See You On The Flipside
By James McFarland
Saturday, July 3, 2023
12:44 P.M.
TICK TICK TICK…the 10-minute timer counted down, like a harbinger of doom. Pawsteps pounded the pavement as 15-week-old Greypaw Gray Wolf raced through the Magdellin streets. The three necklaces around his neck rattled against each other. One was his own, a brass one with a star charm in the middle. The other two, a gold necklace with a sun charm and a silver necklace with a moon charm, were painful reminders of the urgency of his mission. He checked his watch. 12:44. He was running out of time. One minute to disaster.
The dreadful wailing of police sirens stretched their horrid melodies toward Greypaw's ears.
"No! I have to get there first!" he thought desperately. "I have to warn them! I can't fail this time! I WON'T GO THROUGH THIS AGAIN!"
His heart pounded in his chest and he quickened his pace. The Odd World theme park loomed ahead. He could just make out the shape of two white wolves in the distance. There they were! He was going to make it! Just a little further and he'd…
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
The sounds of gunshots made the gray wolf pup howl in despair and drop to the ground.
Why?!
It wasn't fair! It wasn't fair!
BEEP BEEP BEEP! The timer chimed, reminding him that his time was up. He'd failed. Again…
Thursday, July 1, 2023
3:00 P.M.
"Okay, let's try this again," Greypaw said as he and Arctic made some last-minute adjustments to their project: a time-traveling backpack machine.
Arctic, a white wolf, was Greypaw's best (and only) friend in Magdellin. He was an expert at quantum physics, almost as much as Greypaw was himself. Their last attempt at making this work hadn't gone so smoothly. In fact, it was the very reason why they weren't allowed to work in Arctic's garage anymore. Thankfully, Greypaw's cousins were cool with the whole thing as long as they didn't make too much of a mess.
"Let's hope it works this time," Arctic said. "I promised my mother that I'd be home in time to help clean up the garage today."
The door to the garage opened up. In walked two older white wolves. This was Starlet and Snowpaw, Greypaw's older cousins.
"Oh! Sorry for interrupting!" Snowpaw said apologetically. "We just came in to grab a screwdriver."
"Yeah, the darn screen door to the porch has come loose again," Starlet added.
"Again?" asked Greypaw, as he handed Starlet a spare screwdriver. "I thought you guys fixed that last week."
"Yeah, well the wind didn't seem to think so," Starlet chuckled.
"Well, we'll get outta your hair now," said Snowpaw.
"Wait, Snowpaw," Greypaw called after them. "Are you and Starlet still going to apply for that job at Odd World this weekend?"
Snowpaw stopped and flashed the grey wolf pup a smile.
"Well if all goes well," he replied, "I think we just might land it."
He and Starlet then left.
"Alright," said Arctic to Greypaw with a sly grin on his face. "I think that should do it. When should we go this time?"
Greypaw sighed and rolled his eyes at his friend's attempt at a joke.
"Arctic, you know we only have enough power right now to go back a few days and only for ten minutes," he said. "If our packs work this time, we can try to upgrade them to where we can travel further back and for longer periods. It's best if we stick to our plan. We're traveling back to yesterday first."
"Right, right, I know that," Arctic said, as he set the date to the day before, "I was just yanking your tail."
He and Greypaw put on their packs and began the countdown. The air buzzed with electricity and wind started blowing in the room. A high-pitched whining noise started sounding, increasing in volume as the packs energized for the jump.
"T-minus 10…9…8…7…6…5…4…3…2…1!" Arctic and Greypaw counted.
There was a sound like a loud ZAP! followed by a BANG! And when the dust settled, Greypaw and Arctic were gone.
Wednesday, June 30, 2023
12:00 P.M.
Within a small alleyway, a small salescat named Mittens was taking a break by snoozing in the summer heat. All of a sudden a loud BANG! woke the poor cat up with a start. Looking around in shock and utter confusion, she saw two wolf pups with weird-looking backpacks and goggles staggering out of the dust cloud.
"What in Enchantia are you crazy kids doing?!" Mittens yelled. "Can't a cat take a nap on a Wednesday afternoon without some kids waking her up for some sick prank?!"
Greypaw and Arctic looked at her in surprise.
"Wait," Greypaw gasped. "What day did you say it was today?"
Mittens rolled her eyes.
"If it'll make you two leave faster," she snapped, "it's Wednesday, June 30th. Now SCRAM!"
Greypaw and Arctic looked at each other. Then they started jumping around in excitement.
"It worked! It actually worked!" Arctic cheered, hugging Greypaw excitedly.
"Arctic, I think we just made history today!" Greypaw exclaimed.
"Well let's not waste the 10-minutes we have here," said Arctic. "Let's make the most of it!"
He started to run off but then Greypaw grabbed him.
"But don't forget," he said. "Our past selves can't see us."
"Yeah, yeah, I know the rules," Arctic said. "Now are we gonna have some fun or what?"
"Alright, alright," Greypaw said smiling. "Let's go!"
With that, he and Arctic ran out into the streets of Magdellin. They said hello to everyone they met ignoring the strange looks they received due to their apparel. It was a lot of fun…until they turned up Joyville Street. A black Doberman was heading their way with a posse of three Pitbulls flanking her. As soon as she spotted Arctic and Greypaw, her eyes narrowed and a low snarl emerged from her lips.
Greypaw froze as he recognized Daniella, a bully who always picked on him and Arctic in school. And this was really not the time to get into any sort of confrontation with her.
"Crap," the grey wolf hissed. "It's Daniella. Let's get outta here!"
"Yeah," Arctic said, nodding in agreement. "That's a great idea."
They turned to go, but as they did so, Daniella's posse suddenly surrounded them on all sides.
"Going somewhere boys?" Daniella asked in a false friendly tone.
Greypaw sighed.
"What do you want Daniella?" he grumbled. "And make it snappy will you? We don't have time to put up with your BS right now."
Daniella growled.
"Did I ask you what you have time for runt?" she snarled, shoving Greypaw backward. "Cause I don't remember that."
"Hey! Leave him alone!" Arctic snapped, stepping between them.
"Or else what?" Daniella asked, a wicked smile on her face. "I doubt you'll do anything, nerd."
