Extrait du livre Alma and the ice shadows
Alma and the ice shadows Pascale Vignali Illustrated by Mathilde Menet Le Regard Sonore Editions
There was once an extraordinary story, since forgotten by all. It took place in Canada, on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, in the Bay of Fundy, to be exact. There, gigantic and mysterious rocks line the cliffs. They look like large faces with fir trees on top of their heads, all facing the ocean. Where did they come from? What secrets do they hide? No one knows for sure. And yet, their story is as incredible as it is marvelous…
It was here that Little Alma often came to play. Especially when, after long weeks spent out at sea, the Atlantic puffins returned to dry land… and settled on the coast for several months, digging burrows into the moss where they put their eggs, well-hidden between the bushes of heather and the wildflowers.
Alma was busy watching them when… ALMA : Ouch! Hey, you should get yourself some glasses! Well, you’ve got a nerve! First, you land on my head, and now you’re screeching as if I’d stolen your egg! Aaah! You want your fish! Here you go… My hat is good enough for me, thanks! Alma watched the little puffin waddle away. Then, suddenly, woosh! He disappeared as if he’d fallen down a hole. Moving closer to the edge, she saw the bird go inside the cliff just below. She climbed down carefully and found herself in front of a cavern hidden by the heather.
The place was full of curious objects: giant moose antlers, dreamcatchers with eagle feathers, small, wooden figurines, baskets filled with strange blue fish… even the walls were covered with mysterious drawings… ALMA: : Woooow! What is this place? A pirate hideaway? PASSAMAQUODY: Oh no!
Behind her stood a strange character… PASSAMAQUODY: Tell me, Azimut, who gave you permission to bring a stranger back home with you, hmm? Well, at least this time you brought some fish, too! Bravo, Azimut! Nice catch! ALMA: : Ha-humm Hello, my name is Alma. PASSAMAQUODY: Nice to meet you, Alma! My name is Passamaquoddy, descendant of the Wabanaki tribe, also known as the People of the Dawn! ALMA : The people of the Dawn… that’s pretty. Do you live here? PASSAMAQUODY : Of course! Someone has to keep an eye on the bay! In case he ever comes back… ALMA : Who’s he? PASSAMAQUODY: What do you mean “who’s he?” The Ice Spirit of course!
PASSAMAQUODY: In the past, the Earth Spirit and the Ice Spirit shared the World, and their territories were each as big as the other. Unfortunately, over time, the ice began to melt… The Ice Spirit is very, VERY, angry. If he manages to slip into our world through the Door of Light, his vengeance will be terrible! He already tried it once before, and we fought him off, just barely… That day, during the battle, he bewitched almost all of the brave Wabanaki warriors that were fighting against him, transforming them into a fearsome army of tormented shadows that forgot their past lives and would now obey him blindly. We call them… Ice Shadows…
Alma was thoughtful… A secret passage in the sky, a very angry ice spirit, magical warriors with no memory… Passamaquoddy must have been really bored in his cave to come up with a story like that! That summer, Alma often went back to see Passamaquoddy and listen to his incredible stories… Time slipped slowly towards the Indian Summer. Autumn then took over, the leaves on the trees blew away, then suddenly, the days were much shorter, the wind was biting. Nature dozed off and it was winter, with snow-white skies…
