Chapter 9 – Resolve
"Teeeheheheheh!" the two of them heard from a nearby bush. It looked as if the large elf-man emerged from the trunk of one of the trees, his body forming from the twisted shape of a gnarled limb, "How sweet!" Puck said with a sickening smile on his face, "Even while running from her, this little animal tries so hard to protect his sister!"
"You heard all of that?" Chase asked. "I am this forest!" Puck stated, "Of course I heard it all, and I tell you, it has given me one of the most wicked plans I've ever had!" Rumplestiltzkin placed himself in between the kit and the elf, a growl on his face that could have peeled the skin off of a man. "Rumplestiltzkin!" Puck said, "Still getting in the way of things I see!" With a snap of his fingers, the shadows of the trees turned, reaching towards the little kit on the ground, "NO!" Rumple shouted as he watched the darkness turn, "CHASE RUN!"
The kit jumped, dodging one of the shadows as he grabbed the goblin by the bottom of his pant leg. His mouth clenched down on the thick leather of the garment, pulling hard as the two of them disappeared down one of the paths. "Tehehehehahahahahah!" Puck smiled maniacally, "That's it, run, panic! It doesn't matter! This forest is endless, enchanted by my magic! Things like this just make the chase more fun!"
Chase bolted down the trail, taking a quick sniff of the air as he entered into an opening, and darting down the path glowed with the faint light blue light. "Oww! Oww!" the goblin shouted as his head bumped against the ground e few times. "OH SHIT!" he shouted as Chase took a particularly tight turn to the right. He found himself sliding again, this time almost into a tree. "Whoa!" he called out, causing Chase to turn and look at him. "WATCH THE DAMN ROAD!" Rumple shouted, and Chase turned his head, facing what looked to be a large wall of shadows. His eyes shrank and his ears flattened, just as the two of them splashed into the black shadows that barred their way. The shadows once again shrank, and separated, forming the simple shadows of trees, but Chase and Rumplestiltzkin were nowhere to be found.
"RUMPLESTILTZKIN?!" Chase shouted, calling for the friend he almost knew had been attached to a pair of pants that he had been dragging, "Where are you?" His call was answered, but instead of the goblin, he heard tears, the crying of someone he knew. "Crash?" he asked as he neared the other kit. The two twins were there, each sitting next to the other as they both cried. "What's wrong?" he asked, "How did you two get here?" The two of them perked up, turning only their ears to him, "This is your fault!" Crash said, and quickly turned, slamming his head into his brother. Chase hit the floor hard, and quickly found his sister on top of him, her fur crystal and claws extended, "She'd still be here if it weren't for you!" the girl kit said angrily, and watched as Chase lifted his cloak hood. She lifted one of her paws as she tried to look for him and was quickly pushed over by the invisible creature as Chase escaped from them, just as Crash rammed his head into the spot where Chase used to be. "YOU CAN'T ESCAPE CHASE! YOU'LL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO PEACH!" Crash called out as his brother slipped away.
Chase heaved for air as he paused, pulling his hood from his head. "What's with them?" he asked. His rest was cut short as he felt a blast of air hit his side. It wasn't hard, but it was enough to catch his attention. When he looked up, he saw his father and mother, both angry and glaring at him. "Dad?" he squeaked out. Bolt never said a word, instead he lifted a paw, and slapped Chase across the face. Sending the kit across the misty field. "I'm very disappointed in you!" the dog said, and crept up to him, "You took the voice of my little angel!" Chase backed up, looking at his father with fear in his eyes, "Why she wasted that last of her voice to save you is beyond me." the shepherd said angrily, "A coward who hides and runs isn't worth saving!" Bolt glared at the kit, his eyes shining a brilliant green. Chase gasped, and jumped to the side, effectively avoiding the laser vision that struck the ground where he sat.
Chase then quickly pulled up his hood, and was immediately hit by a strong blast of wind. The hood flew off, flapping against his back as he became visible again, "Ah, ah, ah!" he heard his mother say, and turned just in time, to be able to dodge claws. "Sorry sweetie, no running or hiding today!" she said. Rhino rolled up behind him, "Yah!" he said, "It's time you faced your fears!" The moment he finished his words, Mittens raised a paw, and released a cyclone that grew in size. "No!" he said, and turned, trying to run.
Bolt and Mittens both began to laugh as the twister chased their son.
The tears coming from his eyes were pulled back as the wind grew stronger. It seemed as if he couldn't run fast enough but somehow kept perfect pace to outrun the spinning wind storm. 'Your fault!' he heard his mind call out, 'It's all because of you!' The voice that ran through his mind was his own, thoughts echoing inside him as he ran from the storm, 'Better off without you!', 'Killer, murderer!'
He slowed down, keeping his paws to the ground as the wind tried to pull the cloak from his back, and the fur from his body, "I already know it's my fault!" he said, catching his parents by surprise, "It was because of my recklessness and unwillingness to believe that she was hurt the way she was. She could have even been killed because of what happened. Just a few centimeters, that's what the doctor said. Just one minute more!"
Huis heart spilled out in his words, the tears that appeared swept away by the wind as he spoke, "I wasn't smart enough to stop myself the first time, then I was too smart to prevent the second." Bolt and Mittens looked to each other, shock on their faces as Crash and Crystal both came up behind the still kit, "But I can't just quit!" they all heard Chase say, a certain resolve in his voice that demanded justice, "I have too much to pay for! Maybe if I keep helping others, I can be forgiven! Maybe if just keep moving forward I can finally clear my conscience! But until then, I'm going to do exactly what you taught me dad!" Bolt looked bac at the kit as he glared at him "I'm gonna keep pushing forward, I'm gonna try to be a hero!" With that, he ran, gathering speed as quickly as he could. The storm chasing him the entire way, "I thought you were going to be a hero!" Bolt shouted, "Hero's never run!"
"They do when they have a plan!" Chase called out, and took a sharp turn. His speed increased greatly as the wind pushed him instead of tugged at him. Then when his speed was enough, he turned. Blazing in the opposite direction that the wind was turning. HE moved fast, so fast that the wind couldn't hold him back. He tore up the ground as he pressed his paws to it, dirt flying from between his toes as he pushed harder and harder. "NO! STOP!" Mittens shouted as the energy built up around him. Suddenly, the wind from her spell slowed down, the storm coming to a slow stop. "I'll stop him!" Bolt called out, and raced on it, trying to catch the kit. Instead, Chase ran harder, sweat pouring from his fur to mix with the tears as he destroyed the magical wind. Suddenly, it shattered. With a loud pop, the barrier between sound and speed was destroyed, and again the EMP erupted, not from the kit, but from the middle of the hurricane.
End of Chapter 9
