«After the Sleep»

Chapter 12 — “After the Sleep”

The starry sky slowly filled the heavens, and moonlight lit the temporary camp. Pavel sat by the fire, unable to stop scratching, glancing now at Olivia, who sat opposite and kept hissing at Reyn to speak more quietly, then at Sam. He lay in the wagon, still unconscious, only occasionally turning in his sleep.

— Luka, are you sure you picked the right herbs? Because after your miracle ointment, my whole body is itching.

— It helped, didn’t it? Then they were the right ones! Don’t distract me, I have an important task.

With the most serious look, Luka stood guard with his spear together with Michael, though on different sides of the camp.

— Usually we can’t shut you up, and now you’ve become so important, — Michael called from the other side of the camp. — Don’t worry so much, or you won’t last on watch until morning.

Michael himself tried to speak calmly, though it was clear he was no less worried about Sam than the others.

Reyn, once again wanting to show himself from his best side, immediately volunteered to stand guard. For the first time that evening, he distracted himself from Olivia, whom he had been endlessly questioning about what that crash in the forest had been, the one after which the birds had burst into the air. He never received a clear answer, and it visibly irritated the young trader.

— Oh, absolutely not, — Olivia laughed. — Better let Pavel keep watch. Last thing we need is putting a trader on post. You’ll fall asleep, and then what are we supposed to do? Pavel won’t sleep anyway because of his ointment. And I’ll relieve him later. So, Reyn, get off already.

She stood, glanced at the sulking Pavel, sighed heavily, and went over to the wagon.

— How are you, hero… — she whispered quietly, adjusting Sam’s blanket. — Come on, wake up already… Stop scaring us.

Olivia sat beside the wagon. After a day like that, she herself could have used at least a little rest.

Reyn rose, stretched his stiff bones, turned his head from side to side, and gradually headed toward Olivia, who was already beginning to fall asleep.

— Hey, hey! Where are you turning that muzzle and pointing those paws? Sit down! You’ll sleep by the fire! — Pavel muttered unhappily, almost choking on his own spit from anger.

— Come on. I’m going to take a leak.

Before reaching Olivia, Reyn, as if nothing had happened, walked past the wagon, went into the bushes, made a small circle, and a few minutes later returned to the fire.

— What, scared to go into the dark alone? Some Wolf you are, — Pavel smirked.

— Nope. I just lost the mood completely listening to you scratch like a flea-ridden Khemar.

At that moment, something rustled in the bushes.

Reyn immediately straightened and stepped closer to the fire, while his right hand reached for the whip on its own. Pavel also tensed at once and silently rose to his feet.

The crackle of the fire.

Silence.

The rustling came closer.

Two glowing lights appeared from the darkness.

— Well, well… Go ahead and beat me too while you’re at it.

First Michael’s eyes appeared from the bushes, reflecting the firelight, and then he himself stepped out.

— What are you two grumbling about here? Go to sleep. You’ll be on watch soon, and you haven’t closed your eyes yet.

Michael picked up the waterskin, looked with a smirk at the frightened Pavel and Reyn, took a couple of gulps, and calmly went on circling the camp.

— Look how tense you got, and you said you weren’t scared, — Pavel immediately jabbed.

— And you? Same as me. Some warrior-hunter you are… Pff.

Reyn removed his hand from the handle of the whip, demonstratively turned away from Pavel, and lay down with his back to the fire.

Silence slowly wrapped the camp, leaving only the crackle of the fire and the occasional twitching of Pavel and Reyn, who kept flinching at every howl that came from the depths of the forest. Pavel was the last to fall asleep. He held himself back with all his strength so he would not scratch, while his hands kept feeling the fresh patches on his clothing, checking whether the seams had split.

— Hey… Wake up. And wake Oli too.

Several hours later, Michael quietly shook Pavel by the shoulder. Pavel sat up, yawning sleepily, took a long time to understand what was happening, and then, smacking his lips loudly, began gathering his thoughts together.

— Come on, why are you lying around?

Pavel stood and, shuffling his feet, slowly headed toward Olivia, stretching his stiff legs on the way. The girl was sleeping deeply, leaning against the wagon, while the moonlight softly lit her face.

Pavel involuntarily stopped.

