Chapter 4
Arat.
Under the hot sun, under the noise of midges, sitting on the sand, Orhan thoughtfully picked at the sand with a stick, and periodically spat out chewing tobacco. For the second day, he and his companions were looking for the body of Zuhair, who had fallen into the abyss. The warriors descended into the abyss, dived into the dark depths of the water and looked through the rocks and crevices in them. But the boy's body was nowhere to be found. Could he have survived this fall or had a deep sea beast dragged him away? Nearby, a few dozen steps away, two warriors were looking into the abyss and lowering another skein of hemp lasso and one of them was shouting: "More, more!" Orhan did not hear these cries and in general his thoughts were far away. He did not understand Zuhair's actions, the strange behavior of the teacher. From the beginning, everything went wrong.He clearly remembered the day he first saw Zuhair. Another addition to the madhhab of the Keepers of the Purifying Fire. Once a year, from distant villages, settlements and nearby cities, agents who scurried around them in search of talents brought young guys to replenish the ranks of the madhhab's followers. And with each year, this flow was meager. Among the new generation, there were fewer and fewer of those who were born with meridians that replenished energy flows, who could control the ether. Having passed through the main gates of the madhhab, the newcomers gathered in the outer square to determine the level of strength and talent. The madhhab was built in ancient times, on the site where an ancient artifact was kept underground, which served as the basis for the cult of the Keepers of the Fire. Not everyone knew about it. The artifact was considered sacred, and the Keepers guarded this secret like the apple of their eye. And only an initiated circle of people knew about it. The vast territory was filled with buildings of bizarre shapes, as the buildings themselves and the current stonework were laid on an old foundation that was unknown in age. Even the historical scrolls and books kept by the chroniclers did not mention the time of construction of these foundations. But only one thing was known: the remains of the foundations and the bases of the buildings belonged to an ancient civilization that existed tens of thousands of years ago, before the dark times, before the great chaos. It was under the central building, where the head's abode and storage were now, that the artifact was located. The Guardians all had the power to control the ether and improved their skills while being near the artifact. According to the teacher, the artifact emitted incredible energy, which fueled not only the Guardians, but also the mechanisms that served the madhhab. The teachings of the Guardians of Fire required a recruitment of talented followers. Talents were encouraged, they were helped to develop their strength and resources were allocated. Orhan was also once recognized as having the power to control the ether and he ended up in this madhhab. At the time he met Zuhair, he was a veteran, having been in the madhhab for the second year. He had achieved some heights, having a certain authority among the novices. He, like many others, came to the square to look at the newcomers. Among his peers there was a group of guys who were not deprived of arrogance. Here this was considered the norm. Laughing at the newcomers, and mocking, each time, the weak, they believed that in this way they tempered the will of their younger classmates. This time was no exception. Orhan's attention was drawn to the commotion happening in the square. Quickly moving towards the noise, he saw a colorful picture of a battle in front of him. A young guy, apparently a newcomer, stood with raised fists and a determined look. With all this, his lip was cut, his clothes were torn in places. A bloody mass stood out from the broken knuckles. Around his hands, the ether sparkled and seethed in a whirlpool. The power of the ether was not stable, and it was clear that the boy was controlling it with difficulty. But the power was there, and it was not weak. The fortitude of his character was written on his face,He was not going to give up. Hiding behind him stood a fragile girl with big frightened eyes. She reminded him of a frightened doe. With blue-black long hair, with an upturned nose and a beautiful long neck. She really was beautiful, and Orhan could not take his eyes off her, the girl made an impression on him. A couple of the offenders from the older guys were already sprawled on the ground, but there was still a third one. That same cocky ringleader of this gang. The son of one of the elders of the madhhab. He was of large build with rather rough features. He did not expect such a rebuff, from some village newcomer and releasing his bloodthirsty aura, he growled:
------ You won't live, bastard. She will still be mine. At least you know who I am. I'm giving you one last chance, don't stand in my way.
