"How did you...guys that's not...I never...I don't remember any of this, I swear!" he shouted. Skye looked at him hurtfully, then turned away.
"I can't believe I ever had anything..." she stopped herself. Her anger was directed at herself. "So, so, so, stupid!" she said, stomping her paw. However, Zuma took a more, violent way of expressing his hurt.
"You betrayed us?" shouted Zuma-making it sound more like an accusation than a question- launching himself at the German. Chase wasn't expecting it to happen so fast, and he was kicked clear to the other end of the wall. Zuma was going to follow up, but was quickly disabled by Marshall, putting Zuma in a neck hold.
"Wait, Zuma," he said, not upset, but more thoughtfully. Zuma growled, but did as he was told, still glaring daggers at Chase.
"No. No, I won't believe it! You were my first dog, Chase. Before there was even such a thing as Paw Patrol!" said Ryder in anguish. "You'd never do such a thing! Never, I can't...I can't..." he stopped, and just looked at Chase. "Say it isn't so!" he said.
"I promise I never did anything! I didn't, I wouldn't, I'd never do this!" Chase swore up and down he didn't do it, but the image was clear. Jason just smiled.
"Not as trustworthy as you thought, eh, Paw Patrol?" he sneered. Even Ryder began to doubt Chase.
"Chase," Rocky rasped, gasping for breath. "Why would you do this to me? You know how evil he is, but you still...what did he offer you? Money? Fame? Power? I hope it was worth it, because that's what you sold our friendship for." Rocky said, painfully. He didn't say it angrily, and he didn't put Chase down. No, he just said it in a voice full of pain, self-regret, and sadness. Chase sat down and howled in pain.
"I'm telling you, I didn't do it!" he cried.
"Chase, how do you explain this, then?" asked Jason.
"You framed me!" shouted Chase, looking ready to spring at him.
"Nuh, ah, ah, remember your friend, or well, used to be, friend," said Jason, lightly tapping the button. Rocky whimpered a little, sharp pricks of pain coming through the chains and burning his tender flesh. "But I'll be fair. You told me Rocky is a genius when it comes to computers. Rocky, has this picture been faked?" he asked. Rocky looked up slowly, every movement an overwhelming effort.
"Ruff...goggles," he said. He scanned the picture, reading the coding script, and seeing if any changes had been made in it. "Ruff, retract." The goggles slipped back into his uniform.
"Rocky, tell us this isn't true.'' He's lying to us! said Chase boldly. Rocky turned to him, tears shining in his eyes. When he spoke, it was quiet, but very clear.
"It was not faked. This is a legitimate picture," he said, turning his head away. Marshall let go of Zuma. Jason smiled and said,
"Game 1 is now in session, fighters ready... fight!"
Zuma flew across the ground as if on wings, slamming into Chase again. Chase hit the ground, rolling to the side just in time to escape Zuma's unsheathed claws. He turned the roll into an attack, kicking himself up off the floor with one leg, the other striking Zuma in the jaw. Zuma stumbled back, spitting out blood. His paw glowed as he fixed his broken tooth, and when he set it down, there was a great amount of rage in his eyes.
"You little backstabbing mutt! I'm going to make you wish you were never born!" he said, lashing his claws against Chase. Blood slid down his chest, and Chase threw his paws up.
"Please! I don't want to fight you." Chase said.
"Chase, you know you want to fight him...don't you?" asked Jason. Chase looked tortured, but then his eyes flamed.
"Fine, if you want to fight, I'll give you a fight!" he said. Lightning circled him, and he took off at Zuma, running around him. Zuma hit him again, but his paw went through him. Chase wasn't there, he was just making copies of himself. Zuma felt a lightning bolt strike through his fur. It hurt, but it just enraged Zuma even more. Zuma blasted all the illusions of Chase with a wave of water. The real Chase slipped on the water, and at the speed he was going, he slammed into the wall, so hard he put a dent in it. Zuma was upon him in a moment, slashing him in the forehead. Blood mingled with water as Chase howled.
