Olek is a Polish stoker on the Kerberos, though he asks more questions than a man of his standing is supposed to and bonds with other outsiders on board, namely Ling Yi, with whom he develops a relationship with.
Biography[]
Going on the Prometheus[]
Down in the engine room, Olek climbs up into the coal bunker to fix a stuck lever, during which point he is startled by the clattering of random coal while looking at a picture of the Statue of Liberty. He then sneaks off to an admittedly off limits compartment of the ship, where he is confronted by Jérôme, who demands that Olek give over his bread. Clearly starving, Olek does so without confrontation. Later that evening, he and Jérôme are enlisted by the captain to join him and several others in searching the Prometheus, the missing ship that had disappeared four months prior. Onboard the ghost ship, they discover a young boy locked in a cabinet with a small black pyramid.[1]
Olek shares his encounter on the Prometheus with the other coal workers before being approached by the captain, who orders him to find out how much coal they have in the bunker and report back to him. When he does, Olek informs Eyk that the bunkers were half loaded. Two of them almost empty, roughly 3,000 tons remaining. Olek then asks when they'll be resuming course, but the captain simply returns to his room.[2]
Rescuing Ling Yi[]
Olek finds Ling Yi crying inside a box on the upper deck. He rescues her from the crate and surrounding fog before offering her his jacket and a safer place to seek refuge. Olek takes Ling Yi to the same area where they lower the boats and offers to get her something to eat, but when he returns to the bay, he finds Ling Yi whimpering within the fog. He helps Ling Yi to her feet and consoles her as she explains that she's done something horrible and that everything about her is a lie. Later that evening, Olek is captured and imprisoned by Franz, who stages a mutiny to turn the ship around and resume their course to America.[3]
Imprisoned by the mutineers[]
Olek and Jérôme are taken to the upper deck, where a pile of bodies lay. Passengers seem to be dying mysteriously, and no one can figure out why. Nevertheless, Franz orders them to throw the bodies overboard. Olek suspects that maybe these mysterious deaths is what happened to everyone on the Prometheus. With the guards distracted, Jérôme makes an attempt to sneak away, with Olek acting as a decoy, but the guards spot him and open fire. Fortunately, Jérôme makes it onto the ship unharmed. Olek is then taken to Franz, who demands to know if he helped Jérôme escape, but Olek insists he didn't.[4]
After being freed by Jérôme, Olek convenes with Ling Yi, who is distraught after watching her mother throw herself overboard, along with many other passengers who all appear to be compelled by an unidentified ticking sound on the ship. Fearful that they may be driven to do the same, Olek restrains Ling Yi and himself.[5]
Steering the ship[]
With most of the ship's passengers and crew dead, it is up to the remaining few to get the ship running again, so they head down to the engine room to shovel coal into the furnaces, but like before, the lever is stuck, forcing Olek to go up into the coal bunker, with Ling Yi following close behind to help him pull the stuck lever. He drops his photo of the Statue of Liberty, which Ling Yi presumes is from a girl, but it is in fact from his brother, who lives in America. Ling Yi says that Olek is so different from other men and then kisses him.[6]
Olek and Ling Yi make their way to the bridge and steer the ship and hopefully prevent it from capsizing. However, Ling Yi becomes distracted after hearing her mother call out to her. She looks out to the deck, where Yuk Je stands in spite of the rain. Ling Yi races down, with Olek chasing behind her. However, Yuk Je seemingly disappears with the storm, and Ling Yi is nearly knocked off the ship when a large wave floods the deck. Olek rescues her, and he is knocked into the water below instead.[7]
Ling Yi finds herself in Olek's memory while attempting to find a way off the ship. There, discovers Olek in a tar pit, from which he exits to lead her back onto the ship.[8]