Bet you didn't know St. Christopher originally had a dog's head, did you?

Holy Werewolves!

Watching a documentary about White Wolf and their WoD games got me thinking about the less sympathetic way that I deal with vampires, werewolves, and other creatures of the night in the Ascension Epoch. In my universe, vampires and lycanthropes are as loathsome as they are terrifying. They are not sexy anti-heroes. Generally, you don’t become one accidentally. If these demonic curses fall on you, it’s because you actively courted them, and you wallow in your sinfulness and depravity. There are a couple of exceptions that prove the rule, and no one is irredeemable, but they’re the bad guys.

But let’s talk about one group of very bad guys turned good: the Werewolves of St. Christopher’s Legion.

The various ‘true’ forms of Therianthropy, and Lycanthropy in particular, are the product of the tainted sorcery-science of the demonically enthralled race that inhabits the near side of Earth’s moon. Those Selenites have communicated with those humans who sought forbidden powers since the dawn of civilization, and the most loyal and bloodthirsty of their servants were awarded with bestial, astral forms that they could shift into when the ghost light of Sulva ruled the heavens. But many have lived to repent of this ‘boon.’

The most notable such person was the 3rd century bandit and mercenary Reprobus. The savage dog-headed killer sought to serve – or else, become – the most fearsome ruler of all. He found that ruler not in any earthly or infernal hall, but in the body of the Christ child, and repented. Cured by his faith, Reprobus took a new name: Christopher. Christopher would soon die a martyr, but not before converting other werewolves, just as he had converted normal men.

From that day on, there has always been a small but powerful brotherhood of repentant beastmen dedicated to the service of God. They spread across the world, the special missionaries of Jesus Christ to the dark world of monsterdom. The Legion has counted among its members many valiant heroes, including Thiess of Kaltenbrun, the famous Livonian Werewolf who stormed Hell itself to battle Satan and his witches.

With the gospel in one hand and rending claws in the other, they strike terror in the forces of Hell, proclaiming that even the worst of evils shall be turned to the glory of God in the end.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *