The Polar Bear Explorers' Club Alex Bell (learn to read books .txt) 📖

returned to her bedroom, but when she opened the door she found that the fairies had been in and left her a birthday present as well. Every available surface was covered in magic flowers that glowed in beautiful colours, filling the room with sparkling, shimmering light and, when Stella stroked their petals – which smelled deliciously of buttered popcorn – the flowers unfurled themselves to reveal tiny slices of frosted birthday cake, candyfloss-pink, all in the shape of little unicorns.

Stella found she had a bit more room left after all, because she ate all the unicorn cakes before getting into bed, quite sure that she was far too excited to sleep. Her tummy felt like it was full of fluttering butterflies at the thought of going on the expedition with Felix tomorrow. But the excitement of the day had worn her out, and she was asleep before she knew it.

She woke up early the next morning, though, and scrambled straight out of bed, practically trembling with anticipation as she changed out of her pyjamas and into a white travelling dress with star-shaped buttons, a fur-lined hood and extra long cuffs to keep out the snow.

An hour later, Stella’s unicorn, Magic, was harnessed to their sleigh ready to take them to the train station, with all their luggage strapped on the back. Stella and Felix put on their thickest travelling cloaks, lined with the warmest yeti wool, and settled into a pile of furs and blankets in the sleigh. The household staff had been left with detailed instructions regarding the care of Gruff and the pygmy dinosaurs, and so there was nothing more left to do except set off for the station. Mr Pash, the head groom, climbed up into the driver’s seat, gave a flick of the reins – and then Magic was trotting forwards and the sleigh was gliding along, the blades singing over the snow, the house getting smaller and smaller behind them.

CHAPTER THREE

The Polar Bear Explorers’ Club was located in Coldgate – the furthest point of civilization before the Icelands took over – and the fastest way to get there was by sea. Soon after disembarking the train that afternoon, Stella found herself stood on the docks staring up at the most gigantic ship she had ever seen. Granted, that wasn’t too difficult given that she’d only ever seen tiny ones printed in the corners of maps, but even so – this was an absolute monster that towered over all the other ships in the harbour. A beautiful mermaid figurehead rose up along the prow, and there was a name painted on the side in great, looping letters: The Bold Adventurer.

It belonged to the Royal Crown Steam Navigation Company and had been specially commissioned to take the members of the expedition to Coldgate, so they could visit the Polar Bear Explorers’ Club, and then continue on to the Icelands.

Stella followed Felix onto the ship by way of a wooden gangplank that creaked and groaned alarmingly beneath their weight, as if it was about to dump them in the freezing sea foaming far below. Up on deck there were supplies for the expedition everywhere, including unicorns and wolves. Stella could hear the unicorns snorting and shuffling in their makeshift stalls, and the wolves were already starting to howl.

Stella wasn’t sure if the animals just didn’t like the ship, or whether they could sense that bad weather was coming. The clouds on the horizon looked black and threatening; everything smelled of salt and brine and storms, and there was the constant slap, slap, slap of the icy waves against the hull. The deck lurched beneath Stella’s feet, causing her to reach out and grab Felix’s sleeve for balance. For the first time since leaving home, some small, traitorous part of her felt a twinge of nervousness, and something that was almost homesickness. She could be sitting in the orangery right now, throwing twigs for Buster, warm and safe and—

‘It doesn’t do to be too afraid of life and taking chances,’ Felix announced cheerfully, as if reading her mind. ‘No one ever had any fun that way.’ He glanced down at her with a reassuring smile and said, ‘Let’s go and report to the captain.’

The captain was a tall, thin man named Montgomery Fitzroy. He had a magnificent hat and a hooked nose, and didn’t seem terribly bothered by Stella’s presence on board the ship. Stella decided she liked him on the spot, partly because of his hat, and partly because of all the maps and charts scattered about his office. Stella liked anyone who liked maps.

The ship set sail just as she and Felix left the captain’s quarters. Stella heard someone up on deck bellow, ‘Full steam ahead!’ – and then they were on their way.

She hadn’t been prepared for the rocking motion as the ship set out into open water, and found she had to cling onto rails and bannisters to stop herself from toppling over. Trying to navigate the ladders that led below was even more of a challenge. Thankfully, the corridors down there were narrow, and Stella found she could manage them fairly well by allowing herself to bounce against first one wall, then the other, like a skittles ball zigzagging between runners. Felix achieved an inordinate number of accidental strikes that way whenever he took her to the local skittle alley.

There hadn’t been any spare cabins on board, so Felix and Stella were sharing one right at the pointy end of the ship. Felix opened the door – and revealed one of the tiniest rooms Stella had ever seen. Really, it was little more than a cupboard, with a pair of bunk beds, a bedside table, and a porthole that offered a glimpse of the increasingly bad weather outside.

‘Felix, look!’ Stella said, placing her hand against the bed to brace herself. ‘If you stare out the window you see the sky to begin with, and then it changes to sea