After the successes of the Rite of Merit, Siku and Hermes’ handlers (Isabella and Noah respectively) decided to power on to the next Rite, the Rite of Fortitude. This rite was certainly going to be a challenge; a tedious trek was to take place through mountaintops, icy rivers that snaked their way through heavily wooded forests and treacherous rocky outcrops that coated the Alaskan wilderness that their trek would be destined for.
Both Siku and Hermes needed a few days to recover from their huge effort in the Rite of Merit, which gave Isabella and Noah the time to plan their route through the Alaskan landscape accordingly. They would start at the mountaintops that skirted around the designated area, and make their way down into a heavily forested valley, filled with enormous pines that rivaled the mountains in their height. After they made their way through the forests, which they predicted would take a few days, they would end out on the well-known tundra plains; golden grass that was thigh high would brush against the tops of their handler’s knees as they waded through. The entire journey would be challenging and exhausting, and the handlers hoped that their few days rest from the previous rite of fertility, they would be ready to complete the next one.
The day of the beginning of the Rite of Fortitude, Isabella and Noah awoke early. It was crucial to get a good head start before the hottest part of the day, and although Alaska was renowned for its ice-cold winters, its summers could be just as brutal. Isabella and Noah roused the two ever-reluctant Tokotas from their slumber – Siku growling in protest. “Come on, get up you big lump” Isabella laughed as she pushed him with her boot-clad foot, which Siku chose to ignore and continued pretending to sleep. Siku continued to protest his early awakening; sulking the whole time while Isabella gave him a quick brush and tacked him up, pretending to nip at her when she tightened the girth around his belly and even hesitating before having a pre-trek snack, a nice bucket of freshly caught fish. Hermes, on the other hand, was an angel for Noah the second he woke up, and complied with everything Noah asked of him as well as happily devouring his pre-trek snack without hesitation. Isabella looked on in silent resentment. “What have I done to deserve this” She sighed sarcastically, looking over at Siku who was rolling around in the dirt and staining his creamy white coat. Once he realised Isabella was watching, he went back to his perpetual sulkiness, fixing a frown on his face and glaring over at Isabella.
After a few more minutes of preparation, the Tokota handler pairs were ready to set off. For a safety precaution, both Noah and Isabella slung their bows over their shoulders with their arrow cases, Isabella tucking her dagger into the side of her boot and Noah placing his throwing knives in their holders around his waist in a make shift belt. The handlers swung themselves into the saddles wrapped around their Tokotas backs and set off on their new adventure.
Their trek started on the beginnings of an incline, making their way up into the snow capped rocky passes that divided their passage into the plains. It was cooler up in the mountains, something of a welcome relief for the thick, woolen coats that covered the Tokotas bodies – they were bred for working in cool conditions, and the heat took a huge toll on their stamina, so the cooler temperatures made them more energetic and enthusiastic. They tackled the rocky and often-unstable terrain with ease, their thickly padded paws adequate protection against the sharp points the rocky mountain could throw at them. The Tokotas settled into a comfortable pace as they made their way through the mountainous incline, and a comfortable silence sat between their handlers. Although cool, it was proving to be a beautiful day and an excellent way to start of their trek, and would provide them with a good head start in case of any potential mishaps that may develop a long the way.
Although they were making good progress, the hike through the mountains did take up a large portion of the day. Just as they were reaching their camp site for the night, the sun was beginning to set in the distance and a gentle breeze picked up into a brisk wind which bit at Isabella’s skin, a gentle reminder of mother natures unpredictability. They arrived at their campsite; a sheltered rocky outcrop nestled on an overhanging cliff with an impressive view of the distant grasslands beneath them. Isabella busied herself with making a fire while Noah took the two Tokotas out for a quick hunt for dinner. They returned quickly, with a fair bounty in tow; three hares, eggs from some sort of bird and some wild potatoes. The Tokotas had brought back what remained of a caribou carcass for dinner, and were munching on that contently while Isabella and Noah skinned and then roasted the rabbits over the fire in silence. All were exhausted from the first day of exploring, and they still had such an incredibly long way to go. Isabella grew tired just at the thought of waking up at dawn tomorrow morning and dealing with Siku’s antics, saddling him up and continuing on their journey.
For the rest of the night, Isabella and Noah made small talk and then retired to their separate areas of the campsite to sleep. By the time Isabella nestled herself into her sleeping bag and began to close her eyes, Siku made his way over to her and curled up next to her, adding some much welcomed extra warmth to Isabella’s small body. She looked over, and saw Hermes had done the same thing, and smiled at the Tokotas love for their handlers, however volatile their personalities may be (cough Siku cough) before drifting off to sleep.
