What Jake had neglected to tell Everest was the Ruff Ruff Pack wasn't only staying for a single day. The husky assisted in fixing the tower then simply returned inside, expecting the bikers to just leave in the blizzard while she and Jake put on a movie. She was swiftly taken out of her thoughts with disbelief, as Jake emerged back inside with all three dogs in tow. Hubcap had finally returned; news that Jake proudly proclaimed while Everest rolled her eyes. Gasket flashed her a questioning look, Dwayne instantly attacked the first chew toy he saw, and Hubcap wandered off in search of food.

"Alright, get cozy everyone!" Jake said as he pulled his gloves off. "The blizzard's coming back down, so why don't we all just lay back for the night?"

Everest couldn't stop the question from coming out. "Are they staying the night?"

"What, you expect us to just leave?" Gasket countered, walking to her. "When temperatures dip below freezing? Hilarious, you should do comedy." She let out a dry laugh, pushing past the stunned Everest.

They did indeed stay, for far longer than Everest would have liked. A night with them was acceptable; until the morning came, and the bikers barely glanced up from their breakfast. The morning turned to noon, Everest pushing down her agitation as Hubcap gobbled up her pup treats and Gasket's sass followed her every move. Everest couldn't have a single conversation with the Malamute that wasn't laced with passive-aggressiveness. They would be gone at sundown, she told herself as she bit her tongue, surely Jake would have them leave then. The afternoon turned to dusk, then the sunlight faded from the mountain. With the moon high in the sky shining above the unyielding clouds as they released their snow; the Ruff Ruff Pack remained. She was at least grateful that she didn't have to share a bed with anyone, the bikers merely found a space and fell asleep on their sides. A whole day itching with annoyances, a disturbance that festered under her skin.

That night; Everest sat before the lit fireplace, tapping her claws on the ground as her blood silently boiled. Of all the dogs Jake could've called to the mountain, he couldn't have at least called someone she knew. No, let his prized husky be dropped in a cage with three dogs that smelled of gasoline and barely knew a thing about snowboarding. In the back of her mind, she wondered if it would be worth it trying to actually become friends with them. She frowned before the fire, knowing how little friends she already had. Did coworkers count as friends? It was a grey area she had never really got accustomed to, sure a coworker could be a friend, but only within a work setting. Once outside of it, they barely paid one another any mind or even thought of them.

Who truly were her friends? The PAW Patrol was worthy of such titles, but little did they ever give Everest much attention. That said, there was one dog within them she always looked forward to seeing again: The aviation pup, the cockapoo who took to the skies; Skye.

Perhaps it was their love for the outdoors that drew them together, or maybe the twinge of loneliness from being the only girls in male-dominated groups. Or maybe it could've been Skye's outgoing personality that broke the ice of Everest's introverted nature. Either way; they found each other, and were an unstoppable pair whenever they found themselves together on missions. She caught herself thinking about Skye a lot, her friend invading her thoughts often in moments of loneliness. Even with their friendship they rarely talked, only brief reconnections the next time they saw each other. Lowering her head and letting out a long sigh, Everest was willing to give anything if it meant Skye could be here instead of the foul biker gang.

Jake was busy the next morning; his eyes too fixated on his handheld devices to notice the tense breakfast scene. The urge to strangle someone was incredible as Everest watched Hubcap messily gobble up his meal. The blood boiling under her skin was making it difficult to pull a poker face, any more strenuous effort and a vein would probably pop. Gasket could see the whole thing unfolding, watching the husky in amusement.

"Everest?" Jake walked in, holding his tablet. "There's news."

The husky immediately whipped around, elated she was finally getting his attention. "What's u-" A violent choking sound cut off her sentence, as Everest had blissfully forgotten that there was food in her mouth. Flattening her ears, she gripped her own neck and started hacking up the clog in her throat. Much to the silent disgust of the other animals at the tablet, she coughed up a chunk of food and gingerly chewed it before swallowing. Dazed by the event, she let herself breathe for a few seconds before gingerly looking up at her owner with an apologetic smile.

