Blackout

…the political state in Blackout was frayed. Six Dukes had been murdered and replaced in the space of half a year. Blackout was in disarray. In panic. In disaster. Then, suddenly from the shadows, arose a new figurehead. One that would make the very streets of Chaos tremble in fear. Quake had arrived.

Some called him a hero, some called him the exact opposite. What he wanted was clear though: Chaos’s territory was to be his dominion. He claimed it without contest – beating down all opposition. It was then that he began his work to change Chaos forever.

The rising number of Marshals in Blackout was threatening the stability of the entire sector. Some Dukes bowed to Captain Samuel Red’s influence, but others stood against. Quake made his message clear: Marshals are not required in his dominion.

So it remained. The Marshals could not gain control over Quake’s dominion and within it a new system of rules were set up. Murder was highly discouraged. All disputes were to be settled either peacefully or in a violent duel overseen by Quake himself (in latter years, Quake’s inner circle would also come to oversee these duels). The system worked. The strongest quickly rose to power, but the murderous ways of Chaos soon settled. There was peace of a sort but it worked.

The size of the Marshals and Quake’s dominion distracted from a number of other, quieter, operations in Blackout. For instance, nobody noticed as more and more lizards and BOBs were abducted from fighting pits…

Source - The Inversion, published 2681

The Council of Six is the grand term given to the meeting of the six “dukes” of the dominant regions of Blackout, although this rarely happens on an official basis. The remnants of the Marshal incursion into Blackout keep petty squabbles from becoming too much of an issue in the regions that they have control, but each leader keeps to themselves.

The Six dukes are:

• Captain Samuel Red controls the upper part of Blackout adjacent to red sector. Originally mapped to be the first stage into reclaiming Blackout for the rest of the ship, corruption has spread and the gangs of the sector have nested their way into the system such that it is almost part of Blackout itself. Marshals and Enforcement Officers still carry authority here, but they’re nowhere near as regimented as elsewhere on the ship. Unorthodox methods are far more customary here and Marshals stationed elsewhere on the ship tend to frown upon their colleagues stationed in Blackout.

• The Geriatric has half of the lower part of Blackout next to Red Sector. He accepts the patrols of Marshals and holds a surprisingly large store of cybernetics. The Black Market is prevalent here and the Blackout Marshals seem to accept it as simply a part of the inevitable character of Blackout.

• Duke Anthea Viteri maintains control over a small area spanning 10 levels in the centre of Blackout once controlled by her mother, Alice, and continues to hold complete, enforced controls of the only large, functional fabbers in the sector, circumventing the systems to allow anything to be fabbed. Her control has barely changed in her time in command and she follows in her mother’s footsteps of not seeking to try to advance her enclave. Marshal control is accepted here, but quite clearly not enforced.

• Duke Matthew Black continues to lead a large community of committed Children of Earth followers in Blackout, controlling the upper levels adjacent to the Oxygen Forest. Marshal control is not prevalent here.

• Quake holds the lowest levels next to the Oxygen Forest, considered the deepest part of Blackout. Considerable progress has been made here and, despite its brutal and violent laws, it is perhaps one of the most lawful areas of Blackout (possible for fear of the consequences of changing that). Arguably, it could become part of the ship again, if it weren’t for the continued resistance of the residents. It continues to operate on its own legal system and will seem to do so for the foreseeable future. Marshals are still seemingly unwelcome here.

• Duke Madeleine Black controls the other half of the lower part of Blackout next to Red Sector. Having cut a deal with the Geriatric to ensure that Piers Red is kept firmly out of the area, she has pretty much free reign. The pinnacle of Madeleine’s duchy is a casino “Valhalla” which has roaring trade – especially after the demise of Acheron.

Source – compiled notes labelled “A Short Brief on Blackout” dated shortly before achieving Geostationary Orbit around Eva