Disclaimer: All characters are property of DC Comics and Warner Bros.
April 11th-7:30pm Eastern Time.
It was a clear Monday night in Metropolis, for the most part people were normally out and about or working late. Among those currently out was a certain superdog. Sitting on the rooftop of the Daily Planet was Krypto. While on his way back from the Hall of Justice, he went to have a look around the city. After an hour or so, he stopped to take a break.
"Pretty quiet tonight, guess I'll go home and…" just then, Krypto heard a noise not too far away. "Huh?"
He looked in the direction of where the noise came from and went to investigate. As he entered the alley behind Chez Joey's, a popular five star restaurant, he sniffed the ground. The dog of steel paused and looked around, something didn't smell right. Tail tucked between his legs, he started to back out of the alley.
"Ok, I should just get out of here."
Just as he was about to run, Krypto felt a sharp pain in his right hind leg and yelped. "Hey!" using his teeth, he pulled out the kryptonite tipped dart and stared at it.
"What the…?" he wondered.
Krypto was quickly alerted by the sound of glass breaking. The noise came from the opposite end of the alley.
Deciding not to stick around, Krypto took off running.
"Whatever that stuff is it's…" he stopped in his tracks, feeling weak.
"Pretty strong."
Letting out a loud yawn, Krypto then collapsed on the ground.
Later…
April 12th-9:30am Eastern Time
Krypto woke up on what felt like a hard cement floor. He groaned as he opened his eyes and sat up.
"I feel like I got ran over by a truck."
He then stood on all fours and shook himself.
"A big rig truck."
Krypto stretched and yawned, feeling rather stiff from being on the floor.
"That tranquilizer knocked me out."
He then looked around the room.
"Ok, where am I? Some kennel obviously."
Lifting his head up, Krypto sniffed the air but nothing smelled familiar.
"And it's not Star Labs but…"
He was alerted by the sound door opening.
His ears perked up when he heard somebody coming.
"Huh?" he wondered, feeling curious.
Looking through the wiring of the kennel he spotted a tall figure approaching.
He yelped in surprise once he saw her.
"What in the world?!" Krypto sputtered.
"Oh good, you're awake." Said the Scientist.
"Uh, yeah obviously," Krypto replied, still nervous.
He was up against the back wall of the kennel, tail between his legs and ears laying flat on the sides of his head. His blue eyes stared at her yellow ones fearfully.
"I've never been this close to a dog before. Now then…" the Scientist paused and was about to open the kennel but stopped when a voice rang out.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
The Scientist and Krypto both looked up.
Krypto quickly recognized the other person in the room.
"You?! Of all the places where I end up, it had to be in this dump." He said to himself, looking at what he assumed was the Scientist's boss.
"And how is our canine friend?" Her boss asked.
"I'm not sure, I came in and he was awake." The Scientist explained.
"Good, so…" her boss, the Ambassador as he was referred to, walked up for a closer look.
"Wait a second!" he exclaimed.
"What is it?" the Scientist asked.
"I know that dog!" the answered.
The Scientist raised an eyebrow.
"You do?" she continued.
"Yes, when I went to Krypton years ago. This dog belongs to the El Family. I don't remember his name though." The Ambassador explained. He had been to Krypton once, when he was fourteen and remembered Krypto and his owners.
The Scientist looked rather surprised, replying with an: "Oh,"
"I know this dog anywhere, except the last time I saw him he was a puppy." The Ambassador added.
He started to open Krypto's kennel and was alerted by a loud bark.
The Ambassador yelped and stepped back.
"Obviously he remembers you too." said The Scientist.
She was right, Krypto did remember him and his name… Dax, but he had never seen the Scientist before.
"Would you like me to leave? It seems you two have a lot of catching up to do." she joked.
The Ambassador, Dax glanced at her with a cynical look on his face.
"Very funny, Tamar. Just… look up any information you can find about this dog. I'll be back in an hour. I've got an interview in Metropolis." He said.
The Scientist, Tamar frowned.
"With who?" she asked.
"Eh, some journalist named Lois Lane. Anyway…" Dax was cut off.
"You better go," said Tamar.
"You're right… I'll be back." And with that, Dax left.
Tamar and Krypto looked at the door then each other.
