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Balto: Wolf Quest (Part 2)

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CHAPTER 6

BALTO WAS RUNNING. He didn't know how long he had been running, nor where he was running to. He didn't even know why he was running.
All he knew was to follow the raven.
Only this time, he knew that it wasn't a dream. He was running after the raven in real-life. He continued running, knowing that running was the only way that he could catch up to Aleu.
He kept asking himself, Is this really worth it? Every time he asked himself that question, he dismissed it; it was not a question of worth but of love.
Then, after thinking about it once, he remembered Aleu's final words to him: I hate you. Was she saying it purely out of anger, or was she serious?
There was only one way to find out.


Aleu needed somewhere to hide herself from the sun. Even though it was autumn, the sun was blisteringly hot.
Where can I rest? She needed a place with enough shade to hide her entire body. She was on a mountain—a treeless mountain—and desperately needed to get out from under the sun.
While searching, she forced herself to think logically. What am I doing? I'm running away, but I don't know where I'm going.
Suddenly she stumbled upon a cave. Thankful that she could finally rest, she walked inside, dropped down, and promptly fell asleep.
What woke her was a singing sort of sound coming from deeper in the cave. The song was one that made her feel warm inside and, at the same time, it sent a chill up her spine.
Curious, she walked towards the sound, which became louder with every step she took. Soon she came to a most extraordinary picture: a mouse singing beside a pile of diamonds. Above the diamonds, coming from a narrow hole in the ceiling, was a beam of light. The room was big enough to hold her father's ship…probably two of them.
She couldn't resist; she joined the mouse. Because she didn't know the words, she instead howled with her patented dog-wolf howl, singing the harmony with one paw raised into the air. When the song was finished, the mouse looked up to her. "Your singing is quite pretty."
"Oh," Aleu exclaimed, a bit surprised that the mouse acknowledged her. "Thank you. Sometimes I just can't help myself. My father says..." She faded away.
"Your father says what?" the mouse asked, quite politely.
"He says...it's in my blood," Aleu murmured, barely saying the last few words; she was still a little annoyed with him.
"Well," the mouse said, fiddling around with some of the gems, "I think that wolves are very good singers. It's part of your instinct, you know."
Aleu's eyes narrowed. "I'm not a wolf," she growled.
The mouse dropped a crystal at a difficult angle. "Oh, so that's why I'm not afraid of you." He smiled. "But I wonder, how does one know she's not a wolf if she doesn't even know who she is?"
Aleu, now a little more than angry, shouted, "I know who I am! I am Aleu, daughter of Balto and Jenna—who happens to be a pure-bred husky." She eyed the mouse as it continued moving gems around. "And who might you be?"
After dropping a ruby on a sapphire, the mouse said, "My name is Muru, son of Alberta and Dertin—both simple field mice." He stopped his gem-moving long enough to say, "These facts tell us what we are, but not who we are."
Aleu snorted. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"We are all things of this world, but it takes a clear understanding to become in this world. That is when we find out who we are."
Aleu, beginning to understand, asked, "So how do I find out who I am?" When Muru didn't answer—he was occupied changing the angle of an emerald—she asked, "What are you doing?"
To answer the question, Muru stepped away from the gems and let the light from above shine down on them. The beam of light headed straight for one diamond, and bounced off to another, and another, and another...It did this until it hit one pearl that made the light go onto the wall. It was a sight worth seeing; it looked to Aleu almost like the Northern Lights, except these didn't change color. At the same time, however, they didn't stay a solid color. It was hard to describe.
The lights shone on the wall at just the right angles to form lines and circles that made crude drawings of animals. "I am shedding light," Muru said.
Aleu's breath was drawn away. Reach for the stars, she thought, repeating the phrase her father had taught her. You may touch the sky.
"When a being is born on Earth," Muru explained, "a spirit is also created to guide that being through their life."
"What does a person need a spirit guide for?" Aleu asked, never taking her eyes off the walls.
"So that during the times of trouble, the spirit can help that person to know the difference between right and wrong. The spirit also tells which direction the person should go if they reach a fork in the trail."
Aleu was so entranced by the scene that she barely noticed Muru break into a song. She could never remember the tune afterwards, but she did remember the words:

You must go to the east, go to the west,
The road is rocky and the way is far.
It's a dangerous trail, a difficult quest,
If you want know who you really are.

There are voices all around you,
To comfort and to guide you.
Fathers and teachers,
Powerful creatures.
And the voice that sings inside you.

