Kernal

Kernal is the ever-vigilante sightless guardian of the sands. They say he could possibly be psychic, due to how fast his reflexes are. He started off life as a loner, his egg had been turned a bit too roughly by eager nurturers, and rolled out of Astryl's Vale, and into the desert. A ragged explorer found the egg and hatched Kernal, caring for him as if he was their own child, keeping the still fragile hatchling safe. Kernal swiftly sprung into a sturdy adolescent, anxious about adventuring on his own. The explorer assured him that all would go well for the chicken-tailed youth if he could find the chains of destiny and reunite them with the silks of time. Kernal and the un-named adventurer set out to find the chains, plundering countless tombs on their search for relics. Eventually, they found it. The chains of destiny. The explorer tried to tell Kernal some valuble information, but Kernal, in his eagerness, did not listen and snatched the chains from their pedestal. A ominous rumbling filled the tomb as the celing began to cave in. A larger chunk of rock landed on the adventurers back, immobilizing them. Kernal cried out in sadness, trying to free the entraped explorer. His efforts were fruitless. The adventurer shooed him away, wanting Kernal to continue on the quest. He reluctantly left the explorer, and flew up through a hole in the roof. Many years later, he found the silks of time in a city sunken in the sand. Kernal put the chains on top of the silks, and they fused together. He put them on and has worn them since then to remind himself of the friendly explorer.

Guardian of Darkness


The Guardian of Darkness emerged many, many long years ago from the just-created world of Sylestia, as a protector of the many that would soon be thriving in the night, in the dark. The amulet on his head gave him power to help him with the task ahead of him. He succeeded in his task and has kept on succeeding since his creation. You might find this mysterious creature roaming the skies at night, his amulet glowing ever so softly, and his wisps of visible magical power clouding the sky.

Me?

Valentina


my mind is already at halloween and when i was designing for that already i found inpiration in the Mexican Day of the Dead

Sonata Is a young Puffadore who separated from her family at a young age. Her home was attacked when she was vary young and her father hid her away before rushing back to their home to find her older brother, Shadow.
When her father failed to return quickly as he had promised, she left her hiding place and began to search the area. She was soon caught in a terrible storm and slipped off a rocky bank into a river which was much higher than normal and raging rapidly. She eventually washed up on a distant shore near where a Lupora pack lived. The pack was savage and powerful, but it was the alpha male's kind and gentle daughter, Aurora, who found her and with the support of her grandmother Siarra, Sonata was allowed to live there. She quickly grew fond of the simple, primitive lifestyle and developed a love for flowers. Sonata has since become a strong fighter, and a vary close friend to Aurora and Siarra, the Lupora who saved her.
Sonata has not seen her father or elder brother since, but she continues to believe that her brother is still alive somewhere. She will never stop searching for him, and will always be there for Aurora because of the kindness she had shown. Sonata sees Aurora as an older sister, and treats her as such.

Sonata is a loner by nature, but is also fairly friendly and kind to those she trusts. Somewhat shy, but playful, and at times, mischievous. She is clever and agile, and her angry glare can send many of the fiercest sylesti running in terror.
She doesn't like being in large groups.

This is:

~Felix~

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This story is one that ended very shortly :(

Me and my family loved pets and animals, but we were a little allergic. After a lot of pleading, we decided to get a cat. His name was Felix. At first, he hid under the bed and wouldn't come out for a few hours. Probably a bit scared, but we managed to get him out and he got used to us. He slept in the day, and woke up late. Clothing was his favourite bed. Felix snored, purred, and wagged his tail way too much when he slept. It was spring, so there was a bit of snow left outside. Every day, when he woke up, a little scratching and mews, and we opened the door. In which he runs straight to the bird cage and watches them all day. When we sat next to him and pet him, it seemed like he didn't care. But when we don't pet him, he'd occasionally come up and nuzzle our hand to pet him. We let him outside once, but he didn't seem too interested in snow. It was great having a cat around, but there was a problem. His hair went everywhere, and we got a little allergic when we stayed with him for a while. Sadly we had to give him away. And we had only kept him for 6 days!

Here's a photo of the real Felix X3

someone tell me if i'm supposed to ping, idk.
so: Here's Predator!





