Uutak Genesis: Echmer

''“It exists because it is fact. Without fact, reality has no concept and is thus null.”'' – Echmeri Philosophy

The Echmer (/EK-MER/Ech-mer), which means the “Echo Folk” or the “People of Echoes”, are a race of Betmer that inhabit the isles of Yneslea. While they never met, the Ayleids knew of them as the Echiche. It is unknown what the Yokudans, Atmorans, or the Akaviri called them, but obscure texts that can be found in Tamriel suggests that the four groups met in on various occasions in times immemorial.

They are a naturally shy but extremely intelligent race. Well versed in science and academics, it is of importance to note that the Echmer as a whole frown down upon the use of the arcane arts, and prefer using their ‘reflected sounds’ instead. These Reflected Sounds are actually a mutated form of ancient Dwemeri tonal architecture. The Echiche should know about the Deep Folk more than anyone, even the Chimer – for if what they say is true, they were actually taught everything they know by the Dwemer.

Anatomy
A major misconception is that the Echmer are literal elves. However, they are only ‘Mer’ by right of name. While they do resemble elves in appearance, they are in fact the modern descendants of ancient bats that evolved into more merish forms. This ‘evolution’ was caused by Dwemeri tonal architecture, which turned their souls from white to black and increased their intelligence and growth.

Echmer generally stand at a height of five to six feet and weigh around two hundred to three hundred pounds. Naturally slim and well muscled, they are stronger in strength than the actual Mer races besides the Orsimer. The skin of an Echmer is usually a dark caramel tone, with light fur ranging from various shades of brown, grey, white, or black covering it. An Echmer’s face still closely resembles the face of a bat, protruding forwards in a snout. Their ears are larger but closer in shape to that of an elf’s, allowing them to hear exceptionally well. They have four finger hands with opposable thumbs, and four claws on each foot along with a back claw that allows them to hang from the ceiling.

Side Note: The Echmer are not blind, but have terrible day vision (the light from the sun is to bright for their pupils, as they live mostly in the dark caverns underneath Yneslea). They use echolocation (their reflected sounds) to travel in their environments.

The most remarkable physical detail of the Echo People is their wings. Resembling those found on a typical Tamrielian bat, they are joined to the forearms of the Echmer and are typically folded down on their back, making them resemble a cloak when not in use. Although the Echmer are incapable of sustained flight, they are able to glide very well.

The Echo People give birth to live young after nine months, similar to the other races of Nirn, with three to five offspring at one time (it is rare for an Echmer to give birth to one child, and is considered an example of ‘bad genes’ in their culture). The typical Echiche lives to about one hundred and fifty years of age. Their hair becomes silkier the older they get.

Echmeri Subspecies
The Echmer are separated into four main subspecies.
 * Hemaechi – The Hemaechi are the only Echmeri that drink blood for nourishment.
 * Entoechi – The Entoechi are the only Echmeri that hunt and kill insects for nourishment.
 * Pomiechi – The Pomiechi are the only Echmeri that gather and consume frit for nourishment.
 * Lactechi – The Lactechi are the only Echmeri that harvest Yak milk for nourishment.

Origins
At sometime during the Merethic Era, a clan of Dwemer split off from their brethren on the island known as Vvardenfell for unknown reasons and sailed east across the Padomaic Ocean and settled on the twin isles that would eventually be known as modern day Yneslea. As the Dwemer began to construct their factories and underground fortresses, they discovered species of bats within the caverns. Not viewing them as anything particularly interesting, the Dwemer continued on their buildings.

These bats, however, were very attuned to the vibrations of sound and became attracted to the Dwemer and their use of tonal architecture in their experiments, as well as the noise created by their machinery. As the years went by, these bats found themselves slowly becoming something different than what they used to be. The Deep Folk noticed this change, and immediately began rounding up as many of the bats that they could find and examined them. They found this ‘evolution’ to be fascinating, and sought to see if these bats could be considered sentient by their newfound metamorphosis.

Staging them as Trials, the Dwemer began to teach these evolved bats how to read and write, use arithmetic practically, and the fundamentals of the universe. The bats became wiser and stronger by the day, and soon the Deep Folk began to use them as a workforce, teaching them how to maintain their machinery while the Dwemer focused on more important experiments. It was around this time that the bats created the term Echmer as a name for their people, the ‘Echo Folk’.

The Echmeri became not only the pseudo-slaves of the Dwemer, but also their students in their fields of study. However, the Echo Folk found themselves at a crossroads over many of the things that the Dwemer were teaching them. Unlike their masters, they viewed greater beings known as the ‘Et’ada’ as wise beings of power. They also didn’t believe that transcending the mortal plane was a feat fully capable at the time. Despite this, the Echmeri continued doing the Dwemer’s tasks.

Until one day the Dwemer disappeared. The Echmeri continued doing their daily duties, wondering if their masters had traveled to another part of the caverns for some new experiment. And they waited. And they continued waiting. No one knows how long the Echmer actually waited for the Dwemer to return, but eventually their leaders revealed that they believed that their masters had abandoned them. The leaders decided that now the Echmer would be the masters, and they will create their own works and produce their own experiments.