The image from only a short while ago immediately rose before his eyes: Olivia pulling off his shirt and trousers to stitch his clothes, Luka hurriedly grinding herbs in a mortar, and Michael ordering him to wash the wounds faster. If it were daytime now, everyone would probably have seen how red Pavel had turned.

He carefully leaned down, planning to wake the girl quietly, but as soon as he bent, a sharp pain pierced his side.

— Ow…

Even through sleep, Olivia sensed that someone was nearby. Jumping up sharply, she struck her forehead against Pavel’s with full force.

— Ow!.. — Pavel grabbed his forehead. — Why did you jump up so suddenly?

— Why were you crawling so close?

— Shh… Don’t shout, — Michael muttered sleepily, already settling near the smoldering fire. — Luka only just fell asleep… And… throw on… some wood… or it’ll go out…

Before finishing, he rolled onto his other side and began snoring before Pavel and Olivia could even decide who would go which way.

Approaching the wagon, they touched Sam’s forehead just in case.

No fever.

The boy turned restlessly and mumbled something unintelligible in his sleep:

— Mm… yum… cold… ice cream…

They exchanged glances and quietly smirked, though they had not understood a single word.

— Means he’ll live, — Olivia whispered.

After making sure everything was all right with him, they silently went to opposite sides of the camp. They both wanted to discuss what had happened, but the decision came on its own. Until Sam woke up, there was no point talking about it.

From early morning, Reyn was the only one left on guard. In the sunlight, the forest no longer seemed so dangerous, and the good view around allowed the others to sleep a little longer. Out of boredom, he practiced with his whip several times, then sat on a large stone and took the crystals from his pocket.

The thought that very soon he would become rich warmed his soul. He was already imagining how all his peers would envy him, and the traders who had recently laughed at him would start seeking his favor themselves.

— You’ll all envy me yet… — Reyn smirked with satisfaction. — I’ll earn Lagerents. All the beauties will be mine. Maybe I’ll even buy a whole storehouse and rent it out for grain in winter. Then I’ll really live…

The smile instantly vanished from his face.

As soon as he squeezed the crystal in his palm harder, it crumbled into transparent sand with a quiet crunch.

— What?..

Reyn immediately dropped to his knees and began frantically raking through the sand with his hands, still unable to believe his eyes. Just yesterday in the Ravens’ settlement, he had specifically checked both crystals — back then they had been completely whole.

Not understanding what was happening, he took out the second with a trembling hand.

Squeezed it tightly.

It crumbled in exactly the same way.

— What is this… Wolf wisdom… — he muttered, rubbing the transparent grains between his fingers. — A tip made from a crystal like that can pierce straight through a tree… And here… into sand…

Thoughts tangled one after another in his head. He knew perfectly well that a crystal only broke apart after striking the crystal heart of a living beast. He had never seen anything else and had never even heard of anything like this.

— A-a-ah! Rabbits!

A loud cry from the direction of the wagon instantly woke the whole camp.

— Not cute… scary… stitched-up rabbits!

Sam abruptly sat up, waving his arms and not yet fully awake. He looked around in fear and continued muttering something incoherent.

The camp came alive in a single instant.

A second later, the tension gave way to relief.

— He woke up! — Pavel shouted first and, without thinking, ran to Sam, hugging him tightly.

Laughter rolled through the camp one after another. After what they had endured, it was enough for everyone simply to see that Sam had finally come to himself.

— You’re all right… Praise Udgal.

Michael came up to Sam and clapped him firmly on the shoulder. A smile appeared on his face, but his eyes treacherously began to sting. He quickly turned toward the forest, as if looking for something between the trees, so no one would notice the tears gathering there.

— Well, since that’s how it is and everyone’s already awake, we have time for a proper breakfast before the road. Light the fire, and I’ll skin the Feathered Shigranya for now. No sense letting good meat go to waste.

Once he had fully come to himself, Sam immediately began examining Pavel.

— Are you all right? There was so much blood… I see the wounds, and the bites too… But why are you all red? And covered in blisters?

Sam, like a curious puppy, turned Pavel this way and that: lifting his arm, trying to look at his leg, leaning far too close.

— Enough already! That tickles… — Pavel laughed, gently pushing him away. — It’s all passed. Even the itching stopped. I don’t know whether Luka’s ointment helped or whether it’s because of it that I’m covered in blisters, but I feel excellent. Better tell me about yourself. Does your head hurt? Your hand?

