Itorunt under the ice! Interview with King Garin 12 March 1014
Word in from the south is that the city of Itorunt ,once capitol of the realm of the same name, has been completely frozen under the glacier. The frost is also spreading to Jariedma and there seems to be no way in sight to stop the Glacier. At the beginning of this week I wrote to King Garin Indirik to ask for an interview into the situation in the south and understandably his highness has been very busy preparing against this disaster. A full reply came in today and we can present to readers of this newspaper a full interview with the King of the Eponese people:
1. What is the reaction and opinion inside Eponllyn of the Glacier to the south?
The nobles of Eponllyn have dedicated themselves from the start to the defense of the lands and people of the south. The encroachment of the ice has, however, defied our best efforts. We can find no way to prevent its advance. After all, what can man do to stop the coming of winter? It cares not for us and our concerns. With the loss of Itorunt, the prevailing opinion of my nobles is that Semall will soon follow. At that point, Eponllyn is doomed.
2. What is the relationship between Eponllyn and it's neigbors and what do you think of their involvement in the northern war?
As for the northern wars, they are really none of our concern. If Perdan wishes to kill Sirionites, then it is a matter between Sirion and Perdan. King Edvard has a matter of honor to resolve with Sirion, resulting from some incidents that occurred in the recent war against Caligus. But, again, that is a matter between Fallangard and Sirion. As for Perleone, it appears that they have no reason to participate in the war beyond "supporting our allies". They serve as hired swords for the Southern Alliance.
3. The geography between Eponllyn and Perleone is quite complicated can you explain how the two realms took their current shape?
The borders of Eponllyn and Perleone evolved as a consequence of the various defections from Armmonia following the war that Fallangard and Eponllyn waged against that former realm. It quickly became evident at the start of the war that Armmonia was a paper tiger. They had all the appearance of a fearsome opponent, yet quickly fell apart. The nobles of Armmonia knew almost immediately that they were doomed to lose their land to the combined assault. The two dukes of Armmonia therefore decided to save their titles and duchies and defected to Perleone. King Nigel of Perleone, however, put forth a proposal that Itorunt would be set up as a separate realm, and then Eponllyn could wage a staged war against the kingdom and conquer it. The resultant destruction of land and people was quite repugnant to the nobility of Eponllyn, though it was supported by both Perleone and Perdan. When I informed the lords of the duchy of Itorunt about the proposal, they chose to voluntarily join Eponllyn rather than see their lands and peoples devestated. The Lord of Noritor, however, declined to join us.
Betholm was claimed by Eponllyn when it became evident that Perleone could not care for it. Bother Betholm and Enubec had been so mismanaged that the people were routinely starving and revolting. Perleone had ample resources to send soldiers to kill Sirionites, but couldn't be bothered to care for the former Armmonians in the duchy of Xavax. When it finally declared itself rogue, Eponllyn stepped in and took stewardship of the region. Within a week, we brought the region under control, and its people were flourishing.
4. Going back to the Armonian war; was it Eponllyn and Fallangard's decision to destroy Armonia from the beginning or was that an accident?
As for the start of the war with Armmonia, it was not our explicit intention to destroy Armmonia. Both Fallangard and Eponllyn desired to expand our lands in order to ensure the safety of our people. Four kingdoms in the south result in small, weak kingdoms. That was the intent in breaking up the south in the first place: to produce a series of weak kingdoms that could not challenge the dominance of Perdan. After the war was declared, Armmonia chose to capitulate to Armmonia's [ed. Fallangard?] territorial demands almost immediately, yet refused to discuss the desires of Eponllyn. Of course, once the battles actually started, Armmonia instantly collapsed due to internal incompetence.
5. Did Eponllyn have any trouble with the hordes of monsters last month?
The plague of monsters that started a month or more ago did not trouble us overmuch. Our armies were where they should be: Home defending our lands, and not far afield trying to kill someone else's armies. We were able to dispatch the invaders quite easily.
6. What would you say was your finest achievement as ruler so far?
A finest achievement as ruler of Eponllyn? The stabilization and expansion of the Kingdom of Eponllyn, without resorting to the brutalities and depredations of war that so many others choose to engage in. We are a kingdom more interested in caring for our lands and people than in forcing others to bend to our will.
7. Have you ever seen for yourself any of these so-called Hippocamp?
I have myself never seen one of the hippocampi. Many others here claim to have done so, but I have not been so fortunate.
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