Chapter 1

Dusty’s Lament

 

Nome, Alaska was admittedly a pretty small town. It had a relatively low population but there seemed to be an abnormal amount of dogs. They were the only way for the post to be delivered to and from town. With such reliance on the animals, practically everyone was familiar one way or another with the dogs that made up the mail teams.

It was usually a pretty happy place to live. The community, both man and dog, felt reasonably comfortable about the town's safety. Bad things didn't happen here very often. Mostly infamous was the outbreak of diphtheria years back. The families that were affected owed a lot to the dog that saved them. Balto had became a hero overnight. That's a story everyone knew. It wasn't long afterwards that he became a father as well. Life was definitely much better for Balto. Time passed and his pups grew up way too fast. They were all deeply impressed by the wolfdog again when he, his son Kodi, Dusty, Ralph, Kirby, and the rest of the team managed to outrun the post by plane. It was a very proud day for the team.

 

Today, Nome had a completely different tone to it. It was a much more grim atmosphere, almost oppressive. Only days ago, their safe little town had been attacked. Only one life was taken, but it had happened so abruptly and without warning that everyone felt the impact. The peace of mind they had all had about how safe they were was gone now. What if the attack happened again? What would they do if it didn't stop? It was unnerving. People weren't staying outdoors after nightfall anymore.

Today, was the day the poor soul who had been taken from them was buried. The freshly turned up soil had barely even settled before the snow began to cover it. The grave had been marked with a small stone. Chiseled into the stone in big crude letters was the name ‘KODI’

 

Everyone who knew him had grieved for him and his family. It was only made worse by the way Kodi had departed this world. He had been savaged something fierce. Broken, beaten and bleeding, his last hours had not been an easy way to go. He was spared a great deal of pain by being euthanized, after everything had been done for him that they could do, it wasn't enough. That didn't make it any easier to accept. It had still felt wrong to do it.

The only comforting thought was that his suffering was at least over.

 

“No one deserved it less than him.”

“Nome won't be the same without him.”

“I still can't believe he's gone.”

 

One by one, everyone said their final goodbyes to the dog, either fighting back tears, or unashamedly letting them fall. Balto and Jenna were there, surrounded by their friends and family. Every dog of the sled team was there as well. Supporting each other as they coped with the pain of such a big loss. Jenna, his mother, weeped loudest of all. Balto still appeared to be in shock. His eyes welled up several times but not one tear ever fell. He simply held Jenna while they listened to what everyone had to say about their son.

 

Emotions conflicted harshly in his chest as words of praise and respect for Kodi reached his ears. Words had utterly failed him, but he was beyond grateful for everyone who was there. Pride swelled inside him, then burst into a terrifying wave of pain of the worst kind. This son of his he was so proud of. . . he would never see him again.

 

The weight of it threatened to break him. He was certain it would until he finally had to let it out.

Taking everyone quite by surprise, Balto threw his head up and let out one long, loud, almighty howl. The note carried on and on, conveying every bit of the pain he felt in his heart.

Some of the dogs who had managed to hold their tears back at this point completely gave in to them. A few even joined in and added their voice to Baltos. His brothers and sisters joined in. Ralph, and Kirby joined as well.

 

It was a wave of emotion so pure and sad, given life and made into sound. It resounded on them all without mercy. By time Baltos lungs emptied and the sound finally ended, the only one left who still wasn't crying was Balto. Jenna had buried her nose into his chest and sobbed against him.

 

Silence fell then. Balto bowed his head in respect before giving each and everyone there a look of gratitude. As his eyes moved from sad face to sad face, he began to feel a slight warmth. Dark days may be upon them again, but it was comforting to know he was not alone. Not in the slightest. He smiled.

It was a weak one, but hope hadn't completely fled from him. In fact, he knew it was all around him.

 

There was only one person absent from the gathering. Dusty was so beside herself with grief. To see his body again, so broken and lifeless, would have certainly destroyed her sanity. She had been the one who had found him after the attack. She had been the one who dragged him to the hospital. Not once did she leave his side the entire night.

