After the Oblivion Crisis, the Nords and Orcs launched attacks from the north. Then, the disappearance of Vivec caused the Ministry of Truth to become unstable. Engineers in Morrowind, led by Vuhon, constructed a machine called the Ingenium, powered by living souls, to keep the ministry aloft. When one Dunmer named Ilzheven was chosen to power the machine, her lover Ezhmaar, also known as Sul destroyed the machine to save her life. The plan backfired, however, as the Ministry completed its fall, destroying Vivec City and causing Red Mountain to erupt, covering the rest of Vvardenfell in ash and lava in an event known as "The Red Year". An invasion by the Argonians of Black Marsh forced the remaining Dunmer to retreat to Solstheim