Khërn-Švere

The Khërn-Švere, or the Wild Kairn (Khërn), was a group of early Ibrófeneð individuals that existed within the Kairn Tribe. They resided in the northern reaches of the Volain Forest, and are known for their particular seclusion from the rest of the tribe. They played prominent roles in the creation and defense of the northern cities in the Avï-Arfarot. Ideologically, however, they were the most distant out of all the Kairnians from the foundational ideas like the Ëvoðo-Súroy. The Khërn-Švere endured a strenuous relationship with the rest of the Tribe due to these ideological differences.

Background: Departure of the Ýlëntuk Family and Formation of Kairn and Khalúš

The Kairn Tribe, alongside the rival tribe of Varhoŋïð-Khalúš, represented one portion of the Ýlëntuk Family, which was the first of the twelve families to leave the Ïlýrhonid Tribe in mid-25020 AYM. The Family, still united as one during the process of migration, would exit by sailing upstream the Kairn River System and settling at the Ŋópïŋ-Arún-Khërn, that is, the confluence of the two major rivers in the system. This is also near the center of a large swath of forest known as the Volain Forest, such that the river essentially split the forest into three segments.

There, the Family would feed off of the sustenance of the forest, and, finding life in the Forest much better and easier than life in the Tribe, they all agreed that it was the Family's mission to convince other families to make the trek outside the Tribe. They differed, however, on the means by which one was to carry this out. The Khalúšians, who had experienced great hardship in the Tribe, did not trust the central government at all, and wanted to abolish it by force and use their authority to lead the families out. The Kairnians, comprised of those who had predominantly positive experiences within the Tribe, or who simply felt it excessive to use military force, preferred to expose the tribe to the resources of the outside world through trade.

During the mere 3-4 months when the Family existed as a united entity, the two factions would gradually drift apart. By the end of the year, they were in two separate camps; the Khalúšians lived in the segment of land directly west of the confluence, while the Kairnians lived in the other two. Tensions would build up until 22 Wota-Eimarae, when a planned Khalúšian raid was thwarted by the Kairnians in what was called the Ambush of Ŋópïŋ-Arún-Khërn. Much of the Khalúšians were massacred, including key political/ideological figures, and the rest were chased en masse out of the Forest, where they would settle in and eventually take over the cities of Güðün and Óm-hayïd. This ambush remains one of the first recorded acts of mass murder, both inside or outside the Ïlýrhonid Tribe.

History

Early Kairnian History: The Avï-Arfarot

In the months that followed, the Kairnians would spread across the Volain Forest, populating it with small makeshift settlements in what was called the Avï-Arfarot system. These would be the main means of defense against Khalúšian assaults from the west, and provided the tribe with around 300 years of relative security and prosperity.

These settlements were connected to each other through a vast and novel system of communication centered around the three cities of Brüum-Avï, Gavórš-Avï, and Ïpïlš-Avï. These three were all situated in the eastern and western segments of the Forest, leaving the northern wedge-like territory relatively separated. From even this early period, the northern segment, which will from now on be referred to simply as the Khërn-Švere, would begin diverging in lifestyle from those of the other two, solely due to the imbalances in this system. Notably, it relied on foot messengers, and the natural barrier of the river itself, which was only traversible at very select points, greatly limited which cities in the northern part could reliably access this system.

Geographically, there were only two major crossings, one crossing from the west segment in, and the other from the eastern segment in. The main cities of this period were Gašïl-Avï and Hraðóm-Avï, both situated a short ways away from the two main crossing points of the river. From these two cities, a multitude of guard stations grew outward towards the northern edge of the Forest, creating a line of defenses stretching from one river source to the other. It was in this fashion that they would bestow upon themselves the responsibility of guarding not just the northern front of the Forest, but also the entryways into the Forest via these two River sources.

Encounter with the Lhrúuŋðarr Tribe

The Khërn-Švere quickly became acquainted with the fledging settlers of the Ðýmóš Plains, who by now had left the Plains and traveled northwestward, along the Forest's border, led by the Alëhadic Expedition. They were not emigrating, but merely constructing the Palïŋ-Lhrúuŋðarr, the first major trading route connecting the Plains and the Amoŋot Desert. To build the structures for the trading route, they could not rely on the crumbly dirt of the Plains, and instead turned to the Forest. As such, it was through the Khërn-Švere's interactions with these builders, later to be known as the tribe of Lrhúuŋðarr, that the Kairn Tribe as a whole came to acknowledge their existence and thus allow them to use the Forest's resources in construction. These resources would be used to build the three cities of Waðë-Vïn, Ŋëvra-Vïn, and Dlaýe-Vïn, the latter of which would be built partway into the forest itself. Dlaýe-Vïn thus became a multipurpose location for all business between the Kairn and Lhrúuŋðarr Tribes, but also those exclusively between the Khërn-Švere and the Lhrúuŋðarr as well. In fact, it would be through Dlaýe-Vïn that the Alëhadic Expedition would travel through when they were called back to the Ïlýrhonid Tribe in 25019 AYM.

