Why don't you gnaw your way out?
The wind whistled as it blew along the trees and mountains, kicking up snow into the chilly air. The dark red tinted sky created an eerie, almost sinister, atmosphere as Steele slowly backed along a ledge on the side of the mountain. Several angry dogs were moving towards him, their eyes shining crimson with an almost unnatural glow.
?Ok, guys, I already apologized,? Steele pleaded, his ears folded against the back of his head. ?What more do you want??
?There is no forgiveness for you, traitor,? One of the dogs replied, his bared teeth shining ominously against the eerie sky.
Steele continued to step back as the dogs closed in, his heart beating rapidly. The irate dogs looked like they would tear him apart any second and Steele?s size and strength were negated by their numerical advantage. Why would they suddenly turn on him? Was he not the one who saved them from the fire?
?I saved several of you from the fire,? Steele yelled out, desperate to get the dogs to spare him from potentially being mauled to death. ?Is this how you repay me??
?Your motives were conceited,? Another dog replied, growling as he closed in. ?You only were trying to gain back what you had lost through treachery. You don?t deserve that collar!?
At this point Steele was certain the dogs could not be negotiated with. He looked over his shoulder and saw the edge of a cliff with an ice covered pond at the bottom. It would be just as fatal an endeavor to jump as it would to be mauled by the dogs; even if he survived the jump he would surely drown underneath the ice. Steele turned to see a brown sled dog flying towards him, his teeth gleaming in the light. The dog bit down onto Steele?s shoulder causing him to howl in pain as he tried to shake the dog off. He managed to grab the dog in his jaws, which promptly latched onto his collar as well. Steele quickly flung the assailant off of him, which also tore his prized collar right off his neck. But just he flung the one dog off, two more dogs bit onto his legs, causing him to yelp in pain as he clenched his eyes shut. He desperately kicked his two assailants off, but the effort was in vain as four more attacked him this time; latching onto his back, sides, and legs. Steele shook violently and finally succeeded in dispatching the ireful canines from his fur, still cringing from the shock and pain of being attacked by multiple assailants. He continued to step back as he stared down his attackers, their figures now becoming black as the night with eyes that burned with an unnatural fire. Steele took another step back because he knew anyone of them could pounce and try to finish him off at any moment, but it was one step to many. Steele screamed as he plunged off the cliff, time seemingly slowing down around him as he fell for what seemed a lengthy time. He hit the ice with great force, sending sheering pain throughout his body as he broke through. As he plunged deeper and deeper into the freezing water, the ice seemed to have mended the hole where he fell through, trapping him underneath. As he finally stopped sinking, he laboriously swam towards the surface. His entire body stung with an intensity worse than he had ever felt before, as he struggled to move his limbs to propel himself towards the surface. As he reached the bottom of the ice he tried desperately to break his way through with no avail, as the ice was too thick for him to force his way through. The underside of the entire pond appeared to be one solid thick sheet of ice with no weak points or openings. As he continued fruitlessly to try to force his way through the ice he heard a voice call out.
?Why don?t you gnaw your way to the surface?? The voice mocked him.
Steele remembered how he told the dogs in the dredger about his supposed exploits during his trip back from the sled accident during the serum run. He claimed to have gnawed his way through ice to escape drowning, knowing any lie he told them would impress them and gain even more admiration from them. He looked at the thickness of the ice and knew that it would be inconceivable for him to chew his way through it, but he was left with no alternatives. A sense of sheer terror ran through Steele as he began to run low on air. He began frantically gnawing at the ice as his supply of air dwindled even further. Suddenly he was no longer able to hold his breath and his mouth flew open, causing his lungs to begin to fill with water. He sunk further and further into the darkness, no longer having the air to fight his way to the surface. He felt a sharp pain in his chest as all his senses began to dull, the pain spreading throughout his body until it became so unbearable he wanted to scream although he lacked the air or strength to do so.
Steele?s eyes flew open as he awoke with a violent start, frantically gasping for air, his heart racing so quickly that it felt as if it would leap from his chest. It was nothing more than a dream, a fictitious set of events that never really happened. Knowing the whole matter was behind him now, he turned to see sunlight coming in through the window. It was finally morning and he had a big race to win today, the challenging team supposedly coming from the town of White Mountain. Steele got out of his bed and yawned, stretching and looking to see if his musher had left him any breakfast.
