Withmore Globe

GALE CRATER CITY, MARS -

In a stunning development on May 18th, 2111, UN Military forces breached and infiltrated the last remnants of James Reeves and the few soldiers, Jager Strafe included, that remained of the Red Suns Martyr Brigade. Hiding in an abandoned mining operation on Deimos, a tip for this band of stragglers was received in April and the United Nations planned an operation to put an end to a cell of terrorists who had at one point wreaked havoc on Withmore and beyond starting in 2105.

Reeves, who was known as Janus or The Major, was the leading force behind the permanent death of former Chief Justice Gray on October 17th, 2105 in a series of events that saw a significant number of WJF Judges and employees massacred and the loss of critical assets and equipment. After Chief Justice Gray's demise, the Law found new leadership in Gerik Phillips, who was appointed the next Chief Justice.

Criminal forces in the Mix were drawn to Reeves, helping him in his cause, with names such as Alexei Zukhov, Danilo Cardoso working in the forefront and the background, with the latter's name only coming to light years later. Other individuals flocked to the violent cause, with rumors swirling at the time and in the half-decade that followed of involvement of Friday Tchort, Lorelai Jovanovska, Tabitha Phlox, and thousands of others who came and went in the days, months and years that passed. The influence of this galactic criminal and mass murderer stays today in the works of Liat Peretz, Dillon Akirashu with suspected fringe involvement of Yohan von Luz after the arrival of Rasul Hashemi, who left Withmore some months ago in late 2110. Hashemi was not among the incapacitated or bodies recovered during the siege on Deimos. Neither was Betty Black, a force who goes by V in Withmore.

Despite his absence from Withmore and Earth as a whole during the last four years, Reeves's shadow and the embers of uprisings he fanned have long hung over our city, helping shape and direct violence against megacorporations. Under the excuse of seeking political freedom from the hegemony of corporate control, unsatisfied parties who wish for any reason to complain will grab onto the ideology planted by this suspected last cell of Red Sun Martyr Brigade fighters. As the corporations lead us towards a brighter future, it's up to us all to expose the lies of these propagandist terrorists so that good citizens may live in peace.

GCC locals in The Lucky Fish were happy that these last few holdouts had been caught on Deimos and hadn't tried to cause any trouble on the surface of the red planet. Adolescents and gamers found in Yellowknife Arcade did not respond to requests for comments, too busy fighting robots to an electric end or caught up in retro games while surrounded by clouds of smoke and wild laughter - this reporter hopes these youth will one day become productive citizens for their home world.

Because of the reported deaths of Reeves and Strafe, the sanctioned bounties placed on them have been removed by the Withmore Justice Force.

Rip StormburnTemporary Space Incident ReporterWithmore Globe

April 13, 2111 New Light Media HQ

What should have been a night of celebration ended in bloodshed high above Gold.

A select crowd gathered atop New Light Media Headquarters with Juicy Vee to witness the Incorporation Day fireworks. The atmosphere was electric, the music loud, the drinks flowing, and the skyline alive with spectacle in the unmistakable style that made Juicy Vee a household name across Withmore. By all accounts, the fireworks were everything the city had hoped for.

Then the violence began.

According to witnesses at the scene, several assailants believed to be mixers from Red Sector launched a sudden attack on the corporate security personnel assigned to protect the gathering. In the chaos, one of the attackers managed to catch Juicy Vee off guard and force him over the rooftop edge. He fell to the street below and died on impact.

For a murder this brutal to take place on any night would be horrifying. For it to happen during one of Withmores proudest civic celebrations makes the crime all the more vile. New Light Media extends its deepest sympathies to those in attendance, many of whom were forced to watch one of the citys brightest stars killed before their eyes.

In the aftermath of the attack, NLM Corporate Security locked down the scene and began immediate response measures. One attacker was killed on site. Witnesses report that NLM media star Hardcase personally put the assailant down while defending partygoers during the assault. Two additional suspects are believed to have fled. The Withmore Justice Force was subsequently called in and has begun collecting statements from witnesses and bystanders.

Details are still emerging, but early reports indicate the attackers were armed with swords and may have targeted Juicy Vee specifically. There are also unconfirmed reports that another prominent Withmore figure, Seven Ecks, may have been attacked and killed by the same terrorist group only days earlier. At this time, authorities have not confirmed a connection.

No official motive has yet been established. Even so, many citizens are already pointing to the same ugly truth: this bears all the markings of yet another act of anti-corporate terror carried out by Red Sector extremists against law-abiding corporate residents.

An NLM spokesperson provided the following statement to The Globe:

"NLM will not be intimidated by Red Sector terrorists. When we identify the cowards responsible for this atrocity, they will face the full weight of justice."

In a final outrage, Juicy Vees body was not recovered in the immediate aftermath of the incident. Anyone with information regarding its whereabouts is urged to contact New Light Media or the Withmore Justice Force immediately.

Withmore has lost a star, even if only a few hours. The city now waits for justice.

An ill omen to herald spring, a wave of viridans streptococci swept through Red Sector starting in mid-February. Urgent action by the WJF kept the outbreak from spreading to the upper sectors, but the toll exacted has strained city services and supply chains to an outrageous limit. In the end, the virus claimed 363,428 lives, permanently, and possibly more that were unreported.

Better known more innocuously as strep throat, v. streptococci routinely causes closure of the airways, painful swallowing, fever, and general aches and pains. However, this strain had a few novel features. According to Dr. Thomas Baker of Constantine General Hospital, this variant also caused weeping, oozing sores in what he termed "a wildly divergent mutation of the virus." The epidemiology lab in Constantine was too busy to supply comment, but a representative assured the Globe that they were in full collaboration with ViriiSoma's research team to determine the cause of this extremely deadly change.

The virus claimed so many lives in part because of an immediate and crushing demand for oxaprozin, the one anti-viral drug that it responds to. A representative from ViriiSoma said that the sudden supply shock caused ripples all the way along the production line. "ViriiSoma is committed to enhancing and protecting human life," said VSPR-032 in a SIC interview. "It is a tragedy that the city's reserves were not sufficient to combat the disease, but we cannot control how retailers stock our products. However, ViriiSoma chemical labs have done little else beyond synthesizing oxaprozin since the outbreak began."

Initial findings from research teams indicate that the virus had a long dormancy period, which is the period where a person may be infected and even contagious but not yet displaying symptoms. Contact tracing has shown that the disease began to spread in several regions around Red Sector at the same time, possibly due to an immigration influx as the harsh winter weather of the badlands rolled in. By far the most initial cases seemed to occur in northern Central Red and radiated out from there.

And even now that the disease has mostly run its course, there remain the problem of the remains. An anonymous Withmore City Services employee has reported that the massive amount of corpses has caused maintenance issues with the incinerator, leading to alternate storage locations for the bodies in public morgues. Private agencies that run crematoriums are also indicating a massive backlog and emergency shifts to see the diseased bodies disposed of. For now, however, Withmore breathes a collective sigh of relief that the worst is behind us.