short fiction

Blackwood Gazette #182- Theater Goers Protesting Venues Showing Film Version of “Dek Kanar Redak”

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By Alex Grosset, Arts and Entertainment

27/8- Delando’s newest artistic endeavor, a film version of his play ‘Desires of Dek Kanar Redak’, continues its downward spiral into controversy this week as theater goers have taken to KV parlors and other venues showing the film across Nor Easter to protest the film.

“There’s so much wrong with this piece, I’m not even sure where to begin,” said noted critic and expert in theatrical arts Pezzarra Belafonte. “It’s uncomfortable, it’s over-priced, and the silent nature of the films means you cannot experience the emotions of the performers’ voices. On top of that, the quality of the film itself is atrocious.”

Belafonte has spent the last month organizing the protest, coordinating with other critics around the Empire.

“It has been a most stressful endeavor,” said Belafonte. “But also a rewarding one, if we can prevent this new format from overtaking our beloved art form.”

Not all critics are behind Belafonte, however. Trestore Mariche, who lambasted the film, believes that the medium has potential, even if this particular one is a failure.

“Belafonte wants to cast film aside altogether, but I believe this is folly,” Mariche said. “It may be hard to see in ‘Redak’, but I believe that long-form and meaningful story telling might have a future with the right visionary behind it.

“’Dek Kanar Redak’s’ main issue is that Delando simply put a camera in front of the stage and filmed his performers; it’s literally just a play put to film. But imagine if the camera were put into the play itself! You could focus on a certain character while they speak, present the audience with close ups of their faces, or you could play with composition to emphasize a certain thematic element. You could intercut between two scenes at once for dramatic effect, or possibly even stage events that can’t be done on a set. Once you consider the possibilities, it blows open what can be done with drama.

“And who knows? Perhaps one day we could have a form of storytelling that actually invites the audience to direct the story themselves.”

Belafonte, when told of Mariche’s comments, simply snorted and said, “Preposterous. And dangerous. We’ve been doing it one way for centuries, and it works. We have no need to fix it! To say otherwise is…it’s preposterous, I say!”

Blackwood Gazette #182- Theater Goers Protesting Venues Showing Film Version of “Dek Kanar Redak”

Blackwood Gazette #181-Political Scholar Andoni Saldazar Stripped of Tenure, Disappears

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By Isairo Palantes, Monteddorian Correspondent

26/8-Two weeks after giving an interview to the Gazette speaking out against Alejandro Julianos’ activities in the colonies, it has been reported that Andoni Saldazar, a respected political scholar and professor at the University of Monteddor, has been stripped of his tenure. He has not been seen since clearing his office and leaving the campus.

The dean of administration at the university denies that Saldazar’s termination had nothing to do with his remarks.

“This has been a long time coming,” the dean told us. “While his recent comments were troubling, he has for years been undermining the structure of the university and trying to disrupt our curriculum, proposing extreme changes to not only what is taught, but who we should teach and on what basis students should be accepted.

“His behavior as well was troubling. Whenever something didn’t go his way he’d lock himself in his office and refuse to teach. On more than one occasion he left the city without informing anyone, sometimes for days at a time. I wouldn’t be surprised if his current disappearance is one such sojourn.”

However, a close friend of Saldazar, Halma Lucia Llavarado, thinks something else is afoot.

“The dean told you he never told anyone where he was going, but that isn’t true,” Llavarado said. “He always told ME. In fact he often spent that time with me. He hasn’t this time. Not a letter, or a transmiphone message, or anything. I fear that something terrible has happened, and I think a certain party might be behind it.”

While Llavarado refused to say who this certain party is, many who know Saldazar believe it is Julianos. It wouldn’t be the first time the disappearance of a political dissident has been laid at Julianos’ feet either, though it would be the most high profile.

