Persia, circa 400 AD.
To the west, the Roman Empire begins to crumble. As its influence on the Middle East fades, the desert peoples are beginning to take back what was once theirs. Into this chaos step strange creatures once thought to be myth. Some are kind, some are cruel, and some are walking question marks.
Lately, a caravan has been seen passing through the desert. A prince from India is searching for a magical creature believed to reside in the cool forests in the north of Persia: half woman, half leopard. As his caravan winds its way through the sands, many mythical creatures begin following. They think that something important is going to happen. What it is, however, is a mystery, and the prince hasn't been very forthcoming.
Why does the prince want to see this leopard woman? Why did he strike out on this arduous journey? What will happen when the two of them meet? Only time will tell.
The prince's caravan stops on the outskirts of a small town. As his servants head into town to procure supplies, strange creatures show themselves after hiding for some time among the humans.
One of the people in the town, a man clad in black and carrying a large dagger at his side, approaches the caravan. His dark, deep-set eyes scrutinize the camels, horses, and tents.
"It's time," he says quietly to himself. "It's time to leave this place."
Oreja
Amidst the crowded marketplace stood a petite woman dressed in sandy pantaloons and a brown tunic, cinched at the waist by a wide dark brown leather girdle with hidden pockets. Her long black hair was divided into several beaded braids, partially hidden under a cloth headwrap. She could have gone unnoticed if it weren't for her extraordinarily large amber eyes and her unusual companion, a fierce-looking lion with a thick black mane.
The merchant eyed her and her companion warily after she paid for the weapons she was now tucking into her knee-high black leather boots, two thin but very sharp knives. She kept a careful eye on the Prince's caravan as she adjusted her bow and arrows, After purchasing a fine Arabian steed the color of the clouds, she bought a couple of sacks and one blanket. Next she purchased a variety of herbs and food which filled the sacks. By this time the Prince's caravan was busy getting ready to move out.
"Come, Kahpeh. It is time to follow the dream." With that said, the woman mounted her steed, nudged him towards the caravan as the lion padded along side.
Kit
Quintar, the owl, watched from his perch on the caravan as it made its way to the edge of the town.
"Funny," Quintar thought to himself, "Funny that I cannot view into that
Caravan's future at all. The same as I cannot view my own. Perhaps by joining
with them I may finally be able to view my own fates, or meet them."
Quintar braced himself by grasping ever so tightly with his talons the
crossbeam he was perched upon in the old storage barn that the town used to
store items for future disasters. And as he was gazing at the Caravan through
the open doors, his view turned to the image of a leopard woman leading the
way. Beckoning all who would, to follow.
Quintar, the owl, flew off from his perch and out the barn's open doors. High up into the air as his wings could take him, and then down, down to the ground to land at the rear of this strange group crossing the desert.
"What harm can it do to follow along, to see what fate holds for these people and for myself as well?"
Quintar, the swordsman, felt for his weapon at his side, safe within its
sheath. And felt also all of himself, to see that he had forgotten nothing
this time. His camel seeing this came and joined him. "Thank you, my friend. It would have been quite a torturous journey by foot."
Quintar, the swordsman, headed out to cross the desert at the rear of the
caravan.
Thundercat711
The rat captain came out from under the cloth that covered the prince's lunch basket. In his mouth he held a big wedge of cheddar cheese. He had joined this group as they took on supplies in hopes that they would travel to
the sea where he could find again his ship and his crew of rats and set sail for a land more accepting of his kind.
He scurried off with the cheese to a safe cover in one of
the packed tents and set about eating his dinner. He kept his mind strictly on his dinner because if his mind drifted too far, things would start appearing.
Rat-atat
Simone was a cute cuddly kitten with big wide eyes that could make you forget all your troubles and fill you with joy and care and concern for her.
She sat by the side of the street as the caravan passed through the town. Looking up forlornly at all she saw, hoping for a warm saucer of milk and a nice cozy spot to nap in.
When they stopped to take on supplies in the town Simone made her way into a wagon and curled herself into a ball to take a nap. Should someone dare disturb her they would be greeted by the fiercest little creature, but for now she just slept, that cute little kitten, tomorrow she would be 100 years old.
Purring_Kitten
Sze the faery flitted about nervously, small as small can be and with a heart as big as all creation, she worried about many things.
Watching the caravan slowly make its way through the small town she could not help but wonder what all this strange crew was about.
Where were they going and what were all these diverse creatures doing traveling together? So she slowed her wings and gently let herself down upon one of the camels of the caravan for transport. How humiliating, to be taken for a fly!
