Royal Mail Share Chat. Chat About RMG Shares - Stock Quote ...

So I have written a story, a story draft of course. Not a native speaker. Hope somebody can make my story way more interesting, and some part of my story doesn't make sense.
Now let the story begin.
Rui has been lying on the soft and comfortable couch for hours in complete silence, her long black hair hanging off the edge of the couch, as it is almost touching the cold hard ground. Her dark eyes were looking straight dead at the ceiling without even blinking it once, and from my point of view, she looks like a dead person that was poisoned.
“So, Esther, do you want to have a bet with me now?” said Rui with a robotic tone
To my surprise, I never knew a dead person could even talk, and just to clarify, I have never lost a bet to Rui, as Rui was my best detective partner for the past five years of me working as a detective in Tokyo.
“What kind of a bet is it?” I replied with an uninterested tone.
Rui wheeled around on the couch as she jumped off of it and landed safely on the ground, and she is now back alive.
“The bet is simple… you can guess when “exactly” will we be able to get a new case” Said he.
“Well, I would bet that we’ll not be able to get a new case any time soon!”
As I finished the sentence with such confidence, there was a loud bang coming from the door, officer Anson came rushing into our detective apartment, thus breaking our door.
“Detectie Rui, WE HAVE BAD NEWS” Anson breathlessly shouted with all his might.
“Is it a new case?!” Rui shouted back with excitement
“Yes, indeed it’s a new case,detectives, but this is a serious one!”
“Ahh...right, serious” Rui and I mumbled disappointedly
While Rui and I are wondering about what “serious” means, Officer Anson has let two men come into our office. The one that are standing beside Anson is a tall, ruddy, clean-shaved gentleman, as he looks extremely attractive upon his florid eyes and his neatly-shaved face, and you can feel the high-watted aura if you look at him, as if he walked into a room, he’ll definitely be noticed by everybody, as his face is very familiar to me. But, the other person is short and ordinary, but a seemingly well-built looking person, as I have never seen such a person before. Then, both of them had shaken hands with each of us, as they were about to sit down, when my eyes rested upon the paper with words, which they had been holding since the moment I saw them being brought in by officer anson.
“Well, this person here is the Mayor, his name is Martin” Officer Anson pointed at the clean-shaven gentlemen
“Anson, wait, so you’re saying we have a Mayor?” I asked
Anson stared hopelessly at me for a few seconds then continued his introduction to who these two people are.
“And this person is the Mayor’s secretary, his name is Samuel” Officer Anson pointed at the well-built person.
And just to be honest, I have never heard the word Mayor in my entire life, so I have no idea what a Mayor is.
“Well...So, what’s the problem?” I asked
“Well, you see, the Mayor has gotten a mail from the prophet named Alex, as the prophet prophesied the event that will happen tomorrow, but the prophecy is a bad one”
“A prophecy?” I wondered
“Yes, and tomorrow, there will be a celebration for the Mayor’s 50th birthday tomorrow, and the prophecy says that…”the mayor will be killed, if you don’t want the mayor to die, you’ll have to pay us 2 billion dollars to tell you the detail of the murder”
“Why are you even worried, it’s just a prophecy” Rui exclaimed
“But the thing that bothers me the most is that, the prophet named Alex have prophesied many murder crimes in the past, and as if the mayor dies, I will be regretting a lot”
“How about you postpone the celebration to the other day?” Rui asked
“There are a lot of famous people coming from around the world, asIf it was only for a prophecy that hasn’t happened yet, the Mayor might not be able to use this reason as an adequate reason for us to do so…”
“Hah...I don’t get why people believe in such bullshit” Rui cried
“BITCH, WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?” The Mayor exclaimed as he runs toward Rui
What a contradictory scene, a gentleman that’s supposed to be elegant and cultured is grabbing the collar of an impolite and goesh detective.
“Hey both you, calm down. And I fully understand how you are feeling right now, Mayor Martin, so please could you please get your “hands” off my colleague’s collar” I tried to calm them down by speaking in a kindest way possible.
Both Rui and the mayor stared at each other for a good three seconds while both looking very unhappy with what each other had said. But as they stared at each other for a few seconds, the mayor suddenly collapsed.
“Mayor, here!” The secretary exclaimed as he took out a syringe and quickly injected “something” into the mayor’s pancreas.
“Oh damn...that must’ve hurt, right?” I asked
“No, this is the new type of syringe that won’t even hurt, since the needle is as thin as a hair, so it doesn’t hurt at all. The mayor has been suffering from high-blood pressure ever since he has become the mayor, as he works very hard, in fact he worked too hard” The secretary replied.
As a few seconds later, the Mayor finally got up as he looked extremely weak and tired. But still, the mayor was still staring straight dead at Rui, whereas Rui didn’t even show any sign of him being worried about the mayor collapsing.
“Let’s leave this place…” The Mayor sighed
“Alright, but one last thing, detective Esther. If so, could help us at least hire a hundred bodyguards for tomorrow”
“Sure, a promise is a promise.”
As the door shut tight with a loud “bang”, the room that was filled with obstreperous noises of argument is now gone. All that is left in this room is just awkward silence and me. As Rui has left me alone in this place without even telling me.
“Well...Life gives you lemon to make lemonade” I muttered as I took out my pillow and blanket, and went towards the one and only sofa in my office, which I have spent over the night with the awkward silence that everyone has left me with.
Throughout the whole night with me sleeping with the awkward silence , everything was alright. My blankets were keeping me warm, and my lovely pillow was also keeping me comfortable. When I woke up, everything around me was completely different. As I never thought about my office would be this small, but yet beautiful. The sun is shining, and trees are surrounding me, which makes me feel like a part of nature. But as I am enjoying the sunlight and the beautiful scenery of nature, I came to realize that we don’t have windows in our office.
“WOAH, who the hell are you?” I screamed towards the driver
“Well, we are here, Esther”
“We’re here?” I asked as I finally recognized who he is.
I wheeled around the seats and got out of the car with me losing my balance falling onto the sidewalk made out of marbles. And as I looked up, I gasped at the large mansion that is set beyond the luxurious marble sidewalk, the large mansion was towering over her as if it is a tall giant that is looking straight-down at me. The cream coating of the paint shined as the sun beat down on it, causing me to have to squint. The roof was peaked, it was slanting down at an angle. There is uniquely twisted fencing kept the house enclosed, as I can clearly see that the edges of the fence are neatly trimmed. The windows had royal purple curtains hanging on the other side of them, drawn so that the sunlight could stream through it.
“Welcome detectives” Said a man who appeared out of nowhere
“You must be Alex right?” Rui asked with a tone of certainty
“Indeed I am, you detectives are smart. Especially you, Rui, you’re really smart” The prophet said it with a disgusting smuggish face.
“Well...Let’s cut straight into the point!” I shouted
“We’ve heard about the prophecy that the Mayor would be killed.” I stated
“Yes, I have prophesied the event. But sadly the mayor refuse to believe in my trust-worthy prophecy” Alex replied sounding depressed
“If you’re playing and joking around with us, it will be smart if you tell us the truth now” Rui exclaimed
“I CAN PROPHESIED THE FUTURE, THE FUTURE is decided!” Alex raised his voice
“So “Mr. Prophet”, if the future is decided, then the 2 billion dollar that you request will not change the future right?”
“Yes detective Esther. If you prophesied the future and change whatever is affecting the future of your own. Your future will definitely change. This is what I am certain about as a prophet that was never wrong!” Alex declared with such confidence.
“Well, if you can prophesy what will be happening in the future. You definitely will know what I am about to do right , Mr. Prophet?” Said Rui
Rui got back into the back seats of the car, as she took out a paper bag with a word “McDonald” on it. But sadly inside the paper bag wasn’t my favourite Big mac with extra cheese in it. Instead it was an arrest warrant that has been authorised by the highest of the police department.
“You are under arrest Mr. Prophet. We suspect you for committing the crime of intimidation, this is the arrest warrant for us to arrest you!” Rui exclaimed as he placed the arrest warrant right on his face.
“Intimidating others to gain profit for yourself is illegal in this country. As we suspect you for trying to make your prophecy true with planning to kill the mayor.” Rui further explains the reasons for his suspicion, as he takes out his hand-cuff and presses the prophet named alex onto the ground to cuff him tight from the back.
“Listen, I am willing to get arrested for proving myself as being innocent. But the mayor will definitely get poisoned during the celebration of his 50th birthday.” Alex calmly said.
“Did you just say poisoned?” I asked
“Esther, do not believe the nonsense from this criminal” Rui said
“What you guys are doing is useless...the future is all decided!”Alex exclaimed as he gave me a piece of letter and on the letter, it says open it when you got home.
“Let me stop you from spreading those boring prophecies, I will prove to the world, that you are a criminal and a murderer!”
As the police car went further and further away from us, with the prophet named Alex arrested and locked up in the backseat of the police car. Rui and I were both feeling relieved.
Just as we arrived at a five star hotel where the mayor conducted his celebration for his 50th birthday, we saw at least thousands of guards while we were on our way to the ballroom.
“Good afternoon, Detectives, we have to say thank you to you” The mayor’s secretary came out of nowhere as we first walked into the ballroom.
“Oh! Good afternoon, Samuel. And you don’t have to say thanks to us, it’s our profession to help you guys. Also, for the security, we have hired many bodyguards from the US Navy. And there is only an entrance into this ballroom, which if there are snipers, we can spot them pretty easily. Also we have set up many sensors in the whole building, these sensors can even spot rats that are inside of the building.” Rui explained
“Doctor Samuel!”
The shouting came from the entrance of the ballroom. A young looking lady who looks extremely plain. As the way she calls Samuel the doctor, it just doesn’t feel right…
“Here is the blueprint of this whole hotel, and here are the guest list” The lady said
“Ah...Sure, thank you” Samuel replied looking very astonished and ashamed
With the woman fleeing away in happiness towards the exits of the ballroom, I come to notice that the astonishment looking at Samuel's face is not normal. Thus she did call Samuel a doctor.
“Mr.Samuel, from what the prophet has said, I’ve heard that the mayor will get poisoned” I walked over and said
“Poisoned? How did you get this information?” Samuel asked dramatically
“I got it for free” The smirking on my face has nowhere to hide, and I believe Samuel has spotted it.
“Esther, don’t forget you’re a police officer, don’t get fooled that easily” Rui warned
“Well, Mr. Secretary. Can you answer me a question. My question is about what does the mayor do for his job?” I asked Samuel, as I ignored the warning from Rui.
“Well, the mayor currently has many roles. He owns a company that earns at least 270 billion dollars a year, he is also a celebrity, and I think that is it.” With what Samuel has said, I know that he notices my smirk
“Isn’t he also a politician?” Rui asked
“Ah right, he is also a great politician. And he works hard for what he has right now. He works from his finger to his bones, if that didn’t satisfy him, he would definitely go the extra mile and make sure that his works are all picture perfect.” Samuel exclaimed as he frowned
“Wow, he is amazing...but wouldn’t you want to be a politician that is rich and smart, just like the mayor. Also I think no one would randomly call someone a doctor, just like that woman who gave you the blueprint and the guest list right?” I asked as I stared at him dead into the eyes.
“Well, you know...If I were mistaken for being somebody else by anyone, It would be very embarrassing.” He said it as he laughed awkwardly.
I said nothing and kept staring into his fiddling eyes, his fiddling eyes were telling me that this man is no ordinary person.
“After all, the secretary will be working behind the scenes right?” Samuel explained with a frown on his face.
The ”awkward silence” seems to have followed me along into this ballroom, but this time, there was the “awkward staring” that was coming along with the awkward silence.
“Well well well, it seems like everybody’s here” Shouted the mayor that just came into the ballroom.
“Yes sir, we detectives are all here for your security!”
“But, sir...about the proph-”
“Hah, the prophecy? Who would believe in those bullshits right. In fact you guys arrested him!” Said the Mayor, looking very excited for the celebration.
“You...guys arrested the-” Samuel was abrupt once more
“Yes, since he have the suspicion for planning the murder” Rui explained
“But...what if the prophet was correct?” Samuel asked as he looked dramatically disappointed.
Just before Rui and I were able to explain what had happened, there was the sound of a high pitched whistle coming from the entrance.
“EVERYTHING IS READY!” A shouting came from the only 10 foot tall entrance into the ballroom.”
And way before Rui and I start moving towards the seats of ours, many of the honor guests are following along the guards into this celebration. And before they even came in, the guards checked everybody’s pockets and saw whether they had any weapons. And very soon, everyone was seated onto the seats that they were all arranged to.
“WELCOME, ladies and gentlemen, to Mayor Martin's birthday CELEBRATION!” Samuel shouted, his voice was loud enough to even wake up the dead.
“Thank you all for coming to my birthday celebration, I am so honored and happy for everyone who accepts my invitation. As I especially want to thank my high school classmates who accepted my humble invitation to my birthday party.” The Mayor said it with a big smile on his face.
“Esther, bad news. We have a gift that is for the mayor specifically.” Rui suddenly gave me this warning
“Gift? What kind of gift is it?” I wondered for a few second
“AND THERE IS IT!!” The screaming of the mayor through the microphone has woken up the dead, or at the very least, it almost made me become one of the dead.
Immediately, ten security guards brought an enormous wine barrel into the ballroom. From almost as far as twelve meters away from the wine barrel itself, I guess the diameter of the wine barrel being around 28 inch, and at both ends, it is around 23 inch. The height of the wind barrel is around 35 inch long. And there was a cloth that wraps around the wooden wine barrel, there are words written as “Success”.
“This is the best wine possible in the world, currently, let’s all enjo-”
“STOP!” I shouted with an overwhelming voice.
“What is it again, Detective Esther?” Asked by the mayor impatiently
“We have to test out the wine for your safety sir” I ran right beside the speakers that sat beside the stage and exclaimed.
“What! Are you saying that the best wine in the world is going to kill me?” The mayor shouted through the microphone, and yet again, I almost became a deaf.
“No, sir. What I meant is tha-”
“SIR, as a secretary of yours, I will test the wine for you!” The secretary exclaimed as he took a mug and scoop a cupful of the “best wine” and as he was ready to drink the unknown wine, there was a voice that stopped the secretary from drinking possibly the best one in the world.
“HEY STOP, I AM A POLICE. IT’S MY RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT PEOPLE!!!” It was officer Anson.
As Officer Anson went onto the beautiful stage of the five-star hotel, as everyone had their attention set onto the officer who might die from drinking the “best wine”. For a moment, every single person became dead quiet, and guards were all ready. As the sudden transition between the loud and lively place into the dead quiet room, it feels as if the time has stopped. Or perhaps it is just as Alber Einstein says, Time maybe is relevant. As soon as, the Officer Anson’s mouth touches the tip of the mug, he start tilting the cup bit by bit, and as the cup tilts, the clear sound of him gulping as the clear liquid flows through his mouth, and pass his throat as it flows downwards, and eventually reaching his stomach. His face looks as if he just broke his bone, very painfully looking. And through this 12 seconds that felt like eternity, his eyes finally opened.
“Oh damn, this is a good ass wine!” Officer Anson exclaimed
Everyone in the ballroom released the deep breath they were holding for the entire twelve seconds of eternity. As the pause button was released and the time began running again. With such relief that everyone has felt, many honored guests took a glassful from the security. As Officer Anson handed one glassful to the Mayor. And without any hesitation, the Mayor had the clear liquid poured into his mouth. And just before we could see the mayor swallow the liquid that was in his mouth, a disaster happened. The Mayor first coughed and spit a mouthful of the “best wine” out of his mouth, as he dropped the wine glass, then he fell down the stage, two hands holding his neck, and he looked as if he had trouble breathing while his face turned purple and blue. And lastly, he dies from suffocating. With his death, people were screaming and shouting while looking at the corpse of the beloved mayor who had died on his 50th birthday.
“SIR” The secretary shouted as he ran over to the dead body of the mayors
“LOCK THE DOOR, CALL THE AMBULANCE. DO IT NOW!” Rui screamed at the security guards with all his might.
Everything at the ballroom was in chaos, everyone was panicking, some of them even tried to run away from the ballroom. And up until now...the prophecy was true. As Samuel has brought the mayor out of the ballroom.
“You two detectives, did you spot anything wrong during the celebration?” After three hours or so, It was another detective who is now investigating us, while the secretary and police are checking what people have in their pockets, and there are some police officers and detectives that are investigating the crime scene.
“Well, this is like what the prophet named Alex had prophesied. The Mayor was really Poisoned to death” I replied
“Well...prophecy?”The detective wondered
“Yes Mr.Detective, there was a prophecy about the mayor being poisoned to death. But the prophet has been arrested.” Rui answered
“Well, didn’t you say that was complete bullshit, Detective Rui?” Samuel joined in the conversation.
“Yes but now it has happened, I got no words to say currently without any further investigation” Rui answered.
“Mr. Samuel, I have to say that it’s sad to say that it is a bullshit that the mayor will get poisoned by somebody, as what detective Rui said was partially true, from what I just heard from the hospital, the Mayor has died because of natural “Myocardial infarction”. As the doctors said that they had not found anything strange on his body.” A police officer came in and explained.
After Samuel has realized that the mayor has really died by not getting poisoned, he was shocked, as he was shocked to the point where I could see the emotion of disappointment on his face. While Samuel just sits at the ballroom for ages, he seems to be sitting there just waiting for the police and detectives to tell him that the mayor is still alive, but obviously, that is not true at all. As we stood beside him for the whole time, and as time went on, everyone left the ballroom, including the police and the detectives. All that is left in this ballroom was just Samuel and we two detectives.
“Samuel, with our deepest condolences, we are really sorry for the mayor’s death, as we couldn’t do anything to stop that from happening” Said Rui
“No, I couldn't blame you detectives, I am the one that should reflect on what happened, Since I was his secretary who is responsible for helping everything he does.”
“It’s our responsibility as well” Said Rui
“Ah...how about the prophet, from the start where he had asked the mayor to pay 2 billion dollars for the detail about the death of the mayor…” Asked Samuel
“The police have started to investigate the truth behind all of this.” Said Rui
“INDEED THEY ARE. But Samuel. Have you thought about how the prophecy has happened…”
“Happened?” Samuel looked at me as if he is confused
“Yes, it has happened. And a prophecy cannot come true all by luck right, Mr.Samuel?” I give him a stare in the eye
“So what?” Answered Samuel
“So, if the Mayor is now alive, I, as a detective, would like to ask him why does the prophet demand for 2 billion dollars for the truth that he prophesied.” I said
“It is very simple, the prophet wants money right?” Samuel gave a simple explanation.
“Yes indeed, you’re definitely right about this. But what if the Mayor died? They will not earn any money from the Mayor himself. So why not lower the price, instead of demanding a high price?” I stared at Samuel once more.
“Sorry, Detective Esther, but I don’t see any connection between the twos.” Samuel frowned
“And the reason is that, even after the Mayor has died, the murderer of the Mayor will pay the 2 billion as a way to keep their mouths shut. Am I right, Samuel?”
“I...I don’t get what you’re trying to say…” Samuel stuttered for a few seconds
“I mean, you must’ve followed the mayor to where the prophet lives right?” I asked
“I was definitely with him” Samuel exclaimed
“As he didn’t tell anyone about the truth of this crime, even until now. It’s because he is trying to intimidate the real criminal to pay the 2 billion dollars!”
“THEN I AM WILLING TO PAY 3 BILLIOIN DOLLARS TO LET HIM SAY WHO THE MURDERER IS!!” Samuel shouted
“Well, I hope you do that as soon as possible.” I gave the secretary a stare in the eyes yet again, and this time I could see his eyes start to fiddle again.
“Rui. Get it in here!” I suddenly shouted
With my command, Rui got in with a bag, from the outside there was an outline of a dead body, as you can also smell the really bad fishy smell even before opening the bags.
“UGGH, what is this smell?!” Samuel exclaimed
“You should know by now” I said
“Esther, Mayor has died due to Myocardial infarction, and no poison was founded, right?” Samuel asked
“No, he was killed, definitely poisoned to death!” I declared
“But they didn’t find any poison, how is that possible?” Samuel eagerly replied
“Indeed, but do you know an element called “Potassium”? It is one kind of the nutrient that our human body needs. But if we use too much, as we directly inject it into the human body, people will die due to Myocardial Infarction.”
“Then, according to what you say, someone must’ve added the poison to the wine glass or in the wine that I ordered?” Samuel exclaimed
“Not exactly, there are actually many ways to have somebody poisoned.” Rui said
“When we talk about poisoning others, the first thing that might be a way to poison others is by using foods. But there are other ways to poison a person as well. You know the human body very well. For example, bees, scorpions, jellyfishes, and so on...They can all be a source of poison. At this time you’ve used the way of “Injection.” I explained.
“Wait, did you just say a syringe? How would I be able to inject potassium into the mayor’s body without anyone noticing? This isn’t logical!” Samuel said
“A magician can suddenly disappear in front of thousands and thousands of people under bright lights. As the way the magician could do this is by diverting the attention of the thousands. At the ceremony, everyone's attention was diverted at one point right?”I explained as I took out a syringe.
“This is the syringe that you’ve used when we first met in the office, this syringe can only be obtained by the doctors. And this syringe’s needle is as thin as a piece of hair. Even if an unprofessional can do it without letting the patient feel the pain.” I further explained as I unzipped the bag of corpses.
“And just to be sure, I told Rui to check the back of the corpse again, as there is a small red dot in the inner part of the corpse. As I assume that you have injected a huge amount of potassium into the Mayor's body!” I exclaimed
The face of worrying has slowly appeared on Samuel’s face, as his eyes were fiddling hard, and his hands were in his pockets, yet sweating profusely from the face of his.
“Well, detective, your theories are all indeed very interesting, but you know I am not a doctor, nor was I a doctor. Also, I’m just a secretary, my job is to help out the mayor. Therefore, it’s impossible for me to have thought of this perfect plan of murdering others. So can you stop whining about the syringe and the potassium.” He explained
“Oh yeah? How about the woman that called you doctor before the celebration has started?” I asked as I went forward and stared right into his fiddling eye.
“Oh, Detective...you know that must be a verbal error.”
“Samuel, you have been a doctor or even an intern working at a hospital, right?”
“Your mouth stinks” He tried to change the subject of the conversation.
“It’s impossible to have someone who have such stupid verbal error, so if that woman called you a doctor, that means she was a patient of yours. Am I right?” I explained to Samuel who is now sweating profusely.
“We can go investigate together, but if you ever started to investigate, you wouldn’t have these stupid theories that will cause me to be a criminal of some sort, how disgusting of you.” He said as I put my hands into the pocket, reaching for something.
“There’s no need to do any investigation to prove to me that you’re not a doctor. I have already investigated everything about you.” I held up a license that has the name of Samuel Kendrison written on it clearly.
“Here, this is your doctor's license. It says that you were certified to be a doctor on the twelfth of december, 2016. And it says that you are working as a director of all the doctors. Man, you’re amazing.” I was honestly amazed.
“Well, even if I am a doctor, I will refute towards your stupid theories for now. As there was no proof of how I have poisoned the mayor. FIrst of all, where is the weapon for the criminal purpose, or perhaps you’d call it a syringe. And second of all, the police didn’t find any kind of poison in the room right?” He gave me a disgusting smile as he looked at me.
“What is said is that if you throw away the syringe while everyone’s attention was diverted away, you could throw them at any place you want. And with that said, if the weapon for criminal purpose is still here, the murderer will stay here as well. Am I right?” I explained as Samuel was trying to look away from my eyes.
“And if you had the weapon for the criminal purpose of yours destroyed, you will be able to become the mayor, just like you wished to be. And at the same time, the prophet will go to the jail as you wish to, since you’re the one that intimidates him to tell everyone that the mayor will get killed. And today here we are, the mayor is killed as you wish.” I said casually.
“But detective Esther, how about I say that the prophet is the one that intimidates me to murder the mayor?” Samuel refute once again towards my inference
“Ah yes, we have found a letter that you sent to the prophet named Alex to intimidate him” I then took out the letter and put it in front of Samuel’s sweaty face.
“But back to where we are, I can assume that you’re staying here and acting like you’re disappointed, is because the weapon for criminal purpose is still here right?” I further debunked Samuel’s excuses.
“I was here just to hope that the police and the other detectives could tell me that who is the real murderer of this case, I am not here to listen to the unreasonable inference of yours.” Samuel got up as he walked towards the only entrance of this ballroom. But before he was even close to the door, Rui stood in front of him.
“You know, Mr. secretary, there’s one place that the police have not checked throughout the whole investigation in this room.” Rui pointed upwards as he stood in front of Samuel
“It is the ceiling” Rui exclaimed
“Hah...This room was carefully chosen and reserved by me, but why would the syringe that you called be up on the 20 meter ceiling? “ Samuel laughed for a good second
“What you did is by using two magnets, 2 pieces of fabric, a plastic bottle , 2 sets of u-groove pulley, and of course a syringe. So first of all, what you did is set up a u-groove pulley beside the wall, and another right above the stage. Then you stick a magnet on the ceiling where it is just beside the u-groove pulley, and another magnet will be sticking on to the syringe. As then you’ll cut the plastic bottle’s plastic into a long line that seems endless, and tie it in the pulleys that you’ve previously set up. And the pulley that is above the stage will be tied with the syringe that is just a few centimeter apart from the other magnets that is sticking on the wall, as for the other pulley that is just beside the wall will have a long plastic line that is hanging downwards beside the wall, long enough that when the syringe is at the ground level, it will still be reachable by you.” A long explanation was said by Rui
“Wait, so what d-” Samuel tried to shut her up by interrupting her explanation, but he is the one interrupted by Rui.
“And at the beginning of the celebration, you have used two pieces of fabric to cover the syringe with the plastic line connected, whilst it is also hidden under the table. As when the wine that you’ve ordered came in, you had a chance to take the syringe and the fabric out as you inject the huge amount of potassium into the mayor's body. Then once the mayor has collapse and die due to myocardial infarction, you can pull him aside to the wall and try to let him sit up, and at the same time, you will be able to pull the long plastic line downwards, as the syringe will get pulled up and stick onto the magnets you had earlier on the ceiling, and then you will start using two fabrics to rub against the thin and a seemingly invisible plastic line, as what you are doing is to make the static electricity happen, as that the line would curl itself up onto the ceiling. But from everyone's point of view, you are trying to wake the mayor up. The reason you're staying here is because you know the static electricity won’t be staying there for long periods of time, so you are planning to destroy the only proof of this crime.” As Rui finished her long-ass explanation that Samuel and I were totally not listening to, she took out a phone and took a picture of the syringe that was up on the ceiling and put it in front of Samuel’s face.
“So long story short, Murderer (Murderer was what I called Samuel), you were planning to destroy the weapon for criminal purposes. And if we get the syringe that has your fingerprints on it, you’ll be arrested.” I summarized the whole analysation of Rui’s to Samuel, who he is now shaking and sweating like a fountain.
As I finish my sentence, Samuel quickly reaches in for something in his suits. But as he reached out what was in his pocket, a flash and a horrendous noise tore through the side of his long coat, revealing the barrel of a .38 revolver, and a moment later I realized Samuel had shot Rui right in his eye. The reddish blood explodes right out of Rui’s backhead, thus the blood stains flies through the air and lands on my face that was white as chalk. My eyes and mouth were frozen wide open in an expression of stunned surprise.. as the bullet passes through her head, and her eye has exploded and popped right out of his eye sockets, thus falling onto the ground broken into pieces. Her whole body has lost its balance, thus resulting Rui falling onto the ground with her backhead banging the floor as some blood splashes out from her empty eye sockets. From such a quick action that Samuel has done. My brain stutters for a moment and my eyes take in more light than I expected, every part of me goes on pause while my thoughts catch up.I could not even react to what has happened for the past 3 seconds, but in about a second later, I have realized that this is a disaster of the century.
“Rui…” I muttered as I looked towards the Rui that was filled with red blood stains.
“The next one is you, idiot” Samuel said it with himself smiling. What a disgusting smile, I thought to myself.
And yet again, Samuel put up his stance, and pointed his gun directly onto my neck. For a moment, I could imagine the bullet punching it’s way through my neck, causing a gaping hole in its wake that quickly filled with blood and gushed out. Then I might fall onto the ground, as a pool of blood will be forming around me and soak my clothes as I choked to death on it. Then expectedly, a loud harrowing *BANG* The gunfire appeared as I tightly closed my eyelid whilst I thought that I would be swimming in the pool filled with red bloods.. But what happened was unexpected, in front of me, there was Samuel lying in a pool of his blood, formed around him and soaking his clothes as he is now choking to death. I was once again, frightened and speechless towards what I am currently seeing.
“Detective Esther!” The voice of Officer Anson has appeared from the entrance of the door, but as he runs towards me, my visions become misty, as my tears overflowed in between my eyelids and my eyeball. But was it the feeling of relief from the extreme stress when the gun is pointed towards me, or was it sadness from the witness of Rui’s death? I couldn’t even tell. As I’ll accept both emotions in this harsh situation, that I wouldn’t want to be in. But as soon as Officer Anson came by my side, my face was already soaked in my tears, as well with some blood stains of Rui’s. Despite that, I collapsed into Officer Anson’s chest and started crying like a baby, or perhaps a newborn baby will be a better name for what I look like right now.
“Let’s go, Detective Esther…you’re a brave warrior.” The voice of Officer Anson has melted my heart, as his voice was filled with kindness and warmth. And from his arms, I could feel his temperature of warmth filling up my broken heart from seeing my best partner from being killed, and yet swimming in his bloodish pool. And with that amount of comfort that I suddenly felt, I once again collapsed onto the ground, losing my consciousness, but I didn’t die, I was just asleep.
The next morning whilst I woke up from the hospital, I was wearing clothes that I am not familiar with, but there was a News that brought back the emotion that I felt yesterday.
The news said “The prophet has been released and provided enough information to prove himself as innocent, but whilst, the best duo of detectives for the past five years are now gone. Detective Rui has been killed by the murderer of the mayor in the five-star hotel during the day of the celebration of the mayor’s 50th birthday. But whilst, Detective Esther was not killed as he only had a few scratches all over his body. And at the same time, the murderer named Samuel Kendrison, who was a director doctor of the tokyo hospital,has been killed by the police officer named Anson, if it was not his heroic action for saving detective Esther, the people in Japan might have been even more depressed. And what the mur-” I turned off the TV as I pulled up my blanket, and went into a deep sleep just to escape from the truth and cruel reality.
“I wish I was the one killed…” I murmured
To Be Continued...

