WNL Storybook

[Northern Light]

Storybook WNL's stories and legends will be kept here. If you have a story to submit, please PM Gennae. More stories are always welcome! These stories may also be used in storytelling threads and such. Index 001. The Weeping Willow on Willow Ridge, by Laura 002. Jack's Story - The spreading of the Sýktur, by Iris 003. The Winged Wolf Spirit of the Bedeviled Backwoods, by Nightsky 004. Three Trials into Adulthood, by Iris

[Northern Light]

The Weeping Willow on Willow Ridge A long time ago, in the days of gods and warriors, there lived a wolf named Varick, the bravest soul in the land. Hulda, a shamaness, loved him deeply, and feared for his life every time he went out to defend and promote Delilah's message. Love made her powers even stronger, to the point where her magic seemed to know no bounds. And then, one fateful day, Varick was deceived by Twongo and Karatrikk and fell to his death - but that is a story for another time. Hulda, overcome by grief, went into mourning, and for many days and many nights she neither ate nor slept. She would see no one, and all she did was cry for the lost half of her soul. Her powers faded away and she was left weak, and when the other wolves tried to speak with her, to see that she didn't neglect herself, she fled, running as far and as fast as she could, until she reached a ridge where she could see the whole valley laid out below her. There she also saw the place where her beloved Varick had perished, and sadness struck her anew, releasing the floodgates on her seemingly dormant powers and overwhelming her weak body. Her love and her tears and her magic mingled together, warping her, changing her, her flesh growing thick, her fur growing long...until it was not Hulda sitting on the ridge, but a willow tree. A spring, said to be her tears, bubbled up from its base, and now Hulda remains forever watching the place of her love's demise, weeping for his loss. story by laura (callan).

[Northern Light]

Jack's Story - The spreading of the Sýktur Jack had been born on an unusually snowy May evening. His parents had sniffed him, then left him and his siblings to die. By the time the Man came into his life, his siblings were dead and Jack was barely salvageable. He was saved, however, and the Man took him into his home lovingly. Jack received a tag from the wolf saviour program, where he'd been taken in as a special case. For some reason he'd never quite gotten along with the other wolves in the program, however, and in the end the Man decided to take Jack in on his own. Many happy months followed. Jack grew up with dampened instincts and a smoke addiction - his owner being a smoke addict - causing his nose to be much less useful than an average wolf's. One night, his wolf instincts emerged when his owner was almost mugged on a city trip to Reykjavik: He ripped off the assaulter's face one warm summer night. Then he was driven to the more northern, more savage parts of Iceland where his owner had tied him to a tree. It didn't take Jack long to rip his leash to shreds, but when he was freed his owner was long gone, driven back to home, and Jack realized he was no longer welcome there. At the very same time, not too far from where Jack was dumped, a revolution of sorts was happening in a small peasant town. A man who'd lived for what seemed centuries at the edges of the village without harming anyone was now seen for who they really were: A werewolf. One night, the creature ran, using its strength and instincts to escape the angry mob. He landed somewhere not too far away from the depravity peak. His powers depleted, the man turned back into a human, and lay there, exhausted. It was then that Jack approached, starving because he had never learned to hunt quite well. The man barely saw him coming, and was too weak to struggle: A perfect kill. Ruthlessly the flesh was torn apart, and Jack had a nice meal to call his own, at least for a while. The dark wolf took the dead human into a place in the bushes so he knew he had something to feed for later. After he'd had his fill, he stepped past the Depravity peak's boundaries and into the beautiful valley ahead. It was then that he noticed a stinging pain in his head. He whined and howled, and eventually the pain left him. It seemed as though it had all been just a bad dream. Nothing had happened. By the light of the gibbous moon Jack set foot in the valley, unaware of the virus he now carried, the virus that spread through his veins as easily as the werewolf's blood had spilled through his mouth... story by iris (gennae/jack).

