A Dog In Time

By Genevieve Noelle

Rover, Butch, and Rick are just normal Jamestown, Ohio, dogs until they learn of the time machine that their owner has been building for the US government! They accidently stumble into the time machine when they confront a thieving, murderous, band of dogs who call themselves the Stray Crew. The dogs chase one another through time as they each attempt to return home with possession of a powerful weapon called the Power Saber. Along the way, they find new friends and adventure around every corner in these new (to them) time lines. They encounter pirates, hunters, dinosaurs, and knights all while chasing the Stray Crew!

Will they make it back to their worried owner and return the time machine (and themselves) home safely? Will they be able to band together with their new allies to save the world? And in all their adventures, a treasured friend might leave them...twice!

A Dog in Time is a story about friendship, family, forgiveness, and the power of love! (Not the mushy kind. Okay, well, maybe some of that.) It's a three-part series full of character, adventure, and humor!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jan 19, 2023
• ISBN: 9781639615049

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A Dog In Time

Genevieve Noelle

ISBN 978-1-63961-503-2 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63961-504-9 (digital)

Copyright © 2023 by Genevieve Noelle

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

The Beginning

Chapter 2

Secret Plans

Chapter 3

The Machine

Chapter 4

Special Surprise

Chapter 5

A Little Problem

Chapter 6

Promotions and Demotions

Chapter 7

Dancing Thieves

Chapter 8

The Stray Crew

Chapter 9

Richard's Discovery

Chapter 10

The Cavern

Chapter 11

Because It Was the Right Thing to Do

Chapter 12

Pacing

Chapter 13

Friends United

Chapter 14

Truth Be Told

Chapter 15

Midnight Walk

Chapter 16

The Captives

Chapter 17

High Flying

Chapter 18

The Chase

Chapter 19

Time

Chapter 20

The Call

Chapter 21

Pirates

Chapter 22

Jail Mates

Chapter 23

Pirate Fight

Chapter 24

Island

Chapter 25

Castle Knight

Chapter 26

Sir Cadigon

Chapter 27

Kingly Deal

Chapter 28

The Wolves

Chapter 29

The Bear Brothers

Chapter 30

Time and Time Again

Chapter 31

Richard's Mission

Chapter 32

Surrender

Chapter 33

Spot's Return

Chapter 34

Home

About the Author

Chapter 1

The Beginning

One day in the wood of Ohio, far away from any city or any town, in a collection of caves, there lived an evil wolf named Zackariah though he went by Zack. Zack was not just any ordinary gray wolf; he was very different. First, he had this unique white stripe that came from the top of his head to the tip of his nose. Second, he was the largest wolf in the region or even the continent! Third, well, this is the saddest part of his story and probably the reason he became so evil: he was an orphan. Lastly, he had a very strange and unusual ability to turn into…a wanewolf! (Dun, dun, dun!) Ahem, anyway, a wanewolf is a wolf that can turn into a sort of man-wolf. It is a wolf that can stand on its hind legs and is very strong and muscular. A wolf can turn into a wanewolf whenever, day or night, any day of the year! Seems pretty convenient, eh? Not really. It normally scared others because when Zack first realized his power, he just turned into one when he was mad and couldn't control himself. Sometimes, it would result in him killing others. Though with his friend Barnaby's help, he was able to train his power. (Oh! And another thing, if you get bit by one, it doesn't turn you into a wanewolf. It just hurts!)

Zack mainly grew up alone, apart from the occasional friend he would try to make when he was a young puppy, which always resulted in someone taking advantage of him. After all the rejections, he led himself to live a life of isolation.

Over time, Zack finally allowed another dog into his life. This dog was an outcast just like him. They became friends and bonded over their backgrounds and differences from others. Zack's friend was a white albino Rottweiler named Barnaby who had been rejected because he looked different than all the other Rottweilers and was the runt of the litter. They became like brothers.

Being friends didn't mean others left them alone; they were still treated like garbage. When puppies were abused by bigger dogs, Barnaby was too timid and shy to defend himself while Zack didn't mind defending his brother and giving the abusers what they deserved. They were like brothers; Zack was living his best life. How did it go so wrong?

*****

Three years had passed. One day after a lot of thought, Zack said to his friend Barnaby, I want to make a team, a team like us, full of strange and unwanted dogs.

Well, that's out of the blue and…okay, but wait, if we're making a team, we need a weapon! Something that nobody but us will know about. Something that we can use to protect ourselves from others, said Barnaby.

Okay so…oh, of course the old Native American Indian camp near us! said Zack.

What about it? asked Barnaby.

Well, they should know about old relics and things like that. Maybe there is something there that we can turn into a weapon, said Zack.

Okay, let's go at nightfall. It'll be safer because the ranger doesn't guard at night, said Barnaby.

And so they did just that. At nightfall, they ran quietly through the woods to the old Indian campgrounds which the government had turned into a state park. Both Zack and Barnaby knew the forest well. The light of the full moon lit their path as they ran.

