Mysticism in the army of the USSR. Five of the creepiest incidents in military history
My name is Grigory Vakulenko, I serve in the Ukrainian army. When I joined the army, I immediately realized that this was my calling, I realized that being a military man was my profession. But when I started, I could not even imagine that I would see this... After training in the army, I was almost immediately sent to the Chernobyl exclusion zone. There I was seated on a cozy sofa and forced to sit, drink beer and sometimes walk around the perimeter to check if anyone was trying to break through the fence. You may think that this is a trivial matter, for which you also receive money, I thought so too, but only for the first month of my “work”.
2 weeks later I watched movies in the evening and drank beer; today was not my duty, so while my comrades were running around the perimeter, I could relax. But suddenly, somewhere in the zone, a roar was heard, the earth shook, and 30 seconds later the sky was illuminated with a terrible blinding light. Everyone outside the building died instantly.
The next morning, the senior ranks did not answer my questions, and the others, like me, did not understand what was happening. After a couple of days, they assured us that this would not happen again and made us forget about what happened.
But after another 2 weeks, a helicopter flew into the zone, but neither the helicopter nor the crew returned on time as promised. It was decided to send a group on a search, but one person was missing, and for some reason they decided to take me in his place, despite the fact that I was not yet entirely experienced in this matter.
We took off, and after half an hour we successfully reached our destination, but as soon as we wanted to land, something strange began to happen... At first, the helicopter simply hovered in the air, the pilots tried to fly further, but some, enormous strength did not allow the helicopter to move from its place. Then the helicopter spun at great speed, and we were thrown 50 meters forward. I and several other people fell out of the helicopter even before the “touch,” and the rest scattered to the sides along with the wreckage of the helicopter. 9 more people fell with me, the terrain was flat, there were few stones, so I and 6 of my colleagues survived, but three were unlucky and fell on the stones.
We wanted to hobble to the base, but the major forbade it, saying that we would get to the base in any case, but the commander would get angry if we didn’t bring the necessary things (as the captain said, these are some kind of documents). We argued for a long time, but our argument was interrupted by a roar, followed by a trembling of the earth. Soon the sky was illuminated with that unbearable light. We ran to the factory, under which there was supposedly an underground laboratory, which was confirmed by a sealed door. The major quickly entered the code, we entered and closed the door behind us. The major decided that we should split up. The first group, consisting of me, a major and a lieutenant, went to the left wing, and the second, consisting of 3 lieutenants, went to the right, and one remained at the entrance.
We walked along long corridor, looking into each room along the way, and eventually came to a large door. Having opened it, we entered the room and fell into shock. There were corpses of soldiers from the previous group lying everywhere here. Almost all of them were in perfect condition, only a few were deformed, but they were all drained of blood. We were looking around the room when suddenly we heard something like snoring, we went to the source of the sound and saw the silhouette of a man. He did not respond to the call or greeting, after which we came closer and he turned to face us. We didn’t quite understand then: whether it was a person or not, he was completely covered with hair, a round skull, with an elongated chin, red eyes, claws on his legs and arms, and bloody tentacles hanging from under his mouth.
It moved away, hid in a corner and began to examine, we tried to understand who was standing in front of us, but if we were in shock, then this creature did not need to think for long, it rushed at us in an instant, grabbed the major by the throat and ran into the next one. room. We ran after it, but it was too late, it had already dealt with the major. The lieutenant raised the barrel and fired a burst at the creature. It recoiled and disappeared, it simply took over and dissolved. Somewhere in the distance a roar was heard, then machine gun fire and screams.
Suddenly the lieutenant's head came off his body and flew to the side. The creature materialized out of thin air behind me. It looked and growled at me. After a second it began to become transparent, and soon became completely invisible. The only thing that reminded him of him were his red, burning eyes and strange sounds reminiscent of heavy breathing. I felt it approaching me, but I quickly ran around this creature and rushed along the corridor. I heard these sounds, I understood that it was catching up and tried to run with all my might.