"Well, let's get started." She sighed.
Krypto tilted his head.
"Started with what?" he wondered.
Moments later, he was sitting on an exam table, much like the ones in a vet's office.
Tamar stared at him, she was surprised Krypto didn't struggle or snap, he just sat there looking at her.
"Hmm," she muttered and started to examine his right ear.
Tamar paused when she noticed something on her gloves.
"Ugh! Dog hair." She growled and decided to remove her gloves.
She then checked his ears, muzzle and face.
"I've never seen a dog with blue eyes before." She admitted.
Although Tamar had done research on animals, most of the dogs she had seen in photos and stock footage had brown, yellow, hazel or amber colored eyes.
She then opened Krypto's mouth and shuddered at seeing his pearly white canine teeth. Besides looking at photos and footage, Tamar had also read about large dogs such as Mastiffs, German shepherds, Rottweilers and Dobermans. They were strong breeds and Krypto was no exception.
After checking his mouth, she then looked at his fur and legs. Krypto flinched when he felt her grab his tail.
"Hey!" he yelped and barked at her.
"Relax, dog. I just want to take a look at you." Tamar told him.
"Uh, lady I got a physical two weeks ago and my vet's hands aren't nearly as cold as yours." Krypto barked.
"Done." Tamar announced.
She went over to the computer and started to type. It didn't take her long to find what she was looking for.
"According to this article, it says your name is Superdog."
Krypto looked up and glanced at the computer screen, recognizing his photo in an article on the Daily Planet's website.
"And…"
Tamar paused and typed superdog in the website's search bar.
"You're Superman's pet." She said.
"Duh! Took you that look to figure it out?" Krypto asked.
"You are one unique mutt." Tamar told him.
"Ok, we established that, now can you let me outta here so I can go home?" Krypto replied.
Tamar didn't understand a word he said, the whole thing sounded like a bunch of barks and whines.
"Sorry, I don't speak dog." She said.
She then looked at the tag on Krypto's collar.
"Interesting…"
Later…
10:30 am- Eastern time.
Krypto was still on the exam table although Tamar had finished giving him a physical, she didn't put him back in the kennel for some reason.
Lifting his left hind leg, Krypto began to scratch his ear causing his tag to rattle.
"Are you done?" Tamar asked, sounding somewhat annoyed.
Krypto stopped and lowered his leg.
"Thank you," said Tamar.
She glanced at his paws, and flinched at seeing the long ebony black claws on the end of his toes.
Tamar took notes on an ipad like tablet and went back over to the computer.
Krypto sighed and stretched out, with his front paws hanging off the exam table.
Tamar turned around, raising an eyebrow.
Krypto simply blinked, not making a sound.
He and Tamar were quickly alerted by the sound of the door opening.
"I'm back. So, how'd you make out?" Dax asked.
"Well, for starters he's called Superdog." Tamar answered.
Dax raised an eyebrow as he glanced at Krypto.
"Superdog, huh?"
Krypto looked up at hearing this.
"According to records I've downloaded from Star Labs, he's not only Superman's pet but also…" Tamar stopped short when she and Dax noticed something.
"Hey, where'd he go?"
Dax quickly spotted Krypto heading for the door.
"Got'cha!" he said.
Krypto yelped as Dax grabbed him by his collar and placed him back on the exam table.
"Nice try." Dax told him.
"Anyway, there isn't any kind of identification on him, except this tag." Tamar explained, holding it up for Dax to see.
'Good thing she didn't check me for a microchip.' Krypto thought.
"So, what's next?" Dax asked, as he scratched his neck.
"Not much else, I gave him a complete physical," Tamar replied.
"That I didn't need," said Krypto, even though he knew Dax and Tamar couldn't understand him.
"And?" Dax continued.
"He's healthy," Tamar answered.
"In that case, I suppose he's good to go." Said Dax.
"Finally!" Krypto sighed, hoping they were going to release him. His tail began to wag at hearing this.
"So, I guess now I'll start running tests," Tamar concluded.
Krypto's tail stopped wagging.
"Tests?! Wait a second, I didn't sign up for this at all." He barked.
Later that day…
8:15pm-Eastern Time.
