Hello everyone. Happy to see again or for the first time if it's the case. Today, I begin a new story in a universe I discovered a year ago and that I believe is cute and as good potential. I especially like the movie. This story will be more serious than most of the show, but will try to keep his joy and comedy. I won't say more to avoid spoilers.

I hope you will love it. If you do, don't hesitate to say it in the comments (I'm always looking for constructive criticism) or to press the kudos button. Be aware that English isn't my first langage so there might be a few mistakes, but I try my best to correct them.

Now, let's read.

It was a beautiful night in Adventure bay. The weather was nice, the moon bathed the region in a weak light and a good number of clouds were present in the sky. In the forest on the mountains near the town, animals were going about their business when suddenly a bright light appeared from nowhere making them all run away in fear. It only lasted a couple of seconds. When it died down, a pup laid down unconscious where it had appeared. A puppy to be exact. He stayed there motionless for a short time before he began moving and slowly opened his eyes.

"Wh…Where am I," the pup said out loud with a female voice.

She stood up, a bit dizzy, and shook herself to get rid of her dizziness. She then looked around her but couldn't see very clearly in the darkness. She could barely make out the form of the trees and a tall rock on her left. Something wasn't right. Wherever she was, she didn't recognise the place and it wasn't where she was moments earlier.

"Blaze," she called but no one answered her. "Blaze! Where are you? Anyone?"

Still no response. The pup started to realize she was alone and began to whimper. A bit scared. She moved her paw to the backpack on her uniform. Relieved to see she still had it. Her fear grew again when she realized she didn't have her cargo inside the pack anymore. Turning around, she looked everywhere to find it without success and began panicking.

"No. No no no no noooo." She stopped, looking right in front of her. "What have I done?"

—-

The next day, the pups of the Paw Patrol were having fun around the Lookout. Rubble was practicing his skateboard skills, Zuma and Marshall were splashing each other in a small portable pool while Chase, Skye and Rocky were playing tag. During this time, Ryder worked on a new device on the balcony on the upper level of the Lookout. He occasionally watched his pups playing with a smile on his face. Seeing them like that always made him feel happy and at peace. Even when he was feeling stressed or down. He may be very mature for a 10 year-old boy and considered a genius, the weight of his responsibilities and leadership could sometimes be heavy. When it happened, he just had to spend time with his pups to feel better. Though the pups didn't feel the same pressure as him, they knew how serious their jobs were even if they still acted like dogs of their age most of the time. Ever since the foundation of the Paw Patrol, they did a lot of rescues, some more dangerous than others. Whatever the situation, they always did their best. Ryder couldn't be more proud of them.

His thoughts were interrupted by the phone ring of this Pup Pad. Ryder put down his tools on the table on which he was working and took out the pad to answer it. The screen went on, revealing Jake's face.

"Yo Ryder," the mountain patroller and ski resort owner said.

"Hi Jake. What's up on the mountains?"

"No emergencies, don't worry. Since the ski resort is closed for the week, Everest and I decided to do some hiking and camping just the two of us. We are currently on the south side of Daze Mountain where we found something…strange."

"Strange? What do you mean?"

"I could try to describe it, but I think it's best if you come see for yourself."

"Okay," Ryder said surprised by Jake's request. "I'll be over in thirty minutes."

"Cool. Thanks man. We'll be waiting for you."

Ryder ended the call and stored his tools and the device he was working on. He then took the elevator to reach the ground floor and left the building to see the pups were now playing search-the-toy with Rocky being the one who hid them.

"Hey pups. Jake called. I'm going to meet with him and Everest on Daze Mountain to see something they discovered. Do you wanna come," the boy asked.

"Sure," Chase responded cheerfully followed by the others.

The six pups were always eager to help and liked to go to Jake's resort. It meant they'll see Everest, Jake's pup and fellow Paw Patrol member. The resort is also a great place to do outdoor activities whatever the season. The current one being summer. So they didn't lose time running toward their vehicles while Ryder went to get his ATV in the garage under the tower.

