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 Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:56 am
 This is Raven's quest for an Ahuizotl, an Aztec creature of great power and small stature.  Navigation1. Intro 2. Information on Ahuizotl 3. Past Life 4. The Ghost 5. The Future 6. The Guardian
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Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:57 am
"...very like the teui, the small teui dog; small and smooth, shiny. It has small, pointed ears, just like a small dog. It is black, like rubber; smooth, slippery, very smooth, longtailed. And its tail is provided with a hand at the end; just like a human hand is the point of its tail. And its hands are like a raccoon's hands or like a monkey's hands. It lives, it is a dweller in watery caverns, in watery depths. And if anyone arrives there at its entrance, or there in the water where it is, it then grabs him there. It is said that it sinks him, it plunges him into the water; it carries him to its home, it introduces him to the depths; so its tail goes holding him, so it goes seizing him ... [When the body is retrieved] the one it has drowned no longer has his eyes, his teeth, and his nails; it has taken them all from him. But his body is completely unblemished, his skin uninjured. Only his body comes out all slippery-wet; as if one had pounded it with a stone; as if it had inflicted small bruises ... When it was annoyed - had caught no one, had drowned none of us commoners - then was heard as if a small child wept. And he who heard it thought perhaps a child wept, perhaps a baby, perhaps an abandoned one. Moved by this, he went there to look for it. So there he fell into the hands of the auítzotl [sic], there it drowned him..."
~Florentine Codex, Book 11
"AHUIZOTL: Mongrel Water Monster. Cross between a dog and a monkey — with a hand on the end of its tail.
It's the hand you have to watch, as this is the bit that pulls you into the water. Your corpse will be found minus eyes, teeth and nails which appear to be the tasty tidbits. It seems so wasteful. All that remaining flesh left to bloat and float."
~www.godchecker.com
"This strange, lake dwelling creature was first reported by the Aztec people of Central America, in the later portion of the 13th century. Described as being a simian-like animal, which harbored some distinctly canine characteristics, there can be no doubt the Ahuizotl's most unique attribute was the hand-like appendage, which was reportedly attached to the base of its tail.
Dreaded by fishermen of the area, the Ahuizotl was renowned for its love of human flesh, showing a particular fondness for the so-called "crunchy parts" such as the fingernails and teeth. That having been said, the animal was also known to delight in the more yielding delicacy of the human eyeball. The Ahuizotl is also known to resort to making cries not unlike a human baby in order to lure its prey.
Known as a guardian of lakes, ancient Aztecs believed that the Ahuizotl's primary function was to protect the fish therein. This task made it a natural adversary to fishermen, whose primary source of sustenance was rich aquatic stock of their homeland. Legends quickly sprang up in the fishing villages of the area regarding the Ahuizotl's attempts to sink any boat found fishing near its aquatic home. These fishermen attempted to quell this sub-aquatic predator by offering back portions of their catch. This effort met with only a modicum of success.
As if the fishermen's situation weren't dire enough, it would seem that people on land were no safer than those on boats, as it soon became apparent that the animal would not hesitate to use its claw-like tail to grasp at the ankles of those unsuspecting men, women and children who stood too close to the edge of the water. In this fashion, more than one unwary traveler was snatched from their dry perch and plunged into the brownish depths to await their horrific fate. The next day the corpse of the Ahuizotl's victim would wash ashore, usually missing their fingernails, eyes and teeth."
~www.americanmonsters.com
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Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:58 am
She shouldn't have wandered so far from the sea. The ocean was home-- something not to be forgotten. Home was safe, home was secure. Yet, at the same time, food was equally important, something necessary for survival. True, there had been the birds swooping down to peck at the fish beneath the surface, but that wasn't enough for the Ahuizotl. Centehua's pale eyes darted about, nervous. Something was terribly wrong.
Nighttime wasn't as dangerous as the day with no harsh sun beating down on her, but something in the night air seemed to whisper ill omens. The waves lapped at the shore, calling to the wandering creature, time to head back to the ocean, even without prey for the night. Time to return to the comfort of the water, it murmured, gentle. The moon high in the sky seemed to caution the same-- tonight is not a night to be out alone, even in search of those who've slain your kind, your friends.
Centehua tensed slightly, glancing about, milk-white eyes peering from black sockets. There were no sounds in the night beyond the natural, no scents, no sight which gave away any danger. Nothing was out there, nothing had put her on edge.
