The Dark Swarm:
Dezaia’s dethroning through the being now only known as the fairy queen was a surprising turn of events for the entire fairy race. While it was true that the majority of them was unhappy with Dezaia’s rule, few were unhappy enough to go so far as demanding a change in government, and even fewer even believed such a feat could be done. And while Dezaia may have been a tyrant who loved “playing” with the so called “lesser races” as much as she liked playing with her own people, most of her immoral behaviour stemmed from a firm belief that the fairies, due to their magical nature, where the superior being on the world and all other creatures were only there to serve for their amusement. And while, according to her logic, she was the most superior of all, thus being entitled to treat EVERYONE like she damn well pleased, she also left her subjects the freedom to do whatever they wanted. No rules, no laws, no prisons, no taxes. Just the risk of falling victim to the games of a more powerful fairy at any given time.
And since fairies are as close to being immortal as most beings on Hyrule can get, such were accepted facts of life. Still, a majority of the fairies longed for change. Most preferred, as by their nature, to heal members of the other races instead of doing harm, like Dezaia and her followers did. And even some who saw the other races as toys longed for more order, cleared laws and a society that seemed to work so well for the lesser races.
Still, it threw everyone for a loop when the fairy queen, one of the few people with an ego just as big as Dezaia’s, overthrew the tyrant and made her own personal puppet.
Since anything resembling actual social structures had pretty much been non-existent in the fairy race, the whole ordeal didn’t cause that much chaos, just left most lost and confused. But soon, many fairies rejoiced, seeing the fairy queen as a far better alternative to Dezaia.
Naturally, there were those who objected. A minority, but not one to be underestimated. Consisting of fairies who shared Dezaia’s ideology about being the superior species and above all others, as well as those who liked the anarchic structure under her rule, fearing the coming rules under the fairy queen, these fairies were determined to hold on to the old ways. Many of them gathered, and prepared to swiftly strike against the ursupator, dethroning her right away.
However, this didn’t happen. Nebuzia, one of Dezaia’s most trusted companion and firmest supporters, convinced most of the rebels to forfeit that plan and go for another.
For just as Nebuza predicted, the fairy queen herself had predicted the violent opposition against her coup. Already she had surrounded herself with masses of loyal followers, the now enthralled Dezaia at her side, as she patiently waited for the counter revolutionaries to come to her, lure them into an ambush and destroy any kind of opposition right of the bat. And some attackers, those who didn’t listen to Nebuza, too convinced of their own immortality, came to bring the fight to her.
Most of them ended up dying for real, captured, or, if old enough, being turned Korrigan.
Unfortunately for her, the fairy queen soon realised that there was something wrong with the low numbers of the attackers. Most of the rebels had been convinced by Nebuza that they didn’t have much of a chance against the one who had defeated Dezaia herself, less against the rest of the pro–queen mas of fairykind. So they went for another prize instead.
The Essence of Tarm. While a few delusional conservatives unknowingly distracted the fairy queen, thousands of wisps, pixies and spriets, together with hundreds of humanoid constructs, descended upon the very heart of Tarm, attacking the Essence itself.
Many perished that day. Angry strikes of pure magic, channelled by the Essence like typhoons, tore through the attackers, burning fairies no matter the size. Powerful burst of powers send legions of them hurling through the sky, swatting them aside like flies.
But the fight was far from one-sided. The rebels had individuals among them who were almost as old as Tarm itself, and they knew all there was to know about its powers, for it flowed within them. They also knew how to shield themselves from it.
And as powerful as it was, not even the Essence had eyes in the back of its head, and it was just one against an overwhelming number of enemies. Enemies who easily flew past its wild magic surges and attacked from all sides.
Now the important thing is, it was never the intent of the rebels to destroy the Essence of Tarm. They knew full well where their powers came from, and where it would return to if the Essence was to be destroyed. They were fully aware that they needed Tarm to survive. Yet at the same time, they refused to live in Tarm under the rule of the fairy queen.
So Nebuza had proposed to simply leave the realm of the new fairy queen and take a part of Tarm with them.
And so it happened, in this titanic battle of magical elements, that ancient fairies faced off against the essence, channelling their energies into devastating attacks or combined it into protective barriers to shield them from its retaliation, thus keeping it occupied. While lesser fairies of all sizes slipped through its guard and attacked it from up close. With such ferocity and raw magic powers that they eventually succeeded. They split the Essence’s form. Breaking a house sized chunk of from the main body. Coupled with thousands of tiny pebbles the hand sized fairies managed to scrape of, or claim from the splinters when the main part was broken off.
Their prize won, the rebels immediately blew the retreat, fleeing Tarm and dragging their very own part of Tarm with them. Just as this happened, the fairy queen and her troops arrived, having finished of their own attackers and naturally been attracted by the grand lightshow.
