Revenant Bane

rev·e·nant (noun): a person who has returned, especially supposedly from the dead.

Your paws ached from your relentless travels, the worn pads cracked and bleeding- every part of you, down to the very bones, throbbed and agonized in ways you never knew could be possible. You needed to stop, to take a moment and breathe, your ravaged body begging for release, and yet... You could not stop. You couldn't. Despite the pain and exhaustion, and regardless of how little you wished to continue, onward you went. This choice went beyond even you, an instinct you did not understand. You knew so very little- not how this painstaking journey had come to be, how long you had been traveling, nor where it was you were even going. You didn't even know who you were, for any thoughts of a name or origin, any memories you might have held, were lost to you. All you knew was this pilgrimage, the insistent and merciless calling that permeated your very blood. With every step forward, no matter how painful, no matter how agonizing, something within you practically sang with anticipation.

Your surroundings continued to shift and change, meadows blurring into mountains, mountains giving way to forests, on and on it went- until, eventually, your paws would lead you to a place unlike any other: a dark, dreary forest with a dense and heavy canopy that greedily swallowed up the light, bathing the world below in blackened shadows. There would be no birdsong to be found here, no animated chattering of squirrels, nor the chirping orchestration of the nightly crickets. No... As your ears perked forward, swiveling and straining for any sound to break the unpleasant silence, the only noise to greet you as your paws continued to carelessly carry you forward, would be the distant snarls and tormented cries of other wolves. You could not truly source from where, for as you continued to listen, you soon came to the uncanny revelation that the calls seemed to sound from all around. It was an unwelcoming racket, a disturbing blend of aggressed and agonized, something that grated at your ears and prickled at your skin, and yet, strangely, you felt an almost intimate sense of familiarity. As if those cries were your very own.

Perturbed as you were by the revelation, you would find yourself even more unsettled by an even more startling realization- you were no longer moving, your paws having finally come to a halt. Surveying your surroundings, you found yourself standing at a complete standstill in an open clearing, the barest of gaps in the thick, leafy awning above allowing for the smallest of moonlit spotlights to shine down at the center. Where... Where am I? What is this place...? There was something wrong about this forest, a heavy ball of dread tugging at your stomach, leaving you a tad queasy with your unease. And, yet-

A rustling of leaves would quickly break you of your anxious wonder, your head quick to snap toward the sound, lip curling as a defensive growl of warning would begin to rumble at your vocals, startled to find a bright pair of eyes gleaming back at you from the darkness. Your growl would be returned by a bemused chuckle, as, pushing through the shadowy foliage, stepping into the clearing, you would be met by another, one you would come to find was not so unlike yourself. Gaze glittering with a dry mirth, a low, raspy voice would grace your ears, one that sounded almost entertained. "Well, well, look at you. Aren't you tough, little Wanderer?"

"Who are you?"

A moment of silence would pass, in which the stranger seemed to merely take you in, that bright gaze heavy with an almost bitter sort of amusement. "I think the better question would be who you are... Though, I doubt you've managed to piece that one together for yourself yet." Another moment of scrutiny would pass, the other's tail flicking once, then twice, before stilling as they continued to survey your worn and weary self. "What's your name?"

And suddenly, despite your seemingly endless wandering, and established sense of knowing nothing for as long as you could remember, you knew your name. Stunned, a churning sense of alarm and confusion twisting at your insides, you would absently mumble your name. The stranger smiled, though it was a tight, almost uncomfortable smile, a thick and oppressively somber tension permeating the air between you. A brief nod was offered, the name being echoed back, confirming the identity, and, for the first time in your memory, you felt seen. You felt alive.

"You likely have many questions, and I assure you they'll be answered in due time, but for now, you ought to get settled. Things can be pretty jarring and overwhelming at first, and I'd hate for you to break down on me so soon..." They'd pause, releasing another humorless chuckle. "Though I suppose there will be ample opportunity for that later." Turning to delve deeper into the dark forest, lightless forest, the stranger would incline their head, beckoning you to follow. And, hesitantly, you moved to do exactly that- a million questions flooding your turbulent mind. Not a word would be exchanged between the two of you as you moved along your brief but shared journey, and yet, with every step you took, delving deeper and deeper into the sense of wrongness of it all, you could almost swear the shadows seemed to shift and change, stretching towards you, as though eager to welcome you into the darkness. As if you were just as wrong.

Welcome home.

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Welcome to Revenant Bane, home to the cursed sons and daughters of the First Immortal, the Father of Murder, and the Slayer of Kin: Cain. Bound are they by the sins of the Father, forever damned to walk in His shadow, to spend their eternity cursed by the Blood of Cain.