Ajaba

Once, Ajaba played a vital role in the natural and supernatural microcosm of Africa. Today, they scramble desperately for survival in the wake of a leonine massacre. Their enemies thought to destroy them, but now the werehyenas are hungry to reclaim their duties — and exact their revenge.

## **Legend**

Dark times are upon us, my child, but do not mourn. Set your teeth instead to the killer’s grin, for darkness is a friend to those who know the shadows — and none know the darkness better than we.

It was not always so. In the light of First Morning, We were a proud people with a sacred duty. We were the choosers of the slain, the cullers of the flock, and in our footsteps the tears of those who mourned fell like rain. Our jaws offered salvation from a slow death by hunger, by age, by illness. We cleared away the misshapen, the perverse, the wrong-blooded and warped who sullied the herd with their taint. We slew the weak, that the strong might grow stronger and the fallen feed the scavengers and carrion-birds.

It was an honorable duty, a strong birthright, and we did our job well. For generations without number, we held to our ways, and the veldt prospered.

Then came the dry times, when the rains no longer fed the grasslands and hunger swept the land. Drought killed more than even we would dare slaughter, from hunger, thirst, and the heat of the never-ending summer. It drove the herds to seek new lands, looking for water, food, or shelter from the sun.

And it brought men to the land of the beasts.

They came with their flocks, bearing their villages on their backs, and the grasslands died, eaten bare by their cattle and goats. We moved to cull their numbers as well — beast and man alike — but the humans baited us, hunted us, and in time, proved their worth. These were strong men and women, and their blood strengthened our line. Our numbers grew, both two-legged and four, and for a time our clans stretched from one edge of the land to the other. It was a glorious time for the Bringers of the Rain.

But the dry times did not end. And though we held our duty dear, the rains would not fall, no matter how many tears we called to summon them. The wild flocks faded. Even we could not bring swift peace to all those who faced the long night with hollow bellies, never to see another dawn.

Just as hunger drove the herding villages to us, seeking respite, it brought other predators into our lands. Our cousins, the cats-who-walk-on-two-feet, sought the dwindling herds also, and we warred beneath the twilight for food to feed our cubs.

The war between ourselves and catkind grew to desperate levels. They who had once patterned themselves mighty hunters, but who stormed in to steal our kills. They who fouled our waters with their lazy ways. They who left meat to rot in the sun rather than bear

the presence of the scavengers who starved around them.

They blamed us for their poor hunting. Blamed us for our “unnatural ways”. Blamed us when their own pride left their cubs to hunger, their Kin to starve, their children to dry up in their mother’s wombs.

There was no longer enough for both to survive. Not enough food. Not enough water. Not enough hope that we all might live on. They murdered our young, and we theirs, and the grasslands supped on blood from both.

Then came the Endless Storm, and the battle came to a head.

Bare your teeth, my child, at the name of Black Tooth, killer of our kind. It was he who learned the Yava of our people. It was he who raged across the lands, slaying Ajaba, hyena, and human alike. It was his pride who swept the Serengeti like a murderous squall, and his minions who hunted us to the streets of Bombay.

Something had to be done. Our king, Adjua Ka, called the people together, to unite our forces — and counterattack.

We gathered by the hundreds — men, women, and children — filling the Ngornongoro Crater until the valley glowed bright as day with our campfires. Metis and Kin, an army of hyenas, humans, and we in between.

And, as the sky overhead turned dark, and the shadows crept in around us, our once-King began to speak.

Adjua railed against the Simba and vowed to lead us against them. Together, he promised, we would drive the lions from the plains and stop the slaughter of our people. His words were food for our hunger, water for our souls. In his voice, we could hear the song of our freedom, and an end to our troubles.

Our replies thundered in the darkness — howling voices, stamping feet, pounding shields, snapping jaws — all eager, all ready. It was a night of spirit-raising, war-planning, and truth-telling. It was to be the night when the choosers of the slain took back the midnight land.

It was a trap instead.

