Virusomahia

Virusomahia
Tatiana Smirnova

A young man tries to find thr way to live during the psyhovirus, strange epidemic that makes people possessed by different passions. Virusomahia can be translated as fight with virus.

Prehistory

Now no one will remember how this malicious virus got to the Earth. Whether it was created by mother-nature or the meddlesome minds of scientific people. But what happened, happened: the sudden accumulation of exhaust and the smell of something sweet awakened in people previously dormant vices: anger, envy, lust, greed, suspicion. Those who were friends before broke ties, families collapsed, primitive communal relations and the right of the big fist returned to society. But it was in this world, tired without love and sympathy, that our hero, the little Perun, appeared, and our story will be about him.

The Birth Of Perun

A woman wandered through the frozen city in search of a place to sleep. Strangers were not allowed in, and there was not enough money for a hotel. Finally, tired of wandering, she went down to the abandoned subway. Once there was a metro, underground trains that transported people around the city. But since the Virus came down, there have been mass fights and robberies in the metro, and the authorities have decided to close this source of vandalism permanently. Shops, public canteens, and all other crowded places were closed. Now everyone was moving in the advance caused by the car on autopilot and worked from home via the Internet. Doors and windows were sealed with iron shutters, and it was extremely difficult to meet passers-by. In addition, the Christmas frosts fully demonstrated the unsightliness of the streets. But right now, she needed to be in town, find a midwife, and give birth for a baby. By the time she reached the city gates, night had fallen, and it was useless to knock at the iron doors. So, having lost hope, she went down into the darkness of the subway, found a phone, turned on a flashlight, and wandered along the wide hall of white marble once Kropotkinskaya station. The ribbed columns, spreading out like stone flowers, looked like giants in the light of the phone flashlight, and the moving shadows made her heart beat faster.

"Stop who's coming", she heard a child's sharp voice call out.

"Pickpockets", she thought with a sigh. But at that moment, her strength left her and she collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

She awoke in a corner covered with rags and lit by a dim energy-saving light bulb that divided the area into even squares. On such, drawn with chalk squares, once, in her childhood, she jumped with her friends on the street. And the sun shone brighter, and people's smiles were sincere, and she was not afraid of anyone or anything then. She tried to get up on her elbows but realized that her hands were tied.

"Aunt Vera, she's awake", said the same shrill voice, not of a child, but of a girl of about fifteen.

Then aunt Vera appeared in the dark, huge as a cook.

"Go, Lubava, warm up the water", commanded aunt Vera. Then, turning to the bound woman, she continued, "and you, to eat more quickly, you will probably give birth soon, you will need your strength".

She held out a soft slice of rye bread. She poured water into a Cup.

"Thank you", the woman said hesitantly, and pointed at the knot on her wrists.

"What's your name?" Aunt Vera asked, unwinding her hands.

"Marina", she said, chewing her bread greedily.

"I had to tie you up, don't forget. You won't be able to catch up and lose your head", aunt Vera said defensively.

At that moment, everything began to spin in Marina's head: she staggered, and a sharp pain shot through her stomach.

"Well, my dear, your hour has come. Did you give birth already or it’s your firstborn?" Aunt Vera bustled around, and the girl who came with warm water ran to get clean sheets.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, I carried my four and took six in my arms. Take a deep breath, we'll manage…"

On that frosty Christmas night, Perun was born. Mother saw your baby and smiled: "Let him be strong, Perushko-o". After these words vital forces forever have left its body, and soul has carried away there, where there is no envy and flattery, lust and enmity, and rules only eternal Kindness.

And the baby remained to live under the protection of a huge aunt Vera and young Lyubava.

The lessons of survival

When Perushko began to walk and understand words, to distinguish the squares of the energy-saving lamp and the bright light above, where Lubava went every day, when he first climbed the escalator steps and saw the street behind the glass, the first prohibitions fell on him from the strict but fair aunt Vera. "Don't come out", "don't breathe in here", "don't show yourself". At first, they were worth taking on faith, but then, through questioning and mistakes, came the understanding of the significance of what was said. The air above had a sweet-sour taste, sometimes strong, sometimes barely perceptible. And just such an almost indistinguishable aroma acted on the subconscious of all citizens, whether at the level of chemical compounds, or by the action of pheromones, causing negative deviations in the soul. Wealthy citizens got tranquilizers and wore masks. Ordinary people also used simpler masks, and their effectiveness was not always expected. Fights, harassment, and quarrels broke out here and there. Only injection of a dose of a tranquilizing substance stopped them, caused complete apathy and callousness. They themselves were inoculated with such an impenetrable antivirus, and became completely inhuman, unemotional creatures with mechanical movements and lack of any compassion for people.

Every morning Lubava came out of the depths of their underground shelter to work. She was an employee of a self-service grocery store. The work was hard, but safe, because Lubava was completely isolated from customers. She watched the room through video surveillance, and as soon as the goods were finished on the shelves, she drove out on a high forklift and filled the empty shelves. For this she received enough money to feed herself and to maintain aunt Faith and Perusko. She herself had been left without a mother, and had it not been for aunt Vera, she would not have survived the turmoil of the outbreak. Then aunt Vera, who had lost her husband and children in a mass brawl, and little Lubava took refuge in a boarded-up subway, cleaned it of dirt and arranged it in a safe home with reliable air circulation, preventing the spread of psychovirus. In this very place Perusha's childhood passed. Aunt Vera was afraid to let him go to school, and taught him at home, asking him to read and answer her tasks. In addition, Lubava's notebook opened up an immense world of geographical discoveries, scientific knowledge and communication for Perusha. The online translator helped him to communicate with foreigners without difficulty, learning everything new and new. So passed his childhood and apprenticeship. But when Perusha was sixteen, the established harmony was destroyed: Lubava decided to get married. Aunt Vera, who had grown very old by that time, decided to move to the village, so as not to be a burden to the young family. And Lyubava's fiance, a little slowed down by the effects of tranquilizers, drove a large truck, which contained all aunt Vera's belongings, Perusha's books and even a huge desk.

