Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Tiruin]

Still wounded by the Guard, Cyra could only depend on Miguel's support and watch the proceedings happen. She could only remember the pledge a mercenary gives to those who pay for their duties very faintly now, and followed Miguel in deference to the Empress.

"I've battled with different sorts in my long journey--those in my immediate presence are among the best, and most varied. I would pledge everything to the Empress right now but we lack time and the reserves are pretty close; You can do this Empress Grifen! Address your subjects!"

[Haspen]

The soldiers, which all bore the black armor of the Imperial Army rather than the purples of Palatial Guard, finally pushed into the throne room. There were spearmen, swordsmen, heavily armored knights, and robed people of various magical castes - and the number of them was at least 50.

A man wearing a single golden pin on his neckguard led them, and he easily saw the Emperor's dead body.

"They have slain the Emperor!! Kill them all!"

"HALT!" The Archbishop first time spoke in a booming voice, one reverbating and echoing, possibly using magic to do that.

"There was no foul murder. Only a lawful combat, in which this lady here, Grifen-" He paused a moment, thinking, then glanced at Grifen's outfit, "-of Masalla defeated our previous Emperor."

"And you did nothing to stop her!?

"I said, there was no foul murder. The third succession law, the Law of Blade, have allowed this lady to wield the Crown Blade and in turn defeat the weak and unfit Emperor. The Emperor is dead - but there is your Empress, look how she pridefully brandishes the blade!" The soldiers began murmuring, with most seemingly converging around the robed ones, amongst whom there were surely some learned in imperial laws.

"Now - all those that support the Empress, kneel in respect! Those that do not - flee away from her might, while you still can!" The Archbishop followed his own words and knelt at Grifen's side.

The soldiers looked unconvinced, and there was more murmuring. The leading captain glared at the green-haired girl, and then Archbishop, and the other strange people, but an inner conflict forbade him from either kneeling or fighting.

And then, one of the soldiers at his right did the first move and knelt. Like rows of dominoes, all others began to kneel, one by one; and evne the nameless captain knelt in front of the tear-eyed, green-haired, short girl from the countryside.

"Hail Grifen, Empress of the Troy Empire."

[Sirus]

Grifen stared out at the assembled crowds, still shaken but thinking more quickly than almost any other time in her life.

"Guys...everyone, please..." Her voice trailed off; she had been about to ask everyone to rise, but had remembered at the last moment that she was one of the shortest in the room. If everyone rose, she'd clam up for sure and no one would be able to hear her! She tried again, this time raising the Crown Blade up for all to see.

"I'm sure this all comes as a pretty big shock to y'a--you. I know ya must have a million questions to ask, and I wish I could answer more than a few of 'em right now. Trust me, I'm about as lost as you at the moment!

"This is the important part: I am a direct descendant of the first Emperor Troy Lionheart, and my friends and I came here to change the world. The weeks and months to come will be rough and full of new things, but for now we aren't gonna focus on that." The nomad gazed sadly at Julius' body, and at that of the former Emperor. She wondered if she could have treated whatever made him so sick.

"We all lost people today, people we cared about. Before anything else gets done, we need to take the time to mourn the ones who died fighting for what they believed in, and heal the injured. Guess ya can consider that my first order as Empress."

Even Grifen knew that there was a lot of other things to do, messengers to send out, stuff like that, but she didn't want to get too far ahead of herself. Let the empire - and herself! - take just a moment to consider what had happened.

[SeriousConcentrate]

"I will do my best."

Leo stood and turned to the rest of the room.

"Gather your wounded in the hall, and the Archbishop and I will attend to them."

[Powder Miner]

Efa was kneeling too.
:"...wasn't long ago that the very thought of kneeling to an emperor or empress would have been poisonous to me. But, Grifen, you're someone worth kneeling to, where very few other people ever were." She looked at Julius' body. "I'll pledge my allegiance to you, and... even to the new Empire, though mostly you. You've got my bow, accurate or not."

[birdy51]

Miguel rose up after a time. He kept Cyra by his side. Really, for as much leaning she was doing on him, Miguel was leaning almost as much on her. Were it not for the ever-present love of Sancho the horse, the pair would have likely toppled already. Sancho snorted noisily as he pounded his hoof on the dreaded carpet that spelled Julius' doom.

How he hated that damn rag.

: "I would offer my lance, but I fear that you will have a aplenty younger arms in the coming days to support you Empress Grifen. Hohoho!"

