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 Posted: Sat May 23, 2015 8:51 pm
Sky Festival: Storytelling ContestOpens: Now!
Closes: Sunday August 9, 2015 - 23:59 PDT Sky Clan's new alu'nadi, colored by Safaia.
The Sky Festival is widely considered to be the best place to hear all the best, most exciting stories from around the Ela'wadiyi. After all, you rarely get a chance to hear about what's been going on in the other clans and they're far more likely to have surprising stories. It's not terribly hard to keep track of the goings-on in your home clan but you might see each other clan in passing only two or three times a year between festivals.
Part A
After last year's revelations that each clan should be given a task to focus on or a trait to embody, the storytelling has been pushed to a more competitive level. A particularly enthusiastic member of the Bird Clan has arranged to match up a flock of her favorite birds with those who can tell the best, most interesting stories. Naturally, the stories are meant to be an opportunity for each clan to brag about the skill they are meant to embody and how they have embraced it, a task given to them the previous year.
Believing it to be only fair, the Bird Clan lioness gleefully starts the fun:
Positively beaming, Yinehi Kanati was standing before a crowd she barely recognized- just like she had wanted. With a glance up to the trees surrounding the Stargrove where her feathery friends were watching, she spun around dramatically to address them. If she was going to challenge them to a competition, she knew she would have to take the lead.
Unfortunately, she was off to a rocky start and nearly tripped over her own feet as she turned. But with a sheepish laugh, she shook it off and started.
"It's no secret that I have made a lot of friends among the birds," she said, recalling how she had been practically covered in feathers the previous year as she had collected them for the Wolf Clan, "But there is a very large eagle who shares our lands.. He doesn't bother much with us but I'm sure we've all noticed him and the great shadow he casts as he flies around the Southlands where he lives."
She paused, grinning, "It just so happens that here, on my ear, is one of his feathers. And it was a gift."
With a dramatic turn for emphasis, her tale began: On a stormy night, one that surely every member present remembers for it was the only one like it in the lands this year, the Bird Clan was camped near the river. Never one to be deterred by the darkness of looming bad weather, Yinehi went off for a poorly timed walk-- and it was lucky she did. As the rain and wind picked up, she ran for home but it was too late to get across the river. It wasn't too late, however, to see as a nearby tree cracked and split. The cry that came from it was unmistakable, even amidst the deafening sounds of the storm. The infamous eagle had, apparently, chosen a very poor spot to wait out the storm. Between the wind, the tangle of tree branches, and his own enormity, he went to the ground with half of the tree- and it all went dangerously close to the river.
Yinehi, reacting without a second thought, changed course and launched a rescue effort before any worse circumstances could befall the feathery creature. Not without a few confused scratches to the lioness, she managed to untangle the eagle and help him to a lower, more secure shelter where they waited out the storm together.
"When it passed," she said, "I helped him check out his old home, but he bounced back pretty quick- probably why he's lived long enough to become so big. He didn't really need anymore help, but he still gave me a feather as a thank you."
She beamed, took a bow and took her seat.
Rules
1. Only members of the Ela'wadiyi can participate.
2. You may enter as many characters as you can imagine stories for but you may only win one bird.
3. Old pride members should tell stories based on their clan trait (e.g. Bird training for the Bird Clan, Strength and skill in battle for the Mantis Clan, etc).
4. New pride members should tell stories based on their life before joining the pride, but to demonstrate how they will contribute to their new clan (e.g. A new member of the Shadow Clan may tell a story of a particularly challenging hunt).
Form A[size=12][b]Form A[/b][/size][size=10]
[b]Lion's Name & Clan:[/b]
[b]Story:[/b] RP format preferred!
[/size] Part B
Despite the interesting array of stories told, there is one member of the crowd who stands out: A pale lioness with only a few scattered blue markings on her. Her tattoos are limited but hint at an interesting story- the story of how she, an outsider, became the new alu'nadi of the Sky Clan.
Rules
1. Anybody may enter for this gal.
2. Winning a bird does not disqualify you for this part of the contest, you may win her and a bird.
3. She should stay in the Ela'wadiyi, but if you choose to take her away then you lose rights to the Sky Clan.
4. This lioness is the new alu'nadi of the Sky Clan, if you win her then you are the new owner of the clan. You may run clan events and choose any male cub you like to be the clan's nvwati but you can't apply for pride customs or make any changes that go against the basic structure of the Ela'wadiyi.
Form B[size=12][b]Form B[/b][/size][size=10]
[b]Lion's Name:[/b]
[b]Meaning:[/b]
[b]Surname:[/b] For if/when she marries and has cubs.
[b]Story:[/b] RP format preferred! Keep in mind this story should tell how she won over the Sky Clan.
[/size]
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Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2015 6:24 pm
Form A
Lion's Name & Clan: Dever, Earth Clan
Story:
Dever was eager. He'd been in the pride for more than a year and a half now, and he'd learned a lot since coming here! The gold-pelted lion almost stumbled as he stood up to address the group.
"I've always liked the Earth," he began, mind starting to range back. "I used to hide out from the heat of the day underneath some scrub. It was such a great spot that a leopard once tried to take it from me! He stepped on my tail and wouldn't apologize." The rest of the encounter, including the death threats, was left out. It didn't add anything to his story!
"Anyway, I came here and I have discovered that my spiritual connection to the Earth is not in the earth. Not in the dirt. Though I thought if I dug long enough I'd find it." Here the lion paused, apparently still confused by the concept he'd just detailed.
