The Erie Remnant is a refugee defense militia of about 130 members operating in Cleveland's lakefront districts, formed when the second wave of climate refugees arrived in the late 2170s and found that nobody — not the corporate administration, not Axiom Security, not any existing institution — was going to protect them from the gangs, predators, and exploitation that awaited them in the GLMZ. The Remnant organized out of a refugee camp on the shore of Lake Erie, armed themselves with whatever they could find, and declared their intention to defend the refugee community by any means necessary.

The militia is organized along military lines — not because its founders were military, but because a refugee named Adaeze Okonkwo had read enough history to know that militias without structure become mobs. Okonkwo established a command structure, rules of engagement, and a code of conduct that emphasizes proportional response and civilian protection. The Remnant patrols refugee neighborhoods, escorts work crews to and from employment sites, runs a warning network that alerts the community to incoming threats, and maintains a rapid-response force that can deploy twenty armed fighters within minutes.

The Remnant's members come from everywhere — climate refugees from the Gulf Coast, the Southwest, Southeast Asia, Central America, and the drowned Pacific Islands. This diversity is both strength and vulnerability. The mix of languages, cultures, and backgrounds creates a broad skill set and a resistance to infiltration (it's hard to send a spy into a community where everyone knows everyone), but also generates internal tensions that Okonkwo spends considerable energy managing.

The militia's relationship with other factions is cautious. They'll work with anyone who isn't actively preying on refugees, but they trust no one. The Iron Lotus has made overtures — offering protection in exchange for integration — and the Remnant has declined, recognizing that the Lotus's protection comes with strings that would reduce the refugee community to another revenue source.