"Marshall, I know you don't believe Jason, and even if you did, you'd never turn on me. Please, help me!" he said, dripping blood on the floor. Everyone looked at Marshall. It looked like a fight was going on in him. He walked in between the two waring pups, who were taking a small breather.
"Come on, Mawshall! Help me subdue him. He's a twaitor!"
"I'm sorry Zuma, but he's my best friend! I can't let you continue hurting him!" he said, paw causing the residual water to boil away.
"Fine! Then I'll fight you both!" said Zuma. Marshall kept a sustained beam of fire going towards Zuma, which he (Zuma) returned with a blast of water. Fire and Water don't mix, and they both put the other out. Steam floated up in front of them, making it hard to see.
"No...stop this...stop hurting each other!" Rocky cried. He tried to use his powers to break free, but the chains still held firm. He began trying to break the chains with his bare paws. It was hard, but they slowly began to snap.
"I'm doing this for you, Wocky!" said Zuma, who combined his water powers with his Pup-Fu skills, and he slammed his paw on the ground. A wave of water spun towards Chase, who took off to avoid it.
"Not gonna work this time!" said Zuma, who made the whirlwind bigger. It spun faster and faster, and Chase couldn't avoid it. He was sucked in, and Zuma turned the water whirlwind into a suspended ball of water. Chase tried to run, but his paws couldn't get traction in the water. He tried to swim up to breathe, but Zuma kept the water ball rotating, always changing the direction of up. Chase slammed his paws together, and a bolt of lightning shot through the water towards Zuma. Except, water and electricity don't mix, and he electrocuted himself. The ball of water began to freeze, and Chase couldn't breathe anymore.
"Enough!" shouted Marshall, hitting Zuma in the back of the head. Zuma fell, and Marshall threw him into the ceiling. Losing focus, Zuma hit the ground. Marshall blasted Chase with fire, evaporating the water. Chase fell, choking and gasping. Marshall began a full-on assault on Zuma, who was tired from fighting Chase. Marshall lit a ring of fire around Zuma and brought it closer and closer. Zuma tried to jump, but the flames jumped with him. Marshall created an ever-shrinking ring of fire around Zuma. Zuma fought back the fire with his water, creating a shield around him. But the fire raged so hot, he couldn't sustain it, and he felt his fur begin to heat up. Come on fight him, fight him!" he thought, pushing back against his prison with everything he had. But Marshall had a lot of energy, and a lot of anger on his side. Zuma tried to put out the fire, but he ran out of energy. Marshall's eyes gleamed in the light as it got closer and closer. The flames began to lick at Zuma's paws. Suddenly, a strong wind blew the fire out, then blew Marshall back.
What the...thought Zuma, looking up. Skye was flying in the air, and she was powered up and ready to fight.
"I can't believe you're going to take Chase's side!" she shouted, blasting away the fire, and the water. She landed deftly beside Zuma, helping him up.
"You're not going to beat up the one pup who dares to serve justice! I'm almost as good as you, and with my wind and Zuma's water, I'll put you out!" she shouted, blasting him into the ceiling, the walls, then holding him suspended in the air, she slung him onto the ground. Her wind was swift and accurate, and did her every bidding. Zuma was healing his cuts and bruises, and was soon ready to fight again.
"No, don't do it! Don't you get it! He wants you to fight each other! This is his plan, he wants to hurt you!" screamed Rocky, struggling furiously at the chains. Another one of them snapped. Yes! I'm going to get out of this! He thought. Jason was eating popcorn and drinking soda.
"This worked better than even I imagined!" he said. Ryder wasn't doing anything, he just sat down and held on to Rubble, tears streaming down his face.
"This isn't my pups...it isn't!" he murmured.
