All at once

– Strange! – Andrei thought. – Third one in ten minutes. What’s happening? Epidemic?

He took out notebook and pen, jotted observations. Reached central square. Sat on a bench near Lenin’s statue. Observed through binoculars…

Recorded interesting or odd things.

After thirty minutes, thoroughly chilled, he headed home.

– Need to talk to Lyuba today. Explain what’s happening. – Andrei said, teeth chattering. Hurried, almost ran home.

Later That Day

14:36, December 3, 1983

Office of KGB Border Troops Captain Pyotr Orlov

Orlov stood by the window, squinting as snowflakes drifted down… Against blindingly bright sun, white fluffy snow. Each flake refracted light, sparkling like diamonds!

– Amazing, beautiful sight! – Orlov thought.

It hypnotized him. He watched, transfixed. Until suddenly, he saw a passing car… strangely familiar…

– Nonsense? – Orlov muttered. – Orange Moskvich with a Christmas tree tied to the roof… Elderly woman driving… I’ve seen this! When? There… almost hit a man… Impossible! I saw this… Already seen it! Exactly! Then a street cleaner… lit a cigarette. Now he’ll slip… Exactly! What? Impossible! How? Why know this? Calm!

He stepped back, paced nervously…

Dizziness hit… sweated. Oxygen deprived…

Orlov opened the window, inhaled cold fresh air deeply. Couple more breaths, closed it.

Leaned elbows on the sill, closed eyes… Head splitting… Weakness. Chest heavy.

Memories jumbled… Hard to distinguish recent from distant!

He inhaled slowly, held breath… Tried gathering consciousness.

Counted to five…

Exhaled.

Orlov learned this self-control technique in childhood…

Inhaled, held breath…

– I can! – he mentally said. – I must! Obliged! Remember… How do I know? Why in my head? Must remember… understand!

Counted to five…

Exhaled…

Inhaled, held breath…

Remember! Remember! Remember!

Counted to five…

Exhaled…

Gradually, memories formed logical chains – then collapsed, tangled again.

Formed, tangled…

He inhaled, focused…

Calmed.

Exhaled.

Pain slowly faded.

Another effort…

Another…

Another…

He finally subdued it!

Learned to control!

Now he commanded!

Pain gone!

Memory-puzzle pieces fell into place. Not all clear, much foggy… but progress!

Orlov opened his eyes.

– This already happened! – he said confidently. – I remembered! Yesterday. Or… how? Why repeat?

After seconds:

– Yes… today. Happened today! How? Why?

Thoughts suddenly interrupted…

Orlov noticed a suspicious man on a park bench, almost under his window…

This man observed people, houses, passing cars through binoculars… Then jotted notes.

– What? – Orlov bristled. – A spy under my window?

He squinted, peered…

– Bring you here! Then figure out who you are! – Throwing on his greatcoat, he ran outside.

Crossed the road, reached the square…

– Where’d you go? – he shouted, looking around. – Vanish into thin air… Bastard!

Orlov was too late – the suspicious man with notebook and binoculars was gone…

That Evening19:05, December 3, 1983Apartment of Andrei Maltsev

– Lyuba, finally home! – Andrei said excitedly as she entered.

– You’re home early? – she asked joyfully. – Off early? Why?

– Yeah… What? No! Skipped work today. Lyuba, not now…

– Andrei, what’s wrong?

– Asked off. Said sick!

– You’re sick?

– No! Lyuba, come in… Get settled. I’ll explain! Kitchen.

– The kids?

– Kids fine! Homework done. Fed. Getting ready for bed…

– What’s wrong? Scaring me!

– Lyuba, sit… Andrei pulled his chair closer, took her hands.

– Lyuba, see… thing is… don’t know how to start…

– Andrei…

– Please, don’t interrupt! Thing is, this day… this one. It’s happened before! Multiple times! It repeats! Don’t know why… but… working on it. I’ll figure it out, explain later.

– Andrei…

– Lyuba, don’t interrupt! I asked… I know it sounds crazy! But… I have proof! Andrei stood, went to the kitchen cabinet. Retrieved calendar sheets.

– See? Four… identical! Each day, more… Know what it means?

– What?

– This day repeats, over and over… Five times straight!

– Andrei…

– My dear, I’ll solve why. Just wanted you to know. Though… tomorrow, you likely won’t remember this talk.

