Moscow, Burn Unit №9 named after G. N. Speransky
“They were brought this morning. Terrible accident on the M-11 highway. A car caught fire. Five were injured: two women, two men, and a male teenager. I think they’re related. The four adults died within a few hours, but the boy survived until the following day.”
“I’m so sorry,” the chief surgeon said, his voice laced with bitterness and fatigue, as he stepped back from the operating table. Resuscitation had been futile; hemodynamic control monitors showed death. This boy’s lifeless face made everyone hide their wet eyes.
Perhaps that was the reason neither the doctors nor the nurses noticed that the boy’s chest and head, already covered with a sheet, glowed brightly for a moment.
The chief surgeon had already left the operating box when the nurse caught up with him. “Lev Moiseevich, Lev Moiseevich! He’s alive!”
Despite his age and obesity, the surgeon rushed back to the operating room without hesitation.
“Unbelievable!” he whispered, scanning the monitors in surprise.
The nurse interrupted his thoughts. “Lev Moiseevich, how to register the patient? We don’t know anything about him.”
The old surgeon didn’t think long, “Name him Phoenix Alex Lvovich. After he regains consciousness, we will find out his real name.”
A year later, they had yet to identify him. Phoenix was sent to an orphanage after he left the hospital. By and large, nobody needed him: a twelve-year-old boy in a wheelchair who had lost his memory.
Ten years later
New York, John F. Kennedy International Airport
The yellow incandescent sun was at its zenith, bathing the world below in heat. But what could be better than the smell of change? Fresh wind from the Hudson River and the endless noise of the international airport filled the air.
“Alex, are you sure about Moscow and a wheelchair?” a stylish African-American young woman asked the fair-haired, handsome man tightly hugging her in the back of a taxi.
“Yes, Lulu, I have to get home. You can give it to someone from Brownsville.” He pointed behind his back, referring to the wheelchair lying in the car trunk. “I’ll never sit in this two-wheeled monster again.”
The attractive and smiley woman burst out laughing. “How will you, being so ‘fast’, work at the head office of Yandex?” Lulu said.
He grinned and shrugged. “You know, my mind is all that matters. Let me be a turtle, but, hopefully still the fastest of the turtles. And, most importantly, the most creative.”
Alex gazed at Lulu, as if trying to remember his friend better. “Take care of yourself, my guardian angel. They say in Russia the longer the leave-talking, the more tears. So, goodbye. I’ll find my own way.”
The kind beauty sighed. She knew it was useless to argue with this stubborn man and his piercing blue eyes. She hugged him once more, tears pooling in her eyes. “Remember, Phoenix, you’re always welcome in New York.”
The man nodded. “Come visit me in Moscow. Better in the winter, at Christmas. I’ll buy you vodka, show you a snow forest, and a Russian bath.” Aleх opened the taxi door. “Don’t watch me walk. Please, just go.”
As the taxi drove away, he stood with a small rucksack behind his back and two crutches, measuring the number of steps to the reception desk and internally preparing for pain. He smiled broadly. His injured legs were already starting to hurt. “And there you are, Ms. Pain. Let’s go.”
He hobbled through the airport, his poker face locked in place, his legs twitching as if he were walking on stilts. Ms. Pain followed her best disciple like an obedient dog.
Alex barely reached the Boeing. However, this path proved easier for him than he’d expected – the goddess of beauty and grace, traveling the same flight, caught his eye.
He’d never seen such a charming woman. Phoenix even forgot about the pain. She was tall and graceful, a black tight braid draped over her ample bosom. Large, almond-shaped, bewitchingly green, and sparkling eyes followed Alex as she walked past him. For a few moments, he’d forgotten who and where he was.
Alex finally reached the plane’s cabin, reflecting, Who’s this fairy? Is she a model? A tennis player?
“Thank you,” he said, hobbling past her seat.
The girl raised her temptress’s eyes to him and smiled, much like Lulu did.
“For what?”
“For being here!” Phoenix found his seat in the next row, leaning back as soon as he had situated himself. The stewardess then handed him his crutches. Alex sincerely thanked the woman and rejoiced, Great!
