Marshall's eyes quickly opened. A dry sensation lined the insides of his throat, eliciting a parched cough from the groggy Dalmatian. He should've assumed that his body would react to not drinking much water since entering the valley. While he and Rocky packed more than enough dog food to sustain themselves and Everest for weeks, they had forgotten about water. Slowly sitting up, the sleepy Dalmatian let out a groan.

He soon realized that the lack of water wasn't the only reason his throat felt dry. The air around them was oddly warm for the time of year. Even in the middle of summer, the air in Adventure Bay wouldn't be as warm as it was at the moment. Maybe it was common where they were? He wasn't sure. He wasn't the best at remembering weather patterns. That was more of Skye's thing.

Taking another breath in through his mouth, his paws shot up to grab his own throat. Breathing in didn't make the dryness in his throat go away in the slightest. In fact, the inhale only made it worse, the rough sensation in his esophagus moving away from a slightly uncomfortable itch and to a barren desert within his throat.

Coughing to try and clear the tight, squeezing sensation, the Dalmatian thought that it'd be better to leave the tent and go for a walk to get some fresh air. Maybe the heat was just generated from his and Rocky's breath enclosed in the tent. He glanced at the mixed breed, who was still fast asleep and curled up where he had been from the moment Marshall walked into the tent.

He quietly slinked toward the entrance of the tent, hoping that the rustle from the flaps as well as the zipper wouldn't wake his friend. Using his teeth to pull the zipper open, he stuck his right foreleg out of it. It didn't seem to be raining. Perhaps it had stopped hours ago. Upon taking his first steps out of the tent, he shuddered at the strange feeling of the wet grass sifting between his paws and gliding on the fur of his legs.

The landscape was expectedly serene, only the faint sounds of bugs and nocturnal animals going about their nights in the distance. The Dalmatian slowly walked, paying little mind to the sounds his paws made as they squished the grass in his path. He was too focused on admiring the beauty of the Canine Valley. Before that night, he didn't really get much opportunity to look around, as he spent his nights outside the gate with Rocky and Everest.

He turned himself around to gaze at Everest's pup house. The door, like always, was closed. He hoped that she was doing okay sleeping by herself for the first time in weeks. He mentally slapped himself. Of course she was! She was a tough pup, tougher than himself and Rocky. Well, most of the time, at least.

Their encounter with Forest Fury showed him that there were some things that would scare her. She had never seen Everest react so strongly in reaction to a wild animal before. It's not like they hadn't dealt with any since she joined the PAW Patrol. But that bear was different, for some reason. A reason that he couldn't even begin to try and guess. He could ask her when she woke up, but he didn't want to bother her by prying into her head.

He soon wiped his forehead. He was able to breathe better outside of the tent, but it still was hot enough to feel uncomfortable. He couldn't ignore it any longer. Something was definitely amiss, and he was beginning to pick up on it. While his brain began to try and minimize the strange rise in temperature, his heart began to pound anxiously.

Stopping in his tracks, his eyes darted around. He sat on his haunches, focusing on his surroundings and how they appeared instead of admiring the beauty of the valley. A draft of wind pushed by, heating up the area he was standing in substantially. The amount of heat that seemed to blow on his face for just a few seconds made him break out into a sweat. His eyes closed out of instinct, like how it would all of the time back when he'd watch Ryder bake cookies on special occasions.

Upon closing his eyes, a familiar voice slipped into his ears.

"Calm down. Look for the signs before you panic."

He quickly opened his eyes once more, frantically looking around to see who it was that spoke to him, his tail wagging at the voice. Once he remembered that he was standing somewhere in the middle of a forest, far away from that voice, the quick movement of his tail ceased. He wasn't with him. There was nobody to see the signs for him and tell him what he needed to do. There hasn't been for quite some time now.

He'd just have to make his own judgment before he freaked out and woke his friends. Nodding in a newfound determination, the Dalmatian stood back up straight and looked in the direction from which the hot draft of wind came from. His sight was blocked out by a few trees and small houses belonging to other dogs.

Marshall turned his head, looking at both the tent he had come from as well as Everest's pup house. He'd keep them safe, even if it meant potentially walking into danger alone.

