The Story of Kindred
Kindred is not one creature, but two.
Lamb is gentle and quiet, with a white mask and a bow. Wolf is a shadow with teeth. Together, they are death.
Some nights, Wolf asks Lamb to tell him a story. He has heard it a thousand times, and he always forgets. She always tells it anyway.
Long ago, she says, death was only one. A pale man with dark hair, walking the world alone.
Every living thing would meet him one day. So every living thing turned away. Doors closed as he passed. Birds went quiet. No one ever said his name kindly. He was the only thing in the world that no one was waiting for.
So he took an axe, and he split himself in two, right down the middle.
One half became Lamb, for those who are ready. She offers a quiet end, and an arrow that does not hurt.
The other half became Wolf, for those who run. He chases them into the dark.
Cutting himself in half must have hurt more than anything. But being alone hurt more.
So he would always have a friend.
Now they are never apart. Every life they end, they end together. Neither will ever be alone again, and neither will ever be whole.