Religion
Overview
In a world as vast as Aktesh, it's only fair it comes with some religions to match. The base religions we offer are malleable and you're welcome to contribute to the mythos through roleplay and suggestions made out of character.
While not every wolf in Aktesh is religious, and every wolf certainly does not follow the same gods, every wolf does believe that when a wolf dies, their soul bonds with a tree. Because of this, no body is buried - your rotting body must feed the world as the world fed you. If a body is buried, its soul can't escape its mortal bonds to fuse with a tree. To be buried is to be damned for eternity, left to rot and writhe and cry out in loneliness trapped beneath the earth.
This has led to deep-seated fear of areas lacking trees. If there are no trees for a soul to bind with, the soul of the dead wolf will be imprisoned in Fel. There are many interpretations of Fel, and all are negative: an empty void, a fiery hellscape, an endless dead forest, and a treeless wasteland, much like The Wastes in the west.
Aktesh is home to many religions great and small, but only the most well-known will be found on this page. That's not to say you can't create your own religions - please do! If it eventually gathers a following and a proper mythos to back it, we'll be more than happy to add it to this page.
The Nine
Region: Widespread, concentrated in the Midlands and the East
In the beginning, there were only the black waters of the sky, and the floes of ice that swam in it called stars - this place called the Old World. Then from the coldest of the ice, the north star, came the Mother, who split from it and shaped its shards into her mate, the Sun, whose new found warmth melted all of the wandering ice, and turned the black water blue. For untold eons they remained this way in the endless ocean, before the Sun began to falter in his brilliance, and the darkness slowly ebbed away at the blue until night came again, and brought a cold so bitter the ice returned in triple its former numbers. To save her mate, Mother cut her heart open on the sharp ice, and her life bled across the dark waters and gave birth to The First Day and nine cubs, to be Guardians of the New World.
From Mother's decaying body grew thick forests from the ruff of her neck; green plains from her flanks; mountains from her fangs; the winds from the flurry of her dying breaths; the waters from her blood. The Guardians cultivated all that sprung from her flesh, and stalked her grave as gods. Their father, the Sun, permanently weakened despite Mother's sacrifice, anointed one of the Guardians with her blood, and named him the Moon. He was tasked with carrying the Sun's vigil while he slept during the night to keep up his strength. However, the Moon's brightness cannot compare to the Sun's, so while the Sun sleeps, the night slowly creeps back in, still drenched in Mother's blood - it's emergence is known as sunset/the Mother's dying. But the Moon is steadfast every night, and staves off the dark and the ice resolutely until his father's awakening - known as sunrise/the Father's waking.
The rest of the Guardians all wandered the earth in search of purpose, as their brother the Moon had found. One, the Spirit, found their home in the sprawling forests, and from their imagination sprung forth the mortal First Wolves, who took on the likeness of the Mother and her Guardians. The First Wolves mated, raised families, and died, and their children did the same - and when they met their deaths, the Spirit herded their souls into trees, so that they might watch their ancestors grow and prosper for as many years as there are stars in the sky.
Another, the Seer, empathetic as she was, became the god of emotion, waters, and healing. The feelings of the First Wolves became her own, and the chaos of it all drove her mad. Her brother isolated himself and became the Loner in his grief, god of travelers, the pack-less, the underdogs, and memories. While the Seer is said to live in an eastern cave by the sea, the Loner roams the darkest parts of the earth now without purpose or pleasure.
The twins Summer and Winter found their path in the changing of seasons, and became dual gods of war and peace, balance and wisdom. Paradoxically, they are as alike and unalike as can be. Summer is brash and loud, a black wolf embodying the warmth and peace of the summer. Winter is patient and still, a white wolf who encapsulates the callous indifference of destruction. Both exemplifying the two extremes in equally unforgiving ways. The two perspectives they share makes them gods of wisdom, the two polarizing sides making them gods of balance.
Next came Totem, and born from their mind were all predators, all prey, and all things between. Their visions were made flesh, and at the request of the Spirit, they created a companion for the First Wolves: ravens, the first birds. The Spirit had requested ravens be subservient to wolves, but Totem treated all their creations with dignity, and such is why the raven chooses the wolf, and why the relationship between a raven and its wolf is of mutual respect, a partnership and bond that lasts a life time.
