A New Life: The Tale of the Gelerian Imperium
Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2022 3:25 pm
TIMESTAMP: 45th Searing to 91st Searing, 122
NOTES: -
NOTES: -
► Show Spoiler
- - -
- - -
- - -
Both vampyres understood the purpose of learning the history of their new home. They understood why it was necessary to have a depth of knowledge that stretched back to the beginning if they were going to work for the Inquisition in the capacity that they had been told to expect. Such a thing was not even unwelcome by either of them, really. Both Hector and Vergil were curious creatures and both of them enjoyed learning simply for the sake of it. The only rub here was that the history they were being presented was very obviously painted in the Imperium’s favor in pretty much every circumstance…and it made them wonder what was left out, what had been scrubbed over and so on.
One thing that stood out to the two of them, however, was the relationship that the Imperium had with their former family, the Cult of Mending. A funny thing, that. The Cult, officially, was dismantled and quashed by the Order of the Dawnmatyr. Today, the Imperium had a very…tumultuous relationship with the Order despite that fact. One would think that they would have shared some semblance of a kinship given that they had shared such a formidable foe at one point in time, but it would appear that such a thing was very, very far from the truth.
As it was told to them, the Order of the Dawnmatyr played a rather instrumental role in igniting the flames of the Imperial Civil War. Of course, they thought, it figured that the Imperium would blame such a thing on foreign meddling rather than internal incompetence. Such is the nature of man, to look outward rather than in. Eventually, those who meant to usurp the role of Emperor from Konrad the IV failed and were either slain or forced out to a neighboring nation– Arlais. One would imagine that Arlais doing such a thing did not bode well for their diplomacy with the Imperium. The two nations stood on the edge of another war.
The treatment of those left behind the war’s aftermath was both swift and harsh, meant to be a demonstration of power that would wash away any further resistance. Ruling through force and fear, that. This, the vampyres thought, did not bode that well. Control can be taken and maintained by force, yes, but is through hearts and devotion, not fear that one builds something to last. However, such a problem must have been dealt with over the course of Konrad the IV’s lifetime, given the deific reverence with which the current Emperor was currently lavished with.
As was written in the annals of history, the two of them knew of the war with Arlais that followed the Imperium’s Civil War, and this one would take place in the Age of Steel, year 58. Arlais fell to Imperial dominance and it was written in a way that glossed over much of the cruelty that was committed. Konrad the IV’s actions were painted as noble and honorable despite the fact that the war itself was not even remotely necessary. It was a bloodthirsty act of aggression brought on by something that Vergil, at least, thought was a very petty reason to waste resources on a war, but ah well. No sense in cursing the past, is there?
Princess Amelia, however, did not die in the fall of Arlais. With the assistance of the Order of the Dawnmatyr, she and her children made it across the sea to Ecith and Emperor Konrad IV did not follow, simply declaring his victory by default. Which, realistically, he could have done once the princess had fled out of the Imperium itself, but there’s no reason to be pedantic about that now.
And in the aftermath of the Imperium’s Civil War came sweeping changes to the way in which the nation was governed. Regulation of nearly all aspects of society entered into the purview of the Imperial Mandate, thus granting the Emperor more direct control over nearly every facet of the Imperium. In addition, the oversight of the Ducal Houses was very much increased, with the Emperor sending members of the Kathar Legion to each in an effort to put eyes and ears of the Emperor in all the nooks and crannies of his lands. If one were to wonder about how these new practices were enforced, such things were glossed over in very clean terms in the texts. Simply saying vagaries such dissenters were punished or…removed. The vampyres knew better. They were killed and it was likely not in the nicest of ways.
After the war and these new changes were enacted, there was, blessedly, a large period of peace for the nation to breathe and adjust to all of these so very drastic changes. On the surface, the new layout of governance was efficient, but when one looked any deeper, one would realize it lacked, entirely, any system of checks and balances. The second the Imperium crowns an incompetent Emperor is the very moment that they sign over the lives of every soul in the nation to chaos. The thought, to most, should be terrifying– and yet people lived as if such a thing could never happen. All the vampyres could do was smile and nod along.
The disaster in the 99th Year of Steel was very…vague. Of course, the aftermath was known– the Gash was expanded dramatically and the reigning Emperor, as well as many others, died. In the aftermath, Markus was crowned. It was the cause of this that was extremely muddy. Further, allies of Princess Amelia were blamed for this in an attempt to throw out the bloodline that currently headed the Imperium. This, in truth, came across as suspect at best to both of them. They had no idea what the truth was, or if this was even incorrect, but it seemed awfully convenient to blame something like that on an old, well known enemy as opposed to…literally any other potential cause.
Unfortunately, such accusations led to a formal declaration of war on the Order of the Dawnmatyr. Was this…productive? Ultimately, probably not. The Imperium’s forces were rallied and sent across the seas to raid a city most unprepared for such an assault, Ailos. All of this just came across as incredibly unnecessary and an overall waste of resources to Vergil. Hector found the pointless flexing of power to be funny, in a way. Just because the Imperium could did not mean that they should, he thought, imagining that such power and resources could be better spent on other endeavors. Ultimately, this nonsense is what led to the Five King’s Accord, causing a ceasefire in the 107th Year of Steel.
The Imperium’s largely hostile stances on a large swathe of the neighboring natures was ill tidings, indeed, for everyone that lived in any of these nations as well as the Imperium itself. The megalomaniacal nature of the Emperor’s rule was a recipe for disaster with how much power the nation held, and such disaster felt equally possible to fall upon the Imperium as it was to flex and conquer anywhere else.
Learning all of this instilled a sort of flight response in Hector. He did not want to stay here. Not long term, at least, but he had no idea what he was doing. He had no idea how long it would take to leave, nor did he have any idea where he would go and under what circumstances. Sometimes, in the quietest hours of the night, he would explain these fears to his companion turned lover, Vergil, and the other would admit feeling similarly. However, the older of the two tried his best to be reassuring in whatever ways he could think of. Ultimately, the two settled on the idea that they would both strive for personal growth, to become forces bordering on divine themselves, and that this would only be a stepping stone on such a journey.
One thing that stood out to the two of them, however, was the relationship that the Imperium had with their former family, the Cult of Mending. A funny thing, that. The Cult, officially, was dismantled and quashed by the Order of the Dawnmatyr. Today, the Imperium had a very…tumultuous relationship with the Order despite that fact. One would think that they would have shared some semblance of a kinship given that they had shared such a formidable foe at one point in time, but it would appear that such a thing was very, very far from the truth.
As it was told to them, the Order of the Dawnmatyr played a rather instrumental role in igniting the flames of the Imperial Civil War. Of course, they thought, it figured that the Imperium would blame such a thing on foreign meddling rather than internal incompetence. Such is the nature of man, to look outward rather than in. Eventually, those who meant to usurp the role of Emperor from Konrad the IV failed and were either slain or forced out to a neighboring nation– Arlais. One would imagine that Arlais doing such a thing did not bode well for their diplomacy with the Imperium. The two nations stood on the edge of another war.
The treatment of those left behind the war’s aftermath was both swift and harsh, meant to be a demonstration of power that would wash away any further resistance. Ruling through force and fear, that. This, the vampyres thought, did not bode that well. Control can be taken and maintained by force, yes, but is through hearts and devotion, not fear that one builds something to last. However, such a problem must have been dealt with over the course of Konrad the IV’s lifetime, given the deific reverence with which the current Emperor was currently lavished with.
As was written in the annals of history, the two of them knew of the war with Arlais that followed the Imperium’s Civil War, and this one would take place in the Age of Steel, year 58. Arlais fell to Imperial dominance and it was written in a way that glossed over much of the cruelty that was committed. Konrad the IV’s actions were painted as noble and honorable despite the fact that the war itself was not even remotely necessary. It was a bloodthirsty act of aggression brought on by something that Vergil, at least, thought was a very petty reason to waste resources on a war, but ah well. No sense in cursing the past, is there?
