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Chapter 2 - Reunion

Spokane, Washington, USA 2019 AD

Desmond "Des" Black sat at his computer researching for his history essay at college. His straight black hair reached just past his eyes so he kept brushing it away. His grey-blue eyes scanned the third page of his report as he stuck his tongue out and licked his snake bites. It had become a habit for him whenever he started working hard on something. He finished reading and clicked print before walking to his printer and picking up the papers as they came out. A small smile claimed his face as he thought about how organized and clear his paper was.

His room, on the other hand, was far from organized. His clothes, mostly black and grey, were spread to every corner. Band posters covered three of his walls, and the fourth held a large guitar hanger with three electrics and two acoustics. His large amp sat in the corner while his smaller portable amp waited to be used on his desk. His bed was across from his door and took up almost half of the room, sheets and blankets everywhere.

The rest of their house was mostly clean; his mother made sure of that. They lived in a two-story house in the suburbs, painted bright blue with a red and white trim. His father, ever the patriot, had picked the colors when they bought the house twelve years before.

Des heard a vibration from his desk and looked at his new phone. Two days ago, he and his mother, Monica, had gone to the Verizon store and bought it: the new Samsung Solar 2. He had been excited when he first brought it home but now he was back to his usual routine of playing guitar and working without texting other people. He didn't really have any friends to talk to in the first place. The main reason he had wanted the phone was because of the sound quality of the speakers and the 80 megapixel screen. He swiped down the notifications bar and looked at who this new message was from.

His father.

Ian Black.

He hadn't seen his father since he had shipped out two years before when Congress had declared war on Russia. Sleeper agents from the foreign country had been found deep within the highest ranks of government, and rumors had spread that there had even been one in the President's Cabinet. Less than a month after the discovery, Russia had mobilized forces and sent them to the West Coast of the continental United States. The only thing thing keeping the world from plunging into its first all-out nuclear war was the mutual threat holding the arsenal of both countries at bay while their military forces clashed.

Ian had left with his fellow Navy SEAL's as soon as the fighting began, and they had only received one letter from him the entire time he had been gone, about four months after he had left. They had spent the next year and a half hoping that he would make it home in one piece, if at all. This message was the answer to all of their prayers.

Hey Des, it's Dad. Just landed in the Spokane airport, I'll be home in about 15 minutes :) Can't wait to see you and your mom, love you guys!

"MOM!"

Monica Black rushed into the room a few seconds later, her long, black hair trailing behind her. Her grey eyes were wide in worry as she looked around his room, searching for what could be wrong.

"What is it honey, what's wrong?"

Her worried look changed to confusion when she saw his grin.

"Dad's coming home."

He had to repeat it a few more times before she finally took it in. His smile spread to her as they hugged and ran to get the house ready for Ian.

Twenty minutes later, both of them jumped at the sound of a knock on the door. They ran to the entryway, so excited that they forgot the balloons they had hurriedly blown up. Monica's hand trembled as she reached for the doorknob and opened the door as if it held some secret treasure.

But what it revealed was greater to them than any treasure.

Ian Black stood outside the door in jeans and a green t-shirt. His short hair complemented the stubble growing across his chin, and his green eyes flashed with an infectious fire. His shining grin matched those on his family's faces. Joy flooded the family reunion as Des and his mother rushed towards him and pulled him into a hug. Ian kissed the top of Des's head and then his wife as they dragged him inside, where a third chair at the table finally had someone to use it.

They talked through the night about what had happened to Ian while he was away, and then what had happened to both Des and Monica as they worked to rebuild the life they had treasured before. At the end of the night, the trio all went to bed, all of them glad to be a whole family once again.

The next morning, Ian woke to the sound of his cellphone ringing. He was wide awake instantly when he saw that it was his commander calling him. Picking up the phone, he answered the call and walked out into the hallway, looking at the clock as he went. 5:23 a.m.

Two minutes later, he walked back into the master bedroom and started gathering his clothes. His wife woke at the noise.

"Honey, what's going on?" she asked sluggishly, barely able to keep her eyes open.

He could barely look her in the eyes as he told her.

"They're sending me on a new mission," he said.

Meanwhile, in his bedroom, Des had lied awake through the night, as he did most nights on account of his insomnia. His dad walking into the hallway had attracted his attention, and hearing his parents talking finally drew him out of bed. He rose and crossed the room to his door. Monica and Ian started when they saw their son walk into the room.

"Where are you being sent?"

Ian looked at the ground, salty tears making their way towards his eyes as he thought about leaving his family so soon after such a happy reunion.

"Someplace in Turkey, gobble capety or something like that..."

Des's mouth dropped open. "Göbekli Tepe?"

Ian lifted his head. "Yes, that's it. You know it?"

Holding up a finger, Des ran into his room and returned a few seconds later with the research paper he had been working on.

"I've been doing a report on it for college. It's supposed to be some sort of temple from around 11,000 BC," he spouted quickly. "With the recent advances in technology, they were able to excavate the lower levels in the last two years faster than expected, and they just found a hidden level with some sort of weird pool, they have no idea what it's for."

"Well," said Monica. "You better be back quickly. You just got back, I hate seeing you leave again."

She burst into tears and moved towards her husband. Ian wrapped his arms around her and cradled her head into his shoulder lovingly.

"I'll be back soon, I promise."

Des set the paper down and joined the embrace. They remained that way for a couple minutes until Ian finally broke it apart.

"I need to go now, they want me to be in the air in thirty minutes."

He led them to the front door, holding Monica's hand as they walked slowly.

"I don't know what they want me to do there, but they're going to brief me when I'm on the plane. And this time will be different, I have a friend in Turkey, he'll let me use his satellite phone to call you every now and then."

He took a moment to look at his family.

"I'll be back before you know it."

With that, he kissed his wife and his son's head goodbye and walked to his car.

When he had gone, they closed the door. So that which had acted as a gateway to their joy also became the door to their new sorrow.