Pixie Sinclaire

Blackwood Gazette #280- Pharassian Military Unveils New Motorized Vehicles in Blatant Display of Power

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By Jeanne Dupris, Nor Eastern EIC

6/12/282-The average citizen couldn’t be blamed for thinking that the situation between the Nor Eastern and Sarnwainian Empires had cooled down in the wake of the destruction of the ancient fortress of Ma-Droit and the deaths of rogue agents Pixie Sinclaire and Sir Rigel Rinkenbach. Sarnwain had ceased it seemingly ceaseless chest beating and trade between the two Empires had resumed in recent months with little to no trouble.

That lack of chest beating should have been a warning, according to Nor Easter Admiral Alexia Tremonte, who told us that the Pharassian military recently conducted a test of new motorized vehicles in the Tarsian desert, right near the Sarnwain/Triumvirate border.

“That Pharassus would conduct such a test on the opposite end of the Sarnwainian Empire in a completely different province is something we’re taking as a direct threat to the safety of Nor Easter,” the Admiral said. “I implore that the Triumvirate Authority, as well as our Triumvirate sisters in Crowndon and Monteddor, take this threat with the utmost severity.”

The vehicles tested by the Pharassian army certainly sound terrifying, if the reports given by Society spies are to be believed. They describe high velocity armored vehicles, belching a noxious black smoke, armed with cannon and rapid fire weapons that put even the Crowndon army’s crank driven repeaters to shame.

“That they would so openly display such weapons is what worries me the most,” Admiral Tremonte went on to say. “The Triumvirate just launched the most advanced air ship the world has ever seen, and Pharassus didn’t flinch. They’re either fools, or completely confident in their new weapons.”

Crowndonian officials are betting on the former.

“I really don’t think there’s anything to worry about,” Admiral Henry McTolliver said. “Sarnwain has been trying to keep up with the Triumvirate for centuries, and so far their efforts have proven impotent. Their reluctance to embrace Blackwood and pursue oil based energy is a fool’s errand. Honestly, I’m more worried about what’s going on inside our own Empire than anything from without.”

Admiral Tremonte disagrees, vehemently. “That’s rich, coming from a Crowndonian Admiral. It wasn’t so long ago that another Crowndonian Admiral made the mistake of hubris, and was taken down by new technology he didn’t see coming. Nor Easter has proven its foresight in the past. If the Society are telling us we should be worried, then we need to listen. To do otherwise could prove disastrous.”

Blackwood Gazette #280- Pharassian Military Unveils New Motorized Vehicles in Blatant Display of Power

Blackwood Gazette #254-Recovered NESS Operative ‘Confirms’ Deaths of Rinkenbach and Sinclaire

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By Chester Seaton, News

10/8/282-In the week since a Pharassus military flotilla bombarded an ancient and historically valuable ruin, Triumvirate Authority officials have been picking through the rubble trying to piece together what happened. The Authority has now announced a breakthrough.

The sole survivor of the ground team on site, one Gerard P. Shanahan of the Nor Eastern Subterfuge Society, was recovered this weekend, camped in the valley near the ruins. Along with Shanahan, two bodies were recovered.

Shanahan claimed that the bodies belonged to the fugitives Pixie Sinclaire and Rigel Rinkenbach. An authority medical examiner confirmed that the bodies (which were reportedly too badly damaged to make an authoritative identification) were consistent with that of a Triumvirate woman and a man of Sarnwainian descent, both in their mid to late twenties, a description consistent with the pair.

The military of Crowndon, however, has several doubts on this story. For one, Shanahan is a known associate of both Rinkenbach and Sinclaire. Two, there is no one left to dispute his claims. Finally, it is said that the medical examiner in question was Nor Eastern, and was in fact appointed by the Figurehead Marcelette Bastian.

Despite Crowndon’s doubts, the Authority and Nor Easter both have officially declared Rinkenbach and Sinclaire dead. And despite the crimes both are accused of, the remains will be laid to rest in the Nor Eastern Imperial Memorial Cemetery, for their service in the Dividing War.

In Crowndon, many military units had planned to celebrate the deaths of two of our Empires most hated enemies. However, the military leadership has ordered all units to standing duty in order to prevent such displays.

“This whole thing reeks of a cover-up,” said Lord General Johnathan Gorsky. “We have nothing but Nor Eastern assurances of the pair’s demise. And Sarnwain still doesn’t have the answers it wants concerning Rinkenbach and Sinclaire’s actions. This isn’t over, I can guarantee that.”