Blackwood Gazette #181-Political Scholar Andoni Saldazar Stripped of Tenure, Disappears

Blackwood Gazette #179-Letters to the Editor vol. II

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By Maurice Merchant, Editor in Chief

14/8- Welcome to another installment of Letters to the Editor, an installment that we don’t do very often because the results are often depressing. Speaking of…

Terry in Terrlytown writes:

Dear Mister Merchant:

What the hell is going on at the Gazette, lately? Every story you write now seems to be about war, or people dying in weird ways, or losing their fortune, or some sort of crisis. It’s depressing, and I don’t like it. I demand that the Gazette take on a more cheerful, uplifting tone! Why not write a story about larri-cats?

Dear Entitlement Issues in Entitlement-ville,

The Gazette is a newspaper. We report the news. If the news is depressing, it is because there are depressing events occurring. And the thing about war is, it spreads. People see a person like Dougherty taking on a person like Julianos, and they start to think, “Hey, our own situation seems a lot like hers. Maybe we should do something about it!” And before you know it, there’s a rebellion in Thankaen, and then in Ganborrah, and word of rebellion in the colonies. That in turn leads to other things, like economic upheaval, or food and fuel shortages, which leads to a harsh winter in Northern Crowndon. A war isn’t just a conflict between two people. It’s a downward spiral for anyone associated with those people.

As for larri-cats, here’s one for you: last spring, a merchant sailor saved a man from a burning building. As a gift, the man the sailor saved gave him a larri-cat as a pet. But the larri-cat isn’t domesticated, and wound up chewing off the sailor’s face. Turns out, the man didn’t want to be saved…he set the fire himself. He intentionally gave the sailor a wild larri-cat as punishment for denying him his own death. That merchant sailor can’t get a job with the reputable merchant companies anymore due to his disfigurement, so he had to go to Libertine’s Roost to find work.

Have a nice day!
*
Chris-Anathem writes:

Mister Merchant:

Word on the streets says that Rinkenbach’s new robo-butlers are leaving their owner’s houses at odd hours and meeting in city parks after dark. There’s also rumors that one of them has been running about Oeil de Fleur, raiding liquor stores and stealing all the absinthe, and another that has taken to visiting the Owl Sanctuary in Sau Anoit. I haven’t seen none of this reported on in the Gazette. Why is that?

Dear Chris:

You haven’t seen it reported on because those rumors are just that: rumors. Most of them spread by that charlatan Oculus, over at the Ex-Humanor. We publish the news, sir. Facts. Not science fictions or the flights of fancy of every backwoods yokel. And while the new Clockwork Butler has indeed exhibited strange behavior, Rinkenbach R&D is aware of the problem and working to fix it. And besides, your postage says you are from a small town In the Middle of Nowhere, so I doubt you have to worry about any disturbance from any automaton of any sort.

Good day, sir.
*
Adellafan writes (oh, good lord, this person again):

i knew it…i knew it i knew i knew it…from the moment you sent adella chatelaine off to the colonies i knew somethingbad was gonna happen to her you sent her off knowing she was gonna disappear and you not doing anything about it i warned you that if something bad happened to adella that i would hold you accountable well hold on mister because a reckoning is at hand i told you i knew people and my cousin from rommsbach is going to have a word with you just as soon as he gets out of his cups which could be a while so if you know where adella is you better go find her and bring her back and don’t tell me pixie sinclaire is looking for her because it seems to me like pixie is doing everything but looking for her goodbye for now love the paper

Dear Adellafan:

You never cease to amaze me. At first I found your daily correspondence alarming, and when the news broke of my dear friend’s disappearance I found it angering and abusive. Now I just find it mildly annoying, and often amusing.

As for Pixie Sinclaire and her search, Miss Sinclaire is a woman of many talents, with a penchant for rooting out problems. While it is disheartening that her search is taking so long, I don’t expect her to overlook another situation along the way that she feels she can fix, such as the Ancroft Assassination Conspiracy. I still believe that she is the most capable person for the job, since the colonial government has all but given up their search.

