Disclaimer: I don't own or represent Frostpunk. 11 Bit Studios own it.
Citizens of New London
Praise our Glorious Leader
He has allowed the last on Earth to thrive
Death to traitors, Death to public enemies
Obedience is Virtue
And so on and on do the speakers rattle the same message over and over again today. The morning gathering has ended about an hour ago and the Captain has called for all guards to patrol the streets of all housing districts. An informant came up to Noah with credible information about a woman trying to blackmail guards that she slept with, making patrolling her house almost impossible.
The lads and I marched in her house and dragged her out- naked and bruised- into the cold streets.
The New Londen Papers predicted that it would be a chilly -50 F. We dragged her across the splintered streets, ice freezing her skin as the snow froze her skin. Bringing her to the Captain's palace, a large house that housed the administrators, patrol leaders, head of information, the successor, and the Captain himself, along with his family. When we brought the naked woman to the Captain himself he asked us why we brought her here.
"Glorious Leader, this whore was trying to threaten the city's safety by fucking guards. She then tried to force them away on the threat of punishment by your absolute will. We believe you shall decide her punishment." I inform the Captain. He looks at me with grim understanding. Then with a smile, he looks at the whore. Leaning down he turns her battered face towards him.
Rising up, he tells her that she has two choices.
"Either prison or a week as a prostitute. Take your poison."
"Maybe we should assign her as an actual whore. She obviously likes to fuck people, let us make it her job to earn her bread rightfully." one of the guards intervenes. Other jeer and agree with him. I instead await the Captain's verdict.
He looks at me, rising from the crying woman. Looking at me in the eye he says, "We'll wait for her answer, but this doesn't warrant such as harsh punishment. Order brings us strength, but despotism makes us nothing more than savages. Do you agree patrol leader Owen?"
"Of course, sir." I stay, giving him a loyal salute. The pathetic bitch on the ground begs the Captain, sobbing. "G-Glorious Leader. Please, give me another chance. I promise I'll do whatever you want. I'll go to prison, I'll take the ruff and tuff. I don't want to be used in the brothel. I-I-"
"Shut it!" Emily strikes her across the cheek with her baton. She drops to the ground in groaning pain, blood seeping out her mouth, and a tooth chip falls out. The Captain holds up a hand, "Enough. If she won't choose than I will. Take her to the infirmary to heal her injuries, then to the prison. Have her locked up for the regular amount of time." As he turns to leave, we all salute our Glorious Leader.
As he reaches for the doorknob he adds, "And put some warm clothes on her. I need an alive citizen, not a dead one.", before entering back into the warm building.
Citizens of New Liverpool
Rise for prayer
For the Protector of the Truth wills it
Beseech thou deceiver and false shepherd to the will of God
If not for thou Righteous Protector do we not survive the Frostlands
Devotion is Strength
The holy men call out, their actions studied by a pious Faith Keeper. For only he can protect the truth the Captain from heretics. I watch atop the Faith Keeper tower, a city of holiness preaching out in defiance against the endless snow. Where once there was sea now lay's a warehouse of scouts whose devotion to the city allows them to brave the cold.
Sister Praline reported that a heretic was recently captured. He was trying to denounce the Protector of the Truth as a false god who was only trying to enslave us all to her will. Brothers Aaron, Patrick, Matthew, and Houston quickly captured this heretic in for questioning.
Walking down the spiraling stairs I mutter a quick prayer to God to allow us to weather the cold. The scouts report that the weather will fall to -50 F, and only now did the engineers in the workshops manage to increase insulation for the houses and were currently trying to find a way to upgrade the Generator's power for the coming cold.
The Devils Cold wiped most of us out. In the darkest hour, when the fires dimmed and ice grew like a parasite across the ice-filled wood, brittle steel, and frozen gruel became our staple. Some heretics resorted to eating fellow man just to get by. Yet it was the Righteous Captain in her ever mounting spirituality did she cast aside the panic, she made the heretics and cowards repent their unholy sins. With a guiding hand she led the hunts for game, it was her that bored the holes in the thickening ice for seas of fish, it was she who forced the engineers to continue their studies and it was she who founded the Faith Keepers.
He kneels on the ground, shirtless and skinny. A fingernail was ripped out, as as there wounds on his back that let the blood seep onto the frozen ground. A hole through the roof that allows the freezing air onto the heretic, while keeping the faithful warm.
"Oh holy Captain, only through Faith do we thrive. May you forgive the heretic's wrongdoings.", Head Faith Keeper Sister April chants.
"Fuck the Captain. She's trying to enslave us with Faith. This isn't-", a whip cracks out, his painful yelp rings out. Sister April brings him up by the neck, her green eyes bring attention from the heretic.
"For your wrongdoing heretic, you are sentenced to death."
"I accept it. I admit my so called-", he screams as Brother Aaron starts to tear out another fingernail from his left hand, ripping it out slowly to magnify the pain. "You have no right to speak heretic." he orders.
"Enough.", a voice gently speaks out. Turning around we find the Protector of the Truth herself. Wrapped in soft clothing as a blue ribbon circles her body, a Faith cross stands out on her chest. Immediately, we all knee on the ground and silence ourselves. She walks softly to the heretic. With her small hand she motions the heretic's eyes upward as she asks him, "Brother. I ask thee to beg for penance. I haven't sentenced anyone to God's domain and I don't want to now."
"Then why do this? Why lie to us? We aren't mindless sheep. We are human beings with rights. The Bill of Rights gave us British people-"
"The old empire is gone. Buried beneath the snow. London is just a mountain of snow, it's people dead or scattered. We are only it's descendants of the old Queen, now we must live through devotion in order to cast the devil's smite away." She does so silently. The Protector of the Truth has always been a frail woman as her mother. She died when giving birth to her and most of her life was spent in despair. Only when she prayed did she felt life return to her.
I know this because I'm her friend, a childhood friend who would bring books, carry her to school on my back, attend mass with her religious father. One time for Christmas we actually had fun when her father brought fireworks to light up the cold sky. Then, as the ash rained down, so did the snow.
The heretic weeps as she continues to talk to him, I get up to come to her side. Sister April does so as well as we side the Captain. She rises from the man as she asks us, "Faith Keeper April, Faith Keeper Baron I ask of thee."
We both kneel as Sister April replies, "You require our services, o' Protector of the Truth?"
"Yes. I ask you to bring this man to repent for his sins, not with pain, but with prayer. He is simply panicked and lost his family from the Devil's Cold as has many of us."
She refers to Hope.
A/N: So I have something to say those who read and I guess it's important, but only if you cared. As of now Frostpunk (1, probably) has ended with the 'On the Edge' DLC and the stories I've read that include Frostpunk are slowly dwindling, abandoned, or never typed. If you guys want a good one, I suggest two and this is in no way am I affiliated with these two authors.
"Afterfall" by SarkasticPapoy
"Gate: Thus The World Felt Warmth" by Larry the Mailman
And with this I bid ado. This is something that I wanted to get out there as these are pretty good stories, plus it might get them written more. I don't know how many would actually care to read them, but hey, it doesn't hurt to try.
Peace.