BALTO'S

I had just started to enter the mountains and I just finished up on the radio with Jenna to let her know where I was. I suddenly heard what sounded like glass shattering followed by a deep WHUMP sound and I looked up the mountain side through the trees, and I saw an avalanche coming directly towards me. I opened the engine at full and began racing the snow as it began to build. I heard a loud crack followed by a boulder smashing into the lower half of my left leg.

I screamed in pain as I felt the bone shatter into tiny pieces, as at the same time fought to keep the sled from tipping over. I looked around desperately for something, and I saw a cave in the mountains , so I headed for it as fast as I could. I looked back at the sled and the medicine was there, but the box was coming apart. One corner wasn't nailed down properly and the board was lifting.

I looked up and down I could see a giant block of snow and ice threatening to block my only path to safety so I pushed the snow machine harder than I had ever pushed it before. You could hear the engine screaming for mercy as I got closer and closer to the cave entrance.

I watched the giant ball of snow and ice plummet closer and closer and I thought for sure that this was gonna be my grave, so I braced for impact as I neared the hole, but I heard a rush of air then an echo. I looked and saw I was in the cave.

I stopped the machine and turned my radio on and sure enough Jenna was on there "Balto?! Balto?! Babe are you there?!" I took a deep breath and said with pain in my voice, but it tried to hide it "Yeah baby. I'm here." "Oh thank god! I've been trying to get a hold of you since your last transmittion. We have reports of the snow on the mountain tops around your area being unstable and possible avalanches." I chuckled and said "Funny you mention that now." "Why? What's so- oh please tell me you weren't in the avalanche that just happened."

I sighed and said "I would really love to tell you I wasnt, but I've never been a good liar." "Oh my god are you okay?!" "I'm fine. Other than I might need a new pair of pants and a few tiny bumps, I'm fine." It did hurt to lie to her, but the last thing Nome needed was one more body to worry about. Let alone Jenna to worry about. She was already worried to death about out her Baby brother, I didn't want to add to her worries. "That's good to hear. How's the Anti toxin holding up?" I looked back and said "Well I hope the kids like it well shaken. It's still there." she giggled a little and asked "Where are you now?" I looked around the cave and said "I think I'm in blue mountain cave." "Ok, radio me when you get out of the cave. I love you babe. Be safe." "Will do my love. I love you too."

With that, I turned the radio off and looked at my mangled leg and I knew it was shattered. My leg was not in the right position and when I went to move it, it bent like a noodle and I clenched my teeth in pain. I puked over the side of my machine a few times.

I opened my first aid kit and pulled out the splint and I took some leather and I put that in between my teeth for me to bite down on as I attempted to reset my let, I could feel all the fragments of my bones grinding as I torturously slowly moved my leg into position. One it was in position, I stopped, took a breather, before I began taping the splint on.

Once that was done, I crawled into the trailer with a hammer and I gently tapped the boards back into place before putting a few new nails in just to be sure. I crawled back onto the machine, took the leather from between my teeth and packed up the first aid kit and said to myself "Fuck me"

I then started my machine and continued, but right now, I was moving at a crawl to keep the vibrations low so the stalagmites wouldn't break off and come falling down on me. The cave was full of so many twists and turns, it was confusing. I got lost a couple times but I finally found the exit and when I got out, it was night.

I got the radio out along with my compass to get my bearings "Jenna, can you hear me?" "I'm here babe. How are you?" "I'm good. Sorry it took longer than excpected. I had to go slow and I got lost a few times." "Okay, but we can't have any more delays. The kids are getting really bad. Your Clan mother's medicines aren't doing anything now. All the kids have cold sweats and are just getting worse." "Okay hang in there. I am on the west side of blue mountain."

"Okay you'll need to get to the north side then go straight." "Ok, where should I be then?" You should be in the forest just outside town." "Ok. I'll radio you when I get to the forest. I love you. Tell the kids to hang on just a little longer." "I love you too."

With that, I turned the radio off and put it in my pocket and continued on my drive. As I went, the pain in my leg was only getting worse and worse. I knew the bone had to at least have been broken with all this pain. I looked at my gas Guage and saw I had just enough to make it back home.

Eventually, I had to stop for a minute or two to let the throbbing in my leg go away. I seethed through the pain and continued with the drive, the pain driving me crazy. I made it to the north side of the mountain and found my old tracks from earlier and I began following them.

I was about half way there when all of a sudden, the wind started howling, and it began snowing heavily. "Great. Just. Fucking. Great." I said to myself as I was forced to slow down even more. I got the radio out "Jenna can you hear me?" I heard through static "I hear you, but your breaking up." "I'm sending up a flare. If you see it fire one in respone." I then got the flare gun out and fired it. "Can you see it?" After thirty seconds, she replied "No. Your still too far out."