WARNING! This story contains violence, heavy emotion, and minor explicit language. Please take this into consideration before continuing to read.
For those who will proceed to read, constructive criticism is absolutely welcome! I want to make my stories as appealing as possible, but I cannot always do so without the opinions of my readers. Thank you, enjoy!
Balto: Pain of the Past
Prologue
[June 28, 1918]
A male Alaskan husky, merely two months old, is walking deep within a forest, tears puddling in his deep-azure eyes. He is entirely alone, accompanied by nothing but his tears and his beautiful, agouti fur. "Mama? Please come back!" he calls out fearfully. His voice echoes throughout the forest, but no voice echoes back. "Mama, where did you go? I'm scared!" he yells, once again answered by silence. He stops in his tracks as he begins to cry, tired from walking due to his small stature. He lies down, laying his head on his paws in front of him as he continues to cry. "Is anyone there? Can someone help me?" he cries out loudly. "I-I'm all alone! I'm scared! Please, someone help me!" he yells. Still without any answer, the little puppy cries harder. He doesn't understand anything that is happening, not to the fullest. He is too innocent to understand, as much as he is too young to be alone in the wilderness. "MAMA, COME BACK!" he screams. He was hoping his mother would come back if he was louder, but this proves to not be the case. The sad part is, what the puppy does not understand, is that his mother probably can still hear him. The husky puppy continues to lie there, not sure what he should do. He lies there for quite a while, his crying softening to an occasional sniffle after a few minutes. A cold breeze starts to blow, sending an uncomfortable chill up his young spine. After curling up to keep himself warm, he realizes just how tired he really is, because just a minute later he has fallen asleep.
After some time, the husky puppy starts to stir awake. He thought he heard something, but he doesn't hear anything now. All of a sudden, a female voice softly says, "Hello." The husky puppy nearly jumps out of his skin as he jumps to his paws in fright. Turning around, he is startled to see two Arctic wolves standing in front of him. The first one, the male, is large in size, and has fire-yellow eyes that burn with the intensity of a fire. The female, the other one and the one that woke up the husky pup, has hazel eyes that compliment her white fur. "Are you okay?" the female asks. The husky stares at the two wolves, a little too frightened to speak. It takes him a second to gather up the courage to speak, in which he says, "C-can you help me? Uhh ... I'm lost." The two wolves smile warmly. "Of course. What's your name?" the male asks. His voice is not out of the ordinary, but for some reason, it is very appealing to the puppy. Feeling much better, not just because of the male's voice, the puppy answers, "I-I don't have a name, yet. Most people just call me Dash, be-because I like to run." "My name is Myra, this is my mate, Xavier, and these are our pups," Myra says. Dash looks around, confused because he did not see any pups. Looking behind Myra and Xavier, he finally sees them. There are three of them, all of them watching Dash curiously, but shyly. "Where are your parents, Dash?" Myra asks.
"My mama said my papa died before I was born, but I don't know where she is now. This morning she left me here, then ran away. She didn't tell me anything, she just ran away. She ran so fast I couldn't keep up," Dash explains. Myra and Xavier frown, which causes Dash to lower his ears in response. "Sweetie, you're way too young to be told this, but she's not coming back," Myra says regretfully. Dash starts to quiver, breaking both of the adults' hearts. But he must know, so Xavier continues, "She left you here because ... because she didn't want to take care of you, anymore."
Hearing this, Dash begins to cry again. "Whyyy? Was it my fault? I didn't mean to do anything wrong!" he cries. "No, it's not your fault. I don't know why she left, but it's not your fault. In fact, I don't know how anyone could leave you, sweetie," Myra comforts. Dash's crying slows a little, but he still runs over to Myra, and snuggles against her leg for comfort. Myra uses that leg to pull Dash against her side, giving him a comforting hug. "Do you have any other family you can stay with?" Xavier asks. "I don't think so. Yesterday all of my siblings got their own homes, but I was the only one that didn't." Myra and Xavier now understand why Dash's mother may have left him, but the reasoning is not important enough to break the puppy's heart even further. He will piece it together himself when he is older. "What about an owner? Do you have an owner?" Xavier asks. "I don't know. I don't think so," Dash answers.
Myra thinks for a moment, unsure of what they can do. She would take care of him herself, but it may not be the best choice since he is a dog, not a wolf. After more thought between both adults, Xavier comes up with an idea. "I think I know how to help you, but we have to walk kind of far. Are you tired or hurt?" he asks. "I'm not hurt. I was tired earlier, but not anymore because I layed down," Dash says. "That's good. Myra, why don't I take Dash to Nome, and you take the pups back home. "Why No-?" Myra starts to ask, but she answers her own question. "Ohh, I get it. That's a great idea, you do that. I'll take the pups home." Xavier chuckles, then says, "Okay, then. You ready to go, Dash?" he asks. "Yeah!" Dash says excitedly, wagging his tail with the same energy. "Let's go, then," Xavier says, leading Dash another direction into the forest.
