Feral dogs roam the streets of the poor districts. They fight for food. They fight each other. They accost travelers in the wee hours and sometimes eat a whole wizard if they're desperate enough.
Little do the people know, that these are but the brigands, the bandits, the exiles of the Greater Dog Society, lurking on the periphery of the illustrious and very secret Dog Town.
First! You must brave these bandit alleyways. Their territory is wide and dangerous, but they are timid when presented with numbers.
Second! You must confront the Sentries: large guard dogs protecting seemingly unimportant places: strangely pristine garbage containers, small dusty holes at the bases of buildings, half-broken dog houses in smelly dark alleys. These Sentries are disciplined and strong. They shall not let anyone pass who does not have permission from The Mayor, and will not chase beyond sight of their posts. They speak only in Dog, and though they're strong and fierce, they're usually pretty dumb, even for guards.
Third! You must navigate the Tunnels of Terrible Smells!
(Really, not scary at all, unless you're a dog, I guess.)
Then you shall emerge in Dog Town! Town of Dogs! It is warm! It is bright! It is paradise for all of dog kind! Expect a warm and fluffy greeting. The Mayor will certainly want to meet you.
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| From From Studio Ghibli's The Cat Returns |
Characters in Dog Town
The Mayor
The big cheese around here. Venerable weiner dog with a big fake mustache and a monocle. (How else would you know that he's mayor??) Constantly running around doing mayor things, which most of the time is canvassing for votes and delegating other dogs to fix problems "for the good of Dog Town!"
Sentries
Guardians of the Old Master. Magically-enhanced shepherds, twice the size of a grown man, always working in pairs. Strong, disciplined, and dumb as rocks. With the Old Master gone, they follow the orders of The Wizard now, him being their last tie to their old creator. Should The Wizard fall, the Sentries will simply wander off, leaving Dog Town defenseless.
The Wolfdog
A big fluffy snow white husky with heterochromatic eyes. Magic. Super magic. So magical he doesn't even know it! Goofy and melodramatic, unable to understand the powers he possesses. Capable of teleportation, invisibility, levitation, scrying, speaking with dead, and resurrection. Can't go up or down stairs, pass through the circumferences of circles, or enter homes without permission. Probably Fey.
The Retriever
A big dumb-faced lovable lab. When dogs in Dog Town need things, they go to him. He fetch. Runs the General Store, which doesn't actually keep anything in stock - he just fetches things on demand as folk put in orders. HE INSISTS ON THE ORDERS! THIS IS A REAL BUSINESS! Doesn't actually care about whether the forms are filled out correctly (most aren't, or are already filled out, or are soaked in drool).
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| I have absolutely no idea why someone made this or why a wizard bulldog would get things done, but it's entirely appropriate. |
The Wizard
Who everyone goes to when problems get serious. An ancient bulldog of 24 years (168 in human). One opaque eye and one floppy benign face tumor. Grumpy, rude, lonesome, and clever. He was a wizard's pet two decades ago. That proximity to The Old Master granted him insight into the arcane, and unnatural intelligence. Knows a few modest spells, which he mostly uses to impress and terrify the populace of Dog Town. Lives in a miniature tower on the edge of town - a dog house dubiously perched atop a stack of rickety lumber.
The Old Master
The only thing left of her is a portrait kept in The Wizard's tower, which the Wizard brings out once a (human) year for the town to gaze upon in remembrance. Nobody's sure why she disappeared one day and never returned to Dog Town. Obviously, she was a wizard. Probably a rather lonely one. From her happy portrait with The Wizard, though, it may not have been willingly.
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