Chapter 18 Chapter 7

At first I recognized the car. Then he recognized the savage walking down from it. Feelings of sadness, heaviness, and despair welled up in my heart.This man was the one who rescued me when I ran out of the "Magolaju" restaurant in the form of Olga. I should have guessed it earlier, right?If only I had more experience, more time, and more calm.The woman in the car with him—after taking a look at her features, Svetlana described her aura to me in detail. If I could recognize this woman at the time, it meant—I And the wildlings will be recognized.Then this could all be over while I'm still in the car.

But now—how is it going to end? I escaped into the Twilight as the wildling looked in my direction.Maybe it worked, and he walked on, toward the gate.I once sat down there by the garbage pipe and had a sombre conversation with the white owl. The wild man went to kill Yegor.Everything is as I guessed.Everything was as Zaburon expected.The trap was right in front of me, the taut springs starting to compress.Just one step at a time, and a well-done campaign would make the Day Watchers happy. Where are you, Zaburon? Twilight gave me time.The Savage continued walking toward the house, moving without haste, while I looked around for signs of dark forces.Whether it's footprints, breathing, or shadows...

Surrounded by huge magic energy.All the threads of that reality rushing into the future come together here.Here is the intersection of a hundred roads where the world decides where it will go.But it wasn't me, it wasn't the Wildling, it wasn't the little boy alone who could decide, it was all of us caught in the trap.We were all playing tricks, one was ordered to say "dinner please," another was ordered to fall down, and a third was ordered to go up to the guillotine with his head held high.This part of Moscow was once again the scene of a bloody battle.But I did not see them, neither the Darkbringer nor the Lightbringer.Only the Savage was seen, but he was not yet accepted as Other, just a flicker of concentrated power on his chest.At first I thought I saw the heart, but then I realized it was the weapon with which he had killed the Darkbringer.

What's the matter, Zawulong?I feel wronged, absurdly wronged.I am coming!I'm stepping into your trap, look, my feet are up, it's about to happen, where are you? Maybe this dark magician is so stealthy that I can't spot him with my power, or maybe he's not here at all. I lost, totally lost.Because I can't understand what the enemy means.There should be an ambush here, because when the wildlings want to kill Yegor, the dark forces will definitely destroy him. How to kill? You know, I'm already here.I would explain to him what happened, tell him about the patrols following each other, tell him about the peace that forced us to remain neutral, tell him about humans and others, tell him about the human world and the Twilight.Tell him everything, just like Svetlana, and he will understand.

Will you understand? What if he couldn't actually see the Light Force yet! The world was to him—a gray, stupid herd.The dark ones are the wolves that walk around the flock and take the fat lamb.And he himself was a shepherd dog, out of his mind with fear and rage, unable to see the shepherd, running about and dealing with all of them by himself. He won't believe me, and he can't believe it. I lunged forward at the wildling.The gate has been opened, and the wild man is talking to Yegor.Why did he, this stupid little boy, come out so late in the night?He already knows very well what power is ruling the world during this time period.Can the savage seduce his victim?

Gossip less.Attack from the Twilight Realm.Control him first, explain later! As I ran through the invisible barrier, the Twilight sounded like a thousand wounded screaming.Three steps away from the wildling, I had raised my hand to attack, but hit the transparent wall, lay flat on it, and slowly crawled to the ground while shaking my buzzing head. Bad, how bad!He did not understand the nature of magic.He's a self-taught magician, he's a good madman.But when he's running errands, he covers himself in a protective cocoon.I covered myself subconsciously, but I didn't feel relieved by it.

The Savage said something to Yegor, and then withdrew his hand from the lapel of his suit. Wooden short sword.I had heard something of this powerful, yet childish magic, but had no time to recall it now. I slipped out of my shadow, into the human world, and jumped on top of the Savage from behind. When Maxim raised the wooden dagger, he was knocked down.The world around him turned gray, and the little boy's movements began to slow down. Maxim saw that at first his eyes widened in pain, and then slowly lowered his eyelids.The night has become a table in the twilight world. He is used to conducting trials and making judgments on this table. No one can stop this process.