It is important to know, the fairy Queen and the Essence of Tarm were close allies. Much is shrouded in mystery even among the fairies, but shortly after its arrival and their creation, Tarm pretty much ignored its creations, leading to Dezaia’s free reign of terror. Later however, the fairy queen approached the Essence of Tarm and convinced it to give her power, that she could unify the fairies and then help it to further its own goals, namely a return to the stars.
As a result, not only was the fairy queen very powerful, she was much more attuned with Tarm’s powers than any other of her kind.
On that fateful day, when she saw the retreating rebels, she chose not to pursue and kill them. Not outright Mayhap it was cruelty, mayhap it was respect, something different entirely, nobody knows but herself. She didn’t go after them. Instead, with the Essence’s help, she shot a stream of ancient magic at the stolen pieces of Tarm. At first, it didn’t show any effects, and the worried rebels rejoiced, laughing about the usurper’s failure. Something that would soon change…
The Long Walk South:
After the successful theft and escape, the rebels had many things to figure out. First and foremost, where to go, before the fairy queen had established her rule and new laws firmly enough to send troops after them, or even come herself. There were some mild scuffles, as was to be expected of a band of people to only bonded together to preserve a state of anarchy, and were now forced to remain together because they all depended on their stolen piece form the essence of Tarm to survive. Their numbers where soon bolstered by some latecomers who were also unhappy with the queens new rule, but had been indecisive about taking action until getting word of the successful theft, as in, actual chance of surviving without Tarm. Which added even more conflicting ideas to the mass.
Soon, however, that became a secondary problem. For the spell the fairy queen had cast on the stolen pieces, the one that was thought to have failed, went into effect. As a curse. A curse that caused every fairy who had laid hands on the Essence of Tarm when they stole parts of its body to permanently lose her wings.
For an outsider such a loss might not seem that bad for a race of shapeshifters. What one needs to understand however is that a fairies wings are a body part just as important as a leg is to a human. Like fingerprints, each setoff wings is unique. And while they can be vanished when transforming, the essence, the genetic marker of her wings always stays within a fairy. Also, it is the wings which enable one of the most basic powers of any fairy. The power of flight.
And thus, Tarms revenge was done. Aside from the most ancient fairies under them, those who were preoccupied with keeping the Essence’s attention focused, as well as the late comers, every fairy who touched the Essence of Tarm in the attack, who had a hand in stealing parts of its body, little fairies and elders alike, the vast majority of the rebels, was without wings. Without the ability to fly.
And that was not all. Now official enemies of the fairy queen and Tarm itself, they didn’t receive any more power from Tarm. The ancient fairies still managed to successfully enable them all to draw energy from the stolen pieces instead before their original reserves ran out, but that process didn’t go entirely smoothly. They would survive, yes, but as it was, with the new and unusual way of sustaining themselves, all their powers were diminished. Ancient fairies were lost centuries of abilities, and the younger ones were reduced to weak magic fire, shapeshifting that was limited to shapes that had pretty much the same amount of mass and size as the original, and slow flight if they were lucky enough to have wings still.
In this condition, the rebels started their long journey, heading south, towards the relatively uninhabited space between the eastern and western cultures, begrudgingly accepting that at the moment they were in no condition to take on empires. They were searching for unknown, unclaimed lands, or at least inhabited by weak races who could be enslaved easily.
Despite caution to avoid engagements with potential enemies, it was a hard trek. Constant attacks from wild animals, monsters, deku, Lizalfos, bandits, and occasionally overconfident loyalist fairies who sought to make a name for themselves by taking on the rebels. Coupled with the fact that they still had to get used to their diminished powers, and most of them to long distance walks. The fortune of them being unable to starve as long as they stayed near their Tarm piece was a small comfort.
One would think that such hazardous experiences, where teamwork and safety in numbers was crucial for continued survival, would practically force them to forge strong bonds, pull them closer together and make them a true unit. And in a sense, it did, but not in the best of ways. In the end, the fact that most of them were in this position was due to oversized egos, the need for independence, superiority complexes and selfishness.
So even as they did grow close, they also grew apart. Groups formed. There where the ancient fairies, still possessing their wings and convinced that their age and power entitled them to be the rulers. The still winged latecomers, who sort of agreed with that, and felt superior themselves because they could fly. And the wingless fairies who felt the others owed them respect and servitude because it was them who got the stone, them who made the big sacrifice.
And even in these three groups, true unity was an illusion. Above all, these fairies were individuals before all else, pressed together by necessity.
Thralls Hiding in the Dark:
During their journey/flight, the rebels soon began traveling at night and hiding during the day. That alone not being enough to successfully conceal themselves from external threats of all sorts, they soon took to extinguishing the glow fairies usual emit (helped by their diminished power) and change their skin tones to darker colours to blend into the night more easily. As a result the inhabitants of the lands they passed soon came to dub those mysterious wandered as “Dark fairies”.
