Polar Yeti And The Beasts Of Prehistory

by Dennion, Matthew

  A roar echoed through the mountains behind them. Gina shook her head. “Teratorns are not the only thing that we have to worry about. That’s Yukon. He will follow us all the way out of the valley and back to base camp.” She gave a concerned look. “We can’t lead that monster back to camp. If we do, more people will die when Yukon goes on a rampage through the camp as he looks for me and Thu-Ca.”

  Henry smiled. “There is no way that I am letting that monster get a hold of you or hurt anyone else.” He gestured toward Gina’s coat pocket. “Do you still have your radio?”

  Gina quickly checked her pocket. “Yes, do you want me to tell them to make double-time evacuating the campsite back to the ship?”

  Henry shook his head. “No. If we were to take off like that, Yukon might take his rampage to Jun-Tuk’s village. When I sent back Dana and Gordon, in addition to starting the evacuation, I also told them to have the demolition experts rig the side of the mountain to cause an avalanche that will trap the Yeti in the valley forever. Get on your radio and tell them to hurry up. They have about a half an hour to blow the sides of the mountain before Yukon comes storming through the valley pass and heads to camp.”

  Gina grabbed her radio and switched it on. She knew that the demolition guys would be carrying radios because safety protocols demanded that they do so. She could never remember the two men’s actual names. She had one time jokingly called them Axe and Smash after the old WWE tag team Demolition. The two guys got a good laugh out of it and had only referred to themselves as Axe and Smash whenever they were talking to Gina. She picked up her radio, “Axe, Smash, this is Professor Murella come in. Over.”

  There was static for a moment and then the gruff voice of Axe came back over the radio, “Professor Murella, you are alive! How are you? What happened? Is your husband with you?”

  Gina spoke quickly, “Henry is with me. We are heading to the valley pass now. We should be there in roughly fifteen minutes. The Yeti is only a few minutes behind us. Do you have the charges set on the mountainside to seal off this valley?”

  Axe spoke slowly, “We only have the charges set on the one side of the mountain. We thought that we were going to have more time.”

  Gina sighed. “Do you think that only blowing one side of the mountains will cause enough of an avalanche to completely block the valley pass?”

  The radio was silent for a moment. “I can’t say that it will completely block it, but it will sure make a mess of things.”

  Gina nodded to herself. “Okay, we will just have to go with that. We will be out of the valley in just over ten minutes. Can you get the minimum safe distance to blow the charges in that time?”

  Axe was taking deep and labored breaths as he answered, “We are making our way down the mountain now. It’s going to be cutting it close but I think that we can make it.”

  Gina answered with a deadly tone to her voice, “Make sure you are clear in that time frame because if you are not, that Yeti is going to be running out of the valley just as you two are reaching the base the of the mountain.”

  Axe breathed hard into the radio, “Copy that!”

  Gina put her radio back into her pocket and relayed her conversation with Axe to Henry. Henry nodded and said, “Alright, let’s push it and get the hell out of here.”

  The two snowmobiles continued to rocket through the prehistoric valley. Far to their left, they saw another herd of mammoths walking by. Gina briefly hoped that Yukon would take the opportunity to prey on the mammoths, but in her heart she knew that nothing would distract the Yeti from pursuing her and Thu-Ca. As she thought about Thu-Ca, she looked over to see the baby quietly sleeping in Jun-Tuk’s arms. She could see that the old man was a natural with infants. She then looked over at Henry and smiled as she thought of what an excellent father her husband would be. Gina’s happy thoughts faded away when she heard Yukon roar again, reminding her that the monster was not far behind them.

  Several minutes later, the valley pass came into view. Gina picked up her radio and called the demolition experts, “Axe, are you two clear of the danger zone?”

  Axe could barely talk because he was breathing so hard, “We… need about… five more minutes… You guys have to clear a mile out of the pass as well before we can cause the avalanche.”

  Gina spoke into her radio, “Copy that. See you guys soon.” She yelled over to Henry, “We need to be a mile out of the valley before they can cause the avalanche!”

