Eternity RPC Board
03-09-2017, 09:28 PM
Bradea, Caladria | 22 Fein 1582
The "pacification" had taken more time than expected, to the exasperation of Lieutenant-Colonel Savel Paunescu, who was aware that a quickly successful military victory was the main chance for the success of the operation. However, the quickly mobilization of the Fifth Brigade of Bradea, which Paunescu had been informed that it was likely to remain neutral or at least waiting enough time so the center of the city was in the control of the combined rebel forces of policemen, mercenaries, para-military groups, and special forces, had caught them by surprise, and they were forced to withdraw to the port town and the suburbs around the island airport.
However, as soon as the reinforcements came from Histria, a new offensive started. The Fifth Brigade was forced to regroup around the central districts of Bradea, as Yuri Bogand, leading the unknown and unidentified Vestor Mandate Ranger Corps was pushing his troops with a decisive attack. Meanwhile, the rebel forces led by Carpathian mercenary Mircea Monteanu pushed back from the north. At the end of the evening, the Fifth Brigade and the remaining loyal policemen where forces to withdraw to the third district of the city, inside the Office of General Administration and the Bradea Assembly.
The Bradea Assembly had been under intense fighting during hours, resulting in important material damage and twenty people -seven of them lawmakers from several parties- dead. One of the halls of the building had collapsed, after artillery fire started to shoot intensively. Speaker Simona Hasdeu took the decision of surrender, as resistance seemed futile once Histria was under complete control of rebel forces. She was not willing to become responsible of more casualties.
The members of the Assembly were arrested, and Monteanu ordered they were moved to different secret locations, according to their importance and rank.
The next day, Lieutenant-Colonel Savel Paunescu announced the appointment of several provisional committees in charge of local affairs in each of the Caladrian islands. In the case of Bradea, it was formed by a seven-member committe, formed by two military officer, a police officer, two local members of the center-right Republican Party, and two members of the far-right National Unity Party.
Histria, Caladria | 27 Fein, 1582
Lieutenant-Colonel Savel Paunescu was meeting with a group of men. Paunescu's expression was serious and gloomy, as things didn't end as well as planned. Leaving Puscas behind wasn't such a great idea, after all. But it was too late for any lament.
"My men are prepared", Petre Florian told Paunescu. "But it is not much they can do against such threat. We can offer enough resistance so the invasion is slowered, or even postponed. But I can't see many options right now".
"I am aware of that", Paunescu said. "Our only option is to postpone the invasion and force them to offer negotiations. But that may only be enough to save the face, not much more".
"Situation is getting out of control in some of the southern and northern districts...", Ion Popescu, a former lawmaker who was appointed in charge of civilian issues in Histria, said. "Those Skathian mercenaries are giving orders to civilians in those districts they guard, ordering to leave their houses and moving them to several places. They don't speak the language, so civilians are getting nervous. This is not helping us".
"That must be stop", Paunescu. "What are those idiots doing?".
"They are obeying orders", Bogdan Nesterovek replied. "But they tend to obey them in a peculiar way. Don't worry, I already gave orders to solve this issue".
"Let's hope that's the case", Paunescu. "We have more important things to deal with in the coming days".
"I was meeting that Bogand later anyway", Bogdan said.
"Just tell them clearly which are the orders and who's in charge. If they fail to understand, just execute 50 or 80 of those brigadiers", Czeslaw Stryjkowsky said to Bogdan.
The Caladrian translator doubted about translating that. "It's time to be prepared", Stryjkowsky added. "We meet again in 24 hours, if necessary. Let's see how the deployments are working". Stryjkowsky, Nesterovek, and Florian left the room.
A hour later, a jeep carrying Stryjkowsky, Nesterovek and Florion stopped in a square surronded by large industrial warehouses, only a few minutes from the northern port of Histria. Hundreds of men, most of them wearing military or para-military uniforms, were moving large big packages and boxes, with trucks loaded with them moving toward either the nearby port or the southern road.
The man known as Szymond, one of the pilots who had transferred the Vestor troops from Lusby & Corwyn to Caladria, was there, waiting them and giving some instructions to one of the drivers.
"You have come at a busy hour", he said as they got off the car and approached him.
"How is everything going?", Bogdan asked Szymond.
"As planned", Szymond said. "All preparations should be ready in hours. We have been secretly supplying with weapons for weeks, secretly, and probably the Lanlanians don't know this. This may give you a surprising even if short-lived advantage, as the coalition may not be aware of the kind of military technology they are facing".
