Laughing Others

Hyenas

Hyenas! I find them cute, everyone else does not agree... Hyenas have been scapegoats, go tos, political evils, social evils, generally they have been considered evil in every way...

The characteristics of hyenas get them outcasted. Hyenas are very opportunistic and they scavenge for their food, even stealing from bigger predators. They eat the dead and the rotting. Their laughs in the night terrify. Groups of them make them more dangerous, even to the point of attacking lions! Their bite force is ranked 7th among the animals!

Even legends of were-hyenas exist... the werewolf of Africa! Were-hyenas, however, are animals that turn human. In some regions of Africa, were-hyenas are connected to minority groups, spreading more fear and distrust, creating more localized hatred of "the other".

Common among the Arabian Penninsula, Western Asia, and Africa, stories of missing livestock and children, graves being ripped apart, and of seemingly healthy adults being drained of all blood are commonplace when concerning were-hyenas.

Like the wolf-pelt belt of Viking lore, their have been stories in Somalia of a man with a magic stick that would transform him into a hyena creature. Blacksmithing and fire craft have been closely connected to were-hyenas and magic, things being made by fire being considered a heavily magical art. There have also been stories of entire villages being populated by the creatures. In some other cultures, were-hyenas, while being cannibalistic and monstrous, have also been known to be great healers. Hyenas are also considered to be jolly and good team members.

Hyenas are obviously very important to the natural recycling of the ecosystem. Being able to chew through and digest bone, they are essential scavengers, able to recycle what would otherwise take years to decay... otherwise the plains of Africa would be a giant boneyard.