World Cup 96 - Roleplay Thread

[City of Myrtle Beach]

MSN | Good Morning Football

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Myrtle Beach traveled to an unknown location in Astograth today to claim their victory over the inferior team. It was, admittedly, a very close game, and the winning goal for Myrtle Beach came from Brennan in the first minute of injury time at the end of the match... but I think we all knew it was going to end in a win for us one way or another. The team is just, clearly, superior; the defense impeccable, the midfield unbreakable, and the forwards decent.

Farmer- God help his soul- was sitting on the bench for the whole match, clearly still not recovered from his injury versus Xanneria on matchday 2. Fortunately for him, Myrtle Beach will rest tomorrow for matchday four. Although, in a way, football never ends. It is always there, permeating the air, whispering in your ear, "If you don't get your ass up and run the courses I'm going to beat you senseless." That last one might have just been me in university, but I think it holds true for everyone. I still hear Coach sometimes in my sleep...

Matchday 3 | Group 10
somewhere ig | 67F Clear | Kickoff 6:00 pm | Attendance: 27,850

Astograth 0

1 Myrtle Beach

90+1' Brennan

[Pasarga]

To say that the Wanderers Qualification Campaign has gotten off to a bit of a shaky start might be a bit of an understatement or might just be hitting the nail right on the head of it after the last international window saw the side only pull one of the possible six points, after the first window saw the side win the only match in which they were scheduled to play. Such an early bye might have thrown a bit of wrench into the plans of Thor and gotten rid of the momentum that the side had been able to produce after an outstanding first match where they pulled out a tidy little victory to start the campaign. There is a lot of debate on whether byes in qualification campaigns are good or detrimental thing among the fans and experts within the sport and quite a few right now might point the the poor start of the Wanderers as an exact reason as to why they are seen as an overall negative by a large swathe of fans. The staff of the team as well as the federation has declined to comment apart from Thor saying that all the teams are having to deal with the same issue of a bye in their schedule. While true, byes at different points in ones campaign seem to have different effects.

All that being said, one can look at only a point from the last two games and see it as a huge slip up from the number seed in the group and proof positive as to why when the draw was announced many within the Dual Islands were quite concerned with it. A two nil victory over Siovanija and Teusland was a great opener but the team is still considered an unranked team even if there is a significant amount of potential from the squad and their ability to pull off results against the best teams within the group, which was the first window. This window though saw the biggest rivals for the top spot in Quebec visit the Dual Islands and unfortunately it was not the result that went the way of the Wanderers, but it is also the second most difficult game on their schedule besides the return trip to Quebec itself. The third most difficult match for the side though was the second game in the window and that was away to Cardenao and Thor's reshuffled formation showed its defensive prowess in keeping the hosts from grabbing a goal but the Wanderers were unable to find the target themselves and had to settle with an away point instead of three.

However it is none of the top three teams from the group who sit at the top of the table, but rather unheralded Amenria, who is unbeaten through four games with ten points already on the board and three ahead of second place Quebec. Six points adrift from the top of the group is not a great place to be with it being already early and down that late but the Wanderers do have a match in hand as well as both of their games against the aforementioned side. That match however is the last match of the first half of the campaign and will see Amenria traveling to Rushmore to take on the Wanderers. This window begins with Doubeia traveling to the Cup of Harmony holders and they are in a three way time for third in the group with the Wanderers with four points through three games as the two teams collide. It should be a game that on paper that the Wanderers will be able to expect to have the upperhand in, as they are a more talented team that is playing at home, yet having lost at home to Quebec already that is no guarantee that the Stade de Torgos will be an impenetrable fortress upon which they can rely upon to get a full three points simply by playing there.

An away trip to Vyktoria will follow, the third of the three teams who are currently tied on four points and again it is a game in where the Wanderers would believe that they had an edge through talent. Talent however has let them down in the past and it is that sort of thinking that Thor has been trying to erase from the national team program, as well as redevelop a dedication to cultivating youth products that earn starting places in their clubs and not just spots as spot starters or rotation options. Thor is looking to cultivate a team that is talented, has good physical gifts as well, with a hungry and drive to seek out what they want with vigor and determination. It is not going to be an easy process nor a quick one and the players currently in the pool are going to have to show that they have the moxy and wherewithal to be able to handle Thor's training regiment and be part of his vision for the Wanderers' future. The upcoming window demands at least four points if they are to be able to really show the sort of conviction that Thor will be looking for and a full six might even have the manager believing that the pool will not need the sort of overhaul that he currently believes it does.

[Eshialand]

Solid Ground, Solid Performance
Eshialand 4-0 Captina Island

"So Karsten, I hope your lunch behaved a little better this time..."
"My stomach's really missed home games at the SuperDome, Josh..."

While the headline for Karsten may've been that his hot dogs managed to stay inside his stomach, for Josh and all the fans watching, the trip back to the SuperDome brought one of the Owls' more dominant performances in recent memory, blanking the team from Captina Island by a score of four to nil.

"Hang on, I think we've got Kenny Morgan on the line... hello?"
"Hey Josh!"
"Kenny! Great to hear from ya. So, that was one big win! Anything you have to say about it in general?"
"Well, this team definitely played their best and we got the results we were looking for, don't really think there's too much more to say."

"You know, as someone who's watched this team for 8 years now, I was really intrigued when I saw Elizabeth Michaels as the starting goalkeeper on the team roster this year... she's someone who's always been there but never really had a chance to perform on the big stage, and she's been absolutely dominant, just one goal allowed in three games starting. What factored into your decision to put her in goal for this campaign?"

"You know, that's a really good question... I always knew she was able to perform, she was an absolute beast back in the first Jenna Raven Cup, but really it was Mel Carey who told me to put her in, and if I'm being honest, I really do need to listen to her good ideas more."

"Yeah, no kidding, that was one heck of a good idea... and now that you've been able to see her performance here in World Cup Qualifying, how do you feel about Eshialand's next two games?"

"Bostopia and Sargossa are definitely going to be tougher nuts to crack than Captina Island were, but I believe in this team. They definitely have what it takes to carry their momentum on through qualifying, and who knows, maybe they'll even qualify again. For now though, we'll take it one game at a time, and see how we do in Bostopia."

"Alrighty, thank you so much for chatting Kenny!"
"Any time Josh."

[Carpathia and Ruthenia]

Carpathia and Ruthenia mop up group minows to top the group but will face tougher tests ahead

Six points out of six were expected from this game and six points is what was achieved, and with top seeds Ko-oren slipping up to a one-nothing loss away to Sarzonia we find ourselves in the enviable position of top of Group 18. But we find ourselves up next against those very same teams, Sarzonia clearly on the rise again perhaps with another golden generation to rival the squads of World Cups 22-25, or 48-49, and Ko-oren although falling to a narrow loss are not to be trifled with and especially travelling away we will need to be at our very best to even get a point.

One of the intesting quirks of this year's cycle is that with odd numbers of teams in the groups each team ends up with a bye matchday, and Carpathia and Ruthenia are in the ineviable/enviable (depending on your point of view) position of not playing on the final matchday meaning if things were to come down to match results of other teams, it is no longer in our hands and the nation will have to watch nervously on the final matchday. This means it is crucial that we continue the momentum we have at the moment and continue picking up all three points where we expect to and at least salaving a point against the higher ranked teams.

In further good news Clara Bassi has been officially cleared for international duty once again, and although Róza Crocetti has done an admirable job stepping up in the three games she missed having someone of Bassi's experience and character will be essentially in the tests we have upcoming, it is thought that she play at least a half against Sarzonia before returning to full availability for the match against top seeds Ko-oren, can she add another goal against a footballing giant to her quiver?

By Margita Ongaro
CBC Ruthenia

Carpathia and Ruthenia 3 - 0 Labalia               
    Acconci 2'      FT                     
 Naldi 89'                         
 Pék 90'                       


Merse Park, Harkány, Carpathia and Ruthenia

         Rea San Vegas 2 - 4 Carpathia and Ruthenia
    Unknown 38'      FT       Acconci 3', 9'
 Unknown 50'               Pék 40'    
                               Crocetti 41' 


Unknown Stadium, Rea San Vegas

[Chromatika]

World Cup 96 Qualifying Fortnight 2 Results

Matchday 3: Chromatika 4-1 Lisander
Goals: Howard-Dawes 16', 39', Kruetzberg 66', Xuen-Zhukov 80'
Starting XI: Sourtois; Paterson - Jackson-Jones - Nodis; Kruetzberg - Ju - Hauser - Iara; Kuznetsov (C); Howard-Dawes - Fucheux.
Substitutes: Larriet-Cortes -> Ju (52'), Régine -> Jackson-Jones (52'), Fillar, G. -> Kruetzberg (71'), Fillar, E. -> Iara (71'), Xuen-Zhukov -> Fucheux (76')
Summary: Elaine Howard-Dawes scored two goals in the first half to help the Anomalies grab momentum early, the defense of Chromatika was stout save for one unfortunate sequence, and Chromatika never truly struggled as they put away Lisader by a score of four goals to one at the Hawks' Nest in Lanar. Howard-Dawes, in a competition with Delaya to be Xuen-Zhukov's striking duo, scored on two breakaways as the Chromatiks were able to make use of space between the Lisader players. The Chromatiks looked good.

Matchday 4: Aleirave 1-4 Chromatika
Goals: Hauser 22', Kuznetsov 29', Howard-Dawes 81', 89'
Starting XI: Sourtois; Paterson - Jackson-Jones - Nodis; Kruetzberg - Ju - Hauser - Iara; Kuznetsov (C); Howard-Dawes - Fucheux.
Substitutes: Aimée -> Nodis (51'), Fillar, B. -> Kuznetsov (51'), Coulibaly -> Paterson (66'), Delaya -> Fucheux (66'), Régine -> Jackson-Jones (79')
Summary: Away at the third seed, the Anomalies never faltered, scoring a pair of goals from range in the first half and Howard-Dawes getting a brace in the final ten minutes as the hosts tried to mount a comeback. If they are needed to sub in for the usual starters, Chromatika knows that these players are on good form.

---

World Cup 96 Qualifying Fortnight 3 Pool (vs. West Barack and East Obama)

Starters: GK Juxon Fillar (Montreal Koreana, Quebec and Shingoryeo); DCR Ami Coulibaly (Chromatik, Chromatika) - DC Klavida Régine (Serrapince, Tumbra) - DCL Ipati Aimée (Lakewood United, Tumbra); WBR Grayson Fillar (1896 Ebor, Mytanija) - BWM Kaia Larriet-Cortes (La Nueva Avenida, Farfadillis) - AP Baillaire Fillar (Sivolvia Capitalizt, Squornshelan Remnant States) - WBL Edith Fillar (Myana, Chromatika); AM Vasiliy Marten Kuznetsov (Herzegovina City FC, Banija); AF Lavrentiy Xuen-Zhukov (Myana, Chromatika) - CF Candice Delaya (Holdenberg, Eura)
Reserves: GK Hailee Sourtois (Directus, Eura), GK Do Seung-Min (1923 Esca, Mytanija), DCR Paisley Paterson (Shamrock Cathair, Audioslavia), DC Eileen Jackson-Jones (Avanoroch White Wings FC, Tikariot), DCL Cylie Nodis (Chromatik, Chromatika), DC Rowan Harry (Chamberley City, Sylestone), WBR Emilie Kruetzberg (Lakewood United, Tumbra), WBL Manda Iara (Alnio, Chromatika), WBL Nemes Mátyás (Auprussia NF, Auprussia), CDM Amélie Ju (RGS Athletic, Eastfield Lodge), AP Haley Hauser (Spartangrad, Eura), DLP Alija Mesic-Mizayaki (St. John's Arsenal, Quebec and Shingoryeo), AF Elaine Howard-Dawes (Couno Rangers, Rumbra), AF Marietta "Marie" Fucheux (Perce Town, Quebec and Shingoryeo), P Sandara Park (Montreal Koreana, Quebec and Shingoryeo)
Preview: After a bye week, the Anomalies host West Barack and East Obama at the Capitalizt Dome. WBaEO were one of the sides that held Chromatika to a draw in the last World Cup Proper Group Stage; revenge is on the cards, and with the team sporting a 13 GF and 3 GA in four games so far, there is no reason to think they won't be able to continue their form. Win this one, and Chromatka will almost have completed a perfect first round robin.

Part 1
Part 2

THE REBUILD
III: Housing Infrastructure

When people think of Myana Island, the city of Myana comes to mind - and for good reason. It's the second biggest city in the country after Chromia, the headquarters of the Chromatik Navy, a popular fishing and tourist destination, and home to over half of the island's population. What most people fail to keep in mind, though, is that there are quite a few people on Myana Island that don't live in Myana itself - and that a fair bit of those people live on the eastern half of Myana Island.

Eyrods is the second biggest city on the island, but even if you were to take the previously ecological capital of Chromatika out of the equation, there are plenty of people that live on the eastern two-thirds, and all of them had to evacuate when the Abyssal Invasion began. Thankfully, the forces of the Abyss weren't lightning fast when taking over the island - it took about three days for them to reach the point that would end up being the line of demarcation. This was the only reason why the death toll was in the five hundred thousands, and not up to a million (not that five hundred thousand is a small number - that still equates to about ten percent of the Chromatik population, and cannot be understated).

When Chromatik forces returned to the eastern half of Myana Island after the forces of the Abyss returned to their home dimension, what awaited them was complete desolation. The occupying forces had not only destroyed the housing infrastructure, but they had desecrated the very ground that the buildings had been on. It was not going to be as simple as having the million or so people that had been displaced from their homes just return home - because, simply, their homes no longer existed.

A word has to be shared here about the job that the Chromatik job did in taking care of the people that were displaced. Myana took the lead in caring for the refugees, housing over three hundred thousand of them in the suburbs, giving them jobs, and taking care of those that couldn't work. The children and the grieving were especially well cared for, as well as the infirmed. For those that cared to go away from the sight of their tragedy, many other cities and localities took charge of the situation instead of the situation being allowed to dictate them. In fact, it was the individual heroics of families that said that they could take in Chromatiks that had lost everything that helped the nation outlast the tragedy as much as it had.

As Chromatika started to talk to the Yesopalithan divine magic users about which areas they wanted consecrated first, housing infrastructure took a back seat. The argument was that there was no need to rush getting people back to the island if there wasn't going to be anything to support the people returning back. So, the farmlands (and lands to allow the greenhouses) were prioritized first, and then the areas that the new cities would be housing their government facilities; only after those did Chromatika start to plan for the housing complexes needed.

Then, the powers that be had to make another decision that would have far-reaching consequences - whether to just have housing provided by the government or allow people to build their own homes by hiring outside companies. In order to deal with this issue, the Chromatik government had every single person who used to call eastern Myana Island home express whether they wanted to return back to their original home or not, giving the choice of returning to the resident. If a resident wanted to return, their housing would be paid for by the government; if they did not, they would get a lump sum payment instead, depending on where they'd lived and the quality of property that they had owned.