But suddenly a lieutenant from another group ran out from the other wing and we collided. He was raving, talking about some flying balls, but I took his hand and ran on. The creature was already catching up, I saw the door and ran towards it, but the lieutenant twitched and escaped from my hand. The creature immediately attacked him and began tearing him into pieces, while I ran into the room, locked the door and barricaded him with a closet. I heard the lieutenant’s screams, heard the creature suck the blood from his body, heard how joyfully it smacked its lips.
Soon there was a knock on the door, I heard a voice: “Hey, is there anyone? What’s going on here? Why the hell is the fly lying on the floor?..” He didn’t finish, a moment later the creature attacked him, it didn’t even kill him. She simply threw her to the ground and began to suck out the blood.
I’ve been sitting here for 5 hours, the creature has eaten and rested. But, it seems, she still remembers about me, and besides, apparently, she was hungry. I hear how she walks and taps the walls, I hear how she is looking for a way to enter the room, how she is looking for empty or weak walls. But the laboratory is only about 5 years old, the walls are still strong. But still, one thing worries me, namely, that instead of ventilation grille there is a huge hole in my room, and now I sit and pray to God that it doesn’t think of getting into the ventilation...
Oddly enough, before the army I never believed in scary stories, or indeed in anything paranormal. But it was after an incident at my post that my worldview expanded significantly.
After my studies, I ended up in my native part, although I didn’t realize it at the time. I won’t describe my entire service with all the bullshit and vice versa, let’s just say they lied about a lot of things, they simply didn’t know about others. Although it was possible to serve. I had grandfathers - God forbid everyone. The set of guys is also adequate, one professor was worth it, a graduate student was unfinished. But more on that another time.
In general, it took a long time or a short time before my first guard duty. They put everyone in good places, but they shoved me to hell in the middle of nowhere. Guard a warehouse with felt boots and foot wraps at the very edge of the base. Not a soul around. The rest of the buildings are about fifty meters away. On the other side is a fence with a gate. There's even a checkpoint here. Only all the doors have already been welded shut; they haven’t left here for fifteen years.
And behind the fence there is a narrow country road. I don’t know where it leads. There was no interest in walking along it. I will only say that when I later asked my comrades, no one had ever seen anyone driving along it. Well, that means they put me in this half-forgotten place, it’s unclear from whom to protect me. It seems that, God forbid, felt boots are stolen at night, all combat capability Russian army will fall.
They set it up and set it up. You don't have to choose. It was just terribly cold. After about two hours, my hands began to freeze, and I had to clench them into fists in my mittens. Well, at least there was no wind. The weather is clear, although frosty.
I look like someone is coming from that abandoned road. There was no snow yet, although it was cold, so the road was still visible. There are small gaps in the gate, and you can look through them. Really. With every minute, it becomes more and more clear that some figure is moving. He walks, seemingly limping on one leg, and in no hurry.
Later I began to distinguish that it was like a grandmother. She’s dressed poorly, it’s not clear what she’s wearing at all. It’s not even a jacket, but it looks like she’s wearing some kind of sweatshirt. He sniffs and looks at his feet. She approached the gate, and from the side where she was least seen and spoken.
- Misha, hello.
Out of surprise, I forgot the entire charter. My name is really Misha.
- Who are you?
- I'm your mother's friend. She’s really bad, I’m afraid she’ll die today. Everything is calling you.
“I only spoke to her the day before yesterday on the phone!”
- This is how it happens in life. You run to the elder. Tell me what and how.
I don’t know why I had some doubt. Apparently, he was embarrassed that an old woman had come from a dead road.
- What is your name?
This question greatly confused the old woman. She muttered something barely audible. Slowly at first, and then faster and louder. This gibberish started to give me such a terrible headache and a feeling inside... I wanted to howl. I took off the mitten, set it to single shot, pulled the bolt and fired into the air. Everything stopped.
I look. But there is no grandmother. Just now she was standing here, but she’s no longer there. I can’t think of anything because of my excitement. Suddenly, to my right, this whisper is heard again, and so threatening. I turned around, and there was this old woman standing there, pointing her finger at me and muttering. He poked the gun at her and fired. I expected him to fall and moan. Of course. It was as if no one was there.
