Day Watch

by Сергей Лукьяненко

  Gesar stood up to speak for the Light Ones. He spread his hands in a broad gesture. "The Night Watch of Moscow has no… personal charges to bring against the accused. In addition, we believe that the leadership of the sect of the Regin Brothers was provoked into committing its crime by a certain… a certain unidentified Dark magician."

  "That has not been proved," said Witezslav.

  "Only the identity of the provocateur has not been established," Gesar said with a smile. "The fact of his existence is in no doubt."

  Witezslav nodded and turned to face his six colleagues. For a few moments the Inquisitors shared their thoughts with each other without speaking. Then Witezslav looked back to the four motionless Finns. "In the name of the Treaty, bearing in mind the clement attitude of the Night Watch, the absence of any grave consequences, and the other extenuating circumstances, the Inquisition offers you the right to choose your punishment. The first option-you are condemned to death by hanging but your civil rights will not be affected…"

  The large young black man sighed heavily and the Chinese and the Finn grabbed his elbows and held him up.

  "The second possible punishment is that from this day until the end of your lives you will be forbidden to use magic. You will have the right to live ordinary human lives, without using magical means to prolong or improve the quality of those lives."

  The Finns looked at the Inquisitor, stunned. Zabulon giggled shrilly, but immediately assumed a serious expression.

  "The second… the second!" Yukha Mustajoki said in a choking voice. The others nodded.

  "Does anyone present have any objections?" Witezslav asked.

  Gesar got to his feet again. "As a small gesture of goodwill… we consider it possible to permit the accused to use magic… minor magic… with inanimate objects." It seemed as if Gesar had to struggle to pronounce every word, that he was forcing himself to show mercy. "Say, to find some… small item… that's been lost… a key or a coin… To drive the flies out of a room… according to the regulations, flies are regarded as inanimate, are they not? To clean the carburetor in a car…"

  The vampire's face expressed faint surprise.

  He doesn't understand, Edgar thought.

  "The Inquisition has no objections…" the vampire said eventually. "Apply the seals to the accused!"

  Two Inquisitors raised their right hands, and fine threads of glimmering energy streamed through the air toward the accused. The seals were applied permanently, leaving the condemned prisoners capable of only the very weakest forms of magic. Probably the Inquisitors really hadn't understood that Gesar's unexpected kindness had only made the punishment worse. It was one thing to be completely deprived of all magic and gradually come to terms with life as a human being. It was quite different to feel every day that you were a helpless cripple who had to manage with a pale shadow of your former abilities.

  But then, the Finns hadn't thought about that yet. They were led out of the hall, absolutely crazy with happiness. Yukha kept trying to break away and shake everybody's hand, but the vigilant guards forced him to walk out simply by nudging and shoving him.

  Edgar shook his head. He actually felt quite glad that the Dark Brothers had been saved. But what a price to pay… He would probably have preferred a quick death.

  "The next matter for this hearing to consider has not been announced in advance," said Witezslav. "The Inquisition requests the leader of the Night Watch of Moscow, known under the name of Gesar, to step into the circle of the accused…"

  Zabulon smiled in triumph.

  "And also the leader of the Day Watch of Moscow, known under the name of Zabulon."

  Edgar was delighted by Zabulon's slightly perplexed expression. But just how genuine was it?

  "The Inquisition's first question is for the Great Magician Gesar." Witezslav was speaking politely now, but very firmly. "Gesar, have you carried out interventions in the Book of Destiny of the Great Enchantress Svetlana Nazarova, here present, with the intention of compelling the said Great Enchantress to become the mother of a Light Messiah?"

  The hall fell silent.

  "Rephrase your question, Witezslav," Gesar said in a soft voice. "Or I shall take offense."

  The vampire bared his teeth in a smile. "Answer the substance of the point, Great Magician Gesar."

  "Very well," said Gesar with a nod. "I was not expecting these accusations, but… I will explain for the Tribunal."

