The widow of Kyle Barren received the message and instantly wanted to throw it in the bin. The Rokkenjiman's, just like every other Helus-forsaken nation on Mundus could have easily brought her beloved Kingdom into existence but instead they had played the Morelanders game and branded her and her people as terrorists and criminals. She had no idea about what to respond with, at first she had considered ignoring it, then she wanted to spit venom at Lucinda, finally she went to see Giles Gedding.

"What was Kyle thinking" Giles said after reading the note, "Letting Rokkenjiman intelligence or whatever she is into the centre of Borland operations. We can't trust a word these Rokkenjimans say, they're not our way out of this and infact its clear they much prefer things in Northfort the way they are. I do not want you replying, I'll take care of this." Giles said as he slid the letter into his desk drawer. Beatrice was more than happy to allow that to happen, she just wanted to fade into the background now and watch after her sons interests and inheritance.

The next day Giles figured out a response.

"Lucinda. You'll know only too well we lived our lives together dedicating ourselves to trying to do right by the Borland Folk. We expanded that folk far beyond what people would imagine in our homeland. To have the person you love gunned down by criminals pretending to be heroes breaks my heart and I know I will never truly recover. You can be assured we will not forget him and his legacy will be built upon by generation after generation unready to be slaves to the illegitimate regime. For now my focus is on our son, the true King of Northfort. I hope that perhaps one day our paths, and his may cross on better terms."

---

Giles, had left instructions to his subordinate that he expected to be followed to the letter. The subordinate in this case was his nephew, Riley Meadows, a man in his mid twenties who was well versed as one of Giles' legitimate businesses "White Knight" hackers, testing cyber security for a fee. Today though he was up to no good. For the past few years under Giles instruction the group had run a neferious website known as the Valerian Bazaar on the Darknet. The concept was easy, sellers signed up and created digital wallets and utilised the sites "auto-encrypt" functions. Once a buyer had ordered their drugs, contraband, weapons or other nefarious items the buyer transferred digital currency from their regular wallet, to a Valerian one, then to the seller and then days later their goods turned up wherever they'd wanted them. The seller could then move their currency from their Valerian wallet to their digital one and then if they wanted into their bank account. Several tens of millions usually sat in these Valerian wallets any single time as sellers became buyers and vice versa. Today they were in for a nasty shock. No sooner would they have logged into their account to do business than a message appeared telling them the site was shut forever and that their Valerian Wallets were now the property of the Bazaar. While this loss of funds would be bad for most of the people using it the next message was even worse. It appeared the "auto-encrypt" hadn't exactly functioned the way people thought, nor had the feature of deleting personal messages after 72 hours. Every transaction, every transfer had been saved and while the exact identities would likely never be fully known there was a significant amount of data that would be interest to authorities. There was of course a way of the user avoiding this, a simple one of payment could be made ensuring your data never found its way online. Failure to make this payment, determined by how much money you'd transferred, would see everything leaked. "You have 7 days" was the final message before the site plunged the users screen into nothingness.

Brigadier Jim Corey strode into the briefing room wearing gym gear. "Nice legs boss" Redfern chuckled as the Commander of Red Legion tossed a towel onto chair at the head of the briefing table before picking up a cup of tea off the tray.

"Its called exercise Alex.....you might want to try it sometime" the Brigadier added a lump of sugar before taking his seat and quickly examining the press releases. "Rowe you online." He asked a blank computer screen.

"Indeed I am" Lt.Rowe was out at Red Base in Nya Åland and was supposed to be running some newly beret'd Red Legionnaires through some cold weather and amphibious training but as often was the case training teams could often be taken off their programmes and given real things to do. The base had been attacked about a week ago and a rather handy Åland Air Force aircraft had seen off a couple of mortar teams but since then things had been pretty quiet. Most of the Ålanders had been recalled to their own bases and so now the only people remaining was about 20 or so Red Legionnaires, an aircrew from the Joint Special Operations Aviation Wing and five Royal Marine Commandos helping out with the boat stuff.

"Excellent. Word from the King is that you're to shelter in place. Hold the base if needed, we're looking at the possibility of turning it into a safe haven if things start going a bit nuts. We need you to keep the runway clear and we're looking at putting a few big ships off the coast if need be. I'm sending down another twenty lads along with about the same number of Royal Marines. That should keep you guys safe against anything but a serious attack which we don't see coming. Should something go down then you're expected to make your way to the nearest friendly base."

"Roger that, we'll get the kettle on" Rowe smiled as the call finished. 

