⚠️ Warning: This content may include physical and psychological consequences, references to World War II, and graphic descriptions. The author does not intend to be pretentious or morbid; everything narrated is fiction, and reader discretion is advised.
🫠 Author's Note: "Have you ever wondered what happens when a polar bear bites you? Well, let's be honest… that leg would've already said 'au revoir'."
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The atmosphere was enveloping; the air smelled of home-cooked food. Nuriel knew he was dreaming, but it was the first pleasant dream he'd had in months. A memory? Or a wish? Whatever it was, the feeling was warm… until something made him shiver: when he got up, he realized his mother had no face.
A shiver ran through his soul. He sat up suddenly and, his voice trembling, asked:—Who are you? You're not my mother.
His mother tried to come closer, reaching out her arms, but Nuriel stepped back.
When he finally touched her, she vanished into the air, as if she had turned to dust.
His heart was pounding so hard it hurt to breathe, and his hands moved on their own, responding to the fear of the unknown.
Suddenly, he found himself in another plane: Warsaw, the ghetto. The streets were empty, the wagons silent, and the distant whistle of a train carried neither passengers nor cargo. He felt someone watching him, something pursuing him… but he couldn't tell whether the distance held shadows or a person.
As he turned his head to see what was happening around him, he suddenly saw a cherub, floating in the midst of the void. It wasn't the celestial cherub he remembered; it was the same one that appeared in his dreams, with the face of a lion and the beak of an owl, eight eyes scrutinizing him from its skull, and wings pointed straight at him.
A faint buzzing filled his ears as it spoke to him in Hebrew:
—I will always be with you, Nuriel, because until you leave Auschwitz, I will keep reminding you that you never left Auschwitz.
The cherub kissed him forcibly, hurting his mouth. Nuriel tried to pull away, but it was as if the very air held him back. His chest tightened, his breathing grew shallow. Then visions began to appear: the deaths of saints from the past, fleeting glimpses of saints from the future, perhaps being massacred.
Everything spun around him, lights and shadows intertwined in a whirlwind that made his spirit tremble.Above it all, he saw a flock of angels tracing spirals over the peak of a mountain covered in mist and ice. Among them, he spotted Xiaoxui, his ancient ancestor.
His mind burned with pain, both in the dream and in reality. He felt his shoulders, hands, and head tearing apart, as if he were dematerializing with each vision.
A cold so penetrating it felt like the winter in Greenland passing through him, comparable to Auschwitz… or perhaps even worse.
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Nuriel was moving in his sleep, unable to wake up.
Adelaida shouted at Nuriel. As soon as he opened his eyes, he staggered to the side of his bed to vomit.
Even though they had tried to move forward by boat, Nuriel had lost his way; the current had carried him back to the shore.
Afterward, he had dragged Galton and Adelaida through a blizzard. Snow fell into his eyes, it hurt to open them, and he could barely see ahead.
Nuriel was on the verge of collapse. He had gone three days without sleep, moving south with the hope that, if he walked far enough, maybe God would help him… even if just a little.
Until a man, speaking an unknown language, found him and said:"Young man! Young man! Are you lost?"
Nuriel didn't know what to do. Adelaida was still asleep, and by the time she awoke at the sight of the man, Nuriel had already collapsed to the ground, exhausted.
The man took them to his home and offered them shelter. His wife and two daughters tended to Adelaida while also caring for Nuriel and Galton.
Galton, in his stubbornness, refused to act outside what he believed was dictated by the heavens. That obstinacy nearly got them all killed. Adelaida bore the cost: eight deep wounds on her leg, a partial fracture in her radius, and a risk of infection that threatened to cost her more than the journey itself.
Neither of them had any idea of the exact dates, but he remembered that they had shipwrecked south of Greenland on December 23, 1945.
Since arriving at the man's house, Adelaida hadn't stopped sweating; the pain kept her awake. No matter how much morphine she received, the suffering remained unbearable.
As for Nuriel, he was still tormented by a cherub. It was neither celestial nor demonic; it seemed a manifestation of everything that pursued him. Could it be a projection of himself, or a distortion of the divine?
After three days of walking without rest, they reached northern Greenland, in the Eath district. They didn't know it—they had no idea how many days had passed—but it was February 28, 1946.
Nuriel didn't know how to get out of this situation. All he could do was cling to faith, hoping that somehow, a miracle might happen.
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Meanwhile, on the other side of the sea, south of the Davis Strait, in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, Kamei-san was talking with an old friend, Frank.
"Please… you have to help me. I'm desperate, truly, Kamei-san said, his voice trembling"
Frank looked at him seriously.
