Defend the Sonnian Republic

Garrison
Location: Sonnia
Employer: Sonnian Democratic Republic
Start Date: 02 September 3143
End Date: 02 September 3144
Status: Active

Fleeing Errai with a battered touman, the Avengers’ council met to discuss next steps. Engalychev was confident that the information in their possession about the Fortress Wall would be extremely valuable to the Sea Fox saKhanate. They could leverage it to gather much needed supplies and new equipment. However, doing so would require tracking down the saKhanate in this region of space, something much more difficult to do without functioning HPG stations.

Engalychev argued that rather than sending the entire flotilla chasing after the saKhanate across Federated Suns space, the Avengers should instead split their focus. On Errai, Engalychev had learned of a garrison contract put out by the planetary government of Sonnia in the Federated Suns. The contract ran for a year and, while not terribly well-paying, would offer the Avengers a chance for some much needed R&R on a planet known as a vacation destination in the region for its tropical beaches. While the majority of the Avengers fulfilled a milk run contract, a small detachment led by Engalychev would seek out the saKhanate.

The response to Engalychev’s suggestion was outrage on the part of most Clan warriors. The idea of becoming sellswords for hire was berboten in clan culture and the very suggestion of it a hostile act. In particular, Star Commander Connor Drummond threatened Engalychev with physical violence for even suggesting such a dishonor.

The proposal seemed doomed to failure until Arjun rose to speak. He reminded everyone of the responsibility they owed both to the refugees (clan and spheroid, alike) among them as well as to the young sibko trainees who had little opportunity for training. Months of zero-G environment had wreaked a heavy toll on everyone. The garrison contract offered the opportunity to build their strength. Would they rather show up at the Clan Protectate’s door as ragtag beggars or a cluster of clan warriors?

Arjun’s speech ultimately persuaded many on the council, although Connor still strongly opposed the decision. Rather than force the inevitable trial of refusal, he was instead offered the honor of leading the delegation to seek out the Sea Fox saKhanate as a compromise.

Thus, the majority of the Avengers arrived on the tropical world of Sonnia. For many of the refugees, it was a first opportunity to experience walking on dirt in a gravity environment in over eight months. Many wept with joy.

Although the garrison duty promises to be fairly light work, it is not without its tension. The contract had been precipitated by the planetary government’s attempt to restrict the power of the governing noble, Duke Felipe Contreras. For centuries, the Contreras family ruled Sonnia with an even hand, generally allowing for most governmental operations to be run without interference. However, the last two generations of the Contreras family, including the current Duke, have been slowly pulling back more direct power for themselves and limiting governance and free expression.

Tension between the democratic government (including a “House of Lords” compromising a collection of less powerful noble leaders on the planet) and the Duke have been rising for years and finally boiled over in the last year, leading to massive riots and work shortages. Eventually the collective government, now calling itself the “Sonnia Democratic Republic” demanded certain reforms from the Duke to expand democratic governance.

Surprisingly, rather than squash this movement, the Duke appeared willing to negotiate the terms presented to him and the last few months have consisted of these negotiations. Meanwhile, the Duke has removed his house guard from the capital of Crossmantown and restricted them to his estate on a private island in the southern archipelagos.

While many in the government were pleasantly surprised by the Duke’s change of heart, others are more suspicious. They suspect the Duke may simply be biding his time until the best opportunity to strike back presents itself. It is this suspicion which gave rise to the garrison contract, as the Sonnian Democratic Republic desired to “beef up” its conventional forces of mostly infantry conscripts to deter the Duke from any such misadventures.

The Avengers are to primarily garrison the capitol city of Crossmantown which is of both a prime strategic and symbolic point on the planet. Crossmantown is a coastal city located in the tropical zone of the planet. The tension of a planet caught up in a democratic revolt aside, the atmosphere couldn’t be better for the Avengers much needed R&R. They spend much of their day training hard, and in the evening play on the beach and in the water.