Nothing was putting her in danger.
Her tail snaked around, feeling along the sandy path for anything which could possibly be provoking this sensation of caution. Nothing, nothing... what worried her so much? It was probably due to the lack of food recently, the fact that she hadn't been able to catch those who came after her brethren.
A few more steps closer towards the village of the fish-killers. She was almost close enough to pick off any of the stragglers who wandered along the edge, staring out into the night with a mixture of fear and want. Come to the sea, she thought to them, trying to will them to come to her. Of course they wouldn't-- they weren't foolish enough to come near her territory at night anymore.
Too fast-- it all happened too fast for Centehua to know what was going on. Bright flames leaping, blinding her sensitive eyes, shouting making her slow and deaf-- all of it contributed to her mistake of not running the moment things started to go badly. Needing to escape, to get back to the water, Centehua screamed, the sound of a human baby crying leaping forth from her mouth as she struggled against the fish-killers who held her down, burning her tail to keep it from lashing out at them with its terrible claws.
Speaking in a language she couldn't understand, the fish-killers seemed to be debating what they should do with her. Ugly blades glinted in the firelight, everything tinged golden as the villagers prodded her with their weapons, watching her bleed, arguing in loud voices about what needed to be done.
One of the fish-killers, a large man, approached her with a gleaming, red hot knife before stabbing it through her paw on the end of her tail, dragging a scream from the Ahuizotl's throat. A second blade heated by the fire tore into her strong tail, wounding her most powerful weapon, shooting white hot pain through Centehua's tiny body until she could barely make a sound, so full of agony.
Why would they do this? She did her duty, she protected her brethren, her fish-brothers and sisters. They did the same to their family. Why would they scream at her and torture her like this? It didn't make sense. It wasn't right.
Too many blades piercing her body, her brain overloaded with pain, Centehua's mind broke, her body going rigid in the callused hands of the warriors who'd managed to overcome their enemy. Her physical frame lasted for a few more moments before the life faded away from the tiny creature as well, leaving behind only the name of the Ahuizotl and the legend of its brutality and bravery.
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Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:58 am
Name: Abilene
Nickname: Abby
Gender: Female
Race/Species/Element: Ahuizotl
Guardian: Erimentha Morris
Hobbies: Swimming and all other aquatic sports-- and a few attempted land ones underwater. Croquet does not work well. Playing with any sort of new 'gadget'. Figuring out how things work by trying them out-- keep her away from the explosives.
Favorite Colors: All shades of blue-green, as they remind her of the ocean, black and midnight colors, since they're cool as night... and silver because it reminds her of her mother. Just don't tell anyone else that.
Favorite Foods: The crunchy bits, anything with that satisfying feeling of splitting in her teeth-- celery is a personal favorite. Also the gooey eyes and the sweets which remind her of them-- hard on the outside, soft and sticky once broken.
Favorite Possession: The shiny 'eye' pendant her mother gave her.
Abilities:
Water Breath - Can breathe underwater, as well as air. This allows her to stay in either environment for as long as she desires, to better help her survive and also to get what she desires. The downside of this is that when moving from one medium to another, she has difficulty breathing for the first few transitional minutes, leaving her vulnerable upon the switch. -innate
Heightened Senses - Has very keen hearing, sight, and very fast reflexes. This allows her to get her prey when she chooses. However, this means she can't stand loud noises or anything with too much of a glare. Given her penchant for shiny things, this can be difficult to avoid. -innate-
Super Strength - Limited primarily to her tail and fingers, which are extremely strong. As she grows, her tail will get stronger and stronger, to the point where she's able to lift a full grown man with no problem, and her fingers will be able to have something of a death grip. However, as the rest of her body is weaker than those particular parts, when she lifts things that are too heavy, she has a tendency to overexert herself and end up with a great many physical pains, as her tail is connected with the rest of her body. (Expect back troubles to rise from this). -worked on over the course of her life-
You Are What You Eat - She can change her eyes/nails/teeth to those of someone/something she's recently devoured. This allows her to blend in a bit more than usual, though she doesn't care much about 'blending in'. It keeps people from worrying too much, since her eyes are somewhat disturbing. However, this power is also very draining to her, as well as being somewhat unstable. This means that when she uses this, she gets extraordinarily tired after only a short time, and she can't always control how long it will last, or how effective it will be. -teenager-
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Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:59 am
Overall:
General Likes: Crunchy bits, feeling powerful, fish of all sorts, water, anything shiny, gadgets to play with, adrenaline rush, personal space, thinking.
