Darkness Falls

This was originally thought up around my werewolf Kira and vampire Danny. I colloborated on the seven races a lot with my friend, Jin, and he is the one who came up with the concepts for the Phoenix and the Beast People. He also thought up the Faery societal structure.

Quick Facts

 * Title: Darkness Falls
 * Genres: Fantasy, Modern, Supernatural
 * Major Characters: Kira Takinawa, Danny Lecrae, Skyla
 * Places:

Plot
Creatures of legend exist, many that humans would rather not believe exist. Aristocratic vampires with their nobility and councils, Werewolf packs, Fair folk in their deceptive innocence, and others that don't bare mentioning. All exist in a delicate balance with the beasts of the earth and humans that don't believe in them. If one race should fall into chaos, how long would it be before the others fell too?

Vampire Aristocracy
Consists of six vampire lords and their "knights" and sometimes werepires. The lords and their knights are in charge of keeping the rest of the vampires in control and hidden from the awareness of humans. If a human should find out, they are either killed or sometimes a vampire will kidnap them to become their slave. So should one of the vampire lords decided to go rogue, that could pose a serious problem for everyone.

Other Characters: Darkness Falls Characters

Werewolves
Normally fairly tanned complexions; exude an air of wildness and freedom. They can change to wolf form, at will as well as on the full moon. Sometimes they go into their feral form, which is somewhere between beast and man. In their human forms they are sturdy, even though not all are overly muscular.

While extremely long-lived, werewolves normally don't live forever unless chosen to. Silver is there greatest weakness, but typically only if it comes in contact with their blood.

Society
Werewolves dwell in pack-like clans, typically consisting of several individual families. Thriving on social interactions, banishment is reserved for severe circumstances and most who are banished seek to rejoin the clan. In werewolf families, while the name is passed down through the males it is a female that is the head of the family.

Werewolves believe that for every werewolf in the world there is one other in existence that completes them and makes them whole. That is why when werewolves mate, they mate for life. Though it hasn't been unheard of for a werewolf to take on another mate, but it's typically only acceptable if their first mate died or was banished. In most cases it is frowned upon for a werewolf to join with a non-werewolf.

Vampires
The vampires have pale skin, like death warmed over, often look alluring a beautiful and they have reflections and cast shadows. They appear normal; however when they are hunting their eyes turn red and their fangs and claws appear. Direct sunlight will kill them after prolonged exposure, and their abilities are weaker during the day but they can be out in indirect sunlight with little trouble. They can be killed by decapitation, fire, and by any sharp object through the heart. They aren't killed by garlic, though some are sensitive to it. They don't have to be invited, but most "respectable" vampires prefer not to out of common decency. They will hunt those out late at night. Despite common misconception, female vampires are able to conceive however this is only possible once every century. Even if a vampire were to conceive, the chances of carrying to term are extremely low. That’s why every vampire child is considered precious, despite the fact that they don’t receive their abilities or full immortality until maturity.

Half-vampires (Dhampir)
Though the term Dhampir is typically only used for the half-vampire children of male vampires, many humans commonly call all half-vampires by that name. A half-vampire has many of the same abilities as a vampire, albeit not as strong and they are able to go out in sunlight without the effects that vampires experience. They do need to drink blood on occasion, but those that become vampire hunters often drink from blood bags. Whether or not a half-vampire becomes a hunter depends mostly on how they are raised. Most true dhampirs who are raised by their human mothers are often instilled with a value for human life and are the most likely to become vampire hunters.

It was originally thought that half vampires were immune to the lycan gene, the gene that is passed through a werewolf’s bite or scratch. However Skyla could disprove that theory.

Society
Vampires have only one real law; keep their identities secret from humans. Those humans that find out are either killed or enslaved until the day they die. The ones who made and enforce this law are the seven lords and their “knights”. They make sure the vampires who threaten their existence are punished, often times severely.

Like humans, vampires do have an “underground” where the dregs of vampire kind do business. There are clubs where vampires seek out humans for blood and to satisfy other desires. However the black market is the biggest danger to any non-vampire, where vampires can buy and sell humans and werepires as well as other creatures.