About 55% of the people who used to live in the eastern half of Myana Island expressed their desire to return, while 45% of the people stated that they wanted to permanently move to where they had been placed. Those people were given their checks from the government and moved out of the temporary housing, given the freedom to look for their new places of residence as they saw fit. Those that stated that they wanted to return were given three options - to go into apartment-style and housing development homes provided by the Chromatik government (with input from the Myana Island government), to pool their funds together with like-minded people to apply to build communities that would then hire construction companies to build complexes of their choosing (with permission from the government), or to build homes for themselves, understand that they would have to foot the majority of their own bill, and that the spots to allow individual construction would be few and far in between.

An auction was then held for the spots where people would be allowed to build their own huge homes - with the intent to have the profit go to help finance the building of the apartment complexes. The very well off got their land to build their mansions, while the Chromatik government secured the funding needed to house the majority of the populace - a win-win for both.

So, the efforts to build housing in the eastern half of Myana Island continues. It's going to take time, but as the people and the government build, the people that would be living in them will return. As the infrastructure continues to catch up, those people will be allowed to live lives more similar to the ones that they had previously. It's been said that once about a quarter of the people have moved back, those that want to make their home in the newly rebuilt areas - the ones that didn't live there initially - will be allowed to do so.

It's been a delicate issue, balancing the needs of those that used to call the area home with the fact that Chromatika simply needs the area to be populated. As they move forward balancing these issues, it will be interesting to see what other kinds of issues prop up - as well as how they are handled.

-Dr. Charon Netters, Professor of Sociology, University of Myana

Disclaimer: All words of Dr. Netters are his opinions, backed by certain facts. They are not to be viewed as anything otherwise.

[Auprussia]

MILITARY HISTORY OF AUPRUSSIA PART 3

Accounts by deu Lithos written in 195 ASE
Part 1 - Part 2

Ludobrige Submission (End of 19 ASE-Beginning of 20 ASE)
The Ludobrige delegate had offered surrender and to swear fealty to Rodin. Rodin accepted the terms, surprised the delegate was not stalling for time. Rodin organized the 1000 Ludobriges still willing to fight into his army and marched further west heading towards the tribe of Azrebeges. Alarmed by Rodin's progress the Ostrogian scouts around the Ludobrige tribe hastily headed towards Mietod to tell him of Rodin's victory.

Upon hearing about Rodin's subjugation of the Dutroges and Ludobriges Mietod was furious. Mietod summoned a council of the remaining tribal vassals and told them to take up arms and meet him at the capital with himself in command. The Vassals reactions were muted almost apathetic but they complied. Mietod had assembled an army of 15000 men from all tribes and marched north ready to finally stop Rodin's march. Mietod had given two of his vassals orders to scout ahead with contingents of 500 men each. Cauchar Leteiam and Pirthem Armaet were in charge of this operation and attempted to track Rodin by following an Azrebergi trail leading northeast. They didn't see Rodin's army until he was right outside the wooden-walled town of Mithracham; the Azrebergi capital. Cauchar decided to tell Mietod of Rodin's location and Pirthem attempted to talk with the Azrebergi chief about holding out until Mietod had arrived.

The Battle of Mithracham (20 ASE)
Mietod had forced marched his army and had gotten to Mithracham which was under siege by Rodin. Rodin saw the Army and lined up for battle putting the siege on hold. While Cauchar had made it back to Mietod, Pirthem had been caught by a contingent of Rodin's scouts and had been cut down in a skirmish with the rest of Pirthem's contingent scattering. Rodin's army had the Aupalici Spearmen in the center and the 1000 Piendoux Royal Spearmen ready to throw more javelins when the Aupalici were engaged. The regular spearmen lined up on both sides of the Aupalici while the Noble Cavalry lined up on Rodin's left wing and the Lancer Cavalry lined up on his right.

Mietod on the other hand had a very diverse army. 4000 of his own Ostrogian Swordsmen, 2000 Ostrogian Spearmen, 3000 Raider Cavalry, 1000 Azrebergis who were a mix of Light Cavalry and Spearmen, 1000 "Guincharrem" or mercenaries from the surrounding Basonian and Morgavind kingdoms equipped with heavy spears, 1500 Mesangi Javelin Cavalry, and 2000 Spearmen from the surrounding Ostrogian tribes. Mietod had the Ostrogian infatry line up in the center to contest the Aupalici while his Azrebergis and Guincharrem comprised the wings and stood a bit back of the main line. Mietod had the other Spearmen lined up in reserve in case one of his flanks waivered. 2000 of the Raider Cavalry lined up on Mietod's Left while the Rest of the available cavalry lined up to his right in an effort to contain the Noble Cavalry and stop and devastating charges.

Mietod sent his center to contest Rodin's center and sent his Raider cavalry to overwhelm Rodin's right but both the center and the right stood firm against the assault. Meanwhile on Rodin's left the Noble Cavalry started to flank the Ostrogian center Mietod immediately sent all of his cavalry to run down the Nobles. This was a trap as when they charged the Nobles maneuvered out of the line and a lot of Mietod's cavalry ran into the spears of the Royal Piendoux Spearmen who after throwing there javelins at the Ostrogian center lined up behined the Noble Cavalry. Once the Ostrogian cavalry clashed with the Spearmen the Noble Cavalry charged back into the fray. Mietod was forced to send his Guincharrem and Azrebergis to stabilize that flank.

Slowly but surely the more disciplined Piendoux army started to slowly push back Mietod's army. The center was wavering badly and the loss of most of his cavalry on the right means that the Nobles could run and flank anywhere they wanted, pulling back the Raider Cavalry on his left could result in Rodin taking advantage of the gap and overrun the center as well. Mietod saw the situation and ordered a retreat, but the Noble Cavalry disrupted the retreat and cutdown whoever they could find. Mietod knew it was over. Rodin's Army lost 4200 (800 were Aupalici) men while Mietod's Army lost 8000 men, most of which due to the errant charge and the disorganized retreat.

The End of The Ostrogian War (20 ASE)
Mietod had surrendered to Rodin after the Battle of Mithracham and very quickly agreed to Rodin's terms. The lands of the Dutroges, Ludobriges, and Azrebergis were to be under the Kingdom of Piendoux's control. All 3 tribes are allowed to be vassals and to retain their core land but Piendoux takes over the rest. The Aupalici were also to be paid tribute for 10 years, the amount lost to time. When Rodin marched his army back to Piendoux he was given a hero's welcome celebrated by both Noble and Commoner alike.

deu Firot and deu Perin were given nicknames and were paid homage by the Piendoux nobility. Firot "The Wall" de Sabegne, and deu Perin was named Perin d'Aupas "The Sage". Shortly thereafter the Aupalici had adopted Piendoux-like names and had taken parts of Piendoux culture for themselves. The Aupalici gave Perin a title for his wise rulership during this time: "Lue Ilumene" or "The Enlightened One".

Fate Intertwined (An Editor's Forewarning)
The next few parts written by deu Lithos have to do with the Ramaiy and the Basons. Namely their wars and how they affect Auprussian history. The Remaiy-Teolander War and how it came to be after deu Aron left Aupas with other Aupalici and the Bason Wars of Hegemony which involved the Kingdom of Basonia and it's conflicts with the Bervic Tribes, Salva Tribes, and the Morgavinds. This is all in service to lead up to one of the most important conflicts in Auprussian history...but that is a story for another time.

In A Time Far Removed...

Tumbra 4-2 Auprussia @Couno
Auprussian Scorers: Martin Ivicer 58' (Assisted by Herbie Chandelique) - Miren Saloux-Chard (Assisted by Jean Alligioud) 68'
Miren Saloux-Chard comes in for Antonie Piridrisse at 60'
Grigore D'Angevienne comes in for Mourastaire Ashafeu at 72'
Charles Delaire comes in for Ingalcer "Payday" Pardau at 85'

[Brookstation]

---

ARTIANA GALAXY

In the heart of northern Brookstation, along the banks of the Roic River, lies a football club without much recognition and fame but undoubtedly a small little history - Artiana Galaxy. Although, not the best , Artiana has definitely left an everlasting impact on Brook football, producing some of Brookstation's finest talents and contributing to the overall development of the game in the nation.

The club was founded in 1945, a period which was marked by distress throughout the nation. Established initially as the Olympic Club of Artiana, it didn't take very long for the club to engage themselves in the football league, spending their first few seasons in the lower divisions of the Brook Division. There was nothing much special about the first few seasons of the club and in fact the club also struggled to a certain extent , barely managing to maintain their position in the second division. It was during this period of duress, that industrialist John Gondeau of the Galaxy group stepped up and bought a major part of the club. Gondeau was a man who always had an eye for the future and pretty much like his business endeavours, he aimed more towards the future of the club. Thus, instead of spending exorbitantly on players , he focused on promoting a youth programme, a result of which would reflect fruitfully in the years to come. Thus 1968, marked the alteration in the namesake to Artiana Galaxy and the beginning of the club's actual history.

As far as the colours of the club are concerned, there isn't much lore or fascination behind the basic hues of blue, although the logic isn't that simple either. One of the original founding fathers of the club (before the renovation in 1963), Jean-Pierre Chalamet was known famously for being a leading figure in the field of gambling. The undisputed master of derbies, Chalamet enjoyed an elegant lifestyle thanks to the enormous amount of wealth that he had accumulated thanks to his horses. As a result, he had a special affection for his horses and stable. The colours of Artiana were infact nothing but the very colour of his stables, the iconic blue shades which demarcated his territory in the world of racing. Even after the merger with Galaxy group, the blues remained and till date they are visible on the club's jerseys.

However, Artiana is one of those clubs whose crest went through a major alteration. The initial crest obviously possessed a silhouette of an elegantly posed horse with the tones of blue in the background. The change however features a typical simplified representation of space , to bear a more prominent resemblance to the 'galaxy'. This change was probably the most dissatisfying event in the entire club's history and the shift from a more royal dignified emblem to a more modern and abstract design was both pretty dull and unwelcomed by the fans.

Similarly, Artiana is also one of the few clubs to have changed their turf altogether. Initially playing their games in the small Stade Chalamet, named after their previous owner, the club soon shifted to the new, much more technologically advanced "The Galaxy" , one of the most futuristic and lavish stadiums in Brookstation at the moment. The transition period of the club during the 60s saw the arrival of coach Jose la Pase, who immediately adopted his style of play, which came to be known as the Artiana system. The playing system focused mainly on a swift and tactical system , much different from the original slow paced football adopted by majority of the clubs at that point. Players like Dan Farley , Dylan Farley and Zak Hadley , all of whom became perfectly suited to the style of play, had become more consistent than ever , the result of which very soon led them to a second division championship and a subsequent promotion to the major division. The 60s was a period of greatness for the club and even if they didnt manage to go as far as champions, they definitely acquired a respectable number of silverware under their name. But soon after the end of the decade, the club broke up into fragments and Artiana was never the same anymore.

From the 70s onwards, Artiana has always been oscillating to and fro from the second division to the first and even reaching the third in 1980. Well, apart from their extremely astonishing comeback during the 90s and the 2004 division title under the greatness of club legend Agner Lasse, there is not much to talk about when it comes to Artiana. It is a club which has just existed, a club located in a city which is barely talked about , making it nothing but a boring club overall.

[Aleirave]

A New Home
Aleirave 1-4 Chromatika

"Welp... that opener was a bit of a wash..." Tony Beaujoleil said about his new stadium's first match in Lahaira.
"You're the one who wanted to have the toughest, big-ticket opponents play here," Haulafo Paka'ula told him, "you should've expected a loss or two out of them!"
"You could've at least tried to make it compe--"

"ENOUGH!" the king yelled down at Mr. Beaujoleil.
"Excuse me?"
"Can you please stop harassing Haulafo... the Seagulls tried here, and yeah, they lost to a far stronger team than themselves. Believe it or not, it happens! And I don't wanna hear another word of it from you..."

"I've never seen you like this Will--" Haulafo noted.
"You haven't had to deal with Tony's bullshit like I have..." the king replied as Tony walked away.
"Is he always like that?"
"Way, way too often... he just gets under my nerves so much..."
"So why do you deal with him the way you do?"

"Well... look at this place! No matter how unhinged he can be sometimes, he does try to do good things for people... before this, what did Lahaira have for a stadium?"

"Did we even need this though? This sort of just seems like an ego project disguised as a 'gift to the nation'! The Old Grounds serve us just fine, what even is the point of this floating monstrosity??"

"I'm... not really sure, to be honest."

[Tanirinthia]

---

OF FATES AND FORTUNES
Chapter Two - The Rabbit Hole

---

The cans and takeout boxes laid piled up around her, it had been days since that message had popped up on her screen and she had not left the flat in all that time. Searching the web for anything to do with football charities, and something that stuck out was like finding a needle in a stack of needles the size of a small hill. After a fruitless first twenty-four hours which only served to add more needles to the stack, another approach was needed, one she kicked herself for not realising sooner. The side channels, it's always the side channels.

The next couple of days was spent with her taking the huge dataset of football charity matches, and comparing against everything single public (and not so public) data sources she could, writing up a quick program to identify and filter matches that correspond with other spikes or troughs in the data sources. She set everything going and hoped, and with that not even the sheer amount of caffeine pumping through her system could keep her up any longer.

She dreamed a restless sleep, feeling caught in a maze of which there seemed to be no escape, until finally she reached what she assumed was the centre of the maze, and cold empty feeling room, with someone standing facing away from here. She called out to them, a noise repeating in the background, the sound of a coin flipping, the person didn't hear her or chose not to respond. She walked towards them, but the figure seems to keep the same distance from her as she walked, she began to ran, the sound of the coin flipping becoming louder and louder, eventually she was sprinting making it to the figure, turning it around only to see her brother face burning and covered in blood

The loud beep awoke her with a start sending cans and boxes flying.

SEARCH AND ANALYSIS COMPLETE

30 RESULTS FOUND

She read over the report output, it appear that when The Mighty Oaks (which appears to be a Tanirinthia best XI) played since 1987 each match was accompanied with a power spike lasting the period of the match, two days before each match police resources were diverted in pretty much the same amounts of officers and in fact seemingly the same officers diverted each time, and the final data matching point always the same five hotels booked out in full. She had found her needles jumping up and letting out a celebratory whoop. She merrily entered in each of the thirty charities into her various search platforms and set her programs digging away, and with that going to take an hour or two her senses suddenly alerted her to the chaos of cans and boxes in front of her as well as her nose in particular alerting her to the fact she had not showered in some days now. Time to freshen up before she could start to get some answers.

