Ewiddidir

Ewiddidir
Also Known As	Lightwings, Hummingbird Faries
Type of Group	Species
Role in Story	Secondary Protagonists
Book	Skyefin Tales (working title) by E.E. Buchanan

The Ewiddidir (eh-WEE-did-eer) Peoples, which in their language translates to their other name of Lightwings, are a large but rather delicate humanoid species of fairy. Due to their wing shape, they are sometimes referred to as Hummingbird Fairies. The entire known population resides in a mostly inaccessible part of a large rainforest in the alternate earth known as Tasiphin, though in prior days they lived far farther north. They have magic abilities mostly related to illusions and phantom sensations but also some healing and decorative skills as well. One tribe of humans with whom they had a longstanding enmity also dubbed them the "Nightmare Creatures", though this was deemed to be grossly unfair by other humans who had interactions with them.

Created by ScottyBlue.

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Physiology

The Ewiddidir (the term is both singular and plural) maintain many fairy traits, such as slender bones, little body hair, and wings. However, they are mostly humanoid due to the fact their ancestors were human, by most accounts.

Appearance and Dress

Ewiddidir resemble tallish, thin humans, with quite normal-looking faces and arrangement of limbs and digits. Indeed, with the wings out of sight, most Ewiddidir can be mistaken for your average human at a distance. The males average 74-80 inches (188-203 cm) in height and the females only slightly shorter. They have hair on their heads, but intertwined with their hair are several glowing feathers. Both tend to wear their hair about shoulder length and tied back in various loose, somewhat shaggy styles. The ears have a slight point to them but not much. The males have square, strong chests and slightly broader shoulders than the females but overall both genders are very slender and delicate looking at first glance. The skin is a variety of colors, mostly pale/fair but with definite tinges of other colors such as violet, blue, or green instead of pink like normal fair-skinned humans. The hair is darker shades of either purple, green, or teal-blue. From elbow to wrist, and from knee to ankle, both genders have a layer of soft, iridescent, scale-like feathers. The males also have them extending over their shoulders and upper chest, and females have them extending over their necks down to their collarbones. The hands are mostly humanoid, if a bit elongated, but on the feet the skin is tough and scaly and calloused and the toes are definitely far longer than humans. They tend to also grow out their nails, so this gives them a bit of a birdlike appearance. They have no teeth, but their mouths are not deformed sunken like a toothless elderly human, thanks to bony plates inside their gums.

The wings of an Ewiddidir, when not glowing with magic lights (see below in "Magic"), are identical to those of a hummingbird but on a massive scale. Average wingspan is as much as 12-13 ft (3.7- 4 m) in full grown adults. When in flight, these wings raise out laterally, perpendicular to the body, but when walking they are held like a moth's at a v-shaped angle to prevent them dragging the ground. The coloration, like that of the skin and other feathers, varies wildly from individual to individual, but the patterns are always of greens, pinks, purples, and blues. WHen in flight, the wings make a distinct humming that humans from Modern Earth have compared to an old F4U Corsair plane taxiing down the runway, or a small cropduster buzzing overhead at a distance.

Typically, they dress in magically-created clothes that are a combination of plant material and magically enlarged feathers. The males tend to keep their chests bare and wear long, flowing short-sleeved or sleeveless robes and knee-length trousers, with ropes of beads and jewels and feathers around their necks. Females wear knee-length tights and loose, high-collared sleeveless or short-sleeved tunics, often with dozens of long, thin long peacock-like (or more accurately racquet-tail hummingbird like) feathers dangling sporadically all around the tunic hem like tassels, as well as ropes of jewelry about their necks like the males. Usually these baggy tunics hang asymmetrically off one shoulder. Of course, depending on personal tastes, and current occasions, there are great variations to these themes of dress, but this is the standard everyday dress of the creatures. Many Ewiddidr also have glittering jewel-like dust applied to their skin as sort of temporary tattoos, in places. This is more common in females than males.

Internal Physiology

Again, probably due to the fact they were once humans by most accounts, the Ewiddidir's internal organs and musculature are almost identical to those of humans. Average lifespan is about 85-90 years unless killed. There are a few differences, however. First off, the skull has a solid bony plate inside the gums instead of teeth, which prevents their eating anything that requires much crushing or chewing. Secondly, (see "magic" below), the muscles, especially those of the wings, tend to glow in various bright colors, when put under great strain or prolonged exertion, or when magic is being used. Furthermore, Ewiddidir bones are much lighter than normal human bones, hence their delicate nature and their very low weight for such large people. Ewiddidir are far more likely to suffer broken bones than any other serious injury, as the thick layer of feathers over most of their exposed skin prevents cuts.

