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Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #60 on: July 29, 2018, 11:33:46 PM »




BORLANDERS APPEAR IN COURT

The two Borlanders who were arrested during the raid in the Faraday Residential complex in Silverhills have today appeared at a special court arranged at Ostlake North Military Base. The two men were named as Simon Watts (Aged 22) and Jason Steenson (aged 40) and both have been charged with offences relating to terrorism including murder, attempted murder, possession of explosives and treason. If found guilty the pair could face the death penalty. Minister of Justice Darren Bone explained the location of the court. "Usually we hear cases of this nature at Northfort Crown Court, essentially with the high profile nature of this case and the potential for people trying to carry out revenge attacks we made the decision to have the court case on one of Ostlakes military bases therefore ensuring the security. We shall permit a selection of pool journalists to witness the court case however members of the public will not be admitted.

Little is known of the two men beyond the fact that Watts had recently graduated from Technology City University with a degree in Chemical Engineering and had in the last three months had an application to work for EMAC turned down. Meanwhile Steenson has served time in the past for possession of drugs which it is now believed where part of a Borland network which is used to help raise funds for the terrorist organisation. The trials are likely to begin in a few weeks time and could last several months. In accordance with East Moreland law the death penalty may only be given if the guilty verdict is unanimous. The last person to be executed by East Moreland was the self proclaimed Queen of Borland, the illegitimate wife of Kyle Barren, Elizabeth Barren. She was hanged on sixteen counts of murder during terrorist attacks and died just two weeks after giving birth.  In the past there has been international pressure for the King to show clemency but he has already come out and made his view on this case clear. "Should the evidence I have seen secure a guilty verdict I will in no way consider commuting a death sentence. A guilty verdict means these men have aided one of the most ambitious terror attacks in the history of Mundus and as such they have waved their right to exist."

Both men appeared to have suffered injuries during their arrest, with Steenson defiantly refusing his police photograph.



« Last Edit: August 01, 2018, 09:41:09 PM by DaveIronside »

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #61 on: August 01, 2018, 10:30:00 PM »





CEO OF OSMANTECH MAKES STATEMENT

Joanna Osman the eldest daughter of OsmanTech founder Lord Lucas Osman and sister of former Queen of East Moreland Matilda Osman has today made an announcement to the media relating to recent reports of food poisoning and reactions to over the counter medicines. Joanna Osman took over the company almost 18 months ago following a scandal where it appeared Lord Osman was breaking laws on genetic modification of human embriyos , thought to be an attempt to help his daughters not pass on the MPS gene which effected Matilda's son with King David, Prince Caspian, as well as her second child with racing driver Sam Halliday.

The statement was made from the companies HQ in Portworth.

"It has been brought to our attention that our company may have been infiltrated by the Borlanders as part of an elaborate plot. Major outbreaks of salmonella have been reported globally, an indication that it was caused intentionally as a form of basic, but effective bio-terrorism. We have seen an increase in sales of immodium following this which was to be expected. What we have also received however is enquiries from across Mundus about our version of the drug as many people have been admitted to hospital with reports of temperatures, hallucinations and increased heart rate. Having had a chance to examine some of the pills taken into hospital with some patients we have determined that low doses of LSD have been present in the medicine. We urge members of the public to throw away any OsmanTech immodium immediately and should they have already taken any and exhibit any abnormal behaviour or sensations contact a health care professional immediately. We ask all stockists to throw away any stock of immodium made by ourselves.

We have closed production of this line of drug at all our facilities while we review security and have already put in place new scrutiny methods at locations producing other medicines which have not been tampered with. We will be co-operating with the East Moreland security services to get to the bottom of this and will be doing everything possible to ensure that our company supports those effected by this attack upon our company and the people of Mundus. We wish everyone well. May The Gods Watch Over You and Your Family be safe."


The crisis saw share prices of OsmanTech fall however the company is 70% owned by the Osman family and so is unlikely to see any mass panic sales. The production lines at Technology City and Portworth both saw members of Red Legion appear soon after the announcement by Joanna Osman.





ARCHDUCHESS TO MAKE GAMES COME BACK?

Today a post on Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironsides instagram started rumours that she will be once again competing in the Mundus Games. The 21 year old is currently serving as a Pilot Officer in the Air Force where her duties are as a dog handler. The King's niece is the 2nd most successful East Moreland athelete of all time after Daisy Greechan and is already considered a sporting great becoming the first person to win medals at both the Summer and Winter Games. The Archducess started off cross country running while living in care before being discovered to be the daughter of the late Princess Joanna Ironside, former High Priestess of the Cult of Helus. She won national titles at junior level and won her first Mundus games medal at the age of 17. After her initial success which saw three medals in her first games she switched to the ice rink where she took up speed skating winning an impressive haul of six medals. She also became close friends with rival athlete Swimmer Daisy Greechan and the two became the first to row the Mhorish before the Archduchess took on the challenge of a solo trek to the North Pole. She missed last years games in order to take on these two charity challenges which raised over EM£ 1million for the MPS Charity and Legionnaire Legacy.

The Air Force usually release elite athletes for competition so long as "it has no impact on operational needs" and many of East Moreland's top sports men and women have competed while also doing military service. The post this morning however was not at her usual Air Force base at Rockhampton but was outside the HQ of the East Moreland Institute of Sport in Northfort, a place where she has often trained for speed skating and where East Moreland's elite athletes train. This time however she was dressed in running gear which sparked the debate as to whether she will compete. Ironically it was Daisy Greechan, who has 11 Mundus Games medals in Swimming, who responded first saying, " You stalking me? #BattleForTheGOAT" . Greechan will be competing in the games this year but is thought to have scaled down what she will compete in focusing more on long distance than her usual expansive list of entries. Later in the day Greechan was asked about her rivalry with the noble and said, "You don't win nine medals by accident, you don't accomplish what she has by chance. She's already a sporting great and who ends up with the most medals is unimportant. The media make a lot more of this rivalry than we do. If anything it helps, we both would love to have the media say "Most Successful Moreland Athlete ever" and that helps push you on knowing the others working just as hard."


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #62 on: August 04, 2018, 08:47:40 PM »




KING ANNOUNCES NEW CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

Having returned from Lodja where the King signed the latest sets of amendments for the Mundus Convention of Universal Rights the King has triggered a debate in the Representative and Executive Council over the nations constitution. Speaking while visiting the Northfort Grand Prix track ahead of the coming East Moreland leg of Formula Mundus the King said, "While in Lodja and seeing just how compatible our constitution is with the MCUR a few issues came to light, ironically not connected to the MCUR." The King plans to table amendments regarding language in the country. "When we created the nations first written constitution we lived in a nation trying desperatly to keep the Morelandish language alive, in just four short years we've already turned a corner and the language has gone from being a largely religious and ceremonial one to back to being a living breathing language. We have to thank the youth of our nation for this as they have grasped the language and used it all over social media. It's exciting." The Morelandish language is today already being taught in every secondary school however the constitution labels English as the main language. The King intends to place an amendment changing the nations official language from English to Morelandish. "We already insist on all documents we sign being in Morelandish and English, from now on that will change and all treaties we sign will have a copy in Morelandish, that's my hope"

The second amendment again is placed on language and will drop English as a requirement in secondary education replacing it with Morelandish. One member of the National Union of School Teachers said, "This is going to have a minor impact, by law we've all had to teach English and an additional language so we've all been teaching Morelandish for that. I suspect what will happen is we'll now have Morelandish as the main language and English will be taught as an additional language. Its more a paper exercise I think but at least it doesn't create a major issue."

The two proposals will be debated by the two Councils and requires 3/4 of each Council giving their approval. The move has already been meet with warm words by Chief Councillor Thomas More of the National Traditionalist Party, who control 48% of the Representative Council. "Our party wish to keep alive the spirit of the culture and traditions that make our nation great. Our language is a key part of that, it experienced several hundred years of isolation because of the King Paul Properchy and as such is very different to that of the rest of Alba Karinya, we adopted English because most struggled with our language and as such it nearly died. Our Kings father, King Sven, began to push for its rebirth and I'm proud of the work our King and his supporters have done to revive it. These amendments will have my full backing."

No party has yet said whether they intend to push for other amendments to be debated, any that are would require 3/4 approval of both councils and the Kings approval. There have been rumours that some more left wing members of the National Traditionalist Party who have sympathy with some of religious zealot Jinny Denman's ideas may table an amendment about the spouses of the monarch. The debate will take place on Wednesday and unless other amendments are tabled is likely to take 24 hours to reach a vote.




BORLANDER TO PLEAD GUILTY

One of the two Borlanders arrested for the recent attacks has changed his plea on charges of creating "Materials for acts of terrorism".  Simon Watts (Aged 22) was arrested by Red Legion in a raid that saw several Borlanders killed, originally he had intended to plead not guilty however he has now changed his mind which indicates that a likely bargain has been struck. The other man arrested, Jason Steenson (aged 40) , is not at this point intending on changing his plea according to court spokesman. It is likely that by pleading guilty to one of the charges that Watts is likely to avoid a death penalty if found guilty of some of the other charges.

It was also announced today that several bank accounts will be freezed as they have been shown to have connections to Borlanders, Minister of Justice Darren Bone also said, "We have also followed trails on money to several other countries and will be asking for their assistance in helping close down the operations of these terrorists. We would take a dim view of nations who either intentional or by accident permit the Borlanders to pass money through their nation. It is vital the world do all we can to close down these terrorists. While in the past the people of East Moreland have been the target it is now a global issue."

In relation to the recent terror attacks which have even seen rather bizarre attacks such as LSD in immodium OsmanTech have announced that they will be taking legal action against the government of Quintelia. Joanna Osman, the CEO of OsmanTech, explained, "We have withdrawn these drugs as they are not fit for purpose. To hear that the government of Quintelia are still considering selling the drugs is horrifying. Should someone have a reaction to these drugs or worse harm someone while on a hallucinogenic trip it would be us who are liable. As a minimum we demand the Quintelian government give us an indemnity from any action and take full responsibility for any deaths, injuries or damages caused because of these drugs. In our view they should be destroyed with immediate effect."





SWARMBOTS GO AIRBORNE

Following the success of the SwarmBots which went to Lunar and took part in several tasks on the surface of the moon SmartWar have announced they have further developed the technology. CEO Martin Dawson posted a video on line of a version of flying SwarmBots. The video showed them flying and hovering in close formation as well as flying through a window and reforming. A video was also posted of three of the bots carrying a net between them and playing Catch. The 28 year old businessman and designer said, "These bots communicate their position to each other and can follow pre programmed routes or navigate for themselves, for example if you tell them to fly from A to B and suddenly walk in front of them they will manoeuvre around you. These bots are the next step in the evolution of these and we have begun considering a real life challenge for them such as those we sent to the moon. In effect these are Hope, Solo and Blinkies little brothers and sisters and there is a world of opportunities ahead for them."

SmartWar opened a special Facebook page for the bots which have been called the SwarmChoppers, on it they asked for suggestions of a "mission" for them. One leading proposal was for them to be involved in the Festival of Sails opening ceremony.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #63 on: August 08, 2018, 08:47:48 PM »




KING JOINS "TAKE YOUR KID TO WORK DAY"

Today marked the annual "Take Your Kid to Work Day", the fifth time the event has run. The idea was put forward by the Ministry of Education as an attempt to expose children to the world of work and get them to consider a career from a younger age. This year however marks the first time that King David has joined in the event as his daughter Princess Rhiannon joined him hosting an event for athletes preparing for the Mundus Games as well as making her first speech in the Representative Council. Princess Freya also took part by taking foster-daughter Evie to a day with the 2nd Light Scouts. Princess Freya explained why she took part in the event saying, "Days like today are special in terms of allowing children to see what their parents do and gain an appreciation. Take Your Kid to Work Day, or as they call it in Rokkenjima everyday, is becoming an event many parents look forward to."

Princess Rhiannon was photographed trying out a wide variety of sports along with the Mundus Games team including some sparring with the Medeival MMA team. One of the leading competitors and Gold Medal prospect Will Renshaw said after, "The Princess had an excellent control of swordsmanship for someone of her age, she's got great controlled aggression and is sneaky, I think we could have a future champion." Meanwhile the Princess said, "I liked getting to watch a proper sword match, I want to do that one day but I'm too small yet."

The six year old later became the youngest person to address the Representative Council when she preceded her father's weekly statement.

Quote from: Princess Rhiannon's Speech

Thank you for letting me speak here today. My Daddy said that I should talk about something that I want to get better in our country. What I would like to see get better is school dinners. We had mashed potato yesterday and it was yukky, I described it to Auntie Freya and she said it sounded like wall paper paste. I don't think wall paper paste would be very nice to eat and probably isn't safe as it'd glue your insides together. Most of the time at my school we get dinners that don't taste of anything, my friend Evie, she's my best friend agrees. When I was writing this with Miss Meadows, my teacher, she said I needed some facts. I asked my class and 20 of the the 25 don't like school meals. Some days there isn't enough either as the good stuff goes first leaving lumpy mash and sausages like rubber. I therefore ask you all to do whatever you can to give us nice school dinners. My favourite thing you could get us is burrito's, we had them once in a restaurant and they tasted amazing. After we get burritos we should chocolate cake, but not too much cos that makes you fat. I hope that the Council will help me get burritos and chocolate cake for every school. Thank You.


As is tradition when a royal speaks in the Council the Chief Councillor is permitted to respond, Thomas More leader of the Traditionalist Party thanked the Princess for bringing the state of school dinners to his attention and promised that he would, "Try and make sure chocolate cake features on the menu more often." Following the meeting of the Council he added, "It is important our future monarch gets to see what the job involves. While the Council deal with serious issues it is nice to see that we can occasionally smile at speeches as a six year old lectures us on cake. 

