Greetings Laddies and Geraniums,
Before we dive in over our heads into the muck of another season of violence and intrigue, let us take a few moments to enjoy these refreshing messages.
Press # 1 - The Short Short
There once was a Frenchman named Joe
Why he moved as he did no one did know
But with Nigs in his rear
One thing is clear
Joe will be the next one to go.
Press # 2 - The Slightly Longer Short
An ode to the Pope off in Rome,
whose armies just will not stay home
far too much ambition
may create the condition
where you face defeat with aplomb
"Nonsense!" says he - "Carpe Diem!"
"I call all the shots like I see 'em..."
Of course he still knows
that the lists of his foes
are longer than he'd like to see them
Press # 3 - The Feature Presentation
Gotham City –
The Caped Crusader stood beside the twisted ruin of the Arkham Asylum gates. The horrific stench of seared flesh should have roiled his senses; what did it say about his life that he was all too familiar with the aroma, that he could distance himself so easily from the horror? Commissioner Gordon was speaking but he heard the words only at a sub-conscious level; he was far away from this place, this catastrophic evening. His mind soared high and far, and he was in the Himalayans, back in a time when he was Bruce Rayne only, not yet afflicted with his dual personality, training with Ra’s al Ghul at the top of the world, learning the skills and arts that would set his life’s path. His mind, having taken him as far from the grisly scene as it could, nevertheless processed all the information the police chief was giving him. The mad creature that tormented his life, Gordon was informing him, had escaped again, despite the improved security protocols. Le Farceur. The Insane Clown Prince. The Joker.
Would he ever be free of that twisted smile, the brilliantly corrupted brain that became sharper and more focused even as it drifted further from reality? The Dark Knight’s mind was hardly ordinary in its own right; while his conscious self fled the scene, escaping the smoking horror at his feet, the lower levels of his mind heard Gordon suggest that by now Le Joker was far away. His subconscious took in the Commissioner’s opinion and recorded it factually, but when his true focus later came to bear upon the conversation, he would laugh in derision at the absurdity of the suggestion. He should be so lucky: Le Joker fleeing, removing himself from Gotham City , ridding the city of his pestilence – as if! As if he could ever enjoy such fortune. Le Joker was the Yang to his Yin. There was no question of the pasty-faced fiend choosing a rational course such as self-preservation; he would forever find a path that led straight back to Gotham City and his never-ending war against The Batman and the city. Still reeling from the searing loss of this evening, he lapsed into self-pity. Would that it could be so: Le Joker, taking his Circus of Death on the road. Any why not? Why not Metropolis? Go torment that alien freak in his ridiculous costume of primary colors! Wage your futile war against The Man of Steel -- what could he do to Supes anyway? The toll in human life and suffering Le Joker had exacted here in Gotham City over the years was staggering, and tonight was beyond comprehension. Yes, go! go! just go away, be someone else’s problem and leave me alone!
That could never and would never happen, he knew. He didn’t know how or why this battle had started, other than his life was committed to preserving balance, and Le Joker’s goal was precisely the opposite. And what a commitment it was. All the years, all the loves, all the losses. And now this.
The Batman’s focus snapped back from its escape at the top of the world half a planet away, and his gaze finally dropped to the smoldering body at his feet, all that remained of his friend, his confident, his ally, his shield against both harm and horror. His Robin. All the losses, all the sacrifices, every doubt he’d ever had about the life he’d chosen coalesced into a liquid wall of pain and fury, hitting him like a tsunami, and his knees buckled. He caught himself before he hit the ground; he was The Dark Knight, and his mystique was all he had to hold the evil at bay. No pain, no doubt, no weakness could ever be shown, not even to the forces for good, his partners on crime.
Only his friend of many years caught the lapse, and the Commissioner moved quickly to his side for discreet assistance if it was needed. But as he expected, The Batman’s moment of weakness seemed to have passed almost before it began. What had brought him here, even before the Commissioner had a chance to summon Gotham City ’s protector? How had he known of this fell happening seeming almost as it occurred? At times he felt The Dark Knight truly was possessed of otherworldly insights and abilities. “We’ll get him!” Gordon hissed in his ear. “No matter what it takes, however long, regardless of the cost, Le Joker will be behind walls again, and soon! We’ll start by finding out where he got that amount of explosives!” The Commissioner paused, judging his friend’s demeanor, waiting for a clue as to the man’s state of mind. The seconds stretched out interminably, and Gordon, a man of infinite patience, had to forcibly prevent himself from fidgeting. What was happening in the dark corners of The Dark Knight’s mind? In an ironic parallel of which he was not even aware, the concept of Yin and Yang came also to Gordon, of the way the criminal’s and crusader’s lives intertwined, and he suddenly felt nauseous, as another similarity occurred to him. The trauma, the one that had sent Le Joker to another place, never to return -- surely this ultimate loss for The Batman would be just as great a shock? What was happening in that unfathomable brain? He glanced obliquely into his friends eyes, and his heart sank to see nothing there; a sight far more troubling than the rage he’d expected to witness there.
