Walking out on a mission was completely unheard of for the PAW Patrol; no job was too big, and no pup was too small. To abandon the active line of duty was so rare to see Ryder didn't have a set punishment for it, to solve problems and help others was their whole life. Now things were shaken, Chase jumped into his vehicle and sped home to the tower, abandoning the others without a single moment's notice.
"Why are we leaving your friends, Chase?" Amata asked on the drive back.
"Screw them, this is important," the shepherd dismissed her. "Ryder lied to me, I need to know what else he could be hiding."
"Do you think it's possible he just... didn't know?"
"I-" Chase hesitated in his voice, considering her words with grimace. It was a solid point to make, "I... guess, but I need to be sure. The only way for that is to check his main computer, he keeps everything on there."
Rocky and Rubble stayed home from the mission, Chase knew discretion was key or he'd be spotted. He drove extra slowly back into the clearing, not even transforming his vehicle back into a kennel to suppress the noise it would create. Rubble was easily seen sleeping in his kennel, a relieving sight for the shepherd. That construction dog could sleep through nuclear war; Chase's primary worry was Rocky, even more so not knowing where he was. It probably would've been smarter to scope around the area, but time was of the essence. He parked his car and jumped out, racing into the elevator.
Arriving on the top floor, he snuck a look around for his mixed breed colleague, but he was absent. "He's probably at the beach cleaning up trash or something," he said to himself, walking up to the main screen.
"This is Ryder's personal computer," he approached the mission briefing controls. "The answers should be here..."
"Chase, I don't know if I can assist with this, you're illegally accessing this and my directive is to…"
"Help me," Chase finished her sentence for her. "Your directive is to help me, now quiet."
With Amata obediently hushing her digital voice, Chase approached the computer with slight hesitance. There was no active mission, no probable cause to warrant breaking in, let alone the fact it was his own leader's property. Was he really willing to do this, to put everything they built in jeopardy? Chase was the first, the original face in the PAW Patrol before the others came along, the reputation of their organization rested solely on his shoulders.
The same organization leading him astray, led by a liar.
"I have to know," he said, placing his paw on the Lookout's center console. "I won't let myself be in the dark about this any longer."
His mind integrated seamlessly, detaching from his mortal body and drifting into the computer. He waded through a small ocean of files and recorded mission briefing, some recent, some ancient from their early days, Chase was careful not to look at them less memory lane take his soul. It had to be somewhere, his consciousness splashed along the shallow waters of the digital frontier, passing by dozens of documents and images.
"Amata, search all documents, keyword Humdinger."
"On it," said the AI, going silent for a moment. "I found over three dozen results."
"Ugh, of course you did, we see that guy all the time," he said with a groan. "Okay uhm... search with the keyword... joint operation?"
"Well firstly, that's two words. Secondly, there's nothing."
"Okay... try uh..." the shepherd was visibly struggling. "Ugh, I'm missing something... search uhm, search the image recognition database, keywords... Ryder and Humdinger."
Amata came back with six images, most of which were from street cameras having captured interactions between the two. The last one, however, made Chase stop cold in his tracks.
"There," Amata said, enlarging the image for him. Another image from a street camera, but it wasn't action captured in its lens, instead something different in nature. It was taken from up high, angled downward at the Adventure Bay docks, not too far from the mission site he was recently deployed to.
Ryder and Humdinger were center stage, talking under the moon barely illuminated by lamps on the pier, although their cut silhouettes were unmistakable. They were locked in poses across from another, positioned as if they were talking like old friends. A large cargo boat laid still in the water beside them, the small piece of it visible had a tarp concealing its carried contents. The boat's name was visible on the side, providing Chase another way further.
"Amata, search all files, keyword Nivallah," he said, uttering the name of the boat.
"Here," Amata quickly summoned three files before him.
Chase reached out but found no response. "Why can't I open them?"
"I believe they're encrypted," she explained apologetically. "But whatever's in them clearly corresponds with the boat. I could decrypt these, but it'll take time. Would you like me to download them to your home computer?"
But Chase wasn't listening, for something else caught his eye: the names of files. All somewhat different, yet all possessing one similar detail.
The shepherd tilted his head, "Amata, search all files again, keyword... Technosoul."
Like a blurring flock of doves, hundreds of images, documents, and videos all assaulted him at once, blinding his senses under an avalanche of information. It all came in a blinding hurricane; written codes, thousands of documents, Companion Canine manufacturing, Justin Martyr and his robotic dog Alpha, Ryder and Humdinger, it all spilled like a torrent river of data.
"What the hell!?" came his exclamation, physically straining under the influx.
