In the shadows of night, we move, an unseen force of nature, we go unseen and unheard. We will hide among the shadows to protect all that we have. We are an average size pack, made up of only four. We didn't know each other from birth we are a band of rogues, outlaws and outcasts. We are alone and afraid. We are afraid of twolegs. But there was a time where we didn't have to hide like cowards, a time when we flourished, a time that is fading in my memory. I remember the day it all started. My family and I were hunting after caribou and we were running through the forest when we heard a huge bang. A beam of light shot out of nowhere and killed my younger sister instantly. We went to investigate and followed where we see it come from. Then we saw it. It looked like a tank those humans used in wars but different they had what looked like a metal rod instead of a cannon. The machine turned toward us facing us and then suddenly the beam shot out of it and missed me by an inch it chased us through the forest. We bounded and leaped and jumped over big boulders trying to evade the machine. We rounded the corner and we noticed that the river was ahead we decided to jump into it. We knew the water would destroy the machine. We jumped in the river and I realized the current was a lot faster than I expected it to be. It tossed us and threw us around like we were nothing. The river was like a dangerous cougar batting around its prey and then all of a sudden everything went black. I woke up somewhere down the river on the river bank. I stood there for what seems like hours waiting…watching… for some sign that would show me that my family was alive. I waited until dusk and I knew that they would never come back. I left and darted into the forest.
I ran for many days and nights searching for some kind of life. I was starving the only thing I had to eat was a couple of mice and a rabbit Nothing that would really satisfy my hunger. I came to a fork in the forest and I caught a scent of another wolf. The scent was of a female. The sweet perfume was hypnotic so I followed it. I must have run like four maybe five miles deeper into the forest and then I saw her. Her fur was as white as snow and her eyes as purple as amethyst. I walked up to her and I felt so nervous I was shaking. She looked at me and her herself looked nervous to. "What is your name?"
`"My name is Isis. I have never seen any other wolves around these parts for years. Where did you come from? And what is your name?"
"My name is Kiba and I come from the forest down the river by the waterfall" I replied nervously.
"You have an unusual name Kiba, but I like it." She said calmly.
"Why thank you. So I guess you're the only wolf in this part?" I asked
"Why yes I am. When I was a pup I lived in a clan with many wolves until the twolegs came with their machines. They destroyed everything in sight and killed many wolves. Everyone died but I managed to escape. I ran for many weeks and I came here," Explained Isis furiously.
"That must have been hard. I only lived with my small family and one day the machines came and we ran into the river and I woke up on a river bank and I waited there for them for until dusk that day and I took off. How about we travel in pairs it would be useful and it would mean better safety."
"That would be fine I guess…but no funny business ok?" she told him jokingly. We looked into each other's eyes and we bounded.
That night was so lonely yet so safe. I dreamt of a Flower and the moon. I dreamt of a place where the grass was green and the sky was blue. The place was paradise and in the dream was a girl, an owl and a beautiful black she-wolf. A black she-wolf came up to me and said that paradise was waiting and that all I needed to do was finding the girl. She told me to use my instincts and that there will be many obstacles that I must face. She lifted up her head and howled really loud. I woke up suddenly and looked around. "Ok it was just a dream" I panted breathlessly. I looked up at the sky and it was in an array of colors. The sky was filled with purple and orange and red and pink. It was beautiful. I looked over to my left and there Isis lay fast asleep. Maybe the dream meant something. Maybe I need to find the gate and get into paradise. That is it I'm going to find paradise. I looked at her and she slowly opened her cute little eyes.
"Good morning Kiba. What are we going to do today?"
"I had a dream vision. We must find the gate that unlocks paradise. A black wolf came to me in my dreams and told me that is what I must do. She said there will be many obstacles that I must face. Do you want to come with me on this quest to search for the girl to paradise?"
"Kiba…where will be going? Where do we start? And how do we get there? And how on earth do we open the gate to paradise? There are so many questions we need answered. We are heading to the unknown. I am scared."
"The black wolf told me that we must follow our instincts. Maybe when I am sleeping I will get more clues but for now we must hunt." We bounded towards a meadow and we crouched down in the tall grass. There was a heard of deer, Must have been at least a hundred or more. We decided that we must scare them and the slowest and weakest one we will kill that one. We dashed off spooking the deer. We caught sight of a very old white-tail buck. I chased it from behind biting the leg and Isis ran up and grabbed the throat with her giant teeth. We took it down in less than tem minutes. That night we had a feast. I ate my fill and went to sleep. That night I dreamed of the black wolf.
"My son you have proven to be a good hunter and have good battle strategies. You must go to the west to the mountains of Gahoule. There will be an owl that will give you a clue about the girl and also will give you a warning. Whether or not you listen to it is up to you."
