Of The Imperial Territories: Yneslea
Eis Vuur Warden, Scholar and Historian of the Imperial Geographical Society Circa 3E 429
###[Torn Set Of Pages From A Larger Work]
Although speculation of its existence has been around since the growing years of the Second Era in fables and legends from shipmasters in the east, the islands known collectively as Yneslea are home to the strange race of bat-men known as the Echmer, whose existence on the Aurbis is something we do not completely understand. Those that set foot on Yneslea for the first time are not wrong for assuming that they have entered a place both ancient and new; the very lands themselves feel like they are trying to tell you to leave and never return. The bizarre wildlife– ranging from multicolored mammals to giant insects to terrifying monsters – combined with the equally strange plants paint a scene from a childhood dream. Echmer of the working class herd their prized yaks across the emerald green grass. Automatons^1 clamber around performing tasks for merchants, their silver shells glittering in the sunlight.
Do not be fooled by their name, for the Echmer are not related at all to the merish races even though they resemble them quite a bit. Deadpan and secretive, these natives are completely attached to their islands and are not the slightest interested in visiting mainland Tamriel unless for trading or business. According to their own records their race was created by the now extinct Dwemer, descended from the species of bats that were changed by the experiments of the Deep Elves.^2 Whether this is true or not, the Echmer undeniably share many characteristics with bats. They trim their fur (ranging from variations of brown, white, and black) on a regular basis and their large ears can allegedly hear sounds that we cannot. They even have wings, but are incapable of sustained flight. With their brightly colored eyes and gruff personalities, many believe them to be haughty, hostile, and patronizing. In truth, however, the Echmer are just not used to having to interact with other cultures beside their own.
The Tamrielic Empire first encountered Yneslea during Uriel Septim V’s failed expedition to Akavir back in the second century of the Third Era. Conquering whatever lands he encountered, the Emperor set his sight on the islands as a potential garrison for auxiliary troops for his war effort. His men made landfall in the southern region of Ambient Littoral on Yne (one of the two major islands, the other being Slea), where he encountered the group of surface-dwelling Echmer known as the Exul. The Echmer, surprisingly, have had to defend their borders before in ancient times. The Snow Demons of Akavir known as the Kamal make it a priority to invade Yneslea every few years or so (thankfully, the Empire’s presence on the islands seems to have put a stop to these excursions) but the Echmer have always drove them back with their superior fighting tactics and war automatons.^3 The Echmer, however, were taken by surprise by the Imperial Navy and were caught in a bloody battle. To deciding that gracefully losing to the Empire was better than all out defeat, the bat-men regretfully agreed to a treaty that annexed them into the Tamrielic Empire in 3E 279 as the third Imperial territory. Because of this, they were able to keep certain cultural customs and behaviors compared to the inhabitants of the other territories.
Echmer are not the only sentient inhabitants of Yneslea. The goblins known as the Hyu-Ket also make their home here. Differing in appearance with the Tamrielic goblins as some weird insectoid mammalian, they are of a peaceful and simple intelligence and coexist peacefully with the bat elves. The Echmer admit to once using the Hyu-Ket as both a source of food as well as slave labor^4 throughout the First Era before ending the practice midway through the Second Era. Despite this, the goblin population on the island is still small compared to what it used to be before their bondage.
The above is ironic, for the Echmer themselves were once slaves to the Dwemer back when the race existed on Nirn. After the infamous Disappearance of the Dwarves at the Battle of Red Mountain, the bat elves were left to construct their own society from the ruins of their former masters. The Echmer remember these events as the ‘dark times’, back when everything was chaotic and confusing. Wars were fought days on end and there was much bloodshed until three of the armies joined together to crush all of the other opposition. The leaders of these forces became the first Troika and founded the Council of Dull Chimes, the leading government in Echmeri society. Five of the armies, refusing to adhere to the Council, continued to fight until they were given the right to be recognized as major extensions of the government operating under independent authority. These five leaders became the High Hypothesians, and were added into the now permanent eight-member seat of the Council of Dull Chimes.
