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Chapter 19: Exploring the City

Tracker, Marshall, Zuma, and Rubble had agreed to go check out the Shield Sphere together. They were met with disappointment, however, when they found themselves unable to enter the building. It wasn't because it was locked. It wasn't because it was fenced off. It was because it wasn't there.

"Well this is awkward…" Marshall mumbled as they all stared at the empty grass lot in front of them.

Zuma glanced around, "Maybe this is the wrong place?"

"No," Tracker said, shaking his head. "I remember this is the right place that showed on the map. I can hear something humming…"

"Well, looks like this is my job," the Dalmatian sighed as he jumped out of his firetruck. Closing his eyes, he walked into the open grassy area. Once he reached the middle of it, he stopped, looking about in confusion.

Rubble tilted his head to the side. "Marshall, what are you doing…?"

The fire pup looked back at his friends. "Well, I thought it would be another hologram, but I guess not."

"Soooo, you were just going to run into the wall?" Zuma questioned in bewilderment.

"Yeah, that's what the thought was, seeing that I normally do that kind of thing anyway," Marshall confessed, holding his cast in the air to punctuate his point.

"You know, now that I think about it, the building might have been underground," Rubble observed.

"Oh! ¡Sí! That's it!" Tracker jumped out of his jeep, inclining his head toward the ground. "I can hear the humming coming from there!"

"So how do we get in?" Marshall glanced around and looked under each of his paws as if a trap door might answer his question.

"Probably from underground," Tracker reasoned.

"The train is underground, maybe that goes there," Zuma offered.

"Maybe," Rubble concurred. "Guess we'll have to ask Gizmo about it."

"Let's go join Chase and Skye, dudes," Zuma suggested, switching gears. "I bet they're doing something exciting."

"Wow, there's really nothing exciting around here," Chase observed. The two canines had happened upon a neighborhood area of the city and were busy exploring. As the police dog had noted, there was nothing interesting in sight. If they had known more about normal infrastructure, they could have marveled at the differences between these houses and normal dwelling places back on the mainland. Without rain, wind, and cold, the houses needed next to no weather-proofing; the roofs were flat, gutters were nonexistent, and the structures were more lightweight. Rubble would have marveled at the distances possible between stud lines and lack of insulation, but all this was lost on the two pups present.

Skye landed next to him. "I saw the others on their way. It looks like they're about five minutes out. While we're waiting, we could check out the inside of some of these houses. When are we ever going to get another chance to see a house built for dogs?"

Chase smiled, "Yeah, it's pretty cool. I'm not sure how I feel about it though, knowing they're the houses of dead pups…"

"Oh, yeah… I see what you mean," the air pup replied as they turned a corner. "Hey, look at that one," the cockapoo gasped as she pointed to one of the residences that had just come into view.

"Now that's something interesting," the police pup agreed. Compared to all the other houses, which had clearly seen better days, the one in question looked brand new. The overgrowth had been tamed, the walls were in good condition, and none of the lights were burnt out. The most striking features, however, were the masses of wires running around the building along with a large satellite dish on the roof. "Do you think this is…"

"Gizmo's house?" Skye finished for him. "Yep. Do you think he'd mind?"

Chase deliberated for a bit. "I think it'll be fine," he eventually concluded. "Want to go check it out?"

"You know it!" she yipped, tail wagging in excitement. The two dogs raced over to the house, Chase tempering his speed so his smaller companion could keep pace. Skye smiled to herself, pretending not to notice. They arrived side by side at the doorway. Chase reached out his paw and pushed open the door.

They weren't sure what to expect on the other side of the entrance, but they were surprised to find something like a normal home. The automatic lights flicked on in the room as they walked in, showing what could best be described as a combination of a living room and a kitchen. There were two couches along the walls in the back left corner with a table in front of them. To the right of the entrance a peninsula countertop rested close to the ground, separating the living room section from the kitchen section. Embedded in it were an electric cooktop and a special sink which seemed to be optimized for use by dogs. A line of cabinets stretched across the right wall along with an oven and fridge. There were no handles; instead everything opened using a magnetic push mechanic. Staircases stretched up and down on the left side of the room. A number of wires followed the staircase leading downwards.

"What do you think those go to?" Skye asked in wonder.

"Well, outside it looked like a bunch of them went to the dish, and there were more going into the ground. I think they might have been the power lines," the German shepherd reasoned. "It must be some type of computer."

The aviator nodded, "That would make sense. Want to check it out?"

"Sure!" Chase exclaimed. He bounded down the four stairs in one leap while Skye padded down one stair at a time, not wanting to hurt her sore paw again. The room at the bottom of the landing seemed to be mostly unused and uninteresting. Continuing to follow the wires, the two pups entered the doorway on the right. They both gasped as they walked in. What appeared to have been some sort of lounge or television room had been transformed into a computer workshop.

Chase jumped over to the desk and started looking around. "Wow, it's a mouse designed for paws!" the blue pup exclaimed in awe.

A voice sounded from upstairs, "Skye, Chase? Are you in there?"

"Yeah! Hi Rubble! Do you guys wanna come check it out too?" Skye shouted up the stairs.

"No, we were going to go meet back up with Rocky; he said he got the plans and we're going to meet back at the research lab."

"Oh, alright, I guess we should go too then," Skye sighed. "Let's go, Chase."

"Alright, I'll be there in a second," Chase hollered as he took one last glance back at the desk. As he turned to go, he noticed a lone piece of paper on the table. It clearly was not carelessly scribbled notes or hasty equations. It looked as though it had been folded and refolded hundreds of times. On the cover was a strange octagonal shape. His interest piqued, the police dog looked a bit closer and realized it was a letter. He wanted to read it but knew he shouldn't. He turned to go, but something stopped him, as if an invisible force were pulling him back to the paper, as if he should grab it. Déjà vu hit the pup full force as he picked up the letter. Realizing the others were waiting on him though, he slipped the letter in a pouch in his pup pack, saving it for later. He knew it was stupid and wrong to take something that wasn't his, but he promised himself he would return it at his first opportunity. Then he turned and ran up the stairs to join the others.

For anyone that reads these little (well, maybe not so little) notes at the bottom, I probably know what you're thinking right now. "CHASE, WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU THINKING?!" And honestly, it's a great question. My answer is this: plot armor. As for Skye's sore paw, for those of you that don't remember, this is the paw that she hurt in the crash. It just doesn't get called to attention that often.