Date: November 4, 1918
Sunny skies. Birds chirping. Families hugging and chatting. This was the perfect day for Australia. Nothing but a happy aura and cheerful love, spreading throughout the beautiful city. Everything was going well for the city of Brisbane. And down a street, we found a jolly Wolf riding on his bike. He peddled smoothly and without worry of anything. He felt the breeze brush under his fur just as he peddled with every muscle in his body. He felt glee fill his vibe throughout his heart. Not a single fear entered the mind of this cheerful canine. He kept peddling his bike, passing by many happy folk and people he knew all his life. Thanks to the wonderful family who gave him a second chance: The Heelers. All because of them does he even have a future, an opportunity, and a new life. He was happy with what he had. He couldn't have asked for a better time.
Just as he is peddling down the street, he remembers an important task he was assigned: Getting medication for his father, Bandit. Apparently, Bandit the other day ate some very spicy food from an Asian restaurant nearby Brisbane, and well, caused him to have a pretty bad stomach ache. Yeah, ouch. But that's where his trusty young chap jumps in. To pick up medication from the Pharmacy and deliver it straight to his father. Thinking about this makes the wolf happy, causing him to wag his tail once he gets to the pharmacy.
"Oh you cheeky bugger! Wagging at the wrong times, don't you?" The wolf quietly scorns at his tail, holding it in place to keep it still. Fortunately, it works pretty quick and the canine continues his chore to help his father. Upon entering the medical establishment, the bell goes off, announcing his arrival inside the clean joint. The pharmacist at the store is alerted, dropping his newspaper on the counter and getting up from the chair. As the wolf nears the counter, he is greeted by a dark-colored Bull Arab, taller than the kid and a really deep voice. Yet he didn't look intimidating, but rather gentle and kind. The dog speaks calmly.
"Good afternoon, sir. The name's Luther and how will I be assisting you today?"
The wolf smiles and responds back joyfully, "Good afternoon, I am here to buy some aspirin for my father. Y'know," the kid leans in closer and whispers, "stomach problems."
"Ahh yes, haha. Aspirin, we do have that. Let me get it right away, sir," the tall happy canine said, nodding and smiling just before he left to retrieve it.
But just as the tall man goes to fetch the aspirin from the shelf, the wolf kid's attention is caught somewhere else. His eyes are turned in a different direction from the man grabbing the aspirin. His mind is watching another object, and that is of a newspaper. His eyes begin to read the front page.
New King Lucifer I Begins Scraping The Barrel!
All kids at 15 minimum are sent to slaughterhouse in Europe.
All big letters. All slammed on the front page of the newspaper. It's all they talk about anyway. How the new nationalist king is wanting to send even children to war. An absurd war that he caused just for power and land. That teaches the kid only one lesson: As long as there is one with money and power, there will always be a war against someone with even more power. But as the kid's attention is drawn elsewhere, a noise begins to fade in and snap him out of his trance.
"KID!" Screams out Luther, shaking the box of aspirin in his hand, "Here's your aspirin. It's 3 dollars."
The wolf, being in complete shock, responds and reaches in his pocket to hand the man the 3 dollars, "Ahh, yes. Sorry."
Luther skims at the newspaper and reads the front page, now understanding why the kid was stunned. He stares back at the kid as he is struggling to get the 3 dollars out of his pocket. He then speaks.
"You were reading the front page, weren't you kid?"
The wolf, surprised at the question, answers incredulously, "Yes, I was."
"Hmm, that's what I thought," Luther whispers, nodding up and down softly. Then, he heads over to his newspaper. He grabs it from the side…and throws it into the trash can behind the counter.
The kid profusely confused questions and points, "Weren't you just reading that?"
Frustrated, Luther answers with an exasperated sigh at the beginning, "Heh, nothing to read anymore kid. Nothing to read."
The kid begins to feel guilty, causing his ears to fold back. He just caused someone to throw something away because of what he has done. Noticing this, Luther comforts reassuringly and leans in on the kid.
"Listen kid, don't worry about the newspaper. What you should worry about is yourself. Nowadays, the world is turning upside down, with these so-quote "nationalists" and "kings" taking everything from the poor. And in addition, thieves, serial killers, murderers, warlords, diseases, the list goes on. During this time we are living in, you must worry about yourself. Every now and then, help a feller out in whatever trouble they're going through, but remember, you must protect yourself out of everyone. That's what I learned in my Civil War days in America, fighting alongside my Union boys. But just know…you must fight. Fight the fear of losing your family to these bad people. Fight for those who need your help. No matter the cost. No matter what is in the way. No matter who or what is in your way. Fight through it all, and don't you ever forget that."
That being said, the kid's ears went back up and he smiled, thanking him for what he just said. After a brief moment, the two went about normal with their day, with Luther sorting some medications and the kid leaving the place with his father's medicine.
