Headline News - August 2006

Disturbance at the Birthday Ball
Posted By: Leodhais Article: AUG06-1 Reported To: INN Reported On: Sivad Reported At: Tue Aug 01 22:37:46 3006

/Grand Enaj, Sivad/There was a diturbance at the King's Birthday Ball the evening of July 29.A threat was made on his Majesty's life, delivered by an unknown woman suspected to be in the employ of former First Councillor, Paul Moncrief, allegedly hanged the night before.While details are still largely unknown about this disturbance, a woman was seen fleeing the scene shortly after the threat was delivered.Miss Ailith Longres attempted to catch the unknown woman without success. When asked about it, her comment was, "I suspect the woman to be a specialist."There were no injuries reported, and his Majesty is also unharmed./Leodhais Chaloux, INN/

Moncrief Escapes Hangman
Posted By: Aeolus Article: AUG06-2 Reported To: SBS Reported On: Sivad Reported At: Wed Aug 02 10:19:25 3006

/Grand Enaj, Sivad/ What was scheduled to be the last chapter in Paul Moncrief's reign of terror over Sivad was anything but, according to the Home Office, which announced today that Moncrief was snatched away from the hangman's noose by an unknown force, killing several guards and prisoners on the prison moon of Morrigan.Moncrief was scheduled to be executed on Midnight Enaj Time on 28 July 3006. According to the Home Office, he was marched to the scaffold - set up in the lading pad of the Morrigan Prison - as scheduled, but just as the death warrant was being read, a group of worksuited individuals broke through the landing bay doors and opened fire with plasma rifles, killing four guards and two prisoner trustees. They took Moncrief, and left with him in a shuttle stolen from His Majesty's Prison Service. The Royal Naval Service gave chase, but the shuttle escaped into the outer system and disappeared.According to a Home Office spokesman, SHIELD and the colonial constabularies are devoting all their resources to Moncrief's recapture, and a reward has been offered for his return, alive, to face justice on Sivad, or for information leading to his capture.Moncrief's disappearance was only confirmed after a disturbance at The King's birthday ball, held on 29 July. An unidentified woman threw a broach at the King, which was revealed to be a miniature holoemitter. It broadcast a mocking image of Moncrief, who threatened His Majesty's life. Despite efforts of guards and partygoers, the woman - believed to be a specialist because of her unnatural agility and speed - escaped into Churchill Park./Neville McNamara, SBS/

Castori tree city fire extinguished
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-3 Reported To: INN Reported On: Castor Reported At: Thu Aug 03 14:49:29 3006

URSINIRU, CASTOR - Castori firefighters using chemical pumps and hoverbuckets managed to extinguish a blaze that threatened the upper canopy of the tree city of Ursiniru this morning.The fire, linked to an explosion in a research laboratory run by the Castori government, resulted in several injuries to bystanders and firefighters. No fatalities were reported.

St. John-Tully wins Enaj triathlon
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-4 Reported To: SBS Reported On: Sivad Reported At: Thu Aug 03 14:49:29 3006

GRAND ENAJ, SIVAD - For the fifth year running, Hammond St. John-Tully has won the Enaj Municipal Triathlon. Hundreds of participants from around the galaxy gathered to compete in a race that included running, swimming and cycling along the Regreb Archipelago. However, it was the local hero who prevailed, with Timonae Mikk Lanx and Lunite Farris Quell coming in second and third, respectively.

Demarian heat wave kills dozens
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-5 Reported To: INN Reported On: Demaria Reported At: Thu Aug 03 14:49:29 3006

NEW ALHIRA, DEMARIA - Unrelenting summer heat in the city of New Alhira has been linked to the deaths of at least 37 people in recent days. The victims, mostly Demarians and elderly offworld tourists, are succumbing to heat stroke and dehydration due to temperatures that range as high as 125 degrees Fahrenheit in the shade. Meteorologists are recommending that denizens of New Alhira remain indoors as much as possible until temperatures drop with the coming of an anticipated cold front in five days.

Ungstiri miners flash-frozen in platform rupture
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-6 Reported To: INN Reported On: Ungstir Reported At: Thu Aug 03 14:49:29 3006

RESILIENCE, UNGSTIR - Six miners working on an orbital mining platform near Ungstir were frozen and suffocated after a welding system exploded, rupturing a bulkhead and exposing them to vacuum. The platform, owned by Valashinkov Industries, has apparently gone without proper safety inspections for more than five months.

