For Your Eyes Only
Basil Burton-Cogles
Well here you are,
Basil, in the dirtiest darkest hell-hole His Majesty can provide. After Edith’s
death, you returned to
Treason they say. The
solicitor doesn’t even need to tell you that you’re in big trouble. His eyes do
all the talking for him. Everyone knows that treason is punishable by the death
penalty - “A long drop and a short stop”
- that’s what awaits you. But you doubt that you’ll even make it to trial, with
all of the cut-throats and ne’er-do-wells that have been sizing you up recently.
Word is out, and it seems someone in here has got it in for you – maybe some lag
feeling patriotic. Never mind, maybe it’ll be quick – a slash with a razor to
the throat, rather than a knife in the gut. To be honest, it would be a blessed
relief.
Your train of thought
is interrupted by the guard approaching your cell. “You’ve got a visitor.” Your
spirits raise – maybe it’s your solicitor with good news, maybe they’ve realised
that it was all a big misunderstanding. Maybe your good deeds in
You come to. Your
head is still in a haze and it takes a few moments for you to notice your
surroundings. You are sitting in a chair, still handcuffed behind your back. The
room is dark and there is a light shone directly at you – it hurts to look at
it. You can just about make out the 2 soldiers from before standing by the door.
Another figure stands closer to you, and it is this person that talks to you.
“Don’t speak. The next voice you will hear will be the Major. I want you to
listen to him very carefully. He has a proposition for you.” You now recognise
this person as the prison governor. Then he leaves the room and there is silence
for what seems like minutes, only broken by the sound of a rifle cocking!
A deep voice emanates
from behind the light. You try to see past it, but the brightness makes your
eyes hurt. “So then Mr. Burton-Cogles, I do hope you realise you’re in a lot of
trouble. Treason, no matter how trivial the offence may seem is not a laughing
matter. I’m sure you realise that the gallows is a very real prospect for you.”
“However, I’m sure
that you don’t want to spend the rest of your days here, so I have a proposal
for you… A few days ago, I received
word that there may be a very real threat to
“You have a unique
set of talents that would be most useful to us in this matter. So I offer you
this – join the mission, go to
The Major walks
around you and stands at your back, his voice softer, almost whispering in your
ear - “What do you say?”
Although only seconds
pass, a thousand thoughts run through your head; A chance to wipe the slate
clean - a fresh start, a chance to prove that you’re not a hopeless
good-for-nothing. You never meant to do any harm, it was just means to an end.
Your mind is made up, you’ll do this – whatever it takes. All for the memory of
Edith - you won’t let her down.
You stammer your
agreement to the Major’s proposal. “Excellent! Knew you wouldn’t let your
country down. We’ll send for you when we’re ready.” You are lead back to your
cell.
The next few days are
hardly like being in prison at all. It’s hardly the Hilton, but you are moved to
your own cell. The guards seem almost human now, and you are bought veritable
feasts at mealtimes (you would have liked a nice pâté
de fois-gras, but in truth you are just happy not to be eating the gruel that
the other prisoners are no doubt enduring).
Almost a week has
passed when the guard opens the door to your cell. You see the same 2 soldiers
standing outside, and you fear that you may in for another beating, but this
time they stand where they are. One hands you the same black hood, “I’m sure you
understand sir, for the sake of National security…”
You pull on the dark hood – still feeling the bump on the back of your skull. As
the soldiers lead you outside, you can feel the eyes of every prisoner in the
place on you.
You are lead to a vehicle, and driven for a couple of hours in complete darkness. After a time, the vehicle stops, and you can hear one of the soldiers talking to someone. You soon move off again, and then the other soldier saying “We’re inside the perimeter now.” The hood is pulled off of you, and you stare at your surroundings, eyes blinking. You appear to be in an army barracks of some sort – being driven towards what appears to be an aerodrome. The car comes to a stop, and you are lead inside…
You enter a
room designated as ‘BRIEFING’ with some trepidation and take a seat. Hushed
whispers are being exchanged by some of the assembled people here, but these are
quickly ended as an authoritative voice booms behind you, “For those of you that
don’t know me, my name is Major Frederick Adams” A tall, well-built man strides
towards the front of the room and takes his place behind a lectern. “Most of you
won’t know why you are here. I will now explain why it has been necessary to
take extreme measures to bring you here.”
