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Nadia was used to being chased off from other dogs off their property or away from food. But this, this was intense. Nadia might've been a little crazy to think that she and Critter could get away with stealing from the fisherman for very long with the local pack. She'd had some run-ins with them before but had never been much of a problem for them to pay attention to. Of course that changed when she and Critter were stealing for 3, and then got a bit overconfident.

The night had started like any other, Critter went along the docks and Nadia took to the coolers that lined up outside the fishery. Most had locks on them, but some didn't and those were the ones she raided. Her instincts had told her there was something more in the night than just the bugs and the night fisherman. She ignored them, they did this every night so surely it would be. She was just pulling her head out of a cooler and away from the snapping claws of a crab when she heard someone. She peered over to see a figure at the end of the sidewalk, watching her. She took a step away from the cooler, the figure stepped forward. She didn't have much time to react, let alone think and took off in the opposite direction. She got cut off by another dog, forcing her to bank left quickly towards the docks as howls and yips filled the night. She and Critter right into each other, and with a very quick nod, Nadia took lead onto one of the boats that were sitting along the docks.

Now
Nadia was huddled ontop of a cabinet in the kitchen, just enough space for herself to lay down but it wasn't exactly the greatest position to be in if she needed to move. She had at least a 5 foot drop below her, at the very least a dog looking up right under her wouldn't be able to see her unless they looked up from the entrance of the kitchen. She'd used the counter and the fridge to get up, hiding seemed like her best bet. She wasn't sure where Critter was but the dogs filing onto the boat was making rock rapidly from side to side. Unbeknownst to any of them, the rope that had them tethered to the docks had rotten almost all the way through, and with a snap there was nothing holding the boat to the dock. On the other side of the dock from the boat had another boat. Some laughter filled the air as some fisherman loaded up and cranked the engine and went away from the dock, sending a current straight toward the converted trawler all the dogs were running around.

And then it was off, drifting out to sea with a pack of dogs, 2 deviants, and a stowaway that was going to have quite the rude awakening!

Words: 467

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Dagwood~ male~ northern Inuit dog~ stowaway

The night before had been a blur but he had remembered feeling exhausted and that his paws ached from the long walk to the docks. Dagwood lived on the other side of town in the dark rat infested alleyways, he had heard of the fishing nets and practically free and easy food screaming to be stolen before but until now never made the trip. Making a few dozen wrong turns, he had finally made it to the CORRECT docks but it was night and all the seafood had probably been taken into town by now. Huffing in annoyance, Dagwood looked around hesitantly eyeing every dark corner the street lights didn't reach and smelled the air carefully "that'll do." Carefully slinking onto the docks and on the nearest boat, he perked his ears and looked around, his eyes narrowed in the still darkness and he quickly made his way down some stairs and into the nearest bedroom. The room was small and dusty but was warm and a safe place to sleep for the night. Scratching and scrambling under a twin bed, Dagwood rested his head on his large paws and was soon drifted to sleep as the waves rocked his worried thoughts to rest.

Dagwood woke with a thump as he hit his head on the bottom of the bed when he sprung up, a series of scratching and clicking of nails could be heard from upstairs as the other dogs came onto the boat. (he didn't know what was happening) Fear struck his stomach as he smelled the air and noticed unfamiliar voices and smells, the hair along his back prickled and he stayed where he was and as quiet as possible. He had no idea what was happening or that the boat had left the dock he just knew that he wasn't alone.

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Rice | Hunter | White Swiss Shepherd | Mentions: N/A

