Blood Dragons

The Blood Dragons are a terrorist organization supposedly descended from the royal guard of Shogun Hideyoshi -- deposed during a coup several centuries before -- and dedicated to the overthrow of the current Kusari government.

Synopsis
The Blood Dragons are modern Ronin - masterless warriors who hope to find a new master that can abolish the corruption and stagnation of the Kusari government and restore the Hideyoshi family to power.

History
The history of the Blood Dragons goes back to the fourth century. The founding members of the group were the Shogun's Royal Guard during the Hideyoshi family dynasty. In a bloody coup during the celebration of the revived Sakura festival in 321 AS, the Shogun was surrounded in the palace by Samura-backed elements of the military and asked to surrender, along with the Royal Guard. The Shogun, humiliated by the shame he had brought his family, committed suicide. The guards, headed by Kozue Okamura, did not acquiesce so easily. In a bloody battle, they fought their way out of the palace and retreated into the darkness of northern Kusari space. Here they regrouped and began a long guerrilla campaign aimed at overthrowing the Samura-controlled Kusari government

The Blood Dragons are a tight group who hold the sympathy and support of individuals in the highest levels of Kusari government. They periodically launch surgical strikes and commando raids from their Kyoto base designed to destabilize the current government to the point where sympathetic officials could potentially seize power. Blood Dragons prefer to target Samura and Kusari Naval Forces bases and ships, although they occasionally attack other House shippers for supplies.

The group is loosely allied with the Golden Chrysanthemums, who provide refuge and a forward tactical base for assault crews in the Hokkaido system. The Golden C. also provide many of the essential Commodities that the Blood Dragons need, a critical function given the complete lack of Blood Dragon landing rights within the rest of Kusari space. The Chugoku Gate construction is viewed as a direct threat to the continued survival of the group.

After Governor Tekagi's discovery of the Proteus Tome inside the asteroid that would eventually become his fortress, the Order contacted the Blood Dragons to offer them an alliance, with an agreement to share any information that either side uncovers in relation to the increasing threat of the alien race known as the Nomads, although many years later Order and Blood Dragon scientists would learn that the Nomads' real name was the Slomon K'Hara. A lot of the information, however, refers to an ancient race known as the Daam-K'vosh, who had existed for millions of years but inexplicably vanished many millennia ago, and a great deal of the language could not even be translated.

Ryuku base was built in 798 A.S. as a forward observation post, shortly before the completion of Tekagi's Arch, and the Blood Dragons immediately began moving in the necessary equipment to repair and rearm their fighters in preparation for the eventual assault on the fortress. Several Order agents were also based onboard, conducting observations and interrogations of a number of kidnapped personnel from military transports heading from the fortress to the Hokkaido system.

Eventually, in early 801 A.S., the Blood Dragons were contacted by several associates and, along with a freelancer by the name of Edison Trent, successfully launched a raid against the fortress to recover a Daam-K'vosh artifact called the Proteus Tome. Governor Tekagi was killed in the fighting, as were many of his Nomad-controlled followers. The rest fell into disarray and retreated towards an unknown jump hole in the Tohoku system and escaped. The Proteus Tome was eventually taken by the freelancer to the Order, which eventually resulted in the defeat of the Nomads.

In recent years, however, Nomad and Wild activity has been increasing; this has led to speculation that Tekagi's former followers may have returned to wreak revenge on the Blood Dragons for their part in the loss of the Proteus Tome and the death of the governor.

Known Bases

 * Kyoto Base, Chugoku
 * Ryuku Base, Tohoku
 * Sendai Research Complex, Okinawa