Jake had his arms at his sides, staring at his dog. "Are you okay?"

"Ice or snow, I'm... ready to go." The husky said with a weary smile, desperate to be useful again.

"Uh, okay." Said her befuddled owner, looking her up and down for a moment before turning back to his tablet. "Remember the other night when you went out to that outpost?"

The color drained from Everest's face. "Uhm... yeah?" Her heartbeat quickened, uncertainty climbing her back.

"Remember how the signal randomly shut off by the time you made it there?"

"It did do that," the husky nodded. "I thought it was weird, but there wasn't much there..." she hesitated. "Nothing that really... answered many of my questions."

"Well when that tablet you uncovered finally finishes decrypting, maybe we'll get some new information." Her owner said absently.

"It's not done?!" Everest exclaimed, astonished at the time it was taking to repair the machine. "I thought it would be finished by now!"

"That thing was really busted, Everest, I only had so much hardware to work with. I literally had to fix several pieces of it before I even plugged it into my computer, and that alone was not an easy thing to do. But the point is: the signal from the outpost suddenly turned on again. Like, around ten minutes ago."

"It did?" The dog tilted her head, an uneasy vibe beginning to surround the breakfast table. "You mean someone went back to it?" The rest of the animals all raised their heads from their food, their attention now on Jake with piqued curiosity.

"Turning one of those things on doesn't take the flip of a switch," Jake explained, his face twisting in bewilderment at the scenario. "There's a whole process; that means whoever did has an extensive knowledge of how to work one. And that is why this is my highest priority now, I want to know who that is." He pointed at the table, quickly counting up the dogs before him. "I..." he grimaced, wincing at what he was about to propose. "I need someone to go back out there."

"The outpost?" Hubcap said, narrowing his eyes. "Isn't that where she got hurt?" He pointed a meaty paw at Everest.

"It was," the husky followed his statement, happy to finally agree with him on something. But still; she wasn't going to fully reveal the details, even if Gasket knew. She turned back to her owner with a confused expression. "You saw what happened to me there, why on earth are you sending me back if I got attacked?"

"I didn't say I was sending you." Jake waved her off, then paused. Looking down at his dog, his expression turned into confusion. "Wait... you never said you were attacked." He quickly put it together in his head. "You said you fell on glass, why are you saying now you got attacked?"

Gasket barely suppressed a chuckle as Everest turned white under her fur.

"I- ... well," Everest stiffened, her eyes widening as she realized her mistake. "I mean it... it felt like I was attacked. I assure you; I absolutely fell on glass, you could put me on a lie detector for that. I probably uh-" her paws fidgeted nervously on the chair. "I probably ran into a couple of tables or... something. You know?" She ended her speech of lies with a dry chuckle, praying Jake would believe her.

It was difficult to tell with the confused expression he was wearing. "Okay then," he muttered, having lost his train of thought. "Well... I wasn't sending you, not after what happened to you there. I was actually on sending one of the Ruff Ruff Pack."

Hubcap raised an eyebrow at him. "You're sending us out in the snow to a location where it's been explicitly stated that dogs get hurt there?" He said flatly.

"It's because we're stronger, Hubcap." Gasket smirked, sneaking a glance at Everest. The husky immediately returned the gesture with a hostile glare. If Skye had been here, she would've raced to defend her at the minute the bullying started.

Snapping his fingers at the two, Jake was quick to shut down their quips. "Hey, enough. We all work together here, but Everest is in no condition to go out there again."

Jumping onto the table Gasket proudly puffed out her chest. "Send me! I'm not afraid of shadows or... bigger shadows."

"Yeah, send her." Hubcap barely glanced in her direction. "If it means I don't have to hear her for the next few hours."

Dwayne leaned into the conversation, sporting a wide smile and wagging tail. "Can I come? I can do something, I can be helpful!" He put his paws on the table, pieces of scrambled egg dripping from his muzzle.

Pulling an annoyed expression, Gasket looked at him sharply. "Dwayne, where does snow come from?"

