Chapter X

When she woke up, Tsuki once again found herself in an unknown place. It seemed she was in the middle of nowhere. All around, the land was barren, dry, and cracked from lack of water. Dust flew by due to the erosion of the land, and the air was thick with contaminants from the lack of vegetation. There were no familiar scents, just arid nothingness. With no idea what to do or where to go, she began walking.

She continued forward until she saw something green in the distance. Excited, she ran until she saw a giant, leafy bush of grass. It was the strangest plant she had ever seen. It emitted a scent that made her nauseous; it was disgusting, almost poisonous. She didn't want to get anywhere near it, until she saw something that made her frozen stiff.

Next to the plant, she saw… herself. It was like looking in a mirror, except her clone was wearing a white summer dress that flowed nicely in the breeze, her sleek white hair flowed down over her shoulders, and her eyes were wholly red like the Flower Maiden's. At first, Tsuki thought it was a mirage in the heat of this barren desert. As she stepped forward to see if it was an illusion or not, she felt something wet. The dry ground was now covered in water, and what was once a vast desert was now a vast ocean that went up to her ankles. Her clone stood unaffected by the change of scenery.

"Who are you?"

"I'm your counterpart—the part of you that you lost in Paradise when Tora revived you. I am Lupa."

"Lupa? That's what that woman called me—er, us." The girl nodded. "But I have my memories back. Why are you here?"

"Because you're still confused."

As ambiguous as that reply was, Tsuki couldn't deny that she was still confused, even if she wouldn't admit it. She was still confused about what was going on now, and she was starting to think she would never be able to get her life back together because of it. She needed closure, and the only way she knew how to get it was to find answers. "So why am I here? I mean, why are we here? If you're a part of me, then why am I—we—still 'confused'?"

"I am not confused."

Tsuki rolled her eyes. She was so sick of this bullshit. "But you just said we're the same person."

"We may share the same body and the same mind, but I am forever bound to Paradise, therefore I am a separate entity. Your thoughts and feelings are your own, just as my thoughts and feelings belong to me. However, because we share the same mind, I can still feel what you feel, and I feel you are confused."

"And why do you believe that?"

"Because you are still not sure of yourself. Now that you finally remember who and what you were, and you are aware of who and what you are, your purpose in life is still unclear. Whether you are meant to serve the Nobles or go with your pack is uncertain to you. Am I correct?" Once again, Tsuki couldn't deny Lupa's claims. Her doppelganger smiled sympathetically at her. "But now you've been given a second chance, and Tora gave you that chance when he saved you and replenished your body.

"I can't tell you what to do, Tsuki. You may do things I don't agree with, and there is nothing I can do to change that, despite our shared psyche. Ultimately, whatever path you take is your choice. You can either join your friends in their search for Paradise, join together with big brother and Toboe, or you can find Tora, the one man who gave you the chance to change this world for the betterment of wolfkind."

"Paradise," spat Tsuki. "I don't want to go back there. But I don't want to leave Tsume and the others, either."

Her red-eyed clone smiled. "It's your choice…"

"But—"

Before Tsuki could ask any more questions, Lupa slowly faded away. And as the water disappeared, she began to black out.

-X-

As time passed, the harsh snowfall became gentle as if fell upon the dreary land. With slumped back, the wolves tread far from Darcia's decrepit Keep, trying to find their way out of the frozen wasteland. They were, to say the least, depressed. Their leader was missing, the Flower Maiden had been taken away by Jaguara's men, and they had no idea where they were going. The only thing they could think to do was keep going until they could find a solution. After a few hours of walking, the pack decided to sojourn and wait for the solution to come to them instead.

Tsume stood with his hands in his pockets as he watched his sister breathe. She hadn't woken up since their departure from Darcia's Keep. Even though she was only asleep, he was still extremely worried about her. When she finally began to stir, he went to her side and shook her shoulder. "Tsuki, wake up."