Or you can turn back around,
Run along home. Back to the place where your friends are.
Perhaps that is best, You need to rest.
Who wants to go on a ridiculous quest?
Unless you want to know,
You truly want to know, Unless you want to know.
Who you really are.
Who are you? Who are you?...

Aleu noticed Muru's voice fade away. Fearing that he left, she called out, "Muru...are you a spirit guide?" Then, daring to continue, she asked, "Are you my spirit guide?"
Muru's voice echoed through the cave, but Aleu couldn't find which direction it came from. "Follow the path your heart tells you is correct. Talk to your father, and all will be right."
Aleu turned to where Muru used to be, but he wasn't there. She looked around the room, calling his name every once in a while. He wasn't there.
But she couldn't help but notice that there was a newly-formed picture of a mouse on the wall.
CHAPTER 7

BALTO WAS RUNNING. He didn't know how long he had been running, nor where he was running to. He didn't even know why he was running.
All he knew was to follow the raven.
The raven swooped down, landing in front of Balto. "Okay," he said, stopping. "Where do I go from here?"
The raven suddenly turned into a bear. It rose high above Balto, swinging its paws at him.
Balto ducked. Knowing this was just a dream, he tackled the bear. But the bear didn't react; it simply absorbed the blow and sent Balto flying backwards with one kick.
Balto felt the wind being knocked out of him before he woke up.


It was cool outside when Aleu emerged from the cave. She could tell that she had been in the cave for most of the night; the sun was up. Trying to get her bearings, she looked around.
To her left was a trail leading back to where she had come from. To her right was a different trail that led deeper into the woods, and she could tell from this altitude that the trail emerged at the ocean. Straight ahead of her was a drop-off that was in essence a fifty-foot drop to jagged rocks that would happily welcome you to your death.
She turned to the left trail...and her eyes widened.
In front of her, standing on its hind legs, was a bear. She was so petrified that she didn't even breathe.
The bear advanced. Aleu suddenly remembered that she had an urgent appointment somewhere else—anywhere else. She turned and ran for her life.
Before she got too far, she found herself on a corner that came between the other trail and the drop-off. Knowing she was trapped, she turned back around and looked at the bear, hoping to see if there was any way to attack it.
A different figure attacked it first. A gray blur from the left flew into the air and grabbed the bear by its paw.
Aleu was dumbstruck. "Papa?"
The bear threw Balto aside. While recovering, Balto shouted, "Glad you're still speaking to me!"
Aleu, still cornered, gritted her teeth as the bear once again rushed at her. "Save yourself, Papa!" she shouted. If nothing else, she would protect him.
"What, and miss all the excitement?" Balto asked, jumping back onto the bear.
The bear, knocked off-balance, let one of its feet fly into the air. It connected with Aleu, sending her flying over the edge.
"Aleu!" Balto shouted. Then, angered, he slammed his head into the bear's now-balanced foot. The result was the equivalent of Balto smashing his head into a rock.
Balto was so dizzy that when he tried to bite the bear's arm, he had no more accuracy than a bat. Instead of biting down on the bear's arm, he bit down on a piece of bark lying a few feet away. Hm...tastes like chicken. But he quickly shook his head, trying to make the world right-side-up again, and threw the bark away.
The effort was not in vain, however. The bear was knocked off balance, and fell down. Balto ran over to the cliff. "Aleu!"
"Yeah?" Aleu responded. Balto looked down and saw his daughter hanging for her life onto a protrusion in the cliff. With some help from her father, she climbed back up onto solid ground.
The bear got back on its feet and advanced on them again. Balto, hopping in front of Aleu, said, "I'll hold it off while you run away!"
Aleu stood beside her father. "No, I hold it off while you run away!" She dodged as one of the bear's feet tried to hit her again.
"I'm your father," snapped Balto, "so do as I say!"
"And I say I'm too old to listen to my parents. I'm old enough to make my own decisions."
Balto stared at her. "You're fifteen in dog years. That is the age of obnoxiousness." He dodged the bear's foot. "How did you get to be so stubborn?" He was losing his temper both with Aleu and the bear.
"I take after you, remember?" answered his daughter, still a little annoyed about her lineage.
The bear cornered them one final time, and this time there was no turning back. Aleu forced herself to stare straight into the bear's eyes, trying to see when it would release its final kick.
But she saw past its eyes. She saw into its mind. Wow!
As Balto looked on, he saw his daughter's eyes turn from blue to yellow. "Aleu?" She didn't respond. He was about to yell at her, but the voice from his dream stopped him. Inner knowing, it echoed throughout his head.
After a few seconds, Aleu's eyes shifted back to blue. She turned to Balto. "We have to jump!"
Balto stared at her. "Are you crazy? If we do, we'll be killed!"
Aleu looked back at the bear. "And we'll be killed if we don't!" With that she pushed her father over the cliff, and followed him within seconds.
I hope this works!
She felt herself hit solid ground much sooner than she anticipated. She looked, and saw she was on a pillar of rock that protruded about twenty feet above the jagged rocks below. Her father had also landed on the rock. "You knew the ledge was here?" he asked. When she nodded, he asked, "How?"
"Well," Aleu started, "it's hard to explain...I looked at the bear...no...I looked into its thoughts. And I saw the ledge."
Balto sighed. "Well, I'm glad." He stood up. "Are you all right?" When she nodded, he said, "I've come here to bring you home. Your mother is worried about you."
"Papa," Aleu said, lowering her head, "I can't."
Balto caught her eye. "Aleu, it's not your fault that you're part-wolf. Malena and Tydye still love you! And what about Dingo and Kodi and Saba? You're a member of our family, and everyone will miss you if you don't come back."
Aleu smiled. "It's not that. I won't go back until I found out who I am." She stopped, not wanting to admit that she had been talking to a mouse.
"Aleu, you already know that: you're my daughter."
"No, I know what I am but not who I am. And I'm not going to stop this quest until I've found out."
Balto smiled. "Then I won't stop you. But," he added, "We're going together."


