Chapter Text
The air, damp and warm, brought the smells of the forest and melting snow to the pier. It was as if a light, subtle ringing was heard over the awakening forests and fields of the Northern Land. Here, winters were cold and harsh, long and dark, but the more pleasant it was to greet Spring. It always came on time. With the efforts of pagan priests and priestesses, through singing enchanted songs and dancing in circles, people invited the Goddess of Warmth and Rebirth… And every year in the spring, guests from the distant lands came.
The boat bumped against the pier`s boards. Tall men and women, draped in fur coats, were sitting in it. Their tanned skin glowed like bronze in the rays of the spring sun. Decorously, they stepped on the ground, and immediately a bunch of children rushed from the shore to the village, shouting at the top of their voices: "The Greeks have sailed! The Greeks have arrived!"
Every spring, visitors from the South arrived to the Northern Land. They brought books with The Sacred Knowledge, wine, amulets, beautiful jewelry, soft and delicate fabrics which could not be found in North. And on their way back, they took honey, fur, runic stones and gems with them. And, what is more important, magicians from two completely different, but still somewhat similar lands met to find answers to the questions of the universe together. Together they solved runic riddles, read sacred texts… And the merchants were buying and selling. Year by year, spring by spring, the peace, settled by the common aspirations, lingered.
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The broad smile lit Jayce`s face the moment he stepped onto the damp snow. It was the first time ever he got the permission to visit the mysterious Northern Land. The son of merchants, young and full of strength, he was craving for adventures. The metal plates of his breastplate and belt rattled under his fur coat. "Safety comes first," the mother muttered, seeing off her only son.
Talis was an heir to the old Merchant family. His father became famous for forging weapons; his grandfather made his fortune sailing across the seas. And Jayce, heavily armed right now, strong, beautiful, was dreaming not about smithcraft and neither about being a merchant. His entire mind was occupied by magic, a runic canvas that the greatest learned magicians had tried in vain for centuries to decipher.
♦
Back in his childhood, he witnessed the REAL wild magic once. A beam of light, sparks, goosebumps all over his skin and the stood-up hair – that was what Jayce remembered down to the smallest detail. The mysterious Mage then disappeared, never accepting the reward for saving the city from the hordes of invaders, and leaving a ton of unanswered questions behind. But little Jayce managed to collect the fragments of strange crystals scattered on the ground. And since then, he dreamed of harnessing the runes, subjugating chaos and directing it for the benefit of people.…
♦
So far, he`s only been able to set off small explosions in the family forge and scare his mom. But the young man did not lose hope, and as soon as he heard that the magicians of the Northern Land understood runes much better than the sophisticated and calculating Greeks, he asked his mother for permission and sailed over the horizon towards hope.
Jayce took a handful of cold, slightly melted snow, and watched in amazement at the way it turns into the water, running down his fingers. He looked in an awe as everything around him flickered, as the sun played on wet branches and dazzlingly illuminated the snowdrifts that had not yet melted. He took a deep breath and hurried for his friends, who had already done tying up the boat and went straight towards the village. The knyaz♦ and a generous meal were waiting for them there. Precious crystals jingled in the pouch on Talis' belt.
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– Aaah, dearest guests! Welcome, welcome to the cold of our land! What have you come about with?
A bearded knyaz stood up ad opened his arms in a welcoming gesture. The Greeks were greeted with a set table, cheerful music and songs. Jayce, sitting down next to his friends, only had time to be surprised. The unusual speech stuck in his ears, but the young man could still catch the essence of the conversations – after all, he was preparing for this trip! As the most diligent student, he took lessons in the harsh Northern language, memorized strange expressions, wrote out and repeated complicated words several times. Still, being surrounded by new speech was a little disconcerting.… It's a good thing he hasn't had to talk yet.
Actually, Jayce was busy trying all the yummy stuff local cuisine could offer. He was aware, of course, about all the important conversations of the knyaz and Greek merchants, but the long tiring journey and the meager ship's food did their job – Talis greedily munched on everything he saw. Black, red and blue caviar, sturgeon, pike; baked roots, the names of which he did not know, but appreciated the taste; hot fresh bread… And things were happening all around him in the meantime.
