~** The Midnight Sun **~ (Mascot Contest 83)

[peter quill]

Username:
*DJ Wolfy*

Gemdog:
1~

Bio:
__________________________
Age:
1 Year

Gender:
Male

Name:
Shaman

Tamed or not?:
Tamed.

Where does he live?:
Shaman hides away in the dense forest with his mother. He is close to the outlands.
______________________
Story:
I laid on a strong branch in a old oak tree, relaxed. I waited for my mother to return. I flapped my wings just a bit, as my mom came by. I grinned as my mother flew up to me; she had a mouse in her mouth. My tongue lolled, as my mother gave it to me.
“Take half mom. Please.” I said, eating half of the mouse. I was hungry. My mother smiled, and accepted half of the mouse. I came close to her and nuzzled her affectionately. My mother closed her eyes, and I did the same. I fell asleep next to her, in the strong branch of the old oak tree.
*~*~*~*
I opened my eyes and glanced at my surroundings. My mother was down in the ground, crisp leaves moving by the wind under her. I flapped my wings and tried to fly down to the ground. Instead, I started to fall. When I reached the ground, I flapped my wings once, and scrambled to my feet. My mother giggled.
“You okay Shaman?” she asked. I nodded, a bit blurry in my eyes.
“Where are you going, mom?” I asked. She could tell I was curious.
“I’m going to see other gemdogs. A lot have broken bones, or are bleeding. I’m going to see if I can help heal them.” She answered. I grinned a bit.
“Can I come? Please? It’s so boring to be here!” I said. My mother laughed a bit.
“Alright. But stay close.” She replied, flapping her wings. I flapped my wings and tried to fly. She shook her head.
“No need to fly. They’re close.” She said softly. I blushed and walked with my mom.
*~*~*
I gasped. So many gemdogs were injured! My mother was busy trying to figure out what to do. I sat there, looking at one female gemdog. She had a broken bone. My mom tried some cotton on someone, but ti didn't work. Wait! I thought to myself. I quickly sprinted toward some twigs and branches. Two pieces of sturdy wood laid in front of me. I snatched them, and put them on my back. I looked at the trees above. A large tree held a vine. I grinned as I flapped my wings and tried to fly to get it. I fell back down. I sighed, wondering what to do. That's when I saw a longer vine on the ground. I took it, and sprinted back to the gemdogs and my mother. I padded to the female one. I put the two pieces of wood together on the female's broken bone, and then tied it together. The female gemdog stood up, and grinned at me.
"Thank you, are you a...?" She said.
"My name's Shaman." I answered. I flapped my wings once.
"Aah, Shaman. So, you must be, a Shaman?" She asked me.
"Errm, shaman? As in healer? Kind of." I answered. "I must go help my mom now." I added and jogged to my mom.
She smiled at me, and she did the same thing I did. I helped her out with the gemdogs with broken bones. Next, to stop bleeding, we put wet leaves or moss on the bleeding part, and then tied it up with wool. My mom and I kidn of became healers, or in this case shamans. I think I have a talent for healing, I guess. My mom told me I did, but maybe I just knew.
_________
Why do I choose this one?
I love it's design, and when I saw it, I thought, Shaman. It's really pretty, and the blue at the tips of the wing, makes it kind of stand out in my point of view. I love his eyes, too, because when I think of amber, I think soft (as in kind). It's overall, a really pretty gemdog. He stood out to me then the rest.

Where will he be put?
He will be in my character thread. I don't think he should be in my adoptables. <3
Shaman will have his own post, too. ;3

Why Shaman?
I thought, the name just, fit. Shaman is another word for healer, and when I saw this gemdog, I just thought he'd fit as healer. That's why, I put him, as a healer.
____________________
Art: I have no time. Right now, I can't really use my scanner, and I'm having trouble doing the wings. D=

Bid: N/A

Other: I think I'm going to create a story for him, if I get Shaman. It will take some time through, as I need time to think about where it will take place, what's the main plot, and other things. I will write a story for him, as I did with one of my special characters (still working on it xD).

