Myths & Legends

## Anuk-Ite

Anuk-Ite is a common myth among Native American tribes, particularly the Sioux. It is known by many different names but all of them tell a tale of a creature with two faces that delights in tormenting people.

### History

The hellhound Halwyn apparently locked the Anuk-Ite away in the Wild Hunt prior to 1912 and then locked himself away in Eichen House in case the creature ever returned.

Dr. Deaton explains that Anuk-Ite "is an ancient shape-shifter, a creature of disharmony. It can turn neighbor against neighbor sowing the seeds of discord and hate. It doesn’t need fangs. It doesn’t need claws. It uses something far more sinister. When paranoia turns to anger, anger turns to violence, and entire communities tear themselves apart. The creature feeds off the fear and grows more powerful.”

He goes on to say Anuk-Ite is also sometimes called Double Face. One face is beautiful, and the other is hideous. Deaton says two faces could mean two creatures, and once those two halves combine, Anuk-Ite becomes even more powerful and deadly.

### Rebirth

After it escapes the Wild Hunt, the Anuk-Ite entity appears to be invisible except when it infests people and animals via burrowing spiders. The Anuk-Ite sought out one human and one supernatural creature to be its two halves believing it would make itself stronger by adding a werewolf to its makeup.

It uses the spiders to steal a person's DNA and face. This process leaves behind a faceless, bloody, humanoid-shaped lump. This cast-off form inspires intense fear in anyone who sees it or gets close. Medical tests performed by Melissa McCallshowed this remnant of the creature has no DNA or cell structure. While visible and tactile, it does not exist in any measurable sense.

Seeking its other half, the human side (Aaron) used fear and intimidation to test Beacon Hills High School students, rooted out supernatural teens, and attempted to merge with them.

Its supernatural half was born in the woods among the Primal Pack (Quinn) and immediately found its other half at the school. The merging process was violent, with each half struggling for dominance. Aaron seemed to win, absorbed all the spiders from within Quinn and morphed into the full Anuk-Ite.

## Bardo

In some schools of Buddhism, bardo (Tibetan བར་དོ་ Wylie: bar do) or antarabhāva (Sanskrit) is an intermediate, transitional, or liminal state between death and rebirth into one's next life. While not every branch of Buddha accepts this concept, it is a central concept in Tibetan Buddhism where there are believed to be six levels of bardo.

1. Kyenay bardo (skye gnas bar do): Birth and life.

2. Milam bardo (rmi lam bar do): Dream state.

3. Samten bardo (bsam gtan bar do): Meditation.

4. Chikhai bardo ('chi kha'i bar do): Moment of death.

5. Chönyi bardo (chos nyid bar do): Luminosity.

6. Sidpa bardo (srid pa bar do): Transmigration.

The realm of Bardo appears as a large white room with grey and white tiling on the floor, support posts, and florescent light fixtures.

Scott McCall, Allison Argent, and Stiles Stilinskiended up here after a ritual performed by Dr. Deaton in order to locate the Nemeton and their parents. (*Lunar Ellipse*)

Kira Yukimura explains the Buddhist concept and how it is marked by visits from peaceful deities and demons and ultimately resulting in death. (*Anchors*)

Scott and Lydia appear in a similar white room in Stiles' mind where they help him break free from the Nogitsune's influence. (*De-Void*)

The Nogitsune creates an illusion of Bardo as a snow-covered Japanese Garden to fool Stiles into killing himself to gain full control of his body. (*The Divine Move*)

## Berserker

Berserkers were Norse warriors who were attributed with great strength and fury on the battlefield.

Historians differ on how they whipped themselves into a killing frenzy with some attributing their ferocity to drugs.

They wore the pelts of bears or wolves, both animals associated with Odin, and were said to absorb the abilities of the animal.

According to legend, neither fire nor iron could harm them.

According to Chris Argent, Berserkers don't just wear the bear parts to channel the animal's ferocity, they actually become animals themselves. He continues on to say that their human side doesn't last long because they are not tempered by the moon. (*Echo House*)

Based on the two Berserker deaths shown: the body turns to dust at the moment of death suggesting they were no longer human. (*Smoke & Mirrors*)

## Druid

**Druid** in Gaelic means “Wise Oak”. Druids act as advisors, emissaries, and healers to the werewolf packs. They also serve as a link between the supernatural and the human population, helping to maintain balance.

