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Caruso is an epic erotic novel series spanning a period of about 50 years. The timeline of this world will jump around much more as the author releases further short stories and novels all set within the fictional world. I have received many requests to create a quick reference guide for readers regarding races, characters and historical events. As art commissions release, this guide will update with maps, portraits and sexier material to enhance the experience of the books.

Fenra

Fenra is a peninsula in the far north of the largest continent on the world of Carnith. The entire world struggles with war, famine, and general peril at nearly every point in its history, but Fenra is especially notorious with five races all sharing narrow fertile plains and craggy, menacing mountain ranges. The attempted genocides and near endless instances of mass rape have caused many peoples to flee Fenra, but a few devoted remain to continue the struggle for what many would deem a cursed land.

The Canis

Of all the species occupying Fenra, the Canis are the most numerous and vie with the Felidae for control of the region. The Canis exist in three tribes.

First is the Sheoul, a black furred, cosmopolitan elite that rules from their city: Artex. Their universities, artisan guilds, and merchant class are renowned through all of Carnith. But many evils lurk within their cyclopean halls. The Sheoul have a history of sadistic rituals and a religion that celebrates the suffering of enemies and different races. Rumors and legends of a slave trade operating beneath the streets have circulated for millennia and at times the stories were more than just legend. The power of Sheoul is near supernatural, as their society steeps in decadence and excess. Some say they have sworn allegiance to an ancient power that cannot be named. Others whisper of political maneuvering as the Sheoul serve as the primary source of sin and debauchery throughout all of Carnith.

Second is the Geth. They are the grey furred brethren of the Sheoul. Geth subdivide into Scoia and Spectre breeds. Scoia are a darker shade of grey and are usually smaller. Geth of the noble classes tend to be Scoia. Spectre are commoners and usually are much larger, stronger, and long lived than the Scoia. Geth occupy the wilderness surrounding Artex and traditionally avoid the urban life of their Sheoul brothers. After centuries of war and rebellion, the Geth eventually concentrated into smaller communities ruled by Archons. The largest of these was the city of Gethfell. A final armistice was declared between the Canis where the Geth act as a military buffer for the Sheoul against the other savage races of Fenra. The Geth value honor and martial skill above all else. Though the Geth consider themselves morally superior to the Sheoul, their savagery and sadism do occasionally surface, especially in matters of vengeance.

Third is the Redmane. A nomadic tribe continuously drifting among the territories of the Felidae, Canis and Lepus, Redmane are considered low born. There are more variations of Canis in other regions that also fall into the "low born" category, but Redmane presence is an especial affront to the noble Sheoul and Geth. Periodically Redmane offer themselves as servants to wealthy Geth, but harbor a primal fear of their Sheoul cousins. Multiple attempts to commit genocide against the Redmane have been undertaken by both Geth and Sheoul militias, but the Redmane refugees bounce back and forth between shifting, sympathetic regimes constantly seeking asylum. The Redmane tribes follow a continual, chaotic blooming of blue orchids that grow in patches throughout Fenra. They hunt and establish temporary camps in proximity to the blooms and use the flowers for opioid effects. Their faith calls for hallucinogenic spirit quests and a continuous rejection of urban life in all forms.

Redmane are considered sultry and attractive by Geth and Sheoul. Their limbs are slightly longer than what would be proportional. They are universally thin, thanks to near non-existent consumption of meat in their culture. Their red and black fur is accentuated with accents of white on the face, and they all vary wildly in color pattern. Redmanes also trend heavily to homo and bisexuality, something that causes great suspicion among the Geth. Redmane also differ from other Canis with Digitigrade feet that leads some Highwolves to suspect common ancestry with Lepus. It is considered taboo for Canis to eat members of the Redmane breed, but the tribe is often the victim of sexual violence from the Sheoul.

The Myth of Geld and Wyvrk

The horrific feud between Sheoul and Geth has been the source of countless myths and legends. As atrocities pile up between the two cultures, the common folk caught in the middle struggle to rationalize the hell their leaders foist upon them. One legend with more than a hint of truth is the story of Wyvrk and Geld.

