Shadows of the Moonlight
Pack's chain of names: Pack of Mountain Wind -> Pack of Prairie Winds -> Shadows of the Moonlight
While you were having a small stroll in a beautiful moonlit forest, you found yoursef in the depth of the woods, unable to track the road back. You start to panic, and suddenly your ears catch the sound of a cracking branch somewhere behind you. You turn your back and notice a pair of blue eyes, staring at you from the dark with some sort of curiosity. The mysterious figure comes out to a small clearing, and in the moonlight you can see that the stranger has wings, horns and a very abnormal tail. Is that thing even a wolf?
You were about to run away, but the stranger stops you with his commanding, but calm voice:
- Fear not, wanderer, you're safe, I'm not going to hurt you. It seems you're lost, and it's quite dangerous to be here at night, so I shall offer you a stay till the morning. My name is Fafnir, by the way. Follow me, I know the shortcut.
He disappears in the bushes, and you obediently follow him.
After a short walk, you find yourself in a large clearing under the starry sky. You see some caves and wolves there, so you assume that it is, indeed, a camp.
- Seems like a nice place, doesn't it? - Fafnir says. - You're welcome here as long as you have only good intentions. But if you decide to hurt anyone... - he adds with a thoughtful yet ominous tone while looking at his claws - ...there will be consequences.
While others bathe in sunlight, we reside in shadows. While others are afraid of our appearance, we consider it a gift from the Moon. We are Shadows of the Moonlight.
Cave info:
Nursery: a place for mothers, their puppies and pupsitters
Hunters' clearing: a place for hunters
Patrollers place: a place for scouts
Herbalist's den: a place for herbalist and his apprentice only
Travelers' cave: a place for traveling wolves, usually stays empty
Cave of the Lost Souls: just a place for wolves without any specific role set. Lore-wise it's a "web" of tunnels where young wolves without purpose live until they somehow figure out how they can serve the pack. Legend says that deep in these tunnels lives a wise wolf with three eyes who is believed to predict the future (or at least somehow help the young ones with their "destiny"), but all the wolves that have ever tried to find her usually never came back...
Lonely rock near the camp exit: a place for sales/giveaways wolves
Pack's chronicles:
(Yay, I finally wrote some lore, but it's still a big WIP)
Chapter 1: The Beginning
The foundation of the pack was pretty simple. There were two young lovers, Frostheart and Halfmoon, who ran away together to create their own pack. They befriended some wolves, and so Pack of Mountain Wind was born. Their life was pretty ordinary, until one day changed everything.
The pack's camp was often left unguarded, because almost all pack members were doing their duties providing food and other supplies. Everyone was okay with that, because they lived pretty high in the mountains where no predator could find them. But on that day, an agressive bear attacked the camp and killed two pack members. Those unfortunate ones were Halfmoon and an elder wolf, Crookedjaw. When Frostheart got back to camp, he was in deep grief, and loss of his mate made his personality completely different. He stayed in his cave most of the time, refused to interact with anybody and to eat anything. Most of the pack thought that he had gone insane, and one day Frostheart just disappeared from the camp. A few days later, patrollers found his dead body with large claw marks on it. It seems that he tried to kill that bear who ruined his life.
After that incident the most trusted wolf in the pack, a large, strong and strict black wolf named Steelheart became an alpha. He decided to move the pack away from the mountains because it was getting too dangerous to stay there any longer. After a long journey, the pack arrived in prairie. And so begins a tale of Pack of Prairie Winds.
Chapter 2: The Contract, the Massacre and the Grief of Loss
A few moons passed, but the pack was still struggling. There wasn't enough food, and wolves weren't used to hunt in completely open spaces. Steelheart was wondering if he could do anything about it, but he couldn't come up with anything. Then one day, massive earthquakes hit the pack's grounds, but no one was injured... yet.