"Wait? You're my mom? I don't even know how to get to the mountains let alone know where it is. How do I find out where it is? "
"I am the mother of all wolves. I can become any wolf at any time. You are my son and you must find the girl. I took form of your mother when I realized that you needed to be born. I didn't mean to hide my true form from you. Please forgive me. But for now look to your instincts to tell you where to go. They give you senses you do not acknowledge. You have extreme hearing…you can hear miles away and can hear a mouse underneath the ground covered in snow. You have super strength…you can take
down a polar bear. You can smell danger from miles away. You can know where something is without knowing how to get there. Those things will help you survive through this hard time. Now my son wake up and find the owl I will see you soon in your dreams." Suddenly I woke up but this time I wasn't panting breathlessly I was calm and collective and again it was sunrise. I don't think I will tell her about the black she-wolf being my mom just in case she doesn't believe in it. I nudged her with my paw trying to wake her up nicely. She opened her beautiful purple eyes blinked three times and stood up and yawned. She stretched out her front legs in a downward dog position.
"Mother I will forgive you and make you proud" I howled.
"Where are we going today?" Isis barked playfully.
"We need to go to the west to the mountains of Gahoule to look for an owl"
"How are we supposed to know where that is and to find an owl on top of that is very hard work?"
"Don't wine please I know where it is. You see how the sun rises in the east. Well the sun sets in the west so all we have to do is go the opposite direction of the rising sun. We will go until we see mountains and then we look for the owl."
"Ok let's eat before we go we still have some deer left"
"Fine" We ate in silence and didn't even make a sound. The only sound you could probably hear was the belching and the ripping of bones. When we finished eating we bounded westward and along the way we hunted as well.
"Why do we have to find an owl? When you told me this morning I kind of shrugged it off but really it's been bothering me ever since we left. I need to know."
"The black wolf came to me in my dreams again and told me that the owl would give me the next clue on getting to the gate to paradise. The black wolf also said there would be a warning but whether or not I listen to it will be my decision."
"That's really interesting… Do you know who this wolf is?"
"Yes she told me she was the mother of all wolves and that she took form of my brother when she realized I needed to be born. This is my destiny." I howled.
"How do you know the wolf is telling you the truth? How do you know she isn't a demon or something more evil?" She asked.
"I trust my instincts. You should try trusting yours."
"What are instincts?" she asked questionably.
"They are what we have to survive. You have extreme hearing…you can hear miles away which can allow hear a mouse underneath the ground covered in snow. You have super strength… which means you can take down a polar bear. You can smell danger from miles away. You can know where something is without knowing how to get there and that is how we will get to the mountains and that is why I trust the wolf."
"Wow that is something I never knew…Fine I will go with you but I hope we both get into paradise or I'm going to be really mad. May I ask a question?"
"Ask away"
"Why do you want to go to paradise so much? What is there for you that is not already here?"
"You should be asking what is here and not there. The answer to that question is Twolegs. Paradise holds a world where there are no humans. A place; where we can die of old age and not illness. A place; where we won't be killed by the Twolegs. A place; of freedom and not where we have to be hunted down. This place doesn't feel like home to me…not without my family." We kept on walking for a while until we seen the huge mountains. It looked like something out of a nightmare or a scary legend. The rocks were pure black and jagged and really sharp. The mountains looked scary and unnerving and totally not trustworthy. A storm was coming ironically. The winds hurled and the trees shook. The wind was almost pushing us forward as to pull us to the mountains. The rain stung our eyes like a thousand bees. I was as cold as ice and wet as a fish. A crackle of thunder boomed over the land and a flash of lighting zapped over behind the mountains. We ran toward the mountains and soon found a big dark cave. We quickly rushed in and shook off the water from our hides leaving huge amounts of water on the ground. "That was odd and out of the ordinary"
"That was really scary and now I'm cold and wet" Isis whined.
"Ok let's keep going and find that owl." We walked for about an hour and came to a fork in the cave. One cave was light and one cave was dark. We sat there for a bit and pondered which one to take.
"Which one shall we take Kiba?"
"Well think about it. Owls only come out at night. That is when they do their hunting. They avoid light because it is hard for them to see. If we want to find the owl we would want to take the dark tunnel." Isis nodded her head in approval and we started walking down the dark tunnel. It seemed like it was going downward for a bit but it could be my imagination. We saw some trees as we went deeper into the tunnel. The trees were old and dead and had faces of old men. The tree branches were bare and looked like arms. This place was like the forest of the dead even the ground didn't look alive. There was no grass and no sunlight, everything was dark and damp. I don't think anything can survive in this I'm afraid that we won't find the owl. The path led to a huge tree, must have been at least one hundred years old. The tree had a huge hollow hole and we looked into it. "Is the owl here?" We hear a huge screech and we took a few steps back.
