Hearts All of Glass 9: Curtains

And like all good things, our story must near an end. Hope you enjoyed the experience, please share this cautionary tale of wonder woe with as many as humanely possible.

“Humility is not an option for our proud race! It was never an option! After this unforgivable strike on our great capitol, we, the people of Deltora-”

I clicked the radio off and sighed.

“Are you ready to go?” Mei called from the other room. “You uncle’s brought ‘round the car downstairs.”

“I’m ready.” I shuffled into the next room, my dark funeral clothes reflecting my mood rather poetically.

“You need an armband!” Mei gasped, fussing with my hair and tie.

“Why? I’m not a Nexus Party member...”

“Just... I’ll buy you one in Prokovenia. Come now let’s go...” We rushed out the door, Mei locking it behind us as I started trodding down stairs. “I’d say perk up, but considering we’re going to your cousin’s funeral... Okay keep it on the down low on the way there, you know how Boris gets.” She paused, chewing on her words, before continuing: “What happened, the night of the raid? Did anyone from your school- You know, die?”

“No,” I shook my head, “not that I know of. They’ve been posting casualties all week and our school somehow survive unscathed.”

“Thank the gods...” She sighed, and dabbing her lipstick while opening the street door. “So, what then? Girl trouble?”

“You don’t know the half of it...”

“Try me.”

We both sat in the back and I filled her in about what transpired in the Nexus shelter a fortnight ago. My uncle grunted occasionally throughout my account, to either add emphasis or show amusement. The drive out to Prokovenia was very solemn, pushing through the city traffic and rushing by the cratered countryside. After I’d finished speaking there was hardly a word said between any of us in the car, we were all too caught up in our own minds. I, predictably, was netting into sulking about my own misfortune, and hardly paid any mind to the slight gasps Mei gave as we passed the gruesome omens of the coming years.

I wasn’t totally blind to the first effects of the war, of course, none but the literally blind could ignore the signs. On the way to my cousin’s funeral we passed a few sites where the flying bombs had been highly effective, one had come down on a railway line, and the train had come across the severance in the tracks by surprise in the night. The carriages were all strewn about like scattered toys, and the bodies of the passengers had all been dragged out from the wreckage and covered by white sheets in the fields facing the road. Here my uncle sped up, so as to pass the whole scene faster. Mei covered her mouth and gave a little gasp, I simply cringed at the bloodstains visible through the dozens of white sheets, evenly spaced in the field.

There were other signs too, hinting at our nation’s vulnerability. More trucks full of soldiers, more boarded-up windows, and younger and younger faces lining up to receive their black uniforms.

Prokovenia was mostly empty when we arrived. An old tourist town, it’s mainly known for its’ impressive ancient ruins. One of the Demon-Age pillars has been magically carved into the shape of a soldier from an era of warfare long-past. Nobody’s there to sightsee today, most in the town’s square are dressed in black, presumably waiting around for the same mass-memorial service as I was there for.

And indeed, they mostly were. On the far end of the Death goddess’ temple grounds, there was a vast field of black tombstones. All them were thin obsidian pillars, topped with the symbol of the god of their choosing. I wonder which god’s sign my cousin had inscribed on this dog tags. Most likely the god of the sea or goddess of fortune, both popular among sailors. The service was too large and impersonal to have any lasting effect on me. Call me heartless, but from way in the back of the black-clad crowd of mourners, I felt a tinge of boredom and restlessness after the third hour of inaudible eulogies and tearful processions.

I kept this to myself, of course, and slowly shuffled forwards as our turn to approach the small monument to the entire crew of the ship my cousin had served on. Eventually, though, I slid my nonchalantly slid my hand into my jacket pocket and clasped a familiar cold gem in my fingers.

User: Say, Elaine, are you busy?

Ela: ...Yes.

User: Oh, pardon me.

Ela: You’re forgiven.

User: Wait, you forgive me?

Ela: Wait- No. I meant I pardon you, for interrupting me while busy. I’m still very cross with  you for everything.

User: I said I’m sorry. I had no idea things would turn out so... Badly.

Ela: You seemed lacking in any sensible idea to begin with. Now, as I’d said, I’m quite busy so...

User: You’re not really busy are you?

Ela: ...So what if I’m not?

User: And you’re even responding to me now...

Ela: Yes, I’ve noticed. Now is there something else you’d like to bother me about or...?

User: Well, I at least want you to not despise me.

Ela: Oh, I don’t despise you. I’m just rather disappointed.

User: Disappointed?

Ela: Feeling sorry for you, really... Taken in and duped by that lowerclassman. It must feel painfully embarrassing, how she led you on like that...

Now this really stung. I flinched visibly at her scalding words, and Mei, walking in file behind me, placed and hand on my shoulder and patted gently.

“There, there...” She sniffed, clearly shaken by the depressing atmosphere of the funeral.

User: We’re you taken in by Ausrine’s boyfriend as well?

