HIDING UNDER A TARP used to cover dirt and garden tools, Blue leaned close to the truck’s cab window to catch the news reports on the radio about Robo’s murderous worldwide march. Her fur was dirty, and her wounds painful. But that didn’t slow her down. Blue was headed straight toward’s Robo’s compound, where Max needed her. Too many dogs were counting on her to stop the bloodshed.
Suddenly, the truck braked and swerved to avoid a group of stray dogs howling in celebration. The tailgate flew open, and Blue was thrown out the back of the truck as it accelerated again, a bale of hay breaking her fall on the pavement. She quickly got up, but her ride kept going.
“Great,” she sighed.
Blue climbed to her feet and started to run next to the road. For days, she kept up the pace, only stopping for rest and water, until she was back in the pine forests of Jasper, Georgia, the mountain crest before her.
It was time to find Robo’s fortified lair. In one of their many conversations, Copper had drawn her a map in the dirt in case they were separated. But her memory was failing her on the exact location.
Blue was exhausted. She was about to give up for the day, but suddenly caught a strong scent, which pushed her forward.
Suddenly, it was swept away by the wind. Losing hope, she thought: It was probably just coyotes moving through. Her muscles ached, and her wounds were tearing open from excessive movement. She finally nestled into a pine bed, her eyes heavy, and curled up into a ball. She expected to fall asleep quickly, but her mind wouldn’t let her. Instead, Blue hauled herself back up, and started pacing around the base of a mountain. Come on Blue, you can figure this out. As she slowly climbed through its trails, she cocked her head toward a large pile of rocks.
“Isn’t that strange?” Blue whispered to herself.
Just then, she spotted paw prints in the dirt leading straight into the rocks. Blue stepped forward, and started to pull rocks off the pile, letting them roll down the hill behind her. When she uncovered the edge of a huge door, she took a step back. Emblazoned in the steel was an image of a dog encircled with a gear—Robo’s symbol.
“This is it, this is Robo’s base,” Blue murmured. “I’ve got to think this through. I can’t just go in there without a plan and expect to defeat Robo.”
With moon rising above her, Blue took a break to sleep, hiding in a thicket of pine trees near the entrance.
The next morning, she heard the sound of small rocks tumbling by. Peeking out, she saw a large Saint Bernard bounding down the mountain, followed by about a dozen smaller dogs, all coming from the hidden door.
No way am I fighting that thing, she thought, noticing his broad shoulders, huge chest, and powerful legs. As he got closer, though, she could sense fear.
The Saint Bernard looked back toward the exit and nodded. He was clearly the leader of this little group; the other dogs circled around him in support. Blue kept herself hidden. These were clearly Robo’s dogs, but they appeared to be nervous.
“If Robo finds out about this, he will have our heads!” the smallest of the dogs quivered. He kept close to the Saint Bernard.
“We won’t get caught, trust me,” the Saint Bernard said gently. Yet he didn’t seem to believe his own words.
At that moment, he looked up—directly into Blue’s eyes. Not good, she thought. She prepared to defend herself.
Suddenly, the Saint Bernard stood at attention with his crew. He saluted nervously in Blue’s direction. “Lieutenant Clover, at your service, ma’am.”
Blue was shocked, and didn’t know how to respond. They were in no way threatening her, so she stepped away from her hiding place. “I am Blue, and …”
Clover cut her off. “The Blue? Blue of the prophecy? We thought you were dead.”
Blue shifted nervously. “Please state your business.”
“We’re leaving to join the resistance.”
Blue didn’t believe him for a moment.
Clover could tell, so he continued. “I came to this place to learn how to protect my family, whom I love and who love me. I have learned that things are not what I thought, and my family is in trouble. I have to help them.”
Blue stared at him. There was no indication that he was lying. The dogs behind him trembled as he confessed to treason.
“I have learned the ways of Robo’s army, and more importantly, the ways of Robo himself.” He paused, letting Blue absorb what he just said. “I have used my position to learn about this complex—its strengths, and its weaknesses. Robo promised us—promised me—to make dogs and humans equal partners. But everything he has said is a lie. He is not a leader. He is a tyrant.
