Where Does the Time Go Balto?
A Balto fan fiction by silverbalto
Nome, Alaska, November 26, 1947,
It was a fidget morning in the little town of Nome. The townspeople sat indoor, warming themselves by their fireplaces. The Alaskan north was experiencing its lowest winter temperature since 1917. Inside a specific house near the outside of town, Balto and Jenna sat by the fire. They had grown older since Balto had saved the town almost 22 years before. Balto himself had aged quite a bit. His brown fur was now faded, and his bright eyes were now just hazy. Jenna, as well, looked old. Her beautiful red coat was now a faded pink colour. Rosy (Jenna and Balto's owner) had gone to college in Anchorage, leaving both dogs at home with her senior parents. Balto smiled as Jenna leaned against his shoulder. He had everything he could have imagined. A beautiful wife, respect and friends. Then he remembered someone from his past. A mean dog who wanted to show him up, and even kill him. He just couldn't place the name. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. The dog's name was Steele. He just wondered what had happened to the poor excuse for an animal after he was shunned by the town's dogs. Unaware to Balto that right outside of the house, Steele walked by, making an angry scowl in its direction.
Steele growled to himself as he walked to his secret home. He had to make it secret, or else the other dogs would come and destroy the place. Steele walked into his home and lit up a small fire in an old stove he used as a fireplace. Steele muttered angry curses to himself, and finally replied, ''I'll get that punk one day. That Balto will regret the day he took my popularity from me! I just have to figure out how.'' Steele thought of revenge plans as he warmed his body by his miniscule fire.
Nome, the next day, 8:29 am,
As many townsfolk watched, a strange plane came into view above the skies of Nome. Everything was going good, until the plane clipped a radar tower. The pilot checked the altimeter and saw it was going down at an incredible speed.
''This isn't good.'' The pilot exclaimed as he tried to steer the plane toward a safe landing. Suddenly, the right wing flew off, and the plane headed toward the ground at a goofy angle. Finally, with a loud bang, the plane slammed into the snowy ground. It slid for about a few dozen meters, and then stopped. The pilot grabbed his head and got out of the plane, all the while the many residents of Nome were watching his every move. After about a few minutes, the pilot regained his senses and opened the cargo hatch. He pulled out various gadgets, tools, and materials. The mayor of Nome walked up and shook the pilot's hand.
''Hello stranger, I am the mayor of this fine town of Nome, Alaska. Who might you be?''
The pilot removed his flight helmet and smiled. He looked to be only sixteen years old. He shook the mayor's hand courageously and replied, ''the name's Brent. Prof. Brent MacWolf. I believe that I have a vacant house that I am to live in.''
The mayor smiled and said, ''of course. You must be the inventor I've heard so much about. Come right this way.'' The mayor put his arm around Brent's shoulder and escorted him to his new home.
The house, which was previously occupied by an old woman, was in good condition considering how old it was. The one story home had the basics. A kitchen, a living area, a bedroom and a deck. Brent walked in with his stuff and found an empty room in the back to put his things. The mayor then gave a friendly handshake and left, leaving Brent to his own. Meanwhile, Balto and Jenna had decided to take a walk when they saw a strange man buying materials at the surplus store (est. 1946). They walked over and watched as the man picked through the various things.
''Do you have a Toyo T-1000 transistor lying around someplace?'' he asked.
''Huh?'' the store owner asked.
''Do you have a transistor from a Ford lying around?'' the man asked again.
''Oh yeah.'' The store owner replied and placed the part on the table. The man bought the part and walked out of the store. On his way out, he stopped when he heard Balto say something.
''Geez, what a geek!''
''Hey buddy, watch what you say to people!'' the man yelled at Balto. Balto jumped back.
''You…you…you heard me say that? You aren't supposed to. None of the other people did back in 1925.''
''I had the time, so I built a dog-to-English translator out of a toaster and a waffle maker.'' The man retorted. Balto rolled his eyes.
''Okay then. Since you can hear me, then I might as well introduce myself. My name's Balto and this is my wife Jenna. Who are you?'' Balto asked.
''Prof. Brent MacWolf.'' Brent replied. Balto gave him a puzzled look.
''Professor? Aren't you a bit young to be that smart?'' he questioned. Brent shrugged.
''I was skipped a few grades ahead when I was six. Anyway, would you two like to see my house? I just moved to Nome, and I need to get to know people. Plus, I have something to show you two. I brought it with me to finish here in my plane.'' Balto looked at Jenna, who nodded.
''We'd love to.'' He said. Brent smiled and led the two dogs to his new home.
Brent's house, ten minutes later,
''C'mon in guys.'' Brent replied as he stepped into his front hallway. Balto and Jenna followed, and were amazed at what had been done to the place. Even thought it had been a few hours since Brent had crash landed in the town, he had managed to renovate the entire house's problems; the broken floor boards, the broken doors, and the smashed windows. Then Brent opened up a secret door and motioned for Balto and Jenna to follow, which they did. Down a small flight of stairs, and with the flick of a light switch, the room was revealed. Balto and Jenna's jaws dropped. It was a secret lab under the house. Brent walked over to a machine in the farthest corner and placed the transistor into the machine. He then moved to one side and announced, ''allow me to introduce you to the future or the past or both. This is the Time Warper 2000, the world's first real time machine. All I have to do is to punch in a specific time into this machine and press the large red button you see on the side here. Once activated, the machine will produce a time warp through which you can walk into and reappear in another time. I have also made a feature that will allow me to set an age that the person going through the portal would become upon exiting the portal on the opposite side. For example, if I wanted to go back to when Balto saved Nome in 1925, and I wanted to be forty-three at the time, I could set the machine so that even though I went 22 years into the past, I'd be 24 years older. Get it.''
