The Pass (Wattys 2019)

Chapter Five

Nika took a deep breath fo the fresh, mountain air. God, did she love it out there: nothing like getting away from the city, getting rid of that industrial air. Even though she hadn't been in Sverdlovsk for very long. The Urals had been the first mountain range she'd gone into when she was little, and her grandparents took her out to get away from life. However, she'd never been to that part of the mountains: by the time she got to the age where she could go on those tough hikes, the Dyatlov hikers had gone missing, and the place had been deemed off-limits.

As she walked on the side of the mountain, though, she felt a terrible sense of dread. It might have been the fact that she knew full well what had happened on that mountain five years before, recognized the scenery from the picture of the rescuers discovering the ripped-up tent. That, and Rufina - who, apparently, looked quite a bit like her brother - was stalking along the side of the mountain, her face screwed up in a grimace.

"You think it was a good idea to bring her?" Peter asked quietly. "She... doesn't seem very stable, right now."

Nika shrugged.

Before they could discuss it further, Lev came over to the search party: ten UPI students, including Nika and Peter and Rufina. He was caring a large, metal pole with a pointed end, and he had that same smile that kind of worried her: why did he act like this was all such fun? Was he just the kind of person that acted like everything was fun and games, or did he really like the idea of searching for scientists that might already be dead?

"Afternoon, gang!" He said. "As you all already know, I'm the head investigator for this search and rescue party. First off: I want to thank all of you for coming: I know that many of you would love to be getting paid to do this, but, bless your hearts, you're still here."

He smiled a little more, as if that were supposed to be a joke, but nobody laughed: one of the other students coughed, instead, and sniffling from noses runny from the cold could be heard from everybody.

"Anyway, it's time to introduce all of you to the tools of the trade," Lev said. He held up the pole. "This is to help us search through the snow pack: there was a pretty good storm at the beginning of the week, on the day they were due back in Sverdlovsk, so it's possible that a lot of their things are buried. If you feel something, start digging. We'll spread out from here, and if you find something - gear that isn't ours, trouble - radio in." He held up a decrepit radio, one that looked like it was built back when Sverdlovsk was called Yekaterinburg. And, of course, none of theirs looked any better. "Does anybody have any questions?"

Nobody spoke up.

"Good," Lev said. "I'll radio all of you when the search dogs get here. Until then: good luck."

***

Nika stabbed another snowdrift with her pole. Once again, it went right through, without much resistance. They'd been out there for an hour or so, and it had quickly turned to drudgery. They - herself, Peter, and Rufina - hadn't been able to find anything. They were on the northern side of Kholyat Syakhl, a little ways away from the site of the incident. The sun was finally high in the sky, but it didn't do much to warm them: in fact, all it did was make the sun shine like a light bulb. She probably would've been fighting snow blindness, if it weren't for the tinted goggles she'd bought before the K2 expedition. Overall, it was a miserable experience, one that was made even more miserable by Rufina and Peter arguing.

"Do you guys think these poles are actually necessary?" Peter asked as they worked, stabbing the snow every few meters. "I mean: it's been a week. Odds are, they aren't that deep. And if they were really deep, wouldn't it just be easier to get some machinery up here than to dig things up by hand?"