text: The crackle of the Geiger counter was the only thing stimulating the senses. There was nothing to feel through the body suit, nothing to smell or taste but the thick material it was made out of. The visor gave everything a hazy yellow tinge, not that there was much to see here anyway. Miles upon miles of wasteland with the occasional hill or tree in the distance, a sentinel watching over what's left of the land. The earth squelched with each step, as if it were autumn and the leaves had piled up half a foot tall, that was when you were lucky, Occasionally you would step on something hard and not know what it was or worse, had it snap then you knew exactly what it was. A gunshot rang out, there was no way to tell where it came from or how far away, sound seemed to travel forever across the barren wastes. "No threat." The voice was startling, as it always was, and was the only real thing that snapped you back to reality. How much longer was it now? * * * Moths seemed more abundant than ever. Maybe I'm a fucking moth. He looked up, their mission had led them on a path that seemed to follow the moon, looking around he could see his fellow soldiers all moving stiffly in their suits, holding back a chuckle he realised he had started talking to himself a lot recently. "Radio is for emergencies only, you don't know how much power you'll need." So there the group of moths followed the moonlight in silence. The increasing number of gunshots should have been alarming, but no one seemed to take heed of them. Too engrossed in their monotonous march to even notice or if they did were keeping an unnerving composure about it. A mixture of "No threat." "Threat Down." "Threat Escaped." was all that seemed to break the silence up until the sound of rapid gunfire followed a buzz alarm. The sound provided stereo feedback, all turned and aimed their weapons at the sound. No one saw anything. "No threat?" The tone was different, it was questioning, uncertain. No response. The group stopped and held their weapons as a single man approached the location of the sound. "Leakage, his suit let the air in..." No one seemed to speak up, it was the same voice that came over the radio. "...he's dead from inhaling too much, let's move on." Why would he suddenly fire so many rounds if he was just breathing too much of the air? No one else was questioning it, so why should he? They resumed their march, though the moon was long gone now it left an eerie glow over the horizon. There was a sound. The sound of metal or chain ringing followed by the group lifting their weapons, a shot went off incredibly close, as if just over his shoulder. "M-miss-fire." He was so irritable he was about to say something over the radio before realising what had caused the sound in the first place. It was a barely standing wire fence. The barbed wire on top had pieces of fabric blowing, it looked like a babies blanket now that they were next to it. "East side fence located. Proceeding in the morning." Finally having a chance to sleep would have been a relief had it not been stuck in the same suit for the last week. He ran things through in his head, wondering how he ended up in this shit hole. The memories were like a streaming newscast in his brain. "North Korea have tested a new kind of nuclear warhead, it's elements are unknown and no nation admits to supplying nuclear material......North Korea present to the world a new radioactive element, more destructive and can be used as a bio-weapon due to it's slow acting exposure......Missile tests prompt the US, South Korea and Japan in the area to issue warnings, the UN unanimously condemns Pyongyang and even China imposes severe sanctions....All ambassadors and envoys are called to leave North Korea, tourists are no longer allowed to visit as the information black hole of North Korea grows....Two months from the initial missile test there has still been no response from the North Korean government. No new tests have been detected or announced as the world considers lifting the severe sanctions....Guards disappear from the DMZ and Chinese Border, DPRK troops are questioned at Vladivostok before promptly leaving." How the fuck didn't we know? Eventually he could feel his eyes growing heavier and eventually sleep would come, though it just continued where his thoughts had left off. "Satellite imagery shows less activity on roads and streets than usual....Rolling power cuts grow more frequent and in many areas power isn't returning....Silence from DPRK prompts the UN to encourage Chinese investigation. China and Russia veto.....Leaked documents of US Trained South Korean special agents lose contact with the west....Fierce debate goes on between those who want to investigate and those who see it as an ambush..... Conspiracy theorists claim its proof of North Korea using their vast underground cities. There's no way millions of people can disappear like that otherwise." When he woke it was hard to tell if it was actually daylight. The clouds hung heavy and dark in the sky. Even better.