– Andrei… – Lyuba stroked his arm. – Many had a hard day today… headaches, high blood pressure. Maybe you imagined?

– Lyuba! – Andrei snapped. – There are *four*! How imagine that? Sane? What are you saying?

– Well, misprint?

– Four times straight?

– Andrei, don’t shout! Listen! Galya, from work… says Americans are poisoning us from space.

– What? Nonsense? How?

– How should I know? Says poisoning with lasers… or pressure… Forget. Many feel bad today! Ambulances everywhere… Our street cleaner, Prokhor Fomich, blames the institute!

– Meaning? What institute?

– The one on the outskirts… Nuclear Physics. Recently built.

– Well… what? Connection?

– Dunno… But Prokhor Fomich said something’s off about it… Suspicious!

– Specifics, Lyuba!

– Said when picking berries on outskirts, saw long trenches dug around the city. Pipes laid there… with wires.

– What?

– Yeah… Galya and I laughed at him. But he was serious… Said, “Don’t laugh, no joke!”

– Then what? Pipes?

– Don’t know! Not sure… Pipes connected to the institute.

– Why?

– Don’t know, Andrei!

– What else he say about it?

– Said if it’s so guarded and hidden… means bad things happen there!

– Not necessarily!

– He says it is! One thing scared him badly… he avoids the outskirts now.

– What thing?

– Big thing…

– Lyuba, specifics!

– Andrei, why so interested?

– Lyuba, just tell!

– Okay, okay… don’t shout! If I recall… Told us three years ago, picking berries… saw a giant trailer hauling an iron barrel.

– What? Barrel?

– Thing like a barrel… Some engine? Dunno! Anyway, saw it, got scared! Avoids area since!

– Why’d that engine scare him?

– Probably looked scary.

– Lyuba, what he *say*? No guesses!

– He said… scary! Imagined it starting? For what?

– And?

– That’s it!

– Saw an engine, imagined, got scared?

– Yeah, scared. What? He’s old…

– Lyuba, he survived the war! Chest full of medals! Saw him on Victory Day. Hard to scare him!

– Dunno… said scared!

– Imagine what engine that was, to scare a war veteran…

Lights suddenly died… Fridge silenced…

– Started! – Andrei shuddered.

– What? – Lyuba gasped. – Fuse?

Andrei took Lyuba’s hands:

– My dear, I love you very much! Kids and you… love you deeply…

Before finishing, Andrei collapsed…

Muscles numb. Blood trickled from his nose…

At the Same Time

19:05, December 3, 1983

Office of KGB Border Troops Captain Pyotr Orlov

Orlov sat at his desk writing…

He paused, lost in thought. Anxiety wouldn’t release him… Sighing, he resumed.

Then picked up the phone to call Moscow for his daily report. Dead silence… Orlov grew truly alarmed. Government line dead? Unprecedented! Dizziness hit. Hard to breathe…

Slightly calmer, he called the duty officer, ordering signalmen to fix intercity lines immediately.

Orlov paced his office. Heart ached terribly; sweat poured.

He slapped his cheeks hard. – *Snap out of it! Soviet officer! Come on… Need home. Just overworked! Plus these magnetic storms! Home! Urgently home, sleep!*

He froze. A wave of fear and panic…

With sudden horror, he realized – he couldn’t remember where he lived! Remembered nothing!

Heart clenched his chest… Lump in throat… Gasping, he barely managed:

– What’s wrong with me?

Suddenly, the office darkened…

Orlov looked out.

Streetlights off. Nearby houses dark.

Staggering, he approached his desk, grabbed the phone…

Drops of blood hit it…

He wiped his nose. Blood on hand.

– What?.. – he uttered before collapsing.

The Next Morning

08:00, December 3, 1983

Office of KGB Border Troops Captain Pyotr Orlov

The phone rang relentlessly…

Orlov sat at his desk, vacant stare fixed ahead…

Weakness, foggy head…

Slowly, trembling hand lifted the receiver:

– Orlov…

– Comrade Captain, permission to report. Duty Officer Vasilyev.

– Ah… Vasilyev! Again? Report. Drunk detained… driven home… What else?

– Aah… – Vasilyev clearly bewildered. He didn’t know what to say. His brain’s regulations malfunctioned… Used to Captain Orlov alert, by-the-book! Serious!

