Настучать в бубен / Hit the tambourine: Глава 19-7

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Camrad_RIP 04.12.24 в 20:18

Singha took a long look at Pann, who had disappeared into the green wall of unfamiliar and very lush trees, exhaled a little indignantly, and stomped her foot in anger, but she did not even allow herself to disrespect him with words. First, she's in the shadow of his khao's veil and may her skill be enough to see their intent to protect and keep those inside the circle, but they might remember her words. Secondly, this stranger-khanur with his obnoxious temper and profanity-loving mouth-was mostly right in his profanity. The shamaness, an experienced gifted with many generations of khao-seahar behind her back, clearly understood that anyone else in his place would have simply cut the throat of the maiden who had almost killed him twice and would have fed his khao with her life. But he had tolerated her words and actions, saving her time after time and as if he saw nothing wrong in it-she had shared her self with him, too, when they had fled the Heaven that had fallen beneath them when the khao abode had almost dissolved their bodies.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 17:56

Pann did not seek profit or favor in her rescue, nor did he act out of sympathy or carnal lust, certainly not the latter. He had a fierce dislike for her. No, he just didn't see or acknowledge it, as if he didn't realize it was possible to do otherwise. To him, saving her, dying and perishing, was not a matter of profit or sympathy. It was not a question for him at all, a cause for reflection. He saw her ruinous situation and helped as he could and in whatever way he could. It was hard for her to follow his thinking, his behavior, and his understanding of the world, especially given the depth, the ease with which he commanded the innumerable Khaos clung to him like steppe grass to a body lying in that grass, like a foal to a mare. It was hard for her to comprehend this understanding of life and her place in it, but the last thing she wanted was to offend or insult the man who had saved her, to disappoint him even more.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 19:52

It was even painful in its simplicity. The way he'd been disappointed in her and her actions, how angry and profane he'd been, and yet he'd still helped, protected and covered, guided and sharpened the path. She had almost said goodbye to eternity too many times in the last couple of turns of the sun, but especially memorable were the words of that vile brat from the lake. The moment when it had offered, honestly and without lie, a path to salvation for him alone, but without her. Then she realized very clearly that flash, not even of anger or rage, but of disgust and rejection, when Pann had smiled, and with mere words and the power invested in them had forced the ancient evil to retreat. For the sake of her, Singha, daughter of Maega, daughter of Maedra, to continue to live, to breathe, to exist. As her father or, more likely, her constantly making inappropriate jokes, her paternal uncle, would say in this situation: “After doing something like that, even very decent girls are quite indecent to puled up their dress.” Singha realized that if he had only hinted, she would have pulled up too, not out of love or passion. Simply because of such an act, it paid off. Refusal would have been an even greater despicable act for her.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 10:53

She didn't know whether it was good or bad that he didn't see in her someone who could ignite the fire of desire in his eyes. One who could share his passion, lie down, and give herself to him under this strange and alien sky. And that cloak! She had only heard of houses of spirits converted into such relics in legends, and she did not believe in them. In the tent and the central hearth of that tent, where Khailan-Khan's ancestors and ancestors' ancestors had lived, there always lived and never slept two old Khao, mighty, but only together equal to the one given to her by the Soul Tablet. That the ancient and so akin to human consciousness that he understood them with half a mind from the mere image of desire, the khao, allowed to place himself in an ordinary-looking cloak, yes with all his immensely powerful retinue. Singha realized she was simply afraid of doing the wrong thing because she couldn't understand how Pann would behave. People don't behave like that! They don't!

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 10:59

She had sensed his power, and remembered how he had listened to insulting orders from a mere khanur, even without a gift! She had seen his khao retinue, immense and so diverse as to make her dizzy, and remembered how he had tolerated her addressing him, her superior, and demanding orders to speak at her will! She saw him fight, let himself be led by his images, his spirit saw with his eyes how he calculated hundreds of variations of every move of his, hers, and the enemy, weaving them into the pattern of the coming victory, avoiding the doom that seemed inevitable, and remembered how stupid and pompous in his importance the obnoxious Nertm had uttered through his teeth the words against him with slight contempt!

