Chapter 10

"What are you thinking Ben." I heard Ryan yell from behind me as the pair of us raced through the busy street, Dodging and weaving our way through seemingly endless waves of animals. "Thinking Ryan. No" I yelled back to Ryan. "I only think in particular situations. This is doing something." I yelled to Ryan as I focused on the hooded figure that was literally knocking over people to get past them and away from us, the facial features of the figure still hidden by the black hoodie that was on top of the animals head. "Stop." I yelled to the figure as more and more animals where being knocked down as said figure charged his way through the street before making a sudden turn down an alleyway which was hidden from the sunlight. "Come on Ryan." I yelled as I followed the figure down the dark alleyway, nearly slipping as I made a sudden turn to avoid a dustbin that was at the entrance of said alleyway. As I continued on running through the dark sun hidden alleyway I could see the thief just ahead of me as I kept my leaf green eyes set on the hooded thieving figure. 'Come on. Are you kidding me?' I thought to myself in disbelief as the thief literally clambered up and over a 10 foot brick wall that marked the end of the alleyway. What really bugged me was that the thief actually had the nerve to turn around on the top of the wall and face me before giving me a quick wave as the thief jumped down onto the other side of the wall.

"Who does this thief think he is?" I thought as I looked up at the tall brick wall before taking a few deep breathes inn as I began to charge at said brick wall. 'I can do this.' I thought in my mind as the tall brick wall got closer and closer as I sprinted towards the brick wall, determination plastered on my auburn furred face. I leaped into the air like a majestic bird taking flight as I felt the air rush over my fur and my tail, the wall just ahead of me. But it seems I'm just not as good a jumper as I think I am as I finally realized in mid-air that I wasn't going to make it over the wall but instead smashed straight into it. I rammed straight into the tall brick wall which resulted in a loud thudding sound as I bounced off the wall painfully before landing onto the solid concrete ground back first. "Ow…..my back…." I groaned out painfully as I slowly curled up into a ball on the concrete ground as I reached out one of my black paws and grabbed my tail before pulling it up to my muzzle and crying out loudly in pain, the tail acting as a sort of sound dampener.

"Hey Ben are you OK?" I heard the deep and friendly voice of Ryan say from behind me as I took away my tail from my muzzle before putting on a fake smile in an attempt to hide my pain. "Yeah don't worry. I'm fine." I said as I began to slowly stand up as Ryan watched me do so with concern evident in his aqua blue eyes. "Are you sure Ben?" Ryan said as he looked at the wall before looking back to where I had landed. "Because you look like you're in pain." I on the other hand dusted my black trousers of with my black paws before grinning slyly towards Ryan, his eyes still showing concern. "I'm fine really." I said as I turned around and looked at the tall brick wall which had caused me pain. "Hey Ryan do you know any companies that sell bulldozers?" I questioned the white wolf quietly as I continued to stare at the wall. "What was that?" Ryan questioned from behind my back as I just chuckled slightly before turning back round slightly to face him, a questioning glance present on his white furred face. "It doesn't matter." I said as I looked back at the wall with determination plastered on my furred face. "But what does matter is catching that thief." I said as I approached the wall once more before beckoning Ryan to follow. "Do you mind giving me a boost up Ryan?" I said gazing up at the brick wall as the white wolf behind me grinned before he made his way in front of me and placed his paws to the ground next to the wall. "Ready when you are Ben." Ryan said as I looked at him before smirking slyly as I placed a four paw on his lowered paw. "Then let's go catch a criminal."

To say that I was surprised at the height I gained from Ryan's boost was an understatement as I literally flew up the side of the wall, actually going higher than the wall itself before landing on the top of said brick wall and by land I mean just hang on as I nearly flew over the other side. "Bloody hell Ryan. I said boost me up. Not send me to the moon." I cried out from the top of the wall as I looked down at the shrugging form off Ryan below me. "Ugh never mind." I said as I dragged a black paw over my muzzle in frustration before crouching down on the top of the wall. "Alright Ryan." I said as I extended a black paw down towards Ryan from atop of the wall. "Now it's your turn." In my mind I thought that if Ryan could literally fling me up to the top of the wall with ease then I too could do the same for Ryan. I mean I was pretty strong as a human and it seems my other traits like my con skills and memories had carried over into this world so I thought a mundane task like this would be easy. I however was wrong. Lifting Ryan up onto the wall was like lifting a bag of heavy weights as I literally just managed to pull Ryan up onto the top of the wall. "For a minute there I thought you were going to drop me." Ryan said as he looked at me and my panting form which was lying down on top of the wall. "Me too." I said as my breathing began to become more and more controlled as a white paw came into my view. "Thanks." I said as I grasped Ryan's paw with my own as he lifted me up and onto my hind paws. "No problem." Ryan said as I spotted the thief once again. But this time the thief wasn't running and dodging his way through the ally but was instead standing and looking at another much taller wall that was blocking said thief's path. "Wow." I said out loud as the thief quickly turned around from facing the wall to suddenly facing both me and Ryan head on, the hood which was hiding the thief's identity throughout the chase falling back behind the thief's neck due to the sudden turn. The animals face was that of a male wolf just like Ryan except this wolf was slightly smaller in size than Ryan and had bright yellow eyes instead of Ryan's aqua blue ones and charcoal black fur instead of Ryan's snow white fur.

