You've believed in the Emperor this long and this far. You and he have overcome all obstacles and enemies together. This Nicodemus is just another in a long line of them. You don't know all the history that he and the Emperor have, but all you know is he will fall like all others. If the Emperor's next conquest is to be this island then that is what will be done. If it is you that will be needed to help in this mission, then you will gladly serve and die if necessary.

And if…

And if the Emperor has lied to you about everything, it doesn't matter because you have been loyal to the end and have played your role perfectly. The Emperor gave you purpose so if you are to be his new vessel of destruction to accomplish his destiny then there can be no greater honor. You are ready to make that sacrifice. You were created for it.

Nicodemus lowers his hand and stops mumbling. If he's cast a spell it either hasn't worked or it has no obvious effects.

"Casimir, I know what you're trying to do and this isn't going to work. I urge you to stop before it's too late."
"Yes, it is too late FOR YOU!" the Emperor shouts and finishes his spell with a laugh. He then turns to you.

"Goodbye my son, I'm sorry I lied to you, but know that your last sacrifice will help me achieve my destiny at last."

The Emperor suddenly looks unwell again. Like he did when he was sick except now it's happening at an accelerated rate. You see him rapidly age before your eyes.

"NO! WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?! THE SPELL! THE RITUAL! THE PREPARATION! I HAD THE PERFECT VESSEL! I WAS GOING TO RULE THE WORLD! I WAS GOING TO LIVE FOREVER!"

At this point the Emperor collapses to the floor as his body continues to decay. Meanwhile nothing is happening to you though you're in a state of shock watching the Emperor die in front of you.

"Son…help….meeeee…" the Emperor says in a dying raspy tone.
"I don't know how. I'm sorry father…I have failed you…" you reply sadly.

"I…want…to live…foreverrrrrrrrr…" the Emperor says with his last dying breath before he completely decays into a skeletal corpse, then bones, then dust.

And with that The Emperor, Casimir, your father is dead.

You just continue to stare at the dust in disbelief; meanwhile Nicodemus walks over to the pile and picks up the book your father seemed to be so happy to have before he died.

"(Sigh) I warned him it wouldn't work. When I scanned you with my identify spell I learned all I ever had to about you. You were not a suitable vessel for a transference spell."
"Impossible, I am an Eternal! I was born and bred for this purpose!"
"I'm well aware of what you believe, but that isn't what is. Perhaps your breeding was incorrect or perhaps a mistake was made."
'No. My father doesn't make mistakes."
"Really? Recent events would dictate otherwise."

You have no response you just continue to stare at the dust.

"Eternal, I can tell you are feeling a great sense of loss right now and you have my sympathies. Your life seems to be filled with nothing but pain, war and loss. And tragically one of your only stable foundations was Casimir and even he lied to you. Yet you're so broken that you believe you're the one that failed him. You must've been the perfect son."

You begin to gather your strength and thoughts as you are starting to become annoyed with this Nicodemus.

"I still am." You reply seriously.
"Hmm, I see even with Casimir dead, your indoctrination still holds. (Sigh) I hope for your sake that will fade in time lest you end up like he did or the power hungry ancestors of this place. This island was once lush and full of life you know. Makas as it once was called had a thriving civilization with a strong navy. Even the mighty Svelk Empire at the time didn't dare attack us. Then this accursed book was created and changed everything. This is why Casimir was exiled." Nicodemus says and lifts up the non-descript book while still clutching it his arm.

"Did he create it?" you ask.
"Hah. Casimir could've only hoped to create something so powerful. No he was just another of our kind that thought he could achieve the impossible, to become a god. This book is just an ancient mistake of our predecessors and a reminder of why we were not meant to live forever."
"So what is it, a powerful book of necromantic spells?"
"If it were only that, it might be less dangerous. The more dangerous part is the fact that it's not just a spellbook. It's a gateway to another dimension. Of course we didn't really realize that or what we were doing until it was nearly too late."
"I don't understand."
"Our civilization couldn't leave well enough alone. We had everything, but we still couldn't stop the ravages of time and ultimately death. So we did the logical thing of exploring the necromantic arts. It was an exciting time to be sure; I was actually a young and eager researcher myself back then. It took decades, but eventually we managed to unlock everything we could about the art of necromancy. We could've very well taken over the world I believe with our power, but our goals were bigger. We wanted immortality. To be as gods. Nothing less would do. In this book lies the combined knowledge of every forbidden, obscure and even common necromantic arts. We planned on using it to cast off these fragile mortal shells and ascend to a new plane of existence."
"So…what happened?"
"This. The ritual that was to give us immortality destroyed our civilization as we knew it and created what you see today. I was actually not involved in the ritual as at the time I was not as skilled of a wizard, but I saw the devastation that occurred. A black void opened up above the entire island and its very presence killed many weaker individuals instantly. It didn't take long for the arch mages performing this ritual to realize that they weren't being imbued with eternal life, they were opening a portal to death itself. Fortunately some of the mages weren't quite so obsessed with immortality and realized that this was a bad idea and so managed to close the gate before it engulfed the entire island…possibly even the world."
"That can't be the end of it."
"Oh no, it most certainly was not. The entire island had been infused with negative energy and necromantic magic to a point where it was oddly keeping those that lived a much increased life span. However it also made many mad with power. Some of the more obsessed mages were furious about the gate being closed. They desired that the gate remain open, still believing it would lead to immortality. Others settled for the lesser immortality, but desired more power. Thus began the war of the necromancers who marched armies of the dead to wage endless battles with each other and destroying the rest of the island in the process."
"It was only when every inch of this place was cursed and forever tainted that the survivors finally stopped to recognize the folly of their ways. The folly that someone can have total control over death, let alone cheat it forever."
"My father obviously disagreed." You say.
"Yes, though he wasn't the first and sadly he probably won't be the last. Every once in awhile one of our number gets a little power hungry. Usually it's a phase and we exile them as we did with Casimir. Most soon learn that their powers gradually weaken and beg to come back, others vainly try to make it on their own and usually die expending all their energy as soon as they try to raise an army of the dead to conquer whatever it is they've set their eyes on. I have to admit though, Casimir proved to be a little more determined than most. He was smart to stop using his necromancy and rely on more traditional means to run a nation. Even his way of attempting to cheat death was rather clever. A shame he didn't focus his energy on something more worthwhile."
"He did." You answer defiantly.

Nicodemus seems slightly exasperated now.

"And again you defend a man who cared nothing for you and would've devoured your life force just to extend his life span a little longer. What did he do that was so worthwhile? Create his Empire? Lesser men than him have done similar things and with a lot less resources, he wasn't really special in that regard. Live for centuries? He could've stayed here and lived for a lot longer than that if he'd just abandoned his mad plans. Power is fleeting Eternal. LIFE is fleeting. No one lives forever and no one rules forever. Not on this world anyway. Even necromancers die. Just takes us a little longer than most and trust me, we aren't ruling anything so much as we're doomed to act as guardians to this world's life. Most of us know or learn that lesson, because after it's all said and done, this book teaches that important message."
"Message? You've been going on about how dangerous the book is. And if the book is so dangerous, why not just destroy or get rid of it?" you say.
"You don't believe that's been tried? Trust me, it has by every known ability to us and then some. Getting rid of it would be unwise for it could just fall into the hands of someone who does not know its true power and they may unleash its awfulness. Better we should remain its guardians and make sure nobody else ever has to suffer the same fate we do. So if one good thing comes from the book, then it is that lesson. A reminder of what hubris does. Sadly some just fail to learn the lesson. Not everything is black and white, contrary to your worldview of things Eternal. I hope that will fade in time as well. Speaking of time, I believe yours here should be coming to an end. Your master is dead and you have no further business here."

