The Forest of Arden

Arden is located in the South of England; it’s unknown if its location is a mystery, or if the forest moves around. The forest can only seemingly be seen by its citizens, or by Parahumans; to others, it seemingly doesn't exist, the land occupied by something else entirely.

The forest of Arden is roughly 400 acres large, containing a large number of small villages and hamlets, built into the trees’ trunks or branches. The citizens, all Parahumans known as Fae, survive by hunting game animals in the forest, and eating fruit and vegetables grown in orchards. The woods are not only filled with deer, pheasant and boar, but also rarer animals like bears and wolves, and even mysterious cryptids like the Arthurian Questing Beast, the mythical white hart, and perhaps even unicorns and griffins.

All Fae are Parahumans; it seems their strange looks and abilities inspired British tales of Fae and fairies in pre-industrial times. They age incredibly slowly. The Fae and Arden's animals are protected by the mysterious “King in the Woods”, a powerful deity that is in turn kept secret by the Fae; whatever it is, it is responsible for the forest's strange conditions.

Fae Culture

Fae do not age, a side effect of living in the primordial forest. Fae look like any other Parahumans, but there is a higher chance they have pointed ears and pale skin.

The Currency is Amethyst, of which there are only ~200 pieces in the entire forest; it is passed back and forth as a bargaining chip during barter trades.

The Forest contains a large number of unique flora and fungi; all Fae learn which are safe and which aren't at a young age.

Fae traditions are very similar to pre-industrialization British folk traditions; maypole, circle dancing, Morris dancing, the carving and weaving of effigies in wood and straw.

With the exception of the Queens, women are treated much like a subclass, expected to be beautiful and wanton or homely and simple; many dress unconvincingly as men, known as “Panning”, but Fae on the whole treat them as men, no question.

The Fae celebrate the coming of each Great season with a festival on the solstice or equinox;

~ At the beginning of Spring, a procession is led around the villages and the forest, with hobby horses and wild costumes, before a sacrifice, usually a criminal, sometimes a “volunteer”, is set ablaze inside a wicker effigy, an offering for the year to come.

~ At the beginning of Summer, the Fae dress in great masks of flowers and feathers, and the Maypole is danced, as is the Morris. Some speak of orgies, but nothing has been observed. Leaf effigies, doused in summer blood, are left to the King in the Woods.

~ At the beginning of Autumn, a great cauldron, a hundred gallons full, is loaded with food and corn dollies, before being set ablaze, an offering to the Woods.

~ At the beginning of Winter, a procession is led around the villages and woods, at its front the dread Mare of Mab; a Skeletal horse “puppet”. The mare visits each home, knocking three times in the door, before asking for an offering of fine creams. If sated, the house is blessed. If denied or ignored twice, the procession is traditionally allowed to ransack and destroy the home. Wooden effigies, resembling people in pain, are left to the King in the Woods.

Auberon

The King of Arden, the Lord of Summer, claiming divine right having been chosen by The King in The Woods, Auberon resembled something between the satyr-like Pan and the Sidhe Kings of Irish Folklore; tall, red-headed and wild of beard, with curled horns. Once, Arden was ruled by one King and his three Queens; Mab, Titania, and Syccorax, who each shared his power; when Syccorax was deposed and killed by men, Auberon elected to share his power only two ways, between himself and Titania, as a means to ensure Arden always had the strength to protect itself immediately in the hands of Spring and Summer. But the proud and haughty Auberon had a hunger that could not be sated, and continued to share his bed and power with Mab, who over the centuries hungered for legitimate power...

Auberon ruled the Forest when the Academy first made contact, and made clear that his rule was indisputable; even when the First Class endured his insults to protect him from the rebellious Lost Boys. Even after being protected, he exiled his saviors.

Years later, the Lost Class, summoned into the forest through the Winding Way, defeated Queen Mab and her uprising, but exposed Auberon's infidelity. Humiliated, he committed suicide, his power now held exclusively by Titania.

As well as a monstrous visage, Auberon had an amazing sense of accuracy , and could hit a miniscule target with his spear at thirty metres.

Auberon's spear was tipped with an otherworldly blue metal; it Possessed unknown “magic”.Its location is unknown.

Titania

The Queen of Arden, the Lady of Spring, and joint-ruler of the Forest. Titania is gentle and benevolent, with a boisterous sense of humour, but with a remarkable constitution and courage, and a presence that would terrify any who disagree with her. Once just a talented Fae who caught Auberon's eye with her talent for accelerating plant growth, she now rules the forest fairly but strictly, alongside her rekindled lover Old Nick, and the Prince Calibanne.

Titania is recognisable by her dark skin and a great mane of red hair intertwined with flowers of the seasons.

Mab

The exiled Queen of Winter, Mab was Auberon's secret lover long after she was supposedly cut off from the King's power. Spurned and angered, she attempted a coup of the forest, unleashing a killing winter freeze during the Sam-Hainn festival in 1976, enlisting the help of Goodfellowe and his Lost Boys to cause chaos. Using Auberon, Mab attempted to kill the King in the Woods, but its presence left her startled and scared, and the Lost Class were able to restrain and defeat her in the aftermath. Auberon exiled Mab, thinking it would protect him, but the Lost Class listened to Mab's evidence of Auberon's infedelity ,and backed it up with their own findings.

