InsaneJournal

DETAILED PERSONALITY: All of his life, Kirk has possessed a sort of gentleness about him that seems to contradict his outer image. Having worked so closely with the land, and been a family man through and through with very few instances of confrontation left him with a level head and confidence. He is very much, what some people would describe, as a “country boy.” Only perhaps without the boots and the hat and Garth Brooks songs on repeat. He was a man who lived without fear, and instead when slightly frightened of something, forced himself to be curious instead, as he believed you were only afraid of what you didn’t know.

However, since the killings and his incarceration, he’s been a much different man. While his former self remains, it’s buried under layers of anguish and confusion. He very much wants to be totally forgiven, but knows that it will never happen. Kirk has become a bit more reserved, and is not nearly as outgoing and friendly as he once was. He is less trusting of people around him, as he fears retribution. The facets of his personality that he has kept hidden away do come out from time to time, but only briefly.
THEME SONG: You're a Wolf - Sea Wolf

HISTORY: The Cove isn’t the first safe haven for supernatural creatures to be in the throes of chaos, slowly coming apart at the hinges, with more questions than answers, more bodies and bloodshed than a sense of security. A similar set of incidents occurred in a community located in Oklahoma called Sprucedale nestled closely to the Wichita Mountains in the early months of 2005. For roughly three months vampires, elementals, and various were-animals lived in fear as their usually sleepy community was turned into a crime scene, with fifteen individuals being added to the body count before it was all over. Once the killings had ceased the unfortunate breakdown of the dead was eleven vampires, two earth elementals, and two lycans.

It was upon the slaying of the last lycan, a recently turned female no more than twenty years old, that the culprit was apprehended. The people of Sprucedale were beside themselves with relief, shock, and sadness when it came to be known that the accused murderer was Kirk Alden. The offspring of pack alpha in Sprucedale, Bennett Alden, no one in the community would have ever suspected that one of their favourite sons could be responsible for such evil.

The youngest pup of seven, born to Bennett and his wife Lucy in the late 19th century, the majority of Kirk’s life was spent in fear in some capacity. Long before the outing of Others to the general public, most had to be careful amongst humans so as not to reveal themselves. The Alden family moved frequently, often before residents of whatever town happened to catch wise to them in one way or another. They’d barely escaped with their lives from Virginia in 1908, townspeople knocking down their door and armed to the teeth with torches and pitchforks. However, the family did not escape entirely unscathed, and Kirk’s eldest sister, Patricia, was killed during this raid.

Kirk grew up believing the fear was born of not understanding, and vowed to never be scared, only curious. The Alden family eventually settled in Oklahoma, although there came hard times during the Dust Bowl when the family’s farm was destroyed. While his brothers and sisters were beginning to leave home (although they didn’t stray far), finding mates and bearing offspring to add to their growing pack, Kirk was content to help his mother and father with their work on the farm, watching his nieces and nephews grow up. He loved his family, and was content to be Uncle Kirk.

However, Bennett was keen to have his son map out his own path in life. While delighted that Kirk deeply cared for his pack and wanted to help on the farm, Bennett very much wanted him to seek out something that interested him. He also wanted his youngest pup to start his own family. Up until then, Kirk had never had a mate, instead preferring to remain “unattached.”

In 1965, although against his family’s wishes, Kirk enlisted in the U.S. Army, and saw combat in Vietnam. While supernatural creatures could not be conscripted like the humans they lived with, they could enlist should they desire. Having avoided the First and Second World Wars, Kirk saw that it was his duty to serve the country that he lived in, even if most of its people were keen to kill his kind on sight if given the chance. Going by his philosophy that you were only afraid of what you didn’t know, Kirk felt the only way to be fearless of war and evil was to experience it firsthand. He was assigned to a special task force made up predominantly of other supernatural beings, so as not to frighten other enlisted soldiers in an already terrifying territory. Kirk was in Vietnam for a number of years before finally being one of the lucky few sent home when America first started scaling back their troops in 1973. Kirk saw numerous horrors overseas, and refused to speak of them upon returning home. Most say that he wasn’t entirely the same after that.

Not wanting to make a career out of the military Kirk enrolled at the University of Oklahoma in 1974, taking many classes to satiate his curious nature, eventually settling on Architecture as his major. He graduated with his Master of Architecture in 1979 and found work as a city planner in Tulsa a few months after his convocation. There, he met a young lycan named Dianna whom he began courting. After three years of dating exclusively and getting the blessing from her father, the two were married, and the two packs decided that logistically that it would make sense to become one.

Much had changed for the Alden Pack since their humble beginnings as a family of nine. It had grown to include roughly one hundred members over the years, some part of the original Alden family and some not. They’d moved a few more times, but always resided in Oklahoma. In 2001, with the announcement to humans that Others lived among them, the Alden Pack enjoyed a few months of relief before tensions began to rise, then working in conjunction with the State to create Sprucedale, a safe haven, in the Wichita Mountains. Upon the incorporation of Sprucedale, Kirk left his prominent job with the city of Tulsa and relocated to Sprucedale to be with his family, and assist in the building of their new community. Everything was perfect and picturesque for the pack and for Kirk, and he couldn’t have asked for anything more.