All reasons for that title, however, where not purely aesthetical in nature. For, the dark fairies sense of entitlement, coupled with the hardship even for creatures like them to be dragging a house sized piece of magic rock around everywhere, and loss of former luxuries in life due to being on the run as well as loss of power, it didn’t take long for the craving for better living standards developed. And the best way to get that was deemed to be the acquiring of servants. Or, to be more accurate, slaves.
Even with limited magic, and threatened by new enemies outside of their old lands, they were still dark FAIRIES, and thusly a force to be reckoned with, handicapped or not handicapped. In fact, many attacks on the dark fairies during their journey were rather justified. For, the desire for slaves coupled with the need to vent out frustration over their defeat back home, led to them attacking many settlements during their journey. Sometimes burning the whole thing down, sometimes leaving everything intact but taking all the inhabitants, sometimes just a quick raid, for various reasons, from the actual gathering of resources to boredom. In any case, it left the natives very angry and/or scared.
When slave hunting, the dark fairies usually relied on their seductive magic (which is likely pheromone based). At their current state, an ancient fairy could easily turn half a dozen people into docile, non-feeling puppets. Lesser fairies on the other hand usually had to work in two person teams to achieve the same result with just one person, often sharing their new servants. Just like it took a swarm of smaller fairies to enthral one victim.
Not being careful with their new “property” by any stretch, the dark fairies went through a lot of slaves, and only a few of those firstly acquired made it to the end of the journey. Usual victims included Horonians, Geru, kokiri, deku monkey’s, Labrynnians, Lizalfos, Tokay and a few River Zora. For a race of shape shifters, there weren’t many aesthetic preferences.
Usage of the slaves varied as well, going from a form of amusement to mundane things like being tired of walking and letting themselves be carried, to employing them as disposable cannon fodder.
Almost there Tokay:
The journey seemed to be at an end when the dark fairies reached the southern sea, and thusly Tokay lands. After finding out how the natives form of government worked, the dark fairies agreed on a little experiment.
Approaching a large Tokay settlement at the borders of their territory, they used their magic of shapeshifting to look like ordinary fairies with the most over the top, ridiculously frilly clothes they could possibly think of, covering every part of their bodies aside from the eyes. And sometimes even them.
And it actual worked. Calling them “the avatars of cloth”, the Tokay were convinced to be visited by the very embodiment of royalty, and wasted no time in declaring them gods.
Both highly amused and happy, but at the same time quite contemptuous, the trek of the dark fairies settled down for a bit, living the live with willing servants/salves fulfilling their every whim, not even needing encouragement to spread the news and bring more eager followers on pilgrimages to serve those-who-are-clothes.
Fortunately before this could have a lasting impact on Tokay history, namely the message spreading far enough to be considered more than rumours, things went downhill for the dark fairies. Aside from sightings of scouts from the fairy queen increasing, making it obvious that the usurper knew where they were, presenting the threat of her coming to finish the job, the decadent lifestyle of most dark fairies was enough to make even Tokay question the wisdom of letting themselves be ruled by such abusive lords because of clothing. Then a few Tokay too many caught some fairies in the act of shifting out of their clothed forms and soon the now called unclothed-who-only-claim-to-wear-clothes-while-actually-not-having-any-actual-clothes had a full blown rebellion on their hands, pitchforks and everything to punish the nudists who dared to pretend otherwise.
Now, it was only one (admittedly big) town the dark fairies held dominion over, not counting a few small farms and villages. And when the Tokay rebelled, all of them were killed. All of them. The entire place razed from the earth.
However, the fairies sustained losses as well. Not substantial enough to put them on the endangered list, but far more than they’d thought possible. They were now confronted with the reality that so far on their journey, they had only fought people they had taken by surprise and the advantage of numbers on their side, or were attacked by small bands hoping on revenge or possible new sources of food that didn’t know what to expect. This time on the other hand, they were faced with a very numerous force of people very enthusiastic about fighting them and no afraid of dying if it meant to punish the heretics. The fact that the Tokay had knowledge about most of their abilities from their time in servitude.
So, while them being fairies and them being Tokay still tipped the odds in the dark fairies favour, it made them realise that they simply didn’t have the numbers to fight a war of attrition with any of the civilised races of Hyrule. Leading to any plans of taking over the Tokay or other races being dropped like a smouldering iron.
