Days and night were a foreign concept to her. The Tree had always glowed since she could remember her earliest memories, casting its light all over the humongous cavern. The Tree itself towered over everything in Sanctuary, over its smaller brethren and creatures that lived.

Around the glade, surrounded by the gushing river that flowed from the roots of the Tree were giant marble structures that seemed to hold beings much larger than herself. The Wolf told her that before she was born, her forefathers and siblings lived here.

Even though she trusted the Wolf with all her heart, she couldn’t help but be skeptical, since these buildings were so much larger than her. Even with her full height she couldn’t even look through the lowest window when she jumped and the benches themselves were taller than her.

The Serpent said maybe the reason so was that she was young, and hadn’t grown to be an adult yet. She too was skeptical about that. She certainly doesn’t feel like a child and the the Serpent had only ever grown larger since she was born. Its knowledge about growing seemed rather lacking.

She was hopping across the river, stepping on the little stones in the water as they rush around her bare feet. The grass was soft to the touch, an unbound path that leads everywhere. On this side of the river, where the trees were shorter and grass extends as far as the eye could see was the territory that the Wolf claimed from himself.

Slowly, she crouched onto her fours, sleazily moving forward in the tall grass. She inhaled the air, where the wind blew toward her. She knew that this was the path where the wind would circulate around, hiding her scent away from the Wolf. She wanted to surprise him.

Unhurried, she leisurely crawled toward the den of wolves — a smaller cave on under small hill, surrounded with trees and grass to hide it. If she hadn’t knew that it existed, she doubt she would be able to find the place.

The Tree shone across the cavern, casting a soft golden glow over the green grass, the wind rippling the fields like waves upon the crystal lake to the south. It was warm, the air pleasant on her skin.

There were small insects under the grass, ants the size of fists moving about, around and over her, not paying her any mind. Some flowers bloomed on the green stalks, where brightly coloured butterflies fluttered merrily. These, however, are not enlightened creatures.

They are only mere imitations of the Origin Creatures that came from the time before. These beasts and insects only served as prey and fodder to the Origin Creatures, drawn in and created by the Tree.

Time was a strange concept to her. Without the sun and moon, there was no measurement to the passage of existence. The ceiling above had ever only shown red, yellow and blue from the colours of the Tree, casting its luminescence across the vast rocky cave.

The Wolf once told her that before he arrived with the forefathers, the world was a chaotic place. There was a day and night, but they followed to patterns. One moment could be day, one moment could be night, shifting back and forth on a whim and the sun and moon travels in strange undeterminable paths.

The world was strange and dangerous then, as told by the Wolf. Death was common, lives were short and filled with agony. The ground would spill glowing ichor of the earth and the sky would tear itself asunder and crumble. It was only by the grace of her forefathers that Wolf, the Serpent, the Birds and countless others managed to survive.

Having heard that, she felt rather apprehensive about the world outside of the Sanctuary. However, since her forefathers had set out to repopulate the world with the Wolf’s kins and descendants, the world must be a much safer place, right?

Unknowingly, clouded in her own thoughts, she had reached the Wolf’s lair. She could smell the scent of wolves, hear the yipping sounds of pups.

Returning to her senses, she peered through the leaves of the bushes, spying in. Little grey and brown fluffy forms could be seen prancing about, rough-playing with each other. A bigger grey pinned its brother to the ground, exposing the belly. The smaller brown whined in surrender, at which he was immediately let go, bouncing back up. The other browns jumped yipped excitedly, chasing after their brothers and sisters.

They hadn’t noticed her yet, it seemed.

That was good. She wished to surprise them.

She wiggled her bottom in anticipation, readying into a stance that the Panther taught her. She tensed, readying to pounce onto her unsuspecting prey.

The grey one had his back to her, growling without actual intention. Now was the perfect opportunity.

Her hind legs abruptly extended, launching her forward with much force at the wolf. With a small war cry, she propelled herself onto the grey’s back, wrapping her arms around its neck.

Surprised by the sudden assault, the wolf was unprepared to be tackled from the back and was knocked to the ground when it lost its balance. Yelping confusedly, it felt something’s teeth, the hard and pointy bits fastening around its throat.

In just a flash, this prideful alpha of its brothers was subdued.

It could only whine in surrender, stilling its movements

Gradually, it felt the teeth around his throat leaving, letting it sit up with a huff.

She felt rather proud of herself, straddling over her defeated opponent.

“Unfair!” it complained, “Surprise attacks do not count!”

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“I got you anyway, didn’t I?” she replied after spitting out the fur in her mouth, “And you are dead.”

“Still—”

“I brought some apples,” she said, unwrapping a small leaf-satchel from around her shoulders. In it were several golden apples, plucked from the lower branches of the Tree. Since the wolves couldn’t climb trees, she often bring apples as a gift.

