JULIANA MANOVA
THE EYE OF THE SALYUN
Ayona was born in the Female Half of the Kingdom. Women were ruling there, they struggled to keep their land and took decisions. Men were their slaves and had no rights whatsoever. The reverse situation was in the Male Half. Sometimes it just happened that a male, or a female, slave escaped to the other Half but neither could get used to, let alone fight with, the specific types of crime raging in the respective other Half, and soon died of hunger or with a slit throat.
The Kingdom had been divided into those two Halves from time immemorial. Two territories constantly at enmity one with another. Women kept the Crystal Sword. The legend had it that Tavinga had used it to separate Earth from Heaven. Tavinga was the Kingdom’s Chief Goddess. The Sword belonged to the Criyu Royal family. In the other Half, Men had their Bronze Axe. There was another legend to explain that Ritoh, their Chief God, had used the Axe to mark the Border between the Halves, a dark endless void of which horror stories circulated.
Ayona Criyu was sent to grow up on the city’s outskirts where female beggars loomed at every corner ready to cut throats to steal as small a thing as a silver ring. This was a place where one learned how valuable human life was. The young girl was left to grow up wild and unruly. There had been this special thing about her: ever since her very first day in the Royal bedroom to her seventeenth birthday of a couple of weeks ago, she had been taught that she was the Chosen One. There was an open-mouth statue in each of the Halves, one of Tavinga in the Female Half, and one of Ritoh in the Male Half. They were in fact small, yet very potent volcanoes, capable of annihilating their respective Halves. To save the population from perishing, Gods had sent them the Eye of the Salyun, a fist-size precious stone of a fiery yellow. When put in the mouth of one of the statues, it extinguished the volcano and the danger was avoided. But the stone was only one while the statues were two. The stone would remain in the mouth of one of the statues for ten years and all would be peace and calm until the second volcano was activated. Then the population in danger would send a Chosen One to the other Half to steal the stone and save themselves. In another ten years the reverse would happen. The Chosen Ones had to belong to the Criyu family since they owned the Crystal Sword and the Bronze Axe and they alone could touch the Eye of the Salyun without turning into dust.
Ayona often went to the Palace, to be taught how to handle the ancient weapon. The Sword was very heavy and one could hardly handle it for two minutes without prior training. However, Ayona was strong and tenacious and was capable of brandishing it for hours on end, without even a trace of fatigue. After the training sessions Ayona was free to go wherever she liked. She preferred the nondescript bars where the most dangerous women gathered from all over the place. Ayona was on friendly terms with most of them, and felt sisterly to Kitasha the Thief. Ayona had already decided to include Kitasha in the dangerous mission she was about to undertake. No one could understand what was there to make these girls like one another so much. Despite being six foot Ayona seemed small next to her friend who was six foot ten. Ayona’s hair was short and brown and her eyes were olive green while Kitasha had long blond hair braided or just pony-tailed, and very dark brown eyes. In addition, she was as sly as a fox, and just as cruel, and could spread lies all day long without batting an eyelid. The Princess and the Thief spent most of their time together. They would wait in some dark alley for someone to pass, and would rob her. They did not own any slaves, because they were street girls. Often, they would spend the night with another female friend entertaining foreign men.
The day came when the Princess was already an excellently trained thief, so deft, in fact, that she could steal money from any woman’s hand without being noticed. She was just wondering what to take up next when she saw her teacher, Sanaya.
"I am here, Sanaya. What’s the matter, isn’t it too early for the training session?"
"The time has come, my girl. You should go. The Volcano is active. If you do not come back in five days, there would be nowhere to come back to."
Sanaya sounded as though Ayona and the Half were doomed.
"So what’s your problem? You do not believe me ready, do you? Very well, I’ll show you. Come, Kitasha, let’s go."
The Princess was furious. She took her friend by the hand and walked to the Palace fuming.
"Ayona, wait! Take this." The teacher put two small grains in her hand. "You do not seem to remember that you have to cross the Border. This will help."
