A Mission Remembered

by Tanner Froreich

  I swallowed; there wasn’t much point in dishonesty. “I was worried that my wife and/or children needed me.”

  She smiled sheepishly. “Responsibility, that is respectable. You are different Wallace.”

  My palms started feeling sweaty. I should have gotten up, but I couldn’t bring myself to stand. “Thank you. I try to be, but it’s not of anything within myself.”

  She softly shook her head. “That is very modest of you, and you are kinda cute.”

  Now I felt like a caged animal. It was flattering that this young woman was taking an interest in me, but this was unprofessional and really uncomfortable. I was too scared to get up, which was funny. Someone like myself, who can fight hairy giants without breaking a sweat, was getting goosebumps because of a very forward young woman.

  “Ms. Shelly...” I began.

  She placed her hand on mine which gave me the jolt I needed. I stood up quickly, which for me was in the blink of an eye. “I’m sorry, excuse me.” I quickly made my way to the restroom, where I was able to breathe a sigh of relief and splash cold water on my face. How sad was this place I had found myself in. I wanted desperately to not be alone anymore, but the company that presented itself was not safe for me to be around. I never thought I would long for the solitary prayer time I had in my room back at HQ.

  I took a deep breath and exited the restroom with a prepared speech about how my life was too crazy for relationships. However, when I got out, Ms. Shelly was at Mr. Kingsley’s side using her flattery on him, and he had taken it hook, line, and sinker. I sat down in my window seat and a Proverb popped into my head. “With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, with her flattering lips she seduced him. Immediately he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks, Till an arrow struck his liver. As a bird hastens to the snare, He did not know it would cost his life.” 7:21-23.

  Though part of me missed her company, I was comforted with the word Derek had left with me. “Be strong and courageous, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Words taken from Joshua 1:9. Once I remembered that God had not abandoned me, I didn’t feel so alone anymore.

  ∆∆∆

  The flight was long and uneventful. I enjoyed looking out the window but gazing at the clouds and ground far below made me feel alone again. I had no one to talk to now, nor did I have anything to talk about with them. I knew very little of what this world was like. I had no memory of this new, but old world. I practically knew nothing of North Korea except that it was ruled by a dictator, they killed Christians, and I was to protect a senator there. Glancing down to the cloud line below, I could see nothing but white. There was a ding from overhead and an unfamiliar voice said over the intercom, “We are going to have to land in Hawaii to refuel. This should take only a few minutes and then we will be back in the air.”

  At that moment, the clouds seemed to pull away to reveal a vast beautiful ocean. The dark blue waters stretched as far as I could see. The sun glistened off the water with such vibrancy it was almost blinding. I could only imagine the amazing creatures that inhabited the waters. I wondered if the Leviathan described in Job 41 still lurked in these waters. I thought about the fish and whales and considered what they looked like as I had no memory of them. I was enraptured by the beauty of it all, the forests, the air, the oceans, everything. This world seemed so big that I realized how small I was and wondered if I could ever make my way home again.

  Before I knew it, we had begun our descent and landed on a small tropical island. We didn’t stay long though, and within thirty minutes we were back in the air. Once we were at cruising altitude again, Ethan began going around to each agent reminding them of what their responsibilities were on this assignment.

  He came and spoke to me last. With a file in his hand, he slumped down in the chair across from me. “Wallace.” I turned from the window and looked at him. “Your job is a little different than everyone else's. While we will be staying within a hundred feet of the senator at all times, you will not.”

  I didn’t bother asking why, but I did ask, “Where will I be stationed?”

  He handed me the file in his hand. “Inside you will find an aerial view of the location. We will be staying on a private property of three acres with a 20 thousand square foot house, along with other buildings and luxuries. The government wants the senator to feel as comfortable as possible. You on the other hand will be stationed in the hotel directly north of the property. You will have a complete and clear view of all entrances. It’s your job to keep a lookout for any unwanted guests. Though we are negotiating peace, we don’t trust these generals at all. Your room is fully paid for; you just need to stay in it. The key card is in the file. You have a credit card in the file as well. It is for your own use, but mostly for emergencies. There is also an entire schedule you must memorize to the best of your abilities. You will have allotted time to sleep and eat, but other than that, you must remain completely vigilant.”

  I flipped through the file – everything was there. There was also a list of men who I assumed I was to specifically look out for. The agent noticed me looking at the paper and added, “Those men are extremely dangerous – the men who will most likely try to kill the senator. If you see any of these men, radio me immediately. Also, one of our Linguists will have a mic on them at all times in case a visual is impaired. Other than that, there will be complete radio silence. In your room there will be all the extra gear you will need for surveillance. Any questions?”

  “What about when the Senator travels outside of the safety of the complex? Surely he will have to travel to the Korean governmental areas.”

  He nodded. “It’s all in the file – where we’ll be and the best surveillance locations. As soon as we land you will have some time, approximately three hours, as we brief the Senator on customs and other factors. During this time, I would use your speed and scout each location. Besides that, you should know where the best surveillance areas are based on your gut. I know you’ve recently had a traumatic experience, but I’m sure you are more than capable.”

