I: HISTORY[]
Blue Dragons, left to right--Guard, Wong Sai Sci, Tieren, Guard
Formerly the prime Syndicate on the Frontier, the Blue Dragon Syndicate, also known as the Blue Dragon Tong, traces its lineage to the late 19th century on Earth, when they facilitated he transport of Chinese immigrants to America to work in mines and on building the railroads. Established initially to "protect" these immigrants, it soon became clear that their true goal was the covert accrual of power and profit.
The maintained some influence in various countries on the globe, diversifying into legitimate business like construction and electronics. Indeed, following the Global Crisis of 2059, their interests were at the forefront of the push to colonize space which would lead to Earth's unification in 2062 and the implementation of the Century Plan in 2065.
The Blue Dragons controlled the men and materials that laid the groundwork for the race to colonize the solar system. By the dawn of the 2100s, when the establishment of the outpost at Charon marked the end of the first phase of the Century Plan (the colonization/fortification of the solar system) the Blue Dragons had established a model for expanding their organization wherever humans would go in the stars.
Inevitably, this only increased their riches, as it always seemed that the Blue Dragons or some representative thereof would stake a claim to some facet of the colonization business. By 2112, the Syndicate held controlling interests in several shipyards, terraforming companies, and communication companies.
When contact with the Khephren came in 2114, the Blue Dragons were able to establish a close relationship with the mercantile empire. Of all the aliens that the Blue Dragons would have contact with, the Kehphren would be the one government with which they would inextricably ally themselves with, an alliance which continues to this day.
The establishment of contacts between the Blue Dragons and the Khephren would ultimately lead to the Syndicate establishing a base on the Khephren colony of Khalis. The first such non-Khephren colony in their space, this cements the alliance between them and allows the Blue Dragons a safe haven for their profiteering enterprises during the Rigellian War.
In the wake of the Rigellian War, the colony on Khalis becomes the crown jewel of the Blue Dragon empire under the command of Mao Xai Jian and his master assassin Toraires Ata'e. With the peacemaking of the Rigellian War opening up the sector of space known as the Frontier, the ruling council elects to send Mao Xai Jian to establish a base of operations for the Syndicate at Kuran, the large colony and free port at the entry to the Frontier.
Xai Jian flourishes at Kuran, with Toriares and later Kienan Ademetria under his command. During his tenure as ruler, he successfully deals with threats from within and without, establishing vital commercial interests in the new section of space, all of which raise his profile in the organization.
Perhaps fearing his growing prestige, the ruling council dispatch [GMB4 guy whose name I still can't remember] with the intention of putting someone more tractable in his position, or failing that, allowing them a bit more say in Xai Jian's decision-making.
The ruling council's role in the attempted coup that left Mao Xai Jian, his daughter Korin, and [GMB4 guy] dead, the Kuran branch decimated and Kienan Ademetria a wanted renegade are unclear at this time. It is generally assumed that while they had no knowledge of the plot, they would not have stopped the conspirators from executing Xai Jian had the plan been carried out covertly.
In the wake of the conspiracy, the Blue Dragons have fallen on hard times, as without Xai Jian's leadership and no one strong enough to bring the various operations in the Frontier under control, or even to achieve a symbolic victory and capture the still-at-large Ademetria, it seems the "glory days" of the Syndicate on the Frontier are over. The story is ongoing.
II: CHARACTERISTICS
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The Blue Dragons are a vertically integrated organization, with a ruling council of nine members, referred to as "province-masters." Each has an equal voice in the direction of the Syndicate, thus there is no real leader invested with final authority.
Below the province masters are regional commanders, such as Mao Xai Jian. These men are entrusted with command of large sectors of space and are generally charged with maintaining the Syndicates sphere of influence. There is no proscribed method for the regional commanders holding established armies, and thus every organization has adapted slightly differently. Generally a regional commander will retain a small force of guardsmen and employ freelance assassins and gunhunters as needed, although some officially retain a master assassin and entrust him with executing operations.
Below the regional commanders are the local chiefs, who generally control one colony per chief. Their primary responsibility is to collect money from the various Syndicate operations and ship it back to the regional commander. They lack any real power are considered vassals of the regional commander.
While the Guardsmen and the upper echelons of the Syndicate may dress themselves in roves recalling Ancient China (primarily utilizing the Syndicates colors of red, black, and blue) generally regional commanders will dress in a more modern style of dress.