Author's Note: This chapter has a lot of information from Daggerfall in it. Although I don't own Daggerfall, and have never even played it, I've done countless hours of research (okay, two or three hours of it) to make sure I'm not contradicting anything. For those of you who have never played Daggerfall (which, after looking at my reviews, isn't as many as I'd expect), I'll explain things as best as I can. Also, I just realized, I was spelling Falinesti as Falinseti.

Chapter 3: Intrigue in High Rock (Didn't this happen in Daggerfall!)

Empress Mathilda Aureon, former High Queen of High Rock and former Queen of Daggerfall, had returned home to Daggerfall, where thousands of people had gleefully anticipated her return.

Mathilda's return was not a pleasant one. Mathilda and her escort had originally planned to return by a caravan, however, they were thwarted, as the only way to go to High Rock by land was through Hammerfell or Skyrim, an idea that Mathilda did not enjoy. Even if they had made it through, they would be near Orsinium, or even worse, Wayrest. The last thing Mathilda needed was a meeting with Queen Elysana of Wayrest, who would easily support her ally of Orsinium.

When Mathilda ascended to the Throne of High Rock and Daggerfall, she quickly learned that Elysana was…difficult, and aimed at becoming the ruler of High Rock. The fact that she had been able to out maneuver Helseth and Barenziah, and oust them from Wayrest completely, made Mathilda worry.

That is not to say, Mathilda did not have her own plans and manipulations at work. At one time, Mathilda was only seventh in line to the Throne of High Rock and Daggerfall, and was only a niece to High King Gothryd. She had been able to remove those before her in the line of succession. The only member of the actual royal family she had not been able to dispose of was Nulfaga, and she was not in the line of succession. However, the old mystic was still a threat to her, and was dangerous.

However, the highlights of Mathilda's political maneuvers was not the taking of the Daggerfell Throne, it was the assassination of Gortwog gro-Nagorm, the King of Orsinium. Gortwog was a political genius who had earned the alliance of Wayrest and Queen Elysana. Because of this, Wayrest had become more powerful than Daggerfall. Even if Daggerfall had remained the capital of High Rock, Elysana had more power than Mathilda, which bothered her to no end. By removing Gortwog from power, Mathilda had thrown off any scheme they could have had. The next leader of Orsinium, Gro-Mak-Han, was also dangerous, but was not as politically gifted as Gortwog, foiling Elysana for a while.

What Mathilda had, however, was the firm support of the other monarchs of High Rock. Prince Mathias Corvas of Camlorn, Queen Anya Alorva of North Point, and King Ernarad of Evermore had all sworn their loyalty to Mathilda in a plan to expel Elysana from High Rock. With the support of Camlorn, North Point, and Evermore, Mathilda had secured control over most of High Rock, as Wayrest controlled few towns, and used their Orc alliance to remain powerful. Now, Mathilda had an opportunity to banish Elysana.

To arrive at Daggerfall, however, Mathilda and her forces had gone by ship. To arrive at a port, Mathilda used her connections in the Mages Guild to teleport from the Arcane University to the Anvil branch of the Mages Guild. From there, she was able to buy a ship.

Although the Archmage of the Mages Guild was the Imperial Champion, an Altmer named Axenon, Anthrus Polus, the grandson of Raminus, did most of the work. Mathilda and Anthrus were old friends. Although the Mages Guild, as of now, was neutral, Mathilda believed she could get them on her side.

Mathilda knew she needed all the allies she could get. Cyrodiil would undoubtedly win the most allies, presuming they could find a claimant. King Helseth and Queen Barenziah would give their support to a claimant to the Empire for sure. Helseth was never one to be Emperor. Helseth's power was in his workings behind the scenes, not openly. This would earn them the support of the Dunmer House Hlaalu, and their allies, most notably House Dres. And knowing the loyalty and obedience of the Redguards, it wouldn't be surprising if King Kayle of Hammerfell declared for Cyrodiil. With a claimant, Argonia or Elswyr might support Cyrodiil as well.

Summerset Isle would be a powerful adversary. In her decade of rule, Mathilda had learnt that Eldaris was powerful and dangerous, and had connections. Rumor had it that he had even met with the King of Worms recently. Mathilda knew that this was impossible, as the King of Worms was killed by the current Archmage. At least she thought he was. Mathilda didn't want to learn about the tricks Eldaris had planned.

Skyrim, too, was powerful. As it was the oldest human nation, Mathilda worried that even some of the Imperials, and even Bretons would support Herold. Not only that, Skyrim was directly adjacent to the eastern border of High Rock, near the Duchies of Jehanna and Farrun, major cities of High Rock.