Into the Depths:
Fortunately, while many dark fairies spent most of their time as overlords to abuse, torture and otherwise hassle the Tokay population, others, especially Nebuza and the other ancient fairies, along with a few other more level header individuals, were not so idle. They instead used the rest to study, experiment, learned how to best use their most prized possession, the stolen Tarm piece. They figured out how to better draw energy from it, bringing their power level closer to its original height. When the Tokay rebellion happened and it was decided that imminent relocation was necessary, they used that power. Channelling all their power, sending it through the rock instead of just drawing it out, they managed to levitate it, and then, combined and with a force that would do a goddess proud, they used their united magic to throw Tarm piece towards the southern horizon. The force behind the throw was so great, the rock flew all the way over the Tokay Half-island, and passed many miles before it finally sunk into the ocean.
Having taken care of that, secured by the ancient fairies having created magical bonds to the Tarm piece to feel its location and guide them, the dark fairies prepared for a wholly different journey. While it displeased many having to cull all their non-amphibious slaves, in light of possible attacks from the fairy queen, guaranteed attacks from angry natives on land, and the majority of them being wingless, the dark fairies now took to the depth of the southern sea.
While such a thing might seem extreme, it wasn’t really, at least not for fairies. As mentioned before, they were a race of shapeshifter. More, they were beings of magical energy without need for food or even air like most lesser races. So while in the beginning it may have been uncomfortable, but they quickly adjusted to the conditions underwater. Really, considering that before they had used to travel by night, they were already used to the dark, most of their colours already fittingly dark themselves. Also, as a major plus for the de-winged fairies, swimming underwater was as close an experience one could have to flying.
Additionally, the gift of shapeshifting was soon employed to be more fitting for live underwater. Nobody knew the true form of fairies, but generally they went with what they preferred and/or what was the most convenient. Back in Tarm that had been the form of a humanoid female with insect wings. Now, it were the form of a humanoid female with various appendages of aquatic live, ranging from simple fins to octopus tentacles. For some reason, especially the older fairies, like Nebuzia, who by now had pretty much become the unofficial leader of the dark fairies due to being the most powerful and most used to commanding others, preferred tentacles.
The journey was long and comparably uneventful. Aside from occasional attacks from sea predators who were quickly repelled (or used to gain ne thralls), not much haltered their progress. The only danger laid in not reaching the thrown Tarm rock before their energies ran out (they could still draw them from the distance, but in very limited amounts). But their calculations being mostly correct, they reached the rock before that became a real inconvenience.
The City of Corals:
As if guided by destiny, the Tarm rock had landed near an underwater mountain. Well, mainly underwater, enough of its tip pointed through the surface to create a little maze of cliffs deadly to any ship, surrounding some dry land that didn’t have any form of vegetation aside from algae and shells, but flat enough to live on it. The lower part was perforated with underwater caves and caverns.
So all in all, the perfect place for the dark fairies to settle down at long last.
The prospect of having an actual home only belonging to them was enough even to spur fairies, who had for their entire live thought themselves to be above those things, into actual, earnest and hard physical labour. Cleansing the mountain from all the creatures already living there was one thing that could relatively easy be accomplished with magical aid. To extend the already existing caves, joining some together, adjusting their interior and exterior appearance to their special needs, to then later fill them with waterproof furniture and other luxury items, that forced just about everyone to lend a hand.
The mountain was big, and even for a large group of fairies it was a monumental task. But immortals have nothing if not time. It took years upon years, but down here, far away from Tarm and other civilisation, hidden by the never-ending blue of the southern sea, they were undisturbed in their endeavour. And finally, the fruit of their labour, the pearl of all their efforts, the biggest pride of the dark fairies stood proud: Tamrazi des Naziru, Hive city of the dark swarm.
New Minions for the Swarm:
Now proud owners of their own “City state”, if one were to call it that, and after settling down in its comfortable homes, there were many things the dark fairies still desired. Among things like enjoyment, revenge, power, one of the most prominent was servants. And once more not only for the amusement of bossing other creatures around, but also as soldiers, to ward of potential attack without losses to the fairy population, or for military actions of their own.
Already individuals had started to domesticate various sea creatures, who no doubt had their uses. But none of them were of an evolutionary level high enough to provide long time amusement. The few Lizalfos and Geru that had been taken with the dark fairies during their descent into the sea had died of long ago, this ocean had no deep seas Zora, and they lived to far in the southeast for many River Zora to accidentally stray near their home.
Again the solution lay in the fairies ability to shapeshift. On a level even deeper than cellular. As a result of this, fairies, from a certain point of maturity, size and skill, were potentially able to reproduce with other species. Something that had been a common practice under Dezaia’s true follower, most of the time for the sick, perverted satisfaction of it. For the process of mating with a fairy, member of a species that didn’t even reproduce that way themselves, is a painful, draining and often lethal experience for the donator. One that didn’t even need to involve actual sex, donation was enough.
