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«It’s not a secret. I was born and raised in Moscow. Alex is short for Alexander. I have a law degree and worked in various small offices. At the age of 30, I am fond of online quests, engaged in mountaineering, basketball and I dream of opening a private legal agency to provide my services for both Russian and foreign companies. This is what I will spend my winnings for.»
«What about „giving money to the poor“, Robin the Hood?» I ask sarcastically.
«You have no idea how many people need free legal advice,» he suddenly becomes serious, «the poor are more likely to find themselves in difficult situations, become victims of unscrupulous realtors, traders, relatives, criminals, remain without a roof over their heads and lose all their modest savings… At the same time, they cannot even afford to receive qualified assistance.»
I feel ashamed, so I change the topic and tell about myself:
«My name is Victoria, I’m from Samara. I teach English courses at a language school and occasionally work as a translator. I love adventure and look for them in every possible way. That’s why I am here, aboard a plane flying in an unknown direction. I’m 25, and instead of thinking about family and kids, I sit for hours at the computer, pondering on another puzzle.»
«And what will you spend your winnings on?»
«I don’t think it will come to that,» I wave it off. «For me, the Game of the Century is a way to break out of routine and become part of something great and one of a kind.»
Alex stares at me intently, as if trying to see through, and suddenly hits me on the spot with his phase:
«You clearly underestimate yourself.»
I raise my eyebrows in surprise, not knowing how to respond to such a statement.
«You have one important, I’d even say, a unique quality that will make you special in this game.»
«Yes, and which one?» I strain like a string, expecting another joke.
«A very kind heart.»
I have no time to think about his words, as the plane suddenly gets into a zone of turbulence, and it starts to shake severely. With the mind I understand that this is not dangerous at all, nevertheless, I can’t help being nervous: I grip the armrests of the leather seat with my hands and even forget to breathe out of excitement. After a minute, everything calms down, and I feel ashamed of my fear.
I’m already planning a response to another stinging joke from Alex, when the plane seems to fall into an air hole. It takes my breath away for a second. But outside the window the sun is shining brightly, the sky is blinding with its blue – it can only be so blue here, at an altitude of 10,000 meters. Fluffy clouds float beneath us so peacefully that I manage to pull myself together and calm down. And the moment I completely relax, the plane shakes with renewed vigor.
I have never experienced such intense turbulence before. The plane literally jumps in the air, then drops down for a few fractions of a second, then shakes from side to side. Horror binds me, so I can’t breathe or even just move. Instead, I have an iron grip on the seat and cannot formulate a single clear thought in my head. Shouts are heard in the cabin. Excited exclamations come through my own veil of fear. Someone is trying to call the flight attendant. Suddenly, everything ends as spontaneously as it began.
All I want now is to see Alex’s good-natured, mocking smile and make sure everything is in order. But when I turn in his direction, instead of the expected smile, I see a worried, even pale face.
«Alex, I’m really afraid to fly,» I babble.
«Be quiet! Something is wrong! Can you hear the engine running unevenly?»
«Stop that!» I am angry and expect that now he will laugh, rejoice at how well he played me out.
«Please,» I mentally ask him, «tell me it’s not true! I won’t even take offense.»
But looking out the window, I shudder from what I saw. Thick black smoke is pouring from the left wing. There can be no doubt that a serious problem occurred during the violent shaking. And as if in confirmation of my thought, the plane slowly lands on the left wing, holds for some time, as it seems to me, in one place, and then begins to plummet downward.
Fuzzily, I hear screams in different languages, panic in the cabin, Alex’s instructions:
«Fasten all the belts! Don’t move!»
Someone is crying, another one is praying hard. The blood rushes to my head, so I no longer know where the top and bottom are. The eardrums seem to be about to burst from sudden pressure. Seat belts bite painfully into the shoulders. I want to scream, but I can’t open my mouth. I register the impact of some objects flying around the cabin and the deafening roar of a falling plane.
The entire cabin is clouded with thick acrid smoke and filled with the smell of burning. The oxygen mask hung in front of my face, and somewhere deep in my subconscious, the flight attendants’ briefing before the start pops up. With shaking hands, I pull the mask over the face and try to take my first breath, but the lungs sewn with the threads of fear refuse to obey. I close my eyes tightly.
