Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Wolf's Rain or the characters therein.
This is a primarily Tsume-centric fic taking place in no specific point in the timeline. Please be advised, this story contains violence, adult language, mature themes as well as a yaoi pairing. If you aren't okay with that then this story probably isn't for you. For everyone else, please enjoy and as always thank you for your support.
The Path of The Non-Believer
Paradise… it was every wolf's dream, their desire… their curse. Each wolf was born with the feeling that there was a purpose to their lives and that purpose was so simple yet so difficult. Find Paradise. But what was it, really? Did it even exist? Many who sought after it failed to reach it while many others simply resigned themselves to the only logical truth: they would never reach it. Tsume was one of those people. He had been born into a decaying world and though he considered the possibility of finding this magical, mythical place and its promises of a better life he, like so many before him, gave up before even trying. How could someone like him ever hope to find Paradise? He lived under that belief for so long until the thought of Paradise completely faded from his mind.
Soon, wolves became scarce, having died out or been killed, hunted down by bored, malicious nobles. Those that survived only did so by assimilating into the world of humans. They put on masks of men and tried to scrape a living where they could. It seemed like the easier option to wear a cloak of normalcy in a world that rejected his kind and for Tsume it was enough. He joined a pack, of sorts, but none of them could truly understand him. They weren't his kind and while he worked with them, ate with them and so forth, it didn't matter to him if one of them were to leave or die. It was just the way of the world.
And then one day, everything changed when a stranger wandered into his territory. Kiba. He was found by his pack, injured and seemingly half dead, but this fierce white wolf with eyes burning like the sun quickly sprung to life. Even in his condition he had no fear of death or failure and it was clear that he wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone who stood in his way. Before he knew it the flame of desire flared back to life inside Tsume and spurred him onwards towards an unclear destination. He was going to Paradise… whether he believed in it or not.
With them were two other wolves: a glutton and a rather nosey wolf called Hige and a runt with far too little life experiences called Toboe. They didn't have a single thing in common between them save for one: the desire for that damn place and while the three of them were unsure about their quest, Kiba never wavered in his beliefs. He proclaimed with absolutely no doubt that he would find Paradise, that he could get them there. It was his hope and his alone that pushed them forward. It was a faint hope, a fool's hope… but despite that, Tsume still followed Kiba and this pathetic excuse of a pack away from all he knew into the wide, unforgiving wilderness.
Half of the time, however, he questioned their journey and where their so-called leader was taking them. Sometimes it felt like they were going in circles and others like they were simply running from one dangerous situation into another. That day was no different. The pack was attempting to leave a broken down shell of a city but they weren't alone. Huddled behind a broken wall outside the shady town they could see the next leg in their journey: a vast snowy landscape leading to the base of a mountain covered in trees. Unlike the last few places they'd been this one looked more promising and lively. However, standing in their path was a squadron of soldiers armed to the teeth with high-powered guns. No matter where they went they always seemed to run into them and it was getting annoying. Tsume huffed and shook his head.
"No good. They have the route blocked off. Looks like we'll have to find a way around."
"No." Kiba argued in his typical flat tone. "We'll get off track if we do that. We can push through them."
Kiba always sounded so confident and sure but rather than admiring such a trait, Tsume found it obnoxious.
"You dumb shit." Tsume spat. "So narrow-minded and reckless, you're going to get us all killed. There's nothing wrong with taking a detour. Paradise isn't going to up and run away if we take a day or two to be smart about things."
Kiba glared at him in response. "If we stop and take a detour every time we run into something inconvenient then what's to stop us from taking another and another? We'll never make any progress that way."
"Or so you say."
Soon the other two joined them, keeping low as to not draw attention to themselves. Tsume turned his attention away from Kiba to address them.
"You find out anything?"
"Not much I'm afraid." Hige said, shaking his head. "This town's picked dry so we didn't find any food and the next town is in those mountains… but from what I heard it's all but abandoned now after some kind of incident."
"Incident…?" Tsume could only imagine what that might've been but there was some hope for them. No people meant that there may still be animals there for them to hunt with little competition.
"Yeah and I looked around for a way out but this whole side of the city is being watched. We'd have to backtrack and take a wide path around to avoid getting spotted." Toboe finished, looking unsure and a bit frightened.
"Figures…" Tsume groaned. He guessed that was the case but it was still inconvenient. "I guess it can't be helped. Lets head back and-"
"We're pushing through. Straight ahead." Kiba interrupted, causing Tsume to glare at him.
"What the hell did I just say? It's too reckless to go running into those guys. We should go around."
"Go around if you want, then but I wont wait for you."
"But Kiba… maybe Tsume's right." Toboe said softly, not wanting to step out of line. "It's safer, isn't it?"
"If you're afraid then go with Tsume. I'm going to Paradise… and I'm not going to let anything get in my way."
And just like that he was off, leaping over the wall with masterful speed and flexibility. The others watched him go in shock as he ran right towards the soldiers. Tsume should have followed his instincts but the suggestion that he was afraid just pissed him off and he let out a growl before charging as well, following Kiba.
"Come on!" He called back at the others.
"Geez… what the hell kind of pack is this?" Hige asked, shaking his head. Despite the danger, the whole pack followed suit but it didn't take long for the soldiers to spot them and once they did the men immediately opened fire on the wolves. The group took out soldiers one after another, creating a bloody path through the terrified men. Kiba, being the furthest ahead, broke through without being hit. He let out a sigh of relief, reassured that he made the right choice but when he looked back he saw that the others weren't following, struggling to fight off the men.
He wanted to shout back at them, urge them to just blaze right through like he had or to go back and help but at the same time something in him urged him to keep moving. Even if that meant leaving them behind. He was still for several seconds while his mind waged war with itself. He did say he wasn't going to wait but then…
Reinforcements quickly arrived, making the battle more difficult for the wolves, especially the youngest, Toboe. Tsume was the oldest and more experienced so he felt an obligation to protect him, even going so far as to stand in front of him as bullets came flying though the air. He caught one in the shoulder, letting out a pained groan but even then he did not stop fighting. With so many enemies it was difficult to tell where the bullets were coming from and with so much movement around them Tsume didn't notice one soldier sneaking up behind him, a knife risen into the air.
"Tsume!" Hige yelled out, causing Tsume to turn. However, before the man could plunge the knife into him there was a flash of white and Kiba appeared, pouncing on him. His teeth sunk quickly into the man's throat and after a shrill scream and some thrashing, the man stopped moving, his eyes staring blankly, eternally into nothingness.
"Kiba…" Tsume hadn't expected the man to come back for them, let alone to rescue them but he didn't have time to express his gratitude as another wave of bullets descended on them.
"Move it! Everyone, run!" Kiba shouted, urging them on and leading the pack away from the spray of bullets and finally out into the open wilderness.