Greypaw looked about looking for some way out of this mess. Glancing to the right, he found exactly what he was looking for. Nearby to the group, some painters were working on a sign for a nearby restaurant. Carefully, he snaked his tail under the handle of a bucket of silver paint, balancing it precariously on the edge of his tail.
"Now then," Daniella was saying, "Let's see what you two are hiding in those bags shall we?"
She began advancing toward Arctic.
"I've got a better idea, Daniella," Greypaw snapped, winking at Arctic. "Why don't you eat this?!"
Flinging his tail, he launched the paint bucket at Daniella and her posse. The three dogs yelped as they were covered head to tail in silver paint.
Arctic gasped in shock before an amused chuckle escaped his mouth.
"Let's go!" Greypaw shouted to his friend.
With that, they took off running.
"GET THEM!" Daniella screamed in rage.
Greypaw and Arctic raced through the streets as the angry dogs chased after them.
"Where do we go?" Arctic cried, "They're too fast!"
"That way!" Greypaw called, pointing across the street.
Quickly they crossed the road, just as Daniella and the others arrived.
"You won't get away with this!" Daniella growled as she ran into the road…not seeing the car that was approaching.
A screech of tires as the driver slowed down, but not fast enough. The car slammed into Daniella sending her tumbling over the hood.
Greypaw and Arctic stared shock and horror on their faces.
"OW! My leg! MY LEG!" Daniella screeched in agony.
"Should we stop and help her?" Arctic asked nervously.
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
The timers sounded the warning. 10-minutes had passed.
"There's no time," Greypaw cried. "We have to go before the wormhole closes!"
With that, the two wolves raced back to the alleyway.
And with a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw and Arctic vanished again.
Thursday, July 1, 2023
3:12 P.M.
A dust cloud formed in the garage of the Wolf family household as Greypaw and Arctic reappeared in their lab. Arctic shut down the packs and checked all signs for stability.
"All signs stable," he reported. "We're good."
With a sigh, Greypaw removed his protective goggles. Arctic followed suit.
"Well, I'd say that was a successful attempt," Greypaw said smiling.
"Yeah, except for one thing," Arctic said worriedly. "Daniella. We don't know what happened to her."
"Oh, I'm sure she's fine," Greypaw said, brushing off his friend's concerns. "Besides, she deserved it."
Just then, the door opened again. Starlet came out carrying supplies.
"Hey Grey," he said. "You and Snow hold down the fort alright? I'll be right back."
"Where are you going?" Greypaw asked.
"I've got to take a few things down to Mrs. Doberman," said Starlet. "She's been needing extra help since Daniella has been recovering from her accident."
Greypaw and Arctic froze.
"W-What accident?" Arctic inquired nervously.
Starlet shook his head sadly.
"Poor Daniella," he sighed. "She was hit by a car yesterday. Fortunately, she only broke a few bones. Nothing too serious."
Saturday, July 3, 2023
12:00 P.M.
It was late afternoon. The Wolf family was hosting an early July fourth BBQ picnic for the neighborhood. Starlet and Snowpaw were watching as their little cousin Greypaw played with the other pups, including Arctic. However, the two were still worried about time. In a few minutes, they'd have to walk to Odd World for their job interview.
Starlet checked his watch. It was 12:00 in the afternoon.
"Snow," he said. "It's time to go."
Snowpaw nodded.
"Grey!" he called. "Come here a minute please!"
Greypaw, hearing his name, jogged over to his cousins.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Hold down the fort here for a while," Snowpaw instructed him. "Star and I have to leave for our interview."
"Aww! Already?" Greypaw complained.
"Hey, if all goes well," Starlet said teasingly, booping Greypaw on the nose, "we might just celebrate by going out for ice cream."
"Yay!" Greypaw yipped happily, his tail wagging.
"So, can we count on you to look after things for us?" Starlet asked.
"Yes sir!" Greypaw said.
"Attaboy," Starlet replied, ruffling Greypaw's fur. "Alright, we gotta get going. See you on the flipside, Little G."
With that, Starlet and Snowpaw set off.
12:20 P.M.
Several blocks away at Carlos' Convenience Store, two suspicious-looking wolves with tan fur and white jackets entered the store. They approached the register and pointed a gun at Carlos Camel's face, surprising the shop owner.
"Let's go bud!" one of the wolves snapped. "Give us all the money you got, or else we'll shoot!"
"Ok! OK! Just don't hurt anyone!" Carlos pleaded, raising his hooves. He reached down and opened the register. The larger wolf reached over the counter and grabbed all of the bills inside the drawer.
At that moment, a siren started sounding.
"Damn! Sandstorm! The cops are coming! Let's bounce!" The smaller wolf cried.
"Chill out Blaze!" the wolf named Sandstorm snapped. "I know that!"
Filling their bags, Sandstorm and Blaze rushed out of the store.
"Where do we go?!" Blaze cried.
"Odd World," said Sandstorm. "We can lose the cops in the crowd."
The two thieves turned and raced in the direction of Odd World.
12:40 P.M.
Meanwhile, Starlet and Snowpaw were just approaching the entrance to Odd World.
"I hope we get this job Star," Snowpaw said nervously.
"All we can do is hope for the best," Starlet replied. "That's all that matters. If we make it, fine. If not, we can try again somewhere else."
"I know," said Snowpaw. "It's just…We just have to do this. For Greypaw's sake. He's a growing pup, and I know you want him to have a life as much as I do."
"I know that," Starlet sighed. "These last few years have been hard on all of us Snow. All we can do is just remain supportive of Greypaw and be there for him."
Snowpaw nodded.
"I guess you're right," he said.
Just then a shout erupted from behind them.
"Get outta the way you two!"
Starlet and Snowpaw jumped in surprise when two wolves with tan fur and white jackets ran past them carrying two large bags. They disappeared into the Odd World crowd.
"Well, that was weird," Snowpaw said, tilting his head in confusion. "What was that all about?"
Just then a sound of a siren blared from behind them.
"You two! Stop right there!" a voice blared over a megaphone. "Put your paws in the air, and get on the ground now!"
Starlet and Snowpaw turned to see two cops named Officer Pauline and Officer Martin pointing guns at them. The two wolves raised their paws in the air.
"Hold on officers," Starlet started to say, "I think you have the wrong…"
"I said GET ON THE GROUND!" Officer Martin bellowed again.
Starlet and Snowpaw obeyed the command and lay on their stomachs.