Our duty officer had already come running. What and how. Who shot? It's all devilry, of course, but I told him how it happened. He ran away, and ten minutes later he returned with Remza, a grandfather from my company. He replaced me. I didn’t watch to the end the first time.
We went to hand over our weapons, and he gave me two cartridges and said that nothing happened. I'm not a fool, I understood everything. I don't need any fuss myself. He came and fell asleep like a dead man.
The next day, Remza, who replaced me, calls me over. And he says, tell me what happened and how it happened. I resisted, it seemed like there was nothing. Then he was taken aback: “Did the old woman come?” It turns out that there is a terrible legend in the unit. There was a house on the site of one of the warehouses. A crazy grandmother lived there alone. Accordingly, she was evicted and given an apartment in the city, but she still did not let up. She came and asked everyone to go into the house. Even when part of it was already built.
It was rumored that she was a witch. And many years later there were cases of this grandmother appearing. Not often, and usually among young people. The authorities tried to hush them up, because it still needed to be described. And so they will be ridiculed, at best.
By the way, I called my mother that same day. The grandmother lied, thank God, everything was fine with her. And I’m with Remza after that scary story became friends. And in general, serving somehow became easier.
War is generally a terrible concept.
Military history knows not only many cases of cruelty, deceit and betrayal, but also absolute savagery and inhumanity that simply cannot be comprehended.
Some cases are striking in their scale, others in their belief in absolute impunity, one thing is obvious: for some reason, some people who find themselves in harsh military conditions for some reason decide that the law is not written to them, and they have the right to control the destinies of others, making people suffer .
Below are some of the most horrifying realities that occurred during wartime.
1. Nazi baby factories
The photo below shows the baptism ceremony small child, which was “bred” through Aryan selection.
During the ceremony, one of the SS men holds a dagger over the baby, and the new mother takes an oath of allegiance to the Nazis.
It is important to note that this baby was one of tens of thousands of babies who participated in the Lebensborn project. However, not all children were given life in this children's factory; some were kidnapped and only raised there.
Factory of true Aryans
The Nazis believed that there were few Aryans with blond hair and blue eyes in the world, which is why it was decided, by the way, by the same people who were responsible for the Holocaust, to launch the Lebensborn project, which was engaged in breeding purebred Aryans who in the future would join the Nazi ranks.
It was planned to house the children in beautiful houses, which were appropriated after the mass extermination of Jews.
And it all started with the fact that after the occupation of Europe, mixing with the indigenous inhabitants was actively encouraged among the SS men. The main thing is that the number of the Nordic race grows.
Pregnant unmarried girls, as part of the "Lebensborn" program, were placed in houses with all the amenities where they gave birth and raised their children. Thanks to such care, during the war years it was possible to raise from 16,000 to 20,000 Nazis.
But, as it later turned out, this amount was not enough, so other measures were taken. The Nazis began to forcibly take away from their mothers children who had the desired hair and eye color.
It is worth adding that many of the appropriated children were orphans. Certainly, light color skin and the absence of parents are not an excuse for the activities of the Nazis, but, nevertheless, at that difficult time, the children had something to eat and a roof over their heads.
Some parents gave up their children so as not to end up in the gas chamber. Those who best suited the given parameters were selected literally immediately, without unnecessary persuasion.
At the same time, no genetic examinations were carried out; children were selected based only on visual information. Those selected were included in the program, or they were sent to some German family. Those who did not fit ended their lives in concentration camps.
Poles say that because of this program, the country has lost about 200,000 children. But it is unlikely that we will ever find out exact figure, because many children have successfully settled into German families.
Cruelty during war
2.Hungarian Angels of Death
Do not think that only the Nazis committed atrocities during the war. Ordinary Hungarian women shared the pedestal of perverted military nightmares with them.
It turns out that you don’t have to serve in the army to commit crimes. These lovely guardians of the home front, having combined their efforts, sent almost three hundred people to the next world.
