Lynx

Geography
Corvus land breaks away and seems to soften into high desert. The wind has carved great winding shapes and somewhere in the past, great upheavals of land had separated chunks of bedrock from the earth to make jagged, young mountains and wind shorn plateaus. The sand is coarse and gritty here, giving just enough traction to not be terrible to walk on. The plantlife is mostly shrubs and cacti that glean every last drop of water from the air. The rains come in great bursts, flooding.

Lynx is known for its sleek architecture, something a little oriental to its framework, and oiled cloth for the rest, ingenious for trapping heat or the cool when it is needed the most. Crops tend towards peppers, onions, nuts and a few plants that exist particularly well on low amounts of water. Several hot springs exist here and there, and more than a few smaller communities have cropped up around it.

Esharra, Lynx’s largest city, near the. . . big water thing. Near the Corvus border. Lynx's capital, Esharra, is also Lyvus' foremost center of culture and learning. It is home to a university famous for its training in both the medical field and military strategy.

Culture
Lynx and Corvus are some of the closest nations, existing as a commonwealth with the seat of power in Lynx itself, but the actual military forces often existing and training in the harsher lands of Corvus. The people of Lynx tend to be reserved and formal, taking a certain care and dignity in their day.

If Corvi are the grunts, then Lynxes are the officers. As with Corvus, religion takes a back seat in day-to-day life, but Lynx is noted as also being where the majority of Lyvus’ institutions of religious learning are located. An austere people in an austere land, their art and architecture tends towards simplicity and elegance—a single piece of ornamentation placed just so against a plain backdrop, rather than frills every which way. As a people, they take hierarchy— whether military or otherwise — very seriously, and are ruled absolutely by the royal family.

Despite having more or less annexed Corvus by taking advantage of its post-war devastation, Lynx takes its duty as Corvus’ caretaker (as many see it) very seriously, and while Corvus is viewed as subordinate to Lynx’s will on a national level, Corvi are also treated with respect and dignity. However, this is not a universal rule, and for all that Lynx presents a dignified, formal front to the world there are certainly darker currents that lurk beneath the surface—rumors of child soldiers as young as six, and of human experimentation conducted on those unlucky enough to exhibit wild talents but not train them before catching the eye of Lynx’s shadier medical organizations.

Native Creatures

 * Tsenna - This graceful, small creature is a bit of a mix between an ermine and a ferret with just as many legs as both creatures put together. They are adept climbers and can do some amazing feats of dexterity and twisting to avoid being caught. They are omnivorous and prefer smaller creatures but will eat shrubs nearly whole if they are particularly unlucky in their own hunt. They have been known to be domesticated and sold as pets.
 * Quizen - Lightning birds. Long plumed birds of red and gold, they are most noticeable for their soaring, gliding flight and the crackling light that seems to gather around them. They will swoop and brush their prey, stunning them with electricity before capturing or devouring the unfortunate creature. Their diet is primarily small rodents and other birds, but they have been known to attack humans firing arrows or bullets at them.
 * Fucking Jackalopes - No one knows what they eat. And no one cares. Lynx has a rumor that if you eat them they are instantly fatal to the poor fool who tried it.
 * Skidcats - The natural enemy of squidrats. Named for their impossible speed (and tendency to come to a screeching halt in front of something valuable and/or fragile), these feline creatures are a bit bigger than regular cats but not quite the size of a full wildcat. They’re … semi-domesticated. Sort of. You wouldn’t want to be caught in the woods with a pack of them, but it’s not uncommon to have one to protect your home from pests. They have a tendency to wake their “owners” by sitting on unfortunate bodyparts. Their eyes are usually gold and their ears are long and tufted. Their paws are especially large -- for the aforementioned skidding -- and polydactyl.
 * - A translucent beetle that emits a distinctive rattling noise when disturbed. Although rarely poisonous alone, they are highly deadly if you disturb a swarm of them. They can be rather difficult to spot, seeing as how they tend to be transparent most of the time. They look a lot like dew when massed on plants and stones, although they tend to live in areas where water is relatively scarce. This gives them the nickname of “false dew.” If you wake up and a swarm of these buggers has decided to perch on your lawn, it’s time to get a new lawn. They eat grass primarily. Cracking open a clearwing hive produces a strange, sweet-smelling liquid. Look, but don’t taste: the primary ingredient is arsenic.
 * Squidrats
 * Orvi
 * Tets

Affiliated Characters

 * Nil Amir al Lynx - Crown Prince of Lynx
 * Lucei - Head of Science/Medical Department
 * Himeta - Governer and Princess
 * Coppelia, aka “Strike” - Right Hand Woman Thing to Nil
 * Tachin Hakhiou - diplomatic envoy(/spy) for the royal family (Nil)
 * Roranicus Galeus/Brass - Former doctor, Eccentric High General
 * Belos - Major in the Lynxan army