Luck became the god of fortune and fate. Every random occurrence, every happenstance, every decision made and unmade is attributed to her, the most whimsical god of them all. She, unbiased and unspiteful, knows all that has come to pass, and controls all that will. Some believe that winning her favor will seal their good fortune, but the wise know better: Luck cares only to watch the Spirit's creations sew and unstitch their own destinies, forever in peril and helplessly borrowing time from one another and their unpredictable world.
For the longest time, the last child of Mother never found his purpose. While all other Guardians fulfilled their duties, he filled his time causing mayhem and panic, always interrupting his siblings in their business and toying with their hapless creations. It was only when the Sun, with some of his last vestiges of strength, burned a hideous mark into the last child to discipline him, that he named himself Mischief: the last and final god, patron of tricksters and deception.
Believers of the Nine are often more pushy about their beliefs than followers of any other - and being the majority religion, there isn't much stopping them. A large reason why the Nine became so widespread is through conversions; at one point in time, the East was wholly Ichauist, but acolytes from the Midlands began to convert Eastern wolves to their religion in droves. Their campaign was very successful, and Ichauism was all but wiped from the East.
As soon as wolves come of age, they're expected to leave their family and make their own somewhere in the sprawling plains or forests of the East and Midlands. Believers of the Nine usually live in nuclear family units composed of parents and children, though this is open to variability as sometimes extended family members will all live together.
Towards the end of their lives, believers will typically make the pilgrimage to the Stone Teeth if they're physically able, since dying in sight of the physical manifestation of their gods is the safest way to assure your spirit bond with a tree.
Ichauism
Region: Isle of Kuget, some small sects in the East
Ichauists are monotheistic, revering only one god amongst thousands of demons and monsters. The god, Ichau, is said to be a rather small white wolf with a black streaked ruff, a red sprayed tail, two piercing yellow eyes, and his most striking characteristic: a pale pink scar in an 'x' shape on the bridge of his nose, between his eyes. When Ichauism was first born, Ichau was told to be a pure, snow-white wolf - however, years and years of word-by-mouth storytelling has taken a toll, and his appearance was corrupted to what it is now.
As the story goes, the fox-sized wolf god known by the name Ichau roams the sprawling universe, holding his heart (the earth) in his jaws as he makes his annual journey on the Path of Foreive, scientifically known as the earth's orbit. In order to exist in the cold black of the night sky (outer space), the little god must battle demons and monsters of indescribable shapes and horrors. He is clever, fierce, and brave, perpetually outwitting the creatures that plague him, to ensure that his heart, and by extension the wolves of Aktesh, are safe. However, there are times when the little god meets his match as he toils along his trail. As a result of the brawl where two cosmic forces collide, the earth will quake, the ocean will rise, or other natural disasters will occur.Ichauists place great value on resiliency and spirit, in large part because of how tough their god is. Ichau takes beating after beating, and in spite of this he still keeps moving forward. Independence and self-reliance are also seen as very positive traits.
Most Ichauists, after coming of age, are expected to explore as much as they can before even considering settling down, though there's only so much space a wolf can roam on an island the size of Kuget.
Ichauists don't place a lot of value on blood family - rather, after the coming of age roaming period, most will live in solitary or band together with friends or a cause for the rest of their life. Platonic and non-blood familial relationships are stressed the most. Ichauists aren't as likely to take mates because of this, so single mothers are extremely common. Pup mortality rate is high as a result, and while this could be seen as negative, Ichauists view it positively: the Isle of Kuget is small and can only support so many wolves at once. The fewer pups to survive, the stronger the surviving ones will be, and so more prey will be available to eat.
Familiars have little mythology surrounding them to Ichauists, as Ichau himself doesn't have one. Most believe familiars were tamed by the earliest Ichauists as spiritual guides.
The Twins
Region: The North
Most wolves in the North believe in the god of the Rifts, Kaluen, and her spiteful, jealous brother Hanim. Whatever good Kaluen would do for the world, Hanim would attempt to undo, because he was jealous of the respect and devotion Kaluen's followers extended to her. He tried to end the world several times - once, he tore a gaping wound into the earth, and serpents began to emerge from it like tongues. It took all of Kaluen's strength to drive them back and seal the hole, now known as the Pit, with rubble from the Rifts.