Deserata sim mishap leaves man crippled
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-7 Reported To: INN Reported On: Deserata Reported At: Thu Aug 03 14:49:29 3006

DESERATA - A Sivadian tourist was grievously wounded during a mishap involving an erotic simulation that recently opened in Deserata's Dreams Come True resort.The 47-year-old, whose name has not been released due to the sensitivity of the incident, was apparently engaged in sexual intercourse with a holographic character in close proximity to a hydraulic lift that was obscured by the sim environment.The man's leg and groin became snagged under the lift as it descended, crippling him. He is expected to recover, although a cybernetic leg and genitalia are necessary to fully repair the damage.

Waldheim crowns new chess king
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-8 Reported To: INN Reported On: Waldheim Reported At: Thu Aug 03 14:49:29 3006

NEW BERLIN, WALDHEIM - Jon Gruber, a 12-year-old prodigy, has been proclaimed the new chess king of Waldheim. Gruber, who has been playing the game since he was six, defeated all comers in the Waldheim Planetary Chess Tournament. A native of New Berlin, the boy is son to Trevor and Margaret Gruber."We couldn't be prouder of him," Margaret Gruber told INN.

Odarite sets new long jump record
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-9 Reported To: INN Reported On: Odari Reported At: Thu Aug 03 14:49:29 3006

IKIKIR, ODARI - The world record for a non-Zero G long jump on Odari was set last night as Y'krlkrkzk took a running leap and sprang a total of 116 feet (without any aid from his wings). His closest competitor in the Ikikir Invitational Track and Field event was another Odarite, Z'zk'vzz, who jumped 98 feet. The record won't be made official until after blood tests confirm the champion didn't enhance his performance with chemicals. Results of the tests are expected this weekend.

Long-jump champ juiced?
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-10 Reported To: INN Reported On: Odari Reported At: Sat Aug 05 15:26:13 3006

IKIKIR, ODARI - Doctors affiliated with the Ikikir Invitational Track and Field event are reporting that Y'krlkrkzk failed a blood test for performance-enhancing substances. Tests indicate that Y'krlkrkzk was positive for high glucose levels. Glucose injections have become an increasingly nettlesome problem in Odarite athletic competitions, as sugar gives the average Odarite temporary boosts in speed and jumping abilities. A second test on another sample is expected to be completed this weekend to confirm the results. If the results are confirmed, Y'krlkrkzk would default in the competition and his record would be stricken from the books.

Storms in La Terre
Posted By: Joker Article: AUG06-11 Reported To: INN Reported On: La Terre Reported At: Sun Aug 13 18:34:59 3006

The occasional storm is not uncommon in the small planet of La Terre, yet lately it seems they are becoming the rule rather than the exception.Dr. Lester Grant, from the Jensen Meteorological Institue in New Paris, dismisses this change in the weather as normal and fleeting. "Our climatic cycles have always been hectic, to say the least," he asserted. "Specially since our planet was brought back. These storms will subside soon enough and no real harm will come of it."Yet harm has already come. A small outpost on the far side of the same continent New Paris is located in has already been destroyed by the wild tempest. None of the twenty residents have been found and are presumed dead, given the poor state the area was left in.The storms continue to move south rather rapidly, but authorities -- both governmental and independent -- assure the public that the raging winds and water will not reach mainly populated areas.

Terrorist plot foiled!
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-12 Reported To: INN Reported On: Mars Reported At: Sun Aug 13 19:18:33 3006

HESPERIA, MARS - Vanguard special service investigators have thwarted a series of terrorist attacks that would have targeted shuttles bound for New Terra, Sivad, Ungstir, and other more "alien-friendly" worlds.First Consul Darian Ellesmere, leader of the Solar Republic, told INN that the group of 30 humans, calling themselves the Sapiens Superiorus, sought to smuggle components for bombs aboard interstellar shuttles."Their intent was to put the components together once aboard the shuttles and, in mid-flight, they would detonate the devices against bulkheads in an effort to breach the shuttle into vacuum," Ellesmere said.The components would have included some commonplace liquids, household chemicals, datapads, and commlinks.Effective immediately, Martian authorities are screening all passengers at the Avocet Spaceport to prevent them from bringing any of the questionable components with their carry-on luggage.