Officer Martin got on his radio to radio dispatch.
"This is Officer P. Martin to dispatch," he called. "We got two wolves here that match the description of the suspects who robbed Carlos' earlier today."
Starlet and Snowpaw looked up in surprise.
"Wait a minute," said Snowpaw, "Carlos' place was robbed today? But my brother and I haven't been there at all! You've got the wrong wolves!"
"Yeah, yeah boys. Tell it to the judge," Officer Pauline snapped.
"No way!" Starlet growled, standing up. "We know our rights and this is harassment!"
"Yeah!" Snowpaw snarled, standing up as well. "You can't tell us what to do!"
Starlet reached into his coat pocket and found his phone. He planned on recording the entire encounter to post on social media.
As he pulled it out, Officer Martin suddenly yelled, "GUN! They've got a gun!"
Faster than lighting, the cop drew his gun from his holster.
Before Starlet or Snowpaw could say anything, four loud BANG!s shattered the afternoon air.
Then all was still again.
Two white wolves lay dead on the street just outside of the Odd World Theme Park.
The last recorded time on Starlet's shattered phone read:
Saturday, July 3, 2023
12:45 P.M.
Monday, July 5, 2023
10:00 A.M.
"It's been two days since a case of misidentification led to the tragic death of two unarmed white wolves outside the Odd World theme park. Young wolves Starlet White Wolf and his brother Snowpaw White Wolf were shot and killed by police officers Pine Martin and Pauline Penguin on Saturday just outside of Odd World following a confrontation. It is believed that Starlet and Snowpaw were mistaken for these two wolves: a pair of thieves named Sandstorm and Blaze who robbed Carlos' Convenience Store about 25 minutes prior to the shooting. The two suspects were later arrested and charged for the crime. Although Officer Pauline and Officer Martin were adamant that the White Wolves were armed, a witness to the shooting testified that this was not the case, and that Starlet White Wolf was reaching for his cell phone when Officer Martin and Officer Pauline opened fire on him and Snowpaw…"
Greypaw turned off the news. He couldn't bear to hear all the details of his cousins' murder all over again. Murder. The word swirled in his mind over and over again.
The police said it was all an accident.
No. It wasn't.
It was no accident.
It was murder.
It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair!
Starlet and Snowpaw had done nothing wrong. They had done nothing to deserve this. They were good wolves! They were the ones everyone got along with, the ones everyone loved, the ones you could go to when you had a problem and they'd cheer you up.
And now…they were gone. Shot and killed in cold blood.
Greypaw fidgeted with his cousins' necklaces. Ever since the funeral, he'd been wearing them in addition to his own. He sighed, closed his eyes, and lay on his bed.
If I could only go back again, he thought. Just go back to that awful day. If I'd only begged them to stay, had done something different…
His eyes flew open as a gasp escaped his mouth.
Of course! That was it! He could go back to the day of the shooting and save his cousins!
Greypaw reached for his phone.
"Hello? Arctic? Meet me at my house in ten minutes."
10:10 A.M.
Arctic arrived on time to find Greypaw in the garage already setting up their backpacks and adjusting the timers.
"Hey, I got your message…What are you doing?" Arctic questioned.
"Setting us up for a jump," Greypaw replied. "We're going to go back to yesterday and save my cousins."
Arctic's eyes went wide.
"Greypaw! Are you crazy?!" he cried. "We're talking about changing a major event in our lives! Who knows what that's going to do!"
"I know!" Greypaw barked. "But I need Starlet and Snowpaw Arctic. I can't live without them. Wouldn't you do the same thing if it was your cousins?"
Arctic paused, then sighed.
"Alright," he said. "So what's our game plan?"
Greypaw pulled out a newspaper article and showed it to Arctic. It was a report on Starlet's and Snowpaw's death.
"According to the paper," he said, "Carlos' Convenience Store was robbed at 12:20 p.m. The obituary states that Starlet and Snowpaw were killed at 12:45 p.m. I was able to make some adjustments to our packs so we can stay in the past longer. We now have 1-hour before the portal closes. I've already set the clocks to take us back to 12:00 p.m. on July 3, 45 minutes before Starlet and Snowpaw are killed. All we have to do is get to Odd World before 12:45, warn my cousins what's going to happen, and get back to the wormhole. Jump back. Starlet and Snowpaw are saved."
Arctic tilted his head.
"That's a lot of hope hanging on a slim possibility," he pointed out. "Our runs are gonna have to be perfect in order to pull this off."
"We have to try," Greypaw said, pleading in his voice. "Arctic please?"
Arctic sighed.
"Alright, let's give this a shot," he said.
He and Greypaw put on their packs and started the countdown.
With a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw and Arctic vanished.
Saturday, July 3, 2023
12:00 P.M.
45 minutes to the shooting
In the small alleyway, Mittens was taking a break by snoozing in the summer heat. All of a sudden a loud BANG! woke the poor cat up with a start. Looking around in shock and utter confusion, she saw two wolf pups with weird-looking backpacks and goggles staggering out of the dust cloud.
"What in Enchantia are you crazy kids doing?!" Mittens yelled. "Can't a cat take a nap on a Saturday afternoon without some kids waking her up for some sick prank?!"
Greypaw and Arctic checked their phones. The clocks confirmed that indeed it was 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 3, 2023.
"It actually worked! We're back!" Arctic cheered.
"No time for celebrations!" Greypaw reminded him. "We've got to get to Odd World before it's too late!"
"Right! Right!" Arctic said.
With that, the two wolf pups broke into a run heading toward Odd World.
Meanwhile, Starlet and Snowpaw were at their family Barbeque.
Starlet checked his watch. It was 12:00 in the afternoon.
"Snow," he said. "It's time to go."
Snowpaw nodded.
"Grey!" he called. "Come here a minute please!"
At the barbeque, the Greypaw from the current day, upon hearing his name, jogged over to his cousins.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Hold down the fort here for a while," Snowpaw instructed him. "Star and I have to leave for our interview."
"Aww! Already?" Greypaw complained.
"Hey, if all goes well," Starlet said teasingly, booping Greypaw on the nose, "we might just celebrate by going out for ice cream."
"Yay!" Greypaw yipped happily, his tail wagging.
"So, can we count on you to look after things for us?" Starlet asked.
"Yes sir!" Greypaw said.
