However, some daredevils still decided to enter the channel. Their groans, sobs and doomed laughter spread across many leagues, and the piranhas that lived there were sitting on the rocks and scribbling in notebooks, studying information on how to kill the guests in the most offensive and effective way. By the way – after the partisans of the Sleepless sank the hundredth ship of their invaders, the piranhas and centipedes ceased to attack the troops. And yes – they Patron of the Wall relocated. The devil centipede appeared at the base two hours ago and chose a rock for a sunbath above the cave-base of the Sleepless. There, now, he was basking, contemplating the epic battles of the partisans against the outsiders.
From all that I had heard, I had made several conclusions – which was surprising to me, since I do not like to draw conclusions. Again the influence of the Sleepless on my unhappy, restless soul. Before, when I talked only with my group and Orbit – always standing a little apart – I did not bother with brainstorming and summing up. This was how I differed from my father – which was very reassuring, and a fact I was even proud of. But I could not leave the bridge to see my friends. And in the evenings, when I was sitting by the fire, I spent more time with the Baroness and her closest associates. Bom occasionally glanced with a slight sadness from the nearby fire. And sometimes he beckoned me, and asked ‘had I stolen a couple of bottles of good wine from the bridge?’ I give him the loot— three or four ringing bottles – and he immediately and solemnly put out two bottles before the rest of the company, adjusting his shoulder bag at the same time.
I digress, ... was I again trying to draw conclusions? It seems, my brain was seriously infected with logic and seriousness ... soon, Orbit would turn away from me – after all, I would no longer be int-teresting…
Trouble – I quickly lose the spark of chaos and insanity. It was necessary to make up for it urgently.
Conclusions…
In general, the world of Valdira had once again proven its stability, its unpredictability, and unsurpassed patience to the foreigner players who inhabited it. And it showed also the ability to forgive. Forgive not all, certainly not all, but at least things had brightened. A good clan turned into a miserable bunch of aggrs, and vice versa…
Another conclusion was that Sleepless managed to lose and acquire at the same time. Minus generates a plus, and plus generates a double plus – such is the mysterious system. How did they manage? The principle itself was clear – one must be multi-tasking, multifaceted, multilateral, many-sided, unprincipled and ruthless. Was it easy? No. The Baroness was already at her limit – her facial expression she controlled perfectly, she broke very seldom, but her shoulders sunk lower and lower, and her voice became angrier. Soon there would be an explosion.
But while the day was bright and warm, and the horizon ahead clearly visible, much of today's transition had already been overcome- and there was no loss, no urgent repairs, no alchemic flasks puffing with colorful steam, or forge hammers to knock in a fit of feverish diligence. The Armada of the Sleepless swallowed meters of the ocean, the new sails were tightly inflated, and I was standing my watch...
I had already begun to mentally celebrate my services, but then an observer screeched from the main mast. The sentry yelled about something on the waves. But ahead of the fleet, there were dragons and birds, sharks and barracudas under the water— why did they not report the find? How could the thing remain unnoticed until it was right next to the flagship?
Leaning over the railings of the bridge, I did not hide my burning curiosity— I clung to my telescope. And then I whistled in surprise, finding a bird with a rope clamped in its mouth and a wooden plaque, a bird adorned with a pair of golden wings and a short cryptic message:
Ahead are the Ring of Peace and the Wings of War!
Simply an awesome message. And what did it mean?
"And what does this mean?" - thoughtfully asked the Black Baroness, standing on the railing and looking into the blue steel binoculars.
“Oof!” A puffing sound issued from the huge golden bird with a wingspan of four meters.
The feathered monster had flopped straight to the deck! Which, in principle, was impossible, given our defenses, magical artifacts, trap networks stretched between the masts, and other tricks aimed at blocking uninvited guests. And all our protective belts fell before the heavily puffing golden bird, with a contemptuous bent beak and a brazen snout.
“Do not shoot!” Cried the BB, but it was too late, and three arrows pierced the back of the feathered bird. Smoke swirled, then the plumage was covered with hoarfrost, and then an explosion was heard. The bird rubbed its back carelessly, and three broken arrows fell onto the bridge.
Only then did I notice a large bag of gold cloth hanging under the wing, with three large silver clasps.
"The postman!" Guessed Klest. “A new species?”
“The shadow of the Immortals swept over us!" Goldie snorted." "A harp rang in the sky! And these are the kind of letters we get?”
"The Postman of Demons?" I was amazed, involuntarily looking for signs of horns on the guest's head.
They did not answer me — everyone's attention was turned to the postal bag, which shone brightly. A whole stack of paper sheets appeared in the wings of the heavenly messenger – a pile a meter thick, so much paper that it simply could not fit in the bag. The Baroness took the paper away, after which another trembling fish was thrust under the nose of the golden bird. From somewhere from below came the furious cry of the teenage Roska:
“What in the cherry round the scruff of the neck? Return the fish!”
“Kolyvan is hung-g-gry!” The elf supported her sorrowful cry.
Someone began to say something, obviously to calm the raging fisher.
The golden bird looked at the fish, snapped its beak contemptuously, and waved away the offer with a careless gesture of the wing. He and stepped to the table. There the bird, with an extreme dexterity, uncorked a bottle of wine, using the tip of his beak for this, threw back his crested head, and happily drank the whole bottle — bit a microscopic slice of cheese — waved his wings, and rose into the air. And when he flew to the next ship, and the flight was extremely intricate – jerky, with figures of unnecessary aerobatics, as well as a loud periodic hiccough.
“What a job!” I summed up, brazenly taking one of the sheets from the BB, but leaving in her hands the whole pile.
Let us read...
My example was followed by the rest, each taking only one sheet of paper. The BB could not stand it — and, with a sweeping gesture, threw away the "trash paper" from the bridge, where it was immediately picked up.