G'ahnli passengers face serious inconvenience
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-13 Reported To: INN Reported On: Mars Reported At: Sun Aug 13 19:39:59 3006

HESPERIA, MARS - G'ahnli passengers traveling in water-filled hovertanks are finding themselves grounded by the latest security measures at Avocet Spaceport in the wake of plans by Sapiens Superiorus to smuggle bomb components aboard interstellar shuttles.Because all carry-on liquids of any kind are forbidden from shuttles, this means that the G'ahnli could only legally board without benefit of their hovertanks, which are crucial to their survival on such voyages.Roger Scranton of Avocet Spaceport's security department said that about three dozen G'ahnli passengers have been affected so far, but that special arrangements will be made for a G'ahnli-only transport as soon as possible.

Snakes on a shuttle!
Posted By: Brody Article: AUG06-14 Reported To: INN Reported On: Ungstir Reported At: Tue Aug 15 11:27:31 3006

RESILIENCE, UNGSTIR - Panicked passengers flowed off a Solar Express interstellar shuttle today after dozens of exotic reptiles - mostly snakes, some of them quite poisonous - escaped from several crates in the cargo hold shortly before liftoff. Investigators say some passengers were treated for venomous snakebites and that it appears the crates were purposefully opened, possibly with the intent of targeting a witness in the recent high-profile terrorist conspiracy who was being transported from Ungstir to Mars.

Gillgummer grows grayer gooier biologists baffled
Posted By: Fishbreath Article: AUG06-18 Reported To: INN Reported On: G'ahnlo Reported At: Mon Aug 21 19:21:37 3006

G'ahnli scientists have expressed confusion over what has become a record-breaking gillgummer season. The gray-green algae, which appears in the upper levels of G'ahnlo's oceans for a period of some three months each year, has been growing more tenacious in recent years, in 3004 clogging the vents and ducts in Ahndar Subcity and foiling rescue attempts until only ten G'ahnli were pulled from the city.This year's supercolonies have been a more uniform gray than recorded in past years, and its viscosity has reduced the effectiveness of large ducted fans in dispersing the colonies, a common tactic used to protect cities. In addition, the drifts have failed to disappear on schedule, and are in fact increasing in size and number with less than a week to go before breaking the record for longest gillgummer season, set last year. G'ahnli waste management teams have so far been able to keep ahead of the drifts, redirecting them away from population centers, but the reigning opinion among experts is that though their work has been excellent thus far, at the current rate of supercolony reproduction, they will fall behind before the end of the year.Ulbahno Holding Corporation agents say that though the monetary incentives did create more interest in G'ahnlo's unique and diverse marine biology, researchers are no closer to understanding the source of gillgummer algae, or to developing better ways to protect G'ahnli holdings. UHC recently announced a quarter million-perl bounty for technology leading to easier disposal of gillgummer or data leading to the discovery of its source, in addition to a ten thousand-credit bounty for each supercolony dispersed.- Wesley Blake, INN G'ahnlo Correspondent

Second Freighter Destroyed In Attack On Hancock!
Posted By: Keller Article: AUG06-19 Reported To: INN Reported On: New Luna Reported At: Wed Aug 23 08:47:07 3006

Early yesterday evening, the NLM Franklin was seen departing Hancock Station with two Spitfires, escorting her to with the intentions to dock with a Galatea-class Civspec Light Freighter, registered as Orion's Pride. This is the second time in three months that an attack of this nature, has been attempted. Shortly after the NLM Franklin docked with the vessel, the Orion's Pride began accelerating towards Hancock Station. One of the escorting fighters destroyed the engines of the vessel, but apparently too late to prevent the possibility of collision with the military base. The NLM Franklin managed to disengage from the Orion's Pride prior to impact with Hancock Station, and an internal explosion crippled the freighter prior to its destruction by the combined firepower both Spitfires. The NLM has reported no losses. All hands were lost on the Orion's Pride, however, and the matter is currently under investigation by the Militia. This is INN's Brett Harman reporting from Greenville, New Luna.

New Luna Council Member Assassinated!
Posted By: Keller Article: AUG06-20 Reported To: INN Reported On: New Luna Reported At: Wed Aug 23 08:48:35 3006

The representative for the New Luna city of Jasper Point, Councillor Fawkes, was found dead earlier this evening. The official cause of death wasstated as a fall in the shower.However, information leaked to INN sources from where the body was being held reveal thata round from a 7.65mm rifle had shattered the man's skull, in the location of the cerebellum. Councillor Fawkes was reported to have passed away during the early evening. At roughly the same time, his fellow New Lunites were engaged with the Orion's Pride in orbit above the planet. No bystanders have been reported to have witnessed to shooting taking place, or have been able to identitfy the attacker. There was a single loud bang that did startle some residents around this area. This incident is currently under investigation by Militia, too. This is INN's Brett Harman reporting from New Luna, once more.