Ela: I hadn’t expected Danylov to be so... Oh, shut up.

User: Sorry, we both made mistakes.

Ela: We both... No, YOU asked her out after I’d bent over backwards to show you a fair time and even kissed you for gods’ sake! No matter if my date to the dance was a snake, your sins are far worse.

User: I realize that now, and I feel terrible, I can’t even begin to tell you how sorry I-

Ela: Save your pleas. I’ll get over it when I’m ready, for the time being I just hope you learned something about being so impetuously foolish.

User: So, I’m forgiven then?

Ela: No, not at all. In fact, this very conversation’s going to cost you as well.

User: What?

Ela: That’s right, you’re back to square one with me, Vladinova, only now I know better than to expect much out of you.

User: That hurts to hear, surely you can’t just accept my apology and let us be friends?

Ela: I could... It’s been two weeks after all, and I’m not one to hold a grudge.... But where’s the fun in that? No, I don’t quite want to be friends with you Mr. Vladinova, so I won’t forgive you, you’ll have to make it up to me.

Here I drastically misread her intentions and said:

User: Don’t want to be friends? Am I that despicable?

Ela: Oh Dmitri, you don’t quite follow do you...?

User: I’m afraid I don’t- In fact I don’t even know where to start making things up to you...

“Hey, move up, it’s our turn.” Mei whispered in my ear, and stepped forwards to the front of the crowd. I followed my uncle up to the black stone monolith commemorating the brave crew of the light cruiser Nenalev, and took my hand out of my pocket and placed it on the the death goddess’ sigil, muttering the only prayer I knew to her. With the other hand I fished out a match and placed it in the ground amongst the forest of other matches and needles placed in the ground surrounding the monument. My uncle stood, for nearly ten minutes, head bowed in silence while other families came and went. Mei and I stood behind him, unsure of what to do for the time being, and both started to fidget. I reached for my glassheart once more, but Mei slapped my hand away from my pocket and pointed to my uncle, who’d turned, sighed, and motioned for us to leave.

There was meant to be a memorial meal and a few hours to mix and mingle with the other families afterwards, but my uncle insisted we leave ahead of the crowds. I tried my hardest to sympathize with him, and his loss, but the truth was none of us really knew my cousin Anselov Vimitrilev. As Mei later told me, he was born to a woman my uncle had met just twice. Once at a party, and a second time to be informed of the birth of a son. Of course, that was nearly eight turns ago, and he was arguably a different man back then. My uncle had fled my hometown and made for the big city, and been fairly successful in avoiding my family’s scorn and his son’s search for him. Anselov’s mother had died a few turns ago, which explained why we hadn’t run into her at the funeral. This must have meant that my cousin was able to track down my uncle’s name and address but chosen not to contact him, only signing him up as his next-of-kin.

All very tragic, and oddly influential to me later on. I figured all of this heartache was in part at least due to several people’s hesitation to act on emotion, and so I took to heart the ideal of action. Indeed, I didn’t have any situation quite as severe as an estranged family or lost son, but I was resolved to never let myself slip away from anyone simply due to inaction.

And so, as the weekly eclipse began, I fished out my glassheart and saw how Elaine proposed I begin making things up to her.

Ela: Well, you can start by taking ME out for a change. I hope you’ve got somewhere good in mind.

Her idea of very upset with me was very confusing to me at the time, to say the least.

It was difficult, at first, breaking the ice with Elaine. She was clear aware of my guilty conscience and confusing, and gleefully took advantage of my repentant attitude. The first few dates, I paid for everything, mostly with money borrowed from Mei and favors for my uncle. This meant they were hardly upscale trips to the theater or even the Nexus bazar, but Elaine didn’t seem to mind. We took the trollies all across town over the next few months, and when they cut off the trams for civilians, we walked.

She did forgive me, albeit indirectly, one day- She started paying for everything, which was of course well within her means, especially compared to the meager wages I’d acquired doing odd jobs around Sakahlin street. After that, it was very enjoyable, though that may be a great understatement on my part. The entire time I’d felt a creeping sense of contentment which I’d refused to acknowledge about the entire relationship.

Being paired with Elaine was delightful to be sure, but I’d been entirely ambiguous about my true feelings to anyone the entire turn. Inside, I wasn’t so sure myself, it felt strange to forsake Ausrine under any circumstance, and the brisk conversations we shared in class and the searching looks exchanged in the halls somehow served only to confuse me more. Elaine never showed any doubts about us, but I think she could tell that I had futile romantic notions about that mysterious bashful Ausrine now and then.

A full turn and a half after moving to Blackheart I didn’t regret a thing. The war a lost cause by then, and school had been suspended indefinitely in response to the student draft. Sitting on the curb in my tarnished black uniform, I watched with a smile as Elaine wiped her brow and sauntered over to join me in our break. She discarded her shovel by the pile of rubble we’d been clearing, and plopped down beside me, reaching across my lap for a bottle of water in my left hand.

