Title: Untameable Fires

Author: Lexa (yatenshiweb.de)

EDITED VERSION

Disclaimer: Hey guys, Tsume speaking. So, if ya people really believe that this girl owns us shudders with disgust I'd seriously advice you to take a nice li'l room in a mental asylum. Come on, as if such a handsome, independent and not to mention cool guy like me could belong to this person! growls

Lexa: truer word was never spoken, I'm afraid sobs me own nothing ;;

Rating: R17 (some violence and language, just to be sure)

Author's Note: Muwaha wonder what will happen to Tsume? . Well, if I like a character, I love to make him suffer… and I do like Tsume grins evilly can't help it ;;;;

Tsume: Help me

Very sorry for taking so long ;; I'd almost given up on this story, don't ask why, no time, and as time went on, my Muse went with it plus, I've been abroad for one month with no opportunity to get online… sorry, people! Now I'm back, and it's done Y

Hope you haven't given up on me yet!

And thanks to my favourite readers

AspirinForYourHeadache: stop it already, you're making me blush blushes thank you anyway! °° I'll do my best in the sequel… though it's gonna be angsty more than anything else ;;;;

dragonwing4: aaargh, sorry, you're right, I mixed those guys up… gomen ne I'm a pretty confused person sweatdrops thank you ;;

fangsire: don't ask for too much of that sequel… it won't bear any resemblance to this story, merely taking up some of the events told in this ;;;


Chapter 3 – Better let sleeping wolves lie

Beyond the physical and logical I will survive / I'll never give up, I'll never submit / I'm here to fight with swords made of me

(Valiance, "Swords made of me")

As Tsume came to his senses, he almost wished he hadn't, because immediately the pain was there, and it felt as if nothing short of replacing his head with a new one would cease it.

A major concussion, he supposed as a splitting headache threatened to make his skull explode.

Still he couldn't quite recall what exactly had happened to cause this state, many parts were hazy, he only remembered a fight- that much was certain- and getting hurt. Then blackness. Nothing.

Slowly, more details arose from the depths of his mind, he'd been defending Toboe against the robots, yes, after their pack had separated in order to find some food…and as the memories returned, so did his full consciousness.

Not yet daring to open his eyes, lest to worsen the headache any more, he listened to what his other sensed told him- something hard, cold beneath him, it felt like metal; a soft gurgling noise was all his ears could catch, echoing slightly, telling him that he was in a hall or room of some kind, a bad sign; and in the air hung a faint, yet acute stench that he couldn't quite determine.

Looks like I'm captured, he sighed inwardly. That would have to change.

Anyway, apparently there was no immediate danger- Tsume couldn't tell just how long he'd been out of it, but certainly long enough to finish him off, if his captors had indeed wanted to do so.

So he decided to wait until his head would calm down a little and then take the steps necessary to get out of here- such an irritating delay on their search, nevertheless right now it seemed impossible to get up without having his head split open, rather poor prerequisites if one wanted to escape from a unknown place.

Still, the piercing stench sort of bothered him- it was somehow familiar, or so it seemed, yet he couldn't put a finger on it.

Hige'd certainly know what it is, Tsume mused. That brought his thoughts back to his pack- what were they doing right now?

Toboe's probably whining, and Hige's grumbling about his empty stomach- as usual. Coming to Kiba, however, his musings stopped- he just couldn't figure the other wolf out.

What about him? Most likely, he'd resume his quest, looking for Cheza- last night, he'd made himself quite clear about what came first on his priority list.

Tsume wasn't quite sure why, yet… the thought somehow saddened him.

Immediately, he growled at himself. Hell, he had never been relying on others for help or rescue, and he certainly wouldn't start now! He'd get out of here- wherever 'here' might be- and then set out on Kiba's tracks.

And best was to begin with finally cracking his eyes open.

He regretted doing so instantly, as a bluish, though rather dim light pierced his pupil, and he couldn't bite back a pained grown.

"So the sleeping beast has finally awoken, hasn't it?" In the split of a second, Tsume was on his feet, teeth bared and growling, ignoring the pain that threatened to knock him down any moment, and looked around for the unknown speaker.

He'd been so certain that he hadn't smelled a human in this room… however, at realising just who- or rather, what- had spoken to him, he didn't wonder anymore.

Because that thing in the large, blue flickering glass tube had, apart from the scarred head framed by dark hair, nothing human to it- a head that, despite the ruined torso it rested on, was held up high in a way that spoke of immense charisma and willpower, of a man whose mind hadn't broken apart as his body had, and though nothing was left of his former enthralling exterior, he just refused to alter his behaviour at all.