Prince Bartholomew found himself in a rather awkward position. While he was speaking for one of the smallest nations on Mundus he was also heavily influenced by one of those nations that the Pharoah had just talked of as having a large voice. It was true of course but he got the impression that Akasha was making this out to be a bad thing and on that part the Prince wasn't quiet on the same page. "I think from my understanding we have seen a period of rapid change in Clysperis. Just a few years ago this meeting would have never taken place as the very idea of sitting at a table with a nation that permitted slavery would have horrified me. We've seen that positive change. There are however concerns over the antagonistic nature of Clysperis foreign policy such as my friends here have put forward. What also is something I'd like to know, both in your first letter to King Aldwin and then in your opening regard there is a lack of what you actually wish to achieve. This body is a kind of collective bargaining weapon, a way to beef up our voices while at the same time giving us a way of responding as a partnership to situations. This framework is yet to be tested and I think it was King Aldwin who stated that he saw this as being a more streamlined version on a smaller scale as the Commonwealth Treaty Organisation. Until tested we won't know how this actually works and so I don't want to complicate a system we have. I would therefore ask the Pharoah how she would balance us maintaining our voice while cautiously having a relationship."

It was not often that Max got letters such as this. He was much more accustomed to responding to requests from the occasional Lord or Lady from East Moreland requiring a new blade and unless it was a job that particularly appealed to him then he turned them down. He spent much of his time making blades for royal occasions or for historical projects and now as he pushed 70 years of age having the ability to pick and choose what jobs he wanted to do was a joy. He had taken the letter from the Grand Vizier to Quinn Germaine. In her role as the Head of King's Household, and therefore effectively the gatekeeper to the monarch, she would be able to tell him whether this was something he could get involved in. The last thing we wanted to do was cause a diplomatic incident simply by making a few blades. He had simply expected a reply as to whether he could go or not along with some guidance on how to respond but instead found his little Northfort Palace Estate cottage getting a visit. "Good Morning Max" the King had said when a rather surprised Max had answered the door. The King had walked the 1km from the Palace itself into the parkland where Max's cottage lied with its forge in the backyard near the stream. There was mud on the King's boots and he held a shotgun snapped open tucked under his arm. Stood next to him was Princess Rhiannon holding a long canvas bag.

"Good Morning Your Majesty" he bowed to the King before turning to the Princess. "Good Morning Princess, you made another find?" he asked knowing full well what was likely to be in the bag.

"I have" She said proudly as Max stepped aside letting the King and Princess enter. David checked the safety on the shotgun despite knowing it was on and placed it on a shelf alongside Max's own. Rhiannon and Max were already heading for the living room. "Good morning Mrs.Power" Rhiannon said politely and David heard Max's wife cheerfully greet his daughter and ask if she needed the shortbread tin. "Only if its not a problem" Rhiannon replied hoping full well it would not be.

"Lets have a look then." Max said as he took a seat on the sofa and waited for the unveiling. David headed to the kitchen to help Max's wife. Rhiannon unzipped the bag and produced a thin rapier blade. The Princess, much like her father, had begun a collection of swords and while not yet permitted to wear or carry one in public she was already preparing one for every occasion. "It was in a antique shop in Ostlake and Dad let me spend my pocket money on it. I cleaned the blade up but Dad doesn't think he can fix it properly." Max made a quip about her fathers smithing skills, the King liked the idea but was poor on a forge if being honest and despite him having made a training blade for his daughter Max had needed to rectify several errors. "I want the grip redoing and edging in gold.....if you've the time....please." She added. Max inspected the sword carefully. It was not that well made but was a practical weapon and would be a nice one in a collection.

"I can do that......perhaps you'd like to learn how?" Max offered.

"Yes please" Rhiannon said eagerly. She'd sat and watched Max on the forge, much as her father had, dreaming of making perfect swords.

"It'll have to wait a while though." David informed her as he walked in with a tray of mugs of tea while Mrs.Power had a big old biscuit tin full of her buttery homemade shortbread that Rhiannon loved. "Max I'd like you to take up the offer of going to Renaku. It's a good oppurtunity to get a friend or two over there and I like the idea of us showcasing something we're exceptionally good at, and who better than the best of the best. I do though have two conditions."

"Name them Your Majesty" Max said, he was keen to go and thought it would be an interesting experience.

"First I don't want any of the blades to include any iconography linking them to the Cult of Helus." Max nodded, while it wasn't a rule of the faith Max had taken to inscribing the letters "WJK" on the work meaning "With Jekars Knowledge" a testimont to the God of War having taught humans how to make swords close to the dawn of man. With the sword certain to go to a non cultist the words would not be appropriate. "The second is that I'd like you to make it clear that the swords are as a business and not anything to do with East Moreland. We don't know enough about these tribesman  to be sure that they would meet the criteria of the Code of Canley and we had a few issues before with swords as gifts" He said glumly.

"I want to go and do this" Max said, "So if they are your conditions they shall be followed Your Majesty." David thanked him and then enjoyed an hour by the old couples fire listening to Rhiannon tell them about her latest sword competitions and her excitement for learning to kitesurf next week during her school holiday. In some ways Max and his wife were like an extra-set of grandparents, their own visited very rarely as their son worked for the diplomatic service and was currently based in Lijiang. They enjoyed Rhiannon's visits and David always made sure the old couple were looked out for. As the King and his daughter put their coats on to head back to the Palace David wished Max good luck for his trip and shook his hand. "We put a couple of pigeons in your shed." David said as he picked the shotgun back up. "Apparently we're after a rabbit on the way home as Freya wants to make Rabbit stew. Max stood and watched as the King and Princess walked away and spotted a pair of Red Legionnaires trailing along discreetly in the woodland. They'd sat outside having a brew, had Max known he'd have sent them some shortbread out, they spotted him and one gave a friendly wave as they disappeared off.