With that, the Echmer began to study and rewrite the Dwemer’s notes. They began to venerate the gods (as their Collective of ATEDA), and built shrines in their honor. They reversed-engineered many of the automatons and fortresses, recreating them from scratch to fit their own tastes. They even made excursions to the surface to gather material for use, enslaving the goblin-like Hyu-Ket (however, after the Hyu-Ket began to die off dramatically they freed them out of a mixture of horror and scientific purpose).

No longer would the Echmer be in the Dwemer’s shadows. Now, the Dwemer would be in theirs.

Disputed Information
It is implied that the inhabitants of Atmora, Yokuda, and Akavir encountered the Echmer in ancient times. Tamrielian scholars have analyzed texts written about these events for years, with some examples as follows:

“…It was here that the crew of the Brahtmiir discovered even newer horrors, as they were attacked by tribes of savage bat-men whose Voices rivaled their own Tongues in both elegance and power…” – Excerpt From ‘Songs of the Return, Volume 38: The Nigh Lost Tale of the Brahtmiir’

“The talk-demons – with their wings of darkness – had no trouble reaching the shores of Kamal, but the ice daemons found it difficult to follow them back to their lands…” – Incomplete Inscription On A Statue Within Tonenaka

“The Ra Gada had encountered many demons and vanquished each in turn, from the goblins of Malooc to the bat gods of the eastward waters…” – Ancient Yokudan Text Found In Hammerfell

Because these texts were written in times that have been lost to memory, scholars have criticized most of what they say. For example:

The Nordic Songs of the Return, Volume 38: The Nigh Lost Tale of the Brahtmiir mentions that the Companions met a group of ‘bat-men’. However, the Echmer resemble Mer in appearance. Also, the Thu’um was not useable at that point of time by the Nords, making the use of the words ‘Tongues’ and ‘Voices’ mysterious.

Within Tonenaka (an Akaviri shrine that can be found in Rimmen) lies a statue that resembles a humanoid bat with its arms wide open and fangs bared with the inscription found above at its base. However, there is no reason why Tsaesci has any information on the Kamal in their shrine.

Finally, it is widely known that the ancient Yokudan pantheon is practically endless. Hell, they have a god of we have to many gods. Thus, these ‘bat gods’ that they speak of can simply be regular Yokudan gods. The only thing that states otherwise is the ‘eastward waters’ part, with Yneslea being in the east.

An important detail, which is found in all three pieces, notes the Echmer as tribal and gruesome. However, those traits do not fit the Echmer not in the slightest. Because of this, the integrity of these accounts is heavily scrutinized.

Annexation Into The Third Empire
During Uriel Septim’s Akaviri Campaign, the islands of Yneslea (at that time they bore no name) came into contact with the Imperial Fleet. The Tamrielians stormed the island that would be known as future Yne, where they discovered Echmeri workers mining Solarite. After bringing these men back to the Emperor, the Echmer explained that the Echmer were in control of the two islands. When Uriel asked the workers for the name of the islands, he allowed them to leave to report to the Council of Dull Chimes for an appropriate answer, and returned to the Emperor with the names of Yne and Slea. The Tamrielians combined the two, naming the conjoint isles Yneslea and formerly adding it to the Empire.

After the Akaviri Campaign ultimately failed, TEM left the island of Yneslea and nearly forgot about it. The Echmeri still traded with the Empire, selling their expensive cream products in exchange for Tamrielic lore. The Echmeri also have an Ambassador that travels to the Imperial City to report on the status of the island. However, as of the Fourth Era, this has become less frequently and is now considered rare. It appears that the islands have become isolationist in nature now.

Current Events
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Philosophy
Unlike the Dwemer, the Echmer worship deities (their pantheon, the Collective of ATEDA, consists of a combination of Aedra, Daedra, and other Spirits). However, they only worship these spirits core ideals, refusing to believe in anything that is even considered loosely associated with an ATEDA ‘useful’. That sentence neatly sums up the Echmeri way of life. In order for the Echmer to believe in something, they must have proof that such something exists. In their own words:

''“It exists because it is fact. Without fact, reality has no concept and is thus null.”''

Thus, the ATEDA exist because they can prove that they do. The Echmer exist because they can prove that they do. If it can’t be proven, it is not important to an Echmer. Because of this, lies (unless the lie is told for a good reason) and wishes are frowned down upon heavily in Echmeri culture. They also treat promises extremely seriously, with the person making the promise being engraved with a mark showing that they will uphold their promise. The mark is only healed after the promise has been upheld as well.

Personality
Despite being a strict people, the Echmer are very liberal in several places in their culture. However, the only thing that is not liberal is the Law. The Law is the code of the entirety of the Echmeri people, the verse that they live by.

They are cynical, sarcastic, and slightly arrogant in their studies. Echmer are also extremely competitive in their Trials, however they display this competitiveness calmly and patiently, which makes them deadly.