"...and in other news, the Iberian Prince is shagging pop singer Angah Linajo Lee. Yup, the newspapers really haven't changed." said Sigmund tossing the newspaper into the corner of his workshop. It had told him about the Hades Caves disaster as well. There was still no explanation as to the cause of the disaster. This persuaded him to catch up on the last week of news.
Through the news reports Sigmund learned that the problems he was having keeping the mana-crystals stable wasn't his incompetence, but rather the fact that the world was rapidly going to hell. Magic all over EMC, and reportedly further as well, was either missing or causing violent problems. Rumours said the effects could be worldwide! It was causing panic everywhere. People were rushing to purchase radium devices. Hospitals and teleportation temples were being shunned by people, fearing what the unstable mana flow could do to them. Emergency services were being rushed off their feet and calling for more volunteers every day. The national leaders tried to keep the peace, but panic and crime reached previously unseen heights.
"And we've got the bloody Persians to blame for all of this." muttered Sigmund, forgetting that those "bloody Persians" were the ones supplying him with his precious mana-crystals.
Sigmund decided, as he'd always known deep inside, that magic was an unreliable and dangerous method to live by. Now everyone was realising that the predictable nature of radium was a far safer lifestyle choice. He would start by completely refitting the workshop; no manavices anywhere, all radium. One major obstacle quickly occurred to him: "I'm going to need radium... a lot of radium."
