FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The Gift Spirit Details part 2 of 3 Presented Alphabetically (by animal race) copyright 2018 comidacomida

Talapus The Coyote Spirit Old Native American Trickster Spirit

Perhaps one of the most remembered/recognized trickster of Native American mythos, Coyote was so well known among the peoples across what is now North America that he features prominently in legends that feature in tales told by tribes from British Columbia to Florida. While many of those stories can be attributed to other/similar Coyote spirits, Talapus will happily claim them to be his own exploits and, since the overwhelming majority of Humans have no idea how spirits really function, none would be the wiser. The peripheral knowledge that still exists regarding Coyote, and the popularity of his stories mean that Talapus has maintained far more of his strength than many other old spirits, but it is merely a small percentage of what he once had at his command.

Being such a pivotal figure in the history of so many societies, Talapus has had more freedom than many similar old spirits to choose his path in the new world. He has maintained an affinity for those who provide him the greatest spiritual sustenance but, being pragmatic and curious, he has also taken to learning as much as he possibly can about the changing times and, as such, is far more dynamic than many other older spirits. While Talapus is not as empowered as he once was, he is not exactly starving and, as such, he is more than happy enough to rub it in the faces of those spirits who can't manage as well as he. When encountering a spirit better off than he, however, he is quick to point out that he isn't doing as well as he could be and gratefully accepts any charity they may offer.

Like his corresponding animal, Talapus the Coyote Spirit is covered in light gray, red, black, and white fur with a bushy tail. He is of a height that is average for a human (though his erect ears push him over an inch or two) and his fuzzy body is 'fighting lean'. The trickster's amethyst colored eyes are almost always sparkling with humor and his muzzle is usually adorned with a gregarious smile suggesting that he may be thinking about the punch line of a joke only he knows. He tends to move with the fluid grace of a dancer and rarely if ever does so without some kind of embellishment; the simple act of him walking across a room might be accompanied by a skip, pirouette, or somersault.

As a naturally gregarious spirit Coyote enjoys large groups and doesn't balk from interacting with other spirits. He is generally quite welcoming to anyone and everyone he meets, capable of getting along with a wide variety of other spirits. One limitation to that is when there is an important resource around that Talapus wants all to himself; he is notorious for not wanting to share. Aside from this generally open-minded welcoming nature the one spirit he can't stand is Kyle the Raven. Neither is willing to say the exact reason of their rivalry but most assume it has something to do with the fact that they are both tricksters that often fit the same role in Native American tales but, unlike Coyote, Raven is also prominent the world around in folklore such as the Norse and Japanese cultures. Regardless of the specifics of their rivalry, Talapus despites the fact that Kyle often refers to him sardonically as "Bluejay".

Herne The Elk Spirit Old Celtic Naturae Spirit

As one of the greatest spirits in the ancient Celtic world, "The Hunter" has had a dozen titles and an army of devout followers. He was feared and loved-- respected and idolized. His realm stretched from the British Isles and into what is now modern day France and even possibly as far away as Italy. Some even worshipped him as a god, or at least a demigod. This spirit, once known as Cernunnos was said to embody masculinity, fertility, the changing seasons, the thrill of the hunt, man's dominion over nature yet, at the same time, the insurmountable nature of nature and its constant influence over man. Many things have changed however and Herne, if he was truly once that entity, has undergone many changes.

Having lost a vast amount of power with the Roman invasion of Europe not once, but twice, Herne would likely have given over to sleep permanently if not for a vague resurrection of his tale thanks to Shakespeare introducing an antlered huntsman into his play "The Merry Wives of Windsor" in 1597. It is from this literature that Herne takes his current name. He has maintained a small amount of power over the centuries thanks to Shakespeare's fame, but also occasional resurrections of druidism and wiccan religious, especially as incorporated into current cultures. Even so, Herne has drawn sustenance from a variety of sources and, when at his worst, he has relied on spiritual energies released during shows of extreme male dominance including but not limited to animal cruelty, rape, and murder. As a Naturae spirit, Herne does what is required to survive first and foremost and concerns himself with morality second.

