Immortals. Twin princesses, Ella and Elle. Black Wings of the Night

CHAPTER 10 Feast yes…

Radko, along with Dar and Zvan, were on the road, watching outsiders collect their dead. Several dozen people, with a couple of shamans, were engaged in this mournful business. They laid the dead on two wheels, with horses harnessed to them. One held animals under the bridle, wheezing and picking their feet, smelling blood and death. We were in a hurry to lay down, finish, just complete this lesson before dark.

It seemed what to fear here? But Ramid did not trust either Manis or Sabaday, expecting some kind of caverza.

Radko felt that he got hot. And the fact that the shirt under the armor was wet with sweat for a long time. And now you can’t take it all off yourself, you can’t, you had to endure. True, I took a flask of water from my belt, drank a little, and felt a little better.

— Is it hot? asked, chuckling, Dar.

— Yes, it seems, nothing, — answered Radko, — do you want?

— Beer or something?

— No, the water is simple.

“I’ll wait for you. Soon, the Peshtsy said that the Savirovs would set the tables. With a rich, they say, treat.

— So does Savir Katovich feel sorry for salted fish? — Dar laughed, — or did the turnip not get ugly?

— And what, only fish will be at the table?

— Well, maybe turnips and mushrooms. And plenty of barley bread…

— Well, okay, Zvan, — Radko laughed, — and so, read, we sit on breadcrumbs for several days and dried fish. You look, at least kvass will be given enough. We’ll get drunk…

Indeed, eighteen golden rings lay very well in the mosh, warmed the heart. And each of them gave a pair of rings to those who lost their plums in battle. And the foreman Ouma gave a lot to the dead warriors of Warta, and more and more expensive sable furs to calm down the tears of his relatives for the departed.

But now, it seems, strangers finished their mournful business, drove heavily loaded carts over the distant forest, where their army of finders was waiting. Waited more, and buzzed in an unfamiliar way of the horn, stretched huge

carts to the east. They were accompanied by hundreds of mounted warriors. Sabaday’s army returned to their steppes.

Here and Zvan grabbed his horn, bound in gold, and missed four times. The experienced warrior made it known that the finds were leaving the Russian lands. And the answer I heard how their troops answered him from the camp.

“Well, you can come back,” Radko said quietly.

— Exactly, Dar agreed, turning his plow.

***

And in the morning, next to the capital Oum, huge tables were set up. They immediately scurried around, putting dishes and wooden dishes on them. Simple, unpainted. But, however, the youths were cheerful, and greeted the soldiers warmly. Although, it happened in different ways, and often the courtyard did not hurt the relatives. They considered themselves in a higher place, these servants.

Radko approached one, looked closely at wooden dishes full of treats. There was a lot of things here, from the bounties exhibited not at all by the Torovaya foreman Savir. Nearby stood reapers with honey, beer and kvass,

— Hear, Zvan… And here, and not only turnips… he chuckled, and dried fish with breadcrumbs.

— Yes, it is strange. It is unusual for Savir Katovich to scatter. A man known for his tightness. Like his whole family. Have you been to Oum? And at the Golden Palace? Have you seen a huge fortress with a rampart?

— So where… Although I always wanted to. And my daughter, Yolka buzzed all her ears. Say, look at the White Throne, and the very Palace where Elena lived.

— You look, tomorrow we’ll go, we’ll see. Okay, let’s go, we’ll sit on the grass until they called to the tables! said Dar.

And the warriors from the hundred Vatey, leisurely stepped aside. Kalei, without saying a word, threw the harp from the back, and slowly sang, skillfully sorting out the sonorous strings. Hanza gathered around him, listening to an old song. As if alive, the Immortals, the Fallen servants of Elena herself, stood up in front of the experienced warriors. He sang about when they still had white wings, and did not turn black from mortal sins. The soldiers were silent, everyone was thinking now, about their own. They remembered their families, their home.

“Are you all standing here?” And why? Pinned down, but hung their heads! — Vatey said deliberately cheerfully, — go to the tables, everything is ready! Baked meat is delivered! Here, you can’t hesitate! Otherwise nothing will get! Yes, and Kaley will sing to you later, which is more fun, as the bowls of three put honey will disappear! Well, or four!

— And you sit down with us! Dar suggested, why did one settle?

“Where am I without you?” ‘the centurion laughed.