Up in a cave in another cliff, three wolves watched as Balto and Aleu came down to the beach. "Those look like the ones that Niju was talking about, don't they Nike?"
The second wolf nodded. "Oh, yeah, yeah. You're absolutely right, Nuke. What about you, Noke? What do you think?"
"I think we all have weird names," the third answered. "Besides, I don't think. I only eat. It's more filling." With that, he picked up a bone and started chewing on it; there was still some flavor to it, even after hours upon hours of chewing.
A fourth wolf—one that was considerably younger than the others—appeared behind them. "What are you waiting for?" he asked.
Noke was so surprised that he broke his bone in half. Nuke jumped high in the air, and Nike's teeth started chattering.
"Get them!" the fourth wolf ordered, obviously superior to them.
"Why?" Nuke dared to asked.
The wolf made a slash at him with his humungous paw. "Those were the wolves in my dream. They want to take over our pack. We must kill them before they get a chance to do that!"
The three started walking away, on their way to obey their leader. "Okay, okay," Nike murmured. "You don't have to yell."
CHAPTER 8

BALTO WAS RUNNING. He didn't know how long he had been running, nor where he was running to. He didn't even know why he was running.
All he knew was to follow the raven.
"I'd sure like to know why I keep seeing that raven," Balto said aloud.
To his left, Aleu looked up at the raven. Then she only stared at Balto. "You've...been following...a raven?"
Balto smiled, embarrassed. "Yeah," he admitted. "Kind of silly, isn't it?" he added, trying to make fun of himself.
Aleu didn't smile. Instead, she started sniffing the air.
"What is it?" Balto asked.
"Company," Aleu responded. "And…it doesn't smell friendly. We should get out of here."


