Middle Asia. Ten demobilized Red Army soldiers ride through the desert towards the railway. There are three more people with them: the border guard commander Zhuravlev and his wife Marya Nikolaevna and the old geologist. In the desert, they find a well and hidden machine guns - the base of the Basmach Shirmat Khan, whom the Red Army has not been able to neutralize for a whole year. Having sent one fighter for help, the rest remain to restrain the Basmachi. - In the well, however, there is almost no water, but the Red Army men carefully disguise this from the approaching Basmachis. The bandits are severely thirsty, and make fierce attacks in an attempt to get to the well.