A blinding flash filled the meadow with light, turning the darkness of night to day as a sound of rolling thunder tore across the silence. The ground began to shake and animals in the meadow and surrounding area fled in fear. Something was happening, something was changing, and something was beginning. Then, as suddenly as it all began, the shaking and thunder stopped. All was quiet and still once more and the light faded to the normal darkness of night. The animals that had fled soon returned to their rest or other night task in the peace that again commanded the meadow and the forest near it, and within moments, the previous scene was lost to memory. Nothing had happened, nothing had changed, and nothing had begun, or had it?

A small pack of wolves prowled soundlessly through the forest. They were fully aware that something new had entered their territory and instinctively searched for this new presence, the need to determine whether or not it posed a threat to the pack driving them. The wolves fanned out as they approached the small meadow and began to circle it and close in slowly. In the center of their ever-closing ring was a huddled and still form. The wolves paused some distance away from the form as it shifted and slowly rose to a sitting position. The figure shivered, the cool night air of this world chilling him, the clothing he wore not designed to protect against the cold. The man lifted his head and surveyed the unfamiliar terrain; aware he was not alone as the wolves eyed him. He lifted a hand to his temple and idly rubbed it as his gaze went from one silently snarling wolf to the next, searching for some sign of a leader, and finding it in the body of a ferocious dark gray wolf. He was a grizzled and battle-tested warrior, his stance and carriage showing he had been the Alpha male of the pack for many years and he would defend the pack and its territory at all costs. The wolf's savage blue eyes locked onto this man, this one who walked upright that had entered the territory of the pack.

The man kept his face turned to the gray wolf, but he closed his eyes and lifted his hands to the sky before uttering a Word. The word echoed through the night though his voice had been but a whisper. An intense silence followed the death of the echo, the air heavy as if there was an impending storm threatening to break. A couple of the wolves whined and looked toward their pack leader whose gaze was still centered upon the man. The man opened his eyes and looked at the wolf before him, and then he spoke.

"Beasts of the night, I mean no harm to you. I am only here to seek refuge. I know you can understand me, I only wish to be at rest. No more searching, no more hiding." His voice was a soft low baritone, but it was not his voice the wolves understood, though they heard it, rather it was the echo of his thoughts that burned in their minds. The pack leader slowly padded up to the sitting man, their eyes on level with each other. And then the wolf spoke, though not by means normally associated with speech.

~You mean no harm strange one, and so we shall leave you be.~ The wolf began to continue pass the man, but he reached out with his hand. The wolf snarled warningly at him, and the man pulled his hand back.

"I mean no disrespect. I only wish to know where I am. What…where is this…." He looked around the meadow and then up at the sky. "…This world of two moons? I seek safety and refuge…does this place offer such?" The wolf, always wary of those that walk upright, remained silent and then turned back to the forest with a single thought. ~Come.~

The wolves followed their leader's example and padded silently towards the shadows of the forest. The man slowly rose to his feet. He stood about 6'3" tall and looked to be in his mid-twenties. He did not appear to be well muscled, and yet, he seemed to exude a certain strength, and he was by no means weak. He had well groomed, yet slightly tousled, jet-black hair and a friendly face. He was handsome, his most striking feature being his deep, piercing blue-gray eyes. His pale skin seemed brighter beneath the soft light of the two moons overhead. He wore a loose, pale blue shirt made of light material over a pair of dark blue breeches tucked into a pair of black walking boots. At his waist, though not visible because of the untucked shirt, was a belt, and from the belt was slung a small pouch as well as a dagger in an intricately designed sheath. Perhaps one of the more eye-catching aspects of the man was the delicate silver linked chain around his neck. The chain was strung with many charms and pendants of different designs and shapes and were made of etched silver, the most prominent of these a large crescent moon. The man drew up to his full height and paused for a moment before taking one confident stride after another, following the wolf and the pack into the darkness of the forest.

The wolves stole soundlessly through the shadows of the forest, but the man had no trouble keeping up with them. He too moved with silence and stealth, betraying his great familiarity with forest dwelling. Suddenly, the forest ended. The wolves remained among the line of trees that marked the end of the forest, but the leader continued and padded up a small rise, stopping at its peak. The man took a few steps beyond the forest line and then paused briefly as the wolf turned to look back at him before he continued to ascend the small rise to the wolf's side. A small wind picked up and pulled at him playfully as he stepped up to the peak of the rise, and the man caught his breath. This was no hill, but a cliff, and spreading out beneath the cliff was a magnificent view of the land. Flowing rivers, sparkling lakes, lush forests and peaceful meadows stretched out as far as the eye could see, and to the east, the ice-capped tips of mountains were barely visible. The beauty and incredible grandeur of the land beneath the wide and immense night sky was humbling.

The man went down on one knee and sighed softly. "It is paradise." He turned his gaze to the wolf beside him, his blue-gray eyes bright with impending tears. "This world is…magnificent! So beautiful, so peaceful! Thank you, my shadowed friend, for bringing me here, for showing me your world." The wolf lowered his head in a nod, then took a step away to leave.

"Wait…," the man called to him. "Please, tell me, do you have a name?" The wolf lifted his gaze to the man. ~I am called ShadowNight, leader of the Lupisha Pack.~ The man nodded. "ShadowNight, guardian and keeper of your forest, I am Delphias."

The wolf again moved his head in a nod of acknowledgement, and Delphias and the wolf held each other's gaze for a long, silent moment, not as man and wolf, but as equals. The man rose and again turned his gaze to the world below him. The wolf took a step back up to him and remained by his side rather than leaving, also staring out over the world he had always known. The man smiled to himself, his soft blue-gray eyes scanning over the countryside. "Perhaps my search is over, perhaps I am finally home, and perhaps my life is finally beginning."