The King during his speech stated that there had been talks between East Moreland and Rokkenjima when Princess Adriana had visited and spoken with Princess Freya. He said that various agreements had been proposed but that "as a child was sent to negotiate we must now wait for any counter proposals from their government. I think Rhiannon made more progress towards her agenda for reform than Adriana did." The sending of a 15 year old Princess to deal with some of the most delicate talks between East Moreland and Rokkenjima ever was seen as insulting by many including Chief Councillor Thomas More who at the time said, "We have historically placed a great deal of trust and friendship in Rokkenjima and to have them believe that the best way to restore that friendship is to send someone with no actual legal authority to sit with our government is insulting. Had we had a chance in Council to discuss this then I would have voted against her being permitted to meet with anyone other than a junior minister"


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #64 on: August 10, 2018, 10:39:35 PM »




THOMAS MORE PRESENTS CONSTITUTITIONAL REFORMS

Following the first day of debates surrounding the constitution changes proposed by King David covering the inclusion of the Morelandish language instead of English as the official language of the nation. The two articles concerned with this received almost unanomous support, with only members of the Workers Party opposing it instead wishing the language to both be recognised as the nations official language. Polls of the general public show a large amount of support for King David's amendment, with around 80% of those polled wishing Morelandish to be the official language of the nation while around 15% wish it to be jointly English and Morelandish. A vote on the amendments is to take place in the Representative Council tomorrow morning and it is likely the Executive Council will have added their vote by the end of the day.

The last hour of Council business today allowed Representative Councillors to present their own proposals for amendments. For any to be considered they required 1/5th of the Council to have signed a petition for their inclusion, a number of proposals from Thomas More, the Chief Councillor, managed to reach the number.

The following are expected to be debated in the coming days.

* "4.21 The worship of Helus is the state religion and enjoys the full protection of the State; other religions are entitled to practice their creeds and to hold religious service to the extent consistent with morality and public order."  Thomas More wished this to specifically say the Cult of Helus is the state religion. He said the entry into the political arena of the Sisterhood of Helus lead by religious radical Jinny Denman means there is a need to draw a line between just believing in Helus and following the traditional teachings of the faith.

* The removal of "7.3 The nation will not send a person for trial where death is a possible sentence unless it is for treason. The two exemption to this are people tried under military law which is dealt with in the Military Crimes Act (2014), the second exemption is for the crime of treason. In both these cases the judge may only order the death penalty with the majority approval of the jury. " Thomas More claims that while the intent of this was fair at the time it does not reflect current situations. He said, "We live in a time where genocide has not become a rarity, as such there are crimes associated with this evil that are not treason and we would now limit the chances of such people being brought to justice. We should instead deal with them as we would any other extradition request. "

* In the appendix of the constutution it states when discussing non-standard inheritance of the crown "The Monarch may circumvent these Articles if they inform both the Representative and Executive Councils in writing of his choice of heir. The Monarch must also lodge this declaration with the CIS and have it witnessed by any two nations ambassadors. Should any of the situations described in Article 1.2-1.5 take place the written circumvention will be ignored unless a period of 14 days has expired. "  Thomas More explained, "Clearly this is now redundant, as such I believe that we should change this to it being lodged with two nations we have treaties with, this will give wide scope and allow us to go forward without worry that certain organisations may not be around in years to come." Additionally Thomas More wanted to reword the final clause in the appendix which currently reads, "3.5 The Monarch must be a follower of the Religion of Helus. Should the heir not be they will be removed from the line of succession." He explained "This needs clarifying, the monarch should not just follow Helus but the Cult of Helus, the true faith of the Lord of Gods. We will also be seeking an additional clause that states the monarchs consort must also be a member of the Cult of Helus. The faith is vital to our nations culture and way of life. I would hate to see one of those religious nut jobs from the Sisterhood gain the throne or worse a foreign faith such as Odinism, Christianity or worse the Bene Gesserit."


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #65 on: August 13, 2018, 11:48:42 PM »




KING ACCOMPANIED BY NEW LOVE INTEREST AT FESTIVAL OF SAIL

Lodjain Lady in Waiting Stasya Pelagiya was announced as the co-host of this years Festival of Sail alongside King David. The pair have been said to have been in a relationship a few months now having been spotted spending time together at an estate belonging to the King in Seaforth. The 22 year old Lodjain made her first appearance with the King as he opened the Festival of Sail and received his sword by a pack of SwarmBots. Traditionally the monarch always opens the Festival and is joined in hosting the festival with their consort. Since assuming the throne King David has been joined by his ex-wife Matilda Osman, who was Queen at the time, and in the two years since their seperation first by his niece Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside and then last year his daughter Princess Rhiannon. This year however the Archduchess was in the parade of boats leading it in a row boat along with Daisy Greechan with whom she crossed the Mhorish, meanwhile Princess Rhiannon was spending the day with her Mother but was spotted waving and pulling faces at her father.  The couple where seen later walking hand in hand through the crowd and eating ice cream on the Lodjain Queen's yacht which was open for tours to the general public. One bystander who saw them on the Lodjain yacht said, "The pair looked very happy, she was dressed in a stylish summer dress and the King looked very handsome in his military uniform. I think the pair of them would make a very beautiful couple."  Some however did not approve of the King's new relationship saying, "This Lodjain woman isn't a member of our faith, if the worst comes to the worst and he marries her and they have kids how can we be sure one of our future royals wouldn't worship this Sessifet nonsense. "

As always the Festival will feature several days of nautical themed fun in and around the city of Portworth, the largest city in East Moreland. Several hundred thousand tourists are expected to flood the city in which hotel prices have risen around 200% for the period of the event.  The Festival will end with a state dinner which will be hosted by King David and Lady Stasya at a yet to be confirmed location. The news that the future Duchess of Pelagiya will be staying in East Moreland for the duration of the event lead bookmakers to lengthen the odds offered on the identity of the Kings next wife. Swimmer Daisy Greechan and historian Professor Maddie Howard had been front runners at 4/1 however they have now moved to 25/1. The biggest shift however was for the future consort being King Leonard of Vaguzia who moved from 25,000/1 to 100,000/1.




Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #66 on: August 14, 2018, 07:32:54 PM »




WANTED SELEUCID DOCTOR FOUND IN BORLAND RAID

Following an early morning raid on an address in Freestone a female Borlander terrorist and a Seleucid citizen were arrested. Red Legion affected entry to the house of a small cul-de-sac at 6am and no shots where fired however several small bangs were heard. Brigadier Kelly, the commander of the nations elite unit said, "My men had placed the residence under observaton for 48 hours and were certain that this raid could be carried out with little risk to life, both of our own men and the suspects. The fact that we have two people in custody for the Police without a single shot being fired is a reflection of the skill and dedication of the Legionnaires." Police took the two into custody and both where charged with offences relating to terrorism. As soon as the police had taken away the two the Logistics Corps moved in in order to "Make safe rouge substances" which was later confirmed as being precursers to "makeshift chemical weapons."

Later in the day the two were taken to court and named as Helen Bowman (Aged 40) and Imran Gamal (Aged 60) both where charged with crimes relating to the recent Borland attacks as well as producing chemical weapons in contravention of the Uppsala Convention. As Gamal left court it was announced that an official extradition request had already been filed after it was revealed that Gamal had worked at a prison camp in The Iwi during the Seleucid occupation, according to reports he used prisoners as test subjects for experiments on manufacturing chemical weapons. Foreign Minister Edward Tamana explained, "We have treaty obligations with The Iwi and I personally feel that those responsible for the horrific actions that took place in The Iwi must be brought to justice. Once we are shown evidence of the man having a case to answer we shall comply with our treaty obligations and have the gentleman on the first avaliable plane to the Commonwealth of The Iwi.

The news also shows a link between former Seleucid military officers and the Borlanders which has been suspected in the past. Minister of Defence Sir Harry Samuelson said, "The actions of the Seleucid regime in The Iwi during the occupation saw a vast array of crimes and inhumane actions unbecoming of any soldier. As such we should not be surprised that these are exactly the kind of people that the Borlanders would get into bed with. The Borlanders have become experts of hiding in plain view and if I was a Seleucid I'd be wanting to do exactly that. The Borlanders are therefore exactly the people they need to show them how to do that. I hope this Gamal guy gets executed for his barbarian acts."




Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #67 on: August 18, 2018, 09:13:21 PM »




LPVLS SUCCESSFULLY TESTED

The joint CNN Land Portable Vertical Launch System that is being developed was yesterday successfully tested at the Ostlake Proving Grounds.The system was flown into Ostlake West which sits across the lake from the Proving Grounds which make up part of the Eastern base, it was taken just 200meters from the transporting aircraft and a salvo of three missiles were launched at tanks soon to be decommissioned. Two of the three missiles achieved what assessors called "clean kills" with the third landing within twenty meters of the target. The test was witnessed by General Yacobs who seemed impressed with the demonstration, "We've seen an ability to establish an impressive amount of firepower with deadly accuracy within three minutes of an aircraft touching down. The aircraft could have carried twenty of these systems without much of a squeeze, that gives us the ability to put 160 missiles on targets rapidly. Essentially the capability of putting a naval destroyers firepower onto any spot on Mundus."

The test is now the third successful test and the system is coming closer to being given the go ahead for mass manufacture. It is expected East Moreland will be acquiring 30 of these systems which are land portable using a small flatbed truck from which it can be operated. The next test is likely to be done in a few days time when three of the systems are to be air dropped to an infantry legion based in the Alps. Should the test be a success it will give the nation the ability to provide cut off ground forces with a significant amount of firepower in a short amount of time. 

The system is being co-built by companies in East Moreland, Lodja, The Iwi, Ui Cenneslaig and the Ecclesiastical State.




NOBLE CLASS TO PATROL HEYRA EEZ

Following a request from Heyra to patrol their Exclusive Economic Zone the King has offered to send two of the nations new Noble Class destroyers, along with various other assets to help patrol the sea lanes. Along with the pair of destroyers, one of the nations drone carriers and the Ekra-Badger II prototype will be deployed. The decision was explained by Admiral James Thompson, commander of the Royal East Moreland Naval Service, "This is an oppurtunity to test out new equipment in a real life scenario. These new vessels are yet to be given a dedicated mission and the Ekra-Badger II is still on advanced testing. A simple patrol task should not be an unrealistic ask of these assets but they will be backed up by our Naval Rapid Reaction force which can respond almost instantly to any issues. Our Navy will, as always, ensure good order in the areas of our local waters and that of our MICA allies."


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #68 on: August 20, 2018, 10:52:03 PM »




KING SUPPORTS TECHNOLOGY CITY FOR INVESTMENT AS EMAC DROP BOMBSHELL

As King David visited the annual "Transportation Expo" at Technology City he spent time exploring stands dedicated to various East Moreland companies as well as a selection from overseas. The King is known to enjoy cars and looked rather impressed as he posed for photos with Jones Automobiles latest concept and was said to be "considering placing an order." The King also made an announcement that Technology City Stage 3 will soon open with a further series of ready built "flat pack" trading units ready to be set up on. "Technology City was always intended to be a hub for advancing our technological industries and its worked. We've seen companies like EMAC and OsmanTech get stronger. It helped SmartWar become a dynamic global player and other start ups have found so much help here they've done wonderfully. We've done well attracting investment from overseas, Bugatti have a prescence here, as do Riverie Corps and we have begun hearing rumours Abstergo are looking at the place for a new HQ." The City was purpose built as a high tech industry base centred around a new University specialising in sciences, engineering and other related subjects. The city also boasts adapted tax rules rewarding those who support the University, its students and start up entrepreneurs. The King has recently been in Sirinisi and has said that he is hopeful of some East Moreland companies making moves there too.

One of the highlights of the Expo was Rytol-EMAC's stand which saw Sir Alan Maybury make an announcement. "In the coming months Rytol will be taking a step back from Formula Mundus. The team was set up many years ago by Ryan Toller and he has left a legacy in racing both here and abroad which is unparalleled. The team always kept the Toller family close and now with Ryan's son Simon leaving the team for new challenges there will no longer be a Toller involved, as such EMAC have agreed to take over full responsibility for the team. We will retain the Rytol name as part of the new organisation thanks to Ryan and Simon it has become a global power in motorsports and we hope we can live up to their legacy. In addition it is our hope next year to run a 2nd team and as such in one of the Junior Formulas we'll be running Pelagiya-EMAC having linked up with Pelagiya Enterprises. We will provide engines for both teams however both will run very different packages beyond that as we see them as a chance of testing new ideas about aerodynamics, materials and various other systems. It's an exciting time for us and hopefully motorsport."  Later in the day it was revealed that Rytol-EMAC plan to end their formal relationship with a bang. "At the end of the season we're going to unleash the TollerBadger. In testing in 2005 a race car of the type used by Formula Mundus today hit 372.6 km/h (231.5 mph), we're putting together a car that conforms to all Formula Mundus rules and that can beat that."





PETITION BY YOUTH MINISTER HALTS CONSTITUTIONAL VOTE

With a packed Representative Council in attendance Youth Minister Amelia Merriman presented a petition which halted the process of amending the national constitution. By Council rules of processes any petition with more than 100,000 signatures presented by a Minister takes priority over any vote. The 22 year old waited until the speaker was about to begin reading the first of a series of items to be voted on when she stood and presented the document which has 120,000 signatures. As she stood the grand-daughter of scholar Professor Marcus Merriman, said. "While we sit about to determine the official language of our nation a greater problem exists. Dilara Haghighi, is a 16 year old girl who has been sentenced to die because a bias court found her guilty of insurrection, treason and human trafficking. She is a child and I'd suggest incapable of at least two of those crimes. Slava Lavosk are a nation we have allowed to have our Roboguard to protect their border and I urge against giving them any other hardware while the execute someone I believe is still a child. Dilara should be at home studying and preparing for a future, not fearing that she will soon die. I thereby have asked the people of East Moreland to join with me and call for her execution to be commuted. I also ask that should any Morelander with expereince of the SLava Lavosk legal system be willing I will personally help support financially an appeal in court to help Dilara."

