Kestrels

The Kestrels were a decentralised revolutionary movement formed in 626 AFK in and around Omega labour camps. Their name referred to the freedom of a small predator bird in open sky, and their central demand was liberation from the state.

Origins

Sergei, formerly one of DAF's best officers, attempted to leave service after victory. Omega forced him toward renewed service or imprisonment. Krasnarus deported him when he tried to flee there, and years in camps and prisons transformed personal refusal into organised resistance.

Organisation and doctrine

Early Kestrels worked through cells, agitation, education, prison networks and guerrilla action. The movement used an azure flag without a fixed emblem; a spray-painted kestrel sometimes marked captured vehicles. Its decentralisation encouraged rapid growth but prevented one agreed post-Omega political programme.

Uprising

By 628 cells existed across the old Allied-Crowns realm. The following year, Kestrel forces entered Zeevaardersdam and stormed Omega headquarters. Tarralik's televised execution freed some viewers and created a martyr for others.

Three-Way War

The uprising split between Kestrels, DAF loyalists and Allied-Crowns restorationists. Revolutionary revenge killings and local authoritarianism complicated the movement's claim to liberation. Kestrel efforts to open the @Crack of Life eventually contributed to the Great Cataclysm.