Chapter 1

It was a long and tiring day. Covering all that distance between Nome and White Mountain was very energy-consuming. Maxwell, lead dog, sighed. "Ugh. I want a car." he joked as he scratched some snow off his chest. "How's things back there?" he asked Jasper and Dakota, the two wheel dogs. "All good mate." Maxwell could instantly recognise Jasper's Australian accent. In the team's eyes, Max was a great leader. He was protective of his team and was committed to his job. In Dusty's eyes, he had the best personality of any dog she knew. "Here's your mail, sir." Mr Simpson butted in as he handed a huge sack to his boss. "Thank you Mr Simpson. Dismissed." Mr Connor informed as a sergeant would. "Right, let's get you lot free then!" Mr Simpson called cheerfully. All of them barked with enthusiasm.

As soon as all the dogs were untied, Maxwell walked up to Dusty. "So how'd the run go for you?" he asked gently. "If it went good for you, it did for me." she replied cutely. "May I have this walk?" he chuckled as he held out a paw. Dusty played along and held her paw out.

By now they were at the kennel. The calm warmth of the fire gently brushed their necks and faces. The two of them lay cuddled up to each other. "Dusty, I want you to know you're the most important thing in my life. Without you, my heart wouldn't have a beat, my lungs wouldn't have a breath. You keep me alive every day with your presence." They nuzzled. "Until death shall we part. I love you, Maxwell." Dusty whispered. "I love you too, Dusty." he replied in the same tone of voice. Maxwell cuddled her tightly, as both of them succumbed into the night.

I can feel you falling away,

No longer the lost, no longer the same

And I can see you starting to break

I'll keep you alive, if you show me the way

Forever and ever, the scars will remain,

I'm falling apart,

Leave me here forever in the dark...

Buried deep within the Alaskan wilderness, there was a small cave, home to a gang of 6 wolf criminals. A lone dark figure loitered in the dark corner barely hidden from a puddle of moonlight.

"So how'd it go?" Valdez spat dryly as three lightly scarred and tired wolves marched inside. "It went well, sir. The rival gang was devastated." Akiak notified. "Nice to hear. Maybe next time dogs and wolves will know the same fate awaits them whenever they question us." he mumbled. 

"And um, sir, I believe that there is something you should know." Akiak chatted. Akiak was Valdez's aide, almost like a brother to him. "Fire away, partner." he spat out with no motion. "I was exploring Nome earlier today, and I saw a dog who looked familiar..." he informed it like a fairy-tale story. Valdez turned and raised an eyebrow. "Familiar...?" "Aye, sir. And from a short distance, it was the son of Tori and Kenai..." he briefed. Valdez got a small lump in his throat. "So was it him?" he demanded. "Most possibly sir, the scent was very familiar, if my eyes and nose mistake me." he said.

"So, the boy is alive. After all these moons, he is still alive. This lad is tougher than I thought." he said to himself.

"Word has it he has a girl, sir. Name of Dusty, few months younger." Diemos chatted. "Hmm... so he has a girl?" Valdez muttered with growing interest. "Ye, a gurl, sor. Dem nuzzle an' dem look cute. Hehehe." Titan sniggered immaturely. His muscles were up to date, but his brains weren't.

"This girl you speak of. Have you seen her?" he demanded quietly. Only then did he turn to Akiak. "Affirmative, she's light grey with a nose bar, and works with him on the sled team. That's all I know so far, sir." he spat out. "I see. It appears that our little one has someone to love. She is obviously a weak spot." he suggested. "So, what of the girl, sir?" Akiak asked. Akiak seemed slightly obsessed with Valdez's villainous doings. Valdez marched up to his ear. He whispered loud enough to attract the attention of the other wolves in the cave. Titan caught the phrases "Not dead... good going over... inflict injuries... tonight." 

Chapter 2

The day went on rather uneventfully. At the end of it, Max was enjoying a nice sunset at Balto's boat. They were sharing gossip between each other. He chuckled. "...And then Ralph came along and overheard all the rumours, and, oh god, you should've seen his face." he laughed. Balto chortled.

