|
|
||||||
| Home | Locations | Map | People | Flora/Fauna | Links | Feedback |
The Balican Crier, Issue 22
About the Crier A cloud of dust high in the air had made the temperate in Balic more moderate for the past few days. Though by no means cool, it was a relief, though the added silt in the streets had made life dirtier. Silt screens were worn by all those who could afford them, and the House-employed street sweepers were kept even busier than normal. The crowd was sparse at the Balican Common - the airborne silt made it too unpleasant to eat a full meal outdoors - but there were still people conversing or snacking on roasted jee sticks. And into the Common stepped Andelsta, in the livery of House Rees, to provide this week's news to her fellow Balicans. "A brawl that started at the Padestos tavern in the North Quarter spilled out onto the street ended with a fatality. Though the exact cause of the altercation is unknown, it began with a small group confronting Zachtrus Armenedes, the nephew of the owner, and the response of the patrician and his friends. House Wavir investigators are looking into the matter." "General Zanthiros led a devastating raid on an inbound caravan of wood from Nibenay. All of the goods were taken or destroyed, and only a few of the caravan merchants escaped. Since this attack, the price of wood has increased 25% throughout the city, and prices are not expected to drop until another shipment can be delivered sometime next month." "The famed explorer Megari has disappeared along with all aboard her silt schooner. Her newly formed crew was to explore an unrevealed location when it was lost. No other captains have not reported seeing her ship in over a week, and the worst is feared, most likely the beasthead giants." The brawl at the Padestos was no accident, and was an escalation of an already touchy situation involving the Armenedes family. Zachtrus, the son of family patriarch Zephedes, was involved in a misguided theft against a neighboring patrician family. Though undoubtedly a crime, it was intended to be no more than a daring prank by a few bored patricians. However, it has turned scandalous, and the house who was the victim of this act is seeking to bring charges upon the guilty parties, though they do not who those parties are. A mysterious series of messages and messengers have arrived for Zachtrus, and the sender, though unknown to the Armenedes heir, has proof of the theft. Zachtrus is desperate to find the source of these messages, and when he was confronted in his family's restaurant, he lost his temper and killed the messenger. The culprit behind the blackmailing attempts is Kefestis, Zachtrus's younger brother. Equally bored, and thoroughly jealous of his brother's position as heir apparent of the family, Kefestis seeks to destroy his brother's reputation, potentially setting himself up as the rising star of the Armenedes. As for the raid on the caravan, Nibenese agents have come to an agreement with General Zanthiros. The general's bandits are informed of caravan details so that the goods can be seized. Once this happens, the goods are returned to Nibenay where, after the price rises in Balic, the goods are shipped and sold at the inflated price. Megari's disappearance was not an accident or an attack, but a premeditated event arranged by the explorer herself. Megari gathered a new crew to add to her existing one. She then sailed to the far side of Ledo, one of the Estuary Islands, where her new hires were subsequently delivered to the undead being named Ishgathen. In exchange, Megari was given gold and clear directions to a ruin farther to the south. Megari intends to explore the ruins, then continue to capture more victims for Ishgathen, for a reward, of course. Exactly what the undead creature is using its victims for was not revealed to Megari, and she didn't want to know. |