[StrayaRoos]

StrayaRoos 4 (Kerr '18, '78, Vidya '52, Ari '90+4)
Zeta Reka and Hungeldom 3 (Unknown '28, '49, '87)
HT: 1-1 Att: 28,716

StrayaRoos claimed their first win of their WC96 Qualifying campaign with a nailbiting 4-3 defeat of Zeta Reka and Hungeldom. Alana Kerr opened the scoring in the 18th minute, converting a spot kick, then the Zeta Rekans equalised 10 minutes later, making it 1-all. The game stayed this way at the break, before Zeta Reka made it 2-1 in the 49th, after their winger scored an impressive solo goal, having intercepted a poor pass from Yasmeen Karmea. Ella Vidya equalised in the 52nd from a corner, before Alana Kerr got a second goal in the 78th, scoring off a rebound from the opposing goalie. Zeta Reka then scored an 87th minute goal from the spot, after Kai Kuyta went in with a reckless tackle that got him sent off. Staring down the prospect of another penalty robbing them of a win, the Emus threw on every attacking player they had on the bench, switching to a 3-2-3-1 formation, which somehow worked, as Ali Ari scored off a cross from Ade Morgan in the 94th, making it 4-3, with no time for the Zeta Rekans to equalise. The goal completed a miraculous season for him, going from SPL2 failure all the way to a national team place.
With the first win in the bag, how many more can the Emus get?

[TJUN-ia]

The Random Rambles of a Jaguar - World Cup 96 Edition
with Killian Looker

Welcome back to this Random Ramble. Last time out, you got a sense of how TJUN-ian football fan culture can be ultra-reactive to anything the Jagaurs do...win, lose or draw. With that in mind, the road must continue...so how did we do?

MD3: Ishadonia 1-2 TJUN-ia
MD4: TJUN-ia 0-1 Gnejs

My Take
The positives came from the Ishadonia game, a game everyone knew we had to win or else things were just not going to go well back home. The team knew that as well and with that in mind, going 2-0 up after only 15 minutes would certainly help calm the nerves down - with Jackson Smith-Scott and Regina McDuff getting the goals. Sure, the hosts got one back in the 59th...but that was that. 2-1 win, three points on the board...job done!

Then Szensky beckoned as unbeaten Gnejs were about to enter the best atmosphere in all of TJUN-ia. KS, the fan group that calls the Beregozera Stadium home, expected nothing but the best from the home team and if anyone was most vocal about the issues of the sport in this country, it would be them...and they wanted blood. For a majority of the contest, this was a defensive duel between two teams that knew the importance of these three points, going back and forth all the way across this pitch in the CEA capital...but in the end, it took only one slip by Ons Moukaddem to give Cornelis Ceder the winner in the 87th...and now, we are 5 points off the leaders. A brilliant contest...but a brutal way to fall.

Reactions
The win was well received...but the defeat just took all that good away, and everyone knew it. Four points from four games is never good, especially one third into your campaign...and you could tell there is fear spreading around. No one wants to miss three-straight WCs...because that would just confirm how mid this nation has become. That our time in the spotlight was no more. No one wants to see TJUN-ia cast aside as a 'has been', a nation that were the talk of the town until they fell from grace. And that's why this campaign is important to many people. The goal is still to be competitive in the WC Finals by the Centenary Edition in 8 years time...and right now, many would agree we're falling flat on our face.

Next Fixtures

MD5: @Conania (3rd, 4pts)
MD6: BYE

Just the one game this time for us, against a team that also has 4 points. We have to win, pure and simple.

8 games remain.

---

SCHEDULE (Group 14)
Revert to this post for stadium information.
MD1: @Delte (3) - Ildemorton Road, Oswark-upon-Delte L 0-1 (5th)
MD2: vs Sudilia (77) - Stade de la Victoire, Roi Ville D 2-2 (5th)
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD3: @Ishadonia (269) W 2-1 (4th)
MD4: vs Gnejs (42) - Beregozera Stadium, Szensky L 0-1 (5th)
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD5: @Conania (236)
MD6: BYE
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD7: vs United Hawkland (142) - Estadio Universidad Carlandas, Carlandas
MD8: vs Delte (3) - National Stadium, TJUN-ia City
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD9: @Sudilia (77)
MD10: vs Ishadonia (269) - Ke Kahua Pāʻani o Pua Aloalo, Kepu Manu
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD11: @Gnejs (42) - Kejm Park, Port Kejm
MD12: vs Conania (236) - Tiankong Stadium, Tiankong
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD13: BYE
MD14: @United Hawkland (142) - Østad Colliseum, Østad (TBC)

[Elmyia]

The Beaucester Gazette
Beer and Loathing on the Qualification Trail
Porras Grinds out wins as Public Switch Off and Players Get Rowdy

Valentina Galli applauded the few remaining fans, they languidly returned the favour. On a night where the team got reshuffled she took the captaincy for the very first time, she really deserved better than a slow and tedious 1-0 win over East Leaf Islands.

Porras seems to have found a new quality for his once callow Elmyia side, solidity. Only one goal conceded across three games, but a series of performances that saw Elmyia labour to three consecutive victories against teams they expect to put to the sword, Francazar, Darkmania and East Leaf Islands respectively. The switch to the 3-2-4-1 formation has seen Elmyia hold possession, 71%, 65% and 68% in each. Three goals in the first two looked a decent return, but the side seem to lack incision at present, goals from dead ball situations padding out victories in the first two.

With this seems to be a sense that the public has somewhat switched off for qualifying. One might expect a degree of complacency after two successful qualifying campaigns, fans enthusiasm to see Elmyia chug past teams outside the top 100 in the world might be dimmed. More than that, however, the Football Federation seems to have alienated a key chunk of the public. The FF's financial entanglements with the autocratic regime of Corrupt Petrostate have been a ongoing scandal.

The money the regime holds in Hellenic has possibly soured the players currently boycotting the side against returning. It's currently rumoured that Beresford, Speight and Hightower now have personal animosity with centre-back Grosso, who has accepted free holidays in the oil rich dictatorship. Froggatt's personal beliefs also seem to have caused a degree of conflict with three players who have defended a series of liberal causes.

The sum of all this is a national side missing several key performers, with fans switched off and a manager struggling for solutions. Porras appears to cut an increasingly frustrated figure, tied to not speaking out and hindered by those above him, it is now surely only the opportunity to go one step further and make it into the knockout rounds of the World Cup.

Against East Leaf Islands this seemed to come to a head. The heavily rotated side seemed to be walking through syrup. A lack of apparent threat in the other direction led to a continued exodus to the bars in the guts of Mosse Park. Galli, seemingly the only player operating with any urgency, popped up at a corner to prod home from a failed clearance. The remaining 60 minutes passed with minimal incident. Galli to Marinos, Marinos out to Albrook on the wing, back to Reid who checked back to Galli. And repeat. For an hour. Tedious and low energy, Elmyia got over the line and Porras learned precious little.

It is quite possible that the public will now finally switch back onto the campaign. Away to Vdara, and home to the Holy Empire, the qualification campaign could possibly hinge on these. Having rotated through his full squad Porras now understands his options, with the sad caveat that there were few standouts in the win over East Leaf Islands. Galli was personally excellent, but it remains doubtful that she fits into a role in the side. The midfield has four roles available, but it requires two disciplined double pivots to sit in front of the back three, and the two more advanced midfielders are required to drop between the lines. Galli's own skillset of ball winning and box crashing lacks a natural fit in the system.

Against the top two seeds this new, more cautious Elmyia, will be seeking to control proceedings in a way they often struggle to against top sides. The question will be, is anyone still watching.

[Darmen]

Ten Goal Weekend Sees Darmen Bounce Back

SCOTT CITY - The All Greens experienced an explosive offensive weekend as they scored ten goals against their two opponents to secure six points. The high scoring victories will restore a bit of hope in Darmen's chances to qualify after its opening weekend went as bad as possible.

Arjunnagar never looked confident in front of the 45,000 fans in Augusta, with Truman Ryley scoring a first half hat trick to sink any chances the visitors might have had at at least a point. Darmen's second string back four played stifling defense, holding the 232nd ranked team in the multiverse to just three shots, Ori Poirier let in one late in an otherwise impeccable match for Darmen.

Travelling to the Euran Oceania Territories to take on the Expats, no one expected that the Darmeni XI would continue their high scoring ways, but that's precisely what they did. A Marianne Lee brace with additional goals from her compatriots up front in James January and Torger Woodward would have been enough to secure a comfortable victory, but Dwayne Loritz and late substitute Karter Clayton added goals of their own as the All Greens throttled the Expats, 6-2.

Darmen now looks ahead to a home match against Saint Eleanor and a visit to Eraman to round out the first half of World Cup 96 qualification. Currently 3rd in the Group 15 standings, Darmen's zero point opening weekend doesn't appear to have vanquished the All Greens' chances to qualify for the World Cup, at least not yet.

[Sylestone]

CLINICAL SENTIENTS OVERTURN CONSECUTIVE DEFICITS TO TOP GROUP

KIRKHAM, SYLESTONE - The next international break has come and gone and the Sentients have another six points to their name, although both did come at the precious cost of a goal. With a perfect nine points from three games, these results have seen them launch to the top of Group 12 and with one of their two byes already behind them, it really is just the start Mojmir Anac and his team were after.

But bloody hell, Jeruselem and Raspotochje did not make it easy. The Sentients were fully aware of the threat the Princesses possessed having played against them six years ago back in the nation’s return to international football in qualifiers for World Cup 93, but Raspotochje were the surprise packages. Perhaps many could’ve expected Jeruselem to go 1-0 up through Sally Sellen’s deflected shot in the 51st minute of the match, but not many expected Raspotochje to hold out strong in Kirkham for the entirety of the first half before taking the lead through a clinical penalty kick by Robert Kiltić.

But what followed after those goals was something the Sentients are not used to doing very much of, but it was executed so well that one might have thought they’ve been forced to do it all their lives. For once that first goal was scored against them, Sylestone did not relent.

As soon as Sellen scored at the Dazza Dallas Stadium to make it 1-0 Jeruselem, the crowd did not celebrate for long. Almost immediately, the Sentients began to attack their opponents box, almost as if the two teams had switched jerseys such was the differing style of play. Now, it was Jeruselem who were defending their hearts out, and Sylestone who were constantly with the ball, pushing numbers forward and piling the pressure on the home side while they resorted to a defend at all costs style of play and attempted to attack on the counter.

It was never going to work. Jeruselem simply weren’t used to playing such football, and the Sentients’ midfield was far too strong for the Princesses to deal with. It took seventeen long minutes for the dam wall to break but when it broke, it broke.

It was Matilda Molineux who provided the first of three consecutive blows within eight minutes, the Capitol Athletic wingback charging into the no-man’s land Jack Ryland’s outswinging corner had fallen into after clipping the head of Brienne Batenshire and volleying the ball past a rooted Thea Ashwood to equalise. But the Sentients would not slacken and continued to apply the pressure - thirty seconds after the restart, Charlotte Eastwood scuffed a golden one-on-one opportunity to completely reverse the deficit after taking the ball off Batenshire in the defence but it would not be long until she would make up for it.

Now that the breakthrough had been made, the only thing the Princesses could do was run for cover against the ongoing onslaught. So un-Sylestonean it was, but so effective. Jeruselem had not set up for this and it showed. They had no counter.

Although only one moment of quality was needed to reverse a 2-1 deficit and set the game back on equal footing, as soon as Morgan Gallagher’s stunning strike that eclipsed two defensive lines ruffled the back of the net in the 72nd minute, there would be no way back for the hosts. Eastwood, making up for her blunder of only moments ago, would go on to make it three in the 76th after Alexandra Arnold’s through ball, carving the shot between Ashwood’s outstretched legs to seal the game and three points.

And so it was two wins from two at the Dazza Dallas Stadium, the Sentients returning from their 1-0 upset in Jeruselem from six years ago out for blood, completing the 3-1 turnaround and sealing a much needed three points. It would provide the catalyst of belief that led to an eerily identical turnaround against Raspotochje mere days later.

Again, the score was 0-0 at half time. Again, Sylestone’s opponents would take a1-0 lead and again, the Sentients would score thrice to make it 3-1 come full time. But credit where credit’s due; Raspotochje made so much more of a game out of it than anyone expected them too. Although they only held the lead for a mere fifty seconds after Kiltić’s converted penalty from a Harvey Martin handball, it took until the 80th minute before Jack Ryland’s cross-goal finish from a tight angle put the hosts ahead and until the 90th for Brett Sarcav-Jones to seal the points from the spot.

But more needs to be said about the run of form midfielder Morgan Gallagher is currently in. make that two goals in his last two appearances, and two brilliant strikes too. This one came from a Riley Strathfield cutback as the Couno Rangers midfielder slammed the ball into Vladimir Donskoy’s top left corner to level the game just as visiting fans were in elation back home - after all, it’s not every day you go 1-0 up away from home against your group’s pot one nation. Despite not being considered a regular starter for the Rangers, the 26-year-old controlled the centre of the midfield and played a critical role in ensuring that the Sentients would dominate the game - something that wasn’t exactly characteristic of them - Raspotochje barely getting a look in all game really. The penalty itself had its element of luck; Marina Gerulić’s cross into the box was completely mishit and instead of curling around Harvey Martin, instead ricocheted into his trailing arm inside the box,Kiltić slamming it home to make it 1-0.

But even after Gallagher’s equaliser, the 276th-ranked underdogs did what 57th-ranked Jeruselem didn’t do - they refused to crumble under the pressure. Sure, it kept piling on top of them, but they held out, held out and held out even more, putting bodies on the line to protect that point and looking to attack the Sentients on the counter whenever receiving the ball.

Sylestone, though, are ranked 17th in the world for a reason and here in Kirkham, they showed exactly why that was. A brilliant ball forward from Hugo Mornington saw Jeremy Onus released down the wing in the 80th minute, who then proceeded to cut it back into the box for Brett Sarcav=Jones. Tracking back, Mladen Robulović found himself completely defeated by the young playmaker’s fake shot, spotting a run no one else had seen and knocking it out wider, right into Jack Ryland’s run into the box. One touch forward to take the ball away from the defender was all the Serrapince-based winger needed before he tapped it across Donskoy, nestling just inside the far post, but beyond the line nevertheless.

Even with a deficit, still the visitors fought, pushing themselves to the very edge as the Sentients reverted back into a defensive 4-4-1-1 setup from their more expansive 4-2-3-1. In Pavao Kerović’s case, though, he’d go too far, tripping Riley Strathfield in a Sylestonean attack to give the referee an easy decision to make. Although no cards were pulled, the penalty was always going to be given - in these days of lengthier checks, this one was a fresh breath of air. It was a clear penalty, and was finished by Brett Sarcav-Jones in decisive manner, smacking it straight into the roof of the net, Donskoy left helplessly diving to his right.

Raspotochje had fought, they really had. But at the end, the quality and persistence of the Sentients had been just a step too far for them. Yet, they’d still go home with more positive takeaways than negative, their heads held high knowing that they pushed one of the multiverse’s most in-form teams to the end in Kirkham.