Another time, Hanim carved deep fissures in the earth that poured boiling water. It began to flood the North, drowning countless wolves before Kaluen closed the cracks and left her followers with what are now the much smaller, tamed Hot Springs. Many more instances of Hanim's rivalry with Kaluen have been recorded in the earth, most recently the Burned Forest, which he razed to ashes in a fit of anger many years ago. Some think he is also responsible for damming up the passage between the rest of the North and the Hidden Forest.
Kaluen is said to have many agents that help her keep watch over the Rifts, the most notable being ravens. They provide her with an aerial lay of the land, and often tip her off to Hanim's schemes before they can happen. Through time, wolves who worshipped the Twins eventually began to forge partnerships with their own ravens, called Familiars, to mimic Kaluen's relationships and help them survive in the hostile North.
Because of how cruel Hanim has been shown to be, those who worship the Twins take great care in preserving their family units, which is very important not only because of the religious significance, but because in the North, survival is near always dependent on cooperation. Family is valued above all else - existing as a loner can be fatal, and even aloof, solitary-minded wolves will band together to survive the winter before departing from each other.
It's not uncommon for wolves in the North to never leave their parents, even after finding mates. Packs in the North tend to only grow once established, only splitting into smaller groups once they became too large for the territory to support them. But because primary prey sources are constantly on the move searching for greener grass, groups of threes and fours tend to follow herds on their annual migratory routes rather than settle down somewhere, with the exception being when a wolf needs to stop and raise pups for a few months.
Those who worship the Twins believe strongly in duty and loyalty, as they go hand in hand with the word family. A wolf is only as good as their word - traitors and thieves are to be cast out, even killed. There's no room for deception and distrust when only those with the strongest of bonds will weather the most frozen winters.
The Followers of Hain
Region: The South
Those in the South do not suffer weakness, and neither does their god Hain. A black wolf with one eye, he rules the waters that swamp the southern reaches of Aktesh. He is headstrong, powerful, and reckless, everything about him a whirlwinding chaos. Perched on his shoulder is a huge raven named Tempest, the first familiar. It's said in the South that Hain rose up from the southern ocean in the middle of a maelstrom and created the world from the sands of the sea, and his followers will hear no other explanation for how anything else could have come to be.
Followers of Hain tend to be as prideful as their solitary god, and any slight from someone of another faith could be taken as a war cry. It takes next to nothing to get the Followers of Hain riled up; they come from a religion of squabbles and skirmishes, where every wolf has fought in a battle before they reach a year. Fights over territory in the South are extremely common, and even though it's hard to establish long term living in a region where your home could get swallowed by a sinkhole or washed away in a flood, they don't lack for trying.
Despite all their honor and pride, the Followers of Hain are quick to forgive and will band together if need be, especially when it comes to siding against those of other religions. Followers of Hain are very distrustful of anyone who believes in the Nine, as they've had bad experiences with those who wished to convert them. Followers have garnered a bad rep because of their hostility towards non Southerners, and are accused of being bloodthirsty because of how their religion celebrates battle, but in reality they're warm and welcoming towards anyone who earns their trust.
In the South, because of Hain's missing eye and how frequent permanent disfigurement and disabilities are from brawling, disablement to the Followers of Hain is almost considered a rite of passage and is a sign of strength. It's not uncommon for disabled wolves from other parts of Aktesh to migrate to the South so they don't feel so othered by their community.
In a world as vast as Aktesh, it's only fair it comes with some religions to match. The base religions we offer are malleable and you're welcome to contribute to the mythos through roleplay and suggestions made out of character.
While not every wolf in Aktesh is religious, and every wolf certainly does not follow the same gods, every wolf does believe that when a wolf dies, their soul bonds with a tree. Because of this, no body is buried - your rotting body must feed the world as the world fed you. If a body is buried, its soul can't escape its mortal bonds to fuse with a tree. To be buried is to be damned for eternity, left to rot and writhe and cry out in loneliness trapped beneath the earth.
This has led to deep-seated fear of areas lacking trees. If there are no trees for a soul to bind with, the soul of the dead wolf will be imprisoned in Fel. There are many interpretations of Fel, and all are negative: an empty void, a fiery hellscape, an endless dead forest, and a treeless wasteland, much like The Wastes in the west.
