6:00

Let's go, Vanya," she says, as if

6:02

to the stuffed bunny. But

6:04

she certainly looks time right in the

6:06

eyes. How long

6:09

can you sit here stranded, reasons time

6:11

sneaking behind the child? The

6:14

girl confidently takes a turn at the fork. She

6:16

knows her way. The dim

6:18

reflection of the lantern rushes along the

6:20

walls. Don't you run

6:23

away, she whispers in the knitted

6:25

bunny's ear and pulls

6:27

the door. It

6:29

smells like prey. Time

6:31

wraps his paws. The

6:37

entire gigantic space of the production

6:39

facility built for machines is

6:41

permeated with human despair. There

6:44

are soldiers behind polyethylene screens. Some

6:47

cradle the stumps of their arms, some

6:50

smoke leaning on a crotch, some

6:52

lie on the rags turning their backs to the

6:54

wall. There are

6:56

others whose bodies remain intact, but

6:59

the eyes cannot focus on anything. They

7:02

look through the oil cloth, through the comrades

7:04

and the darkness of the bunker, through its

7:06

walls and through the ruins of the city,

7:09

where until recently they rocked their children and

7:12

loved their women, through

7:14

the sea from which dolphins reached

7:17

themselves. They

7:19

watch until the gaze rests on the back of their

7:21

head, turning into a cold

7:23

muzzle. After

7:26

taking care of them, she

7:28

touched everyone here. If she

7:30

were a human, she would become a med surgeon,

7:33

since amputating is your favorite pest

7:35

time. She takes away

7:38

hands, feet,

7:42

future. You're

7:44

not allowed here. Worry your parents.

7:47

A sharp look, a bushy beard, a

7:49

machine gun at his side, and Urza

7:52

incumbent blocks the girl's path. Like

7:55

the rest of the servicemen, he is a prisoner

7:57

of the production facility turned into a bunker. But

8:00

he doesn't look like one. The

8:03

girl casts a sharp glance at the combatant, even

8:05

her braid bristles, and the hair is sticking out

8:07

of it more than ever. She

8:09

tightens her grip on the knitted bunny. "'No

8:12

parents,' she says. "'I have to see

8:14

Misha.'" "'No can do. You

8:17

will be taken to the rest of the women and kids.'"

8:21

"'I have to see Misha.'" she

8:23

repeats softly. "'I'll let

8:25

you through, Captain. Misha asked about her when

8:27

it came round.'" "'My, I bet.'" "'Are

8:30

you Maya?'" The pale soldier

8:32

leans in a crotch. A dirty,

8:34

empty pant leg is wrapped around his

8:36

amputated lamp. The

8:38

girl nods readily. The

8:41

captain's eyes pierce the astute. Something

8:44

definitely clicks on his head, and he barks. "'Go.'"

8:47

Misha is beyond any help, thinks the captain. "'Time

8:51

agrees.'" Misha is one

8:53

of those who looks himself in the back of his head,

8:56

and is ready to pull the trigger. "'The

8:59

girl is all alone,' explains the

9:02

pale soldier in a hushed voice. Her

9:04

house got shelled when she was playing

9:06

outside, bound to smithereens. She

9:09

grew up without her mom and her dad is at the front.

9:11

The neighborhood who took care of her brought her to this

9:13

hiding place at the factory. But the

9:16

little one is feisty. Miss

9:18

behaves.' "'I see,'

9:20

scoffs the captain, though he sees nothing.

9:24

Maya confidently walks through labyrinths of

9:26

oil-clothed and cardboard, iron benches and

9:29

rags piled in a heap. "'Time

9:31

wants to turn back. There is

9:34

lots of other prey in this area. But

9:36

he doesn't want to lose sight of Maya.'" The

9:40

girl kneels near the pile of blankets and uniforms.

9:43

She finally loosens her grip on her bunny and

9:45

puts it next to her. "'I

9:48

missed you,' says Maya. The

9:50

pile of rags moves, uncovering an arm thin

9:52

and weak, as if it belongs to a

9:54

bad-ridden old man. "'Go away!

