Vigilante PAW

Chapter Thirty: Rescue Pups

Marshall's eyes quickly opened. A dry sensation lined the insides of his throat, eliciting a parched cough from the groggy Dalmatian. He should've assumed that his body would react to not drinking much water since entering the valley. While he and Rocky packed more than enough dog food to sustain themselves and Everest for weeks, they had forgotten about water. Slowly sitting up, the sleepy Dalmatian let out a groan.

He soon realized that the lack of water wasn't the only reason his throat felt dry. The air around them was oddly warm for the time of year. Even in the middle of summer, the air in Adventure Bay wouldn't be as warm as it was at the moment. Maybe it was common where they were? He wasn't sure. He wasn't the best at remembering weather patterns. That was more of Skye's thing.

Taking another breath in through his mouth, his paws shot up to grab his own throat. Breathing in didn't make the dryness in his throat go away in the slightest. In fact, the inhale only made it worse, the rough sensation in his esophagus moving away from a slightly uncomfortable itch and to a barren desert within his throat.

Coughing to try and clear the tight, squeezing sensation, the Dalmatian thought that it'd be better to leave the tent and go for a walk to get some fresh air. Maybe the heat was just generated from his and Rocky's breath enclosed in the tent. He glanced at the mixed breed, who was still fast asleep and curled up where he had been from the moment Marshall walked into the tent.

He quietly slinked toward the entrance of the tent, hoping that the rustle from the flaps as well as the zipper wouldn't wake his friend. Using his teeth to pull the zipper open, he stuck his right foreleg out of it. It didn't seem to be raining. Perhaps it had stopped hours ago. Upon taking his first steps out of the tent, he shuddered at the strange feeling of the wet grass sifting between his paws and gliding on the fur of his legs.

The landscape was expectedly serene, only the faint sounds of bugs and nocturnal animals going about their nights in the distance. The Dalmatian slowly walked, paying little mind to the sounds his paws made as they squished the grass in his path. He was too focused on admiring the beauty of the Canine Valley. Before that night, he didn't really get much opportunity to look around, as he spent his nights outside the gate with Rocky and Everest.

He turned himself around to gaze at Everest's pup house. The door, like always, was closed. He hoped that she was doing okay sleeping by herself for the first time in weeks. He mentally slapped himself. Of course she was! She was a tough pup, tougher than himself and Rocky. Well, most of the time, at least.

Their encounter with Forest Fury showed him that there were some things that would scare her. She had never seen Everest react so strongly in reaction to a wild animal before. It's not like they hadn't dealt with any since she joined the PAW Patrol. But that bear was different, for some reason. A reason that he couldn't even begin to try and guess. He could ask her when she woke up, but he didn't want to bother her by prying into her head.

He soon wiped his forehead. He was able to breathe better outside of the tent, but it still was hot enough to feel uncomfortable. He couldn't ignore it any longer. Something was definitely amiss, and he was beginning to pick up on it. While his brain began to try and minimize the strange rise in temperature, his heart began to pound anxiously.

Stopping in his tracks, his eyes darted around. He sat on his haunches, focusing on his surroundings and how they appeared instead of admiring the beauty of the valley. A draft of wind pushed by, heating up the area he was standing in substantially. The amount of heat that seemed to blow on his face for just a few seconds made him break out into a sweat. His eyes closed out of instinct, like how it would all of the time back when he'd watch Ryder bake cookies on special occasions.

Upon closing his eyes, a familiar voice slipped into his ears.

"Calm down. Look for the signs before you panic."