This is where I store and write about my growables. C:
~ CHEETAH EGGS ~
All cheetahs are adopted from here: http://www.chickensmoothie.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=211872
.: Jericho :.
Jericho is a male cheetah. He is actually the second cheetah ever adopted from CE. C:
Though it's not his real story, Jericho was written into a little something for a contest, which is based off the story of Eodipus in Greek mythology.
It was the middle of
the night when Queen Blanca gave birth. Her soft fur was matted with
dirt and sweat, yet when King Jonah looked at her fondly in the dim
light of the den, he still thought she was the most beautiful creature
he had ever known.
Jonah finally managed to turn his eyes to his
newborn child, or really, the egg that contained his new-born child. A
pang of ice-cold fear ran through his veins. Was this really the one who
would grow up to end his life? For now, he was contained in his
ivory-coloured shell, but he couldn't stay in there forever. The
Oracle's words echoed in his mind.
"You shall die by the claws of your first-born son..."
That simple sentence had turned his mind into a chaotic mess. There was no way to escape a prophecy...or was there?
A sudden movement from Blanca interrupted his thoughts. She ought to be waking up anytime soon. It was now or never.
With
a swift swipe of the paw, Jonah ignored the screams of his guilty
conscience and scooped up the egg. Once out of the den, Jonahs ran like
the wind. It was still very dark out, a little past midnight. No one
would be able to see his frenzied race through the forest. When at last
he reached the crystal clear stream, he was quite warm and was breathing
heavily.
He looked at the egg one last time. It was as pale as
the moon's reflection in the water, and could have been mistaken for the
moon itself, had it not been an oval. A sudden fondness came over Jonah
like a wave, but it stopped as quickly as it had started. Jonah's
features hardened, and he finally gave way to the murderous thoughts of
his tortured mind.
The egg didn't make a single noise when it
fell in. King Jonah left without even one look at the helpless creature
he had just attempted to kill. There was no evidence left behind. The
only ones aware of his secret were the stars, shining above in the still
of the night.
It took
days before the egg was found. How it had survived with days of frigid
water lapping at its surprisingly hard shell, no one knew. However, what
was known was that it had traveled downstream quite a ways before it
was found stuck on the rocky shores of the stream, in a completely new
territory.
It was Jorgen, a hunter of the territory neighboring
King Jonah's who found the egg. Jorgen, knowing that his own King and
Queen (their Majesty Lise and Dempsey) desperately wanted a child,
brought the egg to them. The child lived and was named Jericho by his adoptive mother and father. He was treated like a little prince and was much loved by Lise and Dempsey. Jericho did not doubt they were his real parents. Why should he? He had a long ways to go...
Jericho
padded through the forest clearing silently, so as not to wake up his
clan who were still sleeping. He liked to watched the sun rise. It gave
him a wonderful feeling, as if his heart was crying out with joy. Jericho
reached the edge of the forest and started through the trees at a slow
trot. This side of the forest was situated on an enormous hill
overlooking everything for miles around; the perfect place to watch a
sunrise.
Jericho quickened his
pace, ignoring the increasingly painful stitch in his side. Running
uphill at this speed was no easy work, but it certainly helps when you
do it every morning.
Finally, the trees and foliage got lighter and lighter, until they stopped altogether. Jericho
had arrived at the top of the hill. He noticed with satisfaction that
he had made it before the sun had time to begin its ascension. He
surveyed the flat peak of the hill...and nearly jumped out of his skin.
Sitting there, watching him, was another cheetah. The stranger smiled at Jericho's sudden movement.
"Relax, son. I'm not gonna eat you or something."
Jericho
observed the stranger with a critical eye. He was obviously not
royalty; his informal speech and his highly dirty fur ruled that out. He
didn't seem dangerous, and though his eyes were full of mischief, his
smile was kind. Jericho ceased his inspection and spoke up.
"I am Jericho, son of King Dempsey and Queen Lise. What brings you to our territory?"
The stranger let an odd smile appear on his face.
"Their
son, are you? Let me ask you something, my dear prince. Have you ever
wondered why you have no siblings? Why King Dempsey foolishly decided to
only have on heir to the territory?"
