Unsettled Times

"I must admit that although I'm disgusted by it, I also feel somehow bewitched by it. After all this liquid something has been inside your adorable body before and now it somehow 'occupies' my own body. Like poison would do!"

"Better think of it as medicine, that Dr Alessia has prescribed, my dear! It might taste awful but not taking it will harm you much worse.

I am trying to educate you. And I must work from the inside out as well as the outside in. The knowledge that my liquid is always inside you will make you feel more dependent to me. Oh – how I love that thought."

"I can see that! In fact I am a little worried by the joy you seem to have when you have forced me to wear your uniform as well as to accept your pee. I'm starting to fear that you take me on a way where I will slowly loose my whole personality to you. What will be left of me in the end? Will it be still enough to be loved by you?"

"Where have you learned to get so poetic, my dear?" Alessia mocked in amused irony. "Still my honest answer would be: We will have to see how much will be left of your personality at the end! For the moment it is still enough to keep my entertained! But as your fate will remain in my hands, you better take care not to piss me off anymore!"

"You scare me!"

"And scared of me is what you should be, Jurij. Parts of me still want to be nice to you, but there other parts inside me that want to overpower you. Overpower you throughout your entire being. And these parts are actually getting stronger and stronger. And this parts of me will surely not tolerate any disobedience from you nor any disrespect."

[ THE WOMAN WITH THE RED JACKET ]

Mikael shivered inside his coat as he trudged up the winding path to Pavel's house. Let the rest of the Alexandrovich-family hide cowardly in their dacha, Mikael preferred to stay in a real house. Of course Mikael would have even more preferred when this 'real house' would be one of his own ones, but here in the outskirts of the Caucasus, he couldn't be too picky. After all, Pavel was a great friend, who would let Mikael live in his home like a member of his own family.

So while Mikael's cousin Jurij was bravely protecting the family's estate against the chaos of revolution and while the rest of the Alexandrovich-clan was squeezing himself in their narrow dacha-asylum, Mikael was looking forward to relax himself by the fireplace with a hot drink in his hands.

Others might fight and die for their stupid revolution, Mikael would sell them their weapons and enjoy his life a little in the meantime.

But then his eyes discovered a tall stranger framed in the doorway pf Pavel's house. And this stranger looked female. She was obviously waiting for someone. But here? For whom? For Pavel? Quite unlikely!

Slowly Mikael came closer and gained a better look at her.

The woman was wearing a woolen red jacket, that was decorated with velvet bindings and a oversized pointed collar. The double closure of large tulip engraved brass buttons gave her jacket a sophisticated style.

The outfit was completed by tight breeches that flattered her shapely legs before they ended in a pair of black boots.

In dangerous times like this, the occasions had become quite rarely, to see a woman wearing such stylish clothes.

What could such a magnificent young woman want from someone as average as like Pavel?

Mikael couldn't take his eyes from her beauty anymore. Everything within the range of his senses, from the shining sun-light to the haunted emptiness of the surrounding decrepit landscape, seemed to be nothing but an extension of this mystic lady.

Finally Mikael had reached the stairs to step up the porch. Now he was standing at the same ground with her. Still she could look down at Mikael. Mikael was amazed how impressively tall this woman was.

"Good morning!" he curiously greeted the unknown guest.

"Good morning!" was all that came out of her pouty lips in return.

Mikael looked at her, watching how the straight streaks of her shiny black hair easily breezed in the wind.

Her face was definitely cute, even strikingly cute. But - somehow - there was something more inside. Something perky that Mikael just couldn't find the right words yet to describe.

Although her short response had made him feel at little bit fooled, he urged to get more information about this woman.

"Can I help you?" he finally dared to asked.

For the first time the hazel eyes of hers turned to look at him. In fact Mikael felt being estimated by them. He got a little bit uncomfortable.

"Hmm..., maybe you actually might!" she answered in a quite and somehow very disparaging tone.

"I am looking for a man called Mikael Alexandrovich. Do you know him?"

"Yes, I do!"

"Really? Have you seen him recently?" Now Mikael had the full attention of the mysterious woman. He somehow felt proud about it!

"Yes!"

"Where?"

