Facing the Past
Dan and Ohanzee encountered in the air, and fell on the ground, struggling ferociously, biting, clawing... Dan's family stayed in the corner of the room, with no exit, terrified.
- Daniel! Do something! - Paula screamed to her ex-husband.
- But what?! - he yelled back, unsure of what to do. - He's too close to Dan!
Dan tackled Ohanzee, and quickly held his throat with his teeth, strongly, immobilizing him. Aniu stepped closer and her eyes started to glow again. She was going to take them back to - Dan! No! – the hybrid’s father called, running towards the canines.
- Daniel, wait! – Paula tried to stop him, but too late.
They were all dragged into the vortex of mist. Their vision was blocked by what they didn’t know if was snow or mist, and the air got colder. The ground below them started to fill with snow, and then it all stopped. They all fell out-balanced, scattered around the place. Surely it was nearby - I knew there was something more about you. – he said, loud. – You were a human all this time! You’re not just a half-breed, you’re a freak!
Dan snarled angry, and lunged at the wolf. He, in response, counter-attacked, managed to hold Dan’s neck with his teeth and threw him aside, to the edge of the cliff. Dan slid on the snow, heading to the peak. He gasped, and tried to hold the ground with his claws, but there was no use. He slid beyond the limit, and tried to hold the edge, but his claws were not enough to have a good grip, and he fell, his screams sounding lower and lower, until it faded into silence.
Boris was already impatient, walking in circles continuously. The dogs looked at the goose, with no idea of what to say about all that. Luk grunted something to his smaller brother, Muk. Boris stopped his walk.
- Now what the heck is he saying this time?! - he asked loudly, concerned about the time their companions that had gone with Aniu were taking.
- He says he's worried about Dan, Uncle Boris. He thinks something got wrong. - the smaller bear explained, looking to be worried too.
- Flyboy! - they heard a female voice calling over them, as they all looked to the sky to see who had said that.
Stella landed near them and shook the snow from her feathers. Boris' expression got calmer.
- Oh, beautiful goddess of the skies, so long since I last saw you... - he greeted her, taking her wing and kissing it, like a gentleman would do to a lady.
- I'm happy to see you too, Flyboy. But we have no time for greetings. – she said, sounding rushed, like she had seen a ghost. - I just saw that boy, Dan, appearing from the nothing on a cliff.
- Then he got back! - Balto said, happy.
- Yes, but he wasn't alone. With him there were two humans, a white wolf and a black one. This wolf... h-he... - she got suddenly wordless, and started to tremble.
- What, Stella? What? - Dusty hastened her.
- T-the wolf threw Dan from the cliff! - she finished.
The heart of all presents almost stopped. Luk started to cry loudly.
- H-how... - Boris tried to talk, but the shock was too much, Dan had become a very close friend to him in the last days, and that relationship reminded him a lot of the one he had with Balto when he was younger.
Luna broke down in tears, sobbing. Balto tried to comfort her. The goose recovered himself a bit, but they could see a tear rolling on his face.
- What happened to the humans then?! - Boris asked, desperate of worry, drying the single tear he had dropped.
- The wolf called some others that looked to work for him, and they surrounded them. Since they had no chance to fight back, they just obeyed and followed them away from there. – the female goose said. – The white wolf that was with them just… vanished!
Boris looked at the dogs and his adopted nephews, looking for ideas.
- We have no way to know where they are. And Dan is probably dead. - Balto said, lost.
Luna couldn’t stop whimpering. Her boyfriend was dead! Boris looked at the land around him.
- Dan, wherever you are, please, keep holding on. - he whispered.
Dan woke up, and felt he was about to freeze. He found out he was buried under an amount of snow. He desperately fought against it to break free. He couldn’t breathe, and his body instinctively didn’t stop digging, even when his muscles started to ache. Exhausted, he finally reached the surface, and got out of the snow with difficulty, and let himself fall on the cold white ground. He opened his eyes, and looked to the rain of snow that was still falling, and felt the wind blowing cold at him. He closed his eyes again.
