Jarryd Peterson

Player:  Chris Rush

    "I remember an ancient Chinese curse:  May you live in interesting times.  Well, I can honestly say that things have definitely gotten more interesting in my life.  I have seen most of my childhood fantasies and nightmares come to life:  spirits, dragons, dinosaurs, vampires, black spirals, and other very beautiful and nasty things.  I have been given the power to fight against the darkness and, ever since I discovered that power, I have had to fight for my very life almost every day.  And not just for my life, but the lives of the others with whom I now live.  I struggle now to maintain my compassion and humanity as I have become more than human...and less.  Interesting times, indeed!"

Gifts:  Smell of Man, Scent of the True Form, Mother's Touch, Grandmother's Touch, Truth of Gaia, Resist Pain, Luna's Armor, Weak Arm, Chant of Morpheus, Calm, Clarity, Kiss of Helios

Rites:  Accomplishment, Contrition, Cleansing, Gathering for the Departed, Greet the Sun, Stone of Scorn, Breath of Gaia, Binding, Opened Caern, Chi-Kung*

*Chi-Kung is a Rite taught by the Stargazers.  At its highest levels, it allows the user to regain Gnosis.  Jarryd currently knows three levels of this Rite.

History

    I grew up in Michigan's Upper Peninsula in a small town called Ontanagon where I lived on a farm with my parents and my two brothers and sisters.  I had your average childhood, you know, I went to school, did chores around the farm, fought with my brothers and sisters...that sort of thing.  I enjoyed working with the animals on the farm and I had planned to go to Michigan State University (Moo U) to get an agricultural science degree.  Well, I guess the fates had something else in store for me...
    This was the summer before I was to go off to MSU.  I was in the stable working with my horse, Bonnie, when she started getting antsy.  I tried to calm her down but she started to buck and get more skittish.  I looked around the stable to see what was making her so nervous.  She pulled the reins out of my hand, giving me a nasty rope burn, and ran out of the stable.  I lost my temper and took off after her yelling at her to stop.  She wouldn't listen and I got even angrier.  Bonnie looked back at me and ran even faster away from me.  I yelled (growled) at her and chased her over the property line fence, tackled her, knocked her unconscious, and carried her back into the stable.  Then, my parents came into the stable holding my torn clothes and wondering what all the noise was.  I was lowering Bonnie into her stall when I heard my mother scream.  I spun around to see what she was screaming about and ran headfirst into the stall door frame eight and a half feet off the ground.  Then reality came crashing in as my anger faded away and I realized what I had just done.  I fell to my knees shaking, all 8'10", 800 pounds of me.  My mom ran  in and gave me a hug.  My anger left me and I returned to my naked, human form as she helped me back into the house.
    That night, she and my dad explained what I was.  They explained that this was a "gift" that ran in
the family and that it was genetic and not a disease that I got infected with.  They explained some of the other misconceptions about Garou, or werewolves, as well, such as I was not an evil monster who was going to go off at the full moon and kill people and that I could learn to control my "gift".  Let's just say that I didn't get much sleep that night.  The next day, I was out  in the stable checking on Bonnie, who was still a little nervous around me but nothing like the day before, when my dad called me into the house.  There were two strangers waiting for me.  They introduced themselves as Phil Morningstar and Frostrunner from the Sept of Gaia's Strength.  They said that they were here to take me away to be with others like me and to teach me things I could only learn with them. I took this news as well as any teenager would...I said, "I don't think so."  Then my mom surprised me and, with tears in her eyes, she said that I had a greater responsibility and that so few now were "chosen" and that she was so proud that I had been "selected".  She said that I needed to go with them to learn to control the "gift" and use it to help the world.  I was stunned by what she said and, as I looked at my father, he just nodded his head and gave me a hug.  We said our good-byes and I headed off for my new home...

Family Info:     Mother:   Debra Peterson                  Father:   Charles Peterson
                      Brothers: Bryan Peterson (age: 20)     Sisters: Susan Peterson (age: 23)
                                    Robert Peterson (age: 13)               Gina Peterson (age: 15)

In the Eyes of Others...

"Since I was Embraced, I was told that werewolves do nothing but destroy. It was one of the few simple
truths that were left. Then Jarryd came along and destroyed that stereotype. Lupines are supposed to be the death of Kindred... He's the only reason I'm still alive."

"Some accuse Jarryd of avoiding his role as a lawgiver and judge. But, he has achieved a kind of balance that no other Philodox I've ever met can equal. Both between the Spirit and the Material and between his Inner Wolf and Inner Savage."