From his vantage point, he could admire the beautiful woman. A young man, occupying the seat next to him, was staring at his laptop. He more than likely wouldn’t sympathize with Alex.
Two hours later, Alex’s rare state of comfort and tranquility ended. It was all over.
He felt as if someone had hit his head with a bat. There was a flash in his eyes, darkness, and a sensation of falling. However, this pain seemed strange somehow.
Go away! You’re not mine. Go to the dentistry! Alex willed the pain away, and it left him. When he woke up, his condition was close to systemic shock. What was happening?
He could neither move nor scream. Even his pupils were frozen.
Something flickered before his eyes. Panic setting in, he thought, Damn it, those bastards probably gave me a sedative shot and tied me up... What should I do now, huh?
Alex stared at the text before his eyes. It seemed absurd. The letters were ridiculous and unreadable. Suddenly they decreased, became thinner, and now reality was clearly visible behind this warning inscription. At least, Alex hoped it was a reality.
The letters began to change quickly. Alex barely understood the first two lines.
Summary analysis of biostructures completed
Harmonization completed
Alex became enthralled by the indescribable feeling brought on by the surging cool wave. It penetrated him several times, healing all his flaws and injuries. It was an inexplicable phenomenon. Alex no longer felt the aches in his knees or the fatigue the came with it.
Wow! Give two more of these cool tsunamis!
Another inscription appeared before his eyes:
Attention, Alex Phoenix!
A merge is initiated.
Mentor of Way, Jokeiro, from the Almirau civilization, will start work in 0.30, 0.29, 0.28, 0.27...
Calm down. Reduce your heart rate. Talk to the mentor after the initiation is complete.
Heck! What merge?! What the hell is going on? Let’s discuss Napoleon and his marshals… Lannes, Massena, Murat, where are you?!
At first, silence reigned. Then a voice sounded in his head, like a bolt from the blue.
Alex, stop clowning around. You are required to calm down and behave wisely.
I can’t calm down! My heart’s up in my throat. Complete paralysis, madness, hallucinations! Now my paranoia is sending messages and talking to me. That’s very comforting, yep!
Suddenly someone seemed to flip the magic switch – his heartbeat normalized, as if he’d been in meditation for an hour, and all the horror disappeared.
Alex couldn’t move, but he could still see. A porthole five rows ahead of him through which he could see clouds drifting, and a business-class door. The other travelers were sitting peacefully, talking or reading. No panic at all. An ordinary flight. Comfort class seemed to be full as well. They’d have noticed if something had gone wrong.
This means my calmness and the voice in my head is connected with this damned Mentor mentioned in the inscription, Alex thought.
The correct conclusion. Your temporary paralysis is also because of me, Mentor of Way, Jokeiro 028AV, the familiar voice sounded in his head.
Alex felt relieved at the word ‘temporary’.
Who are you? What’s happening? What do you want? Phoenix asked, excitement and interest growing within him.
I am a highly developed symbiont-assistant, created to work with intelligent beings of the highest category of intelligence. My functionality is wide and limited only by the chosen person’s level. Your level.
What bullshit! I am the chosen one? Master of Crutches or what?
The Mentor continued, speaking calmly. Phoenix, listen to me carefully. I will now relate to you important information for your civilization, and for you personally. I was activated far from here. One might even say, in another part of the universe, by several representatives of the Desperate sect. They are a radical fighting community who call themselves the Guardians. This union of sixty-three planets has been unsuccessfully fighting the ruthless Admin expansion for several millennia. In one minute and six seconds, the first wave of automatic absorption systems will reach your planet. Then the second stage will begin, and monsters will come. Within the next few years, the hunters will arrive and the sweepstake will start work.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
They don’t need your land, your wealth, your production capabilities, or labor. They need you to produce the liquid known as Intellectum. One drop of Intellectum can make any living creature smart, strong and magically gifted. Admins are interested in Global Gaming and Betting. Though the surviving earthlings are supposed to breed on special farms in order to produce Intellectum, they are determined to fight back.
