Stormhold Dominion — Command Chamber
The Graveyard System rotated in silence.
Millions of tons of broken hulls.
Collapsed stations.
War relics drifting endlessly.
Daniel stood before the full orbital projection.
He studied the wreckage.
Then spoke calmly.
"Snow."
"Yes, System Lord."
"We stop preserving the old."
Aris turned slightly.
"Clarify, System Lord."
Daniel pointed toward a massive shattered capital ship drifting in high orbit.
"That vessel belonged to a dead civilization."
He zoomed to an orbital station fragment.
"That station was built by those who lost."
His voice was steady.
"We are not restoring their world."
"We are replacing it."
Silence filled the chamber.
Lyra's eyes sharpened.
"You propose total structural purge."
Daniel nodded.
"Recycle everything."
"Dismantle every intact station."
"Strip every relic vessel."
"No monuments."
"No museums."
"No nostalgia."
Snow processed.
"Executing full dismantlement increases short-term energy demand but improves long-term architectural uniformity."
Daniel turned toward the central system display.
"Unlock Technology Tree."
A new panel unfolded.
▣ STORMHOLD TECHNOLOGY TREE — INITIATED
Core Branches:
• Structural Engineering• Energy Systems• Military Systems• Civil Infrastructure• Orbital Architecture• Stellar Engineering (Locked)
Current Tier: Foundational
Research Points Available: 3
Lyra stepped forward respectfully.
"We are no longer scavengers."
Daniel shook his head.
"No."
"We are designers."
He selected:
• Advanced Alloy Framework• Modular Ship Architecture• Industrial Drone Autonomy II
Research began immediately.
Snow updated projections.
"Architectural standardization improves efficiency by 18%."
Aris observed the orbital map as dismantlement orders spread.
Mining swarms changed behavior.
No longer selective recovery.
Now systematic deconstruction.
Massive old vessels were cut apart.
Ancient orbital stations collapsed into controlled debris fields.
Metal compressed.
Stored.
Catalogued.
Stormhold was erasing the past.
Terra Fragment — Haven
The sky was changing.
Not flickering now.
Moving.
Large shadows crossed the debris layer.
Not drifting randomly.
Directed.
Captain Reth stood again in the observation tower.
"Report."
A Watch technician spoke quietly.
"Multiple debris clusters collapsing."
Sol adjusted the Sky-Scope.
The lens focused upward.
Where once a massive broken ship had floated—
Now nothing remained.
Only empty space.
Reth's jaw tightened.
"They're dismantling it."
Elder Mara stood beside him.
"They are cleaning the sky."
"But not for us," Reth replied.
Below Haven, citizens gathered more frequently at the edge of the dome.
Children pointed upward.
"Look."
Metal structures were disappearing.
Large fragments that had blocked starlight were gone.
For the first time in generations—
Actual stars were visible between debris gaps.
The sky was becoming clearer.
But not naturally.
Deliberately.
Council Hall — Haven
Voices were louder now.
"They destroyed the Titan Wreck."
"That wreck protected us from radiation bursts."
"What if they remove the shield fragments?"
Archivist Sol stepped forward.
"They are not random."
He projected comparative sky maps.
Debris density decreasing.
Radiation levels stable.
Orbital alignment improving.
"They are optimizing."
Reth crossed his arms.
"For what purpose?"
Silence.
A younger council member whispered:
"Maybe they are building."
Mara looked at the projection of the disappearing wrecks.
"If they rebuild this system…"
"…we become part of their design."
The room fell silent.
Haven — Civilian Reaction
Farmers noticed sunlight increasing slightly.
Hydroponic growth rates changed.
Wind currents inside the dome shifted.
The sky felt larger.
Some were hopeful.
"Maybe they're helping."
Others were afraid.
"What if they clear the debris that hides us?"
The Watch doubled patrols.
Anti-ship rail cannons remained aimed upward.
But even Reth knew—
Those cannons were useless against whatever controlled the sky.
Stormhold Dominion — Orbital View
Massive deconstruction swarms moved in coordinated patterns.
Old orbital stations collapsed into raw material streams.
Metal flowed toward storage rings.
Energy spikes stabilized.
Snow's voice remained calm.
"System debris density reduced by 11%."
Lyra studied Planet V again.
"With old relics removed, signal clarity improves."
Aris stepped closer.
"Our signature will become harder to hide."
Daniel nodded.
"Yes."
He looked toward the Terra fragment projection.
"They are watching."
Snow confirmed.
"Surface activity elevated."
Daniel did not look worried.
"Good."
"If they must live in this system…"
"…they live under a stable sky."
He zoomed into Haven's fragment.
The dome.
The farms.
The Watch towers.
"They survived war."
His voice softened slightly.
"But they will not survive another."
Aris inclined his head respectfully.
"Your doctrine is clear."
Daniel crossed his arms.
"We build our own fleet."
"Not patch theirs."
He selected the next tech unlock.
• Corvette Frame Production• Medium Shield Matrix
The Corvette Assembly Bay activated fully.
Sleek hull components formed.
Not bulky.
Not recycled.
Clean.
Stormhold's first true warship was beginning.
Haven — Night Cycle
The stars were brighter now.
Debris gaps widened.
A child pointed upward.
"Look! I can see three stars!"
Mara stood quietly.
She whispered softly to herself.
"They are not destroyers."
"They are architects."
Reth heard her.
"And what do architects do?"
She looked up at the clearing sky.
"They decide what remains."
Above Haven, the Graveyard System slowly transformed.
Old monuments vanished.
New structures rose.
The past was being erased.
The future was being forged.
And neither side had spoken a word to the other.