Avalanche Alert

by Jan Burchett

  “We’re going down and that’s final,” said Ben.

  Ben tried to gently lift his sister by her shoulders. But Zoe was staring over his head, watching something in the air. “Look!” she said.

  Ben followed her gaze to see a huge eagle circling above them, gliding silently through the air on its powerful wings.

  “Yeah, that’s impressive,” said Ben. “But you can’t change the subject like —”

  “I’m not,” insisted Zoe. “The eagle’s out hunting . . . and it spotted Prince!”

  The eagle swooped down. Talons outstretched, it was heading straight for the terrified cub. Prince let out a frightened mew and cringed back.

  “We’ve got to do something!” yelled Zoe. She scrambled to her feet, ignoring the thumping in her head. “An eagle could easily carry away a cub.”

  She scrolled frantically through her BUG, trying to find something to scare the predator away.

  “No time for that!” cried Ben. He grabbed a handful of snow, smashed it into a ball, and flung it at the diving eagle. It missed, but the eagle swerved away.

  Prince was backing away from the attack, but behind him was a sheer drop — and he was backing dangerously close to it.

  The eagle made another attack, swooping so low that it seemed sure to hit its target. Zoe cried out, expecting to see the helpless cub dangling from its talons.

  But when it rose again, its claws were empty. It let out a harsh cry and flew away.

  “You did it!” cried Zoe. “Prince is safe!”

  But then they saw that the little cub had disappeared.

  Ben and Zoe scrambled up to the ledge. Very carefully, they edged toward the sheer drop, afraid of seeing a dead leopard cub staring up at them. But no matter where they looked, they saw no sign of life.

  Then they heard the faintest of sounds. A pitiful, high-pitched cry.

  “That’s Prince!” Ben said in amazement. He peered over the edge. “I can see him. He fell onto a sort of natural outcropping in the rock.”

  Ben reached over the edge a little farther to look closer. “But he’s a long way down and I can’t see any footholds,” he added with a frown.

  “It’s up to us to rescue him,” said Zoe. “And we’ll have to do it before Rani returns.”

  “I’ll climb down and pick him up,” Ben suggested.

  “How will you climb back?” asked Zoe. “You’ll have your hands full with a cub. I mean, what if he struggles?”

  “That’s a good point,” said Ben. “I need something to carry him in.” He thought for a moment. “Got it! I’ll take a sleeping bag and wrap him in that. If we tie it to my end of the rope, you can hoist him up. We’ll use one of the pitons as a pulley.”

  Zoe nodded. “Sounds good,” she said. “I’ll keep an eye on you — and the other on the lookout for Rani.”

  Ben rolled up his sleeping bag and tucked it into his harness. Then he rammed a piton into the rock, threaded his rope through it, and steadily climbed down as Zoe let out the rope. But when he approached the ledge, the little cub backed away in fear, huddling back in the narrow end of the rock path.

  Ben moved slowly down until he felt flat rock beneath his feet. Then he hesitated. If he approached Prince, the cub might panic and fall again. Ben slowly slid down to a crouching position, keeping as still as he could. Prince was watching him suspiciously, ready to leap away at any sudden movement.

  Once in a while, Prince glanced anxiously at the top of the ledge, as if hoping for a glimpse of his mom.

  “I’m not going to hurt you,” Ben said under his breath. He unrolled the sleeping bag and opened the end wide. He slowly pulled out the nozzle on his BUG and fired a pellet into his open hand. It broke on impact, letting out a pungent smell. Ben could tell that Prince was curious by the way the cub’s ears and eyes perked up. The little cub put forward one nervous paw. Then another.

  It’s working! Ben thought. He breathed slowly, trying to keep his excitement at bay. He had to stay calm. This was his one chance at saving Prince’s life. He held his hand out flat and perfectly still, inviting the cub to come closer.

  Prince was close, prowling low, but eager to reach the bait.

  Then Prince placed his nose in Ben’s hand. Ben moved quickly. He firmly but gently grasped a handful of soft fur on the nape of Prince’s neck.