My goal is to find a world with the highest ability to resist the Admins’ expansion. I’ve spent many centuries searching. Eleven years ago, I discovered that your planet, Earth, has a high Intellectum index — the highest + +. It means there’s one advanced, intelligent species and up to ten quasi-intelligent.
Alex remained silent. He could barely comprehend this invisible messenger and his warning of approaching catastrophe, Where can I hide from this approaching darkness? Where is there to run? Nowhere...
He could only listen, horrified.
Now to the point, Mentor Jokeiro continued. I advise you to behave as discreetly as possible at the initial stage. Don’t jerk in power fetters – otherwise, Admins can destroy you. After registering you as a player, pay close attention to the development of everything related to camouflage and running. Speed and stealth should be the concept of your initial level up. Trust no one and nothing. Hunters usually use bait. Any fast-moving objects are enemies. Keep away from the players. The Admin Eye will find groups faster than single players. Help Sofia, explain everything to her. She is also a future player.
Alex glanced at the stunning beauty, sitting in seat C-15.
Time to go! Be persistent! I’m encapsulating!
“Wait, Jokeiro!” Alex screamed, standing up.
All the passengers turn to stare at him.
Then a terrible thing happened –the old world disappeared and a horrific new one was born. The entire Boeing 777-300ER crew and the passengers appeared outside the plane in the same poses as they were the moment before. They were still flying through the clouds without feeling either cold or any other discomfort. The ocean glistened below, while the airliner was fifty yards to his right and bending slightly onto the left-wing. Most passengers were screaming and waving their hands, thrashing their legs. Several lucky ones lost consciousness.
Alex, from his uncomfortable position, somehow reached for the girl’s shoulder and shook her violently. When she turned around, her beautiful face was red with tension, and her eyes became round like a lemur’s.
“Listen to me, Sofia. If you want to survive, don’t move!” Alex shouted, hoping she could hear him over the other passengers’ screams. “An aggressive attack has been launched against our civilization. Most of humanity will be destroyed. You and I are chosen players, and we have a small chance to survive. Do you hear me?!” He shook the girl again.
She nodded. “Who are you?”
Alex couldn’t hear her, but thankfully had the ability to read her lips.
“I’m Phoenix! Don’t trust anyone or anything! The best way to survive is to hide well and run fast. I know that sounds crazy, but remember them, Sofia.”
He didn’t have time to say anything else. The new reality galloped by as if it had reached the finish line. The huge Boeing was crumpled into a small, even cube with a deafening noise as if it was made of aluminum foil, and then disappeared. A transparent cocoon enveloped every person flying at an altitude of twenty thousand feet. Alex would remember forever the horror of dying screams and the sound of breaking bones.
All cocoons, except for Alex’s and Sofia’s, simultaneously shrank to the size of a walnut. There was nothing left of the other passengers except thin streams of black haze.
A terrible, unbearable overload. Darkness…
Alex woke, but didn’t open his eyes, searching his feelings after everything he’d just seen.
He listened to the world around him. It was unusually quiet, warm and uncomfortable.
Unbelievable, Phoenix thought with genuine surprise. Beads of sweat formed on the young man’s forehead.
The guy was lying on something cool and hard. His shoulders and neck were numb, but his legs, strangely, didn’t hurt at all.
Alex’s anxiety grew. He first felt the itch to stretch his legs, flex his muscles. Then he wanted to jump in and run.
No, calm down! Alex restrained himself, mindful of the mentor’s instructions. He slowly reached out and pinched his knee.
Hm, I feel my legs! Hey, Mentor Jokeiro, answer me! Are you there?
No response. Alex kept asking, but in return, zilch.
Yeah, thanks! All clear… But where to go? What to do now?
Alex involuntarily bent his knees. He made previously impossible movement easily, naturally, and without the pain with which he had become so familiar.
Oh my God!
Alex finally opened his eyes. All he could determine was that it was nighttime, as he was surrounded darkness. Silence reigned, absent any breeze or the voices of birds and insects — nothing at all.
This is the room. Alex crawled forward and almost crashed into a wall. He reached out and brushed its surface with his fingertips.
