“Nah, that’s not your call to make. What you’re not going to do is try to give us instructions as if this is your mission. This ain’t your mission!” Kash protested.
“I know it’s not my mission. But I’m telling you we are close because I’m a bit familiar with this facility. If my brother had made this far, I wouldn’t be here with you slow folks.”
Dean noticed that Kash was about to counter again and quickly intervened.
“This is not time to call each other names or fight like little boys. Let’s stay on the—”
Dean paused. They heard a weird sound approaching them at high speed.
“They know,” Nima said. “And that must be the second water channel heading our way.”
20
Chapter Twenty
Underground facility
Yamantau
“Was that thieving chimp even real?” Miles asked. He shook his head disappointedly, seeing that the little boy had no answer for him.
The past four hours had been one hell of a long dream. The radioactive poisons he was exposed to drove him into hallucination. The search for relics might just have hit the rocks. He knew that at this point, he had to find something outside the mythical sphere.
“If Mokosh and Dazhbog and all that stuff about the unification of the Soviet nations aren’t connected to some relics, then what is? What was the mission for? Maybe Howard was more susceptible than I thought.” Miles stopped. The little boy continued to walk toward a wooden bridge.
Miles stopped speaking his thoughts aloud to himself and became a little concerned about the boy. He became inquisitive, wanting to know how the boy had survived by himself in the underground facility. He followed the boy closely as they walked past the bridge.
They followed a narrow passage, avoiding the hazy areas and paths where some patrol officers could detect them. They came to a pathway that seemed darker than all the regions they had walked. Miles watched as the boy climbed the rock between them and a triangular structure with a doorless opening. It looked small from afar until Miles had entered and discovered that it had enough room to contain a hundred people. He took out a flashlight and noticed that the boy had entered an open coffin.
“That’s your hideout, isn’t it?”
The boy had taken off his gas mask. He sat up and pointed at another open coffin that was a few feet away.
“Oh, you want me to sleep there?” Miles asked. “Thank you.”
Miles inspected the coffin. The flashlight revealed a few more. The light also revealed the paintings on the wall of several biblical icons. There was the image of the Holy Mary with a halo over her head at the extreme end of the room. At her left and right side of the wall were martyrs. Some pictures were out of place as he pointed his flashlight toward the entrance. There was an effigy of a Slavic leader crowned in the Byzantine fashion, holding a cross-mounted staff in one hand. At the end of the wall, close to the entrance, was the image of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia.
Miles brought the flashlight down, and to his shock, the boy wasn’t there anymore. He pointed the flashlight in several directions. He searched each coffin in the room, and when he got to the entrance, he saw the boy at the foot of the structure, holding an extra gas mask in one hand. He beckoned Miles to come down. Miles tried on the gas mask, which smelled funny. The boy climbed down the rock and beckoned Miles to follow him. It was no use asking where since the boy had been helpful to his survival.
They stopped behind a heavy mass of rock when they heard footsteps—five men dressed in black monk robes passed by. Miles tried to take a picture of them, but the device’s battery was dead. When they were a few yards away, the boy made a move. Miles held him by the shoulders, afraid that they might get caught. The boy slipped away and sneaked into what Miles later discovered to be a training ground for monks. The little boy had been sneaking into the storage facility close to it for food and anything he could find. How he had managed to escape being caught remained a mystery.
The trainees, most of whom were as young as the little boy, lived in an ancient structure that served as a monastery, separate from the caves and other facilities. Miles followed the boy as he climbed up a window. Miles did the same, but as much as he tried, he lacked the boy’s stealth. The silence of the monastery at that hour amplified the sounds of clay particles that fell when Miles tried to hold on to the window frame.
In a blink, the boy entered a basin containing water that the monks used for feet-washing rituals. Miles realized that he was on his own. Thanks to the few lessons he learned at the dojo in the prison yard, he climbed up the wall in quick reaction and hung at the corner behind the entrance, hoping that whoever came in wouldn’t look at that side of the room. A monk did come in two minutes later. Miles's right arm had gotten weak from clutching to a wooden frame for so long. The monk walked back, shuffling his sandals on the floor. If he had gone close to the long basin, the little boy’s hideout would have been compromised.
Seeing the boy stay underwater for minutes just showed how much training he must have had under the monks. It induced a lot of curiosity, but Miles didn’t bother asking. What he saw after they had taken some items from the storage answered his questions…or most of them.
Young men were made to hang upside down at more than twelve feet from the ground. Their legs were tied to a rope that extended down from the roof. Even if they cut themselves loose from the string, they might not survive the fall. The floor had been doused with polytetrafluoroethylene.
_____
Nima predicted correctly. They saw the onrushing water blast through a conduit. Two options were open to them, and if they hesitated, they would risk being hit by the current.
Nima was ahead of them. Kash ran past the only secure place.
“Over here!” Kash hollered.
As soon as they entered the room and closed the door behind them, they heard the sound of metal click.
“It’s a trap,” Avi said. “Now, they have us right where they want us.”
Apart from the desk that leaned against one corner of the wall, the room was empty. The walls had a series of markings that made some parts look like a keyboard.
