Destroyed Pirate Clan
Elon Taggett was a merchant marine junior onboard a ship called the General Stark. He had a side hustle of robbing small-time bookies at various ports of call. He was a meticulous planner who ensured he left no witnesses behind. Over time, his primary motivation evolved from financial gain to murder.
Ten years later, he had become sloppy and complacent. Authorities were closing in on him, when he led a mutiny aboard the General Stark. The ship had never been very successful, and the captain was a harsh and demanding man. Taggett swayed the crew to his side with grand promises of easy wealth and success.
After taking the ship, Taggett murdered the captain and every one of his loyal supporters. He did this on the mess deck in front of everyone, with a very sharp knife. The mutineers promptly named him “The Bloody Bastard”. This event seemed to accelerate his bloodlust.
Despite his tendency towards murderous, bloody violence; Taggett was far more successful as a pirate than he had ever been as a merchant officer. He created a network of informants, sympathizers and fences until his reach extended throughout the Hub subsector.
The clan’s deprivations caused insurance costs of commercial vessels to spike alarmingly. But fear of the Bastards that was a far more serious threat to trade. As time passed and Taggett became more and more unstable, officers and crewmen realized that murder and torture were the keys to their leader’s respect and generosity. As a result, the Bastards became famous for murdering the crews and passengers of the ships they seized.
In 2433, Taggett reached an agreement with Tulrakh (Clement, Hub 0603). He provided “protection” to all ships entering or exiting the Tulrakh system and paid the government a percentage of his proceeds from other systems. In exchange, he was given permission to reconstruct and expand an old mining station on Baol (3rd orbit).
For Taggett, this was a perfect location: a secure base in an independent star system, one transit from rich pickings within the Hub Federation and the scantly patrolled system of Kohlisch (Clement, Hub 0706). With a base to return to and a ready market for plundered cargo, the Bloody Bastards flourished. By 2437 their fleet was estimated at 80 ships.
Taggett’s megalomania grew in lockstep with his wealth and power. He became convinced that he was an inevitable force of nature, and continued to escalate his attacks. However, his organization was now so large it included ships and crews he had never met. Leaks were inevitable, and Hub Federation Naval Intelligence located the base on Baol and placed it under constant surveillance.
The President of the Hub Federation, former Admiral Joshua Clement, decided to deal with the Bloody Bastards very publicly, and very permanently. In 2438, an overwhelming task force was sent to the Tulrakh system, its arrival timed to catch the majority of the clan in port.
The operation was a success. Hub Federation warships and fighters destroyed every pirate ship in orbit and began landing Marines. Fighting was intense, and casualties for the attackers were shockingly high. When the lead elements of Taggett’s apartments, they found him dead by suicide.
Though most of the clan fleet was destroyed during the attack or in the weeks that followed, at least a dozen remain unaccounted for. It is telling that none have tried to resurrect the clan…
The Hub Federation dealt diplomatically with the protests from Tulrakh and other independent systems regarding violation of system sovereignty. However, they did not apologize. The action showed plainly that the Hub Federation was prepared to back tough talk with tougher actions.