Don’t worry, adellafan. I’m sure that if and when Miss Chatelaine is found, you’ll somehow be the first to know. Perhaps you’ll see it in a dream, or a chill will go down your spine, or maybe your heart will spontaneously explode from the psychic resonance or whatever else you likely believe in.

Also, I noticed you’ve discovered the ellipsis. Now if you could only learn how to use the period. It’s like the ellipsis, except there’s only one dot instead of three and you use them to break up sentences. Nifty, yes?

This is the last time I will respond to you. Good day.

Blackwood Gazette #179-Letters to the Editor vol. II

Blackwood Gazette #178- More Julianos Ships Depart for Newlands

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By Isairo Palantes, Monteddor Correspondent

13/8- Despite suffering two major military losses in the last month, the commander of Monteddor’s military forces, Alejandro Julianos, seems to be doubling down on his expeditionary forces in the colonies.

A second flotilla of ships left port earlier this week, heading west over the Barrier Ocean. Unlike last time, the Julianos camp acknowledged the departure with a brief statement.

“We are supplementing our initial force in the colony of Sal Diello with a further ten ships and over 100 personnel,” the statement read. “As for recent criticism directed at Julianos alleging that he has pushed aside the war with Dougherty to pursue some frivolous endeavor in the Newlands, such worries are unfounded. The peoples of the Monteddorian Empire must have faith that the Newland Endeavor is in their best interest, and that Julianos is fully able to oversee both the expedition and the war.”

The statement has left several critics of Julianos, most notably political scholar Andoni Saldazar, either scratching their heads or outright angry.

“This is a man who has no respect for his people,” Saldazar said. “He asks us to take it on ‘faith’. Faith! Julianos is just a man…an extremely powerful man, but a man nonetheless, who came to power without the benefits of political experience. If he would just pull back the veil of secrecy concerning what he’s looking for in the Newlands, it would go a long way to assuaging the concerns being leveled at him. But no, we are expected to accept his allocation of military resources to some unknown side project overseas while Blackwood facilities are burning and the citizens of Monteddor are dying.”

Saldazar says that he is in contact with several other prominent names in Monteddorian academia, and that they plan to petition an audience with High King Mario Adallantes to discuss reigning in the military commander or seeking Triumvirate Authority intervention, though many believe that Adallantes is no more than a puppet.*

*It should be noted that this is not a sentiment officially endorsed by the Monteddorian branch of the Blackwood Gazette. The Gazette does feel, however, that it is an important point of view in these events.

Blackwood Gazette #178- More Julianos Ships Depart for Newlands

Blackwood Gazette #177- Drunken Fist Fight Breaks Out Between McKilroy and La Pierre in Small Sarnwainian Port

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By Basilio Mura, Nor Eastern Correspondent

12/8- A fist fight broke out between two people in a small port on the east coast of Sarnwain earlier this week. Normally, a fist fight between two drunkards wouldn’t be a news worthy item, but the alleged identity of the participants makes it so.

Witnesses to the event say that an already inebriated Captain La Pierre entered the tavern at around 2200 hours. He proceeded to order three pints of house grog, four shots of whiskey, and a Thankai ox cheese and pulled pork crisp sampler. As he was downing the last of his ale, another patron approached him.

This second patron, described as “a woman, around six feet tall with a metal arm and only half a face”, pulled La Pierre from his bar stool and began hurling slurred expletives at him.

“The Captain, he got up and looked at the woman with this look on his face like he didn’t know what was going on,” said one witness to the event, a local fisherman. “Then recognition came over his face, and he charged at her.”

La Pierre allegedly tried to push the woman aside, who patrons believe to be the pirate hunter Johanna McKilroy. McKilroy grabbed La Pierre around the waist and pulled him down, sending him crashing into a nearby table.

“The two of them started going at it like a pair of nunakttan howler-treevils after mating,” said the tavern owner. “Punching, biting, kicking and trying to gouge out one another’s eyes. Everyone in the bar was pushed up against the wall, afraid to get in their way. Half my glasses were shattered, they took out most of the shelves behind the bar, and eventually the two of them went through the tavern’s back wall.”

