The Fey
Description
More an assigned classification than a species, the word fey is a sylvan near equivalent to the common word "magic", and was originally only used in the title Archfey, a station given to the most powerful of the demigod beings that created The Fey Reach. The term, however, began to see use by the Saikar Empire to reference any magical non-humanoid, or any species whose origin could not be traced to Occupied Territories.
When the persecution of creatures the Empire deemed "fey", the Courts of the Reach began to encourage the reclamation of the name, inviting any and all magical creatures threatened by the Saikar to seek asylum on their planet. They deemed any magical creature of living in the Reach to be fey, and thus a part of the power structure that the Archfey sat at the top of. It equally meant, to most, that these newly united Fey creatures fell under the purvue of the Archfey to protect.
Following thousands of years living on the anomalous planet formed by magical means, and where every inch of land radiated unique and potent magical energy, the creatures who came here to hide have become fey to their core. This integration has been both cultural and biological, with many species evolving in radical ways physically as their essence blended with and adapted to utilize the strange magic of the area.
Civilization and Culture
Major Organizations
While the concept of organizations, of ordered and ruled society, is one mostly rejected by fey creatures, they have divided themselves into two ideological factions, The Seelie and The Unseelie Courts, at the top of which preside the most powerful Archfey.
Courtship Ideals
Fey creatures often live vastly prolonged lives compared to the species occupying the rest of Hyperion, and the most powerful of them are ageless and, while susceptible to death at the hands of powerful entities, essentially immortal. This, combined with their inherently chaotic nature, and their power games, has led to interpersonal relations that often burn brightly and short, before the participants move on, although some of the less solitary species build much deeper bonds with their partners.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
The Eternal Dance of Power and Influence
While types of fey creatures are as numerous as the stars, they all hold one shared truth at the core of their being; the more power you wield, the more important and respected you are. Often referred to as The Dance, or the Games, fey society is built around a competition with your peers to acquire more power, allowing you to elevate your status in society. Fey don't use money as currency, instead they rely on magical contracts, often but not exclusively with non-fey creatures. Many ambitious fey spend their entire lives seeking out other creatures desperate enough for something that they will agree to the fey contract. In exchange, the fey entity will claim some part of the person that they can absorb to increase their power. Often the price will be a memory with the strongest emotional impact, some kind of prohibition of, or commitment to, certain behaviours or actions that will incite strong emotional energy on which they can feed, or an oath of service or fealty that will aid them in climbing the ranks of the hierarchy.
The Fey Hierarchy
- The Eldest (rarely encountered, as they are generally bound somewhere)
- Archfey
- Lords
- Knights
- Pages
- Commoners and Exiles