But this time he was stopped, knocked down, and thrown on the tarmac.At the last moment, Maxim quickly stretched out his hands to support him, turned over and stood up. Here comes a third person.Why didn't Maxim find him?How did the latter slip away to him who was busy with important matters?The brightest force in the world that took him to battle had kept him separated from spectators and superfluous visitors. The man was a young man, who seemed to be younger than Maxim.He was wearing jeans, a turtleneck sweater, and a bag on his shoulder—at this moment he moved his shoulders, took off the bag casually, and threw it on the ground.With a gun in hand!

How bad. "Stop," said the man, as if Maxim was about to run somewhere. "listen to me." Was it a casual passer-by who took him for a psycho?But what about the pistol?What about the cleverness with which he had slipped in?Are they secret agents in plain clothes?But this kind of person will shoot, will kill people, and will never let people get up from the ground. Maxim looked at the stranger, bewildered by terrible conjectures.What if this is another dark emissary?He would never have the chance to meet two at once. But there is no dark breath.It's just not, it's over, not at all!

"Who are you?" Maxim asked, almost forgetting about the little magician.The little boy is slowly retreating towards the unexpected savior. "Patroller. Anton Gorodecki, Night Watchman, please listen to me." Anton grabbed the little boy with one free hand and pushed him behind his back.The implication is obvious. "Night watchman?" Maxim was still trying to smell the dark aura on the stranger.But no smell - which is more frightening. "Are you from the dark?" He doesn't understand anything.He wanted to test me: I could feel a violent, irrepressible, clumsy temptation at the same time.I don't even know if I can escape his temptations.In this person, or this other, these two statements are applicable to him, and he can feel a primitive force and a crazy pressure.I decided not to dodge anymore.