''I do, but I don't think the readers have any clue.'' Balto retorted.
''Don't worry, they'll get it eventually.'' Brent answered sarcastically. They then left the lab, and Brent accidentally forgot to lock the secret door.
Later that night, Brent slept in his bed, unaware of what was about to happen. You see, a small Scottish terrier had overheard the explanation of the Time Warper 2000 and had told the entire population of dogs in Nome. A few hours later, even Steele, who normally didn't get out much, had heard of the extraordinary machine. Then he got a brilliant revenge plan, but it involved that machine, which brings us to Brent's house once again. Steele snuck quietly up to the house and tried the door. Surprisingly, it was unlocked. Steele grinned and looked inside. The front hallway was dark and quiet. The only noise that was heard in the whole home was the sound of Prof. MacWolf snoring loudly. Steele closed the door softly and looked for the machine. He sniffed the ground and bonked his nose into an open door. Steele shook his head and saw a small light coming from the open doorway. Steele walked slowly down the stairs and smiled when he saw the Time Warper 2000 in the corner of the secret lab. Steele walked toward it and examined the strange contraption. He remembered what the rumour had said, and typed in the destination time; January 27, 1925. Steele pressed the red button and watched as the machine shook and produced a clear, swirling portal. Steele stepped back and jumped through the portal. He had just done the first step in the biggest revenge plan of his life.
The next morning; November 28, 1947,
Balto walked out into the sunlight and yawned. He then noticed some people in the distance. He smiled and trotted over to them. But the people saw Balto and ran in fear.
''Huh?'' Balto questioned himself and continued on his way.
During his walk, people had thrown things at him, and suddenly, the town of Nome hated him. But why? Then something happened that confused Balto even more. He saw people flocking around, of all people, Steele. Balto had thought everyone hated Steele, but now it seemed that the tides had turned. Just then, he heard Jenna's voice.
''Balto! Balto! Come quick! It's Brent! Something has happened!'' she cried. Balto nodded and raced to Prof. MacWolf's house, alongside Jenna.
''It's horrible,'' Prof. MacWolf screamed, ''just horrible!''
Balto burst through the door, followed by Jenna.
''What happened?'' he asked. Brent turned and gave a sigh of relief.
''Balto, oh thank god you're here! Something has happened! Someone has used my Time Warper!'' he exclaimed. Brent then noticed how bad Balto looked.
''What happened to you?'' Brent asked. Balto then relayed the entire day's events to his human friend. Brent suddenly figured the whole thing out.
''Balto, who was the one person who wanted to get you back for something?''
Balto thought for a minute, and then realized where Brent was going with the question.
''Steele! He's hated me because I was the one who saved Nome rather than him!'' Balto exclaimed. Brent held his chin.
''I think I know what happened then. I think Steele used this machine. But to do what, I don't know,'' Brent then pointed to the last time gauge, (which shows the date of the last visited time period,) ''Balto, do you recognize this date?''
Balto examined the date and gasped in shock.
''January 28, 1925? That was the date when Steele almost killed me when I insisted that I help bring the medicine back!'' he exclaimed. Brent then smiled.
''Now I understand. It seems to me that your friend Steele used my machine to travel back to January 28, 1925, and helped his younger self defeat you and bring the medicine back to Nome himself. He's changed history! He's changed the past, and the future! Balto, we must go back to this exact date and stop Steele from changing your past forever. It'd be a good idea that you two change into your younger selves, because I have a feeling that you'll need to be a bit more physically fit than you are currently. I'll make you the same age as you were in 1925,'' Brent set the age on the machine and pressed a small blue button. A blue beam shot from the front of the machine and struck both Jenna and Balto. As Brent watched, the couple's youth started to become more and more prominent. Finally, the beam stopped, and Balto and Jenna looked their exact age in the year 1925; sixteen years old. But just before Brent set the destination time, he pulled out another smaller machine. He placed it on the table and adjusted a few settings on the dial. He then stepped back and waited. Balto gave him a puzzled look.
''What're you doing?'' he asked.
''Well, to fit in better, I'm using my Ultra Skin Changer to temporarily transform myself into a wolf-dog like you Balto.''
As Balto and Jenna watched, the small machine spit out an orange ring that surrounded Brent and transformed him into a dog. Brent fell from two legs for four feet and began to grow hair. His nose grew outwards, and a tail sprouted from his behind. After only five minutes, the transformation had stopped and a dog stood in front on Jenna and Balto where just minutes before, a man stood. Balto's jaw dropped.
''But you were a man, I mean, you're a…'' he stuttered. Brent held up a paw.
''Never mind. Just follow my lead.'' He said without emotion and set the time machine's date to match the previously visited date. The machine shook and rattled around until a time portal was produced. Balto and Jenna stepped back a bit at the sight, but jumped through the portal. Brent then grabbed the machine and jumped through the time warp himself. The portal stayed for a few more seconds, and then disappeared.
Nome, Alaska, January 24, 1925, 4:23 pm,
Balto and Jenna reappeared in their hometown, but this was back before they were married. Everything had gone back to the way it was 22 years before. The old mail depot where their son Kodi would work, the old telegraph station, (which in 1947 was used more for military transmissions that personal calls,) and the old gold dredger. But something was wrong. The town wasn't on edge because Steele was missing and the antitoxin hadn't been delivered. Suddenly, both dogs heard a faint screaming. It then got louder, and louder, and finally, Brent flew from the portal and slammed right into a snow bank. Balto and Jenna pulled him out of the snow and asked hi the one burning question; ''what the heck went wrong?''
