The Nameless Slave

by Vitaly Zykov

  Exhausted, he leant against the tree trunk. Forces left him. Any enemy could take him with bare hands now. The mad attack threw the enemy back and nearly gave victory to Yaroslav, but brought him to the state of a squeezed lemon. The bony snake meanwhile did not hurry to attack. Judging by some dark cracks covering its whole body, which had not been there literally a few seconds ago, it was suffering a hard time too. The creature snapped its mouth several times in a farewell and glided away. And once again Yaroslav was struck by the fact that he saw the creature, heard its creaking bones on the ground, but did not feel it by his inner instinct. As if the glade was empty. He made a mental note, went down on quivering feet and cautiously stepping, peering into every blade of grass and listening to the slightest rustle, continued his way, blessing the fact that the bony devil had crawled away to the other side.

  The tall pillar of magical flame was approaching much slower now. Yaroslav could not only rely on intuition, and now he was moving to his goal, straining all his senses to the limit. Some part of the way he had to do jumping from tree to tree. The bony monsters came across more and more frequently, and Yaroslav preferred to hide. One mental fight was quite enough for him. He did not learn to see the monsters, he could only hide himself. Moreover, he was in this state most of the time. To do that it was necessary to build a fireball from his own «I», then break it into small balls and conceal them in different parts of his mind. As a result, the fragments of mind which previously constituted an organic whole, retained their communication even being spaced apart. This state exactly fit the description of the law of unity, which Hisser had once told Yaroslav. And now Yaroslav could manipulate with his mind well enough.

  He successfully hid from magic looks, so it was necessary to watch himself carefully, and avoid being seen by various creatures. Especially considering the fact that closer to the mysterious source of Force he met more various monsters, exactly as in a proverb: «As the days grow longer, the storms are stronger». On his way, he met four and two-wing sharp-toothed beasts, flying jellyfishes hurling lightnings to the left and to the right, two-headed turtles suppressing his will and eager to suck out his mind. Such environment changed the very essence of Yaroslav. The previous nice guy, a little secretive, inclined to solitude, romantic in heart and cynic in public, that absolutely ordinary person had vanished. His place was taken by a predator who attacked the weaker and gave way to the stronger. Probably, that was the only way he could survive in such a nightmare. Sometimes, the grid of Force looking for human mind was so tight, that Yaroslav was forced to fell into a trance, hiding his mind somewhere very far, in an unimaginable abyss, trying to merge with the surrounding trees, grass, rocks, becoming a part of landscape. His body was hidden in shadows like under a blanket. Sometimes he had to remain in this state for a few days until the life threat reduced to a level ordinary for this forest hell.

  From some moment even more outrageous monsters began to appear: those like barbed balls and underground burrowers. They were literally charged with magic and used it constantly. Barbed balls were nondescript gray balls, covered with fine fur. These creatures were constantly rolling on the ground, searching for prey. When encountering an enemy, the monster immediately released numerous spikes from its skin, resembling a chestnut fruit. Then the tip of every spike began to glow with a spark of magic light. Such sparks, flooded with power, emitted little lightnings forming a crackling cover of Force over the entire surface of the ball. And then the ball, turning into a nightmarish weapon of destruction, did a jerk towards its opponent and tore them to shreds, no matter what type of armor the opponent had. No creature could pierce the shimmering cover of a barbed ball. In addition to all that, these balls literally sucked magical energy from the environment. Therefore, the beasts, extremely dangerous with their magical attacks, could do nothing against barbed balls.

