READ WEBNOVEL Spectator Mode: From Fireland to Winter Forest
Arkont Locane was second only to arkont Tikano, the greatest explorer of Mu Continent.
When Caliph Tze sent arkont Locane to Fireland to explore the Cipangu Dungeon – the largest unexplored dungeon of the southern archipelago – he felt that an opportunity of a lifetime had dropped on his lap.
Fireland had been previously under Suleiman's rule, but now Caliph's army had occupied most of the archipelago and every island seemed to hold unknown mysteries.
Thus, it was understandably disappointing when Locane got shipwrecked at the coast of Fireland and lost over half of his crew.
But Locane, young explorer eager to prove his worth for Caliph Tze, wasn't disheartened by this small setback. With under fifty surviving men in rowboats, Locane made it to the shore and traveled through the dangerous volcanic forests all the way to the recently established Cipangu Dungeon outpost.
With his platoon, and a small group of native slaves kept as baggage carriers, Locane launched the first Cipangu Dungeon expedition for the glory of Caliph Tze.
During the first days of the expedition, they easily reached the second level of the cave system and fought against small bands of weak deviants and one fire alligator, but they didn't find any Strangers treasures.
Neighbouring island of Tarsuaq had a silver mine, which was a great new source of resources for Caliph, but Locane knew that Strangers artifacts were the kind of treasures Caliph truly wanted. He also knew that local myths and legends about weird events provided useful clues to find such artifacts, so he questioned the native slaves.
The slaves told Locane a surprising tale from the past:
In the earlier eras of Suleiman Stonehat and Suleiman Lion's Mane Hat, there existed a tribe of hunters known as Cipangu, and their leader was a witch matriarch named Nekaterwitha.
Witch matriarch daughter, who's name was also Nekaterwitha, was captured by Suleiman Stonehat's conquistadors when they landed on the volcano island for the first time.
Nekaterwitha was delivered to Shikivan Om in chains and presented to Suleiman as the deviant whore princess of Cipangu Kingdom. Suleiman Stonehat rejoiced and decided to add Nekaterwitha to his harem (and become the new king of Cipangu as a side effect), but Nekaterwitha attacked Suleiman with her sharp nails like a tiger, disfigured him permanently, and then plunged herself to death through a palace window.
Suleiman Stonehat, greatly enraged by Nekaterwitha's effrontery, commanded all Cipangu people to die.
“When their elders are stabbed to death and their villages burn like bonfires, tell them to blame Nekaterwitha! I want them to curse her name with their last words!” (Suleiman Stonehat)
From that day onwards, Suleiman's death squads landed on Cipangu every week and hunted the Cipangu hunters.
War cries echoed in the forests that turned black from ash. Temples were burned and sacrificial walls were demolished.
Every Cipangu child on the island, distinguished by their brindled skin, was put to death.
But it took a long time.
When Suleiman Stonehat died from old age and his successor Suleiman Lion's Mane Hat rose to power, a declaration about the death of all Cipangu was finally issued. Death squads made their last rounds through the islands and left.
Still, legends about the great hunters who resisted Suleiman's death squads for decades continued to live in the memories of other tribes in the archipelago.
There was also a secret story about the witch matriarch Nekaterwitha's final desperate moments: when the death squads surrounded her home village, she sent his only surviving son with a selected group of women to the deepest parts of Cipangu Dungeon, telling him to impregnate the women and keep their blood alive there, in the darkness with monsters.
Nekaterwitha's descendants were still alive, the native slaves said. But they had turned into otherwordly ghosts that haunted the burning depths of the dungeon where cursed rocks flowed like rivulets.
To arkont Locane, it only sounded like the slaves were afraid of the deeper levels the dungeon and wanted the expedition to turn back, so they told an exaggerated ghost story to scare him.
But their tale had an opposite effect: Locane decided to follow the dangerous tunnels with hot gases and streams of lava instead of avoiding them.
When Locane found the twins, only eight of his soldiers were still alive. The giant monsters and wild deviants in the CIpangu Dungeon had collected a heavy toll in blood and flesh.
And before Locane got the twins to calm down and speak with him, the twins had already killed three of his eight men – trained, armored soldiers with firearms lost against these young boys carrying only sharp sticks.
The twins moved like master acrobats, faster than human eyes could follow, and attacked with their sticks like wasps stinging slow and helpless prey.
Locane immediately realized that the most dangerous beings in Cipangu Dungeon were not deviants or monsters, but these brothers.
What ultimately saved Locane were his past experiences with wolf child gangs in northern Mu Continent: children living alone in wilderness often created their own language, their own traditions and their own culture – their own explanations for the world around them. He had seen child deviants who thought they were like worms, lived only at night and ate just insects, and were deathly afraid of “day people”.
He understood that taking the attitude of a conqueror and forcing Caliphate on these kids would surely backfire.
Thus, with strong yet simple words and vague concepts, Locane persuaded the twins to stop attacking and voice their own desires.
The twins called themselves Krajannar and Bodhicoirn.
They lived in a small stone hut built inside a large cave illuminated by one ancient light pillar.
They didn't know they were Cipangu. They had no idea they lived on an island called Cipangu.
They said they were raised by “Grandfather” who was “elder shaman hunter” and spoke his language. They dreamed of killing and eating a great monster in human form called “Sulia-Man”, but that seemed to be the extent of the knowledge they had inherited from their parents.
They called themselves hunters and they hunted the dungeon monsters for food. Hunting was all they did, and hunting was their whole life.
“Listen, young hunters, we hunt the same monster! Sulia-Man is an enemy of our tribe as well! We call him Suleiman!” (Locane)
“You hunt Sulia-Man? Know where Sulia-Man's nest?” (Krajannar)
“Yes, I know! I can show it to you! Come with me to Reignland, come to meet the great chief of our tribe!” (Locane)
“Magic stick. Shoot fireball.” (Bodhicoirn)
“Yes, look how powerful our tribe's weapons are! Our great chief Caliph Tze can give you even more powerful magic weapons! Let's hunt Suleiman together with magic weapons!”
