

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2019 by Thomas Jacob

All Rights Reserved

RAKSHASA: THE RISE OF THE MAN EATERS

By Thomas Jacob

# Rakshasa

The Rakshasa is a demonic being that consumes human flesh.

According to Vedic stories, the Rakshasas were born from the breath of Brahma when he was asleep at the end of the Satya Yuga. As soon as they were created, they were so filled with bloodlust that they started eating Brahma himself...

Rig Veda, Book 7, Chapter 104, Verses 17 to 19

pra ya jighati kharghaleva naktamapa druha tanvam ghuhamana |

vavrananantanava sa padīsta ghravano ghnantu raksasa upabdaih ||

vi tisthadhvaṃ maruto viksvichata ghrbhayata raksasa sam pinastana |

vayo ye bhutvi patayanti naktabhirye va ripo dadhire deve adhvare ||

pra vartaya divo asmanamindra somasitam maghavan saṃ sisadhi |

praktadapaktada dharadudaktadabhi jahi raksasa parvatena ||

(She too who wanders like an owl at night-time, hiding her body in her guile and malice,

May she fall downward into endless caverns. May press-stones with loud ring destroy the Raksasas.

Spread out, ye Maruts, search among the people: seize ye and grind the Raksasas to pieces,

Who fly abroad, transformed to birds, at night-time, or sully and pollute our holy worship.

Hurl down from heaven thy bolt of stone, O Indra: sharpen it, Maghavan, made keen by Soma.

Forward, behind, and from above and under, smite down the Raksasas with thy rocky weapon.)

#  

# CHAPTER 1

YEAR 3 OF THE GREAT INFECTION

THE ARCTIC REGION

(KAMCHATKA PENINSULA, RUSSIAN FAR EAST)

It was the start of spring. The snow was melting. Katya could see the bright green grass and the pink bog rosemary flowers amid the gleaming patches of snow. His father walked swiftly, moving up the harsh, rocky terrain with ease. Katya was breathing hard as he clambered across the gravel and slush, trying to keep pace with his father. Katya was 15 years old. His father, Atuqtuaq, was a towering, powerfully built man wearing a wolf's head and fur coat, the symbol of a Nenek chieftain. The Neneks were a nomadic tribe that had herded reindeer for generations across the empty Siberian wilderness.

'Will they come?' Katya asked his father.

His father only grunted.

The scouts had been gone for over a year now. Katya wondered where they were. _Are they even alive?_

Smoky, a powerful black dog, ran alongside Katya. She used to follow him everywhere. She was supposedly a cross between a Samoyed husky and a Siberian wolf. Katya had found her when she was a puppy, cold and weak, close to death, abandoned on the outskirts of a coastal village during a harsh winter four years back.

_She is so big now_ , thought Katya looking at Smoky as she caught the scent of sable, a ferret-like animal that was common in the Taiga, and rushed off on its trail.

The coastal villages were all deserted now. The people had moved inland into the heart of Siberia fearing the rumours of the man eaters that would come across the sea from Alaska. Siberia was the last outpost of human civilization, supposedly. The thought sent a chill down Katya's spine. His father never spoke of it, nor did the guests living with the tribe. But everyone knew it would happen, sooner or later. Human beings were on the brink of extinction. The monsters had taken over the world. They always came. Even to the most remote corners of the world. No place was safe.

_The age of man is over. The age of the_ man eater _has begun._ Katya shook his head trying to clear his mind as he scrambled up the narrow path, between the thorny shrubs and wildflower bushes, to step onto a wide, open plain at the summit of the hill.

The view was spectacular. Behind him, Katya could see a wave of greenish white hills rolling along the horizon. A few steps in front of him was a sheer hundred-meter drop into the sea. His father took out an old, battered pair of binoculars from the birch bark knapsack he was wearing around his waist and began to carefully observe the sea.

No matter how many times he stood at the pinnacle of the hill, Katya still felt dwarfed by the incredible, harsh landscape around him. There was a time when he used to feel the gods whispering to him here. But that was long ago. His heart was too heavy to converse with the gods these days. The unending wait for the horror that was to come was slowly sapping him of his strength.

Katya looked at the sea without any real hope of catching a glimpse of the long-awaited sailboat. The scouts had been gone too long. It was unlikely they were coming back.

The ice that covered the sea during the winter had begun to melt. Blobs of ice floated about as far as the eye could see. The black-and-white pigeon guillemots flew in thousands above them. This was the nesting season and they were shrieking loudly looking for fish. Katya walked carefully to the edge of the cliff and looked down. He could see a large seal on an ice slab directly below and the misty spray of a group of orcas a mile from the shore.

Atuqtuaq lowered his pair of binoculars. His tough, weather-beaten face did not reveal any emotion. Katya looked at his father.

'They will come,' said his father, quietly. 'If not today, then tomorrow.'

Tuuq had gone on the dangerous journey across the sea to America with eight men of the tribe to bring back the news. They had to find out the truth. What were these man eaters that they had heard about? Were there any survivors left? All contact with other human beings had ceased for the tribe. They did not encounter other tribes or traders anymore on their annual journey north. The few isolated villages and small towns they passed by were all empty.

Since there could be no more trade with the coastal villages, the scouts were supposed to bring necessities back with them; fuel for the snowmobile, kerosene for the lamps, bullets for the guns and iron tools.

Atuqtuaq unstrapped a long coil of rope from his shoulders and threw it to Katya. On the side of the vertical cliff were hundreds of guillemot eggs on narrow ledges and crevices. The eggs would be a welcome change from the reindeer meat and fish the tribe had lived on during the long winter months.

It was a dangerous job and Katya knew that he had to concentrate completely. Katya fastened one end of the rope around himself. His father double checked the knots and then slowly lowered Katya down the cliff. Katya held onto the rock face and moved towards a ledge. The birds screeched as he drove them away, collecting the eggs in a birch basket strapped to his shoulders. It was exhausting work and by the time his basket was full, his arms and legs were aching badly. He finally signalled by double tugging the rope and his father slowly pulled him up again.

Katya sat on the cliff, drained. His father looked at the full basket of large eggs and nodded. Atuqtuaq didn't say anything but Katya knew his father was proud of him.

The moon was shining brightly. With the approach of spring, the weather had started to turn. There was the scent of blooming wildflowers in the night air. The sharp sound of owls hooting pierced the cacophonous drone made by insects. A large group sat in a circle around a bonfire. The camp was in a large clearing in the Taiga, next to a thawing river, surrounded by coniferous forests of pine, spruce, and larch.

The camp comprised of four large baloks and an outlying corral. The balok was a square hut-like structure made of reindeer skin and wood, which was then placed on spruce sled rollers. This made moving easy for the nomadic tribe. Inside a balok, there were beds, tables, and a heating stove. The reindeer skins helped provide insulation against the Arctic cold.

The camp dogs, 14 large huskies, and two pups had been tied to stakes driven on the ground. The temperate had climbed steadily over the week and the group sitting around the bonfire was cheerful. The guillemot eggs had been prepared in a large pan and everybody got generous portions.

Katya looked around the group thoughtfully as he chewed on a piece of dried reindeer meat. The women were telling the children stories of sea monsters, spirits, and strange animals. Katya's elder brother, Orinon, a pudgy 17-year-old boy, was gobbling up his fish soup without a care in the world. If anything happened to his father, Katya knew Orinon would have to lead the tribe. _Would he be able to do it?_ Katya knew the answer: _No._

Aunt Yukai was the eldest, almost 100 years old. Blind and frail, she was the shamanic medicine woman of the tribe. She was muttering prayers, her face turned towards the stars. Katya's eight-year-old sister, Upu, sat beside him stroking Smoky's head. Smoky was too wild to be tied up like the other dogs. She would howl and whine till she was unchained. She also made a poor sled dog. She had too much wolf-blood in her. She sometimes would disappear into the forest for days. But she was fiercely protective of Katya. She would dangerously snarl if anybody even raised their voices in his presence. 'Wolves are not dogs.' His mother would often chide Katya. 'You should never have brought her into the camp.'

'What did you see from the cliff?' asked Upu.

Katya ignored her. He was studying the man sitting opposite him.

The Professor had been a middle-aged college lecturer in Mumbai, living a quiet life, writing books and dealing with family responsibilities. But that was his previous life. Here in the Siberian wilderness, he had begun to think of himself as a warrior. He was preparing for battle. _But against whom? The_ man eaters _or the tribe?_ He had a small bowl in his hand and was painting mud and blood streaks across his face. He had gotten the blood by skinning an Arctic fox that had been caught in one of the outlying traps set up by the tribe. The Professor whispered urgently to three boys sitting around him. Though Vishal, Arjun, and Ameed were still only in their late teens, the boys were all athletic, big and strong. Katya realized that the wilderness suited them. Despite coming from hot and humid Mumbai they had adapted surprisingly well to the cold, harsh Siberian conditions. The Professor slid them the bowl and they too started painting their faces with blood. Katya knew something was wrong. _They do this in front of the whole tribe. Is it a message?_ The four of them had slowly become more and more dominant. They used to bully the children and make rude remarks to the women. They were always whispering and scheming. _They seem unhappy with a lot of things these days._

They had changed so much. The first time Katya had seen the college group, they had been starving and were on the brink of freezing to death. It had been two years ago. Their ship had sunk and they were the seven surviving members of a group of 53, stranded on the ice-covered desolate shore. The tribe had rescued them. The college group had become part of the tribe. They had learned to communicate in each other's language.

'What did you see from the cliff?' asked Upu again.

'Nothing,' said Katya. 'Just birds and seals.'

'No demons?' she asked in a whisper.

'There are no demons here, Upu.'

'Not yet,' she said, worriedly. 'But they will come. That's what Aunt Yukai says.'

Katya knew his little sister was troubled. 'You are going to be safe. Father will never let anything happen to you. And don't listen to Aunt Yukai. She once told me that when she was young she was eaten by a bear and then... she came out.'

'How? Did the bear vomit her out?' asked Upu.

Katya grinned. 'No, she came out from the other way.'

Upu laughed. 'I am going to tell this to the other children.'

Katya watched her scamper away. _What will happen to my family if the man eaters come?_

Katya was aware that the power dynamic had gradually changed after the scouts left for America. There were only two grown men in the tribe now, his father and Ukik, who was 24. Katya and his elder brother Orinon were still in their teens. The rest of the tribe members were women and children.

In the college group, he liked Kartik, Vishaka, and Pranita. They were friendly and kind and did all their camp work without complaints. He knew they still missed their homes and their families. He felt like he could see into their hearts. They had no malice in them.

Katya's mother, Arnaq, came and sat next to him, ruffling his hair. 'Do you want a story?' she asked.

'I'm not a child anymore, mother,' he said, annoyed.

His mother laughed and kissed him. 'Of course, you still are.'

Katya's face reddened. He instinctively looked at Pranita hoping that she had not seen his mother kiss him. But she was smiling at him. He looked away, feeling shameful. He was deeply in love with Pranita. He was always thinking of her. No matter what he was doing, whether it was herding the reindeer, setting forest traps or hunting seals, Pranita was always on his mind. He imagined her soft, slender hands; the way she would play with her brownish black hair and her habit of sticking her tongue out of her mouth when she concentrated.

They were good friends. He loved sitting next to her and talking to her. It was the most beautiful feeling in the world. But there was also the pain. There was Vishal. He glanced at Vishal who was proudly putting bloody smear marks on his face. Vishal was tall and handsome, with a chiselled face and broad muscular shoulders. He was the college captain of a game called cricket. Katya saw the college group sometimes play it. There was coldness in his eyes, a hint of cruelty. Katya disliked him.

Vishal was Pranita's boyfriend. Sometimes he would see them holding hands and kissing, and it would feel like he had been punched in the stomach. During those times he would be confused and amazed at how horrible he felt. And he would wish that she had never come into his life.

Katya got up. He had to find Orinon and then relieve his father and Ukik from the reindeer campsite. He looked at Pranita one last time and made his way to the edge of the camp where the sled dogs were tied.

The Neneks were nomadic reindeer herders. Katya's tribe had more than 100 reindeer. The animals needed careful tending. The tribe would stay in a location for only one or two weeks before moving the herd to fresh pastures. The reindeer would graze near the camp, eating the moss and lichen that grew under the snow. The tribe would travel north to the cold Arctic areas during the summers and south to the Taiga forests during the winters. Atuqtuaq and Ukik were camping with the reindeer in a large valley five miles away from the main campsite.

The sled raced along the forest undergrowth. The narrow runners were designed for travel on snow, boggy marshes, and even dry ground. Blood, a large one-eyed Siberian husky, was leading the pack of six dogs that pulled the sled. He had lost his eye fighting a brown bear that had strayed into the Nenek camp. Smoky ran alongside the sled. Katya kept a wary eye around him. There was very little moonlight filtering through the forest canopy. Tall pine trees rose all around them, enveloping the speeding sled in a dark embrace. Although the dogs were experienced enough to safely navigate their way through the melting snow and to warn them of any danger, whether animal or man, Katya was cautious. 'These are dangerous times,' his father had said.

'This is no way to live,' complained Orinon, slumped on the sled beside Katya. 'I have been talking to Kartik. He says that in his country there are shops called malls that are larger than ten of our campsites put together. He says that if you stand at one end of these shops you cannot even see the other end. Inside, there are thousands of types of food. Just take this thing they have, it's called chips. They fry potatoes in oil and it comes in hundreds of tastes!'

Katya nodded. 'I've heard of it. Pranita told me.'

Orinon smacked his lips. 'I want to go there.'

'But things are different there now,' said Katya.

Orinon shook his head somberly. 'Yes. If only Tuuq had come back from across the ocean we would know exactly what is happening in the world.'

'But he hasn't come back and that tells us something,' Katya muttered.

Orinon changed the subject. 'Are you going to get more eggs? They were delicious!'

'Maybe,' said Katya, feeling a little resentful. Orinon didn't seem to worry much about the future. _My brother only thinks_ about _food._

Orinon was a strange sight among the Siberian nomads. He was fat with a round, puffy face and small beady eyes. He was an anomaly among people living the hardy Arctic lifestyle. It was the result of too little work and too much food. But it made him popular in the coastal villages and among members of other tribes. Everyone wanted to see the 'fat Nenek'. Rubbing Orinon's belly and pulling his cheeks were supposed to bring good luck.

They left the thick pine forest and began to travel on a vast plain with small hills rising all around them. Katya felt better. He could see clearly in the bright moonlight and in the open land, it would be impossible for anything to sneak up on them. Katya smelled the reindeer herd long before he saw the flicker of a small fire.

Atuqtuaq and Ukik had already loaded their things on their sled and had even harnessed the dogs. They were waiting impatiently when Katya and Orinon arrived.

'Don't keep the fire on.' Atuqtuaq told them.

'But it's cold.' Orinon complained.

His father scowled at him. 'Do as I say.'

Ukik screeched at the Huskies and their sled sped off over the snow.

Orinon was glum. 'Wolves and bears stay away if we have a fire.'

Katya watched his father's sled disappearing into the darkness. 'It's not animals he's worrying about, brother.'

The brothers lay in the open near the reindeer. The animals were tame and never wandered too far from the main herd. The dogs had been unharnessed from the sled and they had settled down around Katya and Orinon. Katya looked at the stars shining brightly. He wondered who made them. _Are my ancestors really living there?_ He thought of how he used to lay with Pranita on the ice-cold ground to look at the stars. He had told her stories of the stars, of the gods and spirits, of the sea princesses, of the Kraken, of the first Neneks who now lived among the stars. But that had been more than a year ago when he was not in love. She had been his closest, and probably his only friend, but nothing more. Everything was quite complicated now.

The dogs pricked their ears hearing the distant howl of a wolf. Katya knew he had to make regular rounds between the reindeer herd throughout the night. Apart from bears and wolves, there was also the danger of wild reindeer tempting the tame ones to run off with them. Of course, Orinon would be of no help. He had already slept and was snoring lightly.

A large Eurasian eagle-owl flapped by close to Katya's face searching for rodents. Katya got up and whistled at Smoky and Blood. The night was cold and he tightened the thick reindeer fur coat around himself. Thick black clouds had now covered the sky. Katya hoped it would not rain. There was only a little moonlight seeping through the black curtain above him.

A thought crossed Katya's mind. _What if it comes tonight?_

Katya felt the cold hand of fear take hold of him. He licked his dry lips, nervously. He listened. Even though spring had come, the night was unnaturally silent.

Katya took a deep breath. He unsheathed the small dagger that he always carried with him and walked into the dark night, followed by Smoky and Blood.

If it comes, I'll fight it.

#  
# CHAPTER 2

Old Cambridge College in Bandra, Mumbai was considered one of the hardest and most expensive colleges to get into in India. The rigorous curriculum, the expansive extracurricular activities, the extensive social work programs and the focus on an all-round education made its students the best in the country. The college employed the best teachers and advisors.

The Spring Alaskan Expedition was a class for the students of OCS that happened for a month onboard a ship travelling to the Arctic. The subjects covered would be natural history, biology, and climate change. The college had chartered Queen Isabella, a small but luxurious passenger ship, for the class. There were 45 students and eight teachers onboard.

Pranita tossed and turned on her reindeer fur mat. It had been two years since that fateful day when she had stepped onto the ship. She had been so excited. She came from a wealthy business family and had travelled during the summer holidays to destinations all across Asia, Europe and America. But she had never visited the Arctic. Her worries had been so different back then; getting good marks, choosing the right Ivy League college for her Masters and dealing with teenage boyfriend issues. Now her main concern was trying to survive.

The memories of the horror just wouldn't go away. The more she tried to bury it, the more potent it became. It had been her first cruise and she remembered how she would stand on the deck during the sunsets at sea, strangely touched by the epic, unending stretch of the ocean all around her, watching the dolphins following the ship. She had felt so grateful for everything she had and was determined to make a difference in the world. And then it had started.

A few days into their journey, bizarre reports began to come of a possible pandemic that was spreading from Alaska. The ship was in the Gulf of Alaska when all communication from the mainland suddenly ceased. The last radio message from Anchorage was that an epidemic was exploding across the United States and it warned the ship to stay at sea. After that, all radio contact died out. The students were in a state of panic. They could not reach their families. Their high-speed satellite internet had broken down and cell phone service had stopped.

Mr Ravindra Mittal was a tenured professor from Oxford University. He had been working as an educational consultant with Old Cambridge College and the Spring Alaskan Expedition was his brainchild. He was a strict disciplinarian who expected nothing short of excellence from his students. When the crisis started, he immediately assumed leadership and helped guide the college group during the difficult days of the ship being anchored off the coast of Alaska, desperate for news from the outside world. He had comforted Pranita and her friends, and she was glad that the Professor was with them.

But he was no longer the man he once had been. Pranita thought of how much the Professor had changed. These days he looked at her lustfully, was always rude and acted like a bully. And now he had war-paint on him. Who in their right mind would smear blood on themselves? She had heard of a condition called piblokto or Arctic hysteria that affected Inuit societies where the person with the disease would behave irrationally and dangerously. It was a form of madness and Pranita wondered if the Professor suffered from it.

From the stranded ship the group had studied the coastline. But there was absolutely no one to be seen. All water traffic had stopped. The port had shut down. Even the road and highways were deserted. Where had everyone gone? The only movement they could see would be during the night when figures moved about in the dark. After a week, a few of the ship's crewmembers took a small boat into the harbour to investigate. They didn't return.

Fuel was running low. When the captain heard Russians on the radio, he knew that they were still operating sea traffic. The captain decided to make a dash for the Far Eastern Russian port city of Petropavlovsk hoping to refuel and get news.

Just two hours from their destination, all contact with the Russians died out. A terrible storm battered their ship. It was during the storm that the ship lost power and began to drift helplessly over the large Pacific waves. There were small icebergs near the Russian coast and repeated hits with them made the ship list dangerously. It had been the most terrifying experience of Pranita's life. Water was rapidly filling the lower decks. The ship was bouncing like a small toy on the massive waves, with furniture crashing back and forth, emergency sirens blaring and passengers screaming. With every wave, seawater would flood the decks. Pranita saw her friends being washed away into the raging sea.

The ship had lost half its crew when they left for the harbour in Alaska and the remaining members were not able to deploy all the lifeboats in time. Twenty-one people managed to get into two lifeboats. One of the lifeboats crashed on a rocky outcrop near the coast, killing everyone in it. Seven people in the other boat survived.

Pranita had crawled out of the lifeboat in a daze. She was on a frozen, deserted landscape in sub-zero temperature. The survivors, helpless, cold and wet, huddled together. There was no sign of any life around them. No one had the strength to secure the lifeboat, and thus it drifted out to sea with their food rations. The storm abated but strong winds continued. They were on the verge of dying.

As Pranita lay on the ice, she felt herself slowly drifting off to a painless sleep. That was when she saw the dark shape in the distance. It was coming closer. She could make out that it was a large wolf. Her life was not supposed to end like this, she had thought with a pang of regret. Tears started flowing uncontrollably. She shut her eyes tightly. She could smell the wolf as it came closer to her. The animal sniffed her. That was the last thing she remembered. Then it was just blackness.

It was only later that she understood. The animal was no wolf. It was a big black dog that had found them and had brought the tribe to the shore.

Smoky had saved their lives.

'D _o you see?'_

' _See what, Grandfather?'_

' _Do you see?'_

' _I... yes, Grandfather...'_

' _Do you see?'_

Katya woke with a start. Orinon was shaking him. He looked around himself, rubbing his eyes. He was back in the warmth of his balok. The evening sun was falling on his face through an opening. He and his brother had returned with the reindeer in the morning. He had corralled them, chopped wood for the tribe and set the forest traps. He was exhausted. He had only been asleep for a couple of hours before Orinon had awakened him.

'What?' Katya muttered grumpily.

'I have to show you something,' said Orinon.

Katya closed his eyes. 'I don't want to see it.'

'It's Pranita,' whispered Orinon.

Katya sat up on the mat. All sleep left him. 'What about her?'

Orinon winked and stealthily walked to the entrance of the balok. He peeped out. 'Follow me. But we must stay out of sight.'

Orinon led Katya along a narrow forest path towards the river. Despite Katya's entreaties, he would not say anything more about where they were going. Katya realized that Smoky was not with them. There was a sense of protection when the big dog was around. She must have wandered off into the forest as usual.