Soon there were rumours that since quakes began, something strange started to happen everywhere, from Glacier to Rainforest. Many wolves saw abnormal creatures roaming around and they could never guess if those unexpected guests were friendly or not. Steelheart decided to find those cryptids as he thought that they could help him with the pack's problems. Soon enough he found the cryptids and decided to cooperate with those who he had considered the most powerful - the Merged cryptids. They offered him a contract: they offered the pack protection and prey, but wolf blood would be the payment for it. Steelheart didn't notice the statement about bloody payment and blindly agreed.
A few more moons had passed, and under the protection of cryptids the pack was getting better. They weren't hungry anymore and no predator would dare to step into their territory. But the time for the payment has come. The cryptids reminded Steelheart about it and suggested that he would kill some pack members with his own paws, but he refused to do that. "You'll regret that desssscisssion" - hissed the dark creatures.
Next night the cryptids broke into the camp. They brutally killed every wolf they could find. Some of the pack members managed to escape, but it's unknown if they did it successfully. Steelheart and the pack's beta, Eclipse, managed to fight the monsters off, but it was too late and they were the only pack members who survived. The camp was filled with dead bodies, including Steelheart's and Eclipse's mates and puppies. The two stood in the center of the camp in a complete silence. The mighty alpha was now totally broken. He couldn't save anyone. He let out a scream of pure agony and grief and after that he passed out.
When Steelheart woke up, he noticed that something about him was different. He looked at his back and saw a pair of pure black feathery wings, which, apparently, Eclipse now had too. "You're one of ussss now" - whispered a cryptid's voice in Steelheart's head - "A monssster. Just like usssss".
Chapter 3: The New Life
After the fight, Steelheart couldn't even look at the destroyed camp, so after he and Eclipse buried all dead packmates, he decided to move somwhere else, in the dark depths of Taiga, where nobody could ever find him. Eclipse followed him just to make sure that Steelheart doesn't kill himself out of grief. They found a nice clearing which was beautifully lit by moonlight and made a small camp there. A moon has passed, but both wolves still didn't want to talk after the destruction of their old pack. Eclipse was still angry and blamed Steelheart for the cryptids' invasion while Steelheart stayed in his cave blaming himself.
One day, two female wolves - Midnight and Inferno - found the camp and asked for shelter. They were so scared that they mistook Steelheart for Fenrir, the wolf king, because of his abnormal appearance. The two wanderers explained that they were exiled from their packs for their unusual coats, as it was considered a bad omen. Steelheart looked at them and saw that Midnight had blue stripes on her pelt and Inferno's coat was unnaturally bright red. He had only seen such unusual colors in Dreamlands, so he assumed that these wolves caught some sort of lunar energy when their mothers were pregnant. Steelheart saw these two females as kindred spirits, because he didn't look like a "natural" wolf either, and let them stay as long as they wish. When all the wolves in the camp fell asleep, Steelheart was still awake, thinking about the new packmates calling him "Fenrir". After all, it wasn't a bad name, especially for the cursed winged wolf. He decided to leave his old name behind because it brought him so much pain and bad memories, and from that day on he was called Fenrir.
As Fenrir was wandering around, he found more "moon-touched" wolves abandoned by their packs. He gave them all a shelter and named the new pack "Shadows of the Moonlight". He also found a new mate, Darknight, and had two puppies with her - an elder daughter Umbra and a younger son Fafnir. They were both born cursed - daughter looked like a Cnitharian, and son looked like some sort of a dragon. Their own mother was so afraid of them that she ran away from the pack as soon as they were weaned, but Fenrir gave his children all the love and attention that he could.
Many moons have passed, Fenrir was getting older, and he drew his last breath happy, surrounded by friends and family. Before burial, Eclipse, Fafnir and Umbra touched noses with the dead body one last time.
"I will make you proud, father" - whispered Fafnir, crying.
"Thank you for everything, dad" - mumbled Umbra, sobbing and smiling.
"I forgive you, old friend" - sighed Eclipse and shed a tear. It was the first and the last time he cried since the loss of old pack.
The next day, Fafnir was made an Alpha and promised that he will continue fufilling his father's duty of saving forsakened wolves.