Nicodemus mutters a small incantation and a portal opens up near you.

"This will take you back to your Empire. Goodbye Eternal, and I hope for your sake you find your own way, you'll find yourself a lot better off."

The Emperor is dead and while this man may not have caused it directly, you still feel he is somehow responsible. Part of you wants to attack Nicodemus, but you also know that may not be wise as it is obvious the man wields great power. Then there is the book he holds. You almost feel drawn to it…

You enter the portal

This adventure has drained you physically, mentally and even emotionally. Attacking a powerful necromancer in his homeland might not be the best idea right now. Another day perhaps…

You approach the portal and give one last look at Nicodemus who stands by watching you. You can't figure him out. A lot of what he said was very condescending yet he seemed to pity you rather than be angry. He was also very nihilistic in his views on how achievements don't matter, not even life, though at the same he seemed to be trying to give you advice and help you in some strange way.

You step into the portal and find yourself transported back to the Emperor's chambers. Chambers that seem so empty now. Empty as you feel. Something is bothering you and it's a strange thing to worry about considering it would've lead to your death, but you can't shake it.

Why did the Emperor's ritual fail? Nicodemus said you were not a suitable vessel for the transference spell, but if you weren't, what does that mean? Would one of the other Eternals been a better choice, or was the plan always destined to fail?

You believe there have to be some notes on the subject of your alterations somewhere. Jacob probably has several papers about the Eternal Project in his office, but you search the Emperor's rooms first.

After hours of searching you manage to find several bits of private writings about various subjects. You don't have time to read all of them now, but you focus on anything to the Eternal Project.

One of the major things you discover is that the pregnant mothers had a specific ritual cast over them while the Eternals to be were still in the womb. This ritual, while elaborate and probably quite frightening to the woman in question didn't harm her in any way; it was more of a "prep" spell. (You also read that it took several attempts to get this ritual "right" too. The number of dead pregnant women is quite sizable)

Apparently this initial ritual was a big key in whether or not the final ritual was going to be successful. You can't find any other information besides how the Emperor was REALLY betting everything on this plan as he'd run out of ideas on to extend his life any further short of going back to Mortos and apologizing to Nicodemus for his behavior.

Still wanting more information you go search through Jacob's office. It is actually easy to find everything since he kept everything in immaculate order. Naturally he had everything locked, but you easily remove such annoyances. Nothing is going to stop you from seeking out your origins.

And after hours more searching you find more than you ever wanted to know in Jacob's journal…

I can't believe those idiots! Trent and Stravid grabbed the wrong fucking infant! We only found out just yesterday when I found their list on the floor of the privy room covered in piss!

I went back to check the Empire nursery numbers hoping that MAYBE they grabbed the correct child anyway, but no such luck. The infant that was supposed to be selected was already disposed of as a rejected candidate. Meanwhile the wrong infant is already going through his magical alterations.

I'm not exactly on the Emperor's good side at the best of times, and I'm not getting into fucking trouble for this. Those two morons are going to be executed. As for the baby I'm going to have to grovel to get that svelk bitch to help me with this. She can probably perform the same ritual over this new brat so the Emperor won't be able to detect anything is amiss with it. I don't understand why the Emperor doesn't just perform this ritual in person rather than relying on the svelk to do it anyway.

And HOPEFULLY that will work. It has to work. Maybe I'm worrying about this too much, what are the chances that this kid will live through training and meet the Emperor anyway?

And there it is, your "origins." You weren't even meant to be an Eternal. You were a clerical mistake, a bureaucratic mishap, and the Emperor's death was caused by it. Hell, it's almost like you went through with Jacob and Semra's plan to assassinate the Emperor anyway.

One might think something like this would cause you to doubt the meaning of your entire existence and drive you into depression. Possibly even suicide. An end to this life of misplaced duty, obedience and blind devotion to ultimately an ungrateful master.

Just like Nicodemus said.

But you don't really think about any of that. Instead you start to laugh. You laugh for a very long time.

"He…he didn't even know I wasn't originally chosen! What a fool! Why the hell did I ever follow this man? Because I'm an even bigger fool!" you say to yourself in between the guffaws.

Perhaps you're still being a fool. Casimir lied to you and deep down never really cared save for what he thought you were, but none of that nor his death invalidate your beliefs in the Empire. His idea that the world needs order, that the masses need to be kept in line, that some elements are better off exterminated for the overall good.

Maybe part of you still can't quite shake being the "dutiful" son, but you fully intend on continuing in your "father's footsteps." Of course the difference now being that your life is truly your own now. Since destiny has conspired to thrust you into the position of a ruler, you will play the role that it would have you play.

Now you just have to convince everyone else.

Within the week you call for a meeting of the most important leaders of the Empire. Ranging from generals to economists to advisors and other infrastructure types you've had little to no contact with before. Everyone is told to gather in the throne room, which is a room that hasn't been used in centuries; or rather Casmir stopped using it after he decided to become a recluse.

You won't be doing that. You'll be leading from the front rather than hiding in the shadows causing people to wonder if you exist at all. This is your time now.

When everyone finally arrives they naturally all wonder what's going on, you get right to the point.

"The Emperor as most of us knew him has moved on from this world. As his only logical successor I will be taking his place. If anyone has a problem with this we can have a civilized discussion about it on the battlefield which I have no doubt I will be seeing a lot of when several pretenders, dissidents and outright anarchists attempt to dethrone me. They will fail. The Empire will not fall today or anytime soon. This is just a new era for it and one I fully intend on making successful. The Empire currently is doing well, but I'm confident that with your loyalty and obedience we can make it even stronger."

You take a pause in your speech and scan your audience. None of them are interrupting. They all seem to be captivated, of course maybe some are just planning on trying to assassinate you later, but for now you'll take their attention as a positive sign.

"Join me and the Empire will live forever. YOU will live forever! Who's with me?"

No sooner have you finished your statement, several of the advisors bend their knee and bow towards you. The soldiers draw their weapons and raise them in air pledging their loyalty.

"Hail to the new Emperor!"
"Long live the Empire!"

Well that went better than you expected.

The only "important" person that didn't attend your meeting was Marik though you didn't really expect him to being a derro and all. Not to mention you didn't invite him anyway and had planned on meeting with him personally.

You have no idea how he's going to react to the news and he's erratic at the best of times. You and he weren't exactly getting along the last time you saw him, so for all you know he may just attack you. Part of you hopes he does, just so you never have to deal with him anymore. Besides Semra, Marik was the next one you never liked dealing with just because his demeanor irritated you.

When you get to his personal factory, it's as silent and as empty as it was when you had to clean out those escaped trolls. You hope that isn't the damn problem again. On your guard, you cautiously walk through the factory and make your way down to the underground portion and continue to find nobody around.

"Marik! If this is an ambush, let's just get this over with now because I don't have time for it!" you shout.

You see the door to the tank baby room open up, but it isn't Marik, it's a young girl. In fact it's the tank baby that you spared before your trip to Mortos. She looks like she's been healing well.

"He…he's not here sir. I mean my Emperor. I apologize for not addressing you properly." She remarks nervously.
"That's fine…so word of my ascension has reached down here eh? Wasn't sure if it did, so where's Marik? In fact where is everyone? I know there's still usually a skeleton crew that works in the factory above and there are usually derro guards wandering around down here. In fact shouldn't there be more of you tank babies running around training?" you ask.
"Marik killed them all. He shut down the machine that was keeping the rest alive inside the tanks. Said if the Emperor was gone then his debt was paid and he wasn't going to spend the remainder of his years toiling for the likes of you and called you a…uh…um…"
"Oh just say it, I'm pretty sure it isn't going to surprise me."

