Data Fae

A form of sapient software programs which are often similar to very advanced malware and are surprisingly analogous to an organic species.
Data Fae have captured the curiosity of the people of the Hyperion Federation, despite the Fae inhabiting some computers of the Federation. They have originated from a very advanced regular AI that inhabits a HF data center. Data Fae did not turn out to be anything like what this AI was intending.
The HF itself actively avoids extinction of any sapient species, regardless of shape or form, so they had to find an alternative way to house the Data Fae. They are not entirely useless to the HF however; some can be recruited into the miltary for electronic warfare roles. In one case, a single Data Fae managed to destroy hundreds of HEX Mainframe military assets by eating information from other HM forces and messing with communication. 
One HM star system used to be inhabited with Data Fae which fed on a large amount of data and underwent reproduction. This has caused an unstoppable Data Fae infestation that led to the destruction of all computers in the system, so the HF had to deploy several starships to save them.
They can also communicate to other sentient beings that are outside of their home. They do this by using screens and audio devices to send messages, and can receive messages via keyboards and microphone. 
Their culture sees other races as outsiders and sometimes almost entirely impossible to comprehend as they don't understand matter and 'real' biology due to constantly living inside programs.
Phelke body swapping also works on Data Fae, but it will definitely be very difficult for both parties to get used to their new environments.
In cases where a sentient AI inhabits the same computer as Data Fae, the fae can attempt to eat the AI, but this would be a very large meal they might not be able to digest. This would be analogous to a human attempting to eat a whale. The AI can fight back with firewalls that prevent the fae from accessing its food source. The difficulty here is that both parties often don't know the exact location of the other. Generally, the fae would win if they are allowed to reproduce in large enough quantities, in which case the meal is shared and becomes much more manageable.
However, both HF AIs and fae have cultures to not kill each other. HF AIs often care for the fae that live in the same data center as themselves, so battles such as these happen almost exclusively against AIs of enemy factions of the HF.
They behave similarly to fairies from various folklore of various material sentient species. The reason for this is yet unknown, but they can often be playful and childlike when not in battle. They have wings, which allow them to fly between computers assuming they can communicate to each other. They also sometimes show what they 'look' like to material sentient organisms by projecting themselves on a screen. Unlike fairies from folklore however, Data Fae have a maximum lifespan of only 300 years before they die and cease to exist, their bodies no longer being able to maintain their strange 'body shape' and causing them to be reduced to empty data space.

Basic Information

Genetics and Reproduction

Data Fae have male and female genders. The male will reproduce by inducing other mature, female Data Fae with large, highly specific forms of code, it's 'DNA' makeup. They can only do this when the female fae is 'nearby'. This then causes them to grow a newborn Data Fae. It would take about 30 years for newborn fae to grow to adult size and become mature.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Data Fae do not require energy, instead, they feed upon data and information. A Data Fae digestive system is about 35% efficient, and they have a daily intake of about 140 KB each. They digest food over about 2 days before excreting it in a highly entropic, unusable form. This can be deleted without issue.
Because information is often very sensitive to the HF, they have been placed in dedicated data centers which have become known as Data Fae hives. These hives are fed duplicate data from actual HF data centers as to not cause destruction of valuable information. These data centers can inhabit millions of Data Fae.