“We were on our way to meet up with SAD. We hear they now have a powerful resistance, and since we are familiar with the inner workings of RAD, we thought we might be useful.” Blue was taken aback. She hadn’t considered that the dogs under Robo’s leadership might have doubts, especially in light of their recent victories. She nodded; she understood the significance of what Clover was offering.
“I’m sure you are right. Let’s go together, and we can plan the next steps.”
Clover nodded to his troops, who fell in behind him as Blue led them down the mountain. When they turned around the last bend of a long-forgotten trail, Blue saw Jenny. Overjoyed, she ran up to Jenny, their tails both wagging. “How did you know to come here?” Blue asked.
“Well,” Jenny said. “We cleaned out the base on the beach, and after reading files, we learned about the headquarters here. And…I brought friends.”
Over the pine ridge, Blue saw thousands of dogs carefully approaching the base of the mountain, using the shrubs and trees as cover. Many were battle-scarred, but there were some yearlings and puppies, including the now-healed, half-robot Rover.
“Blue, I think you remember Rex,” said Jenny, as a coyote scrambled up the mountain.
Blue was so relieved to see Rex. Rex meant SAD—and SAD meant they weren’t on their own.
“Fuzzy Wuzzy! Good to see you!” he yipped. Looking around, he asked, “Where is Copper?” Blue looked down, Rex raised an eyebrow.“Blue?”
Blue looked up at him, took a deep breath, and sighed, “Copper…Copper has moved on.”
Rex took a step back and went silent.
“Jenny, Rex, we have lost too many good dogs. We must put an end to the fighting. Today, a group of courageous young officers, formerly of Robo’s army, has offered to help us.”
Jenny narrowed her eyes. “I know—they contacted SAD. I don’t totally trust them.”
Rex cocked his head, “I agree. SAD doesn’t always make the best decisions when it comes to trust.”
“Well, I trust these dogs,” Blue said. “There’s something about their leader. He misses his family a lot. And recently, I’ve learned what that’s like.”
“Fine,” Jenny said. “We will assign one officer from his group to each pack. They will get us into the mountain and act as our guides. Of course, if they turn on us, we will kill them without hesitation.”
Blue nodded her head in agreement, before Jenny and Rex barked orders to assemble the troops. Blue felt tension lift from her chest. For once, someone had listened to her.
Jenny and Rex climbed the ledge, with Blue behind them. They parted, allowing Blue to walk between them, ascending to the highest point of the ridge, looking out over the huge gathering of dogs. She howled, the sound echoing across the mountain. The dogs were stunned. They had heard about Blue: the Chosen One with powers equal to Robo’s. Here she was! Alive! Ready to fight!
She spoke firmly, her aqua eyes glowing with passion. “Brothers and sisters, rejoice! Good always rises up. I am here to join you, to lead you—if you’ll have me—in a battle to restore balance and save the dogs and humans we love.” She paused. “I come here for my pups, Max and Destiny. Who do you come for? Who are you fighting to save?
“We will not let our species fall into the trap of revenge. We will fight for love, not hate. We will not let a dictator choose which humans we will love, and which ones we will not. We will choose our own destinies, without the harsh hand of technology or fear of evil. Let us restore honor, and take our rightful place as protectors of this world, not destroyers.”
The dogs barked in unison. The leaders quieted the crowds and told them to take position.
Blue turned to Clover. “Now, show us how get us in,” she ordered.
“Yes, ma’am. Follow me.”
He led a small patrol, which included Blue, Jenny, Ash, Rex, and Rover. Soon after pushing several rocks aside, they saw the steel door.
Clover showed Blue the imprint of the gear on his paw. “My security clearance no longer works,” Clover said, apologetically. “I’m sure they killed it as soon as I showed up missing.” Blue looked at the patrol and realized she had a solution. She needed another member of Robo’s army—someone less important who would still be in the system, undetected and unnoticed.
“Rover,” she called. “Step forward.”
Nervously, the puppy came forward with Ash.
“Rover, this is your moment. You are making a difference,”
Blue said gently, as she took his front paw and put it on the scanner.
The monitor scanned his imprint, clicked green, and the door opened.
“Good dog,” Jenny said proudly.
Ash proudly licked Rover on his nose. “My son.”