“And what did you need?”
“To have a chat. About something interesting. Ros, when can you attend? You will come into Valdira at some point, right? We can make time for a conversation. Can you free up an hour from your misadventures for the sake of an old friend?”
“Okay,” I sighed, realizing that, since I had gone out of my way to communicate with Vlas, I must continue the business. “From four to five I am all yours.”
“Four to five what?”
“In the morning.”
“Are you insane? I have to be up till midnight completing the Albatross assignments!”
“Then we postpone,” I suggested. “Now my schedule is so tight that there is no other way. Your assignments look like child’s play in comparison.”
“Hmm... “ Vlas laughed, and answered: “As the great writer said: we shouldn’t mock children, we are worse than them. And if we teach them something to make them better, they make us better through our contact with them.
In the silence that followed Vlas’ statement, I could only hear the quiet murmur of the coffee pot.
“That was Fyodor Dostoyevsky,” modestly explained he. “Ros? Are you there, buddy?”
“Oh… Vlas, are you doing okay? Did you fall recently, hit your head?” I asked, recovering from shock, taking the mug of coffee from Trouble.
“What do you mean? I am very well. And if I sleep more than three hours, I become like a cucumber sans GMO - delicious, crunchy, useful - but crooked, and quickly deteriorating.”
“No sooner or later than four in the morning,” I said firmly. “And only until five. So, there will be exactly an hour to talk. Come a little early if you can.”
“Phew… what stars spun the thread of our destinies? What gods and elements wove the fabrics of our lives? How did it happen that my god met his god? … Got it. We meet at five in the morning. Which of the great cities?”
“Come to Hradalrome,” I suggested, almost at random. “I have not been there for a long time. And we definitely have to meet! There is something up with you, my friend! Was the fist of my father too hard? Did the tremendous kick of my ancestor shake your brain? What happened to you?”
"I am going to give you a kick!” Vlas roared, and I let out a sigh of relief:
“Now I recognize you.”
“Swine!”
"Five minutes to four in the morning, on the main square of the Hradalrome," I repeated.
“Right. At that time, precisely I will crack you on the digital snout! You and I are destined to be in a gladiator duel. I will be Dante. And you?”
“And I will be Chuck Norris. Good - I will see you. And do not think about touching books anymore - it's bad for you!”
“Bastard!”
“Bye…”
One more telephone conversation done.
I silently sipped my coffee and looked at the TV screen with the volume turned off. Kira was just silently staring at me with her huge surprised eyes, at the same time, trying to take back the mug.
“Wipe the puddle!” I ordered, not giving in.
"Ros, was that Vlas? Huh? Was that Vlas?”
"Je ne sais pas,” I shrugged my shoulders. "Ce la Vie. Cherche la femme. Paris, Madrid and Magadan.”
“What, what? What’s going on with Vlas?”
“No idea! I will talk to him in the morning. I will feel his forehead, see if the poor fellow is ill. I suppose, enough calls from us tonight... I will only phone my mother real quick.”
"And the father!" - added Kira.
“Yours?”
“Yours!”
"Yes," I sighed. "We must start at once to establish the leverage of our relations, as he puts it. I will call. You called your own?”
“Not yet. Although I talked with Shmig, through you. I will chat with my mother for a few soon, and my dad, and Lena too. Will you make more food?”
“Yeah. But first I will talk with the head of our valiant protection squad. I will tell him about what happened, about my ex-wife. See what he says. And... if you do not mind, I will call him here and invite him to dinner, over which we can talk about this and that.”
“Agreed! Until eleven in the evening - a social and business dinner. Excellent. From eleven to midnight - watching TV... From midnight to four in the morning - you are mine. Then you can dive into Valdira and feel the forehead of Vlas.”
“And when do I sleep?!”
"Whenever you want, but not at the time I reserved," Kira stated, pulling the laptop to her. "I will start calling the family right now. Then I will help with cooking.”
