Ka’nat's Den

Huyutikaya Clan

The home of the Huyutikaya Clan is an underground network of tunnels and caverns near a vast river. The tunnels were initially created by lava flow from a now silent volcano that can be seen a few miles away. By the time they are five moons old, cubs can navigate the tunnels easily at a full sprint. Any outsider that ventures inside without a guide will surely find themselves lost amid the dim, twisting pathways. The main entrance to the caverns, guarded by the pride's sub males, faces the river, and leads to a forked path. To the left, the training cavern and the hoard cavern. Straight ahead is the denning cavern. On the right is the herb cavern and the nursery cavern. Huyutikaya warriors are fierce, determined, and patient, priding themselves on their rock stronghold. While the Huyutikaya lions are perfectly willing to prove themselves in battle, they are a largely peaceful pride, always attempting diplomacy and negotiation before resorting to fang and claw. Adolescents are trained in medicine, battle strategy, and cub rearing until they reach 2 years old. When they are ready, they choose their path: warrior, healer, or den mother. Healers are usually female, but any lion may become one. They carefully cultivate the medicinal garden in the herb cavern, mixing medicines for illnesses, soothing achy elders, and binding battle wounds. Male warriors patrol the borders of Huyutikaya territory and guard the clan’s cave home. Female warriors provide food for the pride. Den mothers help lionesses look after and educate their cubs, chaperoning trips outside the cave system and supporting mothers through labor. Every lion in the clan is allowed to have cubs, should they desire to do so. In order to bring new blood into the pride, some lionesses choose to venture to other territories, returning carrying the cubs of other leaders. While the leader, the Olo’eyktan, will mate with any receptive female in the clan (and outside of it, for a price), his chosen mate is the Tsahìk, the spiritual leader and leader of the huntresses.


Notable Caves:

Nursery Cavern (true cave) ~ a medium sized cave with a low ceiling, just barely tall enough for a lioness to stand up in. There are soft nests of feathers and fur lining the walls. This is where pregnant and nursing lionesses reside; they and their cubs are cared for by the den mothers and healers.

Training Cavern ~ a smaller cave with a sandy floor, used for sparring. There are dead logs strewn about. This is where adolescents and warriors alike come to sharpen their battle skills and their claws.

Herb Cavern (true cave) ~ a massive open air cavern with no ceiling and a dirt floor. It smells strongly of herbs. There are plants growing everywhere, with the exception of a few winding dirt pathways that lead throughout the entire cave. A thin stream of water flows from a crack in the wall furthest from the entrance. This is where the healers grow their herbs and medicinal plants. They can often be found using gourds to ferry water to their beloved foliage, or gently pruning overgrown stalks. Also where elders (lions and lionesses above 13 years of age) live.

Denning Cavern (true cave) ~ a huge cave with naturally occurring divots in the stone floor and rock shelves projecting from the walls. These divots and shelves are lined with feathers, furs, grasses, and other soft things. This is where the lions of the Huyutikaya clan sleep, adult warriors and adolescents both. One shelf at the far end of the cave is higher than all the others; this is where the Olo’eyktan and the Tsahìk sleep.

Hoard Cavern ~ a large cave with rocky shelves sunken into the walls. They hold piles of feathers, skulls, beetles, and other trinkets. Carcasses are piled against the walls. This cave is the deepest underground and the coldest, meaning prey stays fresh for several days when stored here.

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