"Attaboy," Starlet replied, ruffling Greypaw's fur. "Alright, we gotta get going. See you on the flipside, Little G."
With that, Starlet and Snowpaw set off.
12:20 P.M.
25 minutes to the shooting
Several blocks away at Carlos' Convenience Store, Sandstorm and Blaze entered the store. They approached the register and pointed a gun at Carlos Camel's face, surprising the shop owner.
"Let's go bud!" Blaze snapped. "Give us all the money you got, or else we'll shoot!"
"Ok! OK! Just don't hurt anyone!" Carlos pleaded, raising his hooves. He reached down and opened the register. Sandstorm reached over the counter and grabbed all of the bills inside the drawer.
At that moment, a siren started sounding.
"Damn! Sandstorm! The cops are coming! Let's bounce!" Blaze cried.
"Chill out Blaze!" Sandstorm snapped. "I know that!"
Filling their bags, he and Blaze rushed out of the store.
"Where do we go?!" Blaze cried.
"Odd World," said Sandstorm. "We can lose the cops in the crowd."
The two thieves turned and raced in the direction of Odd World.
Meanwhile, at that moment, Greypaw and Arctic rushed through the streets heading towards Odd World. They were about three blocks away when…
"HEY!"
Greypaw and Arctic turned to see an angry Daniella stomping towards them, with her posse in tow.
"Gosh darn it! It's Daniella!" Greypaw cursed.
"You boys are gonna pay for what you did to me!" Daniella snarled.
"Daniella, please!" Greypaw begged. "This is NOT the time for this right now!"
"Yeah!" Arctic added. "We have urgent business to attend to! It's a matter of life and death!"
"Oh, you're gonna have a matter of life and death alright!" Daniella growled. "Get them guys!"
With that, Daniella and her posse charged at the two wolf pups.
"Quick! Run for it!" Greypaw cried.
He and Arctic turned and ran through the streets, turning corners and turning up alleyways.
After a while, they stopped on a street corner to catch their breath.
"Are…they…gone?" Arctic panted.
Greypaw checked their surroundings. Daniella and her posse were nowhere to be seen.
"We're good," he nodded.
He then checked his watch. To his horror, it now read 12:40 p.m.
"Shoot!" he cursed. "We only have five minutes to get to Odd World before Starlet and Snowpaw are killed!"
"It's not that far from here," Arctic said. "Let's go!"
With that, the two wolves broke into a run once more.
12:44 P.M.
60 seconds to the shooting
At that moment, Starlet and Snowpaw were just approaching the entrance to Odd World.
"I hope we get this job Star," Snowpaw said, nervously.
"All we can do is hope for the best," Starlet replied. "That's all that matters. If we make it, fine. If not, we can try again somewhere else."
"I know," said Snowpaw. "It's just…We just have to do this. For Greypaw's sake. He's a growing pup, and I know you want him to have a life as much as I do."
"I know that," Starlet sighed. "These last few years have been hard on all of us Snow. All we can do is just remain supportive of Greypaw and be there for him."
Snowpaw nodded.
"I guess you're right," he said.
Just then a shout erupted from behind them.
"Get outta the way you two!"
Starlet and Snowpaw jumped in surprise when Sandstorm and Blaze ran past them carrying two large bags. They disappeared into the Odd World crowd.
"Well, that was weird," Snowpaw said, tilting his head in confusion. "What was that all about?"
"You two! Stop right there!" a voice blared over a megaphone. "Put your paws in the air, and get on the ground now!"
Starlet and Snowpaw turned to see Officer Pauline and Officer Martin pointing guns at them. The two wolves raised their paws in the air.
"Hold on officers," Starlet started to say, "I think you have the wrong…"
"I said GET ON THE GROUND!" Officer Martin bellowed again.
Starlet and Snowpaw obeyed the command and lay on their stomachs.
Officer Martin got on his radio to radio dispatch.
"This is Officer P. Martin to dispatch," he called. "We got two wolves here that match the description of the suspects who robbed Carlos' earlier today."
Starlet and Snowpaw looked up in surprise.
"Wait a minute," said Snowpaw, "Carlos' place was robbed today? But my brother and I haven't been there at all! You've got the wrong wolves!"
"Yeah, yeah boys. Tell it to the judge," Officer Pauline snapped.
"No way!" Starlet growled, standing up. "We know our rights and this is harassment!"
"Yeah!" Snowpaw snarled, standing up as well. "You can't tell us what to do!"
Starlet reached into his coat pocket and found his phone.
As he pulled it out, Officer Martin suddenly yelled, "GUN! They've got a gun!"
Faster than lighting, the cop drew his gun from his holster.
12:45 P.M.
Greypaw and Arctic rushed up to the Odd World entrance just as…
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
The sounds of gunshots made Greypaw growl in frustration.
"NOOOOOOOO!" he wailed. "We were so close! They were right there! Freaking Daniella! She stalled us and made us get here too late!"
"Grey! It's too late now!" Arctic cried, grabbing his friend. "We have to go! We can try again tomorrow! But for now, we have to leave!"
Greypaw was devastated but he knew Arctic was right. There was no way they could save his cousins now. It was best to go back home and try again.
He followed Arctic to the alleyway where they had entered and pressed the button to send them back.
With a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw and Arctic vanished.
Monday, July 5, 2023
12:15 P.M.
Greypaw and Arctic appeared back in the wolf family garage. Greypaw slammed his paw against the table in frustration.
"We had it!" he snarled. "If it hadn't been for freaking Daniella, we would've made it in time!"
Arctic sighed.
"I know you're upset, Grey," he said softly. "But don't give up. We got so close. All we need to do is try again. Tomorrow we'll come up with a new plan. That's what we do right? Every time we fail, we try something new. Our first plan to save your cousins didn't work out. But maybe our next one will."
Greypaw sighed.
"You're right," he said. "Thanks, Arctic."
Arctic smiled before he turned and headed for the garage.
"I've got to get going," he said. "We'll try again tomorrow."
"See you then," Greypaw said.
"Hey," Arctic said. "We'll find a way to save Starlet and Snowpaw. I know we will."
Tuesday, July 6, 2023
12:15 P.M.
The next day, Greypaw and Arctic met up once more in the garage.
"Ok," said Greypaw. "Operation Save Starlet And Snowpaw is back on."