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 11:43

He's strange, that's for sure. The all-seeing Heaven and all the khao of all the winds can see that, but still, she did not want to be ungrateful and answer evil with good. Yes, he spoke mean words, for some of which others paid with their lives or gold if they had time to buy their lives back. Yes, he said them sincerely and fully realizing to whom exactly, but she recognized that at that moment these words, at least partially, deserved. And it was not words that spoke for Pann, but deeds. She had seen and listened to too many people whose speeches were full of honey and flattery, and whose deeds were more venomous than a steppe viper. Pann was not one of them, and his deeds had never brought her harm, though, truth be told, they should have. She deserved that harm, she deserved a lot.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 11:47

Pann went into his trial of the one or the other of the khao-yanash-mal who had lavished him with her attention. She only exhaled and sat down on the khao-insulated ground, wrapping herself in her marvelous gift, covering her naked body beneath it, and hugging her legs. Singha realized now that she had studied her gifts better, that he had never understood, never realized that one of her gifts was hidden from him, unseen to his inner sight. Singha did not want to hide anything from the one who had done her nothing but good, but she was afraid to admit it because she did not know how he would react. She remembered his words that he would not allow her to summon that khao, the knowledge of whose call and power was poured into her like milk poured into a jug. She understood why he had said that. Why he had warned her of his prohibition. The power of a khao is great, such a one could, if summoned stealthily and in advance, penetrate even that wall of indestructibility which she saw as his defense, penetrate even one whose spirit itself has become like a khao even more than a man. Singha was not going to call this khao even if she could call him stealthily, even if she could get him to attack her savior before the punishment fell upon her.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 11:53

She has honor!

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:52

There is pride!

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:53

There is gratitude!

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:53

But there was also an understanding, a caution, a realization that Pann's caution might be more than his benefactor more than all the good he had done for her. For she could sense his irritation and dislike when he remembered the evil she had brought, the trouble she had foolishly given him. So she did not care to check what Pann would have done if she had learned that another line had appeared on her Tablet, marked by the Tablet itself with the note “invisible to members of the group.” She had already noticed, it was hard not to realize, that Pann could see her Tablet by the right of the one who had given it to her, but he had hidden his Tablet. And she understood him; there wasn't even a shadow of resentment. Who wouldn't want to keep their secrets, if there was a way to keep them? But she kept hers, too, because she was afraid that otherwise her danger to Pann would outweigh his strange and incomprehensible kindness and she would find herself in an unpleasant position. She did not want to be in that position. She didn't intend to use the gift, not on Pann, certainly not on Pann, but, khao witnessed, she was afraid that she wouldn't be able to prove her reluctance.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 12:05

Again and again she looked at that line, not understanding why had the Khao-yanash-mal given her such a gift in the first place, why had she decided to test her honor and gratitude?

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:54

Reward Tokens (invisible to group members): Sweet Feet (25)

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:53

It was a powerful gift, a staggeringly absolute gift that stood above Heaven and any hao she knew, if only by rumor. But at the same time, it was obscene, and also very sneaky, insidious, and dangerous in equal measure. She listened to her Tablet and blushed involuntarily, time after time, at what the Tablet revealed to her, time after time the genuine embarrassment of it growing stronger and stronger. And then there was the realization of being able to use this gift and thereby solve so many of her problems - to rid herself of a threat, to assure her safety, and the certainty of her salvation. It was the meanness of the reward - the temptation to use it, to strike the unsuspecting Pann and get what she wanted, or at least to avoid a sad outcome.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 12:17

If he were like those “friends” of hers who smiled in public and held hidden contempt, envy, rejection, contrived and real grudges in the grip of self-control, she wouldn't have hesitated at all to simply strike first. But he meant no harm. He was saying exactly what he thought, and he had no intention of bestowing harm on Singha in his power. And it made her painfully ashamed to even think of using this cursed and poisonous gift on Panna. It made her feel disgusted with herself, with the part of her self that saw the profit in harnessing the mighty and too trusting, too kind khanur like a good stallion to a harness. It is not for nothing the Slavers of the steppe tribes say that sometimes the best harness for a mighty and unruly stallion is a meek and gentle filly.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 12:21

