In brief
In the beleaguered Donbas region, Ukrainians grapple with the grim consequences of war as Russian forces advance. Amid skirmishes around key towns, some express willingness to cede territory for peace, while others resolutely reject any notion of giving up their homeland. As peace talks unfold and civilian exodus escalates, the future remains uncertain.
Trains no longer run to Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region - part of the Donbas claimed in its entirety by Russia's President Vladimir Putin. It's another sign of the steady Russian advance.
Instead, the last station now is on the western side of the Donetsk border. This is where civilians and soldiers wait for a ride towards relative safety - their train to get out of Dodge.
Putin has been sounding more bullish since the leak of US proposals to end the war, widely seen as being in tune with his maximalist demands. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky says territory remains the most difficult issue facing US-led peace talks.
At the last station on the line, soldier Andrii and his girlfriend Polina are parting after an all-too-brief time together. Andrii has to return to the front, and they don't know when they'll see each other again.
He laughs when I mention peace talks, which have seen Donald Trump's envoys speak to Ukrainian negotiators before heading to Moscow, and dismisses them as chatter, just chatter. He doesn't think the war will be over soon.
There is scepticism among other soldiers who board the train west for a brief respite from the fighting. They are taking some of their 20 days of leave. Most look exhausted.
Russian forces now control some 85% of the Donbas, made up of Luhansk and Donetsk. On Tuesday, they claimed to have captured the key strategic town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk. Ukraine said fighting was continuing in the city.
Denys, who has been serving in the Ukrainian army for the past two years, tells me everyone's drained, everyone's tired mentally and physically. Some of his comrades have already fallen asleep. His unit has been fighting in the besieged city of Kostyantynivka.
He makes it clear they are not ready to give up after sacrificing so much. Nobody will give Putin the Donbas. No way, it's our land, he says.
Yevheniy and his wife Maryna have just arrived from Kramatorsk, along with their two children. Maryna mentions, it's getting harder and harder to even go outside. Everything is dangerous. The family plans to move to Kyiv, expressing little faith in the peace talks.
Inna, escaping with her five children, believes it's time to make a deal stating, in this situation, yes. Meanwhile, soldiers like Serhii, who has deserted his unit, express doubts about Ukraine's ability to prevail, given the vast disparity in population and resources compared to Russia.
As talks continue and civilians flee, the prospect of peace remains fraught with complexity, resignation, and, for many, an unyielding will to protect their homeland.
