Originally uploaded Jun 13, 2024

Imperial Custodian Pov

The Tail End of the Great Scouring

The Emperor's custodians. We were warriors and body guards, taken as orphans for one sole goal. The protection of the Emperor. We were his companions, not only in the field of war but also in everything else.

He taught us everything we knew. He confided in us his deepest desires and dreams for the future of our people. While many saw us as mindless slaves to the Emperor's will we were far more than that.

In each of us he gave a piece of himself. A mark, a dream, a hope. For the future we would build together. We were meant to be not only his guardian but also the people who would gently guide our race into the future.

But all of that seemed like wishful thinking now.

We once numbered fifteen, now we were reduced to ten. A single custodian's worth could not be measured by simple means. The training and modifications we went through at the genetic level placed our value at entire legions of warriors. Each one of us was unique, personally crafted and designed by the Emperor himself to perfection.

We were what lesser could be given enough time to evolve. Everything negative and useless trait was extracted from us to created perfect soldiers.

Our emotions were one such thing. While we fully understood mortal emotions as good as any philosopher feeling them ourselves was a nearly impossible task.

But as we marched swiftly through the Emperor's dying flagship dread began to slowly creep in like a poison. The Emperor had taken his own personal vessel in hopes of closing the rift the dragons had ripped open, but it would seem things haven't gone according to plan. If only he had taken us with him.

Every now and than the entire vessel would shudder violently as if it was a living animal with a cold. We had little time before it came crashing back down to the ground. Each custodian held their halberd and shield as we rushed to find our king.

Ignoring the dead bodies or wounded Djinn that laid on the floor we were frantic in our search. Using every tool within our arsenal the intimidate surrounding area around us was scanned for any energy signature that matched our Emperor.

A burst of draconic fire erupted from the far corridor. Three custodians moved forward as they created a wall with their shields. No words or commands were needed as two other custodians hurled their spear at our assailant.

The two spears whistled through the air as they flew at mach speed. The dragon evaded the first two spears but we were already upon him.

Donning silver armor that was spattered red with blood he was an older Indrath member from the looks of it. Or at least one that wore his age on his sleeve.

He unsheathed a blade of his own as he parried away my blow. In one fluid motion using the momentum of the parry I unsheathed the short sword at my side as I lunged forward again.

The dragon dodged backwards only to be met by another one of my brothers. From the sluggish movements he was growing tired, but so were we. Endless days of fighting have worn us thin and loosing a third of our ranks wasn't doing well for our morale.

But our singular goal of reaching our master drove us forward. A pair of custodians were engaged with the dragon. Each striking and evading their blows in inhumane speeds. The inner corridors of the Emperor's flagship didn't provide much space to maneuver, and forced the dragon to stay in their human form.

Before we knew it the fight was over. As the spearhead of one of our weapons plunged deep into the dragon's chest. He dragon in return roared in pain like the animal it was.

The custodian who had impaled him drove him down to the ground as he fell to his knees. Blood trickling down from the corners of his mouth the looked up at us with disgust.

"Where is the Emperor?" Helios demanded as he placed his sword at the asura's throat. Anger and frustration dripping from his words.

"Heh, your pitiful ruler is already dead." The asura gloated as he laughed.

Driven by anger Helios swiftly freed his head from his body, his corpse slumped to the floor as his head rolled away.

"We could have captured him for information." Achillian said as he withdrew his spear from the asura's body.

"We must move." I spoke out, not wanting to waste any more time. But as I did so we all felt a massive explosion that shook the entire ship. We could feel it physically but also mentally. Like a massive whiplash within our minds that assaulted all of our senses.

We all looked at each other for a moment before we all began rushing towards the source of the explosion.

Our heavy booted footsteps shook the deck below us as we ran. Faster than we have every ran before. And soon we reached the main command deck of the Emperor ship. The doors that led to it were bent outwards and melted shut.

But it was only a momentary speed-bump as with a single slash of my sword the door came away in two. And as the doors fell open we were made aware of the horror that it held.

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The once proud and glorious battleship of the Emperor. Nicknames the an Empire's Dream, the main command deck where the Emperor led his armies against the asuras that came to cleanse us from this world laid in ruins.

The entire front of the deck was smashed, wide open to the outside world as the cold breeze of the upper atmosphere blew inwards. As many part of the interior were either completely destroyed or on fire.

But none of that mattered, what truly mattered was what laid on the floor.

The Emperor. Ruler and savior or our race. Our shinning beacon of hope in the end times. The man who challenged the gods themselves laid on the floor. His masterfully crafted armor of blackstone and gold was dented and soaked red with blood, his blood.

Next to him was a dragon, her beautiful silk battledress and armor probably noted her as a prominent asura. Perhaps even a notable member of the Indrath royal family. But that didn't matter when she laid there in multiple pieces.

All ten custodians rushed to our lord's side. And from up close we could see just how sever the damage was.

A large portion of the back of his skull was missing, as brain matter and blood leaked out onto the deck. His chestplate was bloody hole in the center of it, in through which you should see his rib cage.