I remember bristling fur and wide eyes as the first of the lion’s roars shook the night. Winds cracked the hills and torrents washed away the campfires as the Endless Storm swept over the crater’s edge. In the lightning-flare I saw a wall of lions, leopards, and men around us. There was surprise, but no fear from our people — not then. We were the choosers of the slain. We were the cullers of the herd. We lived to take life — it was our sacred duty, and we were ready to fulfill it upon those who would do us harm.

How little did we know.

They fell upon us, and our world came apart. We fought hard, and we accounted for our lives in blood. But Black Tooth knew our Yava, and his warriors struck exactly where they could do the most harm.

Our people fell like raindrops to the thirsty land.

Some, seeing the battle turn, escaped into the darkness. They ran across the grasslands and summoned up spells to hide themselves. When they reached the cities, they scattered and hoped for the best.

The ones who stayed were butchered. Each man and woman. Ajaba and hyena. Kits and Kinfolk, warriors and children alike. They slew us all, destroyed the court. To mock us, they decorated the site with skulls. And with foul magics, they cursed the lands we once protected, barring us from them for a hundred-hundred years.

So many lives, so many futures, so many tales forever lost. But we are far from dead.

They may have run us into the darkness, but the darkness has ever been our ally. They may have thinned our number, thinking to weaken us, but we are the cullers of the herd, and we know that what survives grows only stronger in response.

Denied our lands, we have scattered to the four corners of the earth and claimed each shadow as our own. Denied our Kin, we plant our seed where we may, breeding new clans to replace the ones so mercilessly taken from us. Denied our duty, we fulfill the role of rainmakers for all, bringing down those who are too weak, too foolish, too vulnerable to survive the teeth-that-bite-and-never-let-go.

We will endure. We will survive. And in time, we will regain what has been taken from us. We will rebuild our families, reclaim our lands, return to our natural place in the order of things.

And when that day comes, the cats will yowl for mercy and find it denied them. They will run, but from the shadows we will hunt them down. And their Kin will mourn over their thrice-wretched bodies as we call forth the rains over the plains of Africa once more.

Ajaba Lexicon
 Aktu
 Anthros
 Clan
 Crocas
 Hyaenid
 Kisasi
 Takuya
 Yava

## **Organisation**

Historically, Ajaba society, like that of their hyena Kin, was made up of tightly knit family groups: packs for hyaenid Ajaba, and small, sometimes-nomadic villages for homids. These packs consisted of related Ajaba and their Kinfolk, and contained anywhere from a half-dozen to nearly 100 members. Each of these family groups was a part of a larger clan, which included the Ajaba-related packs in a particular region, or in the case of homid Ajaba, the members of related tribes in the area.

Traditionally, an Ajaba clan had one leader (usually female), an Aktu, who dictated the group’s behavior. Each clan would include several packs, also traditionally controlled by a female warleader. Packs consisted of several additional warriors (Ajaba as well as human or hyena Kinfolk), scouts, healers, and the like. The pack would also support lesser members — non-hunter Kinfolk tagging along for a meal, children and kits, and newcomers learning the ropes.

### **Modern Nights**

This all came to an end the night the Endless Storm nearly annihilated the Ajaba. Every werehyena capable of making the journey was present in the crater on that fateful night, and — with a bare double-fistful of exceptions — died there. In order to escape Black Tooth’s wrath, those who survived scattered to the four corners of the earth.

Since the night of Black Tooth’s massacre, most Ajaba either run alone or with a small pack of werehyenas and Kinfolk. Denied their traditional lands, these packs have carved out new niches wherever they can do so without drawing too much attention to themselves.

Some slipped into the shadows of Africa’s big cities, building places for themselves among the street gangs and criminal element. Others fled across the sands of the Middle East and into India, relying on the ever-growing tension between Simba and Bagheera to slow the werelion’s pursuit. Some made their way to the American continents, Europe, or Northern Asia; anywhere that they can find shadows to hide in — and weaker individuals to prey upon.

Once, the Ajaba culled their own. Their sacred duty was clear, and while many outsiders feared and distrusted the werehyenas, none could call them hypocritical. In every pack and every clan, the strong destroyed the weak, injured, and elderly to ensure the group would survive and grow strong.