The thoughts get confused in my head.
«Is that all? The end? Is all this happening to me in reality? Is the biggest fear of my life, my nightmares coming true? "I think in some daze. I used to be sure that «pictures of the whole life’s journey» in the face of death is a myth. But now scenes from the past are really flickering before my closed eyes: people, events, experiences. Clearly, distinctly, in some specific moments of life and, most surprisingly, in the reverse order.
Meeting Alex. The Glossy Lady. I board a plane at Sheremetyevo airport. I open the letter with a trembling hand, stamped Antakarana Corporation. I press the «Fill» button of the questionnaire opened on the monitor to participate in the Game of the Century. I study English irregular verbs with first-graders, translate negotiations on the delivery of a new tomograph to the city hospital. Euphoria during the second parachute jump. Horror before the first one. Graduation party at the institute, generously flavored with laughter and tears. Disappointment due to the failed ascent of Elbrus. Painful parting with Andrey. I jump for joy in front of the list of applicants on the wall of the university. First kiss with Kirill at the school prom. – Pictures in my head speed up. – Tears because of the first bad score in math. Mom fries pancakes on Sunday morning, and I burned my finger. First day at the new school. Hike to the Ural Mountains. Grandma’s village, where the goose nibbles me and chases me for some time. Mom leads me by the hand on my first school day. A funeral on a rainy day. Mom and Dad, embracing, cry bitterly in the kitchen. Mom, pale as a sheet, talking on the phone. I play dolls with my older sister. I try to crawl to my sister, but she runs away from me all the time and… Nothing more.
The pictures suddenly cease to come to mind. Chaos and panic reign in the plane. I open my eyes and look out the window. The earth is approaching with unimaginable speed – the two-story airport building is already clearly visible, to which we are rapidly rushing. A couple more seconds – and only a smoking heap of wreckage will remain.
«Goodbye, Mom and Dad, I love you,» I whisper squeezed.
The wing touches the ground, I close my eyes tightly and… nothing happens.
***
Suddenly, the picture outside the window changes and our plane is still standing in the same place at the airport in Lhasa. I look around in fright. What’s happening? Am I out of my mind? Other passengers also exchange looks in bewilderment. No, everything happened in reality, this is not my sick fantasy – this is evidenced by the things scattered around the cabin, and oxygen masks still dangling over our heads. However, the smell of burning and smoke quickly disappear, leaving no trace.
I hear somebody crying. The woman of southern descent is shouting emotionally in her language. The athlete jumps to his feet, swearing loudly and obscenely. His gaze goes to the end of the plane. Without thinking twice, he confidently walks past me in the tail, grabs by the shoulders a slender Asian woman in big round glasses, who I did not have possibility to carefully consider before, and begins to shake her.
«What the hell is going on here?! Are you at one with them? Sick motherfuckers, what the fuck is that?» he keeps swearing.
The girl babbles back and sobs loudly. Alex jumps up from his seat and runs up to him.
«She’s just the victim like us. She’s in shock, can’t you see? Get your hands off her!»
The athlete looks at Alex with bloodshot eyes and breathes heavily. At one point it seems that he will get into a fight. But instead, the athlete lets the Chinese woman go. The girl falls on Alex’s chest and grabs him with a death grip, continuing to sob loudly.
Behind her, Joleo firmly presses both hands to his chest, periodically rubs his high wrinkled forehead and mutters something inaudible, apparently in his own language.
A thin woman of about fifty, whom I had not noticed before, a neighbor of a Chinese woman, bent over, hugging her knees and crying soundlessly.
Apparently, the blonde is in a life-saving swoon. From my seat, I can only see her hand hanging lifeless from the chair. Planck stands next to her and tries to bring the girl to the senses by lightly patting her cheek.
An angelic-looking boy sits in the aisle of the plane and sobs shamelessly. Of course, this is not a boy. He is at least 25 years old. But golden curls, delicate skin and perfectly shaped lips and nose make him look more like a young angel. Large tears roll down the guy’s flawless face. Feeling embarrassed to look at him, I turn away, being myself not in the best condition. I also want to crawl to the floor and sob uncontrollably.
