Different Horizons-A Paw Patrol Story

Chapter Eleven

"Harold!" Mayor Humdinger yelled. "NO!!"

The teleportation machine pulled more things in. Ryder, the pups, and Mayor Humdinger felt as the force of the portal drew them in. They hid behind Chase's cop cruiser and Marshall's fire truck. Mayor Humdinger held his cat carrier in his arms, trying to calm down his yowling kittens.

But the power of the machine kept growing. It increased until the point where the vehicle began to get sucked into the portal.

"The machine is too powerful," Ryder said. "We have to shut it down."

"How?" Rocky asked.

Ryder thought. He peaked at the machine and noticed the glow. The crystals, he thought. Next to Harold's laptop, Ryder saw a capsule where the crystals connected to the machine. "We have to disconnect the crystals from the machine," he said, practically yelling over the humming of the device. "If we do that, the machine should lose its power and shut down."

"But we can't get close without getting sucked into the portal," Chase said.

"We need to make a line to it," Ryder said. "Pups, grab yourself by your paws. Rocky will be at the end of the line. He'll use his claw to remove the crystals."

The pups got in formation. Ryder held onto Chase's cruiser with his left hand. With his right, he held onto Marshall's paw. It went from Marshall to Everest, then Rubble, then Chase, then Skye, then Zuma, and lastly, Rocky.

Once everyone was in position, Rocky called out his claw. He tried prying at the capsule, but it wouldn't budge. "I can't get it open," Rocky exclaimed.

"Try using a flat-head screwdriver," Ryder said.

Rocky called out his screwdriver. He jammed its head into the opening and began prying it open. "Almost got it," Rocky said, his voice strained. With one final push, he was able to open the capsule. "Ryder, I got it," Rocky exclaimed, smiling. His smile quickly faded as he watched the portal yank the crystals of their spots and suck them into the void.

"The crystals!" Ryder exclaimed. Ryder and the pups watched as the edges of the portal were closing in. The problem was that the machine still pulled with the same amount of power, except more concentrated. That's when everything that could go wrong did.

A branch crashed into Zuma's front paw, causing him to let go of Skye. He and Rocky got pulled into the portal. Everyone gasped at what they witnessed. In a moment of shock, Skye's paw loosened in Chase's grip and got dragged into the portal. "Chase! Help!"

"Skye!" Chase yelled. He let go of Rubble's grip and ran into the portal after her.

"Chase!" Ryder called out. Another branch hit his hand, causing him to let go of Marshall, Everest, and Rubble. "No!" Ryder yelled. He was going to run in after them, but Mayor Humdinger grabbed his arm.

"Don't," the mayor said. "They're gone. The pups and H..." The mayor choked on his words. "They're gone."

"Maybe, mayor," Ryder said. "But what if they're not? They need me."

Mayor Humdinger knew that he couldn't change Ryder's mind. That's what made him such a great leader. "Okay, but bring my nephew back. Please."

"I will try, Mayor," Ryder said.

Mayor Humdinger let go of Ryder. Ryder looked at the portal. It was already closing, so there was very little room to enter. The portal was also ripping pieces off the machine as if it would implode on itself, which meant Ryder didn't have long. Ryder took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and ran into the portal. Since the size of the portal was so small, Ryder had to dive to enter before it closed for good.

Ryder opened his eyes and was in awe of what he saw. He was in a tunnel of energy. Ryder didn't know where it led or where he was. He passed different portals leading to unknown places. Some were in the second dimension, while others were in the third dimension.

In one portal, two two-dimensional walking dogs played in a backyard. They looked like Australian Heelers. One of them, the larger one, was a combination of light blue, blue, and dark blue fur, except for its snout, which was tan. The other one, slightly smaller than the first, was completely different, having tan and white hair. They chased each other around a tree and into the house.

In another portal, Ryder saw the pups (the series version). The pups were playing in the yard of the Lookout, chasing after one another. Ryder thought they were his pups until he saw himself walk towards them. The pups, seeing Ryder arriving, lined up next to each other. Ryder threw a handful of pup treats, which each pup snatched out of the air. Seeing this, Ryder laughed before getting tackled by the group.

Ryder turned to his right and saw the pups in a different portal, but they seemed different (the first movie version). Somehow, their bodies had more details, each hair moving freely. The pups stood in the Adventure City attires as Chase mouthed out: "Paw Patrol, ready for action, Ryder, sir." Ryder couldn't hear the German Shepherd, but he figured that's what Chase said.

Ryder looked forward and noticed some other pups in the distance, except they weren't in a portal. Ryder realized that they were his pups, not another illusion. Ryder pressed his arms against his body, pushing him forward faster.

Ryder eventually caught up with the pups. "Pups," he called out. They all turned around to look at him. They had all huddled together, holding onto each other for dear life. Ryder got closer and wrapped his arms around the pups. He didn't want to let go of them again. "It's okay," he assured them. "We're here together."

Up ahead, a new portal opened up. The view inside faced towards the ground. Green trees surrounded an acre of grass. Ryder knew what was going to happen. Ryder knew what he had to do despite how much he hated the idea.

As Ryder and the pups passed through the portal, Ryder let go of them, allowing them to scatter around him. Ryder watched as his pups disappeared into the trees below. He knew that if they stayed together, they would've fallen faster and with more momentum. It hurt Ryder to see his pups fall, but his gut told him they were fine.

Ryder watched as the trees got closer. Ryder passed through the canopy, rolled through the branches, and fell onto the ground below before everything went black.