Ace Reporter Mikumi

Hello, I'm Mikumi, PH, ace reporter, artist, and Vandal warrior. This page is meant to showcase my previously published work until the archive feature is implemented for the Gazette (hint hint, admins! :P)

Without further ado, here are my articles (my first is at the bottom, newer ones at the top):

The Tragedy Behind the Daily Dungeon
Author: Mikumi
Editor: ChongWang

You have to admit, most of us NEaBers have descended the stairs to the Daily Dungeon in search of a hefty reward at least once. In many cases, it involves seeking out a specific person to deliver an item, but be honest – how many times have you questioned the placement of these people? Surely, they can’t want to live in that dank, filthy dungeon!

Well, I set out to discover the answers to these questions. What I found was rather disturbing.

The first thing that I noticed when I embarked on this investigation was that the guide that was taking me up to Otshadow seemed fidgety and nervous when I mentioned my mission in passing. He seemed to quicken his pace and change the subject on me whenever I tried to bring it up. When I got to the dungeon, I decided against telling the apparent housekeeper, Gator, about my real reason for going there. I just went along with the assumption that I was looking to get some gold and experience. After dodging traps, and combating aggressive foes, I found Nada. I tried to make small talk, but all she could tell me was that she was busy – even though all she was doing was sitting at an empty table.

After that, I found Kasim. I asked the questions that I came to ask – who was he, how did he get into the dungeon, and all that, and he almost looked like he was about to answer me in earnest – until he screamed and went through some horribly painful-looking contortions, and then suddenly calmed down and gave me the same answer as Nada had. I was shocked. Unsure of what to do, I tried sneaking the next tenant outside – it happened to be Ballard. It was rather easy, sneaking him out. I just draped some leathers and hides over him, told Gator it was good hunting down there, but I needed more potion, and then got out of sight of the dungeon keeper.

I interviewed Ballard, and apparently, he used to look for shipwrecks as a living. “It got me a lot of gold,” said Ballard, “and helped us piece together some of our world’s history.” I asked him how he came to the dungeon, and apparently, he was just like any other adventurer when he first stepped in.

“I did the quest every day to gain experience, and I’ll admit, I was seeking a bit of a thrill to spice up my day,” he stated. Just when he began to speak of how he came to get stuck in the dungeons, Gator came out of the house and started yelling threats, so I had to run off. I felt horrible as Ballard was literally dragged back to his involuntary job, kicking and screaming, but there wasn’t much that I could do.

The moral of this story? Try to smuggle as many residents as you can out of the daily dungeon next time you’re there. Wouldn’t you be desperate for escape if you were in their shoes?

The Plight of the Moon Fish
Author: Mikumi
Editor: Papa See

Some time ago, several new kinds of fish were discovered by avid NEaBers, including the much-coveted Moon Fish species. These fish are rare and beautiful - even rumoured to have actually come from the moon, as their name would imply. The reason for their high demand is obvious, but if you think about it, why are they so rare?

There are several possibilities: Perhaps they typically live in deeper waters, rather than near the shore where many of us fish – or maybe they are very intelligent and don’t swim near the docks or get too close to the surface very often.

The most disturbing possibility, though, is that these ocean-dwellers are an endangered species. Environmental scientist Taro has been studying Moon Fish and states that, “little is known about these elusive creatures, as they swim too deep for any of [his] mage co-workers to scry while keeping within our spell budget. We think they may be an endangered species, but no legal action can be taken until more information is gathered.”

The trade and sale of Moon Fish is currently very legal and deals worth as much as twenty six million gold have been seen around Castle Soupir. Our fair Castle isn’t the only place that has made money, though. Gortok – the man who runs the rod store west of Stinkfishy - says that has had an extreme spike in profits since he started selling baits that improve one’s chances of catching the more expensive fish. “In turn, the Glum and Parrot Inn is getting a lot more profit from my wife and I,” says the merchant, “So we’re hoping that the Moon Fish aren’t in trouble,”

Whether it’s for the sake of scientific knowledge or cold, hard gold, many NEaBers are hoping the same.