~Fit to Fight~

[SunFlash]

~Fit To Fight~

This story is about SunFlash, and her transition from being Anabelle's trusted advisor, to the Border collie everyone knows and loves ;D . This story on MS Word was 10 pages long, and split up into 6 chapters, so I will post them by chapters (At least, I'll try to).

Note that my style here is very different from many of my other fics. My story style has changed greatly since I started this story last year (Left off at ch. 3). I had alot of homework, so cut me some slack if you don't like it. My brain has changed states from being a solid, to a liquid. This was the best I could do. Enjoy .

PS: Yes, I put that song in on purpose. Usually my fics have at least one song. I couldn't help myself.

Chapter 1: New Horizons

Sun peaked out from underneath the clouds of heaven, breaking the shield of darkness and shadow that once covered the skies. A small, pillared building caught the first blazes of light. A glint of a golden halo could catch anyone’s attention when walking by. It was hovering over a blanket. Emerging from underneath was a black and white dog, the Archangel’s advisor, Flash. A majestic specimen a Border collie, lean in figure, covered with a soft pelt, and a heart to match. She got up, and stretched out her back. Her golden wings then unfurled to show their sparkling plumage. Flash looked at the sundial by her bed “Good, few hours early.” She said. The Border collie grabbed her gold-trimmed cloak, tied in the middle was her diamond-studded wing pin, showing her authority as an angel, and took her reports to deliver to her superior.

Since she was ahead of schedule, she decided to take her time. She watched as puppies played with each other underneath the morning sun. They played tag while using their tiny wings. “Good morning Trixie, Sheba, Lily” She addressed the three pups. “Good morning, Flash” the young Chihuahua pup, Sheba, answered “Where are you going?” “I need to hand in this status report to Anabelle. You know, what’s happening with a census and things like that. I should get going”. She said as flew off. The pups landed, and waved. Trixie looked at her companions “What’s a census anyway?”.

On her way, she saw the below. It didn’t seem strange to her since she sometimes went down there to inspect. Flash never knew how the life of a live beast felt like. She was created for a purpose, to serve and assist Anabelle in heaven. She never had true love, or felt a good squirrel chase. She felt so…trapped. It wasn’t like working was a chore for her, but there was never a chance to feel alive. Flash shook her head to escape from thought, and continued to make her way.

“Come in” Anabelle’s soft voice said as she invited her advisor in. Flash opened the door, and padded in with her report firmly grasped in a forepaw. “Oh Flash, there you are. Early aren’t we?” Flash nodded “Yes, I have that census report you wanted”. She put the report on the Whippet’s desk. “Thank you Flash, you do realized that I called you in for, just a talk”. Flash went to the other side of Anabelle’s desk “I don’t understand, I gave you your report. I thought that was all.” The Archangel shook her head “No, this is more serious. I’ve given you jobs out of your usual duties since emergencies that require your advice never came up ever since Charles went down to San Francisco to get Gabriel’s Horn.” “What are you saying, Anabelle? Am I fired?” Her voice sounded more frantic. Nothing was worse to her than failing at what she was meant to do. “You’re getting me wrong, Flash. You’ve been on such a good behavior. You never complained about work, you’re kind to everyone, and you get the job done. I’m giving you a chance to live what you never lived. I’m sending you down Earth. No missions, just you having your fun”. She couldn’t believe her fold ears. To live? Well, heaven seems to know all. “What? How can I? I never had a body to begin with. What about my work? What if something happens down there? What if Belladonna finds me out?” Her eyes widened, and her voice was pretty much as frantic as they come. The Whippet laughed, “Don’t worry Flash. Once you die, you will go to your normal duties here in heaven. Everything will be fine up here, and I will watch you from time to time. You just have your fun. You’re going in the body of a stillbirth pup. She never had a life in her, but her parents named her Flash ahead of time. You’ll be living in San Francisco, California” She smiled as she took the robe and halo off her advisor. Seeing that her questions were answered, she calmed down, and smiled back “Thank you Anabelle! You’ll never regret this!” Anabelle nodded, and touched Flash with a glowing paw “As for Belladonna, I’m going to erase your memory, and hide your heavenly essence. Only angels can sense your secret, however, it's best that you keep away from angels, just to be safe. Once you return to heaven, everything will return to normal, as well as your memory in both before, and after you went to Earth”. Flash nodded. “Come with me to the Pearly Gates, and then you’ll be on your way” Anabelle said as she walked off. Flash closely followed.