They reached the edge of the pine forest. Orinon crouched down and ran to a small mud bank that gently sloped down to the river. Katya followed him curiously. He heard excited shrieks coming from the river. The mud bank was screened from the river by thick bilberry bushes. Orinon parted the bushes and the two boys peered out.

Katya gulped. He saw Pranita and Vishal playing in the shallow river water. They were both naked. Orinon grinned at him. 'Look at her body.'

Katya felt a sudden revulsion at what he was doing. He knew that it was wrong. He wanted to look away but he couldn't. Pranita waded out of the water, shivering. Katya's heart was racing. He stared open-mouthed at her lithe figure, her small shapely breasts, and her long legs. Vishal ran after her and half-dragged, half-carried her back into the water. They were both laughing. Katya was caught in a vortex of competing emotions. He felt an unexpected explosion of anger towards her, but he was also miserable and even more in love with her.

He was so engrossed that when he heard the light footstep immediately behind him, he knew that he had let someone sneak up to him. He spun around, cursing his stupidity. _These were dangerous times._

It was the Professor. The man was glaring at Katya and Orinon.

'What are you doing here?' he asked suspiciously.

'Nothing,' said Orinon nervously.

They heard laughter from the river.

'Spying, are we?' asked the Professor with clenched teeth.

Orinon stuttered. 'I... No...'

The Professor looked through the bushes. His mouth opened in surprise. 'Pranita?'

Katya studied the Professor's face. He saw something he had never seen before in the man's eyes. What was it? Wonder? Excitement? And then Katya knew. It was lust.

The Professor turned to the boys. 'How dare you?'

'We just...' began Orinon when the Professor suddenly punched him. Orinon fell to the ground. 'Please...' he mumbled shocked as the Professor moved towards him with clenched hands.

'I'm going to teach you a lesson,' the Professor hissed.

Katya stepped between them, instinctively pulling his dagger out.

The Professor hesitated. Katya looked at him steadily, like he would look at a prey during his hunting, half-crouched, ready to spring for the throat. The Professor glowered at him but then broke eye contact. Katya knew he was safe. The Professor took a deep breath and stepped back.

'Let's go,' said Katya offering a hand to Orinon, who got up and brushed his clothes.

They walked away from the mud bank. At the edge of the forest, Katya looked back. The Professor was lying behind the bushes, hiding and observing the river.

Orinon rubbed his face, grimacing in pain. Katya made a ball of snow and handed it to Orinon. 'Put the snow on your face. It's better not to leave a mark.'

'What do you mean?' asked Orinon surprised.

Katya shrugged. 'Or else there might be trouble.'

'That's good.' Orinon snarled. 'Father will teach that monster a lesson.'

'We are not strong, brother. There is just Father and Ukik. Till Tuuq and the men come back we have to be careful.'

Orinon grunted. 'So we do nothing?'

'Only for a little while, please...'

'Fine, brother.' Orinon sighed. 'But mark my words. He will attack us again.'

'He won't,' said Katya, trying to convince himself. But in his heart, he knew what Orinon said was true. Things were about to get a lot worse.

For the next few days, Katya and Orinon stayed away from the Professor. Katya tried to avoid Pranita too. He was guilty of having spied on her and was too ashamed to look her in the eyes. He was also angry at her although he knew he had no right to be. She had been nothing but kind to him. Vishal had been her boyfriend even before Katya had met her.

He was setting a forest trap when he saw Vishal and Arjun walking back to camp along the narrow track from the river. They had blood and mud smears on their faces and upon seeing him, they made their way through the dense undergrowth towards him.

Arjun smirked. 'How is it going, little savage boy?'

Katya ignored them, concentrating on the notch he was making on a tree stump that would support the deadfall trap.

'He's a moody one,' said Vishal.

Katya made sure that his back was not turned on them. He didn't trust them anymore. He had seen them bullying Vishaka and Kartik but so far they had left the tribe members mostly alone. That seemed to be changing.

'He is an ugly little monster, isn't he?' said Arjun.

'What do you want?' asked Katya.

'It's not what I want,' said Vishal. 'It's what you want.'

Katya continued working. 'Find someone else to trouble. You know that I'm not afraid of you.'

'Don't count on that. We are bigger than you.' Arjun hissed.

Katya viewed him, contemptuously. 'But not stronger, nor faster. I can see the fear in your eyes when you look at me.'

Arjun spat on the ground. 'That's because you have a knife in your hand.'

Katya stood up straight. He dropped the knife he was using to make the trap. He took a step in Arjun's direction and looked into his eyes.

'No,' said Katya softy after a moment. 'It's not the knife.'

'I was saying that I know what you want,' said Vishal venomously.

'And what do I want?' asked Katya.

'Pranita.' Vishal whispered.

Katya was confused. 'No... I...' _How does he know?_ It was his secret. Nobody knew. Not even Pranita.

'Yes, you want her. I can see that. I know you were spying on us. The Professor told me. You watched her naked. And now you can't forget her beautiful body. You want to fuck her, don't you?'

'No, no...' Katya protested. 'It's not like that.' _Is that what it was all about? Do I want to sleep with her?_

'Well, you can never have her,' said Vishal smugly. 'And do you know why? It's because of the way you look. You are ugly. You have darkish skin, Mongoloid features. Your eyes are not fully round... it's like...' Vishal searched for the right words.

'The slit eyes of a snake,' said Arjun.

'Exactly. And look at your nose, it's stubbed,' Vishal continued, eyes gleaming with hate. 'Your lips are too big and you are too short. Now look at me, look at my features. I have perfect fair skin, just like her. I am a good looking guy and she is a good looking girl. That is why I fuck her. And she loves it! She just cannot get enough of it! Do you want to know what all I do to her?'

Katya looked down, studying his feet. All his fight was gone. A deep, powerful shame was building up inside him. _It is true. She is not meant for me. What was I thinking?_

Vishal was pleased to see the effect his words were having on Katya. He smirked. 'She will never go for someone like you. Now, she is a nice girl and she might talk to you but you are just too unattractive for her.'

Katya had never thought about the way he looked. He knew the tribe didn't have the facial features of the white Russians. His ancestors had migrated from Central Asia. All his life his mother had told him that he was a beautiful boy. _She was so wrong._

Tears started welling up in Katya's eyes.

Arjun chuckled. 'Aww, look at him crying like a little girl. Not so tough now, are we?'

Vishal and Arjun exchanged satisfied looks.

'You stay with your people,' said Vishal. 'And we'll stay with ours.'

They walked away towards the forest track. Katya sat down, leaning against a pine tree. He wiped his tears away. This had been the most humiliating experience of his life.

The Professor looked at the kaleidoscope. It was beautifully made with intricate, rhythmic Bedouin engravings and scrolling Arabic writing. It had been given to him by a student many years back and he had carried it with him ever since. He had kept it safely the last two years in Siberia as it was a relic of the past, a connection to all that he had once loved. It brought back a torrent of memories from his past life. But his past life had no meaning anymore. He was someone different now. _I am a warrior. I survive in the wild. I am a hunter and I am a killer. I drink the blood of my enemies and eat their flesh._ The kaleidoscope was of no significance to him anymore, which was why he was going to give it away.

The Professor was sitting on a fallen tree trunk in the campsite outside his balok observing the activities in the camp. It was midday. The men were with the reindeer. The women were cooking, washing clothes and cleaning. The children were playing various games with pine cones and small stones. If he was leading the tribe, things would be different, much more efficient. He would change these savages. He would better them. _Soon. Soon._

His eyes rested on Upu. The little girl was talking to her doll, a coarse figure made of dried leaves and wood pieces tied together, away from the other children. He studied her carefully. She would do.

Looking at her, he realized that he had begun to feel a familiar stirring deep inside. He had always liked children. He was aroused by them. Of course, he had not acted on his impulses all these years. Society deemed it wrong. He had been a man with a position and a family. The risk had been too great. But that was the old world. He was building a new world here in the wilderness. He would set new rules. _What if that is my true nature? Should I not be true to myself? What is right or wrong?_ The Greeks in their glory days used to think as he did. Only consent, not age, mattered in carnal relations. Pederasty, unfortunately, had been complicated by modern day morals. But he would rectify it. He would build a perfect society. The tribe would be the people to implement his ideas on. He had thought it all out. His grand social experiment was about to begin.

He stared at Upu. _Isn't she a sweet little thing?_ Her mother was nearby scrubbing the outsides of their balok with a brush made of raven wing feathers. He waited until Arnaq had gone inside and then whistled softly. Upu looked at him. He motioned her to come to him. She walked over to him with her doll, a little shy.

'Do you like gifts?' the Professor asked sweetly.

Upu nodded. He pulled out the kaleidoscope slowly from under his jacket. Her eyes widened as she stared at the beautiful object.

'Look inside,' he said, raising it towards the light.

Upu looked through one end. She saw a dazzling, brightly-coloured pattern inside. She was astonished. She had never seen anything like it in her life.

The Professor pulled the kaleidoscope away. 'Do you want this?' he asked her slyly.

'Yes, yes...' she said eagerly.

'I want something in return.'

'What?'

'The large knife your mother uses.'

Upu hesitated. 'But she will need it for her work.'

'I know that she has two knives. She won't miss it,' said the Professor sweetly.

Upu frowned. 'But why do you want the knife?'

The Professor forced a smile. 'Why do you want this toy?' _She is not as stupid as I thought._

'To play with it,' said Upu.

The Professor shrugged. 'And I want to play with the knife.'

He offered the kaleidoscope to her. She bit her lips, trying to make up her mind. 'And this has to be a secret. No one can know,' the Professor whispered.

Upu knew that she would have to steal the knife from her mother. She would be doing something wrong. She also sensed that it would be dangerous to give the Professor a knife. There was a certain strangeness, a darkness to the man. But the gleaming lights inside the toy were so, so beautiful.

Upu made up her mind. 'Okay,' she said. 'I will get you the knife.'

It was late at night when Katya came back to the camp. Everyone seemed to be asleep. He had been with the reindeer herd the whole day and was tired. He walked to a large vessel hung over a still smouldering fire. He poured out some warm reindeer soup into a pot. He cut strips from a frozen fish and added it to his stew. He ate looking at the glowing embers. Smoky had come back from her wanderings and greeted him by running around him and playfully nibbling at his leg.

He was hungry and he ate his soup hurriedly. His mother stepped out of the balok. She walked to where Katya was sitting.

'Why are you not sleeping?' asked Katya.

Arnaq set about rekindling the flame. 'Bad dream,' she said.

'About what?'

'I don't remember now.'

Katya threw a few bones to Smoky. Arnaq looked at him carefully. 'What is wrong?'

'Nothing,' said Katya quickly. Too quickly.

'What is wrong, Katya?' asked his mother.

Katya hesitated. 'Why don't we look like the other Russians?'

'Which other Russians?'

'The ones who live in the big cities.'

'Why are you asking me this?'

Katya shrugged. 'I was just thinking.'

'We came from mountains far south of these lands hundreds of years ago,' said Arnaq.

'I wish I didn't look like this.'

His mother looked at Katya sternly. 'What happened?'

Katya stared into the fire. He was too ashamed to even talk about it to his mother. He searched for the right words. 'Vishal told me I was ugly. He said a lot of horrible things about the way I look. Things I had never thought of before. I don't know why he hates me so much.'

'Oh child, don't you see? It's fairly obvious,' said his mother.

'What is? What did I ever do to him?' asked Katya gloomily.

'It's not what you did.'

He looked at his mother, puzzled. 'Then what?'

'It's the girl.'

Katya was surprised. 'Pranita?'

'She likes you.' His mother smiled at him. 'And he knows that.'

# HIGH FREQUENCY ACTIVE AURORAL RESEARCH PROGRAM (HAARP) RESEARCH STATION, ALASKA

PRIVATE & CONFIDENTIAL

VIA SECURE COMM LINE

TO: DEFENCE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECT AGENCY, U.S. AIR FORCE, U.S. NAVY (@ LIST CLASSIFIED)

FROM: DIRECTOR, SPECIAL OPERATIONS DIVISION

SUBJECT: EXPERIMENT DETAILS. FAILURE TO CONTROL INMATES. EMERGENCY HELP NEEDED.

The KG-D6 experiment is a success! We have conquered Death, the final frontier. But there have been certain unexpected consequences. The experiment is now sprawling dangerously out of control.

The first batch of federal death row prisoners all died when exposed to the KG-D61 virus. Their medical conditions were consistent with a rapidly degenerating viral form of the Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease.

A new lighter strain of the virus was developed, the KG-D62. The second batch of FDR prisoners was exposed to this strain and they died as well. But after their death they were... reborn. Despite their rotting flesh, the members of the second batch (named Artificial Species 2 or AS2) displayed basic characteristics of life: ability to move and eat. They exhibited extreme aggression. However, there was no activity in the AS2 cerebellum which resulted in slow, uncoordinated movements. They had no cognitive control as their frontal lobes did not function. They could not communicate with each other or think. Nor did they have any memory.

Then the KG-D63 was developed. The third batch of FDR prisoners was exposed to it and they too rose from the dead. The Artificial Species 3 or AS3 displayed some remarkable characteristics. They could learn. They could adapt. Though they did not remember anything of their previous lives, they had perfect memories of their new lives as AS3.

Something extremely strange was observed in the AS3. It seems that due to the pressure on their pituitary glands, there is a regeneration happening alongside the degeneration. The result of this is that the AS3 will grow up to seven feet in height, and become powerful and fast. Many of their behaviour characteristics were the same as that of the AS2 (uttering low guttural sounds, extreme aggression, desire to feed on raw, warm meat).

The most exciting case study was when seven AS3 were released among a group of 30 human prisoners. The AS3 controlled their killing and feeding instincts. Instead of randomly attacking everyone, they bit seven of the subjects to turn them into AS3 like themselves (the infection spreads through fluid-exchange), while killing and eating the rest of the 23 subjects. It is not yet clear if this is just a primitive form of the survival instinct and the evolution of a species, or if there is something more to this remarkable pattern in behaviour.

It has not yet been determined if they can think like human beings, but they have been observed to set traps, manipulate their world and learn from stimuli. The AS3 has a certain intelligence and cunning, and further display rabid predatory behaviour.

On Day 291 of the experiment, everything went wrong. The whole AS3 batch lay silent and motionless in their cells. We had subjected them to sub-zero temperatures and believed they had 'died' because of it. While transporting them to the crematorium to be burnt, they attacked. It had been a ruse. They had pretended to be dead. We were unprepared for the sudden, planned attack. We lost almost all the soldiers, scientists and support staff at the base.

Only a small group of us survived. We are hiding in the base. It has taken us three days to restore the power required to send this message. Most of the AS3 have escaped into the surrounding wilderness. A few are still hunting us.

The escaped AS3 must be eliminated. If even a single one is allowed to survive outside the laboratory, the existence of the human species could be in danger.

Some of the characteristics of the AS3 are: extreme strength, extreme aggression (especially to propagate their species), growth to seven feet in height, extraordinarily fast movements, ability to climb, they hibernate to conserve energy, they can survive for weeks without food intake, they can communicate among themselves (they can't or don't want to communicate with us), they usually form groups of 10, there are leaders in every AS3 grouping that plan and lead the attacks.

Please send us immediate help! We are hiding in the G6 bunker system.

093 – MN

PTB: 00: TH

ENCRYPTED

#  

# CHAPTER 3

#

The boats were made of seal and walrus skin. They were light and moved swiftly in the cold water. Katya and Ukik paddled the first boat. His father stood at the stern looking through his pair of binoculars, scanning the water around him. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining brightly and the glare of the ice was blinding. Katya inhaled the crisp sea breeze. It felt good to be out in the water. Of course, it would have been even better if the Professor and his group had stayed on land. Katya looked at the boat following them.

The Professor was eagerly searching for their prey. Vishal and Arjun were paddling while Ameed was lazily lying in the boat with his hand skimming over the water. Two boats would make the hunt easier and Atuqtuaq had given the Professor permission to join. Orinon had pleaded sick but everyone knew it was because he hated seeing blood, and the walrus hunt would be a very bloody affair.

Katya had been carefully navigating his way between the floating slabs of ice. They could easily crush the light boat if it got ensnared among the moving lumps. His father suddenly saw what he was looking for. He pointed it out silently to Katya. There was a misty cloud rising in the distance. Katya and Ukik paddled furiously. They were in pursuit of the walrus.

The Professor's boat sped up to keep pace with them. Atuqtuaq double checked the lines of the two harpoons, the ends of which were tied to large buoys. The walrus was a massive male, weighing almost 2000 pounds and was resting on an ice floe. It grunted, looking suspiciously at the boats coming towards it. Katya guided the boat in a large semi-circle trying to cut off any chance of the walrus escaping into the deep sea. His father motioned the other boat to drive the walrus towards him.

The walrus hauled off the ice floe into the water. Katya and Ukik paddled feverishly towards the walrus. Atuqtuaq waited until they had reached within a dozen feet of it. He then carefully aimed the harpoon and threw it powerfully at the walrus. The harpoon pierced its back. It swam desperately away from the boat, but the buoys attached to the harpoon prevented the walrus from diving. From the other boat, cheers went up.

The water turned red around the boats. Atuqtuaq readied his gun and waited to get the killing shot. The walrus surfaced, thrashing wildly and Atuqtuaq shot it in the head.

'Let it suffer,' spat out Arjun from the other boat.

Katya and Ukik exchanged a glance. Katya looked at the Professor's group. There was a maniacal glee in their eyes that disturbed Katya. They seemed to have greatly enjoyed the killing process.

The walrus was tied to the boats and it was pulled to the rocky beach. Pulling the massive walrus out of the water and onto the rocks was gruelling work. Smoky was on the shore and ran around the walrus, excited at smelling the blood.

The Professor's group was preparing to leave after the hunt. They had painted their faces with the blood of the walrus and looked exultant.

'My group also needs to have a gun,' said the Professor to Atuqtuaq.

Katya looked at the Professor surprised. _What is he planning?_

'One gun is enough for the hunt,' said Atuqtuaq.

'It's not fair,' said the Professor bitterly. 'Don't you trust us?'

Atuqtuaq was calm. 'Every bullet is valuable. We can hunt with one gun.'

'It's not just the hunting. There is also the matter of protection. My group will feel safer if we are allowed to keep a gun. We will only use it in the case of an emergency. I know there are two guns in the camp. You keep one. I keep one.'

Katya wondered how the Professor knew about the other gun they had. It was kept safely with other valuables in a large storage box in his mother's balok.

'No,' said his father firmly.

'You refuse my friendship constantly. You are a suspicious man,' the Professor muttered.

'I have nothing more to say.'

The Professor's group left, murmuring among themselves and giving Atuqtuaq dirty looks.

'He grows more forward every day,' said Ukik.

Atuqtuaq watched the Professor's group walking away and then turned to Katya. 'Get your mother. We need to skin and cut the walrus.'

Katya was about to return to the shore to skin the walrus with his mother and two other women when Upu ran up to him.

'We have trapped a sable on the south side snare. We have to take it out or the wolves will eat it,' she cried.

The trap was a long walk from the camp. Katya sighed. 'Don't you know how to work a trap?'

'No. You promised to teach me but you didn't.'

'How do you know a sable is trapped there?'

'I saw it.'

'You shouldn't go so far from camp, Upu. It's not safe,' said Katya.

'Blood was with me.'

'Still...'

He decided to get the sable first and then join his parents on the seashore to help them cut the walrus. 'Let's go. I'll teach you how to use a trap,' he told his sister.

They walked along the mossy forest track. Smoky and Blood followed them. Katya looked up at the tall, mighty pine trees. This part of the forest was old. Here the trees rose up to 150 feet. The trees were said to have magical powers and could supposedly heal the sick and wounded. Katya wondered if it was true.

'Mother said that these trees are 500 years old,' said Upu.

'Yes,' said Katya.

He suddenly stopped. The dogs were standing still, ears pricked and growling softly. He listened intently. He could hear what seemed like a distant rumbling. The dogs ran through the undergrowth cutting across small shrubs in the direction of the sound.

'Stay close to me,' he commanded his sister as he sprinted behind the dogs.

The sounds were growing louder. The dogs led him to a small hill which fell down to a large forest clearing. From the top of the hill, Katya and Upu looked down. There was the Professor, Vishal, Arjun, and Ameed. They stood in a circle, faces painted in blood, chanting: 'I am a warrior. I survive in the wild. I am a hunter and I am a killer. I drink the blood of my enemies and eat their flesh... I am a warrior. I survive in the wild. I am a hunter and I am a killer. I drink the blood of my enemies and eat their flesh...'

'Quiet,' Upu whispered to the growling dogs.

They hid in the brushwood and took in the scene. There was an effigy made of reindeer fur and branches. After the chanting, the group lifted their weapons and practised throwing it at the effigy. The weapons were makeshift spears, long pieces of birch wood, the ends of which had been sharpened to a point. The throws were powerful and on target. They could easily kill a man. _How long have they been_ practising _?_ _How did they make the spears?_ Katya saw a large knife in the Professor's hands. So that was how. He had stolen a knife from the tribe.

'This is not good,' he said anxiously. 'Let's go.'

He looked at Upu. She seemed to be upset and was nervously biting her lips.

'Don't worry,' he said. 'They can't do us any harm.'

Upu nodded. She followed Katya away from the hill. She was very apprehensive. _What have I done?_ She wondered if she should tell Katya. _No, he might scold me._ So this was why the Professor needed the knife. She said a silent prayer to the gods asking them to forgive her.

Katya told Upu to keep what they had seen a secret. First, he would talk to his father before spreading panic in the camp. He wondered what would be the tribe's response. Already, there were seeds of discord in the camp. _If we have to survive in the world of the man eaters, we have to learn to live together._

Katya went to the shore and helped with the cutting of the walrus. The meat was tied in bags made from its skin and transported back to the camp.

Atuqtuaq immediately left to be with the reindeer herd and came back only in the late evening when everyone had gathered around the fire and were having cooked walrus meat. Katya noticed that Upu was looking worried; she had hardly touched her food.

The Professor and his group were in an uproarious mood, talking loudly and chuckling. They seemed to be very pleased. Pranita was sitting next to Vishal, who had his arms around her waist.