Flair list for mods, message beneath
u/M0NK3YKLNG (X 2)
u/finnerite
u/dmihaylov
u/SilverInkBlotV2
u/negsan-ka
u/mlts08
u/MegTheMonkey
u/Lapandazas
u/MeowPrincessSandwich
u/hisokas-nipples (x about 10)
u/CapnCobbler
u/frogreads
u/mangosparklingwater
u/purplenintendo
u/dirtytightsdelano
u/SaintMeris (x3)
u/MadiasHell
u/shadesoflanternhill (x4)
I’m a busy girl so we’re going to walk and talk today.
Going across the Chalk Farm bridge, let me say u/m0nk3yklng, one day I’ll get your stupid username right! I got a lovely postcard with both cat and tiles from Portugal. I too was taken by the Portuguese tileage, but they saw me coming and overcharged so much for just one tile that even with all my haggling prowess I could not get a price drop and like hell am I ever mug enough to pay full price for anything. But, love, you’re telling the wrong person about crowded trams – ever been on a northbound Northern Line tube at 1730hrs? One becomes intimately familiar with the arses and armpits of strangers.
Then she goes and over indulges me with a second card and a fortune reading based on me being born in the year of the Rabbit. The card proclaims that Rabbits are peaceful, stylish and intuitive and I think it’s fair to say that I hold exactly none of these attributes. I have always had a theory that all my starsign thingies are wrong because I was born a trimester early (yeah, I was one of those teeny, skinny alien babies with pseudo webbed fingers) and I’m much more of a Gemini and a Dragon than I am an Aquarius and a Rabbit. But our dear resident m0nk3y says this year will bring an abundance of money and luck! …with the caveat that a well-balanced approach to life is adopted. Well, shit.
Moving on from the post office, we go onto Primrose Hill and gaze upon this veggieful card from, I believe, u/finnerite – there was no username but a gander on my records suggests the return address adds up. No need to apologise for a store bought card! Especially when it is one so very in tune with me and so artfully put together. I am craving seasonal vegetables currently that aren’t a root or a brassica because it’s been that way for months and I’m really missing, you know, food that only grows when there’s sun. Thanks for the nice words about my very first handmade card – I have sent you another and hope you see improvement!
As we head around the back of London Zoo, we have to wave at the warthogs because that is important. u/dmihaylov had put out a request for Brits to send him cards on the 31st January so they would be postmarked on the final day of being in the EU. I complied (and wrote a crammed little essay about my desires for the future of the Labour party) and he kindly responded with a postcard from Berlin (SHOCKINGLY lovely writing) with good wishes for Britain’s future. Thank you my old china plate, we appreciate it.
A wonderfully unsettling homemade card from our resident All Might fanatic u/SilverInkBlotV2. I love the creepy and slightly creepy and crawly skin type stuff. Things that edge around the borderline of maudlin and leave you not quite sure how you are meant to feel. Yep, of course I I chose this one!
u/negsan-ka just missed out on the birthday part with this celebratory card, decorated pristinely on the interior and asking after cake. Look, if enough people want cake then just show up and I will make cake. Hold me to it. Am I calling your bluff? Maybe, but there’s only one way to find out! However, it’s safe to say that u/negsan-ka will not be leaving her lovely island of Puerto Rico to visit a dodgy north London flat in a cold, dark city, she’ll be laughing at us all from the sun lounger.
Out onto Baker Street and outside the Sherlock Holmes Museum, u/mlts08 missed out on the birthday party as well! Which is a pity because the message of the card (‘That feeling when you get a surprise card from a new friend’) pretty much sums up my RAoC experience. I have met many, many wonderful, interesting people in a dynamic, busy and diverse little community that interact in ways that are meaningful and brilliant and spread kindness and jest all around the world. We could all bring about world peace one day through the power of handwriting, washi and envelopes. Oh, and yes, you bet I ate the whole damn cake (though I had to freeze batches of it because I haven’t trained enough to do it all in one sitting. One day)
I have things to do and people to see on this next stretch, so I’m meeting you all up at Hyde Park and showing this London Underground card from u/MegTheMonkey who overjoyed me with a cracker of typical British humour. I am excited that someone else is passionate about London Transport (all us public transport enthusiasts are gathering). Considering the underground was initially constructed in the Victorian era, I think it’s a bloody marvel of architecture and engineering and superior to the copycat systems found in many other countries. I therefore fully appreciate the London Underground card and your son has some great interests!
I never got to see Hamilton and I probably never will because culture is expensive (even with Ticket Tix or whatever it’s called). But I have enjoyed plenty of Tintin in my life. u/Lapandazas sent a Tintin postcard from Thailand (stamps are beautiful!). Tintin was one of my Dad’s childhood interests and we had all the annuls around the house growing up. I know there are areas of the saga that are problematic these days, but I fully credit Tintin, as well as the (even more problematic) Hunt brothers from the Willard Price ‘Adventure’ series for making me quite so inquisitive an explorer as I am now. Plus Snowy the dog is super cute and Captain Haddock is the real hero.
Wait, I need to make a detour briefly. u/MeowPrincessSandwich had real life questions in this classy wreathed card as she ponders her next moves and I hope my response helps out some. I typically give very bad advice as I myself never listen to cautionary tales and thus become a cautionary tale one should never listen to all by myself.
We’ll pause outside Westminster Abbey and I’ll tell you all about the lovely little bustle of cards now waiting to be used, sent by u/hisokas-nipples. No, you aren’t seeing all of them because they’re going to be sent out and I don’t like spoiling surprises. Her envelope game, as always, was peak and there’s reasons she won RAoC awards! There was, however, an unfortunate postage accident that saw a sticker girl decapitated on the front which only added to the weirdness and wonder of the delivery.
u/CapnCobbler be sendin’ me jewels (I mean charms!) and wise meditations that I would perhaps gain more meaning from if I had the patience to meditate (and not get distracted within three seconds and yell ‘BORED’ like a toddler). I wish I had her skill for hunting down the artiest of cards because this colourful crab is one glamourous crustacean (www.artbyalexandranicole.com). It’s a gift. Some people that might benefit from the card-dispersed wisdom of strangers are a fair few here in the House of Commons.
“Consider the koi, gliding under a lotus. Disturb not the calm” E. Roa
Yeah.
u/frogreads had set up a nifty riddle to get access to her Santorini cards and I’m proud to actually be able to say I got it. I never even get the answers of those daft and blatant jokes you get in crackers around Christmas whilst my sister is so on the ball that she can’t be beaten (but she right there has been a contestant on BOTH University Challenge and Only Connect whilst I wrote a story about evil pixies instead of my actual Physics GCSE because I was pretty sure I was failing anyway so I may as well make it entertaining for the examiner). Thank you for your lovely message and your mad facts – I’ve sent a proper response back your way! Her gloriously peaceful and idyllic Santorini card can be seen with a scaffolded Big Ben complete with grey hued skyline. And unfortunate dick shadows cast by the bridge.
u/mangosparklingwater did her very best to draw me a honey badger, and encouraged turning demons into art which is WAY easier when you’re good at art! Her sweet message was definitely appreciated and I hope she appreciates that the badger now has appeared to have grown legs by the London Eye.
As nifty as the river clippers are, one cannot say London’s buses are charmless, and u/purplenintendo feels the same about Canberra. She crafted bus stop themed envelopes which were amazing and I spent a good ten minutes reeeaaally carefully cutting away the sellotape to fully preserve it! She then asks about the feeling here post Brexit and, to be honest, there was never going to be some instant shift after three laborious years of waiting for something to happen. Those of use not happy about it aren’t any happier, those of us all for it aren’t any less so. Whoever it was that said about the whole debacle that “it probably won’t be as bad as you fear or as good as you hope” (paraphrase) was probably bang on. No one really cares one way or another too much about what’s going on with the Royals except that Prince Andrew definitely needs a firm shake down and, likely, a court date.
By this point I’d pretty much reached the point where my Thank You on the 168 bus started the other week and was feeling all smug that I’d timed it all so well and then I got home and discovered I’d left a couple behind. So I took these ones out for dumplings.
u/dirtytightsdelano definitely tried to put Royal Mail’s math’s skills to the test with a magnificent and marvelous bevvy of stampage on a card that was travelling all of 30 miles. She was kind enough to clarify to the carrier that it was definitely first class though. I’d like to tell her that the solution to my eternal predicament with jumpsuits and dungarees is simply to make them with nappy flaps. Sorted.
A trio of very different cards and a wonderful, wordy message from u/SaintMeris. With tartan washi on a stag card (which I read is actually an Elk Bull but pffft, semantics) and horticultural stickerage on a plant diagram and a lass serenading a dog under the cherry blossoms. I’m sorry I seem to have freaked her out by being overly casual about how I obtained a leg scar. I assure you, I am just fine, the whole thing was funny pretty much immediately, and I’ve told the whole story in my response. There are pros and cons to living in both countries – the better weather, the wildlife, the nature and (debatably) the family aspect of South Africa keep drawing me in, but at the end of the day, for all our complaints about the UK, it is far, far less corrupt as to barely feature in a comparison of corruptness and, sadly, that and the NHS clinches the deal for now. And public transport because I HATE driving.
If you are like me and enjoy both sending and receiving wordy message, u/SaintMeris is a great correspondent. She’s a stranger in a strange land and trying her best to learn Finnish so any reprieve from that mad clusterfuck of a language is probably appreciated!
I had a spontaneous exchange with u/MadiasHell with the theme ‘sweets’ and she sure delivered with this confectionary covered card upcycled from an old one. I don’t normally have a sweet tooth, but I’m sweet on her now <3
When an envelope from u/shadesoflanternhill plopped into my grubby little grip, I legit could not open it for most of the day. It was perfectly perfect and beautiful and I didn’t want to ruin the perfection by, gasp, opening it. Then when I finally mastered the knackers to do so, the card itself was nestled in tissue paper with more care and attention that I have given anything in my life and the enclosed Valentines Day card was a shiny, shimmery stunner of a creation. As if all that wasn’t enough, there was one of those mini envelopes that looked like a goddamn elephant full of goodies for me to send on to the rest of you if you’re really, really nice and behave for the mods.
Until next time, be excellent to each other.

