EFUA Gossip, Major Events, and Rumors (IC Knowledge)

[Wern8]

The Grand Tournament was held as planned several hours ago and the Queen herself along with Marshal Lestrade, Martel Sharboneth, the Governor and other prominent individuals were there in attendance, but the number of commoners was lower than usual and many remained in the Colony instead, no doubt it is due to their dislike for the recent changes. The Stygian Armada was nowhere to be seen either save for one of their Infantrymen, word is that the Stygians are displeased with the current situation even though they accepted a new contract and some are even saying that they will retaliate soon once given the order by Old Port, but for now this is merely hearsay.

Nevertheless, the events went smoothly enough and there were melee brawls, mage duels, and fist fights, the winner for the melee brawls was Kharst Delzoun, the mage duels was won by an arcanist named Finnegan the Magnificent and lastly, Roya Jans defeated all the combatants who participated in the fist fighting. Haley Mendon was also seen by all there swearing an oath of loyalty to the Queen.

[Wern8]

A fearsome Wererat has been active about the Colony lately, especially in the Temple District and word is that several Ixpadian Soldiers and a commoner has been found murdered at it's hand so far, as this news spreads many are beginning to avoid the Temple District and other dark corners of the Colony, some even dare not to leave their homes during the night. Among the rebellious few though, the creature is soon gaining a strong reputation as a freedom fighter who opposes the Queen and her soldiers, this is still disregarded by the majority though who look at this Wererat as nothing more than a monster.

[Talir]

Several days have now passed since the Colony was surrendered to Ixpadia Sabuth. After the initial outbursts of hostility against the victorious conquerors, the Colony has come to accept that although Zakarias Sharboneth may still be the Governor of the Colony, things have changed. Colonists gather together and throw long stares after Ixpadian soldiers, restless and whispering harsh words without any actions backing those up. Some openly welcome the newcomers, especially merchants and other store owners who have seen their dealings increased tenfold.

Armsmen continue their duties as always yet both the disappearance of Marshal Rowan and the surrender of the Colony have left their marks upon them. None directly oppose their newest Marshal, one of Queen Ixpadia's men called Marius Lestrade, who has begun to show his presence among the Armsmen. Still, there is a quiet part of them that whispers the promise that Rowan is out there, gathering allies to overthrow these invaders. As the days go by, these become fewer in numbers.

The Docks are bustling in activity. Ships come and go, bringing messages of importance to the remaining Ixpadian soldiers. Rumours of a breach in the defenses of Old Port spreads but thus far none has confirmed it. The Infantrymen of the Armada have been seen to increase their training within their School of War.

Those visiting the Stargazers find that the Elders are speaking often with one another, gazing up to the starlight night for guidance.

[Talir]

The second of Ixpadia's ships to be rotated off blocking duty arrive on Ymph. They are a somber gathering eager to spend their fortunes on what the Colony has to offer, some of them carrying scars marking recent combat. In drunken stupor they share tales of a halt in the progress of the war, Old Port's defenses keeping them upon the sea. Even with their Queen leading their efforts they have yet to set foot upon the soils of Old Port. Many speak in concern of how their general is becoming increasingly more restless with the current situation and dwindling supplies may be the cause of rash actions soon. Although both sides have fought each other repeatedly through the course of the blockade, neither side has gained any hold.

Adventurers heading out into the woods during the night speak of increased sightings of werewolves, hunting together in packs and howling toward the moon. The cause for this increase of activity is unknown and a growing number of adventurers are reported missing.

More locally, rumours has it that a dwarf and a man recently partook in a game of Royal Dragon in which they later accused the host, Shelkin Raus, of cheating. The specifics regarding this grow wilder as the tale is shared but what is certain is that Raus' nose doesn't look quite the same.

Rumours pass of strange cultists being seen around the island. Little is known about them.

[Talir]

Upon the 30th of Mirtul, the second rotation was called to join the blockade earlier than suspected. Several ships set sail to join the front where it was suspected general Thurkask planned a decisive strike upon Old Port. Hours passed and smoke could be seen coming from the north. As the third rotation of Ixpadian ships arrived on the evening, rumours immediately started to spread out. Thurkask had through losses managed to achieve a costly victory but another matter was upon everyone's lips. Unheard of thus far in the war, someone had managed to get through the blockade and they had done it twice. Within the inner pier, the docking area of the Leviathan's Lament stands shipless.

[FleetingHeart]

People chatter. In bars, in the streets, whispers abound. Some say he killed twenty werewolves on his own, others speak of thirty and forty. Perhaps even a hundred. Only two things seem certain in the various rumors flying around town: One, adventurers rallied a rescue to seek a man thought lost to the beasts... only to find him alive and well, surrounded by many corpses. And two, his name is Bargo.

