Ajaba

[Tami]

Kisasi yawned and stretched, gratefully accepting the heat the morning sun had to offer. As she glanced around her encampment, she scowled and (not for the first time) found herself questioning her own sanity. She would probably have better luck managing a pack of baboons than a clan of Ajaba, and she was certain the task would be much less frustrating. As it was, maintaining any sense of order or discipline in an Ajaba clan that numbered 20 strong was, to put it mildly, difficult. When the associated human and hyena Kin needed for a war party were factored in, that task became flatly impossible. What Ajaba in her right mind would subject herself to such nonsense?

Of course, leadership was not without its rewards; her influence, the Ajaba had managed to put their without its rewards; thanks to her influence, the Ajaba had managed to put wars with the bastet behind them, and with the help of the garou and the Ahadi they had become a major player in the affairs of Africa;s Changing Breeds. Today, Kisasi hoped to secure that position. The clam’s target was the largest Wyrm- infested mining operation in all of Central Africa, and if they were sucessful in taking it out even the Simba could not hold the Ajaba back. Bringing the mining operation down would shatter the Wyrm’s hold in the region, and that in turn would catapult the Ajaba into a position of eminence and respect among Gaia’s children. Kisasi could hardly wait.

Boistered by her thoughts of victory, Kisasi chortled gleefully and rubbed her hands together, relishing the prospect of flaunting her victory in the faces of those Amadu'o bastards back home. She began barking orders as sought to bring order to chaos, thinking about the day ahead and all the potential it held for her and her clan.

[Tami]

The Ajaba Today

The war with the Bastet went poorly the hyenas, but also took a terrible toll on the on the Simba tribes, particularly the Amadu'o. These were proud people, and indignities the Ajaba forced upon them were unconscionable. Their Rage built to unmanagable heights, and it turned these proud warriors into the very things they sought to destroy. As the Ajaba were defiant, so the Amadu'o became tyrannical. As the Ajaba were rebel¬lious, so the Amadu'o became despotic. None were safe from their wrath, and all were expected to participate in their wars of annihilation. These battles mirrored the War of Rage waged by the werewolves in the north, save for the fact that it was an ongoing conflict that never seemed to end. The Garou were motivated by fear and ignorance, and these things can be assuaged. Not so pride, the greatest sin of them all. And no Simba's pride was fiercer than that of Black Tooth, the most tyrannical Amadu'o the world has ever seen. He was a nightmare given form, and his reign was legendary for its cruelty. Ironically, his destruction, and the beginnings of restora¬tion for Gaia's children inAfrica, was set in motion by a lone Ajaba upstart named Kisasi. Her story changed the face of Africa, and it will quite possibly change the face of the all is said and done.

Kisasi was born to a Maasai woman of noble blood, one who wanted nothing to do with the ruling Ajaba of the time. She was raised with no knowledge of her heritage, or even her name, which means Kisasi began to explore her heritage and the legacy her mother had left for elder, who told Kisasi of the significance of her name, as well as the King and his court. Surprisingly, however, the young Ajaba wanted noth¬ing to do with the vengeance her name suggested; rather, she to fix things, and that that was a hopeless venture.

Thank Gaia for the stubborn resolve of the young!

As it turns out, Kisasi made an excellent diplomat, and managed to make contact with the Mayi'o Simba, other Bagheera, the Swara, the two tribes of Garou in the the Mokole, the Rokea, and a number of extended Kin networks throughout the sub-Saharan Africa. She didn't know she wasn't supposed to like the Simba, and didn't much care that they didn't like her. She simply refused to surrender in the face of antagonism, and they found her enthusiasm infectious. Before long, all of Africa's Fera believed that a united attack force could defeat Black Tooth's Endless Storm. And lo, so it was. She also made them believe that that coalition was worth maintaining thereafter, and the Ahadi is the result of that belief.

Kisasi's efforts have paid off in spades for the other Ajaba the world. She gave them a banner to rally behind themselves, and they snapped it up with all the eagerness of a starving hound. The Mayi’o Simba and the other Bastet final1y forgave the Ajaba's past sins, and as a result the Ajaba are once again growing in strength and numbers. Unfortunately, not all are as commit¬ted to the Ahadi as Kisasi and her supporters are. Those who remember Black Tooth's reign of terror still nurse old grudges, and they are unwilling to forgive and forget, no matter the cost to themselves or others. The most radical of these, led by a fearsome male named Shari, know only hatred for the Simba and all who stand by them. Their hatred is unreasoning, unabating, and undeniable, and the threat they pose to the Ahadi is nearly as great as that of the Wyrm or the vampires that infest Africa.