His legs began to move, a slow walk developing into a paced trot, then a light jog. He made sure to watch his step, as wiping out and crashing into something would be the last thing he would want while everyone was still asleep.

As he jogged through the primitive shanty village, the former PAW Patrol pup pointed his nose to the sky and began to sniff the air. It smelled normal. At least for the time being. If what he was thinking was really taking place, then he'd have to keep looking around to ensure that everything would be fine. There could be no risks taken. No matter what.

Once he finally entered a small clearing in which there was no crudely constructed house or large tree blocking his way, he could finally take one final sniff of the air. His eyes cartoonishly bulged to the size of dinner plates, shock overwhelming him.

Smoke.

He looked ahead, squinting to get a better view of what was just barely over the wall in the not so far away distance. He noticed that something in the forest was bright, and was only growing brighter with each second spent watching it.

"Fire! It's a fire!" The Dally began taking steps back, but tripped over a small rock in the process. He tumbled onto his back, now looking up at the sky, "I should've known. If there's smoke, there's fire. I gotta do something!"

He flipped himself back on to his paws, scrambling to stand and run toward where his friends were still sleeping.

While he dashed through the still silent Canine Valley, his eyes furrowed. How could something like this happen? A forest fire in the middle of the woods? Could it be humans? No way, he and his friends spent days in the forest outside the valley. Even Hood confirmed that humans didn't enter the forest much. He kept running until his paw caught the edge of a nearby tree root, sending him flying.

Upon skidding on the grass to a slow stop, a light went off in his brain. The storm! The lightning must've struck a dry bush or tree and started a fire. Depending on whether or not the area around the fire's starting point was still wet or not, they could be dealing with a serious issue. He grit his teeth, standing to his paws once more. He wouldn't let that happen to them. He couldn't let the dogs lose their home.

Marshall finally slid to a stop in front of Everest's pup house.

Inside of the pup house was a sleeping Husky, who was curled up among the bags that she, Rocky, and Marshall had brought along with them to the valley. Everest had no problem sleeping with them, though. It only made her more comfortable. Aside from Rocky's scrap electronics and tools, which she had to shove aside, everything they had brought was reasonably soft.

Despite the fact that she was miles away from home, it almost felt like she was sleeping inside her pup house just outside of Jake's cabin. It soothed her. Just remembering those silent nights she would spend peacefully resting after long days of helping Jake run his resort made her feel complete once more.

That was until a sharp banging noise shattered the illusion.

"Everest! Everest, please wake up!"

The Husky groaned, her eyes slowly opening. Marshall? What could be bothering him this late at night? Or early in the morning? It was hard to tell inside of her pup house, especially since she didn't exactly have a clock ready at all times. Regardless, she knew one thing, and that was she was being woken up way off schedule.

She sat up and opened the door, using her other free paw to rub her eyes. Once she did, she saw her panicked friend standing there, eyes darting around.

"Marshall...? What's wrong?"

"Everest, there's a fire!" Marshall exclaimed, "We have to do something before it spreads!"

This news seemed to wake Everest up immediately, "A what!?"

"Fire, there's a fire. We need to act quickly!"

Knowing that Marshall was the best equipped when it came to dealing with fires, she nodded, deciding to throw the remainder of her grogginess to the wind, "What should I do?"

"Wake Rocky. I'll get Hood. Meet in his house."

"I'm on it."

Marshall scurried over to Hood's small house, feeling the rush of wind that followed with Everest passing by him. He crawled into the small place before opening his mouth in preparation to wake Hood up. That was until he noticed that the wild Dalmatian was already awake.

"...You're awake?"

"You were banging and shouting at the top of your lungs. Of course I'm awake..." He grumbled, not exactly pleased with being woken up, "So what exactly were you shouting about?"

"There's a fire outside of the valley. From what I saw, it's small now, but it won't be for much longer."

"A fire?" The wild Dalmatian perked up, "We have to get out of here. Now."

"So you plan on turning tail and running away again?" Everest's voice interrupted.

Marshall and Hood turned their attention to the entrance, where Everest was walking in with an exhausted Rocky following behind her.

"That's besides the point!" Marshall shouted, focusing on the problem at hand, or paw, "We need to do whatever we can as quickly as we can."

