The trek took the Rangers towards another section of the jungle. It was all so seamless, so peaceful. Of course that didn't stop them from being on high alert; just because it was safe to travel through for now didn't mean that there would be no surprises waiting to spring on them like jackrabbits.
Ty might not have accompanied his comrades on the Karn missions in the past, but he was still experienced enough to know better than to let his own guard down. That and he was older than the Rookies. He needed to know better.
Ozma deactivated her helmet as she said, "Here we are."
Tearing the man from his apprehension of the terrain's elusive duality, Ty, mimicking his friends' actions, halted behind Ozma and Pix.
There, at the edge of the foliage and before their feet, or paws and treads in the cases of Pix and XR, was a vast and vibrant grassland, composed of mainly trees of various families, bushes and brushes, and...well, grass. No wild beast was present. It was only the group of seven strangers who were accompanied by a warm breeze flowing over the landscape and rustling through the leaves like soothing ocean waves. Fresh and colorful flowers and plants, assuming they were not carnivorous, bent in the wind as they stay connected to dirt and rock. Streams of sunlight peeked through the trees as they touched land, the earth intensifying and merging heat and air into humid updrafts. It was oddly pleasant enough to count as a summer day.
Booster acted as the voice of everyone's confusion. "Why are we here?"
Ozma harshly shushed him with a 'shh!'. "You're about to witness one of nature's wonders. Pix?"
Pix, who had been listening and scanning the horizons in stillness, redirected her focus to the researcher.
"Do you sense anything out there?"
Pix closed her eyes, as her large bat-like ears honed in on her surroundings. Her ears flickered. Flickered. She listened. Listened. Her nose twitched. She smelled. Smelled. A green voice breathed into her ears. After a few moments of eerie quiet, Pix looked to Ozma again.
She smiled, nodding in confirmation.
Ozma awarded Pix with a smile back. She quietly told the Rangers, "And now, we watch. We stay here. Pix, go."
Without another word, Pix carefully crouched and moved forward, her limbs gracefully sliding through the grass. She blended into the tall blades and disappeared from view.
Ty watched. Where was she going? He looked at the landscape, trying to eyeball whatever it was the dog picked up. But even with his heightened eyesight, he couldn't see anything. He and the team stood still, curious as to what was going to happen next.
Pix, using all of her primal skills, slithered and crawled through the jungle's roots like an earthworm. She was sure they were still there. Still there.
It was so peaceful, but as any natural hunter would know, stillness was also an enemy just as it could be a best friend. She needed to trust in her instincts and in nature's work. That was why she took her time in-
...Wait.
There they were.
She leapt and flew into the sky.
XR felt the ground vibrate underneath his treads. "Uh... does anybody else here feel that or is it just me?"
"No, it's not just you. Pix has found them."
"'Them'?"
Ozma pointed, and everyone followed her line of vision. What they saw in the distance was nothing short of astonishing.
It was Pix, galloping near a parade of barleyhorns as they ran away from her. The light pink armored mammals ran with their large ears flapping behind them. Their dangerously long horns on their short snouts presented no threat to the canine; she was keeping close and yet far from them at a reasonable distance. Not that they would try to attack her; their large calf eyes focused ahead and away from the smaller but faster invader. They were also frightened by her riotous barks.
Like a common sheepdog, she was barking out commands in her native tongue. She was thunder, noisy but determined to take them out of their old place and bring them to a new one, where Ozma could check in with them. The pace she was dashing at was amazing. The entire team was gawking, and she was not even running at six hundred miles per hour! They eyed the animals as they drummed thoroughly over the land, with Pix shepherding the elephant lookalike creatures to another location, farther away from their old spot. She was able to weave in and out of the trees and bush, leaving nothing but dust behind her.
Ozma, sensing the team's unstated intrigue, piped up, "Well, go ahead, ask questions about Pix. She's not going to be done with her job for at least five more minutes."
