ICELAND

"Razz! Be a darling, grab the pizza!"
It was Saturday afternoon, and instead of hanging round town with my mates like I should have been doing, I was forced to 'help' my mum do her shopping in Iceland.
Not the actual place, you understand, but the store. It's a pretty depressing store to go in winter, because it's always so cold.
"Okay, Mum!" I shouted back.
I made my way to the freezers, which was home to the pizzas. I opened the door to the first freezer, and a blast of cold air smacked me in the face. I reached in for the pizzas, but they weren't on the shelf next to the door like they were usually. I poked my head in and found that the freezer was slightly larger than I had noticed before. In fact, it looked more like a walk in freezer, which I certainly had took much notice of before now.
I turned around. Mum was waiting impatiently two aisles from where I was. I stepped into the freezer and had a grope around for the pizzas.
Pretty soon, to my surprise, I came to a part of the freezer where there were no shelves, only ice caked the walls. I started to get a teensy bit scared. Had I come to a part of the freezer where I was prohibited to go? Or was there another explanation?
When I was younger, I'd read a book called "The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe", which was about four siblings who hid in a large wardrobe and found a secret country named Narnia. But that was a made-up story; couldn’t happen in real life. Could it?
Anyway, I turned to make my way back to the door, but all I could see was a wall of white stuff. I reached to feel it; it felt crunchy, like snow. It was obvious that I couldn’t run back the way I’d come, so I turned again and ran straight on, not caring where I’d end up.
After ten minutes of running, I tripped up over a big rock lodged deep into the ground. I ended up with snow in my mouth.
“WHO ARE YOU!” A booming voice rocked the area in which I lay.
I looked up. In front of me, there stood a sleigh, magnificently built, it had a red belly, with “THE LORD, RAZZLEDAZZLE” written on the side in gold lettering. It seemed to have been drawn by six or seven penguins. The largest penguins I had ever seen, even at the zoo.
“I SPEAK AGAIN. WHAT CREATURE ARE YOU AND WHAT IS YOUR NAME? THAT IS, IF YOU HAVE ONE?”
I looked for the source of the voice. Sitting in the sleigh itself, wearing a cloak of the richest purple was a polar bear. At least, that was what it looked like.
“I- I am a human,” I stammered. “And my name is Razz.”
Suddenly, without warning, the polar bear jumped down from it’s sleigh with such force that the trees in the near distance shook.
“So it has happened at last,” he said, switching, to my relief, to a quieter voice. “I used to think it was an urban legend.” He looked at me. “Welcome to Iceland, my dear Razz,” he said. “Oh, I nearly forgot! Where are my manners? I am Razzledazzle, the Secret Lord of the Snow Bears of Iceland, and you have come at last to help us fight the Grizzly Bears of Eng-Land, who have invaded us two hundred years ago, and reign supreme over us.”
“Excuse me?” I queried.
“Two hundred years ago, the Grizzly Bears of Eng-Land invaded Iceland and completely took over the lives of the Snow Bear and there is a story that one day, a Human Child with the same name as the reigning Lord of the Snow Bear will come through from the Universe Of The Humans to help us defeat the Grizzlies!”
“But, aren’t their any Humans in Iceland?” I asked.
“Bless you, no. We all, Snow Bears and Grizzly Bears alike, think that the Human is a creature of fairy-tales. You did say your name was Razz?”
“Yes, but it’s not my real name. It’s just a nickname.”
“It matters not. Come, we must away to the Lair of the Lord. You must hop onto my sleigh with me!”
Without warning, a set of steps came tumbling down from the sleigh. Golden steps, encrusted with jewels such as rubies, amethysts and emeralds. I stepped onto the bottom one, and climbed up, where upon, I sat next to the Lord Razzledazzle, totally convinced it was a dream.

We rode for twenty minutes. All I could see around me was a heavy blanket of snow, but occasionally we passed the odd tree or two And, sometimes, I swear I saw a bit of snow moving, just like a sliding door, to reveal a cave, and Snow Bears, as they called themselves, stare at the sleigh as it went sliding by.
After twenty minutes, we got to the Lair of the Lord, which was actually Lord Razzledazzle’s home. It was a large castle, sculpted entirely out of ice. Pretty ice, which shone rainbow colours in the winter sun. As Lord Razzledazzle leapt down from the sleigh, I followed suit, and then I followed him into the castle.
Inside, it was exactly like a real castle you might see in a book about historical kings and queens.
I followed Lord Razzledazzle to a large room, which was home to nothing except a large throne chair in a corner. Seated on it, was another bear like Lord Razzledazzle, except this time, he was brown, and was staring goggle-eyed at me.
“So it’s true!” He gasped, standing up. “Humans are real! What’s your name!” He bellowed at me.
“R-Razz,” I stammered.
“Did the delightful Snow Bear Lord tell you to say that?”
“No. That really is my name.” I felt it wasn’t the right time to tell him that it was just a nickname.
“And I am Grizeler, Lord of the Grizzly Bears, King of Iceland!”
“Cheek!” Screamed Lord Razzledazzle. “I am the rightful King of Iceland. We Snow Bears are the natives of Iceland. You are the natives of Eng-Land, go back there, you could be King of Eng-Land freely!”
“But you see, being King of one country isn’t enough,” answered Lord Grizeler. “We are building an Eng-Landic Empire. To bring more power to the Grizzly Bears!”
“But, to be fair,” I interjected. I had been listening to this argument for ten minutes, and felt I should say something. “The Snow Bears were here first.”
“Be quiet, Human scum!” Lord Grizeler shouted out. He ran towards me.
Without really knowing what I was doing, I picked up an icicle which was lying by my feet, and thrust it right through the heart of Lord Grizeler. Instead of staggering around in pain and then dying, he just suddenly disappeared.
I stood, looking at the spot where he stood. Then I looked at Lord Razzledazzle. He beamed at me, and then shook my hand.
“Oh, thank you, Razz, you have saved us all. That was another part of the legend. When the Lord of the Grizzlies die then all the other Grizzlies die with him. I can be King of Iceland again! Oh, you are wonderful. And now, you’ll be going again.”
And suddenly I was back in Iceland, the store. Only I was standing outside the freezer where it all started, with a packet of pizzas in my hand.
I ran to Mum and her trolley, as though I’d only been in the freezer for two minutes.

The End by Charlene Samm