The post was interesting.
It all began in the usual ornate legendary style, so beloved by the administration.
Sailors! Discoverers! Heroes who know the unknown and overcome the impossible!
You, not knowing rest, despising caution and spitting on storms and peril, persistently overcome the boundless ocean, moving towards a great goal – to Zar'Graad! You are preparing to open the way to a new continent! Thanks to your exploration, the world of Valdira will become richer...
However, sometimes you need a little rest along the way. After all, your forces are not unlimited ... And the higher forces, heartily concerned about the exhaustion of brave sailors...
I was tired of reading the text— it was too luscious – and I began to look for the most interesting facts, trying to get to the heart of the sudden message.
It was simple.
The administration of Valdira was concerned that the players literally burned themselves alive, squeezing the last juices from their overloaded organisms. The ships were racing to the continent. But this could not continue indefinitely. And no one wanted to turn a great adventure into a race of psychopaths.
And so the Immortals gave us a great gift. We were given a location with the long name Ring of Peace and Wings of War.
There was also a picture with an explanation. A giant circle lying in the ocean torn in
to two equal parts. Inside the circle was a giant round platform nine kilometers in diameter. The distance between the inner circle and the outer circle was two kilometers. Peaceful status was guaranteed there. It was completely impossible to sabotage or even visit another's ship with or without permission of its owner. It was the same for the achilots — the same conditions were provided. The nine-kilometer platform was multifunctional.
There were:
Trade benches! With a limited number of goods, and extremely unusual.
Bestial benches! Acquire animals, ordinary and terrible!
Warehouses! Ready to sell lots of spare parts, rigging, ammunition. However, everything is expensive there...
Auction!!! A special event, where customers will be offered a variety of magic scrolls and items. Prepare your wallets!
Arenas! Get ready to fight!
“Tournament! Two grand battles every day! Day and night! And the prizes are magnificent and fascinate the spirit – the higher forces guarantee this.
Disco!
Colorful presentation! Enjoy the spectacle!
Fishing – lot of fish, but it is no easy catch!
A competition for fishing! Twice a day! Separate for achilots and land dwellers. The prizes are amazing! And each catch was very special!
Restaurants! Eat to your heart’s content! The food is unusual, the recipes unique!
Workers' Exchanges! You can hire workers and artisans to fix anything. However, not for free, of course...
Quest boards! Time to remember the spirit of land adventures! There are plenty of quests! Kill monsters, explore the deep caves and dense forests, climb cliffs and dive into the water ... Pay very generous!
Where can you kill monsters? Why, that is why the Wings of War were created! Two large pieces of land on either side of the Ring of Peace, their outlines actually resembling two wings. Overall, if you look at the drawing, you can clearly see the double winged ring of gigantic proportions. Outside the ring, on the wings, it is possible to clash with other players. This is a zone of chaos. After all, nobody forces to go there, right?
The whole event lasts two and a half days. Today we land, spend three nights and two days on the Ring, depart in the morning, and continue the journey. Considering that other clans would join you, there is a magic mechanism stopping them from leaving before the due date.
The players will rest from the Great March, bring affairs and ships in order, relax a bit, and have fun.
A quarter of an hour after the visit of the golden postman – the messenger of the higher forces – the sails will be filled with the Great Wind, which will speed your ships by three, so that you could reach the Ring of Peace faster. The same wind will help your pursuers. Underwater fleets will receive help from the Great Passage Current.
All events will begin tomorrow morning – at the same time for everyone. The Great Wind will make sure that there are enough seafarers on the Ring. Let the fun break begin!
"Wow..." I breathed out.
Nobody heard me – multi-voiced enthusiasm hung over the ships. Apparently, fatigue had long pressed the players.
"Auction, warehouses, trade benches, workers' exchanges..." muttered the BB. “There will be a battle. Klest, let’s have an immediate report on the total amount of cash on all ships.”
“Got it!”
"Goldie, take a list of the most necessary and irreplaceable items from our storekeepers."
“Okay.”
“Malice!”
“Here I am!”
“A tournament! The prizes should be really something special ...”
"The hint is clear!"
“Baron, Whisper, Whirlwind, and I — we all have to give our best. We must win first place. Prepare everything in the highest category – from consumables to equipment.”
"Got it, Boss."
“And inform everyone – the Sleepless Clan must fulfill all tasks! Every quest! I do not order – I understand that everyone is tired and hopes for rest. I ask. It can easily be so that the clan collecting the maximum completed tasks will receive something very special ...”
“Yes ma’am.”
Everyone fled with the hunger of hungry cockroaches, and I lifted my face to the sky and shook my head — everything was all thought out.
And by the way – maybe we were already in the middle of our journey to Zar'Graad?
A tight stream of air hit me in my back, ruffled my hair. The sails buzzed, and the flagship quickly accelerated— surprisingly fast. The Black Queen had never gone this speed— we literally flew over the waves, and it seemed that the stone island hardly touched the water. Behind our backs and to the sides, the players continued to shout joyfully. They felt a long rest nearing. The roaring wind, the Great Passage, dispelled hundreds of ships and dragged them forward. The water trembled, and the waves ran forward even faster than we did – the current of the Great Passage.
The screen, illuminated above the bridge, showed a roaring red dragon spinning in a whirlwind. The rider clinging to his back pointed forward. There, far, far ahead, there was a vague dark line near the horizon – and there it was.
The Ring of Peace. And the Wings of War...
That is it ... I did not know about the tournaments and auctions, but I would definitely do the tasks. It was time to warm up. I think my cheerful company thinks the same...
We were on our way to many more events, adventures and clashes on the unexplored land in the middle of the ocean. It was sure to be int-teresting…
The end of the second part of the novel.
The Way of the Clan 8 Page 38
