The Woodlands Beast

The Woodlands Beast is a monster that has been purportedly seen by a fair few unlucky folk throughout the frozen wasteland, a beast that stalks those who wander in the cold pines at night. The legend began it's spread in Hellwood, where people began reporting strange sounds not belonging to the Living Ice that are wandering around the cold.

Summary

It began in Hellwood, right before The Umbra were established in what would become the Shadowlands. While people were making their claim of home in Hellwood, people began reporting the strange noises at night-time, coming from the surrounding forest. As reported by a local civilian named Brock Hampshire, he and his group saw:

A monster that was as half as tall as the trees around it, a good 8 feet. (...) It watched us from however far away we were, its red eyes baring down on us. I swear I could see it smiling at me, whatever the hell it was.

Other reports indicated that its hand were four-fingered, and it's arms were horribly elongated. One such sighting claimed that the beast was wearing the pelt of a wolf; while a conflicting report claimed that it was the skin of a human. One other report stated that it didn't even have a jaw at all, it's tongue hanging out from the underside of it's head.
Perhaps the most concerning story involving this supposed creature, however, is the disappearance of one of the previous Holders of The Umbra. On August 4th, 1979, the Holder Of Pride was reported to have gone missing after a walk he took outside of his home in the Tomb Of Pride. The same day, those living within the Tomb have reported seeing The Woodlands Beast standing in the woods; and despite some efforts to pursue, they were unable to catch the creature. Instead, however, the search party involved found the shredded clothes that belonged to the Holder Of Pride.

Spread

Due to the sightings being seen throughout the frozen wasteland, especially within the Shadowlands, it did not take long for word to spread between Searchers and others who are traveling across the land for whatever reason. As the knowledge of the story grew, a few have come forth with their own interpretations and sightings of the supposed creature.

Variations & Mutation

The more spiritual people who live in the frozen wasteland, such as the Nomans, Navajo Clans or The Order Of The Holy Stone, have often chipped in with their own thoughts on what exactly The Woodlands Beast is. The Nomans seem to believe that it is a manifestation that can be seen from people indulging in the Crosslings Cigar too often, while the Navajo believe that it is a skin-walker that had survived World War III and wishes to harm the survivors in this frozen world. Those within The Order, meanwhile, believe that The Woodlands Beast is an agent of THE EXPUNGED, though this is a topic that is heavily debated among those within The Order.

Date of First Recording

1964

Date of Setting

1964 - Today

Related Ethnicities

• Native-American
• Nomans
• White

Related Species

• Human

Related People

• Holder Of Pride

Related Organizations

• Navajo Clan
• Shadowlands
• The Order Of The Holy Stone
• The Umbra