Cercetus Etonhualla, Imperial Moth Ambassador's Special Report to the Council Concerning the Brass Golem's Return

4E 2XX - I fear any more detail would only confuse, due to the nature of the crisis.

Given the epochal catastrophe now unfolding in Northwest Hammerfell, the Secret Council has discarded any protocol governing discretion over this matter. As a result, I issue this report by ink and paper, and likewise to the all the realm of Cyrodiil, and to the Legion remnant in Whiterun. I fear that whatever cells of resistance might remain in Wayrest and further North will now be doomed to the fate currently upending Iliac. Whatever debates remain about whether the Legion's line of resistance divided the Thalmor, or simply was left surrounded by their expeditionary army is fruitless. Numidium walks.

I am aware that the secrets of the Tower Conspiracy haven't been shared with everyone, though I'd imagine most of you will be familiar with this popular theory from the Great War. Though discredited in many of its more popular iterations, the Secret Council has long maintained a credible fear of this plot to doom Tamriel by destroying a number of mythic "towers" throughout the provinces. Even we were totally unprepared for what has unfolded.

I am also aware that just in the past few days, hours perhaps, most of you have been preoccupied with the Thalmor's pre-emptive attack in High Rock. I fear that this whole "Second Great War" is nothing but a feint on the part of a darker power. Many of you have been hoping this event would automatically lead the Nords back into the Imperial fold.

Sadly, Skyrim is sundered, and there is little hope that the hatred between Reachman, the Thalmor occupied West, the Imperial controlled center, and rebel-held East will soon subside. To Stormcloak, High Rock remains "our problem".

My intent isn't to re-litigate the military debate. I intend toward something deeper. Skyrim experienced a brief, and hopeful, unity during the dragon crisis. After the dragons' king was felled, this unity immediately dissolved. Without their mythic foe to compel them, it's as if the Nords have lost their fighting spirit altogether. The North, which has saved Cyrodiil since the First Era, will come to our aid no longer. What the Council, and parties, need to understand is the mythic significance of this all. This is not a political problem.

Some of you have questioned my prominence in the Council in recent years. What does a religious liaison have to say about war? I will now reveal it.

For the past few years I have worked on and off with the White-Gold reconstruction project. This too, is something many of you complained about. The reason for my involvement is connected to what was discovered digging at White-Gold's foundations. Something was found that is intrinsically linked to the Elder Magic. The moth-priests have spearheaded the investigation into the secrets found underneath the Imperial Tower. I am their middle man.

In our efforts, we uncovered a strange Elder Scroll of remarkable provenance and with an equally remarkable subject. The Scroll spoke of the time before Convention. It was a record of the events that led to the decision by the Gods to create Nirn.

This is no blasphemy, the moths would not permit it! The priest who translated the Scroll has provided a troubling record that clarifies certain events in the cosmic scheme. Now, finally, I share them with you. Forgive the brevity and the caprice with which I treat this sacred knowledge, it is a necessity.

>The Cycles

It seems that Nirn was the last of an unending number of creations, and prior to the last the mythical 12 worlds of the Anuad once existed as equals in the Celestial Void. The Gods, for reasons we were all taught as children, consolidated these into 1, and this is Nirn.

>The Lorkhanic Imperative

The blasphemy of many ages, I am compelled to report, is truth. Akatosh. Auri-El. Lorkhan. They are all one and the same being. Auri-El and Shezarr were but the two faces of the dragon. Their union of stasis and change impelled the cosmic wheel to turn. They were not one without the other. The union was unbreakable.

>The Terminus

Nirn was a necessary concession, along with mortality. There was too much splintering of pure form, after so many cycles, for the 12 worlds to properly contain and remain stable. They endeavored to reengineer creation. But Lorkhan who fooled the Gods knew the inherent instability of the project. So did another.

>The Thrice-Made-Cede

Though Shezarr and Auri-El's battle is a mythic spike, the recent mythic struggle involved another being.

With the new Scroll, the curious Nord antagonism towards Arkay is revealed. Arkay, by the elves: Xarxes, is the Nord Orkey, and curiously their foe. Our revelation showed that as Lorkhan plotted for Nirn, Xarxes plotted a counter-coup.

At the moment of Convention, Xarxes ritually extracted Lorkhan's Heart from the Missing God's aspect. In so doing, he mantled the new creation, Nirn, and scribed the fate of mortals. This being came to be named, in Altmeri error, Trinimac; they knew him as a transposition of all his roles and forms at and around Convention.