In modern nights, however, every Ajaba life is seen as sacred, and every measure is taken to protect the pack. The healthy nurse the injured and sickly. Leaders punish those who break the rules — but rarely with death. Strong adults protect breeding females and their young until they are able to defend themselves. There are too few Ajaba to risk thinning the Breed further before the Final Battles. Those who remain do everything they can to sustain and increase their numbers.

Clan Names
Their names for other clans were more descriptive — although often insulting — and it is those “names given by outsiders” that others, including the Garou and European traders, came to know each clan. Thus, historically, some Ajaba clans have been recorded as “Butterfly Clan” (meaning brightly painted, but harmless), “Old Man Clan” (a particular insult to the matriarchal Ajaba), and “Clan That Eats Grubs” (implying that they are poor hunters).
In days gone by, these groups would not have called themselves by these names. In modern times, however, some Ajaba packs (and neo-clans) have taken to naming themselves in this fashion as both a touchstone to earlier days, and as a way of thumbing their nose at those who would try to insult them.
Other modern Ajaba groups simply name themselves after their war-leader: Kisasi’s Clan, for example, or Sankau’s Pack. This is especially common in those Ajaba groups that have managed to find a way to maintain their ties to their hyena Kin, as opposed to those who have been pushed into urban survivalism by the Simba’s mystical wards around their traditional territories.

### **Running in the Dark**

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Werehyenas are pack hunters, surviving better in a group than on their own. Denied the support of their own kind since the massacre, some Ajaba have ingratiated themselves into (or taken control of) other pack-like groups.

Human gangs hunting the seedy underbelly of Mumbai. Ronin Garou — or Black Spiral Dancers — willing to accept another canid amongst their numbers. Terrorist factions in Northern Africa and the Middle East. Bastet discontent with Black Tooth’s tyranny. Feral vampires and their minions. Mixed Breed packs made up of those who are escaping from (or have been run out of) their own kind.

Survival of the fittest is old hat to the cullers of the Serengeti. Their numbers may be sparse, but opportunities abound for those who are strong — and desperate — enough to do what it takes to survive.

### **Matriarchy**

Historically, Ajaba society was fiercely matriarchal. Like their hyena Kin, females traditionally served as each pack’s leaders and their most capable warriors. Even among their human tribesmen, until the arrival of European influences, women held stronger roles in the mythology, politics, and daily life of the people than men did.

For males born within an Ajaba pack, this meant walking a difficult road. Male cubs who survived to adulthood were pushed out of the pack soon thereafter. Some formed bachelor packs, hunting as a small group to survive, or changed clans in hopes of finding better treatment away from their female relatives.

Most, however, joined up with another pack-group within the clan, where they would begin a new life as the lowest-of-the low. Adult males in Ajaba packs ate last, were physically bullied, and denied breeding rights, until they’d proven themselves through a lengthy period of initiation. While cruel, this was vital to the growth and strength of each Ajaba clan. It not only ensured that only males who were both strong and committed to the clan’s way of life would go on to sire offspring, but also ascertained genetic diversity by encouraging males to move outside of their family groups to find mates.

After the massacre, the Ajaba mostly abandoned their traditional roles in their desperate need to survive. Females still tend to take dominant roles in Ajaba-only packs. But solitary Ajaba male survivors often found their own packs, filling out their roster with humans (or hyenas) when other Ajaba or Kin are not available.

There is no real set structure currently within Ajaba society. Some packs are reaching out to each other, in hopes of rebuilding old clans. But there are still too few Ajaba to accomplish that goal, and the Simba poise, prepared to strike should any clan grow large enough to be noticed.

### **Kisasi and the Ahadi**

In the wake of Black Tooth’s massacre, the Ajaba spent decades frantically scrambling to avoid utter annihilation at the hands of the Endless Storm. Recently, a young Maasai woman by the name of Kisasi went through her First Change. As she was being educated about the history of the Ajaba — and her role as part of the rebuilding and revenge against the Simba — Kisasi constantly questioned her elders. Why must we take revenge? How will this make our people stronger? Who else has suffered at the claws of Black Tooth? How can we ensure this never happens again?