"Okay, time to even the playing field!" shouted Chase. A sonic wave came from him, and everything slowed down. However, Skye was ready for the move, and surrounded herself and Zuma in a whirlwind. When the wave hit the wind, it slowed it down, but the pups weren't affected as much. Still, they felt sluggish as Chase and helped up a bleeding Marshall. Chase ran small tight circles, faster than the speed of light. He stopped, and controlled the lighting swirling around him. It twisted into one long spear of lightning. Chase held on to it, and rushed at the pups.
"Zuma, you take care of Chase! I got Marshall!" she shouted. Zuma's paws glowed bright, and he created a suspended dome of water in front of him. When Chase threw the spear at him, it soaked into the water, supercharging it. Zuma swung it right back into Chase's face, wetting him, and giving him a nasty shock. Chase was strong, but Zuma was fast. Marshall was still down, and Skye was stalking towards him. Chase touched Marshall with his paw, and there was a small jolt of electricity. Marshall fur cracked a bit, then he began moving very fast.
"Oh, yeah, I can do more than slow you guys down! I can speed things up too!" Marshall was already an awesome Pup-Fu fighter, but this speed upgrade completely shot his power levels through the roof. He jumped up and began assaulting Skye, who was driven backward. She flew over him and threw a long, thin ring of wind at him. The pressure cut open his flesh, spilling more blood. But Marshall jumped into the air, and with his paw, he slammed Skye down into the ground. There was a crack, and Skye tried to get up, wincing in pain. Her paw was a mangled, bloody mess. Without her paw, she couldn't control her whirlwind anymore. She went on the defense as jets of fire spewed at her. She created a dome of wind around her as the fire made contact. She bumped into Zuma, who was driven back because of Chase's lightning attacks. There were multiple burns on him, and more cuts. He was shielding himself also, with a field of water. The water was cracking with electricity, and he was careful to keep it away from him. Skye's wind field merges with his, and they could breathe a bit, at least for the time being.
"Skye, let me see that paw," said Zuma. Skye gingerly stretched out her front paw, and Zuma worked his magic on it.
"No fair!" said Marshall. "You have a healer..." he grumbled.
"Tough luck, Marshy!" said Skye sarcastically. "If you were on our side, Zuma would heal you too!"
"Skye, I don't weally want to hurt Mawshall." whined Zuma. "I only wanted to huwt Chase..."
"You can heal him later, ok?" she conceded.
There was so much fire and lightning coming at them that their fields were starting to crumble. They could no longer see who they were fighting.
"Zuma, we have to do Pupjitzu! It's the only way we can get out of this!" she said groaning. A few tongues of fire and flashes of lightning broke through. Skye and Zuma began doing the kata Marshall had taught them.
"What are they doing in there?" asked Marshall, holding up his assault of fire.
"I don't know, but we are winning!" said Chase, blood dripping off his pelt. There was suddenly a flash. Skye and Zuma drew the symbol for air and water respectively. Zuma's eyes turned blue, and Skye's eyes turned pink. They blasted through the protection they had put up, again exposed. A wave of water splashed over the pups of fire and speed, and they felt their injuries begin to close up. Chase was left slightly injured, though.
"I'm not here to kill you, just teach you a lesson," said Zuma. When they were fully healed, they attacked. Skye began pulling them in, and Chase and Marshall had to run in the other direction, but still, they were getting sucked in. Water coated the floor, making them slip and fall. Zuma put Marshall into another bubble of water, drowning him slowly. Marshall began to swim to the surface, but the sphere was frozen on the outside, and there was no way out. Chase was added to the sphere, and Skye kept everything together with a blast of wind. They were trapped by two elements.
I'm almost there. Though Rocky, who had broken most of his chains. I've got to stop them! There were just two more chains to break.
Realizing they were trapped, Chase and Marshall began doing pupjitzu so fast it made Ryder's head spin. In a flash, the sphere blew open. Chase and Marshall rode their whirlwinds, and stared back at them.
"Just stop it, okay!" said Marshall. "I don't want to fight you! You guys are my best friends!" he said earnestly, fur flaming.