"Those large boxes include Grom-2", Szymond continued. "Maybe you didn't hear about it, and it is not the most advanced and updated technology in the world. But many of my clients were quite happy about its perfomance during the last decade. It was produced in Abdania, based in a Gehenna's design, and this artillery rocket has a range of around 200 km. It is not very precise, that's true, but it may cause some problems to the enemy navy if it is launched from not too far. We have quite hundreds of them. Grom-3 is more precise, with a slightly larger range, but unfortunately we had barely a few of them. They sold well, and these will be likely some of the last which would be in action. It is a smaller variant, easier and quicklier to launch, so we may try to use one of those in one of the smaller patrol vessels, hidden, in order to be shot when the enemy navy is close enough. We are training a few of those foreign Brigadiers in order to see they are able to do it".
"It sounds crazy, but who knows", Florion said, not exactly convinced.
"I was told your cousin was able to take, along a small bunch of soldiers, one entire military barrack in Maurnnia, which was allegedly guarded with more than 1,200 soldiers and protected with large and well-armed guards", Szymond told Stryjkowsky. "Of course, that was from a river crossing the jungle, not in the open ocean".
"At least it sounds something that Wladislaw would do it", Stryjkowsky replied.
"Where is he now?", Bogdan asked.
"Who knows", Stryjkowsky answered. "Nobody heard from him in quite a few years".
"And those small boxes...what are they?", Florion asked, curious about some boxes on the floor.
"These are Drahen-produced amphetamines, a not very well-known but popular variant in some places", Szymond replied with a smile. "It helps with unexperience fighters under long stress, as many of your men are probably".
A woman, with clear Southern Brigidnan features, approached them.
"Now, if you wish, you can go back to the central district. Lucian will take you there". The Calandrian officer left. Leaving the three men, who hadn't meet for more than a decade, alone.
Five minutes later, they were having a drink on the roof of one the industrial warehouses, while the woman was busy with her mobile phone. Down, workers and uniformed men kept loading the trucks.
"And what now", Bogdan asked.
"While you can stay if you wish", Szymond, "our work here has ended. It would be great to have a sovereign states in the Mandavines as client, of course, but that seems unlikely now. We have nothing to do here".
"What's your plan?", Stryjkowsky asked. "Will you leave tomorrow?".
"We considered leaving the place in a fishing boat", Szymond said. "It should pass unnoticed, we were able to leave in different circumstances like that, but it may be a bit risky with such naval mobilization and deployment. So waiting before everything is calm is a better option. Going to one of the smaller islands would be safer, of course. But it would be too easy be found there".
"I just talked with my sister Nicoletta", the woman said. "The offices in Jumbie are already completely clean. There is nothing they could find there, if they would ever try. A month ago, she acquired a small manor house nearby one of Histria suburbs, just in case. Some of you could stay here, before you could leave the place, once everything is calm. The house was acquired under her husband's name, so it is not likely to arouse suspicion".
"Let's hope it works this time", Stryjkowsky said. "I have to leave, there is some business I have to finish before the day arrives".
He and Bogdan left. Szymond finished his drink, while Francesca, the woman, just shrugged.
Polonda island, Caladria | Fein 28, 1582
Mordechai Canaan had remained the last week in his mansion in Polonda, the largest building in the island. Canaan was the richest man in the Caladrian archipelago, the owner of -between many business and companies- the energy company which supplied Caladria with 80% of its energy, and a hotel chain which extended along all Mandavines. Although he bought and built this mansion as a leisure residence, which he rarely visited, he was visible irritated and concerned about something. The day before, coalition forces had landed in the small islands, and easily defeated the remaining 50 soldiers and policemen who protected the island and were loyal to Paunescu's government.
Lanlanian soldiers had arrived early in the morning to Canaan's residency, and registered the area around. That they left without asking many questions calmed Canaan, relatively, as it may mean that they weren't suspecting on him.
Suddenly, his wife's annoying poodle started to bark. "What do you want?", Canaan said, irritated. A few seconds later, the wall started to vibrate, and furniture, paintings, and objects started to fall. Mirrors broke and a tree was close to hit the gardener house. His wife and Constantin, Canaan's assistant came quickly.
"What's going on!", Canaan's wife shouted.
"Down the door", the assitant said. "It is an eartquake!".
"And Ion?", the woman asked, but the couple's son entered abruptly to the mansion.
