OSAS Guild Guide (05/10) - The imperial Guard - Will Wight, New York Times Best-Selling Author of 'Cradle'

OSAS Guild Guide (05/10) - The imperial Guard

9/6/2014

Spoiler Alert: the Imperial Guard does exactly what you'd expect. More news at 11.

The Imperial Guard:

I trust that all of you understand the purpose of the Imperial Guard: to protect the Emperor’s person, and to shield him from attack and unwanted attention. Some suggest that they failed, that the death of the Emperor proves that the Guard were unequal to their task.

I can assure you that this is not the case.

Through a secret alchemical process known only to the Guild of Alchemists, the Imperial Guard replaces some of their original body parts with those of Kameira. Some Guardsmen have patches armored nightwyrm hide grafted onto their skin, or their eyes substituted with those of a cloud eagle. The process is said to be long and unbearably painful, and it results in guardians with the appearance of monsters.

However, in the twelve hundred years that the Emperor reigned, not a single assassination attempt reached his person. We owe that fact solely to the power and extraordinary sensitivity of the Imperial Guard.

I know that many outside the Capital are wondering what the Guard are up to, now that they have no Emperor to guard. Well, in the words of their Guild Head, “We may no longer have an Emperor, but we have an Empire. That, we will preserve until the sun rises in the west.”

The resolve of a true patriot, gentle readers.

Guild Head: Jarelys Teach, a General in the Emperor’s military and Head of his Imperial Guard, does not at first strike you as an imposing woman. I have met her on many occasions, and found her to be singularly devoted to her job. Popular legend says that she swallowed the blood of a Nightwraith, thereby absorbing its powers, but that’s little more than speculation. It’s a matter of Imperial record that she carries Tyrfang, the Awakened blade used to execute the Emperor’s rivals over a thousand years ago.

Symbol: the Aurelian Shield (a shield bearing the sun-and-moon symbol of the Aurelian Empire)

11 Comments

Rhys

9/6/2014 08:44:03 am

Damn it Will. These little bits of info just make me want to read the book more. Hurry up damn it. On a more serious nite however don't rush it. Take as much time as you need to make it good and keep healthy(not like with CoL, though I appreciated the speedy release). It would be a bloody shame if you made yourself ill or exhausted yourself rushing to get the book out. I'd rather you stay fit and have the book a little later.

9/6/2014 08:45:02 am

* note not nite. Damn the tiny keys on my phone.

Will Wight link

9/13/2014 07:50:44 am

Thanks, Rhys! I just really want to make sure I launch OSAS before the end of this coming winter. This is more difficult than it sounds, due to factors that I'll announce later, but all I want is to finish it and release it.

If it takes a little longer, though, thanks for your patience!

Pat

9/7/2014 08:10:35 am

Interesting. 1200 years on the job and its doesn't seem like we've had a single instance of them acting as praetorian guards. Dedicated.

9/13/2014 07:52:42 am

As far as we know.

The guy who wrote this article is a big fan of the Imperial Guard, but most people are a little frightened of them. This largely has to do with the fact that they graft monster body parts onto themselves, which makes them less than attractive.

E. Meyer

9/9/2014 01:19:32 am

Not sure if this was said before, but do we know who is narrating the guild guide. Or is that going to be shown in the book. Just feels like there is a spin to the telling of the guide. Oh and great job! Cant wait to read more.

9/13/2014 07:53:30 am

It's definitely written by a guy with his own set of biases and his own agenda, but I'm trying to decide if you'll find out in the books or not. He may just float around in the background unless I can find a bigger role for him.

Nikk

9/10/2014 04:50:46 am

Sweet, I love all these little bits of the story. But.. what killed the Emperor? Or what killed the Emperor? This reminds me of the old joke 'I am a ninja, I prevent you from dying' 'You are not a ninja!' 'Are you dead? I HAVE THEREFORE DONE MY JOB!'

9/13/2014 07:53:58 am

Ninjas. The answer is always ninjas. Even when it's not.

Brian S

9/12/2014 01:18:32 pm

Will, I'm running out of stuff to read. Where is my next book?

This story looks pretty interesting. I hope I get to read it soon.

Okay, you've wasted enough time messing around on the internet, back to work with you.

9/13/2014 07:49:16 am

How dare you! There's no such thing as wasting too much time on the Internet!

In which we ramble on.
And by we, I mean me.