WORLD WIDE DESTUCTION

Editorial review from The Times – Reports of destruction and devastation are flooding in from around Europe. Creatures, long thought to be the fabrications of superstitious minds have suddenly appeared with dire results. This Paper wishes to know – why?

Artist’s rendition of one of the gargouilles incarné — image courtesy of charcoal-almighty.deviantart.com

In France, the imperial government has mobilized the Garde Nationale in an effort to protect its citizens from creatures it describes as “gargouilles incarné”. Reports from refugees confirm attacks by huge creatures with wings that resemble the famous statuary adorning the roof of Notre Dame de Paris. The beasts are said to be attacking livestock and gorging themselves on the carcasses. Rumors of similar attacks on humans are rife but, as yet, unconfirmed.

Reports of troll like creatures wreaking havoc throughout the mining areas of the German and central European states continue to filter in. It appears that several of the deeper shafts have been flooded and scores of miners who sought shelter there drowned when the beasts destroyed the sump pumps used to remove the excess ground water. The seemingly  inexplicable rampage appears to have some goal to it. Side galleries, long since abandoned are being excavated by the trolls. They seem to be searching for something and, with each fruitless effort, their savagery toward the surrounding communities increases. Gruesome tales of child abduction and slaughter abound.

Russian artistic rendition of a bukavac attacking a fisherman at night — image courtesy of phantos.deviantart.com

Further east in the Russian Empire, there are reports of ancient beasts from Slavic mythology reappearing. Fishermen on the Black Sea have been attacked by bukavacs, giant, gnarly horned creatures that crush their human prey to death. Apparently, the bukavac prefers to attack in the dead of night. Entire fishing villages have been reportedly devastated as the creatures make their way up through the Dnieper River basin. One unofficial report comes from Zaporizhia, some 300 kilometers from where the Dnieper empties into the Black Sea.

Communications with the Empire at large have been spotty. A British sailor, recovered on a raft off the coast of Iberia reported that his ship had been seized, without warning, by a giant sea creature he described as a ‘kraken’.  Mail packets, merchant men, and even Her Majesty’s warships are all rumored to be overdue. Tales of unspeakable terrors are rife along the south coast, spread by those mariners who have returned. The Prime Minister has vowed a thorough investigation into the claims.

On that front, the Prime Minister had come under increasing attack from the newer ‘Conservative’ members of Parliament as well as from the Church of England. It is believed that the Whig support for a more Nonconformist and commercial approach to questions of science and technology may be at the root of the current difficulties.  While, as yet unconfirmed, there are rumors that Charles Babbage and his team of ‘energy experimenters’ may have played some part in the appearance of these creatures and the unusual celestial events we have been witnessing. A veil of secrecy has been drawn over their activities. This has led to demands by social and religious conservatives that the entire affair be laid bare and that the nation dedicate itself to eradicating this scourge.

Imperial French Garde Nationale troops mobilized to meet the crisis — image courtesy of shutterstock.com

As yet, no foreign governments have laid accusations of  responsibility for this terror at the doorstep of Her Britannic Majesty’s government. In what appears to be an effort to forestall such embarrassment occurring, the Prime Minister has called upon representatives of the Imperial French and Russian governments, the Austro Hungarian monarchy, and the German principalities to join with us in a unified effort to address the current world wide crisis. If successful, this grand coalition may herald a new era of peace and cooperation, providing that is, that we survive the depredations of these horrible, and as yet, unstoppable beasts who have invaded our world.

WINGED TERROR IN THE SKIES

Artist’s depiction of creatures descending from the tube of light described by Devon herdsmen. – image courtesy of desktopexchange.com

London, May 5, 1853 – Terror has swept like a plague over the British Isles. Following the as yet unexplained light over Devon last week, the impossible has happened. Britain is beset by dragons. These huge beasts, thought to be merely the figures of allegorical morality tales are in fact alive and ravaging the British Isles. The government of Lord Aberdeen refuses to admit complicity in the disaster that has engulfed the Nation. Farmers and herdsmen from Devon reported that the halo of light became tube like. In a day or two, they noticed shadowy figures emanating from it. One such figure passed across the waning moon. The herdsman, a devout church goer clearly described its bat-like wings and scaly body to local authorities. The unfortunate witness was jailed on a charge of public drunkenness.  Now it appears that this honest countryman was among the first to recognize the danger.

Panic on the Thames as people and boats flee the unstoppable flames. Three dragon creatures have laid waste to the capitol. – image courtesy of Metro.co,uk

Since first being reported, London has been set ablaze by a flight of three beasts. The countryside, as yet, has been spared but rumors of attacks upon other cities are filtering in. The Queen and her family, as well as such members of Parliament who survived  the initial attack have been removed to a remote location in the countryside. Contact is being maintained with the situation via various means. Heliograph signals can be seen flashing across hilltops throughout the center of the country, leading to speculation that the Royal Family and the Government are being sequestered in the area of Oxford.