"The sky turned black! The sky turned black!", Ion shouted. Before they could say anymore more, a second and longer earthquake came.
Once it ended and they could stand up again, they could realize that the inner fire had shaking the island once again. "We have to leave!", the wife screamed.
"The road to the port is closed", the assistant said, "and the port is likely under control of the international forces...I doubt they would allow us entering there".
"Can you drive the helicopter?", Canaan asked.
"Sure I can", the assistant said. "I will prepare it, go to the hangar as soon as possible. And don't lose time! We haven't much time".
A few minutes later, the helicopter was already leaving the island. They could see a huge dark smoke, with occassional lava rocks jumping from the volcano.
"It is impossible to approach to Bradea!", the assistant, who had been a pilot in the Caladrian armed forces for 14 years, said. "The smoke is too intense and the ashes would damage the helicopter. We need to reach Argune".
"Are you crazy?", Canaan replied. "Look all that navy moving".
"It is the safest option right now", the assistant replied.
"We are a civilian helicopter evacuating the island, moving to the south...", the pilot said through the radio.
Five minutes later, in a nearby town
Things were chaotic in Polonda's main town. The usually calm island had been surprised by many events in the last week. The new authorities were unprepared but the first volcano eruption, and several villages were forced been evacuated, which obliged to create improvised camps in the surroundings of the town. Along the 25,000 inhabitants of the town, there were about another 3,600 inhabitants from nearby villages. The invasion a day before hadn't involved much a fight or destruction, but it was unclear what the international coalition was planning to do and who will be in charge of the basic logistics and organization of the needs of the inhabitants of the island, isolated for already a week.
Some inhabitants had taken the decision to organize themselves or helping others. That was the case of a small group of members of the Pious International Mission, who had bought a small terrain and opened an office in the town only a few months ago. In the last days, they were involved mostly helping those evacuated inhabitants, providing them with food and entertainment.
Symphorienne, a young volunteer of the Pious International Mission, as many of the inhabitants and residents of the island, soon realized something wrong was about to happen. The earth had been shaking for almost ten minutes, and it looked that the island volcano was going to break in two. Instead, an apparently endless river of lava descended from the hill, strongly and with fury.
Panic followed, and people started to going down through the main avenue, which led to the small port of the town, where a group of small group of Lanlanian soldiers could see a desperate crowd was approaching, with no logic that the wish of survival. On the left, Symphorienne could see how the old nearby church was drawn by the reddish lava, which just shallowed two Lanlanian military jeeps. Hopeless screams were heard, while the nearby villages could be seen burning on fire or sunk by more lava flowing from the hill.
"Quickly!", one of the members of the Pious International Mission said. "To the van! It is the only way out! Carry out as many people as we can!".
Symphorienne wasn't able to react, but a Muliner brother helped her to react, approaching to the van.
"We can't go anywhere from here", one of them said pointing at the crowd descending toward the port. "Turn to the left, there is a road which leads to the other beach, through the riff".
The van moved as quickly as possible, which wasn't much as it was an old vehicle, the road was in a poor state -if it could be called a road-, and the van moved slowly. The left the van, and moved through the cliff.
"Down there is a cave, which leads directly to the beach", a Calandrian boy said.
"What if the lava is filtering from the undergroud or surface?", a member of the Pious Mission asked.
"It is already too late", another man said. "There is no alternative now". They looked back and they could see as the lava has already descending through the streets of the main town, with people desperately trying to climb through the walls and roofs of the building.
They moved through the cave, which was almost completely dark. After five minutes walking and, in some cases, crawling, they reached the end of the cave. They could see then another riff above then, with a narrow pathway along the mountain as the only way to the other side of the hill.
"Move slowly...but don't be afraid, we are almost there!", one of them said.
They started to move through the pathway. A man, who was carrying a young boy on his shoulders lost the balance and they fell down to the rocks.
"No!", Symphorienne screamed, covering her face with her hands.
"It's too late for them, sister", another member of the Pious Mission told her. "Let's move". Slowly, the rest of people crossed the pathway. As promised, the hill descended into a small beach.
"Help! Help! We are here!", some of them shouted to the helicopters flying over the island, and to the ships nearby.
"These boats look in perfect state. Maybe we can use them. They likely belong to local fishers", one of them said.
"Yes, if we can reach at least one of the nearby islands, we may be safe", another one replied. "If we keep as less adults per boat as possible, there may be room for everyone of us".
Symphorienne looked back, and she saw as most of the town seemed disappeared under the lava, with no sight of the nearby fields where she had worked for the last three week.