- I'm sorry, guys. - he whispered.
He laid his paw on his snout and started to cry. There was no hope. Even if he survived, he would never get to Ohanzee in time, and he would torture and kill his parents. Maybe he had already done that when Dan was unconscious, buried. Suddenly, he heard paws walking over snow near him. He took his paw from his snout and opened his eyes. He saw a gray paw of a wolf. He couldn’t distinguish that wolf’s scent, because he hadn’t any. Was that because of the wind blowing it away? He looked up to recognize the wolf's face, and felt his heart filling with happiness again. Nava was standing in front of him.
- Nava? How did you...? – he started, but got wordless, it was too good to be truth.
Nava looked deep into his eyes.
- I came to help you, Daniel. - he said, with a deep voice.
Surely he was a spirit now, just like Aniu. That made Dan lose his hope again. He laid his head on the snow, sad.
- I’m not gonna make it, Nava. – he said. – It’s over.
A raven swooped over them, throwing a short caw.
- There is always hope, Daniel. – a female voice said, sounding a bit echoed.
Dan looked up again and saw it was Aniu, beside Nava.
– They are still alive. – she continued. - Ohanzee is taking them to his new hideout with some wolves from his group that survived.
Dan sat up. There was still a chance. He turned his gaze to the top of the cliff. It was very far. But if there was any chance for him to save his family, he should seize it. Giving Nava and Aniu a last look, he ran towards the rocky wall and started climbing as fast as he could, being careful not to slip and fall.
With almost fifteen minutes of climbing, Dan was standing, exhausted on the top of the cliff, trying to catch his breath. When he was recovered, he ran following Ohanzee's scent. After some minutes of run, he heard many creatures coming in his direction, and sensed fortunately familiar scents. He looked in their direction and saw Balto, Luna, Stella, Boris and the brothers Muk and Luk, running towards him. Dan, smiling, halted. Boris jumped and hugged him desperately.
- Dan! You're alive! We were all so scared... We thought you were dead! – the goose, suddenly realizing everyone was watching, changed his behavior from relieved to angry. – Don’t you ever do this to us again! You and Balto are always getting into trouble and almost dying! What were you thinking?!
Dan chuckled, and then before he could react, Muk and Luk hugged him, and all he could see was white fur. He broke free, and looked at the other dogs. Luna ran towards him and nuzzled him almost desperately. Her face was wet. Surely she had been crying. He nuzzled her back.
- It’s okay. I’m fine.
- What will we do now? – Balto asked, remembering the urgency of what was still happening.
Dan thought about how they could be useful, and had an idea.
- You all look for Chaska’s pack. Tell them I need urgent assistance. Tell them everything as fast as you can, and make them rush to our aid before things get ugly there.
- But how will they know where you are? - Stella asked.
- That’s where you come in. You'll come with me and overfly the area and tell me when you see Ohanzee's wolves. Then you'll tell me their location and fly back to guide the pack there. Let’s go!
The sled dogs, Boris and the bears stormed in Chaska’s pack direction and disappeared. Dan ran following Ohanzee's scent, with Stella flying high above him.
Minutes passed, and Dan was still running at all speed.
- Can you see them? - Dan screamed.
She was flying high above him, searching the land below.
- No! - the goose screamed back.
Dan looked ahead, seeing only hills covered with snow. It was still snowing, making it hard to see, and the wind was making it harder to run. He prayed that he wasn’t too late.
Stella flew lower, near him.
- I see them! They're some yards ahead! - she alerted.
When they got down a hill, Dan finally saw through the snow rain a large plain. He saw some gray and brown spots moving far ahead, which he recognized to be Ohanzee's pack.
- Thanks, Stella. Now go and bring Chaska and the others here as fast as you can. - he said.
- Right away. - and she flew away.
