The News Desk lit up, displaying a black and white MBF sitting at the desk in an adorably fitted suit. The Synthetic dog began barking as a cute (but not grating) voice was overlaid over it. "Good stellar morning. I am Mono, here for Cloverpaw Interspace news. Today, our top story - the return of the EAD! A rise in sightings and major events propelled by former EAD members provokes all of Null space's populace to ask just how dangerous they are! Two experts weigh in, later. But first, business news." "Thank you." A man in a dark suit with a red tie and curly blonde hair faced the camera. "Today on the Albion stock market, Victor-Marshall's stock rose," the picture behind the man showed an automotive showroom with brand new cars, metalic paints polished to mirror sheens, "on the back of its latest automotive release throughout the city-states - particularly its home in York." "Meanwhile, Soltz Holdings announced bankruptcy and is liquidating all assets after the shuttle accident earlier this year killed most of their leadership, and were unable to appoint a new board of directors." The newscaster turned around, watching an image of a pharmaceutical giant's logo appear on screen. "Noir company Gruppen Tanhauss is expected to be purchasing the bulk of the inventory at the liquidation sale." The picture then flicked to a series of graphs and tables tracking the cash movements of various trading throughout Aleph Null. "Material stocks remain steady as demand plateaus out in preparation for the new year, while financial services have taken a two percent fall, and hospitality services are on a rally." Clearing his throat, the news presenter looked to their right. "Back to you." The camera cast back towards Mono. "Now, for general news. Horrigan University on York has released a high-alert warning for any casters attempting to interact or summon Weird Things for the next month." The MBF shuffled the papers in front of them, looking down and adjusting their glasses. "The warning mentions strange activity for all Weird summons from the last week, suspected to be related to an Elder Weird's doing in the Weald. Head Professor James Ulrich urges all casters great and small to take caution in all magical activities for the forseeable future." Mono licked his nose. as he folded a paper bowl and water poured into it from the ceiling"After the break, our top story." - "SPRAY. Apply directly to the wound." An advertisement ran, with an animation of a man spraying a gash on their arm with a black and mint-green cylinder, with white letters reading 'SPRAY'. "As easy as advertised, and available now from Gruppen Tanhauss." Within moments, the wound begun to close itself up, and the man flashed a thumbs up towards the camera. "It's good for you." - The feed turned back onto Mono, who shuffled his papers once more. "Our top story today is on the members of the Unit institution formerly known as the Emergency Assault Division. Their re-emergence into the public sphere is seemingly sudden, causing much discussion among experts and officials alike. With us today are two such experts, here to chime in on the matter. Mono's desk sank into the floor, leaving the dog in his chair as two other occupied chairs were moved in through unknown (but likely magnetic) means. "To my left is Jirou Harridan, the man formerly known as the 'Rider' and one of the heroes who brought down the EAD from within on day zero. To my right is investigative journalist and whistleblower Jerry Keane, who discovered the EAD leadership's malpractices and broke the news. Say hello to the audience, please." Jirou performed a curt nod and a warm smile to the camera. Keane waved lazily with an upwards nod, casting an aside glance to the Rider, then back to Mono. "To start, why are these former members resurfacing now? Jirou, if you would first." Jirou nodded again. "Well, we've always been around - it's just that a lot of them are starting to do more. . . reportable things. For instance, one of my good friends and leader of the Hospitaliers has been working tirelessly to help the people of Noir ever since day 1. There are others, of course, who prefer taking more loud actions but I would say it's only recently that the louder ones have felt emboldened-" "And there were a lot of louder ones," Keane cut the Rider off. "Many of them were on the wrong side of the law and took to pursuing obscurity as the organisation tore itself apart." "Well, when one has served in any form of outfit, whether it's military, police, or special ops, once that structure is swept out from under you, you shut down. Or, at least, many do." Jirou responded cordially. "The EAD had some very uncouth teachings, yes. Nobody here will deny that. Those who got left behind need time and re-education in ord-" "It has been five years since the organisation fell apart - I'm sure many of them have been re-educating themselves into a variety of new trades." Keane stole Jirou's sentence and sentiments, electing to pursue his own agenda. "For example, in PA 267, former EAD codename Passwall was discovered within an organisation of pirates, operating as a cyberterrorist. In PA 268, codename Arborist was found creating bioweapons in the basement of a mining colony on Donalbain." Keane continued, while Mono looked aside, unhappy with the direction that the interview had taken. "Do you call that re-education, Mr. Harridan?" Jirou's eyes were closed for the duration of the Keane's rant. "No. I do not. I would say that's what happens when we ignore our own mistakes and do nothing to clean up not only the