Atuqtuaq stood up in front of the group and raised his hands, asking for silence. 'In a week, we will start our great journey for the Tundra,' he announced.

There was applause from the tribe. The start of this annual expedition north was an auspicious time. They had stored enough fish and seal meat for the long journey.

The Professor narrowed his eyes. 'No.'

There was a shocked silence. Atuqtuaq was the chieftain. His decision was final and never questioned. Katya looked at the Professor, confused. The journey to the north had been happening every year for as long as he could remember. How could this man, an outsider, object to it?

The Professor chewed on the walrus meat, enjoying the attention. 'Human beings are not meant to live a nomadic life. Progress happens when they settle down. This place has food. We should build a settlement here,' he said importantly.

Atuqtuaq studied the Professor carefully. 'There won't be food here after spring. The birds and seals will migrate away. The reindeer need to move to survive. Anyone from your group who wants to stay here is welcome. The tribe moves in a week.'

The Professor knew his group would have a hard time surviving without the rest of the tribe. 'I speak for the tribe. If I settle here, I want everyone to settle here,' he said.

'That is not going to happen,' said Atuqtuaq calmly.

'This is not a wise decision,' the Professor spat out maliciously.

Atuqtuaq was unmoved. 'We will do what our ancestors have done.'

The Professor glowered. 'It's foolish. I have better ideas for... our people.'

Atuqtuaq slowly walked to where the Professor was sitting. He hunkered down and brought his face inches away from the Professor's. Katya tensely looked at the two men glaring at each other, his fingers fidgeting with his sheathed dagger. Even though the Professor put on a brave, indifferent face, Katya could see that he was nervous.

Atuqtuaq was a big man who exuded power and confidence. He was fearless. Most of his life he had been a chief and had led the tribe through both good and bad times. It would take more than an upstart college teacher to intimidate him. At that moment, Katya suddenly realized how much he loved his father and how proud he was of him.

The Professor leaned back, cleared his throat and tried to think of something to say but no words came out.

'You have forgotten where you are,' said his father quietly. 'This is not your world. It never will be.'

Katya lay on his fur mat near the still blazing campfire looking at the stars. He hated sleeping inside the crowded baloks. He could sleep outside comfortably even in sub-zero temperatures. The dogs were unchained for the night and they ran about, playing and fighting.

He could not sleep. He kept thinking about the weapons. _What were they planning? What were they scheming?_ Probably the Professor's group was just getting ready for the man eaters. But in his heart, he knew that was unlikely. The Professor had something else in mind.

Katya got up and walked to the edge of the camp. Smoky lazily followed him. The moon was shining brightly. He looked at the undulating forests of pine trees stretching out into the distance. _Life was so simple before. The only enemy we had was the cold._

Katya noticed that a large stake that had been embedded into a stunted tree near him, to hang ropes in, had broken. He was fixing it when he heard soft footsteps behind him. Even without turning, he knew who it was. His heart started beating faster. He went on working, pretending to not notice.

'Why don't you talk to me anymore?' asked Pranita.

Katya looked at her. She was wearing a light dress. Her hair was flying in the strong evening breeze. _She looks so pretty._ Ever since he had seen her in the river, he had avoided her. Was it guilt? Was it anger? _I know she will never be mine._ And then there was everything Vishal had told him.

He forced a smile. 'Are you not cold?'

'Little bit,' said Pranita. 'So why are you not talking to me?'

'There is so much work,' said Katya.

She took a step forward and looked at his face. She ran her hand slowly on his cheeks. 'You have a little beard,' she grinned. ''You are no longer a boy.'

Katya laughed, rubbing his face. 'Good.'

Pranita looked back at the camp. 'Things are getting worse.'

'I know. I feel it,' said Katya.

'They trouble Vishaka and Kartik a lot,' she sighed.

Katya was concerned. 'What do they do?'

'Ask them to get things, like water and food, order them around. If they don't do it, the Professor gets very angry. Vishaka and Kartik are constantly bullied.'

'Maybe you could talk to...'

Pranita interrupted him. 'I'm not talking to the Professor! He's going to go crazy.'

'No, I meant... Vishal.' Katya wondered why it was so difficult for him to even say the name.

'I tried. We fight about it all the time.'

They sat on the ground, close together, their shoulders touching. Pranita took his hand. 'This place is so beautiful,' she said.

'It is,' said Katya, wondering if he should tell her he loved her. If there ever was a perfect time, this was it. They were holding hands, sitting in the moonlight and far away from everybody else. But what if she said no? It could all go wrong. _It could be the end of my friendship with her. What if Vishal was right about me?_

Smoky came, squeezed between them and tried to lick Pranita's face. She laughed. 'Stop!'

'She likes you,' said Katya.

'And I like her.'

'She knows you have a good heart.'

Pranita smiled, ruffling the big dog's furry coat. Smoky lay on her back, enjoying the massage.

'Are you going to get married to him?' asked Katya suddenly.

Pranita looked at him, surprised. 'I... no, no... I don't think so.'

'So it's not love?'

Pranita shook her head. 'No.'

'Why do you sleep together then?' he asked, a slight edge to his voice.

'I don't want to talk about it,' she said, looking uncomfortable.

'Sorry I asked,' said Katya getting up. 'It's late. I need to sleep.'

Pranita hesitated. 'I... I have lost everything, Katya. All my friends, my mom, my dad, my sister, my home... I don't even know if they are alive...' Pranita's voice broke. She took a deep breath, trying to find her strength. 'It's a comfort, I suppose.'

Katya played with a twig.

'And pleasure,' she added.

'But not happiness,' said Katya.

Pranita looked up at the stars. 'No, not happiness.'

#  

# CHAPTER 4

It was a scream that woke Katya up. He sat up on his mat, startled. It was early morning and the camp was just beginning to stir. Yellowish orange sunlight gently seeped through the heavy mist around him. Beside him, the campfire had died out. He wondered for a moment if the scream he heard was a dream. But the dogs were growling. And then he heard it again! It was a distant scream and it had come from a hillside near the camp.

Katya grabbed his dagger and ran towards the sound. It had seemed like a girl's voice. Was it Pranita? He cut through thorn bushes and cranberry shrubs, racing towards the sound. When he got to the hillside, he saw Vishaka standing perfectly still, looking at the ground. She was at the edge of the forest, on a narrow track that led to the river.

'What happened?' asked Katya breathlessly.

She pointed down at the track. There was a small patch of snow and on it was the clearly defined gigantic imprint of a man's bare foot. Around it was small drops of blood. Katya crouched down and studied the mark on the snow. Even though spring had come, it was still cold. Katya knew that no one would walk barefoot in the camp and certainly not this far. There was always the danger of frostbite setting in. The mark was larger than any he had seen in his life. Could it be a wanderer? Maybe someone lost? It was possible but highly unlikely. They had not seen other human beings for two years now. Of course, everyone knew man eaters walked barefoot.

'The monsters have come.' Vishaka whispered, clutching Katya's hand.

Behind him, others had started arriving at the scene. There was panic building up. Kartik started praying. A woman from the tribe was weeping quietly. The children were looking fearfully at the mark.

_Have the man eaters finally arrived?_ Katya looked at the forests and hills around him. _Where is it? Where is the creature?_ He walked around the footprint looking to see if he could figure out whether the creature was moving to or away from the camp. But there was nothing apart from the single mark.

Arnaq raised her voice. 'Let us go back to camp. We have to make sure everyone is safe.' Her authority calmed the group and they walked back, chattering nervously among themselves. Katya heard the questions around him. Who was it? Was it the man eater? Where was it? What would happen to them? Could they fight it? Were there more?

They checked if everyone was present in the camp. Everyone in the college group was there. Atuqtuaq and Ukik were with the reindeer and would be coming back any time now. Orinon was present. All the women were there and so were the children... all except Upu!

Katya felt terrified. _Please let nothing happen to my sister._

Arnaq looked amazed. 'But she was with me, sleeping inside the balok when I heard the scream. Where did she go?'

Katya whistled at Smoky. 'I am going to search for her,' he said anxiously.

'So am I,' said his mother.

'Let's organize search parties!' cried the Professor. 'Everyone check around the camp. See if you find anything. We are looking for the creature and the girl!'

Katya looked at the Professor's eagerness and felt a little guilty for doubting the man all along. _Maybe he is not a bad person. Was I wrong about him?_

Katya first checked to see if any of the dogs were missing. Blood wasn't there. He felt a little relieved. Upu used to take Blood along with her whenever she went into the forest or wandered far away from the camp. He knew the dog would protect her. But could it protect her from a man eater?

He walked through the forest, his dagger out. The morning mist made the landscape a blur. He couldn't see more than eight feet around him. He heard Ukik shrieking at his sled dogs in the distance. So his father had come. He felt reassured knowing that his father would also be searching for Upu. He remembered what he had told her: 'Father will never let anything happen to you.'

'Upu!' Katya shouted as he walked along the thick, grassy undergrowth. Despite the morning chill, Katya had rolled down the hood of his fur coat. He needed to be able to listen to the forest sounds. He studied the ground around him for any traces of her passage. He cursed the infernal mist. He couldn't see anything because of it. Upu could be lying injured a dozen feet from him and he wouldn't be able to see her.

The forest was silent. Smoky ran about sniffing the foliage around him. Katya had walked at least a mile from the camp. He knew that in a couple of hours the mist would start to dissipate and visibility would improve.

Where could she be? Mother had seen her in the morning when she heard Vishaka's screams. So she had been safe till then.

Katya heard the snap of a twig. He froze. There was someone or something near him. Smoky was a good hunting dog and she looked at Katya for instructions. He motioned her and she eagerly followed the scent. He noticed that he was downwind from the sound he had just heard, which meant that the thing near him could not smell him. He and Smoky slowly crept towards the sound. Smoky was whining softly with excitement. She guided Katya towards their target. But if it was the man eater, what was he to do? Fight the monster with a dagger? _Upu could be hurt. I have to save her. I have to fight the creature!_

In the mist, he saw a figure. It seemed to be leaning against a tree. He gulped. It was large and heavy, almost seven feet high. He approached closer and heard it grunt. Hearing the sound, Katya suddenly realized what it was. The mist parted a little and he was looking straight at a brown bear clawing a pine tree. The bear saw Smoky and growled ferociously.

'Back, Smoky!' Katya ordered.

But Smoky was too excited to back away. She ran around the bear, wolf-like, biting it and then leaping away before it could strike her with its huge paws.

'Back!' Katya screamed at her. He picked up the pine cones lying around him and started throwing it furiously at the bear. The repeated hits of the cones made the bear turn and make a lumbering run into the mist. Smoky wanted to chase after it but Katya grabbed her by the neck.

'No!' he commanded. She whined and protested. Then she quietened down, sniffing the air.

'Can't you obey?' Katya scolded Smoky.

He sat down to catch his breath. The forest was silent again. There was something that had been bothering him for a while. It had been constantly hammering away at the back of his mind. He had suppressed it in his desperation to find his sister. But now, sitting in the forest, he suddenly realized what it was. It was the behaviour of the dogs. Smoky was with him when he had seen the foot imprint. She had sniffed it but was completely uninterested in it. If she had detected a strange smell, she would have been off immediately, trying to track it. Instead, she had lolled about indifferently near the footprint.

The other dogs too had given no warning signs. Usually, if a wild animal came anywhere near the camp, the dogs would go into a barking frenzy. These were hunting dogs that had been bred to stalk and protect. And yet, they had all been indifferent and quiet.

There was also a problem with the foot imprint. It was too perfect. Every toe could be seen clearly depicted. It didn't seem natural. And then there was the blood. It looked like someone had carefully sprinkled blood drops over the footmark. The whole thing seemed deliberate.

Katya suddenly stood up, thoughts racing in his mind. That was it! It was no man eater, it was made by somebody. But why? Was it to distract the camp and... perhaps hurt Upu? Whatever the plan was, it had nothing to do with any monster. The enemy was not outside but within the tribe. He had been looking in the wrong direction. It all made sense to him now. 'Can you see?' his grandfather used to ask Katya when he was little. 'Do you understand, child?'

Katya looked at the mist around him. 'Yes, Grandfather,' he said to his memories. 'I can see.'

He knew there was only one person who was capable of feigning a footmark to implement some sort of dastardly scheme.

He had to find the Professor.

#  

# CHAPTER 5

Everything had gone exactly as he had planned. The Professor stood near the river ford, which was the designated meeting point, watching the morning sun break out over the distant hills. Today, he would become the leader of the tribe. He had been waiting for this day for a long, long time. He saw the boys running towards him. Vishal, Arjun, and Ameed splashed across the shallow river and reached the Professor.

'He is searching along the river bank. He should be passing by this place soon,' said Arjun breathlessly.

'Is he alone?' asked the Professor.

'Yes,' said Vishal.

The Professor rubbed his hands eagerly. 'And has he got his gun?'

'No, it's with the women in the camp,' said Arjun.

'Excellent, excellent,' the Professor grinned. 'The time has come to act. Let's get the weapons.'

They walked swiftly through the forest towards their training ground in the large clearing. Atuqtuaq would die today. They had practised throwing their spears over and over again. They would walk up to Atuqtuaq and attack him suddenly with the spears. He might be surprised at seeing them with the spears, and maybe even a little wary, but he wouldn't anticipate what the group was about to do to him. Upu's disappearance had been a godsend. The Professor wondered where the silly girl had wandered off to. But thanks to her disappearance, the whole camp had taken the footprint threat seriously and when Atuqtuaq would die, no one would question the cause of his death. Everyone would believe it was the man eater.

'I am a warrior,' said the Professor loudly.

The three boys joined in the chant. '... I survive in the wild. I am a hunter and I am a killer. I drink the blood of my enemies and eat their flesh.'

The Professor thought about last night's incident, the way he had been humiliated by Atuqtuaq. Now he was about to get his revenge. He imagined what was about to happen with relish: the spears piercing the chieftain, the cries of pain, the desperate look in his eyes and finally, the feeling of warm blood on his hands when he, the Professor, the great warrior himself, would cut Atuqtuaq's throat with a knife.

The Professor chortled. _This is life. This is_ really _living._ He roughly patted Arjun's back, thrilled. As they came close to the clearing, the Professor noticed the rising column of smoke. He was surprised.

The group approached the clearing cautiously. It was quiet and they could not see any movement. The spears and the knife were hidden in a small open pit covered over by the brushwood. As he stepped into the clearing, to his great horror, the Professor realized that the smoke was rising from the pit. He ran to the pit, furious. The wooden spears were burning. He looked around desperately trying to find something to kill the fire. Not finding anything, he started kicking at the flames. But it was too late. The spears were gone.

'There is no point,' said Ameed, pulling him back.

The Professor looked at his weapons, despondently. The spears had all turned to greyish black slabs of ash. The Professor couldn't believe it. 'How did this happen?' he whispered hoarsely.

'And where is the knife?' asked Arjun, taking a small branch and searching around the slowly dying flames.

'The knife has disappeared,' said Ameed, amazed.

'Someone did this,' said Vishal slowly. 'This means the tribe knew what we were planning.'

The Professor shook his head. 'Impossible. If they knew they wouldn't have fallen for our footprint trick. Everyone was in a state of panic in the camp.'

'Maybe it's not the tribe,' said Vishal.

The four of them looked around at the surrounding forest. The looming trees stood in the mist and silently watched them. There was an eerie silence. They could hear their own breathing.

'Maybe,' said Arjun trying to control the tremor in his voice. 'Maybe there are others.'

_Where is my daughter?_ Arnaq tried to control her rising panic. She was circling towards the river, inspecting the ground for tracks when she heard the cooee. It was Orinon signalling that something had happened. She wondered if the man eater had entered their camp. She was a strong, hardy Nenek woman determined to fight till death if needed, to protect her family. When she hurried into camp, she saw Upu standing innocently, her hands behind her back, talking to the other tribe members.

Arnaq ran to her and hugged her daughter tightly. 'Where were you?' she cried.

'I just went for a walk,' said Upu.

Arnaq was too relieved to scold her. 'Thank the gods you are safe.'

'Blood was with me.'

Arnaq held Upu firmly by the shoulders and looked at her intently. 'Listen to me carefully. You are not a little girl anymore. Things are not like before when you could go anywhere you wanted. Now there are dangers. Do you understand?'

Upu nodded.

'Tell me you understand,' Arnaq demanded.

'I understand,' said Upu.

Arnaq took a deep breath and kissed her. 'You had me so worried.'

'I am sorry.'

'Where did you go? I searched everywhere.'

'Into the forest.'

Arnaq ruffled her daughter's hair. 'What is that smell?'

'What smell?' asked Upu, looking concerned.

'Have you been near a fire?' asked her mother curiously. 'Why do you smell of smoke?'

Upu didn't say anything.

That afternoon, the tribe decided to bring the reindeer back to the main camp. After seeing the footprint, Atuqtuaq had decided that they would pack up and start for the north the very next day. Watches were organized to patrol the periphery of the camp, all day and all night.

Katya and Ukik walked around the reindeer herd, guiding the animals towards the camp. Upu had come with them and followed along on a dog sled. Her mother knew that she would be safe with Katya and Ukik, especially since Ukik was carrying the second gun the tribe had, slung over his shoulders.

Katya walked to the dog sled. 'So where did you really go today?' he asked Upu.

'For a walk,' she said.

'Why?'

'Because I wanted to.'

'Upu, I know something is going on. What is it?'

Upu bit her lips. 'It's a secret.'

'I won't tell anyone,' Katya promised.

'I went to burn the weapons,' she said hesitantly.

Katya clasped his head. 'That was dangerous! What if the Professor had seen you?'

'It had to be done. When I heard about the footprint, I knew that vile man was up to some mischief.'

Everything made sense to Katya now. So that was why the Professor had not implemented whatever horrific plan he had in mind. His weapons were gone. Katya looked at Upu amazed. 'You are far wiser than your years.'

Upu shook her head sadly. 'No, he fooled me. He made me steal a knife for him.'

'So that's how he got the knife.'

'I am sorry,' said Upu.

Katya ruffled her hair affectionately. 'But you learned from your mistake. You are wise and brave. What happened to the knife?'

'I put it back with mother's things.'

'We have to tell Father,' said Katya thoughtfully.

Upu glared at him. 'You promised you wouldn't tell anyone!'

'I'll tell him that the footprint was fake and that the Professor is very dangerous. I won't say anything about you.'

Upu nodded. Something struck her suddenly. 'They wanted to kill someone,' she said softly. 'That's what this was all about.'

Katya knew she was right. He could not bring himself to say it. It seemed too horrifying to even talk about. The target most likely would have been his father. He felt a fury building up inside him. _One day I'll make them pay in blood for this._

'What happened to the Professor?' asked Upu. 'He was a good man when we first met him.'

'Madness. That's what happened,' said Katya bitterly. 'This land does that to weak people.'

Upu looked at her brother carefully. 'When one of our dogs goes mad we have to kill it to stop it from harming others.'

'Yes,' said Katya quietly. 'Sometimes that's the only way.'

#  

# CHAPTER 6

After bringing the reindeer herd back to camp, Katya and Ukik corralled them hastily and put up net fences. The animals didn't like being confined in close proximity to each other and grunted discontentedly. Katya then had to lasso the big male reindeer that would be harnessed together to pull the sleds and baloks. He walked between the animals and decided on the ones that would do the pulling. Lassoing the powerful beasts was a tough, dangerous job. The bulls could hurt Katya with their big antlers if they were not carefully handled.

After a dozen animals had been separated from the herd, Katya went to the seashore where his father had gone to safeguard their two large boats during the tribe's absence. The boats were light and Atuqtuaq had pulled it away from the water and placed them in a cavern that cut into the rocky cliff near the sea.

Katya and his father ran their hands over the surface of the boats, checking for tears. There were a few cuts and small holes that had to be covered up by the rubbing of melted walrus fat over the damaged area.

Atuqtuaq stood by the seashore, a gun slung across his shoulders, scanning the sea with his pair of old binoculars, one last time. Katya walked to him and observed him, feeling a little sad. _He still hopes the scouts will come back._

Katya knew it was time to talk to his father. 'Father, the footprint was not real,' he said.

His father didn't say anything.

Katya waited for a moment. _Is he just going to ignore me?_ 'Father, the footprint was not real,' he said again, raising his voice a little.

Atuqtuaq didn't look away from the binoculars. 'No?' he asked quietly.

'It was the Professor,' said Katya. 'He was planning something. I don't know exactly what but...'

His father continued to scan the water. 'I doubt that.'

'You have to believe me. I have seen him make weapons and...'

Atuqtuaq finally looked at his son. 'Katya, you are wrong.'

Katya was angry. _Will he never take me seriously? Is he blind to what is happening around him?_ 'And how do you know?' Katya spat out

Atuqtuaq pointed at the sea. 'Because there is the man eater.'

Katya stared at the black blob that was lying on an ice floe. It was at quite a distance and looked like a seal. His father handed him the pair of binoculars. Katya looked through it and gulped in shock.

He could see it clearly. It was no seal. It was lying on the ice, on its stomach, with his face at an awkward angle pointed at the shore. It was naked and at many places the skin had torn away, revealing muscles and fat. He could see the yellowish-white cheekbones in a mouth that had half rotten away, exposing the gums and the large fang-like teeth. Something black and oily was dripping from its mouth. It had hair stuck to its forehead in mats of clotted blood. Katya realized with horror that the current was bringing the creature closer and closer to the shore. _But maybe it is dead._

The eyes opened. It was blood red. The man eater stood up slowly, trying to balance itself on the bobbling ice piece. Nothing had prepared Katya for the size of the thing. It was a giant, at least seven feet tall. Katya looked at it astounded, unable to move or speak.

The thing looked around itself and suddenly looked straight at Katya. It growled. _It has seen us._ Katya lowered the pair of binoculars, his hands trembling. He could see it clearly with his naked eyes now. The thing was eyeing Katya and his father as it snarled, and moved about excitedly.

Katya took a few steps back. 'Let's go, father!' he shouted.

'Go where?' asked his father who was looking intently at the creature.

Katya was flabbergasted. 'It's coming towards us. It's going to kill us!'

'If we don't fight it here, we'll have to fight it in the camp,' said his father.