Influenced by their allies, the Khërn-Švere would gradually adopt the Ótaš-Lhrúuŋðarr style of architecture during these early years. This used diverse resources from both within and without the forest, and due to the sheer diversity within the forest, this adopted style evolved to incorporate uniquely 'Šverian' resources like river pebbles, Dürï, and particularly extensive use of the Yoži-Volën. These serve as a key marker for later archaeologists, as the strictly wood-based architecture of other Kairnian regions has not nearly been able to stand the test of time as those of the Khërn-Švere.

Northern Campaigns

The Northern Campaigns of 25015 - 25003 AYM serve as the largest subconflict within the First Ýlëntukian War, and the first time both the Lhrúuŋðarr and Khërn-Švere saw combat (although relatively little for the latter). It arose due to persistent attempts by Hŋýïŋïkki, the Ðhýúŋðókk of Varhoŋïð-Khalúš, to invade and capture the Ïlýrhonid Tribe. Having been blocked off by the Kairnians and the Maðúšýï, Hŋýïŋïkki's next and final option was to move his army northeastward, traveling around the entire Forest, to hopefully reach the Ïlýrhonidians from the far east.

However, his plan fell into trouble right from the start; spotting the army moving near the western river (which runs just near to the Khalúšian territory), the Khërn-Švere moved to alert the Lhrúuŋðians, who were situated around the city of Ŋëvra-Vïn. What followed was the Battle at Ŋëvra-Vïn and the start of the Northern Campaigns. During the Battle, the city was badly damaged, at which point the battle transitioned to the surrounding areas. Both Šverians and Lhrúuŋðians fought alongside each other in the cities of Dlaýe-Vïn and Waðë-Vïn respectively, comprising one of the largest battles in terms of sheer ground coverage. The stout defense of Dlaýe-Vïn by the Šverians bought the struggling Lhrúuŋðians valuable time, during which they were able to regroup and push back their section.

Following the battle, the Šverians split ways; some individuals, motivated by their victory, opted to join the Lhrúuŋðian Army throughout the Northern Campaigns, while the others returned back to their forest lands. This represents a significant event of cultural mixing, and through their involvement with Lhrúuŋðians, the Šverians played prominent roles in driving back the Khalúšians in the culminating battle of Battle of Ïbhaažrrt-Ýhöýhašúk nearly 500 kilometers north of the Forest.

Palïŋ-Lhrúuŋðarr (Ýmor-Lhrúuŋðarr)

The Palïŋ-Lhrúuŋðarr was the major trading route that was finally completed by the Lhrúuŋðians after their victory in the Northern Campaigns. This last portion connected a specific few cities in the Amoŋot Desert's Hýyo-Wýðúr, especially Óvarhën and Ürhökk, to the three cities centered at Ŋëvra-Vïn, known as the Vanýst-Lhrúuŋðarr, and then to the extreme east cities of the Ðýmóš Plains. As such, these three cities, and by proximity the Khërn-Švere, were now the epicenter of a massive system of trade. In exchange for the many resources of the Forest, Šverians were now raking in rocks and soil from the Desert and the Plains, and their artstyle subsequently blossomed to include resources from nearly every corner of the Blýfónic Valley as a whole. This did not, however, include artstyles of these diverse regions; the attitude towards trade at this time was still one of trepidation, likely fueled by the cultural isolation of the Öšdúu, the violence in the First Ýlëntukian War, and a still-lingering uncertainty about the brave new world, among other things. To these early settlers, one's culture was greatly tied to one's own identity, and was therefore not shared with others outside of their tribes.

Due to their reliance on the trade route, the Khërn-Švere's period of cultural growth roughly matches that of the Ýmor-Lhrúuŋðarr, which was when the route saw the most activity. This lasted from 25003 to 24955 AYM, ending with the outbreak of the First Harýšian War in the far eastern reaches of the Lhrúuŋðarr Tribe. Through repeated assaults near or even at the trading route, the violence associated with this War spread fear throughout the entire route and greatly reduced the traffic there.