Volodimir Vladko - Descendants of the Scythians

The strivings and thoughts of Ivan Semenovich were of quite a different nature. For him, a dedicated geologist who had been prospecting for valuable resourses all his life, the most important thing in all this unexpected affair with the chest lay in the unknown Pronis’ mention of gold deposits. That was something Ivan Semenovich simply could not ignore. But how should he set about looking for the gold?

If they had the map, mentioned by Pronis, it would make things so much easier. But even in the absense of the map, they had to start searching for the gold anyway. Things would go very slowly though, that much was clear. But then, what are the difficulties in this world for if not for man to overcome them!

Ivan Semenovich was mistaken in one thing though. Artem was daydreaming at the moment neither of the gold crowns of Scythian chieftains nor of the mysteries of the cave inside the Sharp Mount. His thoughts were flowing in quite a different direction, totally unconnected with present events. What had brought this on, Artem himself could not say, but in fact, he was reminiscing about his childhood.

He remembered neither his father nor his mother as they had died when he was very young. His memories began only with the orphanage. They were really his first memories and he called them “memories in gray overalls” in jest, because he and all other children there had been dressed in gray overalls for all occasions. Now it seemed such a long time ago…

Then, in search of adventure, he and his two friends had run away from the orphanage with its tedious monotonous routine. So he was a vagrant for some time, but came across nothing worthy of his time.

Once Artem saw some boys his age launching a toy plane in the field. He made their acquaintance; the boys were also from a foster-home, but theirs was quite different from the one he had run away from — not at all “gray-overalls” and dull. He could see it right away from the boys’ bright faces and animated talk. It was so exciting to watch the white model plane soar effortlessly into the air, so Artem stayed to talk to the boys. Then they all went back to the home for boys, and the principal allowed him to stay…

On the first night of Artem’s stay at the new children’s home, he was washed and dressed in clean clothes, then shown a new game he had never heard of called “Maze.” There were innumerable intersecting, twisting lines, drawn on a piece of paper with lots of traps and dead ends. The object was to find the way out of the maze without crossing the lines. It took Artem quite a long time, but in the end he found the way out. He liked the game immeasurably. And jthe teacher said with a laugh: “Always try to find a way out of any situation with the same persistency. Today you’ve found a way out for the second time.” Artem looked at her in bewilderment: why for the “second time”? The teacher explained: “The first time was when you came here. It was a way to escape hunger and homelessness. And the second time is now when you’ve found the way out of the maze. Do you understand?”

Artem smiled to himself when he remembered all that: he had made good use of the advice ever since. It had lodged firmly in his memory. From childhood on, he had always found a way out. He had finished high school, and now he was close to graduation from college. At the present moment, he was once again looking for a way out of a difficult situation… That’s right, he was looking for a way out… Hadn’t the recollections of his childhood and the Maze game with its traps and dead ends come to him in connection with their present dire straits?

Only then did Artem become aware that all this time, he had been holding the lid of the chest in his hands tracing his finger along the deep grooves of its tangled ornament. Again he smiled to himself: that’s what had really brought on the memory of the Maze game… It was as though he were again looking for a way out of the maze… this time made of a strange ornament rather than drawn on paper… How could he get out without crossing the lines?… Hm, what if he took this spot as a starting point?

He located the entrance, but where should he go from there? In fact there wasn’t much choice, since there was only one way along the main line with all the passages disappearing as soon as they branched off from the main route. This ancient craftsman had carved an amazing ornament to keep anyone who happened to be tracing it from going off the main line… What was that? What an extraordinary idea?

Artem’s head began to reel. He knit his brows trying to regain control of himself. No, it couldn’t be… It seemed… He ran his finger over the lines. Oh, had he found the map?

Artem could not control himself any longer. It was incredible, and yet he knew beyond a doubt now that he had made another discovery. What a tremendous piece of luck! Oh, how lucky, how very lucky he was! This was just what they were looking for, right here, so unexpectedly simple and clear. He couldn’t keep the news to himself any longer, especially since everyone was so gloomy…

“Hey, I’ve found it!”

They turned and stared at the young man in startled surprise. What had come over him? Why was his face glowing with such happiness?

In the meantime, Artem walked to the center of the room, holding the bronze chest in his hands and shouting frantically:

“The map! The map! It’s been found! It’s right here! Here it is, the chart of our mysterious friend Pronis!”

Artem did indeed look like a man possessed.

“Where? What map? What kind of nonsense is this, young man?” Dmitro Borisovich said, rushing to the boy in concern.

Instead of replying, Artem handed the archeologist the chest without uttering a word; he just pointed to the ornament on the lid.

“All right, so what does this have to do with the map?”

“It’s right here! You can see for yourself!”

“You mean this ornament?”

“Yes, this ornament, and none other! This ornament is the map Pronis mentions in his message. It’s like a maze, you know. Just have a closer look; it’s terribly simple!” Three heads leaned over the lid of the chest. Six eyes began examining the intricate pattern of lines on it, exchanging occasional agitated remarks. Dmitro Borisovich was distrustfully tracing the groove of the main line with his finger. Lida went into raptures, uttering words of praise; Ivan Semenovich nodded his head in contentment.

As for Artem, he had completely lost control. He rushed up to Diana, grabbed the head of the astounded dog, turned it this way and that, pushed her over, and rolled her over onto her back. Diana did not offer any resistance as she was quite accustomed to such expressions of feelings in the effusive young man. And in spite of the fact that today’s expressions were especially violent, Diana only gently pressed her teeth into the man’s hand.

Artem pushed and pulled, patting the dog’s back and sides. His happy voice rang out triumphantly in the room: “We’ve got the map! We’ve got the map! We’ve got it!”

The representations of horses and Scythian heads are discovered on the walls of the subterranean passages, and the enigma of the torches is solved; an unexpected obstacle blocks the way and Diana expresses the common attitude toward it; gray gas threatens to destroy the expedition and there seems to be no chance of rescue .

Ivan Semenovich stopped before the entrance to the cave and turned to his companions. He looked everyone over thoroughly and meticulously checked their gear. As was always the case before, this time, too, Ivan Semenovich took upon himself the leadership in the expedition in spite of the fact that now it was of an archeological nature rather than a geological one. When Ivan Semenovich had drawn Dmitro Borisovich’s attention to this circumstance before leaving home, and suggested that the latter assume leadership of the group, the archeologist dismissed the offer with a wave of his hand: