lord of the Osiris, wisest of kings. I, Aprod Rift, have come to you at the request of the Most High Governor Shelber Daligen. We need to discuss some political issues regarding the safety of the city.
– Well, let’s go to my meeting room, – the King nodded to the guard and went inside. The visiting ambassador followed him through long corridors. Closing in a small room, they sat down at a round table, which stood at the very window. The old man took off the crown and placed it in front of him. Taking a handkerchief from his chest pocket, he wiped his damp face. – What do you want? He asked, scratching the back of his head. – This month, we paid tribute to Bil Hamhharaf, regularly pay taxes to the temple of Selim and did not violate any agreement between the Nahmau and the Osiris.
«Keep calm, oh great king. I haven’t started the conversation yet, and you are already making excuses. It doesn’t suit you. Vayelon’s people are in great danger. Rohvem wants to completely destroy the city, fearing your power. Even though they are our brothers, we will not allow this madness. The forest of the dead in the southern valley has taken too many people from Fimirel to hell, and our people disappear on Shelber’s mushroom paths. Nahmau are having their worst times. It’s hard to seem like heroes when our own kings left us at the mercy of Jerichan leprosy. Envy, flying up to heaven Vayelon, turned the heads of the governors and priests. We decided to take control of one of the city councils. Whether it is the council of the wisest or the council of the elders, I am obliged to lead this branch within a week. Deliver this to your subjects. Having learned that I am in power, Makhtum will not dare to attack his brothers. Otherwise, he will unleash a senseless war with Shelber.
– It all looks like some kind of competition, – the tsar looks menacingly into his face. – Who from Nahmau will capture the Osirian capital faster. So our obedience is no longer enough for you? Has it ever occurred to you that our people can resist wicked envious people? Fists clenched tightly, his face twitched nervously. – And then, we ourselves are already looking at the lands around us. Living in the occupation of a greedy, dying people is not so exciting.
«You shouldn’t call my people greedy. In that case, let Biel decide your fate. The countdown has already started. You will not be saved by the numerous hordes of mortals, from the ruthless creatures of Rohvem. – Taking out a scroll from his mantle, the governor handed it to the king. – Read this and pass it on to the council. Dahligen’s own appeal. Perhaps it will convince you more than my words. – Getting up from his chair, Aprod left the palace.
Sitting on his soft, wonderful throne, upholstered with the skin of a Nile crocodile, with a sparkling ornament on the upper part of the back, leaning his elbows, King Ormon hung his head thoughtfully. At the long table of the council of the elders, he carried a great deal of weight. And, in today’s discussion, as a result of controversy and disagreement, supported the side of the envoy from Shelber, but the council did not approve of this position.
«My years are passing,» he raised his bushy eyebrows sadly. «And I don’t see a decent youth capable of ruling Vayelon. I have spoiled my children too much. The elders are already forty years old, but they are all helpless children. I propose, to the council, to introduce a new position in the department that is temporarily fulfilling my duties.
– We are not against such a position, but it should be occupied exclusively by a local, – the senator, sitting somewhere in the middle, waves his index finger. – For example me. To give power to a stranger, and even to some governor from Shelber… we will not allow!
– Well, calm down, – the king raised his hands, trying to calm down the shouting advisers. – In a week, we have to give an answer. Collect troops. Our answer is war.
Dark clouds were gathering in the sky. Peals of thunder and striking lightning fell right into the tower of the majestic temple of Selim, in the deserted city of Fimirel. Abandoned stone cottages surrounded a single residential structure stretching to the very heavens. Gloomy, dark building. This dizzying cone-shaped structure is even taller than the skyscrapers of Vayelon. And, most importantly, it moves. Each floor, like a huge disk, in the form of a semicircle, planted on top of each other, slowly revolves around its axis. And at the top, segments of a sharpened fiery roof. It glows bright orange. With the help of kinematics and changing color rendering, the illusion of flowing lava is created. No wonder this tower got the name – Volcano. Queen Fimirel Bil Hamhharaf lives here. An insidious witch who for the sake of power killed her father, and then her brother. She hates men, and therefore killed her son in order to make her daughter the receiver of power. Even all members of the council, in Fimirel, are exclusively women. The only man in the entire Rohvem Valley who can argue with the distraught ruler is High Priest Makhtum. He heads the most important common shrine of the Nahmau. This is the divine, first common religious temple of Selim – Birhatten, and, according to the law, no one has the right to take away the power of the chief priest over the spiritual community. Initially, this temple was built as a palace for the kings of Rohvem, even before the Fimirel tower appeared. But, the building turned out to be too chic, breathtaking, in a word, grandiose. Such a large-scale and magnificent complex that the then ruler Mastakh thought that only gods should live there, and decided to transfer the building to the clergy. A couple of centuries later, when the ideology of the «Law of Svurt» was popularized, the temple was slightly rebuilt, made it even larger and more fantastic, suitable for all spiritual levels. It is strange that the greedy queen did not even try to take possession of this building, because it is several times more beautiful than her palace. Perhaps, she still had some kind of upbringing, and respect for faith, otherwise, if she were blinded by power by a naive dictator, she would have been overthrown by her own advisers and caretakers. Hatred of the opposite sex, the future queen accumulated from childhood. A talented girl has always been ignored and not taken seriously. Her father called any of her suggestions nonsense, although he himself ultimately accepted them and said that these were his brilliant ideas. Now, the touchy lady hates all men in the world, and even her wife Liger is afraid of unpredictable passion and crazy fanaticism, having long planned to escape from the city, to the neighboring village of Dagbu, following the rest, adequate residents.
Today is the brightest night the Knight Masod has ever seen, standing at the farthest outpost of Vayelon. After feeding his horse, he quickly went to the tent to hide from the beginning of the downpour. A strong wind has risen. The catapults standing in the field rolled towards the fire and almost caught fire. The horses whinnied in fright. Two thousand people, already on alert for the second week, on the southern border of the Osiris, tirelessly watch the rugged terrain of Rohvem. Grabbing an earthenware pot, the guardsman began to have supper, quickly eating flour cakes with berry filling. The comrades sat closely with each other, telling different stories. Suddenly, outside there were the shouts of the guards. – Everybody out! Faster, faster! Under construction, under construction! Stand in front of your tents! General Mandalis has arrived!
– What’s happening? Does the general show up in the middle of the night, in such terrible weather, without warning? – Masod goggled eyes, barely chewing on another pie. He carefully pulled back the curtain, peering through the small window of his tent. «Move your ass, guy,» his comrades hurried out into the street. There was complete confusion. It was not just his retinue who came with the general. With him came an army of at least five thousand people in full combat readiness.
– Roll up camp, prepare your horses and sharpen your arrows! – shouts the commander of the outpost. By the decision of the council, in a day, we move forward to capture Fimirel and liberate the Osirian villages.
Delight appeared in Masod’s confused eyes. Under a raging downpour, in the middle of the night, for the first time he felt the greatness of the army gathered here, and his irreplaceable, great