"So then let's wake the dogs," Rocky interjected, "It's their home as much as it is Hood's. They should be able to make that choice too."

"All of them?" Everest's eyes widened, "That could take a while. The whole forest could get burned over before we wake them all."

"Not if we wake Elder first."

The attention turned to Hood, who was looking ahead at Marshall.

"The Canine Valley has a protocol. We memorize the howl of the current Elder so if an emergency happens, the Elder can howl, and all of the dogs will come running. It's been like that for years."

"So I guess we gotta get him to wake up..." Marshall smiled nervously, "Hopefully he's not as big of a sleeper as he is big in general..."

"Guess we'll find out. Let's move."

Hood was first to leave the small building, followed by Everest and Rocky. Leaving the house last was Marshall, who immediately tripped and crashed into the mixed breed. The duo tumbled to the side while Hood and Everest continued on.

"Ow..." Rocky let out a groan, pinned under Marshall's waist.

The Dalmatian slowly stood up, "Dang, that's like three trips in like twenty minutes..." He smiled a bit, "I think my body's repaying me for the lack of trips in the last few days..."

"Just get off."

Marshall chuckled, "Sorry, Rocky."

The two joined back up with Everest and Hood, soon making it to

Pressing his paws into what seemed to be an abyss of fur, Marshall grunted and pushed further. He wasn't the only one struggling, though, as Rocky and Everest were on the other side of the mass. They were doing their best to use their paws to act as buffers between the side of the cave wall and the large dog on the other side.

"What's the point of the Elder being the one dog that can wake everyone if he can't even wake up himself?" Rocky asked loudly, groaning.

Hood, meanwhile, was positioning himself on top of the dog, "You just have to go for the place it really hurts."

He jumped up and stomped down on his stomach, the recoil forcing him off of the sleeping Pyrenees. Elder let out a pained grunt, shooting up from his lying position. Marshall, Everest, and Rocky fell to the ground. His eyes opened, zeroing in on the four pups around him, particularly Hood, who was sitting on his haunches.

The large dog opened his mouth to speak, growling faintly, "Now what are you pups doing in my home?"

"Home?" Rocky asked, confused, "This is a bear—"

Marshall covered his mouth, shaking his head, "Um... Elder...?" He looked up, "There's a fire. We need you to alert the dogs."

"Fire?" Elder raised an eyebrow, "That is pretty bad."

"Pretty bad?" Hood asked, agitated, "Wake the valley, now!"

Elder's howl echoed through the Canine Valley, strong enough to nearly shake the trees around them. Covering their ears, the former PAW Patrol pups groaned, not having expected it to be as loud as it was. Once Elder finally stopped howling, those in the closest houses were first to wake, slowly crawling out and looking in the direction of where the howl had come from. Each and every dog knew exactly who it came from, but were confused as to why.

Before long, a crowd of stray dogs and pups stood in front of them, leaving some space between the crowd and the Elder, who only smiled at the sight of all of the dogs he was glad to share his home with. Marshall gawked at the sheer amount of dogs in front of them. Just by counting, he could see around thirty—no, forty dogs and pups. He knew that the Canine Valley was a home to stray dogs, but he had always imagined that the community was more selective based on how he and his friends were treated when they first arrived.

He was also amazed at the fact that the dogs were silent, seemingly awaiting for Elder to speak. Despite the crowd's size, he could only hear the sounds of more dogs approaching, and the noises of the forest surrounding them all. That was until silent murmurs among the crowd asking what the problem filled the air.

"I understand why you all must be confused as to why I called you out here this late at night..." Elder spoke, his voice silencing the murmurs as quickly as they started, "...According to this Dalmatian, there's a fire nearby."

Elder pointed his large paw at Marshall, and inadvertently Hood, who was standing right beside him. Upon noticing that the eyes of the canine community fell on him as well, Hood took a few steps back, allowing for Marshall to take all of the heat.

The former firefighter nodded in agreement as what Elder told them, "It's outside of the valley, and it could get closer every second!"

All of the dogs standing in the crowd stared at Marshall, disbelief as well as disdain filling their eyes. How could some random pup possibly guess that there was a fire outside of the valley? After hearing that he, as well as the Husky and mixed breed had passed a Valley Trial, though, they couldn't really say that they didn't belong at all.

