Founder's Advent
There were four sections through which the marrows of the Four-Fold Servant milled about on their patrols, their duties, and their work. The Underground, for the upkeep of the water supplies, keeping it safe and free of tampering. The Outer Perimeter, to patrol and administer the law with their non-lethal methods, usually bearing stiff sjamboks crafted and provided by one of the foremost leatherworkers of the city, Drenick Lazslow, who'd had to expand his operation in fact and had taken on assistants that were shipped from overseas, refugees, ex-slaves, and the like taken from other places and finding them a home in Etzos. This influx of new blood was kept busy in various jobs and trades, so as to prevent the slow slide of an idle mind, into the more high-minded observance of the Immortals and other such frivolous concerns. They were kept busy, precisely to keep them from bringing any old religious or cultural habits from their homelands, to Etzos.
Basically anything a marrow couldn't do, the finer points of labor and trades were relegated to these new arrivals, while the natives of Etzos often enough were confined to whatever occupation they already had. There was some resentment, then, when the new arrivals began snatching up new opportunities, from young people who were coming of age to work.
Still, there were many hands needed, and the Guilds sought out these hands where they could, rejecting the offer by the Four-Fold Servant to fill these roles with their dead hands. Of course, the undead were largely uncoordinated and unsuited to anything but unskilled, or else highly-supervised tasks.
So there came a time, when the Masons and Smith's guild was beginning to lag in its duties, as they had largely rejected new, non-etzori hands into its Guild, in favor of giving new young up and coming Etzori natives a chance to try their mettle at mason work and smithing. Two of the most vital industries in Etzos, and required for more than just expansion, but also upkeep of the existing structures. Many of those structures had fallen into disrepair since the War with Rhakros. Lisirra's war had wiped out the majority of the population, thus necessitating the radical opening of immigration to all corners of the world, but even so there was much distrust of these newcomers. It was this distrust that informed Paxler's resistance to accepting immigrant help.
Thus, when the Four-Fold Servant and the Blackguard began employing the marrows for the purpose of shoring up vital infrastructure, a job that had previously fallen upon the Mason's Guild, it was a potentially explosive situation, that would threaten to break the tenuous peace the Etzori had won from their costly victories over Lisirra, and Sintra.
The Citadel's insistence that the Guild open up its ranks to the immigrant population caused much consternation within the Guild. And thus, Paxler instituted a general strike, across the city when Blackguard captains began supervising the Marrows' reconstruction of vital infrastructure that had fallen to neglect. In spite of the help of the tireless undead workers, this brought maintenance and the orderly institution of such to a screeching halt.
Yet the dead hands did not cease their work, conducted by Blackguard captains who had experience as masons. Some among the Guild decided this would not stand, and a group of workers, led by no one in particular, as a mob, carried their tools. They bore their hammers and picks, and chisels, and wielded them against the bones of the Marrows. The flash of action occurred at several points across the city. The Underground saw these marrows getting ground quietly to dust in the passages beneath the city, and their bone dust tossed into the water supply.
The Outer Perimeter Marrows were accosted, and here was the only place where they faced resistance from the citizenry. In the confusion of the battle, it was difficult for the mindless undead to distinguish rioters belonging to the Guilds and regular citizens, and so many suffered as these marrows fought back with sjambok whips, nearly cracking some heads and bruising the populace, although many marrows were destroyed by the tools of the Guild and others who took to fighting back.
Finally the Commercial Ring and Stations had their thoroughfares blocked off, congesting traffic coming into and out of those areas by the Guilds, and the Marrows alike. There was a tense stand off, as neither the marrow nor the Guild took to destructive conflicts in the latter areas. But stood back and stood by for commands either from the Four-Fold Servant, or Paxler himself to unleash destruction of the other side.
