2024 — Part I
The border
The young man rested with a gun at his side, his helmet pulled over his eyes as he tried to get some sleep on the guard duty. His friend aside him, stood watch vigilantly and was just as young. While one pretended to be cool, the other was clearly fearful. They both had no idea what they had gotten into, but made the best of it as they could. “Do you hear that?” the one standing asked as he peered out into the darkness beyond their command post “No, of course not. There is nothing to hear” he said as he feigned disinterest. But he too sharpened his ears and of course, heard nothing. In front of them was only the silence and darkness of the border. It was as it always has been: a silent, imaginary border between two countries that never had come to peace. “No, I heard something. I am sure of it” he urged onto his comrade, unsettled he shifted his feet and continued to peer outwards. “Where are the binoculars?” he asked as he groped around in the darkness, almost stumbling. The man on the ground tilted his head slightly, looked around and grabbed it to give it to the man uneasy on his feet, who continued to fondle around the post, checking his neck, his pockets.
“Here, Seong,” the man on the ground said as Seong grabbed it impatiently.
“Thanks Wook. Fuck me I am nervous, eh? Hahaha…” he nervously laughed and quickly turned to look towards the border. The faint outline of trees covered the horizon as he looked forward into the darkness, barely distinguishing between the silhouettes of the trees and the silhouettes of other things past them — or are they in front of them? It didn’t matter as it all seemed a blur.
“What are you going to hear with your binoculars?” Wook smirked as he shifted himself to try to get some actual sleep. Many years the border had been a tense area between the two countries, but rarely had anything happened. There were agreements and threats, but it all amounted to nothing. They knew it in the South as well as the North but feared it all the same. So they continued, silently, the two nations. Previously one, now apart. Seong had ancestors who had family in the South, but they are forgotten, or vice versa. It was not clear.
Wook and his family had been in the North since as far back as they can remember. His father was in the army, as was his father and his brothers. Everyone in the family was in the army. He was glad to be in this position, far away from any drills or exercises. Just relaxing on the border, with the occasional marching around and shooting practice. The latter of which had become increasingly rarer, due to the lack of ammunition's being able to be produced. The last time they went shooting was more than a year ago, maybe longer, neither could recall.
“I hear it still, Wook. It is like a humming sound? I don’t know. There is something there…” as he squinted his eyes towards the border and sharpened his hearing, he waited. Wook sighed “Just sit down, relax. How long have you been posted here?” he inquired “I’m to be here at least 6 months” Seong replied. “Well expect being here a lot longer than that. We need good people protecting this place. Besides, it’s cozy,” he lifted his hands and shrugged, but Seong did not see it as he nervously peered towards the border. Not a bird was to hear, the moon was occluded by the clouds and it smelled like rain, other than that it could have been just any other night.
Seong continued to wait and cupped his ears towards the border and waited silently, stopping to breathe at times. Wook eventually passed out and was snoring fairly loudly. Seong gave up and just peered into the darkness. It was his 3rd day on guard duty and he could have sworn he heard something out towards the border. What it was he couldn’t say exactly, but he heard it. He continued to listen and figured he couldn’t sleep anyway. He had the weekend off and was going to have an easy going kitchen duty tomorrow afternoon, so he could sleep in the morning before kitchen duty. It should be fine, they usually aren’t that strict when there is role call in the morning. He wondered what movie he could watch with his parents, as they recently got internet thanks to his job. They watched an old Superman movie on the internet, a friend showed him how to do it.
Seong was afraid he would get a virus or that the government would immediately find out, but it turned out to be OK after the neighbor hooked them up to a “special internet”, whatever that meant. Maybe a romance movie, or something sad? Who knows, there are many movies. Seong was counting the hours before he could be in a train when he heard a damp, hollow sound that sounded like something that would come out of a whale. Wook did not notice, and the sound was very faint in the distance. He looked out but could see nothing towards the border, but heard it again. Very quietly, far away, like something had fallen down.
Then again, and again. It didn’t seem to stop. He woke Wook up “Wook get up, something is happening,” Wook groaned and groggily answered “Nothing happens here Seong, for crying… what is that?” he tilted his head up and he looked to the sky as the whale belches continued.
“Seong… is that…?” “What? I don’t know what it is!” he looked back to Wook briefly only to look back to the front again, while Wook slowly got up and took off his helmet “Seong…” “What?” “It has begun.” He simply stated to Seong who looked at him in question, a split second after the artillery shells hit the ground and blew up the border in a fantastic display of destruction and firepower.
The shells from the ships and artillery paired with the decades of mines on the ground led to a series of impressive explosions and a thunderous orchestra of sounds and swept Seong and Wook off their feet. Seong screamed whilst Wook cowered in a corner, grinding his teeth.
It was all over when a shell hit them.