Nima couldn’t hide her curiosity. “What’s this place?”
“Shooting range,” Boris answered, touching the wall. “It’s soundproof and waterproof. This isn’t fiberglass insulation. But they installed an oxygen suppression system. I wonder what it is protecting.” Boris continued to look around. He motioned with his fingers to no one in particular. “By my calculation, we have less than four hours to get out of here.”
“What?” Kash blurted.
“We have approximately two and a half hours before the oxygen level gets back to zero. That’s how it was designed.”
Boris’s last response kept everyone mute for a while. The noise of the rushing water didn’t let anyone try to open the door.
Avi suddenly sprawled on the floor. She had lost a lot of blood. No one pointed fingers, but Nima felt the sharp, accusing eyes in her direction. She looked at Avi on the floor with guilt and walked gently to her side.
Avi was faced down. She was a little startled when she saw a hand reach out and grasp her arm.
“Sorry,” Nima said. “Let me take a look at that.”
Avi didn’t protest.
After applying pressure on the cut, Nima went ahead and cleaned it up with peroxide. She used an ointment on it and dressed it up.
“This is going to hurt,” Nima warned. She had noticed how she carried her arm with discomfort. Nima pulled the arm in a quick forward motion to fix the dislocated shoulder.
“Is that kai?” Avi asked quietly.
“What?”
“Oil perfume?”
“No. It’s a shampoo I bought from a little girl that wouldn’t let me have a quiet nap.”
Avi let out a soft giggle. “Reminds me of my elementary school days. My little sister and I would pester some ladies at Ben Yehuda to buy perfume bottles from us, and th
ey would say, only if we purchased pieces of jewelry from them. In the end, we ended up trading perfume for jewelry.”
“Wait, I did my kindergarten at Ben Yehuda.”
Avi looked at her with surprise. “That’s where I’ve lived all my life, up until I turned sixteen. Ben Yehuda was like a country to me.”
“Well, I was just five when my aunt took me with her to America.”
“Too bad. If you had stayed longer, you might have had one of my elegant perfumes.”
Nima giggled and placed bandages on the back of Avi’s palm where the crocs had left some scratches.
Everyone took a seat on the floor. Boris tried to get Dean’s attention. They’d been caught up in the moments shared by the enemies-turned-friends in the last couple of minutes. When Dean finally turned and noticed that Boris's eyes had been on him for longer than a minute, he squinted his eyes in an expression that suggested What? Boris tried out some subtle hand gestures, but it left Boris confused. He tried to use a code recognized by NATO but soon realized that it was also a bad idea.
Boris scooted over beside Dean and communicated as quietly as he could to keep others from the conversation. “We still have an hour plus, but that won’t be much soon if we don’t do something now.”
“What do you suggest?” Dean whispered back.
“We’re going to need to take some drastic measures to buy us some time. Until the water stabilizes, we still can’t do much even if the door was opened.”
“What do you suggest?”
Boris took a glance at the others and turned to Dean. “We have to cut down on the numbers. I don’t see the use of some individuals here. I get it. Miles likes the company. But these have become unnecessary third-wheelers, tagging along with the rest of us.”
When Boris saw that Dean hesitated to answer, he pressed him further. “Come on. It’s just how it is. Sometimes, you have collateral damage. Even Miles would agree.”
“No, you’re wrong. The Miles that I know wouldn’t leave anyone behind.”
“Unless it’s necessary,” Boris chipped in quickly.
“Who do you think is unnecessary here?”
Boris subtly turned his face toward Kash and then back to Dean. “Him and the injured girl. I would have added you, but you have a good head on your shoulder.”
“Well, thank you, but you’re wrong...about Avi and Kash. Miles selected his team carefully. If it weren’t for Avi, we would have been meat to the crocodiles.”
“That’s fucking right!” Nima yelled. She was standing and staring down at Boris. She turned to Avi. “This lunatic is trying to convince Dean to undertake a triage.”
“What’s a triage?” Kash asked.
“He thinks we are not going to make it with our numbers unless he takes out some of us to reduce the number of oxygen consumers.”
Kash staggered to his feet. “I’ll like to see him try.” His tone was calm, but his deep voice conveyed his feelings. He turned to Dean. “Let me guess…he picked me for the elimination, didn’t he?”
Dean didn’t respond, but Kash knew from the look on his face.
“Of course. Take out the black dude, and the world will be better, ain’t it? I knew this motherfucker was the Fredo Corleone to this team. He came into the team like some sneaky-ass Saruman, the baldhead version. You know a Judas when you see one. Look at those sulky eyes. I know it’s you, Ephialtes, with a goddamn Bulgarian accent. What kind of tour guide does the job with a gun? You think this was some Indiana adventure, huh? I’m talking to you, blue eyes Satipo.”
Boris touched his jacket. He got up and looked around on the floor.
“Looking for this?” Kash said, pointing Boris’s revolver at him. Everyone got up at this point, afraid that the worst might happen. “You know what? I think you’re right. It’s time to eliminate the bad egg amongst us.”
Boris went down on his knees with his hands on his head.
