Furia

The Furia is a mythical familiar of Eithne. Affectionately known as the **Aodhian Hound** or **Chevalier's Companion**, furias are black-skulled canines known for their strange ability to switch between three stages: dormant, passive, and a flaming prime form. Furia’s are classified as fire elementals, and are a completely domesticated species - any ‘wild’ Furias are abandoned familiars.

## Forms & Abilities

A Furia has three forms, each with a different appearance, and to an extent, different abilities as well. Furias are strongest in their prime form, and this is the form in which most non-Aodhians are likely to recognize a Furia.

In their **dormant** form, a Furia retreats completely into their skull.  While inactive, the skull is completely barren of life, but slightly warm to the touch. For the untrained eye, a Furia skull would appear like any other old bone save for the fact that the skull is pitch black. Furias will assume their dormant form for resting, transport, or simply to avoid things they don’t like, such as houseguests. A Furia owned by a non-Aodhian will never leave this form.

When a Furia is in their **passive** form, they gain a tangible body. The body will always be completely hairless, warm to the touch, and range in color from ash grey to black. It may look like any dog, and will also act like one would expect a dog to act. Furias will generally assume this form for spending time with their owner, play and relaxation.

The **prime** form is what a Furia is known for: a black skull attached to a colorful flame body. The flames may coat the entire body, or only parts of it. This form is capable of flight, and burns painfully hot. A Furia’s flame body will cause severe burns on direct contact, and will be hot for anyone to touch, including their owner. A Furia will generally only assume this form when they or their owner are threatened, or on command.

Furia flames are not easily doused by water - they can exhibit their prime form even in heavy rain, but will be weaker. Being underwater makes their flames sizzle out. Like many other fire creatures, they do not enjoy cold, and appear somewhat sluggish in sub zero temperatures.

Other notable abilities of the Furia include their immunity to illness and physical injury. A Furia’s body - in passive or prime form - can not be harmed, and any damage done to it seems to heal up immediately. Their skulls, however, are extremely vulnerable to damage, as they house the Furia’s inherent magic and soul. A Furia will die if the skull is seriously cracked or broken, and their skull is no harder or stronger than a regular skull. Even minor decorative carvings could damage the creature permanently.

Due to their fragility, Furias do not use their teeth in combat, and instead rely on their flame body to hurt opponents.

## Lore

Furias are ancient creatures, and have roamed Eithne as long as equines have. In ancient times, they were kept as pets, and cherished for their colorful beauty and closeness to fire. Furias were considered to be especially good pets for children, as all kirins had a natural immunity to heat, and could handle Furias safely even in their prime forms. They were very much *the* family pet for many kirins, and treated with the fondness that implies.

In God’s War, Furias were among the troops pouring out of Eithne, following their masters unquestioningly into battle. Once gentle companions were formed into deadly weapons, flying alongside wyverns to scorch the lands of Sirith and Onea.

After the disappearance of kirins, Furias too disappeared from Hireath for years. They lay dormant until the new Aodhian herd began to turn to Ignacio - at which point the Furias awakened, recognizing the devotion to Fire, and accepting these new equines as their masters. They have been bonded with Aodh ever since, and are practically non-existent outside Eithne.

Although they are esteemed in modern Aodh, the Furia is considered a soldier’s animal, rather than a fancy pet. Their loyalty, capabilities in combat and extreme mobility make them ideal companions and working animals for the Chevaliers. Compared to the other mythical familiars, a purchase price of a Furia tends to be relatively cheap; easily affordable on a Chevalier’s salary.

Despite King Solaris famously owning one before her death, there is great stigma attached to someone of the higher classes owning one as a pet and companion. In recent uncertain times, it has become somewhat popular for nobles to acquire them as guardians of the home, but they are generally treated less like pets, and more like living alarm systems. Showing up at a public event or court with a Furia would be seen as a minor scandal.

### **Bond**

Furias will famously only bond with Aodhians. Their desire to be with Ignacio’s people far overwhelms any need for friendship, and they will choose a subpar Aodhian owner above the gentlest and kindest Breimian every time. If a non-Aodhian were to acquire a Furia, it would refuse to leave the dormant state, becoming nothing more than an expensive trinket.

It is however possible for a non-Aodhian to own a Furia, and have that Furia appear in their prime form. This requires that said individual is, to some extent, loyal to Aodh, and worships Ignacio as their god. Typical non-Aodhian owners are escaped Aodhian slaves who retain their devotion to Ignacio, as well as a concern for the well-being of Aodhians (in this case, likely slaves).

