Freedom? (Chapters 1-3 of Part V)

Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage
Alfred Lansing

"But the tension in the air was unmistakable.  Both groups knew they might never see one another again."
page 193

Once again, things were looking bleak for the crew.  Although they found land, it was really not very different from the ice floes on which they had camped; supplies would eventually exhaust and there was extremely little chance of being discovered by other ships.  In a declarative sentence, Lansing portrays the scene of the realization by the crew that they could not stay on the island: "They would have to move."  The use of a simple declarative sentence helps Lansing portray the realization as both logical and unsettling.  The decision was reached that Shackleton and a few men would have to sail for South Georgia, some 800 miles away, to get a rescue crew.  Everyone realized that there was a strong chance that either Shackleton and his crew would die on the sea, or that the crew left on the island would die.  This marked the first time that every member of the  crew fully realized the likelihood of their survival; before, men were either bitterly pessimistic or complacent.

A similar situation is found in the last book of the Harry Potter series, The Deathly Hallows.  Nearing the end of the battle against Voldemort, having destroyed the vast majority of the fractions of Voldemort's soul, Harry realized that, in order to see his goal accomplished, he had to die.  A piece of Voldemort's soul had latched itself onto Harry's.  In a talk with Hermione and Ron, his two closest friends and companions, the whole group came to the same realization.  Harry left to die, leaving Hermione and Ron to destroy Voldemort.  In both situations, a group of companions realized that they were to be separated possibly forever.  In addition, the groups left behind were left to fight for their survival on their own.

Yes I realize that this is not the part where he dies, but it looks like it could happen here.

With Shackleton gone, the remaining crew would have to rely on their abilities to sustain them.  Only time will tell if the abilities of both groups would be enough to survive.