root causes but the ghosts of the past. What has the populace done to help reeducate the ones caught in the crossfire, Mr. Keane? Where was the aid when Shadowcat was taken captive on day Zero? Or when Preybird was left stranded without any manner of evac that day? No, I say what goes around, is coming back around." Mono was passed something by an intern, and the canine adjusted their glasses at what they saw. "Sorry to interrupt, but we have something coming in from Sargasso-" Jirou blanched, Sargasso meant only one thing, while Keane tilted his head. "Pavone," Jirou said damningly in the quietest voice he could muster. Keane looked aside, recognising the name and mouthing an expletive. Mono continued. "The man formerly known as the Phoenix has once again made breaking news, as he took on a gang of vagabonds and bikers led by another former EAD, Driver. As I recall, the two have clashed in the past and recently. And Mr. Phoenix has his own team with him now, formed of Sargasso locals. Your thoughts?" Keane shook his head. "Why is a war criminal playing hero and gathering a posse?" He asked, looking towards Jirou. "Looking for redemption in the court of public opinion maybe?" The journalist was miles off the mark. One could almost see the gears turning in Jirou's head. Depending on how he played this, he could end up tying himself too closely to Luca's actions. On the other hand, It could very well play out to be the best thing possible for putting former EAD members on the level. A veritable détente. Mono continued: "Today, he and his team were seen at the Galacta Candy factory in Featherwell, with footage captured by onlookers and citizens," as the footage played out behind the two men, Mono spotted something concerning amongst the team Luca was leading, "I see a Chelti, a Maidenhand - and - is that a Raiken? Huh!" "I thought those didn't leave their space very often?" Jirou mumbled, then shaking his head. "I don't see Driver in this footage. What does this incident have to do with the candy factory?" The footage continued, switching to security cameras around Helion Overlook. A camera from a property adjacent to Kransky and Sons Self-Storage was watching the carpark behind the warehouse, and privy to the moment Luca saw Driver emerge from the building. Keane could be seen leaning backwards in his chair, as if trying to avoid the footage. "Oh. Well, gathering from what I can see, somewhat standard EAD doctrine. A threat was made known, dealt with, and then headed to the source to cut off further threats," Jirou said, watching the footage closely. He could see Luca missing with the first Phoenix Punch and landing on the warehouse roof near someone dressed similarly to a character from his show. Jirou shook his head with a smirk before continuing. "I don't think he was expecting Driver." Keane was keeping their mouth shut throughout the display, and Mono chimed in as they continued watching: "He seems to be able to keep up against the odds..." The dog commented, looking towards Jirou. "Was he always like this?" "I would say yes. We didn't work together on many assignments but the ones we did share were interesting, to the say the least." Jirou sighed, running a gloved hand through his hair. Keane saw his opportunity to do some dredging: "Like what?" He asked. "Well, there was this one time we had to take on a horrible creature that had appeared in Bias. I think the city was. . . Dullston? It all blends together, but it was about ten years ago. Luca was there to run interference on the ground, oddly enough Driver was too - he was heavy arms at the time." Mono blinked incredulously at the idea of someone being on the ground when there was a 'horrible monster'. "Aha! So you worked with Driver, too!" Keane had his 'gotcha' moment. "Yes. You haven't ever worked with a coworker who didn't shut the f- er. . . shut up whenever you were required to work a project together?" Jirou coyly responded. Keane looked down to the floor, pursing their lips. "Well, uh-" He said. "What are you going to do, then? Shut up Driver?" Jirou looked at Jerry with a callous stare. "Perhaps. It's not like people like you are doing anything useful. No, I don't mean reporters. I mean people specifically like you, Mr. Keane." Mono had to resist the urge to put ice on that burn, and he had a news schedule to stick to. "What an interesting turn of events - unfortunately that's all we have time for tonight, please thank our guests Jirou Harridan and Jerry Keane." Jirou calmly waved to the camera as his chair was pulled offscreen, again through the mysterious movement of MAGNETISM. How does this even work? Jirou pondered as they held onto the armrests of the chair, thinking he could get some installed at the studio. "Coming up after the break, sports news with the results of the York University Cup with a word from Maxwell Pantera, and the latest developments in Frame Racing. Stay tuned!" - "Guns, Guns, Guns 2. No, there isn't a Guns, Guns, Guns 1. Get your guns here today!" a boistrous sounding Belza in a rotund metal body said, showing off eight guns held by eight arms. "This month only, a special on the Ella Wraith!" they said, showing off one of the held guns - a sleek SMG. "Buy one and get a holster and ammunition for free!" "Surplus Wildcat Armaments shotguns, just going out the door! Get one for hunting and another for sport! And hey, even one for the front door! Just in case a salesman comes calling!" The Belza said with an affected wink of their wisp-eyes whilst dangling one of the shotguns in front of the camera. Their body