Long before the events of Caruso, the High Wolves led a bloody war in an effort to unite all wolf tribes under a single, imperial rule. Many wolf tribes fled Fenra in an attempt to preserve their freedom. Ultimately, the emperor of the High wolves collapsed his civilization under constant conflict and a small alliance of tribes forced peace. The entire family of the emperor was slaughtered as retribution , all except for his youngest daughter. She was the last of the White Canis who once held the distinction of "High" wolf.

The most powerful tribe, whose name is lost to history, wanted to preserve the blood of White Wolves and mix it with their own lineage. The girl was married to two half brothers. Both were the sons of a king who with a wife and concubine had sired children in a unity pact between an otherwise disparate group. The alliance was what made the defeat of the imperial High Wolves possible, and a unity marriage was once again proposed for the brothers, so hungry for a queen.

Geld was the sable furred son. Wyvrk was the grey. They shared the white wolf as a wife and both pledged to sire heirs from her. The princess was forcibly married and raped by the two in honor of the pact. She was a prisoner and spent years cursing her womb and her husbands. Children were born. Against all odds, she grew fond of them though her hatred of her captors never waned.

The bile between the brothers began to grow in unnatural jealousy. The wounds of the shaky alliance between the two tribes further strained the dual marriage and quarrels quickly escalated between the brothers as crisis after crisis plagued the young kingdom. The events of the next 15 years are very difficult to map out, but one by one, the brothers orchestrated poisoning and violent murders of the rival's offspring. What was left of the Princess' mind shattered as she watched her precious children die one by one at the hands of their fathers' madness.

As the violence reached its apex, the Princess began a horrid nightly ritual, imbibing a tea to poison her blood and pervert her womb. Wyvrk and Geld continued their assaults upon her virtue, but in doing so descended into a toxic madness. She waited until their minds were broken and sense had begun to rot in their brains. She told the brothers after one final ravaging that she had mislead them both as to her children's paternity. Each of her children had been a dull hue, mixed between gray, black, and white. The princess had led Wyvrk and Geld to murder their own children last. In a fit of rage and poisoned fits, the princess strangled them both in the privacy of their chambers.

The people took pity on her. Forgiving her scheming and letting her live out the rest of her short life in the castle which stood on the mountain: Artex. This castle would one day mark the center of the great city. The princess died giving birth to twins. One dark as night, the other a dull and melancholy gray. The First was Sheoul. The second Geth. The tribes are said to take their names from them.

The Cult of Stygos and the Nameless God

The feud between the Geth and Sheoul is also punctuated by the difference in their religious doctrines. Geth worship what is considered the oldest of the Canisian deities in the form of Stygos. Stygos is a wolfish God, taking the color of white in an obvious nod to the White Wolves of the Canis common ancestry. Stygos' cult values honor, swearing and keeping oaths, martial skill, and education. The savagery of wolfish nature cannot be denied, but it must be tempered with civility. The priests of Stygos do not actively demagogue against other races within Fenra or Carnith, but there is a prevailing attitude among the Geth that their kind are caretakers of the world and should guide other species to the virtue of civilization. Eating other sentient species is not explicitly condemned, but Stygos warns of over indulgence in such activities. The primary religious text of Stygos' cult is the Stygian Cantos.

The Sheoul faith is a much darker vision of the world. In the time of Caruso, the Sheoul have abandoned most of their religious observance. A few cults of Stygos have bubbled up in the aristocracy and most swearing uses the name of Stygos. Some Sheoul have even turned to the worship of the Felidae God Tabris, or at least one of his five personas. Most of the Black Wolves have espoused religion entirely in the wake of a nightmarish persecution executed by a Matriarchal coven of Blood Witches that once ruled the Canisian Capital Artex. While not endowed legally with political power, the Coven manipulated the monarchy and the aristocracy by supplying slaves for sexual purposes and curating a complex array of religious rites that could restore youth and drive adherents to maddening, drug like highs.

