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Paradise
Paradise
Info
Japanese: 楽園
Romaji: Rakuen
Residence: Wolves
Visited by: Wolves

Paradise (楽園 , Rakuen) is a mysterious place shrouded in ambiguity, though it is often featured as a beautiful place with lush meadows, crystal-clear lakes, tall trees, snow-topped mountains, and fields of Lunar Flowers. Getting into Paradise is the goal of the protagonists and antagonists in the series; both groups struggle with a sense of longing they can't quite explain but can't ignore.

Origins[]

Paradise's beginning is unclear, though it's presumed to have always existed in tandem with the real world. Its very nature is detailed in the Book of the Moon which claims that mankind descended from wolves. A pseudo-religious text, it could be interpreted as both a fairy tale and a genesis-to-revelations scripture. It states that Paradise can only be opened by wolves, with a Lunar Flower being the guiding force, and that the end of the world is impending; Paradise being the only salvation.

Lord Darcia I disappeared and was presumably killed while attempting to force entry into Paradise. The Darcia Keep, as a result, suffered extensive damage and was half-submerged following the event.

Paradise's true entrance was found to be within a mountain which the Nobles sealed shut. In the OVAs, Darcia III shot an energy beam from his ship to destroy the seal and regain entry.

Quest for Paradise[]

The prophecy surrounding Paradise is often mentioned with varying yet equivalent messages of hope and despair, but the persisting mantra is, "When the world comes to an end, Paradise will open, but only the wolves know how to find it". The world as seen throughout the series indeed shows signs of deterioration and decay, with vast wastelands slowly freezing under an increasingly frigid atmosphere. Meteors light up the sky occasionally, particularly toward the end of the series, with some crashing into the ground with tremendous force.

Characters in the series, humans and wolves alike, show varying stages of awareness of Paradise; the wolves being more instinctually perceptive. While some (in particular, the wolves and nobles) are driven near the point of obsession to find Paradise, others treat it as a far-fetched notion that has no more bearing on the real world than a dream, albeit a persistent one. This 'inner voice' that drives the subconscious desire is strongest in Kiba who is eventually recognized by his pack and by Cheza as the one who will open Paradise. Even Darcia III admits this realization.

False Paradise[]

Darcia I was so driven to find Paradise in his lifetime that he went to great lengths to create his own doorway, using alchemy to create a Lunar Flower powerful enough to open the false door. With a wolf at his side, Darcia I manages to open the door...but, being that it was done so artificially, the Paradise that is opened cannot be sustained and results in a catastrophic explosion that destroys much of Darcia's Keep.

200 years later, Lady Jaguara would work to create and enter her own Paradise. To achieve this, she applied alchemy, Cheza, and wolf's blood, though her motivation to open Paradise was more driven by her desire to be with Darcia III. Her false Paradise resulted in the collapse of her city and she died at the hands of Darcia III.

True Paradise[]

At the beginning of the OVAs, Darcia's monologue revealed how Paradise is simply a future world that can be opened following the end of the one preceding it; a cycle of destruction and rebirth that spawns once the world becomes cold and dead.

At the end of the fight scene between Darcia III and Kiba, Paradise was on the verge of opening but the presence of Darcia's cursed wolf's-eye corrupts the cycle. The purity of the Paradise Kiba and the others were hoping for is tainted, though not destroyed. The resulting Paradise - the world that is reborn - resembles Earth much as we know it. Kiba and the others are reincarnated with no apparent knowledge of their previous lives, though each looks to the sky as if sensing something. Kiba walks along a rain-slicked road before he breaks into a run, signifying the start of yet another journey.

Trivia[]

  • According to Darcia III, Paradise is the one and only cure for his family's curse.
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