The Great Decline – Chapter 15 - Part 01

The Great Decline – Chapter 15

The commanders of the larger DAG detachments were gathering together in a large underground trench for a meeting in the late hours of August 18. This particular trench was reserved for use by Headquarters and by the Party Central Committee. Right beside the trench was a goat path that led straight into the dense forest. The only giveaway that this trench even existed and that something important was taking place in it was the presence of two armed guards; well-armed with automatic weapons. About fifty metres away from the trench entrance stood a senior DAG officer surrounded by several armed lower ranking officers who stopped the incoming attendants and asked them for the password. Then, one by one, they were allowed to continue walking down the path until they reached another armed guard who stood at the trench entrance. Here, under the blurry light of a battery powered lamp, their identification papers were checked and then they were quietly escorted to the trench entrance which was covered by several branches. The branches were lifted and they were asked to go into a tunnel leading into the trench. The tunnel was lit by two oil lamps.

There was a wider corridor at the end of the narrow tunnel guarded by two more guards. Each attendant was again checked before they were allowed to go inside the trench. The entire floor was covered with roughly carved planks and the walls were made of thick carved logs. The ceiling consisted of a series of wide wooden planks from which hung two battery powered electric lamps. There were silent, barely audible conversations taking place inside the darkly lit trench. On the wall to the left of the entrance was a large military, topographic map and under it, along the entire wall, was a long table. On both ends of the table were wooden benches made of long planks of wood. On the wall to the right was a map marked with the latest front activity details. In the right corner there was a table with several telephone sets. Each telephone set was labeled with the identification number of the detachment to which it was connected.

The trench was cool, wet and smelled of mold. The various commanders arriving in the trench shook hands, hugged and looked at each other with wondering eyes, wondering what this meeting was all about. Suddenly there was silence and they all stood still. Zahariadis entered the trench. They all greeted him by a military salute. He began to shake hands with them. His firmly tightened his grip and looked them straight in the eyes. Once in a while he said a word or two, mostly joking around and quietly laughing. Following Zahariadis were his associates, generals and members of the Politburo, Vlandas, Barsotas and Gusias. A few minutes later General Markos entered the trench. He was a tall man with a moustache and an officer’s uniform and with him he carried two officer’s briefcases. Markos was followed by General Kikitsas. Kikitsas also had a moustache. Kikitsas several inches shorter than Markos’s. All the brigade commanders welcomed Markos and Kikitsas. They were familiar with these two and cordial with them because they knew them from the field where they often ran into them in trenches and bunkers.

Zahariadis sat down on the bench near the military map and, supporting his double chin with his right hand, squinted his eyes and began to stare at the faces of all the commanders in front of him, all dressed in old worn out Czech officer uniforms. Their faces were darkened by the sun, by the wind and by the gunpowder from the many bomb and shell blasts they had had to endure... There was concern on their faces and they eagerly waited in deep thought. Some had noticeable graying hair even though they were at least ten or fifteen years younger than Zahariadis.

General Kikitsas approached the large map and, leaning on his shepherd’s staff, began his presentation:

“Based on the latest reports that we received about an hour ago, fellow commanders, the situation at the fronts is as follows....” He paused for a long moment, looked at the faces in his audience and continued. “The 107th Brigade is holding its position in the Krastavets – Chrno Sector; the 14th Brigade is holding the Pirgos Kotili - Gorusha – Sinorite Sector; the 16th Brigade is holding the Gorna Arena – Tsrn Kamen Sector and the 103rd Brigade is holding the Kiafa - Skirtsa – Gramos Sector. A couple of units are defending Arena and the Officers’ School has been put on reserve in Sufliaka. We also have three mountain artillery batteries in our possession.”

He paused for a moment, looked at the map and resumed: “At the same time, our opponent on the other side has the following: In the Alevitsa Sector he has his 61st, 45th and 73rd Brigades from his Fifteenth Division composition. He is attacking the Gorusha – Pirgos Kotini Sector with the 51st, 77th and 3rd Mountain Brigades from his First Division. The Paliostrunga - Greco Sector is being attacked by the 21st, 22nd, 52nd and 53rd Brigades from his Second Division composition. The Likorahi - Petra Muka Sector is being attacked by the 35th and 37th Brigades from his Tenth Division. The Stavros Sector, elevation 2520, which is essentially Gramos, is being attacked by the 41st, 42nd and 36th Brigades from the Ninth Division. And the Konitsa - Doliani Sector is being attacked by the 75th and 76th Brigades from the Eighth Division. When put together, these forces add up to nine battalions belonging mostly to the National Guard, some to gendarmerie and territorial defense. These do not include military aviation, tanks and attack vehicles with which we are all familiar... Unfortunately we do not have any. As you can see, we have been surrounded… we are almost caught in a ring...”

