• It was raining agian. It had rained for three days now every time I came to the mountain to the west of my village. I came here for only one reason and that was for my village.
    I had come here on the will of the village elders to watch the battle below. THe batttle had raged on for two days befor the elders sent me here. It had been a growing worry that the battle would soon come to are village.
    While watching the white robotic armor of our village troops and the red armor of the uknown troops that had been attacking I could here a muffled thud as though some heavy man or animal was aprouching me. I turred my head slightly so i could see an aprouching dark figure.
    I raised my small pistol ready to fire if I came to such a conclusion. The figure stopped and we stood there in silence. One minuet later the figure moved again and came closer to me.
    "Oh, its just you Okami." Okami was my villages most prized weapen. A frost wolf with a keen scence of smell and a good fighting spirit.
    I lowerd my weapon and went closer to the wolf. On his back he carried food and a small coat. I took the gifts then Okami put his nose in my hands and dropped a small piece of paper in my hands.
    "What you got there boy?" I said. The paper was folded and tied wath a small string. After taking the string off and unfolding it I saw something that cought my eye.
    "Sia of the Akashi clan," I read aloud, "you must return to the village in two days if the battle continues. Okami will stay with you. " Then at the bottom was the elders syboll, a wolf with two olive branches on either side.
    "Why two days?" I wondered. Either there was something they wern't telling me or the situation was greater than I expected....


    Two days had gone by with no change in the battle. I grabbed my pistle and packed my small tent and left for the village.
    The rain had stopped but it was still dark with clouds of smoke coming from the ground and filling the sky. I was cold and wet still but I felt ready for what was instore for me, good or bad.
    The mountain path was steep but Okami was steady going down the rocky path. Getting off Okamis back every time i felt my legs tighten I walked half the trip. Okami was keeping a steady pace until I got off so he would not get too far ahead.
    We moved down the path for hours and hours when we finaly cought sight of my village. But what I saw was not what I expected. Not at all.


    Flames were all around me. The small wooden houses catching on fire with ease. Most of the houses were just large piles of burning wood. Okami moved very fast dodging the debris falling from the houses as we headed for the house of the elders.
    We were moving fast when we came upon a group of red armord men.
    "Fire!" One of the men yelled. A split second latter I felt my breath being taken from me and flying back landing hard on the ground. But befor I could look away I saw Okami the prize of my village fall to the enemy and die.