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Chapter 1: "The Top of the World"
Day 2: 76°31′52″N 068°42′11″W
Greenland - Thule AFB
It was late when the specially commissioned aircraft touched down on the ice covered runway of the US air base and the Arctic air was clean and crisp when Tim and Tony stepped down from the plane into a -25°C Arctic night.
From the Military Airlift Command at BWI Baltimore Washington International Airport to Thule AFB, the flight had taken a long and uncomfortable 5 hours and 45 minutes and the two agents were relieved to step down onto solid ground again. It had been a thoroughly bumpy ride which had them both nauseated with Tim spending an embarrassing time with a barfbag under his nose while Tony was lucky to manage some sleep for the last hour of the flight.
They were met on the Flightline by Admiral Eldridge's aide who drove them to their quarters at the base facilities where they were served a decent dinner while they were quickly briefed about their assignment and other information pertinent to the harsh environment of the Arctic.
After dinner, the two were shown to the dormitory-style room they were to share but, as soon as they'd closed the door behind them, any thought of flopping into bed right away, was quickly dispelled and replaced by excitement.
On their beds, they each found an outfit that would ensure to keep them warm in extreme cold conditions and neither man could ignore this boyish and Christmassy feeling of being about to embark on an adventure.
There was a set of warm and comfortable synthetic garments among which a pair of lined and windproof pants, thermals, a fleece jacket of sorts and last but not least, a thick, yet ultra light Gortex parka. The Admiral's aide, Dan, had explained about the necessity of wearing different layers – at least 4, preferably 5 – when going out on the ice. Before setting off in the morning, they would be issued a pair of fitting boots.
Tim eyed the rest of the provided equipment on the bed. He checked the backpack with other necessities for polar expeditions… The whole lot was military issued, of course, and all essential stuff if they were to make it out alive in case of eventualities, which were not uncommon in these harsh environments: a spare GPS, his satellite phone, some dried food supplies…
Checking all this gear spread out on his bed, Tim once more felt boyish excitement almost bubbling over. He was going on an adventure!
From the bundle of items on his bed, he lifted out a thermal blanket of very light material and he couldn't help but think it might probably prove life saving if something bad came their way; like him getting separated from his little expedition team. Lost in what might well become a frozen hell, unpredictable as the weather conditions were as up north as he was now.
Such sobering thoughts made him quickly toss the blanket back on the bed. It really didn't help to dwell on such thoughts but suddenly, his former excitement was dampened by the reality of the situation. They were here for some serious business; they were to find out and prove whether a crime had been committed or not.
They would go out on the ice in the morning, process the now abandoned research camp, help looking for traces (as if there still would be any useful clues left out there in the snow!) and, if they were extremely lucky, maybe find one or both of the victims… Hopefully alive, but that would be a stretch. And yet, during the briefing, they had learned one of them was an arctic expert which made it practically certain this was no accident of the two men simply getting carelessly lost.
He glanced over to Tony and found his friend and coworker stowing away his gear and getting ready for bed.
Good idea and not much later, he scooted snugly under the thick eider down for a dreamless night.
Day 2: Heading due north
Very early next morning, the two NCIS agents, in the company of a local guide attached to the base, a US training officer and 2 Danish naval men were airlifted due north to a remote location where the plane could safely land on a solid stretch of frozen fjord.
After having unloaded their next means of transport, the very practical ski-doos, they set off in beautiful cloudless skies, riding east and inland and up the sloping hills towards the small military research outpost set up on the very edge of Greenland's ice cap.
For Tony and Tim, the ride started off as one lovely opportunity and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Just being here, traveling on this barren yet beautiful snow driven country, was incredible and exhilarating. It was hardly surprising how some people would pay huge amounts of money to just spend their holidays here.
The wide scenery was awe-inspiring, yet humbling and, apart from the engines of their snowmobiles, all was unearthly quiet. There was no sign of life.
Tim was starting to feel like a real explorer, albeit a budding one, and if Tony could see through Tim's balaclava, he would've noticed the wide exultant grin.
Obviously, the same could be said of his friend and Tim could actually see Tony's eyes twinkle with boyish excitement…
81° 6' 35.9994"N 59° 47' 59.9994"W
Greenland - Project Blue Ice Research Unit
The winter sun had reached its highest point as they arrived at the deserted base and Tim and Tony had long abandoned the feeling of contentment. Instead, they felt stiff with cold as well as from sitting for hours on a ski-doo.
They stumbled inside the main building of the station which held the labs, and after a delayed lunch, they set to work.
Inside, a thin layer of powdery dust covered the clutter damaged equipment in the lab. In fact, the place was a shambles like a polar bear had a party inside and emptied the powder fire extinguishers!
Computers, communication devices, the generator in the annex and the snow machines…all had been disabled. Somebody went about it rather thoroughly.
Moreover, the temperature inside was about the same as outdoors; freezing. As a result, the conditions in which the agents had to perform their tasks weren't optimal. Tim's camera wasn't wholly cooperative in the freezing cold – although he managed to take the necessary snaps…as well as a couple of extra pics of Tony and himself as souvenirs - and the bagging and tagging wasn't made any easier, either, with those gloves.
The guide, the US training officer and one of the Danes had left for the GPS location where the men had been reported to have gone missing, looking for any possible tracks.
Meanwhile, the other Dane stayed at the camp with Tim and Tony, trying to get some life back into the generator as it was deemed safer to spend the night in the research camp and the small company got themselves as comfortable as could considering the circumstances.
Against all odds – it was a rare occurrence when somebody gone missing was found this soon - they were successful and had been able to pick up a trail which led them to Bennett's frozen body lying half buried in the wind drifted snow.
The body was brought in with a dramatic sunset for a backdrop and just as Tim and Tony were completing their crime scene processing. It had been established quite early in their search for clues that the damage caused had indeed been by criminal intent.
Any hope of finding Lieutenant Birger Nørsgård, the other missing person, alive had been abandoned with the gruesome discovery of Bennett's body.
Sleep, that night, didn't come easy to the agents which was entirely to be blamed to the all permeating cold, despite the special gear and the working generator.