When her eyes slowly opened, Tsume finally took a breath. "Tsume?"

"Hey, kid. You okay?"

"I feel a little lightheaded, but yeah, I'm okay."

Unfortunately for Tsume, their family reunion was short-lived. When Toboe saw that his friend was awake, he immediately ran over and hugged her. "Tsuki, you're okay!" She was taken aback by his sudden embrace but gratefully returned the gesture. Tsume did his best to hide his frustration and jealousy.

"What happened?" she asked when she was released. "Where's Kiba and Blue?" She heard the third wolf grumble in the background.

"They're gone," Toboe replied sadly. "There was a light, and then they were suddenly gone. All the other humans and Tora also disappeared…" Toboe stopped when he caught a whiff of something and began to sniff the air.

"What is it?" Tsume asked.

"I'm not sure, but it's a familiar scent."

"A scent?"

Toboe ran to the precipice of ice and found a body lying in the ditch. Everyone ran over to see what he found. "It's that hunter again," Tsume growled. Tsume hugged his arm when she saw the body. The man looked practically dead but she couldn't detect a hint of death on him, only liquor. It was amazing he was able to survive in this condition.

"His body's almost frozen," Toboe said in astonishment.

"Just leave him," Hige muttered indifferently. "It's what he deserves."

"How could you say that knowing how important he is to Blue? If we don't do something, he's going to die." The hungry wolf looked away begrudgingly. "We couldn't do anything to save Blue, either, remember?"

Finally fed up, Hige grabbed the unsuspecting pup and slugged him.

"Toboe!" Tsuki let go of her brother and went to Toboe, glaring at Hige as she helped the injured pup.

Tsume pulled Hige back before he could take another swing at Toboe. The last thing he wanted was for his recovering sister to be caught in the middle of a stupid fight (or for Toboe to get hit again). "Would you stop it! Don't take it out on him."

Toboe held his wounded cheek looking surprising calm. "Are you okay?" Tsuki asked in concern.

"I'm fine," he murmured stoically as he stared passively at the irate wolf.

Hige grunted and looked away, refusing to meet Toboe's humble gaze. "We're looking for Kiba, right?" he said. "Then let's go." He began walking away from the others, not bothering to see if they were following.

Tsume looked back at the youngest pack members. "Toboe, Tsuki, let's go."

"Why don't you go on ahead?" Toboe suggested. "I'll catch up, okay?"

"Don't come crying to me when he wakes up and shoots you," Hige said carelessly.

Tsuki frowned at him. Even though his statement was blatantly apathetic, she reluctantly agreed with him. She wasn't sure if it was okay to just let Toboe stay with the hunter alone. If he woke up, who knew what he would do once he saw the wolf pup? "I'll be okay, Tsuki," Toboe said encouragingly. "You should go ahead with them."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

Tsume didn't move, either. He didn't show it, but Tsuki could tell he was also concerned about Toboe. "Hey."

"Just go on," Toboe said stubbornly.

"Don't get too involved," he warned. "He's a human, after all." He nudged Tsuki's arm so she would follow him. She looked back at the brown wolf fretfully. He gave her a reassuring smile before going towards the hunter and lying by his side.

Tsuki smiled back at the brown wolf. Toboe was growing braver, she noticed, and a little more grown-up. But Tsume's warning reverberated in her mind. What if Toboe did get too attached to that hunter? He was the type to grow attached to people very easily, and she didn't want to see him get hurt by his own naivety. For now, she would just have to have faith in Toboe and hope that he would meet up with them very soon.

"Tsuki." Breaking out of her thoughts, the young girl turned back to her older brother. "How are you feeling now?"

"I'm alright," she said.

A moment of silence passed between the siblings until Tsume spoke again. "You know you're going to have to tell me what happened eventually, right?"

Tsuki cringed. "What are you talking about?" she asked innocuously.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Tsuki. The accident—"

"We're going to lose Hige if we don't catch up." Firmly ending the conversation, she ran ahead of her brother, leaving him to seethe.