  By the time Prince realized what was happening, Ben had bundled him inside the sleeping bag.

  Prince struggled, mewing loudly for his mother. Ben unclipped his rope and attached it to the sleeping bag. “Ready!” he yelled to Zoe.

  Ignoring the pounding in her head, Zoe pulled on the rope. Slowly, she began to lift up the heavy weight. When the wriggling sleeping bag was almost level with the ledge, she grabbed it and hauled it up next to her.

  At that moment, she heard a growl behind her. Zoe whipped around, and then let out a cry of fear.

  Rani was facing Zoe on the narrow ledge. The leopard must have heard her cub’s calls. She was crouched, ready to pounce at any moment.

  There was only one thing to do. Zoe feverishly ripped open the sleeping bag, pulled Prince out and set him on his feet. The little snow leopard spotted his mother immediately and galloped joyfully toward her with little yelps of excitement.

  Forgetting all about Zoe, Rani bounded toward him. She took him by the scruff of the neck, turned, and dashed up the steep mountainside. Prince wriggled in her grasp. After a few more steps, Rani put him down and he scrambled after her.

  Zoe slumped down on the ledge.

  Ben’s worried face appeared. “What’s going on?” he demanded.

  Zoe said nothing. Ben climbed up onto the ledge. “I heard you yell!” he said. “Where’s Prince?”

  “His mom came to pick him up,” said Zoe, managing a wobbly grin. “But I don’t know if they’re going the right way.”

  “We’ll just have to hope they are,” said Ben, clipping himself back on to the rope. “We’ve got to get you down the mountain now. No arguing.”

  With fumbling hands, Zoe took out her BUG. “Look,” she said, shakily holding up the satellite image to her brother. “We’re so close to the avalanche site. We only have to get over the top, and we’ll be back in Rani’s home territory. Erika can pick us up there after we’ve gotten them home safe.”

  Ben hesitated. “It may be close,” he said, “but the next part wouldn’t be easy even if you were perfectly healthy. We have to get to that narrow path above the snowfield left behind by the avalanche. It’ll involve lots of tough climbing — and everything’s covered in snow now, so it’s going to be slippery. What if you fall again?”

  “I won’t,” said Zoe firmly. She lifted her BUG, and flicked to the snow leopards’ signals. “We can’t risk letting them go back alone now. I’m going to fire another scent bomb to make sure they’re on track.”

  Ben sighed. He knew it was no good to argue with his sister once her mind was set on something. But he didn’t like that his sister was putting the snow leopards’ safety before her own.

  It was very dark, so they both pulled on their night-vision goggles. Ben began to climb, his sister roped firmly to him. The deep, fresh snow made it difficult to find firm holds on the rock, even with their ice axes.

  They stopped frequently to aim scent bombs farther up the mountainside. Now that Prince was recovered from the poison, it was becoming harder to keep the two snow leopards from heading off in the wrong direction. The agile cats could move much faster than Ben and Zoe through the treacherous Himalayan terrain. And now, it was snowing again.

  Ben could sense that Zoe’s strength was giving out. Only sheer determination was keeping her going.

  And then he spotted a wonderful sight.

  “We’ve reached the avalanche field!” Ben called over his shoulder.

  “Are you sure?” said Zoe. She hauled herself up
behind him and gasped.

  Ahead, stretching as far as they could see, a smooth carpet of snow covered the steep slope . . . and it was untouched by any animal prints.

  Ben used the zoom on his goggles and scanned the peaks above. “There’s our path, running along the top of it,” he said. “Right across the steepest slope.”

  Zoe looked up at the heavy snow-covered peaks looming above them. She wiped the snowflakes from her goggles and just managed to suppress a groan of exhaustion at the thought of the climb ahead.

  “We’ve just got to get Rani along that ridge,” said Ben, “and hopefully she’ll sense her home — and her other cubs. I’m sure Erika will have found them by now.”

  Ben checked Rani and her cub’s signals. They were moving slowly across the rocks directly north from where Ben and Zoe were standing.