Dismissively, she stuffed the apple in the grey pup’s open mouth.

The other browns and greys congratulated her excitedly, happy that their friend had came to visit and bearing gifts. They licked over her face, launching questions at her as she tossed the apples to each wolf one by one.

“—we thought you were at the Serpents —”

“—how’s the Cats?—”

“—Can you bring us there—”

Struggling to answer so many, she abruptly felt another presence near her. It was the sound of something large and heavy, slowly treading through the underbrush. She could smell the heavy scent of the wolves, but it was a magnitude above any these pups carry.

Before she could dodge, she felt herself flying through the air, having been smacked by something large and heavy. Somehow, she managed to regain her senses and twisted her body to face the ground.

With a grace that was still far too lacking when compared to the Panther, she still attempted to fall on her fours.

The maneuver succeed, partially. She landed in a pile of soft leaves, scattering them in a small explosion of green and yellow.

With a small burst of speed and exhilaration, she instinctively moved to one side before her momentum even died.

She felt something brushed pass where she just was, but in the flying leaves she might just as well be blind.

Then, it was all over.

She felt a wind buffeting her back, followed by a paw the size of a tree impacting her back before she could even register the blur moving past. Unceremoniously, she was pinned against the floor with an omph!, unmovable with the titanic weight above her, "And you, are dead."

“Not bad,” her assailant praised, “I see that the Panther had taught you well.”

Meekly she let a small whimper.

The paw on her back lifted, allowing her to move again.

Slowly, she lifted herself from the grass ground, shaking the twigs out of her hair. The Wolf strode around her to its brood, its tail wagging from side to side. Its height was tall enough to be called a small hill, and yet it could still sneak up on to her, unseen and unheard until it was far too late.

How the Wolf managed to achieve that was far beyond her comprehension.

In its mouth was a ram easily three times at large as she is, hanging limply between the bloodied teeth.

The pups crowded around Wolf in respect and adoration as it dropped the hard-earned prey onto the ground. It admonished his eldest son, the grey one, “You must pay more attention to your surrounding. She managed to take you down so easily because you were careless, and could hold off against me for a few seconds because she was vigilant. Remember this well.”

She strode forth, pulling of the last leaf that got snagged in her hair as the wolves tore the carcass apart with gusto and thanks.

Wolf nodded its massive head in a more tempered greeting, “What brings you here, young one?”

She hesitated.

“Speak your mind, young one,” Wolf commanded, “You are among your family.”

It was a request that she had thought about for a long time, unsure of when to ask. There was no Sun nor Moon to compare, but she knew that this idea had been with her for a long time. It was a question that came to her before the grey pup was born.

Biting her lips, she steeled herself and answered, “I — I wish to see the world outside.”

Instead of breaking into a furious rant as she had expected, the Wolf paused ponderously.

“Hmm… the wolf hummed, that was a question that I had been expecting for a long while, I had begun to wonder why you had yet to request so.”

“You knew?” She cried, surprised.

She had wanted to explore the outer world since she had laid eyes on the inconspicuous tunnel that lead outside. For countless times, she had considered sneaking out, to brave the waters but the local Guardian Beast, a great Spider that spun its web to be its own realm and fortress had always caught her. The Spider said, The world is dangerous. Turn back, young one. This is where you will be safe.

She had no choice but to agree. A world that even the great Guardian Beasts must flee from must be one that she cannot survive in.

Still, she had caught herself staring at the tunnel leading out every once in awhile, but never dared to set foot outside, especially since the Spider was always vigilant.

“Of course I knew. The Spider had told me so. Your forefathers and siblings had went to restore the world, and it would only be natural for you to seek them out. I myself hadn’t seen the outside world for the longest time, and would wish to see the sky once again.” the Wolf answered, sitting its humongous furry rump on the greenery, destroying a bush.

“… Why hadn’t you left to seek them out too?” She asked, curious.

“I was tasked to look after the Sanctuary with my fellow Guardians, the Wolf answered sadly, I would give much to see the open sky too, but the task given is my purpose. The mercy your forefather had given were beyond the selfish wishes of myself, and I would honour it.”

“So…” she questioned hopefully, “May I…?

The Wolf did not answer for a while.

“I must convene with my fellow Guardians,” the Wolf finally said after a while, “Come with me, climb onto my back. We shall decide at Tree.”

This went much better than she had expected. With a cry of joy, she clambered onto the back of the Wolf, twisting her fingers around the silky yet strong hair of the beast, laying in the small of its back.

Making sure that its passenger was secured, the Wolf gave a thunder howl into the sky, “OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWHOO”

And with that, the world changed into a blur of colours, leaving behind a pack of disgruntled wolves at the den as the leaves went flying again.