The Nameless Slave

by Vitaly Zykov

  – But what happened with the last of these five?

  – Magician Graass founded the state of Nold and died in the first years of the terrible Wars of the Fall, he gave his life to stop attack of the army of United Colonies of Dusk[28]. It gave us a year of breathing space, and we were able to prepare to repel aggression. Tens of millions died in that war. Elves and dwarves still have not been able to recover from the loss of those years. – Bryms knocked a three-tooth fork on a table top. – But that's all a matter of forgotten days. Now we are interested in you and your friend.

  – But we thought there is no doubt Yarik could not survive? – The interlocutors of the Magister surprised in chorus.

  – That dragon of yours tried to build the Lariat of Force, the impossibility of which has been proved more than once. And your Yarik survived in a cataclysm, which could kill a powerful magician. So, if anyone has a chance to survive in the Forbidden Land, that is him. And as you've probably already understood, people who have survived in the Forbidden Land, are the source of concern for the whole world. The list of my duties includes supervision and control over all hazardous processes for existing world order. As you see, I'm very honest with you.

  – So you want to find this problem in the face of Yarik and fix it? In our world, one controversial book character said «No man, no problem». Do you think the same way?

  – Of course no. Do you think we are barbarians? That's even insulting! It's inexcusable extravagancy to expend such a valuable person!

  At this point their conversation ended. The Master of Punishers quickly bowed and left the offworlders alone. A hot discussion began and completed very quickly, because they had little choice: either they to accept the terms of Bryms and Archimagus, or to be abandoned in this unknown world.

  The next morning, they confirmed their agreement for cooperation. So began their working life in this country residence of Archimagus.

  In the first half of every day, local researchers performed some experiments on them. No matter, that not a single device was familiar, neither did they ring a bell of association. Instead of computer diagnosis and X-ray here were complex structures of colored balls and puzzling geometric constructions on the floor, they were actually experiments all the same!

  After about a week, each of them began to take a glass with some extremely smelly liquid. It was the result of alchemists' research. This smelly liquid was supposed to make their offworld organisms immune to local diseases. Judging by the fact that all the visitors from Earth were still healthy, the goal was achieved.

  Their afternoons were dedicated to long conversations in state of hypnosis with an unremarkable man, one of the helpers of the Magister of Seekers. They all remembered nothing about those conversations. Besides that, every day two hours were reserved for education. They studied writing and etiquette. Artifacts improving memory and concentration were actively used in the learning process. It was still unusual, to learn to read and write acceptably well in a common language in three weeks. Their personal instructor from young students explained that their high speed of learning was the result of existing writing skills.

  Once Oleg asked about the need to study ethics in such a way:

  – Dear lir Raul, can you tell me… – But he did not have time to complete the sentence. Raul just leapt at these words of his student:

  – Remember, Oleg! I'm not a lir! Only your ignorance and alien origin do not allow me to suspect that you are jeering at me, otherwise I would call you to a duel.

  When Oleg, shocked by this blowout, tried to mumble something soothing, Raul in reply, read them a short lecture about hierarchy of local power structure. As the young offworlders had already realized there were nobles and commons in this world. Raul added, that nobility consisted of the people whose ancestors had been brought to Scroll of Blood by a king or a supreme ruler and who had an allotment (when you address them, you must use prefix graass), and incomplete nobles who bought or received a title, but without a plot of land – addressing them you must use the prefix lin. The magicians stood separately. There were True magicians, who possessed the great magical potential and developing it to unimaginable heights. Such ones had the word lir or lirissa before their name. But there were also ordinary magicians, who had crumbs of Forces and developed them through long learning. Addressing them you needed to use a title corresponding their hierarchy in the Mages Gild. Junior student was the lowest rank in this hierarchy.

  True magicians despised ordinary magicians, although the latter were much more numerous. Epithets such as «stubs», «thieves» meant a lot. All that a younger student Raul told with a straight face, as a lesson which had been memorized a long ago. Only then, looking closer, Oleg realized, that before them stood a snotty kid, who just only recently encountered with harsh truth of life. He, the future magician, was destined to be on sidelines forever, just because of the fact that he was less gifted by nature.

