Morrowind Day 0 - Introduction

15 Last Seed

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Of all the words an Imperial recruit wanted to hear "Punishment detail" was certainly on the top. However, "Your first posting will be on the island of Morrowind" probably came in a close second. 

But for the sake of posterity, I'd better introduce myself to my own journal before I write any more. My name is Kerra, no last name given, a Khajiit of Cyrodiil, born and raised, I suppose. Certainly born, but my earliest memories are of lying on the stone steps of The Temple of the One, barely three years of age. I was fortunate to be taken in by the priests and nearly apprenticed myself to the Temple before the priests talked me into volunteering for the Imperial Legion Auxiliaries. I suspect they didn't know how to tell me that a Khajiit priest was simply not going to work, but I bear them no ill will. Thanks to them I had ample food, shelter, and education, more than most would have gotten with similar beginnings.

My last night at the Temple was a restless one. I wasn't combative, or even strong and what brief episodes of sleep I managed to get was plagued by blood, screams, and fields of dismembered corpses, all of them mine. Nevertheless, I set out for the Auxiliaries office early in the morning, determined to see what they were about. I figured I could simply desert one night if I wanted to.

The Auxiliaries were not quite what I thought they were. My nightmares had led me to expect something along the lines of a lighter infantry than the Legion's standard. When I arrived at the address the priests had given me I saw no mustering yard, no armory, not even one of the city's guard loitering at the entrance. A knock on the door revealed it to be unlatched and opened, so I walked in. The room was small and rectangular, bisected by a large wooden desk that was probably just as solid as the stone walls around it. A small wooden bench had been set along one of the walls, but the diminutive man at the desk beckoned me to approach.

A brief interview yielded a sheet of parchment with my name and the phrase "Field Observation Operative" under it. Directions to the actual Imperial Legion recruitment center were helpfully attached. 

When I reported to the recruitment center (armory, mustering yard and city guardsman also helpfully attached), I presented the parchment and was immediately sent into a small building attached to the main yard. Turns out the Auxiliaries should properly be called the Irregulars. They take in just about anyone with skills the Empire feels it can use to its advantage. In my case, the education I had at the Temple, combined with the physical labor I was typically employed with lent well to their needs. I wound up getting a smattering of magical education supplemented by a great deal of combat and survival skills. 

That was three months ago. I've since been employed locally, often along with a more experienced Auxiliary, though the tasks are not great. There is little chance for adventure in Cyrodiil and I've grown tired of chasing away bears and cutting back overgrown trails. I was told this morning that I'm being reassigned to the island province of Morrowind.

Morrowind. Derided among the Legion as a backwater, or as one particularly uncouth Legionarie described it: "The ass-end of the Empire". From what materials I've hurridely been able to consult between odd jobs today, as a Khajiit, slavery is going to be my largest concern, second to the rampant xenophobia I'll be facing. I'd feel better about this if I knew why I was going there without any equipment whatsoever, but I've led a fortunate life so far and hopefully my luck continues to hold out.

- Kerra, Cyrodiil, Imperial Legion Auxiliary barracks (for lack of a better term)