Chapter One

Boy stands up for his rights

Boy tested the strips of hide across his chest that bound him to the mast. He leant into them and pushing his bottom against the mast he pushed his chest out as far as he could to try and snap the straps. He could see one piece was frayed and as he pushed harder it started to stretch, but it wouldn't break. He wasn't disappointed; he had already loosened the straps that had held his hands fastened around the back of the mast and he knew it would just be a matter of time before he weakened the straps around his chest and then he would be free. 

Boy was used to being patient, when out hunting he had to lie motionless on the snow and ice for hours just waiting for the right time for the animal he was hunting to get closer so he could throw his spear or fire his bow.

As he stood tied to the mast the storm raged all around and it was a very bad storm; even though it was just the start of winter the temperature had dropped so low that if you were to breathe in without having your mouth covered, the cold air could instantly freeze your lungs and you would be lucky not to die a very painful death. It had nearly happened to him once before when he was younger; he had been about six years old.

His mind flashed back to the incident. It was his first hunting trip on his own, it wasn't a proper hunting trip, but he had decided if he was to survive on the ice then he had to practice going out by himself and use some of the hunting skills he'd seen the adults use. The rest of the tribe were securely sealed up in their homes waiting for the blizzard to blow over so he was able to sneak out without anyone noticing. Not that anyone would be really bothered if they had seen him, as he was just an extra mouth to feed that they could quite happily do without. But that didn't bother him, even the fact that he wasn't allowed in the main part of the building but had to live in a small room attached to the outside wall didn't bother him either as it was all he knew. His parents had both been attacked and killed by polar bears when he was two. Since then he had been passed from one tribe member to another and was used to fetch and carry for the tribe as a servant. It was the only way to stay alive on the ice, there was little sympathy for the weak or those unable to hunt, and if people couldn't look after themselves they were normally left out on the ice to die. That's why he was determined to teach himself how to hunt and feed himself, he wasn't going to be stripped of his clothing and left on the ice to die; he wanted to live.

His first time hunting had been disastrous; he had waited stationary on the ice for over two hours for an animal to come into sight but because it was blowing a blizzard he couldn't see more than ten feet in front of him. Then it dawned on him that if the humans were all secure in their homes then maybe the animals were as well; that's why he couldn't see any. Plus a herd of animals could pass within twenty feet of him and he wouldn't be able to see them. He looked around him and he was pleased that he was on his own as he would have been embarrassed if anyone else had seen how stupid he was being; lying in a blizzard trying to hunt animals he couldn't even see. In fact he was relieved that no animal had come along as he only had an old broken spear which would have been no match against a wolf and definitely no use at all against a polar bear, but he had hoped to catch a fox, he was sure he would have been able to handle a fox. He stood up and walked back to the village. He hadn't gone far when the ice gave way under him and he went headlong down a crevasse. Thankfully it was only twenty feet deep and the side he was on sloped at an angle rather than a straight drop. He rolled head over heels and landed with at thump at the bottom.  His hood had been knocked back leaving his nose uncovered and before he realised what he was doing he breathed in through his nose. Even as he felt the ice cold air go up his nose he realised that he had made a big mistake. He stopped breathing in but it was too late. He felt a searing and agonising pain as the icy air froze part of his lungs. With both arms clutching his chest he rolled around the bottom of the crevasse in agony. Thankfully for him he had only breathed in a small amount of air and his body was able to warm the air up enough so that his lungs only froze for a few seconds, but it felt to him as if he was in the icy grip of death so bad was the pain. He pulled the hood back over his head and face and gently breathed in through his mouth. It hurt a bit at first but after a while he was able to breathe normally. He then managed to scramble out of the crevasse and made his way home.

     Boy's thoughts were interrupted by a figure moving towards him across the deck of the ship. He thought it must be Larson coming to check on him so he grabbed the strap that held his hands and pretended his hands were still fastened. Larson thumped him on the chest and said, "Are you ready yet Boy to guide us or are you going to stay there until you turn into ice?"

            All Boy could see was Larson's icy blue eyes glaring at him out of his hood. He didn't speak but shook his head instead. He was holding out for a larger share of whatever they caught. Normally fifty percent of what was caught was put in the tribes stores for use for the tribe's main meals and the rest was shared out equally among the others on the hunt. But with him not being a man yet he only got a faction of what the others got. He had decided that since he hunted as much as the others, plus he also had the gift which none of the others had, he reckoned he should get an equal share. When he had put this to Larson, Larson just laughed and said, "Shut up Boy and be grateful we give you anything at all."