Brent checked the Time Warper 2000 that had just reappeared from the time portal, and he found a problem with the machine's internal circuitry.
''Oh boy. We do have a problem. The internal circuitry that controls the destination time setting is fried. We must have been sent a few days ahead because of this thing's safety mechanism. There's no problem though, we still are in 1925, and we just arrived four days early. I'm sure that if we keep our distance and stay out of sight, we should be fine, right guys,'' Brent suddenly noticed that Jenna was missing,'' hey, where'd Jenna go?''
''She's over near the main street.'' Balto replied. Brent grabbed Balto's paw and ran toward Jenna, who was examining the general store. Brent grabbed her as well and ducked into an alley. When he released their paws, both dogs questioned him on why he did that.
''Guys, you can't be seen in this time! Didn't you watch Back to the Future I to III?'' Brent asked. Balto and Jenna gave him puzzled looks. Brent then realized why they had such empty looks on their faces.
''Right. That movie wasn't made until 1985.''
Balto nodded and asked, '' well, can you explain this Back to the Future thing anyway?''
''Yes, but I'm afraid you may not understand.'' Brent assured him. Balto shook his head.
''If it's any less strange than this machine you have made, I'll understand it perfectly.'' He remarked. Brent nodded.
''Okay then,'' he then started to pace, and shake his finger professionally,'' I call this the Repeat theory. You see, if you see yourself as an old or youngest, or even at an identical age, and your past/future selves sees you, this could cause a major problem. Here's an example. Say Balto decided that he'd go back to 1928 to see the town of Nome. Balto from 1947 then sees Balto from 1928. This could cause two things. One; both Baltos would pass out and nothing could happen, or Two; the meeting could cause a disruption in the Space-Time Continuum and throw the whole thing out of balance. The result of this balance loss would create a void where time itself is turned back all the way to the Big Bang and all of the universe would be restarted, thereby killing us all. In short, the second possibility, although a worst-case scenario, could be fatal to the entire universe!''
Balto and Jenna's jaws dropped. Suddenly, Brent put up his hand and replied, ''quick hide! Jenna's 1925 self is coming down the road with what looks like two other dogs.''
Jenna poked her head out and saw her 1925 self with, as said, two dogs.
''It's Sylvie and Dixie! I thought those two moved from Nome!'' she replied. Brent cupped his hand over Jenna mouth and hissed, ''it's not them. Remember, we traveled back in time, so this is just a reply of past events. This is just a repeat of an event from your past, and so we must not interrupt it, or that interruption could cause another unbalance of the Space-Time Continuum. Do you understand? We must not interfere with the series of events up until the fight between Steele and Balto. That is our target. We must stop older Steele from hurting Balto and giving himself the title of hero in Nome.''
Just then, Jenna (from the past) came walking into view of the alley with Dixie and Sylvie. Their conversation was as clear as a bell.
''…you think Steele will notice my collar?'' Dixie asked.
''The only way Steele will notice anything is if it's wearing a mirror.'' Jenna retorted. Older Jenna smiled.
''I was always that way when Steele's name was mentioned.'' She replied. Brent placed his finger over his mouth.
''Shhh. Quiet down Jenna.'' He replied between clutched teeth. Suddenly, all three dogs heard the sound of a little girl. This made Jenna's ears perk up.
''Come on Steele!'' she yelled. Jenna poked her head around the corner, as did Balto. It was Rosie, Jenna's owner. She seemed so innocent, like eight-year-olds should. She wore a brown musher's hat and coat, and she stood, waving her hat in the air wildly. Suddenly, the wind grabbed the hat and dropped it right in the path of Steele and his team. Rosie tried to run and get the hat, but Jenna (from the past) dragged her back. Just as the team was about to run it over, Balto, (from the past as well) ran out and started to match the team's speed. When Brent turned to Balto (from the future, he noticed that he was gone. Looking back around the corner, he saw Balto running to grab the hat himself. Brent sighed and ran after his friend. Beside the streets, the people were yelling and throwing things at both Balto and Brent, and yelled, ''get off the track, you mutts!''
Brent ignored the people and ran beside Balto, replying, ''Balto, get into that alley. Remember, if your past self sees you, either one of the two things I explained could happen.''
Balto nodded and turned a sharp left, cutting through the crowd. But Brent didn't have enough time to stop. He slammed right into a fence and fell backward onto the snowy ground. He looked back and saw that Steele and his team had crossed the line, and Balto was with (we'll identify the past characters with a young prefix.) young Jenna and Rosy. He could hear their voices clear enough that he decided to just stay in his position and listen while the scene unfolded.
''Balto,'' Rosy remarked, ''what a crazy thing to do. Just to show off for a pretty girl.''
Young Balto then looked and young Jenna and smiled.
''I bet Jenna would love to have you on her team.' Rosy replied happily and started to put her sled harness around young Balto's neck. Suddenly, Rosy's father ran up and grabbed his daughter, yelling at Balto. Rosy asked her dad why he did such a bad thing, and his answer was, ''he might bit you honey. He's part-wolf.''
Young Balto sighed, turned and walked slowly down the street.
Brent got to his feet and walked to where Balto was. He poked his head in and grabbed Balto. Both dogs then walked to where Jenna was hiding. Suddenly, just as they rounded the corner, Brent noticed that Jenna was missing.