"I saw him this morning in the mirror, when I washed myself!"

Mikael's answer was supposed to be funny. The perfect introduction into some flirt-talk.

But unfortunately the young woman wasn't interested in a flirt.

Instead her eyes pierced seemed to pierce right through him when she said: "Alright, Mr. Alexandrovich, I need to talk to you. Would you let me in, please?"

"Talk with me? About what?"

"Business matters! Can we get inside NOW?" In her voice rang an insistence that he didn't expected from a young woman like her.

Intimidated by this pertinacity Mikael unlocked to front-door and let her in. Then he followed the click of her boot heels through the entrance lobby and into the large lounge.

Mikael hung his coat by the door and gestured his guest to a straight-backed chair.

"Have a seat. I'll just light the fire and fix you something to drink!"

To Mikael's surprise, the woman did not even look at him when a cold and clear "Thank you!" came over her lips. From the corner of his eyes Mikael watched her unbuttoning her red jacket. Underneath appeared a sleeveless white shirt. The light of the starting fire softly gleamed in its silk.

Mikael had to remember himself not to stare too obviously to this sight of pure feminine beauty.

A few minutes later Mikael reappeared in front of her bearing a mug of steaming coffee laced with some drops of precious vodka.

The unknown beauty sat down and took a healthy swig, quickly followed up by a second large gulp.

"Aah, that really hits the spot. Thanks!"

As Mikael had planned, her cold aura of authority got slowly softened by the cozy atmosphere of the room and his warmed-up alcohol. For a short moment it even seemed to him that a smile rushed over her cute face.

Mikael became confident again.

"You're welcome. So, what's your name?"

Actually Mikael was more wondering about her age, which he still wasn't capable to guess. But no honorable man would dare to ask a young woman for her age, wouldn't he?

"I am Comrade Nastasija."

"Comrade? ...so you actually are a Bolshevik?"

"Sure! You have a problem with that?" she challenged him.

"God no! In fine with it! It's just...." Mikael wanted to say that he never saw a Bolshevik who was dressed that stylish and bourgeois. But then he told himself to watch his tongue before he would accidentally insult her political ideals.

"It's just WHAT?"

"Ah, nothing. So what kind of business brings you here?"

"The business of war." she said in a carefree voice that just didn't seem to fit to the seriousness of her answer.

"Oh, come on! Isn't the 'business of war' a too sad subject for a beautiful young lady like you?"

"No - I guess the 'business of war' contains just the perfect amount of sadness to keep me motivated."

Mikael didn't dare to ask her for what kind of motivation she would need the 'sadness of war'. Instead he wanted to change this awkward subject back into some easy-going small-talk.

"So is there already a smart, nice guy like me waiting for you to kiss your sweet lips when the sadness of this war is finally over? Otherwise I might still offer you my service."

"Are you still trying to flirt with me, Mikael?"

"Would you like me to flirt with you?" Mikael promptly asked back, somehow proud of his ready-witted response.

What he hadn't expected was the ready-wittedness of her answer: "Well, I guess I do! It makes more fun to wipe out the existence of a counter-revolutionist when I know that this bastard has a secret crush on me. It makes my acting appear so delightfully ruthless."

Mikael found himself speechless and confused. This answer was meant as a joke, wasn't it? Still Nastasija's averted eyes didn't give away any sign how serious she was. Mikael tried to stay cool, but deep inside he grew more and more uncomfortable.

Then out of a sudden she looked directly into his face and started to grin. Quickly the grin became a hilarious laugh, letting her sharp white teeth shine brightly in the surrounding gloom.

Although he knew that she was laughing at him, Mikael forced himself to laugh back at her - it just seemed to be the best thing he could do to get out of this awkward situation without loosing his face.

Once more he had this slight feeling of getting outsmarted by her craftiness.

"Is everything alright with you? I hope I haven't scared you off or something?"

"No! Of course not. I'm okay!" Mikael eagerly guaranteed. Still Mikael could barely meet her eyes after that joke. Beneath her smugness and overwhelming sexual superiority he was profoundly diminished.

"Okay then!" Nastasija took over the lead of conversation "Why don't you me about the things you do to earn the money for living!?"

