“Are you insane?” Nikita narrowed her dark eyes at Khochu, nervously fiddling with her spear.
Khochu nodded. “Yes, but I’m also the animal whisperer and have done this before.”
“No wonder you’re not a strong fighter.” Nikita scoffed, then sighed and shook her head. “Okay, I trust you—on one condition.” She held up one finger for emphasis.
Khochu recognized the warmth in Nikita’s eyes. She really did like him back.
“When you return to the cave…” Nikita continued, taking Khochu’s hand.
Oh, gosh. Khochu was about to explode. Nikita’s hand felt so right in his.
She flipped his palm over and caressed his soft yet calloused skin. “We become blood siblings and work together to get the tribes across the land bridge.”
Blood siblings! Khochu’s eyes lit up. “You believe me?”
Nikita nodded. “Like you, the ancestors told me as well. You can’t do this alone, Khochu.”
But Khochu was the next chief, set to begin his rite of passage soon.
“We’re both on our rites of passage,” Nikita continued, reading his mind. “So, let’s make it worth it. Think about it, Khochu. I would love to be your blood sister.”
Was that the same as “girlfriend”? Khochu would ask that later. Right now, he had some Saber-toothed cats to lure away.
He gave Nikita a quick nod and waited until she began leading the rest of the tribe members across the lake. While he waited for the cats, he thought about her and the ancestors’ words:
“To survive, you must kill.”
Khochu didn’t approve of Nikita’s murder of one of his tribe members, but understood why she did it. As she said, she was only doing what Priven taught her. That didn’t mean she wanted to. If only his parents could see that, too.
Khochu waited a little longer, and then he heard the familiar roars of the cats.
This was it.
Khochu lifted his spear and shouted at the predators, “Hey, over here!”
They paused, growling as they unsheathed their claws.
“I have plenty of meat on me!” Khochu lied, feeling his stubby arms beneath his coat.
Before the cats could change their minds, he hurled his spear and struck one of them in the shoulder.
The cat cried out, then glared at Khochu.
That’s it, Khochu, he thought. Make them mad.
The cat pulled the spear from its shoulder and snapped it. Blood trickled onto the ice, staining the snow crimson. Yet it and the two other predators still ran toward Khochu.
He quickly checked the lake, drew his spear, and took off running. His attack had slowed the predators, as they kept checking on their injured tribe member. In a way, Khochu felt bad, but he had to do this.
He moved toward the thinner ice near the base of a snow-covered iceberg, trying to come up with Step Two of his plan. If only he had… If only he had…!
A screech came from the sky.
Khochu looked up, and his eyes widened at the sight of a large, familiar shadow soaring toward him and the iceberg. “Eva!”
Eva, it was. She was all right! Khochu thought he had lost her! But what about Kobe? Then he saw him, too.
Kobe slid across the ice and snow, past the predators, and crashed into Khochu’s leg.
He wobbled but caught himself on his dog’s shoulders. “Kobe!” Khochu hugged him, then noticed that Kobe’s shoulder was still bleeding a little. “Don’t worry, boy, we’re going to get through this together,” Khochu encouraged. “I promise.”
Kobe nodded, then stood before his partner, legs outstretched.
Khochu looked up at Eva. “Eva!” he shouted, his gaze drifting back to the cats. “Kobe and I will lure the predators to the right place. When I give you the signal…” His voice trailed off as he gestured toward the towering iceberg above him and Kobe.
Eva examined it and quickly figured out Khochu’s plan. She hovered and nodded to him.
Before doing anything, Khochu checked to ensure the tribe members were safe.
The tiny forms of Priven, Yerik, and Nikita gestured them toward the iconic cave on the lake’s opposite shore.
That was when Khochu said, “We can do this, Kobe.” He hoped his words gave Kobe confidence, even though he had reached Khochu and obviously wasn’t doing too well.
He limped on his leg like the predator and fell halfway to the iceberg, straining the ice and snow with his own blood.
By then, Khochu scooped him up and carried him the rest of the way, only setting him down so they could threaten the struggling predators.
The ice was beginning to thin, so Khochu quickly slipped onto the thicker ice.
Kobe, on the ground, shook his head and bared his teeth at the predators. He followed Khochu, but as they neared the iceberg, something cracked beneath his four paws. Within seconds, the ice beneath Kobe snapped, and he splashed into the icy water below, spraying water droplets onto Khochu’s legs.
The dog whined and swam helplessly in the water, trying to get himself out. He placed his front paws on the thicker ice, but they slipped, and he began to sink.
“Kobe, no!” Khochu dropped everything and rushed to Kobe. However, he stopped when the ice beneath his feet cracked, forcing him to back away from Kobe’s prison.
Eva called out, but she couldn’t get Kobe out. Only Khochu could do that.
“Kobe!” Khochu repeated. “I promise I’ll get you out.” He didn’t have much time, not with the water’s temperature and Kobe’s injury. However, the predators took advantage of this and slowly moved toward them.
“Hang on, Kobe.” Khochu held out his arms to the frightened, struggling pup. He began to sink to his knees as he tried to think of a plan. He reached for Kobe, but the pup barked, shivering in the cold.
His eyes flicked to the predators, and he nodded at Khochu, giving a look that said, Everything will be okay.
Tears welled in Khochu’s eyes. “But, Kobe.”
Everything will be okay, repeated Kobe’s eyes.