Predator is an awesome...... (uhh what is she?) Drayelosaur... i guess..
Be sure not to place any fragile items in the house if you own predator. no fragile items or breakable
items... BLAHDIDIDY BLAH! (smashing sound in background.) That painting was too colorful.
Wha... hold on a minute... WHAT? That was expensive! (puts Predator outside. Bad! Bad! you will come back inside for lunch, don't worry . you want starve. Sorry.
Ok so where was i? oh yeah... predator breaks stuff. and sometimes kills stuff...
But is lovable like a big, Dino sized puppy. ^.^ (with sharp horns and spiky fins.)


(i know i won't win.
I know i'm not good at writing.)

Chessur

While lighs are only known to be about in the summer time, there is a particular lighira that seems to be a bit...lost. Not that he minds, he never got along very well with the other felines. Proud creatures they are, no sense of fun. While he can get that way himself on occasion, he proudly wears his bows as a reminder that he's just a little bit different than the rest of the crowd and isn't afraid to mix things up and have a little fun. Even when he does lose his bows (which he somehow manages to do quite often), you can always tell it's him by the ever-present, titillating grin that graces his lips.

Kaluwa the Forgotten One

Species: Lighira
Gender: Female
Visible genes: Faded Outline (G1), Faded Outline (G2), Panthera (G3)
Notes: Kaluwa is a Swahili female name meaning 'forgotten one'


It was on the warm, savanna-like plains when a little cub had been born. A large golden lighira, as nameless as the land she lay on, waited to welcome her little one to the world. The new mother watched as a single cub hatched from a fur covered egg, eyes glowing with pride. A tiny paw poked through the sand-colored shell and a small squeak was heard from within. The mother purred, her tail sweeping over the egg as she coaxed her newborn to finish hatching. Finally the tawny lighira cub fumbled out of the eggshell, hitting the dusty ground with a heavy squeak. Her large golden eyes opened and she sat up on oversized paws, her oversized ears rotating to hear the new world around her.

The mother purred, a smile of love and pride spreading across her muzzle. Her large paw lifted up and pulled her daughter close, a pink tongue began to lap her fur. After a bit of grooming the golden mother frowned in confusion. Why weren't the mud spots coming off? She sniffed the squeaking cub and blinked in surprise. They were markings on her fur! Strange, for as long as she could remember her family heritage, and that of her mate, were purely golden lighiras. Pure breeds. Then again, it did not matter. Her new daughter was beautiful. Perfect.

A few days had passed since the hatching. The cub grew strog, learned to speak and was excited to learn new things. Since her daughter was stronger now, the golden lighira decided it was time to move on and take her cub back to her pride. She stood up as her cub, who had been playing on her back, tumbled off with a squeak. "Mommy?" she piped up, rolling back onto her large paws.

"It's alright, my child," the golden female answered, looking back around at her cub. She swished her tail over the cub's muzzle to hear her squeal from the tickle. "We're just moving homes."

The cub sneezed after her giggles and grinned up at her beautiful mother. "Where are we going?" When her mother began to walk, the tiny cub ran to catch up, her tail high in the air. "Will it be someplace big? Someplace fun? With lotsa cubs for me to play with?"

The mother chuckled in her songbird voice. "Actually yes. We are going to meet your father and his pride. She looked down as her daughter trotted by her side. She saw the cub's eyes glowing in excitement. "Your father is a strong lighira. One of the most beautiful in Sylestia. Pure golden fur unlike those ugly ones with unnatural colors...." she frowned at the thought. Such ugly greens and blues, purples and pinks. Such a disgrace.

The cub tilted her head, not quite sure what her mother meant. What was wrong with lighiras of those colors? The cub figured they'd be fascinating to meet. However she said nothing more on the subject and instead bombarded her mother with questions about her father and the pride. Her mother gladly answered every question to the best of her ability. It also helped since the hot summer sun made their long travel a tad uncomfortable. Her cub was a welcome distraction.

It was nearly a full day's walk, the mother sometimes having to carry her child by the scruff as such a young one got tired easily. They crossed massive expanses of desert, grasslands, and wide rivers. The cub never once lost her enthusiasm as everything was new and exciting. She saw many new species that absolutely fascinated her. The large antlers of the male faeloras, the fluffy playful bodies of luffoxes, the large, intimidating stature of the morkkos. Many times her mother had to get her attention with a touch of her tail since the cub was so easily distracted.

