Inuit Raiders

[Sarah Tintagyl]

The tundra and polar wilderness of the Western Hemisphere had long since been monitored by austere nations like Canada, Saboria, and Quebec. Since the passing of those nations and the dawning of the American Commonwealth, the Canadian regions gained greater autonomy under the protection of the Republic. The idea of autonomy was not in terms of nationhood. Instead, bands of nomads and small isolated villages started banning together to pillage and raid across the northern reaches. Riding on horses or sailing on small boats, not unlike the ancient longboats of Viking raiders, these Inuit tribes were brought together by a singular chieftain, Ujarak.

 

Ujarak stood tall. At nearly six foot five he was an intimidating figure. He carried a long iron spear while the men and women who followed him armed themselves with all manners of weapons, from guns, to swords, to bows and arrows. They were a ragtag group, but effective in their hunting and their treasure gathering.

 

In his great tent one evening as the leaders of his raiding band gathered around him, Ujarak graced his fingers over a worn map that they took from a Commonwealth explorer dead in the snow.

 

"The Bear Islands, they are new to this land?" he asked one of the young raiders.

 

"Not new," said the raider, "They are First People, but new to the idea of nationhood."

 

"Do they have a military or any kind of defense around their islands?"

 

"Not that any of us are aware of."

 

Ujarak smiled and thrust his iron spear into the northern most Bear Island. "That this is where we shall raid."

 

The other raiders smiled and that night their ships set sail for the Bear Island - Nation of the Bear.

[Generalissimo]

With the ocean itself frozen still for miles it was another peaceful and uneventful day around Bear Island. Some might even consider this an especially boring kind of day in the Qikiqtaaluk. Even within a literal city of ice residents considered it much too cold for anything but staying indoors. A few more bored adventurous children tried ice fishing in ramshackle shanties beyond the outskirts of ice shanties on the cities' outskirts. On such a mundane day none bothered worrying about security. No raiders would bother hiking near fourty miles through open +hundred feet ice thickness; so confident in this nobody bothered with anything resembling formal military or law enforcement beyond a rough loose militia of a dozen Inuktitut Warriors. 

Another pleasant day in the City of Ice around the Bear Island of Nunavut.

 

Maybe not everyone in the Qikiqtaaluk possessed enough common sense to stay inside. . . 

In the cold howling winds as churning water met rough ice a solitary figure was quietly stalking today's prey of seals.

Minageokuluk would be having a better day if her swashbuckling obsessed sister didn't wander off in wanderlust for American Commonwealth.

Assuming she didn't freeze to death today seemed to have potential for a great day of hunting.

 

Edited February 4, 2014 by Generalissimo

[Sarah Tintagyl]

They came through the chaos of swirling winds and flying snow.

 

When the ships reached the ice shelves around the island Ujarak ordered the small boats to be lightly nailed to the ice before traveling the rest of the way on foot. He stationed a few guards around their landing point while taking supplies, fire starters and tents inland toward the Bear Island city. For four days the Inuit war band traveled. They trudged across the wasteland for hours before making camp, amusing themselves with the promises of a good raid of the city, while feeding on salted fish and boiled water from underneath the ice.

 

On the forth day, the raiders arrived at the outskirts of the city.

 

Ujarak ordered ten men with rifles to surround the city. They were to kill anyone on the outskirts to keep an alarm from being raised, then the rest of the war band would move into town. Their feet sounding like drum beats becoming louder and louder as they neared Nunavut.

 

Eventually a wild call would be raised and the band would attack...

 

Ujarak smiled as he put his plan into motion.

[Generalissimo]

As the walls of a once peaceful ice fishing shanty were painted crimson with red Pimniq died thinking how unfair it was. Today had been his twelve birthday and it was planned a day of ice fishing with friends and father. Pimniq always loved a day of ice fishing because nothing else was that peaceful. . . Until he alongside his friends and father were dying on the ground.

 

The raiders killing everyone on the outskirts was mostly a one sided massacre of elderly men and young boys whilst moving from shack to shack. Element of surprise remained overwhelming throughout and by mid afternoon it was easy to loose count of the number slaughtered. So far nothing had gone slightly wrong in the raid. Perhaps today Sedna, Inuit godess of the sea, favored them. Any time someone got shots off at Ujark’s men it somehow manage just missing.

 

Less ambitious raiders might have been satisfied with the day’s loot. From dozens of snowmobiles, stacks of Geiger Counters, crate of M14 rifles, to piles of seal furs – wouldn't be considered a bad haul on another day. Even a few exotic things here and there.

A titanium framed, silver plated, diamond inlaid dogsled – extremely conspicuous. Most surprisingly a near hundred excessively well mannered meticulously groomed dogs (Sled husky dogs trained enough that killing and eating a few canines of team really wouldn't slightly effect mannerisms or effectiveness)

 

Everything was going fantastically (except for hundreds of people haplessly slaughtered) until the city itself became came in sight. . .  It became abundantly clear they’ve had spent better part of their day harassing the outskirts of outskirts. On city’s edge Ujark realized exactly what he was up against.  Not raiding a mere township or village – but a city of near million. -(796,875 exactly –> after the day’s earlier victims)- Ten men with rifles to surround the city? Against something that decentralized, sprawling, and loosely knitted. . . This entire band of raiders couldn’t properly cover a twelfth of the City’s best exits. A man of ambitions lesser than Ujark might be somewhat intimidated. *Maybe* a slight miscalculation – nothing core of the plan couldn’t handle?

Inuit raider had opportunity enough to properly assess the city before him.

 

Isolated little shanties gave way to disjointed clusters of igloos, huts, and icehouses. A ring of settlements between themselves and island proper; each separated by distance of half a clear horizon separating each. Overall encircling a modest sized island.

 

 Sprawling outskirts gave way to decentralized suburbs of pleasant eight room icehouses. All separated by roughly an acre of property and encircling the modest sized island.

 

Decentralized suburbs gave way to a proper city of ice. Shopping centers, hotels, corporate offices, and government buildings – all crafted from ice (often around proper frames) – all glittering like diamonds in sunlight. All patterned in circle around the modest sized island.

 

Bear Island proper housed was littered with a couple garish long vacated prefabricated reinforced concrete shelters. Center of Ice City was fantastically hallowed.

 

Raider’s prize was before them – only a matter of seizing it.

Eventually a wild call would be raised and the band would attack...

Ujarak smiled as he put his plan into motion.

Edited February 8, 2014 by Generalissimo