General Fiction posted October 22, 2025

Chapters:

...30 31 -32- 33 ...

tfawcus

Tony Fawcus, ex-RAF Navigator and Junior School teacher, spent 22 years living on South Australia's Fleurieu Peninsula where he ran a small farm and a B&B cottage before his recent move back to Adelaide.

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Fire!

A chapter in the book Dmitri's Extraordinary Fate

Dmitri's Extraordinary Fate: 32

by tfawcus

Background
The scene is war-torn Ukraine. Dmitri is seeking official permission to rejoin Leila, whom he thinks is in Turkiye. However, he doesn't realise she has returned to Velinkra, in the Carpathian Mountain

For a while, they stood and watched the smoke billow and darken, bending low over a widening ring of flames. The faint crackle and hiss of dry grasses gradually developed into a low, warning whoosh before building to the terrifying roar of a dragon unleashed.

'Run!' Oleh shouted, tugging Dmitri's arm.

They ran downhill at right angles to the line of the fire, Oleh supporting Dmitri as best he could, hauling him up when he fell. The fire was gaining on them. They could feel its radiant heat on their backs.

'Save yourself,' Dmitri gasped as he stumbled forward. 'I'll be all right.'

Oleh looked about in desperation. The lazy swirl of a river lay fifty metres ahead: two hundred metres behind, the lick and roar of flames.

He dropped his guitar, squatted down, and hoisted Dmitri over his shoulder, gripping his arm and knee as he staggered back to his feet, bowed down by the weight of his friend. Sparks flew about his head like angry fireflies. He drew a breath that scorched his lungs and ran. Almost overcome by the heat and the smoke, he lunged forward into the river with seconds to spare, taking Dmitri with him.

How cold it was. For a moment, they knew only the shock of the water closing over them. They surfaced almost simultaneously.

'Keep down!' Oleh gasped, dragging Dmitri towards the centre of the stream.

A deep, pulsing sound filled the air. Smoke rolled low over the river, carrying the pungent smell of burning grass, and behind it, tongues of flame reached out like fiends. Sparks hissed and died on the water around them. It was as though the river itself was about to catch fire.

Then, as quickly as it had come, the whoosh of superheated wind died away. The dragon had turned north, prowling along the riverfront seeking an easier crossing. Only the whispered crackle of dying embers remained.

Oleh rolled onto his back and breathed in the charred air as he floated downstream, holding Dmitri between his legs with a firm grip on his collar. He muttered a prayer of thanks to God for saving their miserable hides.

They were brought up with a jolt when he floated backwards into the branches of a fallen tree on the river bend. It hooked them and held them fast.

'We made it! Praise the Lord! Safe at last!' Oleh exclaimed between precious gulps of air.

But Dmitri wasn't so sure. An armoured Land Cruiser with a machine gun mounted on its roof had drawn up, and two soldiers stood on the riverbank with their rifles pointed at the bedraggled survivors. A sandy-haired corporal swung his legs free from the vehicle. He ground his cigarette out in the embers, straightened his uniform jacket, and set his cap at a jaunty angle.

'What have we here, then? Russian deserters? Well, well. Put your hands behind your head and come out slowly.'

Dmitri said, 'Don't be daft, corporal. You'll have to throw us a rope. Can't you see? We're stuck.'

The corporal's eyes narrowed. There was something in the impertinent tone of Dmitri's voice that he recognised. He looked him over carefully.

'I know you. You're that little tyke from Kalynorad. Oh, this is rich! And who's your friend, sunshine?'

'Oleh.'

'Olé!' The corporal performed an exaggerated pirouette and held his hands out to one side as if he were holding a cape. He smirked at his men. 'We'll see how well the dago dances when he comes ashore.'

He barked an order. One of the men stepped forward with a coil of rope and threw it so that it caught in the tree branches. He secured the other end to the Land Cruiser. Oleh pulled it taut and looped it around one of the larger branches. Then he and Dmitri grasped the lifeline and hauled themselves, hand over hand, across the river. While one of the soldiers stepped back, his rifle trained on them, the other reached out, grasped them firmly by the hand and hauled them ashore, where they collapsed in a sodden heap, overcome by exhaustion.

'Get up!' the corporal snapped, still smarting at the memory of how Mira had humiliated him in front of his men. He stepped inside Dmitri's comfort zone, examining him like a collector of curiosities. Dmitri drew his head back, overcome by the stench of stale tobacco and garlic. As he lifted his hand to his nose, the corporal kneed him sharply in the groin. He doubled over in pain, staggering to maintain his balance, and retched.

