Life and Fate

The Front at Stalingrad is getting harder and harder to defend. Members of Soviet Army units are dropping like flies and reinforcements are needed. This affects not only the soldiers and commanders but also their families. Parents anguish as they say goodbye to sons and daughters bound for the front.

Soldiers and officers adjust to life on the front lines. Commanders and bureaucrats are putting red tape everywhere, not only affecting those on the battlefield but also civilians at home who want to travel to see loved ones. Those at home can only sit and worry about their families still within combat zones.

Amid the chaos on and off the battlefield, people still find time to love. This episode explores the love between a soldier and his mistress at home, evolving friendships among civilians, and the blooming romantic friendship between two soldiers.

Relationships are beginning to shift. Commanders grow bitter toward their superiors, while a pair of soldiers fall deeper in love. Off the front line, an important scientist is on the edge of nuclear discoveries, which could change everyone's life forever.

While people at home celebrate the new scientific discoveries, things are taking a turn for the worse out on the front. Even with the arrival of a new commanding officer at House Number 6, supplies are limited, the enemy is rallying and the outcome is bleak. 

There seems to be no hope for the soldiers at House No. 6. They take time to remember their loved ones back home. Those at home worry about them in turn as they begin to understand the very real atrocities of the war, including the ostracizing of Jews.

The sacrifices of those soldiers who occupied House Number 6 have done nothing to win the fight against Germany. Their relatives must now accept the loss of their loved ones. Meanwhile the scientists are making their way to Moscow to promote and further their research.

The scientists and their families have made a successful immigration to Moscow. But once they arrive and settle, they realize that life here might not be as simple as they thought. On the front, soldiers start to question the value of human life and confront the fallout from the loss of House Number 6. 

In Moscow, people are beginning to feel the effects of the war in the workplace. Bureaucrats are very subtly trying to move those of the Jewish faith out of their stations.  An investigation begins on a commander who has been accused of being a traitor.

Both citizens at home and soldiers of notable rank are being persecuted. Some are targeted for standing up for their friends. All too often, the persecution seems random, for no reason at all.  

The scientists struggle to maintain their reputations. Standing up for their colleagues is proving to be increasingly difficult. However, phone calls from the right people can solve any problem.  Meanwhile, a general learns why he is being held prisoner.

Though the battle of Stalingrad is over, the war is not. Everyone faces pressure to maintain their reputations and livelihoods. For the scientists, every decision or action seems fraught with moral conflict. They are reassured by friends and loved ones.