He paused again, coughed into his hand, looked up at the map from end to end and continued: “If we are to compare our forces to those of the enemy, we will find that we are outnumbered ten to one. For example, the strength of one of our battalions, on average, numbers no more than 250 men...”

He was suddenly interrupted from someone in the audience who yelled out: “And women!”

“Yes. And women...” replied Kikitsas, continuing: “So, in terms of equivalency, we have to openly acknowledge and emphasize that our enemy has tremendous power over our military and that is before we take into consideration his Air Force, artillery and tanks, which, as I said earlier, are absent from my estimation and from which we have suffered major losses...”

He paused, looked up at the map and resumed talking: “After a generalized assessment of weapons we stand at 50 to 1 in our enemy’s favour. As you can see, and DAG General Headquarters has confirmed this,” he pointed at the red and blue lines on the map,

marking the positions of the two armies, “the way we are spread out it is impossible to hold all our positions. It is simply suicide. I, Comrade Commanders, based on consultations I had at our headquarters with the others, must ask the question: ‘What will we do if we get into a situation where we are attacked from Pind? And if that were to happen I would have proposed that we break up our brigades into small units, sneak back through enemy lines and attack them from behind. Imagine if seven to eight thousand of our fighters found their way behind the enemy?’ What would the enemy do? Would he continue to occupy the Pind rocks and hills? How would he exit from here with all his artillery and machinery and with that huge army?”

He paused again, looked around and then said: “Yes, Comrade Commanders, that was possible in the beginning of the enemy offensive. Now it would be suicidal... But the decisions made then were different and made by some other comrades who saw the rocks and hills of Pind as shelter, as forts, but now we have a new situation that requires a different approach to finding a solution... Therefore, I propose that General Headquarters, together with the Party’s Politburo, examine the entire situation carefully, in detail and then withdraw all our units from Gramos Region...”

He paused and looked at the commanders. There was concern showing on their faces. The tip of his stick, with which Kikitsas was pointing at the lines on the map, moved towards the top of the map where DAG’s forces were concentrated. He tapped on the number 1435, showing an elevation northwest of Alevitsa and continued:

“This is the place, Comrades, where we need to break the encirclement. We need to deploy our forces between Alevitsa and the border. Why here and why withdraw from Vicho? Here,” he said and held the point of his stick on top of Ginova Hill opposite the village Kalevishta, “because our enemy has not established rear support in this region. We have an opportunity to move our Vicho units overnight and gain control. Why from Vicho? Because we control the entire region there and the entire population has given us its support. Thousands of men and women, sons and daughters of these people are currently fighting in Gramos. With much effort and assistance from the local population we will quickly regroup and

arm our forces with weapons and start a new offensive. Our manoeuver, I don’t want to call it withdrawal, will take place during the night of August 20th, 21st,” he paused and looked at his watch and continued: “exactly two days from now.”

He then tapped his watch a couple of times and resumed: “We have two days to make all the necessary preparations. Regarding this, the Politburo and General Headquarters have already made their decision and given the order. Comrade Commanders, while you were on your way here, your deputies were given orders to strengthen their defensive positions and to continue fighting while being ferociously attacked by enemy forces with almost no interruption. A special squad has already been formed which is monitoring enemy positions in the Alevitsa – Ginova Sector. At the same time, our special units are increasing their resistance along the Gramos - Skirtsa - Kiafa - Sufliakas - Skala - Chrno – Krastavets line with aims at holding back the opponent, as long as possible, from taking these mountain peaks.”

He paused, looked at his audience with a concerned look on his face and then resumed talking: “In other words, to rob the enemy of the initiative to charge our units and to give him the impression that we are the ones charging him. According to the orders given by General Headquarters, deployment of forces and withdrawal of units will be done as follows: Over the course of the night, the 103rd and the 16th Brigades will each leave one unit at their current position with aims at providing as strong a resistance to the enemy as possible without concern for preserving ammunition. The General Staff Officers’ School and the 670th Artillery unit, under a single command, will be concentrated in the village Slimnitsa and Belitsa Forest vicinity. The transfer must be completed by dawn tomorrow morning. Then, during the entire day, these units must remain immobile and hidden from view. There must be no evidence of them visible to aircraft or to possible hostile observers. Everything must be conducted in strict secrecy. Every move must be done quietly and any resistance must be handled with cold weapons only. Actions to pierce the enemy circle will begin tomorrow night at 20:30 hours here in Ginova, elevation 1435. Then, after breakthrough is achieved, our units are to rush, at a quick pace, towards the Kalevishta - Revani - Shak -Novo Selo - Krchishta - Labanitsa – Smrdesh Line.”