What worried Mathilda most however, was not Summerset, not Cyrodiil, not Skyrim, and certainly not Valenwood, was Orsinium, or more appropriately, the alliance of Orsinium and Wayrest. Being within High Rock itself, they could destroy High Rock from within.

Mathilda and her guard entered the Great Hall of the newly renovated Castle Daggerfell. Mathilda's throne, made of mithril, was the centerpiece of the Great Hall. Surrounding it were a dozen glass thrones. Four of these thrones were four Elysana, Mathias Corvas, Anya Alorva, and Ernarad, the monarchs of High Rock. The other eight served as seats for Mathilda's advisors.

No one was in the Great Hall now, save Mathilda and her guards. Mathilda was planning to have a council meeting that evening, after she had made an address to the public, regarding her claim to the Throne. After her public address, she and her council members would sit down, and prepare a course action. Mathilda knew, however, unlike certain of enemy leaders, most notably Aleria Willows, she was a competent military commander.

Mathilda knew that the people of High Rock had had varying opinions on her. When she first took the throne, many of the people of High Rock, especially those of Wayrest, detested her, and very few of the High Rock nobles truly considered powerful. However, when she had increased Daggerfall's power, she had won the support of Daggerfall. Queen Anya Alorva had seen an opportunity to strike down Elysana at this point, and had allied herself with Daggerfall. After Wayrest and Daggerfall, North Point was the most powerful of High Rock's kingdoms. With this newfound support, many of High Rock's nobles began to support Mathilda, most notably King Ernarad and Prince Mathias Corvas of Evermore and Camlorn, respectively. Now, for the most part, only Wayrest and its allies were enemies of Mathilda. Yet, the populace of High Rock still had changing degrees of mistrust towards Mathilda. While they supported her to eliminate Elysana, all of them, at least on some unconscious level, believed that Mathilda could be worse than Elysana, and become the new most feared ruler in the west.

Mathilda looked at one of her guards, saying, "Guard, bring me my councilors. Tell them to meet me here in the Great Hall in the next hour, first for the public conference, secondly for the Council meeting. If we intend to win this war, we have to act quickly."

The guard bowed towards Mathilda, and said, "Yes your majesty, at once."

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An hour later, the eight regulars on Mathilda's council had arrived. Marie Charin, Mathilda's Steward, was a close friend of Mathilda's and a powerful ally in her court. A Breton roughly the same age as Mathilda, Marie appeared young, as she and Mathilda were only in their mid-thirties.

One of the most powerful members of the council was Adwin Magis, the court Sorcerer. Mathilda disliked Adwin, but as he was the senior most member of the council, he was a powerful figure, and controlled many political officials.

The only other member of the council to equal Adwin in power was Viktor Ergeon. Mathilda's general. Another member of the council Mathilda did not like, Viktor was still invaluable. His military genius even surpassed Mathilda, and his command over the troops was indubitable.

Mathilda possessed one other major ally on council, and that was the local Magistrate, Antilles Nylan. Antilles was a respected member of the community, even though he had taken more than one bribe. His influence was one of the things that allowed Mathilda to be cleared of all accusations of murdering the various officials in her way.

However, both Adwin and Viktor had their creatures on the council. Ormax Philulaine, the Treasurer, and Sylvie Characal, the Lore Keeper, were more loyal to Adwin than they were to Mathilda. Viktor had his pets too. Camille Sette, the Researcher and Scientist, specializing in Dwemer and Alyied artifacts, as well as the Task Master, Francois Gillelle, who was in charge of the servants in the Castle, were strong supporters of Viktor.

While Adwin and Viktor had their own agendas, Mathilda still knew that they were supporting her claim to be Empress, something she could not lose. After the initial phases of the war were over, Mathilda decided she might replace them with more trustworthy advisors.

Mathilda looked towards her councilors, and began to speak. "Greetings councilors. As you all have heard by now, I'm no longer your High Queen, I am Empress. However, we have entered state of war, with the treasonous provinces of Cyrodiil, Summerset Isle, Skyrim, Valenwood, Morrowind, and Hammerfell, as well as the treasonous cities of Orsinium and Wayrest. Argonia and Elswyer have remained neutral thus far, and are not declared treasonous. However, should they declare against us, they will be." The council all understood the present situation. Mathilda continued, "In the next half hour, I am going to allow and open floor conference with the people of Daggerfell, addressing any questions, comments, and complaints they may have, that, of course, do not incriminate us. While I believe Daggerfell shall remain loyal to us, it is best to secure that loyalty now."

