Tribune Today Dec 31st 2038

Yesterday I began a conversation with Loxley landowner and estate manager Robert Lox. There is no doubt that over the last year he has seen his prominence rise, as his home farm has become the centre of the woodland fight against what is now being referred to in Loxley as The Black Army. Robert is not an easy man to figure out, it is well known that he is fierce fighter, but considering what he has done for everyone living here, it is very obvious there is another compassionate and I would say quite spiritual side to Robert. Today my conversation with this woodland leader, and father to the Hooded Man returned continues.

Day Three. December 19^th 2038.

Picking up where I left off, I consider his point of view, in the few moments I have while Robert arranges some refreshments. I feel a thrill of delight to be given actual real coffee made from the beans grown by his wife, and it tastes so much better than the coffee we all know made from the Dandelion. I await Robert, and he eventually settles back into his chair behind the large carved desk, I have a few moments to think about what he has told me, and so I ask him about his father. Listening to what you have said, I get the impression that maybe your father expected the disaster that brought about the Red Death. Do you think that like Mason, your father may have known? I did expect Robert to take his time, but his answer was instant.
“Yes he did know, I have no doubt in my mind he knew something would happen. I don’t think he knew it would be the Red Death, but he certainly knew there would be some life-changing event. I am not sure how he knew, but as I remember it, for at least a year before he was making preparations.”
When you say preparations what do you mean?
“Thinking back, and I have done a lot of that since I lost him, he did a lot of little things, like he had the solar panels cover the roof of every house on the farm estate, he set up a generator in the basement, and bought a spare, and he also fitted wind turbines to all the property and stocked up on spare parts. We all thought he was just having some sort of green initiative at the time, I remember how our Harry got really into it all, and he bought books on how to make his own, and my dad really encouraged him to learn as much as possible until he blew up the shed experimenting. He pushed John harder about building his own forge, and even though John had said he didn’t want to, dad still ordered enough firebricks to build ten, we still have a huge pile of them stored in the back of the barn. So yeah, I think he expected something, as I say, I do not think he knew just what, but he was definitely preparing.”
This is very interesting to me, as I have always been very intrigued by some of the people who appeared out of nowhere and took command, I have always suspected that Mason knew something, but it appears to me others saw the tragic events ahead of time as well. I do feel that Robert knows far more than he is letting on, and I wish he would be a little more forthcoming, but considering the conversation to date, I hold back on pushing him harder. I move slightly on to other mysteries, you have become very good friends with the old and very well known historian Leenard Rimmer? There are many who say that he has disappeared, and considering that he is at the top of the Knox most wanted list, and has information on Mason that it is rumoured will prevent him becoming king, was it wise to allow him to leave here, after all it is widely known you were sheltering him?
“I do not deny Len is a good friend, he has given me some pretty good advice, and has been invaluable as a healer here over the years. The thing is I only offer shelter to those who want it, no one is a prisoner here, and this is not one of Mason’s cities. Len like all men has his own destiny, and I assume he felt the time was right to seek it, he has family here and can return whenever he feels he wants to, the gates are open everyday.”
So you think he will return with this hidden king and the proof to seat him, which is what most people are thinking, including I may add your son?
“As I say the gates are open.” It was not the answer I wanted, but looking at Robert, I could see I would not learn more. You say he has family here, his granddaughters are here, isn’t one of them the wife of your son?
“Aye its true, there is no secret as to who Rune is, she is the first Lady of Loxley and a fine young woman, I am proud to have her as a daughter, and proud my boy had the sense to marry her.”
She is pregnant is she not?
“Aye she done good, there is to be an heir to Loxley and that sits real well with me.”
I believe she is rumoured to be expecting a girl? Robert gives a hearty smile.
“None of this is a secret, Runestone is expecting twins, and I think the two of them would like one of each if I am honest, but we will have to wait and see.”
They do not live at the farm do they, I was told that your son inherited a small piece of land to the north, which was bequeathed to him by your father because your father thought it was a magical place, there are even rumours of rituals being carried out on that land to talk to the Earth Gods, is any of that true?