"Well, this is great, not only am I stuck here but I'm starving." Krypto said to himself.
He was back in his kennel and learned that the cement floor had small fragments of kryptonite that made him weak enough to prevent him from escaping.
Krypto whined, he hadn't eaten anything all day.
Tamar, who was sitting at the computer on the opposite end of the room, growled in frustration.
"There he goes again." She muttered. For almost half an hour she tried to ignore Krypto's barking and whining but now she couldn't take it anymore.
"What's wrong now?" Dax asked as he entered the lab, hearing Krypto howl.
"I don't know," Tamar replied.
Dax walked over to Krypto's kennel and looked at him.
"When was the last time he's had food or water?" he asked.
"I have no idea, maybe you should ask him." Tamar replied sarcastically.
"Tamar, please. Dogs can't talk," said Dax.
Krypto growled at him.
"Hey, I'm starving here!"
He then started to bark.
"Just…get him some food and water, anything to shut that mutt up." Dax continued.
Tamar nodded and left the room.
A few minutes later, Krypto was alerted by the sound of the kennel door opening.
"All right! I was beginning to…"
He paused and looked down at what was in the stainless steel bowl in front of him. The contents in the bowl looked more like oatmeal than canned dog food.
"You gotta be kidding. Bibbo's dinner has better stuff in their dumpster than this junk."
Krypto pushed the bowl aside and sniffed the other one.
He lapped up some of the cool water, glad to have something that helped his dry throat.
"At least the water's the same."
Krypto continued to drink the water until the bowl was half empty.
"Much better," he said, now that he was no longer feeling dehydrated.
He then looked up at Tamar.
"What?" she asked.
Krypto whined, staring at her with a pleading look in his eyes.
"I don't know what that means." Said Tamar.
"Come back with something edible and I'll tell you." Krypto offered.
He barked at her, trying to make a point.
"Something wrong?" Dax asked.
"He won't eat," Tamar replied.
"I'm not surprised, animals tend to do that when out of their comfort zone." Said Dax.
"You got that right; you people got me in a rusty kennel for crying out loud, sheesh!" Krypto said.
"I've got an idea," Dax announced.
Krypto and Tamar looked at him, obviously surprised.
"You do?" she asked.
A short time later, Tamar had left and came back with a different bowl.
"What now?" Krypto wondered as he watched her place it on the floor.
He glanced at the bowl and was shocked at what was in it.
"Kibble?"
He sniffed it to be sure it was the real thing and sure enough it was.
"Well, beggars can't be choosers. At least it's something I recognize."
Krypto then started to eat, this was the first meal he had all day.
"How's he doing?" Dax asked.
"Much better," Tamar answered.
"Good, let me know how he does." Said Dax.
"Will do," Tamar replied.
Krypto licked the bowl in attempt to get the last of the beef flavored crumbs.
"Not exactly, filet mignon but it'll do." he said to himself.
After getting another drink of water, he stretched out and yawned.
"No! If I fall asleep, who knows what they'll do… gotta stay awake."
1 hour later…
"Ohh, I'm so tired." Krypto groaned.
He looked over at Tamar who was sorting through some papers on her desk.
"Well, she's busy. Maybe one nap couldn't hurt." Krypto concluded.
He curled up in a corner of the kennel and went to sleep.
The next day…
Krypto blinked twice before he opened his eyes. He then slowly got to his feet and stretched, flexing his stiff muscles. Sleeping on a hard floor was anything but comfortable.
"Oy, what a night."
He shook himself and checked his surroundings.
"She's gone!"
"All right, maybe now I can get out of here."
Just as he was about to place his paws between a gap in the kennel, the door opened.
"Or maybe not." He sighed.
Shortly after sniffing the air, he sneezed. It didn't take long for him to recognize the scent.
"I know that smell, that's Wally! I wonder if anyone's looking for me."
Meanwhile…
April 13th-7:28am, Eastern Time…
"Find him?" Nightwing asked.
"No, you guys?" Kid Flash replied.
"Nope," Batgirl sighed.
They were currently near Chez Joey's where Krypto was last seen.
"Karen's looked everywhere and so have Bat-hound and I." she explained, as she stroked the German Shepherd behind his ears.
"That's weird, it's like he's not in Metropolis anymore." Said Bumblebee.
