» Sat May 28, 2011 4:34 am BLACK HORSE COURIER
The following letter has been released by the Guild of Mages, more accurately, by the Arcane University, two years after the event known as the "Oblivion Crisis". It was written by the highly esteemed Ayleid Researcher Reoite Bladhm, and will hopefully clear up some of the confusion regarding the happenings of said crisis:
Arch-Mage Carahil,
I regret that I have not visited you in your new position, and I hope that you found the letter I placed in your desk helpful. Enough of the pleasantries, however, and on to business. My reputation as an Ayleid researched and an expert on all things (well, most things) Elven has required that I answer many questions regarding Mankar Camoran. Few who saw him still live, but those who do have come to realize that his appearance is that of an Altmer. We know, thanks to the annals of Geros Albreigh that take the form of the book The Refugees, one of the first books I read after my time in prison, that Mankar is the child of the Camoran Usurper, who identity is unknown, though it is believed he was some type of Elf, and Kaalys, a Bosmer. The question I most commonly receive is "Was Mankar really an Altmer?" My response, until recently, was always "I am looking into that right now." However, I believe that I have, in fact, found the answer, which is the reason I am writing to you in the first place. I am about to suggest that which no one has ever thought before, or, at least, put into writing. The Camoran Usurper was not a Bosmer, or a Lich for that matter, but and Ayleid.
'How is that possible?' will be the first question on your mind, so it is the question that I will answer first. Most people say that the Ayleids are extinct. However, in the words of one of my father's mentors, most people are idiots. There are several recordings of Ayleids after their fall from power. For example an Ayleid was the midwife of a Dunmer maiden in the last year of the 1st Era, as was documented in the 2920 series. In my explorations of Ayleid ruins, I have found I have found a great deal of ancient cities in Colovian Cyrodiil. These Western cities are, for the most part, older than those in the East. After the Alessian Rebellion, many Ayleids in the Northwest, around present-day Chorrol, fled to High Rock, which is why the Direnni family experienced such a rise in power. But what could the Ayleids in the Gold Coast or West Weald do? It was either North across the barren Imperial Reserve and then the harsh Hammerfell desert, or south into the lush forests. Many southern Ayleids traveled into Valenwood and were welcomed with open arms.
'How would that affect Mankar? He would still look like his mother, wouldn't he?' Though most evidence suggests that, in the modern era, mixed race marriages favor the mother. However, texts state that this may have been different in ancient times. According to the book Frontier, Conquest, and Accommodation: A Social History of Cyrodiil, the Nords of Skyrim "found it difficult to distinguish between Elf and Breton". This supports the argument that Ayleid blood overpowers the blood of other races. This may be due to several different reasons, one of which is the purity of Ayleid blood. If the mother's blood always won out, human mothers would always give birth to humans, and Ayleid mothers would always give birth to Elves. However, as the Nords could not tell the difference between human and Elf, there must have been more than just the normal result in cases where Ayleids were involved. This overpowering blood may have led to an Ayleid being born to an Ayleid father and a Bosmer mother. There are very few who would be able to tell the difference between an Altmer and an Ayleid, as both races look nearly identical, the major difference being the location of each variety of Elf.
This is the best conclusion I can come to with the current evidence. By the time you read this letter, I will hopefully be in Valenwood, further researching the Ayleids located there with a research team led by my good friend, S'razirr. Just send your response to my Anvil manor, my servant Edd Theman should have my forwarding address.
Your good friend,
Reoite Bladhm
