Ice Blink

29: Village

"The war isn't just about control, and it didn't start that way, either. Annoatok is not a country," Iki said. Snow drove into their faces as they struggled up the last hill between them and the village – or what Iki told them was the last hill. Nuna didn't believe him. He'd told them they didn't have far to go, but since then it felt like they had travelled miles.

"Where did they come from, then?" she asked.

"Illulik. Where did you think Mortu's affinity for masks came from?"

"They're fighting against their own home?"

"You say that like it's uncommon. Lots of people fight against their home due to different beliefs – and that's what this is about."

"People believe many different things," Niju added. "Some believe in gods, some believe in spirits; some believe in both... or neither. Illulik was founded on respecting the gods as well as the spirit world, and our first leaders were hand-picked by the deities themselves, before the gods retreated from us. But Mortu and his followers believe that we should seek mastery over the spirits, that we should find out how to control and dominate them. It caused a divide, and the group now calling itself Annoatok split off from Illulik almost nineteen years ago."

"Dominate the spirits?" It was incomprehensible. It was blasphemy. "Did any of you know Mortu?"

"No," Amarok replied. "He left long before we joined the Circle, which he was never part of. He hadn't been chosen to rule, so he decided to take power. He started the war three years ago."

It felt like longer. It already seemed as if peace had never reigned in North Ice.

A loose patch of snow crumbled beneath Nuna's feet and she started to slide backwards. Niju grabbed her hand and pulled her higher.

"Thanks," she said breathlessly.

The slope plateaued, and the village nestled in the valley on the other side finally came into view.

"There it is," Iki said. "The people doomed to die."

"Don't say that," Toklo said. "We can save them. We have the weapons, and we can fight for them."

Iki gave him a flat stare. "So optimistic."

"I think you're pessimistic," Nuna said. "I agree with Toklo. We must be able to make a difference."

The village was already unnervingly like a graveyard, a sombre mood clinging like fog to the people who watched from their doors with blank stares. Iki strode confidently towards the largest building at the end of the main street and Nuna exchanged a look with Toklo, already uncomfortable. Amarok scanned the roads with a distant expression, planning battle strategies already.

Iki rapped on the huge wooden doors to the main hall, and bolts scraped free on the other side. The doors cracked open to reveal an old grey-haired man with a face cracked with lines.

"You're back." His voice was flat, devoid even of relief. "We didn't think you'd come back."

"Lucky for you, I keep my word, Chief," Iki replied grimly, "and I've brought help."

"Bring them inside."

They strode into a dark, smoky room full of young people talking and jostling. They wore their winter furs and clutched hunting gear, a far cry from weapons or armour.

"These are our able-bodied warriors," the Chief said.

"The arrow fodder," Iki muttered under his breath.

Nuna elbowed him in the ribs. "How can you talk like that? I thought you agreed to fight with them?"

"I did, but it doesn't mean I have to pretend we're going to win."

"A soldier without hope has already lost the battle. We will win." At the sound of Amarok's loud, powerful voice, the chatter died away and the villagers turned.

"Who are these people?" a young man with whale tooth piercings asked.

"I am Commander Amarok of the Takaani," Amarok announced. "We are from the Circle of Illulik, and we're here to help."

"You say that like it means something, but there are only five of you. What do five more people matter to Annoatok? Circle or not, we're all just human in the end."

Murmurs of agreement swept through the room.

A chill ran down Nuna's spine. All these people believed they would die, just like Iki. If they wanted to win, they had to convince them otherwise.

"We brought weapons," Niju said, "and we have something else."

"What? The wolf pack of Amarok himself? The real Amarok? A net made from Sedna's hair?" the man jeered.

"We have the might of the spirits on our side. We have entered the Temple of Shadows and lived to tell the tale. The trails of the most powerful spirits ever formed cling to us now. Trust in us, trust in Illulik – we will win this."

Amarok was looking at his friend with pride.

The Chief sank onto a stool, but the villagers eyed them with new interest now. Silhouetted by the doorway, Nuna doubted they could see their exhausted faces or worn clothes. They saw their salvation, and the Inua had to keep up that image no matter what.

"Show me a map." Amarok squared his shoulders. "Tell me everything you know about their forces. I'll find a way to win this."