Chapter 27: The Butterfly Effect (1 Week Later: In the Kitchen at the Station)

It was another cloudy morning as Marshall peeked through the entrance. There, he noticed Bruce preparing coffee for the monthly meeting. By attempting to sneak up on him, Marshall crawled his way over to where he was standing and attempted to jump on his back, but as soon as his paws left the ground, Bruce instantly turned around and caught him.

"Ack! No fair! How did you know I was here!?" Marshall whined.

"Heh Heh! You've gotta be quieter than that!" Bruce chuckled before putting him down.

"Hmph... I'll get you one of these days!"

"In your dreams! So anyways, are you all set?"

"Yep! I'm ready to go, but I'm not sure why you guys need me all of the sudden."

"Well after we're done, there's somewhere else I want to show you afterwards. It should help with that fear of yours," Bruce said as Marshall froze.

"Wait, what!? Y-You're not gonna take me to some high cliff, are you…?" He worried as Bruce patted his head.

"Oh no! Trust me, you're gonna like this!" He reassured as Marshall started calming down.

"Well, okay…"

"That's the spirit!" Bruce smiled before handing the coffee over to him. "Can you take that over to Zen? She should be in the office right now."

"Got it!" Marshall replied as Bruce placed it on his back. He carefully walked away before almost losing balance. "Whooooa!"

"You good?"

"Y-Yeah! I got it!" He said before walking off.

"Heh heh. Same old pup," Bruce sighed as Marshall approached Zen in the hallways.

"Morning, Zen! Bruce made you some coffee!" He greeted as she looked down.

"Oh! You guys just saved me a lot of time! Thank you so much!" She smiled while petting his head.

"Heh heh! You're welc- Wait! If you're out here, then who's in the office!?"

"Oh, it's just Lorenzo. He's finishing up with the maintenance, but if you're heading there, do be careful! There's a lot of fragile equipment in there!"

"Got it!"

In the office… (With Lorenzo)

As the others were getting ready for the meeting, Lorenzo continued to reflect on his life while working on security maintenance. If there was anything he hated the most about his job, it would be maintenance. He wasn't used to working with newer technology, and the more he tried to understand it, the more he started doubting himself. "Ugh! Stupid button layouts! Like….Who's idea was it to make it so confusing!?" He mumbled while searching for maintenance mode. "Hmph… It's like everyone else doesn't have a problem with this, and here I am struggling like an overgrown toddler! It's so weird though. All of this time, I've never doubted myself, and all of the sudden, it feels like I don't belong. Maybe… Maybe those two were right. Maybe I should resign…"

Silence...

"Argh! What am I saying!? I just need to get my mind off of this somehow. Come on, Lorenzo! You've been through worse, so this should be nothing to you! You can do this! Let's see… There's a button they told me not to press, so which one was it? I believe it was an orange one, but a majority of these are also orange…" He pondered before noticing a yellow switch. "Maybe this one will start it up?"

"Begin maintenance mode?" The machine responded.

"Ah-ha! There we go!" Lorenzo smiled as Marshall walked in.

"Morning, Lorenzo! How's it coming along?" He asked as Lorenzo turned around.

"It's a little tiring, but I think I'm getting somewhere!"

"Heh Heh! Well lucky for you, coffee exists!"

"Yeah? Well, I was never good at making it myself," Lorenzo chuckled as Marshall tilted his head.

"Huh? Bruce didn't make you some?"

"Nah… I kind of made him angry last week, so I don't expect him to do anything for me for a while."

"Well, just because someone is mad at you doesn't mean they stopped caring! I'm sure you'll be buddies again in no time!"

"Heh… If only everyone was that positive." He whispered.

"Sorry, did you say something?"

"Nah, I was just thinking to myself…"

"Hmmm… You wait here! I'll see if I can-"

"Hey, watch it-!" Lorenzo shouted as Marshall tripped on a wire, causing an old fan to hit the table, but barely missed the control panel.

"Oh… Oops! S-Sorry…!"

"Ugh… It's fine, just be careful next time," Lorenzo signed.

"A-Anyways, I'll go see if I can make you something that tastes good! Be right back!" Marshall smiled before running back to the kitchen.