Jericho
had indeed wondered, but the stranger was making him uncomfortable. He
suddenly regretted having woken up so early. The stranger ignored the
uneasy look on Jericho's face and rambled on.
"I'll tell you why. You're not they're son."
The stranger paused to allow himself just enough time for a smug smile.
"Things aren't always as they seem."
There was a long pause, which seemed like an eternity to Jericho. Was...was he really not his parent's son? The thought was highly alarming. The stranger sighed.
"Just forget it. How about you bring me to that clearing of yours? I could use some rest before I continue with my travels."
With that, he headed down the hill, leaving Jericho no choice but to follow. Jericho
was silent the whole way down. The thoughts in his head were all about
what the stranger had said at the top of the hill. Was he really who he
thought he was? That question buzzed around in his mind, like one of
those infuriating flies you just can't seem to shake off.
During the whole day, Jericho
battled with his thoughts. By sundown, he had almost managed to
convince himself that the stranger had simply wanted to scare him.
However, his mind would never be at rest until he knew for sure...
The journey to the Oracle had been a rather long one. Jericho
had rushed his goodbyes so that he wouldn't have to explain where he
was going to anyone. He needed to know the truth. He would ask the
Oracle who his parents were. This had seemed like a wonderful plan at
first, but when his feet got sore and blistered from hours and hours on
end of walking, he almost regretted the idea. He had hurried as much as
he could so he would be able to get it over with, and at last, he had
arrived.
Jericho looked at the
opening of the cliff in front of him nervously. The Oracle lived in a
large underground cavern underneath an even larger cliff, and he was
standing right in front of the entrance. Uneasily, Jericho
stepped inside. It was extremely dark and it took a while for his eyes
to get adjusted to the dim light, which was emanating from a few
strangely phosphorescent rocks. However, he wasted no time standing
around and continued on into the gently declining tunnel. There seemed
to be no end to the tunnel, though Jericho was aware that he was quite a ways underground. It was considerably cooler here.
As Jericho
went farther and farther into the tunnel, he realized that the
luminescent rocks were growing fewer and fewer. However, he wasn't
alarmed...that is, until the tunnel went pitch black. His heart stopped
as he realized that he could no longer see his paws. Or any other part
of his body, for that matter. He took a hesitant step forward, then
another, and another. It wasn't long before he ran into a wall.
The small bit of hope that Jericho
had left vanished. He sat down against the wall in despair and made up
his mind. He would have to go back. It was when he got up that he
noticed the light. It was peeking through a small crack where the rock
facade met the dirt ground. In sheer desperation, Jericho
pushed at the rock over the crack. To his surprise, it gave in and fell
over, flooding him with light. The cavern in front of him was actually
rather dimly lighted, but compared to the darkness that he had been
standing in a moment ago, it was as if he were in front of the sun. The
phosphorescent rocks were everywhere, sitting in clusters around the
cavern. And there, right in the middle of it all, was the Oracle.
The
Oracle was a small cheetah with a long tail that swept from side to
side. Her eyes were bound with a large piece of leather, yet when she
turned her face towards a certain spot, it seemed as if she was actually
looking at it. Now that he had reached his goal, Jericho
was at a loss for words. What would he say? Would the Oracle answer
him? He opened his mouth to speak, but the Oracle cut him to the chase.
"Greeting, Jericho, son of Dempsey."
Jericho was slightly surprised by the Oracle, but he was too tired to be frightened.
"I have come to ask...to ask about my parents. I want to know if-"
He was cut off by the Oracle, who's hollow voice echoed in the walls of the cavern.
"Your parents...yes... You are destined to kill your father, and be a mate to your mother."
Words formed in Jericho's
head, but he wasn't able to make sense of them. His thoughts were
confusing, chaotic. He took a few steps back, stumbling into the rock
behind him. He turned to the opening and fled, ignoring the darkness.
He
had now no doubt that Dempsey and Lise were his parents. The Oracle
would have told him if they weren't... But it didn't matter now. He
couldn't let that prophecy come true. He wouldn't. This is why, when Jericho
reached the entrance in the cliff again, that he didn't turn to the
right, towards his home. He turned to the left and took a step towards
the unknown.