The fight continued outside, where residents of the village say the crews of the Pernicious Platitude and Dismissive Smile had already started tearing each other apart on the docks.

“I’ll never forget the sight of it,” said another witness. “These two drunken maniacs slugging it out along the dock while their crew men dueled around them, all silhouetted against the full moon hanging over the ocean.”

By the end of the brawl, witnesses say the two captains were both on their knees, covered in blood and booze, swinging ineffectively at each other in their exhaustion.

“The whole thing just kind of fizzled out,” said the tavern owner. “Even the crews stopped fighting each other to stop and watch the captains as they tried to throw their fists at each other, only to miss half the time.”

The brawl ended when someone announced that the Thankai army was on its way. The crews of both airships retrieved their respective captains and flew off in separate directions.

As he was being taken away, La Pierre is said to have shouted, “One month, we finish this. In the skies over where we first met!”

McKilroy was heard to reply, ”I’ll be looking forward to it, you Northern bastard!”

It is believed that the location where they first met is the Crowndon Academy of Aeronautical Warfare, which both attended during their time in the Air Corps. As such, the Crowndon Air Corps is already preparing for their arrival.

“It’s high time these two idiots are taken down,” said Admiral Winston Johannes said. “Thanks to their penchant for drunken theatrics, we now know where they’ll both be and when.”

Blackwood Gazette #177- Drunken Fist Fight Breaks Out Between McKilroy and La Pierre in Small Sarnwainian Port

Blackwood Gazette #176- Frontier Town Comes Under Attack; Doctor Argyle Von Grimm Orchestrating Conflicts, Marshals Say

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By Chester Seaton, News

11/8- The colonial frontier runs red with blood as the Colonial Marshals report that a small frontier town was attacked by a Duv-Ayid raiding party late last week. The Marshals report over sixty fatalities on both sides.

“The initial conclusion reached by many is that the Duv-Ayid attacked a town unprovoked,” said Lieutenant Stanley Field, an officer with the Marshals sent to investigate the incident. “The remainder of the town and several of my men have their blood up and are looking for a fight, but I believe this would be folly.”

The reason for Fielder’s conclusion?

“For one, Duv-Ayid scouts have been spotted along the plains of the frontier for more than a month now. Thus far they have made no acts of aggression beyond their mere presence, and we have standing orders not to engage unless they act first.

“Secondly, and this is the most curious aspect, several of those killed during the attack have clockwork prostheses similar to those worn by Doctor Argyle Von Grimm’s gang. This wouldn’t be too surprising, were these dead on one side of the fight or the other. But these prostheses were found amongst the dead of both the Duv-Ayid and the townspeople.”

This strange development has led Fielder to develop a disturbing theory.

“It is my belief that Von Grimm has manipulated both sides into conflict. Not only that, but I believe that Von Grimm is the man responsible for supplying the Duv-Ayid with the advanced rifles they used during the attack.

“Furthermore, it is my belief that Von Grimm has not only supplied the Duv-Ayid with these weapons, but the separatists who tried to assassinate governor Ancroft as well. It’s also entirely possible that he is supplying these weapons to the Dougherty rebellion in Monteddor, as well as the recent military coups in Thankaen and Ganborrah.”

These conclusions lead one to wonder how a bandit in the colonies could have such a far reaching influence, however. After all, early conjecture about the possibility of Von Grimm supplying these weapons were shot down as being ludicrous.

“People forget that Von Grimm’s career didn’t begin in the colonies…he was a menace for decades in Nor Easter,” Fielder said. “He also has had dealings with the Royals in Monteddor. The man is connected, and he’s a technical mastermind. Some say he’s on par with Rinkenbach, if Rinkenbach were actively malevolent rather than carelessly aloof.

