Читать книгу Elinor. The Deserted Valley. Book 1 - Mikhail Shelkov - Страница 42

The novices of the School of the North Slope walked along the narrow mountain paths toward the morning sunrise. Sometimes it was necessary to tread on slippery icy roads and risk falling into the misty cloudy abyss. But even the youngest travelers could, if necessary, balance on the thinnest rope stretched over the abyss. They were well prepared by Master Nao.

It was the Master’s will for the School of the North Slope to continue existence on the native land of the Ulutau. This is when the mountain people first encountered an unexpected problem. Previously, masters repudiated their schools; some went into solitude, some were afraid of responsibility and just joined the community, and some people left the country altogether. History also shows several masters were expelled by the joint council of the school community, but in all such cases, a new master was recommended by Ino-to.

As it turned out, Nao himself found a way out of this situation by leaving his wife, the most faithful supporter of his teaching and closest to him in spirit and reason, in the mountain country. Master Nao lived, prospered, and continued to practice the teachings as nearly half of the school and entire families decided to follow him to the Valley, including his son. Despite this, Ulari continued to be the first successor.

Master of School of Blooming Meadows Kuno, and Master of the School of Snowy Wind Ean, also followed the example of Nao, taking with them several families and leaving successors in schools, following the newly elected ruler of the Valley. The detachment advanced to one of Elinor’s greatest miracles – the Celestial Staircase.

How Ulari dreamed of seeing it, and how afraid he was! Everyone was afraid, for they knew that after descending the Celestial Staircase there would be no turning back!

Legends said the monumental structure was built by the First Race, whose representatives were marked with unprecedented strength, knowledge, and wisdom. No one saw the representatives of this First Race; however, the traditions persistently repeated the same thing: they existed! They were supreme creatures, different from people, and were able to build the Celestial Staircase!

There were only two paths to the country of Ulutau. One was the Path of Horror, and the second was the Staircase, although, to be more precise, it was an exit, not an entrance. Having descended to a certain stage, the traveler was caught in the swift water streams that carried him down to the origin of the Kawa River. It was simply impossible to ascend back along the steep rocks. Ulari was ready to question this, as he was firmly convinced that Master Nao was able to climb a sheer rock to a height of at least six hundred lue. At least for now, Ulari did not want to admit the impossibility of returning back, although he remembered perfectly well that everyone who left Ulutau by the Celestial Staircase disappeared forever.

It was terribly, terribly scary for Ulari. It was not a fear for his life, as it is, in principle, alien to the Ulutau. It was a fear for his soul.

And what if life in the Valley really turns out to be so terrible the heart can’t accept it? If the people in the Valley are so stubborn and insidious, then why should the Ulutau go there at all?

Elinor’s fate is in our hands Ulari thought, recalling Ino-to’s words at his reclusory.

Well, the Path of Horror was still there. But apart from Tau, only one person was able to pass through it, and that was Azir Amunjadee. He was from the Djunit people. His skin was dark with hair was like a crow’s wing. Many of his images were kept safe in the libraries of Tokana.

They say that when Tau thought he reached the limit of his inner strength, he threw the Demon’s Flesh into the waterfall of the Celestial Staircase and the waves picked up the relic and carried it away. But the Demon’s Flesh returned to Tokana with Azir Amunjadee, which helped him overcome fears and gain strength in order to defeat the terrible demons. The wise men of Tokana met Azir, but soon the outlander entered the philosophy of Tau himself, and in his heart, he was pure and selfless. The man of hot lands became a friend of the mountain people, having lived in Tokana for many years. When Azir’s hair began to turn gray, he asked the masters and Ino-to for permission to leave Tokana before his death. He wanted to see his family, his children, possibly his grandchildren, and most importantly – to give the other people of Elinor his books.

Ino-to and many wise masters blessed Azir’s return, believing his books would bring a lot of light to Elinor, so Azir descended the Celestial Staircase, taking the Demon’s Flesh with him. The years dragged on, and many people from the mountain began to yearn for the good old man nicknamed the Rogue Azir, who had conquered their hearts. And how much joy there was when once, from the east, Azir returned! It turned out that during his wanderings, relatives forgot about him and his children had scattered around the world and disappeared. Being an old man Azir decided to live his life until the end in Tokana and was able to pass through the Path of Horror for the second time.