2895-2898 AU
The 1st Colonial kept a fairly low profile following the Corporate Wars. Little was generally known of their operations, though much was known of their methods. Border raids on the Nebulan Fringe began occurring with increasing intensity in the three years following. These were at first dismissed by the Nebulans, and largely unknown to the rest of the League. The myth of the Red Devil appeared during this time, and fears along the border began growing.
But in 2895, events conspired to shatter the former peace and adventurism along the northern Fringe. Isos, a blooming Nebulan Fringe colony, was attacked by unidentified forces from over the border. The suddenness and scope of the slaughter spread like a firestorm through the League. Over 30,000 people were massacred horribly, bringing back myths of the Kresh barbarians and the butchery they inflicted. With cries for blood, Nebulan Military Command used the incident to begin aggressive military campaigns into the Fringe. Guerilla warfare broke out and various atrocities began to surface on both sides of the border. Not long after the Rape of Isos, the 1st Colonial was disbanded and mysteriously disappeared. Magnus Laren was demoted to the rank of Lieutenant Commander and put in lock for a year. When he emerged in 2896, he was disgraced and rejected: consigned to the mediocre 136th Colonial Regiment as a company commander. He returned to a Colonial Legion largely stripped of equipment and advisement – a mere shadow of the forces he had once known.
Another note of interest during this period is Project Avafire. Rumors of a secret Terran weapons development project had permeated through political and military arenas since the secession of the Graedian Confederacy from the Nebulan Star Empire. It was thought to be in response to the construction of MDCs and said to surpass MDCs in power. Project Avafire reached essential completion in mid-2896 in the form of the Nautilus, a brand new Supernova-class cruiser under the command of Admiral Targis Bulloc. But during its initial field testing, a terrible accident occurred aboard the ship, resulting in enormous casualties. Bulloc and Chief Engineer Oclev Romanoff managed to secure the event and prevent information from leaking. Whatever the circumstances, Project Avafire would be fully completed by the close of 2897, just a year before the Battle of Aquias. The Nautilus and the weapon developed specifically for it, the Neutron Particle Projector, were built none too soon; both would be used openly in action for the first time the following year at Hsor Station and Aquias.
