<^>I_N_S_T_I_N_C_T<^> discussion

Have a plot you would like to try and implement? Explain it here and we'll see if it checks out!

The Main Plot for INSTINCT is as follows....
(view spoiler)[
A large pride of sabers, known as "Kychet" has constant territory feuds with a pack of dire wolves. This pack of dire wolves, Kyt'al Nuk, is the largest group of wolves in the region and Kychet was the largest group of sabers.
After the death of the trainee, "Vitza", the alpha male, "Aithykyl" and the emperor of Kychet vow to war.

Upon returning home and delivering the news of a battle to the pride, Kychet's residents went into turmoil. While most of the sabers agreed with the Emperor's choice to invade dire wolf territory, many still disagreed.
They spoke of immorality, how eradicating the wolf population would only spell destruction onto the land the Sun Sabers had spent so long to construct. If the wolves were not meant to be there, why would the Sun Sabers allow them to?
Feeling disrespected on many fronts by the sabers that opposed his views, the Emperor proceeded to execute Tala, Quetyl, and Rawae, three gladiators who disagreed with invading Kyt'al Nuk's territory.

The Emperor was to attack the Great Black Canyon that evening. He gathered gladiators for the battle party but, many pride members refused to go with them and involve themselves with genocide.

Ignoring these naysayers, the Emperor proceeded to lay siege on the Kyt'al Nuk camp. They stormed into the territory, any wolf that was so unfortunate to be consumed by their might, was surely killed.
The entire camp rose in a panic, wolves trying desperately to fight back against their smilodon enemies. Soon, their defense turned into evacuation.
As pups and gammas alike ran from their death, the Kyt'al Nuk's alpha and his mate remained, assisting other wolves to scramble out of the canyons and into the deserts beyond them. Their own young, a daughter and two sons, followed them in suit.

The walls of the canyon were confusing and long, tunnels digging into the rock face for miles. As the family struggled to reach the desert, they were ambushed by sabers, splitting them up briefly.
Using this time, the Emperor attacked Aithykyl.
Aithykyl is injured gravely during the fight and is briefly incapable of fighting back against the Emperor. During this moment of breath, the Emperor took the lives of the alpha female and one of his male offspring.
Before he is able to kill the entire family, Aithykyl regains his strength enough to snatch the smilodon around the neck.
This wounds the cat, causing him to retreat. Aithykyl then gathers his remaining son and daughter and flees the canyon.

As the Kychet battle party returns home, the discover that many lions in the pride had rebelled. They took as much food and herbs as they could carry and headed south, further into the deep and confusing jungles.

Unbeknownst to the rest of the pride, who now called themselves "Kychet Net", the band of rebels dug deep into the forests, there they found a towering circle of rocks. Within it's center, a building that holds a pool of water, with a surface as sparkly and clear as glass. In the morning, at a precise time of day, the pond would catch the sun in it's crystal form and light the cave up with a thousand colors. In the pond, flowers that are told to be once raised by Sun Sabers can be found growing. Petals as soft as a newborn cub's paw pads and aroma allures even the most stubborn of hearts.
The group of rebels renamed themselves "Cobhet'na Ha" and named their new home the "Sun's Cathedral". The group of rebels believes they were all destined to find this place. To raise the blessed flora just as their famed ancestors once had. The very shape of the Cathedral can be used to measure the time of day.

.....

Years after the siege on the wolf territory and the splitting of Kychet into Kychet Net and Cobhet'na Ha, the wolves return to the canyon. Leading them, the new alpha of the pack. Aithykyl's daughter, Nevooma, began to reclaim the land they were entitled to. Her beta male, Kamari, her brother. Aithykyl survived his wounds, but is left crippled. He can no longer hunt or fight, so he soon became the Moon Speaker of the pack. Using his daughter as a puppet to reclaim his homeland, Aithykyl projects himself to her every day life. She is to train as him, fight like him, speak with the same booming and terrifying voice, and rule the grasslands just as he once had.

