The Underground Kings
We have to speculate about the denizens of the Under-seelie as no one in their right mind would ever go there! It's that simple. I wish I could help, truly, but I'd prefer to keep my head on my shoulders.Most people find the Fay of Faerie incredibly unsettling, even threatening. Their glass-like smiles, their illogical motivations and their inability to lie - and therefore their reliance on misdirection and illusion - make it hard for sophonts of the multiverse to trust them. However, the Seelie Fay (as the main families of Fay are known) are not the only powerful denizens of the dimension. Even they live in fear of their ancient fellows beneath the ground - the Underground Kings.
Banished to the Depths
The story of the Underground Kings begins in a past so distant that even the oldest of the Seelie Fay have forgotten it. Texts say that the Underground Kings were domineering tyrants who bullied the Seelie, forcing them into servitude by the sheer power of their magic. They could build and shape the climate; it is believed that the untameable biomes of Faerie were caused by their meddling. They built cities as monuments to their strength and ingenuity, the ruins of which have long since been claimed by the ground. Their domineering brought them enemies among even their most trusted nobles, and rebellion overthrew them. Using magic long since lost to time, they were imprisoned and sent to the Under-seelie to perish. Their punishment was short-lived; they broke free of their chains and cages within a few centuries. But the hostile environment of the Under-seelie - as well as their dislike of the rest of their kind - means they aren't capable of escaping.Description
Very few descriptions of the Underground Kings exist, but each of them depicts them as warped and twisted by their abilities. Like a magical Icarus, each one manipulated magic beyond what was safe and it has changed them. The fact that King Sálaman is a wall of living flame is not unusual, then. Other Kings whose names are whispered are creatures of pure stone, metal, wood, dust, or sand, or even stranger things that are humanoid or not humanoid in shape. What unites them is the sheer power that they exude and an undeniable nobility in their expressions.
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Life in the Under-seelie
It's no surprise that the Underground Kings have never returned to the surface. It's believed (although never confirmed) that the Under-seelie is so hostile to life that even the all-powerful Kings have to spend much of their energy to keep their courts safe from the Ebony Wind and the many terrifying creatures that stalk the caves. Only one of these courts has ever been visited by a sophont from Faerie. This is the Salámanc, the City of the Salamander, whose King is trapped in the living flame that keeps the darkness at bay. Because of this fact, no one has actually met the King, but the citizens often speak of him.Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
Interesting entry, I liked the variety of shapes they can get and that is hard to guess how far they can push themselves.