Finally they arrived at the foot of a massive volcano, a monster spire of rock piercing the clouds above like a spear. So far the cub has shown curiosity in everything and very little fear, but when she saw the large pride of golden-pelted lighiras, her fur stood on end and her paws suddenly felt heavy. She stopped, her tail low and her body tensed as she looked around at the large sylestis. Her mother stopped when she realized her cub was no longer at her side and she turned around to see her a few feet back. "Darling, what's wrong?" Her cub did not answer so the mother went back and gently nuzzled her with a reassuring purr. "It'll be okay, I promise..." Tenderly she nudged the frightened ball of fur and the cub began to hesitantly walk forward. Eventually she relaxed and was able to look around in curiosity. She then grinned with ears perked when she spotted some cubs playing nearby.

Suddenly she jumped to a sudden stop when a massive paw stepped in front of her. She looked up, seeing a regal looking male lighira standing before her and her mother. Even after seeing such terrifying morkkos, it was this sylesti that really intimidated her. She quickly backed away under her mother to hide behind her front paws, tail fluffed out in fear.

"I scent you," her mother greeted the male with a purr.

"I scent you, too," the male replied back, his voice deep and filled with authority. They exchanged nuzzles before the mother looked down. "Here is our new daughter. Come out child, you are perfectly safe." Tenderly with a paw, the golden female nudged her cub back out into the open.

The male looked down with pride and excitement, but once he saw the cub's flawed pelt his expression changed. "O-Oh...." he quickly pulled a smile on again, not wanting to insult his mate. "Sh-She's beautiful...."

Hearing herself be called beautiful made the cub grin. She squealed and pounced on the leader's paw, hugging her father's ankle with love. The male gave a nervous chuckle, obviously uncomfortable with this cub clinging to him. He looked around, noticing the pride members watching with curiosity. Was this really a pure lighira like themselves? Not wanting to be seen with an un-pure looking cub attached to him, the leader gave a nervous cough and shook the giggling cub off. "Y-Yes, yes, but I must go for the moment, little one. I need to get some hunting parties ready...."

The cub giggled, not realizing her father was uncomfortable around her. He gave her mother one last loving bump against the muzzle before walking away. The cub looked up with a grin at her mother. "He likes me!"

The mother was also unaware of how her mate really felt and just smiled at her beautiful daughter. "Who wouldn't? You are a wonderful cub. Now, go play with the other cubs and get acquainted with them." She gently nudged her daughter and watched her jump down some rusty-colored rocks to where the cubs were playing.

"H-Hey!" the cub called, slightly out of breath from leaping down to the small open area of the rocks. "Can I play?" She had her tail held high in a friendly fashion, her eyes bright and a nice grin on her muzzle. However the cubs stopped their playing when she approached, their laughter diminished and smiles fell. They looked at the new cub, her fur blotched with dirty browns. Not to mention she was more of a sandy color than a pure gold.

"Ew, no," one of the male cubs sneered, looking her up and down like she was a creature of lower stature. "We only have pure breeds play with us in this pride." The others seemed to agree with him rather quickly, not wanting to have the chance to get to know her.

The cub's grin fell and her face contorted to confusion and a bit of pain from the rejection. "But...but I am pure. My daddy is the chief!"

"Yeah right! Look at you! You look nothing like us!" a female chimed in, hear head held high and her ears pulled back like she was of a higher rank than the new cub. Her sister agreed whole-heartedly. She wouldn't even look at the new cub, not feeling as if her pure eyes were worth looking at an ugly creature.

The new cub's ears fell back, "B-But...m-my mommy said-"

"Well your mommy's a liar!" the male hissed. "Now go away, we have no time to be bothered by the likes of you!" Suddenly he kicked up volcanic dust from the ground and it got into her face. She squeaked and backed away, coughing as the dust got up her nose and mouth and into her throat. She quickly turned and fled from the group of cubs, stumbling over jagged red rocks.

She was crying softly, both from the stinging pain of the ash in her eyes and the awful rejection she had just endured. She had never known such mean-spiritedness. It shook her to her core, now making her rethink her outlook on life. Eventually she stopped and rubbed her stinging eyes with the back of her paws, coughing and sniffing, her little chest hurting from the harsh breathing and the strange emotional ache in her heart.

