Summary: In a world of kingdoms and the fight between good and evil the wolf-people struggle to remain neutral between the two. Will Kai be able to lead them through this with the arrival of another wolf-being? Or will this new arrival end up dragging them back into real society and into their struggles?

Rating: M

Warnings: Quite a bit of violence, male/male relationships, probably some not so nice language.

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade or any of its characters. I do, however, own my main OC.

A.N.: I'm beginning to think people don't like this story. Should I stop writing it while I'm ahead? Also I don't think I'm going to post anymore on Asylum until I get more reviews. One review for three chapters! I think that's ridiculous.

Nirvana

Chapter III

Kai was quick to take charge after they all had arrived back at camp uneasy and nervous--they feared the hunters would come after them, forcing them to move and relocate their home. The others were ordered to tend to the worn horses, so they wouldn't fall ill and die, and to unpack all the supplies so the coming ruin wouldn't ruin them. Mariah, however, was requested immediately to come with him as he relieve Brian of the limp wolf in his arms. Heading towards the river Tala where Tala had caught the fish Kai wasted no time making his way to the chilly waters or waiting for Mariah to gather supplies in which she'd need for first-aid: blankets to ward away hypothermia, clean wraps and salve for wounds, and herbs to help sooth the pained discomfort from the acidic blood of the hellhound. Both knew there was a limit of damage that both forms could take until they remained upon the body and didn't heal themselves.

Only caring enough to kick his boots off at the river's bank the leader of the pack of wolf-beings waded waist deep into the cold yet calm waters of the section of the river that they fished within. The black acidic blood was already burning at his skin, so he was quick to lower himself and his wolf brother in the icy water to start cleaning the sticky blood off. He got so far as getting a small fraction of the blackness out before the frail wolf in his arms woke with a start and squirmed wildly. It was all Kai could do as he attempted to restrain the wriggling wolf in his arms and keep his balance on the slippery rocks beneath the surface of the calm waters, yet calm or not the current was still dangerously swift. It wasn't as if Kai was trying to drown his brother, but if he would've woken up being dipped into the very cold waters he had nearly drowned in it would've upset him as well--for all Kai knew the other wolf-being thought he was going to drown him to death. Kai even had to shift to hold the snapping jaws shut with a fierce grip to keep from being bitten.

"Calm, my brother," soothed Kai in a stern voice and he went through the troublesome process of washing the acidic blood out of the multi-colored pelt of the unnamed wolf. "I'm not going to do you harm, but I need to get this blood off before it does further damage to you. Still yourself." Turning his head at the sound of approaching footfalls Kai's crimson eyes found Mariah making her way towards him with all her needed supplies.

"He certainly doesn't act like he understand," stated Mariah as she set aside several warm blankets and sorted through her things to gather what herbs she would need to make a soothing paste to put into the wounds she knew were there. Picking out five different ingredients,--a few leaves roots and stems-- she set forth grinding them in a small medicinal pestle made out of smooth bedrock she hand shaped herself through many years.

"After almost being drowned in these very same waters," offered Kai as he put more force into restraining the still struggling wolf-being, "I wouldn't be too pleased to waking up being held in these waters." Growling impatiently he grabbed the scruff of the multi-colored wolf's coat and gave the resistant creature a solid shake to, in a sense, bully him to fall unmoving. He was cold himself, but he could feel the furred creature shivering almost violently in his grasp as the acidic blood was more thoroughly washed off. "Trust," soothed Kai in a low voice, and then again repeating himself, "Trust."

"That should be good enough Kai," spoke up Mariah as she set aside the pestle and the thick green paste within its bowl shape. "Bring him over here," she requested as her nimble fingers grasped the edge of one of the woolen blankets and quickly unfolded it as she stood up. This blanket she tossed over Kai's shoulders as he approached, earning a low grunt of thanks from her leader, and the second blanket was just as swiftly unfolded and wrapped around the shivering wolf. Immediately she began to rub the blanket, trying to get warmth to come to the creature's body so it wouldn't freeze to death.

"I didn't quite think he'd be this light and out of shape," noted Kai as he shifted the grip upon the wolf in his arms as so to give Mariah better access without having to put the creature upon the ground where he could possibly bolt once more. "True his build may be a lighter one, but he is still lacking a very good deal of weight, and yet he held off that…thing--" The pack leader was interrupted by the sudden shift in shape of the wolf into man, his faint frown deepening even more in displeasure and the lightness and ease to which he carried the human body.

