Linda and Remus have never forgotten that horrific, but also uniquely haunting and beautiful night,..., not only for them, but probably for every single person who witnessed it.
For Linda, it was the night that marked the true beginning of her many adventures with Guin, and it was an experience that she will always remember.
She and Remus sat hand in hand, kneeling at the entrance to the women's house, with the faithful Suni crouched a little way behind them. Linda's mischievous gleam had vanished - as had Remus's - and her violet eyes glowed with a meditative, thoughtful light. It was the same for Remus, whose violet eyes were filled with a meditative, thoughtful glow, and he was completely mesmerized by the scene before him, blinding his eyes in silence.
Her sensitive heart was easily assimilated to the strange fears and mysteries of the night, and she trembled for the fate of the Shemites, and was shaken by their determination. And, of course, they - she and her brother - could not help being thrilled by the extraordinary change in their own bodies since yesterday.
It seems to me that only ten days ago, not only was the frontier like this, but it was thought to be rich and safe--the dazzling, shimmering crystal city of Paro, the ancient kingdom that was called the flower of the Middle Kingdom. In the crystal palace of the ancient kingdom of Paro, which had been called the flower of the Middle Kingdom, Linda and Remus were known as the two pearls, the jewels of Paro, and were protected from the wind.
After only two days and nights of fierce fighting, Paro was fragilely defeated and the Crystal Palace fell. The young princes and princesses saw their father, the king, and the queen cut down and lying bleeding on the throne of the palace in a cloud of black smoke.
Then, by the hands of their nanny, Bogan, and the minister, Liya, they were sent away with the hope of reviving Paro through the workings of a mysterious ancient machine hidden deep within the palace - but there, too, the hand of fate played its part. They regained consciousness, not in the land of Argos, where their aunt was married as queen, as the ministers had intended, but in a forest near the frontier of Mongol, one of the three great duchies of Gora, which ironically had destroyed their enemy, Paro.
(It was there that he met Guin, was terrorized by the spirits of the dead, became obsessed with the castle of Staphorus, and the Shemites came to Staphorus...) ...)
What a whirlwind of fate - so Linda thought as she held her brother's hand tightly. It had been a dizzying, breathless few days, almost as dizzying as the last ten, after fourteen years at the Crystal Palace, which had been peaceful and even gentle, if too full of color and love to have been uneventful.
During that time, I do not know how many times I prepared myself for death, and yet now she and Remus are alive, unharmed and unharmed.
Oh, Janus, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Linda placed a slender hand gently on her chest. But she also couldn't help thinking inwardly that she had probably been changed - and would continue to be changed - so drastically by the ordeal.
Because the anxious child who had cried out with his brother in the bushes of Vasya for fear and longing, was now leaving his fate in the hands of the barbarians of this frontier and wilderness, whom he had never expected to meet, and was now sitting and watching what would happen?
Such a thing could have been prophesied in the marble halls of the Crystal Palace if it had been, and no one would have believed it except to laugh. But Linda and Remus were there to do so.
It's a long way-- a long, long, long way to Paro.
When will I see the shining towers of the Crystal Palace again, Linda thought. But, of course, her hatred and resentment against Mongol, who had murdered her parents and hoofed her beautiful city, would not abate; on the contrary, it would only crystallize into a determination for revenge that grew firmer with each passing day and would not fade with the years. But even so, she was too young and full of vitality to simply grieve for her lost hometown, safety and peace.
Most healthy, decent children are fond of adventure, and can't help being fascinated by unusual sights and thrilling sights. And the things that Linda and Remus had been through during the past few days, which they could not have seen or even imagined in the depths of the beautiful palace at Paro, could not fail to fascinate them and to fill their minds with the exciting fascination of adventure and exploration. . And--
(Oh, and then there's Guin, of course.)
Linda squeezed Remus's hand, vaguely aware that it was as sweaty and hot as her own, and raised her enraptured eyes to the startling creature.
She had seen it at the right time. For now Guin was standing on a high, flat rock, with Lothor on either side, and the chief of Rak, who was second in rank to Lothor, looking round at all the Semites who had filled the place with an air of power, and trying to persuade them of the coming of Mongol's army, and of the need of all the Semites for hardship. and the necessity of the difficulties of all the Semites.
