Clouds of uncertainty followed Rocky's every move. Had he done the right thing? Had he made a mistake interacting with them at all? He shook his head of the thoughts, traversing the old, empty corridors of the factory. To see Chase chained and helpless, all by his own paw, the thought brought shame to his mind. He betrayed him, his lover, and for what?

Dakota. Rocky sounded the name in his head, what was his game? What was his brother trying to do? He couldn't find his answer, sighing as he surrendered himself to his helplessness. He entered a massive, empty room, likely once filled with tons of machines and bustling workers in the years prior. The walls were lined with broken windows, small breezes and fallen leaves invading the building. This was exactly where Dakota said they'd meet up at, an odd location that befuddled him.

He spotted Chase's pup pack against the wall, the place Dakota had tossed it before locking up the shepherd. Seeing it only brought disdainful thoughts of shame to the puppy, making him sharply turn away from it.

Walking to the far end of the room, Rocky spotted a wall that he initially thought was splashed with paint, only to realize they were actually photographs. Curiosity getting the better of him, he walked over for a closer look. He approached the wall with a tilted head, looking up at the collage of photos all pinned in place with glass shards. Eyes trailing over each photo, Rocky took a gentle step back from the overwhelming amount of information. It was almost every leading figure in Adventure Bay, all with their own polaroid and their own place on display.

Even Ryder.

"What… is all this?" He said with narrowed eyes, trying to understand the puzzle in front of him. Nine photos stuck out from the rest, circled with red pen, a symbol to expose them clearly. An unsettling chill tickled through Rocky's veins as he squinted at one of them. The photo was of a Dalmatian, sending a flare of alarm through the puppy until he realized it wasn't Marshall. The name 'Fernia' was written below her photo, a name floating with familiarity in his head.

He stared at the wall for a long while, trying to make sense of the pictures in front of him. Lost in his focus, he didn't catch the shadow stalking up behind him.

"You found my roadmap," Dakota said, making his brother flinch in surprise.

Rocky turned to him, trying to soothe his frantic heart from the scare. "What is this?" He asked, a twinge of fear rising in his voice.

His brother looked up at the wall, a smile twisting on his face. "What else would it be? These are the nine victims, somewhere on here at least. Plus anyone else I was probably thinking of targeting." There was a glint in his eye, as he admired his own work. "This is where it all begins, or ends, at least. We're mostly in the endgame now."

"Endgame?"

"I've gotten this far already," Dakota explained. "The final target awaits. Those nine insects were nothing, all dominos to a greater cause."

Rocky looked up at him with a frown, his flight instinct starting to quiver. "But… you said all those bad things about them. They did do those things, right?"

"Of course they did!" Dakota almost snapped, flashing his brother a glare. "But where do you think it all begins? Who do you think allowed all this to happen behind the scenes?"

The air around them pulsated with a mournful song, swirling the dogs as Dakota turned to his sibling. "Who do you think allowed Fernia to get away with what she did, who do you think gave Wendy the okay to build that salon?!" Slowly his rusted paws moved forward, ferocity burning in his eyes. He stalked toward the puppy, his voice rising as madness flared into the air.

"I could kill a hundred dogs, Rocks! But it'll mean nothing if someone in the back just keeps unleashing them onto the city! Someone who keeps turning a blind eye to injustice and cares little as the city burns around them!"

Creeping backward, Rocky's eyes were paralyzed on his brother as terror climbed his spine. His once-thought feeling of safety was starting to bleed, the sight of the larger dog making him quake in his step. "W-who?!"

Dakota sharply turned and pointed his paw at the wall, where a single polaroid photo meekly clung to its glass pin. It was that of a middle-aged woman, gleefully holding her pet chicken with a big smile. She carried an endearing expression, yet it reeked of fatal obliviousness.

"Mayor… Goodway?" Rocky stiffened, his eyes widening in alarm.

Dakota scoffed at the name. "Mayor Goodway," he echoed. "For someone who promises unity and prosperity, she really does know how to divide a society." Growling through his teeth, he stalked toward the photo like a hunting shark. "Every tiny, minute little detail goes through her. It's all about image, that's where it began!" He snarled, grabbing Rocky by the scruff and dragging him back toward the wall. "Didn't you ever think, how unnervingly incompetent she is? How she can't even keep her fuckin' pet under a leash?"

"People-" Rocky stuttered as he was dropped to the floor, defensively curling his tail underneath him. "People make… mistakes?"