A 30 minute debate ended with the question "Should East Moreland condemn the sentence of death on Dilara Haghighi?" 117 Councillors voted YES, while 34 voted No. Around 250 Councillors exited the chamber before the vote, according to the Traditionalist Party spokesman "in protest to the derailing of the constitutional reform". Meanwhile Merriman's own party leader Civic Democrat Parties Clayton Rollins said. "We're delighted to have such a hardworking Councillor as Amelia, we may be a minority Party but she navigates her way through politics like a veteran. Today she may have done nothing more than send a symbolic gesture but she has shown that the CDP will do all we can to help our nation live out is founding principles."

The constitutional vote will now take place tomorrow meanwhile the condemnation of Haghigi's death sentence will be debated before the Executive Council tomorrow and if passed by them will be in front of the King by the weekend.




FREESTONE DUO ANNOUNCE "THINK GLOBAL, ACT LOCAL"

Freestone natives, Tim Carpenter (Twice CTO Secretary-General) and Melissa Lusk (Current CTO Refugee Council Chair) have refounded the Freestone Abolotionist Society ((FAS), an organisation that campaigned to end slavery in East Moreland nearly 300 years ago. The refounded organisation hopes to support the abolition of slavery in Tamora and have called for an international boycott of goods made in Tamora. The duo today however have announced a project they hope will allow companies trading without slaves to continue to do business.

The 24 year old Lusk, who has just returned from Lakhzovia, announced the creation of Freestone Mark. "In the history of the slave trade in East Moreland the Freestone Mark was a giant pottery plaque made and handed out to those who can prove they didn't use slaves in their industry. At first it was something that simply looked pretty but as abolotionsits raised its profile it took hold, people felt they could make a concious decision about the origins of their purchases and this empowered people to make the right choice. We live in an age when people buy products for a while range of reasons and many make ethical choices, whether its free range eggs over battery farmed or picking to buy toilet roll from sustainable trees, our buying habits have an impact. People need to realise they think global but act local."

The Freestone Mark that they are introducing will see companies in Tamora voluntarily allow inspectors to assess their business and award a Bronze, Silver and Gold Mark depending on the companies relationship with slavery. To earn a Bronze the company must prove they do not use any slave labour. "We can't force people to do this but it our hope consumers across the world will do the right thing and when they see the words "Product of Tamora" they take ten seconds to simply look for the mark. It is my hope we can make this a global campaign and we're looking for ways to help those with the Mark gain advantages in other ways but its early days."

Tim Carpenter was not at the launch as he was "out of the country" however his exact whereabouts were unknown leading some to suggest he was in Tamora. He did however take to Twitter and said, "Its a simple rule folks, no Freestone Mark, leave it on the shelf"




Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #69 on: August 21, 2018, 07:23:25 PM »




STI DAH QUTLCUH PATLH SOVMO[1]

In a speedy display of administrative organisation the amendments to the constitution today passed three hurdles. At 10am the Representative Council voted on several amendments which have been debated over the last few days. The first vote was on whether to replace English with Morelandish as the official language of the Kingdom. All the votes where attended by nearly all the Representative Councillors, only Samuel Green (currently hospitalised with tonsillitis) and Karen Butler (Naval Reservist on aid operations in the Mhorish) failed to cast their votes. The result on the official language was 476 for with 22 against.

The decision on whether to replace English with Morelandish as a compulsary study at school was then voted on and again was passed by a large majority with 432 voting for change and 66 against. Ironically one of those voting against was the Education Minister Rosa Meadows who said, "The idea is great in principle but it does not put in place a timeline or method for this change and I fear that this puts an unnecessary level of confusion among the educational establishment. I feel it would have been better to remove this article completely from the constitution and have a separate Educational Language Act."

The third change put forward was to change the wording of one Article from stating the Worship of Helus is the state religion to specifically saying the Cult of Helus was. The article still maintained religious freedoms by keeping the phrase "other religions are entitled to practice their creeds and to hold religious service to the extent consistent with morality and public order." This article saw some discussion as a small minority of the Representative Council are avowed members of the Sisterhood of Helus. This bill passed with 336 for and 162 against. One of those who voted against was Sarah Kennedy, a follower of the leader of the Sisterhood of Helus, Jinny Denman. Kennedy, a member of the Liberal Party said, "The Code of Canley is why we base the consitutions stance regarding religion on the worship of Helus. Our views in the Sisterhoods lines up almost identically with those of the Cult, therefore I believe the old wording was fine." Meanwhile other Councillors such as Eric Richards, also of the Liberal Party believed there should be no state support of religion.

Finally the other successful vote was to remove the restriction on extraditions involving the death penalty. This was passed 287 in favour and 211 against. One of those voting against was Amelia Merriman, the Youth Minister and member of the  Civic Democrat Parties, "I don't oppose the death penalty but I do think we need to be humane with it. I remember the way the Iwi executed one of those involved in the Maori Genocide by clubbing him to death. I believe the man deserved to be executed but the manner in which it happened was unacceptable. I therefore believe we should not automatically extradite."

The only amendment put forward to not pass was one put forward by Sarah Kennedy which would have forced the monarch to gain approval of the Council before a marriage. A similar Act of Council had been suggested earlier in the year and was also defeated. This vote saw 408 vote against it and 90 for. As soon as each vote was tallied in the Representative Council it passed to the Executive Council which is half selected by the Representative Council and half by the Monarch, they agreed with the decison on each of the Articles and by 6pm the amendments had been sent to the Palace where the King signed them.

The debate on whether to support the condemnation of Slave Lavosk put forward by Amelia Merriman was postponed after Edward Tamana, the Foreign Minister asked the Speaker via written communication to hold the debate next week after he returns from an overseas visit. With the condemnation falling under the umbrella of a Foreign Affairs issue the speaker agreed to a postponement which allowed the votes on the constitution to take place.





CONSERVATIVES PUSH FOREIGN AGENDA.

Mark Thompson, the leader of the Conservative Party has today called for a switch in the nations foreign agenda. Speaking after the votes in the Representative Council the successor to May Beckett said, "We have many new pots to stir out there. We have talks with Sirinisi, Bakkermaya are a nation we should be much much closer with and then we have nations like Paracambi whom have made a great impact on their regional affairs. At present however we seem to have shrunk back to our old connections, Seaforth, the CNN and even meetings with the Work Experience Department of Rokkenjima. We now need to be what we once where, a nation that spread our net of friendship far and wide. There is much we can offer nations out there as friends and we can gain from them in agreements of mutual support."

The Conservative Leader was also critical of the recent talks with Rokkenjima. " Normally the visit of an heir to a throne is a great occasion for both parties. I don't get that impression with the latest visit. We have a child sent to discuss matters with Princess Freya, a woman who has ran East Moreland as regent during the King's illness, yet nothing has come of it. We saw her depart almost two weeks ago and in that time we've seen them be able to appoint a new foreign vice regent, suspend ship building deals with Heyra, make all manner of statements, reversals and counter statements on Barnacle and even visit Tamora. Some time ago Empress Beatrice herself said about the termination of the Tri-Partite that "If adversity is the test upon which bonds are proven true or hopelessly shallow we shall see a new dawn for Rokkenjima and East Moreland." Well now we have tabled a new dawn but while we have shown commitment to fulfilling this new dawn it appears Princess Adriana has failed to hand in her homework."

The words of Thompson were supported by other party leaders including Chief Councillor Thomas More who said, "At one time the East Moreland and Rokkenjima relationship was one of the strongest on Mundus and we tried to solve many issues together. Clearly the belief that we had a relationship of importance has been weakened as we took swift action to restore good terms yet an asthmatic ant possibly moves faster than the response we've had back. Had we known it would take this long for any approval or counter arguement to come I would have urged the King not to allow Princess Freya to meet Princess Adriana."


 1. It's now officially changed (In Morelandish)

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #70 on: August 26, 2018, 09:37:04 PM »




PAIR FOUND GUILTY AND SENTENCED TO DEATH

Simon Watts (Aged 22) and Jason Steenson (aged 40), both accused of being part of the recent Borlander terrorist attacks around the globe, have been found guilty of a variety of crimes and have been sentenced to death. Watts plead guilty to "Manufacturing Materials for acts of terrorism", a move that people assumed would see him perhaps avoid the death penalty. He was however found guilty of planning acts of terrorism, treason, attempted murder and aiding a named terrorist organisation. The jury took just two hours to come to a verdict once the trial was finished. The lawyer for the defence attempted to mitigate the death penalty by arguing that his client had aided the investigation into the attacks, this however was ignored by the judge who said, "telling people what you have done does not make right the things you did". Watts was then sent to the Northfort Military Prison where he will await the carrying out of his sentence. His legal team have announced that they will seek to appeal the death penalty and this is likely to delay the carrying out of the penalty.

Meanwhile Jason Steenson was found guilty of the same crimes as Watts but also of recruiting for a terrorist organisation and murder. He had pleaded not guilty but the majority of his defence was that the court was not a legitimate one as he did not recognise the authority of King David. The jury in that case took less than an hour to reach a guilty verdict and the judge said, "Steenson is a life long committed terrorist who is now known to have spent the last five years murdering across Mundus, there is then the ten years previous to that which we know he was involved in the Borlander cause. The man has no chance of redemption in this world or the next." His defence team have yet to file an appeal.

In 14 days time the King will issue a decree permitting sentence to be passed unless there is a successful appeal or the appeal process is ongoing. The King does have the ability to commute the sentences to one of life imprisonment however this is unlikely to happen in these cases. Two more suspected terrorists remain in custody, Helen Bowman (Aged 40) and Imran Gamal (Aged 60) are due in court in the coming days, however it was today announced that Gamal will be extradited to The Commonwealth of the Iwi after his trial regardless of the verdict. The Minister of Justice Darren Bone explained, "We believe it highly likely Gamal will be found guilty of similar crimes as Steenson and Watts, what we also believe having viewed the evidence is that he is also likely to be found guilty of the involvement in the genocide of the Maori. As such it is only fitting that they have an opportunity to also have justice. We have an agreement that should The Iwi not find him guilty or pass a lower or equal sentence as East Moreland he will be returned to us for carrying out sentence."




OSMANTECH DISCOVERY A "GIFT FROM THE GODS"

During recent excavations at the Forge of the Gods in Portworth a new medical discovery considered to be "extremely important" has been made. The Forge is the place that historically is considered to be the place where Jekar forged the first ever sword and taught Raimond Unasson how to use it and is part of a larger network of caves which are considered to be some of the oldest dwellings in Alba Karinya. During excavations a blue tinted clay was discovered and has since found to have medical uses after a sample was given to OsmanTech for analysis. The clay was found effective at killing bacteria that have become drug-resistant. The effectiveness has up to now only been demonstrated in the lab but the research is according to an OsmanTech spokesman "encouraging as it was shown to be effective against common pathogens such as Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. This included tough-to-kill strains like carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)." The reason for this is still being examined but according to the company, "This shows that we could be capable of tackling some killer infections without drugs. This is good news as it means we can hopefully tackle the issue of drug resistant bacteria and virus."

The High Priestess, Skye Maddix, has also spoken of the discovery stating, "The Gods Forge is a special place for mankind, it saw us given the ability to defend ourselves from a great threat to humanity, the Underlords. Today millenia on disease is one of the greatest threats to mankind and we shouldn't be surprised that once more the Gods have come to our protection. I look forward to OsmanTech's work revealing this gift from the Gods."




Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #71 on: August 28, 2018, 11:01:37 PM »




FORMER QUEEN VISITS NEU UBURZIS

Matilda Osman, former Queen of East Moreland and founder of the Wild Mundus Organisation (WMO), is visiting Neu Uburzis in the coming days to help open a new Aquarium. The former wife of King David is a Professor of Marine Biology and prior to being Queen worked as a researcher with Dolphins at the Portworth Marine Institute (PMI_. Following her divorce she has returned to work on a part time basis and often leads initiatives to help the Institute engage with the general public, especially young people. It was only six months ago that "Bobby" a Dolphin who had resided at  PMI after being found half blind and with whom Matilda had spent most of her career working died and a "funeral" saw several hundreds who had enjoyed seeing the Dolphin for educational  talks attend. Miss Osman spoke at the funeral saying, "We share this planet with so many interesting and incredible creatures. We are fortunate enough to be what you could call the planets Alpha species and as such we have a responsibility to maintain this balance." She will be spending a few days in Neu Uburzis and will be accompanied by her daughter Princess Rhiannon and another VIP. It is understood the zoo at where the aquarium is located held an event where children could bring their pets and as such Princess Rhiannon will be taking her Fennec Fox, Goldie.

The six year old Princess spoke at Northfort Airport where she was seen carrying Goldie in a small carry cage. "Me and Goldie can't wait. He's never been out of the county and I we're going to have some adventures. I've not been to New Hubziz before and neither had Goldie, I hope we can make some new friends." Matilda elected not to take 18 month old son by Formula Mundus driver Sam Halliday explaining. "Oliver has specific medical needs that can make it difficult for me to be able to work and give him the attention he deserves. Trips such as this are a double edged sword. Oliver gets to spend quality time with his grandparents but I miss him. I hope he'll one day understand the need for me to do this work."






TECHNOLOGY CITY TO BUILD VERTICAL FARM

Matthew Lamb, the mayor of Technology City, has today announced that they have given planning permission for a massive vertical farm building. The farm will be operated by a combination of SFR, Terilium and SmartWar and is thought to cost something in the region of $150million. The project will see SFR provide the green energy on the site from a variety of solar panels and hydrogen produced through electrolysis powered by solar panels. Meanwhile Terilium, a large agricultural investor will manage the day to day crops leaving the vast array of computer technology being utilised to be deployed by SmartWar. The farm will see its crops grow on six-metre vertical poles, using hydroponics and LED lights. No soil or pesticides are used. Infrared sensors monitor how the crops are faring so that the system can adjust light, heat and water flow accordingly. It is thought to be the first farm of its type in the world.

