Bruno and Sunshine exchanged glances and Whine shivered. Lucky knew it would be a tough journey for these dogs, but there was nothing they could do now—Alpha had made his decision. Martha and Mickey led Lick away and the Pack dispersed, resting before the long journey ahead, bidding farewell to the peaceful meadow that had briefly been their home.

Relief flooded through Lucky’s limbs. Lick was going to stay with them. I’ll do anything it takes to keep this pup safe, he promised himself. Even if it kills me.

Only he and Alpha remained in the meadow. He turned to the dog-wolf. “Thank you. She won’t let you down, and neither will I.”

Alpha’s yellow eyes were unreadable. “It will not be easy, keeping a Fierce Dog among us. Blade will come searching for her again.”

“We can get a head start if we go at once,” said Lucky. “And there’s an advantage in being mixed—Leashed and Wild, large and small. The Fierce Dogs all think the same way—they only know how to follow orders.”

Alpha stretched out his forepaw and examined his scar. “That’s all they need to know.”

Lucky shook his fur. “There are other things. We have skills and experience. Together, we are smarter than them. We have wit and cunning. That’s what you need to survive.”

“I hope you’re right, City Dog,” said Alpha. “Because wherever we go, we will need to be one step ahead of them.”

Lucky thought of the Sky-Dogs who had brought the mist. “The Spirit Dogs are on our side; I feel certain of that. We will need their help for the long journey ahead. The world changed when the longpaws left. Maybe things will change back, and the longpaws will return. Or perhaps there will be another Big Growl to change the earth again. But for now, there’s only one thing we can do. We have to keep moving.”

Lucky and Alpha gazed over the landscape. They had traveled long and hard to get here, and now they faced yet another journey. But at least the Pack was still together. At least Lick had returned to them. And for what it was worth, Alpha seemed to have accepted Lucky.

It was a start.

Excerpt from Survivors #4: The Broken Path

Lucky’s paws crunched on the forest floor as he ran. Dappled bronze light, scattered by the branches above him, burnished the fallen leaves beneath his paws. Just ahead, he could see Fiery’s powerful haunches as his huge Packmate bounded through the forest.

“Lucky!” Fiery turned to bark over his shoulder. “Remember—keep your nose alert for Blade and the others.”