– So, did you bring us your beautiful cotton this time? – The knyaz raised a metal cup to his lips and drank all the wine almost in one gulp. He was a tall, broad-shouldered man with calm eyes, and he was sitting alone at the table. Has he never been married? Was he a widower? Anyway, there were always two little girls in beautiful fur coats hanging around him, whom Jace noticed right away. Sometimes the knyaz looked at them in a fatherly way and smiled.
– Cotton of all colors and wine of all tastes we brought with us to you, knyaz. In exchange for sables, of course, and for wild meat! – The old Greek merchant put the cup on a table and grinned slyly.
– Daddy, daddy, will you buy the pretty earrings??? – asked the smaller girl with messy blue hair, clinging to a sleeve of a knyaz` fur coat. The man laughed loudly and, picking up the girl with his hand, sat her down on his knee.
– I will, my treasure!
The air was filled with laughter and the clinking of cups. Jayce`s nose stung a little from the frost and the smell of melting snow. Spring is spring, and yet it was still cold in the Northern Land. Jayce only managed not to get cold thanks to his fur-lined cloak and the wine he was drinking. His gaze travelled from one face to another, studying with interest. People of the Northern Land were paler, more severe-looking, their eyes seemed to sparkle like ice. They were serious and silent, but whenever someone made a joke, they burst into laughter and blushed. Jayce looked at them with the attention of an artist, memorized every detail, and tried to capture in his memory the shades of blush on people`s cheeks. The women here were not at all like the Greeks, but they were not inferior to the Greek women either in stature or dignity. Their long hair was braided, and their foreheads were encircled by hoops. Some women covered their hair with handkerchiefs, while others did not care about it and sat in the cold without even hats, and the tips of their ears were almost red. Everyone was sitting at a common table, and skomorokhs♦ in funny costumes were having fun on the field in front of the guests.
Tall thin man, dressed in long robes, stood next to the knyaz. He looked a little scary, with one eye closed and deep scars running across the entire left side of his face. Catching sight of the strange man, Jayce apparently opened his mouth too wide, and his friend gently nudged him with his elbow. Leaning closer, he whispered:
– This man is the knyaz` personal magician. Here, every ruler has such a defender, who is also an adviser. The northern country is fragmented; they are always on their guard.…
Jayce nodded curtly and looked around again, slightly confused. Jace nodded curtly and looked around again, confused. People laughing happily at the table, playing in the clearing, throwing snow at each other, looked happy and carefree. There was no way to tell from them that they were worried... but perhaps, as Talis had been told at home, people here were not as open as they were in sunny and prosperous Greece. Their worries, Jayce thought, were their own business, and they probably weren't used to sharing them with someone else... and the guests who just arrived were strangers to them after all.
After eating and drinking enough wine to make his head spin easily, Jayce closed his eyes and listened to the hubbub around him, smiling broadly. The unusual, sonorous singing of birds was interspersed with the laughter of children and the sound of a forest stream. A dog was barking somewhere. A rooster crowed in the distance. Footsteps on the snow behind him, the crunch of breaking snowflakes… The unusual orchestra of sounds was pleasant and cozy.
Jayce opened his eyes, leaned back, and picked up a handful of snow. The white frozen water sparkled beautifully in the sun. Before the beauty faded, Talis brought the snow to his eyes and began to examine the bizarre snowflakes, as if carved from crystal.… He didn't care much that the melting water dripped directly onto his feet, he studied such a new and unusual miracle of nature with childish joy. How lucky these people are to see this every winter!
Of course, he had no idea how devastating Winter could be. He did not know what a snowstorm was, how long the winter nights were, or how dark the Northern Country was plunged into in January and February.… He arrived in the spring, to the very awakening of nature, to the rebirth of it. Soon, in a few days, Maslenitsa♦ was supposed to be celebrated, people were getting ready to praise the gods and feast.
The hubbub of voices gradually subsided. When Jayce realized it was getting too quiet, he dropped the last of the snow from his palms and looked around, but almost no one was talking. Only his fellow Greeks and a couple of worried women were whispering. But why did the fun suddenly subside?.. Cursing himself for being careless and lost in the clouds, Jayce looked around. It didn't take him long to find the reason for the tension in the air – another figure appeared next to the knyaz, hunching slightly.