"I do nothing certain. Mostly I just buy stuff that somebody else might need. And then I sell this stuff to him for a little service fee."

"What kind of stuff?"

"Oh - all kind of stuff that people require for their daily life. Like scythes and sickles for the up-coming harvest. Or a grinding stone for the local mill."

For a while Nastasija and Mikael continued this kind of easy-going conversation. Mikael calmed himself that Nastasija interest for his business seemed to be absolutely harmless. Maybe he could even convince her to buy some stuff from him?

But then Nastasija's acting seems to change somehow. Like she grew more and more anxious for something coming up.

"Why are you always looking at your watch?" Mikael asked. Trying to keep their small-talk in an easy-going mood he added half-ironically: "You don't have appointment with another date, have you? Otherwise you might want to forget about him. No second date can offer you more attraction than such a charming man like me!"

But Nastasija completely ignored his poor joke. Her hazel eyes just kept looking deep into the flames of the roaring fire.

Just as Mikael began to think about a nice remark that would re-start their conversation, Nastasija stretched out her booted legs and said: "I just realized that I've stayed here for one hour already. If I don't report back to my unit after one hour, the arresting forces have order to come and do their work. So they should be here be now."

Mikael’s eyes narrowed. Then they became wide with disbelief.

"This is a joke, right?"

"Why would I joke about it?" Nastasija wondered in her most sweetly innocent tone.

Mikael's face went pale. Then he heard some noised coming from the outside.

"Oh - I suppose they are finally coming!" Nastasija cheered. Noticing the rising terror in Mikael's eyes, she calmly smiled: "Don't worry too much, Mikael Alexandrovich. They will just take you to the next Soviet. That's where your case will be investigated. After you have survived a few days of interrogation the rest will go pleasantly fast for you! They will bring the remaining of your body into one of the nearby woods, where you will be executed."

Mikael kept starring at her mouth. The tone that came out of these lips had stayed cool and without any compassion, as if he was no more than cattle to be slaughtered.

"Pleeeease!" Mikael finally started to whine. "You have to save me!"

"Sorry, Mikael! It's like I have already told you before: I really enjoy wiping out the existence of a lousy counter-revolutionist. But there is no need to cry! As I kind of like you, I promise to always stay around you and to take care that you won't have to suffer more than necessary!"

When her lovely smile slowly turned into a devilish smirk, Mikael suddenly realized that this woman was enjoying his misery just too much to help him out. Any more pleading would only waste his time - and time had become valuable now! At the next moment he turned and ran into the kitchen.

Mikael couldn't believe his luck when he actually managed to get out through the back-entrance of the kitchen without being hunt down by his persecutors. Should he really have a chance of escape this precarious situation, just because he had smartly used his advantage of surprise?

Mikael kept running. Running through the little wood and then further along the winding path back to the village. Didn't dare to look back. But while he had been concentrating on what lay directly ahead of him, his mind still got haunted by visions of Nastasija's smirking face. Those dark eyes really frightened him as much as they fascinated him.

Suddenly he heard the sounds of horses coming up. They set off after him.

Mikael kept sprinting as fast as he could, but the clip-clop of hooves still became louder and louder.

Finally he turned around.

Nastasija and three other riders were approaching him at speed. Although his startled eyes had hardly enough time to take in Nastasija's glorious sight, they still noticed the nasty looking crop which was already swinging in her hand.

Then everything happened very fast. With the uninhibited force of Nastasija's high speed the crop slashed against Mikael's head and shoulders. His whole body seemed to explode as the burning line of fire cut into his tender flesh. He winced in pain, but in the end he managed to keep his balance.

In the meantime Nastasija had already stopped her horse and turned it around. Once more the clip-clop of hooves signaled her up-coming approach. If Mikael wouldn't find himself a good protection within the next seconds, Nastasija's crop would surely knock him down this time. Then she would have won this game.

Biting his lip hard he staggered a little, before he run zig-zag across the field, seeking escape in the nearby wood. And indeed he managed to dodge Nastasija's nasty crop this time. Still the brute force of her attack made him fall down to the ground.

Panicking slightly, Mikael tried to rise, managed to stagger to his feet and take two clumsy steps towards the wood before his mounted huntress approached him for another attack.