When The Dark Knight finally spoke he said only, “No need.” Gordon paused, completely taken aback, waited for more, and when nothing was added, he managed, “No need?!? No need what? No need to find out who helped him escape? No need to track him down!?!” With a member of his own force Gordon would have been tempted to slap the man back into reality; the sudden image of trying that effect on this costumed man standing before him sent involuntary shivers down Gordon’s back. After another protracted silence, The Batman appeared to collect himself, and only then finally looked directly at the Commissioner. “No need for either” he replied flatly. “If you search the Asylum you will find the psychiatrist Harleen Qunizel missing. She has become infatuated with Le Joker and provided the means for his escape. We both know his peculiar type of madness can be contagious.” From nowhere he produced a small folded piece of paper and handed it to the Commissioner. “You’ll find she’s now going by the name ‘Harley Quinn’. She sent this message to Robin to lure him here.”
He turned to leave, and this time Gordon actually reached out and grabbed his arm. “Well, wait a second here, what about organizing the manhunt? We still…” The Dark Knight spun around, and now the raw fury was there to for all to see; it seethed for Gordon, for the other policemen, my God surely people miles away must be shivering in their sleep to feel that primordial venom radiating from the black suit, poisoning the night air. “Oh no”, he rasped, “they’ll be no manhunt. Not this time. You’re out of this – it’s all me now. It’s no man we’re hunting for. It’s a beast, with a lunatic’s mind. No walls, not this time, not ever again. The next prison for Le Joker is a grave! This is his last escape. It’s death he craves, and I mean to satisfy his desire.”
“Wait!” shouted Gordon, “You can’t, you mustn’t…” but the night had already swallowed the object of his protestations. For a moment he thought about trying to stop him, to send his police force after the vigilante, but instantly dismissed it as a futile gesture. The Dark Knight would be found only when he wanted to be. Gordon’s fears had been realized and the circle of Yin and Yang had been completed. The loss of Robin may not have driven The Caped Crusader mad, but it had served as a cosmic magnet, completely disrupting his moral compass, and like Le Joker a metamorphosis had occurred. The Batman had served notice that he was now a bird of prey.
Wow!
I mean, Wow!
Not for one minute am I going to try to follow that. Here are your results, fast and straight. More or less. OH, c'mon. I really did try to restrain myself, but it was such a great turn!
* Gauls invade Albion! No less (and no more) than three French units are now occupying English soil.
* Unfortunately, French cities are falling to Italy faster than the English cities can be conquered.
* Angles invade Jutland!
* Huns say "Nein!" to Romans in Bavaria!
* Muscovites denied entry to Venezia! No zuppe for you!
* Ottomans put their feet up in Serbia!
Graffiti on the bathhouse wall:
* Rome Rocks SoHo (South of Holland) with ring for every finger and one more for ... wherever.
* Free the Smyrna Seven!
* The ants go marching 4 by 4. (I'm not last, I'm tied for 3rd!)
RETREATS NEEDED:
Italian A Munich can retreat to Ruhr or OTB.
Italian A Serbia can retreat to Budapest or Greece or Albania or OTB.
ADJUSTMENTS:
Everyone but England have adjustment orders to submit this Winter. See table below for SC counts and Adjustments numbers.
NEXT DEADLINE:
Autumn retreats and Winter orders are due tomorrow, Friday, April 29, at 18:00 Eastern time.
Cheers,
Chris
Orders as resolved. Check for errors, please, and notify me ASAP if there is a problem.
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England:
F Irish Sea - Liverpool (*Fails*)
F London Hold
F North Sea - Edinburgh
F Sweden - Denmark
France:
A Belgium - Wales
A Burgundy - Belgium (*Bounce*)
F Clyde Supports F North Atlantic Ocean - Liverpool
F English Channel Convoys A Belgium - Wales
F North Atlantic Ocean - Liverpool
Germany:
A Berlin Supports A Bohemia - Munich
A Bohemia - Munich
F Denmark - North Sea
A Holland - Belgium (*Bounce*)
A Kiel Supports A Bohemia - Munich
Italy:
F Gulf of Lyon - Spain(sc)
A Marseilles - Burgundy (*Fails*)
F Mid-Atlantic Ocean - Brest
A Munich - Bohemia (*Dislodged*)
A Serbia - Trieste (*Dislodged*)
A Trieste - Venice (*Bounce*)
F Tunis - Ionian Sea
F Tyrrhenian Sea Hold
A Vienna - Trieste (*Bounce*)
Russia:
A Moscow - Ukraine
F Norway - Norwegian Sea
A St Petersburg - Moscow
A Tyrolia - Venice (*Bounce*)
A Warsaw - Silesia
Turkey:
F Black Sea - Constantinople
A Bulgaria - Serbia
A Constantinople - Bulgaria
A Rumania Supports A Bulgaria - Serbia
F Sevastopol - Black Sea
A Ukraine - Galicia
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Ownership:
England (4): Denmark, Edinburgh, London, Sweden.
France (4): Belgium, Liverpool, Paris, Portugal.
Germany (4): Berlin, Holland, Kiel, Munich.
Italy (11): Budapest, Greece, Naples, Rome, Serbia, Spain, Trieste, Tunis, Venice.
Russia (4): Moscow, Norway, St Petersburg, Vienna, Warsaw.
Turkey (7): Ankara, Bulgaria, Constantinople, Rumania, Sevastopol, Smyrna.
Adjustments:
Austria: Supp 0 Unit 0 Build 0 ... eliminated 1903
England: Supp 4 Unit 4 Build 0
France: Supp 4 Unit 5 Remove 1
Germany: Supp 4 Unit 5 Remove 1
Italy: Supp 11 Unit 9 Build 2 ... or build 3 if either A Munich or A Serbia is retreated off the board
Russia: Supp 4 Unit 5 Remove 1
Turkey: Supp 7 Unit 6 Build 1
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