Igni Irae
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: Expand on a location referenced in another codex sub.
Image Credit: Here. Here. Here.
Canon: N/A.
Permissions: N/A.
Links: Into Darkness, After Darkness, Tephrike, Dominion of Light, Disciples of the Vader, Republican Guard, Popular Front, White Maw, Disciples of the Dust, Crimson Orb Trees, The Key Which Unlocks the Void, Blood Fiends, Hellwasps.
SETTING INFORMATION
City Name: Synorostad
Classification: Ghost Town.
Location: Tephrike.
Affiliation: Tephrike.
Population: Insignificant
Demographics: The original population of Synorostad was decimated by plague, strife and war. Very little of it remains. The inhabitants of the ghost town are partisans, scoundrels, and fugitives who are squatting in the ruins. The 'residents' tend to belong to a variety of alien species. As elaborated on further below, the town is home to a variety of non-sentient life, for nature has reclaimed what was once taken from it. Wookiees, humans, Cathar and Bothans used to be prominent among the inhabitants. Scattered groups can still found in the ruins, but none are large in number. Yuuzhan Vong, Rodians and Twi'leks can also be found in the Republican Guard's base. The Ashspawn have a very small presence in the city to watch for potential 'recruits' amongst the living when they die. It can't be anyone who gets blown apart or torn to pieces, but someone who dies of a bullet to the chest could be useful to recruit if they have information.
Wealth: Poor. Synorostad lacks an overarching government that could ensure law and order or promote economic growth. It goes without saying that basic services such as a proper drainage system, electricity and such are essentially unavailable. Plague and strife have stripped the town of almost its entire population. The few people who live here are fugitives, gang members or rebels. What communities exist are essentially small, tribalistic groups. As a result, economic activity does not go beyond subsistence level. The sole exception is the illicit cultivation and smuggling of exotic animals and narcotics. But this is insufficient to stimulate meaningful growth. The Republican Guard, perhaps the most organised group, is mainly interested maintaining its underground supply base and generating some funds for its war against its enemies.
Moreover, invasive overgrowth wreaked havoc on Synorostad's infrastructure, making it very difficult to access. To all intents and purposes, Synorostad is a ghost town and a No Man's Land located on a war-torn planet largely cut off from the rest of the galaxy. The presence of unexploded ordnance does not help. Conventional fuel is extremely hard to acquire, and so people living here often have to resort to horse-drawn carts, bicycles or banthas to transport cargo. Rainfalls can reduce the roads leading to the city into nigh-impassable mudslides, which means that reaching Synorostad in a vehicle is quite difficult anyway.
Stability: Low. Life in Synorostad is defined by pervasive lawlessness, as there is no organised government or judiciary. It is mitigated by the fact that the population is minuscule. Synorostad is very unsafe for travellers to visit. Not just because there are criminal gangs and the fugitives are suspicious of intruders, but also because nature has reclaimed the city. Indeed, Mother Nature is probably more dangerous than sentients. All manner of predators, parasites and even carnivorous plants abound. The larger factions on Tephrike have, by and large, abandoned the place and consider it a ghost town. The difficulty of reclaiming it from the jungle undoubtedly plays a role in this. Synorostad is widely considered cursed on Tephrike. Indeed, some fear the plague has not been entirely banished. These fears are unfounded, but there are many other reasons to avoid it. Some say that ghosts of the dead still linger and haunt its decrepit buildings.
Somehow a couple war droids and automated drones left behind by the Vaderites still function and follow the last command that was input into them: shooting any sentient being that moves. The Vaderites decided rebuilding Synorostad was not worth the effort, but they don't want anyone else to do it either. The machines have not had an update for a long time, so if a Vaderite conscript happened to end up in Synorostad, they would probably target him, too. The locals have been able to corrupt the programming of some of the machines.
