Быть Гладу и Хладу / There will be Hunger and Cold: 5.

5. Just need to convince everyone involved that Ilya will not be the victim of someone else's plans in this battle.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 08:06

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Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 08:06

Ilya leaves very quickly, but without running in panic, simply taking advantage of the opportunity to move through the snow-covered wasteland as quickly as possible. There is now a little more snow, not just covering the rocks and ground, but reaching up to mid-calf in places. Still, the wind blows the snow back up, making visibility poor even for Ilya. And this is despite his ability, derived from the synergy of his talents, to see through the snowstorm as if the air were practically clear. His affinity for cold, the passive property of his vision, and the general affinity of his class with snowstorms resulted in such a trifle. It was precisely such trifles that created synergies, allowing him to use his class and talents more effectively.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 08:08

The Earthlings had become quite skilled at combining synergies, and Ilya diligently absorbed the experience of progressive humanity. That is why he walked quickly, confidently, and without incident, moving in another arc, intending to reach Upperstone on his own. In principle, this option was worse than the original plan to come with a caravan of those who knew him, but it was also viable. His Twin was a city dweller, even if he lived in a noticeably smaller town, but he had the habits and manners, as well as the willingness to demonstrate them. The problem of legalization remained, but he had some money, and the city guards did not approve of outright robbery on the streets.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 08:09

In a remote village or small settlement, they might hack you to pieces or simply strangle you for a nice pair of boots, whereas in large cities, there is much more order. And the risk of being caught is much higher, of course. The irony of the situation amuses not only Ilya, but many others on Earth: in small settlements and villages, where a normal Diver can cut down an attacker with a single blow, the attacking peasants force to reveal themselves, while in cities, although the chance of getting into a fight is much lower, the chance of being discovered is much higher. Guards, artifacts, rituals, the banal attentiveness of the population, the work of security service agents, no matter who that service serves — there are countless options.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 08:12

Ilya would have gladly delayed his arrival in the city until he had reached the third level of his camouflage talent, but, alas, it was not to be. Even with his speed of Essence gathering and personal strength, the risk of encountering an overly cunning abomination in the wastelands was too high to really try to level up in this way. Not only alone, but also without equipment, without the ability to retreat and hide behind high walls. Plus, if he did level up, the first thing he needed to do was improve his appearance with conversion, not camouflage, which was worth more at the new rank than it had been before. The solution was not ideal, but it was optimal. A large city, but with a high population and low order. With the Assassin or Marauder class, it would be a piece of cake to hide among the local criminal element, but the memory of the Twin should not be discounted.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 10:13

The path led him on, and the snowstorm kept him safe from unwanted encounters. The only dangerous moment occurred when he came into contact with a predatory creature, some kind of leopard or something like that. It seemed that on Earth they were called “irbis,” but this irbis, the size of a very powerful tiger, looked at Ilya, who was glowing with the aura of a vendigo, and decided that it was better to be an irbis than to try to eat a two-legged creature. Ilya looked thoughtfully after the beast, but decided not to get involved himself, as he was not sure he could catch up with it. The cat ran so fast that only its tail flashed in the snowstorm. Ilya also let a couple of herbivorous yaks go, even though they didn't even notice him properly. He could have tried to kill them, just for the sake of fresh meat. In fact, he didn't kill them because he didn't want to indulge his inner Hunger.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 10:14

Even if he somehow manages to squeeze a drop of Essence out of the meal, barbarically devouring the animals, eating both of them along with their bones and fur, he will waste a lot of time. What's more, he will get completely dirty, and there are no bathhouses or saunas in the immediate vicinity, unless he rubs himself with snow. In general, the animals encountered by Ilya were spared, and the supply of biscuits from the robbers' lair was gradually decreasing. The only dangerous moment was an encounter with a full-fledged creature, and not even an animal, but Ilya didn't miss a beat. He simply noticed the enemy in advance, looked at it, straining his eyes and other forms of vision to the point of pain, and then resolutely continued on his way, only very quietly so as not to wake it up.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 10:20

