I love the way you show (rather than tell) us so much about the characters background in one paragraph:
Through the window inlaid by the frozen wind, prof. Jules Birnes fleetingly observed the curious monolithic formations to his left, the last offshoots of the Transantarctic mountain range, before returning to focus on the snowcat’s command board and his inner demons.
The connection between landscape and his inner world shows us, subtly, that there is a cold divide between his feelings and what he'll allow through to his waking mind. Really nice writing. I also like your interesting descriptive passages:
He would have dared that, at that moment, the sound of the diesel engine was producing a monotonous C major. No note could have clashed more with the airy andante of the “Nisi Dominus” psalm in G minor, by Vivaldi.
and the careful nuanced way this shows us something more about the characters disposition and cultural make up. Lol, also beyond all that 'literary analysis' I just really like Vivaldi to listen to while driving too 😉
Great stuff @f3nix, you should write more fiction and poetry, I have missed it!
Thank you, I'm flattered. In this short story, I started from the concept of twisting the contest's delivery. Being "a thermal apocalypse", I wanted to reject a stereotypical representation of a burning world. I tried to create some cross-references and allusions, with doseing the information and unveiling them in my own way.
Your analisys is truly spot on. About Vivaldi, I wanted to associate the levitas of that music with a crawling, screaming horror. I didn't obtained it as the story resulted in a less gruesome and more "poetic" nuance, but I'm still sufficiently satisfied.. talking about it, I really feel like writing a raw screaming horror, once for all. Thank you so much once again for your encouragement and such a meaningful comment!