Their eyes are marginally better than average, and their lungs have a far greater capacity than the average human, allowing them to hold their breath much longer than the average human, sometimes as long as an hour. However, they cannot fly above a certain altitude without both the wind and the cold being too great for them. They are actually rather strong, though it is mostly lean muscle, and have a particularly fast metabolism, hence very rarely becoming stout or even more than slender in appearance. Therefore, they cannot last as long as a human can without food. An Ewiddidir who has not eaten in more than four days is very likely to die. However, they can last a day or two longer than the average human without water, getting moisture from the fruits they eat and extra oxygen from their increased lung capacity.

Ewiddidir, as said before, are rather strong for their light weight, and their wings have tremendous lifting power. Three Ewiddidir can lift a human off the ground with very little effort and no magic involved. They are capable of moving - and reacting - far quicker than humans can, flitting at great speed for short distances. Some can manage as much as a steady 40 mph (64 kph) when flying and many can achieve 60 mph (97 kph) in very short spurts. They are, however, very inefficient walkers and running is almost unheard of among them. They are used to thinking and doing things very quickly, and their bodily functions such as heartbeat and breathing and metabolisms reflect this strength and speed theme, hence digesting things and needing to eat again so quickly. This internal muscular strength and quickness is especially evident in births - though an Ewiddidir baby develops at the same rate as a human baby over a nine month span, when the mother's contractions begin - heralded by the glow of muscles being exerted appearing on her middle - they become very powerful and close together within a short time span. Most mothers are holding their newborn within an hour of labor beginning.

Ewiddidir are capable of intermarrying with and reproducing with humans and with smaller giants. Children that come from such unions have the fairy parent's powers but usually are heavier, weaker fliers, and possess regular color skin and hair. Some have teeth. However, the magic usually is not any stronger or weaker as a general rule. Furthermore, whether the mother is the fairy or the human of the couple, the lights that come with the muscle contractions still occur when the baby is being born. A child of an Ewiddidir-Human union can marry either a human or Ewiddidir themselves but the child will always have the fairy powers regardless, being a full fairy if the half-fairy marries a fairy and another half-fairy if the half-fairy marries a human.

Magic

Ewiddidir, like most Fairy types in Tasiphin, possess some magical abilities. Almost all Ewiddidir magic occurs in connection with the motion of their wings. Exactly how this works is not fully understood, but it is clear that when the wings are not fluttering the Ewiddidir is not using magic, even when they are standing on the ground. A flying Ewiddidir has exponentially more strength with their powers than one on the ground. Furthermore, the moon seems to have an effect as well on their powers, for Ewiddidir are said to be more powerful in moonlight than in daylight, and on a full moon on a perfectly clear night they perform a moon dance, which really is just a fun and non-choreographed group flight. Being in the full light of an unblocked moon strengthens their wings and in fact young children who fail to take part in one may well have stunted wings or even non-functional ones that need treatment to become functional. A fairy whose wings are broken becomes quite weak and unable to use some of their magic, and one whose wings are completely cut off loses most of their abilities and, over time, many of the feathers on their body and their colorful skin, becoming almost like a half-fairy-half-human creature.

Specifically, Ewiddidir's magic mostly consists of feather manipulation (to make clothes mostly), light and air manipulation, illusions, dreams, and phantom feelings. They are able to disorient enemies with bright flashes of light and sensations of disorientation, floating, nausea, or being lost. They cannot manipulate a person's emotions or reactions, only alter what a person sees, hears and physically feels (touch/faint pain/nausea). They can alter the appearance of things around them, though it is only a vision and not something actually there. For instance, making a forest appear in the same place so someone gets lost, or making you see or hear someone calling you, much like a Siren. Multiple Ewiddidir together are stronger than one alone, and can even use magic to cause someone to levitate for a while, or even feel phantom pains or phantom objects touching them that are not really there. However, they use this sort of ability only in self defense. When not in danger or threatened, they can give good feelings and dreams and in fact enjoy doing this far more than anything else. They love telling stories, and use their ability to create temporary images to help 'illustrate' the stories. THey can also make shapes out of light, and leave aurora-like trails of light when they fly, especially in direct moonlight. Furthermore, they can use their more solid powers such as air manipulation to help improve the health of others. A sick or injured Ewiddidir can be revived by several companions using their magic at once, as a bit of it sort of bleeds off into the air and can be absorbed. Humans nearby have described this effect as a temporary feeling of weightlessness and general good health, though they do not actually become weightless/able to fly.

