Sometimes the dead refuse to admit that their soul has already passed on. That what remains is merely rotting flesh, without a glimmer of life. Sometimes they rise again, mindless, body decaying, driven by some unknown purpose, unable to rest. Risen Dead is one of these.

In life, he had been a Jeweled Wolf. And full of life he was, always the adventurer, always seeking out new places to explore. Till one day Death found him, and that life was taken from him. But having always been a restless wanderer, what remained of him could not stay where it had fallen. Though pieces of him had fallen off and been replaced, or even lost, that which had once been alive continued to seek new places, to search for adventure, though it could no longer appreciate either of them.

What form Death had taken, none knew. Why this Death had not permitted Risen Dead a final resting place, again was a mystery for which there was no answer. And so the creature that had once been a Jeweled Wolf found the Darkened Land. Here there were many creatures of Death such as he, one stranger than the one before. Though he continued to roam, he no longer left the borders of this place. Perhaps his rotted mind did not know that he travelled the same paths over and over again.

And so taking no notice of those around him, he continued on his eternal, final adventure.

But Risen Dead had not passed by unnoticed by another. The other's eyes glowed in the darkness but little else gave him away in this world of shadows.

Silenced Demon had some to this Realm to escape, to hide from the world that had treated him so cruelly. His tale was one filled with pain and hate.

The story begins when he just a pup, playing in the warm sunshine with the other youngsters while the rest of the pack, inlcuding his parents, were away on a hunt. It was not unsual for little ones to be left unattended at this age and they were not frightened until the human raiders came. In truth the men were little more than a group of drunks, but the pups knew them to be dangerous. They also knew that if they were threatened they were to run and hide without making a sound until it was safe to come out.

The demon pup, with the glowing red eyes was the youngest of the group, and had always felt an unreasonable urge to prove himself stronger, smarter, braver and better than all the others. This stubborn streak of pride was to be his downfall, for as he faced the humans that had invaded his territory, he had little chance of defeating them. And so the pack howled that night for their little lost one they were fated to never see again.

Of all the creatures of all the worlds, humans could be the cruelest. They tortured the poor defenceless pup. Perhaps they did not like his demonic air, perhaps it had nothing to do with the pup and he had just been the unlucky target of humans' sadistic tendencies. To prevent the pup from biting anyone they had attached a muzzle over his head. But not familiar with this particular breed of wolves, they misjudged how large he would grow as an adult. The muzzle tightened over time, but it was far to dangerous for the humans to replace it with another by then, had the thought even crossed their minds. And so it began to bite into his skin, and eventually become a part of his very flesh.

And so the pup became an adult, strong but bitter. Finally, his strength reached that point where he could snap the leash that had held him captive for so many years. In his crazed madness for revenge, he killed the humans and vanished into the nearby woods. In punishment for his attack on the humans, the mages punished him by stripping his tail of fur, leaving nothing but the pink-skinned rat-like tail he now bore as a constant reminder of the hate he held for all other living things.

The muzzle, so tight around his head and mouth, had prevented him from learning speech, not that he had any desire to converse with any creature he encountered on his journey that eventually led him to the Darkened Land.

So he did not speak to his fellow wolf, who would have undoubtedly taken little interest in him anyway. He just watched with to burning eyes, and soon turned to leave himself, vanishing into this barren land where he could go days without encountering another living...or once living...thing.

Name: Silenced Demon
Gender: Male
Parents: Unholy Legend x Royal Dreamer
Element: Demon
Pack: NA
January 2006

Jeweled Wolf