  Henry nodded as he aimed his snowmobile directly at the quickly approaching valley pass. The few minutes that it took to reach the valley pass seemed to drag on for an eternity, but the snowmobiles finally cleared the opening between the mountains. They maneuvered around the rocks at the valley pass and then they continued to move in a straight line away from the pass and toward the campsite. It took them several more minutes to clear the mile marker. When they reached a safe distance, they stopped their snowmobiles and turned around so that they could see the pass. As Gina was looking back toward the pass, she could see the colossal form of Yukon sprinting toward it. She yelled into her radio, “Now! Blow the charges now!”

  There was a deafening explosion and Gina watched as tons of snow, ice, and rock were thrown into the air. Yukon was entering the valley pass just as the explosion went off. The Yeti ignored the devastation occurring around him and he continued to run toward Gina. The anthropologist held her breath as the avalanche made its way down the mountain. Yukon was still running at full speed and Gina thought for a moment that the incredible beast would actually outrun the avalanche. She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer to a higher power that her baby would be saved from the monster. She opened her eyes to see the avalanche come crashing down at the base of the mountain behind Yukon. The Yeti was moving at an unbelievable speed but the wall of snow and ice behind him was moving even faster. Gina watched as Yukon was overtaken by the rush of snow like a child trying to exit the ocean only to have a wave come crashing down on top of him.

  Yukon’s body was tossed and turned as the avalanche used up the last of its strength. Yukon vanished under the snow as the avalanche came to a halt less than a half mile from Gina, Henry, Jun-Tuk, and the baby. When the snow finally stopped moving, Henry climbed off his snowmobile, ran over to Gina, and hugged her. He whispered into her ear, “It’s over. It’s finally over.”

  Gina kissed her husband and said, “Henry, I have something to tell you.” Gina smiled and then there was a loud roar behind them. Gina turned around to see Yukon climbing out of the snow that had buried him. The Yeti walked through the deep snow of the avalanche then he started running toward to Gina and Thu-Ca.

  No one wasted time talking; instead they all jumped onto their snowmobiles. Henry climbed onto one snowmobile and Gina and Jun-Tuk climbed onto the second vehicle. Once they were moving, Gina called out over her radio, “Base camp, this is Gina Murella, come in! Do you copy?”

  The familiar voice of Dana Summers came back over the radio, “Gina, you are alive! Is the valley sealed off? We heard the explosion and the avalanche.”

  “Yes, but the Yeti managed to make it out of the valley. He is still in chasing us. How is the evacuation going?”

  Dana voice came back filled with fear, “We are not able to evacuate! There is a large pod of orcas off the coast. They have herded hundreds of seals to shore. The seals are occupying the only stretch of beach for miles that does not have jagged underwater rocks leading up to the shoreline. The transport boats can’t come ashore with all of those seals blocking the way. Those seals are keeping us trapped here and the orcas aren’t letting them leave.”

  Gina’s worst nightmare was coming true. She was leading Yukon back to camp where he would massacre everyone in sight and there was nowhere for them to escape to. She looked behind her to see that they had gained a little ground on Yukon. Gina pulled her snowmobile to a stop. She turned around to Jun-Tuk. “Jun-Tuk, you have been watching us use these machines. Do you think that you could operate this machine
and hold the baby?”

  The old man nodded. “When I was young I could row a canoe on the great ocean and hold my daughter on my lap. I think that I can operate this dog-less sled and still hold the child.”

  Gina was instructing Jun-Tuk on how to operate the snowmobile when Henry pulled up beside her. “What are you doing? That monster is right behind us!”

  Gina ignored Henry and finished showing Jun-Tuk how to operate the machine. She then pointed to the west. “Go that way and you will find the other people that we came here with.”

  Yukon was less than a hundred feet behind them as Jun-Tuk took off to the west and Gina climbed onto Henry’s snowmobile. She screamed, “Go straight ahead toward the ocean!”

  Henry did as she said then he yelled, “We are almost out of gas! Why aren’t we heading for the transport boats?”

  Gina took a deep breath. “The transport boats can’t come ashore. A large pod of orcas have forced a massive amount of seals onto the beach. There are taking up the only landing area where it is not too rocky for the transport boats to land.”

  Henry nodded. “We’re trapped and you don’t want anyone else to die.” He spoke with as much courage as he could muster. “Don’t worry. I won’t let that monster take you alive.”