The next day Max checked into Northfort airport for the flight to Renaku. His tools and equipment were given the VIP treatment and walked into the hold by a member of the airlines staff to ensure they were looked after and Max discovered the King had upgraded his flight to First Class. Max enjoyed the flight and upon his arrival at Renaku did his best to find the welcoming commitee.

Prince Bartholomew was not exactly used to diplomacy. His role in Semelberg was more akin to what many would describe as an estate manager. The small charter territory of the Reenburgs was not even 100,000 strong and he spent much of his day dealing with matters of accounting, infrastructure management and public relations. He'd only ever had one real diplomatic meeting before and that was with King David of East Moreland more concerned with simply a getting to know you. This was very different, for the first time in his 24 years of life he would be expected to make decisions with no safety net, so to speak. He had enjoyed a few days in Lodja visiting the Pelagiya family who had effectively become his small principalities patrons. Next he had flown down to Weissenwald and there had hitched a ride down to the frozen south. He had watched Avgusta and Aurora enter the research centre, he however opted to have a little walk around the outside. While he wasn't an engineer himself he'd always taken an interest in such things and he wanted to see what the base was like. As he began feeling the cold he headed inside and was thankful now to be in the warm. There he took off the multiple layers to stop himself from now being too warm and greeted the others who had already arrived.

King David and his sister Princess Freya have today travelled to Ostlake to honour the nations longest serving member of the Royal East Moreland Naval Service. Petty Officer Bryan Charles joined the navy  as an 18 year old in 1976 as an engineer and served aboard ships until 1996 at which point he became part of the training establishment at Ostlake training the next generation of naval recruits. In 2003 he became the leading rating for the Maritime Engineering School at Ostlake and was often seconded to Portworth Royal Dockyards to consult on naval projects. In 2015 he was due to retire however the honourary post of Chief Post Master of the Navy became available and with almost unanimous backing from the leading ratings aboard each of the navies ships he was offered the role. The honourary position sees the now 66 year old welcome each ship returning to homebase with its mail as historically the holder was responsible for ensuring all postal communication was accounted for. Now the role is generally held by a member of the Navy "held in high regard by their fellow ship-mates and who serves as a first class example of naval discipline and order.". While the role is mainly symbolic the holder is given a small cottage at Ostlake and paid a small pension in addition to any other income they may have. Petty Officer Charles today celebrated the beginning of his 48th year in the Navy, setting a new record for a rating. The two royals attended a parade at Ostlake East where the crew of REMNS King David I, Bryan Charles' former ship, paraded alongside this years engineering recruits. The King and Princess presented the new recruits with their certificates of proficency meaning they have completed this section of their training before presenting the guest of honour with a model of the REMNS King David I along with the Queen's Medal which is awarded for "services to the monarchy above and beyond that expected of a Morelander." In addition the Mess Hall of the Ratings Mess in the Engineering School will now be known as the Petty Officer Charles Mess. Speaking at the ceremony the King stated, "I'm exceptionally proud to be here and present Bryan with this. He is a wonderful example of service and dedication. I have been coming to Ostlake for almost forty years and Bryan has been a fixture of those times, it is wonderful to see someone like him who clearly loves the Navy and his nation."

Following the award Petty Officer Charles said, "I have never wanted a career outside the Navy and even though my role may be symbolic I take great pride in it. To get a chance to welcome back home everyone who has gone to sea and been willing to sacrifice time with their family in service of our homeland is a great feeling. I've done hundreds of welcome home ceremonies and I've loved everyone of them. My hope is they let me carry on for a good few years yet." The 66 year old is quiet often seen rowing out to meet vessels as they return to Ostlake and the King and Petty Officer Charles later went for a row out to REMNS Portworth which is preparing to head to Bakkermaya.

Princess Freya presented Petty Officer Charles with a replica of the ships bell from REMNS King David I and added, "People like the Chief Petty Officer are the backbone of our wonderful armed forces. I'm honoured to have served in the same military as someone willing to give close to their entire life to serve their nation. As far as I am concerned Bryan should be permitted to stay in the Navy until he chooses to retire and when he finally does I for one will be pushing for a ship to be named after him. I'd like to place on record my thanks and that of East Moreland." Petty Officer Charles was also honoured by his favourite rugby team, Ostlake RUFC, who will make him their guest of honour at tomorrows league game against Keepton.

"While I'd be happy to have all the help we can get, within reason, I'm not about to agree to the support of people covertly unless I know what is happening and who is doing it. Can you tell me a little more? As for further discussions it will be my hope that once we get Troyes its freedom and independence that we can get yourselves and the government of Marseille around a table. So far you've been a rock in this cause and I'd like to see us have even greater interactions moving forward."

