Threshold Trivia: The Rashad

The Rashad are a race of highly intelligent felines that can speak, use magic, become invisible, and have visions. They are magical creatures, and were therefore brought into being by the Creator (religion/mythology will be covered in a future post). Their purpose was to act as guardians and companions to the Serraf--a race of magical women.

When the eleven Serraf (who eventually became the wives of the sons of L'avan) decided to leave behind immortality and return to the human world with L'avan, their Rashad came with them. Since the L'avan people are the descendants of those Serraf, the descendants of those Rashad are sworn to protect them. Some of the mortal Rashad are "called" to do specific things or protect specific people (like with Ravi and Adesina), but most of them protect the race in general.

They have a wide variety of abilities, and only some of them are commonly known. They can speak any language without ever being taught (or even hearing it first). They can become invisible, and they can transport themselves over short distances. They are Dreamers, which allows them to have visions and also to communicate with each other over long distances. They also have a form of magical intuition, which allows them to look into the hearts of those around them. The intuition also give them an idea of how things will eventually turn out (this is separate from Dreaming, since they do not need to be asleep for it to happen). These are the common abilities, but there are also a number of talents that are unique to each Rashad.

They are known for their wisdom, and their advise is often sought. They are extremely careful in the use of their gifts, and they strive to never abuse their power. Like the L'avan, they are deeply religious, and that is reflected in their day-to-day lives.

They have a lifespan of approximately 100 years, but they reach maturity at 2 years of age. Adult males are roughly four feet tall, and the females are slightly smaller. The majority of them have golden-tan fur (of varying shades) with blue eyes, like this:

However, the leader of the Rashad always has black fur and golden eyes, like this:

A new leader is always born in enough time to replace the former one, and there is no knowing which female will bear the new leader. It doesn't run through family lines, so it could be anyone. Gender also plays no part in who the leader will be. Male or female, regardless of parentage, the cub born with black fur and golden eyes is the designated heir.

They live in the grasslands that lead to Pevothem (the L'avan homeland), but they have no qualms about leaving for whatever reason. Their invisibility makes it so they can go anywhere they need to with no trouble at all.