  The second one, possibly even more deadly a creature was underground burrower. This thing could not be detected in any way. It silently moved underground and was unavailable for magical vision. Having met this monster the first time Yaroslav survived only due to luck. He just ran away from branches of a toothy tree to which he had come closer than unsafe distance, and suddenly felt a terrible danger right under his feet. Instinct made him jump up by a yard, in the air he twisted and was able to seize a branch of a quite peaceful tree. The rest was a matter of technique, in a few seconds he climbed as high as possible and then allowed himself to look down. Some conical creature was crawling from under the ground there. Having got out, it firmly rose on its feet and ridiculously pulling its rear, unfolded long needles, which formed a cone of its body. It was looking like a giant porcupine with needles of steel color crackling with lightnings. It looked at the enemy with one eye, the lightnings became thicker, and it hit Yaroslav with a whole bunch of energy charges. But he was already prepared. Yaroslav fenced off by his hand, where he had focused a considerable part of his Force. And the bunch of lightnings thrown by the underground monster enveloped his skin with a corrosive cloud. The hand seemed to have evaporated under the crackling bluish cover. Yaroslav roared violently, shook his hand, and tossed the charge back to the creature under the tree. The creature hissed and jumped aside. The energy clot hit into the ground. It thundered there. A bright flash struck at his eyes. Yaroslav staggered back, then again looked down. There was a smoking crater on the place of the explosion. The fresh smell of ozone was hanging in the air. And the unharmed creature was looking up angrily. Finally, it understood that it could not get the prey, folded its needles and dived into the ground as if into water.

  So, trees were the most secure way to survive. Of course, there also were dangers: winged creatures, small poisonous snakes, and so on, but it was very different from the situation on the ground. Therefore Yaroslav descended to the ground as seldom as possible. Step by step, day by day the goal of his journey had been getting closer until a river crossed his way.

  It happened early in the morning. His skin had been feeling the freshness of a nearby water for quite a while already. This fact was a bit unnerving for Yaroslav, especially in light of the fact that for a couple days he could not leave trees because of two underground burrowers who were pursuing him. These nasty freaks seemed to be waiting for the man to come down to the ground, so they would be able to regale with his yummy flesh. And he, like a hairless monkey, was jumping from branch to branch until the trees came to an end and a wide river opened before him. In fact, its width did not exceed a hundred yards in that place, but it was wide enough for Yaroslav.

  He was sitting on a not too tall tree, standing at some distance from the forest. He came to this tree from another tree resembling a cedar. Yaroslav just began to think about his further way, when the half-forgotten burrowers happily howled and dived into the ground.

  – Why are you so amused, bastards?! – Asked he thoughtfully.

  And a few minutes later he heard the answer. The neighboring tree swayed and fell. Now Yaroslav was cut off from the forest. Muzzles of the burrowers looked out from the ground, their attentive eyes glanced at the man – as if to check that he had not escaped yet. Then the heads disappeared again. The tree under Yaroslav began to tremble.

  – You bastards!!! – The algid lips whispered almost admiringly. – Clearly worked!

  He had no choice. The fate had decided everything for him once again. Yaroslav leapt to his feet, like a professional tightrope walker, ran along the branch toward the water, at the end of the branch he tensed and threw his body far ahead. His heels hit the ground. The water was in about ten yards. He needed one quick jerk. And Yaroslav did it. He ran with wind in his ears, his unwashed for a long time heels were flickering, and the two burrowers behind his back pursued him slithering along the ground. But Yaroslav reached the water first. He had won a split second from death, and now he was swimming with short strokes, while the raging monsters remained on the shore. They obviously did not like water. Yaroslav did not hurry to rejoice. He had a task to reach the other side
alive, and even better, to reach without loss. He threw all his forces to solve this task. His consciousness habitually spread over the water surface, his lungs took a deep breath, and Yaroslav disappeared under the water. He understood that some dangerous creatures could also live in the water, so he should cross the river unnoticed and as soon as possible.

  Clean, cool water, clear to the very bottom of the river was pleasant for his heated skin. His whole body was working in a single rhythm. Yaroslav dived, moved under water as far as he could, then popped to take a breath, and everything repeated again. The shore was approaching, causing his heart to beat with joy. «Come on! Come on!» – The one thought urged his body. At one dive Yaroslav noticed that he did not have enough air. It was as if a hoop was squeezing his breast and did not allow to breath in full force. He popped on the surface and took a breath, but suffocation did not stop. An alarm bell rang in his head. Yaroslav concentrated and felt that he was literally enveloped by some energy net with the color of dirty water. This cocoon was slowly pumping out his energy. If it was to go on, he should become weak and drown.