With the unyielding drive of those who do not know they are destined to fail, Kisasi avoided the knee-jerk reactions of survival and revenge that beset the rest of her Breed. She has begun seeking diplomatic ties with the other Shifters of Africa, searching for those brave enough to consider uniting against the Simba threat. So far, the response has been surprisingly strong, and there are those who claim this young girl may accomplish the unthinkable: putting an end to the Endless Storm.

Kisasi’s success (or failure) lies largely in the support she receives from the rest of the Changing Breeds. With support, she could unite the scattered Ajaba packs into the first true werehyena clan of her generation. Without it — or if she is betrayed by those she trusts — her people may well pay the price for her youthful enthusiasm.

## **The Diaspora**

The Ajaba diaspora is a recent and brutal upheaval, and the displaced werehyenas are still adjusting to their new homes. Around the world, the Ajaba are united through alienation. Throughout history the Ajaba have policed their lands and chosen the slain, but no longer. Wherever they are, the displaced Hyenas gravitate towards other expatriate Central- and East-African populations, in part hoping to find weak lineages of Kinfolk and in part for the comfort of being around people from similar cultures to their own.

The Ajaba who fled the Endless Storm followed other African refugees and have experienced many of the same difficulties. The borders of many European countries remain closed to African migrants. Many Middle-Eastern nations are embroiled in conflicts, with every side willing to conscript people who are obviously capable of fighting. The Asian Beast Courts have their traditions of different Breeds working together, and some Hyenas are starting to explore similar ideas, but outside of their ancestral homelands the Ajaba don’t have enough leverage to start such a grand undertaking.

### **West Africa**

Many of the surviving Ajaba fled west where they thought they would find familiar surroundings and easy territory to claim among the chaotic human civilizations and ongoing famines. Instead they found other entrenched Changing Breeds who were not particularly welcoming to the refugees.

The Ajaba first tried to settle in the wilderness areas, as they were unfamiliar with the larger human settlements.

They soon discovered that the Mokolé and Bastet had long held territories in these areas, and were not about to share them with the broken remnants of a tyrannical nation. The werehyenas lost yet more of their dwindling numbers to running skirmishes, and were forced to seek refuge in unfamiliar cities. When they arrived they found that the Ananasi and Ratkin had a firm hold on the urban territories. The rats and spiders were willing to allow the homeless Ajaba to stay — if they served as cheap muscle, always remembering who was in charge. The Ajaba’s pride was already broken from their experiences and they reluctantly accepted this arrangement in return for a measure of their master’s protection.

In some ways these werehyenas experience the most alienation of any of the refugees. Close enough to their homelands that they feel they should be familiar with the people around them; the cultures of their new homes have turned out to be all too alien. The Ajaba have concentrated on finding and drawing together dispersed groups of their Kinfolk, and have managed to regroup and pull together loose clans from street gangs and criminals. They work the chaotic streets of growing West African cities like Abidjan, Accra, and Conakry — still serving the interests of other shapeshifters — but their efforts have given Kisasi a strong base to draw on in forming her Ahadi.

The West African Ajaba walk a dangerous line. Black Tooth offers substantial bounties to any shapeshifter who murders werehyena Kinfolk — and a far greater reward for killing an Ajaba. So far, their service to the Ananasi and Ratkin has been more valuable than the rewards offered by the Endless Storm, but the Ajaba refugees fear that this may change at any moment.

Despite that, the Ajaba are not victims to roll over and expose their throats. They learned valuable lessons from Black Tooth and have infiltrated human groups that trade with hunters and poachers. They ignore human laws on hunting lions and offer their own bounties for lion pelts, fangs and claws. A few even provide poachers with supernatural advantages and spirit favors. These deals have brought many Hyenas perilously close to Wyrm corruption and more than a few have crossed the line, blinded to their fall by their need for revenge.

### **North Africa and Middle East**

The Ajaba fleeing to Northern Africa and the Middle East found more violence, civil wars and unrest. They also found the opportunity to renew their identity and purpose, joining their fellow Breeds in fighting the rising influence of the Weaver and Wyrm. As pack hunters, the werehyenas have an intuitive understanding of how to organize small cells that take decisive action amidst surrounding chaos. The matriarchal structures of the Ajaba are more intact here than among any other werehyenas.

