Post by shalion on Jun 22, 2012 3:44:14 GMT
The setting for this RP is similar to one that I'm currently using in one of my interactive stories. The gist of it is that there is a town where lions are considered sacred animals by humans and the two species coexist side by side. Lions can have jobs here, like guarding flocks, being a warrior, or practicing the more religious aspects of their species by being oracles/fortune-tellers. The main pride lives in a shrine devoted to lions outside the village, but a large number of lions also live in the town, performing various duties. Lions and humans can't speak to one another directly, but cross species relationships are managed by human priests and lion high oracles from a centralized authority. Things have been this way for the past 200 years or so.
I'll let you all discover more of the minutiea of the town for yourself as we work through the RP. This is a RP-master type thread, so I'll be serving as your eyes and ears basically as you communicate with NPC's and learn more about the town. Me and Krissi have an idea in place for a basic story, but you're more than welcome to join in and shake things up if you like. I know a lot about the town and if you would like more information, feel free to message me for more details, especially if you are planning on playing a lion or a human from the town.
Here's the introductory chapter:
The Town of Urafiki
The grass rustled ever so slightly as the golden jackal moved through the tall grass. Raising her snout ever so slightly, she could smell the light breeze wafted in from ahead. Smoke, dung and sweat tickled her nostrils, a strange combination, but one with which she’d grown familiar over the past few weeks as she’d stalked the outskirts of the human village. She hadn’t gone in yet, but the garbage pit outside the village had yielded more than enough tasty morsels to convince her to linger. Tonight was the night she was going to feast on fresh meat instead of nibbling on spoiled morsels. The reek of fresh blood was in the air. The jackal had come across a discarded placenta in the garbage pit earlier today so she knew that one of the goats had given birth. A calf would keep her well fed for weeks to come. All she had to do was sneak in, grab it and be gone.
The jackal’s heart was racing as she approached the village’s outer boundary. She peeked her head through the last of tall grass. Right in front of her was a rough fence, nothing more than unworked sticks tied together and utterly no barrier to the sleek jackal. However, something on the fence gave her pause. Why the was the indisputable scent of lion sprayed on this human amalgamation. The reek of it was fresh so that she could taste it on the tip of her tongue. That seemed out of place as the jackal had thought that lions were even more wary of humans than jackals. Maybe it was simply that some rogue male had passed through the area recently. The jackal continued on into the pasture proper.
She sniffed the air again, letting her nose lead her to the nanny goat. Ahead, she saw the shapes of buildings made of clay outlined by the fires the humans kept at night. The light was distracting and somewhat frightening, but the shadows were thick out here. She crept on.
The goats were sleeping spread out under a lean-to supported by the rear on one of the larger buildings. It wasn’t hard to see where the calf was. The jackal flattened herself to the earth. “In and out.” she thought. She could imagine it happening in her head, her dashing forward, taking the newborn’s neck in her teeth. Sprinting away before the mother could even get to her hooves. It would be so easy...
The jackal got to her paws, planted them and set off. She could see it happening in her mind, willing herself to be as quick as thought.
But it didn’t happen that way. Not at all. A huge dark shape detached itself from the roof of the building in front of her and landed gracefully on the ground ahead of the jackal. It growled at her. “Get lost pip-squeak.”
“Oh elephant-dung, its a lion!” the jackal cursed to herself. She screeched to a halt on the dirt. “This doesn’t have anything to do with you.” she said, from what she hoped was a safe distance.
“These goats are under my protection. Now get lost before you lose more than your dinner.”
The jackal couldn’t believe this. “Since when do lions protect goats in a human village?”
The lion snorted and began moving forward. “It’s my job, jackal. Now are you going to get lost or do I have to kill you? I honestly wouldn’t mind an extra snack.”
The jackal began moving back, but she wasn’t giving up just yet. she was moving adjacent to the buildings, keeping the still slumbering goats within sight. “Since when do lions have ‘jobs’? Are you some sort of human pet?”
The growling intensified. “I’m no pet, scavenger. I’m a night sentry for this town. I protect the flock and the people inside from danger and pests alike. I’m not going to warn you again...”