  Without another word, he got up and went back to his own seat. I laughed to myself. These people expected me to stay out of sight, but I couldn’t remember anything about being stealthy. I would do my best; hopefully it would be good enough.

  It wasn’t long until we started descending. Looking out my window I was met with a very different view than that of our previous locations. A vast city lay before us. At first glance it was beautiful, with patches of greenery scattered throughout the city and a small river running through its center. Though the center of the city was highly industrialized, as you moved further out the living conditions appeared to diminish, as years of communism had left the common people poor and destitute. We passed over a building I recognized as the North Korean capital building. The pyramid like structure stood higher than any other.

  We landed and began to disembark. Ethan opened the cargo space on the exterior of the plane. He looked over everything, probably checking every bag and satchel. As he grabbed my bag and handed it to me, he said, “I would head off as soon as you can. Get out of camera view and get going.”

  I nodded and took the bag. Placing the file that was in my hand in the bag, I looked around at my surroundings. The plane rested no more than 100 ft from an airport terminal. Across the airport I could see large passenger planes. Through some of the windows I could see countless people rushing to their flights, completely unaware that a covert agency was operating within view. I walked away from the other agents and passed in between two trams filled with bags. As I was blocked from everyone’s view, I bolted off. Heading down the runway, I left a sonic boom in my wake. I quickly ran off of the runway, where the airport fence was approaching quickly and blocking my path, but fortunately there was another tram being driven by an Asian man. He was frozen in time looking down the runway. I jumped onto the tram and then used the extra height to sail over the fence. Within the
blink of an eye, I had left the airport and entered the Korean city.

  ∆∆∆

  I raced through the streets, never slowing down to get my bearings. The street signs were all in Korean. Strangely, I could read the words that surrounded me. A lot of them were for food. How in the world did I know Korean? I must have been bilingual before Mindsweeper. Did IODINE know about this? Surely something useful like this they wouldn’t have lied about. I guess the how didn’t really matter right now.

  I couldn’t figure where in the city I was so I came to an abrupt stop in the middle of the sidewalk. To my surprise, only a few people noticed the strange American that suddenly appeared.

  I walked to a bench and fished through my bag. Pulling out a map from the file, I noticed that the hotel I was to stay at was on street called “강 양욱” which is transliterated “Kang Ryang-uk”. I didn’t know who this was, but it must have been some important man.

  I put the map back in the bag and walked into an alleyway. In a moment, I was speeding through the city again. It wasn’t long before I found the hotel I was looking for. I approached the door, which a Korean doorman opened for me. I thanked him in his native language and walked in and looked around. The lobby was luxurious and rather busy. To my right there was a restaurant that looked far too expensive for any normal person to dine at. To my left was the receptionist’s desk. Directly ahead of me, past several lounges, was a hallway full of what appeared to be metal doors. I walked up to one of the doors. Looking over the oddity, I considered asking how they worked, but slowly my mind pieced back together what an elevator was. There were no buttons, only a thin opening. I started to imagine how the door worked as a man walked past me and inserted his key card into the slot. Within a minute, the doors opened and he boarded. He looked at me like I was lost as the door closed between us. In that moment, I remembered what an elevator was. I followed what I had seen the man do. Pulling out the key card, 1001, I slid it in the slot. I walked up to the open elevator door and stepped inside. There weren’t any buttons on the inside either, but as soon as the doors closed behind me, the elevator jerked and carried me up the building.

  The elevator doors opened and I stepped out. I followed the hallway to find my room. Upon finding it, I entered and realized my room was on the corner of the building. There was a single twin bed, dresser, and desk with a computer. Both the South and East walls were glass doors with balconies. I stepped outside and was looking over the city. Since I was on the top floor, I had a perfect view of the property as well as the other buildings around it.

  I stepped back into the room and tossed my bag onto the bed, which had another bag already on it. In the second bag I found a pair of binoculars, night vision goggles, a radio, some kind of radar dish, and a bunch of other stuff I had no idea how to use. Also, in the bag there was a rifle with plenty of ammo, along with all the goodies you could get on a rifle. I chuckled to myself. “So much for surveillance.” I also found that there was a handgun in the dresser drawer when I put my clothing away.

  Taking the binoculars, I examined the property below. There were only a few people preparing for the arrival of the Senator. Back inside, I pulled out the schedule and map and with the help of the computer, found all the locations the Senator was planning on visiting. I plotted the fastest routes in and out on my map. It didn’t even take me very long to visit these several locations. I was back at the hotel with an hour to spend doing nothing.

  While waiting, something clicked in my head that I hadn’t considered. IODINE wasn’t keeping me under lock and key anymore; I could get my hands on a Bible! I launched myself onto the computer, but every Bible site I could find was restricted by the North Korean Government. I wasn’t going to let that stop me. I instead looked up the nearest South Korean city and got directions. I then left the hotel and stepped into an alley with no cameras that I could see. Taking a brief moment to tighten my shoes, I realized they were the only thing from my old gear that IODINE had not confiscated. I shook my head and shot off with a sonic boom. I should take it easy when I run. I don’t need to announce my presence every time I start running, I thought to myself.

