision secret until the invitations were publicly announced. The real-time chatter inside the Shasta lair was manic, especially at how calmly Hestaby took the news given her concerted but covert persuasion campaign to become a trustee.>
FastJack>
KSAF at its peak didn’t have your sense of timing on that one. Of course that’s what makes you FastJack.>
SunshineThings are now heating up. As a follow-up to the recent announcement of the new trustees and the new Board of Visitors, the Draco Foundation is gearing up for a massive media push that will include trid appearances and MeFeed broadcasts of the selection committee, Visitors, and all of the trustees, include the woman herself, Nadja Daviar. We’ll all see who is the better public persona, the mystery elf or the great dragon, when she does her fi rst real sit-down interview with Holly Brighton on a special edition of Wyrm Talk slated for August 9. Aft er that will come an onslaught of press and other media appearances from The Macmillan Group and NewsNET to the Atlantean Foundation’s Ancient Wisdom Channel broadcasting a two-part special of Th e Awakened World on the Draco Foundation. As much as I try to avoid trideo, I am looking forward to Daviar’s appearance on Beyond the Wire. Samantha Roth has been railing on Ghostwalker as sabotaging the Treaty of Denver and putting the security of North America in jeopardy, and her personal relationship to
a translation. Miller’s old-school black ops, so they were undoubtedly speaking in code anyway. I am not surprised that Spinrad and Miller, and thus Colloton, are collaborating given their enmity for dragons. I wish I knew more.
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FianchettoTh e FBI needs all the cover they can get, because they are quietly investigating the White House staff . It’s a dicey proposition and has put them in confl ict with the Secret Service and the DSA, which also handles these matters as it relates to the uniformed personnel who do everything from fl ying Air Force One to operating the White House mess. It is believed that Ghostwalker has placed a person somewhere on the White House staff , and no one beyond the individual themselves, a handler, and the white wyrm himself knows who it is. It could be anyone, and the FBI’s greatest fear is that it is an agent on the Presidential Protection Detail or a senior offi cial. Th e task force has been engaged in misdirection and has hired especially discreet runners for black-bag investigations and long-term surveillance. Th is has created a signifi cant distraction for President Colloton, because she is afraid that she can’t trust anyone, and to be honest, she can’t. Th e more dependent she has to be on them at this time, the tighter this invisible noose seems to be getting around her neck. So she has reached out to the one person she can trust—her husband Timothy Colloton—to arrange extremely clandestine meetings with people whom they feel they can trust. In a few cases, that has included arranging shadowruns to courier data or gather information.