lore: the Pack of Desert Storms [read only]

Pack of Desert Stormsnote: this is a read only thread, please do not post! if you want to discuss my lore, pm me. I also plan on making a discussion thread for this soon.



loyal - caring - resourceful

i. introduction
the desert is a vast wilderness, untamed and unconquered, harsh and fierce. the sun bakes down on the earth during the day, and the temperature drops to icy at night. yet, somehow, a pack of wolves lives here.
the Pack of Desert Storms live in the deep canyons during the day, shaded by the towering walls of rock and cooled by the silky sand. by night, they venture out into the open desert, where the sand still retains a little heat from the day's sun, to hunt or do whatever else they need to.
with this nocturnal lifestyle, they endure the desert's heat. and after years beyond memory of the Pack living here, they have even begun to flourish.table of contents
i. introduction
ii. the First Storm
iii. ranks and wolves
iv. name & rank selection
v. territory


status
" we have a plentiful amount of food and other resources, despite it being winter. we have also recently been blessed with 4 new puppies born to Sand on Gentle Breeze. Cold Wind in Winter is our new Stormblessed after our previous one sadly passed a few weeks ago. "
html made with help from this guide.

" respect the storm, and it will respect us. "

ii. the First Storm
every night, whenever the storms rolled overhead, the puppies would clamor to hear the legend of the First Storm. the elderly pupsitter caring for them always sighed, and rolled her eyes, and licked her fur, as if she would not tell them. finally the oldest puppy grew impatient and begged, "tell us!"
she looked down at him. her eyes gleamed in the flashes of lightning, and she smiled. "fine, I will tell you. but," she warned, "I will not repeat it. so listen carefully..."

"the first wolves to enter these lands came from far, far away. it is said they were driven from the icy mountains, where once they were part of a large pack. they were seperated, and it is not known what happened to the others. but that is not the point of the story.
these wolves had travelled for long, hot days beneath the scalding sun, through this new land. you see, they had not yet learnt to travel only at night. the cool breezes that sometimes dimmed the sun were a great relief. that night, they were resting on top of a tall, tall canyon. it seemed as if they could see the whole world.
one of them, Styrverkn - for their names were odd and exotic, telling of distant lands - he looked out at the horizon. 'a storm is coming,' he said. his mate, Tiyrkosien, looked. they saw clouds building, looming and dark, blotting out the stars.
'I hope it comes,' proclaimed she. 'I could do with relief from this heat.' where they came from, the storms were frigidly cold, but mild; they did not know of how the desert's heat intensifies the power of the storms, or of the nature of these great storms at all.
they soon fell asleep. they were wakened some hours later by a crash of thunder. when Styrverkn sat up, to see the storm's closeness, a yelp of fright escaped him. there, only a few tail-lengths away, was a cougar.
it had been creeping up on them, and if not for the thunder, it would have pounced on them and killed them before they even knew it was there.
the wolves fled from the beast as, still drowsy, and tired, they were in no condition to fight. they ran to the top of the canyon where earlier they had seen the storm from. the clouds now loomed overhead. they formed the shape of a great serpent, like a cobra with its hood spread wide. lightning flickered from what would be its jaws.
the cougar was just across a small crevice from them. its eyes glowed eerily in the dusk. it leapt.
and at that moment, lightning split the sky. it struck the earth not two tail-lengths from the wolves. they were flung backwards, eyes searing, nearly slipping from the cliff's edge. somehow, they had not been blinded, only dazzled, and had not been wounded. Tiyrkosien got to her feet, a snarl forming... but the cougar was gone.
the lightning had struck just in front of it, breaking the canyon, and sending it plunging into the void below.
at that instant both wolves heard a voice. they would never be able to describe that voice. only that it spoke to them. in their heads or aloud, nobody knows. but it did speak.
'I have spared you this once. if you bring offerings to this canyon top once upon every night of the dark moon, I will spare you again, and not only this, but I will protect you from dangers such as this beast that I killed. but if you fail to bring offerings, you know your fate. and I assure you, it would be equally unwise to leave no offering and try to flee. I will know. I can be your protecter.'
the voice did not say this last part, not aloud, but the wolves heard it in their hearts, and the storm above seemed to rumble it...
'or your worst nightmare.'
and thus, the Pack of Desert Storms was born. we must bring offerings to that tall canyon-top that lies among these lands, on every new moon. the Great Serpent of the Storms is generous and kind, so we do not bring it offerings out of fear, little pups. although, of course, it would be unwise to go against it. we bring it offerings so it may keep protecting us. that is how it has always been, since The First Storm, and how it always will be." html made with help from this guide.