This thing resembled a regular monkey, a mixture of an orangutan and a chimpanzee, only snow-white and no longer a monkey. About half of the creature's body was covered with fairly long, chaotically moving tentacles that seemed to embrace the rest of the monkey. Ilya noticed it because it had two and a half hearts pumping blood through its body, all three of which were deformed, distorted, and nothing like the normal hearts Ilya had seen before. And then he managed to spot this shit with his eyes; it wasn't hiding particularly well, leaning against a jagged rock and allowing itself to be dusted with snow. The Diver simply waited until the creature shook itself off and moved slightly, eating the snow with its tentacles, next to which there were several small mouths.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 10:24

A creature of a combined type, it is animals that most often become such combinations, morphing into undead, or infected, or, in this case, flesh distorted by chthonic hatred. These creatures are extremely dangerous, and huge hordes of them sometimes devour entire areas of the Ecumene, leaving no chance of revival even for those who know how to revive themselves. The higher forms of creatures from the roster of Hateful Flesh, as if selected, possess very nasty talents that allow them to massively desecrate and change the environment on a very significant scale, up to provinces and regions in the case of fives or sixes. Among divers or aborigines, there were no cases recorded on Earth of reaching a level higher than the fifth. Creatures did not have such limitations, and an abomination of unimaginable levels that accidentally passed through the Ecumene quite often caught the eyes of unlucky earthlings. In general, ‘Hatfull Flesh’ arranges the end of the world in a separate section of the Broken with astonishing regularity. Much more often than royal forms of animal creatures or the same undead, yes.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:11

What's more, this filth perfectly infests random victims, creating very unpleasant hybrid creatures. There are worse kinds of filth, but this particular variety is very common and, more importantly, constantly creeps out of every crack and crevice with annoying frequency and persistence. Here, the monkey most likely found or stumbled upon the filth left behind after a recent or ancient breach, partially accepting it and partially being consumed by it. The infection is remarkably persistent, like almost any other type of filth, capable of remaining dormant for centuries. Like anthrax spores, this filth waits in ancient caves, catacombs, abandoned ruins, simply underground, under river silt or snow caps.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:18

And waits, like, right now.

Camrad_RIP 05.07.25 в 21:11

Ilya paused for a moment, thought, and moved on. The creature was clearly a loner and a hybrid, with the animal part still prevailing. It was neither an Infector nor a Spreader of Filth; it could not reproduce, and it had no characteristic features. Well, or he couldn't see them, because it was impossible to be completely sure, especially without specific scanning skills. Ideally, it would be worth eliminating this dangerous scum, which could eventually reveal its ability to produce infected particles of flesh inside its body, which has not yet completely lost its animal traits. But here, it will be necessary to exercise reasonable caution and approach the situation somewhat differently, rather than simply rushing into battle. That is a fact.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:19

He, blessed by the Mechanism, a diver and bearer of the curse of Hunger from contact with the blood of the creature, will not become its likeness. But there is still little pleasure in it. According to experts on the Forum, the sensation is similar to bathing in a peasant outhouse. History is silent on where these experts found such a thing, given that in their technologically advanced age, they managed to find a classic peasant outhouse and bathe in it. It is silent, but it confirms the truthfulness of the personal experience of the mechanics who wrote on the Forum, as well as the fact that it was precisely their contact with foul flesh that reminded them of such filth from their lives. Such filth is usually tried to be beaten from a distance or cleansed afterwards with alchemical preparations. The trouble is not even in disgust, Ilya would not care about that, but in the fact that any protective scanning ritual will react to the diver covered in monkey entrails. Or a guard animal. Or just a domestic animal.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:21

And the fact that a thorough inspection will not find any damage to the flesh does not negate other problems. A thorough inspection will definitely reveal damage caused by the curse of Hunger. Waiting a couple of cycles under the city walls, afraid to go in, or forced to look for a way to obtain cleansing agents... well, he didn't want to. That's why he walked past and moved on. But he didn't go far, because it was already time to stop for a rest, which he did. Another rock, high and inconvenient for climbing, became his refuge. He didn't climb to the top, but settled down below, right under a kind of canopy formed by natural processes.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:23

