Silvius of the Final Empire

“I consider myself to be a man of principle. But, what man does not? Even the cutthroat, I have noticed, considers his actions 'moral' after a fashion. Perhaps another person, reading of my life, would name me a tyrant. He could call me arrogant. What is to make that man's opinion any less valid than my own? I guess it all comes down to one fact: In the end, I'm the one with the armies.”
-Silvius of the Final Empire
== History ==
“Indeed, with words. Form an opinion, say it often enough and pretty soon everyone’s saying it right back at you, and then it becomes a conviction, fed by unreasoning anger and defended with weapons of fear. At which point, words become useless and you’re left with a fight to the death.”
-Silvius of the Final Empire
Born in the Land of the Fey, Silvius wandered for years until he was taken in by a mysterious mage in a lonely tower. There he and his fellow student, Tolumvire, learned philosophy and the arcane arts - one the song of the storm, the other the weave of time. Before he left, he was left with a question he could not answer: what was the form of magic? Calling himself Pix - a nickname Tolumvire had given him - he traveled to the Final Empire, to seek out the power of the Doom Storms. Alongside his allies and fellow adventurers - a band which included Marnard Ningel, and the artificer Vitreous Vrinn, he was able to scale Tir na Og, the tallest mountain in the world, and sail to the lost Islands of the Blessed. There he bargained with the death god Arawn for the resurrection of a slain mortal hero, Brennen of Alara, a great fire mage. Forming an alliance dedicated to the preservation of the dying world, Silvius and Brennen joined forces with Farcraft’s Rebellion, and over a bloody period of twelve years, overthrew Lord-Emperor Nim Lawfey and claimed the Southern Throne. Six years later, they would journey north and claim the Northern Throne in the distant ruins of Xiclotl. Four years later, using the power of the thrones, the two were able to mend the broken timeline and bring the world in conjunction with the past. Acclaimed as heroes, they took on the mantle of ruling the Final Empire together, each bearing the title of Twin-Emperor.
== Personality ==
"Men rarely see their own actions as unjustified. The law is not something holy, my friends. It's just a reflection of the ideals of those lucky enough to be in charge."
-Silvius of the Final Empire
Silvius is a complicated figure, capable of astonishing displays of idealism and cynicism in equal parts. He is often detached, occasionally apathetic, but a keen thinker and skilled strategist. Silvius rarely becomes too invested in any one person, cause, or idea, and remains focused and unmoved when others around him are shaken to their core. His greatest flaw is a great capacity for moral and intellectual sloth, a creeping malaise that lends him a jaded air, a sense of boredom and disinterest, leading to him losing sight of the stakes of the role he is destined to play.
Silvius was simultaneously deeply committed to the project of Philosopher-Kingship while at the same time under no illusions about the folly of it all. He was averse to the war, and was almost always willing to negotiate. He did not mind sharing his empire with another Philosopher-King in the person of Brennen, and he alone was willing and able to ally unconditionally with one of the other Kings, working in tandem with Cordelia during the War. No one could accuse him of having an ego. That is not to say he lacked hubris; he considered himself to be - not without good reason - wiser and nobler then the other Philosopher-Kings, and believed he could solve problems in one fell swoop, with force and flair. 
People often underestimated how charismatic Silvius was; other then Tolumvire, no Philosopher-King enjoyed as much unconditional respect and deference. People who met him came away humbled, thinking of him as regal and powerful. Silvius did not find it necessary to resort to animal magnetism in the way that Tolumvire did, feeling both more secure and less dynamic then the bombastic Emperor of Arendur. 
== Soul Gem ==
During his adventuring years, Silvius came into contact with a demonic parasite that called itself the Shard of Set. The creature bound itself to his soul, and directed him to pursue a plan of chaos and woe. At a point, Silvius triumphed over the demon by putting his soul into a soul gem, and sealing it and the snake in a vault within Thunderdome. At a point, however, the snake slowly consumed his soul, growing ever more powerful, until it escaped to seek a new host. 
== Leadership Style ==
“Empires do not suffer emptiness of purpose at the time of their creation. It is when they have become established that aims are lost and replaced by vague ritual."
-Silvius of the Final Empire
Silvius prefers to rule from afar and dislikes being troubled with what he sees as minutia. He maintains an advisory council that handles day-to-day governance, and is fond of pitting his followers against each other and using them as pawns to further his vision. He has few close confidants, mistrusting advisers, and prefers to use his top officials and allies as pawns and tools. When forced to turn his attention to the affairs of his people, he does not hesitate to display his power - typically conjuring vast and destructive storms - to remind the Final Empire that he is a sorcerer-king whose authority should never be questioned. His chief role as Twin-Emperor, shared with Brennen, is to propose large projects, preside over arcane research, and handle foreign policy affairs. In these tasks, he operates alone, delegating as little as possible. 