About a quarter-hour later, Dash and Xavier are still walking through the wilderness. "Xavier, can I ask you a question?" Dash asks. "Of course," Xavier tells him. "I'm just wondering, but ... why did she come with us?" "Who?" Xavier asks. He doesn't have to look around much before his question is answered. Close behind him, having stowed away, is one of his daughters. She strongly resembles her father; she is large in size, and has fire-yellow eyes that burn with the intensity of a fire. Seeing his stowaway daughter, Xavier chuckles. "Aniu, what are you doing here?" he asks. "I'm sorry, papa. I was just curious," she says regretfully. "It's okay, but next time, ask if you want to come with me. Okay?" Xavier says. "Okay," Aniu assures. With that out of the way, the group once again goes silent as they venture on toward the town of Nome. However, that silence is quickly broken. "Xavier, are you a wolf?" Dash asks. Xavier hesitates, then answers, "Yes, I am. Why do you ask?" He is worried Dash will be afraid of him if he knows they are wolves, but he hopes for the best. "I don't know. My mama told me wolves are dangerous and mean, and I should stay away from them. But you're a wolf, and you're really nice," Dash says. Xavier smiles. "Let me tell you something, Dash, and please, do not ever forget this. Most wolves aren't mean to humans and dogs, and they never want to be. They will only be mean if someone else is mean to them first," he tells Dash. "So ... wolves are like dogs that live in the forest?" Dash asks. Xavier chuckles. "That's right," he assures. He couldn't have given a better comparison, himself.
After a couple of hours, or so, the trio comes up to a large, open field. It is relatively flat, especially compared to the hilly and mountainous terrain they have been travelling on. Far in the distance is a small town, and halfway in between it and the mountains is an old wooden trawler. It is crashed on the shore nearby the water, but not much of it is actually destroyed. "This is the town of Nome. It's a small town, but it'll be a good home for you," Xavier explains. "Are you going to help me find someone to live with?" Dash asks. Xavier frowns slightly. "I can't go into the town, because other dogs and humans don't like wolves. But I do have a friend that can go into the town; he'll help you find a home," he explains. "Are they a dog?" Dash asks. "You can find out yourself, we're almost to him," Xavier says as they approach the trawler. He leads them around to the other side, and up a wooden ramp leading to the deck. "Hello, who is there?" a male voice with a heavy Russian accent calls. "It's Xavier," Xavier responds. In response, the owner of the voice exits the trawler's cabin, revealing himself to be a Russian snow goose. "Hello again, Xavier. And to you as well, Aniu. And who is this young fellow?" he says and asks, waddling over to Dash. "This is Dash. He needs to find an owner, but obviously I can't enter the town to help him. Could you help him?" Xavier explains and asks.
"Of course. Why wouldn't I help this boychik?" the goose responds. Dash wags his tail happily. "Oh, and where are my manners? I am Boris Goosinov, you can call me Boris. I'll find you home in no time, little Dash. We better get going," Boris says. "Us too," Xavier pipes in. "Dash, I wish you the best of luck, and I hope you have a great life. Come on, Aniu," Xavier says, turning around to leave. "Bye, Dash!" Aniu calls before running ahead of her father and down the ramp. "Bye!" Dash calls back. After the two wolves are down the ramp, and are heading back toward the forest, Boris turns back to Dash. "Now, let's go find you a home, kiddo," he says.
Boris proceeds to take Dash into the town, and go from house to house. At each house, while Boris stays out of sight, Dash would scratch and bark at the door. Sometimes no one would come, other times someone would come, but would send Dash away. After about twenty minutes, Dash was becoming disappointed and worried. Boris would reassure him, telling him they just have to keep looking, but he secretly had his own doubts, too. After a few more unsuccessful houses, Dash is getting pretty upset. "We should just give up! No one wants me!" he pouts. "Oh, come on, now. I'm sure someone will want you, we just have to find them. Let's go to a few more houses, and if you don't have a home by then, we'll go back to my home, and try again tomorrow," Boris says. "Okay," Dash says disappointedly. They go to the next house, and once Boris is out of sight, Dash does his usual routine of scratching and barking at the door. After doing so, he can hear footsteps inside, and then the door creaks open. Standing in the doorway is a Caucasian man, about thirty years old. He is not overtly tall or short, his hair is black, and his eyes are amber. After opening the door, he looks down at Dash. "Well, hello there, boy," he says. Dash wags his tail excitedly. The man gets down on his knees to get a better look at Dash. "Hmm, no collar. You're a stray, aren't ya?" he asks, receiving a confirming bark from Dash.
"Well, I already have two puppies, but do you want to live with me?" the man asks. Immediately, Dash barks and yips in excitement, jumping around in circles as he does so. The man laughs, then says, "Very well, then. Come on in," walking back inside the house. Dash looks back to the street; Boris is standing in the middle, no longer hiding. "Bye Boris, and thanks!" Dash says before turning around and running inside. As the man closes the door behind Dash, Boris chuckles to himself, then mutters, "Goodbye, boychik."
Inside the house, the man leads Dash to the living room. In there, in front of the fireplace, are two other puppies. Both of them are Alaskan malamutes with black and white fur, but the boy has dirty-yellow eyes while the girl has ice-blue eyes. When they see Dash, a new puppy, in their house, they immediately jump up and run over to him, barking and jumping excitedly. "Back up, back up," the man tells them, needing to tell them quite a few times before they obey. "Talon, Laura, this puppy is the newest addition to our family," the man says to the two malamute puppies. "As for you, you need a name. What about Ryder?" the man says to Dash. In response, Dash barks twice in agreement. "Okay then. Welcome to the family, Ryder. This is Talon," the man says, pointing to the male, "and this is Laura," he finishes, pointing to the female. Dash, now and forever to be known as Ryder, barks excitedly at his new puppy friends, who excitedly bark back. The man laughs, then says, "You three can go play, now." As if ordering an armada to 'fire,' the three puppies take off into the house, ready to play.
Here it is! The rewrite of "Balto: Pain of the Past" has officially started! I've had quite a few people request more background for Ryder and Aniu, so that's exactly what this Prologue is. You will find that this story is different from the original, but not as much as you would expect. I kept what was good about the original, and expanded upon it. Not only will this rewrite contain a better story line, it will better-fit into the timeline of the "Balto" movies. But most importantly, this story will give the readers a stronger, deeper connection with the characters than ever before. I really hope you enjoy it, until next time.