"He called you a svelk fucker."
"Is that all?"
"Well then he sort of ranted. He said that you had a svelk lover that would strap on a…uh…sexual device and made you bend over like a woman when you would have relations."
"Sheesh. Can't say Marik didn't have a colorful imagination." You remark shaking your head.
"Then he said the pair of you fellated kobolds and ate the dung of…"
"Okay, I think I got the idea." You say holding up your hand.
"He was very angry at you my Emperor."
"Mmh, sounds like. So why did he kill all you tankies?"
"Oh, well he also said he wasn't going to waste any more of his genius for you to use, so he decided to kill all of us in the tanks. He tried to kill me as well by having his men shoot at me and lob several firebombs at me." She says and points over to a partially collapsed bit of the room where blacked equipment and fallen rock now lays.
"Guessing it didn't work."
"I managed to duck under one of the desks and made a blood curdling scream as the explosions went off and the rocks fell down around me. After they let up, I heard Marik laugh at how I feared death in my final moments and after a few minutes I heard them leave at which point I started digging myself out of the rubble."
"Hrm, I see faking your own death actually worked for you this time, good. You shouldn't disregard a tactic just because it fails in one instance." You say as you glance over a pile of papers lying on another table in the room.

"Marik was brilliant in some ways, but he was an idiot in others. The fool left all his notes behind. I can easily restart all the work he did." You add.
"You're going to restart the Eternal Project? But I thought you didn't like…tankies as you call us."
"Well, I was in a different state of mind at the time. Now that I'm Emperor, I'm thinking that I'm going to need dedicated loyal soldiers to help in the expansion of the Empire in the future. Just need to rebuild the factory, get some babies, throw them into the tanks and grow my new army. Of course I'll be overseeing it and making my own alterations to whatever Marik's original design was."
"What about me, my Emperor?" The tank baby asks.

"Yes, what about you? Well considering you managed to survive not one, but two major attempts on your life within weeks of being out of your little tank, I suppose you deserve a place somewhere. To be honest, I did spare you in the first place because you showed more promise and strength than your siblings by merely surviving my assault. You know I was singled out too, on several occasions. I grew stronger from the challenges. You will have the same opportunity I did and I'm going to personally train you. Then depending on how well you do, I'll decide where you're best needed." You tell her.
"You're…you're too kind my Emperor." She says with a gratuitous expression on her face.

You start laughing.

"You won't be thinking that when we actually start training. Let's go. By the way it'll be useful to have something to call you other than tank baby, so what's your name?"
"Name? I don't have one, my Emperor. Marik never saw fit to give me one. I do have a number though. Ten."
"No, I'm not going to call you ten. That's silly, especially since there's only one of you now. Let's see…I'll call you… Decena. You like that name?"
"I don't have any objections to it, my Emperor."
"Good. Let us be on our way."

With this last bit of business out of the way, you feel you're getting off on a good start as the Empire's new Emperor.

You just wish Alison were here to share it with you.
Chapter 3C2: Successor


Year 37

Ruling the Empire, it's a thankless job, but somebody's got to do it.

With all the restructuring and consolidation of what holdings you do have, you haven't gotten around to actually expanding the Empire yet. You have sent quite a few scouts out though.

There were a few groups sent south of Nalin and into the Usksha Desert, but if there is anything past it, it must be a very long ways off. Every scout team has reported practically nothing but endless sands and hostile usksha nomads. To say nothing of giant sand worms and creatures that can turn people to stone with a mere gaze.

Further east of Delerg leads to heavy jungle to the point of it being practically impassible. Scouts that survived have told you that it almost feels like the jungle is actively trying to prevent further exploration. Apparently it's also inhabited by dark skinned Halfling like beings, but a lot more savage. (Though from what Casimir told you, Halflings could get rather savage themselves) They made no attempt to parlay and always attacked on sight.

Someone mentioned that there was evidence of a few ancient ruins, but these weren't explored much due the relentless pygmy attacks. Probably just remnants of a long dead civilization that the pygmies degenerated from anyway.

You didn't bother with sending scouts further north of Rask, it's well known that it's just more mountains and even if there is land past them, it would be so cold that nobody would want to live there, well not the average Empire citizen anyway.

While the Empire has never really had a navy to speak of, you've been trying to make steps in correcting that problem. So far a few ships have been sent east, but there hasn't been much news yet of any other major landmasses, just few remote islands that contain nothing of worth. (And none of them are Mortos either.)

Only the Empire's western borders hold any immediate promise for future expansion.

Some of the scout reports have been interesting, as there seems to be a wide range of societies further west.

The major one you're already having minor skirmishes with are a group of beast like people similar to the now extinct gnolls, but more "multi-racial" in nature. They refer to themselves as the "Children of Tor." (Who you assume is probably some god or ancestor figure to them.) They also call their territory "The Land" and are largely nomadic just like the usksha. As you might expect, they see the Empire as an affront to nature and the land and have been hostile at every turn.

The Torites seem to consist of four major races. The most physically imposing being the great bull beings (The minotaurs). They're reportedly as strong as an ogre and twice as vicious. They probably aren't the greatest of thinkers, but to write them off as stupid would be a mistake.

The second group is no less imposing. These are the ones that seem to be half human half horse (The centaurs). The horse beasts must train constantly with their bows considering how accurate they are with them. They are fairly deadly in open plains due to this and their maneuverability.

The third group seems to be the most common and smaller than the other two, but no less dangerous. These are the "goat people" (The satyrs) They make up the majority of the population, but they also boast a number of wild mages, shaman and other types that tap into a natural elemental magic.

The last group has only been rumored, but you can't dismiss the possibility. Apparently there is also a group of these beast people that have wings like birds that lives in the western most mountain range. Other rumors abound about less sentient beast creatures ranging from large cat like creatures with spiked tails to abominations that are mixed with a multitude of animals.

This is just one current enemy however. They are other more "civilized" groups too who may or may not be enemies in the future. Some of these range from hamlets that are fairly isolated from immediate dangers to small petty backwards kingdoms, which aren't even as great as the one the Felkans had. There are other probably others as well, but it hardly matters since eventually ALL will be submitting to the Empire if you have anything to say about it.

Of course you can't do it all alone even if you do attempt to have a more hands on approach than your predecessor. This is why you have your own inner circle to help.

Jacob's replacement, Kivan pretty much takes care of all the things he did. Though to be honest, most of that stuff is dull administration duty that tends to bore you anyway. The funny thing is Kivan almost reminds you of a younger version of Jacob in some ways. You guess it must be the typical "bean counter" mindset those administrative types share. In retrospect it's kind of a shame you killed Jacob as he ultimately was just looking out for the best interest of the Empire, but these things happen.

Warrick is still head of the Eyes, who are more in control of internal security than ever. You didn't even get a single uprising within the few months you took the throne, though there was a bit of civil unrest that had to be quelled when newborns were taken from families for the Eternal Project. Warrick is good at his job, though you get the impression that he'd like to be out there in the field sometimes. Something you can identify with since you've been growing bored due to the lack of battle due to the whole concentration on "ruling" thing.