Deep within the Whispering Jungles, just south of the Great Black Canyon, lays a place of trickling streams and waterfalls. Where the very light of the moon rushes down and gathers in deep and cooling pools. Within the water, one can see the reflection of the moon. This is said to be a way to directly communicate, if the Ican Nuk, or "Moon Wolves" so wish to speak.
It is here that an ancient and old dire wolf pack thrives. They live in the jungles and are adapted so well with their surroundings, the populations of Sabers and Wolves begin to believe that the pack has died out.
They hold a wolf of extremely old age. She baths in the pools constantly, soaking in their light and listening to the voices of her ancestors. She is this pack's Moon Speaker. Her eyes, said to be washed away by the pools so she may see only the moon's light, are blind.
This wolf, elder of many ages, is believed by all the members of the pack to tell true prophecies. She doesn't say them often but, many believe she truly communicates with the Ican Nuk.

(this is where we are currently in the plot)
It is a prophecy she once spoke that states the Kyt'al Nuk Beta Male, Nevooma's brother and Aithykyl's son, will rebel from his sister and travel into the jungle. After days of surviving through the harsh terrain, he will discover Archet Na'hal. The moon will speak to him, proving him to be the new alpha of the jungle pack.

With a new alpha male, Archet Na'hal and Cobhet'na Ha will arrange a meeting. During this meeting, they discover the true equality between themselves. How they worship two times of the same day, two faces of the same coin. They come to an compromise to avoid any feuding among themselves.

Soon, Nevooma catches word of Archet Na'hal's renewal at the hand of her sibling, enraging her. She constantly sends her hunting parties out to the south only to antagonize the members of Archet Na'hal. Cobhet'na Ha and Archet Na'hal are allies during this time but, they are on a constant thin sheet of ice.
Kychet Net relentlessly attacks both Kyt'al Nuk and Cobhet'na Ha's fronts, stealing their meals and chasing away their hunting parties.
It is the interest of both Archet Na'hal and Cobhet'na Ha to either convince Kyt'al Nuk into alliance OR take over the pack to bring the lands closer to peace.
With the power and stength they gain from allegiance or control over Kyt'al Nuk, the allied groups can then attack Kychet Net directly and hopefully discontinue the Emperor's terrible reign.
(hide spoiler)]

Hey, I was wondering, do the characters have any form of worship, like deities? If not, I thought maybe they could.

I thought of a backstory, a myth, for a deity called Dikeledi, which means ‘tears’ in Tswana. She was an empress, whom was courted by an emperor, whom soon betrayed her. She shed an uncontrollable amount of tears that spread all over the world, that came to be known as rain. To this day, she still weeps for her broken heart, and is called the rain goddess.

That’s just one deity, but I thought that’d be a cool idea if there were more, like an earth goddess, fire god, light goddess, etc.

They do, actually! INSTINCT has lots of overtones of duality so, the religious aspects of INSTINCT also follow.
The Dire Wolves worship "Moon Wolves" or "Ican Nuk" and the Saber Tooths worship "Sun Sabers" or "Wesi Net"

The Ican Nuk are believed to be an ancient race of Dire Wolves who have claimed domain over the entire moon. The Wesi Net are, in relation to that, an ancient race of Saber Tooth Cats who have claimed domain over the entire sun.

Both groups are said to be ancestors of the existent and alive dire wolf and saber tooth populations. They are also both said to hold prophetical abilities as well as to bless certain material things in the world of Instinct ((The stream that runs in the middle of The Great Black Canyon is said to increase the rate of healing and bless the bodies of deceased pack members, for instance))

In the case of the saber tooth prides, they believe that Sun Sabers can be born naturally ((Sundrops/Tear of the Sun)). Alternately, the dire wolves believe that one become a Moon Wolf upon dying and being blessed by the moon.

Though, I may consider including certain "VIP" figures in both the Wesi Net and Ican Nuk. Such as certain sun sabers or moon wolves who are responsible for natural earthen functions, as you suggested. But, for right now, the belief is that the Wesi Net and Ican Nuk are those who control such functions.

That’s great, actually! I love your ideas! You’re so creative!