Напряжение / Voltage: Глава 15

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Camrad_RIP 18.03.23 в 10:58

The country palace was dozing, sighing quietly and measuredly in the quiet wind, exhaling with the rustling of the pine forest branches. Quiet is now the palace. The noisy inhabitants have rushed off in the early morning to the peat bogs and forest lakes for affairs unknown to him. Leaving within the walls of the monumental three-story building, built more than a thousand years ago, only silent and inaudible servants and a dozen guests who love peace, quiet and daytime sleep as much as they do. Nobody scratches words of first love on granite slabs, nobody climbs into windows, disturbing wooden frames dried from time. No one murmurs in the corridors and the courtyard, singing merry songs. No thunderous bass of tutors, trying to find culprits for the third hundred years, no thin voices of children, never guilty in any way, answer them. Blissful.

Camrad_RIP 18.03.23 в 11:11

Only the solitary figure of a man, peering patiently into the horizon from the roof of the palace, suggests that this tranquillity is not destined to last.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 14:36

With a loud chirp, a blue drop of the attack helicopter streaked across the sky, piercing the gray sails of the rain in the distance, and, in a moment, it seemed to collapse onto the snow-white circle of the takeoff pad, frozen some meters above the ground, to descend smoothly, concealing the scarlet insignia in its center. The two propeller pairs, until then visible only as a blur against the sky, flickered and stopped, taking the familiar shape of dragonfly wings bent slightly to the ground.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 14:38

The heavy flap slid sideways, allowing a burly man in his mid-fourth decade, wrapped in a floor-length sable coat, despite the heat of July, to jump onto the heated stone platform. The large jewels - scarlet, turquoise, blue - glinted brightly on gold and snow-white rings, one on each finger. They were matched by a headband, tall and thin, patterned all over, with a silver band that covered his forehead and was lost in his graying black hair. The owner's eyes burned just as brightly with blue and will, a recent storm of anger and fresh irritation.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 14:48

Two lines of servants stretched out towards the helicopter. They tilt their heads to greet their lord. The closest of them respectfully accepted the coat thrown off his shoulders and deposited in the lacquered chest the precious rings the man had indifferently plucked from his fingers. In this place, lost amid the taiga, there is no one to show off their family's wealth by displaying their unique gems. There is no need to lug heavy and stuffy furs around to remind them of the antiquity of their kin. The inhabitants of the palace, known as the Garden, already know that they are the very best, from the youngest inhabitants to honored elders who are given the honor of overseeing the most valuable possessions of the clan.No strangers have been to the area in a hundred years, not even the occasional mushroom picker or hunter who strayed or wandered too far. They were prudent to believe the voice from the bushes and the treetops that there were no more beasts or mushrooms there.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:18

Only the tiara remained on the man's forehead as a status symbol... and a working tool. There, behind the thin silver engraving with ancient motifs hid the technology of the present day, continuously linking the head of the clan with the faithful professionals. Not just an audible link, no - they saw what he saw, heard what he was told, erasing the word 'personal' from his life. Once irritating and anger-inspiring, now it has become a second self.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:19

Too much meant a word in this world, and too often he was required to give a decision now, pressing deadlines and dreading rejection, to ignore wise counsel. Not to mention the small details and hints that might have been missed and misunderstood if the four cameras hidden in the decorative swirls of the runes had not been looking out into the world with him. It is quite possible to compromise the personal, the intimate and the private when the lives and well-being of a million and a half of the principality's subjects depend on decisions. Very few people were aware of the nature of the silver hoop, including the swarthy gentleman who greeted him.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:25

"Did you call?" the Head threw up heavily, waiting for the servants to disappear behind the office doors, leaving him alone with the man whose message had literally plucked him from the corridors of power in the capital and provided six hours of helicopter chatter.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:26

Had anyone else sent the message, he would not have lifted an eyebrow, as the events behind his back had become very murky. But he could not ignore the author of the terse cipher that read: "Come". The best friend, tutor, and protector of his child, a brother not by blood but by a ritual created on the battlefield between their fathers. He had never disturbed him in vain.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:27

"How do I look?" Amir adjusted the collar of his shirt under his snow-white suit and looked demandingly at the silver hoop.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:28

"Like a suicider," the Prince responded to the delay.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:28

"Shh, you're incompetent," his friend tsked at him and turned sideways.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:29

He sighed indignantly, about to give a speech about fatigue and the long flight, but just as quickly calmed down, guided by the whisper of a hidden earpiece.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:30

"The think tank reports that you're an asshole," the man muttered back, losing all irritation, "but Tamara will love it."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:30

