Staff Litter Discussion 2018

[Shobits]

Love tonights outcome! Anyone know the artist or the pups name?

The name is Dorje, and Desmond is the artist <3

[Desmond]

Previous Installments

The wind in the mountains was harsh, cold and crisp, though Caer paid it no mind. The delivery tonight was a strong dream of hope and joy, meant for a creature that had gotten stuck in the steep foothills, where dangerous creatures and monsters hunted and hid even during the daylight hours, sheltered by the sun in the deep, vast shadows. These were lands even the bravest of mortals usually left alone… but the mortal had been sent away by its fellows, asked to seek a better home for all of them. Below, the ice and snow on the peaks had cracked - its weight steadily becoming just too much to remain stacked.

Caer sped on through the deepening darkness, brilliant shining eyes flicking about for signs of attackers, as well as any protectors or guardians that also patrolled the range. More had been sent since reports of three Carriers’ disappearance over the last month, as well as numerous findings of other attacks. The mountains were a perilous mission, indeed.

Finally!

Caer made a sudden, rough dive to land in the mouth of the cave, the maddeningly cold mountain winds slicing through the Carrier’s near-incorporeal body, shuddering the ice crystals that had become lodged within the essence. It had taken refuge deep among the rock formations, hoping beyond hope that it wouldn’t be seen but needing the shelter in case of avalanche or storm.

All Caer had to do was give it the dream, give it hope, and it might survive the night --

!! Chk chk grhh-hh-hh! Chk chk!

Bmpf!

Stunned, Caer’s wings were suddenly pressed against the ground and a blur of fur and teeth were all that the Dreamer could see. Emptied paws scrabbled at skin that moved as if it wasn’t even attached to the monster, rolling along its body like a loose blanket.

This -- this must have been the reason for the disappearances. The attacks. The deaths.

And Caer knew it was Death itself staring back in the dark, snarling with an unbound fury.

But then, far above them, something cracked.

The mountain shook once, then a slow roll of thundering noise echoed through the cave. The creature that Caer had been meant to save sprinted further back into the dark, and the creature disappeared from the Dreamer’s chest, vanishing down the cliff. Caer followed, the dream laying forgotten and shattered among the stones, and took the the air as the first sheets of packed snow began falling into the entrance.

Caer scanned for the mortal, finding it safely on the path to a small hunting party of its brethren, that had set up camp with one of the guardians close enough to watch over them. It would be safe for the night.

The monster, on the other hand….

It had made it to the safety of a cliff just to the left of the avalanche’s path, where it had then continued down at an angle, keeping a growing distance even as the snow, ice, and rock picked up speed.

Caer, unable to complete the mission, returned to the Creator’s side, silent, and disappointed in yet another failure.

The Creator, of course, could not be fooled. Your mission was not a success, tonight.

Caer flinched at the blunt statement. “No. I am sorry… A monster attacked, and the dream was lost. I -” The Dreamer paused, trying to wrestle with words that would not come.

The Creator’s warm presence came in close. Watch, Little One. I want to show you something. Before them, the monster appeared, its stout body perched next to a lantern that it was lighting and extinguishing in a sort of rhythmic pattern, dark eyes as empty and forbidding as the worst of nights staring intently into the distance. Flash - flash - flash.

And on the other side of the valley, a similar light lit up: Flash - spark - spark.

Lantern promptly snatched and stowed, the thing sprinted as a hellbending pace, bypassing the little village in the center on its way to a little alcove, where a small, bright-eyed creature with a big fluffy tail greeted it. As the monster caught sight of the creature - a pure soul, one similar to the one Caer had tried to deliver the dream to - the Carrier tensed, afraid that it would meet the same fate that had nearly been its own, if it weren’t for a well-timed natural disaster.

But the change seemed instant: where there was once a visage of death and evil, there was only joy, protectiveness, and brotherhood. They welcomed one another with a playful dance, the monster playing at being harmless toward what should have been its prey.

Caer… just didn’t get it.

The creature you encountered tonight is another Guardian, but one of the mind. Dorje and his kind were created by a sibling of mine, to protect against manipulation - both good and bad - to ensure the freedom of the mortals can never be compromised by the beings around it. He was only doing his duty in protecting the mind of the creature you sought to save.

“But the disappearances - the deaths - “

Dorje was created to use deadly force as needed. But, that does not make him the same as the monsters you and your brethren face. Just because his duties and viewpoint are different from your own, does not make him evil, Little One. He, too, is capable of good things, and it is not fair of us to judge him.

