Category: Stories
In-universe stories
Betrayer
Betrayer By Falx Volrina, Former Assassin of the Dark Brotherhood There are many things you learn about a man when you are the one to midwife him from this life to the next. You learn what he cares about and what he’s willing to part with in exchange for his life. You see if he…
Vvardenfell Dialects in Dunmeris in the 3rd Era
Those who learn Dunmeris within outland temples or schools, studying the language in the interest of disentangling texts written in the tongue often find themselves ill-prepared for actually travelling to Morrowind and meeting speakers of the language. No language remains pure when exposed to people, and while the Aldmeris roots (via Ald Chimeris) are still…
Amidst Frozen Tears
Long is the day full of pain. Sadness creeps into our hearts, Despair clings to our souls, and makes us weep. Strife causes disharmony, feeding the beast of hate. Enemies amass encircling, trapping the pious ones, killing them with rage. Serenity has died, it shall have no burial, for evil praises nothing. All is lost…
Oversea Prospect – Tattered Journal of an Argonian scholar on Akavir
To whom it may concern; After countless, restless moons of research, at last my work is done, and hope looms once more in this dark time. Weary are the sounds of scales sliding across old, dusty papyrus scrolls, and tired has this tail and these eyes grown. Though the following matters are more pressing, and…
Numidium Annotated
The Confessions of a Morag Tong Assassin
Confessions of a Morag Tong Assassin By Gilyan Sedas My trade is not one you choose; it is one that is chosen for you. In my youth and adolescence, I was a student in preparation to become a priest at the Temple. I believed it to be my vocation—my calling—to become a pious son of…
A Treatise on the Proper Study and Performance of that Most Secret of Arts
Any wizard may cast a spell but true mastery of the arcane arts requires dedication and practice. Improper or imprecise spellcraft can prove disastrous not just to the practitioner but also to any in the vicinity. Moreover, it is most unwise to cast an unpracticed spell, especially in the heat of battle or with little…
The Memoirs of a Crimelord
The Memoirs of a Crimelord By Baron Tristane Kingston, Former Kingpin of the Iliac Bay The days creep slowly beneath this ground and behind these bars. I am stranger to all except the rats who are kind enough to keep me company except when they should become my supper. They are kind like that. They…
Accords of Madness: Sanguine’s Tale
It was in the land of High Rock where Count Ancore Perystair found himself weary from endless stretches of boredom between stifled gatherings and dry visits. All he had desired for was an escape from the dreary higher-class monotony his fellow nobles had grown accustomed to and prayed for an answer in the dead of…
From the Journals of Sextus Silanus, Part 3
This article was published in Volume 1, Issue 5 of The Tel Mora Independent Press.“Catbeard the Pirate” | Illustration by TsaoShin, DeviantArtPart 5Part 4Part 2Part 1
Sa Notauw N’Gasta
Ĉi tiu trovas kun pli por sohkrni. So ahkkspahkrimahkntauw pri Stros M’Kai ahkstis hahklpahkma, kaj tamahkn nahk sufiĉahk ampsohkksaj. So barbauw so Kornaj Infano nur iras ĝis nun. Ĉi tiu tahkmpo intahkr so malmultaj kvadratauw ahkn Hammahkrfahkll finis kahklkajn jarojn. So Rahkĝo Worms pahkrdis intahkrahkson ahkn so Insulo, ĉar pli abundaj ocahkanauw atahkndas intahkrnahk. N’Gasta…
Dreamsleeve Sequence 6225
“Hermaeus Mora” | Illustration by Heart0fInk, DeviantArt
Dawn has Broken!
Greetings, Brothers and Sisters, my name is Nu-Camoran the World-Ruler and I come with glad tidings. By means of Lord Dagon’s grace and the Xarxes Mysterium I send this message throughout the Oblivion Realms and the watery depths of the Dragon’s Sea. Landfall is come and Walk-Brass walks once more! Nirn has fallen and a…
The God-Damned Saint
Rite of Passage… On Beothiah’s Lesson of Value
A Dunmeri lass tries to convey the value of Boethiah to a human compatriot by telling him a story of a boy becoming a man, and the lesson of Masks he learns. “Boethiah” | Illustration courtesy of Aratayn, DeviantArt
The Historic Guest: a Comedy by Students for Students about the Fools we must Endure to Serve our Patron.
Minotaurs, Morthal, and Me: A Traveller’s Guide to Skyrim’s best-kept Secret.
I know what you must be thinking, Morthal’s a dirty, swamp-infested burg with little to see other than brackish water, mist, and sullen-faced citizens. You, my friend, would be sorely mistaken. I, Quaestus Scientio, know that there is more to Morthal (dismissively named the ‘Midden of Skyrim’ by more ignorant travel writers like that hack,…
An Only Semi-Metaphorical Account of the Dawn
L: “Let’s all have an orgy.” A: “No, stop asking.” L: “Come on, we all it’s going to happen eventually. Let’s have some fun.” A: “I said stop.” L: “What if I let you be King of the orgy?” A: “…” L: “?” A: “…” L: “Well?” A: “Okay.” L: (under breath) “So predictably vain.”…
The Fate of Protagorus Timoria
This piece was first published in The Imperial Library’s 20th Anniversary Fan Fiction contest When I opened my eyes, I found myself staring at the canopy of my four-poster bed. I stretched, mouth agape in yawning, and sat up. In the dim light of the dawn, ribbons of sunlight cutting through the dust in the air,…
Lay of Life and Decay
This piece was first published in The Imperial Library’s 20th Anniversary Fan Fiction contest, where it was a runner-up winner. The top file is the original poem. The one below it is annotated by the author.