He didn't know where to start with at all, so entranced by the discovery he didn't hear the elevator arriving behind him. A set of paws walked up from behind, just as Chase was forced to disconnect from the computer for the sake of his own sanity. It was all too much; he'd have to download it in pieces and view it later.
"Figures," came a voice behind him.
"Marshall?" Chase looked behind him, weary from the integration. His eyes rested on a black-spotted firefighter; his usual red outfit traded out for a blue one. His face twisted with confusion, "why... are you wearing my spy gear?"
"Sorry Chase," Marshall lowered his head. "Ruff, net!"
Before Chase could say anything more, Marshall's stolen outfit suddenly dispensed a weighted net into the air, ensnaring him to the ground. The weights tangled into one another upon landing, abruptly yanking his body defenseless to the floor. "Aaah! What're you-" He was completely silenced as a painful stab of electricity shot through the net and snagged him in the ribs, electrocuting him for the final blow. Chase fell still as Marshall retracted the taser, as his vision faded, he barely caught a glimpse of Ryder walking up beside Marshall.
Chase wasn't dead, or unconscious even, but the pain was potent and left him in a daze, even as Ryder dragged him by the scruff. His Nueroband abilities were unresponsive from the shock, even Amata's voice unable to reach his ears. He was pulled into a blank room housing a table and chairs, Ryder unceremoniously dropped him on the metal chair and pulled a small device from his pocket. It resembled cuffs of newer, modern technology. "This should be well beyond whatever you're capable of," he said, cuffing Chase's leg to the chair. The shepherd's vision gradually returned, the fuzziness in his head finally dissipating.
"I had a feeling you'd go rogue," Ryder said with a sigh, shaking his head at the trapped shepherd. "Told Marshall to get you, hope there's no hard feelings. Walking out on a mission is one thing, hell I was more concerned about your well-being," he leaned forward, pointing his finger into the dog's chest. "But illegally accessing someone's personal property is another, I can't let you walk away from that."
"Do you have any idea what I saw in there?" the shepherd yanked against his restraints, further agitated from the poke. "Why are you making deals with Humdinger? What was on that boat?"
"A deal with Humdinger? Have you lost your mind?"
"I know what I saw, Ryder."
"I don't think you do," the boy crossed his arms. "Everything in that computer is now deleted, so whatever you were trying to do is gone now. All that... techno power has gone to your head."
Deleted? What more did he have to hide? "Answer my question, Ryder! I know what I saw there, why are you meeting with Humdinger?!"
"I've been doing no such thing," he said, hardening his expression, although a twinge of annoyance twitched on his face. "I don't fully understand those weird abilities of yours, but I think it's time to end it." He stood up, turning his back on the shepherd he once treasured with his whole life
"You told me my parents were deceased," Chase said, watching Ryder pace around the room. "Amata found proof they're alive, and recently so."
Ryder turned his back to him, uttering a warning. "You shouldn't believe everything you hear, Chase."
"You lied to me," said the shepherd, flattening his ears. A new question came to mind, one he almost withheld before his mouth went on autopilot. "What... else have you lied to me about?"
The boy sharply looked back at him, "that's enough out of you, Chase."
"What else did you lie to me about?" he said again, voice rising in volume.
"Quit while you're ahead."
"What else-" the shepherd's lips curled into a snarl, climbing up on the table. "Did you lie to me about?"
Ryder whipped around, "I've lied to you about nothing! Whatever you've seen, I don't know how to explain it."
Not good enough, Chase narrowed his eyes in a defiant glare. "How can I believe you? How can I believe you about anything you've ever said? Who else are you lying to?"
"That's enough out of you!" Ryder said, slamming both his hands on the table. "You stay here in his room; I have to deal with the mess you created by walking out on a mission." Dismissing the angered puppy, he turned away from Chase and went for the door.
"We're not finished, Ryder!" came the shepherd's bark, his voice silenced by the door clanging shut.
Chase was left alone, a weirdly familiar scenario that brought him back to his early puppy days. He felt everything all over again, the same feeling of being dropped in the darkened, roaring streets, left along with nothing and no one. Like gentle mist, the air of the room faded to white noise, trapping the shepherd in his confusion with nothing to hold his paw through the storm. He sat there for what felt like hours, no clocks in sight to watch the hands tick. The silence was maddening, the metal clamps on his legs tightening against his skin leaving him little freedom in the chair.
Driving his claws into the table producing a grimacing scratch, Chase observed the shadows watching him on the walls. "What has he done, Amata? What- what the hell am I doing at this table, he can't keep me here!" Pulling against his restraints, Chase briefly went feral and tried biting at the clamps, only to painfully learn they were solid metal. "I... I need to get out of here."
