In Brief : New Mars – rumours of Senator Banderas becoming a special envoy on the forming Grand Armada have been described as ‘premature speculation’.
Failure Caused by ‘Aliens’
Dateline Y18 Q7 3217.202
Colonists who evacuated the failed colony of Y18 out in the lonely outer quadrant of Q7 are reporting that their colony failed not as a result of bad luck or administrative incompetence, but as a result of intervention by aliens. Colonial Council Member, Joey-Bob Redneck said “…them gol-darned aileen varmits used to come at night and sleep with our food and eat our womenfolks …”. Whilst readers in Q0 might have dismissed this as the ramblings of inbred incompetent colonists, there is some evidence to back up claims that there was something odd in the nighbourhood of Y18 – in particular unexplained missing persons, domesticated fauna mutilations and mysterious crop-flattening incidents. The colonists managed to record some blurry footage of what looked like landing shuttles – but of a type previously unknown, not human, forerunner, roach or exterminator.
In Brief : Dino flu outbreak ‘100% under control’ according to Fiddle (Q8) colonial authorities.
War on W3
Dateline W3 Q7 3217.216
Warfare has become much more intense in the Deep Hole Colony between the Deep Colonial Corporation and the Deep Democratic Association. The fighting is particularly fierce in the Interstitial Mountains region, and the neighbouring Tree Of Life Colony has been drawn into the fighting on the side of the DDA. There have been major air battles to control the disputed airspace over the mountains and the key high passes have seen some particularly bloody battles.
In Brief: Major riots on W5 following vital drug shortages.
Snivey Governor Resigns
Dateline Snivey Q1 3217.234
In a surprise move the Governor of MAFC colony of Snivey, Councillor Abe Kinoshi has resigned after admitting certain inappropriate activities while in office. His legal spokesperson said “Councillor Abe regrets his former dishonourable actions and feels that the only correct action is to resign immediately and submit himself to the authorities. He will cooperate fully with any investigation”. Along with Councillor Abe’s resignation, were the arrest of a further 32 officials from his administration, pending enquiries into corruption, abuse of powers and taxation irregularities. The new acting Governor, Councillor Rex Dreamzone of the opposition New Helix Party said “Strewth! This was a big shock to us all … especially as we thought old Abe was pretty much untouchable … er … I mean was held in high esteem. Anyway I’ll be able to run things until the elections, no worries!”
In Brief: Carsh (Q7) authorities introduce additional health screening as “…a precautionary measure”
Clean-Up on Lakshmi
Dateline Lakshmi Q8 3217.222
The new colonial government on Lakshmi has conducted a major re-structuring of its trading infrastructure. This has involved taking over the running of Lakshmi Station, following long-standing complaints about corruption and lawlessness on the station, and a widely-held suspicion that the station was a covert ‘freeport’. Supported by mercenary starship marines, the Colonial Ministry of Trade enforced a compulsory purchase order on the station, and has now replaced all the key personel and implement extensive investigations into working practices and the application of space traffic control regulations. A number of merchant starships were impounded when it was found that their ownershp and identity documntation was incomplete or ambiguous. The new Station CEO, Martinette Kweeg said “Honest spacers have not been getting a fair deal before now – I aim to make Lakshmi Station a beacon of fair trading and safety in this part of Quadrant 8.”.
In Brief : Contact lost with newly-settled Getaway colony Q8.
Battles in the Hunger Mountains
Dateline R46 Q4 3217.229
The aspiring colonists on R46 have been in conflict over control of the Red-Mercury-rich Hunger Mountains on this colony world. Unable to reach agreement on access to the important deposits, the various mining colonies have been increasingly arming themselves to protect their vital economc interests. There have been widespread accusations of armed ‘claim jumping’, and the newly established colonies are increasingly operating like militarised armed camps and fighting has been almost continuous in recent octants.
In Brief: Jink economy reported as suffering due to poor health of colonists.