At that time, under the carefree rule of Dezaia, it was simply a game for immortals looking for new ways to pass the time. The offspring was usually deformed abominations unfit for life, immediately disposed of after the failed to provide amusement in their pain.
Now however, old fairies who had practiced it before, took actual care to produce healthy and strong offspring. Using the power that enabled them to change their own appearances, they played with the genetics of the foetuses, and after many failures finally succeeded in inventing ways that allowed them to breed stable, useful offspring with other races.
The preferred donators were river Zora caught by expeditions sent out with the sole purpose of capturing donators. Since the original purpose of these hybrids was meant to serve and protect Tamrazi, River Zora where an obvious choice. Individual dark fairies who also had their own agendas concerning the mainland often used abducted Labrynnians, sometimes Tokay.
All those hybrids shared certain characteristics:
They were infertile. They were all female. If their “parents” didn’t have wings, neither did they If they had, they too used to be born with butterfly wings, but the sizes varied greatly, and none were actually enabling them to fly, for that the magic was missing. Speaking of, while their fairy blood enhanced the natural strength and toughness of the other races donators, allowing them to perform extraordinary acts of strength when matured, as well as prolonging their live greatly, at the same time slowing the aging process for the body, they were not able to do actual fairy magic of any kind. Unless being able to see in the dark was considered to be magic.
Going Native:
While Tamrazi was the new, main home of the dark fairies, and a pretty safe one at that, nobody was actually forced to live there, and most fairies were self-centred individuals at heart still. Self-centred individuals who saw the world as their personal playground. And were pretty much immortal.
So despite all its wonders and advantages, Tamrazi could t some point become boring for a fairy, especially the older ones. Fortunately there are many ways for fairies to entertain themselves, especially dark ones. And the most popular outside of the Hive City was the following:
Leave the ocean and go back to the mainland. Pick any civilisation that is far enough to life in homes. Or huts if you are into that. Assume the form of a member of the race in question. Then join said race. Preferably as someone with wealth and power, either by claiming to be someone who had the good fortune of stumbling over something valuable, or first spy on an already wealthy and powerful individual, kill it and dispose of it, then assume its form and position.
As a result, many (not nearly enough to cause too big of a problem though, usually) dark fairies are living all over the continents disguised as members of the most successful races, enjoying the life of the rich and powerful, finding distraction in the always intriguing ways of those funny mortals. Sometimes, if the dark fairy in question has some personal problems with specific races, if only for a centuries old minor affront, they’ll use their powers to sow mischief, sabotaging or even attempting to cause wars. Fortunately those are acts of lone individuals, and most other incognito fairies are contend with having some simple fun and not going over anything more extreme than local crimes involving kidnapping, extortion, theft and various perverted actions that tend to draw lynch mobs when revealed.
But in general no dark fairy ever passes up a chance to discredit or frame the fairies of Tarm if they have the chance, and if it’s only flying through the woods in their original fairy form to make people afraid of Tarm fairies.
Social:
While as of now, Tamrazi des Naziru has no defined ruler, not even something like a council, there are clear pecking orders, usually based on strength. At the bottom are young fairies still limited in their size to that of a human hand. To compensate for that, they usually life together in numerous groups, seeking strength in numbers. They tend to live outside the actual mountain, sometimes in caves, but often without any kind of home. Just the swarm. Surviving the various sea predators tends to harden them up and quickly make them understand how unforgiving nature tends to be.
On the top are the ancient fairies, unmatched in power and life experience by others of their kind. Their homes usually are deep within the mountain. Should Tamrazi ever actually be attacked, their homes would be the last to be invaded.
Between those, various other groups fight for dominance. There are matured fairies who have reached human size, but are far from powerful enough to challenge ancient fairies. Then there are wingless fairies, who still thinks the history behind their loss entitles them (as well as the fact that they still are a majority), while those with wings think the mere fact that they DO have wings entitles them. Then there are the hybrids, who refuse to let the fact that one of their parents was of lesser blood bring them down.
Now, pretty much the entire mountain that is Tamrazi has been undermined. There are hundreds of places that make for comfortable quarters, thousands of tunnels, hidden entrances, hideouts, only the immortal will ever live long enough to remember it all. On the outside, at the bottom, the mountain is surrounded by something akin to suburbs, a ring of actual underwater houses or natural caves.
Since the survival of the fittest is in full effect, and fairies don’t practice something like “inheritance”, the places where a member of the dark swarm lives can change any day. It’s simple “want it, take it”. Should an individual desire a specific part of Tamrazi that is already inhabited, nobody will bat an eye if she were to walk in and throw the former owner out by force. If one can’t keep oneself in a place, you don’t deserve it. In that case the victim must either search for someone weaker to throw out of another part of the mountain, or move out and set up camp in the outer ring.
