news The National Courier

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

30.03.2021

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The Ministry of Finance suspected of corruption.

The Royal Security Agency has has concluded in their latest report that they found links, linking some of the staff in Ministry of Finance, to bribes and corruption. Such suspicions became apparent when the government started noticing more and more of the actual revenue disappearing from the expected revenue. The Konráðið, under the guidance of the Divine Queen Ena Kalinka, have instructed the RSA to focus more resources on tracking down the corrupt officials in the ministry, noting that corruption and bribery is heavily condemned in the government and such criminals will be hunted down.

The Minister of Finance Karl Jötunhöll, Deputy Minister Frida Sökölheim and Secretary of Revenue Brenda Björk, have all been arrested under the suspicion of corruption and incompetence. The RSA reports that the Deputy Minister Frida Sökölheim infact was part of the corruption conspiracy, after she made a clear confession, when being interrogated. The confession also gave light to new evidence suspecting to more people being part of the corruption, however the names are not yet revealed. It is however apparent that all three people arrested, are part of the corruption. The Minister of Finance, Deputy Minister of Finance and Secretary of Revenue have been relieved from the Ministry and are awaiting court trial which is planned next Tuesday.

The Queen Ena Kalinka has openly announced that she regrets her failure to catch this sooner and that she will do everything in her power to catch and arrest each and every one, part of the corruption conspiracy. She quotes. "I apologize for my inability to track down the root of the weakening economy sooner and i regret that many fellow Ateenians had to suffer for my inability, but i promise, i will personaly see to it, that this problem is solved and that the corruption in our government shall be rooted out and eradicated. Corruption in the government is a crime that i cannot forgive, i cannot forgive the people that would abuse their office and instead of improving the life of all Ateenians, use their power to only improve their back pockets. May these conspirators seek forgivness from the gods, because they will get non from me. I promise you my dear sons and daughters, that i fight a battle every day to give you a better tomorrow, a better future, a better government. All i ask from you is patience."

In recent days it has become apparent that the royal government has increased their focus on rooting out corruption from all government institutions, which has been becoming more and more corrupt since the death of Divine Queen Aslaug Kalinka, 7 years ago.

Edited April 7, 2021 by Ateenia
Titled appropriately. (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

07.04.2021

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More conspirators arrested.

The RSA has discovered more leads leading to new suspects part of the corruption conspiracy in the Ministry of Finance. The new evidence suggests that, the assistant secretary of revenue department, Bjorn Gunnarsson and deputy minister of commerce Helle Brennadóttir are also part of the corruption and have been arrested and their court hearing is in 3 days. Because one of the suspects is in ministry of commerce, the RSA suggests that this corruption spreads further then the ministry of finance and has put the ministry of commerce in the watchlist aswell.

The Divine Queen Ena Kalinka was suprised when she heard that this corruption is not limited to only 1 ministry but 2 or more, Because of that, the queen has begun considering the reformation of the ministries, meaning that all ministers and civil servants of all ministries and departments could be fired in the coming weeks and replaced with fresh and more capable ministers and civil servants. The Queen has not yet made the decision but is considering it, the Konráðið has asked her not to make such a rash decision, fearing this may push Ateenia into further economic depression.

 

 

Minister and Deputy Minister of Finance and Secretary of Revenue sentenced.

The Minister of Finance Karl Jötunhöll, Deputy Minister Frida Sökölheim and Secretary of Revenue Brenda Björk have been sentenced by the Supreme Court and have been found guilty of bribery, conspiracy, forgery and fraud. The Supreme court has sentenced all of them to life in imprisonment with no parole. After the judge made his judgement, Frida Sökölheim asked the judge for reconsideration, that she be allowed to devote her life to the gods for the rest of the life in one of the temples dedicated to the gods. The judge, having no choice, had to accept the request and reconsidered under the guidance of the queen and the gods, to sentence Frida Sökölheim to priesthood and that she be handed over to the priests of the Unheim Temple where she shall be put through the dangerous trials to becoming a priest.

The Queen stated that Frida while being incapable of serving the people and the kingdom directly, can now serve the people and the kingdom through serving the gods in the Unheim Temple or be doomed forever by the wrath of the gods that will follow her for the rest of her life and afterlife.

 

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

14.04.2021

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Conspirators arrested and more conspirators revealed.

The Supreme Court has found both Bjorn Gunnarsson and Helle Brennadóttir guilty of bribery and conspiracy and sentenced Helle Brennadóttir to 25 years in imprisonment. Bjorn Gunnarsson has agreed to reveal all the members of the conspiracy he knows of, under the condition that the Supreme Court grants him shorter prison sentence. The Supreme Court agreed to his terms and sentenced him to only 15 years of imprisonment, but not before he was sent to be interrogated by the RSA which lasted for a few hours until all info was extracted from him and he was sent to prison.

The Interrogation has revealed 6 more conspirators in the ministry of Finance, Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of the Interior. The Conspirators were quickly arrested and interrogated, this time revealing no new links to more conspirators. As such the RSA has concluded that every member of the conspiracy has been caught and their investigation concluded.
The Court sentencing on these 6 conspirators will begin next Monday.

The Divine Queen stated that she is happy that the last of the rotten ministers and civil servants, have been caught and arrested. She has confirmed that Konráðið has already begun selecting replacement ministers for those three ministries and that the effects of this improvement will not take long to appear. The Queen has also confirmed that such corruption will not be permitted to exist in the government as long as she lives.

The Government stated that such fast and efficient work from the Royal Security Agency has not gone unnoticed and that the investigators that participated in this investigation, will be invited to the Royal Palace for a feast with the queen this Saturday. 

 

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

15.06.2021 AD

11.03.1949 AJB

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Preparations for Miðnóttleysa festival begin.

People all around Ateenia have begun preparing for Miðnóttleysa festival that is only 7 days away and like always, lasts untill the 20th of Sólmánður. Like always, the government asks that people would get overboard with the purchasing of alcohol and food.

The Queen herself has begun preparing for the festival as evident by the number of trucks, full of sacrificial animals, logs. food and alcohol, entering the Royal Palace. It is expected that many Ateenians can celebrate Miðnóttleysa next to the Royal Palace this year aswell, just like all the previous years and like always, all people of Ateenia are welcomed to the party, the queen is hosting. Almost all the buisnesses will be closed on the duration of the festival like always and every worker shall be one way or the other, celebrating Miðnóttleys whether on duty or off duty. The emergency workers will traditionaly set up their tents in those festivals to keep doing their job while also partaking in the celebration.

