The pack entered the crystal cave. After many failed attempts, they were all finally at the gates of Paradise. Kiba and Cheza walked in front, while Hige, Tsume and Blue walked behind. Toboe brought up the rear. The pack walked in silence until the came upon the mirror that showed them Paradise. Kiba’s heart raced a million miles a minute.

We’re here, he thought to himself, We finally made it.

They stopped in front of the mirror and waited. After a moment, an old silver wolf appeared before them.

"I am Atali, the guardian of the Gates of Paradise. We’ve been waiting for you, my 6 wolves of the Apocalypse."

Kiba stepped forward.

"Thank you, Atali. We’re ready."

Tsume stood up firm.

"Correct me if I’m wrong, but did he just say 6 wolves?"

Toboe nodded.

"I heard it, too."

Atali blinked and took a second look.

"Ah, but there are only 5 of you."

Kiba began to get nervous.

"We don’t need the sixth one, do we?"

Atali nodded.

"All 6 plus the lunar flower are needed to get in, as you all play an important role in Paradise."

Atali looked at Cheza.

"The Flower Maiden that would lead the wolves to Paradise, and help them prosper."

Then he looked at Tsume.

"Tsume, the Ashen wolf; the Strength of Paradise."

He looked at Hige.

"Hige, the Golden wolf; the Provider of Paradise."

Hige smiled triumphantly. Atali looked at Toboe.

"Toboe, the Ember wolf; Innocence of Paradise."

Toboe blushed.

"Golly!"

Atali continued.

"Blue, the Ebony half-wolf; the Acceptance of Paradise and Kiba, the Ivory wolf, the Purity of Paradise."

The group looked at eachother and shrugged.

"So, what else do we need?", Hige asked.

Atali half-closed his amber eyes.

"You need to find the final wolf; The Pied Wolf."

Again, the group looked at eachother.

"Pied wolf?", Toboe asked.

"What the hell is a pied wolf? Some kind of dessert?" Tsume asked, losing patience.

Atali shook his head.

"The Pied Wolf is the Joy of Paradise."

Kiba sighed and shook his head.

"Tell me, where can we find it?"

The rest of the group gasped.

"Kiba, you’re not serious, are you?" Hige asked.

"We just got here! We’re leaving again?" Blue added.

Kiba looked at them sharply.

"It’s the only way to get to Paradise. I didn’t come all this way just to stare at it through a window." Kiba turned to Atali.

"Again, where can we find the Pied wolf?"

Atali pointed out where the wolves just came.

"Go to the east. There, you will find the pied wolf consuming her stolen feast."

Tsume rolled his eyes.

"Consuming her stolen feast? So, the wolf we’re looking for is a criminal. Great." Hige commented.

Kiba turned to leave.

"C’mon guys. C’mon Cheza."

Atali shook his head.

"The Flower Maiden stays."

Kiba turned sharply and glared at the old wolf.

"WHAT?"

Atali nodded.

"It’s safer for her. You will follow her scent back here. I promise I will keep her safe."

Cheza petted Kiba’s head.

"It is alright. This One will be fine."

"Cheza…"

Kiba closed his eyes as he felt Cheza’s touch for the last time. He turned and loped of, the others following him. Before leaving the cave, Kiba took one final look at Cheza. She called to him.

"Remember This One, Kiba! This One will be waiting!"

Kiba tossed back his head and howled a song just for his precious Cheza.

With that he turned and was off.

---------------------------------------------------

The wolves had been traveling for a few days now. Everyone was on edge, especially Tsume. He hadn’t had much time to complain, though, as Hige was doing it for him.

"This sucks! This really, really sucks! Do you know why it sucks?"

Kiba rolled his eyes.

"Gee, I don’t know, Hige. Humor me."

Hige continued, despite Kiba’s sarcasm.

"I’ll tell you why! Because every time we get close to Paradise, we’re thrown two steps back! First, we’re all killed by Darcia. Then, we all get blasted by an A-bomb, and last time, before we could even bother searching, Kiba goes and gets hit by a trolley!"

Kiba growled at the memory.

"The damn thing came outta nowhere."

Hige began to pace wildly.

"And now, just as we can smell, see, even taste Paradise, some whacked out old guy says the only way in, is to find a stupid wolf made out of pie!!!!!"