General Dislikes: Hunger, predators of fishy-things, heat, nets, irrationality, abstract learning, non-practical things.
Guilty Pleasure: Scaring her family.
Myers-Briggs Personality Type: ISTP
Personality Overview: If there is a single word which describes Abby, it's pragmatism. She remains objective and even-tempered about just about everything. Even when forced to make fast decisions, Abby does so logically. In fact, she almost prefers making fast decisions because then she doesn't have to explain herself to everyone else. In that sense, Abby is much more likely to start things than stick with them.
Abby's very skilled at figuring out how things work-- things. Not people. People remain very much a mystery to her, since they are neither logical nor practical usually. She has a tendency to get frustrated with people and their inconsistencies and tends to walk away from personal conflicts rather than being put in a position where she doesn't know what to do or how to react to a situation. Since she understands how inconsistent people are, Abby seldom shares her deepest feelings and fears with anyone, even those she knows well and trusts.
On many levels, although she's a pragmatist, Abby is also a risk taker. She adores 'danger', as it keeps her on her feet, and loves adrenaline coursing through her body, the feeling that she must decide now before it's too late. She's very realistic and independent in her adventuring though, knowing that she has limits and not wanting the support of others.
Unlike her sister, Cecelia, Abby neither wants nor needs much attention. On many levels, Abby just doesn't get that 'need'. It's not rational, as it's a want for something that really doesn't mean anything, something that will fade away.
Because of her nature as an Ahuizotl, Abby carries a deep need to protect, though she's unsure of how to do so most of the time, having trouble dealing with others. When she becomes attached to a person, she becomes attached to their whole 'group', and will protect them, even if she feels separate from the whole.
Baby:
Abilities: At this age, Abby enjoys picking things up with her tail-- also using it to get the edge on her sister. Her hearing is pretty acute-- possibly because at this stage, she can only see when it's dark out. Too much light-- meaning normal daylight within a room with lights off and curtains drawn-- causes her to be somewhat blind.
Occupation: Learning to crawl and ignoring her sister.
Personality: Fiercely independent above all else, Abby will do her best to keep her family from having to 'take care' of her, probably because her familly has a tendency to 'fuss', which causes Cecelia to protest in loud whines. To this end, she refuses to get upset over things, preferring to try to crawl her way into what she wants. This doesn't always work so well, which annoys the little girl a great deal, since she'd rather not get involved in her sister's tantrums. The only time Abby gets upset is really when she's exposed to bright lights, loud sounds, or when she's gone hungry for too long.
Toddler:
Abilities: At some point during this time period, Abby first tries her hand at staying underwater for a longer-ish moment, and discovers that she can stay there for as long as she wants without feeling too weird after the momentary panic of not having air to breathe. This will lead to episodes of her family believing she's drowned. Her senses actually dull a bit, giving her some time to adjust to the world. Her tail is getting stronger everyday as she tries to push its limits in helping her stand and walk.
Occupation: By this time, she's realized that the primary difference between herself and those who can do things for themselves is the two-legged thing, and dedicates herself to learning about how to do that whole walking bit.
Schooling: At this age, Abby first experiences what others call 'school', in the form of daycare and preschool. Eri doesn't enjoy leaving her child, but Aunt Winter has impressed upon the ex-Dream the importance of education, and helps the girl provide her child with an education.
Personality: If you ask any member of her family, they'll tell you very simply that Abby is stubborn, probably because it runs in the family. She's as pig-headed as the next kid, but fiercely dedicated to what she does if it's helping her. The weird thing is, she still refuses to fuss over everything. Where the average toddler will cry or otherwise seek attention upon desiring something, Abby doesn't throw fits, unless someone tries to keep her from the water. She finds water soothing, so she spends much of her time there.
Kid:
Abilities: Abby's beginning to get a better grasp of how to dim her hearing and her sensitivity to light, now that her mother's managed to procure some earplugs and child sized sunglasses. At the same time, the girl's spending a lot of time trying to figure out how long she can stay underwater without coming up for air, enjoying the different world from beneath the water.