"Where will you go?" asked the AI.
"I... I don't know, who- who could I even go to? Who else is part of this? Is he lying to the others, or... are they in on it too?"
"You make it sound as if no one can be trusted."
"I can't take any chances now," Chase gripped his head in his paws, wrestling with the agonizing confusion. "Marshall took my spy gear and threw a whole net over me, for Christ's sake. What am I supposed to do now!?"
Amata went silent for a few seconds before speaking again, "I am not capable of understanding your emotions, Chase, but I see your distress. You said it yourself, you and I are friends now, and friends help each other," she said. "For what little I can do, I will remain here at your side."
Taking a long sigh, Chase leaned back and stared aimlessly at the ceiling. "That boat could've gone for Foggy Bottom... where Humdinger likes to make his problems. If Ryder was there, he could be more involved than he's telling us."
"What is your plan?"
"I need-" he thought long and hard, paws clenching tightly. "I need to get to Foggy Bottom, maybe even have a chat with Humdinger. I'll have to get the answers myself."
"But how will you do that, Chase?" came Amata's digitized concern. "Ryder has almost certainly locked all your vehicles by now, and I doubt Zuma will be willing to loan his."
"I don't need any of the pup vehicles," Chase cast his gaze over at the far wall, squinting his eyes to call upon his newer abilities. Overreliance on technology would be his backdoor, effortlessly walking out without anything to stop him. His restraints were made of steel, kept sealed with electric magnets controlled by an outside connection. Weaving paths of digital networks were illuminated in the walls to him, drawing a line along the floor Chase could only assume were linked to his bounds. Perfect, he gritted his teeth with focused vision, glaring into the homing signal likely originating from another room. No wall could stop him, he knew with chuckled glee, concentrating into the wireless controls and operations. These primitive idiots, maybe if they hadn't cast him away all those months ago, they'd actually know of his unlimited potential. He found the smoking gun, a tiny line of code helplessly quivering under his might. Chase winked, forcing a command through the network.
His restraints clicked open obediently, its magnets shut off.
"Ryder has an Air Patroller," he blinked the glowing lights from his eyes, dropping down off the chair. "If I can get into the garage and take it, I can be out of here in minutes." He couldn't help but admire his work, taking a brief second to revere the glowing lines of connection glowing in his vision. "They'll be sorry they doubted me, now I just need to-"
The door to the room unexpectedly opened, taking Chase by surprise as a Dalmatian walked in.
"Chase, I just wanted to say that for the record I-" he quickly stopped, seeing Chase out of his restraints. "Wha- how did you...?"
Activation. Chase saw the threat and lunged paws forward, tackling the firefighter into the wall with full force. A slam of impact shook the room, knocking the wind from Marshall under the shepherd's pinning force. Gripping hold of his victim's scruff, Chase dragged the dazed animal over to the chair and pulled his arms into the restraints, shooting the network a death glare to instantly lock him in place. The cuffs snapped closed, trapping the Dalmatian in place before he could even shake the dizzy feeling.
"Sorry Marshall!" Chase wiped his mouth, leaping for the door quickly. "I won't hurt you, but I have places to be!"
The firefighter's cries for him to come back falling on deaf ears, Chase charged out of the room and took the tower by storm. He recognized it immediately as the basement, a maze-like area Ryder excavating underground to build his machines. He just needed to get out of here, to run faster, take the corners sharper; he wasn't about to hurt his friends but escaping this confounded dungeon was his first priority. The hanger had to be nearby, the basement wasn't that big, but the corridors seemed to be expanding in his panic.
"We should be almost there," Chase had to stop, breathing heavily from the exertion. He put a paw to his forehead, feeling for the Neuroband's grip. Better tighten this thing, because the action was about to get explosive. Only bare fur was touched, a jolt swept through Chase's body in rising alarm, realizing something was horribly wrong.
"Amata... where's my Neuroband?"
"It's not on your head?"
"It's gone!" Chase's fur spiked, growing frantic. "Damn it! Ryder must've taken it off me, how am I supposed to-" he stopped, stopping in place with a sudden revelation. "Wait... Amata, if the band is gone... how did I hack the restraints earlier?"
Amata was quiet, seemingly able to feel the chill running down his spine. "It appears... we have a breakthrough in technology, Chase. Something not even I could've anticipated."
"What do you mean...?"
"It seems the Neuroband is obsolete to you now, its core functions and abilities have... integrated with you, is my best guess. Everything you did back there was with your mind alone. Congrats, Chase... you're certainly special now."
