The Silver Imperium

The Silver Imperium is a mysterious organization of assassins. Despite their renown and frequent connections to high-profile assassinations, the organization has remained almost entirely within the shadows, and what little is known about it often comes from secondary or tertiary sources, making details difficult to confirm. Since its inception, the Imperium has utilized death and brutality to shape the course of empires and civilizations from the shadows, all the while keeping their true motivations hidden from prying eyes.

History

Inception

In the aftermath of the Lithos War, much of the world's focus was on rebuilding. Through the establishment of the United Coalition of Allied Nations, the nations fortunate enough to have survived the devastation brought by the Sanumic Combine hoped to lay the groundwork for new post-war nations to recover and flourish through peace and diplomacy. The goal was noble, if slightly naive, as it hoped to ease anxieties and prevent another conflict of that scale from occurring again. Though many within and without the burgeoning alliance agreed with the plan, there were some who believed more direct action would be necessary to prevent any one nation from reaching the strength necessary to replicate the Combine. In order to be certain another Lithos War could never again be possible, it was an inevitable truth to some that blood must be shed.
One man, an individual known only to history as the Imperator, had seen first-hand the devastation caused by the Combine's war, having first survived a raid that destroyed his home village before later serving as a soldier in the Coalition forces near the end of the war. The experience had changed him, and instilled within him a deep rage against the Combine. When he learned of others who shared his fury, he sought to galvanize their fury into something tangible. While others focused on diplomacy and reconstruction, the Imperator was focused solely on revenge. With those like-minded individuals serving as the organization's first Council, the Imperator began organizing a network of mercenaries and assassins with the explicit purpose of executing the leadership of the shattered Combine. Though their chain of command had crumbled, many former Combine leaders remained at large, a mistake the Imperator was quick to correct. The Silver Imperium was officially founded in 4,091 AB (4E 330), and within a year over 400 former Combine leaders were killed by Imperium agents.

A New Purpose

Once the Imperium Council was certain the Combine had been fully eradicated, their attention turned towards a new goal: ensuring no other group could ever rise to the level of the Combine. It was inevitable that some would seek to create their own facsimile of the Combine, especially as many of the leaders propped up by the United Coalition of Allied Nations quickly saw their designated provinces collapse into infighting and civil strife, only to either be replaced by ambitious would-be conquerors or become ones themselves. Many of these leaders would find themselves staring down the blade of an Imperium assassin, their despotism and cruelty turning them into a threat that could not be ignored.

Slow Corruption

As the threat of the Combine faded into memory and the power-hungry regimes of the reconstruction period were replaced with stable governments, the Imperium's purpose again began to change. Though the organization still clung to its initial purpose, the mission became little more than a phrase meant to provide the thinnest justification for their members' actions. Over time, the Silver Imperium became yet another guild of contract killers. Blades once used to dethrone kings and topple dictators were now silencing critics and slaughtering peasants. The morality that guided their founding became little more than a memory, with Imperium members often finding themselves in the employ of individuals their predecessors would have been ordered to kill.
As the organization fell from its initial purpose, members of other established guilds increasingly found themselves increasingly crossing paths, or even crossing blades, with the dreaded Imperium. Over time, the criminal underworld of Yrnath began to grow frustrated with this new reality, as many assassins and mercenaries found their jobs handled by the time they reached their targets. Some even found their clients mysteriously killed before their return, leaving them unable to claim their cut for certain jobs.
The frequent close encounters proved to be frustrating for the Imperium Council, who found themselves increasingly frantic over avoiding a potential clash between them and another organization. In a desperate bid to avoid a direct encounter, the Council mobilized a number of spies and informants into the criminal hubs of Yrnath, gathering intel about the movements and actions of the other guilds to hopefully stave off these frequent incidents. Despite their best efforts, a direct encounter would occur regardless, as an agent of the Imperium was identified and overpowered by an assassin from the Blueskull Company. The description of the agent was soon spreading throughout the underworld, all but ensuring the Silver Imperium's operations would be discovered.
In a desperate attempt to stave off what they viewed as an inevitability, the leadership of the Silver Imperium believed it necessary to wipe out the criminals before they have a chance to spread what they know any further. On the night of 14 Septes, 4,362 AB (5E 149), they sent two dozen of their best assassins to a bar in Celere with the intent to massacre anyone connected to the Blueskull Company inside. The clash that followed was devastating, though in the end the Blueskull mercenaries inside the bar managed to overpower and kill nearly all of the Imperium assassins. The bodies of the dead Imperium members were then returned to the Silver Imperium's headquarters, as proof that the Blueskull Company knew where the Imperium Council was located.