“Hey, I was drinking that!” I reached for the bottle but she turned away from me, holding up a hand and downing the contents in a few gulps. Gasping, she wiped her mouth and spoke:

“Sorry, haven’t had anything to drink all day... This assignment’s sure a bore, where’s the commander anyway?”

“She’s on the telephone with someone, I think new orders are coming down.”

“Oh, joy. Say- it’s been a few days since an air strike or an enemy raid, think we’ll get some time off for once? I heard from Tolstoy there’s a dance hall set up in the aerodrome shelters, you’ll take me once we’re off duty, won’t you?”

“Of course,” I leaned in, with a grin- “I’d be glad to.” I tilted my head in anticipation for a kiss, but was quite rudely interrupted by the unfortunately familiar whine of the neighborhood's klaxon. “Ugh, speaking of air strikes...”

“Quick, let’s get underground,” Elaine hopped up to her feet, tugging on my arm and motioning down the ruined street. “we can leave our posts, nobody cares about a couple of

draftees.”

“What happened to your ‘devotion to the empire’ spiel?” I shouted over the siren, standing and brushing the dust off of my Nexus armband.

“Oh, silence- We’ve got to make sure you stay alive, first and foremost- But we can help direct civilians to the shelters on the way if it makes you feel better.”

“I need to stay alive? What about you?”

“Better  I die than you. Besides, I can run faster, whereas you need someone guiding your every step.”

“To the contrary, I’d much rather I perish than you- Besides, who’s going to keep you from running straight into trouble?”

“I won’t hear any talk of either of us dying,” Elaine resolved, taking my hand was we broke into a run down the ash-strewn way.

The frequency of flying bomb strikes in Blackheart had decreased as of lately, but only to be replaced by increasingly destructive raids by Kragos Union forces from the East. That day was one such raid, with fierce black shadows spawning out of the clouds over the city- the Union bombers able to fly freely in broad daylight at that point in the war. The rattle of ground fire was weak and dim in the distance, with all guns relocated to surround the palace, very little of the greater Blackheart area was left under any sort of protection from bombs or raiders.

As we clambered across a burnt-out omnibus, we heard the shrill cry of the first bombs falling. Elaine looked up and flinched as the silver streak of a flight of Union airships slipped by overhead.

“Hurry,” She panted, tearing free her sleeve from a snag in the wreckage. “the closest metro access is by the school, let’s go!”

“Right, but what about the rest of our squad?”

“Forget them,” She held out her ruby-red glassheart, “I already sent Anya a message, she knows where we’re going!”

Hurriedly making our way towards the school, we traded nervous glances as the waves of bombs fell closer and closer to the Aerodrome district. At the stairs to the metro there stood an anxious crowd of civilians milling about the entrance in despair. We pushed to the front of the crowd, our dirty black uniforms granting us more authority than we’d earned. A few other student draftees held back the crowds as we broke to the front.

“What’s going on here?” Elaine demanded, her voice cutting through the panicked murmur of the crowd. A weary cadet in a faded blue uniform staggered forward:

“The stairs are blocked, down there, see?”

“Oh,” Elaine frowned, noticing the pile of debris in the darkness of the stairway. “Well let’s get digging!”

“No, we’ve sent for a witch, she should be here any moment...”

“A witch? Still here in the city? Why aren’t they at the front, or in the air fighting!?”

“I don’t know, some girl said her mother’s a witch and ran off to fetch them... Perhaps they’re, oh- Look.” The crowd grudgingly parted and stood aside, muttering in confusion as their savior approached. Elaine gave a frustrated groan and approached the witch and her daughter.

“Miss Romanov. This is your mother, I take it?”

“Y-yes, we can help, just stand back...” Ausrine was visibly terrified, shaking with fright every time a wave of bombs touched down elsewhere in town. The shadow of a sleek steel bomber passed over us and the entire crowd held its breath...

“Yes, I’m Ausrine’s mother- And Aza and I are here at last. Now, stand aside.”

I looked on as Ausrine and her immediate family followed their emotionless demon up to the top of the stairs and paused. Ausrine held still, her demon stepping into her body and melding with her skin in a haze of red. Her posture suddenly became very rigid and her hair took on a blood red shade... The elder Novacore looked on with pride as her daughter and demon twisted the lights and shadows of the street, all the darkness around us concentrating around the blockage in the stairwell.

Elaine watched with concern, squinting at the void that was the metro entrance. I looked at her for her response and missed the exact moment the rubble vanished- But suddenly amidst another volley of bombs, Azanaxalphrion emerged from Ausrine, leaving her gasping in pain to fall to her knees. Her mother patted her on the back and helped her up, and the crowd around us only hesitated for a second before another explosion, closer this time, shook them into pouring underground.

“Thank you,” Elaine muttered, bowing stiffly at Ausrine as she stood, stunned and shaking, staring off into the darkness. “Come Dimitri, let’s get underground.”

