Eternal
While you might have some sympathy for Jennifer, honestly you don’t see any benefit of her being by your side. Are you supposed to just kill her husband and marry her or something? If Jennifer is having marital problems or going through a mid life crisis of some sort she’s going to have to work it out herself because you really haven’t the time or the patience for any of this sort of drama, you’ve got so much more on your mind right now. You don’t have a place for her in your cabinet and you don’t feel the same way that she feels about you and you’re not going to pretend otherwise.
“Jennifer, I appreciate your loyalty and your honesty. You will always be someone I have a certain fondness for, but you’re already serving the Empire and me well enough with your museum. I have no place for you here. Go home. Go back to your family and work it out with your husband or divorce him, whatever you wish.”
Jennifer is shocked by your response. She probably was so sure that you wouldn’t turn her away due to your history together.
“You…you’re turning me away?” Jennifer asks.
“I’m turning your proposal away. Look, we had our time together, but that time has passed and there is no point in going back to that. Nowadays, my mind is preoccupied with the Xi, my body is in constant pain, and to be honest I’m probably not going to live too much longer. You still have a long life ahead of you, enjoy it while you can. Don’t squander it with some delusional concept of loyalty and duty. I know you’re probably surprised to hear someone like me say that, but I’m speaking from personal experience. I spent a good chunk of my life serving a man and a system that ultimately cared nothing for me. Then I was locked in a fucking magical coffin for five centuries. Now towards the end of my life, I’ve got all the freedom and choice in the world as Emperor, yet I can’t really enjoy any of it because I’m an ancient pile of broken bones. Can’t even hold a sword for very long anymore, let alone practice with one.”
“I could…” Jennifer starts to say, but you interrupt.
“No. You CAN’T help. Not with this. What I want isn’t obtainable. I want my youth back. I want MY Empire back. I want my Alison back. You can’t provide any of these. Everything I know is dead and has been for quite some time and the only thing keeping me going is my stubborn innate will to survive and to win. I can’t let the Xi beat me, so I will see this through for as long as I can. But you can’t help me with that either. So as I have said, go back Jennifer. Live your own life. You did it before I came into your life and you were doing it after we parted ways years ago. You can easily do it again. I know you’re strong enough to do so.”
Jennifer’s eyes are watered up with tears, she’s trying very hard not to cry, but she’s failing. You touch her shoulder.
“Even Jacob knew when to stop serving his ruler.” You say.
Jennifer wipes away her tears and sniffles a bit. It takes her a moment to compose herself, but eventually she does and gives you a serious look. You expect her to either start cussing you out or telling you that she understands. She surprises you again.
“I will go my Emperor. (sniffle) If you say I have no place here, then I shall redouble my efforts to prove myself.” Jennifer says.
“Jennifer, that’s not what I meant…”
“No, I understand. My place is at the museum and educating the ignorant masses and making them see the light of your greatness. I will continue to work on my book and I will distribute it throughout the Empire so that everyone will know of your hardships and the sacrifices you made and continue to make to keep us all safe.”
You don’t really have a response. You can see she isn’t going to be swayed despite your best efforts to get through to her.
“Thank you, my Emperor. I see what must be done now.” Jennifer says, grabs your hand one last time and kisses it before leaving.
And you are alone again.
For a while you ponder what Jennifer will do or what she has planned. You wonder if maybe you should’ve just indulged the girl and allowed her to stay. Would it really have been an inconvenience? Maybe, maybe not, in any case it’s done and after a short rest you return to the business of combating the Xi.
A few weeks later you receive word from one of your scientists that in order to work on the disease to kill the Xi, experiments are going to have to be done on captured Xi. Naturally you agree that a few forces can be set-aside for capture missions and think nothing more of it.
Life continues much as it always has for you.
Year 563
You look over your balcony and stare at the grand view of the surface below. Complete and utter desolation of what remains of your Empire.
You had the plague released to kill the Xi a year ago and its affects are still being felt. Small porcelain bombs of infection meant for the Xi dropped from airships ended up doing their job well enough, but unfortunately your scientists failed to take extra precautions.
The plague mutated or evolved, or whatever it did, it spread and infected your people as well. It wasn’t noticeable at first, but eventually hundreds followed by thousands of Empire citizens were sick and eventually dying. Rask, Quala, Nalin, nowhere was safe even a small case hit Apex. Your closest advisor David died of it just recently. Oddly you haven’t got sick despite suffering from your increasing frailties of old age. Not even a symptom. Perhaps you have your Eternal roots to thank for such immunities.
Elves were hit the hardest by the disease whenever they caught it. There almost aren’t even many left now. Even as resilient as orcs normally are, they’ve been suffering from the plague as well. The only ones who seem to be doing okay are the kobolds of all beings. If the plague continues to be as effective as it has been, that’s all your Empire will consist of.