''Hey! Where'd Jenna go?'' Balto questioned. Brent shook his head.
''I have no idea, but I think this may help.'' He then pulled out a small object and turned it on. Balto stared in shock at the small object.
''What on earth is that?'' he asked. Brent smiled.
''It's a Location Detector. When I increased your youth, I also gave you a unique tracking beacon. I can figure out and know wherever you guys are at any time. And it looks like Jenna is underneath the hospital.''
''C'mon, let's go rescue her!'' Balto replied and ran to aid his beloved Jenna, with Brent right on his heels.
Near the entrance to the boiler room, 4:58 pm,
The boiler room door looked to have been torn off, and Balto cautiously approached the door. He peered inside and saw that the coast was clear. He motioned for Brent for follow, which Brent did so. Both dogs walked into the boiler room and squeezed into the small crawlspace under the hospital. Balto led the way, and Brent took the rear. Finally, both arrived at the spot where Balto and Jenna had spent their first romantic moment together. And then Brent looked at his radar screen. Jenna's blip had disappeared.
''Uh oh.'' He replied. Balto saw what was wrong.
''Where'd Jenna's blip go?'' he questioned. Brent shook his head.
''I can't understand it. The blip will stay on a subject until I deactivate it with this machine,'' Brent then held up a small box with a red button on it. Brent then go a brain blast, ''wait one second. The only other way that a blip will disappear is if it is not in the same time frame! Jenna's been sent into the future.''
''But I thought you said that you had to take a bit of time to repair the time machine?'' Balto asked.
''Apparently, whoever used it must know a few things about fixing them to. Either that or I must have dropped my instruction manual in my lab back in 1947.'' Brent then placed his thumb and index finger on his chin and started to pace. Balto then figured out who took Jenna. He exclaimed the answer, which startled Brent a bit.
''Steele! He must have done it! We have to save Jenna, and fast!''
''Balto, there are two things wrong with that idea,'' Brent noted, ''firstly, it could be a trap, and secondly, the time machine's nowhere in sight!''
Just as Brent finished his sentence, a small shine caught his attention. He walked over a large burlap blanket and revealed the time machine, with the previous date at January, 28, 1925. Brent pulled the machine out and set the destination time to match the previous time. He turned the machine on and jumped into the newly created warp, with Balto (who grabbed the time machine) right on his heels.
January 28, 1925, 7:34 pm,
Location, a large forest out in the Alaskan north. Balto and Brent appeared near the cliff of ice where Steele and his team had slid down. This event caused the team to crash, which delayed the antitoxin's arrival in Nome. Balto and Brent hid on the side of the hill and peered over. Older Steele ordered Steele team to hold Jenna captive, while he and his younger self battled with Balto. Suddenly, Young Steele grabbed Young Balto and threw him to the ground. One of Steele's team mates replied, ''hey, that can't be legal!''
Balto stared in complete shock as he watched the fight unfold. He had no idea that the fight was this intense. Finally, Steele grabbed Young Balto's leg and threw him against a rock. Young Balto fell onto the ground and laid there, lifeless and limp. Balto and Brent stared in silence at the lifeless body of Young Balto. Balto then couldn't take it any longer. He burst down the ice hill and slid to stop near the battlefield. Both Steeles looked up and were shocked at the sight. All of Young Steele team did the same. Brent slapped his forehead and hid out of view from the watchful eyes of the dogs. Balto growled and exclaimed, ''Steele! I knew you'd try a stunt like this one day! You, you tyrant!''
Older Steele smiled and retorted, ''why thank you, Balto. I knew you had manners, but this is just flattery.''
Young Steele stared at his older self.
''I thought you said that you were one of my distant older cousins!'' he questioned angrily. Older Steele just smiled.
''My name is also Steele. Your mother named you after me.'' He replied. Young Steele nodded and then turned to Balto.
''So you were right. There are two Baltos after all,'' Young Steele sneered, ''I say we finish the older one as well.''
Older Steele put up his paw and replied, ''don't be hasty. I want to wait for his friend.''
''Friend? This Balto has an accomplice hiding somewhere?'' Young Steele asked. Older Steele nodded.
''Yes, and I know how to get him out of hiding.'' Older Steele then rushed Balto and pinned him to the ground. Steele then grabbed Balto, and tied him to the musher's sled. Finally, he grabbed the sled and got into a pushing position. Older Steele then called out into the woods, ''okay MacWolf. I know you're out there! If you want to see you friend Balto and his younger self alive again, you have to get your furry butt out in the open and surrender you time machine to me.''
Brent clutched his fist. He knew he had to save Balto.
''You have one minute, punk. After that, you'll be picking up pieces of Balto at the bottom of the cliff here.'' Older Steele mocked. Balto then yelled out, ''Brent, save Jenna and get out of here! Forget about me, and don't do anything hasty!''
But Brent didn't want to forget about Balto. It was his machine that started this whole thing, and he had to make it right. Brent then looked around. He found a piece of a moose antler on the ground and used it to create a fake time machine out of wood. Brent then grabbed the fake machine and placed it on the icy hill. He then yelled down, ''okay, here it is. Now, let Balto and Jenna go, and I'll pass down the machine!''
Older Steele smiled and untied Balto then ordered his old team to release Jenna. Both dogs were about to walk up the hill, when both Steeles blocked their paths. Balto growled and exclaimed, ''you said you'd release us!''
Young Steele grinned.
''We said we'd release you from your bonds, but we didn't mean totally.''