"Thanks," said the girl, already regretting her outburst.
She took again her friend’s hand and they continued their way to the Palace, although more calmly.
"Good luck!" the teacher whispered after them.
The two girls took the Crystal Sword from the Palace and embarked upon the road. On the first day they had to reach the void, and cross it during the night, on the next day they were supposed to reach Sinru where the Eye of the Salyun was, take it at night, and return. If nothing went wrong, they could be back home a day before the fatal deadline.
Nothing exciting happened on the first day. As they had not taken any food, they had to kill a salyun for their lunch. The precious stone was called after the salyuns because of their eyes which resembled gems. The salyuns were small furry brown-and-yellow cuddly animals. Some people even took them as home pets, they were so sweet.
At dusk they reached the Border. The woods in the Male Half stretched on the other side. No living soul was to be noticed but Ayona and Kitasha knew only too well that the place was teeming with spies ready to kill them. Men in the other Half could dream of nothing better than the disappearance of the Female Half. Every single man out there kept his vigil for possible thieves from the other Half.
They waited until it became very dark indeed and only then Ayona threw a grain into the void. Suddenly a sheaf of variegated color lights sprang into life and made the two girls protect their eyes. The lights formed a bridge which gradually became solid. It was lower than the Border so that even if someone looked, they were not to be seen. The girls cautiously came down to the bridge and ran along, crouching. They reached the other side safely, and went to sleep under a tree.
In the morning, a distant clatter of horse hooves woke them. They had sufficient time to come to and hide behind the trees. A stranger on horseback passed near without seeing them. Ayona sent a silent word of thanks to the people who were farsighted enough to have let her experience life in the slums so she could learn a lot of skills, among them the skill to be still and not utter a sound until the danger was over. Why, had she wanted, she could have touched this stranger, he passed so near. Obviously, he was some sort of a sentinel. Yet he went on his way without noticing anything. The two brigand girls relaxed and continued on their way into the woods. They walked West all day long and eventually reached Sinru late in the afternoon.
Sinru was the biggest town in the Male Half and also its capital. Men were continually coming and going through its main gate. The girls were surprised to see so many men walk around freely with no one to control them. Then they saw a female slave. She was sent to fetch water and was desperately trying not to be in the way yet she crossed the path of a young man. He pushed her aside rudely and cursed under his breath. Ayona made a furious movement and it was lucky Kitasha was there to stop her. How dared a man treat a woman so! Of course, had the Princess herself shoved a male slave on the street and cursed him, she would not have thought twice about it. But this was a woman! Ayona expected the woman to dare the man and fight him on a duel. Instead, she got up and hurried to the well. She then nearly ran back to town. The Princess was stunned. What was the matter with this woman? Why did she not challenge him? How could such behavior be tolerated? She clenched her teeth. There was something wrong in this Half! Women were not slaves, they were fighters! It was men that were slaves! Or…?
While she was pondering on this, the sun set. Time for the most dangerous part of their task.
The brigand girls stole to the back doors of the Palace. The latter was the mirrored image of the Palace in their own Half so the Princess knew exactly where to go. Ritoh’s statue was in the great hall right in the centre. They had to take the stone as quickly as possible and disappear before the alarm was raised. It was not going to be easy, the place was full of guards and the hall itself could have been a trap. Skillful as she was, Kitasha the seasoned thief tackled the lock and they entered the Palace. They followed numerous curves and several times nearly bumped into the guards. Finally they came near their goal. Now they had only to pass a very long corridor which crossed with another, and there it was, their coveted goal. But there were no doors, or niches, along this corridor, to take cover and they were to be exposed to the guards’ wary eyes. The two friends took deep breaths and tiptoed to the door of the hall. They had covered nearly the whole distance when their worst fears came true. The crossing corridor echoed with steps and pieces of conversations. The girls looked at each other and pressed against the wall. They could only hope that the men will pass by without as much as casting a glance in their direction. No such luck. The guards had decided to wait for any potential thieves in front of the door instead of going on their rounds all over the Palace and were now heading straight to the hall! When the first of them turned round the corner, Ayona still hesitated as to what to do. For a split second all stood immobilized. The men, because they were taken by surprise, and the women because they did not know what to do. The Princess quickly counted the guards. Over twenty. However strong, she and her loyal girl friend would not be capable of handling them.
