When Dreams Join Reality

Prologue

History has always been muddled when the details of the Emperor's ascension come into question, whether lost to time and myth or because any combination of events simultaneously were and were not may never be known; stories claim him to have been of different races, done contradictory deeds, and even been of opposite gender. The accepted story is that after the warrior known as The Last Dragonborn defeated both the watcher/mage Vahlok and the usurper/thief Miraak, The Dragonborn took them both into his very soul and meditated upon the summit of Apocrypha. Those that knew him before claim he was changed next they saw him, power radiated off of him like light from the sun. Though his origin is many and varied, who he was after his return is known to all; Magnus, god of magic and architect of creation, reformed in the shape of a Nord hero of old. Upon his return from Solstheim Magnus joined the College of Winterhold to practice in the use and control of his newfound power. through a series of events (search any imperial library for details) Magnus became the Arch-mage after using his staff to rejoin his eye with his body, stabilizing his powers and using his staff to focus his magic.

Months later when Winterhold came under siege by vampires, it was the mages of the college that saved the town, helping pave the way for the two halves of Winterhold to slowly let go of old resentments. Eventually word of the mages triumph over the fiends spread to a group of vampire hunters known as the Dawnguard and their leader, Isran, sent an invitation to the mages asking for an alliance between the factions. The arch-mage agrees on the condition that no major decisions are made without his consent. When the Hall of the Vigilant falls, Isran notifies Magnus or Dimhollow Crypt and requests someone be sent to investigate while his forces rebuild their fortress. Brelyna Maryon, J'zargo, and Colette Marence are given a recall beacon (see codex) and sent to the crypt to meet with one of the Dawnguard accompanied by Vigilant Tolan. The beacon was used to summon Magnus to the Main Cavern when the group discovered trapped vampire possessing an elder scroll. Magnus took the scroll from her and sent Brelyna to escort her home, where she becomes a vampire lord in an attempt to help the college study the infamous Volkihar strain of vampirism.

Two weeks later sees none other than Serana wandering the partially rebuilt and expanded Winterhold, having escaped from her father (Harkon) in an attempt to thwart his plans. Isran was initially furious at what he perceived as a betrayal when he discovered not one, but two vampires at the college. With much explanation, Isran and the Arch-mage were brought up to speed on the Harkon's plan to block out the sun. Eventually a plan of action was agreed upon; the Arch-mage would accompany Serana in her attempt to foil Harkon's plan, Brelyna would help the Dawnguard learn how to better combat the vampire menace, while the mages and the Dawnguard would focus on defending the towns from vampire attacks.

After two months, the arch-mage returned with Serana, he mother, another elder scroll, and a snow elf(Gelebor) wielding Auriel's bow. The College and The Dawnguard launch an all out assault on castle Volkihar. Durnehviir summoned his thralls upon the bridge while Valerica and Brelyna clear the walls of guards, giving the Dawnguard time to take the tower and set up a recall beacon. The mages took the bridge, clearing the way for Magnus and Serana to enter and defeat Harkon.

Upon the return of the war party, The college turned their attention towards a new goal; the return of the snow elves. while the rest were away, Colette had been busy concocting a cure for the curse put on the Falmer by the Dwemer. After two weeks of trial and error on captive specimens, a breakthrough was made. When Gelebor and the Arch-mage were informed, the group immediately set out on an extended campaign of cat-and-mouse to capture and cure the remaining Falmer. After six months of stealthily healing the majority, the ever increasing population of Snow Elves set about repairing the Dwemer Cities connected to Blackreach and capturing the remaining Falmer. Using the knowledge gained from their years of slavery, the newly healed Falmer rapidly restored Blackreach to it's former glory and swore their allegiance to The College and Arch-mage Magnus.