Brent saw the new problem and threw down the fake machine. He then slid down the icy hill himself. Arriving at the bottom, Brent ran at Older Steele, slamming him to the ground with his whole body weight. But Older Steele kicked Brent backwards with his hind paws and rushed at his body. Brent grinned and pressed a small button under his wrist watch. A bright light suddenly appeared, causing Older Steele to back up and go back to his original position. When the light disappeared, all the dogs stared in amazement at the sight. Brent has transformed into a human.
''Looks like the match has just gone into overtime, Steele, and the advantage is mine!''
Brent then charged at Older Steele, knocking him out of the way. He then stared at the rest of the dogs.
''Anyone else want some of this?'' he questioned. There was silence. Brent nodded and grabbed both Jenna and Balto and ran up the hill. Older Steele got to his feet and yelled, ''after him!''
Only both Steeles chased after Balto, Jenna and Brent (with time machine in hand). The rest of the dogs stayed with Young Balto until he woke up.
Brent ran through the forest, with Jenna and Balto right beside him. Right behind the trio, both Young and Older Steele were decreasing the gap between them and revenge. Suddenly, Brent, Balto and Jenna burst out on an airfield. There, sitting on the airstrip, with its engines on, was a six-propeller cargo plane. Brent ran for the plane and opened the cargo bay door. Balto and Jenna jumped in, and Brent threw in the time machine. He then closed the door and jumped into the driver's seat. He pushed the throttle stick forward and gripped the steering stick. The plane slowly started to move forward. Unaware of the trio, Older Steele had seen then get into the plane, and he had set four small bombs on one of the right propellers and on all three left engines. They were set to go off in two minutes, and the plane would crash once they do. Older Steele guided his younger self to the inevitable crash site.
Meanwhile, in the air, Brent was piloting the plane easily. The ride was going smoothly, when the bombs Older Steele planted exploded. The shockwave vibrated the whole plane. It threw Balto, Jenna and the time machine to the back of the plane, and Brent into the seat. When he recovered, he saw smoke coming from both sides of the plane. He knew what had happened. Four of his six engines had exploded, and the plane was going down. He grabbed the microphone to the cargo bay and yelled, ''grab a parachute and jump. The plane's going down!''
Jenna was the first. She hurriedly put on her chute and waited for Brent and Balto. Brent grabbed a chute as well. He opened the door and watched as Jenna jumped from the cargo bay. He turned and saw that Balto had disappeared. He figured he had jumped already and launched himself from the plane.
When both Jenna and Brent landed, they looked for Balto.
''Hey, where's Balto?'' Jenna asked.
''I thought he was with you.'' Brent replied. Then they both looked at each other and exclaimed, ''he's still on the plane!''
Immediately, both Jenna and Brent scanned the skies for the plane. Suddenly, Jenna spotted it. The army green cargo plane was heading for a glacier.
Inside the cockpit, Balto pulled with all his might as the plane nosed upwards. He held his breath and watched as the right wing clipped the glacier, knocking out one more engine. The plane headed upwards, then pointed back to the ground, this time for good. Balto held on as the plane slammed into the forest, knocking parts off, and ripping the cockpit off. Inside, the time machine exploded, causing a giant time warp to appear. From where they stood, both Jenna and Brent watched as this time portal stretched across the sky. Brent's jaw dropped.
''The Reverse Time Warp effect. It was only a theory I developed.''
Jenna looked at him.
''What?'' she asked. Brent cleared his throat and explained.
''The Reverse Time Warp theory only works when a time machine exploded. A giant time portal is created, sucking in all those who are not in their proper time period.''
Suddenly, Jenna started to rise off the ground, as did Brent. They were sucked into the portal, which disappeared after Balto and Older Steele were inhaled as well.
November 28, 1947,
A time portal appeared in Brent's workshop, spitting out Brent, Balto Jenna and Steele into the bright room. Brent checked his lab clock. It read 4:23 pm. It was the exact time that they had departed for 1925.
''Are we back?'' Balto asked. Brent nodded.
''We're back, and it'll be like we never left either.'' He explained. Steele then grinned.
''Good, then your stupid time machine will still be where I hid it!'' he then ran off. Brent turned to Balto and Jenna and replied, ''stay here! If it's my machine he wants, he'll have to go through me first!' and without letting both dogs object, Brent ran in pursuit of Steele. Balto knew he couldn't let his new friend get hurt. And besides, he owned him a rescue. Balto bolted after Brent, leaving Jenna in the lab.
The boiler room, ten minutes later…
Steele ran into the crawlspace and headed for the hidden time machine, with Brent right on his heels. Steele had just uncovered the machine, when Brent confronted him in the crawlspace. Steele smiled maniacally at Brent and replied, ''so, you think you can stop me?''
Brent gave the same grin.
''Of course I can.'' He answered and charged at Steele. He sidestepped and tripped Brent, who went head-first into the adjacent wall. Steele then slashed at Brent's back. On the hay floor, a pile of fur started to build. Just then, Balto jumped in and sunk his teeth into Steele's back. Steele yelped in pain and threw Balto over his shoulder and onto the ground. Steele then gave a small smile of satisfaction.
''Finally, wolf-dog, I have you right where I want you. I can finally make you pay for what you did to me the day you stole my team, stole my popularity, and stole my woman! You will die for making that mistake!'' Steele then threw his front paw up and exposed his claws, ready to strike at any moment. Brent then decided to pull out a gadget he had saved only for an emergency. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a small ray gun.
''This'll shut you up!'' he yelled and pulled the trigger. A beam shot from the gun and froze Steele right in mid-step. He floated for a few seconds, and then disappeared. Balto got to his feet and stared at Brent.