Nowdays, the pack lives its ordinary life in peace. There is enough prey and water, but most importaintly, all wolves are under protection of the mighty alpha.
The pack is safe at last.
While you were having a small stroll in a beautiful moonlit forest, you found yoursef in the depth of the woods, unable to track the road back. You start to panic, and suddenly your ears catch the sound of a cracking branch somewhere behind you. You turn your back and notice a pair of blue eyes, staring at you from the dark with some sort of curiosity. The mysterious figure comes out to a small clearing, and in the moonlight you can see that the stranger has wings, horns and a very abnormal tail. Is that thing even a wolf?
You were about to run away, but the stranger stops you with his commanding, but calm voice:
- Fear not, wanderer, you're safe, I'm not going to hurt you. It seems you're lost, and it's quite dangerous to be here at night, so I shall offer you a stay till the morning. My name is Fafnir, by the way. Follow me, I know the shortcut.
He disappears in the bushes, and you obediently follow him.
After a short walk, you find yourself in a large clearing under the starry sky. You see some caves and wolves there, so you assume that it is, indeed, a camp.
- Seems like a nice place, doesn't it? - Fafnir says. - You're welcome here as long as you have only good intentions. But if you decide to hurt anyone... - he adds with a thoughtful yet ominous tone while looking at his claws - ...there will be consequences.
While others bathe in sunlight, we reside in shadows. While others are afraid of our appearance, we consider it a gift from the Moon. We are Shadows of the Moonlight.
Cave info:
Hunters' clearing: a place for hunters
Patrollers place: a place for scouts
Herbalist's den: a place for herbalist and his apprentice only
Travelers' cave: a place for traveling wolves, usually stays empty
Cave of the Lost Souls: just a place for wolves without any specific role set. Lore-wise it's a "web" of tunnels where young wolves without purpose live until they somehow figure out how they can serve the pack. Legend says that deep in these tunnels lives a wise wolf with three eyes who is believed to predict the future (or at least somehow help the young ones with their "destiny"), but all the wolves that have ever tried to find her usually never came back...
Lonely rock near the camp exit: a place for sales/giveaways wolves
Pack's chronicles:
Chapter 1: The Beginning
The foundation of the pack was pretty simple. There were two young lovers, Frostheart and Halfmoon, who ran away together to create their own pack. They befriended some wolves, and so Pack of Mountain Wind was born. Their life was pretty ordinary, until one day changed everything.
The pack's camp was often left unguarded, because almost all pack members were doing their duties providing food and other supplies. Everyone was okay with that, because they lived pretty high in the mountains where no predator could find them. But on that day, an agressive bear attacked the camp and killed two pack members. Those unfortunate ones were Halfmoon and an elder wolf, Crookedjaw. When Frostheart got back to camp, he was in deep grief, and loss of his mate made his personality completely different. He stayed in his cave most of the time, refused to interact with anybody and to eat anything. Most of the pack thought that he had gone insane, and one day Frostheart just disappeared from the camp. A few days later, patrollers found his dead body with large claw marks on it. It seems that he tried to kill that bear who ruined his life.
After that incident the most trusted wolf in the pack, a large, strong and strict black wolf named Steelheart became an alpha. He decided to move the pack away from the mountains because it was getting too dangerous to stay there any longer. After a long journey, the pack arrived in prairie. And so begins a tale of Pack of Prairie Winds.
Chapter 2: The Contract, the Massacre and the Grief of Loss
A few moons passed, but the pack was still struggling. There wasn't enough food, and wolves weren't used to hunt in completely open spaces. Steelheart was wondering if he could do anything about it, but he couldn't come up with anything. Then one day, massive earthquakes hit the pack's grounds, but no one was injured... yet.
Soon there were rumours that since quakes began, something strange started to happen everywhere, from Glacier to Rainforest. Many wolves saw abnormal creatures roaming around and they could never guess if those unexpected guests were friendly or not. Steelheart decided to find those cryptids as he thought that they could help him with the pack's problems. Soon enough he found the cryptids and decided to cooperate with those who he had considered the most powerful - the Merged cryptids. They offered him a contract: they offered the pack protection and prey, but wolf blood would be the payment for it. Steelheart didn't notice the statement about bloody payment and blindly agreed.
