Ullonwï Upset

Though the spark to start the period of the Upset began with a murder, tensions were high before the Merientei had even reached the shores of Ullonwï. Their ships, hastily built by inexperienced hands, barely survived the fourteen days they spent at sea. One disaster after another loomed behind every corner and daybreak without a glimmer of hope in sight beyond vague rumors and claims of a promised land.

Isänie, the uncrowned mother and ruler of the Merientei, held onto whatever fragments of order she could. Despite her efforts, fights and even a mutiny broke out as people became desperate in their wish to turn back. To them, the journey was hopeless and death their only destination—unless they turned back.

Things hardly became better after Isänie's words were proven beyond doubt. Ullonwï, though rich in life and teeming with more food and resources than the Merientei could ever need, proved a beautiful, if eerie trap. The sung magic they knew and depended on no longer worked, and the very nature around them proved tainted and even deadly. Every plant was thoroughly imbued with some nameless poison—though not deadly, at least not as such.

Anï-eriimel was a condition affecting those who ate the plentiful fruits and berries of the region, something people were desperate to taste after their days on the sea. As the poison began to take hold of their minds, inhibiting control and bolstering emotions such as fear and hate, the foundations to the Upset were near complete.

Many grew ill and some died even before the three ships reached land, with more tragedies piling up on top of each other even after the Merientei landed on Ullonwï. Many found anger easier to handle than grief, one thing led to another, and a life was lost on a hill overlooking the sea when one accused another of stealing food and hiding it away for themselves. That death on top of the hill came to break what peace was left, and gave
birth to Ullonwï Upset.

Outcome

Isänie, Ïhwa-Antï and a few others gathered together the warring people by means of diplomacy where they could, threats where they could not. Reluctantly people from all reaches of Ullonwï came together on top of the very same hill where sparked the first flames of the Upset. They stood silent and tired as Isänie spoke.

Sun shone unusually strong that day, piercing through the veil of overwhelming fog when Isänie announced the end to violence and the beginning of the first Anëhtoma. With a voice of unusual command she called for the first meeting of clans to unite the people.

Those few clans who did not agree to join the Anëhtoma that day were cast aside and forced to move well away from those who agreed to the pact, with veiled threats of aggression returned in kind, should anyone attack a clan under Anëhtoma's—and her own—influence and protection.

Aftermath

Ullonwï Upset directly caused the creation of Anëhtoma, a council of representatives, a gathering of peers which became something of a ruling power in the region. To the Merientei, the Assembly was something completely new, as their own forefathers had lived in relative isolation, with one clan being largely independent of another.

The memory of the Upset remained in tales and songs shared by the Merientei, though even the stories tended to shift over time. The period's consequences, however, remained clear, and though Ullonwï Upset remained a great tragedy, many recognized the creation of stability from the chaos it preceded.