1. THE GREAT ROBBERY

"I was just saying that it seem silly."
"What do you mean?" Arlo Von Gaunt queried Boris.
"That the King's Treasury would have fifty two Firkins of Silver simply walked down to a ship in the Harbour." Boris whispered as the army of Porters walked past in teams of two with a small barrel branded Treasury of Karameikos on a litter between them. They were escorted by a hundred Guardsmen.
"They're paying it to Darokin for the Annual Shipment of Grain."
"I Think it's silly." replied Boris to his new companion.
"You think that twenty-six thousand pounds of Silver is Silly."
The Silver was loaded into the hold.
"I simply think it silly that they didn't have better protection of the Ship."

DM Briefing: Robbers steal a ship moving 260,000sp of Karameikan Coin to the Republic of Darokin.

1. BUTTLEKNNOSE'S STEAM ENGINE

The great brass ball turned as the steam sprayed from its opposing arms.
"What exactly does it do?" Stephan stared at the Gnome-built engine with wonder.
"It is Technology!! It drives the future. It powers the...the ships of industry!" Buttleknnose was struggling for words on his Knees with his hands in the Air.
Shuuu...Shuuu...Shuuu...Shuuu....went the great steam engine echoing all the way down the valley. It didn't seem to be driving anything in particular.
"But what exactly does it do?" Stephan looked at his companion who was attempting not to break into laughter.
"Um, well, nothing right now. Gear's broke."
"Well the folks down the valley would appreciate it if you fixed the noise, particularly the loud bang that happens in the morning."
"Yeah! It's putting off the milking cows." Arn the dairy farmer was finally getting a word in.
"That wasn't the Buttleknnose Steamball(tm). That was the Buttleknnose SteamKannon(tm)." Buttleknnose was on a roll.
"Will you ask him what "(tm)" means or shall I?" Stephan stared sternly at the smiling farmer...

DM Briefing: A Gnome builds some steam based technology to the detriment of the future.

1. FLYING SHIELD ABDUCTS LIVESTOCK

"It was big and shiny and round and polished mirror-like, like a...a mirror and there were lights and it flew and ..." Stephan held up a hand to pause the young Halfling.
"So what you are saying is that a big shiny flying discus abducted your sheep?"
"Nono. That was the Thingummy that they flew off in. It was funny-looking elves with pointy ears and silver clothes and lightning bolt wands with funny grips and they all went about saying 'resistance is pointless' and 'prepare for the harvest' and 'cor! that's a pretty sweater'...scared the missus an all."

DM Briefing: Blacklore Elves with Magic-built flying Saucers and Lightning bolt ray guns abduct some farmers Livestock and take them back to their secret base on the dark side of the Moon.

1. THE BURROWING TOWER

"Our initial investigations of the Tower in the Great Crater have provided valuable Data." Prince Malachie looked around the Council Chambers at the few Princes and Princesses of Glantri who cared to show up.
"Witness reports that the Tower 'burrowed to the surface' have been verified. The Geological Data is on page three of the report. The Tower itself is of Entropic origins and has an aura consistent with an artefact of Entropy" Malachie paused and looked at princess Hillsbury.
"We are however still unable to penetrate the Interior." Princess Hillsbury smiled at his personal failure.

DM Briefing: The Tower has been penetrated by Synn the Night Dragon (a.k.a. Dolores Hillsbury). To activate the tower, she must sacrifice the princes and princesses of Glantri (She has already sacrificed prince Kol). Activating the Tower causes everyone in the Great Crater to evolve into Gargantuan versions of themselves (Gargantuan: HDx8, Sizex2).

1. SOMETHING TERRIBLE

A great and terrible monolith in the deep of the Phlogiston loomed before their hammership. The helm crashed and the hammership soon followed.
"By the Immortals! What is that thing?" Captain Halav stared at the incredible sight as the small wooden vessel fell into its gravity well...

DM Briefing: The PC's, having ventured into Spelljammer Space encounter the Starship Warden, a fifty mile long, twenty five mile wide, 8&1/2 mile thick derelict (and potential Dungeon) adrift in the Phlogiston.

1. ARSON IN THE NEST (PLOT TO TAKE MARILENEV II)

"Fire!" Alexis listened to the cry as her fireball gems struck dry timber in the Nest. No Moon made her invisible on the flying broom. The explosions shook the poorest district of Mirros and began their work. Rescuers were going to their deaths, the impoverished populace was in anarchy. Within moments the entire quarter was an inferno.

DM Briefing: Senior Clerics in the Church of Karameikos plotting to take the Estate of Marilenev as a Bishopric employ a Thyatian Mage to carpet bomb that region of Mirros known as THE NEST with fireball Gems.

1. RIVER OF BLOOD

"The Magos bleeds, my friend." Kuzama whispered to her companion the latest rumour.
"Aye. I hear the River Magos flows with an unholy redness. As though the Mountains were bleeding..." Stephan invoked the ritual of Halav for simply speaking of such evil.

DM Briefing: The Magos river runs bloody red from it's source. Fish in that river float dead on its edges. A Cinnabryl Vein has been discovered at the source of the river by some Modrigswerg dwarves who are using it to make weapons from an alloy of Cinnabryl Known as Corrupted Steel (not RED STEEL). These are Entropic Weapons which inflict + .
The process requires the washing out of the redness of the steel to create a dark and rotting look to the steel.

1. THE POISONING OF AN EMPEROR

"Are you sure he took the poison?" Senator Fiorenza needed to know.
"Yes." The Assassin did not enjoy being interrogated by his employers.
"Are you sure it will work?"
"Fiates Rose is impossible to detect, and immune to all magical and clerical cures. The Emperor is a dead man within three days."

