Chapter 2

I don't know how long it had been, but the cool rain brought me back to my senses.

As soon as I opened my eyes, I found myself covered with a pile of branches. Through the gaps in the branches, I saw a gray sky and tried hard to recall what had just happened. Was I dreaming? But why did this dream feel so real? The female soldier, the sergeant, and the Germans—what was the connection between them? Why did I feel an unusual sense of familiarity when I heard Lida and the sergeant talking?

Apart from the wind and the rain, I couldn't hear any other sounds. It was so quiet everywhere. Quiet? The word suddenly sparked a thought in my mind. Yes, everything that just happened was a scene from the movie "The Dawns Here Are Quiet." No wonder it felt so familiar.

I pushed aside the branches covering me and sat up abruptly. Strangely, the burning pain that had been all over my body was now gone.

Thinking about the shot Lida had fired at my head, I quickly touched my temples and was pleasantly surprised to find no bullet hole. Only a trickle of blood seeped from my right eyebrow. Perhaps Lida, weakened by her injuries, couldn't hold the gun firmly, causing the bullet to go slightly off target, allowing me to escape death. I then unbuttoned my uniform to check my abdominal wound and saw a pool of dark blood soaking through the bandages. The blood had already dripped to the ground, mixing with the muddy rainwater.

I looked around, but Sergeant Fedot was nowhere to be seen, nor was the gun he had used. According to the plot, he must have taken the gun with the last bullet to confront the remaining German soldiers.

Sitting on the ground, I continued to recall the movie's plot: Lida had gone to the city to see her son at night and, on her way back in the morning, discovered two German soldiers in the forest. She reported this to the platoon leader, Kiriyanova, and Sergeant Vaskov. Since there were only two Germans, the sergeant took five female soldiers to capture them. However, they later found out that there were sixteen Germans, not two. After several days of struggle, the German soldiers were eliminated one by one, but all five female soldiers were killed. Only the wounded sergeant survived and captured the remaining Germans...

All five female soldiers who participated in the battle were killed, and the Lida I possessed was also killed. But why was I still alive? Could it be that I had taken over Lida's body?

Suddenly, the sound of a church bell from a distance interrupted my thoughts. I stood up and looked in the direction of the sound, seeing the spire of an abandoned church in the distance. It was an old, abandoned church, and logically, there shouldn't be anyone inside. Why was the bell ringing? Could it be the Germans?

I determined the direction of the church and walked forward. Along the way, I saw discarded boxes of explosives, helmets, canteens, and even a submachine gun left by the German soldiers. I picked up the submachine gun, pulled back the bolt, and found it empty. I then threw it to the side of the road. To me, an empty gun was as useless as a stick.

However, these items became important landmarks for finding Sergeant Fedot and the German soldiers.

The rain continued to pour, as if trying to cleanse the world. I stumbled to the lakeside, where the vast lake merged with the sky. Standing by the lake, I could see the abandoned church not far away, and the muddy road was dotted with chaotic footprints.

I was unarmed, and rushing in would be suicide. So, I used the trees for cover and cautiously approached the church, hiding in the bushes beside it. I parted the branches and peered at the church.

By the well, there were two dead German soldiers, probably killed by the sergeant. I walked over, picked up a submachine gun from beside the German bodies, and checked the bolt. Seeing that it was fully loaded, I quickly moved toward the old iron door of the church.

Just as I reached the door, I heard the sergeant shouting inside, "Hände hoch! (German: Hands up!)" I slowly peeked inside and, under the light of the torches, saw Sergeant Fedot pointing a gun at several German soldiers standing in the corner.

Despite their numbers, the Germans hesitated, staring at the gun in the sergeant's hand. I quickly stepped inside, leaned against the door frame, and aimed the submachine gun at them.

"Hände hoch!" the sergeant shouted again.

One German soldier lunged for a nearby submachine gun, their last chance to avoid capture.

The sergeant's gun fired, but unfortunately, the bullet hit the wall behind the German. I instinctively pulled the trigger, firing two bursts that accurately hit the German. He clutched his chest and fell forward.

The defiant German's death shattered the others' last hope. "Leyagai! Leyagai!" (Russian: Fall in! Fall in!) the German officer shouted repeatedly, leading the soldiers to raise their hands in surrender. Seeing the enemy surrender, the sergeant, leaning against the wall, let out a sigh of relief and slid to the ground, but he still held his gun tightly.

The German commander seemed to harbor a glimmer of hope, but seeing the two black barrels of our guns, he raised his hands even higher.

"Fyodor," I called out to the sergeant, but he ignored me and instead cursed the German soldiers in Russian: "What about victory? Victory? Five girls, only five girls! But you won't get past us, you'll all die... Even if your superiors spare you, I'll kill you one by one, with my own hands! Let them judge me, let them do what they will!" He used the dirtiest words and the most menacing expressions, leaving the German soldiers no choice but to follow his orders.

He gestured with his gun, ordering four German soldiers to tie each other's hands with their belts. Finally, he called the commander over and tied him up himself, securing him tightly.

After everything was done, the sergeant, leaning on the wall, struggled to stand up and picked up the submachine gun. He pulled back the bolt and aimed it at the five bound German soldiers.

"Fyodor, no!" As he was about to pull the trigger, I rushed forward and pushed the gun barrel upward, causing the bullets to hit the wall. The German soldiers trembled in fear and anger at the sight.

"Move," the sergeant ignored me and, using the Germans' own guns, herded them forward with a hoarse voice.

The German soldiers walked past us one by one, heads down, and reluctantly headed toward captivity.

The captives walked dejectedly in front, and the German commander occasionally glanced back at us, his fear not yet subsided. He was probably worried that the Soviet soldier might shoot them again out of extreme anger.

Suddenly, I felt a burning pain all over my body. Pushing the sergeant's gun barrel must have reopened my wounds. I was dazed and thirsty, feeling like my whole body needed water. I struggled to stay conscious, following the line of captives and the sergeant, staggering forward.

We crossed a small river and were almost out of the forest. I felt increasingly exhausted and could barely keep going, but I didn't dare stop, knowing that if I fell, I wouldn't be able to get up. The only thing I could do was follow the sergeant and keep moving until we reached our destination.

In the silent forest, only the heavy footsteps echoed.

The dawns here are quiet.

Suddenly, countless Red Army soldiers emerged from the forest, hills, and riverbanks, shouting and rushing toward us. It was the major and platoon leader Kiriyanova leading the main force to search for us in the forest. However, Sergeant Fedot seemed oblivious, still staggering forward, passing the captives, and continuing on.

I stopped and waited for the major and platoon leader Kiriyanova to reach me. I steadied myself and saluted them: "Comrade Major, Sergeant Lida of the 1st Platoon, 3rd Company, 5th Independent Anti-Aircraft Machine Gun Battalion, reports. The squad was ordered to pursue and capture the German soldiers who had infiltrated our rear to cause destruction. The mission is complete. Eleven were eliminated, and five were captured." As I finished speaking, I was surprised by how fluently I spoke Russian. Had I merged with Lida's consciousness when I possessed her body?

Before I could think it through, the major walked up to me, placed his hands on my shoulders, and patted me hard, saying loudly, "Well done! Girls, you did a great job! I'm proud of you!"

I was already extremely weak after my report, and the major's hard pat made me feel dizzy. I fell heavily to the ground, fainting.

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