War in the Dark

The Celere Incident became the flashpoint for a years-long conflict between the Blueskull Company and the Silver Imperium known as The War in the Dark. During the conflict, each organization declared the membership of the other to be high-priority, "kill-on-sight" targets, leading to a number of violent and catastrophic confrontations. Both sides suffered considerably, though the longer the conflict went, the clearer it became that the Imperium was outmatched. The Blueskull Company had much more experience in direct confrontations than the Imperium, whose members preferred to keep to the shadows whenever possible. With each loss the Imperium suffered, the gap only widened, as their dwindling membership turned the fight into a struggle for survival.
As the war became increasingly dire for the Silver Imperium, a member of the Imperium Council, Vyreet Greystone, began advocating for an end to the conflict. In his mind, surrender was the only way to guarantee the survival of the organization, and believed the Blueskull Company could be reasoned with. The rest of the Council disagreed vehemently with his arguments, believing there might still be a chance for the Imperium to strike a blow devastating enough to force their enemy to surrender. As punishment for his suggestion, Vyreet was demoted to role of Auxiliary, retaining his position on the Council but barring him from Council meetings.
Rather than surrendering as Vyreet had suggested, the Silver Imperium enacted a very risky plan. A group of assassins would be sent to the headquarters of the Blueskull Company, with orders to wipe out their leadership. Despite the chaos of the War in the Dark, neither side had yet to make direct attacks against the other's leadership. While the rest of the Council was certain the plan would succeed, Vyreet understood that if the plan failed, the Blueskull Company would inevitably send their own assassins to wipe out the Imperium Council. Rather than wait for news of the group's success, Vyreet left the Imperium's main headquarters alongside his wife and daughter, moving to an isolated encampment in the Fractured Lands.
Eventually, the plan was executed, and Vyreet's fears were realized. The assassins sent to the Blueskull Company's headquarters were quickly dealt with, leaving the Blueskulls' leadership unharmed. Then, on the night of the 15th of Septes, 4,365 AB (5E 152), exactly three years after the conflict had began, the Blueskull Company sent a lone assassin to the headquarters of the Imperium Council.
There were no survivors.

The Silence of Silver

When Vyreet learned of the attack, he was devastated. The organization he had fought so desperately to preserve had been pushed to the brink by short-sighted fools who cared more for victory than self-preservation. The Imperium Council was dead, and the few members of the organization that remained were scattered across the globe and unable to mobilize.
From this tragedy, Vyreet found opportunity. As the last survivor of the Imperium Council, he was now the highest ranking member of the Imperium, giving him sole authority over the organization. He quickly set about laying the groundwork for a grand return of the Imperium, though he knew such a return would never happen in his own time. The only way he could be certain the Silver Imperium could survive was to be the one to kill it. He ordered any remaining agents to immediately cease their operations, even if it meant forfeiting active contracts. The agents were also ordered to destroy any and all evidence connecting them to the Imperium, to ensure they could lead somewhat normal lives going forward. Vyreet's aggressive actions left a number of spies and informants stranded with no lifeline, with some trapped firmly in hostile territory with no hope of extraction. Vyreet also made sure to destroy much of the Imperium's records, wiping decades of history in the process. The Silver Imperium, crippled following years of decline and a devastating conflict with the Blueskull Company, was effectively no more.
In 4,660 AB (5E 447), the governor of Nesyn in Elysia was assassinated. Witnesses at the time of the murder reported seeing an individual dressed in the traditional garb of the Silver Imperium fleeing the scene. After centuries of silence, the Imperium had returned.

Reality's Shield

4E 330 - Present

Alternative Names

The Imperium