DM Briefing: The Young Emperor of Thyatis is poisoned by something that can neither be detected as poison, nor cured by wizard or clerical magic. This leaves the Thyatian Empire with a child for an emperor.

1. ON THE WHIM OF AN EMPEROR

The Emperor of Thyatis stared at the old map. Oddly Alphatia wasn't on it.
His aide leaned forward to examine the curiosity.
"Um? Sir? Shouldn't that bit be labelled Empire of Alphatia?"
Emperor Zendrolion snapped a look of disgust at the disloyalty of his staff.
"If I say there is no such place as Alphatia, then that is all." The aide straightened and cleared his throat.
"Yes my Emperor!"
The Emperor's Aide carried word to the Cartographers guild. Overnight, Every map was altered and new ones issued.

DM Briefing: Emperor Zendrolion Issues new Maps. Maps without any sign of Alphatia. Irrelevant until you colonise a piece of vacant coast based on that map and the Alphatians show up to tax your Wizard-Baron.

1. A HOME WITH A VIEW

Frandos the Maleficent looked out across the Great Crater. The staircase being carved into the steep embankment, by an army of underskilled humanoids learning the art of stone masonry, was a wide avenue on the roof of the homes on the lower level.
"As you can see my lord, it is a house with a view and you will not regret the location..." Prince Kol's Aide smiled as he sold the better aspects of the city being carved into the Caldera.

DM Briefing: The PC's are granted a nice house in the Great Crater in a Lottery by which Mages from the Great School of Magic might be lured to live in the great Crater.

1. BANDITS IN MARILENEV (A PLOT TO TAKE MARILENEV III)

"They are looking for answers."
"Then it is time we gave them some."
"You will personally spoil a tax shipment of wine coming to the King from within the Marilenev Estate."
"But that would Expose Me!"
"Yes Moray Vaco. And that is why you will go to ground with the Humanoids in the Cruth."
"You are mad!"
"No, Just setting you in place to lead the humanoids against Traladaran Settlements there."

DM Briefing: The clerics conspiring to take the Marilenev Estate begin exposing their own as plotters to destabilise the patriarch and turn the Traladarans against the Church of Karameikos.

1. THE ABDUCTION OF ALEENA

"I intend to father my children upon you." Bargle stroked her cheek and smiled at his own rising pleasure.
"Get off me you monster!" Aleena pushed him away.
"You’re my property now."
"My Husband will get you." She was pure hate.
"Who? Him? He came looking for me at Mistamere." Bargle pulled back the curtain to reveal a very dead and tortured Traladaran shackled to a torture frame. Aleena recognized the broken form before her instantly.
"Noooooo!!!!" Aleena's Scream echoed across the flying castle...

DM Briefing: Her Husband murdered by Bargle, Aleena is abducted from Threshold by Bargle the Infamous. The PCs must penetrate his flying fortress and rescue Aleena.

1. WHAT FIEND IS THAT? (HAND OF KELVIN I)

"What?" Desmond turned his head quickly to catch a view of the shadow moving beyond his field of vision. Nothing.
Desmond shook his head and walked off.
"Heerraaa!" One of his guards screamed.
Baron Kelvin ran to the sound. The Guard was dead.
"Sound the Alarm!" Kelvin's loud voice screamed the words.
Guardsmen poured into the hall.
"We have an intruder. Find him now. And someone deal with him." The Baron pointed at the body. Guards Scurried off and a few carried off their dead companion.
Baron Kelvin returned to his chambers to retrieve a weapon. His mace hung on a hook on the inside of the door.
"Why do you need a mace when you have a perfectly good sword in your hand?" The voice came from nowhere. In his hand he now held a sword. The blade coated in the blood of the Guard.

DM Briefing: Baron Kelvin develops an alternative Personality. It is Chaotic Evil and of the Fighter Class.

1. THE BANISHED (CRISIS OF FAITH I)

"Eoward Radu! You are banished from Traladara for all time!"
The Terrible voice was instantly heard by every one in the kingdom of Karameikos. Eoward Radu looked up at the Sky. The sky distorted and became the face of Halav.

DM Briefing: For Eoward Radu, he becomes the most despised and mistrusted man in all of Karameikos. Once this gets out to other nations, He will be the most despised individual in the world.
This is a crisis of Faith for the Cult of Halav. Suddenly they are no longer sure that King Stephan is the reincarnation of Halav.

1. A LITTLE SCHISM (CRISIS OF FAITH II)

"King Halav! That we might clear away the horrors of the past, It is at the heart of our petition that you should grant us that ground upon which the ruins of Castle Doom do fester. Let us heal these wounds by constructing a Monastery to Petra that shall provide haven and education to both churches and pave the healing path to unification." King Stephan waved forward his servant. The young Cleric handed the petition to the servant and Bowed at King Stephan.
"I Shall give this honest consideration. Halav Knows we need it in these times." Stephan Smiled.

DM Briefing: A few establish a new faction in the Church. They are the Monastic Rose of Petra. They petition King Stephan for the Hill overlooking the Town of Fort Doom. They wish to demolish the ruined castle and build a Monastery on the site. The Monastery is open to followers of Petra from both churches.

1. D'BOER WAR

Gnomish Technicians huddled around a great iron tractor with mounted cannon when General D'Boer entered the Bunker.
"How long before it fully operational? T' Kaisar wants results!" General Hurak D'Boer grasped Albert by the throat and slapped a second Gnomish technician to the ground.
"A month at least my lord!" Albert Wundersteam resisted the urge to struggle.
"Fool! You told me that a month ago! I want t' Steam Tank operational." The other technicians looked at the interrogation with concern.
"We go to war in less than a Year! If this is a failure like that Kaisarballoon project..."
"A month my lord! With the new enchanted fuelrod, the engine power is much improved."
"It better Be! Or you and your little family here will join t' rest of that Glitterlode-worshiping filth on their way to t' STEAM CHAMBERS!"

DM Briefing: An Orcish civilization in Vulcania is preparing to sweep across Davinia using Steamtech.

1. PIRATE LANTERN

"Have I Made it?" Devor Mandrazy looked about. He had managed the dimension door to the hold of the merchant ship. He lowered the Pirate Lantern and pulled the hand drill. The noise of his work was easily muffled by the flurry of crew activity on deck.
His pirate raider was struggling to close the distance.
A Dozen holes along the length of the ship and water began pouring in through the hull.
Water was around his ankles when a voice came from above.
"Saboteur!"
Armed marines began pouring down the ladder into the hold.
Devor grabbed up his lantern and was gone.

DM Briefing: Pirates are discovered to be using Magic items specifically made for them. They have wizards in Alphatia turning out Magic items of all manor. Stats for the pirate lantern: Dimension Door Useable 2/day non rechargeable (30 charges). A platinum lantern frame encasing a petrified 2' gelatinous cube. Once the charges are used up, the gelatinous cube grows to full size attacking the user.

1. LOST

The Tenobar Wake sat in open water.
"Are you certain our course was correct?" Captain Thero looked about.
"Yes my captain. We made the turn the evening last at the island of those cannibals." Navigator Harn shook his head.
"That put us within sight of the mistwall. But the mistwall and the Island are gone."
The Island was gone. Immortals. It had to be Immortals.
"Get us back to the island of the Cannibals. We are going to need the fresh water."

DM Briefing: Ships traveling the Thanegioth Archipelago discover the entire isle of Dread is missing.

1. HAMMERFALL

The Flying Merchantman Mirros Rose moved above the surface of the Sea of Dread.
The Terrible flash in very heart of the Sea of Dread caught the sight of the watch.
"By the Immortals, What was that?" In the distance the deep red glow vanished behind a rising wall of water.
"Oh, Halav!" Devin Hyraksos stared at the wave. It traveled quickly out across the horizon.
"Captain...?"
"What is it?" Captain Gregor Stephanov looked up at the Sailor.
"Wave on the Horizon, Captain. Closing fast." The Captain scaled the rope ladder and turned to look where the sailor was pointing.
A Tidal wave was racing toward them at a terrible rate.
"Halav's Mother! Helm, get us up two thousand feet. Now!"
The Ship surged upward just catching the wave. The wave struck the hull and tipped the ship.

DM Briefing: An asteroid clips the Mystaran Moon of Luna sending large rocks at the planet Mystara. The Asteroid itself impacts in the Sea of Dread sending a wave of destruction through coastal and island communities facing the Sea of Dread.

1. PICKLED VIRGIN

Petrov spat out the wine.
"What in Halav's name? It’s befouled." Petrov walked away from the Barrel in search of an Axe.
"Are you sure? This is supposed to be from one of the rarest and most exclusive vineyards in Glantri." Franz sampled the mug.
"By the Immortals it tastes like pickled hog."
"Exactly." Petrov drove the axe into the wood of his stolen prize until the timbers shattered.
The Corpse of a pickled young elf could be made out amongst the shattered wood.
"Yeergh!" Franz released the contents of his stomach on to the ground.
"Right! When you get done turning out your meal, fetch that tame cleric. I want to know who this corpse is and who killed her before sunset."
"Then What?" Franz sprayed the ground again with his stomach contents.
"Then We break open the other six barrels and find out if this is a one-off."

DM Briefing: A shipment of wine stolen during a change of residence by the Prince of Boldavia turns up in Karameikos. The wine contains Pickled Elves for flavoring. The Elves (requiring a speak with the dead) were abducted from the Elf Principalities of Glantri and are infact being pickled for food purposes.

1. ON THE RUN (HAND OF KELVIN II)

"We didn't kill those villagers lady Aleena. Please believe us."
"I Do, but you need to surrender yourself to trial, running will just hurt your position."
"We tried. Killers attacked us when we did."
"What do you mean?"
"You need to be aware of some evil creeping into..."
A crossbow bolt grazed Aleena and drove into the wall.
"We've put you in Danger."
That attack came from inside the Residence.
"They have people inside the residence?" Aleena was in shock.
"They have agents everywhere. It may be better if we remain criminals on the run."

DM Briefing: The party find themselves blamed for the massacre of a village. Attempting to seek legal outcomes, the party are attacked by agents of the real villains at every turn putting friends and loved ones in danger.

1. THE TWILIGHT SKY

Wendel the Sworder looked down into the valley. There scattered across the side of a Mountain was the shattered iron hull of the Twilight Sky. The Alphatian Flying Carrier that had laid siege to the city of Glantri at the height of the War.
It had gone down in the Wendarian Ranges with all hands.
"By the Immortals!" The carnage was terrible and awe inspiring. The contents of a once glorious empire were scattered across the mountains of Northern Glantri.
Wendel didn't see the Predator lurking in shadow. It came at him with furious speed.

DM Briefing: The PC's stumble across the wreckage of the Alphatian Flying Carrier ship scattered across a mountain in the Wendarian Ranges. There amongst the wealth of lost wizard magic are numerous powerful predators that were summoned to attack Glantri.

1. BUY ME SOME STONE

The Wagons moved up the rocky trail toward New Xorg. Magebuilt walls encompassed a rapidly growing community of walled suburbs teaming with Orcs. Brawls could be seen in the streets...Indeed there was a crowd betting on a fight. Waste was being thrown from the steps into the gutter and the smell was foul and toxic.
Erina of Threshold held her nose. It was worse than the foul streets of Mirros. Get in, buy twenty wagons of Stone, and get out.
Still there was something wrong with the prospect of an orc City.

DM Briefing: New Xorg is located on the southern edge of the ORCLANDS of Darokin. It is a recently established Quarry town employing its orcish population in stonecutting.
INFO on NEW XORG can be found on the Vaults of Pandius (including maps).

1. AND NOW A LESSON IN ECONOMIC TERRORISM

"Now the concept of a glut is over production. Because there is much produce, the buyer or merchant can pick an choose from available producers to get produce at lower prices." Devon was starting to slur from too much wine.
"Now If a farmer wants to push prices up, he needs a shortage of the product or a Monopoly...what's in this?" Devon blinked at the mug of wine.
"Is Radishes...So what's this monopoly thingy if everyone's got one?" said farmer Durn.
"Um Its where like you is the only one with a crop." Devon passed out.
"You mean like where the other farms are burned down and their crops torched?" No reply.

DM Briefing: A drunken economist explains the concept of Market forces to farmers. A few Barns are burned and crops put to torch. There is a sudden wheat shortage in Northern Karameikos as the PCs are called in to investigate acts of Agricultural Terrorism.

1. NIGHT TERRORS

"I tell you I saw it! It weren't no child! It was a fiend!" Afern the ropemaker jerked his head side to side at a shadow still moving around him as they dragged him into the cell.
"Wa! Demons!" came the cry from the many cellmates of Afern.
Jailer Cadesa shook his head and walked back to his seat by the door.
"What in Petra's name is wrong with them?" His companion guardsman shook his head.
"Been pulling them in all night. Ordinary folk just seeing demons. This one killed his daughter. Said she turned into a monster and tried to eat him." Cadesa returned to his ale but he couldn't stomach it. Mirros was in an uproar as the demonic epidemic spread.

DM Briefing: A massive shipment of ergot contaminated ryebread is sold cheap by bakers in Mirros. By evening over a thousand of the populace are sick, hallucinating, or dead.

1. WAR

Franz leaned back on the hay pile and stared at the morning sky. They young farmhand could only wonder at the distant lands an magical sights he should be experiencing.
"Franz? Franz lad, you done with the hay?" Farmer Stephanov marched around the load of hay that was mostly on the wagon.
"Hoy! Back to work! This needs to be shipped to Verge tomorrow." Franz climbed to his feet only then noticing the two black spots in the distant sky and the terrible flicker of thunderous fire between them.
"What the?" Franz pointed at the sky and flying citadels that were closing the distance toward their little farm.
"By Zirchev!" Farmer Stephanov ran to the farmhouse.
Magical Fire snapped and flashed as they continued to draw closer.
Then one began a descent reminiscent of a thrown stone while it's opponent continued bombardment. It fell toward the small farm with increasing speed until it touched below the ground and dug in.
A wave of tilled sod rushed out from the impact and rolled through the farm house throwing it aside.
Franz climbed out from under the collapsed haystack and snatched up a hayfork.
"Woah!" Franz watched as the remaining Citadel drifted over it.

DM Briefing: Two flying citadels engage in open hostilities over Northern Karameikos. One of them is finally shot down by the other near Verge. Who, what and why are left entirely to the DM.

1. A DARK TRADE

"This sword belonged to a soldier in King Stephan's Guard. He was killed in a Riot...yours for a hundred gold Royals." The Black marketeer wiped the blade slowly across his sleeve.
"Interesting...I'll Take it." Del Marko exchanged a sack of coin for the weapon.

DM Briefing: Black marketeers begin selling trophy weapons of Warriors of the Kings Guard who die. The price for a trophy weapon is ten to a hundred times the market price of a new weapon. Some begin killing and ambushing members of the King's Guard just because their weapon's have value.

1. THE JOB (PRE AC1010)

WANTED
Fine and upstanding monster hunters to seek and capture a werewolf plaguing the village of Luln and deliver it to Fort Doom. Remuneration of one thousand Gold Royals value will be made. Deliveries made to Bargle the Wizard.

DM Briefing: What they wont hear is that the werewolf is one of Bargle's Apprentices and he doesn't really want to go back, The entire Affair is designed to cause pain and suffering in the village of Luln, and the PCs are going to be paid one TUN of poor quality wine (value 1000gp if they are lucky)

1. A DELIVERY OF WINE (PRE AC1010)

"Well this here shipment goes to a Wizard in the Black Eagle Barony named Bargle." The wine merchant got Stephan to sign for it.
"Should take a week..." Stephan nodded his head. A simple delivery job. Easy coin.