Plastic, with a border... Well, okay.
He moved to the right, but hit another wall. Then he moved to the left — the same wall. Alex cautiously touched the surface he was lying on and immediately realized: it was a leather-covered bench. He stretched his hand upwards, felt the cold glass edged with rubber, and finally understood.
It’s a commuter train, Alex concluded. Interurban, most likely. He discovered many rucksacks and a long cloth bag with a shovel and two hoes on the nearest benches.
After his eyes became used to the darkness, and he stopped twitching internally, Alex came to another conclusion: this train was most likely in a large city. It seemed the train was full of people traveling to summer cottages and the countryside. Alex knew the residents of large Russian cities loved to relax at the cottages on the weekend. Most likely this happened in the morning. He even imagined those people sitting or standing in the aisles, talking, laughing, and arguing over politics.
But there were no living souls here.
Alex felt scared and lonely. He could hear his heart pounding in his chest. He took out his mobile phone and turned it on. No service, as he expected. He turned it off and, setting it aside, quietly whispered, “Goodbye forever.”
He realized he was saying farewell, not to the phone, but the whole world.
Now, it was time to act.
Alex crawled to the end of the carriage, believing that it would be a little safer there.
What a duality, he thought. Depression and excitement fought for control, and excitement won out, bolstered by his new physical form. There was no more pain or disability. It was inspiring!
Impressed by new sensations and thoughts, he managed to crawl about five yards when he heard an alarming chirr on the right. Alex recoiled, bumping hard against a bench. He froze, listening attentively. He could clearly distinguish the pitter-patter of claws on metal. For a moment, Alex thought he spied a small animal, rushing around in a cage.
Is it a ferret? He approached to take a closer look.
His assumption turned out to be true. A little container for transporting small animals sat only a few feet away. The white ferret within looked scared and stressed, running around its cage and squealing plaintively.
“Don’t be afraid. I’ll help you. No more cages, dude.”
Alex found the latch and opened the door. The animal instantly jumped out and disappeared into the darkness.
He whispered with regret, “Bye, dude. You’re free.”
He was about to crawl on when an inscription appeared before his eyes:
Attention!
Homo-54 player, Phoenix (interim name), Level 1
Perception + 1
Distribute stat points
Register a permanent name
#*#(Error01|Homo-54): you need to activate the gifts, location, voice, mental control!
Alex scratched his head. It’s getting weird but interesting. So, earthlings are homo-54. Then, logically, there is homo-1, homo-2, and even homo-28.
The first few lines were clear. However, below, what was written in red and warning blinking resembled an unauthorized hint system, a bug. Did this mean the System error was in Alex’s favor?
I’d better crawl on further, settle down there and try to figure out all this nonsense.
Alex noticed a large pile of things on the right, and then decided to examine it for useful stuff.
“Lucky I am,” he whispered, finding four spacious tourist backpacks. They had comfortable wide straps, reinforced frames, and rolled up mats fastened to the top. He also discovered an immense bag, made of thick canvas, on the floor.
Alex dragged his findings into a corner away from the window. He laid all four rugs on the floor, fashioned himself a berth, then opened the first rucksack. The most necessary things he found right away – a thermos, some food, and a strong rope. The best discovery came in the form of a multifunctional folding knife, Swiss Victorinox.
Alex also took precautions, tightly tying the door handles with a rope. He understood that closed doors couldn’t stop formidable opponents, but the action still made him feel somehow safer.
He then built a barricade from the backpacks, reinforcing the shaky construction with the huge bag, curious, he unzipped it and saw a regular hunting bandolier.
“Weapon!” Phoenix whispered in astonishment.
His surprise gave way to great enthusiasm. There were four gun cases, four bandoliers, four hunting knives, a machete, a small ax, and several boxes of ammo. He didn’t even try to load the weapon because he had no idea how to shoot. He’d never held a real gun or visited a shooting range. For this reason, he took the ax and machete and slowly rose to his feet. Again, there was no pain.