Brenda doesn't seem to have this problem. She's actually satisfied with more administrative duties, but then she's never been at the forefront of war like the rest of the Eternals have. Still, she's been instrumental in implementing some worthwhile domestic issues such as fully incorporating kobolds into the Empire (The little scalies are now some of the most loyal citizens and always willing to serve its armies!) and giving the remaining orcs their own land in Rask. Brenda reasoned that while their numbers were decimated in the Felkan War, they can probably build them back up within a couple of decades and the Empire will have a new generation of orc soldiers that can be relied upon. Not to mention the orcs are still serving in a good capacity by currently slaying the odd ogre tribe or giant that comes lumbering down from the Rask Mountains.

Brenda still doesn't really get along with Warrick however. She still holds him partially responsible for Roldan's death. There really isn't anything you can do about that though, despite your best efforts. You just give a reminder to the both of them to keep it professional and they do for the most part. Which is more than can be said for General Ackerson and Grand Mage Galen, who you try to keep far away from each other since they'd kill one another if they could help it. Fortunately they aren't called to the meetings very often. Ackerson is mainly kept on the western borders (currently dealing with the Torites as of late) while Galen has been put on day-to-day duty of overseeing the magic side of things for the Eternal Project. (Though he was a great help last year in helping you banish the wendigo problem for good)

He hates the job and would no doubt rather be serving as the dean at the mage academy, but you need someone there with competent magic skills when you aren't available. You've actually made cut backs to the academy anyway, There just aren't that many mages left and there haven't been many new people to show the aptitude for it, especially after the Felkan War. With the rise of technology within the Empire you wonder if eventually magic will be displaced altogether, but in the scheme of things, its of little concern to you, since you still have all your powers after all.

The other one in charge of the day-to-day duties of the Eternal Project is an odd fellow by the name of Elam. He takes care of the more technical matters. He's basically the "new Marik" except that he's human, which makes him a whole lot saner, but not by much. He was once training to be a physician, but was kicked out of the guild for…unnecessary experimentation. He then drifted and somehow his interests turned to technology. He was a human supervisor at Marik's factory, but more than that, he actually was allowed into the derro portion of the factory on a regular basis. After Marik left, he became a recluse and lived in one of the more remote parts of Arat where he tinkered on things and tries to create new inventions. Kivan was the one that actually tracked him down when you stated that you needed someone who had a better grasp of all this "derro techie shit." So far he's worked out well, though Galen whines about having to keep an eye on him so he doesn't do unnecessary tinkering on the Eternal tanks.

Finally there is Decena. In between running the Empire and overseeing the new Eternal Project, you've been training her. So far she's been showing steady improvement due to your harsh training lessons. Lately she has desired the need to go out on the battlefield to use what she has learned and bring glory to the Empire, which was part of your plan when you started training her.

As you finish up, Decena moans in ecstasy when she climaxes.

Bedding her on a regular basis really wasn't part of the original plan however.

"What the fuck am I doing?" you've often asked yourself. You certainly did when you first pushed your lips against hers and groped her body during a sparring lesson. She initially thought you were attempting some sort of new attack on her, which in a way you were. One that ended up being entirely successful.

You sometimes think what you did (and why you continue doing it) was due to quelling a sort of loneliness that exists within you, which is partially true. The other reason is far darker. In some strange way you were re-enacting your own training lesson with Semra. Except now YOU were taking on the role of "Mistress." (You really don't like dwelling on what possible psychological ramifications that all means, you just buried deeper in your ever growing brain box of suppressed thoughts)

Of course it isn't exactly like the fucked up relationship you had with Semra, and Decena didn't exactly resist you and seemed to give in fairly quickly. Of course you can never know if it was because she genuinely felt attraction or she knew that it would've been futile to resist. She claims she did feel something, but wasn't quite sure what it was, which may or may not be true given that she spent most of her life in a fucking tank and isn't exactly an expert on the whole feelings situation herself.

As it stands Decena doesn't ask questions such as if the pair of you are "husband and wife" or even a "couple." From what you can tell she just sees your sexual encounters as a form of "approval" from her Emperor. Perhaps even as some sort of "reward" for all her duty and obedience. Still, given how much time you do spend with her, she might as well be your young bride at this point.

You get up off the bed and take a long look at Decena as she starts to fall asleep from your round of passion.

Do you have any sort of feelings for the girl? Perhaps some, but not in the way that you had for Alison. There probably isn't a day that goes by that you don't take a good long look at Alison's portrait and mentally apologize to it.

What you really need around here is a change.

"Decena, get up." You say and pull at one of her arms.
"Wha? Again?" she asks sleepily.
"No, not that. You're not sleeping here tonight, I'm sending you away."
"Did…did I do something wrong? I can do better, I…" she hastily begins to say, worrying about your reasons.
"No, you've done everything right. It's just that it's time. You're not gaining anything more by staying here and the Empire needs to expand. I'm sending you to the western borders to oversee settling some military outposts out that way. Maybe start making major strides against those beast savages that have been giving us problems lately."

Decena's eyes light up.

"Wait, you mean you're giving me my own command?" she asks.
"Yep, I'll have everything set up in a day or so. You need to be out their gaining real experience, not stuck here training."

Decena at this point proceeds to leap out of bed and embrace you planting several kisses on your face.

"Oh thank you Emperor! I'm so happy you've finally placed this much faith in me and believe I'm ready for this!"
"Hrm. Yes, well can't let talent go to waste. I suggest you go get ready."

Decena excitedly gets dressed and leaves the room. Well that's a temporary solution at least and it gets the ball rolling on expanding the Empire. Eventually though, you're going to have to make a more personal decision about her.

As for you, you need something else to do with yourself as well. You'd like to go back on the battlefield yourself, but there is still so much that requires your immediate attention, the most important still being the Eternal Project. There are also still a few plans and notes that Marik left behind that show some promise. His concept of an "airship" for example is very intriguing to you. You'd like to try to get one built and the only one that's going to remotely know how to get them started is most likely Elam, so it's a trip to the Eternal Factory…

When you arrive Galen immediately walks over to you.

"Emperor! I'm glad you're here, I can't put up with Elam's eccentricities any longer! At this point I'd rather be working along side that idiot Ackerson! I humbly request that I MUST be transferred! One of the other mages here can easily take over for…"

You grab Galen by the collar and then throw him to the floor.

"Shut the hell up! Do you ever stop whining? I've known elven slaves that whimper far less." You say while Galen continues to stare at you from his new vantage point.

"I…I'm not whining for just my sake. Elam has been trying to make improvements to the tanks again and he damn near blew one up if I hadn't managed to freeze the flames caused by whatever the hell he was doing." Galen remarks. "Keeps saying he's bored just monitoring the tanks, though I can't say I disagree in that regard."
"Well, looks like I better give him something else to do then since he's so bored."

You leave Galen and go find Elam who is excitedly explaining something to a nervous looking man though you don't know if he's nervous because you're here or because Elam's talking to him waving some sort of tool that has flame emitting from it.

"Elam we need to have a talk." You say.
"Huh? Oh! Yes, yes, yes, Emperor! Indeed we do! I have figured out a way to improve…"

You hold up your hand as a signal that Elam should stop talking.

"Stop. Not another word or I'll have your tongue removed. Just listen for a change. The tanks are fine; they don't need any more improvements. They just need daily monitoring and maintenance if needed. However since you seem to need something more stimulating, here's something you can do." You say and hand Elam a bunch of diagrams and notes which causes his eyes to widen.

"That is your new project. I want you to start building one of these things. If it proves successful, you can do all the improvements you like to future ones to make them deadlier and more efficient. Does that sound good to you? You may speak now."
"Yes, definitely yes! Thank you my Emperor! I will not disappoint you in this endeavor!"
"I don't expect you will. Of course while you will need a crew to help you, I still need some of your engineers here."
"Oh, of course. In fact how about Gregory take over here for me?" Elam says and points over to the nervous man he was just speaking to.