The arch-mage found that while he was away, the rest of Skyrim had decided enough time had passed since the cease fire agreement and the civil war began anew. when he arrived at Winterhold, Jarl Korir had waited for the arch-mage to return before deciding on if he should rejoin the war and risk his now prospering hold. At the Jarl's statement that he wished to support Ulfric in ousting the "Thalmor puppets" from Skyrim, The Arch-mage revealed the dossier he recovered from the Thalmor embassy which details Ulfric's betrayal during the great war and his status as a Thalmor agent. The Jarl immediately sent word to Balgruuf The Greater, Laila Law-Giver, Skald of Dawnstar, and Ulfric Stormcloak for an emergency meeting concerning "recent information that endangers all of our holds". After the Jarls and their guards arrive and are seated, Korir signals to the mages hidden around the room to paralyze their guests. While everyone is restrained, Korir has the journal passed around and explains the situation. when the spell is ended, everyone looked to Ulfric for an explanation... His answer came in the form of the Thu'um, but was rendered useless by Magnus's own Thu'um overpowering Ulfric's and slamming him against the wall. Galmar was the first to gain his bearings, cutting Ulfric's tongue from his mouth. The gathered Jarls ultimately decided to give Ulfric to General Tullius and explain Ulfric's situation and a new alliance is formed in secret. The public is told that the Empire has won the war, the Falmer are kept secret, and all the factions of Skyrim work to build their strength for the inevitable war with the Thalmor. A moot is convened between the Jarls with Tullius in attendance, naming Arch-mage Magnus as Jarl of Windhelm and new High-King, both for his three times saving not just Skyrim but all of Tamriel and his role in ending the war.

Magnus' first act as Jarl is to re-integrate the non-nords into the city and work to bring his people together after years of racism and segregation. He sends a dark elf and an argonian to take word to their homelands that Skyrim wishes to reforge the Ebonheart Pact in secret. His housecarl, Lydia of Whiterun, is brought to Windhelm and Galmar is named thane. Odahviing is given a place to roost within the city so that he may serve as a liaison between Skyrim and the dragons, hopefully building a lasting peace and partnership between the two, while Galmar is sent to gain the support of the giant clans.

The High-king, forces as much power as he can into the transmute spell, succeeds in turning iron into ebony. Eorlund Gray-mane is commissioned to use his Skyforge to create the very best ebony armor and weapons possible for the for the forces of Skyrim. The end result is an ebony suit of carved nordic armor with Segmented plates over the usual gaps and a fully enclosed helmet rather than the open faced one, later enchanted by the College's master enchanter(see codex for details). The weapons were forged in the style of Eorlund's signature Skyforge steel and everything is teleported to the massive armory built within Blackreach. As the Falmer refurbished the Dwemer assembly lines and furnaces, Production was shifted to them, avoiding public knowledge of the growing supply of equipment.

Ten years passed and much had happened in that time. Winterhold had become a thriving city, thanks to the feud with the College having ended, As did Blackreach and the "Dwemer" cities(though not many surface dwellers were aware of such). Because of their knowledge of Dwemer mechanics and sciences from their time as slaves, the Falmer were able to reproduce many of the Dwemer's ancient wonders, primarily concerning construction and automatons. The Capital of the Falmer's new kingdom was moved to the Forgotten vale, providing a surface city safe from outside knowledge until they are ready. A combined effort throughout the holds had drastically reduced the population of bandits and seen the reconstruction of many old forts. Coincidentally, the Thalmor occupied fort of Northwatch Keep was reportedly "raised by dragons" during this time period, though no evidence was found of any such fort ever existing. The High-king gave an ultimatum to the Vampires and were-beasts, stating that "those wishing to rejoin society should make themselves known. Those that remain in the wilds, preying on the people will be hunted down without mercy." Thanks to the efforts of Serana, Valerica, and Brelyna; not all vampires are seen as monsters by the populace, only those that attempt to hide what they are, some saw it as a new market opening in the sale of blood. Similarly when the Companions went public on being werewolves, many people's fears were eased, the Companions were well known heroes among the people of Skyrim.

Galmar had succeeded in bringing the Giant clans into agreement with the High-king, peace and a military alliance in exchange for the right to roam free of harassment and assault. The Giant name Grok joined Windhelm's guard force and Magnus had a suit of armor and a war hammer made by Eorlund in the same manner as the rest of the suits. The Council of Great Houses of Morrowind agreed to rejoin The Pact if the Argonians return their holdings of Morrowind back to the Dark Elves. The Argonians in turn were urged by the Hist to accept and asked in return to be given the land around the Sleeping Tree in Skyrim to start a settlement. As it turned out, The Sleeping Tree was actually a dormant Hist tree. The High-King agreed, as this would better facilitate communication if the Hist was awoken.

