Black Dragon

To the criminal underworld, organisations like ProtoPharm are inherently flawed. Although their entire business model centres around supplying medication to the citizens of Neocron, it takes a shrewd - and often daring - criminal mind to locate and fill the gaps in the market.

In 2680, two people sought to change that. By merging the myriad aspects of the Italian Mafia and the Chinese Triad, Nico Manecci and Wan Tokai came together in a partnership that would become the Black Dragon. However, like the early days of any uneasy partnership, the two criminals are beset by problems, despite their successes.

Just three years later, Manecci realises that Tokai's poor leadership skills are the source of his problems and, rather unceremoniously, has him killed. With the "Dragon" that gave the organisation its name now lying face down in a Pepper Park gutter, Manecci paints himself as the "Don"; the sole ruling figure of the organisation and the one to lead the Black Dragon to further glory.

Nearly three decades later, in 2710, Manecci - through his network of subordinates - is made aware of a cold-blooded yet determined adolescent by the name of Max Trond. At the age of only fourteen, many see his induction into the Clan as a bold and ill-advised move and, for a number of years, Trond is little more than an errand boy, running messages and small packages from place to place until adulthood.

Trond's ascent through the ranks of the Black Dragon comes to a head in 2727. Having seized control of the city three years earlier, Lioon Reza - with his NCPD - begins a devastating crackdown on the illegal drugs trade. Raids are made across the city and, when the STORM Bots burst into a Pepper Park drug lab, Nico Manecci - who was overseeing the preparations of a large delivery at the time - is shot and killed in the ensuing firefight.

At the age of 31, Max Trond is named Manecci's successor. In 2741, through mostly legal business transactions, Trond uses the Black Dragon's vast wealth to buy vast quantities of Neocron real estate; a prudent move considering that the Department for Real Estate Allocation was transformed into a private company just five years later and given control of the sale of all the unclaimed housing which remained.

The Black Dragon's real estate serves as the perfect shell corporation, allowing them to place their monetary assets into the housing market and have a multitude of options when deciding where to store their illegal goods. While the City Administration might be able to seize and destroy the drugs they produce, it's far harder for them to demolish a building...