Dmitry Nazarov - Right hand. Prince of Darkness

– I see, – the captain interrupted rather rudely. – Listen, sir! he turned to Eitan. We have listened to your recommendations. But we have an unequivocal order given personally by the Earl of Thornfolk. We cannot go against him. Therefore, I beg you – and you, lady – to step aside. You can still find a nicer place to sleep. And we have our own business here.

It would be interesting to know what. – My companion still behaved calmly, but he did not even think about leaving, I saw this clearly. – You are not going to, the right word, to take all these people with women and children to prison.

– Oh no! I stretched and stood beside him, gazing intently at the captain’s face. “They’re not going to throw anyone in a dungeon. Isn’t that right, Commander?

He didn’t say anything, but there was no need to. His facial expressions, silence, the hand that eloquently touched the hilt of the sword – all this left no doubt about the purpose of the detachment sent by the count.

– You are going to cut all these people, – I stated in a calm, measured, almost casual tone.

I did not realize anything new, so the information could not shock me. Eitan didn’t seem too surprised either. I think he, like me, expected something like this. His hand already involuntarily reached for the scabbard, in which, however, only a dagger was hidden. The family sword, alas, remained in the Villa.

– If you don’t want to leave, it’s up to you! the captain barked, not intending to mess with us anymore.

In his view, everything was simple: he gave people a chance to leave without loss, and if they did not use this chance, who is to blame? Fools always suffer. – By order of the Earl of Thornfolk, the heretics are to be exterminated, – he announced, chopping his words, but at the same time trying to speak quickly so as not to leave time for the people to do anything. The verdict is final and not subject to appeal. To battle!

And in chorus, the swords being taken out of their scabbards gnashed.

I am not a seer or a fortuneteller, but where I come from, time is perceived differently. And if I wish, I can see with my own eyes – no, not the future (and timing does not play any role here), but the most probable development of events. For a brief moment, I allowed myself to do so. The screams of the wounded and the moans of death mingled with the real screams of frightened people in a convulsive cacophony sounded in my ears. Powerful horses, literally trampling men and women. Blades wielded by riders to drive down foot soldiers. Short daggers used to finish off the wounded. A man living his last seconds, stretching his hands to his shattered chest. A woman lying face down in the grass is completely still, and only her long brown hair is becoming more and more densely stained with scarlet. With a squeal, children rushing about the clearing, who are sooner or later found and silenced with two or three blows of a dagger. Blood coagulates quickly. The carpet of pine needles is unnaturally reddening. Scraps of bright tents rush about in the wind in meaningless and shapeless patches. The instigators will go to the tavern and quickly forget about everything that happened in the clearing. This is not their first raid, each of them knows his business too well. But the memory will remain: the forest will take care of it. Hundreds of years will pass, but roots and crowns, moss and grass will forever remember every groan and every swing of the broadsword. And the forest will never be the same.

I shook my head, returning to the reality in which everyone was still alive. first fractions of a second. The cavalry began to advance into the clearing. The jeepsies, not expecting such a turn, hesitated a little, but now they scattered in all directions. I took a deep breath, inhaling the smell of pine needles through my nose, feeling the warmth of the resin that did not have time to harden. Several suitable trees were quickly found. A slight movement of the hand – and a tall dry pine tree fell into the clearing, breaking branches with a crash, touching the bushes and trees below, raising a pile of dust, from which everyone coughed, who had the imprudence to be too close to the place of the fall. The horsemen had to retreat, and the barrel reliably blocked the clearing, separating the warriors from the jeepsies.

The second pine was also almost dry, only a few needles were still green on a couple of branches. This time someone was hurt: warning exclamations and frightened cries mixed with groans. A third tree fell on top of the second, making the barrier more imposing. Fourth, fifth… Enough.

The jeepsies realized that they needed to seize the moment, and fled in all directions. Hiding in the forest will not be difficult for them. But we shouldn’t have hesitated either. It seems that the horsemen have nothing to complain about, but they will want to recoup someone for their failure. I pulled Eitan by the sleeve, and he reacted quickly, and there the rashtang arrived in time. It’s strange, of course, when a chariot rushes without a road through a thicket, but who will notice in the dark and confusion?

– Do you even realize that your heated performance in front of the guards was doomed to failure in advance? – I asked curiously an hour later, stretched out on the grass with my hands behind my head.

Eitan habitually sat by the fire, clasping his knees with his hands.

– Do I look like an idiot? he wondered.

I propped myself up on my elbow, examining him, lazily shrugged my shoulders, and lay back down comfortably.

– I do not know. Haven’t seen them in a while.

Eitan raised his eyes to the heavens in annoyance. But no one looked from there with a sympathetic look. Between the oncoming clouds, rare tiny stars blinked fearfully.

– I knew very well that they were of little interest in my opinion, – he condescended to answer.

– Then why didn’t you keep it to yourself?

– I think that in some cases it is necessary to do the right thing, even if it does not change anything.

– Why? – I thought, drummed my fingers on the damp earth. – So that nightmares do not torment you at night? To feel like a good person? To be respected by others?

– That’s how I was brought up, – snapped Eitan, but still considered it necessary to clarify: “If one, second, third, fourth know that they can’t change anything, but still do the right thing, sooner or later something will change. Even a mountain can move.”

– Perhaps. He glanced at me in surprise, apparently expecting ridicule, and not easy agreement. Not wanting to disappoint anyone, she added her fly in the ointment: – Only the concept of “correct” for each of them will be different, so the mountain will not move. Unless, of course, someone pushes her harder.

– For example?

– Yes, you never know, – I answered vaguely, looking into the dark sky.

– Who are you, Arafel?

The question took me by surprise. I propped myself up on my elbow again to meet the overly attentive gaze.

– Just a girl.

Eitan laughed.

I sat up, frowning, smoothing my tousled hair and wrapping my arms around my knees, waiting for this misplaced bout of fun to end.

– No ‘just a girl’ would answer like that, – he said at last.

– But as? I pricked up my ears.

– Well, for example, – Marta from the village of Rotten Stumps.” Or “the blacksmith’s daughter”. But not a “girl”. Would you even say “man”!

I bit my lip in annoyance because that was what I had originally intended to say.

Do you think I’m blind? You took the spell off me without even coming close. Let’s say you’re just a witch. Strong witch. But then it gets more interesting. You struggle with all your might not to enter the temple. And when I did go in, do you think I didn’t notice what happened there? You were not reflected in the mirror surface, and this scared the old woman to death.