At first, Talis didn't understand if it was a man, a woman, or even a human. His fingers turned cold at the sight of the gray ears on top of the mysterious guest's head, his shaggy fur and the strange staff in his thin, bony hand.… As a child, Jayce had heard tales of werewolves living in the Northern Country, bloodthirsty and ruthless, prowling through the forests. About the werewolf knyaz, who turned into a huge wolf in battles, and about the friendship of the inhabitants of the land of long winters with forest wolves and bears.…
Jayce blinked. The shock receded, and the young man realized that someone was just standing with his back to him, and on his shoulders, he had a fur coat made of, apparently, wolf skin, with a hood - a wolf's head. The irrational fear of the unknown receded as soon as the Greek realized that this was not an ancient forest deity, and curiosity took over. Who is it? And why is the knyaz listening so attentively, frowning, to his quiet speech? And why is the magician with the scar on his face nodding slowly and cautiously at him? And as soon as Jayce, consumed by curiosity, wanted to push his older friend and quietly ask him about the nature of the guest.…
Mysterious guest turned around.
And Jayce`s breath hitched.
Talis himself would not have been able to explain why the stranger's gaze was so heavy. Why did the sight of his face make such an impression on Jayce? It was as if Jayce felt the presence of something otherworldly, so powerful that his heart sank. The stranger slowly looked around the guests with a tenacious gaze, and as soon as his eyes met Jayce's, it seemed to the Greek that something cosmic grabbed him by the very soul and shook him, leaving a feeling of goosebumps and an irrational certainty that this meeting was destined by something unearthly...
Although, as soon as the mysterious figure looked away, the feeling disappeared. After recovering from the emotions caused, apparently, by overexcitation from a long journey and a lot of new experiences, Jayce exhaled and began to examine the newcomer more closely.
It was a man, although if it hadn't been for the sparse hairs sprouting above his lip and chin, one might have mistaken him for a very thin, emaciated woman. His high, sharp cheekbones were all the more apparent because they were framed by long brown hair, some strands of which lightened towards the ends. Was he gray-haired? Jayce doubted it very much, because despite his extremely emaciated and sickly appearance, the man did not look older than thirty. It was difficult to see him in detail from afar, but somehow, even from a distance of several meters, you could feel his gaze burning. His amber-colored irises seemed to glow from within, and his large expressive eyes looked into the very soul.… Almost the entire body of the man was hidden under a fur coat, which was not surprising in the cold, but what was strange was his right foot, completely bare, which he calmly lowered into the snow and did not care about it. As far as Jayce could see, the skin on his leg was a strange color, as if one large bruise stretched from the tips of his fingers and up.… The thin hand clutching the staff was exactly the same.
The staff caught Jayce's attention later, but it was still something to see. Made as if from a twisted branch, it was long, almost as tall as the mysterious stranger himself. Runes were neatly burned along its length, and the base itself, resting on the ground, seemed to be charred. At the top, the staff forked, becoming like the horns of a wild goat, and between these "horns" were strings with stones strung on them... And, it seems, there was also a spider's web, in the center of which a fat spider was peacefully sitting. Talis shivered.
A strangely dressed man with a staff, Jayce's gut told him, was definitely a magician! Ancient and strong, judging by the silence… Although by looking at him, you couldn't really say that he was someone powerful and domineering, certainly not in that well-worn fur coat and not with that charred staff! But something that Jayce couldn't understand, something that didn't just say, screamed that this was a real, strong, incredible magician. The magician from the Northern Country who will help Jayce in his searchings!
While Talis was staring at the guest, he seemed to have finished his talking with the knyaz and smiled wryly. He looked around the guests again, full of knowledge and strength, suddenly bowed and almost whispered in a low, slightly raspy voice:
– Greetings to you, dear guests! Feast for our glory and for the glory of Perun♦. Have a good rest and good trading.
He spoke softly, but everyone could hear him. And all raised their cups and drank, obeying an obscure common impulse. Jayce also drank some wine.
When he lowered the cup, the magician was gone. He disappeared as quietly as he had appeared, and no matter how hard Jayce searched, he couldn't find the mysterious visitor anywhere. Then his friend, who had already been to these lands before, leaned over and whispered in his ear, explaining:
– This is the priest of Perun, their most powerful deity. He is feared and respected, and you, Jayce, should know that after the knyaz and his mage, he is the most powerful man. And is he even a human?..