He had to bite his lower lip hard so as not to scream with excitement. He crouched two dozen times, at first carefully, then faster and faster. Shortness of breath and a rapid heartbeat stopped his exercise. Alex exhaled, trying to calm down. Smiling with bloody lips, he feverishly examined his legs. They were skinny, stiff and resembled stilts.
Alex didn’t feel pain, only a slight tremor from fatigue. They say the truth – some die at war, and some profit from it. He had a pang of conscience and regret.
What a bastard I am. So many people have perished, but I rejoice. Awareness of the disaster overwhelmed him. Phoenix had rarely cried in his life. He grew up in an orphanage and used to contain his emotions, but now he found himself bawling like a child. Oddly enough, his new, almost invisible friend showed sympathy by jumping onto his shoulder and squealing.
“It’s nothing, don’t worry, buddy.” Alex touched the furry animal, surprised at the small size of the creature sitting on his shoulder. To drive away sad thoughts, he set to work. Alex decided to first have a bite to eat, calm down, and only then get down to business, to deal with all this.
He found strong coffee in a thermos and boiled pork in one of the containers. The hyperfast ermine, apparently having sniffed the food, had resumed running around.
“Come on, Flash,” Alex said, having decided to call his furry companion by that name. “True friends share everything equally.”
He cut off a large chunk of pork and laid it in a single seat next to him. “Eat, buddy, you and I need to be strong.”
Flash needed no encouragement – it began to eat with great pleasure, occasionally squealing it’s approval.
The new reality continued to amaze Alex as another message appeared before his eyes:
Attention!
Homo-54 player, Phoenix (interim name),
you have access to a combat pet, ermine Flash
(Full compatibility was revealed)
Do you confirm combat symbiosis?
(a mental or voice response is required - 0.29; 0.28; 0.27...)
“Yes, I agree,” Alex answered, suggesting that the timer was counting down the cancellation of the offer.
“I wonder what kind of full compatibility it is, and who revealed it? Hey Jokeiro, stop encapsulating! Get out of your sink, you are really needed here. The chosen one needs you.”
Alex’s call again went unanswered. However, another message popped up, causing him to whistle under his breath, bite his fist, and lean against the wall. He drank from the thermos, ignoring the coffee searing his throat while reading the incoming message:
Battle Pet, Ermine Flash, Level 1
Stat Points:
Dexterity — 9 (congenital)
Swiftness — 10 (congenital)
Night Vision — 7 (congenital)
Jumping — 10 (congenital)
Initially revealed abilities:
Berserker — 0
Lord of Scratches — 0
Micro Portal Virtuoso — 0
Unshakable Tenacity — 0
Senior Master of sabotage — 0
5 free stat points
“Wow, dude! Have you escaped from the Marvel studio?”
The ermine jumped onto his shoulder and chittered at him for some reason, Phoenix, to his amazement, understood bestial language, which translated to, “I don’t know Marvel, I don’t know. The big ones suddenly disappeared, I was scared, hungry, bored. A big brother came, saved, and fed me. Have a drink?”
Alex had a small bottle of water with him, which he poured into the palm of his hand and offered the pet.
“Okay,” Alex thought out loud, “It’s time I start my own struggle. First, of course, I need to look at my stats, then configure them for Flash and me.”
However, he had to postpone his plans for a while. Alex felt a painful sensation of approaching danger. Then came a terrifying, deafening sound coming from above them.
Powerful vibrations shook the carriage, comparable to an earthquake. Something brightly lit the car, and Alex, throwing caution to the wind, rushed to the window. The sight before him was both terrifying and impressive.
A huge fireball was approaching to the Earth. Shaped like a chisel wearing a giant hat and weighing several million tons, it had to be at least a mile long. This giant fireball looked like it would crash about fifty miles from their refuge.
“The second stage!” Alex shouted in horror, briefly envisioning thousands of chisels approaching the ground and piercing it, causing enormous destruction.
“Lie down, Flash!” Alex fell to the floor. Simultaneously, like a mockery, the following inscription popped up before his eyes:
Attention! Homo-54 player, Phoenix (interim name), Level 1
Perception + 3