After about ten minutes, Aleu once again sniffed the air. "Do you still smell it?" Balto asked.
"No," Aleu admitted, a little confused. "Maybe I was wrong." Then, looking up, her frown turned into a smile. "Look, Papa!" she yelled, running ahead.
A large rock protruded from the beach, hanging out over the ocean. It was long enough to hold at least ten dogs, and wide enough for three. Aleu climbed up the rock, went to the very edge, and simply closed her eyes.
The ocean wind hit her face, the water hitting her body. She smiled as the salty water spread across her fur, tickling her slightly. I could do this forever, she thought happily.
Balto appeared beside her, not as excited about it as she was. "I don't like you up here," he said, a little nervous. "You could slip and fall. And then what will I have to tell your mother?"
Aleu still smiled. "I'm not your baby anymore," she protested, not unkindly. "I'm not afraid of falling."
A voice came from behind them. "Then maybe you should be afraid of us."
Balto and Aleu whirled around—Balto a little more cautiously than Aleu—and saw three wolves running at them on the beach. All three of them had bones showing as a result of not having enough to eat; one was brown, one was black, and the other was gray; and all three of them were growling.
"Yeah," said the second wolf. "You two aren't going nowhere!" With this he paused just long enough to scratch the fleas behind his ears. Then they all started onto the rock.
"That's 'anywhere', Fleaback," Aleu murmured.
Balto turned to her. "Uh, Aleu, I hardly think this is the time to be correcting his grammar."
A high wave came from behind Balto and Aleu. Aleu saw it coming and pushed her father forward, onto the shore. She followed.
The wave hit the three other wolves head-on. "The tide is coming!" one exclaimed, and they all started back to the beach.
But a wolf was in their path, preventing both them and Aleu and Balto from going anywhere; a huge cliff was to his side, and the beach ended just a few feet the other way. "What are you waiting for?" the wolf asked, half shouting and half commanding. "Get them!"
"But Niju!" the second wolf complained. "The tide. We'll all drown!"
Niju's eyebrows lowered. "Yes," he said. "There's always that possibility. But," he added in a yell, "if you don't kill them, I'll make sure you drown!" With that, he jumped onto Balto.
"Papa!" Aleu shouted.
Balto had the mind enough to throw up one paw and hold it steady at Niju's neck. "You lay one paw on me," he warned, "and I'll only have to push..." He let his words fade away, giving it the expression of a genuine threat.
Niju growled; Balto could feel this in his paw. Then he threw down his own paw and pushed it down on Balto's neck. "If you even start, you'll be dead!" he yelled.
Aleu suddenly attacked. Tackling Niju in a way that took him away from her father, she brought him down on his back.
Niju's eyes suddenly widened. "It can't be...Aniu?"
Aleu's eyes narrowed. "I don't know any Aniu." With that she dug one humungous claw into Niju's chest.
But Niju was quick. He bore the first two blows, and then let out a kick with his hind leg that sent Aleu flying. She flew out and hit her head on the cliff-face.
Before anything else happened, a voice of authority called out, "Peace!"
Everybody looked up. About halfway up the cliff, a whole pack of wolves stood behind a leader that was even more authoritative than Niju. This wolf was too old for words; his eyes were gray and his voice was cracked.
"Stay out of this, Nava!" Niju shouted. Balto guessed from this that Niju wanted to be leader...but Nava really was. "Go back to your dreams and idiocy, and leave the rest of us live in peace!"
"Peace, Niju!" Nava again shouted. He jumped down onto the ground, landing lightly, and stood right up to Niju. "You know that nobody comes here without a purpose. Now, make way for our visitors."
Aleu got up and stumbled over to her father. "Are you all right?" he whispered, looking her up and down.
"I'm...fine," she said, sounding a little confused. "It's as if I didn't even feel it."
Niju glanced over at them and then stared at Nava. "I will not move." He smiled. "Not until the day comes for me to become leader!"
"That day is not this day," Nava said, never shifting his gaze away from his rival. "Now, I repeat, will you kindly make a path for our visitors?"
By now the three other wolves—Nike, Noke and Nuke—had all slinked away, disappearing with the other wolves.
Niju's teeth gritted. "I will not!" he yelled.
For the first time, Nava took his eyes off Niju, looking slightly away from him, into the sea. Suddenly a whale emerged and made a gigantic splash. The water was directed in only one direction: Niju. It hit him dead-on, missing Nava completely.
Niju, angry more than ashamed, crawled away. "Someday your magic tricks will not be enough to save you," he murmured in a threatening voice.
Nava turned to look at Balto and Aleu. When he looked at them, as Aleu noted, he did not look at their bodies to see what color they were or what shape or what breed. He only looked into their eyes, and Aleu could see in his eyes that he contained wisdom that could not be measured. His eyes seemed to look into hers with a type of love that she had not felt from anybody before, except perhaps her parents.
"I have been expecting you," Nava said, talking to both Aleu and Balto. His voice was even more cracked when he wasn't yelling.
Both Aleu and her father were confused. "You have been expecting us?" Aleu asked.
"You knew we were coming?" Balto asked after Aleu had finished.
Nava smiled. "Of course," he said in his wizened voice. "For it was I who sent for you. Come, follow me," he continued, turning around and starting up the cliff. "We have much to discuss, and little time to do so."
CHAPTER 9