Aktesh is home to many religions great and small, but only the most well-known will be found on this page. That's not to say you can't create your own religions - please do! If it eventually gathers a following and a proper mythos to back it, we'll be more than happy to add it to this page.
The Nine
Region: Widespread, concentrated in the Midlands and the East
In the beginning, there were only the black waters of the sky, and the floes of ice that swam in it called stars - this place called the Old World. Then from the coldest of the ice, the north star, came the Mother, who split from it and shaped its shards into her mate, the Sun, whose new found warmth melted all of the wandering ice, and turned the black water blue. For untold eons they remained this way in the endless ocean, before the Sun began to falter in his brilliance, and the darkness slowly ebbed away at the blue until night came again, and brought a cold so bitter the ice returned in triple its former numbers. To save her mate, Mother cut her heart open on the sharp ice, and her life bled across the dark waters and gave birth to The First Day and nine cubs, to be Guardians of the New World.
From Mother's decaying body grew thick forests from the ruff of her neck; green plains from her flanks; mountains from her fangs; the winds from the flurry of her dying breaths; the waters from her blood. The Guardians cultivated all that sprung from her flesh, and stalked her grave as gods. Their father, the Sun, permanently weakened despite Mother's sacrifice, anointed one of the Guardians with her blood, and named him the Moon. He was tasked with carrying the Sun's vigil while he slept during the night to keep up his strength. However, the Moon's brightness cannot compare to the Sun's, so while the Sun sleeps, the night slowly creeps back in, still drenched in Mother's blood - it's emergence is known as sunset/the Mother's dying. But the Moon is steadfast every night, and staves off the dark and the ice resolutely until his father's awakening - known as sunrise/the Father's waking.
The rest of the Guardians all wandered the earth in search of purpose, as their brother the Moon had found. One, the Spirit, found their home in the sprawling forests, and from their imagination sprung forth the mortal First Wolves, who took on the likeness of the Mother and her Guardians. The First Wolves mated, raised families, and died, and their children did the same - and when they met their deaths, the Spirit herded their souls into trees, so that they might watch their ancestors grow and prosper for as many years as there are stars in the sky.
Another, the Seer, empathetic as she was, became the god of emotion, waters, and healing. The feelings of the First Wolves became her own, and the chaos of it all drove her mad. Her brother isolated himself and became the Loner in his grief, god of travelers, the pack-less, the underdogs, and memories. While the Seer is said to live in an eastern cave by the sea, the Loner roams the darkest parts of the earth now without purpose or pleasure.
The twins Summer and Winter found their path in the changing of seasons, and became dual gods of war and peace, balance and wisdom. Paradoxically, they are as alike and unalike as can be. Summer is brash and loud, a black wolf embodying the warmth and peace of the summer. Winter is patient and still, a white wolf who encapsulates the callous indifference of destruction. Both exemplifying the two extremes in equally unforgiving ways. The two perspectives they share makes them gods of wisdom, the two polarizing sides making them gods of balance.
Next came Totem, and born from their mind were all predators, all prey, and all things between. Their visions were made flesh, and at the request of the Spirit, they created a companion for the First Wolves: ravens, the first birds. The Spirit had requested ravens be subservient to wolves, but Totem treated all their creations with dignity, and such is why the raven chooses the wolf, and why the relationship between a raven and its wolf is of mutual respect, a partnership and bond that lasts a life time.
Luck became the god of fortune and fate. Every random occurrence, every happenstance, every decision made and unmade is attributed to her, the most whimsical god of them all. She, unbiased and unspiteful, knows all that has come to pass, and controls all that will. Some believe that winning her favor will seal their good fortune, but the wise know better: Luck cares only to watch the Spirit's creations sew and unstitch their own destinies, forever in peril and helplessly borrowing time from one another and their unpredictable world.
For the longest time, the last child of Mother never found his purpose. While all other Guardians fulfilled their duties, he filled his time causing mayhem and panic, always interrupting his siblings in their business and toying with their hapless creations. It was only when the Sun, with some of his last vestiges of strength, burned a hideous mark into the last child to discipline him, that he named himself Mischief: the last and final god, patron of tricksters and deception.