The thing suddenly bent down on the ice floe and started to paddle furiously towards the shore. It roared loudly, desperate to reach them.

Atuqtuaq offered the gun to Katya. 'I have three bullets with me. Shoot it in the head.'

'I... I... can't,' Katya stammered, confused.

His father was calm. 'Katya, one day you'll have to lead the tribe. You cannot be afraid.'

'Father, shoot it... please. I can't. I just can't.' Katya begged. This was a nightmare. There was no way he could take a careful shot at the thing. He could hardly look at the monster. Somewhere deep down a voice told him he was a coward. But he didn't care. 'Please father, shoot it!'

Atuqtuaq was grim. 'It's just another hunt, son. Sooner or later we all die. We can't choose our fate but we can decide how we meet it. Look at the danger squarely in the face.'

Katya took the gun. His whole body was shaking. The creature stood up again and seemed to be calculating how to reach them faster. Katya aimed at it and fired immediately. The bullet grazed its elbow. It roared furiously and began to crouch and move about. Somehow it seemed to know it had to avoid staying still when facing a gun.

Katya loaded the second bullet with trembling hands. The creature had started jumping from ice floe to ice floe, coming closer and closer. It moved with astonishing speed, sometimes running, sometimes crawling.

Katya took the second shot. This time he completely missed it. The thing was moving too fast for him to aim properly.

'It wants to kill you. It wants to kill everyone you love, your mother, your brother, your little sister...'

Katya took a deep breath. There was one bullet left. He had to find his courage. He had to take an unhurried calm shot or else... He quitted his mind as his grandfather had taught him. He studied the movements of the thing.

Katya realized that the closer the thing got, the better his shot would be. It was a grotesque sight. The huge creature was in a state of frenzied rage, desperate to reach them. Katya waited with his finger on the trigger. _I am not afraid of you._

The thing reached the shore a dozen feet away from where Katya stood. A putrid smell enveloped Katya. The thing leapt for him and Katya fired the last bullet.

The head of the creature shattered into bones and pieces of brains. It fell down motionless at Katya's feet, its blood enveloping his shoes. Katya staggered back and sat on the ground slowly. All his strength had left him. He stared at the horrifying sight of the dead man eater lying in front of him.

Atuqtuaq sat down next to him and put his arm around Katya's shoulders. Katya was surprised. His father was not an openly affectionate man.

His father stared at the motionless creature. 'You'll make a good leader, Katya,' he said. 'I know that when death comes for me, I can go with a smile.'

Atuqtuaq dropped the man eater's half-destroyed head in the middle of the camp. 'Finally, they have started coming,' he said loudly. 'We have to be vigilant.'

Everyone gathered around the grisly sight. There were hushed whispers and softly muttered prayers. But Atuqtuaq knew that an enemy that could be seen, no matter how terrifying, had far less power over the mind than the unknown monster of the imagination.

'Did you... did you kill it?' asked Vishal hoarsely, unable to take his eyes off the man eater's head.

Atuqtuaq shook his head. 'No, Katya did.'

Everyone looked at Katya, impressed.

'The body is lying near the shore,' said Atuqtuaq. 'Everyone should see it before we leave, even the children. Know what you are fighting against. These are large, strong creatures but they can be killed!'

Katya walked away from the crowd. He walked to the edge of the camp and looked at the distant snowcapped mountains. He wanted to get away from all the people and just think. Something had changed in him after shooting the man eater. He wasn't quite sure what.

He understood that the menace had become real, now. There really were these dangerous creatures and they had finally started coming to Katya's land. What would tomorrow be like? Will the tribe have to live with this ever-present danger for the rest of their lives? Katya sighed. The uncertainty was disheartening.

'Hey!' said Pranita behind him. He looked at her a little surprised.

She gave him a quick kiss on his cheek. 'Are you okay?' she asked.

Katya nodded. 'I think so. It's just... I feel different. I don't know why.'

'It seems obvious,' said Pranita. 'You grew up.'

They were standing close to each other. He could feel her breath. She looked at his lips for a second and then caught herself. She cleared her throat.

'See you at dinner,' she said a little awkwardly.

'Yes...' said Katya quickly, turning red.

He watched her walk away. A wolf howled in the distance. Katya took a deep breath and smiled. It wasn't such a bad day after all.

# THE WHITE HOUSE

#

# WASHINGTON

PRIVATE & CONFIDENTIAL

TO: XXXXXXX, SPECIAL ACTIVITIES DIVISION, CIA (@ LIST CLASSIFIED)

FROM: THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

SUBJECT: OPERATION LIBERTY

Dear XXXXXXX,

In light of our inability to control the recent viral pandemic, it has been decided to proceed with OPERATION LIBERTY.

I understand your personal reservations about this particular course of action. This is not an easy decision to make but if America has to maintain its position in the world, stay competitive and continue to be a force of peace and stability in the new world order that will emerge after this outbreak, we must ensure that it is not only us but the whole world that grapples with this problem. We need to have a level playing field. The KG-D63 has to be spread across the globe.

I am fully confident that under your leadership the Navy SEAL Unit Z will successfully accomplish this mission.

God Bless America.

00 – 10

BGP: 2K4

ENCRYPTED

#  

# CHAPTER 7

The caravan moved north. The reindeer, harnessed together in lines of two, lugged the baloks and the sleds slowly forward towards the Arctic. Katya had to constantly move up and down the reindeer line to prevent the long, interconnected ropes from entangling. The dogs followed the caravan. The members of the tribe sat on the sleds.

The journey was slow but steady. Since the encounter with the man eater, there was an omnipresent sense of danger in the group. So far, the man eaters had only been a rumour; stories from distant lands. But now, they had finally arrived in the remote Russian Far East – the place where the Neneks called home.

The main reindeer herd was being moved north along with the caravan. Even though the thick, rich grasses of the Taiga had started to become sparse, the hardy animals could feed on the lichen and moss that grew under the permafrost. Fires were lit and watches kept throughout the night. Since the tribe had only a dozen bullets left, Atuqtuaq had decided to make spears for protection.

The thick pine and spruce forests began to recede as the caravan inched closer to the plains of the Tundra. The forests were now thin, the trees shorter. Even though it was the middle of spring, glistening white patches of snow still littered the greenish-brown landscape.

The thick rollers under the baloks were made of wood from specially selected spruce trees. They could be moved through both snow and dry ground with ease. It was Katya's responsibility to keep an eye on any cracks that developed on the rollers. The fissures would have to be immediately dealt with, by attaching small, supporting pieces of wood to the rollers. If a roller broke in the Tundra or the far Arctic region, the tribe would have no trees around to make a replacement from.

Atuqtuaq had made this journey every year, all his life. He knew the contours of the land like the back of his hand. He knew the best places for the reindeer to graze, the ideal campsites, the places to find fresh water and abundant game. Atuqtuaq had taught Katya to navigate across the vast region by studying the stars.

Katya's mind was occupied when Atuqtuaq halted the caravan for the night. He would have to sleep in the balok with the college group. His father wanted him to keep an eye on the Professor. Katya was not looking forward to it at all. He would not be able to sleep knowing that his enemies were close by, waiting for the right moment to possibly attack.

The camp was set up on the leeward side of a large hill with open scrublands spreading out next to it. Seal meat soup was served and the group ate quietly. The constant vigil from a man eater attack was taking a toll on the group. Even the Professor looked subdued and morose. There were no more stories and jokes around the campfire. It was just a long silence broken by the occasional barking of the dogs.

Katya looked at the vast blackness enveloping them, beyond the small fires that had been lit around the camp. There was danger all around him. The fires provided comfort but Katya knew that soon the treeless plains would begin and there would be no wood to make fires.

The darkness would only grow.

The moonlight filtered in from the translucent window sheet of the balok. Katya tried to sleep but it was useless. He didn't trust the people around him. The Professor's group was resentful at having to share what they considered their private space with one of the tribe members. But Atuqtuaq had been firm and had dismissed the Professor's protestations. Of course, there was an excuse for Katya staying inside the college group's balok. Mosquitos. The tribe had begun to encounter thick swarms of the bloodsucking insects. One of the reasons reindeer naturally migrated in this region to the colder Arctic areas of the north during the summers was to avoid these insects. It was impossible to sit outside if there was no breeze.

Even in the balok, the door flaps of which were kept fastened tightly, there were mosquitos droning all around. Katya had assisted Arnaq and Aunt Yukai in preparing an oily black liquid from the heating of birch bark which was applied on the hands and face to help repel the mosquitos.

Mats made of reindeer fur were scattered inside the balok. Katya was lying in a corner. Next to him were Kartik and Vishaka, both of whom were sleeping soundly. And beside them were the Professor and Vishal.

Vishal sat up and looked at Katya. 'He is here to spy,' Vishal whispered.

'Of course, he is,' said the Professor quietly.

They were both staring at him in the dim light. Katya pretended to be asleep. His arm was placed over his forehead, shading his eyes. They couldn't see that his eyes were open.

_Will they attack me?_ Katya felt his waist for the reassuring touch of his sheathed dagger. He realized with a shock that he had left it near the campfire. He was unarmed and his dogs were not around to protect him.

He could see Pranita's figure in the dark at the other end of the balok. He wished he was lying next to her. He could have talked to her, seen her smile and maybe, touched her hands. Somehow, he knew that Vishal would not attack him if Pranita was near. He had noticed that Vishal behaved like two different people. When he was with the Professor, he was rude, sneaky and dangerous. With Pranita, he was the opposite. He was polite and well-behaved.

'Keep the sheet off,' whispered the Professor. 'I want to see clearly.'

'Okay,' said Vishal quietly.

Katya's heart started beating faster. He saw Vishal slowly standing up in the dark. So they were going to actually try and harm him. Katya lay perfectly still. _It is happening._

Katya knew that he would have to time his move perfectly. It was likely that Vishal had a weapon. He would have to block Vishal's attack and then hit him on the throat. Katya waited, hardly daring to breathe. Vishal moved towards him. Katya was tense, his hands clenched, anxiously waiting for the attack.

And then something strange happened. Vishal undressed. Thoughts started swirling around Katya's mind. _Is it to keep his clothes from getting bloody? Or is he going to try to_ ... Katya gulped at the horrifying thought. He decided he would kill Vishal when he came closer. And then he would kill the Professor too.

But Vishal didn't walk towards Katya. He went to the other side of the room. Katya was surprised. And then he realized what was happening. He felt a knot tightening around his heart. This was worse than if Vishal had tried to attack him.

Vishal went to Pranita's mat and lay down next to her, sliding inside her blankets. Katya could see him kissing her, on her cheeks and on her neck. She stirred in her sleep. Katya felt like he couldn't breathe. Vishal pulled the blankets away and climbed on top of Pranita, undressing her. _So this is what the Professor wanted to see._ Katya felt absolute repulsion for Vishal.

He could hear light moans as their bodies moved in the darkness. Katya closed his eyes tightly and clasped his arms around his ears, shutting off all sound.

He did not know how long he lay like that, but when he opened his eyes and ears again, everything was quiet in the balok. Vishal had gone back to his mat. The Professor was snoring. Katya couldn't stay there anymore. He got up and walked out of the balok. He lay in the open, looking at the stars. There was a strong breeze that kept the mosquitos away. The fresh air and the warmth of the still-glowing campfire embers made him feel a little better. But thoughts of Pranita and Vishal swirled around in his mind. He was angry and heartbroken. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so bad.

Katya needed a distraction. So he thought about the man eater he had shot – the way it moved, the way it attacked, the size, speed and power of it. He thought of ways of fighting it. The last image in his mind before he fell asleep was the man eater's hollow, blood-red eyes.

The Professor sat outside the balok entrance with his weapon. _It's ironical_ , thought the Professor wryly, looking at the sharp, strong spear in his hand. _I put so much effort into secretly making weapons but_ finally, _it's my enemy who gifts me one._ It was early morning and the reindeer were being harnessed for the day's journey. The camp was a beehive of activity. The women were packing up the pots and pans. Ukik and Katya were readying the sleds. Orinon was feeding the dogs.

The Professor was glum. He knew that the risk of a man eater attack had increased. The creatures were finally arriving in Far Eastern Russia. Instead of settling down and building a protective, fortified enclave to fight off the man eaters, the tribe wanted to continue their journey north, living the nomadic lifestyle. They would be sitting targets in the unknown, open territory they were traversing.

There was only one thing to do if he wanted to survive. He would have to become the leader of the tribe. He knew that he couldn't mount a direct attack on Atuqtuaq anymore. The chieftain was always careful these days. The tribe members moved about in groups of two or three, armed and on the lookout for danger. He had missed his opportunity in the Taiga when his weapons had been mysteriously destroyed.

Katya walked to the Professor's balok and began to run his hands across the sled rollers, looking for cracks. The Professor scowled at him. He hated Katya. The boy was far too intelligent. It was like the little monster could see into his heart and know his exact motives. And he was always talking to Pranita. The girl seemed to like him. Pranita was a little older than the Professor would have ideally wished for, but he was becoming increasingly obsessed with her. _I have to make do with what I have._ Last night, he had enjoyed watching her make love to Vishal. The Professor licked his lips. _Soon, she will be mine._

As the Professor watched Katya walk away after checking the sled, he got an idea. The rollers! That was the answer to his conundrum. What he needed was some sort of diversion. That would be the best situation to make the attack on Atuqtuaq.

The Professor looked at the sun and estimated that there was still half an hour before the caravan would start moving. He sat casually next to the roller of his balok and used his spear to slowly grind away at the ropes that attached the roller to the sled. If he could cut through and weaken the thick knot, the tension on the roller would increase enough to make it crack. The tribe would then have to send out search parties to find the right spruce tree. The big, strong spruce trees were becoming rarer now, as they moved north. After finding a suitable tree they would then have to cut it, make a new roller, haul it back to camp and in the middle of it all, he would hopefully get his chance to kill Atuqtuaq.

In the afternoon the column halted. They were near a swiftly flowing river. The group had lunch, which consisted of reindeer milk and strips of fish with salt. Atuqtuaq waited for Katya and Orinon, who were driving the reindeer herd behind the caravan, to catch up with them. It was a bright, sunny day and the long night that was to come seemed far away. Snowcapped mountains rose up in the distance. The land around them was a sea of violet and yellow because of the blooming wildflowers. The college group lay on the grass, sunning themselves in the meadows by the riverbank. The children were playing while the dogs waddled around in the shallows of the river trying to catch fish.

'You need to go up the river,' Atuqtuaq told Katya and Orinon when they arrived. 'There is a ford five miles away. It's close to a deserted village...'

'Pevyansk. I know the place,' said Katya.

'Tell me if it's safe to use the ford. I want to be sure that the village is empty,' said Atuqtuaq.

'Can Ukik come with us?' asked Orinon, looking worried.

'He has to stay here to protect the group in case of an attack. As do I.'

Katya was thoughtful. 'What if there are people in the village?'

'Everyone left two years back. There won't be people there,' his father answered.

Orinon chewed his nails. 'What if it's not... not... safe?'

'Then we have to go down south along the river and search for a crossing. It's going to be a far longer route.'

'If the village looks empty, should we search it for tools and guns?' asked Katya.

Orinon looked at Katya, amazed. Why would his brother want to do such a stupid thing?

'No, don't. Just watch from a distance,' said Atuqtuaq. 'If it looks safe, we'll make a quick crossing across the ford. We have to stay away from the villages. After all, from the stories I have heard it is people who end up as man eaters.'

#  

# CHAPTER 8

The dog sled raced across the boggy scrubland. Katya decided to cut through the forest rather than take the open plains next to the river. The forest canopy was thin and the afternoon sun warmed his face. Blood was leading the dog sled, whining with excitement. _He senses the impending danger_ , thought Katya.

Smoky ran behind them, occasionally disappearing from the track, going off to investigate the forest scents. Orinon sat nervously next to Katya, nibbling on the dried fish strips that his mother had packed for them in a cloth bag.

'We should have just gone south looking for a crossing,' said Orinon. 'What's the point of risking the ford?'

Katya shrugged. 'The reindeer are already being troubled by the mosquitos. If we stay too long in these parts, some will die. We have to get north soon.'

The Tundra region had a lot of wetlands which were the breeding grounds for large mosquitos. During spring and summer, the insects would hatch and dense, black swarms would engulf everything in their path.

As they got closer to the ford, Katya became wary. He slowed the sled and kept a careful lookout around him. He stopped the sled at a good distance from the ford.

Orinon wasn't happy. 'Are we going on foot?'

'It's safer.'

'And what if we have to run?'

Katya slung the gun their father had given them across his shoulders. 'We won't have to run.'

Orinon sighed. 'I hope you know what you are doing, brother.'

'The sled dogs might make a noise and give our position away,' said Katya. 'We can't take them too close to the village.'

'So we have to tie them up?' asked Orinon.

'Yes. We'll only take Smoky and Blood with us.'

'They won't be able to fight if something comes.'

'They'll be safe. We are the ones who'll be in danger.'

Katya tied the dogs onto a thick tree trunk. The dogs whined as Katya and Orinon left them.

'We'll be back,' Orinon called out to the dogs.

They trudged through the swampy ground. Katya had the rifle ready. Blood and Smoky ran beside them, ears pricked, sniffing the light breeze for any strange scents. The trees of the forest were thinning out into a scrubland. In the distance, almost a hundred feet away, was the village. Katya and Orinon crouched down, whistling lightly at the dogs to stop. Katya took out his father's pair of binoculars and studied the village.

Like most villages in this part of Russia, Pevyansk had a bakery, a dairy, a stable and a Lenin statue in the centre of the village. Katya couldn't see any movement. The place looked deserted. The small gardens outside the wood huts were overgrown with creepers and bushes.

The ford was within a stone's throw of the southern tip of the village. Katya realized that the only way to make a safe crossing was to search the village and make sure that there were no man eaters hiding inside. But first, he would wait and watch. Patiently.

Katya gave the gun to Orinon and made himself comfortable on the hard ground. He settled down to observe the village. 'Make sure no one creeps up on us,' he said.

'Fine,' Orinon mumbled, looking around uneasily.

The warm sun was on his back and after almost an hour of watching carefully through the binoculars, Katya started feeling drowsy.

'There is no one in the village,' said Orinon finally. 'How long are we going to watch?'

'It seems empty,' Katya agreed.

He was just about to put away the binoculars when he thought he saw a hint of movement near one of the small houses. He studied the house carefully. The main door and windows were open. An empty cart lay outside. It looked unoccupied like the other huts in the village. _Was it just my imagination?_

Maybe his eyes were playing tricks under the strain of concentrating for so long. Katya gave the binoculars to Orinon. 'Look at the last house near the river. Do you see anything?'

Orinon looked at the house for a full minute. 'Nothing,' he mumbled.

Katya was thoughtful. 'I might have seen something near that house.'

'Really? What did you see?' asked Orinon.

'I am not sure.'

Orinon lowered the binoculars. 'Let's go then. It's not safe.'

'Maybe it was nothing,' said Katya. 'Maybe it was only a small animal.'

Orinon's eyes were wide with apprehension. 'Or maybe it was a man eater,' he said.

Katya frowned. 'We need to be sure.'

'How?'

'There is only one way to find out. There is a large patch of snow around that hut. We have to check it for tracks.'

Orinon looked at him dumbfounded. 'Go into the village?'

Katya nodded. 'I'll go into the village with Smoky. You stay here and keep looking through the binoculars. If you see a man eater in the village, cooee and I'll run out.'

'It's too dangerous,' Orinon protested.

Katya looked at him determined. 'It has to be done, brother. I have a gun, I'll be safe.'

Orinon reluctantly nodded. Katya got up, brushed his clothes and set off for the village. The vantage point from where he had observed the village was on higher ground. As Katya walked slowly towards the village, he realized that the scrub vegetation that comprised of tall grasses - herbs and bushes - posed an unanticipated problem. If a man eater crouched down, it could easily hide between the bushes and could kill him with a single leap. He did not know if man eaters were clever enough to do something like that. The one he had seen was too aggressive to stalk. A thought crossed his mind. _Maybe they are like humans. There could be clever ones and not so clever ones._ Katya kept a careful watch on Smoky. The dog would hear or smell danger much before he did.

Katya slowly cut through the bushes, rifle cocked and ready. All around him was a possible danger. He walked on tiptoe, not making any sound. Although Smoky was a large dog, she had the instincts of a wolf and could move through the forest absolutely silently. Every few seconds she would look at Katya for instructions. They had been on so many hunts together that a simple nod from Katya would tell her whether to stop, move or attack. _But we are not the hunters now. We are the hunted._

He had approached to within a few feet of the first of the village huts. Smoky stopped and started whining lightly. She had caught a scent. The scrubland had given way to short grass. Katya was standing in the open. He looked around him carefully. The village was uninhabited. There were signs of disrepair everywhere; a hut's roof had fallen in, there was moss growing on walls that blackened the wood, the gardens were unkempt and overgrown with weeds. The skeletal remains of a large animal, a horse or a cow, lay nearby.

Katya realized that it was eerily still around him. There were no bird calls; he couldn't hear any insects or even the rustling of leaves. Katya decided to circle towards the hut where he had seen the movement. He had taken a few steps forward when Smoky started growling lightly. She wasn't coming any closer to the village.

'Come on!' Katya harshly whispered to her, annoyed.

Smoky ran to him, grabbed his leg lightly and started tugging him away from the village. Katya looked at her surprised. She was behaving strangely. She ran around him in circles, snarling at him. _She wants us to leave._

Katya had the rifle pointed in front of him, ready to shoot. He decided to study the patches of snow. If there were tracks on it, he would know. He walked into the village slowly. The huts with their open doors made good hiding places. He would have to be careful. Smoky didn't follow Katya into the village. She stayed away, growling restlessly. Katya walked along the path between the huts. He stopped. He suddenly had a strange feeling of being watched. He looked around him but could see no one. He had learned a long time ago to trust his instincts. And now as he stood studying the huts around him, he realized that it had been a bad idea to come into the village.

He knew that Smoky had caught the scent of a man eater. What else could it be? She was a brave dog, eager to fight wolves and bears. She would not behave the way she did if the danger had been an animal or a man. So why did he still walk inside? What was he trying to prove to himself? Was it that he had the courage to face the monsters?