User: Thank you, Ausrine. Good to see you again.

I turned about and rushed downstairs, following the crowd.

Ausrine Novacore: You’re welcome.

...

And Dmitri?

User: Yeah?

Ausrine Novacore: I’m sorry.

The last I ever saw of her was her mother and demon leading her away from the shelter, back towards Sakahlin street and past the ruined gates of our school. I’ll never know what became of her, I couldn’t even find  record of her family after the war. Still, Elaine and I survived the raid, survived the war infact, and courted for a few months before the East-West split.

After that, I met your mother of course, at university, like I’ve said, but as for how I came up with you name, well- Now I hope you’ve got a better idea of why I chose that name for you, Ausrine.

“Does mother know that’s why you named me that?”

The end

Hearts All of Glass 8: Encore

“In the unlikely event of an enemy aerial assault, there are a few simple guidelines for all civilians to follow.    

First, remain calm and composed.

Second, locate a shelter.

Third, walk, don’t run.

Fourth, stay indoors, avoid windows.

Fifth, don’t drive, abandon vehicles.

Sixth, keep the phone lines clear.

Seventh, avoid sorcery in public shelters.

Eight, the elderly and children have priority access to shelters.

Ninth, expect electric lights to cut off, keep candles at hand.

Finally, obey all public telepathic service announcements above all else.

This bulletin is provided to the public by the Blackheart Wartime Civilian’s Board.” -Fliers distributed throughout the greater Blackheart metropolitan area, 6011

Music ebbed and flowed through the evening air, the tempered steps of a steady waltz washing out over the park. In my arms was Ausrine, and I could not have been happier. She’d arrive rather late, but I was perfectly contented to wait- Whatever time it took for her to dress up had been well worth it. Her spring-green dress shone emerald under the dim lanterns strung across the park, and her hair was braided back in a single ruby tail down her back. She greeted me halfway through the third song of the night, obviously apprehensive about her hairstyle, somehow shy about her exposed face. I was overjoyed to see her with her hair back, honestly, I’ll never understand what she sought to hide. Her entire face rang of nobility and grace, despite what her nervous eyes betrayed.

And so with, without much more to say that day, we danced. It took some urging, of course, as at first she’d wanted to admire the refreshments table. But after Anya arrived and jokingly prodded her out into the promenade, she resigned to stay close by my side in the churning crowd of dancers. Neither of us really knew how to dance, but that didn’t stop us from holding hands and attempting a rudimentary box step, following the lead of the other couples around us. The music radiated vibrantly through the crowd, inducing even the most stubborn holdouts to at least nod their heads or hum along.

It took some time, but Ausrine and I finally caught the hang of the waltz, and when we made it through an entire song without once tripping or faltering, she finally stopped watching our steps and looked up at me in earnest, beaming with delight. In that moment, we were finally together, finally at peace, and finally face to face. I rallied my courage and drew her closer, and she in turn keep smiling straight at me. I felt the greatest urge to simply kiss her, and I steadied myself, drawing a sharp breath to dull my nerves.

All the while we swayed through the crowd of students- at this point in the evening, none of the school staff or parents present had dared joined the dancing- and I found my mind racing as our faces came closer and closer still... Then... Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a slight blur of fiery red. I hesitated for just a moment too long, and Ausrine gave a disappointed sigh as the song rose to a climatic halt. An announcer hailed the end of the school band’s set, and the crowd erupted into polite applause.

“E-excuse me, a moment, Dmitri... Want something to drink?” I shook my head, and she squeezed both my hands in unison and ducked away to the far side of the park. Elaine emerged, arm-in-arm with a smug cadet. I hardly noticed him at first, my gaze focused on Elaine’s undeniably stunning attire. In quite the stylish blue dress, she cut a pretty picture. She gave a curt bow, her teased-up hair flicking forward and back in a single flash of orange. Her smile was both cordial and contented, as she seemed bent on expressing how glad she was to be hanging on the arm of her date. Her date, to my surprise was strikingly familiar... She began to introduce us as I recognized him from earlier that day.

“Good evening, Vladinova, have you met Maxim Danylov?”

“I don’t believe so. I’m Dmitri, how do you do?” I stick out a hand to shake, trying to remain as casual as possible while I ponder the mystery of this cadet’s presence. I... I knew I’d seen him earlier that day, strolling down Sakahlin street with Ausrine. Between luncheon with her parents and the excitement of the evening, I’d nearly forgotten the pangs of jealousy and confusion I’d felt at the sight of him. Now, standing satisfied beside Elaine I found myself consumed with renewed feelings of envy and doubt. Here he was with Elaine, who I had forfeited all rights to pursue, and therefore it should have come as a relief to me that he was with her and not Ausrine. But something about him left a sinking feeling about me. He took my hand and gave it a single hearty shake, bearing a toothy grin and bowing slightly.

