Читать книгу Sharmuziks: Beyond the Great Glad - Tim Brick - Страница 3

The Sharmuziks loved to undertake important matters exclusively on a full stomach. That was why, after enjoying a hearty lunch, Nolton put on his travel outfit, packed his telescope in his backpack, the diary and the map. He flung it on his back, came out into the front yard and was about to close the door when he suddenly stopped and went back into the house. He returned with a small wooden plate and hung it on the doorknob. The plate read: “I’m off on an expedition. Don’t know when I’ll be back.” And so, locking the door and putting the key in his pocket, Nolton sat on a bench and waited for his friends. After some time, Archi came to the house with a crossbody bag with sheets of paper sticking out of it.

“Where’s everyone? They’re not here yet?” Archi asked, surprised.

“Not yet,” said Nolton.

After getting a response, Archi sat next to Nolton and took out of his bag a blank sheet of paper and a small case from his pocket. This was where he kept his golden pen, which was presented to him as the best correspondent in Shmur. Archi began jotting down on the blank paper. Nolton, who was sitting next to him, with his usual curiosity, decided to take a look at what exactly his friend was writing. There were already a few sentences on the paper: “The story began in a city that was not very large, yet not small in the slightest either…”

“Ahem,” Barti, who had just come up to the house, cleared his throat.

“Ah, there you are, Barti. Good that you came. We’re still waiting for Lumi and Renchi before we can leave,” said Nolton.

“Yes, but I…” Barti wanted to say something again.

“And there they are, it seems that we won’t have to go on foot. Look!” Archi interrupted, noticing a large car on four legs making its way in the direction of Nolton’s house and in the cabin of which were sitting Lumi and Renchi. It was the Stilt, one of the inventions of the talented masters. The Sharmuziks used it to pick the fruits of very tall trees. Depending on the tree, the legs of this machine could be shortened or extended. When the Stilt approached the group, its cabin began to slowly descend to the ground, until the Sharmuziks were able to enter it using the steps. Nolton and Archi dexterously climbed into the Stilt’s cabin, while Barti remained standing on the ground.

“Barti, are you going to just stand there?” asked Archi looking out of the cabin.

“I’m… just… I…” Barti tried to say something.

“Hurry up, it’s time to make a move,” said Archi and returned to his seat.

Barti was very afraid of heights. To reach the cabin, which was a few metres off the ground, he had to climb a rope ladder, which was swinging in all directions to make things worse. Trying to overcome his fear, the Sharmuzik grabbed the ladder and started to move up one step at a time. So as not to look down, he simply shut his eyes, and this really helped. In a minute, Barti had finally reached the cabin and sat in one of the seats, catching his breath. The cabin slightly lifted above the ground, and the Stilt began to walk towards the exit from Shmur.

The Sharmuziks were moving along a familiar road. It was the way to the river. All around hung ripe wild berries, three times bigger than a Sharmuzik. It was not the first time that Lumi and Renchi were visiting this place in their machine. They often came to these berry bushes to restock their reserves of the flavourful juice, which they later used to make jam, one of the favourite delicacies of the inhabitants of Shmur. Further on, passing the bushes, the Sharmuziks reached boundless green meadows, where low grass was growing everywhere and lone trees were few and far between. This was the Great Glade.

For a while, the Sharmuziks travelled through familiar places. Slowly and measuredly, the Stilt walked confidently along the path. It was so slow that the Sharmuziks even got hungry again and had to make a stop under one of the lone trees. They gladly ate a bowl of warm soup that Barti prepared with juicy mushrooms on an open fire. And it was no surprise, as the vapour drifting from the cauldron smelled exceptionally mouth-wateringly delicious. After having a good meal, the members of the expedition hit the road again. The sun was already setting beyond the horizon when finally, after a long journey through green meadows, the burbling of the river separating the Great Glade from unknown lands reached them. It was much wider than the one flowing through Shmur and had a more rapid current. The Sharmuziks did not attach much importance to inventing names for rivers. Probably because they only knew of two of the many that existed around the world.

