Originally published in Godlike Machines, and also available in the collection, Beyond the Aquila Rift.
The story starts with an escapee from a mental hospital in Siberia desperately trying to reach the local town.
The escapee was one of three cosmonauts sent to investigate an alien vessel that had appeared in the solar system years before.
The story bounces back and forth between the escapee trying to reach someone in town and when he was a cosmonaut at the alien vessel.
Quite a good twist in the tail of this one as well.
Another good novella from Alastair, a master of short fiction as well as the super long stuff too.
Next up on Alastair’s timeline will be Sleepover.
Alastair’s Page