It all started during the First World War. It was then that many women living in the village of Nagiryov, whose husbands had gone to the front, began to become increasingly interested in the prisoners of war of the allied armies located nearby.
Women liked this kind of affair, and prisoners of war, apparently, too. But when their husbands began to return from the war, something abnormal began to happen. One by one the soldiers died. Because of this, the village received the name "murder district".
The killings began in 1911, when a midwife named Fuzekas appeared in the village. She taught women who were temporarily left without husbands to get rid of the consequences of contacts with lovers.
After the soldiers began returning from the war, the midwife suggested that the wives boil sticky paper intended to kill flies to obtain arsenic, and then add it to food.
Arsenic
In this way, they were able to commit a huge number of murders, and the women remained unpunished due to the fact that the village official was the midwife’s brother, and in all the death certificates of the victims he wrote “not killed.”
The method gained so much popularity that almost any, even the most insignificant problem, began to be solved with the help of soup with arsenic. When the neighboring settlements finally realized what was happening, fifty criminals managed to kill three hundred people, including unwanted husbands, lovers, parents, children, relatives and neighbors.
Hunting for people
3. Parts human body like a trophy
It is important to say that during the war, many countries conducted propaganda among their soldiers, within the framework of which it was implanted in their brains that the enemy was not a person.
They distinguished themselves in this regard and American soldiers, whose psyche was very actively influenced. So-called “hunting licenses” were distributed among them.
One of them sounded like this: The hunting season for the Japanese is open! There are no restrictions! Hunters get rewarded! Free ammo and equipment! Join the ranks of the American Marine Corps!
Therefore, it is not surprising that American soldiers during the Battle of Guadalcanal, killing the Japanese, cut off their ears and kept them as souvenirs.
Moreover, necklaces were made from the teeth of those killed, their skulls were sent home as souvenirs, and their ears were often worn around the neck or on a belt.
In 1942, the problem became so widespread that the command was forced to issue a decree that prohibited the appropriation of enemy body parts as trophies. But the measures were late, because the soldiers had already fully mastered the technology of cleaning and cutting up skulls.
The soldiers loved to take pictures with them.
This "fun" is firmly rooted. Even Roosevelt was forced to abandon the writing knife, which was made from a Japanese leg bone. It seemed as if the whole country was going crazy.
The light at the end of the tunnel appeared after a furious reaction from Life newspaper readers, who were angered and disgusted by the published photographs (and there were countless of them). The Japanese reaction was the same.
The most cruel woman
4. Irma Grese – human (?) – hyena
What can happen that can terrify even a person who has seen a lot?
Irma Grese was a Nazi overseer who tested sexual arousal while people were being tortured.
In terms of external indicators, Irma was the ideal of an Aryan teenager, because she perfectly met the established standards of beauty, was physically strong and ideologically prepared.
Inside, it was a man - a time bomb.
This is Irma without her paraphernalia. However, she almost always walked around with a whip strewn with precious stones, with a pistol and several hungry dogs who were ready to carry out her every order.
This woman could shoot at any person at her whim, whipped her captives and kicked them. This made her very excited.
Irma loved her job very much. She received incredible physical pleasure from cutting the chests of female prisoners until they bled. The wounds became inflamed and, as a rule, surgery was required, which was performed without anesthesia.
She was always present in the operating room because she experienced the greatest pleasure during operations.
She was only 22 years old when she was convicted and hanged.
Cannibalism in war
5. Incident on a Japanese island
During one of the battles of World War II, nine American pilots were shot down over the Japanese island of Chichi-jima. One was picked up by the submarine "Finback", the rest were captured.
It is known that all prisoners were executed with a samurai sword. By wartime standards, this is nothing unusual. But what happened later does not fit into any framework.
It is said that after the execution, the soldiers and officers of the Japanese army decided to throw a party. But in the midst of the evening the snack ran out. Then one of the officers gave the order to get some “kimo” from a fresh grave.
"Kimo" meant "liver". The order was carried out, and the fried liver took its place on festive table among other dishes.
This was just the beginning. In order not to lose face in front of the army, Japanese naval officers began to execute their American prisoners and serve them to the table! And that is not all.
