Fetchlings

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Fetchlings look out of place, even in the Strange.

Overview

Fetchlings, also Iarraidh (Feyspeak \ˈɪri\ for favor, request), are a Fey species native to Arcadia. They are one of the two constituent species of The Court of Half Tomorrows. Their Fey God is The Never Queen. Unlike most Fey species, Fetchlings do not arise naturally within Arcadia, nor are they shaped solely by philosophical adherence. Instead, they originate as mortal children taken from the Integral Realms and transformed into Fey through means known only to their Fey God.

Fetchlings exist in perpetual tension with the Changelings of their Court, bound together in a Strange circuit of interruption and obligation that neither species can escape.

History

Dark Age

Fetchlings came into existence in the middle Dark Age, circa NIR 1380, when The Never Queen founded The Half Court. From its inception, the Court’s philosophy centered on Strange Meaning through incompletion, abandonment, and futures that never arrive.

Rather than shaping existing Fey, the Never Queen claimed mortal children from the Integrum, severing them from their intended lives and remaking them as Fey. These transformed beings became the first Fetchlings, living embodiments of stolen possibility.

Later in the Dark Age, circa NIR 1750, The Half Court was fused with The Court of Tomorrow through the Concordance, forming The Court of Half Tomorrows. This fusion bound Fetchlings irrevocably to the Changelings. Where Fetchlings embody obligations that must be pursued, Changelings embody interruptions that prevent resolution.

From the Fetchling perspective, the fusion was not a shock but a confirmation. Their entire existence already presupposed unfinished business; now it was given a partner species to ensure it never ended.

Dawn Age

In the current era, Fetchlings remain central to the Court’s functioning. Their numbers fluctuate with the Court’s activity in the mortal realms, but their role within Arcadia has remained unchanged since the fusion.

Cosmology

The Court of Half Tomorrows holds that Strange Meaning arises from futures denied and promises deferred. Fetchlings are the Court’s most literal proof of this doctrine.

By being taken as children, Fetchlings are defined by lives they never lived. Their transformation severs mortal destiny while preserving memory, emotion, and longing. What remains is not nostalgia, but obligation, a sense that something must be done, even if it can never be completed.

That this transformation is achieved through magic unknown even to The Keening Women is a point of deep unease within Arcadia. Fetchlings are not merely Fey, they are exceptions.

Society

Fetchling society is inseparable from its relationship with Changelings. Together, the two species form a closed Strange circuit that sustains The Court of Half Tomorrows.

Within the Court:

• Fetchlings are defined by unfulfilled quests, missing homes, and unresolved attachments.
• Changelings generate new interruptions that redirect or complicate those quests.
• No Fetchling may complete their obligation without creating conditions that require further interruption.

Fetchlings often resent Changelings, viewing them as deliberate obstacles placed in their path. Changelings, in turn, see Fetchlings as engines of endless pursuit. Court protocols formalize this mutual frustration, ensuring cooperation without reconciliation.

Ecology

Fetchlings resemble Fairfolk closely, but with a pronounced uncanny quality. Their features are unnervingly symmetrical, their eyes blink out of sync, and their speech often fails to align perfectly with mouth movements. These distortions become more apparent during moments of emotional stress or proximity to mortals.

They possess the ability to read the surface thoughts of those nearby, which they use to navigate Arcadian society and maintain fragile social cohesion. This ability does not grant peace of mind; it often deepens their awareness of what they have lost.

Fetchlings favor environments that echo domestic spaces, homes, doorways, roads, and places of departure. Such locations resonate with their incomplete pasts, reinforcing the Court’s philosophy without ever offering closure.