LogFAQs > #972759751

#82 - Rex the Wonder Dog
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Puppy Forever.

We've heard the tale of Rex and Artemis, the minute-by-minute parentage that has spanned two campaigns now. The current story of Rex the Wonder Dog is that age-old tale of no good going unpunished. In the onset of Kobra's arrival of the campaign, dozens were killed, wounded, maimed and captured in Z'onn Z'orr. Data 7 was nearly victim of an unexpected gunshot, were it not for the sudden reaction of Rex to leap in front of his son and take the bullet. Rex was saved, but his eternal youth has begun to ebb away as a result - and Data 7's primary concern now is to reach the Fountain of Youth and bring Rex back its healing waters, to restore his papa.

The tale of this very good dog and his very good boy, Danny, is a tale told over the course of decades. Yet it's in these potential final weeks that Rex has come to realize that has priorities must be realigned. Rex cares very deeply for his son Artemis - though there are times that Artemis, like any young pup, can be easily distracted by the exciting new sights and smells around him. He also cares very deeply for the orphan Spirit, as well. While Rex is a medic dog and Spirit is a doctor, there naturally has formed a bond in regards to those commonalities. But there is another bond with Spirit - one shared by Artemis and Rex's longtime companion Danny.

Orphans. Rex is a patron saint of sorts to orphans, whether human or dogs. In fact, Rex has spent decades as a best friend. Spirit, I think, really has a deep bond with Rex. There's this tiny flourish, a rather small detail, between Rex and Spirit I love - Spirit will hold his hand out to pet Rex, and Rex lifts his head, rubbing against Spirit's palm, petting himself. There's a certain youthfulness and enthusiasm in this very old dog, something that yearns to share with a young human friend, a companion - something that has been left dorman and fallow as a result of Danny's current egg-shaped incarceration.

But beyond Spirit, there is a very different orphan relationship - that of Data 7. You would be forgiven for believing Rex is the actual father by blood of Artemis, given their physical similarities. But Artemis has glommed onto Rex as a stepfather, a found father figure who has, through his own difficulties in accepting this sudden role, truly found a passion for providing love and care to Artemis. Despite being separated for several years, their reunion has been natural, expected and sweet.

Yet in this time of great pain, the sundowning Rex has begun to fail. His rambunctious internal puppy is giving way to a graying, tired older dog who has begun to become quite exhausted. And anyone who has ever had a dog knows that the final years, where energy begins to fail, can be quite painful to witness. Rex's years are catching up with him - decades of adventuring, of war stories and globetrotting explorations, of stories told with humans and chimpanzees and dogs and cats finally taking their toll from our dear friend.

Rex has been sidelined a bit as a result, but I think Rex's story is one of the most heartwrenching. Data 7's presently is a quest to reverse time itself, to turn tail at the inevitable march of aging. Can Artemis teach this old dog one last new trick?

An undrafted character falls at #81! Or, in another words, twenty times the point total Scare earned for Count Vertigo could have been picked up here.