8:15 AM, 1 April 1234
Baron of Chingaim implicated on charges of Treason
The Tawsiary Morning Post has just learned that Baron Ran of Chingaim, holder of one of the largest estates in the Kingdom, has been arrested and charged with High Treason. He is being confined to his Chateau just outside the town of Brobensy now, while he awaits transport to Bowtudgel City.
The King's office confirmed that the Baron had been arrested and would be transported back to Bowtudgel City, but did not elaborate. But a person who works at the royal palace, and was privy to the discussions, told us that the Baron is believed to be associated with Fyrena Hyrde, the Thane of Egrog: the man who is demanding ransom for Princess Carmeana. (The source refused to share his name; he claimed that he was being disciplined for shirking out on his job as a chauffer, when the King received a fairy call concerning the Baron.)
We will continue to share more on this story as it develops.
7:10 AM, 1 April 1234
Princess kidnapped; King sends hero set out to Rescue the Princess™
This morning, King Telcar announced to a stunned kingdom that the heir-apparent, Her Highness Princess Carmeana, is the victim of a kidnapping and is being held ransom by Fyrena Hyrde, the Thane of Egrog. The King said that the palace reported her sickness as a cover story while they investigated the situation.
Thane Hyrde demanded basically the whole Kingdom as ransom, which the King refused.
Defying expectations, rather than interceding with the army (an approach used on Egrog by several of the current King's predecessors), the King commissioned a hero, a boy named Lance, to Rescue the Princess™
The Hero
Not much is known about the hero, named Lance. He is 20 years old, and comes from the Province of Borringshire, where he worked as a thresher. He earned above average grades at Borrington High School, and was an All-Regional athlete in jai alai. However, there are no indications he has any training or experience in heroing, making him an odd choice.
The King addressed this at the press conference, explaining that Lance is believed to be The Chosen One™, in accordance with a Riconist prophesy. The prophesy predicts that a hero would emerge, coinciding with a disappearence of the Ricohedron (a holy relic of the Riconist people, which has also recently disappeared).
While he lacks hero training, there are some indications Lance is not without aptitude. For one, he has the services of a Pellencoh fairy, a class of fairy commonly found in the presense of a hero. Pellencoh fairies are picky about their clients and not often seen in the sidekicking of someone without heroing skills, prestige, or money. Another point is that, according to sources in the Town of Borringon who don't wish to be named, Lance displayed hero-like craftiness to find his way out of town.
It remains to be see how well that craftiness carries over to the Glorious Quest™ to Rescue the Princess™, but for better or worse, this is what the Kingdom is going with.
6:55 AM, 1 April 1234
News Flash: Was Princess Carmeana kidnapped?
King to hold press conference at 7:00 AM
For the last several days, we've been reporting that Princess Carmeana has been sick and resting following her diplomatic visit to Melerjusa, but sources close to King Telcar who wish to remain anonymous are telling us that the princess was actually kidnapped. No word on who the kidnapper might be.
King Telcar is holding a press conference for 7:00 AM, unusually early in the day for him. He's expected to address the situation with Her Highness.
Story is developing. We'll keep you up to date on any details that come out, plus full coverage of the King's press conference.
6:50 AM, 1 April 1234
Alchemic recipe for Electrolytesportsdrink
by P. Algernon Crossly, Alchemic research editor
A must-have item for alchemy ingredient hunters visiting desert areas, such as the Ngabori Flats of South Silattan, or the Arabian Desert in Asia, is Level 3 Electrolytesportsdrink. It's a powerful elixir that can obviate the need for water, allowing one to forage for much longer before dehydration sets in.
However, Level 3 Electrolytesportsdrink is rather rare and expensive, thus not a realistic option for many alchemists. Furthermore, the Electrolytesportsdrink is concocted with mana.
Of course, I find it rather ironic that we alchemists find an item based on mana so useful. So I set out to find a way to concoct Electrolytesportsdrink without mana, and have found it.