Blackwood Gazette #254-Recovered NESS Operative ‘Confirms’ Deaths of Rinkenbach and Sinclaire

Blackwood Gazette #251-Ancient Fortress Destroyed By Pharessian Bombardment; Fates of Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Unknown

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By Chester Seaton, News

28/7/282-Details are sketchy at the moment, but reports coming in from the Triumvirate Authority indicate that the fortress of Ma-Droit has been destroyed in a bombardment by the Pharessian military.

The fortress was being used by the rogue alchemist Rigel Rinkenbach and known Nor Eastern agent provocateur Pixie Sinclaire. Earlier reports stated that a joint operation between Nor Eastern and Pharessian intelligence services was planning a raid on the site to bring the rogue elements to justice.

A trusted but unverified source tells us that the Pharessian element of the group entered the fortress without the Nor Eastern element’s knowledge. There is no way of knowing what transpired next, except that a flotilla of newly built Pharessian airships arrived on site and began firing on the fortress. The ancient stone crumbled underneath the attack, sending it down to the valley below.

Neither Nor Easter nor Sarnwain has issued an official statement concerning what transpired at the fortress, though the Nor Eastern figurehead Marcellette Bastian did express her grief.

“I cannot see how anyone within the fortress might have survived. It is a sad day for Nor Easter, and the world, to have lost such a vibrant mind as dear Rigel’s. As such I have mandated a six month period of mourning for Nor Easter. Every citizen must wear black for the duration, and no tea is to be served on Saturdays.”

The Empress’ declaration resulted in an uproar amongst Nor Eastern citizens, and the six month mourning period was later reduced to a week.

The Crowndon military also released a statement concerning the events.

“If Rinkenbach and Sinclaire are dead, then good riddance,” said Lord General Johnathan Gorsky. “Those two are responsible for the deaths of more Crowndonian soldiers and citizens than any ten Nor Eastern soldiers combined. They were a blight on this world, and their reckless behavior in Sarnwain, which could have easily pulled the Triumvirate into a war (and still might) is proof of that.”

Blackwood Gazette #251-Ancient Fortress Destroyed By Pharessian Bombardment; Fates of Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Unknown

Blackwood Gazette #247- Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Tracked to Abandoned Fortress; Situation Developing

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By Chester Seaton, News

15/7/282– Breaking news in the ongoing saga of the rogue alchemist Rigel Rinkenbach and the Nor Eastern war criminal Pixie Sinclaire, as sources say a joint force of Nor Eastern spies and Pharassian Seekers have tracked the pair to the abandoned fortress of Ma-Droit. Unfortunately, the situation seems to be far from resolved.

The fortress, a holdover from before the founding of the Triumvirate, stands at the North Western Border between Sarnwain and Nor Easter. It once stood as a bastion against the invading hordes from Tarsia, and has a complicated and bloody history. It is also, despite its age, very well positioned and fortified, making the proposition of storming the fortress a tricky one.

“The builder of the fortress, Vasily Tremenkoff, was notorious not only for the horrific ways in which he dispatched his enemies, but for his love of traps,” said historian Alaine Fordeau. “The fortress is riddled with them, all the way from the highest parapets to the valley floor, deep below. No doubt many of these traps should be in a state of disrepair, if not for Nor Easter’s almost obsessive efforts to preserve its history…even the deadly, functional parts of it. Add to that the fact that the current tenants are the world’s premier industrialist and a highly trained Nor Eastern saboteur, and getting into the place is a dicey prospect, to say the least.”

How do we know the pair survived the fortress themselves?

“In the early morning hours of the first day, we observed an owl flying from the upper tower,” wrote Gerard P. Shanahan, the point man for the Nor Eastern interests. “I ordered it shot down. The species was not indigenous to the area, and it had a note tied to its leg. Nothing of great importance, just a verse of bad poetry meant for someone named Herbert. Doubtless the owl and the verse belong to Rinkenbach. We’re looking into it now.”

Further stalling the resolution of this situation is the joint force’s inability to decide what happens to Rinkenbach and Sinclaire once they are caught.

“Nor Easter no doubt wants them alive and in one piece so the two can provide answers for their actions,” an analyst said. “Sarnwain, on the other hand, probably only wants their heads.”

Blackwood Gazette #247- Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Tracked to Abandoned Fortress; Situation Developing

Blackwood Gazette #237- Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Hit Pharassus Military Outpost; Empress Bastian to Activate Society Agents

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by Basilio Mura, Nor Eastern Correspondent

9/5/282-Rogue alchemist Rigel Rinkenbach and Nor Eastern Agent Pixie Sinclaire continued their reign of mayhem in Sarnwain, allegedly infiltrating a Pharassian military outpost last week, incapacitating several soldiers and making off with an unspecified piece of military hardware. Witnesses to the attack say the pair escaped the outpost and headed in the direction of the capital.