At least, that's what most of them thought. There were still a minority that wouldn't let their thoughts go unheard.

"How can you so easily trust the word of a Domestic!?" Marshall's eyes widened, hearing the sudden shout from one of the many dogs glaring at him.

The shout seemed to fill the other dogs, who weren't exactly still pleased with Marshall, Rocky, and Everest's presences in their community, with confidence. They barked their agreements, letting their dislike for the "Domestics" be known.

"He's just another pup, a Domestic at that!"

"I don't see any fire, how do we know they're not trying to stir up drama?"

"He can't be trusted!"

"Standing up there with the Elder..." One dog in particular growled louder than most, "You think you're better than us!?"

Marshall was stunned. Months ago, he would say that he wasn't used to this. That he couldn't handle something like this, and needed to get away from it all. But after everything that happened in Adventure Bay? After a good portion of his beloved community turned against him? He was unfortunately treading ground he had been on once before. It did make him want to run. It made him want to go back and hide from his issues or even deal with them on his own in order to not get his friends and the innocent dogs involved.

"What the...?" Rocky was just as surprised as Marshall was, "He's trying to help you all!"

Everest angrily agreed, not pleased with how Marshall was being treated, "You can't just—"

"Rocky, Everest," Marshall spoke, interjecting calmly, "I'll be okay. Besides, fighting with them is the last thing we need."

The Dalmatian quietly walked past his friends, his eyes narrowing. This time, the choice to run away wasn't there. His rescue pup roots wouldn't allow himself to run away. There was an emergency. An emergency he was also familiar with.

He walked from where he, his friends, Hood, and Elder had been standing, soon stopping in front of the crowd. He was no longer on the elevated hill that led to Elder's cave, but instead, down the hill with the growling dogs in front of them. Marshall stopped, standing still as insults and refusals continued to be thrown his way. Marshall closed his eyes, got low to the ground...

...And bowed his head.

"I understand why you all might not trust me. I'm not like you all. Neither is Rocky. Neither is Everest. We come from a nice home with nice beds, and enough food to make our stomachs burst three times over... But a lot of you guys never got that luxury. You didn't get the best life, while we... Us Domestics... Lived unaware that you all existed. That you guys were struggling. But that's why I'm here. That's why my friends are here..."

The crowd fell silent, listening to what the Dalmatian pup had to say.

"...I... We... Used to be on a team called the PAW Patrol. We lived in Adventure Bay, saving whoever we could. Whether it was someone lost in a forest, healing wounds, or fighting fires, we did whatever it took to be heroes, but once I saw how much you guys were struggling, I wondered..."

"Could I even call myself a hero if I never came to your rescue!?"

Tears fell out of his eyes, his head still bowed to the ground.

"I saw the horrors in the Medical Bay that await you brave dogs every day..."

Elder thought back on when he watched the Dalmatian treating a little white pup in the Medical Bay, while also scurrying around and reassuring the hungry dogs that they wouldn't be in need of food for much longer, promising that he'd get some to them.

"I saw how cruel this place, as well as the animals in it could be..."

Hood remembered how he, along with the three pups, found the American Eskimo pup, Axel, trapped under a tree. He remembered how he was ready to drop everything and run the moment he and Everest encountered the wolves that were more than ready to prey on the injured pup.

"...But despite that, I want to be someone who does something about it! I know I'm a Domestic, I'll never lie to you about that, but I'm a rescue pup, dang it! I don't want to not be able to help when I see those who need it! Just like in Adventure Bay, there's a place that needs help. A community in need of someone who looks out for them. So why can't we carry that burden for you?"

Hearing the pup's speech, many dogs were surprised at his honesty and transparent disposition. He wasn't holding anything back.

"I beg you... Let us share your home."

"...Let us eat alongside you."

"...Let us live with you."

"And let us help!"

With that final pained shout, his convicted voice echoed through the now silent forest. He panted, trying his best to catch his breath as all of the canines around stewed in what the Dalmatian had told them. Every single word of it.

That was, until the faint sounds of footsteps approached the Dally.

"I trust you."

Marshall slowly took his eyes off of the ground, looking up to see an American Eskimo, donning a primitive splint on one of his hind legs. He smiled innocently at the Dalmatian. It was Axel, the very first pup from the valley aside Hood that he met.