In the village

The village for many kilometers around, was deserted. There was a glimmer of light here and there, indicating that someone was still living in the house, but the streets remained empty and unkempt. In one of these houses, with a strong fence and log walls, aunt Vera and Perusha decided to settle. A neighbor, old grandfather Afanas, gave them the keys to the house and helped them light the stale stove. They had a large docile dog, Gavrik: the animals were not affected by the psychovirus, so they remained the most reliable companions and protectors in this harsh time. Gavrik diligently scared off uninvited passersby from the fence, and aunt Vera and Perushka even managed to collect a good harvest from their small, but lovingly cultivated plot. When the field work was over, Perun began to visit his grandfather Afonya often, listening stories about the past and reflections on the essential like a sponge. Until then, he had lived like a flower in a cozy greenhouse created by aunt Vera. Now it was time for him to think about the meaning of his life, about the purpose and the Higher goles.

"Grandfather Afanas, why does this virus not work on you? "

"My sense of smell must have run out, and with it I can't be stirred up by the noxious odors," said the old man.

"So, if I put garlic up my nose, I'll be safe, too?" Suggested Perun.

"Listen, this reminds me of the plague doctors of the middle ages, they went around in nosey masks, where they put medicinal herbs and garlic, and remained healthy… in general, my personal belief is that all viruses are sent from above to make people think about their place in this world, to stop wasting life. So that they begin to live as they should…"

"And how they should?" Perun respectfully nodded to grandfather, asking for an explanation.

"It is appropriate to live so that every day is meaningful, so that people develop their talents and skills and use them for the benefit of other people and the entire universe. Previously, we had temples everywhere in Russia, and people drew from the dialogue with God the highest meaning, but now there are cameras everywhere, people are afraid of others and themselves. This means that they are also closed to the Higher world…"

Perun pondered these words for a long time, then collected a travel bag, adjusted the mask on the nose with garlic smell, wrapped the notebook given by Lyubava, and went in search of the highest meaning.

In the skete

The road wound along the forest, and when he heard the noise of an approaching car, he turned into the bushes just in case, hiding from unexpected passersby. Garlic really muted the sweet smell of psychovirus and did not stir up bad feelings in the soul of Perun. Having grown up under subway fans, he had not yet succumbed to the effects of this harmful drug. Sometimes he was irritated by aunt Vera's slowness, but he clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms and forced himself to remember the hardships aunt Vera had gone through to raise and feed him on the abandoned subway. With outsiders he almost did not intersect, Lubava and her husband were always kind to him, protected themselves by tranquilizing drugs. Besides them, grandfather Afanas, who had lost his sense of smell, and the dog Gavrik were all his acquaintances. But now he had to meet new people and be prepared for any of their reactions and for the surprises of his own behavior… The road, endlessly winding, finally led to the stone, ancient masonry walls of the Hermitage. An elderly man's unshaven head appeared in the window.

"To stay with us or in search of something? " The head asked.

"In search of meaning", Perun wanted to say, but said aloud: "I'll stay for a few days, if you agree".

"Make three prostrations, and let's go", said the head, and disappeared. A minute later, it reappeared with a fat body in a long black robe. "I am father Gennady, and what should I call you?"

"I am Perun", the young man said.

"Pagan, then," the old man commented (Perun was a god in Russian mythology). "Kiss the cross and go", he added. "Struggle with passions by labor and prostrations. If it doesn't help, then our guards will lock you up in a punishment cell for bread and water until you recover", father Gennady said confidently.

Indeed, there were two guards at the gate, stout men in black cassocks.

"What if they are conquered by passions?" Hesitantly asked Perun, thinking that the two of them he would unlikely prevail.

"They'll have guard above them", the monk said with a grin.

Perun was given an empty cell and assigned to cut all the grass around the Church. He was uprooting weeds until evening, when an old man called to him as he passed by.

"Finish your righteous labors, let's go to eat", he said and looked into Perun's eyes. Looking into them, the old man looked into the very soul of the young man, and when he saw it, he said without words: "welcome, my son".

The bell rang, and from all corners of the large, stone-walled Hermitage, men began to come out, in black vestments and in ordinary everyday clothes. Perun followed them. There, after praising the heavens, the men sat down to eat. Each was given a plate of soup and a slice of bread. Their chewing drowned in the monotonous reading.

"I want more", one of the men suddenly shouted, and the reading stopped in mid-sentence. The man became more and more enraged. "I haven't had enough of this soup", he shouted and pounded the table with his spoon until two guards took him to the punishment cell.

Dinner was over. Everyone went to their cells, and Perun went to his room. There was nothing there but a bed and a desk. However, there was a notebook on the table, and Perun immediately plunged into reading until he was half asleep. Then he went online and found a chat of people who thought up how to fight the psychovirus. Having registered there as a Per, he made the first note: "I came in the monastery in search of solution of virus. All the possessed men are put in the punishment cell, the rest struggle with the temptations of bowing, fasting and labor…"

Vigil