In response, the Primarch of Pharassus has placed the capital and surrounding cities under martial law, and mobilized several teams of the vaunted Pharuss Seekers. The Seekers made a name for themselves during the Harjyk Rebellion two hundred years ago for hunting down prominent rebel combatants that had been harrying the Pharassian military for months.

Not to be seen as taking the actions of the Nor Eastern affiliated Rinkenbach and Sinclaire lightly (or perhaps in fear for Rinkenbach’s safety), the Empress has activated several Subterfuge Society agents to locate and apprehend the pair.

“This is not meant to be an affront to the Primarch’s authority,” Her Imperial Grace said. “His agents and mine will work in concert to help reign in Sinclaire and Rigel. It is my hope that the presence of their fellow countrymen will prevent any confrontation from ending in tragedy, should the Primarch’s forces find them alone. Hopefully they can be taken unharmed and an explanation can be had.”

The Society tells us that four agents have been activated, and that one of them is Gerard P. Shanahan, who recently made the news when he defended himself against hecklers at a recent mandolin performance. According to his file, Shanahan and Sinclaire worked closely together in their early years with the Society. It is hope this will aid in quickly finding and subduing the rogues, before more damage is done.

Blackwood Gazette #237- Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Hit Pharassus Military Outpost; Empress Bastian to Activate Society Agents

Blackwood Gazette #235-Empress of Nor Easter Issues Bounty On Rinkenbach and Sinclaire, Expresses Hope They Will Turn Selves In

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By Basilio Mura, Nor Easter Correspondent

22/4/282– In an effort to stem the rising tensions resulting from the recent sabotage of Sarnwainian interests by two Nor Eastern affiliates, Rigel Rinkenbach and Pixie Sinclaire, the Nor Eastern Empress has issued a warrant for their arrest.

“It is with great reluctance that I serve up my dear Rigel to such dirty business,” The Empress said in a statement. “But in order to assuage the Primarch [of Pharassus] that Nor Easter had no hand in this tragedy, I most put forth a show of faith. As such, I am issuing a two million imperon bounty on both Rigel and agent Sinclaire for their safe delivery into Triumvirate custody.”

The two million imperon bounty might seem small compared to the three million inter imperial scrip bounty placed by the Primarch, however it is important to note that the imperon is the stronger currency.

Despite the issuance of the bounty, the Empress expressed hope that Rinkenbach and Sinclaire would come in on their own.

“I am sure that Rigel has a good explanation for all of this,” the Empress said. “He’s never done anything without good reason…mostly. Regardless, I’d rather have him home, safe, where we can deal with him in a civilized manner. Oh, and agent Sinclaire, as well. Being as I’m told she’s a war hero. They tell me I awarded her a medal, though I have no recollection of the event.

“At any rate, please, Rigel. Come home, so that we may clear all of this up and I can get back to hearing your wonderful tales as we share tea!”

Others in the Triumvirate Authority aren’t so hopeful.

“The Empress, I hate to say it, is delusional,” said High Admiral Jasper Stapleton. “The Authority has no interest in granting amnesty to Rinkenbach and Sinclaire. Their alleged actions have brought us to the brink of a catastrophic and unnecessary war with Sarnwain, when we should be focused on other things. Rinkenbach might be fooled by the Empress’ claims of mercy, but Sinclaire sure as hell won’t be. She’s the brains behind this operation, I’m sure. And I’ve worked with her before. I feel sorry for anyone who manages to back her into a corner.”

Blackwood Gazette #235-Empress of Nor Easter Issues Bounty On Rinkenbach and Sinclaire, Expresses Hope They Will Turn Selves In

Blackwood Gazette #234- Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Become Sarnwain’s Most Wanted After Alleged Sabotage of Djidanni Drilling Operation

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by Basilio Mura, Nor Easter Correspondent

19/4-The Triumvirate is left with numerous unanswered questions this week, after the Empress of Nor Easter received reports that Nor Easter’s favorite ex-power couple, the alchemist and industrialist Rigel Rinkenbach and on again/off again N.E.S.S. Agent Pixie Sinclaire were reportedly seen escaping from a Djidanni oil interest minutes before it exploded.

The explosion occurred in the early morning hours last Friday. Witnesses to the incident report seeing two individuals matching the descriptions of Rinkenbach and Sinclaire fleeing the area before the well erupted into a gout of flame. Given Sinclaire’s record of service as a saboteur during the war with Crowndon, and Rinkenbach’s inextricable connection to Blackwood, it isn’t difficult to establish a motive for the incident and the expertise needed to carry it out.