"Right," Arctic agreed. "Lay out what we've got so far Grey."
Greypaw pulled out his notes covering every detail of his cousins' deaths.
"Ok, so," he said. "Starlet and Snowpaw leave for their job interview exactly at noon. Carlos' Convenience Store gets robbed 20 minutes later. Then, Starlet and Snowpaw are killed by Officers Pauline and Martin at 12:45 p.m. How are we gonna save them?"
The two pups thought for a moment. Then Arctic looked up at Greypaw.
"Hey," he said. "I think I have an idea."
"What is it?" Greypaw asked.
"What if…we stopped the robbery at Carlos'?" Arctic suggested. "Think about it, Grey. If we call the police and tell them about the robbery before it occurs, the police will arrest those wolves before they escape. And that would mean…"
He paused waiting for Greypaw to pick up what he was getting at.
Greypaw's eyes went wide as he realized where Arctic was going with this.
"...it would mean that Officer Pauline and Officer Martin can't kill Starlet and Snowpaw because they've already made an arrest!" he exclaimed. "Arctic, that's a great idea!"
"So, let's get this show on the road then!" Arctic declared.
With that, they started up their backpacks once more.
And with a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw and Arctic vanished.
Saturday, July 3, 2023
12:00 P.M.
20 minutes to the robbery
45 minutes to the shooting
In the small alleyway, Mittens was taking a break by snoozing in the summer heat. All of a sudden a loud BANG! woke the poor cat up with a start. Looking around in shock and utter confusion, she saw two wolf pups with weird-looking backpacks and goggles staggering out of the dust cloud.
"What in Enchantia are you crazy kids doing?!" Mittens yelled. "Can't a cat take a nap on a Saturday afternoon without…"
"SHUT UP!" Greypaw and Arctic barked at her.
Mittens balked in surprise.
Ignoring the salescat, Greypaw pulled his phone from his bag and dialed 911.
"This is the Magdellin Police Department," the operator answered. "What's your emergency?"
"Yes, hi," Greypaw said as he and Arctic broke into a run heading toward Carlos'. "This is Greypaw Grey Wolf speaking. I'd like to report a robbery at Carlos' Convenience Store please…"
12:10 P.M.
10 minutes to the robbery
35 minutes to the shooting
Outside of Carlos' Convenience Store, the day was going about as normal as one would expect. This was the scene that was unfolding as Greypaw and Arctic ran up to the store.
"Alright," Greypaw said. "Arctic, you stay here and keep watch. I'll go in and warn Carlos. Signal me when you see Sandstorm and Blaze."
"You got it," Arctic replied, hiding behind a sign on the curb.
Greypaw turned and walked into Carlos'. Inside was practically empty, except for Carlos Camel himself. Greypaw began looking around the store, pretending to be a normal customer.
Suddenly, Greypaw's phone began to ring.
As he picked up the line, he saw that it was Arctic.
He checked his watch. To his confusion, it was 12:15, five minutes before the robbery was due to occur. So, why was his friend calling him now?
"What's up Arctic?" he asked. "Are they coming?"
"Well, someone's coming," Arctic whispered. "But it's not Sandstorm and Blaze. Greypaw, I'm heading your way!"
"Arctic!" Greypaw growled. "You're going to mess everything up! Stay hidden and keep watch!"
"I am!" Arctic cried. "I mean the other me is coming!"
Greypaw looked up just in time to see another Arctic enter the store. Upon seeing Greypaw, he stopped in surprise, before smiling and approaching him.
"Hey Greypaw!" the other Arctic said cheerfully. "Fancy seeing you here! I thought Starlet and Snowpaw asked you to keep an eye on things at the party."
Greypaw started to sweat a little. He decided to play along. Luckily, he remembered the day's events and quickly came up with a cover story.
"Oh. Yeah, they did!" he told the other Arctic. "But I had to…um…pick up a few things for the party."
"O…K?" the other Arctic said in confusion. "But then, why are you wearing your pack? I thought we were gonna run another test tomorrow?"
Greypaw tried to think of a reply when the door chimed. Glancing over, he saw Sandstorm and Blaze enter the store. Greypaw's heart raced, as he feared that the robbery was gonna take place again. But, this time, Sandstorm and Blaze spotted him and the other Arctic inside the store as well. So instead of carrying out the robbery right away, they stalled, pretending to browse the store.
Greypaw walked over to Carlos with a candy bar. As Carlos began to scan the item, Greypaw slipped him a note.
On the note was the message, "Robbers. Wolves with tan fur and white jackets. Police are on their way! Call 911!"
Greypaw nodded in the direction of Sandstorm and Blaze.
Carlos nodded in understanding and pulled out a shotgun from behind the counter. The store owner pointed this in the direction of Sandstorm and Blaze.
"HEY! YOU TWO!" he shouted. "Put your paws over your head right now!"
Startled, Sandstorm and Blaze raised their paws above their head.
"Woah! Hey now mister!" Blaze cried. "Let's not get hasty here!"
"Stay where you are!" Carlos ordered as he looked away to grab his phone.
But that was his big mistake.
As soon as the store owner's eyes were off him and Blaze, Sandstorm suddenly whipped a pistol out of his jacket and pointed it squarely at the camel's head. Startled, Carlos dropped the shotgun and raised his hooves.
"Not so tough now, are we?" Sandstorm snarled.
Blaze picked up the shotgun and pointed it toward Greypaw and the other Arctic.
"And you kids, paws up now!" he barked. "Don't you two get any ideas!"
Greypaw and the other Arctic raised their paws above their heads.
"Let's go bud!" Sandstorm snapped, poking Carlos with the gun. "Give us all the money you got, or else we'll shoot!"
"Ok! OK! Just don't hurt anyone!" Carlos pleaded, raising his hooves. He reached down and opened the register. Sandstorm reached over the counter and grabbed all of the bills inside the drawer.
"You won't get away with this," Greypaw said. "The cops are already on their way."
"Shut up kid!" Blaze growled. "If you know what's good for you, you keep your snout shut!"
It was then that Blaze's eyes fell on Greypaw's backpack.
"Whatcha got in that backpack of yours kid?" he snapped. "Hand it over!"
Greypaw's heart began to race.
"No way!" he shouted.
"I said give me that bag!" Blaze snarled, lunging at Greypaw.