“We take part.” (Krajannar)
“You speak language of Grandfather. We take part.” (Bodhicoirn)
“Share meat?” (Krajannar)
“Yes, we will share the meat!” (Locane)
After this, arkont Locane was forced to eat the cooked flesh of his dead soldiers with the twins as a sign of trust and friendship. The twins wanted to eat the soldiers eyes because they believed hunters stored their skills in their eyes and Locane offered his share of eyes to them as well.
The twins told Locane that eating Suleiman's eyes was their Grandfather's dream, and their dream as well.
Locane was disgusted by their cannibalistic habits, but kept his disapproval to himself.
At least with his quick thinking and desperate pleas, he had convinced the twins to follow him to Reignland.
Caliph Tze, in his infinite wisdom, would surely find a way to correct their primitive habits and turn these human-shaped monsters into fine, civilized warriors of the empire.
And there was also an added benefit: Suleiman Onion Hat would surely explode in anger when he hears that two male Cipangu have survived the genocide and will continue their bloodline under Caliph Tze's guidance.
Several weeks later, a warship from Reignland appeared in the horizon.
Navark Nahum arrived at Cipangu Island to pick them up and arkont Locane welcomed the rowboats with signal whistles.
“So these are the so-called wonder boys, who you so praised in your message? Hmph. What's the use of adding illiterate savages like them in great Caliph's army? They are slender like two branches of willow and pale like silver slaves! Such camel cranes barely have enough strength to carry a full armor of a knight.” (Nahum)
“Lightning bolt is slender and pale, yet you wouldn't reproach it's power, navark Nahum. All the evidence you need is in the Cipangu Dungeon, if you care to take a walk and see for yourself. The brothers have survived to adulthood in a dark world of giant lung spiders and poisonous spike lizards. With some ideological education and soldier training, they'll surely become elite palatzaars in no time.” (Locane)
“Hmph. Batu, give these two scarecrows full gun uniforms and raincloaks, we'll see if their arms are strong enough to raise the sleeves.” (Nahum)
And so, under the Caliphate war flag, the twins sailed away from their home island.
They were greatly impressed by the fact that they could cross a great valley of water using a large longbowl that captured wind in straight trees of big white leafs held together by fat spiderwebs.
“This salty water around us is called Sea of Peace, the sailship we are standing on is called barquentine Haringoly, the butterfly sails are attached to masts, and the ropes that look like spiderwebs are called shrouds.” (Locane)
On the way to meet the great chief Tze of Reignland, the twins saw a star-shaped island that stood on blackstone pillars like a scorpion monster with five long legs, and a massive dark cloud swirled on top of the strange island, throwing flashes of twisted light.
“That place was built by an ancient tribe called Strangers. It's called Raft Island. We can't go there because there's strong curse around it. Don't look at it too much. Ultimately, it's just a mirage from far past. There are many things in this world left by Strangers – some of them we can use and some of them we cannot, but even the ones we can use, we do not fully understand.” (Locane)
Locane, a man without wife or heir, felt like he had unexpectedly become the father of two rogue children raised by monstrous wolves.
After a long sea journey, the small light strings flickering on the dark horizon turned to Caliph's bright harbor.
The original name of the harbor was Kraton Prevails, but it was more often called Warship City because the docks and piers were full of Caliph's warships, unfinished and finished.
Barquentine warship Haringoly slithered between stone piers and took its place in a line of many similar ships.
The twins climbed up the masts and flashed around the deck when they saw thousands of Caliphate soldiers marching around the wide city streets in straight lines like myriapods.
While the twins were still viewing the strange city sights like owls perched on bowsprit, an officer with a gray mustache came to meet Locane.
“Not a single bow into my direction! Locane, my old friend, you should lead by example and greet me with a bow even if we are the same age!” (Cyrus)
“Stratark Cyrus, I have returned successfully.” (Locane)
“You call it a successful expedition when you sink your ship and lose your men? Someone bring medicine! My friend has lost all perspective in foreign lands!” (Cyrus)
“I have brought living gifts worth more than a single ship or few men. Two living Cipangu will bring twofold glory to Caliphate: Caliph Tze will be pleased, Suleiman will be displeased.” (Locane)
“Tell them to come down so I can see their face. They must learn how to sit on a chair and eat with bamboo sticks like civilized people before they can be presented to Caliph Tze.” (Cyrus)
“One thing at a time, clear communication with them is quite hard already.” (Locane)
The twins came down to meet Cyrus when Locane called them.
“We take part.” (Bodhicoirn)
“Yes, boys, be grateful because you were born and get to live during exceptional times! Caliph Tze will soon travel to north and become the one who dominates both the past and the future!” (Cyrus)
“What?! Is the Moving Palace already moving?!” (Locane)
“That's right, old friend, the Moving Palace started its journey just yesterday! The time has finally come!” (Cyrus)
“Great chief hunts soon?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Listen, you vultures! I shall tell you more about our glorious leader! Caliph Tze carries a magic weapon that becomes a sword, a scythe and an axe. He covers his face with a featureless mask, controls the whole continent of Mu, and will soon become the emperor of the world! Caliph Tze is truly the Great Architect, who will lead us to Strangers paradise!”
“Cyrus, that's enough. They don't need to know such things yet.” (Locane)
After walking through the warehouse areas, Locane guided the twins down a long escarpment into a monorail already filled with dozens of other Caliphate soldiers.
While the twins were bewildered by the armed and sweaty soldiers packed inside oblong metal tunnel, the soldiers standing near the twins felt a primeval urge to run away from dangerous predators. The rapid, shadowy movements of the twins were only strange and nettlesome to those who lacked skills and experience, but for veterans of hundreds of battles, even small shifts of balance from leg to leg felt like harbingers of death.
With less disciplined soldiers, there would've been a stampede in the train carriage before the doors closed and the train started moving.