This gift would be perfect for such a dastardly deed. If ыhe wished to use it, a gradually increasing obsession would fall upon the man, gathering all his attention on Singha's feet. At first, he would just stare, dream, and wish, but at some point, it would seem completely normal for him to start touching, kissing, and licking them. In this state, he will be completely relaxed, gradually becoming more and more excited. She should only put both feet at once to the face of the victim so that he released the semen and became for a moment very obedient. In this way one can persuade the victim to fulfill a single request, even one that is obviously harmful to the obsessor, one can order him to sleep or to give her something valuable, to tell his secret or someone else's secret. And there is no defense against it, none. Neither mighty khao, nor the strongest charms, nor the most powerful temple will not help, with the same ease before this gift will fall the will of a simple yalom or the Great Khan. And no one will even suspect Singha. The victim of obsession will not forget about what happened to him, but simply will not pay attention to it, and will treat it as something ordinary, more ordinary than even going to the bath. The mystery will always remain a mystery, a secret as only she, gifted with a great dastardly temptation, knows.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 12:44

"Unshai uk marakh-tash!" Said the steppe girl, as she spat, switching to her native dialect, the part of it for which her mother would have struck her lips with the palm of her hand until they bled, but now, having discharged her anger and contempt for herself, she felt a little better. "I know honor! And gratitude!"

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:55

She said it as if she'd been cut off. Only now she felt how her underlying and mean, low and unworthy desire to solve all her problems in the way best for her, not for her savior, had finally let go. And having refused, it was as if she could breathe more freely at once. It was as if the air around her, cooled and slightly dried by perfume, had become sweeter, and a light breeze brought freshness to her thoughts. She would not tell. She would keep silent out of apprehension and fear; there was no point in lying to herself. It was even worse than trying to deceive the bargain-breaking khao. But this secret will remain just a secret, but no more. Her secret. She would know and remember that she could have betrayed but didn't, that she could have taken control of Pann's mind and heart but didn't. And that made her feel a little better, or maybe it was just the improving sense of recovering health.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 19:56

Left alone, the shamaness quickly calmed down and got into a rhythm, meditating a little, helping a little the exhausted hao-amal on her blood, which helped her in escape and battle, and just admiring the landscape. Though, admittedly, she got bored of this forest rather quickly. The unusual trees and grasses are only unusual for the first thousand breaths, and then they become just trees and grass. The dirty and almost brown water of the river did not appeal to her either, although she wanted to wash her body, in this river, as it seemed to Singha, that there was a good chance she would only stain herself more, coming out dirtier than she had entered its waters. But she liked the soft and like a little magic, very pleasantly crusty bread, she would have eaten such a thing every day, but she didn't know the variety and didn't think to ask. She would have to tell the servants to look for it at the market when she got home, it was delicious. Especially with the jam, which was also delicious - the soft and tight layer of sweetness seemed to cover her mouth, and the individual large cherries seemed so sweet that if it weren't for a hint of sourness, she might have been sick. But the combination of sour and sweet was soothing, and Singha did not notice that she had rid herself of the stock of sweets, leaving only an empty jar and a long glass spoon.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 12:55

If this mysterious Soul Tablet allowed her to summon such delicious things with a single wish, then she understood why its owners were so sought after. Envy, perhaps. No, it was a joke, of course, she wouldn't anger Hao, and she knew all too well what the Master was being sought for. But still, even jokingly, it was very tasty bread and excellent jam, it would not be a shame to pay gold for it. A lot of gold. For example, as a sprout of the snow-white inflorescence of Usanarax flower - very rare and fastidious, growing only on the rivers and floods of those rivers in the hot tropics of the south. They grow it only on magical places, and they do not want to share their secrets, taking so much for each sprig-flower that my mother every time remembered someone's greed. In the coastal lands, these flowers have long since disappeared. If they existed in the wild, it was only in the depths of the jungle, where they could grow and bloom, parasitizing on the half-rotten trunks of dead trees.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 20:00