He paused again, looked around making sure that everyone was giving him their full attention and continued: “The head of the column must reach the hills of the Labanitsa – Kosinets countryside by morning, on August 21st, where it is to connect with the 18th Brigade units from Vicho, whose command post is located on top of Orlovo Hill. Similarly over the course of the same night, the 107th Brigade, the bodies of the Western Macedonian Artillery Headquarters, as well as the 14th Brigade, under general command, are to concentrate in the Ginova - Pilikati - Krastavets – Chrno area in order to provide a strong defense along the Ginova - Slepetsmeno - Krastavets - Chrno Line until 21:00 hours on August 20th.”

He paused, looked around and resumed: “Tomorrow at 20:30 hours, a unit supported with the entire heavy weaponry of a brigade and a segment of artillery, will carry out a night attack on Stenichka and will continue to fight until the morning of August 21st. When the head of the first phalanx passes by the Ginova watchtower, the remaining units are to retreat from their defensive positions and immediately form a phalanx and connect at the tail of the first phalanx. At early dawn on August 21st, the phalanx is to take defensive positions in the hills surrounding the Goshovo -Boshkovets – the church Sveti Iovan Teolog (elevation 1017) Line...”

General Kikitsas paused for a moment, looked at the map and pointed with his stick at the hills he had just mentioned and continued: “After that the phalanx is to connect with the units of the 18th Brigade. If the phalanx comes under enemy fire, it is to continue on course with the units of the first phalanx. At the same time, during the course of the night, the Fourteenth Brigade must go in the Pirgos - Village Videlushche direction and press on towards Mount Siniachka, through the valley south of Kostur.”

Kikitsas spoke softly, but with conviction and every spoken word was perceived as an order by the commanders in attendance. There was rustling of pencils and paper in the brief silence that followed. The commanders, with notebooks on their knees, wrote down what was required of them for each of their sectors. They wrote down all the information and even though they knew every inch of the

topology, they again checked the names of the places on their maps for confirmation.

“The two units,” continued Generals Kikitsas, “from the 670th detachment under joint command, must immediately be provided with large amounts of ammunition and supported with numerous machine guns and mortars. They must provide strong resistance throughout the entire day and night of the 20th and 21st regardless of their casualties. They must defend the Gramos - Skirtsa - Kafa -Sufliakas – Skala Line because if we lose it, the enemy will quickly penetrate the area along the border and will close off the rim and I don’t need to explain to you what the consequences will be from that... Then, during the night of August 21st, the two units must move behind enemy lines and initiate guerrilla warfare... These are your orders as outlined by DAG General Headquarters. It is now up to you to execute them…” concluded Kikitsas, who took out and lit a cigarette and walked over to the table where Markos was sitting. At that point Barsotas stood up and said to Kikitsas: “General Headquarters Command decided…”

Kikitsas dropped his cigarette and squashed it with his thick boot heel and quietly, but loud enough for everyone to hear, sharply said: “I am a member of Command and there is nothing else, that I know of, that was decided other than what I said earlier…”

“Command,” Barsotas continued, pretending he had not heard what Kikitsas had said, “decided that you, Kikitsas, have to leave for Vicho tomorrow night. Command believes that you will be the best leader to arrange all preparations for the success of our units crossing over from Gramos...”

Kikitsas pressed down on his moustache with the back of his hand and, with a tone in his voice sounding like he was insulted, asked: “In what sense?”

“First,” replied Barsotas, “you are familiar with the terrain and then you have abilities to organize events that require taking serious steps in preventing the possibility of running into enemy forces from Kostur which may cut off our column... In other words we need you

to figure out the best option for this transition without losing Faltsata Hill to the enemy, right?”

“Well, it is understandable that this is a job for an ordinary soldier. I don’t understand why it has to be me, why do I have to personally go there and provide instructions...” asked Kikitsas feeling insulted.

