Jagged Dream

The Jagged Dream is an organization bent on sowing conflict across different nations.

Background
"War is a crucible from which one forges strength, courage, and mettle. That is the dream sent from the fire. Ours is a dream of jagged edges, blood, bone, and the cries of pain. Only through war can we advance. The ancients knew it. They waged wars throughout the long history of our aged world. They waged war with entirely different worlds. When those wars ended, they sought new worlds, and even whole universes to fight. The ancients knew. It is how they grew strong.

Now we are here, and the fires of the crucible send us the jagged dream. We cannot shirk this responsibility. It is our destiny to grow great as the ancients grew great. And we can only do that through bloodshed, violence, and war.

That is the Jagged Dream."

- Gia Soeman, dreamseeker

The Jagged Dream is a secretive cult located throughout the Steadfast and the Beyond Its membership is small but widespread, with hidden cells that meet in secret for fear of being discovered before they're ready.

The Jagged Dream wants to engineer conflict on a massive scale. Their leaders, called dreamseekers, claim to have had a dream sent to them from "the fire" or "the flames," a representation of evolution and natural selection sped up through intensive conflict. In short, they want war and nothing but war. To the cult, peace is death because it means that the species and culture stops advancing. They're not interested in small-scale conflict - only large battles and long-term wars truly test a culture. Individuals don't matter to their plan, only large groups of people.

To this end, cult members attempt to secretly manipulate events toward war. They infiltrate other organizations and reach positions where they can whisper into the ears of leaders (or where they can just become the leaders themselves). They try to stimulate weapon development and production. They found military academies. As their timeline advances, they engineer mistrust and alienation among people and seek ways to cause famines or other events that drive groups into conflict.

The cult organizes itself into small, isolated cells. Often, a member of one cell won't know the members of any other cell. Sometimes, however, members wear a secret sign on their clothing or tattooed onto their flash. These symbols include a small knife with a serrated blade, a counterclockwise spiral around an open hand, or a silver or black raptor swooping downward, talons extended.

A typical cell includes one dreamseeker and four or five other members. The cell rarely has a permanent headquarters, instead meeting in secret in different places. The dreamseeker brings a portable shrine, which looks like a large wheeled trunk, to meeting. Members pray to the fire, seeking clarity and vision. However, they don't think of the fire as a sentient entity like a god. They recognize it as a fundamental force in the universe, beyond conscious thought, choice, or intent.

At a meeting, the dreamseeker coordinates the actions of all cell members. Despite the desire for war and bloodshed, the dreamseeker stresses patience. Slow movements and manipulations are needed to achieve their goals. Because the Jagged Dream's outlook is so much larger than that of any one individual, the cult's goals stretch over lifetimes.

The secretive members value hidden advantages. Many undergo surgeries (often performed by the cell) to gain subdermal weapons, defenses, and enhancements. The scars from such treatments are highly valued and respected by the cult, although they too are hidden from the rest of society.

Members of Note
Because most cells operate in secrecy, it's rare for any of them to become known as members of the Jagged Dream - rumors and speculation are the norm.

Arias Folon:
The flint-eyed dreamseeker dresses in layers of grey and brown, and often wears a large four-eyed snake around her neck. She runs a large cell of twenty members in Qi. Many cultists recognize her as the de facto leader of the Jagged Dream, but she would deny it with ease.

Symbol:
Silver or Black raptor swooping downward with talons extended, knife with a serrated blade, or a counterclockwise spiral with an open hand

Motto:
The flames inspire us to make the jagged dream a reality for the world

Badge of Membership:
Hidden symbol stitched into clothing or tattooed on flesh

Membership Benefits:
Instead of gaining a new skill, cult members can have a weapon or a device that they possess implanted in their body by Jagged Dream chiurgeons. The item will be completely hidden and will always go unnoticed. An implanted knife would be retractable from their wrist. An implanted force field generator could never be taken away.