Читать книгу Elven heritage - - Страница 6

The hardest thing is to take the first step. You look at your feet uncertainly and think, think, think… You imagine the dangers that await you on the way. Friends, and especially envious people, who do not want to change anything in life, who are afraid, but dream of living better, talk about the horrors that await you. And now you are shifting unsteadily from foot to foot, scratching the back of your head, and saying: «Do I need this? Isn’t it better to live without changes, quietly, calmly?» So you threw the bag that was hanging over your shoulders onto the floor. He sat down at the table and poured some wine. Then again, and again. And so on ad infinitum. Then old age will come, and you will think: «Maybe it was worth going on a journey? Maybe it would be better? You can’t go back to the past. The past is a wall, once it’s built, you can’t go back, and if you want to break it, you can lose your future.

And you can take the first step. Then another one. You take twenty steps and you can’t see your goal. But man is a lazy creature. He never wants to go back, even twenty steps. You will go forward into the unknown until you come to victory. Our whole life is the path to a dream! The main thing is not to be scared and take the first step, then it will be easier!

The horses neighed, marking time. Still mounted his horse first. The other nine travelers followed his example. Dinor tapped his son on the shoulder:

– Good luck, son. Fate is our mistress, we are all in her hands. Come back victorious! Know that we are waiting for you!

The king wiped away a tear that treacherously tried to wet his chin.

– With a shield – or on it! – Colonel Darsu said, raising his fist. The old warrior also wanted to go on a dangerous journey, but Dinor ordered him to stay to prepare for war.

«With a shield,» Dinor said. -Only with a shield. I believe that you will return victorious and save the Motherland in this difficult time!

The sun was rising on the horizon, but the heat was already unbearable. Maybe the stones underfoot don’t have time to cool down overnight? The bugles sounded and the squad set off. A crowd of onlookers saw off the prince and his faithful friends with looks full of admiration. Myrtle inflorescences and rose petals fell under the horses’ feet. The travelers disappeared behind the city gates, and the women were still waving white scarves and dabbing their tears.

We drove fast. There are many miles to the next tavern, you need to get there before sunset. Later you will often have to spend the night in the open air, but while you have the opportunity, it is better not to deny yourself comfort. Moreover, as Lewis once said, Still was used to living in luxury. This is the prince’s first journey.

– Well, don’t you want to come back? – Lewis laughed, overtaking Still. – Because the tender royal ass is probably not used to the hard saddle!

Still hit his horse under the sides and began to catch up with Lewis. Nermall shook his head and smiled:

– What kind of children they are! They would have all the toys. The young men do not understand where they have gone, how many dangers await them on this path!

– Were we not the same once? – Kurt laughed into his mustache.

– I still don’t mind competing! – Duncan said and spurred his horse. A few moments later he was already catching up with Still. – Come on, sleepyheads, who will get to the tavern faster?

After a while, all the horses were racing at full speed. Even old Nermall had the hot blood of a pirate boiling. He spent most of his life at sea, but even on land he often had to hide from soldiers. Therefore, he gave a head start to the young scoundrels.

We planned to get to the Gray Horse tavern when the moon rose. But when we got there, the one-day myrrh had hardly bloomed.

***

– Innkeeper, bring the roast goose. Or better yet, wild boar. And beer! – said Duncan.

– Maybe you want to rest first after a long journey? – the innkeeper spoke. – I’ll ask my son, he’ll show me where to take the things!

– What’s your name, guy? – Kurt asked.

– Daryl.

– Daryl, we drove all day without stopping. Yes, we are incredibly tired, but you can’t even imagine how hungry we are! I would eat a whole boar right now. But the only edible thing in front of me is you, fat man. You don’t want me to become a man-eater, do you?

The small hall smelled of beer and food. Looks like fried potatoes or something. And the smell of wild boar cannot be confused with anything else.

The maids hurried. They carried wooden mugs with a foamy drink. The men drank almost in one gulp, only Still and Lewis drank in small sips.

– What are they teaching today’s youth? – Nermall grinned. «They can’t even drink properly!»

The men laughed. Lewis snorted in displeasure. He furrowed his brow as he poured the rest of the mug into his mouth. Still continued to drink, taking his time.