In addition to the capitol, York, Aldershot, and Pottergate were among the first to be devastated. It appears that the dragons’ ire was first raised when they discovered stained glass windows depicting St. George slaying a dragon. Their rampage of destruction has spread from these initial sites to any building resembling a cathedral as well as anywhere the Cross of St. George is displayed.  The government is urging all citizens to remove English flags and other depictions of St. George in an attempt to stem the attacks.

Light cavalry militia scout seeking the beasts’ lair. Military plans to eradicate the threat at its source.

Elsewhere in the country, the dragons seem to have been establishing nests among the rocky crags of Scotland and Wales. Their swath of destruction has spread northward, wreaking havoc on the Industrial heartland. Smoke stacks, steam engines, and other fire or steam belching entities have been attacked with great tenacity. A member of the Royal Zoological Society speculates that, if the beasts are seeking to establish nests, they may see fire emitting apparatus as potential mating competitors, thus accounting for their fierce attacks.

Government troops area being withdrawn from Ireland and around the Empire to meet the growing threat these creatures present. Local militia, most of whom have not seen active service since the end of the Napoleonic Wars are valiantly struggling to protect lives and property from this unearthly threat. However, lacking heavier weapons, they have met with little success.

Hussar and light cavalry militia are scouring the rocky environs of Wales and Scotland in an effort to locate nesting sites. Once they have found them, heavy troops and artillery will move in to eradicate the threat.

Refugees fleeing Charleroi – image courtesy antiquaprintgallery.com

Plymouth, Royal Naval Station,South Coast, May 7, 1853 – The Royal Navy has received reports from merchant ships fleeing the Continent that “horrible beasts” are attacking various regions of the European Napoleonic Empire and the German States. Refugees are spreading stories of creatures they describe as trolls laying waste to the mining and industrial sites located along the Ruhr River Valley. Similar tales are coming out of France. Tales of creatures attacking around Charleroi were also being carried by fleeing refugees. All communication in that area of France has been cut. Emperor Louis Napoleon is reportedly rushing troops into the region.

Similar reports from Silesia in the France’s client state, the Grand Duchy of Poland, are noted as well.

The Navy has instituted a quarantine of the English coast in an effort to forestall the spread of these creatures as well as to prevent infiltration by foreign agents.

TROUBLE, DEATH, & DELAY

A strong force of Tlingit warriors approached the fort via the river in carved canoes

Fort Selkirk, Yukon Territory, 21 August 1852 – Aboriginal peoples of the Tlingit tribe attacked and looted this Hudson’s Bay trading post. The post is located in an area which is in dispute as to ownership. Speculation is circulating that the attack was prompted and indeed, supported by the Russian government in Sitka. Heretofore, the trading post has had the most amicable relations with the area’s indigenous peoples. Rumors among trappers have circulated of a ‘ghost shaman’ who has been reported to be fomenting unrest among the locals. Such guises are known to have been used by Okhrana agents in other disputed areas coveted by the Russian Empire.

Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington in a daguerreotype taken shortly before his demise. – image courtesy of Wikipedia.com

St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, 18 November 1852 – Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, the military hero who orchestrated bringing New Georgia back into the British Empire and former Prime Minister was laid to rest today in a heraldic state funeral, as befits his stature as soldier and statesman. The Duke, well known for his hatred of railway travel, was ironically transported to his final resting place via a special train. Isambard Kingdom Brunel was overheard to remark to Ada, Countess Lovelace, that he did not think the Iron Duke would mind being conveyed by an Iron Horse this one time. The ensuing response from Her Grace was judiciously ignored by most around her. The construction of a memorial square to the Duke is proposed in the area of The King’s Mews near Charing Cross. The square would host a gigantic Doric column surmounted by a statue of the heroic Duke who wiped the stain of revolution off the Imperial map.

Dartmoor prison, rumored to be taken over by the Military for some nefarious research connected by Babbage and his brain trust. – image courtesy of Wikipedia.com

Cambridge, 3 December, 1852 – In a statement to the press, the Brain Trust of Babbage, Brunel, Countess Lovelace, and Faraday today announced that they are very near finishing their calculations and plan to proceed to the experimentation stage in the late spring of 1853. Details are thin, to say the least, as a veil of government security has fallen over the project. Speculation, fueled by labor ministers of Parliament suggest that the War Minister has taken a keen interest in the project. If so, one can only wonder at the potential of an energy source that might also have military applications. Unconfirmed rumors hint at massive influxes of funds and the recruitment of numerous other scientists from around the Empire and beyond. Royal agents are reported to have smuggled out chemists and other specialists from the Germanys and even the crippled Austro-Hungarian  Empire. Despite all information coming from Cambridge, an increased amount of secretive activity seems to be centered near the recently abandoned Dartmoor Prison in West Devon.