Patrick Maxwell, a former Marine and Iraq veteran, was living as a civilian in Austin, Texas selling real estate when something he saw on television changed his life and his plan completely.

He saw ISIS. And the black pirate-like flag that flies from a number of cities in Iraq and Syria these days.

Through it he saw something he said he never saw as a Marine.

A clear, distinct and physical enemy.

So — amazing as this sounds — he packed his body armor, connected with a Kurdish military leader online, threw a baseball cap with the Texas flag emblazoned on the front and headed back to Iraq.

To at long last witness, and fight, the enemy.

See Maxwell and his incredible story in living color in The New York Times video above.