The boy, Illya Nichovich Kuryakin, crept along the walls of the Moskva orphanage that was his home, trying to make himself invisible.
Luckily none of the bullies who tormented him on a near daily basis were around, as he was near the Headmaster's office, a place they liked to avoid at all costs. He had only been here for many months after being brought from the refugee center in Kyiv, and learned quickly who was really in charge of the place.
The Director, Headmaster and teachers turned a blind eye to what went on, and were simply there to collect their pay. Ignoring the violence, thievery, rape and abuse was their daily routine, unless something unavoidable happened such as the birth or death of a child. Such things were only paid attention to briefly, in the time it took to 'take care' the issue.
If a girl gave birth, the child was taken away and never to be seen again, though it was said the infant was sent to another orphanage better equipped to handle babies. This one had only older children, from the age of six to sixteen.
If an older child died of a knifing for instance, that too was taken care of, and the dead were unceremoniously buried in an unmarked grave. The perpetrator, though, was rarely discovered as no one would dare reveal his identity for fear of retribution from either him or his friends.
Once reaching the age of sixteen, orphans were considered adults and were sent away to work on a farming collective, a factory to help the war effort or off to work as a servant for a member of the Party, all a life of bondage, in a way. That, Illya thought, did not fit the Communist ideal, forcing people into labor. There should be a willingness, and a choice to join the collective in a way as each person saw fit in order to serve and benefit the great Soviet Socialist Republic. Some were forcibly conscripted into the army, and sent to the front, to defeat the enemy or die a glorious death trying to do so.
By the time Illya would become of age, he doubted the war would still be ongoing, making his vision of a life on farm becoming his future.
Though exposed to war and death at such a young age, he had no fear of it, and wished secretly to be a soldier; that at least would permit him to enact some revenge for the death of his family at the hands of the Nazis. His time with his father and brother Dimitry and the partisans had taught him many skills.
But he was ten, small and could never pass for a soldier, even if he ran away and tried to join the army. That just was not meant to be...
The skinny blond boy felt like a member of the downtrodden masses, definitely in this place. He knew he needed to toughen up here, but that would be a challenge given his size. He would have to rely on his wiles, and cleverness to outwit the bullies or anyone else who would do him harm.
At the moment, until he could better acclimate himself to this way of life, and come up with a plan, he chose to keep himself out of view...the last words his Papa said to him before he died…'stay invisible." Illya was taking that advice to heart.
At the moment, he heard the sound of music emanating from a radio, coming through the closed door of the Headmaster's office. At first it was just patriotic songs, extolling the bravery of the Soviet people and the Red Army; the choral singers backed by balalaikas and a byan button accordion.
It was interrupted by a bulletin, news from Stalingrad... the siege had been going on for some time now, with the German forces of the 4th Panzer division backed by soldiers from Romania and Hungary. The attack was supported by intensive German Luftwaffe bombing that reduced much of the city to near rubble. That forced the battle to degenerate into building-to-building fighting, and both sides poured reinforcements into the city. The Germans had finally pushed the bedraggled Soviet defenders back at great cost into narrow zone along the west bank of the Volga River.
It seemed hopeless except for one bright shining light, it was a man from the Urals, a young soldier named Vasily Grigoryevich Zaytsev. He was a great sniper, and managed to kill hundreds of Germans. This feat raised him to the status of 'hero of the people," with his virtues and bravery extolled by Lieutenant General Khrushchev, and the big boss himself, Stalin. Zaytsev's successed gave the Soviet soldiers something to hold onto, inspiring them to fight inspite of the terrible conditions in the city.
The door to the Headmaster's office suddenly opened, and the man himself stepped out, grabbing the eavesdropping boy by the collar, lifting him off the floor. Kuryakin was small and weighed nothing, making the effort an easy one. Illya apparently wasn't quite as 'invisible' as he'd hoped he was...
"Kto dal vam razresheniya na proslushivaniye mal'chik ? Eto to, chto vy delayete , ne tak li_who gave you permission to listen in boy. That is what you were doing, was it not?"
"Da...I only wanted to hear news of the war. My family was killed by the Nazis and I want to see them all dead. If I was but older, I would be a sniper and kill them myself just like Vasily Zaytsev."
"Big words for such a little one. Very good, keep up that attitude and you just might make it through this war, or if it continues on, you might just get your wish to be a soldier."
"I survived Syrets, so I can survive anything." Illya boldly retorted.
That earned him a cuff from the Headmaster. "Do not lie Kuryakin, you are nothing but a street orphan...do not make yourself out to be more than you are.
The boy defiantly stuck out his chin, and pulled up his shirt sleeve, showing the man the blue concentration camp tattoo on his forearm. *
The Headmasters eyes opened wide. "Sooo, you tell the truth after all, little survivor." For some reason the Headmaster smiled at Illya, inviting him into his office to listen more to the radio.
"My son Yakov is fighting in the battle for Stalingrad," he said with pride in his voice. He ruffled Illya's blond hair in moment of kindness. " He is a commander of a machine gun unit, an artilleryman, and a commander of a reconnaissance unit with the rank of Senior Sergeant.
His platoon recaptured a four-story residential building in Stalingrad seized by the German Army, and defended it against continual attack by the Germans until relieved by our boys two months later. They are calling the building "Pavlov's House" because of his defense of it. It is said, for his actions in Stalingrad, he is to be awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union."
"I would be a brave fighter, like your son," The young Kuryakin boasted.
"I am sure you would boy, but not for now. Perhaps you may serve the Soviet people someday, after all we need brave little Comrades such as yourself."
"Spacibo, Comrade Headmaster Pavlov," Illya nodded with great seriousness.
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* read "Beginnings" for Illya's life before being sent to the orphanage. This story is a pre-quel to "The Orphanage."