"Night Watch? Are you from the dark?" "No. What's your name?" "Maxim," the wild man slowly approached.He looked at me carefully, as if he felt that we had met before, but I was a different person then. "Who are you?" "Master of the Night's Watch. I'll explain everything to you, so hear me out. You're a magician of light." Maxim's face twitched, a dull, relentless twitch. "You killed people of the dark power. I know that. This morning you killed a transfigured woman. In the evening, you killed a dark magician in the dining room." "You too, right?" Maybe it's just my feeling, maybe there is hope hidden in his trembling voice.I put the pistol into the holster like a demonstration. "I'm a light mage, but not very powerful, really. I'm one of many light mages in Moscow. We have a lot of them, Maxim." He even opened his eyes so I knew I had hit the mark.He's not a lunatic who considers himself "Superman" and prides himself on it.Probably what he looks forward to most in his life is to meet like-minded comrades-in-arms. "Maxim, we didn't catch you in time," I said.Could it be that everything can really be resolved peacefully without the need for two bright magicians to fight to the death? "It's our fault. You fought alone and did a lot of stupid things. Maxim, everything can still be repaired. You don't know about the peace treaty yet, do you?" He didn't listen to me, and he dismissed the unheard of so-called peace treaty.He's not alone, and that's the most important thing to him. "Are you also fighting against the dark forces?" "yes." "Are there many of you?" "yes." Maxim looked at me for a while, and a strong twilight atmosphere flashed in his eyes again.He wanted to find lies, to find darkness, to find evil and hate—something that would allow him to see. "You're not the Darkbringer," he said almost regretfully, "I can tell. I can't be mistaken, ever!" "I am a member of the Night's Watch," I repeated.I looked around - there was no one.I don't know what scares people away.Probably this is also an ability of the savages. "This little boy..." "It's also the other," I replied quickly, "it's not confirmed yet, maybe he will become the Lightbringer, maybe..." Maxim shook his head and said: "He is the messenger of darkness." I looked at Yegor.The little boy slowly raised his eyes. "No." I said. The bioelectric field is clear and visible - a bright and pure rainbow, which is common in very young children, but not in teenagers.It was his own destiny, an undetermined future. "The Dark Messenger." Maxim shook his head, "Didn't you see it? I won't make a mistake, never will. You stopped me from destroying the Dark Messenger." Maybe he wasn't lying.Although his superpowers are not many - but very complete.Maxim could see the dark and find the smallest blemish in other people's hearts.Besides, it was this growing darkness that he saw most clearly. "We can't kill all the dark messengers at once." "why?" "We reconciled, Maxim." "How can you reconcile with the dark forces?" I shuddered: there wasn't an iota of doubt in his voice. "Any war is worse than peace." "But it's not this kind of war." Maxim raised his hand holding the wooden sword, "See? This is a gift from my friend. He sacrificed, maybe because of people like this little boy Yes. Darkness is insidious and cunning!" "Do you think so?" "Of course. Maybe you are indeed the messenger of light." He grimaced with a wry smile, "Then your light has been dimmed. You cannot forgive evil, and you cannot reconcile with the forces of darkness." "Can't forgive evil?" Needless to say, at this point I'm getting sarcastic. "Why don't you stay for ten minutes while you're killing the dark magician in the washroom? Don't see how his children cry, wife How did you cry? They are not dark emissaries, Maxim! They are ordinary people without our power! You saved a girl from a bullet..." He shuddered a little, but his face remained impassively composed. "Good job! But she was almost killed because of you, because of your crime. Don't you understand that?" "This is war!" "You made your own war," I murmured. "You're a kid yourself, with your own toy wooden sword. Cutting down trees—sawdust flying everywhere, isn't that right? Fighting for the light Can you do whatever you want?" "I'm not fighting for the light." He also lowered his voice. "Not for the light, but against the darkness. I was given such power. Understand? Don't think it's a small thing for me. I I have never begged for this power, and I have never dreamed of it. But since the power has come, I am also duty-bound.” Who on earth gave him such power? Why don't we find Maxime at the very beginning of his Otherness? If only he could be a good combat player.After long arguments and explanations, after months of training and years of training, after setbacks, mistakes, and suicide attempts, he will finally understand those conflicting rules, not with his heart, because he doesn't Had been given this thing, but understood with his calm, uncompromising reason.Understand that fighting light and dark is governed by rules, according to which we must disown those shapeshifters who stalk legitimate prey, and kill those of our own who do not follow