"Nyet," Natalya said, "only knew of. I did not ever meet them, but their names were very important. After plague, I am sent on first mission to America for to retrieve last surviving man of Russia. All men on Earth were, perhaps, gone, but one was not on Earth." Her gaze flicked upward to where she could see the sky through the trees.

"Three people on space station when plague was hit. Two were men. One was Vladimir, cosmonaut. Him I was to bring home."