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DISCLAIMER - This chapter contains mild references to homosexuality and 
love between a sentient, intelligent wolf-man and a human, as well as a 
brief, explicit description of the male anatomy of said wolf-man.  Any 
who would be insulted by this, or any children under 18 years of age 
(or 21 in certain areas) should NOT read this story, and by reading 
past this point, you afirm that you are legally mature and able to 
handle the subjects mentioned above.  Also, the writer is not 
responsible for any problems which arise by not complying with this 
warning.  Thank you for your patience, and I hope you enjoy.
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			Chapter 1  -  Rescue


	As I step through the darkness, I wonder if the rumors are 
true... is he here?  Have the imperials really captured a wolf-man?
	I call him a wolf-man, but truly, he is neither wolf, nor man. 
An evolved race of the wolves, highly intelligent, though their 
incredible mind is not as focused as the humans, who have managed to 
discard their feral, wild side and completely embrace technology.  This 
'wolf-man', or Mazuku, as the human race refers to them, stands near 
two feet taller than most normal humans, and that's at their shortest. 
The race is known for it's speed and strength, and with an intelligence 
as intense as the humans and instincts of their long dead brethren, 
they have truly become a powerful force in the world.
	Or they would have.  Humans hunted them down, killed each and 
every one they found, made sure that there would be no threats of 
hostility from these new, sentient beings.  Even so, stopping nature is 
impossible, and a few of them did manage to escape the hunters and 
assassins.  Soon after, the humans forgot about their fellow beings, 
and for near a century, they were believed extinct.  Until now, that 
is.  The humans feel threatened still, by a race of only a hundred at 
best... and so again, the hunts begin.  This is one of the first 
caught... and I pray I am not too late to save him.
	As I wander through the cavernous darkness, my blood chills... 
another scream of agony rings through the damp, unbending eeriness.  
How one could survive down here and remain sane is beyond me... though 
I suppose most who are here are not entirely sane.  I hear footsteps... 
a guard, close-by, too, I must flee!  I make my escape into a small 
sewer grate just in time to avoid being spotted by the human guardsman. 
 With all the other screaming and noise, he would hardly notice metal 
scraping on metal, certainly not beyond the other prisoners scraping 
metal filings against iron bars.  This place was a nightmare I soon 
found myself cursing.  That anyone could treat others with such 
cruelty...
	There, he went around the corner.  Time to continue my search. 
As I open the grate, I hear a growling... a guard dog?  No, not that, 
deeper... wild... this is it!  The 'wolf-man', the Mazuku!
	I follow the sounds to an iron door identical to the others.  
As I gaze through the iron bars on the door, I see him sitting up 
against the wall, completely nude, the pure moonlight shining in 
through his tiny window.  I suppose the prisoners here aren't allowed 
the luxury of clothing.  Of course, he seemed unaffected by his lack of 
clothing, perhaps modesty is non-existant in his culture?  As I watch 
him, I notice something else... his maleness... somehow, through all 
this, it stands rock hard, and I swear I can see it pulse under the 
pale glow of the moonlight.  I swallow hard, and adjust the front of my 
pants.  My eyes widen as the Mazuku spreads his legs, giving me an even 
better view of him, with the moonlight glistening off his slick 
wolfhood.  Oh how I would love to.... no, that would have to wait.  I 
had to get him out first.  I take out a small device from my pocket, it 
automatically analyzes the keypad mechanism by his door, and I hear a 
loud click as it unlocks.
	I cover my ears as a loud, blaring noise assaults my senses... 
sirens?!  No, this wasn't how it was supposed to happen.  I take out a 
hand-blaster, and aim it directly at the wolf-man, but he doesn't even 
flinch.  In fact, I think I see his eyes thanking me.  In one shot, 
it's all over.  The shackles fall from his wrists, another shot, and 
the ones around his ankles fair no better.  I rush over and take him 
onto my back, no easy feat, and make a hasty retreat from the room, 
closing the door behind me.  No need to be too obvious.  Afterward I 
open the sewer grate, lower him inside, and climb down myself.  The 
sewers here are cramped and putrid, but they lead all the way out of 
the complex, and are my only escape.  Knowing the security here will 
also realize this, I encourage my wolven escapee onward, and he moves 
with a speed I'd not imagined.  He holds back for me, though I'd rather 
him rush out of here and allow me to be captured in his place.
