The elevator at the lookout slowly drifted downwards towards the Earth, with Ryder inside of it. Little did he know that there was an intruder that he left behind inside of the lookout.
Ryder stepped out of the elevator once the doors slid open. Out front to greet him were the six Paw Patrol members, playing and wrestling in the grass.
"Pups, at attention," Ryder said.
The pups stopped playing and giggling to race to Ryder, and stood in front of him in a horizontal line. They all stared up at him.
"Yes, Ryder?" asked Chase, tilting his head.
"Thanks for coming here. I see you're done with the search. What were the results?" asked Ryder, opening up a small notebook and placing a pen to the clean paper pad.
"Well sir," Chase spoke up first, improving his posture before continuing. "I looked through the halls on my own, and with my tracking skills, I picked up a few things that could be valuable information," he explained, looking up at Ryder, though not getting a returned gaze since Ryder was busy writing down on the pad.
"Right, go on," said Ryder, taking note.
"So firstly, I found the Mayor's purse. It seems that someone was with the Mayor. I can't pin a name on it, but I do have the scent, and the scent seems to go outside of Town Hall and follows the road out of town. The purse is right here," with that being said, Chase dug into his backpack and pulled out the Mayor's purse. Chickaletta was inside of it, clucking. It clearly was oblivious as to what was going on, nor did it seem to really care.
"I put Chickaletta in the purse because that's where it usually is," Chase added. He gripped the purse in his teeth and walked over to Ryder, dropping it at his feet.
"Right, thanks, Chase. Good work today." Ryder complimented, giving Chase a dog treat. Chase ruffed happily and accepted the treat, walking off on his fours to lay down in the grass, chewing his treat.
"Does anyone else have anything they would like to share? Any progress reports on the search?" Ryder asked, with his arms crossed as he looked over the remaining five pups.
"Well, I don't think anyone else does, but... I saw something." said a pup. However, it was not one of the five.
A pup with pink fur stepped out of the lookout. Ryder turned around to face the pup that came towards them.
"What, wait, who are you? How did you get into the lookout?" asked Ryder.
"You see, I'm really sorry for going inside, I figured that was where I could find the Paw Patrol. I did not know you were not there, so I went in and came right out." said the pup.
"Is that so? I guess you must have come in right after I left... well, what happened, anyway? What's this you want to share with us?" Ryder asked the pup.
The pup looked up at Ryder. The pup had on a pink vest suit, and her fur was a rose pink. Her eyes were purple. Something about this pup's gaze and suit seemed familiar to Ryder, however, he could not put a finger on where he'd seen those eyes before.
"...I'd rather take this elsewhere if you don't mind..." muttered the pup, glancing over towards Chase.
Ryder looked at the pup, then over at where she was looking at.
"Um, just speak low, I'm sure you'll be fine. What is it?" Ryder asked, clearly concerned.
"Well, here's what happened. I was around town when I heard the... Mayor? She seemed really frantic, and I was out on a walk with my owner, so I could not really do anything. I didn't have my tools with me. So I watched from afar, whimpering, and that's when I saw Mayor Humdinger approach the Mayor with a mean look. He took her into a dark purple car and drove off. This was all before
"Now, later on, today, I was really concerned. I didn't see the Mayor anywhere. So I lurked around town, hoping to find an answer to something when I saw... Chase! He was with Mayor Humdinger, though I didn't find the purple car anywhere. I only saw him and Chase talking behind a bush. I swear. I don't know if you'll believe me, but that's what I saw." finished the pup.
"Woah Woah Woah, hold it. That's impossible. Chase was with me the whole..." Ryder paused, thinking. "Well, he was left on his own to complete a search, and he did say he went to do it on his own... but that's not Chase. He would never do that." Ryder told the pup sternly, watching the pup's eyes.
"Right, it must have been a different pup that looked like Chase I suppose, I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions. I best go before my owner finds me out of the house, though," said the pup. She quickly dashed off, running out of sight. "Come on, now, Busby, hurry!" she muttered back, the toy frog following her quickly from the reception signal off of her collar.
/Perfect, now that the seed of doubt is planted in all of the Paw Patrol's heads, time to make my second move... after taking this pink fur dye off./ the pup thought.
She turned around and went to the back of the lookout, proceeding to go up onto the slide, climbing up it with difficulty. She had managed to eventually make her way back inside. All while Chase knew nothing of her visit; he was too busy focusing on his delicious treat.
Ryder glanced over at Chase and stared at him, deep in thought.
"Ryder, you don't really believe that Chase is involved with Mayor Goodway being missing, do you?" Skye asked, stepping forward.
"...No. Of course not, Skye." Ryder replied though he wasn't too sure at this point. Chase wasn't with him during the timeframe of this accusation, but even so, he knew Chase would never do something like that. /Who was that pup anyway? I never saw a pink pup around Adventure Bay.../ he thought to himself, his hand on his chin.
/No, something just doesn't add up,/ he thought more, shaking his head. /Well, it's getting late anyway, I better close up the lookout./
"Alright, pups, this case is definitely bigger than any of our old ones. We're calling this Mission PAW: Find the missing Mayor!" Ryder shouted, pointing to the sky.