For Sylestone, there was plenty of confidence going around - coming back from a deficit so decisively in consecutive matches bodes well for now, although it would’ve been easier if they hadn’t conceded in the first place. Their defence just wasn’t clicking like it was against Zenic but even saying that, despite the chances that were scored, neither team looked close to making it two. It will need to improve, though, ahead of a crucial matchday six fixture in Chamberley against a hurting Commonwealth of Baker Park side, one desperate to return to the World Cup after last cycle’s shock failure - with a 5-1 rout in Jeruselem, they’ve already shown plenty of warning signs. If the Sentients can keep them at bay, it should set the scene for a third successive qualification but should the Commonwealth come out on top, it’s entirely possible that the road to first place in the group will be much more difficult than anticipated. It’s crucial that games such as Sylestone’s next fixture against Al-Tamazgha are completed with a decisive three-point sweep for even if you can beat the better teams, if you slacken off against the teams you really should be beating you’re not going to get anywhere.

Every game counts this cycle, even more so than usual with the reduced schedule. Any sort of slip up can be costly. Can the Sentients make it five from five and move clear in the race for World Cup 96 qualification? Or will they succumb under the pressure and make the job that much harder for themselves? Let’s hope not.

---

Jeruselem vs Sylestone @ Dazza Dallas Stadium, Jeruselem City

Jeruselem (4-4-2): Ashwood; Suns (Oldman 62’ ( 77’)) - Pundi - Batenshire ( 50’) - Mikami; Lockwood - Radahn - Firestone (Wight 62’) - Dallas (Ranger 82’); Schiff - Sellen ( 79’) (Warren 82’)

Sylestone (4-4-1-1 → 5-4-1): Macleay; Holt ( 60’) (Cross 79’) - Mornington - Blackall - Molineux (Statton 89’); Ryland - Hellyer - Lawson ( 45+3’) (Gallagher 57’) - Jones (Arnold 57’); Sarcav-Jones (Dowie 79’); Eastwood

Jeruselem 1-3 Sylestone
                                           Sellen 51’       Molineux 68’
                                                              Gallagher 72’
                                                              Eastwood 76’

Sylestone vs Raspotochje @ Sentient Oval, Kirkham

Sylestone (4-4-1-1 → 4-2-3-1): Brick Wall; Wettenhall - Mornington - Faucett ( 73’) - Martin (Molineux 58’); Milligan (Ryland 75’) - Gallagher (Sarcav-Jones 75’) - Woodfull - Jones (Onus 75’); Rodway; Strathfield

Raspotochje (4-4-2): Donskoy; M Makić - Kerović - Matić - Konopkina ( 84’); Gerulić (Urdić 64’) - Robulović - Su Huilin - Sultić (Gero 82’); Gerotić - Kiltić (Trotsky 82’)

Sylestone 3-1 Raspotochje
                                       Gallagher 49’       Kiltić 48’ (p)
                                          Ryland 80’
                                    Sarcav-Jones 90’ (p)

---

Starting Lineup vs Al-Tamazgha @ Unknown

Charlton; Cross - Nutt - Faucett - Statton; Milligan - Gallagher - Woodfull - Onus; Smythe; Strathfield

Starting Lineup vs Commonwealth of Baker Park @ Chamberley Institute of Sport, Chamberley

Macleay; Wettenhall - Mornington - Blackall - Molineux; Ryland - Rodway - Lawson - Arnold; Sarcav-Jones; Eastwood

[Squornshelan Remnant States]

Undertow
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7
Chapter 8
'Hana

Things were actually going well for once for Oihana and Cristián. They’d been dealing for Raps for a few months now. It hadn’t been like flipping a switch, but money wasn’t so much of an issue now, like it had been working for Copioso Zambrano. They had started to get a decent stash together, enough to maybe look for a new apartment out of North Linden and away from the Sarzonian mob who ran the neighborhood. For the moment though, they were sprawled on the couch in front of a new TV, passing a joint back and forth over a litter of snack bags and empty cans of alcopop. Cristián idly flipped through channels and landed on a local news anchor.

“What was supposed to be a celebratory press conference following the groundbreaking ceremony for a new affordable housing development in Arkintoofle turned contentious this afternoon as Arkintoofle Mayor Aintza Jansi and Brighton-Vang Foundation chair Lyyti Vang faced unexpectedly sharp questions from some members of the press.”

‘Hana straightened a little on the couch. “Weren’t you involved in some kind of BVF program once, Cristián?”

“Eh, well yeah I think they helped me get set up in my first place, you remember the one, when I only ever wanted to go to yours because it was so small and shitty?”

“Yeah, not a great area either.”

“Eh, at least they were trying. Not a lot of people lining up to help out refugees like that.”

Onscreen, the anchor continued. “The planned Valkas Bank Apartments is intended provide around 400 housing units at subsidized rents in the Zossopt-Valkas district of Arkintoofle, just across the river from the downtown commercial districts. While the development has been praised by many as a much-needed step to address the urban housing shortage in the city, it has drawn criticism from right wing commentators.”

“In particular, a representative of conservative regional news portal The Heartlander was eventually removed from the event after refusing to accept answers to his questions and interrupting other media members.”

The shot of the anchor was replaced with video from the press conference with Mayor Jansi standing at a podium. The voice of a man standing off-camera could be heard.

“Mayor Jansi, can you answer the people of Arkintoofle as to why your administration continues to prioritize spending taxpayer money supporting immigrants and contributing to rising crime in our city?”

“Valkas Bank will benefit everyone who’s feeling the pressure of high rents. The rumors that some have published that only immigrants and refugees will be eligible to live there are absolutely false.”

The video then cut to Brighton-Vang Foundation Chair Lyyti Vang at the podium.

“People have come to expect this kind of misplaced wastefulness from your foundation . . .”

“Is there a question here or just a rant?”

“The question is, Ms. Vang, what will you say when this becomes another run-down, crime-ridden housing project that law-abiding Squornshelans fear to walk past? When gangland shootouts like what happened in Lublova this week are an ordinary occurrence here, what will you say to the victims then?”

“What do you say now to the people who are paying nearly three quarters of their income in rent? To those sleeping in their cars or under the overpasses of this city? Helping to put a roof over people’s heads is a step toward eliminating crime, not increasing it. Neglect creates crime, not care.”

“An uncontrolled flood of immigrants creates crime, with you all too eager to hold the door open.”

“No sir. You’ve had your one question. Your argument is invalid, and your time is up.”

‘Hana shrieked laughter, so loud that Cristián jumped. “Sorry, sorry but I wasn’t expecting that. Vang doesn’t pull punches.”

“Makes sense though, wasn’t she some kind of badass power forward in her footballing days?”

“Something like that,” ‘Hana shrugged, “I was never the biggest football fan.”

“Anyway, that’s the kind of thing it takes to stand up to the bigots. Too many politicians are scared to speak their own language back to them.”

“Well if your whole identity is about being so bland that no one hates you and you stay popular, then yeah.”

“Hmm.”

There was a silence as both drifted in thought for a moment.

“Hey ‘Hana?”

“Yeah?”

“That Valkas place they’re building didn’t look half bad. You ever think about Arkintoofle?”

“Well I’d have to get a bunch of tats or I’d stick out there, wouldn’t I?”

“You could pull it off. Anyway, we’ve got a good bit of money together now, we should talk about where to go some time.”

“Yeah, but not now, it’s late.”

A sharp knock at the door shook them both. ‘Hana nearly fell off the couch as the two scrambled to the peephole. A male figure stood a few feet back, but they couldn’t make out his features in the darkness.

“Do we open it?”

“Grab your pepper spray ‘Hana, I’ve got the bat, let’s see what he wants.” Keeping the chain lock in place, Cristián opened the door wide enough to look out. “What is it?”

“I’ll admit it’s late, but is that any way to greet an old friend and business partner?” The figure’s arms and lips spread broadly.

It took a moment for Cristián to be able to answer. “Román? What are you doing here?”

“I came to say hello, catch up a little. You haven’t been in to see me or Mr. Zambrano in so long, we got worried, wanted to check up.” Around the corner of the apartment hallway, three other men appeared, taking up flanking positions around Román. “Aren’t you going to invite us in?”

Qualifying Schedule and Results:

MD01: JFV 4-1 SRS @ Stadion Ljubco Savevski (cap.  24,000), Samuilovo, JFV
MD02: SRS 7-2 USD @ Flanoil Arena (cap. 50,350), Traal, West Flania, SRS
MD03: ZWZ 5-2 SRS @ Wayr Stadium, Rackham Range, ZWZ
MD04: BYE
MD05: SRS  v  CEM @ Black Raven Field (cap. 35,400), Yassaca, Sivolvia, SRS
MD06: SEM  v  SRS @ Natunolstadion (cap. 86,000), Jansberg, SEM
MD07: SRS  v  BRS @ The Lutenstaad (cap. 75,000), Lutenblag, Molvania, SRS
MD08: SRS  v  JFV @ Admiral Cherenkov Stadium (cap. 71,200), Santraginus, Isle of Squornshelous, SRS
MD09: USD  v  SRS @ TBA
MD10: SRS  v  ZWZ @ Megabrantid Financial Field (cap. 69,245), Brantisvogan, Megabrantis, SRS
MD11: BYE
MD12: CEM  v  SRS @ TBA
MD13: SRS  v  SEM @ Bridger Lane (cap. 72,406), Damogran, Algolia, SRS
MD14: BRS  v  SRS @ Wimbley Stadium (cap. Various), Council Groves, BRS

[Zwangzug]

The Spenson Star

In Zwangzug's first home match of the qualifying campaign, the national team convincingly defeated the Squornshelan Remnant States, 5-2. The Black-and-Reds' all-out-attack set the tone for the day, and while they were able to keep up with the hosts in the first half, Zwangzug pulled away after halftime, with a Stephen Marcus goal five minutes after the restart setting the tone for the second half. A win against the second seeds will no doubt provide some reassurance for the campaign as a whole, to say nothing of the prolonged history between these two sides, dating back to [we're not doing this -ed]

Zwangzug got off to an early start with a goal from Chester Hildegard in the ninth minute, assisted by Sullivan Brecht. Twelve minutes later, a pass from Øystein Shakhnovich set up Tarbi Ksudach, and the visitors pulled level. In minute 34, a dribbling run from Ukko Saigir culminated in a short pass to Tiiu Aaltonen, who tapped it in. [Not every day you see a goal created by two players whose uniform numbers sum to 121. -ed] Wait, so we can talk about that but you don't like talking about World Cup history?

...Whatever. The lead only lasted four minutes, however; Sofya Turmal-Hence was not afraid of Ffraid Norling at back, and dribbled past the Chalesm FC defender to equalize.

After halftime, Zwangzug enjoyed the majority of possession, and Marcus' goal made it 3-2. Two sets of black stripes battled for control of the midfield, with captain Sevet-Ibilx Kai [don't even think about it -ed] What??? Um, that is, leading by example, while rookie Jubilee McGraw put in many steps before being replaced by the more experienced Jude McWaler. Finally, in minute 71, a long smash from Ashley Fillmore-Gaul hit the crossbar, and while Radoslav Bláha could not overcome the momentum carrying him that direction, McWaler cheekily smashed in the rebound. Marcus scored again in minute 86 to secure the victory.

All in all, the team that wears black stripes and also stripes that are "confederate" red (my editor tells me this phrasing is very important but I don't really know what's going on here) may have been their own worst enemies on the day; Zwangzug's growing control in the second half didn't thwart their all-out attack any, and doubling down on ineffective tactics seemed only to leave them in deeper Dudu [stop -ed]. For Kate DiMarini, it will likely be a relief to have this match out of the way; the demise of the Eagles' Cup has been received with gratitude by fans worried about fixture congestion, but it occasionally served some purpose in giving players a look at some of the world's top teams before heading off to qualifiers to play in places like Celestial Emapier [sic].

(MD4: Turmal-Hence 16, Hegesa 20, Spand-Maunk 49, McGovern 71)

[Adab]

Monday, October 19, 2048
Ekhistan 0-0 Adab

KickTheBall.com
Bringing you the latest news and rumors in football, in Adab and abroad

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Monday, October 19, 2048 | 11 Muharram 1471 | 12 Heshvan 5809
Ekhistan 0-0 Adab

NEWS | WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
By: Enlilbani Hussein

Al-Amin to publish cookbook

In the aftermath of Adab’s goalless draw against Ekhistan in the third match of the World Cup qualifiers, winger Hakim al-Amin surprised journalists – and his own manager – by announcing at the post-match press conference that he is planning to publish a cookbook.

Accompanying national team manager Saad Kaykali at the press conference, the 39-year-old al-Amin – never known for his culinary talent – took the opportunity to announce to those present that he and his wife will be releasing a cookbook “sometime early next year”.

“It’s a labor of love,” al-Amin said. “I have been trying my hand at cooking over the last year or two and it’s been going on well. My wife is obviously much better at this and I’ve learned a lot from her.”

The cookbook will contain recipes from “every Adabian province”, al-Amin explained. “It will reflect the variety and diversity present in our country. Hummus, fattoush, shkedei marak, kateh, what people eat from the Sinai to the Zagros, it will be there.”

Reacting to the surprise news, Kaykali declared it to be “very interesting” and said that he looks forward to buying al-Amin’s cookbook when it hits the stores.

“I’m no cook myself,” Kaykali confessed, “but I think it will be useful for my household. I do like tasting new kinds of food.”

Al-Amin said that he had intentionally not told any other teammate – in both club and country – of his venture.

“I try to maintain a wall between my public and private life,” he said. “I’m not the kind of guy to publicize what I’m doing outside the football pitch.

“So I understand if this comes as a complete surprise to even those who are closest to me. But it never hurts to try something new in life.”

[Kimi-Suomi]

After starting out with back-to-back draws, the Huuhkajat of Kimi-Suomi spent their 1st bye week of the campaign looking towards the chaos known as Group 20...one where everyone had at least one point already and no one was stretching away from everyone else. When Esko Laaksonen saw this, the only thing he had to say was this: "This group is still anyone's game". That may be true...but could the Huuhkujat take advantage? Or are we too green for that leap?

The answers would be found over in Pesä as Reçueçn came to town, a team just outside the Top 100 that Bonheur Relié has taken over in recent times. The Unicorns certainly brought their A-Game to our turf, with Franky Adams and Per Tegeler certainly being aggressive with the ball, but they couldn't find a way past Anna-Leena Outinen at all. Jyrki Bottas found the winning goal in the 32nd in the end and considering the other results, the Huuhkajat were now tied for 2nd in this group...two points off the lead.

So far, so good...but we still have a long way to go. Brannfjord is up next over in Grimnes before the legendary Cassadaigua make a trip to the Galaktien Colosseum for what should be a huge game. Things are only getting more and more important. 9 games remain. NOSTA KUIN HUUHKAJAT!