You wave Gregory over who walks over like he thinks he's in trouble.

"You, can you just do your damn job without the urge to fuck with the tanks unnecessarily?" you ask.
"Yes…yes sir. I mean yes my Emperor."
"Good. That's all I need from you. Now get back to work. And as for you Elam, you'll be transferred over to another factory, preferably one with a lot of space and far away from populated areas. Oh and I'll still be coming by to check on your progress. Both of you." You say and leave the pair of engineers.

You don't leave the factory though as you want to make sure your future Eternals are still doing okay despite Elam's over enthusiasm to improve their current dwellings. Of course while you're doing this, once again Galen walks over to you. You swear he must have a death wish today or something.

"So I overheard that you're transferring Elam out of here." Galen says.
"Your hearing is as sharp as ever Galen." You answer.
"While it would be a blessing to continue to work here without having to deal with him again, I still believe that my own talents are going to waste here. I mean you hardly need a wizard of my stature to oversee these tanks. Another lesser mage could easily do this job."
"(Sigh) After all your bitching about Elam, you're really no better. You know what though, you're right. Your talents are going to waste here. I'll have you transferred to western borders." You say.

Not exactly what Galen had in mind by the look on his face.

"What? We've got enemies that need taken care of so that the Empire may expand. Goat people with magic abilities of their own if the reports are correct. You said you wanted something that was suited to your talents; well you've got it. And don't worry, I'm not sending you to Ackerson's command. You'll be assisting Decena."
"Decena? You mean the young Eternal girl? When did she get a command?"
"Just recently. Now I expect you that you won't have the same issues with her that you did with Ackerson AND Elam. Because if I hear about shit not running smoothly due to personality conflicts again, I'm going to be very displeased with you. Understand?"
"Yes, my Emperor." Galen responds dejectedly.

In the weeks to come, happily everyone seems to be doing well in their new assignments. Elam is already working hard to a degree where it's actually not detrimental. The future Eternals are now under a more cautious, but still vigilant caretaker. And from her letters it appears that Decena and Galen are working well together or at least not to any degree where there are problems.

Decena's letters are always full of excitement. You get the impression she wishes she could tell you about her battles in person. It's obvious she wants you to be proud of her victories. And you are or at least you're happy to see that she's effectively using the skills that you taught her.

The most concerning thing about her reports though is that so far these beast people never engage in traditional battle. She mentions how they prefer to ambush or only attack when they have vast numerical superiority. The most difficult thing about combating them is their extensive knowledge of the land, which they live off of, as they have no towns or cities to conquer. Because of their nomadic nature you anticipate that they're going to be a problem for quite awhile.

Still, at least Decena seems to be handling the situation. You have a message sent back that you will send reinforcements soon. In the meantime, General Ackerson has also made strides in annexing several of the smaller isolated independent towns and villages. These places will become some of the staging areas of what will most likely be an extended conflict with the Torites.

You'll eventually win though and claim the land for the Empire; you have no doubt about that.
Year 40

"I thought the plan was to keep them in the tanks until the sixteenth year." Brenda says.
"No, those were Marik's original plans for the last Eternals he worked on. We're doing things differently. From Elam's earlier calculations, and my own magic theories on this project we both came to the conclusion long ago that keeping them in the tanks for as long as Marik did is asking for trouble in the long term. While it certainly accelerates their skills and abilities there's a risk for it to have a terrible affect on the mind. In fact it's probably just as well that Marik killed them all, otherwise we might've had hundreds of mental cases." You reply.

"But Decena seems okay. I mean from what I know of the girl." Brenda says.
"Decena's an exception, but I'm not going to tempt fate with this group. Five years seems like a good stopping point."
"So are you going to be training the rest of them?"
"No, you are." You say to Brenda who is speechless for a second.

"What?" Brenda says.
"You're going to be responsible for these new Eternals Brenda. I know you're going to need assistants, but it's going to be chiefly your responsibility to train them and to make sure they become the best of the best. What Eternals should be. What WE are."
"But, why me? I mean I've never been on the frontlines like the rest of us were."
"True, but I know you're no stranger to battle and you're the only one I can trust with this task. Warrick's job is to be the head of internal security and to directly oversee the Eyes, so he can't do it. And I feel it would be best if another Eternal should be fully in charge of training these new ones. That leaves you and I know you to be an honorable woman who upholds the ideals of the Empire. Who could possibly be better?"
"You?" Brenda says.
"Heh, well it was a rhetorical question. But besides being too busy myself, I actually don't believe I'd be the best trainer. I think due to our own experiences of how we were trained as well as our personalities, you will make a better teacher."
"But we both had the same training up to our twelfth year."
"Yes, and then our next four I guarantee was vastly different. And even during our twelve years together in Semra's class, MY training experience was very different from yours. I think you'd agree."

Brenda nods, probably remembering that Semra took every opportunity to single you out in the class and subjecting you to the harshest punishments when it struck her fancy.

"You had Captain Gruz as a teacher and from what I heard, he taught you all to fight as a team and to have a shared respect for each other and he did it without resorting to excessive measures. I know the common belief is that I'm cruel by nature, but I'm actually not. Ruthless perhaps, but not needlessly cruel. And because I'm not cruel, that's why I'd rather have a more even-tempered person with at least a less hellish childhood experience than I train these children. They may be Eternals, but they're still children that will have to be molded into good productive soldiers for the Empire with minimal problems to their mental state. I know you'll be tough, but fair."

"Well, I don't know what to say, except I appreciate your confidence in me in all this and I'll do my best to carry out this task successfully. However, while I do understand that you don't really have the time to train the new Eternals I'm still slightly puzzled to as why you believe you'd be a rotten teacher. I mean you trained Decena and from what I've heard she's fanatically loyal as well as a great warrior bringing glory to the Empire."

"That's right, I did. And she is." You answer and don't give any more elaboration, which prompts Brenda to just leave it alone.

"Okay." She responds.

There's a brief pause before Brenda decides to break up the silence by changing the subject.

"So, what's next on your agenda?"
"Me? Well after I go inspect the new airship that Elam is supposed to be finished with, I'm going back on the battlefield. I think its time; most of the internal reorganization and major projects have been dealt with and don't require my immediate watchful eye anymore. I'm sure if any problems crop up, someone won't hesitate to inform me. Besides, the Torites are causing all sorts of problem on Ackerson's front. And I think he may even be having issues with that petty kingdom he recently made contact with. I don't even remember what its name is, and if I have anything to say about it, neither will anyone else."
"Well I'd tell you to be careful or wish you luck, but I know you'll be fine. You always are. Are you going to stay for the grand opening though?" Brenda asks and points at the rows and rows of tanks.

"No. Probably best if they don't see me immediately. Keep me a semi-mysterious unapproachable figure for awhile." You reply.
"Oh like what they told us?" Brenda says.
"Worked didn't it? Still, when you've sufficiently got that idea into their heads, then I suppose I'll make my appearance to them, most likely unannounced. I'll want them to actually believe that I may very well pop up at any time. It'll keep them on their toes."
"Ha ha, that's probably even more frightening than never seeing such a figure as I have to admit even at times I wondered if the Emperor was actually watching me all the time, though Roldan certainly thought so."

Brenda at this point temporarily spins off into a pleasant memory she has of Roldan. You've never told her it was actually Casimir that had Roldan assassinated for his own reasons. You've pondered if you should tell her the truth, but ultimately decided it wouldn't do any good save for perhaps destroying her faith in the Empire, which you don't want.