rotated to point a handcannon at the camera. "And we have the Kiloton Dynamics BIG KILL .44 Magnum back in stock because you wanted it - and now we got it! Comes in cobalt, nickel, and tastefully understated chrome finishes, with 6", 8" and 10" barrels while stocks last! Throw in an extra 3000 UC and you get a recoil compensator!" "Guns, Guns, Guns 2! We got guns and ammo! Get some today!" the Belza said, once again holding all eight guns out - punctuating the end of the ad with an eight gun salute. - When the camera came back, Mono had their snout in a metal bowl. A hand reached out from the side of the screen to retrieve it. "Oh! Welcome back to CIN. Coming up, sports news straight out of York, with the University Cup wrapping up for the season." The camera shot to the grassy, verdant tundras of York, sweeping over the domes that encapsulated each enclave of the old city, and the tall structures poking out of them, and around. There was a brief focus on the large, slowly rotating octohedron on the River Unestam, serving as the city-state's link to the Orbital Object Null. From there, the overhead view begun looking northwest. Shooting in from the corners of the the picture came the three university football team logos: The green and silver Gorgons of Valley Run, the blue and white Lancers of Richard's Lake, and the Red and Gold Mindstorm from Mt. Cranth. The logos split apart as the camera panned towards the Bummaree Stadium - the agreed neutral zone for college sports. Cutting to the grounds, football players were seen in full sprint, running after a black and white ball. One of the midfielders from the Gorgons was staying hot on the heels of a Mindstorm defender, juking and dancing around them to get a clear shot and taking it - the goalie was just a moment too early to body-block the ball, and it shot into the net from under them. "And there was the goal that won the overtime and the cup," the Albion-accented announcer called out from the box, as the green and silver players started piling atop each other in celebration, while the Mindstorm players were aghast "Gorgons captain Gilbert Mays must be feeling like a million kings tonight-" referring to the large golden coins, "-what an achievement, and a beautiful win for the Gorgons!" The two football teams were lined up to face each other, with match officials carrying the coveted Trophy, fought for anually by the three teams in a tournament, and presented by star York Boreals captain Maxwell Pantera. Pantera took the trophy from the officials, and presented it to Mays, patting the captain on the shoulder. Moments later, the Gorgons were in arms together. "Another year, another cracking good tournament of football," Maxwell - a handsome man of lithe and powerful physique was being interviewed, a plethora of microphones in his face, "this is going to set up a huge rivalry for the Mindstorm - who have to play the Lancers next week to see who will get second place." "Do you think you'll be drafting any players into the Boreals for the Albion Cup next year?" An interviewer asked. Maxwell ran his fingers through his buzz-cut hair, thinking. "I've seen a lot of excellent players from the colleges this year from all sides, it's going to be hard to pick a couple for the inter-city cup. We'll see!" The camera then cut to the fans - the adoring fans who were now brawling in the street over the outcome of the match - the Mindstorm was robbed, their fans would say, and the Gorgons would disagree with them - physically. Police armed with water cannon were brought in to disperse it. Such was a tradition after local games, followed by going to the pub and getting plastered. The camera returned to the studio. Mono shuffled his papers again while footage from El Hermosa began playing in the background. "This week in Frame Running, a surprising upset nobody could have ever seen coming. Candor Medical has finally won another Full Run, for the second time in the team's history. The race on the Hermosa Helix was a close one, but they managed to pull out in the end for a clutch victory. This win unseated Jula from their four month winning streak in the Full Run." The feed cut to a sandy Rolaan with an icepack over their eye. "Good for them. I'm tired of my magitek frame getting all the attention on the field. Now, can you PLEASE get me some SPRA-" The feed then switched to a Mindeye with a uniform that was a middle ground between a doctor's coat and a racing suit. They said, "We're not entirely sure how this happened, but we're happy for the win nonetheless since nobody else on the field was too injured today. We look forward to the next big race!" The camera flicked back onto Mono. "The Ace League is another story. Hrul's aggressive ace pilot Val Kilrich's winning streak was finally undone by Selzen pilot Wide Load. The Belzan declined to comment but has given us approximately an hour of nothing but them posing to bright lighting and music, which can be also be viewed on their promotional site as we have declined to take up all of our airtime with it." The camera shifted and Mono swiveled to meet it. "And now, celebrity news. This week Gerald Ewings announced a new monster movie, once again starring long-time collaborator Elena. He has declined to give any strict details, but he has promised that this movie will 'make even the crabbiest members of the audience writhe in their seats', whatever that oddly specific choice of words means." Mono nodded to the camera. “This has been CIN. We hope you will tune in next time, and as always, shop Cloverpaw. Good day, arf arf!”