“No thanks!” I refused. “I know your help - when the olives disappear directly from a closed can. I can do it myself. Chicken tonight?”
“Hell yes!”
“Good, then.... I will go and call the guards. Oh … I wonder what happened to Vlas? Hm?”
Chapter Seven.
City of gnomes. Suggestions and requests. Jumping into the abyss for the sake of the fan.
Hradalrome.
The center of the Winter Ridge, a massive mountain range.
According to legend, in ancient times, it was only a mountain - but a huge one. Tall, beautiful, crowned with pristine snow. The majestic hill was part of a single mountain range, but at the same time, stood a little apart, like a cute wallflower on the dance floor.
When, however, the long-vanished ancient race of the Greats paid close attention to the mountain, they decided to found a giant city. In this case, the Creators did not erect unnecessary walls - they preferred, instead, to simply remove the core of the mountain, cutting it out almost completely, and creating, inside, the majestic halls, gigantic underground squares, streets and houses. And all this underneath a thick slab of stone, hardened with magic and indestructible. The dark spaces needed to be illuminated somehow, and so there were snails with brightly colored shells, crawling on the walls and ceilings. To these were added hundreds of glowing butterflies. In the most-visited places there was installed an illumination system consisting of hundreds of glowing. There was almost no darkness in the underground city.
Having created this dignified, gigantic structure, the Greats did not forget to give a name - Hradalrome. So, among the snow, ice and stone, the race of dwarves now had a homeland. At the very top, under the roof of a snowcap, was the palace of the mountain king. But mere mortals were not allowed there.
Those who did not have royal blood boiling in their veins, there were many beautiful corners of the Hradalrome available, both for free and for a steep admission price. I chose the second option - where you have to pay, there are always less people. I was sitting now at a table by the stone steps where the abyss began - the restaurant I chose was located five levels above the central city square and eight levels above the Hradalrome Crèche, an urban quarter built on the site of old ore developments. There were underground lakes with fish, and there was a river, and a mill nearby. There were rats in abundance, snakes and lizards and various worms, as well as snails, slugs, and other living creatures. An ideal starting point for gnomes and for future miners, in particular.
But I preferred to drink cranberry juice to chase away my dreams. A large coffee cup billowing with steam was next to the glass. Far away, a huge cloud filled with lightning, moving slowly. Above the cloud, a few majestic birds were hovering. The riders sitting on them were holding long nets in their hands, catching lightning snakes. Not a bad salary, by the way.
“Hi!”
“What’s up?” I smiled back, gesturing to the other side of the table. “Coffee?”
"I've already ordered some,” smiled the elegantly dressed Gray Talon, 224th level.
A gray shirt, gray trousers, a slightly darker gray waistcoat, a dazzling white tie, a few modest rings on his fingers. A belt and shoes made of almost black suede. Hair combed back - everything was perfectly fitted. I sensed the light and pleasant scent of cologne.
“Huh,” I said, not concealing my surprise. “Soon I will begin to take pride in our friend
ship - if you do not become more feminine, that is.”
"Where do you see femininity?"
“In the absence of armor.”
“You do not have any either,” Vlas said, unbuttoning the top button of his waistcoat.
"I am a mage, not a warrior. You're a tank, aren’t you?”
“I am a versatile person. And am wearing excellent equipment. Well, tramp, is my time running?”
“Five minutes in,” I nodded. “You have almost an hour. Then I will fly to another meeting.”
“You’re popular.”
“You do not say. Listen, if you ask questions, then just to warn you - I will not give you many answers. No offense, right?”
"I'd like to ask you," Talon admitted, rubbing his perfectly shaven cheek. "But not today. Ros, I already know, but just to be sure, I will clarify - everything we will talk about will remain between us. Right?”
“Right.”
“Well, that’s good. What do you know about the Gray Wardens?”
"Nothing," I admitted after a few seconds of meditation.
“Yet,” “threatened" Vlas, taking a big cup of coffee from the waitress.
