Into The Rift

Reinstated Purpose (2)

"Why the south pole sir?" I hastily inquire, being caught off guard by the unexpected answer.

He answers back in a flat almost dismissive tone, "I don't know much besides the order from high up United Nations command to get you there within eight hours."

"I....see." I mutter under my breath, using the following silence to digest this information.

To say my mind was rife with confusion would be an understatement.

"Will that be all sir?"

"Yes." He nodded.

"Meet me on the airfield in no longer than five minutes understood?" The aged man sternly ordered to which I responded with an "affirmative" and a rigid salute.

'What good would a special force operator be in such an isolated location such as Antarctica?' I thought to myself while my footsteps echoed along the mostly empty corridor.

The south pole huh.....

Out of all the numerous destinations I thought of as a possibility, Antarctica didn't even cross my mind. It's just something that seems improbable.

There is definitely something serious going on in the south pole, one that requires UN Special Forces intervention. Various theories and speculations were created within the storm of my own thoughts.

Has an insurgent cell been uncovered in Antarctica? It wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility, those bastards get smarter every year. Long gone were the days of international conflict, in the 21'st Century the threats to peace mainly come from terrorism in all its forms such as suicide bombings, mass shootings, the list goes on.

Despite being part of the Secretive military arm of the United Nations, I knew I am only human. Even though lives may have been saved by the actions of me and my comrades, there will always be a few unlucky individuals that didn't live to see the light of day.

That is the brutal truth, in the grand scheme of things, we are simply damage control in a fucked up situation.

====Military Airbase, Restroom====

I make my way to the sink, anchored to the wall above it is a mirror. On it the reflection of my robust form complete with signature black eyes stared back viciously.

The doppelganger before me serves as an omnipresent reminder of how much has changed since I was that lanky, naive boy 15 years ago.

At 26 years old, the accomplishments and experiences I had towered over pretty much almost everyone even when compared to people twice my age. It is practically written in how I carried myself as well.

The sides of my lips turn ever so slightly upwards to form a small smile. Opening the tap I rinse both my hands in the cold waters thoroughly before heading outside towards the airfield, to await my flight.

The door opens, and cold midnight air rushes in to replace the warm humidity of the restroom, it gently caresses my exposed skin making goosebumps appear on unprotected forearms.

The lonesome walk continues onward without pause, passing by the occasional visage of various uniformed men and women, looking reasonably tired and weary.

Looking up at the undeniably beautiful skies, the enchanting sight of the twinkling stars held my gaze.

The atmosphere it gave provided me with a sense of peacefulness as my journey to the airfield speeds up. Due to the complete silence of the night the faint sound of a plane engine could be heard.