"Brother, I know you've asked me for many things before, even illegal arms smuggling, and I understood that. But this… this is too much. Going to southern Greenland is extremely dangerous. What guarantee do we have that we'll find those you're looking for? It seems absurd"
Kamei-san knelt before him and pleaded:
"Please… they're children. I have to go for them.His pure heart was evident, and unlike Galton, Kamei-san was not proud; he asked for help sincerely, aware that, even though he was immortal, that didn't make him untouchable"
Frank sighed heavily:"I know… but asking the lieutenant to do something like that is impossible. And if there's nothing to negotiate with… you don't even have gold to bribe him"
Suddenly, a bright light filled the room. A cherub appeared before them, floating among the beams of light. Its presence was intense, more imposing than beautiful.
"Kamei‑san, Frank, the angel said in a firm voice, you must go to the house of Naval Lieutenant Luis Tremblay and speak with him. We have intervened to save Nuriel and Adelaida. You will go to southern Greenland and bring the children to the port of Aasiaat, where the fishing boat will be waiting for you".
The cherub paused, watching Kamei‑san."I know you can't do this alone. Even with your influence, you'll need divine intervention. God has seen them. Nuriel and Adelaida are suffering terribly, and it's Galton's fault. That's why we left him in a coma: he won't wake until they reach Vermont".
"Go to the captain and make sure the company has a convincing excuse to go to southern Greenland. Also, bring a surgeon; Adelaida, the Wind Saint, was severely attacked by a polar bear"
Kamei‑san blinked, incredulous:"A polar bear?!"
"Yes. Now act. The lieutenant and Frank must help," the cherub replied with authority.
Frank was frozen; he had never seen a cherub, and the stories he had been told about angels were very different. He murmured almost without a voice, "Th-what… is that?"
"It's an angel, don't be mistaken," Kamei‑san said. "Not all angels are beautiful… well, they are… in their own way."
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While this was happening, in northern Greenland, Nuriel and Adelaida struggled to organize their thoughts and clear the doubts that tormented them.
"How did we end up in this place?"
Nuriel answered in a weak voice, "I don't know… I don't know how we got here, maybe the coldest country in the world."
"This is disgusting," Adelaida said. "I can't even digest the food they give me; I throw it all up."
Adelaida looked at Nuriel with sadness and continued,"Nuriel, I'm so sorry… forgive me for not being more helpful. I don't know what happened to you during the journey, but I know you were distant. Maybe if I had used my abilities better, we could have avoided the bears and wouldn't be in this situation."
Tears began to stream down her face, one after another, as she repeated almost like a broken record:
"Nuriel… I'm sorry… I'm sorry…"
Until he, exhausted, shouted,"Shut up already, Adelaida! I don't hate you. Forgive me, okay? I was an idiot. I should have been kinder to you. I let myself think foolish things."
He approached her, looking at her with a tenderness that broke him from the inside, and added,"You're not 'a German' to me… you're my sister. You cared for me when I was cold, you gave me food, and shared your strength with me."
Nuriel got up from the bed, kissed her forehead, stroked her cheeks, and took a deep breath.
"You're my sister. I'm not going to hate you. Just give me a couple of days to recover. I'm exhausted, but I'll rest enough to carry Galton and you. We'll go to southern Greenland. We'll return to the ship where we shipwrecked."
"Galton made us walk in a straight line north, not knowing there were tribes nearby… he didn't even know they existed," he added, drying Adelaida's tears with his hands.
She felt that each tear that fell left behind a piece of her torment.
"Please, forgive me," Nuriel said softly. "I won't ignore your pain again, I won't belittle your care again."
Relief replaced guilt in Adelaida's heart. Biting her lips from the pain, she hugged him tightly, as if their lives depended on it. If she didn't hold him like that, she wouldn't know how to show him how much she cared.
They were both exhausted. Then Galton's snoring broke the silence. They looked at each other and, between fatigue and hope, shared a faint smile.
"And if we leave him here?" Adelaida asked.
"We can't," Nuriel replied. "God is watching us. We have to take Galton to Vermont."
"Seriously?" she shouted. "I didn't say anything before because you're the one dragging him… but now that we're here, we can leave him, Nuriel!"
Nuriel looked at her, exhausted; his hands trembled slightly."No. This time I'll do what God asks. I don't trust anyone else, but if He commands it… we'll do it."
"I know Galton is a burden. I know. But if we rebel against what is asked of us, we could lose divine strength and even our fragile invulnerability. I can't risk it."
There was a tense silence.Adelaida took a deep breath, trying to bring order to the chaos inside her.