— Everything’s oki!

— Oki? — Pavel repeated.

— Well… everything’s good. After yesterday’s… bzjikh… boom… I feel normal. I just didn’t understand how I did that from my hand…

Pavel instantly grabbed him by the wrist.

— Quiet! Not a word about that to anyone. We’ll talk later.

— But Olivia and Michael already know everything. Why can’t I talk about it in front of Luka and Reyn?

— No. Later. At home. Better let’s go gather branches.

The strange conversation did not go unnoticed. Reyn listened carefully out of the corner of his ear, but his joy that Sam had woken quickly faded into the background for him. His thoughts still circled around the crumbled crystals.

“Bzjikh… boom…” he repeated mentally.

Was that the same crash that had frightened the birds yesterday? Could that be what turned the crystals into sand?

The questions kept growing.

“I’ll need to find everything out… The main thing is that the crystals in the settlement weren’t damaged…”

— And now I need to check something…

Reyn took out his knife and went to help Michael skin the Feathered Shigranyas. For several minutes, he diligently poked around in the carcass until he received a solid smack to the back of the head.

— What are you doing?! You cut the bladder. Now we’ll have to throw the carcass away. The meat will both stink and taste bitter. Who even trusted you with a knife? Shoo. Better watch the fire.

Lowering his head and pretending to be mortally offended, Reyn silently moved away and sat again on the same stone where he had sat during his watch.

“I thought so…”

He once again went over what he had seen in his memory.

“The Shigranya doesn’t have a crystal either… And that shouldn’t happen. It’s a beast of Udgal… Very strange…”

— Hey, lazybones! Why are you sitting there? Come help! Or are we feeding you for nothing? — Olivia called to him while breaking dry brushwood and quietly humming something under her breath.

Reyn immediately jumped up. He plucked a white flower with thin pink veins, resembling a chamomile, right by the stone and, as if nothing had happened, headed toward the girl.

— Why am I sitting? I was looking for a flower for you. You’re as beautiful as it is.

Without thinking long, he carefully tucked the flower into Olivia’s hair.

— Hey! Hands off, — the girl snorted, fixing a loose strand. — Thanks for the flower… But your wolf words won’t feed anyone. So stop sweet-talking and help.

Reyn only smirked and began gathering brushwood, though his thoughts were still far from the work and circled around the vanished crystals.

At that moment, Pavel came out of the forest with Sam, carrying an armful of dry branches. Seeing Reyn place the flower in Olivia’s hair, he involuntarily darkened.

— Tail-twister… — Pavel muttered barely audibly and dropped the branches with a crash right beside them.

Olivia only snorted and began lighting the fire. At first glance, the brushwood seemed completely dry, but inside it was still damp after the rain two nights earlier. Several times the fire flared and immediately went out, forcing everyone in turn to lean over the fire and blow with all their strength. When the flame finally caught on the thinnest twigs, thick acrid smoke covered the camp. Everyone waved at it together, some with bowls, some with cloaks, some simply with their palms, trying to drive it toward the forest.

— Well now… at least I’m not the only one brought to tears, — Michael grumbled, wiping his watering eyes.

A few minutes later, stew was already bubbling over the fire. After the previous day, everyone ate with great appetite. Only Pavel poked at his food with his spoon without much desire, thoughtfully looking somewhere ahead, as if his mind were in an entirely different place.

— Hey, why aren’t you eating? You need to regain strength. Wounds don’t heal themselves. Or do I have to save you again on the road? — Olivia moved closer with concern. As luck would have it, the flower given by Reyn was still sticking out on her side.

— Leave me alone… I have no appetite.

Pavel set the bowl on the ground and turned away.

— Eat. Or I’ll start feeding you myself. And I’ll do it so fast you won’t have time to chew.

Pavel instantly turned red, silently turned back, took the bowl, and began eating.

— No… thank you… I’ll pass, — he muttered while chewing, though more than anything in the world he wanted to agree.

After a quick breakfast, the group set off again.

About one Shout later, the narrow forest road unexpectedly gave way to a wide strip of stone. Beyond a low cliff, a huge river gleamed.

— A highway… This is a highway! I think I saw one like this when I was little… Where are the cars?

Sam confidently ran up to the rusted metal barrier.