Last year, most of the Ateenian streets and roads were empty with almost everyone partaking in the festival. The festival was also the direct cause for the increased birth rate in Lífsmánður when tens of thousands of new children were born. The Midsummer festival has also sometimes been called the festival of life or the festival of love due to many new couples forming and many pregnancies happening during the Miðnóttleysa. The primary purpouse of this festival is still to make sacrifice to the gods and to party in the name of the gods so that good fortune and fertility may be granted to all of Ateenia. Some say that the allfather Vrjoln and many other gods also took part of the festival, this year it is hoped that the festival will be even greater so that the gods may attend once again. Unfortunatly last years Miðnóttleysa festival was also the reason of death for hundreds of people that either died of drowning, overdrinking or other accidents, 1 death also occured because of fighting, however the killer was cleared of charges due to both parties being consenting to the fighting and too drunk. This year the government advises to take better care in making sure that fights end before anyone gets killed and that no one fights unless they are absolutely certain that they can hold their own. The Queen wants to remind Ateenians that its better to admit defeat in a fight rather then to fight untill you die. 

The Queen will give the festivals opening speech in the 18th of Sólmánður (22nd of June) when the festival will begin.

 

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

25.06.2021 AD

21.03.1949 AJB

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Miðnóttleysa festival has concluded.

This year's Miðnóttleysa festival has concluded, lasting from 18th to 20th of Sólmánður, with a turnout of over 3 million people from all over Ateenia having attended the festival at one point or the other. Many of the bonfire sites were overloaded with crowd with most sites having up to 3000-4000 people at their most populated parts of the day. Thousands of sacrifices were made to the god Ungor who is the god of prosperity, peace, forests and wildlife, aswell as to the goddess Ungrilla who is the goddess of love, sex, fertility, beauty, parties and nature so that both of them may grant the Ateenians good fortune and plentiful harvest and children. In the first evening, the chickens and rabbits were sacrificed, in the 2nd evening, the pigs and goats were sacrificed and in the 3rd, the cattle as was tradition. In honour of Ungrilla, people danced, had sex and partied both nights but as is custom, children were not allowed in the areas during night so they were sent home. Overall the festival concluded well with less deaths and injuries then last year but unfortunatly 21 people still lost their lives and 81 injuries still had to be treated. The people were happy with this year's midsummer and some even felt like it outdid the previous festival saying, most likely thanks to more bands playing better music then last year aswell as better food. Emergency incidents were relativly low with only 5 sites almost igniting past the bonfire, however thanks to many firefighters being present and still on duty while taking part of the festival, they were able to stop those fires before they became too great, aswell as only 71 arrests were made by the law enforcement however 53 of them were pardoned due to the festival being the time of letting themselves free and the 53 of them not being guilty of any serious crimes.

Image taken in Osarvik bonfire "Iro" in north coast of the city.

 

 

The "Aar" bonfire

The most popular bonfire area was yet again the "Aar" bonfire located near the Athahöll Palace (in Ateenian just Athahöll) just outside of Atha that had over 5000 attendants, some of whom were invited by the Queen. The Festival began with the Queen's opening speech which was short.
"My belowed Ateenians! Today marks the 18th day of Sólmánður which as you all know is the day of Miðnóttleysa festival, the day where we begin partying and making sacrifices to the gods and begin yelling out Ungor's and Ungrilla's name for good fortune, fertility and good harvest so that we may survive yet another year. As all the years before, I wish you good luck and have fun for saddness is forbidden for the next 2 days. Now may the horns mark the start of the festival and let the party begin."

It is known that the Queen Ena Kalinka herself took part of the festival both day and night so there are suspicions whether the queen might have an heir soon or not and whether she found herself a husband or not. Alongside the Queen, the Empress Kira'Karn Elemmiire of @Haruspex and her wife Ayn Gende Elemmiire were also seen accompanying the queen and at some point, even taken part of the festival even if they do not actualy belive in the Ateenian gods.

The Queen of Love for the "Aar" site this year was a girl from Atha named Ilga Astridottir who was 17 years old and was first to walk away from the dancing crow with a mate to make love. After her, many followed. Last year's Queen of Love was a girl from a little village of Trehöll named Silga Olidottir who was 23 years old.

At the end of Miðnóttleysa festival, the participants used a knife to cut a wound on their arm to leave their party spirit behind to the goddess Ungrilla as their sacrifice, like all the years before and after that the festival was officialy over and the people returned to their daily lives, some with their new partners, some with their old partners and the few who were unlucky enough, alone. The Queen herself after the event returned home without a partner but not alone. She went back to the palace with the Empress of Haruspex and her wife to discuss matters that the royal house has not yet announced, so it is only a guess what they may be discussing over. Some suspect that Ateenians might hear alot more about the country Haruspex in the future.

 

Edited December 5, 2021 by Ateenia
Forgot the opening speech from the queen. (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

01.07.2021 AD

27.03.1949 AJB

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Kira'Karn state visit to Ateenia comes to a conclusion.

The state visit by the Empress Kira'Karn Elemmiire of the Sovereign Imperium of Haruspex, comes to a conclusion, after 12 days of being a guest in Ateenia and the Heimstrell palace where she and the Queen of Ateenia Ena Kalinka discussed important and not so important topics about both their nations, their houses and themselves.

The primary topic between the 2 was about the shared blood link of the 2 dynasties through the blood of the legendary Ateenian king, Jorling that once unified the jarls of Ateenia under his divine rule that brought the Kingdom of Ateenia into being. The shared blood link was discovered in 2001 when the historians discovered mentions of Jorlings 4th son who's existance wasnt certain before due to his name in the Jorlings Saga having been lost to time through the ages. It was discovered that Jorling's son Knorr Jorlingsson led a raiding party east that lost its way and was never heard of again. It was assumed he died in sea at the time but evidence in Haruspex suspect that he and his raiding party found their way to Europa, where they crashed and were forced to stay. Evidence suggests that they lived together with the natives of the area at the time and eventualy Knorr Jorlingsson Kalinka's son, Ivar Knorrsson Kalinka came to form the Empire of Haruspex after the succesful unification of them and the natives in the area. Through out ages, Knorr's bloodline split from Kalinka and became a whole new dynasty, the same dynasty that the empress of today's Haruspex is apart of.

Through that historical record, Empress Kira and Queen Ena are certain that they are related, allbeit the blood link is 19 centuries old they still consider eachother blood relatives. This discovery alone has been the driving force of the increased relations between Ateenia and Haruspex in the recent years.

The Queen states that they were also discussing on increased trade with the Empress and that they managed to come to an agreement that all tariffs between the 2 countries be lowered by 35%, meaning that when this new law comes into effect in the 89th of Sólmánður (1st of September) this year, the lower prices of goods would encourage the companies of either country to increase trade and presence on both countries while the government owned companies would also be required to increase their exports and imports between the 2.

Empress Kira'Karn Elemmiire of Haruspex left yesterday but before she left, she and the Queen Ena made their last handshake and Ena gave a brief speech about the importance visit to the people which ended with this sentence. "Our brothers and sisters are coming home!"
It is uncertain what she meant by that but it is speculated that we might start hearing more about Haruspex real soon.