"Mistakes, sure." Dakota shrugged, "but what if they're not? What if she's not incompetent, what if it's all a ruse?!"

"What are you talking about?"

"I told you, Rocks! I've been watching you since day one." Snapped the larger animal. "I've seen every little thing the PAW Patrol does, including their little dances with Mayor Humdinger. It doesn't make any sense, nothing about what he does makes sense! I had a front fuckin' seat to that fiasco in Adventure City, and none of you thought how any of that started to begin with?" He leered directly into Rocky's vision, staring down the puppy like a predator. "How can he just do that, Rocks? How can Humdinger just walk into a city and take control like that?"

"It was a basic understanding that…" Rocky hesitated under the imposing stature of the killer before him. "Everyone figured he somehow sabotaged the vote."

His meek words sent his brother into an uproar of laughter. "Oh that's rich!" Dakota cackled, "you believe that? Here's my theory: There was never a vote to begin with, Humdinger had full clearance to…" he turned back to Mayor Goodway's photo, malice flashing in his eyes. "Walk right in…"

"Walk… in?" Rocky asked, confusion striking him.

"It all comes back to Mayor Goodway," Dakota said. "I think she's in cahoots with Humdinger, imagine this." He walked to Rocky's side, leaning his head over the puppy's shoulder. "Adventure Bay, Foggy Bottom, towns of… essentially nothing." He listed, moving his head to Rocky's other ear. "Two politicians, desperate to put their lands on the map. They suddenly strike gold with a privileged kid and his team of service dogs, and they get an idea. One mayor strolls into town and causes trouble, nothing too bad, but just enough that the other mayor can play damsel in distress."

A grin formed on his face, waiting for Rocky's reaction. "Then the PAW Patrol comes in like knights in shining armor, ready to save their little town. Humdinger twirls his mustache and gets away, everyone applauds and celebrates."

"So… what?" Rocky's discomfort was fighting over control of his body. Averting his gaze, he turned his head back where Chase's equipment had been tossed. A small detail quickly made itself known, making his ears pick up slightly.

Chase's pup pack was gone, vanished from where it stood.

His heartbeat starting to race, Rocky quickly spoke again, trying to keep Dakota's attention. "What does this have to do with recent events?"

"The point is, if Mayor Goodway is willing to put on these little charades with Humdinger just for the money and tourism, it shows a lot about what else she's willing to do." Dakota straightened up. "Every dog that fell to my teeth, they never would've gotten as far as they did if Goodway had stepped in earlier. Maybe with some it wouldn't really help, but it would at least change the outcome!"

He snapped his teeth with fiery rage. "She knew exactly what was going on, and let it all happen because she wanted to preserve the image of Adventure Bay! Filthy strays and poverty are bad for quality of life, that's why she's done nothing to stop all this! It's all her, I tell you! And I'll prove it!"

Although he could hardly believe the madness he was hearing, Rocky subtly glanced at something across the room. Something Dakota hadn't yet spotted in his tirade. "Prove it how?!"

"I'm going for her, Rocks." Dakota said, looking back at him with a manic eye. "I'm taking her down. I'm gonna find her, and when I do, I'll get the answers I need. Then she'll get a nice, public death. Let her execution serve as the spark for all strays everywhere to rise up!" His voice softened for a moment, taking a breath. "After all… after everything we've been through, it's what we deserve, don't we?"

The fire-charged rant floated in Rocky's head, wrapping around his mind as he tried to process what he was given. Only aimless static formed as a response, as he found nothing to say at the terror in front of him.

The click of a gun sounded in the room, making Dakota prick his ears. He didn't move, yet his claws stuck into the metal floor.

"What you call freedom," Chase said through clenched teeth, staring down the sights of the gun. "Is nothing but pure anarchy." He had successfully recovered his pup pack, donning it quickly and arming himself.

Rocky turned to his lover with a hopeful expression, his heart bursting with joy at the sight. His tail began to wag, a gesture he couldn't possibly control now. Chase only gave the mix a slight glance, expression softening only a hair. They would have to embrace later, as the shepherd sharply kept eyes on the killer.

Motionless, Dakota's lips curved in a grimace, his head still low. "You escaped."

"I-" Chase started to say, before glancing at Rocky again. He didn't want to put his partner in any more danger. "I guess I did. Rocky, come stand by me." The mixed jumped at the officer's word, quickly jogging to his side. Relieved that Rocky was at least behind him, Chase fully trained his gun to the larger dog. "And you… don't move."