"Your leg is in bad shape, but divinity protected you in part."
"What will we do?"
"I'll bind them into cocoons with the blankets and the bear hide. But before that I'll inspect the leg; if there's no gangrene I'll clean it and stitch it up. Be brave; you already have more than enough of that."
"We'll go along the coast, village by village, asking for shelter. In a month or two we'll reach the ship, then we'll decide what to do."
"The south is better than the north."
Adelaida looked at him, incredulous and exhausted.
"Can I ask you something?" Adelaida said. "If Galton was attacked by the bears… how is he still alive?"
"That's what angers me the most," Nuriel replied. "The angels healed him; they didn't heal you. I don't understand it."
She opened her mouth to answer, but instead of words she vomited into the bucket beside her.
"Adelaida," he said, his urgency restrained, "I'm going to examine your leg. I'm going to sedate you; I have ten morphine capsules left. Hold this cloth and breathe deeply. Do your best to bear it."
"Alright, Nuriel," she agreed, her voice weak. "But one thing… do you have any dried meat in your backpack? I can't take that fish anymore; I think it makes me nauseous."
Nuriel shook his head and gave a tired smile."No, it's not the food. You're vomiting because of the cold."
Meanwhile, in St. John's, Newfoundland, Kamei‑san was talking with Naval Lieutenant Luis Tremblay and Frank. He stood beside his wife, holding her hand, and looked at the young men seriously.
"I've seen many things in my life," he said, "but never anything like what I witnessed this morning. The angel told me you would come… and I didn't even have to call you. It seems God has chosen me to save two people from Greenland."
Kamei‑san took a deep, steady breath.
"You don't know what it means to me that you're helping, man. I was planning to go alone, but crossing northern Greenland at this time of year is suicide."
"Not even with all my strength could I have gotten past the ice blocks. And Galton… he led us straight there. He's an idiot."
Luis Tremblay nodded calmly, his gaze steady."Listen to me, young man. People do foolish things, not for no reason, but because they ignore what God shows them. This time I won't be foolish. I won't ignore this sign."
Kamei‑san calmed down a little and asked,"When do we leave?"
"Like a fishing exploration route," Luis replied. "I don't know all the details of what the company said, I only received the order to go from the north to the south of Greenland, claiming marine biology. My mission is to take them there."
"And when will we arrive?" Kamei‑san pressed."Between April and May. During the journey, we'll make several stops.""How many men will go?""Thirty. We'll have enough food and supplies."
At that moment, someone knocked on the door. A young man with an unusual appearance poked his head in and asked,
"Is this the house of Lieutenant Luis Tremblay?"
"You're the doctor, aren't you?" Luis replied.
"Yes," the young man said. "And you saw it too, right?"
They came in, and Luis's wife murmured,
"I'll prepare some coffee."
The atmosphere was heavy; it wasn't excitement that could be felt, but the weight of the divine gaze on every decision.
"The angel ordered me to find a girl," the doctor said firmly. "She has a leg injury and could lose it if I don't treat her. I was sent specifically to help her. I cannot ignore it."
Kamei‑san was stunned, realizing that some people act solely out of faith, without calculating the consequences. Finally, he said,
"Thank you. My heart can be more at ease."
"I was planning to go alone, but the angel stopped me and guided me to this place. Now I feel ready to cross the sea."
Luis Tremblay nodded.
"My mother used to tell me that for God, nothing is impossible. But for men to do the impossible, God must intervene and make us believe. That's how miracles are born."
There was a moment of silence. Then Luis broke the stillness:
"Well, we need to pack. Young man, what's your name?"
"Kamei‑san," he replied.
"Very well. We'll be on the ship for a month, with stops of up to twenty days according to protocol. I can't promise I'll leave without you, but I'll wait that long. Do you think you can manage that?"
"I cannot leave Greenland without making sure those saints are safe," Kamei‑san said firmly, his gaze burning with the possibility of saving them.
Nuriel carried Adelaida on his back, dragging Galton, wrapped and tied in a leather sack fastened at the hips.
The sack slid flat over the snow, making the path easier. The locals could barely see him; they peeked out from the windows of their scattered huts, murmuring about the young man who defied the blizzard.
He couldn't stop. He promised himself an eight-hour rest after a full day of walking. His only sense of the day came from the stars and the glow of the sky. The snow blinded him, and the cold bit his skin.
The wind lashed with fury. His heart kept him moving; his strength prevented him from giving up. Each step was an act of pure will.
He forced his mind to silence, recalling the fields' eternal teaching:"If it's cold… keep walking. Don't think. Just keep walking."