Chapter #15Halfbreeds by: Yote   Anthros, animen, manimals, beastmen, halfbreeds or furries - just a few of the terms that cover the uncountable breadth of human-animal hybrids. There are as many potential halfbreeds as there are species of beast in the world, encompassing such things as centaurs, werewolves, dogmen and catgirls. New variations are constantly spawning wherever humans, animals and magic are in close proximity, though certain mixes are common enough to have banded together and formed their own societies.
Though wild-born halfbreeds make up the bulk of their numbers, not all were born as they are. Some are beasts that gained a semblance of humanity through magical interference. Others are human-born, humans that have adopted (or had forced upon them) animal traits.
How anthros are treated by humans varies greatly depending on the species, the location, and whether or not they have an owner. Most larger towns are tolerant of feline, canine, and lizard men on the proviso that they don't cause trouble, though they are only afforded the rights of animals, not humans. If they have no owner, they can be killed without trial and anyone wishing to claim them can do so simply be catching, collaring, and branding/tattooing them. Life for a free anthro is a constant struggle to remain unclaimed.
As a middle-ground, anthros may surrender their ownership to a military, such as those of the Study or the Faith. While owned by these organizations they cannot be claimed by others and enjoy marginally more freedom compared to slaves owned by individuals. They are often used as scouts, front-line soldiers and in high-risk operations, and can even progress through the ranks and garner a modicum of prestige.
Out in the sticks, where wild anthro raids are common, any anthro not under the clear, direct control of a human will be treated as a dangerous animal and attacked on sight. The more dangerous types, such as werewolves, vampires, and centaur are not tolerated even in the liberal city of Sentral.
Felini
Cat-human fusions that are popular as slaves for their high docility and intelligence. The coverage of the fur varies between individuals, from coating just the tail and ears, to encompassing the whole body. They are commonly used as scouts for the agility and speed, and as concubines for their sensuous natures. Female felini go into heat roughly once a month.
Canids
Dog-humans fusions are frequently employed as slave labour for their endurance, strength and unwavering obedience.
Saluria
Lizard/human fusions, saluria are prized by the Study for their innate capacity to memorize and cast spells. Individual saluria can be taught around 4-6 simple spells and are often given into the ownership of battle wizards, assisting them in their duties.
As cold-blooded creatures, they become lethargic in cold weather and are constantly on the lookout for sources of heat, even if that means cuddling up with the closest warm-blooded creature. In hotter climates, saluria become aggressive, insubordinate or outright rebellious and are thus deployed appropriately to cooler climates where they can be more easily controlled. The one spell they are never taught is the fire spell, as giving them control over their own body temperature would simple be asking for trouble.
Saluria worship deities of fire and light.
Viera
Rabbit/human or rabbit/elf hybrids, the Viera are tall, with long ears and supple limbs. They breed prodigiously and the Kingdom is currently taking steps to limit their numbers.
Ponygirls and ponymen
An unsatisfactory result of an attempt at creating a more docile human-horse hybrid than the centaur, ponymen lack the hind quarters of the horse, having only equine hooves, mane, and ears. They are in most other respects human, unsuited for the strenuous manual labour they were designed for. This has not discouraged their owners forcing them into a harsh life of toil.
The Centaur
Body of a horse, head and torso of a man. They live in clans on the northern steppes and are in constant conflict with the human nomads, a war that spiraled out of a minor skirmish when the victorious humans coaxed their horses to mount the wives of the beaten centaur cheiftans. This obscene act united the clans forever against the humans.
They possess an aggressive, independent, and willful temperament and are rarely used as slaves, as most centaur will sooner kill themselves. Those that have been successfully tamed are seen as items of great esteem by their owners.
Werewolves
It is unclear specifically why, but wolf-human hybrids are invariably unstable creations, both mentally and physically. The wolf and human aspects fluctuate in dominance according to the waxing and waning of the moon and mentally the two aspects are constantly waring with the other, resulting in individuals who are tormented, violent, or insane.
Vampire/Vampyre/V'ḧmpęěr
One of the most ancient human-animal fusions, originally the vampire were nothing more than bat-human hybrids which drank blood. This all changed when the first proto-vampire fed on demon blood, imbuing his subsequent bloodline with a host of unholy powers and elevating them into a new, distinct race.
Vampires are creatures of darkness, able to shape-shift into a number of forms, even living shadows, but unable to walk in daylight and deadly vulnerable to fire. They are able to dominate lesser minds with a mere glance.
Vampirism peaked 450 years ago, attaining a domain that encompassed most of humanity. In those dark days, there were few villages that didn't fall under the shadow and predations of a vampiric baron, forced to pay homage in the form of delicious virgin women. However, their time in the sun (so to speak) did not last and hunted to "believed" extinction since then, they now exist as a fraction of their old numbers, hiding from the world, slowly rebuilding, plotting, and scheming.
Scrabs
Unpleasant, diminutive creatures a few feet in height, scrabs resembles a cross between a dung beetle and a tramp. They dwell in filth and love everything about it - the smell of it, the colour of it, the taste of it, rolling it up into balls, building little houses out of it.
They are tolerated solely because they are fundamental to the smooth running of a sewerage system, or taking the place of sewerage systems where none exist, collecting and squirreling away fecal matter to do... goodness knows what with it.
They have the greatest freedom of all anthros simply because no sane man would ever want to keep one as a slave or go anywhere near one.  indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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