My name is Tomari Toshiro. I used to work as a robotics engineer for a mining company in the underground city of Shin Akavir. When the Emperor announced an alliance with another empire named Tamriel after a millennia-long war with the Ka Po' Tun I decided to travel to find more opportunities for me. I didn't have to pack many things as my ancient apartment was already stocked. I had some basic amenities and a ticket to Tamriel.
I joined a gathering crowd walking to newly-built TelePads, platforms that teleports objects and people to another. After a few hundred people or so, including me walked on the platform we were teleported to the surface and saw palm trees, sand, and the real sun, shining on our faces. We were guided by guards to a makeshift dock manned by Akaviri people, and Tsaesci; creatures resembling humans with their lower body being that of a snake tail. Our ships were repurposed battleships built by the Ka Po' Tun, a fierce race of humanoid tigers. They were decommissioned after they were replaced by airships and their dragon serum.
Groups that emerged from the TelePads boarded the ships, hundreds by hundreds. There were a series of horns from the ships as we set off. I was a bird among cats as the ship had mostly Tsaesci and only a handful of humans. I went to the bow of the ship and leaned against the railing, observing the water being split by the ship's knife-like hull. Next to me was a male Tsaesci holding a picture, an egg incubator holding three large eggs, and his luggage next to him.
"[What's that you have there?]" I asked nervously in my native tongue as I pointed to the incubators. "[My offspring.]" the Tsaesci answered with a tired, raspy voice. "[Is that your wife with you?]" I asked, pointing to a well-built Tsaesci woman next to him in the picture. "[Yes… she is. She decided to stay behind and help the others recover from the airship crash.]" he answered with snake-like hisses. The disaster he was referring to was when a Ka Po' Tun airship crashed into the remaining Tsaesci settlements and were saved when a Tamrielic doctor arrived and warned everyone to retreat underground.
A week later, we finally arrived in Tamriel at one of its eastern provinces; Morrowind. I will spare you the boring details of customs and immigration. After hours of waiting, I finally checked out and exited the immigration building and saw a city with a towering mushroom and spiralling sand yellow skyscrapers under red skies. "What's to come now?" I thought. I approached the rest of the passengers in an assembly area near the parking lot of the dock where a red humanoid reptile-like creature wearing green army fatigues was standing in front.
Strangely, he was speaking in our native tongue as if he was one of us. "[Welcome to Tamriel, or Dawn's Beauty in the ancient language of the Aldmer. My name is Hunts-Shadows; I am an Argonian one of the races that inhabit Tamriel. I will be your guide to New Vvardenfell.]" the creature said enthusiastically. We all followed him across the pavement to a convoy of white buses similar to the ones in Akavir, but strange devices replaced the wheels, enabling them to hover. We boarded the buses and as the last man entered, the buses were lifted up into the air. "[Don't worry, this is normal. In Tamriel we have developed flight capabilities in cars, buses, and certain trucks. We developed this because of the increasing traffic. Instead of building more roads, Hammar Industries developed devices that allow levitation on land vehicles. Our next stop is New Balmora, a city southwest of here.]" Hunts-Shadows explained.
The buses rise above the city, joining fleets of insect-like cars, zipping across the sky as fast as drift racing cars. "[We previously developed another form of air transport that can fly higher; the airplane. They can carry hundreds of people at once and are faster than the average flying car. The flying car can only fly below the stratosphere to separate traffic.]" he continued. "[I imagine some of you don't know half of what I'm saying, but you will learn later on about the atmosphere. We will arrive in New Balmora very shortly.]" he continued. We sat quietly and gazed in awe at the towering mushrooms. "[These are Mage Towers built by House Telvanni, one of the organizations that make up Morrowind's government. They practice magic, scientific research, and industry. They produce a variety of machines and vehicles from Hammar Industries, their commercial industry division.]" Hunts-Shadows explained.
We soon arrived at New Balmora, a city on the southwest coast of the island. We disembarked the buses when they slowly landed in front of a museum. "[This is Vvardenfell Museum, a museum of events and artefacts from Vvardenfell. The curator will now guide you around the museum and learn our history.]" Hunts-Shadows said. He boards the bus again and the convoy flies away as a grey-skinned Elven woman with blood red eyes, wearing a blue business suit approaches us. "[My name is Alvera, the curator of the Vvardenfell Museum. I am a Dunmer, or Dark Elf in Tamriellic. Follow me inside.]" the strange woman said in rough Akaviri, I can understand what she's saying but she's pronouncing certain words wrong.
Inside, we were greeted by strange architecture, paintings, and ancient weapons. I was fascinated with their rich history and was curious of what the other provinces have to offer. In accordance to a cultural exchange program by their government I and some others were flown to the mainland where I was escorted by an agent to a suburban neighbourhood at the edge of their capital. We approached a house and its occupant, a bearded man in his 30s wearing a red T-shirt and shorts, emerged. "Hi, my name is Cal! What's yours?" the man introduced himself in Tamriellic. I didn't understand what he said.
To be continued...
