Canada Moose's Arc

Chapter 4 of 4

Canada Moose woke before dawn to the sound of rain against the cabin roof. He stepped outside and saw Cee Cee already waiting by the shed, her fur slicked dark with water. She held up the map, now protected in a clear sleeve, and pointed to the storm clouds moving in from the west. "It's here early," Cee Cee said. "We go now or we don't go at all." Canada Moose looked up at the cliff face disappearing into gray mist. Three hours of practice wasn't enough — he knew that. But the climbers were huddled under an overhang near the top, exposed to wind and lightning. He felt his chest tighten. This was exactly the choice he'd failed to make last season. He pulled the climbing rope from the shed and looped it through the anchor bolts they'd drilled yesterday. His hooves fumbled with the carabiner. Cee Cee steadied his foreleg and helped him lock it properly. "You've got this," she said. Canada Moose tested his weight against the rope, felt it hold, and started his descent into the rain. Halfway down the cliff, his brake hand slipped on the wet rope and he dropped six feet before catching himself. His heart hammered against the gold cross on his chest. Above him, Cee Cee shouted instructions he could barely hear over the wind. He adjusted his grip the way she'd taught him and continued down. When he reached the overhang, two climbers stared at him with wide eyes. He clipped them to his harness one at a time and hauled them up through the storm. By the time all three reached the top, his legs were shaking and his hooves were raw. But everyone was safe. Cee Cee gripped his shoulder and nodded once. Canada Moose had done it — not perfectly, but he hadn't frozen.