History and Formation of the Clans
It started with the purge.
Cats had lived with humans peacefully for many lifetimes. But when disaster befell humans, as the first wave of the black plague hit, they blamed cats. It was believed that cats were the carriers of the plague. Of course cats scoffed at that. Ridiculous! Some of them had even died from it themselves! But popular opinion had turned against them. At first a few, then many, then almost all cats were driven from the town, with the hope that the sickness would stop spreading. Some were killed, but more died from sickness and starvation.
Driven to the wilderness, they fought bitterly amongst themselves. In order to survive, they grouped together in small groups, with the stronger fighting off the weaker.
It was at the beginning of spring, when the first greens were shooting up, when prey was beginning to be more common, one pregnant she cat laid to rest in a Grove. Her mate and their companions set up a guard, but to everyone's surprise she went into labor. The toms immediately freaked out, but even though they gave her space, they still stayed close to defend her. Her mate approached her, this was his mate, and his kits after all, why would he be aggressive and why would she? He promised her his love, to protect her, and that all the others would do the same. But she was so weak, everyone feared for her.
At that moment Devas moved. They lent energy and life to the queen, helping her give birth to her kits. All three were born strong and mewling. It was a miracle. The queen, filled with Devas strength, thanked them, and the other cats in the group, and vowed that together they would all make their lives here. No more looking to the past. After this they would look to their future, and build it under the benevolent gaze of Devas.
And so Pineclan was born. Of course it would not be named so for many seasons, but the seeds of it existed, the first monarch, a queen with her kits, and her mate who helped her to recruit and train new cats, to protect camp. She went on to mother many more kits, many who weren't her own. Under her direction they pushed cats outward, back into the human town, and deeper into the wilderness.
Humans no longer hunted cats. After having lost so many to the plague, the rats were out of control. They were forced to accept cats back in order to keep rats from completely taking over.
With the plague mostly gone, trade started back up again. With the ships came new cats, cats from far away places. After many cats had been forced back in the city, they were now very much more hostile to outsiders. A few of the foreigners took shelter with Pineclan, but they just never seemed to quite fit in. So, the outsiders gathered as many cats from around the docks and ships as they could, and headed north past Pineclan. They made their home along the bank of the Firth. It was they who first designated Pineclan as such, as “that clan from the Pines.” Eventually to differentiate between the two groups, they became known as Pineclan and Firthclan.
As the two clans grew, so did their territory. Slowly, the native wild cats were pushed further and further until they were forced out of the forest completely. At this point, Firthclan and Pineclan had begun to skirmish over borders and territories, though it wasnt too violent quite yet. But for the wildcats, forced to trek across the open fields until they could find a place of shelter it was devastating. It was the middle of winter, cats died of starvation and sickness left and right. And on top of that, the faeries of the normally isolated area stalked them, stealing their kits and causing havoc. They were forced to band together, to hole up in a rock formation, hide their young deep in the stones. The other clans referred to them as the Moor Clan, even though they had not taken on the position as a group quite yet. They were simply a splintered group of cats sheltering together. But as the next generation grew, they forged bonds and ties strong as any of the other clans.
Pineclan and Firthclan’s war escalated. Pineclan wanted all the territory on this side of the firth. Firthclan wanted their original camp, a place called Salmons rest to remain theirs, as well as a strip of land. The two clans fought over it bitterly.
However, with the appearance of the wild cats in faerie territory, the faeries began to explore, to push outward, particularly the brownies. They began to play mischief on the other two clans, worsening the war by taking on the appearance and even sometimes the place of certain cats. When one jet black tom became the deputy of Firthclan, a battle in which a kit was killed took place. The clans discovered that the tom was a Faerie merely impersonating a cat. All the animosity which had been turned towards each other suddenly turned towards a new target. The Faerie.
The clans, all of them hunted faeries that they found, killing or harming them. In turn the faeries enacted revenge. It was almost as dark a time as the purge.
It would be Moorclan who would become the mediators. They would bring all together in the ruins at the gathering place, including the representatives of the brownies, the group of faeries which had been part of most of the meddling. Moorclan hoped that in close quarters the cats would have the advantage, so when the faeries inevitably broke the truce (which they always did in Moorclan’s eyes), the clans would wipe out the brownies. But the truce held, and negotiations began. Eventually after rigorous debate and discussion, the Pact was established.