The air filled with tension as Chase gingerly began walking forward, approaching the killer. Rocky could only watch from behind, conflict in his eyes as he watched the scene unfold.

"I guess I don't give you pups enough credit," Dakota said flatly, eyes still locked to the floor. "You're a tenacious one, you know?"

"Shut up," hissed the shepherd. "Save your mouth for the courtroom."

"Courtroom, we're really gonna go that far?" The mutt rolled his eyes, "can't you see this is all song and dance? You'll arrest me, then what? Put me in prison?" He glanced back at Chase, staring down the barrel of the gun. "There's thousands of strays in prison, you know! You'll drop me right in with my brethren, are you asking for an uprising?"

"I'm asking…" Chase hesitated, panic climbing up his spine. In silent horror he remembered all of his other gear was still at home, he had never intended to get as far as he did once he left. Without cuffs to bind Dakota, he had no tools to apprehend the criminal. "I'm asking to put an end to all this mindless death! You've killed nine dogs, and are actively conspiring against the mayor!" He barked, taking a small step back.

Ever skilled at observation, Dakota picked up on the detail fast. "Where… are your handcuffs?" He asked, narrowing his eyes.

"In my… pup pack, don't move!"

"Show them to me," Dakota turned, fully facing the shepherd fearlessly. "Arrest me."

Fear flickered in Chase's eyes, his ears flattened against his head. Hesitation stuttered him, although faint, it completely betrayed his control of the situation. Shaking in his breath, the shepherd took another fearful step back. "Stay back!"

"You don't even have bullets in there, do you?" The killer tilted his head, eyeing the weapon.

"Want to find out!?" Chase was starting to quiver. "Stay back!"

His breaking words fell flat to the rusted floor, Dakota rising up to his full height and towering over the puppy. "Trying to be brave?" He said, chuckling slightly.

"Dakota, no-" Rocky tried to step in.

"You…" his brother sharply hissed, "stay back, and let me deal with this." Exhaling his agitation, he grinned while approaching the shaking officer. "So brave, so courageous, so loyal to your patrol. Your… mayor," he said, heightening his voice at the last word. "You serve the mayor, don't you? Do you have any idea what kind of system you've sewn yourself in?"

Leaning down, he leered into Chase's paralyzed expression, meeting him eye to eye. "You don't, but I do." He said, a deranged smile spreading across his face. "With them you see dishonest, bigoted waste, but with you I see potential." He only grew more amused the more he watched Chase's terrified expression, seemingly feeding off of his fear alone.

"I could use someone like you." Dakota said, his voice circling the shepherd. "Someone behind enemy lines, someone to feed us information from the inside. With you we could really get somewhere."

Chase found difficulty talking, trying to form words through his shaking breath. "I want nothing to do with you."

Raising an eyebrow at the statement, Dakota shrugged off the words with a slight glance at his brother. Rocky was looking directly at Chase, fear on his face as he felt powerless to do anything. Suddenly, everything began to click in his mind. Dakota squinted for a few seconds, looking back and forth between the puppies. His eyes widened for a split-second, a violent twitch hitting his body but quickly regained his composure. Looking back down at Chase, his voice went soft. "How… did you escape?"

Taken aback by the question, Chase frantically searched for an answer. "I just… did."

"Tell me how you escaped."

Rocky knew his brother all too well, alarm spreading on his face as he realized what was coming. Devoid of any answer, Chase had only silence for a response. He was already close to buckling under Dakota's imposing figure.

"You didn't escape," Dakota's eyes flicked to his brother. "You were let out."

"I didn't-"

"Let out!" The killer sharply cut off the puppy, leaning back in frustration. "Now who- I wonder- who in their right mind would…"

"No!" Rocky jumped forward, racing into the scene. "It's not what it looks like, it's-"

"Betray me." Dakota finished his sentence, gritting his teeth.

"I've betrayed no one!" The puppy lashed out, "I thought he would just run away! I didn't think he'd actually follow us!"

Chase looked at his partner with fear in his eyes, "Rocky, stop talking-"

"I'm sorry, okay!?" Rocky ignored him. "But this is about the greater scope of things, right? He's done nothing against us, he shouldn't have to suffer!"

Dakota merely stood with an amused expression, staring to the ceiling as he contemplated his answer.

The silence was beginning to ride Rocky's anxieties. "He's special to me, I didn't want him to suffer for this! Why can't I just have one, a single dog I can have spared?!"

"Rocks," Dakota started.

"My name… is Rocky." The mix growled.