The "pacification" had taken more time than expected, to the exasperation of Lieutenant-Colonel Savel Paunescu, who was aware that a quickly successful military victory was the main chance for the success of the operation. However, the quickly mobilization of the Fifth Brigade of Bradea, which Paunescu had been informed that it was likely to remain neutral or at least waiting enough time so the center of the city was in the control of the combined rebel forces of policemen, mercenaries, para-military groups, and special forces, had caught them by surprise, and they were forced to withdraw to the port town and the suburbs around the island airport.
However, as soon as the reinforcements came from Histria, a new offensive started. The Fifth Brigade was forced to regroup around the central districts of Bradea, as Yuri Bogand, leading the unknown and unidentified Vestor Mandate Ranger Corps was pushing his troops with a decisive attack. Meanwhile, the rebel forces led by Carpathian mercenary Mircea Monteanu pushed back from the north. At the end of the evening, the Fifth Brigade and the remaining loyal policemen where forces to withdraw to the third district of the city, inside the Office of General Administration and the Bradea Assembly.
The Bradea Assembly had been under intense fighting during hours, resulting in important material damage and twenty people -seven of them lawmakers from several parties- dead. One of the halls of the building had collapsed, after artillery fire started to shoot intensively. Speaker Simona Hasdeu took the decision of surrender, as resistance seemed futile once Histria was under complete control of rebel forces. She was not willing to become responsible of more casualties.
The members of the Assembly were arrested, and Monteanu ordered they were moved to different secret locations, according to their importance and rank.
The next day, Lieutenant-Colonel Savel Paunescu announced the appointment of several provisional committees in charge of local affairs in each of the Caladrian islands. In the case of Bradea, it was formed by a seven-member committe, formed by two military officer, a police officer, two local members of the center-right Republican Party, and two members of the far-right National Unity Party.
Histria, Caladria | 27 Fein, 1582
Lieutenant-Colonel Savel Paunescu was meeting with a group of men. Paunescu's expression was serious and gloomy, as things didn't end as well as planned. Leaving Puscas behind wasn't such a great idea, after all. But it was too late for any lament.
"My men are prepared", Petre Florian told Paunescu. "But it is not much they can do against such threat. We can offer enough resistance so the invasion is slowered, or even postponed. But I can't see many options right now".
"I am aware of that", Paunescu said. "Our only option is to postpone the invasion and force them to offer negotiations. But that may only be enough to save the face, not much more".
"Situation is getting out of control in some of the southern and northern districts...", Ion Popescu, a former lawmaker who was appointed in charge of civilian issues in Histria, said. "Those Skathian mercenaries are giving orders to civilians in those districts they guard, ordering to leave their houses and moving them to several places. They don't speak the language, so civilians are getting nervous. This is not helping us".
"That must be stop", Paunescu. "What are those idiots doing?".
"They are obeying orders", Bogdan Nesterovek replied. "But they tend to obey them in a peculiar way. Don't worry, I already gave orders to solve this issue".
"Let's hope that's the case", Paunescu. "We have more important things to deal with in the coming days".
"I was meeting that Bogand later anyway", Bogdan said.
"Just tell them clearly which are the orders and who's in charge. If they fail to understand, just execute 50 or 80 of those brigadiers", Czeslaw Stryjkowsky said to Bogdan.
The Caladrian translator doubted about translating that. "It's time to be prepared", Stryjkowsky added. "We meet again in 24 hours, if necessary. Let's see how the deployments are working". Stryjkowsky, Nesterovek, and Florian left the room.
A hour later, a jeep carrying Stryjkowsky, Nesterovek and Florion stopped in a square surronded by large industrial warehouses, only a few minutes from the northern port of Histria. Hundreds of men, most of them wearing military or para-military uniforms, were moving large big packages and boxes, with trucks loaded with them moving toward either the nearby port or the southern road.
The man known as Szymond, one of the pilots who had transferred the Vestor troops from Lusby & Corwyn to Caladria, was there, waiting them and giving some instructions to one of the drivers.
"You have come at a busy hour", he said as they got off the car and approached him.
"How is everything going?", Bogdan asked Szymond.
"As planned", Szymond said. "All preparations should be ready in hours. We have been secretly supplying with weapons for weeks, secretly, and probably the Lanlanians don't know this. This may give you a surprising even if short-lived advantage, as the coalition may not be aware of the kind of military technology they are facing".