The Fleet that escorted Kira'Karn departed yesterday evening around 7pm and was escorted by 2 Ateenian corvettes to the international waters where the Ateenian ships turned around to head back to the port and Haruspex fleet continued on East, back to Haruspex.

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

22.07.2021 AD

48.03.1949 AJB

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Decision to decrease RSA funding, overruled by the Queen.

This morning the Konráðið gathered to vote on a decision they have been discussing for the past 2 weeks now. They voted on whether or not to decrease the spending on the KÖ, also known as the Royal Security Agency or the RSA. It was brought up due to some Jarls not being content with their work and thinking they are an useless money sink in this time of economic hardship in the Kingdom of Ateenia, some even pointing out that they are nothing more then bunch of corrupt officials trying to secure their hold over the government stating that the arrest of the previous Minister of Finance and deputy ministers from both ministry of finance, ministry of commerce and ministry of Interior were falsely accused and the evidence of their conspiracy was planted by the RSA. Most Jarls called such claims outrageous but still agreed that the spending on RSA is better used elsewhere instead.

The Jarls eventualy voted on the matter and reached a decision, with 13 out of 23 Jarls voting for the defunding of the RSA and 9 against, 1 did not vote due to being impartial in this matter. With the bill passed, the bill was sent to the Queen to sign into effect as was expected by the Jarls, however the Queen decided to not pass the decision and instead decided to veto it. She stated that this budget change is outrageous with the Kingdom of Ateenia being plagued by corruption and stated that the fact that some Jarls want the RSA weakened, brings concern that should be investigated by the RSA further. She stated that instead of decreasing the funding, the Konráðið should be voting on increasing the budget instead to fight corruption harder in hopes of eventualy bringing all those that are hurting Ateenia with their corruption, to their knees.

The Queen herself has made another decision on this matter and decided that the budget of RSA should infact be increased by 6% so that they may continue their fight stronger then ever. The Director of RSA, Olga Geldadóttir, applauded the Queens decision and stated that she is grateful for the Queens continued understanding and support on what the Agency is doing to help fix the kingdom.

The Konráðið has voiced discontent with the Queens decision to overrule them and some even stated that if she does not let Konráðið pass the decisions they vote on, then what is the point of it existing in the first place. Jarl Knut Olferr was outraged by the veto so much that he threatened that if the RSA does not stop arresting whomever they please after planting fake evidence, then the RSA will not be allowed in the Jarldom of Mosiheimr. The Queen responded to the threat that if Jarl Knut only rules over Mosiheimr because his house has sworn to serve House Kalinka and the Kingdom of Ateenia and that he does not have the right to ban the Kingdoms agencies from his lands. 

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

20.08.2021 AD

77.03.1949 AJB

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Queen Ena to visit Prathen

Queen Ena has announced her upcoming visit to Prathen in the Haruspex Imperium, to discuss further relations between the 2 countries. She not elaborate more but made it clear that this trip is purely for the benefit of the kingdom and not her personal vacation. She will be accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs Torvi Helgidóttir who will fly with her on The Royal Dragon. The plane is scheduled to take off from the Jorling International Airport in Atha tonight at 23:07, when it will begin its long flight to The Haruspex Imperium's capital Prathen. There the queen will take a car convoy to the imperial palace where she shall meet the Haru empress Kira'Karn Elemmiire.

 

 

It is unknown what exactly the queen is going there to discuss other that that it will improve the relations between the 2 great countries. 

Minister of Foreign Affairs Torvi Helgidóttir stated that she is happy to accompany the queen on this trip, stating that this gives her an opportunity to assist the Queen to forge stronger relations with the Sovereign Imperium of Haruspex that will strenghten Ateenia's position on the wurld stage. 

Not everyone in the government is so optimistic about this trip with some of the jarls stating that this is just some overly advertised vacation trip or that she will go there to weaken Ateenian sovereignty for some selfish desire to befriend her so called long lost relative even if it means selling Ateenia out to their overly expansive Empire.

The Unheim Temple has expressed their disappointment on the fact that no priests of the temple were invited, they pointed out that they expect the 4th core policy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be followed both today and in the future for they consider it an insult to the gods every time the government respects any foreigners false religion out of courtesy.

The Queen has made no reply to these comments and is proceeding with the preparations for the flight.

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

22.09.2021 AD

18.04.1949 AJB

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Jarl Knut's backdoor deals uncovered.

The RSA has uncovered evidence about Jarl Knut's involvement in the corruption conspiracy that has been extensivly plaguing the government of Ateenia for years. It was discovered that there were multiple undocumented incomes and spending's in the Jarldom of Mosiheimr treasury, one of them being a undocumented transfer of money from the Ministry of Finance to the treasury of Mosiheimr of a sum of 110 million Krónas. It is yet unknown why the money was transfered but the RSA promises to find out soon.

The RSA contacted the local police not long after to arrest the guilty jarl, however the local police refused to arrest the jarl, saying that they will not arrest a jarl over a false accusation from untrustworthy agency. As such the RSA contacted the Queen not soon after and an emergency meeting of Konráðið was called.

When the emergency meeting started, the evidence was presented before any discussion even began and the Queen proceeded to accuse the Jarl of treason and ask why this transfer was made. The jarl responded that the evidence is forged and felt insulted by, what he called, false accusations. He proceeded to state that this is yet another example of the RSA planting false evidence to cause havoc in Ateenia and disunite the kingdom. Queen Ena was having non of it and demanded to know why the transfer was made once again before being interrupted by Jarl Kari Skunhild who took a stand on the side of Jarl Knut, voicing her concerns about how easily a jarl can be framed. She revealed her trust towards Jarl Knut and said that she does not believe a loyal jarl like Knut would ever work against the kingdom for he would sooner die then hurt the beating heart of the Kingdom of Ateenia that has protected and guided the lives of every Ateenian for thousands of years in the guidance of the gods. She backed her statement with pictures of Jarl Knut leading the men and women of Ateenia to battle against those that would harm her in the Kingdoms restoration war and told the queen that Jarl Knut shed blood and tears for the kingdom long before her royal majesty was even born. Before Jarl Kari could finish Jarl Calder stood up and presented a few stories about how he fought side by side with Jarl Knut and saw first hand how the man would even condemn his soul if it meant that Ateenia would continue on. 

Queen Ena, after having patiently heard the Jarls out continued, "It is all very interesting and honourable indeed and I thank you both for this great service but the evidence is clear, whatever the reason for this transfer, Jarl Knut is involved in whatever conspiracy is going on in my kingdom and I will have non of it, your past glories do not make you immune to the laws and I must ask Jarl Knut of House Olferr to go with the RSA to be interrogated and arrested for this illegal act..." before the queen could finish, Jarls Kari, Calder and a few other Jarls stood up and called it an outrage. They asked the queen to stop ignoring them and to stop this madness, followed by all of them agreeing that if the Queen wants to arrest Knut for something the RSA is framing him, she better arrest them too for they will not stand and watch as the loyal Jarl that has given so much for the kingdom be mistreated like that. They warned the queen that she should get more solid evidence before even daring to speak about Jarl Knut like that again. 

