California Free State

California

Overview

Calfornia; The Spanish who found it thought it was an island of dreams. For generations, it has been the dream of riches. From farmers who saw its broad, fertile valleys to the miners who saw its ore-laced streams and mountains, to the movie and technology moguls who crafted dreams from celluloid and silicon.

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History however, shows it to be more of a nightmare.

Founded on gold rush fever, built with blood and developed on technological mastery, she was finally finally brought low by complacency and over confidence. California is a land that has Chaos running in its blood. It's native population was all but eradicated in the Spanish push to missionize the Natives, and finally reduced to scattered, disorgnized bands in the Gold Rush of 1849, the result of laws that allowed the taking of Natives as slave labor.

The wake of the NAN wars saw California as a member-state of the United Canadian and American States, receiving the vast majority of Anglo refugees from the Ute Nation, Pueblo Corporate Council and Salish Shide Council. Even with VITAS and the horrors of the Awakening, California's population and resources were equal to any nation around it.

Once a part of the most powerful nation on earth, the United Canadian and American States, California threatened to go its own way if its demands were not met. The President assisted them in their desires, removing California from the union by act of constitutionally questionable executive orders.

On July 4th, 2036, The day the last UCAS soldier boarded his transports for Seattle or Saint Louis, the newly minted California Free State was invaded twice. To the south, Aztlan invaded San Diego under the pretext of defending their Hispanic brethren. In short order, the entire city was property of Aztechnology. The California Guard, a small force of what had been the California National Guard, under equipped, under trained and poorly led, tried to mobilize to repel them.

Hours later, to the north, as the Cal Guard still tried to find their guns and was rushing south to face Azltan, the elven nation of Tir Tairngire invaded the whole of Northern California, pushing as far down as Redding. Some murmur that there is a secret military alliance between Aztlan and Tir Tairngire. It that is true though they also say that by stopping at San Diego and suing for peace that Aztlan left the Tir to face the brunt of the Californian counter attack.

Faced with assaults on both sides, the governor appealed to the CAS and the UCAS, begging for re-admittance and assistance. When they did not respond quickly enough, the Governor tried to shame the two American powers by calling upon the Japanese Empire to assist. That, as history would show, was like inviting the wolf to guard the flock.

The Japanese landed in record time, flying a division of Imperial Marines directly in to San Francisco in a matter of hours. Much faster than the CAS or UCAS envisioned. The Japanese however, simply became the third occupier of note when they assumed direct control of the San Francisco peninsula as a possession of Japan. The following military-assisted purge of the local Mafia firmly (The Worczek Family) installed the Yakuza as dominant Californian cartel. San Francisco belonged to the Japanese. Taken in the south, taken in the west and taken in the north, California held firm in the center. Guerrilla war forced the Tir back significantly, but much of the Northern California Cascades remained a war zone for 20 years.

I know, you're thinking right now, that California still has Los Angeles! Trid Stars! Fast cars! High Society! Not quite.

Despite the influx of wealthy San Diegan Anglo's to Los Angeles, the city continued to be plagued by high crime, race riots and the same self-centered California attitude that lead to the California Free State as opposed to the State of California. El Infernio, as the sprawl of Los Angeles was known, gave rise to a decker gang that managed to wipe out the 2046 gubernatorial election results. Vowing to get things done, the state government sent in the troops. That turned in to a massive, massive cock-up.

History repeated itself when rather than fix the problem with the anthill they kicked over, Sacramento simply kicked Los Angeles out of California, declaring Los Angeles a free-city and not their problem. In the space of 10 years, California lost it's three most populous and wealthy cities and a vast swath of its resources and watershed. But it still had the agri-corps who called it home, giving it stability and power. Things were bad, but stable.

But if there is one thing California has never enjoyed for long, it was stability. Something in the soul of California requires chaos, either in culture, government or in geology. Sometimes, it's nice enough to package all three together.

In 2063, the Ring of Fire woke and tore the Japanese Empire apart. The new Emperor called all the Marines home to help rebuild. Colonel Kenji Saito, rather than obey, staged a corp-backed Coup de etat against the General in charge of the Japanese Garrison of San Francisco. Over the next few days more troops arrived from other Japanese holdings who were similarly refusing the call. With nearly five full strength divisions, 'General' Saito rolled out and captured nearly half of California completely flat footed.

The only major points of resistance came from the California Rangers, a conglomeration of the Department of Transportation and the Highway Patrol, and the few Cal-Guard units in the way. Most units however, were out of place, down near San Diego or up on the Tir Border. The Rangers, never a front line combat group, but instead a rigger-focused highway law enforcement unit, took horrendous losses but became heroes.

In the same moment, the chaos of the earthquakes of '63, the Pueblo Corporate Council annexed most of Southern California, from the Colorado to the Pacific. Its troops rolled quickly and quietly across the desert, taking Los Angeles and everything in between, much to the annoyance of Aztlan, the Ute Nation and not to mention, California. But, again, California was in no condition to do anything about it.

California Free State is a global hot spot, a state in chaos at the moment. It has no less than four active combat fronts of varying intensities. These four separate battles have fractured the state, leaving the central government almost powerless to act as regional administrators and warlords vie for power and try to hold on what they have left. California is on the verge of being what was once called a Failed State. The implications of this possibility are extremely frightening to the UCAS and other regional powers.

The California Free State

The Japanese Protectorate Of California

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