Know Your Elves Part 1

 If you just showed up or have seen me around, you may have noticed I spotlight elves. 

And the more stories you see, the more you will notice there are certain rules, and yet some are different from the others. My universe does have related rules on these things. While there are humans as we know them, I decide not to highlight them. For my stories, one must understand the Divines. 

Why are the Divines relevant?

The fate of existence is in the hands of a bunch of delinquents. 

The basic core of all the stories is that each world is crafted by these gods. It may or may not get mentioned in the stories, so I will tell it here. The Divine of Creation was a god being that happened upon what are basically Primal Elves. The Primal Elves are different from the main type you will read about. They were non-magical and extremely savage. The Creator assumed their form and lived among them, and so was born his fondness for these creatures. So he made his own elves, but with his touch. 

A young Vincent Frostfire with his older half-brother.

These are the main type of elves highlighted in my stories. The Common elf is different from the Primal elf. Their features were refined to be more aesthetically pleasing, their colors made brighter, and in each elf was a magic touch that separated them from all other creatures. This tiny spark of magic kept them safe from the effects of age, kept them beautiful, made them stronger, and allowed them to live 3 times as long. This new type of elf was the favorite of the Creator, so most worlds he made were seeded with these new elves. And from these elves he scoured for ones who would aid him in tending worlds. These chosen were remade as gods, and together, they became the Divines. 

A blending of species. 

However, the Creator also came across humans in his travels. In his way of testing, he would sometimes seed a world with both humans and his elves. Some worlds he would place elves into an established human population. These experiments didn't go so well. At best, humans would share their technological advancements with them and coexist peacefully. But many shared worlds resulted in humans subjugating the elves, locked in war with them, or coexisting in hatred. The few times they worked together often resulted in the hybrids, called yelflings. 

Yelflings, always desperate to reclaim magic... by any means. 

Yelflings were the result of a human/elven union, though not always consensual. These hybrids were both too human to be among elves, and too elven to be among humans. Sadly, many worlds would exterminate yelflings, or treat them horribly. Most elves feared the creation of yelflings, and often when they learn of them, they outlaw them. The yelfling often looked like elves at a glance, but their core was fractured like a human. These hybrids were weak, prone to human illness, short lived, aged like humans, and held no magic touch in their soul. Even if a yelfling tried to interbreed with an elf, the bloodline is already hollowed, and a yelfling could never birth a true elf, nor could they acquire what was lost to them at birth. In worlds Yelflings were allowed to live, they often stuck together, and bred among themselves, effectively creating a new race where they belonged. The creator found these results to be interesting, and so yelfs were seeded in worlds alone as an experiment. 

But still, yelflings were often seen as undesirable to true elves, so it was a source of shame to share blood with one. Such is the way of elvenkind. 

Why did the gods experiment so much?

Lady Bianca's "happy" family. 

The Creator noticed something about his elves. Unlike humans who propelled themselves forward technologically, the elves reached a certain point of progress and then they would plateau. It boggled him that they wouldn't progress without human interference. Perhaps the Primal influence held them back. He could only ponder. While some worlds differed, they all came to the same end: a hard life of kingdoms, dominance, bows and swords, and of knowing their place. 

Augustus Greymoore, the White Devil of District 33. 

Only when clashing with humans did some elves accept the technology, though they cling to their noble heritage. But with their longevity, they are capable of mastering the human system, even if it is meant to work against them. Unfortunately, the human society is often traumatic and soul-crushing for an elf. It is why they flee to their simpler lives. 

When a city elf meets a provincial elf...

Most humans don't seem to understand their desire to live a simple existence. To them it is like going backwards. But to an elf, it is returning to life. 

But Yelflings aren't the only hybrids. And the Creator wasn't the only god to add his touch to the elf species. Learn about the myths and monsters on the next edition of Know Your Elves. 

Nymphea, a siren who longed for a soul of her own...