Boy had then said, "If you don't give me my fair share then I won't guide you."

Larson had grabbed him by the throat and said, "You will do as I tell you Boy, I'm the leader and I decide what happens in the tribe." He then threw Boy onto the ice. Some of the other hunters agreed with Boy that he should get his fair share as they knew that without Boy's gift they may have trouble getting to where they wanted to go and also getting home again.

Larson was a good leader normally but he had one fault and that was he would never admit he was wrong. Since he had already refused him there was no way he was going to change his mind no matter what the others thought.

It hadn't mattered at the start of their journey as the sky was clear and they could see for miles. They knew which direction to go as they used the sun to get their bearings. But after a couple of hours the clouds came and blotted out the sun. They could still see but without the sun they had no means of knowing if they were heading in the right direction. All around them for mile after mile was a flat barren landscape of snow and ice.

Larson who was at the back of the ice ship had shouted to Boy at the front, "Which way do we need to head?"

Boy just put his arms out and shrugged his shoulders. Larson said, "Stop messing around and give us our course."

Boy shouted back, "Give me my fair share and I'll give you the course."

Larson was furious and he came running to the front of the ship and hit Boy hard across the side of the head. Then Larson said, "Don't you mess me about Boy, give me the course now or you'll be in serious trouble."

"Give me my fair share," said Boy defiantly. He was at the same time hiding his nervousness as he had seen Larson kill a man before who questioned his leadership.

Larson grabbed him and dragged him to the middle of the ship where the mast was and tying him to the mast he said, "Well see how stubborn you are after a few hours tied here." Larson then looking behind the ship could see the marks the runners had made in the snow and to the others he said, "We don't need Boy, we can see where we have been we just need to keep going in the same direction we are heading."

Some of the others were unhappy but they didn't want to face Larson's anger so one kept a lookout for the tracks behind them while others steered the ship by adjusting the sail. The ship was powered by twenty dogs that ran ahead pulling the ship across the ice and while there was wind they used the sail to help them. When the ship was empty the tribe rode in the ship if the wind was blowing but if the wind stopped they had to get out and jog alongside. Also on the return journey if the ship was laden with meat and oil they had to walk alongside or at times push the ship to help the dogs.

Larson glared at Boy and angrily pointing his finger at him he said, "I'll give one more chance Boy, guide us or stay there until you die."

Boy said, "If my gift is so important then it should be rewarded and I should get a fair share the same as the rest. I hunt the same as the others and I can guide us safely to the whales and back again. In fact, since I do two jobs I should get two shares."

"Two shares, exclaimed Larson! You'll not get a single share Boy yet alone two shares while I'm the Leader." Jabbing his finger in to Boy's chest he said, "You will do as you're told or I'll leave you tied up here to the mast until you turn to ice." Larson then looked into the storm and said, "This storm looks as if it is going to blow all night, I'll come back in the morning and if you are still alive we'll see if you are so stubborn then." Larson then turned away and joined the others in the shelter at the back of the ship.

Boy looked out into the storm which had been slowly building up over the last couple of hours into a really bad one. He and the others were used to being out in storms as it was normal, especially now as summer was at an end and winter was starting. People normally just made a shelter and waited the storm out, but he knew that if he was left out exposed to the wind all night that he might not survive. Not that he planned to be left tied up all night; as soon as Larson had closed the flap of the shelter he started work on the straps holding him again. He moved his body sideways then forward and back and after a while he felt that the straps had slackened a bit. Boy wore a double set of furs, the first one next to his skin was made out of wolf and fox fur, while the heavier outer coat and trousers were made from polar bear fur.  After slackening the straps some more he then put his arms above his head and he wriggled downwards out of his overcoat. His coat was held by the straps which allowed him to slip free. He quickly freed his coat and put it back on. Then he checked to see if anyone had seen him but the flap on the shelter was firmly closed. He grabbed his bag and climbed over the side of the ship and dropped down onto the soft fresh snow below.

Boy ran northwards for about a hundred yards, checking behind now and then to see if he was being followed but it looked as if no one had noticed his escape. Plus the storm was getting that bad that he could hardly see more than twenty feet anyway. Then he heard his name being called. It was Larson shouting, "Boy, Boy, come back and stop being stupid."

He shouted back, "I won't come back until you give me my fair share"

"You'll die out there by yourself, you need the tribe."

"You were going to let me die at the mast anyway so what difference does it make?"

"I only said that to scare you; come back and we can talk about it."

"No, I'm not coming back until you agree to give me my fair share."

"You're being stupid Boy; you know you can't survive on the ice without being part of a tribe."