She wanted her mommy, she wanted to cuddle between her paws and into her warm, scaly chest. She felt safest there. But she didn't want her mother to see her like this- dirty and crying. Once she was able to see, the whimpering cub walked over to a trickling brook. It was steaming, being attached to an underground hot spring fed by the volcano. She crawled in, thankful for the warmth and cleaned herself off, scrubbing her face with the warm, strange smelling water. Finally she was clean from volcanic dust and stepped out, shaking her fur to dry off. Again, the cub took a moment to compose herself before she climbed back up the rocks.

The cub spotted her mother laying out in the sun on an overhang, her father beside her and grooming her. Grateful to see them, the cub pranced over, putting on a smile when her mother turned her head to see her. "Hi mommy!"

"Well hello, my darling! I thought you were off to play with the other cubs?"

The little one didn't want her mother to worry for her so she just feigned a smile and crawled over her mother's front legs to lay between them. "I didn't feel like it. I'm too tired."

Her mother bought the lie and simply groomed her child. It was soothing for the cub. Where the world was harsh like a bee stinging one's nose, she could always return to her mother for security.

The next day, the cub followed her father around much to his discontent. However he dare not speak his mind to her, not wanting to risk the wrath of his mate. However he was able to trick her away from time to time to do some lame task, such as pick some fairy mushrooms growing in the rich volcanic soil, so he could be alone with some of the adult pride members to discuss politics. However she would always complete whatever task her father sent her to do, no matter how difficult or useless. After all she respected him and wanted to make him happy.

Another day passed and the cub was returning to her father with a few mushrooms in her jaws. However a few cubs were waiting, hiding behind the rocks. Smirking they pulled up a vine they had placed across her path and she tripped. Yelping, the mushrooms fell from her jaws and she hit the ground. Coughing from the dust she sat up to brush herself off while ignoring their laughter. "That wasn't funny, guys..."

"Well, we thought it was!" a male snickered, looking extremely smug and proud of himself.

"Well, I don't care," the little cub hissed back. "I'm doing an important task for my father!" She used her paws to gather up the mushrooms that had fallen from her grasp.

The male frowned, wishing he had gotten a better reaction out of her. After all the stupid impure cub wasn't getting the hint that she wasn't wanted here. He then smirked and jumped up onto a rock to lay down beside a few females and another male cub. "You do realize he has you doing all the dirty work, right? You really don't mean anything to him. Sooner or later he'll find another dumb cub to do his tasks and you'll just become a kaluwa."

The cub paused before she picked up the mushrooms with her teeth and glared up at bully. "A what?"

"A kaluwa. A forgotten one. You're not important. Not pure."

"I am too pure!" her fur stood along her spine in anger. She was getting really tired of them saying she wasn't pure simply because her pelt wasn't perfectly gold. Her mother and father were both pure breed golden lighiras. Some of the most beautiful Sylestis in all of Sylestia! "And I won't be forgotten!" Huffing angrily she picked up the mushrooms and trotted away, her tail lashing in anger.

The days were warm and the nights were cool as time went by in the pride. The young cub was shunned by the others her age and looked at with uncertainty by the adults. However all she cared about were her parents. They were the world to her. A world that would come crashing down in flames and darkness....

One day the cub was pawing playfully at the tough scales on her father's chest when the alarm was sounded. Quickly the lighiras stood on alert as a sentry came limping towards them, yowling in pain and fear. An arrow was buried in his flank...

"BANDITS! BANDITS!" Panic ensnared the pride and they ran in the opposite direction from where the bandits had been spotted. Only one reason bandits would randomly attack wild sylestis....poaching. The soft, pure golden fur of these lighiras would fetch a high price..

The cub was paralyzed as her father stood and ran for his life, but her mother quickly nuzzled her to her paws. "Run, my darling! Run! Run!" she called. With speed she didn't know she possessed the cub took off with the rest of her pride. She was panting, heart racing in fear. What were bandits? Why were they running!? The adults bounded past her in leaps and strides thanks to their long legs. Suddenly the cub was scooped up by her mother and she leapt away from the pride, arrows bouncing off the rocks as it missed them.

The mother quickly stuffed her frightened cub into a crevice on the mountainside, her paw tenderly stroking her before she backed out. "S-Stay here, little one! Don't make a sound and don't come out until I return!" Gently she gave a quick kiss to her daughter's forehead. "I love you," panting she backed away and raced to catch up with the pride.