''Where'd you send Steele?'' he asked.
''He was being a bad dog, so I sent him to where all bad dogs go.'' Brent explained as he holstered the ray gun. Balto then grabbed his by the neck and stared straight into his eyes.
''What did you do with him? Tell me!''
''Okay, okay. Just let go of my neck,'' Brent choked. Balto released his hold on Brent's neck and waited for an answer. Brent sighed.
''I didn't think I had to tell you his, but I guess there's no choice. I am not from this time period. I come from the time 2025. That is why I am so good with technology. You see, dogs of the future have become as intelligent as mankind, and are considered as citizens of the world. And yes, in the future dogs always get to sit at the table. But back to more important things, about 200 000 000 miles above the Earth's surface orbits a space colony called K9. It is inhabited by dogs, and on this colony is a prison where all the dog criminals are put. I sent Steele there.''
''But how could you do that if the colony exists in 2025, but we are in 1947?'' Balto asked. Brent smiled and showed Balto the ray gun.
''This is standard issue for all agents that inhabit the colony. I was hired by the President of the United States (his dog actually) to travel through time and capture all criminal dogs who have made the world ramped with crime. You see, I am truly a dog.''
''But how can that be?'' Balto asked. Brent then smiled.
''Technology in the future has advanced so much, that I can change myself into a giraffe if I wanted to. But enough talk, I must return to the colony. I hate to go, but I must.''
Suddenly, Brent's watch started to beep. Brent pressed a small button on the side of it and a small hologram appeared with the head of a general inside the beam. Brent saluted the general and replied, ''Agent Brent MacWolf reporting in, sir!''
''It's terrible! The colony reactor is about to explode. That maniac Steele has made the nuclear core unstable. It's about to…'' The line then cut out. Brent was stunned, and he turned to Balto.
''We have to go to 2025, and stop Steele from destroying my colony! My family, my friends, my life is aboard that colony, and the creep Steele has wiped it out. Let's go ahead one day. That should give us enough time.''
Brent set the destination time on his ray gun and was about to fire, when Jenna ran in. She jumped at Brent, which made him pull the trigger accidentally. Jenna froze in mid-air and disappeared. Brent checked the time and gave a sigh of relief.
''Whew. She's on K9. But you'd better go first so that you can tell her the story. See you in a few!'' Brent then pulled the trigger. The beam rushed from the gun and surrounded Balto. He went as straight as a board and disappeared. Brent then turned the gun on himself and sent his body to 2025 and colony K9.
Space Colony K9, November 28, 2025,
A brown and white husky walked slowly down the hallways of the space colony K9. He was a lonely husky with no friends, and the bullies teased him about his liking of Balto. Suddenly, the husky heard something. He looked up and saw Jenna heading straight for him. The husky tried to run, but Jenna landed right on top of him. Then Balto and Brent did the same. Under the three bodies, the husky yelled, ''can you please get off me! I can't breathe!''
When the three friends got off the husky, he casually brushed himself off, muttering to himself as he did so. Finally, he turned and started to rant.
''Who do you think you are? Landing on me like th…'' the husky's jaw then dropped.
''You're Balto! You're the real Balto!'' he exclaimed. Balto gave him a puzzled look. Brent leaned over and whispered, ''this guy is K9's only true Balto fan. Seeing you in person is like A Star Wars geek seeing the guy who played Darth Vader.''
Finally, the husky stretched out his hand and replied, ''my name's Yukon. Nice to finally meet you Balto!''
Balto smiled and shook Yukon's hand. Yukon then shook Jenna's hand as well. Brent then walked up and whispered something in Yukon's ear. He nodded and handed Brent a small device. Brent pressed the small red button on the device and transformed himself back into his canine form. Brent then turned to Yukon and replied, ''Yukon, can you leaf us to Central Control? I have important information to give him. It is vital for the survival of the…''
''Okay, just follow me.'' Yukon retorted, cutting Brent off in mid-sentence. Yukon walked down the hallway and came to a door. He looked into a small scope (which scanned the cornea of the eye to determine the identity of a person) and the door slid open. Yukon put out his hand.
''After you.'' He replied. Balto leaned over to Brent and asked, ''is he always this nice?''
''I dunno. I haven't seen him often before. I just knew that stuff about him from looking his profile up on K9's main archive.'' Brent explained as they entered the Control room. Balto and Jenna's jaws dropped. The room was huge. On the adjacent wall was a giant screen, (about 100 feet in both directions,) and there were many small computers sitting on the room's floor. Balto had never seen such a place in his life. He had no idea of half the stuff that was even in this room, let alone what they did. Just then, the general approached Brent and Yukon of a flying platform. Both dogs saluted the general, saying the phrase, ''good evening sir!'' as they did so. The general saluted and relaxed, as did Yukon and Brent. Balto and Jenna stared blankly at each other and continued to observe the scene. Finally, the general noticed both of them.
''Who are they?'' the St. Bernard general asked in a deep, scruffy voice.
''Those are Balto and Jenna from Nome, Alaska 1947 sir!'' Brent answered his general. The general stared at Balto.
''You mean the Balto? The one who saved Nome in 1925? My god, it's an honour to be in the presence of such a great hero!'' The general then shook Balto's hand, replying, ''my name is General William Macduff. I run this colony, and I am also the head of the Earth Protection Program, with in case of an emergency, K9 can be used to defend the Earth from alien attacks. But enough of this matter. What is it that you want?'' Macduff asked. Brent saluted his general.