9:57

You're not supposed to be here,' says Maya. as

9:59

a man with a raspy voice. How

10:02

are you? Could be better,

10:05

jackals he. Hey,

10:07

cheer up, says Maya. I have an

10:10

idea. She is not waiting

10:12

for his questions and spills the tea. Dad

10:14

promised to return, but there is no place for him

10:17

to return. You know what happened to our house. He

10:19

won't be able to find me. That

10:21

means I have to find him. There

10:24

is no phone signal and grown-ups tell me

10:26

nothing, so you can help me. Maya

10:29

puts her stuffed bunny into Mischa's open

10:31

hand. The

10:33

young man crawls out of the blanket. The

10:36

pain contorts his face. The

10:38

thievery-ish roses are blooming on his

10:40

cheeks. I

10:43

can help no one, croaks

10:46

Mischa. Time nods. The

10:48

guy is septic, since his wounds haven't been

10:51

treated properly. He has days left. A

10:54

week, at best. If

10:56

everyone talks like that, what will happen

10:58

to us? Mischa knows

11:00

the answer, but he is not going to discuss it

11:03

with Maya. He notices the

11:05

bunny in his hand and

11:07

tries to sit up. Tell

11:10

me about your dad. How else will

11:12

I find him? The young

11:14

man leans against the wall, but even sitting takes

11:17

too much effort, so he closes his eyes. Maya

11:20

brightens up. My dad! You'll

11:23

recognize him immediately. He's tall, taller

11:25

than a captain. Pretty strict

11:27

when he wants to discipline me, but

11:29

most of the time he's fun to

11:32

be around. We kayak together and explore

11:34

the caves and even play soccer. He

11:37

took me everywhere with him. What's

11:39

his name? Nikolai Bunder. There

11:41

are a lot of people with that name, I googled,

11:44

but dad is one and only. He

11:46

also loves fishing and reading books.

11:49

And me, of course. When you

11:51

meet him, tell him. Don't you forget. I

11:53

love him too. Very, very much. Misha

11:57

forces himself to smile. docked

12:00

on duty, standing behind a fragile

12:02

wall of polyethylene and cardboard exchange

12:05

glances. Why Misha? Why

12:07

not? Time shares their

12:10

astonishment. Out of all

12:12

the wounded warriors, the girl chose the

12:14

weakest one. Where

12:19

were you? yells a woman

12:21

with faded eyes. Her lips quiver.

12:24

She hates me, says Maya to

12:26

a dark-haired soldier who the captain

12:28

sent to escort her here. Maya

12:31

tried to escape from him, all the way

12:33

she dragged behind, told him she needed to

12:36

go to the bathroom, sneak to the side

12:38

tunnels. Now he says why.

12:41

Who cares, love or hate? It's war!

12:44

You could die! And here at least you

12:46

get food and water. Aunt

12:49

Tanya, give me my phone back. Maya

12:52

gets angry. The bunny is left

12:54

in the hospital ward, restless Maya's

12:56

hands unravel her unkempt parade. Tanya,

12:59

her neighbor, looks helplessly at the

13:01

dark-haired soldier, then turns to Maya

13:03

and says softly, you

13:05

can't turn it on anyway. Everyone

13:08

knows she's lying. Go,

13:11

the soldier's brought us crackers. I left

13:13

some for you. Tanya

13:15

sends the girl away and Maya reluctantly

13:17

walks through the compartment with linen hanging

13:20

on the lines to the tables

13:22

assembled from crates and boxes. Maya

13:25

does not look around. She does

13:27

not pay attention to other children. I

13:31

can't give her the phone, the

13:33

neighbor quickly whispers to the dark-haired soldier.

13:36

Maya's father is badly wounded, somewhere

13:39

near Harkiv. The message came

13:41

when we had the signal. If Maya

13:43

finds out she will run away. I can't

13:46

handle her. The girl will

13:48

perish. Time shifts

13:50

its feet at the half-open door if

13:52

dropping. She will run away.

13:55

Time estimates the probabilities and decides

13:58

that it is totally possible. The

14:02

dark-haired soldier scratches the back of his head.

14:05

Originally wanting to help the girl, he is no

14:07

longer happy he volunteered. He knows how to

14:09

use a gun, but responsibility

14:11

for the life of someone's child

14:14

is not for him. Weaklings

14:17

thinks time. People

14:20

give up too soon. Only Maya

14:22

stands up, all alone against all adults. They

14:26

do not see, but the girl

14:28

has pieced it all together. As

14:30

only kids can, they unmistakably understand

14:33

all, while simultaneously not realizing they

14:35

are doing it. That's

14:37

why she chose Misha. The man

14:39

and her father will pass away

14:41

soon. People think

14:43

that there is some kind of room on the other side,

14:46

where all their friends and acquaintances are

14:48

crowding. And one can

14:50

give the message to another. Is

14:53

it true? He shrugs. Time

14:56

has been feeding on people and their ideas about the

14:59

world for way too long, so he

15:01

could not know something they don't. The

15:05

dark-haired soldier did not come up with any solution

15:07

and decided to return to the rest of his

15:09

mates. Time follows him through the

15:12

tunnels, listens to the drops of

15:14

licky pipes, and grunts,

15:16

suddenly remembering how old he is.

