It was the sound of a fight going on that had alerted Kensell, and he had woken to find Scanlon missing. Quickly and as quiet as his breed was, the big Rottweiler stood up and prepared to stalk down to see the commotion, but as he began to prowl, his sister rose her head and let out a gentle whine.
"What's wrong, Kenny?" She whined nervously, and in surprise Kensell froze with one leg raised like a pointer. He turned around and shushed his sister, urging her to go back to sleep so that he could inspect. She was loathe to do as her big brother asked, but he let loose a gentle growl and quietened her. She dropped her head back down and Kensell trotted down to go and investigate the loud noises. He did not have to go any further then the hill to identify Scanlon at the centre of the scene, and he had to hold back the urge to pelt down and save his young leader.
Scanlon was not having a good time at all, he had been leapt upon by at least five different dogs and they all seemed to be taking turns at who was allowed to bite him. He had tried to kick and snap at any creature that came near him and at first he had been quite lucky and caught most of the first attackers so they had pulled back quite quickly, but their leader was smart. After ten minutes of fighting as individuals that leader had given the order for them to hold him, and the dogs had all grabbed parts of Scanlon's ragged fur and thrown him to the ground, pinning him down so that the younger ones that had been scared at first could just lunge forward and bite his belly. Scanlon winced in agony, but then with another command from the boss he was set down and the big dog paced around him as Scanlon wheezed and whined. He had not the strength to lift up his head now and was staring like a smacked puppy at the bitch that had betrayed him. Now the big boss dog was preparing to killing him properly, and Scanlon felt his pride float away with the fact that he had failed after only a few days on the mission.
The large dog reared up and lurched over the German shepherd, his mouth open and his body prepared to stamp on the dog's chest and catch his throat when Scanlon convulsed. But as he leapt the dog received an echoing blow to the side that knocked him flying with a whine. Then something grabbed him before he landed and threw him again. It continued for a few moments and the other dogs in the pack stared nervously at the black dog that was killing their master. After four catches the big black animal took the offender by the throat and smashed him down against the ground five times till the body was broken and stiff. The leading dog was dead and suddenly all strength fell out of the remaining animals. They leapt about in shrieks of panic and tried to get away as the beast tore around them, grabbing and throwing any creature that got too close. Then the big animal went toward Scanlon, and Scanlon blacked out completely.
Scanlon's eyes opened slowly and he had to blink several times for the light that was burning them. He peered around, curious as to why he was being bumped as he lay down. Scanlon turned his head from the ground where the dirt track as they climbed into the mountains were fleeing away from him, he spotted the black head and the other dogs in his group pacing up ahead. Scanlon was not dead, captured, or too badly humiliated, but he was in agony and could barely moved at all. His eyes cast around to the nearest dog on his flank, spotting no one and guessing that they were all ignoring him because he had been stupid once more. With a low whine Scanlon nudged the back of the Rottweiler's head gently, apologetic and pitiful.
"Save it for now Scanlon. I know you were only trying to get a prize bitch to give to the Ohu Soldiers but you should have told us first. Its just lucky that I wasn't deaf otherwise you'd be torn in about five different ways. Rest some more and I'll tell you when we've stopped or when I switch carrying duties with the others." Kensell growled gently, and Scanlon grinned at his friend. There was no love lost between them both at least, but he had no idea if the other dogs felt the same way.
After a few hours resting and a few hours awake and watching the world go by, the other dogs became visible close by on a sideline to the dirt track, licking their tired paws and preparing a bed for Scanlon to lie in. The German shepherd was taken careful, though he whined and winced a lot, from the back of the big black and tan and both animals drifted to sleep after they were given a small meal.
After another hour of rest the two dogs were up, though Scanlon was looking around nervously at the lack of companions. Kensell was watching a point in the forest behind Scanlon, his nose twitching and his eyes widening. The German shepherd moved to stand and turn himself, but Kensell gave a low growl. Scanlon froze with his head down, something dangerous was close by, and it was obvious the big male dog was watching it.
Then without hesitation the big dog lunged over his friend and with a yelp of surprise Scanlon leapt up to see what had been caught. Kensell sat like a lazy bear over the back of a young bitch. She was scrabbling around and snarling angrily, but Kensell did not seem inclined to move. Scanlon's limbs hurt but he managed to pace around to have a look at this young animal. He noticed quite quickly that she was a white and black crossbreed, something like a Collie mixed with some sight hound, and she did not look like she had any trace of the typical breeds that were found in Japan, but that did not matter. She stilled looked quite pretty though slim and only furred slightly. She was in no way going to escape from Kensell's clutches, so quite calmly, Scanlon asked her what her name was, and she answered calmly.
"I am Amaya, and you're trespassing on my family's land! If my father found you here then you'd regret because he's tear your ears off! He's already got the rest of you captive, you're just lucky you caught me and not any of my brothers or pack members." She snarled angrily, but Kensell just snorted gently and Scanlon shook his head in confusion. There were too many rival dog packs in the Japanese Alps these days, and their mission was just getting harder and harder….