Tsume knew Tsuki couldn't avoid confrontation for long, but he wasn't going to force her to tell him something that made her uncomfortable. He just got her back; he wasn't going to lose his little sister by being careless again. For the time being, he would wait for the right moment to ask her about it again, and hopefully she would comply without evading the subject.

It wasn't long until the pack finally made it out of the tundra and into a desert-like plain, surrounded by giant rock formations. It was hot, but the weather was nice compared the freezing wasteland they'd just left. It also gave Tsuki a haunting feeling; she couldn't put her finger on it, but this place looked too familiar to her.

Despite the change in weather, Hige still didn't grow a better attitude about their predicament. "You know," he said, "the fact of the matter is it's useless to keep looking." Ironic, Tsuki thought, since continuing on without Toboe to search for their missing leader was his idea in the first place. "I mean, do we go back and search around the fallen Keep again, or go past those huge mountains and look for him there? Either way, we still don't know if he's alive."

"I had no idea you were so worried about that Blue chick," Tsume suddenly mentioned, catching him off guard.

"Hey! What do you mean? I haven't said a word about her!"

"It's because you haven't said anything. That proves you're worried.

"It's not like that," Hige mumbled stubbornly.

Tsuki, who had been listening to their conversation silently, was watching Hige when Tsume suddenly mentioned Blue. She had no idea he was involved with the navy blue wolf, and Blue never mentioned anything about Hige, either. And contrary to what he said, Tsuki also believed that he was concerned about her. His feelings for Blue explained why he was so suddenly mad at Toboe (she was still mad about that). She was also growing concerned for Blue. She wondered if she was in the same place as Kiba, or Cheza and those other humans.

Suddenly, the pup noticed the older two stopped in place. When she heard whistling coming from above, she looked to the sky and saw a fleet of Nobleman aircrafts. Tsume pushed her behind him protectively as they hid away under the shade of the rock formations.

"Those are the same guys who brought down Darcia's Keep," he growled. "Whichever Noble they work for, they're too strong for us to fight." Tsuki knew those ships. They belonged to—

"It's Jaguara," Hige said, finishing her thoughts.

"Jaguara?"

"They must be hers. She's the ruling Noble to the South."

Tsume and Tsuki looked at the hungry wolf intriguingly. "How do you know that?" Tsuki asked curiously. Not many people knew about Jaguara since she did everything so clandestine, so how did a wolf like Hige know about something like that?

"I just heard the name, is all," he replied without removing his gaze from the sky.

"Jaguara," Tsume echoed bitterly. "That's what that human said in the last town. He made it sound like she was collecting wolves." His eyes narrowed until they were glaring at the Nobleman crafts. "Why the hell would she want to do that?" Tsuki stood behind him quietly, pondering on his question.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a familiar howl. "That's Toboe!" she cried. He sounded like he was in trouble. She ran off to follow the yowling before the two other wolves could react.

When she found him, she saw that the vulnerable wolf pup was surrounded by two men on horses. Tora had told her about these people—Native Americans, they were called. Unlike many humans they'd encountered, these people lived like the wolves, relying on nature to provide for them instead of sophisticated technology. He also told her that they even lived alongside the wolves at one point. She always thought they were a peaceful people, so she didn't understand why they were attacking Toboe.

When she saw the bow and arrow pointed at Toboe, she ran in front of him and spread her arms out defensively. "Stop!" The man withdrew his arrow a bit in confusion, but then he pointed it at Tsuki. Before he released it, a gray wolf with a scar on his chest attacked the man on the horse and held him down. Hige did the same with the other man.

When Toboe saw that he was no longer in danger, he sighed in relief. Tsuki joined his side, and they hugged each other fiercely.

"Are you one of Jaguara's flunkies?" Tsume demanded. "Why is she after us?! What the hell does she want?!"