"Guess my name and I will give you the information you require" a screech sounded from the whole in the tree
"I wasn't given a name. So how could I know it?"
"That's why I said guess you mouse brain "The screech was louder this time. I thought a while about it and looked to my instincts to help me. Than it came to me…Noctuae! "Your name is Noctuae!"
"Congratulations now I shall give you the information you require. The girl you must seek is tall and beautiful. She has eyes so purple they look like the gem stone Amethyst. Her hair is a soft pink. She is also timid and sensitive so mind your manners with her. She is known as a flower maiden. You will find her dancing on top of the water but heed my warning; you can only have three wishes. She will tell you how the wishes will be done. Just remember don't wish for something stupid wishes have their own logic so be careful of how you word things and most importantly do not mess around with fate. I also forgot to tell you that you shall find the girl in the forest of somnia Now be on your way before I get even hungrier." Noctuae screeched and spread his wings. We ran out of there as fast as we could.
"Let's go through the light tunnel maybe it is a way out" Isis panted breathlessly.
"Ok let's go." We ran for many nights and days until we came to field full of sheep. A small house was placed in the middle of the field. The house was small and white and had a rotten wood fence. The paint was fading from the walls and the chimney had no smoke coming out of it. The fence that held the sheep in was rotten wood and parts of the fence were broken. The field was surrounded by trees. "Could this be the forest of somnia?"
"I don't know. I heard one of the elder's from my clan talking about somnia and they said that it means dreams. So we are in the forest of dreams. So is this even real or are we sleeping? Just thinking about it makes you question if you're in reality" We walked on by the house trying to go by the house stealthily just in case a twoleg spotted us. We managed to go by the house and head deep inside the forest. We found ourselves walking alongside a river. I don't even remember us walking up to the river. We kept walking until we seen this beautiful girl dancing in the river. Wait she wasn't dancing in the river she was dancing on top of the river. She was singing oh how well she sang it even made me want to dance. She smelled of sweet flowers with a hint of darkness but that didn't bother me. Her skin was pale with a hint of pink. Her eyes were as purple as an amethyst but just a little bit lighter than Isis's eyes. She was slender and her hair was a light pink with a hint of purple. She was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen and smelled in my entire life. For some reason I wanted to touch her. I felt like I should make her happy all the time. I felt a deep connection to her.
"Are you the flower maiden we have been looking for?"
"At last we have met Kiba. I have been waiting my whole life to meet you" she said happily. She started petting Kiba softly and giving him a hug. "I knew you would find me Kiba!" She went down on both knees giving me a huge hug. I am guessing you want your three wishes. You're going to have to wait till tonight to do it when the moon is at her highest." She looked at me with those brilliant eyes and kissed me on the forehead.
"Why do we have to wait so long? It's the afternoon and even than I'm still confused." Isis complained.
"What is it that you're confused about?" The flower maiden said.
"Well this is the forest of dreams right? So are we even awake or are we fast asleep somewhere I don't even remember walking up to the river. That is what I'm confused about." Isis howled.
"Don't judge a place because of the name. Yes it is the forest of dreams but that doesn't mean that you're going to be asleep. No you are awake." The flower maiden explained.
"So how does the granting of wishes work anyway the owl said that you would explain that [art to us."
"Well when the moon is at its highest I will kneel down and place my index finger in the middle of your forehead and then you will tell me what you wish for and then I will kiss your forehead and we will wait exactly twenty minutes and your wish shall come true but you cannot wish all three wishes on the same night. The night goddess can only do so much. She is the one who gives me the power to give me the power so I am able to grant you your wish. I also have to let you know that my wishes sometimes don't always go as how people would want them to."She explained all of this so happy but the last thing she said it sounded sad. Her sad voice wanted me to consol her. I wanted to make her happy so I sat by her feet and jumped up to kiss her face.
"Well we will wish for something easy to start we just have to think about it for a while. I still don't know what I want for the first wish because really there is only one thing I truly want." I told the flower maiden.
"Do not tell me anything yet I'm not supposed to know your wish for another I don't know three minutes or so." She winked at me and sat down. We waited for what seems to be hours and then she finally announced "It is time for your first wish Kiba". She knelt down and placed her index finger in the middle of my forehead. "Tell me what you wish for."
"I wish that I could have the ability to never fail a hunt" She kissed me and there was a long silver light flashing down from the moon and wrapping itself around me. It was a beautiful sight it looked like silver fairy dust surrounding me. I started to glow and I grew larger my teeth got sharper my fur got longer and my eyes became sharper. I could feel my muscles grow. I felt amazing. The glowing stopped and the silver light vanished in thin air. "How do I look?" I asked all proud.
"You look scary Kiba. How do you feel?"