Stupid lion, she almost had a beeline for the goats as they circled each other. Just a few more steps. “And why would you do such a thing?”
The lion lowered himself, looking ready for a pounce. “Because this is my home.” he intoned and then sprang.
But the jackal was crafty and the lion telegraphed his pounce well ahead of time. The jackal dodged easily and went after the calf in a single movement. She quickly found herself darting between the plump, sleeping bodies of the goats, bounding then and slipping between. The lion was right behind her, but followed along outside the leanto, unwilling to plow through his charges. The jackal found the calf against its mother and her teeth found its neck. Oh, the feel of it as she dragged it up, the delicate trickle of blood as her fangs broke the new skin. Its bleats of fright were weak and fleeting and she began to drag it away, wringing its neck simultaneously.
The jackal might not have been able to pounce like a lion, but she knew she could out distance one. If she could just get past the fence... The lion she’d spoken to was still behind her. He was charging, but the jackal knew he couldn’t keep up the pace. Lions were sprinters, not marathon runners.
The jackal was so occupied with the lion behind her that she didn’t see the one ahead of her until it was too late. A swipe of the paw sent her flying with what felt like multiple fractures to her small frame. She landed hard and the second lion was on her instantly. He ended her quickly, and for that, the jackal supposed, she must be grateful.
***
Gamba let go of the jackal’s neck which had broken between his teeth like a twig. His stare lingered on the dead goat calf until Kondo caught up with him. Kondo sought his breath and asked, “Is... is it dead?”
Frowning, Gamba rounded on the younger lion. “Yes, and its dead because of you. Why didn’t you kill her instead of having a nice little chat with the jackal whose hunting our goats?”
“I was trying to get her to see reason. I thought she’d...”
“She was just talking so she could circle back to the goats! I swear Kondo, I don’t know why you bother. There’s no hope for useless scavengers like her.” Gamba took both the calf and the jackal in his fangs and began to walk back to the town proper.
“Is this going to come out of my pay?” asked Kondo dejectedly.
Gamba shot him a look, and said nothing, turning back.
Kondo sighed wretchedly and looked back out into the starry savanna night, resolute not to fail in his duty again. What good was a sentry lion who couldn’t guard the flock, right?
I'll let you all discover more of the minutiea of the town for yourself as we work through the RP. This is a RP-master type thread, so I'll be serving as your eyes and ears basically as you communicate with NPC's and learn more about the town. Me and Krissi have an idea in place for a basic story, but you're more than welcome to join in and shake things up if you like. I know a lot about the town and if you would like more information, feel free to message me for more details, especially if you are planning on playing a lion or a human from the town.
Here's the introductory chapter:
The Town of Urafiki
The grass rustled ever so slightly as the golden jackal moved through the tall grass. Raising her snout ever so slightly, she could smell the light breeze wafted in from ahead. Smoke, dung and sweat tickled her nostrils, a strange combination, but one with which she’d grown familiar over the past few weeks as she’d stalked the outskirts of the human village. She hadn’t gone in yet, but the garbage pit outside the village had yielded more than enough tasty morsels to convince her to linger. Tonight was the night she was going to feast on fresh meat instead of nibbling on spoiled morsels. The reek of fresh blood was in the air. The jackal had come across a discarded placenta in the garbage pit earlier today so she knew that one of the goats had given birth. A calf would keep her well fed for weeks to come. All she had to do was sneak in, grab it and be gone.
The jackal’s heart was racing as she approached the village’s outer boundary. She peeked her head through the last of tall grass. Right in front of her was a rough fence, nothing more than unworked sticks tied together and utterly no barrier to the sleek jackal. However, something on the fence gave her pause. Why the was the indisputable scent of lion sprayed on this human amalgamation. The reek of it was fresh so that she could taste it on the tip of her tongue. That seemed out of place as the jackal had thought that lions were even more wary of humans than jackals. Maybe it was simply that some rogue male had passed through the area recently. The jackal continued on into the pasture proper.
