"Good evening, this is the 8 PM news report with Elsanne Tijhoff," the news anchor said as the familiar opening music faded into the background. "Today on the news, the designation of a US private equity firm as a terrorist organization, the emergency laws passed to declare mana veins a European national resource that cannot be sold to non-Europeans, and several other major developments." She paused briefly before moving to the first story. "But first, we begin with the assassinations of the employees currently working for the private equity firm Broken."
"All active employees of the company have been killed, with many of the deaths occurring in broad daylight," Elsanne continued. "The police have stated that they are taking the situation extremely seriously, and investigators are currently working to determine exactly how the attacks were carried out." The authorities had refused to provide details about the identities of the killers. "However, the current working theory is that these deaths are retaliation for actions the employees were involved in before Broken was designated as a terrorist organization."
"The European Foreign Minister has already begun the process of bringing members of the company's American headquarters before a European court," Elsanne explained. "The legal justification for designating Broken as a terrorist organization came primarily from information provided by a whistleblower from a local organized criminal group." She carefully avoided giving the man's name. "The individual claims that the criminal organization had carried out operations on behalf of Broken and has provided investigators with information concerning at least twenty missing persons."
"Those twenty cases can now be confirmed as murders," she continued. "According to a spokesperson for the police, investigators were able to provide the information to the System and request assistance in locating the remains." The System had apparently been able to identify the corpses and provide recordings containing information about their locations and conditions. "The service was not free, but the police have described it as extremely helpful in reconstructing crime scenes and confirming the testimony provided by the whistleblower."
"The police have also confirmed that they will not be releasing the whistleblower's identity," Elsanne said. "This decision was made to protect his safety while the investigation continues." She then moved to the next part of the report. "According to investigators, the murders were allegedly committed on behalf of Broken to acquire properties at significantly reduced prices."
"The accusations do not stop there," Elsanne continued. "Investigators also presented evidence suggesting that representatives of Broken had threatened individuals and shown a willingness to use force to obtain control of mana veins." She looked directly into the camera as she delivered the government's conclusion. "Authorities determined that the combination of these activities met the legal requirements for designation as a terrorist organization."
"Anyone connected to Broken is now expected to face questioning," she said. "Some individuals may also be detained for further investigation if authorities determine that sufficient grounds exist." The statement immediately caused considerable discussion throughout Europe. "The government has emphasized that the designation applies to the organization itself and to individuals who knowingly participated in its criminal activities."
"The European Parliament was called into an emergency session following a request from a representative of the armed forces," Elsanne explained. "The military had been among the first organizations to publicly raise concerns about foreign companies attempting to acquire mana veins." The proposed emergency legislation was intended to temporarily halt the sale of mana veins to companies and individuals who did not reside within Europe. "The proposal also included retroactive provisions covering transactions that had already been initiated."
"During the emergency session, lawmakers were presented with additional evidence and further clarification concerning the situation," she continued. "This information eventually resulted in the initial emergency measure being expanded into a more comprehensive law." The original emergency legislation had contained a time limit because Parliament had expected to review the matter after more information became available. "However, after seven days of investigation and political discussion, lawmakers voted to replace the temporary measure with permanent legislation."
"As of today, mana veins cannot legally be owned by individuals or companies that do not meet the requirements established under European law," Elsanne announced. "The legislation specifically restricts ownership by people who are not of European descent and who do not currently live within the European Union." She then turned toward the camera with the practiced expression of a professional news anchor. "This concludes the 8 PM news with Elsanne Tijhoff. Have a good evening, everyone."
The television screen went quiet as the broadcast ended.
"That was entertaining," Dennis said from his seat. The entire family had gathered to watch the news because the story concerned them directly, even if the public had absolutely no idea how deeply the Sonnenbergs were connected to the events being reported. Everyone had been paying close attention to the coverage. Nobody wanted to miss what the government would reveal next.
"Yes, I am surprised that the designation of Broken as a terrorist organization passed so smoothly," Teun admitted. He leaned back as he considered everything that had happened during the previous week. "As for the retaliation, they had it coming." He remembered the blurred photographs shown during the news report, with several employees of the company lying dead in different locations.
"The news conveniently failed to mention one important detail," Teun continued. "The police only classified the deaths as retaliation because employees of the company had been dying under increasingly strange circumstances." He shook his head as he remembered the sheer scale of it. "By the time the authorities understood what was happening, roughly seventy-five percent of the company had already died."
"The remaining employees were killed more directly," Teun added. "By then, everyone involved knew exactly what was happening." He was not particularly sympathetic toward the people who had been targeted. "Still, I am surprised that the murders happened so quickly."
The rest of the family looked toward him.
"Think about it," Teun explained. "The family had to leave their island and either sail or travel to the city where the employees were located." The distance alone should have made the operation considerably slower. "The headquarters were easy enough to deal with, but Broken had several negotiation teams scattered around Europe."
"Oh, with that, we were lucky," Karl replied.
He had been listening quietly until that point. "Their headquarters were located in the Netherlands, and the negotiation teams had not yet left the country." The teams had apparently been waiting for the result of the Sonnenberg negotiations before deciding what to do next. "That made the entire operation possible in only five days."
Karl smiled with clear satisfaction.
"The negotiation team that had attempted to return to the closed city found its ship looking like Swiss cheese," he continued. "Unfortunately for them, they never made it more than halfway through their journey." The attack had left the vessel badly damaged and the negotiation team dead. "The sailors survived, although they were understandably furious and terrified after being forced to escape onto the shore."
"They were found roughly a hundred kilometers from the nearest city," Karl said. "The sailors had to walk that distance before they could report the ambush." He paused briefly. "By the time they reached civilization, they also learned that the people they had been transporting had been classified as members of a terrorist organization."
"That must have been a pleasant surprise," Dennis said dryly.
A few members of the family laughed.
The conversation eventually shifted toward another subject that had been strangely absent from the news. Bertho had been waiting for the opportunity to ask about it. Despite everything that had happened during the previous week, he had not heard a single major report concerning the proving grounds.
"I am curious," Bertho said. "Why haven't they said anything about the proving grounds yet?" He frowned as he tried to remember the previous week's broadcasts. "I have watched several news reports, but I haven't heard anything about them."
"That is simple," Bill answered confidently.
Everyone looked toward him.
"They haven't been built yet," Bill said.
The room became quiet for a moment.
Bill gave them a confident smile, as if he had just provided the most obvious answer in the world. The proving grounds had generated enormous excitement within the military, but excitement alone could not make the buildings appear. The construction plans required mana veins, enormous amounts of materials, and a substantial investment of money.
And, unfortunately, Europe had not suddenly discovered a way to manufacture mana veins.
The family therefore understood why the subject had disappeared from the news. The governments were dealing with a far more immediate political crisis involving the ownership of the very resources required to construct those proving grounds. The irony was not lost on anyone sitting in the room.