The Jalaryian Ascendancy often portrays itself as a Technological Utopia, one free of war and suffering, the promise of a bright tomorrow under the guiding and loving hand of Grana. The Technological part is certainly true, but it is far from a Utopia, and parts of the border regions know no such thing as peace, since its foundation, the Ascendancy sought to spread the Light of Grana to human and alien worlds alike. The more primitive and underdeveloped worlds had giving in to the Light and were absorbed by Grana's Interstellar Empire. The Ascendancy's influence had spread mostly unopposed, that is until they had encountered small star-panning civilizations, which of coursed presented more of a challenge. These civilizations had refused to be a part of this growing empire, preferring to hold on to their respective beliefs, religions and ideologies, and unfortunately for them, the Ascendancy took "No" as a none-answer. Only twice in its history had the Ascendancy engaged in open warfare against these smaller powers, and in both of these conflicts they had emerged victorious, the aftermath being an unpleasant one for the citizens of the defeated and for many years had suffered under the iron grip of their Conquerors. Even to the present day, the peoples of these fallen nations struggle and fight against the Ascendancy for gain back their freedom. ------------------------- [b][u] Ascendancy Space World of Kasius Former Kasian Systems Republic [/u][/b] The Kasian Systems Republic was the last and most recent of the smaller powers to fall to the Ascendancy, the war ending nearly thirty years ago. The Systems Republic was once a Independent Human Colony, one of many descendants of colonial rebels fleeing from the Kingdom of Sol's reach. Their new home of Kasius, named after their founder and leader, soon grew as small, but prosperous nation, colonizing over a dozen systems and even coming into contact with several primitive alien species to later absorb. All seemed well until the Ascendancy arrived, at first, the missionaries were allowed access, but soon the Leadership demanded that the republic peacefully surrender sovereignty to Grana and its caretakers, the Ecclesiarchy. The leaders of the Republic refused, just like the previous ones before, leading to a bloody war that would last seven years ending in the final defeat of the Kasian Republic. Thirty years onward, life within the former republic is hell for the citizenry, their continued resistance met with harsh crackdowns and the like. But the Kaisan people persevere through these times with the hope of restoring the Republic and pushing out the Ascendancy. [u]New Dawn City Outlining Slums [/u] [img]http://www.missourah.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/resistance3_opo.jpg[/img] New Dawn, once the Capital City of the Republic, now the Seat of Power for a corrupt System Governor. Although the inner parts of the city remained intact, with more foreign architecture built, the outer parts of the city however were ruined slums, cut off from the central city by large walls and guard posts, forever quarantined. It is here where the "Heretics" and "Apostates" are tossed aside, to live in puerperal poverty. The Outer Slums are as well no stranger to conflict, the sounds of gun and plasma fire echoing through the blasted streets. Rebels often engaging the APEC who often patrol and raid the slums as the well-known rebel strongholds they are. ------ Three humans dressed in old, worn-out military uniforms with bits of armor slapped on dash through the broken down corridors of an old apartment building, one of them wielding an RPG-like weapon. "Hurry! We're not too far." one of them, an old man in his late fifties said. The aged soldier moves ahead as he smashes his way into one of the rooms, where their intended target as to be, half of the room had been blown off, revealing the battle below. A dozen rebels were taking cover behind an assortment of fallen wreckage, exchanging fire against three dozen APEC soldiers supported by three Crusader APC variants as they slowly made their advance. "They're going to overwhelm them!" One of the three rebels, a young woman exclaimed. "Not unless I scare the shit out of 'em!" another said, a young man, who also had in his possession the rocket launcher, he moved silghty ahead and took aim at one of the Crusaders. "Die bastards!" he shouted as he pulled the trigger, the rocket launching out, making an explosive impact with the center APC, scattering it into fiery pieces, sending the APEC troops into chaos for a brief moment, one much needed for the pinned down rebels.