"You go. I shall deal with them." Kitasha pushed her slightly to the door.
Ayona considered this, as she looked at her. Kitasha may be six foot ten, yet even she could not fight over twenty men on her own. This was suicide all right. She opened her mouth but Kitasha forced her to silence.
"Not a word! When, mind you, when and not if, you succeed in taking the Eye of the Salyun, I shall be waiting for you here and we shall turn our backs to this rotten place at once. Come on, go before they come to their senses. Thirty little boys are not a problem for me."
Ayona walked to the hall, while listening to her friend who was challenging the guards using a vile language:
"In the name of Tavinga, what ugly bastards are you!"
Disgust had distorted her face and uttering a shout she slashed into the crowd of males.
The Princess shook her head and stepped over the threshold. She had to protect her eyes, so bright was the shine of the precious stone. Ayona looked around. Four ugly figures surrounded the sculpture of the God. They were male torsos with heads of a snake, an insect, a jackal and an owl, all in threatening postures. By the walls of the huge hall, which was round by the way, there were numerous other statues, all copies of the four main figures. A bit taken aback, Ayona took the Crystal Sword from her back where she had kept it till then, and approached the Eye of the Salyun. She placed the Sword under the stone and briskly took the stone out of Ritoh’s mouth. The stone resounded melodiously when it reached the floor, and stayed there as a piece of gold. The girl looked around herself nervously. No poisoned arrows to kill her, no water to drown her. Nothing. The Princess bent and took the gold piece. Nothing. She took a breath of relief. This sigh seemed to be the sign the sculptures expected. Suddenly all figures in the hall came to life and started moving towards her. Ayona realized then that the place was protected not by an ordinary trap but by magic. She took off her weapon and steeled herself for a cruel battle. First she had to deal with the four in the middle. The first blow decapitated the insect. The second pierced through the heart of the jackal, the third ripped the belly of the snake open and the fourth bore the Sword so deep into the owl’s head that Ayona had to struggle to withdraw it. While she was doing that she noticed that the jackal and the snake had come to life again. So you had to strike mortal blows, what with all those volunteers around you… Yet the weapon cut through these monsters much easier than through people so she could save her energy. The girl brandished the Sword furiously trying to make her way to the wall so that at least her back could be protected… She reached the wall and started working rhythmically to butcher the creatures. She relied on her miraculous strength and her tenacity. Yet the unknown magician had done his job extremely well and unless the creatures were beheaded or cut into small pieces, they stayed neutralized only for a while. Ayona started feeling discouraged. The number of creatures was decreasing but this was not enough. She could not endure this long, not much longer. She forced herself to stop thinking and concentrate on striking. Strike, lift the sword, strike next, lift the sword, strike again, lift, strike, lift, strike, lift… The rhythm swallowed all her thoughts, only the will to live remained. To live, to survive even when there was no hope, this is what Ayona had learned when she was still a toddler. Time lost its meaning. She could not remember how long she had been fighting, and did not care. It could have been an eternity- She was tired. The enemies were no longer that numerous, not more than ten were still around. The Princess went on fighting even though the Sword felt heavier and heavier in her hand. Finally, there were only three to fight. She managed to decapitate the first, and split the skull of the second down to the nose. While she was trying to withdraw the Sword however, two hands closed round her neck. She turned into the cold stare of the snake’s head. The grasp was growing stronger and Ayona realized she was at the threshold of death. Suddenly the monster’s head split from its body and its hands released their deadly embrace. Behind it stood Kitasha, blood-dripping sword in her hand.
