Update 10 - 2010 FF The Year of Dawning Minds
SPOTLIGHT: The Northern Front, Horus AKA Barragh's Neck
A foggy night had settled over the Imperial Army's camp. It was still called that by their general, and although they were technically no longer under the rule of the First Prince, nobody questioned the Prince - their First Prince - or at least survived it.
Anyway, it was a foggy night. The mist was rising from the submerged trench dug by the vile rebels. They were a nuisance, and already their power was crumbling under the pounding Fist of Barragh. Soon they would capture the Academy city of Drach'nyen. From then, it was merely a matter of reasserting control and suppressing frequent revolts. Much more easier than fighting structurized armies, but far more tiresome. Much work lay ahead, but for now the Fist was unclenched and idle. The winter was still fresh in the air, and had been worse here than in many other places. It seemed like the rebels were channeling the cold and humid air into the north. All of the soldiers were either huddled close to the campfires or inside their tents courting the Sleep Fairy. The only place where guards stood on duty was outside the gilded tent with Imperial Flags waving above. The wind was blessedly still, but the fog was misting every surface, and even the fires seemed to crackle a lot more than usual.
Suddenly, a gust of wind came through the fog, dashing between the huddles of men towards the Prince's tent on the small hill. Quite a few soldiers felt it and turned their heads, although they were unable to locate the soundless and nearly invisible wind. As suddenly as it appeared, the wind calmed. The men dismissed it as a chance of nature. Minuetes went by. Then hell broke loose.
The first commotion came from the hill. The guards all rushed inside the tent, and flashes of magical light emerged from holes being ripped open on the roof and the sides. Then a violent explosion that shook the entire camp. Every soldier began to mingle and go to their assigned report posts. Officers were shouting orders, and the military decorum was maintained despite the bewilderment. It was a proud sight for any general: an army keeping calm and order in the middle of a seeming crisis. Then the wind came again and destroyed it all.
The wind sped out of the Imperial Tent and shot up in the air. Every soldier stopped and looked up at the patch of watery smoke that swirled in loops. It was looping and twisting to hold something airborne: namely a severed head. This sight was witnessed by nearly the entire army, which also caused the panic afterwards. But the army had already lost without knowing it themsleves.
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An hour later, the fog still swirls over what will be remembered as the most fearsome magical assault so far in the Fall of Wu'di. The frozen fog silently settles as the forces that spawned it has retreated to the windless night. The winter would not release the Neck of Barragh for many months yet.
Global News: The plague has ended in most nations. The onle exceptions are the fortress of Jaid (read below), Moonshard and Pashawan. The walking dead are doing just that: walking. Every one of them seem to be traveling eastwards, except for those in the Western Shelf and the western Heartlands who have walked out at sea. Sone of them swim awkwardly, others simply walk the seabed. In any case, they have left their former host nations, and the locals are happy to be rid of this horror. Where they are headed, and what their intentions are remains an unsolved mystery.
Western Shelf: The war between Soltyria and Shaemar continues. As expected, the Soltyrians marched mard towards the Academy of Fire. An attempt to animate the borderland forests ended in a hopeless failure for the Soltyrians, as the Ents who actually lived there were appaled at the idea of having fake replicas of themselves, and refused not only to let the Wardruids do so, but also refrained from joining the ranks of the Soltyrian army as well. Nevertheless, the Nature Adepts of Soltyria managed to summon many woodland and mountainous animals from the coutryside to aid them against Shaemar. As opposed to this, Shaemar activated their fellows, the dragons, who promptly started slaying nearly every animal the came across. The final battle outside the capital was still unavoidable. Mephistopheles, the Dragon Lord, led the Shaemaran defence. The Soltyrian army came in a great wave that engulfed the capital and proceeded sieging it. Seeing their obvious defeat, the Shaemarans decided to break the siege and retreat eastwards to safer lands. Mephistopheles carved a way through the sieging army by burning two strips of land in front of the main gate. Then the army broke out and crushed the Soltyrians locked between the walls of fire making a hasty but rickety escape eastwards. Again, the Dragon Lord had to stay behind to ward off pursuit. Albeit being successful in doing so, Mephistopheles was badly wounded and retreated to a place unknown. Meanwhile, Soltyiria continues to gain land from the running Shaemar. The latter has formed a base of operations and temporary capital in the city of Garlos. Still, without the Academy and the Dragon Lord, things are looking grim for the Shaemarans.
Islands: Everything is calm in the northern sea. o battles were fought on the waves, as the Empire was tiring of the war and had pretty many domestical problems to deal with. The plague continues to claim lives of uncounted thousand in Moonshard, and the people's undounted faith in the First Prince and the Immortal Empire (sorry for ripping off, Contempt

) is wavering. Still, with the generous donations and the year of No Taxes imposed by the said ruler has mitigated for most of this unrest. Right now, the Empire is struggling to maintain the illusion of superiority, but how long will it last?
