Chapter 9
Arat
Mirad was not upset, or deliberately and well hid his disappointment. He looked once more at Orkhan, who was bowing, and turned away. For a couple of years now, Mirad became the head of the Guardian maskhab and tried to change the main principles. The last head, in his opinion, was too conservative. But he's not like that, he's always been on the side of progress and new useful connections. These same connections helped him eliminate the former head of the Guardians of the Purifying Fire. Now he's the head, and everything's going to be different. The decoction he was about to take had already cooled down and stood alone on the table. As he listened to his student's explanations, he built a chain of events in his head that led to this outcome. Zuhair was dead or not, it was unknown. It is also not clear what happened to the Manuscript. But one thing is for sure, even if the kid is alive, he will be killed. Meruids don't like to stand on ceremony. They will extract the Manuscript from the living or the dead. Now the truth could only be learned from them. How in this scenario, when Zuhair was almost in their hands, Orkhan managed to lose him. Well, at least they were able to get to him, wound him, and almost reached the Manuscript. Considering that there were maskhabs on the continent much stronger than the Guardians of the Purifying Fire, they could not even get close to the Manuscript, unlike them. But how the Meruids got involved. It was a mystery that Mirad was currently pondering. The Meruids were a secretive and powerful race and, if desired, could easily level his maskhab and not only. He only found out about the Meruids' interest in the Manuscript now, but could it be a lucky coincidence or were they deliberately following them? It means that a powerful race that has not shown itself so far has so successfully got involved and taken the prize from under the very noses of others. And the main sucker here was him, with his maskhab. After all, it wasn't in his best interest to annoy such a powerful race. Although his patrons could resist the Meruids, Mirad decided to save this trump card for another case. He had completely different plans and a completely different interest.
------ You can go, student, and no one should know about what happened. Warn your warriors, if anyone finds out that we are to blame for the loss of Zuhair, revenge for excessive talkativeness will be swift. We weren't there, it was all set up by Meruids, that's the whole truth. Do you understand Orkhan? ------ Mirad asked calmly, turning to Orkhan, who was still bowing.
------ Yes, Teacher. I've already warned everyone, but now I'll remind you again. ----- Orkhan said and hesitated a little, asked:
------ And what should I do with Zuhair's friend?
-----"Is she still alive?" Well, we may still need it. Keep her isolated from the others. And not a word about Zuhair. ----- I put an end to the world, indicating that the conversation is over.
------- Yes, Teacher. ---- Orkhan said and quietly left.
The head of the Guardians, having made sure that he was alone, entered the meditation hall. Sitting on a high pedestal, he released his aura to concentrate his energy. All the pedestals were arranged and built primarily in the place of the greatest concentration of energy and ether. At the end of the last chaos, a new generation of Arata people began to feel and control the ether, unlike representatives of the previous civilization, who never possessed this gift and did not even know that there was a huge world of energy and ether around them. Like blind kittens, they believed only in technological progress and therefore were destroyed ten thousand years ago. But now people of a different mindset, and almost most of them possessed the skills of ether concentration. If there is a bundle of energy, then there must be a place for its absorption. And the presence of a pedestal in any public or public place has become commonplace and habitual. It could even be that the buildings were built precisely around a powerful cluster or energy beam concentrated in a certain place. First, the pedestal or elevation, and then the building. The pedestal of the Guardian Maskhab was built directly above the Maskhab's secret artifact, and in addition to cosmic energy and ether, the artifact emitted another powerful alien energy, which was once called radiation. There was a majestic artifact under the main palace of the maskhab, which was secretly worshipped for several thousand years and considered a shrine of the Guardians. It was a huge ancient nuclear bomb, which was the crowning achievement of a past civilization to destroy its own kind. After ten thousand years, the bomb had lost its former combat effectiveness, but it still posed no small threat. The uranium charge was gradually splitting, which led to thermal destruction after so many years. And if a