When the two dogs reached the gates, Gabriel’s Horn was sounded, and the gates opened to welcome the newly deceased dogs into heaven. “Just go through the gates, and you’ll be there”. Flash nodded, and stepped cautiously through the gates. Once she passed through. The world went dark, and her mind was a blank.

[SunFlash]

Chapter 2: Childhood

3 months had passed when the advisor was sent down to Earth. She was oblivious to her past form, the only memories she had was being a puppy, playing with her new siblings, Cody, Bryn, Stripe, and Pharaoh. Her dam watched them closely as the puppies played in a park in the outskirts of San Francisco, where their breeder lived. They became restless, frequently Flash tried to get away. Her dam, Lass, was aware of those escapes, and usually found her by dusk. “Where do you think YOU’RE going, Lucky?” Flash froze when she was about to slink underneath the fence. It was Stripe. Stripe was never too fond of Flash being considered ‘The lucky one’, and getting more attention. “My name isn’t Lucky! It’s Flash!” “You think you’re so special because you are a survivor. When I get my own human, he’ll pamper me, while you get sent flying into the dumpster” Stripe snapped. “That does it!” Flash barked, and pounced on her sister. The two pups rolled and used their sharp puppy teeth to get at each other’s napes. In a final roll, Flash was caught at the bottom, at mercy to Stripe. Bryn, Pharaoh, and Cody watched helplessly. “I’m getting mom!” Bryn shouted, and ran off. Pharaoh tackled Stripe “Leave her alone Stripe!” The female pup calmed down as their dam approached. “Mommy, Flash wanted to hurt me. She tackled me!” Stripe tried to look as pathetic as possible. Flash rolled her eyes “Oh please. You were the one that called me names and-.” “Did not!” The arrogant pup interrupted. “Did too!” “Did not!” “Di-”. “Quiet, both of you!” Lass interrupted. Stripe stuck out her tongue to her sister. “That’s enough Stripe. Go inside, dear”. Stripe narrowed her eyes, but went inside obediently. Lass then looked at the other two pups “Maybe it’s best that you go in with her”. With Pharaoh leading, they went back inside.

“Now, what seems to be the problem, Flash?” Lass said quietly to the pup. She looked at her paws “I was going to the fence, then Stripe came and called me ‘Lucky’. She said I was going to be tossed in the dumpster when a human takes me. I tackled her and…” Her voice trailed off. Lass nodded “Stripe is just jealous. Maybe if you try to warm up with her, maybe she would leave you alone”. She shook her head “I doubt it. She always acts so big because she looks the most like you. She says that she would find a human first because of that”. Flash had a smooth coat, while her siblings were long. That was how she was usually distinguished. She licked her pup “For every human on Earth, there is a person there for him or her. You’ll see. I bet you that tomorrow, you’d be the belle that gets sent out first, you see.” Flash smiled, and licked her mother “Ya, I’ll show her”<br>
The next morning arrived the pups were playing gleefully in a playpen, being watched by their master, and dam. Flash sat beside Bryn. No one arrived yet. It was until an hour or so later when a woman came, and greeted the breeder. The puppies were oblivious to the fact that they were reserved. The woman picked up Stripe. Stripe gave an evil smirk “I told you ‘Lucky’!” She stuck her tongue out at her sister. Pharaoh looked at Flash “Don’t listen to her”. “Ya. Most likely she missed some rabies shot,” Bryn giggled. It had been 3 hours since Stripe had left. Bryn, Cody, and Pharaoh had already left. Flash remained. The eager puppy sat there for hours, never leaving to play with blades of grass or bugs. All she did was act her cutest and perch their forepaws on the playpen mesh. A man then came up to the box. She became aware of his presence, and started yipping. He picked up Flash after talking to the breeder, then going into his car to take Flash away. Lass yipped goodbyes to her until she was out of sight.

About half an hour later, they came to a house. The man opened the car, and scooped her up. This was new to the pup. The scents, the sights, the sounds of the neighbors. She was put by a crate with soft bedding. It hasn’t been long since she was within the comfort of familiar faces, but she already sobbed. Flash went inside the crate, and sang a sorrowful song.

“Somewhere out there beneath the pale moonlight,
Someone's thinking of me and loving me tonight,

Somewhere out there someone's saying a prayer,
That we'll find one another in that big somewhere out there.”<br>She rested her head, and nodded off to sleep.

[SunFlash]

Chapter 3: Coming of Age

A year passed from that fateful day when Flash found a home to call her own. Her name had been changed from Flash, to Lisa, although she still referred to herself as Flash. She became a show dog, being a representative of her breed, even though she never won. “Come on girl, wake up” Her master said while tapping on her head “Time to go”. “Hmph, not now…sleep…” She groaned. Flash didn’t want to get up. She hated getting up early to show. “When I say come on, I say come on!” He yanked her by the collar, and dragged her out of the crate.

After being fed and groomed, it was Showtime. She was led with a thin black lead into the ‘Best of Female dog’ ring. Flash never liked the looks of the other Border collies, reminded her too much of her sister. Those glares, the fangs showing her up, they could’ve been directly related to her. Flash felt submissive towards them, which was most likely the reason why she kept on losing. Her master looked at her eye-to-eye, and grabbed her muzzle “Ok Lisa, it’s make or break now. Don’t let them scare you”. “Scare me? Tell them not to be on my case!” Flash knew that he couldn’t understand her, but she tried to make herself feel more comfortable. “Are you going to win?” Flash tried shake her head, but he gripped, and made her nod. He led her into the ring “Ok then, not my fault if I lose. You’re the one that wanted to change my answer.” She said. The dogs that have already been checked stared at her, as if they knew she would screw up. Flash felt intimidated, and started to fidget. Her master jerked the lead to tell her to stop. “Take them around” the judge said. The other dogs started to laugh as they ran along with their masters. Flash snarled. “Come and get me. You aren’t scared are you?” the dog ahead of her mocked. They were put back in a stack. The other dogs continued to mock her while in a stack. Flash couldn’t take too much of it. She started to bark and show her fangs. “Lisa, quiet” his master yanked the lead. Flash continued to fidget, and grew restless. She backed up, then up again. The ribbons were distributed to the dog ahead of her. She gave a nasty glare. Flash stared back. Her master sighed. She never had a single point in the 3 months she was shown. He yanked the lead “Come on girl, let’s go home”. Flash’s ears wilted “Somehow, I can realize that this is my fault”. She was put in the car, and she was brought home.

[SunFlash]

Chapter 4: Identity

Flash lounged on the couch later that night. “Lisa, I told you! No sleeping on the couch!” Flash raised her head, and jumped off. Her claws shredded the pillow she was resting on while she slept. The man stared at her “Lisa, this is the 5th pillow this week!” He opened the door to the garage “Lisa, come”. Ears put back, she obediently walked over with her head down. Flash sat down by the bench while her master looked through his tools. She tilted her head “What’s he doing?” She said to herself. “Lisa…sit”. She sat down. He brought down a box, “Girl, you shred pillows, track mud, bark, and are energetic. I wish is wouldn’t have come to this, but it looks like it has”.