  «Something is rotten in the State of Nold! Contrary to what they tried to prove us!» – Oleg thought.

  And then happened an important event in their lives. Lirs Bryms and Vittor came to them. Or rather lirs Vittor and Bryms! Archimagus and his right hand! Everything occurred in the same dining room, which the guests had already had time to study thoroughly for they had dinner here every day! There was a nice view over the distant woods from the wide windows, the walls were made of white stone and decorated with exquisite tapestries. They even laughed at some of them (not all of the pictures fit Earth norms of morality!). The mosaics on the floor depicted battles of human mages with representatives of other races and various monsters. One could fathom that fighting men were magicians by the lightnings, tornadoes and summoned demons, which were actively used in those battles. And over all that splendor stood a very long table for at least fifty persons. It was made of polished wood, with veins glowing inside it. It looked like ordinary wood, but certainly worth a fortune.

  Oleg's thoughts were interrupted by the voice of Archimagus:

  – Young people! I am pleased to inform you that the research showed the expected result. You were found absolutely safe for our world. As for the knowledge we needed, it had already been received from you by the scholars of the Magister of Seekers. So, you can consider yourself full-fledged citizens of Toarn. – Vittor smiled fatherly and continued: – Besides that, you may not worry about your fate. As it had been promised, the Council of Masters takes you under protection.

  The Head of Masters Council paused for a while, giving his guests time to comprehend, what they had heard. The young people breathed a sigh of relief all together. They had certainly hoped for a similar result, but the worm of doubt still gnawed them. They winked at each other and smiled happily. This, of course, did not completely fit canons of genteel behavior, but there were no noisy shouts or disputes. Etiquette lessons had an effect!

  – Considering the fact that our imperfect world is divided into states, we suggest you to take our citizenship… with all attendant rights and responsibilities. Your voluntary cooperation has given us valuable information for further research in several areas of theoretical magic. And it should be rewarded. – A kind smile once again. – In addition, other states do not adhere to our high universal principles, and cooperation with them can lead to disastrous consequences for you.

  The young people were quiet. «That's right. A carrot goes first, and then a whip. The more interesting a carrot, the more impressive a whip!» – Oleg thought, and said aloud:

  – We are already familiar and have warm relationship with the local people, I may probably speak for all of us. – His eyes ran across the faces of his fellows: Nastya's encouraging, Natasha's enthusiastic and Olesya's scornful one. – We all gratefully accept your offer. As they used to say at our home: enough is as good as a feast!

  – Very good and true saying! Just why do you say «at our home»? I think you have to get used to the fact that now your home is here, – Magister made a wide, covering gesture with his hand. – And now
we'll talk about the details… So, as I understand it, our bachelor Bernard has offered his hand and heart to you, girls, and you said «yes»?

  He looked at Natasha and Olesya. They nodded, and Oleg and Nastya stared at them in mute amazement. Yes, of course, they had suspected something like that, even talked about it, but when otherwise civilized girls agreed to a life basically in a harem, it was too extravagant!

  – According to the groom and the brides' wish, the ceremony will take place in two months, in the temple of Phoenix, not far from here. The groom will take care of your aliment himself. – Vittor winked and continued: – I can tell you that he is a very eligible bachelor. Rich, handsome, clever, lucky and highborn. Recently he became a captain of a ship, and this post provides guaranteed salary and a good home. Though he is not a True magician, but not a mere mortal either. You will not regret this.

  During this short speech Oleg and Nastya were standing like two pillars of salt. The shock was too great. These fun-loving and incredibly naughty girls, nevertheless, knew how to make their way in life! Something like that flashed in Nastia's head, but Oleg noticed something else: if a captain's assistant Bernard became a captain himself now, then what had happened to captain Irung?

  – Now let's talk about you. – Archimagus finally turned his attention to another pair. – With you everything is much more interesting. Our Master of Punishers is interested in you, Oleg, and he has an offer for you. But as I can immediately remark, if you do not accept it, we will not force you, and you will be provided with a job and quite decent earnings for comfortable life. It's up to you.