"And how's Dusty?" he asked. "Yeah. She's fine, beautiful as ever." Max gulped suspiciously and scratched the back of his neck. "Summat wrong son?" Balto asked with concern. "Listen, Dad, can you keep a secret for me? I've been dying to tell someone for weeks. You see, the thing is, well, I've got to that point in life when I want nature to come into course." he confessed. "You want to have pups?." Balto hummed. "Yeah, but I can't get the strength to ask her. She's the female, she's the one who's got to carry them, and give birth to them, and feed them. It's a really big burden to carry." "I see what you mean." "I just don't know how I can let her go through all that." he sighed. Balto sighed in unison. "Yeah, I found that out too with Jen. Pregnancy's a really difficult time for a female, but the best thing you can do, is to stay by her side and to be there when she needs you, and support her when the time comes. And if you raise them the best you can, she'll love you more than ever." "I guess you're right. She's an amazing girl, and she would make an even more amazing mother." he sighed. "Why don't you propose to her tonight?" he suggested. "Yeah, I'll do it tonight! Thanks dad! I'll let you know how it goes!" he called back as he rushed towards the town. Balto chuckled. "Good luck."

The cold air swirled through the alleyways like a flock of birds. Dusty was on her way to the fountain to get a drink. Every few seconds, she would stop and look around. She felt she was being watched. It was deadly quiet. Any crunch of snow or creak of wood would echo through her ears. If anyone was following her, they sure had skill.

"Hello, Dusty..." a deep voice uttered behind her. She spun round to see three dark figures standing there. "Who are you...?" she asked nervously. By now the cold wasn't the only thing making her shiver. "We have been looking for you." "What are you doing?" she asked again. They blanked her again. "Do you know Maxwell?" they demanded. "Y-yes. Why? What do you want him for?" she stuttered, shocked. The three looked at each-other. They nodded. "Get her." one of them whispered. They suddenly rushed forward. She screamed. One of the strangers lunged for her chest and another caught her hind leg. She didn't feel any pain, for the utter shock of the attack was overcoming her. "HELP!!!" she squealed.

A few streets away, a black and white dog's ears shot up.

She whimpered helplessly behind her arms. They beat her like a slave owner would. They all laughed manicly and took turns. As they stepped back, she grovelled into the wall. "Max...Where are you?..." she whimpered so silently she herself couldn't hear it.

"LEAVE HER ALONE YOU SCUM!!!" someone yelled ferociously. Dusty's ears flicked upwards. Maxwell charged into Diemos' side, inflicting a direct hit on his shoulder. Dazed, they leapt forward towards the chivalric stranger. Dusty, also too amazed to move, lay motionless on her side as the shadows were cast on her. To her, it seemed very repetitive. He would bite one wolf, he would get bitten numerously himself. Instantly after Maxwell speared his teeth into Phobia's neck, a high-pitched whimper was heard, followed shortly by a collapsing sound. The remaining two wolves glared open mouthed at the body. Max's eyes narrowed at them. He bared his teeth one last time, and they ran into the pitch black alleyways, awed by his rage.

Maxwell panted. Cold air puffed out of his mouth like a train does with steam. Dusty slowly got up, not taking his eyes off him. Maxwell struggled to support himself. He took a quick look at her. His head bobbed up and down. His legs shook. His eyelids drooped. The last thing he felt was his chest hit the floor.

She automatically rushed up to him, tears holding themselves back. For a brief moment, she felt nothing. No pain, no sorrow, no air. The moments after that were followed by pure worry and sadness. Nothing stopped her from collapsing onto the floor and bursting into tears, with no self-control neccessary. She held him and fell into her own paws.

A faint waft of air suddenly trickled down her neck. "Dusty..." a dying throat coughed out. Her ears springed up and her eyes shot open. "Max?" she asked, quickly and happily. "I'm dying, hun..." he droned. "No, no, you can't be! You can't die yet!" she startled, just as she witnessed a nasty gash on his neck. The pleads for life soon descended into distant whimpers as his body drifted further away from life.

"12...13...14...Here it is!" she thought to herself, faithfully bearing witness to the big bold letters 'Nome Vetenarian and Animal Surgery'.

She scratched desperately at the door handle. A few barks at the tower of wood quickly followed. A few seconds later, it swung open. The vet's face produced a smile. He bent over to her. "Hello, Dusty! What are you doing here?" he greeted her with a pat on the head. She backed up and turned to Max, lying motionless on his side covered in red stripes. The vet rushed to him. A flow of relief swept through her head like a mighty tsunami. The vet will take him in and cure him. Thank god. After thoroughly examining him, the vet walked away. "Sorry girl, but I can't help him yet. I've got paying customers waiting. Wait here with him, and I'll get to you as soon as I can." he gently patted her forehead. That was probably the first time she had growled at a human. Thoughts raced through her head again.