[Northern Light]

The Winged Wolf Spirit of the Bedeviled Backwoods Years ago, three human hunters were stalking through what is now known as the bedeviled backwoods, searching for prey they could eat at home that night. As they quietly moved they saw two wolf pups and abandoned their plans to hunt for rabbits and deer. After all, if they brought home a wolf they would have glory and food from the wolf's meat. Raising their bow and arrows, they prepared to shoot at the wolf pups when suddenly a strange creature appeared and shoved them right as they released the arrows, making the arrows hit a tree by the wolf pups. Alarmed, the two pups watched as a white wolf with the wings of a dragon and blue eyes attacked and killed two of the hunters, while the third got away. When it was over, the mysterious wolf vanished right before their eyes. Only then did the pups run home and tell everyone what they had seen. Soon the story spread between wolves, and humans also heard about the winged wolf from the hunter who escaped. Angered, the humans began to prepare to attack the creature that had taken two human lives. However, the hunter had escaped without seeing the wolf disappear, or otherwise the humans would leave the woods alone. But he had not seen it vanish like the two wolf pups, and so twenty humans left for the backwoods the next day. Once there, the humans found the pack the two pups belonged to at their home, and attacked the unsuspecting pack. Chaos ensued as the weaker wolves ran from the humans while others stayed to fight. One wolf pup tried to rush to safety, but two of the hunters saw him and gave chase. Within ten seconds, one of the hunters shot an arrow at the wolf which punctured its leg, causing it to scream with pain. But then, at that exact moment, the mighty winged wolf reappeared and killed the two hunters with one swipe of his sharp claws over their chests. The other hunters were terrified and tried to run away, but the wolf attacked them and killed them just like before. There was no hope for the hunters to survive; the strange wolf out powered them, and soon only the youngest two were left. The wolf only glared at them and allowed them to escape, knowing they would tell other humans and discourage them from coming. One human looked back and he chose that moment to vanish, and the wolves knew the humans would never return. The wolf pup who got hit by an arrow never forgot the spirit who saved him and was inspired. Later he would become known as the great wolf god Dandrian, and whenever asked why he was so brave and adventurous, he would begin by telling of three human hunters seeing two wolf pups in the bedeviled backwoods... story by nightsky (neka).

[Northern Light]

Three Trials into Adulthood The three trials into adulthood were first founded under Landi and Khaotiq Mikill’s reign. They inserted these trials to make sure the puppies were ready for their adult lives. In the case of a litter, if all of them are still together, they are allowed to go through these trials together rather than alone. The trials are to be performed on the second-to-last and last day before their birthday, and the last trial is to be performed on the birthday itself, on which day the pack will accept them as adults. These trials are not a mandatory feat for all packs, and some packs or leaders may choose not to follow them for various reasons. The First Trial For the first trial, the pup must climb the Griðarstörjökull. Up on the glacier, there are ancient stone slabs that tell of the stories of the Gods, of their mortal lives and of their heroic tales. These tales are written in the ancient Icelandic language, so only wolves with an Icelandic tongue can read them. There are drawings to illustrate these mighty tales, however, for those that do not speak the language. The child must view these enormous stones, watch the stories of the Gods. They must come home then, and tell their pack mates of the great stories they have read about, and the occasional youth might have had an epiphany about life upon reading these slabs. An alternative to this is to visit another place that has a high spiritual value, such as the weeping willow on Willow Ridge. Per pack, this ritual may be altered depending how spiritual the pack is. The pack’s leader(s) will educate a youth whose rituals are almost to come, especially in case of a slightly different tactic. The Second Trial For the second trial, the youth must lead its first hunt. If there are multiple puppies who are raised into adulthood around the same date, they may lead the hunt together. This is to view how well they serve as an adult and if they are real team players, something that is necessary to be a part of a pack’s adult ranks. The Third Trial The last trial is for the wolf to find a piece of jewelry. They will search around, trying to find a piece of jewelry or, in some cases, if the moon is right – or if they thought ahead to this – they will be able to create a piece of jewelry. If they prefer not to wait on fate, they might go to the Senile Dumping Grounds to find a piece of jewelry. They will then return to their pack and the pack’s Alpha – or one of its leaders – will put the jewelry in wherever they want it. In some cases, it is also allowed, sometimes even strived for, depending on the pack, for the youth to bring home berries for paint so they can paint marks onto their face or elsewhere. This last trial is performed on the youth’s birthday, and as it is finished, the youth will officially be an adult of the pack. Its rank will depend on various things, including how the trials were undergone. story by iris (gennae).