Mira was the first to break out of her spellbound gape. "R-right. Soooo what is she doing?"
"She's trying to move those herd of barleyhorns to a new location. Because the new season is around the corner, they need to move into a new spot where there's fresh water and grass."
Booster scratched his head. "But wouldn't they already know if it was time to migrate? I mean without Pix to tell them where to go?"
"Normally, yes. And normally, I don't intervene with the animals' migratory patterns. But there's been a spike in poaching again; I want to keep these animals safe however I can, and if that means having Pix take them to a safer territory, then fine! I'll do it." No one could particularly blame the furious growl lodging in Ozma's threat. Her passionate love for animals was strong but deadly.
The one to tame the beastly mindset was Ty. "Uh... right. So she acts as a guard dog and a herding dog then. What does she do if someone crash-landed here by accident?"
It seemed to work in calming Ozma's nerves down. She inhaled fresh air deeply before adopting a neutral expression. "It would depend. Sometimes she'd accompany them and bring them to the Bio-Station. But if they're too far away to make it in time, she'll stay with them and find shelter until I can get over to them or until they can find their own way." The breeze picked up a little chill, but it was still mildly warm enough to relive the party of tension.
Ty ignored the wind brushing his neck. "How would you know where she'd be located?"
"The tag on her collar is electronic. I find her coordinates, I find her. It's the same way I keep track of the other animals when they migrate. But I'm leaving part of this up to Pix. She possesses a greater amount of knowledge about the jungle than I do, but that's because she was raised in the Verdentian jungle with her pack. It's another reason why I chose her."
"Huh. Interesting. I guess that could...wait a minute, I thought you said dustchasers have owners who train them to follow any commands you want them to heed." Ty's brow was scrunched up in confusion at the contradiction.
The confusion coaxed Ozma to smirk a bit. "You catch on quick. I'm impressed." Ignoring Ty's unimpressed brow, she elaborated, "But you're right, Ty. They do have owners who train and care for them. But dustchasers are also free-range creatures; they're domesticated enough to be by your side and follow your commands, but they're also independent enough to look after themselves and live in the wild or anywhere they want to reside. Most of the time, they like living in places where it's hot or moderate, like the jungle or the beach."
"Or even here."
"Exactly."
Buzz asked, "So then why is it until now, we've never heard of these types of dogs?"
A shrug was followed by a, "You didn't ask. But there is a reason why they haven't been brought to the public eye. The Verdentians don't want to show them off to the Galactic Alliance until they're all fully trained. You also need a specific license to own one of these dogs since they're so multitalented. I managed to obtain Pix because of my science degree."
"As riveting as all of this sounds, I've got one quick question to ask about those animals she's been jogging with."
"Which is...?"
XR pointed to the animals. "Are they aware they're about to go over a cliff?!"
The Rangers froze. But Ozma remained calm. "Just watch. Pix will handle this."
The parade panicked. Panicked. The smaller fanged creature was hot on their tails and seeming to close in on them.
Closing in on one side, while on the other side, the edge of the world was near.
The herd panicked again as they ran, all instincts overriding their experiences.
But a savior would appear in the least unlikely place.
Putting on a burst of speed, Pix leaped out right into the path of the frightened group, cutting them off before they could fall off.
They were on the very edge. She stood her ground as she stared up into the leader's eyes in defiance and courage while she growled softly over the breeze.
The matriarch of the herd dared to stare, her own courage rising in spite of the canine's large white fangs.
Pix spread her limbs out, ready to fight if she must.
Finally...
"Sweet Mother of Venus! She stared them down. Now they're turning around and heading the other way!" Buzz passed a pair of binoculars that he brought out to the others for a better view. With the exception of Ty; he saw easily what was happening.
Booster remarked, "Wooooooow. That's amazing! She didn't attack them!"
"Of course she didn't. She'll only attack if she needs to defend or if she feels threatened. Now they'll know that she means no harm. They'll listen to her orders."