“Moving cave?” (Bodhicoirn)
“This is a vehicle called train. It is a machine built by Caliph Tze, based on Strangers design. The machine works by eating black rocks and moves in a straight line from Warship City to the City of the Sun over scorching desert. This machine is the fastest way to get to the heart of Reignland, to the City of the Sun... But since great chief Caliph has already started his long journey north, we will step off on halfway station and travel the rest of the way with a coach." (Locane)
After the train, in a horse coach going after the Moving Palace, the twins sat next to a group of elite soldiers going the same way.
“Why all warriors, wear same skin?” (Krajannar)
“All Caliph's soldiers are one with Caliph. We live together, we sleep together, we hunt together, we die together. You will understand when you wear the same helmet. When a human goes in, a warrior comes out.” (Locane)
“Understand, same?” (Krajannar)
“Why do you boys look the same then?” (soldier)
“We brothers.” (Krajannar)
“That's right! That's the reason! We are all brothers here! And soon we brothers celebrate our brotherhood in the Golden Cage!” (soldier)
The soldiers in the coach laughed, even though they also felt a weird fright in their heart when the twins looked at them.
“There will be bacchanals and insect dances, boys! We will drink the nectar of albinos and rub our bodies with oils! We will eat and we will vomit, and then eat again!” (soldier)
“Golden Cage?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Golden Cage is a lush garden where the finest women of Caliphate live. When you become the warrior of great chief Caliph, it is a promise great chief makes to all hunters: you will experience the paradise where heavenly women invite you into their rooms and follow all your orders. And on the other side of paradise, you can see hell through a clear glass: a place of torture, fire and pain for cowards who refuse to hunt with Caliph. It is both a promise and a warning: for great heroes and hunters, Caliph grants a personal key to Golden Cage; and for greatest cowards, there is a special place of a slow fire. Are you interested?” (Locane)
The twins were interested.
The Moving Palace had moved only about dozen kilometers away from the City of the Sun and looked like a large, colorful festival village in the middle of a desert plain.
Great domed oasis tents and wood-panelled rooms were linked together with tunnels and corridors, then strengthened with sandbags, bamboo frames and metal poles.
Horse wagons and mining vehicles pulled and pushed rooms around like set pieces in a grand theater. Slaves carried decorative furniture and statues from room to room, all day and all night.
Palace guards that looked like giants in spike armors stood at the temporary gates, and palatzaars with crossbows that shot grenade arrows looked down from movable pillar towers.
Locane took the twins inside the Moving Palace and was about to guide them straight to the Golden Cage wing, but a messenger came to inform him that Caliph Tze wanted to see the Cipangu brothers immediately.
“On this day, arkont Locane has arrived in front of Caliph Tze!” (courtier)
“Great lord, this humble one has returned.” (Locane)
Caliph Tze sat on a throne of black metal. He wore a simple robe made from white silk and his face was covered by a featureless silver mask.
Two tall, muscular women – an albino and an argyre – stood on each side of the throne, and on the both sides of the throne hall stood ten palatzaars wearing masks of silence, holding carbines and sabres.
Slaves hiding in the corners of the ceiling turned large mirrors and guided streams of sunlight inside the hall, illuminating Caliph Tze like the star of a performance, and other people as needed.
The twins held their noses because the heavy scent of perfume and incense in the hall irritated them, and when the mirror slaves directed sunlight at them, they quickly sidestepped the light beams.
All the guards in the room felt distressed by the unpredictable movements of the twins, but Caliph's fingers simply tapped the Starcutter on his lap with a relaxed poise.
Locane tried to signal to the brothers that they should get on their knees, but to no avail.
“We are most pleased about your predicted return, arkont Locane. We allow you to tell us a short version about your heroic story.” (Caliph)
“Apologies, great lord. My ship was ruined by Suleiman's petty tricks and the harsh conditions of Fireland took the lives of men I collected for this expedition. Alas, my great hardships were not fruitless, for I found these two brothers of Cipangu tribe, who are like thorns in Suleiman's eyes. As an apology and a gift, I give you Krajannar and Bodhicoirn from Cipangu.” (Locane)
Caliph Tze watched the brothers quietly, measuring their value. Locane understood that he should continue talking.
“Great lord, these twin brothers are wild hunters, but also great warriors. They have hunted the fire alligators and cave condors of Fireland dungeon ever since they were born. They wish to join the great warrior tribe of Caliphate and avenge the genocide of their tribe. They wish to do this by killing Suleiman.” (Locane)
“Twins.” (Caliph)
“Yes, great lord...?” (Locane)
“Age?” (Caliph)
“Sixteen, great lord, but they have lived like wild animals in a dark dungeon, so I–” (Locane)
“Enough. This confluence is above trifling details.”
Caliph Tze raised his hand and signaled a slave servant standing in the shadows to bring a blue dagger to Locane.
Locane took the blue dagger with shaking hands and dropped his forehead to the carpet.
“Thousand suns to merciful Caliph!” (Locane)
The blue dagger was a symbolic weapon given only to great explorers, treasure hunters and researchers of Strangers artifacts.
For Locane, this meant that Caliph had granted him status equal to arkont Tikano.
For the twins, this meant that Caliph had accepted to add their power to his own.
When Locane took the twins through the training quarters, they saw soldiers eating horse meat between flour cakes and throwing daggers to wooden targets painted to look like people.
“That target is painted to look like Suleiman Lion's Mane Hat, the father of current Suleiman Onion Hat. That's how they look, although more alive and less wooden, the ones who placed the death curse on you.” (Locane)
“Suleiman, black eyes, that too?” (Krajannar)
“No, the other target seems to be painted like a member of Dark Murderers gang. Great chief Caliph has many enemies, many strong monsters to hunt.” (Locane)
“Caliph hunts and eats, together with tribe.” (Bodhicoirn)
“That's right. Stay with Caliph and you will understand how to hunt all enemies and protect the great tribe with strength beyond strength. It must be done so, for this great tribe must prosper in peace.” (Locane)
Holy odalisques lived in circled wagons around the Golden Cage, and a bamboo-framed tent was raised inside the wagon circle. The outside of the tent was painted bright yellow to create an illusion of a gold-leaf covered temple.
Inside the Golden Cage of Moving Palace, young women and men in scanty clothes moved around in silvery chains, and through movable paper walls, the twins saw silhouettes of men and women in various positions of pleasure.
