Foreign Affairs Minister, MIR
Across Chiron's broad grasslands, life continued much as it had long before the Mahporeem Imperial Remnant appeared on the horizon.
Chironian herds crossed beneath open skies. Local freighters rose from scattered settlements and commercial ports. Cargo moved between the surface and orbit while independent haulers carried goods onward toward neighboring systems. Chiron had survived Hutts, Imperials, wars, and the shifting fortunes of the galaxy. Another power extending its influence into the region was hardly reason for the planet to stop turning.
Above them, however, someone was collecting tolls. At first, captains reported isolated attacks. Freighters were intercepted after leaving established shipping lanes, their cargo inspected and a portion confiscated. Crews who cooperated were generally permitted to continue. Those who resisted occasionally disappeared. It was piracy, certainly. But it was unusually disciplined piracy.
The raiders rarely remained in one place long enough to be cornered. Scouts identified approaching vessels before heavier ships moved to intercept them. False distress calls diverted potential victims. Small craft disappeared among the system's clutter while larger vessels retreated to anchorages that Imperial reconnaissance had yet to locate. Rumors spoke of abandoned facilities left from earlier occupations, forgotten stations, and other places where a flotilla could disappear until it was time to hunt again.
More troubling was the pirates' choice of prey. Chironian vessels were rarely bothered. Long-established local shipping concerns reported comparatively few attacks. Some captains admitted paying occasional fees or surrendering minor cargoes, but most described the arrangement as predictable. The pirates understood which vessels belonged in Chiron and apparently preferred not to antagonize them.
Mahporeem vessels enjoyed no such courtesy. Freighters carrying goods to or from the Remnant were being intercepted with increasing regularity. Companies entering into contracts with Mahporeem suddenly discovered their ships attracting unwanted attention. The deeper Imperial commerce reached into the region, the more organized the attacks became.
Then a convoy carrying military components was hit.
The pirates knew its route. They knew its departure time. They knew its cargo. They even knew the strength of its escort. Information that should never have reached Chiron had arrived before the convoy did. Someone had given them the manifest. That changed matters.
Imperial warships entered the Chiron system soon afterward, accompanied by intelligence personnel, diplomats, and representatives tasked with securing Mahporeem's growing interests in the region. Their arrival was welcomed by some. Others were considerably less enthusiastic. To many of Chiron's merchants, there was no crisis requiring Imperial intervention. Their ships still flew. Their cargo still arrived. Their businesses still operated. Whatever arrangement existed between the pirates and Chiron's commercial community had produced something dangerously close to stability.
Now Mahporeem threatened to upset it. The Remnant had a different interpretation. Someone had decided that passage through Chiron belonged to them. Someone had decided which ships could pass safely and which would pay. Someone had decided that Mahporeem would pay.
They were about to learn otherwise.
OBJECTIVE I — BREAK THE TOLL
The pirates have survived by refusing to fight the battle Mahporeem wants. Their flotilla operates from scattered anchorages throughout the Chiron system, using scouts, raiders, false distress calls, concealed staging areas, and rapid hyperspace jumps to strike before Imperial forces can respond.
Find them.
MIR naval forces have been ordered to identify the flotilla's hiding places, isolate its individual elements, and prevent them from simply disappearing when confronted. Destroy or capture enough of the pirate force to break its ability to control traffic through Chiron. Captured vessels and crews may also possess information valuable to the investigation into the attacks.
There are persistent rumors of forgotten installations and abandoned facilities scattered throughout the region. Whether the pirates have made use of such places remains to be discovered.
Suggested Characters: Fleeters, starfighter pilots, Marines, boarding teams, military engineers, privateers, mercenaries, or independent spacers attached to the operation.
OBJECTIVE II — SOMEONE LEFT THE DOOR OPEN
The pirates know too much. Shipping manifests. Departure schedules. Cargo declarations. Planned routes. Escort assignments. Information concerning the attacked military convoy reached Chiron before the convoy itself, and the precision of previous interceptions suggests this was not the first time. Imperial Intelligence has been tasked with tracing the breach.
The information could be coming from inside Mahporeem. A shipping company may have been compromised. Credentials could have been stolen. Communications might be intercepted. Port officials could be selling information. Someone among Chiron's commercial community might be passing manifests to the pirates.
Or someone might simply want Mahporeem shipping to remain dangerous.
Follow the information backward. Identify who had access. Find out how the pirates receive it.
And determine whether this is corruption, espionage, or something considerably larger.
Suggested Characters: Intelligence agents, slicers, investigators, security personnel, spies, bounty hunters, information brokers, law-enforcement types, undercover operatives, or characters with connections to Chiron's commercial or criminal communities.
OBJECTIVE III — THEIR PIRATES, OUR PROBLEM
There is only one problem with Mahporeem's pirate crisis. Many people on Chiron do not believe it is theirs. Chironian merchants and long-established shipping interests have learned how to operate alongside the pirates. Their vessels are rarely attacked, their crews generally return home, and whatever unofficial arrangements have developed have kept local commerce moving.
Now Imperial warships have arrived promising to solve the problem. To some locals, that sounds suspiciously like creating one. Chironian representatives, merchants, freight operators, port authorities, and offworld commercial interests have been invited to meet with Mahporeem representatives. The Remnant needs their cooperation: shipping records, navigational information, knowledge of local traffic patterns, and preferably their public support.
They have reasons to hesitate. Some fear that attacking the flotilla will turn Chiron into a battleground. Others worry about exchanging a tolerable pirate presence for permanent Imperial oversight. Some may know considerably more about the pirates than they are willing to admit.
And a few businesses may have discovered that competitors being attacked while their own ships travel safely is rather good for business.
Persuade them. Reassure them. Bargain with them. Or discover what their cooperation will cost.
Suggested Characters: Diplomats, politicians, Chironian representatives, nobles, corporate representatives, merchants, trade negotiators, fixers, lawyers, intelligence officers operating under diplomatic cover, or well-connected independent characters.
BYOO — BRING YOUR OWN OBJECTIVE
