Chapter 2: Mission File—Operation Chase-off

Alex's POV

This is nuts. THIS IS NUTS!

I sat behind a huge block of ice and snow, rubbing my gloved hands together. Sitting on the tightly-packed snow, I could feel the water seeping into the layers of my pants. It was utterly cold, but I was too tired to care. Might as well die now, at least only my butt will get frostbitten, I thought, giving a sigh.

Don't get me wrong, I love the snow and all. The cooling temperature…okay, maybe a bit too cold. Can you guess?

Bingo! A cookie or cupcake for you if you guessed that I'm at Artic!

"Damn you Blunt," I cursed, hugging my knees to my chest tightly. It's too cold…must be below 20 degrees Celsius at least. All this Eskimo clothing is making it too hard to blend in with the surrounding. It's tough to just move around in the layers. Smithers altered the clothes so they are bullet-proof and lightweight…but with all the layers worn together…I feel like a mummy…too bad it ain't Egypt here.

I squatted and peeked from behind of the block of ice. A small, innocent-looking igloo stood there, right in my view.

It's definitely not as innocent as it looks. Deep inside, there's a factory…at least, according to the blueprint Mrs Jones gave me.

Looking out for passers-by or my intended target, I quietly slipped towards the igloo.

Something's not right, I thought. The temperature…is it getting warmer? There are no security guards or cameras either?

I turned on my phone and scanned around. Nope, no detectable cameras or bugs nearby. Weird. It's too easy.

I took a step forward, and the snow gave a loud crunch. My foot…is it sinking…?

There were sudden tremors in the ground, gentle at first, but getting more and more vigorous.

Then the ground broke apart.

Before I had time to register that in my mind, I was falling into a bottomless black pit.

Oh God.

I woke up to find myself lying on concrete. How nice. Concrete in Artic? I thought they would be better off using snow. At least there will be water for me to lick off…I'm feeling real thirsty.

Well, at least it wasn't a bottomless pit…

I sat up carefully. My head was pounding, my temple pulsing along with my heart beat.

I hear my heart beat to the beat of the drums…

Okay, nevermind.

I stood up, wincing as a pain sliced through my right ankle. Leaning on my left ankle, I hobbled around, checking the surroundings.

"Morning Rider."

I startled, whipping round, letting my eyes adjust to the darkness. A figure was standing at what looked like an entrance/exit. I squinted.

"Don't bother squinting, Rider, you don't know me." The figure walked towards me, and smirked.

It was true, I don't know him. But who cares? I lashed out immediately, aiming a high kick at the man's temple. He wasn't that tall, so it was an easy enough hit if I tilt my body downwards.

I caught the man briefly on the temple, but he grabbed my ankle and pushed it back towards me—hard. A shock of pain shot through my ankle up my calf, making me lose my balance. I tumbled back to the floor, rolling backwards and remained at a squatting position, one hand and one knee on the floor, trying to regain my composure. So, this man has a pretty fast reflex huh? My ankle was throbbing real hard, and I bet it is purple.

I stood up, hands relaxed, feet apart—balancing my weight on the balls of my feet. Having an injured ankle is a real disadvantage now. I hissed, the air whistling through the gaps in between my teeth.

The man advanced towards me.

"Now now, Rider. What kind of manners do you have? Is this how you greet someone? Have a nice night and I'll make you obedient." Before I knew it, there was a sharp pain in my arm and I blacked out.

Smithers, I think you forgot to warn me that the bullet-proof layer only implies to the chest.

I woke up in a cold room, lying on a block of ice. A small fire was built in the small room. Maybe the ice was man-made? As in, not H2O?

I looked down. My boots were removed, leaving me with thick, wolly socks. My fur-lined jacket too…Which leaves me with a two pull-overs and my undershirt. My gloves were gone as well.

Is this mad-man going to freeze me to death? What an anti-climactic way to die.

There was a shiny door beside me…probably steel. I went forward and tested the door. Uh-uh. Locked.

