NIGHT WITHOUT END

BY- JASPREET SINGH

I arrived at the coast of Baffin Bay in the polar ice-cap of the Arctic Circle with a troop of Marines deployed by the government to aid in a rescue operation. We were informed earlier about a plane belonging to The British Airways had crashed right in the middle of the Polar ice caps. However, we were not informed on how many passengers were aboard and if all of them were safe. We just knew that the group of passengers which survived that horrible airplane crash was left to fend for themselves in cold blizzard weather conditions with the help of a few scientist stationed there in a research centre. 

I followed the group of marines with another reporter from a safe distance, afraid that I might get hurt in the fight. Up front, a man,  was driving a tractor at top speed across the steeply sloping crevasse ice. We were told that he is armed, highly dangerous and also is keeping a man and a lady as hostages. There were a few men chasing the tractor, with one of them shooting the tractor with his rifle, yet the vehicle was still moving at dangerous speed. 

Suddenly, the tractor stopped. There was a commotion in the tractor and I could see that the driver and another man, whom I suppose was a hostage as he had his hands tied behind his back, were fighting fiercely. They then fell out of the vehicle, still fighting with great power when suddenly the criminal took out his gun and shot the hostage. I could see that the men initially chasing the tractor arrived at the scene and one of them started chasing and attacking the criminal, and finally killing him. Unfortunately, there was another criminal, still holding the lady as hostage. He shot the lady just below her left elbow, prompting the other men to release their weapons. 

As this was happening, the Marines were closing up on the criminal. Unfortunately, the man with the lady hostage realised about the presence of the Marines and quickly pushed the women and jumped into the tractor. About then, he shot a man in his arm as this man tried to stop him from running away. The tractor was moving fast across the glacier, but was completely out of control as the glacier was so steep and slippery. It went straight into a big rock and the criminal, who was holding something that looks like a radio, and the women fell out of the driving cabin. Then, they slipped and fell into a crevasse. 

Further away, two planes were flying low across the glacier, with red-fire shooting from their guns onto men carrying weapons from a nearby fishing boat. The man who was shot at his arm just now, along with few men, went running to the crevasse. He threw a rope down, and out of a sudden just jumped into the crevasse. He certainly looked like he knew was he was doing. 

Moments later, the men at the top of the crevasse pulled the women out of the crevasse. At this point, I could feel the ice beneath me moved slightly. Hoping the ice do not close on them, I prayed the man, whom by now I know of his name, Dr.Mason, gets out of the crevasse in time. Fortunately, he managed to come out in time, bringing with him the radio that was with the criminal. I could hear the criminal in the crevasse pleading for help, but the men ignored him and within moments, the ice moved again. The mouth of the crevasse closed, swallowing the murderer to his end. The whole controversy's root remains a mystery to all of us. What was the purpose of Dr Mason risking his life to get just a radio?