Ashes of the Shrouding
One hundred years ago came The Shrouding.
No one agrees on how it began. Some say cathedral bells rang across the continent without a single hand upon their ropes. Others claim the sun dimmed at noon and never truly recovered. Still others speak of heroes who marched toward a final battle… and were never seen again.
What is certain is this: something failed.
And in the silence that followed, something answered.
Old roads became grave paths. Great cities emptied. Borders dissolved. The world did not end in fire or collapse—it endured. But it endured like a body fighting infection.
In the years that followed, decay crept slowly into the bones of the world. The dead did not conquer kingdoms; they simply remained. Graves would not stay closed. Sacred places grew quiet and hollow. Ancient wards faltered, and forgotten places stirred once more.
From that uncertainty arose a quiet authority calling itself the Pale Compact. It claimed no throne and wore no crown. Instead it brought structure. Through agreements, tithes, and quiet vigilance, the Compact promised to keep the world from sliding further into ruin.
Far from the old centers of power lies Moonrest Isle, a cold land of forest, ice, and restless sea. On its southern shore stands Moonrest Haven, the island’s only true settlement.
For a century, the people of Moonrest have endured.
And in a world shaped by forgotten failures and buried truths, endurance may be the most dangerous secret of all.