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SCHEDULE (Group 20)
MD1: vs Mytanija (23) - The Nest [Pesä], Kimi Kaupunki D 0-0 (T-2nd)
MD2: @Lakikieli [Legalese] (258) - National Stadium, Central Junction D 2-2 (T-4th)
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD3: BYE (T-5th)
MD4: vs Recuecn (108) - The Nest [Pesä], Kimi Kaupunki W 1-0 (T-2nd)
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD5: @Brannfjord (79) - Blekebakken Stadion, Grimnes
MD6: vs Cassadaigua (43) - Galaktien Colosseum (Colosseum of the Galaxies), Lumikukkulat
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD7: @Erishinmaat [The Erishlands] (291)
MD8: @Mytanija (23)
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD9: vs Lakikieli [Legalese] (258) - The Nest [Pesä], Kimi Kaupunki
MD10: BYE
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD11: @Recuecn (108) - Le Stade National, Reçueçn (city)
MD12: vs Brannfjord (79) - Galaktien Colosseum (Colosseum of the Galaxies), Lumikukkulat
---------------------------------------------------------------
MD13: @Cassadaigua (43) - Peak 'n' Break Stadium, Grande Mountain
MD14: vs Erishinmaat [The Erishlands] (291) - Galaktien Colosseum (Colosseum of the Galaxies), Lumikukkulat

[Tikariot]

OOC Disclaimer: Content warning - this true crime series may contain imagery (no actual images, just words) that some people may find disconcerting. Reader discretion is advised.

Good evening Tikariot, welcome back to The Tikariot Files, where we look at some of Tikariot's most outrageous, brutal, mysterious criminal cases the nation has to offer - all of them unsolved.

The picture cuts to the logo of the show while images of prison cells, blood spatter and other crime-related footage is shown in the background, with a lone, sombre piano melody playing.

In our third episode, we will be looking at a quite peculiar case that, while without a doubt being highly criminal, is quite different from the other cases we are covering as it has a, likely not the right term, but "positive" side effect.

It began with Port Rhovanyon police receiving a letter from an anonymous sender who called himself The Grand Master. It advised them that they had been challenged to a game of chess. Naturally, the police did not take this letter seriously as a game of chess was not exactly something that fell into their jurisdiction. One week later, however, they received a second letter, which, according to the sender, was copied to the newsrooms of the three main Port Rhovanyon newspapers, the Chronicle, the Herald and the Tribune. In it, the Grand Master reminded them that he had not received a response and outlined the stakes of the game.

If he would lose a piece, a criminal from the police's most wanted list would be killed. However, if the Police would lose a piece, a government official would meet their maker. The police still ignored the letter, putting it down as just someone trying to get a rise out of engaging with law enforcement.

This, however, would change another week later when on the same day, Port Rhovanyon's chief of the municipal council James Woodward was found in front of the garage of his house, shot right in the forehead, and an enforcer of the Port Rhovanyon Terrone crime family in a back alley, in the same position. What connected them, however, was that both had a pawn piece stuffed inside their mouth. This was followed up by a third email, asking the police that the Grand Master hoped he had their attention now.

The instructions were that the police had 48 hours for a move, which had to be published on the front page of each of the three big Port Rhovanyon newspapers and would be the only mode of communication. This indeed had law enforcement's attention and immediately, a task force was assembled, which included several chess grand masters and the programmers from the Rhovannyr Institute of Technology that had built an experimental AI-assisted chess computer, as they were very aware of both the consequences and the fact that everything was very much in the public eye due to the involvement of the newspapers.

The case led to incredible public scrutiny as every move from both sides was widely investigated, argued and dissected. Mind you, this was in the time before the internet, so there was no tracing of emails or electronic. Forensic examinations of the letters did not give any results, no fingerprints, no details about the typewriter, paper or envelopes were in any way, shape or form identifiable.

The chess game proceeded with an eerie feeling of inevitability, everybody knowing that literally lives were at stake. Law enforcement tried to protect politicians at an unprecedented, but with every chess piece lost, the Grand Master did manage to find an official who was either unprotected or find a kink in the armour around them. Regardless of how many resources the authorities threw at the investigation, the Grand Master remained elusive and some people began to actively root for him as he cleaned the streets from criminals or got rid of often disliked politicians.

In the end, the combined brainpower of the grandmasters and experimental AI managed to turn the game in the public's favour, ultimately leading to a desperate move by the grandmaster that cost him the game. That evening, a seemingly abandoned warehouse in Port Rhovanyon's dock district exploded in a huge fireball, damaging several buildings in its vicinity. After the fire was put out, the police found a large basement, which apparently had been the location of a huge drug distribution operation. One of the charred corpses found in the aftermath of the inferno was identified as Henderson Maxwell, one of the ten most wanted criminals in Tikariot.

One day later, another letter arrived at the PRPD, congratulation the police on winning the game. Since then, nobody ever heard of the Grand Master again and despite exhautive efforts by law enforcement agencies, they could not find any evidence to his identity or whereabouts, leaving this as one of Tikariot's most baffling unsolved cases.

[Valentine Z]

Part 3 – Revamp.

Exuberant Superintendent T-2000/2904-3 Surveillant Clarissa Alanis Star Breya « La Amoureux Chéri » Millie Taissa Butterfly Mélody Coraline Jolijn Trini Clementine Hollie Samantha Zeta Harumi was more than satisfied. It is a relatively great set of two matches, looking at the scores. The third match on the home turf ended on a draw as the Valentians put 2 goals in and so did the Ceni. A formidable match, which is then topped by the Valentians having no mercy (on the field) as they put two goals against the Boring Paradise’s team, while also not offering them any goals back in return. “At first, we tried to play it defensively as it reflects our ethos a little bit more,” Clarissa then explained to the press and the fans of the team, along with some NSSCRA fans of her, “However, this does not work too well with us and for Gwen’s Angels in basketball also. We are meant to play offensively and as the matches so far have shown so far, I believe they are working! We might not be able to defend against an occasional goal or two, but then you need to go out with a bang! Again, it’s working well for us, and I am more than happy with it too! Oooh and- hm? Yes! I would like to emphasise that as well! Just because we are playing offensively doesn’t mean we are too aggressive! I can speak for my team that we won’t foul anyone. We still play by the rules, as always!”

The following day, she was looking through the data and analytics of her football team. It’s still too early to tell, but the current data and projections would suggest that when pitted against these teams – both more well-known and the relatively newbies – the Valentians would fall into the middle for the time being. They have played many seasons, but they have yet to truly break the mold and needed a comeback. Clarissa still does not fancy pressuring her team and she is not intent on doing this anytime soon. Still, she thought, it would be nice to do a little better. In the meantime, she received a mass email that is sent amongst The Sixty, basically the head and the main staff of Valentine Z. It came from one Chief Senator Annette, who has been re-reading through the national factbooks and entries that would describe Valentine Z for who they exactly are and what they exactly have. She outlines it as so: “In particular, I would like to make a request to update our factbooks, for they have been outdated for so long. It will be a massive help for the people who’re reading through our details, especially those who shows deep interest.”

Clarissa agreed, and she would volunteer to help expedite the process. After all, she has access to all of the information regarding Valentians. Perhaps other than to keep the nation’s defensive measures secretive, Valentians do not exactly run any kind of activity that would run afoul of human rights. “So, there’s nothing much on that regard and still, even after I have done the edits, the Sixty will do the vetting, anyway.” Clarissa stated, looking through thousands of the files – the information regarding the many branches of the Valentian Defense Forces, including the Civil Defense Forces, and the (unironically) named Space Force that Valentians used mostly to blast away all of the asteroids. “For my friends and colleagues and teams in the International and Interdimensional Sports ventures, we are more than confident that we will not be using the Defense Forces against them,” Clarissa remarked, “This is something that might be of interest. And sometimes, it serves to deter the others in the other universes.” Perhaps this time, it’ll be complete instead of eternally stuck like a multi-million dollar crowdfunded MMO space trader.

[OOC: Basically, I will be looking through the Military Factbook of Valentine Z, and I would like to make it a point and obligatory to clearly highlight what is taken from the factbooks there, and what is completely new content for both the RPs and for the factbooks. In the meantime, the Factbook shall NOT be updated to preserve its original form.]

[Independent Athletes from Quebec]

Independent Athletes from Quebec (IAQ) - World Cup 96 Team
WINDOW 3 - v. Cardenao, @ Doubeia

26-PLAYER ENTRY

GOALKEEPERS (3):
Marianne Oh-Ntare (Litala '93, MYT), Innes Sheppard (Urrheddiao, CMT), Devon Qalicho (Zenit Attawapiskat)

DEFENDERS (9):
Giovanni Jurgen Berhalter (Jinja City FC, BNJ), Alain Delisle (Mipojoseon), Kira Dormann (FC Inter Nantwich, TMB), Esteban Flores (Lhor, CMT), Joo Hyeong-Seok (Olympia Arkindoofle, SRS), Kim Gyeong-Seok (Urrheddiao, CMT), Drake Lokombo-Ssekitoleko (Lakewood United, TMB), Serguei Sapozhkov (Daedonggang 3.26), Frederic Yabusele (Atletik, MYT)

MIDFIELDERS (8):
Kweon Hyeok-Joon (FC Longview, VAL), Cesar Icardi-Rabiot (Jinja City FC, BNJ), Jordan Mah (Océanic C.F. Langlois, KSK), Samuel McTavish (Lakewood City, TMB), Pyo Seung-Hye (Avondale City, SYL), Maude Qalicho-Qaqqaq (Anormalies, CMT), Juan Aurelio Redondo (Montreal Koreana), Rebecca Anne Wawanolett (Chromatik, CMT)

FORWARDS (6):
Billie Blue Hamisi (Urrheddiao, CMT), Clyde Han (Wansan Noksaekjeonsa), Josephine Moreille-Park (Ceramadhion Lynx FC, TKT), Corneille-Theophile Poulin (Avondale City, SYL), Amina Salihamidzic Beckie (Frenei Tor, CMT), Otis Tekarhonhonte (Eivora Athletic FC, TKT)

Three Weddings and a Funeral

PART 1 - First Wedding - The Road to Mandalay

'Arrrrrrgggh, bloody 'ell,' Jean Helfrich Koa'aga'itöka groaned, as he slowly got out of the fall from the brutal, rock-a-bye of the mechanical bull at Bonneville's Blue Rodeo pub. His head felt like it had been hit by a hammer upon the point of contact, his stomach overturned back and forth with the pouch still full of alcohol, and the eyes, while loose in gaze, were still wide open that the next thing he could see after slowly getting up were that of his mates.

'Christ, it's a miracle you're still alive, mate,' said Isidore Domenech, as the best man pinched him twice to get the reaction out of him. The immediate look of frown from his friend, his eyes fully squeezed and mouth almost close to a bite, suggested that his hometown friend, whom he had known since first grade. 'Could see how you did two full rides on that bloody buggy though.' The mechanical bull, fortunately, was not very occupied for the night, perhaps due to the day being a Monday evening. 'Not the same ole Jean I know of.'

'What do you mean the ole Jean?' asked Heo Seung-Geon as the twenty-one year old, who was the youngest out of four best men by solid couple of years, asked. Unlike the others, who had known him either as a toddler or a fellow classmate, Seung-Geon mostly remembered him to be an up-for-no-good, hyper-energetic head boy whose sole goal was to bring the 'QBC Radio's Big, Bigger and Biggest Weekend' with the hottest of stars to his school. So it was natural for him to feel surprised that there's another version of Jean. 'Thought he had always been the same I had known of him, all the way back to our Bugil days.'

'Not one bit, believe it or not,' said Isidore, as he tried his best to lighten up the mood, while not trying to speak too much about the groom's childhood self. 'Those days he was barely seen in school, though not because he chose to skip. He used to be so sick, sometimes fainting here and there, almost as if he was a bloody ghoul-'

A slight raise of eyebrows immediately gave away some signs for Seung-Geon, though the groom would intervene right as Isidore was set to continue. 'But then I rose back like a phoenix that I bloody am, and the SUI I live by,' Jean said as he put both his hands in his waist. 'And you know, the SUI is the way of life.'

'Guess the little tum tum tugger is back indeed!' said Serge Konowalchuk, the hunkering, pale-haired bear who was one of the two other groomsmen watching him get back up. 'Jean, sorry about that fall, but you know, it's probably too funny for us to just ignore what had happened and sleep it off. So why don't we go look for another pint elsewhere?'

'Absolutely we should,' Jean answered, as he pointed both his hands with a pistol gesture at Serge. 'Gonna be a bit hard finding a place her this late on a Monday night though. You know, Bonneville things and whatnot.' He then turned around and looked back at Isidore's way. 'Isi, is the Citrus Cornet at Queen Nat street still open?'

'Not sure, The Milne (a not-Google -e.d.-) map says it's closed, but if the old barkeeper's around, we may be in for some luck,' Isidore answered, as he quickly scrolled to his phone. 'Worst comes worst, we could just go to Paint and Pony (inspired by a RL Boise bar) and pick their pick your poison special.'

'Why not? Sounds good to me,' was all that groom said, as they got themselves out of the pub. The only problem was that the weather, perhaps best explained by the light layers of snow that had started to form on the gigantic hills and mountains on the horizon, was anything but pleasant. It was only early October in Bonneville, but the temperature was low enough at three degrees celsius which, when combined with high altitude of the mountains in northern Yoseo-Manitoba, had made it a particular challenge for them to walk. Not to mention the fact that they had all donned mostly warm-weather clothes in anticipation of the conventional autumn season found out east and in Joongyeong.

Still, the groomsmen and the groom seemed quite determined to find a place for Jean to drink further into the first of two bachelor nights, and carried on. Feeling fortunate and also granted by the virtue of their bachelor house being located just next to the city's clean, old-world Downtown, they would decide to go on a walk around the Downtown, first to the Circus Cornet and then maybe Paint and Pony, before calling it the night.

A year ago...

Now into his sophomore year at the Conservatoire de Joongyeong, Heo Seung-Geon rarely spent company with his fellow classmates, mostly choosing to spend his time in his own circles at the Quartier Calanien, outside of spending occasional time with his elderly grandfather, the all-respected Dr. Heo Dong-Soo 'the Younger' of Université St. Croix, and his great-grandfather Dr. Heo Shin 'the Elder', the famous film studies professor (now emeritus) at Université Technique Jangan.

Since moving into his one-room flat in Rue Combray, Seung-Geon would wound up staying more and more at home, with his homely hours mostly spent on visualising the scores on his repertoire while lying on top of the head, or catching up on the classics his grandfather would still send them his way post-move. While with greater privacy than his grandfather's apartment, which had many rooms but limited privacy with two elderly men living on a separate level of thoughts, Seung-Geon would still avoid bringing friends and company over and instead spend most of his days outside.

This tendency, combined with pleasant, classic charm of ever-amicable six-foot-six giant, had allowed him to become a fairly known presence among his friends found at various circles of the Quartier Calanien. Always dressed to the codes of 'smart casual', preferring to stay clean over flamboyant, and simple over complicated, Seung-Geon found himself comfortable enough in almost any settings he had been with his friends who found no shortage of merit in inviting him over with little in return outside of his presence. In this case, he was here for the Seongyoongwan Drama Society's performance of a well-read 19th-century play named 'Up from Serfdom' by Gavril Soloviev, with invite coming from his friend, Jean Helfrich Koa'aga'itöka, who was the head boy when Seung-Geon was a sophomore just moved from hometown Erskine Collegiate to Bugil College.