Jericho had traveled for days on end, not exactly knowing where he was traveling to. After miles of not seeing a soul, Jericho
finally encountered two cheetahs in the middle of a very narrow
passageway between two cliffs. It was impossible for him to pass them
without someone squeezing against the side of the cliff. The first of
the cheetahs raised his voice.
"Step aside for his Honour!"
Jericho
was tired and in a vile mood. He refused to budge, paws planted on the
ground, head held high. The cheetah let out a low growl, obviously
offended that Jericho hadn't listened to him. With a strong swipe of his paw, the stranger hit Jericho at the base of his neck. Three large, red gashes appeared on his otherwise pale fur.
Anger built up inside Jericho
and he lunged at his provoker, pelting him into the cliff and instantly
breaking his neck. He then turned to the cheetah's companion and made a
sarcastic little bow.
"Is the passage clear enough now, your Honour?"
Jericho
took a step to continue on his way, but the infuriated stranger blocked
his path and attacked him violently. The two fought well, and the
stranger could probably have won, had he any other opponent. However,
destiny was not on his side, and his body soon lay lifeless on top of
his servant's. Showing little signs of remorse, Jericho continued on his way.
It took another four days for Jericho
to fall upon another living being. This time, however, the creature was
much, much different. With the head of a human and the body of a
lioness, the sphinx was enough to put fear in anyone's heart. Jericho was no exception.
The sphinx looked at Jericho
with a wicked little smile. She hadn't eaten for days and was delighted
to have a new prey. Of course, he would have the riddle...but no one
could guess the riddle.
"Hello, hello, hellooo," she purred, exposing unnaturally sharp teeth. Jericho shuddered but kept his ground.
"I demand the right of the riddle," he said in a clear voice.
The sphinx chuckled.
"They all do."
Her
eyes lingered on the pile of bones to her left. She sighed and
straightened her shoulders, wanting to get this over with quickly so she
could finally eat. She could smell the dried blood on Jericho's fur and wounds, and it was whetting her appetite. She let out a long, exaggerated sigh once again.
"Very well. What is the creature that walks on four legs in the morning, two at noon, and three in the evening?"
Jericho felt light-headed. He didn't know what to reply. The sphinx smiled cruelly.
"Do hurry up, or I'll be obliged to eat you without an answer."
Jericho
suddenly remember when he had overseen a group of humans traveling
through his territory. The older ones had used a sort of stick to help
themselves walk. As for the infants who were being carried, they were
hardly old enough to walk, so it would be natural that they crawl...
"The answer is humans," he declared.
He
winced as the sphinx opened her mouth, convinced his life was at an
end. However, she had not opened her mouth to end his life. She had done
so to let out a long, infuriated cry. She then jumped from the side of
the mountain they were standing on. Jericho had just gotten the right answer to the riddle. The sphinx was no more.
The
clan that lived on the same territory as the sphinx had been trying to
get rid of her for ages. She had terrorized every living thing around
for miles. Thus, when it was heard that Jericho
had gotten the riddle right and sent the sphinx tumbling down the
mountain, he became quite a hero. He was invited to a large feast, and
later, was asked to take the place of the King, who had been murdered a
few days ago. Jericho became Queen Blanca's mate, who was quite older than him, but still breathtakingly beautiful.
Jericho
had, without knowing, killed his father in the passageway between the
two cliffs, and had become his mother's mate. The prophecy had been
fulfilled.
Jericho
had four sons with Blanca, each as healthy as could be. His youngest
son, Darius, loved him the most and was always by his side. Life for him
was happy, and the whole clan had never known better days. All this
disappeared when Darius fully matured to an adult. Suddenly, a terrible,
violent sickness overcame the whole territory. All were convinced it
was a punishment of the gods. But why? What had they done?
In desperation, Jericho
consulted the Oracle. He was told that he must punish the murderer of
the previous king, Jonah. Only then would the sickness stop.
Once back in his territory, Jericho
sat and thought. How was he to find out who had killed Jonah? He
decided to get assistance from the oldest and wisest cheetah of the
clan, Elrik. Perhaps he would know how to solve this terrible problem.