"Yeah, just stop trying to kill me!" said Chase.
"No! You betrayed us!" said Zuma, snarling at the german.
"Yeah, and you beat him up!" said Skye, giving Chase the evil eye. Of all the pups, Skye was the hardest on him."
"Last pup standing wins!" shouted Jason, spurring them on. Jason was a master of his art. He turned the pups on each other, and now they were fighting each other. They weren't a team anymore, they were enemies. I wanna fight, but I don't know who to side with. I'm sitting this one out. thought Rubble.
The whirlwinds collided, and as they fought, blood spilled all over the ground. Chase was knocked right out of the sky, and he landed, unconscious. Zuma was next, and he fell out, long tears down his side, bleeding out. It was just Marshall and Skye.
"You know I'm stronger than you!" said Marshall, using every Pup-Fu move he knew.
"Yeah, but I'm much faster!" shouted Skye. In the end, they knocked each other out, blood pouring across the floor. Ryder had since passed out from the violence, and Rubble was looking like he was about to go the same direction.
Just one more... thought Rocky. SNAP! Rocky was free.
"What, how did you..." began Jason. Rocky stumbled a few feet. Maybe getting out of that wasn't such a great idea. Rocky had over judged his strength, and it had come back to bite him in the tail. Rocky was still very weak, and he collapsed on the ground. Jason immediately picked him up, and tied him up again, with even thicker chains than before.
"You'll never get out of these!" he sneered. He spat in his face, and Rocky winced as the sticky stuff defiled his fur. "How does it feel Rocky, to have your entire family turn on each other? And you couldn't do anything, because you are weak, you're just a petty, stupid mutt who can't do anything right," he said. Rocky slumped in the chair. He's right, I'm too weak. I couldn't save them. He thought sadly. "You are nothing! You're worth nothing to no one! Even Chase came to that conclusion." he laughed in his face, and spat on him again. Rocky hung his head.
"I hope you don't think that I'm done with you are your friends, oh, no! This was just to drive a wedge between you. The torture comes tomorrow! I hope you're ready!" Jason laughed whole-heartedly. Rocky just sat in the chair, spit clinging to him. I feel like complete trash. Maybe I am worth nothing... Jason left the room, and came back in with a dog that Rocky didn't recognize.
"Who is he?" Rocky murmured.
"You don't remember? Well, I let you two catch up, then. See? I'm not all evil...you just can't please some people." Jason said, leaving the room.
"Rocky? Is that you? Again?" asked the gray mix.
"Marcus, you're here!" Rocky said, wagging his tail. Marcus went over to his former best friend.
"How'd you get stuck here again?" he asked.
"I came to rescue you! And I still will!" Rocky said. Marcus looked at him sadly.
"There is no escape. Jason has run into a large sum of money, and his torture rooms are fully locked and loaded. Besides, Jason knows all your powers, and everything about you. But it's not..."
"Yeah, if Chase wasn't such a big traitor, we wouldn't be in this mess!" said Rocky.
"That's just it! It's not Chase's fault. Yes, he did do it, but not willingly." began Marcus.
"How do you know this?" asked Rocky.
"Jason tells me everything about you, just another way to make me suffer," said Marcus dryly.
"He never expected anyone to ever come back for me, so he hides nothing. When the meteor struck, Jason got powers too. He can mind control people, and his powers have been getting stronger! That's why the police have never found him. They have, but Jason not only can control them, but he can erase memories! He's dangerous!"
"Then how did he get to Chase?" asked Rocky. Marcus went over to the lock on Rocky's chains.
"This will hurt for a second. Please don't scream," he said. He inserted a claw and twisted it to the side. Rocky bit his tongue to keep from howling. Then the chains fell off of him.
"How did you do that?" asked Rocky, jumping off the chair.
