Zs99: Chapter 9 of AWOL! ... I really don't have anything to say here, besides enjoy! Oh, and a massive thanks to Adderstar for reviewing each chapter...not to mention everyone else who also reviewed!

Ryne sat with her back against the wall as she listened to Crow. Flippy? Betray? Sarge had a thoughtful look on his face. "Who'd have thought he would do that." Alam was pacing restlessly. He licked his fangs, then questioned Crow. "You said that this group is lead by a Shepherd, correct?" Crow nodded. "Then, did you happen to hear his name?"

Crow closed her eyes and shook her head. "No, I was too far away to hear anything." Alam growled and continued pacing. Ryne was staring at the floor, turning everything over in her mind. There was no way to fully verify anything, except for the word of Crow. Had Flippy REALLY switched sides? 'No' She though 'he wouldn't do that...what is the motive behind this madness...?'

Alam stopped pacing and looked at Ryne as she stood up. "Alam...come with me." The Shepherd watched her walk to the exit, then followed.

He saw that Ryne was running in the direction of the dying sun. Alam caught up with her, his breath whistling wetly as he panted. "What are you doing Ryne?" Ryne stopped and looked around. "I'm going to check it out myself." Alam shook himself. "And why did you bring me?" Ryne started running again, shouting back over her shoulder. "Didn't you want to find out who that dog is?" Alam ran his tongue over his fangs and snarled. "Of course!" Ryne had vanished, but her voice carried back to him. "Then come on!" Alam snorted, then continued.

(Timeskip--1 hour)

Ryne's red eyes peered out of a screen of leaves as she survey the enemy camp. A few of them were Varg, but most were dogs. There was a large fire in the middle of the camp. Most of the dogs were crowded around it, tearing at hunks of meat. A silver dog lifted his head and sniffed. For a second, Ryne thought he had smelled them, but was relieved when he got up and walked over to a piece of meat.

There was a savage snarl and another dog near the meat leapt at the other dog, his fangs flashing in the firelight as they impaled themselves into the silver dogs head. The dog yelp and ran a few yards from the fire, with the other dog snapping angrily at his tail. The silver dog tripped and tumbled, landing on his back. The attacking dog stood over the other, his legs stiff, his hackles raised, ears raised, tail held vertical to his spine, and his lips pulled back in a snarl.

Alam suddenly tried to surge forward, a savage snarl curling from his chest. Ryne grabbed the enraged Shepherd around the neck and forcefully pulled him back. The dog down near the fire thought that the silver dog had snarled and proceeded to bite his ear off. Ryne's eyes were slitted and mad as she confronted Alam. "What the hell was that!?" She growled softly. "You could've given our cover away!" Alam quieted down slightly and went to look back through the leaves. The dog had left the silver one to writhe in pain on the ground, plopping back down near the fire.

"That dog, the one that just attacked the silver one, that's Viktor...he's a true traitor! I've sworn to kill him!" Ryne looked out too and watched Viktor. He gnawed on the meat, then lifted his head and barked something at someone. Ryne felt her insides squirm as she recognized Flippy. The green bear stood up and walked over to the edge of the woods, said something to the dog out there, then stood watching. "He's on guard. Come on." Ryne started to creep away, when Alam's fangs grabbed her tail. She turned her head and stared at him. "What?" "Do you even know what you're doing?! He's the enemy now!"

Ryne pulled her tail from his mouth. "You don't really know that. Stay here if you want, but I'm going to see him." Alam knew he could do nothing to stop her as he padded after her. 'I can't stop her, but I can make sure she stays safe.' His claws scrapped the ground, knowing what he was prepared to do in order to protect Ryne.

Flippy sat on a log, keeping watch. A sudden movement caused him to stand up, his knife out. A dog came out of the darkness. Flippy, at first, thought it was one of Viktor's followers, but then he saw the mutilated muzzle. He backed up slightly. "Alam, what do you want?" Alam opened his mouth, strings of spit extending from his upper to lower jaws. "I want nothing from you. But someone else does..." He turned his head and looked into the woods.

Flippy blinked as Ryne stepped out of the woods. She continued walking until she was a few paces away from him. "Ryne, why are you here?" "I should ask the same thing, what are you doing here?" Flippy looked to the side and wouldn't meet her gaze. "I'm a bear, I belong on this side." Ryne shook her head. "No you don't. You have a better heart than any of them. You belong with us..."

"No, I don't! Now, get away from here or I'll kill you!" Ryne moved back slightly, but stayed still. Flippy growled dangerously. "You think I'm joking! Get going!" He leapt at Ryne. Alam rushed forward, pushing his body between the two, and received a slash across his shoulder. Flippy back off, his knife bloody, as Alam snapped his long fangs at him. "Alam, no. I understand now. Flippy," He looked up. Ryne's eyes were calm but there seemed to be a hidden confusion deep in them. "take this."

