41) Blue-Black Water and the Cracks in the Ice

They had reached the mountain top where the Raddlelink supposedly rested. The Raddlelink was a furry beast with the coat of a mammoth. The creature stood on its hind legs but ran like a gorilla, with four tusks ready to gorge anything that got in its path. Its tale was an ice breathing snake which froze its prey before melting through the ice to eat the flesh in stages.

The Raddlelink was truly frightening, which is why Wolff had to find it. He had done the boring stuff like sleep with lions and wrestle a bear. Now he wanted to become a legend. And the best way to become a legend was to find a legend.

The surface of the mountain top was cracked. Deep inside it looked like blue-black water was frozen and had formed an aqueduct. Beyond that was something hairy and woolly. Wolff was sure this was where the Raddlelink slept. According to the books, the only thing which could it was cutting of its tail; that was where the brain was centred.

He picked away at the ice until there was a crack wide enough for him to slip down. The ropes allowed him to abseil down into the cavern and perch on the aqueduct. He took a picture with a camera; the Raddlelink was massive, even when hunched over in its frozen state. He walked along the frozen water and round to where the tail was, baring its isosceles triangle fangs. Wolff leapt onto the tail. He slipped on the surface but quickly regained his balance. He lit a flame near the base of the tail to start melting the ice.

The snake wiggled and stretched, shattering the ice around it and causing Wolff to fall onto a lower aqueduct. Wolff took out his knife and waited. He could hear the snake hissing and feel the chill of its breath all around him. It coiled around the aqueduct Wolff stood on. Wolff charged towards him, but quickly backtracked when the snake breathed frost at him. He lit up another torch and once the snake had finished, threw it at his open mouth. Wolff charged. The snake couldn’t muster up anymore frost so darted at Wolff. The hunter rolled forward and clung to the snake’s neck. It writhed as it tried to get Wolff up, but he clung on and brought the knife across the unscaled flesh. The snake collapsed instantly.

Wolff took a couple of seconds to compose himself before looking at his kill. There was no way he could carry the head back to base with him. He took a picture and then marvelled at the rest of the beastly creature still encased in ice. Imagine fighting the Raddlelink in its prime. He would never know that joy.