"Ehh… What's the worst that can happen?" Lorenzo thought out loud before pressing a button on the monitor.

"Request pending!" The machine responds.

"Aww geez… And the worst part is, I've still gotta explain the conversation to the chief! It's like I'm just begging for problems nowadays! Ugh… maybe I should come back to this when my mind is stable," Lorenzo thought to himself before leaving the room. "Hey, Marshall? What exactly are you planning?!

"Tower deactivated!"

An hour later…

After Marshall gave Lorenzo his coffee, the team headed to the hotel conference room. As the others were having their conversation, Marshall waited in the hallways watching the cars pass by outside.

"I need to work on being quieter, huh?" He pondered before noticing a box moving away from a black truck with a symbol that says "L.T." outside. A few seconds later, a dog stuck his head out of it and looked around the parking lot. Once it noticed that it was further away from the truck, it helped another dog climb out of it, and they ran off. "Hmm… Maybe I can use that box instead of hiding in plain sight. Yeah! That way, he'll never expect it!" He smiled before running outside. "Wait… I should probably ask those other guys if they're still using it. I'll wait over here until they come back!" He decided before taking a peek inside the box. "Hmm… It looks pretty comfortable. I'm surprised those two could fit in here! I wonder…" He whispered before hopping inside. "Oh-ho! And the styrofoam makes it feel even better! This could be like my very own portable bed! Oh, I really hope they let me keep it!" Marshall cheered as he buried himself in the styrofoam. "Maybe I can take a short little nap until they return. I hope they don't mind!"

About 30 minutes later, a small group of people walked out of the hotel and quickly searched the truck.

"I-It's not in here, ma'am!" One of them said as a woman in a black coat started getting angry.

"What do you mean it's not in there!? Where did you put them!?" She fumed.

"I-I don't know! I swear we left them over here by the truck!"

"Well, figure it out before I break a bottle over your heads!"

"Y-Yes, Ms. Rosa!" The group shivered as the woman walked away.

"What are we gonna do? We're supposed to have them in by tomorrow morning!"

"I don't know! Just check around the parking lot! It's gotta be around here!"

"Wait, hold up! I think I see it over there around the corner!" A man called out as they noticed the box Marshall was sleeping in.

"Oh, thank goodness! I thought I was gonna lose my mind!"

"Uh… The box is open, but he's still in here."

"... Was the breed always a dalmatian?"

"Who cares? Let's just tape it up and put it in the trunk!" They discuss before taking Marshall with them.

(Meanwhile with the others…)

"And so, after we got the family out safely, we took the kid over to the hospital, and made our way back to the station." Nico explained as the chief nodded his head.

"Well, it's good to know that you guys aren't having any issues, but there's something else I've been meaning to ask you," He said.

"What is it?"

"... You guys haven't been hurting the dog, have you?"

"You mean Marshall?" Zen asked. "No, why do you ask?"

"Alright, I just wanted to make sure because there's been some shady rumors going around lately. Things like firefighters abusing their dogs and what not."

"What!? That's the first I've heard of it!" Bruce shouted as Bret nodded his head.

"Yeah, what gives?" Lorenzo followed.

"Well, I'm not sure how it all started, but I was told that it was mostly coming from our station, so I wanted to make sure it wasn't true. I believe they all started sometime around spring?" The chief answered.

"Spring? But what could have happened then?" Bruce wondered as Zen looked at the table.

"Hopefully the media doesn't come crawling around us, we'll continue this conversation later. Until then!" The chief said before leaving the room.

"So… Apparently that's a thing." Lorenzo noted.

"It's so weird though. Why would anyone think we're abusing Marshall?" Bret asked.

"... Maybe it has something to do with Nico's car accident?" Zen mentioned as Bruce's eyes opened wider.

"But what does that have to do with him?"

"Think about it! The people don't know what happened, so of course they'd be assuming stuff! I mean, how would you react if you heard Nico yelling and then saw Marshall after training?"

"Oh… I see where you're going with this," Bruce realized as Nico looked away.

"Well in that case, we should probably be careful with what we say around the public," Bret suggested as Zen agreed.

"Yeah. The last thing I want is a bunch of no-lives coming after me.," She sighed.