"You made me better! I can't walk on it right now, but I know I can real soon!" Axel grinned, "So I trust you, Marshall! I don't care what anyone else says!"

"...How'd you get here without walking on your splint?" The Dalmatian asked, looking at the undamaged splint on Axel's leg.

"Brutus took me!"

Marshall's eyes drifted further up to meet the orange eyes of the familiar Shepherd. He didn't take long to speak, "Get up. You and your friends have had my trust since you passed the trial. I've seen your compassion for myself. I know you're being honest."

"Thanks, Brutus..." The former firefighter smiled.

Brutus shook his head, "Thank me later. You know what you have to do."

Marshall nodded in response to the pitch black Shepherd's statement. He stood up and turned around, "Rocky, Everest, Hood! We don't have any more time to waste!"

The three mentioned pups were already mentally prepared, Rocky and Everest donning smiles while Hood simply gave him a nod.

"I have a plan, but it could only limit the fire, not stop it..." Marshall muttered, "I don't have a hose."

Rocky grinned, "Leave it to me. I'll have you one really quick."

"Thanks, Rocky," The Dalmatian smiled back at him before turning to the Husky and wild Dalmatian, "Everest, help Hood get these dogs somewhere safe, okay?"

"No problem!"

Marshall turned, "I'll leave it to you guys!"

After getting an affirmative nod from both Everest and Hood, he and Rocky rushed back to Everest's snowcat. As they did, the mixed breed looked over at Marshall, raising an eyebrow.

"So what's your plan to limit the fire?"

"Easy, I'm gonna make a fire break!"

After emptying Everest's snowcat of every bag that was in it, Marshall raced off, leaving Rocky to come up with a way to make a hose with the materials he already had. He wasn't too worried about Rocky coming up with something, as he seemed to always find a way. What he was worried about was the fire he planned on facing. He was potentially driving right into a fire with just the fur on his back and Everest's vehicle.

As the air around him began to warm up, he gulped. It would be a dangerous maneuver to make a fire break as large as what he was planning, but at the very least, it would keep the Canine Valley from being incarcerated. The wall and most of the shanty houses were built primarily out of wood, after all. Time was of the essence.

Before he knew it, he was facing down the cause of the light he had seen in the distance when he had gone on his midnight stroll. Just like he had predicted, there was a blazing fire ahead of him. It seemed as though the environment around him changed in an instant. Before nearing the fire, visibility was low, and the area was warm, but not as bad as a hot summer day back in Adventure Bay. Once he was faced with the fire, though, the Dalmatian found himself in the midst of a fiery hellscape, in which the flames illuminated every inch of ground within his line of sight.

He quickly looked down at the scarf around his neck. He needed to make sure he was careful dealing with the fire. With all of the excitement he had completely forgotten that he was wearing it. It felt natural enough around his neck to forget that it was there most of the time. His eyes then narrowed. Maybe he could use the scarf for something. Maybe to cover his mouth and nose to prevent smoke from getting in. For that, though, he'd need water, and there was no way he would wet his scarf with muddy water from the forest floor. It could get dirty!

Marshall stopped the snowcat once it was right in front of the bright fire, looking around. Just as he had suspected, the fire had begun to spread, and was nearing the wall of the valley. If he didn't get his plan going fast, then the dogs of the valley would surely not have a great time.

"Everest, the fire is getting close to the valley!"

Everest stopped in her tracks, hearing Marshall's voice come through the communicator strapped around her right foreleg, "Evacuation is not a possibility anymore, it's an absolute!"

The Husky gasped, "Hood—!"

"I heard him," The wild Dalmatian cut her off, "We need to get the dogs out of the valley."

Everest thought for a moment, her eyebrows furrowing. Would they really have to move all of the dogs out of the valley? Hood had told them before. The forest outside was dangerous. The only reason why the valley was safe for them was because they knew the layout, and there was safety in numbers. Outside the wall, there were surely other wild animals that were escaping the fire, and would come across the dogs.

"If the wall was fireproof, we wouldn't have to worry about it getting in..." Hood muttered.

"Hold it!" A lightbulb went off in her head, "Fireproof! Remember when we first got here, and we saw the Medical Bay?"