  Within moments, I was out of the city and quickly moving across the country side. Within minutes I was approaching the Korean border which was separated by a two and a half mile no man’s land. The barbed wire fence ahead of me marked North Korea's side of the zone. I slowed to a stop and inspected the fence. It stretched for as far as I could see, but not as far as I could run. I ran until I found railroad tracks, but they were, however, guarded. The guards didn’t faze me at all. I simply ran past them and through the space between nations. I should have stayed on the tracks, but I took a straight path, running through the underbrush. It was then that I realized one of the reasons this place was sealed off – landmines. I wasn’t hurt at all, but I could hear the bombs going off behind me. Pulling further ahead I continued across the no man’s land until I lept off a tree stump and sailed across the South Korean border fence.

  It wasn’t long before I entered a South Korean city and found the place I was looking for. I approached a building with “서점” written on it – a bookstore. I entered the building and was greeted by a middle age woman near the checkout area. She didn’t seem to be surprised by the American walking through the door, so she said in poor English, “Hello sir, how may I help you?”

  I smiled and said in Korean, “I’m looking for a Bible, do you carry any?”

  Her face lit up when I used her native tongue, but I still wondered how I knew it. “Right this way.”

  Chapter 14

  Dark Memories

  B y God’s Grace, I was able to get ahold of a Bible written in English. I was back at the hotel sitting quietly on the outdoor balconies, reading and being refreshed by the scriptures. Something that stood out to me was Matthew 10:18-19, “You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak.” I’m not sure why this verse jumped out to me. I sat pondering what this verse was saying and how it was important. Something told me that this verse was a precursor to events to come.

  I turned my eye towards the city. Having the Words of my God again tore at my heart. Matthew 28:19-20 speaks of the Great Commission, and here I stood in a city in desperate need of the Gospel. I stood up and looked at the busy street below, filled with people heading for Judgement, and I was up here waiting while working for an Agency comprised of people heading the same way. Aside from Derek, I was alone. I wondered what was going on in this crazy story I found myself in. Who am I? What is Mr. Bordeaux not telling me about who I am? Who was that prisoner, and how did he know me? These, and more questions, were racing through my head. I was starting to seriously doubt if I ever was an agent. What if IODINE took advantage of my memory loss to help their agenda?

  There was an identity, that of Arphaxad Fredrick, out there somewhere. I felt as if I was going to go mad if I didn’t find out who I was soon. While I was lost in thought, the wind picked up and ruffled the pages of my open Bible. Stopping the paper, I turned to a page that had been folded in on itself. The page was opened to 1 Peter 2. Verse 9 and 10 seemed to leap off the page. “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” I, as a person, had lost my identity, but as a member of God’s chosen people I had everything I needed. I knew I was meant to share the gospel. My true identity was never lost. I am The Blue Blur: a servant of God, redeemed by the Blood, and contender for the faith.

  I briefly closed the book and looked over its leather exterior and saw how the beautifully bold golden letters spelt the words, “Holy Bible”. I let out a small smile and considere
d how blessed I was to finally have a copy. I stood up and looked out across the city again. However, there was a slight moment of discomfort, as my head hurt again. I wasn’t expecting much since the last headache wasn’t too bad and I don’t remember anything from it. But in a sudden blast of piercing pain, I dropped the Bible over the railing.

  I collapsed on the balcony as the pain seemed to rip through my mind. A memory flashed through my head. I remembered being in a room with lots of friendly faces, and my parents, they looked young. I also was surrounded by siblings, all younger. There was a sister and brother, with two baby boys being held by mom and dad. The pain blurred their facial details. There was a rectangular package with colorful paper in front of me – the number eight covering the paper. Tearing up the paper like the rambunctious eight-year-old I was, I revealed a Bible that was covered in blue leather. My name was pressed into the front left corner – my first Bible.

  The pleasant memory faded into something darker. My surroundings shifted from a bright cheerful birthday, to that dreaded room. As soon as I heard the voice of the young woman, I was pressing against the door again. Something felt different. There was a breeze. Behind me, there was an archway. It was the opening to a tunnel out of the room. It led in the opposite direction from the door I needed to get through. I felt the wind again. It was cold, foreboding, and sinister. The opening started to look like the gaping jaws of Hades itself.

  An irresistible force drew me to the doorway. In a moment, it was a dark rainy night with lightning flashing across the sky as spikes of pain flashed across my head. I spun around to see in the shadows an ominous figure. His red eyes blazed like a furious fire. I watched as he started to run at me while a bolt of lightning slowly found its way to the ground. His approach was quicker than I had ever anticipated, and I seemed to be stuck in place. I remembered this scene – I had seen it once before, but not in this clarity. With a speed that rivaled mine, the figure tackled me to the ground. The pain reached a climax as the figure spoke, and his voice was cold and riddled with hate. “As always, Arf, too slow.”