Mayor Lamb said, "I've learnt quiet a bit about the Vertical Farm project in the last month or so and its another example of the cutting edge work going on in this city. I've seen other vertical farms but they tend to just see horizontal racks of crops grown, essentially creating more floorspace by piling on layers. If this works we'll literally have living walls of crops and use far less resources." It is understood that if the project goes according to plan the farm can  grow up to 350 times more per square metre than outdoor field farms. It is expected that the farm will begin planting its first crops in January of 2019.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #72 on: August 29, 2018, 10:15:54 PM »




DANGER OF "DILUTION OF EFFORTS" SAYS KING IN RESPONSE TO IMPERIAL ADDRESS

Following the annual Imperial Address of Rokkenjima King David used his time at the weekly Representative Council appearence of the monarch to give the traditional East Moreland response.

Quote from: King David to the Representative Council

As we do every year we have today received the content of the long anticipated Imperial Address of the Rokkenjiman Empress. The address marks a significant moment in the diplomatic calendar as it dictates for many the future direction of one of Mundus most influential nations. The last twelve months have been a see-saw for Rokkenjima for many reasons and so this years will be poured over with much debate by political analysts globally. As always the Council ask me my view of the address and so as I have in prior years I shall endeavour to use this time granted to me by the honourable council to do exactly that. First though it is worth reminding ourselves that while Rokkenjima have been in many senses AWOL on the international scene they enjoy a long history of attempting to bring about endeavours for the greater good of many and this years address hopefully signals a step back towards that direction.

As usual there is much we as Morelanders can look at in this speech and think "yes that's something we can get behind" or "Yes thats another ally on this goal" but as always there are things we disagree on. The Empress said,  "yesterday is meaningless when tomorrow is the day we are faced with" and while I believe this is a fine sentiment it does not bare out in reality. Nations and people around the world make decisions all the time about what is the best course ahead, that decision is based not soley on what you can or are offering but on the actions of the past. I firmly believe yesterday is the foundations that tommorrow is built upon and as such this means a slate can not automatically be wiped clean. The memories of past actions influence our views and judgements on today and tommorrow, we must now forge a path that slowly begins to show the mistakes and mistrusts of the past are being eroded, that comes not through words and simply saying tommorrow shall be better, it comes slowly and gradually as we show the world that today is different to yesterday. A God much wiser than me wrote "Do actions agree with words? There's your measure of reliability." We have today heard the words of Rokkenjima but the past actions do not meet up and thus Frossaj would judge them unreliable. It is my sincere hope that Rokkenjima of late can be the Rokkenjima of old and match its words and deeds.

Rokkenjima once more speak of the Illumic. This in the past sends a shiver down every Morelander and Seaforthians spine, it has been a much debated area between the nations. I am on the record more than once speaking of Regional Determinism, the right....and the responsibility of each region looking after its own backyard. We of the Illumic, and the Mhorish too, are more than capable of doing this and the creation of organisations such as MICA have only strengthened that position. Rokkenjima have been in the possession of a proposal by my sister to further ensure Regional Determinism becomes a reality of the day to day life in the Illumic and I call for all those nations blessed to have shores touching that water to stand with us to make those waterways the safest and most welcoming of all Mundus. As such we have seen in recent days our navy begin operations in the EEZ of Heyra to ensure the waters stay safe and open to all good natured traffic. This shows our dedication to making the Mhorish and Illumic our responsibility and as such we will offer support to any nation needing it and co-operation to all.

It is however from these waters that my biggest concern comes in recent days. We have seen Rokkenjima become the target of a media campaign by Heyra after the mess that is the Mhorish Island issue reached its current point. We have seen muck slung on both sides and I would urge both sides to tone down the rhetoric and focus on what matters, the lives of those in the Mhorish. That being said I am deeply troubled by the practice of Heyra releasing recordings of diplomatic phone calls and meetings. It has always been my belief that what is said to me in diplomatic meetings is said in confidence, between the people gathered in that room. I am aware in the past of diplomatic talks that have seen highly sensitive information exchanged that would impact nation security, Heyra's practice now of recording and releasing talks means I fear that we may not be able to share such things through normal channels or in the normal way. We have had diplomats such as my sister sit in talks with Heyra regarding the AKO, what concerns me is whether those meetings where recorded by the Heyrans as we gave no consent for them to be and should that have happened we see a breakdown of trust in a region that was beginning to see unprecedented levels of co-operation.

My final thoughts take me back to the Imperial Address. The Empress announced a  Social Interest Service something that would " direct funds, resources and manpower to existing institutions to ensure a multi-pronged approach which brings assistance to the places it is needed in those times it is needed." This is welcome news, we see such institutions as the Global Childbirth Initiative, the Refugee Council, Mundus Health Organisation, Joint Emergency Team and various other organisations all at strecthing point at times and having a dedicated Service directing manpower towards these should be welcomed. What concerns me howver is that we do not see a dilution of efforts, it is no good having these multi-national organisations if one nation then goes off pushing its own version of them. By standing together and uniting with common purpose we achieve great things. Look at the Uppsala Crisis, East Moreland, Achkaerin, Lodja, The Iwi, Ui Cenneslaig and Kaedwen responded and along with the Alanders prevented not one but two great humanitarian disasters escalating. Had each nation gone it alone and offered support I am sure this would have failed, I therefore urge Rokkenjima learn from this lesson and that of the past. The greater prestige comes not from having ones name as the headline but from the sure and certain knowledge that there are people alive who would not be save for your actions.While a nation my be bigger, richer or stronger on paper they alone can not achieve what those nations who unite will. Unity is a beast in itself. If a wolf sees two little boys playing in the woods on one side, and a big strong man on the other, he will go to the one who stands alone.





PRINCESS AND HUSBAND TO BE PARENTS IN A WEEK

A Northfort court today confirmed that Princess Freya and her husband Major Alex Redfern can adopt a six year old Mavrosian refugee in a weeks time unless any family come forward. The six year old was shipwrecked with Red Legionnaire officer Alex Redfern after he attempted to rescue refugees in the Mhorish and was washed away and believed to have died when a body with his jacket on washed up on the coast of East Moreland. The Major had infact given the jacket someone to stay warm while he aided rescue efforts and infact Redfern and two other adults found themselves on a remote Heyran island with the six year old. Redfern ended up building a raft and sailing the four towards what he believed to be home after one of the castaways began running out of diabetic medication. The raft was found by a Seaforthian Naval vessel and Evie refused to be parted from her saviour.

Almost three years later the girl has been living with Redfern and his father and more recently Princess Freya, she also attends the same school as Princess Rhiannon and are in the same class. Redfern has twice attempted to adopt her but been refused, the first time for not being able to provide a long term stable home for her and the second for not being able to prove Evie's parents are deceased. It was on this third occasion a judge ruled, "In effect because of the efforts made by the Refugee Council of the CTO and other bodies I am confident that if no one has come forward by now they are sadly likely dead. I therefore see no reason why Major Alexander Redfern and his wife Her Royal Highness Princess Freya Ironside should not become Evie's legal parents." It is not yet confirmed whether the girl will be given a title if adopted but is said to be "just like a niece" to King David.




LINDLEY SHUTS OUT HALLIDAY AND COOKE FOR RECORD SEAT

Having announced that at the end of the season Rytol-EMAC will attempt to break the speed record for a Formula Mundus style car the team today announced that former driver and current test driver Mark Lindley will drive the TollerBadger in the record attempt. No images of the car have yet been released but many imagined current World Champion Sam Halliday or his team mate Matt Cooke would be selected for the attempt which would need to hit 372.6 km/h (231.5 mph). The attempt will see, if successful, another speed record broken by EMAC who are leading the effort.

EMAC CEO Sir Alan Maybury joined Lindley for the announcement and said, "We want Sam and Matt to focus on the Championship, there are lots of points to be had and we'd love to see the Toller families official association with the team end on a massive high point of a retained Drivers Championship and a Constructors Championship, but a triple crown of a speed record would make it an incredible farewell to the Tollers who helped catapult this style of racing into a global event." It was father and son duo Ryan and Simon Toller who got King David involved in the push to make a world open wheel championship which saw East Moreland host the very first Formula Mundus event. The pair are leaving the team they set up in order to focus on "new exciting projects in other fields". The name Rytol will still be used by the team that will be EMAC controlled as Sir Alan explained, "Ryan Toller, and more recently Simon, will always have a special place in East Moreland motor sport, as the only Morelander team in the pinnacle of the game it is fitting the name is carried proudly forward."

The record attempt is being carried out after the final Formula Mundus race of the season as driver Mark Lindley explained. "Essentially I'm going to have to get some laps in and then nail it on the straight, we've worked out the more rubber that gets laid down the better and so once the final race is over it'll be caked in the stuff and then thankfully they'll let me have a go. We'll be praying to the weather Gods." This means the record would be broken on home soil as the final race is at Silverhills.




ARCHDUCHESS LEAVES IT LATE FOR GAMES SQUAD

With the deadline for submitting teams for the Mundus Games the nine times medalist, Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside, has qualified for the Cross Country team as well as the marathon. The 21 year old niece of King David competed in the Aldcliffe Bridge run, a marathon run over the cities 20 bridges and meet the Mundus Games qualifying time despite finishing fifth behind guest competitors. By meeting the qualifying time she is eligible for the squad and the Air Force have consented to her being issued leave for the duration of the games. This could see her total medal haul raise to eleven which would equal that of Daisy Greechan, the nations greatest sports person, however Greechan has the chance to win a suspected four more medals at the Games.

Speaking to the media leaving the Bridge Run the Air Force Pilot Officer said, "I'm excited to be going again. I was 17 when I went to my first games and I didn't really take it in. I've now been to two winter games and I'm much more comfortable in myself at championships. I'm looking forward to seeing if my legs are still up for the long runs as despite the cardio being there from the speed skating I'm not sure the legs are exactly the same. I've been doing a lot of running having just done basic training and I hope this will put me back into contention for the medals."



Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #73 on: September 05, 2018, 09:17:34 PM »




EMAC BEGIN WORK ON NEW ROYAL PLANE

The East Moreland Aircraft Company were today announced as the winners of the contract to build the new royal aircraft. The current aircraft is a twin propeller pusher plane and is probably one of, if not the smallest government aircraft in use by any nation. The new design however appears to be much grander and will feature many cutting edge technologies. The current Ironside One has eight seats which can be folded down into beds as well as a small kitchen and bathroom. The aircraft carries a specialist pod which is almost identical to that carried by many of East Moreland's fighter aircraft allowing it to dispense chaff and flares in case of attack. Former Ironside One pilot Wing Commander James Norton flew the aircraft for three years and explained, " The aircraft has many advantages over the traditional bigger aircraft used by many nations, its small, agile and the positioning of the engines makes it hard to spot with IR. It was a fun aircraft to fly."

The newer model will be windowless and include solar panels as it is likely to feature semi electrical engines. The concept also shows that it will be much bigger, perhaps reflecting the changing nature of East Morelands involvement in world affairs from 15 years ago when the current model entered service. Sir Alan Maybury of EMAC explained the new design. "The windowless nature means we can be more streamlined and therefore more fuel efficent, furthermore it allows us to use a material that makes it more radar absorbent for security. Images will be relayed to virtual windows via a digital feed. The engines will use traditional fuel to reach altitude and then switch over to electrical drive to conserve fuel. All considered the new Ironside One should make the other look like a piece of junk despite it being already state of the art." It was confirmed that there is likely to be a scaled down lower tech version for the civilian market.  The Royal Palace announced that the first of two aircraft is expected to be delivered sometime in 2024.




GREECHAN RELAXED ABOUT GAMES

East Moreland's greatest athlete, Daisy Greechan, yesterday spoke about her upcoming chances at the Mundus Games and seemed relaxed. The Naval Rescue diver who serves normally aboard REMNS King Robert, the nations flagship, stands able to become the greatest athlete in the history of the games during the next two weeks. The swimmer however is downplaying the chances of adding to her already impressive haul of 11 medals. "It gets harder every year but while I enjoy competing I know I've still got a chance. This year I've had several active duty tours which have eaten into my competition schedule but I feel fresh and strong so I think I have a chance."

The Freestone native competes tomorrow in two events, the 400meter Butterfly and the 400 meter freestyle. It is however in the 800m freestyle and medley and then the 1500m where she stands a better chance in the pool. "I started off as a sprinter, my first games saw me never swim more than 100 meters but now I prefer the distance events, its more in tune with what I do day in day out at work and that's normally open water which is very different to the pool. I'm excited though." She will also compete in what is now her favoured event the Open Water Swim, however it has emerged she is also on standby for the relays. "My first games saw me compete in every discipline in the 50m and 100m events as well as one of the relays. I'm used to the demands of multi eventing. I also get several calls a day sometimes at work for rescue dives and so again I'm used to going and then later in the day repeating it. I won't be  blaming over eventing if it goes wrong."

The former girlfriend of King David also stated, "The games village as always is fun, I like getting to hang out and not scrub the decks of a ship for a change. Its good to catch up with my team-mates and also the friends I've made in other countries." 

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #74 on: September 08, 2018, 08:59:37 PM »




"HUMAN LIFE NOT A CORPORATE ASSET" SAYS HIGH PRIESTESS

Following recent announcements in the Heyran press of corporations either adopting children in large numbers or now creating them through IVF the High Priestess of the Cult of Helus, Skye Maddix, has spoken out on the matter. When attending a seminar on ethics at Royal Northfort University she was asked what her opinion was on the Heyran situation. In response she said, "Human life is not a corporate asset. A child should experience pure love from its Mother and Father. I can accept adoption, it is an act of true selflessness and any parents adopting a child are in my view very special people. What worries me though is that a corporation adopting them does not have that love in its heart mainly because it is not a human and therefore had no heart. The same, if not worse can be said for IVF, to take advantage of surrogates merely to swell artificially a population is a horrid thing. We live on an overpopulated planet and to artificially bring a child into the world simply to attempt to maintain a standard of living is tragic. There should only be one reason to bring a child into existence and that is love."