There was a large patch of snow near him and he slowly walked towards it, looking watchfully around him, listening intently. He looked at the snow and gulped. There were tracks. The snow was crisscrossed with human footprints. He knew it was recent. Whoever had moved across it had done so within the last few hours. There were huts all around him. The thing could be hiding anywhere.

But the footprints were small, no bigger than a child's. He felt a sense of relief. The man eater he had seen was massive, almost seven feet tall. It had huge feet. So this couldn't be a man eater.

A pebble suddenly fell a small distance away. Katya looked up startled, his hand on the trigger. He slowly walked forward to investigate. Someone had thrown the pebble! Was he being warned? Or being scared off? Maybe it was a child after all. But what was a child doing in the village alone? Was the child even alone?

Katya needed answers. As he picked up the pebble and examined it in his hand, another one fell nearby. The child, if it was a child, was guiding him somewhere. He walked to the second pebble and waited. A third hit the Lenin statue at the village centre, twenty feet from where he stood. As he moved towards the statue, he saw a slight movement from the corner of his eye. He swung towards it and caught a glimpse of someone disappearing into the stable to his left. Katya took a deep breath and lowered his gun. It was no man eater. It had been a small girl wearing a light, muddy frock. She was no taller than Katya.

'Come out,' said Katya. 'I won't harm you.'

There was no response from the girl. A pebble fell outside the stable door. Katya inched forward. He held his gun down. He didn't want to scare the girl by pointing it at her. The stable was a large, high-ceilinged building. With every step he took towards the building, he started to feel more and more uneasy.

'Come out,' he called again. 'I am here to help you.'

There was no response from the girl. _Does she think it's a game?_

Katya stood at the entrance of the stable, letting his eyes adjust to the dark. The only light coming into the stable was from where he stood. He could see the outline of empty box stalls on both sides of the entrance. The far end of the stable was too dark for him to see. Katya wondered what to do. Going inside would be dangerous but he knew who he was dealing with. It was only a small girl.

A pebble fell with a sharp crack at the far end of the stable. Katya took a deep breath and stepped inside. A putrid smell instantly enveloped him. He had smelled it before at the seashore when he had shot the man eater. He raised his rifle. He began to walk slowly forward towards where the pebble had fallen. As he passed the box stalls, one by one, on both sides, he kept expecting to see the girl.

He had walked to almost the other end of the stable. A few more steps and he would reach the pebble. There was something very wrong about this. This was the perfect trap. He had been lured inside a dark place where he could be attacked from any direction. Katya knew that if he had not caught a glimpse of the girl, he would not have come this far.

The smell was overpowering now. He realized it had gotten stronger. There must be an animal carcass nearby. Or it could be something more sinister. Could man eaters think? Could they be keeping the girl as bait, maybe? If so, he had to save the girl. Katya scrutinized the black space beyond the box stalls where the last pebble had fallen. It was a large area which was presumably used for keeping feed. It was too dark to see whether the girl was standing there. _She has to be there. Where else can she go?_ There were no openings of any kind inside the stable. She could not go anywhere else unless she passed by him and went out through the entrance.

He stepped away from the box stalls into the dark space. He looked around him and realized with surprise that the girl was not there. The smell, however, was stronger than ever. Katya couldn't breathe. He looked down at the pebble near his feet. Whatever was about to happen would happen now. He hesitated. He somehow knew that the girl was waiting for him to pick up the pebble. But how could the girl have disappeared?

He felt an inexplicable sense of danger closing in on him. His heart told him he was about to be attacked. But how? The stable was empty. The girl had disappeared.

Unless...

Katya suddenly pointed his rifle towards the ceiling. As he looked up, the girl leapt down from a wooden beam directly above him. In the split second, before the girl landed on him, Katya knew that it was a man eater. He could see the rotting flesh, the hollow eyes, and gaping mouth. Katya fired.

The shot hit the creature's shoulder and deflected it away from him. The thing fell with a thud next to him. The recoil of the heavy rifle fired at an awkward angle pushed Katya back against the wall. There was no time to reload. He dropped the rifle and pulled out his dagger. The thing was bleeding from the shoulder. But it was not dead. It roared furiously and sprang towards him, trying to bite his throat. Katya slashed at it and stepped to the side. The knife opened a large cut across the thing's face. Flesh and skin hung down in strips. It turned enraged and jumped at Katya again. Katya grabbed the thing's hand, trying to land a killing blow on its head with his knife. But the thing was extraordinarily strong and pushed him away with tremendous power.

Katya went hurtling back, tripped on a rucksack and fell down. He looked up. The thing was preparing for what could be the killing leap. Katya knew he would not be able to fight it off, lying on the floor. He made the decision in an instant. He threw the dagger with all his power at the thing's throat.

He missed the throat and hit the collarbone. The thing stumbled back at the force of the blow. The dagger had pierced it deep. But it roared again. Katya clambered quickly to his feet. Now he was unarmed. The rifle was lying too far away and the creature had recovered.

Katya clenched his hands. _If I am going to die, I will die_ fighting _._

'Come on!' Katya screamed at the thing and lunged at it, pummeling it with blows. It growled and jumped away, climbing the wall like a lizard. It crawled along the ceiling directly above Katya and leapt down.

It fell on Katya. They stumbled onto the mud floor. It was on top of Katya, desperate to bite into him. It thrashed about furiously as Katya held its throat to keep it from getting close. Blood, fat, flesh and skin from the creature was falling on Katya's face. The rotten odour of decaying flesh swamped him. He tried to keep the thing's mouth away with all his strength but it was slowly closing in on his throat.

The thing's jaws clicked repeatedly desperate to taste blood, inches from Katya's face. It suddenly pulled back and cleverly grabbed both of Katya's hands. Katya was now helpless. He couldn't keep the mouth away. _This is it_ , thought Katya. _I am going to die._

As the thing was about to bite, a shadow sprang at it, smashing it away from Katya. Smoky tore into the creature's throat, shaking it powerfully. The thing roared trying to fight off the dog. A fountain of blood and flesh fell around Smoky as she bit furiously into the thing's throat and decapitated it.

The creature lay lifeless. Smoky ran around it snarling, waiting to see if it would move again.

Katya sat up, panting. _Today is not the day I die._

Smoky nuzzled him, covering him in the thing's blood. He hugged her. 'So you came,' he said softly.

Katya got up, removed his knife from the man eater's body, picked up the gun and stepped into the sunshine outside the stable.

He closed his eyes, feeling the warmth of the sun on his face. He started laughing loudly. Smoky looked at him puzzled.

He was not afraid anymore.

#  

# CHAPTER 9

It was late evening when the caravan made the crossing. Katya had painstakingly searched the whole village. He had found no signs of other man eaters.

Two miles from the ford, the tribe made camp in a pine forest. The trees here were much smaller than the ones in the Taiga. The campfires were lit and the women started preparing the evening meal.

Katya had told the group about the man eater he had fought off in the village. Atuqtuaq was livid at Katya for going into the village despite his strict instruction against it. But everyone listened with fascination to Katya's story of how the man eater had tried to lure him into the stable.

Katya's watch was on the south side of the camp. He sat near a fire with Ukik and Pranita. All three of them had their spears ready. The moon was shining brightly and they could see clearly far into the distance. They were at the edge of the forest and facing a swampy land with no vegetation except for patches of short grass. They felt safe. No man eater could sneak up on them. They would see it at least a mile away.

Pranita played with a blade of grass, thoughtful. 'So can they think?' she asked Katya.

'Yes, but not like us,' he answered.

Ukik shook his head. 'And yet, these things are far more intelligent than animals. Throwing the stones to lead you shows that they can plan.'

'We can't fight them with spears,' said Katya softly.

Pranita was surprised. 'But you did it with a knife.'

'It was just a child and yet, it was far stronger than me. We won't have much of a chance against a fully grown one. And, they only die when their head is smashed.'

'We'll see what happens, I guess,' said Pranita.

Ukik was puzzled. 'So did two man eaters... get together... and have that child?'

Katya and Pranita burst out laughing.

'I think it was a child who got the disease and then it turned into a man eater,' said Pranita.

'If they can think, why can't they have a child?' Ukik protested.

'Well, because they are dead,' said Katya. 'Their bodies are decaying.'

Ukik scoffed. 'The one thing they are not... is dead.'

'What exactly are they?' asked Pranita.

Katya shrugged. 'I don't know.'

Ukik grabbed his spear. 'I have to unharness the reindeer. Keep a careful watch.'

They watched Ukik walking away. They sat silently for a while.

Pranita pointed at the sky. 'What is that star?'

'That's the water demon,' said Katya looking up.

'I miss the stories, you know.'

Katya smiled sadly. 'Things are different now. Stories are for happier times.'

'Maybe they will remind us of better times,' said Pranita.

Katya nodded. 'Maybe.'

Pranita looked at the embers flying in the air. 'I'm glad you're sleeping with us now. It's safer.'

'No, I'll be sleeping outside from tonight.'

'Oh, really?'

'I am too used to the open.'

'It's not safe, Katya.'

'It's safe with the dogs around.'

Orinon called them for the evening meal. Pranita got up and pulled Katya to his feet playfully. They walked to the main campfire to have their reindeer soup.

The night passed uneventfully. It was early morning and the camp was being packed up for the day's journey. Orinon had the north side watch with Vishal and Arjun. The three of them were standing on a small hill in the pine forest near the camp, holding their spears. The higher ground made for a good vantage point and they were able to see far out into the distance.

There was no mist and visibility was good. The chill in the air made Orinon's teeth chatter.

'You look like a pig,' said Vishal suddenly.

Orinon knew it was best to ignore Vishal. _If I say anything back it will only make him angry._

Arjun grinned. 'Pigs should be on all fours, no?'

Vishal laughed. 'Yes, they should.'

Orinon looked at them warily. _What are they going to make me do?_

'Get down on the ground,' Vishal commanded.

Orinon licked his lips nervously. 'Please... I...'

'Now!' shouted Arjun.

Orinon put his spear down meekly and got on all fours.

'Now, move,' cried Vishal.

Orinon crawled on the ground. Vishal leapt onto his back and pinched his ears. 'Faster, piggy! Faster!'

Arjun howled playfully and gave Orinon a kick on his backside. Orinon tried to move faster.

Vishal and Arjun were crying with laughter when Katya walked out of the forest. He had been sent to bring the three of them back to camp. He looked astounded at the scene in front of him. Seeing Katya, Vishal got off Orinon's back and looked at him contemptuously. Arjun stopped laughing and scowled. Orinon's face was flushed red with embarrassment.

Katya was furious. _How dare they treat my brother this way!_ Katya moved fast. Dropping his spear, he lunged at Vishal, grabbing him by the throat and smashing his elbow into Vishal's startled face. The blow stunned Vishal and he fell down clutching his face.

Arjun attacked Katya with the spear. He repeatedly tried to stab Katya. Katya dodged the thrusts realizing that Arjun was going for the kill. The spear would easily pierce him if Arjun managed to get a blow on target. Katya rolled over and picked up his own spear. When Arjun attacked him next, he parried the blow and using the blunt end of his spear, he smashed Arjun on his shoulders. Arjun fell down screaming in pain. Katya walked to him and kicked the spear away from his hand.

Arjun clenched his injured shoulder. 'Please... stop...' he stammered.

'No,' said Katya. With a slow, well-aimed punch, he broke Arjun's nose.

There was an outcry in the camp. The whole group had gathered around Katya. Aunt Yukai was cleaning the blood from Arjun's broken nose and applying a herbal paste. Pranita sat next to Vishal on the ground, running her hands through his hair. He had a black eye and a swollen face.

The Professor was seething. 'The boy needs to be punished,' he screamed.

'They were troubling Orinon,' Katya snapped.

'Did we hurt him?' Vishal spat out bitterly. 'Look at him. He is perfectly fine!'

'Did they mistreat you?' Atuqtuaq asked Orinon.

Orinon looked down on the ground, red-faced. He was too embarrassed to admit that he was bullied. He cleared his throat. 'No,' he said quietly. 'We were just playing.'

Katya stared at his brother, shocked. 'But...'

Atuqtuaq looked straight at Katya. 'You disappoint me.'

Katya didn't know what to say. 'I...'

'He needs to be punished,' said the Professor furiously.

'And he will be,' said Atuqtuaq.

Katya looked at his father, perplexed. His father didn't understand. His father didn't see. _They are dangerous. They have to be controlled. They should know that we will strike back if they try anything. Don't you see that?_

'From today you will stay with the reindeer herd,' said Atuqtuaq. 'Alone. Until I let you come back to camp.'

'Not alone,' Arnaq beseeched, worried for her son.

Atuqtuaq was unmoved. 'He is the only one among us who has killed man eaters. He will survive.'

Vishal and Arjun were unhappy. 'That's no punishment,' said Vishal angrily. 'He is with the reindeer most of the time anyway.'

'Shut up, Vishal,' said the Professor coldly. 'The punishment is sufficient.'

Vishal and Arjun looked at the Professor surprised but did not complain.

Katya looked around the group. The Professor looked satisfied. Pranita was glaring at him. He had never seen her look at him like that before. _She hates me_ , he thought with a sinking heart. No one said anything. No one protested. Orinon had lied. He felt betrayed by the tribe. _And these are the people I risk my life for every day._

He walked out of the gathered circle to the dog sled. _They want me out of the camp. So be it._

Katya stayed with the reindeer. He moved the herd north following the tracks of the caravan. He would stay awake at nights guarding the reindeer against bears and wolves. He had five sled dogs with him and also Smoky and Blood.

In the beginning, he was too angry to miss human companionship but as the days passed, he started thinking more and more of the tribe members. Ukik would visit him every two days with food and news. There were no signs of any man eaters.

Katya wondered if the Professor was still scheming. After Upu burnt his weapons he hadn't done anything much. He usually looked subdued and demoralized these days. Katya was surprised that the Professor had not asked for more punitive measures against him. He seemed satisfied with Katya being with the reindeers, which if he thought about it, wasn't really much of a punishment.

Katya spent his time training. He strung together dried pieces of wood and made a seven-foot effigy of a man eater. He practised fighting it with his spear. He knew that a dozen bullets the tribe had would run out in no time at all and then, it would have to be hand to hand combat.

A week had passed since he left camp. Katya sat in the dark surrounded by the reindeer. He did not want to attract any attention with a campfire. He had found a rich pasture for the reindeer on a hillside. The land gently fell from where he was sitting onto a marshy scrubland that stretched as far as the eye could see. He could see the main camp in the distance with campfires lit all around it. The fires provided comfort and protection to the group but it also attracted attention. Katya looked at it troubled. The fires were large enough to be clearly seen till the horizon.

He missed Pranita. He wondered what she was doing now. Probably having her soup. Or maybe in the balok snuggling with Vishal. He remembered the way she had comforted Vishal, stroking his hair gently after Katya had fought him. She had been so tender and caring. Katya sighed. Vishal was the luckiest guy in the world. _Will she ever forgive me? Will we talk to each other again? Is the friendship over?_ He tried to put the thoughts out of his mind. Thinking of her only made him sad.

The dogs were curled up near him. They had been burrowing into the hard ground to make a soft, warm depression to sleep in. Katya knew that even though they were dozing, the slightest sound or smell would awaken them.

_The Professor will not change._ Katya remembered seeing the Professor's satisfied face when he had left the camp. The man was obviously planning something and Katya leaving the tribe would work in his favour. His father had been right when he had told the Professor how the land would never be his. Katya understood the meaning behind the words. The Professor and his group would never live in peace in this land. They were slowly becoming monsters. They were losing their humanity. A form of madness was slowly possessing them. And it was happening just when the danger from the man eaters had become real.

Smoky sat up; ears pricked and sniffed the air. Near her, Blood got to his feet and started growling. They were both looking at a small hill nearby. Katya stood up. He had good eyes and the moonlight was strong enough to let him see all the way to the top of the hill. There were no trees or shrubs on the hill. He looked carefully for any figure or silhouette, but there was nothing. The other dogs stirred but then went back to sleep. Katya knew that Smoky and Blood had caught a momentary scent. But of what?

A light breeze was blowing down the hill. Whatever it was, it was on the other side of the hill. Katya knew he had to investigate. If it was an animal, he would drive it away. But what if it was a man eater? The guns were in the main camp and he only had his spear and knife. Katya didn't want to think about it. _I'll have to fight it. What else?_

'Come on,' he whispered to the dogs. Smoky and Blood followed him as he walked to the hill with his spear in his hand. He wished his father had given him the gun.

He walked up the hill quietly, looking around him carefully. There were patches of snow and he stopped often to study it for any tracks. As he got close to the hilltop, he softly patted his legs. The dogs obediently stayed close to his heels. Katya looked at them. They were getting increasingly agitated. They had caught a scent. Whatever it was, it was close by. He crouched down and made the last few steps to the top of the hill on all fours. He peeked across at the other side. Everything was still. There were thick shrubs and short squat trees on the slope. At a distance, a small stream was flowing. Blood was growling loudly now.

'Quiet,' Katya harshly whispered. He didn't want his position given away, just yet, to man or beast. He scanned the landscape carefully, looking for any movement. But he could see nothing. The dogs were looking at a thick cluster of sedge that provided dense foliage. _It is a good hiding place_ , thought Katya, concentrating on trying to see something, anything.

And then he heard it. It was a light, rasping cough. _It is no animal._

Smoky and Blood were good hunting dogs and they went completely still at the sound. They looked at Katya, eager to stalk the source of the sound. Katya carefully got to his feet and signalled to the dogs. The dogs moved swiftly like wolves in the dark, keeping to the cover of rock outcrops and large boulders which were lying between them and the sedge bushes.

Katya reached the bushes. He saw a slight movement behind the thick long blades of leaves. The dogs were quiet, motionless, ready to pounce when Katya would signal. Katya had to see what was behind the bushes first. He stepped slowly forward and parted the leaves. He looked directly into the battered face of a man inches away from him. The man gasped. Katya fell back with a start. The sudden movement from Katya made the dogs jump into the bush, tearing through the leaves ferociously as they attacked.

'No!' Katya screamed. The dogs were inches away from the shocked man's throat when they pulled back at the command. There were two men in grimy Russian army uniforms who defensively grabbed large sticks next to themselves. They looked at the two big dogs running around them in circles snarling, completely shocked.

'Who are you?' asked Katya stepping into the bushes.

The men looked at Katya. They stared for a moment, their mouths open, not comprehending what was happening. Katya could see that they were half relieved and half frightened. They were filthy, with tattered, blood-stained clothes and unwashed faces. They looked like they hadn't eaten for days.

'Who are you?' Katya asked them again.

'He is human,' one of the men mumbled.

'Maybe we won't die yet,' the other whispered.

One of them collapsed on his knees. He had tears in his eyes. 'Thank you!' he cried to the heavens.

#  

# CHAPTER 10

Katya returned to camp with the two men. They were starving and hungrily gobbled the fish and reindeer stew that was offered to them. Everyone in the group had gathered around them, curious.

Katya looked at his father. 'You can stay,' Atuqtuaq told him.

The soldiers spoke haltingly between their bites. They told the tribe their story.

Artyom and Yegor were Special Force soldiers in the Spetsnaz Task Force 9.

They were part of an elite team sent to secure a nuclear base during the early days of the infection. Moscow was the first city to be affected. It had become a no-go zone in less than three days after the first signs of the disease. The city was overtaken by man eaters and the creatures started spreading out, looking for food.

Task Force 9 had been safe in the high-security nuclear base for almost a year. The commandos went on regular raids across Siberia on their helicopters, killing as many man eaters as they could. But ammunition and fuel soon started running low. There was no communication from the Government. The unit suspended all raids and focused on surviving by keeping the base safe.

Then the first man became sick inside the base. No one knew how. It was believed that during the unit's regular sorties around the base, one of the soldiers had been bit and didn't tell anyone in fear of being jailed or killed.

The infection spread like wildfire inside the base. There was fierce fighting between the soldiers and the man eaters. Most of the people at the nuclear base were either killed or turned into man eaters. A dozen Spetsnaz commandos packed provisions and managed to escape into the Siberian wilderness on snowmobiles.

They found a disused gulag, an old Soviet forced labour camp. It provided them with basic security and protection from the cold. But they knew that their provisions would soon finish.

So Artyom and Yegor had left to forage for food. They lived off the land hoping to find inhabited villages. But all the small towns and villages they had come across were abandoned. It was the middle of winter, their ammunition was over and the game had become increasingly hard to find as the sea froze and animals migrated south. They were moving to the Taiga forests when Katya had found them.

Artyom scowled looking at the fire. 'The man eaters are like your worst nightmare. They are demons. Their flesh is rotting; there is hatred in their eyes, they are the undead. Pray you never see one.'

'We have seen them,' said Katya.

Yegor slurped the last of the soup and belched loudly. 'So they have gotten this far east then.'

'More than how they look, it's the smell that I can never forget,' said Artyom thoughtfully. 'The stench is horrible.'

The children looked at the men frightened.

'Is no place safe from the man eaters?' asked Upu.

'No,' laughed Yegor. 'They come everywhere. There is no point trying to protect yourselves. We should all prepare for death... or worse.'

'How do you fight them?' asked Katya.

'You don't. You run,' said Yegor derisively.

'You can shoot them in the head,' said Artyom. 'That's the only way. Hand to hand combat is not possible. They are faster and stronger than humans.'

Yegor glowered. 'And smarter.'

Katya studied the men. They had been through a lot. Beneath their weather-beaten faces and wizened bodies was dangerous unfriendliness. Their eyes were empty. Katya knew instinctively that they were not good for the tribe. They were desperate men who had survived. They were capable of anything. Next to him, Smoky was viewing the soldiers suspiciously and growling almost inaudibly. _She knows. She senses something._

'Did you meet any other tribes?' asked Atuqtuaq.

'No,' said Artyom. 'There is no one left. The epidemic has killed everyone.'

'Or worse...' Yegor muttered.

'You are safe here with us,' said the Professor cloyingly. 'Recover your strength. We have abundant food. The tribe needs strong men. Welcome.'

Both the soldiers nodded in agreement.

Artyom rubbed his belly drowsily. 'And then you'll all help me to take food to the soldiers in the gulag,' he mumbled.

Atuqtuaq didn't say anything.

Later that night, Atuqtuaq left to be with the reindeer. He didn't take the dog sled. Instead, he decided to walk the three miles to where the herd was.