King David had enjoyed an evening in Portworth after visiting a factory that made some tidal energy platforms. The visit to the factory had been rather run of the mill, he'd meet with workers, spoken with bosses of some other local businesses about their ideas and concerns for the energy sector and then eaten some of the driest chicken known to man kind in the factory canteen with some of the young apprentice workers the company had hired. After he'd meet with some of the navies senior officers and thankfully had a much nicer dinner in the officers mess. He'd been happily asleep on a belly of fine venison and a few glasses of best Cenneg single malts when the phone in his room in the mess rang. "Your Majesty we're sorry to wake you but there is an urgent matter" The voice on the phone began to explain, it took him a few moments to recognise it was that of Quinn Germaine, his head of Royal Household.  "I've a Steward on his way up to escort you to the Naval Command Centre."

David had just swung his legs out of bed when there was a knock of the door that began delicately and then proceeded to increase in volume until the King opened the door. "Your Majesty" The man held a tray with a cup of coffee on it and a plate of toast. "I'll wait outside" he added once he had placed the tray on the table in the lounge area. The King checked the time 1:30am and sighed in the knowledge that if this was something that couldn't wait until his scheduled 6am wake up call then something major must be happening.

"A million pounds Rokkenjima have done something stupid" David said to himself as he took a quick bite of toast and a swig of the coffee as he proceeded to follow the Steward down the stairs and into a waiting SUV which his protection detail where already assembled in. The King took his appointed seat in the rear and as the car began to take them to the opposite side of the base where the Command Centre was Quinn turned round from her position in the front seat and began telling the King what was dragging him from his sleep. "I had a call from Brigadier Corey, they have what he called" She scanned her notes, "reliable, actionable intelligence that would give them a potential shot at Barren." The Kings eyes widened.

"Are we in a position to take action?" David asked.

"Corey thinks so Your Majesty" Quinn said optimistically.

"Well we better get this show on the road" David said feeling his pulse beginning to race. They pulled up at the Command Centre, a small squat whitewashed building that stood on a hill overlooking the dockyards where several of the Navies ships were bobbing away in the moonlight. The King was shown straight in and down to the bunker that was set up as a place from where the Admiral of the Fleet could conduct major operations, today though the seat at the head of the table was set up for David who could see banks of video screens showing various others and most surprisingly was a group of three Red Legionnaires sat making a brew on a hillside somewhere all David could see was feet as they stood around the little stove. "Whose on four?" David asked pointing to the numbered monitors.

"That'll be Major Redfern Your Majesty" Quinn said as she placed a hefty pack of documents down in front of the King who was busy getting settled.

"The Big Boss is on" David heard one of the Legionnaires say and then watched as the camera that was mounted on one of the Legionnaires helmets was lifted and spun round revealing Alex Redfern   "Good Morning Your Majesty" He said as he was clearly walking away from the others in his squad where he found a rock to use as his desk as he sat for the briefing.

"Good to see you Alex" the King said and was about to start a conversation with his friend when Grace Yacobs, one of the Kings most trusted intelligence analysts entered the room.

"Sorry to interupt" She said without no hint of real reluctance to halt the social occasion. She put down several folders and unrolled a map. "We're time critical on this one." She added and it seemed like everyone understood the urgency and so went silent, the King pulling his seat closer to the table. "The situation is that we've an asset entrenched with one of the anti-government milita units in Mersch. We've known for about six months that the group and the Borlanders have been exchanging weapons and we've had word that Barren himself has just visited to secure the sale of some missile systems for the Borlanders. Barren is expected to be heading back through the Alps in the next two hours and we've got the tip off of his route. He's coming through the Dalton Goat tracks, its a common route used by smugglers as its prone to rockfalls so most normal traffic avoids it. We've a genuine chance to get a shot on the guy."

"OK, then lets sanction an air-strike" David urgently spoke.

"Its not that simple" Alex said turning helmet cam so that the King and others could see the scenes, "Its gash weather up here. Visibility is a few hundred meters and we couldn't reliably call an air strike in, its a job for people on the ground and we just happen to be two passes east chasing down leads of a series of Borlander caches." Redferns camera showed a thick fog that was common in the Alps. "We've the gear to put a hit in but we need to be making a move. I'd also like the rapid action team from Keepton on standby."

"We don't need to discuss this" David said determinedly, "put the brew away, get your gear and get going. If we've a chance to get him then we take it. You need anything Alex then you call for it and it'll happen. Get hunting."