through on this principle. Right now he is standing in front of me.A light magician, he has killed more people from the dark forces in the past few years than our combat team members have killed in a hundred years.Here is a lonely, persecuted magician of light.A person who can only hate but not love. I grabbed Yegor by the shoulder and turned away. He quietly shrank aside, listening to our argument intently.Then I pushed him forward and said: "Is he a dark magician? Maybe. I'm afraid you're right. In a few years this little boy will feel his powers. He will live on his own, and the dark forces will surround him. He will Feels easier to live. Every step he takes will be at the cost of someone else's pain. Do you remember the story of the mermaid? The witch gave the mermaid a pair of feet to walk on, but with every step the soles of the feet seemed to be stuck in a handful Red-hot knives. That's how we are, Maxime! Every step we take is like stepping on a knife, and we'll never get used to it. It's just that Andersen didn't say everything. Witches can use other The way to make a mermaid walk is to cut the soles of your feet not yourself, but someone else—and this is the way to darkness." "My pain is my own," Maxim said.The hope that he could understand rose again in my heart. "But it shouldn't be, and I have no right to make any changes." "Are you going to kill him?" I pointed at Egor, shook my head and said, "Maxim, tell me, will you? I am a member of the night watchman patrol team, and I know the line between good and evil .Even in killing the Darkbringer, you may be fueling evil. Tell me—are you going to kill him?" Without hesitation, he nodded, looking into my eyes calmly and joyfully. "Yes. Not only is it ready to kill, I have never let go of the product of the dark power. I will not now." The invisible trap made a "snap". I wouldn't be surprised if I saw Zaburon standing next to him at this moment, maybe he would suddenly appear from the Twilight Realm and pat Maxim on the shoulder approvingly.Maybe he'll make fun of me. But it soon became clear to me that Zaburon was not here.Not here, never been here. A well-placed trap does not need to be watched by anyone.The trap will catch its target.I'm stuck, and any other Night's Watch patrol member has undeniable alibi at the moment. Either I let Maxim kill the little boy who would become a dark magician, and I became an accomplice—with all kinds of consequences. Either I will duel with Maxim and destroy the wildlings—our strength is incomparable anyway.Then I killed the only witness with my own hands, and he was also a light magician. Maxim would not let Yegor go, this was his war, his little martyrdom, he had drawn himself here for several years.He either wins or dies. So, why did Zawulong personally intervene in the arrest operation? Every move he made was correct.First clearing out some extra Darkbringers, then putting me in a vulnerable position, causing tension, and even going into battle myself, sniping from the side, forcing me to rush for the wildlings.By then he was hiding away, probably no longer in Moscow.But he's monitoring events: there's enough skill and magic to allow him to do it.He'd just have to wait and see -- and laugh from the sidelines. I'm stuck. No matter what I do, what awaits me is the Twilight Realm. Evil does not have to destroy good with its own hands.It is much simpler to let goodness bite itself. My only remaining chances are slim, and by means of the most despicable means. Just make myself too late. Let Maxim kill the little boy, no, I didn't let Maxim do it, I just didn't have time to stop it.After killing Yegor, he will be quiet.Then he would go with me to the headquarters of the Night's Watch Patrol, would listen and argue a hundred times, would calm down after being refuted by his superior's steely arguments and merciless logic, and understand what he had done to destroy What a fragile balance.So he would turn himself in to the courts, and then he would have the chance of being acquitted, which was slim, but still there. I'm not a combatant.I can only do what I can.I even figured out the tricks of the dark powers, the tricks of some very smart person, I just didn't have enough ability, enough time, or quick enough reflexes to deal with it. Maxim waved the hand holding the dagger. Time suddenly dragged on and slowed down, as if entering the twilight world again, but the color did not darken, and even brightened, and I was moving forward in a stream of time as lazy as jelly.The wooden dagger slid across Yegor's chest, while constantly changing its appearance, sometimes giving off a metallic luster, and sometimes being shrouded in gray flames; Maxim's face was very deep, but his clenched lips It showed his nervousness, but the little boy didn't have time to figure out what happened, and he didn't even want to hide. I pushed Egor aside—but the muscles didn't work, they didn't want to do something so absurd and endanger their lives.For Yegor, the little dark magician, one swing of the dagger meant death.And for me, it's life.Know that this will always be the case, it was, it is, and it will be. To the Darkbringer, life - to the