''Sir, I have information about this colony's future. We must talk in your private room. I do not wish to cause havoc in the control room.''
''Very well.'' General Macduff replied and led the four dogs to a door. He placed his eye up to a scanner and the door slid open after a few seconds. General Macduff motioned for the four friends to enter, which they obeyed. The room was amazing. It was a circular room, with futuristic furniture and ceiling lights brightly shining their rays on the chrome detailing that accented the chairs. General Macduff sat in a large leather chair at the far end of the room, while Balto and the others sat in smaller, but just as luxurious recliners. Brent then began telling the General the story so far and the information about the colony's fate. After he finished, Macduff was shocked.
''Great Scott,'' he exclaimed, ''this is bad. You're saying the colony will explode because the reactor overloads? This could be disastrous! We must stop this Steele character before it is too late!''
Brent then checked his watch.
''It may be too late, sir! Steele is supposed to destroy the Reactor Temperature Regulator in ten minutes, which gives us fifteen minutes to either stop him from doing it, or replacing the regulator on the reactor!''
Suddenly, a siren started to sound. It was accompanied by a voice, which said, ''warning, warning! Reactor temperature at 45 overload.'' The message was repeated once again. Macduff sighed and turned to Brent and Yukon.
''Take this key-card to the main hangar. You must quickly instruct Balto and Jenna on how to operate the battle droids. They are our only hope now. Good luck!'' Macduff saluted both dogs as they led Balto and Jenna out of the private room.
All four friends hurried to the droid hangar. Brent swiped the key-card through the recognition slot and the door slid open. Balto and Jenna's jaws dropped. Inside the giant room were four robots, each with their own unique weapons and styles. Brent jumped into the droid at the far left of the room, and Yukon did the same, except he chose the one on the far right. Balto and Jenna shrugged and clambered into the remaining droids. Brent's voice came over a communication system in their droids.
''Okay Balto and Jenna,' he replied, ''the droids are extremely easy to operate. You see those joysticks on both the left and right side of your seats? Those are your steering sticks. You use them to move and drive your droid. Also, the button on the top of each joystick fires the laser gun on their respective side. The large lever to your left is the throttle, and if you open the above compartment, there will be a communications helmet, and a small blue pill. Take the pill, and it will help you pilot the droid.''
Balto and Jenna did as they were instructed. Balto popped the pill into his mouth and swallowed. He suddenly started to feel funny, and all of a sudden, he could move his finger and toes, as well as his arms and legs like humans. This effect happened to Jenna upon taking her pill. Yukon's voice then came in clearly through their headsets.
''Those pills you took will give both of you temporary anthropomorphic (definition: animals with human-like body movements and qualities) qualities, and will enable you to operate your droids with a bit more ease. However, the pills' effects only last for fifteen minutes, and once their time is p, you will return to your canine nature.''
Just as Yukon finished, General Macduff's voice came over the comm. system.
''Come in Alpha team. Come in.'' he replied.
Balto was the first to answer.
''We hear you General, go ahead.''
''Read you loud and clear.'' Yukon added.
''You're coming in perfectly General.'' Jenna replied.
''Ready for instruction, sir.'' Brent said formally.
''Roger that, the fugitive has stolen a droid of his own. The prototype Sigma-Omega-Twin Jet, a.k.a. The Obliterator.''
''Just like Steele to pick the toughest, most powerful thing on the planet.'' Balto retorted. The General gave a small chuckle and continued.
''Ahem, anyway, Steele is heading toward the backup reactor. It only activates when the first reactor is destroyed. If it's destroyed as well, the colony will explode within five minutes of the reactor's destruction. If you can stop Steele for doing this, we can be able to evacuate the colony before it does explode. You must stop Steele. Good luck.''
Brent was the first to activate his droid's power cell. The robot came to life, and mimicked Brent's every move. Balto, Jenna and Yukon did exactly what Brent had just done. All four droids then ran down a long hallway, which headed for space. Brent jumped and turned on his jet booster, making his droid hover in mid-air. Yukon did so as well. Balto had actually managed to copy Brent's moves, but Jenna wasn't so lucky. As soon as she approached the exit of the hallway, her droid caught a small fold in the flooring and it went down. The droid slid the rest of the way and shot out of the exit. Balto saw this and flew his droid toward Jenna's. He stopped and caught Jenna in his robotic arms.
''Whew, thanks Balto.'' Jenna sighed and activated her jet booster. Brent then turned on his radar tracker and replied, ''Steele should be appearing around this area soon. We're right in front of the entrance to the second reactor. He'll have to go through us to get inside.''
Balto knew better.
''If I know Steele, he won't let a few droids get in his way. Once he sets his mind on something, he'll stop at nothing to get it.''
''Then we'll just have to shoot him out of the sky before he tries anything.'' Brent then pulled out his two Charge Guns. Yukon reached around and grabbed his Dual laser machine guns. Jenna used her pink droid's robotic arms to search and find her dual Pulse rifles. Balto sighed and grabbed his two energy guns. They then waited. For ten minutes they waited quietly and breathlessly, for Steele and his black droid to appear. Suddenly, a small shape appeared in the distance and started to come closer. Soon, it was clear who it was.
''Stand your ground everyone, we can't let Steele through!'' Yukon ordered over the comm. link as Steele stopped the Obliterator in front of the four droids.
''Well, well, I have the advantage, and you still think you can beat me. How predictable.'' Steele then pulled out his weapons. He possessed dual Bulldog rocket launchers, which launched six rockets at one time. Brent was shocked. He hadn't thought the prototype Obliterator would be this powerful. Steele then pulled the trigger.