“If anyone has the the mind, the motivation, and the resources to enact such a far reaching conspiracy of unrest, I’d say it’s Von Grimm. It’s always been Von Grimm, and people seem to have forgotten that fact.”

Blackwood Gazette #176- Frontier Town Comes Under Attack; Doctor Argyle Von Grimm Orchestrating Conflicts, Marshals Say

Blackwood Gazette #175- Sir Rigel Rinkenbach Returns to Oeil de Fleur; Is Promptly Arrested

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Basilio Mura, Nor Eastern Correspondent

10/8- A man claiming to be Sir Rigel Rinkenbach was detained outside of a Rinkenbach R&D warehouse in Oeil de Fleur this weekend. Police say that he was beating on the door, demanding to be let in and ripping down the Imperial seizure notices plastered onto the building. He also had the remains of a dead owl in a cage with him.

“That’s how I knew it was him,” said the arresting officer. “That owl. What is that, like the fifth one, now?”

After being detained, Rinkenbach was taken to Oeil de Fleur’s main precinct and interviewed.

“He wasn’t exactly forthcoming about where he’d been or what prompted his disappearance,” said the police chief. “But we couldn’t get him to shut up about why he’d come back. Something about releasing an inferior product and slapping his name on it, followed by a rant about the value of his name and intellectual property interspersed with demands for jam biscuits and tea. Nonsense, mostly. You know how these auteurs can be.”

Rinkenbach was held in isolation overnight, before being picked up by several men dressed in the uniform of Empress Marcelette Bastian’s private guardsman.

“They didn’t state any reason why, and they didn’t need to,” the chief said. “When it comes to the Imperial Guard, you don’t get in their way unless you want to end up strapped to the bottom of an air ship, scraping paint off the hull. But it isn’t exactly a secret that Her Imperial Majesty and Rinkenbach have a thing. And let me tell you, Rinkenbach was not pleased at all about being turned over to their custody.”

The Imperial Palace has yet to issue a statement on the matter, despite requests for comment.

Blackwood Gazette #175- Sir Rigel Rinkenbach Returns to Oeil de Fleur; Is Promptly Arrested

Blackwood Gazette #174- Rebel Aircraft Hit Desantana Blackwood Interests

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By Isairo Palantes, Monteddorian Correspondent

7/8- Alejandro Julianos’ forces suffered another grievous blow this week, as the rebel leader Dougherty unleashed her recently captured fighter planes on Desantana Blackwood distribution operations across Monteddor.

The attack happened in the early morning hours Vurnsday morning, as four five plane squadrons hit major distribution centers in Govanna, Desantana, Ballantine, and Salasan territories. In each case, the main Blackwood storage facilities were hit, sending fires raging throughout the centers and the surrounding countryside.

Due to the unusual alchemical properties of the Blackwood, the fires have proven nearly impossible to extinguish. Analysts estimate that somewhere between one to two hundred tons of Blackwood were set alight in total. The costs from both the damage and the yield of lost Blackwood are said to be astronomical, and the death toll in said to number in the hundreds.

“This could very well lead to a supply crisis that will make the difficulties last winter look like a Nor Eastern midday tea break by comparison,” said a spokesperson for Yolanda Desantana. “Recovering from this will be a struggle, but Miss Desantana has no doubt that it will be possible. Still, Northern Crowndon should prepare for another rough winter.”

Given the recent military alliance between Crowndon and Julianos, and the effects that this attack will have on Crowndon, many speculate that the Crowndon Air Corps may intervene. Neither Monteddor or Crowndon has issued a statement on this possibility, however.

As for the rebel aircraft, all twenty planes managed to hit their targets and escape before Julianos’ forces could intervene, leading to questions about Julianos’ capabilities as the commander of Monteddor’s military forces. These concerns are only exacerbated by the fact that Julianos recently sent a large expeditionary force overseas to the colonies for unknown reasons.

The attack has also led to fears that Dougherty may target the Blackwood Grove itself, which would be a disaster of apocalyptic proportions. As such, the Triumvirate Authority has tripled security around the Grove, both on the ground and in the skies above.