"Well." I said as myself and Ryan gazed down at the thief as he continued to glare daggers at the both of us with his bright yellow eyes "Aren't you just the perfect depiction of a thief." At this the black furred wolf began to growl angrily as I jumped down from the top of the wall, landing a bit awkwardly on the concrete which sent a jolt of pain up my hind legs. I watched as the thief eyed me like a killer would on a hunt when he's about to pull the trigger to end a deer's life. I could hear the loud growling that was emitting from the black wolf as I also heard Ryan jump down from the wall before joining me by my side, he too looking towards the growling black wolf. "So if I'm a thief." The black wolf growled out as he glanced quickly between me and Ryan, his bright yellow eyes only showing anger and intimidation. "Then what does that make the two of you then?" The black wolf said in a light sounding but dark tone of voice as I glanced toward Ryan and then back again towards the charcoal black wolf. "You know to be brutally honest with you." I said before scratching the back of my orange furred neck "I don't really know?" I said shrugging my shoulders as I turned toward Ryan who dragged one of his big white paws across his muzzle in what I guessed was embarrassment as the black wolf in front of us began to chuckle lightly to himself before laughing out loudly in obvious amusement. After a few seconds of the wolf laughing his heart out at both me and Ryan he began to calm down, his breathing heavy and quick from his recent fit of laughter. "Oh…y... you two are the best. You don't even know what to do against me." The wolf said as he breathed in deeply once more before facing me and Ryan once again, as an evil grin began to make its way onto his black furred face. "But you shouldn't have followed me here." The wolf said as he unzipped his black hoodie which revealed a metal syringe that was hanging inside a pocket in the wolf's hoodie. The syringe itself had a glass vial which held a weird purple liquid inside said syringe.

I stared at the black furred wolf in confusion as he glared directly at me with his bright yellow eyes as I waved my right black paw in front of me as a gesture for him to continue on talking thinking that he had something else to say to which the black wolf gave a small sideways glance, his evil look and glare leaving his features for a moment as he now stared at me in confusion. "What?" I said as I gave a questioning glance back towards the wolf as he continued to stare at me blankly, confusion clearly evident on his face. "What's wrong? Is there something on my face?" I said as I began to rub at my face with a black paw before I felt a firm tap on my shoulder. "Hey Ben…are…you alright?" I heard the deep voice of Ryan say as I turned my head around to face him whilst my face scrunched up in confusion at the perplexed expression that was clearly present on his white furry face. "I'm fine." I said with confusion evident in my tone of voice as I turned back around to face the black furred wolf whose face had now gone back to its angry and malicious look. "Ben. Please tell me you know what's in that syringe." I heard Ryan say from behind me as the black wolf in front began to take it out of his hoodie before holding the syringe in his right black furred paw, pointing the tip of the syringe towards me like someone would when there holding a knife ready to attack. I stepped back a step as I lowered myself slightly so that I was ready to defend myself if the wolf lunged at me. "Come on wolfy." I said as the charcoal black wolf began to approach me syringe in paw as he began to growl angrily, whilst myself on the other hand just held my ground.

"If you give me the wallet now then no one needs to get hurt." I said as I looked quickly towards Ryan as he too readied himself for the fight that was inevitable. "How about NO." The wolf said as he lunged at me with the syringe held tightly in his black paw as I sidestepped in the nick of time, just about dodging the syringe as it narrowly avoided my stomach. 'Damn.' I thought as the wolf lunged at me again with syringe, this time actually tearing a bit of my shirt off as he jabbed at me again and again, myself just narrowly dodging every time. "Ryan." I yelled as I dodged the black wolfs syringe once again as I jumped back to avoid another attack before I watched Ryan jump in from the side hitting the wolf in the face as he too entered the scuffle. "Ugh." The wolf groaned as he stumbled back from the hit he had taken from Ryan before he brought a paw up to his face in pain. "Nice hit there Ryan." I said as Ryan joined my side shaking the paw he had struck the charcoal black wolf thief with. "Thanks." Ryan said as said black wolf looked up at the two of us as he removed his paw from his face before growling loudly in anger and baring his pure white K9 teeth at the both of us. "That's it." The black wolf said as he charged full force towards Ryan with the syringe aimed directly towards Ryan's chest, his eyes glaring with anger. "Incoming." I yelled to Ryan as he jumped to the side dodging the incoming attack with ease and catching the black wolf of guard as he landed quickly before kicking the thief in the arm causing the wolf to drop the syringe. 'For a mechanic Ryan sure can throw a punch or two.' I thought as the black wolf grasped his paw in pain as Ryan back away a bit waiting for the wolf's next move. "Alright now what are you going to do." I said to myself as the black wolfs attention switched from Ryan to myself as he then charged at me just like he did a minute ago to Ryan. I waited lazily on the spot with my paws behind my back as I stepped to the side sticking out my right hind leg which the wolf charged into and abruptly fell muzzle first into the concrete.