Robert gives a deep laugh. “You are a Christian convert are you not? There is no mystery as to my son’s inheritance, as for magical, well yes, I think it is a very magical place, it is deep in the heart of some of the oldest woodland in this area and that alone is special. Most of us here like much of the Woodland Realm are Earth Faith, so I think it will come as no surprise that we celebrate outdoors. Your faith conducts its rituals in a church; ours does it in the oldest part of the woods, there is no real mystery there is there now? I have a host of different faiths here, we have a convoy every Sunday for those who travel to the local church for Christian services, although we are lacking a vicar at the moment. Ruben from the shoe shop and some of his friends meet to pray in the back of the shop, I have a whole congregation of Muslims who work at the big mill outside the walls, and they get together in a converted cabin down near the gates. You really shouldn’t listen to gossip, we have about 75% Earth Faith followers here, and then a whole host of other faiths, there is nothing strange here. We all believe in something bigger than us, and that is what is important, to be honest, I run a farm and I am interested in what skills people have and how to put them to good use for all the community, it matters not to me who prays to whom.”
Everyone here lives to the rule of Woodsman’s law, which is predominately Earth Faith based, is that not a problem for those of other faiths?”
“You attended the Fellowship in your own town for many years, you tell me is there an unfair law in the Woodsman’s Code? It does not enforce religion, if anything its all about tolerance of others and showing respect. Our rules are not much different from any other large town or even a stone city of the past. We expect good behaviour, freedom to speak, and the right to live as we feel without being victimised, harmed or injured, if it wrong to have that expectation for all who live here, then I am not doing things right, but no one has made any complaint, so I naturally assume everyone is fine with it.”
You say you run a farm, yet you also supply weapons, and your brother John manufactures a lot of goods. On top of all that you run the food, cattle, and have a lot of business’s running within the stockade that even includes a bookshop. The markets have all moved here, and you have a Hotel with bar and dance room in it, not to mention the Village Hall, you have quite a lucrative empire yourself do you not?
Robert gives me a broad smile. “Now we are getting to the grip of it.” He sits before me a very powerful man looking at me, and gives a gentle nod of his head. “You forgot I own all the land and buildings as well as all the forestry, and I have a cave in the woods that is stacked high with bars of gold silver and bronze.” He bursts into a deep and thunderous laugh as his face reddens. “I like you, you have the balls of bull with a mind to do damage.” He laughs for a few more minutes, and I smile as he calms down a little and shakes his head. “I aint Mason and this is no Empire, you ask any of them out there I don't mind, but I tell you this lad, doing this as I have ain't the way to make a profit. The market is free, folks here need stuff from outside and no rent attracts traders, I will add that it is a hell of a lot safer for folks. The shopkeepers pay no rent, but we insist they pay wages and train others with the skills to keep all of us alive. I supply the army out of my own pocket, but I own the trees and we send out regular parties looking for scrap to get steel. Most the food we grow is part of the wage, as is the housing, but yes we do sell or barter some of our food with other growers in the area, its all a part of survival. We do mint the coins, but a committee, of which only two of my family are serving members, administers that, everyone contributes skills and labour, as well as products to aid the cause of the Woodland Realm. We are not Knox Industries using Cutters to raid old shops and stores looking for out of date tins of food that are relabelled and sold on for high profits. I make money there is no doubt, but hell it is not as much as you would think.”
I find it a little hard to believe, is anyone really that charitable? But looking at the man I cannot really be sure if he is being completely honest about his business, and I suppose I cannot blame him. I know how my father never talks profit with anyone, his concern is to keep the family afloat, so maybe Robert is being honest about his business; he does appear to find much of this funny. I move on to the future, in hope of trying to get a better picture of how the Woodland Realm will defeat Mason Knox, I am acutely aware that Robert is talking to all the leaders from across the country, and there is a very set plan as to how to win a war against the huge Knox Empire. What do you think the future holds for everyone, is there really any hope against such a mighty enemy?
It’s a sombre moment, and I can see as Robert sits back in his chair I have touched on a subject that has preoccupied every waking moment of recent times with him. “Well that is the million bit question isn’t it?”
