Chapter 4 – A Stranger in a Strange Land
The Solomiya family jumps down one by one from the high steps of a waiting locomotive. Each one looks with amazement at their new, fascinating surroundings. Iryna had never been on a train before, however she had always wanted to travel by rail. She would see the engines chugging along leaving trails of smoke behind them whenever they came through their tiny village, and she’d wonder where they must be going, what incredible sights its passengers and crew must see every day.
As the train whistle blows loudly she must admit the journey, while short, had been very uncomfortable. As Jews their fellow passengers hadn’t allowed the family to rest in the nicer parts of the train, so the Solomiyas spread out and sat with their boxes and bags on the platforms between carriages. It was bumpy, cold and noisy however for Iryna it was well worth putting up with the discomfort just to experience something so out of the ordinary.
Now the young girl from a nowhere-little village stands amid a bustling crowd at the Kiev-Pasazhyrskyi Railway Station. Hulking masses of metal machines belch steam and smoke as they stand in lines on their rigid tracks with all kinds of people boarding and alighting. There is such an incredible din to the place, the whole building is so very loud, no doubt made worse by the huge arched ceiling covering the central platforms. It’s an awe inspiring sight, the scale of the construction, its intricacy with its criss-crossing, interlocked beams of steel and iron, huge sheets of glass opening the dome to the sky above. The largest building she’d ever seen before was her town’s synagogue and now here she is beneath this colossus.
“Iryna! We’re over here!” Angelina calls out from up the platform, waving her younger sibling over to where the rest of the family has already assembled. With a jaunt in her step Iryna bounds over to her family carrying her fair share of their belongings in two tightly bound bundles.
“Isn’t this incredible? Look at this place.” Iryna stammers as she arrives.
“This is the industrialization our years of farming have brought us. It’s just a shame such things never made it to Moldanava!” Yosyp jokes, taking the slack in his suitcases and leading the family along, out of the busy station into the city itself.
The amazement only increases for Iryna as the Solomiyas march together down the packed streets of Kiev. She’s never seen so many people moving about at once. There must be thousands of them all around her on the roads and in the towering buildings. For someone so used to houses made of wood; the structures around her now are almost alien in nature. Thick stone walls, incredibly carved with master precision, stretching so very high into the air, up to four or five stories tall. Some buildings are topped with onion like domes decorated with vibrant colours and as the clouds in the sky part; rays of sunlight glare intensely off windows blindingly.
Overhead hang strange wires and cables upon which birds sometimes perch. As Iryna wonders what these fascinating wires could be for; the loud ringing of a bell grabs her attention, promptly answering her question. From around the street corner comes a strange contraption; something which looks similar to the train she was on before, only much smaller and without a steam engine. Instead this tram rolls along on tracks in the road while connected to the cables above. The cabin is painted a brilliant red and at its front is a bright light, an electric lamp. Moldanava didn’t have electricity so Irynas only heard of such things in passing. She wonders if their new home might actually have electricity, to be so very modern would be incredible.
After a while of walking through the streets of her new city; Iryna and her family finally make it to the doors of a large apartment building. For a moment she looks across the street and spies a long line of people standing in unison. The cue disappears into a quaint corner shop, with people entering through one door and leaving at the side carrying small bundles of presumably food. It’s quite a surprise that even here in the city people have to wait in line for anything. Iryna had assumed in the industrial world outside the country everything would be taken care of with efficiency and speed. It seems that she was mistaken. As she contemplates this; her shoulder is tapped by her mother and Iryna turns to join her family in their ascent to their new home. There's no mezuzah attached to the door of course, yet several members of the family still raise their hand to touch the frame instinctively upon entering. What new experiences await her inside Iryna wonders?
A tiny cramped apartment is all that greets the Solomiya family on the fourth floor of their new Kiev residence. As most of the children head on inside; Yosyp and Diana help Grandmother climb the painfully steep stairs. Inside consists of a sparsely furnished single room. Along the wall on the left side stand several bunked cots, draped in matted, rough looking sheets. At the far end of the narrow home, too thin for two people to evenly pass side by side, stands a small kitchen unit. There are counter tops, a fold out table, plenty of cabinets, one with its door hanging off precariously, there’s even a large metal basin on the floor, rusted around the edges with a soggy wash-cloth slapped into its cold insides.
The whole place has a terribly musky smell about it, made worse by the clothes which hang from wooden pegs on wires which span across from wall to wall, almost acting as a putrid curtain separating the beds from the rest of the home. As Iryna looks around in absolute disappointment she spots a framed portrait of a man on the wall dressed in a military uniform, donning a big smile beneath his huge moustache. All around the picture the green paint on the walls, with which the whole apartment is slathered haphazardly; peels off in chunks like scabs. There is no electricity here; Iryna doesn’t even have to check, the presence of a worn out gas lamp tells her that. Surprisingly something else is missing as well; a bathroom.
