-1"Easy now, keep taking deep breaths, try to relax and try not to think too hard on the past half hour." Caller-of-rats spoke with a soft tone.
"Who are you?" Kakashi asked, eyes narrowing.
"I already told you, my name is Caller-of rats and I'm a friend… well cousin really, you see I'm like you."
"Like. Me?"
Caller nodded "We are Garou."
Kakashi's eyes widened, a thousand things running around in his head. That simple word had plagued him for days and now here it was again.
"I see you recognise the name," his gaze traveled to Sakura, who was still holding on to Kakashi, "is she ok?"
The silver-haired man's attention snapped back to the kunoichi in his arm, "Sakura-chan? Are you ok?"
She looked up at him, even with only the moonlight to light her face he could see that her eyes where red from crying and the tears had stained her face. He went to brush away a fresh tear but stopped when he notes the state his hand was in. it was covered thick with blood, fresh blood.
It was the only thing he could think of at the time to comfit her, so he went with it leaning for would he placed a soft kiss of her forehead.
"Can you find my backpack for me?" Kakashi asked, voice barely above a whisper.
Sakura just nodded not trusting her voice. He shuddered slightly at the lost of her body heat, the reality of what had happened finally starting to sink in.
"I said try not to think about it, I know its hard not to I went through the same thing, something must of told you this was coming right?"
"T-The dreams." Kakashi muttered under his breath.
"I know this part all to well, something inside you snapped and the next thing you know your covered in blood and standing in a pile of flesh and bone that use to be someone," he used his foot to lift the hood on one of the fallen attackers "You did good this time, these things are minions of are enemy, you need to learn control but don't worry that comes later."
"What's going on Kakashi?" Sakura asked quietly as she handed him his broken bag.
"He just went through his First Change," Caller-of-rats said before Kakashi could speak, "Kakashi is a werewolf."
Sakura's eyes locked with Kakashi's. It was odd, there was no fear in her eyes despite her just having witness him turn into a snarling death beast and brutally dismembering people. No. There was no fear at all.
"We have to move quick, there will be more and they will most likely have silver with them."
Kakashi gave a nod to there new friend as he rummaged around in his backpack for his spare clothes, the backpack itself was blood splattered and the straps where torn off, he quickly got dressed as Sakura gathered the rest of his belongings that had been strewn about the clearing. Burning what was too damaged to take with them.
"Leave the corpses, I have a pack mate covering are tracks we have a long way to go and I have a lot to tell you."
So as quickly as they could they moved on would with Caller-of-rats leading the way. Kakashi throw a longing glance behind them, back to where he changed. Where he killed. Where he raged. Saying goodbye to his old life.
"Ok to start off, the things you see about werewolves on the TV and books, most of it us pure garbage, we don't go on a mindless killing spree when the moon is full, and we are not cursed humans, well really we are not human at although we are born from humans or wolves we are."
"Garou." Kakashi breathed.
Caller nodded "You got it, you have good instincts I was worried I would have had to drag you along," he laughed "its an inborn gift from are mother, she has given us a lot of gifts but this one is the hardest to deal with - the one that makes us warriors - the one that makes us monsters - the gift of." he stopped, knowing the copy-nin would say it.
"Rage." Kakashi growled.
"Right, if its one thing that the movies got right is that it doesn't take much to get a werewolf angry enough to kill you. Well that and the silver thing."
"Where are we going?" Sakura asked
"To where my pack has made camp, you see we have no set territory like most packs - we can't stay still for long within areas with hidden villages - there has been a spirit, we call them Kin-Fetch. Watching over Kakashi from birth, it knows when he was going to change and comes to alert us before it happens."
"Why was I not then raised among other Garou?" Kakashi asked.
"It's a long story," he sighed "One I'm afraid I don't have time to tell, but its like that for all of us - even for wolf born Garou, you grow up watching how the humans live, learning from them for a way to better conceal what you are and yes we do have to keep are race hidden, think of the Garou as humanity's hidden village."
Kakashi glanced at Sakura, who was walking along beside him. He wounded what was going to happen to her, Caller just said they had to keep their true nature secret from humans.
"Don't worry, she is what is known as Kinflock, she has werewolf blood in her but is not one herself, we closely work with them sometimes." Caller said almost like he was reading his mind.
Sakura eyes grew wide "I'm what!?"
Kakashi turned to face Sakura, truth be told neater of them really knew how to react to this but they could not ignore what they had just seen, or what they felt.
"I know what you want to say," Kakashi spoke to her in a quite, comforting voice "You want to say this guy is nuts, that we have no resin to believe him, but Sakura," taking a step towards her he closed the gap between them, "something that I can not describe is telling me to trust him."
Sakura met the gaze of his lone eye, there was something unreadable in the way he looked at her "I'm as confused as you are but please Sakura-chan trust me we will be ok."
Sakura wanted to say something but her words where lost in her mind. She wanted to turn back around and go but she could not bring her self to do it, she could not leave Kakashi. Her partner. Her ex-sensei and her closest friend.
Her eyes shot from Kakashi to Caller who was a few steps behind him.
"Trust me." the silver haired mans voice was no higher then the hushed breeze that was drifting through the trees.
Locking eyes with Kakashi ones more Sakura gave him a slow nod of the head.
Kakashi gave a small sigh of relief, taking a step back from her he offered his hand witch to his surprise and delight she took. Wrapping her thin pale fingers around his own bloodstained ones. They tuned to face Caller, telling him it was ok for him to continue.
With a nod and a smile he cared on talking as he went.
"I know this is a lot to take in, and there is much you need to learn about yourself but time is short so lets just say I will tell you the bare bones for now, we are at war cousin."
"War? With who?"
"I'm getting to that" Caller laughed, "you can get stabbed in the hart and still cut your way through a army of shinobi, have more strength and speed then any human can compare too, well we would not have this power if it was not needed, we - the Garou are Gaia's warriors."
Caller stopped and turned to face the newly awakened Garou and his Kinflock friend, his face had a series look on it, " You asked who we where at war with, now please lesson carefully."
In the beginning Mother Gaia sent out three forces into creation, The Wyld - a force of chaos of change a wild force, The Weaver - the spider who wove her web of order of set rules and boundaries, and The Wyrm who was the balance between the two… but somewhere along the line The Weaver went mad, determined to wrap all of creation in her web capturing The Wyrm in the process.
Now the Weaver is still the Weaver. But The Wyrm, now he is something else driven man by its own pain and anger it became hate itself. It lies in a pit at the roots of the universe trashing in constant agony. Each horrible thought it has. Each urge of revenge, each maddened desire to kill, or seduce or destroy. Everyone becomes a spirit of corruption and is let out into the world, they feed on evils they find and get stronger.
Every murder, every rape, every beating it all feeds the Wyrm's children.
"W-Will it ever brake free?" Sakura asked, failing to hide the tremble in her voice.
Caller gave a slow, grim nod, "Tales say it will brake free of its bonds and come to this world in the last battle, the final battle of the Apocalypse - the thing must be as big as a continent by now, and the signs show that the battle is at hand."
"I have seen it, a grate green eye in my dreams is that the Wyrm?" the silver haired man asked his voice firm like he was talking about something mundane.
"Yes, its that big, and we have to defeat it, somehow we have to make the world strong enough to survive we may all die in the process but it has to be done."
"But this is the thing I keep saying "we" I can't order you to follow me or fight with your Kin, you have to join the war of your own free will or you will do no good to this world, there's no where you can run or hide I'm afraid."
Well cousin? What will it be?