Some prisoners of war were executed after eating them. Their limbs were cut off alive and eaten immediately, because there were no refrigerators on the island in which to store meat.
There is something worth saying about one rescued pilot who was picked up by a submarine. It was George Bush Sr.
We all know how difficult it is in the Russian army because of the hazing that exists there. Some were simply beaten half to death, and some were even driven to suicide. Grandfathers mock recruits and the saddest thing is that all this happens with the permission of the officers. Also, the situation with hazing is getting worse from year to year due to national hatred within the army. Read on for the terrible stories of soldiers who became victims of hazing. Not for the faint of heart.
Anton Porechkin. Athlete, national team member Trans-Baikal Territory in weightlifting. He served on Iturup Island (Kuril Islands), military unit 71436. On October 30, 2012, during the 4th month of service, he was beaten to death by drunken grandfathers. 8 blows with a mining shovel, little was left of the head.
Ruslan Aiderkhanov. From Tatarstan. Drafted into the army in 2011, he served in military unit 55062 in the Sverdlovsk region. Three months later he was returned to his parents like this:
Traces of beatings, a knocked out eye, broken limbs. According to the military, Ruslan caused all this to himself when he tried to hang himself on a tree not far from the unit.
Dmitry Bochkarev. From Saratov. On August 13, 2012, he died in the army after days of sadistic abuse by his colleague Ali Rasulov. The latter beat him, forced him to sit for a long time on half-bent legs with his arms extended forward, striking him if his position changed. Also, by the way, Sergeant Sivyakov mocked private Andrei Sychev in Chelyabinsk in 2006. Sychev then had both legs and genitals amputated, but he remained alive. But Dmitry was brought home in a coffin.
Before the army, Ali Rasulov studied at a medical school, so he decided to practice on Dmitry as a doctor: he cut out the cartilage tissue from his nose with nail scissors, damaged during the beatings, and sewed up tears in his left ear with a household needle and thread. “I don’t know what came over me. I can say that Dmitry annoyed me because he did not want to obey me,” Rasulov said at the trial.
Dmitry irritated him because he did not want to obey...
Taking into account the fact that Rasulov carried out sadistic experiments on the victim for 1.5 months and tortured her to death, the sentence of the Russian court to the sadist should be considered ridiculous: 10 years in prison and 150 thousand rubles to the parents of the murdered man. Compensation type.
Alexander Cherepanov. From the village of Vaskino, Tuzhinsky district, Kirov region. Served in military unit 86277 in Mari El. In 2011, he was brutally beaten for refusing to deposit 1000 rubles. to the phone of one of the grandfathers. After which he hanged himself in the back room (according to another version, he was hanged dead in order to imitate suicide). In 2013, in this case he would have been sentenced to 7 years ml. Sergeant Peter Zavyalov. But not for murder, but under the articles “Extortion” and “Excess of Official Power”.
Nikolai Cherepanov, father of a soldier: “We sent this son to the army, but this is the kind of son he was returned to us...”
Nina Konovalova, grandmother: “I began to put a cross on him, I saw that he was covered in wounds, bruises, bruises, and his head was all broken...” Ali Rasulov, cutting out cartilage from Dima Bochkarev’s nose, did not know “what came over me.” And what happened to Peter Zavyalov, who for 1000 rubles. killed another Russian guy in the army - Sasha Cherepanov?
Roman Kazakov. From Kaluga region. In 2009 recruit of the 138th motorized rifle brigade (Leningrad region) Roma Kazakov was brutally beaten by contract soldiers. But apparently they overdid it. The beaten man lost consciousness. Then they decided to stage an accident. The soldier, they say, was asked to repair the car, but he died in the garage from exhaust fumes. They put Roman in the car, locked him in the garage, turned on the ignition, covered the car with an awning to guarantee... The result was a gas van.
But Roman did not die. He was poisoned, fell into a coma, but survived. And after some time he spoke. The mother did not leave her son, who became disabled, for 7 months...
