Holdfast Orchard Incident: Cracked Crown Crew (“Candy-Gallows”)
Compiled for Osmosis Harlet ahead of the Main Hall address.
Scope: Members of the Sixty whose immediate family were killed, abducted, or directly harmed during the Holdfast raid.
Dead: Sella (Netbridge Row), Rowe Tann
Abducted: Toma Eelwright, Neri Moss, “Little Bran” (child)
Material Loss: resin barrels, dampener reeds, rope stock, pearl-dampening slab (Axis II tether pocket risk)
Kin harmed: Father Rowe Tann (killed).
Profile: Quiet discipline, “stone-face,” breaks only when the fighting starts.
Current risk: Will seek single-combat vengeance if given a name and direction too early.
Handling note: Give her structure: assign her to family recovery detail and witness protection, not the first wave.
Kin harmed: Aunt Sella of Netbridge Row (killed).
Profile: Big laugh, bigger temper—uses humor as a lid.
Current risk: Over-commits to “hero moments,” tries to shield everyone at once.
Handling note: Put him where he’s best: cannon-wall discipline under a steady lieutenant. Give him a job with a rule.
Kin harmed: Brother Toma Eelwright (abducted).
Profile: Fast, patient, and dangerous when quiet—built for tracking.
Current risk: Will leave formation the moment he catches a scent-trail.
Handling note: Make him lead tracker with a leash: pair him with a second who can legally override him.
Kin harmed: Sister Neri Moss (abducted).
Profile: Gentle hands, iron eyes. She patches people while memorizing faces.
Current risk: Self-sacrifice spiral—will trade herself for the hostage if pressured.
Handling note: Give her authority, not pity: place her as medical lead for the operation so she stays anchored.
Kin harmed: Child “Little Bran” (abducted). (Mira Kestrel filed the report.)
Profile: The most “normal” man in the Sixty until the word child enters a sentence.
Current risk: Uncontrolled brutality if he sees Cracked Crown colors; may kill a hostage-holder too early.
Handling note: Before any deployment, speak to him alone. Give him a promise you can keep: retrieval first, punishment second.
(Details withheld in public hall; discuss in closed council only.)
Kin harmed: Partner harmed during the raid (survivor; ongoing care).
Profile: Doesn’t raise his voice. Makes men stop moving.
Current risk: Executes prisoners if left unsupervised.
Handling note: Assign him to containment and evidence custody—he needs a role where restraint is the mission.
Kin harmed: Mother badly injured during evacuation; grove home burned.
Profile: “Bright rage”—smiles while tightening bowstring.
Current risk: Tunnel-vision on raider captains; ignores flank threats.
Handling note: Pair her with a spotter and restrict her to counter-boarding overwatch, where focus wins.
(Not blood-loss, but still “direct harm”: homes destroyed, livelihood cut, children displaced.)
Kin harmed: Family lost their dampener shop stock; forced displacement after the slab theft endangered the tether pocket.
Profile: Cold math, hates improvisation.
Current risk: Paralysis under emotional pressure—needs clear orders.
Handling note: Use him for tether stabilization and anti-cursed-pearl screening. He turns fear into checklists.
Kin harmed: Younger brother wounded during the fire; can’t work the nets now.
Profile: Reliable, bitter, deeply loyal to the Horn.
Current risk: Joins any retaliation party just to feel useful.
Handling note: Give him logistics command—he’ll keep the war machine fed and stop people from running ahead.
If you want them to remain a unit (not a mob), they need to hear three things from your mouth:
The truth, cleanly said (who, how, what was taken, what is confirmed vs rumor).
The order of priorities: retrieve the living → secure Holdfast → then punish.
A promise of discipline: justice will be delivered as formation, not as vengeance.
Retrieval & Tracking Core: Varek Eelwright + (designate a leash-partner)
Hostage-Safe Breach: Naila Tann + Isham Netbridge (front discipline)
Medical Anchor: Pella Moss (keeps the mission human)
Overwatch: Hestia Pike (counter-boarding)
Containment & Evidence: Soren Lark (under direct oversight)
Infrastructure Stabilization: Kerrin Reed + Orric Kelp