"Hey," an unfamiliar voice asked Thunderbolt, "are you alright?"
Thunderbolt blinked his eyes twice before finally opening them and smiling at the black and white German Shepherd that was gazing curiously at him. He then examined his surroundings, most of which was a flat land of green grass, mountains in the distance, and trees that were protruding from the ground. "Where am I?" Thunderbolt asked curiously.
"You're in Ohu, a land inhabited by wild dogs such as myself," the black and white Shepherd explained. "My name is Jerome."
"Hi, Jerome," Thunderbolt greeted politely. "My name is Thunderbolt." He tilted his head in confusion. "And what do you mean wild dogs? You mean actual dogs that run around free?"
"Yes," Jerome answered, causing a shock of energy to shiver Thunderbolt's spine.
The brown Shepherd had a sudden epiphany as he realized, with the right training, he'd be able to become a real hero! He asked, "So, what are you? Are you a police dog?"
"No," Jerome answered. "I used to be an assassin and stopped being one for quite a while, but it was only after meeting Weed – a young Tora-Ge Akita – that I had a change of heart. However, after watching me kill two Doberman assassins, Weed decided to banish me from his pack. Luckily, I managed to prove myself to him by saving him from a river. I barely got out alive and was rescued by his father's human friend Daisuke."
"You sound like an amazing dog," Thunderbolt remarked, watching as Jerome smiled. "You look strong, as well."
"I'll take that as a compliment," Jerome said humbly. He hesitated. "Thunderbolt? Would you like me to teach you ways of assassination?"
That alone made Thunderbolt's ears prick up in interest. "You're serious?" He began to stammer. "But I-I-I've never fought anything in my life! All of those fights I ever did in my own TV-show were all staged! I have very little experience in actual fighting!"
"Think about this, Thunderbolt," Jerome told him with encouragement. "As an actor, I assume you're very creative, resourceful, and talented, am I wrong?"
The brown Shepherd hesitated, but then thought back when Patch had helped him "save" many people, even a cat that was 'stuck in a tree'. He had used a ladder, using his limber body to tilt it towards the tree and easily swept the cat off of the branch (although in the end he landed on the very same cat). And all of it was so that he could "prove" to the young Dalmatian puppy that he was a real hero.
But Jerome was giving him ideas in how his acting skills could aid him in real battles. He was using Thunderbolt's experience as ideas of how to win actual fights with really evil dogs. He – hopefully – was going to give him tips in how to fight, despite being a lousy actor.
Thunderbolt – after hearing Jerome's words – smiled and agreed with, "Alright, Jerome. If you can teach me how to fight like a real dog, then I suppose I could stay in this . . . Ohu place with you and these . . . 'wild dogs'."
"I understand, Thunderbolt," Jerome said with a bow of his head. "Now," he looked around at trees that surrounded them both, "let's start off with your basic abilities – jumping, biting, and clawing – shall we?"
"Yes," Thunderbolt agreed as he too began to look around at the trees. "We shall."
Oh heck yeah! Thunderbolt's going to gain experience in actual fighting from Jerome! Is it getting better? Please read & review!