Crisis of 2530

The Crisis of 2530 was a political and military crisis in Azure City which developed over the course of 2530, culminating in the Anti-Jackal Campaign in December. The crisis is usually considered to have actually begun in November the previous year.

Background
The Jackals began threatening the northern areas of Azure City in 2506, proceeding to influence, infiltrate and take over large areas of the city outside the walls, as well as several safehouses within the walls of Azure City. By the late 2520s, the Jackal threat had become significant enough that the Azure Order faced the possibility of Jackal attacks on voters during the elections scheduled for November 2529.

The crisis
Early developments (November 2529 - April 2530)

The threat of a Jackal attack forced the postponement of elections to April the following year. The government also announced that voting would be suspended in the City Outskirts district, igniting a brief political crisis as the Conservatives in the Council of Elders questioned whether the sitting Reformist government had the right to deny the vote to the mostly Conservative-leaning district.

The election returned a massive Reformist majority, as developments across the city in the previous year contributed significantly to Reformist popularity. The new government took this as a mandate to undertake a military intervention to expel the Jackals from the city.

The government began planning for the military action against the Jackals almost immediately, making it the topic of an extraordinary gathering of the Council the day after the election, with the military and Azure Guard being put on medium alert the same day. The Azure Order proceeded to impose severe restrictions on travel into areas considered Jackal-influenced, including the Old Town.

Lockdown and military campaign (May - December 2530)

Political and public pressure continued to mount on the Reformist government to take concrete action against the Jackals, as opinion polls showed rapidly growing Populist support in the east of the city and provocations in Azure City itself continued. Despite this, the summer passed without major developments in the crisis. A flareup in violence in August gave the government the chance to put its plans in place.

Official imposition of a lockdown across the city occurred before dawn on 5 September, with soldiers constructing sandbag walls around the Old Town and to the east of Ceiriosen and the declaration of a state of emergency. Travel across the wall was only allowed at four checkpoints located on major thoroughfares in the north of the city, namely in east Ceiriosen, on Mango Alley, on East Square Avenue and on New East Lane. Pylon Hill station was also closed, and the stations serving Maliwan Hills and Syggelekugele Square were also closed to street level access, remaining open only for transfers between lines. The government announced that this would be an temporary measure, and the situation would return to normal by the end of the year.

The wall proved unpopular, though recognised as necessary for the safety of the city. The 117 days under the state of emergency have since become one of the darkest periods of the city's recent history in the popular imagination. The Populists especially viewed the wall as necessary only due to the inaction of the Reformist government, and Populist elders staged a walkout from the Council on 5 November to protest two months of division. This lead to widespread unrest in Populist strongholds in the east of the city, eventually escalating into a spontaneous demonstration in City East on 16 November, where protestors demanded immediate action against the Jackals, and veterans chanted slogans offering to join any anti-Jackal campaign by the army. Instead of infuriating the Populists further by suppressing these protests with the Azure Guard instead of using the Guard to fight the Jackals, the government decided to negotiate with the protest leaders, and acquiesced to the majority of their requests.

This was followed by an order to the military and Azure Guard to report to their camps for battle on 20 November. The crisis was then abruptly ended by the Anti-Jackal Campaign that followed, which completely destroyed Jackal influence in Azure City and established Azure control over former Jackal strongholds, including Jakobstown, the heart of the Jackal faction. As promised, the walls and checkpoints were dismantled on the night of New Years' Eve to unprecedented celebratory crowds, and the metro stations were reopened to the public the following day.