The Moral Quandary: Consumption of Imgakin meat

>##The Moral Quandary:

>####The Consumption of Imgakin Meat

>#####A Pamphlet by Etienne Dauphine, Culinary Master

>######Published by Rosebud Press, Wayrest, Stormhaven, High Rock

Long has mankind wondered what could and could not be eaten, what our bodies could savor, could consume safely and without qualm. Often this wonder wanders off to far-flung desires and tastes often considered taboo: the most glaring example being the eating of another mannish creature, or cannibalism. In my travels to find the perfect flavors, I found myself sailing down the Xylo river, that body of water that separates the elves from the cats, and observing the activity of these peculiar little imps, covered head to tail in fur with mannish ears and lively personalities. Our Bosmeri guide called the thing an 'imgakin' before unceremoniously marrying it with the tip of his bone-arrow.

As he was making short work of the body, a Khajiit in our group was chiding the elf for his poor manner in killing the first thing he saw and for daring to consume it (apparently a common Bosmeri thing to do is to eat anything you kill. Anything).

After this little tiff in my flavor expedition, I went back to High Rock to figure out the heart of the matter: is it moral to eat these tiny creatures that so resemble us?

The consumption of Imgakin has been both praised and derided down the River Niben for what appears to be centuries, documents written in the the Ayleid times being nothing more than recipe books containing ingredients like 'Eye of Imgakin' or 'Imgakin Feet'. How Imgakin could survive in the rather pleasant climate of the Niben today is beyond me, but they must have been there at some point.

There was, of course, a movement in the Tenmar Forest criticizing the eating of 'such wise, intelligent creatures'. The Khajiit of the region remarked how smart they were, outwitting capture from clever cats in the treetops and tricking them into grappling on rotten branches to deter capture. Anything that had such wiles must hold some intellect. If an Imgakin was intelligent, then it would be immoral to eat it (unless you were a Bosmer of Valenwood, as it so appears). There were also sporadic reports of some cats falling ill to deadly diseases buried in the flesh of these critters, a further testament to their crafty nature. One such disease was said 'to deprive the mind of all reason, the consciousness of all rationale, and the victim of all intellect. They would become . . . irrational, nonsensical, and very dangerous to their person and others.'

My conclusion, after hearing both sides of the argument, and after observing them on the Xylo River, would be this:

It's perfectly safe to eat Imgakin. They do not harbor any dread disease (as far as I can tell), and the meat is quite juicy, tender even! Imgakin is sure to be a perfect compliment to any dish with pureed Moon Sugar Sauce and diced red pepper. So go forth, find you an Imgakin, and sink your teeth into its supple, roasted flesh.

EDITOR'S NOTES: After finding the 'great' Etienne Dauphine dead in his abode just last year attempting to use thrice-roasted Jarrin Root as a garnish for 'Raven's Breast marinated in Nirnroot and Belladonna Berry sauce' and consuming the result, the Rosebud Press would like to remind its readers that the opinions of this Culinary Master should be taken with, and pardon the expression, a grain of salt.