While Mikael was lucky enough not to be kicked by the horse's hooves, Nastasija's heavy boot slammed right against his head.

His knees buckled and he pitched forward onto his face as the world roared around him. Over the sound of Nastasija's triumphant rejoice he felt blackness descend.

[ THE ENDLESS MARCH TO SARATOVSKAYA ]

After their break Alessia and Jurij continued their long walk to Saratovskaya. They walked for two more hours before they ran into a group of several other refugees â€" all of them trying to flee southwards towards Saratovskaya before the White Army would catch them.

Alessia decided that she and Jurij would travel more secure if they join this track. In the chaos of the civil war nobody of the refugees was taking care about the joining of another young woman and his boyfriend. In fact most of the people looked so tired as if they wouldn't take care for anything anymore. It didn’t take long until Jurij recognized a familiar face between the refugees in the group and after a while of hard thinking he even managed to remember her name: Nadja Lukova! He knew her because she used to date his cousin Mikael. Inside him grew the urge to talk to her and find out what she knew, but he wasn't sure how Alessia would handle such an approach.

At high noon - while the sun was at its highest - the group decided to stop, take a break and cook lunch. Alessia actually used the opportunity to lay down for a short nap. As soon as Alessia seemed to be sleeping, Jurij went over to Nadja.

"Hello! You are Nadja, right?"

The woman smiled at Jurij as she obviously recognized him as well. “Right! And you are... Joshua right?�

“Nearly! I’m Jurij.�

“Okay â€" yeah: Jurij! I remember! Mikael’s cousin!â€? she explained. Looking at his weird outfit she asked: "Are you okay?"

Jurij let out a laugh and said: "Oh yes.... I am okay. It is just that... Well, let’s say: I had a tough time recently!�

“I see. It has been quite a troubled time since I saw you last time. So who is that woman you are traveling with?�

As Jurij didn't want to scare Nadja off, he just said: “That’s an old friend of mine, named Alessia. Our relationship has made a lot of changes in the last time, but that’s a very long story. In the end I guess I have become some kind of consultant for her.�

“That's sounds interesting! Maybe you have the time to tell me this long story sometimes?�

“Maybe! Have you heard anything about Mikael recently?�

“Me? Not much! After we have broken up, I have heard only very little about him. But maybe you know more â€" after all he is supposed to be your cousin?!â€?

Over the next minutes Jurij told Nadja everything he knew about Mikael, while she seemed happy to tell him all of the things that had happened to her over the last few months. Jurij listened carefully, moving slightly closer, until he could even see the fine dark hairs of her eye lashes and smell her subtle odor of femininity.

In the end more than hour had passed before Jurij realized the rest of the group was getting ready to leave. He excused himself to go awaken Alessia.

On his little way he was thinking what kind of relief it was to chat with another girl beside Alessia. In fact it had been his first chat with a sweet, young girl since his war imprisonment. No â€" since his time as a soldier in war even! His last flirt seemed to be an eternity away. Well - chatting with Nadja maybe hadn't been a real flirt, but it definitely had been a very easy-going chatting with a very lovely girl. And the fact that it wasn't authorized â€" and not even known â€" by Alessia gave Jurij back his feeling of freedom and independence. His wild, boyish days surely weren't over yet!

Much to his surprise Alessia had already sat up and was watching him when he arrived back to her. She had a very annoyed look on her face, however she said nothing. When the rest of the group started walking, Alessia grabbed Jurij's arm to hold him back.

When he looked at her with quizzing eyes, she just stated coldly at him: “Stay here with me. We will catch up with the group later!�

As soon as the group had left their sight, Alessia's face turned stone cold: “Why were you talking to that nerjacha [= slut].�

“She has been the ex-girlfriend of my cousin. I just hoped that she might be able to tell me something about his remaining.� a visibly nervous Jurij tried to explain.

“So I hope you made her clear, that you already belong to me!�

“Ah... well... maybe not exactly.�

“NO EXACTLY?�

“Well, I told her that I am some kind of consultant working for you!�

“Before this afternoon is over, you will have told this nerjacha the truth about you unconditional dependency to me!� Alessia demanded with fire burning in her eyes.