The pups barked in confidence, determined for the mission.
"You got it, Ryder! We'll find her!" shouted Marshall.
"Yeah, Rubble on the double!" added Rubble.
"I'm sure the Mayor couldn't have gone too far," said Rocky.
"Of couwse, no way the Mayow could have. We got this!" encouraged Zuma.
"Ruff!" barked Skye, clearly she was excited.
Chase was snoring, he was asleep.
All the pups laughed when they heard Chase snoring. "Oh, Chase!" Skye giggled out.
"Okay pups, here are your treats. You were all such good pups today. Time to rest. Once you guys go in I'll lock up the lookout. Be ready to work more on the missing Mayor case tomorrow." Ryder said, smiling at them all.
"Thanks, Ryder!" the pups shouted as Ryder threw five treats at the pups, each one getting a single treat. They devoured them quickly, and it was gone as fast as they had received them.
"This way, pups," Ryder said, gesturing with his hand. Chase was still asleep. Giggling, Skye quickly ran over to Chase's limp body and put two paws on his side, shaking him violently.
"Chase, you silly, get up!" Skye exclaimed, laughing as she rocked him back and forth.
"Ugh, yeah, yeah, I'm getting up..." Chase tiredly groaned, getting onto his fours.
"Time to go inside Chase!" added Skye. She wiggled her hips and wagged her tail in amusement as he rose to his fours.
Chase nodded and walked over to the elevator with the rest of the pups. The sliding glass door closed and the elevator rose up into the lookout. As the platform passed the big paw patrol logo, the logo shone in the evening sun and when the elevator passed the logo, the pups were undressed into their collars only.
As the pups were upstairs and chatting before bedtime, Ryder began to lock up the lookout, closing the garage door and activating the lock on the elevator. Unfortunately, Ryder was only locking in the problem, not keeping it out.
Ryder went upstairs through a special staircase and had entered his room. He pulled out his gadget and pressed the button to broadcast a message, "Goodnight pups, good work." to the pups' pup tags. He shut off his gadget, placed it on the nightstand to charge, and got undressed to put on his pajamas. With that, he laid down and shut his eyes. The only thing on his mind was where the Mayor could possibly be, and if Chase had really known something about the situation.
/That's impossible,/ was Ryder's last thought before zoning out, asleep.
*****[In the other room]*****
"Hey guys, what do you think happened to the Mayor?" asked Rubble.
"I don't know..." commented Marshall. He stood on his four paws. "I mean, you guys did hear what Ryder and that one pup were talking about, right?" he asked the others. This time, however, Chase heard him.
"What pup?" Chase asked, turning to face Marshall. The other pups looked up at Marshall.
"Uh, well, um," Marshall started, but couldn't find the right words to finish. "W-Well..." he stuttered, kicking the floor with his paw. "A mysterious pup approached Ryder and was telling him something. I was just asking the others if they had heard anything, but I guess they didn't... Did you, guys?" Marshall smiled, turning to the pups once more.
"N-No," stuttered Skye, avoiding Chase's eyes.
"Nope!" said Rubble, though he seemed nervous.
"Yeah, no," Rocky added.
"..." Zuma didn't reply, but simply stood quietly.
"Oh." was all Chase had to say.
"Yeah..." Marshall looked away, feeling awkward. No words were spoken after that ordeal.
"Right, I'm going to bed. Good night, guys," sighed Chase, knowing something was up. He began to walk over to his room door with his head down, sulking all the way to the door.
"Night Chase," the others said as he walked away. They felt bad about having to lie to him, but they knew it was for the best.
Chase opened his room door and walked inside, shutting and locking it behind him.
Suddenly, a net had fallen over his body, pinning him down to the floor. Almost immediately afterward, an old plush toy was shoved into his maw, gagging him and preventing the canine from being able to bark or shout.
"Mmph?!" Chase shouted muffledly. He squirmed under the net and looked around in the dark frantically, wondering what was going on.
"It's so nice to be able to see you again, Chase," said a British Royal voice. The lights flicked on to reveal Sweetie the royal pup, her fur stained with small pink spots, and atop her head rested the crown of Barkingburg.
"Mmf- Shmeeite?" exclaimed Chase, however it was muffled to the point where it was barely audible.
"Yes! It is I, the royal pup, Sweetie," she bloated in a sweet voice, running a paw along her neck. She certainly was acting fabulous.
"So Chase, let's get down to business. I'm going to take that toy plushie out of your mouth. If you decide to shout for help or bark, so help me, you will regret it," she threatened, pulling out his journal. She mockingly held it in her paw, waving it around with a dark smirk across her face. "I'm sure this explains what will happen if you DO decide to be an idiot," she added, laughing. Her laugh ended with a snort.
The situation hit Chase hard. He felt the wind knock out of his chest and his heart stopped at the sight of Sweetie with his journal. He had spilled his deepest, darkest secrets in there, simply because he had nowhere else to release them. The fact that another being had read this, and can expose it all, was enough for Chase to do anything to prevent that.
Chase nodded.