The Queen did not follow up with this and called the meeting over and told the Jarls to all go home. She was then reported whispering to the Director of the RSA to dig more deeply into it but was interrupted by Jarl Knut saying, "oh and from now on, these filthy spies of the RSA are now barred from Jarldom of Mosiheimr!" before slamming the door behind him.

Later that evening, Jarl Knut followed through with his statement and evicted the RSA from his Jarldom and demanded that the RSA department of Mosiheimr be closed by Friday.

House of Konráðið

Edited September 22, 2021 by Ateenia (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

29.09.2021 AD

25.04.1949 AJB

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More Jarldoms to ban RSA

After the Jarldom of Mosiheimr banned the Royal Security Agency from its lands last Friday, more jarls have begun standing up against the queen to ban the RSA from investigating or even basing in their jarldoms. Among Mosiheimr, the list of Jarldoms that have banned the RSA include 4 other jarldoms, those being the jarldom of Áinlandi, jarldom of Úlfan, jarldom of Jorklandi and the jarldom of Yönnur. Queen Ena responded to the bans with a statement that every jarl that goes against the Queens interest and the interest of Ateenia is nothing more then a traitor and will pay for their treason, threatening other jarls from following this act of treason. In response to the queens threat, Jarl Calder of the jarldom of Grundvik made a warning to the queen that it is not treason to evict those that would harm Ateenia and that it is every Jarls and even the Queens moral duty as an Ateenian to rid the kingdom from these snakes. Followed by the response, Jarl Calder made an announcement that the RSA will be banned from the jarldom of Grundvik by the 39th of Dauðamánður making him the 6th Jarl in Ateenia to evict the Royal Security Agency.

The RSA has up until now, been silent about its displease of getting evicted from the jarldoms, however the Herraleik of the RSA, Rayen Karoladóttir, told the queen and the Konráðið that she will not tolerate disruption in her work and has assured the jarls that the RSA has not provided any falsified evidence or claims nor will it ever start. She continued that the RSA has served the kingdom loyaly for over 300 years, stopping anyone that wishes to harm her and has been the queens truthful eyes, ears and hands throughout its existance, followed by statement that the Royal Security Agency has special clearance to operate all across Ateenia and the right to carry out any operations approved by the monarch since its foundation, to prevent their investigations is to prevent the will of the Queen and god Jorling to be carried out and thus committing treason against the gods and the kingdom. Rayen ended with the promise that she will make no more retreats and that the RSA will continue its investigation into the conspiracy and will not be stopped by the bans from the jarldoms to follow links to wherever they may lead.

Non of the Jarls in question have made any further comment on the matter, however it is confirmed that the presence of both the Herraleik and all of the Jarls in the next Konráðið meeting, in the 31st of this month, has been requested by the queen. She asked that the evictions be lifted atleast untill the Konráðið meeting has concluded so that further compromise could be found in that day. The Jarls have not responded to the queens request yet and it is unknown whether they will even attend the meeting.

The event has also brought rise to a small protest in many of the jarldoms with the protestors voicing their concern with their jarls treason against the queen, so far, neither the local jarls nor the queen have neither supported nor dispersed the protests however there have been small instances where some protestors were met by the police giving them warnings to discontinue the protests.

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

03.12.2021 AD

91.04.1949 AJB

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Nýttár Hátíð begins as the year comes to a close.

The festival of Nýttár Hátíð begins as the year 1949 comes to a close and 1950 will begin. Preparations for the festival have taken place for over 2 weeks now and as the night draws closer, the preparations end and the festival begins. As always when the sun sets, the festival begins to transition from the previous year to the next and as the sun rises, the festival will be over and the year 1950 will begin. As always, the festival will begin with a feast that people mostly have been holding at their homes with their families, where traditionally fish, sheep and chicken is served alongside rye bread, waffle cookies with coffee aswell as alcoholic drinks like mead and ale there to settle the thirst. In recent days, many new additions have come to the feast tables but the traditional cuisine remains popular around Ateenia. Many tables will often be filled with songs and stories of the old and when the people are full, the real festival begins as the people gather outside and take part in singing, dancing and enjoying the scenery of others doing the same. For the entirety of the night, the streets will be filled with song and music aswell as dancing as people move both in parades and stand in the more open areas of their respective towns or cities with torches in their hands as their cities get lit up with torches rather then street lights. It is also why it is tradition to turn the lights off in the cities so that only the torches may show the light.

Later into the night, the people will gather to the story tellers who shall reenact and tell the story of Ateenia's first king, Jorling Vrjolnsson Kalinka, from the day of his birth to the day of his death, telling how Vrjoln fell in love with his mother Lida, that resulted in her giving birth to Jorling that grew up as a farmer and as a warrior, how his mother was executed by the local jarl Horling that led Jorling onto his destiny of uniting Ateenia, it began as Jorling took revenge on Horling through a duel and won and because Horling did not have an heir, Jorling came to take his throne and become the Jarl. telling old stories on Jorlings great raids aswell as his battles that led him to uniting Ateenia through conquest, marriage and diplomacy and when no Ateenian jarl could oppose him no longer, they swore loyalty to Jorlings dynasty and through that formed the kingdom of Ateenia that has now existed for over 1900 years. As the night draws closer to the morning and people get tired of partying, the time of offerings to both god Jorling, to thank him for founding and fathering the kingdom of Ateenia and thus uniting its people, and goddess Ásair, the goddess of time so that she may bring forth the new year.

When the sun starts to rise once more to begin the new year, the time of rest begins as people return to their homes and take rest for the rest of the day while the seer and seeresses begin their ritual to sit in a circle of candles and directly thank Jorling and Ásair in the people's names aswell as listen to their guiding and ask for them to grant them the power to talk to the gods for another year.

 

On other news:

• Preparations for the Miðskammdegi festival are to begin after the Nýttár Hátíð festival.
• Varnar considers calling in the reserves as tensions grow on the western border.
• Princess Tyra to marry Prince Benjamin of Zaxar
• Demand for electric lines grows as citizens of Kliþorp gather infront of their Shöfðingi's house in protest.
• The music band Sögumaður releases their now song "Nótt" for their album "Guðirnir"

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

21.12.2021 AD

18.01.1950 AJB

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Miðskammdegi has begun as the darkest day has begun.