"M-Mommy....!?" the cub whimpered. She went to poke her head out but quickly jerked back with a frightened gasp when strange creatures ran passed her. They were not like any Sylestian she had ever seen before. Flat faces with furless, featherless and scaleless bodies clad in strange materials. They had strange, sharp and shiny sticks and used strings and tree branches to somehow make other sticks fly through the air. What were they? Were they the bandits? Whatever they were they scared the cub and she stayed stock still in her hiding spot. Even long after the commotion faded into the distance she stayed still. Her mother told her too.

Night fell over the land and the full moon peered out of the silver clouds. It was a chilly night and the cub curled up tight, shivering as her thin fur did little to keep her warm. her tail wrapped around her, ears flat on her head as she stayed pressed into the crevice. Every time she heard a rock fall or a sudden screech of a nytekrie she would jump awake, ears swiveled forward on alert. Where was mommy? Why was she taking so long...?

The morning came and the sunlight filtered into the small crevice, warming the cub's sandy pelt. She whimpered and lifted her head, her eyes heavy from lack of a good sleep. Her mother still had not come to get her. She stood and slowly peeked out of her hiding spot. Her nose twitched, scenting the air, eyes wide and looking to every little movement, her ears swiveling around her head to hear the slightest sound. Everything seemed safe. She knew her mother said wait, but she was hungry, scared and thought too much time had passed. Cautiously she crawled out, staying low to the ground as she made her way through the rocky volcanic landscape. She followed her nose, tracking her pride as their fear was still heavy on the breeze. Then something else came to her nose, a scent she knew from the food the pride would bring home....blood......

She stumbled off the volcano's side into the straw-colored grass, seeing the forest on the horizon. She began making her way across the grassland when she tripped. She grunted and sat back up, rubbing her head. The cub looked to what had made her fall....it was a golden lighira! An adult male laying perfectly still, his beautiful mane shaved from his head. Whimpering the cub backed away quickly, only to back up into a collapsed female. Her eyes widened and she looked around, noticing many lighiras lay dead along the grasslands from arrows, magic and swords. All males were missing their manes.

"M....Momma....? D-Daddy....?" The cub held her tail low as she weaved around them. Her chest felt tight as no one woke up. Some looked like they were asleep but others had their eyes open. They all looked frightened. "M-Mamma!" the cub wailed, tears in her eyes. Suddenly she caught her mother's scent on the wind and her ears perked up. "M-MOMMY!" with a smile she raced towards the origin of the smell, stumbling over bodies until she came across her mother. She lay still on the ground, arrows in her side and flank. "M......Mom....?" the cub found herself suddenly hesitating. "Mom? W-Wake up! W-We need to find th-the others! We need to find d-dad!" tears were now rolling down her cheeks.

(CONTINUED IN NEXT POST)

(CONTINUED FROM POST ABOVE)

She knew, but her mind had yet to except it. She knew her mother wouldn't wake up....and she never would. A little wail came from the cub's throat, hitching slightly on her breath. She tenderly pawed her mother's muzzle as she cried for her to wake up. To not leave her all alone.

Hours passed and the cub cried until her tears dried up. She lay beside her mother's muzzle, simply staring at nothing. What would she do now? Her mom made her feel safe....made her feel secure. She was alone now, vulnerable. What could she do....? Suddenly she sat up with a start. Her dad! He wasn't among the dead! Her dad could still be alive! She stood and nuzzled into her mother's cheek. "I-I'm s-sorry mommy....." She wanted to stay but she knew her mother would want her to be protected. Her dad was her best bet.

After her goodbyes the cub ran off in search of her father. She would travel as far as she had to, travel through whatever terrain. Her hope hung by a thread, that being the idea her father was alive and would welcome her with open paws. The cub crossed the grassland and into the forest. She swam through rivers and scaled hills and rocky landscapes. It took a few days and the cub taught herself to hunt, though not very well. At least she could catch small lizards and bugs. She made it far along the variety of landscapes of Sylestia in her dedicated search as the scent on the wind grew stronger.... Soon she came to the edge of the unknown lands of Sylestia, bordering on the civilized lands of Astryl's Vale. They were here. Her father and the rest of the pride..... They were here!