  – Shit ass! – Yaroslav screamed in fear and anger, and struck the cocoon-vampire with a blade of his will. – Take that! Eat me!!

  Rage was bubbling inside him, blood veiled his eyes. In such a state, he could not fail. The thin grid was helpless against such a monstrous force pressure, it was torn into small pieces and slipped from Yaroslav. He was breathing hard, adrenaline was boiling in his blood. Yaroslav examined the surrounding water in magic vision and hair stirred on his head. The ravenous creatures, octopus-like energy structures, invisible for usual eye, hastened to him from all directions. Previously Yaroslav was invisible for them, while he concealed his mental activity completely. But fighting with the cocoon, he as if lit a beacon for all predators of the river. Yaroslav screamed hoarsely in fear and jerked towards the shore which was still not too close. It was about thirty yards ahead, and that was quite far for Yaroslav.

  All his feelings, all aspirations were directed towards the shore. His heart was pounding in his chest, horror chilled his blood. «Hurry up, hurry up!!» – Only one thought was ringing in his brain. One jerk, then another. He already felt the shallow water, his feet already reached the bottom, but the danger still hung over the swimmer. One particularly agile beast was in immediate vicinity. Yaroslav decided to take a chance. With one powerful jerk he shook off the pursuer, turned around and found himself face to face with the river hunter. Immediately, without trying to look around or do similar nonsense, he lashed the enemy crosswise by the whip of Nergal. And, without considering what had happened with the enemy, he turned back to the shore and ran forward. He overcame the remaining yards in one breath. Like a bullet, Yaroslav flew onto the shore, and then looked at the place where he had struck the monster. There was boiling water – predators of all hues were fighting each other for possession of the best pieces of the dead creature.

  – Don't mess with us! – said Yaroslav tossing the self-made knuckles in his right hand and whistling something very grand and incredibly proud plunged into the forest beyond the river. His trembling voice spoiled the impression a little, but there was no audience, and therefore nothing to be ashamed of.

  Some unfamiliar feeling caused his heart to beat faster. But the sense of danger was silent. Yaroslav looked around. The pillar of bluish magic fire was very close. Fluids of Force emitted by the magic fire were tingling his skin already. It was calling, pulling, beckoning. He felt some irresistible desire to rush at a breakneck pace to this unknown Source. His whole body was aching painfully. The source of Force, hidden in the depth of his mind, began to emit toxic waves. The ropes of will defending his mind from outside intrusions and painful despair of eternal loneliness were broken. It was as if a dark maelstrom drew Yaroslav inside, absorbing his mind, replacing his mind with primal instincts, turning him into a two-legged predator carefully walking through the ancient land.

  CHAPTER 9

  Irung was biting his lips in anger. It was unbecoming of an adult man, a True magician and a captain of battleship, who was assigned to a very important job, but he could not help that. Childish sense of helplessness before the blind elements returned from the depths of his consciousness. Like twenty-seven years ago, when he was standing a few yards from burning hut of his father, flashed by a lightning. And closeness of the sea could not help then. Irung's father (just Airy in that time), was a fisherman, a simple poor fisherman, and like any fisherman, he set his hut on the shore. That day he was drunk and probably did not even feel his death approaching. Little Airy never knew what happened with his mother. Probably she was immediately killed by a fireball which flew into the window. He stood and looked at the fire, which devoured not only his parents but his childhood too. After that there was a shelter for orphan children, children's pranks, which honestly could be called executioners' amusements, endless fights, and then like a ray of light in the darkness there was appearance of Teacher Marol, who recognized a spark of True talent in the young boy.

