Waykuj: Hunger in the Snow

My grandfather used to tell me stories about the old ways. About spirits that walked this land

long before we did. Most of them sounded like legends… But whenever he mentioned one name,

his voice would drop. The Waykuj. “A creature of cold and hunger,” he’d

say. “Born when a human survives winter by doing the unthinkable.” Their heart freezes.

Their soul rots. And what’s left is no longer human. I thought they were just stories.

Warnings to keep kids from wandering into the woods when the snow fell. I was wrong.

That winter was the worst in a hundred years. Our small Yukon town was buried.

Roads vanished. Power failed. Then the generator died. We were cut off.