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Chapter 1:

Flashback

*Bang*

The tree next to me exploded in a shower of splinters. More gunfire came from the left. I heard the cries of a fallen brother, not my brother, but a brother nonetheless, he fell at my side. The pack was in full retreat from a tenfold of men clad in fur. I was only one year old at the time, just a pup, educated but not yet strong enough or nearly wise enough to lead the pack. The air around us stunk of fear as we fled for our lives.

*Bang*

I shouldn't have looked, but I had to see how far away the hunters, who were seeking revenge for some unknown deed, were. It is this sad truth of life that hit me like a blow to the head- it was not for punishment that we were being hunted, but discrimination.

It was then that I saw my mother, Lupin, fall, never to rise again. I stopped wanting to come to her aid, but the cards that were in my hands would not allow such events to play out.

"Okami!" I turned my head to see my father furiously barking commands that that were barely audible over the sounds of my fear circling in my head. All I heard was, "Run, Okami, run." I did not need any provoking and I fled. Powered by intense fear and adrenaline I made it. However, my luck only lasted so long. Being only one year old, I didn't have the endurance to keep up. I did the only thing I could do, I ran to the side in an attempt to hide from the great evil that was hunting us. I jumped over a tree that was laying in my path. Fortunately, due to years of termites' hard labor, the tree was hollowed out, I hid in there. I soon learned though, that my fortune, like my luck, also had a time limit to it.

I lay down and nodded off to sleep. I slept peacefully, but at the same time with a nervousness churning in my stomach. I did not know whether that nervousness was caused by the events of the day, or by the fact that I was betrayed by my own father. He left me to die what I can only imagine is a horrible death, slow and painful.

This slumber of mine was awakened by the sound of barking. I stood up, ears perked, trying to locate the origin of the sound. When I did, it was much too late. I was going to run from the tree and make a break for it, I delayed, this delay saved my life. I ran, and a second later a massive set of jaws was barking at the entrance of the tree. A second earlier and I would have ran right into those open jaws of death. I skidded to a stop inches from those jaws.

Then, I saw one of those fur clad humans. He took hold of the dog and tried him to a tree. He then approached me, knelt down and held out his hand. Not knowing this as a sign of peace and having that combined with the fear surging through my body, I made a serious mistake. Without a growl, without warning, as was my nature, I lunged and tried to make that fatal strike at the throat.

The human was faster than me, and he dodged my attack and batted me away with no more effort than he would have a annoying fly. He then picked up the stick of death he dropped in the snow. He pointed it at me, aimed, and pulled the trigger...