strong.
"Boy, you two sure still know how to make quite an entrance," Balto said, coughing up some water that he had accidently swallowed.
"How did you two get up on that rock ledge?" Boris asked, not entirely thrilled by the nature of their entrance.
"We climbed," said Muk. "How else?"
"I didn't think polar bears could climb," said Stella.
"Proved you wrong," said Muk.
It was almost 5:00 when Mika and David were free to go home for the day. Mika's first stop before heading home was the general store. He walked out carrying a six-pack of IBC root beer. Balto saw him come out and instantly recognized him. "Yeah, that's him, alright," he thought. Kodi and Dingo passed by him while just cruising through town, saw their Dad and stopped to say "hi".
"Heard about your run-in yesterday, Dad" said Dingo. "You OK?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Balto was feeling considerably better following that swim. "How have you guys been lately?"
"Life is good," Kodi and Dingo said in synchro.
"Mom said something about you wanting to apologize to this guy," said Kodi. "Why are you taking that from him? He's the one who creamed you."
"Because it was partially my fault," Balto replied. "I didn't look where I was going when I exited the alley. I later saw him exiting the hospital holding a bag of ice over his bandaged right cheek. That's when I really felt bad. I even almost broke down when I told your mother about what happened. I've never hurt anybody before, let alone like this. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to see this through."
Balto started off toward to follow Mika. But he didn't get far before turning around to ask his boys a favor.
"Listen, you two," he said. "If I'm not done by quarter to seven, let me know. Your mother and I have dinner plans for tonight."
"Got it," said Dingo.
Mika walked into his house and shut the door hard behind him. Balto tried to make it through the doorway before the door closed. Instead he wound up going through the door, leaving a big hole in the lower half of the door.
"Would it kill you to paw at the door first!" Mika exclaimed after he sighed and threw both his hands up. He then went over to inspect the door.
"Well, I guess this can be repaired," he said, sounding disgusted.
Balto backed away shyly, nervous of how Mika might react next.
"I...I'm not mad at you," Mika said, pausing in mid-sentence as he picked up the debris. "I've just had a rough day. This co-worker of mine, David Stoner, is a real pain in the ass. He not the boss, but you wouldn't know it by the way he orders me around. Which happens virtually all the time."
"Uh, yeah, you're getting the short end of the stick, alright," Balto added. Realizing that he had just spoken out loud, he froze.
"I hear you," Mika replied. Realizing who said it, he also froze, with his head perked up and eyes wide. Slowly, he turned around to be sure where the voice came from. "I do hear you," he said. "You're really talking, a..." he paused briefly, then added "Wait a minute, this is a dream. I gotta be dreaming."
"I don't think so," Balto replied. "I mean, come on, you're eyes are still twitching. Oh, listen, you should get even with that David guy. May I suggest a murder-suicide."
Mika was silent for a few seconds before he finally spoke. "Look, what do you want?"
"I'm the dog who tripped you yesterday, Mika," Balto said, sounding uneasy, not sure if Mika would believe a word he said. "When I saw you leaving the hospital with that bandage and bag of ice on your face, I felt bad about it. I came to apologize to you."
Mika was stunned, but he wasn't sure what stunned him more: the fact that a dog was talking to him, or that he getting a verbal apology from a dog. "How do you know my name?"
"After the screaming match," said Balto, "I heard you reveal it as you walked away." He then held out a paw, expecting a handshake. Mika was still in a state of disbelief, but he eventually extended his right hand and returned the handshake.
"Apology accepted," Mika said, shaking Balto's right front paw with his right hand.
"Name's Balto, by the way," Balto added.
Mika's jaw plunged down. "Balto? The Balto, the dog who saved this town from that diptheria scare?"
"The very same," Balto answered.
"Oh my god!" Mika exclaimed. "How about that?! I have a local celebrity in my house! Man, how many around here can say that?"
Just then, he saw David Stoner outside. He thought of bragging about it right then and there. But before Mika got his chance, David walked away, leaving him kicking himself for losing out on a chance to "rattle his cage".