It was like that log that had floated past their little temporary camp, caught on a snag about a hundred feet from the edge of the guard circle. Singha even wiped her eyes, and then, wincing at the slight pain and weakness, looked at the flower with the eyes of a couple of khao. Both her own and the ones who had been ordered to listen to her will, doing Pann's will. Indeed, that very flower was a long and smooth white twig stretching upward, and on the side opposite the sun gathered small flowers that looked like little steppe bells. She had seen this flower many times, held it in her hands, and brought it to Khao as a gift, so it was easy to recognize its true reflection, but here the flower was still alive. Not just alive, but fully intact and, as Singha knew, of the five delivered by her father's errandmen and traders she knew, it was good if at least one of them retained all its properties. And here she could preserve them herself, treat the stem properly, and collect the inflorescences. The price would be enough for a dozen new dresses.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 13:02

Well, she doesn't need to. She will come back from this trouble anyway with a profit simply obscene. If she comes back. But the future khao-seahar kept such thoughts away from herself but it is possible to present the flower to the same Pann. He also speaks, he also hears khao and can't fail to appreciate it. She wanted to show herself not only as a useless child, which mother wolf or furry brother Yarsha covers from evil! She was sick of thinking even about what her mother would say and how much she would be whipped with a rod when she returned to her native house and white yurt. One could only hope that she would never find out that it was her call to her khao had been the sweep of the wide-brimmed cloak on which the insecure prisoner of the magic tower had pounced like an enraged buffalo. And it would be pleasant to see in Pann's gaze, as he returned from his proclamation, surprise, and approval, pleasant to her, for then she would not be so useless.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 13:12

She knew she shouldn't leave the protection of the spirits, the enchanted circle, but she also knew he hadn't locked her away or sworn her in. He had simply asked her not to leave the protection, especially while she was powerless. But she wasn't far away! Literally a hundred paces away, she wouldn't go far! And even if she did, even her strength would be enough for her to call for help! Biting her lip and once again barely holding back the weakness, she took a closer look at the precious flower, ensuring her eyes had not deceived her and she was not being baited by a predatory something. She remembered very well the cute and so funny bird she had almost stepped towards there by the lake. Singha had made her decision. She waited a moment, counting her breaths to a hundred until her body calmed down and her weakness subsided, then she rose carefully, without putting on the cloak she had temporarily lost her strength in, and walked briskly toward the spot, taking care to tread as carefully as she could.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 20:23

The incredibly humid stifling heat immediately hit her in the face as she left the circle. The heat covered her with a heavy woolen blanket and wrapped her in three hides, her breath was knocked out of her chest, but she did not fall or even stagger, no. She walked cautiously, leisurely, to the bank, wondering how to pluck the sturdy stalk - the bank here is very steep. If she jumped into the river, it would be difficult to get out, especially with a delicate flower that could not be soaked with water. She began to think about how to call her or one of her trusted khao more carefully, so he could cut off the stem with a blade of his will, and the second one could bring the stem to her without taking even a speck of dust from it. She even picked up a careful and soft call, not to strain her gift, but then she had to step back two steps, quietly whispering a few words in her father's dialect, which her mother would not approve, as well as her father. From here she would have been more comfortable pointing her target with her chosen khao, but before she could speak and call, a heavy and rather long dart whistled past her, a couple of feet away, hitting the water about half a step from the flower and very close to the log.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 17:50

Shrieking in surprise and consternation, Singha immediately shifted, preparing to run under the protection of the circle of hao and call out to them for help. At her call they would come, she knew it, Pann had given her the right to do so. At the same time assessing the one who had dared to attack her. She was not attacked, as became clear a moment later, though she was startled at first to see a long, six-foot-tall snake-maiden from tail to top, armed with several more heavy darts, a blowpipe, and a long wooden dagger of clearly not simple wood. The swarthy almost-skin of the human part of the body, which was in fact only very fine scales, as Singha knew, was covered only by the straps for weapons and a wide belt, while the snake part was traditionally not covered at all. Her shoulders, chest, and belly were covered with some tribal symbols, which Singha sensed as strange magic, not calling to the Khao, but also connected with their world.

Camrad_RIP 16.12.24 в 14:18

She smiled a predatory and dangerous smile, showing slightly different and unhumanly shaped teeth, but she didn't rush to attack. A moment later, flashing bright aquamarine eyes that were dimming with the drop of magic that had passed through them, snake folk pointed a finger at the river. Singha was not the sort of fool to fall for such a childish trick, but neither was she foolish enough to believe such a ridiculous blunder by an experienced hunter. And her words, spoken in broken and very heavily accented Confederate, finally convinced her to look back at the spot where the dart had struck.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 17:57

T.N. The snake speaks in a broken language with a snake accent.

