The Fairy Dance by Karl Wilhelm Diefenbach
Etherbound Fey
“The Fey of the Ether are wiser, older, and more cunning than their worldly counterparts. These types of Fey are those which some say have existed since even before time itself, the sort that can slip between realms as easily as one snaps their fingers.”
- Arginet Motierre, Head Archivist of Auclair
Etherbound Fey are Fey which can easily travel between the Ether realms, where they reside, and the Mundane, where mortals reside. This includes Fey belonging to any of the three courts and their masters, the Archfey. These, the Fey of the Ether are also the only type of Fey that can be a part of the upper echelon, in terms of power, and make more impactful deals. They are also harder to best through wit or brawn than Worldbound Fey, as many of them have existed for ages.
Archfey
Archfey are the ████████ of all fey, and are only known through cryptic texts and the rare few times they are known to have interacted with the Material. Maintaining a █████ of █████ ███ around them, Archfey rarely step upon the Material, instead preferring to remain immersed in ████████ ██████ of their ███ ████████. They see little reason to ██████ █████ in the ‘████ █████’, filled with other meddlesome ██████. Making an enemy of an Archfey is ████████████ █ █████ ████████- though gathering the attention of one enough to spur them to act is a feat in and of itself.
The Court of Monsoon
“The Court of Monsoon is commonly associated with the concepts of rain and fog, of the transformative nature of dreams, and of the foreign and uncanny.”
- Guide to the Fey, The Court of Monsoon
Often referred to as Stung by Rain, Drowned in Glamour, or Those by Bedside by fey of other Courts, the fey of the Court of Monsoon are often uncanny and odd to humanity, even when cloaked in mortal skin. A step closer to the realm of the dreaming than the realm of the waking, fey of Monsoon can often be recognized as an oddly unnatural at-sight; something that should not be, even if only instinctually.
The Court of High Monsoon
Those of Near Monsoon are human monsters, wearing their skin like tourists to reality. In their interactions with mortals, there is a palpable oddness and uncertainty in the air. These fey are those that fashion tales of children sold for fortune, of coronations graced with prophecy, trinket, and curse. Prices are delivered plain and fair, yet bear greater cost than expected. Fey of Near Monsoon are closely associated with markets, ‘fairness’, and the fey customs of The Rule of Threes and Prophecy; that thirds are more than firsts and seconds, their words are snake oil, downplaying or inflating something’s worth as benefits their aims.
The Court of Low Monsoon
Those of Far Monsoon are the truly monstrous, those unrecognizable as anything human, and are occasionally more a concept than a true being. In their interactions with mortals, they are the hunter and the hunted; enigmatic and violent, little humanity is to be found within them. These fey are those that become the beasts devouring travelers gone astray, of hands grasping beneath the bed. Fey of Far Monsoon are closely associated with nightmares, inhumanity, and the fey customs of ██ and ████; that one should never ██████ or ███████, that the possession of ██████ gives them power over them.
Court of Drought
“The Court of Drought is commonly associated with the concepts of heat and dust, of the inevitability of reality, and of the familiar and understandable.”
- Guide to the Fey, The Court of Drought
Often referred to as ██████, █████, or ██████ by fey of other Courts, the fey of the Court of Drought are often █████ and ████, appealing to ████████. A step closer to the realm of the waking than the realm of the dreaming, fey of Drought can often be recognized for ████████████.
The Court of High Drought
Those of Near Drought are ██████, often being ████████. In their interactions with mortals, there is a ██████, whether through ████, █████, █, or even █████. These fey are those which stories of ████, ███, ███, and █████ are made, who ██ mortals █████ and grant them a ██████ and their ████████. Fey of Near Drought are closely associated with ███, ████, and the fey customs of ███ and ████; fond of ████ and ██ that should be ███, using █████, and █████ within a ███ web of ███, ██, and prophecies.
The Court of Low Drought
Those of Far Drought are █████, bearing a dangerous sort of ████. In their interactions with mortals, they are the ██████, the ████, or the ████, drawing them in with ████ or ████. These fey are the sort which become tales of a ████ being █████ by claiming █████ and of ███ sanctuaries ███████- both genuine and not. They prey on the ██████, and sometimes ██████. Fey of Far Drought are closely associated with ████, ████, and the fey customs of ███ and ████; that rules of ████████, such as needing ██████, that ███████, and to always bring █████.
Court of Hibernal
“There is another Court, one separate from the others. The Court of Hibernal is, so far as I have come to understand, one of the only ways in which a fey may die- though I surmise it is likely a worse fate than that.”
- Guide to the Fey, The Court of Hibernal
Those of Hibernal are wrong; they are ██████ purposelessness, they are the twisted knotting of a being’s fabric. The Court of Hibernal is Winter, is Nonexistence, and is Death. It is more conceptual than it is real, and so it is by far the least understood of the Courts. What is known, however, is that fey of the other Courts loath it and those within it; they view it as a blight, as something pitiful and to be avoided.
“Ew.”
- A small note hidden in the margins of the Guide to the Fey; it appears in all known copies, though the writer is unknown.
Come unto These Yellow Sands by Richard Dadd
Lesser Etherbound Fey
Not all Fey that traverse the Ether are equal in power. Those of lesser power and dominion may even spend more time on the earth, toying with mortals in ways that range from harmless jests and unlucky deals to cruel games of life and death.
Fibgnat
While weak on their own, this awful little Hibernal fey is said to be born of the one sin of every other fey, their lies. Dark inky creatures, holding no real shape past a mish mash of smoke and black viscous substances, a few bones as a shell to protect their formless being. While one may be nothing but a mild nuisance, many in a swarm may pose a deadly threat even to some of the stronger fey out there. Not that they only enjoy hurting other fey, people can also end up on its menu should nothing else catch the ire of the fibgnats.
Nucklelavee
“It was like something out of a nightmare, I only caught a glimpse. I ran, I left behind my village and I ran. Death came with the flood, but it left with that damn horse…”
A rare fey to encounter, yet one would wish to never have the sliver of chance required to see this one. Sightings would report a skinless horse with a torso of a person growing out of its back, arms long enough to fall down to the ground at its sides, and a singular eye at the top. It is not often you see a Nuckelavee, and that would be a blessing to have never stumbled upon one in a lifetime. The only sightings have been after harsh weather or natural disasters, and rumors have it that it leaves corpses in its wake without ever touching what it had killed—surely, something this maleficent must be Hibernal.
Contributions from Chiarophinx, Avajain, Catmerization, Moony, Nerdocalypse, and Dinomono
