December 7, 1899 — East Shore Industrial Complex, Amerathia
The early morning air buzzed with energy as fog lifted from the chimneys of East Shore. Once a quiet township bordering the Severn River, it had transformed into the pulsing heart of Amerathia's postwar industrial revival. The clang of steel on steel echoed down long boulevards lined with corrugated warehouses and smokestacks that loomed like iron monuments to progress.
A massive sign stood above the entrance gate to the East Shore Industrial Complex, freshly painted in bold white lettering: "Hesh Corporation Manufacturing Division – East Sector Hub." Beneath it, hundreds of workers filtered into the facility, lunch pails swinging at their sides, boots crunching over coal dust and gravel.
