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Ironteeth Witches are a species of witch created by the mating of Valg and Fae, said to take after the Valg while the Crochan witches took after the Fae. Ironteeth witches all share a retractable set of iron teeth and nails, and a clear eyelid for flying.  

There are three clans of Ironteeth Witches, the Blackbeak Clan, the Blueblood Clan and the Yellowlegs Clan.

History[]

Millennia ago, when the Valg broke into the world, witches did not exist. It was the Valg, and the Fae, and humans. But the Valg wanted the world for their own, and they thought a good way to get it would be to ensure that their offspring could survive there. The humans weren’t resilient enough to breed with, but the Fae were stronger, and the Valg began kidnapping them to breed with. Their offspring became the first witches.

After the first Valg War, the witches were gifted the Western Wastes by Brannon Galathynius. It is unclear whether the Ironteeth were excluded from this arrangement, but five hundred years later the three Ironteeth Clans united to overthrow House Crochan and take over the Witch Kingdom. Their victory was short-lived however, as the land was cursed by Rhiannon Crochan prior to her death, and became unusable for the Clans to live in. The Matrons then forced the Clans into exile, and for the next 500 years the Ironteeth would hunt the Crochans across the continent, looking for the one that could break the curse.

At the start of the second Valg War, the Ironteeth Clans were gathered by the King of Adarlan at Morath, with the promise that if they fought on his side he would help them find a way to break Rhiannon's curse. The clans were allowed to live in Ferian Gap where they were trained with the newly made wyverns to form the King's new aerial legion. The Ironteeth moved to Morath and were overseen by Duke Perrington. The witches were also used as breeding subjects to create new Valg creatures capable of hosting Valg demons.

Over time the Ironteeth lost faith in their alliance with Morath, even more so after the breeding programs started and the Blackbeak heir, Manon Blackbeak, defected from her clan. They eventually split into different factions; those who remained on Morath's side, and those who defected to join Manon when she united the Crochans and Ironteeth against the Valg. The Ironteeth who fought with Erawan were killed, and after the war the curse on the Wastes was broken, and all the witches returned home.[1]

Physiology and Abilities[]

Ironteeth witches greatly resemble human women in shape (as they are all female), and many are beautiful. However, they are immortal and predatory in every other sense. Ironteeth blood is blue, like all witches, and they have a retractable set of iron teeth and nails. As the Ironteeth were known to fly on enchanted ironwood brooms, they also have a retractable clear eyelid to protect their vision from the wind as they fly. This eyelid slightly blurs their vision. Ironteeth are immortal and stop aging when they reach maturity. Their senses are also stronger than that of humans, and they have increased speed and strength.

  • Members of the Yellowlegs Clan are known to have saffron ankles, and the Blackbeak Clan prize black eyes flecked with gold, only seen in their clan.
    • These eyes are throwbacks to the Valg Kings, and are feared by normal Valg.
  • The Matron, or high witch of each clan, is seen as each aspect of the Three-Faced Goddess; the Blueblood Matron a young beautiful maiden, the Blackbeak Matron a woman in her prime and the Yellowlegs Matron an aging crone.

Magical Ability[]

Witches are able to build magical objects such as witch mirrors, which are capable of seeing the past, present, and future, communicating, traveling, and mirrors that hold or amplify raw power. The only additional magical objects known to be built by witchkind are the enchanted ironwood brooms they used to fly.

Some Ironteeth witches can see the future the way an oracle can, and it is rumored that for the Ancients, the past, the present, and the future bleed together. The Blueblood Clan claim they have the power but Baba Yellowlegs was known to be a gifted fortune teller and powerful oracle. Despite that, ironteeth witches do not possess magic like the Fae, crochans and some mortals do.

The only magic they can unleash is called the Yielding. They cannot summon and wield magic, but for once in a witch's life she can summon great power to unleash upon her enemies. The cost is that she is incinerated in the blast, her body yielded to the Darkness. As the Ironteeth witch yields life to the Darkness, its power fills her and unleashes from her in an ebony wave, a manifestation of what lies in their souls.

Culture[]

The Ironteeth society is ruthless and rigid; their culture is based around raising their witchlings to be heartless, loyal, and bloodthirsty warriors. Centuries ago, only some witches became warriors, called sentinels. However, since the witch wars, every witch born has been trained in violence. Their culture is hierarchical; each clan is ruled by a High Witch called the Matron and the Matron’s appointed heir; every witch of the clan belongs to a Coven, there is no such thing as a lone witch. Within each coven, there is a hierarchy, first a leader, and then the leader’s Second and Third. It is the duty of the Second and Third to defend their leader against all threats, even if it means sacrificing themselves. While the bonds between the witches of each coven are stressed upon, the leaders of the covens are raised to see their subordinates as expendable, and if they ever become insubordinate, they are to be dismissed.

Reproduction[]

Among the Ironteeth witches, witchlings are rare and sacred; from conception to the age of sixteen, they are protected. For a witch to harm a pregnant witch, their unborn witchling, or their daughter is the greatest crime imaginable, and they are punished with enormous suffering in a long, long execution. There is no greater pride than to bear a witchling for the Clan; and no greater shame than to lose one.

To the Ironteeth, humans are seen as only good for two things; rutting and bleeding, for Ironteeth witches drink the blood of mortals like mortals drink wine. While witchlings are prized by the Ironteeth, relationships with mortal men are seen as a weakness. However, affairs with human men are very common and encouraged. Bearing a witchling is not only honorable but extremely difficult, and they need all the chances they can to conceive. Witches will use the man for pleasure and then murder him and dine on his blood. Witches also have intimate relationships with each other, for example, Thea and Kaya of The Thirteen are lovers and the Blackbeak Matron has a beautiful young dark-haired witch to warm her bed.

Religion[]

Ironteeth, like the Crochans, worship the Three-Faced Goddess or the Three-Faced Mother, each representing an aspect of woman; mother, maiden, and crone. They call the Eye of Elena the Eye of the Goddess; the outer circle representing the crone, the interior circle representing mother, the bottom circle represents the maiden, and the eye inside is the “Heart of Darkness within her.” Because of this the Matron or high witch of each clan is seen as each aspect, the Blueblood Matron a young beautiful maiden, the Blackbeak Matron a woman in her prime and the Yellowlegs Matron an aging crone.

Blueblood prophets have the Eye of the Goddess tattooed over their hearts, and those who win valor in battle were once given those to mark their glory and their status as Goddess-blessed.

Ironteeth legend has it that all witches were gifted by the Three-Faced Goddess with iron teeth and nails to keep them anchored to this world when magic threatened to pull them away. The barbed iron crown the Blueblood Matron wears is supposedly proof that the magic in the Blueblood line ran so strong that their leader needed more iron and pain to keep her tethered in this realm.

The Ironteeth Witches believe that once they die, they are claimed by the Darkness; they believe that the Darkness cures all.

Known members[]

Blackbeaks:

Bluebloods:

Yellowlegs:

Trivia[]

  • Ironteeth witches show respect with a salute by two fingers to their brow.
  • The Ironteeth Witches (And Baba Yellowlegs) were at least partially inspired by Baga Yaga.
  • According to Asterin, all Ironteeth hear the roar of the wind in their ears, and feel storms calling to them.

References[]

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