She waved her wand and a small leaf appeared which she now rode upon like it was a magic carpet ride as a ladybug eyed her with suspicion
and so Sze joined the troupe and headed toward the future...
lilTrink
Deep green eyes watched with interest as the human's caravan was being prepared. At last, the final stage of his very long journey had been reached.
The journey, though exhausting, had shown Og sights he never knew existed and, whilst humans were known to him in his homeland, he had never dreamed they existed in such numbers and over such a vast amount of land.
The "call" had first been felt two years before whilst hunting in his native mountains in the north of the Tin Islands. He was unusual for his kind. being, four times as large as the rest of his species and having the deepest green eyes. He was much feared in the highlands but had never known fear himself until the call became too strong to resist.
Without knowing why, he had headed south; steering clear of the human settlements along the way, until he reached the largest settlement he had ever seen. It was then the change had occurred for the first time.
Watching the humans whilst keeping himself hidden, Og began wondering what these creatures were really like. Fear gripped him as he realised that something was happening to him - changing, growing until he had assumed the form of a human. Other changes occurred at the same time. His reasoning became more subtle, he found he could understand the sounds the humans made and that he had the ability to talk as they did.
Stealing some clothes from an empty house, he had explored the "city" until he came to the docks, when again, the call became irresistable. He approached a man whom he "knew" to be the captain of a foreign vessel. How he knew, he did not know. Having no money, he bargained a place for himself as a crew member and had thus began the longest part of his journey.
For months his journey had taken him through strange lands - sometimes in human form, sometimes as cat.
As in his cat form, he was very large and powerful for a human and others tended to be wary of him, so much so, that to date, he had not had too much trouble in reaching this point in his journey.
As he watched the caravan being prepared, he noticed others. Others like him, changlings, and they were heading to join the caravan. Wondering how finding others would affect his journey, Og rose and began to make his way to the caravan.
Pipedreams
The caravan has been restocked. With a full supply of food and water, the prince's servants begin to pull up the tents and get the camels and horses ready for travel. Several of the prince's guards are sent through the village to round up stray members of the prince's entourage.
The man in black takes to his own horse and trots several yards to the rear of the caravan. His shadowed eyes watch the bustle of activity with intense scrutiny. As the caravan moves forward, he chuckles softly and whispers to himself, "So many shiny things, so little time."
Oreja
Persia, circa 400 AD.
To the west, the Roman Empire begins to crumble. As its influence on the Middle East fades, the desert peoples are beginning to take back what was once theirs. Into this chaos step strange creatures once thought to be myth. Some are kind, some are cruel, and some are walking question marks.
Lately, a caravan has been seen passing through the desert. A prince from India is searching for a magical creature believed to reside in the cool forests in the north of Persia: half woman, half leopard. As his caravan winds its way through the sands, many mythical creatures begin following. They think that something important is going to happen. What it is, however, is a mystery, and the prince hasn't been very forthcoming.
Why does the prince want to see this leopard woman? Why did he strike out on this arduous journey? What will happen when the two of them meet? Only time will tell.
The prince's caravan stops on the outskirts of a small town. As his servants head into town to procure supplies, strange creatures show themselves after hiding for some time among the humans.
One of the people in the town, a man clad in black and carrying a large dagger at his side, approaches the caravan. His dark, deep-set eyes scrutinize the camels, horses, and tents.
"It's time," he says quietly to himself. "It's time to leave this place."
Oreja
Amidst the crowded marketplace stood a petite woman dressed in sandy pantaloons and a brown tunic, cinched at the waist by a wide dark brown leather girdle with hidden pockets. Her long black hair was divided into several beaded braids, partially hidden under a cloth headwrap. She could have gone unnoticed if it weren't for her extraordinarily large amber eyes and her unusual companion, a fierce-looking lion with a thick black mane.
The merchant eyed her and her companion warily after she paid for the weapons she was now tucking into her knee-high black leather boots, two thin but very sharp knives. She kept a careful eye on the Prince's caravan as she adjusted her bow and arrows, After purchasing a fine Arabian steed the color of the clouds, she bought a couple of sacks and one blanket. Next she purchased a variety of herbs and food which filled the sacks. By this time the Prince's caravan was busy getting ready to move out.
"Come, Kahpeh. It is time to follow the dream." With that said, the woman mounted her steed, nudged him towards the caravan as the lion padded along side.
Kit
Quintar, the owl, watched from his perch on the caravan as it made its way to the edge of the town.
"Funny," Quintar thought to himself, "Funny that I cannot view into that Caravan's future at all. The same as I cannot view my own. Perhaps by joining with them I may finally be able to view my own fates, or meet them."