This recipe is quite simple. Anyone with a modest alchemy setup can make their own thirst-quenching elixir, using ingredients one can find at most specialty shops. It's cheaper than the mana-based version (though still on the pricey side), and requires no mana, which is a win-win for any alchemist.
Mix together the following ingredients in a cauldron (elemental
class or higher):
▪ 2 galls of goat
▪ 3 roots of hemlock
▪ 5 teeth of wolf
▪ 7 maws of shark
This is a metastable recipe, so it doesn't require a specific incantation, but like most metastables, a long magic word can help the transmutation along. "Ontological serendipity" works. fine.
6:30 AM, 1 April 1234
Grand Theft of the Ricohedron: Details Emerge
MELERJUSA - More details have emerged on the theft of the Ricohedron from the Sacred Temple.
Neptelisa has now raised questions about the involvement of Princess Carmeana of Bowtudgel. The Princess's presence on the island of Melerjusa shortly before the theft was originally thought to be a coincidence, as she was travelling back to Bowtudgel at the time the theft occurred.
But Neptelisan officals now say that she hadn't actually left the island. Instead, breaking with her itinerary, she demanded passage to the Sacred Temple. Neptelisan officials say they did conduct her there in accordance with their policy to give passage to all Pilgrims of the Ricohedron. But they say she never returned from the Temple. They claim that instead, the Princess and the three missing sajes climbed down the far side of the mountain to Silera with the Ricohedron, in an attempt to provoke a war and give the Kingdom of Bowtudgel an excuse to occupy the strait.
Sileran Prime Minister Mark Gellar called this claim, "a load of rubbish," pointing out that the Kingdom of Bowtudgel is largely in favor of the status quo, but that the ally of Neptelisa, the House of Khennora, does openly desire control of the strait. "If anyone had a reason to provoke a war," he said, "It was them."
Unfortunately, there are no known eyewitnesses to the disappearance of the Ricohedron, the missing sajes, or the Princess. The four remaining sajes and the Sacred Temple's staff all claim to have been inside the Temple when the disappearance occurred. The Ricohedron is on the Temple's roof, and it not visible from inside.
Saj Urooban's thieving past
Other details emerged about one of the three missing sajes, Saj Urooban. The Imperial Times has recently obtained a copy of his prison records from the Province of Odureg in South Silattan. The Odureg Hills were considered a strategically important frontier during the Last Barbarian wars. Because of the chaos that surrounded the area, banditry was common and travel to and form Odureg City was dangerous without Khennoran military escort.
One of the most notorious bandit leaders, and the only one unafraid to attack travellers under heavy guard, was a young man named Sal Urooban. Urooban complicated Khennoran plans for the province for years; travel in the province required increasingly heavy escorts and people were reluctant to settle there despite incentives.
At last the war ended, and Khennora was able to send sufficient troops to sweep the forests of bandits. Urooban was captured and imprisoned for 20 years.
Records from his imprisonment include work records, punishment records, and health records, as well as a journal he kept. It was a difficult prison life. He was forced to endure hard toil, diseases including malaria, and frequent lashings. In his journal, he writes that in the midst of this suffering he discovered Riconism.
Riconism, he said, gave him hope of a worldview he could accept: that of "imperfect perfection". He writes that over time he let go of his bitterness over his treatment, renounced his past, and forgave the Khennorans for their actions. Eventually his 30-year sentence was commuted to 20 years, and upon release he headed straight to the the Riconist Seminary in Melerjusa, joined the Sacred Temple and eventually reached the rank of saj.
Questions have been raised over the sincerity of Urooban's forgiveness of his captors, however. The journal he wrote in was inspected regularly (it even contains notes, warnings, and occasional grammatical corrections from inspectors), and some have suggested that he was only writing what his captors wanted to read.
However, the Sacred Temple has vouched for Urooban's neutrality. According to another saj, Saj Ainurad, Urooban was the Sacred Temple's liason for political relations, and was given that responsibility precisely because his judgment and fairness in the matter was most trusted. It is the reason he was part of the delegation to meet Princess Carmeana, rather than the most senior saj, Saj Adlez.