Greypaw twisted out his reach and managed to bite Blaze on the paw.
"I said NO!" he yelled.
"Grey! Just give it to him!" the other Arctic pleaded. "We can build another one!"
"No!" Greypaw shouted.
12:45 P.M.
Outside the store, Arctic waited anxiously for Greypaw's return. When the sounds of shouting grew inside the store, he considered running in to help his friend. But, knowing that his past self was in there too, that was too much of a risk. So he stayed put and prayed that Greypaw would handle things.
Suddenly…
BANG! BANG!
Two gunshots rang out.
As Arctic watched, a small white wolf pup staggered out of the door of the store. Arctic's eyes widened as he watched his past self slump to the ground.
A half-second later, Greypaw came running out. Sandstorm and Blaze rushed out the door too.
"Where do we go?!" Blaze cried.
"Odd World," said Sandstorm. "We can lose the cops in the crowd."
The two thieves turned and raced in the direction of Odd World.
Meanwhile, Greypaw knelt by the fallen Arctic.
"No, no, no, no, no! Arctic! ARCTIC!" he cried in despair. "Hang on buddy! Please! Don't die!"
The Arctic from the past coughed, a spew of blood erupting from his mouth. The Arctic that traveled with Greypaw approached the fallen body of his past self, shock and horror on his face.
The Past Arctic turned and spotted the version of him from the future. His eyes went wide in shock and confusion before his gaze turned to Greypaw.
"Y..Y…You're…not…," he started to say.
Greypaw shook his head.
"No," he replied. "We're not from today. We came from three days later. But you can't die you hear me?!"
The Past Arctic blinked his eyes before they fluttered shut and a last breath escaped his lips.
"Arctic? Arctic?!" Greypaw cried.
Suddenly, Arctic coughed. Blood splattered onto the ground as the gunshot wounds appeared on Arctic's body.
"G-Greypaw?!" he choked out weakly, terror in his voice.
Arctic's body started to flicker, like static on a TV screen.
Greypaw's eyes widened in horror as he realized what was happening. Since the Arctic from the past had died, that meant…
The grey wolf pup frantically shook the past Arctic.
"Arctic! Wake up! WAKE UP! WAKE UP RIGHT NOW!" he screamed.
He gazed back to his friend…only to find that Arctic had vanished. The only thing left of him was his backpack and goggles.
Greypaw let out a howl of despair.
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
The timer sounded it's warning.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry Arctic!" Greypaw sobbed.
Picking up his friend's gear, he raced back to the alleyway and pressed the button to take him back.
And with a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw vanished.
Tuesday, July 6, 2023
12:30 P.M.
Greypaw appeared alone back in his family garage, still clutching Arctic's backpack. Dropping it to the floor, the little grey wolf pup fell to the ground and wept.
It wasn't fair!
This wasn't supposed to happen!
Where had everything gone so wrong?
Was this going to be his life? Was he going to continuously lose those he cared about most forever?
As he lay on the cold concrete floor, the door to the garage suddenly opened. Looking up, his eyes brimming with tears, he saw Starlet and Snowpaw enter. The two white wolves had solemn expressions on their faces.
"Hey Little G," said Starlet gently. "How're you holding up?"
Greypaw shook his head.
"I just wished I could've done something," he whimpered.
Snowpaw came over to Greypaw's side and patted him.
"Grey, it's no one's fault," said Snowpaw. "It was a terrible tragedy. It's sad that Arctic had to get caught in the crossfire, but sometimes these things happen you know?"
Greypaw nodded sadly.
"There is something we need to discuss though," Starlet said suddenly.
Greypaw looked up in confusion.
"W-What is it?" he asked.
Snowpaw sighed.
"You see Little G," he said slowly, "ever since Arctic's funeral, Starlet and I have just been feeling…off slightly."
"Feeling…off? What do you mean by that?" Greypaw asked.
"It's hard to explain," Starlet replied, scratching his ear. "But for some strange reason, Snowpaw and I feel like it should've been us who died that day. Do you know why we'd be feeling like that?"
Greypaw felt as though someone had poured a bucket of ice all over his body. Arctic had been right. They had messed up the timeline completely.
The grey pup sighed. He knew he had to come clean to his cousins.
"I…do know," he murmured.
Starlet and Snowpaw could tell by the serious expression on Greypaw's face that he wasn't playing around. A solemn expression crossed Starlet's face.
"Greypaw…" he said slowly. "What's going on here?"
Greypaw sighed.
"The truth is…you and Snowpaw are supposed to be dead Starlet," Greypaw said.
He gestured to the backpacks he and Arctic had made.
"These packs are an invention that Arctic and I came up with for school," he explained. "They allow us to travel back in time to a set date for up to 1 hour."
He paused as the terrible memories of July 3rd began to resurface.
"When you guys died, Arctic and I traveled back in time to try and save you both," he explained. "Our first attempt didn't go so well, because we arrived too late. And in our second attempt…well…we tried to stop the Carlos' Convenience Store robbery."
"You…did…WHAT?!" Snowpaw cried in shock.
"Greypaw! That's incredibly dangerous!" Starlet growled. "What were you thinking?!"
"I was desperate okay?!" Greypaw cried, tears spilling down his cheeks. "I wanted to save you two no matter what. But then, Arctic ended up getting killed instead."
Snowpaw shook his head.
"Look Grey," he said softly. "Sometimes, no matter how hard we want things, bad things happen. And there's nothing anyone can do about it okay?"
Greypaw nodded sniffling.
"But," said Starlet, smiling. "That doesn't mean you have to give up."
He pulled Greypaw to his paws and handed him his backpack.
"What do you say we help you fix this mess?" Starlet said.
Greypaw smiled in gratitude.
1:30 P.M.
About an hour later, Snowpaw and Greypaw stood attentively as Starlet stood before a whiteboard with a fully drawn plan of action on it.
"Okay," he said. "Grey?"
"I've already reset my pack to take me back to the previous jump to get me there at the same time as Arctic did," Greypaw said.
"Right," said Starlet. "Now, while you will know what happened on your last jump, Arctic won't. Since you've also been back there twice already, you know the route to take to avoid Daniella. Then all you have to do is get to Odd World and warn me and Snowpaw, thus saving us and Arctic at the same time."
"Sounds like a plan," said Snowpaw.
With that, Greypaw started setting up his backpack and preparing to jump back.