As the sky is dominated by Estrid once more, with Vrjoln shining his light in the south, the northern lands have entered their darkest days. Today is one of the few days when midday and midnight are equally dark and indistinguishable from eachother. It is this that time of year when the god of darkness and mischief, Myrkrið is most active, playing tricks to people's eyes and ears, while his wife Nótt shows the calming beauty of the darkness of the night.

As all the years before, this year is no different, the Miðskammdegi holiday is observed for the next 10 days, as the people honor all those that have left the realm of the living. As is tradition, in the first day a candle is lit for every family member or friend you have lost. It is believed that the souls of the dead can see the candle, lit in their name and for the 10 days of the holiday, will be able to visit their candle, where they will be able to hear the living. During this period, the living can communicate with the dead but only the living can talk. People use this time, often to say their last goodbyes to their loved ones if they didn't have the chance to do so in life.

Up until the 10th day, the holiday will pass quietly and will often be uneventful, but it is the 10th day, when people party and feast in the dead's name and make offerings to the gods, so that their own lives and the lives of their offspring may last for years. In the morning of the 10th day, the morning feast will begin, where people will eat, drink, dance and sing with the dead. The Feasting and partying lasts until the late evening and last words are given to the dead, who are preparing to return to the realm of the dead. When the last day of Miðskammdegi nears it's end, the candles are put out, the candles of a relative sometimes with blood to renew and strengthen the eternal bond between blood relatives, thus ending the holiday and returning to normal life.

 

 

 

 

On other news:

• Shöfðingi of Kliþorp promises electric lines by late Lífsmánður.
• Konráðið demands reform in the RSA from the Queen.
• 32 year old Ahranian mountain climber, found dead at the Midgor mountains.
• Over 4000 households without power in Osarvik yesterday.

 

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

03.05.2022 AD

60.02.1950 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

First Haruspex soldiers arrive in Ateenia

For the past couple of weeks, the first Haruspex troops have been arriving to Ateenia and have started setting up their bases across Ateenia, with many being stationed in existing Varnar bases and others being tasked with setting up temporary Haru bases in the jarldoms of Osarvik, Atha, Grundvik and Konallandi, as permitted by the queen. This however has recieved heavy backlash from Konráðið and even heavier disapproval from the jarls Calder of house Hrein, Astrid of house Tofi and Sigmund of house Olaf, for it is their jarldoms that have to accept the presence of a foreign army. Jarl Calder went even as far as to call Ena a foreign puppet and the death of Ateenia, to which the queen made no comments. While the queen left the Konráðið room shortly after explaining the situation, her brother Harald entered in her stead, where he discussed things with the jarls that remains unknown for now. 

The Queen has ensured the people of Ateenia that the Haru troops are there for Ateenian interests and shall be tasked with fighting communist influence in the region, both in Ateenia and abroad. In recent interviews, the minister of defense has given subtle but clear hints of increased involvement in the current Baltican civil war in the near future, which is expected to involve the Ateenian and Haru militaries. Ministry of Defense has also announced that a join military exercise will be held soon, between the Varnar of Ateenia and the 1st Legion Renor Vlos of Haruspex at a date which has yet not been decided. As for now, the disembarking of the legionnaires of the Imperium of Haruspex continues in the Osarvik port, with the port being under heavy security for the past 2 weeks.

 

On other news:

• First powerlines are being set up in Kliþorp and the town is expected to have full electricity coverage by the end of the month.
• Grundvik dockyards considers scrapping the unfinished Aslaug Class corvette which was originally built for Baltica, but abandoned after the start of the civil war.
• 17 people arrested in Osarvik, after throwing stones and eggs at the military convoy passing through the city this morning.
• Unheim temple to have another housing block begin construction at 27th of Dauðamánður, which is expected to increase the housing capacity of the temple by 420 people.

 

Edited April 11, 2023 by Ateenia
Renamed house Olafsson to house Olaf (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

25.06.2022 AD

21.03.1950 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

Miðnóttleysa festival ends.

Once again, the time of the year had arrived, the time of the festival of Miðnóttleysa to celebrate the generosity of the gods. Yet again, like thousands of years before, hundreds of bonfires were lit across Ateenia in 18th of Sólmánður and as such, it marked the beginning of the festival, often nicknamed the festival of life. The people fought, made love, drank and partied, all in the name of the goddess of love, sex, fertility, beauty, party and nature, and in the name of the god Ungor, the god of prosperity, peace, forests and wildlife, to earn great fortune and good harvest for yet another year. Many livestock were once again subjected to sacrifice to these gods so they too may party and revel in the livestock's blood. This year's turnout was smaller as last year, according to some sources, though the exact number of attendees could not be given and as such this cannot be confirmed. What can be confirmed was that this year, the festival was more violent then last year, with 33 deaths nationwide, due to overdrinking and brawls that got carried away, aswell as 154 hospitalizations for both minor and major injuries.

This year, the Queen once again attended the "Aar" bonfire, but unlike last year, it was not the most popular fire. In it's stead, the "Austurgrundvik" bonfire was the most popular, located at the eastern outskirt's of the city of Grundvik, with it's honorary guests being Jarl Calder of house Hrein, Prince Harald of house Kalinka aswell as his sister Hilda Kalinka, who stayed by his side throughout the festival. It was counted that atleast 5800 attendees attended that bonfire. The Queen of love for the "Austurgrundvik" bonfire was non other then the 22 year old Princess Hilda Kalinka herself, who was first to retire from the dancing crow. Suprisingly, her mate did not reveal his face and it remains unknown who she retired to her tent with.

While the "Aar" bonfire was not the most popular, it was not empty, having around 5200 attendees, which was more then last time, it marked the 2nd most popular. Queen Ena was once again spotted with a mate and was one of the first to retire from the dancing grow, this time a known entity, a prince Ajax from the lands of the Imperium of Haruspex, a empire many consider a brotherly nation next to our great kingdom of Ateenia. 

In the evening of 20th of Sólmánður, the horns were blown, marking the end of the festival and once again the attendees gathered to their bonfire, where they cut their arms to drown the goddess Ungrilla in their blood, giving her their party spirits, after which all attendees returned to their homes. Queen Ena was spotted returning to her palace with prince Ajax Hur Elemmiire of the Imperium of Haruspex.

Fighting in Baltica resumes after the end of Miðnóttleysa festival.

During the festival, the Ateenian soldiers did not leave the festival unattended, together with the Haru military accompanying them, they too lit a fire in the name of the gods, where they celebrated the festival, together with the vjoldinists of the Haru military, while the heathens of the Haru legion were left to ensure the safety of the bonfire and the troops within it. 