Slowly and carefully, he assembled a brand new ballista, checked the bowstring and set of lead bullets, and prepared both darts for throwing. This is not some armoured beast that you can't pierce; the target here is simpler, even if it does stink terribly. It was tough, of course, but not particularly resistant to blows, especially since it was parasitising on a living body and had not yet fully digested it. Even one dart to the head should be enough, but Ilya was simply playing it safe, not wanting to take any risks, even small ones, if he could avoid them. The Diver wondered whether to go into battle now or give himself a rest and kill the creature in the morning, because the filth that had half-merged with the beast hardly had enough willpower to go anywhere. Most likely, in the morning, this thing would still be sitting there, covered in snow, waiting for prey or some other stimulus to bring it out of its stupor.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:25

In principle, he didn't care, but he wanted to wait for better weather. In the current blizzard, shooting with a ballista would be difficult and not very effective. Darts are much heavier, of course, but even they can be blown off course by the icy wind. By morning, the weather would clear up enough to quickly and decisively kill the tentacled monkey and, if he was lucky, take a drop of essence from it. Having made his decision, Ilya continued to chew one of his last biscuits, but he obviously did not go to sleep. The fact that beasts afflicted with flesh usually do not move anywhere and do not want anything without orders from the higher forms of their branch of development did not negate the simple truth. They usually do not move anywhere.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:27

So he kept his eyes fixed on the conspicuous mound at the edge of visibility, under which the creature was sitting, even though he could hardly see the mound behind the swirling snow. And so he did not miss the moment when the snowy night was torn apart by a flash that was barely visible from his position. It wasn't even a flash, just a fleeting glimmer, like a firefly flickering in the distance. Ilya was no fool, and he knew for sure that in Broken, it was better to be a paranoid and overly cautious person than an optimist who had lost one of the rebirths or die

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 18:28

He could immediately name several harmless sources of such a flash, which might simply seem to him. But for some reason, the first thing that came to mind was a flash of activated long-range talent, which attacked the mutated monkey. Flesh mutants are quite generous with their essence, and the target is surprisingly convenient for those who have normal ranged attacks in their arsenal. So, theoretically, if there was a pursuit group following the strange bone carver, killing the dangerous abomination in passing would have been an obvious solution for them.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:13

With one movement, Ilya stuffed the remains of the biscuit into his mouth, gathered his belongings, including his weapon, and silently rushed forward. Because the first flash was followed by a second, slightly different, and from a slightly different position, as if there were two mutants attacking at once. And where there are two, there are three, because a trio of fighters was considered the optimal classic if you needed to act against a single target. No. Of course, the ideal was considered to be the holy seven, which, with the right selection of the group, would leave a single target with no chance at all, but try to gather seven gifted fighters to pursue a single target. It's expensive, and why bother when a trio or even a pair is usually enough?

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:20

The earthling does not think about whether it seemed to him or not; he is not stopped by the fact that no one in Tooth could pursue him. He doesn't care that, strictly speaking, there is no reason to pursue him, even if he were gifted, let alone a couple of them. He simply reacts to the probable danger, acting following the protocols that have been polished and written in the purest blood of Earthlings thousands of times. The very same ones he taught, the ones that were drummed into him at seminars and colloquiums, the ones that allow people from the third planet from the Sun to survive successfully in the Broken. Well, with varying degrees of success.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:35

"I wonder if it's my FaFo that's helping?" The earthling asks himself in an inaudible whisper as he disappears into the night, barely parting his lips in the frost. "I was lucky. Not because I noticed it. I had to watch and be on duty. I was lucky to encounter a creature that someone had set their sights on and killed, allowing itself to be noticed."

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:36

In response, he receives another handful of snow in his face and gusts of cold wind, which would have long since frozen the skin on his face if he were still human. His mind is already racing, searching for a plan to determine whether he has become paranoid, while avoiding detection by his pursuers, if they indeed exist. Let's assume, just assume, that there is a tracker among them. That's the only possible explanation for how they caught up with him and found him. There definitely is one, but it's unclear whether it's a Killer, a Marauder, or a Seeker. All three are well-honed in pursuit, not to mention the exotic build of another class.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:39

So, there is a specialist, and a specialist will understand that their target disappeared in an instant during the night, just like that, for no reason. And since nothing happens in Broken without a reason, the pursuers will realise that they have somehow been spotted. Most likely, they saw their fight with the creature, which means they will now assume that the victim has the ability to see in a blizzard. Ilya walked steadily and tirelessly forward, while in his head there was a continuous stream of unprintable profanity as he cursed his luck and repeatedly checked his status, looking for changes in the attributes of Fate and Fortune. He found nothing, but he remained suspicious. It was too incredible a coincidence for gifted individuals to start chasing and catching up with him for no reason.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:43