Rice had entered the boat alongside his pack, sniffing his way around the place. Despite living in the town for his whole life, the dog has never stepped foot in a boat. The terrain was all new to him. The ground felt solid like regular dirt but it felt different. He could feel the motion of the sea rocking the boat ever so lightly. It made Rice a little uneasy. Seasickness they called it? Distractions. Distractions. Rice shook his head and placed his nose close to the ground. Scents of many things flooded his nose. Food, humans, his pack, the other dogs. As he shifted his nose to stay on the deviants, his ears caught human laughter. As his ears moved backward, his body lurched forward. His motion sickness became 100x worse. The boat had started rocking and Rice lost focus.
'No, no, no. It can't be.' He felt at the bottom of his gut that this was bad. That this wasn't normal. This wasn't your average rocking of a boat. Thoughts raced through his mind. How will they hunt if they got lost? Who will make sure the pack is safe?. The dog wanted to freak out but kept a calm composure. He had to make sure there was at least one calm dog on this boat. He may not have shown off his worriedness but he sure as hell was. He sat down quietly as he looked around at the other dogs' facial expressions. The troublemakers vanished from his mind at that moment. He only focused on the swaying of the boat.

Word count: 265 words (of course not including the header)

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Brindle||Female||Papillion||Alpha||Mentions: The Pack

The day had started out like any other. Waking up, taking charge, scaring dogs 3x her size into order, and doing everything else an Alpha does in a day. Brindle didn't really know how they ended up in the situation they were in at the moment. Yet here they were. Chasing some strays away from their food. They had managed to run onto a boat and if they thought that would stop the pack they were wrong. Brindle gave the order for them to continue their pursuit. And that they did. All of the dogs raced onto the boat, searching and scanning for the two strays.

It was two strays, Brindle thought. how had they lost two strays on this small boat?! But the situation got worse. The boat started to rock and move, causing Brindle to skid slightly around the open area, just from the sheer lightness of her body. She Bore her teeth and struggled to stay still and also not get sick at the same time. She realized the boat was beginning to drifting away from shore. How? HOW? How had this situation gone from bad to worse in a matter of minutes?

She had to stay calm. She was the Alpha. Taking a breath she opened her mouth and commanded, in a tiny but powerful voice "EVERYONE STOP! Slow down. This is not a safe situation and I need everyone to remain calm if we are going to get out of this alive." She said

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Cosmo - Scout - Male - Bull Terrier
@N/A

Cosmo was sniffing around the dock when he heard some commotion amongst his companions, turning his attention to them as they began to climb on a nearby docked boat. He didn’t want to wander to far so he followed along onto the boat, his ears twist back at the sound of humans but made sure to keep up with the others. He pressed his cold wet nose to the deck of the boat, huffing against the boards at the new and unfamiliar scents. Cosmo was a bit caught off guard at the sudden smell of someone familiar. Someone that definitely wasn’t supposed to be there. Nadia. Nadia was a friend of his that lived in town but wasn’t apart of his pack. He raised his head, feeling the boat sway gently as he looked around to see if the Nadia was in sight at all and to make sure no one else finds her first.

Cosmo made his way below the control box, Nadia’s scent trailing into there, noticing others are beginning to made there way down as well. He sneezed loudly, not on purpose but he knew that would signal Nadia that they were below deck now. Cosmo then stumbled a bit, ’that’s a bit odd’, Cosmo thought. He felt a very familiar sway in the boat. It felt as if the boat was leaving the dock. “The boat left the dock!” He barked, letting those below the deck that the boat was floating away from the town. Cosmo scrambled back up to the deck of the boat, seeing if it was true, if the boat was actually leaving. The male couldn’t believe his eyes. Cosmo jumped at the sudden sound of Brindle yell at them a order to stop, his bum smacking the wood quickly.

Word Count: 297

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Morning | Scout | Doberman/Greyhound | Female
Mentions: the pack and the deviants

Morning didn’t know how she had gotten roped into this. All she really knew was that two dogs (Brindle called them Deviants, like they were dangerous) were stealing food. Did the pack need that food? Probably not. But that’s how packs were. And unfortunately, being half Greyhound usually meant that if anybody needed chased, you were the first pick.

She had chased the two dogs onto the boat with the rest of the pack, but that’s where she lost them. Human stench was almost overwhelming, and the tight spaces belowdecks weren’t helping her claustrophobia. So, she’d ignored Brindle’s order and rushed up onto the deck, hoping to get off of this boat before anyone told her otherwise.