As with all Fairies, the kiss of an Ewiddidir to a non-magic person transfers magic very strongly, especially if the kisser happens to have been doing a moon dance or been around many other Ewiddidir before. This has not been fully explored, but it is known that a single kiss may cause the recipient to temporarily gain weightlessness, like a flying Ewiddidir, and it is suspected multiple kisses might do further magic.

History

The history of the Ewiddidir can be divided into four distinct eras. The second phase was actually lost to history for a while and left to vague legend. The true facts were only recently rediscovered by travelers coming upon the remains of the City of Anffin.

First Phase-Beginning

When the world of Tasiphin was created, there were a couple magical peoples and creatures, but exponentially fewer than there eventually came to be. The first Ewiddidir were either a human or half-human-half-giant people who came into contact with one of the many "Objects of Transformative Magic" (OTMs) that existed when the world was young. Most of these magical objects were meteorites or other similar arrivals from the stars, or either plants that were affected by contact with these things, and possessed the ability to transform anyone who came in contact with them and give them magical powers. There are precious few if any of these left now. In general, a meteorite or space rock type OTM could grant anyone who touched it power. A plant-type OTM would usually have to be ingested, not touched, for it to work.

It is said among the Ewiddidir themselves that a group of humans (or possibly human-giant decendants) who lived in the early days of the world discovered a strange and beautiful vine flower growing among their cultivated lands, after a meteor shower one night. The humans initially planned to burn the field, as the vines were too thickly intertwined with the young plants to dig up without killing the other plants anyway, and attempt to start that year's crop over. However, when they went to destroy them,the smell they gave off was so beautiful and delicious that many people ate them as a snack while they were working, much as one might eat a honeysuckle.

Accounts from here differ - one says that some nights later, when the full moon rose, all those who had eaten the flowers found themselves unable to resist walking out into the moonlight, and the instant the moon shone upon them, they started to glow with magic, and then to change shape and color, becoming taller and slimmer. Then, suddenly, Great wings burst from their shoulders and feathers appeared over them and their teeth disappeared, and they flew into the sky leaving glowing trails of magic behind. Another account says that once they ate one flower, they felt a great hunger and thirst for more, and began to grow feathers. Each feather that grew represented one flower and their magic abilities slowly started to appear, causing them to decide to eat the flowers until they all were gone. Over the next several weeks, they had eaten so many that by the time of the full moon the feathers had turned to wings upon their backs and in the light of the moon they gained flight and their magic powers were fully realized, though by this point they already were essentially Ewiddidir in appearance. Regardless which account is correct, most if not all of the population transformed, including unborn babies carried by pregnant women who themselves transformed, and the genetics were permanently altered so all Ewiddidir for generations to come bequeathed the powers down.

Second Phase - Anffin

This part of the history is poorly understood. What is understood comes from discoveries of scrolls and tablets and ancient writings discovered in the ruins of Anffin. This huge city, built along a temperate forest riverbank, was a great civilization and crossroads in ancient times, a place of great culture and education and home to many humans as well as some Giants, friendly Trolls, shapeshifters, and other fairies. The humans outnumbered the other creatures 10-1. Most of the beings there lived in harmony, according to what was recorded in the extensive Library which was preserved by falling rock from the passage of time.

The writings indicate that the Ewiddidir appeared about 200 years into the City's existence, though they likely had existed for centuries before, and were known to live in the woods outside the city, preferring nature to stone and buildings and crowds. However, some would occasionally come into the town to sell fruit or nuts they harvested, or goods they made from feathers. They were considered eccentric but harmless nomads, and their ability to tell and magically illustrate stories was revered. They had little occasion to use their disorienting/illusion magic but when enemies approached the city they would do this in just enough time to escape. By this time, the Ewiddidir had apparently forgotten much of their initial past and having never had a written language they spoke to each other in the language of bird-like twitters and chirrups they adopted among with other birdlike mannerisms after gaining their powers, but they were quite capable of learning the common tongue and many apparently did. Furthermore, in the marriage and birth and death records these educated people kept, there are some records of Human and even smaller giants marrying Ewiddidir and bearing fairy children.