"Roger that" Alex said and as he donned his helmet the figures of Barks, Saxby and Rowe were already pulling their packs on steaming mugs being left behind. It would be touch and go but the boys were confident they could cover the distance required, especially because the majority of the tab would be done without the need for being tactical. The team were around an hour and a half of hard scurrying away from the Dalton Pass, giving them just half an hour to recce the area and set up their attack. The hike was done largely in silence, not for secrecy but just to allow each man to keep his breath for the fast paced hike. More or less bang on schedule the four men crested the ridge and could see the single track winding road beneath them. Redfern knew the path reasonably well having used it several times himself during the regency crisis. He knew there was another path around 2km further along that would have been the one they'd likely have turned off onto and Redfern was doing his best in the gloom to begin formulating a plan. He had contemplated putting something in the road but knowing their luck a poor farmer coming to feed his cattle would be the guy coming along and in this weather they'd never know and so they'd have to rely on the element of surprise and skilled marksmanship. "Rowe, you're a hundred yards up the road, you're our eyes. I need you to give us a go no go when they reach us. Take the grenade launcher and once you tell us to engage its likely they'll stop, if its one vehicle hit it, if its multiple hit the back one, lets try boxing them in. Saxby you take the sniper rifle. Aim for the engine, then the driver of the lead vehicle, then any poor sod you can. I'm going to stick a glow stick in that dry stone wall. When the lead vehicle gets level with it I'll call out, Saxby take your shots, me and Barks will be left and right flank respectively. Barks you take the GPMG and sweep from centre of the vehicle forwards, I'll sweep centre rearwards. Everyone good."

"Roger, lets kill the bastard" Barks said with genuine excitement in his voice.

The people hurried to their positions and got set up, Redfern placed a glow stick in the wall and from a position just about twenty meters away he could just about see it, luckily so could Saxby who had zeroed in on a patch of asphalt that seemed to stand out from the rest and would act as a nice sighter for him. Now it was just about waiting, they'd have fifteen minutes if everything they'd been told was correct.

Twenty five minutes later nothing had happened, there was the very first hint of light creeping into the world and the feint glow of headlights on fog indicated something was coming. "Two Landies, three up in the first, four up in the second" Rowe had spotted it coming and using a spotters scope had zoomed in. He was trying to spot Barren but there was no chance, he'd have to go with his gut. "GO!GO!GO!" he took a gamble knowing it would be worth it.

"Roger" three voices came back on the comms and then just a few seconds later a gunshot rang out and Rowe knew that Saxby had taken his first shot, Rowe posted up took aim at where he imagined the rear vehicle would be and hit the trigger on the grenade launcher. Already a second sniper rifle crack could be heard and then the sound of gunfire from the flanks. The sound of bullets bouncing off metal echoed off the steep valley walls. Rowe moved to approach the convoy from the rear, he peeked over the dry stone wall and seeing the vehicles beginning the get riddled he rolled over and took up a kneeling aim and poured fire into the rear vehicle which seemed like it had only been scorched by the grenade. The driver was now trying to inch it backwards with one tyre flopping about as its rubber had been shredded. Rowe aimed roughly for where he imagined the drivers head would be and squeezed the trigger on his assault rifle. The rear left door briefly swung open and he switched his bursts of fire from the imaginery head to the door and a figured flopped out onto the road seemingly hit by gunfire. The rear vehicle was stationary now and on the radio Saxby reported that the first one was likewise stopped. "Barks stay on overwatch, Rowe meet me rear vehicle. Saxby watch for anything coming" The others confirmed their receving of the orders and soon the steady gunfire was silent. The two men meet at the rear vehicle and Redfern opened the door as Rowe took up position to allow him to fire on anything that emerged. Nothing did, Redfern heard groans and grabbed the driver pulling him out the vehicle and dropping him onto the road. He then slid inside and looked at the passenger, he was clearly dead a pair of bullets had passed through his skull. In the rear Alex could see one dead and one moving but from his position couldn't see who it was. "Rowe get the X-Ray" The door swung open and Rowe dragged him out peering at the body a shake of the head indicating it wasn't Barren. The two men were left bleeding at the side of the road, they were weaponless and so with Saxby giving them cover they headed forward to the other praying to get something more. The driver and passenger in the front were dead, each with a bullet from Saxby lodged in their skull. In the back there was groans but no movement and with his heart pounding Redfern dragged the man out, he was covered in blood and three rounds had entered his torso, likely from Barks' machine gun. Redfern dumped him on the ground and pushed the hood on his parka back to reveal the mans face, Rowe saw his Majors face light up. "Got the fucker"

Rowe began removing a medi-pac from his belt kit. "What the hell you doing?" Barks asked now he'd come down and joined them.

"We need to take him in and put him on trial" Rowe idealistically stated.

"Now we need to end him." Barks began removing the pistol from his belt.

"Hold" Redfern stated as he walked a few steps away. He switched radio frequencies. "Operation Aerodrake is a success, we've got Barren in a bad way but salvagable. We can wait for the helicopter to get in now its getting light. Evac him to Keepton and then hand him over for trial." Alex waited but there was nothing but silence on the radio before David's voice came on the airways.

"We don't need a trial. Withhold medical care let the bastard bleed out" David said with a tone in his voice that made Alex think the King was envious that he wouldn't be there to watch it happen. Alex didn't bother to respond and merely walked back to the others and relayed the order.