  Gina hugged her husband. “I love you, Henry. You are everything that I could have asked for in a husband. Don’t worry, our journey together doesn’t end here. In fact, it’s only beginning.” The line of seals and the ocean came into view. The sun was just starting to set to the west and it cast an orange glow over the gathered seals and the ocean behind them. The scene was one of the most beautiful things that Gina had ever beheld. Then she looked at the thick black fins circling in the waters just off the coast. She whispered into Henry’s ear, “Let me off just in front of the seals and then head down the beach a little way. Yukon will follow me.”

  They had reached the seals and Henry pulled the snowmobile to a stop. Gina climbed off and quickly kissed her husband through their ski masks. She turned to see Yukon less than fifty feet behind them. She handed Henry the radio and yelled, “Go!”

  Tears welled up in Henry’s eyes. There was so much that he wanted to say to his beloved wife but she had said that their journey together didn’t end here. Henry loved his wife and he trusted her. As he drove down the beach, he knew that he would have the chance to tell her everything that he felt.

  Gina took one look at Henry and the she started wading into the massed seals. The animals were making all kinds of sounds and climbing over each other in a panic as Yukon ran toward them from the beach and the orcas circled in the water. The panicked seals finally decided to take their chances in the ocean rather than have Yukon slaughter them, and as one, they rushed into the frigid waters of the ocean. As the seals dashed into the freezing water, Gina followed them.

  Her body felt like a thousand knives had pierced her skin as the cold ocean water attacked her body. The pain only lasted for a few seconds before her entire body went numb. She could feel herself starting to blackout, but when she saw the enraged Yukon step into the surf, she forced herself to stay awake and go deeper into the water.

  When Henry saw Gina go into the water, he grabbed his radio. “Dana, this is Henry, we are going to need a Sno-Cat with a hyperthermia kit one mile north of base camp ASAP!”

  Dana voice came back rushed, “Roger that. We are climbing aboard and will be heading out in less than one minute.”

  Henry replied, “Please hurry! Push that thing as fast as it will go!”

  Gina was nearly in shoulder deep water when Yukon had caught up to her. He was reaching down to grab her, but once they saw the orcas, the seals panicked again and swam back to shore. A fleeing seal bumped into Gina and knocked her away from Yukon’s claw. Gina tumbled through the icy water and out of the corner of her eye, she saw a thick black and white form collide with Yukon’s leg. The collision caused the Yeti to lose his footing and fall into the water. The Yeti rolled over to see the jaws of an orca wide open and coming for him. Yukon howled in pain as the Orca closed its jaws on his arm and shoulder. Blood poured out of the Yeti and it turned the ocean around him red. Yukon dug his free claw into the whale’s side. Then, in another show of his immense strength the Yeti stood up, lifted the orca out of the water, and slammed it down into the surf. The orca crashed into the water then it rolled over a few times and headed back out to sea. Yukon roared at the fleeing orca and Gina watched as a second orca crashed into Yukon’s leg and knocked him into the water again. This time the orca had grabbed Yukon’s leg and the powerful oceanic predator was fighting to pull Yukon out into the ocean. Gina had been trying to swim back to shore but her freezing body had stopped responding. She saw a seal swim past her and she was content to let herself slip beneath the waves when she felt strong arms wrap around her. Henry pulled her out of the water and said, “Like you said, our journey together isn’t over yet. “ He pulled her head out of the water and she watched as Yukon continually struck the orca in the face until it let him go.

  By the time that Yukon had managed to free himself, the orca had drug the mighty Yeti into waist-deep water. The orca circled back out into deeper water then it and one of its fellow pod members swam toward Yukon like living torpedoes. Henry pulled Gina ashore and through chattering teeth she said, “Orcas form families… to attack one is to attack them all… Like Jun-Tuk said… The Yeti is the greatest predator on land but the orca is the greatest predator in the sea. Yukon is out of his element and outnumbered. This is one fight that he won’t win.”

