Against all odds.
Ariane Circle
Years ago, strong minds, true Backrooms survivors from a multitude of small groups, joined forces. They understood what mattered most. Faced with a hostile and unknown world, it was necessary to guarantee security and the common good. Thus was born the Ariane Circle, from the desire of several initially insignificant groups to guarantee this security, by all possible means. No technology is too complex, no method too violent, to guarantee this objective.
Against all odds, despite the dangers, despite death itself, we will fulfill our mission.
We are the bulwark.
The Ariane Circle is a Francophonic group with numerous teams, whose common goal is to guarantee safety for all wanderers within the Backrooms. Thus, they simultaneously lead expeditions to explore and secure unknown levels, testing campaigns and eradication of entities, or war against factions representing a danger to the "common good".
The Circle sees its mission as a sort of “public service,” a vision which often distances it from other interest groups like the B.N.T.G. Nevertheless, although they do not seek to create alliances, their goal has led them to approach the M.E.G. Without being directly affiliated with it, the Circle collaborates with the M.E.G. in order to benefit from its database and the advanced equipment. In return, the Circle agrees to help the M.E.G. in various operations thanks to its large strike force.
These form smaller teams, which, though all belonging to the Circle, enjoy total autonomy. At the center of the group's organization is the Inner Circle. The Inner Circle is made up of founding veterans as well as brilliant minds with advanced knowledge in many fields. The Circle, due to the difficulty of its mission, is a profoundly technocratic group, ready to develop and use all kinds of weapons and equipment to achieve its ends. This appreciation of technology grew as more promising new minds were hired. Today, each Ariane Circle team operates in their own preferred field, putting their formidable skills at the service not of a group or an individual, but of the entire Backrooms.
However, not all is perfect in the Circle. Although its facade is seemingly indestructible, internally, there is much tension. The autonomy that teams enjoy is a double-edged sword. Many militias disapprove of each other's methods, while the Inner Circle, entrenched in its old beliefs, experiences difficulty adapting to the new problems of their environment, which is constantly evolving. During the Circle's turbulent history, teams, which only found the Circle to be a source of disillusionment, have entered into conflict and have left, sometimes even becoming the enemy of a cause they had once sworn to defend.
But if there is one quality that the Ariane Circle possesses, it is the ability to endure these trials as best it can. But for how long? If their professionalism no longer needs to be proven, the same is true of their elitism and stagnation. In recent years, the Circle seems to be losing its splendor, its former glory and power seeming to be fading, while some seem content to stay warm in their base, far from the dangers and from their mission.
History
The Ariane Circle was founded in June of 1998, when two small French-speaking groups decided to join forces in order to better fulfill their common vision: the creation of a powerful and expert faction capable of helping the most deprived wanderers in the face of the multiple dangers of the Backrooms. Although each used different methods, they commonly decided to ally themselves, pooling their abilities and resources to ensure their effectiveness. Gradually, several other groups merged with them in a desire to join their strength and their vision for this noble common cause. In three years, the Ariane Circle already included eight teams, led by eight veterans who worked together to guarantee the safety of wanderers.
Over the years, the group has grown and diversified in terms of focuses and action. It was also able to come into contact with other groups, strengthening its resources and its notoriety. However, from the beginning, the veterans were often in conflict over which methods to use to achieve their goals. It is because of these numerous disagreements that, on September 23, 2003, the Level 4 agreements (named after the place of ratification) were promulgated, where all the teams existing at that time committed to being self-sufficient. They kept to themselves, giving no orders to others and having no weight in the discussions of other teams. However, instead of improving relations between them, these agreements have only deepened the differences between the teams and the veterans themselves, although they were allies in a common struggle. However, this did not prevent the group from developing extremely efficiently, recruiting and training new individuals and introducing them to the customs of the Circle, but only accepting the elite of what the Backrooms could offer in terms of soldiers.
The history of the Ariane Circle is rich in highlights and key dates for the future of the group. Most events generally only include two to three teams and therefore have not had much effect on the future of the Circle over the years.
Structure
The Ariane Circle is not a singular institution like the M.E.G. or the B.N.T.G. On the contrary, it is made up of a multitude of subgroups called teams. Each team was created to fulfill a specific role, and is therefore master in a particular area. The Hermès team is, for example, a specialist in adapting in unfamiliar terrain and in improvisation, while the Thanatos team is a master in everything relating to combat against hostile entities and arming with rustic equipment, trying to replicate as best as possible the initial mission of the Circle.
Each team evolves independently for its own sake. This means that, in their nature, no team can force another to perform this or that action. This directive was initially decided in order to prevent them from slowing each other down and thus let them expand on what they do best. However, as the Ariane Circle developed, it became clear that this direction prevented any checks and balances or higher authority in the event of internal conflict between the teams.
The only general institution of the Circle is the Council of Veterans. This was originally a small group made up of the initial creators of the first Circle teams. However, as the number of teams increased, the Council expanded to include the leaders or representatives of each team. This Council decides on the future of the Circle as a whole—for example: deciding on the creation of new teams. It also happens that they implement sanctions against teams or individuals, but because of the differences in residential levels, the sentence can only be recognized by those who accept it. This brought its share of problems, leading to what could amount to a civil war in the worst cases, notably during the dissolution or de-officialization of a team that was judged to be too radical or too dangerous towards the Circle or its initial mission.
Strengths and Weaknesses
The main strength of the Ariane Circle is undoubtedly its professionalism. Even if the unique status of each team has over time reduced the capabilities of each of them in terms of pure combat, they nevertheless remain unconditional masters of their fields. This allows the Circle, to some extent, to be extremely versatile.
However, this versatility only works in theory. Indeed, without an institution of higher authority, no one on the board can force a team to engage in a fight that they refuse. Although, in most cases, teams execute on an as-needed basis. It happens often that a team refuses a mission entrusted to it for various reasons (need for rest, rivalries, or simply a belief that they are not capable of carrying it out). This remains rare, but tensions still occasionally arise following the refusal of one team to support another.
Additionally, due to the lack of higher authority, each team over time began to refocus on its own interests rather than those of the group as a whole. Indeed, although they keep the same overall mission of helping and protecting wanderers within the Backrooms in mind, the methods used for this are far from unanimous. Even worse so, it happens that two teams can come into conflict over equipment or an outpost, or following more vague reasons such as a "humiliation." The Council of Veterans tries as best it can to resolve these conflicts, but the fact that each team does not have to interfere in the work of the others makes any punishment or sanction impossible, in addition to exacerbating the conflicts between the teams.
Finally, it is important to mention that with all these conflicts, the Ariane Circle seems, for several years, to stagnate in terms of professionalism and capabilities. Indeed, if the group as a whole continues to be relatively respected, it is clear that its former image no longer suits the current Circle, which, due to a lack of collaboration and conflicts of vision, struggles to evolve at the same time in the Backrooms as a whole, which risks, in the long term, harming their mission and the group itself.