So passed the night and morning, during which Ilya dozed for a couple of hours in a snow pit, deliberately falling into a crevice covered with snow, from which it would be difficult to dig him out even with a remote talent of the striking type, but from which he could jump out with one leap with all the power of his frozen body. Then a day passed, then another, during which he maintained the set pace without any problems, without even getting tired. The Wendigo's body needed only an hour and a half of sleep for a full rest. The anticipation and tension were much more exhausting than the need to move, much, much more. They, the earthly divers, were also taught this, and similar points were pointed out to them more than once.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:44

Broken, he is overwhelmed by a mixture of routine and nightmare, by the way one thing replaces another, leaving no time to adapt to the change in situation. In some ways, the confrontation between Ilya and his pursuers resembled a duel between snipers who knew each other but could not see each other. Silence, routine, the calm and slow passage of time. And the weary mind wants to escape the routine, wants to believe what it saw. Maybe there weren't those two flashes, maybe it just seemed that way, maybe it was some kind of northern lights or an optical illusion? Maybe, maybe, maybe. The mind does not want to rush ahead, tormented by suspicions that even now may prove to be in vain. It wants to stop, rest, and eat some caught prey normally. Or, on the contrary, turn around and go towards danger, let them know that he saw them, that they are also prey.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:46

Both options are wrong because they will only expose him more to the enemy and open a window for a strike. In such battles, the one who strikes first wins, especially against an enemy who is not expecting it. And in a direct battle against a well-coordinated pair that has already developed basic skills, even with all his bonuses, Ilya has little chance. Against a trio? The chances are so slim that it would be foolish to even seriously consider them. The only way to try to fight back with any chance of success is to strike first, strike suddenly, and lure the enemy into the trap. To be blunt, this is a very unusual task, requiring you to detect the enemy yourself and not let them detect you until the very last moment.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:49

Given that they have at least one tracker sensor, the complexity of the task becomes comparable to that of an inter-school competition in higher mathematics.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:50

The second day of pursuit was followed by the third, and then the fourth, with the diver deliberately straying from his original route. The enemy most likely still understood that the victim was heading for Upperston, but now they were all making a wide arc together. Ilya led his pursuers deeper and deeper into the uninhabited parts of the Ridge, where he increasingly encountered animals, both simple and not so simple. He had to roar loudly, almost turning that roar into a Howl, to drive away a couple of cat-like beasts, which had already grown to the size of large calves. The cats obeyed, did not attack the frozen meat of the vendigo, and let him pass. He wanted to believe that they would attack his pursuers, but that was unlikely. These animals were not stupid; they would not attack the gifted ones on command, most likely. And if they did, they would at most delay them while they gutted the expensive and essence-rich entrails.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:52

The other animals did not even attempt to attack, preferring to move out of the way without being prompted. Separately, a melancholic bear, resembling more a relatively peaceful panda than a predatory animal, looked at Ilya with indifference, sighing almost humanly. And he dived into the snow, as if dissolving into it. Even his heart disappeared from view, instantly appearing at the very edge of another perception, a hundred and thirty meters away. Another unique individual, possessing teleportation tied to snow and cold. There were also such individuals among the Earthlings, and they made good scouts, the type that had to crawl into a hole and come back with the data they had collected.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 14:59

Usually, such builds are played by Poacher or Marauder classes, but not Assassin, as it is simply not profitable to focus on “Snow Dive” or “Blizzard Steps.” In addition, such builds are heavily dependent on weather conditions, so they are only assembled for a specific community. There are areas of Broken where everything has long since frozen into ice, and winter lasts all year round, while intelligent life hides underground, where it is warmer. In such conditions, it is quite justified to create a deliberately narrow build, tailored strictly to the environmental conditions.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:00

Somewhere Ilya read that pandas bring good luck, which is why they were almost exterminated for souvenirs and stuffed animals. He wasn't sure if he had misunderstood this detail, but specifically for him, the panda, even if it was local, really did bring a little luck. And no, FaFo hadn't changed; it was more likely that it wasn't the initial one that played a role, but the diver's correct actions, his attentiveness, and his readiness. The right conditions were bound to come along sooner or later, and here they were. He quickly picked up speed, taking advantage of his even lighter load, leaping over a very wide and long crevice, jumping four and a half meters, deliberately falling just short.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:01

