Some patrons of the "Long and Short" tavern in South Cordor seem to be nervously telling stories and bending the ear of anyone who'll listen. Specifically, about how groups of Dark-cloaked men in uniform-like armor seem to be coming and going throughout Cordor's Southern District. Stories vary based on who's telling them; and a few minor details change such as whether or not these men can "Fly and turn invisible at will" or "Are Vampires/Shadow Thieves/Demons sent to take over the prime".

No one seems to know exactly who they are or what they are doing, though some of said tavern patrons claim that their "Brother's Wife's Cousin" (Or somesuch Relation) was knocked out by one, dragged off "to who knows where"; and later found doused in alcohol without any idea of what went on, without having been robbed, and with nothing on their person missing.

The tavern patrons seem to find this a favored topic to babble and debate over, making them out to be almost myth-like. But those who frequent the streets of South Cordor seem to be getting more tight-lipped about who and what they see at night. Not many seem to be willing to say much at all, and some seem half scared to death.

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Those trees won't burn themselves down. (by Maryn)

Damien Clauth, a well known former good-two-shoes, and now murder and rogue, grins as he hears these rumors, and begins dropping coins and whispers to those who run the underbelly of Cordor, hopeing the mysterious men will grant him an audiance if they hear he is so determined to meet them.

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Damien-"I like this game we play, you and I, but the thing is I have more peices in play, and its my turn".

*A dedicated supporter of the ACLU!.

Pete Wright is nervious about such stories on the street, and starts spreading his variations of the rumours especially to those he beleives are the 'good and upstanding type of folks'

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Active Characters:
Margery 'Ma' Brud (Priestess of Gruumsh)
Quex'stopheles (Devout of Tiamat)
Vladimir Johansson (Inquisitor)

There is an official announcement by the Cordor Department of Corrections, Prison Management Office; but the buzz word around the Southern Taverns are "Cloaks". Though most voices are kept low when mentioning them, the gossipers tend to believe that they are to blame. The announcement is as follows:

"As per our annual statistics and census review, we have determined that unsolved homicides and disappearances in the southern precinct are on the rise. It is believed that this increase correlates to the activities of the "Black Flag", and that we can safely assume that the numbers would be within average for this year without their intervention. However, there are some disagreements within the review committee as to whether or not that there is some other unknown cause for this increase.

Many of the disappearances are reported of ex-convicts released from the Corrections Department. There is dispute as to the rehabilitative nature of our facility, as it is theorized that these individuals find themselves knee-deep in organized crime and-or gang conflicts immediately after being released from the prisons. This would account for their disappearances, and no further investigation should be required, none will be performed. Our priorities should remain: Improving the corrective nature of our facility, Improving our Information extraction procedures, and implementing a system to track criminals after their release.


~Sergeant Korlis
Cordor Department of Corrections "

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Those trees won't burn themselves down. (by Maryn)

A battle took place in the Southern Districts of Cordor, according to several witnesses. Black-Cloaked men attempted to storm a ship in the middle of the night, while several dwarves and a human fought off the ship-crew. They say that the ship sailed off some distance, before sinking in the harbor, without a known cause.

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Those trees won't burn themselves down. (by Maryn)

Citizens in Central Cordor, south of the river; report to the press that members of Cordor's Guard were seen raiding a house in the district. They claim that a man wearing a dark cloak not unlike the ones rumored was dragged out of this house in shackles. So far, there has been no official reports released on the identity of the person arrested, nor on what led them to raid the house.

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Those trees won't burn themselves down. (by Maryn)

Damien Clauth itchs his empty eye socket and replaces the patch back over his "family illness" scar. He listens to each new commotion with sever interest, many plans formulating in his mind. He grows increasing more curious especially after the guard took one of his hits into protective custody.

It takes him awhile to make up his mind and he decides to persue a reckless and probably dangerous path. He doesnt care who the cloaks are or how the guard is related to them, but he decides to try and get a look or some hint just because of his addiction to the intrigues that fly around the island unchecked,

To this end he is quite blatantly seen asking about the "cloaks" and about a certain lady of the guard whos name begins with K.

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Damien-"I like this game we play, you and I, but the thing is I have more peices in play, and its my turn".

*A dedicated supporter of the ACLU!.

A special edition of the Amian Recorder goes on sale today, and quickly becomes the talk of Cordor due to the featue centerpiece, a work of investigative journalism by the editor-in-chief, Ethan Starr, on the Cordor Guard.

The Inside Source

CORRUPTION IN THE HOUSE OF LAW
by Ethan Starr, Editor-in-Chief of the Amian Recorder

Cordorian citizens, merchants, and public officials alike rely upon the Cordor Guard to bring peace, stability, and the rule of law to a city rife with municipal concerns such as immigration, overpopulation, fair trading and the downward spiral of economic depression and high crime in South Cordor. The Cordor Guard has a reputation for loyalty to the Duke, the Merchant's Guild, and the common man, living to protect and serve the interests of all parties rightly and justly. Without civilian cooperation and faith in their ranks, the Cordor Guard would be at constant strife with the population. To Cordor's detriment, that solid faith has been shaken, and the Four Pillars of Law themselves threaten to topple: corruption runs rampant within the House of Law, perhaps as high as the once infalliable Knights of Law, and until this edition of the Amian Recorder, few have been any the wiser.

