Cherish || A Chase x Sweetie Fanfiction ||

(S3-C27) • The Climb •

Chase was glad Marshall chose to remain on solid ground, he would've had a hard time moving with the gaps in-between the steps and the wind attempting to blow their team away. That was no time for his clumsiness.

Skye was struggling to balance herself beside the rescue group. Her copter shook against the force of nature, relying on Tracker to make sure she wasn't reaching her rig's limit. It was a sturdy vehicle but nothing physically man-made was ever built to last.

"Just a few more steps," Chase yelled to his team to reassure them. The wind was inside their ears, they could barely hear themselves think. Skye began to be tossed around as they came closer to the castle in the sky—the eye of the storm. They had to make their ascent quick.

Before Chase and Tracker, who were tied together to keep weight to the front, took another step, their hearts died from the sudden disappearance of the whole set of stairs. They all screamed for a second before falling, rolling down to the side of, surprisingly, a new set of steps below them. Tracker dangled behind Chase as the Shepherd held on to the solid goo platform. Everest and Zuma were able to hold on their own surfaces as well, although only the former was about to pull herself up, hopping onto Zuma's already ridiculously small platform to return his equilibrium. Chase at least was able to lift himself and Tracker from the danger, although the scenario surprised them all.

Esther. Chase shot his eyes back to his team on the ground, observing with squinted eyes as the one-eyed pup puffed tired breathes as she kept her shaking arm extended. "We don't have much time," he said, immediately telling his team to pick up the pace. However, after a few more climbs, the wind blew harder than ever, the pups almost stumbling after Skye's vehicle enlarged on their faces.

"Sorry, pups. It's turning into a gale out here, I don't think my copter's going to hold out—"

Chase caught Tracker's ears snapping straight, panic on his face. "Skye, watch out!"

Too late. A large chunk of debris slammed onto the metal vehicle. It spun out of control and everyone couldn't say a thing, for their thought process accelerated to Skye's situation and the wind that was about to throw them off once she leaves their side.

Suddenly, a black wall formed and took the slam of wind, and the team of pups watched as Skye lowered altitude. She blasted off her seat and a parachute emerged from her emergency backpack, completing the conditions of her safety.

"Isn't Esther tired?" Everest yelled from behind right before they turned back, fear striking their hearts. The platforms behind them rapidly disappeared, forcing them to dash up the steps. If one of them were to ever slip or stumble, they would bring all of them to their demise due to the rope. That thought infested their minds, their blood circulating faster than ever. Everest could feel her platforms disappearing after every trek, just barely able to climb.

"Just a little more," Chase whispered to himself, unintentionally in sync with Tracker as they climbed the steps. The platforms started to dissipate along with the wall that held the wind. With the final step, Chase and Tracker lept, hopeful for they reached sunlight after all the gloom, standing on land. We did it!

Little did Chase know that although they were able to cross, a force dragged them back to the edge with a scream, his claws digging deep into the dusty cement as he carried his whole rescue team with his strength, and he realized what happened. Everest and Zuma couldn't reach the final step unlike them, and their weight and kinetic energy overpowered their standing, potential state.

They all panicked. They reached the point where wind was absent but it didn't matter if they couldn't lift themselves up.

"Oh, no." Chase felt himself slipping, and his arms were beginning to exhaust. "We've gotten so far, this can't be our end." Those were the last words that left his muzzle before he finally lost grip on land, every single one of them feeling air beneath as they began to free fall. They never thought this was how they'd end up. Chase thought it was unfair since life has been kicking him since the very beginning, he wished it could've given him just one chance.