It’s cool in the hall, or maybe it seemed so after a day spent on a horse in the heat. Several torches hung on the walls could not cope with the dimness in the room. The servants brought in a dish of wild boar roasted on a spit.

– Look, Kurt, don’t break your neck! – Duncan smiled. The man turned towards the dish, which spread the aromas throughout the entire room. When they put the dish on the table, the men began to tear off pieces of meat with their hands. Still tried to eat with a fork and knife for a while. Others looked mockingly at the spoiled prince. And then he abandoned the pointless idea and began to eat like others.

– Our person! – Nermall hit the prince on the shoulder.

– Bring some beer! – Duncan shouted.

Having eaten enough, the travelers lay down in the beds offered by the innkeeper.

***

– Hello, Nermall! – said the red-haired woman. Goosebumps ran through the old man’s body, and the woman laughed.

– Lisa, what are you doing here? You… You shouldn’t be here!

– Don’t be dark, Nermall! Say it straight: «You, Lisa, are dead!» You, Nermall, allowed my death, but I don’t blame you. I forgave you a long time ago.

«I’m sorry,» Nermall whispered.

– Kiss me like you did before? Do you remember at the first meeting? – Lisa reached out to him, but Nermall pulled away:

«I’m sorry,» the man whispered again. And then he opened his eyes, wiping cold sweat from his forehead.

He hadn’t dreamed of her for a long time. The wound did not heal completely, but did not bleed for several springs. He did not forget her face, but tried not to think about Lisa. Now the memories flooded again, as if through a broken dam.

They first met at the bazaar. Nermall, as always, was in a hurry to get somewhere, and brushed his shoulder against the red-haired silk saleswoman. A pile of clothes fell from her hands, and the wind began to blow away the light silk. Nermall picked up all the dresses. For one I had to run to the corner.

«Thank you,» she said. Since then, the student, the son of a nobleman, began secretly meeting with a young merchant. His father was preparing a rich future for him, and there was no place for a non-noble girl there. Nermall and Lisa were happy. They didn’t notice the spies who were watching them. One day Nermall came to the appointed place at a certain time. Lisa was not there. His heart sank with alarming foreboding and Nermall did not know what to do. He trudged home. That night he never slept.

The maid stirred Nermall up early in the morning.

– Father is calling you! – she said.

«Hello, son,» the usually serious Henry smiled. That smile didn’t bode well. – Nermall, there will be an execution today. The guards have caught another witch, and the Inquisition will carry out a show execution.

– Father, you know I can’t stand the sight of blood. I’m starting to feel nauseous.

– I insist on your presence. You have to grow up. Moreover, the Inquisitors have their own methods – they do not shed blood.

On the Square of Majesty stood two inquisitors in long black robes. And Lisa was standing there. Nermall almost rushed to the center of the circle designated by the crowd, but Henry held him by the sleeve.

– Look. There’s nothing you can do here!

Nermall stood there, unable to move. One of the anti-mages raised his hand up.

– Illigulus, spirit of Justice, evaluate the guilt of this woman. If she is a witch and uses illegal magic, punish her according to what she deserves.

Lightning flashed from above, and Lisa caught fire.

– I told you she was a witch!

Nermall lost consciousness at that moment. He opened his eyes already inside the castle.

– Father, why did you do this? You set it all up, right?

– How could I set up illegal magic?

– It’s all you! I know you found a way. Why, father? For what?

– For your own good. This witch is not your match. You know that you already have a fiancée.

– I don’t love her!

– No one forces you to love. If you don’t fall in love, you can look for love on the side. But you must marry her.

Henry drank and squandered almost his entire fortune at cards. When the time came to transfer the inheritance to his son, he found the simplest way to rehabilitate himself – he promised one of Beelzuvik’s Advisors a son, in exchange for a good monetary reward. But things didn’t go as planned. Nermall ran away from home that night. He jumped into the sea, wanting to end his life. But he was picked up by pirates. A few days later he returned to his father’s house. Nermall wanted to kill his father. But he found an old beggar who, having drunk, stretched out his hand to live another day. Fate punished his father, so Nermall spared the man.

But Lisa’s face sometimes appeared in his dreams. She smiled. And in the end she always died.

The old man closed his eyes.

– Nermall! – he heard a familiar voice.