[Haspen]

~&~

~~EPILOGUE~~

This is all that transpired during the formation of the new dynasty; the old regime crumbled in the flames of civil war and its pathetic Emperor was slain by a group of bravados wishing for a change. Many historical documents were, however, slightly modified to legitimize the ascent of the Empress and to spread her government's propaganda...

~~~

...but there is also truth in the historical documents, as they describe the names and the future of those who have changed the Empire forever.

Fezz Scordato, Emperor-Consort
His scholarly hobbies and wisdom quickly found itself useful in the new administration of the Empire, and he became the first Imperial Consort to hold an important post in the Empire - that of the Master of the Law. Whenever Empress Grifen needed help in matters of law, her husband would help her; this balanced division of tasks between her personal charm and his wisdom ensured many years of governmental prosperity and stability.

Leopoldo and Sheila Belmonte
After Grifen became Empress, Leo and Sheila split their time between patrolling Imperial waters as sanctioned privateers, and spending time with the imperial family and their own children. The two also occasionally acted as unofficial envoys of the crown when needed.
They lived long and had peaceful life, and managed to get six children, most of which then took on sea-related jobs to continue their mother's line of work - three of the children later actively served in the Imperial Navy of the Empress.

Ciera and Alec Slyvir
After a proposal involving castle balconies, a ring delivered by arrow, and many tears of joy from Ciera, the two settled down in the capital and finally began a life of peace. Ciera was able to finally start the orphanage she had dreamed of and helped raise hundreds of children who were without parents for whatever reason, while Alec took the place of the deceased Spymaster, reforming the Empire's network into a clean intelligence network (as clean as spying gets, anyway), all the while helping keep the orphanage supplied and happy.
After Alec's replacement as The Spymaster in 260 by Grifen's son and heir, the two began quietly living in the orphanage, and no further information is available about them.

Efa Llewellyn
Efa would work for the new Empress Grifen as a liaison between her and the villagers of the empire -- a position she took upon herself. She would often take long absences to hunt and live in the woods,  never willing to become one of the bureaucrats.
Later, during the final years of Empress Grifen, she formally left her post and returned to live in the countryside.

Canna "Candy" Divola
Not much is known about this pink-haired enigma, and even less is known about his whereabouts after the ascension of Empress Grifen.
Several years afterwards, locals dwelling at the very outskirts of the Wasteland would speak about a human-sized butterfly, vanquishing monsters and undead, and there is a tale of big, pink, tentacle monster being destroyed as well.
Historians really doubt these fairy tales, although they cannot dismiss the fact that afterwards The Wasteland became less polluted and its monster population began rapidly shrinking, finally allowing brave explorers and settlers to reclaim treasures of the ancients and clean the land for settlement.

Sir Miguel Cervantes of Garaz
After the coronation of Grifen, Miguel returned to Garaz a tired man with a broken body. After all those years absent from life, he finally sought the forgiveness of his only daughter.
His daughter, a powerful, shrewd and ruthless woman by now, however finally relented and welcomed her father back; this in turn allowed Miguel to live in peace till venerable age of 78, when he died in his sleep, exactly 5 years after formal coronation of Empress Grifen.

Cyra Hayes
After the coronation of Grifen, Cyra remained in service to the crown by honing her trade, working as a guardian and teacher. She spent the next few years branching off into seafaring studies and weather reading, specializing in navigation and sailing, working as a crewmember of Sheila and Leo's galleon.
Her name no longer appears in Navy's documents from year 230 onwards, and nothing more is known about her.

~~~

There are others who were once part of the to-be Empress' group, and let's not forget their names.

Sakura Lonia
Disappeared after Chapter 2xx; rumors have it she became the leader of tentacle grape farm.

Maible Talruss
Disappeared after Chapter 2; according to some gossip, opened a bookstore in Mirr.

Sara
Died during Chapter 3.

Roderic Agrippa
Disappeared after Chapter 2; people say he continued to travel around as a mercenary.

Julius Orto
Died during Final Chapter.

Taicey Aigeat
Disappeared after Chapter 2; according to documents about Civil War, continued to serve in Mireosian Army till 230's.

Sonja Lutece
Disappeared after Chapter 4-2; folk tales speak of black-haired witch roaming the Kretosian countryside.

Matilda of Mireos
Killed during Chapter 9.

Leymont of Carneag
Continued to serve Mireosian Army and attained rank of Captain; garnered further accolades under the Western Republic until his retirement in 272.

Raphael
Tried for violating several young men in and around Tyll; imprisoned for 25 years, died in prison in winter 229.

Yonn of Kretos
Became the next Duke of Kretos, only to lose his rank and life during the Siege of Crimson Palace in the last weeks of Imperial Civil War.

