When we think of sneaky characters, it is normally a cat or a snake. Dogs are trustworthy and loyal companions. They save children from fires and help find those who are lost. Dogs are truly good. Or are they? No one likes to think of dogs that are brutal or treacherous. No one wants to believe that humanity’s best friend is scheming behind their back. But this story is not one of saving children or finding loved ones. It is of misunderstandings and trickery. 

You look around the vast expanse of the XPRESS MEGA-MALL AND CONVENTION CENTER. People milling about, shopkeepers selling wares and replacing items on the shelves. Children slipping and sliding along on the black and silver tiles, the smell of things frying and the sound of sizzling meats. 

Among the crowd, you spot a human girl. She was short, clueless, and had no shoes. Perfect. You walk slowly towards the girl, fixing your bowtie, puffing up your tail, and just generally trying to look as cute and sweet as possible. You tap the girl’s shoulder and say,

“Hello miss, are you a follower of our Lord and savior M’jxkjl?” You grab a pamphlet out from behind you and hand it to the girl. She takes a look at it and hands it back to you.

“I was told not to trust dogs sir.” her face was resigned, her posture tense.

I wonder who told her that? You think to yourself.

“Well,” you say, sitting down and straightening your posture, “I am not a dog. I, am a Jackal. There’s a very big difference,”

“I suppose that makes some sense…” She says. You hand her back the pamphlet inside which you have snuck anti-Emperor propaganda. 

“Read it,” you say, “ and then if you agree you can meet me here,” you hand the girl a sheet of paper with an address on it, 312, Bradbury Coffae. You then slink away into the crowd, leaving the girl to absorb the information.

You saunter through the mall looking through the various shops and you spot a beautiful bedazzled bow tie. It was a cream color that was covered in shiny jewels in all the colors of the rainbow and more! You were so drawn to this bow tie that you just had to take it. But I have no money, you think to yourself, eh, who cares? These people are rich anyway. You grab the tie and then walk out of the shop as if nothing happened. 

A few minutes later a mall enforcement officer walks up to you. You look up at them. They are wearing the black and purple uniform that was typical of law enforcement, with a dark green endless utility fanny pack that supplied anything they needed. Their face was a large mass of shaggy brown hair with a large brown handlebar mustache. You observe the mustache and see that it is almost as if the mustache had muscles!

“S’cuse me, sir,” they say, “I do believe that that bow tie was not paid for.” the mustache moved up and down as they talked and it was so distracting that you did not notice when they pulled out a pair of handcuffs. You finally realize what is happening and make a run for it. You dodge around groups of people, under signs and around pillars, your paws slipping and sliding around on the tile. You make it to the front entrance and burst through the doors. Once off of the slippery tile of the Mega-Mall you could run at your full speed. Within minutes you were at least 1000 paces away from the town itself and now were speeding headlong through the woods towards the rebel base.

You reach a clearing in the dense wood and start searching for the trap door that was hidden underneath layers upon layers of fallen leaves and debris. You find the notch in the door and pull up. The entrance to the base was a deep, dark tunnel that smelled of wet dirt and rusty metal. You hear the creaking of metal panels and the woosh of leaves. You look around in the surroundings and after finding that no one had followed you, you jump down into the hole. You land with a soft squishing sound upon wet leaves and dirt.

You trod along through the dirty tunnel, your paws covered in water and dirt until you find yourself in a giant glowing cavern. There are beings walking around and buzzing with purposeful conversation. You walk across a bridge to get to a large stateroom with a long table. About ten beings sat in the chairs on either side and you take a seat in the regal black leather chair.

“Welcome back, your highnesss,” says your Lieutenant General, Andion Zyxxler, they bow their head.

“Hello everyone. I trust you have kept things running smoothly in my absence?” you say looking around at all of the buffoons in their military uniforms. The only reason you keep them around is for their influence in court. 

“Yes of course General Li’isnar,” Colonel Phaben Kyryg says, “my forces in Valut await your command!” Col. Kyryg bows her head and then motions for one of the officers waiting in the back of the room to bring forward some documents. “These are the documents that you wanted to look at Sir. They detail all information on Saren Hyacinthe and the rest of the imperial line.” The officer hands you a fat brown folder filled with papers. You rifle through the papers and realize that most of it was about Saren Hyacinthe and there was barely anything else! These Idiots.

“What is this?!” you ask with a raised voice. The people around you flinch, “I asked for a comprehensive history of the Empire! This is a biography about one person!” as you yell your teeth are bared and your voice growls. “I want a FULL history of the Imperial line by next week,” you look around at all the sniveling fools that call themselves Colonels and then exit the room.

You grumble as you walk along the thin cave pathway. Ahead of you sits a hedgehog soldier from Ausvanda eating a peice of bread. Why won’t this urchin move? Doesn’t it know that it is in the presence of the great and powerful leader of the Rebellion? You run at full speed towards it and push the soldier off the path into the abyss below. You hear it scream for a long time. And then, thunk. That has got to have hurt. Good thing it wasn’t me! :). You saunter out of the giant atrium and climb back out into the forest. 

You walk through the forest, feeling the crunch of leaves under your paws. You hear the sound of Cockatrices squawking quietly in the distance. You walk for a while until you reach the edge. The edge is the border that separates Ausvanda and The Empire. The trees had been cut in such a way so that the border would be clear and indisputable. You look out along the vast desert and inhale the warm, dusty air. Someday, all of this will be mine. You turn away from the sand and walk back through towards the city.

Plenty of stories have been written about dogs, but this may be the first one to have a jackal with a snazzy bowtie. It’s only getting worse from here, so, welcome, to the end of chapter 3.