Their connection to werewolves formed in ancient Greece after King Lycaon and his sons were turned into wolves by the god Zeus. The Druids had shapeshifting abilities and, while they could not undo the old god's curse, they taught Lycaon how to shift back and forth between human and wolf creating the first alpha werewolves.

## Ghost Riders

They appear to be humanoid and dress in cowboy hats and other "old west" apparel. There are many riders but only four are credited; "The Outlaw," "The Enforcer," "The Marauder", and "The Ranger."

### Real World Mythology

Originally a Norse myth, it shifted to the "old west"in American popular culture during the 19th and 20th centuries. The 1948 song "Riders in the Sky"by Stan Jones established the Ghost Riders as cowboys forever chasing "the devil's herd" of red-eyed cattle. Dozens of artists covered the song including country singer Johnny Cash in 1979 and death metal band Gorlock in 2011.

In the original myth and newer versions of the legend, the riders take unwary or unsavory characters with them.

"If you want to save your soul from hell a-riding on our range, then cowboy change your ways today or with us you will ride..." - Riders in the Sky
### Teen Wolf Mythology

Lydia Martin first found a book describing the mythical Ghost Riders in *Status Asthmaticus*

**"Woden’s Hunt, also known as the Wild Ride or Wild Hunt. A myth of devilish riders in the sky accompanied by black dogs, spectral beasts whose eyes glowed with fire... A Bearer of Death and Guardian of the Supernatural, the black dog is also known by its more common name, the Hellhound.**"
They tend to take and erase people who have seen them. The process can be instant, as in the case of the couple who's son was left behind or gradual such as when the memory of Stiles Stilinskiseemed to disappear for different people at different times. (*Memory Lost*)

They take people by shooting them. They also use whips and ropes to grab and erase their victims. The whip carries a supernatural toxin that can kill if the victim is struck but not taken by the riders. Victims disappear in a puff of green smoke. (*Superposition*, *Relics*, *Ghosted*)

Riders deliver those captured to what appears to be a train station that only the riders can safely enter and exit. (*Radio Silence*)

In the one case we know of, the riders left behind a Banshee (Lenore) despite her ability to see them. Lydia speculates that this may be because the Wild Hunt is connected to the old Irish legend of the Morrígan, a mythical Irish figure that Lydia says was a Banshee. (*Ghosted*)

Capturing is possible. Mason, Corey, and, Scott constructed a special cage that shielded it from electric currents to prevent the Rider from leaving once he entered the cage. They then surrounded it with Mountain Ash as a precaution. (*Heartless*)

Killing a Rider was not believed possible until Garrett Douglas killed "The Outlaw." He was infused with their power. Later, Liam Dunbar and Theo Raeken battle riders and were able to kill a few with a bone saw and their own guns. (*Heartless*, *Memory Found*)

They appear to have a degree of control over Hellhounds potentially due to the creature's own connection to the hunt. (*Heartless*, *Blitzkrieg*, *Riders on the Storm*)

### The Wild Hunt

The Wild Hunt is used to describe the Ghost Riders themselves, the place where those they take end up, and the train that represents the place and the riders moving to a new town.

While not described as such on the show, it appears the Riders and their "train station" exist in a dimension outside normal space and time that is adjacent to our own. This dimension was, until recently, inescapable by anyone but the Ghost Riders.

According to Theo, the Wild Hunt comes and goes and doesn't stay in one place for long unless it's "stuck." (*Ghosted*)

**EDITOR'S NOTE: *In an interview with Jeff Davis, he explains that the events of* Amplification *and* Lie Ability *related to Kira's power causing an "electrical disturbance" at Eichen are the reason the Wild Hunt was stuck in Beacon Hills. However, it doesn't explain why the entire town of Canaan (*Ghosted*) was taken as well.***
While no one can supposedly escape the Hunt, there have been successes and attempts. In an interview, Jeff Davis said that Stilinski's visage of Claudia was a Ghost Rider who wanted to leave the Hunt.