“Lights” The
Major orders to a man at the back of the room. A second later, the lights are
dimmed, and your attention is drawn towards a screen to the side of the Major.
Another officer hands you a dossier, and switches on a small reading light in
front of you.
“Recently, one
of our operatives in
Mein Fuhrer,
The first results of Project Uber-Mensch are very encouraging. We have conducted
a number of field tests, and save for a few difficulties that we must iron out,
I believe that we are nearing successful completion of the project. It will
bring to the end seven years of effort – seven years well spent when you
consider the superiority it will give us over anyone who stands in our way. I
will of course keep you informed of any progress.
Glory to the Fatherland.
“For a
while, we have suspected that the Germans have been up to something. And now we
know. Or rather we don’t know. For those of you who don’t speak German,
‘Uber-Mensch’ translates as ‘Super-soldier’. What is ‘Project Super-Soldier’?
Why are the Germans in
“Given the
time critical nature of this mission, you will be flying out at 1100 hours. We
would have preferred to go at night, but there is a scheduled civilian flight
over the area which we will take the place of in order to not raise suspicion.
If you read the second document in your dossier, you will see that the area of
“A note to
the civilians amongst you - you are expected to follow the orders of the officer
in charge at all times and obey the chain of command. You have of course, all
signed the Official Secrets Act prior to this briefing, so I do not need to
remind you that everything you witness during the course of this mission is NOT
to be disclosed to anyone outside Pegasus Division on penalty of the harshest
consequences. One final thing – due to the nature of the situation, Central
Command has designated this as a ‘Damocles Imperative’ mission - that is a
mission which could have worldwide ramifications.”
“That is
all, ladies and gentlemen. Good luck and God Speed. God save the King.”
The lights
go back on, and you are led out of the room to a bunkhouse.
The evening
meal is a strange affair. There is a marked difference between the civilians,
such as yourself, and the members of the armed forces. You and your peers are
subdued, probably as you contemplate what lies ahead, whilst the military
personnel have an excited buzz about them. You keep pretty much to yourself
during the meal, but at the end, Lieutenant Savage approaches you and introduces
himself. His confident manner and assuredness is somewhat comforting, and the
aching in your stomach subsides.
After the
meal, the soldiers make themselves busy preparing for the mission. You and the
other civilians are led into a training room to learn how to parachute. This was
never on the menu! The session is lead by Sergeant Johnson, an infectiously
enthusiastic man – although you are slightly worried that parachuting boils down
to jumping out of a plane and hoping for the best!
The rest of
the evening is your own, and you decide that your time will be best spent
getting a bit of sleep. In truth though, the events of the past 24 hours make it
almost impossible. However, it seems as if your head has barely touched the
pillow before you are woken by a private with a nice hot cup of tea. You dress
quickly – the air is cold this morning and makes the hairs on the back of your
neck stand on end. The morning consists of a final briefing on the ‘theatre of
operations’, and then the call comes in that the mission is ‘GO’. Once everyone
is ready, you are lead out onto the airstrip where a twin-engined plane is
warming up on the runway. Major Adams stands by the door, and gives each of you
a sturdy handshake and a “Good Luck” as you board the plane. Sergeant Johnson
makes sure that everyone is strapped in tightly before heading to the cockpit.
As he returns and fastens his own seatbelt, the low hum of the engines increases
in pitch and you feel the aircraft begin to edge forward. The plane speeds up
and then suddenly you feel the ground drop away as you become airborne. You
glance around you – your comrades seem to be either deep in contemplation,
sleeping or praying. The hours pass, and you find the drone of the engines
strangely hypnotic and relaxing.
You are
woken from your reverie by a harsh buzz, and a red light illuminates above the
aircraft door. The army personnel unstrap themselves, and then Sergeant Johnson
sets about releasing everyone else. Before you rise out of your seat, he clips
you onto a guy-line that runs towards the door. Once everyone is safely attached
to the line, he pulls the door handle, and opens the cabin to the cold rushing
air outside. Your breath is taken away by the conditions outside, as the
Lieutenant performs one last check. The buzz sounds again, and the light turns
to green.
“This is it
chaps. Good luck!” He pats the first in line on the shoulder, and one by one
they all throw themselves out of the plane. You feel a tap on your shoulder, and
look out of the door at the horizon. The sun is already beginning to set. You
jump out into the cold unknown…