The Iron Covenant

The Iron Covenant: A Code of Seven Tenets

This code is structured into three parts: The Blade (Individual Duty), The Sheath (Group Duty), and The Edge (External Conduct).

Part I: The Blade (Individual Duty)

• Tenet 1: The Hand is Never Empty: Always be armed, be vigilant, and know the weight of your weapons. Lethality is your shield; complacency is a grave. Train until the draw is reflex and the shot is grace.
• Tenet 2: The Body is a Fortress: Waste nothing that serves the unit, least of all yourself. Augment where needed, mend what is broken, and keep the engine clean. You are not a citizen; you are a resource.
• Tenet 3 Trust the Sight, Not the Word: Never trust the unarmed or the soft-spoken. Read the hands, read the eyes, and judge intent before promise. A threat seen is a threat nullified.

Part II: The Sheath (Group Duty)

• Tenet 4 The Line Holds Absolute: The Covenant is the blood; the blood is the life. You shall not break formation, nor draw upon a kinsman. Treachery is swift dissolution, and the punishment is exile into the void.
• Tenet 5 Share the Burden, Not the Feast: Contribution secures your place. Your skill—whether steel, cipher, or suture—is the Tribe's asset. Resources are earned through utility and defended by all; they are never given freely.
• Tenet 6 The Debt is Paid in Kind: The Covenant protects its own. Any harm done to a kinsman demands immediate, proportionate, and overwhelming retribution. We answer slights with scars and injuries with extinction.

Part III: The Edge (External Conduct)

• Tenet 7 Contracts are Written in Steel: When dealing with outsiders, treat every transaction as a zero-sum war. Honesty is secondary to gain. But once the bargain is struck, enforce the terms with relentless loyalty, for our word is our only reliable currency in the wasteland.

Cultural Manifestation

• The Oath: New members would be required to recite this code, likely while touching or holding their primary weapon, emphasizing the bond between the warrior, the weapon, and the tribe.
• Punishment: Breaking Tenet 4 (betraying a kinsman) would lead to immediate execution or "airlock justice." Breaking Tenet 2 (negligence of duty/self) might lead to forced labor or resource deprivation.
• Slang: Referring to a trustworthy person as "Tenet-True" or calling someone unreliable a "Broken Edge" would be common.