"Uhm," the Great Dane was taken aback, puzzled at her question. "Uhh... when a..." he squinted, trying to form his answer. "When a mommy snow and daddy snow love each other very much...?"

"That's why you're not coming. You're an idiot."

"Hey, I can be smart!" Dwayne huffed, tapping his paws. "I just need to learn how."

"My point is thus proven," Gasket said, looking back to Jake with a smirk. "You're looking at the superior animal, here. Send me out to the outpost."

Groaning into his hand, Jake was visibly exhausted from the bickering. Ending this song and dance was more motivation to move on than the actual mission at stake. "Alright, fine! Gasket's going, everyone shut up now, please! Let's all just eat our breakfast and be friends, okay?" He held out his arms at the four, pleading for harmony. "Jesus, you'd think talking dogs would be advanced enough as a species to get along with one another." He pointed to Gasket. "You; Malamute. Follow me, I'll get you set up with your gear."

If Skye had been here, Everest discreetly thought in her head, she'd have shut them all up in seconds. She blinked as Gasket's tail whipped her face, the biker walking off with Jake for mission briefing. At least the jerk would gone for most of the day, she sighed in defeat as she returned to her eggs.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The following night was a lonely one. Gasket hadn't yet returned from her mission out in the snow, and Jake's work had been relatively light. Everest lay awake in her bed, idly staring at the home screen of her tablet. She finally had some time and a whole room for herself yet didn't have the slightest clue about what to play. Her eyes flickered across each game she had, mentally dismissing each one as she saw fit. She already played that one, that one she mastered, and that one barely interested her anymore. Too easy or boring, without realizing it she had already swept her entire game library.

Overwhelmed with a feeling of longing, Everest picked up her tablet and accessed its call function. Just one call, one little talk with the PAW Patrol, would be enough to ease her worries. It would certainly be better than trying to talk to Chase on a discontinued machine. Picking up the device in her mouth, she crept out of the room with gentle steps. She just had to get somewhere quiet, out of consideration mostly, and maybe she could finally have a private conversation. Her paws were muffled on the worn blue carpet, as was the case for the other dog walking up behind her.

"Evening!" Dwayne spoke, shattering the silence with his voice.

"Gaahh!" Everest jumped, her heart skipping over itself. "Ah- what are you-!?" Furiously turning around, she faced him with bared teeth. "What the hell is wrong with you?! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

The Great Dane flinched back, a flash of fear on his face. "I was just... saying hi."

"You can't just sneak up on someone like that! Especially not in the middle of the night!"

"I know, I know," Dwayne began to shrink. "I know, I'm sorry I-"

"Do you want me to slap you?"

"N-no!" The biker's tail went under his legs, taking a step back. "I just... I just wanted to apologize."

"For what?"

He nervously kneaded the ground, hanging his head with an uncomfortable expression. "About what happened at breakfast. Gasket and all... she's just a jerk."

"I would feel a lot better if the apology actually came from her," Everest grumbled, trying to lick her fur back down. "What, is she telling you to say all this?"

"No." The biker shook his head. "I just felt bad."

Scoffing slightly, Everest leered at him with a sour expression. "Well thanks for your concern, but I'm fine. Can you please leave me alone now?"

"Right, sure." Dwayne's tail slowly began to wag again. He stood up and turned away, but not before looking over his shoulder. "If it makes you feel any better, I don't think it's anything personal. She's just always like that." His words fell on deaf ears, as Everest had already swiftly fled down the hallway. Realizing she was gone, Dwayne stood alone for a few seconds and frowned. Sighing to himself, he sadly walked back to his bed.

Pushing open the door to an unused back room, she was met with the stench of old carpet and hardwood. A mess of unused ski equipment was tossed to the corner, doomed to gather dust until someone gave the time to fix their imperfections. At least now she had some privacy, letting the tablet fall from her mouth to the floor. Sitting down and making herself comfortable, she accessed the call function and pulled up the screen of contacts. She didn't talk to many over the phone too often, usually because it required having groups of friends in the first place.

