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Nymphs
Loveliest of the fae, nymphs are nature spirits linked to wild sites such as springs, sacred trees, or the vastness of the sea. To mortal eyes they appear at once enchanting and unknowable; though their forms resemble those of comely young men and women, their eyes are filled with an ancient awareness that seems to see both more and less than mortal eyes reveal. They move with inhuman fluidity, and those who have spoken to the fae say that their understanding of reality is profoundly alien. Time flows differently for the fae, and the rhythms of the world move them in strange ways.
Although nymphs are not evil, neither are they "good" in ways that most men would recognize. Adding to this ambiguity is the fact that most who encounter these faeries are incapable of distinguishing the benevolent nymphs from their more malicious sisters. Tales abound of travelers who passed a fleeting night in the company of a nymph, only to find that a century went by in the world they knew and that all their friends and family were dead by dawn. Whether that should be considered the innocent mistake of a frolicking nymph or a deliberate trap laid by some malign faerie is seldom certain.
Many have fallen in love with nymphs due to their exotic beauty -- and, some say, their bewitching magics. On occasion, the nymphs return their affections. These romances are invariably doomed, however, for one can no more possess a nymph than one can leash the wind; any attempt to do so fails, or else blights and ultimately destroys the very beauty it meant to keep.
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