Once at the camp, they quietly searched the place, looking for anything that could be used to make a weapon. They even looked through some of the old native rock paintings to see if they said anything about a powerful weapon. They grew up near the campground, so they taught themselves to read the writings, but so far, nothing.

No sign of a sign, said Zack, looking over at Barnaby. (Get it? Get it?)

Yeah, nothing here either… Wait, wait just one minute. Have either of us checked in the ranger station? asked Barnaby.

No, but why check in there? asked Zack.

Because this place has been a state park for years! They must have taken everything important out of the camp and moved it to the ranger station museum! said Barnaby.

Barnaby, you are a genius! Let's go! said Zack.

The two dogs slipped into the museum through an open window which had been left open by the ranger to allow the nice breeze in during the warm summer night. They quickly found themselves at the feet of the ranger. Nervously, they froze until they realized that he was sleeping at his desk. They quietly sneaked past him through the ranger station and into the museum section of the building. In the museum, they saw a bunch of stones with native writing on them. They stood on their hind legs, being careful to be quiet, as they read the stones. One, in particular, caught Zack's attention. It read, "The moonstone is powerful, and it falls down to earth every two thousand years. Its power is capable of amazing things, but none of us have found a moonstone. We don't know all it provides."

That's it! Zack whispered. We need that moonstone!

The ranger stirred then fell fast asleep again.

Well, be quiet about it, said Barnaby.

Zack and Barnaby slipped back through the window and out of the ranger station. They took off again back toward their cave when they saw shooting stars in the night sky, or so they thought.

Wait! Look at that, said Barnaby.

They saw a glowing blue orb fall from the sky. They ran after it and found it lying in a small crater in the ground. It was a small stone that was glowing blue; indeed it must have been the moonstone that they had read about. They picked it up and took it straight away to a local blacksmith, a coyote named Sargent. Sargent taught them how to forge using his special techniques, and they used half of the moonstone to make a spectacular weapon. The weapon had a black handle and a blue sword which they named the Power Saber. Marveling at their creation, Zack and Barnaby set out to test the capabilities of their new weapon. They found that the Power Saber could cut through anything.

With their new weapon in hand, Zack and Barnaby started recruiting stray and unwanted dogs to join their group. Zack was proclaimed the leader of the group, which they called the Stray Crew. At first, Zack just wanted to recruit members and help the unwanted. However, soon, he became addicted to power and started acting out violently toward others. Zack began to enjoy seeing the fear in others' eyes and the taste of blood in his mouth. He had become an evil, bloodthirsty monster. He began sending orders to capture and kill other dogs and humans that were different than they were!

Barnaby was never happy with the brutality nor the killings. He attempted to reason with Zack but could not. Zack wouldn't listen to him anymore. To Barnaby, Zack no longer existed; instead, he had been consumed by an evil monster. Barnaby finally decided that he could stay no longer.

One evening, when Zack was out on the prowl, Barnaby found his opportunity to run away and leave the gang but not before stealing the unused half of the moonstone that Zack had kept.

Barnaby went into hiding. He knew that Zack would be upset by his leaving and probably want to kill him! Barnaby attempted to avoid contact with anyone. He was an outcast before, but now since he had been a member of the Stray Crew, surely no one would want him around. However, to his surprise, there was one dog that showed him kindness and generosity. His newfound friend was Rover who was a stray German shepherd that was being harassed by the Stray Crew. Despite the threats of the Stray Crew, Rover hid Barnaby and helped him whenever the Stray Crew decided to come around.

Barnaby knew that he could not stay in hiding forever, plus he felt a sense of responsibility for the terror that the Stray Crew had inflicted on the area. Barnaby revealed to Rover the piece of the moonstone and how he and Zack had used it to create the Power Saber. Using the technique that Sargent had showed him, Barnaby was able to create his own Power Saber with the help of Rover.

Thank you, Rover, for all the kindness that you have shown to me, said Barnaby. Now it is time for me to finish what I started. I am going to put an end to the Stray Crew.

Not by yourself you won't! replied Rover. I will help you! And we can gather our own team to defeat them!

No, I'm afraid I cannot allow that. This is my fault. If I just consulted him sooner… You don't know Zack like I do! You could get hurt or worse, I don't want to put you in any danger! said Barnaby.

You're my friend, and I'm coming! said Rover.

You truly are a good friend, Barnaby responded.

Barnaby and Rover formed a new group call the Bonum Crew (pronounced bow-num, which is Latin for good). Several times the Bonum Crew and the Stray Crew clashed, but neither side could prevail. Zack was furious that his only friend had betrayed him. Barnaby hoped that there was still some good in Zack and that he might be able to change him back.

Life went on. Sometimes the fighting was frequent; other times they would neither see nor hear of the Stray Crew for long periods of time. Rover soon fell in love and married another