  You were expecting them, thought Edgar. You were expecting everything, you cunning old schemer…

  "An intervention of that kind is impossible in principle. Even for me," Gesar declared modestly.

  Witezslav seemed confused by that.

  "But, Great Magician Gesar, Svetlana Nazarova's Book of Destiny…"

  "Shows that she will become the mother of the greatest of all Light enchantresses; in poetical terms a Light Messiah." Gesar smiled happily. "This is a great joy for the Night Watch of Moscow… and, indeed, for all Light Ones! But the respected Inquisition must understand that such things cannot be written into a Book of Destiny. Absolutely not. There is no way. Not even by using a certain artifact familiar to you which belongs by right to the Night Watch."

  "But interventions were made in Svetlana Nazarova's Book of Destiny?" the vampire continued to insist.

  "Yes," Gesar said, and nodded. "As everybody, or almost everybody, knows, it is possible to make a new entry in a Book of Destiny, but it has a direct effect on the balance between Light and Darkness. It is fairly simple to introduce trifling changes in the destiny of an ordinary human being. It is rather more difficult to make even insignificant changes in the destiny of an Other. And the more powerful that Other is, and the more serious the change, the greater the disturbance suffered by the Light and the Darkness. Respected members of the Tribunal, can you calculate the consequences that would ensue from introducing into a Great Enchantress's Book of Destiny an entry that would make her the mother of a Messiah?"

  No one replied.

  "Any one of us… all the Others taken together, would be dematerialized if they attempted that kind of meddling. We'd be reduced to dust! The world would collapse! And you accuse me of committing such acts."

  "Light magician Gesar, what changes were entered into Svetlana Nazarova's Book of Destiny?"

  Gesar shrugged. "Nothing but trifling details. I am obliged to be concerned for my colleagues' well-being, am I not? A trip to some Italian resort or other… a course of lessons in a driving school… and something else… I can present a detailed list, if you wish. There's nothing serious. Just the small pleasures of human life."

  Witezslav thought for a moment and asked, "Where were the new entries made? Before or after the entry about the birth of the greatest of all Light Enchantresses?"

  "I think, before…" Gesar said with a smile.

  "And in that way, you adjusted the time of the event." Witezslav was not asking-he was thinking out loud. "You maximized the probability that Svetlana's future daughter would be a Messiah of the Light…"

  "Possibly," Gesar agreed. "But what of that? All I did was to improve the daily life of one of my colleagues."

  "And could you not have used other methods to improve Svetlana Nazarova's living conditions? Free vacations, bonuses, friendly advice?"

  Gesar looked genuinely offended now. "I made use of what came to hand. The Inquisition has a right to be surprised if I hammer in nails with a microscope… But there's no way you can charge me with that."

  The Inquisitors exchanged glances. This time the silent consultation lasted for almost a minute. Edgar felt a trickle of cold sweat running down his back. It would really cause a ruckus if the Inquisition charged Gesar. The dematerialization of a Great Magician was not such a simple proposition as dealing with the four Finns…

  "Not cognizable," Witezslav said eventually. "Great Magician Gesar, having heard your explanations, the Inquisition accepts that you have not violated the letter of the Treaty…"

  "The letter or the sp
irit." Gesar corrected him sharply.

  "The letter or the spirit," the vampire agreed in a voice that betrayed his frustration. "However, your actions are still considered to be dubious and dangerous."

  "No more so than the attempt by the Day Watch of Moscow to eliminate Svetlana Nazarova shortly before her initiation," Gesar snapped. "Do you have any more questions for me?"

  "No," said Witezslav. "You may return to your seat."

  Throughout the questioning, Zabulon had stood modestly on the very edge of the circular grille… He didn't seem upset that no charges had been brought against Gesar. And that made Edgar feel uneasy.

  "Dark magician Zabulon, the Inquisition has some questions for you," said Witezslav. "Was the attack by the sect of the Regin Brothers provoked by you?"