"Grey, wait," Snowpaw said suddenly.
The white wolf placed two objects around Greypaw's neck. The grey wolf pup looked down to see his cousins' necklaces.
"Just in case Little G," Snowpaw said.
Greypaw smiled.
"Do us a favor will ya Little G?" Starlet added. "When you go back to three days ago, try as hard as you can to convince us, will you?"
"I'll do my best," Greypaw replied.
Starlet and Snowpaw pulled their little cousin into a hug. After a while, they finally let go and stepped back.
"Hey," Snowpaw and Starlet called as Greypaw started the pack. "We'll see you on the flipside Little G."
Greypaw smiled.
"See you on the flipside cuz," he replied.
And with a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw vanished.
Saturday, July 3, 2023
12:00 P.M.
45 minutes to the shooting
In the small alleyway, Mittens was taking a break by snoozing in the summer heat. All of a sudden a loud BANG! woke the poor cat up with a start. Looking around in shock and utter confusion, she saw a small white wolf pup with a weird-looking backpack and goggles stagger out of the dust cloud.
Arctic looked around in confusion. Greypaw was nowhere in sight.
"Greypaw?" he called, worry in his voice.
Had something gone wrong during their jump?
"What in Enchantia are you doing kid?!" Mittens yelled. "Can't a cat take a nap on a Saturday afternoon without…"
Suddenly there was another loud BANG!
Greypaw suddenly appeared in another swirl of dust.
"What the hell?!" Mittens cried in shock.
"Greypaw?" Arctic asked in confusion.
Greypaw looked up and beamed upon seeing his friend.
"ARCTIC! YOU'RE ALIVE!" he cried in delight, wrapping his friend in a massive hug.
Arctic blinked in confusion but hugged his friend back.
"Yeah? I'm glad to see you too?" he said. "Look bud, we've got a mission to complete. Let's not waste time."
"Yeah, you're right," said Greypaw. "Let's get going. Come on!"
He raced out of the alleyway with Arctic in tow.
As they did, Arctic turned to the left to head towards Carlos' Convenience Store. But to his absolute confusion, Greypaw instead bolted to the right in the direction of Odd World.
"What the heck?! Greypaw! Where are you going?!" Arctic cried. "We need to get to Carlos'!"
Meanwhile, Starlet and Snowpaw were at their family Barbeque.
Starlet checked his watch. It was 12:00 in the afternoon.
"Snow," he said. "It's time to go."
Snowpaw nodded.
"Grey!" he called. "Come here a minute please!"
At the barbeque, the Greypaw from the current day, upon hearing his name, jogged over to his cousins.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Hold down the fort here for a while," Snowpaw instructed him. "Star and I have to leave for our interview."
"Aww! Already?" Greypaw complained.
"Hey, if all goes well," Starlet said teasingly, booping Greypaw on the nose, "we might just celebrate by going out for ice cream."
"Yay!" Greypaw yipped happily, his tail wagging.
"So, can we count on you to look after things for us?" Starlet asked.
"Yes sir!" Greypaw said.
"Attaboy," Starlet replied, ruffling Greypaw's fur. "Alright, we gotta get going. See you on the flipside, Little G."
With that, Starlet and Snowpaw set off.
12:20 P.M.
25 minutes to the shooting
Several blocks away at Carlos' Convenience Store, Sandstorm and Blaze entered the store. They approached the register and pointed a gun at Carlos Camel's face, surprising the shop owner.
"Let's go bud!" Blaze snapped. "Give us all the money you got, or else we'll shoot!"
"Ok! OK! Just don't hurt anyone!" Carlos pleaded, raising his hooves. He reached down and opened the register. Sandstorm reached over the counter and grabbed all of the bills inside the drawer.
At that moment, a siren started sounding.
"Damn! Sandstorm! The cops are coming! Let's bounce!" Blaze cried.
"Chill out Blaze!" Sandstorm snapped. "I know that!"
Filling their bags, he and Blaze rushed out of the store.
"Where do we go?!" Blaze cried.
"Odd World," said Sandstorm. "We can lose the cops in the crowd."
The two thieves turned and raced in the direction of Odd World.
12:44 P.M.
60 seconds to the shooting
At that moment, Starlet and Snowpaw were just approaching the entrance to Odd World.
"I hope we get this job Star," Snowpaw said, nervously.
"All we can do is hope for the best," Starlet replied. "That's all that matters. If we make it, fine. If not, we can try again somewhere else."
"I know," said Snowpaw. "It's just…We just have to do this. For Greypaw's sake. He's a growing pup, and I know you want him to have a life as much as I do."
"I know that," Starlet sighed. "These last few years have been hard on all of us Snow. All we can do is just remain supportive of Greypaw and be there for him."
Snowpaw nodded.
"I guess you're right," he said.
"STARLET! SNOWPAW!" a voice called out behind them.
Startled, Starlet and Snowpaw turned to see Greypaw and Arctic sprinting towards them.
"Arctic? Greypaw?!" Starlet cried in shock. "What are you two doing here? I thought we told you to stay at the party and watch over things for us!"
"And what in Enchantia are y'all wearing?" Snowpaw chuckled, gesturing to the backpacks the two pups were wearing.
"We'll explain later," Greypaw said frantically. He grabbed Snowpaw's leg and tried to pull him away from Odd World. "Right now, we need to get out of here."
"Get out of here?" Snowpaw asked in confusion. "Why?"
"Grey, what's going on?" Starlet asked.
"Listen to us!" Arctic pleaded. "Carlos' Convenience Store was robbed today and the robbers are on their way here to Odd World!"
"Wow, poor Carlos," Starlet said. "But what does that have to do with me and Snowpaw?"
"If you and Snowpaw don't leave right now, you both are going to get killed!" Greypaw shouted.
There was a beat of silence.
"Look," Greypaw said. He reached out and pulled out his cousins' necklaces that were still draped around his neck.
"You only told me that I'd get these if you died," he said.
Starlet and Snowpaw stared at the necklaces…before an angry expression crossed their faces.
"Is this some sort of a sick joke?" Starlet growled. "Because it's not funny Greypaw."
"Yeah," Snowpaw snarled. "You think you can threaten us like that and come here with some copy of our necklaces like this?"
Suddenly, another voice rang out.
"Hey, you runts! Get outta the way!"