Chapels of Cyrodiil
As every good citizen of the Empire knows, the Nine Divines are the True Gods. As a symbol of our devotion, we constructed chapels in each major city of Cyrod. These were devoted to all the Divines, with special preference for the city’s patron god. Inside these holy sites dutiful worshippers could benefit from church…
A Response to Brother Caius
After reading Brother Caius’ treatise on the Nature of Ghosts, Ghouls, Wraiths and other Phantasms, I have discovered significant flaws in his theory on the entities of the Otherworld. Through all my research I have never once found a connection between the manner of death and the resultant after-life. It is known from Daedrological Studies…
The Tone-kin and Kyne’s Breath: A Continuance of The Music of Life or What Lives in the Silence
For the aspiring zoologist there is much to learn. Tamriel, as a continent, is filled with dazzling and mysterious creatures. Many, such as faeries, are born from local superstition. All attempts to find these elusive ‘Fey Folk’ have always turned out to be fruitless. Of all the species of beasts that inhabit our world, there…
The Enlightenment of Sydney Gaerham
Art by Zdzisław Beksiński (24 Feb 1929-21 Feb 2005)
From the Journals of Sextus Silanus: Part 2
Part II In which a storm besets the Breath-of-Kyne; the Captain delves into the Black Keirgo on curious business; the storm abates, for now Captain’s Log—Freddas, 5th Last Seed, 2E 806I will, before further enumerating the events of yesterday’s layover in Senchal, detail today’s likewise remarkable happenings. We kept a westward bearing through the…
The Death of History
______________________________________________________ Era of The Return 98676889th Swing of the Pendulum. My name is Kyndlattiamallariyeceybal, but no one calls me that. Everyone who knows me calls me Jiub, for when I was given a Cliffracer figurine to play with as a child, I instantly broke it, and we know Jiub was a saint who broke Cliffracers….
Windhelm City Blues
“Execution“ | Illustration by erika-xero, DeviantArt
Commentary on Freyr’s Audience with Peryite
“329. Peryite” | Artwork by beewinter55
A study of Tsaesci biology
[…] When we first met with emissaries of the Tsaesci I was surprised, if not a bit disappointed, to be welcomed by an Imperial (or so I thought, at the time). That is to say; a bipedal, soft-skinned, man-sized being of light-brown complexion. Apart from the accent, there was no distinguishing him from the members…
The Merchant
The subterranean hall was dark, in stark contrast to the light cast on the mosaic floor by the doorway, punctuated by the elongated shadow of a bent and spindly figure. A vague draft whispered through the angular pillars, and a lone column of light crashed upon a titanic marble throne. A shaggy brown dog sat…
Sixteen Accords of Madness – Boethiah’s Tale
Boethiah burned with satisfaction as Man, Mer, and Beastfolk alike rose with roars of victory or fell with screams of terror. Tonal oaths and spun promises meant little at the end of a blade or arrow, the Prince mused. Even at the touch of a deadly spell would one’s own will become their definition unto…
A Lecture on Numerology
“…as you can see then, the iconography displays the balance of the classic Ayleid arcane numerical system. Any questions?” A young woman amongst the group of disciples raised her hands. “But Master, you clearly said that the number is counted as Nine by Nine. Yet the artifact displays an odd count.” The Master looked back…
The Truth about the Bretons: An Explanation
Hail mighty Hermasheolg the master of all knowledge and the origin of intrigue! You think yourself knowledgeable about the Bretons, those half-elf folk who live in their high rock and think a nasty man comes round to poison their crops? Nay, I say, for your knowledge has not been gifted by Hermasheolg, and so…
How Rajhin Stole Saturalia
One day, nearing the end of Evening Star, while the people of the land were preparing for Old and New life festival, the King of Senchal – who was the King of all Elsweyr during this phase of the Ja-kha’jay – left his palace to go for a walk. The King was a gruff and…
A Treatise on Sithis
A Treatise on Sithis By Hist-Tender Xhal-Lei The dryskins believe us backwater savages, worshipping primitive gods and mindless trees while living in makeshift structures, thinking we foolishly personify chaos. Sithis does not care whether or not the dryskins believe, for Sithis does not require belief. Sithis simply is. When the walls of your once great…
FOUR ARE GREATER THAN THREE
An Excerpt from a New Temple Inquisition, circa 4E 60 Apostle: Reclamations be praised! When my superiors informed me I would be interrogating a prisoner captured at a shrine dedicated to the Mad Corner, I was certain I would be faced with the tedium of extracting a passable confession from an incomprehensible lunatic. I’m pleasantly…
Gortwog
…I take a deep breath. The acrid smoke rises to the very ceiling of the main hall of our House, filling my lungs as shamans throw the smoking blends into the fire. It takes me an effort not to start coughing out the smoke. We have no other way to fall into a trance yet….
The Eye of Knowledge
“By the Empyrean Light of Aetherius, may the Eye of Magnus always be upon me. Grant me the wisdom to use his gifts, and patience to know his wisdom.” [x] “In Apocrypha, the Golden Eye weeps cold tears at this plague of ignorance.– We give you praise, Hermaeus Mora. We seek enlightenment, illumination, and a…
Invocation of Vaermina
Fanfiction Invocation Of Vaermina _____________________________________ -Nyloth the Altmer Conjurer -Ma’kaan the Khajiit Spy -Horst the Nord Huntsman _____________________________________ -Vaermina the Daedric Prince of Dreams, Nightmares, Visions, Omens and Portents, and Psychological Torture _____________________________________ -Only the Nightmare Queen would fathom the obscene rites Nyloth needed to master in order to reach into the depths of Oblivion….