But this mumbling… Drunk? Vasilyev thought. Though Orlov never drank… Why talk like this? How know about the detained? Strange!

– Well… – said Orlov. – Understood… Silence, I manage alone! Report accepted! Goodbye. At ease!

He hung up.

– There! – he muttered. – How know all this? My head… my state… What’s wrong? Must see Klavdia Vasilyevna… she’ll help! Give pills…

He rubbed his face, slapped his cheeks. Gritted teeth, stood, staggered to medical unit.

Knocked… Entered without waiting.

– Klavdia Vasilyevna, may I? – he asked, closing the door.

– Yes, Petya, come in. – she replied tiredly.

Klavdia Vasilyevna stood by the window, smoking. Exhaling thick smoke into the draft.

– Petya, dear, glad to see you. Come! – she smiled.

Orlov smiled shyly, sat.

– Klavdia Vasilyevna, working late again tonight? – he asked.

– Yes. – she replied sadly. – No one waits home! I arrive at seven AM. Leave near midnight. Something wrong?

– No. Just asking. Not afraid walking alone so late? Night, winter… Anything could happen?

– No… – she laughed. – Who needs me? Old woman! City’s quiet. I live close…

Klavdia Vasilyevna, hesitated…

– I think… – she added uncertainly.

– You *think*? – Orlov pressed. – Don’t remember where you live?

Genuine fear filled her eyes. She strained to remember… Failed! She stubbed her cigarette, sat silently. Looked terrified at Orlov, tears welling:

– Petya… I don’t remember! I… don’t remember where I live!

Orlov watched her, heart aching! But he smiled:

– I don’t remember where *I* live either!

– What? – she wiped tears.

– I don’t remember! But I remember where *you* live! I’ll take you. Familiar walls will help you remember! Don’t worry!

– Really? – she smiled through tears.

– Yes. – Orlov approached, hugged her tightly.

– All be fine! Don’t cry.

They stood embracing; Klavdia sobbed on his shoulder. Orlov stroked her head with a trembling hand… Barely holding back his own tears.

Suddenly, the room darkened…

Orlov, as if snapping awake, said sharply:

– I remembered!

– What happened? – Klavdia panicked.

– I remembered! – he repeated loudly. – Stay here! Don’t leave! Be back soon!

– What’s happening?! Petya… Petya, where?

But Orlov didn’t hear…

He ran outside…

Crossed the road, stopped center square near Lenin’s statue. Looked around. Dark…

Looked left, right… City engulfed in darkness!

He remembered… this repeating day! Start to finish.

Suddenly, the earth trembled; a wave of bright green light knocked him down.

Orlov rose… crumpled in pain!

He screamed, hands clamping ears. A piercing sound tore at his eardrums, drilling into his brain!

A minute later, silence.

Orlov slowly straightened, caught his breath. Looked around…

Looked at his hands… covered in blood…

The Next Morning

08:00, December 3, 1983

Office of KGB Border Troops Captain Pyotr Orlov

Phone ringing.

Orlov mechanically answered:

– Listening!

– Comrade Captain, permission to report! Duty Officer Vasilyev.

– Report!

– Emergency in the city! Since early morning, many citizens seek medical help… Hospitals overwhelmed! Symptoms identical: Headache, arrhythmia, psychosis, hallucinations. Doctors don’t know this epidemic. Psychiatric hospital full too. People going mad! Many deaths. Suicides. City in panic!

Orlov silently processed this…

He fought to stay calm and detached. It was hard!

– Hello? Comrade Captain, hear me?

– Hear you, Vasilyev! That all? Anything else?

– No!

– Understood… told you yesterday… damn… forget! Now…

Today… Now, tell signalmen – urgently restore Moscow connection! Immediately! Need communication! Got it?

– Yes, Comrade Captain!

– Execute!

Orlov hung up.

– The sheet! – he said anxiously. – I wrote on a sheet yesterday…

Opened a document folder… the top sheet was blank!

– Hm… figures! Almost expected! Okay… rewrite.

He rewrote yesterday’s notes…

Added in large letters at the end: SITUATION WORSENING!

– Klavdia Vasilyevna! – Orlov remembered fearfully. – Promised to walk her home…

He stood abruptly, strode to medical unit.

