000
To Major and Tom.
Lost but never forgotten.
001
The small room was brightly lit by the single electric bulb hanging from the ceiling. But no matter how bright the electric light was, the lone man sitting at the small table was like a dark cloud at the horizon on a sunny day. On a day when the sun shines bright, the sky is of the perfect clear blue but somewhere at the distance there is a single dark spot that just refuses the light, that just keeps itself dark out of sheer desperation, no matter the strenghth of the sunshine.
He was alone in the room. Though in his mind he was alone in the whole world. He was talking to a blank wall in front of himself, sending word after word flying and bouncing the around the room, filled with pain and memories, as if they were deadly bullets he used to fire from his rifle.
"Wolf… Well, he was always quiet, always observant, always ready for anything… Like a true predator, like a real wolf..."
"It was a simple walk… usual even… go in, do our thing, go out - quickly. That we did. Went in, did our thing. Then when we walked back… then it happened."
"It was a tank… probably… you know - when you don't hear the sound of the shot itself, just the explosion when it hits. Dumb thing. Still we somehow managed to duck down in time.
All of us. Almost."
"Wolf was… he wasn't… was everywhere… we didn't… didn't have time… no time to gather what's left... the remains… The guy walking behind him grabbed Wolf's rifle and we ran. We ran, we ducked down again and then ran more. Ran like hell was following us… it did."
"And we all… we made it back. He didn't. Wolf didn't. We brought his rifle back though."
"And then… then it got worse… I thought it was the worst but it got worse anyway…"
"We were back one man short. And you know what we were told? 'You should've brought at least an arm or a leg'! An arm or a leg, you got it? Or he's forever 'missing'. Not dead. Not deceased. Just… lost."
"And do you know who told us so? Not some random scumbag from the HQ… not some dumb officer… it wad our brigade commander… I don't even know what he was doing there, why he wasn't where guys like him are supposed to be… yet we ran into him and there he was. All proud of himself, telling us what we were supposed to be doing…"
"I still… still remember it all… as clearly, as if it all happened yesterday… today… even… even months after… victory… it's… it's like I'm cursed…"
He was talking to an empty space. He was throwing his words into the void, into the nothingness surrounding him. The words, the sentences fell and rang, one by one filling the void up. One by one they brought something out of nothing. Someone, even. A rather normal guy in his late thirties or early forties, wearing a worn-out military uniform. He stood there carefully watching the guy with his steel-gray eyes.
"For them, for the higher-ups we're just cannon fodder… a meat for the grinder… We're meat, we're just meat…" The guy at the table continued.
"Walking, talking… drinking meat," said the figure in the uniform. "Drinking too much I must add."
"Oh what do you know?" The guy grimaced. "Who are you anyway?"
"I am… just a traveler. That's what they call me anyway." Traveller shrugged. "And I know… some say I know too much."
"No kidding… Traveller, huh? I am… doesn't matter." He waved Traveller away.
"Look… I know, I know," Traveller put his hands on the table, leaning forward. "I know where you've been Viter. I really do."
"How… how do you know my old callsign?"
"Told you: I know too much." Traveller smiled.
"..."
"It's time to go," said Traveller.
"Go where?"
"Go back. In space and possibly in time." Traveller smiled again. "But it's dark there so 'where' and 'when' can't see you hence they do not matter."
002
The stars were falling. Slowly, like the lightest feathers in the quietest night, bright shining stars were floating down from the sky. White-hot stars, burning through anything they touched.
"...'Lighters'," Traveller lit up a cigarette, adding one more dancing light to the ballet of falling stars. "En erebos, phos."
There was a sound of the door closing shut.
"Phosphorous…" Said a woman's voice to the Traveller's right. He turned his head and in the fading light of the thermite charges he saw a woman's figure, dressed in red.
"Welcome, lady Madeleine," Traveller said to her. "Thank you for accepting my invitation."
"I haven't accepted anything yet," she replied with a light shrug. "And don't 'lady' me."
"Sure," Traveller nodded. "If the goddess says so…"
"I am no goddess. Just a detective doing my job."
"Sure," Traveller nodded again. "So can we contract you for… some help? We need to find a person."
"You could've do it yourself… considering what you are."