Staring at the crippled man in instinctive disgust, Tsume barely noticed his legs giving way beneath his body when the adrenaline rush subsided and the pain returned with full force, his eyes rolling back in his skull that was about to burst, drawing a choked groan from the grey wolf as he closed in eyes in a desperate attempt to stop the nausea that came with the headache, almost making him want to throw up.

The taunting, cruel voice somehow nudged its way back into his awareness, cold and delighted at the same time. "My, my, don't push yourself too hard, you were hurt quite severely… But at least my men didn't draw much blood, that's a good thing. Awh," he sighed with something akin to pleasure, and Tsume would have very much liked to rip out the vocal cords producing this malicious voice that continued, "such a strength… after the beating you received you've still so much strength, such a powerful being, just what I need…"

Tsume was about to ask just what this bastard 'needed' from him, but decided against it- the guy wasn't worth the efforts, and he certainly wouldn't do him the favour and resume his human disguise.

A disgustingly amused chuckle came from the man's withered form. "So you don't want to talk to me? I know that you could… You made yourself quite a lot of enemies, and I know about you wolves- you could communicate with me if you wanted to, don't try to hide it."

Some things fell in place for Tsume at the crippled man's words. Rarely anyone believed in wolves anymore, and even less really bought the old stories of wise wolves in human form, yet this guy knew…

He growled lowly, the only reaction that thing was ever going to get from him.

"So you are unwilling to talk… Fine with me, then let's get straight to business," he giggled again, a nauseating high-pitched sound that echoed from the high, blank walls melting with the darkness above, making a shiver creep down Tsume's spine. What was this bastard about to…?

Whether by word or motion the wolf couldn't tell, yet somehow the man had activated a mechanism that made a door at the small side of the hall slide open, and all at once, a dreadful stench washed across the room, hitting Tsume and nearly making him gag, his head spinning badly.

Death.

He was no stranger to that kind of stench, yet never before had he smelled it in such a high concentration, not even the countless corpses he'd seen up to now had ever given of anything near that intensive reek.

Pure destruction.

Struggling to fight off the nausea and trying to breath through the mouth, the grey wolf narrowed his eyes peering into the chamber revealed by the opened door, barely lit by a set of flickering technological devices, to see just where that horrible stench was coming from, yet as he finally did, he almost wished he hadn't.

After the life he'd led, after so much fighting, the look of death had become almost normal, and killing was neither unusual nor something to worry about, for Tsume least of all people… however, the, yes, mass grave he had made out in the faint light was enough to make even him shudder.

Seventy corpses at least, men and women alike, were laying twisted into bizarre postures in a large square hole in the ground, seemingly deprived of all their blood- the bodies were withered and wrinkled as if dried out from within.

"They were weak, inapt for my plans" the man commented with an indifference that made Tsume's temper flare dangerously. He despised humans, they were worthless beings, yet even he had his limits- such ruthless slaughter for some perverted 'plan' was too much!

He snarled deeply in his throat, the stench making his head swim, and wondered just what the crippled bastard had in mind.

The man continued "You'll certainly agree with me that my body's not in state one would call acceptable, the war devastated me into what you see… There are the technologies necessary to return the strength to me, though, I've got all the devices right here… yet I simply lack a source of life energy strong enough to feed me! Years after years I spent- or rather, my father did so- searching for a powerful being that'd satisfy my needs. However, none was ever strong enough. They withered and died, without giving enough energy for me to regenerate. Humans are too weak!" His voice grew almost angry, the first emotion beside amusement that Tsume heard in the high-pitched tune, then suddenly, the cripple started sniggering like a madman- which he, in Tsume's opinion, probably was.
"Humans are too weak for my purpose… yet there are also non-human beings out there, with a power that surpasses any that man might inherit, and as I learned of the wolves, I knew my chance had come…"

Realisation dawned on Tsume, and he liked neither the man's twisted smile nor what his speech was implying- that the grey wolf was about to end up on that heap of dead bodies to serve that bastard's narcissistic plan.

Certainly not. He wouldn't play the guinea pig for some crazed cripple's experiments, he'd never, ever have his life taken by a low human asshole, and most of all he wouldn't submit.

Even so, maybe his head was hurt worse than he'd thought, as his senses refused to do what he wanted them to, because otherwise he certainly wouldn't missed another man entering the room- an skinny old guy clothed in some kind of green robe whose bearing was just as arrogant as the crippled man's, yet with a hint of hesitation in his movements that told the grey wolf clearly just which one of the two humans had the upper hand in their relationship.

The elderly man, looking even paler in the blue light emanate from the glass tub, walked over to the younger one, pressing his hand on the cold surface, bowing his head slightly. "Ker. Are you ready?"

