"The most important thing about fairies is that they are highly intelligent." My mum stood in front of a class of about 20 werewolves ranging from pups to elders since groups weren't split by year groups but by the wolves opportunity and timetables.
"They plan five steps ahead and have three backup plans for each step of the way." A murmur came form the back of the class where one of the oldest wolves of our pack was sitting.
"Do you mean to say that they can plan all that in their head? How is that possible?" He exclaimed.
"Like I said fairies are highly intelligent. Our brains work on different levels to those of other species. This means that fairies can be deadly in battle and especially in one-on-one combat. Another myth that I will have to debunk in order for you to fight the fairies if that becomes necessary is that fairies cannot fly; that's pixies. With exception of the Aetheris Hive who have control over air and ether. They are able to move the air around their bodies in such a way that it allows them to levitate. They also ride the wind and birds." The wolves around me looked short of terrified. The aspect of potentially having opponents who were able to control the air around you and even ride the wind was a daunting one.
"I will give you a quick overview of all the Hives." She pulled up a photo on the screen behind her; two fairies stared back at us, a male and a female. Their hair was the colour of glowing embers and their eyes looked like black pitches of coal. The skin was deathly pale and painted with what looked to be ashes; they were tall and packed with lean muscle.
"This is a couple of the Ignis Hive. They control Fire and heat, which makes them dangerous because they can conjure flames in their hands but also because their temper matches their powers. They are easily angered and cannot remain still. Once you have gained their trust though, they are fiercely loyal and will stop at nothing to help you. It takes a long time to gain their trust though as they are naturally skeptical and prefer solitude."
"This-" She pulled up a picture of a couple with deep blue eyes and of slender, but muscular built. The female's hair was lilac and the male's a dark forest green. Pale skin contrasted with cherry red lips that even stood out in the male's face. "is a couple of the Mentis Hive. I myself am part of this tribe and we have control over the mind. The fairies of the Mentis Hive have acquired the powers of Telepathy and telekinesis over the thousands of years of our existence. For example:" She lifted a pen that lay on her desk in the air and molded it into a slightly sharper object before firing it into the wall at the end of the classroom; Telekinesis was an awesome power. The shocked faces of the wolves around me, almost made me chuckle but I kept it in. "This power can be very destructive, but the Mentis Hive is allied with us and the Ignis Hive have always been our enemy." She pulled up another photo, this time the couple had black hair and light blue eyes, their skin also had a slightly blue taint to it and their hands and feet were webbed. Their faces had something alien to them; the eyes seems abnormally large and bone structures fine and slim.
"This is a couple of the Aquae Hive. They control sweet waters like rivers and lakes. They can ask obedience of the inhabitants of said bodies of water but never command them; they are a very peaceful Hive and will never choose confrontation if they can evade it. Their sister Hive is the Maris Hive." She pulled up a picture of a couple with black hair that had a dark green shimmer streaking through the wet tresses. Their eyes were white, which made them look blind and their hands and feet were equally as webbed as the Aquae Hive's.
"The Maris Hive control the salt waters, meaning the ocean. Similar to the Aquae Hive they can control the water itself but not the inhabitants. They are more warlike than the Aquae Hive but will always stand by their sister Hive no matter what their decision." The next couple that popped up on the screen evoked a gasp from the class. The couple was completely white, except for their golden iris. Their bodies were lean and slim and their hair reached down to the floor.
"This is a couple of the Aetheris Hive. They control the air and ether as I mentioned before they're the only fairy Hive that can fly, even though it is not technically flying but more riding the winds. They can change the weather and are generally a neutral Hive. They do not like to interfere with anything and believe that everything happens in due time. They are very hard to enrage but once they are angry they can be even more dangerous than the Ignis Hive." The next couple was of almost otherworldly beauty. Their hair was a beautiful ginger and their eyes a light green, their lips formed the most beautiful mouth one had ever seen and it was hard to resist them even just looking at a picture.