The Nameless God spoke to the first of the Blood Witch matrons shortly after the enslavement of the Roden. Their coven utilized an intricate system of torturous rituals that drew blood under varying psychological conditions to create salves and potions with many potential effects. These formed the basis of catastrophic addiction in Artex that nearly wiped out two thirds of the population. Artex briefly submitted to the rule of a Geth Archon before re-asserting their cosmopolitan domination of the Canis through new trade policies and economic conquest. Artex became the center of Commerce in Fenra, but it only occurred after a brutal purging of the Blood Witch ranks. The tenants of the nameless god were lost to time, and the Sheoul began a long, painful path to redemption in the eyes of their neighbors. Despite this shift, the Sheoul still struggle with sexual slavery and underground sentient trafficing. Rumors of bloody rituals and ecstatic orgies still persist as some hope to revive the nameless god to guide the faithful once more.

Felidae

Felidae are the cat like denizens of Fenra and call the eastern region of Gael home. Ruling from the capital cities of Enfys and Rhogan, they have presented the most substantial threat to Canis rule of the land. The culture of the Felidae is very different from the Canis, though many surmise the two races are somehow related farther back than even the split between Geth and Sheoul. The two share plantigrade stances which are also exhibited by the Roden species. But the Roden's angular faces, wiry tails and vegetarian diet drives a more substantial wedge than what exists between Canis and Felidae. Felidae eat meat as well as more vegetation than the Canis. Felidae hunt small game and also abhor the consumption of other sentient races. Enphys was the first city in Fenra to institute a law banning the practice, turning the Felidae lands into an early safe haven for the Fenra's more persecuted peoples.

Felidae are also distinguished from Canis in their ethnic harmony. There are more variations in Felidae species than Canis. There is also no distinction between those who are "high" born. A Felidae is essentially a Felidae and faction divides are quite rare. They branch off into many colors and racial divides. Some favor Lynxes, while others have more of a Leopard look. There is also a Lionish race that is larger and concentrates in the city of Surwen in the South.

Despite their apparent benevolence, the Felidae have also engaged in bloodshed. There were many wars fought between the Canis and Felidae over the centuries, typically over territories north of Endmir and Meurig. In truth, the Canis instigated these conflicts in times of strife amongst the Geth and Sheoul. When the two clans nearly drove each other to extinction, an excuse would manifest for war with Felidae and the blood-thirsty wolves would unite long enough to quell their feuds. The Felidae most often proved worthy adversaries for Canis, though both suffered immense casualties when war broke out. The Felidae are disciplined and skilled in the art of war, though they engage in it with less zeal. Though the Canis speak ill of Felidae, there is a healthy respect between the two species. The two could very easily end each other should the wars truly rage out of control.

Tabris: the One of Many

Felidae religion is a very murky affair. Stygian cults focus upon moral integrity and the sanctity of oaths. Felidae worship the concept of complexity and balance. The creator God Tabris is said to have always roamed the chaos that predated the world. It was his urge to put order and division that caused a cataclysmic sundering of his identity into five divinities, each charged with laying the foundation of what Carnith would become. Felidae choose an aspect of Tabris to revere above all others. Worshipping more than one face is considered taboo.

Aka the Burning One: Red is the face of chaos and life unchained. Worshippers of red tabris participate in frenzied revelries rivaling the excesses of the Sheoul. While not as focused upon violence and pain, Cultists of "The Red" seek to transcend the boredom of everyday experience with drink, food, and sex. They view the pain that follows such benders as part of the mystical experience. Red Tabris also puts great value upon combat, but does not favor skill or discipline. Members of this sect fly into a frenzy of blood lust on the field. Wise Felidae generals use the so called "Crimson Infantry" as fodder when soldiers of greater skill need cover.

Lapis the inturned eye: A female incarnation of Tabris whose sole focus rests upon knowledge and wisdom. Lapis Stands in stark juxtaposition to the Red, and the two sects rarely deal with one another unless absolutely necessary. Lapris cults encourage study, meditation and scholarly pursuits. Most of the greatest intellectual minds and teachers hail from the Lapris cult. The king Adelaide is one of many rulers who revere the blessed guide. Legends say that although Lapis and Red Tabris cannot stand each other's presence, they once shared a lurid affair that gave birth to another of the faces. Various epics explore the possible parentage, though no definitive answer has ever satisfactorily identified the child's name.

