A Dangerous Journey

I left the house to Aya and carefully placed the unexpected patient on my horse cart. It was the easiest way to get him to the cottage hospital, which was in another village - the only genuine healthcare center within a reasonable distance. Only they could take care of things a single doctor who was sent to a poor, unknown village couldn't.

The defective horse cart was given to me by a trader passing through our village many years ago; but the problem was that I didn't have any horses, so the cart was left next to our neighbour's small farm to rot... until now. I had to find an animal that could pull the cart all the way to another village, through rough and snowy paths.

I ran to my neighbour's house and knocked the door in haste.

"I'm coming, I'm coming, be patient!" my neighbour said from inside.

"It is me! I need a favor, friend!" I said.

My neighbour finally reached the door and opened it with no delay.

"Holy God, what is wrong? What brought you here in the middle of the night?" he asked me.

"Please, let me take one of your animals. I need to ride a cart to the Usuloyuk village, I need something that can pull the horse cart." I said.

"What is wrong? Can't you wait until morning?" he said. "I am not asking for me or my animals, but it is dark and full of snow. You may get lost, it is dangerous!"

"I need to get my patient to the cottage hospital." I said. "Come on, please just let me!"

"Alright, alright, no use arguing with you..." he said. "You are the kind of man who would literally cut your arm to help your patients."

He took a key from his house and walked with me to his barn. A few cows woke up and started moaning.

"Here, all yours. Take one." my neighbour said.

I went ahead and picked a strong cow who could resist the cold and hostile environment at night. My neighbour let the cow out and together, we got it to the horse cart.

"Thank you a lot, your help is invaluable." I said. "I promise I will bring her back safely."

"Are you sure you don't want a second one?" my neighbour asked. "Will you be fine with one cow? This thing is designed for two."

"It is okay, we are not lifting heavy stuff." I said.

"Oh my God, you dumb man, stay here..." he sighed. After a while, he came back with another cow.

"Okay, here you go." he said. "Godspeed. I don't care about the cows, just bring yourself back safely, that's all."

"Thank you so mu-"

"Just go!"

The cows started walking as my neighbour returned to his house and closed the door. While I was leaving, I saw my daughter Aya looking at me from the window. I waved at her, and she waved back.

Soon enough, I was out of the village. I could still see a few lights here and there, but other than that, I had no clue about where exactly I was. The village I was travelling to was placed in between hills, so I wouldn't be able to see anything before I came very close. And furthermore, it was a nightmare to navigate on the dirt roads which were rendered invisible with the thick layer of snow.

Apart from trying to stay on path, I was also trying hard to look out for potentially hostile wolves and (the very rare sight of) foxes.

After travelling in silence for some time, the first thing I heard was the moaning of my patient, Yunus. I looked behind to see how he was doing. He was rolling around and holding his hands over his stomach.

"Easy there, man." I said. "Look up and watch the stars. I am getting you to the hospital."

His response to me was a disgusting burp.

All of a sudden, I found myself weighless. A loud crash was heard. It only lasted for a short moment, and I was laying on (or rather 'in') the snow afterwards.

I looked up to see what had happened. One of the cart's wheels were broken, and the cart was pretty much 'sinking' into the snow.

Mr. Yunus had fallen as well. I quickly dragged him back onto a dry part of the cart.

"Damn it." I said. "Can I make it?"

I looked around. I could still see my village, but I couldn't see anything else.

"If we are still that close to Yuvakaya, there is no way we can make it on foot." I said. "Sorry, buddy. I'm going to have to get you back."

There would be no other travellers courageous (or stupid) enough to use this way in the middle of the night, at this season. I couldn't stay here and wait for help.

I broke a few loose planks from the cart, placed them together using tethers and used them to place Mr. Yunus on one of the cows. What I did was looking like a badly built raft at best... if you squinted hard enough. But if it could hold long enough to bring him back to my house, it was okay.

I released the cows from the cart and started guiding them back towards my village, Yuvakaya. The return journey was going to be a bit harder, but there was no choice. I wouldn't want to freeze here and die.

I was trembling because of the cold as I was trying to pull my legs out of the snow, move them forward and get buried knee-deep into the snow again. The cows weren't having such a good time either, but at least they looked like they were more resistant to cold.

To heat myself up, I got closer to the cows. It was worth the smell.

"Hey, are you there?" I asked Yunus. He made a weak grunt and tried to show me that he was doing his best to stay on the cow's back.

"Good." I said. "Are you cold?"

It was another grunt, but louder.

"Yeah, keep feeling it. Don't get too comfortable." I said. "Maybe there is nothing lethal and you will get to live for longer."

That last sentence was not audible to him.