Anffin eventually fell into ruin in its 632nd year, when the river that flowed through the city center terribly flooded from an unusually-far-inland hurricane destroying an upriver dam, killing many thousands, and bringing down most of the buildings. The potential danger of the dam had been a point of contention for many years which had caused Anffin to become less harmonious than it had been at its founding, and when it fell there were hard feelings against many of the non-human creatures who had helped to build it, the giants, fairies and trolls in particular. Unfortunately none of the peoples of Anffin were able to rebuild the city thanks to subsequent famine and hard winter and illness that claimed more lives, and conflict that arose. The ruin was eventually abandoned as people groups split and sought homes in safer territory away from others of different race. The last mention of Ewiddidir before the city was abandoned is found in the last tablet that was written and sealed in the Library, left by a scribe in hopes that maybe someday some would return and rebuild the city. It says the Ewiddidir were the first to leave, quietly disappearing one night, with one who could write the common tongue leaving a note saying they felt with their high need for food their voracious appetites were hurting the other survivors and they wished to do no harm to their friends, even if the humans no longer considered them friends. They are the only ones of the people groups that split away from Anffin that have been traced, since.

Third Phase - Vallismare

The best understood phase of the Ewiddidir's history comes after the destruction of Anffin, but is incidentally, thanks to long conflict, war, and fear, the reason why they lost a lot of their history and culture except the stories of how they first came to be. The Ewiddidir themselves do not remember the details of Anffin, but say only that they were driven from the lands they originated from by a great flood and famine, and traveled northwest, in search of food. Almost instantly, they found themselves in terrible, seemingly endless desert country with hardly any food to be had at all save insects and very scanty plants. It was only with great difficulty and much loss of life that they survived this, and found another forest near the Great Western Sea and realized they could not survive a journey either back across the desert (and they did not know the way to do so, anyway) or further across the ocean, so like it or not they were trapped in these cold, mountainous forests. There were plenty of pine nuts, insects, bee's honey, and apples to be had but not really enough for them to ever gain full strength to have the energy for another long flight, but they settled here near the fertile shores of a great lake and hot spring, about fifteen miles from the coast.

These coastal cliffs and hills were the land of Vallismare, which was the home to many small towns and villages of humans. The Vallismarians noticed the glowing lights when the Ewiddidir would fly at night, and once in a while a foraging individual in the woods might be spotted from a distance, but as the lands did not encroach, neither people saw the need to have contact with one another. The Ewiddidir in particular, probably remembering how through no fault of their own they fell out of grace in Anffin, kept themselves to themselves, though once in a while one might speak/show images to a human who approached in peace.

Unfortunately, as the human villages grew and united into larger villages over the next 150 years, the problem of needing fertile land became a serious point of contention. At the same time, they began to encroach on Ewiddidir lands, and vice versa, as populations of both people grew. The Ewiddidir began to fear the human warriors who would sometimes challenge them to fights, trying to prove their bravery, and used their magic to enchant and confuse them long enough to get away, in hopes of confusing them. However, friendly humans they interacted with with little fear, even giving gifts to favored ones, so long as there were no weapons. One or two humans were allowed into the Ewiddidir village through the illusion wall that surrounded it. The Council of Village leaders, seeing an opportunity, began a campaign of fear based on the negative interactions with warriors and the fact the Ewiddidir could cause illusions. Soon, the common theme was one of great mistrust, that even freindly gestures couldn't be trusted since there might be magic and deception behind it. Many village leaders went so far as to ban interaction with the Ewiddidir completely, and anyone who spoke against this was also deemed to be possibly "Enchanted" and not to be trusted. The Ewiddidir, in turn, began to greatly fear all humans and to keep well away from them, sensing the great danger the power-hungry leaders might bring upon them. Unfortunately, to keep away, more magic was used, thus fueling stories of the Ewiddidir of being dangerous.