Here and there, the Vaderites drop a few bombs if they notice clusters of civilisation in the ruins. Usually, their victims are civilian refugees. This is target practice for their pilots. They get to say they have wiped out a 'terrorist nest' without exposing themselves to actual danger. Taxpayers' money at work, comrades. As of late, the frequency of these air raids has decreased since someone in Imperial high command has noticed the waste of resources. The few Ashspawn in the city keep to themselves and hide their presence. Their main interest lies in observing the other groups, procuring new 'recruits' and acquiring knowledge of the pre-Dark Age era. The sentient undead tend to be Disciples of the Dust or their escorts.
The Dominion of Light has a small observation cell. It does not include any Jedi, but some trusted 'randoms' scattered among the refugees. The main reason for their presence is to ensure that they are informed of their enemy's moves and also to report if anything of interest is found in the ruins or nearby forests. They also acquire some of the drugs and unusual items. It goes without saying that this is not a prestigious posting. However, some of the agents prefer it that way because it means the oppressive Dominion's leash on them is a loose one, even if means being stuck far away from civilisation. Besides, they can make a profit by getting involved in the Key trade. Indeed, the Inquisition suspects that many of the alleged agents have actually 'gone native' and are actively falsifying reports.
Freedom & Oppression: In a way, freedom is incredibly high, as Synorostad lacks a government, police force or judiciary. No lawman will fine a visitor for ignoring speed limits. Nothing is forbidden, everything is permitted. But naturally this also means there is no protection save one's own wits, resources and martial strength. Partisans from a rebel movement have set up shop in the tunnels beneath the town and do not take kindly to intruders or trespassers. They may hang a perceived enemy from a lamp post or a tree to make the point clear.
Moreover, some criminal groups have occupied a few abandoned structures, recognising no law other than their own. Some are just fugitives trying to escape a horrible war, but others simply cutthroats, slavers and other awful people. None of these groups actually rule the town. They are not numerous enough and it lacks the strategic significance. But they will not hesitate to kill an intruder if it suits their purposes. That said, it is quite possible someone who happens to visit Synorostad might not come across sentient life at all. Visitors will be busy trying to keep the forest from being the death of them.
Description:
Decimated by plague, devastated by war, and reclaimed by nature, Synorostad is a ghost town. The ruined city lies in the south of Tephrike. In the old days it was an important urban centre on the Tephrike. Back then it was a hub for the timber, rubber and pharmaceutical industry. But now it is a far cry from that. Synorostad is built on a plateau near a lake. The small city has been virtually depopulated by the Gulag Plague and swallowed by nature. Most buildings lie in ruin and are heavily overgrown. Structures have been devoured by plant life, for invasive overgrowth had triumphed over stone, metal and industry. The roads have fallen into a state of disrepair.
Rainfalls can turn the roads leading to the city into mud trails. Entrances and entire roads have been sealed off by vines and branches. It seems eerily devoid of sentient life. Ancient vehicles have gone to rust. Wild animals roam the streets. Magic mushrooms and carnivorous plants grow in the fields. Growing at a faste rate, vines and branches have blocked off roads. Large apartment buildings are eeriely silent. No children play at the playground or learn lessons at school. Entire districts have been utterly denuded of sentient life.
Here and there, one may find relics from a better time. The natives and travellers alike marvel at the idea that once upon a time there were large stores that sold goods in abundance. Here and there, one may come across faded grafitti or propaganda posters. A visitor may find a damaged, and probably rusty groundcar, speeder or tank standing in the streets. Creepers may have latched on to the wreck. They will also spot skeletons, long stripped of flesh by vultures. Some bodies still hang from lampposts, often with a placard hanging around their neck that proclaims them to be a traitor to this or that cause. The writing may be difficult to read at this point.
