CHAPTER 18
WEDNESDAY
Yongsan Garrison, South Korea
Tom was gearing up in the locker room. He looked at his watch – already less than an hour until mission launch. He was wearing his all black night operations uniform. He saw himself in the mirror across the room. He thought he looked like a ninja. Maybe a high tech version of a ninja he thought. It had many pockets all over - three on each arm. It was made from a special fabric that repelled water, so it dried quickly. It did not help to be wet while trying to move covertly.
His Draeger Rebreather was sitting on the bench next to him. Unlike a traditional SCUBA oxygen tank, the Draeger was closed circuit. A diver breathed in air from the Draeger, and the carbon dioxide he exhaled was recirculated into the system and converted back into oxygen, which the diver ended up breathing again. This meant that no bubbles came out. With a Draeger, an operative could swim right up to an enemy beach and they would have no way of knowing he was there from looking at the water. It was the perfect device for these types of SAD missions. Tom had experience with it because as a SEAL he had used it for a number of operations.
Into a sheath on his hip, Tom inserted his Mark 3 knife. Almost seven inches, it was very durable and had many potential uses on any mission. Next, Tom strapped a holster around his right thigh. In it he put his silenced Sig Saur P226.
Tom closed his eyes. He tried to feel his heart beat. He rested his arms limply at his sides and let his jaw hang open in a more relaxed position. He forced himself to slow his breathing. Within a few seconds he could feel his heart rate slow down gradually. With that came an overall feeling of calm as any remaining tension left his body. He was performing an old trick he had learned while in training for the SEALs. Most people believe that there was a one-way path between someone’s emotions and his or her body’s physiological action. One is scared, therefore one’s knees shake from muscle tension. One is unsure of himself, therefore one feels his stomach tense. But what many people did not realize, which is what the SEALs taught, was that a person’s body and mind work in the other direction as well. A body’s physiological action can create the emotions. And that is important because everyone can directly control his or her body’s physiological behavior. So if someone “wills” his knees to stop shaking by relaxing his muscles, the feeling of being scared will slowly start to go away. If someone makes himself release that tension in the stomach, he will slowly feel more sure of himself. By controlling one’s body, one could control one’s emotions. Simply letting the arms and jaw hang limp could often be enough. Anyone can employ this technique anytime – even while sitting on a couch. This was not based on some new popular psychology either. Tom remembered learning in the SEAL classroom courses that William James, a Harvard psychologist from the late 1800s and early 1900s, had come up with this theory back in the 19th century. It was known as the James-Lange Theory. The James-Lange theory got lost in the waste-bin over the next hundred years as psychologists criticized it and tried to disprove it. It just felt wrong to them. But while they were criticizing it, SEALs were quietly using it. And it was as much a weapon to them as their rifles. Being able to control one’s emotions in hostile situations and maintain calm sometimes made the difference between life and death. Tom had seen it first hand while deployed in his SEAL team. The question he sometimes thought about, usually in the morning while looking over the Potomac, was whether they were controlling their minds or their bodies when using James-Lange. They used their minds to control their bodies to control their minds. He sometimes searched for the right word to describe that. Paradox?
Tom grabbed several explosive charges and placed them into special straps on his uniform. He would need these if any doors were locked. He assumed all doors would be.
He picked up the ADS. He had grown to like it, although he still doubted whether he needed it. It had been wrapped in an airtight plastic wrap so that it could travel in the water with him. He strapped it onto his back.
Tom lastly checked his helmet. His night vision goggles worked. They were folded up so that they stuck up straight out of the helmet. Right behind and to the side of those was a small but sturdy helmet camera. That would be providing a live video feed to the Command Room – Anderson, Sara, Mr. Park, and the rest of the team back in DC.
Tom spoke to Anderson several hours earlier. Anderson told him that North Korean activity looked normal and he could still expect a low presence of troops. Tom thought it was smart that they were using only satellite imagery. There was no need to send in a drone, which the North Koreans could potentially shoot down. Given that the peninsula was on the brink of war, that would be an unnecessary provocation. Anderson told him to be careful and to make this infiltration fast. But Anderson also said that Tom should take the time he needs. There was no need to risk himself in order to be marginally faster. Tom appreciated hearing Anderson say that. But he would try to make this quick, he thought.
Tom put on his helmet, strapped on his M4, and put his Draeger and flippers into a utility bag. He strapped that on his back. He did not need those yet as he was first going to fast rope from the helicopter onto the submarine. Then after the submarine had moved into position off the northeast coast of North Korea, he would climb into the SDV with his diving gear to make the infiltration.
Tom looked at himself in the mirror one more time. He looked like a shadow in the well-lit locker room. He glanced around the empty room. The clock on the wall told him it was about time to get loaded into the helicopter. He could hear the faint sound of blades chopping through the air outside. Tom nodded to himself and started walking towards the door.
Outside the locker room, he saw Jiyeon standing against the wall in the hallway. At first her eyes ran up and down him, looking at his rifle, his upright night vision goggles, and his pistol strapped to his thigh. Tom guessed she had never seen a black ops officer in full gear. She came up to him and stared into his eyes. Hers were open wide. She held her hands together, her fingers intertwined like a zipper. She shivered one or two times. Is she going in there or am I?
Tom reached for her waist and kissed her forehead. “It will be OK” he whispered.
She nodded and looked down.
Mr. Lee appeared at the far side of the hallway and walked towards them.
“Sorry, I was on the phone. Mr. Park is with everyone in the CIA Command room. They are all ready.”
Tom looked at the two NIS analysts. He nodded at them, and they nodded back. Then he started walking down the hallway, towards the door leading outside. His pace was controlled. Tom was looking at the ground eight feet in front of him while he walked. He focused on his breathing.
Outside the cool air refreshed his face. He had been inside all day. The sun was a purple-orange as it had started crossing the horizon. Tom saw the helicopter about half a football field away. Its blades were spinning. It was ready for him. He marched on, maintaining his steady pace. When he reached the helicopter, the crew was inside, ready to take him. They were watching him carefully. Tom climbed inside and sat down. He looked outside. Back near the building, he saw two figures standing and watching him – Mr. Lee and Jiyeon.
When the helicopter took off, it looked like the ground flew away from him quickly. It was a funny sensation Tom always enjoyed. As they were gaining altitude, Tom looked around the base. Nearby, he saw six soldiers looking up at the helicopter. Tom wondered if they were the same group he saw at the firing range yesterday.
The helicopter started picking up speed. They were now headed out towards sea. Tom checked his watch. Soon he would be in North Korea. He thought about that underground base. Whatever was in it awaited him in that dark land he saw northward.
Devil's Fork Page 24