Orhan looked around, there were no Guardians in the square. And a couple of senior stewards were talking among themselves and pretending not to see the conflict, completely ignoring it. The bully's dad would always take his son's side, and they had no desire to spoil relations with the elder. It was clear as day. The strong devour the weak. Orhan decided to intervene, and, emerging from the crowd of onlookers, approached the bully:
------ Stop it Badush, you don't want any trouble. There are too many witnesses here. The boss won't approve of your methods.
Orhan calmly walked up and stood between the boys, creating a barrier to further fighting. Badush looked at Orhan with a displeased expression, surprised that he had intervened and growled:
------ Do you think the chief will believe the words of this rabble? What does it matter to you, don't meddle in something that's none of your business.
------ The case is actually mine. They are both under my protection. ------ Orhan said firmly and calmly added:
------- And besides, Guardian Mirad Sahib asked to bring them to him. What do you think, Badush, what will he say if he finds out how you and your pack treat newcomers? And he will have questions, seeing this kid in such a state.
Hearing the name Mirada, Badush somehow wilted and said in fear:
------- There was nothing, I just asked the girl where she was from, wanted to take patronage over her and that's it. Nothing more, and this psychopath himself got involved.
The two beaten friends with broken faces gradually came to their senses and began to get to their feet, whining from pain. Badush shouted briefly to them and left the square. The two of them trudged after him, casting hateful glances at Zuhair. But they were no longer able to do anything under the gaze of the newcomers who had gathered. The conflict was over. When Badush disappeared from sight, the square was again filled with a buzz and conversation. Everyone was discussing the skirmish. And immediately a moment later the voice of the manager was heard:
------ Everyone gather at the pedestal, prepare the scrolls from your sponsors!
Gradually, the newcomers began to approach the managers, forgetting about the spectacular performance. Orhan approached Zuhair and the girl:
------ Are you okay? Your action was impressive. Badush is a vengeful and rotten guy. You need to be very careful now.
Zuhair wiped the blood from his face and thanked Orhan:
------- Thank you, senior, for helping.
Orhan nodded and said:
-------- You two don't need to check in here. Come with me, I'll ask teacher Mirad to take you in. You'll study with me. My name is Orhan. ------ he said and asked cheerfully:
-------- And what are your names?
-------- My name is Zuhair.
-------- My name is Rumia. ------ the girl answered timidly.
Rumiya... Orhan savored this name. How stupid and hopeless he had been then. A young man in love. Perhaps he would not have intervened in this conflict then, exposing himself, his authority and his position in the madhhab, if not for her. The memories and flight of thoughts were interrupted by the shout of one of the sahibs:
------- Orhan Sahib, I found something down below, by the grotto.
------- What did you find there? ------ Orhan stood up and headed to the edge of the abyss. There, at the edge, a lasso was tied to a large rock block. He approached the cliff and looked down. There, in the depths, almost at the edge of the water, several figures were swarming about; it was impossible to recognize their actions from such a height.
------- So what's there? ------ Orhan asked impatiently, peering down.
------- You must see for yourself, sahib. There is an energy trace there and I cannot recognize it. ------ the warrior answered.
Orhan decided to go down and see everything with his own eyes. Now he must not make mistakes or allow himself to be neglectful. Guardian Mirad sternly warned that powerful forces were interested in the outcome of this matter. When Mirad said this, Orhan noticed something he had never noticed in his teacher's eyes. Fear. Precisely fear, hidden, barely perceptible, but nonetheless fear. What or who could have frightened Mirad so much, Orhan did not know. The Manuscript had to be retrieved at any cost. And he had not only lost the Manuscript, but also managed to lose Zuhair in such an absurd way. Orhan deftly grabbed the lasso and began to slowly descend, avoiding the razor-sharp spikes of stones and rock ledges. The lower he went, the louder the roar of the waterfall became. Having descended to the water's edge, a little further from the waterfall, he addressed his fighters, shouting over the noise of the falling stream:
------- What did you find there?!
