The Collision
It is safe to say that everything changed. Our cultures, our kingdoms, the very ground beneath our feet. Continents formed and shattered, families were torn across the planes, and cities folded together and spread wide. There was nothing natural about it - This was the work of the divine.
The Collision was a celestial event unlike any other. The human world and the elven world were brought together by the Divinity of Change. While not a collision in the traditional physical sense, the two planes were partially merged, causing parts of each to be swapped and distorted.
Before the day
I snuck out tonight to go see Glori~ ♡ We stood beneath the old pine tree under the stars, and I counted them for her. And I told her that I would give all of them to her, and nothing less. And she said she would give me more, all the stars from all the worlds, all the stars we couldn't see, and she would adorn me with them like a crown. And as she spoke, a brand new star appeared in the sky! And she laughed, and said she brought it for me.
To hell with what my family say! I will run away with Glori in a few days. Just need to pack a few more things. Hopefully Yiren is willing to hand me stuff under the counter so we'll be set. I can't wait to be with her every day!!
By all available accounts, nothing unbelievable occurred the day before The Collision. Some report the appearance of new stars in the sky, though whether this was due to the planes coming close or for normal scientific reasons is unclear. Some magicians suggest that magic was amplified in the hours leading up to the event, with one school classroom exploding in a fire spell gone wrong, and a huge thunderstorm out in the ocean that sprang from nowhere. Others say they saw strange flashing lights in the sky the night before - evidence of strong magic, or glimpses into the elven plane? Since it was so long ago, we must take everything with a grain of salt. It seems strange things only occurred at the fringes of reality, rather than in broad daylight amongst the public.
The Collision
In the middle of our conversation - and I no longer remember what it was about - we felt an awful rumble. Was it an earthquake? Then I saw a building fall from the sky and crash into the city square, and the house across the road vanish, and my mother, my dearest, disappear. I feel no shame admitting I wept, collapsing to the ground. My friend, my dear Nimi, dragged me beneath the coffee table, and we waited out the chaos.
The Collision itself occurred suddenly, and its effects quick. The very air shook and twisted, and fear ran rampant. Our own human plane was intersected messily with that of the elven plane, and strange things resulted. The most common affect was the severe distortion of coastlines, as though the gods had dragged their fingers through the beaches and dragged them out to sea and inland. The great city of Fovenis was split into many pieces and scattered across the surrounding countryside, with one large chunk wedged deep underground. A huge volcano, that we now colloquially call the Elven Spire, was transplanted roughly into the east coast, spewing forth glowing blue lava. Families were magically torn from each other and moved all across our world, and to the elven plane itself. And the elves, of course, found themselves here. To call it 'chaos' would be an understatement.
Aftermath
I never found where she went. Was she ok? Did she miss me? Did she go quietly, or painfully and all alone? I hope she forgives me.
Many people needed to be rescued for collapsed buildings, and more needed to be taken in and looked after in foreign cities. Not to speak of the elves, in a land they did not recognise, surrounding by humans speaking a language they didn't understand. Many fights broke out between elves and humans on that day, in both our realm and theirs, for we blamed each other for the disaster. Those elves fortunate enough to appear in the east quickly made for the Elven Spire, for it was the biggest familiar landmark.
It took many weeks for chaos to die down. Communication was difficult, but it was managed. Magic proved a key connection, as they knew many of the same spells, merely by different names. An elven city which had been brought alongside the Spire became the capital of a new elven homeland in our plane. This was made easier by the collapse of many eastern kingdoms, who lost land and homes and citizens to the Collision. Political turmoil persisted for years, and perhaps decades.
The intersection of our worlds also brought about new things for both our peoples - new magic, and new discoveries. Now we knew other planes existed, and that we drifted upon the Planar Sea, the vast cosmic basis for existence. Elven magicians discovered ways to manipulate planar fabric, and soon portals were opened between worlds. Many families were reunited, and many were not. The gods did not discriminate,.
Beyond the destruction of The Collision, much was created. Our worlds were left the better for it, like how a bushfire burns the parasitic undergrowth and rejuvenates the towering trees. There is much that was discovered by the collaboration of humans and elves that could never have happened otherwise. The Collision was a positive force in our development, and couldn't be undone.
Until The Separation, that was.
Fantastic and gripping article about the consequences of universal collisions. This article makes a great set piece into the setting you have made. If this is 'outdated' I cant wait for your update!