ground. Not waiting to socialize any more, Haywire bolted through a bush, and sprinted blindly ahead of him. He looked back, and though a thicket of bushes blocked the hunter, a peal of thunder came shooting over his head, burying itself in a nearby tree. Haywire ran like a fat man being chased my hungry wolves.

Suddenly, a nerve-racking pain shocked Haywire as he blindly collided into something furry. He tumbled head over tail as they rolled down a hill. Haywire then stood muzzle-to-muzzle over a very terrified and shocked Blitz.

Up to this day, Haywire still wishes he could remember that look on Blitz’s face, but he couldn’t because he had more important things to worry about.

“I...think you’ve been drinking out of a toilet again,” Blitz grumbled painfully.

Haywire got off of him and threw his paws in the air, gesturing towards the spot behind him. “H-H-Hu...Hu...”

Blitz got to his feet and stared at Haywire. “Yup...you have. I told you not to do that unless I was really mad at you, or if Ambyr commanded you.”

Haywire didn’t seem to hear. “Hu-Hu...Human!! THERE’S A HUMAN HERE!”

“There are humans everywhere,” Blitz said with a roll of his eyes.

Haywire shook his head. “...WITH BIG BOOM-BOOM STICKS!!!”

Blitz looked up and him, and smiled happily. “Really? Oh, I LOOOVE fireworks!! Come on, let’s go!!”

He started running off, but Haywire pulled his tail back. “Not those boom-boom sticks, you idiot!! I mean boom-boom-BOOM sticks!!”

Blitz stared at him. “What the heck’s a boom-boom-BOOM stick?!”

Haywire didn’t have to answer. Another peal of thunder sounded off in the distance, and a small hole exploded in the ground, falling dangerously close to Blitz’s left paw. Blitz gaped down at it, and turned his head to see a two-legged shadow taking aim again. Haywire shoved him forward.

“Oh, right. And if you just sit there, I’m sure he’ll be more than happy to miss you again. RUN!!!”

Haywire and Blitz took off for all that they were worth. They kept their heads down low as another shot rang out, and sliced into the ground, whizzing past Blitz’s ear.

“Why didn’t you tell me he had a gun?” shouted Blitz.

“I did!!”

“No, you didn’t!”

“I said he had a boom-boom stick!!”

Another shot ripped the air to shreds.

“Do me a favor – the next time you feel up to telling me I’m about to get blown to bits, SAY IT PROPERLY!!!”

The two dodged under a pile of fallen branches to catch their breath. They stood very still, taking little peeks out for any sign of the hunter. “Why is he attacking us?” Haywire asked.

Blitz looked at him. “What do you mean ‘us’? What did you do?”

Haywire recoiled. “Me? Nothing!!”

Blitz narrowed his eyes.

“Okay...so I kinda jumped up and scared him.”

Blitz’s jaw dropped. “You WHAT?”

“Hey, I thought he was you, okay?”

“Great. He probably thinks we’re some rabid Huskies who think we’re wolves. Nice going, Haywire. I knew I could count on you to screw everything up.”

Haywire smiled. “No problem!! ....Hey!!”

Blitz put his paw to Haywire’s muzzle. “Sssh! He might hear us!” Blitz looked around. “Okay, we have to get out of here.”

“No way! I almost died enough times already, thank you.”

Blitz gave him a look. “You stay here, you’re already dead.”

“...That sounded like a threat.”

“It was. Now, do you remember the way out of here?”

Haywire thought or a moment. “No – but Hark does.”

Blitz looked at him. “Brilliant, Haywire. Why don’t you practice on your bird calls while I think up something a little more reasonable.” He scouted the perimeter again. “We’re gonna have to split up.”

“SPILT UP?! Oh yeah, veeeery reasonable,” he said. “I say we look for Hark.”

“If we stick together, we run the chance of getting each other BOTH killed.”

“Thanks, but why don’t you let me worry about my safety?”

Blitz sighed. “Okay, fine. We’ll look for Hark together. But once that gun starts to go off, you run like a mad Chihuahua, alright?

Haywire nodded.

“Okay, let’s go.”

