Lore:Chimere Graegyn

Chimere Graegyn, later known as Old Man Chimere, was a retainer of the ambitious Direnni clan and a master of Conjuration. He dared to scheme against Mehrunes Dagon, and won. When his trick succeeded, Dagon was cast into Oblivion. However, in the instant of his betrayal, Dagon struck out against the mortal who tricked him. Chimere's pact assured that he would live forever in his home town among the happy voices of his friends and countrymen. Twisting the literal words of Chimere's pact, Dagon scooped up tiny Caecilly Island (a small island off the coast of Northmoor) and hurled it into the Void. All Chimere's friends and countrymen were instantly killed, though the sounds of their voices remained to torment Chimere's memory. Chimere was condemned to live forever, to grow progressively old and crippled with arthritis, and to contemplate the tragic consequences of his defiance of fate and fortune in cheating a Daedra Lord.   

History
Chimere was perhaps the cleverest and most ambitious of the Direnni summoners. He sometimes claimed to have been quite fond of cats, having once possessed litters of kittens. 

The Trick
Chimere tricked Dagon into swearing an oath against the Powers which he had no intention of keeping, then used the Saviour's Hide to turn Dagon's titanic fury long enough for Chimere to deliver his own attack -- an incantation invoked upon Dagon's "Protonymic" (i.e., incantory true name) which would gradually drain all of Dagon's power into the void. Chimere miscalculated, however, not realizing that Dagon's resistance could slow the draining of his power, even if it could not stop it. As a result, Dagon had the time to curse Chimere with a literal fulfillment of the terms of his bargain with Chimere. Rather than let his power drain into the void, Dagon cast it all into his curse. As a result, Caecilly Island was cast into the void, all its citizens were horribly slain, and Chimere was condemned to live forever among the ruins of his greatest ambition. Chimere also studied the legendary Spear of Bitter Mercy. 

In Oblivion
Chimere thought Dagon had Caecilly Island established as the site of the   to personally mock and torment him. The green crystal structure was created by enchantments, and was the only building on the island erected after it was ripped from Tamriel and loosed in the void. 

During the Imperial Simulacrum, after many failed attempts, Mehrunes Dagon successfully invaded the Battlespire.  Chimere encountered an apprentice from the Battlespire who had entered the realm from the Shade Perilous while following Dagon's retreating armies. Old Man Chimere gave the young hero the information needed to escape the realm and ultimately defeat Dagon. 

Notes
It's unclear how long Chimere has been in the Chimera of Desolation. His journal, as paraphrased in Battlespire, was titled "''Harvest's End, 3E 172;;". This text later appeared in Morrowind as "''Tal Marog Ker's Researches''". The text appeared again in ESO, which took place circa  , with the title "''Harvest's End''", but with no author or dates given. This is muddied further by it being unclear if time in Oblivion and time in Mundus have any kind of linear relationship.
A son of Chimere is known to have survived past the time of the Imperial Simulacrum and spread the tale of the recovery of the Battlespire.  Old Man Chimere estimated that he had anywhere from one child to two thousand. 
The topic of the disappearance of the Battlespire was brought up during the meeting of the members of Lusty Argonian Historical Society in Frostfall  . One of the members, Varinturco, claimed that he met a survivor of this event, Chimere Graegyn. 

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See Also
For game-specific information, see the Battlespire article.

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