Lightbringer, death, and vice versa.Not something I can change... I still stopped Maxim in time. Yegor fell, hit his head on the gate, and fell slowly - I pushed too hard, for me it was more important to save people than to worry about him getting hurt.A look of almost childish grievance flashed in Maxim's eyes.Still he said: "He is the enemy!" "He didn't do anything!" "You are protecting the darkness." Maxim didn't question who I was, a dark magician or a light magician, he could see it clearly. Only he himself is whiter than the light.The choice was never difficult for him - who should live and who should die. The wooden sword swung again—but not at the little boy, but at me.I avoided it, found the black shadow with my eyes, and leaned over - the black shadow obediently rushed towards me. The world turned gray, voices fell silent, and movements slowed down.Yegor, who was tossing and turning, became motionless.Cars moved hesitantly on the street, struggling to turn the wheels; the branches on the trees seemed to have forgotten the existence of the wind and no longer moved with the wind.Only Maxim did not slow him down. He himself didn't understand why he followed me closely, and slipped into the twilight world calmly like a person walking from the road to the side of the road.Now he didn't care about anything: he drew his strength from his conviction, from his hatred, very, very noble hatred, from his hatred of the dark powers.It cannot even be said that he is the executioner of the Darkbringer.He was the judge, and far harsher and crueler than any judge in any of our courts. I threw up my hands, spread my fingers wide, in a simple but infallible gesture of strength.All young Others laugh when this "finger-finger" gesture is first made to them.But Maxim didn't stop - he staggered, lowered his head stubbornly, and walked towards me again.After I came back to my senses, I quickly retreated while anxiously recalling various spare spells. "Agape" is a sign of love, and he doesn't believe in love. The triple key of faith and understanding would come, but he didn't trust me. Poppies, the road to dreams—I felt my own eyelids close. It turned out that this is how he defeated the dark forces.His fanatical faith works like a mirror, reflecting back blows that come his way, bringing his level up to match that of his opponent, plus his extraordinary insight into the dark and his ridiculous magic weapon. With a dagger, he has an almost invulnerable ability. No, of course he couldn't fight back one by one, not immediately, and Tatos' defensive shield or white sword would probably subdue him. Only, to kill him would be to kill myself, to send myself down the only way we are all destined to go: into the twilight world, into the colorless inexplicable, into the dark, icy world of eternity.I don't have enough strength to make him an enemy as easily as he makes me an enemy. We circled face to face, and Maxim made a timid blow or two now and then—very clumsy moves, he had never fought seriously, and he was used to killing his prey quickly and easily.I heard Zaburon's mocking sound coming from somewhere far, far away, a gentle and seductive voice: "Decided to defeat the Darkness? Play. It's all yours. Enemies, friends, love and hate. Pick your own weapon, any of them. Surely you know the outcome. You'll know right away." Perhaps this voice is my invention.Maybe it did. "You're suicidal!" I yelled.The pistol holster knocked against my body as if asking me to pull out my pistol and shoot a stream of little silver bullets at Maxim, as easily as I had done to the dark magician of my namesake. . He didn't hear me - didn't let him hear. Sveta, don't you really want to know where our boundaries are, where is the line of truce when we fight against darkness?Why you're not here now - if you've seen all this, you'll understand. But there was no one around, neither the dark emissaries, who would have enjoyed the duel otherwise, nor the light emissaries, who would have helped me if they were there, pounced, bound Maxim, and put an end to our mortal twilight world dance.Only the little boy struggling to his feet, the future dark magician, and a stony, stern executioner - an uninvited knight of light.He has done no less evil than twelve shapeshifters or vampires. I gathered together the wisps of cold mist rising from between my fingers, let the mist seep into my fingers, and poured a little more power into my right hand. A white, red-hot sword appeared in his hand.The Twilight Realm was burning, making a "sizzling" sound.I raise the white sword, a common and infallible weapon.Maxim froze. "Good and evil." There was a sneer on my face, "Come here, come here, I will kill you. You can become a bright magician three times stronger, but the problem is not at all here." Maybe this trick will work.maybe.I can imagine it going like this: I get a lightsaber empty-handed, and then Maxim actually walks towards me. And so he came, and came five paces away from us.He was very calm, without frowning or looking at the white sword.I also stood still and continued to repeat the light and confident words to myself. Then the wooden dagger pierced my chest. In