«We are glad to welcome you, participants of the Great Game!» a soft deep voice is heard. We turn around and realize that it belongs to an elderly man on the monitor screen hanging above the entrance to the aircraft cabin.
An old Asian-looking man, most likely Chinese, brings his hands together and bows slightly. His gray long hair is slicked back, and his narrow slanted eyes express friendliness and old wisdom. He smiles and bares teeth that are too white for his advanced age.
«My name is Maestro. I will accompany the players throughout the game. First of all, let me tell that you are completely safe on board. This is one of the most modern and reliable Bombardier models, additionally equipped with security and air control systems. Any problems during the flight are completely excluded. I assure you that in 11 hours we will safely deliver you to the place where the Quest will be played.»
An absolute silence reigns in the cabin. We look at the screen in shock and bewilderment. The old man continues:
«In addition, the aircraft is equipped with a flight simulator similar to those used by pilots. The simulator is all at once: acoustic, optical and mechanical. The devices built into the windows show the various pictures, but these are only types. The mechanisms in the housing and chassis simulate the movement of the aircraft, smells and sounds.»
The aggressive guy recovers first:
«Oh, you sick bastard! I’ll strangle you with my own hands!»
He continues to shout curses. As if hearing the athlete, Maestro continues:
«You may be curious, for what purpose did we use a flight simulator and stage a plane crash? The answer is simple: check your reactions, my friends. Emotional stability. Ability to think sensibly and make decisions in stressful situations. Just consider this as the last of many tests you had to pass to get here.»
At this time, the blonde, who has already come to her senses, jumps to her feet and shouts:
«You call this a „test“? Who are you to mock us like that?! Let me out now, I’m leaving this plane and this damn game.»
«I suppose,» the elder continues calmly, almost sympathetically, «that some of you will want to quit the game without even starting it. Unfortunately, this is not possible. Each of you has signed a contract and has no right to leave the game before it ends.»
«Not possible? Who will stop me then?!» She walks furiously toward the exit. Four men in suits and glasses, similar to those who accompanied me from the airport in Beijing, come out from the cockpit. The blonde girl shouts something else, but hesitates and returns to her place.
«We have selected the best people for this Game. Each of the participants is extremely important for the Corporation and for me personally. Now this is almost impossible, but you will soon comprehend how necessary this cruel test was. I promise that a lot will become clear by the end of the game week. Show patience, wisdom and restraint – these are the three pillars on which any sage rises. After all, only a true sage can become the winner of the Great Game.»
«He’ll definitely learn the strength of my patience as soon as collides with me personally,» the athlete hisses in rage.
A woman of southern descent with a whiny voice and surprisingly clear English addresses the screen as if the elder can hear her:
«How unfair and cruel subject people to such tests! Your test is a crime! I do not wish to take part in this. The fact that we have become part of the quest does not make us cannon fodder in your perverted games!»
«Many of you lack motivation. Money is a powerful engine, but still often insufficient, especially when it comes to the emotional level of perception, when the game hurts the thoughts, feelings, and sometimes the dignity of people. And we can do nothing without motivation. Well, I will give you this incentive. The winner will receive one million dollars to spend it as he pleases: keep it for himself, divide it between the participants, send it to a charitable foundation, God knows how else. But that’s not all. Antakarana Corporation will fulfill one of the most important and vital wishes of the winner. We are powerful, believe me, these are not empty words. Many of you may not yet even guess what exactly is your innermost desire. The time will surely come to find out. But the organizers already know it from the moment they met you and decided that you and no one else would become participants in the Great Game. Money, my friends, is dust, but the thing we are ready to do for you in case of victory is deeply personal and worth some hardship.»
Maestro pauses meaningfully.
«What is he talking about?» the young man with an angelic face asks quietly. The athlete looks at him contemptuously:
«That he can make you a real man.»
«My dream has already come true, I discovered and proved the presence of the satellite Joleo in the Saturn system,» the absent-minded scientist exclaims with unexpected joy and smiles broadly, «but if I can prove the existence of the tenth planet in our solar system… This promises the Nobel Prize, no less! I really can make history!»