That might sound cruel, but it keeps life interesting, a constant challenge. Also, while young, small fairies are usually going around in groups, the older and more powerful they become the smaller the groups grow, constant back stabbing driving them apart. Once a fairy manages to survive to become ancient, a VERY long process, she is usually alone, with maybe allies, but not actual close friends. And at that point, she is usually strong enough to conquer a nice place in the deepest part of Tamrazi for herself, her power then making her untouchable for everyone aside from the other ancients.
So basically, the more powerful the fairy, the smaller the circles she lives in. If that is ignored, all of the swarm suddenly ceases their quarrels to bring the hammer down on those stubborn fools who refuse to split apart, looking like they want to use numbers to take over.
An exception from that are the hybrids. While held in disdain by many dark fairies, often even their makers, the basic philosophy of the dark swarm demands people to be judged by their abilities and power (well, people with fairy blood at least). And given that hybrids tend to be weaker than the average fairy who has reached human size, it is accepted for them to stay in bigger groups.
And as long as no one is killed, all is fine. If one were actually to die, well, ancient fairies have many ways to get true answers out of people….
Concerning the fairies living in foreign lands in disguise, they have usually matured to human size, or are ancient already They are tired of Tamrazi and go to the surface to find new pleasures. When at some point they return, they usually do so with many new experiences, skills and powerful items, making it easy to get back up high on the social ladder.
Political:
The political structure of the dark fairies is a complicated matter. At some point, it used to be easier. During their journey south, they were much like every other band of refuges, aside from all the destructive magic. When going into the sea and founding their hive city, they even had a leader. Nebuza, former close companion of Dezaia, oldest of the dark fairies. The one who came up with the ides of stealing a part of the Essence of Tarm, to travel south the way they did, to throw the rock to there they wanted to go instead of dragging it around, and to move into the ocean in the first place (okay, the last part hadn’t been her idea, but she had brainwashed the lesser fairy who had originally come up with it and told her, so that didn’t really matter).
Point is, those credential (as well as being the most powerful of them all, making everyone to afraid to challenge her) enabled her to declare herself a supreme queen in her own right, as well as sole ruler of Tamrazi once it was founded. And for a few years, that worked. However, Nebuzia made some severe miscalculations. After seeing Dezaia being overthrown by the fairy queen, she was afraid of the same thing happening to her if she was to soft. As a result, she became a bigger tyrant than Dezaia had been, brutally supressing her subjects.
Which was the exact wrong thing to do. What Nebuzia failed to understand was that Dezaia had been overthrown by fairies who didn’t agree with her cruel perversions and longed for more stability brought by laws. The dark fairies who had fled Tarm however did so because they wanted to be able to continue being as perverted and decadent as they damn well pleased, without laws holding them in place. Most would have been completely fine with Nebuza simply declaring herself queen and leaving it at that, having her own fun and having her subjects have theirs. Occasional and coincidental cruelty to individual citizens acceptable. Repressing the masses however, that made most dark fairies think they had just traded one repressive ruler for another.
And so, feeling save in the face of her superior power and accomplishments, Nebuzia was pretty surprised when an entire army of conspirators successfully ambushed and overpowered her in her own personal quarters, shattering her body. This didn’t kill her, as is the case with any great fairy her body was just separated into dozens of small fairies. However, the magical forces behind the shattering blow had been so extreme that it would take Nebuzia years to regain her old form and power.
And when, after years, she was back to normal, there was no way for her to go back to power. Her assassins had set up their own “political” system. Inscribed into the Tarm rock positioned in the deepest, darkest cave within the mountain that was the city, it now sported three rules, translatable in:
“No one shall ever rule over the hive city of the dark swarm”
“No member of the dark swarm shall kill another member of the dark swarm”
“All who break these laws are to die of death”
The thought behind that was the following: The dark fairies didn’t want anyone to rule over them and force them to obey rules. But if they simply lived without rules, one of them might take them over by force. So they relented to let themselves be governed by three rules only, who would cause that if anyone of them tried to take over, she would have EVERYONE else against her. Also, the dark fairies had, in comparison to other empires, never been all that numerous to begin with, hence one city being enough (even though it was a really big one), so it was actually necessary to avoid death through infighting.
However, this does not mean that things are peaceful and friendly in Tmrazi. Quite the opposite. While there is a rule against killing, nothing is said about fighting, stealing, kidnapping, beating, torture, imprisonment and the likes. Dar fairies like their fun, and are firm believers in the survival of the fittest. So if some old fairy beats up some lesser fairy and turns her into her own personal punching back, it’s the lesser fairies fault for not being strong enough/smart enough to have avoided that, and if she wants to gain freedom, she’ll have to figure out on her own how to escape.