  – So, with permission of our respected Archimagus, lir Vittor, I'll start, – Lir Bryms joined in the conversation. – Oleg, as I have already told you, you have some potential, magic potential. And if you develop it, you will get a very impressive result. That has been confirmed by our research. You just need to join our Academy of General Magic. The Gift of Force is like a diamond: at first it must be extracted from depth, and then polished in order to get a sparkling diamond!

  – But what about Anastasia? – Oleg muttered distractedly. He did not take seriously any of the previous conversations, but now, for some reason, he excruciatingly wanted to become a part of something powerful, secret and incredibly beautiful, as everything supernatural. – I can't leave her!

  – Nothing wrong will happen to your girl. You're not going to a jail. You will be able to meet twice a week. In addition, we can offer dear Anastasia enrollment at our University of Culture, the graduates of which are appreciated throughout the all civilized Toarn. So she will not be bored! Your decision?

  Oleg looked into Nastya's eyes and took her hand. Painful desire to accept the offer was struggling with the inability to leave his girlfriend. But his girlfriend decisively, as she always did, pursed her lips and whispered:

  – Let's agree! Do you think we both want the same life like these stupid girls? We need to settle in this world, and achieve some new heights. I also agree about this University. We'll still see who reaches more in the new world!

  The last words she uttered with a perky smile, which always attracted Oleg. He only nodded wordlessly and gently squeezed her hand.

  – We agree! Nastya and I agree to study in your Universities.

  – Well, that's fine – Archimagus smiled good-naturedly. – It's just perfect. You may stay right here for a couple of months, until your background has been developed and we have taught you what even our children know.

  – Wait, what background? – Oleg was surprised.

  – Oleg, you disappoint me, – said Lir Bryms and shook his head. – Well, do you think that we will allow such tidbits for all the foreign intelligence services like you to openly walk around the country?

  CHAPTER 16

  Yaroslav had been walking as if zonked for several hours already. His feeling of reality was pushed into a far corner of his consciousness and was yelling from there in a muffled voice. The ideas about this damn world were turned upside down. And how else could he perceive these totally insane changes of the world? You are just walking there, not even touching anyone with a finger, but troubles are peeking from behind your shoulder with nasty giggling.

  The changes began with the ground beneath his feet. The dead, cracked earth dotted with small tufts of tough and nasty-looking grass was replaced with adorable forbs. The man's legs immersed in this soft living sea with pleasure, wiggling at every gust of wind.

  Then it was the birds' turn. Yaroslav had not heard or seen a single bird even once throughout the whole time in this world. There were, of course, small animals (and sometimes not so small) filling the scenery with their screams of animal rage or death throes, but he had never heard the soothing twitter of small birds before. But now this situation changed: every now and again he saw bright plumages of birds, gliding between tall prairie grasses with chirping and whistling. Large representatives of feathery kingdom began to appear high in the sky. The magical aura was almost absent here, only a weak background still remaining there. Yaroslav began to feel that the nature of the places where he had traveled before, was not quite normal.

  Then a really strange thing happened: the local sun changed. It looked so incredible: at one point you make a step under a glowing ball of vivid green light, and the next one already under a bright yellow star, very similar to the Earth's sun. And the world changed too. It felt as if some oppressive load had dropped off your shoulders. One step back, and everything came back again, only now you already notice the invisible oppressive heaviness. And your senses become blunt. A step forward, and under the new sun, some tight blinders seemed to fall off your eyes. The world is not perfect, but you realize that it is different, that it has been changed. Though, in fact, he had not walked very far from the illfated ford!

  Still surprised, Yaroslav resumed his way. Fauna here became more diverse then in the steppe on the other riverbank. Small groups of horned animals grazed here and fled instantly when the man approached them. Flocks of small scavengers accompanied sharp-toothed hunters. Yaroslav prepared for battle at every such encounter, but the majestic predators ignored him. Only once, when he came too close (in predator's opinion), it briefly snarled and leapt towards the man. But was immediately split into two unequal parts. And the escort of scavengers enthusiastically howled and lashed at what previously was their master and benefactor.