DM Briefing: The PC's are paid a hundred coin to deliver a wagonload of wine to Fort Doom. Unfortunately the Black Blades (Traladarans out for vengeance against Bargle) have other plans. They intend to kill the PCs and handle the shipment themselves having added a suitable poison to the wine.

1. A LETTER IN THE MAIL

"Good Sir, we have journeyed far to deliver this letter on behalf of Nevone the Wizard to your Lord Furlan." Franz handed over the Letter and waited for a reply from Lord Furlan's Aide.
"If you would wait in that room there. Food and drink shall be brought." Manservant Dalwith indicated the small room near the busy kitchen.
Cheap wine and sandwich loaves stuffed with meats, herbs and cheeses were soon served.
Franz and his companions took in the feast for an hour before drifting off.
Dalwith returned, the contents of the Letter on his mind: Dispose of those who deliver this letter and you shall be granted favours of great worth from Bargle the Wizard.
"Move them to the Dungeon. Lord Furlan intends to question them."

DM Briefing: The PCs are hired by Bargle (in disguise) to deliver a letter. The letter is to a nasty lord somewhere in the Kingdom. The Letter is the PC's Death warrant.

1. THE WITCHFINDER COMMETH

Witchfinder Ruthven Ghoulburn looked about. Here was a city where ancient hatreds were sorted out on the street and the mob ruled. There could be no mistake: here was a den of witchery and evil.
The Artifact in his hand pulsed with awareness.
Ruthven walked across the crowded market place toward the church of Karameikos. Around him the crowd parted and melted away.
Ruthven nodded to himself. Such was the way of things.
The tall Paladin of Vanya looked at the great wooden doors and hefting the eye of Vanya, placed his hands against their wooden form.
"Invo Vanya Writus!" The wood smoked as Vanya's fire burned across the surface. People about him fled in panic.
As the smoke cleared, Vanya's Holy symbol could be seen scorched into the wood. With it was a writ from the Synod of Freiburg, their seal burned into the wooden document.

WRIT OF VANYA
Unto this kingdom have we dispatched Paladin of Vanya for it is become corrupt with witchery, heresy, and concealed horrors.
All faithful of Vanya are commanded to route out all witchery, sorcery, and heresy that the faithful of this land may know the embrace of Vanya's Bosom.- issued by the Synod of Freiburg, this year of our Lady Vanya one thousand and twenty.

DM Briefing: The Eye of Vanya has the ability to scribe a Symbol known as a writ of Vanya on any surface. All clerics and followers of Vanya looking upon the writ must make save vs spell or form angry mobs and attack wizards and those clerics who are not clerics of Vanya.

1. MYSTARAN EXODUS

"...now where was I? Ah yes: My Dear King Stephan Karameikos, It is with deep sorrow at..." The Emperor fell from the chair in a twitching fit.
"Summon the Cleric!" The scribe leapt forward to help the Emperor of Thyatis as he twitched and foamed on the floor.
He stopped.
"THE END OF MYSTARA IS NIGH! YOU MUST TAKE THE EMPIRE FROM THIS CRYSTAL SPHERE. THE ALPHATIANS WILL AIDE YOU IN THIS TASK!" The Emperor passed out. The Scribe fell back from him as the other guards arrived with a Cleric.

DM Briefing: The Emperor of Thyatis spouts Prophecy during a fit. The Mystaran Exodus is coming.

1. THE MANTICORE

"Captain!"
"What is it number one?"
"Small moon approaching off the port bow sir!"
Captain Halav looked up from his Mystaran Almanac at the approaching sphere.
"That no moon!"

DM Briefing: This spherical spell-jammer consists of a large sphere with over two thousand port holes on the outer shell. Out every port hole across this vessel is heavy ballista. For the crew moving on the deck below this sphere, they are simply firing up and out a hole from their deck position.
Below the battle deck is the crew quarters. The rooms are hexagon shaped as are the hallway sections that weave between them.
Below the Crew deck In the heart of the ship is a massive hollow occupied by a great brass gyroscope on which is mounted a large helm that powers the ship.

1. THE MYSTARAN WELL

Halav investigated the edge of the huge well that descened down to a dark pool of still liquid.
"You say the Ancients built this to go where?" Halav looked at Zirchev who stood near the well's edge.
"Beyond!" Halav stepped back.
"What a silly idea." Halav looked back at Lady Petra.
"Are you sure we should take Zirchev's Great Flying Bowl into this well?"
"It doesn’t go to the Hollow World." She gave him the 'It’s not like we have something better to do' shrug.

DM Briefing: The PCs discover a Well a mile across that takes them all the way down to the inner Boundary of the Crystal sphere of the Mystaran Universe. It sits in a Deep Cavern near that boundary between Outer Mystara and the Hollow World and can only be reached by descending deep into the subterranean reaches of Mystara. Beyond is Spelljammer Space.

1. THE WIDOW’S ATTIC

“Oh please help…There is some monster in the Attic of my home…won’t one of you help me?” The crowd in the Tavern seemed disinterested in aiding the Widow and some remarked it was the attic in her head.
Calbert the Sworder stood to his feet and waved her over.
“How may I be of help?”

DM Briefing: A widow has a problem with monsters in her Attic.

1. WELLSPRUNG

Leon de Sylare shifted to werewolf and dropped down from the tree on to the Elves...that was his first and last mistake. Sheon Ewanil shifted to Wellsprung Lycan. The almost alien horror of the transformation paused Leon de Sylare in his tracks...and he turned and ran. The fear of this unknown Lycanthrope seized control of his brain in a most unnatural and unfamiliar way. A blur of silver and it stood over him. With a single bat of its monstrous clawed hand, the Were-Elf smashed the Werewolf through the trunk of a tree, crushing his organs and bones to paste.
DM Briefing: A Humanoid or Demi-human has discovered the Well of the Moon in the Great Pass through the Black Mountains (X5 - Temple of Death) and bought home a Case of rather unique Lycanthropy. The pure strain Lycanthropy is safe for Humanoids and Demi-humans because there is no animal parent spreading the Disease. Anyone stumbling across the well of the Moon might acquire the disease and assume a new Lycan form consistent with beast form-free lycanthropy.

1. THE PIT OF BLOOD GOLD

The great wicker basket slowly lowered down the long shaft with two men as its passengers. It seemed forever. "How much longer Bargle? I grow Weary of this ride down a well in a bucket." Bargle smiled to himself at the fairytale reference. "Not much longer my lord Baron." Bargle lifted his Magical Lantern to illuminate the shaft which seemed to end in a deep cavern. Yet the basket continued down into the darkness - the silence replaced by a roar that grew slowly louder. The Baron breathed in shock as he saw for the first time some of that which lay below him. "And there you have it...some ancient city a half mile below fort Doom."
A Spell and the distance the roar was revealed to be a waterfall pouring in through the rock wall. Bargle pointed at it. "It is Sea Water. The Engineer tells me it only opened when we broke through into the cavern releasing the pressure. We have a week to plunder what we can." The Basket came to rest atop a stepped Pyramid on which was piled the dirt and corpses of their recent mine collapse.
DM Briefing: While excavating beneath the earth, the Baron's slaves break into an underground cavern in which an ancient Nithian city lies. Its Treasure Vaults are filled with a million pounds of Orrichacum Artefacts (A Gold-Copper alloy). While not an absolutely foul amount of wealth, it is sill substantial. As Nithian Artefacts they would be worth a million gold pieces but as metal ingots only a few hundred thousand gold pieces. The Pyramid is dedicated to some immortal of Entropy involved in the Fall of Nithia.

1. THE DAROKIN PIT (AC1020)

Daryn of Athenos hammered the piton into the stone of the shattered wall and looked around. There was still another three hundred feet to the bottom.
The Cataclysm had swallowed the capitol and all its riches but without magic, few could get to them.
Daryn pulled the bell rope to signal that he needed to be lowered another ten feet. The Rope slackened and he found himself swaying in open air at the mouth of a cave tunnel that now opened to the sky.
The Purple Worm that dominated the tunnel mouth snatched him and pulled in the cable from which he was suspended.
Above, his companions could only watch in surprise as their apparatus was pulled over the edge.

DM Briefing: In AC1020 the Night Dragon Synn drained the Nucleus of the Spheres causing much of the heart-lands of the Known World to collapse into the Cavernous Shadow-elf Realms beneath them. For the city of Darokin, this meant destruction as a large area of land dropped some thousand feet devouring the City, its people, and their Riches Now every fortune hunter in the region is desperate to plunder its wealth.

1. A BASTION OF LIGHT

"What in Halav's name is that?" Gregor stared in shock at the huge stone keep that now dominated the previously naked landscape. "That wasn’t there yesterday..." Franz Torkeep was as surprised as Gregor.

DM Briefing: The Keep is sent backward through time to serve as a bastion of light in the Coming age of Darkness. The Occupants are recent house guests but the Statue will know only that the future is a writhing horror and this 'gate-keep' was part of a great citadel serving to defend the survivors from some unknown horror sweeping the land. It does not know precisely when this horror is to sweep the land however (uses the new Castle Caldwell Map).

1. THE KUE GOBELIN

Jamby of Shireton had spent the day watching the entrance to the caves. Only that evening had Bugbears emerged from their dark recesses.
Denby of Luln crawled up next to him in the Dark and passed him a refill of drink water.
“Well?”
“These are defiantly the Bugbear caves of that old map...”

DM Briefing: The Kue Gobelin are a fifty mile long network cut by ancient flood waters that divert south through the caves to spill out into the Radlebb lowlands south of the Westron Road.
About ten miles south of Fort Radlebb, are the entrances to an extensive network of caves and caverns frequented by Bugbears. The caverns extend north to the Radlebb Mines, and then North-north west beneath the Ruins of Korizigy keep to a Cave entrance thirty miles north of Luln known to be a Lair for Goblins.

1. VOLCANO ERUPTS NEAR FORT CRUTH

Captain Theobold Longshanks Pushed his horse across the open hill country toward Fort Cruth. Somewhere ahead of him was his new Assignment. A Quake shook the earth beneath him and he was thrown from his horse. A Great Gas plume blew up out of the Rock and bellowed into the Air. There were more such plumes spraying up out of tiny cracks in the Rock. "Hells Bells!" Longshanks struggled ot his feet, his bottom sore from the rough landing he could only run after his horse.
DM Briefing: A Volcano (located on the Shadowelf Subterranean map) sixteen miles north of Fort Cruth erupts. Foul and Poisonous gases blow out of the earth and the Primary hex and the adjacent hexes are rocked by tremors. Eventually The Area will blow and a Full on Volcano with flowing Magma will erupt from the Earth.

1. THE EGG RETURNS (AC1020)

“I’ve almost got it.” Sedwik reached through the smashed-in hole and touched the two broken wires together.
SYSTEMS ONLINE...RUNNING SYSTEMS CHECK. An indistinctive voice vibrated through the surface of the Giant Egg.
DAMAGE DETECTED...AUTOREPAIR ACTIVATED.
AUTOREPAIR WORKING...DAMAGE REPAIRED. Sedwik fell back from the egg as the damaged hole vanished.
“Hello?” Sedwik reached out to touch the smooth stone.
SENSORS ONLINE...SCANNING.
SCAN COMPLETE...BIOLOGICAL PRESENCE DETECTED.
ATTEMPTING TO MAKE CONTACT...ACCESSING LINGUISTIC PRIORITY LIST.
GALACTIC-A: RESPOND PLEASE.
“Anya! Come and listen to this...There is someone trapped inside it.” Sedwik felt about the surface looking for some catch to release the person trapped within.
RESPONSE DETECTED...COMPARING...THONIAN VARIANT DETECTED.
THONIAN: RESPOND PLEASE.
“Anya! I think this egg just asked me to pleasure it!” Sedwik was shocked at the suggestion.
RESPONSE DETECTED...COMPARING...AFRIDI VARIANT DETECTED.
POSTULATING...ONE PERCENT THONIAN AND AFRIDI DETECTED IN SHARED SUBLANGUAGE.
POSTULATING...A MINIMUM TWO THOUSAND YEARS HAVE ELAPSED.
SUBDIALECT ALPHA: RESPOND EGG PLEASE.
Anya the Witch listened to the Words...
“You are right...The Egg just demanded you pleasure it. There must be some sort of evil Demon trapped within.” Sedwik backed away.
“We must warn the Village Elders.” Anya nodded in agreement with Sedwik’s assessment of the Situation.

DM BRIEFING: The Artificial Intelligence previously known as the Egg of Coot has been reactivated in the Mystaran year AC1020 and attempts to make contact with the Locals. Once it overcomes the language barrier it will attempt to teach them the Galactic Federation Language known as Galactic-A. Only then will it begin creating the new Age of Technology.

1. CLOSE ENCOUNTER OF THE GOBLINKIND

The Citadel of light hovered over them for a while until it turned and little more than a large dark discus was above them. Now the discus lowered slightly until its centre sat above the ground.
"BUA! BA! BA! BA! BU!" The Incredible sound echoed across the landscape.
"BUA! BA! BA! BA! BU!" The Sound came again from the great Citadel in the Sky.
Now a small light appeared at the heart of it...and spread becoming a large opening from which small children emerged.
"This isn’t happening....Kord tells us we are alone in the Universe!" Jethero the Paladin up and fled.
The Ugly little children in silver clothes emerged and surrounded Silvarn the Wizard. "Help...I'm being abducted!" They walked him back into the light.

DM BRIEFING: A major incursion occurs as the Goblin Citadel-ship ENCOUNTER is revealed to the planetary populace. The evening is filled with sightings of strange lights in the sky, the abduction of ten thousand head of livestock, mass-crop vandalism (crop circles). They proceed to abduct numerous Wizards capable of understanding BLACKLORE. All the Goblins wear silver clothing.

1. THE BARON'S EGG

Baron Amien watched from the battlements of his small keep as the Flying Egg descended into the Castle grounds with a terrible Roar and alighted on the Rosegarden. "This wizard has offered me great secrets..." Amien smiled. "Let us hope they are sufficient to throw down the Duke and his assaults."

DM BRIEFING: An Alphatian wizard in a flying egg offers a local baron technological secrets that his craftsmen will be able to build. Backed by ten Specially bred Trolls (the Wizard calls them TALAK), The Wizard (an OARD Leader) is prepared to instruct the Baron's Artisans in better fortress design, Steam Artillery, and a selection of other crucial technologies that will achieve the OARD's endgame.