The High Hypothesians each control one of the five Penta Wards, large familial organizations with unique roles in Echmer society focusing on Education (The Coalescent Efflux), War (The Shattering Fusion), Medicine (The Neglectful Acceptance), Religion (The Hidden Perception), and Sorcery (The Confined Abyss). These Wards also govern one of the six capital cities (the locals call them ‘Urbs’). The last Urb is joint-headed by the Troika, who focus on Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce. Disputes between government officials is handled swiftly and fully, with acts of assassination or espionage viewed as cowardly and disgusting.5 The Echmeri government holds no title of ‘King’ or ‘Queen’, but is instead a society where the elite (the Council) rule conjointly.6
Echmer are separated into cultural groups: the surface-dwellers known as the Exul and the underground-dwellers. The surface Echmer possess a much more even-temperament than their below ground cousins, and make a living through farming, fishing, herding, and mining. Those that dwell belowground also practice farming, fishing, herding, and mining, but also focus on more educated pursuits like literature and automaton production which they provide to their aboveground cousins.
Bat elven apparel usually consists of exotic robes7 or a flowing shirt with breeches made from some sort of silk. These tend to be brightly colored, clashing well with their tan skin and varying colors of fur. They tend to go barefoot or wear sandals when traveling, and the Exul favor woven wide-brimmed reed hats to hide the glare of the sun. Cloaks are also appreciated on the islands. In times of war the Echmer wear light, medium, and heavy variations of their unique chainmail and laminar armors. Depending upon their rank, a servicemer’s armor will glow a different color to help differentiate them from their comrades. These soldiers are armed with bucklers, cutlasses, tridents, repeating crossbows8, and more unique forms of weaponry depending on the situation, as well as being accompanied by an Auralmata.
Something that should also be known to the average Tamrielic is the peculiar religious beliefs of the Echmer. They do not seem to worship any Aedric or Daedric deities at all, and have no traditional pantheon of spirits. According to their philosophers, they see no difference between the gods and themselves and believe it foolish to hold reverence for a specific set of entities when an infinite multitude exists.9 The book Varieties of Faith in the Imperial Territories: Yneslea is thus a somewhat inaccurate description of Echmeri ‘religion’, as it only lists only a few spirits compared to the amount they actually recognized. They seem to not have a creation myth10 and do practice some form of Ancestor Worship^11 as well, along with a strange but strong distaste for practicing magicka.
Of special note are the Cult of HRAHNDEYL, the Cult of LYEDHNARH, the Black-Welkin, and the Prophecy of the Tutor, Tester, and Truant, which seem to be the only overtly religious practices in the Tamrielic line of thinking.
>Cult of HRAHNDEYL > >HRAHNDEYL is a god-hero of the Echmeri race, having once been a mortal that ascended into godhood through mysterious means. In his mortal life, he was a great leader and philosopher who was exiled from Yneslea when the Council believed him to be of a radical mindset. For twenty years he wandered Nirn for the meaning of mortal life, which he apparently attained. Hrahndeyl then returned to Yneslea, where he spoke of the things he learned in his banishment. To prove what he said was true, he built the Pleonastic Spire simultaneously as he pierced the Black-Welkin with it, apotheosizing as the God of Sound (but more commonly called the God of Talk). He materializes many times throughout Echmer history like the other et’ada, appearing in times of strife or confusion to help guide the bat elf people to prosperity. He supposedly resides at the top of the Pleonastic Spire, which houses Echmeri acoustineers and is the center of development for their version of Tonal Architecture.^12
>Cult of LYEDNHARH > >LYEDNHARH is openly hated by the Echmer people as the self-loving and self-serving God of Silence, who seeks to destroy their very way of life. A deity whose origins are shrouded in utmost secrecy and mystery, he has been linked countless times to HRAHNDEYL, who is his archnemesis. His worshippers are called Mirror-Talkers due to the reflective masks they wear and are hostile to both Tamrielics and Echmer alike. They have been banned from Urbs since times immemorial, but a few always find a way to cause damage to the cities.
>Black-Welkin > >The afterlife of the Echmer race, where their souls cease from existence. The Echmer state that it is just an old translation for the Void, but the Empire (and especially the Imperial College) frowns down on such claims. Tamrielic priests agree that is merely another realm of Aetherius sacred to the Echmeri people.
>The Tutor, the Tester, and the Truant > >The Mirror-Talkers speak of a mysterious and ancient prophecy detailing the return of a mysterious Echmer hero that will truly free their race from the aurbical prison once and for all. The Tutor is linked to HRAHNDEYL and the Tester is LYEDNHARH, but the Truant is apparently of both of their natures. Not much is known about this strange divination, and the Council openly disapproves of it.