The Council members nodded in agreement, and knew that, for now, they would support their Empress. After the nodding, Viktor took the silence as an opportunity to ask a question to Mathilda. "Your Majesty," Viktor said, "What plans do you have for military conquest of Tamriel. As you know, before we can accomplish anything, we must first secure control over Wayrest and Orsinium, as the pose the greatest threat. However, it is also necessary to secure our eastern borders from Skyrim, as the Duke of Jehanna will not be happy if he wakes up to see his city under siege. In addition, our southern border is near Hammerfell, who, according to the information I heard before, support Cyrodiil. King Ernarad is one of our most powerful allies. I highly doubt that losing Evermore to the enemy would keep him on our side."

Mathilda stared at Viktor, and simply said, "We shall discuss this at the council meeting later. First comes the public audience." Mathilda knew that Viktor was already looking for holes in Mathilda's plans-he would want an excuse to place himself as Emperor quickly.

The pre-address council had ended, and the councilors started talking amongst themselves. Marie went over to Mathilda, and whispered, "Mathilda, I haven't told anyone about this yet, I swear. But rumor has it that on Summerset-"

Mathilda silenced Marie, said, "Quiet, Marie. If it is so important to keep it secret, speak with me after council. I'll tell you what I think of it then. Until then, however, tell me. How have things been while I was gone?"

Marie looked up at Mathilda, who was nearly a half-foot taller than she was, and said, "Not as good as you would hope. Elysana is scheming, and you know that when Elysana schemes it's bad. Even worse, Nulfaga has grown worse. She bothers me to no end, trying to learn information. Mathilda, I think she knows what you've done to get the Daggerfall Throne."

Mathilda quickly and quietly responded, "I know she does. She's wanted me dead ever since I took power. She doesn't trust me, and I don't trust her."

Marie softly whispered, "What do you think she plans to do? Do you think she'll help Elysana and Gro-Mak-Han?"

Mathilda knew that was ridiculous. The only thing Mathilda and Nulfaga agreed upon was their hatred for Elysana. However, Mathilda did not believe she would remain loyal. "No. She will either support Cyrodiil or she may decide to flee to Valenwood or even Summerset Isle."

Marie looked worried, and said, "What should we do?"

Mathilda did not know. Nulfaga was a semi-respected and influential figure, even if recently the people were souring towards her. Arresting her could cause a scandal. However, if the arrest were kept private…yes that would work. Nulfaga rarely left her chambers, now that she was old and fragile. One or two of the servants did all of her tasks for her. If she arrested Nulfaga and her two servants during the public address, no one but Marie, Antilles, and a small group of guards would ever know. "Marie, find six of my most loyal men." Mathilda whispered. "During the public address, have them arrest Nulfaga and her two servants. Give them instructions on how to find my secret prison chambers and have them place her there. Once the arrest is finished, have the guards served some wine. I want the wine poisoned, so no one will ever here of this. However, make sure the poison is served in different amounts, so they die at different intervals. Give Antilles the report or arrest, but bribe him to tear it up. That way, should it ever come back to haunt us, Antilles will be the only one who is implicated in the destruction of evidence."

Marie nodded, and quickly did as she was instructed. When she returned, she winked at Mathilda. The public meeting was about to begin. The citizens of Daggerfall all entered the council chambers.

Mathilda welcomed her people. "Greetings, people of Daggerfall. As you have undoubtedly heard by now, I have been declared Empress of the High Rock Empire, and am not the true ruler of the Empire. However, four other pretenders have made claims, and one is going to soon. We must show the strength and power of the Breton people, to show that it is our right, our honor, and our privilege to rule Tamriel."

The people of Daggerfall could do nothing but applaud. Cheers and shouts of victory filled the halls of Daggerfall Castle, and Mathilda knew she had won them to her side. With her allies, Mathilda knew she could become Empress of Tamriel.

Mathilda had one more tactic to win them over for good. "People of Daggerfall, as your Empress, I believe it is my duty to inform you of what you wish to know. If you have any questions, now, or tomorrow, or ever, I will answer them, as it is my policy to tell the people what they want to know."

The people continued applauding and cheering. After the room had calmed, one of the wealthier citizens of Daggerfall, Mathilda could not tell whom, posed a question. "Your Majesty, who are these pretenders to the throne? And what makes your claim more legitimate than theirs?"

