Commander Romulus lived most of his life in a different world as a highly-decorated general in the old Solaris Empire's Royal Academy, a privileged leader with an upright reputation for integrity. Romulus' fall from grace happened not with the Great Chill, but much earlier. Over the years the nobility had become more powerful with the constant acquisition of land and titles, and one day Romulus woke up to find himself on their bad side. "Where there's smoke there's fire" so the old saying goes, and rumors of Romulus' association with seditious rebels was enough for the king to remove Romulus in disgrace.
But the same power that allowed nobles to remove a decorated hero like Romulus was the same power that allowed them to crush the life out of the peasants. Impossible taxes sparked the flame of rebellion first in the hinterlands and then closer to the heart of empire. This rebellion was big enough to wake up even the sheltered aristocracy within their bubble of wealth. In the time of their desperation, the old King thought of his former general the Court had mistreated years ago.
Romulus returned at the head of an army of Loyalists and pitched camp against a vastly bigger army on the Rebel side. Romulus held the Rebels at bay for months, but soon realized his strategy was doomed to fail. The Rebel ranks kept increasing with discontented peasants as more and more Loyalists abandoned the cause. Battle was inevitable and, as expected, Romulus lost.
So the general, twice elevated and twice disgraced, was led away in chains as a prisoner of war.
Although an enemy of the Rebels, General Romulus had done nothing deserving of death. Many Rebels had once served under him, including the former student who currently commanded the main Rebel force. Romulus' chains were immediately removed and he was surprised to find he was being treated quite hospitably.
Romulus spent months captive in the Rebel camp as he pondered his situation. Why should he fight on behalf of corrupt nobles uninterested in improving the life of the people? If the Rebels were going to win, why should he be numbered with the royal transgressors? Sunfire Castle fell to the Rebels in weeks. The royal family was no more. Romulus decided that for the sake of the new government that must rise in its place he would take the position of advisor to the Rebel leader who now called himself "Chief".
Romulus found himself essentially a free man afterward, troubled only by one central question: what happened to the Aeetes? This was the brigade Romulus had founded and led for most of his career. Fearful of Romulus' unproven loyalty, the King had not allowed Romulus to return to his former command even when asked to fend off the Rebels. The Aeetes themselves were assigned as far away from Romulus as possible on the other side of the Imperial hinterland. Even the new Rebel government did not know what had happened to those Romulus once counted his closest friends.
Romulus has retreated from public life and in the twilight of his years wishes to embark on a new and potentially very dangerous quest: to find out what happened to his old brothers-in-arms.