"You move away in time, think rightly, or else be prey, be eaten." And it was hard for Singha to argue with this when she saw that under the log with the rare flower there was a creature, invisible to her other eyes, like a monkey covered with fish and snake scales with very long claws on each of its arms and legs. "Hmpassash is so hunted. Looking for a flower. Seeks fruit. Magic. And waits for someone to come along."

Camrad_RIP 01.02.25 в 08:11

"Thank you, honored one.' Singha's reply was no longer as strained, but he still took a few steps towards the temporary shelter, preparing to call for help from the hao at any moment. "I could have... died."

Camrad_RIP 16.12.24 в 14:19

Singha lies a little because she believes the Pann's khao would have pulled her out in time to hit the ravenous creature, but why not thank the one who decided to help? Snake girl only flashed her deep turquoise eyes, and then began to pull the body of the killed creature to the shore, pulling out a dart and a log with a flower. Now the young Khao-Seymar did not dare to demand the flower for herself - she did not deserve it. She felt uncomfortable. It was stuffy, hot, humid, and as if pressed all around her, but she could not just walk away, showing her back and disrespecting the one who had helped her. Boldly meeting the gaze of the snake-elf's bright emerald eyes, she gives a quiet bow and thanks, trying to speak as slowly and simply as possible. She was used to the difficulty of switching from one language to another, but she knew how to communicate with someone who understood you but did not understand you well.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 20:26

“No, just recently here, hunting ground, good place.” She says, carefully and properly withdrawing the flower, wrapping it in an opaque section of dense snake scales. “Sees you, watch you. Then you come up. I'll help. I am Seishassasssssss, and who are you, human maiden?”

Camrad_RIP 01.02.25 в 08:13

Singha, trying to get closer to the sheltered camp without being seen, told her and Pann's story briefly and allegorically. Snake girl had seen the moment of his departure, but had not dared to approach. She referred to the fact they had gotten lost on the khao trails and were here by chance. She thought the golden-eyed snake maiden had conveniently appeared after Pann had finished sending out the distant packs of khao seekers that was why she had slipped invisibly so close to them. Still, even though she was clearly gifted. Singha could smell her magic. And she could hide herself since Singha hadn't sensed it in the first place, but she wouldn't have been able to hide from the eye of a Khao-seran as powerful as Pann was. His eye was attentive, and the steppe girl appreciated and realized how he approached the inspection of their camping place. She could not understand why she was telling the blue-eyed serpentess, who listened attentively and nodded when necessary.

Camrad_RIP 16.12.24 в 14:25

"What?” she asked, in answer to a question from Singha, who was crouching by a tree to keep her tired legs from wobbling. "What do you want to ask?"

Camrad_RIP 01.02.25 в 08:14

"Hai?" Singha says in surprise, looking into the dark green eyes of her conversation partner. "Did you want something?"

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 10:56

"I wanted to. To see Pann. To talk to him." She had finished butchering her prey and now she was very close, so close that Singha could smell the tart odor of fresh grass coming from her body, looking into her dark brown, almost black eyes. "But I am afraid. I am weak. He is strong. You speak. I'm old. Can you help me? Help me talk? Talk to Pann."

Camrad_RIP 01.02.25 в 08:17

"Hai." Why she stares so intently into the soft turquoise eyes, something as if she wants to remember about eyes and snake folks, but that something slips away, slides away just like the soft movements of Seyshshsh's serpentine body, cool but so scalding at the touch of her body, the touch of her slender and long fingers on Singhi's hot belly and chest. "Hai. Hai. Hai. Hai. Hai! Haiiiiiiii!"

Camrad_RIP 20.12.24 в 08:59

Her touch was so bold and pleasant. It was as if it were stroking her whole, each touch making her agree to something she didn't even realize she was agreeing to. Seyshshsh repeats and asks again if necessary. She talks about herself, asks about Singh, talks about how she wants to talk to Pann, just talk, nothing more. But Pann is so strong, so dangerous, and she is just an ordinary hunter, she is afraid of him, but she wants to look into his eyes, but she is afraid. Singha will help her talk, just talk, just talk? Even if she had to add a drop of special juice from a special herb to Pann's drink, a harmless drop, a good drop that would make Pann feel good, almost as good as Seyshshsh's fingers make Singha feel?