Greypaw, Arctic, Starlet, and Snowpaw jumped in surprise when Sandstorm and Blaze ran past them carrying two large bags. They disappeared into the Odd World crowd.
"Well, that was weird," Snowpaw said, tilting his head in confusion. "What was that all about?"
A second later, a siren rang out as Officer Pauline and Officer Martin arrived on the scene.
Seeing them, Greypaw let out a frustrated snarl.
"You've gotta be kidding me!" he growled. "Not again!"
"All four of you! Stop right there!" Officer Martin shouted over the megaphone. "Put your paws in the air, and get on the ground now!"
Officer Pauline and Officer Martin exited their cars.
Greypaw rushed up to them.
"Listen to me!" he cried. "The wolves you want, they just ran inside of Odd World! Go inside and you'll find them!"
"Back up kid!" Officer Pauline snapped. "Just follow our instructions and everything will be alright."
"Greypaw," Snowpaw called. "Just listen to the police little cuz. Everything will be fine."
"Your cousin is one smart wolf," Officer Pauline noted.
"Look here officers," Starlet started to say, "If this has anything to do with that robbery at Carlos', my brother, my cousin, and his friend here had nothing to do with that."
Unfortunately, it was as if those words set off an atomic bomb. As fast as lightning, Officer Pauline and Officer Martin whipped their guns out and pointed them at the quartet of wolves.
"On the ground! All of you, right now!" Officer Martin shouted.
"Woah! Woah! Wait! We didn't do anything!" Snowpaw cried.
"We're all innocent!" Arctic cried.
"I said GET ON THE GROUND!" Officer Martin bellowed again.
Greypaw, Starlet, and Snowpaw obeyed the command and lay on their stomachs.
Officer Pauline reached out and grabbed Arctic by the strap of his backpack and through him to the ground.
Officer Martin got on his radio to radio dispatch.
"This is Officer P. Martin to dispatch," he called. "We got two wolves here that match the description of the suspects who robbed Carlos' earlier today."
Meanwhile, Arctic struggled under the weight of Officer Pauline.
"H-Hey! G-Get off!" he choked out. "I-I-I need air!"
"Arctic!" Greypaw cried, realizing in horror that his friend was suffocating under the weight of the police officer.
Starlet and Snowpaw looked first over at Arctic, then at Greypaw, then at each other.
The two wolves shared a nod and stood up.
Starlet reached into his coat pocket, found his phone, and pulled it out.
Seeing this, Greypaw cried out.
"Starlet! Snowpaw! What are you doing?!" he cried.
"Saving your lives Little G," Snowpaw said gently.
"Never forget us," Starlet added.
At that moment, Officer Martin yelled, "GUN! They've got a gun!"
Faster than lighting, the cop drew his gun from his holster, pointed it at Starlet and Snowpaw, and…
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Four gunshots rang out through the afternoon sky.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Greypaw screamed, tears streaming from his eyes.
He felt his heart shatter into a million pieces as he watched the bodies of Starlet and Snowpaw slump lifelessly to the ground.
Officer Pauline let go of Arctic and rushed over to the two fallen wolves.
Greypaw was wailing in distress. He was dimly aware of Arctic pulling him to his paws and crying out to him, "Grey! We have to go! NOW!"
The next few seconds were a blur as Arctic led Greypaw back to the alleyway once more and pressed the button to take them back.
And with a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw and Arctic vanished.
Tuesday, July 6, 2023
1:40 P.M.
With a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw and Arctic appeared once again in the wolf family's garage. Greypaw dropped his pack on the floor and slumped to the ground.
Arctic dropped his pack too, but stared at his friend, anger on his face.
"Why didn't we stick to the plan Grey?!" Arctic yelled. "I thought our plan was to go to Carlos' Convenience Store and stop the robbery!"
"That wouldn't have worked Arctic!" Greypaw snapped.
"How would you know that?!" Arctic demanded. "We haven't even tried that yet."
Greypaw's eyes fell to the ground, and he shuffled uncomfortably. Unfortunately, Arctic noticed.
The white wolf pup's eyes went wide.
"You have," he gasped. "You went back again, didn't you?"
Greypaw didn't reply.
"Grey! Tell me right now!" Arctic demanded. "How many times now have you gone back?"
"Five," Greypaw replied with a sigh. "It's because you died on the fourth run Arctic."
Arctic fell silent.
"You mean to tell me, that had we gone to stop the robbery like we planned, I would've gotten killed?!" he yelled.
Greypaw nodded.
"I'm sorry Greypaw," Arctic said, shaking his head. "But, I'm done with this now. I'm not doing this anymore."
"You don't have to," Greypaw said.
"Grey, we tried okay?" said Arctic. "But. it's time we stopped okay?"
Greypaw nodded.
"I'm gonna run inside for a drink," Arctic said. "You want one?"
"A Sprite would be good," Greypaw replied.
"Got it," Arctic replied.
He turned and exited the garage. As soon as Arctic was out the door, however, Greypaw suddenly reached up and grabbed the garage door,
"I'm sorry, Arctic," he said sadly, as he slammed it shut.
Arctic turned and raced back to the door. He pounded against it.
"Greypaw! GREYPAW! OPEN THE DOOR!" Arctic cried. "Don't do what I think you're going to do!"
Inside the garage, Greypaw put his backpack on again and started it up again.
Arctic ran inside the house and rushed around to the garage. He burst through the door just as the Greypaw's pack reached its full charge.
"Forgive me Arctic," Greypaw said sadly as he pressed the button.
And with a loud ZAP! BANG! Greypaw vanished.
Saturday, July 3, 2023
12:00 P.M.
Greypaw appeared this time in the Wolf Family garage. He checked his watch and set his alarm for 12:45. The grey wolf pup took a deep breath, and looked out into the distance where Odd World awaited.
Staring straight ahead at that glimmering theme park, Greypaw broke into a run one more time.
Out there…was hope. Out there…was another chance. All that he needed was one last perfect run.
As Greypaw ran through the Magdellin streets, the only melodic sounds he heard were the thumping of his heart, the pattering of his paws, the clinking of the necklaces,...
…and the ever-persistent ticking of the clock.
TICK TICK TICK…the 10-minute timer counted down, like a harbinger of doom.
He could only run.
He could only pray.
He could only hope…
…that he wasn't too late…