he shoved the door in and the team walked in.

“Hold on Jenna, I’m coming,” he whispered.

The boiler room was surprisingly dark, the fire that normally lit the room up so well being long since extinguished. A bitter wind rushed in through a high window and rattled a set of chains that hung above. Something didn’t feel right… Balto felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as they inched ahead. 

“I’ll be the first to say that this is the creepiest, the most disturbing, unnerving, the most ominous-”

“Kaltag… not the time.” said Kodi.

Suddenly, there was a sound of running paws, and they stopped dead in their tracks. Then right after, they heard a voice.

“Are you my mommy?” it cried out meekly.

It sounded just like a little puppy. Balto stepped away from the rest of the dogs.

“Hello? Who’s there?” he called bravely.

“Can you help me find my mommy?” it asked him.

“Maybe. But first I need your help finding someone.”

Soon after he uttered these words, the door shut behind them quickly, plunging them into a complete blackness, save for a few rays of moonlight that shown through window.

“You’re not my mommy… You’re not my mommy!” the voice started to wail.

The voice started screaming loudly, as if it were throwing a temper tantrum. Then all at once, the voice went silent along with the rest of the room. Balto held his breath as he eyes were just now starting to adjust to the change of light.

“Hello Bingo,” a voice whispered into his ear.

Balto whirled around and felt a body right next to him. He jumped onto this body and heard Kodi grunt as he fell to the floor, stunned.

“Sorry Kodi.”

“Just be more careful.”

Balto was actually able to see his son stand back up, so it must have meant that their eyes were adjusting. He turned back to the team and saw a figure weaving in and out of them, and within that instant, a match lit up and was tossed into the boiler, igniting it and sending a bright wave of light immediately. They were all blinded momentarily as they covered their eyes from this now harsh light. When at last they could see again, there were three pups sitting right in front of them. The three just sat there staring at the adult dogs, giving a more unsettling feel to the situation. Past them, a figure walked from behind a crate. Balto smiled at first, but then frowned as he saw more than he had expected. It was Jenna, only she also had a purple bandana tied around her muzzle, and a leash around her neck. Followed by her was Steele, carrying the leash in his mouth.

“Hey wolf-dog!” he called, “Jealous?”

He yanked the leash in his direction forcing Jenna closer to him. She glared at him in return and tried to pull away, but Steele just pushed even tighter to her.

“Ooh, I see we have a feisty one here,” Steele growled suggestively.

“Let her go Steele. We can just end this all now if you let her go.”

Balto took a step forward and Steele put a paw to his chest in a disrespectful manner.

“Just let her go,” he mocked.

“Wow Dad, he sure is a lot more immature than you described him. How could you take him for a threat?” Kodi chuckled.

Steele looked at Balto with an obviously fake sense of hurt. “I’m in awe Balto. I thought you were supposed to instill manners into your young ones. But how could I forget, you were pretty screwed up in the first place. Poor things never had a chance.”

Steele smiled smugly when he heard Kodi and some of the others growling. “Ooh hoo hoo, did I strike a nerve?”

None of the dogs replied, most of them still glaring at Steele, Balto wasn’t however.

“Please, Steele. I don’t want there to be any fighting. All I ask is that you return everyone safely.”

“You just don’t give up when you really should half-breed. Do you think I’d let go of Jenna, now that I finally have her?”

“I’m sorry to say, but she isn’t exactly with you willingly.”

There was a low grumbling sound which they realized was coming from Steele.

“Ooh, I think the little puppy didn’t like that.”

The other dogs began to laugh, except for Balto, Kodi, and Kaltag.

“Hey guys, shut up.”

Steele looked past the team of six and then down at that pups, a smirk appearing on his face.

“Get ‘em,” he whispered.

“Ha! He expects them little ones to take us down!” hooted an orange husky.

“Hey beautiful,” said a voice, “we think you may be mistaken.”