"Exactly because of that, I can't. The guy we're looking for is lost but not forgotten…"
"He remembers." Traveller turned and gestured to where Viter was standing with the expression of utmost confusion on his face. It was understandable as just moments ago he was sitting at his apartment's kitchen getting drunk and talking to the walls, then this Traveller guy appeared out of nowhere, took him out to the street where yet another unfamiliar guy in black leather biker gear and a motorbike was waiting for them. And then it got weirder, when Viter sat on the bike saddle and they somehow rode right to the battlefield of the war now over, but the one Viter remembered all too well.
And then this woman just appeared.
So he felt he has every right to be confused - and just a tiny bit glad the thermite wasn't falling on his head, instead lighting up the field in the distance.
"Normally I'd ask you to take me to a crossroads," said Madeleine. "But I guess a crossover is the crossroads of stories in a sense, so it'll do."
She stepped closer to Viter, looking him in the eyes.
"Talk to me, soldier," she said. "Tell me what you remember. No matter how bad those memories are, talk to me."
Viter saw a small cracked mirror in her hands but didn't pay attention to what was reflected in it… he started talking.
003
When he stopped, there was a moment of silence. The woman in red kept looking at him, Traveller smoke and watched the sky, the biker guy stood back leaning on his bike.
"We'll need a guide," finally said Madeleine and pulled a silver watch out of her coat's inner pocket, opened it and looked closely at the fluorescent clock hands. "Thankfully there are no shortage of dogs around battlefields… we can even be a bit picky here…"
The wind picked up, dragging the gun smoke out of somewhere over the field. Viter looked around but didn't notice anything unusual - well, nothing more unusual than his present company.
Then there was barking of the dogs. The usual animal ritual of send-and-reply at night when every dog in the neighbourhood has to tell every other dog that them's doing fine and every dog hears every other dog loud and clear.
Then barking ceased.
A black dog showed up from the smoke.
It walked in a way that made Viter think of himself when he was dead drunk. The dog made two steps to the right, then two to the left and only then one step forward.
Then, when it walked closer, Viter saw and immediately regretted his previous thoughts: the dog's legs couldn't bend. Each leg was probably broken in several places and healed badly… but the dog pushed forward, despite how much effort it took.
It stopped and fell to a side, unable to sit in a way other dogs do. It looked at Viter and Madeleine and barked, as if asking what was needed from it.
Madeleine kneeled in front of the dog and put a hand on its head.
"Thank you for answering my call, Enodia," she said, patting the dog. "We need to find a lost soul… and we can't do it without your help."
Dog barked again, spend a few more seconds enjoying Madeleine's touch then tried to get up. It was struggling with its four legs being straight no matter what - Viter moved forward to help it but Traveller put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
The dog howled. It was a long and drawn-out sound, making Viter's spine chill and making him want to duck for cover for in this howl there was everything: the buzzing bullets, the long whistle of an artillery shell, passing overhead, and a short "frrrt" of a mortar round flying in your face.
The dog howled, telling every other dog in the neighbourhood loud and clear that something wasn't fine, that someone's been lost and needs to be found and shown the way back home.
The dog howled and the wind weaved the bitter smoke into the howling sound and carried it across the field so it was heard and smelled everywhere by everyone.
The dog howled.
004
"Wh… what? Wolf?" Viter couldn't believe his eyes when a man in a military uniform, body armor and a helmet ran out of the night's darkness and smoke and stopped in front of them.
"Wolf? Is that really you?" Viter stepped forward. He didn't even noticed the dog's howling stopped.
"Viter?" The other guy said, shifting his piercing gaze from one person in front of him to another. "Where are the others? Who took my weapon?"
"Wolf!" Viter finally couldn't keep his emotions and ran to the guy, hugging him. "I never thought I'd see you again!"
"Well, now you do," Wolf said, getting out of the hug. "Can anyone tell me what's happened?"
"What unit are you with?" Wolf turned to Traveller. "I don't see a patch…"
"I'm with all of them," Traveller said, scratching the back of his head.
"You look familiar," Wolf kept looking at him with a suspicion. "I just can't remember… Special operations? Military intelligence?"
"There's no intelligence in the military," Traveller laughed. "We've never met, Wolf. And now we never will. I'm… I'm sorry for what's happened to you. But really… you'll gonna be fine, all things considered. We'll let you two talk for a bit, right Madeleine?"
"Not for too long…" She answered. "Nobody can keep the rules stretched for too long. And nobody wants to be here if they snap."
"Sure, we understand, right, guys?" Traveller said looking at Wolf and Viter.