Knocked… Opened the door, entered:

– Klavdia Vasilyevna, let me walk you… – he froze in shock. By the window, smoking, stood a middle-aged man.

– Who are you? – Orlov asked distrustfully.

– Petya, hi! You? Came to chat? – the man smiled.

– I repeat, who are you?

– Petya, not funny!

– I’m not laughing! Who are you? Where’s Klavdia Vasilyevna?

– Petya, what’s with you?

– Who’s “Petya”? Count to three – I draw my gun!

– Pyotr, what’s wrong? Confusing me?

– One!

– Petya, crazy? Stop!

– Quickly! Who are you? Where’s Klavdia Vasilyevna? Two!

– What Klavdia Vasilyevna? Drunk? – the man hid fearfully behind the desk.

– Three! – Orlov drew his gun, aiming.

– Talk! – he shouted.

– Talk what? – the man wept, trembling.

– Who are you?

– Vasily Karlovich!

– Who? – Orlov kept shouting.

– Petya, what’s wrong?

– Call me Petya again – I shoot! Who are you?

– Doctor… work here. My office. Petya, what’s wrong?

– Warned you! – Orlov snarled. He rushed the man, pressed the gun to his head.

The man cried harder, begged Orlov not to kill him…

– Calmly, who are you? Where’s Klavdia Vasilyevna?

– Please, calm down!

– Don’t calm me! Talk! – Orlov released the safety.

The man squeezed his eyes shut, slumped…

– Talk!

– Vasily Karlovich… – he stammered, sobbing. – Work here… We’re friends! You… Don’t remember?

– Lying, bastard! – Orlov pressed the gun so hard blood trickled from the man’s temple.

– Please… – he begged. – It hurts! Stop!

Orlov lowered the gun, asked calmly:

– Where… is Klavdia Vasilyevna?

Wiping temple blood, the man stammered:

– Truly, don’t know who that is? Worked here long. Understand? No idea who you mean! What’s wrong?

Enough! Stop! Why? Why treat me like this?

Orlov saw the man likely spoke truth…

At least, believed it himself!

– What’s happening? – he asked mentally. – Am I going mad? Or already mad? Where’s Klavdia Vasilyevna? What’s happening?

Composing himself, he smiled awkwardly:

– Sorry, friend… Vasily. It was a test… and you passed! Apologize. Part of the job!

– What? What test?

– Yes… Don’t sweat! Routine test… Call from HQ…

– What call? – the man tensed.

– Checking everyone’s loyalty to the Motherland!

– Seriously? – the man stood stiffly.

– Yes! And you… friend Vasily, passed with honors!

– Really? – the man sighed relieved.

– Yes! – Orlov backed toward the exit. – Correct! Well done… Goodbye… – exited, slammed the door.

He strode to his office. Put on greatcoat and hat, descended stairs, exited…

Crossing the road, he passed the park, soon reaching Klavdia Vasilyevna’s building.

Entered, climbed to the third floor…

– What the hell? – he gaped. – Where’s her apartment?

Orlov stood center landing, disbelieving. Where Klavdia’s apartment was… now a wall!

– Wait! Apartment one, two, three… Where’s four? What the hell? What’s happening?

He knocked on one door.

A young man opened.

– Excuse me… – Orlov said. – Where’s apartment four?

– Always three apartments here. – the man replied calmly.

– Always? – Orlov bristled. – Joking? Every landing in this building has four apartments! This floor – three?! How? Where’s the fourth?

The man replied with equal calm:

– Comrade Captain, why shout? Answered your question. Four apartments per floor – here, apparently three. Complain to builders! Not my fault! Sorry!

– There was a door here… – Orlov fought for control. – A red door! Still here yesterday! Where? – He pointed at the wall. – Right here!

The man looked at the wall, then Orlov:

– Three apartments. Always only three! What else? Argue? Pointless? What do you want? Told you everything!

Orlov glared menacingly… couldn’t think of a reply… Silently turned, left!

He inhaled frosty air deeply, trying to calm down…

Thoughts jumbled, soul sick!

What’s happening? Can’t be real! Can’t! Reality changing! Or… someone’s changing it! Who? Why? Same day repeating… What?

For a moment, Orlov truly believed he’d gone mad!

He walked slowly back to HQ through the park.

Thought… Remembered… Questions flooded him.

Had Klavdia Vasilyevna ever existed?