— What “highway”? — Michael immediately grew wary. — Sam, you’re scaring me today. Every other word is something new. Are you sure you feel all right?

— Or is everything… uki?

— Not uki, oki, — Sam laughed. — I feel great! After the sleep, it’s like I started remembering some things… And speaking became easier. And I miss Catherine… Sarah… And…

He suddenly grabbed his head.

— I can’t remember…

Michael had long noticed that with each day, Sam looked more and more like an ordinary teenager. His speech became more confident, more memories appeared. But it was happening too quickly. After wounds and memory loss, people recovered for months, while Sam seemed to heal with every hour.

— Don’t think about it now. We’ll see them soon. We’re already almost halfway to the Wolves.

— Well, I’m already remembering your strange words. A car is an iron chariot. And “uki”…

— Not “uki,” Michael, “oki,” — Olivia laughed. — It’s like “good.” And then what is a highway?

— A flat stone road. Like this one. For chariots.

— Well, you’ll see plenty of it yet. But you still haven’t seen the stone cave. All right, let’s go. Soon there will be a descent to the river. We need to get water and let the horse drink.

— And why are you standing there as if it’s your first time here? — Michael asked.

Behind the rusted metal barrier, the early rays of the sun reflected in the blue surface of the river. The view from here truly took the breath away, and everyone wanted to stay for at least a few more moments.

After watering the horse at the river and resting a little, the group continued on. Several hours later, the stone road, or highway as Sam had called it, led them to a huge stone cave cut straight through the mountain. The perfectly even walls and high arch took the breath away. It seemed impossible to believe that such a thing could once have been made by human hands.

— Now wait… Let me catch my breath at least. I’m already tired of dragging this rascal away from every iron chariot.

Michael breathed out heavily, sat on the hood of a rusty car, and wiped sweat from his forehead. All this time he had not taken his eyes off Sam, whose energy seemed only to be growing.

— Au-u-u!

— Au! Au! Au!

— Au-u-u!

Sam ran around near the tunnel entrance, shouting into the darkness and waiting with delight for the echo to come back.

— Luka, I thought no one could outtalk you, — Pavel laughed. — But no… Looks like Sam manages that perfectly.

— Hey! That’s unfair! — Luka protested. — At least I talk about things that matter.

— And he talks into the tunnel! — Olivia could not hold back, after which everyone laughed.

Only Reyn did not share the fun.

— Enough with this circus, — Reyn grumbled unhappily. — We’re not children. If my tribesmen haven’t heard Sam yet, they definitely will soon. I don’t want to embarrass myself later. Let’s take torches — they’re usually left at the entrance — and go. I still have plenty of things to do.

For a whole hour, they walked through the long dark tunnel. Every step echoed hollowly from the stone walls, and the wind, flying through small square openings under the very arch, howled as if some enormous unknown creature were hiding somewhere in the darkness. Even Michael involuntarily looked back several times, and Sam soon stopped shouting into the echo and now walked silently, listening to the strange sounds.

At last, daylight appeared ahead. The travelers had already decided the tunnel was ending, but when they came closer, they saw only a huge opening in its side wall — a true rock window overlooking a cliff. Far below it, the same lake gleamed, surrounded by sheer cliffs, while cold wind freely rushed inside and scattered the stale air beneath the vaults.

Soon the group set out again. The tunnel swallowed them once more, but now the darkness did not last long. After some time, the true exit appeared ahead.

Beyond it, the travelers were met by the high stone wall of the Wolf settlement. The only massive gates were guarded by several armed sentries.

— Oh, Reyn! And we were wondering who was howling from the darkness all the way, — one of them laughed.

— You came back fast. Eh, Mira is going to give it to you. She already knows there will be guests, so you can go report at once. Tell her you brought them.

The guards opened the gates and led the guests to the hitching posts.

Olivia, Pavel, and Luka found themselves here for the first time. They looked around with curiosity, but instead of the settlement they had expected, they saw only a wide road, fields, several utility buildings, and a large entrance into a cave.

— Michael… — Pavel was the first who could not bear it. — And where is the settlement itself?

— Yes… there’s nothing here, — Olivia said in surprise.

Reyn only smirked.

— You’ll see now.

He entered the cave first.

After only a few steps, the others seemed to grow into the ground.