"Whassis, may I ask? I kept waiting and waiting and still no sign of you and then I come in and see this thing here trying to throttle you and there is a slaughterhouse around. Will you kindly explain whassis?"
"Later on, lets get away from here," Ayona croaked, massaging her throat.
The two friends made their way out of town with no one noticing or raising the alarm. While walking to the Border, the Princess told Kitasha of her trial and wanted to know what had happened meanwhile, outside the hall.
"Oh, there was a fine battle, there was, and I told you that some thirty small boys can do nothing to me, I squashed them on the floor," the brigand girl said, obviously very proud of herself.
They walked all day long. There were no salyuns in the Male Half but there were grists. The grists were awful to look at, slimy and pimply all over but their meat was the tastiest thing in the world. They reached the Border at night, used the second miraculous grain and crossed undisturbed.
On the other side the earth was already rumbling, as the volcano was activated. The girls felt safe and at home so they went to sleep near the void. In the morning they got up rested and had almost forgotten their adventures from the previous night. They walked briskly to Sakru, the capital of the Female Half where they lived, and were home on the same afternoon. Before she brought the stone to the hall with Tavinga’s statue, Ayona went to see Sanaya.
The teacher was very happy.
"I am so glad to see you alive and well, my girl. So you have succeeded. Am I right?"
"Of course, Sanaya. Did I prove to you that I was worthy to be the Chosen One?"
"You did, Ayona. I did not mean to hurt you, I simply thought you a bit too young for such a difficult task. Now, would you go and put the darned stone in its place, please, I get seasick from the incessant earthquakes."
True, Sanaya did look changed. The Princess could not say exactly what was the reason but was sure of the change. She pretended not to have noticed anything, and went and put the Eye of the Salyun in its place. The earth shook once again and then froze. This was much better. They would have nothing to fear for the next twenty years.
A new era started for Ayona. From now on she was to learn not to steal but to protect the Half from thieves. Her method of training was very simple: she would start in the morning with pockets full of money and if by nightfall all money was still with her, that would mean she had done her job professionally. At the very beginning the girl would come home with barely a couple of coins still left and feel really low. She knew how to steal but so did most of the women in the city. Yet, gradually, she started to differentiate between the thief and the honest woman. In a few years she knew how to recognize decent women with certainty. This was combined with endless physical exercises. What happened in Sinru revealed to her that her stamina could still fail. While she used to brandish her sword for four to five hours on end before, she was now capable of doing this up to eight hours. A year before the ten-year period was over, Ayona was capable of slaughtering enemies for ten hours on end. She doubted she could encounter enemies so numerous that they could advance for ten hours and not be destroyed by her.
All these years Ayona was secretly keeping an eye on Sanaya. She was unable to understand what had befallen her teacher. Surely many things were different. Before, Sanaya used to pat her hair with her palm. Now this was gone. Formerly, she would have her favorite words and phrases, she would grimace while talking. This was gone, too. She was not her old self. Ayona kept watching, without asking as much as a question. She had patience and knew that the moment would come when she would grasp the meaning of those changes.
There came the day when the sentinels on the Border announced that the volcano had started shaking the Male Half. There were to follow five days in which the women would either protect the stone to become the sole rulers of the Kingdom, or lose it to the males and have to fight for their lives again, in another ten years. Simultaneously with this significant news which made all women stand on their guard, the sentinels announced that a group of 15 to 20 women slaves have succeeded in crossing the Border and were now heading to Sakru. Ayona felt bored. Again, the newcomers had to be educated about the rules.
At dusk the refugees reached the gates of the city. The Princess with a few of her court (including Kitasha, of course) were already expecting them. The new arrivals made a variegated group. The youngest was a girl of about 13 and the oldest, a Granny of nearly 80, with a walking stick. For a brief moment, Ayona wondered how they had ever succeeded in escaping but then chased those thoughts away.
"Welcome to the Female Half," she started. "Since you have escaped from those barbarians from beyond the Border you should feel very happy here."