“I do quite well, thank you. And yourself?”

“Er, well enough- I am here after all.” I gesture broadly behind me, scanning the crowds for Ausrine.

“Such a lovely evening it’s turning out to be, did you have dances like this in your hometown?” Elaine swayed closer, studying my face for signs of jealousy. My uneasy grimace in the presence of  Maxim must have given her the impression that I was envious of her date. And, at least in one way I was, but not in any manner she was expecting.

“Nothing like this at all. The orchestra was surreal, though I hardly know how to waltz.”

“Father’s sent me to lessons for turns and turns,” Elaine blushed, looking up at her date. “It’s just now starting to prove useful! Such fun though, dancing. I can’t wait for the Electra band up next!”

“They hired one of those modern noise gangs? Ugh, can’t say I’m too fond of that trash.” Maxim interjected, grunting with disapproval. Elaine shot him a look of mild annoyance but it was deflected harmlessly off his confident demeanor.

“Well,” Elaine began in a huff, “that’s not till after the fireworks, which should begin shortly. Want to watch them with us?”

Maxim countered:

“I’m sure Vladinova here has better things to do than follow us about. Got to get back to your date, don’t you my man?”

“Actually, where is your date?” Elaine asked, raising a curious eyebrow. “She lea-”

“Ausrine just went for drinks, I better go find her-”

“Ausrine?” Maxim’s facade of certainty faltered for a brief moment, before his eyes hardened again and he laughed: “Yes, well- We better leave him to find his date, my dear.” He said, nodding to Elaine. “Maybe we’ll catch up with you later tonight.”

“Right,” Elaine frowned with dismay, “Perhaps we’ll-” Behind her the first fireworks shrieked skyward. We all looked back and turned our bodies in unison, watching the blossoms of  sparkling lights erupt in sequence above the North end of the park. The scattered flashes burst into a fully fledged fireworks routine, the resounding sound of the display drowning out any future of a conversation. We both bowed and backed away, with Danylov giving only a casual nod.

I drifted back into the awestruck crowd, weaving between the students and parents, all fixed gaping upwards. My search for Ausrine was in vain at first, as when I arrived at the refreshments table I had no luck locating her. I shrugged to myself and picked up a slice of fruit, pensively nibbling it as I considered my next move. Backing away from the table slowly, I’d meant to turn around and re-emerge into the crowd, but I collided squarely with a thin pillar of silk.

“Dmitri!”

“Mei!” I stumbled backwards, bowing in apology. She was standing there, rapt, fanning herself slowly. My uncle, I noticed, was nowhere in sight.

“This is such a swell party!” She shouted over the fireworks. “Why didn’t you tell us your school was hosting a promenade for everyone?”

“I... I don’t know. Sorry.” She squinted and cupped her ear, leaning in closer.

“What?” The fireworks were reaching a climatic roar in the course of the routine, and I could hardly hear her vocalizations. “Never mind- Your uncle and I have been meaning to.. Talk to you... Where have...” Her voice trailed off, smothered under the crackling of the lights above.

“Where is he?”

“Your uncle? I... Er, Boris left for a smoke, down that way-” She pointed towards the North end of the park, where the clustered trees provided ample darkness for the stone paths twisting down to a small lake. The fireworks all originated from some point beyond the grove of trees, and their glow periodically cast a vibrant hue amongst the trees. “You should really go speak with him, as soon as you’re able- He’s been pretty broken up about his son, you know...”

“His son?” Before I could question Mei further, I felt a gentle tapping at my shoulder. I turned and found Ausrine standing close by. She flashed a smile as our eyes met, but she was clearly shaken, and continually flinched as each subsequent firework detonated above.

“Hello there, who’s this?” Mei stepped forward and offered a hand to Ausrine, waving politely with her other hand. Ausrine gave a nervous bow in Mei’s direction but otherwise didn’t acknowledge her.

“D-dmitri, my parents told me through the glassheart to return home at once, they say Aza’s sensed something bad’s going to happen, and I wanted to warn you before I go...”

“Go? Wait why? The dance has just begun!”

“What’s wrong?” Mei asked with dismay.

“I’m n-not sure, I just need to go home, you should too!”

“Ausrine, I’m sorry, but I don’t understand...”

“Yeah, what are you talking about-”

“You two don’t understand, you need to run, leave the park now!”

“But wh-”

The crackling roar of the fireworks above was suddenly undermined by the slow whine of a very unnerving sound. Air raid sirens, drowning away slowly from unseen klaxons scattered around the city. A few panicked shouts and feminine screams rose above the clamor of the crowd, and I stood, stunned as Ausrine bolted away from the surging sea of panicked party-goers that engulfed me. Mei and I were just as quickly separated in the stampede, and I only barely managed to keep my footing as students and teachers alike fled all around me. I caught sight of Ausrine’s flowing hair trailing in the air behind her as she dashed ahead of the crowd, clambering up a grassy hill and up to the street running parallel to the park.