"Those large boxes include Grom-2", Szymond continued. "Maybe you didn't hear about it, and it is not the most advanced and updated technology in the world. But many of my clients were quite happy about its perfomance during the last decade. It was produced in Abdania, based in a Gehenna's design, and this artillery rocket has a range of around 200 km. It is not very precise, that's true, but it may cause some problems to the enemy navy if it is launched from not too far. We have quite hundreds of them. Grom-3 is more precise, with a slightly larger range, but unfortunately we had barely a few of them. They sold well, and these will be likely some of the last which would be in action. It is a smaller variant, easier and quicklier to launch, so we may try to use one of those in one of the smaller patrol vessels, hidden, in order to be shot when the enemy navy is close enough. We are training a few of those foreign Brigadiers in order to see they are able to do it".
"It sounds crazy, but who knows", Florion said, not exactly convinced.
"I was told your cousin was able to take, along a small bunch of soldiers, one entire military barrack in Maurnnia, which was allegedly guarded with more than 1,200 soldiers and protected with large and well-armed guards", Szymond told Stryjkowsky. "Of course, that was from a river crossing the jungle, not in the open ocean".
"At least it sounds something that Wladislaw would do it", Stryjkowsky replied.
"Where is he now?", Bogdan asked.
"Who knows", Stryjkowsky answered. "Nobody heard from him in quite a few years".
"And those small boxes...what are they?", Florion asked, curious about some boxes on the floor.
"These are Drahen-produced amphetamines, a not very well-known but popular variant in some places", Szymond replied with a smile. "It helps with unexperience fighters under long stress, as many of your men are probably".
A woman, with clear Southern Brigidnan features, approached them.
"Now, if you wish, you can go back to the central district. Lucian will take you there". The Calandrian officer left. Leaving the three men, who hadn't meet for more than a decade, alone.
Five minutes later, they were having a drink on the roof of one the industrial warehouses, while the woman was busy with her mobile phone. Down, workers and uniformed men kept loading the trucks.
"And what now", Bogdan asked.
"While you can stay if you wish", Szymond, "our work here has ended. It would be great to have a sovereign states in the Mandavines as client, of course, but that seems unlikely now. We have nothing to do here".
"What's your plan?", Stryjkowsky asked. "Will you leave tomorrow?".
"We considered leaving the place in a fishing boat", Szymond said. "It should pass unnoticed, we were able to leave in different circumstances like that, but it may be a bit risky with such naval mobilization and deployment. So waiting before everything is calm is a better option. Going to one of the smaller islands would be safer, of course. But it would be too easy be found there".
"I just talked with my sister Nicoletta", the woman said. "The offices in Jumbie are already completely clean. There is nothing they could find there, if they would ever try. A month ago, she acquired a small manor house nearby one of Histria suburbs, just in case. Some of you could stay here, before you could leave the place, once everything is calm. The house was acquired under her husband's name, so it is not likely to arouse suspicion".
"Let's hope it works this time", Stryjkowsky said. "I have to leave, there is some business I have to finish before the day arrives".
He and Bogdan left. Szymond finished his drink, while Francesca, the woman, just shrugged.
Polonda island, Caladria | Fein 28, 1582
Mordechai Canaan had remained the last week in his mansion in Polonda, the largest building in the island. Canaan was the richest man in the Caladrian archipelago, the owner of -between many business and companies- the energy company which supplied Caladria with 80% of its energy, and a hotel chain which extended along all Mandavines. Although he bought and built this mansion as a leisure residence, which he rarely visited, he was visible irritated and concerned about something. The day before, coalition forces had landed in the small islands, and easily defeated the remaining 50 soldiers and policemen who protected the island and were loyal to Paunescu's government.
Lanlanian soldiers had arrived early in the morning to Canaan's residency, and registered the area around. That they left without asking many questions calmed Canaan, relatively, as it may mean that they weren't suspecting on him.
Suddenly, his wife's annoying poodle started to bark. "What do you want?", Canaan said, irritated. A few seconds later, the wall started to vibrate, and furniture, paintings, and objects started to fall. Mirrors broke and a tree was close to hit the gardener house. His wife and Constantin, Canaan's assistant came quickly.
"What's going on!", Canaan's wife shouted.
"Down the door", the assitant said. "It is an eartquake!".
"And Ion?", the woman asked, but the couple's son entered abruptly to the mansion.
"The sky turned black! The sky turned black!", Ion shouted. Before they could say anymore more, a second and longer earthquake came.