Things escalated to full on war when a group of rash young warriors marched on the Ewiddidir land, supposedly to challenge them to a formal tournament for possession of the lake, which the Vallismarians contended was technically part of their land since they were int he mountains before the Ewiddidir were. They were found dead at the bottom of a cliff. The Ewiddidir, to this day, contend they never met any of the warriors and that they perished after getting lost in the terrible rainstorm that blew up the night they left. This is almost certainly true, as the cliff they fell off of is completely off course from Ewiddidir land some miles southeast, and no Ewiddidir goes flying in heavy rains as their feathers get waterlogged. However, this incident was all the Council needed to initiate the war, and the Ewiddidir were blamed for "enchanting" them to walk to their deaths and were quickly hunted down and slaughtered and their land taken. The survivors fled further into the mountains and again settled, though during the battle their disorienting magic had caused humans to drown, fight each other, or fall from ledges, thus making them guilty of human blood and permanently giving the Council reason to deem them enemies. The fertile lands were all taken for the Vallismarians, and settled there and eventually made their Capital City. This cycle repeated itself many times - each time an Ewiddidir settlement was discovered, or an Ewiddidir was found foraging, battle ensued and the lands or foraging grounds were claimed for Vallismare, until after many generations the Ewiddidir were seen as evil forest spirits whose defeat heralded the reward of good and fertile land for the people, and the Council, for leading the army protecting the humans for the Ewiddidir, became the most powerful entity for a hundred miles and not to be opposed. Any Ewiddidr who attempted talks of peace, and any human who attempted any talks of peace on their behalf, was deemed an enemy (or "enchanted and therefore untrustworthy and dangerous" in the case of sympathetic humans) and quickly tortured or imprisoned or even killed, all hope of peace quickly faded. Warriors and Council members even began using feathers and wings of Ewiddidr as trophies to be worn or displayed, as symbols of power, until there were no Ewiddidir left to be defeated - all were killed, or had fled, and they passed into legend and eventually were considered near-myth.

For more than three centuries, the surviving Ewiddidir lived in a terraced village in a mostly inaccessible part of the mountains, coming down in the winter for shelter and to forage. Apart from the odd sight of a glowing light, or the odd feather or footprint, no humans had any interaction with them. As the generations passed, they managed to scrape out a rough but reasonably happy, if illness-stricken, life in these hidden terraces, provided they had access to foraging grounds in winter. YEars when for various reasons this did not come to pass resulted in the deaths of children and elderly, rather frequently. THey began to dread winter as the "Death season", though eventually they established some cultivated land in their lower foraging grounds and greatley reduced the risk. They did not forget, or forgive, the Vallismarians for driving them out and refused to go within miles of their cities or known hunting woods. Any human sighted was fled from immediately, no questions asked. However, the passage of time and increase of numbers of both Ewiddidir and humans and the spreading of the cities had the inevitable result, and eventually sightings of Ewiddidir became common among the humans again. By this time so much time had elapsed that humans no longer remembered the true events of the war, and some even were inclined to think perhaps they were not evil at all. However, when the Council began looking into records of the history, they saw a golden opportunity for more fertile lands for their growing population, and decided to repeat the path of their ancestors.

The Council met with great opposition at first, as the Vallismarians, after centuries of peace, wanted to start no wars. They pacified the people by saying they would merely set non-lethal traps for the Ewiddidir, and capture one for interrogation. However, the first one they captured instantly used his magic, out of sheer terror, to create a burning sensation on his captors' arms, and that was enough to start the whole panic again. The Ewiddidir's foraging grounds were claimed, and they began to starve as years went on, only able to sneak down and that at great risk of traps. Many were captured and had their wings cut off and were interrogated about their homeland, but the inability of an Ewiddidir to find their way home from the ground meant all these unfortunate captives were killed. Again, humans (and there were far more this time, including many groups that arose in secret) who opposed this cruelty were treated as being "enchanted" and imprisoned or beaten. However, the Ewiddidir knew how to hide by this time so there was never outright war, only a prolonged stalemate with one or two deaths of Ewiddidir (and very rarely humans) once in a while.