She reached behind her and pulled off her golden tail ring. Her tail, without the added weight, curled up like a normal Akita's tail. She tossed it to him and he caught it. She turned and started to leave, pausing only to say one last thing. "See you on the killing field." Then disappeared. Alam started to back away into the shadows. "Tell Viktor, that an old friend is here...and I'll get my revenge!" Alam whipped around and vanished with Ryne. Flippy looked at the tail ring, then the bloodied knife and paw, sighing regretfully.

Alam walked beside Ryne as they made their way back. "So, did you find out what you went out to discover?" Ryne shook her head. "No, but I don't think he betrayed us." Alam gapped at her. "How can you even say that?!" He turned and licked at his wound. "It surprised me that he wounded you, but I don't think he meant that. You were in the way and I don't think he knew you would put yourself between him and I."

Alam grunted. "Still, how do you know that?" "Alam, I look deeper than you or Fyre can."

The moon came over the mountains.

"And..."

A shadow descended across the prison cave.

"...I didn't see a hint of malice in his gaze."

...

The black skunk, who had whipped Fyre earlier, looked up from his duty as guard at the prison cave. Flippy was walking towards him. "Oh, a shift change?" Moonlight shimmered on a blade as it swung towards him. His body remained standing even as his head hit the ground. Fyre, who was laying on his side, opened his eyes as soon as he heard a thud. Flippy was standing before his. A snarled started, then froze. Fyre spied the dead body and the bloodied knife.

Flippy bent down and put one of Fyre's arms over his shoulder. At first, Fyre started to snarl, but Flippy motioned for silence. Fyre's eyes seemed to still hold some resentment and suspicion, but he stood shakily on his legs, leaning on Flippy for support. "Come on, Fyre. Let's get you back." Flippy half stumbled, half walked to the exit and looked out. The dogs were still sitting around the fire and there would be no one on guard. After a seconds hesitation, Flippy moved out, with Fyre limping by his side.

(Timeskip--15 minutes)

Fyre sat with his back against a tree, wrapping a strip of cloth around his leg. Flippy was leaning against another tree, breathing heavily from their mad dash through the woods. Fyre stood up slowly and put some pressure on his leg. There was a slight pain, but is was bearable. "We should get going, before they notice we're gone."

As if to answer him, a howl was heard. 'If they tracked us, they'll be at this spot in less that 5 minutes.' "Flippy, we have to go, now!" Flippy nodded, standing up straight and walking over to Fyre. Fyre waved him off as he tried to help him. "No, I'm fine, let's just get moving." Fyre limped off, some of his energy returning. Flippy looked back at their tracks. It was very clear which way they went.

Fyre stopped moving when he noticed that Flippy wasn't with him. He turned and saw the green bear facing the way they had come. The sound of Viktor's pack tracking them was getting closer. "Come on!" When Flippy didn't move, Fyre growled and limped back to him. He grabbed the bears jacket and spun him around. "Get moving now, bear! Do you want them to catch you?!" Flippy just shook his head. "They'd catch us even if we never took a break. They can run faster than us, especially you, in your wounded state."

Fyre narrowed his eyes and flicked his tail. "Then what are you gonna do? Stay here and become a POW (Prisoner of War)?!" Flippy shook his head again. "No, you'll run back to the base and...I'll stay here and keep them busy." Fyre blinked and snorted. "You stay here and keep them busy?! That's just stupid! They'll kill you!" Flippy turned and face the enemy. They were very close now. "Fyre, this is no time to worry about anything like that. There's a stream just over there." Flippy lifted an arm and pointed to the left. "If I'm right, it should run directly to the river that runs by the base. It should flow slowly, so you can wade in it until you reach the bigger river. They'll lose your scent that way. Now, please go, and tell Ryne I'm sorry for tricking her."

Fyre stayed quiet for a moment, then sighed and limped off. He stopped suddenly and turned to look at Flippy. "Fine, I'll tell her. And I want you to...forgive me, for what I said about you. I was wrong." The Akita and the bear, two swore enemies, stared at each other. Flippy nodded, "I forgive you, even though it worked out good for my little scheme." Fyre rolled his eyes and turned, limping rapidly into the darkness. Flippy turned, feeling the strange energy rising up in him and excitement pound through his veins.

A second later, the enemy erupted through the bushes. The dogs skidded to a halt and hesitated, looking around in confusion. There was no one there. Viktor stood at the head of the group, surveying the area. He lowered his head and sniffed the ground. Flippy's scent was strong here. 'That damned bear, I'll kill him!' Viktor lifted his head slightly in confusion, then sniffed again. There was a strange familiar scent lingering on the ground, but it had long gone stale.