Renault Istair
Refused to settle down with Sheila's mother in Setine and instead returned to work at the sea. However, he disappeared during the storm season of 232 and many believe he might have drowned.

"Ram"
Disappeared shortly after assault on Imperial Palace, never to be seen again.

Charles
Returned to Duke of Masalla and served him for next three years, before suddenly disappearing. His whereabouts, much like his origins, remain a mystery.

Fyra Adelaide Eloria von Edelweiss-Labrande
Retired from the Imperial Army shortly after coronation of Empress Grifen and returned to her family's manor. Never married.

Stephen Carlinn
Murdered by Amana Divola around the time of Chapter 10-2.

.

..

....

...o/\o...

Empress Grifen of Masalla

_{Known as "The Rose of Change", "The Nomad Empress", "The Smiling Lion", and more}

_{Moderate, Stoic, Reformist}

The second full-fledged Empress on the Imperial Throne, Grifen of Masalla had lots of work to do in the first seven years, in both areas of internal administration as well foreign affairs. The Western Coalition of Rebel Forces split upon her ascension; the hardline Mireos country opted to continue to struggle, while the Barony of Syra surrendered. The opinion in the Mainland Empire was split, mostly between nobles, but the population embraced her, remembering the times of prosperity and good rule under Empress Helra, hoping that second Empress would follow her footsteps. Amongst the loyal Affiliates, Garaz supported the new government, while Duchy of Masalla remained neutral.

Empress Grifen pushed for reforms, especially in the fields of magical academics, role of the Church in the workings of the State (culminating in the Decree of Diversification in 229) and the dilution of aristocrat powers in the Empire's government. Many of her reforms garnered her scolding and hostility from the more traditional groups, and so, 'Seven Years of War' were the central topic in the Empire; the Dragon's Uprising during the summer droughts of 223, the Mireosian Secession in 224 and subsequent Western Invasion in years 225-228 (with normalization of borders happening only in 229), The Slaver's Riots in years 225-227 and finally the Masallan Rebellion in winter 228/229, which saddened Her Majesty the most, were all bloody conflicts which tested Empress' willpower. However, thanks to the support of the Army and the citizenry, the Empire emerged victorious from all these conflicts, either by successful tactical, strategical or political moves, scoring major territorial gains (all of the Mainland, except Garaz, became actual Imperial territories by 230) and furthering the people's belief that she is the next coming of Helra the Just, or maybe even the ever-victorious Troy himself.

The next two decades saw revitalization of the Empire, with corrupt nobles and administrators being punished, whilst internal affairs ran by wise scholars and honorable judges became the characteristic of the Empress' rule. Kretosian slave industry was abolished, and the last private slave on the island freed by 244. The Three Schools of Magic were reconciled and equally legal. The Church of Golden Dragon, weakened by the rebellion, finally became only a minor cult of the polyreligious Empire in 239, allowing various schools of thought to emerge, quickening the intellectual renaissance of the nation. And finally, the First Council Session was hosted in the city of Troi at 24 March 232, where Empress Grifen appointed 21 Advisors and Governors, who would take over several important matters of state administration, yet reported directly to the Empress, who held the power of executive veto in all matters of governance.

The reforms didn't leave any exceptions, even in the laws pertaining Imperial Family; the hereditary rules were changed and the throne would go to the most able of all children, not the first-born. This in turn resulted in the third child and second son of the Empress Grifen, Marik, to ascend the throne in 260, when yet another important change happened - namely, Empress Grifen, instead of holding the throne till her death, abdicated, taking on a new title of Empress-Mother. Marik, who, unlike Emperors of the preceding dynasty, kept his birth name as his regnal name, becoming Marik I. The abdication example set by the 'founders' of new branch of Troian dynasty, was then copied by every subsequent leader, up to and including Troy XI "the Puppet", the last of Troian Emperors.

Grifen held the title of Empress-Mother till her death, having outlived her husband by thirteen years. She attended the coronation of her great-grandson Arius in 296 as her last public appearance. For decades onwards Empress Grifen would be fondly remembered by the population of the Troian Empire as a loving mother and ultimate savior of the declining nation.

~~FIN~~

.

.

.

Year 362: Troy IX "the Puppet" is forced to abdicate. Troian Empire is dissolved and becomes Overseas Land, forced to then help conquer and dismantle the Garazian City-states, the Free Western Republic and Principality of Setine, and by 365 the entirety of the archipelago falls under the rule of iron-fisted, oppressive Governor-General of the Fourth Reich from across the seas to the East.