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Operation Birdcage (鳥籠作戦) was a collaboration between the Governor General’s office of the Imperial government along with the Intelligence Division and Railway Military Police of the Imperial Army to detain those who they deemed posed a significant threat of interfering during the Crossbell provincial legislature in Mishelam.
Background
In May, S.1206, the Crossbell Special Inspectorate would visit Crossbell City to attend the Crossbell provincial legislature at Orchis Tower. The legislature would be pivotal in Chancellor Giliath Osborne’s overarching plans in establishing the future framework of the Erebonian Empire through the announcement of the Eight Metropolis Plan. Given its importance along with the conference being nationally broadcasted on Imperial Chronicle Radio, Governor General Rufus Albarea would devise Operation Birdcage. The operation was designed to detain or incapacitate those who posed a threat to interfering with the conference, specifically members of the Special Support Section and their known affiliates.
The plan would also serve as means to make Crossbell forget about the S.S.S. who the public saw as their saviors after the Azure Tree and Crossbell incidents. Since outright arresting them under false charges would undoubtedly cause a public outcry, the goal of the operation is to just prevent them from acting. This would hopefully tarnish their reputation and thus make the citizens of Crossbell less hopeful and in-turn more subservient to the Empire.
Kleist & Co. is also said to have had some involvement with the operation. Although the specifics to their involvement are never specifically stated, because the company has say in the management over Mishelam and would later face no repercussions from the Imperial government despite violating Calvardian trade restrictions, they may have gained these privileges from a deal made with the Imperial government which allowed them to use Mishelam as the stage for the operation.
Operation Specifics
The operation would involve luring and confining those deemed as a significant threat to Mishelam. Soon thereafter, a blockade around the area would be set-up by the Intelligence Division and the Railway Military Police. At the same time, strict restrictions on travel into and out of the area would be placed under the guise of simply being security measures for the visiting inspectorate.
Rufus would utilize the authority he had as Governor General over the Crossbell State government and Crossbell Military Force to give orders that would divert known affiliates of the S.S.S. who worked within the two sectors to Mishelam. These would include former mayor Henry MacDowell, mayoral secretary Elie MacDowell, Chief Sergei Lou, Detective Alex Dudley, 2nd Lieutenant Noel Seeker, and Fran Seeker. Grace Lynn of the Crossbell News Service would also be amongst the confined, being lured to the area under the pre-tense of covering an event in Mishelam.
Under unknown pretenses, Lloyd Bannings, Arios MacLaine, Rixia Mao, and KeA Bannings would also be lured to Mishelam before being driven into the nearby Lake Elm Wetlands. Using the mark of the Ironbloods given to them by Chancellor Osborne, Lechter Arundel and Claire Rieveldt are able draw power from the energy of the Great Twilight. Using this strength, they along with the Railway Military Police are able to corner the four within the wetlands despite being extremely overpowered.
Outcome
The operation would prove successful as the legislature would go off without a hitch and the public would be none-the-wiser to events that transpired in Mishelam.
The operation also ensures the Imperial government there will be no interference with the Governor General’s future endeavors. Major Michael Irving reveals that the following their release, those involved continue to be under surveillance. Now seeing that the Imperial government doesn’t mess around and fearing harsher penalties, the S.S.S. and their affiliates stay quiet in the following months.
The Imperial government is also able to cover-up the operation the public by heavily censoring the Crossbell Times and limiting the authority of government institutions. The enactment of the National Mobilization Law two months after the operation would mandate all government institutions to prioritize cooperating with the war effort. This means that despite Kleist & Co. passing evidence of corruption within the governor general’s office directly to Inspector Reiner and the Government Accountability Inspectorate, they are unable to conduct an investigation as doing so would mean they are violating the law themselves.