The female Ajaba have encountered resistance in the male-dominated region but they are cunning and know the power of well-chosen words in the ears of men. They’ve also used male catspaws to gain leadership roles among the humans. The females are not content to just organize others to fight, they excel at daring raids and hit-and-fade strikes in the moonlit night, nimbly sidestepping the human’s rigid gender roles.

The Aktu of the Middle Eastern packs have kept communications open using modern technology, spirits, and Ajaba couriers. They share stories of strength, expertise and combat readiness, all with a singular goal in mind. When Kisasi’s alliance strikes against Black Tooth and his allies, the clans of the North African and Middle Eastern regions will move back to the homelands — blooded, angry, and ready for revenge.

### **Europe**

Europe is not particularly welcoming to the Ajaba, with most countries categorizing the werehyenas as refugees fleeing the wars and famines gripping much of Africa. Many European countries have closed their borders to all African immigrants, including the rainmakers and their Kin. The few werehyenas who settled there have done so quietly. Other nations like the United Kingdom allow refugees, but strict border controls mean that it is often easier for Ajaba to enter the country illegally. After all, human authorities do not recognize the danger of being slaughtered by werelions.

Strategically minded Aktu often use the ease of travelling between European nations to their advantage when working on a dangerous plan. A few have tentatively approached the proud European Garou, proposing allegiances and offering to work with the werewolves. Simultaneously, small groups of werehyenas strike at Garou Kinfolk and interest in ways that implicate the Simba and then spread rumors of Black Tooth’s ambitions outside Africa.

Some European Garou are beginning to notice the pattern, but whether they recognize the ruse for what it is and destroy the Hyenas, or turn their Rage against the Bastet in a third War of Rage, none can say.

### **India**

The Ajaba find India an easy place to hide but difficult place to live. India has a reasonable number of African migrants, and these new refugees are unremarkable among the human population. The difficulties stem from India’s swift growth. In rural areas, many people hold to vestiges of the caste system, and are happy to relegate refugees to the bottom. In urban areas, the rush of expansion demands migrant workers to do the jobs considered too menial for other Indians, again leaving the Ajaba on the bottom rung of society. This closes off many opportunities, and in return many Ajaba vanish into the criminal underworld. Naturally, they come into conflict with the Ratkin nests that claim India’s cities as their own. Early skirmishes between the two Breeds were unfavorable to the werehyenas, but caught the attention of other shapeshifters. Many among the Changing Breeds of India also oppose the Ratkin. If the Ajaba can survive long enough they may find allies — and hope for a future.

The Ajaba of India face another peril they have yet to realize. On the western coast of the subcontinent, a handful of Indian Simba tend to a small population of Asiatic lions, coaxing them back from near extinction. These Simba keep to themselves and have little contact with other shapeshifters, but they know of Black Tooth’s bounty on the remaining werehyenas. Currently, they are debating whether befriending or hunting the Ajaba will benefit them in the long run.

### **Asia - Beast Courts**

The Ajaba living in areas controlled by the Hengeyokai are baffled by what they have found. The Beast Courts are an alien experience to the werehyenas; so too is the willingness that different Changing Breeds have to work together in this structure. The rainmakers are too weary from fleeing the Endless Storm to provoke an unnecessary fight. These lands do not belong to the Ajaba, and they do not claim any dominion over them. Some of the more curious young werehyenas have approached the Hengeyokai hoping to find a place in the Beast Courts. A few were accepted into wave sentai, and used the opportunity to immerse themselves in this unfamiliar culture. As they find acceptance from their sentai some now seek the Rite of the Second Face to find a role more suited to their individual natures.

The older Ajaba are generally content to live and let live. They seek time to rebuild and avoid causing trouble for the Beast Courts if the courts don't make trouble for them.

### **North and South America**

America and Canada took in many African refugees, but this proved a mixed blessing for Ajaba as it brought them into the heart of Garou territories. The werehyenas who have settled in the Americas stay on the move, searching for a place to call their own. Because they gravitate to roles where strength and power hold sway, they frequently come into contact with werewolves. It seems that anywhere the Ajaba may go, they will find Garou already there.