If the plague wasn’t enough, a lot of those that haven’t fallen ill have decided to blame you personally for all this. You’ve got mass riots all across the Empire, despite the Eyes valiantly attempting to maintain control of the situation. You’re just glad Sightmaster Crowley didn’t succumb to the plague (yet).
And to top it all a small group of your citizens have taken it upon themselves to enact their own brand of vigilante justice on dissidents. This group is lead by Jennifer of all people. She finished her book called “Eternal Defender” and distributed it for free throughout the Empire, well as much as it could be under the circumstances. It doesn’t really matter though since the group actively goes around like religious missionaries preaching about your “virtues” and even that the plague is evidence of how the unworthy are being culled from the true believers. From what you’ve heard, the museum she once ran is now practically a temple and her husband is dead. (You have no idea how)
You do nothing to stop her delusions or her group. It wouldn’t matter and on a practical level she’s helping contain the chaos. That’s all she ever wanted, to help. You can imagine that she’s out there night and day preaching fanaticism in your name and hoping that it will somehow please you and invite her back to Apex and “ascend to the heavens.”
That won’t happen though. Nowadays you just want to live out the rest of your years in solitude. You did everything you could to resurrect the Empire, and just as you did over five centuries ago, you’ve practically destroyed it again. Makes you wonder what the hell the point was.
You look forward to the day when you’re free of this damn broken down old body and this world. You’re tired of being Emperor. It hasn’t been any fun, but then maybe it wasn’t supposed to be. Maybe your “quest” to be Emperor was a lot more desirable than the actual goal. Which makes your decision to help assassinate Casimir an example of complete foolishness on your part. Perhaps it would’ve been better for the Empire if you had just let Casimir kill you…if that is indeed what he had in store for you. You’ve allowed yourself believe that was the case and it probably was, but still…there’s that one part of you that has always wondered if Semra wasn’t just lying and you fell for it.
If she was lying, then she got the last laugh on you.
“Wait a minute…no she didn’t. She’s fucking dead and I’m still here. She got eaten by the damn Xi.” You say to yourself then you think about that a little longer.
You think about how they must’ve easily eviscerated her withered old helpless body. Probably dissolving her insides, sucking them up and then taking the bloody slop back to their Xi maggot babies to feed on via regurgitation. Leaving nothing more than a husk behind. Everything she was just gone, and in such an undignified manner and how she must’ve suffered the entire time.
Then you start to laugh.
You laugh for a long time…
“Jennifer, I appreciate your loyalty and your honesty. You will always be someone I have a certain fondness for, but you’re already serving the Empire and me well enough with your museum. I have no place for you here. Go home. Go back to your family and work it out with your husband or divorce him, whatever you wish.”
Jennifer is shocked by your response. She probably was so sure that you wouldn’t turn her away due to your history together.
“You…you’re turning me away?” Jennifer asks.
“I’m turning your proposal away. Look, we had our time together, but that time has passed and there is no point in going back to that. Nowadays, my mind is preoccupied with the Xi, my body is in constant pain, and to be honest I’m probably not going to live too much longer. You still have a long life ahead of you, enjoy it while you can. Don’t squander it with some delusional concept of loyalty and duty. I know you’re probably surprised to hear someone like me say that, but I’m speaking from personal experience. I spent a good chunk of my life serving a man and a system that ultimately cared nothing for me. Then I was locked in a fucking magical coffin for five centuries. Now towards the end of my life, I’ve got all the freedom and choice in the world as Emperor, yet I can’t really enjoy any of it because I’m an ancient pile of broken bones. Can’t even hold a sword for very long anymore, let alone practice with one.”
“I could…” Jennifer starts to say, but you interrupt.
“No. You CAN’T help. Not with this. What I want isn’t obtainable. I want my youth back. I want MY Empire back. I want my Alison back. You can’t provide any of these. Everything I know is dead and has been for quite some time and the only thing keeping me going is my stubborn innate will to survive and to win. I can’t let the Xi beat me, so I will see this through for as long as I can. But you can’t help me with that either. So as I have said, go back Jennifer. Live your own life. You did it before I came into your life and you were doing it after we parted ways years ago. You can easily do it again. I know you’re strong enough to do so.”
Jennifer’s eyes are watered up with tears, she’s trying very hard not to cry, but she’s failing. You touch her shoulder.
“Even Jacob knew when to stop serving his ruler.” You say.
Jennifer wipes away her tears and sniffles a bit. It takes her a moment to compose herself, but eventually she does and gives you a serious look. You expect her to either start cussing you out or telling you that she understands. She surprises you again.