Without pause, the root systems of the trees and strangler figs devour the ancient structures. Magic mushrooms grow in the new fields of green. Parasites of all sorts abound. The Sarvorium Herb and the Rokna Tree Fungus grow in the forest that has overrun the city. The highly addictive drug Rokna blue is derived from the fungus. Above all, Crimson Orb trees dot the ruined the city, and are harvested by various parties. Animals, who once had to withdraw into the forest and yield ground to civilisation, are populous again. Examples include boars, Banthas, Nexu, giant snakes, feral Akk Dogs and escaped Sithspawn that have gone feral. Pigs, goats and dogs roam freely. A Terentatek has been sighted. There also some Yuuzhan Vong beasts such as Radanks, Quednaks, Sacbees and Umrachs. Fearsome Thrakesion Jungle Devils have made their homes in the ruins, for the trees offer them excellent ambush locations and they are able to burrow beneath the earth. Blood Fiends abound where it is wet. Hellwasps are also common, for the trees and the ruins offer manifold places for them to set up nests. Travellers should beware their incredibly nasty sting, for the wasps are both dangerous, and fiercely territorial.
There are also dangerous mosquitoes that can act as vectors for many disease-causing viruses, as well as fast-growing creeper creatures that latch on to anything solid and are almost impossible to remove without severing the branch. Carnivorous plants similar to those on Felucia grow here, too. Some plants have strong psychedelic properties, which can cause irrational emotional reactions such as hysteria, psychosis and paranoia. But predators are not the only danger a traveller might face.
Travellers should beware unexploded ordnance. A long time ago, Synorostad was a battleground. Broken streets and bombed-out buildings bear the marks of ruthless shelling and airstrikes. The city was heavily bombarded. Bombs have left giant craters. The Vaderites were particularly fond of dropping cluster bomb munitions, while the Republican Guard made liberal use of land mines. Thus there are bombs, shells, land mines and so on that did not explode and still pose a risk of detonation. Some corroded artillery shells may contain chemical warfare agents.
In addition, some of the buildings have been booby-trapped more recently. For while Synorostad has been all but denuded of sentient life, it has not been entirely abandoned. The Republican Guard, a revolutionary movement that seeks to wrest control of Tephrike from the tyrannical Jedi and Sith cults, maintains a secret underground base called Devastation Deeps. The clandestine outpost is an important part of the partisans' logistics network. The inhabitants of Devastation Deeps conduct patrols on the surface and have set up some motion sensors to warn them of intruders. They also venture into the city to hunt and forage. But overall their presence is low-key. Developing the surface above is not really in their interests because its present state camouflages their presence. Their realm consists of the underground tunnels and they often only leave them at night under the cover of darkness to hunt, scout and send transmissions.
The rebels do not rule the city, and have made no meaningful attempt to establish a surface presence of note, but hunt and grow crops topside. They tolerate the cultivation of mushrooms and the harvesting of Key for pragmatic reasons. The revolution will not fund itself. Underground channels are used to smuggle the finished product into the territory of its enemies. It is a way to acquire funds and undermine them from within. Scattered bands of fugitives and criminals have taken up residence in some of the abandoned, ruined buildings.
The partisans have entered a pragmatic arrangement with certain criminal groups. The rebels summarily execute sentient traffickers, but tolerate and tax the smuggling of animals, drugs etc. But the town has no real ruler, police force or municipal government. There is no law in Synorostad, save that of survival. And power comes out of the barrel of a gun. The Republican Guard is mainly focused on keeping the exact nature of its underground presence secret. The tunnels allow it to transport supplies and personnel without fear of being bombarded by its enemies, and the base allows it to provide sanctuary for its personnel, coordinate operations and manufacture armaments and munitions. They are not too interested in what goes on above ground unless it threatens their operations.
POINTS OF INTEREST
Stone of the Lost Souls - A stone of remembrance that has been set up above ground in the city. Surrounded by ruins and trees, it is a bit opague, though the rebels know what it stands for. It is dedicated to the citizens of the city who died during the Plague, as well as the Republican Guard soldiers who were killed during a bloody battle with the Vaderites. It is a simple, great fair stone. Twelve feet long, it is lacking in ostentatious decoration. The phrase 'their souls liveth forevermore' has been inscribed upon the stone.
