Otherland

A realm of chaos, timelessness and whimsy. Here reality has no rules, sense is nonsense and whatever a dreamer could think would be reality. It is a land of capricious fae, stardrunk madmen and halfspun gods. Nobody who enters the realm sane could ever try to hope to perceive it in any way that they could comprehend and even the mad would be shifted out of their broken minds attempting to hold what little grip to reality they have.

The closest thing to any sense of rulership or stability this chaotic plane receives is the from the Archfae and their Courts. These beings are astonishingly beautiful and either fair or dreadful depending on which Court they lean towards. These beings are comparable to the Demon Lords, Princes of Infernus or Scions in terms of power, though with perhaps the most limited scope, as whilst in their personal realm they hold near supreme power, this quickly fades as they travel away from it. Many of the Archfae often find themselves aligned to either Myrell or the Masked Man due to their own sphere of mischief and chaos, which will often be the source of conflicts between the Courts.

Though the Archfae are perhaps the most impressive individuals the Otherland has produced it has been a heavy influence in the creation in many other races. Creatures like quicklings, sprites, spriggans and fairies all have their origins in that unchanging land, from there just like their cousins in Confluence they spread out across their land and to others, where they mingled, bred, and influenced other races. From their interactions the races such as wood elves, satyrs and tabaxi entered the world, each carrying their own mark of the disconnected nature of the distant Otherland. Races and people who trace their lineage to fae sources have a tendency to fall into wanderlust, a quickly bored personality with a desire to experience new things consistently, an ease to slip into mental illness and addiction and a desire to be constantly moving off from places or jobs before things had finished.

On top of their more intimate interactions with mortals the fae also had a major influence over the study of druidism. The first fae were the first proto-druids, when they had mastered their own craft most were eager when they met the mortal shamans of Confluence, magic users who tapped into the powers of the elemental planes that were infused into the Lesser Planes. Working together with these individuals the first Druid Circles were formed and the craft spread between both planes with druids often acting as neutral parties in many conflicts throughout history or supporting the common folk of both sides during wars.

### The Courts

Around the ever changing nature of the Otherland and the barely contained desires of its denizens is a nexus of political structures. These Courts are made up of likeminded fae, who either have the same desires, inspirations or ideals which have drawn them together into something resembling an ordered society. Though each fae will be a member of one court at one time or another, there is nothing stopping them from moving from to one another over the course of their life, depending on how they see the world at that particular time.

The Courts may well be the greatest source of order and sense within the nonsense realm of the Otherland, but to the unwary they can also be the truest of dangers. The laws of the Courts are myriad, chaotic and precise in equal measures, to the uninitiated they can seem contradictory at best, maddening at worst. To reside in even the lowest of fae courts is to dance a political dance, mixed of actions and words for both have equal power within this land and to its people. Many have found themselves trapped within the lands of the fae, their guard lowered with the false confidence that they had outsmarted the beings who delight in trickery over strength.

#### The Seasonal Courts

If one were to look down on the Otherland from above, they would see it formed into a flower of a thousand different colours. Each petal is maintained and limits the size of the Courts within it, with the four greatest of these being the Seasonal Courts. Here the kings and queens of summer, autumn, winter and spring rule supreme, warping the land to suit their tastes and commanding both fear and respect in their subjects and in visitors alike.

##### The Court of Summer

Residing in a land of rich islands, soft beaches with gentle streams, gulls flying overhead as the hills roll down to meet the warm waters of the sea. The fae of the Court of Summer are known to be jovial, easy going and friendly to strangers and friends alike, their days are long and calm under an endless radiant heat and dry soothing moon. Though none should mistake this gentle nature for weakness, laziness or idleness, for whilst they enjoy a life of relaxation and ease as best they can, when roused their anger is terrible and fearsome to behold. They can be vengeful for generations and vicious in their quests for vengeance against any slight.

They are led by the Queen of Summer, Titania, often remarked as one of if not the most beautiful of women to have ever existed. The Court is fiercely loyal to their Queen, playing subtle politics for her notice and her favour, which whilst hard won rewards greatly. Of all the Seasonal Monarchs Titania is the most likely to come to the aid of mortals should they hold the fae in their faith, but equally she is the first to dispatch her agents in times of growing war and conflict.