An air raid? In Blackheart? The first flying bomb strike on the capitol was actually several weeks before my arrival, in an outer borough of the city, but this was the first time I’d conceived of an enemy attack on anywhere this far into Deltora. I scanned the sky as I ran, nearly tripping over discarded shoes and cups, searching for any danger from above. The constant sickly pale glow of the electric city lights suddenly flickered away, the power having been cut off. The sky was a smoky haze of fireworks’ trails and gunpowder clouds, but I saw no enemy bombers or monsters.

As I reached the street, I scoured my surroundings for any signs of Ausrine. She’d gone back towards Sakahlin street, down the way past the school- But as I started to head that way, everything in the world came to a crashing halt. In the same instant, I saw Ausrine, running down the street, tripping and silently screaming as a dark steel lance plunged from the sky to ground in the street a few blocks ahead of her, violently exploding.

Blinded and deafened by the harsh flash ahead, I fell to my knees and shuddered at my numbness. Voices echoed and faded around me, and the shadows of everything untouched by the flames stretched into view. Figures rushed about like frightened ants in the smoldering haze ahead, the site where the bomb had struck was totally engulfed in flames. The sounds of the fires roaring and more flying bombs shrieking across the sky slowly crept into my ears as I stumbled to my feet. I struggled to keep my balance as a few more explosions rocked the park district and threw dazzling clouds of embers into the air from the burning buildings around me.

The street was strewn with people, both active and stationary, but none of them were real to me- My focus quickly locked on to where I’d seen Ausrine last, halfway down the street to where the bomb had fallen. I rushed closer, carefully dodging the debris and ashen heaps spread around where she lay. Ausrine, trembling and panting, struggled to sit up. Her dress was tarnished and scorched by the embers, her face stained by ash and blood. She reached up and ran a finger through her matted hair... Her fingers came away bloody and she whimpered at the sight.   

“Ausrine! Careful, you’re bleeding...” The fires crackling and her ragged breaths were the only sound as she nodded and stood. A few more bomb impacts across town shook the ground where we stood and she braced herself on an abandoned car beside her. I helped her upright and she hugged me, holding her breath as she squeezed me tightly. I hesitantly broke our embrace to examine her face. A shallow gash on her forehead, either from shrapnel or falling, bled slightly. Her dress was torn in a few places, but it had seemingly provided considerable protection from the hot embers and upturned cobblestone. She brushed herself off, removing a marginal amount of dust and ash, and stood upright.

“I’m... Fine. We can’t head home this way now-” She pointed down the street, acknowledging the raging inferno with a dejected sigh. She padded her pockets and pulled out the chain which secured her glassheart. “It’s fine...”

“Sorry... Listen, we’ve got to get underground, it’s not safe out here.”

“I know! I just... I don’t know where to go! Mother always said to come home if this ever happened!”

“There’s a metro station by the Aerodrome, a few blocks this way- Come!” I took her hand and started away, but she was rooted in place. I tugged on her arm and urged her to move but she stood, staring out in the fires and murmured something...

“Dany...” Her utterance didn’t register with me at the time, and I only continued to persistently drag her onward. She gave a terrified groan and gave ground, lurching forwards and breaking into a run. I squeezed her hand and tried to keep pace, but she amazed me by how quickly she could run.

“Wait, Ausrine the Aerodrome is that way!” Instead she headed Northward up the street, opposite where the bomb struck. She hardly made any attempt to hold my hand at all, rushing ahead at full speed, hiking up her skirt to step farther.

The air raid sirens picked up in volume now and then, but there was only the sound of our panting as we hurriedly made our way down to the far end of the park. We ducked under the treeline of the grove surrounding the lake just as the next wave of flying bombs whistled overhead, screeching over the rooftops before falling and detonating randomly. Under the thick trees by the lake there were many couples from the dance, each pair huddled together against the sturdy trunks and under the thick branches. Most couples embraced each other in the silence, a few mumbling incomprehensible prayers, and fewer still bickered with each other, wasting away what might have been their final moments by arguing with one another.

By the lake, we sighted Maxim and Elaine. Pinned up against the wall, Elaine squirmed with discomfort, deflecting a kiss from Danylov with a sharp turn of the head, and pulling her arms out of his grasp. She crossed her arms and turned away from him, and he crept up behind her, pleading out of earshot for her to return his advances. At least, I presume as much. She huffed indignantly and cowered as more bombs fell somewhere uptown. He wraps his arms around her at this and she kicked his shin with her heel.

“Dany!” Ausrine called, peering through the ashen haze at the pair by the lakeside. Maxim stopped, dead in his tracks, and Elaine grudgingly pried her way out of his grasp and marched towards the water. A cloud of searing embers rode the winds across the lake and blew Ausrine’s hair in every direction as she approached Danylov. I was both confused and enraged and sickened, but most of all astounded by what I observed next... “WHAT IN HELL’S NAME ARE YOU DOING!?” She slapped him across the face and stood centimeters away from him, quivering with rage.