Occupation:
Schooling:
Abilities:
Personality:
Physically:
Teenager:
Hair:
Occupation:
Schooling:
Abilities:
Personality:
Physically:
Youth:
Hair:
Occupation:
Schooling:
Abilities:
Personality:
Physically:
Adult:
Hair:
Occupation:
Schooling:
Abilities:
Personality:
Physically:
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Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 3:00 am
Overall:
Eye Color: White iris with black where the normal 'whites of the eyes' are.
Hair Color: Black
Skin Tone: Black
Distinctive Markings: Small, pointed ears, like a small dog, and she's very canine-like in appearance. Her skin is like rubber-- smooth, slippery. She has monkey paws with sharp nails and webbed feet. She has a long tail with a hand at the end of it. Throughout her life, she'll be small, tiny for her age.
Wand:
The most important thing about the staff is the black, rubber hose-like tail wrapped around it with a vicious-looking clawed hand at the top, clutching a bit of seaweed, as if it were the only thing keeping it still. The rest of the wand is black, ridged like the choppy waters of the ocean near the shoreline, with eyes lining the crests of the tiny waves.
Baby Ghost:
Black as sin, with tiny pricks of white where eyes might form, colorful splotches dimmed over her body in representation of the eyes she's eaten.
Baby:
Abby's hair is short and somewhat curly. To the touch, it's mostly unmanageable, much like a dog's fur. With a long tail with a creepy looking hand attached and black skin, Abby isn't exactly your run of the mill baby. For one, she's tiny. As in, where the average height for a baby girl is 45-54cm, she's only about 37cm, a full 10cm shorter than the median. Add onto that her pointed ears, monkey paws for hands, and her webbed feet, and you have one of the stranger children in the family-- and that family has seen some pretty strange individuals. Luckily enough, Eri doesn't care, and chooses to treat her like any other baby (probably because Eri has next to no concept of what 'normality' is) and dress her simply in blue and white cotton onezies, ignoring her mother's protests of how 'children in this household do not wear cotton'!
Toddler:
Her tail has become slightly more muscled in the amount she uses it, and it proves a good thing, as she can use it for her support when she tries to walk. Other than that, she's still rather tiny, which makes for some worry among her family members, but Eri insists that she's just right, she'll grow in her own time. Usually, Eri dresses her in simple dark dresses which match her body.
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Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 3:01 am
Name: Erimentha Morris
Nicknames: Eri
Race: Ex-Dream, now Mary Sue [human female].
Age: Ageless, somewhere between fifteen and forty two.
Gender: Female
Eyes: Silver
Hair: Black, tied back in a french braid usually.
Skin Tone: Moonlit pale, slowly tanning.
Height: 5'3"
Weight: 112lbs.
Predominant Features: When she isn't paying attention (most of the time), Eri's fingertips glaze silver. No one's really asked why, since while Arch's around, no one wants to bother Eri, and when Arch isn't around, Eri usually isn't either.
General Appearance: Arch adores dressing Eri up in expensive, pretty clothes. Eri doesn't care, so she has a wide collection of gorgeous silk, satin, lace, velvet, etc. clothes. And the accessories to match.
Relationship Status: Single
Parents: Dreamer Eric Spencer and Creator Arch-- who, ironically enough, have never met, but live next door to one another.
Siblings: Well, Arch has this crown, and has been talking about an 'angel'...
Hobbies: Reading and observing art; sleeping; spending the day in quiet meditation-- something she doesn't get to do often, as Arch enjoys shopping a bit much.
Favorite Colors: Silver and green and gold and blue and black and everything.
Favorite Foods: Sweet wafers.
Favorite Possession: Her journal.
Criminal Record: Existing, breaking and entering, disturbing the chaos.
Abilities: Occasionally able to 'tap into' Eric and Arch (separately), and minor other psychic abilities she works on in her spare time. She's not very good at any of this, but she enjoys it as recreational fun.
Likes: Fictional stories; happy endings; listening to stories; books and other art forms, as they are manifestations of dreams like herself, only not quite so fleshy.
Dislikes: The uninspired; being forced from home; spicy foods.
Guilty Pleasure: Happy endings.
Image Song: "Spirit of a New World", Earth Wind and Fire
Myers-Briggs Personality Type: INFP
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Posted: Tue May 01, 2007 1:25 am
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Posted: Tue May 01, 2007 2:16 am
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