The man held under the grip of Tsume's knife gave him a perplexed look. "Jaguara?"

"She's capturing wolves, and I want to know why!"

All of a sudden, the man began laughing. The wolves stared at him in befuddlement.

"What's the deal?" Toboe asked. "Why are you laughing at us?"

"If you're wolves, you should've just said so in the first place." The man sighed in exasperation. "That's just great. The elder's gonna have my hide for this."

After clearing up the misunderstanding, the man, whose name was later revealed to be Iyek, offered to take them back to his village. Apparently, Iyek's men were attacked the other day by some strangers, and they were watching out for them ever since. Just as Tora taught her long ago, Iyek's people, the Hmong tribe, meant no harm to wolves.

As soon as they were in the village, Toboe and Tsuki were instantly fascinated. There were many strange cone structures (Tsuki remembered they were called teepees) all around which were, apparently, what that Hmong people inhabited. There were poles with cow hides and sweet-smelling meats hanging from them. All around everyone was happy, enjoying their domestically nomadic lifestyle. It was probably the most positive place the wolves had been to thus far, and with everything that happened to them, it was nice to see people smiling for a change.

Toboe was the most eager to be here. The others assumed it was because he used to live with humans, but the pup never saw anything like this. Back then, it was just him and Granny. They were alone; they didn't have other people to depend on like the Hmong tribe. And these people treated everything with respect and compassion. It was really something to be admired.

The group suddenly stopped in front of two girls tending a sick dog, and Iyek jumped off his horse to join them. Tsuki noticed there was something green on the dog's back, mostly likely some healing herbs. Iyek talked to the girls for a bit, and they responded by laughing and running off to play.

"Is he one of your friends who was attacked?" Tsume asked curiously.

Iyek nodded. "I don't know if they were poachers or what. They just hurt the dogs and left. This one kept fighting off until the very end."

"We know who might've done this. That old human—"

"But he couldn't have!" Toboe denied. "That guy was half frozen! Besides, he knows the difference between a wolf and a dog."

"How come you're trying so hard to protect that geezer?" Hige asked angrily.

Toboe hesitated a moment before answering, "He was talking in his sleep. He said, 'Blue, I'm so sorry.'" Tsuki looked at the pup sadly. It must've been tear-jerking to hear that from a senile old drunk. She almost felt sorry for the old man.

"Maybe," Hige said, "if they mistook the dogs for wolves…"

"Jaguara, then?" Tsume surmised.

"She may be killing anything she can get her hands on, even if it only looks like a wolf."

Tsume turned back to Iyek. "You mentioned earlier about believing in wolves. What exactly did you mean by that?"

"What did I mean? I meant what I said. Wolves are the ancestors of every human being, except for the Nobles, of course."

Suddenly, an elderly man approached the group. His face was wrinkled with age and deep wisdom. Tsuki could feel something spiritual about this man. "Iyek," he croaked.

"Yes, Elder."

"Bring along our guests."

Later that night, the Elder began to recount the origin of wolves:

"Long ago, back when Man was still an animal, there were evil monsters that ravaged this earth. Mother Earth opened the gates to Paradise and set the wolves upon the land. The wolves fought bravely against the evil and vanquished the monsters. To the ignorant man-beasts that remained, they taught them many things, and from part of their own bodies, the wolves created Humanity.

"This tale has been passed down in our tribe since ancient times."

"You mean humans were created from wolves?" asked Toboe.

"Yes, little one," the Elder replied. "Back when the world was young, as you are. When the wolves seek out Paradise, this world will come to an end. Or perhaps the world will end because of their search as they make their way home. It is unclear which will happen first. Regardless, when the wolves find it, everything in this world will cease to be.

"Who first began this search?" he suddenly questioned. He looked at Toboe, who was closest to his right. "Was it you?"

"Was it my idea?" Toboe reiterated. "No, sir."

"Was it you?" This time, the Elder looked at Hige.

