I don't think too hard about thread titles tbh

A knight in black armor would need to find an answer by any means necessary.

Uncertainty among the continents had began with the trembles. A darkened night with no stars. The dawning day painted red and furious. As if the very ground beneath their paws had come alive. Soon prey animals alike were sick. Not just any old sick, but infected. Going crazy, acting odd, spewing worms from their mouths. It didn't take long for wolves to get it either. Eating tainted meat that had eggs festering and growing into worms inside their own bodies.

He had to find the source, the origin. Keep it away from the bamboo. Blood splatter his paws, his mask keeping his facial orifices safe from infection. Bamboo staff strapped across his shoulder nicked and bent, needing attention. There wasn't time. More needed to perish for the infection to go away. There was no cure. No remedy that would reverse the effects. A sacrifice was needed.

Just a moment though. One breath, one afternoon of rest. Tomorrow, he could keep up with the murders sacrifices. His large paws, aching and tired, carried him through the short grass and thorny thicket. A break in the trees pointed him toward a sheer cliff and a small area that appeared unattended. Could it be a place for a nap? The thought of sleep was too alluring.

Ducking beneath the pointed canopy, he scans the area, steel gaze landing on a small, feminine form that appeared rather koi-like. More family related to Hattori? His daughter had had pups, had she not? His head cants as he approaches slowly, an alerting chuff releasing from his maw toward her.

Halfway across the flat expanse of earth, a rustle behind him in the thicket catches his attention. Off to the side, closer to the girl, a wolf emerges from the shadows. Its shoulders are hunched, eyes crazed, lips drooling thick mucus. His body goes on alert, fur bristling, ears pinning to his head. Looking between infected and the girl, he calculates. Could he reach her in time before the sick one did? He wouldn't be given any more time.

"Run!" Akito yells, his own paws kicking off the dirt to try and intercept the wolf headed straight for her.