Belongs to: Clan Nightriver
Pack Leader: Asgerd Thormundottir
Priestess: Disa Sjóúlfur
Pronunciation (s-yo-ul-ver)
Pack Sjóúlfur is a secluded pack that dwells on the Eastern shores of Mardrun, with their fishing village built into the cliffs that overhang the sea. They are a very close knit community and are well renowned for their fierce loyalty to each other and their allies in times of need.
With their remote location on the Eastern side of the continent they have established a robust fishing trade and while their sailing may not be as renowned as Stormjarl or Squalborn, they certainly are proficient in the trade. What they are renowned for are their great organized hunts for whales. A unique custom that has come from this pack is an honored hunt for a shark that is treated much the same as the right to hunt wolves by other Ulven.
The pack is named for their worship of the wolf Sjóúlfur, one of the first children of the Great Wolf. That story is often called Sjóúlfursaga, the Story of the Sea Wolf. This story tells of how their first chieftain gained the favor of this deity who blessed the pack with the Fylgjur, a protective spirit that takes the form of an animal. It is said that a Fylgja will appear in one’s dreams before a great moment of fate is to take place.
Sjóúlfursaga
Long ago there were several families that began to call the eastern cliffs their home. They were descended from great warriors and kinsmen of Nightriver. They started the trade of fishing off the coast of their settlement but none dared to go deep into the waters for fear of drowning and attack from the great monsters that lived in the dark green waters.
Amongst them was a man named Ólafur Skagisson. He was a great man who was proficient in hunting and fishing and he owned the largest boat in the area. Many of the people who lived in the settlement followed him due to his kind nature.
One year the fishing was not going well. The people could barely catch anything. What they drug out of nets was either so small that it should be used for bait or half eaten already. Rumors began to fill the settlement, sightings of a great monster in the deep waters. One day Ólafur found the carcass of a large fish washed up, as he was harvesting what he could he found an impressively sized tooth stuck in the skull. It seemed to only confirm the rumors. But Ólafur knew something must be done. Winter was quickly approaching and if something was not done, they would not survive the season.
Ólafur, who was filled with courage and duty to his people, set out to kill the monster. He sailed his boat into the deep waters South of the settlement. It was not long before he found signs of the beast. The dead bodies of sharks and other large fish floated about the water. Then Ólafur spotted a strange sight. On a sharp series of rocks sticking out of the water sat a wolf with white and gray fur. As he moved the boat closer to the rock he could see crimson on the wolf’s leg, clearly a fresh wound.
Ólafur was a smart man and clearly knew the signs of kunning, so he called out to the wolf.
“Hail wolf friend! I am Ólafur son of Skagi. I greet you with kindness and friendship.”
The wolf looked the man up and down, clearly sizing him up before speaking to him. “Greetings Ólafur Skagi’s Son. I am the wolf Sjóúlfur Gaiasdottir. What brings you to these deep waters, friend?”
“I am hunting a great monster that is causing the suffering of my people. Have you seen what I seek?”
“I have seen this monster you talk about, a great whale bewitched by foul magics. It came from the northern seas, killing anything it can find with no care for food. I have a mind to help you in your task as I too suffer from this foe. Give me your spear, friend.”
Ólafur looked over his spears, handing the wolf his best one. The wolf then took blood from its own wound, painting a series of runes upon the shaft of the spear.
“Use this spear to strike your monster. Recite this verse nine times ‘Gal anda viðr, gangla viðr’ and then thrust your spear deeply. You will find your foe nearby to the west.”
Ólafur took up the gift from the wolf, thanking her and set about his task with renewed courage. The sun had begun to set when Ólafur caught sight of the monster. He quickly drove his boat on course and set upon it. The fight was great and lasted many hours as the whale thrashed around trying to devour him. Finally the time had come and Ólafur recited the verses, thrusting the spear deep into the whale’s flesh. The thing cried out in pain, nearly turning Ólafur’s boat over and dove deep into the waters to die. A calm set about the sea as the sun began to rise once again. Ólafur, set out back to the rocky outcropping to inform the wolf of his deed.
As he retold the battle the wolf jumped up with glee.
“For this great deed I name you Ólafur Sea Wolf and I give you and your people the gift of the Fylgjur, protective spirits. I know my father, the Great Wolf shall hear your name for I shall tell him myself!”
The wolf lept from the rocks, turning its skin into that of a large shark and disappearing into the deep water.
Ólafur returned home to the settlement boasting the accomplishment and not long after the carcass of the whale washed up on the shore, his spear still impaling the thing. With the meat and fat from that whale the settlement thrived through the winter and Ólafur was praised as a hero by his people, becoming the first Chieftain of the newly formed Pack Sjóúlfur named after the wolf Sjóúlfur, the Sea Wolf.
To this day Pack Sjóúlfur still hunts whales on expeditions into deep waters, spearing them so that they die and wash up upon the shore.