“I am arkont Locane! Bring the master eunuch!” (Locane)
Tando Bagho, the master eunuch of the Golden Cage, welcomed Locane and the twins with a deep, silent bow.
“Master Tando, I already know what I want. I will leave these boys for you. Give them what they want.” (Locane)
“Certainly, my lord.” (Tando)
Soon after Locane had disappeared into a private room with a young woman, Tando realized that the twins were not after exotic pleasures or orgiastic revelries at all: their simple desire was to impregnate virgin women of similar age to create more hunters to their tribe.
The only specific wish he could get out of the twins was that they didn't want their women to use any perfumed oils.
After pondering the matter for a moment, Tando called his assistant and ordered him to bring in certain named slaves from understudy.
Soon two young women wearing white garments and silver chains around their necks appeared.
“For master Krajannar, this is Sarafina af Maripol.” (Tando)
“I am Sarafina af Maripol.” (Sarafina)
“For master Bodhicoirn, this is Spell af Kenorland.” (Tando)
“...I am Spell.” (Spell)
“These ladies will do three favors for you and they are ready to bear your children. To the garden with them, red bamboo room, three moons over the door.” (Tando)
Tando offered the silver leashes to the twins and the twins followed the women.
In the garden of the Moving Palace, slave gardeners moved trees, bushes and flowerbeds in sync with the rest of the palace, and master landscapers covered desert sand with fake grass and set up giant mirrors on fake mosaic paths to uphold the illusion of a palace garden much bigger than it actually was.
Krajannar and Sarafina went down one path, Bodhicoirn and Spell turned to another path.
“I heard a rumor about you from arkont Locane's favourite... Is it true you lived in a volcano?” (Sarafina)
“Man, follows.” (Krajannar)
“Oh, that is Sahib, he's an eunuch. It is his job to watch us.” (Sarafina)
“What is, eunuch?” (Krajannar)
“Don't worry about him. Instead, what do you think about me?” (Sarafina)
“You, woman.” (Krajannar)
“Oh my, flattering me with such detailed compli–”
Krajannar couldn't wait anymore, so he pushed Sarafina down on fake grass and in few minutes it was over.
“What do you think about me now?” (Sarafina)
“Now, mother.” (Krajannar)
“I see... Do you miss your home?” (Sarafina)
“Now, give birth. Strong warrior. Eat many eyes. Share with tribe.” (Krajannar)
“My, what a strong and serious warrior you are... Caliph Tze likes strong, wild warriors, that's why his closest bodyguards are–” (Sarafina)
“No talk. Go. Mother, sleep.” (Krajannar)
Krajannar left Sarafina alone on the fake grass and hurried back to find his brother.
The first third of the Moving Palace moved in the morning, second third moved in the evening and the rest moved at night.
Everything was taken down, moved, and rebuilt day after day.
Next day, arkont Locane took the twins to meet other soldiers at the training grounds.
On a circular battle arena, novice knights trained with cold weapons. Long wooden racks were filled with swords, axes, daggers, clubs, spears, and chains. There were also wooden swords and softened hammers for less dangerous training.
“Lokhagi Kragan, I've brought the twins for your evaluation, as ordered by Caliph.” (Locane)
“Oh, they sure look lively for a dead tribe. I am lokhagi, and that means I am weapon master and war instructor. Kragan Cerray is my name.” (Kragan)
“Krajannar. Bodhicoirn. We take part.” (Krajannar)
“Really? An army is like a well-operated graveyard, like I always say. Weeds are cut only from the graves of heroes.” (Kragan)
“Another one of your weird metaphors?” (Locane)
“How about we see what your boys can do against fully trained knights.” (Kragan)
“No, lokhagi Kragan, I don't think that's a good idea.” (Locane)
“I was told to evaluate their skills, that's what I'm going to do. Real swords for real training, what's the problem? Let's just see if they can keep up with my knights for a while. Or are you afraid your newly adopted sons will hurt themselves?” (Kragan)
“...Kragan, did you read my report? I just brought them here for your evaluation. Have you gone blind? I can't take responsibility for what is about to happen, if you put them against knights.” (Locane)
“Bah, your reports and rumors are bloated! Put the meat on the skewer, are they wonder kids or not? Let the kids speak for themselves, I can see they can fight!” (Kragan)
“...Krajannar, Bodhicoirn, do you understand that this is only training? You attack, they defend; then they attack and you defend. If you get your opponent on the ground, it's over.” (Locane)
“Why?” (Bodhicoirn)
“For practice. To learn how to fight.” (Locane)
“Practice? Hunter against hunter?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Haha! Put a hunter to hunt a hunter, these boys are funny!” (Kragan)
“No, that's not... Listen, it's only play. Only a game, not real hunt.” (Locane)
“Hunt prey, play?” (Krajannar)
“Locane, they understand enough! Let's start!” (Kragan)
Despite arkont Locane's unease, the twins were directed to take their places on the battle arena. They wore only light leather armor and seemed troubled about what weapons to choose from the racks.
“Boys, take the wooden swords! Wooden swords!” (Locane)
“My knights won't go easy on them, no matter what they choose, Locane!” (Kragan)
The twins followed Locane's words and chose wooden swords.
Soldiers around the arena whispered and laughed when two Kragan's elite knights in full plate armor ascended in the ring. They both held a blunt steel swords.
“Krajannar, Bodhicoirn, just make them fall on their back and it's over! That's all!” (Locane)
“You always keep placing your krúricks on wrong dogs, Locane... Knights, you attack first. Begin!” (Kragan)
The knights went on attack immediately and fully expected a counter-attack from the strange movements of their young sparring partners.
When the first knight was about to strike with his blunt sword, Krajannar disappeared from his vision and appeared above him like a hawk about to catch a rat. The wooden sword in Krajannar's hand split into two spikes and one of the spikes went deep inside the knights skull through his right eye.