As the pair - Dorje and the mortal - tumbled about, the Dreamer turned attention to the little soul. “Doesn’t the creature know what Dorje does? Why has it not been tainted by that knowledge?”

The Creator’s light warmed further, as if in amusement.

I believe he keeps the full extent of his Guardian duties secret. The mortal is his friend, he does not wish harm on the little creature, or its bright soul. Its innocence, I believe… is refreshing.

The Dreamer turned away from the scene before them, at a loss. The Creator’s words made little sense in the best of times, but it was clear that neither could condemn the mon- Dorje - for doing as it was created to do for the betterment of the mortals. But if the Carriers continued to be sent where Dorje and his fellows resided, they, too, would fall. The safest solution would be to stop delivering dreams, delivering hope - but that was completely unacceptable. To do so would be to write off all mortals to death from the night monsters, from hopelessness and despair, and from the loss of inspiration that life could be better.

“What are we going to do?”

The Creator’s presence twisted slightly, almost curious. You are my Dreamer, Little One. There is a solution, all you must do is find it.

----
Dorje is, indeed, a honey badger, also known as a ratel. When the palette was finally chosen, and it ended up being one of my very, very dead last choices (I don’t care for pink, and I didn’t feel like working with blue this year), I looked at the two colors that I was most willing to work with and fiddled with them for a bit before the other three colors ended up being dragged in. I knew going into it, Caer needed something to face and actually stay as an antagonist, or at least a challenge, rather than become an ally like my other staff pets, but the palette wasn’t too cooperative and Dia and I agreed that our outcomes would be friends pretty early on -- so I had reason to give him a benevolent, kind, and purposeful side as well, I just had to figure out where that would be. It took almost to the end of September for me to find that reason and write his story. ^^;

HINTS
-Dorje was inspired by the honey badgers in the Ubisoft game Far Cry 4. Now, honey badgers themselves are clearly not exclusive to that game, that just happens to be the last time I had to deal with one, haha. All Ubisoft games are said to belong to the same universe - so my PS4 hint, my Assassin’s Creed nods (my nudges to Desmond Miles and the Creed itself), and mention of Far Cry… that was to get you to here.
I also had this group in my hoard listing, after finding that you guys looked there and found the CQD SOS group (clearly, this one’s not a hoard, lol): accounts/viewgroup.php?groupid=6272949&userid=28434
The pets are dressed as the main antagonist (Pagan Min) and the protagonist (Ajay Ghale) of Far Cry 4. The group name comes from The Clash’s Should I Stay or Should I Go, which is #2 on the album Combat Rock. It’s not necessarily the theme song of the game, but it’s prominent in some scenes.
“I am very particular with my words” is a quote from Pagan Min, but it also works with me. :B
Several times, I mentioned a golden path -- The Golden Path is the rebel group Ajay winds up allying with to fight Pagan Min.
Another hint that was in plain sight was in my team page bio. I ended up directly mentioning Far Cry. ^^;;
-As stated earlier, the morse code messages between Oscar and Dorje gave the first letter of his name. After watching you guys struggle with it, I decided to be nice and let you all have it once you figured that part out, heh.
-I stated at some point recently (it didn’t get added to the chart) that he shares a unique thing each with two of my previous outcomes (Caer: no horns; Lir: no wings) and with those two, shares a feature among all three of them (edited pup lines).
-My telling you to go back and look where you’ve already looked… well, that was supposed to lead you to the hoard group Clash Combat #2 and my team bio. I really, really tried to not make this so hard!
-I also mentioned somewhere that he has something somewhat distantly in common with my favorite movie… which is The Lion King. The Lion King’s current TV show, The Lion Guard, features Bunga… a honey badger. :D

[catmother456]

Previous Installments

Snip

I do love the story and I’m glad you explained your hints. I’m not familiar with Assassin’s Creed or Far Cry so there was no way I would have figured out how the clues fit. And I love Dorje! ❤️

[22tabby]

Ahh, I love him! The story is super nice! I love all of the detail put into it and how your pets are all so connected <3
Also glad I was able to see honey badger, haha.

[GreatWhiteDragon_1]

Previous Installments

The wind in the mountains was harsh, cold and crisp, though Caer paid it no mind. The delivery tonight was a strong dream of hope and joy, meant for a creature that had gotten stuck in the steep foothills, where dangerous creatures and monsters hunted and hid even during the daylight hours, sheltered by the sun in the deep, vast shadows. These were lands even the bravest of mortals usually left alone… but the mortal had been sent away by its fellows, asked to seek a better home for all of them. Below, the ice and snow on the peaks had cracked - its weight steadily becoming just too much to remain stacked.