####Places of Note:
#####Port White-Gold Port White-Gold is the center of power and life for the Empire on Yneslea; a bustling town founded in the spirit of Nibenay. In fact, it is rare to find a Colovian at all on the islands for it seems the Nibenese have taken it upon themselves to recreate their realm on Yneslea. The East Empire company practically controls the city, as it the main source of income for the Imperial towns on the islands. Tattoo parlors and silk shops are plentiful, and the cash crop rice has been successfully integrated with the environment. The Cult of Heroes has become widespread along these parts, and the Akaviri motifs only further makes the town standout. Fort Musicmoth can be found on the outskirts of town, housing the legendary warriors of the Legion. Exul have even started to come into the city to live, which is viewed as a positive thing for the Empire as a whole.
#####Dweech
The Dweech is the name for the entire cavern system beneath the Yneslian islands, which is under the supreme authority of the Council of Dull Chimes. Compared to the surface, it is an entirely different land altogether. Morpholiths are embedded in the wall to illuminate the dark tunnels, revealing the bizarre flora and fauna that dwells below. Sadly, most Imperial information on this exotic remains speculation for the most part, for the Echmer hardly let anyone of Tamrielic background down here – whether to protect them or to keep them ignorant of their doings, one can’t say.
#####Oexra’numsaz
The largest and oldest Urb on Yneslea, Oexra’numsaz is under the control of the three Troika of the Council of Dull Chimes. Solarite – a silver Echmeri metal mined on the surface – and marble buildings are built on the ground and out of the ceiling, linked by ladders, walkways, and zipline systems harnessing hook-gauntlets worn by passengers. Mermade lakes housing fish and subterranean Yak farms are abundant, along with greenhouses for herbs and spices. According to its citizens, it was built on the ruins of a Dwemer city that in itself was built on ancient temple of an even more ancient, extinct race now forgotten to time. Everyday excavators continue to dig out new sections of the temple, which seems to have been built by a group of men that worshipped esoteric insect gods.13 Tamrielic researchers help in the process, as this is the only Urb where people from our continent are welcomed to live and pass through.
#####Begetter’s Hillock
An abandoned Dwemer Ruin on the surface, whose name has been lost to history. It is currently being contested by the Empire and the Council of Dull Chimes; Emperor Uriel seeks to investigate it for any useful artifacts14 and believes he can due to the fact that it lies above the surface, thus under his jurisdiction. The Council opposes this, seeing the ruin as something that should not be meddled with.
#####Hrahn’s Isles
This group of three isles (the Yneslea archipelago is officially made up of eight islands) are barren and insignificant, but the Empire has shown some interest in them in the past year for some unknown reason, and are beginning negotiations with the Council of Dull Chimes for its acquisition. A dirt oasis filled with mysterious carved rocks jutting out of the dust, only a persistent tribe of Exul and an assortment of animals call these lands home.
#####The Dreaming City
According to tomes of Echmer lore, this fabled city of water and life is where their souls come from. All members of their race are born knowing of it, but not how to find it. Does it exist underwater, in another plane of existence? Or does it even exist at all?
###[Scribbled-In Commentaries]
“Undeniably a practice that they learned from the Dwemer. Perhaps the Summerset Isles can benefit in learning the process in the creation of animunculi, even if it means dealing with these lowly beastfolk?”~
“An interesting origin, which further separates them far from our ancestors.”~
“Why are the Kamal so interested in conquering Yneslea?”~
“Hmph, goblin slavery is not too appalling. However, eating them is. Barbaric!”~
“One of the few things I admire about the bats. Very orderly, unlike men and the other beastfolk.”~
“This is also an admirable trait. Maybe their merish influence has been for the better after all…”~
“Heard tales that the Echmer are capable of binding summoned Daedra in their attire, giving them special and hidden properties…”~
“The Empire attain advanced schematics for self-reloading crossbows and do not distribute them to the other provinces?!”~
“This is blasphemous! Clearly they have adopted many of the Dwemer’s philosophies. Very dangerous…”~
“!”~
“At least they have this amount of intellect.”~
“Really need to open negotiations with the Council of Dull Chimes…might be beneficial to stealing Tonal secrets…”~
“Must bring more agents to investigate this!”~
“I’ve heard that the ailing Emperor is trying to gain the help of the bats to learn about the abrupt disappearance of the Numidium after the events of the Warp in the West. Might have something to do with this…”~