«I hope you were able to appreciate the significance of my words. After 11 hours, you will be taken to the Location. This is a wonderful place of incredible beauty in the Indian Ocean. I will not hide it, it is fraught with many dangers. But together you will cope with them without much difficulty. Every day you will find yourself in situations that require the best skills, knowledge and capabilities. My advice: stick together to the last. Only one, the strongest, will win, but alone none of you will reach the final, since each participant has a specific set of knowledge. Every day, every hour, you have to make decisions that affect the course of the game. Always remember that these are solely your decisions and the Corporation does not impose them on you.»
I am so overwhelmed by the simulated catastrophe and immersed in myself, that I can hardly perceive the words of Maestro. The flaming wing of the plane still stands before my eyes, the smell of burning is felt in the nose, and the deafening growl of the engine is heard in my ears.
«So we come to the most important thing: the essence of our game. Of course, the goal of the quest is to go through all locations and reach the final. But here is the topmost task, the solution you have to find, my friends…» he again makes a long pause. Maestro has achieved the desired effect. Now all the participants’ attention is riveted to the monitor.
«Each player is here not by accident. The main question is: what unites you all besides the passion for quests and riddles, be it online games, researching the secrets of mankind or the search for a new planet in the solar system? Undoubtedly, each of the participants is a master of his genre, one might say, a genius in solving puzzles. Yet there is one secret that binds you more than you can imagine. The players will have to find an answer to this question in the coming week. And we will help you with this.»
Those present in the salon exchange glances in bewilderment. We have never seen each other before and so far have not even considered it necessary to know each other’s names. We were only potential rivals and did not know how closely we would have to interact. Now everyone is looking at each other as if for the first time, as if we had not experienced a joint plane crash and a common death.
«Now that you have full information, I still give you the first choice, and this will be the last opportunity to leave the game. We aren’t inhuman masters of fate. The decision is always yours, remember this! You will have only a minute to get up and leave this plane for good.»
At these words, the ninjas at the exit parted in different directions. There is deathly silence in the cabin, so you can hear the ticking of someone’s wristwatch. The players froze, as if paralyzed by the words of Maestro. I can feel how dense the air has become from the thoughts and inner doubts of the participants. My first impulse is to jump up, get out of the plane, return home and never, ever remember this awful day, this cruel imitation of flying and falling. I turn to Alex, who is still standing next to the Chinese woman. He meets my eyes and shakes his head slowly. I can almost hear him: «No, temerarious girl with the name of a force of nature. You are capable of more. «And the moment is missed, the guards again block the passage. None of the participants even moved.
«Well,» the old man smiles from the screen, «your reaction confirms once again the fact that the Corporation was not mistaken in choosing you. All participants are familiar with the rules of the game in detail, I will not repeat myself. I would like to just give two pieces of advice: do not try to break the rules and stick together to the last. I wish you the best of luck. And remember: this is just a game, but you are experiencing it in reality.»
The screen goes blank. Two uniformed girls appear, and the guards hide in the cockpit. The silence is interrupted only by the instructions of the flight attendants. We take our seats and fasten the belts. The plane enters the runway, quickly picks up speed and this time really takes off from the ground.
***
More than two hours pass, but still no one speaks a word. Everyone copes with the shock in his own way. I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep. I feel uneasy at the mere thought of looking out the window. About an hour after take-off, we were offered lunch, but I did not even touch the exotic dishes.
It always seemed to me that, having gone through such a shock and suddenly being safe, I would feel a euphoria, similar to the one I experience when waking up from a nightmare. But instead, I am filled with a terrible emptiness, unbearable sadness and incomprehensible longing.
To distract myself, I reflect on the words of Maestro. What can unite us all? Have we met somewhere before? I had a chance to visit abroad twice: in Spain for climbing the Pyrenees mountains and in India at the tourist resort of Goa. None of the players present seems to me even close to familiar.
We’ve definitely never seen each other until today. We are absolutely strangers, people who were not only not united by the plane crash, but also distanced from each other as much as possible.