Princess Amelia, however, did not die in the fall of Arlais. With the assistance of the Order of the Dawnmatyr, she and her children made it across the sea to Ecith and Emperor Konrad IV did not follow, simply declaring his victory by default. Which, realistically, he could have done once the princess had fled out of the Imperium itself, but there’s no reason to be pedantic about that now.
And in the aftermath of the Imperium’s Civil War came sweeping changes to the way in which the nation was governed. Regulation of nearly all aspects of society entered into the purview of the Imperial Mandate, thus granting the Emperor more direct control over nearly every facet of the Imperium. In addition, the oversight of the Ducal Houses was very much increased, with the Emperor sending members of the Kathar Legion to each in an effort to put eyes and ears of the Emperor in all the nooks and crannies of his lands. If one were to wonder about how these new practices were enforced, such things were glossed over in very clean terms in the texts. Simply saying vagaries such dissenters were punished or…removed. The vampyres knew better. They were killed and it was likely not in the nicest of ways.
After the war and these new changes were enacted, there was, blessedly, a large period of peace for the nation to breathe and adjust to all of these so very drastic changes. On the surface, the new layout of governance was efficient, but when one looked any deeper, one would realize it lacked, entirely, any system of checks and balances. The second the Imperium crowns an incompetent Emperor is the very moment that they sign over the lives of every soul in the nation to chaos. The thought, to most, should be terrifying– and yet people lived as if such a thing could never happen. All the vampyres could do was smile and nod along.
The disaster in the 99th Year of Steel was very…vague. Of course, the aftermath was known– the Gash was expanded dramatically and the reigning Emperor, as well as many others, died. In the aftermath, Markus was crowned. It was the cause of this that was extremely muddy. Further, allies of Princess Amelia were blamed for this in an attempt to throw out the bloodline that currently headed the Imperium. This, in truth, came across as suspect at best to both of them. They had no idea what the truth was, or if this was even incorrect, but it seemed awfully convenient to blame something like that on an old, well known enemy as opposed to…literally any other potential cause.
Unfortunately, such accusations led to a formal declaration of war on the Order of the Dawnmatyr. Was this…productive? Ultimately, probably not. The Imperium’s forces were rallied and sent across the seas to raid a city most unprepared for such an assault, Ailos. All of this just came across as incredibly unnecessary and an overall waste of resources to Vergil. Hector found the pointless flexing of power to be funny, in a way. Just because the Imperium could did not mean that they should, he thought, imagining that such power and resources could be better spent on other endeavors. Ultimately, this nonsense is what led to the Five King’s Accord, causing a ceasefire in the 107th Year of Steel.
The Imperium’s largely hostile stances on a large swathe of the neighboring natures was ill tidings, indeed, for everyone that lived in any of these nations as well as the Imperium itself. The megalomaniacal nature of the Emperor’s rule was a recipe for disaster with how much power the nation held, and such disaster felt equally possible to fall upon the Imperium as it was to flex and conquer anywhere else.
Learning all of this instilled a sort of flight response in Hector. He did not want to stay here. Not long term, at least, but he had no idea what he was doing. He had no idea how long it would take to leave, nor did he have any idea where he would go and under what circumstances. Sometimes, in the quietest hours of the night, he would explain these fears to his companion turned lover, Vergil, and the other would admit feeling similarly. However, the older of the two tried his best to be reassuring in whatever ways he could think of. Ultimately, the two settled on the idea that they would both strive for personal growth, to become forces bordering on divine themselves, and that this would only be a stepping stone on such a journey.
- - -
Aidolon Speech
'Thoughts'
"Kathalan Tongue/Speech"
"Vallenor Tongue/Speech"
"Common Tongue/Speech"
"Mythrasi Tongue/Speech"