Dimitri

The General

Lia felt the pressure building in her ears as the SUV followed the road higher into the mountains. It was almost midday and the convoy of SUV's  had been travelling since early that morning. The southern route out of the city seemed clear though which was good news. Apart from some trees that obstructed the road - no doubt blown down in the heavy storms that had hit the city and surrounding areas recently- the road looked empty and safe for the annual migration south. Next to her, Lia felt Dimitri start to relax. His tense shoulders and jawline had indicated his anxiety through the early parts of the trip. Lia had realised again how much stress he was under. She wished she could do something to relieve some of it.

At the head of the convoy of the captains was two armoured cars. Then the SUV's carrying the captains. Branislav up front, Evgeny in the middle and Dimitri bringing up the rear. Behind Dimitri were another two armoured vehicles. Although Dimitri had queried the additional security he had been overruled by the other two captains. Instead of arguing the matter further, Dimitri had decided to bring Lia with him as part of his entourage. He knew that this move had made Evgeny angry but no comment had been made openly when Lia had stepped into the courtyard and the SUV carrying Dimitri, Vlad and several other soldiers. Alexi had remained in the compound with other council members. Dimitri knew that drawing so many military men and armoured vehicles away from the compound to accompany the captains was a risky move so he had left Alexi in charge. Separated as they were, the vulnerability of the captains and their people could create a perfect opportunity for an attack by the General.

As the convoy approached the top of the southern pass, Dimitri felt himself beginning to relax a little more. The journey so far had been uneventful and at the top they could stop briefly to assess the road down the pass before beginning the journey home. Next to Dimitri was Lia. He turned to her and smiled. She returned his smile and he felt his love for her in that moment.

Up ahead a massive explosion ripped the first armoured vehicle apart. The armoured vehicle behind it was forced to a dead stop. Behind the armoured vehicles, the SUV's had to follow suit quickly. The impact of the sudden stop threw everyone forward and Dimitri immediately realised that the convoy was under attack. In the next moment he heard the gunfire outside as the armoured cars behind him tried to regroup and create a defensive formation around the SUV's.

The armoured vehicle behind Dimitri's SUV was hit next. The explosion rocked the SUV.

'It's an ambush,' shouted Dimitri. 'We are a sitting target in the SUV. We have to leave the SUV and find cover in the mountains around us.'

His announcement was met with a stunned silence. Around the SUV the sound of gunshots carried on unabated. Cautiously Vlad opened the door of the SUV. As he did that a rush of bullets forced him to close it again. The remaining armoured vehicle behind Dimitri exploded in a burst of flames and heat.

'Damn' Lia heard Dimitri shout next to her. 'We are trapped here.'

She could feel his tension and fear. It wasn't clear who was attacking them but she knew who the most likely person was. The General. Another explosion indicated that all four armoured vehicles were gone. Worse still they were blocking the road ahead of the SUV's as well as the road down the mountain pass. The captains were trapped. Then as suddenly as it started the gunfire stopped. The eery silence was worse than the gunshots had been.

The sound of vehicles driving up the moutain pass became slowly audible. In the SUV carrying Dimitri there was absolute silence as the men tried to gauge the number of cars and the distance they were from the burning ruins of the armoured cars and the waiting SUV's. The noise of the vehicles drew closer and closer. The tension in the SUV was suffocating.

Suddenly the noise of the cars stopped. The tension became unbearable. Who was in the vehicles and why had they attacked the convoy?

'Come out of the SUV's. Hands in the air and guns visible ', a disembodied voice announced.

Lia felt Dimitri tense next to her. They were trapped and possibly outnumbered. There was no escape from this. He had no choice but to obey the command.

'I will go first,' Dimitri said.

Lia felt a wave of nausea. Typical Dimitri Even when they were about to die he was the captain who led by example. Slowly and cautiously Vlad opened the door of the SUV. Dimitri climbed out first. He lifted his hands and opened his jacket so that his gun was visible. Behind him followed Vlad and then Lia and the rest of the men.

In front of them, Lia saw Branislav and Evgeny do the same. They had realised as Dimitri had that resistance was futile.

The SUV in front of them was one of four. They had been able to maneuver past the burning armoured vehicles and now formed a defensive line. The middle SUV had tinted windows and Lia guessed held the man responsible for the attack. The General.

A heavily armed man stepped out of the first SUV. More followed and lifted their weapons, aiming towards the captains and their encourages. One of the men walked to the middle SUV and opened the door. He saluted and stepped aside.

Into the sunlight stepped a silver haired man. Dressed all in black, his piercing blue eyes observed the scene in front of him. It was the General. Dimitri moved forward to shield Lia from his gaze.

'You have aged, ' he said calmly to the General.

The General smiled a cold smile at Dimitri.

'So have you,' he retorted. 'Perhaps the strain of your duties wears on you.'

Dimitri tensed as the General observed the scene in front of him.

Turning to Dimitri again, the General spoke. This time though not to Dimitri.

'Natalia', he said. 'You have served me well. Come here and join me'.

Dimitri felt the rush of blood in his ears. The bile rose in his throat. Behind him he felt Lia start and then move past him towards the General. Her pace was steady and determined as she walked towards the General.

At the SUV the General stopped Lia. He held her face momentarily between his hands and kissed her on each cheek. Without looking behind her, Lia got into the General's SUV.

'You have 24 hours to decide how you want this to end,' the General announced to the captains. You will assemble in my main arena and hand over your power and people to me. Failure to follow my command will lead to full scale war and your complete destruction.'

The General climbed into the SUV next to Lia. The door was closed and the convoy drove down the mountain. On the mountain, there was only silence and the sound of the burning armoured vehicles.