Mab possessed limited but incredibly potent weather powers, able to summon lethal chill winds and heavy destructive snow storms, and a small knowledge of magic. She had a “goth” appearance.

Exiled into the outer world, Mab is still somewhere in Great Britain, eternally young and Possessed of a bitterness that cannot be contained...

Syccorax

The dead Queen of Autumn, an enormous woman, possessed of incredible magical skill, who documented and manipulated the power of The King In The Woods. Cruel, selfish, hedonistic and proud of her unique beauty, Syccorax secretly travelled the country, slipping away through the Forest in the form of a sow, cursing and blessing the populace of ancient Britain for her own amusement. Her actions brought the attention of those who could never understand Arden, and following the path led by her footsteps, were able to infiltrate the forest. Syccorax’ Tower was destroyed, as were all her books and tomes, except two; one was held by Auberion, the other stolen, though pieces still remain. Syccorax death became the stuff of legend, and inspired even further hatred of humanity in the Fae.

Her son Calibanne has finally taken her emptied seat, and is slowly rebuilding her collection of arcane tomes, piece by piece.

Robyn Goodfellowe

Once Auberon's paige, the mischievous Goodfellowe is a chaotic individual motivated purely by their own desires and whims. It was he who sowed the seeds of distrust, intrigue, curiosity and eventual uprising in 1970, and returned to aid Mab's chaos in 1976. When it takes his liking, he is an ally to the Collective, but at other times he is ally to no-one.

Robyn is androgynous; whether he is Panning or not is unknown.

Goodfellowe can fly unaided, has limited magical knowledge, and a deep understanding of the flora and fungi of Arden.

The Lost Boys

A group of Goodfellowe's lackeys who kidnapped Parahumans to try and understand the outside world, before realising how much they desired to live in the wider world. After attempting to overthrow Titania, the Lost Boys were exiled, and continue to cause problems for human and Parahuman relations with their immature, violent antics. A handful of members have joined the ranks of the Collective over the years.

~ Moth: Can induce disorienting vertigo and related nausea in a target. A many time member of the Collective. Close with Mustardseed.

~ Mustardseed: Radiates a noxious, nauseating aura; not only felt by anyone physically near them, but also by telepath attempting to read their mind, or intangible beings in the vicinity. Close with Moth.

~ Peaselblossom: Can rapidly accelerate plant growth. Killed by the Evercircling Skeletal Family.

~ Cobweb: Could produce a thick, sticky secretion from their skin. Killed (possibly eaten) by Bodmin.

~ Touchstone: A humourless jester who, as long s their feet were on the ground, could mentally convince anyone looking that they were actually standing five feet to the left. Killed by the Evercircling Skeletal Family.

~ Aeriel: Could fly and produce fire and light. Claimed to have been the inspiration for the Shakespeare character.

~ Calibanne: Strong, tough, simple and obstinate. Claimed to have been the inspiration for the Shakespeare character.The son of the deposed Enchantress Queen Syccorax. Following Mab's defeat and Auberon's death, Titania revoked Caliban's exile and invited him to take his place as Prince of Arden.

~ Old Nick: Not really a parahuman, but a human “cursed” by Titania centuries ago; his head was horribly disfigured, and kept it hidden under a large hood. Joined the Lost Boys in an attempt to escape back to the outside world, but had a change of heart and betrayed the villains to Titania. Helped the Lost Class in the fight against Mab.

The King in the Woods

The same powerful entity that protects the Forest of Arden from almost every pair of human eyes, it dwells deep in the woods, its form and exact location utterly unknown to those who were not born in Arden. A Creature of untold power, only the Kings and Queens of the Fae, and a handful of others, have met the source of the forest, and speak of it only in reverent tones.

Considering the offerings made to the King in the Woods by the people of Arden, it is possible that the creature may be what inspired British Folk-Pagan Traditions, like the Green Man, hobby-horses and corn dollies.

Events

July 1970, “Into the Forest of Arden”

When one of the students is kidnapped by strangely dressed teens, the Academy discovers a Parahuman community living in a secluded forest in the South of England, uninterrupted for hundreds of years. Something strange in the woods is keeping the Parahuman inhabitants young, leading to stories of Faeries. The Class’ rescue leads to a number of the “Fae” becoming enamoured with Parahuman superiority. Following an attempted coup, and exiling the upstarts, King Auberon & Queen Titania likewise exiling the Class from returning… but one of the Fae wants to experience the outside world, and joins the Academy.

Halloween 1976, “Saim-Hann”

The Lost Class return to reality, appearing in the Forest of Arden, overjoyed to be back in Great Britain. It swiftly becomes apparent that a coup has occurred in the Forest; Queen Mab has usurped Titania and Auberon, calling forth an age of dread, supernatural winter to roll across the land following All Hallows Eve. The Class clash with the traitor Robyn Goodfellowe and their misfit Lost Boys in an attempt to liberate the Royal couple. Auberon is revealed to have been implicit in Mab's actions as her lover and takes his own life, leaving Titania in rule, Mab exiled and Robyn and the Boys missing…