BALTO WAS RUNNING. He didn't know how long he had been running, nor where he was running to. He didn't even know why he was running.
All he knew was to follow the raven.
And this was where the raven had led him: to a wolf pack in southern Alaska. He was still trying to find out how a quest to find his daughter had turned into an appointment with a wolf pack that he had never seen or heard of in his life.
"My brothers and sisters, friends and visitors," Nava started after the sun set, "I have studied the blades of grass on the earth and the stars in the night sky. They have all told me the same: the caribou will not return this year."
There were gasps and whispered among the rest of the wolves, but Niju spoke up. "So, the old one looks at the grass and the wind in-between the blades. And he looks up in the night sky just to look at some galaxies and planets that serve no meaning."
Nava ignored him and continued. "The stars have told me that the caribou crossed the great water during the last rainfall. The grass has told me that there is only one way to cross and nobody can go back but the one who cannot stay. The caribou have to stay, so they will not come back today, tomorrow, this week, or this month. They will stay there forever."
There were more gasps and even more whispers. Aleu heard some of them:
"The caribou are our only food, and now they are across the sea? What are we going to do?"
"Maybe we should stay; we have enough food leftover."
"How long will that last?"
"If we do stay," one spoke up, "how will we survive without the caribou? They bring us life!"
Niju smiled. "Easily: we simply take what we need from the other clans. We're wolves, aren't we?"
"Steal from others?" Balto asked. "It isn't right."
"There is no right, half-breed," Niju shot back, "except our right to survive!" He made it a point to make sure everybody heard his statement.
Nava spoke up once more, "But if we take food from other clans, then what will they eat?"
"That," Niju answered, "is not our concern."
"It is our concern," Nava said. "If we steal from them, they shall steal from us. And soon there will be riots—battles—wars—over less and less food."
Niju's eyebrows lowered. "And exactly what do you propose, O Wise One?"
Nave turned to Balto. "My sister, Aniu the White Wolf, has come to me in dream visions." Upon that name, both Aleu and Balto shivered, though they didn't know why. "She says that one would come that should lead us over the sea. This one that she was talking about was to be one who was wolf but does not know the wolves' ways." With this, he turned to Balto.
Balto took a moment to understand. "And that would be…" His eyes widened. "Oh, wait, you've got the wrong guy! Honestly! I mean, I've led a sled dog team before, but never something as big as a wolf pack."
"You see!" Niju announced. "The old one has been mistaking! Instead of a grand leader, he has made a special door delivery that contains a mutt! So I say, Nava, for you to step down, and let a real leader take your place."
"I will step down," Nava said, raising his voice slightly. "But only when a real leader takes my place.
Niju's eyes widened, and then narrowed. He sprinted four steps and jumped his claws bared and his mouth open, ready to tear Nava apart.
Nava disappeared.
Niju found himself on the ground, looking around desperately for Nava. "Show yourself, old man!" he yelled. When he didn't get a response, he turned to the other wolves. "You see what a great leader he is. He cowers at a fight and says we should move when we are plentiful. Just because the caribou may not come this year, why can they not come next year? As for myself, I am tired of old leaders. Those who will, follow me!" With that, he started down a path that led to a different section of the beach, half the pack following him.
Aleu sighed. How long will this last? How long has this lasted, I wonder? She turned to the left and saw a tree, which had definitely not been there before. As she watched, the minutes went by, and she started thinking that the tree was awful strange for a tree—it looked more like a wolf.
Then the tree moved. It started walking. And then it turned from a tree into a wolf: Nava.
"Whoa!" Aleu exclaimed. "That was neat. What did you do?"
"I simply made myself look like a tree," Nava explained.
Balto grinned. "If I did that, I'd get splinters," he joked. Neither Nava nor Aleu smiled at this, so he let his grin fade away. Why is it I'm the only one who gets my jokes? he wondered.
"Could you teach me that?" Aleu asked.
Nava shrugged. "It is not something that can be taught, rather something that one simply knows." He looked after Niju. "We will provide as much hospitality to you as we can, regardless of how Niju treats you. You may sleep here tonight, and be on your way in the morning, if that is your choice." He walked away, indicating that he did not wish to be followed.
Aleu looked across the water absently. Suddenly, she felt her mind rip away from her body, and started floating across the water.
Caribou!
A herd of caribou was crossing an ice bridge, nearly reaching the land on the other side of the ocean. She followed them as long as she dared, and then let herself reconnect with her body.
"Aleu!"
Aleu jumped. She turned. "Yeah, Papa?"
Balto breathed a sigh of relief. "I've been trying to get your attention for the past minute." He looked back to the north. "We have to go. Our place is not here."
"But Papa, I saw caribou!" Aleu said. "That's what I was seeing!"
Balto didn't show any sign of changing his mind. "Nevertheless, our place is not here."
"You can't make me leave here," Aleu said. "We have to help these wolves. Your dreams have foreseen it!"
A wind came from the ocean. "That is a sign that winter is coming early," Balto said, trying to persuade her. "Your mother will have been worried sick by now. We shall spend the night here, and then we will both leave in the morning." With that he went over to where the other half of the pack had laid down.
Aleu sighed. Once again, she asked herself, Where do I belong?
CHAPTER 10

