Otherworld

> Your world may not always be thrilling, but it beats this one. There are seven realms in the Otherworld, each a different kind of boring.
>
> Stella to Bloom Peters, "To the Waters and the Wild"

The **Otherworld** is a magical world that is home to beings such as fairies, Blood Witches, and Burned Ones. The Otherworld exists independently from the non-magical world, which is called First World. Much like how the First World is divided into multiple nations, the Otherworld consists of seven distinct realms, each of which is ruled over by a monarch.

## Overview

The Otherworld and the First World appear to exist as parallel versions of planet Earth, as shown by how the inhabitants of the Otherworld possess extensive knowledge about the First World, such as Sky being aware of where California is located, Aisha being familiar with the *Harry Potter* franchise, Stella knowing who Jeff Bezos is, Sam being a fan of *Enya*, and multiple residents of the Otherworld using social media from the First World such as *Instagram*.

Society in the Otherworld functions using magic as its main power source instead of electricity. Despite this, inhabitants of the Otherworld are able to make phone calls to the First World and access social media platforms such as Instagram. Most notably, the prevailing form of government in the Otherworld is monarchy, as opposed to the First World where presidents and prime ministers are high-ranking governmental figures.

Travel between the Otherworld and the First World is possible through the use of gateways, though interaction between the two worlds rarely occurred and only under exceptional circumstances. One of these involved the barbaric practice of creating changelings, fairy children who were sent to the First World and swapped out with human children. They were said to be a way for vengeful fairies to wreak havoc in the First World, as changelings are raised without knowledge of their fairy nature and thus have no control over their powers when they manifest.

## History

The most powerful magical force in the Otherworld is the Dragon Flame, which was used about a millennia ago in an ancient war to create malevolent creatures known as the Burned Ones. These monsters terrorized the Otherworld since their inception, prompting the creation of a Barrier around Alfea College in Solaria to keep the students safe from attacks. Rosalind, a powerful fairy from Alfea, led the crusade against the Burned Ones with help from her allies: fairies Farah Dowling and Ben Harvey, as well as Specialists Saul Silva and Andreas of Eraklyon. In 2004, Rosalind discovered that the nearby village of Aster Dell was home to blood witches, who practiced forbidden magic drawn from human sacrifice. The blood witches had somehow kidnapped a fairy infant that possessed the Dragon Flame, which attracted the Burned Ones to Aster Dell. Rosalind was able to rescue the baby girl and whisked her away to the First World on December 12, 2004, leaving her in the care of Michael and Vanessa Peters. They named the child Bloom and raised her thinking she was their biological child. With Bloom safe in the First World, Rosalind magically implanted a memory within the child's mind to find her when she was sixteen years old.

When Rosalind returned to the Otherworld, she saw an opportunity to eliminate both the Blood Witches and the Burned Ones together. She devised a plan where Dowling and Harvey would combine their magic with hers to destroy the Burned Ones, a feat previously thought to be impossible for fairies. Rosalind lied to her allies about evacuating Aster Dell before their planned attack; the only one who knew the truth was Andreas. On the day of the attack, Silva discovered there were still people in Aster Dell, and tried to warn Dowling and Harvey about it. Andreas intervened due to his loyalty to Rosalind and attacked Silva, prompting the latter to strike Andreas with his sword in an attempt to kill him. By the time Silva reached his fairy allies, it was too late: Rosalind, Dowling, and Harvey had used their magic to conjure a powerful lightning storm that completely annihilated Aster Dell, its inhabitants, and the Burned Ones.

Rosalind was able to save Andreas from succumbing to his wounds, and instructed him to go into hiding to raise another fairy child she had rescued from Aster Dell - Beatrix. Dowling, Harvey, and Silva were wrecked with guilt for aiding in the destruction of Aster Dell, and to this end, magically imprisoned Rosalind in the secret tunnels beneath Alfea. Eventually, Dowling became the headmistress of Alfea itself, with Harvey becoming a professor at the school and Silva serving as the Specialist Headmaster. Queen Luna of Solaria helped cover up the destruction of Aster Dell, using her light magic to conceal the ruins of the village.

## Geography

### Realms

* Solaria
* Eraklyon
* Linphea
* Andros
* Polaris

### Oceans/Seas

According to the globe of the Otherworld, there are three known oceans/seas:

* Eraklyon Sea
* Adovair Sea
* Sylar Ocean

## Schools

* Alfea College
* Malacoy Academy

## *Fate: The Winx Saga*

### Season 1

The Otherworld's strongest defense appears to be the realm of Solaria, which is rules by Queen Luna, and where Alfea College is also located. The Queen's heir and daughter, Princess Stella attends. Whilst there are other magical colleges in the Otherworld, Alfea College is recognised as the best school for both Fairies and Specialists. As a result, some of its student body are from different realms. Eraklyon is described as a neighbouring realm to Solaria, and is known for for its fierce warrior culture. Linphea, unlike the other two realm is regarded as a natural wonder with lunsh dense jungles, a rich diversity of animal and plant life, and there are rumours of powerful lost treasures and relics.

## Changes from *Winx Club*

* The Otherworld is an adaptation of the Magic Dimension  from *Winx Club* . While the Magic Dimension spans multiple realms located on different planets, the Otherworld is a single planet where seven realms are based on different continents.

## Trivia

* According to Celtic mythology, the Otherworld is the realm where the gods and the spirits of the dead live. It is a supernatural realm of everlasting youth, beauty, abundance, health and joy that is elusive but can be visited by heroes or by an invitation by one of its fairy inhabitants. The Otherworld is believed to be located alongside the real world and is located beyond the edge of the world.
	+ The Irish version of the Otherworld, Tír na nÓg, and its version from the Arthurian legend, Avalon, were inspirations for Tir Na Nog , the kingdom of the Earth Fairies  in the Winx Club series .
		- According to Irish mythology, Tír na nÓg is where the Tuatha Dé Danann (the Gods of ancient pre-Christian Ireland who later became fairies in Irish folklore) settled after they left Ireland.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Season 1, Episode 1: *To the Waters and the Wild*
2. ↑ Season 2, Episode 9: *Your Newfound Popularity*
3. ↑ Season 1, Episode 2: *No Strangers Here*
4. ↑ Novel: *Lighting the Fire*
5. ↑ Season 1, Episode 4: *Some Wrecked Angel*
6. ↑ Season 1, Episode 6: *A Fanatic Heart*
7. ↑ Season 1, Episode 3: *Heavy Mortal Hopes*
8. ↑ Season 2, Episode 3: *Your Newfound Popularity*