He gripped her collar tightly, and pushed down on her eyes to close them. Flash didn’t see the can of yellow spray-paint being sprayed on her face, covering her black head stripe coming from the top of her head, to almost on her nose. She yelped when she opened her chestnut eyes, and sneezed from the paint’s fumes. Her collar was yanked off. “Listen to me closely, I don’t want to see you again. I want you to run as fast as you can, got it?” “Wait, I don’t understand. What did I do?” Flash said franticly. Her master sighed, and kicked the Border collie out. Flash rolled on the concrete driveway. Hiding her feelings, she shouted back “Watch it buddy!” Her master heard it as a series of snarls and growls. “GIT!” He yelled as he threw a glass bottle, landing a few feet in front of her. She yelped, and ran off behind the corner.

Her ears continued to droop as she looked at herself in a puddle. Flash sighed, “I can’t believe this. Stripe was right, I’m getting tossed around like trash…except I’m not in the dumpster”. She looked at her yellow stripe. She wetted her paw in the water, and stroked the stripe. The paint already was sinking into her fur. Tears streamed down her cheek “I messed up my only chance of finding a home, and I blew it. Nice going, Flash. You let yourself get intimidated by a bunch of snooty Best-In-Show-ers”. Thunder welled up in the sky, and a few drops of rain hit her ears. Flash sniffed “Perfect…” she said sarcastically. She looked around, and went into an ally. The only shelter available was a dumpster. She leveled her eyes “I guess Stripe’s ‘prophecy’ was true. The little mutt” She mumbled to herself. Flash jumped in, and slept through the pitter-patter of rain against metal.

Flash awoke to a poking of her shoulder. “Hey, this is my dumpster, Stripy!” Half awake, she rolled her eyes “First ‘Lucky’, then ‘Lisa’, now ‘Stripy’. Can’t wait for what’s next”. She got up “Oh get over it you mangy baggage”. An English Mastiff stood there growling out there. He was nearly two times her size. Flash widened her eyes, and drooped her lips. The Mastiff picked her up by the scruff, and plopped her on the ground. The large dog climbed in, and fell asleep while Flash sat out in the rain. She sighed, and turned a trashcan as quietly as she could, not to wake the sleeping Mastiff. Her pelt was soaking her to the very marrow. She shivered “There has to be a blanket in here,” she said as she dug through the trash. The only thing that could keep her warm was a bright orange bandana. She tied it, and slipped it on her neck, then fell asleep.

[SunFlash]

Chapter 5: Friends and Foes

The next day started to get humid. There was a blazing sun, but the air seemed as moist as breathing in through a sponge. The memory of the other night was haunting her, and she didn’t feel like eating. Flash felt weary, but continued walking down the winding San Francisco streets. She sighed, “How stupid is this? I’m walking, but I don’t know where I’m going”. She looked up “Stupid sun. Who invented Border collies to have black backs anyways? I’ll boil ‘is ‘ead”. Flash wasn’t usually like this, but the ordeal made her much more aggressive. She found her shade within a house’s basement. She slunk in through the window, to the cold and dark floor below “I might as well stay here ‘till nightfall”.

She looked around, catching the scent of another dog. She leveled her eyes “This can’t end well”. The window was too high for her to jump for. Flash heard the clicking of claws, then the sturdy build of a male Rottwieler. He barked, and dashed down. There was no way out but to fight. The big black and tan dog stopped by the end of the stairs, and rose his hackles “Flea-bitten mongrel” He harshly said. Flash snarled back, her ears went forward in aggression. They lunged full power at each other. Flash managed to keep away from the powerful jaws by gripping onto the male’s shoulder. She bit several times on his nape, until she was thrown off. She returned to a sparring stance, and bared her fangs. The Rottwieler charged towards her, and the Border collie jumped, catching the back of her opponent’s floppy ear with her hind claws. “Dallas, that’s enough!” another Rottwieler shouted. The male stopped, and looked up at her “There is no room here for sensitive trash, Raven. She intruded, and there is one consequence”. The sleek femme looked at Flash “The master isn’t home, and there is nothing that a dog needs down here. You go upstairs, and I’ll take care of her. Alright”. Dallas growled, but went upstairs.