The other knight's end was equally fast. When he attacked, Bodhicoirn seemed to jump straight through him, suddenly appearing behind his back. The wooden sword was lodged in the knight's crotch between armor plates and a strong kick pushed the sword up to the knight's ribcage.
The audience went quiet.
Two elite knights were brutally killed in seconds and the twins looked like they hadn't use any force at all.
“This is exactly what I was afraid of. Are you satisfied, Kragan?” (Locane)
“...Well, I'll be. I should have trusted my instincts instead of doubting myself.” (Kragan)
Locane wiped sweat from his forehead and signaled the twins to come out of the ring, but they weren't ready to step out yet.
The brothers peeled off the protective plates from the dead knights like dismantling monsters, and started eating their dead eyes with great relish.
“No! Stop that! Stop immediately!” (Kragan)
“Bodhicoirn, Krajannar, please stop eating!” (Locane)
“...Not eat, why? Eat to live.” (Krajannar)
“...Now play?” (Bodhicoirn)
“What is wrong with your boys?! To desecrate their bodies like this, you should ha–” (Kragan)
“Don't say I didn't warn you, Kragan, don't say I didn't warn you! You were the one who threw wolves into goat corral and told them to play.” (Locane)
From the expressions of terror and repulsion on the soldiers faces around the ring, Locane could tell that the twins would not make any friends here.
When the sun went down, arkont Locane was invited to a meeting with stratark Qilvers.
When Caliph Tze was called Dragon's Head, Qilvers was called Dragon's Claw, as he was currently the oldest warmaster of Reignland and also rumored to be the closest friend of Caliph.
“– they were raised by echoes of volcanic eruptions. They talked a lot about their grandfather, but when I briefly looked into their hut, there was just a piece of petrified wood in the corner, decorated with eyes and stripes. Stratark Qilvers, I hope you can understand where they come from and why they are confused. For their defense, I would like to point out that they followed orders and did their best, as far as they could understand.” (Locane)
“What is your opinion, lokhagi Kragan?” (Qilvers)
“It is clear that they cannot take part in normal training exercises. They are not suitable for front lines either; our knights would stand constantly on their toes, if they were stationed in the same squad. This doesn't do good for slave morals.” (Kragan)
“...Caliph Tze wants the brothers to live because it makes Suleiman furious. In that sense, they are untouchable totems. This should be understood by all. However, there is disharmony in the heart of the issue: Caliph wants to parade the brothers around openly to rub his fist to Suleiman's face, but Suleiman will certainly send assassins after the brothers, so leaving the palace is not an option for them. Do you understand my worry?” (Qilvers)
“Yes, warmaster.” (Kragan)
“It will take time for them to understand the civilized ways of Caliphate and forget their wild instincts–” (Locane)
“I have already made my decision, arkont, no further talk is needed. Their education is a challenge indeed. Arkont Locane and lokhagi Kragan, you must take this challenge under the threat of losing your hands or heads. When Moving Palace reaches Wineep territory and summer walls are swapped to winter walls, I want to see a change from summer to winter in the Cipangu brothers as well. If drastic changes for the better are not observed by then, you will receive appropriate personal punishment.” (Qilvers)
“Understood.” (Locane)
“By your will, warmaster.” (Kragan)
“Krajannar, Bodhicoirn, listen carefully – in the civilized world, hunting alone is not enough to survive. You also need charming words and cunning explanations. Words are like invisible spider strings between people; they can be used as traps, as weapons, and for protection. You can weave tapestries of lies and even cut the red strings of blood that connect families. Thus, you must learn how to read and write to be able to hunt with the great chief.” (Locane)
“Language, in the trees?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Yes, that's right. Tribes leave their markings in the trees and animals leave their scent to mark their territory, it is just like that. And there's more weapons for you to learn, greatest weapon of them all being knowledge – knowledge about enemies, about the world, about new hunting grounds. You do understand, right? Knowledge is power over the ignorant like money is power over the poor and weapons are power over the weaponless. The words and knowledge of great chief Caliph Tze is the power that connects our great tribe: he knows the fifteen words to tempt a person, the nine words to have an executioner spare your life, the eight words to turn people on your side, and the seven words to have someone love you forever. You can hunt animals who don't speak, but if you want to hunt monsters that use the magic of language, you must learn the same magic. Remember how I talked with you in the dungeon, in your home? With sharp words, you can fight and hunt even without raising your hands.” (Locane)
The twins listened and tried to understand.
“Great chief drink blood from skull?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Great chief share brain, eat? Grandfather drink source, great voice under?” (Krajannar)
“Let's go through this slowly...” (Locane)
Locane wasn't sure if the twins were asking simple, naïve questions or somehow jumping ahead of him.
Months later, the great caravan called Moving Palace crawled over the northern coast Wineep Isthmus.
The days became shorter and the nights became longer, forests thinned out and snow-capped mountains rose behind glacier fields that looked like shattered glass.
Thin carpets were replaced by animal furs and bonfires were lighted on frozen swamps.
The twins sat in a mining vehicle driving at the front of the caravan, drinking warmed wine under thick blankets.
“There's a large open dungeon south from here called Wineep Dungeon. Great chief mines the black crystals that power Strangers vehicles and machines. In your dungeon, there were black crystals as well, but it would be much harder to mine them and move them out from there... But if the easy dungeons dry out, then hard dungeons become important. Great chief Caliph Tze looks far in the future and prepares for all eventualities by exploring exotic dungeons. That is why our great tribe prospers.” (Locane)
“Who is Wineep?” (Krajannar)
“You mean the origin of the name? That's a good question, I don't actually know. You should ask from your court etiquette teacher Sorady.” (Locane)
“What is black crystal?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Another good question. It is said that black water crystallizes and becomes black crystal, and sometimes continues to become black metal and white metal. Strangers, the ancient hunters, built everything out of it, all towers and machines, and used it as fuel for everything. It is a miraculous material that makes things move. But where does the black water come from? What is the origin of the black magic that seeps through? That is truly a mystery of highest order.” (Locane)
“Where are Strangers?” (Bodhicoirn)
“You sure are full of questions again! Like I explained last time, Strangers were the great hunters who hunted everyone everywhere. They were eating the world, but something came up and they left in the middle of the meal, and now we wait for them to come back to finish the meal. We are like rats living on scraps. But great chief Caliph Tze will change all that. He will become one with the principle of the world and make the Strangers his slaves when they come back!” (Locane)
“When will hunt?” (Krajannar)
“Patience, young hunters. We will hunt soon, it will happen in the near future. Great chief has many important things to do now, so you must wait patiently.” (Locane)
Locane was concerned about their bored expressions during daily lessons of reading, writing and calculating.