'Ah, it brings me joy to see you, dear Seung-Geon,' said Jean, as the lighting designer walked out to give Seung-Geon an embrace. 'Hopefully the production didn't disappoint you, so to speak. The two serf leads for this one, Ivan and Riley, may have gotten too immersed into the role and perhaps have forgotten that this Baldwin Hale Theatre is only so big that it could seat fifty..those freshmen and whatnot.'

'No, no, no, that's fine,' Seung-Gweon answered with a couple of shakes to his head to suggest his ambivalence from the exuberance by the cast, who were likely selected via getting noticed from their 'Cuppers competition' reserved for the freshmen at the start of every autumn semester. Seung-Geon had considered auditioning for it himself as a freshman, with Conservatoire being one of the institutions that were directly affiliated to the university and their degrees translated to the equivalent of a Bachelor of Music (BMus) in most other universities, but stayed away due to 'personal reasons'. 'Please, I always come away here refreshed by the fresh interpretations of the olds, so it's always crazier the better.' Seung-Geon answered.

He, however, kept close enough distance as an attendee to most their plays, which he found useful in keeping himself 'grounded', while also befriending most of those in the 'rotation' at the same time. Being a Conservatoire student, and a Trombonist no less, came handy for Seung-Geon had come to help out his friends with occasional orchestration, and would even provide musical support where needed on some, and he took pleasure in it. For most part, however, the joy came in the pleasure of amity where his closest friends mostly happened to be the rural or working-class members of the society, a sizeable minority whom he happened to relate better even if the junior had been every bit under the limelight as the son of Mr. Baseball himself.

'In that case, I am more than glad to see you as always,' said Jean, nowadays a postgraduate student finishing up his Masters degree in political science. 'Now excuse me, I'll be right back, as I have to run to the back of the stage. I'll be back once I sort things out with the stage crew there, give me a moment.'

And with that Seung-Geon found himself by himself, as he looked around the rest of the main floor concourse. He could recognise most of the spectators, whom he had either assumed to be the friends and even family members of the younger cast, but otherwise new to him. Most of his friends on this play had already gone back to the dressing room, and he was not going to meet them until for an after party at a nearby pub around ten in the evening, but he wasn't so quick to jump straight into that phase. Not when an older woman, who happened to be dressed in a long, green coat with a dark dress buttoned up, approached his way.

'You've had the Shin-byeong (神病/신병, spiritual illness commonly found in a future shaman -e.d.-) before, didn't you?' said the woman, who stood no taller than five-feet tall, as she walked effortlessly her way. 'That's why you've mostly kept your body covered, and have kept your place shuttered unless it's for emergencies.'

'It's a habit from when I used to live with my grandfather and great-grandfather,' Seung-Geon answered calmly, trying to suggest no fear in it all. He could see from her eyes, familiar ones that ranged from red to black, that they weren't that of a normal person, and that her energy, while not powerful enough to compel or repel in physical manner, were potent enough.

'Let's not pretend that I don't know, Seung-Geon,' she shot back. 'I have seen dozens of those like you before, and let me tell you that it's not as easy to ignore things. Most end up having to make choices - whether to fall into the inevitable madness caused by that, or the perceptions from them, or make appropriate life choices.'

'Do I?' Seung-Geon asked back, now standing in front of her. 'I don't think my choices have ever been in doubt, at least not from family that is. Unless there are reasons which the paths would change, in which I would gladly accept but-'

Right then, their conversation was quickly disrupted as Jean came back with a grin. 'Seung-Geon! Izzy! How glad you two have met at last,' said Jean, as he quickly got in their way to ease the tension. 'Seung-Geon, this is Izzy my partner. I think I've told you about her before - currently the postdoctoral fellow at Mount Ester.'

At that moment Seung-Geon's memory briefly came back to register that Jean's mentioned a few times in past about his new partner, who was apparently eight years older than him. The words in town were that they had met while on a weeklong summer workshop and had walked off the item by the end of it. 'Yes, you have. The all-inquisitive eyes of Isabelle Yoon,' Seung-Geon answered, as he looked back at Isabelle's annoyed expression. 'Pleasure to meet you at last, in any case...'

It was around two in the morning when the groom headed back to their lodging for an early night's sleep, away from the rest of the groomsmen. It was a clear, highland, late-autumn night with a light layer of snow and no shortage of ice on the ground, making their walk, which had already been difficult enough from their earlier walks to Circus Cornet and then Paint and Pony, a tricky task. The remaining group, drunk but their senses firm and awake, had found themselves struggling to balance their walk back, and feeling mostly lost by the end, decided to rest at the local park that was void of even the rowdy local teenagers.

Ah, thought Seung-Geon, as he found himself lying, as did three others, on the very middle of of the wet, green meadows of the local park. With th trees and benches surrounding them to the edges, they found themselves in a relatively peaceful state of mind. For all the freezing weather that had been bothering their way, the clarity of the skies and the stars, how they shone in the millions, did not disappoint. 'The stars you don't see them like that anymore,' said Rudy Slater, a tall, dark-haired college friend of his. 'Think they only shine them like here out west.'

'Probably why he's thought about moving back out west in last year or two,' answered Isidore, as he chuckled at another flashback to when him and Jean were little. He was quietly checking his phone, perhaps to see if his parents or brother had texted him since. 'He's lived out east since, what, fourteen? And there's only so much you can do to see family and all that at times here. Like how long did it take you guys to make it out here? I know Serge rented a car and was travelling separately til this morning.'

'Six when we arrived last Saturday,' said Serge. 'Flying from Banbh via Attawapiskat wasn't the easiest, I could tell you about all about the airport delay in the morning.'
'Five, had to connect at Jolbo(nopolis),' answered Seung-Geon. 'It rained all day in Joongyeong, so the takeover at Bobigny (airport) was a pain in the arse, as you could imagine.'

'Well, enjoy yourselves here because really, Bonneville is at its most beautiful around this time of the year,' Isidore answered. 'Even after moving to Montevicio, it's hard not to miss this place. There's certain feeling attached to it - one where there's a blue oasis to the red sea of uncertainty, or the beauty that is protected by the mountain gods far out and wide.'

The specific remark brought Seung-Geon to interest, and perhaps the timing, as Serge and Rudy noticed something odd, that of an odd, pale fire, before heading off to the other side of the park. Feeling that it's something to do with Isidore, Seung-Geon decided to ask him what he couldn't get to ask the best man about. 'Isidore,' Seung-Geon asked, as he turned around to look at the Jubilee and Trinity peaks, both featuring rocky tips and forests under them along the slopes, to the northeast. 'What did you mean that he was so ill and frail when little? Like gravely ill?'

'Well,' the Montevician nodded, him initially unsure on how to answer it before deciding that it's not a bad idea to tell while Jean's not there, even more so since the groomsmen themselves have known him for years. The chances of words spilling would be low enough, or at least he had hoped so. 'I mean, as you guys know, he's not only the heir to the elderly band chief, Sir. Reynold Koa'aga'itöka, but also the only great-grandchild still remaining. That being the grandson of his daughter Una, who married late Mr. Helfrich.'

'Interesting, I remember grandpa often mentioning about old Don Helfrich. Apparently they were best friends back at Queen's College, but hadn't been able to meet much since he moved out west,' Seung-Geon answered. He remembered that his grandfather, Dr. Heo the Younger, would mention about his late friend, a true man of nature who would work on cemeteries during summer vacations at his native Pahkatequayang, and would spend hours walking and wandering in the forests and marshfields.

His recollections of the late friend, while one of relative distance established by the life paths they had each taken, were mostly positive, and increasingly one of missing him, perhaps reflecting on the gradual loss of friends and family the Younger had to go through. 'The old man misses him a lot.'

Isidore nodded, perhaps coming to an understanding that Seung-Geon's aware of the dynamics. 'Yeah, it wasn't the easiest on the family,' Isidore answered calmly. 'Let's just say there was a lot that's happened in that family when Jean was young. I think his grandma died before he was there, sure, but when he was six, Mr. Helfrich passed, and then so did a lot of people when he was, what, ten? or eleven? There were a lot of news about that when he was younger '

He continued explaining, trying to keep his volume to a minimum. 'That's why I said I recall a lot of our younger memories as him being ill, or mostly away from school and all that. Like, he was gravely ill for most of his life by that point, with nothing the doctors and everybody else could do about it, and eventually things got bad enough where there were a spade of tragic deaths that happened around his family. One after another, they would take away his loved ones, and their family plot had to be moved. Eventually he recovered, and the versions of Jean we remember better came up, but really, that's how he ended up being the sole person left as the next in line among that family.'

'Bloody,' said Seung-Geon. 'Could see why that's been so difficult for grandpa, if that's what he had known.'

'Perhaps, especially since it involved Mr. Helfrich,' Isidore gave a nod or two before answering. 'It sounds like they were indeed close friends.'

It was then that they heard a shout from Serge and Rudy to come to the other side of the park. 'Come here! We've found something, a cave. Maybe even even a pot of gold!' Rudy shouted. At the initial impression, Seung-Geon and Isidore had felt immediate signs of suspicion, questioning themselves why there would be an underground cave in middle of a Bonneville park, let alone one that's emerged in the recent months. Then, with the curiosity of what could be possibly be underground in middle of a Downtown park, which combined themselves with the sweep of the wind, they had decided to head that way to perhaps see if it's a good idea to find some warmth there....

[Vdara]

Shout To The Top

Back in Chania and experiencing home comforts, the Vdarans were ready to put up a much better performance than they had against the East Leaf Islands. With proper preparation facilities in place, things were looking bright at the VdarArena - and it wasn’t just because the sun was shining. Add to that the arrival of a mysterious new player, and it was clear that there had been some energy sparked into the team, and unmistakable aura of optimism around the team was clear - they’d never beaten The Holy Empire before, but if ever there was a time to do it, now would be as good a time and place as ever.

VdarArena
Home Team Dressing Room
Pre-Match

The players slowly filtered into the room, trying to jig themselves into that matchday mindset. Naturally, most of these players had known each other for a good while - if they hadn’t already met this cycle, they’d met several cycles ago. Some, like Manousos Athanas, had been there since the very start, having watched so many of his teammates come, go, or become even coaches. In short, everyone knew everyone, it was a tight-knit environment. Hence, there was a fair amount of confusion when the man with a strange head walked in and sat himself down on the benches. He didn’t look like anyone they’d ever seen before, nor did he act like anyone. There was a very good reason for this, though - this man was not human. His name is Windows XP and, with a large plastic CRT monitor on his head, he had been called up at very short notice. Markos took it upon himself to introduce the new arrival to the rest of the players.

”Most of you will have already noticed him, but in case you decided to be blind for the day, this is Windows. Now, before you ask, I’ll settle a few questions. Yes, he speaks fluent Vdaran. In fact, I’m pretty sure he speaks fluent everything. Yes, he can play football, otherwise why the fuck would he even be here. Yes, he was born that way, and he wouldn’t change it for the world. His name is Windows XP, but you may call him Windows. Or XP. Or, fuck it, whatever you really want. But play nice! Wee XP here might be a computer, but he’s got feelings. Oh, and he can give you a good kick in the balls if you try and get wide with him. Are we all clear on that?”

The players nodded in agreement. Windows gave a satisfied beep. Markos clapped his hands together.

”Lovely! That’s the first issue put aside. Next: how we absolutely smash this ragtag crew of clowns. The Holy Empire are, as always, managed by the Big Man - Juan. The Big Man has taken them far and wide, for longer than we’ve even been in this sort of competition. But I don’t need to tell you any of this, because you already know it! We’ve played this mob thrice, and we’ve only ever managed to get a piddly draw over them once. The other two times? They have PUMPED us. And I don’t mean just any old pumping, I mean a bending over and a spanking. I mean, we don’t lose often - and that’s probably because of me and my greatness - but The Holy Empire seem to always have our number. Today, that changes. You see, now that we’ve got Windows over here…”

Markos tapped Windows on the head (or, well, monitor). Windows gave another satisfied beep.

”…we can be more adaptable, more changeable, than ever before. He may look pretty unassuming, but at the click of a button, he can immediately change what we do, and you best believe that he’s going to do it. These clowns, these nincompoops, they’re going to be astounded by what he, and indeed we, can do. Take it away, Windows!”

Windows whirred into action, displaying a football pitch on his screen. The others began to murmur. As the cogs in Windows’ head began to turn, Markos began to speak again.

”This isn’t something he can always do, by the way. Doing this much processing takes a toll on the wee man, so we’ll only need him for the REALLY difficult fixtures. Otherwise, he’ll just be a regular old Vdaran with some plastic on his head. Oh, and don’t ask him to score headers - it could really damage all the bits and bobs inside him.”

Windows dinged. ‘TACTIC 1’ was projected onto the screen, showing BoJo the Clown getting sent off for ‘woke reasons’, and the Vdarans exploiting the loss of the opposition’s star man. The strategy wasn’t exactly foolproof - they couldn’t always rely on this idiot getting himself sent off - but the stats seemed to suggest that this was highly likely. The players nodded, and took Windows’ suggestions into account.

”Yo, Markos,” piped up one of the youngsters. ”if Windows can do all this tactical stuff, why isn’t he the manager?” Markos slowly walked over to the player, his previous goalkeeping experience allowing him to tower over them, before leaning right into their face. ”I will not have my authority questioned by some fucking CHILD who’s never left their house without a silver spoon shoved up their arse!” Markos stood up straight. ”Windows is not the manager because he can’t shout at you like I can. He may be able to put all that on a screen, but he can’t dictate you all like I can. Plus, he’ll be on the pitch more often than not, which can make communication a wee bitty difficult!” Windows continued to beep, whirr, and clunk. ”You can stop, now, Windows. We’ve all seen it, don't overwork yourself." Windows beeped, and turned his screen off. "Now, are we all ready to rock and roll?"

VdarArena
Home Team Dressing Room
Pre-Match

Pandemonium. For the first time ever, the Vdarans had beaten The Holy Empire, and they had managed to do it in front of an adoring, elated crowd. Despite it only being the third game in a fourteen-game qualifiers, you'd think that they had already won the entre tournament. There were tears, chants, and beeps galore. Once everything had calmed down a bit, Markos found it within himself to speak to his players with a voice that he had long-since lost, thanks to a whole lot of screaming.

"Un-be-fucking-lievable, lads and lasses! We did it, we actually bloody did it! I know we all had our doubts, I certainly fuckin' did, but we've overhauled The Holy Empire! I cannae believe it! I cannae! I know, I know, we had a lot of great upsets last cycle - beating Gnejs twice was certainly up there - but this feels different, y'know? Like a stone being overturned. We'd never beaten this lot ever! They absolutely smashed us, and we've only gone and defeated them! Oh, I feel like I'm gonna faint... but before I do, I need us all to give a massive round of applause to the man, the machine, and the legend that is Windows XP! You da man, Windows! I don't know how you knew that BoJo would get sent off, but you're a clever fucking cookie, you are! Everyone in here is a legend!"

an hour later

"...but let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's still a long way to go, but as much as we're enjoying ourselves, I think we need to put it all into perspective. This is our second game in a fourteen game group, let's keep ourselves in the right mindset for now. We've got Pyazhnaya up next, we've played them a good few times, so let's keep this simple, let's keep it short, and let's keep it sweet."