Camrad_RIP 20.12.24 в 09:01

"Hai! Hai! Hai! Hai! Hai!" Singha responds, feeling the snake part of her best friend helping her stand, cool, soft, wrapping her whole body in tight rings, stretching one of the rings along the somehow very hot and humid khanaal, her long fingers rubbing the berries, such hard berries of her taam-tat, she only presses herself harder into the much-needed coolness of the snakegirl's body, looks into the pale violet eyes of Seyshshsh, and says, she has so much to say, so much good to do for those eyes, those fingers, those rings, that best friend of hers. "Haiiii! I can't. Not give. He notices a drop. Want to help. Help. Be able to help. To do. Do. Do it! Haiiiii!"

Camrad_RIP 20.12.24 в 09:18

She slips into an even worse Confederate language than Seyshshsh's, but she is not offended by it, and she is not offended when Singha switches to the steppe language at all, only to help her start to speak clearly again. And the shamaness, flying up again and again, wriggling in the rings of the snake body rubbing against her, tries to say, tries to help. She says that she herself can make it so that Seysshesh is not afraid of Pann so that Pann will not harm Seyshshsh, so that his khao will not do her harm, so that she will do him good as well as Singha. She said she would. He would call off the khao. He would unlock the defenses. He would do everything Singha said. She tried, honestly tried to explain how she would accomplish this, but she didn't seem to be understood. It was getting harder and harder to speak, to remember the words to explain complicated things, and Seyshshsh couldn't understand Singha's babble.

Camrad_RIP 20.12.24 в 08:56

"Hai! Haiiii! Haiiii!!! Him! Do it! Do it! Kiss! Feet! Lick! Him! Hiiiii!!!" With another squeal, she jerked especially hard, nearly breaking free from such gentle cool rings of her friend and sister, staring into her blue-green-white-dark-birch-blue-yellow-black-purple eyes and shuddering finely at the pleasure that shot through her body, feeling the pleasure and passion flowing along her legs. "Hai, I'll forget. Hai, forget. Hai, to do. Hai. Hai. Hai. Hai. Haiiii."

Camrad_RIP 20.12.24 в 08:57

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Camrad_RIP 04.12.24 в 20:18

It was even easier than expected to reach the desired point. His body and spirit in symbiosis carried his feet as fast as the wind. He was not particularly worried about Singha. Even if she decided to escape, and he defiantly did not lock her in the dungeon, she would not get far, except to her own death. But okay, even for this horse, killing herself in the middle of nowhere after all she'd been through was a bit much. No point in making her dumber than she already is, at times. Indeed, Stepan thought, she was a perfect hit in the image of smart but stupid at the same time, just textbook. Nothing, she'll wait. There are guard spirits, which will stop any attack within the closed circle of the amulet, and support spirits, which can attack outside the amulet. Although the latter should be ordered to attack, Singha will cope, it does not even need special strength, and primitive dialog is available to her despite the exhaustion.

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:58

A couple of times he watched what she was doing, watching with the eyes of the spirits, trying to be inconspicuous, but she was either meditating, warming up, or eating the treats he had left. The shaman was a little jealous of her eating the tasty jam, but eating sweets and eating in general before the coming call was still contraindicated. He had already reached the level of strength where he could ignore such minor conditions as fasting, a separate type of call, or ritual greetings in the nude and with blue paint on his face. He could, but he saw no reason to bother his own life unnecessarily. However, he wouldn't have smeared his face with blue paint and undressed in this steam room, which was misleadingly called a jungle. The increase in efficiency at his current skill was not so small, but it still didn't pay for the time and effort.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 20:31

The right tree was found on the first try. There were no others like it here. It was huge, thick, and quite tall, but not much taller than the average forest, but it paid for itself in the width of the trunk and the density of the crown. The tree was also seriously ill and had been dying slowly for decades, having caught a spontaneous curse and become a nesting place for some particularly magical woodworm. The shaman was sure that this kind of parasite was not just magical, it had been growing on this tree for many generations, being a de facto endemic and the only place where this thing, which, by the way, was quite capable of eating birds and animals, crawling under their skin and almost gnawing its way into their spinal cords, had ever lived. Somehow it became clear at once that he would destroy this endemic without special pity for the endangered red-listed species.

