|
Hey guys, just thought I'd let you in on the latest happenings in RTW's Balto world. Two Hearts Racing has been put on formal hold for now, it's on my computer that the military is shipping and it probly won't be here for a while... but never fear, I have purchased a laptop, and am hard at work on another new story Balto: As Good As It Gets.
It's going to be a good one I think, though it will be another heart wrencher (I love those, don't you lol).
This one deals strongly with Kodi and Dusty's children. I have yet to use them (if you follow my stories you'll know they were born a while ago, in Balto: Who She Is) and so I've decded to write a story mainly about them and a hardship they will have to endure. The Fic is sitting at about 45 pages now, so I'm guessing about two weeks to completion, maybe sooner. As soon as it's up I'll let you all know, and I'll post it on the forums as well as send it to the site.
I have included an excerpt from the story here to wet your appetite's a bit. Hope you like it, and be sure to let me know if you think I'm going in the right direction, sometimes I need your guidance you know...
Balto: As Good As It Gets
Written By: Anthony E. Rotramel
Started: 20070428
Finished:
Pages:
Words:
Note: This story was inspired by Balto, (© 1995), Balto II: Wolf Quest (© 2000) and Balto III: Wings of Change (© 2005) by Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment. The characters Angie, Gemeni, James, Fairbourne, Shanaea, Hans, Alai, Ebbie, Josh, Kodi, Dusty, Roger, Stephen, and the events of this story are © 2005 by Anthony Rotramel. The other characters are © Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment. The name Saba is the intellectual property of Juuchan 17.
Warning! This Fanfic is rated PG-13 for Violence and gore, reader's discretion is advised!
(This means don't come whining to me if you read this and have bad dreams for a week.. heh heh... no, seriously, it's not that bad, just messin with ya!)
Prologue:
A small brown dog ran through the blinding snow out of Streene, a small town just north of Applegate, Alaska. The images of what he was quickly leaving behind were still as fresh in his mind as the blood that coated his paws.
“I didn’t want to hurt her.” He thought.
A tear came to his eye.
“…why did I have to do that?”
He thought back to the past. This was not the first time this had happened. There had been many before poor little Angie.
Angie, whose deep brown eyes he’d fallen so desperately in love with only a few weeks ago. Angie, whose beautiful red coat had gleamed in the daylight and downright shimmered in the moonlight… Angie, whose throat his jaws had clamped down on not ten minutes ago… Angie, whose blood coated his paws and dripped from his muzzle…
…Angie, who was no more.
The small brown dog tried to shrug off the guilt and sadness he always felt after he rendered these females harmless.
“It was her or me…” he thought. “…and it sure wasn’t going to be me. I had to do it. If I hadn’t she would’ve taken over me. I could see it in her eyes… she said she loved me, but she really didn’t. I could tell by the way she acted, the treacherous little liar… and I almost fell victim to her trap… I must be more careful in the future…”
He swallowed as he ran and a grim scowl came onto his face.
“…yes…” he thought. “…even though I loved her I only did what had to be done. She would’ve taken my very identity from me. I could feel her sucking my soul right out of me…it was self defense, that’s all…”
The brown dog kept running from the town however, putting more and more distance between he and the slaughtered female, for even though he himself felt the killing was justified, the dogs of the town would not feel the same way. This he knew from past experience.
The first time this had happened he’d tried to explain the danger to the dogs of his town, what felt like so long ago, but in fact was only about a year. It was only by luck and the help of a sympathetic party that he’d managed to escape with his life.
“…Samm…” the dog thought. “…why’d you have to turn against me… why’d you have to side with them, you saved me once, then tried to consume me yourself… why… why did you make me kill you…”
It was a question he’d asked himself many times… but he’d never gotten an answer… for Samm, the beautiful female who’d aided his escape from Fairbanks was dead, and the answer to this question, the dog supposed, had died with her.
The dog quickly shifted his thoughts away from the painful memory of Samm to more important matters, like his current escape.