"Ow." I said as the wolf groaned on the floor in pain as I walked up to his side and crouched down before poking him in the stomach with a black paw which caused the wolf to groan again. "You seem to be in pain there." I said as the charcoal black wolf then growled angrily as he jumped up wincing a bit before swinging one of his big black paws in an attempt to hit me as I jumped out of the way. "You fight dirty Fox." The wolf said as he spat on the floor before his eyes wondered of to the syringe that now lay on the hard concrete floor a few feet away from him, his yellow eyes focusing intently on the syringe. As soon as I noticed the black wolf looking at the syringe on the floor I knew what he was going to do. I immediately began to dash towards the syringe at full speed as the charcoal black wolf did the same, the both of us intent on reaching the syringe first. As the pair of us neared the syringe on the floor the black wolf jumped up in the air intent on striking me with his hind legs as I on the other hand increased my speed before sliding along the floor dodging the wolfs attempt at striking me with his legs. As I slid along the floor I noticed the syringe with the purple liquid inside was only a few feet in front of me as I reached out my black furred arm and grabbed the syringe in my paw as I continued sliding along. I immediately jumped back up onto my hind paws and turned back around to face the wolf only to find that he wasn't trying to get the syringe anymore but was instead looking around quickly as if listening for something. "What the hell?" I murmured to myself as I watched the wolfs ears swivel around in many a direction before I heard I loud howl coming from behind me.

The black furred wolf turned around quickly as he gazed behind me with gleaming yellow eyes before he lifted his head up towards the sky and began howling along with the other howl. After pondering the weird situation briefly I shrugged my shoulders in confusion before walking up to the now howling wolf and smacking him in the head knocking him out. "Well that was helpful and kind of weird." I said placing the syringe in the back pocket of my now dirty black trousers as I gazed down at the unconscious thief. "Hey Ben." I heard Ryan call out as I quickly turned around to face the blue eyed and white furred mechanic as he came running towards me before stopping in front of me with a slight smile plastered on his muzzle. "Are you alright?" Ryan said smiling whilst I in return folded my auburn furred arms and gave him a deadpan look. "Yeah Ryan I'm fine." I said as I scratched the back of my head as Ryan looked at me with his deep blue eyes before shrugging his shoulders. "Wait what am I saying." I yelled out loudly as Ryan folded his arms and watched in mild amusement as I began to rant whilst pacing back and forth before once again turning to face him. "Where the hell where you just then and where did you learn to fight Ryan?" I said as I pointed a black paw in Ryan's direction as the wolf in question just chuckled slightly in amusement. "I wasn't always a mechanic Ben." Ryan said as I looked at him accusingly with my leaf green eyes. "Well what where you then?" I asked in slight worry as a thought made its way into my head a thought that I didn't like. "You weren't a cop where you?" I questioned as I began to back away from Ryan a bit as he gave me a toothy grin. "How did you know?" Ryan said as he gave me a questioning look of his own as I stopped backing away and glared at him.

"Well you did just take on a thief and score some good hits on him so there's that." I said as Ryan just smiled again. "True." Ryan said as he looked towards the body of the lack furred wolf that still lay unconscious on the floor. "Well you also seem to know how to fight." Ryan said as I sighed before making my way over to the body. "Yeah well wolfy here became distracted so it was an easy fight." I aid as I looked back towards Ryan and noticing the guilty expression that was making its way onto his face as I raised an eyebrow at him in suspicion. "Hey Ryan." I said as an evil smirk began to creep its way onto my face whilst Ryan began to look worried as I continued. "What is it?" Ryan said as I placed my arms behind my back whilst the evil grin continued to consume my face. "This." I said as I howled loudly for a brief moment which caused Ryan's ears to twitch as well as his right eye before he lifted up his head and howled loudly towards the sky. I burst out laughing as Ryan continued to howl as other howls could be heard joining in from all over the place as I continued laughing hysterically. 'Con man one. Ex-cop zero." I thought as my laughing decreased and the sound of complaining animals could also now be herd along with the howling. Unknown to me though a dark figure was watching me and Ryan from around the corner before quickly disappearing down the one way ally which led to the city streets.