"I'll start my own tribe if I have to."

"Who would want a boy as a leader, you are being really stupid now Boy."

"Lots of people will find my gift useful if you don't want it," Boy replied defiantly.

There was silence for a bit and then he heard raised voices and arguing. Boy decided to carry on walking and let them argue among themselves. He walked another four hundred yards or so and thought that would be far enough from the ship as he knew no one would come out into a storm like this after him.

He stopped and started to dig into the side of a bank of snow. It wasn't long before he had a hole dug big enough for him to climb inside; he continued digging until it was about six feet long. He got a candle out of his bag, lit it and then he dug into the side wall of the hole until he had a space big enough for him to lie down. Then he blocked the entrance with snow to keep out the wind and to hide where he was. Now that he was sheltered from the raging storm outside Boy made his bed up and snuggled down inside it. Lying in his bed he chewed on a strip of seal meat for his supper and after he had finished he then blew the candle out and was soon fast asleep.

Chapter Two

The Ship

Boy woke up and saw that it was light outside. He stretched and let out a big yawn. He had slept very well and getting out of his bedding, he made himself a hot drink and chewed on a strip of meat for his breakfast. After breakfast he packed his things away and going to the entrance of his shelter he poked a small hole through the snow that covered the entrance. Peering out he could see that the storm had stopped but the sky was still heavily laden, so he knew snow could be expected within the next few hours.

  Boy looked in the direction of the ship and saw some of the tribe clearing the drifted snow away from the hull and runners. Others were walking across the snow in various directions. Someone was coming towards where he was hiding and he heard his name being shouted. He could see it was Jenson and he was shouting, "Boy, Boy, come out we want to talk to you."

Ever since his parents had died he had always been called Boy by everyone. It was Boy get this, Boy do that, shut up Boy, come here Boy. He knew his parents had given him a proper name but he was so used to being called Boy that he had forgotten what his birth name was. He was nearly fourteen now so for the last twelve years or so he had known no other name but Boy.

Boy made a larger hole in the entrance and crawled out. He looked all around to see if he could see anyone else but the only one near him was Jenson and he was about a hundred yards away. Boy got on OK with Jenson so he stood up and said, "Stop there and say what you have to say."

Jenson stopped and said, "The tribe had a meeting and we have agreed to give you an equal share if you come back to the ship."

"What does Larson say?"

"The tribe has spoken so Larson has agreed to do what the tribe has decided."

Boy smiled and thought, ‘I bet he wasn't happy about that.' But he knew that by the rules of the tribe, if the whole tribe agreed to do something then the leader had to go along with it or leave the tribe.

"OK, I'll come back now that I am going to get a fair share."  He then walked towards Jenson and the ship.  Jenson blew on a horn he was carrying to let the others know he had found Boy and everyone started to make their way back to the ship. 

Most of the others were happy to see Boy come back on board the ship but Larson just scowled at him and demanded to know which direction they should go. Boy pointed to the left of where the bow of the ship was pointing and the sails were raised, the dogs were whipped and there was a loud cracking sound as the runners broke free of the ice and they headed across the barren landscape to the whale hunting area.

Boy's special gift was that he could never get lost. No matter where he was no matter if it was night time or in the middle of a blizzard, he always knew which way to go.  No one ever voluntarily went out in a storm or even worse a blizzard; as you couldn't see more than ten feet in front of you, and many people had died when they were only yards from safety but had not been able to see it. Boy had from a very early age wandered out in many storms and blizzards and never thought anything about it. When he was tired or bored he would just turn around and walk back. He could always walk right up to the door of where he was living, whether it was a tribe home or a temporary shelter it didn't matter, he could head straight for it without even having to think where he was going. He had never thought anything of it as he thought everyone could do it. It was only when someone had noticed he wasn't in his room and he had come walking out of a blizzard two hours later that they found out he had this special gift. Ever since then they took him with them on their hunting trips and he always guided them safely back. Plus once he had been somewhere he always knew how to get there again even in a blizzard.

There was a good breeze blowing and the ship made good progress across the snow. The sky was still overcast and as they journeyed the clouds got darker and darker. It started to snow lightly and Larson told him to come to the front and guide the ship. This meant that he had to sit on the bow with his legs wrapped around the centre piece that formed the prow of the ship. The prow like the rest of the structure of the ship was made out of whale bone and it was carved to look like the head of a polar bear with its jaws wide open. The polar bear was the emblem of the Larson family and they had made the ice ship. That is how Larson who was the grandson of the original Larson was the leader; a Larson's had always been leader since the ice first came three generations ago. Having the ice ship which could not only sail on the water but travel over the ice had given the tribe a big advantage over other tribes that had to rely on kayaks on the sea and dog sledges on land.