“I will go my Emperor. (sniffle) If you say I have no place here, then I shall redouble my efforts to prove myself.” Jennifer says.
“Jennifer, that’s not what I meant…”
“No, I understand. My place is at the museum and educating the ignorant masses and making them see the light of your greatness. I will continue to work on my book and I will distribute it throughout the Empire so that everyone will know of your hardships and the sacrifices you made and continue to make to keep us all safe.”
You don’t really have a response. You can see she isn’t going to be swayed despite your best efforts to get through to her.
“Thank you, my Emperor. I see what must be done now.” Jennifer says, grabs your hand one last time and kisses it before leaving.
And you are alone again.
For a while you ponder what Jennifer will do or what she has planned. You wonder if maybe you should’ve just indulged the girl and allowed her to stay. Would it really have been an inconvenience? Maybe, maybe not, in any case it’s done and after a short rest you return to the business of combating the Xi.
A few weeks later you receive word from one of your scientists that in order to work on the disease to kill the Xi, experiments are going to have to be done on captured Xi. Naturally you agree that a few forces can be set-aside for capture missions and think nothing more of it.
Life continues much as it always has for you.
Year 563
You look over your balcony and stare at the grand view of the surface below. Complete and utter desolation of what remains of your Empire.
You had the plague released to kill the Xi a year ago and its affects are still being felt. Small porcelain bombs of infection meant for the Xi dropped from airships ended up doing their job well enough, but unfortunately your scientists failed to take extra precautions.
The plague mutated or evolved, or whatever it did, it spread and infected your people as well. It wasn’t noticeable at first, but eventually hundreds followed by thousands of Empire citizens were sick and eventually dying. Rask, Quala, Nalin, nowhere was safe even a small case hit Apex. Your closest advisor David died of it just recently. Oddly you haven’t got sick despite suffering from your increasing frailties of old age. Not even a symptom. Perhaps you have your Eternal roots to thank for such immunities.
Elves were hit the hardest by the disease whenever they caught it. There almost aren’t even many left now. Even as resilient as orcs normally are, they’ve been suffering from the plague as well. The only ones who seem to be doing okay are the kobolds of all beings. If the plague continues to be as effective as it has been, that’s all your Empire will consist of.
If the plague wasn’t enough, a lot of those that haven’t fallen ill have decided to blame you personally for all this. You’ve got mass riots all across the Empire, despite the Eyes valiantly attempting to maintain control of the situation. You’re just glad Sightmaster Crowley didn’t succumb to the plague (yet).
And to top it all a small group of your citizens have taken it upon themselves to enact their own brand of vigilante justice on dissidents. This group is lead by Jennifer of all people. She finished her book called “Eternal Defender” and distributed it for free throughout the Empire, well as much as it could be under the circumstances. It doesn’t really matter though since the group actively goes around like religious missionaries preaching about your “virtues” and even that the plague is evidence of how the unworthy are being culled from the true believers. From what you’ve heard, the museum she once ran is now practically a temple and her husband is dead. (You have no idea how)
You do nothing to stop her delusions or her group. It wouldn’t matter and on a practical level she’s helping contain the chaos. That’s all she ever wanted, to help. You can imagine that she’s out there night and day preaching fanaticism in your name and hoping that it will somehow please you and invite her back to Apex and “ascend to the heavens.”
That won’t happen though. Nowadays you just want to live out the rest of your years in solitude. You did everything you could to resurrect the Empire, and just as you did over five centuries ago, you’ve practically destroyed it again. Makes you wonder what the hell the point was.
You look forward to the day when you’re free of this damn broken down old body and this world. You’re tired of being Emperor. It hasn’t been any fun, but then maybe it wasn’t supposed to be. Maybe your “quest” to be Emperor was a lot more desirable than the actual goal. Which makes your decision to help assassinate Casimir an example of complete foolishness on your part. Perhaps it would’ve been better for the Empire if you had just let Casimir kill you…if that is indeed what he had in store for you. You’ve allowed yourself believe that was the case and it probably was, but still…there’s that one part of you that has always wondered if Semra wasn’t just lying and you fell for it.
If she was lying, then she got the last laugh on you.
“Wait a minute…no she didn’t. She’s fucking dead and I’m still here. She got eaten by the damn Xi.” You say to yourself then you think about that a little longer.
You think about how they must’ve easily eviscerated her withered old helpless body. Probably dissolving her insides, sucking them up and then taking the bloody slop back to their Xi maggot babies to feed on via regurgitation. Leaving nothing more than a husk behind. Everything she was just gone, and in such an undignified manner and how she must’ve suffered the entire time.
Then you start to laugh.
You laugh for a long time…