After making his remarks, Kikitsas looked around the trench seeking agreement and support from the commanders but when he received none he asked: “Do you have anything meaningful to tell me?”

“Of course I do… and you don’t need to get angry...” replied Barsotas.

“Comrade Zahariadis,” Kikitsas angrily replied, “is it necessary to remind me of what I explained a while ago and...

Zahariadis, without paying any attention to Kikitsas, said: “Barsotas… continue...”

“In other words, you will need to identify the places where the units are to be equipped with arms and ammunition and to make sure there is enough food for everyone... For everyone...” said Barsotas stretching his last words.

“Is it important,” interrupted Kikitsas, “that I, personally do this?” and without waiting for an answer, continued: “Let me remind you that it was no other than I who studied the situation on the front and gave you the plan for these manoeuvers. Let me also remind you that it was I who foresaw the whole situation and came up with these measures… me! Markos knows about this and about all the times we discussed it before it was presented to you…” Kikitsas paused for a moment and then said: “before you were even aware of it! So, please spare me your frivolous instructions. The decision that General Headquarters made for me not to command this operation, but to be the first to leave Gramos and go to Vicho is, at the least, Comrades, offensive and disparaging...”

“Calm down Kikitsas…” interrupted Zahariadis. His voice was soft but carried a menacing tone. This was characteristic of Zahariadis

when he was simmering deep inside… and everyone knew it. “Don’t let your emotions overtake you. It is the least we all need in circumstances such as these. We all now need to be cold and determined. And you should know that just because General Headquarters decided something its does not mean it has the final say. On the contrary...” Zahariadis lowered his voice in order to focus the attention of his audience.

Feeling a bit confused and somewhat stressed by the situation he was put in, Kikitsas, while Zahariadis paused for a moment, took the opportunity and anxiously interrupted: “Who will then command the entire operation?”

“I will!” replied Markos.

Visibly surprised, Kikitsas calmly looked at Markos and, after a moment of silence, asked: “Are there any other orders?”

“No!” replied Markos, standing up and slowly approaching Kikitsas, stopping a couple of steps in front of him. The two men looked each other in the eyes and came to an understanding without exchanging words. They had known each other far too long and it was easy for them to know what the other was thinking. In defining moments such as these they always stood together, one beside the other. They rarely made mistakes. They also understood the others, especially those in the Party political leadership. But they in the Party did not understand them and always tried to sow discord between them.

“No, there are no other orders, General Kikitsas…” replied Markos breaking the silence.

“May I go now?” asked Kikitsas.

“I think we are done here...” replied Markos in a pleading voice. “You are dismissed.”

Kikitsas saluted Markos military style, turned and went to the exit.

The guard stood at attention. He was only a few steps away from the entrance and was looking up at the sky. Kikitsas spoke to him and

said: “Look down… in front of you… Now tell me, where are the couriers?”

“Over there, Sir!” replied the guard, pointing with his hand.

“Courier!” Kikitsas yelled and walked towards them.

One ran towards him and the General said: “You are coming with me. Call Markos’s personal couriers and prepare their horses immediately.”

The four couriers, who always followed in Markos’s footsteps and never openly deviated from him, carefully listened to Kikitsas who told them: “What I am about to tell you is a favour and a strict order. You are to constantly keep an eye on Markos. You are never, not for a moment, to leave him unattended. You go wherever he goes, even to the toilet. From now on you are responsible for his safety and you will answer to me with your heads if something happens to him. If something happens to the General… it will be execution with out a trial for you… When we meet again you will personally report to me!”

Kikitsas looked at his watch. It was one o’clock in the morning. He and the couriers stepped outside and, under the dark shade of the pine trees, could barely make out a silhouette that looked like Markos. There was a gust of wind. It was cool and moist. It shook the branches slightly, enough to make the leaves rustle. High above, the tops of the pine trees were playfully rocking back and forth. Further down, about ten steps down the hill, the Bistritsa waters ran like a torrent. It had rained a couple of days before. From time to time voices were heard speaking in the distance and horse hooves pounded the goat paths.

Kikitsas turned on his battery powered flashlight and so did the others. There were three short beams and one long beam of light shining in the distance.

“Let us go now,” said the General, again addressing the couriers: “You must not forget your orders! Keep Markos safe!” As they continued to walk in the dark they split up and Kikitsas and one of

the couriers took a different path. When they reached the outer circle of the protected zone, Kikitsas stopped walking and sat down.

