Of Man And Of Bat And Of Wolf

Well. I finally managed to write another Valkyrien story. I seem to recall promising some of the various backstories. Admittedly, I'm still trying to figure out how a Kitsune, which is a being from Japanese mythology, ends up in medieval Scandinavia. Or at least bearing Norse blood. On the other hand, this may help to explain where Illuss came from, and how he met Gorm. Intellectual property of myself, Jared Gamaliel Juckiewicz. There be reference to violence. As anything containing Gorm. And Illuss. And Vixen. And Tyrone. And Kaziklu Bey. Kinda has to.

Anyway, here you go...

Well, after we had landed on that border in Eastern Europe, and after we'd set up a base camp, Illuss decided to send us out on recces. Recconaisance missions. Yum. My Favourite. Honest. See, our mission is to cause as much havoc as we can. The area we've been dropped, well, its a favoured trafficking route for the Chechens. Women and Drugs go into eastern europe, money and guns come back. And a considerable chunk of both of those go to groups such as Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Or whoever has got around to replacing them. Our orders are to put as much as a crimp into this traffick as possible. Luckily, if our brief is right, and if the area is like it was last time I was here, that will be... doable, at least. See there are (or were) very few roads. Which means plenty of choke points. Some of the stuff can be hauled my mule train, but we can cope with that.
Anyway, Illuss reasoned that we would to know the layout of the area. So he split us into fire-teams of three, and sent us off. Armed with naught but a blade and a sidearm. Which found us in our present situation. See, he paired Vixen and I off with Tyrone. Our orders were to infiltrate and investigate. Avoid contact. Determine location and strenght of enemy forces. Schedules of patrols. That sort of thing. Of course, what he neglects to take into account is that this particle trio in particular are made up of a Gall-Gaedhil Sidhe. An Elf. A Gaelic Elf no less, and thus originally less than peaceful. Who has since adopted the ways of the Norse overlords of the Hebrides, circa 1200 AD. At the latest. Oh. And A Norse Werewolf, who has been kicking about since a good two or three centuries before then. And a Kitsune who also bears Norse blood, and has been kicking around for almost as long. And, of course that neglects to mention the fact that Tyrone can summon a Cuain Sidhe, an Elfhound. Already has in fact. And I've seen Ponies that are smaller. And Wolverines that are less vicious and bloodthirsty.
However. That is besides the point. Won't become an issue until we actually come across something. Three days we've been roaming these heavily forested mountains. And not a sniff of a contact. Seriously, we have been using scent to try and locate our quarry. Thick as the forests are we can't see particularly far, and in the mountains, hearing is oft a shade less than useful. Anyway. Three days without a sniff. Darkness has already fallen, so we've settled in for the night. There be a fir tree we found when we decided to make camp. And there are these nice little gaps between the roots. So, whilst Tyrone and his hound, Cu-Tyr, kept watch, Vixen and I bedded down. We were on watch as of midnight, and thus sleep was what some would call marginally useful. So, as Tyrone and Cutyr went and concealed themselves, I curled up against the tree, dragging my Ghillie Cloak over me for warmth. Even as I did so, Vixen, little vixen that she is, wormed her way under the edge of my cloak, and snuggled up next to me. "Gorm." she whispered to me, once she was comfortable, nestled in the crook of my arm. "Why did you have them give Illuss the command?" 'Twas a reasonable question, for I had the seniority. I lay silently for a moment, considering how to explain. "I thought he'd do a better job of things." I answered softly. "I'd over-react to something. It'd end in atrocity. Illuss won't. He's always been more controlled." "Since when?" she asked, a grin spreading across her face. A grin spread across mine, as I remembered. "He and his master almost got me killed." I whispered, and she suddenly blurted a "HOW?", so I started in on the tale.
"It was the 14th century or so. Can't remember the exact year. I was a Janissary for the Turks. A slave soldier. On the other hand, 'Twas better than being in the Sultan's guard." I was getting into full story-teller mode, and this was one she'd not heard before. We'd not really discussed our pasts. At least not more than the century or so before we'd met. So, she snuggled in closer, against the mountains chill, and asked me "Why's that?". "Well. To be in the Sultans guard, you had to let his surgeons take your spleen. They didn't want to pay me in the appropriate coin for that." Although, to be fair twouldst be unlikely that they would want a Janissary as a Royal Bodyguard. "Anyway, so, here I was, Janissary for the Sultan. Now, me and my unit were drinking in a tavern, when a few guardsmen showed up. We Janissaries, and the Sultan's guard never really got along, and when someone threw a punch... Instant distraction." I could tell she was curious as to where this tale was going. "Which gave the Voivode. Well. He wasn't yet the Voivode. But, it gave him the chance he needed to kidnap one of Prince Mehmet's concubines. His shiny new concubine no less." Vixen giggled, quietly like. "So," I continued. "Here we are. Prince Mehmet is furious and announces that everyone in his service who was in the area will be executed." My grin went feral and vicious. Not many of us managed to cut our way free. Although those of who did, we remained friends until death parted us. I think I'm the last. "Those of us who managed to cut our way loose," I went on "Scattered to the winds. No one pays any attention to a mangy street cur. I tracked the girl by scent until she took to sea. That would have been the end of it, but I may have chanced across those who kidnapped her. They'd stayed in the Turkish lands." Vixen kept getting more and more curious as my tale went on. "I tailed them until they left the Turkish lands. When the young Lord claimed his title, I proffered him my service. He made me a personal bodyguard when I explained a slightly edited version of what had happened." "Edited?" Asked Vixen coyly, and my response took no thought. "I couldn't tell him I was a Wolf, now could I? And that is the tale of how I wound up in the service of Vlad Dracula, called Vlad Tepes. And by the Turks, Kaziklu Bey." She bolted upright at that. "You served Dracula?" She queried. "Aye. I did." was the response. "And was he?" was her next question, as she stared at me. "No." I responded. "No, he wasn't. Illuss was, by that point. It was that that did it. The myth came out of his only confidante being a Vampire. Oh. And his greatest bodyguard being a Werewolf." She settled back against me, curiosity almost satisfied. She had but one last question left. "So. How does that make you less controlled than Illuss?" "Simple" I answered. "Vlad relied a lot on his advisors. I'd have Impaled half the nobility as well as the rest of those he impaled at his wedding feast... Illuss had him hold off. Never known for a restrained response me." And on that note, I pulled her in close, and shut my eyes. Realizing just how much time we'd wasted on our tale, she too decided to sleep. Out of the darkness came a bemused snort. It seemed that Tyrone had been listening...

And a few notes on Historical Accuracy. Whilst there are few reports that are particularly accurate from that time and period, those Historians who study it have agreed on a few things. Vlad Dracula, son of Vlad Dracul, the Dragon, was tutored by the Turks, a hostage for his father's good behaviour. It is also widely believed that the tale of his kidnapping one of Mehmet's concubines is also accurate. Mehmets response is not recorded, but it is unlikely he took it well. I'd give you my sources, unfortunately my record of sources on Vlad Dracula, who was indeed known to the Turks as Kaziklu Bey, is in Scotland. And I am not. Coincidentally Kaziklu Bey translates roughly as Impaler Knight, or Impaler Lord.