Zog packed three little red wagons with different plants and convinced Smitty to pull them on a harness. “These plants are semi sentient and will shepherd and encourage growth like crazy in your greenhouses. I also have some plants you won’t find on this planet and they will be real money makers for you. I’m only giving these to you for the promise of a boat I can use Bear. Trust me when I say you are getting the better end of this deal.”

Blackbear nodded. “You don’t have to gift us anything Zog. I would lend you a boat no matter what. Not that I’m going to turn down a money maker. You’re also going to be given housing. The city looks a bit...different than you would remember it.”

Jax laughed “Just a tiny bit different.”

Zog stepped out looking left and right giving a full sweep of the visible perimeter. “Looks clear Bear. We better hustle on out of here before we get caught up in a wave of nasties.”

Blackbear glanced over at him. “Wave of nasties?”

Zog nodded. “Ya man we get wave after wave of different types of monsters that come here just about every day. Lately we have been getting these Walrus type of creature that has fangs the size of your arm on them. They have hardened fins on the bottom of their bodies that they use to skate across snow and ice. They weigh a couple of tons apiece I’d recon, but they are fast and slick as an otter.”

He chuckled, “Not that it helps em any here. I have a particular nasty strain of barbed, poison, ivy that’s as strong as steel cable!”

Blackbear looked out into the distance. “I see. How often does this occur Zog? The whole reason we are out here is to look into these hordes.”

Zog pointed to the southwest. The couple I mentioned earlier came from that direction. It’s mostly flat down that way. They said that they could see pretty far so they knew when to make a break for it from their cave. They said the waves always came from that a ways. It happens pretty regularly, I’d say every two or three days. If you don’t mind I’d rather not go with you all on your inspection. I’m pretty helpless without my jungle to protect me. Be a lot quicker if you took your boat down around the island that ways anyway.”

Bear nodded. “Yeah we will take you back to The Village and head further south on the boat tomorrow. I have so much on my plate that it won’t hurt me to spend some time actually in the city.”

As they made their way back to the boat Zog stopped outside of the circle and held up a hand. He whistled and once again the protective jungle sprang out of the ground. He whistled a second time and it grew ever larger with twenty foot trees popping up spaced out every thirty feet. Zog laughed as if he had heard an inside joke. “I’d like to see them get through that. Explosive pod shooting trees. A recent development breakthrough I made!”

He turned back to the team. “OK I’m all set. I’ll hang with Bigfoot and the plants if you don’t mind. If we get attacked I’ll ask you to stay away from me in about a ten foot circle cause I’ll be poppin a mini grove for protection.”

The group started to head back to the boat and as soon as they were a fair distance from the house a weird warbling howl could be heard. Bear looked about to see where the sound was coming from, but it sounded like it was coming from everywhere. He noticed that Zog was looking down at the ground avoiding his gaze and muttering to himself.

“Um Zog, is there something you should be telling us?”

Zog dramatically threw his hands in the air and clenched his fists. “Oh for fucks sake! These dog brains never stop. They try to raid my house every week and I have to keep killing them even if it kills me to do it.”

Blackbear raised an eyebrow. “Explain and be quick!”

Zog pulled a bow from a bag and started fulling around with a plant. “I’ll handle this, you guys just stay back and try not to make an enemy here. This is like a wolfman race if they were just dumb dogs. They have the intellect of a ten year old and just can’t take no for an answer.”

Blackbear slowly stated to turn about seeing a pack of creatures slowly surrounding them. “What’s the issue?”

Zog frowned and shrugged. “I don’t really know! One of the plants I grow drives these dumbasses crazy, but we can’t figure out what it is. I let one of them into my house one time and he went beserk destroying half of my plants. The chief keeps insisting that I let them in so they can figure it out, but every time one even gets close to my door they go crazy.”

Another weird howl pierces the air and a deep gravelly voice hows out one word. “ZOGGGGGGG!”

The group spins to the north as one to see a huge beast of an animal sprinting towards them. Everyone grips their weapons tighter and crouch to defend each other.

“ZOGGGGG!”

Zog stepped out from the group and readied his bow attaching a small bud of some type to the end of an arrow. He puts it to the bow and pulls back. “Rex if you don’t stop I’m gonna have to shoot you!”

Jax whispers, “Rex? What kind of name is that?”

Zog smiles, “I dunno his name, just that he is a very good boy. Hah! I don’t know if they have names, but I recognize a couple of them so I call them Rex, Lassie, and Spot”

A huge… Dogman runs to them. He looks to be about seven foot tall from a distance. He switches back and forth from walking on two legs and back to all four. He looked like a human dog hybrid, but not quite. He has black fur and a weird half human half dog body. He has abs and a defined chest but also a tail. And paws. And a long dog dangler hanging free and proud. It’s a weird mix that the human mind has trouble looking at.