Boy liked sitting at the prow as he could watch the dogs racing across the snow and he liked having the wind in his face. Because he was high up and the snow slid past quickly below he could imagine that he was flying through the air.  One time had had been in the same position and he did end up actually flying through the air. The dogs had run into a deep snow drift and though they were able to bound across the snow the ship ploughed into the drift and came to a sudden stop. He had gone flying through the air and landed head first into the drift. He went that deep only his feet were sticking out the snow. He thought it was funny at first then he found it was hard to breathe as the snow being soft had caved in around him and stopped the air from coming in. By the time the others had dragged him out of the snow drift he had passed out with lack of oxygen and he had to be resuscitated. Now he kept a keen watch out for snow drifts and a tight hold of the prow.

As the day wore on the snow got heavier but they were only about two hours from the sea so they carried on through the snow. By the time they reached the sea the visibility was very poor but he knew where they were and he called to Larson to slow down and stop. When they eventually stopped they couldn't see the sea but they could hear the waves, so they knew they were at the right place.

They decided to set up camp on the shore as it was too cramped with everyone on the ship. Plus they were going to be here for weeks so they needed a proper camp anyway. Boy was just going to put his tent up when Larson shouted for him. He went over and Larson said, "You're on dog duty tonight Boy."

Boy thought Larson was punishing him for being out voted but he didn't mind being on dog duty, he liked the dogs. He went and got his things and went over to where the dogs were still harnessed to the ship. He shouted up the ship, "Pass the dogs food down."

Rebecca looked over the side to see who it was and then she dropped the sack containing the dog food. He picked it and going to the front of the line of dogs he first released the right one and then taking a chunk of frozen meat out and threw it off to the right. The dog chased after it and soon it was ripping into the frozen meat and hungrily gulping it down. He then released the left hand dog and threw a chunk of meat off to the left. He worked his way down the twenty dogs following the same procedure until all the dogs were released and fed.

When he was younger and he had first been given the job of releasing and feeding the dogs it had been total chaos. He had been told to release the dogs and then feed them, which is what he did. He had gone along the line and released the twenty dogs and then Larson had thrown the sack of meat down to him. No sooner had he caught the sack of meat and all the dogs leaped on him at once to get at their food. He was buried under a heaving mass of snarling, snapping and biting dogs. By the time he managed to crawl out of the pile of dogs he was covered in scratches and nips off the dogs. His clothes were ripped and he though he had been lucky to escape with his life. When he looked around he saw most of the tribe were standing laughing at him and he realised he had been set up by Larson. He had learned the hard way how not to release and feed the dogs and he never did it again that way.

Later on after the evening meal the snow was still coming down heavy so he got his sleeping bag out and going over to the side of the ship away from the wind he put it on the ground. Then he got in it and pulled it over him so that it covered his whole body. The dogs all curled up around him and he knew the heat off their bodies would keep him nice and warm no matter what the weather. So while the rest of the tribe finished off setting up the camp he closed his eyes and went to sleep surrounded by twenty dogs, safe in the knowledge that they would wake him if any danger approached.

The next morning when he woke up he peered out from under his bedding and saw that the snow had stopped and the sun was coming up. "Great, we may be lucky and catch something on our first day if the weather holds," he said. One of the dogs which had its head only inches from his, looked inquiringly at him when he had spoke. Boy reached out his hand and rubbing it on the dogs head he said, "Were going hunting." At the mention of the word hunting the dog stood up and started barking as though it was keen to join the hunt. This started all the other dogs off and soon there was a huge din as they all barked and howled up at the sky.

Boy got up and shook the snow off his sleeping bag and went around to the camp to see if anyone had put the kettle on for a hot drink. When they camped like this they all ate together at breakfast and in the evening. For lunch they just ate whatever food that they had at hand.  He had pouches in his inner fur where he always put a couple of pieces of frozen meat so that by lunchtime the heat of his body had not only thawed them but had warmed it just nice for chewing on. Sometimes it was meat that had been cooked other times it was still raw but it didn't matter to him, he was just grateful to have something to eat. When had been younger and reliant on others for his food he had gone many a day without anything to eat at all. Even now that he could look after himself, he never forgot the hunger he suffered when he was young and he was always grateful for the food that he had.

There were a couple of people already up and Boy sat and talked to them until everyone else had got up and they were ready to start the hunt.