Nebuzia was also happy with that. As nice as the feeling of having been a queen was, it also caused far too much stress and responsibility. With her restored powers, she was pretty safe from most other dark fairies, and as long as she didn’t try to get a new crown, she could have fun like before with nobody bothering her about it.
Economic:
Once again this is a special case with the dark fairies. As immortals with no need for trivial things such as food, and many deeming the other races to be as far removed from being equal as possible, there isn’t much economics, or even trade, to be had. Luxury items can be formed by magical means or taken by force. It is true that hybrids need food, but pretty much all of them are carnivorous, and the sea provides more than enough food in that regard. And if they can’t even hunt for themselves, they didn’t deserve to exist in the first place.
So mainly, “economics” could be summed up with “sinking the vessel of every unlucky sod who got too close to their home, or doing some raiding to get nice things/food”.
What is held in value however, other than power, is magic. Or magical objects, to be more precise. For, the amounts of energy that can be drawn from the stolen pieces from the Essence of Tarm is infinite. The number of fairies it can sustain, however, is very much finite. Which is also why it is a good thing that hybrids are infertile, so that their numbers can easily be held in check.
Anyway, especially the ancient fairies, and some younger ones, are constantly trying to find new ways to gain more powers than the Tarm piece can give, or other ways to obtain power. As such, magical artefacts are valued items, and one can be rewarded highly if she manages to bring such an object to an ancient fairy (and be smart enough to actually get paid instead of robbed). If compatible, those magical items are then added to the Tarm piece, making it possible for the swarm to grow.
And once more concerning the fairies on the surface, searching for such objects is one of the reasons to go there in the first place (and that most of those objects are holy to the savages just means more fun). Also, magical artefacts, along with the many, many pebble sized rocks that small dark fairies once knocked out of the Essence of Tarm, are the very things that sustain fairies traveling to the surface in the first place, often disguised as a kind of jewellery or hidden carefully in their homes.
Those fairies also like to, when knowing that their time of hiding between the mortals is coming to an end, conclude the experience by planning an expedition of the southern seas, so that when they leave, ships have already set sail to the south. All that is needed to do then is bringing notice to Tamrazi, assemble a small band, and much fun is to be had while sinking some ships and getting treasure/food. Sometimes works outside the water as well.
Religious:
In many ways, dark fairies see themselves as gods. True, young fairies are small and can easily be killed, but the fact that a bolt of their magic can still kill being ten times their size does wonders for the ego. And seeing how powerful they can become if they get old enough, they see their youth as a rite of passage they have to endure before descending into godhood. Or demi-godhood at least. As far as their dark fairies are concerned, they are the most worthy species of all, and all of Hyrule is their personal playground where they are entitled to treat all creatures as they please. Hylians, Gerudo, Zora, Gorons, Darknuts, Lizalfos, these and all the others are only there for their amusement.
As for hybrids, they are considered to be beneath true fairies, but still above all others. And the fairies of Tarm, those weaklings refuse to embrace their own power, in some aspects making them worse than the lesser races. They are traitors to the glory of the fairy race.
Now, the dark fairies are, despite all that, aware of the existence of the actual gods. They know Majora, the goddesses, the fierce deity, they are all there. And the dark fairies loathe them. It feels so very wrong to them that there are beings who actually surpass them in power.
And while they hate the gods for that, they also begrudgingly accept it. As arrogant as they may be, even most dark fairies think twice before angering someone who holds dominion over water. The thing most of them live in.
Many are, however, willing to risk antagonizing them by torturing their chosen races or stealing artefacts of theirs.
Military:
The dark swarm has no standing military. Their numbers are very limited in comparison to other races, and while all the inhabitants of Tamrazi des Naziru could bond together to be one of the most powerful armies to ever walk the earth, it would be but one army against thousand others. As such, the dark fairies have no interest in going to war with anyone, contend to play with the lesser races instead of ruling them.
But even though wars are not done, one should never think that makes the dark swarm less dangerous. At some points in live, pretty much every immortal gets thirsty for some bloodshed, and in these instances, a powerful fairy is quick to assemble a small war band around her to go and pillage/burn/raid villages or even small towns. Fortunately in such vast distances concerning time and land that it doesn’t have too much of a negative effect on the unfortunate nation of whatever lesser race the dark fairies felt like screwing with.
Dark fairy war bands can include:
Small fairies, matured fairies, ancient fairies, hybrids, ad a variety of sea creatures who have been domesticated and reformed to help guard Tamrazi. Those sea creatures come in various sizes, from piranhas to giant sharks.
In rare occurrences, they can also resort to enthralling members of the lesser races.
In addition to that, the dark fairies living in disguise under the lesser races are usually in a position that makes it easy to acquire native soldiers and make them think they are fighting for someone of their own kind.
