The Whispering Shadow

Very little is known about this wolf. His original homeland is unknown. His name is unknown. His age is also unknown, though the few inhabitants that have seen him believed him to be around 1 year old at the time of his earliest known presence. His appearance was very sudden to the natives of the land, and sightings have been few and far between. Stories from those that do see him tell of a wolf with fur as black as the darkest shadows and a ghostly gray mask running across two sharp eyes that glow in the moonlight. The wolf has only ever been seen at midnight, silently stalking through the trees. It is said when he is present, a deadly silence momentarily falls over The Forest, and a soft, cold, unnatural wind sets in, quickly followed by a mysterious fog. Soon after, strange noises will begin to creep through the woods. The noises are described as "echoing whispers," speaking in a language unknown to anyone. Only after these events will he appear. Only the most observant of creatures can spot him, and none go unnoticed themselves. The smallest noise, the slightest shift in the dirt, and his phantom eyes immediately fall upon the observer. His stare is believed to be of supernatural power, reaching into the furthest depths of mind, heart, and soul alike. All accounts tell of bizarre experiences, from enduring worst fears or guilty memories to encounters with hated or loved ones long passed to visions of the future. When the ordeals end, and reality returns, the wolf is nowhere to be found. The fog, wind, and whispers disappear as well. The Forest is returned to its normal state, as if the encounter never happened. As if the wolf was never there. However, to those few living souls who have found him in the dark of night, he is never truly gone. He is always watching, waiting, in the places the sun cannot see. He reaches out through the darkness to all who wander into it, calling them. Where light is not, he is. When The Shadow is near, the Whispering begins.

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While The Shadow remains a mystery to most, there have been a few wolves whom curiosity, circumstance, and past lives had driven to the darkened lands where he resides. These individuals soon learned whether the legends of The Shadow were also the truths...