Midori the Kudzu: Botanists and workers of herbs all revere Midori the green, but there is a sinister element to her advocacy for "all things which grow within the Earth." Midori resents life which exercises intelligence and reaps the harvest she sees as rightfully hers. Just as the fruit of the fine can sustain life, so can it poison. Midori works to blur these lines with appealing toxins and fermented spirits that drive men to madness even as they take root with addiction. Midori is unique among the faces of Tabris in that she supposedly harbors the soul of one far older than Tabris himself. Cultists of Midori do not like to speak publicly about these legends, but many believe Midori aims to erase each of the other faces and become Tabris reborn. This would in turn end the world. She also placed a curse upon the intelligent races that eat "only of the leaves," dooming them to lifetimes of servitude and weakness against stronger, carnivorous species.

Shiroi the Truth's Blade: Shiroi is the embodiment of balance and justice between the five faces. His cult obsesses over governance, bureaucracy and law. Shiroi also shares a triad representation with Aka and Kuro, sharing authority over martial skill. Within war, he values discipline and just actions while also defending those weaker than oneself. Of all the Tabris cults, adherents of Shiroi are the most vocal about their religious affiliation and the only sect to openly evangelize to other cults. In Tabrisian literature, Shiroi's liturgical writing is almost always depicted as a form of adventurous epic which pauses between adventures for brief moments of proselytizing. Oddly, these works make mention of another deity that serves as a kind of companion to Shiroi named Stygos. Some theorize that the Canis took the name of this other deity as the center of their own myths, but no absolute proof has been discovered. Shiroi nurses a rivalry with Aka, and the two are usually seen bickering throughout Felidae mythology, but Shiroi's sense of justice and balance usually keeps the tension from escalating to outright conflict. In a very strange juxtaposition to his courageous nature, Shiroi is also often said to fear Midori though no explanation is ever given to justify it.

Kuro the Decay: Cults of Kuro hide their religious affiliation with zeal. While religious persecution amongst the cults of the Felidae is rare, most Felidae view Kuro as a figure to be feared. His domain is one of things unseen and the inevitability of decay. Kuro is often also seen as a herald of deep time and the curator of all that existed even before the sundering of Tabris. His greatest rivalry in the pantheon is against Midori, and their wars are said to have ended worlds beyond Carnith. Wherever Midori works to grow long lasting life, Kuro follows closely to undo her progress. It is said that Kuro views Midori's great Hyperion trees, which can live for more than a thousand years, as blasphemous to the nature of life itself. He blesses those that eat of flesh and offers up a complex combat doctrine that eschews bloodlust and morality with the purity of efficient death. Mercenaries are the most common group to worship Kuro. The great general and philosopher Wilhelm Caruso is also suspected of being an adherent.

A quick note on Felidae biology

All the species of Carnith practice interspecies coitus to some extent. As a general rule, variant species can not conceive outside of their own with a few extremely rare exceptions. High wolves cannot produce offspring with low-born wolves. Lepus and Roden are said to have produced a few examples of hybrids that were sterile. Felidae can breed amongst their species easily, producing interesting color variants and new racial features, but Lynx, Lion, and Leopard eventually re-assert themselves a few generations later, keeping the breeds physical characteristics relatively stable.

Of greater importance is the nature of Felidae coitus itself. Felidae rarely go outside their species in sexuality for one reason. Felidae women have tough, leathery skin around their genitalia which makes mating a difficult endeavor for all but Felidae males. Males of the Felidae race have barbs on the head of the member which protrude a half inch out when the foreskin retracts. These barbs are the only thing stimulating enough for a female Felidae to enjoy sensation during mating. For this reason also, females of other species avoid sex with Felidae for fear of grievous harm. Whilst it is not unheard of, the process is typically extremely painful and not given with consent.