A few more moons had passed, and under the protection of cryptids the pack was getting better. They weren't hungry anymore and no predator would dare to step into their territory. But the time for the payment has come. The cryptids reminded Steelheart about it and suggested that he would kill some pack members with his own paws, but he refused to do that. "You'll regret that desssscisssion" - hissed the dark creatures.
Next night the cryptids broke into the camp. They brutally killed every wolf they could find. Some of the pack members managed to escape, but it's unknown if they did it successfully. Steelheart and the pack's beta, Eclipse, managed to fight the monsters off, but it was too late and they were the only pack members who survived. The camp was filled with dead bodies, including Steelheart's and Eclipse's mates and puppies. The two stood in the center of the camp in a complete silence. The mighty alpha was now totally broken. He couldn't save anyone. He let out a scream of pure agony and grief and after that he passed out.
When Steelheart woke up, he noticed that something about him was different. He looked at his back and saw a pair of pure black feathery wings, which, apparently, Eclipse now had too. "You're one of ussss now" - whispered a cryptid's voice in Steelheart's head - "A monssster. Just like usssss".
Chapter 3: The New Life
After the fight, Steelheart couldn't even look at the destroyed camp, so after he and Eclipse buried all dead packmates, he decided to move somwhere else, in the dark depths of Taiga, where nobody could ever find him. Eclipse followed him just to make sure that Steelheart doesn't kill himself out of grief. They found a nice clearing which was beautifully lit by moonlight and made a small camp there. A moon has passed, but both wolves still didn't want to talk after the destruction of their old pack. Eclipse was still angry and blamed Steelheart for the cryptids' invasion while Steelheart stayed in his cave blaming himself.
One day, two female wolves - Midnight and Inferno - found the camp and asked for shelter. They were so scared that they mistook Steelheart for Fenrir, the wolf king, because of his abnormal appearance. The two wanderers explained that they were exiled from their packs for their unusual coats, as it was considered a bad omen. Steelheart looked at them and saw that Midnight had blue stripes on her pelt and Inferno's coat was unnaturally bright red. He had only seen such unusual colors in Dreamlands, so he assumed that these wolves caught some sort of lunar energy when their mothers were pregnant. Steelheart saw these two females as kindred spirits, because he didn't look like a "natural" wolf either, and let them stay as long as they wish. When all the wolves in the camp fell asleep, Steelheart was still awake, thinking about the new packmates calling him "Fenrir". After all, it wasn't a bad name, especially for the cursed winged wolf. He decided to leave his old name behind because it brought him so much pain and bad memories, and from that day on he was called Fenrir.
As Fenrir was wandering around, he found more "moon-touched" wolves abandoned by their packs. He gave them all a shelter and named the new pack "Shadows of the Moonlight". He also found a new mate, Darknight, and had two puppies with her - an elder daughter Umbra and a younger son Fafnir. They were both born cursed - daughter looked like a Cnitharian, and son looked like some sort of a dragon. Their own mother was so afraid of them that she ran away from the pack as soon as they were weaned, but Fenrir gave his children all the love and attention that he could.
Many moons have passed, Fenrir was getting older, and he drew his last breath happy, surrounded by friends and family. Before burial, Eclipse, Fafnir and Umbra touched noses with the dead body one last time.
"I will make you proud, father" - whispered Fafnir, crying.
"Thank you for everything, dad" - mumbled Umbra, sobbing and smiling.
"I forgive you, old friend" - sighed Eclipse and shed a tear. It was the first and the last time he cried since the loss of old pack.
The next day, Fafnir was made an Alpha and promised that he will continue fufilling his father's duty of saving forsakened wolves.
Nowdays, the pack lives its ordinary life in peace. There is enough prey and water, but most importaintly, all wolves are under protection of the mighty alpha.
The pack is safe at last.
| Alpha Fafnir | ||||||||||||
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