Chapter 3:

HEART OF THE BEAST

It is cruel and deathly cold night. The wasteland is howling with a freezing wind. The man sits in his small igloo, praying that the spirits of the snowstorm still have mercy on him.

"But just like the shaman had said; the blizzard has mercy on no one." Avatar Onsui whispers sadly to himself.

It has been more than three weeks that Onsui has been stranded and lost in this part of the wasteland. His hope of finding his way out of the blizzard had already been used up.

There is no more food. There is no more meat.

And although he has already mastered his third element, he knows it would be fatal to use up his remaining energy to create warmth. So there is no fire either.

He can already feel his insides whither, his breath weakening along with his body. A disturbing and frightening process has taken over. He has become dangerously gaunt.

He must not let his eyes close, if he sleeps, he shall die.

"I am the Avatar and I must not be weak, I must not fail" Onsui tells himself. But he can barely comprehend what those words mean to him anymore.


He knows he must go to the tribe in the mountains and give aid to their struggle. But it is too late. It is too far. The blizzard has now made sure of it. It is to end here.

After 31 years, in all his battles, his travels, after all the people he had met all over the world, Onsui believes that his journey is to end in this desolate place. As it was the land of his birth, it is now to be the land of his death.

After a final thought, Onsui gently awakens his one friend that had been with him through all this.

It is his animal guide; a large polar bear named Nanuk. An animal whose unbreakable loyalty has rivaled even the closest of Onsui's human friends.

Nanuk had been kind enough to nestle next to Onsui to provide him extra warmth. But this creature was now in weakened state as well, and if he were to continue to stay there with Onsui, he would also surely starve.

"Nanuk, p-p-please w-wake up." Onsui speaks to him in a hoarse, shivering voice. He strokes the black stripe that runs along the bear's forehead and white back.

The beast stirs and opens its eyes.

"Nanuk, l-l-listen to me." Onsui says with tears in his eyes. "You sh-shouldn't stay here. You are st-till s-stronger than I am. You m-must…leave me here. You are n-no longer to be my animal guide. You may go to the w-wilderness and live as a wild thing once more...That is the only way that you will survive this b-b-blizzard."

The bear looks at his master. Nanuk's eyes widen knowingly.

"You heard what I said. I know you understand, do not pretend that you cannot. Go, leave me here." Onsui says to the creature sternly.

Nanuk shakes his head and lets out a low defiant growl.

"STOP THAT! I AM NOT GOING TO LET YOU D-DIE HERE WITH ME!" Onsui yells to Nanuk, his voice beginning to break.

It is then that the creature does something remarkable. The beast takes Onsui's hunting spear into his mouth and gives it to Onsui. Nanuk then slowly crouches, low on the ground, bowing to Onsui in a final submissive gesture.

"Nanuk!" Onsui gasps with horror, realizing what his animal guide is allowing him to do.

"NO! I cannot do that! I am …forever g-grateful that you offer yourself to me as food so that I may survive. But if I wanted to k- kill you for meat to feed myself, I would have done that a long time ago! It is your life that should be spared, not mine. How c-could you even offer that?"

Nanuk lifts his head and growls once more.

"I-It isn't that I wish to die here!" Onsui shouts, clutching the spear. "But y-you are not just any mere b-beast to kill for meat. You…are my friend. We have b-been through t-too much together. You have been guiding me in my role as the Avatar, and it would be wrong to murder you like this. I CANNOT EAT YOU, NANUK! IF WE ARE TO DIE, WE MUST DIE TOGETHER!"

Nanuk lets out a violent roar.

"Nanuk…P-Please, do not f- force me to do this." Onsui says in a sickened tone.

The beast bows down once more, stubbornly refusing to move. Nanuk lets out a sad sounding howl…as if to say goodbye.

"Nanuk…no." Onsui grits his teeth. He cannot believe what is about to happen.

It is two weeks later that a warrior watching from his village post, spots the form of a tall beast striding towards him.

Squinting his eyes, he realizes that it is not a beast, but a man. It is a man wearing the white pelt of a slain polar bear.

"Avatar Onsui! You have finally arrived to help us!" He shouts joyously. "We thought you had died in the wasteland! I cannot believe you actually made it through that unholy blizzard!"

Onsui answers in a spiritless voice.

"I only survived because of a sacrifice made to me by my friend. I am here to fulfill my duty as the Avatar so not to waste that sacrifice or that friendship."