In the morning, Ankerex found ten young men of various ages waiting for him in the courtyard, wearing belts. Their bodies are weak and lithe, lacking any real muscular definition, even if they are skeletal; one boy insists he is thirteen but looks eleven. Androchus chose to start rather than argue.
He couldn't have asked for better weather, both good and bad. Every morning for the past few weeks has seemed to be colder than the day before, and this morning was no different. Judging by the blue color of their skin, these young men had been waiting in the cold for a while. Once they started practicing, their trembling was replaced by sweating.
He spent at least two hours teaching them everything; kicks and punches, stretches, proper push-ups and squats, etc. He explained to me each time how to change the order and never do an exercise long enough to feel comfortable. He then asked them to demonstrate it again, and even though they were exhausted and could barely move, they seemed to remember.
"Well done, you weak little dwarf. Do this every morning and in six months you will be stronger than an adult. Keep it up for a year and your mother won't recognize you. If you can keep up. , I'll probably still be doing it here tomorrow. You're fired," he said. To their credit, they all more or less kept up, even the little one. Apparently, impressing women is a man's most powerful motivation.
After breakfast, he told his servant to let him pass as soon as the old man appeared. Gabby spoke from time to time, and her waking hours seemed to be getting longer and longer; she would comment on something in the room, then look around, even answer a question, then fall back into passivity.
The old man didn't show up, which made Ankerex a little dissatisfied. He wanted to know how the man knew about the kit. Something isn't quite right.
In the afternoon another prince appeared, and Androkel had to go to him. The boy was older, about sixteen, well-dressed, with the same hair and facial features as his brother. The prince promised him gold and a title, and hinted that if he behaved, the king might give him a daughter to marry. A
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Okles heard about him, asked him if he was the heir, and sent him away when he was not. A
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Okles wonders if he can continue his journey before the king himself appears. Another possibility is that the king will send twenty armed men, and Androker will have to get Gotzo
e's common room is a mess and she's going to be furious with him. Only time will tell.
That night the common room was filled with another crowd, almost to capacity, as many as the night before. He shooed Gabi away again, hoping another quiet night would help her recover. He could find her a home tomorrow.
Wolfscar spent the day hunting and ended up catching about thirty cockroaches. These were all cooked for him, and he ate them while listening to Androx's stories. It was hard to look away from him, though Androx could tell they were a little disgusted. The old man was not among the crowd that night.
* * *
The next morning, twelve young men braved the morning cold to wait for him in the yard. Although he tried to explain as little as possible this time, the newcomers quickly understood. WolfScar even took off his robe and tried to follow him for a while, then gave up and went to find something else to do. When the fairy started to help him do push-ups with his wings, A
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Okles almost laughed out loud. The faint grunt he was trying to make made him sound like an angry bird.
The old man didn't show up today either, and the crowd gathered again during dinner. This time, a large group of kids filled every available space near the couch, fidgeting, chatting, and more. A
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okles wearing Gotzo
The new robe e customized for him is dark green, with each edge and seam embroidered in yellow and white. It feels expensive, and probably is.
Androcles chose to tell them the story of his ancestor and founder of the tribe, Agapetus, the son of a water spirit and general of an ancient kingdom. Since then, fourteen generations have not forgotten him. Androcles tells how Agapetus strangled a gorgon with hair from her own thorn vines. He told them the story of his race with the Centaur to win his bride. He told them of his daring escape from Sewell's underground mansion in the days before the Sworn Father conquered the giant.
He borrowed heavily from the poet who wrote of Agapetus in one of his epic poems; although Androchus lost his meter several times and forgot how it happened, the crowd None of them had heard the original meter, and he doubted they'd noticed.
As he reached the end, where Agapetus had died defending his newly founded city against the barbarians, Androcles noticed a chill that was incongruous with the enthusiasm of the crowd. A mist drifted through the still air of the inn, and he smelled moss and a pungent smell like animal sweat.