After a pause, the older Greek suddenly burst out laughing:
– Well, look at those eyes! He won't eat you at night, ha ha ha! Relax and drink, Jayce, for Maslenitsa is coming soon!
And Jayce raised the cup to his lips again, and drank, but his thoughts were occupied with one thing – would this magician appear at the celebration? Would Jayce be able to talk to him?.. And why was he so sure that this priest needed to be talked to?..
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As the days passed, Jayce's initial excitement subsided. Everything stopped seeming magically rattling, steeped in mysteries and ancient magic. Along the way here, Talis managed to fantasize about how the priests in the Northern Country greet the sunrise every morning, how strange birds fly in the sky, and horses with golden manes and talking bears walk right through the streets.… Of course, there was nothing like that. The northern country lived an ordinary peaceful life, roosters crowed in the frosty air in the mornings, merchants traded in the streets.
The presence of something ancient was felt, of course, and in the evenings, sometimes, Jayce stayed for a long time next to the gray-bearded elders, who talked among themselves about different things. But, to the great annoyance of the Greek, most often the Ancients were not concerned with questions of Higher Magic, but with simpler things, such as when it was better to sow crops and when to drive out the cattle.
After about three days, Jayce realized he was bored. It was his own fault that he had set himself up for magical adventures, and upon arrival he was confronted with the usual trading reality… So on the fourth day, he began impatiently counting down the days until the upcoming Maslenitsa, hoping to cross paths there with the only one who occupied most of his thoughts lately. With a priest in wolf cloak.
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On the day of Maslenitsa, it seemed that even the sun rose earlier and shone brighter. After leaving the house designated for Greek guests, Jayce immediately felt a change in the air. The frost stung his cheeks more than usual, and maybe that's why the air seemed to be quietly pulsating with particles of the universe. Everything was ringing, the light reflected from the snow was blinding, and outside the gate, in the field right in front of the forest, there was a huge straw effigy.
When Jayce, throwing on a woolen raincoat hastily and pulling on gloves (which were generously donated by a local merchant), jumped out onto the road, he was immediately caught up in a whirl of laughter, dancing and fun. He didn't have time to make out what the beautiful local women were saying to him, what the men were shouting after him. How did he get a bunch of crispy dough rings in his hands? Who grabbed him by the elbow and dragged him towards the straw effigy? Everything happened so fast, so colorful, that Talis did not have time to turn his head and only responded to greetings and gifts with a wide, sincere smile. That, thankfully, was enough.
From the mountain, where there was still snow, people went sledding. Jayce also took a ride, almost flying into the trees and not being upset at all. Laughing, he quickly joined in one of the dances, completely not caring about the snow that was getting into his boots. He was having fun, and his friends were having fun at the celebration, too – so why shouldn't he enjoy the sun, laughter, and such unusual, interesting traditions? Jace had never been to SUCH a holiday before!
Snow flew up and swirled around Jayce, wetly settled on his face in cold droplets, sparkling, blurring his eyes. Talis could only hear laughter in the mad and cheerful dance, his eyes clinging to scraps of colorful shawls and skirts, bright festive shirts, his legs almost staggered, but the Greek had the dexterity to pull them out of the snow and manage to rearrange them, flying away with the dance higher, towards the sun, into the very…
Jayce didn't even realize how he'd gotten caught up in the dance and bumped into someone. However, someone jumped aside deftly, almost falling into a snowdrift... but they didn`t. And Talis fell. In an instant, the laughter disappeared, the dance continued, and Jayce found himself covered up to his shoulders with fresh snow.
COLD!
He jumped up and began furiously shaking himself off, bouncing first on his right and then on his left leg. Quickly, shake off the biting white snowflakes! But the white flies melted on Jayce's hot skin, turning into not very pleasant droplets of icy water.…
A soft laugh from nearby made Jayce stop brushing himself off and look angrily at the one who dared to laugh. "It's not funny!" he wanted to outrage, even taking a deep breath to express his opinion about all kinds of jokers.… And he just froze, amusingly opening his mouth and staring at the laughing man.
– So the Greeks are not used to looking at their feet? – almost sang the priest in the wolf coat in a cunning voice. The same one! The man at the sight of which everyone fell silent a few days ago! The one with the burning eyes!..