"Good boy," she teased, walking forward to rip the toy out of his mouth. She kept the net down on him and looked into his eyes with a fierce expression.
"Listen, po-po," she growled, glaring downwards at the German Sheppard. "This is exactly what happens when you spoil my plans. Just like you did at Barkingburg. Isn't that right, Busby?" she turned her head to see the robotic toy frog lying lifelessly on the floor. "Oh, come on!" she wailed with an inside voice, slapping her collar with a paw. The toy suddenly jumped up and came to life, which satisfied Sweetie enough to put a smile on her face.
"I have a deal for y- I mean, WE, have a deal for you," she said, motioning to Busby. "I'm going to raise your net, too, that way we can really get into the details," she cooed. "However if you decide to pull a fast one, no worries. I can just tell the rest of the paw patrol about your dark secrets. We both know how you feel about... hehe..." she smiled an evil smile, tucking his journal away.
Chase looked distressed but complied with a nod. He knew there was no room for defiance here.
"Good boy, I guess Ryder taught you when you can't win." she mocked, raising the net with the push of a button.
Chase rose to his four legs, glaring at Sweetie with a furious glare. "How did you even get in here, Sweetie? Don't you know when enough is enough, anyway?" asked Chase in an aggressive tone, growling under his breath.
"Maybe," she giggled. "But let's just say this place isn't as secure as you guys should have it. I also managed to get my paws on the main database of the Paw Patrol, take a look!" she pulled out her golden flash drive and tossed it up in the air, catching it in her teeth.
"Well, of course, you can't, so you'll have to take my word for it," she added, tucking the drive away. "Now then, down to business. We both are really sure you don't want your journal's secrets revealed to the others, and I have some things I want from you..." she said, smirking. "You see, Barkingburg isn't big enough for a pup like me, that's why I need more..." she murmured, gazing off out the window.
"What are you talking about?! Barkingburg is big enough. Stop being selfish." Chase growled in retaliation.
"I suggest you stop being rude. Bow down to your princess, mutt," she growled back. Her eyes showed the burning rage she felt towards Chase.
"I'd rather bow down to a cat," Chase said, keeping his glare strong.
"So be it..." she said, walking past him. "I'll be meeting you soon, Chase," she added. She let her tail stroke against his face as she passed him, and she left the room without a word.
"Ugh, BUSBY!" she shouted back, a clicking noise audible in the distance. The toy came to life in Chase's room and whizzed out of the room after Sweetie. "Let's get out of here before anyone sees us," said Sweetie, going down the elevator with her Busby.
"Ugh, geez..." groaned Chase once the royal pup left, burying his face into his front paws. He was very stressed, and his heart felt like an empty pit of fear and anxiety. /She knows... holy.../ was all he could think of. /Why sweetie, why her... She's going to ruin me.../ he thought.
Chase walked onto his bed and curled up, hugging himself. He could do nothing but fear the unknown of what Sweetie would pull.
After a few moments had passed, Chase had fallen asleep, with tears streaming down his cheeks.
*****[The next morning...]*****
"Chase..." said a sweet voice. Something was shaking him. Not something, but someone... Who?
Chase opened his eyes.
"Chase, you're up." the voice said. It was a very soft voice. Chase had opened up his eyes to Skye, the female cockapoo, resting her paws on his chest as she sat beside him in bed.
"Ryder and the others went on a mission. I came in here because you were making noises. Were you having a nightmare?" she asked. She backed off of his bed and sat on the floor beside of it, looking at him curiously.
"Huh, a nightmare? No. It's nothing, don't worry about it," he quickly said, looking away from the pup.
"Chase..." she sighed, tilting and leaning her head towards where he was looking, eyeing him in sympathy. "We all are a part of this team. We all need to be helping one another. I told Ryder to leave you and me behind because I knew something was up. I don't think the others caught on yet." she explained.
"Well," Chase began. "I'm really okay, I guess I just did have a nightmare is all," he said, smiling at the cockapoo. "Honest," he added.
Skye watched his eyes. Her eyes were full of sympathetic pity, and she kept the eye contact for a bit before nodding. She smiled back weakly, and walked out of his room, shutting the door behind her.
"You'd have thought the flirt would never leave, huh?" teased Sweetie, coming in from the window.
"Oh, it's you," Chase said, glancing towards her. "Have you decided to finally ruin my life?" he asked, his ears flapped down limp.
"Oh no, I just came to give you a gift," she said, smiling. She held his journal in her teeth and walked closer to him.
"M-My journal? But why? I thought you-" he started, but she got closer and closer. Sweetie wasn't eyeing Chase, however, she was eyeing the door.
"Now Busby," she muttered. The toy robot frog whizzed into the door, opening it and spilling over a basket of toys. This created a lot of racket.
Sweetie stared through the walls with her now green eyes. She smirked as her plan now had just been put into place. Time to put the finishing touch in!
Sweetie walked up to Chase with his journal in her maw, and she stood over him. Quickly she dropped the journal into his lap and leaned forward, kissing the German Sheppard on his lips.
As if right on cue, Skye had walked into the room. The first thing she saw was Chase, the Paw Patrol's second in command, kissing the Barkingburg criminal, Sweetie.