Others in the room noticed too; some of them were pale and looked nervous. As the chill grew stronger, he could feel an evil energy building in the air, almost like a homicidal intent, but not outright malevolence. He began to stutter as he recited, becoming more distraught with each sentence. WolfScar whimpered, crawling through the collar into Androx's robe, looking for a place to hide.
When some in the crowd began to kneel and prostrate, Androx stopped his story and asked, "What happened?"
No one answered. He stood and looked around, frowning. The feeling and smell in the air became stronger and stronger, and even the children began to huddle together, hugging each other and looking at the ground.
Then the crowd dispersed around a woman, who walked toward him unobstructed. Her beauty stunned him; her full breasts and hips swayed gracefully, her bright red lips beckoned to him, and her sleek brown hair seemed to float behind her as she walked. She wore a robe of green and yellowed leaves that seemed to hover around her body rather than being sewn together. Its length left a lot of her legs exposed, smooth and flawless. She walked barefoot, but she walked so gracefully that she barely touched the ground. Her eyes stood out more than anything else when he noticed them: they glowed pure red, like pools of blood in the sun.
The power of her gaze struck him with such force that it left him breathless and his legs weak, until murderous thoughts arose in him, giving him strength. Her presence was stronger, but he could resist. An instinctive need to resist her moved him, though he didn't know why; maybe it was just that she seemed to be challenging him. He picked up his spear and stood erect, ready to meet her.
"That doesn't do you any good, losing one," she said. She has no human voice; instead, she speaks with the cacophony of nature. Her sounds are the roar of the wind through the woods, the cry of wild animals, and the rushing of a stream. The sound seemed to come from everywhere other than her mouth.
"Who are you?" he asked, cautiously but without flinching.
"Didn't my children tell you about me?" she said, laughing as she heard the snapping of branches. "I'm getting angry at them." I am Mary and everything is mine. "
Everyone in the room, except him, was kneeling as hard as they could with their heads on the ground. Most people found it difficult to control themselves in the crowds, huddled together like corpses waiting for a fire to be lit. Androcles realizes who she is: the Wild Mother, the goddess of the Cetals. He stood face to face with the goddess. The thought almost terrified him, and brought him to his knees like a savage; only his stubbornness kept him standing.
"What are you doing here?" he asked.
Her hair turned into threads of fire, and her teeth became as sharp as thunderbolts. "You have ignited my anger," she said, her voice like a ferocious wolf tearing at its prey.
Androx looked at her calmly, suppressing the trembling fear deep in his bones with raw discipline. Wolf Scar was shaking in fear in his robe, pulling at his chest hair in pain. A thought gave him courage: he had seen that hoe before, and she looked nothing like him. A
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okles can stand up.
When he didn't flinch, she stared at him intently, and he could feel the pressure of her will like a weight on top of him. It hit him mercilessly, and while he knew he couldn't hold on forever, his resolve wouldn't waver now. not yet.
She reached for him, pointing her fingertips at his forehead. He knocked her hand away with his spear. It hit her wrist with a snap that was sure to leave a bruise. Surprisingly, she sneered at him instead of getting angry. "There was an old wizard who said a warrior would appear and kill me," she said. "He was trying to protect things that didn't belong to him. They were mine."
She looked at her wrist. There was no bruise, but smoke. A
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okles can smell it, like a campfire. She licked it and it hissed; the smoke disappeared.
"Did he play with you and bring you here?" she asked, her voice like a woman's but with laughter and bells behind it. Her hair changed from fire to water without falling out or getting anything wet. Small fish swim in the curls.
For a moment Androx hesitated. Then he frowned, knowing she had caught him.
Mari laughed, his voice like crackling fire, and said: "Ah, he has! He always does. He is a manipulator and a plotter. Do you know who he is? Or is he hiding from him?" Did the warrior see it?"
"What do you want?" he asked.
"How dare you ask me, lost?" You can't even see clearly what kind of person I am, and you don't know how scared you should be. He saw the amusement in her blood-red eyes, and it made him a little angry. He held on to the feeling to stay strong.
