Rain-From-Heaven-High

Rain-From-Heaven-High is a Lupus Stargazer from Cheju Island, South Korea.^[1]

Overview

The Stargazer tribe has long held a sept to protect the caern at Cheju Island, just south of Korea. They have had a presence there for over a thousand years, and even for the last several centuries the island has remained remote from Korea, holding a small population of people who were able to maintain tradition and live their lives without ever rubbing elbows with the Garou living there. The Stargazers used the caern (and the lava tunnels below, as the island is essentially one big dormant volcano) as a place of peace, meditation, and as a repository for much of their ancient lore.

But just over a decade ago, South Korea claimed the island, and began quickly turning it into a popular tourism spot, calling it "Korea's Hawaii." The Garou there have managed, adapting to the sudden population increase as best as can be expected. The edges of the bawn ere hedged in, but since the caern remained underground (and underwater), the situation remained safe though uncomfortable.

Two years ago, however, the circumstances surrounding the sept and caern grew far more dangerous. Both South Korea and Japan began dumping industrial waste not far off the sound end of the island. Combined with the already flagrant pollution from the boats, generators, and other industrial and electrical equipment, this additional contamination began killing much of the underwater wildlife while leaving the above-ground ecology fairly untouched. The totem spirit, the sea dragon Seiryuu, demanded that her children defend the caern from this depredation. But the Stargazers there were peaceful, and largely in accord with the natives, so they deliberated for a long time on a manner to help save their sacred place.

It was too late. By the time a plan had been realized, South Korea put in place a new governor to reign over Cheju Island, an awful man who long had given his soul over to the Wyrm. One night he commanded a number of American military men (stationed in Pyongyang) to hunt down a suspected clutch of "terrorists" and "pirates" living at the edges of the island. The military, using weapons meant to help oust the Garou there, laid waste to many of the Stargazers living there.

Rain-From-Heaven-High was one Cheju Island's Stargazers. She was one of the few, however, who managed to survive the attack. A young Rank 2 lupus, she remained living due to little more than lick, as she watched the rest of her sept be executed by the overwhelming forces.

The lupus, in an uncharacteristic move, vowed revenge, and began enacting a plan to obtain such vengeance. Long has the volcano on the island been dormant, but with the help of the old totem, Seiryuu, she has learned how to wake the slumbering spirit of the fire mountain. She has drawn others to her cause in an effort to wake the sleeping beast, with the intention of drawing down a terrible explosion of lava and ash upon the Weaver-gripped tourists and government ruining the once-beautiful island. This hope of murdering the Weaver's influence there has also attracted the attention of one of Shigalu's survivors - the Stargazer called Tara. Rain-From-Heaven-High has made much movements in learning the veneration rites meant to wake the spirit, and soon, with Tara's help, she may just succeed. The war, in their minds, has just begun. Shigalu - and Cheju Island - would never happen again.

Rain-From-Heaven-High is a young Garou, but is nevertheless a fierce fighter with a surprising depth of spiritual ability. She acts as Tara' secret second-in-command, and can often be seen at caerns around the world performing the commands of the Weaver-hating Trappists.

References