Lynx - Information & Industry / LII

Operating under the name of Black Fox Security, the then small security firm gained notoriety during the Xi’an cold war for locating and securing resources in the contested systems of the Perry Line. Black Fox ran its operations from a few run-down warehouses spread across the planet Terra in the Terra system until eventually establishing its own headquarters there. The firm took advantage of the planets’ insatiable appetite for resources and made excellent use of the jump point network surrounding it, often taking the lesser known routes in and out of the system.

Whilst the firms’ methods were dubious at best in the eyes of Terra’s corporate elite, which included the circumvention of both UEE and Xi’an patrols, as well as the use of less than reputable connections, the results where unquestionable. Many smaller companies and freelance miners utilized Black Fox’s expertise to bolster their own revenue streams, having often been lured by the promise of untapped riches. Black Fox was always happy to oblige so long as the clients were ready to pay a marginal fee.

The firms’ continued success eventually caught the eye of the Mars-based tech giant Icarus Innovations, who were expanding into the Terra system and offered to buy out Black Fox and integrate the firm into its corporate security branch. Icarus was a big player in the UEE military-industrial complex and Black Fox recognized the opportunity presented in front of it. Only one condition was demanded of Icarus; that Black Fox Security was permitted to continue operating under its own name. This acquisition allowed Black Fox to equip its fleet with cutting-edge tech, vastly increasing the potency, efficiency, and longevity of its ships. The merging of Icarus’ tech and support with Black Fox’s experience and determination created a force to be reckoned with.

As the cold war with the Xi’an continued, the ever growing demand for resources prompted Icarus to expand its operations further along the Perry Line, forcing the security branch to be restructured into several quasi-expeditionary fleets. With a track record as solid as Black Fox’s, the task of oversight fell to them. Icarus Innovations saw years of growth thanks to the ongoing success of the expedition and the board greedily pushed its corporate reach further and further. The cash flow brought Icarus a staggering thirty subsidiaries and guaranteed repeat business with the UEE and firms such as Covalex and Shubin as well as many others.

However, the waning power of the Messer regime, which Icarus heavily relied on to keep political repercussions at bay, began to take a toll on the tech giant. Pressure against both legal and illegal operations along the Perry Line rose sharply following the Horus Incident, which cut vast amounts of Icarus’ funding. Preparing for the worst, Black Fox began consolidating itself in case it would be ousted or sold off by Icarus, a step that would later prove beneficial. Political pressure continued to rise and Icarus’ relationship with the dying Messer regime proved to become a point of internal contention. The 2789 Akari-Kray Peace Accord only strengthened the sentiment and forebode coming changes for Black Fox and its employees.

The death blow for Icarus came not only through the ending of the Messer regime in the Revolution of 2792 but also through its own greed; embezzlement, unconsolidated expansion, and the uncovering of illegal dealings through other subsidiaries brought everything to a halt. With Icarus’ reputation in tatters, it could no longer receive backing from its contacts in the senate. Icarus was ripped apart by the reconstituted Advocacy and subjected to several deep investigations, resulting in the arrests of several board members, never to be seen again. The generally regarded untouchable tech giant filed for bankruptcy shortly afterward.

Black Fox almost escaped Advocacy scrutiny thanks to the preparation started years beforehand. By surrendering operational details to the Advocacy, as well as Icarus’ structure and backroom dealings, a case was made for Black Fox’s non-involvement in Icarus’ misdeeds, though the firm was still heavily fined for the operations along the Perry Line. With Black Fox being the only functioning part of the now-defunct Icarus Innovations, it quickly seized all assets and subsidiaries from their former parent company, selling most to pay the fines and clear its name. With the yoke of Icarus no longer holding Black Fox back, it rose from the proverbial ashes. A taxing restructuring and rebranding process followed, finishing mere weeks before the ratification of the Perry Line Pact in 2793. Thus the Lynx – Information & Industry Corporation was born at the cusp of the Xi’an cold war.

Today Lynx maintains its presence on the frontier, sometimes operating inside alien systems, and continues to offer valuable cartographic data to those who yearn for resources, as well as close protection services for those seeking peace of mind. However, Lynx’s past was not entirely forgotten; whispers of those less than reputable connections still haunt the firm held under their previous name, along with rumours that it had a hand in bringing Icarus Innovations to its knees.