Spine of the World: Konahn has returned from his temporary absence, and attended for the first time the Council of Lords. With his dramatic and aweinspiring personality, he quickly grasped the Council firmly and reaffirmed his supremacy among the barbarians. In fact, the loose structure in his own forest empire is becoming more and more solid, forming a kind of tribal feudalism. The regional lords still rule, but under the watchful eye of Konahn. What will emerge from this knitting is yet to be seen.
Steppes: Shaba and Cairo launched an assault at Jaid in an attempt to crush the Imperial Duo early in summer. At first, it went slow. The earth Adepts from Shaba had planned to flatten the walls, but their efforts were dispelled by the Earth Adepts on the Empire's side, forcing the rebels to form a manual siege. The remains of the Wu'di army was fierce and fearsome indeed, nearly fighting for two armies their size. Yet, when the Cairen Defenders managed to breach a hole in the walls, it was all lost. Shaban cavalry rushed in and slaughtered everything that was left of the defence. The only thing that marred this glorious victory was the retreat of the Earth Adepts into what is now dubbed the Stone Coffin. Malor and Dellamar and their Adepts have formed a stone fortress that towers over the city of Jaid. their immense magic has deformed much of the landscape, raising the hills to mountains and forcing the river to change course. Still, they do not have anywhere to escape, and thusly, their imposing castle has been named the Stone Coffin. Now the rebels only wait for the inevitable fall of the Imperial Duo and to grab the Academy within.
Far worse does it fare for the Cairens. Pashawan, seeing the vulnerable state of the currently moving Academy of Life sought it to find a cure for his population. Sending the Winged Heralds forth, they attacked the infantry keeping guard over the Academy. Seeing how the conscripted defenders were being mowed down by the enemy forces, the Life Adepts made a fatal choice: they sacrificed their magic to save their people. Activating the safety they had placed on the scrolls and books, they blew the entire Academy into pieces. With their quarry gone, the Pashawan cavalry soon retreated. The Cairen governor went to his people after this catastrophe, but his people would no longer listen to him. Seeing their successful neighbour, Shaba, who not only had a country to speak of, but also enough food and prosperous land, the people began to want a change of rule. After all, the Shaban were ruled by representatives of the people. Was the governor any better than the First Prince of the Empire? With this unrest and the dwindling population, Cairo is looking less and less like a nation.
Heartlands: Ramon began the year with a massive purging of the land. The ramonian army began mobilizing in the north where they slaughtered the Delenlorian refugees, and driving the rest southwards. In this process, they also cleansed the lands for most it's plague and undead infestations as well. The purging was a tremendous success, and there are close to none left of the original refugees, as most have either fought and died, or driven out into the frigid south. Wuite a few tried to make it to the east, but this was not to be as the army sent to purge them overcome them as alarming news reached them: Delenlor was at their doorstep, waiting for their northern allies.
As suspected, Rollux had allied with Delenlor against their common enemy Ramon. They had agreed to join their forces in a massed assault against the Citadel of the Pass. As spring reached the southern lands, the Rollux army marched as fast as possible to join the Delenlorians, who had formed a lineat the foothills. They merged, nad turned westward, hard at the Citadel. Still, they lost the element of surprise, as Knights of the Flame on scouting duty had spotted their movements, alerting the rest of the Ramonian army. Still, their amassing of forces meant ramon had to face both enemies at once, something they had feared would happen. With much of their forces tied to the northern front in a stalemate with almost equally large Rollux defenders, Ramon was forced to battle with what they had. At first, it was going well for the defenders, with the defensible citadel as their main advantage. Soon, though, the larger forces of Delenlor and Rollux took control. When the Purge Force came to relieve their brothers-in-arms, all they could do was secure a path to retreat. While the exhausted garrison of the citadel withdrew, the reinforcements carrying Frost Armor from Horus made a fighting retreat, saving many Ramonian soldiers from annihilation. Delenlor has made a ned capital in the Citadel. What more, the Death Adepts from Rollux has made defence works out of the bones and armor littered about after the numerous battles in the Pass.
For Ramon's ally, Horus, things have changed radically. They are no longer pressed by the Western Empire as several tables have turned since last year. First of all, Horus succeeded in assasinating Barragh, and carrying off his severed head in front of his entire army. secondly, the army which tried to pull back over the strait to regroup was engulfed by two major tidal waves which literally swallowed them and sucked them into the frigid waters. Thirdly, the riders of the Sea them proceeded to freeze the surface of the strait, blocking any attempt to reach the surface and swim for the Wu'dian soldiers. The only thing that saved a lot of the troops was the Earth Adepts who managed to raise a wall of stone to shield those around them against the tidal waves. Still, back home a popular revolt has claimed a new rulership over the Turin peninsula. A Republic has been proclaimed by enraged people, centered in the capital of Rashal. Surprisingly, this Republic is not only popular in the former Western Empire, but in Horus as well. As their foreign enemy has vanished, Seth Dethos' rule is being threatened from underneath.
I think that's it. Must have lunch, my stomach's growling! *growl!*