It is unknown why the Dotveskan and Velaherian troops did not attack the bonfire during when Ateenian Varnar was at it's most vulnerable state, but it is believed that it was due to their lack of knowledge about Ateenian tradition which left them unwilling to launch an offensive, believing that such an offensive would have been met with well prepared defences. As such the 3 days of Miðnóttleysa festival among the Varnar's troops was uneventful and after it's ending gave way for surprise aerial assaults by the Ateenian rattlers and recently arrived Haru Vipers and Venom's against the Velaherian airforce based in Dotveska, after receiving intel on the location of all airports and airfields inside Dotveskan territory, from unknown source. While the SAM sites in Dotveska were able to fight back, they did not manage to prevent the devastating attack which resulted in confirmed destruction of 1 R-12s, 9 R-5s and 12 R-67s, leaving the Velaherian aerial capabilities in Baltica devastated.

This attack has ensured the air superiority of the Ateenian and Haru fighters in both Baltica and Dotveska, with many experts believing that this has left the Dotveskan military targets open for airstrikes. It is thanks to this air superiority, that the Varnar also finally decided to assign 6 Djöfull rocket artillery vehicles aswell as 4 S-09 mobile artillery vehicles, to support the troops on the ground in their future offensives. 

While immediately after the end of Miðnóttleysa, the fight in Baltica has become rather eventful, it was not so before the festival, where the most eventful thing of the day was minor skirmishes on the ground aswell as minor aerial engagements between the Ateenian and Velaherian fighter jets.

The casualties since the start of the conflict have amounted to:

Ateenia: 96 deaths, 117 wounded, 13 BV-85s, 8 BF-75s, 11 Rattler's

Haruspex: 38 deaths, 71 wounded. The Haru have not revealed their equipment losses, nor can the Varnar confirm, though it is believed that they have lost a few.

Velaheria: 162 deaths, 15 wounded (only the ones the ones that have fallen into Ateenian captivity are counted), 20 R-67s, 12 R-5s, 3 R-12

Dotveska: 190 deaths, 21 wounded (also only the ones that have fallen captive are counted).

 

On other news:

• Princess Tyra Kalinka has revealed her newborn daughter Yotáana Zaxar on her brief visit to Ateenia during Miðnóttleysa festival, before leaving to Kertosono.
• 2 Haru soldiers found dead in Grundvik, believed to have fell victim to mass beating according to witnesses.
• Prices rise due to recent sanctions placed on the Kingdom of Ateenia, many industries begin looking for new partners to save themselves from upcoming decrease of aluminium and magnesium import among other imports.

Edited June 26, 2022 by Ateenia (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

31.07.2022 AD

58.03.1950 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

Varnar forces return victorious from Baltica.

With the surrender of Dotveska, the civil war in Baltica has come to a close and with the fighting over, the Republic of Baltica has transformed into the Federation of Baltica, a new government which Ateenia has already recognized, with the official recognition having signed yesterday on the 57th of Sólmánður. Due to Ateenian goals in Baltica having been achieved and the presence being no longer required, the Varnar has announced the withdrawal of Grundvik's mechanized battalion, the accompanying detachment of the Haru legion in Ateenia aswell as the 2nd Multi Role squadron from Baltica, who are to embark on their journey back to Grundvik. Before withdrawing, they were tasked with locating and liberating all of the varnar soldiers that had fallen into Dotveskan captivity and locating and retrieving all unburned corpses of the Varnar personnel, through contact with the new Baltican government. It is confirmed by the Varnar that the captured Dotveskan personnel are to be turned over to Baltican authorities at the same time.

The Ateenian government has admitted that a prisoner exchange with Velaheria has already been held on the 35th of Sólmánður, where all 15 Velaherian prisoners of war were handed over in exchange for all 4 Haru and 7 Ateenian soldiers that had fallen into Velaherian captivity. During the same day a treaty of cease fire was signed, which marked the end of fighting between the 2 parties. Almost all of the Ateenian and Haru soldiers had bruises and cut wounds on them and the inhumane treatment of them was confirmed by the debriefing reports of these same soldiers.

All of the troops are expected to make it back to Ateenia by 62nd of Sólmánður, just before the victory parade will be held in the city of Grundvik by the heroes of the Varnar, during which the Queen will be present to reward them for their service.

The Varnar has accounted that during the military operation, 104 Ateenian soldiers and 41 Haru soldiers are confirmed KIA, however 12 Ateenian service men remain MIA and are expected to be found by the deadline of the withdrawal. Alongside the soldiers 16 BV-85s, 14 BF-75s and 11 Rattler's have been destroyed through enemy action, all of which are planned to be replaced in near future.

 

 

3rd Special Operation Detachment assigned to Svikari Port in Ulfheimr.

The Varnar has announced the deployment of the 3rd Special Operation Detachment of the 2nd Atha's Mechanized Brigade to the Svikari port in Ulfheimr, which the Kingdom of Ateenia obtained from the Farmadr tribe of Ulfheimr, earlier this year (last year on the Gregorian calender). This move was done in response to the heightened tensions between Ulfheimr and it's neighbors and while the government has said that they will take no part in the potential conflict which may occur, they have not revealed the purpose of this deployment.

Varnar has stated that the detachment will arrive in the Svikari port by 60th of Sólmánður, however some sources say that parts of the detachment have already arrived to Svikari.

 

On other news:

• Queen Ena announces that she is with child.
• Group of 5 people arrested, after having been caught beating a Haru soldier to near death. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs extended an apology to the Imperium of Haruspex shortly after.
• The Ministry of Foreign affairs has issued a note of condemnation to the embassy of Cote De Fourrure, condemning their recent cyber attack against the Empire of Greater Zaxar.
• In the past 2 nights, secret meetings have reportedly been held by the jarls in the house of Konráðið.
• 6 miners missing, presumed dead, after an accident in copper mine near Ira where a mining shaft collapsed. The cause for the accident is under investigation.
• Grundvik dockyards to begin paying a refund to the new Baltican government, for the 5 Aslaug Class corvettes the previous Baltican government ordered. The company is required to pay 2.78 billion Króna's (253 million USD) which the previous baltican government managed to pay before the order was canceled due to their collapse. The deadline for this payment is 91st of Dauðamánður this year. (3rd of september 2022)

Edited August 1, 2022 by Ateenia (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

19.08.2022 AD

77.03.1950 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

Assassination attempt made on the queen's life.

BREAKING NEWS: Just minutes ago, an attempt has been made on the queen's life and her unborn child's life. This assassination attempt was made during when the queen was attending dinner, with the assassin managing to enter the Royal Palace's dining room, where he stabbed the queen at the shoulder, missing her chest just by pure luck of the queens reflexes.

The assassin was immediately restrained and arrested by the royal guard, after which he was removed from the palace. The name of the assassin has not yet been discovered, nor the intent of this crime, both of which are to be determined by interrogation. Queen Ena has commented that she believes that the culprit of this assassination attempt was tasked by the communist regime of Velaheria, after their defeat in Baltica a few dozen days ago. The KÖ however has commented that this could have been the result of internal tensions in Ateenia, but they could not figure out who would be responsible. 