15:19

He has to intervene. As

15:22

people say, only time

15:24

will tell. The

15:28

smell of despair is still present, but

15:31

time has lost his appetite. Ah,

15:34

that's how it goes, Captain, reported the

15:36

dark-haired one. The girl might

15:38

become an orphan. They don't tell her,

15:41

since they're afraid she might go away wall. The

15:44

Captain has other things to worry about. Really,

15:47

he's in charge of the hangar full

15:50

of injured and unscathed soldiers with indefinite

15:52

futures. He has difficult negotiations to

15:54

run and an order that must be

15:56

carried out at any cost. They

15:58

have been hiding underground. small

22:00

back door, though. If

22:02

he takes a risk and takes Maya through it,

22:05

he can't pull her out, or

22:07

it will break her completely. Shooting

22:10

from a trench is much easier

22:12

than putting people's lives back together,

22:16

and he is surrounded by people, his

22:18

people. He'll

22:22

survive, says the captain, though he doesn't

22:24

believe it himself. Maya

22:26

doesn't believe him either, but her

22:28

eyes are not as keen as before.

22:31

Time breathes a sigh of relief. As

22:35

usual, Maya gets escorted again, but

22:38

she doesn't try to run away this time. She

22:42

lets a guy grab a hand and

22:44

tries to keep up with his long soldier

22:46

stride. Time tails

22:48

the procession, hearing the bunny that he

22:51

is sick and tired of now. The

22:54

people forgot about the toy, but

22:56

Maya might still need it. Sitting

23:01

in a burn-through control room, time

23:03

watches the last of the combatants leave

23:05

the factory. Children,

23:08

women, injured soldiers and

23:10

stretchers, it's all happened

23:12

before, and will happen again someday.

23:16

Yesterday, Maya and her

23:18

neighbor Tanya boarded the bus. While

23:20

they were passing checkpoints, time went

23:22

over several hundred years to wander

23:25

around Damaka, the Cossack fortress, and

23:28

among the trophies he found an eye, suitable

23:30

for a stuffed animal. Now

23:32

the bunny looks at the world with a coltent button

23:35

that fell off the sleeve of a tartar dress. Checkpoints

23:38

and check-in procedures continue for hours.

23:40

Time almost loses his patience when

23:43

he hears the phone ringing in

23:45

Tanya's pocket. Maya, not

23:47

waiting for her neighbor's permission, grabs

23:49

the mobile and starts chatting. Dad!

23:52

Misha did it! Misha found

23:54

you! Time sees Tanya

23:57

burst into tears. It's all

23:59

stress, no? nerves, etc., think the

24:01

people around her, but

24:03

the childless neighbor weeps because

24:06

she wanted to adopt Maya, even

24:08

if the girl runs away five times a day. She

24:11

weeps out of joy for the kid, since

24:14

the girl doesn't need her now. Time

24:17

touches Maya on the shoulder, trying hard not to

24:19

put too many years on her by accident. The

24:22

girl turns around and picks up a bunny

24:24

with a glistening new eye from the seat

24:26

next to her. Vanya,

24:30

Maya smiles. She will

24:32

remember a shiny button that was not there

24:34

before, and will remember that

24:37

Dad called her that day, and

24:39

will believe that everything is possible.

24:43

Time also tries to smile back, although he

24:45

doesn't quite understand how to do it. War

24:49

is sneaky, but she sees people mostly when

24:51

they are already dead. Time

24:54

knows them alive. They

24:57

had a bet. If the captain got out of

25:00

the bunker, if he brought out

25:02

the wounded ones, the women, the children, and the

25:04

combatants, then his sister

25:06

will release everyone, including Maya's father.