"Wait for me," Marshall called as he ran behind his friends until he tripped on an inflated balloon.

This sent the dalmatian rolling on the ground toward his fire truck and hit it. The other pups closed their eyes before the impact. They reopened them to see him upside-down with his back against the truck and his head on the ground.

"I'm good. Just rolling to see our friends."

His clumsiness and joke made the other pups laugh as they climbed aboard their vehicles. Together, they drove toward the coordinates Jake sent Ryder. Since it wasn't an emergency, they didn't drive faster than the authorized speed limits. Luckily, there wasn't a lot of traffic. When they reached the forest, they had to follow a small path between the trees, making them drive slower. In all, it took them thirty-seven minutes to reach the bottom of Daze Mountain. There was nothing in this sector besides animals and vegetation. The Paw Patrol stopped their vehicles at the border of a clearing where Jake and Everest were waiting for them.

"Hey Ryder and pups. Always awesome to see you," Jake said.

"Hey guys," Everest said happily as she was running toward the pups.

"Hi Everest", they all replied as happy as her.

Marshall jumped off his vehicle in front of Everest, a big smile on his face and his tail wagging even more rapidly. "How are you? It's been a while since you came at the Lookout."

"Yeah, we've been busy at the resort", Everest responded with her tail wagging too. "This is why we decided to take a small vacation until we found that thing."

"About that, where is it exactly," Rider asked.

"Right over here buddy. We never saw anything like this," Jake responded. "Everest, you lead the way?"

"With pleasure Jake. Follow me."

Everest ran back into the forest, followed by the other pups and Jake and Ryder. After ten minutes of walking around trees, plants and branches, they arrived in front of the mentioned thing. It was a circle with a three meters radius inside which everything was burned. Plants, trees, the ground and even a tall rock. Yet, they were all standing normally as if nothing had happened including the vegetation. There also wasn't any residue of dust or ashes on the ground. The pups and Ryder were so shocked that they stood still for a few seconds without saying anything. Just like Jake and Everest when they first discovered it.

"Whoa dude," Zuma finally broke the silence. "Everything seems to have been burned."

"Did someone lose control of his campfire last night and didn't report it," Rocky asked.

"Fires don't do this kind of damage," Marshall responded. "And with all the vegetation around, it would have spread way farther than that."

"You're right buddy," Jake added. "We have no idea what could have caused that. No one even comes in this sector of the mountain."

"This is really strange," Ryder said as they were all walking to the edge of the burned zone.

"I already checked the perimeter. I didn't find any other place similar to that. No injured animals or traces of people either," Everest informed Ryder.

"If no one was hurt, at least it's a good thing," Skye said. "I hope the poor wild animals weren't scared away."

Chase walked into the burned zone. The German Shepherd tried to use his excellent sense of smell to find any clue as to what happened and who did it.

"Anything Chase," Rubble asked.

"I'm not sure. I don't smell any traces of fire or smoke, but there is…". He sniffed the ground again. It was impossible to find any traces because of its burned state, but he still managed to smell something. "I think someone was there. There is an odor, but it's weak. I can't tell if it's human or animal."

"Hm…Rocky, can you take a sample of the ground and that tree," Ryder ordered while pointing at a huge tree on his right. "We'll analyze it at the Lookout. Maybe it will help us understand what happened here and if it's dangerous."

"I have clean test tubes in my truck. Don't lose it, re-use it."

The mixed breed ran back toward his truck to get the items. During this time, the pups and the humans continued to examine the burned zone. Sadly, they couldn't find any clues. Rocky came back with the tubes in his mouth. Since the pups didn't take their equipment with them, he couldn't use his mechanical claw. He still was able to collect the samples with Ryder's help. Ryder's Pup Pad then rang again. When he answered, Mayor Goodway appeared on the screen.

"Hello Ryder?"

"Hi Mayor Goodway. What can I do for you?"