“That’s right. That’s how to eat a bullet from the black motherfucking karma.”
“Please, don’t do it,” Nima pleaded. “I know he deserves it, but let’s not be like him.”
21
Chapter Twenty-One
Underground facility, Yamantau
June 2019
“Oh no, I’m going to have a panic attack.” Avi paced around the basement with terror in her eyes. She drew her hands down her face in horror. Unable to control herself, she took in very deep breathes and exhaled loudly.
“It’s either you are trying to get us all done quicker, or the oxygen drop depletes your IQ. Poor Avi, how quickly your brain cells degenerate.” Nima shook her head slowly.
Avi breathed in deeply, then she bent over and exhaled. Still maintaining the same position, she inhaled again, stood up straight, and blew out more air. Nima and the others observed her strange actions.
“Avi, I was wondering if you were trying to save us some breaths from the precious life-giving gas, or are you bent on using it all?” Kash said.
“I’m doing my best to overcome my panic attack and work out how we can get out of this hole.” Avi banged her fists against the wall in exasperation.
“What is she doing?” Boris asked with a worried frown on his face. “Does she have any idea how much oxygen her hyperactivity is costing us?”
“Everyone’s gonna die anyway,” Nima answered quietly. “Maybe she thinks she’s helping us by making it quicker.”
“Avi, calm down.” Dean had had enough of her running around. It was really getting to him, but he didn’t want to upset her any more than she already was.
She spun around immediately and moved toward him, her eyes wide and disoriented with fear. She breathed very hard as she fought hard to control her emotions.
“Calm down?” Her voice was etched with agony at the thought of an imminent end.
Dean knew Avi had had it rougher than anyone else so far. With Nima always picking on her and her susceptibility to attacks and injuries, he could tell she was almost at her breaking point. She could be a polyglot and a pro at unraveling the mechanisms behind secret locks but being faced with possible asphyxiation was taking its toll on her. He had to do something to calm her down if they were to get out of the basement alive.
“Look, Avi, we will get out of here alive, but we can’t do that without your help. I need you to sit down and relax. It would help us live longer and come up with an idea much faster.” Dean forced himself to smile, although he was feeling far from happy being stuck in an underground basement.
Avi seemed to relax a bit; she nodded in agreement with Dean and sat down in the corner of the room.
Dean was almost at his wit’s end about what to do. He closed his eyes and leaned against the wall. It was as cold as ice, and the chill ran through his clothes, stinging his bruises. It occurred to him that it was no coincidence that they were in the basement just as Miles had not been separated from them because they did not have enough diving gears.
Miles was never one to leave things to fate or play by the ear. He was a sucker for details, even the most negligible ones. The split was intentional. That was the same with the bet between Miles and Kash to determine who would have the diving gear. Knowing how Miles operated, Dean convinced himself that Miles knew about every bump and surprise they had met on their mission.
It infuriated him that Miles, being his friend and partner, had thought it alright to leave him out of necessary details such as the basement. Dean wondered if Miles was working toward something else. Why didn’t he warn Dean about possible suffocation or being eaten alive by starving crocodiles? Maybe Miles wasn’t who he appeared to be. This mission could be a decoy to drag him to his death.
Nima coughed but tried to clear her throat when she got a worried look from Boris.
“I’m fine,” she said hoarsely. It was clear in her voice that they didn’t have much time left. “You look a little pale yourself, Boris.”
“I have a banging headache,” Kash moaned as he buried his head in his hands.
“I have to lie down now,” he said breathlessly.
Avi was murmuring something incoherent to herself, rocking back and forth.
“I think carbon monoxide levels are also rising,” Nima announced in between spasms of coughing. “We are all going to pass out soon.”
“How soon is that, Nima? Is it going to be painful?” Kash asked.
Nima swallowed a lump in her throat as his words edged the harsh reality they faced. She was stuck between giving him the hard truth and a placebo.
“It might be a little uncomfortable at first but not as painful as dropping from a ten-story roof,” Boris joked.
“I think Nima would be the last to go. Aside from being trained in the harshest environments, she is the medic. She’ll record the time of death in her memory so someday when future archeologists come calling, her bones will tell them everything.” Kash let out a short laugh that quickly turned into a long coughing spell.
Dean fumed silently at Miles for leading him into the death trap. He would get even with him as soon as he got out of this hole alive. A new hope surged through Dean, and with that came another thought. It was possible Miles was aquaphobic and had cleverly avoided going through the water. In that case, it was likely there was a way out, if only they could find it fast before they run out of time.
“Can you guys shut up already?” Avi spat.
“Hey, I thought you were dead,” Nima quipped.
“Not so fast,” Avi replied.
Dean was toying with the possibility of an escape. There has to be a clue or something that could get them out of the basement. He was sorry he had thought the worst of Miles, but he still resented him for not sounding a much-needed warning. Dean looked around the basement. The walls were as plain as could be. There was nothing unusual about the color or texture. How then did the builders make it out of the place? He knocked against the wall; it sounded hollow. He did it on all four walls, and they sounded the same. The roof was too high up for him to reach.
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