Dakota spent the rest of the day running across the barren landscape of the desert. The wolfdog had been living in such a harsh environment for a little over a year now and had managed to adapt to the environment enough to get by. His coat was white in all the wrong places, but it was better than nothing. Besides, he had a water skin slung over the length of his back, and not only did it block the sun, but the cargo the skin contained had a nice cooling effect to keep his temperature lowered. His experience as a prized sled dog had made him a fast runner, and he could cover heaps of desert ground in a day. It helped that he had competed in, and won, the Iditarod twice, as the lead dog no less. The crash site was about 15 miles out from the base. Dakota reached it in half an hour. It was obvious with the circling vultures. He positioned himself on a dune nearby and observed, his red and white fur, as well as the browned skin would keep him adequately concealed with the surrounding sand from prying eyes. the wolfdog narrowed his own optics. There was a small team inspecting the site. Three men clad in dark armour like the ones they'd captured, and a large red and white dog which was furiously barking after the trail of their footprints. He looked familiar. Dakota knew the average human travelled about 20 miles in a day on foot. They would reach the base by nightfall. The wolfdog tightened his jaw. If that dog was as powerful as the cat said he was…

Dakota sniffed at the air. He had until dusk before he had to give it up and go home. He better pick up the scent of what he was looking for quick. He really didn't like what was coming. He took off into the furnace heat as the squad started off again. the humans were wearing the worst clothing for the desert heat and weren't adapted to it. they would be slowed down by their need to pause to rest and consume water. They were also travelling in the worst part of the day. Those mistakes would compound and really slow them down. Him? he had what he needed on his back and was used to the heat by now. A few sips of his supply would see him across half the desert and back. As such was the training that got him used to strict rationing and restraint when it came to not overwhelming his body with moisture or drinking more than his share.

Without the discipline of a master to maintain the steady speeds of mushing, Dakota pushed himself as fast as his body would allow, carefully monitoring his rising fever and only stopping for water breaks when he felt the slightest ache in his head. Within a few deep sucks of the water skin, he was off again across the desert sand. Every time he stopped he would have to push himself harder to make up the difference of the discrepancy in his cooling supply. But eventually it paid off as he located the faint scents of another dog. He picked up the pace and eventually spotted two forms buried up to their necks in the sand, drying out from the heat. The wolfdog ran over, standing to block the sun from them and sniffing gently to check if they were alive. Barely. They were lucky. The wolfdog began quickly digging at the sand to pull them out, observing the forms as they spilled onto the hot ground. The cat was silent, but the dog was at least heaving and coughing a little bit. The wolfdog checked the sun. there wasn't much time left. He heaved the dog up onto his back and grabbed the cat.

Then he ran faster than he'd ever run in his life.

"…Bolt?" the dog let out a groan. His fur was hot. The ground below him though was cold. He blinked, realizing the shade. He was no longer out in the hot sun. in fact he didn't feel the desert heat at all. Was he indoors somewhere? The American White Shepard managed to open his eyes and lifted his head. He was staring at the large form of a russet and white wolfdog, too delirious to tell if he were familiar or not.

"…Gus?" he murmured, and the wolfdog's eyebrows raised.

"'Gus'? now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time." Now Bolt noticed the wolfdog's friendly cobalt blue eyes, the lack of a collar, and the russet stripe down his muzzle. The eyes in particular were different not just in their colour, but in the bright yellowed whites that framed them. the super dog groaned in response, then he felt a hand on him. no member of Calicorp would ever stroke him. he managed to look around, spotting the form of a person nearby, as well as the waterskin laying on the floor, a few drops of the precious water that remained in it trickling onto the floor.

"that's a good boy…" the human murmured before turning to the wolfdog. "he's going to be fine." He said before standing up and walking away. Bolt flicked his ears in something of relief, hearing the footsteps get quieter and quieter, and then a door closed. The dog groaned, heaving himself onto his feet to look at his wolfdog companion for a moment. then he glanced around, remembering something.

"…Mittens…!" she wasn't there. He looked at the dog. "where's Mittens?" the wolfdog tilted his head to the side.

"the cat? She's being taken care of by someone else." The wolfdog licked his lips and hesitated, glancing at the floor. "…we aren't sure if she'll make it." the dog's tail drooped and he cast his eyes down, feeling his heart sink. "I'm sorry." The door clicked once more and the human from before returned with a bowl of wet food. The wolfdog looked up at him as he rested the bowl down. "you should eat." He told Bolt. "there's something we need to discuss."

Bolt looked at his companion, licking the final traces of canned food from inside his mouth.

"you're sure of this?" Dakota nodded.

"it was confirmed by his cat. After finding you, I do not doubt it." Bolt flicked his ears, his mind whirling. How could be fight after last time? Now Penny AND her father could be here, not to mention Mittens, Calico, several dozen members of his guard AND his cats… and Gus was about to bear down on them all.

"is… is there some kind of post somewhere? An anything?" he stammered. Dakota nodded.

"follow me." The two darted across the floor of the room and Dakota lead the super dog through the compound in the mountains on the edge of the desert. They reached a ledge overlooking the waste and Bolt's eyes widened as he could see a few lone figures wandering across the sand. "they do not know that we are here." Dakota told him. "once they get close, men down there will shoot them." he gestured to the men hidden behind rocks down below. Bolt looked down and swallowed some dry saliva.

"…they will shoot him…" he said glumly. "…but it won't end well." Dakota frowned.

"I can maybe draw their attention with an alarm bark. The whole place would act like a full army assault were happening." Bolt nodded at him.

"that might be the best course of action. I'll keep Gus occupied as long as I can." The wolfdog nodded in his turn.

"the likely response will be a full team evacuation." He warned him. Bolt's tail flicked and he sighed internally. It felt like he would spend his whole life chasing Calico over this. Now he was willingly letting his enemy and his person go.

"I'll have to live with that."