Update 17 - 2017 FF The Year of Escaping Goats!
SPOTLIGHT: A prison cell in the heart of Soltyria
A trickle of blood was dripping down the gutter. The bodies of three Wardruids, identified by their purple robes, were hanging about the place in general. Red gashes decorated the stark walls with sprays of blood and entrails. Sewer rats had emerged and were nibbling on the gray ooze that was seeping out of a split skull. And all around the smell of blood and gore, and a tang of leaking urine. One of the guarding Wardruids must have suffered a blow to his lower bowels.
This sight, although dominating large parts of the cell, was not what would meet the eye first. By the far wall, there was a mass of rotting vines. Among those vines was the body of a man. A man of legend, he had survived in this dungeon for more days than he remembered. Indeed, he was unsurpassed in both strength and tenacity. Until now, he had met every obstacle with surprising ease and fortitude. He was the Man. He was Solid Snake. He was.
The man called Snake lay slumped against the wall. His eyelids were closed, and strikingly peaceful. From his mouth, a small trickle of blood ran down to his chin, and dripped into a pool on his abdomen. The pool was rather shallow, except from one place in the middle where the dark color betrayed a deep hole. His left hand remained frozen, clutching his chest. His right held the weapon that killed him, a long hooked thorn, white like ivory and likewise solid. The thorn was connected to a shriveled branch that went back into the mass of vines that once bound Snake.
What had happened? Why had he died, even though the Wardruids were dead? Had he attempted an escape? Had someone else come to rescue him? It was surely did not matter anymore. The legend was dead, the fabled man vanquished. It was a grim and merciless sight. Until something very unusual happened.
A flash of light, and a woman appeared. She was clad in nothing but a mass of red hair. She looked down upon the dead men, and then upon Snake. Then she opened her mouth and spoke:
"Rise."
Solid Snake opened his eyes, and rose. His face betrayed awe and bewilderment at his own being - his life. Then his gaze fastened on the woman.
"Come."
He went to her.
"Go!"
Another flash of light was seen, and Snake was indeed gone. He would appear again in a world far, far away. Moments later, the woman vanished as well.
-----
What met the guards that relieved the dead ones was just a heap of dead Wardruids - and a vanished prisoner.
Global News: The drought is continuing, folks! Start taking measures! I've already started subtracting some nations of population due to this. The nations currently affected the most are Soltyria, Rollux, Cairo and Konahn. The last one is particularily hard his, as their main source of both water and food is based on the forests, which are shriveling rapidly. What's worse, the forest dying is making the water vanish even more rapidly. Things are looking really grim for Konahn, as the river network connecting the far-flung regions is dying out. What can be done?
Islands: The Empire was struck by an oddity in these days. The disaster was one of abundance of water. The torrent was caused by Clous magic, on behalf of the Southern Empire. The damages were not great, but a number of Empire ships went down due to this, along with several coastal settlements. The inland was largely unaffected by this rainfall, and actually relieved some of the drought problems. The other factions are struggling to get on their feet again after their defeat last year...
Felaskhar is still continuing to rebuild after the terribly boiling bomb. Nuff said.
Spine of the World: Konahn has sent a number of ships to the western lands to spread their knowledge of the world and establish lasting diplomatic contact. The four nations concerned are Pashawan, the Southern Empire, Rollux and Ramon. Also, a regional rule by the Imperial Voices has been formed, upping efficiency and centralization. Still, the empire is large and wide, making actual rule cumbersome at best.
Steppes: The people of Cairo has had their fill of the Governor. Terrator has after considerable pressure, resigned from his post. The debate is raging wether a republic should be set up, or the people should merge with their neighbor, Shaba. The official reply from Shaba has yet to come, but it is clear that the Shabans would benefit from such a merger, not to mention the fact that the Governor recently made a deal with the First Prince of Wu'di that allowed the Cairens to work towards rebuilding their Life Academy. Still, the majority is currently aligned with a Cairen Republic, so a merger is by no means a given...
Lirkland: Pashawan continues to prosper, in contrast with most other places. The drought has done little to none on their crops. The people never go starving, albeit their crops being rather dry and dull tasting. :/ Still, a belly full of mush is better than an empty one, and the people rejoice for this security in these troubled times.
