1991, autumn, Black Swan Port.
The rusty cast-iron pier leads to the frozen sea. A young sentry stands at the end of the pier, with a five-pointed star embedded in his bearskin hat. From his collar badge, it can be seen that he is a Soviet Red Army soldier.
This is the northernmost part of Siberia. It faces the vast Arctic Ocean, and even American spy satellites have difficulty scanning it.
Logically speaking, there shouldn't be a port here. After all, even the nearest city is 340 kilometers away, making supplies very difficult.
If you want to come here, except for the annual Lenin icebreaking supply ship, you can only come here by dog sled.
And dog sledding takes at least five days.
Therefore, unless there is something particularly important, this transportation route is generally inaccessible.
But at this moment, at the end of the sentinel facing the ice sea, an incredible scene appeared.
In the lonely sea breeze, dark cirrus clouds swooped in from the south.
In such high latitudes, once such cumulonimbus clouds appear, a blizzard will soon follow, and soon the snow will bury the area near the port.
But just as the snow and dust on the sea surface were swept up from the south, a group of people riding dog sleds roared toward Black Swan Harbor under a dust head of dozens of meters.
"Are they from the Verkhoyansk Border Guards? They encountered a snowstorm on their way here?"
The sentry thought as he looked at each other, all of whom were wearing warm Soviet gray military uniforms.
But he couldn't think of that much anymore. The sentry rushed to the iron frame and rang the bell. The bells scattered throughout the harbor, which was an early warning of the coming blizzard.
Then he arranged for his companion who had just handed over to him and had not gone far to inform the doctor.
Although the men and horses riding the dog sled wore the military uniforms of Soviet soldiers, generally speaking, all military personnel must be received by doctors.
Here, the knowledgeable doctor is the supreme commander.
"We have been operating on this ice sheet for five whole days, and we are almost freezing to death. We just want to get warm as soon as possible, can't we go in?"
It seemed that they had been waiting for a long time, and the soldiers who came from the direction of Verkhoyansk on dog sleds complained a little.
"Sorry, you can't go in unless the doctor comes forward. This is the rule." The sentry said apologetically.
To be honest, standing here felt like he had been waiting for a long time.
If the doctor didn't come, he was afraid that the soldiers in front of him would beat him up if they got impatient.
He can't withstand dozens of hands with one punch.
"It doesn't matter. I can understand if this is the rule. So, no need to apologize. The most we can do is wait for a while. You agree."
A man with black hair, a black iron mask on his face, and a dark gray officer's uniform said gently.
"Since the doctor has said it, let's just wait."
The soldiers who were still dissatisfied just now expressed their understanding immediately.
In response, the sentry glanced gratefully at the doctor named Alex in front of him.
Even though everyone calls Alex doctor, he has three stars on his shoulders.
In other words, the military rank of the man in front of him is captain, and he is the leader among mid-level officers.
Generally, officers of this level usually hold the important positions of company commander, deputy company commander or chief of staff, and can lead about 100 to 170 soldiers.
And these dozens of complaining soldiers were all taking orders from him according to their military ranks.
As for why Dr. Alex has black hair and black eyes, according to what the Sentinel just learned, it is because he is from Altai.
This is an indigenous Siberian ethnic group, mainly living in the Altai Republic of Russia. Their number is only about 60,000, and they are considered a minority in Russia.
To be honest, it is difficult for Altai people to reach this level of officer, and this is the first time for the sentry to see him.
This is enough to show the excellence of the person in front of him.
Just going out on a mission and wearing a mask still seems a bit strange.
"Sorry, Comrade Captain, I'm late because there are some problems with the research."
Shortly after everyone's conflict subsided, an old man appeared from the harbor with some soldiers.
"Are you the designer of Black Swan Port and the highest officer here?"
Alex walked up to shake hands with his iron mask on.
During this period, he looked at the old man carefully and could see that this doctor had the characteristics of an eighty-year-old man and a twenty-year-old young man.
The woolen military uniform fit his straight figure, the trousers were pressed straight, a purple silk scarf was stuffed at the collar, and his pure silver hair was neatly combed back, making him look as handsome as a young man in his twenties.
But at the same time, he was also old, and the depths of his eyes were full of traces of time.
Therefore, Alex was somewhat unable to determine the age of the other party.
"Comrade Captain, if there is no other doctor named Herzog here, then I will be the highest officer in your mouth." The doctor shook hands with him jokingly.
"Doctor, please call me doctor. I am more accustomed to calling me doctor than to the title of comrade captain." Alex said gently.
At the same time, he pointed to the supplies behind his team:
"The polar night is coming soon, these are the supplies I was ordered to bring here.
In addition, as a new military doctor, I heard that your research on medicines is very thorough.
I think it's okay to stay with you for a while.
Oh, by the way, this is the document I applied to the direct department. Please take a look. "
After saying that, Alex took out a document from his pocket and handed it to Dr. Herzog.
In response, Herzog stared at Alex closely for a while, then took it and looked at the document.
In northern Siberia, the polar night usually begins in mid-November and lasts for two months until mid-January.
And it's already early November, so what the other party said is not wrong.
Because of the polar night, Alex's stay will take at least two months.
At the same time, because the supplies for the Lenin icebreaker have not yet been delivered this year, the supplies sent by the other party can be said to have solved an urgent need.
Therefore, Herzog has no reason to reject Alex's case.
"Before that, doctor, can I take a look at your appearance under the mask?" Dr. Herzog suddenly asked as if something had occurred to him, "I see in the document that you have had burns before."
"Of course, I don't want to reveal your scars, I just want to confirm your identity. After all, if you wear a mask on your face, no one can recognize who you are, right?"
To be honest, Herzog really doubted the other party's purpose.
Of course, it was not Alex himself who was suspicious. He himself had a list of all the soldiers in Verkhoyansk.
I came out late only because I looked at the faces of all the soldiers in Verkhoyansk before I came.
Herzog suspected that the other party might be a spy from some forces to replace Alex.
The air suddenly fell into silence.
After a moment of silence, Alex spoke: "Since the doctor doesn't trust me, I can only take off my mask."
Under the gazes of Herzog and the soldiers, Alex slowly took off his mask.
The moment he took off the mask, a face covered with scars and wrinkles, with a mixture of burnt black and red swelling, appeared in front of everyone.
After careful comparison, Herzog found that the other person's face was exactly the same as in the information.
"Sorry for causing you discomfort." The doctor apologized.
In response, Alex put the mask back on and remained silent.
"This is where you will live in the future."
After the soldiers in the port followed the doctor's instructions and took Alex to the living area, they pointed to a single-occupancy house and said.
"Thanks."
Putting the keys away, Alex walked into the room.
The room was about 40 square meters, and the walls next to it were covered with socialist propaganda and posters.
In order to keep warm, a meter-thick cement wall was poured on the outer layer of the building. In addition, three-layer glass windows were added, and the windows were very small.
After placing some of the items he brought with him, Alex carefully inspected the entire room.
After confirming that there was no surveillance equipment here, Alex sat on the bed and took out a silver cross necklace from his arms.
"Mai's makeup skills really helped me a lot." (End of Chapter)
