Silent Walkers

Origins and Nature of the Silent Walkers

The Silent Walkers are one of the least understood forces in New Vance. Unlike the Citadel Council, Solar Guardians, or Gear Rats, they are not a faction with clear borders, trade routes, or leaders. They exist almost entirely inside the Shambler’s Graveyard, a heavy infection zone outside the stronger lines of the Perimeter Watch.

No one agrees on where they came from. Some stories say they were once a failed medical team that stayed too long in the early outbreak zones and changed. Others claim they were a cult that chose to live with the infection instead of fighting it, and learned how to survive inside it. A few Perimeter Watch veterans say they remember early patrols seeing strange figures moving with shamblers before anyone had a name for them.

What is known is simple. Silent Walkers move among shamblers without being attacked. Shamblers do not seem to see them as prey. They do not bite them. They do not turn on them during surges. Walkers move in step with the herds, often at the edges, and drift through the ruins as if they belong there.

The Silent Walkers do not speak. No one has recorded clear spoken words from them. They wear bone-laced rags, cloth wraps, and masks that hide their faces. Their bodies appear thin, but they move with steady balance, not with the broken motion of the infected. Their skin, when visible, often shows scars, strange growths, or faded infection marks that never fully bloom into shambler rot.

The most common view inside New Vance is that they are neither fully human nor fully infected. The Shambler Virus seems to mark them, but not in the usual way. They do not show the open wounds, full decay, or madness of normal shamblers. At the same time, they do not return to regular city life. They remain in the Graveyard, walking and watching.

The Shambler’s Graveyard and Their Territory

The Shambler’s Graveyard is the main territory of the Silent Walkers. It is a vast zone of ruined districts, collapsed towers, and mass infection pits where the dead and infected have piled up over years. The Perimeter Watch treats it as one of the worst outer regions and marks it as a no-go area except for critical missions.

In this area, shamblers gather in large numbers. Some move in slow herds through old streets. Others cluster in empty plazas or around old disaster sites. Many bodies lie still in drifts and heaps, only rising when disturbed. The air carries a constant smell of rot and old smoke.

Silent Walkers drift through this landscape without fear. They move along broken streets, over debris, and through clusters of shamblers that ignore them. They appear most often near the deeper infection pits and at old mass grave sites. Some Perimeter Watch scouts report seeing them pause there, bend down, and collect objects from the ground before moving on.

They rarely leave the Graveyard. On rare occasions, they are seen at the edge of Perimeter lines, standing still and observing barricades, guards, or patrols. When approached, they retreat back into the ruins rather than fight. Shamblers near them often move in the same direction, creating moving screens that cover their withdrawal.

It is not clear how they navigate. They do not use visible markers, beacons, or lights. They do not carry obvious gear beyond small satchels, bone charms, and bundles of cloth. Yet they seem to know where shambler clusters are strongest, where ground is unstable, and where old hazards lie. They do not trigger many traps that shred normal shamblers and raiders who wander into the zone.

For most of New Vance, the Shambler’s Graveyard is a dead patch on the map. For the Silent Walkers, it appears to be structured. They move with purpose, return to the same pits, and seem to follow patterns that outsiders cannot read.

Behavior, Tokens, and Those Who Return

The Silent Walkers do not talk, but they do act. Their behavior shows clear patterns.

Walkers often travel in small groups. They move in close formation, matching each other’s pace. They avoid direct contact with living outsiders unless forced. When they spot patrols at a distance, they slow or change course. If cornered, they do not charge or scream. They simply back away and let shamblers between them and any threat.

They collect objects. Witnesses report seeing Walkers pick up teeth, bone fragments, rusted tags, old ID chips, broken augment parts, and small personal items from bodies. They examine them briefly, then tuck them into pouches or string them onto bone-laced cords that hang from their clothes. Some believe these are trophies. Others think they are a form of record-keeping, memorial, or study.

