The Melting Sea (28 page)

“Well … I guess we can give it a try,” Tartok grunted.

Hauling his seal along, Toklo returned to the den, followed by Tartok and Olikpok. As he approached, he realized that several other bears had gathered there. He recognized the she-bear and her cubs who had watched them as they crossed the ice.

“I only came because you asked me to,” the mother bear was telling Sakari as Toklo padded up. “But I really don't think we'll be able to fight off Salik and his bears. They're so strong!”

There was a murmur of agreement from some of the others.

“I think we should move on,” a younger she-bear suggested. “I've heard there are other places where the ice doesn't melt so quickly, and there aren't as many bears competing for prey.”

“Try it if you like, Nukka,” Olikpok told her. “But how do you know Salik wouldn't follow us?”

Tartok gave his brother a shove. “You're always moaning, Olikpok!
I'm
all for fighting off Salik, but I don't see why we need a brown bear to tell us how to do it.”

Toklo saw some of the other bears nodding, as if they agreed with Tartok.
If you can fight off Salik, why haven't you done it already?
he wondered. He narrowly avoided speaking the words aloud. Instead, he said, “I'm not trying to tell any bear what to do. But my friends and I have had experience—”

“You're not even a white bear,” an older white male interrupted. “What do you know?”

“Yeah,” Tartok growled. “Why do you get to boss us around?”

Toklo glared at Tartok.
A few heartbeats ago, you agreed to give it a try. Why are you changing your mind now?

Before he could speak, Yakone stepped forward. “I know the bears I've traveled with are an odd group,” he began, nodding at Toklo, Kallik, and Lusa, “but I've seen them fight off bears and other animals, and hunt together, and you wouldn't believe how successful they've been!”

“You're right: We wouldn't,” Tartok muttered.

Toklo was surprised at Yakone's wholehearted support, and even more surprised when Shila squeezed through the crowd of bears to his side.

“I was inside a no-claw firebeast when it crashed and set the whole of a no-claw den on fire,” she said. “Toklo and his friends worked together; they saved me and some other bears who were trapped inside the den. They've managed to do things no bear could manage on their own, and that's why we all need to listen to Toklo.”

Toklo saw young Nukka nodding her head, and the mother of the cubs was looking interested, but some of the others were turning away.

“There's nothing for us here,” Olikpok said.

“Wait!” To Toklo's astonishment, Taqqiq pushed his way into the center of the crowd and stood beside Toklo. “I was one of Salik's bears,” he announced.

Growls of hostility rose from the group of bears. They hadn't recognized Taqqiq until now. The mother bear moved swiftly to place herself between Taqqiq and her cubs.

Taqqiq flinched, then seemed to brace himself. “You have to understand this,” he said. “Salik and the others aren't anything special individually. It's only because they work together that they've been able to terrorize the rest of you. So it's only by working together that you'll be able to defeat them. And we need to do that before Toklo teaches you to hunt, so they don't come after that food, too.”

He flashed a glance around the group, looking shamefaced and awkward, then sat down, his shoulders hunched as if he was trying to make himself inconspicuous.

Toklo wasn't sure that Taqqiq's words would change the mood of the gathering. But the bears who had been ready to leave were turning back, and even Tartok and the old male were looking less hostile.

“Okay,” Tartok said at last. “So what do you want us to do?”

Kallik watched, nervous and excited, while
the white bears formed a ragged circle around Toklo. She gave Taqqiq a nod of gratitude as he shambled past her to take his place with the others. Lusa stayed on one side with Pakak and Tonraq, keeping them well away from the training session.

“What you need to remember,” Toklo began, once the bears were in position, “is that Salik and the others think you're all scared of them. So the first thing in a fight is to show them that you're
not
scared. Growl. Bellow at them. Convince them that you're not going to back down.”

Kallik could see a few of the bears exchanging doubtful glances, but Toklo went on before any of them could speak.

“Smaller bears can dart in, strike a blow, and dodge out of range again quickly.” Toklo's gaze rested on the older cubs for a moment. “Salik and his group won't be nimble enough to follow you. But bigger bears can't do that. You have to rely on strength.”

There were some murmurs of understanding at that. The older cubs' eyes gleamed eagerly, as if they were imagining how they could strike back at Salik.

“When brown bears fight,” Toklo went on, “we claw at each other's shoulders and try to sink our teeth into our enemy's throat. That means having a good grip on the ground with our hindpaws. It might not be so easy on the ice. On the other hand, it might be easier to knock your opponent off balance when it's slippery underpaw.”

Kallik was surprised and proud at how confident Toklo sounded. She knew he sometimes doubted that he was strong enough or brave enough to take care of his friends. All the white bears were looking interested now, as if what Toklo was saying made sense to them.

“Another idea,” Toklo continued, “is to try to push your opponent back to the edge of the ice, or into a seal hole. The edge might crumble away and pitch him into the water, and even if it doesn't, the thought that it might will make him nervous. And a nervous enemy is easily defeated.”

“You're suggesting we kill them?” Sakari asked doubtfully. Kallik could tell that in spite of all the damage Salik and the others had done, she wasn't comfortable fighting her own kind to the death.

“No,” Toklo explained. “But if your opponent falls into a hole, it will give you a break from fighting while they get out. And if one of their friends stops fighting to help them, that's
two
enemies you've dealt with.”

