ABSTRACT
During a vicious snowstorm, Flight 999 is thrown massively off-course and crashes
in the Himalayas. By a miracle, three people on board survive. Or maybe we
should say two and a half, as one of them is a young boy so badly injured he
cannot move. The pilot, who knows about such things, says that because they are
so far off-course there is no prospect of rescuers finding them. As if that was not
bad enough, if they stay put another day or two, he says the cold will finish them all
off too. The only chance is to leave the shelter of the plane and walk over the top of
the mountain range and down to the monastery there. If all goes well, this will take
two days. Now the other survivor is a fit young man and he cheerfully agrees to
attempt the hike. But he points out that to have any chance of surviving they will
have to eat something. Taking the pilot aside, he points out grimly that the only
food available is the injured boy!