No! Khochu wouldn’t give up on Kobe. He wanted him just a little longer, so he reached for him, wrapping his arms under Kobe’s belly. The ice beneath him kept cracking, so he had to be quick.
Khochu waited until the Saber-toothed cats lunged at him, then pulled Kobe out, sliding both of them away from the hole. They ended up on the lake’s other side, and the cats plummeted into the hole where Kobe had been, widening it like a woman in labor.
Oh, this was terrible to watch, but Khochu had to protect the tribes. He may have befriended a hyena on his birth day—his parents told him so—but he couldn’t befriend three hungry cats.
Khochu backed away from them and picked up frozen Kobe, tucking him into his coat. He glanced at Eva and shouted, “Now, Eva!” Then he hurried away from the lake and the struggling predators.
Eva waited until she was sure he was safe, then she flapped her wings and pushed a loose piece of the iceberg off the edge. She moved out of the way as a roar came from the wall.
Khochu closed his eyes and covered his ears as snow and ice rolled down the berg like a stampede of bison. The lake beneath it cracked, spewing water into the air, and the predators roared as snow and ice buried them like a pile of bones.
Within minutes, the avalanche slowed, leaving nothing but a broken lake, snow, and ice where the predators had once been.
Khochu’s chest burned the same way it had that day with the bear, and he clutched it. He wasn’t a bad person, he wasn’t a bad person—he was just trying to survive. But he still yelled and punched the snow.
Soaring down, Eva landed beside him and Kobe, then opened her wings and wrapped them around them. It’s okay, Khochu, it’s okay, read her eyes.
“Khochu!” a voice shouted behind him. Nikita, Khochu’s parents, and Chief Yerik rushed up behind them, slipping and sliding on the ice.
Eva unwrapped her wings, and Khochu shouted, “Mom, Dad!” He shivered from head to toe and stood shakily, showing them Kobe. “Kobe. Please.”
Kobe’s head drooped, and he closed his eyes as his body went limp. He couldn’t even whine.
Yerik took him from Khochu and said, “Come on.” He rushed forward, and the others followed.
Khochu’s parents still kept their distance from Nikita, but Vika grasped Khochu’s shoulder and said, “This is who you are, Khochu—a leader inside and out who cares for everyone. We’re proud of you, son.”
Khochu didn’t feel proud after murdering three more animals, and he was now almost certain he would lose to Kobe. He was too old and weak to recover from hypothermia, but Khochu wanted Aloy to at least try. So he tried to find some confidence, even though the traumatic image of Kobe falling through the ice hunted him like those cats.
***
Aside from all the cave paintings Khochu had added to the cave’s walls over the years, it remained the same: icicles hanging from the ceiling and his canoe sitting in the river.
The two tribes had segregated. Hunters from Khochu’s tribe remained on high alert, just in case a cannibal decided they were hungry.
Nikita joined Khochu on his side of the divide, while Aloy tended to Kobe. Yerik had built a fire, but the dog still barely moved.
Khochu clutched his parents’ hands, watching as Aloy prodded Kobe and waved her arms over him, chanting.
A lump formed in Khochu’s throat, but he still asked, “Well, Aloy?”
Priven and a few of his men left their tribe to attend the ceremony. “You-You really are the son of Vika and Sasha?” Priven muttered to Khochu. “The ancestors told us you would come one day.”
Khochu didn’t feel like being worshipped right now, not with his best friend on the brink of death. “Well, Aloy?” he tried again.
Finally, Aloy looked up from Kobe and met Khochu’s eyes, shaking her head. “He is too old. I’m sorry, Khochu.”
Khochu had expected that, but his heart still sank to the bottom of his stomach, crushing his insides. Now everything hurt (not just his heart). “Aloy, please, he’s my best friend,” he begged.
“I’m sorry, child,” Aloy repeated, drawing her hands away from Kobe.
“No, no!” Sobbing, Khochu rushed to Kobe and held him close.
Eva hovered over him, causing a few tribe members to flinch, but they relaxed when she didn’t attack.
Kobe peered into Khochu’s eyes and shifted his legs, but Khochu said, “Shh, shh.” He gently brushed his palm across Kobe’s fur. “Save your strength, Kobe.” He rested his hands over Kobe’s legs. All he could do was comfort him.
“Remember all the good times we shared,” Khochu choked out. “I wouldn’t be here today if not for you and Eva.” His mind drifted back to the Spirit Animals he had seen the day before. “You’ll never be truly gone. I’ll listen for you every day.” Khochu rested his head against Kobe’s soft belly. “I promise. I love you, Kobe.”
A few more minutes passed, and then Kobe slowly closed his eyes. His belly stilled, and a gust of wind blasted through the cave.
Khochu lifted his head. “Kobe? Kobe! Kobe, no!” He shook him, but Kobe didn’t move.
Vika and Nikita covered their lips, tears shimmering in their eyes.
Yerik and Priven pulled Sasha and them away, and Yerik said, “Let’s give him some time alone.” With that, the group left Khochu, Kobe, and Eva.
Khochu sank onto his side and hugged Kobe with both arms, repeating, “I love you, Kobe, and… I’m sorry.” He wiped away tears. “Great Spirit, please look after him.”
Eva stayed a little longer, but then she nudged Kobe and rubbed her bill against Khochu’s back. Afterward, she folded her wings and turned, leaving the two friends alone.
The Spirits had been right about everything, but what was Khochu supposed to do now without Kobe?
Was growing up really this hard?
ns216.73.216.217da2
and then Add to home screen.