Back in Moldanava the Solomiyas were very lucky; they had a separate indoor washroom. Granted they still had to venture outside to the outhouse whenever nature called, however here will prove quite different. There is one communal lavatory for the whole floor and a shower for the entire building in the basement. Apparently the building's architects wanted everyone to be close. They succeeded. There is a small balcony for their apartment, something Iryna does appreciate. There has to be something she likes. Surprisingly however as her family funnels into the tiny abode they don’t share the same sentiment.
“Well this certainly beats the countryside doesn’t it children?” Yosyp asks with pride, placing his heavy case down by one of the beds and taking a seat, practically blocking the entire thoroughfare to the door.
“Oh, it's wonderful dear! Just look at how modern it is. And with your new job well; we’ll be living like the Tsar in no time!” Diana says as she sits down next to her husband, the bunks springs creaking loudly beneath her.
“Mother, there aren’t enough beds for everyone.” Eithan remarks. He’s correct of course; there are six small cots in total and the Solomiyas number eleven.
“We’ll make do honey. Some people might have to sleep on the floor but we’ll survive. We always do.” Diana says with a smile. Iryna looks back at her mother as she says this and can’t help but feel that despite her words, her eyes betray a deeper feeling of regret and intense sadness. It’s as if she can’t express it, as if no one can. It's not denial, it’s like that day with the Russian soldiers all over again. Iryna hasn’t seen Kyubey in weeks, but she desperately wants to. She hasn’t been able to call him with her telepathy either. She has so much to ask him.
It’s Irynas first nightfall in Kiev and it’s truly a bizarre sight indeed for this ignorant young ex-farmer. She stands high atop her apartment block, her long ice white skirt blowing madly in the high winds. Iryna looks out over a sea of buildings the likes of which she could only imagine before today. Many of them along her new street look almost identical; their most striking differences being the assortments of clothing residents have hung out to dry over their balcony railings. Figuring it’s important she learns more about her new home; Iryna leaps from rooftop to rooftop with ease as she explores her new surroundings.
In the distance stands Kiev city centre, where the buildings become even grander, such as the Ginzburg skyscraper, a twelve story monster of a building; once the tallest in the Old Russian Empire. One structure stands out among all others however; the Great Lavra bell tower at the Kiev Pechersk. Standing tall and proud amid the endless mass of residential buildings, this huge, four tiered tower is topped with a glorious golden bulbed roof, blazing as it reflects light from the full moon overhead. The bell tower is just one part of a massive church complex further into the city; also adorned with giant golden domes which have huge crucifixes standing prominently atop their spires.
Despite being a Jew Iryna can’t help but find this mighty Christian beacon to God an awe inspiring sight. Or at least it should be a beacon. Iryna finds that the church, known as the Dormition Cathedral, has been converted into some kind of museum. Continuing her exploration of Kiev this would become something of a recurring scene. Every now and then the young girl stumbles upon a church which is clearly abandoned, its doors boarded up and all signs of religious activity long since passed. Iryna simply doesn’t understand why. Had these places done something wrong? Why had the Soviet authorities cracked down so hard on these Orthodox institutions?
Continuing her tour of the city; Iryna drops down to street level from time to time to look in amazement through shop windows or at the rare automobile parked in lots and yards behind buildings. With caution she hops from tower to tower of the incredible Yevheniya Bosh Bridge across the Dnieper, an experience she’ll never likely forget, as such an enormous structure is almost unbelievable to her peasant eyes. “Large” is in fact a word which could describe most of Kiev she thinks to herself as she gazes over the grounds of the Kiev Industrial Institute. Surely this must be the grandest school in the world Iryna thinks, how can there be anything larger?
It’s such a bizarre thought that these amazing buildings are here in the same city as her new, disgustingly cramped apartment. Still Iryna doesn’t plan on spending much time in that place anyway. There’s so much more to see and experience in Kiev. Every alleyway may hold a new secret, every park, every abandoned building. She passes department stores and hospitals, gigantic factories with chimneys that plume smoke even at night, even a so-called “cinema”. She’s heard of such things before but never actually seen a moving picture. Maybe she’ll get the chance soon enough, she hopes.