##### The Court of Autumn

The lands of the Court of Autumn are swaddled in a great forest, the leaves often falling throughout the year and the days are short with a chill in the very air. Though some would think it a dark and depressing land, where the cold heat of the sun barely warms the bones, to the denizens who live within it is a place of calm, quiet contemplation and peace. The fae who dwell within the Autumn court are artists, philosophers, poets and sculptors, all enjoying the soft and gentle nature they can enjoy under the falling leaves. Though rare to rouse to conflict, preferring to act only after careful thought, deliberation and debate, they are vicious when brought to battle, their long years of enjoying their own personal craft has left many of them with skills unmatched by all but the deadliest of Greater beings.

They are led by the Queen of Autumn, Solanum. From atop the boughs of the golden leaves she rules, ever watchful, ever observant of all that goes on within her realm and indeed the happenings of most of the rest of the Otherland. Many believe her and those who learn directly from her to be amongst the greatest of diviners within all the Planes and few idlily turn aside her warnings and omens, for more often than not this mighty queen has seen all roads and all paths that could lead from it.

##### The Court of Spring

Many travelers who find themselves in the realms of Spring often find themselves at first confused, for whilst it is warm, with gentle hills and great open plains with rich and fertile forests it is also swept by a constant biting rain that hampers all attempts to move through the open. Little is dry within this place and much grows wild and uncontrollably. It should come as no surprise that the fae of the Court are as wild and untamable as their land, often being seen as active and capricious tricksters, wicked in their deviousness and eager in their designs. Perhaps the quickest to their emotions over thought, the Court of Spring is notable for its active participation in the other Planes, with many of its members venturing out either on a whim or for some greater design.

Led by the elusive King Oberon, the Spring Court more often than not has the great difficulty in simply finding their king as much as they do actually holding court. It is often said that not every tree could be one of the Kings many passageways between the Planes, but any could be. Oberon delights in exploring, misleading and entreating with the different powers, individuals and places of the universe, often causing his Court to follow swiftly in his wake causing no small amount of chaos in their revelry and mad fun.

##### The Court of Winter

Harsh even to its natural inhabitants, the Court of Winter enjoys a land of perpetual chill, the air still until great blizzards and ice storms sweep across the lands. Frozen lakes and glaciers cut through the land itself, making travel as much a danger as being caught out in the elements. Rather than try to bend these forces to their will however, the Winter fae adopt it into themselves, becoming as harsh and sturdy as the very frozen rock upon which they wander. Out of all fae they are perhaps some of the slowest to emotion, truest in word and deed and deadliest in the arts of war, for only in their own brutal way can they hope to enjoy their wild festivals and joy within the earthen depths of their home.

They are led by King Uther, who commands from within halls of ice and fire merged as one. Few can match this mighty kings skill with magic and fewer still dare test themselves for he accepts no challenge idly. Despite the Winters Court slower nature they are at least keenly interested in two particular regions of the world, having a distinct presence within the Divine Gate and often having a number of enclaves within the mortal realm of Utveremeria. In fact it was the Court of Winter who lent the largest portion of the fae support when the country broke away from their Marolian overlords, leaving many to be curious and cautious as to why they would be so invested in such a small land an entire Plane away.

#### Aesthetic Courts

Whilst the Seasonal Courts are certainly the most powerful and influential of the rings of fae society, they are by no means the only ones. Some fae either through personal, political or ideological differences simply don't feel welcome or at home in the direct Courts of the Seasons, and so they tend to band together into their own social circles. These Courts will generally be bound together under a core ideal or purpose, members of which rarely trade their loyalty with another Court, as often they feel intensely strongly in their opinions about whatever made them enter into their chosen Court to begin with.

Whilst a number of Aesthetic Courts are entirely independent entities, existing within their own complex web of politics and intrigue, there is also a number of these Courts within the Seasonal Courts themselves. These two ideological lines tend to clash, for any number of reasons that could drive a mortal mind mad trying to count. Either way this inter-ideological conflict leads to a constant shift in political favour and support from one another, making the social strata a constant shifting mess that perhaps not even the fae can truly comprehend.

##### Court of Light

If the Seasonal Courts are the four largest and greatest petals of the flower, then the Court of Light is bulb in the center. Though to the fae it is a bitter reminder that even greatest and most glorious of things can be tarnished and defaced. Long ago, beyond any attempt to record time in this timeless place the Court of Light was the center and core of all of the Otherland.

