The Age of Empty Thrones

Alduin fell, but the dragons remained in Skyrim. With no common leader, some listened to Paarthurnax; others sought isolation or new domains. While the war divided men, the people learned to avoid the lands of the dovah.

Paarthurnax left the Throat of the World to teach the Way of the Voice to the other dragons. Some listened; others refused. During his long absences, the Thalmor began to watch the monastery and the dragon’s movements.

Ulfric defeated Tullius’s army, and the Stormcloaks believed Skyrim would be free. Blue banners returned to the roads, but the hope did not last. In Cyrodiil, the imperial defeat was taken as an intolerable humiliation.

Cyrodiil gathered legions, veterans and caravans to reconquer Skyrim. The new campaign sought to kill or capture Ulfric, break the strength of the Stormcloaks and keep any other local authority from defying the Empire again.

The Thalmor fed the war with espionage and political influence. When they learned of Paarthurnax’s absences, they sent the imperial command a plan against High Hrothgar, presenting the teachings of the Voice as a threat to the reconquest.

In Paarthurnax’s absence, imperial troops besieged High Hrothgar. The Greybeards resisted, but their masters were killed. Only one survived: taken under escort to an unknown fate, he left the monastery sunk in silence.

Paarthurnax returned and found High Hrothgar devastated. He held back his wish for vengeance to preserve the Way of the Voice and avoid a war against every dragon. After staying by the mountain, he left without any reliable word of where he dwelt.

The new imperial army took forts, bridges and roads. Ulfric refused to flee and gathered his warriors to halt the advance before Windhelm was cut off. Under a snowstorm, the decisive battle became a tragedy for Skyrim.

Ulfric died in battle, among the warriors who fought at his side. Without their leader, some of the Stormcloaks surrendered; others vanished into the mountains or formed small bands of resistance. The Empire declared the rebellion over.

Having won the war, the Empire emptied the cities’ thrones to prevent new rebellions. Jarls were imprisoned, killed or forced to flee; even Cyrodiil’s allies lost their autonomy. The halls remained, but nearly every throne stood empty.

The imperial victory cost more every week. Ruined roads, cold, disease and short supplies wore down the legions. Split into small bands, the Stormcloak resistance struck at patrols and made the occupation ever harder.

Months after Ulfric’s death, the Emperor authorized a partial withdrawal. Legions returned to Cyrodiil, and forts were abandoned. The Empire kept Solitude and strategic positions, but no longer had the means to hold all it had conquered.

Solitude became the seat of imperial authority in Skyrim. Officials and administrators worked from the city, while small garrisons guarded the essential routes. The Thalmor kept moving wherever Cyrodiil’s influence opened the way.

Outside Solitude, provisional councils took on each city’s troubles. Guards, merchants, priests and townsfolk arranged taxes, granaries and local disputes. Even with no Jarls on the thrones, daily life had to go on.

The people learned to recognize and avoid the dragons’ territories. Merchants turned their routes aside, and hunters respected the forbidden slopes. From that coexistence came a territorial peace, held up by custom, caution and fear.

When dragons took animals from the farms, the folk called the loss the Tribute of the Skies. Many would rather bear the cost than provoke a creature able to burn their homes. As the elders said: “Better two cows than two houses.”

The provisional councils began to lose their hold. Roads went unrepaired, guards demanded their wages and families fought over land. Order was coming apart, and every empty throne raised a more urgent question: who had the right to rule?

Ulfric’s death turned his story into legend. The Stormcloaks split between independence, the worship of Talos and revenge. Cells, militias and veterans sometimes worked together, sometimes fought each other. The banner lived on, but no one commanded them all.

Rumour had it that a Greybeard survived as a prisoner. His fate stayed hidden, among tales of ships and secret fortresses. If he still lived, he could keep the order’s teachings alive, and perhaps knew the old paths of Paarthurnax.

Skyrim had no recognized High King. Between fragile councils, imperial influence and draconic domains, the struggle to govern the cities grew. The halls were filling with voices again, and the people demanded someone who could answer for their future.