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027-alettertothefox.txt
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Letter from The Raven to The Fox

To The Honorable Fox, Keeper of the Wildlands and Guardian of Our Shared Past,

It is with great respect and the deepest understanding of what our bond has
meant that I pen this declaration. We have shared victories and defeats, joys
and sorrows, and no other soul knows the path we have walked together better
than you. However, the time has come for me to choose a side in this war—a side
that I know will cause you to question my motives, and perhaps even our
friendship.

I hereby declare my allegiance to the House of the Rat and, by extension, the
Grand Concordian Empire.

I know this will strike you as a betrayal of everything we have fought for.
After all, you hold fast to the old ways, to the spirit of the Wilds and the
honor of Faekind. But the world around us is no longer what it was. The greatest
threat we face is not the Empire itself, but something more insidious, more
dangerous: ERIS, Dysnomia, and the apathy that grips the human world. These
forces poison the very fabric of existence, corrupting not only the mortal realm
but the Dreaming itself.

We cannot ignore the truth any longer. The Empire, for all its ruthless control,
at least brings order. It offers structure and a means of resistance against the
chaos that ERIS sows among humanity. The rise of Dysnomia—unchecked lawlessness
and the decay of societal bonds—threatens to undo everything we have fought to
preserve. The Empire stands as a bulwark against this creeping disorder, and it
is a fight I cannot turn away from.

The House of the Rat understands this as well. They see the danger that apathy
poses—how it spreads like a disease among mortals, weakening the very fabric of
our world. Where you might see the Empire as our enemy, I see an opportunity to
harness their power to confront the greater foe. The Rat’s methods, though
cunning and often difficult to stomach, offer the means to outwit ERIS. They
offer strategy, resources, and, most of all, the will to fight this creeping
nihilism that threatens to drown us all.

This is not a betrayal of our kind, but an acknowledgment of a grim reality. If
we allow ourselves to remain divided, we will fall. The Empire, for all its
faults, is a force that can resist the corruption taking root in the human
world. I have seen the cracks in the Dreaming, the places where Dysnomia spreads
like rot, and I know in my heart that the old ways will not be enough to hold
back the tide.

The Wilds, for all their beauty and strength, cannot stand alone in this war. We
must adapt, Fox. We must forge alliances with those who have the power to shape
the future, or we risk becoming relics of a world that is already crumbling. The
House of the Rat has offered me a place in that future—a future where we can
fight not only for the survival of the Fae, but for the survival of all realms.

I do not expect you to follow me in this decision, nor do I demand your
understanding. All I ask is that you consider the wider picture, and the forces
that threaten to tear everything apart. I know you, and I know your heart will
never bend to the Empire’s will. But should the time come when ERIS turns her
gaze upon your lands, and you find yourself in need of aid, you need only send
word.

Until then, my path lies with the Rat, and with the Empire that stands between
us and the chaos beyond.

May the winds of the Wildlands carry this message with the respect and care it
deserves.

In solemn duty to the Fae, and to a future where we still have a voice,

The Raven

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