The traditional territories of the Ajaba saw few Garou, mostly African Red Talons and Silent Striders, who have not passed knowledge of the werehyenas on to their American cousins. As such the werewolves do not know what to make of these new shapeshifters. So far the interactions have been more curious than confrontational but it is only a matter of time before the Ajaba make some insult to the proud Garou, and both sides give in to their Rage.

Ajaba who travel to the Americas gravitate to Central and South America, where they find it easier to fit in with Latin American countries and to deal with the smaller numbers of Garou. Unfortunately the Ajaba’s greater numbers and confidence have drawn the attention of the region’s Bastet. Many of those werecats are aware of the rewards offered by Black Tooth. The werehyenas may soon be caught in another war for survival against the Bastet — or used as pawns in an intercontinental war between tribes of werecats.

Yava of the Ajaba
 An Ajaba cannot bear the taste of baby meat; an infant younger than a year of age is always safe.

## **Culture and Kinfolk**

In the past, werehyenas placed great importance in family ties, ancestry, and group identity. They hunted as a pack, keeping their Kinfolk close. Most hunting parties had human, hyena, and shapechanger members, and although the Ajaba had the upper hand, the Kinfolk had a say in group activities.

Now many of the ancestral bloodlines are cut; the Endless Storm slew the Ajaba’s Kin alongside their cousins. These days, the Ajaba mate with whomever they can to keep their kind alive. The older members dislike “polluting their blood” with undesirable strains, but this is survival, and the end is all that matters.

Hermaphrodites & Hyaenid
This, along with the air of mystery (and distrust) that surrounds the hyena, has resulted in them historically being mis-grouped as a bastardized cat-dog hybrid. In truth, however, they share closer ancestry with civets and genets than they do wolves or any of the big wild cats.
For centuries, due to unique characteristics in the hyenas’ female reproductive system, Europeans believed the animals to be hermaphrodites, possessing both male and female genitalia. 21st century researchers discovered the truth: female hyenas have a clitoral pseudo-penis through which they urinate, mate, and give birth. This, along with their greater mass and more aggressive nature, was responsible for much of the confusion about the gender roles within natural hyena groupings.
This unique characteristic is present in female Ajaba hyena Kin, although female homid Kin have entirely human anatomy. Female Ajaba demonstrate aggressiveness and combat prowess like that of their hyena Kin. However posthumous reports from the researchers tasked to uncover whether they also share their hyena Kin’s anatomical peculiarities were inconclusive on the topic. The (late) researchers were unavailable for comment.

### **Appearance**

While their traditional Kinfolk are from the tribal villages (and hyena packs) of Central and Southern Africa, because of the cataclysm of the past few decades, modern Ajaba may descend from any human racial stock. Regardless of their heritage, werehyenas tend to have large lower jaws, thick teeth, bristly hair, heavy builds, broad shoulders, and hoarse voices. They’re not the most attractive of the Changing Breeds. These days, most tend to dress in cast-off clothing and carry improvised weapons out of necessity. While their Yava is not commonly known to outsiders, many Ajaba are careful to wear some sort of protection over the weak spot near the base of their skull — once bitten, twice shy.

## **Traits**

### **Willpower**

Although they can be great warriors, and their mystic tie to the needs of their homeland was a matter of great pride to them, Ajaba are not noted for their strong will. All Ajaba begin play with 3 Willpower.

### **Renown**

The Ajaba place a high priority on Ferocity and Cunning, but they find that the weight placed upon Honor by the Garou and Bastet is more trouble than it’s worth. Instead, Ajaba value an individual’s willingness to place the needs of the pack (and the Breed as a whole) above her own, which is embodied in the trait of Obligation.

## **Breeds**

Like many Shifters, Ajaba have three breeds: homid (of human parentage), metis (of Shifter interbreeding) and hyaenid (of animal parentage). Historically, hyaenid Ajaba were the most numerous, although the massacre struck twoand four-legged Ajaba equally as brutally. When forced out of their native territory, homids may have found it easier to hide among city shadows than their hyena-born brethren.

