User:IceFireWarden/A Yneslea Historia: The Merethic Era

A Yneslea Historia: The Merethic Era

by Eis Vuur Warden, Imperial Geographical Society, 4E 199

A Brief Account of the Merethic Age in the Yneslean archipelago

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Herein lies a thorough detailing of the histories and events pertaining to the Yneslean Archipelago, Homeland of the Bat Elves, and one of the Empire’s most valued and longstanding trading partners. Events transcribed within these volumes are largely taken from the records and theories of Echmeri scholars, with a few portions of the timeline including Tamrielic dates for reader comprehension and to add additional reasonings/detail to the happenings that occurred in those years within the Ice Cream Lanes.

I.I THE MERETHIC AGE

I.II THE EARLY MERETHIC

ME ca. 2000 — The Dwemeri Wanderings

• The Dwemer, 'ancestors' of the Echmer, drift throughout the Starry Heart during this timeframe. It is unknown if they, like the Aldmer, came from Aldmeris or if they were always dwelling in Tamriel since the end of the Dawn. Not staying in one place for too long, the Deep Folk move eastward in their exploration of the continent.

ME ca. 2000 — The Arrival of Men

• According to the archaeological studies of the crumbling ruins found throughout the archipelago, as well as the oral renditions of the Hyu-Ket, a large group of men migrated from the east (presumably from Akavir) and made landfall in Yneslea around this period of time. They called themselves the Kítapoe and had a fairly primitive culture, which revolved around ritual sacrifice, herbivorous dieting, hieroglyphics, and the construction of temples from the (then) carapaces of the giant arthropods that called the island-chain home during this time frame.

ME ca. 1700 — Construction of the Chaos Monoliths

• Since no other civilizations exist on Yneslea during this time, the Kítapoe are assumed to have constructed the Chaos Monoliths: a series of standing stones dedicated either to a group of forgotten deities or to illicit celestial bodies. They are inscribed with various insect imagery, and according to Hyu-Ket and Echmeri legends hold some form of untapped power, but for the large part remain mysterious to scholars. Chaos Monoliths, from smaller wayshrine-like ones to the towering obelisks, can be found throughout the archipelago.

ME ca. 1800 — Foundation of the Dwarves

• As shown on the awe-inspiring mechanical-stone tapestry the Echmer call Gharen’s Wall, the Dwemer end their nomadic wanderings and begin to settle the areas that would become Skyrim, Morrowind, and the northern parts of Argonia in the eastern parts of Tamriel. Although they come into conflict with several groups of primitive beastfolk and men, it does not halt nor deter the beginning foundation of what would become the Freehold Cities.

ME ca. 1650 — Wars with the Dreugh Kings

• According to stone carvings found in ancient Kítapoe temples depict the Dreugh not as the monsters known and feared today, but rather as the mysterious Cephalomer. The Cephalomer’s migration to ancient Yneslea brought them into conflict with the Kítapoe, who knew nothing of their kind, but were still able to put up a fight against the outsiders. It is believed that the dreugh kings drive the majority of the giant insects of the archipelago into extinction shortly after their arrival.
• Midway through these Dreugh-Kítapoe conflicts, a new species arrives to the archipelago – the Broh-Kah. The Broh-Kah are a race of savage and hairy frog-men who claim (when one of their ilk is born with the mental capacity to speak) they chased their archenemies (the dreugh) ‘from the last world-river into this one’, hinting at some otherworldly nature. Due to their amphibious nature, the Broh-Kah lay waste to the underwater kingdoms of the Cephalomer as the Kitapoe withdraw when faced with this new threat.

ME ca. 1600 — Fall of the Eastern Dreugh Kingdoms

• The Broh-Kah drive the Yneslean dreugh civilization into extinction, claiming their underwater cities for themselves and using them as a staging ground to attack the ill prepared Kítapoe. Due to a natural propensity to raze and plunder, the Broh-Kah quickly become a thorn in the side of the Insect Men and and even today present a threat to the entire archipelago.

I.II THE MID MERETHIC

ME ca. 1500 — The Dwemeri Expansions

• Having gained a firm holding in eastern Tamriel, the Deep Folk begins to establish and maintain borders throughout the extent of their territories. Originating from what would eventually be called the Velothi Mountain Range, underground cities, farms, factories, and trading posts grow in presence as the Dwemer become a continental superpower only rivaled by the Falmer to the north and the Ayleidoon to the west.

ME ca. 1500 — The Search for Trinimac

• The ancestors of the Hyu-Ket arrived in Yneslea around this time, as a result of the Velothi Exodus. By examining the accounts in Nordic & Altmeric cultural myths as well as the oral traditions of the Hyu-Ket themselves, we can safely assume their origin. All goblins were once Aldmer who worshipped the god-hero Trinimac. When the warrior god went out to confront and stop the Velothi Exodus, he was changed by malicious forces into the daemon-god Malacath and his followers changed with him. The majority of these Aldmer became the Orsimer (Orcs), the large ones became Ogres, and the smallest ones became the original goblins from which all known goblinoids are descended.
• A large tribe of said goblins (the ancestors of the Hyu-Ket) eventually migrated to Resdayn in hopes for revenge against the Chimer that wronged their god, but were forced to flee eastward when the Velothi showed no mercy for them or care for their plight. Most of the goblins made landfall on the region of the Yneslean archipelago known as Hrahn’s Isles, where they underwent severe physical changes as a result of their consumption of a now extinct magical porcini.
• The Hyu-Ket and the Kítapoe would trade before the latter’s mysterious fate, allowing the Hyu-Ket to learn necessary skills like animal domestication and alchemy. The goblins quickly become adept at the brewing of all manners of potions and poisons, and use their newfound animal skills to domesticate the autochthonous dire wolves of Yneslea.