Kiba calmly turned to the outraged wolf and, in the nicest possible way, said,

"Hige, shut-up."

Hige stomped his paw into the ground and began shouting.

"I WILL NOT SHUT-UP! YA KNOW WHY? CUZ THIS IS CRAP, YOU HEAR ME? CRAP CRAPITTY CRAP CRAP CR…"

Before he was able to finish, Hige’s face met hard with Tsume’s fist. The yellow wolf fell to the ground, unconscious. Kiba looked up at Tsume and nodded.

"Thanks, Tsume."

"No problem."

Kiba looked around at his surroundings. It was desolate, as far as the eye could see. He sighed.

"We’re gonna rest here tonight."

There were no complaints. Everyone was tired and hungry. Resting for the night was the only way to conserve their energy. So, each wolf dug a little hole in the ground, curled up with their tails over their noses, and fell asleep.

-------------------------------------------------------

Tsume awoke in a cold sweat. He was breathing hard and shaking. The dream was more then he could bear. He got up, shook himself off, and went for a walk.

Tsume stopped and turned around. Toboe had followed him.

"Tsume, are you okay?"

"I’m fine." Tsume answered coldly.

Toboe looked at the ground sadly.

"You looked so scared…"

"I SAID I WAS FINE!!!!"

Toboe backed up.

"I’m sorry."

With that, he walked back to his hole to get some sleep. After a while, Tsume, too, returned to bed.

-----------------------------------------------------

The next day, the wolves found themselves at a fork in the road. Kiba looked at both trails.

"Where to now?" Blue asked.

Kiba shook his head. He honestly hadn’t a clue. Tsume looked at the trails. Suddenly, flashes of the dream he had began running through his head. The iron bars, the people, the men with the sticks.

"Tsume!"

Toboe’s voice brought the grey wolf back to reality. He looked at the pup.

"We’re leaving now."

Tsume looked at the trail Kiba decided on.He shook his head.

"It’s the wrong way."

Everyone stopped to look at Tsume.

"What do you mean ‘it’s the wrong way’?" Kiba asked.

"It just is. We need to go the other way."

Kiba tilted his head.

"How do you know?"

Tsume looked down at the dirt.

"I…I had this dream last night."

"A dream?" Hige asked. "How do you kno…"

"Do what you want." Tsume answered. "I’m going this way."

Tsume took off. After a moment, Kiba followed, then Toboe. Blue followed afterwards. Hige rolled his eyes and trotted behind.

Soon, they reached a town. They looked down at it. More flashes ran through Tsume’s head. There was no doubt about it.

"This is it." He said aloud. "This is where the Pied Wolf is."

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Ch.3 "We Finally Got a Piece of the Pie"

It was a normal day for her. Sit in her uncomfortably small cage all day until the zoo visitors went home. Then sleep in the uncomfortably small cage until the visitors came back tomorrow. She looked through the iron bars at the greedy humans. She hated them. It was the only thing that kept her alive. Her hate for every human that she seen. She laid down in her own filth, only to be yanked up again as the head zookeeper muzzled her and snapped a leash on. He roughly tore her from her cage and pulled her towards a room. She recognized this room. Animals that were taken in never returned. She began to struggle and squirm. It wasn’t her fault she was in terrible condition. It wasn’t her fault they never fed her or cleaned out her cage. And it wasn’t her fault someone complained to the board of health. But, the zookeeper felt it was her fault, and he was going to make her pay. She still struggled. She pulled and tossed her head from side to side.

"Why don’t ya just pick it up?" A worker asked, shoving a club sandwich into his fat mouth.

"Are you nuts? This thing is bigger then I am. Besides, I ain’t touchin’ it. It’s filthy. Look at the crap smeared in it’s fur." The zookeeper complained.

And I suppose that’s my fault, too? She thought to herself.

The worker and another man bothgrabbed sticks and whacked her in the back with it, trying to make her go forwards. She moved slightly, then stopped. The keeper dragged her closer and closer to the door of no return. But, she wasn’t going to give in so easily. She sat down and refused to budge another inch, despite the crack of the stick on her vulnerable spine. The keeper needed to rest a moment, but a moment was all she needed. The second she felt the lead slacken, she whipped around and bolted, ripping the leash from the keeper’s hand and knocking over the cruel men with the sticks. She wasn’t sure where to run, but that didn’t matter now. She just ran.