"Well," said one of the women, "I wouldn’t call them barbarians…"
"In fact, they were not that bad," said another.
The Princess was looking at them in surprise. Every woman who had managed to escape from under the control of men was telling horror stories of those animals who would not leave you alone…
"Very well, I shall not ask you why you have escaped then if the situation was not ‘that bad’," Ayona said when she recovered her ability to speak. "Yet I’d better inform you that we have laws here. You are entitled to a three-day stay in the Palace until you find a place to live. Then we shall throw you away. You can steal or lead a decent life - it is entirely up to you, suit yourselves. But once you are outside this Palace, you would better not let me set my eyes on you again unless you have risen so high in position as to be entitled to enter into the Palace. Any questions?"
"One," said the old woman. "While we are staying in the Palace, would there be any forbidden places or we could go anywhere we want?"
"There are no forbidden places," the Princess said calmly. "You are our guests and can go wherever you want. Anything else?"
There were no other questions so they accommodated the women and left them. Ayona and Kitasha stood guard in front of the door to the hall where the precious stone was kept. Nothing whatsoever happened throughout the night and it was so quite that around five in the morning both of them felt very sleepy. Ayona knew only too well that falling asleep could cost them the magic stone. Yet no one had come so far, why should anyone want to come right now? Her eyes were closing. She saw that her friend, too, was fighting sleep. After all, they could hardly be awake for all four nights… They could afford five minutes…
Ayona woke up with a startle and saw her friend do just the same, just as sleepy. The sunshine was streaming through the windows. So it was at least eight in the morning! They must have slept for at least three hours! The two of them looked at each other frightened, and reached for the door simultaneously. Two sighs of relief escaped their lips when they saw that the Eye of the Salyun was in its place, untouched. They listened for a sound and realized what had awaken them. Noise of steps and a strange thumping, echoed along the corridor, coming nearer. The two girls prepared for a battle but released the grip on their weapons when they saw who was coming. Round the corner the old lady from the Male Half appeared, thumping her stick, and made towards them.
"I went out for a walk and your Palace struck me as rather empty and still," she said.
"In this period, I have in mind the five days for defense, only the guards are here and they are trying to be absolutely noiseless," Ayona explained.
"I see. Might I perhaps have a look at the hall behind?" The old lady looked beyond them. "I hear you have that precious stone here."
"By all means, you are well…" Ayona blinked. For a split second she thought she saw something glistening, the stick looked metallic, rather than wooden. Nonsense, it was wood all right. She shook her head. How was she to guard the stone when she had started to see things? "Excuse me, I felt faint for a second. You are welcome."
"Oh, by the way, my name is Sabella. So as not to think of me as ‘That old lady’," the woman said on entering the hall.
"But of course… No one thinks that…" The girls looked at one another, ashamed.
"Not at all, I am not hurt. I am old, there is no denying." Sabella was looking round herself with interest. "And who guards this treasure now? Is it magic?"
"No, it is only us and the numerous guards in the Palace," Kitasha explained.
"Are you sure there is no magic? From what I have heard, you are lucky to have a powerful magician in your Half, a woman called Sanaya."
"Yes, she makes magic but not in this case."
"Very beautiful hall, this. Well, I am off, the Palace is so big," the old lady apologized and made for the door. "It was a pleasure. See you soon."
The Princess and her friend left, too and closed the doors behind themselves. They had just assumed their guard when they heard someone running to them. This time it was the 13-year old girl.
"Very pleased to meet you, I am Lirana," she shook Ayona’s hand and also Kitasha’s hand. "Have you seen my Granny Sabella?"
"She has just left," Ayona said with a forced smile. The smile was forced because she had felt the girl pressing a note into her palm. "I believe she went this way."
"Thanks a lot. I have been looking for her for the whole day. This is a huge Palace." Lirana ran to the direction that Ayona had shown.
"Excuse me, Kitasha, do you think you could manage on your own for a while? I have to go to the bathroom." The Princess smiled apologetically.