Over the past year, the Cordor Guard has been under the public microscope for accustations of poor judgment. The mishandling of the Roddyist terror crisis at the Cordor South District Prison which led to the deaths of several guards; rumors of a Law Knight running unchecked through South Cordor, promoting and enacting violent vigilante justice; the perceived failure of the Cordor Guard to act upon Boss Miller's crime spree, leading to rumors that his criminal empire is a sanctioned one; not to mention the changing of the Guard Captain three times in as much as a year. The most recent scandal involved the late Vishlesz, a drowess at the center of the ACLU vs. Galverson case, who reportedly died from blunt trauma delivered after she attacked three armed guards, mere days before she was scheduled to testify in the case. Despite apprehension, the citizens of Cordor have continued to support the Guard. In truth, that may be the chief reason why corruption has now overtaken the core of the Guard. Duchal and civilian oversight of the Guard has been non-existant due to blind faith, empowering those within the Cordor Guard to exploit the office's power for their own benefit.

An inside source within the Cordor Guard, who has gone on the record as anonymous, has reported that a faction of like-minded individuals deeply entrenched in the Guard have not only been suspected of criminal activity, but have been implicated by corroborating physical evidence.

"I care about the law of this city. I care about her citizens, and about my mates in the unit," Inside Source's informant said in a closed interview. "If it weren't for the fact that this corruption goes as high as it does, I wouldn't worry about giving out my name. But as it is, I'm probably already targetted. Frankly, I think my days on the force are numbered."

The informant presented official documentation of a search warrant for a private residence in West Cordor, as well as an arrest warrant for its owner, Cordor Guard Sergeant Mellene Korlis. Eyewitness reports confirm that a fully tactical raid was conducted at Korlis' residence on 754 Waterloo Way, a raid that resulted in the apprehension and arrest of several unknown individuals. Several Guard documents that should be filed in the Guardhouse were recovered during the raid by Law Knights, many of them detailing classified information regarding Cordor Guard operating procedures, Cordor Guard special objectives, arrest record information, and worse, the identity of undercover agents currently active in the field, as well as unaffiliated informants. Korlis herself is a sergeant with an oversight role in the Cordorian Department of Corrections at the South Cordor District Prison, meaning she has near exclusive access to the kinds of documents retrieved from her home.

Had the raid itself not occurred over a month ago, it might seem as though the Cordor Guard is acting swiftly upon its own corruption. However, more than thirty days have passed since the raid on Korlis' residence, and there have been no announcements to the press, no public statements made, and no public trial scheduled for Korlis or the unnamed individuals apprehended at the Sergeant's home. In fact, it was only under significant pressure from Inside Source that the clerks at the South Cordor District Prison even acknowledged that Korlis and the unnamed individuals were incarcerated at that location.

"Though I'm not even sure they [Korlis, et al] really are there," said the anonymous informant. "All of my efforts to find out the truth have been rebuffed by the Law Knights and the clerks. I have significant rank in the Guard, and I've been told that all details of the case and the documents taken from Korlis' house have been classified Red. I think even the Duke would have a hard time getting through that much red tape. And when you have that much red tape, you know something is being hidden. Something bad, something really bad."

Inside Source agrees, if past experience is any indication. A raid on the home of a well-informed bureaucrat Sergeant in the Guard, the immediate classification of evidence obtained in the raid, incarceration without due process of the law and a public hearing, and an entire Guard comprised of tight-lipped officials; when we weren't looking, the Cordor Guard's role "to serve and protect" changed. Just who are they serving and protecting? Us, or themselves?

Garrett and his bodyguard sit quetly in the corner of the tavern, watching and listening to the talk about dark figures intently, gathering as much details as they can can. Garrett slowly sips his black mead and thinks to himself, Hrm, this could be either beneficial, or devastating to my plans. Perhaps I shall investigate this matter further, and learn what I can from it. He finishes his mead, "We should investigate this matter and learn of their intent. Perhaps we will find new allies, and then again perhaps we will find an obstical in our path that must be overcome." He says to her. "I would like you to gather two of our own and I believe we should begin seeking these men - if thats what they are - out. Compensation will depend on the success of this investigation, naturally."
With that said he rises and motions for his bodyguard to follow him out the door.

//Is there anyway to get an investigation roleplay in game about this with you Leggomi? Sorry, havent really done this before via forums. Please let if there is more we can do.

Lieutenant Daernais'shal hurries to get the special edition of the Amian Recorder as soon as he overhears some people talking about the article. He curses heavily after reading the thing, then moves into the guard house and remains there, waiting for to have a word with his colleagues.

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Korail, already feeling nervous about people following him, quickens his pace a little more whilst walking through the city.

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My bands myspace: www.myspace.com/mysterymachinetheband