Chess Figures
A touching story was told by a friend - the old KGB Bashnik Yuri Tarasovich.
Once his comrades - war veterans "settled" so that he "supported" his former connections and reduced them to the tir to shoot from a three-line - the last time in life to hold the real front weapons in his hands, to remember youth...
Tarasych seemed to promise, but somehow not specifically... all postponed and repelled.
A year passed.
The veterans buried another of their friends and said:
- You, Yuri, what are you waiting for, that we will die one by one, and you do not need it.
Will we be in the news...? You promised him too...
The cover was nothing, Yuri Tarasovich postponed all the affairs, called, the tension of the one-cash general, he gave "good", and the next day the "guard" brought the grandparents to some underground tir, where various special services are exercising in shooting.
Grochot stood incredible: who was on the move "smiling", who, lying with overlords, who in a second from "Stechkin" released the whole embrace, one of something whispering-silent firkal...
Finally, in the shootings made a break, brought a sniper rifle
Mosin without optics, called our grandparents, (only six people), gave them three bullets, pointed to the "submersible" target in fifty meters:
“Who is first?”
The men around smiled and cheered approvingly, when the grandfathers, wrapping up medals, skillfully, in business, loaded their weapons. It was immediately apparent that
Everyone’s hands remember.
Although almost none of the veterans got into the “fascist”, but still after the next shot, friendly applause of the fighters was spread around.
Grandparents were as happy as boys.
The last in line had to shoot the old front sniper grandfather
and maxime.
He approached the fire line, charged his three cannons, shot himself without hitting, and confusedly departed.
Instead of applause, the surprising voices of the fighters said: “It’s mine!!! This is a sniper!“Sniper and lived to our days, oh young people!”“!”
The boys knocked their comrades and a minute later near grandfather Maxim, already crowded with dozens of fighters and all grabbed his hand. Every young man gave an old sniper: who a badge, who a shell with a bullet, who takes, and in response began to ask, at least something for good luck. For them, the war has not yet ended, and luck they will need, and the best talisman is a thing from the sniper, who won the whole war and remained alive...
Grandfather Maxim was confused, scratched in his jacket and pulled out the small pocket chess. He gave everyone a figure, wished them good luck and said, "May each of your battles always end only with your shot."

Yuri Tarasych was somewhat discouraged by what was happening, he approached one sniper, who wrapped the chess figure in a paper so as not to lose, and asked him:
- And how do you all realize that grandfather Maxim was a former sniper, because he was not even a sniper?
Have you ever hit the target? And I didn’t tell anyone.
There are no former snipers. Reflections received nearby
With the enemy's barracks, you will not drink.
When he after the shot overthrew the fence, he did so sniperly, with his wrist, so that the gylza did not fly away, but jumped into his palm.
This is so that the flying gyllene does not shine in the sun or move the grass.

On the way back in the bus, Grandfather Maxim slowly asked Tarasych:
Did you tell them that I was a sniper on the front?
No, Maxim, they understood it from your eagle’s gaze.