It should be noted that Furias will also bond with ancient kirins - the original Aodhians - despite their hostility towards modern Aodh.

## Behavior

When it comes to behavior, Furias strongly resemble canines, and are driven by strong protective instincts and an eagerness to serve and please their owner. Furias bond strongly with their owner, and although they will accept other members of their owner’s family and friendship circle, they will never favor or obey them instead of their owner.

On a more individual level, each Furia is unique, just like a dog would be. Some are inherently more social and friendly, some are more aloof and others are endearingly hyper. They may also display other canine traits, such as an instinct for herding, guarding or hunting. A Furia’s personality and tendencies don’t necessarily correspond with their appearance - it’s entirely possible to have a Furia that looks like a Boxer, but behaves like a Border Collie. Furias are also not burdened by the potential health issues of the breed they resemble.

Although most Furias seem to be the quiet type, others are extremely noisy. They communicate with their owners mostly via emotional telepathy, allowing the owner to feel what they feel. They can however make sound - their eerie, unnaturally echoing warning howl is easily recognized, and can be heard from miles away. Furias can also bark, whine, growl and make all manner of other dog sounds, although each has a slightly strange crackling to them. A Furia in combat is silent except for the loud crackling and whooshing of their flaming fur.

Furias are notoriously difficult even for Familiar Whisperers to communicate with, and generally don’t do well with words even when Uplifted and communing with a Whisperer. They seem to prefer their emotional telepathy over all other kinds of communication, and will only talk when they feel it's necessary.

Furias do not visibly age, and they do not need food or water - which is lucky, as they do not have tongues. They do need rest, however, and the average Furia sleeps about 12-14 hours a day in their dormant form. Sleep is punctuated by intermittent spurs of activity.

### **Life Cycle**

Furias are mortal, but inherently magical creatures. They are not born like natural animals, but instead seem to come into existence when a fire spirit comes in contact with a suitable container, and possesses it. Whatever the container once was, it will then be morphed into a black skull, and the Furia will wait for a master to bond with. Furias appear where Aodhians gather, meaning most Furias are ‘born’ in New Valore.

Enterprising Aodhian familiar breeders have found that specific types and colors of container seem to produce different types of Furias somewhat consistently - a painted clay pot seems to mostly result in a small terrier type, for example. How Furias choose their container is not known or understood, and it's unclear if the container affects the spirit, or if specific kinds of Furia spirits just happen to like a certain type of container.

They come into existence fully formed; inexperienced, but capable. While Furias do not have a ‘childhood’ per se, young Furias tend to be more playful and excitable, while older ones are a bit more serious and stern. Some Furias have the appearance of young dogs or puppies (10wk+), and will remain as such their whole lives.

As they do not age, Furias are much the same their whole life, maturing mentally and in skill, but not in appearance. They live approximately 100 years naturally, and tend to be passed down from owner to owner within a family.

When a Furia dies, its skull will become inactive and cold. A Furia never leaves behind a body - even if killed while in prime form, they will return into their dormant form, leaving only the skull.

## Creation Rules

### The Furia will **always**:

* Have a black skull.
* Have a dormant form.
* Have a passive form that is hairless, with grey or black skin.
* Have a prime form, that can switch between fire and burning steam.
* Be capable of flight (prime form only)
* Resemble a member of the Canidae family, including size, build and behavior
* Be loyal to their Aodhian owner, but refuse to even leave their dormant form for non-Aodhians.

### Furias **can**:

* Have the flames in their prime color be any bright color or colors
* Have a prime form that is not fully covered in flame (although this is a disadvantage)
* Have their skulls painted or otherwise decorated (no carving)
* Have minor chips and scratches in their skull without consequence
* Have larger cracks or scratches in their skull that impairs them mentally and/or physically
* Have ears and tails. These may also be missing.
* Communicate with their owners via emotional telepathy, even if not uplifted.

### Furias can/will **not:**

* Have a prime form consisting of electricity, smoke or any substance other than fire/steam.
* Have piercings or decorative carvings on their skulls.
* Have scars on their bodies.
* Have an abnormal number of limbs, or a size that strongly deviates from their canine counterpart
* Have dark or black flames in their prime form, or flames that change colors like a mood ring
* Have markings in their passive forms.
* Fail to injure a non-kirin owner if touched in their prime form.
* Communicate via spoken telepathy, even if uplifted.