"Not likely," Hige immediately denied.

Then the Elder looked across at the two siblings. "You then?" he asked as he looked straight at Tsume. The gray wolf stared stoically at the old man, not bothering to input an answer. "No? Then how about you, little one?" Tsuki shook her head.

"So we shouldn't be trying to find Paradise?" Toboe asked dubiously. "I mean, if the world ends, what will happen to everyone?"

"As to that, no one can be certain." The Elder then looked up. "No matter where nature goes, our path is to follow."

Tsuki followed his gaze and looked upward. She assumed he was looking at the moon, and she could practically feel the spiritual energy of the lunar star flowing into the room. The Elder, she assumed, was probably more in tune with nature since he was the oldest and wisest member of the tribe. And after hearing his ancient tale, she realized these people were more similar to wolves than she thought. Maybe he'd be able to answer some of her questions.

When all the other wolves were gone, Tsuki went back into the Elder's teepee. "Yes, my child?"

"You were expecting me?"

"You are not like the other wolves."

"Is it that obvious?"

The Elder smiled at her. "I could sense it as soon as you entered our village. You are probably wondering why all is."

Tsuki nodded shyly. "Everything's been so topsy-turvy lately now that I have my memories back. I thought everything would be as it was before my… accident, but I feel more distant from my brother and even more like an alien. I'm too different."

The Elder nodded and considered her words carefully. "It seems you don't realize your transformation is a blessing in disguise."

"What do you mean?"

"You now hold the blood of both the wolf and the lunar flower. You create balance between this world and Paradise. That is why your friends cannot go there without you."

"My friends can't…" Tsuki tried to comprehend this new insight. "So… does that mean… I'm the key to Paradise?"

The Elder shook his head. "Since you are the only wolf to ever go to Paradise and come back, you have a closer connection with the Flower Maiden. But there is only one wolf that can open the doors to Paradise." And he left it at that.

Once she left the teepee, she found Toboe standing outside the entrance. "What were you and the Elder talking about?" he asked.

"Oh, um, I had had a few questions about the story, is all," Tsuki answered quickly. "Where are the others?"

Toboe shrugged, blushing shyly. "I stayed here to wait for you." Tsuki's cheeks also flushed at the nice sentiment. "So, um, do you… do you want to take a walk?" Tsuki nodded before taking his hand.

The pups took a comfortable stroll through the Hmong village. Only a few people were still out. The rest were inside their teepees either asleep or spending time with their families. The dogs that were out approached the wolves, and soon, both parties began to play for a bit. When they got tired, the dogs snuggled next to each other. Toboe and Tsuki changed back to their human forms and left their fellow canine friends to sleep peacefully.

A few minutes later, the pups stopped to rest on a rock formation, lying back to gaze at the moon and stars. "It's beautiful," Tsuki said.

"Yeah," Toboe sighed out. "Tsuki, what do you think of the Hmong tribe?"

"I don't know. It's the nicest place we've come by so far."

"I thought so, too. Everyone here is so friendly, and they love wolves. We'd be completely safe here."

Tsuki, sensing where this conversation was going, turned to look at Toboe. "What are you getting at, Toboe?"

"Don't you think... staying here would be a lot better? We wouldn't have worry about Darcia or anything! And the people of the Hmong tribe would take care of us! What do you think, Tsuki?"

Honestly, Tsuki didn't know how to respond. The idea sounded euphoric, but she knew just as well he did that staying wouldn't solve all their problems. However, before she could give him her answer, a bay cried out. "Hey, you two!" The pups sat up to see Hige and Tsume. The gray wolf had a very irritated look on his face. "Where have you guys been?"

Toboe and Tsuki jumped down from the platform. "We were just talking a walk," Toboe answered.

"Well don't get too comfortable," Tsume said. "We're leaving first thing in the morning."

"Um, actually… I think… I wanna stay here."

