He watched as the sun sank behind a rosey cloudbank. He enjoyed watching sunsets. They always seemed to differ from each other and the sun never seemed to set the same way. It was ritual and yet different. He heaved out a sigh of contentment. The base of his skull throbbed but it barely bothered him except on very bad days. He turned his gaze from the sunset and towards the town.
They seemed so content to stay in the warmth while he was out here freezing by himself. His lips curled in resentment as a growl rumbled in his chest. He deserved the warmth, not them. His claws dug into the wood as anger washed over him. He bared his fangs at the town as images of red washed over his eyes. As soon as the flash of anger came it vanished leaving Balto adrift.
Where had those thoughts come from? He backed away from the sight of the town. He had wanted to murder everyone. He shook himself and ran along the shore. He had to get himself under control. He kept running, trying to put the town far behind. Something was becoming very wrong for the wolfdog.
As he ran a strange sound hummed in his ears. At first he thought it was the wind brushing his earfur, but it grew louder and louder. It was eerie and he wanted it to go away. But it was persistent like his heartbeat. He ran faster, hoping that the sound of his paws would drown out the sound. It kept up and grew louder in response. It was driving him crazy.
Suddenly he crashed into a solid object. Without thinking, he struck the object and was rewarded with blood flooding his mouth. The music seemed to fade with the taste of blood. He tore into the animal more and the song faded away. He staggered away from his victim as the crazed moment passed. The coppery taste bathed his tongue and throat. Blood flecked his face and coated his muzzle. He looked like a monster.
He didn't look at the mangled remains once as he stumbled away. His stomach roiled and clenched at thought of what he had done. He had a few feet of distance between him and the dead body before his legs gave out from under him. He puked up the contents of his stomach and laid there in misery. His head wasn't throbbing as much though and he took relief in the lack of pain.
He laid in the snow and felt its coldness seep into his coat. His eyes grew heavy as his temperature dropped. He soon was in a deep sleep. His mind quiet at last.
Hours later, Balto opened his eyes and shook out his coat. A light covering of snow fell away and he stretched his stiff limbs. He exhaled a breath and looked around. He had no idea where he was and didn't remember anything before waking up. He rose to his stiff paws and limped through the snow.
As he limped, the stiffness left his body and he was able to walk more smoothly. The moon was higher in the sky than before he collasped. He picked up his pace as the sounds of the town reached his ears. He wanted to meet up with Jenna.
When he reached town though, he noticed a shift in the people. They were distracted and calling out someone's name. As he drew near a person, he heard the name they were calling. It was Steele.
Before he could ponder this, Jenna came bounding up. She was out of breath and her eyes reflected worry.
"Have you seen Steele?" She stopped just short of him.
"No," his chest burned with anger. She hadn't seem to worry about him and he had been missing as well.
"Are you alright?" Her brown eyes focused intently on him.
"Fine, so how long has he been missing?" He bit out.
Jenna had the grace to flinch from his anger. Inwardly he smiled at the brief show of fear of him.
"He's been missing since earlier, he was supposed to meet me at sundown."
Balto's fur bristled but he kept himself in check, "Meet you?"
She nodded and took a step back, "I think my girl is calling me, good-bye Balto."
He watched as the slender husky took off. He turned away and walked silently through town. His mind churned with thoughts of Jenna and Steele. Was she cheating on him with the dumb brute? He would show that cocky husky the errors of his ways. Balto stomped his paw into the snow as he formulated a plan to take down Steele. It was going to be perfect.
"The perfect murder."