“When they’ve realized that I’ve run away they’re going to connect me to Angie’s death… murder is what they’ll call it, and it won’t take long for them to get a team out looking for me. I have to find somewhere else before they catch up with me.”
The dog came to a well traveled trail and turned, starting down it.
“A trail like this has to lead somewhere.” The dog thought. “I’ll run down it until come to a town, then I’ll stop there.”
The dog continued down the trail, running through the falling snow…
“Hey Sis!” A gray and white dog said, bounding up the steps where a red and cream colored husky stood. “Ask Dad if we can go play.”
The dog at the top of the stairs smiled.
“Already Hans? We just got back.”
“…come on Sis, please?” The gray dog pleaded.
The other smiled again.
“Okay, Hans, okay, just no pouting.”
Hans grinned.
“..deal.”
“How come it’s always me who’s got to ask Dad, huh?” The other dog asked.
“…because, Dad always listens to you.” Hans responded.
“…whatever.” The other dog said, walking through the doggy door and into the house.
“Hey Dad.” She said.
Kodi looked up from his spot by the couch.
“Hey Shanaea. What are you up to today?”
“…not much.” Shanaea responded. “Hans wants to know if we can go play.”
“Hmm… well, you know we have to be ready for that night run lesson tonight. The musher expects all of us here. If you’re not he’ll be mad.” Kodi answered.
“I know.” Shanaea said. “…but we’ll be back before that. We just want to play a little hide and seek.”
Kodi smiled.
“Well I guess as long as you’re back when the musher expects you to be I really don’t care.”
Shanaea grinned.
“Thanks Dad!”
She nuzzled her father.
“Just be careful alright?” Kodi said. “Remember to watch for cars and don’t go near the outskirts.’
“We won’t.” Shanaea said. “…and we’ll watch for cars, I promise.”
“Okay,” Kodi said. “You two have fun. Just make sure and be back when you’re supposed to. I don’t want the musher to get mad at you. Are your other siblings going too?”
“I don’t guess so.” Shanaea said. “They’re still out with Josh.”
“Okay.” Kodi said.
Shanaea smiled.
“I’ll see you later dad.”
“Alright.” Kodi said.
Shanaea turned and stepped through the doggy door to the porch outside.
Hans jumped in front of her.
“So what did he say?” He asked excitedly.
“He said it was okay, as long as we’re back for the lesson tonight.” Shanaea responded.
“See?” Hans said. “…told you he always listens to you.”
“…guess so.” Shanaea said.
“Come on! Race you there!” Hans called, bounding down the steps and running down the sidewalk.
“Hans wait up!” Shanaea yelled, running after her brother, quickly leaving her home behind.
On the plains a brown dog stumbled over one of the many hills on the horizon. He rolled until he reached the bottom, and then he then he struggled to stand against the surging wind.
The storm had come out of nowhere. When the sun had went down it was clear, then about a few hours later, the wind had begun to blow and the smallest snowflakes began to fall.
The brown dog thought back to where he’d been when he’d felt the first snowflake on his nose…
A brown dog walked quickly down the sidewalk.
It had to be tonight. He’d messed up, already he could feel his self control draining away when he was with Julie. He’d let her get to close, gotten too complacent in the fact that the entrapment he usually felt when dealing with these females wasn’t present with her. It wasn’t that she was different like he’d first thought, it was that she was more crafty than the others. Even with his experience she’d managed to get by his emotional alarms… but finally one had triggered within his mind, he’d noticed the first changes a few days ago.
He no longer felt that he could do without her companionship. He felt he had to be near her every moment of the day, and on the third day he’d come to a startling realization.
He was no longer whole without her.
Only one other time had such a thing happened to him, back when he didn’t know any better he almost lost himself to the first female he’d known. Her name was Samm and he had loved her dearly… and he’d almost paid for it with his soul. He’d come dangerously close to losing himself to her, and he’d promised himself it would never happen again, yet it almost had, and he didn’t even feel he loved Julie as much as he had Samm.