They had already learned how to use firearms and gunpowder, as well as how to drive mining vehicles and use common Strangers artifacts, so there wasn't much new to teach them about the tools of war either.
Prisoners were brought to the twins as practice targets, but they didn't show much interest in hunting underfed weaklings. They wanted to go out and hunt Suleiman and other powerful monsters.
Locane kept reminding them that everyone must wait until great chief Caliph is ready to lead the hunt personally.
Only constant visits to the Golden Cage reduced their boredom, but lately even those visits made them show troublesome expressions – they expected to see their children born, but somehow their “wives” didn't show much signs of pregnancy.
Locane felt conflicted because had heard unfortunate information from Caliph's court physicians. Should he tell his adopted sons that their seeds were weak and unable to bear fruit?
One day, there was a sudden commotion in the Moving Palace when messengers from the west brought unpleasant news to Caliph Tze: a certain secret dungeon station had been destroyed by unusually powerful gunpowder explosions and important artifacts from the stations had been stolen. The potent perpetrators of this heinous act were a mystery, although Suleiman Onion Hat was obviously the first suspect on the list.
Immediately following these news, Caliph Tze sent a special envoy of elite palatzaars back to south to reinforce the defenses of another dungeon station and ordered dozens of death squads to patrol the borders of Reignland, for he believed that the perpetrators and the living artifacts of the Bone Dune Station would certainly travel south next – to either steal more Strangers artifacts from the Giant's Dungeon, or to destroy his new submersible warship Hadodoah from the harbor, or to destroy the Strangers Cube in the White Palace of the Sun.
Caliph's advisors were against sending so many palatzaars back to Reignland, but Caliph was adamant:
“It is already too late for my enemies to stop the destiny written in the principle of the world. After we become one with Rukhkh's Egg, we do not need bodyguards. The circle will be complete and all insects will die under our boots.” (Caliph)
Moving Palace descended into the massive cave of Rukhkh Mountain and the long journey was finally over.
The walls of Moving Palace merged with the ancient Strangers fortress on the first level of the mountain dungeon, while deeper in the dungeon, where fisher slaves sawed ice blocks from an underground lake, Locane arranged a special hut for the twins to live in. It resembled the one where the twins had lived in Cipangu Dungeon.
Yet even this wasn't enough to mitigate their dissatisfaction. Rukhkh Dungeon didn't have any strong monsters to hunt.
“Arkont Locane, I am full of sorrow because of these brothers! They killed the painting teacher with a paintbrush, arkont, with a paintbrush!” (Sorady)
“Oh...?” (Locane)
“That's all you say, oh?! Look, my hands are shaking! Do you want to hear what they did when I tried to teach them how to read maps? They ate the maps, arkont, Caliph's valuable maps!” (Sorady)
“Do not despair, Sorady, I hear and understand. The twins have been returning to their old wild ways because they are frustrated. I am working on how to mitigate their frustration. Please don't spread bad rumors in the palace, there are more important matters in Caliph's mind.” (Locane)
“Arkont, it is impossible for me to look at these matters through my fingers! Discipline is needed for these brothers, not rewards! If only I had known it would be like this when I promised to help you–” (Sorady)
“This discussion is getting old. Consult lokhagi Kragan, he shares the burden.” (Locane)
“I came to you after talking with lokhagi Kragan!” (Sorady)
“What then? Do you want me to disturb Caliph himself with such trivialities? Caliph has retreated into his study to research new Strangers artifact that was sent by our soldiers stationed near Stray Dog City. They intercepted Suleiman's troops and found an artifact unlike anything he has seen before. This artifact confirms our theory that Suleiman has started a new campaign against Caliph using previously unknown Strangers powers both in east and west... and you wish to disturb him with mere maps? And like I said, I'm working on it.” (Locane)
“Locane, as your friend–” (Sorady)
“Just cancel all further lessons in arts, they don't need such things! It was a failed idea from the start. They have learned enough lessons and earned their rewards. It's a good time, a good time to let them go all out and show to everyone that they are strong and trustworthy brothers in arms... I will send them on a real mission with the knights at the edge of the Winter Forest. They will surely form bonds with soldiers and knights when they stand shoulder to shoulder against dangers of cold winter nights.” (Locane)
“Locane, you still talk about them like a father worried about their sons who can't make friends.” (Sorady)
“How could I not think like a father? I must protect and teach them, but they must also learn how to work in the world by themselves. They must learn to march as Caliph's knights, or I might still lose my head.” (Locane)
When stratark Qilvers accepted Locane's suggestion to send the twins to Winter Forest, knights preparing for the same expedition received the news with nausea and animosity.
“They still walk proud even after butchering Chay and Ksyghar. Where is the punishment and shame they deserve? They are not knights, they are just wild dogs!”
“They get private whores and private teachers, and shoot with the finest carbines and revolvers, yet contribute nothing. For the glory of Caliph, they should be thrown away.”
“I join your disapproval and spread it as I go, brother.”
“Hear my proposal. Before the snow fills the land, the expedition to the edge of the Winter Forest will depart. The names of the wild dogs are on the list. Winter Forest is a dangerous place and the mission takes a long time. Accidents happen, brothers.”
“What are you saying? An accident will happen to us, if we try to assassinate them.”
“They lived in a volcano. Have you seen how they shiver in cold without fur coats? When we enter the true coldness of Winter Forest, they'll become as weak as rats. They are wild and unpredictable; maybe they absconded. We can't know where they went and what happened.”
“We will be punished heavily for conspiring against Caliph.”