In spirit form, Herne presents himself as an incredibly proud green-eyed humanoid stag. Although his fur is most often of a color similar to the moose or elk of the region he inhabits, when his power is waxing he will often appear with a fine silver pelt. Not including his antlers, Herne stands at almost six and a half foot tall and has the build of a Greco-Roman wrestler. As he is a symbol for male virility and pride, Herne rarely wears clothing but, when the need arises he will wear as little as is reasonable considering the situation; a simple loincloth is his preference if required for modesty's sake and any additional clothing will be accepted only if absolutely necessary.

Herne has many personality quirks, not the least of which is enjoying sex for the sake of sex with whatever partner (or lack of partner) is available. This has led to some crazy stories in the past (some conjecture that Herne may be responsible for the Minotaur of Crete) but he doesn't mind whatever tales, true or not celebrate his conquests. This casual disregard for social niceties has not earned him many friends among the more conservative spirits and, interesting enough, is not well-received by Felicity, another highly sexual spirit. Quite to the contrary, Felicity (an up-and-coming spirit) finds Herne (a down-on-his-luck has-been) to be a very unpleasant reminder that men used to rule the world and that their brutish nature is still far too prevalent.

Kon The Fox Spirit Old Japanese Trickster Yokai

Yokai are incredibly unique spirits in a number of ways and are capable of great feats of chaos in the most unexpected ways. To this end, only a maximum of one Yokai will be introduced into 'The Gift'. While other spirits may feature in more than one story line the Fox Spirit is limited to only one. This means that only Kon OR Gon can be included in a story line, and the other will be omitted from any further story line. Kon's background will not be discussed here because of just how mysterious the character is. Kon is a male Fox Spirit.

The Fox Yokai has not had a good run since leaving Japan. Having crossed the Pacific Ocean during World War II, Kon found the western world to be incredibly strange... and wonderful. Taking to the culture like a fish to water, the Fox spent the next fifty years finding ways to generate the necessary spiritual energy to survive. More than once Kon had been required to assume the physical form of a Fox to gain sustenance for a material body because of how hard it was to seek out worship and adoration in ways that were taken for granted in Japan. While specifics are not available, it can be inferred that life was not good for the malnourished spirit and there will doubtlessly be some things that the Fox refuses to discuss about his/her past.

Kon is of a slim physique and athletic build. The years of hardship have made the Yokai even thinner to the point that he is starting to show signs of what would be poor health in a living being. Regardless, it is of tantamount importance that the Fox present himself well, and so no small amount of energy is put forth in making the best impression possible. Small Yokai tricks of glamour and illusion often compliment careful clothing choices to hide the worst signs of his/her waning power. Although the Fox occasionally 'forgets' to bother with clothing, he alternates between favoring more traditionally Japanese styles and 1960s style American fashion. Kon will usually choose a green kimono with warm-colored obi for the former or jeans with a black leather jacket (no shirt) for the latter.

Due to his relative weakness, the Fox Spirit will go to great lengths to get along with all other spirits around the human but, of course, would prefer to have the human all to himself. Despite this willingness to bargain from a position of weakness, the Yokai realizes that there will be no reasoning with "The Ancient One", the singular spirit with whom the Fox cannot cohabitate. Be advised that any storyline involving the Fox Spirit will have a high capacity for chaos-- for example, the Yokai is the only spirit type who can impregnate or be impregnated by a human. Incidentally, this could be a possible outcome of the story, and not all such endings will be happy ones.

Jack The Gryphon Spirit Old European Heraldric Spirit

Jack is one of the few remaining spirits once known as Heralds. In ages past his kind were prominent stewards and guardians of noble families, powerful institutions, and even entire nations. As nations fell, states rose, religions changed, and people forgot their old ties the power of the heralds withered and spirits that were once some of the strongest in the world eventually bled dry. Jack, as a Herald, has spent several centuries guiding and protecting the ancestors of the families that once rode under banners showing his visage. While the simple act of watching over the lines of the once great family is enough to sustain him the constant energy he exerts to do his duty as a guardian means he is bleeding himself dry and it is only a matter of time until he fades away for good.

Despite the waning power of spirits, Jack also has the good fortune of being an animal spirit with a well known image. Small windfalls of additional spiritual energy helps to bolster him every time attention is drawn to corporations that maintain a gryphon as their logo; the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Vauxhall Motors, and Saab have done much to provide a passive sustenance for him but it is far less than he once knew as a symbol of power and guardian of the divine. Regardless, the selfless spirit does not lament his fate nor blame those who once venerated him; in his mind it is not required that they believe in him for him to maintain his oath.