Markos was, as always, right - he found it hard to keep himself composed, but he knew that he had to. This struggle to maintain composure didn't seem to affect him or any of the other players against Pyazhnaya, though - with the deadly combination of Sophia Kyprianou and Windows XP coming together to stave off a strong performance from the opposition. With second-seeds Elmyia next to face the Vdarans at the VdarArena, Vdara had a fantastic opportunity to go top of the group. Whether or not they would take it or not was entirely within the hands of fate... and Windows XP, of course.

(OOC: Image (and headline) credit goes to Mertagne, who was involved in the creation of Windows XP in a Discord call (alongside Ko and Plough) that devolved into manic laughter - moreso on my part.)

[Bears Armed]

The date is twenty-four days after the last time that we saw any events taking place in Bears Armed.
Again, the location is the living room of Karra Brent's flat in Wimbley. This time, however, this time our viewing of the scene begins after Karra and her old friend Lurrsee Fane-Urrsen have already been joined by two other friends: Steffannee Bruin and the vulpine Hannorra Scarlett, both of whom are also members of the Bear Belles. They are enjoying a supper as they chat but with their match scheduled for only a few days ahead, this time away against the team of the United States of Devonta, the three footballers are limiting themselves to non-alcoholic beverages -- milk for Steffannnee, and herbal cha for the others -- accompanying a relatively light meal of "healthy" foods such as nuts and fruit... and Lurrsee, who now works as a reporter for that great metropolitan newspaper 'The Bear Necessities' instead, is voluntarily limiting herself to the same range of possibilities rather than flaunting her greater freedom in such matters.

(Lurrsee)_ "Hwell, that was an improved way of getting from NorthPort back here to Wimbley, for true."

(Karra)_ "Ayyuh, just stepping through a doorway from backstage at the stadium there to backstage at the stadium here definitely beats having to take either three separate trains or two boats followed by two trains."

(Lurrsee)_ "It would be nice if a lot more destinations would be linked like that, but from hwhat Errisabear has been able to tell me the wizarding involved is too complicated for giving these 'doors' a choice of destinations or for putting multiple doors too close together."

(Steffannee)_ "Ayyuh, that's hwhat mum said she'd learned from Sermharn, too. Apparently the wizards do have a more flexible method for long-range travel, using some sort of the odd dimension that exists "behind" and between all mirrors, but using that involves a hrrisk of getting lost... and that 'Mirrorspace' dimension has residents, or maybeso visitors from yet other dimensions, that aren't always friendly to any travellers who happen to meet them..."

(Hannorra)_ "Urrgah! That sounds like a way of journeying I'd hrrather not try, then.
"Ah well, this is probably my last cycle playing in international games, anyhows. We Vokksurr generally don't retain our full fitness for as long after leaving adolescence as you Ursines do, we're closer to Humans in that respect, that's why I wasn't surprised to be rrelegated from the Belles' usual starting lineup to just a substitute this time aound. I don't expect an invitation to play in the Belles for the next World Cup's qualifiers, let alone for that Cup itself if the Belles play well enough to get into it."

(Karra)_ "We're all getting older, though. After all, so many other members of the Belles' current line-up have been ourr team-mates since ourr Dee-Bee--Cee days too."

(Steffannee)_ "Ayyuh, and we still have basically the same coaching staff that ran things back then, as well. I wonder hwhether the Association will start making changes in batches of new people over the next two or three cycles, or hwhether they'll try to replace everyberry all together at the same one time?"

[Mytanija]

BRANNFJORD 1-1 MYTANIJA

MYT: 1. Besak; 2. Jesenko (sub. Bajalica 75’), 3. Mbala-Ekakia (c), 4. F. Mlinarevic (sub. Pestotnik 68’), 5. Depreradovic (sub. Lusamba 75’); 6. Papez; 7. Stanoev (sub. Stojadinovic-Srpkinja 68’), 8. Saranja; 10. Ovsyannikov; 9. Skara (sub. Issoumou 45’), 11. Papic-Papratovic

MYT: Ovsyannikov 14’

MYTANIJA 1-1 CASSADAIGUA

MYT: 1. Besak; 2. Jesenko (sub. Slomsek 60’), 3. Mbala-Ekakia (c), 4. F. Mlinarevic, 5. Depreradovic (sub. Mytnjak 60’); 6. Papez; 7. Stanoev (sub. Hajdarpasic 72’), 8. Saranja (sub. Seslar 81’); 10. Ovsyannikov; 42. Issoumou, 11. Papic-Papratovic (sub. Kovacec 72’)

MYT: Issoumou 56’

Predrag & Radola
Part 1 - 2

When Predrag Zlokovic had asked Radola to report to his office a few days after the end of the campaign, Radola understood exactly what was coming. Crvena Zvezda had been relegated, their squad had a few ageing players on larger contracts and a couple who would be retiring, and the club had put a lot of money into securing promotion and really needed to stay in the 1. Prvenstvo to secure their finances. They had failed to do so, so sales would need to be made and Radola was intelligent enough to understand that he would be one of the players up for sale. He had performed well in a struggling side, there would be interest at home and abroad and given his age he would draw a fee which would ensure the club wouldn’t fall foul of the 2. Prvenstvo financial rules. It was the business of football.

He supported Crvena Zvezda, he’d have liked to have stayed at the club for a couple more years at least, perhaps try to get them back into the 1. Prvenstvo and then leave on a high, but at least this way his departure would do some good for the club – he wouldn’t be leaving on the cheap because he’d run his contract down like some players do. The club would get a good fee, they’d secure their finances, and they should still have a decent enough squad to have a go at returning straight back to the top-flight. It wasn’t a fairytale departure, but it was at least one which benefited Crvena Zvezda as well as Radola. That made the conversation with the sporting director Predrag Zlokovic, the manager Damir Azanovic and his assistant Stevan Ninkovic easier than it might otherwise have been.

“You’ve been brilliant for us this season, Radola.” Zlokovic had started. “We appreciate everything you’ve done for the club in the last year and over the past couple of years since you joined the senior team. We’ve been really pleased with your development and impressed with your maturity and the way you carry yourself – you are a real credit to yourself. As I’m sure you are aware, relegation is a real blow to the club, particularly in terms of the financials. That means we are going to have to sell a few players to secure the club’s future and we intend for you to be one of them – we love you, but you’re one of our younger talents who we can draw a large fee for.”

“I appreciate it, Predrag. I completely understand. I’d like to thank you for the time you’ve put into my pathway.” Radola replied earnestly, turning towards Azanovic and Ninkovic. “Gaffer, Stevan. Thanks to both of you for all the hard work you’ve put into my development out on the pitch too. I’ve improved enormously as a player under you both, so thank you for that.”

“You’ve been brilliant, Radola.” Damir Azanovic smiled. It was a smile tinged with disappointment, he was losing a hardworking, talented player, but it was something which was always likely to happen – he had just hoped it wouldn’t be quite this soon, and perhaps not for a reason which was as frustrating as Crvena Zvezda having such precarious finances.

“You’re going to go far, son.” Stevan Ninkovic chipped in. “Keep working hard and you can go as far as you want in this sport.”

“Do you have any questions about the situation, Radola?” Predrag Zlokovic asked, immediately back to business.

“Are there any clubs interested at the moment?” Radola asked inquisitively, stopping for a moment before another thought crossed his mind. “And are there any restrictions on where I will be sold to?”

“A couple of 1. Prvenstvo sides are interested, some of that depends on what happens with players they currently have, I think FK Arsika and Liria are in that category. There’s a couple of Farfish sides interested. Oh, and Litala 93. They actually made an enquiry before we had made it known we were open to selling you.” The last team immediately piqued Radola’s interest. Litala 93 had been a pain to play against, Radola could imagine it would be a lot of fun to be a marauding wingback in their system. Josip Radonic had done some outstanding work as manager, too. Predrag Zlokovic knew he’d missed something: “What was the other question, Radola?”

“I think you kind of answered it.” Radola said. “I just wanted to know if there’d be any restrictions on where you would be selling me to, if it’d be abroad only or whatever, but it sounds like 1. Prvenstvo sides are on the cards too.”

“Yeah, nothing like that.” Zlokovic grimaced slightly. “Unfortunately, we can’t really afford to be discerning. Key word being afford. The money will be key, so that may put some restrictions in if one club makes a larger bid, but we want a good move for you too – so if it’s home or abroad or on the bloody moon that you want to go... If they right size the bid, then you can go there.”

“Cool, well, thanks to all of you. I suppose we’ll see what happens next.” Radola said, shaking each man’s hand and exiting the room.

Over the next few hours he had several conversations, with his family, with his teammates and with his old friend Predrag Arandelovic. They had both grown up Crvena Zvezda supporters, so this was a situation that neither of them would have wanted to happen like this, but it had come to pass, and their reactions were rather different. Predrag was pretty much in crisis; he really didn’t want to accept the news. Radola was rather more laidback about it all and Predrag could not understand that. Then Radola explained that, whilst he was a Crvena Zvezda supporter, he also had other goals beyond just wanting to play for his boyhood club – goals which he could not achieve in Srvena right now.

Predrag was almost apoplectic. In the end Radola just decided to leave it, to make his excuses and leave to extricate himself from the conversation. Predrag understood that he needed to leave to save the club, that was clear. He understood Radola had to do the same thing, such was the size of the problem Crvena Zvezda had. What he could not understand was Radola’s position on wanting to play for another club because of some notion of ‘goals’ – was playing for Crvena Zvezda not enough? Radola tried to explain that he wanted to fight for trophies domestically before eventually going overseas to sample life somewhere else. He explained that football was a short career and that you never knew when injury might strike to curtail it, so he had to take the opportunities when they were being presented. Anything he tried just seemed to go over Predrag’s head.

After he made his excuses and left, saying they’d catch up on it another time, he realised that this was yet another example of how he and Predrag had just grown up in completely different directions. Radola felt like he had quite a level-headed and rational approach to life, he just wanted to try and make the best footballing career he could for himself and avoid trouble. Predrag, perhaps to his credit, still believed in the idealism of playing solely for the club that he supported – Radola could at least respect that. However, it seemed to be predicated on some of the stuff which turned Radola’s stomach, the stuff Predrag had picked up on the terraces.

He said they should stay because playing for Crvena Zvezda was one of the only ways they could fight for the people of Srvena and Zentria, they were the on-field representation of the supporters’ identities and belief systems. They were the people and could play for them. It was the sort of thing which could come from the mouth of the most ardent Ultras DRCZ member, or even a Zentrian ethnonationalist politician. Radola thought his old friend had gone completely around the twist.

He thought back to when Predrag had done the Zentrian three-finger salute celebration against Malotranska, something which he had since repeated when scoring goals. Radola had tried to talk to him after that, about how the image of Predrag doing that with Radola putting his arm around him had been plastered all over Srvena. The tagline ‘continuing the fight forever’ made him feel deeply uncomfortable. The connotations of the Zentrian three-finger salute, linked to Kalinina and her genocide made him feel queasy. Predrag had reacted to that conversation in a similar way.

“You need to relax, mate.” Predrag said. “You’re getting your pants in a twist over a celebration. We know what it means to our supporters, you should be ecstatic that we’re on that sticker doing that – it’ll be remembered forever that image.”

“You aren’t getting it Predrag – I don’t agree with what that salute means, what the people who did it stood for.”

“What are you talking about? This is our history, Radola. You should be proud of it.”

So Radola had left it then, too. It was easier than causing tension with Predrag, who didn’t seem to be living in the real world and didn’t seem to realise that their friendship was drifting. It was also easier to leave it so there wasn’t any friction in the dressing room, Crvena Zvezda were going places at the time and Radola didn’t want to stop that. He wondered if he was being a little cowardly, perhaps he was, but people holding the beliefs Predrag seemed to have didn’t hold any power in Mytanija – trying to convince him was meaningless nowadays, everybody had moved on from the Conflict and wanted to put those tensions far into the past. So he moved on too.

A few weeks went by after the conversation was had about Radola leaving. He was still intrigued by Litala 93’s interest, though there had been no advance on their initial enquiry. Liria and FK Arsika being involved was a sign of how well Radola had performed over the previous campaign, the league champions and National Cup winners both interested should their incumbent right backs depart. Then, everything moved much more quickly. Predrag Zlokovic rang Radola just after he had eaten his dinner at home.

“Radola, are you at home?”

“I am.”

“Okay, well, Litala 93 have made an official bid of 15 million coruns. We have accepted that, it will go a long way to helping us sort the club’s financial position out before the start of the 2. Prvenstvo season.” Zlokovic explained. “Josip Radonic would like to talk to you with their sporting director so that they can start contract negotiations. There’s no pressure if it’s not where you would like to go, but we feel that it’s a good deal for Crvena Zvezda and it could be a very good move for you too. You’ll play every game, Radonic is a good coach, they’re a club going places.”

“I know, Predrag.” Radola replied. It came out rather more curtly than he had intended. “I understand completely. Honestly, I think it was the move which intrigued me the most when we discussed it. You don’t need to give it the big sales pitch.” He laughed.

“I get it.” Zlokovic let out a little chuckle of his own. “Well, I will put them in touch with you and let you get on with it. Let me know if you’d like us to put you in touch with an agent to help you with negotiations, I know you and your family have handled that with us in the past, but sometimes it helps to have someone with a bit of experience on board.”

“I think we’ll be okay, Predrag. Thanks though. I’ll let you know how things go.”

“Got you. Alright then. Speak soon, Radola.”

Litala 93, then. Radola was happy with that. He was eager to speak to Radonic to see what he thought about his development, how he saw him playing within his system. The contract negotiations he was less interested in, but he’d let his parents have their say in that. They were quite good at that sort of thing. They thought about things he missed. He absentmindedly wondered what Predrag would think about it. At the very least he would find it distasteful, given the beliefs he now seemed to espouse wholeheartedly. Litala 93’s lavender shirt would be unlikely to ever have ‘Arandelovic’ emblazoned on the back of it. At this point Radola didn’t really care. Their friendship had dissipated into nearly nothing in his mind, even if the realisation of that fact hadn’t dawned upon Predrag yet.

He didn’t expect Predrag to take it as badly as he did.

[Saint Eleanor]

OOC: Lara Torridge roleplay NOT cleared with Audioslavia, yet again, but in wonderfully typical Audio fashion he's given me free reign to do whatever. I've tried not to ruin his country too much in the process and have wired him a link to confirm this, with that said cleared with Audio at 12:04am UTC on Sunday.

---

Group of Six meeting (IX) --- SAINT ELEANOR 1-0 Eraman
Participants: Gentle Breeze, Reniira Clevinger, Stephen Mitcham ~ Bridget Coombe [C], Cathy Winchester [VC], Rick Goldsmith [ballot]
Location: The Presidential Palace; Central district, Saint Eleanor city, EXT

I'm Stephen Mitcham, assistant manager, and I'm pleased to announce that I've yet again taken over notation duties from Reniira, Bridget and Gentle Breeze, in that order. I'm somewhat less pleased to tell you that my father - who you may know as President George - has authorised the use of the Presidential Palace for this meeting. I'm sure our opponents from Darmen and Tumbra (the third and first seeds in our group) will be distraught to learn that they can't get a heads-up on our tactics beforehand. Drinks were, of course, served by Palace staff. Orders: green tea for Bridget, black for GB, milky coffee for everyone else and self-serve sugar for the group.