the distance, Za Wulong, the leader of the Sun Watchers patrol team, laughed in his cave. I knelt down with a "plop", and then fell to the ground on my back.I put my hands on my chest.It hurts, it's just pain at the moment, and then I feel blood flowing out, and the Twilight Realm screamed angrily, making way for it. What a grievance! Maybe this is my only way out?die? Svetlana can't save me.She will go her own way, a long and great way, though one day she too will enter the Twilight forever. Gesar, perhaps you already knew all this?Would you like to see this scene too? The world returned to color.Dusky, night colors.Twilight Realm spit out dissatisfied and spit me out.I half-sat and half-lyed, clutching the bloody wound. "How are you still alive?" Maxim asked. The feeling of grievance appeared in his voice again, he just barely pouted.I wanted to smile, but it hurt too much to laugh.He looked at the short sword, and raised it melancholy.In the next moment Yegor appeared beside him.He stood up and stood between me and Maxim.Even though it hurt, I still laughed. The future dark mage has rescued another light mage from the light mage! "I live because your weapons are only against darkness," I said, my chest gurgling with pain.The dagger missed the heart, but pierced the lungs. "I don't know who gave you this short sword. But it's a weapon against darkness. Use it against me—no better than a splinter, though it hurts a little." "You are a light magician." Maxim said. "yes." "He's a dark magician." The short sword aimed at Yegor calmly. I nod.I wanted to drag the little boy aside, but the little boy shook his head stubbornly, still standing. "Why?" Maxim said, "Why, huh? You are the emissary of light, he is the emissary of darkness..." This is the first time he laughs, though not pleasantly: "Then who am I? Tell me!" "I think you're the judge of the future," said a voice behind me. "I'm almost sure of it. A genius, ruthless, straight-forward judge." I squinted and said: "Good evening, Gesar." The boss nodded at me concernedly.Svetlana stood behind him, her face whiter than powder. "Can you last another five minutes?" the boss asked, "and then I'll treat your wound." "Of course I can take it," I agreed. Maxim looked at the boss—gazing at him with a somewhat perverted gaze. "Listen, you don't have to be afraid," the chief said to him, "yes, if it were an ordinary court, a captor like you who breaks the law would be sentenced to death. Your hands are stained with too much The blood of the dark forces of the world, and the court must protect the balance. But you are excellent, Maxim. A man like you must be reused. You will be above us, above light and darkness, even if you are Nor will it matter which side this comes from. Don't be confused, though, it's not a right, it's a nightmare. Throw away the short sword!" Maxim dropped the weapon on the ground as if it had burned his fingers.This is the real magic.I can't compare to it. "Svetlana, hold on." The boss looked at the girl. "What can I say? Your self-control and endurance have reached the third level. There is no doubt about it." I leaned on Yegor and tried to get up, I really wanted to shake the boss's hand.He won it back on his own terms, taking advantage of everyone who happened to fall into his hands, and finally won Zaburon.What a pity he wasn't there!I want to see his face, the devil's face!It was the face that turned my first spring day into an endless nightmare. "But..." Maxim wanted to say something, but he didn't say it.So much happened to him that day.I totally understand how he feels. "I believe, Anton, absolutely, that you and Svetlana are capable," said the boss softly. "For a sorceress with her power, the most terrible thing is to lose self-control. To lose the discipline in the struggle against the darkness is either to be too hasty, or, on the contrary, to be indecisive. And this training phase cannot be delayed.” Svetlana finally took a step towards me and carefully grabbed my arm.She looked at Gesar—her face changed with anger in an instant. "Don't be angry," I said, "Sveta, don't. He's right. I just understood this today, for the first time, where the line of our fight is. Don't be angry. And this," I moved my palm from Chest removed, "just a little bruising. We're not average, our bodies are much stronger." "Thank you, Anton," said the chief, turning his eyes to Yegor, "thank you, boy. I feel very bad that you are on the opposite side of us. But I am sure you will protect Anton's." Maxim wanted to take a step towards the boss, but I pressed his shoulder.He doesn't need to talk now!He doesn't understand how complicated this game is!He didn't understand that everything Gesar was doing - it was just a counter move. "There is only one thing I regret, Gesar," I said, "only one thing. Zaburon is not here. I didn't see his face when the whole game was lost." The boss didn't answer right away. Probably he had a hard time answering.But then I heard him say something that I wasn't happy to hear. "This has nothing to do with Zaburon. I'm sorry. But it really has nothing to do with him. This is entirely an internal drill of the Day Watcher patrol team."