The Jumlin is widely referred to within the Cherokee Nation as the father of vampires. His Legend is as follows:
There was once a wise Medicine Man who was married to a woman named Laughing Sky. The Medicine Man loved his wife but unfortunately Laughing Sky was barren. He prayed many times to the Great Spirit but to no avail. Out of grief and frustration, the Medicine Man turned to the dark arts and summoned a demon, which promised him many healthy offspring; the demons’ name was Jumlin. When the Demon materialized he possessed the Medicine Man and transformed him into a bloodthirsty beast, which craved human flesh.
The demon kept his word, Laughing Sky bore many healthy offspring, however the possessed Medicine Man did not stop with his wife; he in turn found great pleasure in raping the other women of the village who also bore his children. Many of them were just as evil as their father but one in particular stood out above the rest.
Laughing Bear was the last child that Laughing Sky bore. After Laughing Bear was born, Jumlin drained the blood from Laughing Sky and left her corpse to rot. Jumlin gathered his offspring and fled the village as world had spread of a great hunting party that had gathered and were coming for him. Jumlin and his vicious brood would travel from village to village, raping, pillaging and murdering. Before he departed each village, Jumlin would abandon one of his offspring so that the surviving women of the village would unknowingly take the child in and raise it as one of their own. In this manner, Jumlins’ bloodline secretly flourished.
One day Jumlin spotted the daughter of a Chief from a neighboring village and attacked her. When the Chief heard her cries he raced to the scene where he was met by the great hunting party. Together they defeated Jumlin and killed most of his offspring, but Laughing Bear and a few other siblings managed to escape.
It is said that the children of Jumlin live to this day; they walk among us and they breed with us. Though they seem completely human, they are to this day, creatures of darkness.
By: Lyn Gibson