They awoke early the next morning, just as the pink and orange tints of a rising sun touched the sky, packed up their campsite and extinguished what remained of the fire, and set off. They would be heading down the mountains now, and making their way into the heavily wooded forest that was waiting for them, almost in anticipation, below. Isabella had grown accustomed to the silence that settled between her and Noah, and instead focused on the abundance of life that came to greet the new morning with enthusiasm. So on they continued, quietly making their way down the rocky slopes with the help of the Tokotas surefootedness, and making good progress. However, the weather had begun to turn; clouds made their way into the sky, swelling with the weight of rain and darkening to various shades of grey, hanging over them with a very threatening presence. “Hey, it looks like its about to pour down, should we go for shelter somewhere? We are ahead of schedule so we can afford to stop for awhile” Noah called out to her, his eyes flashed with concern at the quick weather development.
“Sure, I’m happy to find some cover, I’m sure Siku and Hermes wouldn’t mind the break too” She replied, looking down at Siku who was coated in sweat – since their descent into the forest he had trouble acclimatizing to the temperature change and his fur that was naturally suited to cold environments was definitely hampering his internal cooling system. Just as they reached a small cave wedged between two huge willows, the rain came. It poured down, unrelenting and unforgiving. Isabella and Noah wedged themselves in the small cave with Siku and Hermes lying at the front of the cave, still sheltered by its overhang.
“It will be over soon, its just a superficial downpour” Noah said, smiling at Isabella who blushed when she realised how close she was lying next to him. “I hope so” She replied quietly, looking at the steady flowing rain wistfully.
Contrary to Noah’s predictions, the rain did not stop. It went on, and on, and on. It was now reaching the afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set, and they were still stuck in the cave sheltering from the rain, and had began to flood areas of the forest floor; large, muddy puddles coated with fallen leaves and branches that were heavy with the weight of the rain popped up everywhere. “Should we try and start a fire?” Isabella asked, suddenly shivering at the cold that had crept into the cave. “If you can find some dry kindling and wood, sure” Noah laughed lightheartedly at her. “You go hunting with the boys for dinner, I’ll try and find some dry kindling. It looks like we will be spending the night here.” He replied a bit more seriously, and pulled the hood of his jacket over his head and walked into the steady rain outside of the cave.
Isabella gathered her weapons and rustled up the two Tokotas who were now brimming with unused energy, and set off to try and hunt something for dinner, even in this weather. She pulled the hood of her leather and thankfully waterproofed coat over her head and lifted herself up onto Siku’s bare back, and set off with Hermes in tow.
An hour later, Isabella, Siku and Hermes had returned. They brought back an old doe that was developing hypothermia being unable to escape the cold wet rain, and a couple of small hares. It was a meager dinner but it would have to do. Isabella was impressed to see that at the front of the cave, Noah sat with his hands around a small and comfortable looking fire. At least they would be able to cook a meal and stay warm tonight.
Once again, in comfortable, mutual silence, Noah and Isabella cooked and ate while the Tokotas snacked on leftover bones from dinner. The rain was still coming down in loads, and it had no intention of letting off anytime soon. “Do you think we will make it?” Isabella asked Noah. She was concerned – they had been forced to spend the whole day here, and they had lost a large amount of incredibly valuable time. Noah turned to face her, his face solemn. “Honestly, I’m not sure. We might even have to vacate this cave soon if this rain keeps up, were in a low-lying area that will flood if this rain doesn’t stop. I guess we just drew the short straw” He sighed, and turned away, running a tanned hand through his hair. Isabella stared out into the distance, feeling helpless and trapped by in theory, such an insignificant thing. Mother nature really knew how to make things hard. Having no other option, Isabella settled back into her sleeping bag and closed her eyes, letting the gentle lull of the rain hitting the top of the cave put her to sleep.
Isabella awoke to the now familiar sound of rain hitting the top of the cave, and her feet freezing. She sat up, and saw that the end of her sleeping bag was soaked. The cave had begun to flood overnight. She stood up in a rush and helped herself out of her sleeping bag, and woke Noah. “Noah, the cave is flooding!” She exclaimed, and gathered all her belongings up and stuffed them in her saddlebags quickly. A half asleep Noah also dragged himself from his makeshift bed and collected up his belongings; tying them to his saddlebags. They were lucky that they woke up when they did, for if they slept in any later, the cave would have been flooding with knee-deep water. Siku and Hermes looked on into the cave in curiosity, and their tails began to wag as they saw their handlers rush out with their tack around their shoulders to saddle them up. They had no choice but to move on from their cave today – rain, hail or shine, but the Tokotas were excited at finally expending the bounds of energy they had built up over the past day. Isabella’s teeth chattered as she tightened Siku’s girth, her fingers going pale they were so cold. Noah shivered and squeezed water from his socks as he sunk his feet into his boots. Isabella and Noah looked at each other, faces solemn with the task ahead.