As the wolf leaves the place, Luther says some final words mostly to the kid, nodding in pride and joy.
"Your strong kid. I can sense it."
On the way back, the kid looked confused and thoughtful. His mind kept circling over and over about what the pharmacist had just said to him. A lesson that maybe the man was trying to teach him. He is lost in thought as he rides all the way back home. Then, he takes a turn to a small cul-de-sac. Filled with many humble homes and loving neighbors. He smiles upon seeing the sight he witnesses. He gets closer to the house located in the middle of the cul-de-sac, being none other than the Heeler home. He stations his bike next to the front porch and climbs the steps to the door. As he opens the door, he hears two familiar voices scream in complete joy, "Levon's Back!"
Our wolf boy Levon Heeler enters the door and is greeted by two huge hugs from his sisters, Bluey and Bingo Heeler. He is suddenly surprised by this quick act, but instantly returns it by hugging them as well.
"Hey B n' B, how are you two beezers doing? Ya miss me?" Levon jokingly questions his sisters, to which Bluey mockingly responds at Levon.
"Yeah, right. You could go to Antarctica and we still wouldn't miss you." To this, Levon says accusingly and pointing at her tail, "Oh you sure? Then why are you wagging your tail?"
Bluey looks behind her back to find the traitorous tail wagging back and forth in glee. In reaction, she only giggles at her brother's accusation. Levon as well pets her on the head. Then a voice is heard from the kitchen.
"Hey Levon, you got Dad's medicine?"
"Yes, I did," Levon responds back to the soothing voice. The voice continued, "Good, leave it on the counter. We're about to eat some brunch."
As ordered, Levon and the girls do what they are told and Levon leaves the medication on the counter. They all then sit down on the table to where a red heeler pops out of the kitchen and lays a plate down on the table. It was absolutely colorful. The plate was filled with a nutritious meal of cut-up fruits, all in their own spots. The kids smell and "mmm" in satisfaction. The red Heeler then spoke, "Well, it's not going to eat itself. Dig in." Almost immediately, the two Heeler sisters started grabbing fruits and began chomping them down. On the other hand, Levon grabs a slice of apple and asks his mother.
"Is father still feeling a bit sick from the stomach, Mom?" The teenage wolf kid begins to look worried and his ears droop a bit.
His mother, Chilli Heeler, answers, "Well, yes he is. But don't worry, it is just a tummy ache. Not sure what he's making a fuss of."
Levon giggles at the sudden exclamation, making himself feel better. Chilli pats his back, and gets up to give Bandit his medicine in the other room. Levon, feeling better, thinks one thing.
Today will be nice. I'm sure of it.
He then opens his mouth to bite his apple—
*ding dong*
The doorbell rings, causing everyone's attention to point in the direction of the front door. Chilli gets confused, knowing that she isn't having any visits somewhere this time. As everyone is shocked by this sudden interruption, Chilli goes to open the door. But as she opens the door, a feeling comes over Levon. A feeling…of despair. Agony. Misery. Depression. Death. Door opened, and three men in uniforms were standing upright in front of the door. They looked menacing, while the middle one, dressed as an officer, seemed very serious. The officer then spoke.
"Is this the Heeler residence?"
Chilli responds slowly, "Yes."
Then the officer said 6 words that would change Levon's life. 6 words that would send the young teenager to Hell on Earth. 6 words…is all it took.
"Is there a Levon Heeler here?"
3 Months Later…
A truck filled with men in uniforms. All depressed. All broken. All lost. Everything from this point on could be their last days in this world. Nothing could heal what they are about to go through. No medicine for trauma. No cure for anxiety. No resurrection for death. And in between this mess, lied Levon. His face was masked by the feeling of worry and fear. He suffered three months in a camp, being forced to train like a marionette on a string. He would witness the deaths of those who resisted or even attempted to escape the facility. He would get sick just from thinking of the place they had to sleep in. Get treated like wild animals, only to then get sent to a slaughter. Levon couldn't stand this, but alas, what could he do? He tries to do something, instant death. He complies and gets sent to war, delayed death. No matter the options, they all would send him to death. But just as he is in his thoughts, he hears a voice call to him.
"Hey kid, you alright?"
Levon looks to his left, to which a colored-mixed Spitz dog was staring at him and with a face of worry. Levon, being a bit pissed off, responds, "What do you think?"
The Spitz dog only nods and groans slowly, then continues, "Hmm, yeah. I'd probably be as pissed as you are. All 'cause of this damn war." Levon stares confusedly at the canine, wondering why he is speaking to him. The Spitz dog then faces back to him, noticing Levon's face in confusion. Then, the Spitz dog smiles and lightly slaps his forehead in addition to his comment, "Oh, where are my manners?" He stretches his hand out, "Dustin. Dustin Sable Spitz from Cambridge, England."