Of course, Linda still could not understand most of Shem's chirping words. Since she and Suni became acquainted, she has been able to convey her intentions roughly by gestures and mimicry, but this is limited to very simple, everyday things.
So, to her, what Guin was saying was completely gibberish, but that didn't diminish the appeal of the place in any way that she felt.
The tribes of Shem, which filled the whole area, must have numbered perhaps as many as five thousand; and the tribe of Lach, if babies were counted, numbered nearly three thousand, and the tribe of Rasa and the tribe of Tubai, who were close neighbors of Lach, had their chiefs with them. And the Lhasa and the Tubai, who were also close neighbors of the Rak, each had a chief who came with his warriors, and behind him came the members of all the tribes, from old men to children carried by their mothers.
They only opened up the middle of the square, and first of all, just around the flat stone which served as a platform, sat the elders and chiefs, with feathers on their heads and long fur cloaks, and even their eyebrows were white or gray.
Behind them are several warriors in the role of standard-bearers, each holding a spear with the flag sign of his tribe, and after them the warriors of each tribe are lined up in a row, pushing and shoving each other.
That was enough to fill up the square of Rak, and the last of them were huddled in the entrance of the houses, as if they had been pushed in.
And, moreover, filling every crevice of the valley were women and children, and old men and babes. They were clinging together almost suffocatingly, and restraining each other in their efforts to get as near as possible to the square, and to hear the words of the strange warriors and of their own chiefs.
This was not, however, an unprecedented gathering of Shem's people, although it was extremely unusual. This was not an unprecedented gathering for the Semites, even though it was extremely unusual, for the touch of Lothor, the chief of Rak, to Rasa and Tubai was a request for all the forces to come to the valley of Rak, and when the Semites began to fight in full force, the women and children took up arms and became almost as good warriors as the men and adults. This is because.
Among the Semites, the only ones who were not warriors were an old man who could no longer move and a baby who had not yet been weaned.
They have been listening. They had been told of the coming of Mongols, and they knew that their numbers were greater than ever. It might be that all the tribes of the Semites would be swept away from Nosferus. Their countenances were so stern that not even a child uttered a whimper.
Their faces were all turned towards the one who had brought the news, the leopard-headed giant of a different aspect, who had been proclaimed by the chief Roto as the great warrior, the son of Alfetu, the god of war.
Standing among the Little Apes of Shem, Guin's stature seemed almost unbelievably majestic and commanding. He seemed to be the very image of a gigantic and mighty god that was looked up to by the crowd of believers.
His bare upper body, with its well-developed muscles shadowed by the bonfire, and his huge, round leopard head seemed to threaten the surrounding night. Even if Roto had not said so, just looking up at him standing there, it was clear that he was not a human being - no, not just a common warrior, not even a hero, but a mythical being who had been sent to lead Shem to the fatal battle. He was a mythical being, sent to lead Shem to the fatal battle, and they had to follow him as he led and guided them.
That he must be the herald of that doom which had been foreordained, and perhaps the god of war who should bring victory to Shem, was whispered secretly in the mouths of the women of the tribes of Shem who stood there and looked up at him.
However, Guin, unaware of such whispers, was desperately trying to persuade the hesitant chiefs.
"Of course, Lhasa is in favor of fighting. But ..."
The Lhasa people are known by the name of "speckled-haired," and their characteristic feature is the mixture of black and gray in their body hair. They are rather large for Semites, and this makes them look humorous and mild.
"But Lhasa also does not want to fight a battle he cannot win."
"We have a chance to win."
Guin assured him. Shem and the others shouted and buzzed.
"I swear to you, we can win. But to do so, all Shem must first unite and work together."
"Not only with Rasa and Raak, but also with Kaloy and Glo. I can't do that."
One of the Tubai chiefs said in displeasure.
"Kaloy is the revenge of Tubai."
"And why should Karoi or Gloi help Rak or Rasa or Tubai?"
One of the others shouted.
"They make fun of Rak, calling him a coward."
"It's true, Liard."
Shiva said softly. Sheba stood behind Guin, as if guarding him, and occasionally whispered the speaker's name and notes softly into his ear.
"Gauro, the great chief of the Kaloi, and Iraceli, the Glo, make fun of Rach at every turn, saying that he gives up fighting like a woman."