Mika then walked over to his refrigerator - which was really just a wooden crate packed with ice - and put in the IBC root beer he had recently bought. Balto started looking around Mika's house at some interesting items, most of which were relics from back home in Finland. The big hints to Mika's nationality were the Finnish flag patch on his jacket and a full-size flag in a glass case mounted on the mantle over the fireplace.
"Who's flag is that?" Balto asked. He'd clearly never seen another flag, other than Old Glory, which needed no introduction, and still needs no introduction today.
"That's the flag of my homeland," said Mika. "Finland."
"Finland?" asked Balto. "You're Finnish?"
"Duh," said Mika, "you think?"
"I just asked," said Balto. "Well, that explains the accent. So, where in Finland are you from?"
"Kokkola," Mika replied. "It's on the west coast, right on the Gulf of Bothnia." He then pointed it out on a map of Finland mounted on a nearby wall.
Kokkola is located near 64 degrees north, roughly same latitude as Nome, but has roughly eight times more people.
Nearby, Balto noticed a frame containing Mika's birth certificate. The DOB read January 9, 1909. Also nearby were his immigration documents, passport included.
"You leave those things alone," Mika commanded. "They're personal."
"What? Immigrant papers and other legal documentation? You call that personal!" Balto retorted. "How much red tape did you have to cut to get in to this country?"
"A lot. And you probably wouldn't believe it if I told you the whole story. And it's a long one."
"No wait," Balto said, sounding more like he was protesting. "You can tell me. I like long stories."
Mika sighed, then sat down on the couch. "Alright," he said. "Sit down, hold all questions until I say you can ask them, and listen."
Balto sat down on the floor in front of the couch to listen in.
"As you already noticed on my birth certificate," Mika said, beginning his story, "I was born on January 9, 1909, in Kokkola. I'm the second-youngest of four brothers. The older two are still back in Finland."
"Four brothers. Was it anything like living a frat house?" asked Balto.
"Did I say you could ask a question now?" Mika responded. "And to answer your question, there was less beer in the house, but just as much mess, especially in our respective bedrooms."
"Oh, man," said Balto. "What a life. So, what are your brothers' names?"
"Mikko (pronounced me-ko), Ari (are-ee), and Kaj (pronounced kye)," replied Mika. "Mikko's the oldest (25), Ari's the second-oldest (23), I'm 19, and Kaj is the youngest (13). Kaj and me actually shared a bedroom."
"But it wasn't all fun and games," added Mika. "Almost a century I was born, Finland was conquered and taken over by Russia. This was still true even when Mikko was born. Of course, that was back before the Great War of 1914-1918."
When Mika said "Great War", he meant World War I. World War II wouldn't take place for another decade.
Mika continued with, "My father, Toni, and my uncle Jarno both fought in the war, flying British-built Sopwith Camels on the Eastern Front. Most of the fighting took place far from home on mainland Europe, so I personally never went through the horrors myself. Norway, Sweden, and Finland, because of their relative isolation, lay far removed from the wars that have ravaged mainland Europe and the British Isles. Uncle Jarno was shot down by Ottoman Turks, but was later rescued by Dad in a daring raid on a POW camp. Those same guys almost shot down Dad, but all the damage they could do was leave some flak in his hamstrings. That's the back muscles in the thigh. So Dad landed back at base, then went with some comrades to rescue Jarno. Only Dad and Uncle Jarno made it back alive. The rest were captured or killed."
Balto, who had climbed up on the couch to listen in, was in awe over the incredible rescue. It seemed to make his own rescue missions look wimpy.
And remember, about the relative isolation of the three above mentioned nations: This is before Norway was overrun by Germany during WWII.
"What was Kokkola like?" Balto asked.
"Well," replied Mika, "it's a lot bigger than this place. And from my old home there, you could see the Gulf of Bothnia. I really miss it. The house was not too different than this one here. I purposely requested it to be built just like that one."
Mika then pointed to a picture on the mantle showing the old house. It was slightly larger, but for the most part, it was almost indistinguishable from his new pad.
"After the war," continued Mika, "my dad continued to fly planes. The big difference was, this time, he used his plane to haul mail, supplies, and other cargo throughout Vaasa, the province in which Kokkola is located. The company was called Vaasa Express, and it was based in Kokkola. It was quite a successful business throughout the past decade. But the good times didn't last. The entire
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