Lydia had gathered together 11 of those whom had proven themselves loyal to Magnus during his journeys and brought them to Windhelm. There they swore on their Honor, Life, and Souls to obey and protect him, before he bound them to himself. Over the course of the 10 years they were personally trained in the use of the Thu'um and Dovahzul by Magnus and the dragons, taught all schools of magic by the masters at the College, trained with their preferred weapon with the companions, and studied strategy and tactics, economics, diplomacy, and politics. They were given the best training they could get for 10 years and whatever they could not perfect within that time, they at least had a good start. A trade was made with the Gelebor for suits of aetherium and ebony like the carved ebony suits in exchange for the Eyes of the Falmer. The suits are then enchanted just like the rest and thanks to the magical nature of aetherium, the enchantments on the armor are several times stronger. Added onto their new armor is a robe made of woven ebony thread to hide the armor from others and enchanted with a levitation spell that works in the same way as the water-walking. As a finishing touch, each one is given one of the dragon priest masks, with Magnus keeping Konahrik to go with his own suit. He names the group "The Tongues" in honor of the Ancient warriors that fought against Alduin.

The Empire had done their best to regain their old strength over these 10 years, but crisis after crisis since the start of the fourth era, the citizens of Cyrodiil and High rock wished only to think of themselves. The Oblivion crisis, the war of succession , the Void Nights, the Great War, Hammerfell Seceding, Banning Talos worship, Wayrest falling, Bravil's riots, Civil war in Skyrim, Dragon sightings on the border, and another Emperor assassinated all build a sense of hopelessness and despair within the people of Cyrodiil. When Anvil was suddenly taken by the Dominion, followed shortly by Kvatch, the Legion scrambled to counterattack. Arriving at a burning Skingrad, the Legion makes its stand; the front-line is drawn. When word reaches Skyrim that the Dominion has made their move, a moot is called by the High-King. Deciding unanimously upon a decisive counterattack, the Holds are emptied of all available forces and word is sent to the rest of The Pact. The next week saw Magnus and 5000 ebon-plated Nords marching over the border into Hammerfell with dragons overhead, another 1000 marching south into Cyrodiil with a contingent of giants, and argonians raiding the coasts of Elsweyr. The argonians allowed Dominion ships to disembark supplies in Valenwood to make them haul it to their destinations in Elsweyr, only to steal the supplies in the night after they cross the border.

After a short confrontation with the Alik'r, the Nords were able to explain their intentions and managed to gain the support of Hammerfell in their "Elf Hunt". Marching till they reached the city of Hegathe, the Nord army commandeered the local's ships and set sail for Auridon while the Alik'r headed south to support Cyrodiil. Meanwhile House Telvanni and House Redorran forces join with the southern nordic army and argonian forces to assault the cities closest to the borders of Cyrodiil. Firsthold was the first city of Auridon to fall, to the defenders it seemed almost as if a second oblivion crisis was happening. A flag fell from the sky and then an army clad in black appeared in their midst, slaughtering all the defenders in minutes. Afterwards the High-King gathered all the townsfolk in the main courtyard and used his Bend Will shout to force any disguised Thalmor agents to reveal themselves, a tactic he would later repeat on every person he captured. Through the use of recall beacons, water-breathing, night-eye, and the Thu'um; each city on Auridon was infiltrated via ports or sneaking in at night, beacons were planted, defenders massacred, and populations screened for Thalmor. Knowing that once communication stopped, the Dominion would now something was wrong, Magnus delayed the assault on the rest of Summerset in favor of awaiting the Dominion troops that pull out of mainland Tamriel.

When the Dominion fleets attempted to return they were harassed by argonian and reguard ships and dragons, losing most of their number in transit back to Summerset. Upon their arrival on Auridon, they were greeted by impatient nords charging out over open water to greet them. After the last dominion forces trickled in, followed by Skyrim's allies who were now free to assist in the invasion, the combined armies turned their sights on Summerset Isle. One by one the Atlmer cities fell, many High elves actually joined in against the Dominion troops for a chance to be rid of Thalmor influence. Alinor, the last bastion of the Thalmor fell one month later, the citizens fled into the arms of the invaders and Magnus cast the city into the sea. After the city sank, Magnus used his staff to pull creatia from the surrounding lands and rebuilt Crystal-Like-Law as though it had never fallen. The war was over, the Empire was a united Tamriel once again, and the Thalmor were no more. With an open throne and a Dragonborn hero having been the one to re-unite all of Tamriel, the choice of Emperor couldn't have been easier. Upon taking the throne, Emperor Magnus stationed his Tongues within all the courts and ruling bodies of each province and instituted educational reforms throughout the empire. All citizens are to learn the basics of restoration and are encouraged to continue their studies in other schools of magic as well. So began the Fifth era.