"Besides, if it weren't for Kaloy and Glo, all of Rak, Rasa, and Tubai, even the women and children, fighting, would be very much no match for Om."
Om--man or hairless man, Shiva whispered.
"But if we keep going like this, we're just waiting to get hit."
A voice came from within Lak. The Lak chiefs, having already listened to Guin's persuasion in the chief's house, partly agreed with him.
"Besides, if you stay in the mountains or move your village, I hope that will make the demons give up, but if not, it's over."
"Why don't you shut yourself away in this Rak Valley and wait for Lhasa and Tubai to pass by?"
Some heads seem to agree. Some heads seem to agree and nod.
"No, that's not good."
When Roto opened his mouth slowly, everyone became quiet and listened.
"Then there's nothing we can do if this valley happens to be discovered by the Orm scouts, even by accident - and then there's Kaloy and Glo. The villages of Karoi and Glo are much easier to find than Rak Valley. Even if they are our enemies, we can't just let them get away with it and let Aum take advantage of us."
"Besides, they may torture the last of them, and Orm may ask them for the position of Rakya."
Lino said.
"Great Chief! Have you sent a messenger to the Karoi and the Glo?"
"Oh, it's already out, Tubby's Tubby."
Roto replied calmly.
"At the same time as I sent for the village of Tubai and Lhasa. He will return with a reply."
"Unless they killed me and ate me."
Tubai, the great chieftain of Tubai, added a note. He was an exceptionally large Semite, almost as tall as Remus, but his more striking feature was his face and his tail. His face, as if he were an old warrior, was covered with white scars, and his tail, too, was cut off at the base, like a stump.
"Even so, I don't believe that Gauro of Caloy or Iracelli of Glo, no matter how much you want them to, will give their all when you call on them."
"Wait. --Listen to me."
Guin jumped up on the flat stone and slapped his chest hard. Shem and the others, who had been talking among themselves, turned their heads toward him.
"Do what I say, Shem."
Guin shouted out.
"Look, while we are wasting time discussing these things, Mongol's army is steadily advancing deep into Nosferus. Whether the Karoi will come or the Glo will join them, I do not know. Or how far the few clans here alone can meet Mongol's army, I do not know. Just because our enemies outnumber our allies does not mean we are doomed from one to the other.
But what is far more certain - and the only thing that is certain - is that no miracles will ever occur as long as we are here, passing the time in vain. And the army of Mongol is unmistakably advancing with a ruthless determination to sweep away the Semites.
Look, Shem and the others-- we don't have time to discuss and decide what's best for us-- it's not time to decide. All we can do now is go out and fight!"
"Liard."
Seb stood up fearfully and shouted in order not to be defeated by the cheers of the supporters.
"You said it yourself, Liard. We have a chance. We are outnumbered, outgunned, and outgunned. How do we stand a chance against Orm?"
Yes, that's right," said another voice. Guin held up his hand to stop them, and nodded confidently.
"You can win. There's only one word to describe it. Nosferatu!"
"..."
Shem and the others gasped.
Guin's voice is more encouraging and he tries to add to his own words.
But just as he was about to open his mouth, there was suddenly an uproar at the entrance to the valley.
"Something!"
Roto cocks his head. Sheba rushes out to see what is the matter.
But there was no time for that.
"Glo--glo!"
"Gross!"
Immediately, cries of astonishment and joy were uttered by the crowd that had gathered near the mouth of the valley!
"What?"
Suddenly, Roto stretches his head towards you and tries to look at you.
At that time, the women and children of Shem, who had been crowded together at the entrance to the valley, split off to the left and right, as if the waves of the sea were breaking in two and letting the chosen people pass through.
And between them, mouths from the crowds on either side,
"Gross! Gross!"
"Iracelli--!"
"Aye!"
The four rows of warriors solemnly walked into the Rak Valley while being showered with welcoming cries of their own!
"Oh... what a surprise! The noble black-haired Guro is being led by the Great Chief himself to the village of Raku where the brown-haired Guro makes fun of him!
Behind Guin, he heard a young Sheba uttering a deep cry of astonishment.
"It was nothing to worry about, Sheba."