The cave, which had seemed from the outside like an ordinary dark passage, turned out to be enormous inside. So enormous that its opposite end was lost in the half-darkness. High overhead, in the vault, a giant opening gaped, through which sunlight fell in a broad pillar straight into the center of an underground lake.

On a small island in the middle of the water grew an enormous ancient tree. Its mighty roots went straight into the stone, and its thick crown almost touched the rays of the sun. Light reflected in the clear water, broke into thousands of trembling glints, and slid across the cave walls in living waves, illuminating the entire city.

Around the lake, several tiers of the settlement rose in rings. The lowest was the noisiest: a broad square, dozens of trading stalls, workshops, the smell of fresh bread, smoke, and hot metal all mingling into the single hum of a great market. Higher up, right in the rock, were the dwellings, connected by wooden bridges, stairs, and balconies. Still higher, almost under the very vault of the cave, stood massive stone warehouses and a closed foundry, where the Wolves kept their main secret — the art of making glass Lagerents.

Even the noise of the city sounded unusual here. Human voices, the barking of dogs, the ringing of hammers, and the splash of water blended into one echo that slowly rolled through the whole underground hall.

— Well? — Reyn smiled with satisfaction, watching the guests’ faces. — Now do you understand why we don’t like telling strangers where we live?

Even Pavel did not immediately find anything to answer.

— All right… don’t scatter, or you’ll get lost, — Michael was the first to break the silence. — I’ll go talk to Mira about the grain, and you walk around the market for now. Choose something for yourselves… and for Catherine. I promised to bring her souvenirs. Just don’t make me stay here until dark. Knowing the prices here, they’ll skin three hides off us for one night.

Olivia, Pavel, Luka, and Sam headed toward the market, while Reyn and Michael went to the house of the settlement’s leader.

The moment Reyn crossed the threshold, something heavy whistled past his nose and smashed against the wall with a loud crack.

— What flea-ridden thing are you doing here?!

Mira’s voice echoed through the whole house.

— You and your parents literally begged me on your knees to send you with the traders! You practically whined just so I would give permission. I don’t believe they’ve already returned. Don’t tell me you got bored and ran back! Oh, Reyn… Don’t push me. Because of you, I almost quarreled with one of the most influential families in the settlement!

With every word, her usually calm face grew darker. The wrinkles on her forehead deepened, and veins stood out at her temples. It seemed a little more, and she truly would lose self-control.

Reyn immediately rushed to her.

— Gran… you mustn’t get so worked up.

He carefully took the woman by the arm and helped her sit on a chair.

— I’m here for a completely different reason. Everything is fine with the traders.

— What “Gran” am I to you? — Mira snorted angrily, catching her breath. — Just because I am the mother of your mother’s uncle does not make me your grandmother. And it certainly does not give you the right to call me that.

— Leave it. That’s enough… I’m calm now.

Mira inhaled deeply, drank some water, and finally calmed down a little.

— So what happened after all? I won’t believe all this noise is only because of Reyn, — Michael said, sitting nearby with curiosity.

— You don’t need me to explain it to you, Raven. You understand yourself that after what happened to Green Grass, everyone is alarmed. Traders now leave the walls with caution, and some are postponing long journeys altogether.

Mira fell silent for a short while, as if deciding whether to continue.

— But that is not all. For almost a month now, some wanderers have been roaming our lands. All in black clothes. They do not speak our language. From what we managed to understand through their drawings and gestures, they are looking for… the Children of Udgal.

Michael involuntarily swallowed loudly.

— The Children of Udgal?..

— Exactly. No one knows who they are or what they truly want. But after what happened to Green Grass, people fear the worst. What if these wanderers are somehow connected to the Bones? What if all this is part of the same thing?

She sighed heavily and walked to the open balcony. Below, the market roared, children ran between the stalls, traders argued over the price of grain. From the outside, it seemed that life was going on as usual.

— The fact that the settlement looks calm means nothing, — Mira said quietly, without turning around. — People are simply trying not to show their fear. And the Rock Blackfaces, who have lived among us for many years and long ago became our own, have almost stopped leaving their houses altogether.

She gripped the railing tighter.

— I am afraid, Michael… If all of this is truly connected, then the hunt for the Children of Udgal may begin again. And with it, chaos, distrust, and hunger will return. And then it will no longer matter who is right and who is guilty. Everyone will suffer.

End of the Chapter.