Queen Ena was delivered to the Aar Hospital in northern Atha, where she will remain under hospital care for the next few days. There she remains under constant security by the royal guard, who has been instructed to forbid access to all but her closest family members, with her unconfirmed lover, Ajax Hur Elemmiire from the Imperium of Haruspex, who many expect to become the future king of Ateenia by marrying the queen, included.

Doctor of the Aar Hospital have said that the Queen's life does not remain at risk and that her unborn child is unharmed and remains at full health. She is expected to recover and be able to return to her life in the next few days.

 

On other news:

• Group of 3 arrested after attempted beating of 2 Haru legionnaires in Grundvik.
• Relations partly restored after the dropping of unfriendly policy by the countries of Great Xio, Kingdom of Seylos and Tagmatium.
• 1 miner out of 6 miners, previously presumed dead, discovered alive in the copper mine near Ira.

Edited August 20, 2022 by Ateenia (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

20.09.2022 AD

17.04.1950 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

Union between house Kalinka and house Hrein

In a surprising turn of events, jarl Calder of house Hrein has recently proposed a betrothal between his youngest daughter lady Iona Hrein and prince Harald Kalinka, to the queen which she almost immediately took into consideration. This is regarded as a complete turn in jarl Calder's stance against the Queen and her house, who has previously criticized queen Ena at almost every turn. This has also given explanation on Konráðið's sudden change in tone to a more content tone in the past couple of days.

Royal marriage between the two houses would solidify their bond and make the most powerful houses in Ateenia, allies. It would undoubtedly repair the rift within the kingdom and ease the bad blood Atha and Grundvik has had in recent years. It is uncertain why house Hrein took such a major turn in their position in relation to house Kalinka, but it was a welcomed one among the populace, with many hoping it will finally bring stability back to the kingdom. 

The houses agreed that upon the birth of the couple's first child, lady Iona will be married into house Kalinka.

 

 

 

Haru legionaries to be withdrawn.

With the military operation in Baltica over and the communist threat in the region decreased, the Konráðið has through almost unanimous vote, proposed a decision for the Haru military presence in Ateenia be withdrawn. The Jarls appealed to the queen to approve the decision, pointing out that their presence in Ateenia no longer serves a purpose and does nothing but intimidate the citizens of the kingdom. Queen Ena vetoed the decision and instead asked Konráðið to compromise by changing the decision. Instead of a full withdrawal, the queen proposed that the Imperium of Haruspex be offered a permanent military base in the jarldom of Atha and that the Haru legionaries stationed in Ateenia be limited to 2,000 personnel, during time of peace. 

While the Konráðið was unhappy about the proposal at first, they eventually yielded and passed the decision, which the queen immediately approved, after having achieved the approval of 12 jarls. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is tasked to notify the Imperium of Haruspex about the decision at the first opportunity, so that the bulk of the Haru soldiers present, may begin withdrawal as soon as possible.

Jarl Calder Hrein has commented on the situation. "I am disappointed that our queen could not be convinced to withdraw all of the foreign soldiers, desecrating our land with their presence, but I am satisfied with the current results. I find that it could have been worse and queen Ena could have vetoed the decision entirely. I remain hopeful that our kingdom may be free of foreign militaries once more in the future." 

On other news:

• The Kingdom of Ateenia condemns Côte de Fourre for another cyberattack and asked them to abandon their hostility against Greater Zaxar.
• Atha says that the Kingdom of Ateenia will not recognize the separatist state of Vorose Isles and will continue supporting the integrity of the nation of Ulfheimr.
• Another Haru legionnaire found dead in Grundvik as a result of internal bleeding, resulted from clubbing.
• 3 miners found dead in the Ira copper mines. 2 still missing.

 

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

10.10.2022 AD

37.04.1950 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

Prince Ajax Hur Elemmiire of Haruspex now citizen of Ateenia.

Earlier today, when the scheduled Konráðið meeting was nearing it's end, queen Ena came forward with a proposal to grant her future husband and king consort with the citizenship of the Kingdom of Ateenia. The proposal was initially met with criticism, with Jarl Calder reminding the queen that a person who does not have Ateenian blood running through his veins cannot acquire Ateenian citizenship, stating that this has been the case for centuries and that it would not serve the kingdom well for the queen to start making exceptions out of emotional reasons. Queen Ena responded to Calder's criticism by pointing out that similar exceptions have been made in the past by previous monarchs. This however did not convince many of the jarls, with Jarl Calder pointing out that Queen Ena has been making so many unstable decisions and multiple violations of the Ateenian law during her reign that any more would only raise unrest in the kingdom and would severely hurt what is left of her image among the common populace.

The Queen, ignoring Jarl Calder's warning, stated that the people of Haruspex, especially it's royals share a common blood with the Ateenians through King Jorling Kalinka's bloodline. She noted that the Imperium of Haruspex was founded by the descendant's of Knorr Kalinka, one of the sons of Jorling Kalinka, and his raiding party which got lost in Europa. She insisted that despite the blood tie being almost two thousand years old, the Haru still carry Ateenian blood in them. Because the law does not specify through how distant ancestor must the blood tie be, many of the jarls were convinced enough to begin voting.

Proposal to grant Prince Ajax Hur Elemmiire the citizenship of the kingdom of Ateenia passed Konráðið just barely with 9 votes being for and 8 against it, 6 of the jarls abstained, with queen Ena's vote being the tiebreaker.

It is suspected that this decision might make it possible for future exceptions to be made for all Haru citizens, bringing the two brother nations even closer and resulting in historical changes in Ateenia in the future.

 

 

On other news:

• The Ministry of Defence rumored to be preparing a procurement plan for 1951-1952 (2023-2024) and is expected to present it to Konráðið in the coming weeks.
• The Federal Republic of Azuria launches invasion into the Republic of Anatea.
• Reportedly there are border skirmishes at the border of the Republic of Cote De Fourrure and the Empire of Greater Zaxar. Minister of Foreign Affairs Torvi Helgidóttir seeks both sides to refrain from escalation and solve the disputes through diplomatic options.
• Ateenian ministry of foreign affairs has marked Cote De Fourrure, Anatea, Louvier and Azuria as unsafe and has asked the Ateenian citizens to refrain from traveling to the listed countries as well as those already present there, to evacuate. Travelers to Zaxar are to reconsider their plans.  The Ateenian embassies to Port au Sud, Solisea, Saint Philippe and New Godstone have been reduced to essential staff only due to heightened risks.

Edited October 10, 2022 by Ateenia (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

21.03.2023 AD

17.02.1951 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

The branches of House Kalinka expand!