"I don't understand a thing, but thank you!" Viter replied. Wolf just shook his head.
005
…Then Wolf left, following closely the black dog who was really easy to follow considering its stilted gait. It took them good five minutes to disappear into the night's total darkness.
Viter watched them go, not taking his eyes away for a second, making sure he remembers everything he sees. Then he turned to Traveller.
"Thank you… Traveller."
"Don't thank me," Traveller waved his hand. "Thank Madeleine, she did all the work here."
"You're welcome," the woman in red nodded, hiding her hands into the coat's pockets. "I'm just doing my job."
"Traveller…" Viter looked at him with curiosity. "I have a question."
"Yes?"
"I mean… I'm thankfull for what you've done, for letting me talk to Wolf one more time, but… how will it help? Him, his family?"
"You'll see." Traveller said. "You'll see soon. Just watch the news."
"I see… one more question then?"
"...?"
"If you… If you can find only the ones forgotten… How did you find me? Am I…?" Viter left the question mark dangling in the air sharp, as a hook.
"Yes. Yes you are." Traveller said without mercy. "And if you'll keep drinking alone sitting at your kitchen… well, you'll stay that way."
"Never. Listen to me, man," Traveller pointed his finger at Viter. "Never count on whoever finds your body to remember you. Statistically speaking they are way more likely to remember what they ate for lunch than yet another dead drunk. Got it?"
"I did…" Viter shook his head. Then shrugged. "I wouldn't mind a lunch right now."
"Ruprecht," Traveller turned to the guy on a bike. "Please, take our friend Viter to the time and place where he has to be now."
"You know, Traveller," the guy in a helmet growled. "I, actually, am not your personal errand boy."
"I know and I am sorry. This is the last time I ask you to do something for me, I swear."
Ruprecht growled something incomprehencibly German then nodded Viter to get onto the bike's saddle behind him.
006
"Do you have a phone with you?" Traveller asked Madeleine after Ruprecht and Viter left.
"You don't?" She asked back, taking the smartphone out and handing it over to Traveller.
"Not a weapon of war…" He said, opening the browser and scrolling through the news. "At least not of the war I'm made from. Information warfare is not my thing. Now I just need to switch to the right date… and search… and… here it is. Look, I'll translate for you."
"...The remains of ***, callsign 'Wolf', who previously was considered missing, were recovered and brought back to his hometown. The townsfolk knelt on the sides of the road to meet the car carrying the fallen Defender of Ukraine…" Traveller stopped reading aloud, turned off the phone and gave it back to Madeleine.
"Do they do this often?" She asked. "The kneeling I mean?"
"To honor their fallen, yes." Traveller said. "Not much for any other reason."
"Why even bring me here then?" Madeleine asked. "You could've just told those guys where to look for the body… That would've been considerably less effort and cheaper."
"Well…" Traveller looked up at the dark night sky. "Sometimes you need to put a considerable effort to make sure the future remembers the right past. So that the sound of thunder tomorrow will make the butterfly clap its wings yesterday or something." Traveller smiled at her.
Madeleine smirked.
"You're an oddity, Traveller. You can't impact the world of the living outside of your predetermined function. So you've dragged me into this. That much I understand."
"Nothing hides from your sight, detective," Traveller rubbed the back of his head.
"But I don't think this was all you wanted me to do," Madeleine continued. "Isn't it so?"
"True," Traveller nodded. "There's one more thing… one more loose end to this story."
"I'm not working for free, though. So your debt is going to go up considerably."
"Well… the old vampire I'm working for has pretty deep pockets. He'll pay."
"Hell always pays…" Madeleine shrugged.
007
*** ***, former brigade commander of the ****th brigade, woke up in the middle of the night. He scratched his belly, yawned and decided on going to the restroom. He slid into his slippers, yawned again, and rose up from the bed.
He opened the restroom's door and flicked the light switch, filling with bright light the long corridor with white walls that somehow appeared in place of the more familiar room.
The black dog stood there shaking on its stilted legs.
The dog barked. Once. Twice. Thrice. With each bark men in very familiar uniforms appeared behind the dog. More and more of them. All of them watching a man in the door frame with heavy gazes.
Then the dog said in a woman's voice.
"I bestow upon you the Curse of Memories."
The former brigade commander's eyes widened with the sudden recognition. All of the men in front of him. All of them, dead. All of them, his.
And he
Remembered
Each and every last one of them
He
Remembered.