What is difficult to understand, however, is how these events came to be. When last we heard of Rinkenbach, he’d been absconded with by kidnappers wearing the same blue uniforms as those worn by the Arms Summit attackers. As for Pixie Sinclaire, she was last seen in the colonies, and according to several sources was part of ongoing operations there. Further, none of this takes into account how the two came to be working together, considering their messy personal history, as documented by Nor Easter’s most salacious tabloids.

The incident has sparked a massive manhunt across Sarnwain, regardless of how the pieces do or don’t fit together, and separate three million Inter-Imperial scrip bounties have been placed on Sinclaire and Rinkenbach’s heads. The Primarch of Pharassus is said to be enraged, calling for Nor Easter to explain the actions of its citizens under threat of war.

The Empress, as is to be expected, denied any knowledge on the Empire’s part of this alleged sabotage, citing Rinkenbach’s official status as missing and reminding us all, once again, that the Nor Eastern Subterfuge Society is dormant during peace time.

One can only hope that such ‘official’ responses will be enough to stem the Primarch’s wrath. Regardless, the Triumvirate Authority is said to be preparing its fleets to take action should the need arise.

Blackwood Gazette #234- Rinkenbach and Sinclaire Become Sarnwain’s Most Wanted After Alleged Sabotage of Djidanni Drilling Operation

Blackwood Gazette #216- Crowndonian Military Conducts Raid on Mysterious Island Stronghold; Finds Evidence of Sir Rigel Rinkenbach

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By Chester Seaton, News

10/2/282- Triumvirate Authority Officials report that a task force following leads in the Pyrossi Ocean region raided an island stronghold this weekend. While no evidence of the mysterious attackers who raided the Arms Summit last year was found, they did find evidence that Rigel Rinkenbach had been kept there, recently.

“There is an abundance of evidence,” said Captain Michel Dufresne, the lead investigator in charge of the task force. “Including but not limited to discarded lab notes referring to something called BW-19, all of which is encoded in some unbreakable cipher. A tell-tale Rinkenbach trait.

“Also found at the site: 21 discarded bottles of absinthe, a half-starved owlet, and a faded pictograph of a woman believed to be Pixie Sinclaire, stained with tea rings. On the back of the picture was another string of encoded equations none of us have been able to decipher.”

The Captain went on to say that they are attempting to contact Pixie Sinclaire and bring her into the investigation. However, the Nor Eastern government has proven difficult in this regard, saying only that she is occupied with other matters of Imperial importance.

More baffling, however, is the lack of evidence that any of the shadowy Men In Blue were present at the stronghold.

“Other than Rinkenbach’s lab, the only other presence we can find traces of are those of pirates,” Captain Dufresne said. “It is likely this location was used as a hideout for one of the smaller bands, or possibly even a lookout station for Seylene Plamondon herself. In any case, this development is most troubling. It was not pirates that kidnapped Sir Rigel Rinkenbach late last year. Somewhere along the line, custody of our wayward scientist was transferred from one group to another. We have theories, but none of them are worth sharing at this point in time.”

Was any evidence found pointing to Rinkenbach’s current whereabouts?

“None whatsoever. Whoever was here left in a hurry. It’s possible they struck out without a plan. It’s also possible they decided Rinkenbach was too much trouble and dumped his body in the ocean. We have search parties combing the coast line and trawling the nearby shallows.”

Blackwood Gazette #216- Crowndonian Military Conducts Raid on Mysterious Island Stronghold; Finds Evidence of Sir Rigel Rinkenbach

The Lelina Horror, Part 19

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PIXIE (IX)

Vengeance is a pesky thing. It isn’t exactly justice, but the need for it can eat at a person. And unlike other emotions or whatever vengeance is, it doesn’t dampen with time. Revenge is a dish best served cold, as they say.

It’s also very rarely justified, but that doesn’t matter to the person searching for it. They just want closure. There’s a lot of things I could say about the feelings in the air that night as we escaped from the hospital, but I don’t think closure was one of them. At least not for Arufina Villanova.

I felt the cold steel of her gun barrel against my head, and then I heard the click of the hammer as it fell on a dud, of all things. With how many rounds were fired over that ten minutes or so, I guess at least one was bound to misfire. I don’t consider it fate, or even luck. Just…statistics, I guess.

I turned around and gave her an evil glare. There was no surprise on her face, just resignation as she lowered the gun and said, “Go.”

We made it back to Point Hammond by dawn, and luckily for us, not a Cartographer could be seen. The large group of malnourished people in ragged clothes did catch the attention of the local law, however, and we were all taken in for disturbing the peace. It took some explaining but once I was able to impart to the sheriff who we were and where we had come from, he contacted the nearby Marshal garrison and handed us off to them.