…but it didn’t matter, though he’d let his guard down before, it was up again now, and no doubt the little terror thought he was still under her spell…
“…this should be fairly simple.” He thought.
As he neared the alley where he’d told her he would meet her, he started creeping.
He reached the alley and looked around, seeing that the coast was clear he stepped into the alley, his veins flooded with adrenaline at the thought of what lay ahead.
He saw her before she saw him.
He walked up to her and she said his name, flashing the beautiful smile that had drawn him to her in the first place.
Her smile disappeared real fast after he leapt at her, his open jaws catching only her leg as she spun around to try to get out of his way.
The familiar salty taste of blood filled his mouth as he landed on the ground and rolled, taking Julie down with him.
She started to scream, but he clamped his paw over her mouth and rolled on top of her.
He looked down at her, at her widened scared brown eyes.
She started to whimper and he took his paw off her mouth. Tears filled her eyes and she said his name again…
“…why are you doing this?” She asked. “You hurt me.”
Indeed he had hurt her, the bite to her leg had been sufficient to tear through to muscle, and the roll had almost torn the joint from its’ socket.
“You’d have done the same to me...” He said.
“What?” Julie asked, pain evident in her voice as she continued to struggle beneath him. “What are you talking about?”
“You’d have taken my soul, it’s too bad it turned out this way, I really do love you.”
“You’re insane.” Julie said. “What you’re saying makes no sense.”
Then she did the last thing he wanted her to do.
She screamed.
“HELP ME!” She sobbed. “SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!”
It took a moment for the fact of what she’d done to sink in to him.
As she called out again, he viciously tore into her exposed throat.
Her scream turned into a wet gurgle as he tore deeper into her throat, until he reached bone.
He pulled his head up and got off of her, watching Julie twitch and squirm.
He’d done far too much damage to her for her to be able to scream anymore, though she tried, not much sound came out.
Her white fur had quickly turned a deep crimson as her blood gushed from the horrible wound, over her chest, shoulder’s and face to pool in the snow beneath her.
Her blood covered him as well, and he stumbled back, horrified at what he’d done.
”…what I’ve been forced to do.” He corrected himself.
He watched as Julie’s struggles slackened, then stopped completely. The only sign she was still alive was the rapid up and down heaving of her chest as she struggled to breathe through lungs filling with blood.
Then there were her eyes.
The eyes were always what got him.
Those big frightened, accusing and pain laced brown eyes.
“I’m so sorry Julie,” he said, tears came to his eyes. “I’m so sorry.”
He walked over to her and laid down beside her, cuddling up close to her.
By this time Julie was already too far gone to comprehend much of what he was saying, but he kept talking anyway, possibly as much for his own benefit as calming the once beautiful, dying dog..
“I didn’t want to do it Julie, I really didn’t. Why did it have to be this way? I love you… but I couldn’t let you do that to me… please, understand that had you not done this… I never would have hurt you, I promise.”
Julie turned her head to look at him, and though he had done this to her, strange comfort was better than no comfort at all in these last few moments.
With great effort she laid her head on his shoulder, looking up at him, pain, confusion, and fear etched across her features.
Tears were pouring down his face now as he looked at Julie, at what he had done to her.
“God, I’m so sorry Julie, please forgive me, please… I don’t want you to die… I love you. If I could save you I would…”
A vision from the past rushed back to him, as it always did in times like this.
A beautiful red and white husky lying in a pool of her own blood, struggling to breathe, even as Julie was now.
“Why’d you do this?” The female’s sweet voice gurgled.
“I don’t know…” He heard himself say. “Oh God I’m so sorry.”
“I know… I knew there was something different about you, I couldn’t place it, but somehow I knew. I only wish I could have helped you before… this happened.”
The beautiful female struggled to crawl over to him and he backed away, horrified at what he’d done to her.
She made it over to him and pulled him down beside her, laying her head on his paws.