Its not the reply I expected, and I notice the softer tone to his voice, its something I have seen often in my own father, and I am suddenly made very aware that here is a father and soon to be grandfather, the pressure of that alone in these times would weigh heavily on the shoulders of any man, but Robert also has a whole community to protect, and the pressure of knowing the whole country is looking to him for answers. The pause is long.
“Look we all know that the Knox family are hell bent on killing the lot of us, and we all know pretty much where they are because even though everything they do is conducted in secret behind those high stone walls, building them in the first place is a sign of what is to come. I have seen up close what he gets up to in his cities, and so has my lad, both of us agree its not for us, so we have made a stand against him. All I can honestly tell is this, my boy and I are men of the north, so we don’t bow to other men, failure for us is not an option, and so we have spent most of this year watching, learning, and talking with those who feel as we do. We have had a few big scraps, none more than in May where we took out a lot of enemy soldiers in Hathersage. I will say that was something I took no pleasure in doing, because that town has been a huge part of my life, but it was necessary in order to protect those who want to live a free life without being enslaved by the madness that runs through the Knox family. I have no real idea if we shall all live or die, but I can tell everyone reading this that I will not let a moment pass that I do not try to find a way to save as many as I can and defeat that bloody family. We have made a start, and it’s a big job, you mark my words, we still have a hell of a lot to do, but it is not as black as a lot of folks think it is. My lad risked his life and has gathered together some fine men under the banner of his Specialists, and struck hard at the heart of the Knox Empire, so they know now we will not go down without a fight, and that I think is about as much as I can say, except we have half a country working hard to prepare, and when the time comes, the men of the north will fight and fight hard, and only at that moment will we know if we have what it takes to stop them.”
I see the sincerity and the worry on his face, and just for a moment he looks almost older, I have tried to prize apart the mysteries behind this man and the town he has built around him, and in the closing moments of our conversation, I feel I see the true power of the real man. I honestly think that here is a man who will give his all in the name of his family and those he has taken under his wing, and even though I have not yet met his son, I can only feel that if he has any of the man sat before me inside him, then I think we can take a small amount of hope knowing they are fighting for all of us. The Lox family are truly fascinating, they are not like any other people I have met in my life, they feel passionate and have real commitment to all they face, and to everyone reading this I must say that they deserve your support.
Robert shakes my hand, and bids me goodbye at the door of the old farm, and I walk into the dusk and the snow. I feel the chill after being in the room with the roaring fire all day, but wonder if some of it is not the chill of apprehension from gleaning what I have about the bigger picture of a fight with a superior enemy. I pull my cloak tight around me, and shuffle through the snow that is half way up my boots. My mind is racing with everything I have discussed today, and I realise that I have judged the Loxley family wrong from the start. I came here looking for the wrong answers, I tried to question the motives of this family, feeling they were driven by a way to enhance their future for their own gain, but I have been deeply surprised at how different they are from any preconceived concepts I had on my journey here three days ago.
This is a battle for survival, and all of us are a part of it, and we all need to play our part, of that I am now completely sure. There is more to learn on what the Knox family are really like, I am sure that there are many other things than what the Lox family have divulged to us about what is really going on behind the high walls, that have concealed the real intent of the Knox Empire. I begin to understand why it is that the Knox family have tried to stop this small and insignificant little paper from being printed, as it is quite clear I have been very naïve, as they have a lot to hide, and by being here talking to their biggest rival, they fear I will print the truth about them.
We live and we learn, and I understand now what Jake Lox meant, we do not understand everything, and that in its self has given me more purpose. I really want to know more of what has happened, like what really went on in the woodland up north that saw some of the Cutter forces bleed to death in pain, and what is the real story behind the battle that raged at Dunnottar, and what is happening behind the high walls south of Birmingham and at London?
I can only answer as I investigate deeper, and in that you have my word, I fully intend to dig deeper. Until tomorrow when I report on more of my encounters and adventures around Loxley, I bid you all peace and happiness, and hope you remain safe until the next part of the story finds you.