The Smolensk Army

The snow creaks under the hooves of short Mongol horses; banners and standards flutter in the winter wind—invincible tumens of Batu and Subedei, carrying out the command of Genghis Khan as they march west, toward their famed campaign. One of the warriors of the young prince Mikhail’s retinue—a sorry minor noble, a local man, Pavel Petrov-son Remezov… a research assistant, a candidate of sciences—who ended up in the past during a successful experiment studying resonance fields. He isn’t driven into battle by the desire to curry favor, nor by brotherhood of arms—Pavel wants to go home and knows—almost certainly—how to do it. But the Mongols have already crossed the Vistula; Sandomierz has fallen; Khmelnkik has burned; ahead lies Krakow. And there, unexpectedly, Pavel gets held up—meeting a girl who reminds him of his old love, Polina, who tragically died a year and a half ago. And here she is—alive and young. And Remezov himself has shed twenty years—he’s now the son of a noble, a minor feudal lord, a “boyarich”… and a lucky warrior, for whom the retinue follows. Should he throw everything away? And is there anywhere to return to?..