Once her claws hit the wooden boards, Morning looked around to find the exit - then recoiled. The boat wasn’t surrounded by other boats, fisherman, and small buoys anymore. Now, they were floating farther and farther out to sea. Vaguely, she noticed both Captain and Cosmo staring out at the water, but she couldn’t dwell on it. All she could remember was the man’s hand on the scruff of her neck, throwing her and her squealing siblings out to sea. The same sea that she was now adrift on, with two dogs she had never met and a whole pack of those she had - and there was no way back to land.
~ 230 words ~

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Gizmo | Scout | Male | Lurcher | Mention(s): The Pack

Gizmo stood solid in an effort to keep his paws from skidding. The sudden jolt and sway of the boat nearly caught Gizmo off guard. The swaying was an action he was used to thanks to his previous adventures, but his nerves were steeled for Deviants, not boats going astray. His heart skipped a beat as he turned around, realizing just how bad the situation had gotten as they slowly drifted farther from the dock. Farther from his home, from his owner...

His eyes flickered between Morning, Cosmo, and the rest of the pack before settling on Brindle, his alpha. Morning looked as if she was about to collapse. Rice didn't look too well either, as the hunter tried to hide his bout of sickness. From what he could tell, nearly everyone was upset and freaked out. With good reason, too.

This kind of situation was inescapable without the use of swimming. Only humans would be able to bring this boat back. Judging by the fact that the Deviants hadn't left the depths of the boat, Gizmo assumed the owners were absent. Morning refused to swim, and Gizmo didn't know this pack well enough to decided whether their members would be able to swim this far back.

The thought brought a feeling of dread to him. This would be the farthest he had ever been to his owner. The idea of the distance between them growing made Gizmo distraught enough to consider abandoning ship and swimming back to shore, but as he shuffled his paws he realized he couldn't live with the guilt of abandoning this pack when they needed him the most. A whine escaped his mouth as his eyes landed on the shrinking shoreline. He desperately wished to go back, to be with his owner, but his paws remained on the boat. Gizmo realized fear kept him rooted.

Another whine escaped him, this time frantic. "What... what do we do?" Gizmo turned to his pack, his brown eyes darting between each member. His Irish accent came out thick as Gizmo struggled to keep his composure. "The shore..."

Word Count: 349

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Dagwood~ Male~ Northern Inuit dog~ Stowaway~ Mentions: the pack, brindle

The frequency of the waves started to change underneath him and his paws scratched to stay in one spot as he slowly started to struggle and slide out from under the bed. All at once a bigger wave rolled underneath the boat and he was sent sliding across the hard floor into the wall on the other side, making a quiet but noticeable sound. His eyes widened slightly as he held his breath and looked around as quiet as he could, still laying on the ground from sliding. Dagwood hadn't been around other dogs in months, he actually hadn't seen too many strays in town, just leashed pets but he would quickly slink away from any kind of of conversation. A pit of fear formed in his stomach as he realized the boat rocked steadily now but not the way one would feel tied to a dock, more like the small canoe felt, struggling against the waves in Alaska on the night he was stolen. Dagwood sprung to his feet suddenly and perked his ears listening to the pack of dogs deciding what to do, his head peaked around the corner of the bedroom and up the stairs as he listened in silence.

He was contemplating whether to run up the steep stairs that he stood at the bottom of and launch himself out as far as he could and swim back to shore but right as his paw stepped out of the stuffy room he felt so confined in now with anxiety, he stopped and heard a small but strong voice filled with authority up on the main floor address the other dogs. The hair on his back prickled but she was right, it made no sense for him to get riled up and cause a scene so he decided to stay where he was and calm down a little bit. Jumping up onto the bed and resting his head on his paws, he took a deep breath and looked up the stairs. They were all on a small boat floating out to sea and this was a pack of dogs whose noses worked perfectly fine, he was sure of it.. he no longer felt the need to hide, they'd find him one way or another. Everyone was drifting farther and farther away from where they knew as home and no soul on this rocking boat was gonna be able to escape it.

