The Imperial Guard, in their flourishes of pine velvet and tall white hats, march ahead of the column. Flanking are regiments of gallant noble youths fluttering in a rainbow of colour in the steppe wind. At the centre, guarded on all sides by Imperial Custodians, the Emperor himself sits atop his gryphon. Resplendent in the golden armour of Great Mor, which details the glorious history of the first King-of-Kings in its intricate inlay, he glitters in the cold spring sun. None of the common soldiers are close enough to see that the gryphon's great wings are bound with thin steel chains, fastened to the membranes of the wings with spikes. Nor do they see the nervous handlers that tow the beast forward. Or smell the sweat on the skin of the Emperor, as it drips through the cracks of his golden armour.
Paddy Dobson
1st February 2022