'I don't trust these two men. All the dogs should be here,' Atuqtuaq told Katya before leaving.

Katya was glad to be back in the camp. He was eager to learn more about the man eaters. Apart from Ukik and Orinon, who had the first watch, everyone had gone into their baloks. The Russian soldiers lay near the campfire, satiated after their heavy meal, chatting.

Katya sat next to them. 'Tell me more,' he prodded them. 'Do the man eaters talk?'

Artyom grimaced. 'Not to us. But among themselves they... make noises... communicate with each other.'

'So do wolves when they are hunting,' said Katya thoughtfully.

'Yes. But these demons are far more intelligent,' said Artyom.

'Do your friends in the gulag have guns?' asked Katya.

Yegor looked at him suspiciously. 'Why do you want to know?'

Katya shrugged. 'Because we need weapons.'

Artyom shook his head. 'Our ammunition is almost over.'

'Where can we get it then?' asked Katya persistently. 'In cities?'

'The cities and big towns are overrun with man eaters,' said Artyom. 'There are no army bases nearby but yes, if you do manage to get to a military base then you might find guns.'

'Is there no cure?' asked Katya. 'Something to stop people from turning into man eaters.'

'Not that I know of,' said Artyom.

Katya was thoughtful. 'Is there any part of the world that is safe?'

Artyom looked into the fire. 'Do you know the village of Oymyakon? It's near Yakutsk. It's the coldest human inhabitation in the world. I have heard of people going there.'

Yegor was irritated. 'You don't understand, boy. It's over. This is the end of the world. There are going to be no humans in ten years' time. The sooner you accept it, the better.'

'There is no point to anything,' said Artyom.

'If that's the case I shouldn't have saved your lives,' said Katya angrily. 'Since there is no point to anything.'

'Yes, maybe you made a mistake,' said Artyom, eyeing Katya coldly.

'And maybe this mistake will cost you dearly,' scoffed Yegor. 'After all, we were being followed by a man eater. Now it's going to track us to you.'

'What do you mean?' asked Katya.

The Russian soldiers looked at each other.

Artyom took a deep breath. 'There was a man eater trailing us. These things can track you for days. It was quite close before you found us. Now you'll have to kill it. It must be nearby now.'

Katya stood up. 'My father has gone to the herd by himself. Why didn't you tell us about this?'

Yegor frowned. 'Why is your father alone? Is he stupid?'

Katya bit his lips. It was likely that the man eater would track the men to the reindeer herd. His father was alone there and with no dogs to warn him of danger. _I have to go there._ Katya thought of taking Ukik along but realized that there had to be someone to defend the camp.

Katya grabbed the dog harness from a stake cut into a tree and hurried to the dog sled nearby.

Artyom called out. 'Listen, boy!'

Katya turned to him.

'I know what you want,' said Artyom, studying Katya carefully.

'And what is that?' asked Katya.

'Hope. You are looking for hope.'

Katya looked at the dancing flames near the men. _It is true_ , he thought. _I want to know that things will get better._

Artyom spat on the ground. 'But there is none.'

#  

# CHAPTER 11

Atuqtuaq sat on a hilltop. The ground gently sloped into the scrublands around him. From his position, he could see the whole reindeer herd gathered around at the foot of the hill. He sat motionless, his eyes watchful, his spear resting on his shoulder.

The moonlight began to fade. Atuqtuaq looked up to see thick grey clouds in the sky. He could no longer see the reindeer in the darkness. He got up, walked down the hill, and decided to make a circle around the reindeer herd.

He had made half a circle when he noticed that the animals were all staring attentively towards the direction of the hill he had been sitting on. He tightened his grip on his spear and walked between the animals towards the hill. He suddenly heard the frightened call of a reindeer near the hill.

_The animal has seen something._ Atuqtuaq hoped it was only a bear or a wolf. He moved swiftly towards the hill. The herd had started to panic after more warning calls came from the reindeer near the hill. The animals began to run away from the hill. Atuqtuaq shouted at the stampeding reindeer, trying to push them out of his way. He struggled desperately to stay on his feet. He knew that if he fell down, he would be trampled to death. Just as he made his way out of the herd, he saw a sight that stopped him in his tracks. In the darkness, he could see a reindeer lying on the ground, still alive and struggling, as a large figure ate its stomach.

It was a man eater. Atuqtuaq pointed his spear at the creature, his eyes cold, his hands steady. The man eater turned and saw Atuqtuaq. Its face was covered in blood from the reindeer. It growled and stood up to his full height. The massive creature slowly made his way towards Atuqtuaq, snarling.

Atuqtuaq realized that the creature did not attack instantly but rather seemed to be gauging his strength. It went down on all fours and moved with frog-like jumps in circles around Atuqtuaq. With every circle, it was closing the distance.

Atuqtuaq could smell the stench as it roared. Atuqtuaq kept the spear steadily aimed at the thing. The circles had reduced to a dozen feet. He was within the distance of a single leap. The creature suddenly threw mud at Atuqtuaq's face. For a moment, he was blinded but he instinctively raised the spear knowing the thing would now jump.

The creature leapt. The spear end smashed into the thing's mouth, breaking the jaw and scattering the teeth. It fell back, roaring and clasping its head. Atuqtuaq wiped the mud from his eyes, took a quick step forward and thrust the spear powerfully at the creature. The creature tried to dodge it but the spear cut into its stomach, flesh, blood, and guts spilling out.

The thing grabbed the spear before Atuqtuaq could pull it out. It moved erratically trying to dislodge Atuqtuaq's grip on the spear. Atuqtuaq suddenly let go of the spear. The thing misbalanced and fell. As it clambered up unsteadily to its feet, Atuqtuaq grabbed its head and with a swift motion of his thumbs, pierced both its eyes out.

The thing roared, blinded. Atuqtuaq pulled his spear out suddenly from the creature's body and as it swayed, trying to find its enemy, killed it with a careful smash on its head.

The thing lay motionless on the ground. Atuqtuaq looked around. The reindeer had scattered in all directions. He would have to round them all up. He lowered himself on the ground and sat next to the creature, catching his breath. The moon was shining again. The thick clouds had parted momentarily.

He glanced at the hilltop and saw a silhouette watching him. For a moment, the stillness with which the shadow was looking at him made him think that it was a human being but as he looked at the powerfully built body and the awkward pose, he knew it was another man eater.

He stood up and picked up his spear. He had fought one off. He would fight this one too. But as he looked, he saw more silhouettes appearing on top of the hill. There were two... three... four... ten man eaters. It was a whole pack. The creatures began to fan out around him.

Atuqtuaq knew he was being surrounded. He wondered if he should make a run towards the river. He might just be able to outrun the creatures.

But he laughed at the thought. He was a Nenek chieftain. He wore the wolf head and fur. This was his land. He would not run.

He made a quick prayer to the stars, to his ancestors. He knew he would be seeing them soon. He wished he could say goodbye to his tribe, to his family, to Katya.

He took a deep breath and steadied his spear as the creatures ran at him from every direction.

_Where is the herd?_ Katya looked at the empty land in front of him. He stopped the dog sled, baffled. Did his father move the reindeer herd for some reason? He studied the tracks on the ground in the moonlight and realized with horror that there had been a man eater attack. He unharnessed the dogs and followed the large man eater footprints fearing for his father.

'Father!' he yelled.

There was no answer. He saw a group of four reindeer. Katya ignored them and followed the man eater track that seemed to be leading to the base of the hill where he had last seen the herd. Katya felt his hands tremble. He desperately hoped his father was alive.

Smoky started howling a little distance away.

Katya ran to where Smoky was. He stopped short seeing something lying on the ground. He slowly walked to it and saw that it was his father's blood-soaked clothes. The sight was horrendous. Atuqtuaq had been eaten out by the man eaters.

Katya broke down, weeping.

The coffin had no body, just pieces of bone. It was fastened high up on a tree as was the Nenek custom so that the spirit could fly away to the stars. Katya was devastated. His father had always been there for him. Even during the most troubling times, there was hope alive in him because he knew his father would find a way. He always did. And now, that hope was dying inside him. _Maybe it is really true after all. The age of man is over. The age of the man eater has begun._

The tribe was in a state of shock. It was only the next afternoon that Ukik, Orinon, and Katya went to round up the scattered reindeer. Of the over 100 reindeer the tribe had, only 60 were found. Many were found eaten-out while the rest had fled in all directions.

Katya desperately hoped to find the man eaters. He was in a state of rage. He wanted to kill all of them. But the creatures had disappeared. Their tracks showed them going south following some of the fleeing reindeer.

Katya wanted to follow the man eater tracks and hunt them down.

'They will be miles away and there seems to be at least ten of them,' said Ukik.

'I'll go after them. You both stay with the caravan,' said Katya. 'I'll find you in a week or so.'

Ukik shook his head. 'Katya, we need to stay together. These creatures are going to kill the last of the reindeer and then double back to the hill. Then they will follow the caravan. We'll see them in a few days and we need to be ready.'

'I'll be letting down my father. I have to fight them. Either I will kill them or be killed by them,' said Katya furiously.

Orinon looked at Katya steadily. 'Father wants more from you, brother.'

Katya thought for a moment. He took a deep breath trying to calm himself down. Then he followed Ukik and Orinon to the dog sled.

He would fight but not today.

# NAVY SEAL UNIT Z

PRIVATE & CONFIDENTIAL

TO: XXXXXXX, SPECIAL ACTIVITIES DIVISION, CIA (@ LIST CLASSIFIED)

FROM: COMMANDER, UNIT Z

SUBJECT: OPERATION LIBERTY

Sir,

Operation is successful!

112 cities across six continents have been exposed to the virus. The whole world now shares our problem.

01 – 07

ktr: 8TR

ENCRYPTED

#  

# CHAPTER 12

Orinon looked into the small mirror and grimaced. He looked funny wearing the wolf's head and fur coat, the symbol of a Nenek chieftain. He stood in the balok, alone, hesitant about stepping outside. He wiped the sweat from his face and nervously bit his nails. Outside, near the campfire, everyone was waiting to hear from their new leader.

He couldn't control the thoughts swirling around in his mind. _I am not ready for this. I am not my father. I don't want this._ He noticed the drops of blood on the coat. It was his father's blood. Orinon felt dizzy. He held onto the sturdy table in the middle of the room, trying to breathe. He realized that his father's death would hang over him like a sword, a memory that he couldn't escape from, every time he wore the coat. He tried to rub away the dried blood stains furiously.

'It won't go away,' said Aunt Yukai, behind him.

Orinon spun around startled. 'You scared me.'

'Come. It is time.'

Orinon took a deep breath and apprehensively followed Aunt Yukai to the campfire. Orinon looked up. It was a cloudy night. He could see no stars. _My ancestors are ashamed that I've become the leader._ The camp dogs moved about in dark, sniffing the wind. Everyone was armed with spears. Arjun, Vishal, and Ameed laughed looking at him.

'Here's our piggy,' said Arjun, amused.

Vishal sneered. 'He looks ridiculous.

'Shut up!' said Katya loudly. Arjun and Vishal became silent. Ever since Katya had fought them, they were scared of him and had carefully avoided him.

The ceremony was brief. Fresh reindeer blood was smeared on Orinon's face. The women said prayers to the stars and Arnaq threw blades of dried grass into the fire.

The tribe members congratulated him. It was time for the speech. Orinon stood nervously looking at the group. Katya had told him to talk about how the tribe would overcome whatever adversity they faced. Orinon had memorized a short speech but looking at the gathered crowd, he forgot everything. He tried frantically to think of something to say but no words would come out.

The Professor smirked. The two Russian soldiers looked at him coldly.

'Do we continue our journey north?' asked Pranita helpfully, breaking the silence.

Orinon cleared his throat. 'Yes...'

'No,' said the Professor.

Everyone looked at the Professor who slowly got up and walked to the centre of the circle, next to Orinon.

'There is a better idea,' said the Professor, enjoying the attention. 'We know that...'

'The chief decides,' Katya interrupted him.

The Professor glowered at Katya. 'I'll speak and then he can decide.'

Katya was obstinate. 'That's not the custom.'

The Professor turned to Orinon. 'Can I speak?'

'Well... yes,' said Orinon anxiously. He was scared of the Professor.

'Good,' said the Professor. 'I was saying that there are at least a dozen man eaters on our trail. As Artyom and Yegor will tell you, killing even one full-sized man eater is extremely hard. With a few wooden spears, we just don't stand a chance against a group of them. Look at what happened to Atuqtuaq. Who was stronger than the great chief? And yet, he fell. They will destroy us. That is certain. Going north without a plan is only going to get us all killed.'

'What else is there to do?' asked Ukik. 'Stay here? We can't fight them off here either.'

'You are right,' said the Professor smoothly. 'We can't fight them here. But there is a place where we can; where there are huge walls that will protect us and other men who will help us kill the man eaters.'

'Where is this place?' asked Katya suspiciously.

'It's the gulag where my friends are staying, a seven-day journey to the west,' said Artyom.

The tribe members looked at each other. 'If we move fast, we might get there before the monsters catch up with us,' said the Professor. 'We won't stay there permanently. We'll just see off this man eater attack. And then we'll go north as before.'

Katya shook his head. He didn't trust the Russian soldiers. 'I don't think...'

'You are not the chieftain to decide,' interrupted Vishal snidely. 'No matter how badly you want to be.'

'Let the fat one decide,' said Yegor. The Professor's group laughed.

Orinon reddened and looked at his feet, trying to make up his mind. _They know that I am no leader. They are all laughing at me._

'Come on, tell us what you think, boy,' said Artyom impatiently. 'Do you want to live or die?'

'We will go to the gulag,' said Orinon.

Katya got up. 'What about the reindeer? They need to go north. We don't know if there are enough pastures west.'

'The chief has decided,' said the Professor patting Orinon on the back. 'Well done.'

Katya was not ready to give up yet. 'This is not a good idea...'

'Katya,' Arnaq looked at him sternly. 'Your brother is the leader. He has decided.'

'But mother...'

Arnaq shook her head. 'It's final. We shall not talk about this anymore.'

The caravan moved west. The melting snow had created swamps and pools across the landscape, and the movement was slow. The mosquitos increased and became a constant bother. The reindeer herd's natural instinct was to go north during the summers and the animals were increasingly agitated at being driven west.

Katya was always busy now as he and Ukik had to split his father's share of work among themselves. Katya slept late at night and woke up before the first light of dawn. He was glad of the hard, tiring days he was having. It helped him keep the thoughts of his father's death away from his mind. He kept his guard constantly up. There was the danger of the man eaters, but he was also wary of both the Professor's group and the Russians. The dogs were always around him for protection and he made sure the reindeer herd was close to the caravan, within eyeshot.

Since the land the tribe was traversing was completely unknown to them, Katya had decided that he would scout ahead on the dog sled and choose the best path to take. It was early morning and as the camp began to wake, Katya readied the dog sled. He saw Pranita throwing water on her face. She had been on night watch with Ukik and Kartik. She looked tired.

Katya called to her. 'Do you want a ride on the sled?'

She thought for a moment. 'Where are you going?'

'To check the path ahead.'

She shrugged. 'Why not? It's too late to catch any sleep now.'

Blood led the dogs and the sled moved swiftly across the boggy ground. The sun peeked out from behind the horizon colouring the sky orange-yellow. The morning mist began to dissipate.

They felt the cool wind against their faces. The land gleamed in the morning sun. Pranita tried to control her flying hair. 'I feel alive again after a long time,' she smiled.

'Me too,' said Katya. But he knew the reason was not the scenery or the wind. 'I am sorry about the fight,' he continued.

'Forget it,' said Pranita.

'What do you make of the soldiers?' asked Katya.

'I hate them.'

'Really? Why?'

'The way they look at me. It's creepy.'

Katya drove the dogs around a ridge. 'I don't trust them,' he said.

'Where is Smoky?' asked Pranita looking around her. 'She isn't following us.'

Katya shrugged. 'She sometimes goes hunting for two or three days.'

Pranita suddenly pointed straight ahead. 'What is that?'

Katya brought the dogs to a halt. 'It looks like a hut.'

He took out the binoculars from a knapsack and studied the site. It was a small town. He could see quite a few structures, from dwellings to barns. There was no movement and the place seemed abandoned. He gave Pranita the binoculars while he wondered what to do next.

It was best to keep as far away from the town as possible. But on his left, the ground was just a big swamp. Trudging through it would be painfully slow and would mean that the caravan would be near the town for maybe two days. The man eaters who killed his father, if they were still on the trail, would possibly get the time to catch up with the caravan. Trying to fight them off in the swamp, where there was heavy fog all day and all night was a bad idea. Also, there could be more man eaters in the town who would join the hunt if they heard noises.

On his right was a long stretch of steep hills. They wouldn't be able to get the baloks and sleds across it. Katya bit his lips. So they had only two options. One was that they retrace their path for almost a full day, which would get them to the open land before the hills began and they could go west from the other side of the hill, safely skirting the town. Or, they risk a quick passage near the town. From the edge of the town to where the hill started was less than 100 feet. Even if the caravan and the herd were moved closer to the hill, they would be in clear view of the village.

'Anybody there?' asked Katya.

Pranita lowered the binoculars. 'No.'

'Let's go back.'

'Why?' Pranita asked surprised.

Katya was confused. 'To tell the tribe.'

'I mean, why are we not first checking if there are man eaters inside?'

Katya shrugged. 'It's too dangerous.'

'We can search for tracks near the town. We don't have to go inside.'

Katya shook his head. 'It's risky.'

'I don't understand,' said Pranita. 'A few days back you went inside that village looking for tracks. What is different now?'

Katya knew why he didn't want to go near the town. _You are with me. I am not going to put your life in danger._ Katya thought of something to say.

'Nothing is different,' he said. 'It just seems like a large place. It's quite likely that there are man eaters inside.'

Pranita looked at him carefully. 'It's me, isn't it?'

'No,' said Katya quickly. Too quickly.

'You don't think I can fight.'

'It's not that.'

Pranita was angry. 'Yes, it is... well, I am going to check for tracks. You stay here.'

She started walking towards the town. Katya ran after her.

'Wait,' said Katya.

Pranita didn't look back. 'No.'

'I can't lose you too,' Katya blurted out.

Pranita stopped. 'Oh.'

Katya reddened. 'I mean... yes... I...'

She suddenly leaned forward and kissed him. Katya closed his eyes as he felt her soft, wet lips on his. His heart felt like it would burst. But it was too short. Pranita pulled away reluctantly.

'We are still going to check for tracks,' she said.

Katya was too overwhelmed to say anything. They both walked towards the town.

#  

# CHAPTER 13

The small town was surrounded by grasslands. The blades of the bright green spring grass barely reached a few inches from the ground. Katya was glad that there were no trees or boulders on their path to potentially conceal a man eater.

They had approached within a stone's throw of the first buildings of the town. There was an old picket fence that surrounded the settlement. A wide mud road led into the town. Katya knew that the slushy road was the perfect ground to check for tracks. He suddenly realized that he should have got Blood with him. He had been too distracted by the kiss.

But Katya's heart was soaring. _Does this mean she likes me?_ He wanted to kiss her again, and again. He looked at Pranita walking purposefully beside him. She was looking carefully at the outlying buildings on their path.

They reached the slushy road near the town entrance. They walked slowly, looking for tracks.

'There,' whispered Pranita, pointing in front.

The road had large human-like footprints. Katya bent down and studied it. It was a couple of days old. He could make out that there were three different sets.

'There are man eaters here,' said Katya softly. 'Large ones.'

They both started walking away from the town, keeping a constant watch behind them. They got to the sled. Blood growled, unhappy at being left behind. Katya rubbed his head.

Pranita climbed on the sled. 'What do we do now? Are we risking going this way?'

Katya was thoughtful. 'Maybe. Going back and finding a different way to bypass this town will cost us time. The man eater pack will catch up.'

'You seem to want that,' said Pranita, looking at him carefully.

Katya studied his hands. 'They killed my father. I want to fight them.'

'Even if it risks the lives of everybody in the tribe?' asked Pranita.

Katya didn't say anything. He knew she was right. He wanted vengeance but it was wrong to put the whole tribe in danger. He turned the sled and sped back towards the caravan. The sun was now shining brightly. The mist had gone. They raced across meadows of red wildflowers. Katya reached out and tentatively took Pranita's hand in his. She squeezed slightly and rested her head on his shoulders.

Everyone seemed to have a different idea about what to do next; Ukik wanted to attack the town, battle it out with any man eaters inside and then make the crossing. The Professor wanted to go back and find a different path that would completely circumvent the town. Arnaq felt that the swamp was the best way to go. The fog would hide them from the pursuing man eaters as well as the ones in the town. Katya secretly wished his father was there to help them decide. His father had always known what was best for the tribe.

'From my experience, I can tell you, the man eaters always hunt at night,' said Artyom, scratching his face thoughtfully. 'It's only when they are disturbed that you see them in the daylight.'

Yegor grunted his agreement. 'It is true. We can cross right next to the town if we are quiet. But with the reindeer and the dogs... if they make any noise it'll surely attract the man eaters.'

'It seems to be the best option,' said Katya, finally making up his mind.

There were arguments back and forth. Orinon, the chieftain, stayed silent. After much debate, the members decided to risk crossing the town sometime around midday.

'We had sniper training with the Russian Special Forces. Let us carry the guns,' said Yegor.

Katya was hesitant. 'We'll see if the need arises.'

'We are not the enemies,' said Artyom coldly.

'I know that,' Katya retorted.

'He has always been suspicious and hateful of my group too,' spat the Professor.

Yegor wasn't happy. 'We are offering to protect your tribe and this is how you treat us.'

Katya was unmoved. 'I saved your life, remember.'

'What do you think, chief?' the Professor cleverly asked Orinon.

Orinon wondered what to say. 'I...'

Katya hoped that Orinon would stand up for himself. 'The guns should stay with me and Ukik, brother,' Katya pleaded.

The Professor glared at Orinon. 'Well...'

Orinon succumbed to the pressure. 'The soldiers can have the guns. They will protect us.'

