Chapter II

The soldier

The hours pass us by and now, the daylight is almost gone. Outside I can see the sun will set soon, as Charlie sleeps deeply on his seat, clutching to his bag like it's his source of life.

Our train comes to stop and some people walk in the corridors. There are no men with green clothes in the train like there were in the station, just children and women. I still have no clue as to where we're going, and I'd try to figure it out now if I wasn't desperate to relieve myself.

I gently bite Charlie's fingers and he blinks his eyes open, smacking his lips as he stretches himself and yawns. He looks down at me and I know he knows what I want. Humans aren't that sensitive. They need complicated language signs and sounds to communicate. Most of them have a hard time understanding the genius simplicity of our language. But Charlie is different.

Charlie leaves his bag in the train and he takes me outside with quite some effort as we try to dodge the people crowding the station.

This one is also full of men in green clothes.

We get to an empty lot near the station and Charlie unlatches the leash from my collar so that I can walk around freely.

"Don't take too long, now," He tells me, "And stay near, alright?"

I yelp before I walk away from Charlie. I relieve myself quickly and go do some place recognition. I can smell metal, and I hear children crying not that far away from where we are.

Then, I smell of blood.

Usually, I don't get away from Charlie or disobey his orders. I know he gets worried if he can't see me, and I don't want to be far from my boy anyway. But once something gets my attention, I can't really control myself. So, I run toward the smell.

"Balto!" He calls from behind, but I'm too focused on my search to look at him.

He begins running after me, and I know that if he gets me before I find the source of the blood, I'll never know where it comes from. I have a strong tracking sense due to being part wolf, never letting go of a trail once I've put my mind to it. I run faster, and it doesn't take long until I leave Charlie way behind.

Humans only have two legs that they use to run, an incredible disadvantage compared to us.

I can feel that the smell of blood is stronger than ever, and now I also catch a delicious scent of food. I'm between train rails, empty still trains and there are boxes all around me when I find the source and I stop in my tracks.

A man in one of those green clothes is sitting on a box, eating, with a bag by his side. His hand has a bandage around it and red liquid has colored it, and I know the blood's still fresh in his wound from the smell. He's alone and we're far from any other humans. I don't know what he's doing here, but he doesn't seem to be dangerous.

I duck behind a box when he looks at me, noticing my presence at last. He smiles at me, and I've learned that when humans do that, it's because they like you. Dogs show their teeth when they're angry, humans do it when they're happy. I used to confuse that a lot when I was a pup.

"Hey, boy," He reaches out in my direction, holding a piece of the bread he's eating, "Come here!"

I know better than approaching strangers in deserted places, but I'm so hungry that I can't bother to worry right now. Besides, he's smiled at me, so I don't think he's a threat. Still, I try to be careful as I get close to him and take the food he's offered me.

"What are you doing here, buddy? Are you lost?" He runs his hand through my fur and caresses my ears, before he reaches for the collar in my neck, "Balto, hum?" He reads the little tag with my name on it.

"Balto!" Charlie calls and he appears from behind one of the trains, finally catching up to me. He sees me and the man and runs to us, grabbing me by the collar and pulling me close to him.

"Is this your dog?" The man smiles at Charlie.

"Yes, thank you for holding him," Charlie tries to catch his breath as he attaches the leash to me once more, "Sorry, usually he doesn't run away like that."

He then turns to me and holds my muzzle, "Don't do that again!" I feel guilty, and my ears fold back.

"He is pretty," The man nodded, "He looks like a wolf, is he a hybrid?"

Charlie gasps, and I'm surprised too. The man seems to take our surprise as a yes.

"He looks like the one I used to have," He says, answering the question before we ask. "How did you get him?"

I look at Charlie. He's not a fan of talking to strangers, let alone talking about me. When I notice that he gets uncomfortable, I run away so that he has an excuse to escape that. However, he seems to be alright as he sighs and then sits down on one the boxes beside the man, so I sit down beside him; but I pay close attention to his signs. If needed, I'll run.

"I found him," Charlie pets me and I lean my head against his leg, "His mother was shot by hunters, I think. There were five pups, he was the only one who was alive. The others had starved to death."

The man nods, and Charlie's face scrunches.

"And who are you?"

The man reaches out for Charlie, "John. I was recruited to go fight the war today. I just wanted to get some fresh air before I go."

'War?', I think to myself.

Charlie shakes hands with him in the weird way humans do to say hi, "And what about you?"

Charlie shrugs.

"I'm Charles. My dad was recruited too. I'm going to stay with my grandfather while he fights. I should go back to the train soon so that I don't miss it."

"I see. Tough times, right?" He caresses me again, "Where are you going to leave this guy?"

I tilt my head. What did he mean by that?

Apparently, Charlie is confused too, because all he does is ask, "What?"

"Most people leave their pets behind when war comes."

"What? Why would I do that?" Charlie pulls my leash and my ears fold back at what he's saying.

John sighs. "War, boy. Tough times make one take tough actions. You can't take care of them when you don't even know if you'll be alive in the end of the day yourself. It's not uncommon for people to leave their pets behind once they flee. I thought you were going to leave him somewhere."

Charlie stomps his foot on the ground, "I'd never, ever leave Balto behind. He's going with me, war or peace, I don't care."

I feel his hands on either side of my face as he caresses my ears, and I wish I could tell him I'd never leave him either. But I think he knows that.

"That's a beautiful philosophy you've got," John sighs and stands up, "But still, war might stand in your way. It doesn't care for values such as friendship, boy."

"Well, and I don't care for things such as war."

Charlie stands up and turns away from the man. I feel a tug on my leash as he pulls me alongside him. I stand still and look at the man one more time before Charlie calls me and we leave. The last thing I see is the man standing up and walking away as well.

We go back to the station and walk back into our train. Charlie doesn't say a word all the way.

When he sits down, I hear his stomach rumbling. Mine does the same.

The man we talked to mentioned a war, and I still don't know what's happening, but I think I have a better idea now. Unlike what I thought would happen, knowing more about our situation didn't make the changes we were facing any easier to take. In fact, it makes it harder.

When I look up at Charlie, I see that he's about to fall asleep on his seat. I lay down over his feet and try to make myself comfortable. When I'm almost falling asleep, Charlie reaches down and runs his hand over my neck and back.

"We'll be alright, Balto," He sighs, "I promise you."

I look at him again and take a deep breath.

We will, Charlie. I promise you too.