  Ben took his ice axe out of his backpack. “It’s not going to take much to get them on the right path now,” he said. “I’ll go. You wait here, I’ll come back for you.”

  Zoe shook her head. “We have to stay together,” she said, her lips tight.

  Ben sighed. He checked the rope that tied them together and grinned at her. “I’m making sure this is secure, just in case you decide to take another spontaneous nap.”

  Reaching up with his left hand, Ben slammed an axe into the ice-covered rock. He used it to steady himself while he found footholds. He pulled himself up a bit, then did the same again. He could feel the rope tugging on his harness as Zoe struggled to keep going. He slowed the pace and held the rope taut to take some of her weight. Every now and then, he caught a glimpse of Rani and Prince up ahead, following the trail of the scent bombs.

  He stopped to check his BUG. As Zoe climbed up beside him, he showed her the screen. “Look,” he said.

  Zoe strained her eyes to focus on the leopards’ signals on the satellite map. “They’ve reached the ridge!” she exclaimed. “They’re almost home.”

  “And we’re almost there too,” said Ben.

  “I’ll race you then,” said Zoe with a feeble chuckle. “As long as you give me a push first!”

  Once on the ridge, Ben put their ice axes away. “We don’t need these now,” he said. “This part will be like an easy hike.”

  Zoe let out a sigh of relief. She stumbled along behind him. Now that they weren’t climbing, she was finding it easier to breathe, although her headache wasn’t getting any better.

  Their mission was nearly over. Suddenly, they heard Rani let out a yowl somewhere ahead.

  Zoe gripped Ben’s arm. “Do you think she picked up the scent of her other cubs?” she said with excitement.

  “She sounded scared,” Ben said.

  Another sound reached their ears. “What’s that?” whispered Zoe, puzzled. “It’s like a deep drumbeat.”

  White swirls billowed up from the peaks above. An immense hissing sound filled the air as waves of snow came pounding down toward them.

  “It’s an avalanche!” cried Zoe. “And Rani and Prince are right in its path!”

  “So are we!” yelled Ben.

  Ben and Zoe were engulfed in a wave of powdery snow. “Get to the side!” Ben yelled. The force swept them off their feet, threatening to turn them over and over.

  Ben struggled, kicked, and thrashed against the power of the avalanche, trying to get to the edge of the flow. His mouth filled with icy flakes as be breathed heavily.

  After a while, the flow slowed. His feet touched firmer snow beneath him and he was able to wade through the drifts.

  At this point, Ben was very glad he’d paid attention during the avalanche training on the plane.

  The rope on his harness was getting tight. That meant that Zoe hadn’t kept up with his pace, and was likely being overwhelmed by the force of the snow. He had to help her. He reached out for a large boulder and pulled himself up. He was out of the avalanche.

  Gasping for breath, he made sure he had a good foothold and pulled on the rope. He could just see Zoe’s flailing arms. He pulled harder and saw her struggle toward him. She was waist deep now and seemed to have found her footing, but she looked very tired.

  “We’re almost there, Zoe,” Ben called.

  Suddenly, there was another deep rumble from high on the mountain. Ben looked up the slope and saw a huge wave of snow moving much faster than the first. It pounded down, sending up a frosty spray behind it. Zoe was right in its path.

  Ben knew the force of the snow would pull her under and that would drag him in, too. Still, Ben refused to let go.

  Then he felt the rope go loose. Zoe had unclipped herself.

  “No! Zoe!” Ben cried out.

  * * *

  WHAM! The avalanche was upon Zoe. At once, she was smothered by icy snow. She went tumbling over and over, the sound of the snow pounding in her ears.

  Zoe felt completely helpless in the immense power of the avalanche. Then she heard Ben cry out for her. Suddenly, a new determination seized her.

  She kicked out again, using every bit of her remaining strength to swim through the snow once more. But it was no good. Even if she hadn’t gotten altitude sickness, she knew she couldn’t hope to overcome the incredible force of the snow.