Camrad_RIP 07.12.24 в 19:49

To tell the truth, it was much less work than expected, and if Stepan hadn't made all the necessary preparations, he would have done it much faster. Some of the contracts were already ready, and some other spirits he was able to summon with a minimum of preparation, only the good effects, which he decided to do on the verge of shamanism and witchcraft, required work. And that, to be honest, was simply out of a desire to show off, and the fear that if he didn't do the assignment perfectly, the reward would be reduced. Even though small assignments were also becoming more difficult, and originally called small system quests were now hardly small. But his level and skill were still growing faster. Now, after the recent reinforcement, he didn't even doubt the success, he just wanted to get through it as quickly as possible and get back to work on getting home. In fact, he was thinking of using this tree, its essence, grateful for the rescue, to the extent that such a primitive sub-spirit of the reflected type knew gratitude at all, as a support for the leap to the Revealer's abode.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 10:16

//“I wonder if this is druidism or not.” - He thought as he considered what he was going to use to reinforce the basic call and create the teleport link because the Revealer alone couldn't cover half the world. There was no escaping the call of the Piercing One, whose contract was renewed by a token. - “Obviously, it's the new one, the first of my higher ones, that I'll have to call.”

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 10:08

It was a pity to waste a renewed summoning of a higher spirit but it was just for the record because there were no other options of comparable reliability, speed, and quality. He could, of course, spend a good deal of money to summon several elder spirits and transport them to Dantmark in a series of separate leaps, but that would require an unsustainable amount of time and effort. After all, for what the hell does he need an existing contract if he's going to be constantly regretting to use it and to put it to its intended use? Especially since it's got four summoning charges for a year and he's not going to be traveling much to save now, anyway. The main issue with the upcoming transfer will be the final point. Now that the worm network is out of the way, he can move to Dantmark just fine. The problem is that Piercing is not good at stealth. His forte is the breaking of blockades and barriers, brutal and swift in its irreversibility. So you'll have to provide concealment yourself, and the best way to do that is to go straight to the underground hall.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 10:13

Only then, even with all the power of ready-made totems and careful preliminary preparation, there is a high risk that the presence of Stepan's underground stronghold will be detected. More precisely, they will detect the very fact someone has installed under the city some analog of a witches' shrine, a divine altar, or a shamanic totem, but not its exact coordinates. The shaman intentionally added the necessary interference and false images to make it more difficult to identify the nature of the anomaly, but this does not cancel the fact of anomalies. Is it worth specifying what kind of emotions this would arouse in the already worried representatives of the secret guards? Or you can transfer to the suburbs of Dantmark, which will be detected with an even greater guarantee and much faster localize the transition. And already there leave through the door of the Revealer, unnoticed and having wiped off all traces. Then these same guards will get much clearer traces of movement and the exact place of the final transition, but it will be even less useful to them than in the previous variant. But, if we go with the second plan, there is a risk of running into trouble. What if, purely by chance, the city authorities or just random witnesses have some important business near the point where he and Singha come out of the teleporter? So they'd react faster, so he'd have less time to cover his tracks and leave more clues.

Camrad_RIP 09.12.24 в 10:29

But at least he had no trouble with the assignment, and he had done it easily, summoning and calling the strong and small spirits, keeping the call of the senior spirits in reserve. The biggest problem was with the woodworms, which were no more dangerous than a dozen nests of Japanese hornets, except that they didn't fly. But their hive mind, or rather, hive instinct, spurred by magic, perfectly sensed where the main flow of magical power was coming from, which was harming them, driving them out of the wood, sealing their burrows and tunnels gnawed in the wood. By the way, with those tunnels, it helped a lot to use the smallest power and quite strongly distorted from the basic basis locking of paths. It also, in a way, locked the passages and cut off the integrity of the collective magical aura of the parasite swarm.

Camrad_RIP 08.12.24 в 20:57

These parasites did not like Stepan, or, on the contrary, liked him.

Camrad_RIP 20.12.24 в 09:18