Elaine doubled back and waved a rude gesture in their general direction, before approaching me. Ausrine’s voice rose to a near-incomprehensible shout, her face flushed with blood and tears as I stood by, bewildered. I stepped forward to butt in, but Elaine grabbed my shirt sleeve and shook her head. I pulled away from her grip and walked up to Maxim and Ausrine.

“Ausrine, what’s wrong, how do you know Max-”

“Stay out of this, Vladinova!” Danylov snapped at me, attempting to regain some of his composure.

“I don’t understand, Ausrine, are you-”

“... D-dmitri, I’m sorry, you should go...”

“Yes, leave-” Maxim agreed.

“What’s going on?”

“Go home, Dmitri! Go away already!” She turned to face me, eyes reddened and fists clenched. I was shaken to the core by her sudden hostility and emotion. I raised a hand to point to Danylov but he swatted it away.

“You heard her- Go!”

... I inched backwards and bowed, swallowing my confusion and rage. Another volley of flying bombs hit somewhere on the horizon and the flash made our shadows flicker taller along the shore.

“They’re both no good, Vladinova, now let’s get to a shelter.” Elaine stood, arms crossed, behind me. Before she could take my hand and lead me away, a hoarse shout broke my concentration on the ground.

“Dmitri!” My uncle. As I sulked away into the trees, he stopped me with a hand on the shoulder. “It’s not safe out here, you know.”

“I.. I know, but Ausrine...”

“Enough about Ausrine!” Elaine broke in, following my uncle and I into the grove, stepping over cowering students and dancers. “This is not the time for any of this, we should get underground.”

“Ah, miss Prokofiev, nice to see you again.” My uncle grunted, nodding in her general direction. “You are entirely right, but I think we’re safe, for the time being...”

“I... Wh-” Another wave of bombs fell, somewhere farther uptown. “How?”

“The shelters are full of panicked idiots, and they’re likely sealed off by now. We’re better off outdoors like this, not as much to fall on us.” I look up, examining the dense canopy of broad leaves stemming from the patchwork of branches above us. Not much protection to be found in any part of the park, but being near the water couldn’t be bad, considering the risk of fires.

“That’s absurd, we’re sitting helpless out here, we’re just as vulnerable to gas attacks and firebombs anyhow, you need to follow proper Nexus party proce-”

“Well then,” My uncle snorted, lighting a cigarette indifferently. “What do you propose we do?”

“Follow me!” Her shouts drew the attention of a few of the couples leaning against the trees around us. They too, it seems, were interested in finding better shelter. A disheveled pair of third-turn students shuffled forward to listen to Elaine. “Follow me,” She repeated, in a discreet hush now, “There’s a private shelter, for Nexus party members... Only...”

“What’s the catch?” One of the third-turners said.

“Danylov has our identity cards.” She crossed her arms and huffed.

“That boy over there?” My uncle pointed to the lakeside, where Maxim and Ausrine stood, locked in a heated shouting match. Elaine nodded, but before she could explain her grievances with Maxim, my uncle turned on his heel and marched off towards the couple on the shore.

Elaine and I stood silent amongst the small gathering of students there, I remember feeling nothing but sorry for myself and utterly stunned at the turn of events that night. Overhead, the whine of sirens and shriek of enemy bombs had resigned itself to another portion of airspace, at least several kilometers away by now. Elaine shook her head and hissed angrily to herself as my uncle dragged Maxim over to us by the collar. He shook himself free and dug the identity cards out of his coat. Standing upright, attempting to regain his dignity in spite of his surroundings. Handing one to Elaine, he muttered something about explaining things to her father.

“Thank you.” She murmured coldly. “Now, come Vladinova, we’d better get out of here.”

Taking purposeful strides, Elaine led her small band of followers out of the park and up to the street. She didn’t bother looking back, instead only pushing onward down the rubble-strewn avenue. A few weary students trailed close behind, huddled close and talking in hushed tones. The crowd would shudder and yelp whenever bombs would fall elsewhere across town. My uncle and I trudged behind the pack, anxiously watching the buildings around us, and glancing up at the sky with concern. Ausrine and Danylov trailed far behind, engaged in tense discussion as they strode side by side up the ruined way.

Smudges of orange and grey stained the smoky night sky, only briefly lit here and there by the rain of rockets all across the cityscape. The silence between my uncle and I was so tense it was nearly tangible. He finally spoke as we carefully picked our way through a street flooded with rubble.

“Which one was supposed to be your date? I’m confused. Now... The one up front I’ve met- She’s a charmer- But what’s bitten the dark red haired lass behind us...?” He slurred his words and pointed rudley to both Elaine and Ausrine as he mentioned them. The rest of the trekking students kept quiet as Elaine led us around one final corner towards our destination.