(Preface as to seeding: Tumbra first, Saint Eleanor second, Darmen third, Eraman fourth)

The Eraman match was unremarkable, as you'd expect. It was agreed that Felaraneta and Matsuda gave the midfield the extra panache necessary to get past the opposition; Matsuda scored the winner from some fine buildup play which left the Eramanian midfield and defence alike flummoxed. Some opportunities were allowed, but Richardson got to those well when she needed to, and the defence was once again largely clean, despite Davies getting a yellow for an unnecessarily rash challenge towards the end. The match was overall given an 8/10 by Cathy and GB, 9/10 by everyone else, and agreed by all to be the kind of performance we should model in our next two games.


The first and so far only time I've taken notes for a briefing, it was a high-stakes game which I saw fit to lead. The next two qualifiers will also be crucial and I consider it important that we come in with a good plan for those, as well - but we agreed that the plan in each case would hew close to our strongest possible lineup.

From my notes on Darmen, they are aggressive on the surface, but clean and willing to counter-attack in reality. We anticipate getting hit by their wide attacks more than by their central possession play nonetheless, not least because of our strength. The lineup has been unpredictable as of late - Truman Riley, who is apparently only their second-string striker, scored three goals against Orunolaya (formerly known as Arjunnagar) - and while we assume that they will field the strongest lineup possible in their traditional 4-3-3, Bridget suggested and we agreed that the identities of the Darmeni players would be immaterial in our planning.

Given their strength in width, it was considered inappropriate to allow Davies, who is known to be somewhat haywire, to start against Darmen. On the contrary, we need strong, defensive-minded central midfielders; and cannot risk sacrificing any of our more traditional wide players. We have therefore agreed to field a 5-4-1 as follows: Richardson; Winchester, Newbridge, COOMBE, Launceston, taFREXALA; Newcastle, MATSUDA, HOLLENBERG, Northend; Goldsmith. (Players in CAPITAL LETTERS have been introduced to the lineup or, in Bridget's case, moved to what I imagine will probably be a sweeper role of sorts.)

This is an unusual setup, but will give us the stability in width and flexibility in the centre needed to come out with a result in Johnho. Bridget will probably be expected to do everything, which she doesn't mind. Otherwise, I'll ask the players to function as they would in the normal 4-2-3-1 setup.


Tumbra at home is a completely different kettle of fish, and one that is rather firmly on the boil. We must assume, based on what has been said and written elsewhere, that Tumbra will field their strongest lineup - Jones; Renton, Kerr, Pritchett, Mercurio; Harrison, [unclear who her CDM partner will be - assuming Finnemore], Monaghan; Wells, Henshaw, Crossley.

Tumbra, like every team, has weak links. The focus on Darmen can easily be on neutralising their strengths - but we cannot take this chance against a team like Tumbra who we need to at least get a result against, if not defeat outright, to stand a hope of automatic qualification. It's known that they're not particularly good at setpieces, so we will attempt to force those within reason (nothing obvious, nothing red-worthy); this will help to spurn Tumbran attacks, allow us to win the ball easily and start our own attacks.

The culture in Tumbra is to counter-attack. This will be our plan, as well - if we are not creating setpieces, we need to keep the open play moving as fluidly and effectively as we can. There are obvious problems with this strategy, however: we can expect the wide defenders to be fast, agile and capable; the central defenders, and especially defensive midfield, to be reasonably aggressive and focused on advancing any potential attacks.

We therefore need a backup plan, and that plan is to keep Tumbra mired in midfield for as long as possible. If they cannot attack, they cannot score. Creating standoffs, clustering attackers and defenders around the ball, pre-emptively marking the opposition - all of these will be useful tools. If we are outnumbered in midfield, GB will rapidly move to get Steve Pilchard taken off the pitch and replaced by Lydia Nicholls, who is out-and-out aggressive and could be seen as a bit chance-y in ordinary circumstances but will be more than suited for the purposes we envisage.

Marking will be positional, aggressive, and everyone's responsibility (although you are welcome to drop back to help the defensive effort if necessary). You will be given fairly free reign to be assertive against the Tumbrans, as you may have expected. Attack will feature pace, panache, and sufficient accuracy to get the job done - I'd prefer to move it through Pilchard in the centre, although the central midfielders have been instructed to launch long balls at the striker if required.

Our ordinary 4-2-3-1 will be fielded: Richardson; Winchester, Newbridge, Launceston, Davies; Coombe, MATSUDA; Newcastle, Pilchard, Northend; Goldsmith. It was agreed, although with some tension, that (A) Matsuda was more worth the risk as a starter and (B) Davies' strength and reputation preceded her enough to warrant a start on this occasion; Wells is good but, we feel, the weakest link in the Tumbran attack. I reserve the right to revisit this plan after the Darmen match and discuss whether it is still the best plan, but I don't anticipate much in the way of changes and would rather get a head-start on this absolutely necessary training.


As a note, the offside trap will operate in both the Darmen and Tumbra games, and aggressively so. We cannot risk allowing the central strikers from either of our biggest rivals to pop up with a surprise goal from a completely expected cross; a deep offside trap will either have the expected effect or force them into a deep-enough position where our defenders and midfielders can swamp them.

The Grand Tour of Anaia - Audioslavia: The biggest mistake of my life, in a good way

by Lara Torridge - January 24th 2006

The ferryboats of Vilwandia can take you a long, long way if you want them to. In my case, it just so happened to dock at the port of Cathair in Audioslavia. I'm convinced it docked there by accident; I ask the boat attendant if I was meant to go here instead of Koronavia. He tells me I got on the wrong one, although perhaps without knowing that - as far as I am concerned - any Anaian destination I have not yet visited is fair game. The sign at the bureau de change was clear, perhaps even the first thing I managed to see once I set foot on shore: dollars are the national currency. Thank goodness, right?

Exchange rate: Not applicable

Audioslavia is a big, big country, much bigger than Saint Eleanor. Not knowing anything about the railways, except for the fact that they're celebrated on the badge of the feted AC Izotz Zubia, I reckoned that renting a car would be a good idea. But - as I did in Vdara - I end up borrowing one again, from a helpful man on one of the residential roads around the docks who identifies himself only as "a Ceilerden Rovers fan," hands me his phone number, and warns me that "this one might have a few problems."

Indeed it does: I get up two or three kilometers, in their terms, to the petrol station, where it breaks down right as I pull in for a refuel. The attendant has to leave her station for a couple of hours while she attempts repairs, which (to her credit) got the job done. It takes me a few more kilometres and something like twenty minutes to find my way around town, before I finally park - illegally - outside a shopping centre. I order some tat on the card, find out that my car's been given a parking charge notice a couple of hours later, than use one of the payphones in the mall to tell my newly-minted Rovers-supporting friend rather than pay it myself. He generously obliges, again, but warns me I'm on the hook for my third one onwards.

A couple of hours driving takes me past some of the greatest stadiums in Cathair: Glass Bridge, which I rather like; the Arena Kirola, once upon a time the glorious 66 Stadium of yore, today a place which has been made a bit of a cookie-cutter by recent renovations; the Beltzarga, which I hate. Possibly to my friend's disdain - this psychology graduate will not dare to comment more firmly on his mental state - I do not spy the Silver Jubilee Stadium, or whatever the Ceilerden Rovers are calling their home venue these days, anywhere. Maybe I'll do it tomorrow morning, I tell myself.

It takes a bit more driving, perhaps even by accident, but I end up in the relative comfort of Zijweg, where I find what is supposed to be a budget hotel located suspiciously close to the motorway and pay for what I imagine will be a standard room for a few nights. I do not speak any Intermarean, or indeed any language other than Terranean, but the hotel attendant is merciful enough to understand my request. He even insists on offering me a room upgrade for the duration of the trip; I try to refuse it, but he says hardly anyone has tried booking the fancier rooms as of late. It's the first time I've been in one so far, or at least since I went on my last overseas summer holiday with mum and dad aged fifteen, and I love it.

Day 1: Summary

What I wore: the classic jeans, Saint Eleanor top, trainers and forty-year-old chronograph watch from most of the Vilwandia trip
What I spent: nothing, by cash
What I've got left over: 95 Eleanorian dollars for emergencies; 825 Eleanorian dollars for ordinary use

I need a change of clothes, again. But, since Audioslavia is civilised - or, in politer terms, more recognisably Eleanorian than almost anywhere else I've been to - I figure as though I can get away with a bit of girly oomph. A man at the hotel breakfast queue, about my age, tells me that "you look pretty;" I suspect he's married, though, so I won't try and tell him back. I ask him instead if he knows where Calorborne, the legendary Audioslav retirement destination where people age far more slowly than on the mainland - and will continue to do so even if the referendum to enact Rosemarian Time passes - is. He tells me it's on an island far, far away from here; so far away he doesn't know where exactly.

So, with that, I am back on the road - where do I go? North to Oljestaden, of course. I ask a couple of the locals what they think about the decision to scrap the high-speed rail project from Cathair to Oljestaden, something I had somehow not seen fit to do when I was actually in Cathair, with all the consumerism I'd been steeped in. Most of them tell me it was a bad idea, if not an outright negative to the national economy. A woman in her old age tells me it was a good idea, because she thought it would suck away jobs from Oljestaden and put them in the capital. A man who could pass for an ordinary office worker agrees, but for the completely different reason that Egon Musk's proposal would be far superior.

I figure that lunch would be a good idea, and get it from a pizza restaurant the likes of which I have never seen before. Ten dollars for one sounds almost too good to be true, but I've seen takeaway pizzas marketed at that price back home. Morally, it isn't a satisfactory meal; physically, and nutritionally, it gets my spirits up enough, ready for even more driving. I am just thankful, by the end of it all, that they no longer do any WGPC racing in the city.

Stuck at one of the motorway services on the way back to Zijweg, which I imagine offers even better prices for even more calories and somewhat better food (and they do), I leaf through my tourist guide to Audioslavia which I got at the docks and peer at the section on Laivana, only to find nothing except a few paragraphs on rally racing - not the kind of thing I'd be much interested in - and the local football club. The high speed railway does, in fact, only run from there to Ferramendiak, with an inexplicable detour through Crossport and western Cathair. I therefore figure I'll give that a miss and go back home-of-sorts.

Day 2: Summary

What I wore: a pleated skirt, long-sleeved top, and a pair of sturdy boots
What I spent: eighteen dollars
What I've got left over: 95 Eleanorian dollars for emergencies; 807 Eleanorian dollars for ordinary use

The weather isn't any good, so I change clothes yet again, but just to add a few more layers. I don't see myself staying here much longer, although not for that reason - I'm told that Saint Eleanor is buried under a few inches of snow, again - so I check out of the hotel once and for all, clock off the highway, and travel down what I'm convinced is a dual-carriageway to Ferramendiak. It is not. It narrows down to a lane each way for a good portion, operates contraflow from time to time due to improvement works, sporadically widens around the few towns along the route and is generally not a nice experience. I stop once, for some diesel at the suspiciously low price of 72 cents per litre; I'm told it isn't tampered, but rather the result of some dramatically extensive jobs-for-the-boys scheme in the local area. My mind's been poisoned by the social sciences enough not to ask further.

In a sense, Ferramendiak is diverse. Founded on the ironworks; made by modern services; the greatest non-Cathair city in the nation; three million of the nation's ninety million; a touch libertarian, although I'd rather trust Arielle Richardson to explain Audioslav politics to me. Fearful of getting my second parking charge in three days, I ask the first person I see if I've done anything wrong with my parking, he tells me it "doesn't harm a man." I imagine he works up the mines; he does, apparently. He's willing to talk for a bit about his life and other people's; I try to spark up a few more conversations, but none of them land anywhere near as well.

I get a local newspaper - as if Audioslavia has local news of any repute - and note the printed images of KT Itzalovalle's Antzerkia and KT Ferramendiak's Burdina Jauregia. I can't be bothered to make out the words at this hour; it's getting late, somehow. I figure that both of them are scary enough, however, and swear off any hope of me supporting them to any degree. I have never been one to support anyone other than the Arsenal, though.

What there is to do in Ferramendiak is still, somehow, much the same as there is to do in Cathair. Have a look around the local area (and, I would say, the museums and galleries, although this is a practical nation); get some food to eat (the restaurant I go to is a bit fancy for my likings, but I consider it to be just about right for my purposes - it's been a long day); go and do a bit of shopping (just an energy drink and a bar of chocolate, both of which I finish off with due haste). And then, as always, stroll around town for thirty minutes with no firm idea as to what's next on the itinerary. I still think I've made a good choice of clothing, though.

I call my Rovers-supporting friend from one of the local payphones and say I'm in Ferramendiak; he tells me that there is an actual motorway back to Cathair which is much cheaper and that he'll be taking over driving duties to the international airport in Crossport. I ask if he knows anyone in Gardenia, given I've heard much about the place being absolutely hollowed out by the nuclear power plant failure, down to fifteen thousand poor souls, and I have no immediate comparator since it thankfully hasn't happened in Elsmouth yet. He says me he knows someone called Isabella who lives there - although since he still isn't giving me his name, I have no reason to believe that she's actually called Isabella - and hands me her phone number.

The dialing code does match up to Gardenia, as it turns out, so I dial with extraordinary confidence. What is it like there, I ask her? Boring, solitary, with maybe a few chain shops and a good restaurant which she doesn't think I'd like for vairous reasons. Oh, and raining much, much more heavily than it is in the valley; she's not in the sarcophagus, for reasons I once again cannot fathom. I tell her I'm touring all of Anaia for an Eleanorian newspaper called Academy; she urges me to visit Gardenia after I'm done if I want to, anyway. Some use of a few dollars there. I consider my job in Ferramendiak done, possibly break the speed limit once too often on the motorway back to the dockside area - I haven't been told off for it yet; it's my friend's responsibility from now on anyway - and leave the keys with my friend.

He drops me off at the airport in what I'm convinced is due time, hands me my luggage, and - upon learning that I got the car repaired and took it to multiple cities way out of Cathair in a matter of days - jokes that I'm a far better driver than he is. As it turns out, the final flights took off a good number of minutes ago; I go to sleep on the couches in the departure area, before security, thinking it would be a good idea. It's uncomfortable and I wake up after six hours of poor-to-fair sleep, but I nevertheless do book a ticket to another destination in the region in the end after I wake up - and don't regret a single second of it.

Days 3 and 4: Summary

What I wore: what I wore on day 2, plus a pair of tights and a tiny little coat
What I spent: a nice, round seven dollars
What I've got left over: 95 Eleanorian dollars for emergencies; 800 Eleanorian dollars for ordinary use