Believers of the Nine are often more pushy about their beliefs than followers of any other - and being the majority religion, there isn't much stopping them. A large reason why the Nine became so widespread is through conversions; at one point in time, the East was wholly Ichauist, but acolytes from the Midlands began to convert Eastern wolves to their religion in droves. Their campaign was very successful, and Ichauism was all but wiped from the East.
As soon as wolves come of age, they're expected to leave their family and make their own somewhere in the sprawling plains or forests of the East and Midlands. Believers of the Nine usually live in nuclear family units composed of parents and children, though this is open to variability as sometimes extended family members will all live together.
Towards the end of their lives, believers will typically make the pilgrimage to the Stone Teeth if they're physically able, since dying in sight of the physical manifestation of their gods is the safest way to assure your spirit bond with a tree.
Ichauism
Region: Isle of Kuget, some small sects in the East
Ichauists are monotheistic, revering only one god amongst thousands of demons and monsters. The god, Ichau, is said to be a rather small white wolf with a black streaked ruff, a red sprayed tail, two piercing yellow eyes, and his most striking characteristic: a pale pink scar in an 'x' shape on the bridge of his nose, between his eyes. When Ichauism was first born, Ichau was told to be a pure, snow-white wolf - however, years and years of word-by-mouth storytelling has taken a toll, and his appearance was corrupted to what it is now.
As the story goes, the fox-sized wolf god known by the name Ichau roams the sprawling universe, holding his heart (the earth) in his jaws as he makes his annual journey on the Path of Foreive, scientifically known as the earth's orbit. In order to exist in the cold black of the night sky (outer space), the little god must battle demons and monsters of indescribable shapes and horrors. He is clever, fierce, and brave, perpetually outwitting the creatures that plague him, to ensure that his heart, and by extension the wolves of Aktesh, are safe. However, there are times when the little god meets his match as he toils along his trail. As a result of the brawl where two cosmic forces collide, the earth will quake, the ocean will rise, or other natural disasters will occur.Ichauists place great value on resiliency and spirit, in large part because of how tough their god is. Ichau takes beating after beating, and in spite of this he still keeps moving forward. Independence and self-reliance are also seen as very positive traits.
Most Ichauists, after coming of age, are expected to explore as much as they can before even considering settling down, though there's only so much space a wolf can roam on an island the size of Kuget.
Ichauists don't place a lot of value on blood family - rather, after the coming of age roaming period, most will live in solitary or band together with friends or a cause for the rest of their life. Platonic and non-blood familial relationships are stressed the most. Ichauists aren't as likely to take mates because of this, so single mothers are extremely common. Pup mortality rate is high as a result, and while this could be seen as negative, Ichauists view it positively: the Isle of Kuget is small and can only support so many wolves at once. The fewer pups to survive, the stronger the surviving ones will be, and so more prey will be available to eat.
Familiars have little mythology surrounding them to Ichauists, as Ichau himself doesn't have one. Most believe familiars were tamed by the earliest Ichauists as spiritual guides.
The Twins
Region: The North
Most wolves in the North believe in the god of the Rifts, Kaluen, and her spiteful, jealous brother Hanim. Whatever good Kaluen would do for the world, Hanim would attempt to undo, because he was jealous of the respect and devotion Kaluen's followers extended to her. He tried to end the world several times - once, he tore a gaping wound into the earth, and serpents began to emerge from it like tongues. It took all of Kaluen's strength to drive them back and seal the hole, now known as the Pit, with rubble from the Rifts.
Another time, Hanim carved deep fissures in the earth that poured boiling water. It began to flood the North, drowning countless wolves before Kaluen closed the cracks and left her followers with what are now the much smaller, tamed Hot Springs. Many more instances of Hanim's rivalry with Kaluen have been recorded in the earth, most recently the Burned Forest, which he razed to ashes in a fit of anger many years ago. Some think he is also responsible for damming up the passage between the rest of the North and the Hidden Forest.
Kaluen is said to have many agents that help her keep watch over the Rifts, the most notable being ravens. They provide her with an aerial lay of the land, and often tip her off to Hanim's schemes before they can happen. Through time, wolves who worshipped the Twins eventually began to forge partnerships with their own ravens, called Familiars, to mimic Kaluen's relationships and help them survive in the hostile North.