"Yeah?"

"Rocky said it was made out of brick... Brick isn't flammable! We can go there!" Everest exclaimed.

Hood shook his head, "It isn't big enough to hold all of us... But maybe we could use Elder's cave too."

"Pardon?" Elder interjected, his eyes widening.

"C'mon, it's the only way to keep everyone safe!" Everest pleaded, "If we go out there, you know better than anyone that we wouldn't be that safe out there..."

The large dog slumped, letting out a dramatic sigh, "Good points, Husky."

Hood nodded, walking past the two, "I'll take half and bring them to the Medical Bay."

Everest then looked down at the grass below her paws, taking a deep breath in, "Rocky, please tell me you have something to help Marshall..."

Rocky, in fact, did not have something to help Marshall.

The mixed breed hurriedly rushed around, searching bag after bag. He had thought he had at least one thing that he could recycle into a hose for Marshall to use. But everything he had collected from the discarded electronics from the lookout in Adventure Bay were well, electronics. None seemed to be able to mix with water well.

"That Marshall..." His teeth clenched together as he searched, "He didn't even make sure I actually had a plan! He just rushed off, saying that he knew I'd come up with something!"

He stared at the various scrap devices and trinkets laid out on the ground before him. Wires, screws, as well as switches filled his line of sight. What could he do? He needed a plan. An actual plan, not pieces of things he was yet to make.

Rocky stood up, taking a few steps back. He couldn't let Marshall down, not after he put his trust in him so easily. Still walking backwards, the mixed breed turned his attention to the direction in which he knew the fire was. Despite his sight of the forest beyond being impaired by the trees and shanty houses in front of him, the light of the fire shined bright enough to be visible behind the tree in front of him.

He then tripped over a small bag behind him, falling onto his back.

"Oww..." The mixed breed groaned, now looking up at the sky, "...What did I just fall over? Hope nothing broke just now..."

Rocky looked at what he fell over. A bag. One of many. But this one hadn't been opened yet. The creative canine was almost instantly able to recognize the bag as the one holding his, Marshall, and Everest's items. He slowly zipped the bag open, pulling his projectile pack out of it.

All of the horrific memories of being accidentally sprayed by his friend's water cannons while they were on the PAW Patrol filled his mind. Each and every time. His eyes studied the projectile pack, gears beginning to turn in his head. He slowly closed his eyes, realizing what he needed to do.

"I'm sorry, projectile pack. I know what I have to do."

Everest, meanwhile, watched the final few dogs squeeze into Elder's cave, watching as the fire seemed to only grow in volume. What was Marshall doing? Was he okay? How was he handling the heat? It was already warm enough where she stood, and it didn't seem to be letting up in the slightest.

While she was watching the fire grow in the distance, she didn't notice Hood walking up to join her.

"Are all of the dogs inside?" The wild Dalmatian asked, making her jump in surprise.

"Jeez, Hood! How are you so good at that?"

Hood raised an eyebrow, "Good at what?"

The Husky sighed, "Nothing... But to answer your question, all of the dogs that were with me are inside safe."

"That's good, but..." Hood turned his head to look at the fire, "The fact that we're able to see the fire now isn't a good sign. We might have to consider leaving the—"

"No, we won't."

"Huh?"

Everest stood firm, the expression on her face remaining unreadable, "We're staying here. Marshall and Rocky won't let the fire reach the valley... And neither will I."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The two's ears perked up upon hearing the sound of crackling nearby. The fire was only growing closer. The Husky gulped. Was the fire too much for them to handle on their own? Has Rocky come up with some kind of hose yet? She then shook her head. Whatever the case, she needed to get moving.

"Hood, watch over the valley. I'm tagging in."

Rocky ran through the blazing inferno, making sure to avoid the spots that were actively on fire. Strapped on his back was what used to be his projectile pack, which was now closed, attached to a long plastic tube, and bigger than it was before. He had succeeded in making something that could function as a hose. Well, more like what Marshall used to have as a pup pack. All he would have to do is find the Dalmatian.