  Remembering the training film, she forced her aching arms up and cupped her hands in front of her face. Now at least she’d have a little air supply if she was buried.

  After what seemed like forever, she realized that she’d stopped moving. The avalanche must have run its course.

  It was pitch black now. The snow was pressing down on her. It would soon start to harden, and then it would suffocate her.

  “Get digging!” Zoe told herself.

  First, she had to figure out which way was up. She’d lost all sense of direction. Zoe scratched at the snow in front of her face and felt it fall onto her nose. That meant she was lying face up.

  She stretched her hand toward the surface, but all she felt was more snow. The realization hit her like a punch: she was buried deep. There was no point using up her air and energy trying to dig. The training video had said she would have about fifteen minutes of air. She hoped that would be enough.

  She had to set off the FANG on her helmet to alert Ben. Then her blood ran cold. She had no idea if he’d escaped.

  The snow was already hardening around her. She had to get her head in the right position to aim the FANG toward the surface, and she had to do it now before the weight of the avalanche crushed her.

  It was her only hope. She couldn’t reach her BUG since it was tucked deep in her pocket.

  Zoe forced herself to take slow breaths, but she could hardly move her arms. How was she going to pull the cord on her harness? She tried to jab down with one elbow. The snow resisted, making her feel the pain in her muscles as she forced her arm back down.

  At last, one finger touched the ring on the end of the cord, but she couldn’t get a grip on it. She tried again, jerking her arm down through the wall of snow. At last her finger caught the ring. Her helmet shuddered as the FANG fired. She could hear a muffled whoosh as it sped away. Then she felt a cold pinprick of air on her neck. She had an air supply! The FANG had reached the surface and its beacon would be giving out a warning light.

  But is Ben there to see it? she wondered.

  * * *

  Ben felt sick with dread as he reeled in the loose rope. As quickly as it had begun, the avalanche stopped. Silence fell again. He desperately scanned the deep snow field. There was no sign of his sister anywhere.

  WOOSH! His head whipped around at a rocket-like sound. He saw the end of Zoe’s FANG shooting into the air a little ways down the slope. It flew up to the end of its wire and the fluorescent orange umbrella opened and fell to the ground. The beacon on its point began to flash.

  “There she is!” Ben cried out.

  Now he knew where to dig, but he had to get
there safely first. He lay flat on the new snow. “I have to spread my weight out,” he muttered to himself.

  Ben sank a little. That meant the snow was already freezing and compacting. He scrabbled toward the FANG umbrella. He held it tightly and gave it two sharp tugs to let Zoe know he was at the other end.

  He knew his sister didn’t have long. Ben began to dig, hacking at the hardened snow with his ice axes, following the line of the FANG. But it was taking too long. The hole didn’t seem to be getting any deeper, and snow kept tumbling back down into it. Suddenly, he saw a slight movement below him as Zoe’s gloved hand forced its way out. Ben grabbed her fingers and gave them a squeeze.

  He dug frantically, throwing the snow out behind him. At last, Zoe’s head emerged. Then her shoulders. With one final tug, Ben dragged her out through the snow.

  At last, Zoe was free from her snowy prison. Ben hugged her, unable to speak from exhaustion and relief. Then he began to rub her arms and legs to warm her up.

  “Thanks,” said Zoe simply, her teeth chattering with cold.

  As soon as she could move, they crawled to the edge of the snowfield.

  “We’ve made it to the snow leopards’ territory,” said Ben with a grin. “Though not quite the way we hoped to.”

  Zoe grabbed his arm. “But what about Rani and Prince?” she asked.

  Ben and Zoe looked at each other. Neither of them spoke. Had the two snow leopards been swept away in the avalanche? Were they suffocating under hundreds of square feet of deadly snow?

  Fingers trembling, Ben scrolled through the menu on his BUG searching for the leopards’ signals. At last two flashing lights on the screen popped up. Ben and Zoe high-fived each other excitedly.

  “They’re moving,” said Zoe. “That means that they’re not buried.”