Jenna’s eyes widened as a familiar sound rang around the room. It was a shrill laughter that seemed to resonate from every corner. It sang through the hanging chains and darted around the ears of every dog. Then another joined in, this one sounding much more feminine, but no less hysterical. And then three others added theirs to the noise before Steele and all three pups joined in. Jenna sunk to the floor and covered her ears tightly with her paws, but still they could be heard. She began to cry out. This was exactly like the dreams she had had. Tremors shot through her body and she slammed her eyelids shut tightly.

“Jenna! Jenna are you okay!?” Balto stepped closer to her and Steele snarled, “Steele, please. I beg you! Can’t you see she’s hurting?”

But Steele didn’t tear his eyes away from Balto. And then the sounds of sick joy suddenly ceased. The other dogs gathered beside Balto, building up a front, all except Kodi who stayed a little ways back. They all focused on Steele once more.

“Pups! Over here!” Steele ordered.

The pups, who had grown since Steele became his guardian, rushed over to him. Steele propped himself on top of Jenna and dropped the leash. His little ones began to tie the leash onto an old rusted pipe. Steele lowered himself on Jenna and stuck a sharp claw near her throat and gave a toothy grin.

“Any of you get closer, and Jenna can say goodbye.”

Jenna’s eyes snapped back open and she tried struggling, and she would have screamed too, if not for the bandana quieting her and forcing her breaths to be more labored.

“So, what do you plan on doing? Just having us stand here all night?”

Steele snickered, trying to hide his excitement.

“Now that would be boring now, wouldn’t it Pup?”

The team did an about-face and saw Kodi sprawled on the floor with claw marks across his left cheek and a dog with a pale white face staring at them.

“Oops, did I do that?” he grinned wickedly.

Hal whistled and four more dogs appeared from the shadows.

“Hey boys,” smiled Lilith, “meet your welcome wagon.”

Kaltag turned to his left and saw a dog that he hadn’t expected. His jaw dropped.

“S-Star? What are you doing here?… Are you with them!?”

Star kept as straight of face as he could. The threats he had been given just before were still racing fresh in his mind. The promise of death still echoed in his mind. He didn’t want anyone to be hurt, but he knew that if he didn’t listen to them their would be a terrible price to pay.

“Nikki? You too?”

All the chow could do was give a solemn bow. They had been warned not to speak. Steele took pleasure in the other dogs surprise, and stepped towards them.

“See? Isn’t it amazing how easily it is to break a dog? Turn him against his own friends?” he turned back around and flicked Balto’s nose with his tail before strutting back towards Jenna proudly.

“Why you!” shouted the orange dog.

He leapt towards Steele, and before he knew it, he was thrown to the ground. Lilith stood over him, smiling smugly. Then a sled dog rushed towards her, but she simply dodged him as he flew past her.

“Oh come on. You can’t be serious?… Oh that’s right, you’re all lousy lap dogs. You’ve never had to face the streets.”

At once, the air became heavy with heaving and barking as it all broke loose. Balto was having a stare down with Steele from across the room. He had given them all strict orders on leaving Balto to him.

~-~-

“Now listen lady, I don’t wanna hurt chu,” said the orange husky as Lilith began backing him up.

“What. Afraid that I’ll whip you like the sorry puppy you are?” she said cockily.

“Well no, but-”

He yelped and put a paw to his cheek, and pulled it back with blood dripping from it.

“Oh now that’s it.”

She jumped back away from him as he charged toward her. She decided her claws were more important and looked at them casually. Right as he was about to ram her, she fell to the ground, rolling over, and sending him tumbling through the air before landing on the hard wood floor. He groaned as she loomed over him.

“So, when are you starting?” she asked lazily.

~-~-

“Star? How could you?” Kaltag asked.

They locked eyes and Star frowned silently, something that was new to Kaltag.

“Are they making you do this? Please… Please tell me. I don’t want to hurt a friend,” pleaded Kaltag.

Star turned away. He caught a glimpse of Steele, frowning towards his direction and moving his paw in a circle. Star bit his tongue and tried to think. If he went through with this, then he could forever lose the trust of his friend, but if he didn’t, he ensured that neither he nor him would breath

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