The Fate of the Chia-Lupe Feud

What? What do you mean what feud? Never mind, I know what you mean. That’s why I wrote this article! This article was written to remind us all of a cherished hallmark of Neopia, which has fallen by the wayside and been forgotten!

So, do you know anything about this marvelously entertaining feud? You know that Lupe treats are shaped like Chias. You know that Chias come in fun fruity flavors. But did you ever wonder why? No? Well, most of Neopia did, for the longest time. First, some history!

Chias and Lupes have had an ongoing feud since the dawn on Neopia, or at least the dawn of the Neopedia. Which no one ever reads, to my great distress. Maybe I’ll write an article about that, and continue to torture you with my odd rants. ANYWAY, I once found an entry in the Neopedia about an unusual Lupe who no longer ate Chias. This entry does not matter in the least, (which is good because I can’t find it anymore) but it does have one important fact.

The Lupe is unusual in that he no longer eats Chias. This means that Chia-eating is a day-to-day occurrence in the regular Lupe lifestyle. And thus, you have it. Lupes one day decided Chias were tasty and started eating them. Chias retaliated. How did they retaliate? With something that used to be the most terrifying substance to Battledomers everywhere, before it was retired and the price rose to ridiculous levels.

They retaliated with Chia Flour. This magical powder changes any Neopet it is used upon into a Chia. This was terrible for the Lupes! Their brethren were being turned into prey, tasty, tasty prey... ahem. Lupes re-retaliated by making Lupe Treats, tasty, Chia-shaped goodies which, although not necessarily threatening, were certainly taunting. And then Chias designed Chia treats! These are less well known than Lupe treats, but I stumbled across them one day and thought they were funny. Lupes re-re-retaliated by calling in faeries to create magical Chia pops, which, when ingested, cause Chias to turn into fruity/vegetabley versions of themselves. And I’m sure Chias retaliated in some way as well. And so on, until the Lupe-Chia feud escalated into a real feud, not just a predator-prey relationship.

This feud used to be the basis of hundreds of hilarious happenings! Well, maybe not. I was just practicing alliteration. Anyway, it was fairly interesting. Neopians debated the real source of the feud, and when Lupes started eating Chias. Many comics were made on the basis of this. I would love to give you the links for them, but most of these authors have retired from the site, so I could not get their permission. Perhaps this is why the Chia-Lupe feud was forgotten. Without a sarcastic fire Lupe preying on his owner’s stock brokers, the reason for the feud was forgotten. Without a certain brave-to-the-point-of-reckless-stupidity blue Chia studying the source of this conflict, and the psychology of Lupes in general, the feud itself was forgotten. Without the network of old-time comic writers in the old NT, making hilarious or simply slightly amusing comics about paranoid Chias, the favourite food of Lupes was forgotten. What a tragedy, to lose such a hallmark of Neopia. Or, maybe not... I’m sure the Chias are happy...

But why do we need reminders? Couldn’t the average Neopian remember something like that himself? Also, it was debated on every board! Why were Chias so darn tasty? When did the feud really escalate? Or is there a deeper meaning to the feud? Did the Lupes really start it by eating Chias, or was that retaliation on the Lupes’ part for offenses done by Chias? These debates took place regularly. Why were they lost? Why were any hallmarks of Neopia lost?

Maybe because Neopians no longer saw them as icons. They were simply an idle distraction after a while, and then not even that. As the old camaraderie that Neopians used to share faded away, so did the stories they spread. Newbies were no longer indoctrinated into what used to be common knowledge for all of Neopia, and thus, they failed to spread the word to other newbies. As Neopia got overcrowded, its inhabitants got over-jaded. Instead of talking and laughing with complete strangers, they were busy making fortunes and showing off to complete strangers. And so Neopians lost fodder for friendship, rivalries, and humor, as this Neopian Icon was lost to the ages. What a tragedy...

OR, the Lupes and Chias stopped arguing long enough to create an alliance, and they are currently planning to take over Neopia, along with Sloth, the Meepits, and Neopian Times writers like myself. I think the first one’s probably true, but the second one is far more interesting and it means I get to take over the world! Or, most boring of all, Chias just started tasting bad. Or something like that, which seems terribly unlikely to me.

Now, adoring readers, you have been reminded of a cherished hallmark of Neopia! Spread the word, and perhaps now, the feud will be remembered and this Neopian Icon will take a place in the hearts of Neopians once more, and will become the source of many lively debates, jokes, and ever more Neopian Times stories! Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed my article!

*Side note- Only one Chia was harmed in the making of this article. He stubbed his toe while trampling the author with the rest of his angry horde and is now suing for injuries, present and future. The author is in hiding, but would be perfectly happy to receive questions, comments, or abuse. But no Chias. Please, no Chias.