Meinos's Discord
2013
The Death of Glainwing was an event that shook the roots of Lyr'Lowain. Many of those who had agreed with the decision of Auriel Su'Shanar, Queen of Lyr'Lowain, the ride the elder dragon into battle against Demon's Hollow felt shame, regret, and no small amount of anger. Those who had opposed the act felt righteous justification.
For the death of an elder dragon was momentous enough, but the death of the very elder dragon who had brought the elves to Lyr'Lowin in the first place was unforgivable for most. Those who had supported Queen Auriel doubled down on their support, claiming Glainwing's sacrifice was necessary to spur the elves to further action. They grasped at any excuse and reasoning to explain away their guilt. However, those who had opposed Auriel wouldn't allow her supporters any room for backpedaling or explanation. They condemned the actions, going so far as to claim any who supported her should be exiled for the sake of unifying their country.
The result was a year of arguments, hurled insults and battered emotions. As each side sought the virtuous upper hand, they became more embroiled in their respective stances. Arguments soon gave way to physical altercations between those who believed they should be marshalling the remaining elven forces of Vault to attack Demon's Hollow and those who wished to cut their losses in live with the shame of what they had already lost. Conflict ensued. Sides were measured. And in the year 2013, almost twelve hundred years since Eve Galdarion and Dulce Haldev united the clans of the elves under one banner, the nation split into two.
Meinos Ryn'raythe lead a revolt against the crown claiming the power wielded by Lyr'Lowain's monarchs was the very thing that killed Glainwing, as much as Demon's Hollow ever did. With the help of the military might of the neighboring dwarves of Dagmar, Meinos lead her elves in an uprising that created South Lyr'Lowain, a nation which she believed represented the ideals that Glainwing held in high regard: peace, honor, and solitude. Unwilling to recreate the terrors of Galdarion's Exodus, the nobility of what was now North Lyr'Lowain decided to allow Meinos the severance, and did not pursue reintegration into what they believed to be the true elven nation.
Today, the North of the forest is a regimented, military might, bent on driving Elfkind into a future where they need not fear the destruction of their culture. The South exists in the belief that living in that fear is already defeat. The two still engage in conflict -- sometimes brutal violence and sometimes childish chiding, but for almost 4oo years, the division created by Meinos's Discord has forced the elves of Lyr'Lowain to abhor each other, and kept their gaze inward.