Mission Log: December 15th 2056, 0900 hours: I've been contacted by the Master of the Ice People. This is going to sound insane but it contacted me through my dreams and, as it turns out, he is Captain Scott, my great uncle. According to the Master, he had saved Captain Scott by transferring my great uncle's consciousness to himself. For years, he used Scott's knowledge of Antarctica and of the world to build his army and train them to know exactly how to take us, the humans, down.

But Scott's brain has taken the Master as far as it can, and now it wants me. He said he'll trade Christine if I willingly go to him in return, but it would mean I would put the entire world at risk. I know things about the I.N.R.I.A., about the Navy, and about how our world works that, in the wrong hands, could be very dangerous indeed. I had never really thought about how precious the information I had was. It isn't like I'm an army general or the Prime Minister or even the King, but there were things that I knew that could be devastating.

He wants me. My consciousness. My knowledge.

I still can't wrap my head around that. I still can't believe that I could be the source of all our problems.

I just don't know what to think anymore.

I just stood on the edge of the ice cliff, staring at the huge, white beacon that shot into the sky like a rocket. My hands were dug deep into my pockets and my chin buried into my coat. I had been like this for two hours now and the cold was starting to creep into my fingers and toes.

There was something oddly beautiful about the beacon. The way that it was so perfect, so precise as it split the sky in half.

It was like the glory of angels, as if God had decided that we didn't deserve the Earth anymore.

I knew that I had to go there. If Christine and the scientists were going to survive, then I had to give myself up. But the cost for their lives was the world. I remember doing an exercise like this in basic training with the I.N.R.I.A. They always told us to go for the greater good and save as many people as possible.

But I doubt that they ever thought we'd have to deal with a situation like this.

"Matt," Pete said from behind me.

"Yeah?" I asked, not turning around to face him.

"Captain Jackson wants you," he told me. He hesitated for a moment. "Are you going to tell him? Are you going to tell him the dream? The message?" I took a deep breath of the clear air.

"I guess I have to," I replied. "I need his help to get there."

"You're seriously considering going through with this?" Pete asked, laying a hand on my shoulder. "Matt, if what you told me was true, the world is at risk here. Christine wouldn't want you to do this. In fact, I'm pretty sure she'd kill you if you did."

I didn't reply. I only closed my eyes and let the cool breeze brush past my face. Pete was right, and I knew that. But at that moment, I couldn't think of another way. The Master had us cornered, every escape route blocked. By the time any authorities got here, it would be too late. In fact, they'd just be heading into a trap.

Turning, I slowly trudged back to camp, ignoring Pete. I heard him sigh and follow behind me, but I'm pretty sure he got the message that I seriously didn't want to talk.

The other sailors were all gathered with Captain Jackson around the map that I had drawn on yesterday. They had already packed up everything which was piled up, ready to be transported to the only working boat. Captain Jackson looked up on my approach, his eyebrows raised.

"Where have you been this morning?" he asked. I glanced at the other sailors, including Midshipman Goodman whose head was still wrapped in bandages.

"Can I speak to you privately, Captain?" I asked. He gave me a puzzled look but nodded, giving orders to the rest of the sailors to start loading the boat with supplies needed for the attack. Pete clapped my shoulder, heading down with the rest of them for final checks.

"What is it, Mr Mayhew?" the Captain asked. I slowly explained what had happened last night. I told him of my connection with Captain Scott, of the Ice People's Master and how he had saved my great uncle. I told him everything, knowing that I sounded like a lunatic.

When I was done, the Captain just looked at me, studying me with his clear blue eyes. I stared back at him, refusing to back down. For a moment, everything was silent as the two of us contemplated our next move.

"That's quite a story, Mr Mayhew," the Captain finally said. "And with all the crazy things that have happened recently, I would be a fool not to believe you, no matter how insane it sounds." I inwardly sighed with relief. For a moment, I was sure he was just going to laugh in my face.

"I know that it sounds crazy," I replied. "I didn't believe it myself at first, but then that damn beacon went up and, well, I had to believe it." The Captain nodded, gazing up at the beacon.

