I changed the basic story a bit to make it funnier. It's a great "big dumb guy" story, so if you're playing up to the black furies, you can lean on that angle. All the major players are male--two Ahroun elders and an Ahroun cliath, two obstinant cowboys, and, of course, a bull, which is really the totem animal of male sexuality (at least, to males!). IMO most of the humor in Choska's version was based on the high-testosterone level, which is the main reason he left off the moderately critical female Child of Gaia, besides having to explain one more character in a fairly short story.

The characters involved:

Jules Walks-the-Wyld-Ways: Get of Fenris Ahroun Homid, Huge Size, known for being chaotic, but glorious. Cecelia Winters: Child of Gaia Cliath Homid Theurge, soft-spoken and a cub at the time <"Left her out of story, she did only smart thing that night...was story about dumb garou, not smart cubs..."> Steel Fang: Glass Walker Lupus Ahroun Elder--known to be thoughtful and moderately creative, and the eldest GW of Austin currently. Choska Spirit Horse: Uktena Lupus Cliath Ahroun, known for being posessed by any stray spirit <"Great warrior! Biggest in tribe! Wise and glorious! Okay, well, I lie a bit...">

So, The Spirits told the Garou to go to East Texas - there was potential for great reward - underground treasure, a lake under the earth untouched by man for 100-odd years, or a glade on the prarie, where Gaia came close to earth, etc., but also a test of judgement, a monster in the form of a bull, and so on. Cecilia used the internet to scrounge up the story of a ghost bull, dead a hundred and fifty years, whose regular appearances signified murder and death, all that good stuff. <"Anyone who looks at it turns into a murderous psychopath.">

The Garou get to the prairie, where the ghost bull is said to arrive...conveniently, on this very night. Of course, that's why the spirits appeared to the theurges.

When the garou get there, dusk settles. A few minutes later, Choska was posessed by one of the two cowboys , and the other appeared in the Umbra, and they started talking, and arguing--Their story, in brief, "so there was this bull, it apparently fell from the sky, and landed in the sheriff's pasture. The sheriff, he raised cattle, and this was a really great bull, largest he'd seen," any appropriate exaggeration on size for humorous effect is fine, <"will breed many, many other bulls!"> And so the sheriff kept this bull on his land, until it wandered into the pasture of the neighboring rancher. Tex, who owned that ranch, said "what a fine bull this is! Such big horns," etc...in brief, Sheriff found the bull, said "what are you doing with my bull?" Tex says "your bull? It wandered on to my ranch, it has my brand on it!" and the sheriff said "bang!" and Tex didn't say much of anything after that, then the townspeople found out what happened and they shot the bull dead, and hanged the sheriff, who said "gurgle," or something.

(this is a fun section, exaggerate as needed. You may want to also mention the glowing red light on the horizon that's getting closer and closer.)

So the two cowboys, they'd been feuding over the bull every 10 years for 150 years, each time the bull appeared people who saw it would go on to become murderous psychopaths, killing their nearest and dearest - and the cowboys are both getting tired of it, they need someone to settle the argument - once someone settles it, one cowboy will shoot the other, the bull will die, and that'll be the end of it. And so they ask the Garou, "which one of us is right?" And each promises the Garou something--the Sheriff promises the Garou a hidden lake under the earth, a cavern untouched by man for 150 years, and Tex promises them his ranch, which is a strong Glade after all these years--whichever one gets the bull, that's the prize the Garou will get.

About this time, the bull gets in. It's a huge devil creature (have fun with description!) Big horns, snorting foam and blood and fire, striking up sparks with its hooves, and so on .

So Jules and Steel Fang go to the attack, but they can't do more than beat the creature back a few feet. Everyone can smell the reek of the Wyrm on it, whether or not they have the gift. It turns its head to them, opens its mouth, and spews forth a stampede of ghost bulls at them (this can be horrifying or really silly, depending on how you describe it!) The stampede hurts the two Ahroun terribly, but still they fight.

Stretch out the combat as long as you want to--Steel Fang tries to make the bull explode, calling on city gifts, but a bull isn't a city, so nothing happens. Jules uses a Big Gun. Nothing much happens, until Cecelia tells the Garou to decide, Jules shouts "It's the Sheriff's bull!" and the Sheriff kills Tex. <"That's not what I said before, yah - wanted to make it shorter. Said the garou made the decision by killing the cowboys, an' then the bull went splash. 'Cause garou always decide things by shooting them, right? But that's what happened, however it makes good story for you, you say that. Anyway, the Garou said the Sheriff gets the bull, and Tex got shot again, and the Garou got a beautiful and sacred lake under the earth, which no human had seen since the Pure Ones held the land, and if anyone knows how you tell if an Ahroun is a murderous psychopath, I'd be a lot happier.">

JVW


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