Rubara Haerl Interstellar Spaceport - Named after a Cathar explorer and cartographer who served as the first head of the colony. Suffice to say the port no longer gets any traffic, interstellar or otherwise. A good portion of the roof has collapsed. The few starships that remain in its docking bays have long gone to rust, and are no longer functional. In many cases, fast-growing creeper creatures have latched onto them. Much of the building has been consumed by green. Unexploded ordnance poses a risk.
Founders' Monument - a statue of Synorostad's official founder and first head of the colony. Far-left groups disliked the statue due to its associaton with the Corpo era. Humanists hated it too since it glorified an 'alien feline'. This is ironic since they kept clamouring about wanting to defend 'proud and storied traditions'. War and strife have done what votes failed to do. Today, the statue is broken. Only the legs to the knee are left.
Unity Bridge - a bridge which has collapsed leaving a gaping hole. A very, very dangerous timber span has been erected across the gap. Basically a handful of logs lashed together without a handrail. Only for the particularly brave or foolish to cross.
Freedom Road - an unremarkable track through the forest. So named because the Republican Guard used it to evacuate allies and civilians. Many of the escapees perished, but some made it back to friendly lines. It leads into the mountains and then down to the distant swamps where the escapees were received by the partisans, who ferried them away by boat.
Timberline Ridge - Once upon a time this was a pleasant housing suburb, which had plan housing for the middle class with a cheery sign at the entrance. At one stage a tank rammed the sign and drove over half of it. This used to be one of the most attractive places to live in. Then the plague and the war came. Now it has been turned into rubble. Gangs and animals dwell in the overgrown ruins. Travellers should watch their step and keep their eyes open. Ghosts of the dead are said to linger here.
Synorastad Lumber Collective - old Tephriki names lacked the floweryness of their later descendants. This is an industrial site - timber related due to the forest. It used to be one of Synorostad's main job creators. Now it is abandoned and rusted, but forms a good place for gangs to hideout. Thus control may be contested.
Synorostad Municipal Rail Network - or SMRN for short. An underground station with tunnels. Vaderite soldiers feared venturing into the tunnels since they were ambushed in the darkness, so they resorted to nerve gas. It is a smallish network, but the tunnels are great for the Republican Guard or other parties to move cargo and personnel around safely, except for the manifold beasts lurking within. The careless risk being ambushed by a Thrakesion Jungle Devil.
The Rampart - this used to be a defence structure for the local police. Ironically built on the original pirate base before they were driven out. Now mostly ruined though the underground vaults are well protected and still partly intact. Fighting took place here during the battle. The Vaderites used it as a command post, but a slave was able to smuggle in explosives and suicide bomb a meeting. A few Ashspawn live in the vaults now. They conceal their true nature by pretending to be a smuggling syndicate, which trades Mind Taint Weed that grows in the area around Palmyra's Wail, as well as other commodities.
Horizon Tower - An abandoned residential building. The carefully hidden trap door that is the main entrance to the rebel base has been set up nearby. The building was put under quarantine during the Gulag Plague, which decimated its inhabitants. Today, it lies in ruins. Trees have grown, and vines and grass have overtaken stone and metal. Banthas like to graze here.
Scarlet Grove - a wild grove of Crimson Orb trees growing there which the Republican Guard picks and processes to sell down the line. The partisans have a laboratory in their underground base. Taking drugs yourself is severely punished by the rebels...but they have no qualms about working with smugglers to sell the product in Dominion or Vaderite territory.
Synorosyad United Rubber Works - an old rubber factory. The trees produce rubber, and so it was one of the city's major industries. Centuries ago, poor working conditions at the factory triggered a workers' strike that led to the fall of the Corpo regime. The United Rubber Works have seen better days, but rubber is still a commodity the scant few inhabitants trade.