I fell to my knees as I tried to lift my king from the ground. The sense of unadulterated fear and dread seeped through all of us. But we were warriors, grieving had to come later. Yet, when we tried our lord's body did not budge.

I withdrew my hands and saw that it was red with my master's blood. The master that our sole task to protect. And we had failed him. We had failed in our only goal in our lives. Whether we survived this ordeal or not, it did not matter. For the shame each custodian would carry would be a fate worse than death.

My mind even pondered the thought of commit suicide right here, right now. Or just throwing myself at whatever asuras that still was roaming the mortal world. At least than I will have a warrior's death and didn't have to live further with this shame and failure.

But the Emperor eyes sluggishly opened as he coughed, spewing blood.

"My lord!" I gasped as I bent down.

The Emperor grimaced as he tried to rise, but his body failed him. It only resulted in more of his blood being shed.

"My custodian captain." He muttered quietly, almost as if recalling an old memory.

While I did carry the title of captain no custodian held more authority than the rest. I was merely given the role due to my seniority and experience. Although Achillian joked that it was because I was the Emperor's favorite and most loyal.

"My Emperor, please rest. We shall get you out of here." I reassured my lord as I motioned for the other custodians to aid lifting him up.

"The rift." The Emperor said weakly.

I turned my head and saw that the rift that connected worlds together was closed. Whatever the Emperor did he had accomplished what he has set out to do. Despite all the odds, he had done it. And it was one of the many reasons why we followed him.

"The rift has been closed my lord." I said and it seemed to calm him somewhat.

Trying to lift him up again resulted in failure. But soon a couple of us broke off from the main group to look for anything to us as a stretcher to carry our injured ruler out before the entire ship blew up.

"Bellerophon." The Emperor called my name and I knelt before him.

Even injured he radiated a gold and purple halo of aetheric energy that seemed to have a soothing effect. Whether he was doing it purposefully or not it didn't matter much now. Seeing him alive was enough.

I stared back at him. His square-set jaw and dark eyes. His long black hair was matte with blood but it did little to detract from his radiance.

"The war is over, Bellerophon." He lamented, almost to himself more than to me.

His words confused me. We had shut an entry way for more asuras. The only problem was dealing with the ones that were already here. And while our forces were depleted we could still-

"The enemy will never give. Even this was a temporary solution. They will come again soon enough. Win or lose this war our race is damned. Our people will share in our ignorance and pride until the last man or woman draws the species' last breath. This Empire I have built may last a hundred years, or a thousand, or tens of thousands. But it will decay and fall. The shinning path for our race is lost to us now." The Emperor's words cut through my thoughts.

None of the custodians have never heard such pain in his words. Our Emperor had always taught us about seeing into the future. Of a bright and fruitful dream where our race would flourish and evolve beyond this one world. But to hear him now talking about such things, I could feel my heat drop into my boots.

"No, this can't be." I vocalized my dismay. I gripped my spear tightly in my hands.

The Emperor only seemed slightly amused by my child-like behavior. It seemed he had regained some of his own strength as he slowly rose from the ground. Helios quickly came to his aid and helped him stand by letting him lean on him for support.

"No? Than what are you to do custodian? With your spear and fury? Do you plan on ripping Fate from its path?"

"We will retreat and rebuild. Under your guidance my lord we will live through this we can begin anew. We can purge this world of the asuras, even if it takes centuries We will persevere- " I stated, my mind ached as my words and action bordered on treachery. To go against my king like this was a first and it led to a searing pain in the back of my mind.

"Even if we strike down Indrath another will come to take his place. I can see it now. It is the way of Fate. An endless cycle until the inevitable end. Another will come, one who will doubtlessly learn from Indrath's failings. Many have tried like us before, we are simply joining them in the grave, Bellerophon. The golden pathway for our people is lost. And I am blind as everybody else in this desert of Fate."

I refused to concede. "You are our Emperor. We will crush any who oppose us. After licking our wounds we will rebuild with your guidance."

The Emperor stared down at me, as a father would look down at his child. Not with contempt or anger. But a sad understanding. It felt as though in the entire world we were the only two present.

"And what if I am no longer around?"

Stunned by this answer my mouth stammered as I lost my words. The lives of each custodian was so interwoven with the Emperor as our leader it seemed impossible to imagine a future without his guidance.

The entire ship shook again as pieces of the roof tumbled down. Four custodians approached holding a large piece of metal they had fashioned to a stretcher. The Emperor seemingly haven exhausted what little strength he had left fell to his knees.

The injuries he has sustained what far too much for simple healing spells to fix. But there was one option. Varactor has been working on a life extending device during his research into asuras and their long lifespans. If we were to fashion it into a life support system we could possibly save our master.

"What now my king? What are your orders?" Achillian asked with sorrow.

The Emperor turned and looked out into the orange dusk sky. Looking at where the rift was once. Could he possibly see something we couldn't? It was likely, the way he saw the world and how aether and mana reacted to it far eclipsed even the best Djinn scholars and researchers.

He stayed like that for a couple of moments. His mind clearly working away. We could feel the aether and mana round us being drawn to him as he did so.

Than he spoke three words no one had ever heard him speak before.

"I don't know."