Dan followed the pack carefully from far. He saw his parents being escorted by the wolves. Ohanzee was a bit behind, thoughtful. A brown wolf approached him and started to talk. Dan risked to get closer and sharpened his hearing to know what they were saying.
- Sir, are you sure you don't want to kill them now? - he heard the brown wolf asking.
- Yes - the black wolf answered. – I want to have revenge on those too. And it won’t be complete until I don’t make them scream and beg for death.
- What do you plan to do after that, sir? - the brown wolf asked, apprehensive.
Ohanzee scowled.
- We’ll recover and reunite more forces, and we’ll make those traitors pay for their insolence. And after that, when our forces are more powerful, we’ll be able to get rid of another problem. – a grin spread through his face.
- What would it be, sir? – the brown wolf asked, sounding scared.
- Humans. – Ohanzee answered, chuckling meanly.
The black wolf interrupted his malign thoughts when he was hit by some snow threw from somewhere. He shook it from his face and searched furiously the area with his eyes looking for the author of the prank, until he finally saw Dan, beside a big rock, staring at them, with a confident grin on his face. The black wolf widened his eyes.
- Dan! – Paula exclaimed, confused between happiness and worry.
- You’re alive?! – Ohanzee exclaimed.
- Sorry for disappointing you, Ohie, but I’m much tougher to kill than you think. – Dan replied, defiant.
Ohanzee growled in wrath and ran towards Dan. The hybrid was ready, and dodged, leaving the wolf to slide further.
- Oh, that was so close, I almost felt it. – Dan mocked.
The black wolf snarled harder, furious, and charged again. The younger canine dodged again. They kept like that for some more moments. Dan was doing that to tire Ohanzee, so they could have a more balanced fight. Finally, the attacker stopped his attempts to reach Dan and stood there, panting.
- Aww, already? I’m starting to think that you got a little old for this stuff... – the hybrid mocked again.
Ohanzee snarled again, offended, and charged at him blind of fury. Dan threw himself aside, letting Ohanzee miss him again. But in that he made a mistake. He ended up between Ohanzee and the rest of his pack. The wolves started to approach. Dan stepped back, but the sound of Ohanzee snarling behind him made him stop. The black wolf was up again, laughing malignly, seeing victory at his reach.
- You always knew I would win. – the wolf said, taking an offensive stance.
Dan heard howls coming from somewhere nearby, and grinned.
- On the contrary, Ohie. I always knew you would lose.
Chaska's pack rushed from behind the hills in their aid. They surrounded Ohanzee's wolves and engaged with them in fight, allowing Dan to sneak past between them and reach his family. They smiled seeing him. He made sign with his head for them to follow him. All of Ohanzee’s wolves were engaged in fights against Chaska’s, so they had no trouble getting out of the confusion between empty spaces. Dan led them to a safe place, far from the battle. The sun was settling, giving the sky a tone of orange and rose. They stopped near the woods. Luna and Balto appeared there.
- You guys lead my parents back to the mountain. The spirits will take them back to Olney. – the young hybrid told the huskies. – I’m gonna finish this.
- But, Dan… - Luna tried to protest.
- Just go! – he said last, as he turned and started running back to the fight.
Balto and the female ran towards the mountain, barking to call Dan’s parent’s attention. The humans were looking at Dan while he ran back to the battle.
- What is he going to do? – Paula asked.
- I don’t know… - Mr. Hawkins noticed the barking dogs. – But I think we need to follow them. Let’s go!
They rushed after the huskies, heading to the mountain.
Dan approached the battlefield, searching the area with his eyes for Ohanzee. A sound of smashed snow warned him that he was right behind him. The hybrid turned back, and saw the black wolf, looking at him furious.
- You ruined my pack! My life! – he shouted.
- No, Ohanzee, it’s you who ruined your pack, and your life. – Dan replied. – This ends now.
- Sure it does.