When the Stilt approached the river, Renchi stopped the machine and looked at Lumi, as if silently asking: What do we do next? Lumi nodded, after which Renchi took hold of the lever and pushed it forward. Entering the river, the Stilt slowly moved to the opposite bank. It seemed as if the metal legs had to make a lot effort to take every step. But, despite the strong current, the machine successfully crossed the river. All that was left to do was overcome the steep ascent. Suddenly, out of nowhere, it began to rain heavily. The Sharmuziks had noted dark clouds looming over their heads when they were crossing the river, and the clouds eventually covered the entire sky. It was raining dogs and cats and the rain instantly washed away the sand on which the Stilt was trying to climb. Its feet sunk in the mud. Finally the machine completely toppled over and was slowly sliding into the river. Realising that there was nothing they could do, the Sharmuziks began to run ashore quickly. And as soon as everyone had left the machine, the Stilt fell into the river in an instant. Since the machine was built with incredibly light metal, it was immediately picked up by the strong current and carried away into the unknown with all the food supplies.

The rain turned into a violent storm. The sky was menacingly dark because of all the thick clouds. The wind picked up the leaves and twigs, tossing them around. It seemed as if all of nature was angry at the Sharmuziks for crossing the river and turning up on foreign land. Suddenly, quite close, a bolt of lightning struck and thunder rumbled incredibly loudly, as if throwing off balance the earth itself. The Sharmuziks, who had hidden from the rain under the crown of a small dense tree, immediately dashed into the thick of the forest, trying to escape what had completely surrounded them from every side: nature.

Without looking back, the Sharmuziks rushed ever farther from the river, as if trying to get away from a dangerous predator that was about to catch up with them. Tired from such a long run, they stopped under the large leaf of a plant. The rain practically did not get to them through the dense crown of the trees, which, like a shield, were taking the full blow of the bad weather. Fumbling for a biscuit in one of his pockets, Lumi decided to share with the others and, breaking off a small piece for himself, he passed it on to the others to do the same. Taking turns, one after the other, the Sharmuziks were breaking off their share of the biscuit. And so, when Archi got a small piece, being not that hungry, he decided to give it to Barti, who constantly suffered from hunger.

“Here you go, Barti, I can’t… Barti?”

Realising that among those present, the Shmurite baker was missing, the Sharmuziks began to call out for their buddy, but they got nothing in response but the howling of the wind. Night was falling, and through the darkness, it was quite difficult to make out anything that might have resembled Barti. To find their friend, the Sharmuziks decided to come out of their dry and calm place under the leaf and go out in search of him. The forest, which was more like an impenetrable jungle, seemed even more terrifying because of all the sounds that were reaching them from every direction. Overcoming their fear, the Sharmuziks decided not to abandon their idea and began to move forward uncertainly.

In the meantime, Barti was still running with all his might, pushing away the leaves and twigs that were constantly slapping him on the face. And so, finally stopping to catch his breath, he realised that he was in the middle of a dark and unfamiliar forest. He could hear rustling, swishing and occasional voices of birds or other animals. All of this was like a huge ball of fear, which continued to expand, grow in size and head towards Barti. By chance, the Sharmuzik noticed a faint light coming from behind the trees. Barti wanted to go towards this light; it was luring him with its warmth.

The rain did not even look like it was going to subside, on the contrary, it began to pour down with even greater force. But the Sharmuziks did not stop in their search for Barti, who had likely in a panic run farther ahead than the others. Nolton, looking closely at everything around, more out of fear than in search for Barti, noticed a path that could lead them out of the forest or maybe lead them elsewhere. He decided to share his find with the others, but no one could hear him over the strong wind. Suddenly another bolt of lightning struck followed by a peal of thunder. Startled, Nolton fell to the ground. And so, in the bushes ahead of him, he saw two shining eyes staring at him. Fear hit the Sharmuzik like an arrow, and in a blink, he jumped to his feet. After running a few metres, he ran headlong into a trunk.