By Jeanne Dupris, Nor Eastern EIC

10/12/282-Two days ago, I was able to express hope that Crowndon may be able to heal itself thanks to the actions of its people against those who ordered the murder of 200 of its citizens. Today, however, that hope is a thing far away indeed. So very far away, thanks largely in part to my personal proximity to the issue at hand.

The Imperial Court of Crowndon returned a ruling in the Gazette Sedition case today, and it is a sorrowful turn of events. Maurice Merchant, owner, proprietor, and son of the founder of the Blackwood Gazette, was found guilty on charges of sewing unrest against the Crowndon Empire, and has been sentenced to death by firing squad, to be carried out later this month.

On a slightly less grim note, Mister Merchant’s alleged co-conspirators, most notably Ada Herschel, were sentenced to life in labor camp at an undisclosed location, with possibility of release following rigorous re-education.

I cannot believe the situation in Crowndon has devolved to such a point in such a short time frame. Since the attack on the Imperial summit meeting late last year, Crowndon has moved further and further away from the ideals the Triumvirate was striving for. And if we believe that Nor Easter and Monteddor are not complicit in this descent, we are fooling ourselves. We’ve left our sister Empire, and its citizens, to freeze in the cold.

I do not know why I even bother to try again, but I implore the leadership of Nor Easter and Monteddor, Empress Marcelette Bastian and High King Mario Adallantes, and the governing body of the Triumvirate Authority, to intervene before this matter grows worse. Evicting Crowndon from the Triumvirate is not an option: she must be healed, not left to die.

We call ourselves the Imperial Triumvirate. It’s time we remembered how to be that again.