“No, lokhagi and arkont are the ones who will receive the punishment. Despite our warnings, they decided to send these unpredictable flames in a hay barn. We only tried to restrain the raging fire, that is all.”
“It is dangerous to even talk about this...”
“Arkont and lokhagi have proved with their actions that we are just meat shields to them. The twins cannot be touched in the palace, but now an opportunity has emerged. We must not waste it. The spirits of Chay and Ksyghar demand revenge. Are you with me, brothers?”
In the light of the rising sun, the knights and soldiers marching to Winter Forest left multiple snaking paths on the black fields covered by white snow.
While the soldiers carried heavy backpacks and slaves carried the knights backpacks, the twins sat under fur blankets on wooden sledges pulled by slaves like foreign princes. This method of traveling incited the knights motivation to get rid of the twins even further.
The knight captain chosen to lead the expedition, Gafanzar, happened to be one of the men who was part of the cabal.
“Men, you can already see the snowbanks, that's the border of the Winter Forest! The knights will go in first, soldiers will follow in two hours! When you cross the threshold, the wind will push you inside the forest. Let it happen! When you cross the wind zone, you will arrive at the calm zone. That's the zone where we will set our camp. Do not leave the calm zone! If you can feel a light breeze from the wind zone in your back, you haven't gone too deep in the forest. Going too deep inside the forest is absolutely forbidden! If you start to hear strange singing, you are too deep! Any questions?” (captain)
“Suleiman, in the forest?” (Bodhicoirn)
“...Yes, he's in the forest.” (Gafanzar)
No one disputed Gafanzar's lie, which made the knights feel that they were on the right and everyone wanted to leave the twins behind on this expedition.
When the brothers left their sledges and climbed over the snowbanks with fur-covered snow shoes, they entered the wind zone and the knights following them kicked their plan in action without hesitation.
They split into to two groups, approached the twins from both sides and fired their first shots from knight captain's signal:
“No! It's an enemy ambush! In the name of the Caliph Tze, save these brothers! They are in mortal danger!” (Gafanzar)
Carbines kept spitting lead and long icicles dropped down from tall spruces.
The twins used their deviant skills to avoid damage, yet the heavy wind and heavy snow coupled with honest confusion about the situation slowed their movements.
“Great chief hunts own tribe?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Hunter to eat hunter?” (Krajannar)
After the first volleys, the knights retreated further back to the wind zone. Even with their hidden step skills, the twins could not effectively jump against the pressure of the wind.
“Save the Cipangu brothers, brave knights! Shoot the unknown enemies who try to kill them!” (Gafanzar)
The twins hopped in the calm zone and the knights chased.
“Caliph Tze hates these enemies! We must shoot until they return in the forest! Do you hear me, enemies?! Return to the forest and never come back!” (Gafanzar)
The gunfight between the brothers and over sixty knights continued for a while, but eventually the twins decided to run deeper in the forest.
Their bodies felt sluggish and they had used most of their ammo. They knew when it was best to give up on difficult prey and conserve strength.
The brothers stopped in an opening surrounded by frozen bushes that looked like giant snowballs and talked about their situation.
“Effortless women and effortless food. Great chief has only fattened us to hunt as like prey.” (Bodhicoirn)
“Monsters eat their own offspring when they are too lazy to hunt.” (Krajannar)
“Grandfather was right to not trust Outsiders. The outsider lands are cold and too bright. We must protect our eyes and mouths from these elements.” (Bodhicoirn)
“One of us will protects eyes, other will protect mouth. One survives, if other succumbs to elements.” (Krajannar)
“You speak truths, brother.” (Bodhicoirn)
“We are on unknown hunting grounds. Can we trust the truths spoken by teacher Locane?” (Krajannar)
“Trees of Threes, Sun Hole, Snowsnake, Ice Creek. These are the things he said.” (Bodhicoirn)
Locane had taught the brothers what awaited beyond the calm zone of Winter Forest, just in case they accidentally stray from the plan. This vague knowledge from old reports – a list of semi-permanent landmarks – proved to be more useful than expected when the knights kept pushing the twins deeper in the forest, until rising snowstorm forced the knights to give up the chase.
When the knights returned early from the Winter Forest expedition, they had a tragic story to tell:
“Hunger and cold turned the brothers into monsters! They turned into half-men, half-wolves, and their claws and teeth grew long! It is the curse of the cursed ones! They howled like wolves and ran away without looking back! We tried to follow them and save them, but their tracks disappeared in the snowstorm! Truly, they were wolves in human skin, that was the shocking truth! Oh, now I understand, this behavior must have been the reason Suleiman of the old wanted to eradicate Cipangu! Such dangerous creatures without any sense of humanity or reason should be hunted by death squads and bounty hunters!” (Gafanzar)
When the sun rose again in the Winter Forest, the twins woke up in small ice cave.
Although the windless forest under deep snow was eerily silent, the brothers thought they heard a strange song – a low, gurgling melody of vehicles moving in snow.
They moved deeper, crossed a frozen river following the sound, and crouched behind an ice wall formed between fallen trees.
They saw five tracked vehicles moving in single line. Five warriors in scaly blue armor rode these strange vehicles like horses, holding sickle spears made of wood and bone.
Suddenly there was a collective war cry, and the five vehicles turned – the twins realized that sunlight had reflected their shadows through the ice wall.
Bodhicoirn shot the first rider in the head with his carbine. The warrior dropped in the snow on his back and his vehicle stopped, but the bullet didn't penetrate his scaly helmet; Bodhicoirn then appeared on top of the temporarily disoriented warrior, grabbed the sides of his helmet and forced his head backwards.
Krajannar used his skill to jump on top of the second vehicle and pushed his dagger in the armpit of the second warrior. The surprised warrior tried to shake Krajannar off, but the vehicle crashed on snowbank and turned over.
The three other snow warriors switched their weapons, and poisoned bolts flew from their short crossbows.
The twins disappeared, the bolts missed, and the twins appeared on top of a bent, frozen tree.
Suddenly, there was another war cry and a different machine song coming from the other side of the frozen river.
