In the foothills of the Jerall Mountains, west of Kingscrest Keep, three ghostly figures can be found guarding the sealed entrance to the Ayleid ruins of Sedor. These ruins play an important part in human history, for it was here during the Alessian Slave Rebellion that the wandering King, Pelinal Whitestrake, won back the freedom of the ‘Thousand-Strong of Sedor’, a human tribe enslaved and held captive by the ancient Mer who inhabited here.

To humans, especially Cyrods, Whitestrake is a hero and a saint, a Divine Crusader who helped free Cyrodiil from Mer oppression. To the Ayleid’s he was a villain, a bloodthirsty warlord whose sole aspiration was the annihilation of their culture. I wonder how modern Mer view Whitestrake now? I am certain none would call him a hero, but could they acknowledge his achievements in context of Tamriel’s history? Probably not, for our histories are forever dyed by the colour of our suffering.

It is a lie that history is always written by the victors. When two cultures clash both sides record the event from their own biased perspectives. Whether they be the winners, losers, or onlookers, we all see the same acts from different angles. Our libraries are filled with our perception of history, whist libraries in foreign lands are filled with their own, often conflicting with our version of the same events.

The wise will say that we must learn from history so as to not repeat it, but we can never learn from a history that teaches us that we are forever the oppressed and never the oppressor. Every single group of people in Tamriel have been both the oppressor and the oppressed at some point in time. Every single nation and religion has persecuted other people for being different or not accepting their god, and yet we look back in our own history books and record only where we have been challenged, hurt, betrayed, and beaten. And It goes on still, because the only history we have not learnt from is that of our enemies.

S.K

Is it It better to live with fear, hope and wonder, or to know what is to come? For most people the unseen future is a frightening prospect, like walking into the darkest of nights without a torch. Yet surely stepping into the light can be just as daunting as the dark. For if we knew all the consequences of our own actions would we still have the courage to fulfil our destiny?

The Temple of the Ancestor Moths in the White Fall Valley of north-eastern Cyrodiil, is home to the Cult of the Ancestor Moth, a priesthood dedicated to the practice of divining the Elder Scrolls. The Scrolls are said to archive all of Tamriel’s history and future simultaneously. The process however extracts a heavy price upon the augurs, rendering them blind of both sight and clarity; they do say that to light a candle is to cast a shadow. Our eyes however can only see what our minds can comprehend, so surely these augurs are but slaves to their perceptions, their minds denying knowledge in order to rationalize their faith and bias. They also tell us the information they reveal is never absolute, and that our destiny is our own to craft; only once a foretold event is carried out does it become fixed. So I have to ask, what is the point to their practice?

Many of these Elder Scrolls were stored within the Imperial Library at the White-Gold Tower, but when the Dark anchors fell upon the city and the capital was lost, the Cult moved them, hiding many around the grounds of the Temple of the Ancestor Moths. Eventually however Banner’s soldiers discovered the scrolls and stole them, building their own temples across Cyrodiil to house them close to the battlefield, thus bestowing the Scrolls’ supposed blessings upon their troops. Any experienced General will tell you that it is not numbers or strength that bring the victories in war, it is having stronger morale then your adversaries.

Moth Priest Crassius Viria who leads what is left of the Cult of the Ancestor Moth has sent emissaries to reason with the alliance leaders, although none have yet returned. Ironically if the Scrolls were to be returned then perhaps the augurs might divine the path of this seemingly endless war. Such potential knowledge is perhaps more powerful than any sword or spell. But then what would sap an army’s morale more, fear of the darkness, or fear of the light?

S.K

To the west of Farragut Keep can be found the ruins of Fanacas, once a mining hold for the human slaves of the Ayleid empire, and according to scholars, perhaps the birthplace of the Tharn dynasty when one of their Nedic ancestors rose to the rank of slave overseer. Visitors have of late reported feeling a heavy aura about the ruins, as if dark and evil deeds of the past linger in the ancient stones.

All I was to find at Fanacas was a Breton enchantress and her soulbound servants preparing to perform a ritual she hopes will grant her great power. Mabrel Pierel speculates that countless offerings of blood and souls must have been made here for such an aura of evil to linger still. Her mad purpose is to open a pathway back to the days of the ancient Ayleids and use their power for her own insane ambitions.

Why is so often that evil endures the corrosion of history, when good does not? The mark of a kiss quickly vanishes, but the wound always leaves a scar. Perhaps evil is only remembered because history is dyed by the colours of our wants and desires. Even today people have a most annoying habit of only remembering the things they shouldn’t. Perhaps my blade will help this deranged enchantress to forget.

S.K