Everyone except Tsume looked at the pup, stupefied. Tsuki didn't want to believe him, but she knew he was serious. "You're gonna stay here, huh?" Tsume finally said, breaking the tension. "So does that mean you don't want to be with us anymore?" Toboe nodded in reply. "So does that mean you want to stay here?" This time Toboe made no response. When he saw the look in Tsuki's eyes, he tore his head away. Tsuki's hand fell from his. If Toboe chose to stay, then the pack would be even more separated. She had just gotten her memories back, and once again it felt like her world was falling apart.

"There's something about this place, how Iyek's people live," Toboe finally said. "That's Paradise to me."

"Are you sure?" Tsume asked. Toboe bowed his head and frowned. "Toboe, is this what you want?" he asked more forcefully. Toboe only continued to say nothing. "Well, if that's really what you've decided then it's okay by me, kid. Take care of yourself." He turned away from the pack and began walking back to the village. Hige looked back at him sadly before following Tsume.

Tsuki, who grew still throughout the conversation, hugged her arms, trying and failing to hold back tears. "I didn't want it to end this way," she whimpered. "We were supposed to…"

Toboe hugged her. "I'm sorry, Tsuki. But you can always stay with me. We can live here in the village together."

She pulled away from him as if his touch burned her. Hot tears fell down her cheeks, and it him knowing he was the cause of her misery. "No I can't."

"But… don't you also want this?"

"I do, Toboe—I mean I did, but... I can't…" She took a deep, calming breath. She didn't want to leave Toboe, but she had no choice; she didn't want to lose her only family. She didn't expect Toboe to understand her predicament, but then again, he still didn't know she had recovered her memories. It was only fair to tell him the truth before they went their separate ways for good. "I can't leave the rest of the pack. I can't leave Tsume."

"Why not?"

"Because… he's my brother."

And with that, the gray wolf pup bounded off to join the other two, leaving Toboe standing in a tizzy.

Tsuki didn't say goodbye to Toboe the next morning. After running off like that, she was too cowardly to face him. She just told him that Tsume was her older brother. She loved him dearly, but even she knew the gray wolf could be intimidating at times. No doubt Toboe had his tail between his legs. And even though she had made up her mind, she didn't need another reason to give herself doubts. She couldn't stay. It wouldn't have been right.

Once they were ready, Iyek led them out to the desert until he couldn't follow them anymore. He didn't know what was beyond the canyons and his people never went past this area, but the wolves would find out for themselves once they moved on.

"Thank you for everything, Iyek," Tsuki said before she left with her brother and Hige.

"No problem." He looked back at the wolves that were waiting for her before saying quietly, "You know, you can always stay with us if you like. It's safer here, and I know that you're very fond of that other kid. He looked sad when you left the village."

Tsuki gave him a half-hearted smile. "I wish I could, but I can't leave my brother. Not again."

Iyek returned the gesture with a sympathetic grin. "Alright. I understand. Have a safe journey."

When he turned his horse around, Tsuki turned as well and began towards her brother. When she reached him, she latched onto his arm. Hige saw this but neglected to say anything.

"You okay?" Tsume asked as they walked on. He knew how close she was to Toboe; it had to be killing her to leave him behind.

"I'll be okay," she whispered hoarsely.

"Since the day I met him, that kid's always wanted to be with humans. The runt's always had a soft spot for them."

"I guess that was pretty obvious," Hige murmured.

"Didn't you say you've given up on Paradise, too?" Tsume suddenly said to Hige. "Don't feel like you have to tag along with us."

Hige stopped in place, prompting the siblings to halt as well. "You two would keep going, even if you had to do it alone?"

Tsuki looked up at her brother with the same perplexity as Hige. "I want to see it for myself. If wolves really do cause the world to end, then I wanna be there when it happens. Besides," he looked back at Hige with a smirk, "there's no way I'm giving up now, not after spending time with that pig-headed jerk. So I'm going to look for him." Tsuki rolled his eyes before walking ahead. What a typical male response. Tsume chuckled as he followed her, sensing her annoyance.

