//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 - The Beginning // Story: This Night // by 7H //------------------------------// Chapter 1 - Beginning *********************** I woke up really groggy. I really need to stop going out with my drinking buddies so much... My name is Professor Gin, and you're probably wondering why I, a respectable member of the scientific community, would drink. Well, it's fun. Enough said. I sat up and turned my alarm off; the blasted device had yet to ring and I didn’t want it to worsen my abating hangover. I almost never woke up before my alarm. My current residence was a Boston one bedroom hotel room with a somewhat-stocked kitchen, and a living room. It wasn’t much, but it was enough for a decent living. Well, time to go to work. * * * * * At a glance, my workplace was a shoddy, nearly run down, two story building with cracked pavement. However, on the inside, the facility was like none other imaginable. Scientists, rent-a-cops, and students were listening to a speech. Shit. I was supposed to help deliver that speech. Urgh.. what was that thing about again? Oh yeah... shit. I had to help give a speech about my scientific breakthrough from a couple days ago. I've never really had any pull over the scientific community, but ever since I found the stone.... * * * * * 5 Days Earlier #24352345>Antarctica. #24352346>Frozen Research Base. I got out of the two seater biplane. My best friend, Frank, looked at me excitedly. The man was dressed in double lined slacks and an insulated sport coat, and had short, cropped gray hair with a leopard skin overcoat. Was he trying to start a fad or something? "We're finally here!" He seemed excited to the point of jumping, and as entertaining as that would be, I decided to save my friend a bit of dignity when I said, "Alright, we're here. Now, we need to find our new station." "And just where do you think it is?" Hm. Just leave it to Frank to hand me the bill. But where is the bloody thing? Taking one hand, I shaded my eyes and re-scanned the landscape. That's right about when I heard something behind me. I whirled around, drawing my stainless steel switchblade in the process. My arm stopped just short of its throat when I realized it was a human. I lowered my arm saying, "Well who the hell are you?” He nearly fell to the ground laughing, and took his time recovering too. "It's me, you goofy American!" He pulled off his ski mask; his clothes were all very thick, and white as the Antarctic snow around us. I recognized the man as Tom, a Harvard colleague of mine who occasionally visited to work with me in Boston. We then briefly embraced, laughing, asking each other how we'd been, how our families were going, etc. After we were done, I spoke up. "So, I assume you're here to lead us to the station? Oi'm a freezin’ me bloomin' arse off out here!" I loved making fun of his Irish accent. Tom immediately snapped back to reality. "Oh! My apologies. Right this way." He gestured for us to follow him, and he led us to a seemingly empty piece of land. He then fumbled on his belt for a walkie-talkie, and muttered a few words into the receiver. The ground shook, sending the snow in front of us into little flurries. It was then that a crevasse began to form in front of us, shaking the Earth like a hundred bulldozers. When the shaking was done a very large, gaping hole was in front of us. We each peeked down with apprehension, aside from Tom. "Well, here we are. Follow me!" Tom swan dived into the maw. "You first." I took one last look at Frank and the surrounding area. "Last one down's a frozen Frank!" I dove, and heard him jump after me, shouting "I don't think so!" before the world turned black.