Once it ended and they could stand up again, they could realize that the inner fire had shaking the island once again. "We have to leave!", the wife screamed.
"The road to the port is closed", the assistant said, "and the port is likely under control of the international forces...I doubt they would allow us entering there".
"Can you drive the helicopter?", Canaan asked.
"Sure I can", the assistant said. "I will prepare it, go to the hangar as soon as possible. And don't lose time! We haven't much time".
A few minutes later, the helicopter was already leaving the island. They could see a huge dark smoke, with occassional lava rocks jumping from the volcano.
"It is impossible to approach to Bradea!", the assistant, who had been a pilot in the Caladrian armed forces for 14 years, said. "The smoke is too intense and the ashes would damage the helicopter. We need to reach Argune".
"Are you crazy?", Canaan replied. "Look all that navy moving".
"It is the safest option right now", the assistant replied.
"We are a civilian helicopter evacuating the island, moving to the south...", the pilot said through the radio.
Five minutes later, in a nearby town
Things were chaotic in Polonda's main town. The usually calm island had been surprised by many events in the last week. The new authorities were unprepared but the first volcano eruption, and several villages were forced been evacuated, which obliged to create improvised camps in the surroundings of the town. Along the 25,000 inhabitants of the town, there were about another 3,600 inhabitants from nearby villages. The invasion a day before hadn't involved much a fight or destruction, but it was unclear what the international coalition was planning to do and who will be in charge of the basic logistics and organization of the needs of the inhabitants of the island, isolated for already a week.
Some inhabitants had taken the decision to organize themselves or helping others. That was the case of a small group of members of the Pious International Mission, who had bought a small terrain and opened an office in the town only a few months ago. In the last days, they were involved mostly helping those evacuated inhabitants, providing them with food and entertainment.
Symphorienne, a young volunteer of the Pious International Mission, as many of the inhabitants and residents of the island, soon realized something wrong was about to happen. The earth had been shaking for almost ten minutes, and it looked that the island volcano was going to break in two. Instead, an apparently endless river of lava descended from the hill, strongly and with fury.
Panic followed, and people started to going down through the main avenue, which led to the small port of the town, where a group of small group of Lanlanian soldiers could see a desperate crowd was approaching, with no logic that the wish of survival. On the left, Symphorienne could see how the old nearby church was drawn by the reddish lava, which just shallowed two Lanlanian military jeeps. Hopeless screams were heard, while the nearby villages could be seen burning on fire or sunk by more lava flowing from the hill.
"Quickly!", one of the members of the Pious International Mission said. "To the van! It is the only way out! Carry out as many people as we can!".
Symphorienne wasn't able to react, but a Muliner brother helped her to react, approaching to the van.
"We can't go anywhere from here", one of them said pointing at the crowd descending toward the port. "Turn to the left, there is a road which leads to the other beach, through the riff".
The van moved as quickly as possible, which wasn't much as it was an old vehicle, the road was in a poor state -if it could be called a road-, and the van moved slowly. The left the van, and moved through the cliff.
"Down there is a cave, which leads directly to the beach", a Calandrian boy said.
"What if the lava is filtering from the undergroud or surface?", a member of the Pious Mission asked.
"It is already too late", another man said. "There is no alternative now". They looked back and they could see as the lava has already descending through the streets of the main town, with people desperately trying to climb through the walls and roofs of the building.
They moved through the cave, which was almost completely dark. After five minutes walking and, in some cases, crawling, they reached the end of the cave. They could see then another riff above then, with a narrow pathway along the mountain as the only way to the other side of the hill.
"Move slowly...but don't be afraid, we are almost there!", one of them said.
They started to move through the pathway. A man, who was carrying a young boy on his shoulders lost the balance and they fell down to the rocks.
"No!", Symphorienne screamed, covering her face with her hands.
"It's too late for them, sister", another member of the Pious Mission told her. "Let's move". Slowly, the rest of people crossed the pathway. As promised, the hill descended into a small beach.
"Help! Help! We are here!", some of them shouted to the helicopters flying over the island, and to the ships nearby.
"These boats look in perfect state. Maybe we can use them. They likely belong to local fishers", one of them said.
"Yes, if we can reach at least one of the nearby islands, we may be safe", another one replied. "If we keep as less adults per boat as possible, there may be room for everyone of us".
Symphorienne looked back, and she saw as most of the town seemed disappeared under the lava, with no sight of the nearby fields where she had worked for the last three week.