You know Brenda is prone to bouts of depression ever since Roldan's died, telling her that the government and its ruler that she served was directly involved in her husband's death might push her into hopelessness. Maybe even suicide. As it stands, you've been working to try to keep her spirits up.

Which is another reason why you picked her to train these new Eternals. Perhaps it will give her a better sense of purpose.

"Sorry, I rambled a bit there. I guess I just still miss Roldan." Brenda says.
"No need to apologize, I completely understand. Roldan was a dedicated soldier of the Empire and if he were here today he'd be proud of your accomplishments. Anyway, I have to go; if I'm lucky Elam hasn't blown up this new machine he just built yet. I trust you have this?"
"Yes I do."

You leave Brenda to her task and make your way to your next stop, which should be very different…

You look at the brand new airship you've poured money into. It certainly is as large as you thought it might be, though it is still strange to see such a machine that was only picture on a piece of parchment a few years ago. Elam is visibly anxious about what you'll think about it. He's surprisingly quiet though, which might be a good sign that he's learned to not run off at the mouth all the time.

"Hrm, its impressive looking, but does it actually work?" you ask Elam.
"Oh yes! We have tested its flight capabilities and it certainly works according to all the notes and plans Marik left. Had to make some adjustments of course, but I believe now that we've made one, we can easily improve upon it and make more." Elam says.

"Good, glad to hear it. What about weapons?"
"We've equipped it with the latest cannons and the prototype repeater. There are also firebombs that can be dropped from the sky." Elam answers.
"Excellent work as always Elam."
"Thank you, my Emperor. Will you be boarding it?"
"Boarding it? Hmm, hadn't actually given it much thought. I mean is this final product? You don't need to do anymore testing on it?"
"Well we were just going to do some weapons testing while it flying it, but the airship itself is fully operational. It won't go crashing into the ground or anything like that."

While you prefer keeping your feet firmly on the ground, you have to admit you do like the idea of potentially floating through the sky towering over your enemies and all those that might oppose you.

"Very well, but I still want you to go through a weapons test like you planned, before I get on it. Do another safety check as well."
"As you wish, so about a week?" Elam asks.
"Fine, but no more than that." You reply and leave.

Seeing as you have a few more days to kick around before the airship is ready, you return to the mundane duties of rulership. A couple days later you decide to check up on Warrick to see if there is anything he's uncovered that needs your attention.

The Eye Headquarters is probably the safest place in the Empire other than the palace itself. The Eyes may not be Eternals, but they're the next best thing and Warrick being both is certainly one of the best warriors at your command.

That's probably why he looks so bored behind his desk when you meet him. In fact your visit is probably the most exciting thing that's happened in his life lately.

"Emperor! Didn't realize you were coming, I was just busy going through all these population lists. You know like who is a potential trouble maker, who is a loyal citizen, that sort of thing." Warrick says getting up when you enter his office.
"Anything interesting I should know about?" you ask.
"Not really. I mean there are still some grumbles from citizens about when we took babies from some families for the Eternal Project and the free elven population is always unsatisfied with the way things are, but I'm not seeing any uprising material. Unless you want to have some dissenters whisked away in the night just to be safe." Warrick says.
"I don't think that'll be necessary. They can't all be kobolds." You reply.
"Heh, got that right. Still can't get over how Brenda was so successful in assimilating them the way she did. I still remember during our first major assignment in Nalin we had to wipe out caves of those vicious little bastards."
"I just saw her a few days ago actually, she's going to be in charge of the new Eternals, training and such."
"Is that right? Well she's probably the best candidate. I mean with you busy ruling and me busy being in charge of the Eyes and all. Um, is she still pissed at me?"
"She didn't really say anything about you, but I imagine you're still not her favorite person."
"(Sigh) That's a shame. You know I don't harbor any ill will against her and if I could've I would've had even tighter security that fateful day. I mean I just…"

You stop Warrick

"Warrick, you don't need to explain. You did everything you could that day. We all did. I mean hell even I didn't see a shadow assassination coming. A dead one that I killed no less. Just don't worry about it. Brenda will probably get over it one day, and if she doesn't, well it's still not your fault."

This reassuring statement seems to make Warrick calmer. You've obviously never told him the real truth about the assassination either and again you see no reason to stir up trouble by doing so.

You and Warrick talk for a while, some it about the present, some of it about the future, and some of it about the past. During your conversation, it suddenly occurs to you that maybe you could hand a small honor over to Warrick for all his hard work. He certainly could use a break in the mundane paper work that he primarily does nowadays.

You wonder if you should let him take command of the new airship and see some frontline combat.

You let Warrick command the airship

You figure Warrick deserves something for all his hard work and loyalty, besides you're still a little hesitant to go flying off into the sky.

"Warrick, I also saw Elam a few days ago too. He told me that by the end of this week, it should be ready for flight as well as combat. Originally I was going to take the first official flight on it, but would you like to do the honors?" you ask.

Warrick looks like he can't believe his ears.

"Are you serious?"
"Completely. I know you're probably bored at times doing this job, trust me I sympathize. The day-to-day task of ruling isn't exactly as exciting as being hip deep in the corpses of your enemies. So I'm giving you this chance to be on the frontlines for a while. I mean I assume you've got someone here that can take over for you while you're gone for a little while right?"
"Sure! I'm got more than few very qualified Eyes that can do the job." Warrick says.
"Okay, well it's settled, you'll report to Elam's factory in Arat in about four days. Just tell him I sent you, I'm sure there won't be any problems."
"Thank you for this opportunity and this position Emperor. I won't let it go to waste. Oh, what's the name of this new vessel?"
"Name? Actually I don't think it has been named yet. Or at least Elam didn't give it one. Hrm…call it the Storm. I mean you'll be floating through the sky raining death down upon your enemies in a spectacular fashion. Plus you're an Eye. I mean Eye of the Storm. Play on words, I dunno, sounds clever to me."
"Heh, sounds good to me too." Warrick agrees.

With Warrick obviously in better spirits, you leave the Eye headquarter and make your own preparations for heading out to the western front. You might not be riding on an airship to do it, but you'll still be engaging in battle in some capacity.

In a couple days you meet up with Ackerson's company in one of the small towns that has recently been converted into army encampment. The new Empire "citizens" don't look very happy about their recent occupation and change to their way of life, but they don't have much choice in the matter and in time they'll either get used to it, or they won't and will have to be put down. No matter to you either way.

General Ackerson himself looks very tired. Like he hasn't been sleeping for days. In fact many of the soldiers have a weary looking appearance. While this is somewhat expected with long drawn out conflicts, you can't imagine that they've had so much trouble that would cause them this much stress. Decena's command has had more conflict activity, but she hasn't given any reports of problems. (Though it's possible that she's not reporting such things, but given her idolization, you doubt if she'd lie, and even if she wasn't telling, you're pretty sure Galen would send you a complaining letter of sub standard conditions.)

"What the hell is wrong with this camp Ackerson? Every man and woman here looks like they're hung over due to partying for weeks on end, or they've been under going months of a siege. I don't see any castles around here, so it better not be the former." you demand.
"I…I don't know my Emperor. Everything was fine until recently. I mean as fine as it could be with groups of sneaking beast people attempting to bushwhack our patrols every so often. Now it's like most of us can't get a restful sleep and a lot of us are just never fully awake anymore. Just a tired feeling even if we haven't been doing much during a particular day. Some have even reported odd or bad dreams."

While you can't be certain of what would cause such a thing, you feel you're pretty safe in assuming one possibility.