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Morning|Scout|Doberman/Greyhound|Female
Mentions: Gizmo, Brindle, the pack, the Deviants

Morning's paws shook, making the small chain around her leg clink, as she heard Gizmo's voice. Her fellow scout, a dog who had been nothing but kind to her, a dog she trusted and even looked up to, worried? She had a wild, fleeting instinct to leap from the boat and swim for her life, but she couldn't do that. Not only was the current roaring beneath the waves, judging by how fast the boat was now moving, but she had never swam - or gone more than paws deep in water - since the awful day when she lost her first home.

And, she thought, like it or not, you're in this pack now. They took you in, so you owe them something. Brindle won't be able to swim in this current, and who knows? The other dogs might not swim either. With that thought, Morning decided to respond to Gizmo's plea. "Well..." she began, the other dogs seemingly surprised by her voice. How long had it been since she last spoke up before the pack? "I'm no expert, but judging from the boat's speed and the look of the waves, not all of us would be able to swim back to shore." She paused, ducking her head. "And I'm... I'm not comfortable swimming. Not... not anymore." Morning stopped again, all too aware of the pack's eyes on her. "A-anyways. I think... I think we're stuck here. On this boat, with the Deviants and each other. And we'll have to wait until it drifts back to land to leave it, or try to signal another boat or something."

With that dire proclamation, Morning suddenly realized that she'd addressed the situation before any other dog. Here she was, a lowly scout, making grim announcements before Alpha, Beta, or anyone else older or higher-ranking had even spoken yet. She coughed a little, tucked her tail back between her legs, and slunk back, hiding in the shadows. Pawing the chain around her leg, as she tended to do when nervous, she sat on her haunches and waited for somebody more qualified to speak.

{349 words}

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Brindle||Female||Papillion||Alpha||Mentions: The Pack, Morning, Veira, Gizmo, Captain, Rabbit

Brindle looked around at her pack. Many were still panicking and looking over the edge of the railings. But some had stopped and turned to give her their attention. She looked to the side of the boat and out at the crashing waves around them. She padded farther towards the middle, not seeming to bothered by the boats slight tossing now that it had calmed down a tiny bit. She looked around for her Sentinel and saw him looking over the edge. Growling she said, "Firstly I need everyone away from the edge. Especially smaller dogs like me. It would be very easy for one of us to go overboard and never be seen again. Secondly I need Captain, Veira, and Mercury up here with me. Has anyone seen Rabbit?", she asked, looking around for their youngest pack member. It was worrisome to her when she couldn't see the Wolfdog anywhere.

She glanced around once more at her pack. Hopefully they would be able to establish some form of order around here. She had listened to both what Gizmo had said and what Morning had said and nodded at both. "Morning is right, I would not be able to swim through that water back to shore and neither would many of us. I agree that we are going to have to make the best of our current situation. Now, it seems like this is a normally used boat by its owners, so there is probably useful supplies inside of it." she said loudly. If someone was currently missing what she was saying because they were still panicking she would be pissed.

She knew this was a hard situation for many of the logs as they had trauma related to water or just trauma that this situation may remind them of, and she was sympathetic to this, she had her own trauma, but right now was not the time to be panicking and doing whatever you wanted. She needed everyone to stay calm and listen to their higher ups, as this was still a pack. Brindle believed they could get through this and this boat couldn't stay lost at sea for that long could it? She shook her head and puffed out her long coat as a cool ocean breeze blew over the boat. It was definitely too late now to get back to shore so they had to deal with what they had. "Before we start looking through the boat I want to make sure everyone is accounted for. Does anyone see anyone else missing other than Rabbit?", she asked, still heavily worried about the reckless young dog's safety.
[439 Words]

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Critter | Female | Australian Shepherd | Deviant | Mentions: The pack, Nadia and Dagwood.