Katya turned away disappointed. _My brother is weak and spineless,_ he thought saddened. _Orinon is going to end up leading the tribe into a disaster_. But almost immediately, Katya felt guilty about thinking such thoughts of his own brother. He felt like talking to Pranita. He looked for her and saw her with Vishal. He sighed. Despite the kiss, things hadn't changed much. Vishal was still her boyfriend. Katya watched her for a moment and then went to round up the reindeer herd.

The preparations for the day's journey were made and the caravan slowly moved towards the town.

They stopped at a small distance from the town. Katya decided to first move the reindeer herd across. He realized that keeping the herd from straying too close to the town would be a difficult task. He knew that he couldn't use the camp dogs like he normally did to move the reindeer. He feared that their barking would alert the man eaters inside the town.

The only option was to break up the herd into smaller groups and move the groups one by one across the narrow stretch of firm land between the town and the hills.

Artyom and Yegor stood guard near the town with guns raised as Katya, Ukik and a group of women moved the herd across. Everything was quiet in the town. There was no sign of any man eaters. It was late afternoon when they finished moving the whole herd across.

Katya was relieved. 'Now, we just have to move the sleds. We'll be far away from the town before the sun sets,' he told Ukik.

Ukik nodded. 'If we call a halt only by midnight, we'll be at a safe distance.'

Katya muzzled the camp dogs with pieces of rope to keep them from barking and tied them together in a line behind one of the baloks. The dogs whined unhappily.

Katya frowned at the dogs. 'Quiet,' he ordered. 'It's only for a few hours.'

He wondered where Smoky was. He hoped she would not try to investigate the scents in the town if she came this way. He couldn't have her running wild anymore. It was not safe. There were man eaters everywhere now. He worried that since she had lost her fear of the man eaters by fighting the one in the village, she would try to attack them now.

Everyone had their spears ready and the caravan moved slowly towards the town. The reindeer herd was two miles away, sheltered from view behind a highland plateau. They moved to keep as close to the hillside as possible. Everyone was eyeing the town warily. Pranita was sitting on a sled, looking through the binoculars for any movement. But there was none.

They had reached the narrowest part of the crossing. The outlying buildings of the town were barely 50 feet away. Ukik put his fingers to his lips, motioning everyone to be silent. Artyom walked in front of the caravan while Yegor walked behind it. Katya moved back and forth making sure the ropes of the harnessed reindeer didn't entangle.

And then a loud crack split the silence.

Everyone looked around confused and startled. But Katya instantly knew what it was. He felt his heart dip. A balok roller had suddenly broken.

The Professor clenched his teeth in frustration. He had completely forgotten about loosening the ropes on his balok's rollers. He viewed the broken roller, calculating the damage. _My plan has backfired._ After Katya had been told to live with the reindeer, no one had checked the rollers. The Professor was happy about it and expected the roller to break immediately. But the wood was well-chosen and extremely sturdy. His whole plan had been to kill Atuqtuaq after the roller broke. But the man eaters had done that for him.

He clasped his head and looked worriedly at the village. The sound had been loud. Had it alerted the man eaters? The Professor observed Katya and Ukik studying the damage. Everyone had gathered around.

'Can we fix it?' asked Artyom in a whisper.

Ukik shook his head. 'It's broken clean. We need to make a new roller.'

'How long will that take?' asked Yegor.

Ukik shrugged. 'At least a day if we find a suitable tree nearby.'

'But we have only seen bushes for the last two days,' the Professor argued.

Katya was thoughtful. 'We have to leave the balok behind.'

'And where will my group sleep?' asked the Professor annoyed.

'Outside,' said Katya. 'Take whatever is inside and put it in the sleds.'

'Katya is right' said Arnaq. 'There is no other way.'

Katya started hurriedly removing the broken balok from the caravan line. 'Help me with the ropes,' he told Ukik who was standing next to him.

The group stood watching, glancing at the town uneasily every few seconds.

'Spread out,' said Artyom softly. 'Be ready with the spears.'

Vishal looked at the empty town. 'It doesn't seem like anyone is inside.'

'We saw tracks,' said Pranita. 'There are definitely man eaters there.'

Vishal looked at her surprised. 'We? Why were you here?'

Pranita didn't say anything. She looked into the binoculars. The Professor's group had been still sleeping when she and Katya had gone to scout ahead.

'I asked you something!' said Vishal raising his voice.

'Hush, you fool,' whispered Artyom urgently.

'Can we talk about this later?' asked Pranita annoyed.

'No, I am not going to be quiet,' said Vishal furiously.

Yegor grabbed Vishal. 'What madness is this? Shut up!'

'Calm down, everyone,' said the Professor.

Vishal pushed Yegor away. 'Why were you with that dog?' he screamed at Pranita.

Ukik looked up from the ropes. 'Careful how you speak to Katya, boy,' he said threateningly.

Katya realized that the situation was spiralling out of control. 'It wasn't her fault. I asked her to come with me,' said Katya.

'This lover's quarrel will get us all killed,' spat Artyom.

The Professor scowled at Katya. 'You stay away from my group.'

Pranita turned to the Professor, angrily. 'You can't tell me who I should spend time with!'

A loud grunt came from the town. Everyone froze.

'The win... win... window,' Orinon stammered, pointing.

From the window of a derelict hut in the town, a face was looking at them. It was a large man eater. It grunted again and again.

'It's calling its friends,' said Yegor. 'So there are more of them.'

'You mugs have awakened them,' said Artyom. 'Now fight for your lives.'

#  

# CHAPTER 14

The children fearfully huddled together inside a balok. There were bloodcurdling roars coming from the town. Upu had been put in charge of the children.

'There are more of us,' said Upu confidently. 'We will win.'

'But people will die,' said a little girl next to her.

Upu closed her eyes, trying to concentrate on the sounds outside. 'Maybe,' Upu conceded. 'We shall soon know.'

Artyom and Yegor had their guns pointed at the town. Katya, Ukik and the women of the tribe stood in a line, spears pointed. The Professor's group was beside them in a haphazard circle. Vishal had stopped arguing and was now standing with his teeth clenched, itching for blood.

The Professor addressed his group. 'When one of these filthy maggots gets close to us, we will surround it first, and then attack together from all sides.'

Everyone waited with bated breath for the man eaters to attack. The grunts and roars had stopped.

'Why don't they attack?' asked Katya.

'These seem to be the more intelligent sort. They are planning,' growled Artyom.

Pranita was looking through the binoculars. 'One is peering at us from behind the tall building on the right,' she said urgently.

'Can you get a shot?' Katya asked the Russian soldiers.

Artyom shook his head. 'I need a clear shot. I can barely see it.'

'It disappeared,' said Pranita.

Katya looked at the sky. There were three hours of daylight left. He hoped the man eaters would attack soon. It would be harder fighting them in the night.

The waiting was unbearable. But even after fifteen tense minutes, the attack did not come. Artyom and Yegor lowered their rifles.

'We are dealing with a clever bunch,' said Artyom. 'They are waiting for the night, or perhaps for us to let our guard down.'

Yegor nodded somberly. 'There aren't too many of them, that is for sure. Otherwise, the creatures would have instantly charged seeing us, knowing that we can't fight off more than three or four of them.'

Katya and Ukik busied themselves with removing the broken balok from the caravan line.

'Are the reindeer safe?' asked Orinon.

Ukik nodded. 'They should be. These monsters will come for us first.'

'Untie the dogs, brother,' said Katya to Orinon. 'They'll help us fight the man eaters.'

Orinon ran to the line of dogs and unmuzzled them. Katya observed the dogs as he freed the last of the ropes from the broken balok. To his surprise, he noticed that the dogs were not watching the town. Instead, they were looking at the hill that rose right next to the caravan.

Katya turned to Pranita who was still looking at the town through the binoculars. 'Do you see any man eaters?' he asked.

'I haven't for a while now,' said Pranita.

_Could it be?_ Katya took his spear and walked a few steps towards the town. He studied the surroundings carefully. After the balok roller broke, everyone had gathered together near the middle of the caravan and had been studying the town. They had not kept a watch on their flanks. It was possible that a man eater could have slipped out of the town from the back, moved through the swamp and then cut across on the left or right side of the stationary caravan to cross the hill range immediately behind them. If that was what the man eaters did, the attack would not come from the town but from the hill. And since no one was watching the hill, they could get close before the tribe realized what was happening.

Katya turned his back to the town and regarded the hill. The hill was covered by small bushes and short grasses. There was not enough cover to hide a man eater. A sudden movement caught his eye. Katya looked at the spot. It was on top of the hill and although he couldn't see anything as he stared fixedly at the place, he knew that something had moved.

There could only be one explanation. A man eater must have been peering from the top of the hill and then ducked out of sight. Katya was confident that his reasoning was right.

'Quick,' Katya said urgently. 'They are going to attack from the hilltop.'

The group looked at him confused.

'Be ready!' he beckoned, readying his spear.

Everyone turned to the hill. Artyom and Yegor looked at Katya surprised as they instinctively pointed their rifles at the hill.

'Why would...' the Professor began to talk but stopped.

Three figures leapt down from the top of the hill and raced towards them.

'Here they come!' screamed Katya.

Artyom and Yegor aimed their rifles. Shots began to go off. Instead of coming straight down, the creatures were running downhill, zigzagging, which made shooting them hard. They had come halfway down the hill without a single shot hitting them.

'Guard the children,' Katya shouted at Ukik. The balok with the children was directly in the path of the man eaters.

Artyom shot a man eater in the head. It collapsed, sliding to a halt, dust rising around it. There were two more to go. The dogs were barking, fearful and excited at the same time. A second shot hit a man eater in the chest. It fell down but was up again in an instant, unmindful of the gaping wound. The two man eaters reached the base of the hill and jumped into the midst of the spear-wielding group. Artyom and Yegor stopped shooting knowing they may hit one of the tribe members.

The dogs ran about, barking at the man eaters but seemed too frightened to attack them. And then, Blood sprang at one. Seeing him, the other dogs followed his lead. The man eater tried to fight off the dozen powerful jaws biting into its body. It grabbed a dog, lifted it high in the air and choked it to death with its big tough hands. But the other dogs pulled the man eater to the ground. Blood tore at its throat as the creature thrashed about, desperate to get away.

The last man eater sprang at Katya but his spear pierced its chest. It tumbled down and as it got up, other spears sliced into its body. The tribe members surrounded it and cut it again and again with the spears. The man eater roared furiously, blood and flesh flying around it, trying to grab at the spears. But there were too many.

'The head,' shouted Katya. 'Aim for the head!'

Vishal threw his spear at the man eater's head. The Professor's group had been practising regularly and his aim was true. The sharp end of his weapon crashed into the creature's left cheekbone, shattering the face.

It stumbled onto the ground, flailing and weak. Arnaq smashed its head with a final blow and it lay still. It was dead.

Arjun and Ameed whopped with joy.

'We have won!' screamed Vishal.

There were loud cheers from the Professor's group. Everyone congratulated each other, all divisions forgotten. Artyom and Yegor were grinning. Orinon hugged his mother. The children peeked out of the balok, relieved. Katya walked to where one of the dogs lay dead. He bent down and patted it. His joy and excitement at the victory had been dampened by the dead dog, but it was a small price to pay. The group had fought off a man eater attack.

Katya took a deep breath and looked at the euphoric group. He smiled. _They now know that there is hope. They know we can fight these creatures._ And then he saw Vishal embracing Pranita, the fight between them forgotten.

'How was my throw?' Vishal asked Pranita, ecstatic at the victory.

She grinned. 'It did the job.'

Vishal kissed her passionately, running his hands all over her body. 'Too bad there are no trees around,' he winked, 'Or else...'

Pranita laughed. 'It can wait.'

The smile faded from Katya's face. He grabbed a shovel and went to bury the dead dog.

During the next four days, the group did not encounter any more man eaters. They kept a careful watch at all times. There was a sense of confidence in the group. They had faced their worst fears. They had been attacked by the monsters and they had won. The snow had now all melted. They were travelling through open plains now. The group was cheerful. They were moving southwest, following a rarely used mud track. Artyom and Yegor knew this part of the land. They were able to guide the caravan between the hills and the swamps. The days were warm now and the children seized every opportunity to jump into the marshes, much to the consternation of their mothers. Katya was quiet and kept to himself. After Pranita had kissed him he had thought that things would be different between them. Maybe, they would kiss again. Maybe, she was in love with him. But every night it was Vishal who lay with her. Since the college group's balok had broken and had been left behind, they slept in the open now. Katya hated sleeping near the campfire, where the rest of the college group would lie in the night. He didn't want to see Vishal and Pranita together. Vishal knew how Katya felt and was always trying to be intimate with Pranita if he saw Katya around.

Katya could see that Artyom and Yegor were constantly leering at Pranita. And so was the Professor.

Katya sat near the reindeer herd away from the campfire, stroking Smoky's head. She had finally come back from her wanderings. She was thrilled at seeing Katya again and had not left his side even for an instant.

Katya was thoughtful. He replayed the events of the last few days, in minute detail, again and again in his mind; the sled journey to the town with Pranita, the kiss they shared, putting her head on his shoulders. _So does she love me?_

She felt something for him, that much he knew. But then why was she still with Vishal? _Is it that she pities me? Was that what the kiss was about?_ Whatever it was between them, Katya wanted a resolution. And he wanted it fast.

Katya sat looking at the stars. It was a moonless night and the stars sparkled brightly. He wondered if his father was looking down on him. _Can he see me?_ Smoky raised her head and sniffed the wind. He could hear laughter from the campfire. Someone was singing a song.

_It is strange_ , thought Katya. Despite the cheeriness around him, he had never felt more lonely and miserable in his life.

#  

# CHAPTER 15

The next evening, the caravan sighted the gulag in the distance. It was a sprawling encampment. Katya looked at it amazed. He had never seen anything the size of it. The outer perimeter was a tumbling barrier made of barbed and meshed wire, supported by thick wooden beams.

'We tried to fix it up as best as we could,' said Artyom.

There were gaps in the barbed wire wall and Katya wondered if the place could withstand a man eater attack. Behind it was a sturdier wall made of tall wooden planks that stretched out in a wide circle around the camp. It was in disrepair too, but at least Katya could see no gaps.

As the caravan approached, two men ran towards them. They were wearing Russian army uniforms and carried AK-47s. The dogs started barking threateningly and Katya had to shout at the dogs to keep them from attacking the men.

The men had hollow faces and looked weak but they hugged Artyom and Yegor with great enthusiasm and wide grins.

'Hope you have some food for us!' said one of the men anxiously.

'Yes!' said Yegor.

'Any attacks?' asked Artyom

'Nothing after we got here.'

The men sized up the tribe members, looking at the college group a little suspiciously. When they saw the reindeer herd that was being driven behind the caravan at a distance, they were surprised.

'Who are they?' asked one of the men.

'They are reindeer herders,' said Artyom. 'They are here to help us.'

The men opened the gates of the gulag and the caravan proceeded inside. There were eight men inside. They all looked dishevelled and weak. The food rations had run out weeks ago and they had lived off the few sables they were able to catch in the pine forest that started at a small distance in the south.

Around the gulag were rich, open grasslands stretching out as far as the eye could see. There was plenty of feed for the reindeer, with moss and lichen growing bountifully underfoot and Katya kept the herd right outside the gulag gates. The animals could feed in the surrounding area for weeks. There were no mosquito swarms to trouble them and Katya knew that the reindeer would be healthy near the gulag till the weather became warmer.

Smoky wouldn't come inside the gulag. Katya called her again and again but she ran off towards the pine forests in the distance. Katya sighed. _The dog is impossible._

The other dogs followed the caravan inside. They looked around suspiciously, growling at the soldiers. Katya walked around the camp with Blood while the women started preparing the evening meal. He noticed that the soldiers were not a friendly bunch. They were taciturn and not very interested in the tribe. Two men guarded the gate while others sat in a circle in a large shed. Katya was concerned. He wondered how things would develop. He knew that the tribe was the only source of food for the Russian soldiers. Would they join us on our journey north? It seemed unlikely. At the same time, they would not want to be parted from their food source. _Things might turn ugly._

But the other tribe members seemed happy at having strong walls and armed men around them. It gave them a sense of protection after months of living in the open, where danger had been their constant companion. There were large empty sheds everywhere in sight. Katya realized that it was in these sheds that prisoners were housed a long time ago. There was a sense of despair and horror to the place, even after all these years. He had heard about the camps. During the Soviet times, many of the Neneks had been forced to go into these camps to produce for the State. Their nomadic lifestyle had been brought to a halt.

In the centre of the gulag was a stone mine. Katya saw that steel tracks had been laid from the mine to a huge outhouse. There were broken carts on these tracks. Katya thought of the past. Prisoners had toiled here, often sick and weak, to ferry stone from the mine.

The wall made of wooden planks that stretched around the camp seemed to be holding up everywhere. Katya studied it carefully, running his hands across the wood, testing its strength. It was adequately strong to prevent men from leaving or entering, but it was unlikely that it could withstand a planned man eater attack.

Katya walked back to the main gate of the gulag, where the caravan was stationed. The soldiers had opened a second shed for the tribe to stay in. The shed was a large rectangular structure. The ceiling was high and there were no windows. There were no rooms or partitions, just a long hall. It was mouldy and damp. Katya hated it. Most of the college group was inside, chatting. Ukik had gone outside the gulag to check on the reindeer. Orinon lay on the ground, the wolf coat under his head, propping him up.

Katya sat next to Orinon. 'How do you like this place?' Katya asked his brother.

'I am glad we are somewhere safe.'

Katya nodded, feeling the strong wall of the shed. 'It's not going to be easy for anything to get inside this shed.'

Katya glanced at Pranita who was talking to Kartik and Vishaka. _I have to talk to her._ _I can't go on like this._

Orinon seemed content. 'I'll be able to sleep peacefully after a long time.'

Katya sighed. 'But what happens tomorrow?'

'What do you mean?' asked Orinon.

'They might not want us to leave.'

'We helped them. They'll want to help us too. Some of them might even come with us. We'll have soldiers protecting us.'

Katya shook his head, unconvinced. 'Not everyone is like us, brother.'

Orinon closed his eyes. 'You worry too much, brother. Now let me sleep.'

The soldiers ate the dried reindeer meat and walrus soup ravenously. The meal seemed to bring the men back to life. They joked with one another and congratulated Artyom and Yegor for coming back with food. They were in a boisterous mood, making sexual jokes and remarks constantly.

Katya looked at them, a little worried. He had tried to talk to some of the men but they had ignored him. Katya had noticed that the men had all looked at the reindeer herd at the gates of the gulag with astonishment. They had remarked about how large the size of the herd was. _It is a lot of food._ Katya was determined to be on his guard.

After the meal, the Russian soldiers and the tribe went to their respective sheds. The Professor was outside playing cards with the soldiers near the main gate. Katya couldn't sleep and he sat in the corner of the shed, thinking. He wanted to sleep next to a fire, with the dogs around him. But the Russians had warned him of the danger of a campfire attracting passing man eaters. They were adamant about having no light after dark.

The dogs were snarling at the soldiers all evening. A dog had almost bitten a soldier after he had tried to shoo it away. The soldiers were angry and Ukik had to bring all the dogs inside the shed. Blood and Smoky were taken out of the gulag to guard the reindeer. The tribe knew that the two powerful dogs would keep the reindeer safe.

Katya tried to sleep but he was too uneasy. The place made him nervous. He tossed and turned restlessly.

The shed door suddenly opened and the Professor peered inside. 'Arjun, Vishal, Ameed,' he cried. 'Help me move some wooden beams.'

'At this time of the night? Why?' asked Vishal, annoyed.

'Because I lost a bet while playing cards.'

There were groans. 'Why not tomorrow?' asked Ameed, sleepily.

'Hurry up!' growled the Professor and left.

Katya watched the three boys grumbling and stumbling out into the night. He knew he would not be able to sleep in the dastardly prison camp. It was too depressing. He decided to sleep among the reindeer outside the camp. He got up and walked to the shed door. Then he had an idea. _I better talk to Pranita._ Everyone seemed to be sleeping in the shed. He walked to where Pranita was lying and crouched down.

'Hey,' she whispered.

'Not sleepy?' asked Katya.

'No.'

'I want to talk to you about something.'

Pranita sat up. 'What?' she asked, trying to straighten her tousled hair.

He looked around. 'Can we go outside?'

#  

# CHAPTER 16

The moon was shining brightly. They walked towards the stone mine at the centre of the gulag. In the distance, they could hear the Russian soldiers singing gleefully.

'They seem happy,' said Pranita.

Katya nodded. They walked to the edge of the mine and looked into the circular depression. It was a steep drop to the black bottom.

Katya gathered his courage. 'This is not easy for me to say...'

Pranita waited.

'I love you,' he blurted out finally.

'I know,' said Pranita. 'And I love you.'

But she didn't seem very pleased. Katya was surprised.

He tried to put his feelings into words. He had rehearsed what he would say to her a thousand times and yet, when the right moment finally arrived, as he stood next to her, the words were stuck in his throat. 'I... then why...'

Pranita interrupted him. 'It doesn't matter what we feel for each other. It's not meant to be. You know this.'

'Is it Vishal?'

'Yes.'

'But you once told me you don't love him.'

'I don't but it doesn't matter.'

Katya clasped his head. 'I still don't understand.'

'Don't you see?' asked Pranita. 'He is no longer the person I knew. The only thing that still keeps him... sane... human... is me. If I leave him, he won't make it. He'll see me with you and it will drive him crazy. The Professor's whole group will become more unpredictable. I know what is going on, Katya. They are on the verge of madness. I don't want your family hurt.'

'Then why did you kiss me?' asked Katya, anger rising up suddenly and unexpectedly. Was he a toy she wanted to play with?

Pranita looked away. 'I shouldn't have.'

'I wish you never held my hand, never talked to me, never met me. You should have never come into my life.'

Pranita had tears in her eyes. 'Sorry. Maybe you should not have saved us that day. Your life would have been better.'

She turned and walked back towards the shed. Katya followed her, his shoulders slumped, his heart broken. He could see her wiping her face. He wanted to run to her, hold her in his arms and kiss her tears away. But what was the point? She had said it best: _It's not meant to be._

Near the shed, the Professor's group happened on Pranita. They were carrying their spears and had smeared blood on their faces.

'There you are, beautiful!' the Professor leered. 'We were looking for you.'