“You’re drunk, uncle.”

“Of course I’m drunk, it’s s’posed to be a party tonight right? What happened to the fireworks?” Another volley of bombs touched down, further away now but still rattling ash and dust down from the rooftops.

“There’s the shelter.” Elaine stood atop a tarnished car, pointing towards an empty storefront. She pushed the door open and everyone followed her inside. My uncle struggled to climb the last mound of rubble along the way on his own, so we entered, last, behind Ausrine and Maxim. Inside, a pair of soldiers wearily stood guard over a small trapdoor in the polished wooden floor. Each of us filed down into the shelter without a word, eyeing each other nervously as we descended the ladder into a squat, stone room.

There were a few cadets and presumably the store owner already huddled inside the shelter when we all settled in. The room was totally bare, a naked concrete cellar with only a buzzing electric bulb for light and a glossy Nexus Party poster adorning the far wall. We all sat on the floor, backs to the cold walls in silence for several minutes.

Elaine to the left of me, my uncle to the right, I felt strangely safe for the time being, despite the rumbling tremors from above that occasionally caused our sole light to flicker. Across the bunker sat Ausrine and Maxim, looking equally ashamed and enraged at each other and the rest of us. The other students that had accompanied us down took to chattering in hushed whispers, almost afraid the enemy bombs might seek them out by sound. I turned to Elaine to speak, but she inhaled sharply and crossed her arms.

“Elaine, I...”

“Hmph!” She pivoted her entire body to face away from me, hunching her shoulders in defiance. My uncle simply chuckled and slurred:

“Ah, I see now... You really messed it up now, didn’t you boy? You went after the dark red one over there, didn’t you, instead of our fiery savior over here.” He hiccuped and smiled at his own wisdom. “And then, turned out the one you chased wasn’t all that into you, infact looks to me like she’s quite taken. Must be rough for you and the other lass. Say it isn’t...” I was staring daggers at him at this point, but he hardly even lowered his voice. “It isn’t that Elaine girl is it? You passed her up to chase that sullen gal with the cadet over there?”

“Uncle, please- Not so loud!”

“Ha.” Elaine muttered, grumbling about the outcome of her evening.

“I... I’m sorry D-dmitri...” Ausrine spoke up from her corner. “I should have told you sooner... Maxim and I... Well his family and mine... I mean... I don’t know anymore, after tonight-” She shot Danylov a look of disdain. “what we are... But I shouldn’t lead you on, I-I’m afraid I...” She buried her head in her hands and started to sob, quietly. Maxim slid closer and attempted to put a hand on her shoulder but she slapped it away. I was frozen with anger and confusion, and Elaine’s next word’s hardly helped.

“Give it up, Ausrine, none of us are fooled by your little shy act. You knew full well you were leading on Dmitri here and went so far as to insult me to convince him to accompany you out tonight instead of me.”

“No! It’s not like that- I-I really like him too, I just... Max... We...”

“What? Not so sweet and mysterious now, are you? Just scared you might lose both your suitors in one stroke?”

“Elaine, this is hardly...” I tried to speak out before she could spill some inconvenient truth.

“Or were you simply sneaking around your parent’s wishes, taking an extra boyfriend on the side at school eh?”

“Shut up! You don’t know anything about me family and I!”

“Oh, on the contrary miss Novacore, we know quite a lot about you.”

“Don’t call me that! My surname’s Romanov!”

“My father told me all about the treacherous things you old-blooded families get up to, this is just another disgusting example of the greed and corruption that brought your family down during the civil war.”

“What are you talking about!?” I couldn’t stand silence any longer. “Ausrine’s no royalty, I’ve seen her home! What her family’s done is the past, why guilt her with it?”

“Why are you defending her, Vladinova? After it’s so obvious she lead you on while courting Maxim! And after our date, too, I can’t believe you’d miss the opportunity to invite me to attend tonight’s festivities!” A particularly large explosion overhead shook the entire bunker, the light faltering for a moment, before flickering to life once more.

“Date?” Ausrine sat up, wiping the tears from her reddened face and sniffing indignantly.

“Yes date, or haven’t you heard? I told Tolstoy in our theatre class to tell you that Vladinova was mine...”

“You told me you hadn’t been out with Elaine!” Ausrine shouted at me, her voice startling

the timid observers of our little drama, and making my uncle chuckle with drunken amusement at the show. Elaine turned on me immediately, her eyes practically on fire with rage.

“You told her what?”

“Why?”

“Why the hell would you lie about that?”

“What could you hope to even get at, you wanted to repulse both of us?”

“Y-yeah, what-”

Another explosion, the largest by far up above, interrupted the torrent of questions. I had no answers, and couldn’t formulate the words to say so. We all sat in silence until the light came back. My uncle simply started to laugh to himself and both girls turned away from me. I opened my mouth to speak but one of the third year students that had up until then only been watching, held up a hand to hush me.

“Don’t bother.”