Kid Flash looked over in the alley and gasped.
"I think you're right." He said, pointing at the ground.
The five of them looked in the same direction and noticed a few paw prints along with tracks they didn't recognize.
While Nightwing and the others continued their search, Krypto's morning was anything but pleasant.
"At least they remember to feed me," he said to himself, after finishing up the kibble in his dish.
He lapped up some of the fresh water Tamar had left just a few moments ago. The dog of steel was quickly alerted by the door opening and footsteps.
"Who's there?" he barked.
Looking up, he saw who it was.
"Oh, it's you."
He then growled at Tamar.
"Easy, Superdog." She said before typing in the code and opening the kennel.
"Come 'on now."
She went to grab his collar but stopped when Krypto whined.
Tamar looked at him for a moment, she could see that he was afraid and felt sorry for him. She shook her head, snapping out of her thought.
"Just come 'on," she insisted and pulled Krypto by the collar and placed him on the exam table.
Krypto yelped in surprise feeling the cool steel underneath his paws.
"Cold table!"
Once he got over the shock, he glanced at Tamar. It was obvious she had little or no experience with animals.
"What?" she asked.
Krypto simply tilted his head in reply.
"Eh," Tamar muttered, shrugging her shoulders.
Later…
"Hey, what are you gonna do?" Krypto wondered.
He shut his eyes briefly when Tamar examined them with a small flashlight.
"Hmm…"
She looked at Krypto's front paws, mainly his dew claws and paw pads.
After a moment, she walked away.
"O…K." Krypto said to himself.
He heard Tamar on the opposite end of the room. She was looking for something in a drawer and was having a hard time finding it.
"What's next?" Krypto wondered.
Moments later, he found out just what she was up to.
Krypto's barking could be heard throughout the room as well as in a nearby hallway.
"Hold still!" said Tamar.
She grunted and struggled to hold him.
"What's going on in here?" Dax asked as he entered. He had heard Krypto barking and decided to investigate.
"I've ran all the DNA tests, except for one." Tamar explained.
"Which is…?" Dax said, frowning at this.
"I took hair and saliva samples and his paw prints, now I just need to do blood work, but he won't keep still. This dog is stronger than he looks" Tamar replied.
"Maybe I can help," Dax suggested.
"Go ahead," said Tamar before stepping aside.
Dax struggled to get a hold of Krypto but after a moment of trial and error he held him down.
"Got him," he said.
Krypto howled in pain when he felt a needle prick his skin, he was also shaking.
"Did you get it?" Dax asked after a moment.
"Yes, one sample is all I need." Tamar replied, she set aside the needle and vial containing the blood sample.
After placing a band aid on Krypto's left leg, Dax loosened his grip.
The two of them looked at each other, two sets of eyes, one blue and the other orange just stared at one another.
"I hope he had his vaccines." Said Dax.
"Of course I've had my shots and the last place I want to be is stuck in some lab with you two." Krypto barked.
He continued to stare at Dax, making it obvious he didn't appreciate the vaccine remark.
Dax looked over at Tamar, ending his and Krypto's staring contest.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Oh, nothing… don't mind me, I won't interrupt your conversation." She joked.
Dax's eyes widened for a minute, he stared at the Scientist angrily.
"Uh, never mind." Tamar said nervously.
Later that day…
5:30pm, Eastern Time
Krypto yawned, feeling both bored and tired.
Tamar did the same and realized what she did.
"Hey, knock it off! It's contagious." She told Krypto.
"Can't help it," he said, even though it sounded like a bunch of barks to her.
He nipped a hang nail on his dew claw and stretched out on the exam table.
Apart from Tamar typing on the computer keyboard the room was quiet.
"Rough day?" Dax asked.
Tamar yelped in surprise.
"Would you please stop doing that?!" she exclaimed.
"Sorry," Dax apologized and stepped back giving Tamar some space.
She didn't hear him come in and was startled when he came up behind her.
He glanced at the computer screen, reading the information she had on file about Krypto.
"Don't you have anything better to do?" she asked.
Dax was quiet for a minute then spoke.
"No, not really. As soon as you're done, there's something I need to talk to you about."