== Feats of Magic ==
No sorcerer past or future - with the possible exception of Perduke - would ever display blood-inherited power as potent as that of Silvius. His control over wind and wave was absolute and undisputed, but more astounding was his breadth of curiosity, which led him to dabble in arts as diverse as soul transmutation, alchemy, and chronomancy.
* The scale and precision of his control over water and lightning were beyond what was thought possible. From storms the size of nations to manipulation of the water in the human body, nothing was beyond his reach. 
* Working alongside Brennen of Alara, he was able to repair one of the broken Twin Thrones. 
* Working alongside Brennen of Alara and using the Twin Thrones, he was able to repair the entirety of a broken timeline, fusing it with a severed past. 
* He was able to call upon the power of arcane storms, which were understood to be by definition beyond the control of any mage. 
== War of the Philosopher-Kings ==
Of all the Philosopher-Kings, Silvius would remain the most distant from the war, due to the constant need to draw upon the southern throne for the creation of the storm wall that kept back Aglazdere's sky fleet. A reluctant participant in the war, Silvius nonetheless had a hand in preparations, principally spearheading the creation of the Final Empire's magitech navy - the first of its kind. He would declare war on Aglazdere, largely in solidarity with his ally, King Raine of Atlantis. To combat the threat of the sky fleet, he would use the power of the Thunderdome to create a great storm wall, preventing the ships from passing into his kingdom. The war effort would largely fall into the hands of his commanders, Fax Gallengrand chief among them. He would emerge briefly to visit Aurum, where he would forge a treaty with Princess Cordelia - the only such agreement between Philosopher-Kings. Silvius would be forced to leave following the invasion of the Final Empire by Tyrant Skraz of Darguzze, where he would conjure great storms and slaughter countless hobgoblins. Despite his efforts, he lacked the manpower to hold territory, and was forced to dispense with the storm wall. He calls upon Ragnarok for aid, imploring King Bolgar to save his people. Bolgar sacks the city of Al Mandera, crippling Aglazdere's sky fleet and effectively ending the war. It is at this time that Silvius learns of the death of Brennen and the fall of the Northern Dome, making him the Lord-Emperor of the Final Empire. With only enough fuel for one flight, Rick leads the sky fleet to his old enemy's aid, breaking the hobgoblin lines and giving the Final Empire a short lease on life. Ravaged by plague and war, the Final Empire crumbles. King Bolgar of Ragnarok comes to their aid, purging the plague and taking in a number of refugees. Silvius willingly abdicates, giving the Thunderdome to Bolgar, who posts guards so that it might never be used by an unworthy king. The once mighty Twin-Emperor goes into exile, disappearing into the wilds to become a hermit. He spends his final days in the swamplands of the Final Empire, in the care of a man he had once dispatched an assassin to kill - Joseph Saturday. Saturday would tend to the ailing emperor, performing his last rites, and burying him in a small and modest grave. 
== Legacy (The Fox and the Lion) ==
Less divisive than other Philosopher-Kings, Silvius' legacy was mixed and uncertain. His subjects, unlike those of other countries, were used to war, uncertainty, and rule by self-proclaimed messiahs, and considered Silvius as part of that tradition. For largely keeping himself out of the business of his people, he was appreciated, but after decades of civil and foreign war, the people of the Final Empire were more weary than anything else. Outside the Final Empire, Silvius was seen as relatively more enlightened and benign than many of his fellow Philosopher-Kings, but he would never be forgiven for enabling and abetting King Raine of Atlantis, or for being the first monarch to declare war. Nonetheless, he held the unique distinction, often forgotten, of being the only Philosopher-King willing to work with his peers. He was comfortable co-ruling the Final Empire alongside his long-time associate, Brennen of Alara, and even during the war was able to reach out to and ally with Cordelia of Aurum. Among scholarly circles, he would be regarded as having furthered a great deal of arcane research, although Brennen would be remembered more on that regard. Ultimately, Silvius was seen as the monarch who was unable to stop his kingdom from crumbling, rather than dying before having to see his works come to ruin. 
Silvius was buried in a small grave near Fog Cabin in the Swamplands. His grave marker has his hame on it and nothing more. Category:Monarchs
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