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On Fae

In a time where legends bleed into myths and magic appears to be subject to reason as much anything, it is easy for some to forget the old tales. This is, of course, a mistake- and one that can cost you your head if not your soul. All are familiar with the elves, long lived and graceful, as they coexist with many other races in the lands of Eronvé. Some are familiar with the fair folk, reclusive creatures that live on the fringes of civilisation and beyond, their ways both mysterious and capricious. There are those that would compare the two, even go so far as to use Fae and Elf interchangeably. They are wrong. So let me tell you about the Fae. Before this story can truly begin I must caution you. These creatures are more than just myth, they roam the world, yet pray you never meet one. If you are unfortunate enough to come across one of the fair folk, pray to all the gods that it does not take offence at you. If one does take offence at you, beg. Crawl on the ground before them, praise them for their cleverness, their virtue, praise them for anything they say or do. Then condemn yourself and pray you survive.

Now, properly warned, I will tell you of what the fair folk are, how they came to roam Eronvé and I will tell of two prominent members of their race. In the Beginning the goddesses worked tirelessly to populate the moon Eronvé with mortals of their creation. Unfortunately they found their lives were short and memories shorter. They honoured the goddesses that had created them, but they could not see the greater balance or how their actions influenced that balance. The goddesses knew that they needed emissaries of their greatness to watch over the land and keep balance.

Shemesh made them radiant, for they were to represent her splendour. Xeridwyn made them mystical, for they were to represent her unknowable mind. Shemesh made them clever, for they were to represent her thoughts and ideals. Xeridwyn made them proud, for they were to represent her devotion to her creation. Together they made them beautiful, for everyone would look upon them and see the splendour of their creators reflected in their creation. They were so busy to make the perfect creature, that they forgot to make them complex and humble. So the fae were created: Fae are wonderful. They provoke wonder. Fae are marvellous. They cause marvels. Fae are fantastic. They create fantasies. Fae are glamorous. They project glamour. Fae are enchanting. They weave enchantment. Fae are terrific. They beget terror. They made the Fae an epitome of shining beauty, and simultaneously capable of the darkest depravity. But the two Goddesses thought nothing of it, for they saw only beauty and a knowing smile, the mirror image of their own, and so they let their creations loose upon Eronvé. The gravitated to certain places, places with a precarious balance, with a thin veil, with too much of one thing or the other, and created a balance, just like their creators had done on a larger scale. But through their own unchanging nature, their likeness to the Goddesses, they became jaded. It was not long before the Fae started feeling superior to the other creations around them. They started seeing themselves as closer to the gods, and within their right when commanding others they viewed as below their heightened status. Some felt that they should teach those lower than them of the mistakes they unwittingly made, for were not only the Fae shown what was true balance? They felt that the other creation, bumbling along their short lives should be taught, that those who disrupted should be shown their mistakes. This movement named itself Seelie, or ‘Those who Teach’, in Fae. Do not misunderstand me, these Fae are still dangerous, and gaining their ire will see you just as dead. Others however, started feeling they were in their right controlling other creatures, taking no heed of the autonomy that the Goddesses had granted each and every single one of them. Soon, those Fae were keeping balance at the cost of the lives of those who unwittingly disrupted it. They did not deign to explain their actions, and when any of the other creations of the gods and goddesses rose up to fight back, they were ruthlessly beaten back in the name of balance. This other movement quickly adopted the name of ‘Those who do not Teach’ or Unseelie. Thus was the great rift created between Fae. It would only grow deeper with time.