" every wolf, no matter the rank, has a say in decisions. "

iii. ranks and wolves
in this pack, all wolves have a say in decisions; the leader cannot make a choice that the rest of the pack entirely disagrees with. (the Serpent of the Storms, however, may issue any order that It wishes, and the Pack must follow.) thus, wolves' importance is measured through influence.

the Stormblessed - Cold Wind in Winter - the pack leader. they are chosen not by their lineage but by the Serpent, while they are still puppies, who sends a dream to the current Stormblessed or a weather-related message. they are sent important messages from the Serpent in the form of dreams. they have a lot of influence; if they choose a mate, their mate will also have a lot of influence, but will not get dreams from the Serpent.
the Farseeker - Glint of Umber Rock - the scout(s), they must have permission from the Serpent to leave the desert and discover other lands. there's only ever been one in known history, but there is often none. second highest influence besides the Stormblessed.
the Providers - none yet - the hunters, they provide food for the pack. good influence due to the importance of their role.
the Carers - Larimar; Dusty Swirl of Wind; Dust on Clouded Day - the pupsitters, wolves who stay at all times in the canyons to care for the Young of the pack. decent influence.
the Undecided - Tempest; Sand on Gentle Breeze; Silence before the Storm - wolves who have not yet chosen their rank, or have not yet been chosen. very little influence, but some.
the Young - Nameless; Puppy 1; Puppy 2; Puppy 3; Puppy 4 - the adolescents and puppies of the pack. influence depends on age - adolescents have a little, young un-weaned puppies have none, and the others are in between.iv. name and rank selection
the wolves of the Pack of Desert Storms are named in the same fashion that the Pack itself is. four word names describing a phenomenon, usually weather-related, such as Cold Wind in Winter; these are then shortened to nicknames, like just Winter. names are normally chosen based on something their mother or the Stormblessed noticed upon their birth or when they weaned, became adolescents, or became adults.
if something large occurs, like a clap of thunder just as they're born, or if the current Stormblessed gets a dream from the Serpent, the pup is considered Blessed and will become the next Stormblessed. if there is already an Heir chosen, the new pup will become a Farseeker instead.
besides this, wolves may become Farseekers if they request to become one and the Serpent approves, through the Stormblessed's dreams or through a weather-related event as, or just after, they make the request.
other ranks are chosen by the Stormblessed based on need or the wolf's aptitudes, or, rarely, chosen by the Serpent through a dream to the Stormblessed.html made with help from this guide.

" our territory is rich with resources, if you know where to look. "

v. territory


Canyonhome - the Pack's home, where they live. large red-rock canyons with a river winding through them.
the Serpent's Spire - see detail of Canyonhome, below.
River Shrubs - low bushes and grasses growing on the river's banks, a good place to find small prey.
Rainflow River - only source of fresh water for miles around, the river comes from the distant prairies and flows right through Canyonhome and then on into the open desert. (note: it enters a small gully/canyon at the point where the water is darkest, just after the River Shrubs, and emerges again just before it leaves the shown territory.)
Drygrass Dunes - sand dunes with dry, spiky bushes and grasses growing on them. little prey to be found here.
Prairie Edgeland - the edge of the prairie, this stretches on for a long distance before transitioning into true prairie; with lots of low bushes and green grasses, it's the best place to find large prey in the territory.
dry riverbed - a river used to flow here, but it long since dried up, leaving only a darkened scar in the sand.
Rockcluster - red-rock canyons, smaller and lower then Canyonhome.
Palesand Expanse - a large second of lighter-colored sand, occupied by nothing but cacti.
Open Desert - red-sand, sun-scorched desert that stretches until the horizon. no life occupies these treacherous wastes.



Camp - the general area considered to be the Pack's camp.
Pup Den - the carers and pups of the pack live here, a sheltered overhang protected from the elements.
General Den - the largest den, a high overhang, all undecided wolves and adolescents live here.
Provider's Den - a fairly low overhang, the Providers of the pack live here.
Stormblessed's Den - a small but cozy den, the pack leader, the Stormblessed, lives here.
Farseeker's Den - while home at the pack, the Farseeker or Farseekers live in this den.
Rock of the Stormblessed - medium height canyon with an easy way to climb up, the Stormblessed (and their mate, if they have one) sit up here during meetings.
the Serpent's Spire - the tall canyon where the Serpent's offerings must be brought upon the new moon.
Rainflow River - see overall territory, above.html made with help from this guide.