Ancient Elf

Menewa-Khenu

The **Ancient Elves** otherwise known as the **Menewa-khenu**, were an elven people that lived in the deserts of Khu. They are by record, the first Elves to have existed, as inscriptions and hieroglyphs show of their existence, as well as their numerous numbers of advanced magical techniques years before settlements of many civilizations

## History

According to hieroglyphs, scrolls, and myths, the Ancient Elven mythology shows that the Elves were born from specs of sands created by the goddess Rhajat. Early evidence of Ancient Elven Civilization traces back to the settlement of Kesh-Menu over 14,000 years ago. The formation of the Menewa Confederation dates back around 12,000 years ago, and would become one of the worlds oldest civilizations to exist. At the same time, the Confederacy would discover agriculture, and would start utilizing it in mass scale early on. The Khenu meanwhile, would migrate from the south around 11,300 years ago, with the evidence of stone-tipped arrows. Merging of the two tribes came at around the same time.

The discovery of Mana pools around the desert of Khu would not come until the 7,000 years ago, which was said to have sped up the advancement of the Menewa-Khenu ten fold. The influence of the mana pools gained considerable knowledge of the previously primitive Elves, who would start to quickly unite together to form the Dominion of Menewa, ruled by their first Pharaoh, Khatra-Urm. Under his reign, and his descendants, the Menewa-Khenu would develop impressively tall and large structures, and built impossible machinery that would only be possible with the power of these tools. The practice of Slavery was reduced, until being completely abolished by the Third Dynasty over 4,400 years ago as seen through tomb paintings of Pharaoh Nahmar II. Instead, much of the work was handled by golems which would improve by using reinforced magical bronze, with each one of them having a different caste, due to them having more Elven-like life in them from the effects of the mana. The Dominion would become an Empire under Pharaoh Tahir I 2,500 years ago, with the Menewa Empire being the height of Menewa-Khenu culture. According to glyphs translated, the era was so prosperous, even the peasants were in gold. Though for all of their wealth, they would not bother expanding further beyond their greatest extent of Khu, essentially being a Middle Kingdom.

Pharaoh Tahir I's death would see a decline in it's once glorious prosperity. Political squabbling, as well as assassinations would see the reigns of many Pharaohs come and go. It is not clear why this happened, but it was likely due to Tahir's more liberal policies that was left over, giving way to more corrupt and greedy officials, who were given more free reign to handle affairs on their own. This all changed on the ascension of Tahir VII over 1,970 years ago, where he would see much of the reforms reversed, and punished corrupt officials. Although his reforms were sound, it would bring controversy, as Slavery was re-instituted to save money on paying for upkeep of the golems, and the declining power of mana pools

The Sea Battle near Nakaris usually marks the last time that the Menewa-Khenu would ever see a major influence in the region they reigned, as it would end in the worlds' first peace treaty with the Avarati. Following this, the Menewa-Khenu would start to marry nobility with Avarati descents to help keep their relations moving, and would focus on efforts of trying to save their empire.

Suddenly, over 1,200 years ago, a mysterious cataclysm has occurred within the Menewa-Khenu, which caused the collapse of the Menewa Empire left many historians confused on what happened. Many historians attributed war, famine, plague, or courtly intregue, but other sources say differently. Not much was recorded about the periods leading up to these events, as many records were either destroyed or completely missing. According to the accounts of the The Lost Journal of Meshkatawis I, when the Sea Elves arrived ten years after the collapse of the Menewa Empire, they reported that the Menewa-Khenu had changed in an "abnormal" way. The inhabitants in their former capital of Mennwakh, would have been strangely docile and extremely easy to subjugate. They would have no memory of their former enemy, nor of the great civilization they had built. They also appeared to act rather weird, as if they were in some utopia, feeling comfortable and accepting of their new rulers, some even seeing the Avarati as "Descendants of the Gods". According to the journal, it would point to a pyramid in the desert. It is unconfirmed if these records are indeed true, but reports of strange strobes of lights were seen among desert nomads, and that even their fellow nomads had amnesia when returning, acting as if they had no idea how to use bows and arrows. Their lifespans also seem to have significantly reduce, when previously, the Ancient Elves can range from aging up to being 500 years of age, with some even aging to over a full 2,000 years. The ones that were found only lived to be 300.

Whatever happened to the Menewa-Khenu remains unknown. The current population estimate of the Ancient Elves remains unclear at the time, as many of them had interbred with the Avarati rulers. Much of their laws and customs, as well as culture was adopted, and later, would be assimilated by Pharaoh Meshkatawis III and her reforms. They are considered an extinct species by many, due to the lack of any actual Menewa-Khenu having memories of their past glorious civilization.

## Appearance

Many records record that the Ancient Elves had dark tan skin, although, some were recorded to have lighter tones. The Khenu were recorded to be even darker than the Menewa due to their southern origins. It is not really known how tall Ancient Elves were, but some paintings show that they towered over the ones they traded with, putting them at an estimated 6 foot. Descriptions of Ancient Elves by travelers usually describe them by their tall, beautiful appearances. Avarati journals state that males are often taller than females by a few inches higher, and some even state that they even towered over them.

According to the "Menewa Accounts", a book written in Neo-Menewa, the Ancient Elves were described to have been decorated with gold, mostly in their hair, on their bodies and even having some of the first evidence of piercings on body parts. The more richer Ancient Elves tend to show this off more by stripping articles of their clothing, and having robes showing parts that would flash their jewelry. Males practiced the arts of shaving their heads off to prevent lice in their hair, and it is seen as a status symbol for males to wear wigs, as well as placing makeup on their face. Females practiced a similar art, with women wearing wigs dreaded and tipped with golden holders. Though, it was shown that the lower classes did not really do this all too much, with them keeping their natural hair, as well as members of the middle class. The Pharaohs who did this, as well as the Royal Family, varied.

Despite their revealing nature with jewels, the Ancient Elves were fairly conservative with their clothing choices, with many dresses and robes covering parts of their body. This usually depended on the class of the elves, with a few elves showing more skin when they are richer. However, this source varied, and not enough information is really known about this.