	From what I see of him now... his nude, scarred rear end and a 
tail that is motionless and hung low... he must have nearly lost hope 
in there.  The many scars on his body tell only a brief story of the 
hours of torture he must have faced, though I'm sure a few are 
battle-scars as well.  He is a beautiful creature, in all regards, 
though, as I follow after his nude behind, I remember that we must 
hurry.  Pulling together all my strength, I rush forward, and he takes 
the hint to move at his fastest.  There is a light at the end of the 
pipe.  Finally!  The end to his suffering is at hand.  And as his head 
pokes from the end of the sewer pipe, he stops, and growls.  Motioning 
me forward, I crawl, very cramped, beside him... but then, it was 
pleasantly cramped... he had a distinct smell to him, but it was not 
foul as the scent of man seems to be.  It was musky, and even though 
his fur had become quite filthy during his imprisonment, it still held 
a softness to it that amazed my hands.  A quick nudge on the nose 
breaks my reverie, and I look to see him looking back at me.  I really 
must try to stay focused.  Looking out of the sewer pipe, I frown.  A 
cliff?  Had I taken him the wrong way?  Damn, if we try to go back, 
we'll certainly be caught.
	Just as I begin cooking up a second plan for our escape, I hear 
a loud echo from further down the pipe... it has the distinct sound of 
water... rushing water, in fact.  He slides from the pipe and clings to 
the rock wall beside it, but as I try to follow, I'm pushed with great 
force from the pipe.  Water is rushing all around me... but even now, 
it seems to stand still... as the ocean waters below race up to meet my 
face.
	And all goes black.

	I awake upon a sandy beach... covered in sand, and feeling 
something wrapped a little too tightly around my arm.  Looking at the 
source of the discomfort, I discover a long, thin piece of sea-weed, 
wrapped around most of my upper arm.  Reaching my other hand over to 
touch it, I wince in pain at just a slight brush of my hand.  What 
happened to me?
	Then I remember... the sewer pipe, the rushing water, and the 
world flying up at me... no, myself, falling toward the ocean waves.
	A rustling behind me breaks my concentration, and I jump to my 
feet and spin around, readying my hand-blaster to take out whatever it 
is.  But before I get a chance to see, my vision clouds over, and 
though I feel myself falling to the side, I never feel the ground 
impact me.

	When I next awake, I have a splitting headache, and a desperate 
craving for food.  I sit up, much more slowly than before, and hear a 
deep, almost bestial voice behind me call out, "Ah, I see you're awake. 
There are some fruits I found in the jungle just this morning beside 
you, be sure to eat your fill."  I turn around quickly again, seeing 
the very wolf-man... no, Mazuku... that I rescued before, tieing 
together a few large leaves to form a make-shift sachel.  Sadly, my 
surprise again took the best of me, and I felt my head become light, my 
vision cloudy.  Before my eyes close, I see him rushing to my side, the 
sachel of leaves dropped and scattered where they had been.
	I never truly go unconscious this time... I know because I 
still hear his voice, comforting me, helping me rest, helping me regain 
strength.  My eyes slowly open, and I finally feel my surroundings 
again, including the warm fur under my neck.  I look up, and see him to 
my left, feeling his right arm under my head, holding it up slightly as 
he dabs lightly at my forehead with a warm cloth... which seems to be 
the same colour of dark green as my shirt was.  I look down, only now 
noticing that my dark green shirt and brown trousers have been removed, 
leaving only a white pair of shorts on my body.  I blush fiercely, and 
hear him chuckle above me, something I didn't expect from a being so 
closely resembling a wolf.
	"Ah, so you have life in you yet."  He says.  "I was worried I 
would have to carry you all the way to my people's land."
	That sparks my interest.  His people's... land?  He's going to 
take me to where he resides?  I try to sit up, but feel a gentle 
pressure on my chest, something contained of strength, yet with the 
softness of clouds behind it.  "Do not move, I can't have you going out 
again."