 

So much happened between them in his final hours. It pained her beyond belief to see him in such pain. Even then, Kodi refused to complain. He was just happy to see her. Just before the end, he had actually confessed his love for her. Dusty’s heart, so heavy with grief and left in literal pieces after his passing, had felt so full of joy to hear him say that. She had never felt love and passion so strongly for someone.

 

Her mind couldn't let this memory go. It drove white hot knives into her chest every time, but it was stuck on an unending cycle. She would see his eyes staring into hers and she would stare back. Full of hope and certain he was going to be ok. Then she would see his body lying motionless, his eyes shut forever, and she stood over him, unable to come to terms of how this had happened. Anger welled up in her that he had been taken from her so cruelly. Surely there could be no bigger injustice to her.

 

Sadness, pain, and grief was all she knew anymore now. So complete was her anguish, she couldn't focus on anything anymore. Her mind went back in forth endlessly from fragmented images of Kodi, to long periods of utter numbness. It was like her mind simply could not cope and would literally shut off. Her eyes stared at nothing. Completely empty, still, and unblinking.

 

No one else knew about the brief time she and Kodi had been together. It crushed everyone when they had found out, but no one completely shut down like she had.

 

Dusty spent the days sitting in the same spot, not even caring how uncomfortable she became. Though she had been told Kodi was to be buried today, she hardly acknowledged it. If she had, it may have been the very thing to send those agonizing thoughts back to the front of her mind, freshly renewed and back to take even more of Dusty away.

 

At some point during that day, completely unaware of what was going on at Kodi’s wake, the sound of Balto and all the others howling reached her ears. Her ears twitched once, otherwise, she was completely unresponsive. Then it grew louder as more gave their voice to the call. Her ear twitched again and she blinked.

 

The haze cleared enough for her to recognize the sound. All hope in the sound was completely lost on her. All she could understand was the agony in the sound. Completely isolated in her home, she cried so fiercely that she lost all consciousness for a few hours.

 

Later, she felt someone nudge her gently. She opened one red and swollen eye to see Ralph and Kirby standing in front of her. They looked awful. Her mind could barely associate the names with their faces.

 

“Dusty. . . you should have been there with us today. You shouldn't be alone while you're like this” Ralph's voice sounded hoarse.

“He's right, you know” Kirby's voice sounded  just a hoarse. “None of us should be alone. We're all gunna need help to get through this.”

 

Dusty couldn't bring herself to speak. It may not have been completely gone yet, but there was an absolute lack of desire to say anything. The only thing she wanted was to be alone. She sniffled and closed her eye.

 

They both slept beside her that night. Doing their best to console her when her woe threw her back into fitful sobs. When she stilled and went silent, concern filled them. It couldn't be helped however. Any and all mention of Kodi only aggravated her pain.

They fell asleep uneasily. It was so late by then that it had gone completely dark outside. Moonlight bathed the three of them through the window.

 

Without knowing why, Dusty stood up. Her legs trembled under her but it meant nothing to her. Nothing did anymore. Just one thing was left in her, one last desire.

Her whole body shivered once she stepped out into the night. Somehow, she knew where to go. Without looking up once, her paws carried her slowly. She didn't stop until she was there; at Kodi’s grave.

 

She sat and looked at it passively for a moment. She curled up beside it and lay her head on the mound of turned up soil. Everything important to her lay there with her. Buried and gone forever. The cold wind and snow chilled her body, but she didn't move. Trying to ignore the pain in her chest, she let herself fall asleep there.

 

The next morning both Ralph and Kirby awoke rather alarmed at Dusty’s absence. With one look at each other, they knew exactly where she would have gone. They hurried off, prepared for the worst. If she had been out all night. . . The thought only made them quicken their pace.

 

Sure enough, when they approached Kodi’s burial, they found Dusty curled up against the stone with his

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