"Steel alone cannot rebuild a fallen kingdom. You'll need trust, and trust is forged slower than any blade."
—Vetra Annon, High Caravan Commander of Hollowpath
+23 Days After the Ashen Vault Defense
Location: Southpine Crossing – Caravan Treaty Grounds
Jag had walked into battles before. But this one felt different.
There was no roar of beasts. No scent of smoke. Just eyes—watching him from across the massive circular pavilion draped in weather-torn banners. Flags of old treaties. Symbols that meant nothing yesterday.
Today, they might again.
Three factions had answered the Broadcast.
They came with hesitation, but they came.
Jag stood at the center, armor polished, cloak of Stormwatch wrapped tight.
Beside him: Rain, silent and calm. Verana, cloaked in memory-steel threads. Ashra lingered behind, leaning against a rusted support beam, watching for trouble.
Each seat held a name, a nation, or a weapon.
And none were allies yet.
Faction Delegates Present:
Hollowpath Caravan League – Commander Vetra Annon (Veteran Trader, Beastbonded Scout)
Steelpact Guild – Forge-Marshal Borgan Rekk (Craft-Authority and Tactical Engineer)
Sable Fangs Mercenary House – Shadow-Prime Leir of Sable (Assassin-Legate)
Opening Words – Jag of Stormwatch
He stepped forward. He didn't speak loud. Just clear.
"You heard the truth. I didn't beg you to. I burned it into the sky."
They didn't blink.
"I'm not here to ask for soldiers. I'm here to form a wall of memory. One they can't erase. One they can't rewrite."
Leir of Sable smirked. "And if we don't?"
Jag's hand flexed.
Rain answered for him. "Then you'll forget we were ever here."
[System Questline Triggered – The Restoration Accord]
Objective: Secure a binding oath or alliance treaty with all 3 factions
Success Requirement: Present strategic value, shared goals, and memory-proofed terms
Failure Result: Factions leave neutral, no support
Special Condition: If more than one faction leaves hostile, Stormwatch's name will be downgraded in the world state
First Trial: Hollowpath Caravan League
Commander Vetra stood. Her voice was wind-rough and stone-steady.
"My people trade through fire. Roads burn, we ride. But memory? It burns slower. I like that. But I don't like wars."
Jag nodded. "Then help us end one before it spreads."
Vetra tilted her head. "How many supply lanes do you control?"
Verana spoke. "With access to Ember Node vault paths and the Black Vale echo-routes, we can bypass Vulture checkpoints in five regions."
Rain added, "We've also unlocked communication links previously marked 'Dead Code.'"
Vetra grunted. "Show me."
They did.
She leaned back, arms folded.
"You get one route. Use it well, and we give you five."
[Alliance Progress – Hollowpath Caravan League: Tentative Agreement Reached]
Second Trial: Steelpact Guild
Forge-Marshal Borgan rose, slamming a fist the size of a smith's anvil onto the table.
"Craft is legacy! Memory? Sure. But I want ore, output, and order!"
Rain produced a forged plate embedded with a live memory-glyph—one of the old schematics recovered from the Ember Archive.
Borgan narrowed his eyes. "That's... Scepterfire Alloy. That was lost."
Verana nodded. "And its forge-code. You want legacy? We'll help you rebuild it."
Jag added, "Help us restore Stormwatch, and we'll bind these lost blueprints to your codex forever. Exclusive use."
Borgan leaned forward. "You've got a deal. One condition."
Ashra raised an eyebrow. "Which is?"
"Let me reinforce your walls. You'll never hold if you don't seal your memory cores in steel."
[Alliance Progress – Steelpact Guild: Official Pact Signed]
Final Trial: Sable Fangs Mercenary House
The assassin-leader, Leir of Sable, smiled as if already disappointed.
"You want mercenaries to care about 'truth'? Our contracts are written in coin, not flame."
Jag's reply came instantly.
"And your enemies rewrite your history the second you fall. You die? No coin. No honor. Just... silence."
Leir leaned back, unimpressed.
Rain interjected, holding out a nameplate salvaged from the Ember Archive.
"This belonged to your brother."
Leir's expression froze.
Verana activated the plate.
A memory replayed: Sable operatives dying to hold a line... only for their role to be erased by a Vulture diplomat.
Leir said nothing for a long time.
Then: "Terms."
Jag answered without hesitation. "We give you a clean ledger. Proof of your house's oldest deeds. You fight with us, and you stay remembered."
Leir's grin returned—but it was colder.
"Three months. Coin matched. No edits."
Jag extended a hand.
Leir clasped it.
[Alliance Progress – Sable Fangs Mercenary House: Contract Bound]
[System Update – Questline "The Restoration Accord" Completed]
Result: All 3 Factions Bound to Stormwatch
Bonus:
• Alliance Network Unlocked (Granting Access to Coordinated Defense Events)
• Political Influence in 2 Neutral Territories Increased
New Quest Unlocked: The Map They Tried to Burn – Reconstruct Pre-Vulture World Routes
That Night – Campfire Quiet
They didn't celebrate.
They just sat.
Jag cleaned his blade with a rag.
Rain wrote new glyph strings, syncing truth-paths between the allied leaders.
Ashra leaned near the fire, eyes half-lidded.
Verana spoke at last.
"You made enemies today. Real ones. The kind that don't fight with swords."
Jag didn't look up. "I know."
Rain's voice was tired, but steady. "But we also made a beginning."
And for the first time since waking in Stormwatch, Jag allowed himself the thought:
We might actually win this.