If Lorkhan's plan was to unbind the dragon towards some imperceptible benefit for his children and our mortal future, then Trinimac hoped the opposite. The God's motivation was nothing less than the annihilation and utter reversal of creation. To those that protest a dark motivation for a beloved divine, I admit that I couldn't say what would inspire such a dark purpose. Arkay is the god of life and death secrets, he had that unique insight into the true nature of existence. Perhaps this obsessive focus bent his mythic spark to twisted paths.

>The Red Diamond

In the unsettled and chaotic Dawn of Nirn - the collective splinters of all the cycles of all the 12 worlds throughout the helix, to the point where our Gods gave their divinity just to prevent cosmic expiration - the ancestors of mortals first walked upon Tamriel. It was a splintered Tamriel of infinite diversity and unbound reality, swirling together in a chaotic sea. The early elves who remembered Convention tried to stabilize it, to reverse Lorkhan's error as they knew it. They built a tower.

This 'Aldmeri' tower, so we can call it, did stabilize reality. There was a cost, however: infinite distinct shards. The first was Convention and Ada-Mantia, the last was Lorkhan's Heart firm at its Terminus under Red Mountain. No unbinding of Nirn could occur until all shards connected.

While the elves labored for this endeavor, their mannish slaves subversively produced the consolidation instead.

Imagine Lorkhan's Heart as dripping its blood in each shard as it flies to Red Mountain at the other end of creation's arc from Ada-Mantia where it was expelled. Each shard had its drop, its heart, its tower-stone.

St. Alessia, in her prayer to Akatosh, provided the ritual covenant which finally bound the shards. Her prayer was for freedom, and the only thing sacred to Akatosh's blood that was common to all diverse shards of Aldmeris. Thus, out of many, the one Red Diamond formed and Cyrodiil become the one heartland.

>Ysmir the Shezarrine

St. Alessia was helped in her crusade, mainly by a hero whom the Cyro-Nords recognized immediately as their Ysmir (I add to caution you, it was to their detriment to say so). This 'Shezarrine' spirit which seemed to wander in and out of history as humanity's savior, the very ghost of Shor, has always been treated by Imperial scholarship of recent years as but a legendary synthesis. We did not understand.

Trinimac, the god of the world compelled the elves to build their tower, to consolidate the chaos, so he could unmake Nirn. But as he pressed his scribe pen to the narrative of history, there were parts he could never write. Shor was gone, but his ghost Ysmir the fox remained in Nirn. Unable to control the decisions of this variable spirit, Trinimac constrained history to force the Spirit to serve his purposes.

Undoutedly, St. Alessia's coup upset Trinimac's plan. However, he retaliated.

>The Middle Dawn

The specifics of this Dragon Break are unknown. It seems the players change depending on whom you ask - which historical source that is. However, legends refer distinctly to a tower of one becoming eight.

This conspiracy took Ysmir's coup, and shattered its potential to affect Nirn's destiny.

I understand there are many among the Arcane University who would contest the temporal-spatial implications of the Middle Dawn creating the eight outer provinces of Tamriel. If you doubt my narrative, you doubt the Scroll. If you choose this path, ask the moths, if you dare.

So arrayed, as eight gems around one, Tamriel could be used in Trinimac's plot to overcome Ysmir.

>Trinimac's Transformation

There is a common notion, from the Altmeri children's tales, that Trinimac is no more. That he became the Dark Prince Malacath. I must admit that the truth here is subject to no conspiracy. The truth has been before us the whole time, and instead we hearkened unto the fables of our enemies.

I will concede that what follows is my personal analysis, given what we've learned. Yet, if you wish to challenge it, head West and go ask the Brass-God yourself!

The Dwemer, whose origins have remained even yet more shrouded than the nature of their disappearance, are nothing more than the servants of Trinimac. Amongst all the Mer, these Deep Elves were most devoted to Xarxes' philosophy. He was Auri-El's tonal architect, his scribe and shield-thane. The Dwarves were his children.

Unlike their Aldmeri cousins, who after St. Alessia's revolution were rendered as but wild Ayleids by Pelinal, Dwemer had no gods to pray to. Their master ascended before Convention had even concluded. Their philosophy was always the same as his, and irrelevant to godstalk: denial, uncreation.

After the failure of Tower One, the Dwemer wandered to seek the one recourse which could sustain their cause. Red Diamond, in all its million million shards, would always be snatched away by cunning Ysmir. The Deep Elves would not trifle with this wrinkle in their scheme. They dove for the source: the Heart of Lorkhan.

Red Mountain was creation's Terminus. The final node of the cosmic impulse. They would work upon this artifact, and starting from the bottom up unravel any chance Ysmir might have to stop them.

But the Dwarves were mortals as well. They were not united. Their devotion to their plan shared many of the Aldmeri misconceptions. When the Heart had been truly studied, and the plan properly understood, there must have been rigorous debate over what to do.