Werepires
Pale skin, hair and eyes often have a wild feeling to them. One's that are under a vampire's control often have to stay in wolf form during the day and can move freely between forms at night. They become ravenous and blood-thirsty when the moon is full.

The only sure way to kill a werepire is a silver stake/bullet through the heart, but many will burn the body just in case. Generally a werepire is created, normally when a vampire drains the blood from a werewolf. However, in Skyla's case, she was born half vampire and attacked by a werewolf when young. To gain her control a vampire caught her and made her drink his blood, then sold her to another vampire when she got tiresome.

While a free-thinking werepire can be as intelligent as any werewolve, a werepire under a vampire's control generally acts on instinct. That includes mating, with male werepires actively pursuing any female in season...whether they're werepire or werewolf. That is why female werepires are rarely seen, as even a vampire lord had trouble controlling an amorous werepire...much less a pair of amorous werepires. Another thing to note, controlled werepires don't particularly care where they mate or who happens to be watching.

Faeries
There are many different types of faeries, some benevolent and others malevolent. Nearly all faeries are known to be mischievous and enjoy a good prank at another’s expense.

Society
While there is a king and queen of the faeries, most faeries are more interested in looking out for themselves and those they are responsible for. Helping the king and queen is a council of nobles that act as the proxies, governing the mass of their respective element. Due to their immense power and influence members of the council can often be seen in public, it's not uncommon for one of them to appear before humans in the place of the king or queen for treaties or just appearances in general.

Phoenix
Disclaimer : Concept belongs to Jin, do not use without permission.

Immortal creatures that will burst into matter and resurrect as children once again, phoenixes are one of the smallest based on size. Normally they will only mate within their element, but mixed phoenix are not uncommon. The most widely known member of this race are the fire phoenix, also called "firebirds" among the humans. Because they never die, they are very intelligent and are invisible to humans who either don't believe or have no affinity for the "supernatural". All phoenix, after their first cycle's puberty, are able to take on a human form that's considered a 'second skin'. Their human form can be seen by all, but for normal humans once they return to their natural form they appear to disappear. Although no phoenix is able to die from natural causes, it isn't impossible to kill them, but among humans a superstition has spread that 'to kill a phoenix will bring the wrath of nature itself upon your family' so it's typically avoided. Normally, phoenix take on the shape of peacocks or roosters, but realistically their form resembles a generic 'bird' shape that they choose. The true size of the phoenix is believed to be the source of the legend of the Rukh. (I believe it can also be spelled Roc)

Society
Phoenix hierarchy is based on magical ability, the highest ranks are called "Bringer"s. Obviously, while all Bringers are phoenix, not all phoenix have the potential to be Bringers. The Bringers are highly respected individuals that take on immense tasks, and are above their law. The ones that actually govern the other phoenix are called "Grand Masters" and hold the same respect as the Bringers. There is a single entity that governs them all, while humans tend to believe this means their god, it's quite far from the truth. The "Lord" of theirs is an omnipotent phoenix that has never turned to ash, never been seen, and never displayed its true potential. Although it's never been confirmed, many of the younger phoenix seem to speculate that their Lord is actually the spirit of the world itself. Unlike the other phoenix, those of the Shadow clan drink blood at the end of every month; an old hen's tale is that Shadow Phoenix who fail to regularly drink blood become demons.

Bringers
The Bringers themselves are mysterious beings. Phoenix are broken into the Arcane Elements, the Sub-Elements, Light, and Shadow. Although the Element groups are much more lenient, for the Day and Night Bringers, they become barren and unable to bare children. While it is both a blessing and a curse, there have been some bringers in history that developed disgustingly promiscuous behavior because of this. It is fairly normal for the pairs of either hemisphere to take one another up as sexual partners regardless of the actual sex due to this.

Dragons
They are the largest and perhaps the fiercest of the races, with just as many different species as the faeries. Most dragons would rather attack and eat an intruder; however there are a select few who are inherently evil or good. There is a chance that if you raise a dragon, depending on the type and nature of it, that you will have a loyal companion and defender for as long as you or the dragon lives. However, there is still the chance that the dragon could just decide to eat you upon hatching.