Taking out a piece of wire that was slyly sewn into the fabric of my pull-over, I poke it in the lock. It unlocked with a satisfying click.

That was easy…

I snuck out, clearly aware that I may freeze once I get out in the open. I adjusted the watch to 2 o'clock. There. The signal will be sent to MI6 to get me out. Within this time I should find…what did I need to find? Oh yes, a blueprint. Easy. A retrieval mission.

I crept along the corridor, peeking through every door as quietly as possible. Every single door was open, until…the last one down the end…

I tried the door, but it was locked. This time, it had a passcode.

I didn't know there was electricity in Arctic though.

It was a risk, definitely. Taking a few steps back, I slammed into the door. The door popped open with a crack.

What?! Now I knew why. The walls were made of snow. Now, if this isn't stupid, I don't know what else is there to describe it.

I probably have a few minutes left before that mad guy come rushing in… blueprints…hah! I took the entire roll of blueprint from the 'office' and hacked into the computer system. Stuffing my thumbdrive into the USB port, I downloaded all information into the thumbdrive.

"Argh, the door's fallen apart again!" The mad-man's voice floated in from the doorway. I scooted below the table. Damn. Too obvious.

"Better go fix it…" Footsteps reverberated along the corridor, each step getting softer and softer. I breathe a sigh of relief. Too easy.

Quickly, I padded out into the corridor with the blueprints and the thumbdrive, going up the steps that I was certain will lead me back up to the surface.

Pretty soon, I reached the surface. Fast huh!

It was freezing. It was only now that I realised I forgot to retrieve my clothes…Oh dear…

Hugging myself, I went back behind the block of ice where I waited earlier. I squatted down, trying to keep warm. My hands were bare, and they were tinged blue. Am I going to die, just like that?

Pretty much. Before I knew it, there was a sudden group of penguins gathered around me. Flapping their wings, they squawked loudly, eyes glinting.

I gave a loud cry and sprinted across the snow. The penguins gave chase, waddling the best they could.

I didn't know whether I was sweating or crying in frustration, or it was raining in the Artic. Small icicles were beading on exposed skin. Either that, or my blood was starting to freeze. I was unbelievably cold, despite running.

"There there my little penguins! Chase!"

So the mad-man knew I escaped. I continued running, and I was getting more and more tired after each pounding step. Looking back, I spotted a penguin at the far end blasting apart, leaving nothing but black and white feathers. Ouch. So they were programmed to explode?

I stumbled, and I crashed into the snow, my vision sheeted white. Small burst of stars appeared in my view, making everything hazy. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted…a moving iceberg? Either I'm hallucinating, or it's really an iceberg.

It cut into the ground, starburst gashes that weren't there before. Jagged pieces of ice floated into the sea. Oh God. Either I roll…or get cut. So naturally, I rolled.

Avoiding the iceberg, I looked into the sky. A helicopter flew into my field of vision, and it descended…a man was hanging on what look like a bungee cord…I felt him grab hold of my torso and attached a simple rope-harness to me. I was dragged upwards…upwards…

I lay on the small mattress in the helicopter, wrapped in blankets and hot water bottles. Looking out of the window, I realised that the homing iceberg was still following the helicopter. This is insane. I think it will melt soon though.

With that I fell unconscious.

I woke up in a hospital bed, with my right hand and my right ankle bound up. Blankets piled in layers on me, and hot water bottles surrounded me. Bliss.

I gave a sigh, and drifted off to sleep, which would most certainly be plagued by a mysterious man and bomber penguins.

Insane was a word to describe this mission…

Okay, a really short story about the mission. For Savannah Silverstone.

I'm really sorry I didn't update recently. I know, lame excuses such as "I'm busy" and such. But the truth is I'm busy and I lacked inspiration. If this goes on, I'll keep writing new storylines and not complete any. Sorry...

Thanks for reading and supporting, guys!

-Blue