"Sure, though try not to stay away for too long. Who knows an horde of men who have run amok and have destroyed everything on their way can materialize any moment to annihilate us." Kitasha laughed at this thought. "Of course I shall manage. Try and get some sleep," she added, with concern.
"I shall follow your advice, don’t worry," Ayona answered and went in the direction of Lirana.
When Kitasha could no more see her, Ayona opened the note.
"WE MUST TALK IN THE SLAVES’ ROOM ON THE UPPER FLOOR. IT IS IMPORTANT!!! COME IMMEDIATELY!"
So far Sanaya had been the only person in the world to command Ayona. Yet the Princess felt there was something that she had to understand. So she went up the spiral staircase and entered the Slaves’ room. Lirana was already there, waiting for her.
"I shall ask you to listen to me attentively and not interrupt," the girl began. The answer to this was a brief nod. "The men have a powerful magician among them. His name is Harnig. Your teacher is not the real Sanaya. While you were busy stealing the stone, they kidnapped her and replaced her with one of their inferiors. The group I came with also consists of men. No one has ever learned about the magician because no one who knew has ever been left alive. The only exception are the men enchanted by the spell and myself because I am the favorite in the Palace there, and because they think I am too young to understand what is going on and threaten them. I used to bring food and water to the real Sanaya. She is being forcibly kept in the Dungeon, the most horrible place in the Kingdom. She can work magic from there, too, but it cannot match the magic of Harnig. In the male group there was a boy on whom they had cast a spell to make him look like me. Sanaya made him believe himself to be me and he now stays behind thinking and acting as Lirana while I came over with the rest. I had to warn you. They are carrying the Bronze Axe with them, concealed as the stick of Sabella. Yet your great magician has cast a spell over the hall where the Eye of the Salyun is being kept so do not worry, though this has cost Sanaya her entire magic powers," Lirana ended her story.
Ayona stood silent for a while, considering what she had just heard.
"So I have to kill my teacher and the refugees, is that what you mean? What if they are innocent? What if you are under spell yourself? What if you are sent here to shed innocent blood?"
Lirana stood and waited silently.
"No, too many things corroborate your story."
The girl smiled.
Suddenly a shout was heard from below and something heavy fell on the floor.
Ayona and Lirana ran down the stairs. When they reached the lower level they saw Sabella entering the hall with her stick. Kitasha was prostrated, unconscious, on the floor, blood running down her forehead. The Princess took her pulse and was relieved to feel it. She wanted to follow Sabella but Lirana stopped her.
"Have trust in Sanaya, Your Highness. Do not go there. We shall enter when everything is over."
Nothing happened for about a minute. Then the shrieks began. Ayona tried to press her fingers onto her ears but they pierced her eardrums, shrieks of horrified people, going through indescribable terror. The Princess was thankful to have been prevented from witnessing what was going on there. In a while, silence reigned again.
"I can get in now," Ayona said but Lirana restrained her once again.
"The danger is still there. Someone may have survived, or the magic may still be in action. Let me do that."
She entered the hall herself. A dying man’s shriek was heard.
"Yes, there was one survivor," Lirana remarked on her way out. "You can go in now."
Ayona did go in. The first thing she noticed was that the stone was missing. The second thing were the bodies of many men whose faces had frozen in the grimace of deadly fear. The magic had obviously lost its grip after death. On the top of the pile of bodies there lied the body of Lirana.
Quick steps in the corridor showed Ayona that Lirana’s killer was running away. The Princess ran after him stopping on her way because she saw that Kitasha was coming to. While the two of them were explaining the situation to one another, the killer had made great speed and disappeared. The girls took the strongest horses and followed him. The man, too, had taken a horse but had luckily bumped into one of the oldest and slowest in the stables so the girls came near to him in less than half an hour. The magic was still in force so the girls were actually watching the back of Lirana in front of them. Gradually, the distance was reduced so that Ayona was able to shoot. She lifted up her bow. It was very difficult to make herself shoot the image of her new friend. Apart from this, shooting anything on a galloping horse is not the easiest task in the world. Yet Ayona’s endless training sessions were coming to use. The first arrow missed the man in a girl’s image but the second scratched his hand and the third found its way to his heart. He fell from his horse. When they reached him, the girls got off their horses and looked at him. On his back was the Bronze Axe, in his palms the Eye of the Salyun.