She was then asked whether she would support organisations such as OsmanTech carrying out mass adoptions or a similar IVF project in East Moreland to which she said. "Here in East Moreland the Cult has no say over law. We trust that King David would do the right thing as a descendent of Helus most beloved human, Raimond Unasson, and that would mean that he would forbid such a cold act. It should be that we look at Heyran children with pity in our hearts as if they view children as a resource rather than a treasure they are undervaluing their youth."

The Royal Press Office has yet to speak on the matter beside saying, "Once more His Majesty is honoured in the faith the High Priestess has in his following of the Cultist Code's."




RYTOL-EMAC UNVEIL THE TOLLERBADGER

Today at the Silverhills GP Track the East Moreland based Formula Mundus team Rytol-EMAC unveiled their ambitious speed record which will take place at the final race of the season. The TollerBadger is being designed to comply with all current Formula Mundus rules and aims to beat the current record of  372.6 km/h (231.5 mph). The car is being driven by Rytol-EMAC test driver Mark Lindley who was present at the unveiling and said, "We have some major advantages over the teams in the pits, we're not having to design a car to take on hundreds of different twists and turns over the season, we have to deal with maybe three bends at most. As such we can literally run right on the edge in terms of downforce. We don't have to worry about the fuel load changing as we'll literally have the smallest fuel tank known to mankind and we also don't have the same issues with breaks overheating so we don't need to consider airflow there. It's going to be an engineering miracle."

Sir Alan Maybury the CEO of EMAC said, "We do these projects to create excitement about engineering, to keep the profile high of our own business but also of the work of engineers and designers. We've seen a 300% increase in applications for jobs at EMAC since we started doing these little vanity projects, this means the standard of our already excellent team has increased. It's like we can almost take the pick of the litter." Sir Alan also indicated that in the coming days EMAC would be unveiling a new youth related project.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #75 on: September 09, 2018, 07:11:20 PM »




GREECHAN TAKES GOLD

Swimmer Daisy Greechan today won her 12th Mundus Games medal, making her the most successful athlete in the history of the Games. Taking victory in the Women's 400m Freestyle see's her move onto 12 medals making her the Greatest Athlete of all time according to some. She pulls ahead of Achkaerin cyclist Sammy Lawson. Later in the day Greechan missed out on another medal when she came 5th in 400m Butterfly. Speaking after the medal ceremony the Freestone native said, "I think all the talk about who is the best is a little redundant. We've myself and Sammy who compete in events with multiple medal chances and then we have (Archduchess) Sophie (Harrison-Ironside) who I think should really be considered the greatest athlete. Me and Sammy compete in one discipline, I swim, she cycles. Meanwhile we've seen Sophie become the first to take medals in both sets of games in two completely different disciplines. That takes some real skill."

Greechan still has chances for medals in the 400m Medlay, the 800m freestyle and medley and then the 1500m before finally competing in the Open Water swim, potentially taking her total tally to 17. Other medals came when Greechan's Naval colleague John Salmon took gold in the Mens' 200m Freestyle before his younger brother Simon took gold in the 400meter version of the event. Silver and Bronze came in the 400m Men's Butterfly while Eddie Hall took silver in the weightlifting.




KING SENDS "COURTSHIP REQUEST"

It was confirmed today by the Royal Press Secretary, Malcolm Tucker, that the King has sent an official request to form a relationship with Lady Stasya Pelagiya in accordance with Lodjain tradition. It is expected that anyone wishing to form a romantic relationship with any of the Lodjain Queen's four Lady in Waiting must seek the Queen's permission. The King had been criticised in Lodjain media for not following this protocol and it had seen East Moreland Ambassador to Lodja, Sir James Fitzroy, formally summoned by Queen Klara. It was also Sir James who presented an official letter from the King to Queen Klara which, "requested Her Divine Majesties permission for Lady Stasya to be courted by His Majesty King David." Tucker explained, "The King deep down is a man who loves history and traditions, he finds this rather sweet in a way and hopes he has not caused Lady Stasya any dishonour."

It was later revealed that Queen Klara accepted the letter personally and will "give it due consideration."


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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #76 on: September 17, 2018, 09:53:40 PM »




CARPENTER LAUNCHES FREESTONE PARTY

Today in the city of Freestone the former two time Secretary General of the Commonwealth Treaty Organisation and the nations first Chief Councillor, Tim Carpenter, has announced that he is founding his own political party. The city of Freestone has always been one of the more politically active cities within the nation having been the birth place of a large women's rights movement in the late 1700's as well as the founding home of the nations campaign for same sex marriage. In more recent weeks Carpenter along with support from Melissa Lusk, another native of Freestone, have established an anti-slavery pressure group known as the Freestone Abolitionist Society. Carpenter launched the new party in a rather low key manner via YouTube. During a 10 minute announcement the 33 year old said, "East Moreland is a nation that has always tried to do the right thing and is heavily guided by our ethical code. My concern is that we've seen parties like the National Traditionalists go too far nationalist, meanwhile we've seen the Liberal's go too Liberal. We have very little in terms of an effective party that represents the best of both. The Freestone Party will stand for what Freestone always has, doing the right thing to make East Moreland a great nation. We intend to fight to make sure everyone in East Moreland enjoys the freedoms and rights everyone should enjoy, meanwhile there has to be a managing of responsibilities to the Nation and each other. We shall pursue polices that give people a chance to both flourish as an individual while helping their nation do likewise."

Carpenter has yet to release any policies or details of any other members of his fledgling party. Carpenter currently does not hold any place on the Representative Council and there are no upcoming elections for at least two years. This has lead to speculation that perhaps the party already has recruited several Representative Councillors one of whom may be willing to stand down to allow Carpenter to re-enter the Council. His parties new page on Facebook reached 10,000 members within 24 hours.




EMRC TO PUT BULLETS ON A DIET

The East Moreland Rifle Company has today announced it has reached a deal with the Ministry of Defence for the Army to test out a new style of ammunition. The company which has supplied most of the nations firearms and Army munitions since 1840 has been developing Telescoped Caseless Ammunition (TCA) for the last two years and believes it is now at a point where it is ready for deployment on a limited scale. A tradition round of ammunition features a metal casing, usually made out of brass which contains a propellant which when ignited pushes a projectile down the barrel of the gun, the vast majority of the weight carried is in the form of the brass container, which is often ejected and discarded.  TCA however sees the projectile encased within a polymer tube completely surrounded by propellant and a plug in front that provides a gas-tight seal to drag the shell along. As a result the ammunition is lighter and can contain more propellant making the round fly further and faster producing more stopping force.

ERMC have to date been using light squad machine guns to test the rounds which have been belt fed using rifles that needed slight modification. The modified Light Support Weapon weighs 14.5 pounds, compared to 21.8 pounds for the traditional version. Meanwhile carrying 1000 rounds of TCA ammunition saves 20lbs compared to the traditional belt fed brass version. The company have now however developed a magazine that would work with a slightly modified version of the current infantry front line rifle. Should the ammunition prove effective it would mean the average soldier deployed in the Alps would carry around 40% less weight for a multi-day operation. The EMRC CEO Derek Brown stated, "We have high hopes for the future of this ammunition, our tests show an average soldier would benefit from a 41 percent weight reduction and 12 percent volume reduction compared to conventional ammunition. There is also less chance of a round being cooked off in the barrels as there is no radiation of heat to new rounds. We also save a great deal of money making the ammunition, the process can be effectively done by something very similar to 3D printing and requires no manufacture of casing separate to the projectile."

Mr.Brown also revealed that a team of ex-Red Legionnaires have been testing the weapons and ammunition with excellent results. "Our testers have fired 5,000 rounds of ammunition and discovered the 5.56 CT System achieved a 20 percent tighter shot grouping at 150 meters and required 30 percent less ammo to accomplish fire missions over the existing Army light machine gun. " One barrier however to introducing the new ammunition comes from the fact that weapons need slight modifications and that the nation only recently changed assault rifle in 2013. The extra cost implications may see the new ammunition take around 10 years to become widely used although it is likely special forces units may utilise the CT rounds sooner than that.




Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #77 on: September 28, 2018, 11:49:23 PM »




NATION PARTIES FOR THE HONEYBADGER

The nation today came to a stop to celebrate Honeybadger Day, a festival to commemorate the introduction of the Honeybadger into East Moreland in the 18th Century. King Nathan had read about the creatures in a science journal and believed from what he had read they were the perfect embodyment of what a true Morelander should be, tenacious, brave, intelligent and willing to lay down their life for their loved ones, as a result he had four brought from Paracambi and kept as pets on the royal estate at Northfort. He found the Honeybadgers to be fascinating and soon ordered 1000 to be brought and released into the wilds, the animals also become fashionable pets for a while and several hundred escaped their confinment on private estates and joined their wild siblings. Today it is estimated that some 10,000 Ratan's run wild today mainly in the woods around Ostlake and up into the Alps.

The nation has always celebrated the event with big street parties, feasts, BBQ's and fun fairs. This year, as usual the royal family spent the day in People's Park in Northfort where a large music festival takes place every year. As usual Princess Freya was spotted in the VIP section front of stage dressed as a Honeybadger, this year however she was joined by adopted daughter Evie and niece Rhiannon. The concert was headlined by 2Cellos whose finale saw a fly over by a squadron of Air Force fighters just before midnight. Meanwhile the athletes taking part in the Mundus Games hoisted an effigy of a giant Honeybadger outside their accomodation block and the teams usual red and white tracksuits were swapped for Honeybadger onesies. There was even a parade round the village by the team who handed out cookies baked in the shape of the national animal.

Embassies across Mundus also celebrated, rumours are that Sir James Fitzroy, the ambassador to Lodja hosted a function on the Island of the Goddess while in Bakkermaya a garden party was thrown with a real Honeybadger as guest of honour.

As evening fell on East Moreland the King took to TV to give the usual Honeybadger Day address which typically is a simple thanks to the armed forces, security forces and veterans of the armed forces before calling on all Morelanders to keep the spirit of the Honeybadger alive. "As a nation we have always clung to the Code of Canley as closely as we could, the Honeybadger is the embodyment of that, fierce in defence of its home, willing to place its family above all and if need be lay down its life to protect its children. The Honeybadger is a true warrior of Helus and I am proud our nation sees the noble beasts wander freely in our forests. Long live the Ratan."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #78 on: September 30, 2018, 09:43:10 PM »




HALLIDAY INTERVIEW CAUSES ROYAL RAGE

Comments made by Formula Mundus Champion, Sam Halliday, in a recent EMTV interview have caused King David to become "enraged" according to some sources in the Palace. In an interview for the weekly Formula Mundus Show on the nations broadcaster Halliday covered a whole host of subjects from his performance so far this season, to the retirement of the Toller family from direct involvement with the Rytol team and also his family life. Halliday began a relationship with former Queen, Matilda Osman, after her split from the King and the pair have a one year old son, Oliver, who just like Prince Caspian is a sufferer of Hunter's syndrome. During the interview Halliday was asked how he has adjusted to being a father following a rather fractious start during which he and Matilda split briefly and he demanded a DNA test on Oliver. The 27 year old racing driver explained in the interview. "I was at a point where I was struggling to come to terms with the challenge of competing for a world title while also having a relationship with the most influential woman in East Moreland. It was crazy and then the devistation of seeing Oliver with that condition that I know killed Caspian was heartbreaking. We've worked through things and are now a solid family unit." What caused the controversy however was what came next when Halliday said, "I really enjoy being a father now, and while I know I don't get to be there 24/7 I love all the time I can with my family. We've a really solid bond and its great being Rhiannons other father."

It was this last statement that caused the King to apparently lose his temper. A Palace insider stated, "The King heard the interview, after all he is a big supporter of the East Moreland Formula Mundus community, he hosted the first ever Formula Mundus race and has a keen interest in the series. When he heard Halliday call himself Rhiannons other father the King was very angry. I'm sure I even heard him smashing things in his office." King David is known to be very guarded with his daughter and has Royal Press secretary Malcolm Tucker conrol the media's access to her at all times. The King was essentially a single father for the first year of his twin children's life as the then Queen Matilda first suffered severe blood loss during childbirth and was in a coma for over a month before suffering minor damage to parts of her brain controlling short term memory and mobility, something she has now largely recovered from. The King even took six months away from running the country handing reigns of power to his sister Princess Freya.

Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker was asked about the matter when he briefed the media at the weekly press conference. The media veteran stated, "Princess Rhiannon has one father, that's King David. Yes Sam Halliday is the boyfriend of her mother but he will never be her father. There is an unshakeable bound between the King and his daughter and anyone who sees them together knows that."





EXECUTION GETS GO AHEAD

The executions of convicted Borlanders Simon Watts (Aged 22) and Jason Steenson (aged 40) will take place within the next 48 hours. The pair who were partly responsible for the series of Borlander attacks that even saw Rokkenjiman Naval bases attacked claimed hundreds of lives across the globe. One of their co-conspirators is currently facing trial in the Commonwealth of the Unified Iwi where the Seleucid national faces genocide related charges. The execution of the two Borlanders was today given the go ahead following unsuccessful appeals and the King informing the commander of Northfort Military Prison that he does not intend to commute their executions to life imprisonment.

This will mark the first execution since that of Rebekah Barren, a supposed "Queen of Borland" who gave birth to the terrorist leader Kyle Barrens child some three years ago. There have been several human rights groups already call for protests outside the prison and a petition for the King to use his powers of clemency has reached 2,100 signatures. The King has in the past stated that he will not use his powers under the constitution to grant mercy as Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker explained. "The King permitted James Clusky to escape execution under international pressure when he was still an inexperienced monarch. It is a move he today regrets and has no intention of allowing another Borlander to escape justice. As long as a legally recognised court of East Moreland gives a sentence of execution and the appeals process is followed the perpetrator will be executed in accordance with our laws."

