After everything that went down during the Serum Run—the blizzard, the wreck, Steele’s meltdown—the team had made it back, and Nome was safe. Balto was the town’s hero now, the legend, while Steele? Well, no one really knew what happened to him, and no one really cared to find out. With him gone, things had settled into a new normal. The team kept working, still running deliveries like before, only now without someone barking orders in their ears.

It was another long day hauling supplies, and as usual, the dogs found their way to the meetinghouse after work. The old abandoned Gold Dredger had always been their spot to wind down, swap stories, and complain about the usual aches and pains of sledding through the cold. Kaltag, Nikki, and Star were right in the middle of it all, lounging with the others, shooting the breeze.

"Well, someone's gotta do it," Kaltag said, stretching out his legs, looking as relaxed as ever. "Can’t just keep runnin’ in circles forever."

He didn’t have to say what it was. Everyone knew—the musher was going to have to pick a new lead dog sooner or later.

"Yeah, but who’s got what it takes?" Nikki added, rolling his shoulders like the weight of the question was sitting right on them.

Star, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly perked up. "Well... uh, maybe it'll be someone who’s got experience, or—or maybe someone fast! Or, or maybe—"

Kaltag shot him a look, and Star immediately clamped his mouth shut. The moment hung for a second before he shrank back down, mumbling, "...never mind."

The conversation drifted from there, names being thrown around, jokes being made, but underneath it all, the reality hung in the air—things were different now. And sooner or later, the musher was going to make his choice.