[Talir]

As the morning sun rose the third of Kythorn, rumors spread quickly of a party of five coming back from the Tangled Woods bloody and torn. Despite their appearance it is said that they achieved a victory for the Colony by slaying the leader of the more recent werewolf attacks.

[FleetingHeart]

Hunters coming back from the woods report seeing massive boars with terribly sharp tusks. Those few caught unaware by these highly aggressive boars and managed to escape have nicknamed them Razor Boars and caution against approaching them.

[Wern8]

Many hours ago, Governor Zakarias Sharboneth was seen leaving the  Governor's Tower and traveling towards the Sharboneth Citadel with several guards for a confidential meeting, on his way back to his residence however it is said that a vicious female Wererat attacked him and brutally wounded him during her rampage that took the lives of the three Stygian Soldiers watching over the walkway leading into the Temple District. Immediately after the Governor was wounded, the wretched creature was seen fleeing from the scene and shortly after, Marshal Lestrade arrived and ordered for the Governor to be brought back to his tower.

Gossip soon spread about the Colony like wildfire about the Governor's severe injuries and the Werecreature who had wounded him, yet the Marshal did order for the sewers below the Temple District to be searched and hours later, the adventurers returned with news of her death at their hands. Nonetheless, the Governor remains gravely wounded and it is said that he will remain in his residence for some time until he recovers, but the physicians and healers who treats him say that he shall surely survive.

[FleetingHeart]

With the death of the wererat, people had expected some return to normalcy. However the rate kidnappings and disappearances in and around the colony seems only slightly reduced.

[Wern8]

Many weeks have passed since the day that the Colony upon the Isle of Ymph was conquered by the Ixpadian force and yet since the Grand Tournament that was held merely several days after the takeover the new ruler, Queen Ixpadia Sabuth has not been seen here at all and she has instead been concentrating entirely on the war against Old Port. Under the stern rule of her loyal Captain, Marshal Marius Lestrade however... the situation has been quite stable if not quiet, with there being no sign of open rebellion at all yet even though hostility with the Stygian Armada is growing. Nonetheless, in the past several days a few Ixpadian vessels have been seen returning from the naval blockade, and it is gossiped in the taverns and streets that the men who returned brought back news of there being a somewhat major naval battle recently and this resulted in high casualties between both sides, including the lost of three large Ixpadian ships.

As word of this news spreads further, many of the common people are beginning to say that the Queen's war against the Port is likely going worse than what her men would have them know.... On more local matters though, it is said among the commoners that Governor Zakarias Sharboneth has been recovering well under the care of Physician Isaac Solomon since he was attacked by a wretched Werecreature days ago.

[Talir]

The Colony stands shaken after recent events. It begun in the docks where a group of House Sharboneth Armsmen arrested a criminal there. The action drew the attention of a group of Bloodhound thugs who sought to bully the Armsmen into leaving. As other colonists gathered to watch an arrow was fired at one of the thugs and chaos erupted. With angry shouts of outrage following them, the Armsmen and others who made their stand with them left the district in a hurry, the bodies of slain Bloodhounds in their wake.

As the House sent reinforcements to control the wall overseeing the district, a spokesman of the Bloodhounds approached them and demanded that all who partook in the slaughter of his bloods-brothers were to be handed over to them, else they would seek their revenge upon the House. In addition, they would help the Arrmsmen with bringing in the two Duergar that in recent times had caused trouble. It is said that Sergeant Cain Simmons stepped down from the wall and surrendered himself over to the Bloodhounds, to the protests of his fellow peers. Confronted with losing one of their sergeants, the Armsmen made pleas to get him back and sort the conflict out in other means. Ten thousand gold pieces were given the Bloodhounds to settle the conflict and in a surprising turn of events, the leader of the Duergar surrendered himself to stand trial.

Decleared guilty and judged to execution, the Duergar was brought to the top of the Ziggurat as rain fell from the sky. At the very last moment, a cleric of Talos intervened in the execution and managed to free the prisoner. They escaped into the Sewers where they beat down the last of the pursuer and went by raft to Shipwreck Beach, dragging Master of Arms Rodrigo Ferdinand after them. Rumours spread that upon Traitor's Cliff, the Talossians and the Duergar were brought down amidst a heavy storm. The bodies of Rodrigo Ferdinand and Cain Simmons were spotted at the bottom of the cliff, having escaped their captors' clutches.

Once more the Duergar was brought up to the very top of the Ziggurat and a final attempt was made to rescue him from justice. Justice preserved and in the presence of Armsman Cedric Ithor, the Duergar was executed.

The Armsmen of the House mourn the passing of their beloved Master of Arms, a hero and survivor of the Veil of Selune, as well as their Sergeant. The past weeks have diminished their numbers and hold upon their Colony, yet they meet the dawn with the declaration that through it all, those who stood against them all met their deserved fate.