"I've been honing my skills since I was first captured. I can pick any lock with my bare paws." Marcus said. "After you told Chase about your story, he immediately began looking for Jason. He found Jason's old base that day. Jason was there for some reason, some errand he had to run. Chase was going to arrest him, but then Jason put him under his control. Chase has never been the same since. I've been trying to figure out how to break the charm, but I can't figure it out." said Marcus.
"So Chase is innocent! He's being used by Jason, and Jason removed his memories! We treated him so badly..." said Rocky.
"Yeah, you did, but now you guys can makeup or whatever," Marcus said.
"How has Jason been treating you?" asked Rocky, tentatively.
"He fulfilled his promise alright. He makes me go to the torture sessions three times a week. He says it's punishment for when I let you guys go free." Marcus said. Rocky turned away from him, tears running down his face.
"Rocky?" Marcus asked. "Are you okay?" he put his paw over Rocky's, but Rocky pulled away.
"Leave me alone..." Rocky whispered.
"What? I'm just meeting you again after three years!" exploded Marcus, spinning Rocky around to face him. He saw tears running down Rocky's pelt, and onto the floor. "Rocky, what's wrong? Is it something I said?" Marcus asked. The Paw Patrol began to wake up from their violent fight. Zuma was the first up. He once again healed all the pups- even Chase- and looked over at Rocky. Is that Marcus? he thought. Zuma decided to just watch.
"Rocky, you need to talk to me. Best friends don't shut out best friends." Zuma felt a small twinge of pain in his heart.
"It's just that, no matter how many times people tell me it wasn't my fault, deep down, I know it is." Rocky cried. Marcus pulled him into a hug.
"Rocky, you can't carry that guilt around with you any longer. It's been three years. Don't you think that's enough?" he asked. "I choose to stay behind. That wasn't your fault, it was my choice! You need to let this go! It will tear you apart! Let it go now! Just let it go. I'm right here for you. We are together again, and we'll escape together, or not at all. I wouldn't have changed my decision for anything. I would've done the same thing." Marcus comforted him, hugging him close. Rocky silently cried into his fur. "It's okay. It's alright. I'm fine, and I'm here now. Let's just let the past be the past, and look towards the future." he said. Rocky calmed down, and it looked like a great weight had been released from his mind and heart.
"So you don't hate me?" Rocky asked.
"Rocky, I could never hate you. I love you. And I always have. I thought about you every day since you left." Marcus said. Zuma's heartache increased dramatically. Poor Rocky. He thought. The door opened again, and a small pretty gray mix was tossed in.
"Oh, Taja, how'd the game go?" asked Marcus, helping her up.
"I managed to get us something special today!" she said cheerfully. She went into her clothes, and pulled out a very large chicken bone. It was fried and crispy, and there were a few pieces of it that were chewed off. " She giggled a little bit.
"How did you even manage to get this?" asked Marcus, stepping towards her.
"I snatched it right off of Jason's plate the moment he wasn't looking. I'm sorry I ate a little of it off, though. I'm just so hungry." she admitted. Rocky began counting her ribs. She looked like she hadn't eaten in days.
"This is the first time this week I managed to get something!" she said. She winced a little and sidestepped.
"Taja...what happened?" asked Marcus.
"Umm...nothing!" she said. Marcus gave her the 'don't play with me' look. She sighed.
"Ok, ok. I got shot in the hind leg with a couple of rubber bullets. But I did my best, I promise!" she said.
"I know Taja. But you need to stay off your leg, until it heals," he said. He and Taja were covered in cuts and scrapes, ranging in size from small cuts to deep gashes.
"Ummm, Marcus? Who is she?" asked Rocky.
"Oh, sorry! This is my sister. She was captured at the same time as me, but she was placed in a different facility." explained Marcus.
"Taja, it's nice to meet you," said Rocky.
"Are you...Rocky?" she asked quizzically. "My brother has told me so much about you!" she bubbled. "I'm so glad I can finally meet you. You were with Marcus during his first three years in prison, and I always knew you'd be back to save us!" she squealed. Some pup cleared his throat, and they saw Zuma behind them.