Fourth Phase - Draconius' Legacy

Thirty or so years into this stalemate, a young father of two was out hunting in the high mountains when he slipped on a rockfall and fell into a rushing river. He washed up, half-dead and badly wounded, on the bank below the lower terrace of the Ewiddidir's territory, though this was cleverly concealed with magic. Fearing that if he was found dead the humans would blame them and storm their territory, the Ewiddidir nursed him back to health, and desperately attempted to communicate with him their desire to be left in peace and that they meant the humans no harm anymore, being tired of the fighting. Draconius spent nearly four months with them before he was recovered enough to travel, learning their culture, teaching them some of his language, and watching with growing horror their dismay and grief whenever another family was deprived of a father, or mother, who had gone to forage. He also saw that the whole "they keep the most fertile lands" story was a lie, and as soon as he could travel, swore to his friends he would do all he could to save them.

Upon returning to Vallismare, Draconius told his wife and two daughters of his adventures, and also several friends. AT the next great festival, in the presence of people from all over the country, he stood up before the Council and proclaimed as loud as he could before all who could hear him the innocence of the Ewiddidir, and that he had proof of their true nature. He condemned the humans' actions as wanton murder. Unfortunately, he was quickly deemed by a panicked Council to be "Enchanted to be a traitor of the worst kind" and he and his wife and eldest daughter were executed and their following scattered.

The younger daughter, Arluna, grew up as a sort of "street orphan", though an old marriage officiate named Markus and some others secretly on her Father's side helped her greatly. When she was seventeen years old, Arluna discovered a victim of an interrogation, bleeding to death from having his wings removed (to keep him from using powers against his captors) and thrown into a ditch. She revived him with water, but he hid in the cave of the roots of a hollow tree and refused food or help. Eventually, with the help of Markus, she succeeded in showing him they meant no harm, and they secretly nursed him back to health. She and Kiati, the young Ewiddidir, fell in love over the course of time, were married by Markus, and set up their own home in a ravine, far from Vallismar, though incidentally also far from Kiati's home as he had not the strength to travel back there. Arluna and Kiati hoped to someday make it all the way back to Ewiddidir territory, where Kiati's wings might be healed, but it was a terrible journey for one who could not fly and who needed so much food to have the energy to walk.

Eventually, Arluna became pregnant, and bore Kiati's son, whom they named Drake after his grandfather. The two were delighted to find that humans and Ewiddidir could have children, as this had been forgotten since Anffin, but also worried of what might happen were they discovered. THey determined to save up as much preserved food as they could and supplies as well, and begin the trek to Kiati's homeland, for the sake of their son and any other children they might have in future. However, they had to wait until the infant fairy was old enough to travel. WHen he was four and a half years old, they began the trek, and when he was near five years old, they were near their destination when Markus met them and told them to flee for their lives. A spy had discovered them. The Vallismarian Council, furious at this proof that humans and Ewiddidir could live together, determined to end them quickly before their power was questioned again. The enemy caught up to them and slew all three adults, taking Drake back to Vallismare in hopes he could be someday used as a tool against his father's people. This action proved to be their undoing, for Drake's presence made people more and more sympathetic to the Ewiddidir.

When the first travelers for centuries - Skyefin water nymphs from a far northern land - came to visit Vallismar and gave them the news that the outside world was full of many magical creatures, Drake, who had been biding his time, saw the opportunity and grabbed it. He allied himself with the nymphs, who had not received a kind welcome but had refrained from dishonoring themselves by using their great and terrible powers against weak humans. Together they were able to free a captive Ewiddidir named Wiwa from a trap, before the humans got to her. They tended to her bruises and cuts, and sent her husband husband Dywit (who had stayed and not fled with the rest of the foraging party when she was caught, and was trying to chew through the net in desperation when they got there) back to their people with a message that they would be protected if they came to confront the humans now. Drakes' ability to understand them and his resemblance to his famed Grandfather were enough to convince them he spoke the truth, and by this point they were on the verge of complete starvation and extinction anyway. Thus, the entire population of Ewiddidir came to the humans and bowed before them, not using their wings so there would be no question of magic or enchantment, and begged for peace. Seeing all the thin, disheveled, sorry-looking women, men, and children, weeping and begging on bended knee for mercy, the majority of the populace was moved to pity and declared the end of all hostilities, and the Council was forced to agree and concede the end of the war. However, the traps were not taken down and the terms of the peace kept being changed as talks went on. The Skyefin Nymphs, knowing the Council was greedy and was trying to start up the war again by stalling and making the Ewiddidir angry, took the entire population of Ewiddidir via a magic portal in the sea to a far and distant Jungle, where they reside to this day. Drake elected to go with them instead of staying in Vallismare. Once living with his father's people, he married his wife Ky and fathered many children, one of which was named Kiati the Second.