It is expected both men will be executed on the same day marking the first double execution in over fifty years.
« Last Edit: September 30, 2018, 09:52:54 PM by DaveIronside »

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #79 on: October 08, 2018, 09:47:39 PM »




BORLANDERS EXECUTED

Simon Watts (Aged 22) and Jason Steenson (aged 40), the two Borlanders responsible for the most recent burst of Borlander terrorist activity, have now been executed. The two where hanged yesterday at Northfort Military Prison, the only prison used in East Moreland for executions. The pair had been found guilty of a variety of crimes connected to terror offences and despite Watts largely "co-operating" with investigators he was still sentenced to death.

It was confirmed by a press witness that Watts was executed first at around 8am and that he declined the presence of a Priestess of Rolaf. He said no final words before the trap door was opened and he fell through, dying instantly. This was followed at around midday by the execution of Steenson who again declined the use of a Priestess. He did briefly address the gathered witnesses which included members of victims families who are routinely invited. The convicted terrorist said, "While we may die our bodies will be buried in a soil that is forever Borland" His execution went off without incident as well. Following the execution both bodies were, as is routine, cremated and will be kept for 30 days for next of kin to collect, should they not be collected they will be spread on the river Ost.

While the pair were being executed there was a gathering of Human Rights protesters outside the prison, their leader was Representative Councillor Simon Calladine who represents Tech City West. He spoke to the crowd saying, "We live in a society where bloodshed is no longer a daily occurrence, what we have going on today is nothing but state sponsored murder. Yes these men have committed crimes but they are essentially at this moment defenceless, tying them to a rope and breaking their necks is therefore not neccessary. Justice is ensuring they can not commit the crimes again, to protect society from evil. Behind those walls contained in a box for the rest of their natural lives they would not be a problem to society." About an hour into the protest however Tim Carpenter, former Chief Councillor, Secretary-General of the CTO and founder of the newest political party in East Moreland arrived. Carpenter is a well known campaigner for various rights and a native of Freestone, a city devestated by Borlanders four years ago.

Carpenter spoke to the media in favour of the death penalty, "When I was a teenager I was idealistic like Councillor Calladine, but I had family killed in two incidents by Borlanders. What we are dealing with are people who clearly do not respect human life and therefore don't deserve their life being respected. I've seen enough bloodshed in my life to keep me awake at night, the people who campaigned against James Ironside when he tried to take the throne, the missile attack on my hometown and then the genocide of Cultists in Royal Seleucid. What is clear is one thing, there are people out there who do not respect the special nature of human life and that in my eyes makes them Underlords, people who like our God's enemies wish to cast our world into darkness. Jekar showed us how to deal with people who bring the darkness, you rip them apart, you remove them from the world and you do not shed a tear over their demise. As long as the Borlanders don't respect humanity I hope we keep hanging them." Carpenters words took many by surprise due to both the seemingly violent nature of them as well as the use of religious imagery.

One of Carpenter's former political colleagues is the now retired Foreign Minister Robert Kennedy, now confined to a wheelchair because of MS, "Carpenter always used to be a rather peaceful person. I know he's been through a lot in his last few years, being at the centre of the Cultist Genocide will have exposed him to things beyond what I can imagine. I think this new less pacifist Carpenter is going to only increase his appeal, particularly among younger Morelanders who seem to be experiencing a bit of a cultural rebirth compared to their parents. I think King Sven (King David's father) expected East Moreland to become less traditional in terms of its world view, however I think perhaps what we see under King David is someone keen to preserve the traditions and heritage of our nation and try and impose them on the way we interact with the world. A politically active Tim Carpenter in that aspect could be a valuable ally for the King and the firebrand does have a large youth backing."

So far no-one has come forward to claim the ashes of Steenson and Watts, nobody has claimed the ashes of the last three Borlanders executed, including that of "Queen" Rebekah, the former mistress of Kyle Barren, leader of the Borlanders. Those have been spread on the River Ost and would have been washed out to sea.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #80 on: October 13, 2018, 07:48:38 PM »




LPVLS "GRADUATES" FROM ACADEMICA

The joint CNN developed Land Portable Vertical Launch System was confirmed to have yesterday been used for the first time in anger. The system which will allow flatbed trucks to transport canisters of precision munitions to any place on a battlefield is capable of firing a range of highly accurate Surface to Air and Surface to Surface missiles usually found onboard naval vessels or carried by aircraft. The idea behind the platform is to provide ground units with a highly accurate and highly mobile platform capable of either giving an air defence umbrella or provide close support for ground operations. The canisters can also be air dropped making them a highly versitle piece of kit. With the providnce of Academica currently still under East Moreland protection it was determined to place one of the prototypes there to provide air defences in the short term. Sir Harry Samuelson, the nations Minister of Defence has however confirmed that it was used by a Red Legion unit in the Alps who were pinned down by a Borlander force.

The Minister told the press, "A four man team on a routine intelligence gathering patrol were ambushed and as standard practice dictates called in air support, an enterprising technician realised that the LPVLS could have fire on station slightly faster than the Air Force could and so a barrage of two missiles were released using information given by a laser target designator. The salvo did the trick and the Borlanders were either killed or captured. This goes to show the value of the system and I think we can safely say today it graduates." It was expected that the prototypes, of which each nation has two, would be assessed in the next few weeks but this first confirmed kill is likely to show the system is ready to be deployed. Minister Samuelson explained, "We intend to purchase around thirty of these and assign them to infantry units when they deploy. This system will we hope make them safer while arming them with precision offensive firepower."




PRINCESS WARNS AGAINST "TERROR SCHOOL"

Following news that Seaforth have given permission to the Bene Gesserit to open a boarding school Princess Freya has issued a warning. "King Andrew is new to global affairs, but I would hope he would be aware that the Bene Gesserit are a faith with four, now soon to be five boarding schools across Mundus. They make no secret of the fact that the train girls under the age of 18 to be soldiers, many from the age of five, with the sole intention of sending them to fight a war in Kaitaine. We consider these child soldiers and have provided in the past evidence of this to the world. Furthermore we see them as a group that sent a highly trained, because of their schools, commando force to steal nuclear waste from a convoy in East Moreland. We have yet to hear anyone of any authority within this alleged religious Sisterhood explain what the target was or take responsibility for these actions. As such we view the faith as terrorists in the exact same way we do the Borlanders, a group they know the wrath of only too well. If they are intent on this school opening then they need to keep a very watchful eye on this terror school."

The Princess went on to explain that East Moreland are currently looking at identifying a number of leading members of the Bene Gesserit faith and taking actions against these people. "We are aware this Niklaus Corrino, a Cenneg businessman is a high ranking member of their faith and so will be exploring any financial connections he has to East Moreland. We shall also be looking at trying to prove any criminal activity he is involved in and if any is found using the CNN charter to demand Ui Cenneslaig hand him over. What interests me the most though are the females of this organisation as they seem to hold the power. We shall especially target any assets of these Chapterhouse Schools."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #81 on: October 16, 2018, 09:46:19 PM »




DECORATED RED LEGIONNAIRE WANTED FOR TREASON

A decorated former Red Legionnaire has today been named as a wanted fugitive on charges of treason. Liutenant James Gillespie was awarded the Military Medal for his actions in rescuing hostages from the Borlanders in Morton during a siege there in late 2016. His citation for bravery states that he "hold an exposed position alone to maintain covering fire allowing his comrades and hostages to withdraw across open fields. His actions drew fire on himself rather than civilians and despite being wounded in the process he maintained his covering fire until all hostages had been rescued." However it was now confirmed that almost a year later he helped a captured Bene Gesserit Truthsayer escape custody following attempts to steal nuclear waste. Gillespie was a former member of the Royal Engineers and joined the elite military unit in 2013. It was confirmed that he had seen action if Royal Seleucid, Meche and Seaforth.

The Military Police have been searching for Gillespie for almost a year now and have so far no leads beyond knowing his real first name was Nathanial. His current whereabouts are unknown however the East Moreland intelligance agencies are working with those from Kaitaine as it is suspected he may be in Seitch, a city in Western Kaitaine under rebel control. A reward has been offered for information leading to his arrest. Brigadier Kelly, commander of the Red Legionnaires said, "To have a man we trusted and considered a brother to desert us this way is beyond imagination. To have someone live among us with the sole purpose of betraying us for a group of terrorists saddens me. The only thing that could have been worse was if he was a Borlander." It was also confirmed that should he be arrested he would face a military tribunal and be charged with treason, aiding terrorism, desertion and planning terrorist activities, all charges that could carry the death penalty. Legal experts however suspect he would not be executed with one saying, "This man may have run away to help a foreign terrorist organisation, but lets not forget he did help save lives in Morton and he served the military for many long years helping serve his country. This may have been a front but he did do some good and I believe any judge would take that into account when he is finally sentenced.




FLOUR TO BE FORTIFIED WITH FOLIC ACID

In order to reduce the rates of serious birth defects, all flour sold in East Moreland will now be fortified with folic acid. The government announcement represents a hard-won victory for the many medical organisations and children’s health  groups who have been lobbying for such a policy for decades.Folic acid also known as vitamin B9, is an essential human micronutrient involved in the metabolism of amino acids. In pregnant women, a lack of B9 can interfere with the formation of the fetus especially the tissue structure that develops into the brain and spinal cord, thus leading to several lethal or permanently disabling disorders such as spina bifida and anencephaly.

It has been shown that B9 supplementation during pregnancy can reduce the risk to babies by up to 70 percent, but much of the critical development phase occurs very early in gestation, meaning that many women may not even know they are pregnant until after the damage is done. Minister of Health, Rufus Marsden said “I am delighted to hear the news  that flour will be fortified with folic acid in order to prevent the birth defects spina bifida and anencephaly. This means we are taking an important step in preventive medicine, and helping to avoid disability or termination of pregnancy,”

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #82 on: October 19, 2018, 10:55:08 PM »




RED BASE AGREEMENT EXTENDED

It was announced yesterday that Red Base, an East Moreland run military training establishment in Nya Aland, is set to be extended. The facility, an old fishing village, was acquired three years ago and was used primarily by Red Legion as a training facility for their operations however it has since been used to help the Huscarls, Nya Aland's elite military unit, in their training. This has seen the Alanders train alongside Red Legion for a number of exercises and on one occasion a rescue mission during the Uppsala Crisis was mounted from the facility when a group of Red Legionnaires evacuated Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside while she was on school exchange. The news means that for the next five years the facility will remain under East Moreland management.

The news was welcomed by Red Legion commander Brigadier Kelly who said, "The importance of Red Base can not be underestimated, it allows us to do exercises we couldn't do in East Moreland because such conditions and possibilities don't exist. We've essentially a small town at our disposal whereas in East Moreland we can replicate only a small village environment, add to it the fact we've got access to the Alucard and it means we can practice literally any scenario that comes to mind. We all enjoy working with the Alanders and it is our hope over the next few months to gain permission for Lodjains to also come here and sharpen their skills."

The base is commanded by a Red Legionnaire Captain while a detachment of 20 Royal Engineers keep the place maintained. On a day to day basis there are usually no more than 50 people on the base and the former fisherman's homes are used as barracks as well as potential targets during exercises. One Royal Engineer who can not be named said, "It's strange, you can sleep in what appears to be a lovely quaint wooden house all lovely and warm with a roaring log fire, then the next minute a Red Legionnaire is using a shotgun on the house opposite to blow the doors off its hinges. It's a place that certainly keeps you on your feet." At its most busy the base has hosted 200 soldiers in one go. The base is around 50km away from the next nearest settlement meaning the isolation replicates the spirit of Aldfield back in East Moreland.



KING SUPPORTS IWI'S "RESULTS NOT METHODS"

King David today announced that in future he would continue to support the extradition of alleged criminals to the Commonwealth of the Iwi for crimes against humanity despite the apparent brutal method of execution. A former Seleucid army officer was found guilty of using the Maori as guinea pigs for chemical and biological weapons and sentenced to death which was carried out by strangulation, following which the man's body was dissolved in acid. The King was informed of the sentence prior to it being carried out. Gamal, the accused, was also suspected of being a supplier of chemical weapons to the Borlanders however it was determined he should be handed over to the Iwi for trial on more serious charges.

The King was asked about potential future extraditions and said, "I think terrorists and murderers should be executed. It is clear Gamal was a evil man who saw human life only worth it according to race, he was willing to butcher the poor people who fell into his lap. I think you have to support the results not methods of the Maori but there is something almost fitting about the Muru method of justice. The way you live your life is the way your own ends, its not something I will see brought into East Moreland as I believe the execution of a life is no trivial matter and impacts just as much the executioner, the easier we can make it for them the better. I can only imagine what strangling another human being to death will do to a person's nightmares. I will not however deny King Piripi and his people justice to spare a criminal and terrorist their punishment." The King did admit that he understood other nations would oppose the Iwi's methods but he urged them to not refuse to bring those who committed genocide to justice.




BIG NAMES DELIVER ON "FAB FRIDAY"

With three of East Moreland's biggest sporting names in action today always seemed to bring about the chance of medals and there was not any disappointment. The day started with the return of Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside to summer games action following success in speed skating at the winter version of the games. The Air Force officer returned to her original event the Cross Country and managed to lead the team to a silver overall as well as an overall silver for herself. This now means that the King's niece now has ten medals to her name across both versions of the games. Speaking after the medal ceremony she said, "It was fun being back in action on the biggest sporting stage on Mundus, I've the marathon to come and that's a new experience too, it may be running just like cross country is but the conditions and nature of the event make it a whole different challenge."

