Yost - Great arctic adventure: an elfs christmas tale

THE
GREAT
ARCTIC
ADVENTURE

An Elfs Christmas Tale

by Jerry Yost

AuthorHouse

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.authorhouse.com

Phone: 1-800-839-8640

2012 by Jerry Yost. All rights reserved.

Cover Illustration by: Danny Martin

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 08/15/2012

ISBN: 978-1-4772-6037-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4772-6036-4 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012914748

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,
and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery Thinkstock.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Dedicated to two of my granddaughters

Victoria and Jessica

With the assistance of our third grandchild

Danielle Martin

Property of Santa Claus Incorporated

The small helicopter circled high above the frozen tundra; the pilot maneuvered the craft for landing. The girl watched from the passenger side of the cockpit as the windsock fluttered wildly. The snow drifted in blowing gusts across the makeshift landing site. She looked down on the tented camp below, and her lower lip began to quiver. It wasnt the cold, but a trembling that comes when your emotions begin to grip the reality of the here and now. Her mystical travels had taken her into a wonderland seen by very few, if any, humans, and it was ending.

The pilot descended slowly, inching the copter down while gauging his descent against the windsocks erratic behavior. He landed with a soft bump on the deepening blanket of snow. The girl glanced at the pilot, sadness showing in her face. No words were exchanged; they both sat in silence. She grabbed her bag and jumped to the ground... the tears running down her cheeks said it all. The events of the past few days made saying goodbye very difficult, if not impossible. She could only manage a half-hearted wave as she tried to smile. The pilot nodded, but his grin seemed not nearly as wide and his eyes not nearly as bright as they usually were. Were there tears in his eyes, too? She guessed not; the storm had distorted her view as she moved away from the copter. His image was now hidden behind a veil of snow that covered the copters cockpit as it lifted off. The pilot quickly turned back to the controls; there indeed were tears in his eyes.

The young girl had arrived in despair, failing to make the connections for her very first assignment. She could not have known that the events that were to follow would take her on a mystical journey... one that would end in sadness, exposing her to a knowledge that fates mysteries were all part of the circle of life.

She relished the experiences that led her through this unique adventure; however, she would abandon any journalist instincts to write the story. It would remain a secret that shed carry with her forever.

The pilots hand pushed the stick forward, and he lifted the helicopter back up into the sky. The young girl wiped her eyes, focusing on the small crafts departure. She followed it until it was no more than a red dot, and continued her gaze until it disappeared into the white wall of the blizzard.

The elderly man dressed quickly before leaving his tent. He was not quite certain what he had heard or where it was. Outside, he stared into a blanket of white, having left his goggles in the tent. Blindly he followed the sounds in the direction of the area where their supply plane could land. But no supply plane was scheduled... not in this weather. What unfolded was unbelievable.

He thought he saw a red and yellow helicopter landing in a storm that no one should have tried to navigate.

Yet there it was, its rotors whipping snow into the air, making identification all but impossible.

He wiped his eyes, barely able to make out the letters P.O.S.C.I. below the tail rotor. They didnt belong to any helicopter service he could remember. His curiosity increased watching someone climb out onto the snow. Then, just as quickly, the rotor blades hummed back to full power, and it lifted back into the air. He shook his head; the passenger backing away from the departing craft should be able to answer his questions.

The girl turned back toward the camp and slowly shuffled through the mounds of snow toward the tents. She made out a figure waiting for her and waved. Surprised, the man finally recognized the form plodding through the snow.

Hello, Tori? he yelled over the swirling gusts of snow.

She recognized a surprised Dr. Simpson moving toward her. She raised her arm to shield her face, and acknowledged his greeting as the last sounds of the copter blended into the howling wind. She wondered just how much he had seen before the helicopter disappeared.

Where have you been, and how on earth did you find us in this storm? Simpson questioned.

The polar expedition had used sleds to arrive at this remote area, no one could have known their exact location without using their radio beacons signal. They had shut that down to save the generator. Since setting up camp, it had been three days without any radio contact. Simpson concluded only a fool would risk flying into an uncharted area in this weather.

Thats a very, very long story Tori replied. Seeing the perplexed look on Simpsons face, she wasnt quite sure how she would explain her arrival. He just nodded.

Julia Carson, the expeditions nurse, had now joined them, and other members of the group started coming out of their tents. She put her arm around Tori and headed the girl toward the tent that served as the cook tent and central meeting place. More questions followed, but Tori was able to avoid them by claiming she couldnt hear anything over the sound of the storm.

Therell be plenty of time to unravel the mystery after we get her inside Julia laughed as she gently pushed the girl past the tent flaps into the large tent. Tori sat and gladly took the hot coffee mug offered to her.

Whered you find a helicopter service to fly you out here? Better yet, who would make the trip in this weather? Simpson was determined to get answers.

Tori sighed, It wasnt easy, but the service was recommended. She explained that the pilot was reluctant to fly, but seemed to have an idea where the expedition might be located. He decided to risk it, even with the storm getting worse. And here I am.

Tori

Three days ago, Tori had landed on a commercial flight at the Nome airport. She couldnt believe her luck. She had missed her original flight to Nome, and now this flight had been delayed. She walked toward the terminals entrance, where she was supposed to meet the expedition. No one stood waiting for her, and she had no indication where she might find them.

She slumped down on one of the benches, and her head dropped into her hands. Her assignment was blown. She had counted on this opportunity... her first big assignment as a photo journalist since graduation. It was to be the big break in her short career. She had moved to New York after graduation from the University of Texas. Several interviews later, she was happy to take the job with the scientific journal. Now all her education and training had earned her the first opportunity to cover a real story. Overwhelmed with disappointment, tears streaming down her cheeks, she sat trying to figure out what her next move could be. She was tired from having been in the air the entire day.