	Looking up at his face, I nod my dissent, and he sets me back 
down, as I notice my clothing is bundled up under my feet to keep them 
elevated.  I open my mouth to speak, but find only that I haven't the 
strength to muster up a single sound.  He can't help but notice, still 
being only inches from me.
	He looks at me, and appears troubled.  I can't tell from his 
face, it doesn't move.  His eyes give all his emotions away.  "Still 
weak, I see... are all of your race this frail?"
	I look up at him, and my eyes give him my answer.
	He nods, "I see.  Well, don't move for a while.  You've been in 
and out for nearly two days now."
	It wasn't surprising, that I'd been out so long.  It was a long 
fall, from what I remember of it.  I try my best to speak just one 
word, wanting to express my gratitude, as well as happiness, that he is 
alright, but all that comes out is "w.... wwaaaat.... wateerrr...."
	He smiles, or at least, I think that's what it is.  His lips 
move little, but his eyes seem almost over-joyed.  "Ah, water, was it? 
You're lucky, I found a stream near here earlier today, filled your 
canteen with some of it's clear water.  Go ahead, drink to your heart's 
content."
	I do so... well, almost.  He still has to hold the canteen to 
my lips as I drink, and I feel some of it spilling from my lips, down 
around my cheeks and neck, only a few drops, though, as my greedy mouth 
almost attacks the source of the clean, cool liquid... at least, with 
what strength I still have.
	"That'll do for now, you need to go easy."  He remarks, and 
takes the canteen away from my lips.  I resist only slightly, as I 
realize he's right.
	Finally, some color returns to my face, and he again seems to 
smile at me, "By the Gods, you seem better.  All you needed was some 
water."
	I smile back at him, and clear my throat.  It feels like it had 
been scraped raw by the ocean water, but now that some fresh water had 
been introduced, it was much more managable.  Finally having it in me 
to speak, I look up at him again, and feel the words pulled from my 
tongue even as they are ready to be said.
	He's gorgeous... even more than I'd originally imagined.  His 
fur is a light grey, turning lighter around his belly, which I see only 
a small glimpse of from my position laying on the ground.  He's still 
just as naked as when I'd saved him, that much I know, and I can see 
his tail flopping up, only to slump back to the ground.  His entire 
physique is just... marvelous.  How such a creature can be hated and 
hunted is beyond me.
	All the while, I stare at him, and I barely even notice him 
staring back.
	"Yes?" He asks.
	Suddenly brought out of my hypnosis, I blush crimson and let 
out a soft laugh, "N.. noth..ing.."  It's too bad my voice isn't 
recovered in full yet.  
	"You will still need rest if we are to travel.  Stay here."  
With that, the Mazuku stands up, and walks away, giving me just one 
more look at his crotch.  I can barely even believe such thoughts are 
still on my mind, but I swear, as his furry sheath becomes engraved on 
my mind, I begin to feel better already.  Still, I take his advice, and 
just go to sleep.  I need my rest.

	I awake that night, to see a small fire crackling benignly a 
short distance away.  In the light of the fire I see the Mazuku, the 
dancing flames playing off each strand of his fur like a beautiful 
field of flowers and grasses blowing in the wind.  He appears to be 
cooking something, I can see a make-shift shish-kabob in his hand... or 
paw, as it seems.  What the skewer is made of, I am not sure.  I can't 
see how he found anything but wood out here in this jungle-like 
setting... but he may well be more resourceful in the wild than us of 
the human race.
	He hasn't seen my wakenness yet, or simply has not responded, 
but I decide to make my presence known, by standing up, and walking 
toward the fire.  He seems shocked that I'm standing, and rushes up, 
dropping his cooking food on the ground near-by to come to my aid.  I 
try to evade him, but he is determined and I simply submit.  He sets me 
down on the ground, and sits right next to me, taking up his dropped 
kabob and continuing to let it roast over the fire.
	"So, how has your recovery been coming?  I see you are more 
energetic now."  I can't decide whether he means that I was walking, or 
that I now have an ever increasing erection from being this close to 
him.
	"I... I'm doing... b-better."  I still sound so weak, I'm 
afraid to talk, lest I embarass myself further.
	"I see.  And what of your arm?"
