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- Archive Page Twenty -

GANG WAR IN RED MOUNTAIN - THE DEATH TOLL MOUNTS

Dateline: 23-3-516

If you live in Red Mountain, you know the names already - Rat Eaters, Unnumbered Dead, Red Death. These are only three of the over twenty street gangs that fight in the eternal twilight of RMK's alleys and hideaways.

"Everyone thinks we bury adventurers." said ‘Creaky’ Karok Bloodmountain, Chief Gravekeeper for Red Mountain, "We get way more gang kills than that. Last month we had ta' work overtime building coffins. Without pay even!" Sixty two gang kills were on the public record last month alone.

"The gangs have plenty of reason to fight.", confirmed Ms. Azzy, a noted adventurer from the area. "The Unnumbered Dead kidnap rivals for their vampire masters to feed on. The Rat Eaters sacrifice captives to their demon god. Single Arrow assassins kill for whoever pays the most. Add in all the merchant gold laying around as a prize for the victor and you get war."

The gangs take a heavy toll on RMK. "Yes, just yesterday the Red Death redirected a lava flow to destroy several shops that refused to pay protection.", reported a inside Guard source. "But you can't arrest lava. And we're not really sure who caused that outbreak of zombies in the foreign quarter today, but the murder of Baron Hockles during the upheaval was definitely a Single Arrow job."

Many seem to know why the gangs hold such power. "It always ties back to gold.", said one merchant. "The Guard is bought off, and the adventurers prefer the dungeon where the pickings are easier." Guard Commander Johnny Sevenlimes disagrees. "Despite continued lack of funding, the Guard maintains the steady flow of goods and tax monies in and out of Red Mountain."

One possible solution to the problem has come from Baroness Glaze Fierein, who has proposed that Courtyard security be put under the control of her fan club. “Some well-armed MMWBFC members would sort it out. I am sure they could bring law and order to the courtyard and possibly even into the dungeon itself. You would not even need the ineffectual guard,” she declared.

This reporter will continue to investigate.


CROWN AUTHORISES DEMOLITION OF ABANDONED ESTATE

Dateline: 24-3-516

It has been revealed that the Crown has authorised the demolition of an untenanted estate in eastern Moonward. The estate had the dubious distinction of being the north-easternmost in Bereny, and thus in a very exposed position,  and had been without a Baron for a while. Most of its population had already relocated elsewhere, and the few that remained fled or were killed when it came under attack by the goblin hordes of King Slime. Only intervention by forces from the neighbouring Abbaye du Fidele prevented the castle from falling to the goblins, although it was left in ruins. Clearly the Crown believed that the estate could never again be made viable, and this week authorised its demolition.

"The castle is gone, the hamlet is gone, the walls of the estate are gone," said Heri Sanberligne, Abbot of the Abbaye du Fidele. "It has simply disappeared."

"We pride ourselves in quick work," said John Reilly of Shiftit Collections, the contractors retained  by the Crown to undertake the demolition work. "As soon as we received the reclamation order from the Crown we moved a team into the area who had been on standby. We collapsed the castle, which had fallen to ruin, in three days, filled old mine shafts and potholes with the rubble, and paid our team with the money earned from the scrap."  

"Then we hired a local team to remove the fencing, the wood from which was donated partially to the poor for fuel and partially sold to cover the team's costs.”

“It is probably just as well,” said a farmer on the Abbeye’s estate, “’cos we all know what happens to abandoned castles and mine workings, don’t we. You get monsters moving in and then one day you wake up and you’re living next door to a Dungeon.”

And so both here and at Meadowbrook, which also lies ruined and uninhabited, a lasting legacy of the goblin invasion seems to be the abandonment of settlements on the Kingdom’s borders and a contraction of Bereny’s populated lands.


POLDOON AREA TERRORISED BY CRIMSON GAZE  

Dateline: 28-3-516

People in the area of Poldoon continue to live in fear of the monstrous Emperor in Crimson, whose terrible Crimson Gaze has struck down many in the surrounding countryside. Although the monster has not moved from the forests north of the city where it first manifested itself from the corpse of the fallen goblin King Slime, it has made its presence felt. Its ‘Crimson gaze’, a dreadful gaze attack with shrivels and destroys all those unfortunate enough to be touched by it, seems able to reach out over several miles and to even be able to penetrate walls.

Although the city itself seems to be beyond the creature’s range, it has struck down travellers and wagons on the great north road as they have approached Poldoon, as well as many of the soldiers, adventurers and army reservists who gathered to raise the goblin siege.

The monster has proven to be immune to any weapon or device of the Crown forces, although there are reports that Necromancers have claimed to be able to harm it using their sinister powers of anti-life.

Many of the Crown forces in the vicinity have retreated or have taken refuge within the ‘Wooden Horse of Poldoon’, a 40ft-high giant wooden horse structure that stands at the edge of the woods nearby. The wooden horse was created by the goblins and wheeled out of the forest during their siege, and is known to be hollow and to have been filled with goblin warriors. Although its purpose has always been a bit of a mystery, it was thought to have been some sort of siege tower. However even when the bulk of the goblin army fled from the city, the goblins within the wooden horse remained. Some in the Crown forces have wondered if the structure might contain clues as to the nature of the goblin’s plans, and so a concerted effort is being made to capture it.

The Bugle’s reporter Andrew Gilligan has accompanied the Crown’s forces in their attack and has revealed that the wooden horse is indeed hollow, with barrels and supplies piled up inside it. The Crown forces have cleared the lower level of goblins and are now advancing into its upper levels.


WHITE TOWER READY TO SAIL THE SEAS OF THE UNDERWORLD

Dateline: 4-4-516

Deep under the surface of Bereny is the vast, dangerous and mysterious realm of the Underworld. As reported previously there is now a small light within the dark, the settlement recently established under Royal Charter by the Guild of the White Tower.

The town is now a bustling metropolis attracting experienced adventurers from all over the Underworld, hardened veterans arriving there to expand their careers through the magical portal in the Swinderlog courtyard and even novices who now begin their lives from within its impressive fortifications. Still it has been reported that the distances of the Underworld are prohibitive and to arrive at dungeons or other areas of interest could be a matter of many months travel, enough to put off many who prefer the easier prospects of the surface loot.

Recently however reports had reached the offices of the Bugle of another massive building project nearing completion within the settlement, a docks and associated boat building facilities. Intrigued, we sought comment from the offices of the White Tower, normally quite reticent to provide many details. In this case though they invited reporters to inspect the new construction.

At the northern end of the settlement the docks are an impressive span of wooden platforms thrusting out far into the Underworld oceans bordering the island. They teem with men at arms, armoured Knights and members of a dozen other Guilds. At the further end are two ship building factories which are capable, it appears, of producing vessels from lowly canoes to large yachts. Already many vessels are moored to the docks ready to transport adventurers to the Fortress of Caldor and other points of interest. Asked to comment further the White Tower issued the following statement;

"The docks are, as with the rest of the settlement, open to all loyal Berenians. This is the first stage of the planned construction allowing for the building and purchase of civilian vessels capable of using both coastal and deep water. Our intent is to extend the facilities to allow for the future production of military ships to allow the White Tower to create a naval force capable of aiding the securing of the local shipping lanes, defending the seaward approaches to the settlement and engaging any enemy sea forces further afield"

It appears that the Tower are digging themselves deeper in against the perceived threat of the Dark Legions.






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