"Hi, guys! I'm Zuma," he said shyly.
"Hi, Zuma!" said both Marcus and Taja.
"Zuma, this is the friend I was telling you about, Marcus," Rocky said.
"You're alright in my book, Mawcus. That was a weally cool thing for you to do," said Zuma.
"I like your voice," said Taja. "It makes you sound so cute." Zuma blushed red.
"Sorry about my sister, she likes to speak her mind," mumbled Marcus, cuffing her over the ear.
"I have a speech impediment. I'll grow out of it eventually. Some days are worse than others." he mumbled.
"Well, I think your voice is just fine," said Taja, nudging him. Zuma's paws glowed, and the moment he touched her, all her injuries began to heal simultaneously.
"What are you doing? What are you?" she asked, as she felt the pain ebb from her now nonexistent wounds.
"Umm...I'm one of the few pups in this world who gained powers from the space wock."
"Wait, you have powers too?" she asked.
"Too? You mean you have powers as well?" said Zuma, wagging his tail.
"Yeah! Jason has been studying the space rock for a while now, trying to figure out the source of its power. He decided me and Marcus would be his test subjects. He locked us in a room with it, and it suddenly went off. We were slammed into the back of a wall very hard. Nothing happened, and the meteor was drained after we absorbed its power. He was really mad at us about that, because it was the only one he had. He hasn't been able to find another piece quite as big as that, but he is still looking. Marcus and I had gotten powers, but we never let him know the experiment didn't fail. I can manipulate energy." She said.
"I'm not sure what I can do..." Marcus said.
"But I'm sure his power will show at some point," Taja said. "I know he has one, because his paws glow sometimes. We just don't know what he's doing."
"Wow. What a battle..." mumbled Marshall. "Thanks, Zuma," he said, looking down at his healed body.
"You're welcome," said Zuma, giving him a friendly lick.
"Marcus? MARCUS!" Marcus was taken down by a small female cockapoo.
"Jessie? They got you, too?" he said, looking up at Skye.
"Yeah, they did. They knocked us out and brought us here when we came to the place Rocky and Zuma investigated." Skye licked his nose and got off of him.
"We've heard a lot of things about you!" said Marshall. "And all of them good."
"Yeah, the Paw Patrol can never repay you for what you've done for us!" said Ryder. Chase hung back, not wanting to spoil the moment.
"Ummm... Paw Patrol...isn't that...Chase?" he asked.
"Don't worry about him! He's a traitor to us all," said Skye in furry.
"Yeeeaahhhh..." said Marcus, drawing out the word. "About that. Chase didn't do it for one purpose. Jason gained powers from the space rock, and used them to enslave Chase. So it's not his fault, he's just a victim, but until we know that the charm has been broken, you need to be careful what you tell him. But, don't blame him and beat him up. He was actually trying to bring Jason to justice the day he was taken over." Marcus finished.
"Wait, really?" asked Skye.
"Yeah, Jason tells me everything about you pups. It's his way of torturing me, but it really backfired on him this time."
"Jason has been getting better and better, no, more creative with his methods of torture. It's actually okay once you get used to it. Until we come up with a plan to escape, I and Taja will catch you up on the routine here. It's like an actual prison here, but we'll show you the ropes." said Marcus. "Welcome to boot camp, cadets!"
Okay! The pups are outraged at Chase's betrayal. There is a massive fight, which ends in blood. Jason had accomplished his goal, to drive a wedge between the Paw Patrol. He didn't count on Marcus being there to stop him, though. Marcus explains to Rocky that he shouldn't be so upset all the time, and that it is time to let go of his guilt. Marcus' sister, Taja, is introduced. She and her brother both got powers from the meteorite, with Taja able to control energy, and Marcus not knowing what his power is. The Paw Patrol meets the pups, and Marcus and Taja promise to teach the Patrol how to survive until they can get out. More very soon...