Quintar braced himself by grasping ever so tightly with his talons the crossbeam he was perched upon in the old storage barn that the town used to store items for future disasters. And as he was gazing at the Caravan through the open doors, his view turned to the image of a leopard woman leading the way. Beckoning all who would, to follow.
Quintar, the owl, flew off from his perch and out the barn's open doors. High up into the air as his wings could take him, and then down, down to the ground to land at the rear of this strange group crossing the desert.
"What harm can it do to follow along, to see what fate holds for these people and for myself as well?"
Quintar, the swordsman, felt for his weapon at his side, safe within its sheath. And felt also all of himself, to see that he had forgotten nothing this time. His camel seeing this came and joined him. "Thank you, my friend. It would have been quite a torturous journey by foot."
Quintar, the swordsman, headed out to cross the desert at the rear of the caravan.
Thundercat711
The rat captain came out from under the cloth that covered the prince's lunch basket. In his mouth he held a big wedge of cheddar cheese. He had joined this group as they took on supplies in hopes that they would travel to the sea where he could find again his ship and his crew of rats and set sail for a land more accepting of his kind.
He scurried off with the cheese to a safe cover in one of the packed tents and set about eating his dinner. He kept his mind strictly on his dinner because if his mind drifted too far, things would start appearing.
Rat-atat
Simone was a cute cuddly kitten with big wide eyes that could make you forget all your troubles and fill you with joy and care and concern for her.
She sat by the side of the street as the caravan passed through the town. Looking up forlornly at all she saw, hoping for a warm saucer of milk and a nice cozy spot to nap in.
When they stopped to take on supplies in the town Simone made her way into a wagon and curled herself into a ball to take a nap. Should someone dare disturb her they would be greeted by the fiercest little creature, but for now she just slept, that cute little kitten, tomorrow she would be 100 years old.
Purring_Kitten
Sze the faery flitted about nervously, small as small can be and with a heart as big as all creation, she worried about many things.
Watching the caravan slowly make its way through the small town she could not help but wonder what all this strange crew was about.
Where were they going and what were all these diverse creatures doing traveling together? So she slowed her wings and gently let herself down upon one of the camels of the caravan for transport. How humiliating, to be taken for a fly!
She waved her wand and a small leaf appeared which she now rode upon like it was a magic carpet ride as a ladybug eyed her with suspicion and so Sze joined the troupe and headed toward the future...
lilTrink
Deep green eyes watched with interest as the human's caravan was being prepared. At last, the final stage of his very long journey had been reached.
The journey, though exhausting, had shown Og sights he never knew existed and, whilst humans were known to him in his homeland, he had never dreamed they existed in such numbers and over such a vast amount of land.
The "call" had first been felt two years before whilst hunting in his native mountains in the north of the Tin Islands. He was unusual for his kind. being, four times as large as the rest of his species and having the deepest green eyes. He was much feared in the highlands but had never known fear himself until the call became too strong to resist.
Without knowing why, he had headed south; steering clear of the human settlements along the way, until he reached the largest settlement he had ever seen. It was then the change had occurred for the first time.
Watching the humans whilst keeping himself hidden, Og began wondering what these creatures were really like. Fear gripped him as he realised that something was happening to him - changing, growing until he had assumed the form of a human. Other changes occurred at the same time. His reasoning became more subtle, he found he could understand the sounds the humans made and that he had the ability to talk as they did.
Stealing some clothes from an empty house, he had explored the "city" until he came to the docks, when again, the call became irresistable. He approached a man whom he "knew" to be the captain of a foreign vessel. How he knew, he did not know. Having no money, he bargained a place for himself as a crew member and had thus began the longest part of his journey.
For months his journey had taken him through strange lands - sometimes in human form, sometimes as cat.
As in his cat form, he was very large and powerful for a human and others tended to be wary of him, so much so, that to date, he had not had too much trouble in reaching this point in his journey.
As he watched the caravan being prepared, he noticed others. Others like him, changlings, and they were heading to join the caravan. Wondering how finding others would affect his journey, Og rose and began to make his way to the caravan.
Pipedreams
The caravan has been restocked. With a full supply of food and water, the prince's servants begin to pull up the tents and get the camels and horses ready for travel. Several of the prince's guards are sent through the village to round up stray members of the prince's entourage.
The man in black takes to his own horse and trots several yards to the rear of the caravan. His shadowed eyes watch the bustle of activity with intense scrutiny. As the caravan moves forward, he chuckles softly and whispers to himself, "So many shiny things, so little time."
Oreja
Chapter 2
