ElfQuest

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A Tribe of Bird-Elves

Brief Description

The Windwalkers are a tribe of wolf-rider sized elves that have feathered wings built into their arms. Unlike the Glider elves however, Windwalkers have much more limited flight capacity, being built mainly for short flapping flight from tree branch to tree branch. They can only reach great heights through use of updrafts. Windwalkers may be immortal, although this theory has never been proven because although Windwalkers are very long lived (many are several thousands of years old), they lead a rough life and most have met by an early death. One reason for this is probably because Windwalkers are relatively fragile for elves, having hollow bones (to help in flying). Due to the birthplace of the Windwalker's race and the Wolf-rider blood, Windwalkers carry a reservoir of magic inside them and most have magical talents such as tree shaping, weather sense, plant healing and some are still able to bond with wolves, although this happens very rarely. Recognition is very rare, mainly because the Windwalkers are quite inbreed, thus if a stranger elf - ie: from another clan, discovers a Windwalker of the opposite sex, recognition almost always occurs. However, the Windwalker clan has been very isolated and this only occurs very infrequently.

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History

Many centuries ago, the Palace of the High Ones made its first landing on the World of Two Moons. As the High Ones stepped outside to welcome their new world, primitive humans set upon them and many were slain. One High One, badly wounded escaped into the forest alone. She ran until exhaustion consumed her body and then collapsed in a sunlit glade. Her blood soaked into the ground, impregnating the soil with magic. And there she perished, alone, her name lost to the ages.

Decades later, a small band of wolf-riders stumbled across the glade. Led by the charasmatic and rogue-ish Wildwolf, a rebellious youth who had decided to start his own pack. Their wolf friends started to act strange when they discovered the glade, seemingly attracted to it, as if by a magnetic force. Here this small group, of no more than five youthful wolf-riders, started their first holt. Eventually, recognition occurred between Wildwolf and the meek and quiet Mouse and a child was born. At first >The Firstborn was considered deformed, for her arms were in the form of feathered wings! It was found out relatively quickly however that this was not a deformity at all, and was in fact very advantageous at the huge forests they inhabited were ideal for an arboreal existence. With this new way of existence, the wolf-friends became less neccesary and some of the young WIndwalkers took to stealing the young of The Great Harpy Eaglesand raising them.

All was not harmonious however, for when the third chief, Hawkeye, met his demise, there was discourse between his two twin sons, Starlight and Ravendark. The two twins were as opposite as night and day. Eventually Ravendark lost at the challenge and left the flock, taking with him a small group of followers. They left the great forests for the rocky cliffs across the Burning Wastes. Thus the Windwalkers became a flock divided.

Tragedy was to strike Ravendark's clan however, for they were too close to human habitation. The first victim was Ravendark's son, Sable, also known as The Silent One, he was kidnapped by humans and considered dead. And as the human's technology grew, their desire to eliminate the Windwalkers increased also. Two generations after Ravendark's reign, the humans invaded the cliffs, shooting them with arrows and burning whatever they could. Few escaped, and of those that did, many died in the Burning Wastes. A small flock of four, including the chief's daughter, Skydancer, managed to create a small oasis in the desert.

Meanwhile, Starlight's flock were prospering. Even though the chief's daughter, Kestrel, suffered recognition with An Outsider. Eventually they became too large to live in the ancestral grove, and moved into a new roost further in the forests. The old glade became home to a > Wolfpack, possibly the very distant descendants of the original wolf-riders companions.

Chiefs

R = recognised

red =Chief's blood

The Male always comes before the Female horizontally

WildWolf (wolf-rider) ----R---- Mouse (wolf-rider)

Nightshade -------- Shimmer

Hawkeye -------- Feather

Starlight -------- Sablerose

Ravendark-------- Moonshine

Kestrel

Raptor -------- Aurora

Stormcloud -------- Skyhawk

Swift -------- Peregrine

? -------- Goldflash

Windkin ----R---- Skydancer

Animal Friends

Most of the animal companions of the Windwalkers are eagles and vultures. Despite being referred to as Harpy Eagles, Starlight's flock normally befriend something closer to the Monkey-eating eagle in appearance. These birds stand close to a metre (over 3 foot for you Americans!) tall and thus can be bigger than the elves themselves! They are adapted to jungle living, having shorter, rounded wings adapted for flying through the close foliage.