'What do you want?' asked Pranita, irritated.

Katya stopped in the shadow of a nearby decrepit building. He sighed. He did not want another fight with Vishal. He just wanted to be left alone. He decided to wait for everyone to leave before walking back to the shed. He observed the Professor's group apprehensively. _They have started to paint their faces in blood again. Things are going to get bad._

The Professor's group was smoking cigarettes. Katya wondered where they had got it from. It must have been from the Russian soldiers.

'Since when do you smoke?' Pranita asked Vishal.

'Just now,' said Vishal, offering cigarettes from an open pack to her.

She shook her head. 'Did the soldiers give it to you?'

Vishal looked guilty. 'I made a deal. Cigarettes in exchange for...'

'It's not going to be too bad. You'll enjoy it,' said the Professor to Pranita.

'Enjoy what?' she asked.

Vishal took a deep breath. 'We have been talking to the Russians. Everyone has to contribute whatever they can to the group, for the common good. You are no exception.'

'I don't understand what you are saying,' said Pranita.

The Professor looked at her coldly. 'You have to sleep with all of us.'

Pranita laughed derisively. 'Is this some sort of sick joke? I'm too tired for this nonsense.'

'It has to be done,' said Vishal quietly.

Pranita looked at him and knew that they were not being flippant.

'The Russians and us... four,' Arjun explained with a grin.

The Professor licked his lips shamelessly. 'I've been waiting for a long, long time to be inside you.'

Pranita looked at him horrified. 'What's wrong with you?'

'I'm sorry,' said Vishal.

'Let's take her to the Russians,' said the Professor.

Vishal, Arjun, and Ameed suddenly grabbed Pranita and started dragging her towards the shed where the Russians were. She struggled desperately and tried to push Vishal away. He seized her hands, suddenly furious and hit her on the face.

'No one is going to help you,' cried Vishal. 'You betrayed me. Did you not want to fuck that savage boy? I'll give you something even better. Drunk Russian soldiers!' he hissed venomously.

Katya moved fast. He knew he had to fight off the four of them. He ran from the shadows, sliding his dagger out. The Professor saw him coming from the corner of his eyes.

'Kill him!' the Professor screamed.

Vishal turned in an instant and threw his spear at Katya. The aim was perfect and Katya had to jump sideways to avoid it. The spear grazed Katya's shoulders, opening a cut. His dagger fell out of his hands. Arjun and Ameed attacked him with their spears. Katya was helpless. Unarmed, he dodged their repeated thrusts.

'Help!' he screamed, hoping the tribe would come to his aid.

The Professor was holding Pranita by the hair. 'Your friends are locked in the shed,' he laughed at Katya. 'And your wolf is outside the camp.'

Vishal ran to grab his fallen spear. Katya knew that Vishal's next throw might kill him. He had to do something quickly. But it was impossible to get close to Arjun or Ameed.

'Please stop,' pleaded Pranita desperately. 'I'll do whatever you want me to. Don't hurt him.'

'It's too late for that,' the Professor snickered.

Katya dodged Arjun's next thrust and grabbed hold of the spear. But before he could yank it way, Ameed had smashed him on his side with his spear. The hit didn't pierce him but it knocked him, off balance, onto the ground. _This is it_ , thought Katya.

'No!' screamed Pranita.

'He's mine,' shouted Vishal readying his weapon for the killing move.

Katya was lying on the ground. Everything seemed to be happening slowly. He could feel the light breeze on his face, the sweat trickling down the back of his neck and his hands clenching at the mud on the ground. _So this is how it feels before death takes us._ The Professor had won. They would kill him, imprison his family and Pranita... his beloved Pranita would be...

Vishal raised his spear high, about to throw it at Katya. He was standing a few feet away and would not miss. Katya felt a mad, helpless fury at the Professor's group. He had saved these people and they were going to kill him. Katya gritted his teeth and his hands tightened on the ground, almost to the point of breaking his bones in anger.

Vishal's hand moved. He was going to send the spear hurtling into Katya's body. A thought flashed in Katya's mind. _The mud!_ Katya threw the mud his hands were clenching into Vishal's face just as Vishal released the spear. As Vishal saw the mud flying towards him, his almost imperceptible jerk made the spear smash into the ground inches from Katya's head. The mud hit Vishal in the face, thus blinding him. Katya rolled over and grabbed Vishal's spear as Arjun and Ameed attacked furiously. He deflected their blows. Instead of thrusting the spear back at them, he swung it in a circle above his head. It hit Arjun on the head and he collapsed, holding his head in agony.

'Throw at him!' shouted the Professor.

Seeing Arjun and Vishal out of action, Ameed was nervous. He threw but he missed Katya completely. The spear went sailing past him into the darkness. Ameed was unarmed. Katya smashed him hard of the shoulder with his spear. Ameed fell down, crying out in pain.

Vishal ran towards the Russian soldiers' shed. _He is going to call for help._ The Professor threw Pranita to the ground and took a step back.

'The Russians are going to kill you all!' cried the Professor and turned, following Vishal. Katya hesitated. _Should I do it?_ The Professor was running towards the Russians' shed. Katya took a deep breath. It had to be done. He aimed and threw the spear powerfully. It flew in the air and pierced the Professor's back. The Professor stumbled to the ground. He looked at the bloody spear end poking out of his chest, astounded. And then he fell down dead.

Katya ran to Pranita. He hugged her tightly, almost crushing her. 'Are you hurt?'

Pranita shook her head. 'We have to help the others,' she said.

They both ran to the shed where the tribe members were. There was a huge, rusty iron lock fastened to the door. Katya tried to smash it with his spear. The dogs inside the shed started barking. The Russians soldiers had stopped singing. He could hear raised voices coming from their shed. He knew he had to hurry.

'Is it you, Katya?' asked Ukik from inside the shed.

'Yes,' said Katya. 'I can't break the lock.'

'Listen, escape from here!' said Ukik urgently.

'Not without everyone,' Katya protested, pounding the lock again and again.

'Katya, they want us alive to do their work for them,' said Arnaq. 'We'll be safe. Run!'

Pranita looked behind them. The Russians had lit torches and began to stream out of their shed. 'Hurry,' she said.

Katya looked at the lock. It would not break with the spear. There had to be another way. He felt the hinges of the massive door.

A shot was fired. The bullet hit the wall near Katya. The Russians were aiming for him.

'We have to leave!' Pranita cried.

'I'll be back,' Katya shouted through the door.

They both ran behind the shed as a second shot was fired at them. Katya knew that the only way out of the gulag was through the main gate. Smoky and Blood had started barking outside the gate, hearing the shots. But the main gate was closed and they would be of no help. Katya and Pranita ran towards the mine and then circled back between the decrepit buildings towards the main gate. From a distance, Katya threw two stones into the mine.

Hearing the clatter from the mine, the Russians moved towards it. The lit torches showed the positions of the Russians soldiers clearly in the night. Katya and Pranita kept in the shadows and reached the main gate. There was a soldier guarding it. He was armed with an AK-47. Katya peeped from behind a broken water tank. If they could get past the lone soldier, they could escape out of the camp. The man was facing the camp, gun ready. There was no chance of sneaking up on him.

From the mines, he heard shouts. The sounds were now coming closer. The soldiers knew they were not in the mines and were moving to the gate to cut off any chance that they would escape out. Behind the soldier, Blood and Smoky were barking ferociously, trying to get inside the camp. The main gate was made of sturdy wooden beams that did not budge. The dogs put their heads between the beams desperately trying to squeeze inside but the gaps were too narrow. _They know we are in danger._

The soldier glanced uneasily every few seconds behind him at the enraged dogs. Then he turned towards them. Katya knew what the man was going to do. The moment the man faced away from the camp, Katya ran towards him. The soldier raised his gun, aimed for the dogs.

Before he could pull the trigger, Katya smashed his dagger hilt into the man's head. The man uttered a low groan and fell down unconscious. Katya grabbed the man's gun as Pranita hurriedly unbolted the gate.

Katya turned back to see figures coming towards them. He had a gun and he had his dogs. _Can I fight_ the men _?_ No, they were experienced soldiers. They would easily kill him. He wouldn't win a firefight against them. He had to plan something else.

They both ran outside towards the reindeer. He shouted at the dogs to follow him. They ran into the night and crouched down between the reindeer, panting. The men got to the gate and stopped.

If the men decided to spread out in the dark searching for them, Katya knew that he would have the advantage. The dogs knew how to stalk and could kill the men stealthily, one by one.

The soldiers were arguing loudly among each other. Katya and Pranita could hear what they were saying.

'Let's kill them!' an enraged soldier bellowed staring at the guard lying unconscious on the ground.

'Kill the boy. I want the girl alive. I'll have her before I kill her,' said another.

'You fools, the boy has a wolf,' shouted Yegor. 'In the dark, it could come from anywhere for your throat.'

'They can't run for long. They have no food. We'll track them down in the morning,' said Artyom. 'We still have some fuel for the snowmobiles.'

There were grunts of approval.

'I wanted that girl tonight,' a soldier complained.

'You shall have a girl tonight,' cried Yegor. 'Just not that one.'

Katya and Pranita trudged along across the swampy, wet ground in the moonlight. Smoky and Blood followed them, close to their heels. They were making for the pine forest on the horizon, the only cover they could see near the gulag. They didn't talk. Both of them were grappling with their own thoughts and emotions.

Katya was desperately hoping that the Russian soldiers would not hurt his family. He knew the men were capable of anything. _How can I save them?_ It seemed impossible. The soldiers were on the guard now. The only way into the gulag was through the main gate which would now be guarded carefully.

Katya felt completely spent and exhausted. It suddenly hit him like a punch to the stomach: _There is no way I can save the tribe._ He looked at the forest looming in the distance. He stopped.

'What's wrong?' asked Pranita.

Katya lowered himself onto the ground. 'I can't do this,' he said.

Pranita didn't say anything. She looked at him concerned, then sat next to him and put her arms around him. He felt her warmth and her soft, long hair on his cheek.

Katya took a deep breath. 'What is the point of running?' he asked wearily. 'The ground is wet. Our tracks are clear. In the morning the soldiers will hunt us down in the forest. They have guns and they'll be shooting to kill.'

Pranita nodded.

'We should have never come here,' Katya continued. 'Everything is lost. Even if we somehow escape the Russians, where do we find food? We'll have to travel south for days before we can find game in the forests. And what happens to my family? Will I ever see them again?'

Pranita kissed his cheek lightly. 'So we just give up?' she asked.

Katya shook his head. 'No... I...'

She turned his face towards her. 'In the end, things always work out,' she said.

Katya shook his head. 'Not this time. There is no hope.'

'There is always hope, Katya. As long as we are alive.'

Pranita got up and pulled him up to his feet. 'We will fight,' she said softly. 'Till our last breath.'

Katya held her hands, unconvinced.

And then they heard a distant sound. It seemed to have come from the pine forest. Katya gulped. He looked at Pranita. They were both thinking the same thing: it sounded like a roar.

They waited quietly, listening intently. Katya hoped it was a bear or a wolf. The only thing that could make their already terrible situation worse would be if they now had to fight off man eaters. They heard a cacophony of distant grunts and roars.

'It's a man eater pack,' said Katya, raising the gun in his hand.

Pranita closed her eyes, concentrating on the sounds. 'And a very large one,' she said.

Katya's heart raced. The lethargy and depression instantly vanished. His survival instinct had kicked in. He had a gun and his two best dogs. Could they fight off the creatures? He wondered how many bullets were there in the gun.

'From the sounds, I think there must be at least 25,' said Katya, dismayed. It was too large a group. Even with the gun, he could not hope to kill more than three or four.

Katya turned to Pranita. He looked at her surprised. There were man eaters in front of them and bloodthirsty soldiers behind them, and she was smiling.

'What?' he asked confused.

She glanced back at the gulag in the distance. 'I have an idea.'

#  

# CHAPTER 17

Katya cooeed.

From the pine forest there came a series of roars and then, silence. They knew that the man eaters were now stalking them and had been investigating the sound they had heard.

Katya and Pranita ran across the wet, swampy ground back towards the gulag. Katya knew that the man eaters could move fast and easily outrun them. They kept glancing back to see if the monsters were following them. In the moonlight, they finally saw figures come out of the pine forest. There were around two dozen creatures.

Katya cooeed again. The creatures started moving faster towards the sound.

'I think they have seen us,' said Pranita.

Katya turned to see the man eaters spreading out. _I hope this works,_ he thought desperately. In front of them was a small rising in the land. Katya knew that once they were over the undulation, they would be hidden from the view of the man eaters till the creatures got to the rising.

Katya knew that everything depended on getting the timing right. They ran across the rising and jumped down at the other end. They were near the gulag now. The gates were closed and armed guards were standing behind it with burning torches.

'Wait here!' said Pranita, coming to a stop and looking behind her. 'Let the man eaters get closer.'

After a nervous minute had passed, Pranita nodded.

Katya cooeed for the last time. There were grunts behind them. The creatures were closing in. The guards at the gate had heard the cooee too, and looked into the darkness, guns pointed.

'The fools have come back,' a soldier laughed.

'Be careful. The boy's got a gun,' the second soldier warned.

Katya and Pranita ran away from the main gate towards the side of the gulag.

'Come here,' Katya whispered to Smoky and Blood. The dogs were growling, after having scented the man eaters.

They ran to a gap in the barbed wire fence and crawled inside. They crouched down near the opening, the wooden beams around them keeping them out of sight. They waited with bated breath.

They saw the man eaters climb over the rising and stop. The creatures grunted softly. They had seen the gulag.

The attack didn't happen at the main gate. The creatures quietly began to spread out around the camp. Katya and Pranita sat nervously as the man eaters passed by where they were hiding and encircled the camp.

_Are they going to try to smash the wall?_ Katya knew that the wall was sturdy and high. Katya peeped from his hiding place and saw that the creatures, after having squeezed inside the wire fence, were crouching low to enable others to climb on them.

Katya and Pranita looked on, amazed. The man eaters were making a 'human pyramid.' Standing on the back of others, a single leap was enough for the man eaters to grab the top of the wall and scramble up. From the top of the wall, they pulled up the other man eaters.

'They are clever,' whispered Pranita.

Katya nodded. 'The Russian soldiers say the bigger the pack, the faster they learn and change.'

'And this is a big pack,' said Pranita quietly.

Suddenly there were shouts from inside the gulag. Gunfire from AK-47s rang out. The battle had started.

Katya knew that the soldiers were experienced and had faced many battles with man eaters. It would be a close contest. They would hold off the attack, at least for a while.

Katya and Pranita slid out of their hiding place and approached the main gate cautiously. Katya had the AK-47 pointed, ready to shoot any soldiers or man eaters he saw. But the main gate was unguarded. Katya shot the hinges away. They opened the gate and ran towards the shed where the tribe was.

A furious battle was raging near the walls of the gulag. Katya could see the Russian soldiers concealed between buildings, firing. The man eaters were hiding, climbing on top of the sheds and stalking their prey from the roofs. They were clever enough not to directly face the gunfire.

The noise was deafening. Katya and Pranita reached the shed. The dogs were in a barking frenzy inside the shed. A man eater was smashing at the door, trying to get in.

Katya aimed his gun and pressed the trigger. A hail of bullets tore into its head. The thing collapsed.

'Stay back,' shouted Katya through the door as he fired at the lock, shattering it into pieces. He kicked open the door.

"What is happening?' cried Orinon in a state of panic.

'We have to run,' said Katya.

The tribe hurried out, trying to keep the dogs with them. They ran toward the main gate. A man eater roared at them from the top of a shed. Katya turned the gun on it and emptied his magazine. The man eater collapsed onto the ground. The bullets had finished and Katya threw away the gun. He desperately hoped that no more man eaters would jump at them. The group ran out of the gate.

"Where is the Professor?' asked Arnaq. 'We can't leave him behind.'

Katya didn't know what to say. 'I... they...'

'They all died in the attack,' said Pranita.

Ukik looked back at the camp. 'Our caravan is still inside, and all our things.'

'It's too late now. We can't go back,' said Pranita.

They ran towards the pine forest. In the distance, near the forest, they saw the reindeer herd. The animals had panicked seeing the man eaters and had fled towards the forest.

By the time they reached the forest the gunfire had completely died out. There were only the distant roars now.

Everyone knew what it meant.

'The pack must have grown even larger now,' said Ukik in a whisper.

The group looked behind them, towards the gulag. It was too dark to see anything.

They stood at the edge of the pine forest. The children sat down on the ground, tired and worried. Smoky ran into the forest.

'How are we going to fight the man eaters?' asked Upu, fearfully. They had no weapons. Their spears had been taken by the Russians when they had locked up the group. In their hurry to get out of the camp, they had not taken any tools or weapons from the caravan.

'We just have the dogs and my dagger,' said Katya.

'Maybe they won't come after us. We can hide in the forest,' said Arnaq.

Katya looked at the pine trees rising near him. 'Upu, get up on a tree and tell me what you see.'

Upu was an expert climber and she ran to the nearest tree. She got 20 feet high and looked in the direction of the gulag. 'They are coming here,' she said to the alarmed group. 'They are following us.'

The dogs growled restlessly as they picked up the scent of the approaching man eaters.

'Maybe we can climb up the trees,' said Pranita.

Katya shook his head. 'These things can climb too.'

_How are we going to fight the creatures?_ It seemed like an impossible task to Katya. The dogs might attack and kill one or two man eaters. But unarmed, the tribe would be slaughtered by the creatures. In a few hours, they would all either be dead or turned into monsters.

'Where are they coming from?' Katya asked Upu. Maybe there was still a chance that some of the tribe members could be saved. He could make noises and get the man eaters to follow him, away from the forest.

'They have spread out in a long line,' said Upu.

Katya felt his heart sink. The creatures were planning to encircle the tribe. The ruse would not work.

'We have to run into the forest,' said a panicky Orinon. 'In different directions... some of us might live.'

'We are not separating,' said Arnaq firmly. 'We have to stay together. That's the only way we'll survive.'

Smoky came out of the forest and stood next to Katya. Katya stroked her head, unable to decide what to do. Fear had gripped him hard. It was then that he realized that she was completely wet. There were no marshes or swamps in the forest. Could this mean...

'There is a river nearby,' cried Katya suddenly. 'We have to cross it.'

'What?' asked Ukik.

'The man eaters cannot swim. They don't go in the water.'

'How do you know?' asked Pranita.

'I saw one of them on the ice float.'

Smoky had come back in minutes so Katya knew the river had to be close by. The tribe hurried into the forest, following Smoky. Katya looked at the reindeer nearby. Ukik caught his glance.

'Maybe we can even save the animals,' said Ukik eagerly.

The river was wide and swift-flowing. Looking at it, Katya felt his heart soar. He knew that it was too deep for the man eaters to cross. The grunts and roars were coming closer.

Everyone hurriedly removed their heavy coats and tied it up in bundles. Katya and Ukik drove the reindeer herd first into the water. The animals waded through the water and climbed up on the other side. The dogs were more cautious and didn't get into the water easily. The tribe members had lived near the sea their whole lives and were expert swimmers.

The children swam across easily despite the current. Kartik did not know how to swim so Katya and Orinon helped him across the water. Aunt Yukai clung to Ukik's back as they made the crossing.

Katya was in the water when the man eaters came out of the forest, near the riverbank. They roared and ran about the riverbank maddened with rage as they saw their prey slipping away from them.

The group clambered up the shore. The night mist was slowly spreading over the river. Katya shivered as he looked at the opposite shore. The roars were deafening. The creatures had gathered near the riverbank and were watching them.

Katya knew that the melting snow in the mountains would have made the river too wide for the man eaters to wade across for hundreds of miles in either direction. They were safe from the creatures.

The mist was reducing the visibility and the creatures stopped roaring as they began to lose sight of the tribe. Pranita came and stood next to Katya, and took his hands in hers. They were both dripping wet. Katya held her in his arms and kissed her.

He knew she was hurting. She had known the Professor, Arjun, Ameed, and Vishal before the infection had turned all their lives upside down. Katya knew they were once good people and she would be grieving.

They both looked at the opposite shore. The creatures could still be seen through the mist.

Pranita pointed suddenly, looking shocked. 'Is that...'

One of the man eaters, a lot smaller than the rest, crouched by the riverbank, watching them. Katya realized it was the Professor. Already, the change in him was drastic. His eyes were different, his posture was inhuman. There were wounds in his body.

Pranita shuddered as he watched the thing. Katya felt a stab of pity for the Professor, but he knew that what he was looking at was no longer a man; it was a man eater.

And then, the mist closed in on them like a curtain. They couldn't see the creature anymore.

#  

# EPILOGUE

YEAR 4 OF THE GREAT INFECTION

Katya climbed the steep hill. The harsh winter was ending. Wildflowers had started blooming and the sea ice was melting. It had only been a year back when he had climbed the hill with his father. Katya thought back to that day. He was different then. He had been a boy, afraid of the horrors that were to come. He was a man now. And the chieftain of the tribe.

Orinon didn't want the responsibility of being the leader of the tribe and Katya had gladly taken over the duty. He tightened his father's wolf fur coat around himself as fierce winds battered him at the summit of the hill.

The guillemots had arrived at the cliff and screeched as they searched for fish. He took out his binoculars and searched the sea. There was an endless expanse of water and ice.

'They will come,' he whispered to himself.

He took a deep breath. It wasn't so long back that everything had seemed hopeless. He remembered that fateful day when the tribe had barely managed to stay alive after the man eater attack in the gulag. They had lost all their things, which had to be abandoned behind them. After crossing the river, they had slowly rebuilt everything - the sleds, baloks, the ropes. They had migrated north to the Arctic as their ancestors had done before them.

They had built rafts and kept close to the sea or large rivers during their journey. Water was the best defence against the man eaters. Katya made bows for everyone in the camp and made practising a must for the tribe members. Now, even the children could kill a small rabbit from a distance.

He stopped scanning the water. _If not today, they'll come tomorrow._

Katya looked at the spectacular scenery around him. The sea was bright blue with ice floes sparkling like jewels. The hills that rose near him had turned into carpets of pink and violet as the spring wildflowers bloomed. _Pranita needs to see this._

He smiled as he thought of her. He was in love. He was happy.

And he wasn't afraid anymore.

# THANK YOU!