“My foot has been hurting all day,” he said, “this damn boot doesn’t fit properly. I need to rub my foot. The pain is from an old wound.”

About ten minutes later, Kikitsas put his boot back on, stood up, stomped the ground several times as if testing its integrity and suddenly stopped. At that very moment, the silence was broken by a long burst of machine gun fire which echoed loudly in the mountains. Within seconds more machine guns began to fire.

“Alevitsa...” said Kikitsas quietly.

“No. I think it’s closer…” muttered the courier with uncertainty in his voice.

“It must be one of ours then. I have the impression that the enemy is trying to break through Pilikati. Let’s move a little faster. This damn boot! We lost so much time because of it!” said the General. “Let us not enter Slimnitsa, it will take too long to go through security. We don’t have that much time. Let’s bypass it. You know other paths that lead to Videhova, right?” asked the General.

“I know this place like the back of my hand!” boasted the courier.

“Then walk ahead of me,” said Kikitsas.

After about half an hour of walking they were stopped in their tracks by the loud and stern voice of a guard. They ran into a large unit. The courier asked for the commander. A short compact man approached them in the dark and, after introducing himself and the number of his unit, advised them not to continue. He said: “It is not a good idea, General, to continue on your trip. There are enemy scouts all over the place sniffing around...”

“You are telling me they are sniffing around?” the General interrupted sharply. “Why then aren’t you doing something to stop them?”

“Well, General, I have my orders… I received new orders. I must stay here and defend my position to the last man... Those are my orders. If you think I should be doing something else, then you will have to clear it with Command… in writing…” said the commander and abruptly stopped talking. After a long silence the commander asked, “Do you have other orders for me?”

“No! Execute your current orders!” ordered Kikitsas and then asked: “The machine gun bursts?”

“It was one of our units defending Ginova. It seems that the enemy intends to close the border,” replied the commander.

The general said goodbye to the commander and, while shaking his hand, asked: “How far is it to the border?”

The commander took out a map from his officer’s briefcase, turned on his battery powered flashlight and said: “We are here…”

“And Videhova is?” asked Kikitsas.

The flashlight circle moved north and the commander said: “Videhova is here… here… on the other side of the border. In Albania,” he explained. “The closest road to Videhova is here,” he again pointed with his flashlight. “You should turn left here. My units are still holding this road. I will give you two of my couriers to escort you to the border.

“And how far is that?” asked Kikitsas.

“About half an hour’s walk,” replied the commander.

“Commander,” said Kikitsas quietly, “I am going on a special mission…”

“I Understand...” replied the commander.

“Half an hour’s walk is too much for my wounded leg. Do you happen to have a horse?”

“I will find one for you Sir,” replied the commander.

The commander called on one of his couriers and said: “Go find two horses and bring them here. Then ask two couriers to escort the general…” He wanted to say to the border but realized that it was inappropriate and said: “To escort the general to his destination…”

The courier brought the horses and whispered to the commander: “We were told that Ginova fell.” The commander then quickly informed General Kikitsas.

“I expected that,” said the general. “You follow your orders and hold onto this place, we will hurry to our destination. You suggested we travel on this road, right?” he pointed to the map and then turned to his courier and asked: “Are you familiar with these places?”

“Like the back of my hand, General!” replied the courier.

“I also have a local here from Ianoveni and he too, General, knows these places well...” said the commander.

“Call him then… or better not. We can’t wait much longer. We lost nearly twenty minutes already. We need to go now. In the meantime, please call and inform your superior and Command that Ginova fell. Goodbye Commander!

The horses had no problem traversing the narrow path in the forest. It was dark in the dense forest among the tall trees and the only visibility available was that from the flashes of many flying and exploding rockets that scraped the sky above Alevitsa. They turned left as they were instructed and in almost twenty minutes, the escorting couriers stopped.

“General, this is the border,” said one of the couriers and, in the dark, pointed with his hand.

“Good. You go back now, we will continue,” replied the general.

The courier got off his horse, held out the flashlight in his left hand and, with his left arm stretched out, turned it on and off a few times.

This was the signal warning the Albanian border patrol of their presence. Three short, two long dashes of light was the signal for crossing the border. The horse hooves with an evenly rapid trot beat the rocky path.

“Stop!” a young man’s voice was heard echoing in the dark, followed by a metallic sound of a rifle being prepared to fire.

The courier turned his flashlight towards the direction of the voice and repeated the signal.

