At this tale, the relatives groaned in surprise, and the hunters from Brun’s detachment again rustled and stamped, confirming the words of the hunter.
«I understood that the maiden recognized Zavrini’s eyes, but the eyes are somehow wrong,» Ramir explained. – And she says to me: «Do not come near, monster!». I was in a hurry. «Illy! I calm her down. «It’s me, Ramir!» And she looks and understands nothing – she does not recognize me! I am closer to her, and she screams and collapses to the ground unconscious. I took her in my arms and carried her to the detachment…
The tribesmen opened their mouths.
– Upon returning to the camp, Illi told me that when she parted ways with Ramir, the roots of unprecedented plants entwined her legs, and then got to her hands. And she doesn’t remember anything else. She doesn’t even remember how Ramir brought her to her senses,» Brun concluded. – She has known unity, people! And her unity was broken. I tell you exactly! Did you forget Azis? He, too, lost his memory when they violated him.
The elders and experienced rangers nodded, and the sentinels, once again hearing the mention of the old shaman, again froze in anticipation of some details, but Brun continued to explain what had happened to his beater:
«Illy hears our voices as we, the hunters, hear with the vision of incarnation. And what about her eyes is not at all clear. You say, Valan, they look like a star? – he pointed with his hand at the manifestation, and all those sitting by the fire immediately raised their eyes to the sky. «Perhaps they are similar,» the leader continued to argue. «But what do I know for sure, and Illie herself told me that she saw with her eyes the twilight in the middle of the night, as if it were not night at all, although then it was well after midnight. And all living creatures that chirp and clatter, she saw luminous lights, and she sees us all relatives in a different guise, like our eyes are embodied lizards! He says – carcasses we are in armor! She herself knew that her bones stick out everywhere and meat with blood – there is no skin! Neither she has, nor we, nor anyone! Only bare flesh!
* incarnate the eye – in the language of the first people means «with the eyes of a hunter.»
***
– Aaa! Unga yelled, and an eight-legged shadow appeared on the illuminated wall to his side.
– What? What’s happened? – frightened by the cry of a fellow tribesman, the already excited children began to wail.
– She’s on me! Sitting on me!
– Who is sitting? How is he sitting? Ronin immediately brought the torch closer to his kinsman.
– Creature!
A barely visible shiny cobweb stretched down from Unga’s chin, and at its end, at the chest level of the future hunter, a tiny furry creature hung.
«In the name of Pangea, Unga!» Elna exclaimed. – It’s Yellowbelly!
Omi giggled, and the black-haired girl picked up the web with her finger and held it up to her to see the insect. The spider, meanwhile, chaotically waved its paws, trying to cling to at least something.
«They live in rocks, remember? Elna added. – He himself slipped them dragonfly larvae!
– Unga, it’s already so creepy here, and you’re still with your creatures! Ronin growled angrily.
The gloomy tunnel gave off dampness and coolness. Its narrow and winding corridors were so monotonous that it sometimes seemed to young explorers that they were walking along the same nooks and crannies. In places, the pointed reliefs of the walls and the shadows falling on them resembled the silhouettes of lizards, and sometimes it seemed to the children that the stone forms were moving at all. This made it scary. But despite the terrible decoration of the underground passage, the desire for adventure did not leave the brave hearts, because the mysterious and unknown path inspired young relatives not only with anxiety, but also with the anticipation of seeing something unusual and unseen before.
Making their way along the narrow corridor, the future hunters barely spoke. They were seriously afraid to break the enchanting silence of an unfamiliar dungeon. Therefore, the road to the Temple of the Creator passed without chatter and tomfoolery. And only distant bursts of an underground stream measuredly disturbed the silence of the walls.
Ronin and Unga were constantly helping the girls up the awkward slopes and ledges. And Unga also marked the walls of the tunnel with his small bone knife. From time to time, carving arrows on the walls and asking him to wait, the boy delayed the move, to which his fellow tribesmen were indignant, since the tunnel did not branch out and it was impossible to get lost in it with all the desire. But Unga insisted, justifying his actions with the words: «Just in case.»
Often, children hit and scratched on the sharp edges of the reliefs, while receiving unpleasant burning abrasions. But the youth endured and moved forward. After several too narrow corridors, Elna guessed why the adults did not go to the Temple of the Shaper this way. In this sleeve, even small offspring sometimes had to crawl on all fours, which was a very unpleasant act: sharp warehouses of caves dug into their knees, leaving behind a strong desire to return to the camp and, having collapsed on a soft bedding, plunge into the carefree world of dreams, but curiosity took its toll..
It seemed that the tunnel would never end! The children walked and walked, but soon the corridor began to expand significantly, which could not but please the young adventurers.
«I think we’re almost there,» whispered Ronin in a barely audible voice.
«It’s getting warmer in here,» Elna said.
Will we see the leader soon? Omi exclaimed at the top of her voice.
– Shh! Omi, what are you talking about, Ronin whispered. «Do you want the watchmen to hear us?» I beg you – let’s whisper!
«Sorry, Ronin, I just missed Pa,» the girl pouted, pouting.
«Soon you will see the leader, soon,» said Ronin. – Be patient. The main thing is not to meet anyone.
«Stop it, Ronin!» It’s creepy to the bone in here. Who else should we meet? Unga got excited. And to be honest, I’m already tired. I am sleepy.
– Well, you will, Unga, – Elna muttered. «You yourself wanted to go to the caves, more than anyone!»
«I wanted it, I wanted it, I didn’t want it,» the youth grumbled offendedly, remembering the yellow-bellied who attacked him.
The underground passage became wider and more spacious, and the glow of the torch covered its length less and less. And if before, in the narrow corridors, the flame of fire scattered the light far ahead, allowing you to walk more confidently along the rocky terrain, now the vast structure of the tunnel noticeably absorbed the glow. The wider the grotto became, the closer to the juveniles, devouring the limits of visibility with black, pitch darkness crept up. Sometimes children are completely lost in the expanses of the dungeon. The outlines of the walls either appeared very close, or disappeared into the darkness for a dozen steps.
This pretty much scared future hunters. Their progress has obviously slowed down. And after several such sweeping transitions, in order not to get lost by chance, Elna offered to join hands and step along the left wall of the corridor.
Soon, a barely visible green light appeared in the distance.
– Look! Unga was the first to notice. Is there something glowing?
The fry stopped and tried to see what the youth was pointing to, but the flickering of the torch did not allow them to focus their eyes.
«Ronin,» Elna said. – Well, put away the torch.
Ronin moved his hand to the side. The radiance of the torch receded, and not far away in the darkness, fifty paces from the young relatives, greenish silhouettes of stone walls appeared.
– Yes,