“A knight, an honorable sellsword, and a fool march into battle. He dies.”
-Lommy of Grassey Vale. He was never allowed into Highgarden again.
It was nearly dark when the Dead man and his flighty fool arrived at the Inn on the Rose Road. The man did not look dead for sure, indeed with all his war panoply and the way he held himself on his well fed expensive chestnut mount he looked (from afar) like another confident journeyman in the pride of life. The Inn-it’s only brand signifier being a well polished sword and shield carved from a melted breastplate and hung pride of place above the large entrance-had serviced such men all day. The Rose Road as always busy this time of year, but this was no ordinary bustle, but a steady stream of travellers turned into a deluge as all the Reach Lords and their fancy entourages took the Rose Road north to the greatest coronation, wedding and greatest joust in years. Lord Uffering had stayed the night before and been courteous enough. Lord Cordwyner and his oversized escort had stayed the night before, full of wine and good spirits, and had been thoroughly rude. And tonight, a rowdy boisterous bunch of mercenaries who apprently had recently come across a horse of wealth and spent it like crazy. Not that the Inn keep, a veteran whose breastplate had been melted down to create the sign, minded. They all paid well, even if they did grab the serving girl’s asses. And god knows he needed extra swords for protection. Wulfs tavern up road had been sacked by bandits, and rumours of a samr group of Kingswood bandits had hit Grassford and White meadow. They’d think twice about attacking a tavern so full of armed men however…
The Innkeep was protective of all he had for he’d worked so hard for it; fought the battles he’d needed, found a good wife and prayed to all the right gods, and was a good father, if over protective and too harsh. And he was tough as nails, no stranger to freeriders trying to skip tab, or violent guests, or mailed knights in his younger days.
But this rider however...the innkeep grabbed his now long gone sword. Something about this rider scared the Innkeep, and he had fought and survived all the major battles in the Riverlands during war to overthrow the old mad king and his Bittersteel scum.
The rider drew closer, and the Innkeep could make out his features. Handsome, very much so. A shock of long windy blond hair too A lannister then? Thought the innkeep But why take the Rose Road through the Reach of all places.? But the man did not look a Lannister. A scar down the side of his face looked as if it had healed badly, the armour was good-very good, a nobleman's clearly-but no red, no lion and clearly very old-some of the chainmail scales where missing. Instead's his armour wa coated in a garish Green, as was his shield, yet oddly no sigil-All lords loved trumpeting their damn sigils, and the hedge knights where no better. Normal ones anyway. But this soldier was no normal man. For the man was a solder, the Inn keep did not need to see armour to know that-any old merchant could buy a good one these days. It was his swagger, the way he constantly clasped his blade, the way he kept looking back frantically, his position on his horse, posed, ready, his twitchy fingers…
Not just a solder then. A killer. An evil man..
“Oh he’s just so dreamy!” His fool of a daughter Rosie sighed behind him. Lounging off and ogling passing knights instead of working the tables as ever. Should have used the strap on her more, her mothers protests be damned.
“Look father” his daughter was petite redhead who freckles aside had no issues grabbing the attention of passers by, even highborns who claimed to screw only those of their station. But mot this knight though. Barely a glance. “Look!” she pointed again, all giggly the fool. “He looks like a knight in the paintings. Oh and his hair too…”
Stupid girl. This is no storybook knight. This is a killer, and everything such men touch dies. Stay away! But the Innkeep knew not to waste his breath. She was at the unfortunate age where she knew so little, yet claimed to know all.
A sudden flash of colour, and behind the lone knight pranced up a fool on a tiny Piebald pony, his red and green costume all torn and the colour drained by wear, yet a stunning sight to see on an evening roadside tavern nonetheless. The fool seemed to be close to the kni-the killer. He tapped in the shoulder, got a growl in response, argued about something, smiled triumphantly and suddenly rated back and sang in a not unpleasing rich voice-
“From there O’ here. O’ here to there. Oh Black ‘n Brown and cover’ with hair! She smelt that scent‘O summer air. The bear the bear and that maiden so fair! And how are you fair maiden?”
That flirtatious remark was directed at Rosie, who had never heard that version of the song, nor sung so well. And definitely not for her. She swooned.
Damn fools. Her too, but mostly him. Lechers, sucking off rich men, though this one is better than most. So which rich fuck does he serve then? The Innkeep was now more intrigued, through his stomach felt uneasy, as it dead the night Royal forces had ambushed them..
The fool interrupted his thoughts. Wear in his voice, but clearly well rehearsed, he proclaimed “Dear Ser! Dear Innkeep. This be your daughter? Truly a most blessed man. And such a fine establishment. I am Lommy of Grassey Vale-you know of me of course-and this be My knight Ser..Lancel..Flowers..bids you bed us and feed us tonight.”
“This ain't no Charity. We don't just let in gutterwipes and beggers.” The innkeep hated driving away business but he did not like this man or his fool. “If you’re just some hedgeknight, we got no room. Find some nice hedge, or bugger off towards Chelstead..”
The knight looked up, angry red on his face, and the Innkeep tensed, but then the knight closed his eyes and seemed to let it go. The fool seemed not to have noticed. “No hedgeknights here Ser! Only a good Lord, his famous fool-If I do say so myself-and lots..” a jangling of coins-”..of Silver for your purse.
The Innkeep eyed the silver, yet his gut resisted. Suddenly, a story came to mind, one he had heard as a rumour several times by wide eyed scared drinkers in his tavern quarters yet had dismissed as mere travellers fancy or too much meade..A knight-sometimes in Green, other times Yellow on a Chestnut horse, rides from castle to town to castle looking for a place to sleep and someone to fight for. And every lordling and every merchant and every well meaning farmer who let’s him in soon after dies-oftentimes badly I hear. For he is cursed, the incarnation of death himself, and death follows him..
The Innkeep eyed the knight again, with his armour and fine brown horse…My god, no wonder I mistrusted him on sight.! “No rooms damn ye! No rooms I say! Now begone!” Please, go…
“But father!” That cursed girl opened up. “You know we have plenty O’ rooms! And you just told me that we need good music and entertainment for tonight. Why not….”
The innkeep slapped her. “Quiet girl! I’m saving you! This man..” he pointed at the knight “is death! A plague. Go I say Ser! Let me be!”
The fool’s face went red, raised his arm, and then suddenly a pack of young hedgeknights-mercenaries really- came out swords on hilts shouting warnings, and then the Green knight dismounted, walked over and the innkeep bawled his fists…
The Green knight held his fool on the shoulder lightly and told everyone to put their swords away. “No Lommy. Not over this. I can see when we’re not wanted. My apologies Ser” The knights voice took the Inn keep aback-he’d not expected death incarnate to have such a soft voice, nor be so well spoken, nor so respectful to a lowborn. “We have wasted enough time, and it is custom to share as he so desires. Besides, i’d be wary about renting to me too” a ghost of a smile, as if there was some private jest known to the knight he knows he’s cursed too.
“Begone Ser!” The newly rich Mercenaries who were staying that night chimed in-a handsome black haired stormlander in remarkably fine yellow silk and a wicked crooked smile lead them. He seemed nice enough. “Do you not see how the lady is frightened?” he poured on the charm. “Mayhaps your stench offends her? Or your evil face? Begone, and leave our..good landlord..in peace.” He smiled.
The Green knight stared down the man, tensed over his sword, then sighed and relaxed. He shook his head sadly, as if they the audience was missing out not he. “I’d please advise you not to turn me down good Ser” he addressed the Inn keep again. “Bandits hit a silk caravan down road today. Then turned north. I’d reckon they’d hit you next. I’m a sworn anointed knight pledged to defend the weak. Give me bread and board, and i’ll protect you for tonight no payment needed. His voice was so genuine it took the Inn keep aback. I heard of this raid. Mayhaps one extra sword for so cheap a price is not so bad..
“Ha!” The smirking black haired mercenary snorted. “A likely story. Very convenient eh? Bet you use that on loads of Inn keeps and castellan across the Reach eh? And how do we know you’re not one them them eh? Maybe you’re their spy!” The leader seemed angry enough and him and five of his fellows inched closer to the knight. “Maybe you’re here to get inside, slit this good mans throats and ours, rape this fair maiden and get away with the loot eh? You hear stories? Well so do I...and some of ‘em speak of burned towns, murdered hosts..and all involve a Green knight..” he stepped back, arms wide apart as if in taunt, his smile one of a man who knows he’s struck home a point.
The knight was flustered and stammered-offended, shocked...the Inn keeps suspicious mind was at work. Or caught out in the lie! “It’s not true...I never..I tried to save them…” but the words where not coming out of mouth right. By now he was surrounded on three sides by the silk mercenaries, and the leader came up to Rosie and put his arms around her protectively, though she squirmed and tried to push him away. The Green knights eyes narrowed on the leader and eyed their daggers, then the frightened girl. He turned to the Inn keep for one last plea. It was dark now, and rain threatened.
“Please Ser. These men...are liars with ill-intent in their hearts. I shall sleep outside if you want. Please, let me help you..”
“No!” The Inn keep, a stoic man, was so frightened and the unease in his stomach so intense that he yelled erratically. “GO! Go you foul creature. These good men will protect me! He picked out a Gold Dragon-a day's earnings in a non season time-and threw it at the knight. He did not pick it up. “Take that blood money and go bother someone else. Good day.”
The knight ignored the valuable coin, mouthed “sorry” to Rosie, shook his head and finally turned his horse North. Thank the gods, we’re safe. “Thank you dear sers for scaring him off” he told the Black haired mercenary. “How may I repay you?” The mercenary smirked again. “Oh my dear landlord..” he gave an unsettling look at Rosie, one the Inn keep had seen in certain evil men many times before..”Letting us into your..fine establishment was reward enough. Now, let me see more of your..fine..daughter..” he strong armed the Inn keep and took him inside, still eyeing Rosie. The rest of his men eyed the purse where the Gold dragon had come from, and eyed it hungrily. And the Inn keep realised that though the cursed Green knight was gone, an unsettling feeling in his gut was still there..
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That night, the black haired mercenary and his five men got up, tied up the landlord at knife point, and raped Rosie in front him. Having casually slit his throat, they nearly forgot about him in their search for stashed loot, only later realising they needed no witnesses. So they went back in and burned down the inn-a place that had taken 10 years to build and the Inn keeps other joy after his daughter-and burned it down with the Inn keep tied up inside.
The next day, when a local lord sheriff surveyed the carnage, he asked around for witnesses. In the end, the only witness was a nice looking black haired young man passing through from the stormlands, who told of how he had fled, seeing only a Green knight leaving the scene of the crime. The man and his merchant friends were allowed to go free, with the lords compliments and reward money, and a warrant went out for a “Ser Lancel Flowers” that was never fulfilled. And the story of a cursed Green knight spread further. And once again, the story was missing a few verses.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It’s for the best The Green knight thought as he awoke the next day under a cold dewey morning sky. There was smoke and the smell of burning wood in the air coming from down road towards the Inn, but the knight forced himself to dismiss those fears. He had failed so many times, he did not want to think he failed that little red freckled girl…
"You used your real name, and those doors would have flown off and that Inn keep asshole would have been kissing your ass” came the muffled grunting if Lommy. He did not like mornings, even less when not in his preferred sleeping place. That is, anywhere not coated in cushions, feathers and naked women to warm it. He’d seen little of that these last 10 years. Yet he’s still with me regardless.
“He mistrusts hedgeknights, that's his problem. If he knew you were a lord-” Lommy continued and the knight raised a mailed palm to quiet him. “If he knew who I actually was, then soon everyone in the Crownlands and the Reach would know, whole armies would track us down, either to drag me back to my lordship or to hang us. I’m not sure which is worse.” A rare joke, yet it had truth to it. If he did not kill me in my sleep as a daemon. After all ,it’s not every day the great and dead Lord visits your home. And talks to your daughter.
And besides, the Inn keep had not feared him for being a hedge knight. He feared him because he knows what I am. A killer, a monster. And a man cursed to watch all those I touch die around me. Save for the most annoying ones.
He got on his horse, and was tempted to go back to the Inn to soothe his sneaking suspicions, yet dismissed it. I tried, but i’m paranoid anyway so.. Forward, always forward, else the past would swallow him. It was to Kings landing or death.
And almost certainly both. But then, why should I care. Damion Fossoway’s been dead 10 years anyway.