-----------------------------------------------------------

The group stared down at the dreary little city. Their concentration broke when Hige’s stomach growled.

"Uh, is anyone else hungry?"

Kiba looked up at the butcher shop sign. Underneath was a smaller sign that said "Back in 5 minutes." He turned to the others.

"Hige, you take Blue and Toboe and raid this shop for some food. Tsume and me will keep guard out here. I already broke the doorknob so you guys can get in."

Hige nodded and he, Blue and Toboe walked in. Tsume and Kiba waited outside. In the shop, the 3 robbers began their raid. Toboe noticed a cake near the back of the store. It said "Happy 7th Birthday, Wolfie!" and had a picture of a wolf-like dog on it. Toboe turned to Hige.

"Is that the pied wolf?"

Hige laughed and rubbed the pup’s face in the cake.

"No, but you are!"

Blue quickly broke up the fun.

"Guys! We’re doing something important, remember?"

----------------------------------------------------------

Tsume and Kiba began to pace uneasily.

"What’s taking them so long?" Kiba asked.

"I dunno, but…" Tsume sniffed the air and scrunched up his face. "Ugh, what’s that smell?"

Suddenly, a brown wolf whipped around the corner and rushed straight at them. It wore a muzzle and dragged a leash behind it. It crashed into Kiba, knocking the wind out of him. It laid on top of him for a moment to catch it’s breath, then got up, snarling menacingly. The muzzle was lose and hanging off of its face. It wanted to rip the blue-eyed man’s throat out, but a sweet smell filled its nostrils. The wolf didn’t know why, but it couldn’t kill Kiba. It leapt off and ran. Tsume had been watching, and for some unknown reason, he felt he should follow the brown colored wolf. Kiba jumped up and ran after Tsume. Hige, Toboe, and Blue exploded out of the butcher shop, mouths full of meat, and followed suit.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Tsume was catching up with the half-muzzled animal. A few more long strides and he was upon it. He had to hold it down. But the wolf was stronger then it looked, and whipped him around like a rag doll. Kiba arrived and, too, jumped on the raging beast. Still, it was overpowering and threw both wolves about with ease. Hige, Toboe and Blue dropped the food in a pile and helped. Hige figured his weight would definatly hold the wolf down, but he was wrong. Still, the powerful creature thrashed and fought. Toboe piled on. Blue jumped on the wolf’s head, hoping to control it that way. Big mistake. The muzzle fell off, and the wolf grabbed on to one of Blue’s legs. She yelped, but stayed on the massive animal’s thrashing head. Finally, after almost an hour, the beast passed out.

The tired wolves collapsed in a heap. Kiba grabbed the wolf’s leash in his jaws.

"Unless one of us has an opposable thumb, tying this wolf up is gonna take a little teamwork."

Reluctantly, everyone stood up. With a mixture of jaws and paws, the wolves made the best leash possible and put the muzzle back on the unpredictable animal.

"We need to talk to her." Kiba said. "She may know where we can find the pied wolf."

"What if she doesn’t want to say?" Blue asked. "Then what?"

"Oh, we’ll get it out of her." Kiba assured.

Tsume shook his head.

"I’ll talk to her."

He got up and left before anyone could ask questions.

Tsume looked at the pathetic animal. Her brown fur reeked and was covered in mats.

The wolf opened her eyes to see a man dressed in leather staring at her. She growled.

"Rotten human."

Tsume smiled.

"I think you’re mistaken. I’m a wolf."

The she-wolf took another look. She seen a human before her, then a gray wolf, then a human, then a wolf…she was getting confused and aggravated.

"I don’t know what you are. All I know is, no self-respecting wolf would disguise itself as a disgusting human. You ought to be ashamed."

Tsume laughed and dropped his disguise.

"There, is that better?"

She growled again and turned away.

"Hey, I need to ask you some questions."

"I’m not telling you anything. I don’t trust you."

"Why?"

"Because you’ve helped chain me up."

Tsume walked over to her. She snarled viciously, but he ignored her. He took the leash between his teeth and chewed it off. He did the same with the muzzle. Then he backed up and sat down.