They also mark areas. In some parts of the Graveyard, Perimeter Watch scouts have found simple arrangements of bones, twisted wire, and small tokens placed on doorways, stairways, or collapsed entries. These markers follow repeated patterns and are often kept clear of rot and debris, even when everything around them is covered. Many assume these are boundary signs or warnings meant for other Walkers. Shamblers ignore them.

The most disturbing detail is what happens to people who return from deep inside Walker territory. Not many do. Those who come back alive often share similar changes.

Some speak less or stop speaking at all. Others develop a flat affect, with slow reactions and weak emotional responses. A few insist they hear “the dead moving” even when no shamblers are near. Many suffer from sleep disturbances, sudden freezes, or episodes where they just stand and stare in a fixed direction.

Medical exams show mixed results. A portion test positive for low-level viral markers but do not progress into full infection. Others appear physically normal but show strange neural patterns under crude scans. In several confirmed cases, people who spent too long in the Graveyard began to walk in sync with nearby shamblers when outbreaks reached their districts, even before they were bitten.

The Citadel Council labels these cases as high-risk and usually orders strict quarantine or forced transfer to secure medical sites. The Hydro Hegemony and Solar Guardians try to avoid employing anyone with a history of deep Graveyard exposure. The Shadow Syndicate, by contrast, shows quiet interest and has been linked to a few disappearances from quarantine wards.

Theories, Fears, and Faction Responses

Because the Silent Walkers do not speak, all knowledge about them is based on observation, rumor, and theory. Many of these theories conflict.

One view claims they are a rare stable outcome of the Shambler Virus. In this model, the virus changes the brain and body, but does not fully destroy higher function. Walkers gain some form of shared sense or partial link with infected herds, which lets them move among them safely. Supporters of this theory point to their calm motion, their apparent awareness of shambler behavior, and the low-level viral markers in some returning survivors.

Another view says they are a cult that has lived in the Graveyard long enough to learn non-verbal habits that fool shamblers. According to this idea, infection is not required. Instead, they move, breathe, and present themselves in a way that does not trigger shambler aggression. Critics note that this does not explain all the medical anomalies.

More extreme claims say the Walkers control the shamblers or direct outbreaks. There is little hard evidence for this. However, there are recorded incidents where herds suddenly shifted paths to avoid certain routes or to move toward soft targets, shortly after Walkers were seen in the area. Whether this is cause or coincidence is not clear.

Each major faction in New Vance responds in its own way:

• Citadel Council: Treats Silent Walkers as a major unknown threat. It keeps files on all confirmed sightings, pressures the Perimeter Watch for reports, and pushes for field research missions. It has run small operations to capture Walkers, but none have returned successful.

• Perimeter Watch: Sees them as another danger at the edge, but not the main one. Most Watch veterans advise simple rules: do not follow them, do not engage them, and do not stay long anywhere they linger.

• Solar Guardians: Focus on shamblers as moving infection vectors. They do not prioritize the Walkers, but they adjust patrol routes if patterns suggest a link between Walker activity and herd movement.

• Hydro Hegemony: Avoids the Graveyard as much as possible. It does not waste resources on studying Walkers and treats any related talk as a distraction from direct water threats.

• Shadow Syndicate: Shows interest in their unique state. Rumors speak of Syndicate offers to pay for samples, recordings, or live captures. So far, proof of a direct connection is limited.

• Gear Rats and Raiders: Mostly avoid deep Graveyard zones. Those who get close tell stories about “ghosts that walk with the dead” and use that fear to keep new recruits in line.

Across the city, ordinary citizens treat the Silent Walkers as a bad omen. Any rumor of them near a district triggers worry about new outbreaks, missing people, or strange behavior in the days to come.

Role in New Vance

The Silent Walkers hold a special place in New Vance. Unlike the Citadel Council or Hydro Hegemony, they do not hold resources or territory that people can trade with or join. Unlike Raiders or Gear Rats, they do not raid, bargain, or announce themselves. Their power lies in what no one understands about them.

In practical terms, they keep the Shambler’s Graveyard from being written off as just another danger zone. Their presence turns it into a place where something is happening beyond simple decay. This affects how factions plan defenses, scouting runs, and research efforts.