  Gina and Henry watched as one of the orcas slammed into Yukon’s hip. The whale dug its teeth into Yukon’s thigh and the force of the attack spun Yukon around so that he was facing the shore. Yukon threw his arms out and roared in defiance, and when he did so, a second orca leapt out of the water and clamped its jaws around Yukon’s arm. The Yeti didn’t roar in pain. He looked silently at Gina with eyes that were filled with sadness from loss and betrayal. The Yeti only looked at Gina for a second, and for all of the rage that she had seen within Yukon’s eyes, his last look of sadness would stay with her for the rest of her life. Gina held Yukon’s gaze for that brief second before the orcas pulled him under the frigid waves. A pool of blood gushed out of the water where Yukon had gone under. Gina and Henry sat freezing to death on the beach where they waited for several long minutes. When Yukon did not surface Gina said, “Now it’s over.”

  Henry hugged her. “Now all we have to do is not die from freezing to death before Dana gets here.”

  Gina looked at the now almost fully set sun as it sent the last vestiges of its orange light across the ocean. She looked at the hundreds of beautiful seals around them. Then she looked at the frozen wasteland that had become like a second home to her and Henry over the last several years. She realized that this is exactly where she wanted to be. She couldn’t feel Henry holding her but she tried to snuggle closer to him. She forced her frozen face to smile and she said, “You can’t freeze to death here, Daddy. Your baby is going to need you.”

  A huge smile slowly formed on Henry’s face. “My baby! You mean…?” Gina nodded and Henry hugged his freezing wife as hard as he could. To the left of the couple, the last rays of the sun dipped into ocean, and as they did so, the lights of Dana’s Sno-Cat came into view.

  Epilogue

  Six months later

  Gina and Henry were sitting in their house in New Jersey. They had nearly managed to put the events of what had occurred in Antarctica behind them. Thanks to Dana, both of them had survived nearly freezing to death after plunging into the icy ocean waters. Most importantly, the baby in Gina’s womb was also unaffected by her exposure to the extreme cold. After several hours at the campsite, the standoff between the orcas and the seals finally came to its only possible end. The seals’ hunger finally forced them to take to the ocean where some of them lost their lives to the orcas. When the orcas had eaten their fill, the seals finally cleared off the beach. With the seals gone, the
transport boats were able to come to shore and then to return everyone to the ship. Prior to leaving Antarctica, Gina and Henry saw Jun-Tuk one last time. The old man had asked to raise Thu-Ca as his grandson. He felt that if his daughter had cared for the infant for several weeks after he was born, he was a much Shunu’s son as he was Wen-Ku’s. Jun-Tuk was happy to raise the infant as his grandson. He hugged Gina and Henry and thanked them for helping him to ease his sorrow from the loss of his daughter by helping to him to find his grandson. He also thanked them for helping to free his people from the reign of the Yeti. Jun-Tuk felt that by returning to his tribe with the infant, he could prove to them that the Yeti was not a god because no human could wrest an infant from the clutches of a divine being. Jun-Tuk also felt that those who still believed in the Yeti’s godhood would abandon those beliefs as time passed and the Yeti did not return to their village. With a final goodbye to Gina and Henry, Jun-Tuk took Thu-Ca and headed back to the village and out of the young couple’s lives forever.

  Once Gina and Henry had recovered from their ordeal, they radioed Princeton about the events that occurred during their expedition. The fallout from the expedition was extensive. While Gina and Henry were found to be clear of any legally responsible for the deaths of the people who died in the valley, the personal toll on both of them was tremendous. Through a mutual agreement with Princeton, both Gina and Henry resigned from their positions at the university.

  After much deliberation between the scientific community and the United States government, it was decided that the valley itself, as well as the Quinic tribe, would be put under the jurisdiction of the United Nations. No independent nation would be able to study the unique valley without UN approval. Once the legal matters regarding the valley were taken care of, there was the long list of funerals to attend. Gina and Henry still held themselves responsible for the deaths of their students and they attend as many of the funerals of those who had died as the families would allow them to. While most of the families did not blame Gina and Henry for the deaths of their loved ones, there were several who felt the two professors were negligent in their duties. A lawsuit was filed, but since everyone who went into the valley volunteered to do so, the case was dismissed. Gina and Henry still felt as if they had to do something to honor those who died during their expedition and they worked with Princeton to construct a memorial on the campus for those who died in the valley. The construction of the memorial helped Gina and Henry to ease their minds and to mentally move on from the deaths of their students.