the water—white where the orcas were dark. The water was churning fiercely, so she couldn’t see it very clearly, but the orcas all moved away from it, whatever it was. Kallik squinted through the waves.
“Kallik, swim!” Lusa’s voice carried across the water. “Hurry!”
“Over here!” Toklo yelled.
Kallik turned away from the pale shadow and swam through the space the orcas had left. She reached up and felt the claws of her friends digging into her fur, dragging her up onto the ice. With a final heave and a scramble from her back paws, Kallik shoved herself up and out into the air. She was alive!
Even better, this chunk of ice had floated close enough tothe other side that they could leap across safely to the unbroken ice. Kallik tumbled onto the snow and lay there, her head spinning. She was too exhausted and dazed to stand up and shake out her soaking wet fur.
“That was really weird!” Lusa puffed, licking Kallik’s ear. “The orcas just seemed to back away all of a sudden.”
“If they hadn’t, I would have jumped into the water and fought them off,” Toklo promised. “I was just about to.”
“You can’t ever do that!” Kallik barked. “You can’t fight them, Toklo. Not even my mother could fight them. Promise me you won’t ever try.”
“But it seemed like you scared them off,” Lusa said, her eyes shining.
Kallik glanced over at Ujurak, who had a knowing look in his eyes as he gazed at the water. He lifted his head into the breeze. “I knew you would make it,” he said. “It’s another sign. We’re meant to be together, and we’re meant to be going this way.”
Toklo snorted. “Could you ask the signs to be a little less traumatizing next time?”
Kallik didn’t know or care if it was a sign for their quest right at that moment. She knew what she thought the pale shadow had been.
Thank you, Mother, she thought, closing her eyes and resting her cheek against the cool ice. Thank you for saving my life.
CHAPTER TEN
Ujurak
As soon as Kallik was up to it, they started walking again. Ujurak tried to shake off the fear he’d felt when he’d seen the orcas attack Kallik. He knew that if she’d died, it would have been his fault for insisting they cross the broken ice.
And was he right about where they were going? He wasn’t even sure. The signs out here were so strange. He was used to reading broken tree limbs and piles of rocks and the sound of streams burbling in the distance. He didn’t know what to make of the shifting whorls of snow or the endless, blank emptiness of the ice, and that troubled him deeply.
He glanced around at Kallik’s huge bulk, looming over Lusa’s small, dark shape as they trudged side by side. It had been a relief to hand off the responsibility of leadership to her for a while. He’d hoped her knowledge of the ice would be enough to guide them wherever they were going, especially when he was so confused out here. But of course she knew even less than he did…well, she knew more about surviving on the ice, but she didn’t know how to read the signs of theirjourney, and of course she didn’t know what they were looking for.
He barely knew what they were looking for. The strange tugging under his fur pulled him forward relentlessly, so he knew there was a reason to be here. He just hoped he’d recognize it when they found it—and that it would help them save the wild, as his and Lusa’s dreams had promised.
Ujurak turned his eyes back to the sky. The dancing lights had been such a promising sign, but all they’d told him was to go out onto the ice. They gave him no clues about what to do once he got there. Even the Pathway Star confused him; at night it was nearly directly overhead, so he couldn’t tell if they were still supposed to be following it, or if it had just been leading them here, to the ice.
And during the day it was even harder. He squinted at the thin gray clouds scattered across the dull blue sky. Earlier he’d seen
“Kallik, swim!” Lusa’s voice carried across the water. “Hurry!”
“Over here!” Toklo yelled.
Kallik turned away from the pale shadow and swam through the space the orcas had left. She reached up and felt the claws of her friends digging into her fur, dragging her up onto the ice. With a final heave and a scramble from her back paws, Kallik shoved herself up and out into the air. She was alive!
Even better, this chunk of ice had floated close enough tothe other side that they could leap across safely to the unbroken ice. Kallik tumbled onto the snow and lay there, her head spinning. She was too exhausted and dazed to stand up and shake out her soaking wet fur.
“That was really weird!” Lusa puffed, licking Kallik’s ear. “The orcas just seemed to back away all of a sudden.”
“If they hadn’t, I would have jumped into the water and fought them off,” Toklo promised. “I was just about to.”
“You can’t ever do that!” Kallik barked. “You can’t fight them, Toklo. Not even my mother could fight them. Promise me you won’t ever try.”
“But it seemed like you scared them off,” Lusa said, her eyes shining.
Kallik glanced over at Ujurak, who had a knowing look in his eyes as he gazed at the water. He lifted his head into the breeze. “I knew you would make it,” he said. “It’s another sign. We’re meant to be together, and we’re meant to be going this way.”
Toklo snorted. “Could you ask the signs to be a little less traumatizing next time?”
Kallik didn’t know or care if it was a sign for their quest right at that moment. She knew what she thought the pale shadow had been.
Thank you, Mother, she thought, closing her eyes and resting her cheek against the cool ice. Thank you for saving my life.
CHAPTER TEN
Ujurak
As soon as Kallik was up to it, they started walking again. Ujurak tried to shake off the fear he’d felt when he’d seen the orcas attack Kallik. He knew that if she’d died, it would have been his fault for insisting they cross the broken ice.
And was he right about where they were going? He wasn’t even sure. The signs out here were so strange. He was used to reading broken tree limbs and piles of rocks and the sound of streams burbling in the distance. He didn’t know what to make of the shifting whorls of snow or the endless, blank emptiness of the ice, and that troubled him deeply.
He glanced around at Kallik’s huge bulk, looming over Lusa’s small, dark shape as they trudged side by side. It had been a relief to hand off the responsibility of leadership to her for a while. He’d hoped her knowledge of the ice would be enough to guide them wherever they were going, especially when he was so confused out here. But of course she knew even less than he did…well, she knew more about surviving on the ice, but she didn’t know how to read the signs of theirjourney, and of course she didn’t know what they were looking for.
He barely knew what they were looking for. The strange tugging under his fur pulled him forward relentlessly, so he knew there was a reason to be here. He just hoped he’d recognize it when they found it—and that it would help them save the wild, as his and Lusa’s dreams had promised.
Ujurak turned his eyes back to the sky. The dancing lights had been such a promising sign, but all they’d told him was to go out onto the ice. They gave him no clues about what to do once he got there. Even the Pathway Star confused him; at night it was nearly directly overhead, so he couldn’t tell if they were still supposed to be following it, or if it had just been leading them here, to the ice.
And during the day it was even harder. He squinted at the thin gray clouds scattered across the dull blue sky. Earlier he’d seen
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