"Me? Look scary whatever do you mean. It is still me right. You should never judge a book by its cover. Anyways I feel amazing." I said proudly.
"Go to the river's edge and look you will see what I'm talking about Kiba." She took a few steps back. I gave her a weird look and I walked to the river's edge and looked into the water. I did look scary but that was because everything grew. I didn't want to scare her but at least I will never fail at a hunt again.
"I understand what you mean but hey it is still me. I'm the same guy just look different." I looked into her eyes and for once she had the look of fear into her eyes. "Flower maiden am I able to wish this away or am I going to be stuck like this forever?" I asked with such uncertainty that I thought I was going to have an anxiety attack.
"You have to put up with it for tonight but tomorrow you shall wish for this to be gone." She looked at me and smiled her sweet smile. "But remember you just wasted two of your wishes and you cannot wish for more wishes."
"I am so stupid Isis I'm sorry but we shall get our third wish and it will be a grand one. Please don't be scared of me. Can you deal with this for one night?" I asked timidly.
"Yes I can but you're staying on your side." She said skittishly.
"Fine I will do as you say" We fell asleep that night and for once I had no dreams so maybe I'm doing everything right maybe I'm making my mother proud. I'm going to wish that I and she could go to paradise and live free. I will set things right again but I'm going to stop thinking for a while and let myself drift off to an even deeper sleep. The next day I woke up feeling groggy and hungry. I looked around and everyone lay fast asleep. The flower maiden was asleep under a huge purple flower. I ran into the woods again and I spotted a Caribou. Man does that thing have huge antlers. I chased after it I was fascinated by how fast I was going, everything flew by me and all of a sudden I felt the Caribou's throat inside my mouth I could taste the blood; the flesh; and the fur. I dragged it back to where we spent the night. By the time I got it back everyone was awake. A large gasp came from Isis mouth. "What are you waiting for dig in" She smiled at me and we had a huge feast. That day we spent getting to know each other and we asked the flower maiden a lot of questions. There was one that I wanted to know. I wanted to know what her real name is. "Flower maiden what is your name?"
"My name Kiba is Cheza. Of all the questions you have been asking you should have asked me that first." She said happily.
"I understand I didn't have the courage to ask you. I'm not usually that timid I have no idea what came over me. Cheza I'm sorry." I lay down and started chewing on a bone. She walked over to me and kissed forehead. "I thought you were afraid of my appearance to."
"I am but inside I know it's you so why should I be afraid of you?"Cheza said cheerfully. "It's time to make your second wish. "She walked towards me and knelt down to her legs and put her index finger in the middle of my forehead. "What is it that you wish for Kiba?"
"I wish to be myself again and not be the hideous creature I wished to be" The silver light came down from the moon and encircled me again and lifted me up. I saw myself get smaller in size and myfur became shorter and my teeth became shorter everything became what I was again. I was me again and all of a sudden I was on the ground and the silver light disappeared. I looked at Isis and went up to her and gave her a kiss "See its still me"
"Yes your right. Your eyes are not red anymore. I'm so happy but they did change color."
"Really what is the color of my eyes right now?"
"They are a brilliant electric blue. They glow and make me feel safe. I love them and before they were an electric yellow. I think right now your eyes are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my whole entire life." She gave me a kiss and it felt as soft and beautiful as if an angel were to have done it. I lay beside her that night thinking about the wish I was going to make. It upset me more than anything. At first I was going to wish myself into paradise and I was going to leave her here but I can't I want to bring her with me. I have feelings for her more than anyone could ever understand. I made my decision I cannot live without her and she will come to me in paradise and we shall live forever as free wolves. I woke up suddenly and told Isis what my decision was. She was thrilled and happy. I told her I didn't want to live without her and she gave me a huge kiss. That whole day was spent trying to woo her and making her happy. Night came faster than it did before. Cheza walked toward me and kneeled down to both legs and placed her finger to the middle of my forehead and asked.
"What is it you wish Kiba?"
"I wish that I and Isis could go to paradise" Instead of a silver light coming from the moon a red lighting blast came and zapped me and Isis. The pain was unbelievable and we woke up in a dark forest. We saw the owl and asked where we were.
"You are in the dark forest you will never get to paradise now. You deliberately ignored my warning. I told you not to mess with fate and you did and it brought you here. This is where wolves go who do not belong in paradise. Here you are rogues and you must fight your way and prove yourself worthy of getting into paradise. In the shadows of night, we move, an unseen force of nature, we go unseen and unheard. We will hide among the shadows to protect all that we have. We are an average size pack, made up of only four. We didn't know each other from birth we are a band of rogues, outlaws and outcasts. We are alone and afraid. This time we are not afraid of twolegs we are afraid of the demons who try to stop us from reaching our goal. I have met many wolves that did the same thing. I know that I will earn my keep and be able to get to paradise.