Guin, in a low voice,
"We knew that from the beginning. No matter how much the Glo despise the Rak clan or how much they don't get along with each other, the Glo can't stand against Mongol army alone. When he heard the news, unless he was very foolish, he would have sent out scouts to find out the truth of the news, and if it turned out to be true, he would have forgotten all his pretensions and disagreements and headed for Rak Valley.
"Liard: ..."
Sheba gently shook his head in disgust. Guin laughed.
"The only thing I feared was that they might not make up their minds, or be too cautious, and waste too much time, and in the meantime bring the army of Mongol irretrievably nearer. Fortunately, Glo moved much more swiftly than we had expected. But Gros moved much more quickly than we had expected, and this increased our chances of victory as I said before."
"Oh."
Sheba said softly.
In the meantime, the new warriors of the Glo were coming straight into the square, with one shout of welcome after another.
They are the second largest of the Shemites of Nosferus, after the Rak. They are called the "black-haired" Glo, and their whole body is of a much darker black than that of the Rak.
And farther inland in Nosferus than the Valley of Raq, they made their home in the desert, where there was nothing but rocks and withered bushes, so that they wore on their bodies, not feather ornaments, but the fierce-coloured skins of desert lizards, as tokens of war.
At the head of them was the Great Chief, the Iracheli of the Gloom, a Semite as large as the Tubai of the Tubai, whose black hair was long and bushy, and whose face was covered with strange patterns of coloured dye. He embraced Lothor, who greeted him in person, in an intimate embrace, though somewhat grudgingly, and then, according to Semitic custom, put a sand lizard, a gift, on his spear and dropped it before Lothor.
The Glo warriors who followed him were all mighty men, but they were much fewer in number than Guin had expected. The reason for this was soon revealed to him by the Great Chief Iracelli himself.
"If Rasa and Tubai had come with their warriors, I would have thought that the Rak Valley would already be filled with more Shem than the ring of the Kesu River."
He said.
"The Guro are warriors, women and children alike, and if we were to bring all of them with us, the Rak Valley would not be able to hold them. Therefore, we have decided to bring only the chiefs and the heads of the young men to Rak Valley, and have left the others waiting outside the valley. But if you need us, the women and children can come here at once."
"Thank you, Iratelli."
Roto shook the hand of this new ally with all his heart. He was followed in his welcome by Tubai, chief of the Tubai tribe, and Osakert, chief of the Lhasa tribe.
But the Great Chieftain of Glo was interested in something else entirely. He looked at Guin with astonished and incredulous eyes, and seemed completely enthralled by the giant. When Roto explained Guin's role and his opinion of him, Iracelli of Glo, the bravest of the Semites, seemed even more moved.
"And, by the way, what are you doing sitting here, without a battle pattern on your face, without an arrowhead in your quiver, when you have roused people from between the furs of their beds with a messenger? What are you doing sitting here?"
After the buzz of welcome had died down, Iracelli glanced at the Semites who were crowding around to get a glimpse of the Great Chief and chided them.
"We held a meeting of the chiefs to discuss whether we should fight against the coloured Ohms, or flee north to Asgarn and wait for their return."
Roto explains. As soon as he heard, Iracelli struck the ground violently with his spear.
"You're still talking like that. We don't have time for that. Even the women and children in Glo's tent are busy boiling arrowheads in poison jars and hoeing spears and machetes. As soon as we heard the news, we sent a party of spectators in the direction we had been told. Indeed, Aum's army was heading this way, but it was also heading straight east, and it was already two days too close to Rak Valley!"
Shem and the others buzzed. The light in Guin's eyes became more intense. The Mongols, at least, had avoided the folly of a night march, had camped at night, and had relied on that time, assuming that they would not be in action until after nightfall, but they had dared to march through the Nosferus Wilderness at night, knowing that they would be slowed down and in danger.
Even though it is two days away, it is not necessarily the most dangerous situation because the Rak Valley is not immediately visible to the naked eye and its entrance is hidden between the mountains. However, the Mongol army will send out its troops and head inland while searching the area.
"Fight!"
It was the warriors of Raq who rose first to their feet and shouted. The answering shout roused the Rak valley.
"The fight--!"
Relieved, Guin leapt from the flat stone and nodded to Iracelli. Alongside him, the dwarf warrior, who was only about his waist, stared back at the leopard-headed giant, his chest heaving.
When he came to, it was light and twilight. The morning had come to Nosferus with the prospect of battle.