Night fell, covering them in darkness. They stared at each other for some moments, and finally they charged. They hit each other and started to fight more ferociously than ever, with more lethal strikes, decided to kill each other. Two wolves loyal to Ohanzee got away from the battle, and rushed to help their leader. Dan saw that, and after driving Ohanzee away with a head strike, he ran away. Tired like he was, he would have no chance against three. The black wolf and his minions ran after him. Dan entered the woods, with no idea of where he was going. He needed a plan. Then, he was forced to stop when he saw a big trench in his way. He halted to prevent himself from falling into it. He recognized it. It was the trench over which Balto and the sled team had walked before the ice bridge they were using collapsed. That was a perfect opportunity. He heard Ohanzee and the wolves coming, so he hid behind one of the trees nearby. The two minions were in the lead, with Ohanzee after them. They didn’t see the trench in time, and though they tried to bury their paws in the snow to stop sliding, it was useless. Dan heard their screams as they fell into the abyss. Ohanzee, who was behind, managed to brake in time, sliding until he was a few inches from the edge. He turned around to see the hybrid, who had left his hideout.
- Now I’m done with this game. This time I’m gonna finish you for good! – the black wolf yelled in rage.
They lunged at the same time, engaging in fight again. Dan was tired, so Ohanzee managed to get his teeth on his neck. The wolf tightened his grip, and thrashed the hybrid, causing him to cry out in pain. Dan couldn’t breathe, and his attempts to break free weren’t working. Then he had an idea. If breaking free wasn’t working, why not taking advantage from the capture? He pushed himself back, consequently pushing Ohanzee as well, causing him to hit a tree behind them. The wolf lost his balance, causing the same to Dan though releasing him, and both started sliding on the reclined ground to the trench. They were about to fall, but they used their claws to get a hold on the edge. The canines were hanging in there, too close to each other. Ohanzee was still blind of rage, and started hitting Dan with his rear paw to make him fall. The hybrid’s claws started to slip…
- Dan! – Luna called.
The female was coming from the woods with Balto and Dan’s parents, in a hurry. It would be a relief, but there would be no time with Ohanzee trying to make him fall. Suddenly, a raven swooped over the hanging canids. They looked up as they could. Dan recognized it as the same raven that had appeared after he fell from the cliff. Cawing, the bird made a loop for a new swoop, this time aiming for Ohanzee. It flew straight to him, and started pecking him.
- Argh! Stop, you… - he exclaimed loudly.
Only then he noticed that his paws were slipping faster, and before he could regain his grip, he fell. Dan heard Ohanzee’s last desperate scream as he fell deeper and deeper into the nothingness. Luna and Balto got close enough, and Dan’s parents helped him getting up on the ground, saving him from slipping into death. Finally standing over the edge, Dan sighed relieved. It was over. Ohanzee was dead. The pack was free, and his family was practically safe.
- It’s over… - he said to himself, happy.
He turned to his father and mother. They were just very relieved to see he was safe. They hugged him. Dan closed his eyes, knowing their opinion had changed about his decision.
Later, Dan, Luna, Balto and his parents, were at the top of the mountain again. As a wind current passed by them, the snow swirled in front of Dan, revealing Aniu. She smiled at them.
- Congratulations to you all. – she said, being heard and understood even by the humans. – You all remained strong when your bravery was tested. All of you. – she looked at Dan’s parents. – Paula Hunt and Daniel Hawkins, you risked yourselves to save your son when you saw him fighting Ohanzee in Olney. That’s an act of love that few would do.
Dan looked at his parents and smiled at them, thankful. They smiled back at him, happy that he was safe now.
- Dan… - Mr. Hawkins started, falling on his knees to be eye-leveled with his son. – I’m sorry. I was too blind to see the truth about you. I confess that deep inside, I knew you didn’t belong Olney. I think I was just afraid of losing you. – he made a pause. – But now I see how great you can be, and the future you have here. Here you have friends that would give their lives for you, and I am very, very proud of you.
The hybrid approached his father, who hugged him.