“Proceed!” commanded the same voice in Albanian, now a bit calmer.

They followed the guard, who with short flashes with his flashlight showed them the way. About one hundred steps later they were inside Albania and were joined by an Albanian military officer who spoke Greek. He said: “Comrade General a jeep is waiting for you. The horses will remain here. I have orders to escort you to the border where you are to exit near Smrdesh…”

The jeep was parked in front of Command at Videhova. The engine was running quietly. The driver, lighting his way with his battery powered flashlight, was testing the tires by kicking them with his heavy boots. A soldier took the horses and the three silently boarded the jeep: the Albanian officer and Kikitsas sat in the back seat and the courier sat with the driver in the front seat.

“Drive!” ordered the Albanian officer.

The jeep moved slowly through the dark streets of the border town, which due to the proximity of the front was completely dark. On the way out of town, Kikitsas turned to the officer and said: “I need to get to my destination as soon as possible…”

“I understand General,” said the officer. “Necessary orders have already been given to the patrols to let our vehicle pass. Unfortunately the road is bad all the way to Kiuteza. We will lose a lot of time because of that. The heavy rains and trucks traveling over it ruined it but soon we will get on the Bozhigrad – Bilishta

highway. Then the next thirty kilometres will be a breeze... If you can, please go ahead and rest a little...”

They arrived at the border at dawn. Kikitsas asked if they could continue without delay. He said: “Please instruct the driver to drive directly to Command in Smrdesh.”

A truck appeared with lights off at the other side of the border. The jeep stopped and waited for the column of trucks to pass. They continued on their way. Further along they heard a sharp, squeaky voice yell: “Stop!”

A tall man came out from the two-storey house next to them, rushing to button his officer’s shirt. He ran towards the jeep. Kikitsas slowly got out of the vehicle. The officer stood at attention in front of Kikitsas and tried to introduce himself as the commander of the People’s Militia command post.

“No need!” interrupted Kikitsas, waving his hand. “Take me to Command!” he ordered.

The room was large and smelled of mountain tea boiling. To the left, near the window was an iron bed, unmade and visible by moonlight.

“It looks like you just woke up?” remarked Kikitsas. The commander looked grim and rushed to make the bed.

“Leave it! Leave it!” ordered Kikitsas with a tone of command.

To the right, next to the wall was a large table with several telephone sets resting on it. Kikitsas undid his belt and placed his officer’s briefcase on the table. He then pointed at an empty chair with his eyes and said: “Sorry, young man, I did not introduce myself. I am…”

“General Kikitsas!” interrupted the commander. “I recognized you General... from the officers’ school… Third class... and I was also informed by Headquarters that you were coming...”

“Well then let’s get to work... Sit... Find me the chief quartermaster first then find me the commander of arms and ammunition... Let’s go, start dialing!”

While the commander of the Smrdesh command was executing his orders, DAG General Headquarters was having a meeting.

“On the morning of August 20th,” continued Barsotas, “the units are to gather in pre-designated places as ordered by General Headquarters. Each one of you will receive your part of the detailed order which specifically relates to your units. I will only explain the general terms now. I must emphasize that the operation must be conducted with haste and in utmost secrecy. In other words at 23:00 hours our 16th Division units will charge and attack Ginova in total silence. They will approach their target quietly so as not to be detected and at the agreed upon time they with surprise the enemy by rushing it with the use of hand grenades, knives, swords and fists and, if necessary, with pancerfausts; they will throw everything at the enemy. The attack should not take more than fifteen minutes. I repeat, no more than fifteen minutes. The 17th Division will follow right behind the 16th. The battalion from the 107th Brigade and a couple of units from the Officers’ School, immediately after crossing, will open a front on the hills around the village Revani, to protect the right flank of the phalanx. The remaining forces from the 107th Brigade will be deployed from the village Ianoveni in the direction of the village Stenichka where they will engage the enemy through a surprise attack at 20:30 hours and continue until morning. This will give the enemy the impression that DAG is attacking the Nestpam – Kostur corridor and take enemy attention away from the Alevitsa – Ginova position.”