  Mountains were approaching. They looked very different from the ones Yaroslav had visited before. These mountains were somehow more comfortable. They did not exude strength or power of unconquered greatness. Those mountains had been severe and above them there was a mark of ancient hatred and struggle, which poisoned the air itself. But these mountains were just mountains. Beautiful and majestic, exactly like what mountains should be. They were not broken creatures of mad magic, they just existed.

  Yaroslav was walking enjoying life, breathing deeply, with impatience of a young animal waiting for new encounters and events. With impatience of so young and stupid an animal, who had not learnt bits of information about the local lands gathered in such a hard way.

  It all started at the foot of a very lovely hill, covered with thick grass of unusual terracotta color. Having made a stop for rest and to pondering his further movement, Yaroslav looked up the hill. There was something suspiciously bright. His curiosity stirred, like a bear cub looking out of its den.

  – I should cherish my impulses! For they are mine, not somebody else's, – Yaroslav muttered meaningfully, then paused and continued: – Well, at least occasionally!

  Saying that, he started to climb up. Later, life showed how wrong he had been.

  On the top of the hill there was a small metal pole, topped with a mirrored metal disk about a yard in diameter. The whole disc surface was dotted with fine cracks, and its edge was decorated with nasty stains of greenish mucus, very similar to some mildew. The disc surface itself was slightly concave towards its center. This ancient metallic mirror set here for unknown purpose, could rota
te almost in any direction and at any angle. Yaroslav leaned toward the lower edge of the mirror, trying to get a better view of its attachment method. But he did not succeed in that.

  His sense of danger ached sharply, but he already had no time to react. There was a loud «baaang» and at the same time Yaroslav got a powerful blow into his face by the turned mirror. From sudden and terrible pain with tinnitus and «spots» before his eyes, he lost orientation in space. His instincts nevertheless forced his disobedient body to roll behind the pole with the mirror and freeze there.

  Silence. Only a local analogue of grasshopper was quietly rubbing its setaceous underbelly with its forepaws, and wind was evenly rustling the grass. Yaroslav's wary ears were catching every sound. His magical reserves have not yet been fully restored, but he already could something. But here was a problem – there was nobody to fight. Quickly, almost instantly recovering from the stroke, Yaroslav stopped bleeding with an effort of will, and now was scanning the vicinity but could find nothing. Nothing! Not a single magical object around. Moreover, his senses could not find any living creature. There was only the sky above, grass and chirping bugs. Beauty! Just a large stone flew here from nowhere, hit the top edge of the mirror and made its bottom edge blow at the man's face according to physics laws. Just a cheerful cobble having dropped here by itself. But Yaroslav did not know such laws, which allowed simple stones spontaneously inflict bodily harm to humans. Besides magic, of course, which he could not find here.

  «Obviously, Tarks have sneaked up on here already. They probably heard the hullabaloo at the ford and came to see who's so impolite. – Yaroslav burned with annoyance. – It was so good. Peaceful, quiet and now this stone!»

  He could not hide here for long and Yaroslav crawled to the edge of the hill. Like a snake, or closer to the local realities, a bone boa, he writhed in the thick grass. He just decided to stick out his head, when the sense of danger caused him to roll aside and stick out in a different place already. And a kin of the first cobble whistled where his head had been a moment before. Yaroslav saw a very unpleasant thing. Some mighty monsters with vile snouts were rising up the hill stepping lightly over the ground. Those were the right words: «the monsters with snouts» indeed, in an amount of five pieces. Their mighty legs were treading soundless, as if not even trampling the grass. They were exactly like Ghol had described them: tall bodies covered with thick skin of grayish color. With rippling boulders of muscles. The evil snouts with smiles were demonstrating impressive fangs. Their eyes were small, but tricky. Their ears were not visible. Their noses were like Urgs' ones, only about four times larger. Their only clothes were loincloth's. Typical savages bursting with power of pristine nature. The look of these creatures immediately arose association with rocks, with ancient rocks of this world, as though the mountains themselves had given birth to these amazing creatures.