ALEU WAS RUNNING. She didn't know how long she had been running, nor where she was running to. She didn't even know why she was running.
All she knew was to follow the raven.
The raven led her across the sea, into a land that the caribou had entered. Then Aleu watched as the seasons changed from winter to spring to summer and autumn…and back to winter.
The raven led Aleu back over the ice bridge, toward the wolf pack. She saw not her father leading the pack, but herself. She looked on as she saw herself leading the wolves over the ocean, toward the land plentiful with food. She saw the seasons change three times, and heard herself scream in agony, wishing for death to overcome her. She wanted to see her parents, and she never would again. She saw herself running back across the sea, arriving in Nome once again.
She saw herself in Nome, standing beside her brothers and sisters. She watched in horror as Dingo, Kodi, Saba, Tydye, and Malena all fell to the hunter's power. And then she saw the hunter turning his gun to her.
No matter what path you choose, the raven's voice called to her, it will end in death. Nothing can prevent it. Nothing…
She saw herself somehow surviving the hunter. She saw herself cross Alaska, Canada, and some of the States. She saw herself accompanied by a wolf and a fox, the wolf dying and the fox going on to betray her.
And then she saw her daughter…
Aleu closed her eyes. "No!" she shouted to the raven. "Enough! I don't want to see anymore!"
But even with her eyes closed, she could see the trails in her future. She saw her father lying down, wishing to see Aleu one final time, and never waking up. She saw her mother take on a journey to find her daughter, only to die one day after finding her. She saw Uncle Boris being buried under a glacier as it collapsed upon itself. She saw Luk and Muk dying from old age, asking Aleu in their final breaths to never forget them. She saw her grief after losing all of them. She found herself talking to the fox, saying how it would have been better if she had led the wolf pack, instead of leaving them behind for the sake of her own family. She saw the fox leaving to lead the pack on its own. She saw it return after the pack had all died off from a caribou stampede.
"Enough," she whispered, barely able to do so because she was not strong enough to watch anymore.
She saw the dead wolf being revived. She saw an enemy wolf shocking him to death with lightning. She saw the fox being near death himself and asking Aleu to remember their good times. She saw herself promise to fulfill the fox's wish. She saw the years pass, and one by one all she loved die. She saw herself on her death bed, wishing for her father to return from the dead. She saw herself close her eyes one final time, and she saw herself fall dead…
And then a white wolf appeared, its entirety filling up the dark sky, its form blotting out the raven and its horrible predictions. The wolf erased all the images that Aleu had seen. The wolf was the most vicious and—strangely—loving thing Aleu had ever seen. Besides her father, the wolf was about the most beautiful creature in the world to Aleu; she felt as if she could reach out to it and touch the face of God.
All will be right in the end, Aleu, the wolf said. No matter which path you take, there will be One who will walk with you.
And it was then that Aleu knew which path to take.


The sun had not yet risen when Aleu woke up. The sky was starting to lighten up, however. The beach was a gray sort of color, and Nava was sitting there, watching the spot in the sky where the sun would be.
Aleu decided to go and talk to him. She walked down to the beach and sat beside him, waiting for him to notice her.
After a few minutes of silence, Nava said, "The sun rises, and the sun sets. Noting can stop changes from happening." Then silence again enveloped them.
Aleu was tempted to answer this, but she held her tongue. She felt as if Nava was thinking about something, and she didn't want to be impolite by interrupting his thoughts; she had thoughts of her own that she felt were private.
After an hour, Nava smiled. "You have questions."
Aleu nodded, somehow knowing that the silence was some sort of test. "Why is Niju so afraid to leave?"
Nava sighed. "Niju is not a coward. He would rather die than leave the land that he believes belongs to him. He was born here, and he will die here; this is his one and only home. Many of our pack is that way, but they fail to see that all good things must come to an end."
Aleu sighed. "No kidding." She thought about her dream from the night before, how only darkness came before the dawn. "But I don't see why all things must change if they're fine the way they are."
Nava looked over at her. "I saw your past in a dream last night, Aleu. I share your sorrow. But I know from my dream that your place—for the time being, at least—is not in Nome."
"Is it here?"
Nava looked back at the ocean. "No. You have a very twisted path, dear one. Whatever choice you make will affect the rest of us, including your family."
Aleu sighed once more. "Let's hope I make the right choice, then." She figured that, no matter what, her father would understand her decision.