The crevice itself was almost six meters wide, and its depth exceeded even that of the chasm in which the Earthling Twin was born. But even though he didn't quite make the jump, he managed to grab hold of a rock ledge he had spotted earlier, miraculously avoiding knocking the protruding stone loose, and quickly climbed up to the opposite side. But in doing so, he had to move quite a bit to the side, right along the sheer cliff, like an insect on a wall. And there, about seven kilometers away, another tall vertical cliff awaited him, the top of which he climbed. The storm had gradually subsided in recent days, and now the weather had become almost calm, with even the cold rays of the sun glistening on the snow, threatening snow blindness to those who did not possess the developed attributes of the gifted Mechanism. A wall of almost black clouds was already visible, coming from the east, threatening to cover the heavens with an even more violent blizzard, covering the entire Ridge with a thick layer of snow.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:04

But during this brief period, having taken such a convenient position and waited for the right moment, Ilya can take advantage of the excellent view. And he waits, lying sprawled on the rock, almost merging with it in a passionate embrace. They become especially passionate when the wind begins to blow with renewed force, threatening to blow the human figure off the top of the stone tooth. It's a good thing he had the sense to leave most of his luggage below, covered with snow; otherwise, it could have carried away his backpack just as easily as an umbrella in a summer storm. An hour passed, then two, then five, and as sunset approached, it seemed that he would not make it in time and the storm front would envelop Ilya's position, but his pursuers were finally caught.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:05

"There you are, you bastards." He smiled kindly, gently, almost lovingly, but his face was still contorted by the smile, which had become too wide, too nightmarish, not human. “Why are you so attached to me, huh? I'm embarrassed by such persistent attention.”

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:34

There were indeed exactly three of them, as if on cue: at first, only two appeared, but a few minutes later, a third figure emerged from invisibility and began gesturing to the pair that had appeared earlier. From such a distance, even with improved attributes and talent, it was almost impossible to see anything without a telescope or binoculars. By the way, it would be worth looking for some, as there are areas of the Ecumene in Broken where optics and artifact technology are highly developed. Ilya decided that the invisibility was of a classic nature. That is, it was complete invisibility, not just a distraction or something like that. It's not a fact that the invisible tracker doesn't have something else in the category of camouflage, but it's still a useful observation.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:40

The trio argues for a few minutes before one of them grabs the rope in his teeth, repeating Ilya's previous trick, and jumping to the opposite side. Interestingly, he jumped across the entire crevice at once, rather than clinging to the bottom. He must have been very strong. The second and third crossed to the other side using the ropes held by the first jumper, but the dexterity and coordination movements showed that they could have made the jump themselves. Ilya could have done it too, but now, watching the invisible man running around the edge of the crevice, he smiled again. He couldn't say the exact name of his talent, as there were many similar ones, but he could guess the group of that talent and its classification. It's something from the subtype tied to a trail, like a straight line thread.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:43

Having lost Ilya's landing spot on the rock protruding from the inner part of the gorge, the skill was disrupted, and he will now have to find a new way to “grab the thread” and “unravel the ball.” Or... yes, exactly “or.” Clearly cursing under his breath, even though nothing could be heard from such a distance, the tiny figure approached the edge of the cliff and, leaning over it, began to search for the “end of the thread.” It won't be particularly difficult to find, of course, but Ilya won't see it. And not only because the snow front of the mighty blizzard will hide the enemy troika from him, but also because he will rush away right now.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:44

In a matter of seconds, jumping from ledge to ledge, clinging to the rocks with his fingers until they cracked, the novice Wendigo climbed down the cliff, grabbed the things he had already gathered, and quickly rushed forward. He identified his opponents and finally accepted that they existed and were pursuing him with clearly malicious intent. No, of course, it was possible that these pursuers did not wish him harm and simply wanted to ask how to get to the Endless Library, but Ilya had reasonable doubts about this assumption. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered anymore except the coming conflict, in which he might well lose his life for the first time.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:45

Will be reborn for the first time.