"So what'll she do now, Dr. Furbanna?"
"Finish the job."
Now a gentle but stern gale, Pix escorted the herd away from the cliffs and into another portion of the ghastly jungle.
One by one, the members of the parade evaporated into green nothingness, with Pix acting as the caretaker. When the last member went into the brush, Pix followed after them.
And the breeze leveled off.
Ty grinned a little after the show was over. "Heh, wow. She is very well trained; I can see why you chose her."
"Isn't she great? She's the best partner I've ever had. But now that the job's done, we need to head back to the Bio-Station. The two hour safety window is nearly up and it'll be time for some of the other animals to start looking for food again." She pulled out her whistle to summon Pix again.
And once more, the annoying ring buzzed Ty's ears again, which also did nothing to ease the sore spot Ozma unintentionally brought up about the 'p' word.
But Pix was able to soothe away Ty's annoying headache with her arrival. Paws flying up and down to meet earth and air, she ran back to the team of Rangers and her employer, a big old smile on her snout. She skidded down to a screeching halt, her tail whipping back and forth in excitement.
She panted in exertion as she said, "All done, ma'am. They're off and enjoying the new watering hole I found for them! They thanked me for it too."
The love Ozma had for her dog shined through as she gently patted Pix on her back. "Good girl. You'll get a nice treat when we get back to the base. How about it?"
Pix nodded happily before barking out her agreement. "Sounds awesome to me! Let's head back." She bounded the opposite way, nearly bowling over the team in the process. The only one who was amused by the whole event was Ozma. The rest of the team was recovering from a case of shock after nearly being blown away by the burst of air Pix left in her wake.
After managing to catch up to her, and after she managed to ignore their grousing, the team was back together. Pix was in the forefront, with Ozma and Ty behind her, and the rest of the team following not too far behind. Pix was feeling particularly good about a job well done, and at random times, she'd jog around the Rangers to ask them questions about themselves-their homes, their jobs, their strengths, anything she could think of to know these two-leggeds better.
Ty watched her and although she was a little too pushy with some of her questions, he did kind of enjoy having somebody ask him questions he wasn't normally asked. Even if that person happened to be a super fast dog. He observed to Ozma, "She's really curious about everyone, isn't she?"
Ozma nodded as she smirked back at the dustchaser currently asking Mira about her Tangean powers. "Yes, she is. But I welcome that about her. She's open to learning new things and isn't afraid to push herself or take risks."
"Yeah, I can see that too. She was risking a lot going up against that herd back there. She's smaller than them, but she stood her ground and got them out of danger in time."
"All in a day's work for her. I don't want her to get hurt, but she's aware of the dangers on Karn, and does her best to stay out of it." Ozma threw the dog a pointed glance as she loudly emphasized her sentence. But Pix just grinned mischievously, curling her tail as she snickered.
"What can I say? I LOVE going into places where adventure and danger exist!" She leapt ahead again, brimming with childlike excitement.
"You mean you're not afraid of the animals here?"
Pix tilted her head at the bewildered Booster and regarded him like he was sporting two heads. "Why would I be? I'm an animal too, ain't I? I know how the jungle works. 'Sides, if you've lived in the jungle for as long as I have, you learn how to get along with most of them. And the ones you don't, well..." She shrugged her shoulders and remarked nonchalantly, "ya either fight 'em or avoid 'em. It's a law of the jungle that I gotta obey as a resident and protector."
"Why?"
"Duh, instinct! And like I said, I know how the jungle works. You gotta live by those rules sometimes if you wanna survive. Other times, I'm free to do anything I want! Including racing." Her teeth flashed in a cocky manner.
Ty's ears perked up at the word. "'Racing? You're a racing dog too?" There didn't seem to be anything this dog wasn't capable of, was there?
"Nah, I'm not an active racing dog. I just love running and challengin' other runners for fun! And I'm the BEST at it. I can beat any runner, even my own pack!"