Raven looked at Flash “You’re a pretty good fighter against Dallas. What’s your name?” Flash calmly spoke “Flash”. “The name’s Raven. Don’t mind Dallas. Everything to him is so important, sometimes he doesn’t care who he hurts” She sat down by Flash “What brings you here?” “It was hot, and I just came in here to chill out. I try not to fight. I don’t really have the experience. I lost my home yesterday, so I’m just getting used to everything on the streets”. Raven nodded “Poor thing. I see many dogs on the streets. Not many newcomers end up survivors”. Flash sighed, “I’m not sure whether I can even survive my own painful memories. I was given a stripe as a marking, and then he kicked me out. I’m marked for life, and it always reminds me”. “How can you not like it? Mixed in with your bandana, it’s nice and bright, like the sun. Maybe it’s a sign of a brighter future. I promise, things will turn out better”. Flash rolled her eyes “I’ve heard many promises, none seemed to be kept”. She ignored the fact that Stripe’s promise came true. “I’ll promise you one thing, I’ll help you get out,” Raven said as she walked to the window “Climb on me, and you’re out”. Flash climbed onto the dog’s back, and using her muzzle, lifted the window, letting herself out. “Hey, Flash”, Raven spoke up. Flash looked back at her. “If you need some tips on how to forget, try to cut off contact from things that remind you of your past”. The Border collie nodded, and ran off.

[SunFlash]

Chapter 6: Conclusions

Two years have past. The shy and abused Flash became no more. She used Raven’s advice, and moved off to the outskirts, sometimes acting nocturnal, coming out at night to go to the city to scavenge. She wasn’t a pet anymore, but a feral stray. Her coat became thicker, adapting to the sometimes-cold conditions away from the inner city. Now a stray, she deserved a more feral name. Recalling what Raven said about her stripe shining like the sun, she changed her name to ‘SunFlash’. The day where the stripe meant abandonment still sunk her heart, but she tried not to let it bother her.

SunFlash slept in a fallen log one May morning. This place was unexplored by her. She didn’t really know why, but kind of liked the privacy. A high-pitched whistle sounded. In surprise, the SunFlash raised her head quickly, banging it on the ceiling. Rubbing it, she crawled outside. “What was that about?” She snarled with frustration. Following the chuffing noises across the hills, SunFlash saw it a massive cargo train. She never saw a train before, and became curious. She watched cargo being put into the cars. She came up onto the deck, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible to the men walking around. SunFlash then heard the conversation of the engineer, and the foreman of the loading crew. “That should be the last of it Mr. Matthew. Where is this load going anyways?” said the foreman. “New Orleans, Louisiana. Getting things early for the Mardi Gras this summer”. SunFlash heard of the great festival, Mardi Gras. Her eyes lit up “Perfect, going across the country sounds like a good place to lose some memories.”<br>
She quickly dashed towards a train car. The whistle sounded, which made SunFlash jump. She stopped and snarled at it “I am going to get sick of that stupid whistle”. As she spoke, one of the crew was approaching. She quickly dashed in, then looked for places to hide. She moved a few boxes, then squeezed in behind them. The man looked inside, not seeing her inside “I thought I saw a dog go through here”. He looked at the open door on the other side. He then closed the door, then the other one, thinking that she escaped through the other side before. SunFlash chortled to herself “SunFlash, you are a genius, sheer gen-”. She jumped at the sound of the whistle. She landed on top of the boxes, gripping them with her claws, and twitching with her hair raised. When she felt the train moving underneath, she jumped down. Feeling a trapped sense, she laid her head on the ground, prepared for the long journey to a new world.

[wonderdog]

A very enjoyable story Sunflash. Well done

[newshadow777]

Vary good sunflash vary good.