"Hellhound," croaked the worn and tired voice, cracking almost as if it was hardly ever used; which meant, or so Kai assumed, that this wolf-being preferred his wolf shape over his man shape. Once getting a slightly puzzled look in return of his comment the unnamed male gave a distant sigh, as if he was already drifting off into a world of rest and blackness. "Hellhound," he said again, a little more airily than before, and then elaborating, "what that creature was.. A hellhound." It only took a few more blinking moments before garnet eyes slid shut and the body surrendered itself to unconsciousness.

There was a long pause as Mariah kept working, patting the male's body dry and carefully apply the thick green paste into the rather deep and extensive wounds. Softly she rose her voice, not wanting to startle her leader who was in clear deep thought. "We should have Kenny look at this," she suggested while gesturing to the wounds. "He'll be better able to treat and gather what real damage is here than I can; after all he is the better healer of the two of us," the pink-haired young woman admitted with a nod.

Breaking free from his thoughts Kai turned his crimson eyes to Mariah soon nodding in agreement as he resituated the unconscious male in his arms. A nod was made back towards the forest where their home was and Mariah understood without a question and quickly gathered her things. It was best not to linger too long away from camp and leave the others worrying themselves over nothing that couldn't be actually handled. However Kai's mind was drifting back to the name of the creature the other had said before allowing himself to sleep 'Hellhound.. I thought they were bound to Hell but The Lady..'

More slowly they mad their way back towards camp, no longer in any rush for the moment. The other was still living and well enough to be left sleeping undisturbed for the time being. True the wounds would need to be looked at, and Kai would need to find dry clothes for himself and his brother, but those things weren't drastically important. Mariah led the way, dark starting to fall and the clouds growing thicker and darker in their telling of the rain that was soon to come. Sure enough just as they reached the outer rim of the camp it began to drizzle, and soon it was pouring heavily.

Both were greeted by five curious faces as soon as they entered the safety of the den, five sets of eyes staring boldly at the unnamed being within the wet blanket. Kai's stern gaze soon persuaded them all to go back to whatever they were doing before the two had arrived. "Mariah, take Kenny with you and settle our brother down to bed so he can rest--also I want you to check him over and make sure the wounds aren't too serious, Kenny," requested Kai as he placed the shivering male into Mariah's arms after she had handed her things to Kenny.

"It shouldn't take too long, but whatever you're going to talk about make sure not to start until the both of us are back and here to listen to what you have to say," chided Kenny with a small easing look before following behind Mariah back further into the den. With the aided strength of their wolf-part he knew Mariah had not trouble carrying the unnamed male, but he still believed that even a mere younger teen could carry someone so light as he was.

Settling the male upon a soft pallet of straw that was covered over by a sheet and another softer blanket Mariah made sure the other was comfortable before pulling off the wet blanket. Nudity was nothing new to them, they were all comfortable with it. She didn't stare, didn't ogle the form bare before her, but instead went rummaging for dry clothes to put upon his form. A time later, with the approval of Kenny after he had checked the wounds, she had the form dressed and covered in dry blankets so he would become warm once more yet not uncomfortably so.

"You did very well with treating his wounds, Mariah," smiled Kenny as he complimented the woman. He was pleased to see her beam at his comment and he was soon continuing with what he saw, as so to point things out to Mariah and help her learn more about treating injured beings. "The salve you made was perfect for the type of wound made, though we should check later just to make sure the burns are starting to partially heal instead of remaining there. I don't believe anything was broken, but he'll be incredibly sore for some time with the beating both forms have taken and absorbed."

"To protect those kids like that, even though he wasn't in his best shape, was a brash thing to do.. But it was noble as well. I forgive him for biting me, how couldn't I? If we hadn't let him go I don't think the children had survived, even with Kai and Brian there." Brushing herself off Mariah started off back towards where the others were sitting around a fire and eating fresh roasted fish that was still bubbling over the fire. "I'd have to say he's something like Kai, seeing as he's known to do things of the such.. However it'll be hard to say what his personality really is until he calms more and opens up."

"It's to be expected," responded Kenny as they neared the others. As Tala looked up he smiled at him in greeting, warming greatly when his mate returned the small yet meaningful gesture. "We just need to give him time--he might not even want to stay with us seeing he's already showed a slight sign of aggression. Of course it could be possible he's more of a loner, but we can't assume anything yet until we actually get to know him as a person." Grabbing a wooden plate and a carved eating utensil he retrieved himself a portion of fish before settled next to Tala and watching Mariah do the same yet sit next to Less herself.