Larisa Kazakova, mother of a soldier: “At the prosecutor’s office I met with Sergei Ryabov (this is one of the contract soldiers - author’s note), and he said that they forced me to beat recruits. Battalion commander Bronnikov beat off my hands with a ruler, I have a criminal record, the conviction was not expunged until 2011, I could not act differently and had to follow the battalion commander's order".
The case was closed, information about hematomas disappeared from the soldier’s medical documents, and the car (evidence) unexpectedly burned down a month later. The contract soldiers were fired, the battalion commander remained to serve further.
Roman Suslov. From Omsk. Drafted into the army on May 19, 2010. The photo below was taken at the station before boarding the train. He had a one and a half year old son. I didn’t make it to my duty station (Bikin, Khabarovsk Territory). On May 20, he informed his family via SMS about the abuse on the train by an officer and a warrant officer who accompanied the conscripts. On the morning of May 21 (the second day in the army) he sent an SMS: “They will kill me or leave me disabled.” May 22 - hanged himself (according to the military). There were signs of beatings on the body. Relatives demanded a re-examination of the causes of death. The military prosecutor's office refused.
Vladimir Slobodyannikov. From Magnitogorsk. Called up in 2012. Served in military unit 28331 in Verkhnyaya Pyshma (also in the Urals). At the very beginning of his service, he stood up for another young soldier who was being bullied. This caused the fierce hatred of grandfathers and officers. On July 18, 2012, after 2 months in the army, I called my sister and said: “Valya, I can’t do it anymore. They will kill me at night. That’s what the captain said.” That same evening he hanged himself in the barracks.
Pechenga, Murmansk region. 2013
200th motorized rifle brigade. Two Caucasians mock a Russian guy.
Unlike Caucasians, Russians, as always, are atomized. We are not in solidarity. They would rather mock the younger conscripts themselves than help someone during the lawlessness of national minorities. The officers also behave as they once did in tsarist army. “Dogs and lower ranks are not allowed to enter” there were signs in the parks of Kronstadt and St. Petersburg, i.e. the officers did not seem to consider themselves and the lower classes to be one nation. Then, of course, the sailors, without regret, drowned their nobles in the Gulf of Finland and cut them into pieces in 1917, but what changed?
Vyacheslav Sapozhnikov. From Novosibirsk. In January 2013, he jumped out of a 5th floor window, unable to withstand the bullying from the community of Tuvans in military unit 21005 (Kemerovo region). Tuvans are a small people of the Mongoloid race in southern Siberia. The current Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation S.K. Shoigu - also Tuvan.
I do running, weightlifting and hand-to-hand combat. Not to say I'm a sports fan, but there's not much else to do in the town where I grew up. Either drink or rock. In between workouts I read. I read everything that was in the city library twice, there were no new products in the bookstore, and then, as luck would have it, the Internet was turned off. To escape boredom, I decided to visit my grandmother, who lives in the village of Ivanteevka, three hundred kilometers from us. I thought I’d live for a week - it’s still a vacation. There is fresh milk in the village, fresh air, wonderful views - just grace.
The first two days I even forgot about training. I walked around, admired it, went to mow, and waved my scythe. In the evening I sat with the locals, we played the guitar and exchanged news.
When I woke up in the morning, I realized that I shouldn’t have “exchanged” so much. Rural moonshine did not benefit my well-being. I lay there for three hours, getting up only to drink milk. Around noon I was released. I went out into the yard, did a few push-ups, in the absence of a barbell, took a splitting ax and began to warm up with firewood. Around five o'clock I had finished the whole pile and decided to go for a cross-country run. As a route, I chose a road going into the forest. Ten kilometers one way, a short rest, a walk through the forest, then back. Summer forest it was simply wonderful, if only all the owners of the mowing mowed the grass on time, otherwise running waist-deep in the grass would be no fun.
I ran more than ten kilometers, got a little carried away, but I didn’t give up my plans to take a walk with a player and a camera. I walked for a long time, gradually the oaks and aspens began to disappear, and a spruce forest began to grow. I went to the bank of an unfamiliar river, drank heartily and lay down to rest.