"Something strange happened to the garden in front of the City Hall and it's attracting bad attention from people," the woman was answering as she turned her phone around to show what she was talking about.

The tulips in the circular garden seemed completely burned. It looked just like what Jake and Everest discovered, except the flowers seemed trampled. Ryder couldn't believe it. Two strange yet similar phenomena at two different places. It's most likely not a coincidence. Some people who were passing by the garden stopped to watch it more closely. Some were even taking pictures.

"It's a disaster for the town's reputation and my poor flowers. Can you come over please," the mayor asked as she placed the camera in front of her again.

"Don't worry. We're on our way," Ryder answered before ending the call.

The boy explained what he saw to the others. Him and his pups then bid goodbye to Jake and Everest and drove toward the woman's house.

"Ryder, do you think whatever happened to Mayor Goodway's garden is the same thing than in the forest," Chase asked.

"It would seem so, but it's too soon to make any conclusions," the leader answered.

Around twenty minutes later, they arrived at the City Hall to see several people surrounding the mayor's garden, still looking at it and taking pictures. Mayor Goodway was telling them to leave, but no one was listening to her. Ryder felt bad for her. He never understood this sick curiosity some people have. He activated his ATV's siren. The sound attracted everyone's attention as the Paw Patrol stopped their vehicles on the sidewalk just in front.

"There is nothing to see here folks. Please continue your way," he ordered. "Chase, make sure they all leave and establish a perimeter around the garden."

"Chase is on the case," the police pup responded, jumping off his vehicle. Since he didn't have his megaphone, he needed to talk louder than usual as he walked toward the undesired people. "You heard what he said, clear the place. Paw Patrol order."

Some complained, but they still all dispersed under the pup's serious surveillance.

"Oh thank you Ryder," Mayor Goodway said as she walked toward the boy and the pups. "I always liked to see people enjoy the sight of my flowers, but not when they're like that. My poor tulips. Even my sweet Chickaletta is shocked."

Said chicken was currently sleeping in the mayor's purse. Completely unaware of the world around her. Thankfully, everyone was used to the mayor dramatic side by now.

"No problem and don't worry," Ryder said. "We'll take care of your flower."

Followed by the mayor, they all went to take a closer look at the garden. The burns extended a bit beyond the parterre. Everything within a three meters radius was indeed completely burned, but the tulips were still standing. Just like in the forest. Some flowers were trampled however and there were petals on the ground, seemingly indicating someone had walked on them. The garden soil was too messed up to determine what had trampled them though. Chase sniffed the place and once again found a weak odor. Too weak to identify from whom it came. Ryder's worries only increased as he saw this. Whatever did this in the forest came into town. Chase began to install a barrier at the level of the hedgerow surrounding the garden while Rocky took other samples. The rest of the pups kept examining the burned zone while Ryder talked with Mayor Goodway. He told her about Jake and Everest discovery in the forest which surprised her too.

"Do you have any idea how it happened or who could've done that," he then asked her.

"No, not at all. When I left the City Hall this morning less than an hour ago, I found the tulips in this state. Mayor Humdinger always comes to mind, but there is currently no contest or celebration, so I don't see why he would do that." Ryder could only agree with her. Humdinger's actions were always led by personal gain and here, there was none. Plus, this didn't seem like the work of his kitten, the Catastrophic Crew. "Wait a second. Last night, I was sleeping peacefully when I heard a strange sound accompanied by a strong but brief light. At first, I thought it was just a dream so I didn't react. Now, I wonder if that dream was a dream after all."

"A strange sound and a strong but brief light," Ryder repeated in deep thoughts. He couldn't think of anything corresponding to this rather short and not so helpful description that could cause this kind of damage.

"(Gasp) Oh dear. Maybe I could have done something to save them if I had woken up," the mayor added.

"I don't know about that, but you can count on us. We'll get to the bottom of this. No mystery is too thick. No pup is too small."

Thanks for reading the first chapter. The next one should come out next week.

Until then, take care.