"We're settled now, food in out bellies and warmth against our skins, so lets talk," put forth Kai without any real delay. The others were anxious, he could smell it as well as see it. They've had gatherings like this before, sitting down as one big family to talk things over, usually when a decision had to be made did this occur. "Our brother, it would seem, knows what exactly that creature was..and now that he's said the name I'm aware that it is very well what he said it was. The question is how did it get here and why it's here in the first place," proclaimed Kai in an even tone.

"He called it a Hellhound, did he not? I've only heard that word only a few times before, but I didn't exactly know what it was until now," mentioned Mariah in a bit of a miffed tone. "Of course I'm just as curious as to how something got here--I thought The Lady kept all but a few of the magical creatures in other placed away from here, so the humans wouldn't see them and use them… or kill them. Do you think someone could've been sending the creature there for a purpose?" she inquired.

"The Hellhound originated by The Lady's hand, but they were damned to live out in Hell to guard the gates of the dead," put out Tala with a frown. "They can't get here into this place of living without The Lady's permission, which we all know within our beings isn't the case seeing we would feel it, or unless someone very skilled in the magical ways freed the beast. There are stories about them, myths that are scattered wide and not very informational, so little is known about them as a whole."

"Thank you, Tala, for informing us all of this. You're right to say that The Lady didn't give the creature permission, or else it wouldn't have been attacking and it wouldn't have attempted to harm another one of The Lady's creations. We're going to have to be open to the idea that someone indeed send the Hellhound here, but we still need to be careful in our own wake. The humans are too curious for their own good, and after today they could come looking for us--or even worse try to kill us," put out Kai, making sure everyone in his pack understand that they must be open and aware of everything that could and might happen.

"And we must also realize that our Brother might know more than he is willing to tell us," sighed Rei, as if he didn't wish to think of it that way. "If he knew of the creature, what is to say he doesn't know more? And then again he merely could've been in the wrong place at the wrong time. What we need to do is think upon a course of action, to protect ourselves, to heal our brother, and to possibly plan for a move if things get too busy around here. We need not be involved in this."

"Someone will need to scout out the village tomorrow to see what is going on, yet be careful not to be seen. Mariah I would like you to do this, seeing you are the swiftest and could get away if need be." At this Mariah nodded and Kai continued on with his decision of what was going to happen as things progressed. "We will allow our brother to stay with us, and if he wishes to go after healing then we will not make him stay, yet if he wishes to come and go as he pleases this will be fine as well; a breath of fresh air. I want you to check up on him every now and then, Brian. Make sure he's fed, his wounds heal sufficiently, and so on and so forth. Kenny and Tala I want you to make absolute sure that the horses aren't going to get colicky and that they be in riding condition at any moment. Lee I would like you to help plan how to pack things and help scout out a new area to live with me--Rei will be doing the scouting."

"We need to be ready for anything more than ever," spoke up Lee lightly as he gathered together the empty plates from his family. "Human affairs isn't something we need to get involved in unless we are dragged into it by force," he stated darkly before moving over to wash the silverware and the plates. All nodded in grim agreement before falling into companionable silence with one another.

"There was a wolf fighting that thing--"

"Did you see the burns in the ground that the thing's blood made?"

"Sticky and black, all over that wolf's pelt--"

"It's a miracle the poor children are still alive--"

"Who was that group of people?"

"I heard they live out in the forest somewhere--"

"Just like animals, they are--"

"Do you think another one of those things will come?"

"That wolf.. What do you think became of it?"

It was all Judy could do to keep her mouth shut from commenting on the whispering villagers. Could they not just be glad that no one was hurt and that their flock was unharmed? Bristling angrily she made her way towards the elder's hut where she had been called to just moments before the pouring rain had started. Max and Emily were still very frightened, and it took a lot to just peel them off her skirt, but she managed to get them to stay with one of the hunters while she was away.

Even with it raining the people were skill out gossiping, though considering the strange events Judy could somehow see where they were coming from--however it didn't make it right. The wolf, she knew now, was indeed one of the wolf-beings.. No normal wolf was that intelligent, though they were very smart as it was, and no normal wolf could inflict such hideous damage upon someone with one single snap of the jaws. It was too.. Out of place.

Now the creature itself now laying dead in the middle of the sheep's pen was indeed something utterly new to the woman's eyes, and it was very much not from this world, or at least from her moral view. The acidic blood was unheard of, and the sheer size of the animal, if that is what one would call it, was too large to be any kind of strange mutation. Hopefully the elders would have information on this, of course they could just be meeting with her just to do so--it was hard to tell with them.