[tennisbutt]

They're being judged tomorrow so all the WIP forms hurrry x3

[corgie]

I'll finish my form when I wake up in the morning /shot

Expect a mascot entry from me tomorrow also if I have time ^o^


I have 1 question, could the mascot be your character / character still? and ow many entries are allowed? ^^

[EarthStar]

Username:EarthStar
Gemdog: #2
Personality
Very strong, she's very rooted in life and in everything she does. She's bold and independent, willing and able to obey orders and rules, but also likes to be doing things her way sometimes. She's not afraid to to go up and talk to anyone, as she's not easily intimidated by people or animals. She enjoys being around others and has a very "leader-like" personality. She's often seen heading a project and telling others what she wishes them to do, she's not overbearing however. She doesn't tend to take things personally, she brushes unkind comments and words right off her shoulder, she is happy to comply with whatever anyone wants her to do as long as in her mind it is fair, just, right and true.
Bio:
I remember the first time I tried to fly. I didn't go all that well, at least not by my standards. I got stuck in a tree, half drown in a pond, and almost got myself killed more than times than I wish to recount. I swear it wasn't my fault though. It was all the fault of Vicor. Vicor was watching me every second it seemed like. And if Vicor wasn't watching me he was interfering with my flight. It seemed the crazy guy wanted me to fail!I mean, I know it was his job to train me and to occasionally observe me, but what Vicor was doing was more than observation, it was stalking. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck constantly rising up with the feeling of being followed. It was uncomfortable, to always be watched, your every move available to someone, but I endured it, and all for the sake of being taught to fly better. You see, I was in the early training stages to become a part of an elite gemdog flight group, one that practiced obsessively hard to preform small, short, but extremely taxing and difficult maneuvers. These maneuvers were meant to be preformed in sequence, as a dance type thing. This type of flying was an art form, one that required a great deal of effort and dedication, skill and intelligence, a well rounded individual. I was always admiring their dance-flights and dreamed of one day becoming one. Of course, this meant I would have to audition, go through rigorous practice and trainings and dedicate my entire life to it. I was ready. I had little family, and I was very independent, I always had my own ideas about things, so I knew I was ready to break away from the boring life of a wild gemdog family. I was going to become a dancing, flying, highly trained gemdog, conditioned by the most professional of teachers. As it turned out, my training began with the ever-present Vicor who was an interesting character. Vicor was in his 20's, a failed artist and high school dropout. He constantly worried about things and had a deep driven streak of perfectionism. He was always on top of you making sure you did everything you were supposed to, and he wasn't always kind about it. He would often lose himself in fits of hideous screaming and rant on to himself afterwords as well. He was though, a fantastic flying coach, and you would always want to pay attention to his every word, not wanting to miss a cheat, a technique, or a trick. Vicor owned a gemdog himself, a little female that he captured and trained, prompting him to start the elite gemdog flying dance preforming company. I was lucky the red-haired man took me on, he was very selective and strict about his performers, but he seemed sure I could handle the job. And so began my adventures in to the preforming world. Today I am the head company dancer/flier, much the same as the top dancer in the NYC Ballet. I could fly longer than any other gemdog and preform amazing and awe-inspiring tricks. I was also one who got really into the dance/flight routine, making any show so realistic I would often see audience members leaving in tears or laughter. I was at the top of my career.
Art:No time. D:
Bid:N/A

[tennisbutt]

I'll finish my form when I wake up in the morning /shot

Expect a mascot entry from me tomorrow also if I have time ^o^


I have 1 question, could the mascot be your character / character still? and ow many entries are allowed? ^^

No characters ^^ As many as you want I guess.

[bearlygrunge]

].[ G A L E N

Wished to be adopted by Autumn.Zephyr.
Galen is untamed, but that's not to say he won't meet humans in the future. He lives in the Pindus Mountains with my Smili, Calixte. In the future, he will meet up again with his family.


IN DARK WOOD LOST ].[

No dancing rays of bright moonlight shone on the darkened floor of the forest this night. A deceptive light & airy breeze swept the boughs of trees into its soft embrace, allowing unnerving shadows to caper below. Aside from the tender wind, the only other sound was the heart of a vernal Gem Dog, which pounded loudly against his ribcage. Eyes wide in fear, he was constantly on the alert, glancing in every direction at fleeting phantoms of illusion. As he wandered slowly through the wood, he could hardly take one step with out being wrought with severe, momentary trembling induced by fear.

It was early yesterday morning that his curious, unattended excursions brought him much farther away from his family group than he had expected. Now he was utterly alone, deprived of any true security, nutrients, & consolation, he quickly realized how extemporaneous he was—how credulous he was. A throaty whimper escaped him as he looked up to the tenebrious sky, wearing a most sorrowful expression. As he brought his bright, amber eyes back to area surrounding him, he was so exhausted he didn't feel as frightened anymore. A glance at what appeared to be a den at the foot of a mountain became a sudden aura of hope. Cautiously & with a guarded manner, he studied the space surrounding the disguised sleep-place. When nothing unusual presented itself, he quickly trotted over to it, nose to the ground, ears swiveling backwards in order to catch any sound of approach. He detected no resent scent, but was wary to crawl into another animal's home. & against his notions, he preceded into the nest with was lined with dried grass & brush, & much golden fur. For an hour, he lay there listening to faint outside noises, which were at first chilling to listen to, but soon turned into a sort of haunting lullaby & he drifted off to sleep.

