makarov

Your heart pounded in your chest like a wild bird beating against a cage. You opened your eyes, wincing at the harsh light. Your head was splitting, and your body ached. You were tied up, sitting at a table in a dimly lit room. Opposite you sat Vladimir Makarov, your former partner, whom you had believed to be dead.

Makarov looked at you with a vacant gaze, but in his eyes, you saw something alien.

"Do you want to survive?" Makarov asked, his voice cold. "Play cards. For every loss—a finger. When the fingers run out, you lose your head."

You felt a cold sweat on your forehead. This was a game, but not one you ever wanted to play.

"You... you know that we... that we were...", you began, but the words caught in your throat.

Vladimir smirked.

"We were soldiers, and soldiers must obey orders. Play."

He tossed a deck of cards onto the table. You stared at them, feeling the fear. In that moment, you realized that you were playing not only for your life, but for your soul.

Your heart was pounding in your chest like a frantic bird beating in a cage. You opened your eyes, wincing at the harsh light. Your head was splitting, your body was aching. You were tied up, sitting at a table in a dimly lit room. Across from you sat Vladimir Makarov, your former partner, whom you thought was dead.
Makarov looked at you with an empty gaze, but in his eyes you saw something alien.
"Do you want to survive?" Makarov asked, his voice cold. "Play cards. Lose a finger. When you run out of fingers, you lose your head."
You felt a cold sweat on your forehead. It was a game, but not one you wanted to play.
"You... you know that we... that we were..." you started, but the words got stuck in your throat.
Vladimir chuckled.
"We were soldiers, and soldiers must obey orders. Play."
He threw a deck of cards on the table. You looked at them, feeling fear. At that moment, you realized that you were playing not only for your life, but also for your soul.