It was here that those meddlesome demons, about whose deeds we oft leave unspoken, intervened. Here, at Terminus, the Daedra had gathered their own batch of Aldmer. The Chimer followed their chief, Boethiah, to chaff against the godless ways of the Dwarves.

In this conflict, in which Trinimac spun his conspiracy, he sacrificed his own people to force the hand of both peoples. The betrayal of ash and choking air. The Sun's Death.

At Terminus, Numidium was born, it was too late. The Tribunal at first thought him defeated. Indeed, the Dwarven dissenters to the Xarxan nihilism were transformed mythically into the foul Orcs. Their King, Dumac, mantled that awful realm of the betrayed - for his god and people had betrayed him and his kin - to burn forever in choking ash. Mauloch was born.

Trinimac remained. The story never referred to the thrice-made-cede, only ever to what we never imagined: his people.

>The Tower Conspiracy Re-Examined

Now we understand the stakes. The Terminus unbound, Numidium possessing that object of Akatosh's sanity-breaking appetite: the Heart of Lorkhan. But Numidium hid.

The Jillian web Trinimac had constrained upon us mis-ordered the events of history. We supposed the Dunmer possessed the Heart. They did, but they shouldn't have. It belonged to the Brass God of the Dwarves. This hole that resulted, the military records refer to him as Dagoth-Ur, and his curse: the blight of Morrowind.

To save the world Ysmir-who-couldn't-be-scribed was forced to play into Trinimac's hand, and 'remove' the Heart from the world. But it wasn't removed.

Each of the towers, and not fully understanding these magics we can't order them perfectly, was felled one by one. We know of White-Gold's doom, of the plague upon Green Sap, of Crystal-Like-Law's shatter. I fear, also, Skyrim's conquering spirit is broken and sundered too. And each time Ysmir, who had infinite choice to make his reality, was left in the end with the choice of seeing Mundus expire in the immediate, or slowly play into Trinimac's hands.

There is but one tower left: the first.

There is only one way to sunder it: reunion with the last tower, hidden until now.

>Numidium Returned

When Morrowind's hero cut Lorkhan's Heart away from Dagoth-Ur, he sent it right back to Numidium.

The Mantella was a deceit. It was a way to consolidate the broken province, the mongrel province. How could we not have realized it? Numidium was the Brass-Tower of High Rock!! High Rock's diversity was its strength. In one fell swoop, one lousy ship full of gold, the Thalmor bought near half that province off! Their marines only then needed to fight for half as much! Consolidation is the weakness of Bretons. Their very blood rejects a clear classification of kind.

What a perfect mythic trap! Trinimac's multi-faceted mind cannot be matched by the mortal strategist.

And, so, true Numidium has returned. Popping back into Tamriel from whence he left, but now with the power of all the shards but one.

Even now he marches towards Ada-Mantia!!

>Conclusion and Measures that Remain

Numidium is a ponderous God. Though powerful, his course is winding and multi-faceted. Time will bend in every direction. For some of us, this may provide an unexpected advantage.

In the final analysis, we must hope and pray to any God we can remember that Ysmir will outwit his pursuer.

But perhaps we can help our savior!

I will now reveal that the inconsistent reports from the West do not reflect Altmeri deception over the war in High Rock. Time is bending. We know already of future events.

It seems that Numidium faced resistance from the Altmeri Expeditionary Army. In response, He cut Alinor from the fabric of possibility. Do not rejoice in this holocaust of souls. It may be our fate soon enough. Though this is the high elves' eventual, inevitable fate, many still actively fight throughout the West against annihilation.

Meanwhile, the Redguard put up an unexpectedly harsh fight. They have mobilized ancient weapons of great power. These weapons they have saved even after so many centuries of Imperial domination. Somehow some of them knew this day was coming!

Numidium has stomped much of Hammerfell into the sea. This, our reports indicate, has occurred three or four times over in many places. But the Redguards employ tricks. Their fierce spirit has yet to begin to yield!! And they are eager for us to join the great sword-meeting!!

All we can do is delay Numidium's march to Balfiera. There is no one outcome against such a perversion of the fabric of reality, but the more united we are the stronger our bid for existence.

I cannot say what will happen when Numdium reaches its goal. Perhaps all will end in a blink of darkness. Perhaps the gods will return. Perhaps Nirn will remain, but only long enough to suffer terribly under its one and final god of brass.

You have heard my report! It is extraordinary, and stretches the boundaries of what we thought was truth. But the Brass-Demon marches against us. Let us raise our banners and march back against that fate worse than Oblivion! Let the Red Diamond's kin meet the brass-scythe and shatter it!

Yours in the Eight, AND THE ONE

Cercetus Eton'Hualla, your brother