'Funny world,' the corporal said softly. 'What goes around, comes around.'

He turned to his men. 'What shall we do with these two snivelling rats? Shoot them and throw them back in the river, or take them to headquarters for interrogation?' There was little doubt which option he would have preferred.

***

Back in Velinkra, Elena stood in disbelief as the door swung shut behind Leila. Would everyone she had ever known be taken by this wretched war? First, her husband and her son, now Dmitri and Leila. Was there nothing she could do to prevent this madness?

In a last desperate attempt, she ran out into the driveway, waving her arms and shouting for Leila to stop, but if she heard, she affected not to. Elena picked up her skirts and ran to the front gate. She had been unsure if the girl was headed for the Birch Road bridle track or to the main road between Velinkra and Moreniv, but when she saw her veering off to the right, she knew she still had a chance.

She hopped into the car and gave chase. Drawing up alongside Leila, she unwound the passenger side window and leant across.

'There's no need to leave like this, dear. At least let me give you a lift to the station. There's half an hour before the next bus. No sense in you waiting in the cold.'

Leila looked at her suspiciously. She knew that once Elena had her in the car, she'd try to dissuade her. It was difficult enough already, without that. She kept walking.

Elena edged the car forward. 'Besides, I still owe you wages. You'll need money for the trip.'

This was true enough. Leila had little enough saved, and every hryvnia would help. She climbed in reluctantly.

'You won't change my mind, so don't even try. It's five days since Dmitri phoned. He's in trouble. I know he is. Besides, if he thinks I'm still in Türkiye, I have to stop him.'

'But how will you find him? Ukraine's a big country. He could be anywhere.'

'Nonsense. He was going to Kalynorad. We know that.'

'But five days. He could have been there and left. Surely it makes more sense to wait until he gets in contact again?'

Leila didn't answer. She sat staring straight ahead with a firm set to her jaw.

Elena couldn't make up her mind whether it was concern for Dmitri that was driving her, or jealousy because she thought he had found a travelling companion to displace her. She tested the water.

'It's a good thing he's made a friend in Kyiv. Two men travelling together are safer than one alone.'

Again, Leila refused to engage, though a glance in Elena's direction said more than words.

When they pulled up in front of Moreniv station, Elena opened her purse and pressed some notes into Leila's hand. 'Your back wages, my dear, and thank you. You've been such a help to me.'

Leila pocketed the money without looking at it and leant across the car seat to give Elena a hug. Elena clasped her to her chest and held her tight enough for their two heartbeats to feel like one.

'Take care, won't you? And keep in touch. And remember, whatever happens, you'll always have a home here if you need it. Dmitri, too.'

She blinked away a tear and made as good an attempt at a cheerful smile as was possible with her bottom lip quivering.

Leila strode off towards the station entrance, then turned and waved before disappearing from view.

When she bought her ticket, she discovered that Elena had given her more than twice what she was owed. She ran to the entrance just in time to see Elena's car turn the corner and vanish.

***

In Kyiv, Leila went straight to the counter for a ticket to Kalynorad. The ticket clerk looked at her as if she had arrived from another planet. 'Where've you been, miss? Haven't you heard? There was a missile attack a few days ago, a direct hit. Blew up a trainload of soldiers going to the front. It was in all the papers. There won't be any service on that line for at least two more weeks.'

An image too horrific to contemplate overcame Leila. Her stomach tightened, and for a moment she couldn't breathe. 'What do you mean? When did this happen?'

'Five or six days ago. The wreckage has to be cleared away. Tracks need repairing or maybe replacing. It all takes time.'

'Think carefully. This is important. Was it five or six days ago?'

The clerk scratched his head. 'Six. I remember now; it was my wife's birthday. If you're interested, I may still have the paper.' He scrabbled around under his desk. 'It was the overnight train, and it happened a few kilometres this side of Kalynorad.'

He came up in triumph, paper in hand. 'Here it is.' But she was already weaving in and out of the crowd, on her way to the bus station.

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Main Characters in this Chapter:

Dmitri Zahir, a teenage boy hellbent on reuniting with Leila, his true love.
Mira Zahir, his twin sister, who was killed in a bomb attack.
Elena Prishtina, a volunteer carer who looked after Dmitri during his recovery from catatonia.
Leila Haddad, the Syrian girl Dmitri has fallen in love with.
Oleh, a guitarist that Dmitri met on his way to Kyiv

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