The Shifting blood runs stronger in Ajaba than it does in other Breeds. As many as three in ten offspring between two Kinfolk (human or hyena) will become shifters, and the number increases drastically when one parent or the other is a werehyena.

### **Homid:**

Historically, most homid Ajaba were of native Central and Southern African descent. As Europeans pressed south onto the continent, however, they were also incorporated into the werehyenas’ breeding pool, creating a broad spectrum of racial representation.

That diversity has increased even further since the Ajaba were driven out of their native homelands. Desperate to renew their numbers, the Breed feels a stronger imperative than ever before to ensure their next generation is a populous one.

**Starting Gifts:** Apecraft’s Blessings, City Running, Master of Fire, Persuasion, Smell of Man

### **Metis:**

Matings between two Ajaba are also exceptionally fertile, and when conception occurs between two werehyenas, it always results in a metis offspring. The race has never shared the usual Changing Breed view of metis, however, and the current crisis only makes them more accepted.

Now more than ever, metis Ajaba tend to be fully accepted as members of the tribe. While they are sterile (and thus cannot help increase the Ajaba’s population on their own), they develop into functional adults within a few years of being born, rather than undergoing the decade-long childhood and several-year adolescence of homid Ajaba. This, coupled with the near-assurance of conception has led some Ajaba to turn to interbreeding as a solution to increase the Breed’s numbers — at least in the short-term.

While observers mistakenly thought all natural hyenas to be hermaphrodites, metis Ajaba do exhibit a higher-than-average rate of hermaphroditism as their metis disfigurement.

**Starting Gifts:** Create Element, Primal Anger, Rat Head, Sense Wyrm, Shed

### **Hyaenid:**

While there are several species of hyena, only one — the spotted hyena — is the traditional Kinfolk of the Ajaba. Despite having a reputation as foul scavengers, spotted hyenas hunt up to 95% of the food they eat, and other “predators” of the region (such as lions) often attempt to steal their kills.

Hyaenid breed Ajaba have historically been the most common, as hyenas have outnumbered humans on the African continent for much of its history. Today, the shorter adolescence period of hyaenid Ajaba would be a great boon to the Ajaba’s efforts to restore their population to its pre-massacre heights.

Unfortunately, due to the mystic wards the Simba have raised over much of their native homelands in central and southern Africa, most of the Ajaba’s wild hyena Kin are out of their reach. Some Ajaba are working to counter this ban by freeing captive Kin from zoos, preserves, and refuges in an attempt to create a new wild clan for the next generation. Others have moved into northern Africa, the Middle East, and India to try to court the striped hyena there who share ancestry with the Ajaba’s spotted hyena Kin. The results have been less than promising so far, but Ajaba do not give up easily.

**Starting Gifts:** Hare’s Leap, Heightened Senses, Predator’s Arsenal, Prey Mind, Sense Prey

## **Aspects**

Historically, Ajaba elders recognized three major aspects: Dawn, Midnight, and Dusk. Dawn and Dusk aspects were most common among females of the Breed, translating to a high aptitude for pack or clan leadership, respectively. Midnight aspects were most often male, making the oft-abused and little-respected male Ajaba the most stable and centered of the Breed. An Ajaba’s aspect is determined by the time of day that she undergoes her First Change. From sunrise to midday, she is Dawn, from midday to dusk she is Dusk, and when the sun is down, she is Midnight. All Ajaba regain two points of Rage each sunrise.

In the years since the Endless Storm massacre, however, nearly equal numbers of males and females have manifested in each aspect. Future generations of Ajaba may be interested in the ramifications of an assumedly-supernatural trait changing due to cultural schisms — assuming the Breed survives long enough to study it.

### **Dawn:**

Dawn Ajaba are filled with fury and Rage, eager to fight with their foes or to prove their dominance over their own kind. They are feisty and combative, easily-offended and hyperactive, and have historically made strong pack-leaders — although they usually lack the control necessary to lead an entire clan.

