For the Want of an Empire

"For the want of an empire…all humanity was lost."

―Jaalib Brandl^[1]

For the Want of an Empire was a play starring Jaalib Brandl. The play included a sword duel between two former friends. It focused on a tragic hero bent on destroying his one-time friend and companion.

At the death of the friend, the hero went on in the final act as a young councilman to rise into the inner circles of high government, only to discover corruption in every facet of its existence.

In act two, the hero initiated a campaign to end the deterioration of the bureaucracy.

In act three, as his vision expanded, it became a ruthless autocracy, bent on extermination of its enemies and all who opposed.

In the final scene, the hero stands alone in a splintered universe of his creation, devoid of hope, life, family, and friends. Then the hero collapsed to the ground. Dead.