March to the Beat of the Doom Drum

by Caligulus Traxius

Preface

Common educational institutions throughout the Empire (may Talos save it) commonly neglect Merethic poetry. The reasons for this vary, but the primary one is that it is so hard to actually prove that a poem is legitimately from this era. As a child, when I thumbed through my school course companions on poetry, I was always so upset at the lack of detail given to the Merethic works. It wasn't until I was about the age of thirteen that I actually found a compilation of these poems.

Needless to say, I dedicated my pursuits to the study of ancient poetry to try and bring some of the lesser known works to light. My unrelenting search has allowed the common reader to delve into this extroardinary era. A recent archeological dig in Cyrodiil - the one that most of you have read about - unearthed several poems that arcane dating (amongst numerous other tedious measures) has placed in the Merethic. Lo' and behold, I was asked to translate them.

One of particular interest sprang out at me. It is the title of this essay. With the recent Great War leaving the Empire (may Talos save it) in distraught, many of you may have heard local bards reciting a nameless piece that is meant to rouse mens' spirits and foster opposition towards the Dominion. I had no idea that it was actually a Merethic Era poem. After much debate with my peers, we concluded that this poem must have been recited in the mythic war between Lorkhanic entities and Anuelic forces. It was preserved, in more or less perfect form, through millenia of oral transmission. This is an astounding discovery. Rarely does something journey through Time for such long stretches and come out of it unscathed. There are a few key differences, but the poem itself (as recited today) goes as follows:

Harken you lads and sharpen your spears;

Ready the lances and use those ears.

If pointed they are, then enemy is he;

Lay down our siege against tyranny!

Grab your wives and hold your sons;

Kiss your daughters, love till you’re done.

Talk out your grudges and brandish your rum;

For tomorrow we march to the beat of Doom Drum.

Flex the bows, plant the spikes;

Make the ground an elven pike.

The Mundus Frame the Giver-God;

We march to music of an old Heartless sod.

The Elves are ungrateful, their gods are the same;

But we know the light, the true Gods are sane.

A mannish plight 'gainst Aetherius Come;

Lest all is undone, march to the beat of Doom Drum!

Scholars are still working out its anolysis and we still cannot seem to grasp what some of the meaning is, particularly about the parts that are different in the original form. For instance, in the original copy (which we were lucky to be able to read, the stone tablets uncovered in most of the dig were badly fractured), line four does not complete the rhyme, and ends in the word Anueil rather than tyranny. A similar contrast occurs in line twelve. Heartless is replaced with Fatherly.

The initial conclusion was that the original was indeed a reflection of the events at that time. Whether or not such a war of the divines ever happened, this is fundamental to our understanding of Tamrielic history. We now have unrefutable proof that the legend of mannish-mer wars of the Merethic indeed derive from that time frame, and are not some rural myth that began in the First Era. No other known Merethic poetry describes these events.

The changes must account, obviously, for the the current affairs of our age. Heartless was inserted in order to amend the piece to keep it in concordance with accepted "facts" about Lorkhan, the Doom Drum. Similarly, it is much more fitting for a bard to recite a fight against tyranny (may the Divines undermine its spread) than against Anuiel, the chief merish depiction of Akatosh, or some shard of him. Whether or not this poem is connected to the growing conspiracy theory that the Thalmor are trying, in some way, to undermine the existence of the Mundus is another debate - one for the amateur scholars who dabble in such rubbish. Readers who have had their interest piqued will be relieved to know that the next issue of The Black Horse Courier will contain a fully detailed anolysis of the poem as it relates to the overall discoveries of the archaeological dig. In the meantime, I recommend my book, Where the Nirnroot Grows, for a comprehensive compilation of Merethic poetry and subsequent anolyses.

- Caligulus Traxius, 4E 200 Middas, Sun's Height

Hmm. I wonder if that's sung by the tune of March of Cambreadth.