They were interrupted by a faint croak. "What did... he... say?" Maxwell griped with fading hope. "He said we'll have to wait until he's finished with his current job." Dusty whispered, not meaning any alarm or panic. He was too weak to panic. "I'll never make it..." he stammered discretely. "What do you mean??" she startled up. "It's no use... I can't hold on much longer..." he groaned. Dusty's eyes narrowed with determination. "If the vet won't help you, I will." she snapped. "Wait- wha-?" he uttered. Before he could finish she had unhinged the door and stormed inside. A strong smell of disinfectant struck her. Row upon row, shelf upon shelf of medicenes, bandages and tools. A large table in the middle of the room beheld a passed out husky who had hurt his legs. The vet lifted his glasses to her. "Dusty? What are you doing?" he pulled a puzzled face. She sniffed at the cupboards. Nutritients...Plaster Casts....Morphine... He could do with some pain killer. she thought to herself. "Oh, you're helping him yourself? That's very chivalric of you. Just take what you need little one, and I'll help when I can." Don't listen to him, he'll put you off. After slinging a leather bag over her shoulder, she wandered round for a few minutes, raiding any cupboards of use to her. She took a look in the bag. Bandages, plasters, pain killer, antiseptic, that's everything. She cautiously darted for the door, rushing quickly enough to not waste any time, but at the same time making sure nothing in the bag broke. She pushed the door open again. The cold air struck her like a rocket. "Dusty... what are you... doing?" She failed to respond. She was too anxious. Using every ounce of strength she could muster, she lifted a powerless body onto a blanket, and, using her jaws, towed him to the kennel, a few blocks away. Within minutes all the medical equipment was ready. She gave him a comfortable amount of morphine to ease the burning pain. His eyes drooped. The pain quickly ceased. It was an awesome feeling. "Dusty... If I don't make it, I want you to know that... every day I've known you, you have made all of life's problems and pains worth suffering for. I'm very lucky to know someone like you..." he insuated, before he went into a trance.

It became a rather gruesome routine. Clean up the incision, bandage it before it bled again, and moving to the next one. It was an indistinct price to pay for the life she would be saving. Her brows grew damp with sweat, her paws ached, her eyelids sagged. Finally, several hours of tense and harsh surgery paid off. She stood back and admired her work.

I can feel you falling away,

No longer the lost, no longer the same

And I can see you starting to break

I'll keep you alive, if you show me the way

Forever and ever, the scars will remain,

I'm falling apart,

Leave me here forever in the dark... 

"Ugh... my head..." he groaned. "Max, I'm so glad you're alright!" Dusty shrieked. They nuzzled. "Honey... you saved my life..." he uttered. "How can I ever thank you?" he rushed. "You can thank me by getting well as soon as you can." she chuckled. "I want to thank you for stopping those dogs. Without you I would've been-" he summoned the strength to lift a paw to her lips. "I know, love. These scars are worth what they paid for." he stammered faintly. "Shh. Try and get some sleep, it'll do you good." she urged as she gently held down his shoulder. His mind drifted off again and he went back to sleep. He just didn't have the strength to do anything else. Dusty cried, but they were tears of happiness. For Max to show his love in such a way really touched her.

Dusty headed for the door on her way to the vet, never taking her eyes off him. To her shock she almost bumped into Balto. "Woah, careful, missy." he advised. "Oh, sorry Balto, I need to get to the vet. Max is running low on pain killer." she chatted. "Okay. How's he doing, anyway? Heard he got some bad scars." Balto asked. Dusty hesitated. "Yeah, his wounds are pretty bad, but they'll be fine in a few days if there's luck." she replied. "Well, tell him his dad said to get well soon." Balto said before he walked off. Dusty stopped as her eyes followed him. 'Dad?' she thought to herself.

* * * * * * * *

"So how'd it go? Did you find the girl?" Valdez mumbled, his face hidden from the moonlight.

"Affirmative, sir." Akiak notified.

"The boy?"

"Given a few bad injuries, yes."

"Good, good." he gave a little chuckle.

"But there was one small problem, sir..." Akiak mumbled, worried about the response. "Oh, really? Anything that would make me angry?" Valdez moaned dryly. "Well, sir, if you would be so merciful, may I report that Phobia is... no longer with... us..?" he stammered, worriedly. Valdez threw himself around. "Phobia is WHAT?" he screeched. Everyone in the cave leapt up. "It appeared that Maxwell is a better defender than we thought, sir." he quickly added. "N-Not to call you under-estimative, your exellency." he said again with nerves. Valdez hummed to himself. "We're gonna need a stronger force next time, with weapons, and better tactics...Yes, and we must attack quickly, while he is weak and injured." "Orders, sir?" Akiak asked somewhat anxiously. "Orders..." he thought. He focused on two of the wolves standing side by side in the corner. "Xavier and Diemos. I want you to take this into the town on Tuesday night." he passed them a razor-sharp knife. He glared into their narrowed unsuspecing eyes.

"And I want you to kill them."

* * * * * * * *