As Iryna comes to rest against the slanted roof of a particularly isolated apartment block; she looks down at her soul gem on her chest. It’s been tingling for the past few minutes now and the sensation has become rather concerning. Indeed the Magical Girl notices that she has used up far more magic by bounding across the city than she had intended, and now her soul gem is beginning to get rather dark and cloudy. Iryna has a nasty habit of using grief seeds the moment she collects them, so as it stands; she has none on her right now. Her best bet for a magical recharge is to find a Witch somewhere nearby. In a city this large it won’t be that difficult. Iryna changes her gem into its egg-form and uses it in her palm as a guide. There is in fact a Witch close to her current location. So as the young girl jumps from the tower with confident determination she readies herself to get to work.
Irynas soul gem has led her in the direction of Kiev’s factory district, where the smell of smoke and sulphur permeates the cold night air. Every now and then metal beams and factory equipment creaks and groans as they cool down after a long days use. Reaching her final destination Iryna trudges over a gravel-coated back yard towards a pair of heavy metal cellar doors by the back of a large tenement building. As she approaches her soul gem blazes with energy, clearly indicating that she has found what she is looking for. Cautiously the young girl opens the unlocked doors, which screech loudly as she does so, before she descends into the darkened basement below.
“And God said let there be light.” Iryna says with a smile, her magic generating a small ball of illumination by her side, lighting up the whole area around her. What she finds in this abandoned storage cellar is incredibly surprising. All along its length sit row upon row of assorted chairs, all facing a podium which has been toppled and now lays shattered on the floor at the far end of the room. Scattered about are used and burnt up candles, their holder’s nowhere to be seen. It looks as if this basement was once being used as a church of some kind. In all likelihood it had been discovered by the police and shut down.
Iryna has no time to mourn the loss of this place of worship however; as she soon notices a familiar presence growing by the wall behind the fallen preacher’s podium. A multicoloured kaleidoscope of swirling runes and pictograms spins against the dull plastered wall, looking like a strange flower twirling, distorting the light. This is an entrance to a Witches Labyrinth, something Iryna has experienced several times now after she learnt to avoid falling into Witches barriers by mistake. Relieved that she has found her prey, the evil demon which has come to roost in this once holy place, Iryna takes a deep breath and steps through the mystical portal.
An incredible sight immediately greets her on the other side as she stands within what looks to be the largest cathedral in the world, something she could only imagine exists in Paris or London. A chambered ceiling sits impossibly high above her head and gigantic pillars stretch up to meet it, making the young girl feel so very tiny in comparison. The great hall is bathed in vivid heavenly colours as light burns through tower-block sized stained-glass windows depicting such recognisable scenes as the great flood and the binding of Isaac. They seem wrong however, confused and inaccurate with images of strange creatures and impossible geometry. The endless expanse of the floor is made up of a vast sea of mosaic tiles, forming intricate patterns and designs.
Despite this Labyrinth being one of the most amazing sights Iryna has ever seen, the Magical Girl can sense the incredible amounts of sadness and raw malice in the atmosphere. Then, suddenly, she spots movement by some of the pillars ahead of her.
“Oh Lord, give me the strength to face these evils and the tools to banish them.” Iryna prays softly. As she does so a mighty flash of energy, equivalent to a bolt of lightning, sparks violently in her outstretched palm, spontaneously creating a blade of pure angelic light in the shape of a short-sword for her to wield against whatever may be lurking in the shadows out there. It doesn’t take long for her to meet her mysterious observers; the Witches familiars.
“That’s just horrific!” Iryna blurts out loud when the subjects of the Witch make themselves known. They appear in humanoid form, as large as an adult, some clearly male, others female; however all without detail or facial features. Their bodies consist of a sparkling, white-crystal hardened surface which cracks and breaks as they jitter and twitch towards the waiting Magical Girl. The only sound these monstrosities create is something akin to shifting sands as they walk, leaving a trail of debris behind them as they come.
Iryna isn’t about to back down however, she has a mission to accomplish and a grief seed to earn. Iryna says a silent prayer before she bursts into a frenzy of action, slashing away at the familiars with her holy blade. When she cuts into the strange creatures however she is surprised to find that their bodies are actually made from masses of compacted salt. She can even taste it in the air around the foul beasts as she rips her way through their onslaught of troops. Further and further she goes, running at full speed down the cathedrals wide open nave while dipping, dodging and leaping over the horde as it swarms her.
Iryna bounds from pew to pew without falter, soon coming to what must be the centre of the church, a crossroads directly below the largest bell she’s ever seen. Beneath this crucible of brass is a strange object; a booth of some kind, with two doors covered by curtains. It’s a confessional, something the young girl has heard of but never actually seen. For Jews confession is done in private, with prayers known as Vidui. The idea of a mediator between your confessions and God is a very confusing idea to Iryna. Seeing no signs of progress in any other direction she comes to the conclusion that this booth is in fact a door deeper into the Labyrinth. Sometimes such things are layered; she dare not try to understand the logistics of it all.
