The Desert Crescent, 1
The Desert Crescent is a region along the equator of Meridia, on the continent of Alayr. As its name implies, it is crescent shaped, formed by a string of mountains along its west-to-south border, and a large gulf. Port towns dot the Desert Crescent's shores, many of which are situated on the mouth of a river. While a great deal of the Crescent Desert is sand and rolling dunes, the numerous rivers create many fertile stretches of land. It is here that Kith society is based: up and down the rivers and along the coastline.
The oldest known recordings that can be dated stretch back some 7,000 years, to the dawn of the precursor of Kith society. Humans, facing some threat from the southern lands beyond the mountains, fled into the desert. Much of the fleeing population died in the exodus, but enough made it to the fertile areas of the Crescent to start new lives. These early settlers adapted to their new environment, discovering what plants naturally grew in the rich soils of the riverbanks, as well as which crops from their homeland could survive. It seems that whatever forced the humans to flee their homes never followed them beyond the mountains, or never survived the arid wastes.
Some 3,000 years ago, when this precursor society was entering its height of power, the royal court mages began a series of experiments. The pre-Kith were fascinated by the local cats that dwelt in the Crescent, especially their adept nature as hunters. The cats were often used as hunting animals, bringing down the more dangerous beasts of the region to protect what livestock the people had. The court mages were tasked with breeding a new kind of hunter, a combination of man and cat that would allow for fewer resources and manpower devoted to the hunt. Through various forms of magic now lost to the Kith and the world, the mages were successful. The finished product retained a very human appearance, with the ears, tail, and skin adaptations of the cats. The new hunters could survive longer out in the desert, and were hardier than the humans who accompanied the cats.
The change to pre-Kith society came some 250 years after the Kith's creation. The Sandrunners, as they were called, were elevated to a very special rank among pre-Kith society very quickly, and soon inter-breeding began. For reasons unknown, the product of Kith and human reproduction always resulted in Kith offspring. 500 years after the Kith's creation, they equaled the human population, and soon overtook them. Eventually, the Kith were all that remained.
This instance in their history had a profound effect upon Kith society. Some Kith worried that the dying out of the true humans meant a dying out of their own humanity, and this fear gained widespread hold. Kith and pre-Kith society had ties to the outside world due to their ports, and the various goods found only in the Desert Crescent. Interactions with non-Crescent humans were myriad, but the times when the Kith were treated as nothing more than animals by outsiders helped fuel the fear of being less than human. Kith go to extravagant lengths to prove their own free will, and "led by instinct" became a common insult for those who gave into more "animal" urges. Kith sexuality, for example, is primarily based around beauty and sensuality, with those giving in to a need purely for pleasure or some instinctual drive to reproduce being shunned from society at large. This fear of "animalness" extends into their offspring; rarely a Kith will be born that appears more cat than human. These offspring are ritualistically sacrificed, left to the desert and its predators lest the beast reproduce and overtake the Kith in the way the Kith overtook the humans. This is, understandably, something not often talked about, and the practice has only escaped the Desert Crescent in rumor form among the sailors who frequent the ports.
The oldest known recordings that can be dated stretch back some 7,000 years, to the dawn of the precursor of Kith society. Humans, facing some threat from the southern lands beyond the mountains, fled into the desert. Much of the fleeing population died in the exodus, but enough made it to the fertile areas of the Crescent to start new lives. These early settlers adapted to their new environment, discovering what plants naturally grew in the rich soils of the riverbanks, as well as which crops from their homeland could survive. It seems that whatever forced the humans to flee their homes never followed them beyond the mountains, or never survived the arid wastes.
Some 3,000 years ago, when this precursor society was entering its height of power, the royal court mages began a series of experiments. The pre-Kith were fascinated by the local cats that dwelt in the Crescent, especially their adept nature as hunters. The cats were often used as hunting animals, bringing down the more dangerous beasts of the region to protect what livestock the people had. The court mages were tasked with breeding a new kind of hunter, a combination of man and cat that would allow for fewer resources and manpower devoted to the hunt. Through various forms of magic now lost to the Kith and the world, the mages were successful. The finished product retained a very human appearance, with the ears, tail, and skin adaptations of the cats. The new hunters could survive longer out in the desert, and were hardier than the humans who accompanied the cats.
The change to pre-Kith society came some 250 years after the Kith's creation. The Sandrunners, as they were called, were elevated to a very special rank among pre-Kith society very quickly, and soon inter-breeding began. For reasons unknown, the product of Kith and human reproduction always resulted in Kith offspring. 500 years after the Kith's creation, they equaled the human population, and soon overtook them. Eventually, the Kith were all that remained.
This instance in their history had a profound effect upon Kith society. Some Kith worried that the dying out of the true humans meant a dying out of their own humanity, and this fear gained widespread hold. Kith and pre-Kith society had ties to the outside world due to their ports, and the various goods found only in the Desert Crescent. Interactions with non-Crescent humans were myriad, but the times when the Kith were treated as nothing more than animals by outsiders helped fuel the fear of being less than human. Kith go to extravagant lengths to prove their own free will, and "led by instinct" became a common insult for those who gave into more "animal" urges. Kith sexuality, for example, is primarily based around beauty and sensuality, with those giving in to a need purely for pleasure or some instinctual drive to reproduce being shunned from society at large. This fear of "animalness" extends into their offspring; rarely a Kith will be born that appears more cat than human. These offspring are ritualistically sacrificed, left to the desert and its predators lest the beast reproduce and overtake the Kith in the way the Kith overtook the humans. This is, understandably, something not often talked about, and the practice has only escaped the Desert Crescent in rumor form among the sailors who frequent the ports.