''Evasive manoeuvres!'' Yukon yelled as the six rockets headed for the four droids. Steele growled and reloaded his weapon. Balto took this momentary pause to aim and fire. He managed to fire off two quick rounds at Steele's droid, doing minute, but still acceptable damage to the Obliterator's armour. Steele grinned and pressed the trigger. Balto's droid took all six rockets. His red droid was thrown backward from the force of the rockets. When Balto finally managed to activate the jet boosters and stop his droid, the true damage seemed to now just sink in. Off the droid, sparks flew into space, and the droid started to slouch, like a child after it was scolded. Steele smiled and replied, ''how fitting. I finally get to finish you off, all the while sitting in the most powerful droid in the universe. I just want you to know that this victory will be delicious. Farewell Balto, my admirable adversary!'' Steele pressed the trigger the rockets shot from the Bulldog. Balto closed his eyes.
''Nooo!'' Brent yelled and threw his droid in front of the rockets. Brent's blue droid took the full force of the rockets. Inside, the damage counters were going off the scale. Brent started to sweat as the internal temperature of his droid started to rise. A computerized voice then replied, ''warning, warning, droid damaged at tolerability threshold. No more damage can be tolerated.''
Brent tapped his comm. link microphone and said, ''Balto, you still there? You Okay?''
A crackled voice came back through Brent's audio speaker.
''Yeah, I think so…droid damage at 85.be fine…Steele doesn't hit me.''
''Balto, you're breaking up. Balto? Balto!'' The line was dead. Brent grabbed his comm. headset and smashed it on the floor of his cockpit. He knew it was over. His droid could not take any more damage, let alone six more rockets from Steele guns. He shook his head and thought, ''Man Brent, you really blew it this time.''
Suddenly, an explosion caught both Brent's and Balto's attention. They both looked in the direction of the explosion and saw that Yukon and his yellow droid had taken major damage too. It was just Jenna and Steele. Steele could not force himself to shoot at Jenna, which gave her the advantage. But all she did was pointed her Pulse Rifles at Steele, nothing else. Through Brent's smashed comm. Headset, he could here Balto yelling, ''Jenna, you can finish this right now. Do it, pull the trigger!''
But Jenna response was to lower her two rifles and say, ''I can't. Even if he's about as low as pond scum, I can't force myself to shoot him. It wouldn't be right.''
''Then you do have a soft spot for me after all, don't you?'' Steele asked. Jenna raised her rifles again.
''I said I couldn't shoot you, I didn't say I wouldn't.'' Jenna scowled. Steele whimpered. Suddenly, Brent noticed the time. The colony was going to explode in five minutes.
''Okay everyone, we have to get out of here. Let's move!''
But just as they were about to leave, a small child's voice came over their comm. link.
''Help me,'' he wailed, ''help me. I can't find the escape pods! Help!''
''Oh, for the love of Christ. Fine, okay guys; let's hang a U-y! We have to save that kid.''
Colony K9, three minutes until explosion,
Brent and the five others landed there droids and jumped out. Inside the hangar was the small child. Brent grabbed him and placed him on his shoulder. He then turned to Yukon.
''Yukon, you know this place like the back of your paw. Lead us to the escape pods.''
Yukon pointed to a door just to Brent's left. It read "Escape Pods" over the door.
''Smart ass.'' Brent muttered and opened the door. Inside sat one pod. It was able to sit five people, and there were six. Balto then replied, '' you guys go. I'll stay.''
But Brent had other plans.
''Listen, I know how much you want to be a hero Balto, but I will give my life. You have Jenna and your owners to take care of. Me, I have no one. No friends, no family. I'm a loner. That's why I don't deserve to live. Go, before my sacrifice is in vain.''
There was no denying it. Brent was indeed sacrificing his life. But before Balto closed the canopy of the pod, he said quietly, ''Brent, you'll always be a friend in my heart. And my hero. Thank you, and save me and Jenna a spot in doggy heaven, will you?''
''10-4. See you in the future, Balto.''
Those were the last words Balto heard from Brent as the pod, (driven by Yukon) sped off away from the colony. Just a minute later, all five looked back to see a giant explosion appearing right on queue. Balto held Jenna as she shed tears for their friend. They had never had one like him before. And they called him a nerd when they first met him. Yukon, not trying to break up the moment, exclaimed, ''next stop, 1947! Hang on!''
And with a quick burst of speed, the pod disappeared in a time portal.
November 28, 1947,
The pod reappeared discreetly behind the old fishing yacht that was Balto's home. Yukon smiled and said, ''it was nice meeting you Balto. I'll never forget this moment. Bye!'' And after a flick of a switch, Yukon was gone. Balto and Jenna sat on the ship, while Steele slowly walked back to town, shouting, ''I'm sorry Balto. You deserve the popularity, not me.''
This statement from his arch rival made Balto a tiny bit happy, but the loss of a good friend kept him sad. Just then, Balto heard something. He looked up and listened intently. The sound he heard sounded like screams of terror. The sound then got louder, and a time portal opened up above the boat, spitting out Brent from it. He fell onto the deck, hitting it hard. Balto and Jenna rushed to his aid. Brent got to his feet slowly and shook his head.
''You didn't think I'd die that easy, did you?'' he retorted. Balto and Jenna were so happy, they both hugged him. Brent smiled and replied, ''Man, I think I may have found my home after all. Forget the future, I like the past better.''
And with Balto and Jenna by his side, Brent walked into Nome, happy he was with his friends once again.
END