Chapter Four

As Emily's mind surfaced from the warm embrace of sleep, she first noticed that she wasn't cold. This came as a surprise to her, as the last thing she remembered was falling asleep under the pile of clothes on the small boat she had stolen, in an attempt to keep the spray of the waves off her. She then noticed that she didn't feel the weight of four dozen items of clothing pressing down on her. Keeping her eyes closed, she listened for anything around her and quickly noticed three things. First, she couldn't hear the wind or feel it. So either the wind had completely died down, or she was in some shelter, either natural or man-made. The second thing she heard was the crackling of a fire, a small, quiet noise, one of a fire that was tamed, rather than the roaring noise that came from a fire out of control. She had heard plenty of fires devouring houses after the stock markets had crashed, from looters or arsonists, to tell the difference. The third thing she noticed, and the most concerning, was the rustling of clothing. Someone was with her.

Opening her eyes only a fraction, she looked around her new surroundings, all the while making as little movement as possible. She was in a house, two-storied given the staircase off to the left. She was in what looked like a living room, with a small fireplace in front of her, and the two windows on the wall to right were frosted over, denying her a view of the outside, but given the light streaming in, it was still day. And there, sitting off at a distance, feeding the fire with small branches, was a man. He wore a toque on his head, which was blue with a white peak, and his back was to her, so she could only see the back of the jacket that he wore, a greyish white. Looking past him, she saw a bow and hatchet resting against a couch that ran along the windowed wall, and a quiver filled with arrows lying on said couch. Pushing herself up to look around the rest of the house, the blankets that covered her slid, creating a rustling sound, and caught the attention of the stranger. He turned his head, revealing a full beard, and locked his blue eyes with Emily's green.

"Ah, you're finally awake," he said, turning his body to face her fully.

Emily, who had frozen when the man had turned towards her, took in the sight of this stranger. He seemed young, probably in his late twenties, with a calm look on his face.

'He might be my age,' an intrusive thought said, before being promptly pushed down.

"Do you have a name," the man asked, snapping Emily out of her thoughts.

"Emily," she replied. "What's yours?"

"Lucas. Lucas Vorban." He settled into a more comfortable position, crossing his legs. "So, Emily, what brings you here?"

"Where is here, exactly," she asked, looking more fully around the wooden room, noticing that there was an entryway into what looked like a kitchen.

"Well, we are currently taking shelter in the Misanthrope's House, which rests on Misanthrope's Homestead, which resides in the bay of the region known as Coastal Highway."

Emily looked at Lucas with a scowl, unamused by his obvious joke, but he just smirked.

"But for the answer you're looking for, welcome to Great Bear Island," he answered, his arms swinging wide in a flourish.

Emily unfroze at that, sitting up straighter. "Great Bear Island? This is Great Bear Island?"

Lucas rubbed his neck. "Well, if you want to get technical, we aren't actually on the island. We're about a two-minute walk across the ice from it. We're on an island just off of the coast, called Misanthrope's Island, as I stated."

Lucas' face became serious as he lost his light tone. "So, Mainlander, what reason do you have for coming here?"

Emily tensed, sensing the change of atmosphere in the room.

"What do you mean," she asked, "and why do you think I'm a Mainlander?"

Lucas leaned back, seeming to take in her whole appearance before answering. "To start with, the reason I know you're a Mainlander. First, I'm a wanderer on the island. I work for anyone willing to fairly pay me, so I meet lots of people. I've met people in Cinder Hills, Thomson's Crossing, Milton, and more. Yet I've never seen you before, and you don't look like a Forest Talker or a resident of Blackrock. Secondly, you seemed surprised that you were here, so that also rules out the idea that you're from Perseverance Mills. But that also raises a question. You know about the island, which most Mainlanders don't, especially after The Collapse."

"The Collapse?" Emily interrupted. "Do you mean the crash of the stock markets?"

"Yeah, if that's what you Mainlanders call it. Anyway, you know of Great Bear, so you were most likely planning to come here anyway. So why would a Mainlander want to come to some island, despite the difficulties with coming here due to the First Flare?"

"Sorry," Emily said, raising her hands and frowning. "These are all new terms for me. By 'First Flare', do you mean the blackouts?"

Lucas nodded.

"Right, well, Mr Vorban, yes, I am a 'Mainlander' as you put it, I'm from Akulivik. It's a small town in Quebec. And I do have a reason for coming here. I need to meet with some people, and they live further inland from what I remember, if you must know."

"Where specifically?" Lucas asked.

"A town called Milton. The people I need to meet have lived there for years, as long as I can remember."

"And who are these people that you need to meet?" Lucas inquired.

Emily paused, a brief silence filling the room.

"Matthew and Elizebeth Scron," she said in a quiet voice. "My parents."

Lucas' eyes widened. "Your parents are from Milton? Then that would mean-"

"I was born here," Emily finished. "Yeah, moved away from home after I finished school to get an education in Ottawa. A girl from the middle of nowhere heading to the capital for University. After I finished my studies, I moved to Akulivik, and then the following year the stock markets crashed. I've been worried about my parents, but could never afford a ticket to Great Bear. Then the power went out everywhere, and I couldn't stay put. So I stole a boat, loaded my clothes for warmth, then headed in the general direction of Great Bear. And here we are."

Lucas sat and thought for a moment. "So you need to get to Milton, that correct?"

This time Emily nodded.

"Well, I'll tell you this now, you won't make it. The island is dangerous, you don't have the gear, and you don't know the island all that well. You'll be dead by this time tomorrow, probably by a wolf, but most likely by the cold."

"But I-"

"What you need," Lucas cut over, "is a guide. Someone who knows the island."

Standing up, he walked past the dying fire, now little more than embers. He slung the bow over his shoulder, holstered his hatchet, and attached the quiver to his waist, then turned his head to Emily.

"I can get you to Milton, but I'll need payment. When we get there, I'm happy to settle for a warm meal, bed, and good conversation."

He smiled, then turned around and opened the door, walking out into the cold air, leaving the door open.

Emily looked at the open doorway, weighed her options, then got to her feet, and followed him into the cold.