Viktor shook his head and looked up. There be time for that later, but now, his only thought was to find Flippy. He didn't care about the Tora-ge at the moment, he was probably just a follower anyway. Viktor wanted Flippy, the only creature who dared to trick him. A dog at the back of the pack sniffed and walked a few paces away from the group. With a yelp, he felt the ground give way.

Viktor whipped around and saw the dogs tail vanish. One of the dogs companions edged over to the pit and looked in, quickly backing up after seeing his friend impaled on several sharp branches below. The dog lowered himself to the group, whimpering to another dog. "How'd he get the time to do that?! We'll all die if..." He didn't finish. Viktor leapt at him and grabbed him by the scruff. The Shepherd reared up on his hind legs and threw his follower into the pit. The dogs yelp was cut off as slices were heard and he was impaled too.

Fyre paused and looked back, then he sighed and continued on.

Viktor whirled on the other dogs. "And that goes for the rest of you! Fear is weakness and weakness is death! If you show fear again, I'll personally kill you!! Understand?!" All of them barked out, "Yes, leader!!" Viktor snorted and wheeled around, sniffing. Truth be told, he didn't smell Flippy, but he had to act like he did. He faced a random direction and barreled off. "This way!" His followers followed quickly, each of them fearing to be the one to bring up the rear. Up in a tree, Flippy sat. He smiled evilly as he watched them running. He took out a knife, tested its edge, and gave an evil chuckle. The night was young and there were so many to kill.

(Timeskip--1 hour)

Viktor stopped running and looked around. He had run into a dead end and now they would have to back track. While he was running, the Shepherd had heard several yelps from his group, but he never once stopped to see what the matter was. Now, as he stared at his followers, he noticed that he was missing several of his group members. He growled and prowled through the pack, looking for any signs of fear.

He reached the end and started running. Viktor listened to the pawsteps of his followers as they ran after him. As he ran, Viktor saw another pit. From the scent of blood, he didn't need to look into it to know that it contained the body of a follower. 'To bad he's the enemy, he'd make a fine soldier...'

The group reached the area where Flippy and Fyre had parted. Viktor sniffed around a bit, then snarled. "Fine, forget Flippy! We'll just go after the Tora-ge!" Viktor started walking, then stopped. Standing before them, was Flippy. Blood splattered his paws and jacket and his knife was smeared in the red substance.

Viktor's hackles rose and he stalked stiff-legged towards the bear, his lips curled up in a snarl. "So, I found you..." Flippy laughed harshly. "Found me?! No, I revealed myself to you! And, you know what? You won't walk a step beyond here!" With a snarl, Viktor leapt. Flippy moved to the side and swiped at Viktor with the blade. Unfortunately, Viktor moved quickly and evaded the attack. Viktor licked his fangs and smiled. "Not bad, Flippy."

Flippy stayed quiet as he kept his eyes on Viktor. The dog had started circling him until his back was facing the other dogs. "There's a thing about dogs that you should know...do you want me to tell you what that is?" Flippy still didn't answer. "We dogs always hunt in packs." Viktor nodded. Too late did Flippy realize what Viktor had done. He ducked, allowing a dog to sail over him. One came around from the side and snapped it's fangs into Flippy's arm. Flippy swung around with his knife, plunging the blade into its forehead.

Upon seeing the knife impaling the dog, the others leapt, striving to bury their fangs into Flippy. He disappeared underneath the heap. Suddenly, the dogs flew back and Flippy was standing. Blood splattered from several wounds as he snapped the neck of another dog, flinging its body into the face of its friends. The dogs backed off. Flippy stood in the middle of the circle, his teeth bared in a snarl. "Come on! Fight me, you bastards!!" They stayed back. "What?! Are you afraid of me?! Ha! You bunch of cowards! Viktor! You'll fight me!" He looked around and, to his surprise, Viktor was nowhere to be found.

"Up here, you monster!" Flippy looked up, only to receive twin blows from both of Viktor's forepaws. They landed on his skull and knocked Flippy senseless. The dogs started to gather around him, eagerly trying to tear some part of him. A black and white speckled dog sank his teeth into Flippy's paws. Viktor leapt at him, his serrated claws slashing the dog open. Its blood spilled onto the ground as it died. The rest fell back, yelping as blood washed over their paws. Viktor stood up straight, his chest swelling with pride. He flicked his paws, splashing blood over the ground. "I've changed my mind about killing him. We'll take him with us and torture him instead! He might not be the leader, but I'm sure he has some very valuable information for us!"

His head flew back, a wild, absolutely mad howl tearing through the still night air. The rest took up the call until the howl carried across the mountain. Fyre stopped and turned, listening to the howl. He had heard that type of howl several times after a battle. Victory. He shook his head and picked up speed as he followed the raging stream back to HQ.