User blog:Emperor Maximus/Age of Industry: Tales From the Fireside II

(Part 1)

When the old man had finished his story the child sat in silence for a while, looking into the embers of the fire.

'I like Dick Turpin,' he finally said. 'He did lots of nice things. Do you think he was a good person or a bad person?' he asked his grandfather.

The grandfather turned to the child, and answered him. 'He was neither good nor bad. He was certainly working for a good cause, but he didn't always go about it in the right way. The Emperor at the time - Kamodus X - was a tyrant and a fiend, but not all of the people Dick killed were like that.'

'What other people were like that? People who were doing bad things to do good things? Those people seem the most interesting.'

'Oh, too many to name!' the grandfather responded. 'Almost everyone who does great things did them by committing sins. But the best example is probably General Kamodus.'

The child recognized the name instantly. 'He was the first emperor wasn't he!' he exclaimed. 'He beat back those nasty high elves, and started a new age!'

'Yes, that's true. But he slaughtered thousands to get there. Not just enemy soldiers, not just high elves in general, but friends and allies as well. Anyone who stood in his way, or who was holding him back. Do you know what happened when he reached Alinor, the elven capital?'

'No.'

'Then I shall tell you. Sit back, and listen.'

_____________

Kamodus stood outside the huge stone walls that surrounded the city. They were truly a magnificent feat of architecture; the rock glistened in the sunlight, and all the colours of the rainbow shone from it. It was a pity that they were being destroyed.

Another flaming boulder was flung from one of their catapults. It soared through the sky and smashed into the walls near the turrets at the top, sending half a dozen Altmer archers falling to their deaths.

More and more and more of these rocks were thrown at the walls in a tremendous barrage of destruction. Soon enough, the stone of the walls crumbled. And the Altmer knew what was about to happen.

Kamodus smiled. He mounted his horse, and rode along the battle lines, crying out 'Men! The gold-skins are defenceless, and now is our time to strike! I want you all to remember the feelings in your heart when your own homes were destroyed by the Altmer; remember!'

All along the formations, yells of approval were heard.

'Now enter the city, and show them what we "pitiful mortals" are capable of!'

Kamodus' army charged the city. The Altmer tried to defend it as best they could, but their numbers were small. Men of all the provinces and races rushed through the walls, killed the defenders, and rampaged through the city. In those few hours all of the hatred and fear these soldiers had been bottling up was released.

Kamodus himself rode straight for the palace, the seat of Thalmor power. His sabre swung through the air, cutting down enemy militiamen, women, and children alike. 'For the Empire!' he roared.

The horse's hooves clattered through the cobbled roads, and within an hour the general had navigated himself to the palace. He swiftly dismounted and strode up to the gates. Two guardsman rushed him, but he quickly dispatched them. Nobody would stand in his way. Not now.

When he kicked open the door, his eyes widened in surprise. For the palace was completely empty, save for one solitary figure. The Altmer sat upon a golden throne at the far end of the room. A beam of light shone through the window, resting on his pale form.

'They left me to die. All of them. The battlemages insisted on protecting the walls. The soldiers wanted to defend their families. Not one of my honour guard wasted time on making sure I would be safe.' The Altmer's tone was soft and full of melancholy.

Kamodus walked over to him. 'This War is over, Caliban. Your armies have been scattered, your lands sundered.'

'No, dear boy,' Caliban responded. 'This War was over long ago. What is happening now is simply massacre.'

Kamodus' face contorted with rage. 'You brought this upon yourself! Do not think that you were undeserving of this fate!'

Caliban looked up into the general's face. 'Yes, we did some terrible things. But it was all for a cause. And now you are also doing terrible things for your own cause. Tell me, General Kamodus, is there anything left that separates me from you?'

Kamodus did not answer with words. Instead he thrusted his sabre into the Altmer's solar plexus, and wrenched upwards to reach the heart. Without even looking back, he walked away from the throne, back to the city.

It was quite a sight to see. Houses were burning. Women were screaming. An entire city was dying.

But Kamodus just stood, and smiled. This was what he had been envisioning for months. A new age was dawning. Somebody had to have the courage to seize hold of it and force it upon the changing face of Tamriel.

It was the 25th of Evening Star. The Festival of New Life. Perhaps it was fitting, really. After all, from the death of the Thalmor, a new - greater - force would take in its first breath.

A snowflake flittered through the air, and came to rest upon Kamodus' breast, right above his heart.