"Sounds like magic. Or some form of it. Why haven't you had your mages check it out?" you ask.
"I would have, but they're all dead my Emperor. If it isn't the blasted centaurs with their deadly accuracy, it's the damn satyrs with their own wild magic. It's like they target our mages even if they lose more than half of their own numbers in the process."
"That can't be a coincidence. Seems like it's the goat wizards doing this to your command. Better double your efforts and hunt them all down within the vicinity."
"Well, I have since I thought that might be the case, but I don't think it's the Torites doing this. Their mages seem to focus on earth based or elemental magic, nothing to do with the mind or similar witchery. I think they'd be more likely to summon a tornado at us, which thankfully they haven't done yet." Ackerson explains.
"Perhaps, this is just a taste of their what their mages can also do, still if you don't believe its them, who else? The people here don't look happy about the Empire taking charge of this place. You sure there isn't a hidden mage here?"
"No, don't think so. The people of this town have also complained about feeling tired also. In fact that's probably why they're pissed at us. To them, we brought this curse as they call it to their town."
"Okay, what about that new kingdom you said you made contact with? What's the name of it?"
"Oh them. The Broki Kingdom. I'm not even sure they have any mages. The whole place is backwards. Its chaotic nature reminds me of Rask before the Empire enforced order to it. It's barely even a kingdom and certainly not like the one the Felkans had. A single king runs the kingdom this is true, but he's not a strong one. The only reason why he hasn't been overthrown is because the rest of the barons are all too busy scheming against each other."
"That sounds like a rather inefficient way to run a government." You say.
"From what I can tell it is. Practically nothing gets accomplished other than minor civil wars over land by the barons. Some of the barons have seen our arrival as an opportunity to make a mighty friend for their own power grab. The king on the other hand has apparently been making speeches warning his subjects that they all need to put up a united front lest they all be swallowed up by the Empire."
"Hmm. Sounds like this king isn't an unintelligent fellow despite the fact that it'll be a futile task to stop us even if he does manage to keep his kingdom united."
"We haven't made any major moves against the Broki yet since we've been still focusing on the Torites, then this wave of fatigue that's been plaguing my command and that's made things more difficult as well."

Just as you're about to answer what the next move should be, a messenger who is panting heavily and ragged looking interrupts you.

"(Gasp) Message…(pant) for the Emperor! Very (pant) important…" he says handing you a letter.
"Why are you out of so much breath, boy? Surely you rode a horse here?" Ackerson asks.
"Half way, (pant) horse died. Rode too hard (gasp) Ran rest of the way. Message from Sightmaster Warrick. (pant) Very important."
"Shit, well I guess I better open it then. And someone get this boy some water before he collapses." You say opening the letter.

Emperor,

As always I hate to be the bearer of troubling news, but it is best you know.

While boarding the Storm, I took a little tour of the ship before it took flight. It is quite impressive and I'm sure it will be a mighty weapon in the service of the Empire when it has been inspected again.

I say again, because unfortunately I found one of the crew was a saboteur. It was fairly subtle. He didn't place a bomb on the ship, but instead had rigged the prototype repeater so that it would explode when used. The explosion would've caused much damage and most likely would've resulted in setting part of the ship aflame, which then would've caused an even bigger explosion by proxy and ultimately caused it to crash to the ground.

I had a list of every member who was working under Elam and all of them save for this saboteur had been an Empire citizen from birth. This one apparently just showed up one day and proved he had engineering skills, so Elam hired him. I would've interrogated him, but he committed suicide by slitting his own throat with his dagger as soon as I had discovered the sabotage. Curious that he did not just simply try to quietly sneak off, but I can only assume he did not believe that he was going to get away with it since he was the main one who had last fired the prototype repeater during the weapon testing. Either that or he is working for an unforgiving master who would've killed him anyway for his failure.

I've already questioned Elam and the rest of his staff, but I believe they genuinely didn't know, though I wonder about Elam's judgment skills. I highly recommend that he not screen any further employees he requires, at least not without an Eye present.

I will return to my post as I now have wonder if there is some sort of conspiracy or possibly leaks in our security system. As much as I would've liked to have taken that ride to the western front and kill some Torites, the internal safety of the Empire comes first. I'm sure you would agree.

Long Live the Empire,

Sightmaster Warrick

"Problems, Emperor?" Ackerson asks.
"As always, but Warrick's got it under control for now. In the meantime we still need to solve your problem. I want your most skilled soldiers reporting to me tomorrow. Have you done a thorough check of that large nearby forest area? Don't the goats prefer them over other terrain."
"Somewhat, but its very vast my Emperor."
"Well, I'm going to go over it again. Something is being missed. Maybe I should call in those new kobold commando units too. It's possible the goats are hiding somewhere right underneath us and if there are, the kobolds can tunnel underground faster than any of us can and find out immediately."

While you're taking charge of things, you tell Ackerson to go get some rest. You aren't normally used to casting magic for beneficial reasons, quite frankly other than healing magic it wasn't ever really part of your training. Still, you know enough to block out the affects of the Torite spell at least temporarily and it's a welcome relief to your troops who manage to get well rested for once.

You don't waste time and begin your search of forest area immediately. It's not an easy task and you're attacked multiple times by satyrs along with their minotaur muscle. Your first encounter with them is exhilarating. It's probably the first proper bit of personal combat you've had in years.

The goats don't put up that much of challenge for you, but the bulls, now there's a suitable challenge. During your first encounter with Torite forces, a pair of the bovine monsters attack you with huge axes that a human would now doubt have to hold in one two hands, but for them the weapons are swung around easily with one.

As you're dodging their attacks and landing hits when you can, you can't help but think the whole time that you hope you can at least tame some of these beasts somehow as they would make an excellent addition to your forces.

Whether you eventually will or not doesn't matter though, since these two in particular eventually fall to your blade after an extended battle.

"Are you okay my Emperor?" one of your soldiers asks.
"Okay? Are you joking? I missed this shit. This is the best I've felt in a long time!" you exclaim.

You spend another few days searching the forests and have a few more encounters with Torites, some of the groups even contain the goat wizards, but even with their elimination you don't sense that the magic is gone. In fact the whole time you're in the forest you get the feeling of being continually watched the entire time and you get the impression it isn't just the average Torite lurking about.

You aren't the only one who feels that way.

"There's something out there…and it ain't no man." One of your soldiers says to you while you're staring up at the trees.
"Of course it isn't, it's probably something fairly inhuman." You respond.
"Well that too, but I meant literally that it's female."
"Oh, not this elven fairy tale shit again." Another soldier remarks rolling his eyes.

You probably didn't notice due to the helmet and armor and the fact that you didn't inspect every single soldier Ackerson sent with you, but the first soldier who addressed you isn't actually human. He's an elf. This is certainly a rarity since as far as you knew there weren't any elves in the army or at least it isn't a profession most of them choose. Assuming that they're free of course.

"Quiet. I want to hear this. What's your name corporal?" you ask.
"Flevas, Emperor." The elf answers.
"Surprised Ackerson didn't point you out immediately, might've been nice to know I had someone with an affinity to forests and shit in my command."
"The general…let's just say doesn't care for my kind very much and prefers to ignore my potential talents. I suppose even he couldn't ignore my battle prowess though. So I was quietly slipped in. "
"Okay, so what do you know?"
"Honestly? Probably nothing. I don't even know why I spoke. After years of being in an army that barely tolerates my presence I don't normally bother to speak at all."
"Alright, alright, cut the oppressed elven routine, if you've got something important to say then just say it."
"Very well Emperor." Flevas remarks.