Subreddit	Title	Brand
gaming	A rare look at No Man's Sky E3 press room	Sky
AskReddit	Let's settle it once and for all, why do you prefer Pepsi or Coke?	Pepsi
news	Canadians with cystic fibrosis live, on average, 10 years longer than their counterparts in the United States	United
worldnews	Woman Confronts Sean Spicer at Washington, D.C., Apple Store, Tweets Video	Apple
funny	This is what popped up when I Google searched for Ewan McGregor today	Google
videos	Best Browser Microsoft EDGE Optimize For Windows 10 !	Microsoft
worldnews	Facebook and Twitter Could Face Fines in Germany Over Hate Speech Posts	Twitter
mildlyinteresting	Discarded in Walgreens parking lot. Someone is having a bad morning.	Walgreens
funny	Ads on Facebook have taken an interesting turn.	Facebook
videos	TRUTH or DARE!! Target Edition!!	Target
videos	WE GOT A MINI PET PIG!!! BAD IDEA	MINI
videos	Irish Jockey Ruby Walsh confronts Twitter Troll	Twitter
todayilearned	TIL Winston Churchill was made an honorary citizen of the US	Winston
Jokes	How is Google Drive like Snapchat?	Google
videos	Prof Robert Kelly is back & this time his wife & children are meant to be in shot! BBC News	BBC
Jokes	My lesbian neighbors gave me a Rolex for my birthday...	Rolex
food	Homemade Apple pi my friends and I made for pie day. ;	Apple
pics	a NSFW ABC news and c#&t report	ABC
mildlyinteresting	The wall of this Nike store is made up of waffle irons	Nike
todayilearned	TIL today six corporations control 90% of the media in The United States	United
WritingPrompts	WP The Dinosaurs have initiated the nuclear holocaust, and most of all life is to be eradicated. The United Counsel of Mammals prepares the ID-inator, a device that will wipe the ability of consciousness for all organisms present. However, a large sect is in uproar and refuses to enter the device.	United
Futurology	San Francisco talks robot tax - "Following the recent advice of Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Supervisor Jane Kim called for a hearing Tuesday on imposing a tax on robots and automation."	Microsoft
funny	Someone's gotta tell Facebook the truth	Facebook
Showerthoughts	FaceTime messages: having deaf parents and not being able to leave them voicemails I could leave a FaceTime message instead of a text. Apple workers hop on this!	Apple
news	Brazil prosecutor targets politicians in Petrobras scandal	Petrobras
AskReddit	If you just got killed in Halo 3 by some French guy over Xbox Live, and got so mad you broke your controller, how could you make it look like manufacturer error?	Xbox
Music	Hillbilly Casino - Violets In May - Rockabilly	Casino
OldSchoolCool	Francis Ford Coppola, Irvin Kershner, Akira Kurosawa, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and Carroll Ballard at Coppola's place - 1980	Ford
food	Homemade Tea Infused Cranberry Orange Scones	Orange
news	DOJ to announce charges in Yahoo hacks	Yahoo
funny	For a split second I thought ESPN had actually started covering card games.	ESPN
mildlyinteresting	My Taco Bell hot sauce didn't have a phrase.	Bell
todayilearned	TIL That the phaseout of leaded gasoline along with the large scale removal of many other leaded products has been correlated with a 34% drop in violent crime in the United States.	United
AskReddit	If Time Travelers coming from the future were ever proven to exist, What events or parts of history should have tipped us off?	Travelers
explainlikeimfive	ELI5: Why do the United States' only have two major political parties?	United
news	[Greenfield man who spent life helping others now receiving much needed help with ALS	CBS 4 - Indianapolis News, Weather, Traffic and Sports](https://www.reddit.com/news/comments/5zgzp3/greenfield_man_who_spent_life_helping_others_now/)
funny	Wanted the cake to say Congratulations Zehra + Prince... Typical Walmart fashion has misspellings and looks like a 2 year old decorated. "Congratulations" is a plastic thing.	Walmart
movies	'The Matrix' Reboot in the Works at Warner Bros. Exclusive	Warner Bros.
mildlyinteresting	A lone gallon of mislabeled? Costco milk in a sea of Winco grocery store brand milk in Lewisville, TX	Costco
news	Strep throat leads to quadruple amputation for Kent Co. man	Kent
AskReddit	You've been elected President of the United States with all of its power and access: what is the first self-indulgent perk that you take advantage of?	United
OldSchoolCool	My grandfather used to race in the 1960's. His car was nicknamed "The Orange Crate"	Orange
OldSchoolCool	George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and R2-D2 on the set of Star Wars, 1977	Ford
personalfinance	I need car insurance for a 2003 Ford Taurus. Don't have much, but I need it as soon as I can and don't know what to look for. Please help!	Ford
AskReddit	Just like Youtube personalities, Who is your favorite Reddit personality and why?	Youtube
OldSchoolCool	George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and R2-D2 on the set of Star Wars, 1977	Ford
mildlyinteresting	This brand new Jeep ready for WW2!	Jeep
AskReddit	ITT: What kind of Youtube clickbait you Hate the most?	Youtube
videos	Prof Robert Kelly and family - the full interview - BBC News - the interrupted interview	BBC
movies	Morning Glory is 2010 comedy film where Harrison Ford plays the host of a morning TV show. What are other examples when the casting of an actor seem a little bit out of place or just "random"?	Ford
funny	Hilarious BBC interview parody video about why everyone assumed she was the Nanny!	BBC
movies	'The Matrix' Reboot in the Works at Warner Bros. Exclusive.	Warner Bros.
funny	Live BBC interview crashed by children: Family speaks out for the first time.	BBC
listentothis	Static-P -- Sky Lanterns indie rock 2015	Sky
mildlyinteresting	Nothing to see here, just a Costco employee silently hunting a pigeon	Costco
sports	538 and ESPN Films make a cool video about the chances of a 16 beating a 1	ESPN
todayilearned	TIL that L-1B visas are bigger than H-1B and worse for American workers. U.S.-based multinational corporations such as IBM can use its own overseas employees to do the work in the USA for a fraction of costs of American workers.	IBM
worldnews	What made these grannies go nude in public? - BBC News	BBC
AskReddit	You're the new First Gentleman/Lady of the United States. What's your special project for the term?	United
news	Blind woman and service dog kicked off American Airlines flight	American Airlines
funny	Prof Robert Kelly and the interrupted interview - take two - BBC News	BBC
gifs	1 This was an on duty Uber driver. 2 The driver lived.	Uber
funny	Had a fun chat with the Facebook ai today	Facebook
TwoXChromosomes	Dallas Uber Driver	Uber
worldnews	Headphones catch fire on flight from Beijing to Melbourne, burning sleeping passenger's face and hands - ABC News Australian Broadcasting Corporation	ABC
funny	Playing Google Feud and happened upon this answer, wtf?	Google
todayilearned	TIL the United States and Canada's land border is the longest land border in the world	United
worldnews	Popular Xbox One controller charging station recalled over burn hazard	Xbox
explainlikeimfive	ELI5: Why does blood clot or Apple juice turn into schnaps when touched by a menstruating women?	Apple
AskReddit	Why has patriotism become the counter-culture in the United States and wider western world?	United
videos	Typical day in Newport Beach, California.	Newport
gaming	Why isn't the Playstation 4 Backwards Compatible?	Playstation
television	Neil deGrasse Tyson Isn't Afraid Of A Little Crystallized Water	Tyson
explainlikeimfive	ELI5: Why does blood clot or Apple juice turn into schnaps when touched by a menstruating women?	Apple
gaming	Best Microphones for Gaming and Youtube Commentary in 2017	Youtube
funny	Cats And Dogs Chase Laser Pointer	Chase
gaming	I dont know anything about the Jeep Patriot, but i bet Tony Hawk got one for free.	Jeep
worldnews	The Department of Justice will announce charges against hackers with ties to Russia who were behind the Yahoo account hack	Yahoo
Jokes	Breaking News : Apple soon to launch their cars.	Apple
videos	Dad saves the day in a BBC news live interview	BBC
worldnews	Mid-flight slumber cut short by exploding headphones - BBC News	BBC
Music	Sam Kent - My World Alternative Rock	Kent
worldnews	Forbes and other Twitter accounts hacked by attackers calling Germany, Netherlands Nazis over dealings with Turkey	Twitter
worldnews	German police raids Audi headquarters over emissions fraud	Audi
videos	Prof Robert E Kelly has returned to BBC News to talk about his unexpected viral fame last week, when his children crashed his live TV interview to the amusement of millions of people who later watched the clip	BBC
worldnews	Ikea drivers living in trucks for months - BBC News	BBC
TwoXChromosomes	X-post relationships, received Facebook message from woman boyfriend slept with before me	Facebook
AskReddit	What's a creative way to use the Lego tape?	Lego
worldnews	The diplomatic spat between Turkey and the Netherlands spread online on Wednesday when a large number of Twitter accounts, many with no apparent connection to the dispute, were hijacked and replaced with anti-Nazi messages in Turkish	Twitter
worldnews	Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will warn China’s leaders that the United States is prepared to step up missile defenses and pressure on Chinese financial institutions if they fail to use their influence to restrain North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs	United
pics	When he's not trying to destroy our American democracy, he's serving me complimentary Starbucks beverages on my Delta flight.	Starbucks
pics	When he's not trying to destroy our American democracy, he's serving me complimentary Starbucks beverages on my Delta flight.	Delta
todayilearned	TIL Universal Studios, Inc sued Sony and its distributors in 1976, alleging that because Sony was manufacturing a device Betamax that could be used for copyright infringement, they were thus liable for any infringement committed by its purchasers. Essentially trying to kill videotape recording.	Sony
gaming	Crazy No Man's Sky dinosaur thing	Sky
pics	An example of what private-public partnerships do to public roads in the United States because a certain party won't raise bloody taxes to have public infrastructure	United
worldnews	Donald Trump's 2005 tax return leak reveals $38m bill - BBC News	BBC
videos	Police Chase 2017 Compilation - Brooklyn, Los Angeles, Houston. Best Police Chases car March 2017	Chase
gaming	Brooklyn Public Library Gets $3 Million Grant To Bring An Xbox To Every Branch	Xbox
worldnews	High profile Twitter accounts hijacked in Turkish-Dutch protest	Twitter
worldnews	'Turkish backers' target Amnesty and Unicef Twitter accounts	Twitter
pics	This was the last photo my Canon took before the shutter got stuck. It's of the Monticello Dam's Infamous Glory Hole In California which just recently began overflow for the first time in 10 years.	Canon
gaming	Stream Xbox One to Windows 10 - No Lag	Xbox
nottheonion	Man claimed on Facebook he ran a circumcision service — from his 'cabin in the woods'	Facebook
AskReddit	What's the most essential programs to run along side Microsoft Word and Excel?	Microsoft
worldnews	Hacked Twitter Accounts Post Swastikas, Pro-Erdogan Content	Twitter
worldnews	Marine Alexander Blackman conviction reduced to manslaughter on appeal - BBC News	BBC
personalfinance	Does anyone with a TD Auto Finance loan know how to set it up to have extra payments applied directly to the principal rather than to future payments?	TD
worldnews	Mid-flight slumber cut short by exploding headphones - BBC News	BBC
videos	Prof Robert Kelly is back & this time his wife & children are meant to be in shot! BBC News	BBC
worldnews	Le Pen Win Would Wipe Out 25% From French Bank Shares, Citi Says	Citi
funny	[Box 24 Casino	Best Casino Bonuses](https://www.reddit.com/funny/comments/5ziz5j/box_24_casino_best_casino_bonuses/)
television	Trump Twitter League	Twitter
pics	Chinese Lottery Winner Dressed as Baymax So Thieves and Poor Relatives Won't Discover Who He Is.?	Discover
IAmA	AMA Request The Apple engineer who left the iPhone 4 prototype at a bar in 2010.	Apple
videos	Looking Back at the Original Version of Google Chrome!	Google
videos	Children interrupt BBC News interview REVERSED	BBC
news	Airbnb CEO weighs in on Uber crises: 'We are all learning'	Uber
AskReddit	What would a trade war with the United States and China look like? Who would likely be hurt the most and how?	United
funny	Best Casino Bonuses! NO DEPOSIT BONUS!	Casino
Showerthoughts	BREAKING NEWS: It's just occurred to me that aliens could be watching Sky TV without paying for it.	Sky
movies	Great job, Total Film.	Total
pics	In 24 hours my Ford Ranger grew to the size of a dump truck.	Ford
Showerthoughts	If everything should be left up to the states and not the country as a whole, then why are we even a United country?	United
pics	What is this off the coast of Hilton Head?	Hilton
news	Justice Department to Announce Indictments in Massive Yahoo Hack	Yahoo
worldnews	Ship crashes into 'pristine' coral reef, captain may be charged - "The 297-foot 90.6 meter MS Caledonian Sky crashed into the reefs at Raja Ampat on March 4."	Sky
mildlyinteresting	This is what a UPS truck loading chart looks like	UPS
funny	Damn, CVS can count!	CVS
news	Man claimed on Facebook he ran a circumcision service — from his 'cabin in the woods'	Facebook
Music	Michael Kiwanuka - Cold Little Heart Soul Live jam session video. It's like Pink Floyd, Otis Redding, and Bill Withers got together and had a musical baby. Put it on in the background and enjoy 10 minutes of goosebumps.	Otis
gaming	When you poop and it sounds like the Xbox 360 notification sound	Xbox
WritingPrompts	WP The Earth is beginning to drastically heat up and species are beginning to die. Large scale infrastructure is beginning to fall into disrepair. You are a Canadian, the ports are closed and the wall blocks you from any contact with the United States.	United
worldnews	Hackers Post Pro-Erdogan Messages in Attack on Twitter Accounts	Twitter
LifeProTips	LPT: On iOS devices running iOS 9+ there's a secret flight tracker that can be viewed by typing the airline name and flight number into a note or a text to someone JetBlue #111 or Delta #6 ...	Delta
videos	In light of that Pigeon in Costco here's a trap specially made for Sparrows and birds in buildings.	Costco
worldnews	Justice Department charging Russian spies and criminal hackers in Yahoo intrusion	Yahoo
Futurology	4 out of 5 US homes have solar power potential according to Google study	Google
LifeProTips	LPT: Do not use document shredding service at places like Staples or FedEx Office	FedEx
news	Ikea drivers living in trucks for months - BBC News	BBC
worldnews	US charges Russian spies over Yahoo breach	Yahoo
worldnews	Pro-Erdogan hackers in Twitter attack as EU blasts Turkey	Twitter
news	Two Russian spies indicted by US Department of Justice over hacking of 500m Yahoo user accounts	Yahoo
worldnews	Two Russian spies are being indicted by the US Department of Justice over a huge breach of Yahoo user accounts.	Yahoo
worldnews	Russian spies among those facing U.S. charges over Yahoo hack: source	Yahoo
worldnews	Hackers hijack Twitter accounts over feud between Turkey, Netherlands	Twitter
news	US charges Russian spies over Yahoo breach	Yahoo
worldnews	Irish woman Danielle McLaughlin murdered in India - BBC news	BBC
worldnews	US charges Russian spies over Yahoo breach	Yahoo
news	Russian spies among those facing U.S. charges over Yahoo hack: source	Yahoo
news	Two Russian spies charged over Yahoo hack, the biggest cyber attack in the world	Yahoo
AskReddit	What do you think sending the Error Report to Microsoft actually fucking does?	Microsoft
nottheonion	Man claimed on Facebook he ran a circumcision service — from his 'cabin in the woods'	Facebook
Showerthoughts	Whenever I see a targeted advertisement from Google that actually applies to me, I wish that I had an option to tell them that their algorithm is working, it's just that I don't want to click on their ads.	Google
movies	Looks like Warner Bros. is gearing up for a new Matrix movie.	Warner Bros.
news	Yahoo breach - US to charge Russian spies - BBC News	BBC
todayilearned	TIL that Royal Mail is still legally obliged to issue stamps with the Queen's face and She has to approve the image.	Royal Mail
WritingPrompts	WP The United States and Russia start a nuclear winter from their recent war. Years later as the countries strike a truce and begin to rebuild, the White House recieves a message,"The penguins have taken South America and are marching for our border."	United
AskReddit	I remember one time when both Dominos and Pizza Hut lowered their prices at the same time. How is it possible unless they had planned it together?	Pizza Hut
news	Russian hackers charged in massive Yahoo breach, 'largest data breach in US history'	Yahoo
news	U.S. Indicts Four in Theft of 500 Million Yahoo Accounts	Yahoo
worldnews	U.S. Indicts Four in Theft of 500 Million Yahoo Accounts	Yahoo
OldSchoolCool	Howard Cosell and John Lennon in October of 1974 at the New York headquarters of ABC Radio.	ABC
personalfinance	Keep 2015 Jeep or sell to lower debt?	Jeep
worldnews	Russian hackers charged in massive Yahoo breach, one in custody in Canada	Yahoo
news	U.S. Indicts Four, Including Russian Spies, in Theft of 500 Million Yahoo Accounts	Yahoo
Showerthoughts	When I replace the Uber driver's radio station with the music on my phone, I feel like I'm abusing one of the hosts in Westworld and there is nothing they can do about it.	Uber
worldnews	Justice Department charging Russian spies and criminal hackers in Yahoo intrusion	Yahoo
worldnews	US charges two Russian spies and two hackers in Yahoo data breach	Yahoo
worldnews	U.S. indicts Russian spies, hackers over massive Yahoo hack	Yahoo
WritingPrompts	WP The Dinosaurs have initiated a nuclear holocaust, and all life on Earth is to be eradicated. The United Counsel of Mammals prepares the ID-inator, a device that will wipe the ability of consciousness for all organisms present. However, a large sect is in uproar and refuses to enter the machine	United
Music	Astrale - Above the Sky Electronic	Sky
news	Russia backed Yahoo email hack, two Russian spies charged	Yahoo
worldnews	Facebook—in hate-crime clash with MPs—claims it’s “fixed” abuse review tool Lawmaker accuses Twitter, Google, and Facebook of "commercial prostitution."	Facebook
worldnews	Beijing aims to add good Samaritan laws to new civil code：The Asahi Shimbun	Asahi
worldnews	Hundreds of Twitter accounts including Bieber and Forbes hacked, calling Germany, Netherlands 'nazi'	Twitter
Showerthoughts	"App" in the Apple App Store is short for Apple.	Apple
worldnews	Canadian-Kazakh national charged in Yahoo hack	Yahoo
AskReddit	Anyone else think Facebook listens to your conversations when you are talking then serves you ads?	Facebook
mildlyinteresting	There was a Maybach at McDonald's today	McDonald's
videos	I see your Alexa-CIA video, how about a Google Assistant one?	Google
worldnews	DOJ: 2 Russian spies indicted in Yahoo hack	Yahoo
aww	Zeus doesn't like when I play Xbox because he isn't getting the attention he needs.	Xbox
pics	When did Kraft get so evil?	Kraft
worldnews	Canadian-Kazakh national charged in Yahoo hack	Yahoo
explainlikeimfive	ELI5: Why the pictures of people from Russia show them wearing adidas tracksuits with signature stripes most of the time?	adidas