Culture at a Glance

The Ewiddidir live mostly in seclusion deep in the southern jungles, now, in a village (see "Building, Below") constructed up high in the canopy. They still farm but find they do not have need to do much of that save some gardens along the riverbanks, since there is plenty of fruit and edible plants and insects to be had. There are some friendly trolls (there are unfriendly trolls as well in this world, just not living in this area) living nearby but the nearest humans live far upriver and downriver, being unable to penetrate the dense jungle near where the Ewiddidir live. Occasionally they will pass by on the river, in a boat, but the banks are steep and the undergrowth so thick there is literally nowhere to safely walk without being entangled in vines and lost within a few long strides of the river. The very few humans who do pass by belong to very small tribes which are mixed with some nymphs and more friendly trolls, so they have no enmity with them and all seem to get along well. However, the Ewiddidir do not often invite guests into their canopy home, though they are very friendly and kind and use little to no magic when they meet guests on the river or occasionally fly down the river to the village when they have to barter for supplies between growing seasons. The society about is quite used to a variety of magical creatures, so these infrequent meetings are absolutely no danger to the Ewiddidir. Furthermore, it is impossible for any non-winged person to get safely through the thickest part of the jungle or to ascend 90 feet (27 m) into the canopy to bother the Ewiddidir in their homes - there are magical entities that guard the entrance to the thickest part of the jungle and the creatures within, which further help.

In their society, the Ewiddidir spend most of their time in their gathering and planting and building, learning from Drake and his descendants the language and ways of humans to better communicate should need ever arise again. They have many celebrations, including, when the rains are thin enough or absent and they can see the full moon, the ceremonial moon dance. They also have worked to tame some of the animals about, and are sort of allied with the more intelligent such as the river dolphins and the many species of primate and parrot that live about. They have no real set leader, though they do tend to look up to the cleverest or handiest among them for advice in situations. Drake and his wife and children are sometimes considered unofficial leaders, though they encourage the Ewiddidir to think and act for themselves. Ewiddidir are mostly guided by the needs of the moment, which all share most of the time, so there is very little cause for quarrel. Being fast thinkers, they like learning and study, especially about nature, and constantly seek to improve their knowledge about it. They have little use for most of their damaging illusion magic, now only using it against Jaguars and other dangerous animals at the most. They are currently exploring the small/limited healing powers of some of their magic to find its' full extent. They do not have organized worship places, but they have long believed in Grace and Providence (their form of a Christian belief system) which focuses more on a personal relationship and small group singing and study. They also have a large belief in the power of many over the power of one, since they are delicate and can easily be captured or killed when alone, as history has taught them. In this spirit of many help the weak, they tend to make a fuss over injured, ill, pregnant, handicapped or otherwise incapacitated individuals, whether the individual really wants the help or not. 

Feeding

Ewiddidir's high metabolism leads them to have to eat several times throughout the day. They do not often have set meals, but are grazers, eating whenever they get hungry. Most of what they eat they chop up or crush so as to make it soft enough to be chewed, and most of their food is not eaten raw but boiled in water or made into a soup or stew. They are unable to chew anything tough, having only bony gums and no teeth. They are largely vegetarian and eat mostly soft fruits and vegetables, as well as honey, flowers, and eggs when they can find them. Crushed nuts that don't need to be chewed are another favorite food. Sometimes they also eat leafy plants that have been boiled or chopped into soup, and occasionally they grasshoppers/locusts and termites as well, again usually boiled to soften them, but these are the only insects they can eat without danger of being poisoned. Extremely rarely, when they can find them, they will open and eat the insides of freshwater mussels as well. They also make porridges from any grain-like or legume-like plants they come across. If they do welcome a guest to their riverbank outposts, they might catch and serve a fish, but they themselves are not overly fond of fish meat even when they CAN eat it, which is seldom.

