Beacon

         Sam looked out over the short stretch of water to the ice raft Paul had been floating on. His orange thermal suit clung to his body, shielding him from the icy wind. Frigid wind whipped through the air, slivers of ice formed on his eyebrows. His friend’s mutilated and bloody remains swayed with the drifting chunk of ice.

         Their shipwreck happened in the night. With the first glimmer of dawn, a massive white bear appeared. It watched them from a nearby ice shelf. The men screamed taunts, hoping to scare it away. Paul tossed a ball of ice, narrowly missing its mammoth skull. The beast slid into the water and reemerged on an ice floe just feet from Paul. Black eyes, devoid of expression, hungered for him. Without a sound or splash, it was gone again. “Run! Swim to us!” Danny screamed. Sam rummaged through his pack and pulled out an ice axe. Paul moaned as he struggled to get up. The bear materialized from the water and overpowered him with its giant paw, ripping chunks from his body. Sam and Danny watched helplessly. Sam’s insides twisted like a mop being wrung out. The monstrous creature’s fur dyed deeper shades of red with every plunge of its snout. The crazed animal finished and slipped back into the water, leaving Paul’s torn and bloodied corpse on the ice.
Sam and Danny crawled toward the far edge of the floe, waiting their turn. Sam’s legs dragged behind him. He clasped the ice tool in his hand. Freezing water seeped through his thermals, leaving his skin numb and stinging. With each pull of the ice axe, his body felt heavier, like the dead weight of sandbags. They huddled together, feeling fear in each other’s trembling bodies. The water remained quiet. “Don’t Look back”, Danny said. “Let’s talk about home. What’s waiting for you when we survive this?”

         “I’m getting married next month. This job was supposed to pay for it,” Sam said. He slumped his head to look down at the ice floor of the floe.

         Danny smiled, showing a row of teeth whiter than the ice. Hair escaped his thermal hood and danced in the wind. “You might attend the wedding after all,” he said, nudging Sam to look up. Sam licked salty water from his lips and raised his head. Through the hazy air, a distant light shimmered on the horizon.

         “Is that for us?” Sam asked.

         “No other reason for being here.”

         They sat and watched the light draw closer. The wind grew stronger, creating a veil of snow-filled air encircling them. They huddled together for warmth. As hours passed, the light grew larger and shined across the Arctic, a beacon of hope. Sam and Danny sat on their frozen prison, hoping the dense air would hide them. Sam fell back to the memorable moments of his relationship with Amanda - their first date, their parting kiss, and her excited visions for their marriage. He longed for her with every fiber of his being. Amanda, baby, I’ll never take a risk like this again; he whispered into the howling wind. He hugged his midsection, seeking solace from the frozen abyss that loomed around him. Why did I make this stupid decision? He thought. A cheap wedding beats an empty casket any day. He felt like a lamb willingly walking into a slaughterhouse. His eyes drifted back to the faint orange ball shining in the nether.

         Danny jerked at his thermal jacket, pulling him from his thoughts. “Sam look.” Danny pointed toward Paul’s body. The men leered at the bear through the murky atmosphere.

         Danny put a finger over his lips. “Shhhhhh.”

         A powerful gust erupted, blurring their view. They stayed still, not moving, until the gusts of wind calmed. The cloak of blinding white cleared, and the bear was gone. Sam’s quivering lips and teary eyes betrayed his desperation. Danny put his hand on Sam’s shoulder. “Hold it together buddy, see that light out there? That’s Amanda, my friend. That’s your wedding day sailing toward us”. Sam’s soul divided, two muses trying to overpower the other. Sam fumbled with the ice tool. “Thank god you were out here, man,” He said.

         Water splashed behind them. A white paw burst from the water and clawed at the edge of the ice floe.