Alex squated down next to the man, "Hey.....Your Majesty" he poked him with the end of his own rifle. "Look at me." They'd propped him up against the front vehicles rear wheel. "That's it sunshine" Barrens eyes barely opened and even that brought a groan. "Hey.....my names Alex Redfern and I've spent nearly half my life hunting arseholes like you across Mundus. You're dying here today because I wouldn't even waste a Micky Mouse elstaplast on you. So what is going to happen is I'm going to shoot you.....a lot....but not anywhere that'll kill you. We're then going to sit and wait for a helicopter while you leak. By the time it gets here you'll be dead because frankly I'm not hanging around all day wasting my time on you. So before I start shooting you I just want you to know, it was us who killed your kid, it was us who captured that wife of yours we hung and everyone of your buddies who died, it was us. Now if any tin pot wannabe King comes along after you he's going to meet us too and just like you end up nothing but a blood stain on a road." Alex fired a single shot at point blank range into Barrens right thigh and then stepped back. Barks and Saxby each fired shots into his torso while Rowe radioed for the helicopter. They waited for the call to end and then the four of them stood watching for a moment before each fired two more shots into Barren and then Rowe stooped and put some IV lines in as Barren lay there moaning as a pool of blood formed under him. At least this way the Air Force guys picking them up would at least think they'd tried saving the now slowly dying Borlander leader. The others who had been injured were dispatched with single gunshots and by the time the helicopter arrived Barren had seconds left. As the chopper touched down a team of Red Legionnaires piled out the back in a defensive circle. Among them was Captain Peacock who hurried over to Alex.

"Its true then" he said looking down at Barren who as if with perfect timing took his last breath.

"Yep" Alex said gleefully watching Barren shuffle off to spend eternity being punished by the Gods. The two officers shook hands on a job well done and then Peacock produced a body bag from his pouches. The two of them bundled him into the black bag as other Legionnaires began gathering the bodies of the others. Five minutes after the helicopter touched down it was gone leaving a team of four Reds watching the site from discreet positions until the clean up crews arrived from the Army. As they touched down in Keepton FOB it was clear word had got out and the bases garrison had seemingly come out to see the moment. As four of the Reds carried the first of the body bags out the helicopter cheers went round the aviation area as Legionnaires from various units alongside members of the Air Force found themselves high fiving and even hugging. Some closeby even spat towards the body bag. Barren's trip though was not over. From Keepton his body was put onto a plane and flown to Ostlake, by now the King himself had arrived.

Barrens body was taken into one of the medical rooms at the base and through a window the King watched while forensic teams took images and let facial recognition loose on them. Each ping of the computer that announced a finished comparison between videos released by Barren and the body before them indicated it was a match. Each ping was like a fresh wave of celebration inside King David who was watching. "That's the fifth match, I'm pretty sure its him." Three hours later the ultimate in confirmation came through, the DNA comparing the dead man and Kings own DNA showed distant relations but the DNA between the deadman and the child Barren had with his 2nd wife confirmed he was the father. "That's good enough for me." David said as he turned away from the room where Barrens body lay on a metal bed. "Take the body and dump it far out to sea, no grave, no location just get rid" David ordered before pausing just before leaving the room for a final look at his long time foe. "Under no circumstances burn it" He added knowing to the Cult cremation was thought to ensure the soul was released from the body. With that done he returned to his own suite of rooms at Ostlake HQ and there began to write something for real that he had written so many times in his mind before. 

OsmanTech have today unveiled what they hope will be a new addition to "a toolkit that will allow us to tackle malnutrition globally in an innovative way." Dr. James Durham who has been leading the project began to explain the development to the media by describing the rice as "a potentially eco-friendly way of boosting protein intake at an affordable price. The rice is grown in special vats after going through a process where the grains are coated in fish gelatin and then exposed to beef cow cells. The rice then grows with a combination of rice and beef proteins growing in the grain. Once grown the rice can then be used in exactly the same way as traditional rice. "We believe that perhaps this rice can be grown and then stored for situations such as disaster relief or famine. In the right conditions the rice can be stored for around five years so we could seriously stockpile the stuff. We are still perfecting the process but so far research shows that the rice contains around 8-10% more protein than traditional rice and slightly lower increases in fat content. This could be important in helping people get a more balanced diet in times of hardship." The rice was tested by the assembled media teams and was said to taste more nutty and a little sweet compared to traditional white rice. The rice also had a kind of pink tinge to it which was unusual.

OsmanTech have plans to improve the process involved and the rice is added to their "Golden Rice" which has been shown to improve the amount of Vitamen A in diets. The company are hopeful that the new rice will also help in terms of environmental concerns. "Protein is something that we all need to grow" Dr.Durham explains. "Those of us who enjoy eating meat know that this can often draw criticism from environmentalists for being damaging in terms of its carbon footprint. Traditional beef farming produces 49.89kg of carbon dioxide to make 100g of protein. Our estimates are that this new process will take just 6.7kg of carbon dioxide to produce the same amount of protein. We're a greener alternative." The company hope that they can begin mass production of the new rice by the end of the year.