"But a lot of stuff lives in the Earth. And on it. And mountains are made of it and they're big and old and strong. And one day I hope I'll be like them."
Dever sat back down abruptly, signaling an end to his story. He grinned at the crowd, pleased with how it had gone.
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2015 11:00 am
Form B
Lion's Name: Kanohesgi
Meaning: 'History' in Cherokee
Surname: Kanehelvsgi ['Story' in Cherokee]
Story: The lioness was quiet as things began, listening and shuffling the things she heard into the back of her mind to be remembered for the future. When there was a pause, she stepped forward.
"I have not been a part of this pride for long. But I have lived outside of it. At the base of the great mountain. Occasionally, I would meet members that have left the pride, members that had traveled outside for some reason or another, and lions that I knew would find their paws resting within the refuge of the Ela'wadiyi." She paused, watching the faces of those who were not of her clan before she continued.
"It was when the Jini-msemi came to call the great mountain home that things changed for me. Though my little part was small, I could not begrudge them of it. They had many mouths, many paws, and needed all the space they could get. I contemplated joining them for a time, but their ways were not for me. Instead, I looked here. I gathered my things, and made the journey. It was not a long one, and I was greeted by a friendly face. I believe she is in the Mantis clan now, Ionùin. I'd met her when she was traveling here, had given her hospitality when she needed a rest on her journey to join her parents in safety. It seems safety she has indeed found, and I am glad of it. Especially since that is what I, too, have found." She chuckled, and smiled softly. "Ah, but what you all are most wondering is the story inked onto my pelt. And that is what I am about to tell."
"It was Sky Clan where the spirits saw fit to place me, and their judgement was correct. For the thing I excel in, above all else, is memory. Memory and the re-telling of it. History is my forte, and it soon became known that. Everything I learned about the pride, I held onto. I remembered the things once-pride members had told me, many seasons ago, and brought them forth for the benefit of the clan and those new to the clan. Some might wonder why I would proffer my gifts to others when I am but an outsider, not born into the ways of the Ela'wadiyi. I do so because though I was not born here, it seems here is where my spirit was meant to reside. Apparently my clan agreed as well. When I began to paint some of the stories onto rocks for the more visually inclined to learn from, it seemed to seal things." She bowed slightly to her fellow pridemates, smile never fading.
"And now I stand before you, newly come into my own as alu'nadi of the Sky Clan. There is more to my full story, as there is more to all of your stories, but that can be told at another time." She stood aside, so that another could tell their story, their tale.
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Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2015 11:05 am
Form B
Lion's Name: Amayeduhi
Meaning: Water Lily
Surname: Amogayvhi "Running Water"
Story: Here she was. The new Alu'nadi of the Sky Clan. It was all a matter of chance with perhaps a twist of fate that had brought her here. The finishing touch of the petals to her shoulder signified her beginning, but it would never be her end. She had done her best to describe the events that had brought her to this sanctuary in the vast deserts.
"It had all started with a dream. One that came to me every night after the last full moon. A sun rising and setting over some mountain peaks in a continuous rotation until after 20 rotations it stopped and it faded into night. The moon reflected an eerie glow against a circled grove of trees and then the dream would fade and I'd wake up. Every night it would come, again and again and finally I just left. I had no family in the lands I had called home so there was no one who would miss me when I left.
For 20 days I traveled. Following the rising and the setting of the sun. The dream didn't come as often once I had started traveling so I took it as a sign that I was doing as was intended of me. It was on the sunset of my 20th day of traveling when I looked up to see the sun setting to the east of a vast range of mountains. It was that night the dream changed. 'I was soaring in the clouds. It was strange, seeing the world from so high. It almost frightened me and I watched as the mountains gave away to subtle streams and a vast plain with little foliage. The moon shone bright and it seemed to encompass a grove in the middle of nowhere and it was there the dream faded away..' I awoke with a renewed energy and continued towards the mountains. I was on a mission now. I would make sense of this all.
I traveled relentlessly for 3 days and came to a river that seemed to lead through the mountains. I followed the stream and pushed myself to exhaustion and after 4 more days I had finally broken free of the rocky terrain. I continued onwards, despite my aching bones and weary muscles and as the sun set on the 3rd day the moon came up and it was there that I saw it. A circle of rocks encasing a grove of trees and the river was leading towards it. I was almost in disbelief because I couldn't understand how a dream could be reality. Perhaps it was a sign from the gods? It wasn't something I had ever considered before. There had to be a reason as to why I was being lead here. As I arrived I could hear voices and followed along the edge until at last I found my way into the circle in which I now tell my story."
She learned about the history of this pride and of the clans within and with the knowledge of their past and her own she wanted to help to build it up. To make it closer to how it used to be. Her memory was strong and she hoped that it would continue to serve her and others within the clan.
"I pray that as we make new memories together our past memories, combined, will help to pave the way for a better and brighter tomorrow. We will continue to grow and we will continue to learn and teach all that we have been given. I promise that as your new Alu'nadi I will share not only what you have taught me, but what I have to teach you in return." She would do what she could and perhaps she would tell of her past before having come here when the time was right.
(I wanted to go a lot more into it, but I don't want to step on toes or add stuff that wouldn't happen or something. I'm so new to this.... If I need to change it let me know!)
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Posted: Sat Aug 01, 2015 1:23 pm
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Posted: Sun Aug 02, 2015 7:49 pm
exclaim End Date Added
One week remains to enter this contest!
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