Chapter 213: Sledging

Chapter 213: Sledging

If you like to sled you have to like to drag the sledge.

Russian Proverb

Namir was less than enthused when it was time to set out on the sledge. I had carefully packed it, tied the rope to it, and now sitting expectantly on top of it, waiting to go. Nyx had already taken the place of pride on the tip. I felt that she would soon be retreating into our clothes once the whistling wind whipped the heat out of the air, but for now, I let her sit there happily. She'd see soon enough.

You expect me to pull this? he asked unimpressed.

Yes, its hardly heavier than me and the stuff; it will be a lot easier on the downhill, I explained my thoughts and realised we had not exactly discussed how I envisioned the next part of our trip.

It's not the weight that I object to. He stated.

But you already carried me once. I dont quite see the issue. I argued, confused as to what the sticking point was.

You were unconscious and are no older than a cub. He said as if that explained everything.

Whats the difference? I asked.

You were not conscious and needed help. He explained as if that rationalised why he did not want to pull the sledge now.

And? I asked cocking my head in confusion. This was supposed to be a success. I had worked hard to create a method with which to carry our belongings.

It is not you specifically, but our history. He tried to explain.

Our history? What you and me? I asked for clarification but had a sneaking suspicion I knew where this was going now.

The history of humanity and beastkin. He added.

Ah. So Nyx would be fine. I would have to leave it up to him to explain the stumbling block we had just tripped over.

"Nyx will be fine, but she will retreat soon enough in the cold. Look, Beastkin from Ostro are often enslaved by others, particularly humans who emphasise their beast-like traits. Now I know you do not see me that way, but asking me to pull the sledge would be no better than treating me like a dog. He objected to my beautiful solution with a cultural clash I had not seen coming.

Ah . . . and if I wasnt sat on it? I tried to work my way around the problem. "You are happy to pull our supplies."

Yes, that is fine. He answered succinctly, realising the awkwardness of his position.

What if I was unconscious? I searched for the difference between carrying me unconscious across the endless ice and pulling me on a sledge.

That, too, would be fine. He said after a moments thought.

I tried to drill down to his specific problem with my beautiful hand-grown sledge I had spent so many hours labouring over.

What if you pushed it instead? I asked, trying to flip the propulsion around to the other side.

That would be fine. He answered, leaving me confused.

I felt like we were going round in circles. I thought it would be easier to pull the sledge than push it, and we had worked hard to make a sufficiently long enough and strong enough tendon rope and harness.

But if pushing it worked, pushing it would have to be.

The harness!

What if it was just a rope without a harness? I asked. I had created the harness to allow him to keep his arms and hands-free, but maybe that was the problem. Maybe it was too much like a leash for him to allow.

. . .

It took a couple of days of running at my slower pace for Namir to relent and pull me permanently on the sleigh. Cultural baggage was overridden by necessity and possibly boredom at our slow speed.

He taught as he ran, pointing out the best paths, discussing our past hunts, and a plethora of vegetation that was edible elsewhere, but the problem with the endless ice was that there was little to no vegetation to point out.

Constantly moving meant that we couldnt spar till the evening, but then we would generally be busy dressing recent kills or preparing our temporary shelters.

Still, this was doing wonders for some of my neglected craftsman skills. I was even gaining a few new ones. The lower levels came easily from the constant use and the importance of the tasks now sustaining our lives.

Tier 1

Hunting(Lv1 - 5)

Skinning (Lv1 - 5)

Skiing (Lv1 - 5)

I had even gained a new tolerance to accompany my Pain and Poison tolerance.

Tier 2

Cold Tolerance(Lv1 - 3)

Our pace increased; we were making good time across the endless ice, only pausing to hunt when we literally ran across burrows, dens or nests. We avoided the larger bears and wolves simply due to the time it would take to process them rather than a fear of facing them. We were self-sufficient enough to keep going by now. Still, when challenged, we defended ourselves, so we were staying a little longer at our current ice cave.

An Arctic bear had found us only to take offence at our presence. They were terribly territorial and had fought to the death rather than flee at the first injury. It was going to take a while to process the fur, meat and bones. Still, another bear fur blanket would be nice to cover up the sledge as we ran. I might even be able to stop powering the amulet for heat.

As we were working on turning tendons into string and rope for repairs and further supplies I noticed something new.

We have company. I cautioned Namir.

Who and how many? He questioned bluntly and to the point.

I paused, trying to focus in on what my constant scans had shown me and make sense of it. There was a group moving west and would pass within easy sight of us. There appeared to be four ridiculously large humans, each pulling their own sledges.

Four . . . I hesitated, . . . giants. I knew they existed theoretically but had never seen them with my own senses.

Giants? Ice or Human? He asked, and I realised that there were more than the nine noble races.

Um. I couldnt tell, at least not from this distance and by the time I could, they would be able to see us.

Right. He made up his mind. Cover the camp in ice and hide here. I will face them on their path. If they are hostile, I will lead them away. If they are friendly, we will say hello. Follow my lead.

I hastily covered the camp in ice, covering up the grisly remains of our work on the bear that had attacked us and the blood-stained snow. It was not perfectly camouflaged against the endless ice, not quite following the wind-carved ice around us, but it was the best I could do on such short notice. At least it matched our surroundings in colour now.

Namir was already loping away from our temporary dwelling to the nearest ridgeline. A ridgeline the four giants would be crossing any second now.

With a last look with my naked eyes, I closed the ice above myself, sealing myself within the ice cave we had created.

Now with my senses, I watched as they crossed the ridgeline and stopped on spotting Namir.

It was up to him now.