Synorostad Community Hospital - formerly the city's main hospital, but now defunct. The hospital was overwhelmed by the outbreak of the Gulag Virus. It suffered from severe shortages. By the time the Vaderites clashed with the partisans, only a skeleton staff remained. The Vaderites combed the hospital for 'saboteurs'. Alien patients were evicted and murdered unless they were deemed capable of work or used as human shields. At the time it still had a few Twi'lek doctors. At first they were allowed to keep working, but then shot. Ironically, the last ones to be killed were tending to human patients - some of them wounded Vaderite soldiers - who begged their comrades to spare their caretakers. The partisans retaliated with summary executions of wounded Vaderites. While the morgue is still pretty intact, the upper floors have decayed. Nonetheless, the building can provide some shelter for fugitives.
Andronikos Dyrran University of Synorostad - Named after a human rebel who organised supplies and safehouses for fugitives during the Imperial era. The name rubs the Republican Guard's alien-centric elements the wrong way. Served as an improvised partisan strongpoint during the battle. The rebel-held campus was fortified, with bunkers, and machine gun nests. The battle has taken a heavy toll on the university. Up to sixty percent of its buildings were levelled. The library was almost completely destroyed by Vaderite artillery fire.
Devastation Deeps - A clandestine Republican Guard base located far below the surface. The base is well-guarded, the tunnels to reach it are incredibly narrow and filled with manifold traps and dangerous creatures. Conditions inside the tunnels are cramped and they are riddled with various dangerous creatures. However, they also provide the rebels with a sanctuary. They only emerge from the darkness to look after their crops or go on missions. To ensure the survival of the community, the base has air vents, secret exists, hidden entrances and various defensive measures, such as traps and trapdoors.
SECURITY
Low. No formal barriers such as defence cannons, an organised garrison or a shield generator. Devastation Deeps has its own security measures, as detailed in its own submission, but it is underground. However, there are informal barriers such as natural hazards, gangs, plenty of mines and unexploded warheads.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Translated into common Basic, Synorostad means Frontier City. The name is fitting, since it was the first settlement to be founded on Tephrike, a remote world on the galactic fringe. The planet was colonised in the centuries leading up to the twilight of the Old Republic. The first settlers were pirates. In contrast to some groups, these were not lovable rogues who never did any slaving or raiding. Regardless, it was the splinter group of a pirate faction called the White Maw.
They were known for their toughness and resistance to the elements. The corsairs founded their base around a damaged starship and then used droids and fire to clear fell the forest around. In the process they came across the Crimson Orb trees, whose red fruit could be harvested to produce a highly addictive narcotic. However, they did not penetrate far, for many dangers lurked in the forest. For a while, the jungle and Tephrike's remoteness provided them with a natural defence. However, their hideout did not remain obscure for long. Corporate prospectors took an interest in the all but uninhabited planet, for it was rich in natural resources. Thus the pirates were driven out by Corpo security forces.
The Corpos built their original settlement on top of the pirate outpost, but then branched out. The site became the main base of their militia and police force. It soon turned out that conditions on Tephrike were very difficult. Mosquitoes, parasites and predators of all types abounded. Certain fungi had the unfortunate habit of devouring metal. The dense foliage made communications difficult. However, the resources seemed to make it worth the investment. A hardy draft of colonists, indentured labourers and convicted felons came to settle here to make a frontier living. The Corpos were not shy about press-ganging or 'persuading' colonists to sign exploitative contracts. This was not entirely legal, but Tephrike was far away from the galactic centre. Synorostad was built on a plateau with access to water.
Heavy forests lay all around it, but there was some open land, too. The local authorities built a road to secure access to the ore mines that lay further inland. However, there is a reason corporations rarely bother to directly administrate a planet instead of simply bribing politicians to do as they like. In the long term it is not profitable. Not only did other groups, chief among them aquatic aliens, discover Tephrike and refuse to play ball, the colonists grew unruly. Unfair working conditions led to a workers' strike. One of the reasons for the protest was the use of chain gangs, a particularly brutal practice to punish convicts. Foreign mercenaries had to be deployed when several native militia deserted rather than fire on the workers. The contractors' response was predictably brutal.