He heard the sound of tires cracking branches nearby, answering his question as to where his firefighting friend was. The creative canine followed the sounds, eventually coming across Marshall, who seemed to be sweating profusely, the black and white spotted fur appearing damp at only a glance. He seemed focused on the fire ahead, making sure to use the snowcat's snow plowing capabilities to kick up dirt.

"Marshall!" He called out to him.

The Dalmatian perked up and turned his head, his eyes meeting with those of the mixed breed, "Rocky! You're here!"

Rocky nodded, a smile on his face, "And I come bearing a fruit of my labor!"

"What do you have?" Marshall hopped out of the vehicle, hurriedly walking over to his friend.

Rocky gulped, "It's a... Water cannon. But since we don't have the same kind of tech that Ryder has accessible at the moment, we have to use that tube to collect more water since the pack can't really be opened."

"Cool, is it voice activated?"

"Yeah..." The mixed breed hesitated.

"Is something wrong?" Marshall asked, concerned.

Rocky quickly thrusted the pack into Marshall, taking a few steps back. "Nope, nothing at all. Here you go."

Marshall looked at the fire blazing in front of them, "We don't have much time to lose. Let's do this!"

"So what have you been doing?"

"Using Everest's snow plow to kick up grass from some areas to keep the fire from spreading. I only did half of it, though..." The Dalmatian looked down at his paws.

"Okay, I'll focus on getting you more water to load up, and in the meantime, I'll keep doing what you were doing."

"Okay, sounds good!"

Splitting up once more, Marshall began to use the water that Rocky somehow already loaded into the pack to begin spraying the fire. Rocky boarded the snowcat, holding a large plastic container with the vehicle's claw. He glanced back at his friend, making sure he was alright before he raced off to find a river or pond.

If he could find a swamp somewhere in the forest, then they'd have a solid supply of water. If he was able to come across a pond somewhere, they'd have a solid supply of water that they could also drink from. That would be the best outcome. Either way, at the moment they needed some kind of water, any kind of water.

Based on what he learned while being a scout with Skye, going downhill would be the best way to find water. It had just rained hours ago, so even if there wasn't a pond to be found, then he would just have to go downhill and look around there. He would also know if a natural pond was nearby or not based on what creatures he found around it.

His face then lit up. Creatures! He stopped the snowcat in order to take a look around. The animals that lived in the forest often knew the best places for water to be found. After all, they had been living there all their lives. He kept looking around until he spotted a deer not too far away. He groaned. Deer were the worst possible animal to follow. They were flighty, especially when approached. It was the best way they could survive when there were so many predators around.

Rocky inched the snowcat forward, knowing well that he was on a time crunch. Even so, he needed to find that pond before he even began to think about moving fast. He made sure not to make any noise, watching the deer's every move closely.

Observing the deer, he watched it prance forward, nearly getting out of his sight. Rocky followed behind, watching the ground closely for any stray branches. There was no way that he would comically snap one the moment the deer started to lead him to a possible water source for it to suddenly look up at him and dash away. He wouldn't let that happen. He didn't like that gag.

After trailing the deer for a bit, he eventually spotted the pond that the deer was approaching. His eyes lit up. He did it! He pounded on the gas, the wheels spinning and grinding against the ground as it launched forward. The deer's head instantly whipped around to look at the driving mixed breed, its ears falling and eyes going wide.

"Sorry!" Rocky swerved around it, "I need this water for the good of the forest!"

Slamming on the brakes, Rocky stopped the snowcat in front of the pond. He took the container out of the snowcat's claw before dunking it in the water and carefully putting it back into the claw with much struggle.

Backing the snowcat away, he kept the water steady as he turned around and rolled off in the direction of the fire in the distance. He focused on the smoke rising from the flames, and how they seemed to taper off for a few seconds before rising once again. Marshall must have just started running out of water. He needed to go faster.

Upon looking back at the path ahead, he flinched at the sight of a deer suddenly crossing his path. If he were to keep going, there was no way he wouldn't hit the deer. After all, it was now standing still. A deer in headlights.

"Woah, woah!"

The mixed breed swerved the snowcat as quickly as he could to the left. He had done it too quickly, though, as the momentum he had previously had transferred into the side of the snowcat, making it tip over, Rocky falling out of it. The mixed breed crashed onto the ground, the snowcat falling right on top of him.

Everything around him went dark.