It was a very bitter morning in a native part of America. The snow was covering the tops of most of the mountains and many of the birds had migrated to get some warm weather elsewhere. A young boy, Toku, and his brother were walking through the woods to the lake to catch their breakfast – fish. They caught many fish, big and small, for them and the rest of their tribe, and decided to hang the basket fall of them on a tree branch while they went for a wash in the lake.
The tribe that the boys belonged to were a tribe that believed once you had died your soul would be lifted to the spirits and that’s where you would stay – in peace with not only humans but animals also. However Toku had not tied the basket to the branch very well and after a while it fell to the ground, leaving all the fish scattered every where and jumping around trying to stay alive. Soon after Toku’s other brother came along to join them, however he stopped and saw that all of the fish had been taken and next to it was a paw print that was fresh and deep into the ground.
The brother shouted at his brothers and told them to get out of the water. As the two brothers approached the eldest they could see he was very angry and so they started to panic. Soon enough the brothers had learnt that a bear had eaten their fish that was on the ground, they could tell by the paw print on the mud. Both of the brothers blamed Toku, as he was the one who didn’t tie the basket right. Therefore, Toku decided that he would go after the bear and retrieve the basket that they had all made themselves and maybe retrieve some, if not most of the fish they had caught earlier that morning.
So of he went following the bears footprints along with his spear in his right hand, however little did Toku know that his eldest brother was following him (to make sure he was safe) and that also that this bear was no ordinary bear, it was a polar bear, much more ferocious and more powerful than any normal bear. Toku followed the prints as they led up to the cold, icy mountaintops. He started to worry a bit as many men had died up here from the cold or from the avalanches that happen frequently, however he was determined to get the basket and fish back just to prove his brothers wrong.
When he finally got to the top, Toku could see the bear sitting eating away at the fish. He was shocked to find out it was a polar bear, but that didn’t stop him and so he tiptoed quietly towards it anyway. However the polar sensed Toku and started to chase towards him. Toku started to run also but the bear was too fast and caught up with him, made him fall to the floor and was just about to step on him when all of a sudden a stone hit the bears face. Both the bear and Toku looked in the direction of where the stone had come from.
There standing was Toku’s brother, with a smile on his face. The bear was angry and so it started to chase Toku’s brother. The bear chased him to the edge of the mountain, however the bear skidded on the ice and pushed itself and Toku’s brother of the edge. Toku ran to the edge just in time to see where the bear and his brother landed – it was in a river. Toku waited for his brother to rise to the surface, but only the bear did. Toku ran down the mountain as fast as he could, cutting and bruising himself the whole way.
As he reached the bottom of the mountain he jumped into the river desperately searching for his brother. Toku was pushing the water away from him so he could try and move faster but he was getting tied, then all of a sudden he saw the thing his mind was telling him he wouldn’t hopefully see – it was the body of his dead brother. Toku collapsed into the water crying and screaming and also his body full with anger and revenge. So the body was taken back to the village where they had the funeral the same day.
They all built a coffin from the trees and set it out on the river, where they believed his body would have a long journey to happiness. However little did Toku and his other brother, Tinga, know that their brother had been turned into an eagle so that he could watch over his brothers. After they had set the body down the river, Toku went for a walk where the accident happened. Tinga was already there and Toku told him that he was off to kill the bear once and for all.
However Tinga tried to stop him and told him to forget about it but of went Toku again with his spear in his right hand. Toku was following the new paw prints, this time it led into an open topped cave. It was very cold in there, Toku’s breath turned into ice as soon as he breathed out. There out of the corner of his eye he saw something move he looked and saw the bear running up to the open. With anger inside him, Toku ran after it and when he got to the top he couldn’t see it. At this point Tinga got worried and so he went in the cave to try and find Toku.
He shivered as soon as he got in there, folding his arms over his chest. Mean while at the top, Toku was hanging for dear life on a ledge, after the bear had knocked him off the top. Toku screamed and Tinga heard and started running towards the screams. Back at the top, Toku had got of the ledge and was back on the mountain, this time he ran for the bear, ducked under it and stabbed it as hard as he could. The bear let out a yell and collapsed on Toku. After a while Toku got up from under the bear and started to catch his breath.
Then all of a sudden a change came over the whole area of where Toku was. First the ice started to melt and grass came with pretty flowers instead, then it started to get very warm and beautiful colours like reds, and oranges brightened up the area. Then shadows of ancient and new animals started to flow all over the place and as Toku tried to run away the animal shadows wrapped around him. Toku was amazed by what he saw and heard, and was intrigued to step into the tornado of colours near him.
Toku stepped into it slowly and as he did the winds lifted him up and he was twirled around, at this point Toku dropped his spear and it landed near some of his ripped clothes. As Toku was being twirled around the spirit of an eagle lifted him up higher and then the spirit of the polar bear was also lifted up next to Toku, then as he twirled for the last time they combined and Toku was changed into a polar bear. All this time the shadow animals were making all kinds of sounds and were surrounding Toku.
The eagle spirit let Toku gently down back to the ground and all of a sudden the animal sounds faded away and everything was back to normal except the weather was now raining and the clouds were very dark. At this point Tinga finally reached the top of the mountain and all he saw was the remains of his brother’s clothes and spear. He picked up the spear and walked towards the polar. At this time Toku the bear got up but was so dazed he couldn’t see and when he got to his feet he slipped down to the river. It was sunny and all the animals were around.
Toku was just awakening when he saw the village witch doctor in front of him. She told hime that if he wanted to change back he would have to find the lights of the spirits on one of the mountains. Toku was surprised and puzzled – what did she mean’so then out of coincidence he looked at his hands and was shocked to see white fur and fainted on the spot. After he woke, the witch doctor had gone and so he had to go on the quest to find the lights of the mountain by himself. As Toku was walking he found a little polar cub crying in a tree log.
Toku went up to it and started talking to it. Toku found out that the little cub was called Plantinga and that she had lost her mum on the mountain top. Toku wanted to help so he told her that he would hep her search for her mum as long as she helped him look for the mountain that the witch doctor mentioned. What a coincidence the mountain was where Plantinga would hopefully find her mum – at the polar bear gathering at lake fishalot. So the two of them set off to try and find the two things they were looking for.