Barsotas paused for a moment, looked around and continued: “At 00:30 hours, on August 21st, I repeat, at 00:30 hours, on August 21st, remember this well, the opening of the enemy defense line will begin and the head of our units will start their exit. At 03:30 hours the head of our units must find its way into the hills of the village Krchishcha. The remaining units will follow. By 08:30 hours, the units in the vicinity of Krchishcha must create a strong defensive position in order to protect the phalanx which, by the afternoon hours, must find its way to the villages Kosinets and Labanitsa with

its head reaching the village Smrdesh. From there it must proceed towards Breznitsa, Rula and Zhelevo where it will be intercepted and supplied with food and ammunition by our units,” he paused and looked at his watch, “because by this time Kikitsas, I believe, would have arrived and made the necessary preparations…”

Barsotas stopped talking, looked around at the sober faces and resumed: “I want to share my belief with you that we have abandoned Gramos but only temporarily, for strategic purposes. For that reason I want all our heavy weapons to remain there, hidden, buried underground. I want all warehouses with weapons and ammunition to be locked up and secured. You are to ask your fighters to take as much ammunition with them as they will need. I also have a special request for the commander of the General Hospital. All wounded must be transferred over the border, as soon as possible. The transfer must begin immediately. No wounded are to be left behind on the battlefields during the penetration and movement of the phalanx, not a single wounded. Even those near death, who will eventually die on the way, must also be taken. Comrades, commanders that is all! Now go back to your posts and prepare for the operation...”

It was 3 o’clock in the morning, August 19th. The meeting participants, one by one left the smoky trench. Outside, a cool mountain breeze caressed their faces and filled their chests with morning freshness and the fragrance of resin.

Kikitsas, while waiting for the commander to make contact with the chief quartermaster and commander of arms and ammunition, was getting tired and sleepy. He was snoozing, military style, while holding his head with his hands and resting his elbows on the table. He suddenly jumped and raised his head. He was surprised by the silence; there was no shooting...

“It’s the commander of arms and ammunition,” he heard a soft voice say after he felt a light touch on his shoulder. Kikitsas looked up and the first thing he saw was the handset of a telephone close to his face.

“General Kikitsas here!” he said abruptly, skipping the pleasantries. The most important thing at this very moment for him was to make contact and execute the orders. Kikitsas was surprised by the sharpness of his own voice and the strength it carried. Before that, while waiting for the connection to be made, he had thought about what to say and how to say it: Should he say just his name or his name and rank? He did not know the man on the other side of the line. The man on the other side was a noncombatant accustomed to sleeping in and working away from the front. He had contacts at the top of the organization and keys to the bread, meat, sugar, flour and who knows what else? So, the General wondered if the man on the other side of the line would even know him if he just said his name without his rank? He was not even sure if this man yielded to army discipline. And as such the General decided to present himself by name and rank and with a stern tone of voice. “General Kikitsas here!” he again yelled into the telephone mouthpiece. “Listen to me carefully...” the General interrupted before the man even had a chance to introduce himself.

“I am authorized by General Headquarters to immediately start moving arms and ammunition and deploy it along the road between the villages Breznitsa and Smrdesh. What does this include?! It includes rifles, machine guns, automatic rifles, mortars large and small and plenty of ammunition. Do you have all that?”

“Yes we do!” said the man on the other side of the line. “The warehouses are full. Packed...” he added.

“Good. Begin to empty them immediately! Deploy everything that we can carry. Order your people to go out and mobilize the peasants from nearby villages! Do you have any trucks available?” ordered Kikitsas.

“We have only ten,” replied the man.

“Get everyone ready and when darkness falls use the trucks, mules, horses, donkeys, oxen, people’s shoulders, etc., and begin the move. Get it done!”

The General did not wait for confirmation. He dropped the telephone handset and sharply yelled: “Find me the quartermaster!” He walked over to the window and looked up at the hillside near the village V’mbel. He saw sunlight. Dawn was breaking…

“The chief quartermaster is on the line,” announced the commander.

The general turned, stretched his arm out and with a quick step came over to the table, grabbed the telephone handset and in a loud voice said: “General Kikitsas here! What? You don’t understand?! What don’t you understand? You don’t understand when a general is talking to you? What? You are complaining to me that you were abruptly awakened? You went to bed late? Let me ask you, would you like to be sent to the front? No? Then wake up and listen to me! You hear me? Listen and remember well… These are your orders: This evening after sunset, along the Breznitsa - Smrdesh road all the way to Labanitsa… Are you listening or sleeping?!” the General angrily yelled into the mouthpiece, “I repeat! This evening… Yes! Today, I said today!”

