exastris | WORLD SETTING: THE NIGHT COURTS

NIGHT COURTS } A place of shadows and silence.

The Night Courts are the ones that govern the night and seasons fall and winter. They can found in the realms they reside in which are a separate location from the country they are in, a pocket of lands that is hidden from humanity but is said to be seen in the distance at night if one looks at the stars long enough until tears come into their eyes and they then look at a certain direction. The beings from here are more inclined to favor magic and wits in terms of combat instead of blessings and strengths the Day Courts favor. They are more secretive and coy with what they do in their works, keeping their true intentions and agendas under wraps and out of sights from humans.

People from these Courts can be seen as manipulative and calculating, using the people as their own gain instead for the people's benefits. But they are intelligent and wily, sharp and not afraid to take action. It's not a surprise that they are favored and prayed to by spies or thieves and other people part of the cloak-and-dagger world.

The official language among those from the Night Courts is Nox. To best describe it to a normal person or someone not from the Night Courts, it sounds like sounds. Closest sounds that resembles the language when spoken is chimes and tinkling. It's not an easy language for others to learn but it can be understood if one listens carefully enough and decipher what is being said. This takes time and effort however and most just attempt it since interaction with this type of Courts is rare as they prefer to stay in the palaces out of distrust and uncertainty.

Another point of interest is a practice the Night Courts have around the world. Using stars and magic, they create begins that are literally made of stars. This is usually done as a quick and easy way to get servants or workers and they are usually just given enough intelligence to fulfill their role and nothing else.

HIERARCHY } The royal family.

The Moon-Queen { The ruler of all the realms of the Night Courts since, stories from Selene's words claim, the women cried out in anger when the sun was given to the men and they were gifted with power over the moon in reply. The Moon-Queen has the final say in most actions that happen in the realms she resides in, meaning she has the most power and responsibility. Rarely seen as a result of this. Has the powers to grant abilities or blessings to people.

The Moon-King { The Consort Ruler to the Moon-Queen. Doesn't have much say in what happens behind the scenes of the realms so is the face of sorts of the royal family. Is often the more sociable of the royal pairing and sees to the Star-Prince/s and Princess/es welfare. Also has the ability to grant abilities or blessings to people.

The Star-Prince and the Star-Princess { Children of the Moon-Queen and -King, usually from the union between the two. Either the first born Star Prince or -Princess is chosen to be the next Moon-King or -Queen when then feels like the should retire or are about to pass away. The chosen Prince or Princess is usually encouraged to marry another being from the other Night Courts but Day/Night marriages have happened in the past. (But has been heavily frowned and disproved off so they are far and inbetween.) The rest of the children, if there are any else, are married off to other Night Courts or given positions in the realms. They don't have the powers to grant abilities or blessings to people.

MAJOR DIFFERENCES } They're not all the same.

What is in a name { Asia's Night Courts tend to be more flamboyant and flowery about the titles of their realms compared to Europe's Night Courts and others. For example: China's Night Courts style themselves as the Eternal Night Courts and call their realms the Evening Realms. England's Night Court simply calls themselves the Dusk Court and their realms simply as that: realms.

Dark is not Evil { Not all beings from the Night Courts are considered manipulative or deceitful, shady and cruel. There are those who are open and honest, sweet and even playful. They don't always adhere to the stereotype of the Night Courts and are more willing to interact with humans and those form the Day Courts as a result.

Size doesn't matter { Of course not everyone follows the astrology of the Zodiac. For example, the Chinese have their own Zodiac and so do other countries. As a result the number of Star-Princes and Star-Princesses vary greatly from country to country.