Vol. I: Issue 041                                                                                             October 2nd, 2026

Breaking news out of Starlight City, where Georgito has just revealed the first major undertaking of his newly formed Munificent Monocle Trust.

At a press conference today, Georgito announced what he is calling the Ketona Counterpunch Project, an ambitious effort aimed at helping Ketona Beach recover from the devastating destruction left behind by Hurricane LePunch.

And if you have been following Georgito’s story, this is the move many have been waiting for.

When Georgito Grand Resorts went public earlier this year and propelled its owner to the title of wealthiest person on the Gurth, Georgito pledged to donate half of his fortune over the next ten years. At the time, he said the Munificent Monocle Trust was exploring scholarships, but that when it came to a major project, he was waiting for the right opportunity to present itself.

It appears that opportunity is Ketona Beach.

Georgito says the Counterpunch Project will play a major role in both the recovery and re-imagining of the battered beach town. But before anyone starts talking about resorts, boardwalks, or rebuilding the shoreline, the Trust is starting with the people who actually live there.

The first phase will focus on displaced residents, many of whom are still living in temporary accommodations after losing their homes to the storm. Georgito made it clear that stable housing will be the project’s immediate priority, giving families somewhere permanent to land before the larger rebuilding effort moves forward.

That larger vision is still being developed, but Georgito described the goal as something beyond simply putting Ketona Beach back the way it was. The idea is to help the town rebuild stronger, rethink damaged areas, and eventually restore the sun-drenched destination generations of visitors remember.

For a town whose leaders openly admitted they did not have the resources to rebuild on this scale, this could be the turning point they have been waiting for.

And before I go, a quick note from all of us here at NowTime News. Oakie Deloke is currently in the hospital with pneumonia, and we are keeping him in our thoughts as he recovers. We are all wishing him a smooth and speedy return home.

I’ll be tracking our friend’s recovery, along with the recovery of Ketona Beach as the Counterpunch Project’s plans turn into action, because Duke’s Gotcha covered!

 

Hiya friends.

Today we’re looking at Oilseed Springs.

Friday and Saturday are warm and mostly sunny. Sunday gets cloudier with some thunderstorms moving in, then Monday cools things down behind the front. After that, it’s dry, mild, pleasant, whatever. You know the drill. Sunshine, a few clouds, crisp evenings, classic early fall. Oilseed Springs is doing just fine.

So… there you go.

You know what, I’m sorry. I just don’t really have it in me to be chipper this week. Finley and I decided to call things off. He’s always out on Calypso Island now, and trying to keep a long-distance relationship going just got harder and harder until… well, here we are.

So, once again, I’m sorry if I seem a little off today. I’m just not feeling very sunny myself right now.

 

Oh boy. Well, umm… The Mumph here and… yeah. Alright. Let’s talk some baseball.

Maple Mountain came out swinging against Frostfield, putting two on the board in the first. The Batters answered with one of their own, but after that, runs for Frostfield became about as elusive as the Sugarsquatch itself.

The Flapjacks added two more in the third, another in the fourth, and one in the sixth, while Griddon settled in and completely shut Frostfield down. After giving up that first-inning run, he hung eight straight zeroes on the board, and that will get you an MVP every time.

Final score, Maple Mountain Flapjacks 6, Frostfield Batters 1. Winner, Maple Mountain. MVP, Griddon on the mound.

My two cents, Maple Mountain gave Griddon an early lead and he treated it like it was locked in a syrup safe. One run allowed, plenty of support, and a very tidy win for the Flapjacks.

 

Hello out there…

Something happened to me Wednesday that I have been trying very hard not to overthink.

Like I do every week, I stopped to pick up my comics and drove home. Standing beside my car in the driveway, I pulled out the stack to make sure the latest issue of Windstorm had made it into my pull list. As I did, a flyer for the upcoming SprocketWorld convention slipped loose and blew underneath the car.

I bent down to grab it.

That is when I saw the blinking red light.

It was subtle, tucked up against the undercarriage where I never would have noticed it if that flyer had not gone wandering. After a little inspection and considerably more finagling, I managed to get the device loose.

At that point, comic books could wait.

I took it straight to my friend DrydenTH3Cultivar, who knows far more about these things than I ever hope to. After giving it a once-over, he confirmed my concern. It was some form of tracking device.

Dryden immediately disabled it and agreed to dig into the hardware when he gets the chance. Maybe there is something inside that can tell us where it came from, who was receiving the information, or how long it had been riding around beneath my car.

Until then, I am making a deliberate effort not to fill in the blanks myself.

I have rattled quite a few cages lately. Thrasher’s Heap. NuBetcha. Ty Quilton. Even Gigaloaf Labs. More than a few people and institutions have appeared in this column who probably would have preferred otherwise. But suspicion is not evidence, and I am not going to point a finger simply because someone makes a convenient suspect.

Still, two questions are now sitting very prominently at the top of my notebook.

Who put a tracker on my car?

And what were they hoping to gain from tracking my movements?

I intend to find out.

And that’s The Scoop.