Skye was the first contact Everest called, tapping her name on the screen. The tablet buzzed to life as it sent the call, Everest sitting patiently as the glow of the screen illuminated her frown. Silence encompassed her as she sat alone, surrounded by her own thoughts and mind. The line suddenly went dead, something Everest wasn't too surprised about. The call was missed -or likely declined entirely - much to the husky's disappointment. "She's probably busy," she shrugged off the crippling loneliness as they scrolled through other contacts. Perhaps Chase could talk again, she told herself upon seeing his name, maybe she could get some answers about the happening in Adventure Bay.

She called Chase and waited, tapping her foot on the floor impatiently. Seconds passed her by, agitation bristling her fur as she stared at the tablet. The call suddenly declined, coming to an abrupt end as Everest sat in surprise. It hadn't been ignored or missed, Chase had actually declined the call.

"What-?" She muttered, feeling hurt as confusion sowed in her mind. "Why did- ... fine."

None of the other PAW Patrol members were picking up either, each one going to voicemail and sinking her heart further. At first; she was angry, annoyed and demanding an understanding of why no one wanted to talk to her. By the next call it turned into desperation, a hollow feeling growing in her chest as she silently pleaded to hear someone's voice.

The last contact was a dog named Zuma; a Chocolate Labrador who worked as a coast guard. She didn't talk to him often, or really had any interaction at all with him, so Everest was expecting another dead end. Figuring she'd at least go through all six, the husky lowered her ears as she apathetically tapped Zuma's name. The ringing of the tablet was lost on her, her eyes wandering up the frost-covered window on the wall. Gazing through the layer of snow, her mind aimlessly drifted into the unknown. Her thoughts were filled with uncertainty, echoing static clouding her head with the unknown. A feeling of hopelessness began to slowly arise.

A voice came through the tablet. "Hello?"

"Huh?" Everest snapped out of her thoughts, looking back down at her device. "Hello?"

"I already said hello." The voice said absently, "who is this?"

"Zuma?"

"Yes? That's me, who is this?"

It suddenly clicked in her head, Everest quickly recollected herself realizing that the call was actually answered. "Zuma, hi! Sorry, it-" She laughed nervously. "It's Everest! Sorry, I didn't think you'd actually answer me."

Zuma's voice came through again, completely devoid of any joy or excitement. "Everest, this really isn't a good time."

"Right- right, I understand." The husky said quickly. "I know you guys are busy, can you tell Skye I called?"

The Labrador went quiet for several seconds, almost making Everest wonder if he had hung up. "Yeah, I can um-" he hesitated, voice sounding uncomfortable. "I can... tell her you called."

The dissonance in his voice was drawing her concern. "Is everything okay down there?"

"We're fine, Everest. But... some things have happened." Zuma said, grimacing in his words. "A lot of things; big things. Things that we aren't really sure what to do about. Look, it may be awhile until you hear from me again, there's... there's just a lot going on down here."

Concern flashed over Everest's face, leaning closer to the screen a little. "Well then can I talk to Skye? If you guys are going away, I at least want to know when-"

"No." Zuma cut her off almost immediately. "Skye..." he winced. "You just... you just can't right now."

"Why? Is she okay?"

"Goodbye, Everest." Zuma growled, sounding like he was about to end the call.

"Wait, no!" She almost barked. "Just tell me, I can help! Whatever's going on, I can help! Zuma, please, just tell me what's going on!" She completely stood up, staring down at the tablet as desperation flooded her voice. "I never get to do anything around here; no one ever lets me!" A thought came over her, flicking her eyes to the side for a moment before she tried a little something. "Just like how no one ever lets you do anything, right?"

Zuma went quiet.

"I never see you out there, on the missions with the rest of them." She pressed the subject. "It's always the same dogs, I've almost never seen you. Zuma, how often do you actually get picked to help them?"

No response, Everest began to grow concerned as she wondered if this was crossing the line. "I... to an extent, understand you in a way. Do you ever feel alone? I know I do..." she hung her head slightly. "Even with these new dogs here, I don't know any of them. I just wanted to talk to Skye; the one friend I have over there, and if she's going away for a mission or something, I'd really like to know why." Her words trailed off, an audible sigh leaving her. "So can you please tell me... what's going on?"