The sudden deviance caught Chase's attention, a sight of confidence he almost admired.

"Fine," his brother grimaced, waving off the statement. "Rocky, I always knew you liked to play in the dirt, but lord." He said, scoffing at the puppy. "You'd actually risk… everything, for him?"

"I… I guess I would."

"Hm," Dakota looked at Chase, a malicious twinkle in his eye. "I guess we need to do this again." Looming over the puppy, he watched him with a predatory stare, before curling his lips in a snarl. "Let me show you how to kill cops."

Rocky's eyes widened. "Wait- no, no!"

Springing for the kill, Dakota lunged teeth and claw into Chase. He grappled the shepherd and pinned him to the floor, a violent slam of metal ricocheting off Chase's bones. The puppy had no time to bark as jagged teeth clamped into his neck, breaking through his skin.

A powerful gunshot split through the air, along with Dakota's agonized scream. He jumped off Chase like he had been burned, stumbling backward and collapsing on the floor. "Aaah! Fuck! Fuck!" A streak of red leaked from his gut, dripping into crimson puddles on the floor.

"Dakota!" Rocky ran for his wounded sibling.

Clenching his stomach, the dog snarled and screamed with all the rage he could muster. The fur of his belly was already staining red, no matter how frantically he tried to block his wound. "You fucking rats!" He lashed his arm, striking his brother backward. "You let him out! You did this to me!"

Rocky stumbled, the side of his face stinging from the blow. Tears fell down his cheeks as he cowered from his sibling. "He… loves me."

Gasping for air, Chase tried to push himself up to his feet, the metal arm of his pup pack holding the smoking gun. Bloodied teeth marks tore into his neck, overclocking his body with adrenaline. Splitting pain tore through his muscles with every movement, and Chase's life flashed before his eyes.

Running to him quickly, Rocky wrapped his arms around him in a panic. "Chase!"

"Fine- I'm fine!" The shepherd gasped, wincing from the pain in his neck. The feeling of Rocky's fur against his was unbelievably soothing. He fought little as his partner laid him on the floor.

"I- I need to get you to a hospital!"

"Rocky," Chase looked up at him, and their eyes met. The shepherd's paw reached up, lovingly touching against his partner's chest. "I'm fine. No-" he winced slightly from the searing heat on his neck. "No deep wounds." The world seemed to quiet around them, falling still as the two dogs held each other.

Looking down at his beloved, Rocky smiled through the tears. "Promise?"

"Heh," Chase couldn't help himself. "You know me, I pull through." He gave Rocky a coy smile, earning an endearing chuckle from the mix.

Entranced in the moment, it was a few seconds before a shock of realization hit both puppies. Chase jumped to his paws quickly, facing where Dakota had fallen. The other dog was gone, in his place being a trail of blood forming a path.

"He got away," Rocky frowned.

"No!" Chase gently yet firmly pushed his lover away. "We can't let him escape! We'll never find him again if he does!"

"Chase, it's too dangerous! Let me get you to Marshall, you need that wound treated!"

The shepherd flattened his ears, a powerful rush of drive powering through his body. "I'm not letting him get away! This ends here!"

"But-"

"Get back to the Lookout!" Chase charged after the bloodtrail, fueled solely on his adrenaline. "I'll meet you there, I'm not leaving until he's dealt with!"

Rocky's protests fell on deaf ears as Chase pursued his target. He swiftly left the room, strafing down the cracked floor as he rounded corners and kept his ears alert. The blood trail only continued, a dreaded breadcrumb of what he'd face at the end. Dakota's bite would've been fatal if hadn't acted so quickly, firing his gun point-blank into the killer's gut. Even then, Chase couldn't stop cursing himself for paralyzing in fear like he did. The gun was loaded, yet Dakota had this unyielding, darkened effect that walked with him. The very unnerving sight of him alone was enough to make anyone stop in their tracks.

A dog like that had to be stopped.

Chase charged through the door onto the roof of the factory, the orange sky above welcomed him with chilled wind. He quickly ran to the edge and looked through the metal banister, wondering if Dakota had tried to climb down. His search inconclusive, the puppy growled and looked around the massive area.

His surroundings were littered with rusted banisters and broken antennas, a small catwalk reached off the factory and connected to three massive storage towers. There were only so many places to hide without going over the edge. His body piqued with alert, Chase darted his vision along the thin towers and power lines. A faint whine emitted through his muzzle, becoming more anxious the more he came across nothing.