She sniffed the air again, letting her nose lead her to the nanny goat. Ahead, she saw the shapes of buildings made of clay outlined by the fires the humans kept at night. The light was distracting and somewhat frightening, but the shadows were thick out here. She crept on.
The goats were sleeping spread out under a lean-to supported by the rear on one of the larger buildings. It wasn’t hard to see where the calf was. The jackal flattened herself to the earth. “In and out.” she thought. She could imagine it happening in her head, her dashing forward, taking the newborn’s neck in her teeth. Sprinting away before the mother could even get to her hooves. It would be so easy...
The jackal got to her paws, planted them and set off. She could see it happening in her mind, willing herself to be as quick as thought.
But it didn’t happen that way. Not at all. A huge dark shape detached itself from the roof of the building in front of her and landed gracefully on the ground ahead of the jackal. It growled at her. “Get lost pip-squeak.”
“Oh elephant-dung, its a lion!” the jackal cursed to herself. She screeched to a halt on the dirt. “This doesn’t have anything to do with you.” she said, from what she hoped was a safe distance.
“These goats are under my protection. Now get lost before you lose more than your dinner.”
The jackal couldn’t believe this. “Since when do lions protect goats in a human village?”
The lion snorted and began moving forward. “It’s my job, jackal. Now are you going to get lost or do I have to kill you? I honestly wouldn’t mind an extra snack.”
The jackal began moving back, but she wasn’t giving up just yet. she was moving adjacent to the buildings, keeping the still slumbering goats within sight. “Since when do lions have ‘jobs’? Are you some sort of human pet?”
The growling intensified. “I’m no pet, scavenger. I’m a night sentry for this town. I protect the flock and the people inside from danger and pests alike. I’m not going to warn you again...”
Stupid lion, she almost had a beeline for the goats as they circled each other. Just a few more steps. “And why would you do such a thing?”
The lion lowered himself, looking ready for a pounce. “Because this is my home.” he intoned and then sprang.
But the jackal was crafty and the lion telegraphed his pounce well ahead of time. The jackal dodged easily and went after the calf in a single movement. She quickly found herself darting between the plump, sleeping bodies of the goats, bounding then and slipping between. The lion was right behind her, but followed along outside the leanto, unwilling to plow through his charges. The jackal found the calf against its mother and her teeth found its neck. Oh, the feel of it as she dragged it up, the delicate trickle of blood as her fangs broke the new skin. Its bleats of fright were weak and fleeting and she began to drag it away, wringing its neck simultaneously.
The jackal might not have been able to pounce like a lion, but she knew she could out distance one. If she could just get past the fence... The lion she’d spoken to was still behind her. He was charging, but the jackal knew he couldn’t keep up the pace. Lions were sprinters, not marathon runners.
The jackal was so occupied with the lion behind her that she didn’t see the one ahead of her until it was too late. A swipe of the paw sent her flying with what felt like multiple fractures to her small frame. She landed hard and the second lion was on her instantly. He ended her quickly, and for that, the jackal supposed, she must be grateful.
***
Gamba let go of the jackal’s neck which had broken between his teeth like a twig. His stare lingered on the dead goat calf until Kondo caught up with him. Kondo sought his breath and asked, “Is... is it dead?”
Frowning, Gamba rounded on the younger lion. “Yes, and its dead because of you. Why didn’t you kill her instead of having a nice little chat with the jackal whose hunting our goats?”
“I was trying to get her to see reason. I thought she’d...”
“She was just talking so she could circle back to the goats! I swear Kondo, I don’t know why you bother. There’s no hope for useless scavengers like her.” Gamba took both the calf and the jackal in his fangs and began to walk back to the town proper.
“Is this going to come out of my pay?” asked Kondo dejectedly.
Gamba shot him a look, and said nothing, turning back.
Kondo sighed wretchedly and looked back out into the starry savanna night, resolute not to fail in his duty again. What good was a sentry lion who couldn’t guard the flock, right?
Also added Christmassy snow and banner :3
I'm currently getting some uni work done before heading to the post office. What's up with you?