The Marshal’s fed us, treated Veronica’s wounds and had a doctor examine the people we’d rescued. None of them were in trouble physically. Psychologically, however, was a different story. After a few days we were cleared to leave. As I understand, several of the captives stayed. I don’t know their reasons.

As for Mister Bricklebrand McKay: I had assumed Arufina had killed him. Such was not the case, as he was already at the garrison when we arrive. He ran away, you see. I wish I could say that surprised me, but it doesn’t.

Veronica, Adella, Doctor Rothery and I chartered a ferry up the coast to the city of Bly, where they will board a train to New Crowndon in the morning. We traveled in relative silence. I considered asking Adella and Doctor Rothery for details, but decided against it. If Adella ever wishes to tell the story of what happened, I imagine she will do so in her own time.

By the time we arrived in Bly, the news had already hit the papers. A number of reporters and well-wishers greeted us. Adella and Rothery were in no mood to answer questions, so I stepped in as spokesperson, stressing the need to let them provide answers in their own time.

Veronica, Adella and I just had a goodbye dinner, where we spoke of things other than Point Hammond and Lelina. I told them of some of my lighter exploits since the end of the war, and Veronica told of her dig in Pharassus. Adella didn’t share much, but she seemed in high spirits. I have hopes that she will carry on.

I will not be joining them on the train to New Crowndon. No sooner than I returned to my room at the hotel did my handler with the Society send me details on my next job. The Triumvirate Authority is worried about whatever Alejandro Julianos is looking for down south, and since I’m in the area, the task falls to me.

And so, as one task ends, another begins.

The Lelina Horror, Part 19

The Lelina Horror, Part 18

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ADELLA (X)

She asked me if I remembered her, and despite the trauma of my captivity and the long years since I’d last seen her, I did.

Pixie Sinclaire. Spy. Saboteur. A decorated hero of the Nor Easter-Crowndon war. And, once upon a time, a fellow student and friend.

We’d studied together at the University of Oeil de Fleur. She only spent a semester there before joining the military and going on to a career of death-defying derring-do. Even in that short time, however, I knew that Pixie Sinclaire was someone I wanted to be.

She was the one who pushed me towards investigative journalism when everyone, from my parents to my professors, pushed me towards straight on reporting. Where they told me to find a nice paper to work for in a nice, comfortable city, Pixie was the one who told me that finding the truth of a story was nearly more important than merely stating the facts.

After she left, I hadn’t seen or spoken to her for years. And yet here she was, in this hellish place, trying to save me. To save us, even though I doubt we deserved it. Not only that, but she had refused to turn over a person who wanted her dead for a quick and easy out. I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised at that.

I told her that I did, indeed, remember her, and she asked me if I was ready to leave. When she asked me that I felt like myself for the first time in a long time. She smiled and said,

“Let’s go, then.”

A few moments later, the people who’d brought us to this place and put us through hell came through the only door in the room, and the guns that Doctor Trenum, Pixie, and the assassin Arufina Villanova thundered in the small space. The bodies fell and tumbled down the stairs. I didn’t feel anything as I watched it happen. Not horror, nor relief as Pixie led us up the stairwell and into the decrepit hospital.

More people, all wearing blue, like the others, waited for us in the corridors above. I think I recognized one of them as Shelby as I passed his body. It was kind of hard to tell, with half his face off.

Pixie led us first into a dark room off of one of the corridors, a room filled with broken beds and horrific machines. She said that they had entered through there, but the window had been boarded up. Metal bars covered the others. With their original point of ingress now closed, we had no choice but to storm the front.

A small group of men waited for us there. Not very many, eight, but just enough to stop us. Pixie was out of bullets, and Veronica had taken a hit. Arufina had four shots left. Even if she managed one bullet per man, that left four with six shots a piece. Going back to scrounge for more from one of the bodies was an option, but Pixie offered another solution.

“I still have one of my little pills left,” she said. “I can take out that cluster of five or so by the door. The others will be your problem.”

Arufina nodded. Pixie tossed her bomb, and the assassin swept the room, fanning the hammer on her revolver and taking out the other three with one bullet to spare. It was easy. Looking back, it was sort of scary just how easy it was.

We walked out of the hospital. I half expected more of the men in blue uniforms to be outside, waiting for us, but there weren’t any. Just a cool, clear autumn night. We were safe. We’d made it out.

And then Arufina raised her gun, put it against the back of Pixie’s head, and pulled the trigger.

The Lelina Horror, Part 18