"My... mind?" his legs began to shake, his breath increasing its pace.
"I wonder when this happened," Amata continued, thinking out loud. "Who knows, it could've happened any day ago and you just never noticed. This is quite the accomplishment for Evcon's technology, not their core objective, of course, but no doubt a substantial-"
"Quiet!" Chase hissed, struggling to comprehend the words he was hearing. "Just- stop talking for once!" He picked up his pace, praying his exit was somewhat around. There was no time to think over this jarring realization, he just needed to get out of the damned area before anything else.
Taking some winding twists, he found the hangar and threw himself into the massive room. "There it is!" The small airship was sitting quietly off center, left to sleep from unsure until a future mission required its presence. Better late than never, Chase darted to the red ship and began climbing into the cockpit, until the rest of the PAW Patrol finally caught up with him.
Ryder led the charge, "Chase! Stop!" The other five hastily followed behind him, some wearing expressions of fear, while others ran spiteful growls and hostile glares.
No, not like this. Chase felt his blood boil just in his voice alone, he wouldn't be contained, not anymore. The shepherd dropped from his climb, turning to face his old friends. "Stay back!"
"I said..." his lips peeled back in a rabid snarl, powerful rage coursing through every last one of his veins. "Stay... back!" He screamed his warning like a feral warrior, powerful electromagnetic pulses radiating from his body at relentless rates. All lights in a massive radius exploded like glass-filled grenades, the absence of light plunging the entire area into all-consuming darkness, dozens of radios and loudspeakers overcharged in ear-splitting screeches until they blew out, several machines either overclocking in power until rupturing, or malfunctioning beyond all repair. Ryder shielded his face as glass shrapnel attacked the patrol like a swarm of wasps, the other puppies unseen in the darkness but screaming and sounds of impact were heard.
It was the perfect distraction, Chase quickly climbed into the Air Patroller, caring little about the glass leaving cuts around his body.
"But Chase, you don't have a pilot," came Amata's concern.
Walking up to the interface of controls, Chase gently put both paws on its surface, laying them upon the infinite possibilities open to his mind. Closing his eyes, he felt formless magnets seal his arms to the machines, interconnecting strands of life with his mind and the Patroller's inner computers.
"I don't need one," he said, letting his consciousness sink into the singing whirlwind of codes and data. The ship's engine spontaneously activated, kicked to life by nothing like a miracle itself commanded it to. The hull lowered, closing around him and sealing him into the ship. The blades begin spinning, the rising sound of the powering machine deafening all noise in the area. The rest of the pups quickly abandoned their pursuit, retreating back with fear-filled eyes while Ryder stared incredulously at the miracle being witnessed.
Putting his muzzle upward, Chase flicked his head to the side, remotely interfering with the tower's mechanisms and opening the sunroof. Light poured into the room, exposing the glass-littered floor and terrified group of his old friends cowering and bloodied. The glass had done a number on them, but it was nothing a few medical wraps couldn't fix. They'd be fine, Chase knew, they were just harmless little cuts, the nerve of them to be so dramatic. Nothing could stand him, not a single one of these inferior machines had the tenacity to suppress his mental commands. Laughing sporadically at what he now understood as a marvelous achievement, Chase arched his back, and the Patroller responded. It lifted from the ground like a rising angel, passing seamlessly through the open roof and taking the skies, all while the rest of the PAW Patrol helplessly watched from below.
He was free, a soaring bird in the blue sky with the whole world ahead of him.
"Amata, did I really do all that with just my mind?" he asked, voice dripping with awe. "I... I don't need the band anymore?"
"Indeed you did. I'm amazed by this development, and quite excited to see what becomes of you."
Physical equipment be damned, Chase was a whole new dog now. Infinite possibilities, maybe more, laid at his feet. Truly nothing was off the table in this exciting evolution. He spent the first hour of the flight initially unsure of himself, fearing whatever condition his brain was left in after whatever occurred to allow him this ability. Until his mind went rampant with daydreams and glee, imagining all the different things he'd be able to do, clicking his mood in a whole new direction. He was a true Mighty Pup now, nothing like those dumb costumes and sandbox power the others had from that meteor.
"Amata, access navigational archives to Foggy Bottom," Chase said, then had a second thought. "Actually... I'll do it myself." Keeping the airship active, Chase accessed the databases within his mind, pulling maps and directions where needed.
"What will you do upon arrival?"
"Hopefully talk to Humdinger and get some answers on what all this means," his teeth gritted. "I'll beat it from him if I have to..."