"Ok, that's it."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:30

"Nice, then I go?"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:31

"Yeah, just look in on your daughter," the mate said light-heartedly.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 15:31

The windows flickered for a brief moment, signalling that the defences were on. The floor trembled, lifting the men slightly above the general level of the floor. The ceiling and the seemingly indestructible walls moved in sync. All to create a room within a room, the space between them immediately filled with the hum of energy shields. The palace already boasted decent protection from the attention of outsiders, but the created transformation elevated security to an absolute. The faintly audible background from the hoop link was gone too. They would get the recording afterwards.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:06

"Did she say where he was?" said the Prince with a suddenly dry throat.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:06

A heavy excitement pervaded him, swirling with hope and forcing him to listen to the humming silence of the room lest he should miss the coveted answer. The strange thing was that the only person who could play with his emotions like that was eleven years old, and also his own daughter. Nowhere and never had the prince been a petitioner, yet... he had made it by his fifth decade.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:12

Six months ago, the young lady, completing a drawing of a tiger in a coloring book in response to the trainer's question of where to fly next time, informed him routinely that there was no need to fly anywhere else. She's already found her brother for a month...

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:14

Amir lost his oriental cool and dragged his friend out of Moscow with an incoherent shriek. The emergency flight, the panic, the clinking of champagne crates, the excited chorus of analysts' voices in the hoop... And here are two big-headed fools standing in front of a serious girl and asking for the third time, "Why not?" - and hearing the utterly childish response, "Because".

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:17

Who knew that an arduous mission to reign in the prophetic gift could end like this? Apart from the prophetess, of course.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:17

Everyone saw the meeting, the tears, and joy, the elation and success, trying not to think what to do with the new-found prince - far more important was the "working" oracle. And the girl saw what would happen "after" and "punished" her father by refusing to tell him where her brother was. She punished him for the future, not for the past.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:19

The first attempt to press ended in a complete refusal to cooperate. That is, an impenetrable childish "Nope" against which there was no method. Because the first one who suggests a violent solution was a burn by Amir.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:23

So, the clan now had an oracle of enormous potential and power, showing her tongue and covering her ears with her palms.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:27

That night many people managed to get so drunk on champagne that by morning, even the figure of the Treasurer, proudly reciting a poem standing on the table, was no surprise to anyone. Because outside the window, in the sky above the forest, a huge electric dragon was trying to catch the fiery one by the tail. Then they put out the forest, planted a new one, and thought a lot.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:29

Finally, they decided to change the initial scenario of sending the "foundling" to a good family across the ocean. However...

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:30

"No," Amir smiled sadly and quoted his ward, "Daddy is still punished."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:31

"Like daughter, like mother," the man said indignantly as he paced around the much smaller room. "No respect and discipline! At her age I...!"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:32

"Locking Dad in the Treasury," Amir coughed loudly into his fist.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:32

"It wasn't me who broke the vase!"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:33

"That's right, it was me," his friend nodded, amused, "for which I thank you."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:33

"And I glued it back together!" The head of the great duchy spluttered indignantly.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:34

"Your craftsmanship is unsurpassed," Amir chuckled admiringly. "From glue and diligence, you create such a masterpiece..."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:37

"Why pour water into it, eh?" The man continued to be indignant without listening.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:38

"Water in a vase! The silly people!" He shook his head sympathetically in response.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:39

"It's three thousand years old! And they stick flowers in it!"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:39

"Aye-aye."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:40

"Amir," the man stopped abruptly, instantly curbing the vivid memories of his childhood (of course, the ruined treasury... and with whom would he remember?), "if not the son, what reason is there?"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:41

"The papers on the alliance with the Tenishevs, remember those?"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:41

"Gone?" without understanding, voiced an assumption the Prince. "She has hidden them and won't give them back? I told you not to take important documents to Ksusha!"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:43

"The papers are in place," his friend reassured him, maintaining a serious expression on his face, "but your ban has been broken after all. Yelizar Sergeyevich decided to take the initiative and visited the girl to talk about the duty and honor of the clan."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:43

"Results?" Prince exhaled back, rubbing his face with his palms. That was no way to say good news.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:45

"Ward two, under IV. Stroke, but we got there in time, so the prognosis is positive."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:46

"What did she say to him?" Prince turned back to the window, putting his hands behind his back.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:46

"The truth." Amir, too, turned around, peering at the flat line of forest on the horizon. "The young wife is cheating. His only son is on drugs."

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:47

"Who overlooked it?"

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:47

"We're working it out," Amir shrugged behind him.

Camrad_RIP 31.03.23 в 16:48