Because of how cruel Hanim has been shown to be, those who worship the Twins take great care in preserving their family units, which is very important not only because of the religious significance, but because in the North, survival is near always dependent on cooperation. Family is valued above all else - existing as a loner can be fatal, and even aloof, solitary-minded wolves will band together to survive the winter before departing from each other.
It's not uncommon for wolves in the North to never leave their parents, even after finding mates. Packs in the North tend to only grow once established, only splitting into smaller groups once they became too large for the territory to support them. But because primary prey sources are constantly on the move searching for greener grass, groups of threes and fours tend to follow herds on their annual migratory routes rather than settle down somewhere, with the exception being when a wolf needs to stop and raise pups for a few months.
Those who worship the Twins believe strongly in duty and loyalty, as they go hand in hand with the word family. A wolf is only as good as their word - traitors and thieves are to be cast out, even killed. There's no room for deception and distrust when only those with the strongest of bonds will weather the most frozen winters.
The Followers of Hain
Region: The South
Those in the South do not suffer weakness, and neither does their god Hain. A black wolf with one eye, he rules the waters that swamp the southern reaches of Aktesh. He is headstrong, powerful, and reckless, everything about him a whirlwinding chaos. Perched on his shoulder is a huge raven named Tempest, the first familiar. It's said in the South that Hain rose up from the southern ocean in the middle of a maelstrom and created the world from the sands of the sea, and his followers will hear no other explanation for how anything else could have come to be.
Followers of Hain tend to be as prideful as their solitary god, and any slight from someone of another faith could be taken as a war cry. It takes next to nothing to get the Followers of Hain riled up; they come from a religion of squabbles and skirmishes, where every wolf has fought in a battle before they reach a year. Fights over territory in the South are extremely common, and even though it's hard to establish long term living in a region where your home could get swallowed by a sinkhole or washed away in a flood, they don't lack for trying.
Despite all their honor and pride, the Followers of Hain are quick to forgive and will band together if need be, especially when it comes to siding against those of other religions. Followers of Hain are very distrustful of anyone who believes in the Nine, as they've had bad experiences with those who wished to convert them. Followers have garnered a bad rep because of their hostility towards non Southerners, and are accused of being bloodthirsty because of how their religion celebrates battle, but in reality they're warm and welcoming towards anyone who earns their trust.
In the South, because of Hain's missing eye and how frequent permanent disfigurement and disabilities are from brawling, disablement to the Followers of Hain is almost considered a rite of passage and is a sign of strength. It's not uncommon for disabled wolves from other parts of Aktesh to migrate to the South so they don't feel so othered by their community.
Legends & Stories
The Graylings
In the North, all wolves alike speak of the Graylings: the ghosts of creatures who died in the winter. They can be stags, wolves, coyotes, foxes - anything, and they all serve Kaluen. They appear as static shapes, bloodless white and twisting like snow in a blizzard. Most claim to have seen them on the banks of Grayling Creek, and farther north, in the eerie Burned Forest. They are spirits of the snow, and according to the story, one could only catch a glimpse of them while it's snowing.
The Legend of the Southern Beasts
Long ago, two brothers Khen and Hohn rose to great esteem in the South. They were hulking beasts, terrifying to all those who beheld them, and they were hungry for power. But the war-torn South was not enough for them - they'd heard tales of the plentiful Midlands above them, and they plunged north with some of their most faithful followers.
Upon arrival, they quickly realized the powerful packs that resided there were forces to be reckoned with - but not so much that the two brothers who were born and bred for battle, raised with war songs for Hain as their lullabies, would have to turn around. Quickly and without warning, they attacked the smallest of the first three packs. It was a slaughter - nearly every opposing wolf was killed in battle, and those that surrendered were given the option to join the Beasts, or die.
News of their victory spread across the plains like wildfire, and more and more wolves pledged their loyalty to the brothers' mighty, growing pack. Growing haughtier with each day, Khen and Hohn sent their wolves to hunt on the second pack's territory, and for several days the huge pack feasted on elk that wasn't their own, rallying for their attack on the second pack.
When they approached the camp of the second pack in the dark of night, their scouts informed them that the second pack had gone. The two brothers realized that they must have gone and joined with the first pack, putting aside their rivalry to survive a slaughter. Rather than wait and ponder things, they led their pack, which had swelled to over fifty wolves, straight to the border of their last foe. Khen's mate was expecting pups, and he was determined to finish off his enemies before they were born.
