Volk

Volk is one of only two totally new characters introduced to the series after Sonic Wings 3 (the other being Hawk). One of the darkest playable characters in the series, Volk is a Russian cyborg who once worked for Fata Morgana. However, the enemy betrayed Volk and attempted to kill him, so Volk joined Project Blue and now seeks revenge on Fata Morgana. Volk's main enemy in the organization seems to be a human man with the ability to create android copies of himself.

In Russian, Volk's name (волк) means "wolf." In appearance, Volk is foreboding. He always wears a long, dark grey cloak covering his entire body, as well as a Russian ushanka. Volk has a mechanical right eye and left foot, as well as a tube that extends from and reenters the collar of his cloak. His single organic eye appears to be grey; his hair is a sandy blond and shaggy. Volk is always unshaven and has bushy eyebrows, one scar across his nose, and one under his left eye. He is shown with a cigarette in Sonic Wings Limited/Sonic Wings Special but not in Sonic Wings Assault.

Nicknamed "the Undead" and calling himself "the man who forgot death" (死を忘れた男), Volk appears to be invulnerable. This is possibly due to his cyborg parts, which also allow him to move much more quickly than would be expected. Volk may have had these parts when he was with Fata Morgana, but another theory holds that they were given to him by Project Blue (and likely created by Kowful) after Fata Morgana betrayed him and tried to kill him.

Volk's motives are questionable; he claims to be following his personal vendetta against Fata Morgana and thus doesn't seem to care about Project Blue's mission, as long as he gets to fight. However, his description in the Sonic Wings Assault manual (see below) indicates that perhaps he just likes to destroy things!

Volk's occupation is stated to be as a mercenary (傭兵). He has this in common with the enemy boss Tenukie Chaudo, a fact played up on with an image of the two characters together, which was once used on Video System's official website (see Artwork Gallery).

Inspiration[]

The sketchbook Pseudo Sky Rascals indicates that Volk was partially inspired by the character Anatoly Gorodoku from the manga Panzerjager Wolf (狼の砲声). Gorodoku, who has a mechanical right eye, is the lieutenant of a Soviet Russian tank crew. Gorodoku is arrogant but an excellent soldier and respected by his subordinates. Volk was meant to be similar to Gorodoku in personality,^[1] and Volk's mechanical eye resembles Gorodoku's. During the development of Sonic Wings Special, the developers even referred to Volk as "Gorodoku."^[2]

Volk's design was also partially inspired by the character Lord Alberto from the anime OVA Giant Robo, which began in 1991. Like Volk, Alberto has a mechanical right eye. It could also be argued that, like Volk, Alberto was betrayed by the heads of his organization, and at the end of the series, he aids the heroes.

Sonic Wings Special/Sonic Wings Limited[]

Swsvolk — Volk in Sonic Wings Special and Sonic Wings Limited.

The Man from the Country of Ice
A man of much mystery, he always hides both hands in his coat, never taking them out under any condition. Because it is detailed in the internal affairs of the "Organization," it is rumored that he is a former soldier of the "Organization" who cannot die. Code name: "Volk the Undead."

—Sonic Wings Special Japanese game manual

Volk is paired with fellow Russians Chaika and Pooshika in two-player mode. He has little patience for them. . . especially for Pooshika, who sees him as a rival but still has a crush on him. Chaika, on the other hand, dislikes Volk and thinks he's crazy.

One-Player Mode Endings:

Boss battle with Pandora/Gurabura: Volk gloats over the defeat of the final boss; then Glenda and River-n-White radio him from their airship. Glenda asks if Volk will continue working with Project Blue, but Volk refuses.
Boss battle with Lar/Do-ni Kai: After defeating Lar, Volk finds another humanoid man in agony amid the wreckage. Volk declares that the man tried to kill him, then cries "Die!" and shoots him. However, when the mysterious man falls, Volk discovers that "he" is really an android substitute for the real man, presumably a figure from Volk's past with Fata Morgana. Volk is unconcerned and states that the pleasure of killing his enemy has simply been postponed.
Boss battle with Balbi/Osaru: Volk infiltrates Fata Morgana's base, where his enemy announces that the base will explode in two minutes and that Volk will die along with the enemy's "copy," implying an android substitute as in the previous ending. Volk reminds his enemy that he, Volk, "does not die, no matter what" just before the base explodes. The ending states that Volk's fate is uncertain, although presumably he survives since he later appears in Sonic Wings Assault.