Diminished profits did not justify the investment. Moreover, the Jedi Order got involved after receiving reports of 'debt slavery', abuse of workers and environmental degradation. The Corpos' connections in the Senate helped their masters avoid serious consequences, as they pinned the blame on local agents. However, the Corpos left the city, and Tephrike's fledgling democratic federation took shape. To reflect the changing times, the new government chose to set up the capital elsewhere at a more central location. Synorostad was left to be a resource extraction place.
Like all Republic worlds, Tephrike fell under the sway of the Galactic Empire after the coronation of Emperor Palpatine. The Imperial Moff imposed a despotic, cleptocratic regime, using human supremacist groups as his main support base. Ironically, Synorostad's relative obscurity turned out to be a blessing in disguise, for it allowed the settlement to become a runaway haven during the Imperial era. However, many inhabitants died from starvation when the Moff closed off Tephrike in a vain bid to preserve his regime. The New Republic-backed rebellion was able to organise an air lift. Following the Imperial regime's downfall, Synorostad received aid from the new government and was able to recover.
In the decades leading up to the outbreak of the Gulag Virus, Synorostad was a small city and a bit isolated, but not tiny. The streets were well-developed and a big distance was kept to the forest. But the city experienced an economic downturn. Moreover, Tephrike's increased political polarisation did not leave Synorostad untouched. A sizeable fraction of its human population supported Winston Stakes, a corrupt businessman who ran on a platform to 'make Tephrike grand'. He was not shy about seeking the endorsement of Imperial sympathisers. His incendiary rhetoric was good at galvanising those who felt the political and business elites in distant Palmyra had abandoned them. He even got some votes from non-humans, despite his xenophobia.
On the day he was elected as prime minister of the planet, liberal and alien rights groups took to the streets in protest. His term as prime minister introduced a new era of political divisiveness and was mired in corruption scandals. Stakes did not win re-election due to his mismanagement of the Golden Future Binary Fusion Plant meltdown, but refused to concede, making fraudulent allegations of vote fraud. Synorostad was rocked by protests and counter-protests.
However, it was the Gulag Virus sent the city descending into chaos. As is so often the case, sentient nature contributed to this and made an already horrible crisis even worse. Panic, fearmongering and conspiracy theories played their part. The local government was reluctant to take the necessary steps out of fear of irreparably damaging the economy. Moreover, rabid protesters refused to adhere to proper safety measures and accused shadowy elites of spreading the virus. Human supremacist groups initiated a brutal pogrom against aliens, blaming them for the outbreak. Supposed 'plaguebearers' were assaulted on the street or in their homes, beaten up or even lynched. Homes and shops were ransacked.
The alien inhabitants of Synorostad included, among others, Wookiees, Bothans and Cathars, who knew how to defend themselves, and so they responded with force, arming themselves against the right-wing thugs by forming paramilitary groups of their own since the government had failed and certain members of the police force were complicit in the mob violence. They formed a camp in the woods. A violent mob of far-right thugs formed a 'militia' to roust them out, but got bushwhacked and almost wiped out. A Cathar militia then carried out a retaliatory strike in the town itself to avenge the deaths of their friends at the hands of humanists.
Typically, the human supremacist thugs petitioned parliament to protect them against 'xenos mob violence'. Gang and militia violence became common, as the city was split into various armed camps. Alien solidarity was not ironclad either. At the same time quack doctors peddled miracle cures, undermining the efforts of responsible members of the medical community to find a way to save lives from the virus. Synorostad became a shadow of its former self, while Tephrike was plunged into a Dark Age. Over time, its population plummeted. Only the most stubborn and those with nowhere else to go remained.