With the army of salt-based familiars closing in on her, Iryna leaps head first through the curtains, being blinded momentarily in the process, as on the other side she finds herself in a vast hall, incredibly bright with lights emanating from no visible sources. The chamber bears the same architectural styling of the cathedral before, with giant columns and a floor decorated with tesserae runes. The most striking feature of this sub-space however is its residence, the Witch itself.
It’s an imposing sight; an immobile circular tower reaching high into the sky, covered in dark windows, carved pillars and spiralling stairs. From its open windows sprout a countless number of tendril-like arms, waving like grass in a strong breeze, tipped with razor like hands. They appear as shadows, detail-less, void of substance beyond their form, however surely dangerous enough to warrant avoiding. Satisfied that she has located her target; Iryna smiles a determined grin as she takes a stance ready to leap towards the Witch and land a killing blow. Before she can do so however, the side of the tower erupts into a gigantic explosion sending a powerful shockwave at Iryna, almost knocking the surprised girl over.
Through the billowing cloud of smoke now steaming off the Witches flank an unexpected interruption arrives; a girl, who lands next to the startled Iryna with princess-like grace. Her outfit is a dead giveaway that this sudden arrival is another Magical Girl; something Iryna has never met before. She stands up, adjusting her black fur hat and blue coat-tails before looking at Iryna with an angry, enraged expression.
“Who the hell are you!? Who do you think you are barging in here!? This is my Witch, my kill, my grief seeds! Got me!? Why don’t you just-” the mystery girl shouts loudly directly into Iynas face before trailing off as if noticing something about her. “Oh great a Jew. Just what I needed!” She moans sarcastically. Iryna is quite taken aback by this. For her first ever meeting with a fellow Magical Girl it isn’t going how she had imagined it.
“Umm. I’m sorry I didn’t mean to intrude. I was just following my soul gem to find a Witch and it led me here. I-I’ve never met another Magical Girl before! Maybe we can fight that Witch together?” Iryna smiles happily, clearly letting her excitement at meeting someone like herself get the better of her. “I’m Iryna Solomiya. What’s your name?” she continues naively. However unfortunately for her; her assailant has no desire for idle chit-chat and Iryna quickly finds herself at the sharp end of the girl's sabre, aimed dangerously close to her neck.
“Listen here Zhyd! I won’t repeat myself. This Witch is mine, this city is mine! You are on my territory and I don’t like trespassers. You’re new, I can tell, so I’ll cut you the benefit of the doubt that you didn’t know. But now you do, so in future; stay out of my way!” the girl snaps angrily, staring at Iryna with vicious, hate filled eyes as she keeps her blade an inch from her throat.
Iryna isn’t normally one to back down from confrontation, however here she understands that she has little choice. Swallowing her pride she nods in approval at her attacker, signalling that she understands. With that; the sword retracts from her neck and the other Magical Girl turns away to face the Witch in the distance; who has now recovered from the blast which subdued it earlier. Then, from the side of the tower emerges a pair of feminine lips, which open to reveal a colossal tongue as the Witch screams a thunderous, operatic cry. The flurry of shadow-arms burst from the windows once more, racing towards the two girl’s position.
Instantly the mystery girl leaps into action, cutting her way through the shadows with ease. Every now and then one of the arms narrowly misses her and slams full force into the ground casting up a plume of dust and smashed mosaic tiles. Iryna can only watch in amazement as this clearly experienced Magical Girl blitzes her way towards the towering Witch with complete ease. Before long she has arrived and begins jumping up the staircase which spirals the demon's evil body. When she finally reaches the top she plunges her sword deep into the tower's roof which results in the Witch screaming in pain before collapsing as any building might.
As soon as the Witch is dead the surrounding Labyrinth begins to decay and fade out of existence, placing both girls back into the abandoned underground church. Iryna changes back into her regular clothes while sitting on the floor, looking in complete awe at the other girl who does not transform. She holds two grief seeds in her palm, almost mockingly showing her trophies off to Iryna. With a smug smile she closes her hand and scurries the seeds away inside her coat before making her way towards the cellar doors to leave. Unable to bear not knowing who this is, Iryna clambers to her feet to catch her before she vanishes.
“Hold on! Who are you?” she asks in a daze.
“My name is Anastasia. Heed my warnings well Jew. I’ll decide what to do with you later.” The other girl replies threateningly before ascending the cold stone steps into the night outside, leaving Iryna both confused and slightly worried.