Two-Player Mode Endings:

Boss battle with Pandora/Gurabura: Chaika and Pooshika ask Volk about what he'll do now that he's had his revenge on the enemy; Volk replies that he's going to open a candy store in Pakistan. When the girls don't understand, he warns them not to play with fire then storms off. Pooshika still has a crush on him, but Chaika's just annoyed.
Boss battle with Lar/Do-ni Kai: Pooshika challenges Volk to a fight. . . and ends up losing, naturally. Despite her loss, she vows that she'll win the next time, even though Chaika scolds her.
Boss battle with Balbi/Osaru: As before, Pooshika challenges Volk to a fight, but he tells her to quit annoying him. Volk pulls a disappearing act that freaks the twins out so much, they pass out, and he makes his escape.

Sonic Wings Assault[]

Volk in Sonic Wings Assault.

Volk is a mercenary who is rumored to have once belonged to Fata Morgana. The reason for his current position in Project Blue is not the large amount of money he is being paid, but rather a personal grudge against Fata Morgana for betraying him.

Volk was the first to join the battle in this upheaval. He went out before the call came in and advanced into Siberia. He easily bloodied the enemy landing force. As he gazed with satisfaction at the burning enemy ships, he received a message:

"I want you to eliminate the enemy and save the people of the world. The rest of the team is assembling," said Lord White, the leader of Project Blue.

"I don't care." With that, Volk flew off to the south seeking his next prey.

Volk's nickname is "the man who forgot death" (死を忘れた男). Death and destruction are the finest wine to him. Revenge against the organization may be nothing more than an excuse.

—Sonic Wings Assault Japanese strategy guide

Behavior when appearing as support: He's a bad man who enjoys a good fight. If you get in the way of his fighting, he gets angry and will take his anger out on all his enemies.

—Sonic Wings Assault Japanese manual

Volk has the alias of "the man who forgets death." He is a fearsome man who enjoys fighting. Because he likes fighting one-on-one, he'll scold the player that covers him and aims at the enemy plane to take advantage: "You're in my way!" When he gets angry, he transfers his anger to the enemy. . . . We're glad he's not our enemy.

—Sonic Wings Assault Japanese game manual

The Japanese manual for Sonic Wings Assault describes Volk's personality as 殺伐, meaning fierce, violent, bloodthirsty, etc. While Volk's main reason for serving with Project Blue is to get revenge on Fata Morgana, it's also because fighting is "his reason for living." His profile also notes that he always wears a long coat and never takes his arms out from under it. Volk "seems to have a secret."

Volk enjoys dogfighting in particular. He is voiced by Yosuke Akimoto in the Japanese version of Assault, and Jeremy Schwartz in the English version. Despite his dark character, many of his voice lines in the English version of the game are humorous:

"Say hello to my little friend." - a reference to the 1983 movie Scarface.
"You fight like a girl! But you kiss like a man!"
"Oh, borscht!" - borscht is a kind of soup popular in Russia and other parts of Eastern Europe.
"Somebody get that fish away from me!" - Volk doesn't seem to like Whity very much.
"Yah, what would you like? We got no chicken. We got no bread. We got dirt. You want dirt? Dirt and rock... and a little vodka. Come, it's nice." - a line similar in style to those of Russian-American stand-up comedian Yakov Smirnoff, who often makes jokes about Russia.

Voice Samples[]

From Sonic Wings Assault

"Ready to serve." (Aerofighters Assault)

"Say hello to my little friend." (Aerofighters Assault)

"Do svidaniya!" (до свидания, Russian for "goodbye") (Aerofighters Assault)

"You fight like a girl! But you kiss like a man!" (Aerofighters Assault)

"I'll take care of this." (Aerofighters Assault)

"It is nothing." (Aerofighters Assault)

"Most impressive, comrade!" (Aerofighters Assault)

"Much thanks, comrade." (Aerofighters Assault)

"Now you will die." (Aerofighters Assault)

"Oh, borscht!" (Aerofighters Assault)

"Somebody get that fish away from me!" (Aerofighters Assault)

"Where are you, comrades?" (Aerofighters Assault)

"Yah, what would you like? We got no chicken. We got no bread. We got dirt. You want dirt? Dirt and rock... and a little vodka. Come, it's nice." (Aerofighters Assault)