ME ca. 1400 to 1300 — Arrival of the Velothi

• The Chimer migration to eastern Tamriel, where they would be left alone by their aedraphile brethren to the west, brings conflict and war to the Dwarven Holds. Veloth’s people find themselves insulted by the Dwemeri devotion to the ways of science and alchemy instead of the gods and magic, creating an animosity that would never be solved.

ME ca. 1300 to 900 — A Rage of Dragons

• Kítapoe hieroglyphics depict several migrations of Akaviri dragons (both the two-legged drakes remembered in the West, and the rare bestial khimeras almost exclusive to the East) around this time period. Some attempt to roost in Yneslea, creating conflict, while others continue to fly ever westward for unknown reasons. Judging from some temples, chaos monoliths, and stone-tapestries, this was taken as a terrible omen by the Insect Men and the entire culture becomes much more withdrawn from the affairs of the archipelago as a whole.

I.III THE LATE MERETHIC

ME 700 — Evidence of Early Akaviri Colonists

• The Yneslean island of Tzunma is the first place factually proven to have been visited by inhabitants of Akavir post-Kítapoe, although it is more than likely that they were making trips beyond their continent way before this point of time.
• Reasonings for this date stem from Tzunma Island’s most incredible feature—the Jaeshesci, a gigantic representation of a winged sea-serpent magically carved from the coastline of the island itself. Within the maw of the statue is a calendar that counts backwards from the day of its construction, which allows scholars to accurately measure the time of Akaviri arrival.
• Since the settlement of Tzunma, more Akaviri colonists seem to make their way towards Yneslea according to the Hyu-Ket. The Kítapoe, however, are less than pleased with this and are remembered by the bug goblins to have warred with the outsiders frequently.

ME ca. 500 — The Kítapoe Vanish

• The Kítapoe disappear from Yneslea, leaving only small traces of their presence behind. The Broh-Kah seem to not care about this event enough in order to remember it (but to be fair, that is typical of their behavior). The Hyu-Ket either have no knowledge of the civilization’s true fate or do not sing of it in their ancestral songs for the Echmer to analyze and study. It is notable, however, that the arrival of the humanoid arthropodal monsters known as the Peine to Yneslea coincides very closely with this ‘extinction’ event.
• Several chaos monoliths are repurposed into makeshift ‘remembrance’ shrines for the Insect Men by the Hyu-Ket as a means of honoring them.

ME ca. 400 — The Noraken Exodus

• After years of fighting with the Chimer, and perhaps disagreements with the other clans, Clan Noraken sets sail from Tamriel and never as a whole return. They are led by Gharen Mezzalf, the Supreme Lord-Artificer of Dumac Dwarf-King, who leads his people eastward from Tamriel by airship and boat in search of a new homeland.

ME ca. 300 — Gharen’s Congregation arrives in Yneslea

• Although the exact date is uncertain, as Gharen’s Wall does not imply one, it is believed that the Noraken made landfall in the Yneslean archipelago around this time. They are quick to establish a presence, repurposing their airships and sea vessels into early settlements and using their automatons as a reliable workforce.
• While skirmishes with the Broh-Kah and the Hyu-Ket occur, the Noraken mostly leave the simpler races alone as they strive to complete their cities (however, if surviving oral traditions hold some truth, Noraken scientists also began capturing and experimenting with racial samples in these mysterious years).

ME ca. 200 — Nature Blooms

• Nature spirits (like spriggans, sylphs, nereids, pixies, and nymphs) become much more common in the archipelago as the Hyu-Ket begin cultivating and taking care of its environment, in spite of frequent clashes with the Broh-Kah.

ME ca. 250 — Noraken drive back the Akaviri Colonists

• Not taking kindly to the inhabitants of Dragonland they find lurking in the southeastern islands of the archipelago, the Noraken exterminate them without thought or care, retrieving extra resources from the short-lived communities and leaving the ruins standing as a silent threat.

ME 1 — The End of the Yneslean Merethic & Birth of the Spirit Chieftain

• A particularly powerful khimera (remembered in Hyu-Ket oral history as Faasevenaarbahlok) arrives in the archipelago, massacring several of his brethren and any drakes he can find and declaring the island chain his new kingdom.
• Rallying against this new threat, the Hyu-Ket unite their scattered tribes into a unified force and wage war with the khimera for thirty days and thirty-one nights until their Gol-Thek (a word that means “Spirit Chieftain”) strikes the killing blow.
• Sources differ on the nature of Gol-Thek. The Echmer consider this to be the origin event of the Gol-Thek spirit, created when a Hyu-Ket devoured the blood and soul of the dying Khimera. The Hyu-Ket claim that the Gol-Thek has existed since the beginning of time and was only able to manifest onto Nirn using the power of the vanquished dragon.
• The Gol-Thek fashions ten powerful spears from the khimera’s corpse before ascending to take his place at Malacath's side (although only three of those spears are still in existence today). This event marks the end of the Yneslean Merethic Period.