Jack, when materialized, takes the form of a tall humanoid Gryphon. His head is shaped like that of an eagle with piercing Topaz eyes and brownish feathers that act like a mane and two feather tufts that look like ears and express his moods similarly. The rest of his body is covered in brownish gold fur, which melds into a lighter hue along his chest, abdomen, and inner thighs. A dark brownish-red trail of fur extends from his the base of his neck down to his groin. His tail is that of a lion, but the tuft at the end is of feathers rather than fur. Despite realizing the world has changed around him, Jack takes great pride in his duty as a guardian and almost always appears in a suit of chain mail armor and a broadsword which he wields quite efficiently in his talon-like hands. On the exceedingly rare occasion Jack is presenting himself in a more relaxed manner he will usually wear a doublet of green and white and pair of simple leather britches; his eagle head and lion-like paws are always bare.

Despite his willingness to understand the changing landscape around him, Jack himself does not like the direction the world has taken. Preferring the simpler things in life, the Gryphon spirit often finds the new ways of things to be frustrating. He has been in what he still refers to as 'The New World' for around three hundred years but he still speaks with a Northern England dialectic accent and continues to use the active pronouns of 'thou', 'thee', and 'thy' in formal situations. Still, despite his preference for the old ways, Jack is capable of working well with any spirit be then young or ancient so long as they do not disrupt his duty to protect his chosen human. The one exception to his amicable nature toward other spirits is Medved, with whom he shares an ancient rivalry that cannot be explained by either spirit; perhaps it is so esoteric or petty that it has been lost to time, but it has not done anything to lessen the ill-will they have for one another.

Balam The Jaguar Spirit Old Mayan Spirit Guide

Balam, at one time, was one of the greatest spirits of Mezo America. After the Mayan empire fell and its people were all but wiped out the Jaguar Spirit has essentially faded from our world, but not completely. Having always been a reclusive being, Balam has a knack for conserving his power and has spent decades at a time in quiet meditation and slumber. Although the ancient tales told of him by the Mayans often identify Jaguar as a guiding spirit then also identify him as a divine protector; he was often known for providing vision of disasters before they happen and prophetic warnings. Those times, however, are long past, as the near total destruction of his devout humans has left him a weak and fading husk of a once great spirit.

Although Balam has spent the last several hundred years secluded in the jungles his people once called home he has not spent all of that time inactive. In addition to picking up a working understanding of newer languages, he has also tried his best to understand how the world has been changing. He has taken a special interest in travelers from lands far outside his realm and, through them, has gained rough understanding of the ways the world has changed. Tourists have continued to vex him, as few truly appreciate the majesty of his pristine realm and few respect the ways of his people. Still, all it took was that one stranger to catch his interest and he finally felt compelled to step out into the world to experience things himself.

On the rare occasion Balam will let himself be seen as anything other than a shadow rustling within the jungle's undergrowth he appears as a six foot tall golden-eyed, copper furred humanoid jaguar with dappled black spots as dark as a moonless midnight sky. When he speaks he does so in an even tone and, unless he is particularly disturbed his teeth never show; likewise, unless he is angered his thin, dexterous fingers also lack claws, but that can change quickly if he is pushed. While he is capable of appearing as a traditional jaguar, Balam will tend to choose a humanoid form when interacting with humans, and in that form he usually selects traditionally Mayan garb: a wooden circlet crowned with feathers, a loincloth, and sandals. His ears are each pierced with a jade loop and has three prominent scarified tattoos visible through his fur: an eagle on his back, a snake encircling his left eye, and a feathered serpent wrapped around his right arm with its head resting on the back of his paw.

The largest obstacle for Balam to overcome is his lack of knowledge about the world. Having been sequestered for several hundred years means that what little secondhand understanding he's picked up is only so useful. Fortunately, he learns quickly and has little pride when it comes to admitting his limited understanding. Unfortunately, Balam's primary language is all but extinct in the world and his semi-competent grasp of Spanish won't do him a lot of good with the human to whom he has taken an interest. Regardless, Balam does not back away from a challenge, and his iron will won't let him give up. While the Jaguar generally views other spirits with indifferent and indifference, one exception is Anapa the Jackal, but why that is has to be left up to the imagination since Balam can't effectively express the reason for his displeasure.