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Short Stories

Interdictum Mundum

“So, wizards and heavy armor divisions, what can go wrong?”

Just as they were about to begin their charge forward, the distinct sound of a teleportation could be heard. A group of soldiers rushed towards the noise, but were stopped in their tracks by a shout of “Interdictum Utique Tempus”. An elaborately decorated scroll hung in the air, somehow blocking the approach of the soldiers.

The Lieutenant was dumbfounded as a short man in a business suit carrying a briefcase walked up the path towards his group. A closer look at his suit revealed what appeared to be rank insignia. “Combat Barrister First Class Stewart, here on the orders of Her Royal Highness.”

The Lieutenant cursed under his breath. He had heard rumors of these battle lawyers but had not encountered them in person before. “And so?” the Lieutenant inquired. “What exactly are we here for?”

He felt it was time to make something of the situation. It had been a long journey for him, having to battle some of the greatest wizard clans he had ever known, and a large part of that had come from learning what it meant to be a warrior in the wizarding world. His first thought was simply to stay put and allow his forces to advance until reinforcements were arrived.

Stewart gave a quick, but pointed look over his shoulder. “They have been working against the Ministry for years.” The Lieutenant paused for a moment and wondered what he had learned.

“You do realize that this is a very serious matter?”

“What we’re here for now is an interdict. We are here to destroy what the Ministry believes to be the most lethal magical weapon in the wizarding world, the Interdictum Mundum. It is being prepared by the Ministry to be used by a select few individuals at the end of this war.” The Lieutenant smiled at the idea in his mind until his voice turned to a low rasp. “I am grateful that my superiors, the Ministry, were willing to share it with me.”

“You do realize that this is a very serious matter?”

“Indeed,” the Lieutenant replied evenly. “They have come to a very obvious conclusion though – this is the right decision, and I trust that whatever happens, it will not be one that will cost us anything else in the short term.”

“For some reason,” Stewart said quickly, “they are not all that interested in a proper trial, not this time. Not after their first appearance at our camp.” A smile spread across the lieutenant. He had been right; this was an attempt to force the Ministry to give him access to more data before he could make a decision.

“I would imagine that you know this,” the lieutenant asked. “Why are you going into the middle of this? Are things going to be so complicated from here?”

Steward made a mental note of this. Even the best of us might not know the full extent of what was going on around the war. He had known the Ministry would not make a stand unless there was an immediate and definite threat on offer, and that they would use every means at their disposal to make sure that was not the case.

“The problem is that the Ministry are in a tight spot. They are facing a large, powerful enemy, something that they can neither defeat easily nor win easily.” “It is not sufficient to simply send more powerful wizards against the Interdictum Mundum, for you see it is not merely a magic weapon, it is a magic contract… and I found the loophole.”

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Horror News

Chtulhu Widening Lead In 2020 Presidential Election

Polling data is showing Cthulhu with a clear lead over the other candidates, leading to accusations of voter tampering. Still, Cthulhu is a highly polarizing candidate, with polling showing a cult-like approval and existential dread as the most common sentiment reported by those polled with very little in between the two. Some election officials are starting to question Cthulhu’s campaign promise to “get inside the mind of voters” in light of this new polling data.

One poll suggested the Democratic candidate might not have been too far off the mark, at least in part. (And we may want to think twice about our own perceptions of Lovecraft.) (Note to readers: This article contains spoilers.)

What’s the point of polling if it has nothing to do with the election results? It could indicate whether or not Cthulhu is gaining ground among Republicans, or whether the Democratic candidate might actually be getting more votes than she had hoped. If she wins the election on Nov. 8, what will the pollsters say, and how will this affect the way we vote?

Polling is a part of this election season, so let’s give the data some credit. The polling numbers are showing Cthulhu with a real-world lead, in large part because most people who voted in the primary didn’t know she was running as a Republican and had no idea of her affiliation. There was much ado in the election over whether Clinton’s lead would be bigger than the Obama one in the general, and many Republicans and independents had already given up on the party to run as a candidate. But polls show some evidence that she actually did just that.

What this data says is that there is something really resonant about Lovecraft’s ideas, and in particular how those themes run counter to the idea that the United States has always been ruled by white men. For instance, when we read Lovecraft’s tales as a child, there were a lot darker themes to consider than what we might think today.

Cthulhu

It’s been suggested that the Cthulhu Mythos has a direct influence on the way people feel about politics. We’ve seen that some Republican primary voters have begun to reject the idea of Donald Trump as a Republican nominee, as well as those who are not voting Democrat in the primary. Some have even argued that Cthulhu could have helped to keep Trump out of office, which would be a pretty interesting story for Lovecraft to tell.

Cthulhu is certainly resonating with some voters, and it’s encouraging to know that some of those in the polling are actually listening. But there are still questions. Why Cthulhu? Is there some deep connection between Cthulhu — his Cthulhu Mythos — and what we feel about the world of politics and power that the United States has come to inhabit since the days of our founding? Or is Cthulhu just a weird fantasy created by a guy who writes his stories in the margins of an obscure, weirdly influential book he’s never read?

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