"Trust me now?" He asked, half expecting the wolf to bolt.

To his surprise she sat down, too.

"Thanks. I had it on because I escaped from…"

"The zoo?"

She looked up at the gray wolf suspiciously.

"Yeah. How’d you know?"

Tsume looked away. It was too embarrassing to tell her he had a dream about the wolf in the zoo.

"Instinct." He answered.

After a few moments of an uncomfortable silence, she got up.

"I should bathe. I stink."

She walked over to the creek and jumped in she looked over to see Tsume watching.

"Do you mind?" She asked.

"Oh!" Tsume turned and walked away. He was going to hide behind a rock to watch her bathe, except…

"TOBOE!"

Toboe smiled innocently from behind the rock.

"Hehe…hi Tsume!"

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Ummmm…I was just stretching my legs!"

"Hmph. Yeah right. Let’s go."

--------------------------------------------------------------

She splashed around for a bit, rubbing in the water. She rubbed the years of human scent and horrid stains from her fur. She rubbed against rocks to pull out the mats and chunks of feces that collected in her tail. Luckily, the creek washed away all her filth and the scent of captivity. She looked at herself in the water and wagged her tail.

"It’s nice to see me again!"

She jumped out and shook vigorously until she was dry. A chilly breeze blew. She shivered. She wasn’t used to the wilderness weather. She looked around and found an old blanket crumpled up and shoved in the crack of a rock. She snatched it in her jaws and threw it in the air and walked under it. It draped over her. The only visible part of her was her muzzle and legs. She walked over to the other wolves. Hige tossed her a chunk of meat.

"Eat up."

She stared stupidly at the meat. Had it been so long since she had a meal that she forgot how to eat? Not likely! She threw the blanket off and began to ravish her meal. The others stared at her in amazement. Her muzzle and half her face was jet black, the other half of her face was a snow white. Her body had huge black blotches covering the white. Her white chest had mottled black and gray spots. Her tail was white with a black tip.

To Kiba, she was the wolf they’d been looking for. She was the Pied wolf that would get them to Paradise. To Tsume, however, she was the most beautiful creature he’d ever laid eyes on. Out of nowhere, Toboe started laughing. Hige glanced over at the pup.

"What’s so funny, runt?"

"Go to the east…" Toboe laughed out. "There you will find the Pied wolf consuming her stolen feast!"

Toboe was hysterical now.

"That’s funny?" Blue asked.

"YES!" Toboe gasped out.

"Why is that funny?" Hige questioned.

"Cuz she’s not the criminal, Hige! You are!!!!!"

Hige thought for a moment then gasped.

"Oh yeah."

Blue laughed along with Toboe. The Pied wolf looked up and tilted her head.

Weirdos, She thought to herself.

Kiba got up.

"Listen, we need you to come with us. We’ve been searching for you."

The Pie looked at Kiba curiously.

"What do you want with me?"

"You’re the final wolf that’s needed to open Paradise."

The Pie laughed then turned her gaze towards the setting sun.

"Paradise. What a joke."

Kiba stepped back as if someone just struck him in the chest.

"Wha-…a joke??"

"You heard me." The Pie said, narrowing her eyes. "I just got my freedom and I’m not about to waste it chasing some pup’s fantasy."

With that, she turned to walk away. Kiba stomped his paw.

"It’s not a fantasy! We were just at the gates several days ago. They said we can’t enter without you! You’re our only hope."

The Pie ignored him and continued walking away.

"You couldn’t kill him, could you?"

The Pie stopped, and looked at Tsume.

"What did you say?"

"Kiba. You couldn’t kill him, could you?"

She didn’t answer. She looked at the ground. Tsume continued.

"You couldn’t kill him…because you smelled Cheza."

Pie’s eyes widened.

She looked over at Tsume, then Kiba. As much as she hated to admit it, Tsume was right. She wasn’t sure what she smelled on Kiba before, but she knew it was important. She wagged her tail slightly.

"You’re right. I’ll go."

Only because Tsume is going. She thought. I’d follow that tail anywhere!

Kiba jumped up.

"Alright! What’re we waiting for? Let’s go!"

Kiba took off towards the cave. The others, though still tired, followed.

