"Not all revolutions begin with battle. Some begin with memory."
—Rialt, Stormwatch's Silent Cartographer
+13 Days After the Ashen Vault Defense
Location: Stormwatch – Tower Delta Strategy Chamber
The silence in the chamber was different today. Not tense. Not hostile. But wide. Expectant.
Jag stood at the center of a newly carved table, his hands splayed across a full map of Stormwatch's territories—fortified ridges, unsealed ruins, new caravan trails, and now, at the bottom corner, etched with new precision: Redglass Hollow and Northwatch Depths.
Rain stood at his side, clad in a modified cloak marked with the symbol of the Veilkeepers: a downward eye inside a broken ring.
Branwyn, Rialt, and Ashra stood close. They'd all read the same decrypted archives pulled from Northwatch.
Rialt spoke first.
"Factions have begun whispering. Traders from the east. Mercenaries from the neutral bands. Even scouts from Stonebarrow."
Jag didn't blink. "About Rain?"
"About what he remembered."
[System Update – Passive Consequence: World Reaction Phase I]
Public Rumor Spread: "The Order of Rain was purged by history merchants."
Global Impact:
• Resistance Factions +5 Favor
• Neutral Settlements -10 Trust (Fear of Hidden Wars)
• Vultures Network: Status – Aware of Memory Leak
New Alert: A Vulture Writ has been issued for Jag and Rain – Status: Assassination Contract (Tier II)
Elsewhere – Western Border Town: Coldflint
A message arrived, slipped into the pocket of a Stonebarrow informant.
The paper was pale green. The ink? Oil black.
VULTURE CONTRACT #942
Target 1: JAG – Alias: Bastion Prince
Target 2: RAIN – Alias: Veilkeeper, Broken Link
REWARD: 4 Blood Marks, Access to Forgotten Codes, One Rewritten Identity
The man who received the letter said nothing.
He simply nodded once.
And disappeared into the wind.
Stormwatch – Outer Ring Encampment
Ashra drilled recruits in silence.
Rain stood beside her, arms crossed.
"They're afraid," he said.
Ashra glanced at him. "Good. Fear is better than doubt. Fear keeps them sharp."
Rain frowned. "What if they begin to fear me?"
Ashra didn't answer for a moment.
Then: "Then show them why that's better than trusting the wrong people again."
Strategy Room – Mission Planning
Branwyn slammed her gauntlet on the table. "We need allies. Soon. We can't fight ghosts and assassins and hold borders at the same time."
Jag nodded. "Then we find one faction worth trusting."
Rialt pulled a new scroll from his coat. "There's talk of a settlement south of Stonebarrow. One not registered on any trade or war route. Called Irontide. Built in old colossus ruins. Mercenary-wired, yes—but founded by exiled memory-menders."
Rain turned sharply. "What?"
Branwyn blinked. "You know it?"
"No. But it sounds like a splinter sect of the Order. A failed pocket. Ones who fled the purge rather than fought it."
Jag tapped the table. "Then we ride at dusk."
[System Quest Branch Initiated: "Fragments in Exile"]
Objective: Locate Irontide Refuge
Possibility: Discover survivors of the Order of Rain
Secondary Benefit: Gain access to their memory engines
Warning: Irontide is uncharted and not officially recognized by any known faction
Squad Size Recommended: 4 Elite / Stealth & Diplomacy Loadout
Reward: ??? (Variable Based on Outcome)
Nightfall – Tower Roof, Private Moment
Jag stood alone. The wind howled, carrying the scent of steel, pine, and far smoke.
Rain joined him.
"Why do you keep moving forward?" Rain asked quietly. "You're not chasing glory. Not anymore."
Jag didn't answer right away.
Instead, he watched a shooting star arc across the sky.
"When I died in my world," he said at last, "I didn't get a choice. This time? I make every step count. Because I finally can."
Rain nodded.
"That's enough of a reason."
Final Entry – Echoes Awakened
The next morning, Jag's party left before sunrise.
Ashra at his right. Rain behind him. Branwyn coordinating tower security while they rode. Rialt watching from above with an old spyglass.
The wind shifted east.
The sky was clear.
But something stirred far beyond the horizon.
A memory someone had tried to bury…
Was clawing its way to the surface.
World Shift Phase I: Active
Contract Issued: Tier II Assassination Threat (Jag & Rain)
New Faction Discovered: Irontide (Unconfirmed Memory-Mender Haven)
Next Quest: "Fragments in Exile" – Journey to Irontide
Bonus Insight: Vultures have begun rewriting recent history to discredit Stormwatch's rise. Resistance counters needed.