Society
Because the different societal structures vary among the different breeds, it is hard to get a clear set social structure for all dragon-kind. The general rule of thumb however, is different dragon breeds will rarely interact on their own.

Beast-People
Disclaimer : Concept Belongs to Jin, do not use without permission.

The beast people vary from cats, birds, merfolk, and more to creatures many people believe to be entirely mythical like centaurs and satyrs. By default the average appearance is a roughly 50/50 mix between animal and human attributes, but it's common to be on either end of the spectrum with looking like bipedal animals or looking like modified humans. They typically have features attributed to the animal tribe they belong to. There are only three species of the insect/arachnid categories. It should also be noted that very few-if any, invertebrate species exist among the beast people.

Canine
The strongest breed from the canine tribe are the Dire Wolves, being larger, stronger, and more violent than their normal wolven brothers. Over the years they've died out because of genetic reproductive deficiencies, so the Dire Wolves are almost entirely royalty and nobility. The ruling clan of canines is a lineage of Dire Wolves. The most common, however, are mixed Shepherd dogs. Because of the canines' indiscriminate mating fashion it's rare to find pure-breds outside of the Dire Wolves.

Feline
Similar to the canines, the feline tribes are an ancient breed that has almost died out, the Smilodons. Their close relatives are the Tigers, but the two breeds seem to butt heads from pride just as much as they do with Lions. The most common of the felines is a diverse gene pool simply referred to "Tomi" cats. (pronounced tow-me) It isn't rare or uncommon to find pure-bred families though.

Avian
Specific to the Avian tribe, they function on a hierarchy based on wingspan. The top of the pyramid are members of the albatoss family, because of the wandering albatross. Avians in general are often flighty, flamboyant, and eccentric, but it isn't uncommon to find one that's actually down to earth and level-headed.

Reptilian
Reptiles are hard to find in groups of more than two or three at any given location. They are the only known tribe that practices cannibalism, as well as honor killing. They are secretive and long-lived so not much information is known on reptilian tribe aside from boas. Although many will simply have reptilian tales it is also considered normal for snakes to be built similar to nagas and lamias.

Different from the normal reptile tribe, the Ancient Reptiles are a legendary minority of beast-man that live on a solitary island off the coast. They consist of almost entirely crocodiles, alligators, and turtles. The reason they're considered legendary is because there have only been five recorded natural deaths of those reptile tribes.
 * Ancient Reptilian :

Aquatic
Also called mermaids, however not all members of the aquatic tribe are the typical 'mermaid' as many people think. The odds of their legs turning to a tail/fins are 50/50, but both 'tailed' and 'tail-less' have a third eyelid, the ability to alter their heart rate, the ability to communicate vocally or otherwise underwater, as well as absorbing oxygen through their skin. True to their names aquatics prefer to spend most of their time in or around water, the most respected are whales while the most abundant are fish. It should be noted that all members of shark families are unnecessarily aggressive and tend to have volatile personalities.


 * The aquatic/mermaid tribe are considered "fleetingly exotic" in the fact that all mermaids are born with white or semi-transparent hair. When said hair comes in contact with any form of water, it changes to their "birth color" which can be any natural color for their tribe. This is true for those with tails as well, so those who have tails will typically avoid going out when it's raining. When their body dries, their features return to "normal".

Insectoid/Arachnid
This tribe only consists of scorpions, moths, and butterflies for some reason, and even then scorpions are the minority. The birthrate for this tribe is low so they are rare to see anywhere, so very little information is known.

Society
Unlike common misconception, the beast people are not broken into races or "Degrees", they simply exist however they want. They are ruled by a king that is chosen by the sentient pelt of an albino fallow deer. Although the pelt technically has no name many have grown to calling it Jitterbug. Although the chosen is addressed as "King" Jitterbug does not descriminate between gender or species. Unlike humans, the beast people are largely magic orient, with an average of 70% each generation having the potential to become magi. It is against the law to discriminate based on magical potential, and while tribe-descrimination is not possible to outlaw, it is frowned upon.