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A teaser scene from my sequel to The Golden Collar. A big thanks to AlphaWolfJenna for help with shading the ice and overall instruction/advice while I drew and colored this picture.
?Ok, guys, I already apologized,? Steele pleaded, his ears folded against the back of his head. ?What more do you want??
?There is no forgiveness for you, traitor,? One of the dogs replied, his bared teeth shining ominously against the eerie sky.
Steele continued to step back as the dogs closed in, his heart beating rapidly. The irate dogs looked like they would tear him apart any second and Steele?s size and strength were negated by their numerical advantage. Why would they suddenly turn on him? Was he not the one who saved them from the fire?
?I saved several of you from the fire,? Steele yelled out, desperate to get the dogs to spare him from potentially being mauled to death. ?Is this how you repay me??
?Your motives were conceited,? Another dog replied, growling as he closed in. ?You only were trying to gain back what you had lost through treachery. You don?t deserve that collar!?
At this point Steele was certain the dogs could not be negotiated with. He looked over his shoulder and saw the edge of a cliff with an ice covered pond at the bottom. It would be just as fatal an endeavor to jump as it would to be mauled by the dogs; even if he survived the jump he would surely drown underneath the ice. Steele turned to see a brown sled dog flying towards him, his teeth gleaming in the light. The dog bit down onto Steele?s shoulder causing him to howl in pain as he tried to shake the dog off. He managed to grab the dog in his jaws, which promptly latched onto his collar as well. Steele quickly flung the assailant off of him, which also tore his prized collar right off his neck. But just he flung the one dog off, two more dogs bit onto his legs, causing him to yelp in pain as he clenched his eyes shut. He desperately kicked his two assailants off, but the effort was in vain as four more attacked him this time; latching onto his back, sides, and legs. Steele shook violently and finally succeeded in dispatching the ireful canines from his fur, still cringing from the shock and pain of being attacked by multiple assailants. He continued to step back as he stared down his attackers, their figures now becoming black as the night with eyes that burned with an unnatural fire. Steele took another step back because he knew anyone of them could pounce and try to finish him off at any moment, but it was one step to many. Steele screamed as he plunged off the cliff, time seemingly slowing down around him as he fell for what seemed a lengthy time. He hit the ice with great force, sending sheering pain throughout his body as he broke through. As he plunged deeper and deeper into the freezing water, the ice seemed to have mended the hole where he fell through, trapping him underneath. As he finally stopped sinking, he laboriously swam towards the surface. His entire body stung with an intensity worse than he had ever felt before, as he struggled to move his limbs to propel himself towards the surface. As he reached the bottom of the ice he tried desperately to break his way through with no avail, as the ice was too thick for him to force his way through. The underside of the entire pond appeared to be one solid thick sheet of ice with no weak points or openings. As he continued fruitlessly to try to force his way through the ice he heard a voice call out.
?Why don?t you gnaw your way to the surface?? The voice mocked him.
Steele remembered how he told the dogs in the dredger about his supposed exploits during his trip back from the sled accident during the serum run. He claimed to have gnawed his way through ice to escape drowning, knowing any lie he told them would impress them and gain even more admiration from them. He looked at the thickness of the ice and knew that it would be inconceivable for him to chew his way through it, but he was left with no alternatives. A sense of sheer terror ran through Steele as he began to run low on air. He began frantically gnawing at the ice as his supply of air dwindled even further. Suddenly he was no longer able to hold his breath and his mouth flew open, causing his lungs to begin to fill with water. He sunk further and further into the darkness, no longer having the air to fight his way to the surface. He felt a sharp pain in his chest as all his senses began to dull, the pain spreading throughout his body until it became so unbearable he wanted to scream although he lacked the air or strength to do so.
Steele?s eyes flew open as he awoke with a violent start, frantically gasping for air, his heart racing so quickly that it felt as if it would leap from his chest. It was nothing more than a dream, a fictitious set of events that never really happened. Knowing the whole matter was behind him now, he turned to see sunlight coming in through the window. It was finally morning and he had a big race to win today, the challenging team supposedly coming from the town of White Mountain. Steele got out of his bed and yawned, stretching and looking to see if his musher had left him any breakfast.
---------------------------------------
A teaser scene from my sequel to The Golden Collar. A big thanks to AlphaWolfJenna for help with shading the ice and overall instruction/advice while I drew and colored this picture.
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