One innermost desire, said the Maestro. What could it be in my case? For what am I ready to make such sacrifices as, for example, to experience this impromptu disaster? I have always considered myself to be quite a happy person. I have wonderful parents and a small but loyal circle of friends. I was lucky to do what I love and do not have to complain about health problems. A list of things to do before you die? Like all people on earth, I have a list with rather generalized phrases like «swim with dolphins», «conquer the Mont Blanc», «jump upside down from a bungee in Sochi Olympic Park» and other nonsense. But can I call anything from this list my innermost desire? Definitely not! Love, family and children? I never thought about it seriously. Now my heart is free, and it suits me perfectly. I love the feeling of absolute independence. Moreover, I am convinced that all this will happen in due time and without the help of some powerful Corporation. Another open question. I have no idea about a response.
The words of Maestro do not go out of my head: «Better stick together to the last,» said the elder. How will I interact with all these people? I’ve always had a hard time pairing quests, not to mention team games. I can find a common language with almost everyone, but it gives me discomfort to discuss and explain my decisions to someone else. Continuous questions and not a single even approximate answer!
Realizing that, despite the long tiring flight from Russia to China, I will not be able to sleep, I open my eyes.
«Alex, are you awake?» I ask in a whisper.
«No, I’m sitting and waiting for you to ask me if I’m sleeping,» he jokes. But the expression on his face is not at all like that self-confident cheerful grimace, which so angers and pleases me at the same time. «Lavina… sorry to my laughing at your fear of airplanes. It seems that from now on I am also afraid. It must be contagious. My own fault, I should have washed my hands in time,» Alex tries to cheer me up in his own peculiar manner.
«You’re pale, are you all right?»
«Yes, it’s from the awful look of the dinner. What is this muck? They didn’t manage to smash us to the ground, and that’s why they decided to poison us?»
«Alex… I always thought that the expression „life flies before your eyes“ is a myth. What did you seen in the last seconds of our lives?» I ask strangled, unable to drive away the obsessive memories.
«I haven’t seen anything like this, because I don’t have your violent imagination. I remember only one thought constantly spinning in my head: what a fool I was that I did not know how to appreciate life. That’s all. No faces, no memories, no sound thoughts. Only: what a fool I was, how blind I was. Probably, I should be grateful to the organizers for opening my eyes.»
«And are you grateful?»
Alex laughs joylessly:
«I’d hold each of them while the athlete polishes their smug faces. Tell me better about your visions.»
«It’s rather strange,» I say thoughtfully, «I saw brightly and distinctly moments from life, people’s faces and some places from the past. For a split second, I experienced the same emotions as during that period of time. Some events are clear-cut, and some have completely faded from memory. The last memory was my older sister. She died tragically 20 years ago in a terrible car accident.»
As soon as I say it out loud, I suddenly understand the reason for my sadness. No matter how successful and happy our life is, we will never be able to drive out ghosts from the past, survive the tragedies that have happened and heal the wounds inflicted. One way or another, they overtake us at the most unexpected moment and, when all bad things seem to be left behind forever, they fall down with a heavy and devastating load.
Suddenly a thought comes to my mind. What if each of us has experienced a terrible loss in the past and now leads his ordinary life trying not to look back, because there is only pain and emptiness? At least this is some kind of clue! I make the first note in my notebook: «Common: past tragic losses?»
«What are you writing there?» Alex cranks his neck curiously.
«Plan how to seize a million dollars.»
***
We talk to each other for a while. He tells a little about himself, generously seasoning the monologues with jokes and anecdotes. At the same time, the guy does not skimp on jokes about me.
I am deliberately not mentioning anything about my assumption. At the first stage, I don’t want to share my thoughts and guesses with anyone else, even with Alex. The conversation encourages me a little, but I still feel miserable. The rest of the passengers are either asleep or in muffled conversations with each other.
I decide to visit the restroom and follow to the rear of the plane. Suddenly, like a bolt from the blue, in the last row I notice a girl about 10 years old. She looks out the window and holds something tight to her chest. This is so unexpected that for a moment I am speechless. Although the rules did not mention anything about the age of the participants, I was sure that only adults are allowed to play. Does that mean she also had to go through that hell? Well, this is too much! It is inhumane and cynical to do such experiments on adults. But to subject children to such tests is a heinous crime. There is no limit to my indignation. I appeal to the girl:
