PAW Patrol: Blood Moon Massacre

Part 3

Ryder continued to sob in the dark on the lookout floor, blaming himself for what happened to Rubble.

"I'm so sorry Rubble... I'm so so sorry. The rotation mechanism's never malfunctioned like that before... The entrance to the slide is supposed to scan each of you and identify your personal vehicle!" He slammed his fist on the floor. "I should have kept constant maintenance on it. This is all my fault..." He cried heavily.

Chase tried his best to comfort him while he tried to hold himself together. Rocky, with tear stained eyes, was searching something on Ryder's pup-pad, tapping his paw here and there across the screen. The words that had been spoken by the unknown voice still rung around in his head.

Those who gaze upon the moon as I pass, shall soon find that night to be their last. He thought to himself trying to decipher the terrible riddle.

His eyes widened as realization settled on him. He began to search: Flying ghost ship passing by moon. A picture of the exact same ghost ship passing a moon appeared on the screen in an electronic article.

"Guy's..." He called out to the other's in a shaky voice. "I know this is a bad time... but you need to hear this. I pulled up an article on the ghost ship we saw... It says that not many have seen the paranormal scene, but if you do happen to see it, it's considered to be a bad omen... Those who have seen the ship float past the moon have either been involved in freak accidents that led to their death or have been... murdered. The reporter who captured this photo was found the next day hanging from a flag pole by his intestines..." Rocky gagged at the thought of that scene, also remembering Rubble for a split second before a tear trickled down his cheek. He wiped his eyes before continuing to read the article. "*sniff* According to legend, the name of the ship is called the Reaper. The Reaper was a pirate ship that belonged to a pirate who went by the name Blood Beard. Blood beard was a cold blooded pirate. He murdered the innocent and took from them, no matter the circumstance. One night after pillaging the town which is now known as Adventure Bay, the King ordered him to be found and executed. Blood Beard and his crew tried to sail away using the dark night and cloudy skies as cover, but the clouds moved from in front of the moon and the light shining from it illuminated the ocean, giving away the pirate's position. The king's soldiers fired a barrage of cannon balls from the pier and sunk Blood Beard's ship, leaving no trace of the pirates..."

Rocky looked back at the picture of the ship in the article. His eyes were concentrating hard as if he had seen the vessel before. He gasped. "T-This ship... If I can remember right, it's the same ship that Zuma was trapped under when we saved the mer-pups." he stated.

Skye walked towards the mixed breed with fear in her eyes. "So does... that mean... everyone who see's the ship pass the moon... dies?"

Rocky sat the pup-pad down before lowering his head in silence. "That's what it sounds like..." he answered. "The ghost... is real. It's real." Tears began to fill his eyes again as he continued. "I should have sided with you guys... I shouldn't have teased you for believing. If I would have agreed, maybe Ryder would have taken it more seriously and Rubble wouldn't be-" he trailed off while little droplets splashed on the floor. "I want Rubble back!" Rocky screamed, throwing his hat across the room. "I was just as scared as you guys! The difference is you were all brave enough to admit it!" he stated with tears pouring down. "I'm the coward! The coward who teased his friends for being scared! His FRIENDS! It should have been me who went down the slide and-" he was cut off by a paw placed over his mouth. He looked up to see a tearful Skye.

"Rocky stop..." She pleaded through tears. "You're hurting us."

Rocky looked up to see everyone next to him with wide tearful eyes before being ambushed by a hug.

"Wocky, please... Don't ever say that again... please..." Zuma pled as he embraced him with worry.

Chase stepped forward placing a boot on his shoulder. "None of us blame you OR Ryder." Chase said, while Marshall nodded with agreement behind him.

An important detail clicked within the dalmatian's mind. "Guys... we ALL saw it." he stated.

"That's right." Agreed Skye. "Us, Cap'n Turbot, Alex, Mr. Porter, Katie, Cali, Mayor Goodway, and Chickaletta."

Ryder's eyes shot open. "Oh no... Mayor Goodway." he said remembering the Mayor's distressed call. He quickly picked his pup-pad up off of the floor and tried to call the mayor. No one answered. "We have to go and check on the others. Once we're all together, we can try and find a safe place. I'll go and check on Mayor Goodway and Chickaletta. Chase and Marshall, you two go and check on Alex and Mr. Porter. Skye and Zuma, you check on Cap'n Turbot. Rocky and Rub-" Ryder paused for a moment before finishing his sentence. He wasn't used to being one pup short, but this was no time to be consumed by grief.

"It's alright Ryder. I can go check on Katie and Cali alone..." Rocky answered, staring at the floor sadly.

"Are you sure?" Ryder asked, regaining his composure.

"Yeah... It's time for me to be brave." Rocky answered.

"Ok... PAW Patrol... is on a roll..." Ryder announced with not even the tiniest bit of enthusiasm and happiness that he normally shows when saying the phrase.

Spy Chase headed for the slide.

"Wait!" Shouted Ryder. "Don't take the slide. I-I don't wanna take any chances..." He pulled out his pup-pad and began tapping across the screen.

"But sir, how will we get down?" Chase asked curious. "The slide and elevator are the only ways down and the power is out."

"This'll just take a sec." Ryder replied still tapping his screen. "Ok. Auxiliary power ON!" he shouted after tapping one last button.

The power all around the lookout flashed back on and the sound of some machines whirring and computers booting up could be heard. Ryder ran to the elevator with the five following him and they descended to the ground floor.

As the elevator door opened; Ryder wore a serious expression.

"Pups... please be careful." said Ryder.

The five slowly nodded.

"There's no way I can get my ATV, so I guess I'll have to..." Ryder paused before finishing. "...Take Rubble's rig..."

Ryder shook his head. "Ok pups, let's head outside." he commanded.

The five pups exited through the automatic doors as they opened and closed. Once outside, they waited for Ryder to join them.

Ryder walked towards the exit doors.

The doors would not budge.

Those who gaze upon the moon as I pass, shall soon find that night to be their last...

Ryder's heart stopped upon hearing the familiar voice and once again,

the power within the lookout had shut off.