- I’m proud of you too, Dad. – he said. – I’ll never forget you.
They separated, so Dan could be hugged by his mother as well.
- I love you, sweetheart. – she said when they were embraced.
- I love you too, Mom.
The humans stood up again. Daniel (Sr.) turned his head at Luna. He crouched to see her better, and stroked her face affectionately.
- You take good care of him, okay? – he said, smiling.
Luna smiled back at him.
- I will. – she answered.
Dan’s parents stepped closer to Aniu.
- We’re ready. – Paula assured.
The she-wolf nodded, and looked to the sky. A multi-colored aura filled the place as many bendy shapes of light appeared above. The northern lights were shining over the mountain again, just like Dan remembered. The humans and Aniu were surrounded by a beam of light that went down from the sky. The many shapes of light were very close to them, and many silhouettes became clear in many of them, showing not only wolves and dogs, but geese, fishes, caribou, eagles… The spirits of all kinds of animals of the region were there, watching the scene. The dogs and the humans looked around dazzled. Aniu called their attention at the center of the place. The humans approached, apprehensive. The dogs watched them as the light got more intense.
- Good-bye, Dan. – Paula said. – Good luck.
Dan nodded, feeling a huge happiness to see that his parents now approved his choice, and it was all solved. The light reached its zenith, and the sudden flash blocked everyone’s sight…
Dan woke up. He sat up on his bed and looked around, completely lost. It was his room, dark because of the night. He took his blanket out, and looked at his body. There was no fur, and surely no tail. He was a human again. What had happened? He got up and looked in the mirror on his wardrobe’s door. A human and confused Dan looked back at him from the reflection. Was it all a dream? He tried to remember everything. He had been taken to In the next day, which was a Sunday, Dan went out for a walk. As he strayed by the sunny town, he thought about his dream. Maybe it was a test from the spirits or… He gave himself an imaginary tap. It was just a dream, and that was all. Distracted in those thoughts, he didn’t see the girl walking towards him when he was passing by a park, and they collided. Dan looked at her.
- Sorry, I wasn’t…
The girl fixed her long black hair, showing her sapphire blue eyes. Dan got stunned, and stopped talking. She looked back at him.
- No, it’s okay. It was my fault. – she looked at his amber eyes, intrigued. – Do I know you?
- Well, I’m not sure. – the lad answered. – I’m Dan. What’s your name?
She smiled.
- I’m Luna.
Dan got surprised with the coincidence. They started to chat for a while, and then they started walking away together. In the middle of some trees, a white as snow form materialized. Aniu looked at the teenagers getting away down the street, and smiled. Her work was done. She then disappeared with a current of wind, never being seen in any part of the world again… at least, in that time. You must be asking yourself, “What was it all for?”, and that this entire “dream” was pointless. Well, let me explain the results of this story:
Dan’s parents, though not assuming that the dream was real somehow, understood that their needed some more understanding, not exactly because he was a wolf inside, but because he needed to feel he had a place in that world. They started to listen to him more, and started to see how his ideas actually had a point. Now he had met Luna (who never mentioned the crazy dream in which she was a husky that met a wolf-dog named Dan), both became great friends, and they had the same interests, including Balto movies. Soon, they became more than friends… In the past, Luna had never existed, and Balto and the other dogs assumed that it was just a dream and told no one about that, but deep in the forest, Chaska’s pack would still howl proudly and thankful for Daniel, The Half-blood Wolf who had saved them. One thing was sure: Dan, Luna and the others would never forget that dream.
The End
Balto, Jenna, Boris, Kodi, Kirby, Ralph, Dusty, Muk, Luk, Steele, Aniu, Nava and Stella are © to Universal Studios
Dan (Daniel Hawkins Jr.), Luna, Daniel (Daniel Hawkins Sr.), Paula Hunt, Ohanzee, Chaska, Ahanu, Adahy, Yiska and Mr. Wellington are © to Half-bloodWolf93