Levon returns the greeting hesitantly, "Levon. Levon Heeler from…Brisbane, Australia."
Dustin's eyes widened, and he said in a surprised tone, "Australia! Jolly Hell, that's barmy. I took a vacay in Australia 2 years ago, and let me say," Dustin leaned closer and made an ok gesture, "it's fecking wonderful."
Wearing the serious mask, Levon tried to hold back the smirk that wanted to be let out. Sadly, Levon let out the small smile and even chuckled in response to Dustin's remark. Dustin smiled in return to see the kid at least respond something towards him. But after smiling it over, Levon thought about Australia…and thought of his family. Levon's smile would fade, and the face of worry would once again crawl on him. His head feeling a million thoughts, and carrying a ton of weight. He felt that his heart would overload from so much beating. He felt…that he wouldn't make it out alive. Then, he felt…a hand. On his shoulder, Dustin patted him and said the following.
"Kid, don't sweat. We all pretty much have the same fate. And even if we tried to run from it, it would eventually catch up to us. Hmm, this life. I truly don't know what the meaning of it is."
Dustin turns to face Levon, who appears to be listening attentively. Dustin continues saying, "Y'know, if the king really did care for us…I don't think any of us would be here right now. We would all be at our own homes. Feet kicked up on the couch. Wives cooking our favorite dish in the kitchen. As well as us men enjoying a good ole game of football through the radio. That would've been the life…would've."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. I just…really miss home," Levon added to Dustin's comment, making a pouty face at the end. Dustin began to exclaim loudly, "Yeah…me, too. All of us would have been like that right now, but the king had other plans in mind for us. Other plans that required millions to get murdered. Other plans that would mark these times as an extermination. Other plans that we didn't need to get involved in. And if I had the chance to tell that king something, then I would say you wretched piece of shit mother-"
"DUSTIN!" A voice from across the truck is heard. As the two men turn their directions to the mysterious dog, it is a Beagle colored brown with a serious face, staring straight at Dustin. His eyes looked ready to pounce at Dustin and eat him up. The Beagle then says, "I will not tolerate any vulgar speech against His Highness."
"Alright," Dustin responds, rolling his eyes over and leaning back against the wall. As Dustin puts his attention off, Levon keeps his eyes watching and notices another dog staring at the Beagle, very angrily.
The anonymous dog exclaims at the Beagle, "He is not wrong, Major Rudolf. The king is a selfish bastard who only cares about himself." The frustrated canine turns over to the other dog, standing upright as he speaks.
The dog continues, "Plus…he has horrible taste in putting who is in command."
Rudolf counters, "Officer Jakob…we already talked about this. You may be the reason why we won the Battle of Nantes, but let me remind you," the beagle leans in closer, "we are in German lands. Very few survive here and very little make it. So please, in these times…we need a true leader."
The beagle stands back up, and Jakob only gives a glance at the serious dog getting back up. He then turns his head in the other direction, to which he notices Levon, the curious kid listening in on the chat. Levon only turns his head quickly forward, trying not to give suspicion of what he just did. But Jakob didn't care for that. He observed only one thing off of Levon. Something that worried him the most. His age. To Jakob, he saw only a young boy get sent to war, and return with a horrible memory of what he saw. Jakob felt disturbed by this thought, not wanting to imagine what he would become in the future. A canine with shellshock problems…or…a corpse. Lifeless and rotting. This shook Jakob to the core. He almost let a tear run down his face, but successfully could hold it in. It went back to silence until…*bangs*
Bombs began firing from above. Almost hitting the truck from behind, the soldiers began freaking out. Especially Levon, to which he froze and started breathing heavily. As the men looked out the back of the truck, an airplane came crashing down behind them, spreading debris all over the air. As the truck kept on going down the road, Rudolf interrupted the noise, "Men…Welcome To Hell."
Levon looked down. His face was in shock. His breathing couldn't control itself. His body began to shake in terror. He began thinking a million thoughts. He could already see his fate…death. Death itself knocking at the front door for a cold, dark welcome. Levon began tearing up in fear. He knew he wasn't making it out. With all this bombardment of artillery. With all this screaming and shouting of other scared canines. Then he began hearing a song in his mind. A song that he heard one time on his trip to Mexico. A song he didn't understand, yet felt powerful and dark at the same time. The song began fading into his mind as he looked out the back window. He saw the dark clouds cover the once bright sky. Filling nothing but darkness and immorality. Levon's eyes quivered to view such a sight. That's when he knew…Nothing was going to save him.
Nothing.
Until Next Time…
So this is episode 1…I hope it was good. Tried my best. Hope you enjoyed it and be looking forward to more longer episodes in the future.
(By the way, the song at the end is Esta Cobardia by Chiquitete. It's going to be the closing song for every episode. I like it a lot and it's really good, so if you want, give it a listen. I recommend it.)