[Random_White_Guy]

The Docks continue to be a haven of trouble amongst the colony. With the recent Massacre of the Bloodhounds as well as numerous criminals flocking to the ale and blood stained halls of the wastrel, many citizens avoid the region all together. Those who dwell within are often seen eyes cast down, rushing from place to place to avoid conflict at all costs. Businesses struggle given the various gangs. Some slowly turn apathetic and immoral, outraged that the "Rulers" of the colony have abandoned them.  Patrols by the Sharboneth have noticeably lessened. Some say it is due to the increase in conflict and that they hope to avoid further hostage situations, others that they are yet again, abandoning them to the fate of thugs, criminals, and worse that dwell amongst the Docks. Others still hold firm loyalty to the Queen and that soon victory shall arrive in the war against Old Port.

The Bloodhounds with their new found funding have double recruitment efforts and are often seen sporting gaudy golden chains, holding lavish parties at the Wastrel, and generally infighting amongst themselves for "The Mother Load" offered to them by the Sharboneth.

The Stygians hold firm their position of "Defenders" as no external forces have invaded or taken the Docks, though the rampant toll of decadence in their ranks continues to play a factor and internal conflict and crime flourishes through the region. Rumors slowly circulate that there is talk of efforts to terminate their contract...

[Random_White_Guy]

Chaos spreads through out the Colony.

Though the reasons are numerous, some plausible and some spread by inane rumors, The Stygians and Bloodhounds found themselves facing off in the civic circle of the Docks, before the Gallows.

In a brutal and merciless action of massacre, the Bloodhounds and even a few citizens caught in the crossfire, were felled by swift action and hand. In the aftermath, it is said Marsk, whom already declared "war" upon the Stygians in the name of the queen, slew one of them in a duel to the death.

Fighting once more broke out. Barricades are being placed, men and women begin rationing, it is said some even begin departing to face the wilds rather than yet another armed conflict. The air is thick with the death of the Bloodhound Massacre in the docks, the corpses ordered to remain for the "Gulls to clean".

Tensions mount, the Docks continue to deteriorate into chaos, and it seems all but inevitable that Tempus' warhorse sit just under the horizon...

[Random_White_Guy]

Peace is slowly becoming a word that few know the meaning of...

After half-crazed allegations that the Ixpadian agent Marsk was arrested for assault despite being one of the Queen's Men, the Docks once more fell into disarray.

Reports are mixed, and who started what is shrouded in mystery, but the results are all the same:

Death, Exile, Murder...

Some even say "War".

A small cadre of Ixpadian soldiers and the Stygians posted in before the gallows squared off in the region now being refered to as "The Warzone" given the dozens that have been slain in the last fortnight. Burkden and Kedrian and a small legion of his men against the Marshal and Marsk and a handful of his men.

Shrieks of pain and roars of battle erupted, some saying even Saughuin partook in the ensuing melee as Citizens fled in every direction.

Amongst the tavernfolk there is word that while some corpses were seeing being drug to the Sea, Graveyard, Sewer, and anywhere else that a body could be left, an unusually high amount of men for a "War" were seen limping from the fray.

Pessimistic say the inevitable bloodshed is around the corner, while some say the fact that any walked out alive is a sign that this was a simple scuffle blown out of proportion.

The only certain fact is this: The Docks are deteriorating.

Merchants all together have begun avoiding the region. Citizens continue to flood into the Ziggurat angering numerous Patricians as the "Rabble" flood to the Refugee camp within the ziggurat.

The Armsmen of Sharboneth grow concerned with the increase in "Dockfolk" venturing to the colony, suspecting crime shall spike, though the new Master of Arms seems eager to enforce and restore Order.

The Stygians Shark has tasted blood, and the Queen's Forces have shown their hand. Those who stand out against Sabuh's rule shall be slain...

The Stygians find themselves in a strenuous position at best.

In the aftermath of the conflict it is said that many of the Dock have begun pushing their way against Stygian Occupation. The Bloodhounds slowly begin to recover from their losses, the Wastrel has become a hotbed of political discussion and brawls occur near-nightly.

There are those who say the Queen's rule actually would bring freedom to the Dock, something non-existent since the Wards were in place to remove the risers and colonists began to settle.

The Stygians are quickly becoming compared to the 900 brothers, ruthlessly slaughtering all who would stand out against their coinflow. Reports of abuses, murders, and believe it or not, far worse as the Saughuin have taken to eating of colonists, slowly foster hefty anti-Stygian sentiment through out the region.

Should the path continue, and a most "Uncivil" war make its way to this colony, it is difficult to say which power the Docks would find themselves supporting...