Caer sped on through the deepening darkness, brilliant shining eyes flicking about for signs of attackers, as well as any protectors or guardians that also patrolled the range. More had been sent since reports of three Carriers’ disappearance over the last month, as well as numerous findings of other attacks. The mountains were a perilous mission, indeed.

Finally!

Caer made a sudden, rough dive to land in the mouth of the cave, the maddeningly cold mountain winds slicing through the Carrier’s near-incorporeal body, shuddering the ice crystals that had become lodged within the essence. It had taken refuge deep among the rock formations, hoping beyond hope that it wouldn’t be seen but needing the shelter in case of avalanche or storm.

All Caer had to do was give it the dream, give it hope, and it might survive the night --

!! Chk chk grhh-hh-hh! Chk chk!

Bmpf!

Stunned, Caer’s wings were suddenly pressed against the ground and a blur of fur and teeth were all that the Dreamer could see. Emptied paws scrabbled at skin that moved as if it wasn’t even attached to the monster, rolling along its body like a loose blanket.

This -- this must have been the reason for the disappearances. The attacks. The deaths.

And Caer knew it was Death itself staring back in the dark, snarling with an unbound fury.

But then, far above them, something cracked.

The mountain shook once, then a slow roll of thundering noise echoed through the cave. The creature that Caer had been meant to save sprinted further back into the dark, and the creature disappeared from the Dreamer’s chest, vanishing down the cliff. Caer followed, the dream laying forgotten and shattered among the stones, and took the the air as the first sheets of packed snow began falling into the entrance.

Caer scanned for the mortal, finding it safely on the path to a small hunting party of its brethren, that had set up camp with one of the guardians close enough to watch over them. It would be safe for the night.

The monster, on the other hand….

It had made it to the safety of a cliff just to the left of the avalanche’s path, where it had then continued down at an angle, keeping a growing distance even as the snow, ice, and rock picked up speed.

Caer, unable to complete the mission, returned to the Creator’s side, silent, and disappointed in yet another failure.

The Creator, of course, could not be fooled. Your mission was not a success, tonight.

Caer flinched at the blunt statement. “No. I am sorry… A monster attacked, and the dream was lost. I -” The Dreamer paused, trying to wrestle with words that would not come.

The Creator’s warm presence came in close. Watch, Little One. I want to show you something. Before them, the monster appeared, its stout body perched next to a lantern that it was lighting and extinguishing in a sort of rhythmic pattern, dark eyes as empty and forbidding as the worst of nights staring intently into the distance. Flash - flash - flash.

And on the other side of the valley, a similar light lit up: Flash - spark - spark.

Lantern promptly snatched and stowed, the thing sprinted as a hellbending pace, bypassing the little village in the center on its way to a little alcove, where a small, bright-eyed creature with a big fluffy tail greeted it. As the monster caught sight of the creature - a pure soul, one similar to the one Caer had tried to deliver the dream to - the Carrier tensed, afraid that it would meet the same fate that had nearly been its own, if it weren’t for a well-timed natural disaster.

But the change seemed instant: where there was once a visage of death and evil, there was only joy, protectiveness, and brotherhood. They welcomed one another with a playful dance, the monster playing at being harmless toward what should have been its prey.

Caer… just didn’t get it.

The creature you encountered tonight is another Guardian, but one of the mind. Dorje and his kind were created by a sibling of mine, to protect against manipulation - both good and bad - to ensure the freedom of the mortals can never be compromised by the beings around it. He was only doing his duty in protecting the mind of the creature you sought to save.

“But the disappearances - the deaths - “

Dorje was created to use deadly force as needed. But, that does not make him the same as the monsters you and your brethren face. Just because his duties and viewpoint are different from your own, does not make him evil, Little One. He, too, is capable of good things, and it is not fair of us to judge him.

As the pair - Dorje and the mortal - tumbled about, the Dreamer turned attention to the little soul. “Doesn’t the creature know what Dorje does? Why has it not been tainted by that knowledge?”

The Creator’s light warmed further, as if in amusement.

I believe he keeps the full extent of his Guardian duties secret. The mortal is his friend, he does not wish harm on the little creature, or its bright soul. Its innocence, I believe… is refreshing.