"It seems that they want us to come to them," he said. "I'm not going to lie, that was a shock this morning when I woke up." He thought for a moment. "But it might help us. Satellites probably picked that thing up the moment it appeared. All ships in the area will be diverted here in a matter of days, so we should be able to get out of here."

"The Ice People will tear all those ships apart as soon as they get here," I muttered. "More people will be put at risk. We can't defeat them with brute force." The Captain hesitated, running a hand through his hair.

"You're right, I know that," he sad. "So what's your plan now?" I looked up at him.

"My plan?" I asked in disbelief. "Captain, I've put all your crew at risk. It's my fault that the Ice People attacked us again, that they took Christine to use as leverage. They want me. You're asking me for my plan to defeat my now evil great uncle?" The Captain smiled a little.

"You are not the bad guy, Mr Mayhew," he said. "Don't make the mistake of thinking that because your great uncle is behind this, it is automatically your fault. In fact, without you, we would all be dead at least three times by now, me included. You've saved all of our lives."

He took a breath, looking up at the beacon then back at me. "It may be you that they want and so, by default, you may be to blame. Some people may see it like this. But, at the end of the day, you had no idea, and you're doing everything you can to stop it. So yes, I want to hear your plan, Mr Mayhew. I want your way out of this, because you might be the only man on this Earth who has any idea how to."

I stared at the Captain, my lips parted slightly. Without knowing it, he just gave me the pep talk that I needed to keep going, to come up with a genius plan and get us out of this mess. He was right. I had no idea that this was going to happen. I couldn't have stopped the Ice People before it started.

But I could sure as hell end it.

"Get on the boat," I told the Captain. "We're going to end this. No one else is going to die today." He smiled.

"That's more like it," he said as we headed down to the boat where the rest of the crew and Pete were waiting. Pete looked at me, his eyebrows raised and asking if I was okay. I nodded, climbing on board and facing the bow of the boat.

"Ready to go, Captain," Sub-Lieutenant Harrison said as he came up from the small engine room. His hands were covered in oil and he wiped them clean on a small rag. "She won't go fast, but she'll go steadily."

"That's all we need," Captain Jackson replied.

"There's also a radio in the captain's cabin," Harrison said. "But before you get your hopes up, it won't be strong enough to get picked up within a fifty mile radius. Our message still won't reach the right people in time." The Captain nodded with a sigh.

"We'll forget the radio for now," he said. "Good work, Harrison." He turned to me. "Where to then, Mr Mayhew?" I looked across the water and at the beacon that shot into the sky. I raised my hand, pointing to it.

"Right there," I said. The boat was silence as everyone looked at me, then to the beacon, then back to me. I could practically see the gears turning in their heads as they mentally worked out our chances of survival. The answer to this equation:

Not good.

"You have to be joking," Lieutenant Silverton scoffed, staring at me. I looked at him with an eyebrow raised.

"I'm afraid not, Lieutenant," I replied. Again, silence. I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "Look, guys, that beacon will certainly draw the attention of the various navies around the world. They'll send their ships here to figure out what it is. Then, the Ice People will destroy them, just like they destroyed the Duchess and the Nelson." I turned to face the beacon again. "We have to take the Ice People out at the source and stop them from taking anyone else, from turning anyone else." I waited for their reaction, almost certain that they were all going to get off the boat and take their chances elsewhere.

"Mr Mayhew is right," Midshipman Goodman piped up. Everyone turned to look at their lowest ranking member and yet their bravest.

"Say that again, Midshipman," Captain Jackson ordered, a little shocked. The poor Midshipman went scarlet as he glanced at the floor, mumbling something to himself.

"I...er-well," he stammered. "I think that Mr Mayhew is right. We are the most experienced men in the world when it comes to the Ice People. We have an obligation to do what we have to do to protect everyone else, despite if it costs our own lives. That is what it means to be in the Royal Navy." The Captain clapped the Midshipman on the back, ignoring the poor boy's wince from his injuries.

"You are a good man, Mr Goodman," he said. "And well spoken too. Does anyone disagree with him?" He glared menacingly at all the other crew members who suddenly found the deck very interesting.

"No, sir," they said.

"Good," the Captain replied. "Now, Mr Mayhew, let's hear your plan." I smiled mischievously and told them what I wanted to do.

*****************************************************************************************