The next century saw many cities rebuilt and expanded, the Falmer's resurgence and alliance with the Empire was revealed to the public. The Emperor is revealed to be immortal, along with his Tongues through their being bound him. Explorers find the people of Akavir have killed each-other off through their constant civil war and so the continent is colonized. Falmer made automatons are becoming common throughout the Empire, doing menial tasks such as farming and mining. Plans are made to journey to Masser and Secunda, a bounty is put out for the first to create a successful "Aether-ship". At the turn of the century research into the obscure fields of scrying and divination rediscover a form of free, long distance, instantaneous communication for all; dubbed "The Dream-sleeve".

5th Era 105: The first ship to succeed in reaching Nirn orbit burns up on reentry.

106: New ships are designed, experiments on creating a new alloy start, the Falmer have discovered the secret to creating aetherium through the transmutation of sapphires.

108: A new alloy of ebony and malachite is perfected and dubbed Lorkhanite. The new alloy is approved for use in building new ships due to the strength and ease of enchantment offered by its base metals. All Imperial ships are to be given the same enchantments as the armor and robes of the Tongues, but many times stronger through the use of complex rituals.

109: The first of the new Falcon* model aetherships is finished.

180: With the blessings of the Divines, their long dormant bodies have been colonized, the spirits of the Aedra making their surfaces habitable at the cost of limiting their ability to intervene in the affairs of mortals, their influence limited to the immediate area around their physical bodies.

465: The populations of Each planet within the Magnus system have reached pre-colonization numbers. Magic use has extended the average lifespan of each race by 2 times, with the most skilled mages projected to live as much as 8 times their race's normal years. Due to such population levels and ever extending lifespans, the Empire looks outward for room to grow. Meridia offers to teach Magnus in the creation of his own realm as a jumping out point for the Empire in exchange for the destruction of the Necromancer's moon that orbits Arkay.

466: After a week of constant bombardment from 500 Falcon failed to destroy Mannimarco's corrupted form of godhood, the Emperor dons his armor and exits his ship. Putting his full strength through his staff, Magnus obliterated the moon and a swath of asteroids orbiting the system. The Emperor orders the for a new ship to be designed with maximum destructive ability and intimidation as the focus, for the event that massive levels of destructive power are needed in the future.

468: under the tutelage of Meridia and with his knowledge of the Aurbis, Emperor Magnus created his own realm. Located outside The Wheel, this new realm is to be used for expansion beyond the Aurbis and outside the Godhead's dream. Since a realm is an extension of the maker's will, Magnus has complete control of all within his domain. He creates a massive floating fortress within his realm and names it Arctus station, after Tiber Septim's battle-mage Zurin Arctus. For assistance rendered, Meridia is officially added to the Empire's pantheon of gods.

501: Three garden-worlds are colonized, with the Emperor and his mages working to make the other planets and moons in all three systems habitable in the near future. Mass immigration occurs within two of those systems, but one system is found to have an enormous artifact of enormous power trapped in ice on the edge of the system. The empire limits the colony to one city in the event an evacuation in needed.

508: The first Alduin class* aethership has been finished, this ship is made the Emperor's flagship. The ship is named The World Eater and piloted by Odahviing. The Empire's population reaches 72 billion persons; with a navy of 18 million Falcons crewed by 90 million plus support personnel and the Imperial Legion numbers in at 800 million combat personnel supported by logistics and support personnel.

512: Six new systems have been colonized with all planets and moons made habitable, 10 of the Tongues have been made Imperial governors of each system and the remaining two are made Grand admiral and Supreme commander of the navy and Legions respectively. The Empire has ceased colonization efforts until a time when population levels demand expansion. The Emperor has started gathering files on potential additions to the Tongues. So far no new information has been discovered about the mysterious artifact besides the fact that it is composed of a metal that is roughly equivalent in strength to Lorkhanite. The World Eater and its attending fleet of 6000 Falcons are stationed in the system to guard the artifact and protect the colony. The artifact suddenly comes to life and 50000 ships of various designs and states of repair pour into the system.