Whilst the adolescent was dozing, a large catlike animal was returning from her meandering walk as she had insomnia this night.

[Arukardis]

Okay guys, time's up! I'm gonna team up with Tennis and we're gonna start judging the entries in a few minutes

[Froggyhiphops]

Yay! I'm so excited

[Arukardis]

I am very happy that I can across this thread. c:

So, I'm planning on applying for a Gem Dog, but as I was trying to work out a backstory, I found I had amassed a list of questions. . . I hope that I don't completely overwhelm you, Arukardis, but I want to make sure I get it right. Without further ado, here are my questions:

I'm terribly sorry for not seeing this before! I just went through all the comments now and saw it, sorry! Next time please PM me

So, I'll try to answer all of these the best way I can ;P

How are adolescent Gem Dogs able to amass enough calcium in order for their ears to continue in their natural growth?
I thought the same thing while designing them, because... yeah, massive ears needs lots of calcium! So what I came up with is something completely different from what mammals do. Female gemdogs, when near gempups or young gemdogs have the ability to produce this high calcium milk, that's very different from the usual milk for newborn baby gemdogs. This milk is constantly being produced and if not consumed by a puppy, it's absorved by the female's system and the cycle goes on. The female's mamary glandules do not show any signs of fullness unlike when they are pregnant. So, this way, gempups can get their much needed calcium from adult females from the group, wether they have pups of their own or not. And this is a very social behaviour, so if a gemdog is a complete outcast or is taken at a very young age from it's family, it's ears may not develop properly, unless subsitute milk rich in calcium is fed to it.

How do Gem Dogs hunt? Do they hunt in a group or singly? Do they have the advantage of speed, stealth, strength, tracking, etc.?
Gemdogs are group or solo hunters. While they usually live in groups, nothing stops an hungry gemdog from hunting by itself. They have the avatage of speed and stealth, because of their lightweight bodies and half-hollow bones that enable them to make short and silent hovering flights. Their sense of olfact is not that well developed, and it's poorer than a regular dog's. They rely on their eyes and ears to track their preys.

Are Gem Dog groups collected primarily of family members & those of extension? Do the groups, perhaps, change yearly?
Groups are formed mainly of family members, but outsiders can join if they meet the group's "requirements", which can be hunting ability, speed or anything else or nothing at all. It depends from group to group. They usually do not change.

What is the consequence of the "gem" on the animal's forehead?
No one knows what it is used for, but some humans believe (wrongly) it has magical properties and usually hunt these creatures in order to take the colorful minerals from them. Actually, I have no idea how can there be a mineral substance on top of a mammal's head and growing with it. I guess it's a new kind of animal+mineral creature? 8D XD They aren't magical though. x)

Is there an system by which Gem Dogs seek a mate? Do Gem Dog pairs mate for life?
They hey mate for life and always seek the healthiest, strongest, and fittest individual in a group or outside of it. It's the male who actually chooses the female, which is odd in the animal kingdom, and males prefer medium to light colored females for some reason. That's why darker individuals are considered uncommon or even rare.

How long are puppy to adolescent Gem Dogs dependent upon their mother/parents?
Until their ears cartilage is strong enough to hold their massive ears. ;D

Is there a social hierarchy which groups of Gem Dogs? If so, which sex is the dominant sex?
There is, but not a very well defined one, there is usually just a male or female leader (it doesn't matter, both genders can be dominant) and the rest are followers. they are not subordinates or anything like that, but they rely 100% on their leader when it comes to big decisions (like moving from the current territory, big hunts, and so on)

Although Gem Dogs live in groups, do they live independently from each other? As in, they go about their day doing whatever they wish, but perhaps form groups when they rest?
They can do stuff outside the group, but they feel better when in it It depends on the individual as well, some are more outgoing and others just like to "stick around".

Do Gem Dogs, in general, have a fight or flight reaction? Does it vary with individuals?
They are very calm creatures, and they can become very stressed when confronted with an uneasy situaion. Their reaction varies with indivisuals, so they are pretty much unpredictable. Some will automatically bite, others will run away, some may even desperately try to fly away (which they can't, they can't fly upwards because they weren't built that way) and others might just become paralysed with fear.

Whoo, thoese were a lot! I hope this is useful!

[tennisbutt]

Winners of the Gemdogs <3


Gemdog 1: *DJWolfy*

Gemdog 2: EarthStar

Gemdog 3: TheAlbinoBunny

Gemdog 4: Mirandamay

Congratulations!