"This is a couple of the Meli Hive. They have power over voice and song. Their song can captivate and control anyone even a fellow Meli Fairy. They have mastered the songs of nature and emotions; they are generally like the Aetheris Hive but a bit more confrontational. They will stick by what they think is right and won't hesitate to attack if need be. Their tempers are easily provoked, but are a very loyal Hive and I expect them to side with us since the Mentis and Meli Hive have a century old agreement of loyalty." Mum sounded so sure of herself, but I could sense a bit of doubt behind her confident manner. The next couple sent a gasp of horror through the rows of wolves. Their skin was almost black, their hair white and the eyes looked like little red holes in their skulls. But as soon as we had caught a glimpse of this horrible sight, their appearance changed and they looked like your average human.
"This is a couple of the Stimuli Hive. They can bring torment over their opponent and were known as the black terror back in the days. They have mastered the art of the mist to disguise their appearance so they can get close enough to their victims to inflict the torture. The Stimuli are, despite their appearance and power, a very neutral Hive and don't usually interfere. They have their own battles to fight and they do so in silence. Which make them a very dangerous threat, should you get on the wrong side of the dispute." The picture changed and in front of us was a picture of two very plain looking fairies. Their hair was brown and leaves were stuck in it, their skin which was probably a beautifully golden colour, was dirty and covered in mud. The most striking this was their eyes: they were of the brightest green I had ever seen and seemed to be hypnotising.
"This is a Terrae Hive couple. They control the Earth and land, which allows them to change the landscape. During the wolf killings ten years ago, the Terrae Hive made an army of about 500 humans disappear in the depths of the earth by splitting the ground right beneath their feet. They are usually a peaceful Hive and it takes time to anger them but when they are prepared for battle, they will stop at nothing and will come at you with the literal power of the earth." A few gasps sounded in the room as the next photo came up on the screen. Similar to the Meli Hive, these two fairies were almost painfully beautiful. The woman had wide hips and the man was muscly and tall. Their hair was golden and their eyes of the softest brown, the skin glowed healthily.
"This is a couple of the Consi Hive. The Consi Hive's power is fertility, this makes them the probably most peaceful of all Hives. They do not fight and no one would dream of attacking them, not even the Ignis Hive who have some kind of unfinished business with almost every Hive on the face of this earth. The Consi's can make ground and animals fertile and are of exceptional beauty which has made them the target of quite a few attacks from humans in the last centuries but being the peaceful souls they are they always found a way out without hurting anyone." The next couple had an animalistic feel to them. Dark brown, almost black hair in a mess and eyes similar to a predators, they had roguh bone structures and muscle everywhere. They were the ones that looked most like us, but there was a different kind of animal at play.
"This is a couple of the Pecudis Hive. They have learned to speak to animals and as harsh as it sounds control them too. Some fairies of this tribe can also turn into certain animals but only if a special bond exists. What I mean to say is that when a fairy of this tribe has acquired this special bond to an animal, the fairy can accompany the animal in its mind. This special bond can only happen once to a fairy and once it is broken it is irreparable. You can imagine this bond almost like a mating bond but not as intense and purely platonic." There was embarassed giggles from the young ones but they were quickly hushed by one of the elders.
"The rogue fairies, or Sprites as we call them, are extremely dangerous because their powers aren't bound anymore. While fairies live in and are part of the Hive, their power is bound to the Queen of that Hive. The Queen therefore has power over the fairies and their abilities. She will never go so far as to manipulate a fairy, but Sprites are cut off from their mediator of some sorts. The Queen helps us channel our powers and use them to our full potential but as soon as we are cut off from that source, we are very vulnerable towards influences from the outside and some Sprites have been known to be completely possessed by thier powers, to the point where one Sprite of the Ignis Hive was a walking torch because the power of its inner fire was too strong and had consumed the Sprite's earthly body." I stared at my mother with an open mouth. She had never really told me about Sprites before. I mean I knew that there were rogue fairies but she had never mentioned them adn it's not like Sprites would've been a desired topic of conversation at our annual family dinners at the Mentis Hive. She went on to talk about the fairies' battle techniques but I let my mind wander; I knew all about those. I'd visited a sort of summer camp for the Mentis fairies to train their combat skills adn techniques. We had also had a proper run down on the other Hives' techniques as far as they were known to us. And as if on cue I could hear my father's voice in my head.
She will be a big asset for the battle teams. She is trained in Wolf and Fairy Combat alike.
I was shocked and froze in my seat; did that mean he wanted me to go out and fight?