"We start with the bear clans!" Niju shouted to his mini pack, his form looking to them as if shining in the morning sun. The wolves howled in agreement, and started following Niju to the beach.
But Balto was there, preventing Niju and his followers from carrying out their plan. "Going somewhere, Niju?" he asked.
Niju smiled. "Oh, look who's got a change of heart." His smile disappeared. "You're outnumbered, Half-breed. Go and chase your dreams, and leave us to our own business."
Aleu appeared beside Balto. Nava stood on his other side. The wolf pack stood behind them. Aleu smiled. "The dreams he has had…I have had them as well!" she exclaimed; she knew how much the wolves respected shared dreams from the instincts she inherited from her father.
This brought murmurs from the other wolves under Niju's command.
"Did you hear that?"
"She has had the dreams, too!"
"Nava was right about Balto!"
A huge crash interrupted them. They all turned as one to look toward the source of the crash. On the ocean, a multitude of icebergs lined themselves up, forming a straight line from the shore out into the open ocean.
"It's a bridge!" Aleu shouted. Understanding the meaning of the first part of her dream, she turned to the wolves, saying, "Last year the caribou crossed the sea on a bridge. Now it's our turn!"
Balto suddenly understood where his own dreams were leading him. They were not given to him to scare him spitless, but to prepare him to lead this wolf pack. "If we are to cross, we are to do it now!" he announced, trying to emphasize the fact as much as he could.
Aleu turned to him. "Whatever happened to your 'Your mother will be worried sick' line?"
Balto sighed. "I don't think we'll ever see your mother again. You were right: our place is here."
While they were talking, Niju's wolves started toward the icebergs, followed by all the others. While Niju tried desperately to call them back, he noticed Nike, Noke and Nuke racing behind them.
"You idiots!" he called; this stopped them. "Where do you think you're going?"
Noke spoke up: "Well, Niju, you know that I usually don't think, but this time I think Nava is right. Besides," added with a growl in his belly, "I'm hungry." With that, all three of them raced after the other wolves, eager to fill their bellies with delicious caribou.
By now everybody was at the shore, about to board the icebergs. Balto, as leader, told everybody what to do. "Team up. Make as many pairs of two as you can." Once this was done, he said, "The bridge will only be connected for a short amount of time, so we'll have to move as swiftly as we can. Everybody ready?" When everybody shouted yes, he yelled, "Mush!"
Nobody moved.
"What did he say?" Nike asked.
"I think he said 'lunch," Noke answered.
"Oh, great, food at last!" Nuke exclaimed.
"Sorry," Balto murmured. "Mush is a sled dog phrase for 'move out'." Still nobody moved. "Get moving!"
Everybody jumped, and then as one, they all hopped onto the icebergs, some slipping in their haste to reach the opposite shore.
Aleu, teamed up with Nava, had to stay behind to help him onto the iceberg; no matter how clever he was, he was old and needed help. After helping him, she looked back to the shore. She saw her entire life fall away into forgetfulness. This was her home…now she was leaving it.
Niju suddenly jumped into her view. "Out of my way, Half-breed!" he shouted, knocking her into the water before jumping onto the iceberg. As Aleu got up, trying to see through the wet fur that now hung over her eyes, she saw Niju attack Nava, knocking him hard onto the ice.
Aleu suddenly felt determination, and she jumped onto the iceberg to prevent Niju from harming Nava any further. But she, too, was knocked onto the ice. She felt a pain in her side.
"Your magic tricks will not save you this time, old one!" Niju yelled in triumph, raising a paw for the final blow. But Balto was suddenly there, preventing him from doing so.
"If you're going to kill Nava, you're going to have to kill me!" Balto said, and not as any idle threat, either.
Niju growled. "I would enjoy killing you all, but one of you 'has' to lead the pack across the ocean!"
Balto looked at Aleu, giving a little wink, and turned back to Niju. "What do you mean, one of us?" His voice was one of sureness. "You wanted to be a leader, didn't you? Now's your chance. Go, lead the pack!"
Niju suddenly widened his eyes. He looked from Balto and Aleu to Nava to the wolf pack. He looked down in the water and saw his reflection. Aleu could see him forcing himself to make a decision of whether to leave his home…or follow his life-long dream.
After a few minutes, he stuttered, "N-N-No! I will not leave my home!" He turned back to the shore. "Forgive me," he whispered, and then jumped into the water, swimming back to the nearby shore.
Balto helped Nava up. "I'm going to help you get across," he said. But Nava shook his head. Balto sighed. "You're right; you'll never make it." He gulped. "Well, then I'll go."