"You did not get involved in some strange sect, did you?" I asked with suspicion. “You’re not wandering around “real” apartments and offering people divine enlightenment for money, are you?”
"You crazy?" Said Talon. “Hell no! Damn it. To hell with all these sects - long live the secret societies!”
“All the same, I do not follow…”
“Listen. Do not think about the name - it just fits the meaning. The essence of the Wardens is a pure search for information - information deals, information theft. And most importantly - the use of information received for the purpose of development and enrichment.”
"I do not understand. In addition, I am tired of these half-words and riddles ... either say everything completely, or do not say anything at all. Is this a clan?”
“No, and yes. There is a small building belonging to the Gray Guardians on one of the outskirts of the town of Bird's Twitter. They do some tasks around the town - doing everything in a row, from destroying predators and pests to fieldwork on cabbage and potatoes. They help at a couple of workshops that produce good equipment to the hundredth level. There is a pharmacy by them, where they make potions. On the top floor, there is a small library with useful literature. The clan is not empty, but there is almost nothing in it. As soon as they “grow up” - they send their recruits to other clans, silently leading them to believe that the others are much better than the Gray Wardens. They let everyone go kindly, with smiles, with gifts, and everyone is friends, no one is offended at all. In general, this is a teenage nursery with a constant cycle of players. Do you understand?”
"Continue," I encouraged him, with an awakened interest. I love fairy tales early in the morning.
“And hard-working players like myself are friends of the Gray Wardens. You understand?”
“Yeah,” I confirmed. “I do.”
The status of "friend of the clan" meant a lot. Such an admission meant that they got the same opportunities as members.
“All clan friends have full access.”
“Yes. Full access to the village pantry. Were you going for the cranberry jam? How did you get into this, Talon? It could not have been accidental, right?”
“An old friend suggested it,” smiled Vlas. “Not like you. In real life, we do not know each other, but our friendship stood the test of time and battles. Listen.”
“Hurry up and get to the dark and slippery parts. I feel that any moment you’ll offer me to sell my soul in exchange for a gold coin.”
"Who needs your soul? I told you that it is information that is bought and sold. For example, I am an Albatross, but no one has ever tried to learn anything about Albatross clan from me. I mean, I would not tell them! Betrayal is not looked kindly upon.”
"That's interesting," I narrowed my eyes, recalling Trouble’s recent suggestion that the player Gray Talon is a "mole.”
“Believe me, Ros, in Valdira there are many secrets. Lying right under your feet. You do not need to sell the clan panties.”
"So the Albatrosses have panties?"
"Not funny. Do you grasp what I am talking about?”
“You explained it clearly. I understand. You are looking for gaming secrets, embedded in tasks, in the heads of "local" ...
“ ... in books, in locations and so on,” Vlas said. “And we sell it. Alternatively, we use it ourselves. The most important thing is that you are paid instantly, and you can choose to take payment with game money or real money. In rubies, or in bucks. What do you think?”
"Crazy. Really?”
“Hell yes. I have already earned more than forty thousand bucks, plus a good outfit. But I am doing a hell of a lot of errands. And assignments so mysterious, at times, that it is ridiculous. Sometimes it takes a whole day to fulfill an errand, sometimes you have to go out and get access to such remote areas that you cannot simply walk into them”
"But it seems worth it. So you wanted to lure me into the ranks of the Guardians?”
“The organization,” said Talon. “A serious one, a real order.”
“Meaning - yes.”
“Yes. Moreover - you have, on your person, an object that will bring you a lot of money. Five thousand dollars at least, and you will not lose the statuette yourself. What do you think?”
"You said a statuette?"
“Ah damn… it slipped. Uh-huh. The figurine of your wolf. Where is he, by the way?”
“Sleeping in the private room. You won’t let it go, will you?”
“Why be greedy? I told you - the object will remain in your hands. Simply, with its help, it is quite possible to get some important info from a "local" old man.”
“Does this "local" old man perchance own a certain animal shop in a big city in the hills?”