Building

Ewiddidir love to build and construct things, having both a natural and magical knack for creating things out of plant material and decorating them with feathers. They create living homes by intertwining branches and vines to create huts and tents among the branches, and weave vine ladders and 'cargo nets" to connect these. They also construct platforms between branches to walk on in areas where the tree branches are too thick to fly through. Given their very light weight, they put very little strain on the huge jungle giants living up there. Many of the trees are linked by platforms of green wood, and bridges/nets as well, so the structures form a very great city through the Canopy that can only barely be seen, if at all, from the ground if you stand at the bottom of the tree. Ewiddidir like building so much that they do not mind if foul weather messes up something they built and they have to start over, provided there is shelter still elsewhere. One or two trees have huge central hollowed-out huts like small palaces or meeting halls. High roofless ballrooms are built on the highest parts of the trees where the Ewiddidir go for celebrations and dances. Everything is decorated with colored lights, gems and feathers.

Courtship

Like many birds, Ewiddidir take courtship and choosing a husband or wife very seriously, and they also share religious beliefs on couples staying together through good and bad and being there for each other. During the second, 60-year conflict with the Vallismarians, this had been somewhat forgotten, but since moving to the jungle they have been free to exercise their beliefs and traditions without survival being their greatest worry. They are monogamous, though widows and widowers will remarry when the opportunity arises. When an Ewiddidir is about 18 or 19 but sometimes earlier or later than this, and declares he or she is ready to find a mate, he or she is allowed to meet all the single Fairies in the area and occasionally outside as well at special dances held for this purpose a couple times a year. If a couple feels a connection after one or more of these meetings, they will pursue their relationship for a long time, with many couple dances, prayers, flights together, and long private talks, much like dating humans. They especially like to learn about each others lives and to learn knowledge from each other that each have discovered in their individual studies and working. Dancing and singing as a couple is also important but this is often done in private settings and not often in public save when a couple is a long established one that would not be embarrassed by people seeing. However, Ewiddidir never court/date for fun, but always with the intent of discovering whether the other person is going to be their soulmate. A couple that has been together for more than two years is considered "betrothed", though they can break the engagement if they want (extremely few do). Marriages usually occur 1-3 years after courtship starts, and ceremonies usually are small but very exciting and joyful affairs, with much dancing, singing, and flying about. In the case of widows or widowers, the process is honestly not much different, but it is a different meeting dance that is held. Sometimes, of course, couples of either age find each other without the dances. These dances only exist to provide options. Arranged or forced marriages of any kind are strictly forbidden.

Families and Children

Ewiddidir family groups usually consist of a father, mother, and children and occasionally grandchildren as well. Families are reasonably close and there is little squabbling save of a mostly harmless sibling type over space and shared items. Most couples have on average four children, and these children grow at the same rate as human children and develop at the same rate, as well, save when it comes to their wings and magic.

From the time they are able to crawl, Ewiddidir infants are able to make tiny silhouette-like images in light to convey to their parents what they are asking, and therefore learn to speak a bit slower than human infant average. They nurse until about nine months old and then eat fruit mush. They are born with wings and feathers, but these wings are very very small and all but useless save to flutter to start magic. Until a baby performs its first moon dance with its parents, at about 18 months of age typically but it can be any time after the baby is able to walk with ease (parents wait until then or else the baby would never learn to walk at all), it cannot fly. The parent has to fly up holding it. In the first moon dance, the wings grow in size and gain strength and the young one gains the ability to fly. If a child fails to do this (as in the case of Drake, most notably), they will grow up with useless wings that will take several moon dances before they are finally able to be used, unless many Ewiddidir use healing magic to help speed it along.

Children full gain control over their magic at about ten years of age. Parents raise children with the same values as their parents before them, and make sure to let the children know of their history and the dangers of using their powers without thinking. Ewiddidir do not often administer corporal punishment, but a particularly mischevious or disobedient child will likely be grounded in a hut for several day almost like a prison until they apologize.

Language

The Ewiddidir have no written language of their own - all written things are written in the Common Tongue shared by most humans and magic creatures for trade purposes, in the globe of Tasiphin. Their spoken language is rather fast and high, though not shrill or piercing, mostly consisting of light purrs, trills, chirrups, cheeps, and vowel syllables. Male voices tend to be a pleasing musical tenor, and females voices only marginally higher, more a high alto than a soprano - hence not having the phonics to write it down. However, most if not all can read and write the common tongue, which resembles a mix of old English and Latin, and they record anything important on tree bark scrolls in this language.