The Dreamer turned away from the scene before them, at a loss. The Creator’s words made little sense in the best of times, but it was clear that neither could condemn the mon- Dorje - for doing as it was created to do for the betterment of the mortals. But if the Carriers continued to be sent where Dorje and his fellows resided, they, too, would fall. The safest solution would be to stop delivering dreams, delivering hope - but that was completely unacceptable. To do so would be to write off all mortals to death from the night monsters, from hopelessness and despair, and from the loss of inspiration that life could be better.

“What are we going to do?”

The Creator’s presence twisted slightly, almost curious. You are my Dreamer, Little One. There is a solution, all you must do is find it.

----
Dorje is, indeed, a honey badger, also known as a ratel. When the palette was finally chosen, and it ended up being one of my very, very dead last choices (I don’t care for pink, and I didn’t feel like working with blue this year), I looked at the two colors that I was most willing to work with and fiddled with them for a bit before the other three colors ended up being dragged in. I knew going into it, Caer needed something to face and actually stay as an antagonist, or at least a challenge, rather than become an ally like my other staff pets, but the palette wasn’t too cooperative and Dia and I agreed that our outcomes would be friends pretty early on -- so I had reason to give him a benevolent, kind, and purposeful side as well, I just had to figure out where that would be. It took almost to the end of September for me to find that reason and write his story. ^^;

HINTS
-Dorje was inspired by the honey badgers in the Ubisoft game Far Cry 4. Now, honey badgers themselves are clearly not exclusive to that game, that just happens to be the last time I had to deal with one, haha. All Ubisoft games are said to belong to the same universe - so my PS4 hint, my Assassin’s Creed nods (my nudges to Desmond Miles and the Creed itself), and mention of Far Cry… that was to get you to here.
I also had this group in my hoard listing, after finding that you guys looked there and found the CQD SOS group (clearly, this one’s not a hoard, lol): accounts/viewgroup.php?groupid=6272949&userid=28434
The pets are dressed as the main antagonist (Pagan Min) and the protagonist (Ajay Ghale) of Far Cry 4. The group name comes from The Clash’s Should I Stay or Should I Go, which is #2 on the album Combat Rock. It’s not necessarily the theme song of the game, but it’s prominent in some scenes.
“I am very particular with my words” is a quote from Pagan Min, but it also works with me. :B
Several times, I mentioned a golden path -- The Golden Path is the rebel group Ajay winds up allying with to fight Pagan Min.
Another hint that was in plain sight was in my team page bio. I ended up directly mentioning Far Cry. ^^;;
-As stated earlier, the morse code messages between Oscar and Dorje gave the first letter of his name. After watching you guys struggle with it, I decided to be nice and let you all have it once you figured that part out, heh.
-I stated at some point recently (it didn’t get added to the chart) that he shares a unique thing each with two of my previous outcomes (Caer: no horns; Lir: no wings) and with those two, shares a feature among all three of them (edited pup lines).
-My telling you to go back and look where you’ve already looked… well, that was supposed to lead you to the hoard group Clash Combat #2 and my team bio. I really, really tried to not make this so hard!
-I also mentioned somewhere that he has something somewhat distantly in common with my favorite movie… which is The Lion King. The Lion King’s current TV show, The Lion Guard, features Bunga… a honey badger.

Incredibly wonderful story for sweet Dorje. I got confused about the Dreamers, but then it was cleared up the more I read the story. This is great!!!

[Desmond]

Windi: The Dreamers are a large part of the whole story, they're explained a little more in the older installments. c: I've linked to them in my post.

And thank you, guys! :D I'm glad you all like him.

[Velveteen Hound.]

I have to say for this outcome, I really wish the palette had been white instead of blue. I don't know why the blue isn't meshing as well for me here as it does with the others. That is a very small thing though.
Over all I really like the design. The pose is very clever, and I am a sucker for skeletal designs. It is very unique, but honey badger was my first thought, I am glad it was a correct one. I also thought of the redwall otters / or weasels for some reason xD

I have to say that the PPSs outcomes have been my favorite by far this go-round. I have loved every single one of them, and I am not usually a fan of the PPS lines. I usually like the involvement from the typically fairly plain line art to the adult. But all of thee PPSs have great detail, and wonderful designs.

[dragons135]

Adopt virtual pets at Chicken Smoothie! omg this pet is so cool looking from the litter

[King Scotty]

so how many are left to grow?

i've got three, it appears:

bubbleback, kittysinger, and foxtail...

[JK341]

so how many are left to grow?

i've got three, it appears:

bubbleback, kittysinger, and foxtail...

same over here, too.