“How do you know?!”
"How do I know?”
“Yeah!”
“No biggie - I am the leader of the Gray Wardens! And I managed to learn the most intimate, personal, extremely amazing secrets of the world Valdira. So amazing that the Immortals themselves bow at my presence…”
"What are you talking about?"
"Isn’t that what you're talking about, Vlas? A secret order... Okay, it might sound good, but in the end, it is ridiculous. Do you understand me? The old growling bear is trying to pretend to be a timid gopher. Look at yourself, Talon. Do not pull me into this mysterious muck. I have my own problems up to the roof, and only a child's scapula to dig myself out of them. So, I will not become a Warden. I will not enter into your ranks; I will not work for the Wardens for any gain. I repeat - this does not suit you, Vlas. You look like a peasant in a ballet tutu! But! If this is necessary for YOU, personally, if it somehow helps you, moves higher, to the side, reveals new horizons, or expands old ones - I will help than I can. Personally, you - I will help.”
“And off you go…”
“Yes, because this is fucking crazy! Do not tell me about your Wardens, I do not care what color they are. Speak for yourself personally, Vlas – that is what I need from you, friend. Now that will be a conversation! Do not you agree?”
“You never change, do you Ros?”
“Lord forbid. My dad is a tough admiral. Any change away from the direction of the navy is considered an attempt to escape, is considered the desire to change orientation and sex, is considered the rejection of real life values and the betrayal of the motherland as a whole. In short, I am not crazy about the Gray Wardens. Tell me exactly what you need, if you can. And if I can, I will help, but under the condition that I will not lose the statuette of the wolf. If the money comes from you - I do not want it. If the Gray Wardens insist - let them pay full price, I will be glad of extra money. I am almost a family man now, I have an adolescent girl, and her relatives are such a handful that I have to order some Vicodin.”
“Okay! There will be money. Rose, but maybe
you'll think about it after all?”
“About your Wardens?”
“Yeah.”
“Hell no. But if you need help - talk to me. Ask your gray friends not to worry.”
“Understood. Then this is what’s up - when do you have a couple of free hours? So that we could go into the famous animal shop together with a wolf and a statuette, and stay there for a while?”
"Hm... let me think ... And your schedule is not free, right?”
“Not free at all. I need to know in advance. But, if it is in the afternoon - I can cancel some things for the sake of such a thing. If it is in the morning - warn me at least an hour ahead of time.”
"Then wait for a message from me, friend," I sighed. "I will help you. I just wonder why the granddaddy is so stuck on that statuette."
“Thank you!” Vlas shook my hand, only not crushing it due to the peaceful status of the location. “I have to go now, to find one ve-e-ery unpleasant person. I must give him something.”
“What?” I asked mechanically, not expecting to receive an answer.
"If you can keep a secret," grinned Talon, and whispered: "a ton of cornflower petals and five thousand cypress toothpicks."
“What?!”
“Okay, I gotta go. Thank you, brother! I am waiting for your call!”
“Good luck,” I waved my hand, shaking my head in amazement.
What kind of weird cargo is that? What unknown person?
A strange set of things .... And for some reason, it seemed so familiar. As if I myself once had tried to do something just as insane.
Fuck only knows. And I do not care.
Opening my menu of messages, I wrote a message to Bom, suggesting a change of venue - the cafe in the city of gnomes.
Bom, as always, showed practicality and efficiency, responding to the message quickly, briefly and in the affirmative, not forgetting to add in, at the end the statement, the words "at your expense". Well then, at my expense it is. But it is strange - we have so much gold, that our pockets and bags are breaking. But Bom continues to economize, continues to earn and earn.
Waiting for the "ass" in chain mail, I ordered more coffee, and tried to distract myself, gazing at the grandiose panorama of the snow-capped mountains and sipping the invigorating drink. My thoughts, however, did not want to move from the recent conversation with Vlas.
The Way of the Clan 7 Page 13
