Faction Directory

The Unwound are rebels who move in silence and shadow, fighting to free their people from the lethal Treatment Plan and to slip beyond the Loom’s relentless gaze. Direct confrontation with the Loom or its Sergekeepers would have destroyed them centuries ago, so their survival depends on secrecy, subtlety, and the careful avoidance of open conflict. Their mission is to liberate Deviants and Variants from the Treatment, guide them through the harrowing process of detox, and deliver them into fragile freedom. That freedom demands absolute secrecy. Every Unwound must hide their detoxed state while quietly resisting the Loom and searching for a path beyond the Boundary of Embrathis itself.

The Unwound are made up primarily of Deviants and Variants who have broken free from the Treatment. A small number of sympathetic Loom mages may also serve among them, but they are intensely vetted and given only the information necessary for their role. Potential recruits are observed and screened before they are approached, and recruitment is handled carefully through the Unspoolers. Once detoxed, most choose to join the cause. Those who do not are kept at arm’s length and given little knowledge of the rebellion so that safehouses, escape routes, and other members remain protected.

Membership requires strict secrecy. Detoxed members must learn to mask their freedom from the Loom, follow Determination Day procedures, protect safehouse locations, and avoid exposing other members or the rebellion’s infrastructure.

Rendwarden — Head of the Unwound

Current Rendwarden: Wulfric Rexanthe

The Rendwarden leads the Unwound and holds final authority over strategy, operations, secrecy, recruitment, and the protection of the rebellion. They are often directly involved in recruitment and detox efforts and closely track Sergekeeper movements in order to anticipate threats.

Vicerender — Second in Command

Current Vicerender: Devlin Oteno

The Vicerender oversees the rebellion’s day-to-day logistics, resources, finances, supplies, and safehouses. They hold direct authority over the Marshals and translate the Rendwarden’s broader direction into coordinated action across the organization.

Glyph Marshal — Head of Communications

Current Glyph Marshal: Bella Bales

The Glyph Marshal safeguards communication throughout the Unwound. They oversee the use of Organic Glyphs, informants, messengers, dead drops, codes, and other methods of spycraft intended to move information without exposing the rebellion.

Mend Marshal — Head of Medical

Current Mend Marshal: Enara Sharpe

The Mend Marshal directs medical efforts throughout the Unwound, with detox at the center of their work. They oversee underground care, childbirth kept hidden from Siphons, and the movement of medical supplies to members who cannot safely rely on sanctioned clinics.

Unspoolers — Officers in Command of Cells

Unspoolers carry out leadership’s orders on the ground and keep individual cells functioning safely. Their responsibilities include safehouses, supplies, recruitment, training, infiltration, and teaching members how to mask their magic and behavior beneath the Loom’s attention.

The Unwound — Average Recruits

The broader membership forms the rebellion’s eyes, ears, and working hands. They gather intelligence and supplies, help secure safehouses, identify potential recruits, and carry out the ordinary work required to keep the cause alive.

Liberation — Detox and Recruitment

The Unwound work to free Deviants and Variants from the Treatment, guide them through detox, and help them preserve their secrecy afterward. Members remain alert for potential recruits and work to dismantle the lie that innate magic is inherently more dangerous than the Loom’s sanctioned magic.

Subterfuge — Spycraft and Secret Cover

Secrecy is the rebellion’s lifeblood. Detoxed members are taught to pose as people the Loom has already deemed unfit for magic, while informants gather intelligence about Sergekeeper movements, Treatment distribution, potential breaches, and methods used to identify Deviants and Variants.

Investigation — Keeper Tracking and Forbidden Knowledge

The Unwound study Sergekeeper movements and every fragment of forbidden information they can gather, both to survive and to search for something larger: a route beyond the Loom’s control and, eventually, beyond the Boundary itself.

Recruitment

Learn the target before making a move. Observe, screen carefully, and report findings to the Unspoolers before recruiting.

Detox

Detox must be conducted in secure, discreet locations. An emergency dose of the Treatment must always be available to prevent loss of life.

Sergekeepers

Avoid confrontation whenever possible. If apprehended, cooperate, maintain secrecy, and await assistance. Attempt a solo escape only as a last resort.

Determination Day

Masking potions are mandatory. Members without one must remain hidden in safehouses.

Safehouses

Access is restricted to fully vetted members, except when a detox center is being used for someone undergoing the process with nowhere else safe to go.

Escape Routes

Major safehouses connect to an old underground tunnel system absent from city plans. If a safehouse is compromised and an escape route is used, that route must be collapsed afterward to prevent pursuit.

The Emberwarm Housing Complex

Emberwarm is the headquarters of the Unwound, a gated complex of modest apartments in Central Embrathis protected by private security loyal to the cause. Its fifty units are occupied by long-trusted members, including the Rendwarden and many Unspoolers. It is one of the rebellion’s most secure detox locations, but access is deliberately limited to thoroughly screened recruits.

Bridge Mouth

Hidden within the ruins of the Bridge Mouth is a cavern converted into a covert detox center with bunks, a small kitchen, an infirmary, and basic plumbing. It has three escape routes: one into knee-deep ocean water, one into the Bridge Mouth itself, and one upward toward a ravine suitable for disappearing into the surrounding terrain.

Mine and Yours

Mine and Yours operates publicly as a supply shop serving travelers heading into the mountains. Roughly half a mile deeper into the rock, an abandoned mine has been reinforced and converted into a secure detox center and hideout. Multiple tunnels provide escape routes farther into the mountains, and this is where antilumium is given as the first component to members of the Unwound.

Current Owner: Grubby Fergusson