Furthermore, using such a position to spark conflicts between the lesser races is grad amusement. Also, as far as the dark fairies are concerned, it is perfectly fine for one of them to walk up to one of the lesser races and offer to help them fight their enemies (kills time just as well). As long as they don’t reveal the location of Tamrazi, the fact that they can shape shift, can and do disguise themselves as members of their race, and in the end shift all the blame to the fairies of Tarm, its completely acceptable.
All in all, when it comes to matters of war, or rather, should the dark swarm ever be drawn into one, they might not have the numbers to fight it for long, but would be more than willing to punish the offenders. Relying on their awesome powers, their biggest weakness aside from low numbers would be a lack in discipline and little to no tactical knowledge, starting with how to stand and march/swim/fly in a straight line. In that regard, their best weapons are the hybrids, which compensate the lack of serious magic with large groups and tactical thinking.
And in the end, who would want to go to war with someone whose main base is in the ocean, and can send members of other races against you under false pretences? Or shapeshift and thus easily infiltrate your camp? Really, if a war were to come, hit and run tactics if deployed correctly by the dark swarm would be devastating.
Recent History:
In the endless winter, some dark fairies died due to the wild magic, but all in all, they were pretty save due to their Tarm piece at home and the smaller pieces those on the surface had with them. And hybrids weren’t effected at all, some very few exceptions notwithstanding. Majora’s descend and the goddesses fall also had no grave consequences at first. While undoubtedly powerful, Majora had no direct cause to go after them, for they didn’t serve the goddesses, had no interest to oppose him as long as they were left alone, and they caused chaos and pain to the goddesses creations in their own ways, even though it were comparably small occurrences.
However, all the grand developments on the surface didn’t leave the ocean untouched. Picking up their game, the dark fairies spent more energy in strengthening the old and finding new defences for Tamrazi, fearful of something similar to the land of the Zora freezing over. And realizing that if Majora intended to come after them, well, unlike other armies, water alone would not stop the troops of Ikana.
In addition to the bolstering of their defences, the dark swarm also set up two new outposts. One in the most life-threatening parts of the swamps in Labrynna’s south, east of the Tokay half-island. To an it, aside from regular fairies, they created more hybrids, and this time mainly with Labrynnians and Lizalfos, to get fighters that were specialised on fighting on land only.
The second was in the west, before the coast near Ikana, manned by fairies and Zora hybrids, to keep a closer eye on new developments there. So far both outposts have remained undetected. Or perhaps Majora knows of them, and simply doesn’t care.
As a positive development (well, positive for the dark fairies), the overall chaos/madness all over Hyrule naturally produced many refugees. And especially in the southern parts of the west, and Labrynna, many people tried to escape Majora’s wrath by unintentionally mirroring the dark fairies journey and traveling south in search of new lands building ships and setting sail.
Sufficient to say, it was a long and joyous feast for the dark swarm.
The home front aside, the dark fairies on the surface were effected as well, naturally. With all the fighting and fleeing going on everywhere, most had to abandon their old identities. Fortunately, the chaos made it very easy to assume new ones with nobody suspecting anything (or any more than they already suspected Majora influences everywhere).
Now, the dark fairies on the surface usually had a very different take on hybrids than those in Tamrazia. There, they were just tools created for fun or out of necessity. On the surface however, the fairies in disguise were influenced by the races they hid in than they were willing to admit. Living with them, watching them, many dark fairies wondered what it would be to experience the joys of parenthood.
While under the sea fairies who reproduced with other species often had a fairly big litter (it was dependant on the pain tolerance of the individual, but hybrids could be produced in huge numbers), dark fairies living on the surface, if reproducing with other species, usually went with one or two, trying to actually raise them as their real children (and quite often screwing that up in some regards, and if it was only secrecy). Those hybrids had a farm more intimate and emotional binding to the true blooded fairies, and due to the usual lack of gills were completely removed from Tamrazi.
With all the Majora madness, some surface dark fairies however thought it would be better to bolster their own “special forces” with some more hybrids (since again, no gills, so no ability to go to Tamrazi, there were no set limits for how many hybrids were acceptable), or in other regards step up their game and gain more influence under the locals, should a storm break lose.
However, all these plans and actions are hindered/slowed by two things. One, fairies age for a long time, and so do fairy hybrids, so bolstering those forces takes time. At the moment, domesticated beasts and thralls have to do for emergency soldiers. Two, the dark swarm has no real leader, and Tamrazi is still filled with voices loudly arguing about what actions to take and not take, if something like a war council should be created, and if yes, who should be in it. All in all, the dark swarm is preparing to be prepared for a war, and at the moment not nearly as prepared as they could be.
Arc 5 (Continental): Hearts, Minds, and Souls
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[/SPOILER]
looks like a mixture of the two garbs
