Wildbay Uprising
"We did not lose our home in a single night. We lost it inch by inch, as the tide swallows the shore." – A Wildbay Elder
HOLLOW LAKE’S UNCHALLENGED DOMINANCE
By 1950 BGW, Hollow Lake had fully established itself as the unrivaled power within Nunca. With an extensive military force, immense wealth, and a growing stranglehold on regional trade, the Ashwood Dynasty ruled with unwavering control. Though Wildbay had once been a prosperous, independent settlement, its resources—lumber, fish, and minerals—were now entirely at the disposal of Hollow Lake.
The people of Wildbay harbored deep resentment toward their overlords, but resistance was futile. The Ashwoods had long anticipated the discontent of the annexed coastal town and had prepared accordingly. A permanent garrison was stationed in Wildbay, its streets patrolled by Hollow Lake’s elite guards, ensuring that any whispers of rebellion never became more than fleeting thoughts. Trade routes were tightly controlled, and any goods moving in or out of Wildbay required the approval of Hollow Lake’s officials.
EARLY UNREST: A FUTILE STRUGGLE (1950 BGW – 1945 BGW)
The first murmurs of defiance arose in secret. A handful of Wildbay’s remaining leaders and merchants attempted to resist through small acts—sabotaging timber shipments, concealing portions of their fish harvests, and hiding supplies from Hollow Lake’s tax collectors.
It was a desperate and uncoordinated effort, and Hollow Lake wasted no time in crushing it.
Those caught hoarding supplies were publicly punished as a warning to others.
The streets were lined with Hollow Lake banners, a visual reminder of who held true power.
The military presence doubled, turning Wildbay into a city under occupation rather than a mere annexed settlement.
Attempts at organized resistance never gained traction. Unlike the cities and towns that had fallen under Hollow Lake’s dominion through diplomacy, Wildbay’s people had no representation in governance. There was no negotiation, no appeals to reason—only an iron grip that tightened with each passing year.
THE GREAT REPRISALS (1940 BGW – 1930 BGW)
As the years dragged on, life in Wildbay grew more unbearable. Hollow Lake, uninterested in maintaining the illusion of fairness, enacted harsher policies to stamp out any notion of rebellion before it could take root.
Martial Law Became the New Normal – Curfews were imposed, forbidding movement after dusk without explicit permission from the Ashwood-appointed governor. Anyone found violating this decree faced immediate imprisonment—or worse.
The Destruction of Wildbay’s Identity – Hollow Lake dismantled the remnants of Wildbay’s once-proud governance, erasing its history. Town records were rewritten, and those who spoke of the old ways too openly were silenced.
The Chains of Labor – Those who wished to survive had no choice but to work for Hollow Lake, either in the fisheries, the timber yards, or the mines. There was no path forward for Wildbay’s people that did not serve the needs of their conquerors.
Any remaining spirit of resistance was crushed under the weight of hopelessness. Wildbay had not been conquered in a day—it was bled dry over decades, its people reduced to laborers in service of a city they had grown to hate.
A LAND WITHOUT HOPE (1925 BGW – 1920 BGW)
By 1920 BGW, Wildbay was no longer a town—it was a possession of Hollow Lake. The governor appointed to oversee the region ensured that all exports flowed without interruption, and the last remnants of Wildbay’s culture faded into memory.
The forests were stripped for timber.
The docks remained busy, but only with ships bearing Hollow Lake’s sigil.
The once-proud fishermen, traders, and shipwrights of Wildbay had become nothing more than workers with no future beyond servitude.
With the Council of the Three Seeds long dissolved, there was no external force to plead Wildbay’s case. The rest of Nunca, long accustomed to Hollow Lake’s power, did nothing to intervene. There was no great rebellion. No victorious uprising. Only silence.
THE LEGACY OF SUBJUGATION
The fate of Wildbay was a lesson to all: Hollow Lake’s rule was absolute.
Unlike other towns and settlements that had been absorbed through negotiation or alliances, Wildbay stood as a grim example of what happened to those who resisted. Its people did not win concessions; they did not force the Ashwoods into compromise. They were simply absorbed and forgotten—a town swallowed by the tides of history, its name reduced to nothing more than a footnote in Hollow Lake’s continued rise to power.
Though the people of Wildbay still carried their resentment in their hearts, they carried it in silence. Their chains, though unseen, were unbreakable.