“I love you, I always have, and always will, no matter what you’ve done. I hope someone can save you later.”
The beautiful females blue eyes swelled with pain and fear.
“Hold me…” She said.
He wrapped his paws around her blood covered shoulders and held her close as a violent tremor shook her body.
She looked up at him.
“I… I love you.” She said.
Then her eyes went dull as her body slackened against him.
He held her body close and cried…
The vision ended and he looked down at Julie.
Her eyes had that familiar look to them, the dull look that means that the life within has flared and went out.
He shrugged her off of him and stood, as feeling weak, almost unable to stand.
He turned and saw someone standing there at the head of the alley.
“Hey you, what are you doing?” The dog said, walking forward.
“Is that… oh God…. Julie…”
He sighed.
“*****… “
The dog came back to the present, the howling wind tearing at his fur, felling as though it would tear it from his body.
He’d been lucky to get away from there. He’d been attacked by over twenty dogs, and he didn’t know exactly how he’d managed to get away, but he had…
…but he was hurt, and hurt bad, he knew.
One of the dog’s had bit him on the neck, and he’d thrown the dog off, but as the attacker fell his teeth had torn a large gash that had ripped down the side of his neck, to about half of his shoulder… the wound was still bleeding and the dog knew that if he didn’t get help soon he would most likely bleed to death… and there didn’t seem to be much help around.
Slowly the dog struggled to his feet.
He’d never given up before…
”…and I don’t plan to start now…” he thought. “I’ll just have to continue on… it won’t be easy, but who said life was supposed to be easy…”
He laughed softly at the old line and struggled on through the howling storm.
Shanaea walked carefully through the darkened streets. The sun had fallen, and the bustling city of Nome Alaska had given way to the cold darkness of night.
Shanaea thought back to what her father had told her earlier that day.
“We need to be getting back.” She thought. “The musher will be angry if we’re not back soon.”
“Hans!” She called. “Hans come on, it’s getting late and we’re going to be in trouble!”
She looked around, and then stuck her head into the alley to her left.
“Hans!” She called again. “Hans come on, I give up!”
Shanaea started to walk carefully down the alley, recalling with a burst of hear the darkened alley in her dream, the same one she’d had since she was a pup.
”It’s nothing.” She told herself. “It’s just a dream. No sense in being scared of a bad dream. It’s a nightmare, that’s all. …just a figment of my imagination.
A can turned over behind her and she stopped walking mid-way down the alley, whirling around to face the sound.
“Hans?” She asked timidly.
A growl came from behind her and she whirled around.
“Hans, if that you this isn’t funny.”
A dog stepped into the light in the middle of the alley.
“Hans?” She asked taking a tentative step forward. “Is… is that you?”
The dog looked up and Shanaea gasped.
The dog’s eyes glowed red as the light glinted off them.
The dog growled again.
“Hans… cut it out.” Shanaea said, her voice beginning to quiver with fear. The dog growled again and ran toward her
“Hans…” Shanaea said, the rest of the words caught in her throat as the dog leapt forward.
Shanaea backpedaled, stepping on a can which sent her sprawling to the ground.
As the dog close d the distance to her it leapt into the air.
A burst of adrenaline hit her system and time slowed for Shanaea as the dog flew at her. She could see his gleaming teeth as he leapt at her, but fear had frozen her muscles and though her mind screamed at her to move out of the way, she could do nothing as the dog decended toward her…
Well that's all for now, I know, horrid way to leave you hangin huh? that's the nice thing about being a writer though, and it's useful at generating suspense too isn't it?
Oh, and if you can't tell, yes the brown dog is SERIOUSLY messed up in the head. If you can tell me the mental disorder he suffers from (before the story is done) I'll name one of my future characters after you (or you can pick the name, whichever you like. This is my first attempt at some kind of contest, let me know if you like the idea or not they'll probably be more, if not I can drop it too, just thought it might be fun... lol)
Well that's it for now. Hope to hear from you soon!
- RTW
P.S.
_________________
|