Mathilda grew angry at the near treasonous second question. However, she remained calm and peaceful on the outside, and prepared to answer. She decided to secure their loyalty even more with her answer. "High King Eldaris of Summerset Isle has made a claim for his people, and is using the powers of a Dark God to conquer with an iron fist. Aleria Willows, the High Queen Regent of Valenwood, made a claim for her son, Farwyn Willows. A child cannot be Emperor, especially one so horrid as Farwyn. High King Herold IV of Skyrim made a claim, and is rallying the Nords to his side. Will you truly allow a barbarian such as him as your Emperor? The province of Cyrodiil has not yet made a claim, to my knowledge, but as they are the current seat of the former Empire, they will."

The Breton who posed the question asked, "And the other claimant, your Majesty?"

Mathilda took a deep breath, and said, "King Gro-Mak-Han of Orsinium has declared himself Emperor, and he is supported by our age old enemy, Elysana of Wayrest." The crowds gasped at the revelation that Elysana was against them. No one in Daggerfall liked Elysana, yet none of them would ever have expected her to side against them in this war. They were now more determined to remove her from power than ever. "And why I possess a better claim, you ask? It is because all of the other claimants wish to rule with hostile intent towards this city, and this nation. We must stand united and defeat our enemies. We shall kill the Orc King and oust the traitorous Queen from Wayrest. High Rock shall grow in its glory, and we will come into a new, glorious golden age, in which Breton royalty shall rule for centuries-no, millennia, to come!"

The applauds once again thundered, only this time louder than before. Mathilda had won the people, something that she knew some of her adversaries (namely Aleria) could not do.

Mathilda spoke again. "If that is all, I declare this meeting adjourned." After the adjourning of the meeting, the room remained filled with applauds and cheering, shouts of triumph and glory for another ten minutes. As the crowd finally began to disperse, Mathilda turned towards her councilors. "Councilors, now it is time we make our plans for war. Our primary concern is to take Orsinium, followed by Wayrest. We must secure complete control over the province before we can accomplish any external conquest. At the same time, we must defend our borders from Hammerfell and Skyrim. Hammerfell will likely be preoccupied, as many of their forces will be recalled to Cyrodiil to defend it from invasions from Valenwood, Summerset Isle, and possibly Skyrim, leaving it only with a border guard. However, should Skyrim choose to march east rather than south or west, our eastern border could be in grave danger. The Nords are some of the most savage fighters on Tamriel, and they could overrun us quickly." The council nodded approvingly, even Viktor, and agreed that it was their present plan of action. "Viktor, I want you to personally lead an assault on Orsinium. Bring five thousand Battle-Mages, and as many other troops you deem necessary, so long as our cities are defended." Mathilda knew it was wise to keep Viktor away from Daggerfall as long as possible.

The council approved of her decision, and even Viktor did not put up an argument, even though Mathilda knew he was against the decision. The only thing Viktor had asked was when he should leave, in which Mathilda said in three days time.

"As that is the entire business of the council," Mathilda said, wanting to speak to Marie about her rumor, "I end this meeting. Viktor, prepare your armies for war, other councilors, be prepared for assignments at the next meeting." She sent all of them away, but glanced at Marie, giving her a look that said, "stay."

Only Marie was left in the council chambers, save a group of guards. Mathilda turned to them and said, "Leave us." The guards did as instructed, and Mathilda could no longer wait for this information.

Marie looked horrified. "Empress, the rumor I heard is what I presume you want to hear. Mannimarco has been sighted!"

Mathilda gasped at this. Mannimarco was dead. It was a well-accepted fact that Axenon of the Mages Guild had received the position of Archmage because he killed Mannimarco. "Marie, you know that's impossible. Mannimarco was killed a hundred years ago."

Marie fright increased. "That's what I said, when I heard it, your Majesty. But then I heard where he was sighted."

Mathilda knew that this could only be bad. "Where was it, Marie. Please tell me it isn't where I think it is."

Marie nodded. "He was sighted in Alinor on Summerset Isle, at the royal palace. Worse, he was meeting with one of Eldaris's agents!"

Mathilda was petrified. It meant Mannimarco was supporting Eldaris. But that was impossible. Mannimarco was dead. It didn't make sense. Mannimarco was killed by Axenon during the days of peace.

But he was meeting with an agent of Eldaris.

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Well, that's the end of that chapter. By the way, I'm taking a quick poll: out of the three leaders we've been truly introduced to-Iszel, Aleria/Farwyn, and Mathilda, who would you be most likely to support? Who would you be least likely to support?