Despite not wanting to make a life of being a military man, Kirk re-enlisted in 2002 and was assigned to a unit similar to the one he had served with in Vietnam. With most humans knowing and accepting other beings there wasn’t such a need of secrecy behind what they were, as there had been in past military involvements. Their unique conditions were put to good use, and there were missions better served by supernaturals in Iraq than by humans. Upon returning from a tour of duty in August of 2004, Kirk retreated into himself, much more than he had than when he had come home from Vietnam. His family and Dianna were concerned, but after a few weeks Kirk slowly began to bounce back.

Then something happened. To this day, no one, not even Kirk himself could explain what transpired between November 2004 and March 2005. Much speculation has occurred since those days – theories ranging from finally snapping under the horrors he had seen in war to something as foolish as having been coerced into doing it by humans. The fact of the matter is that Kirk murdered fifteen supernatural beings, and has no recollection of it whatsoever.

The night of the full moon in November of 2004 began like most nights that had come before it, the only difference being that on that evening, Kirk and Dianna had a fight shortly before their transformation; something foolish and inconsequential, as most fights between married couples tend to start off as. That was the last time Kirk would see Dianna alive. He does not remember the events of the night, but upon coming to in his human form the following morning, found his wife brutally murdered, and still in her lupine form. Kirk was devastated. A full investigation was launched, but little evidence was recovered, as there hadn’t been much of Dianna left.

It is said that Dianna’s murder was a catalyst for all of the others. While Kirk likely had not meant to harm Dianna, their fight escalated past a breaking point, and things got out of hand, as can sometimes happen with lycans. The rest of the slayings happened due to Kirk’s rage and anguish at the loss of his mate.

It went this way for many more months, as many as six supernaturals being killed during the full moon. It wasn’t until the full moon in January that Kirk came to the horrible realization that it had been him. He couldn’t explain the blackouts that occurred in his lycan form, and only during a full moon. If the occasion arose when he would need to change form any other time, the blackouts did not happen. Years later, scientists in the lycan community still were not able to deduce what happened to Kirk Alden.

Kirk did everything he could think of to prevent himself from getting out during the full moon; he caged himself, locked all his doors, tethered himself to anything that might be nailed down, but it appeared to be of no use. It was only by fluke that he had been apprehended, his lycan form having grown careless and attacking his last victim in full view of many others.

The punishment was to be severe, with little to no leniency granted just because of the family name. Since all those killed had not been human, the jurisdiction was relegated to Sprucedale, with the Federal Government opting not to get involved. Kirk preferred that the case not go to trial, and simply confessed to the killings, not wanting a plea bargain. He’d done horrible things, and wanted to receive adequate punishment for them. Because he confessed, the death penalty was waived and he was given life imprisonment.

Kirk served time for nearly six years, a life of privilege and honour having given way to the scheduled, and heartbreaking, mediocrity of the judicial system and prison. He was resigned to spending the rest of his long life behind bars, wrestling with the consequences of his actions and trying to deeply to find within himself reasons why he had done what he had done. There were times during a full moon when Kirk would blackout, but as the years went on they became less frequent.

In September 2010, Bennett demanded the release of his son, going to the council to make his views on the matter heard. He deemed that the fact that Kirk had to acknowledge day in and day out what he had done was punishment enough. Naturally, many others disagreed, stating that it wasn’t known that upon being released back into the community whether or not the blackouts would commence again, and Kirk would begin killing mindlessly once more. However, it was painfully evident that it had been the wolf that had carried out these acts of violence, and the council agreed with Bennett that everyone’s lycan form could potentially be dangerous. On these grounds, the council granted him a day pass, and on the nights of a full moon, an evening pass, and he was released into the care of his family. There were no blackouts to report, and Kirk seemed to be functioning normally again.

Despite the concerns of the people of Sprucedale, and the devastation of the victims’ families that justice had not been served, Kirk was released from Sprucedale Penitentiary in February of 2011. However, one of the conditions of his release was to leave the community nestled within the Wichita Mountains and never to return. Kirk wasn’t certain that his release was any better than being locked up. Kirk would have to leave behind everything – his family, their farm, the life he’d come to know. He was to relocate to another safe haven, where he would be assigned a parole officer, a job, and accommodations until it was deemed that he was fully fit to re-enter society.

Kirk chose a safe haven community as far away from Sprucedale as he possibly could, of the mindset that if he had to leave behind everything he knew and loved that he wanted to start fresh. He chose The Cove.

FAMILY: Father, Bennett Alden; Mother, Lucy Alden ; Brothers, Luke, Jack; Sisters, Georgina, Karen, Anne, Patricia (deceased). Mate, Dianna Thompson-Alden (deceased).
EDUCATION: Masters of Architecture (M.Arch) from the University of Oklahoma.
OCCUPATION: Currently working at camping and hiking supply store called The Trail Shop, but looking to obtain work in the architectural field.
HOME: Home is the safe haven community of Sprucedale, in Oklahoma for Kirk, and always will be. However, since relocating he has acquired a small property which he was extremely lucky to get. He made the case that after being cooped up in prison for six years that he could not deal with having to live in a cramped apartment, especially having lived in the Wichita Mountains for so long. His parole officer, understanding of his circumstances, was kind enough to help him get a freestanding house with a view of the Pacific Ocean.
WHY THEY ARE LIVING IN THE COVE: Due to his crimes, Kirk was banished from his own community, and wanted to get as far away from it as possible. Needing to live in another safe haven, as per the terms of his release from prison, he chose The Cove.

EXAMPLE: Writing sample waived.