Beginning Rage: 5

Beginning Gnosis: 1

Starting Gifts: Beat of the Heart-Drum, Finishing Blow, Lightning Reflexes, Pack Tactics, Razor Claws

### **Midnight:**

Midnight Ajaba are balance made manifest. While their anger may not equal that of the Dawn aspect, nor their supernatural strength that of the Dusk, neither do they have particular weaknesses in either area. Historically, males among the Ajaba frequently exhibited the Midnight aspect. This gave them a unique place in Ajaba society, as they were considered some of the most stable and balanced individuals of the Breed, despite their low social standing. The irony of this state of affairs was not lost on them.

Midnight aspect Ajaba are often the glue that holds the pack or clan together, and many of their aspect Gifts reflect that talent — or the simple ability to endure in the face of adversity.

Beginning Rage: 3

Beginning Gnosis: 3

Beginning Gifts: Beast Speech, Burning the Vision, Mindspeak, Perfect Recall, Tears of the Heavens

### **Dusk:**

Dusk Ajaba turn their Rage inward, learning more subtle ways to fulfill their sacred duty. Dusk aspect werehyenas strike from the shadows, stalking their prey until they are most vulnerable. They know how to see beyond the obvious, ferreting out their target’s weaknesses and using them to full advantage, whether that be to cull the herd, or lead the clan.

Beginning Rage: 1

Beginning Gnosis: 5

Starting Gifts: Blur of the Milky Eye, Fatal Flaw, Open Seal, Scent of Running Water, Whispers in the Grass

## **Forms**

Ajaba can change into five forms: Homid, Anthros, Crinos, Crocas, and Hyaenid. Their difficulties associated with shifting forms are the same as those for the Garou.

### **Homid**

Ajaba in Homid form look like bristly-haired humans. They have stocky torsos and disproportionately long, slim limbs. Their voices are often coarse and uncomfortable to the ear. While in Homid form, Ajaba carry an unsettling air of cunning about them, although often with an untrustworthy or maniacal element to their mannerisms.

### **Anthros**

The Anthros form is a hybrid of human and hyena characteristics, walking upright but decidedly inhuman. The Anthros Ajaba’s neck, brow, jaw, and other facial features thicken, and her body hair becomes coarse and bristly. Her body’s musculature becomes much stronger than in Homid form, but she pays for this improved athleticism with a terrifying appearance that makes non-violent interactions difficult.

### **Crinos**

This form is built for battle. Strong and capable, Crinos affords the Ajaba the greatest protection of all of her forms, while still allowing her to manipulate weapons and equipment with little difficulty. Thickly matted with heavy, bristled fur, a Crinos Ajaba masses several times more than her Homid or Hyaenid forms, and every ounce of the extra weight is designed for survival. Ajaba in Crinos form invoke the Delirium.

### **Crocas**

Imagine a hyena as big, strong, and dangerous as a bear, yet capable of the stealth and cunning of a wildcat. The primordial war-form, Crocas calls back to prehistoric days when cave hyenas slunk through the shadows ready to snatch whatever unwatched kill — or off-guard prey — they could manage. Barrel-chested and thick-necked with jaws like a steel-trap, their crushing bite inflicts one extra die of damage.

### **Hyaneid**

The Ajaba’s Hyaenid form is like that of her normal hyena Kin — strong, capable, and deeply attuned to the world around her. Hyenas are endurance-based hunters, relying on their high stamina to wear down their prey. This makes the Hyaenid form more useful for movement than any of the other forms, but it lacks the strength of Crocas or Crinos, or the flexibility of humanoid forms.

Form Statistics
 Dex: +1
 Sta: +1
 Man: –1
 App: –3

## **Gifts**

Ajaba begin play with one breed Gift, one aspect Gift, and one Level One general Ajaba Gift from the list below. Breed Gifts are functionally identical to those of the corresponding Garou breeds, with hyaenid using lupus Gifts. Ajaba share a great number of Garou Gifts, though they often learn them from very different spirits.

Stereotypes
 **Simba:** You’re murdering dictators every one. Some of you might not like the current bastard in charge, but that doesn’t make us friends.
 **Mokolé:** You will remember our story and it will teach future generations: do not trust the Simba.
“We remember every atrocity, every feud. We will remember the Ajaba as choosers of the slain, not as refugees from their own homeland.” — *Radiant Tsanga*