Nothing short of a disgusted groan came from the crippled body behind the shiny glass, "If I am ready! I've waited for years! Just do it! It will work this time!" Several emotions could be determined in those choked-out sentences- impatience, anger, greed, the need to reassure himself that a cure for him was near were only a few of them.

Tsume wasn't about to wait and find out if the man called Ker was right. His head had calmed down enough for him to get to his feet again, and he let his narrowed gaze scan over the room, trying to establish a plan, the best way to get out of here. If his muddled memory wasn't playing tricks on, he was somewhere subterranean, meaning that escape would prove to be difficult.

A grim smile worked its way around the corners of his mouth. What a coincidence that danger happens to get me all excited… Without further thought, hoping that the two men were still busy enough talking to give him the moment's delay he needed, he closed his teeth around one of the poles that where holding him captive- they'd underestimated him badly to think that mere steel would keep him in check.

Of course, there was one fatal error in this plan- the two men weren't as busy as he'd hoped, and even if they were, the screeching sound of metal bent and cracked would've certainly caught their attention.

"What the--!" yelped the elderly priest, Kares, yet his voice was lost beneath the panicked shriek his son gave off as the wolf leapt out of the cage, seemingly having crooked the bars with teeth and willpower alike. "SOLDIERS!"

Obeying immediately, several black-clad men rushed in, armed with guns that- like anything in the room and on the humans here- were pretty old-fashioned… lost beneath the surface and to time as well, fled here as their home town died, surviving, existing without living, only striving for an aim that was as arrogant as it was futile.

Tsume bared his teeth in a feral growl that, to his amusement, made the warriors recoil slightly.

If it weren't for the black pain raging through his skull, making it almost impossible for him to see straight, he'd probably have enjoyed this- as things were, however, he was in a hurry to take care of the sixteen soldiers rushing at him- maybe there were even more of them waiting outside, with that horrible stench filling the room it was impossible to smell anything beside death.

And death he was, since before they were able to release the safety catch of their guns- fools for not doing so earlier- half of them were lieing in pools of their own blood, throats and chests slashed open by razor claws or ripped out by sharp teeth.

The grey wolf cursed inwardly as he stumbled rather ungracefully, too off-balance to catch the momentum of his leap as the dark streaks of pain coursing through his brain made him close one eye in order to see straight at all. Shit…

Within seconds, a bulky warrior had regained his composure and took the chance, bringing his gun up and firing a well-aimed shot right at Tsume's heart that the wolf barely managed to avoid.

"DON'T KILL HIM, YOU FOOLS! Take his blood, no matter what! I need his blood!" came Ker's panicked screech, the blue liquid surrounding him in the glass tube moving and splashing as he twisted in some useless subconscious effort to participate in the fighting, keeping the grey wolf from leaving. "I WON'T LET YOU GO!"

The next few minutes where only a blur of motion, screams, blood and pain, as Tsume ripped and clawed his way toward the door, soldiers falling one after the other, and he was so lost in fighting, killing, that he didn't notice Kares approaching him, armed with a plain steel sword, swinging it with unpractised, weak hands, certainly no warrior, yet following his son's command blindly.

The strong momentum completely out of the old priest's control, the blade not only delivered a deep slash to Tsume's left side, but also deprived two soldiers of their heads, and their limp bodies went down at the same time as Tsume collapsed on the floor, growling deeply within his throat, feeling the strength leave his body together with his blood at a startlingly quick pace.

Yet with the deep-rooted instincts of a wounded beast, his initial reaction was to jump at the one hurting him, not caring about the sword since Kares by far wasn't fast enough to bring the blade up a second time, and seconds after that, the old man was lying on to ground, his tattered green robe soaked crimson, unseeing eyes staring into darkness.

His son, however, couldn't care less- his struggling only increased as he realised that none in this room was alive anymore, aside from him and the wolf, and that his only chance of being restored, of living again, of getting away from that desolate place was right now limping out of the door.

Gathering all his remaining strength, Ker moved his hands, flexing them, testing them, then reaching out to grip the edge of the glass tube, trying to feel it beneath the flesh of his fingers that had been scarred into numbness, pulling his crippled, burned body closer to the edge as the wires connecting his body to the devices necessary to keep him alive were stretched before tearing off with a snap.

It didn't matter.

"I… won't let you… go," he choked out between ragged breaths, making the wolf that'd almost reached the door turn around again to watch him with cold golden eyes.

For a brief moment Tsume considered killing Ker like he had Kares, yet he decided against it. He couldn't afford to waste his energy like that, not with the amount of blood he was loosing, and that fool had, in his blind despair to get him, just delivered himself to death as he severed the electronical connection that was keeping him breathing, and he could already see him feel the effects of it- no need to interfere.

He'd more important matters to attend to right now.