Earlier today, queen Ena of House Kalinka finally entered labour after the pregnancy, which the royal family has been keeping mostly quiet about, reached its end and potential heirs to the throne of the kingdom were born. It was only during the morning today, when an ambulance was spotted outside the royal palace, that it became obvious that the children of the queen were being born, which was confirmed hours later by the royal palace itself, when the announcement was made that not 1 but 2 new members of the dynasty had been born. This announcement was followed by another one hour later which confirmed that the newborn twins were girls, with the younger being named Embla and the older Hertha. With the birth of these 2 daughters of Ena and Ajax, House Kalinka and House Elemmiire are now bound together by blood, paving the way to a long-lasting friendship between the dynasties and increased ties between the Kingdom of Ateenia and The Imperium of Haruspex.

It is expected that the naming ritual for Embla and Hertha will be carried out overmorrow in accordance to traditions, through which the chosen names for the children will be bound to them and their souls. As are the traditions the ritual will be carried out as such, a pint of blood is to be taken from both children, which is to be used to cover the sharp end of a dagger chosen for a child, each is to get their own, this dagger is then to be used to carve the name of the child into a tree of the parent's choice. Once the name is carved, the chosen name will be bounded to the child's soul, and its destiny will then be written out along the branches of Trélíff.

It is also expected that right after the naming ritual, a feast will be announced in the palace, in honor of the allmother Estrid and allfather Vrjoln, in gratitude for their blessing of healthy children to the dynasty, followed by a sacrifice as a gift to the gods of Vjöld. This in turn is suspected to be followed by an announcement of a marriage between Ena and Ajax, to which many hints from the palace has hinted to in the past months.

 

On other news:

• With the Haruspex declaration of war on The Kingdom of Great Anglia, the ministry of foreign affairs has issued a travel warning on both countries, advising Ateenians traveling to those countries to exercise increased caution and to avoid regions of conflict.
• The Ira copper mine has resumed normal operations, after the recently collapsed shafts have been cleared out and their structure has been reinforced.
• 2 men were arrested in Atha last night after they attacked and caused bodily harm to an off duty Haru legionary, before they were both restrained by the same legionnaire, with the help of a local passer-by.
• After short delays, another housing wing was opened 4 days ago at the temple of Unheim.
• An Ahranian female mountain climber named Milja Holmgren found dead on Estridfjall, after a 4-day-long search and rescue effort.

Edited April 2, 2023 by Ateenia
spelling (see edit history)

[Ateenia]

The National Courier

ᚱÍᚲᛁᛊᛒᛟᚦᛁ

02.04.2023 AD

29.02.1951 AJB

________________________________________________

 

 

Queen Ena and King Ajax married!

House Kalinka and House Elemmiire have now officially become allies through the marriage of Queen Ena of house Kalinka and King Ajax of House Renor Elemmiire. With this marriage, the Kingdom of Ateenia and the Imperium of Haruspex have also become allied, solidifying the friendship between the two nations. The marriage took place at dawn of today with celebrations lasting until evening, before ending in the send off of the married couple and Ateenian officials who flew back home. The marriage took place according to Haru tradition but contained various vjoldinist traditions which could not be left out of the ceremony. This was not recieved well back in Ateenia by neither the common populace nor the jarls in Konráðið, who called this marriage a disgrace to Ateenian traditions, with some of the opposition even taking upon themself to call this an act of treason with the public support of prince Harald Kalinka. 

The final preparations for the marriage started the previous day when the royal plane arrived at an airbase in the Haru city of Ulan'ude, carrying Queen Ena, King Ajax, princesses Hertha and Embla, minister of foreign affairs Torvi Helgidóttir, minister of defence Hakon of house Tofi and minister of commerce Vidar Stensson, all of whom were brought to increase relations between Ateenia and Haruspex as well as attend the royal wedding. The wedding was also attended by Ena's youngest sister Ingrid Kalinka and youngest brother Bjorn Kalinka, her cousin Tyra Kalinka, Tyra's husband Benjamin Zaxar and their daughter Yotáana Zaxar. Shortly after landing the ministers of foreign affair, defence and commerce split from the rest of the party to meet with their Haru counterparts, while the rest of the party took rest in the Ulan palace where they prepared for the wedding.

At the same time, a meeting between the foreign minister of Ateenia Torvi Helgidóttir and the senior minister of the Third Circle (Ministry of Foreign affairs) of Haruspex Sias Hu'yan was happening, where an agreement was reached on various topics, notably on the topic of visa free travel between the countries and an easement of the process for the citizens of the two countries to acquire residence in the other country. The most important topic that an agreement was reached, was the topic of an defensive pact between the nations, obligating their respective countries to come to eachother's aid if one is attacked. All these topics await ratification which is expected to happen within the next month. (Ateenian month, aka within the next 2 irl months)

During the same time, another meeting between the Ateenian minister of defence Hakon Tofi and the Haru senior ministers of the second and fifth circle (ministry of defence and ministry of navy) Kaorin Renor Vlos Elemmiire and Tihun Xun was also ongoing, where topics like joint sea route patrols, standardized ammunition for the two countries and joint military exercises in the near future were discussed.  Only the topic of joint security of the sea routes between the nations reached a conclusion where an agreement was signed between Hakon and Tihun, creating joint patrols along the naval routes between Ateenia and Haruspex.

While this was going on, the minister of commerce of Ateenia, Vidar Stensson and the senior minister of the first circle (ministry of foreign trade affairs) Ajax Hur Elemmiire (who happens to also be the future husband of Ena and king of Ateenia) were also in discussion. Through these discussions an agreement was reached for Ateenia to decrease the tariffs on trade with Haruspex from 3.14% to 1.15% which aims to promote trade between the two countries aswell as take away the strain on existing trade. Various agreements on regulations on goods were also made.

The second day started and ended with the marriage ceremony between Ena and Ajax in accordance to Haru tradition, involving some vjoldinist traditions like the establishment of blood connection between the husband and wife where both are to slice their arm and then hold eachother's arm with the same wounded hand, aswell as both handing the other the arm ring of marriage which they are to wear for the rest of their life and afterlife. The marriage ceremony was followed by a feast which lasted until late evening. After the feast ended, a blessing ceremony for their children Hertha and Embla was attended before the visit reached it's conclusion and the guests set out to return home. 

(a post about the marriage ceremony itself will be made by Haruspex when he has time, because the marriage happened in accordance to his traditions)

On other news:

• Jarl Calder Hrein and Balder Drekablóð disprove the marriage and announce refusal to recognize Ajax Hur Elemmiire as their king.
• Protests erupt in the city of Grundvik, protesting against the queen's disrespect to Ateenian traditions, with some even carrying signs calling Ena illegitimate and calling Prince Harald Kalinka the rightful monarch of Ateenia.
• A Varnar supply convoy attacked by unknown party in the jarldom of Konallandi. RIA and the military police have already been mobilized to track them down.
• The Haruspex Embassy in Atha was vandalized with stones and graffiti by unknown vandals. 

Edited April 12, 2023 by Ateenia (see edit history)