The wall by Robin-Boer
Original prompt courtesy of Syraphia. Thank you.
It had been months since that fateful raid on my village. By the time I was in a position to defend, there was nothing left to defend, and no one to exact revenge on. I had been able to find my home, a small alcove dug out of the stone cliffside. I wasn't expecting what I find inside, my younger sister desperately trying to revive our mother even as she was bleeding out of a deep slash wound across her chest, their blood soaking the bear skin rug and running onto the cold granite floor, pooling in crimson red ponds of life.
I pried her off, as much to keep me from shattering as to allow me to try and treat her. I was too late, as she grabbed my hands and stared into my eyes as she croaked out with her last breaths of life, “Avenge...us… Sister…”
I stayed for one fortnight, giving them a proper burial, all of them. I owed it to them, to pay for my failure, my failure to the village, my village. I gathered what supplies were left after the raid and prepared to leave, to run from the site of my failure. Before I left, I made a promise, a promise bathed in the salt of a mourning family member’s tears and sealed with the blood of a tormented soul. I promised, to my sister and my tribe, that I would avenge them.
That was months ago, a distant yet recent memory that has spurred me on through impenetrable swamps, poisonous jungles, and mountain ranges tall enough to pierce the very sky. All of those at least had food and water, which couldn't be said about the Sykielos Desert I was traversing. I had ran out of water four days ago, and my food a week ago, the empty waterskin and food pack a constant reminder of the dire straits I was facing. I half stumble, half fall onto my walking stick as I trudge forward, towards the city of Demaran. In the horizon, the Sun was already peeking its oppressive body out from the dunes and rocks, baking away the comfort of night.
The Sun was at the height of its power, crushing me under it's rays as I stumble towards the city. Far in the distance, was the wall. It was built during the Third Sykielan War between ancient elves and dwarves, under the dictatorship of Klignikrin the Terrible. Many of my people perished trying to breach the stone walls, their armor penetrated by bolts before they could even see the dwarven archers. I could only hope I did not share a similar fate as I worked my way towards the massive wall.
Trading posts had pushed their way out of the protective stone of the walls, spilling into the fine sand of the desert. I kept moving, past the horses and camels, past the horses and camels, past the merchants and buyers, past the makeshift tents and sturdy wood shacks. I could feel the eyes of others joining the Sun's assault on me as they whispered and talked among themselves.
Who is she?, What is she doing here?, Another elf think she can make it out there alone? No wonder they lost against the dwarves trying to fight here.
In my rapidly declining vision, I spot a trough of water next to an inn built for traveling traders. The walking stick in my hand falls to the ground along with me as my knees give up on me, dropping me on the burning hot sands. I drag myself along the sand until my hand grabs the wood edge of the trough. Pulling myself so I'm leaning against the Sun bleached wood, I scoop up the fetid water as fast as I could, ignoring the grains of sand and bits of straw mixed in with the fluid. My burning throat rejoiced at the taste of water, any water, but my stomach couldn't handle the vile liquid as I retched it onto the ground, a thin, clear acidic stream absorbed before my blurring eyes into the inhospitable desert.
The taste of the water, no matter how bad, was enough to revive me at least partially as I picked up my walking stick and started to head into a shaded alleyway for water, anything better than the horrid mixture in the watering trough. Instead of water, I ran into a group of 4 people, humans by their appearance. They spread out in front of me, blocking my path forward.
“Please, water,” I croaked out my dessicated throat, the words burning as they rattled out.
“Sure, I’ll give water… For a price”. That was the large man in the center of the pack. In his hand was something long and darkly colored. “Give us your money, anything valuable, elf.”
“I...I have nothing. Please, sir, water,” I pleaded with the man.
“You elves always have something valuable. Give it up and it’ll be easy. Make me take it, you don’t want to find out.”
“I have nothing. Now please, I need water*.”
“We’ll see about that.”
He waved forward a somewhat strongly built human male, who started to approach me while pulling something out from under his shirt. With the remaining strength I had, I brought up my walking stick in front of me, the rounded wooden tip shaking in front of my face. When he had gotten close enough, I jabbed at his head with everything I could muster. I wasn’t strong enough to keep the point from dipping down as the wood found a temporary home in his throat, my body weight pushing it forward as I lurched towards my attack.
The man coming at me took a step back, then another, and one more before tripping on a rock and falling back, clutching his throat as he wheezed and coughed, trying to recover from the strike. Not taking chances, I stomp on his head, taking him out of the fight as he goes limp. The leader of the ragtag group of robbers waved his hand again, sending up a man and a woman. The adrenaline now coursing through my veins instilled in me a little bit of extra strength as the pair advanced towards me, clutching a knife and a club.
Taking a swipe at the man’s hand, I feel the impact as it travels up the wood pole into my hands. He drops the knife as I jab the blunt end of the stick into his stomach, poking the breath out of him as he bends over. Rushing up to him, I kick his knee inwards, his scream letting me know that he would not be a threat anymore.
With two of them taken care of, I focus on the other criminal, twirling her baton as she inched closer to me. I bring my walking stick up in front of me, keeping the point in front of her. Before I could react, she smashes her baton into the wood, knocking my only weapon out of my hands.
With nothing left to defend myself with, I charge into her, punching forward at her face. The dull impact was enough to stun her as she reached up to grab her nose. Getting a grip on the back of her neck, I pull her into a knee to the stomach. Yanking her head down, I drive my knee into her face, the shock rattling my weak knees. Days without food and decent water had left me weak, too weak to keep holding onto her as she blacked out, blood starting to run out of her broken nose onto the yellow sand. I'm about to straighten up to face the last criminal when a hand grabs my arm and throws me back.
The next thing that happened was the fist of the robber boss as it slammed into my face. Stars danced in the bright blue sky as I fell back onto the sand. The taste of copper filled my mouth as a hot river started to rush from my nose, vision a blur from the devastating blow. He straddles me, pinning my arms down as the weight of his body crushes down on my emaciated arms. The sound of metal scraping on metal, the shifting of weight forward, the cold edge pressing against the soft flesh of my throat, and I knew I was done for.
“You have knocked out one of my women, crippled one of my men, and probably killed another one of my men. Your chance at getting out easy is gone. Prepare to die, elf”
The fear in my heart overwhelms the hatred in my mind as I squeeze my eyes shut, desperate to make my last moments alive not looking at my killer. I mouth a quick prayer to the Spirits as I prepared to die, not a heroic death, but one of shame.
“Get off her!”
The weight of his body is lifted as another man shouts. The clinking of metal plates accompanies the sound of something heavy being thrown against stone. The long scraping of steel on steel was the greeting call of a sword. The wet slicing sounds the result of the thirsty steel blade tasting the blood of enemies. One final scraping and click signals the weapon’s return home into its scabbard. I curl up into a ball, covering my face with my hands as a heavy footed man walks next to me and kneels down. As his hand touches my shoulder, I jerk away from the sudden contact.
“It's ok miss, you're safe now. You're under the protection of the Royal Guards. Sergeant Mathis, at your service,” said a cordial voice above me. I uncover my head and look up at him, covering my eyes and squinting in the overwhelming light of the Sun. The source of the voice was standing over me, an armed human man, faceplate flipped up as he smiled warmly upon me. Outstretched in front of me is his hand, clad in steel and mail, which I grab. No sooner than I had wrapped my fingers around it, he pulls me off the ground.
He shouts for the innkeeper leaning on the railing outside his in to fetch some water. He quickly scurried back, handing me a waterskin so full it looked like even one more drop would burst it and spill its precious contents. I tear the bag from his hands and claw at the cap until it falls off, freeing the lifesaving fluids. I guzzle the water down as fast as I can, squeezing the bag between my hands, the liquid soothing my burning throat and starting to quench my insatiable thirst. Half of the skin’s contents are swallowed before an armored hand tears it out of my hands, spilling some onto the sand, where it disappeared before my very eyes. I lunge for the bag, some of my strength recovered by the water, but my coordination is still damaged by the punch. The sergeant stops me mid-lunge, grabbing my shoulder as I try to push for the waterskin.
“You can't pound all the water down that fast. You'll just puke it all back up. Trust me, I know,” he explained as one would to a child when they were misbehaving. I struggle a bit more, squirming in his firm grip, but to no avail as I rapidly grow tired.
“Tell you what, you know the White Sands Inn, the one down the alleyway? Why don't you stay there for the night, recover some? If the innkeeper or anyone else gives you any trouble, I'll be there with you into you get to your room,” asked the guard.
Having tasted fresh water, I feel confident enough in my voice to speak.
“You… you'd do that? For an elf? But… but you're… human…”
“Not all of us are like that. Most of us aren't like that. And of course I would. Without compassion for each other, well, we'd be no better than animals.”
“Thank you, thank you so much! How, how can I repay you?”
“Worry about that later. I feel that you're going to have that covered just fine.”
A while later, and I'm alone in my room, one usually for the most successful of desert traders, stomach full and thirst quenched. As I lay on the cotton and down bedding, the words he said echo in my head. Going to have that covered just fine. What could that mean?
“Sergeant, let me get this straight. There was a robbery earlier today, in the alley,next to the White Sands Inn. Is that true?”
“Yes, Commander.”
“And you were present for at least part of this altercation between four human criminals, three men and one woman, and one Elf girl, correct?”
“Correct, Commander.”
“Yet you didn't intervene until the victim was knocking on death's door or whatever the Elven version is. Why?”
“Because you didn't see the way she fought. She wasn't trying to use a bunch of flashy but ineffective moves, she was using the least amount of energy for maximum effect. She was, in three words, efficient and trained. In one word, ideal.”
“Are you suggesting sending her to the capital for training?”
“Yes, Commander. She has not been told about this though. Right now, she's likely sleeping in the White Sands Inn.”
“Very well. Make sure she gets this… Invitation. We'll need everyone we can get our hands on for this war.”
“Aye, Commander. I'll get this done right away.”
The Sun was streaming through the window by the time I awoke, it's golden rays splashing off the dark wood and light fabrics. Rubbing the crust from my eyes, I spot a scroll rolled up in a basket next to the wall. My heart skips a beat when I realize someone was here earlier, while I was asleep, defenseless. There's only two people I know of who could get in, and with that realization my mind start to calm down, my body still mulling over someone being able to get to me at my most vulnerable time.
Not wanting to leave the scroll unread, I get out of bed, running my hand through my matted hair in a vain attempt to tame the wild strands. Rubbing my face with my palms, I stretch as I wander over to the scroll, careful not to trip over the Sandcrawler fur rug laid on the fur. The scroll itself was quite interesting, papyrus fibers meshed together to form the rough, yellowish material, but the contents of the scroll were something that was both expected and unexpected. Between the crude drawings, unreadable scribbles, and semi-legible Aecodeti, it was clear I was to go to the town's main garrison. I throw what little I have into my bag before slinging it onto my back.
Within the hour, I have walked to the garrison, a small but well fortified location built into the massive stone walls that surrounded the main city. With a slight tremble in my body, I walk towards the guard post, a squat stone hut flanked by a stone wall and large, iron plated gate. I wipe the crumbs of bread off my hands before pulling out the scroll, displaying the seal stamped onto the woven papyrus. The guard waves me through, but not without subjecting me to a withering stare as I walk into a large paved square.
A man in armor waves me over, the sword sheathed at his side wiggling at his hips, almost daring me to do something, anything, to let it drink. I gulp one last time before walking over to him, trying not to have my trembling be so obvious. As I get nearer, I recognize the man in armor; Mathis. He beckons me into a stone building, closing the wooden door behind him.
Sitting at a sturdy looking wood table was another armored man, slightly older than the one who rescued me yesterday. The sergeant stiffens up and slams his gauntlets hand against his chestplate before walking out of the room, shutting the door behind him.
“Take a seat, miss. I see you have received my message.”
I spot an already pulled out seat and plop myself down into it, setting my bag down next to me.
“Why did you leave a scroll at my room telling me to come here? I didn't do anything wrong, I think…”
“Oh, you didn't do anything wrong, except for fighting in public”
I shove the seat back as I shoot up, slamming my fist on the table.
“I had no choice! They were going to rob me and leave me to die! I had to fight in public, or I wouldn't be here right now!”
“Which is why we have a self defense clause, in which you are safe from any legal action. I am not here to discuss whether or not you should've fought or not, but to offer you an opportunity, an opportunity at turning your life around, to become someone.”
With that revelation,I sit back down, blowing out a deep sigh as I tried to process what he said. “Wha… Why… Why me? I'm not anything special… Far from it…”
“From what I was told, you're not a nobody. You know how to fight, how to stand your ground. All that needs to happen is some special training and I'm sure you'll be an excellent member of our military.”
“But… But I couldn't even defend myself against four lowlife criminals… I would've died if Mathis, Sergeant Mathis hadn’t been there. My neck would've been slit, and I would be dying in the sand outside.”
“That is true, but you have also went for a long time without food or water. From what I have heard, somewhere within a few days. I am correct, yes?”
“How did you know? Have you ordered your forces to follow me, to track me as I came to your town?”
“No, but would someone who hasn't tasted the sweetness of clean water dive into a watering trough to drink its water until threw up? I don't think so.”
I stay silent as I think about what he said. Does he really think that, or is this just an act? I'm still thinking when he continues.
“We took the perpetrators into custody shortly after the sergeant escorted you to the inn. Just by looking at their injuries, it's clear that you have had prior training. You went for the kill, maximum damage with what was available to you. I bet that if you weren't severely dehydrated and starving, you would've been able to fight them all off, and that's not bringing in weapons, besides your wooden walking stick. Imagine if that were a spear. Or a proper staff. I don't think they would've lasted more than a minute or two.”
“Why do you want me so much though? I'm just a normal Elven girl, nothing more… I couldn't even defend myself or my village…”
“What happened at your village, if you don't mind me asking?”
I steel myself before dredging up the memories, those painful memories. I take a deep breath, starting my voice before speaking.
“Bandits, too many of them. I didn't get there fast enough, I was too late, too late.”
“Do you know who did it? Did you see who was the leader?”
“Yes, yes I did. I will never forget that face, that voice… I will get revenge for my village, my home, my family”
"I have no doubt that you will be able to become a force to be reckoned with. Mark my words, you will get revenge. But this is no easy task, not for a bandit group able to destroy an entire village. You're going to need help, whether you think you need it or not.”
“Are, are you asking me to enlist in your military? Would they even take me?”
“I will send a special recommendation along with your enlistment package, if you do choose to.” He turns around the papers in the table, removing the cover on top of them. Written on the papyrus fibers, foreign writing, unreadable to me. I look up ah him in confusion, at which point he calls in someone with a distinctly Elven name. She walks in the door, a simple but elegant dress hanging off her similarly delicate frame.
“She will be your interpreter, if you choose to join us. Have a good rest of your day”. With that, he walks out of the room, shutting the door behind him.
“So, what's your name?”
“Aerilaya Yinsalor. How about you?”
“I'm not the important one right now, you are. Before we begin, tell me honestly, do plan on joining or not? If you're not, might as well save both of our times, right?”
I rub my face with my palms as I contemplate the decision laid ahead of me. This was a chance to gather strength, to ensure victory, revenge, against the bandits, but it also brought me further away from the bandits. It gave me more time to prepare, but it also gave them more time to prepare. In the background, my translator began tapping her fingers on the table, counting away the seconds that passed as I mulled over my decision.
“Have you made up your mind yet?”
“Yes, yes I have. I… I'll… I'll join your military.”
“Excellent. Item one…”...
“Commander, I have just finished helping the new recruit finish her packet. I must say, she would do well, provided proper training of course.”
“Good, very good to hear. How good would you say she is though? Good enough to be transferred to Y’taarie for special training?”
“She is certainly the best choice of all the possible candidates we've seen so far, perhaps even out of all the candidates. It'd be a waste of potential to not recommend her for special training.”
“Very well. I will put her on the next caravan to Y’taarie. Dismissed.”
“Aye, Commander.”