Later in the day East Moreland's Greatest Athlete, swimmer Daisy Greechan, took her 15th medal in the Games taking gold in the 10km Open Water swim. The games legend said after being given her medal, "I'm exhausted but happy. Its where i feel most at home and felt a little like being back at work with the Navy. I can put my feet up for a while now before joining back with the crew of the King Robert in a months time." EMTV showed her crew mates celebrating onboard while the ship is on routine patrol in the Illumic. The Captain of the fleets flagship said, "Daisy is an incredible asset to our ship and every single one of us is proud of what she's done." It was then confirmed that one of the vessels landing craft was renamed The Greechan in her honour something she described as being "Nearly as good as a gold medal."

It was then in the evening that the HoneyBadger Seven, the nations 7-a-side rugby team took the gold against the Iwi in the final match of the tournament. Having seen his girlfriend take silver in the mornings cross country the 6ft 7inches tall Seaforthian refugee turned Morelander helped steer the team to a 3 point victory. The Northfort Royals flanker was a key element in the victory his defensive work helping turn the ball over a number of times. MacAllister is currently completing his national service in the Royal Artillery and as a year left to serve. Speaking after the final whistle MacAllister said, "Being a Honeybadger brings great pressure no matter what version of the game. I think anything less than a gold would have been seen as a failure so I'm glad we got the job done against the tough Maori boys. I'm also thrilled that at least in some small way Seaforth get a gold medal." It is rumoured that after completing national service MacAllister will seek a move to a club in Seaforth for at least a season as he has always talked about helping his homeland in some way.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #83 on: October 28, 2018, 10:21:30 PM »




RED LEGION TO BECOME TOUGHER

The East Moreland Special Forces unit known as Red Legion, also one of the oldest military units in the world, has today announced that it is making its notoriously tough selection process even tougher. Any potential Red Legionnaire must have already served five years in the East Moreland military before being invited for selection. Those invited to begin selection face a rigourous 32 week selection course which includes a 65km navigated route march to be completed in around 20 hours and a week long escape and evasion simulation. Today however Brigadier Kelly, the current commanding officer of Red Legion, announced the changes. The 32 week selection course will now be extended to 40. We will include a week based in Nya Aland dealing with the cold conditions there, there will then be a 7 week long "21st Century Warfare" course. This new course will include aspects of cyber warfare, use of drones, mini drones and various other new technologies. Its important that our forces are prepared for all modern situations yet most situations a Red Legionnaire finds themselves in still entitles them to infiltrate a target area, get rounds on target and get out. We can't compromise the core mission and so instead selection will be extended."

The news was welcomed by ex-Red Legionnaire and head of the Court of Canley Sir Charles Townsend. "Red Legion always kept one step ahead of the game even back when I wore the Red beret, now we're seeing that remain the same. Its still challenging but by the end of the selection process the course is more like a training course anyway." Those attempting Red Legion selection will still only have two attempts before being banned from ever attempting selection again and as Brigadier Kelly explained, "Attrition on selection is high, we want it that way, generally speaking though everyone who gets past Stage 5 tends to pass the remaining two stages. Those who fail will leave Aldfield as better soldiers, their fitter, stronger and more competent in terms of their military skills. What other nations may see as a selection process we view as higher level training, that way skills cascade down to those they rejoin if they fail."

It is also expected that those Red Legionnaires still serving will also sit training of the 21st Century Warfare section of selection.





FORMER RED LEGIONNAIRE BRINGS HOME "NATIONS GOLD"

37 year old Louis James, a former Red Legionnaire and the nations Heavyweight Swordsmanship Champion has won the first Mundus Games Gold Medal in the event dubbed "Medieval MMA". A former Captain in the Red's James left five years ago to pursue his sporting dream and with a fight record of 37 fights with 35 victories, 1 loss and 1 draw he is considered one of the best to have ever competed. Speaking after receiving his medal Louis said, "I felt the pressure of a nation on this one, we invented this sport, its in our blood and our people are obsessed with it. I even hear Princess Rhiannon is beginning competing in her age category. The support we had here was out of this world, the Red and white was everywhere and I could hear the crowd screaming throughout the fight. It was like having a whole army at my back. This is the nations gold and I can't wait to show it everyone back home." The match was commentated on by Tom Ridge, the only man to have defeated Louis James when the two meet in January and Ridge took the Swordsmanship World Title in a match watched by 60,000 in King Robert Arena. Ridge broke his hand a month before the games in a training accident but was cheering loudly throughout the match and after he said, "The final was the 2nd best possible final, of course Morelander V's Morelander would have been best but the Bakkermayans are good so the fans, many who have never seen Swordsmanship fighting before got to watch a brilliant match." James knocked his opponent down in the 4th Round of five and the Bakkermayan was unable to beat the count.

The day got even better when 24 year old Caitlin Lewing added to her unbeaten record of 19 fights. She forced her Seaforthian rival to yield in the 3rd round following a fearsome barrage of attacks to the arm. The Silverhills native took up the sport three years ago in order to "get in touch with my nations heritage and get fit at the same time." Now she has a Mundus Games gold medal and is expected in December to challenge for the women's world title on the undercard of Louis James next fight against much fancied youngster Richard Oakes who was also competing in the games. Lewing said following the fight, "I can't wait to get this back home. This medal, this event is what our nation has yearned for since we first entered the games. I'd like to thank everyone who pushed for our sport to become part of the Mundus Games, I now hope this sport goes global."

Shortly after the medal ceremony Henry Forster, the Chairman of the Council of Sporting Swordsmanship (CSS), the organisation which sanctions most title fights and has the largest global market, announced that they would be taking the fights to two new countries. "The sports got a lot of viewers during the games, we're taking a fight to Lodja and we've got an eliminator for the Lightweight title going on in Nya Aland soon. They should be great additions to the sport and I hope we'll get several other nations wanting to host events in the near future."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #84 on: November 02, 2018, 09:48:16 PM »




MINISTRY OF DEFENCE TO PROBE TRUTHSAYER WEAPONS

Following the release of a news story about the Seige of Seitch in Kaitaine the Ministry of Defence have started a probe into how the Truthsayers, a recognised terrorist group, obtain their weaponry. In one of the pictures that accompanied the propaganda article showed a group of female soldiers carrying assault rifles that looked identical to those used by the East Moreland military. This prompted an investigation by the nations Intelligence Agency who have worked in co-operation with the weapons manufacturer East Moreland Rifle Company. Today a spokesman for the Ministry of Defence confirmed the findings of that report. "The AR-1's we see in that picture have been identified using photographic analysis. We can sadly confirm that they come from a batch sold to the Lodjain Ministry of Defence in early 2017 and have been found to be "missing" once we made enquires with the Lodjain Ministry of Defence. There are presently 429 AR-1 rifles missing in Lodja, something our review of the armed forces highlighted as an issue." It is likely that these weapons were part of a scheme devised by the former heads of the Lodjain military to sell military assets for a profit and therefore it is likely these weapons found their way onto the blackmarket because of this and somehow then into the hands of the Bene Gesserit.

Minister of Defence Harry Samuelson made a statement later in the day, "It is clear from the evidence that the Bene Gesserit are using the black market to purchase weapons. Our nation has never permitted weapons to be sold to unless the purchaser is a signatory of the Uppsala Convention. We have today found that policy has failed as the very weapons we hoped to keep out the hands of the terrorists are now being used by them. We must do all we can to ensure that the terrorists and their criminal contacts do not profit from these weapons. It is important that we now stop the train of weapons reaching the Truthsayers, every rifle they buy helps fund criminality and makes Mundus a less safe place."

It was later confirmed that an East Moreland intelligence task force is going to be working with counterparts from Kaitaine in order to identify smuggling routes into Kaitaine in order to help shut down the criminal gangs responsible. Minister Samuelson also announced that EMRC would be releasing their serial numbers list to any nation requesting in order to help them confirm the identity of the rifles.





"NEXT GAMES MY LAST" SAYS GREECHAN

East Moreland sporting legend and 2nd most successful Games athlete of all time, Daisy Greechan, today announced that she will only compete in one more games series. Upon the return of the East Moreland team Greechan spoke with the media about the games. "These were a strange one, as always the conditions for athletes was great but it didn't feel like the last few games, its hard to put a finger on but there was just an edge to them. It's not what the games should be like." Greechan was then asked about her future plans and the rivalry with Sammy Lawson of Achkaerin to be the most successful athlete of all time. "As far as I'm concerned there is no rivalry, I don't know Sammy, I've never really spoke to her. That's not because of this so called rivalry, we're just in different events and our paths don't cross. I'm sure she's a lovely person and I wish her well. I just focus on doing what's in front of me." It was then that Greechan made the unexpected announcement. "I'm going to give it one last go at the next games, maybe I'll come out on top maybe not but the next games my last. The years of training and competing take a toll on the body and your lifestyle. When my friends go out to the bar I can't because I'm competing, when family have events I'm often away. I've missed the last five Feast's of Helus because I've been away from home competing. Eventually it has to come to a end."

Greechan then confirmed that another reason for her retirement was a change in career path. "I've spent the last few years as a rescue diver onboard the King Robert. I've loved doing it and I honestly think its helped me achieve what I have. I want to progress though and I've got the backing of my commanding officer to go through officer training. I'm hopeful that I'll pass the interviews and selection tests and that I can earn a King's Commission."

The team where welcomed back to Northfort by King David, former boyfriend of Daisy Greechan, who said, "Once more our atheletes have done us proud. I look forward to hosting the annual ball for their homecoming and getting to speak with old acquaintances and our raising stars." One of those was 21 year old Isabelle Rogers, a young Royals Signals Officer who won the Women's Sabre and a silver in the Epee. The Keepton native, who was a former student of Sir Charles Townsend the same sword tutor currently teaching Princess Rhiannon, played down her moment in the spotlight. "People are saying I'm the next Daisy, its insane to say that. She's achieved so much and I'm just out of my first international event. I've a long way to go but I'd like to thank the nation for their support."


Isabelle Rodgers
« Last Edit: November 09, 2018, 09:32:37 PM by DaveIronside »

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #85 on: November 09, 2018, 10:11:15 PM »




OSMANTECH MAKE MUSHROOM ELECTRICITY

A team at OsmanTech's Technology City HQ have today announced that they have produced electricity using Mushrooms. A team in the companies Carbon Neutral Team have been examining ways of using a bacteria known as cyanobacteria to generate electricity. The bacteria are able to convert sunlight into electrical current however they have a short life span when grown on artificial surfaces. The team used a specially adapted 3D printer to imprint a spiral of the bacteria onto the Mushroom. Previously  the team had used an electronic ink to embed graphene nano-ribbons on to the surface of the fungus to collect the current. While the amount of electric produced is minute it is the first in a series of steps intended to develop the technology.

The team explained, "Previously the bacteria had a life span of a few hours which made experiments very difficult, now we have a lifespan of about a week. The next step is to attempt to produce a genetically altered version of the bacteria to survive longer and even create large fungus farms where the bacteria grows naturally. It is our hope then that these large farms can generate usable electric that can help cut down our worlds carbon foot print. In an ideal world the mushrooms would also be edible and we can kill two birds with one stone." The team have investigated a large number of different techniques ranging from solar panels, power kites and biofuels.





BIGGEST KNIGHT FIGHT IN HISTORY SIGNED

With Medeival MMA making its Mundus Games debut the sport has gained global interest. Council of Sporting Swordsmanship (CSS) is the biggest governing body of the rapidly expanding sport and the authority behind the various world titles. At the Mundus Games it was the World Heavyweight Champion Louis Blanche who took gold while fellow Morelander Tom Ridge, the only person to have defeated Blanche watched on from the sidelines nursing an injury.  The fight that everyone wanted to see at the Games never took place, however on 2nd January 2019 the King Robert Arena will host the biggest fight in Medieval MMA history. The two Morelander heavyweights will contest the world title in a rematch of their 2017 fight that saw Ridge win in a final round stoppage having knocked Blanche down twice. This fight came before Blanche became World Champion and the Mundus Games Champion is keen to gain revenge. "I need to take Tom on again. He's the only man whose got a W against me and as World Champion I can't let that stand. I probably wanted this fight as much as he did and I'm going to give him his first defeat."

Ridge meanwhile is looking forward to fighting in front of the largest crowd in the sports history. "We get great viewing figures in nations like East Moreland and Bakkermaya, but the numbers we've talked about here is incredible. When me and Louis fought the first time we each got paid about $400,000, a nice earner. We've signed contracts today that see me making $4,000,0000, that alone makes it worth fighting him but to get his belt too will be the icing to a tremendous cake." Pay Per View Sales in East Moreland have already reached new records while there has also been major interest for the fight in Bakkermaya and Nya Aland. There had been rumours that Blanche's next defence would be against young hotshot Richard Oakes, however his military rotation means he is unavaliable for that date. It is expected however that he will fight the winner of Blanche V's Ridge.

The CSS has also announced that its December Main Event will take place in Lodja, the first major event outside East Moreland. The Pelagiya family are providing the funding for the event and its headline bout will see Mundus Games Women Champion Caitlin Lewing take on World Champion Sarah Pembroke from Bakkermaya. The 24 year old Lewing is undefeated in her career of 19 fights. "It will seem strange fighting abroad outside the two main MMMA nations but if we're making the sport global then we have to make sure we take it new places. Lodja put up the money so I'm happy to go."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #86 on: November 11, 2018, 07:36:21 PM »




KING USES ROCKHAMPTON ADDRESS TO "PUT RECORDS STRAIGHT"

Today marked the beginning of the Rockhampton Craft Festival, a month long celebration of the various art forms, cultural heritage and traditions that make up East Moreland. The city is hosting the 300th Festival which see's everything from musical performances, blacksmith competitions and over 1000 different food stalls throughout the city. The first weekend of the festival see's the King host a banquet in the cities old Town Hall and also gives an address which in the past has focused on domestic issues, this year however the King used the speech to address more international issues.