  "No one is obliged to testify against himself…" Zabulon said in a dull voice.

  "Is that a confession?" the vampire asked in a lively tone.

  "No, it is a reminder of the law. You have no right to ask such a question. Therefore I shall not answer it."

  "Very well. Your objection is accepted. Great Magician Zabulon, have you been planning, in order to oppose the future Messiah of the Light, to resurrect the Great Magician Fafnir, who was consigned to the Twilight and dematerialized more than a thousand years ago?"

  Zabulon began blinking rapidly and exclaimed in a voice full of amazement, "Where did you get a nonsensical idea like that?"

  "Did you act to prevent the initiation of Svetlana Nazarova and carry out other actions directed against her?"

  "Yes, within the limits permitted by the Treaty," Zabulon replied briskly.

  "And Fafnir?"

  "What about Fafnir?" said Zabulon, answering a question with a question. He looked at Edgar and winked.

  "Why did you send to Prague a certain member of the Day Watch, ideally suited for the rematerialization of Fafnir?"

  "I have no idea what you're talking about!"

  "Did you plan to exploit the following parallels: Fafnir as the Antichrist, the four members of the Regin Brothers sect as the four horses of the Apocalypse…"

  Zabulon burst into laughter. He laughed and wheezed happily for a long time, the way someone might laugh if they had just pulled off a risky but very amusing hoax. Then he wiped away the tears that had sprung to his eyes and said in a calmer voice, "I am delighted by the sense of humor demonstrated by the members of the Inquisition. Fafnir was an insane psychopath. I actually knew him personally and there is nothing I would like less than to meet him again… in any case, he wouldn't suit as a Messiah of Darkness. That's beyond his level… Eliminating Svetlana, now…" Zabulon smiled. "… That's a possibility. But at such a price… oh, no, never. And as for those half-wit Finnish magicians… what did you say they were-the horses of the Apocalypse?"

  Edgar felt like a total idiot. He looked imploringly at Witezslav. But the vampire hadn't given up yet.

  "Why did you carry out the following actions: arranging the death of Alisa Donnikova, which can be interpreted as a ritual sacrifice for rematerialization, and ordering two portraits from a well-known Moscow artist-one of the Dark magician Edgar and one of the dragon Fafnir?"

  Zabulon became more serious: "I would also like to understand the circumstances of Alisa's death better! As I understand, it is to be the subject of the next inquiry. Well, and as for the portraits…"

  The head of Moscow's Day Watch reached inside his jacket and took out two small pictures in frames, about twenty by thirty centimeters. Edgar was horrified to recognize one as a portrait of himself. The other showed a dragon contorted by convulsions.

  "This is a small Christmas present for one of my finest employees-please pardon an old man's sentimentality…"

  And with that Zabulon took a step toward Edgar and held the portrait out to him. It was a good portrait-no two ways about it. But Edgar was only frightened even more by Zabulon's whisper: "Smart boy…"

  Zabulon returned to the circle.

  "And the second picture?" Witezslav asked.

  "Pure sentimentality," Zabulon repeated. "Those Regin Brothers stirred up old feelings. I remembered Fafnir and… decided to have a portrait of him made as a keepsake…"

  "You were not planning to bring him back to life?" Witezslav asked again. This time Zabulon answered very seriously and apparently with absolute sincerity. "Not for a moment. There are less disruptive ways to achieve my goal."

  The Inquisitors exchanged glances.

  "Great Magician Zabulon," said Witezslav. "The Inquisition has no charges to bring against you: You may return to your seat. However, we remind you that taken all together your actions appear extremely ambiguous and dangerous…"

  "I understand, I understand," Zabulon muttered as he walked out of the circle. "Soon it will be impossible to pick your nose without permission…"

  Edgar looked at Gesar, expecting the old intriguer to be angry.