Hige smiled at him before running to catch up to them. "Hey, Tsume, when'd you start talking like that? You sound like him."

The gray wolf said nothing as he looked up at his sister. He could accredit his sudden optimism to their absent leader, but really, it was Tsuki who inspired him to continue this fruitless endeavor. If she hadn't regained her—no, if she hadn't reentered his life in the first place, he wouldn't have anything to live for; he'd have no reason to even want to go to Paradise. But now, knowing the world was bound to end, he had a lot more to live for, and he'd be damned if they couldn't get to Paradise because of their idiot leader.

The wolves continued their trek until they reached the edge of a precipice, and before them stood a dry, desolate desert.

"Man, talk about a wasteland!" Hige exclaimed.

Beyond that, the wolves spotted a bulging figure out beyond the desert. Tsuki figured it was probably what drove the Native Americans away. She couldn't see it very well from that distance, but she felt something very familiar about it. "Is that it?" Tsume said.

Something roared in the distance, suddenly catching their attention. A black tank bulldozed towards the bulge. "It's those guys!"

Tsuki froze. Those were the same soldiers who attacked them at Darcia's Keep—Jaguara's soldiers. Which meant they were the same people attacking Iyek's men and their dogs. "How'd they find us?"

Tsume grabbed her hand as they began running towards the tank. "The way they're coming," he panted out, "it's almost like they can track our moves before we make them!"

"Which means it's kinda pointless to run and hide!" Hige pointed out.

As they ran on, Tsuki began to recognize their location. She recognized this desert, and as they finally made their way to the bulge, she recognized that, too. It was the giant, leafy bush of grass from her dream. Those black soldiers were after something in it. They were Jaguara's men which only meant one thing: they were looking for a wolf.

"Kiba's in there!" she hollered.

"What?" Tsuki unlocked her hand from Tsume's tight grasp and ran ahead of them. "Tsuki, wait!"

The girl did not slow down. As soon as she came in contact with one of the knights, she dropped her human guise and bit into his neck, instantly killing him. Another knight with a strange-looking gun shot at her, but she quickly dodged it before she was hit. Tsume, in his wolf form, jumped the knight before he could take another shot at the pup. The knight was strong enough to push him off and began shooting at the gray wolf. An arrow was suddenly shot into his neck, and he was also down for the count. Iyek showed up on his horse with his bow at the ready and an anxious wolf at his side. However, before anymore damage could be done, the knights suddenly fell unconscious. The wolves stood about in awe.

Through all the trouble, Tsuki was able to sneak past the knights and get inside the grass. She found a gaunt white wolf inside. "Kiba!" Once again human, Tsuki pushed away the grass as she crawled further inside. Even in her human form, the stench of its poison wreaked her sensitive nose. However, she didn't fall as the knights did when she came near the plant.

When Toboe saw his friend go inside the poisonous bush, he ran to join her. "Tsuki!"

"Stay back!" Toboe drew back at Iyek's command. "Don't get any closer. The poison from that grass has paralyzed your friend."

"But, how come Tsuki isn't paralyzed?"

"She must be immune."

"But… But what if she ends up like Kiba? I mean, is he…?"

"He's not dead!" Tsume exclaimed. "And she won't die, either!"

With a bit of struggle, the lavender-gray wolf was finally able to pull Kiba out of the grass. Iyek carefully picked him up and set him on his saddle. "Your friend's spirit has been taken," he told the wolves. "I'm sure the Elder can call it back."

"Maybe I can help," Tsuki offered. The wolves stared back at her, completely dumbfounded. Iyek didn't look so surprised. "I'm familiar with… the Spirit World."

Iyek nodded. "We must hurry." He mounted his horse and held onto Kiba as he galloped away with Tsuki at his tail. The wolves looked back at each other with uncertainty before following their comrades.