Aetherial

The Aetherial are the radiant elite of The Otherworld, fae beings of unmatched grace, timelessness, and poise. Believed by some to be The Hollow Crown's firstborn, and by others to be the dreams of the Otherworld given flesh, the Aetherial embody the heights of Fae elegance and mysticism. Towering over other Fae (often 6 to 7 feet tall), they appear as flawless, luminous elves with eyes like liquid starlight and skin kissed by moonfire or soft shadow. Their voices hum with subtle resonance, and their every movement suggests a practiced, almost ritualistic beauty. But beneath their serene exteriors lies immense pride and an ancient, often dangerous awareness of their place in the world. Native to the high-floating isles, silken groves, and crystalline spires of the northern Otherworld, the Aetherial are both adored and resented by other Fae. They are known for wielding magick with fluidity that borders on artistry, often casting without gestures or incantation, their will made real through sheer presence. Their culture revolves around etiquette, symbolic gestures, and deeply structured courts where poetic insult and subtle ritual can shift allegiances or destroy reputations. Aetherial live long lives and remember even longer histories. Though they did not suffer greatly during The Fall or felt the wrath of The Great Schism, their magick-born infrastructure neither impacted from The Folklands scientific devastations, nor its own magickal understanding, their society experienced a deep cultural wound: the severance from the mortal world stripped them of many shared arts, crafts, and social dynamics they once perfected through trade with Gaiatia. Though peaceful in appearance, Aetherial are not passive. When provoked, their wrath is precise, elegant, and cruel. They are known to exile dissenters into mazes of perpetual time loops or erase the names of rivals entirely from memory and stone alike. They do not raise their voices; they raise consequences.