Dear Runners.

It is with great sadness that we have to announce the death of Jack Red. He was killed on the steps of the City Administration HQ, the very building he worked tirelessly in; by a cruel and heartless murderer answering to the name of Alex Mendez.

Since the fatal night the City Administration building has remained summarily tight-lipped and resolute in its grief but today we must appeal to you the citizens of Neocron for help. The ongoing investigation has drawn few leads. Alex Mendez has become a ghost in the network. Noone has seen or heard from him. The City Admin have exhausted every lead and explored every nook and cranny of Neocron City, indeed in recent days brave runners of the Last Generation clan have forged on into the Twilight Guardian's own backyard and fought a vicious and bloody battle there in order to glean more information on this traitorous dog.

Alas it is to no avail. Therefore we must appeal to you for calm, vigilance and peace in these tragic times. It has been deemed appropriate by an already stretched NCPD to throw open this investigation to the Runners of Neocron's great and glorious factions. The Storm Bots alone cannot cope and so now the decision has been made to enlist the help of all factions in bringing this killer to justice.

So far all that is known of the attack was that a few hours before the attacks some huge power fluctuations occurred across the network. The attacks instantly knocked down and disabled the NeXT GR systems and caused database errors across the board. Some Gene Replication records were compromised and others were wiped completely. We are unsure which Uplink these attacks originated from but rest assured the City Administration has its omnipotent eyes watching out over them for fear of a second attack from the same source.

Unfortunately for our brave Copbots the same power fluctuations deactivated some of their guidance software and core data arrays. This meant that the Twilight Guardian terrorists were able to not only slip through their watchful gaze but also they were able to draw weapons and attack and kill our dear leader.

The City Administration has now had to take the grave decision to withdraw it's forces from outside the city itself. They are focussing their protection solely on the Plaza and Via Rosso districts. Pepper Park will have to fend for itself and the Outzone has been left to the rats and mutants it has so wantonly hidden beneath its decaying cowl for so long.

The NCPD has doubled its efforts in searching for this criminal and so now needs your help Runners! Often you have asked what can you do to show your love and support for your Government, well now it needs you! The initiative is now yours to sieze, take up arms against the Twilight Guardian scum that infest our glorious city. Strike at them wherever they may turn. Offer them no quarter in your quest. Visit upon them great vengeance and the furious wrath of your obedience and servitude to our cause. Spare none as you remember how they mercilessly took the life of your beloved leader in front of your very eyes!

Please in your quietest moments at the end of each day pause for just a moment and remember the man who made our city the prosperous hive of activity and the last bastion of salvation that it currently is. When our saviour Lioon Reeza was killed so many years ago it was Jack Red who stepped up and assumed control of a City on it's knees. It was Jack Red who soothed our pain and cooled our open wounds with kind words and gentle touch and it was Jack Red who exacted our revenge upon the scum that dared to cross us. He sacrificed much of his own back then but now he has sacrificed it all. He has paid the highest price and we should honour that, each in his own private way. Prayers are forbidden under City Directorate #37468 but please every man woman and child give thanks to the man who guided you into being the people you are today.

It will be an incredibly difficult task to find a successor who has the candour, humility and intelligence to lead Neocron through one of it's darkest hours since the Dome of York Wars but fear not runners a dedicated panel of experts is already preparing for just that responsibility. Further details will be announced in due course but for now please remember that as hard as they push us we will not stumble, as much as they press us we will not bend or break. The recovery will be arduous and we are far from safe but we will meet it with fire in our hearts and our heads held high.

We are the City Administration and we ARE Neocron!

Gore Burnelli

Neocronicle