Broken Orbit | ONC

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              With the sled, the distance covered in a single day was considerably more. After three hours, I turned the sled to the nearest building. We managed to get inside before the wind shifted. Thanks to the sled, we could spend more time warming up in the house.

    Days passed. Every morning, we spent those three hours sliding across the snow towards the Equator. The storm threw ice and lightning around in a frenzy, as if furious that I'd managed to use it to my advantage.

    As time went on, the period that we could use the winds grew smaller. By the time we were a week away from Quito, we could only stand the cold for two hours instead of three. My heart was in a constant race the closer we got to Quito. These were the defining moments of my future. If the Ark existed, then I was saved. If it wasn't real, then I was dead.

    One particular day, time began to close on our window to travel by sled. I examined our surroundings for a good shelter. We were in an area of low, spaced-out buildings. Turning the rudder a little made the sled angle to the side and we skidded around a group of structures. I continued to follow the line of structures until I realized it was in a loop. The buildings were arranged in a circle. By the time I reached the other side, the winds pushed the sail backwards. I was forced to turn around to prevent the sail from tearing.

    I'd never seen industrial buildings arranged in this way. Puzzled, I peered between the gap and saw another building in the center. It was surrounded by a chainlink fence. By the looks of it, the fence had never been cut. That fence was intact, meaning the building inside was. My heart picked up a pace at the thought of more supplies. No one had gotten through the fence yet. That meant that building was untouched and waiting for me.

    Determined, I guided the sled into the circle of buildings before reaching the fence. Hopping off the sled, I pulled down the sail before it could take the sled away. Chance sniffed around my feet, used to the ice precipitation by now. My body was covered with numerous bruises, but I was so cold that I hardly felt them anymore.

    With the sled secured, I examined the fence. The reason for why it was intact became clear. It had barbs hidden in the links, where someone would grab the fence and get stabbed before they saw the spike. Clever. And a pain. I didn't have wire cutters, so how was I going to get through this thing?

   What confused me was what this fence was tall. In order to still be several feet taller than me, it had to be tens of feet high. I stood on several layers of snow and ice. What kind of place had this tall of a fence?

    Examining the area, I finally got an idea. I clicked my tongue and Chance lifted his head. At my head jerk, he followed on my heels. I approached the nearest building and pulled the knife from my belt. My eyes scoured the building until I found an uneven layer of ice – thicker at one end and thinner at the other. Bracing my hand on the ice, I braced my knees before stabbing the knife into it. A few stabs later and a line cracked.

    It took half an hour to finally break off the wedge. Retrieving the sled, I managed to lever the ice wedge onto it. I set Chance onto the sled before grabbing the back. Digging my toes into the ice, I began to push it forward.

    The winds pushed northward, so I pushed the sled until we were on the south side of the fence. I dropped off the wedge of ice before moving to the next house. Chance sat on the sled and watched as I went from house to house, breaking off wedges of ice.

    The sun neared the horizon by the time I had enough ice. My face strict with concentration, I gathered all of the wedges. It took every ounce of my strength, but by the time I finished, the wedges were stacked into a ramp.

    God, I hope this works, I thought. I clicked at Chance. He jumped into the sled as I pushed it back a good thirty feet from the ramp. The thicker edge faced the fence and sat at about two-thirds its height. The wedge sat far enough away that I prayed the momentum would help me clear it. It would all depend on the wind.