"We already took care of his obstacle course, so I guess we've gotta see what happens next. I'll go check on him right now and see if he's doing okay," Bruce said as he walked to where he last saw him. "Yo, Marshall! Are you here?"

No response…

"Ah geez… Now's not really a good time to play hide-and-seek, buddy. Can you please come out?"

Still no response…

"Marshall? Where is he...?" Bruce wondered as he searched the entire area. "Hmm… Maybe he went to take a leak or something. He'll be back soon. Maybe…? I-I have a bad feeling about this! I need to go check!"

( With Marshall In the Box, On the Back of the Truck)

It was late afternoon. Hours went by as Marshall remained in the box. As he was asleep, he dreamed of being able to climb tall structures without being worried about falling off. However, he was completely unaware that he was taken miles away from the hotel while he slept. Once he started coming around, he noticed that the box was sealed, but before he could react, the vehicle hit a slight bump that was enough to launch Marshall out of the trunk.

"W-What the!?" He screamed before tumbling off the side of a freeway hill. Before he knew it, the box had ripped open from the impact, and he found himself plummeting to the dirt with injuries everywhere.

"Oww…! Oww..! Oww..!" Marshall cried before noticing his bloody tooth on the floor. "W-What… How did I… W-What happened? Where am I? W-where's the hotel!? Bruce!? Lorenzo!? A-Anybody…?" He whimpered as he stared into incoming traffic. If there was anything he was more afraid of than heights, it was being lost all by myself. He's never been outside of the city before, so he started panicking. He had to find a way back somehow, but there was just so much going on through his mind that he wasn't able to think straight. With no other options, he decided to trust his instincts and follow the opposite direction of where the traffic was heading. His body was shaking. He walked for at least half a mile before collapsing to the ground. Tears fell across his cheeks. He knew he wasn't going to make it any further if he didn't have something to eat. It seemed like all hope was lost until suddenly, a faint smell of grilled food caught his nose. He lifted his head in surprise.

"F-Food?" Marshall wiped his eyes before noticing a rest stop nearby. Without hesitation, he managed to slowly make his way over to where it was coming from. There, he saw an almost empty parking lot with a pink car off to the side. As a family entered their vehicle, Marshall tried to catch their attention, but by the time he approached them, the vehicle started taking off.

"No… C-Come back…!" He whimpered before realizing that the smell stood around. Shortly after, he saw a recently used grill along with a bunch of plastic bags next to a trash can. He desperately ripped open the bags and ate whatever he found. A few moments later, a truck driver pulled over for a quick stretch. Marshall didn't notice until the man picked up his phone.

"Yeah, sweetie, I'm almost there. I just need to drop this shipment off at Roseville, then I'll be home soon," The driver got back in his car as Marshall's ear perked up. "Yeah, I promise I'll be in time for the tea party! I love you!"

"W-Wait…!" Marshall begged as the truck started moving. Without thinking, Marshall quickly rushed over and grabbed onto a small staircase that was in between the vehicle and the shipment.

"Yikes!" He yelped as the vehicle started accelerating. Before he knew it, he was holding on for his dear life. As his heart rate increased, he carefully pulled himself onto a spot where he could sit, then grabbed onto a handle and closed his eyes. He tried to think of something that would cheer him up, but the injuries all over his body would always interrupt his thought process. Slowly, he began to cry once more. It felt as if the world was suddenly against him, but as soon as he opened his eyes to a beautiful sunset, he started to relax. Despite all the bad things, he knew that he would be back at the fire station soon, and that's all that mattered to him.

He watched the sunset until the sky became dark, then proceeded to wait until he was familiar with the area. A few hours later, the truck had finally begun to slow down. As Marshall lifted his head, he realized that he was finally back in the city and only a few blocks away from the station. Overjoyed, he howled to the night sky, then waited for the truck to stop at a traffic light. Once he saw that it was clear, he quickly jumped off the vehicle and started making his way back to the station. It seemed like his long and dreadful day was coming to end until suddenly, he noticed an odd smell coming from the opposite direction. Once he turned around to check, he saw a faint orange light coming from a few blocks down. Instantly, his fur started to spike up as he felt a shiver down his spine. It was a fire... And he had a bad feeling about it.