From within the capital of Eversong, a great and beautiful work of art built from crystalaised song and woven along the shining bark of the Great Heart-tree, the Court ruled over all fae and sought to charter a path of peace, harmony, self fulfillment and satisfaction. It was from here that High Queen Eingaia watched over her growing people and it was here that she made contact with the mighty Divines, a turn of events that even they had not been able to predict. For until this time the plane was hidden away behind the raging chaos that separated the Planes from one another and through that not even the gods can truly see with clarity.

With this newfound contact made came newfound friends and enemies. The Divine Myrell was the first to establish her own holdfasts within the Otherland, for which she was gladly welcomed in for both she and her celestials found much in common and a deep kinship was formed between the two. The Masked Man followed shortly after, though curiously his presence within the Plane remained limited, though the exact reason is not entirely known many scholars have posed theories over the ages. The Kindred Flesh too made its presence known within the realm of the fae, for it found itself drawn to the wild emotions and thoughts of the capricious fae. The fae in turn were delighted and repulsed by the vile god, drawn to its pure loving nature and sickened by its twisted nature. As the fae made their peace with the forces of Celestia they were soon thrust into its own politics, contact with the Abyss and Infernus was inevitable though nobody is entirely sure if it was first made by over eager fae attempting to find other celestial powers or by forces of the Hells when they realised a new threat had made itself known. Whatever first brought the Otherland to the attention of the Greater Planes mattered little, for by the time the Divine Gate was completed the fae had already long been drawn into the Bellum Aeternum.

The original purpose of the mortal realm was to be as a source of power for the Greater Planes to be replenished from, though it is believed that the Spirit Realm was an almost expected after effect of the arrival of mortal souls, the Otherland was not. Quickly the fae discovered that whilst Confluence itself was protected by the Divine Mandate, ensuring that the great and endless conflict of the Greater powers could not simply spill uninvited into it, their own land did not enjoy such protection. War would not finding them wanting however, for the fae were ready and willing to defend their homes and their Courts even to the bitter end.

Such a war does not wage without scars being left on those within it. For millennia the forces of the Otherland were led in their ceaseless defense of their world by Turalia, the Bright Prince, eldest and noblest son of the High Queen. His valiant command led to many victories, his strength of arms and skill of magic made him a truly fearsome foe and many heralded him as the future High King who would lead their people to victory over the forces of the Greater Planes. A festering bitterness at the Divines for not including his own people under their protection and the many and countless horrors of war grew from the tiniest flickering of doubt to the endless chasm of rage and hatred. Slowly, so slowly that even their greatest diviners could not see it, the sickness spread from the Prince, to his generals, to the soldiers under their command and worming its way through the Court of Light and even the Seasonal Courts.

##### The Court of Flame

The slow smoldering hatred that was growing with the fae could not be held back or hidden forever and when it finally burst forth it did so in true devastation. The full events of the Day of Dark Fire are not fully known, for those few that escaped the horrors would not speak of them and those that committed them could not be held accountable for a true retelling. Even many years later few if any dare to try to look back on such a terrible time, for the horror and sorrow itself can manifest into a being of unspeakable dread and power.

What is known from that evil day is Turalia returned to Eversong with a large number of his forces, claiming to have a need for rest after a long campaign. They smuggled into the city with them a considerable number of demons and devils, for Turalia, now calling himself the Ember Prince, had sworn pacts and oaths to both Hells, now leading his twisted Court to act as a mercenary force for either Plane. The Prince had become convinced that the only way for life to flourish freely was for all of the creations of the Divines, including the gods themselves, needed to be purged and burned away, so that new growth could sprout in the ashes.

This philosophy was forced upon those members of the Court of Light who had not yet joined the newly formed Court of Flame. Eversong was destroyed, along with much of its remaining people. The Great Heart-tree was set alight and burned for six decades before finally the last embers died out. High Queen Eingaia was cut down by Turalia himself, with her body being hung as an effigy atop the city gates whilst her head was woven into the braids of her traitorous son. Their crimes committed, home destroyed and people shattered the Court slipped back into their new homes, leaving a force to maintain and expand the twisted flames in the Otherland. In the ages since these vile and crazed fae have not ceased their waring, nor has their hatred quelled as the years have hardened them.