For example, staying on his feet… He cursed quietly. Kares' blow had hit him badly, more bad luck than anything else, and the deep slash marring his side from the left hind leg to his shoulder was bleeding profusely. He could only hope that no more soldiers would come to their master's help…

The grey wolf stepped out into the hall, a narrow passage dimly lit by flickering, pale lights, and tried to decide just where to go. Sniffing the air, Tsume felt the intense stench of death filling his nostrils, nausea beginning to make his head swim- no, that wouldn't do.

Maybe the right one... he mused, noticing that not far to his right, the passage led into a larger, better-lit hallway. Heading for it, he tried to favour his right legs in order to lessen the pain somewhat, and cursed his own vulnerability.

Step by step, it was getting harder to focus on moving, and by the time he reached the hallway, breathing heavily, his body felt unbearable hot. White stars danced across his vision, their amount increasing, and Tsume closed his eyes in an desperate effort to not give into the leaden heaviness that was pulling his body to the ground, as if gravitation had somehow doubled her force.

Not fainting, was his only thought, not now, not here, it was too dangerous... yet his system refused to ignore the severe loss of blood any longer, and before realising it, the grey wolf felt his body hit the ground, vivid colours swirling across his vision...

As Tsume came to again, he found himself lying on the floor, his right side hurting from the impact, his left side hurting from the deep wound, and his head hurting still from the encounter with the robot. Wonderful, he mused sardonically while carefully trying to sit up, watching out for any signs of dizziness, feels like I'm still alive. Wonder how long I've been out...

Anyway, there was no time for pondering this. First, get up, second, get out of here, third, find Kiba and the others. Nothing more, nothing less.

The first task was carried out rather easily, slowly he climbed to his feet, feeling somehow relieved that his system had stabilised again, and breathed in deeply- successfully ignoring the stench still coming from the room abound with corpses he'd left behind.

Task two proved to be much more difficult to accomplish. Just where's the fucking exit! Rather randomly, after reaching the broad passage, he turned right again, not really knowing why, but trusting his instincts that seemed to call him into that direction.

He wondered whether it was a good sign that, all of a sudden, he heard voices and hurried steps echoing through the hallways, approaching him, and quickly he returned to the passage he'd just left, crouching against the wall and listening intently, waiting for the owners of the voices to come. He was not really in the condition to fight, and lest he used the moment of surprise his hiding would- hopefully- provide him, things looked bad for him.

Pointed ears twitching, fangs bared, the hunter tensed his body, lying in wait for his prey.

No, he wouldn't submit. He wouldn't loose. He was ready.


The former town- or rather, the very large village- was a sole field of ruins bleached out by the glaring sun and scraped off by the sand-laden wind carrying over from the desert.

Apparently, no human had set foot on the deserted, dirty streets or entered the remains of once impressive houses for years- a town like most cities were today, run-down and lawless, only worse. It was dead.

However, Hige's sensitive nose had caught the faint trace of motor oil again, leading them to a building that must've once housed some military base, and somewhere beneath a dangerously unstable mess of steel girders and crumbling concrete they'd found what seemed to be a doorway of some sort- amazingly well-kept considering all the decay around, showing that it had been used not long ago on a regular basis.

The metallic gate was locked, yet steel had never proved to be much of a challenge for wolves' teeth, and so gaining entry was quite easy, a little too easy for Kiba's taste.

As soon as the white wolf stepped into the darkness lurking behind the gate, far from the harsh sun burning down on the outside, a cool breeze came out of the shades laying before them.

"I smell humans… faintly," Hige noticed while holding his nose high into that stream of chilly air.

Only a few looks were exchanged between the three wolves before beginning their descent into whatever it was that awaited them, and each look was answered by a brief yet determined nod.


Author's Ramblings at the End

sighs in relief I was slowly coming to a point were I didn't want to continue this, and in order to finish the story despite this, I had to shorten a little - the characterisation of Kares and Ker, which I had actually planned to elicit more, especially Ker's obsession with restoring his strength and the motivation behind it… fell by the wayside, argh maybe I'll re-do some parts of this story later on.

I'm quite proud of the fainting scene... if you wonder, you really see funny colours while you're out. Nota bene: never go to blood donation with some guys constantly telling you to hurry up. Your system will take revenge ;;;

sobs I got to watch the last episode, so sad ;; The ending gives a completely new, philosophical edge to the anime, and I guess I'll have to watch it again in order to understand it. o.O; Yet I loved the ending… especially that Tsume gets a proper dying scene ;;; And today I found the artbook lot of character studies, some beautiful artworks, I like the style they're drawn in, lavish yet simple, in those nice sepia colours, giving them that 'ancient' look (curses her lack of English vocabulary). Too expensive for my bank account, though