  Irung shook his head sharply. He was deeply moved, but now had no time for memories. Usually he was not inclined for such demonstration of feelings, but too many events occurred with him in short time. These unknown fantastic ships, a hopeless escape and miraculous rescue like in a fairy tale. And the unusual assignment issued by Lir Bryms himself (that's really a man, who doesn't need to flee from an enemy!), and such strange saved people, and an impossible spy snooping around the ship… Too much, too much. An ordinary campaign (perhaps a little more dangerous and demanding) turned into something complicated, confusing and incomprehensible. It looked like a surgeon's scalpel which opened an abscess and accumulated pus flowing from there. Irung shrugged.

  – Brrr, it's cold! – He said to the first officer.

  The latter nodded in agreement.

  The weather warm before, dramatically changed into piercing cold that was an unprecedented rarity for these latitudes. And when did it all start? Exactly with the maelstrom crater emerged under the pursuers. Irung shuddered remembering unimaginable chaos of the raging Ethereal spirits. Their sizzling rage and hatred attracted weaker, but much more numerous air and water elements. And those infected with the fury of their older brothers, twirled into a deadly whirlwind which, in fact, destroyed the unknown enemy. Heretofore Irung had believed that ocean of Force is necessary for such action, but now he realized he was wrong. His intuition of a trained magician told him about an outbreak of magic a moment before the death of the enemy, just some few miles to the west. A flash, whose power was not enough for such maelstrom, was exactly enough to challenge the freedom-loving Ethereal spirits that obey nothing and nobody.

  – Clever, very clever. Very few who are able to perform that. The unknown magician was skillful, very skillful. – Among True magicians whom Irung knew, only magicians with level of Apprentice could potentially cope with such a task.

  The first officer, a weak mortal magician, but a good commander, was standing near and nodding in agreement. He, too, felt something, and understood what his captain was talking about.

  The unknown savior did not take into account only one thing, that his spell would break for a moment the cloak of absolute invisibility and expose his ship. And for a second, a silhouette of a wonderful ship appeared in the place where hitherto was only a flat surface of the sea. Irung, the sailor with eight years of experience, had seen such a ship for the first time. His mate had not seen anything like that too. It did not look like anything else. Neither paunchy merchant ships of Jugha nor sharp-nosed galleys of Gartash nor beautifully adorned ships of Khan Empire, ships of Tlantos or of Nold no sense to mention at all. It was like none of them. But, however, something vaguely familiar in its flashing silhouette rang the bell. And it reminded of Elves.

  – I wonder whether the Dark Firstborns have honored our quarrel with their presence? – Bernard broke silence thoughtfully. – Did they really decide to get out from their millennial voluntary seclusion? Yeah…
>
  Irung absently nodded, but then, as if remembering something, slashed with his hand vigorously:

  – Belay! We have a goal and an order. We'll perform it, Nold is still three days away. Leave thinking to those who should do that according to subordination. – Having said that, the captain looked into his mate's face. – And I advise you to perform your direct duties and to talk with sailors to keep in secret all they had seen.

  Bernard's face remained inscrutable, he silently saluted and left the bridge. Irung looked at his back and grinned: «Did you think I have no idea who is the observer of Punishers on my ship?! Well, I do…»

  As for the words «let think those who in charge do the thinking …» – he almost agreed. Now there was no proper time or place for that. Irung imagined how Bryms would take the news. He sent the ship for scientific purposes, and got a bunch of problems. Well, for him to wreck his brain trying to figure things out now. At this point a strange idea pierced the young captain. Could Bryms have been aware of everything from the beginning?

  Oleg was sitting on a bed in his cabin, directly opposite the porthole. The sunbeams caressed his face.

  – How strange… The sun has become yellow, and I did not notice when! Nastya, do you know when it happened?

  Sleepy Nastya was lying on the bed, she turned her whole body, crawling like a butterfly from the cocoon of the blankets.