Downtown Kiev was aglow in fire early Wednesday, as demonstrators undeterred by a bloody day on the streets staked their claim to the heart of the Ukrainian capital and, they hope, the heart of the country itself.
Such flames have been a constant for three months, acting as fiery barricades all around Kiev's Maidan, or Independence Square, for protesters. Yet the flames grew more ominous on Tuesday as at least 21 people died in fresh clashes between government forces and activists.
What began with protests over President Viktor Yanukovych's backpedaling from a trade pact with the European Union -- a move that the opposition maligned, accusing Yanukovych of trying to cozy up to Russia rather than the West -- has spawned into something much larger.
In addition to new elections, the opposition is calling for constitutional reforms to transfer more power from the presidency to the parliament.
Yanukovych and his allies have responded with some concessions, even offering places in government to opposition leaders. But on-again, off-again talks have gone nowhere, with the opposition refusing to budge politically and from its positions in the center of Kiev.
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None of that changed after a face-to-face meeting overnight between Yanukovych and opposition leader Vitali Klitschko.
Speaking to reporters afterw.