About the Ricohedron
The Ricohedreon is a ancient relic, said to have both extraordinary powers and extraordinary danger. Its origins are obscure, but we do know that it is connected to a group of mystics known as Atelionists.
The Atelionists were a mathematically-oriented cult based in the Middle East. It was an early example of universalist pantheism, and had adherents among many major religions. According to legend, there was a prophesy among the Atelionists that a great and powerful item would be discovered on the continent of Silattan, in an area now known as Neroka, after a great upheaval.
That upheaval, according to them, turned out to be the powerful Umayyad dynasty, who saw Atelionism as subversive to Islam. Atelionists (which, it should be noted, had many Muslim adherents) saw this as the prophesied upheaval, and many of their ranks set out for Silattan. There, it is said, they discovered the Ricohedron, exactly according to the prophesy.
Those Atelionists, who now called themselves the Riconists, eventually settled on the island of Melerjusa, in the straight of Silattan, and built a temple for the Ricohedron on the highest mountain of that island. In time, as commerce flourished, the island's wealth grew since it controlled passage through the strait. Riconists considered this prosperity to come from the power of the Ricohedron.
But all was not well. In 1059, Riconism had a major split over a proposed mathematical doctrine known as the Axiom of Choice. The Sileran sect, from the northern part of the island, rejected the Axiom of Choice, calling it non-constructive. This led to bitterness, conflict, and eventually civil war, which has erupted multiple times over the past two centuries.
However, the Sacred Temple of the Ricohedron has remained neutral and accessible to all followers of Riconism. In spite of the continuous conflict, neither side ever tried to claim the Ricohedron. Until, possibly, three days ago.
5:00 AM, 1 April 1234
Princess Carmeana Cancels More Appearances
BOWTUDGEL CITY (BA)―Lady Tealcap, the lady-in-waiting for Princess Carmeana, announced early today that the princess has cancelled her appearances for another two days as she rests after her state visit to Melerjusa. The popular princess has not appeared publicly for three days.
"Her Royal Highness Princess Carmeana is recently returned from Melerjusa," her spokeswoman Lady Tealcap said in a prepared statement. "It was a very stressful trip due to the tense political situation in the area, and she has contracted a mild fever. On the advice of her healing mage, the princess is currently declining to make any public appearances, or to have any audiences, for at least two more days. We thank the public for its understanding and well-wishes during this difficult time."
King Telcar, as usual, referred all questions about his daughter to the Princess's own office, but he did issue a short written statement, saying, "I have no doubt that the Princess will sooner or later return to her old self, but she, and all the rest of us, need some time to rest. Preferrably a lot of time. So I urge patience on the matter."
But while the Royals downplay concerns, the secrecy surrounding the situation is making some observers suspicious. No one in the princess's entourage was made available to the press for comment, and no specifics have yet been given about her condition. This has led some speculate that the Princess's condition is actually very serious. Some even suspect that reports of her illness might be a cover for something else.
Among this group is Dr. Walter Sprayconic, Professor of Nobility Studies at the University of Chingaim. "This has all the signs of a disappearance," says Dr. Sprayconic. "In addition to the tight-lippedness of the Royal Family, there is another indication that the Princess's whereabouts are unknown. The King recently issued a decree to the army for a special commission. Typically that's used to assemble a team of experts for a matter of utmost national security, such as a missing Crown Princess. It's a rare thing, so when it happens it's notable. The likely explanation for this is that the King needs to locate a daughter who's absconded."
According to Dr. Sprayconic, one thing we can definitely rule out is kidnapping. "In the case of a high profile kidnapping", he says, "the abductor is certain to make some demand from the King to ensure her safety. You can be completely sure that the King would take some noticeable, large-scale action in response, whether it be to accede to the demands, which are surely considerable, or to plan a counter-response. But that hasn't happened: a special commission is not the action a sane King would take to rescue his daughter from a kidnapper."
But, regardless of any coverups, one thing almost everyone hopes for is to see a healthy princess again. "We just love her, and we're praying she gets better soon," said Jennifer Napeats as she carried milk in the River Market.