This was the state the city was in when the Republican Guard and the Disciples of the Vader clashed. The Republican Guard, a revolutionary vanguard movement, promised equality of all the races and freedom from the tyranny of the Force. Unsurprisingly, it sought support among the underprivileged and the non-human population. The Disciples of the Vader were a fanatical Sith cult that believed in human supremacy. The far-right remnant was reluctant to join them, as the Disciples believed that only Force-Users could rule, but they were brought in line. Similar the Guard's alliance with Wookiee and Cathar natives was not entirely harmonious due to its stance on Force-Users.
Regardless, Synorostad was devastated by the battle. The Republican Guard's supreme commander Sinya Kairn, a clone trooper who had defected from the Dominion's clone slave army, led the Republican Guard on a series of campaigns. She made an alliance with Tephrike's Yuuzhan Vong. Having been stranded here at the end of the war many centuries ago, the Vong had by and large integrated. However, the Vaderites regarded them as abominations and launched a genocidal campaign against them. The partisans welcomed them as shock troops. Sinya was a successful warlord and very aggressive in expanding the Republican Guard's territory, fighting warlords, the Vaderites and others. Psychological reasons played her role. Like with many first generations clones, Sinya's creation had been rushed. Her advanced aging was taking a toll on her and she suffered from health problems. She knew that she only had a limited window before she died or was unable to lead and wanted the Guard to be as strong as possible.
The Vaderites vilified her as a demon, but she embraced her notoriety and they learned to fear her. However, while successful, many of her conquests were not lasting. She was a great general, but a poor political leader. The Guard was driven by fervour and good commanders, but suffered from overextension. Internal rivalries also played a role. The partisans managed to seize large parts of Synorostad in a lightning strike, but as the Vaderites pushed them back, the city became a war zone. Having failed to beat the Vaderites conventionally, the partisans switched to unconventional urban warfare. The battle was a meat grinder. What was left of the city was devastated during the slaughter. The Vaderites carried out savage massacres against non-humans, not even sparing children. Prisoners were generally shot out of hand on both sides.
Sinya herself died in battle, fighting a Vaderite army. Her troops had been encircled by the enemy and she led one of several assaults in order to secure their breakout. The breakthrough was successful, but partisan casualties were staggering. The partisans managed to hide most of the immobile wounded along with nurses, taking refuge in caves, tunnels and in the forest. However, the Vaderites searched the area with kath hounds and killed the wounded almost to the last, along with the nurses. A large number of civilians were also killed, though some escaped.
In his final report, the Vaderite commander described the rebels as well organised, skillfully led and with combat morale unbelievably high. Sinya had fallen in battle. She was hailed as a martyr by the rebels. Close to the tail-end of the battle, Dominion pilots executed a strategic bombing ruin of the city to weaken both sides. Devastated by the battle, and decimated by the plague, Synorostad was largely abandoned. Over time, it was swallowed by nature, and the Republican Guard returned. The rebel movement had taken stock and decided upon a strategy of partisan warfare, realising that it lacked the manpower and industrial capacities to fight and win a conventional war against its enemies.
Eventually, the Republican Guard returned to set up a clandestine underground base. It was called Devastation Deeps. It became a vital component in their network, serving as a sanctuary, supply base and logistics centre. But they were not the only group that took an interest. Criminal gangs feuded over drugs and exotic items. Automated drones originally unleashed by the Vaderites had been left behind. The Netherworld Crisis did not affect Synorostad that much since it already had not had an organised government in the first place. Anarchy cannot break out if it already holds sway.
Perhaps its few inhabitants had already been conditioned to accept horror that even the raptures did not phase them unduly. However, the city received an influx of new inhabitants in the form of a few Ashspawn infiltrators. Having broken out of their confinement in the Palmyra's Wail nexus, the sentient zombies sought information about what had become of their homeworld - and new hideouts for their people. Some of the dead were in good enough condition to be raised, and the Ashspawn watched for potential 'recruits' among the living when they died. And they communed with the ghosts. To mask their presence, the Ashspawn hid behind the cover of being a smuggling syndicate.
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