The warrior standing closest to the seething stream shouted something and dove into the water under the rock. Orhan realized that there was a hidden grotto there and dove after it. After swimming a short distance underwater after his fighter, they emerged and found themselves in a small cave. It was not so noisy here, the water in the grotto drowned out the roar of the waterfall. Orhan swam out onto a small bank in a light cave. Standing at full height, his head could barely touch the sharp ledges of the vault of this cave. Light was breaking through from somewhere above. Orhan began to scan the space with his aura. He immediately and clearly felt someone else's, overwhelming energy aura. An uncovered, daring and challenging aura. He went cold with horror. It was them. They deliberately did not cover their tracks. They left everything in plain sight. Maybe even one of them is here now and watching him. Orhan suppressed the urge to run with difficulty. He needed to calm down and not panic. Orhan continued to probe the area with his power. His sea of reason began to seethe. He felt Zuhair's aura, but it was suppressed by this alien aura, which was causing horror in his soul. But the aura of the Manuscript disappeared, as if it had never been there. Although up above, even dozens of steps away from Zuhair, he felt the Manuscript. They had taken Zuhair, and with him the Manuscript. Thoughts and guesses began to appear in his brain at lightning speed. He needed to urgently inform Mirad about what had happened here. It was time to get out of here. Orhan nodded to his warrior, quickly dove into the water, swimming away from this place and soon emerged in the canyon to the sound of a waterfall.
------- Everyone up! And quickly! ------ shouting to the sagibs, he was the first to jump onto the lasso and began to climb up.
Faster, away from this place, he repeated to himself, quickly climbing higher. It seemed that the fear that he had suppressed within himself had finally broken free. After some time, he reached the edge of the abyss, where his once close and only friend had just recently stood. Zuhair, what have you done? Orhan, suppressing his despair, began to wait for his warriors, who were already climbing the cliff one after another. Having waited until all the warriors had climbed the cliff and caught their breath, he gave the order:
------- Everyone be on guard! Create a barrier and protect me, I must create a mental link with Guardian Mirad!
------- Yes! ------ the fighting sahibs shouted in unison, surrounding Orhan and creating the sign "Hazizun".
Orhan sat in a meditation pose and began to concentrate energy. He began to strain hard, releasing an aura and creating an energy field. He had mastered this skill recently and it was not easy for him, while using a huge amount of energy, leaving the opponent practically without strength. Orhan called the teacher. Soon a sparkling silhouette appeared in the energy field. It was Mirad, or rather his energy shadow. Orhan began to speak:
------- Mirad Sahib, can you support this connection by adding energy?
------- Speak, Orhan. I have begun to feed your field. How are you doing with the task? Where is Zuhair, did you find him? Most importantly, where is the Manuscript?
------- Teacher Mirad, your student has let you down, I have lost Zuhair. And with him the Manuscript.
Orhan told Mirad about the chase and about Zuhair's injury, about how they ended up in the region of wild animals. He also told about Zuhair's deed. With each word, it became more and more difficult for Orhan to maintain the energy of the field. He felt tired and despaired. Having reached the cave and the grotto in his story, Orhan felt fear, and this feeling was transmitted to Mirad. And he impatiently asked again:
------- Speak more clearly! Whose aura was that?! What did you discover?
------- It was the Meruids! They took Zuhair and the Manuscript. ------ shouted Orhan, sweat pouring down his face and neck.
Hearing about the Meruids, the Energy Mirad twitched and its outline began to distort. The energy field sparkled. The Silhouette Mirad asked again:
------- Are you sure it was them?!
------- Yes. Teacher, it was the aura of the Meruids. ------ Orhan exhaled and fell exhausted. The field was illuminated for a moment by a bright flash and then suddenly went out. The connection was broken.