The dogman stopped about twenty yards from them and gets on all four paws. His tail starts wagging back and forth furiously. “Zog cannot leave without giving us the treat. I have not tried to get in again. I am a good boy.”

Zog sighed and lowered his bow. “Rex I know you are a good boy! But I have told you over and over I can’t let you into the house. I was cleaning that explosive diarrhea for weeks!”

The Dogman slowly started walking to them ignoring everyone but Zog. “We no need in house. I smell plant here now!”

Zog raises an eyebrow, “Oh really? He turned to Blackbear. “If you will indulge me for two minutes Bear this will take care of a problem that has been bugging me for a while. He walks over to the three wagons. “Rex come here, but not too close.”

The Dogman walked closer to the group. Instantly his tongue plopped out of his mouth practically hitting the ground. Drool started flowing. He stretched out his entire body close to the ground and his ass and backside started waving back and fourth.

Jane started laughing and covered her mouth. “I’m sorry, but my old lab used to do the same thing when I got her favorite tennis ball out.”

Zog pointed to the first wagon. “Rex try to pay attention...Is it in that one?”

Rex raises his nose to the air and takes a big sniff. “Nopes, It’s in the next! Pleasssssssseee get it, please please!

Zog pulls the second wagon out a bit further rubbing his head in confusion. “This one? This is just all mundane plants for my own use, nothing weird in here at all!”

Rex practically has convulsions as he rolls around in a circle smashing the side of his face into the ground and rubbing it all over. “Yes Yes YES! It there!” He jumps to all four feet and starts running about in tight circles making yippy noises.

Smitty drops to a knee and starts laughing out loud. “I can’t take it anymore I’m sorry! He is doing ZOOMIES!”

Jane looked at Smitty with a smirk. “I would find this more funny until I just remembered that my old lab would also try to hump my leg when he got super excited! This guys about six foot eight and it wouldn’t end well for me.”

Zog looked over to her. “Your not far off. These beasts have little to no control. Look at the bugger running around in a circle like a pit bull with his peanut butter chewy!”

Rex started to whine “Fur man please help. I cannot stop myself! Please pin me!”

Smitty snorts and walks over. “I got this. I had to play the domination game many a time with my old German Shepard. Smitty went to a knee near Rex and when he got close Smitty snatched him by the neck and wrestled him down pinning him to the ground. “Gotcha!”

Rex tried to struggle and snapped a few times, but eventually he calmed down. “Thanks.”

Zog slowly brought the cart over and pulled a potted plant out and held it down near Rex. “This one?”

Rex let out a gasp, “No. Green pot!”

Zog looked down and snorted. “The green pot? You have GOT to be shitting me!”

Smitty looked over. “It’s a million dollar plant right? It’s always the one that’s gonna cost you the most.”

Zog shook his head. “Actually it’s the exact opposite Bigfoot. This is maybe the cheapest plant I have. For the love of God it’s just plain old Chamomile. It’s a personal thing I brought because I love this specific strain for my tea!”

Jane started snorting clapping a hand to her thigh. Between gasps she said, “Chamomile! Of course! I use it for the same reason. It’s extremely calming for me. Give Rex a mouthful Zog.”

Zog pulled off half of the stems and dropped it by Rex’s snout. A big tongue shot out and curled around the plant. Smitty must have felt something because he let up off of the Dogman and stood.

Rex rose to four feet and started shaking his head. “Wow...I did not expect this. My head is clear for the first time ever. Thank you Human Zog. Can you raise more of this plant for my people? We will pledge ourselves to you as pack leader if you can!”

Zog side eyed Blackbear. “I did NOT see that coming HAH! Rex this is a very common and easy plant to grow here. I can give as much to your pack as you need with no problem. I do not wish to be a leader however. I have too many commitments myself as is.”

Zog took the plant out of the pot and bent over to scoop a little hole into the dirt. He placed the plant in the ground and closed his eyes and layed his bare hand to the Earth. A green wave shot out away from him about twenty feet long. Shoots of the plant started to rise from the ground. Zog took back his original plant and put it into the pot.

“Rex that will be a decent sized plot until I can return and make a more permanent plot near your home base...err den or whatever you call home.”

The huge dogman bowed. “We are in your debt human and will guard your home until you return. The pack will venerate you forever!” He trotted off to a small gathering that started forming and howled his strange howl. In harmony and unison they howled back at him.

Jane gasped and swiped at her face as if wiping a tear she whispered “Let me sing you the song of my people.”

Jax leaned over her. “What was that?”

She looked at him with a frown. “You wouldn’t understand...Savage…