It used his emotional pain of loss to become real, but it only worked so long as he didn't remember Stiles. The only other time it appeared to have worked is with Lenore's son Caleb who died prior to the Riders coming to Canaan. (*Ghosted*)

The Anuk-Ite was trapped there by Halwyn until Scott's Pack's interference with the Hunt caused it to be free. (*Said the Spider to the Fly*)

## Kitsune

***EDITORS NOTE:** What follows here is the barest overview of Japanese fox folklore.*
*It is not, nor is it meant to be, a full account of the Kitsune Myth.*
*The different Japanese folklore stories about foxes are as widespread and varied as rocks in a riverbed. There is no one thing to which you can point and say “there, that is the Kitsune Myth.”*
*Confusing the issue even more is the fact that each different Asian culture has its own unique fox-based myths - each with different names and attributes.*
*What follows deals exclusively with the bare basics of the ancient Japanese folklore on the subject and does not take into account anything published after the 17th century.*
**Kitsune** (キツネ) is the Japanese word for Fox.

Early portrayals of kitsune cast them as heralds of Inari Ōkami, the god of rice, but in some areas of the country the worship of the foxes became more important than the god they served.

There is no single, universal concept of kitsune just as there is no single, universal concept of “ghost” or “demon”.

In Japanese folklore, all foxes exhibit some level of magical ability including shapeshifting into people, other creatures, and inanimate objects. These powers increase with age and wisdom.

In ancient stories, some foxes use their magic for good while others are malevolent. They are often portrayed as tricksters. Some of the stories are comical while others are deeply emotional love stories featuring human/fox pairings.

There are thirteen types of Kitsune in Japanese mythology.

* *Tengoku* (Heaven, Celestial, Light, Prime)
* *Kukan* (Void or Dark)
* *Kaze* (Wind)
* *Seishin* (Spirit)
* *Kasai* (Fire)
* *Chikyu* (Earth)
* *Kawa* (River)
* *Umi* (Ocean, Sea)
* *Yama* (Mountain)
* *Mori* (Forest, Woods)
* *Sanda* (Thunder)
* *Jikan* (Time)
* *Ongaku* (Music, Sound)

## La Bête du Gévaudan

According to Dr. Valack, the Beast was originally a human in the late 1700s, the time of the original Gevaudan attacks.

Gerard retells the story of Sebastien Valet, a French soldier in the 1760s. While running from British soldiers in Canada, he became a werewolf after drinking rain water from the paw print of a wolf. This allowed him, through unexplained means, to transform into a monstrous werewolf whose body is surrounded by smoke-like shadows. (Read More...)

***EDITOR'S NOTE: Jeff Davis explained in an interview that Sebastien was already evil prior to his transformation and becoming the Beast heightened his evil nature.***
Once the man became the Beast, there were a number of very different descriptions of it. Witnesses apparently described everything from a red-furred giant wolf to a cloven-hoofed panther the size of a horse. According to The Argent Familylore, the Beast's body was oil-black, solid but shapeless at the same time. It was like a shadow pretending to be real.

Officially, the Beast is accused of killing 113 people. According to the Dread Doctors, via Theo, the death toll was closer to 500. During the time of the original attacks in Gevaudan, many people believed that the Beast simply killed for sport, as it never ate its victims and would only target the head and neck of its prey. Sebastien's best friend, Marcel, covered up his crimes until Marie discovered the truth.

The only weapon that historically proved effective against the Beast was a steel pike wielded by his sister, Marie-Jeanne Valet. The steel was made from Wolfsbane, Mountain Ash and was forged with her own blood under the light of a full moon.

After his death, Sebastien was effectively erased from history. His sister burned everything he signed and everything he owned in a practice known as Damnatio Memoriae.

A similar incidence of this is described by Scott in reference to the Demon Tailor, a real world serial killer. He lured children into his shop in Paris where he would kill them, boil them and eat them. The court ordered that all records of the case be destroyed, thereby erasing his memory from history. The case Scott cites happened in 1598 but he and Stiles link this story to the Beast as well.