She said, "Tell me, did He destroy your home to get you here? When you stray from His will, paving your path with rocks and thorns? Beating you with scorn and heartache?" ?Take away all your hope and happiness? ?Mold you until you are ready for His will?"
He was shaking all over, trying hard not to let the expression show on his face. It was all true, but he didn't dare show it. He asked: "Who are you talking about?"
She smiled, her voice like a hundred songbirds. Her laughter taunted and humiliated him, fueling his anger. This emotion strengthened his will and helped him hold on a little longer. The woman said, "Worship me and do not remember your other gods. I will not play with my children. If you honor me, I will bless you. If you do not honor me, I will curse you. I am Mary .”
A
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Okles mustered up all his pride and courage and said: "I want nothing to do with any god. I just want to get on with life until I can keep my vows."
"You have a weapon. He gave it to you. Do you know what it says? Or does it keep you in the dark like a child?" she asked.
"I don't know what it says, but I know what to do."
"It's dangerous. I don't want you to get it. I'm going to eat you because you killed my husband," she said, her hair turning to fire and her eyes sparkling. She opened her hand, palm down, on the table. An unseen force crushed her hand to pieces with a loud bang, and the remaining food and wine spilled everywhere.
"But if you respect me, I will let you keep it and your life. Give me that little girl and let me eat for you, and I will tell you where your woman is. I know you are looking for her. .For the rest of your days, pray not to other gods but to me and I will forgive you and I will hold you in my arms when you finally die."
She wants to eat Ga
bi? Did she mean that literally? He put on a gruff look to hide his growing fear and said, "I've killed too many people to count. Which one is your husband?" He couldn't do anything. Doing it would only delay time, even though the pressure of her presence almost crushed him.
"You call him Tartalo. His name is Sugar Snake Man, and once, he was beautiful and powerful," she said. The fire in her hair died out, leaving ash falling to the floor. "He was the storm in the air, the wind, and the delicious sunshine. His domain was taken from him, and he became dead like the rest."
Androx didn't know whether he should attack her or run for the door. Either her pressure was getting stronger or his was getting weaker; either way, his nerves were about to snap.
"This little girl was his gift to me. I want her. Let me eat her," she said, her eyes filled with blood.
"What do you mean 'eat her'? Really eat her?" he asked.
She laughed again, her voice like the roar of the wind and the cry of an animal. "I eat and get stronger. Strong enough to challenge them. It's faster than they like. I've eaten a lot and I'm going to eat more. So he sent you. He doesn't like me eating them. "
Androcles summoned his last courage, lowered his spear, and aimed it at her throat. He dug deep into his anger and gathered all his murderous intent. The sound was so violent and intense, full of anger and resentment, that it almost startled him. His intentions feel like the distillation of justice. powerful. His own intentions seemed to push her away, changing the balance between them. He declared: "She's mine, not yours. I'm not giving her to you."
She smiled again. "He will hide Della forever. You are just a toy to him."
"I'll find her. Get out of here now or I'll be called the Godslayer!"
All fun was gone from her face and her skin turned black and cracked, glowing like coal in the middle. She roared from deep inside, a terrifying sound, like a tiger staring at its prey. "You will watch me eat the girl. But first I will eat the children, both of them. I will cover your roads with hedges and vines, and guard them with jackals and bears. I will find her hidden Two sons, though she gave me the eldest. I will eat them slowly, starting from their ears and fingers, and take pleasure in their pain. It will make me strong. You will hear their screams, Know your helplessness. Then I will rip the girl from your arms and eat her slowly, enjoying her pain, which will make me strong. Only then will I eat you. Slowly. And Rejoice in your pain, which will strengthen me." She looked around and said, "Then I will punish my children with fire and wild beasts, because they have given you honor. They will give me many sons and daughters, and I Eating them and rejoicing in their pain makes me strong. Then I forgive them. I am always forgiving. I am their mother, Mary."
She raised her right hand, and it burned with incredible heat. "Now watch my punishment begin!" A fireball appeared, hovering above her palm and getting bigger and bigger.