However, his gaze wasn't burning right now. In the light of the bright spring sun, his eyes shone softly with honey and amber. And the priest wasn't wearing a creepy wolf skin, although his shabby gray fur coat gave him some resemblance to a wolf. At least he wasn't making the same killing impression now as he had on the first day.…
– Did you swallow your tongue? Or are you busy staring at me? Pffft, the Greeks... - the priest sneered again and froze, watching as the blush flooded Jace's swarthy cheeks. Did mage enjoy the effect? Maybe. It was hard to tell, but there was a sly smile on the man's face, and his eyes narrowed, laughing.
Jayce, who`s gaze was really glued to the priest's face, hurried to close his mouth and straighten up. The desire to be indignant somehow disappeared immediately, and besides, Talis should have focused on driving the hot blush from his cheeks. Trying to maintain his dignity, the young man cleared his throat and extended a wide palm to the priest. Belatedly, he thought that maybe he shouldn't touch the priests, and he was doing something stupid.… How little he knew about the local customs! He thought he knew everything, having read all the books in the home and city libraries, but once he got to the Northern Land, the illusion disappeared. Jayce felt like a fool, but he didn't pull his hand away, not wanting to put himself in an even more awkward situation. Despite his embarrassment, he smiled broadly.:
– I'm terribly sorry, ah... priest. I didn't mean to. I was…
His tongue moved with difficulty. Jayce had managed to practice talking to the locals over the past few days and no longer had any problems understanding them. He liked the Northern language. The people here spoke a little differently, as if in their own dialects, but it was still not difficult to understand them.... It was difficult to speak. Perhaps his accent was slipping, in fact Talis was sure that he spoke terribly. But the priest seemed to understand him anyway.
– … caught up into the dance. Yes, I saw that.
After hesitating for a moment, the priest slowly extended a slender hand with long fingers to Jayce. The left one. A healthy one, if only such a thin limb could be considered healthy. Wreaths and vessels shone through the pale skin, and Jayce found himself staring at the priest again. Although the feeling of his all-encompassing power and importance was now slightly dulled, Talis still felt something. About the same vibrations of the air that he felt at the ceremonial festivals at home in Greece. Only in geometric and bright Greek temples did magicians radiate a sense of peace and order.… The northern magician seemed to excite the world with his presence, and next to him everything rattled and floated a little. Or did Jayce make it all up?.. He was always an impressionable boy.…
Thin, cold fingers wrapped around Jayce's hot palm gently, and the priest froze for a moment. He stared into Talis's golden eyes as if he had seen trough them. Understanding. Reading into the soul, the most secret desires, aspirations and fears. A light flashed in the depths of his pupils, and for a split second, Jayce felt the presence of something incomprehensible again. It seemed to him that reality itself stirred at the place where their hands touched. The almost scalding ice of someone else's fingers was pleasantly imprinted on his tanned skin. And then the priest smiled crookedly, showing charmingly uneven teeth, and tilted his head to the side.
– It is a pleasure to meet you, Jayce.
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✦ A Knyaz is a historical Slavic noble (or royal) title. It can be translated into English as “prince”, “king” or “duke”. His land (his state) is called knyazhestvo (yeah I know it`s tongue-breaking). In my case it is a title for a noble ruler, so it is really close to the “king” meaning. :)
There are also feminine forms of the title!
The prince`s wife or a ruling princess is called knyaginya (kniahinia, knyahynya)
Daughter of the prince is called knyazhna (kniazioŭna, knyazivna)
✦ A Skomorokh, simply speaking, is the buffoon. It is an actor who can sing, dance, play musical instruments and entertain.
✦ Maslenitsa (Butter Week or Cheesefare week) is a spring Slavic holiday. The traditional attributes of the Maslenitsa celebration are the Maslenitsa effigy, sleigh rides, and festivities. Maslenitsa may be the oldest surviving Slavic holiday. The celebration is meant to welcome spring, say goodbye to winter and eat a lot of yummy food :)
✦ Perun is a god from Slavic mythology. Although it is very difficult to talk about Slavic mythology as a whole, because it has practically been erased from history, and almost all mentions of it are speculation, the existence of the cult of Perun is one of the most proven and well-founded. Perun is the highest god of sky, thunder, lightning, war, fertility and oak trees. He is kinda a bit like Zeus.
Thank you for showing up for my ted-talk! XD