representative of the ancient people could have seen this, he would have been so horrified by what the new generation was doing, having built its own maskhab, consisting of many magnificent buildings, over a missile silo with a ballistic missile inside, which miraculously did not explode. And this explosion effect would really be a cleansing fire. He would have cleared everything in a hundred-kilometer radius. The one who first organized the maskhab and gave it its name had a good sense of humor. But it wasn't Mirad or anyone else who didn't know about this, considering radiation to be a gift from God, but an inevitable mutational anomaly for the effect of cultivation development. But there was a mutation, and it manifested itself in the representatives of the Guardians of Purifying Fire maskhab. It was especially evident in those who came into direct contact with the nuclear artifact. Mirad also had an unusual mutation. Mirad kept the development and enhancement of this mutation a secret from everyone with each rank. But now he wasn't thinking about it, and sitting in a meditation position, he began to create a powerful protective sign that hid from others all the action he was about to perform. No one within a five-hundred-step radius would be able to smell his aura, hear his words, or see him. After entering a state of inner trance, he came into contact with his patron. Focusing on the desired object, Mirad appeared in spiritual form in front of the bronze giant, one of the representatives of his great and powerful race on Arath. Hano was a talented Lanurian, a bright representative of his race, located on Arath. By order of the deity Lanu, he, like other residents of Neberum, manipulated events and actions on this planet. The Lanurians have controlled Arath for five hundred thousand years. Neberum's policy was simple, resource extraction, control, and manipulation of the human race. But the Lanurians also pursued another, no less diabolical goal. The study of other races, genetic experiments to breed labor, and the creation of religions and cults in the name of themselves. Religious worship was considered the simplest and most effective way to manage and monitor the masses of people. They acted openly and boldly, as always. But after the first Meruid war, they became more cautious and circumspect, allowing the planet to develop to unprecedented heights. Humanity has launched its representative into space. The first man set foot on the satellite of Arata by landing on a space shuttle created by humans without the help of ether and energy force. And even then, in the dark and secretive Lanurians influenced the economy and politics of Arath, until the last apocalypse occurred, a hundred centuries ago. Back then, no one took responsibility for the extermination of the human race. The Lanurians blamed the Meruids, who in turn blamed Neberum. This is how the cold War went on until these days. The report of the missing Manuscript did not surprise Hano, as he already knew about it. The network of informants and spies he supervised was extensive. Clear instructions came from Neberum to find and seize the Manuscript at any cost. It is not surprising that the Meruids got involved in this race. Hano knew about the Manuscript, that it contained the soul of an immortal and that it contained an impressive source of energy. But he understood that this was not all he had been told. He was given what he needed to know. The fact that there is a soul fragment in the Manuscript is certainly an anomaly, but this is not an isolated case. In his experience, he had already dealt with such sources of anomalies. This means that he is being given limited information. Hano was ambitious and he didn't like this state of affairs. And he started his game. Yes, he was afraid and acted very cautiously. There was something else in the Manuscript that everyone considered to be the secret of the artifact, but everyone knew this secret. The secret of polichinelle. Judging by the conversations, there was information in the Manuscript that everyone wanted to get their hands on. No one knew what this information was about or what it contained. For small clans and clans, the information in the Manuscript was not important. And why, when it could have been sold or exchanged. The manuscript became a monetary measure for which you could get everything, if you were lucky. Everyone knew that there was nothing left of the Manuscript, of its physical shell, it looked like just a lump of concentrated energy, and everyone knew or had heard of a chosen young man who was favored by fate and who became the bearer of this artifact. Soon, the news of his capture by the Meru clan will spread throughout the continent. Hano was crestfallen. He planned to talk to the trapped soul of this so-called Manuscript. The Lanurian decided to report the failure to Neberum after all.