When Elrik entered the King's den, he found him deep in thought.
"Your Majesty," said the old cheetah hesitantly. "You asked for me..."
Jericho
looked up swiftly, startled. When he saw Elrik's kind but
disease-ridden face, he relaxed, though his face remained quite sad.
Even Elrik was sick.
"Yes, indeed I did Elrik. Come sit here, and tell me exactly where and when the King was murdered."
Elrik sat and looked at Jericho's tired face.
"He
was traveling to another territory with one of his servants. He was
found murdered, as well as his companion, in the middle of that narrow
passageway between the cliffs. That was approximately...four, maybe five
days before you rid us of the sphynx."
Jericho nodded, but did not dismiss Elrik. They sat there in silence for quite some time before Elrik spoke up again.
"Poor
Jonah must have had a curse. His only child disappeared before it even
hatched. The child would have been about your age now."
Every single muscle of Jericho's
body froze. The pieces were coming together one by one in his,
revealing the gruesome, twisted puzzle. He suddenly leaped to his feet
and cried out in a mix of rage, guilt and despair. He had not escaped
the prophecy. He had run straight into it.
Jericho
ran into the den where his sons lay sick and resting. He slit the
throat of the closest one, blinded by his rage. They were tainted. He
had to kill them! He would have proceeded with the rest, had Blanca not
ran in with a scream of despair.
"Jericho!" she yelled, in hysterics. "Why?!!"
She stopped yelling, overcome with frenzied sobs. Jericho
could barely look her in the face, but for a second, their eyes met,
and in that second, Blanca recognized him like only a mother could. A
look of horror on her face, she fled out of the den and ran towards the
edge of the mountain they were perched upon. She stood still for a
second, filled with such heart-breaking grace and beauty. Then, she
jumped.
Jericho watched her in horror and lunged off the edge after her, in some insane attempt to save her.
It
was spring, but the forest had not been green for a long time. It was
eternally in the shadow of a large mountain which loomed overhead. Some
said it was a curse of the gods, though no one knew for sure. The place
was avoided by all living beings, and was devoid of almost all life.
Almost all life.
In
the eternal shade of the gnarled trees was an old, blind cheetah. His
legs were deformed; perhaps they had been since birth, perhaps it was
from a fall. No one knew, or even wanted to know who he was. He hobbled
along with the help of a younger, adult cheetah. He seemed quite insane,
as he would sometimes stop and turn feebly to his companion.
"I
killed him..I am tainted...I killed him..." He would suddenly raise his
head and yell in despair. "Please, Darius! Don't leave me!"
Then, his companion would shake his head sadly.
"It's over. All over... Here, lean on me."
.: Mistral :.
Mistral is a female cheetah. She is a solitary being, shunned by others of her race because of her frightening abnormality. She is a beautiful signer though, and many travelers are often lured into her marshland territory by her lovely melodies. However, they run off in terror when they manage to catch sight of her. She has a habit of catching birds and emprisoning them in cages made from reeds, partly because she is jealous of their freedom, and partly because their own singing makes her forget her miseries.
.: Desmond :.
Desmond is an ethereal creature, an alusive fée cheetah. He is a spirit of the meadows and lakes. Desmond makes sure that all species co-exist peacefully, and that all plants are healthy. Those who see him are very lucky, because he hardly makes any appearances.
.: (unnamed) :.
Will add once she grows. C:
.: (unnamed) :.
Will add once she grows. C:
~ KITSUNE COVE ~
All fennecs and kitsunes are adopted from here: http://www.chickensmoothie.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=219469
.: Blanche :.
Blanche is delicate and flirty. She hasn't known many hardships in her life and is blissfully ignorant.
All Fat Cats are adopted from here: http://www.chickensmoothie.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=240083
.: Marko :.
Marko is full of slightly crazy and whimsical ideas. It's not surprising, considering that the majority of his day is spent thinking...and eating.
.: Jonas :.
Will add information once he grows.
.: Shallow :.
Shallow has one hell of an imagination. When he was a little kitten it used to be a problem because he'd get scared at night (:c), but now he puts it to good use and entertains his friends by telling stories all day.
