Emperor August the Second
Long live the Emperor! Anyways, what do we know about the emperor?Obviously, it is hard for those outside of the imperial court to speak on the emperor's character or his actions. Still, the stories people hear tend to make Emperor Augustus sound rather...peculiar, to say the least. From the fact that Augustus is not his real name to the fact that it is not even a Kosari name, and there was no Augustus the First to begin with. A lot of people believe that the emperor's quirks are the reasoning behind some of the more questionable choices in the newest Ardenian history, or that the emperor is quite frankly possessed by Chaos himself. Still, the Ardenian Empire has been doing quite well in the past decades, and anyone who dares to question Augustus' right to sit upon the divine throne tend to find themselves beheaded by his loyal advisors in no time.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Born as Third Prince Vivien Thibault de Arden, he grew up largely in the shadow of his two older brothers. It seems the young prince was quite a rascal, often escaping from the imperial palace and travelling throughout the capital incognito. As Prince Thibault grew up, the stories only became more wild. Some people claim to have met the prince all the way out in the New World, amongst its bustling colonies. Complete nonsense of course, but the fact of the matter is that we know very little of his early life.
Whatever was the prince's occupation, he was there when First Prince was killed on a duel over a noble lady. In fact, it was Third Prince Thibault that avenged his brother by immediately challenging and killing the offending courtier, whose whole family estate mysteriously burnt down the next night. No idea who could have done it, none at all. Now second in line to the throne, Prince Thibault has started to increasingly appear in official records as actively attending upon the court business - though he still preferred to travel around the country for most of his time.
It was one of such travels that saved him when the Hummish troops rebelled. Demanding the restoration of the old ways, they took the capital and the imperial palace. Both Emperor and Second Prince were killed in a fight, likely by an overeager soldier rather than by intent. No hostages, no crisis of power - the Kosari nobles banded behind Prince Thibault and retook the capital. It was at that time, during the coronation ceremony, that Prince Thibault chose to take on a new name as Emperor Augustus the Second.
And here start all the heated debates about the emperor's bizzare behaviour. Is it something picked up during his travels, or a mental trauma caused by the death of everyone else in his immediate family? Are his all-powerful counsellors really carrying out his will, or are they the ones guiding it? There were plenty of speculations on both topics, but I dare you to try and speak of it to the emperor himself.
Children
The Lost Empire
Most people think that the name Augustus comes from a series of pseudo-historical drama books called "History of the Lost Empire", outlining the lives and deeds of a nation far away as they built and lost their empire. In the books, Emperor Augustus is the one to herald in the age of greatness for his realm - quite an aspiration for a new emperor to take after, is it not? Especially since the author claims to have merely translated them from a long-lost language recovered in the ruins of the New World. Truth be told, I do not believe that claim. Nor does anyone else in the publishing business. The books read like complete fiction and are just riddled with stereotypes and plot holes saved only by miracilous interventions. But hey, who would turn down an offer to copy and sell a book by His Divine Majesty's favourite author? And why would they care if the thing is real or not, when you can make a profit off people trying to guess the imperial mind of a fairy-tale book.Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
Comments