Neberum must decide for himself what to do now, knowing that the Manuscript is in the hands of the Meru clan. Will they declare war or will there be an additional landing of Lanurians on Arat? But landing is not possible now, the path could only be paved through the portal. The Neberum phase has moved far away from the solar system in the next two thousand years, and ships will not be able to reach Aratus. Neberum has the conquest of Taras in the foreground, and although the resources and forces will not be spent much, the location of the planet has changed thoroughly, which made it impossible for anyone to physically travel to Arat. Lanu turned his planet into a huge spaceship, and this expansion of Taras was not the first and not the last. This was the original nature and purpose of the Lanurians. It was a race of conquerors, and sometimes aggressive intervention was in the foreground. Besides Khano, there were about two hundred Lanurians on Arath, and most of them were lower earth gods. The lower gods have been in the service of the Neberum elite since ancient times. This class of semi-immortal gods consisted of representatives of various races from the once-expanded planets that did almost all the menial work. There were about a dozen immortal celestials. Hano was one of the ten supreme gods. Being in an ancient outpost underground, he wove his nets all over the planet like a spider. Hano was a long-lived Arata. He was the one who witnessed the second flood that wiped out the first wave of genetic broods. He saw world wars between humans, the discovery of atomic particles, progress in aircraft construction, and the first human flight around the orbit of Aratus. Khan influenced politics, controlled the birth rate, and manipulated the powers and their leaders. He was the shadow ruler of Arath until the chaos happened. After the disaster, major purges began at the top. Mostly among clans of geneticists and warlike clans. A conspiracy among the celestials was revealed, and Hano was also affected. He was initially against the extermination of humans. And although he did not join any of the camps of the opposing sides, Hano fell out of favor with the deity and as punishment he received an order not to enter Neberum for a hundred thousand years. Since then, he has languished on Arat and been deprived of his former privileges. He was one of the ten, and above him was the chief resident of Aratus, the celestial Lazida. Her outpost was located in the central part of the Faras continent. And at the moment, she was in control of everything that was happening on Arath. But Hano had experience and secret influence on the planet, and it remains to be seen how the loss of an important artifact will affect Lazida's career. A defeat for one could give an advantage to the other. Hano decided to observe further events and when the time comes, he will be ready to intervene, despite the fact that Lazida was from the family of Star Readers, she can also commit irreparable acts.
Orkhan was walking through the courtyard of the maskhab. Novices and other residents of the maskhab met on the way, respectfully bowed to him, placing their palms on his chest. The first and eldest disciple of the head, even the elders were afraid of him, knowing his vindictive nature. Orkhan's star lit up when his teacher, Mirad, became the new head of the maskhab. Orkhan felt irritation in himself, trying to suppress it, he became even more inflamed. The only people Orkhan could behave with restraint and deliberation in front of were Guardian Mirad and her. She was the one Orkhan fawned over, he was overcome with confusion, and in front of whom he turned into a boy. The Rumiya he was heading towards now. After passing through the vault and the gate leading to the inner isolation ward with a huge number of guards and security signs, Orkhan entered a semi-dark corridor. When he reached the right door, he signaled to the soldiers guarding the cell and they instantly disappeared. He knocked uncertainly and opened the heavy metal door. The dim cell consisted of another room adjacent to it. Apart from the guards and windowless walls, it was quite possible to live here. A golden cage for valuable and beautiful birds. That's how she seemed to Orhan. Suddenly, something scuttled in the depths, and a pretty girl appeared next to Orkhan. Rumiya was still as beautiful and her sleepless eyes were even more charming. She looked at him with anxious eyes and hope.
------ Brother Orhan, you have come. How did you get through security? What's happening? They don't tell me anything. I was captured so suddenly that I didn't have time to tell Zuhair. And where is he? What's wrong with him? Is he alive? ------ The girl stood wringing her hands and suddenly tears gushed from her eyes. She didn't let Orkhan say anything and clung to him. He hugged her very carefully. His heart was pounding out of his chest. And he discreetly and gently stroked the girl's head, saying softly:
------ Everything will be fine. I'll get you out of here. Soon.
-----"How's Zuhair?" Is he okay? ----- Rumiya asked. Hearing Zuhair's name, the irritation in Orkhan's chest began to rise, but he quickly regained his composure and calmly whispered in Rumiya's ear.:
------ Yes, he's fine. I helped him escape.…