Sharp

From the personal journal of Krafton Sharp, leader of the Liberty Lions. Dated May 13, 2026.

The streets are quiet now. All the people are gone. The shops from my childhood are closed. Homes deserted. It hurts my heart to see my city emptied out, and scarred by war. But it is an necessary evil.

Our city will be rebuilt, stronger than before. The people will be free. I do not know what will happen to the young men in my employ. They have no place in the future that I am building. For awhile, they may be vanguards. They can be directed to help restore the city, but I know wickedness that spreads between them. Eventually, they will be as useful to me as a broken trowel.

There are some still, fellow residents, still trapped within the city. I know they turn their noses up at me. I'm sure they think that I was the catalyst that brought about this cataclysm, but I am not. The rot had already grown strong within our city. I watched as they bussed people in, sending them into our national park to search. I felt the tremble of their construction vehicles as they tore apart our streets, dismantling our city long before any conflict came to our shores.

They were looking for something. But they were not from Palmyra. They are not descendants of the fisherman and trappers that settled this land centuries ago. I am.

And that is why the voice called out in the dark. That is why it invited me into it's embrace. I won't deny that I was scared at first. I saw what was alien, and I recoiled. But, in all its benevolence, and mercy, it saw fit to press on, to show me the error of my ways.

It was a distant land, but familiar in so many ways. I saw the beauty of our home mirror in this foreign place. There they had achieved all I had ever dreamt of. And if it was possible there, then so too must it be possible here! The benevolent ones have bestowed upon us a gift.

Not only the foresight to see the product of all our bloodshed, but the courage to seize the opportunity in front of us. They spurred us into action, and I will be damned if I don't see their vision- our vision fulfilled.

No one must know. Not yet. The men must have faith in the vision, as I have shared it with them. They don't need to know what will come next. As long as they follow me, they will be saved. I will lead them, through the pain, the suffering, the unending onslaught. For only I can. I am the only one the Benevolent ones have approached.

It is nearly time. Soon. Very soon. There will be a flood. It will wash away all that clings to this city, the rot, the heretics, the monsters. We will be freed.