Ravendark's bird companions (and Skydancer's Wraith and Shadow) are bearded vultures (also called the lammergier). They also stand about a metre tall, are whitish in colour with dark wings, large hooked bills, mad red eyes, and a little black goatee. Although an old world vulture, lammergiers do not have naked faces and are sort of noble yet goofy looking. They eat mainly very old carrion (bones) and will drop bones on rocks (or vice versa) to crack them open.

Another bird that has become a Windwalker companion is the Egyptian Vulture, which looks a little like a chicken crossed with a raptor, with yellow skin around the eye and beautiful white feathers. They call it the Chicken Vulture because of this similarity. This bird is kept by Ravendark and his daughter Aurora.

Of course, some Windwalkers might prefer to befriend their namesakes - particularly birds like peregrine falcons and kestrels which can be used in hunting. There is also one occasion when a Windwalker befriends a wolf, but that is very rare.

Solitude Lust

For anyone who has read the stories, you will notice constant references to Solitude-lust. This is the Windwalker version of Wolfsong and has come through the inbreeding that had to go on in early days. Unlike the Wolfriders, Windwalkers cannot sink into the oblivion of the Now, instead they go through a retrospective/introspective period where they desire to be alone and generally sink into deep thought. It is similar to meditation or angst. Sometimes they will seek deep answers, but for this they need to be a mystic or to sink very deep into it. Solitude-lust is dangerous because the elf is likely to get so caught up in their thoughts that they fail to notice the predator stalking them or the sudden change of weather. Just as it is possible to get caught in Wolfsong forever, it is also possible to get caught up in Solitude-lust, where the past becomes all you care about.

Talents

Each elf has a talent, these generally reoccur in each generation and are genetically inherited. These vary from basic talents such as direction sense, weather sense to the more obscure ones. The mystics have talents that go beyond the physical world - the ability to read thoughts or receive visions from objects, the ability to shape dreams.

Hunting

Windwalkers hunt in various manners. Some use their animal friends for the actual killing, as this can be difficult when you can't use your hands and fly at the same time. Others indulge in bizarre clothing - spiked shoes, or vests and actually fly into their victims, spearing them on their clothing. This is how Talonfoot got his name! Hard caps in the shoes also are useful, for kicking in the heads of birds. This is done by continuously swooping on a bird, such as a fowl, refusing to allow it to gain flight, and when it tires it is kicked in the head. The most common technique for flight-hunting is the old knife between the teeth. The Windwalker, holding the knife, drops on its prey like a hawk, which usually pins it to the ground, and slashes its throat with the knife, which it grabs when flight is no longer necessary.

In groups, Windwalkers hunt using spears, usually throwing spears. Some, but not many, Windwalkers have even mastered the bow, but this is awkward with the wings which limits the manual dexterity somewhat.

Clothing

Windwalker clothing is always tight, so as not to interfere with flying. All of the tunics have huge sleeve holes (for the wings) and many wear cloth body wraps. Their clothing is made from tanned leather, fur from their kills and occasionally cloth weaved from that fur. For special occasions - such as ceremonies, they have special clothing trimmed with animal tails - such as martens (brushtails),squirrels. lemurs (ringtails) and foxes, claws and teeth.

Footwear is generally simple. Because Windwalkers are perching animals, they tend to go barefoot or wear thin leather shoes that do little more than protect their feet from the rough bark of their perches. Boots, although sometimes worn, make landing in trees difficult and are thus reserved for special occasions or where the Windwalkers inhabit an area where trees are not the common landing platforms - like Ravendark's flock for example.

The Windwalkers are mine, however.