Blackwood Gazette #174- Rebel Aircraft Hit Desantana Blackwood Interests

Blackwood Gazette #173- Release of Rinkenbach R&D’s Newest Clockwork Butler an “Unmitigated Disaster”

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By Ada Herschel, Science and Technology

6/8- Despite the disappearance of its CEO and seizure by the Nor Eastern government after the Industry and Innovation Conference nearly two months ago, Rinkenbach R&D released its next generation Clockwork Butler earlier this week. So far, the reception has been lukewarm, at best.

Where the last generation Butler had the wealthy of Triumvirate society sending out their servants in droves to place orders for a machine that would soon replace many of them, the newest model only garnered the attention of an estimated three hundred buyers, Triumvirate wide. That means, out of three Empires that span nearly thirty percent of the world’s landmass, only three hundred came out to pay.

“It’s an unmitigated disaster,” said Elsa Deveraux, Rinkenbach R&D’s CFO. “Probably the biggest launch failure not just in Rinkenbach’s history, but the history of the Triumvirate.”

Not helping matters are early product reviews from those few customers seeking to replace their last generation butlers.

“I’d hoped for something…more,” said one wealthy businessman who received his butler yesterday afternoon. “Indeed, I’d hoped that the rumors about only scant improvements were false, but this new machine only has a few more features than the old butler, and one of them, the voice synthesizer, has sent my cat hiding in the closet and refusing to come out.”

Even worse, it would seem that the new Butler is experiencing some technical issues.

“I ordered it to pour me some coffee,” said Barbara, in Walsh. “It did so without a problem. But when I told it to scrub the latrine, it told me ‘no’, poured another cup of coffee, and attempted to drink it. Luckily the only damage it did was to its voice box. At least I don’t have to listen to its horrific attempts to hum anymore.”

Rinkenbach R&D claims that it is looking into these matters, and has offered an extended warranty to all early adopters at the discounted price of ten per cent of the unit’s retail value.

Blackwood Gazette #173- Release of Rinkenbach R&D’s Newest Clockwork Butler an “Unmitigated Disaster”

Blackwood Gazette #172- Pirate Bands Emboldened by World Wide Political Instability

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By Isairo Palantes, Monteddorian Correspondent

5/8-According to a new Skyway report by the Imperial Sky Authority, pirate activity is up forty per cent over this time last year. The report cites worldwide political instability as the cause.

“Pirates are anarchic by nature,” said Crowndonian Admiral Winston Johannes. “It’s embedded into their philosophy, such as it is. So when they perceive a weakness on the part of authority, it should be no surprise that they eschew the trappings of our truces with the denizens of Libertine’s Roost and take to full on raiding and pillaging.”

The report cites that many of the ships being spotted raiding civilian and commercial air ships belong to merchant companies registered on Libertine’s Roost.

“We’ve always known that many of the ‘merchants’ based on the Roost engaged in the occasional raid,” Johannes said. “But now they’re doing it openly, and they’re flying the Blue and White banner while doing it.”

In addition to political instability, author Clement Aldridge Keene believes that recent comments by pirate captain Seylene Plamondon about being the last true pirate may have pushed many of the privateers based in the Roost to resume their plundering ways as a way to regain their status, but the report claims the activity began to upswing around the time the pirate hunter Johanna McKilroy was brought down by Captain Roderick La Pierre and his ship, the Pernicious Platitude.

Whatever the cause of this uptick in piracy, the Authority has issued a warning to those traveling along the Imperial borderlines, particularly over the Anadem and Des Anges mountain ranges. They have also increased patrols in these areas, as well as around Libertine’s Roost.

“The golden age of air piracy is long over,” Admiral Johannes said. “But we have not forgotten the methods that led to its ending. It would be in the best interest of these privateers to remember that.”

Blackwood Gazette #172- Pirate Bands Emboldened by World Wide Political Instability