"I can't be certain and contrary to popular belief we sveld don't have some magical all encompassing knowledge to nature. If we did, we most likely wouldn't be in the current situation we are now. However, I suppose we do tend to have instinct and we do have lots of old stories. One of these stories is of dryads. They're being that make their homes among the trees or within the trees. The stories aren't really clear if they're flesh and blood beings that tend to remain invisible or they're some sort of spirit. Though from the stories they always appear in female form when they actually appear at all. They also never directly attack and rely on manipulating denizens of the forest and their magic. As I said I think there's one in this forest, maybe even several. I don't really know. What I do know is they do have access to magic that can affect the mind." Flevas explains.
"And you didn't think this was important enough to tell anyone until now?"
"As I said, my opinions are not highly regarded by the general or anyone else for that matter. I did mention it to him long before you arrived and it was dismissed as old elven nonsense."
"Then the general is an idiot for dismissing the possibility given all the wonders in this world that have been seen and yet to be seen. But I'll deal with that later, so in these stories how does one go about killing one of these dryads?"
"Killing? Heh, well in the sveld stories, dryads aren't killed, they're revered as protectors of nature. The only ones actively trying to kill them in stories are the svelk and as you might imagine they always fail in the stories."
"Okay so how did the svelk try to kill them?"
"Oh usually by futilely attempting to destroy an entire forest. This can range from the predictable firestorm magic attempts to hilarious efforts of trying to cut down every tree."
"Fire doesn't work?"
"It works, but not fast enough. I mean even a fire takes time to destroy an entire normal forest assuming it doesn't burn itself out. Dryads as you can imagine are a little more pro-active on saving their homes. Along with their magic, it would seem that the Torites are willing allies which would mean they'd probably help put out any fire we set. Assuming there are more in the forest."
"Hrm, maybe the svelk in those stories just weren't persistent enough." You say.
"I dunno, svelk are pretty tenacious when it comes to killing."

Flevas has given you something to think about and it all involves destroying the forest. The fastest way would be to start building a few more catapults to fling flaming debris, and send for a few more mages to assist you in creating a larger firestorm. You have to believe that it would be more than enough to incinerate the forest within a matter of days.

Of course the better way to ignite that forest is a way the svelk didn't have, namely an airship that can drop firebombs from the sky. Of course given recent events, the Storm is going through yet another safety inspection then it has to get here, all of which is going to take time. Time which might cause the Torites to increase their defenses and who knows what else.

You attack without the Storm

While Flevas has provided some useful intel, he's still working off of stories. These dryads if they even are behind this, probably aren't as powerful as the tales claim. And if they are, then it would be best to attack them as soon as possible without too much waiting around.

"We're going back to camp. We need to start constructing more catapults and I also need to send a message for more mage reinforcements, shouldn't take more than a few days and then we can start burning out the Torites no matter what magic they hide behind. Still, you were very helpful Flevas, Ackerson shall be hearing of his idiocy of not seeing your full potential on this matter." You say.
"Um, thank you Emperor." Flevas says unsure of how to react.

When you return, you give Ackerson an earful of his failure to use his resources wisely and not even informing you of the potential of certain soldiers who could come in useful. You also explain that the only reason why he isn't being demoted is that he had the intelligence to at least see Flevas' combat abilities and send him with you in the first place.

You have the army start chopping down trees and constructing catapults while you await the arrival of the mage reinforcements. You attempt to shield the minds of the army as you did when you arrived, but it would seem you've definitely caught the attention of the dryads or satyr mages because it's a little more taxing than it was last time.

In a couple days the mages arrive and the bombarding of the forest with flaming rocks begins. You along with the help of the newly arrived mages begin casting a firestorm of the largest size. It takes a lot of energy and you can definitely feel resistance, but you break through it and soon a majority of the forest is in flames.

You also order the army to wait around the outskirts of the forest as much as possible since there will no doubt be enemies running out of it in an effort to escape. So far the plan is going well, you just wish you weren't so tired.

As predicted forest creatures, but more importantly Torites eventually come running out of the forests, some manage to get away, others attempt to fight your army in an attempt to kill you and the other mages, but they naturally fail. However what isn't predicted is the fact that the forest hasn't completely burned down yet and it's been more than a few days, in fact the flames have been extinguished completely in areas and somehow a few trees have completely regrown.

Eventually some of the weaker mages collapse from exhaustion and even die completely drained of life. You attempt to redouble your efforts, but at this point the army is starting to feel the effects of unrest again and you are as well despite the mind shield.

"Emperor, I don't think the men can't take much more of this. I think maybe we should…" Ackerson remarks.
"Don't even make that suggestion Ackerson. We are NOT going to be beaten by some fairy magic. (Sigh) Just need to rethink this a moment…damn it my head…" you say to yourself while rubbing your temples. It's getting harder to concentrate with all the energy you've expended and the short naps you've taken don't seem to do any good at all.

You see Flevas nearby, though he's wise enough not to say anything. He'd probably like to say, "I told you so." but values his life more. To be honest you might not blame him if he had the courage to do so since you basically ignored him just like Ackerson did. A mistake on your part and one you're going to correct.

"Alright fine. I didn't want to use it so soon after the sabotage attempt, but I'm guessing Elam's probably got the Storm straightened out by now. Have a message sent to his factory to have it sent with as many firebombs as it can carry. Fix these fucking forest fairies for good."

You know its going to take some time for the Storm to arrive so in the meantime you tell your people to just keep up the bombarding. You know everyone's tired, but its necessary that this attack keeps going, you can't afford to let up.

Can't afford to let up…

"Shit…I'm going to my tent. I need to try to get some rest before attempting another firestorm again." You say and stagger to your tent and lie down.

It's odd, but you actually feel sleepy. Before you felt tired but not actually sleepy (much like most of the troops here) maybe your attack is weakening the dryad's magic. In any case you're taking advantage of the situation and getting some much needed sleep.

You drift off…

"My love, wake up it's time." You hear a voice say.

You wake up and find yourself in a lush green field. Nearby you see Alison though she's dressed in civilian clothing. In fact so are you.

"What the hell's going on? I feel weird." You say.
"You fell asleep shortly after our picnic, you looked so peaceful I didn't want to wake you up, but it's time, we have to go."
"Go? Go where?"
"We have to attend the Emperor's celebration silly! Everyone's going remember?"
"Oh right. Yeah, I suppose he'd certainly want us to be there to provide security."
"Security? Oh you must be having one of those dreams again! You certainly have a vivid imagination! While I'm sure the Emperor would be honored to have you as a bodyguard, I'm sure he's just as glad to have you tilling the fields, now come on we have to go before the festivities begin!"

Alison at this point takes your hand and you get up. You still don't understand exactly what is going on, but something about Alison's smile and the warmth of her hand makes you feel so at ease.

"I…I thought you were dead…" you say and suddenly hug her. She hugs you back.
"That was a dream and it's okay now I assure you. I'm here and you're here and we're both very much alive and living safely in the glory of the Empire. Could anything be better?" Alison says.
"No, of course not….I still feel weird though."
"Well sounds like you had a nightmare. I'm not surprised you're still disoriented. Come on, you can tell me all about it on our way to the celebration."

Something about this entire situation seems off to you, but it feels right somehow. You don't question what's going on any further and happily kiss Alison before walking off to the Emperor's celebration with her hand in hand.

Then the vision fades and everything goes dark…

You never wake up from your slumber.

Finding you dead with a faint smile on your face, Ackerson comes to the correct conclusion that the dryads must've somehow killed you in your sleep. Considering you aren't the only one in the army to die in such a manner within the last twenty-four hours he orders a full retreat from the area.