Red Dawn Rising

*Posted by : Winteroak on Mar 6, 2018, 11:00pm*

Dusk - 18th August - The Sprawl - Late Evening

Enoch Solomon stood in the shadows of the unnamed cellar, listening to the orator preach to those men and women that had been invited to attend the gathering of one of the Red Crew cells.
There were around 30 people in attendance. Men and women of all ages. Workers. Tonight's group focused on those toiling at the textile mills of Councilman David Corbet under brutal conditions.

"Why do we keep toiling away to feed the greed of Highholm, of The Twins?" the speaker asked. "Why do we keep sacrificing our sons and daughters to the bloody machines of this city, day after day, after day?" Solomon saw some people murmuring agreement.
"And for what? For a handful of coins and scraps off their tables? Why do we keep toiling to keep them fat and safe while our children go hungry every night? Us, the blood force of Dusk. Clothing people that discard us like trash when we loose limbs, when our bodies break down and we can no longer work. People that would not piss on us if we were burning. For what brothers and sisters?" Shouts of agreement rose loudly mixed with laughter at the crude language used.

Five years ago when he joined the Red Crew, the group was yet another small underground movement you could find in any District of Dusk.
The only thing that set them apart were the teachings and political views of their Founder, Ezekiel Tinker. His speeches on social equality and communal distribution of resources and power had a profound impact on young Solomon, who at the time was looking for a cause. And a cause he found.

Slowly but surely the Red Crew grew from a small group of factory metal workers into a ideology that was rapidly gaining traction among The Steamworks proletariat and many denizens of The Sprawl.
They were not as big or popular as the Rising Star, the anarcho-revolutionist group yet, but that suited them fine. So far they had managed to avoid drawing attention to their final cause and ultimate objectives. So far the militia and the Council had tolerated them.
Their rise was in no small measure due to Enoch Solomon's influence on Ezekiel. He had shown the older man the need to organize themselves and bring others under their umbrella. To become a force to be reckoned with.

He helped cultivate connections with the Dockers and Railway guilds. He encouraged talks and deals with the Glassblowers from the Foundries, made pacts with other Rodbusters groups and Spinners from the textile mills. Slowly but surely he masterminded a network of engaged cells friendly to the cause but acting independently from one another. Spreading the word. Building to the Red Dawn.

The day would come when First Citizen Josiah Hazard would turn his attention to them and they needed to ensure any attempt to dismantle their Crew would failed. Some would die, and die gladly they would, but the vision had to survive.
It was a testament to his work and careful planning, that he could stand her among his brothers and sisters of the proletariat and no one knew he belonged to the inner circle of the Red Crew.
Enoch took a sip of *aguardente* from his silver ornate flask and winced as the burning liquid slid down his throat.
Yes, Revolution was coming to Dusk. And when it did, the Maelstrom would pale in comparison to what the Red Dawn would bring.