Camrad_RIP 05.07.25 в 21:11

One against a coordinated trio.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:45

Moreover, these trios were already well-developed and, quite possibly, selected to reinforce each other's strengths and cover each other's weaknesses. On the eternal and impartial Forum, of course, there were stories about how such opponents were defeated even by a single player. There were also cases where the winner was a complete newbie who had not yet completed the first cycle. Nevertheless, Ilya is not at all opposed to adding another story of his own to these real and confirmed Forum stories.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:46

He did not look back, rushing through the snow at full speed, peering intently into the distance, trying to find landmarks that would help him. The earthling had already seen and learned everything he needed to know, if not to win, then at least to make a decent attempt at victory.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:47

The most difficult part remained — not allowing the well-thought-out and beautiful battle plan to come to nothing when faced with determined resistance from the enemy. After all, the enemy also had plans for a beautiful and swift victory over their pursued victim. It was simply a matter of convincing everyone involved that Ilya would not be the victim of someone else's plans in this battle.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 15:47

* * *

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:52

At one point, it seemed to him that the battle would be postponed until the next Cycle. He had already been in Broken for more than thirty full days, whereas the standard cycle duration was twenty-seven days and nights. Even though the standard is almost always broken, now that twenty-seven days are behind him, he can totally expect the cycle to end at any moment, whether it's convenient or not. The Earthling, in principle, isn't against leaving Broken; he's actually very much in favour of it. After all, he doesn't know much about his class and talents, didn't quite plan his build in this direction, and therefore simply didn't remember many small details. But he knew where to look for answers, who to ask questions, and from whom to buy advanced advice, even if only for the Essence.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 19:53

But the end of the Сycle still did not come, while Ilya finally found the place of the upcoming performance. A whole group of rocks, all with the same teeth sticking up, creating a small labyrinth of stone passages. Looking at these rocks, he realised once again that it was not for nothing that the Dead Man's Ridge had been given this name: from the side, it looked remarkably like the protruding ribs of a huge skeleton belonging to some giant. The place was very suitable for the final act of the protracted play. In recent days, Ilya had been working and running not to exhaustion, but sleeping and resting just enough to keep from giving up. Half an hour, twenty minutes, another ten, and that's enough, keep running, run, earthling, run, Diver, run without stopping.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 20:16

And when you're not running, prepare for the upcoming battle by scraping the plates removed from the dead armoured creature with a blade that is almost cracking in the cold. Ilya didn't like carving on the go, and as one of ten, he would not recommend repeating this pastime. However, sometimes he would stop for half an hour or an hour, feverishly working with the blade, trying to collect all the fragments and dust. It didn't work out very well, but who knows, maybe his pursuers would miss him, even the invisible tracker. They already knew that their victim was aware of the pursuit; they couldn't fail to understand that. The way he left his overnight camp after the battle with the wounded monkey, the way he watched them from the top of the cliff. The tracker must have followed his trail, realised that their prey had seen them jumping over the gap, and understood the seriousness of the situation.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 20:18

Perhaps they would have already tried to catch up with him, taken some potions, sniffed some speed powders, and tried to force a fight. If the earthling had tried to reach Verkhnekamenny to escape his pursuers, taking advantage of the huge number of other people and their signature traces, they would have caught up with him. Well, that's what he thinks. But the enemy is not stupid and does not seek to engage in battle without preparation — tired, stuffed with not the most healthy junk, and unprepared for battle. They hardly doubt their target is also blessed by the Mechanism. A mere mortal simply could not withstand such a race and would have died long ago in these snows. No, no, as long as the victim still has hope of escaping, as long as he is not heading for the city, as long as he is wandering in the snowy and rocky wastelands, they will silently pressure, exhaust, and pursue him.

Camrad_RIP 03.07.25 в 20:20

Ilya plays along, allowing them to close the distance, sometimes falling into the snow and simply rolling around, practicing his carving skills at the same time. Sometimes he deliberately staggers, falls on all fours, and crawls. With all his might, he shows the owner of the “ball” who can see the “thread” that he is exhausted, that he is about to collapse himself. Gifted people are rarely idiots; they do not strive for a beautiful fight, because in it they can be killed. They are quite satisfied with the option in which the victim is simply and unpretentiously tied up when he has no strength left, including the strength to fight back.

Camrad_RIP 04.07.25 в 16:03