Quote from: King's Speech

Ladies and Gentleman, this year I am afraid I will be using the media coverage this events generates to put records straight. We currently see Mundus sat in a precarious situation and a whole host of hot heads are looking to once more split us wide apart. That may sound odd, we have recent news from Lakhzovia that the conflict there is over and that  should be cause to celebrate. For us however it is not, Hunter's Vale, a former military base in East Moreland, is currently home to many displaced people from Lakhzovia and my concern is that I have yet to hear anyone speak of them. During the conflict with the Hand of Elmet the East Moreland forces held a safe haven open in the North of the country along with our Cenneg allies. East Moreland Air Assets created an air bridge between East Moreland and Lakhzovia taking out several thousand who faced being caught up in an ever collapsing pocket of conflict. During this operation we lost an air crew of 5 members of the Air Force, 32 Legionnaires, 10 Marines and around 82 civilians due to an air accident, meanwhile more forces lost their lives attempting to keep the Hand of Elmet securely away from these areas. What concerns me however is that we have Rokkenjima now cosying up with Lakhzovia once more and speaking of Human Rights, yet at no point have Lakhzovia sought to do anything to support these citizens of their nation, nor has any Rokkenjiman come to speak with them. I have visited Hunter's Vale and heard tale from some of those there of the Lakhzovians being as equally brutal as the Hand of Elmet. I am not naive enough to not rule out the fact these people may well be Utmen with little sympathy for Lakhzovia but you at least lift up the sheets before getting into a new bed.

It is this sudden concern for once more talking of human rights that in many ways angers me. Today we hear of a "MCUR Plus" proposal. I was present when the amendments to the MCUR were being drafted, during that time there were many heated debates, especially around the premise of Gender Identity, I can tell you I learnt a lot about science that day. However our host Queen Klara of Lodja ran a fair conference that gave every nation a chance to vote on every amendment, some nations such as Neu Urburzis did what I would consider the principled thing, they voted against an amendment and then when it was passed gave their apologise and left. However Rokkenjima never voted against a single amendment. Also Rokkenjima just like every nation present had a chance to put forward new proposals for inclusion, Rokkenjima made one proposal and that was to make access to clean water a human right, that is now on the document. If you are going to try and portray yourself as some great champion of extending human rights then that was the time to pick your battle and stand behind your arguments, not three months after the occasion. What we now face is a situation where a nation makes no attempt to raise their concerns at an appropriate time and choose to complain after the fact, you can't say a document leaves "Peoples open to certain forms of discrimination as well as a denial of their rights" when you had a golden opportunity to fight for them and didn't. Now we see them using relations with Lakhzovia to promote this yet we may see the Lakhzovians deny people their right to own property by the back door. We see the Rokkenjiman government crying about a lack of human rights, making zero impact on improving the MCUR in a way they wished and now supporting a nation that may have committed attrocities against its own people and is seizing their historic property because of a paperwork issue, against the spirit of the MCUR.

We also see the tinder box of Midaranye being stoked once more with tensions increasing between Tamora and Slava Lavosk, this is a crisis that once more is sucking in resources from across Mundus. Rokkenjima have announced that they are first sending ship suited to and now a Land Based combat Destroyer. A strange choice of vessel for anti-piracy operations, meanwhile our Cenneg allies have told of little piracy action in that region. It's also clear that the Royal Seleucid Navy, Slava Lavosk have a navy of 10 Frigates and Corvettes as well as 12 patrol ships, that region is very well prepared for anti-piracy operations and throwing yet another nation, who I believe are uninvited into the mix is likely to inflame the situation as each side interprets this move differently. Changing the role of a ship on anti-piracy duties so far from home, especially to a type of ship less suited to such operations smacks of something fishy, I know it and everyone in that region does. We have seen the initial sending of a patrol ship upped military readiness levels in the region and if you now send something with many more times the firepower you are sending a message the situation is escalating. Meanwhile I am today announcing that I am suspending the licence of SmartWar to sell further services or parts to Slava Lavosk until such a time as we are reassured about events at the various camps in their nation. This means that they will no longer be able to buy systems upgrades, support packages, even spark plugs for their automated patrol systems. It has always been our stance to not permit weapons sales to nations breaching the Uppsala Convention, if the media reports are correct the military of that nation have many questions to answer.

We also have seen in the last few days the Borlanders once raise their heads, this time kidnapping a member of the Lodjain government. I would like to send our prayers to the family of Minister Anna Utkin and reassure them that we will lend the Lodjain government every support in recovering Lady Anna and returning her home. The Borlanders have shown in recent months that they are a threat to international security and peace. We are ramping up operations in our own Alps to combat their hiding places there and will also be supporting nations across Mundus who feel they could or have been targeted by the terrorists. I would urge Queen Klara to stand firm and not give in to their demands as this will only embolden their actions.

Finally I would like to make two more announcements. The first is that in the coming days I shall be asking our Ministry of Justice to establish the Genocide Investigations Department, we will seek out individuals responsible for historic genocides and push for the creation of an International Tribunal to hear cases discovered. It is my hope this will ease the current hostile atmosphere between our friends The Iwi and other nations. No one denies the Maori should be able to seek justice and that no one should protect the guilty. I will even go on record as offering East Moreland as the HQ for this organisation and that we would house all prisoners within our military prison system. I would call for other nations to support our initiative in order to try and bring this sad episode to a swift and mutually satisfactory conclusion.

My second announcement is that in the coming weeks we shall be consulting with the people of Academica to bring to an end the East Moreland protectorate there. It is my hope that by the end of 2019 no East Moreland troop will be on the ground there and that no East Moreland citizen shall hold any position implementing, creating or enforcing laws there. We have built a solid relationship with our neighbours to the North since their civil war and have in place a broad representation of different opinions from that nation in the path they wish to take. Starting in a few weeks there shall be a conference between the East Moreland presence there and the Academican representatives to first draft a new constitution and a framework for our withdrawal. Once this has been agreed we shall give the people of the nation their say on the matter and within 6 weeks of that hold elections based on the new system the people choose. It is vital we are support our neighbours and we wish them every success as they determine their own future."

« Last Edit: November 11, 2018, 07:53:13 PM by DaveIronside »

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #87 on: November 15, 2018, 10:32:07 PM »




PRINCESS FREYA TO LEAD ANTI-BORLANDER TEAM TO LODJA

It was announced today that the King's sister, Princess Freya would be taking a team of military experts over to Lodja in order to try and lend support in the investigation of the kidnapped Social Affairs Minister Anna Utkin. The Princess is a Lt-Col in the 2nd Light Scouts unit and narrowly missed out on becoming the first female Red Legionnaire, she is an accomplished military commander having seen action in Safraen, Marseille and Academica. The Princess departed early this morning and is likely to arrive in Gaia shortly. Prior to leaving the Princess gave a short statement to the media saying, "It is vital that we offer our allies what support we can in terms of dealing with the Borlander threat. They are trying once more to convince Mundus they are some legitimate government and everyone has seen this trick used a hundred times and never once has it pulled the wool over peoples eyes. While the Borlanders say this is a trial going on everyone knows its merely some publicity stunt for some sick aim they have. I would urge all nations to recognise the Borlanders for what they are, terrorists. Our mantra is well known, we do not negotiate with terrorists, we shoot them. As such we shall not comply with a single condition put forward by the Borlanders."

It is suspected that the Princess has taken a team of Red Legionnaires with her however it was not confirmed whether her husband, Red Legion Major Alex Redfern was among them. The pair have been married for just over a year now.




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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #88 on: November 16, 2018, 09:46:34 PM »




"ITS WORRYING I AGREE WITH BORLANDERS" STATES RELIGIOUS OUTCAST

During a webcast on a popular religious show the leader of breakaway religious sect the "Sisterhood of Helus" Jinny Denman has today caused further controversy by stating that she agreed with one of the Borlanders demands regarding the kidnapping of Lodjain Social Affairs Minister Anna Utkin. The Sisterhood of Helus is a slowly growing religious group lead by the former Priestess which believes that the God Helus is in fact female not male like traditional teaching professes. Furthermore she also believes that Helus created a pure blood line from her own womb and that the East Moreland Royal family are its descendants. As such she believes that the King should not have married his ex-wife Matilda Osman as she is not of formal birth. Speaking on Faith Today the self proclaimed "High Priestess of the Sisterhood" stated, "The Borlanders are evil pieces of work who have no right on anything they claim. What they do however seem to realise is that His Majesty King David is the figurehead of the Helus worshipping world and as such should not be taking an active role in the practices of another faith. He has been part of a marriage ceremony in Lodja once before and now will do so a second time. The Borlanders are right he should not be part of Queen Klara's ceremony. It's worrying I agree with the Borlanders."

Denman also believes that the King should not continue his relationship with Lodjain Lady in Waiting Lady Stasya Pelagiya. The pair meet during the wedding of Queen Viktoriya of Lodja and are currently confirmed as being in a romantic relationship. Denman said, "While I believe the Queen of East Moreland should be a pleasant and beautiful woman and Stasya fulfils that criteria she is a worshipper of Sessifet and as such has no right being honoured enough to court the descendant of Helus. The King should find a beautiful young woman from noble birth either from East Moreland or Bakkermaya and have done with this Sessifetian nonsense."





WILL HE OR WON'T IT. MacALLISTER'S DILEMMA

With an upcoming World Cup approaching the rugby world has once again returned to a hot-topic, the international future of Rollo MacAllister, the 22 year old 2nd Rower who has a winners medal and Mundus Games gold medal in the jersey of the Honeybadgers of East Moreland. The 6ft 9 1/2 inch tall Northfort Royals player was born in Seaforth and came over to East Moreland to study at the Royal Merriman University, during which time he meet Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside and began a relationship with the niece of the King. MacAllister now has 23 caps for the Honeybadgers and is seen as one of the most effective 2nd Rowers in the international game additionally he was voted 2nd best player in East Moreland last season narrowly losing out on the Players Player of the Year Award to Danny Kare. There have however been rumours that he will seek to switch alligences back to the country of his birth.

Under International Rugby Board rules once a player has represented an international team in a competative international for which caps are awarded he may not switch nations. However MacAllister elected to play for the East Moreland team at a time when Seaforth were not playing international games and as such didn't exist as an option for him. It is therefore possible, at least according to many Seaforthian fans, that MacAllister could be given permission by the IRB to circumvent the rules and switch his international alligeance. This however has previously been downplayed by MacAllister who said he was "proud to pull on the red jersey". This time however tongue are wagging as MacAllister didn't return to East Moreland following the Mundus Games and instead headed to Seaforth where he has been seen helping coach several University teams. With the players Sporting Leave from his national service in the East Moreland military coming to an end he will be expected back in East Moreland by Monday otherwise he will be listed as being AWOL. On social media however he posted a picture of Northfort Royals training ground and the words, "Back to Work Soon." Leading many to conclude this whole rumour mill is growing merely as a taster of the drama a rugby world cup can bring.




RYTOL BADGER MAKES ITS WAY TO HAMBLEY

The hotly anticipated first appearence of the promised record breaking Formula Mundus Car, the Rytol-Badger, is to take place during the race weekend of the Hambley Grand Prix in Dartfordia. The car which is being jointly developed by Rytol Racing and EMAC is set to challenge the speed record for a Formula Mundus car which currently stands at 231.5 mph. The car will be driven by former Rytol Formula Mundus driver Mark Lindley and will go for the speed record during the Silverhills Grand Prix which will bring the curtain down on the current season. During this weekend the car will do only one flying lap but will be limited to 80% of its maximum engine power.

Driver Mark Lindley said, "We've done many laps now on the test track back in Northfort and the cars handled well. The problem with a test track however is that it is not rubbered in. Every time a Formula Mundus car does a lap it leaves a minute trace of its rubber behind, with many cars doing many laps we get a kind of rubber road on the track which helps with grip. It's that which we need for us to fully see how the car will handle. We'll let the Formula Mundus guys go out and do their stuff and then once the tracks clear we'll go and do a lap. We were offered the chance to go between a support race and the main event, however we were concerned that I may stuff it up, hit a wall and throw oil everywhere and that's not what the guys need." When asked about whether he would be returning to active racing Lindley dropped another bombshell. "Next year EMAC will be involved with two teams, Rytol and the new Lodjain based Pelagiya Racing, I'm already learning Lodjain and so I hope my race radio banter will be entertaining."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #89 on: November 22, 2018, 07:08:48 PM »

One of the lagrest complaints of people living near airports is the noise however today EMAC may have developed the answer. The Ion Driven Aerial Vehicle (IDAV) is only in its infancy however the team behind it demonstrated anidek with a wingspan of 5m, which flew a distance of 55 metres at a speed of 4.8m a second. While this is yet to come anywhere near standards needed for the design to go into mass production it was the first time an engine with no moving parts has been used to power an aircraft. Instead of engines, it is powered by a system comprising two main sections. At the front of the plane sit a series of parallel electrodes made up of lightweight wires that produce an enormous voltage - +20,000v - supercharging the air around it and splitting away negatively charged nitrogen molecules known as ions.At the plane's rear are rows of aerofoils set to -20,000v. The ions automatically move from a positive to negative charge, dragging with them air particles that create the so-called "ionic wind" to provide the aircraft with lift.

Sir Alan Maybury, the CEO of EMAC said, "The design can be scaled up a great deal in a short time and we hope to have a manned version by the end of May 2019. We also envisage the propulsion system being able to be placed on the fuselage of existing designs meaning that the aircrafts body could be used to cut down the amount of engine power needed for lift. The applications of this could be huge." It was confirmed that the system was originally part of EMAC's military division who were looking at ways of cutting down infared signatures of planes however the civilian arm believed it could have more immediate impacts on airliners.

Sir Alan said, "The idea of a gentle buzz, a blue light and a moving aircraft may sound Star Trek but we've took a step further into that arena and we shall keep striding towards the final frontier."