Free Soul Eater by Michelle Paver

cowering with their tails clamped between their legs.Far away, the ice bear vanished among the blue hills. Torak and Renn ran to where Inuktiluk was already sitting up, rubbing his forehead.He recovered fast. Grabbing the traces in his fist, he104drew his knife and, with its hilt, dealt the dogs punishing blows that made them squeal. Then, breathing hard, he nodded his thanks to Torak."We should thank you" Renn said shakily. "If you hadn't distracted it.The White Fox shook his head. "We only lived because it let us live." He turned to Torak. The distrust was back in his face. "My dogs. You can speak to them. Who are you? What are you? "Torak wiped the sweat off his upper lip. "We need to get going. That bear could be anywhere."Inuktiluk studied him for a moment. Then he gathered his remaining dogs, shouldered the body of the dead one, and limped back to the sled.Torak dropped his harpoon with a clatter, and bent double with his hands on his knees.Renn rubbed her shoulder.He asked if she was all right."Hurts a bit," she said. "But at least it's not my draw arm. What about you?""Fine. I'm fine." Then he sank to his knees and started to retch.The sinking sun burned golden on the dark-blue ice as the dogs flew toward the White Fox camp.Night fell. The slender moon rose. Torak kept glancing at the sky, but not once did he catch sight of105the First Tree: the vast, silent green fires that show themselves in winter. He longed for it as never before; he needed some link with the Forest. But it didn't come.They passed dark, fanged ice hills, and heard distant cracks and groans. They thought of demons hammering to break free. At last Torak spotted a speck of orange light. The weary dogs scented home, and picked up speed.As they neared the White Fox camp, Torak saw a large, humped snow shelter with three smaller ones linked to it by short tunnels. All were honeycombed with light shining through the blocks. Around them, many little humps sprang to life, scattering snow and barking a noisy welcome.Torak stepped stiffly from the sled. Renn winced and rubbed her shoulder. They were too numb with exhaustion to feel apprehensive of what lay ahead.Inuktiluk insisted that they beat every flake of snow from their clothes, and even pick the ice from their eyebrows, before crawling into the low entrance tunnel that was built like a dog-leg to keep out the wind. On hands and knees, Torak smelled the bitter stink of burning seal oil, and heard a murmur of voices, abruptly cut short.In the smoky lamplight, he saw whalebone racks, around the walls with many boots and mittens hung up106to dry; a glittering haze of frozen breath; and a circle of round faces glistening with blubber.Swiftly, Inuktiluk told his clan how he'd found the interlopers in the storm, and everything that had happened since. He was fair--he mentioned that Torak had saved him from being dragged across the ice--but his voice shook when he told how the "wolf boy" had spoken the tongue of dogs.The White Foxes listened patiently, asking no questions, and studying Torak and Renn with inquisitive brown eyes not unlike those of their clan-creature. They didn't seem to have a leader, but four elders huddled close to the lamp, on a low sleeping-platform piled with reindeer hides."It's them," shrilled one, a tiny woman, her face dark as a rose hip shriveled by frost. "These are the ones I saw in my vision."Torak heard Renn's sharp intake of breath. Placing both fists on his heart in sign of friendship, he bowed to the old woman. "Inuktiluk said that in your vision, you saw me about to do evil. But I haven't. And I won't."To his surprise, laughter ran through the shelter, and all four elders gave toothless grins."Who among us," said the old woman, "knows what evil we will or won't do?" Her smile faded, and her brow furrowed with sadness. "I saw you. You were about to break clan law."107"He wouldn't do that," said Renn.The elder didn't seem annoyed at this interruption; she merely waited to see