No one could completely argue against that. After seeing her run at HALF the supposed super speed she possessed, it was nearly a given fact that she could beat competitors. But Ty would go on to say, "I'll buy that. Y'know Pix, I like running myself."
Ozma and Pix would both ask Ty, "You do?"
"Yeah. I was the best runner in my class when I was at the Academy. I can still run fast, but I don't think I could run at the speed you can." He chuckled a little as an afterthought of his admission. "My old dog was a fast runner like me. The fastest I've known...er, up til now anyways." Ty was slowly winding down and easing himself to talk to Pix, even if he still had some mixed opinions about how he felt towards canines. It was just as well; she didn't bear any ill will towards him, and she was genuinely personable. So why not give her the benefit of the doubt?
A dog? Did he say dog? Pix had to know! "You had a fast dog? What was the dog's name?" Pix trailed back a little to keep up with Ty.
"Yeah. I had a dog when I was a kid..."
Ozma watched Ty and Pix interact with each other, her thoughts over this fast forming bond. It was not uncommon for Pix to be friendly towards outsiders, but the way she was communicating with Ty was extraordinary and quite nothing like what the naturalist had seen before. She was very familiar with the bonds between man and beast, yes, but there was something...different about this bond. She couldn't explain it, but there was something about Ty that felt off yet surprisingly assuring that somehow Pix, and she, could somehow pick up on. It was likely that Ty wasn't like any of the Rangers she met-he was more humble and open-minded in comparison to Lightyear, and older and somewhat wiser than the rest of Lightyear's comrades.
Or perhaps it was merely because of the fact that man and dog shared a few commonalities in general. Who knows? Regardless, she'd have to take notes on this peculiar event when they got back to the Bio-Sphere.
They arrived back at the base. Just then...
Pix stopped dead in her tracks in the middle of a conversation with Ty. Her attention no longer pointed at him, she was now looking right into the dark underbrush near the infrastructure, eyes wide and concentrating.
Ozma was the second one after Ty to quickly take notice of the dog's frozen state. "Pix? Why did you stop?"
But the dog didn't hear her. Instead, she sniffed the air for scents. Alarm slapped itself onto her features. She took to growling fiercely.
The Rangers, now armed with wrist lasers, didn't need the naturalist to know what that meant.
Something was in there.
Ozma yelled, "Alright, poachers, come on out!"
But it was not a poacher of the normal kind.
A long snakelike gun uncoiled itself from its hiding place, rose swiftly and high into the air, and fired an energy shot at the group!
Faster than lightning, Pix pushed Ty and Mira out of the way while Buzz, Booster, XR and Ozma hurled themselves out of harm's way in time. Everyone quickly got to their feet and ducked for cover behind some of the other flora by the base before aiming to take fire at the strange weapon. Ty, Mira and XR were behind one tree a few feet away while Buzz, Booster, Ozma and Pix took cover behind a large bush. The strange weapon fired back.
It turned into a gunfight. One minute. Two minute. Three. Four passed by.
Booster, in between shots, yelled, "Jumpin' Jupiter, Buzz, what is that thing?!"
"I don't know, Booster, but whatever it is, we've gotta take it out hard and fast."
And for once, Ozma didn't object to Lightyear's gung-ho antics.
Ty, acting as a makeshift leader of the small group, traded off with Mira and XR in the shooting range. Ty would fire first before Mira and XR would cover his him. And it was then that both rookies made an observation about the particular weapon.
Mira spotted it first. "XR, that gun. Doesn't that weapon design look familiar? It looks like the kind of weapon that the-"
"Hey, hold on a minute. It's stopped!" Indeed it did stop. What happened?
The teams peeked out from their respective hiding places. Buzz snarled when he saw who were the shooters. "You!"
A/N: I will talk more about this chapter on my blog, but I wanted to give a quick note: barleyhorns are just something I made up and not in the actual show. Enjoy this chapter and have happy days!