Rollux has taken a radical turn. Many refugees have fleed over the border to Shaba and Pashawan. They tell horrid tales of entire settlements being taken by the Death Adepts, never to be seen again. Others tell of vast hordes of zombies, apparently under the Lichlords' command. There might be a link between these vanishings and the increasing amount of undead, but noone dares even spaculate further. Whatever Rollux is hiding, it is certainly a mighty device of Death magic. This might become a reason to worry for more than the nation's immediate neighbors...
western Shelf: Solid Snake is dead. He was found dead in his cell, apparently after an unsuccessful rescue attempt. A woman was spotted riding away to the east shortly after this discovery, presumably an agent from Benethrezim. Wether her mission was to free or silence Solid Snake, is still debated. Otherwise, there is the war in Benethrezim...
Shaemar sent Shezmon north again to battle the undead hordes. However, the Most Powerful Man On Earth (he truly is!) apparently over-estimated his powers when he took on half a dozen HUNDRED THOUSAND undead at once. His escort was overrun, and Shezmon himself escaped only by calling one of his dragons to lift him out of the pinch. This humiliating event has led to his nation doubting a bit in their illustrous leader... Or at least his sanity. Still, Shaemar's dabbling with the mysterious dragonpowder has finally borne fruit. The Shaemaran archery now boasts Musketeers, the first of their kind ever seen on the Southern Continent!
Heartlands: Ramon has suffered a inwardly blow after a long period of "peace and prosperity". The peace was good for the people, as was prosperity. But there was one group of people it did not benefit, but actually harmed. That was the Wrath Knights. After a prolonged period of inactivity and "stressful peace", the Wrath Knights' mutters became fierce outcries. Inevitably, a struggle for power occured among them, and the winner of this contest proclaimed himself Warlord Matt, leader of the Wrath Knights. These rebels have currently occupied the southeastern corner of Ramon, but are far from satisfied. Now they need something to wage war against, and the closest is Ramon itself. Being a good chunk of the Ramonian army, the rebellion of the Wrath Knights may prove tricky to resolve for Ramon... What can be done?
TEH WAR!
Soltyria did not waste any time with invading Benethrezim. After the numerous betrayals and book burnings of Benethrezim, the Soltyrians had enough. This time, they would wipe Benethrezim off the map once and for all - and reinstate the Senate of Tori. The invasion went quite smoothly, and upon landing, many of the local Tori loyalists welcomed them. A foothold was established. Still, the war was about to get really ugly. The invasion of Benethrezim was bound to be anything but a cake walk straight to Drach'nyen.
First, the Soltyrians received intel regarding a vast horde of undeads marching southwards towards them. Then, without warning, the Vampyrs struck at midnight, killing off many Soltyrian officers. After this event, the Soltyrians were badly shocked, and could not let their guard down even during the night. It also showed how deadly the Vampyrs could be. Their tactics of using different abilities in concert was both confusing and intimidating. Still, the Soltyrians had local support, and a larger army.
A week after this ambush, the Soltyrians were once again met by the defenders. This time, in the form of a horde of zombies. Apparently, the Benethrezim Death Adepts had scoured the land for corpses and animated them to fight against Soltyria. This was, all in all, a very basic tactic that was easy to deal with for the latter. But there was more. Among the zombies were spread the rest of the benethrezim army, including the Vampyrs. The Vampyrs also blended with the other undead, making them harder to spot and twice as deadly.
As night came, the slightly winning Soltyrians were rebuffed by the Vampyrs yet again, and forced to retreat and regroup. This allowed them to avoid the worst of the Vampyr onslaughts, but still caused as many deaths as during the day. What more, the zombies never ceased advancing, and the battle was already raging again at dawn.
By this time, the Soltyrians were outflanked by their enemies, and had only their rear and west open. This proved deadly when another horde of zombies came from the south and blocked the Soltyrians from escaping westwards. In the end, the outnumbered and outflanked Soltyrian force could only make a desperate break northwards, something they succeeded only at a great cost of men. Still, despite their many losses, there fell ten times more of zombies that day and a half. Now the Soltyrians have cleared out the northern half of the Turin peninsula, and begun the rebuilding of the Senate. What will be the end of this war? What can be done?
That iz it!
Sorry for the late update, guyz, but I really worked hard on this one to make up for the last one that I rushed, and the confusion I caused earlier. Anyway, I hope you liked the spotlight.
What do you say now, Cleric? And should I say, a reunion is in order?
No, it's not what you think!