I woke up from the cold. There was darkness all around, and night birds were hooting somewhere. Having washed myself, I wandered back. Grandma was probably already worried.
To be brave, I turned on the player at full volume and screamed my favorite songs at the top of my lungs. I realized that I was lost after half an hour of fermentation, returning to the river. I didn't have any compass with me. The network indicator on the phone was at zero. Using the built-in navigator wouldn’t have worked either - I didn’t download a map of the area. Cursing the jogging, I walked strictly straight. In the European part of Russia it is difficult not to go to some settlement, so everything was fine.
At about one o'clock in the morning I went out to broken road. This was already better. All roads start from settlements. They can end anywhere: in another settlement, in a forest clearing, in logging areas, but they begin only in settlements. After a couple of kilometers, I noticed the silhouette of a man ahead. Deciding that it was better to move together, I quickly caught up with him. It turned out to be a man of about thirty-five in a faded military uniform very old style and with a curled mustache. On the left side hung a saber, on the right a holster. I didn’t notice whether there were weapons in it - it was dark. Judging by the appearance, some kind of role player. Despite the strange appearance of this man, I decided to turn to him for help:
I'm sorry, can you tell me where the nearest settlement is?
Nearest settlement? I'm just heading towards him. Nikitskoye village. Will you join me?
“With pleasure,” I answered in surprise. There was something strange in his speech, like in films about the Russian Empire.
Let me introduce myself. Timofey Terentyevich Nikitin. Retired military man,” he extended his hand, having first removed his white glove.
Nikolai.
What about your middle name?
Nikolai Alexandrovich.
Beautiful weather, isn't it, Nikolai Alexandrovich?
Yes, but it wouldn’t hurt to sleep for an hour or two. And I’m hungry, you know.
Gradually I joined his game and began to express myself in Marmeladov’s style. Timofey Terentyevich was not surprised, he took my manner for granted. After a while he asked me:
Forgive my curiosity, but what are those strings hanging on your chest?
This, dear Timofey Terentyevich, is the latest invention of the Japanese genius - I decided to play along with this role-player, who had gone into such a frenzy. - Music player. Now music is recorded not on large gramophone records, but on a small box. Equally small speakers play it directly into your ears. Isn't it a funny little thing?
Will you allow it? - the landowner, as I called him to myself, extended his hand to the earphone.
Yes, of course, dear Timofey Terentyich,” I handed him the headphones along with the player.
Nikitin listened to music for about fifteen minutes, holding the player carefully, like a jewel. Then he returned with regret:
Funny music, unusual.
Timofey Terentyevich told many interesting things. He mastered his role perfectly, knew the history of the early twentieth century by heart, but only until he was fifteen, had an excellent command of Latin, and told funny stories from the fronts of the second Patriotic War. I didn’t immediately realize that this was what he called the First World War. It was clear that the man had thoroughly prepared for his role as a retired staff captain.
Gradually we reached Nikitsky. To the left appeared a graveyard and family crypts. The landowner explained to me the way to Ivanteevka and turned left.
Timofey Terentyevich, where are you going?
Home, my dear, home. My wife is already waiting for me. Have a good trip to you.
There were seven kilometers left to go home. I ran part of the way and walked part of the way. When I entered the yard, it was already dawn. I fell asleep on the porch, not wanting to wake up the old lady, who had been asleep for a long time, judging by the lights being off.
Two days later I visited Nikitskoye. The crypts there were very beautiful. Entering one of them, I saw a tombstone.
“Nikitin Timofey Terentyevich (erased) 1881 - 1915 (erased) Nikitina Ekaterina Pavlovna (erased) 1886 - 1915.”
It was dry and cozy inside. Portraits of the deceased were carved on two stone tombstones. At one of them, I easily recognized my role player. And before leaving, I charged the player, folded it Charger and headphones and returned to the crypt. I left all this at the tombstone of the landowner, who he was during his lifetime. I also wrote a note explaining how to use the device. I hope he finds an outlet at least in the cemetery gatehouse. And I hope that such a nice person will be able to come to an agreement with the watchman.