“I think it's a great idea!” Nukka exclaimed. “Can we try it now?”

“In a moment,” Toklo said. “There's one last thing I want to suggest. With all the bears we have here, we outnumber Salik and his gang. We need to practice with two bears joining together to fight one. Kallik and Yakone, will you help me show the others what I mean?”

Kallik stepped forward, her paws tingling with excitement. Yakone followed her.

“Okay,” Toklo said. “Come at me.”

He growled threateningly and raised himself up on his hindpaws. Kallik darted toward him, avoiding Toklo's sharp claws, which were groping for her shoulders, and slid underneath him. As Toklo staggered from her sudden onrush, she clawed at his belly, while Yakone jumped up onto Toklo's back, unbalancing him and sending him crashing to the ice.

“That'll do, thanks,” Toklo said, his voice muffled by Yakone's fur.

As they broke apart and scrambled to their paws, a murmur of appreciation rose from the bears who surrounded them.

“That's cool!” one of the older cubs exclaimed.

“Okay, divide up and let's see you try,” Toklo told them.

At once the bears split up into small groups, trying to copy what they had seen. Shila leaped up onto Nukka's back, digging her claws in and balancing as Nukka tried to throw her off.

“Come on, Olikpok!” Toklo roared. “Don't just stand there!”

Olikpok hesitated a moment longer, then jumped up, ramming his forepaws into Shila's side. Shila lost her balance and tumbled off Nukka to roll over on the ice. Together Nukka and Olikpok leaped on top of her, pinning her down.

“Get off!” she gasped. “You're squashing me!”

“That's great,” Toklo praised them, as Olikpok and Nukka backed off, letting Shila scramble to her paws.

Kallik glanced over to where Taqqiq and Tartok were circling around Sakari, darting in to strike a blow at her and then leaping back before she could retaliate.

“Good,” Toklo said, padding over to watch. “But when you're fighting for real, you'll have to hit harder than that.”

“I
know
,” Tartok growled. “But I don't want to hurt Sakari.”

While Tartok's attention was distracted, Sakari leaped at him and dealt him a couple of hard blows around the head. Tartok paused, half-stunned, and Sakari swung around to face Taqqiq. The young male raised his paw to strike, only to lose his balance as Sakari ducked underneath the blow and swiped his paws out from under him.

“Good job, Sakari,” Toklo told her. “Keep on like that, and Salik won't know what hit him.”

Kallik could sense that instead of being doubtful, all the bears were becoming excited and more hopeful. Her own optimism brimmed over as she exchanged a glance with Toklo.

We might just be able to do this!

The sun was rising the following morning when Toklo roused the bears for another training session. Kallik looked on as he divided them into two opposing groups, with Tartok leading one and Shila the other.

“Tartok's one of our best fighters,” Yakone commented, padding up to Kallik's side. “He's stubborn and defiant.”

Kallik nodded. “I'm amazed by Shila,” she said. “Her shoulder is still giving her trouble, but she's so cunning! She seems to know what her enemy will do before he knows it himself.”

“Okay,” Toklo called out when the bears had separated into their groups. “We're going to practice a battle. Tartok, you and your group can be Salik and his gang. Shila, you're defending your dens and your cubs.”

“Got it,” Shila said with an emphatic nod.

“Can we be in the battle?” Pakak rushed up to Toklo, with Tonraq hard on his paws. “We practiced all those moves with Lusa.”

“No, you cannot.” Lusa hurried up. “We'll watch from a safe distance.” She herded both cubs away; they looked back over their shoulders with disappointed expressions.

While Toklo and Yakone were giving final instructions, Taqqiq broke away from his group and padded over to Kallik.

“I'm going to find Salik and the others,” he announced. “I'll tell them that I've discovered Sakari's new den in their territory, and lead them over here, to where you're expecting them. If all goes well, we should be back tomorrow. I'll try to organize it so the attack comes at dawn.”

“Have you discussed this with Toklo?” Kallik asked.

Taqqiq nodded. “He knows what I'm going to do.”

I can't count the number of things that could go wrong
, Kallik thought. She glanced around for Toklo, but he was busy watching the pretend battle.

“No, Olikpok!” he roared across the ice. “Stay on your paws! Use your claws!”

“What if something happens?” Kallik asked Taqqiq, anxiety welling up inside her. “It's been a few days now since you left Salik, and he must know that you're with us. What if he and his bears don't trust you anymore? Will you be safe?”

“I've left them before,” Taqqiq reassured her. “Remember the time I came with you when you left Great Bear Lake? I've always gone back to them, and I've always been loyal. Why wouldn't they trust me now?”

“Very convincing.” A voice spoke behind Kallik. “It makes me wonder if
we
should trust you. If you've always been loyal to Salik, Taqqiq … where do your loyalties lie now?”

Kallik turned to see that Shila had broken away from the battle and was gazing at Taqqiq with a challenging expression.

Taqqiq faced her. “I'll do what I say,” he assured her. “I want peace on the Melting Sea.”

Shila let out a faint snort. “You'd better come back,” she warned him. “And you'd better be on our side.”

As she watched them, Kallik was suddenly aware of some unspoken connection between Shila and Taqqiq, something that she couldn't understand. But this wasn't the time to ask them about it.