Dmitry Nazarov - Right hand. Prince of Darkness

– What happened to her, that fortune teller? – Eitan suddenly asked.

– Which one?

– The one who foretold the death of a young man.

– Oh, with her… Yes, in general, nothing good. – I wondered if I should go into the details of a mortal, but in the end I decided not to torment myself with ethical questions. I’m not an angel after all. – She died, fell into the Darkness, and spent… let’s say, a lot of time there. But then she got out anyway.

– Did you repent of your deed? he raised an eyebrow.

– Getting out of the Darkness is not so easy, – I laughed. – No, she got out of the songs.

If before Eitan was surprised, now he was simply taken aback.

– Songs?

I nodded.

– What is it like?

– Well… You can say, she rose, as if on a rope. For a long time, slowly, tearing his palms into blood, but still. You have no idea what music is capable of. If you love her with all your heart. Well, no one imagined it. We were all incredibly surprised. But then they realized that everything was natural.

My companion wanted to object, but a Gypsy girl approached us.

– Do you want me to tell you a fortune, beautiful? – she asked cheerfully, squatting next to us.

Her curly brown hair fell over her face and she pushed it back with a shake of her head. The wind, frolicking, played with thick curls.

– Why not? I exclaimed enthusiastically. – It will be interesting!

– Then let’s go closer to the fire.

Rising, she beckoned us to follow her and stepped towards the dancing flame. I followed.

– Will you risk it? Eitan asked softly, touching my shoulder. “I just said it myself, it’s not safe.

– Not for me, – I chuckled. Believe me, I have strong immunity.

– And you believe she won’t lie?

– Let’s see!

I rubbed my hands in anticipation.

– Everyone doubts, – smiled the fortune-teller, who apparently had a sensitive ear, since Eitan’s quiet words reached her ears in the general hubbub of voices. But as they say, if you don’t try, you won’t know. Are you ready to try your luck?

– Is always! I assured her and, in confirmation of my words, extended my open left palm to her.

The girl took a closer look, and soon the smile flew off her face. She looked up at me with confused eyes, then again stared at the hand, squinting and bringing it up to her face, as if reading ancient lines written in small, illegible handwriting.

Finally, she slowly lowered my hand.

– Perhaps your companion is right in his doubts. – Not to say that the confession was hard for her: the fortuneteller’s pride was not hurt, rather, she was at a loss. – The art of divination must have betrayed me today. Eat and drink, and the future will be known when it comes.

She was about to leave, but I grabbed her hand just in time.

– Oh no, that won’t do. You did see something. Why don’t you want to say?

– I saw it. But it doesn’t make sense.

– Well, that’s up to me, – I said. – Spread it.

The girl shrugged her shoulders and took the hand I extended again. She looked at her, looked up at me, then at Eitan, as if looking for support, waiting for us to share her feelings. But we didn’t even know what it was about, so we could only raise our eyebrows inquiringly. And with a sigh, she spoke:

I see two births and two deaths. The road to the future, which will lead to the source of origins. An oath to be kept and yet broken. Seven unlit candles that burn brightly. An enemy who turns out to be a friend, and a confrontation that is devoid of essence.

Once again, lifting her eyes from the palm of her hand, she looked at me with a mixture of former uncertainty and sadness. But the neighing of horses and loud human exclamations interrupted the divination.

An armed detachment left the forest for a clearing. In the flickering light of the fires and behind the tree trunks, you couldn’t see much, but there must have been at least a dozen of them. Chain mail made of tight-fitting rings, sharp-edged swords, some have knee pads made of leather and even metal. In general, everything that helps vulnerable human beings feel invulnerable. I didn’t like the energy they gave off. Waves, barely accessible to human perception, but for me as obvious as a bright light or a suffocating smell of burning.

The leader rode forward, looked around the clearing with a hard look, lingered briefly on Eitan and me, but then seemed to lose interest and spoke to the others.

– Gypsy! His Excellency Anthony William Blade, Earl of Thornfolk, declares your presence in his territory illegal!

– We are a nomadic people, captain, – said the same man who first greeted us that evening, firmly but politely. – We are not subjects of the count, and we have no claim to his land. He can’t stop us from just passing through Thornfolk.

– You’re wrong. He has already banned.

The captain held out his hand. One of the escorts touched the horse and, approaching, handed him a scroll. The commander unfolded the document, glanced briefly at it.

– Would you like to know? grimacing in disgust, he turned to the Gypsy.

– No, – he answered, hesitating slightly. – I believe you. Well, tell the Earl we’ll move out in the morning and move towards the border of Thornfolk.

– Oh, no, that won’t do, – the captain objected maliciously. – You are here and have already violated the ban. We’ve already put up with you too long. Gypsy is a spot on a blank county map. You don’t know the laws, you don’t follow traditions, you don’t pay taxes. You worship the Prince of Darkness.

– Wow, it somehow got past me! – I exclaimed enthusiastically. – Is it really true?

– We offer prayers to both brothers, – the fortuneteller answered quietly, so that none of the soldiers could hear. “Our belief is that the world needs balance.”

The enthusiasm faded away, and I answered with a sour wry smile: moralizing about balance, as well as any others, irritated me. My attention was again captured by the military leader, who quite naturally concluded:

– The cup of patience is full, and punishment will befall you in full.

– I protest! Everyone stared at Eitan with a fair amount of amazement. – Mr. Captain, I understand the nature of the accusations, but I believe that a case of this kind should be considered thoroughly. – My companion spoke confidently, harshly, but did not deviate an inch from the framework of etiquette. The Prince of Light will figure out how he did it. – It so happened that we accidentally met these people when the sun was going down. This allowed us to get a certain impression of their habits. They are friendly and hospitable. They were ready to share food and lodging with us. They did not show a single sign of hostility, did not try to steal or harm us in any way. And I did not see them praying to the prince of Darkness, although, of course, I know little about this side of their life.

The Gypsies listened in silence, holding their breath. Hope arose in someone’s hearts that the soldiers would heed the stranger’s words. Someone did not count on concessions, but was grateful to a random fellow traveler for words of support. The thoughts of others were occupied exclusively by the count’s detachment. The interest of the soldiers was of a slightly different kind – they were more curious about where this guy came from (given that he clearly did not belong to the Gypsy people) and what he needed here.

– Who is that? the captain asked his assistant quietly.

The question was not supposed to reach outsiders, but my hearing is more subtle than that of humans.

– Looks like a nobleman, – he answered even more quietly. – The identity is unknown to me. I had never seen this man or his portraits before. But he, of course, is not a gypsy, rather a local one. And not from the common people. Maybe some kind of impoverished aristocrat…