The Border
Past the swamps and waterways of the northern areas, the terrain flattens into dry open land stretching for miles. The Border sits on this exposed ground: a collection of dilapidated buildings that look like a poor imitation of a pre-Fall city, maintained with scrap metal, wood, and salvage, every vine and plant torn away and burned to prevent regrowth. The settlement appears empty during most hours. Then a bell rings, and residents emerge in colorful woven robes, moving quickly between buildings before vanishing again.
The Border is the headquarters of the End of the World Cult, a community devoted to maintaining the boundary between life and death. Everything beyond the settlement's perimeter is the domain of death, and the residents train daily in combat to keep the dead from crossing into the world of the living. The cult leader Auden conducts ceremonies from the Palace, a domed building at the settlement's center with stone floors, a vegetable garden, fabric-draped ceilings, and religious murals depicting the pre-Fall world. The Reliquary houses pre-Fall artifacts used as objects of worship, guarded near-constantly by acolytes who interpret the artifacts as signs that foretold the Fall.
Hospitality extends to travelers who do not mention Full Dead, settlements of the undead, or anything suggesting they have crossed from the deadlands. Psions who display their abilities are executed as tainted. Those deemed impure are fed to the massive reptiles housed in the Reptile House, an excavated pool where creatures over ten feet long are deliberately deprived of food before sacrificial rituals. The Guardhouse towers along the perimeter are staffed at all times by gunners who shoot down approaching zed. Retrogrades in the area have learned to wear masks near the Border after repeated incidents of unmasked Retrogrades being shot on sight by acolytes who could not tell the difference between rotting skin and undeath.
The Border is the headquarters of the End of the World Cult, a community devoted to maintaining the boundary between life and death. Everything beyond the settlement's perimeter is the domain of death, and the residents train daily in combat to keep the dead from crossing into the world of the living. The cult leader Auden conducts ceremonies from the Palace, a domed building at the settlement's center with stone floors, a vegetable garden, fabric-draped ceilings, and religious murals depicting the pre-Fall world. The Reliquary houses pre-Fall artifacts used as objects of worship, guarded near-constantly by acolytes who interpret the artifacts as signs that foretold the Fall.
Hospitality extends to travelers who do not mention Full Dead, settlements of the undead, or anything suggesting they have crossed from the deadlands. Psions who display their abilities are executed as tainted. Those deemed impure are fed to the massive reptiles housed in the Reptile House, an excavated pool where creatures over ten feet long are deliberately deprived of food before sacrificial rituals. The Guardhouse towers along the perimeter are staffed at all times by gunners who shoot down approaching zed. Retrogrades in the area have learned to wear masks near the Border after repeated incidents of unmasked Retrogrades being shot on sight by acolytes who could not tell the difference between rotting skin and undeath.
Demographics
The population is united by faith rather than Strain. Retrogrades, Yorkers, and various other Strains live together under the End of the World Cult's teachings. Residents dress in colorful woven robes and follow a bell-driven schedule, emerging from buildings only when summoned and moving quickly between structures. The settlement is hospitable to travelers who respect its rules, but those lines are drawn sharply: Psions who display their abilities are executed as tainted, and those deemed impure are fed to the massive reptiles in the Reptile House. Retrogrades in the surrounding area have learned to wear masks near the Border after repeated incidents of unmasked Retrogrades being shot on sight by acolytes who could not distinguish rotting skin from undeath.
Government
The Border operates as a theocracy under the cult leader Auden, who conducts ceremonies and directs acolytes from the Palace. Priests and acolytes form the ruling class, managing everything from daily rituals to perimeter defense. Trained fighters man the Guardhouse towers along the settlement perimeter, and their authority extends to lethal force against anyone deemed a threat or tainted by death. The governing philosophy is absolute: everything beyond the Border is the domain of death, and maintaining that boundary is the settlement's sacred purpose. There is no separation between religious authority and civil governance; they are the same institution.
Defences
The Guardhouse consists of a series of small towers along the settlement perimeter, connected by metal walls and wire, staffed at all times by gunners who shoot down approaching zed and Full Dead. Towers are built of wood reinforced with metal, with retractable rope ladders and stockpiles of ammunition, guns, water, and food rations. The flat terrain surrounding the settlement makes covert approach exceptionally difficult; there is no tree cover, no terrain to hide behind, and miles of open ground in every direction. Travelers must be examined for marks of death before entry is permitted. The residents train daily in combat as part of their religious duty, making the entire adult population a functional militia. The settlement's remote location in the southern Northern Clime, past the swamps that deter casual travelers, provides additional natural isolation.
Industry & Trade
The Border's economy is largely self-sustaining and internally focused. The Palace contains a vegetable garden. The Reliquary houses a collection of pre-Fall artifacts used as objects of worship and teaching tools, but these are not traded. The settlement does not appear to produce significant trade goods or participate in regional commerce. Its value to outsiders lies in its position as a waypoint in the southern Northern Clime, but the strict entry requirements and execution-friendly religious practices limit the number of travelers who choose to stop. Whatever economic activity exists serves the cult's mission rather than any commercial purpose.
History
The cult leader Auden established the Border in the southern Northern Clime, choosing the flat, exposed terrain specifically because it offered clear sightlines in all directions and no place for the dead to hide. The End of the World Cult built its settlement among dilapidated pre-Fall structures, stripping away vegetation and burning it to prevent regrowth. The Reliquary was assembled from pre-Fall artifacts interpreted as signs that foretold the Fall. The Reptile House was excavated and stocked with massive reptiles trained for sacrificial purposes. The Guardhouse towers were constructed along the perimeter to provide continuous armed surveillance. The settlement grew as the cult attracted followers from various Strains, united by the belief that the boundary between life and death must be maintained by force and faith.
Religious cult settlement guarding the boundary between life and death
