The Godless
The land of Avalon is rich in supernatural happenings, fundamentally based off from the superstition of the land inhabited by individuals. While each individual has a different perspective when it comes to the world of myth, below is universal knowledge. Everybody has had some exposure to this kind of superstition. What you decide to do with this knowledge - believe it or write it off as madness - is entirely up to each and every prospective individual.
LORE AND MYTHOLOGY
The Dorocha are the spirits of the dead who have gone mad by the world of the living. They are said to only come out at night, searching for living souls to steal and feel whole again. It is not known whether everyone who dies becomes a Dorocha or if it is the ones forsaken by the Many-Faced god, Yudire. One thing that is known is that they are depicted as skeletons made of white smoke, shrieking and wailing a dreadful sound that paralyzes their quarry. One-touch from these dreadful spirits is a death sentence. Their touch of death freezing their victims, both in the literal and lateral sense.
Pups are often told about the Dorocha to scare them into behaving. It is said that they favor the spirits of the innocent, coming for pups and youth alike. Den-Mothers certainly use this to their benefit when scolding the wickedest of pups.
The Dullahan are believed to be servants of Yudire. It is believed Yudire sends the Dullahan to collect the souls of the wicked. Every bit menacing Dullahan is depicted as headless canines in a state between specter and solid mass. Despite having no head Dullahan have an uncanny ability to pinpoint where a living being is at. The noises they make aren’t any better. Low moans of pain can be found coming from them as they go on hunts for wicked souls.
The Wild Hunt is an event that is believed to occur near the end of the year in fall. It is where a large group of specter and decaying wolves can be found cheering and whooping, and howling in madness and excitement, chasing an unfortunate soul who grabbed the Hunt’s attention. It is strongly believed that wolves who sneak out at night are hunted down by the Wild Hunt and as such, it is strongly discouraged for packmates to leave camp. Those rule-abiding wolves are safe from the Hunts insanity.
The Hunt is well known to toy with their victims, letting them get away and feel a sense of security before chasing their prey ragged. When eventually caught the Hunt tears into its prey. It is widely believed that the hunt tries to have their prey live for as long as possible before finally ending its misery. Corpses are never eaten.
Wendigos are an evil spirit consumed by an insatiable hunger for flesh. These creatures are believed to have once been an individual who fell victim to famine and ended up consuming canine flesh. They are depicted as solid beings gauntly looking from malnutrition and starvation with yellow eyes blazing with a fire of madness in their depths. Their pelts are ragged and mange like with foam and drool falling from their unnatural gaping mouths.
LEGENDS
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More to be added over the course of Godless' history**
Merida was an alphess who was desperate for love. Despite her rank, she had difficulty finding a partner. Most wolves flirted with her because of her power, so she couldn’t tell which relationship was candid. One midnight, she hunted a rabbit as a sacrifice and prayed to Freya. Every day after, she noticed a bunch of butterflies flying around a certain male, Brandwen. Whenever she looked at him, she saw the insects all over him. The male was just a warrior, so Merida was unsure if she should pursue him. Higher ranked wolves with lower-ranked ones were taboo and often discouraged. She decided to take a chance and spent some alone time with him. They soon developed feelings for each other and became mates months later. Their relationship was the longest in the pack and every litter they had brought healthy pups.
Azik was a beta of a pack who suffered from rabies. Half of the members in his pack were suffering from the disease, and he happened to get into contact with it. He resigned from his position and left the pack in order to help get rid of the disease. His mate, Akumi, and pup, Alden, accompanied him despite his requests to stay away from him. They were not infected, he was. During their journey to unknown territory, he started to feel symptoms, such as hallucinations. One night, during a hallucination, he was told by an old, wise wolf that if he killed his pup, his old pack would be free from rabies. Azik took the unreal message seriously and started to bite at Alden in the middle of the night. His mate woke up and saw him. Akumi tried to stop Azik, but she was too late. She knew their pup would have rabies if he was to survive. “Go ahead, finish him! The damage is already done,” she snarled at her mate. “Let Yudire diminish your soul!” Azik told her about the dream he had, but she considered it crap and vowed to never mate with him again. Shortly, Azik fell to the floor and died. Akumi was surprised by his quick death and quickly left the area with guilt in her soul. She told her pack about the event and soon, the nearby packs made Yudire a popular spirit.
Batelon was a popular alpha of the past. He promoted war and strength among his pack members to the extent that he would have omegas participate in battles. Batelon prayed to Gaurus every single day of his life and never lost a battle. Most wolves didn’t think his prayers made much of a difference until he died and a new alpha emerged. The new alpha didn’t worship Gaurus as passionately and seemed to lose almost every battle. The pack turned on the new alpha and tried to replace him with someone who did worship the god.
Redith was a popular scout of a pack. He was known to gather intel from a rival pack and was great at helping slaves (that originated from his pack) escape. When wolves asked for his secrets, all he said was that he prayed to Lady Luck before and after each scouting. Many wolves doubted him until one night. That night, his task was to free a slave, Luci, from a rival pack that used to be a scout in his pack. As he neared the pack’s camp, the slave spotted him and made her way to him. They were about to leave when three warriors spotted them. “Quick, say ‘let me be free from danger’,” Redith prompted Luci. They both said it several times as they attempted to run away. When the three warriors were too close to them, something magical happened: a herd of bison came running towards them. The rival warriors were no match for the angry bison. Seeing the diversion, Redith led Luci around the chaos and ran to the river. Together, they made it to the pack and told their stories. The pack asked why Luci got caught, and she told them, “I didn’t pray to Edema that day.” Since then, Redith’s alpha required all scouts to pray to Lady Luck before and after each scouting.
Sweven was an alpha, and his pack had been suffering from food shortages for about a month. Hooved mammals migrated to other places, smaller animals were harder to find, and the river was frozen. Many of his fellow members, especially elders and pups, were getting sick and shortly died. His shaman met with him one day and asked him to influence the pack to pray to Tsunam for food. Since the pack was located by a river, it made sense to ask the Drowned God to unfreeze the river. Sweven’s pride almost prevented him from praying for help, but he changed his mind when he thought about his fallen members. The next day, he held a praying session with everyone in the pack. “Let the ice give away to rushing water,” was one of the closing parts in the prayer. The river’s surface became unfrozen within the next two days. Sweven’s pack did not go hungry again.
The Reject Unis, the Reject, was an unruly wolf who never followed orders. His mother would always remind him to be kind to those around him; however, he often ignored her advice. Instead, he bullied everyone and liked to leave slaughtered prey around the campsite to scare pups. Eventually, the alpha of the pack gave him the omega rank. As years and alphas passed, he never received an opportunity to move up a rank. He had gotten beaten on several occasions despite his plea to Iridis is forgive him.
Huckle Wolf Tamina was the epitome of fairness and humility. She treated everyone with respect and rarely showed signs of aggression to anyone. Although she had been treated badly by wolves of higher ranks, she had always kept her loving demeanor. One day, a bully from a pack attacked her during her midnight stroll. She fought for her life. Her fighting skills were no match from the bully’s. Eventually, a rabid bear approached the attacker from behind and began mauling him. Tamina left the screaming wolf behind and ran into camp. The news went around the back like flies and then spread to the packs. It was said that Iridis was her saving grace.
Thanks for reading!
Godless Staff~