"Where did he…" he growled, walking toward the west edge of the building. A bloodstain was waiting for him, splashed along the rusted metal as the wounded dog fled. Leaning down, Chase sniffed the puddle.

In his distraction, two paws suddenly slammed down on his back, jumping him from behind with no warning. Chase's body was smashed into the metal floor, his torso teetering over the edge of the roof, overlooking a lethal drop to the ground below.

"Nng- you little shit!" Dakota grabbed Chase's gun in his teeth, tearing it from the pup pack's arm. Tossing it aside unceremoniously, he fought against the debilitating pain in his gut. "You… you can't kill me!" He laughed sadistically, keeping the squirming shepherd pinned. Chase fought with every fiber in his being, snarling and lashing his body in any way it would go to wiggle out of his grasp, but Dakota was just too strong.

"You won't win this, even if you kill me!" Chase struggled under him. "What you're planning, it won't work!"

"You know nothing of what vermin laces the streets! They're all just waiting on the edges of their seats to see the mayor hung from her neck! And it'll be me, I'll be the one to bring this all to fruition!" Dakota tightened his grip, baring his teeth before Chase's neck wound. "And so what if you've corrupted my brother? I can always just plow some tramp on the street and make a whole new litter! A brand new line of puppies, all to be raised in my philosophy! I'll have an army, and there's nothing, not you, not those annoying PAW Patrol runts, not anyone can do about it!"

Glistening in sadistic pleasure, Dakota positioned his claws between Chase's shoulder blades. "I have seen corruption and I will-"

He was so enraptured by his own rambling, he missed the gunshot sound that snapped through the air. Dakota paused, his face twisting in confusion as his mind slowly processed what he had heard. Glancing down at himself, his eyes came to rest on a new hole torn through his chest. A red stain had already formed, sporadically bleeding out. His paws lost their strength, releasing Chase from his powerful grip, allowing the shepherd to quickly scramble back from the edge.

His anger and ferocity dying away in seconds, Dakota felt a wave of coldness overcome him. His bullet wounds, fiercely running red, clicked in his mind of what had occurred. Slowly he turned his head, locking eyes with the shooter.

Rocky stood a few feet behind him, holding Chase's gun with a heartbroken expression.

They held each other's gaze for a moment, a wordless exchange between them. Rocky could only lower the gun, watching with tear-soaked eyes what was once his endearing family. Dakota stared at him with a stunned expression, a gutted look of betrayal on his face as his own blood drained underneath him. His jaw moved subtly like he wanted to say something, but the strength had already left his body. Collapsing to the metal floor in a crumpled, bloodied heap, Rocky was quick to catch him.

"Why…" The puppy's voice quivered, holding his brother's head in his arms. "Why did you make me do that?"

With what little strength he had left, Dakota could only meet Rocky's eyes in their final moment together. He watched his brother, trying to speak words that couldn't form.

"You're my…" Rocky fought his shaking voice, unable to control his cries. "You're my brother. It… it wasn't supposed to be this. We were supposed to grow up together… be friends and… support one another." He desperately held Dakota's head like the gesture itself would save him. "I… won't forget you, I promise." Rocky wept aloud, "I'm sorry."

Dakota went limp in his arms, the life fading from his eyes as he bled out on the factory roof. Standing a few feet away, Chase watched with a sorrowful expression. His body ached from the beatings he had taken, yet somehow the sight of Rocky's grief broke him further than any teeth to the neck could.

The killer in Adventure Bay was gone, the threat was finally neutralized. As a member of the PAW Patrol, Chase was entitled to fetch his collar and ring in for backup, and not to mention Zuma still trapped in the restrooms. He had his own regulations to abide by, and yet, he didn't move. Their old methods were suddenly lost on him, years of Ryder's training now just whispers in the wind.

Coming to Rocky's side, Chase wordlessly sat down and placed a paw on his partner's back. He felt conflicted, yet right where he wanted to be. Nothing made sense to him, yet everything was painted in clear black and white. The more he sat next to Rocky, the more the past became meaningless. The longer he held him, the more the chains around his own body began to weaken.

He wanted to be next to him, he wanted to listen, he wanted to hold him, embrace him, and talk for hours about pointless things. He wanted to see Rocky every minute of the day, and the times he couldn't he'd ponder aimlessly about his activities. He wanted to give the mixed breed every ounce of love he could possibly give, and if the others couldn't accept it, then a conclusion wrote itself in his head:

The PAW Patrol was dead to him. Rocky was, and always had been, his whole world.