In what may be a world first the company SFR have successfully generated energy using a system known as a tidal kite. The company believe that they have successfully adapted a small scale wind turbine utilising a kite to work underwater. The device they have installed is located in a channel between rocks and the coast just to the east of Seabrooke. A mechanism weighing 28 tons and with a kite wingspan of around 12 meters has been installed onto the seabed. When the current running through the channel is correct the kite is released and using an automated steering pattern it goes into a figure of eight pattern turning a turbine and thus creating electricity. The company released the system just after 9am this morning and by 11am had reported that it was up to speed and generating around 1.2 megawatts, enough to power around a 1,000 homes. The project manager, Clare Laughton, explained that the device is likely to be rolled out in other areas in the near future. "Here at SFR we've been looking for innovative power solutions for a decade now. We've managed to input several hundreds of megawatts a day into the East Moreland grid utilising a range of green technologies including wind, solar and various other methods. Today we're adding to that offering. Its our hope sites can be found that ensure the safety of the maritime related industries while also giving cheap and green energy. The beauty of this tidal system is that the sea currents are much much more predictable than things such as the wind and sun and as a result we can ensure this system gives a regular input to our grid. We have a system of acoustic deterrants on the kite itself to mean that to marine life in the area its likely to be considered another big fish in a large ocean."

The system will now be monitored for six months and if successful other sites around the nation will be looked at. SFR have also recently won a contract to ensure that Northfort Palace is entirely energy independent and fully renewable by 2030.

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With Niameck Fashion week starting soon in Neu Urburzis it has been confirmed that the Queen's not for profit fashion label Pelafashion is to feature and in addition the Queen will be one of the featured models. The event is the highlight of the fashion calendar on Mundus and as such the Queen has been an attendee for many years. In a statement released by the Queen's Head of Household Alexandra Samual the Queen has said "From the age of about 12 I remember flicking through glossy fashion magazines to see what people where wearing at Niameck and trying to get my hands on the cool stuff. I first did a small show there when me and some friends at University did a small boutique and the same year I walked on a runway for the first time. I'm excited to use the fashion show as an opportunity to let Morelanders best young creatives flourish." It is expected that the Queen will showcase Pelafashions leading collection, "QS1" in a major show while several smaller shows will also take place for young up and coming designers. The Queen's statement said, "Every year we take some 14 students out of University who have come from disadvantaged backgrounds and give them two years of work experience before offering them support setting up their own fashion collections, brands or boutiques. We've decieded this year that the best of those students will get the opportunity to dress the Queen and hopefully some other VIPs." It is understood that Princess Adelheid, who is the patron of the shows, has also been invited to walk the show.

Pelafashion became a "Not for profit" in 2021 and has since used all its profits to fund projects that support charities such as the Global Childbirth Initiative while also supporting the next generation of creative people. One of those who has benefitted is Sarah Forsyth a 23 year old who last year opened her own small boutique in Silverhills. "I struggled to get through University as I came from a single parents family and Dad worked as a security guard so money was always tight. In my final year Pelafashion approached me after one of their team saw my work at a student fashion show. I was offered an apprenticeship with them, a scholarship to finish my studies and then two years later they believed in me so much that they gave me an investment to open Forsyight a small store where I sell my own designs and those of a few other local people. We do commissions too. We just finished our first 12 months and while we're not making enough to retire on I was pleased that I managed to finish year one in the black. Without the support of Pelafashion I'd have never been in the position I am."

Agnizka Tarak is the Lead Operating Officer of Pelafashion and a childhood friend of Queen Stasya and she said, "We're thrilled to help people like Sarah. We want to create a vibrant and creatively challenging community in the fashion world so the more success the better. We know Sarah has three members of staff helping her run her boutique and so we help create jobs in the industry beyond what we do here ourselves. It allows us to generate income that allows the Queen to do good works globally." The conditions of investment into stat ups is that the Pelafashion company get 5% of the businesses shares for the first three years or until the initial funding is paid back, whichever comes first. The Queen has also announced that in the coming days she is looking at making "significant updates" to her attendance to the fashion wek.

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Today King David responded to reports about his daughter, Princess Rhiannon, being caught up in some viral social media joke in Neu Urburzis. With reports of an image portraying her as a Viking screaming the words "Holmgang" being seen many had become concerned about the message it put out. The King when asked by the media said that the Princess was aware of the image and while "Not fully aware of what Holmgang means thinks the picture is great." The King went on to explain, "Rhiannon is someone who has found a deep interest in our nations martial culture of swordsmanship and in her younger days at the Festival of Sail was taken by the appearance of the Alander Vikings. She's read up on many aspects of Alander Viking culture and I have encouraged her to appreciate cultures from across Mundus. She has a deep respect for diverse faiths and finds the Odinic faith, like I do, one that has many similarities with the Cult of Helus." The King then announced that his daughter had printed a copy of the picture out and glued it to the inside front cover of her school notebook.

The King then spoke seriously about the situation in Nya Aland. "We are watching the situation with great interest. I've been in touch with our friends there and if required we will offer support. I can confirm Morelanders there have come under fire and responded in kind but with more success. We will not be withdrawing our forces and if required we will send more manpower if requested. Statements from the Gungnir for ritualistic combat is no way to run a nation and shows just how out of touch with reality they are. I'll be speaking with my daughter about the meaning of the word Holmgang and how it is a misuse of the skills that we teach her in swordsmanship lessons with Sir Charles Townshend. We believe firmly that these skills are for defending the weak not for giving yourself power as this Magnus Odinsson seems to want to."