One by one they silently killed the sentinels posted on the top of each rise, long before alarms could be raised, and by the time the enemy realized the Beasts were upon them, it was too late. The bloodbath was breathtaking - many wolves died, including some of the brothers' closest friends, and Hohn lost an eye killing their foe's alpha. But by daylight, the Beasts had won, and absorbed the pack's mothers and pups.
The bloody means they used to become alphas of the Midlands were not reflective of their rule at all - for many years after, the wolves of the Midlands prospered under the legendary leadership of Khen and Hohn. It was they who declared Fossil Rock to be a gathering place welcome to all wolves for the rest of time, and they who, despite being Followers of Hain, were content to allow their subordinates to keep their Nine gods. It was only once they both died, both of old age, that the great pack broke into smaller factions, unable to decide a new, universal leader.
The Will o' the Wisp
In the South, they tell tales of a flickering, burning light, one known to lead a wolf through the bog if they've lost their way. This entity is known as the Will o' the Wisp, and depending on the nature of the lost wolf, will either lead them to safety or to their demise.
Origins of Man
Believers of the Nine tell of the bastard experiment of Totem and Mischief, the mistake that created mankind. [WIP]
In the North, all wolves alike speak of the Graylings: the ghosts of creatures who died in the winter. They can be stags, wolves, coyotes, foxes - anything, and they all serve Kaluen. They appear as static shapes, bloodless white and twisting like snow in a blizzard. Most claim to have seen them on the banks of Grayling Creek, and farther north, in the eerie Burned Forest. They are spirits of the snow, and according to the story, one could only catch a glimpse of them while it's snowing.
The Legend of the Southern Beasts
Long ago, two brothers Khen and Hohn rose to great esteem in the South. They were hulking beasts, terrifying to all those who beheld them, and they were hungry for power. But the war-torn South was not enough for them - they'd heard tales of the plentiful Midlands above them, and they plunged north with some of their most faithful followers.
Upon arrival, they quickly realized the powerful packs that resided there were forces to be reckoned with - but not so much that the two brothers who were born and bred for battle, raised with war songs for Hain as their lullabies, would have to turn around. Quickly and without warning, they attacked the smallest of the first three packs. It was a slaughter - nearly every opposing wolf was killed in battle, and those that surrendered were given the option to join the Beasts, or die.
News of their victory spread across the plains like wildfire, and more and more wolves pledged their loyalty to the brothers' mighty, growing pack. Growing haughtier with each day, Khen and Hohn sent their wolves to hunt on the second pack's territory, and for several days the huge pack feasted on elk that wasn't their own, rallying for their attack on the second pack.
When they approached the camp of the second pack in the dark of night, their scouts informed them that the second pack had gone. The two brothers realized that they must have gone and joined with the first pack, putting aside their rivalry to survive a slaughter. Rather than wait and ponder things, they led their pack, which had swelled to over fifty wolves, straight to the border of their last foe. Khen's mate was expecting pups, and he was determined to finish off his enemies before they were born.
One by one they silently killed the sentinels posted on the top of each rise, long before alarms could be raised, and by the time the enemy realized the Beasts were upon them, it was too late. The bloodbath was breathtaking - many wolves died, including some of the brothers' closest friends, and Hohn lost an eye killing their foe's alpha. But by daylight, the Beasts had won, and absorbed the pack's mothers and pups.
The bloody means they used to become alphas of the Midlands were not reflective of their rule at all - for many years after, the wolves of the Midlands prospered under the legendary leadership of Khen and Hohn. It was they who declared Fossil Rock to be a gathering place welcome to all wolves for the rest of time, and they who, despite being Followers of Hain, were content to allow their subordinates to keep their Nine gods. It was only once they both died, both of old age, that the great pack broke into smaller factions, unable to decide a new, universal leader.
The Will o' the Wisp
In the South, they tell tales of a flickering, burning light, one known to lead a wolf through the bog if they've lost their way. This entity is known as the Will o' the Wisp, and depending on the nature of the lost wolf, will either lead them to safety or to their demise.
Origins of Man
Believers of the Nine tell of the bastard experiment of Totem and Mischief, the mistake that created mankind. [WIP]