Radko sat on the bench among his comrades, and the unot, passing along the table with a basket, endowed him with a magnificent piece of baked meat on the bone. It turns out, a noble venison, when they bake a carcass in a pit, with burnt coals. It is baked for almost a day, and the meat comes out incredibly soft and tender.

The treat barely fit in the bowl, it exuded a bright aroma of horseradish, currant leaf, wild garlic. The knife immediately, as if it were in his hand, the sharp bronze of the blade cut off the juicy slices. I tried it, and just stunned. It was just incredibly tasty, especially after crackers, and camp porridge, and stews. And especially, with a piece of excellent, slightly salted bread. And next to it, on the table, there was a green onion. In general, it was impossible to distract. But then the melon came again, and filled the buckets with sparkling dark beer. Dar lifted his cup. And then, and others stood up. And there it began, and beer, and behind it and put honey. It was fun, Kaley started a new song. And the unots brought a whole-fried bull, and the soldiers simply shouted in delight…

CHAPTER 11 Christmas tree, Tisat and patterned boots in the night fog

The chosen one sat at the table, with a perfectly straight back, like a great lady between the people, and she was among her faithful students. Carefully combed long hair was not braided, but simply fell on her back in a golden wave. She was used to respect and worship. Yes, and deserved it. Such a bee is a uterus, and around it swarmed working bees, young girls whom she instructed.

— Elle, be kind, put here a reaper with currant brew, raspberry is not worth it, it’s more likely a medicine… And let them bring strawberries. Yes, Tisat remind you of currant kvass!

“I’ll do it now, Kida,” the girl replied, and walked away from the table.

It was necessary to hurry, the chosen one did not like to wait long. Yes, and go not far, along the path, and there she noticed a girl at the carts of cheerfully homing unots. Yes, and well, her shoes were at ease, the pistons did not rub her legs, and the wrapper was fine and soft, made of good linen, her mother did not skimp on the children, as Elle thought with gratitude.

“Good day, youths,” the girl said decorously, approaching Savir’s notes, and bowed politely.

“And you, hello,” answered the eldest of them, and also bowed.

— Tisat, — she began to say, and tried to say it convincingly, like a lady, — The chosen one wants strawberry and currant brew and certainly currant kvass.

— Of course. Now I’ll take it, beauty, “he said.

The girl did not notice that she managed to instill reverence in the youth. The Elle frowned a little with light eyebrows, but the words of the prigozhny youth were pleasant to her. And, she hoped that she did not blush, but, just in case, and of course, not from embarrassment, turned away. What else is it to be embarrassed by her! After all, she took Sabaday’s son prisoner!

“We heard here that you captured Manis. And how could you? Directly incredible! Tisat asked her, looking quickly at the guest.

“It happened,” she fumed, “let’s go.”

There was a reluctance to explain that she was in men’s clothes that day. Somehow it turned out wrong, although then she did not think so.

“Come on,” Tisat nodded, and rolled his supply cart.

She walked behind, watching how funny the wheels sometimes bounce, but the lug deftly kept its balance, and not a drop of drink spilled from the pots. But the boy himself was pleasant and funny, and it seems that she liked it a little. Yes, and looked good. They came quickly, but faster than she would have liked.

The boy put drinks on the table, then bowed low to Kid. And the boy stood behind Elle, whispered quietly:

— I will wait for you at the parking lot, where there are nut bushes. The sun will set…

— All right, go away. You have nothing to do here! — strictly ordered the Chosen Youth, — hurry up! Elle, and here you are, sit next to it. Look, they brought us fish!

Indeed, while she walked and wandered, there was a whole trough on the table with a huge baked sturgeon. And it looked great, and smelled even better from this food. The chosen one, armed with a wooden spatula and a spoon, laid out treats in bowls, generously endowing her students.

— Here, Elle, you are the best. And then emaciated like, right skin and bones, — she said carefully, — here, eat. Natka! Lika! And you take it!

The students took the food, and decorously, without pushing, sat down nearby. Like Gata and Dita and Priya and Mia, all Seven, everything turned out right according to custom. And the Chosen One always followed this order, without doubt and without changing anything. On a wide platter, in front of them, lay bread cut into narrow slices. And, not ordinary barley, but wheat. Well, how can you not respect such a welcoming owner! And the Christmas tree decisively proceeded to treat.

Such a fish is good in itself. True, her mother added grated horseradish and currant leaves, but, judging by the taste, the Savirova cook adhered to the same rules. The fish cooled down, and to the very extent, hot, but not burning, and simply melted on the tongue. Washed down with currant kvass, and then screams and songs rang out around. The warriors rejoiced at their joy.