	I look at the seaweed wrapping around my left arm... it still 
seems to sting badly, and each time I try to touch it, I get the 
distinct impression I should not.
	"It does appear better than it was before, but you should not 
move it much.  It was cut open and bleeding badly after a rock grazed 
you after your fall.  You were lucky, that it was only your arm which 
got injured so."
	I nod, and look at him a moment, wanting to tell him everything 
in my mind, yet unable.  I strain myself to speak.  "I... I w..."
	"Please, do not strain yourself.  As your speech is still not 
yet well, you should rest your voice.  I have a bit to say."  He pauses 
a moment, and brings the kabob away from the fire, I assume to let it 
cool before he eats.  "I would have liked to know why a human rescued 
me from the depths of that infinite hell, when it was humans who put me 
there in the first place."  He glances at me a moment, then back to his 
food.  "Please, do not answer.  The ways of humans has always seemed 
odd to us."  Again, he mentions that there are more of him... how many 
more, I wonder?  But by now, I've missed part of his story in my 
thinking... "...ainst nature, rather than coincide with it.  But I 
suppose that was simply the route your race took, as mine decided to 
stay with the trees and the earth.  Deer?"
	I blink, confusion settling upon my mind.  Did he just call me 
dear?  "I.."
	"Would you like some deer?  I hunted while you were asleep."
	I look at his hand... paw... whatever, offering me the piece of 
bone he'd been cooking with.  That explains it.  "Th... Than... Tha..."
	"It is alright, do not strain yourself.  Go on, eat."  As I 
eat, he continues his story.  "Now, as I was saying, I find the human 
race beyond my comprehension.  They fear us, though we have never done 
them wrong, and they fear and dispise nature, as though IT defies them. 
Truly, it is they who defy it.  Know, human, I mean you no ill will 
when I say this.  You are as much a member of my family tribe as my 
dear brother, as I am humbled by your rescue.  Truly, no simple human 
would risk his own life to rescue one of my kind."
	As I listen to his thoughts and feelings, I begin to wonder 
about the way things are going.  Surely, he's noticed by now that I 
have found some kind of attraction in him.  The way his body looks to 
me, I can't understand it, but I've fallen for him.  Surely, his kind 
would never agree, nor would mine... how could I let this happen?  I 
will simply have to put it out of my mind.  I feel a slight jostle to 
my side, followed by another, then I feel I'm being shaken near 
violently.  I blink once, and look to my side, to see the Mazuku 
holding my shoulders, and shaking me this way and that.  As soon as he 
sees my eyes looking at his, he stops, and again, his eyes seem to 
flash me a smile.
	"Ah, I thought you'd left me or something.  You must learn to 
keep your concentration, you seem to have a lot of problems with that."
	Just thinking about what he means by that makes me blush bright 
crimson, and as I feel his paw brush over my face, I jump up in 
surprise, though my body quickly disagrees, and I slump back down.
	"Oh, are you alright?  Are you hurt?  I had not realized that a 
human's face was so sensitive."  His innocence seems to be much more 
that I'd originally thought, though in many ways he's far more mature 
than any other person I know.
	"No... I-I'm... fine."  He smiles as I assure him of my 
well-being, picking me up in his arms and setting me back down by the 
fire.
	"Now, you need your rest, and I need mine.  In the morning, we 
should begin our travel, I am sure it is not long before we are 
discovered, if we stay here."  What he speaks is probably true.  The 
humans who captured him would do anything to get him back, even 
journeying out to this place, where ever it is.
	"I..." I begin, trying to thank him for all his help, wishing I 
could ask him to sleep by my side.
	"Please, rest yourself.  I will still be here come morning, you 
may tell me then."  Not entirely true, but I have to live with it.  I 
just close my eyes, and within seconds I feel nothing, and see only 
dreams... one particular dream of a certain Mazuku...


copyright 2002 - Neiko Mitaki
	Feel free to e-mail me with any comments you might have, I 
would love to hear from anyone at all.  Send comments to 
neikolion@catlover.com  Again, comments and criticisms are graciously 
accepted.  Flames will be ignored.  
	Oh yes, and this is simply one part of a series.  I'll keep 
going until I get writer's block, usually happens after about the fifth 
installment or so.  Happy reading!