"Sure thing, listen Dax I was wondering if…" Tamar was cut off.
"Can't talk now, we'll continue this later." He said before making his exit.
"But…"Tamar sputtered.
Next thing she heard was the door shut.
Letting out a loud sigh, the female Reach went back over to Krypto.
"Twelve years later and I can't get a word in. I mean really… just once I think things would be better if he was nicer to…" Tamar stopped short and turned around.
She groaned realizing Krypto was sitting there just watching. He wasn't barking or anything.
"Great, I'm talking to a dog! Like you understand a word I'm saying." Said Tamar.
Krypto smiled.
"Oh, you'd be surprised."
"Honestly, I…oh forget it." Tamar said in a frustrated tone.
"Sounds like Dax hasn't changed since the last time." Krypto concluded.
Tamar sighed and looked at Krypto.
"I guess some things never change." She said, stroking his soft fur.
"Yeah," Krypto agreed.
Later that night…
9:45pm, Eastern time.
"Well, that does it for today." Said Tamar.
Once Krypto was back in his kennel, she shut the door.
"See you tomorrow." She told him.
After entering the code, she turned off the lights before leaving the room.
Krypto groaned as he stretched.
"Ohhh, see me tomorrow."
Just then, he had an idea.
"Or will you?"
He looked at the door before walking to the back of the kennel. Krypto circled three times before he settled down for the night. Having slept on the hard cement floor the night before, he was glad to find what looked like a mat in the corner. Shortly after closing his eyes, Krypto nodded off.
The next day, Krypto woke up early. Although he had only been in this place for two days, he quickly learned about Tamar's routine. She normally came in around seven a.m. and went on a break around eleven-thirty. It was currently five in the morning, for the next hour Krypto tried to figure out how to escape. Krypto yawned and stretched after a while.
"Now to get out of here."
Krypto paused when he heard a faint growl.
"After I get something in my stomach first."
Later…
April 14th-7:30am, Eastern Time
Krypto's ears perked up at the sound of the door opening. Now that he had a full stomach, he was ready to get to work.
"Showtime!"
He stretched out on the floor and began to howl in pain.
"What the…?" Tamar sputtered, startled by the noise.
She went over to the kennel and noticed Krypto laying there, barely moving.
"You don't look so good." Said Tamar.
Feeling frustrated, she groaned.
"Last thing I need is a sick dog."
She punched in the code for the kennel door and picked Krypto up; laying him on the examination table.
Letting out a loud sigh, she looked at his limp body.
"What am I going to do with you?" she asked.
Walking over to a nearby shelf, she looked around for some medication for him.
No sooner did she have her back turned, Krypto opened his eyes.
Shortly after he stood up and jumped off the table.
'Hey! Come back here!" Tamar exclaimed, going after him.
"Morning," Dax greeted her as he entered the lab.
"How's it go…?"
"Shut that door!" Tamar yelled.
"Whoa!" Dax sputtered when he saw Krypto.
The superdog ran into him, knocking him over.
"What happened?" Dax asked.
"I don't know, I thought he was stick but I guess not." Tamar answered.
"This dog is smarter than we thought." Said Dax.
Letting out a grunt, he stood up.
"No doubt," Tamar replied.
April 14th-9:45 am, Eastern Time
Krypto had been running for a while, the hallways were long and not clearly marked making it hard for him to find a way out and the alarm blaring overhead didn't make it easier.
He sniffed around the hallway and picked up the scent of fresh air.
"Exit's gotta be around here somewhere." Said Krypto.
Now that he got the scent, he decided to keep going.
While Krypto tried to find a way out, Tamar and Dax went around looking for him.
After checking several places, the two of them stopped for a moment.
"Did you find him?" Dax asked.
Tamar panted for a minute, trying to catch her breath.
"No, we're still looking. At this point, he could be anywhere."
Dax growled at hearing this.
"Keep searching, I want that superdog!"
"I'll check the east side, maybe he's gone that way." Said Tamar before she headed off down the hallway.
Krypto panted heavily, all this running was exhausting and he needed to rest.
No sooner did he sit down, he heard the sound of footsteps.
Krypto jumped up and yelped.
"Better get going." Krypto said to himself.
He took off running, wherever the exit was, he was determined to find it…