 

Hark was frantically circling the sky, looking for the dogs. The sound of a firing gun was something every animal out here – save for those Huskies – knew. It terrified Hark when he realized he was in dangerous territory. He had no idea this place was a hunting ground; he just passed through here on his way to Nome, and thought it was the most beautiful spot ever. Will those dogs ever trust me again, Hark wondered. Maybe I should go warn Ambyr. He quickly dismissed the idea. If the hunter wasn’t going to get him, Ambyr was. Hark continued circling the grassy plane, but the trees blocked his view. Hark called out to them, whistling in the air, but no reply. Beginning to feel a little desperate, Hark tried again...and again...and again.

 

Blitz peeked through some shrubs. The coast looked clear. Turning back, he gestured to the trees behind him. Cautiously, Haywire stepped from the shadows and joined him. “You see that?” Haywire said, pointing his muzzle ahead.

“No...what?”

Blitz rolled his eyes. “It’s an open plane, Enlightened One. We need to get across. You ready?”

Haywire readied himself. “I was born ready, lap dog.”

“One...two...three...”

“GO!!” Haywire finished. And with that, he dashed forward. Blitz barked after him and followed. The two dogs became exposed as they ran over the open terrain. Blitz easily passed Haywire, and he gasped.

“Who’s the lap dog NOW,” laughed Blitz.

“Ummm...how about none of us!!” He looked over at a certain two-legged shadow standing on top of a hill about two hundred yards away. He was aiming.

Blitz whimpered and ran faster. He got to the end of the field, and bush covered him, but Haywire was still about twenty yards behind him. “Come on, Haywire!!”

There was a sound of thunder as a bullet over Haywire’s head. Haywire closed his eyes and ran just like a mad Chihuahua.

“That’s it, Haywire, you got it!”

Haywire was almost there. I’m gonna make it, I’m gonna make it, he kept repeating to himself.

But he didn’t make it.

Another din rang over the hills. The bullet skidded across Haywire’s back, and Haywire whined as he tumbled to the ground. He lay sprawled as the grass around him turned crimson red. He tried to get up, but struggled to balance himself on all fours.

“HAYWIRE!!!”

Blitz ran out to the field. He grabbed Haywire in his mouth and began tugging him to the brush. His eyes looked to the corner of his head to see the hunter reloading. This only gave them a couple of seconds. “Come on, don’t give up on me, now!!”

Haywire whimpered again, and tried to help Blitz by crawling part of the way. Blitz got him to the other side of the field, and covered him out of view. He looked at the ground. A dripping trail of blood dotted the grass. They could easily be followed.

Blitz shoved Haywire to his feet. Haywire stood, and tried to still his wobbling legs. He couldn’t tell if they were wobbling because he was wounded, or because of the shock.

“This sucks,” said Blitz, trying to lick the blood off of Haywire’s fur.

Haywire mumbled. “Please don’t lick me like that...it puts disturbing images in my head.”

Blitz spoke with his tongue still grazing Haywire’s cut. “Yew hink I WIKE hu taste uff your fur ang gwood?! YEACH!!” He managed to reduced the flow of blood to a trickle. “There. That should hold you for a while.” He turned around and peeked through the bush to see that the hunter was gone. “We better get moving.”

“Why am I always the one to get hurt first?” Haywire complained.

Blitz either didn’t hear him, or he didn’t want to answer because he knew Haywire was right – somehow, he was the one who always ended up with the scars. Not wanting to think about it any longer, he turned around and started crouching low to the ground as he slowly made his way through the brush.

“Remember how we originally came here to play hide and seek?” Blitz asked.

Haywire cocked his head to the side. “We came here to play?”

“Yeah! Don’t you remember?”

“Oh, no. I’m sorry. I was too busy running for my life, I totally forgot I was supposed to be having fun. Would you like me to go out there again, and pretend that bullet tickled?”

Blitz ignored him. “It’s more of the same principle...only you get much more than a ‘Tag – you’re it’ if you’re caught.”

“What’re you trying to say?”

“We simply wait.”

“How ingenious of you. Have the hunter come to us! Even I couldn’t be able to think up a plan as insanely ludicrous as that!”

Blitz looked up at him. “Look, you’re wounded. Moving around will cause that cut to start bleeding again. It’s a dead giveaway!”

“Emphasis on the ‘dead’

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