Later… (EMOTIONAL WARNING FROM HERE ON OUT)

With fear in his chest, Marshall decided to see what was going on. As he struggled to reach the scene, he noticed that a house with a broken roof was almost fully covered in flames as a small crowd watched in horror.

"Has anyone called 911!?" A man asked.

"We did! They said they were sending someone about a few minutes ago! What's taking them so long!?" A woman answered.

"At this rate, it's going to spread across the neighborhood! We need to warn everyone before it's too late!"

"We'll take over this side, while you guys cover the rest! Hurry!" They decided before splitting up. Meanwhile, Marshall grew worried. The others had never been late to an emergency before, so what could have happened? He was hoping they would arrive very soon, but just when he thought that things couldn't get any worse, he heard a small yelp coming through the window.

"Oh my gosh…! I think there's still a dog inside! It needs our help!" A girl shouted as Marshall's eyes opened wider.

"No, wait! It's too dangerous! You can't go in there!" A man protested before holding on to her.

"But, dad! We can't just leave it there!"

"I know, but listen, sweetie! We're not professionals! There's no telling what might happen if we risk our lives to save it! We have to let this one go."

"But… I..." Suddenly, the flames grew wider as an explosion sound came from behind the building. "Oh my gosh…"

"Come on! We've gotta go!" The man shouted as Marshall trembled from a distance.

"No…" He whimpered to himself. Deep down, he knew a day like this would come, but his heart was just not ready to accept it. He started taking deeper breaths as he wiped his eyes. "T-There's still time…! T-There has to be!" He thought out loud before rushing inside. He knew it wasn't his brightest idea, but he had no other choice. He slowly made his way through the debris as his head grew dizzier.

"Heeeey! Can anyone hear me!?" He called out with no response. Slowly, his vision started giving out as well. "Nngh…! J-Just a little further…!" He wheezed before noticing a slight movement coming from underneath a wooden cabinet. He couldn't tell what it was, but he was hoping for the best.

Cough! Cough! I-I'm coming!" Ashes filled the area as he walked through the living room. As he got closer to the cabinet, he noticed a tiny paw sticking out from the side. "Oh, please be okay… Please be okay…!" Marshall worried as he barely managed to free it before the fire reached the cabinet. There, he noticed a brown pup that was barely breathing. It seemed familiar somehow, but Marshall couldn't tell who he was. He was relieved to know that it was still alive, but he wasn't sure how long they would both last. After all, the smoke was only getting worse, and his body was slowly getting weaker. However, he wasn't ready to give up just yet. He carefully lifted the pup on his back and started searching for a way out.

Cough! Cough! "D-Don't worry, I'm gonna get you out of here somehow! Just hang in there…!" He reassured him as he avoided the flames.

"D...Dad…?" The pup mumbled before losing consciousness again.

"Wait... Your dad!?" Marshall coughed before looking around. "He must be around here somewhere. I have to go back for him!" He thought to himself before placing the pup near the hallways. "Alright...Y-You should be safe over here! I'm gonna go back for him, alright?"

No response…

"Right… I need to hurry!" Time was running out. As Marshall moved back to the living room, he could feel his legs becoming even weaker. His eyes were bloodshot, and his vision was completely blurred. He struggled to find his way around the fire, but eventually, he spotted another unusual figure trapped underneath the debris. Except this time, it wasn't moving…

"No…" Marshall whimpered while getting closer. The dog's eyes remained open. He tried to check for a pulse, but once he couldn't find anything, he started to panic.

Cough! Cough! "N-No… H-He's not..! He can't be…! I-I was supposed to-!" He cried out loud before turning to the debris. "No…! Sir, you have to get up! P-Please!" Cough! Cough! Marshall attempted to lift the junk with the rest of his energy until suddenly, a pile of hot ashes flew right in his eyes. Instantly, he screamed in pain as he could feel his body suffocating from the lack of oxygen. His voice grew quieter and quieter until he was too weak to make any more sound. As he tried to reach out for the father, his body finally gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Please…" He whispered before losing consciousness, and that was the last time he ever saw them.