25:09

War sold the seed. It

25:11

was supposed to sprout, and people

25:13

were supposed to die of despair and

25:15

terrible losses, surrendering to their fears before

25:17

they were captured by the enemy. Time

25:21

put his bet on people. Even

25:24

though they don't realize it, it's

25:26

inherent in human nature to

25:29

survive against all odds. The

25:34

sister got angry. She is hated to

25:36

lose since childhood. That's why

25:38

she departed from the seashore to the east

25:41

to admire the night sky colored with flashes

25:43

of fire. Father

25:45

Plague will soon come here to feast on

25:47

the ruins. He

25:49

is not a petitsh one. Time

25:53

stays to observe the exodus of humans.

25:56

The line of people keeps stretching and

25:58

stretching, like the blood flowing. going

26:00

out of an open wound. Raindrops

26:03

drum on the wreckage of factory floors. Perhaps

26:07

they will be overgrown with ever-present grass for

26:09

a long time. Perhaps

26:12

something new and grandiose will be built in

26:14

this place. Something that

26:16

even time cannot imagine. For

26:18

he knows the past. And

26:22

as for the future, only

26:25

people can define that. And

26:31

welcome back. That was Against All Odds by

26:33

Anna Michalievska, translated by Elvera Riziyeva.

26:44

If you enjoyed that, Anna had a story in Future

26:46

SF earlier this year, Emil's labyrinth,

26:49

as translated by Alex Schwartz. Anna

26:54

senses these notes on Against All Odds. Anybody who lives

26:56

in a war seeks ways to overcome it.

27:00

When I was watching videos from a Zovstil, when I was looking

27:02

in the eyes

27:04

of soldiers left there, I felt that I

27:06

needed to do something. At least write a

27:08

story that would suggest new ways to cope

27:10

with a war. That would suggest new views.

27:15

And that's what I was looking for. Time

27:20

and love. Maybe that will help. I hope that will. Thank

27:27

you, Anna, for the story and the thoughts. There is

27:29

very little I can say

27:31

to follow that, frankly. Certainly not from my

27:33

safe and privileged position, protected from war and

27:36

all its suffering. I hope that will. Thank

27:42

you, Anna, for the story and the thoughts. There is very

27:44

little I can say to follow that, frankly. I

27:48

hope that will help. There

28:00

is no justification to this, of course, and

28:02

no purpose except to show up the fragile

28:04

ego of a world leader terrified

28:06

of being seen for his weakness. I

28:10

don't know why some in this world value

28:12

other people's lives and suffering so cheaply. And

28:15

I don't know why these people keep getting into such

28:17

positions of power. And I

28:20

don't know how to stop any of that. I

28:22

don't know how to change the world. But

28:26

I do know that people make the effort to

28:28

be kind to each other, even under the most

28:31

difficult circumstances, and that there is always hope

28:33

so long as there are others around you. And

28:35

I know that even if these things do not change the

28:37

world, they make the world better. And

28:39

sometimes that is enough. And sometimes it

28:42

is all there is. And

28:44

we should try to be that kindness in the world all

28:46

the time. Not because it will

28:48

change the world, not because it will be rewarded, but

28:51

simply because it is the right thing

28:53

to do in a world where we need each other. That

28:56

was our show for this week.

28:58

On behalf of everyone at PodCastle,

29:01

your co-editors Shingai N. Jouragagunda and Eleanor

29:03

R. Wood, assistant editor Caitlin Zivanovich, audio

29:06

engineers Devin Martin and Eric Valdez, and

29:09

our many wonderful first readers Andrew Kehoe,

29:11

Craig Jackson, Amalia Harrington, Julia

29:18

Pat, Kieran Korsaini, Ryan

29:21

Cole, Sarah S. Messenger, Shri

29:24

Kripa Krishna Prasad, Tava Nova,

29:27

Tieni Bailey, Zeeve Whitties, and

29:29

myself, Matt Dovi. Thank

29:31

you for letting us share another story with you. The

29:35

Legal Bit PodCastle is

29:37

part of the Escape Artist Foundation, a

29:40

501c3 non-profit, and

29:43

this episode is distributed

29:45

under the Creative Commons Attribution

29:47

Non-commercial No Derivatives 4.0

29:49

international licence. That

29:51

means you can share it, and please do, but

29:53

you cannot sell it and you cannot change it.

29:56

If you want specifics, check Creative Commons dot all.

30:01

Our music is by Shiva in Exile.

30:04

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be back next Tuesday with another fantastic

30:28

tale. In the meantime, you

30:30

might care to check out our sister podcasts, EscapePod

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for Science Fiction, Pseudopod for Horror,

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Stories. If your

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30:45

week. Be safe and

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be kind.