"You know, it was very difficult to make myself shoot dead my new girlfriend, who helped me so much," Ayona confessed. "I am awfully concerned about Sanaya. I intend to go ahead and reach the Male Half and get her out of there safely. Will you help me?"
"You fail to realize that there is no use to ask me such elementary questions," Kitasha grumbled. "Let’s go!"
Horses helped them shorten the way and they reached the Border in less than two hours. They thought the horses would be able to jump over the void and Ayona’s horse did yet Kitasha’s, being tired, slipped at the edge and nearly plunged her into the void. Luckily, the girl managed to jump from his back before it disappeared there. Having escaped, Kitasha had to use Ayona’s horse and that delayed them as one was walking while the other was on horse back. Nonetheless, Sinru was reached before dusk. They left the horse in the woods and entered the city. They imitated the slaves although not entirely successfully (Ayona was prepared to challenge a passerby when he involuntarily pushed her aside). They asked a woman how to reach the Dungeon and she told them yet she was watching them in a strange manner and eventually pronounced them crazy to want to go there at all. They shrugged and followed her instructions. The first obstacle were the guards at the door. The girls just could not kill them in front of so many people. Both being very pretty, it was easy for them to lure the two men and make them come with them into an alley. There the guards remained behind with their throats cut and the girls, getting into possession of their keys, tried to remain unnoticed in unlocking the gates and getting inside.
It was very quiet and damp inside. Long stone steps were going down into the darkness. Holding hands, the two friends descended. When the last vague light from under the gates disappeared, they saw the pale flame of a distant torch. While they were descending, both felt something light and soft touching their faces and hands. They thought it was cobwebs, yet could see nothing. There was also a soft throbbing under their feet - could it be the awakening volcano? At last they were down. The flickering light revealed a horrifying sight. The floor was plastered with old and desiccated skeletons. Walls were more horrifying however. Numerous bodies, in various stages of decay, were seen in shackles. There were also bodies in cages which hung from the ceiling. At the beginning they could not see Sanaya. When they did see her, terror gave way to relief, she was alive and though clad in rags, looked well enough. The girls rushed to embrace her. The three shed joyful tears. The Princess told Sanaya of their tribulations and demanded to know what had happened to her teacher.
"What Lirana told you is true. They kidnapped me and were holding me here. But I tried to help you and obviously have succeeded. Let me tell you something about this Harnig. He is not a magician. He is a creature from another world."
"HOW TRUE, DEAR SANAYA," the voice was coming from everywhere. Ayona and Kitasha tried to discern its owner but there was no one and nothing to be seen. "DO NOT LOOK FOR ME, MY DEARS, DON’T YOU REALIZE YOU ARE IN ME? SOME CALL ME THE DUNGEON, OTHERS CALL ME HARNIG BUT NO ONE UNDERSTANDS WE ARE ONE AND THE SAME. ONLY YOUR SANAYA KNOWS AND WILL HAVE TO DIE. SHE IS SLY. SHE USED MY MAGIC TO PROTECT YOU AND SUCCEEDED WHICH ANNOYS ME TREMENDOUSLY. I CAN TRANSMIT THOUGHTS WHICH KILL BUT I AM MOST PLEASED WHEN SOMEONE IS DYING OF HUNGER AND THIRST, TO SEND HIM HIS MOST AWFUL NIGHTMARE. I LIKED SANAYA IN A WAY THEREFORE SHE WAS GIVEN FOOD AND WATER BUT IT IS TIME NOW FOR ALL OF YOU TO DIE."