She sat alone in silence for what felt like hours, until Zuma finally spoke up again: "Everest, you should probably sit down."

"Hm?" The husky cocked her head, then lowered herself back to the ground. "Okay... I'm sitting." A feeling was beginning to climb her; a hollow, sinking feeling.

"Everest," Zuma could be heard taking a deep shaky breath, great agony bleeding from his words. "Skye is dead."

It was then that Everest froze, her mind shorting out as his words echoed within her. Body going still, Everest stared forward as she completely stiffened. "You're..." she could barely speak in her disbelief. "You're joking."

"I... really wish I was," the Lab muttered in a defeated tone, his voice drained of hope. "She's dead. Chase shot her in the Lookout roughly half an hour ago."

Every memory Everest had ever shared with her dear friend flashed through her head in an instant. Confusion froze her step, disbelief spilling from her. "What... why!? Why did he-" she sputtered, her voice cracking. Tears feared her eyes as anguish screamed into her mind, an overwhelming sense of panic fogging her thoughts. "What are you talking about?! Why did- why did he shoot her!? Why would he-"

Zuma snapped, barking into his microphone. "I don't know! I don't know, okay?" His voice broke for the faintest second, quickened breaths leaving the dog as if he was forcing back tears. "Something... something is really wrong with Chase. There's this military organization called the ACG that's been starting shit around town, and Chase just revealed that he was working with them under our noses. I can't trust him anymore... I won't trust him." An icy tone dripped off his tongue, fiery vengeance emitting from the Lab's voice. "He keeps ranting about some parasite, some... creature, I don't know. Everything was fine just a little while ago... then it wasn't. We're all locked in our kennels right now, it's where he told us to stay."

A writhing knot twisted in Everest's gut, her knees buckling as her body collapsed. Stomach acid threatened to fill up her throat while she stared into the ground. Not a single thought could iterate itself in her mind, the static juggling between disbelief and the rancid urge to vomit.

"Well, we're not entirely locked in here." Zuma said again. "I'm about to go take a walk in the rain, I just need to... think about some things. In the meantime; Everest, I suggest you... stay away from Adventure Bay, at least for a while. I don't understand what's going on anymore, all I know is that Chase is unstable and he needs to be dealt with..." A growl emitted from his throat. "This may be the last time we talk for a while... take care, Everest."

As quick as Zuma's voice had appeared, it was gone. The call ended, the light of the tablet dying and shrouding the husky in darkness. Her paws went limp at her sides, tear-filled eyes aimlessly staring ahead at nothing. The memories of Skye's laughter circled her, taunting her weakness as they echoed in her ears. Then one by one, each memory slowly faded away, until there was nothing left of her best friend to support her. Aimlessly she stood up again, her hollowed expression staring at the floor as she walked back to her room. The ski resort slowly faded in color around her, dissolving into white noise that echoed in her blank thoughts.

Quickened breaths emitted from her muzzle, as wet streams formed down her cheeks and dripped to the floor. A hollow fog laced with grief surrounded her as she lifelessly passed a stairway. Approaching the banister that overlooked the lower floor of the lounge, Everest found herself unable to walk anymore. Slowly sitting down, she stared ahead with heavy eyes at the blank wall. Nothing could come to her mind but the lingering fog of static.

Someone came through the front door; Everest could hear the old, wooden door open into the blizzard, then shut quickly. Slightly turning her head, she looked down at the entrance through the bars of the railing. It was Gasket; standing on the entrance mat covered in a sheet of frost. She had returned from her mission, it seemed, but Everest couldn't care less anymore. Gasket stood like a statue, her eyes scanning the area without moving her head. Her vision then clocked forward, and silently her paws moved one after the other. Everest watched the biker listlessly walk, her movements fixated and without flaw, crossing the cafeteria until she vanished from view.

There was nothing left she could give for the night. Everest stood up again and returned to her room, completely oblivious to the unfathomable horror that had just invaded the ski lounge.