Pie looked at Tsume and wagged her tail. She licked his cheek and ran off. Tsume stood there, dumbfounded, then bounded after her. After a couple days travel, everyone was still in good spirits. Pie glanced over at Toboe. She could tell he was just a pup. She playfully hit him in the side with her paw. He looked at her in surprise. He wasn’t used to being played with.

"What did I do wrong?" He asked.

"Wrong? You’re a pup aren’t you?"

Toboe nodded. Pie got in the ‘play bow’ position.

"So, let’s play!" She begged, wagging her tail.

Toboe smiled happily. He’d been waiting so long for someone to play with! He agreed and the two bounded after each other. She chased him, he chased her, they tackled each other to the ground and were just having a grand old time. Tsume and Kiba watched, both wearing smiles.

"Atali was right." Tsume said with a sigh. "She really is the Joy of Paradise."

Kiba smiled at the gray wolf.

"Tsume, you don’t have feelings for her, do you?"

Tsume averted his eyes.

"Why would you say that?"

"Because every time she walks by, your tail goes a million miles a minute!"

Tsume smiled.

"Not every time!"

Kiba laughed. Suddenly, he stopped. Everyone stopped. The scent of Cheza filled their nostrils.

"We’re here!" Kiba cheered.

They could see the cave in the distance. Once again, Kiba bolted. Tsume followed. Hige and Blue dashed ahead. Toboe, however, was tired and couldn’t keep up. He ran as fast as his tired legs could carry him. The Pie was behind him. She thrust her head under him and lifted him off the ground. Toboe found himself on her back. He quickly grabbed a mouthful of her fur and held on for dear life. Once she felt Toboe was safe, she sped up. She passed Hige and Blue with ease. She flew passed Tsume, who squinted his eyes to see if he saw what he thought he just saw.

The Pie was now running at Kiba’s side. They matched each other stride for stride. They bolted into the cave and slid to a stop in front of the gates, where Atali and Cheza waited. The Pie stared in wonder.

Kiba approached his awaiting Flower Maiden, who was very glad to see him.

"Kiba! You came back!" She wrapped her arms around his neck. "This One knew you would come!"

"Cheza! We found the Pied Wolf."

"This One knew you would find her! She is beautiful."

The others finally caught up. Hige collapsed in a heap, breathing like he’d just raced a cheetah. Tsume, who was also breathing hard, looked over at Hige.

"What’s the matter, Porky?" He gasped "Outta shape?"

"Shut-up." Hige spat out. "Where’s Toboe?"

The wolves looked at the Pie. A red fluff ball was attached to her back. His legs were wrapped tightly around her midsection, his tail between his legs, his ears flat against his skull, his head buried in her fur and his eyes tightly shut.

"Wake up, twerp." The Pie said.

Toboe opened one eye, then both. He released the death grip he had on the wolf and slid to the side of her. He lost his balance and found himself on his back, looking up at the cave’s ceiling.

"What just happened?" He asked.

Atali smiled.

"My 6 wolves! You’ve made it! Finally, Paradise can be opened!"

Atali turned to the Gate and howled.

"Oh, Paradise! The 6 wolves of the apocalypse are here to claim you! Kiba, Hige, Tsume, Toboe, Blue and…"

Atali went silent. He looked over at the Pie.

"What is your name, dear?"

The wolves all looked at the Pie.

"You never told us your name." Tsume said.

The Pie smiled.

"My name is Shiloh."

Tsume sighed at the name.

Atali nodded and smiled.

"Shiloh."

The window began to pulsate.

"Now, you must each howl. Cheza, sing your song."

As Cheza sang, the wolves howled. The window shattered, and Paradise spread. The cave disappeared. Paradise spread over the land, covering up the evil, smothering the wicked in its glory.

Kiba opened his eyes. He was sleeping in lush green grass near a babbling brook. He got up and looked around. He was in Paradise. He found his friends bounding in the fields, happy as can be. He smiled and looked at his surroundings. It was everything he’d ever wanted. But, what was he going to do now? Everything was perfect. Too perfect. He suddenly felt a sense of failure. How was he going to quench his lust for adventure? He sighed as looked over at his hopes and dreams.

Paradise… He thought. Now what?