From Russia With Love

Siberia

Disclaimer: I do not own Siberia or any of the characters. The only character I own is Malena.

A/N: Sorry if the chapters seem short at first. They will become longer as the story progresses.

Chapter One

Siberia

I shielded my eyes from the bright sunlight as I stepped out of the van and took my first breath of Siberian air. I looked around. There were two small wooden cabins, and a fire pit. There was a place for firewood beside one of the cabins. We were in a clearing surrounded by trees. It was warm and sunny, and I wondered if I would need the leather jacket I was wearing, having had anticipated someplace much cooler.

I studied the contestants who would be competing against me.

There was a woman with long blonde hair, who was speaking loudly in an Australian accent, an older but tough-looking gentleman, a woman from Asia, a woman with dark hair and a nose piercing, a man in a denim jacket, a guy with glasses, a woman with dark, long hair, a guy in an orange jacket, a tough-looking woman, another blonde woman, but with an American accent, and a man speaking in an accent I couldn't identify.

One of the crew corralled us all around the fire pit. They asked us all to state our names. I introduced myself; Malena. The Australian woman was Esther, the older man was Sam, the woman from Asia, Irene. The woman with the piercing had an alluring voice. Her name was Annie. The man in the denim jacket was Johnny, the guy with glasses was Daniel, the woman with dark hair was Carolina, the guy in the orange jacket was Tommy, the tough-looking woman was Sabina, the blonde American was Natalie, and the man with the unknown accent was Miljan.

Two of the cameramen took us off one by one to get video of us talking about ourselves and saying what we'd do with the money, a prize of 50,000 dollars, while everyone else got a bunk in their cabin and put their things where they belong. We'd been told to bring one outfit, but I'd brought extra socks, in case it got cold. Under my jacket I had a red t-shirt and jeans. I'd worn combat boots, not knowing what sort of terrain Siberia harbored.

I chose a bunk next to Annie, and she smiled at me as I set my bag down next to hers. I was going to say something, but a cameraman came to get me.

He took me to the side of the camp and told me where to sit, so the background of the frame would be appealing.

"Tell the world about yourself," he prompted.

"My name is Malena Tjäder, and I'm from Stockholm, Sweden. I'm twenty-three. I'm a journalist. Um.. I don't really know what else to say."

"If you win, what'll you spend the money on?"

"A good portion would be donated to charities," I said without hesitation.