The chosen one whispered something quietly, looking around. It was evident that she was annoyed by all this. Kyda first rolled her eyes to the sky, then simply joined her eyelids, unable to restrain herself.

And Elle looked at her products, but Lika and Nata only hastily turned away. Last night, the girl had to take a good look at her “girlfriends” for their “jokes.” Several cracks and slaps, as Elle hoped, brought the girls to their senses. She wasn’t going to forgive the ants in her bed. True, now Elle kept thinking about whether or not to go on a date with Tisat. In the end, and pleasant weather, it will be cooler than now. And then, right, I thought it was not clear to myself what…

Not far from the Kida tent stood a sundial, measuring the time from sunrise to sunset of the daylight. A long shadow indicated that there was very little time left. And Yolka again had to get out, but without asking. Where to go? Although, the girl thought it over well. Now she was sweeping the earthen floor of the tent where Kida treated the suffering.

And Elle, like a businesswoman, again got hold of a man’s dress — pants with a pattern at the ankles, and a wide jacket, with generic embroidery.

“Exactly, Agnas’s family, from Oum. And, still, — she whispered quietly, — thank you, boy..

Each family had its own pattern, and everyone from Hanza would easily understand it. It’s like identifying your haired by the horns, it would be impossible to make a mistake, as the girl thought now.

Well, the hair should have been covered with a hat with long lobes on the sides. This dress was, fortunately, inconspicuous.

In the meantime, she diligently fulfilled this lesson, continued cleaning. And, in fact, very deliberately leisurely. I listened all the time, as if not to be taken by surprise. Finally, I decided that it was time to change clothes. Having completed her transformation, she sat down for a short time, corrected the screwdriver on her feet. I checked if everything was in order, and only then decided completely.

Carefully diverting the canopy, she looked out of the tent. None of the students was visible, no one scurried, crushing the slightly trampled white sand of the parking lot with light shoes. A slight rustle appeared, but no, Yolka did not notice anything like that. She pulled the canvas, the canopy, and began to quickly change clothes. She carefully put the girls’ clothes in a bag, threw them behind her back. No, of course, I looked in the bronze mirror, exclusively for good luck. But, I was pleased with myself, and got out, lifting the linen wall, and crawling, quickly screamed into the bushes.

I remembered the road well, but tried not to be noticed. She ran quickly, and saw Tisat standing a little to the side of the hazel bushes. She suddenly wanted to surprise the youth, well, maybe a little scared, if possible. And she, not thinking about the knees of her pants, crawled through the thickets. A couple of times I touched old bitches with my feet, and almost cried out in pain, but restrained myself. But here, she was attracted by four people hidden among the trees. The Elle noticed, according to foreign shoes, that two of them are finders, recent enemies. Others, hanza… And one of them had noticeable, embroidered boots, and both were wrapped in raincoats, and there were no faces to see.

The hand itself reached for the knife hanging on the belt, and grabbed the bone handle. The girl tried to hardly breathe, and get closer to hear what the conversation was about. Even her lips were pursed with excitement. Maybe it helped, but now I was able to distinguish the words by ear:

— … So let’s decide.

“And we don’t mind,” the foreigner said.

The Elle shuddered. The voice was Manisa, exactly… But the clothes that the young man had were no longer simple, camp, but rich, embroidered with a whimsical pattern, very elegant. The girl, for example, really liked the new look of this young man. She froze, almost did not breathe, although her legs began to go numb, it was very uncomfortable to lie.

“It’s better to agree than to fight. And the benefits for everyone will be great. And our union will bring a lot of benefits, — the Hanza broadcast, — enough to fight endlessly.

— What will the elders of Warta da Gandvika say? And Sargats? Serponov and Sad? Manis recalled in a calm voice.

The Elle tried to examine the speaking Hanza. It was inconvenient, because she lay behind a man with patterned boots. But I tried to hear everything and remember the girl. I understood how important it is. And the nasty branch hung right in front of her eyes, as if she did not understand this, and cheekily scratched her forehead.

— Let’s agree… With Elder Serponov, Urgaz, I am great in friendship. And Gandvik the Great — he is so far away, from us, but they have few soldiers. — repeated hanza, — And that’s what. I’m sorry that it happened, but the girl captured you.