A hoarse voice from the other side of the line said: “General, we have a bad connection… I can hardly hear you… I understood the part about today… By tonight you want me to acquire enough food for two days for ten to twelve thousand people… bread and other things that go with bread, right? Yes! I understand… especially bread and canned foods… Of course General, we have enough. Yes General, we will contact the ovens… understood. We will ask them to begin baking immediately. We will issue an order to immediately begin to knead and bake. If we need more we will order it from the warehouses in Korcha... Will there be enough? Yes there will be enough. I assure you. Goodbye General…”

“Along the road, I repeat, along the road. And don’t interrupt me, yes, along the Zhelevo, Breznitsa, Smrdesh road. Yes that’s what I said! All the way to Labanitsa! Leave the food there and make sure there is cooked meat and cheese... I asked you not to interrupt me... The line?! What line? The line is no good? Wait!” the general said to the man on the other side of the line and called the local operator. “Commander? Where are you? Oh, you’re here. Check the line immediately!” The General then transferred the handset to his left

shoulder and said: “Are you still on the line? I told you, don’t interrupt me! Yes, as I said! Yes! That’s an order! You want the order in writing? In writing??? Listen to me there! I have extraordinary powers today and tomorrow! Do you understand? Good! Now listen! After you execute my orders you are to report here immediately! You will come here! After you complete the tasks I gave you, you will report to me, here!” the General angrily yelled, hung up the telephone and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He then said to himself: “We put complete idiots in charge of important jobs...” Kikitsas then turned to the commander and said: “Connect me with the commander of the 18th Brigade.”

The commander turned the telephone handle several times and repeated the password. Finally there was a reply: “18th Brigade here!”

“Pandeli?” asked the General in a quiet and almost gentle voice, “Kikitsas here!” Yes, yes. In Smrdesh, at the command post. I will tell you later. Now listen to me carefully. What I am about to tell you are your orders. You are to separate some units from your brigade and rapidly march them to take position on the hills east and west of the village Kosinets. You are to do this immediately. You are also to supplement the Faltsata defense line with several strong squads which is now held with a single unit. Reposition one of the Faltsata squads to the village Trstika. Then send one unit from the 18th Brigade to take position in the hills above the village Krchishta. All positions are to be held regardless of casualties until the column from Gramos arrives. These orders cannot be altered until you receive new orders. Now go and execute them!”

The general sighed with relief, wiped the sweat off his forehead, turned to the liaison officer and said: “Take appropriate measures to establish a command post with telephones on top of the hill outside the Labanitsa forest. Make sure you set up direct telephone links with Faltsata and Kosinets. Now connect me again with the 18th Brigade.”

“18th Brigade is on the line, General,” replied the liaison officer.

“Pandeli? It’s me again… Kikitsas... Listen, put together some reserves and dispatch them to Kosinets immediately. These reserves are to protect the village Sveta Nedela in case of an emergency, in case it is attacked, to deter the adversary. Okay?” said Kikitsas, dropped the handset, opened his military map and studied it for a long time. He then stood up and said: “Call the militia commander for me.”

“You have a connection, General,” replied the liaison officer.

Kikitsas picked up the handset and without introducing himself said: “Listen to my orders! Get all available militia forces and position them on the hills above the village Blatsa. They are to defend them to the last fighter. The opponent must not be allowed to sneak behind our back. I order you to fight to the last man. Now go and execute my orders!”

The general again asked for a connection to the 18th Brigade to check if the positions in the Kostur – Pozdivishcha Line were secured. He then asked his courier: “Is there anything to eat?” Now, after all this time, Kikitsas began to feel hunger. The last time he had eaten something was yesterday, before the big meeting. Dry bread and mountain tea.

“We have some bread and some cans of meat, General,” replied the courier, taking a can and a knife out and then asked: “Should I open it?”

“What time is it?” asked the general.

“It’s nearing seven o’clock,” replied the courier.

“It will be dark soon. The day passed quickly…” said the general in a slow, low tone of voice. “What are you waiting for? Open that damned can!” he ordered in a brisk voice.

The general took a chunk of bread and a slice of meat and stepped outside. He stood on the steps of the staircase and stared at the gap between Karandzhova Glava and Prisoiot. He ate his food standing up, then shook the crumbs off his hands, walked back inside, took

the commander of the Command Centre aside and said: “Is it possible to travel to Labanitsa by jeep?”

“It will be difficult… the road is blocked by a rock slide...” replied the commander.

Kikitsas then angrily asked: “Are you waiting for the rocks to remove themselves? Find me a couple of horses! And… clear those rocks. You are to personally report to me! Understand?!