But Aleu stopped him. "No, Papa," she said, her voice kind but determined at the same time. "You don't belong here. You belong at home, with my mother." She turned to stare at the wolf pack. "But I belong here. It's my destiny." She turned back to face him, a slight smile on her face. "I think I finally have found out who I am. I am…" A tear fell down her cheek. "I am a wolf.
Balto stared at her. "But, Aleu…"
Nava interrupted him. "Aniu told me that the one who should lead our pack would be one who was wolf but does not know the wolves' ways. I had assumed it was you, but I see now I was wrong." He smiled. "It is your daughter."
Balto looked from Nava to Aleu. "But…" He thought over all the things that had happened back home, all the times they had had together. He realized that all of that was in preparation for this moment in his daughter's life. "I…understand."
Aleu smiled. "I thought you would."
Balto hung his head. "It's just…so hard to let my baby go." For the first time, he didn't mean to say it; it was purely out of habit.
"Papa, I'm not…" Aleu's voice trailed away. Her smile returned. "Oh, all right." She wrapped her neck around his, one final hug. "So I'll always be your baby."
Balto felt a tear drop down his cheek; at the same time, he felt Aleu's tears on his chest fur. "Will I ever see you again?" he asked, trying to sound not as sad as he really was. The effort was in vain; his voice betrayed his true emotions.
Aleu smiled. "Time moves quickly," she answered. "Just yesterday I was a dog. Now look at me; today I'm a wolf." She let go of him. "We will see each other again, sometime. I promise."
Balto smiled. "Reach…for the stars," he said in a quivering voice, repeating the phrase that he had taught her.
Aleu sniffed, tears in her eyes. "You may touch the sky," she finished. Then she edged toward the edge of the iceberg, and was about to jump. Before she did, she turned back to look at her father. "Tell Mom…tell her I've finally found my home." With that, she jumped into the water and started swimming to the now-far-away icebergs—into her destiny.
Balto thought over all his adventures with Aleu, from when she was born to when she ran away. He thought of the times they had had on the beach; the days when her siblings would sometimes visit, and they would all play games and have fun; the hours when she would tell him what Jenna had taught her; the argument in the forest that had led her to leave in the first place; their encounter with the bear; their arrival at the wolf pack; and, finally, their final conversation. Now, at long last, her quest—her wolf quest—was over.
Aleu reached the iceberg, climbed on, and looked back at her father. Then, bidden by her now-familiar instinct, she let out the most authentic wolf howl she had ever made, one paw raised in the air. Her first life was now over; now she was beginning her second life, the life of a wolf.
"Good-bye…daughter," Balto whispered, knowing she would hear him. Then a mist came from the ocean, and she was gone. Balto kept his eyes fixed on the place where she had disappeared.
After a long while, he turned back and went to shore. Nava was there. When Balto had stopped walking, Nava said as encouragement, "She will be a good leader. And now it is time for you to go home."
Balto looked back at the mist where Aleu had disappeared. "What about you?" he asked, his voice still quivering.
"I will find Niju," came the reply. "His heart is now gentle. We will become great friends. Now, you can go on your journey."
Balto looked back at him. "What am I supposed to tell Aleu's mother? I promised that she would see Aleu again."
Nava smiled. "That promise will come true one day, my brother. I have no doubt of that. And now it is time for me to say good-bye." With that, he walked away, disappearing into the cliffs.
For the first time in his journey, Balto didn't know what to do. He wasn't about to go back to Nome and tell everybody—Jenna, Boris, Muk and Luk, and all his children—that Aleu was gone for good, but at the same time, he knew it was his duty, both as Aleu's father and as a wolf.
The raven he had followed landed behind him. Without turning his back, he snorted, "What now?"
He was startled when the voice of his dream replied, "Only the journey home, my son."
Balto whirled around. In the raven's place was a white wolf. "Aniu?" he asked. The wolf nodded. "You're…you're my…"
The wolf raised her head and gave a howl, and then a mist came and enveloped her into the night.
Balto smiled. "And…good-bye to you, too…Mother." With that, he completed his own wolf quest, and turned down the beach, toward the distant horizon.
I'll see you later, Aleu. Later.



Reach for the stars…
You may touch the sky.
I wrote this fanfic a LONG time ago, and seeing as now there is a proper group to put it in, I guess now's the time to transfer it here! I wrote SEVERAL fanfics with Aleu in them, so here's the first one focusing on Aleu. Yes, it's a direct adaptation of the Wolf Quest movie, but with a few twists here and there to keep it entertaining.

Part 1 can be found here: [link]
© 2012 - 2024 SkulblakaShurtugal
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