The Pact was a powerful magic, binding them to the Faerie and granting them an afterlife, while also giving them tools to protect themselves against the faerie. The clans agreed to hold a gathering every full moon, in the gathering place, a night on which faeries could move more freely between realms. The hope was that the clans might commune with those who had passed away, or ask benevolent faeries for favors. However, faeries rarely appeared, or kept hemselves hidden, and their lost loved ones, if they appeared, never spoke to them. The clans still kept the gathering nights, but the original more mystical element slowly faded from the custom. It became a way to address issues between clans and provide shows of strength and prosperity.
Pineclan and Firthclan returned to their camps, their war put aside for the time being, content that the faerie would have less desire to continue to meddle.
But after all the effort, all of what they had had to sacrifice, Moorclan was not content with the outcome. The pact had not completely protected them from the faerie. So they returned to their territory and sought another more radical solution. Moorclan sought out one of the named faerie, and formed a smaller pact with him, but they paid a terrible price.
When they came to the gathering the next moon, they informed the other clans. Their territory was no longer accessible to faeries. In return any black kit, who could potentially be a faerie in disguise would be left out to be consumed by the earth and sky. The other two clans rioted, but Moorclan had their minds made. Their bond with the named faerie was established.
What followed were many seasons of peace. So far, no major devastating wars have broken out. Skirmishes, and small rivalries lasting years at a time, but nothing else.
Moorclan routinely sends out spies to keep track of the various factions.
Pineclan sneakily expands in the summer, counting on more common food to keep the other clans careless in checking their borders.
And Firthclan draws ever closer to the realm of faerie, distancing themselves from the other clans.
Recent points in history to include in Biographies:
(New history points will be accepted based on when high positions are accepted and what parts of their histories are considered relevant)
60 moons ago: Heavy rains flood Firthclans camp. Firthclan moves to new (current camp). Previous camp used to be in Salmon’s Rest. Clan begins to become more distant from the others.
44 moons ago: First border skirmish since moving to a new camp. Firthclan is attacked after being wrongfully assumed to be a Moorclan patrol. Firthclan leader negotiates an appropriate repayment of the blood debt of the cat who fell during the battle.
38 moons ago: A black kitten is rescued from just inside Moorclan’s border and adopted by a Firthclan queen. They are not told of their origin.
22 moons ago: A sickness strikes Firthclan. Some believe it to be a curse brought upon by someone disrespecting a faerie, or a cat aligned with evil faeries. Some cats are lost, although the oracle manages to save many.
8 moons ago: The more spiritually attuned Firthclan cats notice that local sprites and faeries are becoming more agitated and worried, some randomly disappearing and new ones appearing more frequently than normal.
59 moons ago: Previous Monarch takes charge of Pineclan, begins an era of internal focus, allow more outsiders to join the clan and help it prosper.
48 moons ago: Battle with Moorclan due to discovery of spy attempting to seduce the Monarch.
46 moons ago: Truce with Moorclan lasting the lifetime of the then monarch, promising no spies on either side and no unnecessary aggression. Birth of Current Monarch.
12-14 moons ago: Four cats disappear, all in completely different locations, but all in the same way. It is suspected a dangerous rogue faerie is involved. The disappearances suddenly stop, so nothing more can be done.
6 moons ago: Death of previous monarch, suspicious death of chosen heir, current Monarch takes charge of Pineclan.
56 moons ago: Moorclan dispatches spies to Firthclan, Pineclan, and the human town.
48 moons ago: Spy is discovered in Pineclan, and executed. Moorclan treats it as an act of aggression.
46 moons ago: Truce with Pineclan, no more spies there, but the other two spies are still active.
35 moons ago: Firthclan spy informs Moorclan of the black kit. No actions are taken.
27 moons ago: An avalanche buries several cats beneath rubble, and the place becomes a place haunted by the spirits of those who could not reach the afterlife.
15 moons: An odd earthquake shakes the territory, and for a short time, the sky has the wrong color. But it returns to its average normal self. Loireag refuses to explain what happened.
3 moons ago: Moorclan spy in human town reports stories from ships cats, of sickness spreading through humans again. The sickness is marching north its said, but it may come earlier on one of the ships. Moorclan is advised great precaution when hunting and encouraged to stay away from the other clans.
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