“It’s my own fault… I wanted to go to Oum, but I didn’t understand that Dargat was preparing an ambush, so I got caught… And the girl is great, nimble. I’d take her as my wife.

The Elle almost shouted, in indignation. What did you invent that she would become the wife of someone else, but came to her senses.

— Nothing, the matter is young, you will have time yet… Still, what do you think about our contract?

— What? And my father does not mind that we would agree. He himself asked to convey such words to you, as a year ago, — Manis reproached.

— Not the time was yet… And even more so, in the time of Dead Princess Alma. You remember yourself, or your grandfather told you that the Princess was too cool. And I would instantly let go of my skin, but filled it with straw, made a scarecrow. That’s for sure… And I would make a necklace from the priest of your head. Her magician was a great craftsman, he created many curiosities.

— That’s good that she fell asleep long ago… And we, because there is no time to sleep here, right…

Here Manis wanted, as you can see, to name his interlocutor, but the Christmas tree spoiled everything with excitement. A knot crunched loudly under his left hand, and stuck in his forearm, piercing the felt of his jacket sleeve. She screamed muted, could not restrain herself, and these four froze, listening. And she pulled her legs to her stomach, rubbed her hips and lower legs, preparing to run without looking back. And it’s good that it got dark quickly, but the fog began to fall on the ground. And Elle pulled a wand towards her, and threw it without panache, landing in a distant elderberry bush. Strangers and Manis turned to the bush, and the girl ran the other way.

Branches and branches with old leaves mercilessly creaked and rustled under the leather soles of her shoes, and she looped between bushes and trees like a crazy hare. So fast, she probably never ran. Finally, she screamed into the hollow of a fallen tree. And, what is good, fog quickly fell into this hollow of the forest thicket, as if the spirit of this place deliberately caused this hassle. The Elle, arms and legs pressed, lay barely breathing. I heard people pass by, and one of them whispered quietly:

— You can’t see what the guy was running for…

“I’ll find it soon, Manis. I noticed what kind of embroidery on the jacket, which one of the genera… It’s good that it’s not from Warta.

Elle’s voice seemed to recognize. And the face, under the cloak was not visible. But now, the noise from the steps was moving away from her shelter, and she waited and waited. I was afraid that I would run into those people now. Finally, everything calmed down, and in the dark Elle had to get to the carriage of the Chosen One. It was good that the sky was clear, and she quickly walked along the Travel Star. All one thing, soaked through the night dew. And as I came to the wagon train, I almost screamed with joy. Again I had to crawl under the wagons, wait in the shadow of huge wheels. And then the students could not sleep, dragged next to the tents. I saw Natka and Lika swear again. But the Elle got to the tent, where it should have been cleaned, and crawled, lifting the canvas of the wall. She quickly pulled off her wet men’s clothes, began to bandage her hand with a strip of clean fabric. The blood did not flow, the wound was clean. Here, squinting, one might say with pleasure, she dressed in a frilly skirt, a shirt of a thin canvas, and a jacket, quickly tightening the ties. She straightened her hair in front of the mirror, removed the dirt from her nose and forehead, and did not have enough to appear dirty. She sighed, remembering where she managed to smear herself like that! I checked the jewelry, and only now calmly sighed. She lit an oil lamp, and slowly and proudly went to her tent.

— Elle, haven’t you gone to bed yet? Nata asked, pulling the blanket to her very nose.

— So everything is in work, not like you, fall asleep, — the girl answered, — warmth yes well here…

— And we thought you ran to the guy on a date, — added Lika, turning over on her side, and putting her palm under her chin, — Tisat, he is prigozhny…

The girl looked at the Christmas tree with a slight smile, as if expecting some details. Not a little she believed the words of such a late girl.

“Everything would be lamented to you about the youths,” she answered strictly, “it’s time to sleep!” Dark…

And the Elle blew out the fuse of the lantern, it hissed offended and went out, releasing a trickle of smoke at last. And the girl sat on the mattress, taking off her shoes, hastily undressed. She put her skirt and jacket carefully on the seat, but it was hard to take off her shirt and painful. She gasped, touching the broken knee, The night shirt of the gray canvas without sleeves covered her body. Immediately it became a little easier in my soul, but anxiety did not leave her. The girl quickly curled under the soft felt of the blanket, stretched with pleasure, stretched her legs, playing with her fingers. It became warm and good, she sighed, and closed her eyes, falling into sleep almost in an instant.