A second tribe riding aerosanis came with a force of seven vehicles, and these vehicles had skis instead of tracks. The new warriors wore red helmets and looked like great bears in their heavy fur coats.
The twins immediately understood that these strange tribes riding different types of vehicles were enemies, so they jumped and ran away, leaving the tribes to fight amongst themselves.
Following the wide paths left by the tracked snow vehicles, the twins went deeper in the forest through a jagged valley of ice and saw the first village of the scale-armored tribe: the Source Tribe.
They climbed on top of ice shelf and looked down to the village that was built on top of round island in the middle of a frozen lake.
The island village was surrounded by icy trees connected into a wall, and the middle of the village was like a market square built out of white stone. On every corner of the square, there was a domed watchtower, and in the middle of the square was a sacrificial altar with a statue of a thousand-eyed god.
“They eat?” (Krajannar)
“Sacrifice to ancestors?” (Bodhicoirn)
The twins watched curiously when they noticed that a human sacrifice was being prepared: a young woman wearing nothing, shivering from cold, was placed on the cold altar by tribesmen.
A shaman wearing a horrid bone mask came out from an ice hut carrying a long pole, and without further ado, started beating the woman with the pole like she was a dirty carpet.
When the woman stopped screaming, a green spiral appeared out of nowhere near the statue of thousand-eyed god.
At the same time, white dogs in cages around the village started barking furiously.
The shaman walked over and started stirring the green spiral with the bloody pole like a cauldron. Soon there was a flash of light brighter than sunlight, and the pole in shaman's hands turned green.
“Holy Source has accepted the red string! Where is Jirisbey, where is Tay-Tay? You must ride!”
The tribesmen around the square exclaimed in manic joy when the shaman spun the green pole above his head and placed it on top of one of the snow vehicles at the edge of the square. The vehicle immediately started singing in low voice.
“Ride! Ride!”
The warriors let out of crazed cries when one them jumped on the humming snow vehicle, ready to join the war.
He rode the vehicle around the village in a frenzy, waving his sickle spear and waiting his companions to join him.
“Suleiman's hunters?” (Krajannar)
“Suleiman's hunters ride colorful horses or dark vehicles with wheels, not rolling carpets or skis like this. These are all outsiders.” (Bodhicoirn)
The twins looked at the multiple tribal villages far away on the other side of the frozen lake. If something similar was going on in every village, they had no way to win.
The endless forest of ice and snow behind the villages didn't look inviting either, so the twins decided to head back without hunting or eating anything.
The twins headed east, or maybe south – it was hard to tell in the Winter Forest because the sun seemed to rise from different direction every morning.
They found a pack of monstrous wolves, which they used to fill their empty bellies. The meat of the wolves was white like worm's, and tasted horrible, but the twins ate anyway.
Before sundown, the twins saw a group of Staff Tribe warriors hunting a Bone Bear with their aerosanis, and studied their hunting techniques in hiding.
Next day, they found a small ice tower outpost of the Staff Tribe and killed the four warriors inside. They collected their weapons and supplies, and left the outpost driving one of the aerosanis together.
At the end of the day, the aerosani stopped and they had to continue on foot.
They found multiple tracks of warriors and monsters heading in many directions, and followed the monsters tracks.
Two days later, they encountered a strange apparition called Stick Witch.
She was a white-skinned woman with green hair and mouth full of sharp teeth that resembled a bear trap. She appeared in front of them from behind a tree, dressed in green tunic and holding a red staff with a red pennant.
“You are not from the Source! You were not born here! You will wear the wreath and kiss me! Kiss me!” (Stick Witch)
This apparition was the most frightening monster the twins had ever encountered – even more powerful than great chief Caliph Tze, who they had seen using his Starcutter during their long journey north.
Bodhicoirn shot the apparition with his carbine and revolver, but the bullets simply went through its body without any resistance.
Krajannar tried to cut the witch's eyes, but the knife cut only empty air, and when the apparitions red staff touched his fur coat, it burst into fire and he had to throw it away.
They had to run away again.
The apparition used a strange movement skill to appear from trees in front of them, but gave up the chase immediately when they split up and hopped into different directions over a field of ice devoid of trees.
Soon the twins heard the humming songs of aerosanis behind them and long hunt started.
Warriors of the Staff Tribe chased them for two days.
They killed a few of the warriors and managed to survive their ambushes, but they were already fighting at the limits of their strength.
Finally, on the third morning of the chase, they found a circular stone monument covered in blue ice and saw the sun shining through a hole at the top of the monument.
“Sun Hole?” (Bodhicoirn)
“Snowsnake, Ice Creek, then the strong wind. That is what Locane told us.” (Krajannar)
“We can go out, if we find them.” (Bodhicoirn)
After a long and strenuous tour of being hunted like weak foxes, they once again felt the strong wind blowing from the edges of Winter Forest.
“We gained strength and knowledge when we ate at great chief's house, but it was not enough. We must hunt more and more to become greater hunters.” (Bodhicoirn)
“It is so. In these hunting grounds, we will one day return. When we are strong.” (Krajannar)
“Brother, we can only dangle from a weak strand of a spider, if we trust only our own strength. We must use the power of great hunters, use their teeth as our own.” (Bodhicoirn)
“You speak truth, brother. We will take their teeth.” (Krajannar)
When they walked against the wind, Bodhicoirn stopped abruptly and pointed at one of the ice-covered trees.
A sooty glyph was carved in the frozen bark.
“Brother. It's Grandfather's voice.” (Bodhicoirn)
“Grandfather's voice in the trees? Why it is a sign for a hunting party?” (Krajannar)
“Look, another tree over there. Another sign so close.” (Bodhicoirn)
“Sign for rain, and there is another one, sign for fire. Grandfather's voice has turned strange.” (Krajannar)
“Brother, what is that sign over there? Is that great chief's voice?” (Bodhicoirn)
“A bird? A bird with a long beak? I do not know.” (Krajannar)
The brothers followed the mysterious and disorderly signs, and when the sound of howling wind ceased, they heard the sound of flowing water.
It was as if spring had arrived.