Shrugging her soaked cloak upon her shoulders Judy pushed back the flap that led into the elder's hut, breathing in the warmth of the fire that they had burning within the decent sized home and living quarters. Pulling back the hood she allowed her blonde hair to fall against her shoulders and the warmth to kiss her cold and wet flesh. The elders knew she was coming, they had summoned her after all, so it was to no surprise that the three older beings sitting around the fire didn't look up at her arrivals. Courteously she took off her wet boots and slid off her cloak, placing it near her as she sat within the circle around the fire so both she and it would dry.

"This event," croaked the oldest of them all as he threw some saw dust into the fire with his crooked and bent fingers. "Has put a bad name upon our village, which is a bad omen for us all. The years ahead of us are going to be dark a troublesome, but you have done well, Lady Tate. You kept the people calm, and you also protected our protector from our people. That wolf--he has been here off and on around this village since I was but a mere baby, and he has come to protect our village. You honor him, and in return he honors you."

"He's been around here before?" questioned Judy in a soft tone, her calm yet curious eyes gazing from being to being around the fire before taking an offered cup of warm sweetened mead to help put off the chill in her bones. All three of the elders nodded in response to her question, the younger of the three smiling in what could be taken as fondness, as if they had an encounter with the wolf before in their own long lives.

Letting out smoke from his mouth, which he had drawn in from a long angled pipe carved of wood, the eldest turned his warm brown eyes to Judy. "Few have seen him, and those who have either end up dying or becoming something great--all three of us Elder's have seen him. However with this visit we understand that his behavior was off, not normal, out of his usual character.. And I must admit that his absence was a strangely long one."

"We sense that something is wrong and amiss," stated the only female of the group of elders, her faded green eyes looking straight into Judy's soul, so it would seem with such an intense stare she was giving the younger woman. "This absence of the wolf and his protection, his guidance told us this long before..yet we all missed it. Darkness is growing out of balance to the light--the spirits are restless. A long path of trouble will ensue, and only the creature of The Lady will tell who's side will win, and if balance in restored."

"I feel as if what you say is most definitely true, but does this mean you know of the creature out there dead in our sheep's pen?" quested the young woman, seeking answers from those in the village who knew most. The elder who had yet to speak turned o face her, blind eyes blinking in a dull slowness that sent shivers up her spine. This man was always like this, strange yet silent in his matters.

"We know much that consists with the older ways that we do not share, merely because we are laughed at by our own people for saying things about what is truly there and hat is not. These wolf-beings you seek information about--we know of them. The creature out there? We know of this as well. The Lady has created many things, most which do not even reside in this realm, but that creature out there doesn't belong here and The Lady doesn't allow creatures to cross worlds," explained the blind man as if he were speaking to a mere child. "The balance is being off set by the being who set free that creature upon us--that Hellhound."

"The Lady.. I didn't think anyone believed in her anymore--the mother of all animals. But now that she's mentioned and with what you say things are starting to fit together a bit more," elaborated Lady Tate before taking a sip of her warm mead and speaking again. "The Lady has created many creatures, some with no name to our tongue, and others with names. These mythical creatures that we here stories of as a child.. Those are hers, yes?" A nod was given by the eldest. "The wolf-beings are one of her creations that live on our world, and the Hellhound belongs in.. Well it would seem Hell is where they belong. The creature must've been brought here by someone with intentions to do harm.. To take over, possibly?"

"There are forces out there that few know of, that few could possibly comprehend without being driven mad," spoke up the older woman as she looked around the circle of the people she was a part of. "There are people who have powers that we can not grasp, and those who thrive to collect those unique. We as people fear what we do not understand and have no answers for, therefore why the hunters went after the wolf."

"We as elders," put out the blind man as he closed his blank eyes. "Say what people wish to hear. They don't want to hear that there are magical forces at work here, that there are creatures out there that could kill them with ease, that there are other worlds out there. The King who we have given permission to in order to take our village under his protection knows of all these things, understands them, is open to them. He is a good leader, though lets pray whomever or whatever has brought this Hellhound upon us does not gain the upper hand too soon."

Judy gave a nod of understanding as the man spoke, seeing everything that was said clearly and knowing each point brought out was true. "We have strayed so far from our roots, from who we once were. I am in hopes that this king of ours will bring back the old ways, to get people to believe in the myths that are indeed not myths but real. I believe the key to all this will be the wolf-beings.. Those that live in the forest, the very ones in which saved multi-colored wolf from utter death. It worries me that we have scared them away, or that they want nothing to do with out struggles for power and land. They are creatures of peace, of the old ways, of seclusion. I will put out my hope in them, though.. Maybe our wolf friend will come back, or convince them that things need to be intervened upon… If not we are alone on this."