"Did you feel some soft flying things upon entering? These are his secret thoughts," Sanaya explained in whisper. "I have already figured out how to destroy him yet I cannot break the damn shackles. Listen, try to catch one of the thoughts and bring it here, into the light to show it to him, show him his own secret thought. Then rip it open with the sword and put the Eye of the Salyun in there. If you do that and take it back to the entrance, he is done with. This creature is the cause of all our trials and tribulations, he had made the two volcanoes and he keeps them simmering. If you kill him, there will be no more need to enter the Male Half."
So they had to kill him. There was no other way to escape. They started climbing back to the entrance.
"You silly, do you seriously think I am going to let you escape, you! I have control over the gates, what do you think you will be doing there?"
Without paying attention, the two friends continued their way up until they felt the flying soft things touch them again. They tried to catch at least one and realized how great their speed was. In a while, tired already of waving her arms in vain in the void, Ayona heard Kitasha’s voice:
"Princess, I caught one! I can barely feel it yet I am sure I am holding it. Let’s go back!"
On their way down, Harnig’s shouts were heard again. They both held on to his secret thought, lest it escaped at the very last moment.
"YOU ARE GOING TO GET ME VERY ANGRY INDEED, AND I AM GOING TO PUNISH YOU! DO NOT MAKE ME KILL YOU! I WANT YOU TO PLEASE ME. WHAT IS THIS YOU ARE CARRYING? OH, NO!"
At this moment Kitasha took her head in her hands and started shouting:
"Take them away from me, take them away from me! For God’s sake, TAKE THEM AWAY!!!"
Then the fit if it was a fit, passed and she held on to the thought even more tenaciously. Now it was Ayona’s turn: she saw, in front of her, the most terrifying creature she had ever faced in her life, worse than her nightmares. It defied description, it was slimy and had sharp big teeth. It started coming up to her…
"Go away, please! DO NOT COME NEARER!"
The creature disappeared. Ayona realized she had let the thought go. Still trembling, she succeeded in recatching it.
"Let’s finish quickly," the Princess implored. "He really means to kill us."
They were still standing on the last step. The moment their feet touched the ‘carpet’ of skeletons, the strength of the phantoms diminished.
"A-A-A-A-A-A!!!"
They, too, read the thought now. This is what it said, in big block letters:
I COULD HAVE BEEN GOOD
Kitasha was holding the thought and Ayona took out the sword. With one quick movement, she split the nothing into two. The letters scattered, and the thought remained empty. The Princess took the magic stone out of her bosom and put it there. Another cry of pain shook the dungeon. ‘This is for all the lives that have perished because of you!’ Ayona thought quickly and ran back up the stairs. Sanaya’s words followed her:
"When you drop it, close your eyes and turn your back on it!"
The girl felt something flying past her. She had reached the spot. She threw the thought up, turned her back on it and waited. Bright light poured and nearly blinded her even though she had her back turned and her eyes protected with her hands on them. When the light went out darkness looked impenetrable. Yet soon she discerned the flickering flame of the torch and went down the steps.
"Did I really kill him?" Ayona was still uncertain in her victory.
"You did, my dear! Bravo, there could hardly be found another girl so brave," the magician said. "Would you mind unlocking the damned shackles now and let’s get out of the darned Half!"
The three of them climbed the stone staircase for the last time and went out in the light of the setting sun and into the noise of the crowd. A last tremor shook the earth and then everything was calm. ‘A deathbed tremor,’ Ayona thought.
The three women started on their journey back, spent the night together in a wonderful mood, near to the Border, and reached their homes late on the other day. But, when they got back, they discovered there was yet another problem to solve.
For, to live in the Kingdom meant you had to solve even more problems, and the Magician, the Princess and the Thief belonged to the Kingdom to the bottom of their hearts.
© 2001 Juliana Manova, author
© 2001 Vessela Lutskanova Publishing House
All Rights Reserved!
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