A feeling of hope and joy filled her chest, making her feel warm and it tingled her toes in excitement. The first time she smiled since her mother's death. She leapt almost playfully into the beautiful green plains of Astryl's Vale, squealing and giggling. She felt the wind through her fur and the strength grow in her legs. When she bounded to the top of a hill and looked down that's when she could see them. The pride of golden lighiras on the edge of a beautiful crystal lake.

"DAD!" she called out, her eyes bright. She was grinning so hard that her face hurt. She raced down the hill, picking up speed as she ran giggling straight towards the leader. Suddenly a large female placed herself in the cub's way and snarled. The cub squeaked in fear and skidded to a stop, kicking up dirt.

"Get out of here! You're not welcome, impure filth!"

The cub's eyes widened in disbelief. How could this be!? She had always been welcome in this pride! "I-I'm not impure! Dad! Daddy!" she called to the leader. The lighira looked broken, his lips in a tight line and his eyes dull. He just lost his beloved mate and other members of his pride. Slowly he looked towards the cub and she smiled. "See? He's my dad!"

"......I don't know who you are, cub...." the male said in a low voice. His grief was too much that he had no patience left to deal with the ugly, flawed little cub. He turned his back to her and sat down, simply staring out at the water.

'I don't know who you are'.

The cub couldn't believe what she heard and for a moment she couldn't breathe. The world around her seemed to vanish and all she saw was her father's back. Why? How?! Suddenly fear ensnared her heart in icy talons. He had forgotten her! How long had she been gone!? She.....She really was a kaluwa.....

She couldn't remember when she began running. She couldn't even see passed the tears. Where was she going? What was up? What was down? All strength left her and she hit the ground, her body trembling and seizing up. Everything hurt. Why did everything hurt? She wailed and cried, her claws kneading the dirt. The cub eventually passed out, her poor little heart unable to take much more. She simply lay in the middle of a field with the summer sun shining down.

She woke in the middle of the night and whimpered. "M-Mom...I had a bad drea-" she rolled over hoping to see her mother. When all she saw was grass her tears renewed and she remembered. Slowly she looked to the stars above her head. Was her mom there? "M-Mommy.....wh-what do I do now....?" she was terrified and heartbroken. What could she do? What did she even want to do? She was tempted to simply give up.....but..... She thought of her mother. She knew her mother would never want that. She simply closed her eyes and imagined her mother. That smile, those warm eyes, that gentle voice.....

The afternoon was so hot and the cub stumbled across the lands of Astryl's vale. She wasn't sure where she was going, but she knew she had to find food, water and shelter. She spotted a strange structure nearby and it made her very curious. She never saw anything like it! It was surrounded by trees carrying bright red fruits. They looked so juicy.... The cub licked her lips and hurried over to one of the trees. She put her front paws up on the trunk and gazed up, mewing at the apples.

With a grunt she climbed up the tree, rather ungracefully. At least it was effective because she made it to a limb and clung to it. She reached out with a paw and batted at a large apple until it broke from the bough and fell to the ground. Grinning in pride at her accomplishment she shimmied back down and happily began to eat.

"HEY!" She looked up quickly. A bandit! He looked just like the creatures that killed her mother. However there were some differences, he wore brown material instead of black and he carried a different type of stick with five claws at the end. He was running right at her coming from the direction of that strange wood structure. She didn't know that this was actually a farmer and she was eating his harvest. With fur standing on end she picked up the apple and took off into the woods.

The cub lived in fear like this from all humanoid creatures. One afternoon she was down by a stream for a drink of water when a tall female humanoid came through the woods flanked by three sylestis. She smiled at the cub. "Aw, poor thing all alone. Here, why don't you come home with me and join my hatchery?" She was nice and pure hearted, an enemy of the bandits actually, but again the cub didn't know. She hissed, fur fluffed out and she darted away.

She was tired....so tired. She had traveled into another part of Sylestia known as Viridian Meadows. She was hungry, not haven eaten in four days. It made her weak and exhausted and the only thing that kept her going was the memory of her mother. Suddenly she heard shuffling as a creature was heading in her direction. The cub looked around quickly before diving behind a broken down wagon. She stayed absolutely still, eyes wide in fear. Was it another bandit or a hungry sylesti bigger than her!?