The chase had been a blur for Critter. One moment she was rummaging through the humans catch of the day and the second she was running for her life. For her luck (or misfortune as she would later learn) she had managed to stay closely in Nadia’s heels into a boat close by. They both had had the same idea to hide below the deck, but when stepping inside the dark space Critter had lost sight of her companion in panic. She had hidden under a table. A stolen fish dangled between her jaws made it difficult for her to smell, but her eyes and ears were still good as ever and when she saw a few of the pack dogs descend into the kitchen she had been more than ready to bounce. However, for her luck, the sharp voice of the dog's leader had made them turn tail back to the deck. This gave the mottled female some room to catch a few breaths, but not for long she thought.

Critter could still feel her heart bound against her thin chest. She tried to scan the room for any sight of Nadia, but it looked like the she-dog had poofed into thin air and with the fish blocking all the scents Critter couldn’t even use her sharp nose to her advantage. Under the table she was vulnerable. That much she knew. But there was nowhere else to hide. Or so she thought until her eyes happened to land on a dark doorway. The new possibility of a way out took her curiosity and she quickly crept closer. But her spirits soon sunk when she saw that it only led deeper into the belly of the ship. A shiver rang across her back the longer she looked into the leading darkness, but staying up in the kitchen was becoming less of an option as time went on. After a few moments of pondering her choices she came to the conclusion that only way to remain hidden was to venture below.

Critter’s sharp claws clicked against the hard stairs with as she crept further. Every other step she gave a glance over her shoulder in case anyone tried to come after her, but seeing that no one was there made her initial panic calm down. The ship had left the docks. That much she had gathered from the barks and screams of the mongrels and the way the ship swayed under her paws only made it seem more likely. Not that she could know the difference as she had never stepped on a boat before. All she knew the dogs might as well try to flush Nadia and her out by making them panic for nothing. When her paw hit finally a more solid ground she let herself have a moment of relief. If only for a brief second. The air seemed much thicker this far below, but at least it was warmer. Critter was ready to hide under one of the beds when her eyes happened to glance over a pair of paws. Wait, paws? Every muscle in her thin frame came to a halt. Her bi-colored eyes were wide as ever as she came to see who was before her. Behind the fish, she couldn’t smell the stranger, but she was sure it was not one of the pack mongrels at least. But how much could she trust this dog? Did she even have a choice? ”I’m very sorry to disturb you, sir. But I really need a place to hide.”. Her voice came off with a clear nervousness from the situation at hand, but her stiff body didn't allow her to show fear. "Could I hide under your bed? At least until the mongre- other dogs have left the ship.". Her slip of word was followed by a nervous chuckle. She really did not want to get on the strangers nerves if he indeed had connections with the pack above.


Word Count: 600

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Gizmo | Male | Lurcher | Scout | Mentions: The Pack, Morning, Brindle, Mercury, Ryker, Rabbit, and Baxter.

Gizmo's head snapped to Morning, his dog tags clinking together as they hit the chains on his red collar. His eyes went wide when he listened to her speak, and part of him felt awe that she gained the courage to speak out like that. During their work together she often opted to remain silent. To Gizmo, the situation felt ironic that she spoke for a plan he was against.

Gizmo parted his jaws to object, to voice his concerns about leaving their home behind when Brindle spoke up in response. The Lurcher felt his ears lay flat as his alpha agreed with her plan. He released a whine, circling his spot as he gazed out to the shore again, now distant, then back to Brindle. As much as his heart hurt, the pack spoke with sense and calm. Gizmo couldn't understand how they could at a time like this, while they're leaving everything they knew behind.

He barely heard Brindle as she continued to speak. He sat down, defeated, his eyes focusing on the waves of the ocean as the boat rocked. He halfheartedly scanned the pack on the deck when Brindle brought up the missing members. At first, the pain in his heart made him hardly care about anything going on, but the scout had to do a double take when he realized just how many of their members were missing. Instantly, he knew who the missing members were. He vividly recalls everyone entering the boat, even the Deviants. No one should have been left behind, unless fear drove them to jump overboard.

Gizmo shuddered. Voice hoarse with emotion, he spoke calmly enough so his rushed accent couldn't hinder his speech. He spoke loud enough so the pack, including Brindle, could hear him. "Rabbit, Mercury, Baxter, and Ryker." He said. "They're gone."

Word Count: 304

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