The King then proudly confirmed that his daughter had been selected to compete for the Y8 Girls Swordsmanship Team in the City of Northfort Championships. "My daughter has started Y7 this year and is settling into her new school well. When the school coaches asked if I'd sign to let her compete against girls a year older than her I had no hesitation in saying yes. If she is successful its a great experience however if she loses then the lessons she'll have learned from fighting better competition will make her more determined. I don't want her having an easy path , I want her challeneged."

Yengwayo was slightly in awe of the city of Dlamini. While the Afolyan may be the largest tribal group in Zimalia the constant wars there until around 40 years ago had done a great to destroy the influence of any tribe on the cities. It was clear that the "Zimalianisation" That had occured under Elwes had an even bigger impact than Yengwayo imagined. The various tribes influence had wained and now his role as Tribal Elder was nothing more than a symbolic position that mainly saw him carry out obsolete rituals, bless marriages and speak at funerals. He took a few moments to marvel at the walls and then the ancient texts written on the wall. He was introduced to Tepu and the two conversed for a moment in the Afolyan language before he was introduced formally to King Tshepo. "Your Majesty the city looks beautiful and I can not wait to see it. I hope you don't mind me getting a tour at some point?" He enquired. As the King offered the wax tablet he accepted the stylus. "Your Majesty I am deeply honoured by your invitation to walk your streets." He did his best to sign his name but in wax and unused to the strange surface he wasn't too sure his name was even legible. "What happens to the tablet now?" he asked wondering whether they were simply melted down and recycled. "I hope we can discuss many things, among them the idea of our people being able to find extended family members here. We've perhaps several hundred years of seperation but the Afolyan are taught that our tribe is more like a family and having cousins here that we do not know is important to us. I also want to see if we can fund a memorial here in the city for those who helped the initial Afolayan settle her once freed from their bonds? Is there perhaps a site we could purchase?"

Jean-Pierre had loved all the bells and whistles of a state visit yet on this occasion realised that he was neither entitled to such things nor would it be a good idea. He wanted this meeting to be discreet and it seemed that the Empress had ensured just that. He was happy to see Serena again, she's been a strong ally so far to Troyes and now he was about to put that to the test. He returned her traditional Marseillian greeting warmly and then took a seat. ""Thank you for agreeing to see me Your Imperial Majesty" he began before swirling the wine slightly in the glass and savouring the aroma. "Nice" he said to no one in particular before taking a sip of it and nodding agreeably. "An excellent choice" he added placing the glass on the table. "If we may turn towards my reason for coming. Its taken a long time to reach a point where Seaforth are under pressure and we have seen some movement but not much, it seems that without further pressure we will not see them leave. I therefore have two requests. The first is that you utilise whatever means you can to bring economic and political sanctions on Seaforth to end their occupation. The second is that if that fails Real Marseille shall once again consider the use of targeted physical resistance. Our aim would be essentially to cut off the base there from the rest of the city, destroy supply routes and stop things getting into our out of the military establishment. We could use help in terms of ensuring nothing from the oceans gets in as obviously we are merely a land based operation as our work in the Materna conflict showed. I know this is a lot to ask but can we consider any, some, all or none of these things."

On behalf of Libby

Team name: Pelagiya-Semelberg (PelSem)
Nation:  Lodja
Gender: Womens
Riders:
   1.) Lidochka Fyodorov
   2.) Taisiya Sobol
   3.) Praskovya Mikhailov
   4.) Katerina Shvets
   5.) Daria Pasternak
   6.) Aleksandrina Chaykovsky

No idea about specialisms however the team is designed to be a development team for the national squad and as such all riders are aged under 23.

To:- Her Imperial Majesty Empress Serena of Aosta

I am writing to you with no official capacity as such. It is safe to say you have done more than anyone to help push for the restoration of Troyes to the nation of Marseille however so far our joint efforts have yielded no results. I am therefore writing to you to inform you that many of us who carried the banner of Real Marseille throughout the conflict that ravaged here are determined that by the end of this year Troyes shall become free. While I am ready to dedicate myself fully to this goal no matter what personal cost I am also aware that the task before is monumental and we may lack the resources to see this task through. I would therefore be honoured if I can meet with you and discuss our plans and hopefully persuade you to continue your magnificent support for Troyes and the people there.

Deepest Respects
Jean-Pierre Cantona
Commander of Real Marseille.

To: His Majesty Emperor Malachi of Kodima

I am writing to you to seek a meeting regarding the continuing status of Kodiman troops within the Duchy.

I believe that it is important that we meet to discuss this arrangements future as over the last few years we have seen various changes to the geo-political nature of the region and our own nations own relationships.

It is my hope that we can meet in Jerusalem in the coming days.

Best Regards

Duke David Aragon