Suddenly a pair of purple paws stopped in front of her hiding space and her nose twitched. That scent....it....it was lighira! "I apologize if I scared you," a soft voice said.

"M-Mom!?" Without really thinking the cub scrambled out of her hiding place but froze when she realized it wasn't her mother. This lighira was of a beautiful purple hue with regal horns growing out of her skull between the ears. The cub was scared again but did not run. She got an oddly comforting vibe from this odd-looking lighira and was actually a bit fascinated by her appearance.

"It's alright," the purple female spoke. "I didn't mean to startle you. My name is Zi'Long and I'm just starting out on a mission my owner asked of me." She saw the cub looked at her confused and she chuckled. "Anyway, what is your name, little one? Are your parents around?"

Name....? Her name.....wait, wasn't it just lighira? Like kelparis and zolnixis? "What....?"

"A name is your identity. It makes you special and unique," Zi'Long explained, sitting down and curling her tail around her paws.

Unique? That's what her mom called her. Identity? She was..... "K-Kaluwa.....my name is Kaluwa....." the cub spoke, her voice getting a tad bolder now. This lighira made her feel safe like....like her mother. "And......my mom is......." she looked down, ears flattening against her head.

Zi'Long understood and she placed a gentle paw on the cub's back. "Kaluwa...... Would you like to join my family?"

The cub looked up is shock, "R-Really....?!" a new family? One who wouldn't make her feel separated and would make her feel safe?

"Absolutely. I can even introduce you to my son." Zi'Long pointed to a group of sylestis near the city gates of Esior's Haven. There was a pink lighira with gorgeous feathered wings, a large blue sylvorpa, a beautiful black griffin with neon blue stripes and more. They were all strange and unique. Not one looked the exact same as the other. Zi'Long stood up and smiled, "Come with me, Kaluwa. I'll introduce you to everyone."

The cub, now called Kaluwa, grinned, tears of joy in the corner of her golden eyes. She began to follow her but froze when she saw a male humanoid among the sylestis. "B-Bandit....!"

Zi'Long stopped and looked around. "Where?!" But then she noticed Kaluwa's fear was pointed to her owner. "Oh, no, no, no. It's alright! That's Max, our owner. Our...father in a way."

Father? "Does.....he forget you....?" Kaluwa asked quietly.

Zi'Long shook her head. "Never. He knows each one of us by name and loves us all. He would never forget us and always care for us." She nudged Kaluwa again and continued to walk towards the group and the cub followed much more hesitantly.

She froze in fear at the foot of the man who looked down and smiled. "Oh, hello there!" he said gently and reached down. Kaluwa's fur fluffed out and she felt ready to use her claws if need be....but the young man gently picked her up and held her in his arms. She seemed to relax immediately. It was like her mother when she laid between her paws. Kaluwa gave a small squeak and the man chuckled. "How would you like to live with us?" At this the cub smiled. A roof over her head, food, water, and....love. A family.

"Her name is Kaluwa," Zi'Long informed her master.

Max smiled. "Welcome to the family Kaluwa." Keeping her in his arms he started to walk off into the city with the others following. Family..... This is what she had been seeking. Smiling Kaluwa stood in her new owner's arms and nuzzled into his neck, purring. She then gazed over his shoulder at the darkening evening sky. She saw the first star twinkling on the horizon. She waved at it, knowing it was her mother. She'd see her mother again someday, but for now she had Zi'Long, Max and so many new family members. Ones who would never hurt her....never make her feel like a forgotten one.


AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I really would have spent much more time and effort on this but I don't have a lot of time before it's due and the forum post can only hold so much in terms of text and pictures. I also would have drawn more than two pics (a couple, actually, to help narrate the story) but again not enough time considering. Already I drew these pictures extremely quick so they're not of my best quality. And NO I did NOT trace those or use a base. Yes they are similar to the Lion King style but It's because I practiced it for years to look right. If you would like proof then visit my Devianart. A link is on my Sylestia main page.
Kaluwa is based on my love of Africa and wild cats. I really love natural looking colors such as tawny and brown and most of my lighiras I own already are all very bright blues, pinks, pastel whites, ect. I really hope for a pretty neutral lighira. =3 I also hope I represented Sylestia lands and the traits of the sylestis correctly in my story. I also thought it would be cute that Kaluwa's first encounter with my pets was with my very first lighira I ever got when I joined about two years ago =3