  But no. Gesar wasn't angry. He even seemed to have taken a genuine interest in what Zabulon had said. That is, he had been quite convinced that the head of the Dark Ones would wriggle out of everything, but he was interested in all the details.

  They'd known all of this beforehand!

  Edgar struggled desperately to gather his scattered thoughts. That meant Svetlana really was going to be the mother of a Messiah of the Light… and a female one-that was a surprise! Zabulon was fighting against it, but… but not by creating an Antichrist in the flesh… that had only been a diversionary maneuver, one in which Edgar had behaved like a naive child.

  But then what was the most important thing?

  "The Inquisition now moves on to the consideration of the most important matter of the day, which is of exceptional importance for the Light and the Darkness," said Witezslav, as if he were answering the question that Edgar hadn't asked. "The case of Igor Teplov, a third-level magician of the Moscow Night Watch. Is everyone familiar with the materials of the case?"

  Nobody said anything. Everybody had been familiar with the materials for a long time…

  "I offer the prosecuting counsel, Anton Gorodetsky, the floor."

  The Light One was standing opposite Edgar. He raised his head and nodded curtly to Witezslav.

  "I shall be brief. In essence, our charges are simple-we accuse the respected magician Zabulon, here present, of deliberately sending Alisa Donnikova to the Artek camp, knowing that Igor Teplov would be there, restoring his powers. Zabulon had probably read the reality lines and realized that for Igor and Alisa those conditions would immediately lead to… to love between them. A tragic and hopeless love, since the young people served different powers. A love that would end in a duel which would lead to the death of either Igor or Alisa, while the surviving opponent would be condemned by the Inquisition. We accuse Zabulon of the deliberate and cynical elimination… attempted elimination… of the Moscow Night Watch agent Igor Teplov. We therefore request the Inquisition to withdraw the charge brought against Igor Teplov of violating the Treaty and murdering Alisa Donnikova."

  "Is that all?" Witezslav asked after a pause.

  "No. We also request the court to consider the matter of the death of a young boy who was not an Other, as a result of the duel. Insofar as the duel was arranged by Zabulon…"

  "Objection," Zabulon exclaimed in a squeaky voice.

  "Objection sustained," the vampire ruled.

  "Since we believe the duel to have been arranged by Zabulon, he is also guilty of the boy's death, for which Igor Teplov cannot be blamed. That is all."

  Witezslav turned his head to look at Zabulon. "Can you reply to the essence of the matter?"

  "There will be no answer-I have already explained the reason," Zabulon replied coolly.

  "I offer the floor to the counsel for the defense."

  Edgar sighed and began. "My colleague's speculations are all highly diverting. We are witnessing an attempt to shield a criminal…"

  "Objection!" Anton put in quickly.

  "To shield the accused," said Edgar, c
orrecting himself. "Igor Teplov is guilty of the murder of the young witch Alisa Don-nikova. And the worst thing about it is that he loved her with all his heart. And worse again, in the grip of his maniacal passion, Igor Teplov incidentally caused the death of the boy Makar Kanevsky. He killed a child. A human child, who also had a right to live. And there is more. As a result of his extensive gathering of Power from children on vacation at Artek, seven of them suffered from nightmares for three months. Two cases of persistent incontinence were recorded. Nine-year-old Yurik Semetsky, a resident of Moscow, died of asphyxiation a month after returning from Artek, when he drowned in his bath. We do not know as yet if this was a result of the actions of Igor Teplov… the Light magician Igor Teplov."

  He looked at the accused. Igor's face was stony. Impervious. Expressionless.

  "The Light Ones can put forward their groundless accusations as long as they wish," said Edgar. "Without any proof, without even any cogent explanation as to why the Day Watch of Moscow would sacrifice a young and promising member of its staff who had already received several commendations from the head of the Watch, in order to eliminate a third-level Light magician who possesses no real talent… That is a matter for their consciences. We only request the Inquisition to consider the situation impartially and punish the guilty party for violation of the Treaty."