Sweltering, scorching heat was bearing down as it had done in the days of our forefathers. A funeral procession, unprecedented in history, was toilsomely trudging through the narrow streets of the Holy City. The Supreme Marshal Balduin led the procession at the front, followed by the emperor's widow, the patriarchs of all five Great Kingdoms and behind them the representatives of the Imperial Guard and the Holy Embassy. They all wore black clothing in keeping with the occasion, with the women being all fully veiled. The flags and standards of the Imperial House, the Empire, as well as those of the Holy War were proudly waving in the wind. It was an event that no contemporary had ever experienced, nor would ever experience again. The size of the crowds of people who had come to witness this historic moment was simply incomprehensible. It is hardly possible to put it into words. Yet, even more impressive was the general atmosphere that prevailed. It was not a peaceful, reverent funeral march. On the contrary, there was at times shrill, deafening shouting, at times bawling wails and lamentation from the mourning crowd. An obsessed, even disturbing spectacle presented itself to the impartial observer. Countless people threw themselves on the ground, weeping, screaming and pleading, a behaviour that they would probably not even have displayed when their own parents had passed away. The guards barely managed to push back the deluge of people who wanted to touch, or at least see, the sarcophagus as it slowly made its way up the Serapinal. These scenes were bizarre and at the same time completely understandable. The events of recent decades had left a deep mark on Kaphkos and its inhabitants. To the clarion pealing of giant silver knells, cast specifically for this occasion, the whole Empire paid its last respects to its Chosen One. Here, a man was laid to rest who had touched more souls than any before him, who had left such an impression on the minds and hearts of the people, that it had changed the destiny of all mankind forever. Melgar, he had truly been a great one. With him, the revolution had begun and under him, religious fervour had reached unprecedented dimensions. Like a tidal wave, it had swept over the continent, drenching it in blood in the name of carrying out the divine will! This unequalled exuberance was also on full display on that fateful day. Not only were his followers and Teleiotic fanatics present, but also many of those who rejected him and his rule, who would probably have called it tyranny. Everyone wanted to confirm for themselves, that the one who had shaped and changed all of Kaphkos to such an enormous extent, who was and is the corporeal manifestation of their endless adulations, had now actually parted from us. For, whether one hated him or loved him, Melgar the Self-Appointed had been a man of great significance, who had turned the world on its head. He had reintroduced absolute imperial rule and either subjugated or eradicated all groups critical of him. From my point of view, the historical period to which he had given form should be labelled as “the Dominate” by future generations.

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- Philon of Monopharo (later charged with blasphemy and executed)