7. ESCAPE
Chani, running quickly into the room, threw his soaking wet cloak into the corner and brushed the raindrops from his face with his palm.
- Get ready, and quickly, as quickly as possible!
Hani, who had been listening fascinated to Toril's endless story about the voyage of the captains of Tan-Khorez to the distant islands of the South Sea, waved his hand dismissively.
- Why? Look what's going on outside.
- That's exactly it! While this is going on... These cowards decided to hand over the princess to the Sea King.
Toril turned pale.
— They wouldn't dare.
Chani, jumping up to the closet, began to throw fur jackets, raincoats, and travel bags out of it right onto the floor.
- They have already dared. A pack of worthy and respectable citizens, called the magistrate, has gathered in the town hall; howling with fear, they have made the courageous decision to surrender to the mercy of the conqueror, and are now gathering ropes and nets. They intend to catch you like a mad dog.
However, the momentary confusion had already passed, and Toril's lips twisted into a smile.
- Well, we'll see about that. We'll see what happens to the one who decides to do it.
"Yes," confirmed Khani. "We'll see."
- Fools! Where did I put my flask? Ah, here it is, found. - Chani turned, his eyes flashing. - Do you really think, Princess, that I will let you do something to them? Yes, they are wrong, yes, they are cowards, they want to commit a vile act. But can they be blamed? And besides, this is my home town, and I will not allow... We must leave.
- Run away? - Toril did not understand. - From a gang of shopkeepers? Never! My honor does not allow me to do that. I will teach them such a lesson that they will swear off it forever...
"Don't even think about it!" Chani interrupted her.
"So maybe you can help them?" the princess asked sarcastically. "It's easy and simple to tie me up."
"No need," Chani said wearily. "They'll thank us later, but for now we have to go."
"Will there be?" Toril asked sarcastically.
"They will," Chani confirmed confidently. "And the main thing is that your magic won't help you. The dragon is here, the very same one with ten wings."
"It can't be," Toril was taken aback.
- Maybe, maybe. I saw it myself. Get dressed quickly, - Chani threw her the cloak.
- Every minute counts! By the time they get ready, by the time they quarrel, by the time they make peace, by the time they decide... We can go far, if only we don't hesitate.
"So that's why they became bold," Toril said, not hearing him.
- Like it or not, we must hurry!
"What's the hurry?" asked Khani.
"We have only one way now – through the Western Gate and forward to the Misty Mountains," Chani explained, feverishly pulling on his jacket. "It is quite clear that the sea route is not for us."
- What about our boat?
Chani, without answering, grabbed his travel bag, picked up the princess's bag and rushed to the door. Toril followed him. After thinking for a moment and still continuing to grumble, Khani hurriedly dressed and, looking sadly at the dinner cooling on the table, moved after them.
Suddenly, Chani burst through the door, almost knocking him off his feet.
- I almost forgot! And you're also good, you didn't remind me!
- About what?
— What kind of journey can there be without reliable weapons?
Khani blinked in confusion, thinking sadly that his brother was right again. After all, it was he, Khani, who had collected an excellent collection of the most varied swords, daggers, broadswords, yataghans, shields, hanging on the walls of the room. True, they were all old, slightly rusty, dented and bent in some places, but they had once been truly formidable weapons! Khani spared no time or effort to bring the old junk, as Chani contemptuously spoke of this collection, into a decent appearance.
Chani, after a moment's hesitation, tore two small gladius swords from the wall and threw one at Hani.
However, Toril, who had entered, deftly intercepted the sword and, taking it out of its sheath, gently ran her finger along the blade, which sparkled with some strange yellowish shine, completely unlike the usual steel color. She carefully examined the simple black handle, decorated with a small seven-pointed star, laid out of colorless, nondescript stones, reminiscent of glass.
"Where did you get this?" she asked Chani.
He shrugged.
- I have no idea. My brother found it somewhere, probably at some dump. That's where you find useless iron.
- Why are you taking it?
Chani hesitated.
"There's less rust on them," he finally answered.
- And you don't know if this is a good weapon?
- From where? What, did I try it or something?
"Indeed," the princess said quietly to herself. "And it would be stupid to think… No, just a copy… A bad fake. How long are you going to dig around there?" she added unexpectedly.
"I'm ready," Chani straightened up.
"Then let's go." Toril, without noticing it, began to command again.
They pulled their cloaks tighter around them and slipped out into the street. As if happy about this, the wind suddenly appeared from somewhere, throwing a fine water spray into their faces. It settled on their clothes in tiny silver balls, making it seem as if their cloaks were rapidly turning grey. However, they remained dry; if you ran your finger across them even once, a black, damp streak would immediately form.
Chani walked ahead, hugging the walls of houses, turning into the narrowest and darkest alleys and generally trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. Toril watched him with a puzzled grimace. Suddenly, Chani, turning the corner, darted back, so unexpectedly that he ran into the princess. He hissed:
— Looks like we're in trouble.
"What is it?" Toril asked.
— Guards.
- And that's all?
- That's enough to keep us from getting to the Western Gate. And by the time we get to any of the others, it'll be too late.
An evil light flashed in Toril's eyes, she straightened up abruptly, and it seemed to Hani that she was about to draw the sword she didn't have. Or that something else would happen, but something terrible too. And he said quickly:
- They wouldn't dare.
"They will dare, and how," Chani objected sourly, looking around in confusion.
- You yourself said that they are too cowardly.
- That's exactly it.
"I don't understand," Hani shrugged.
"They were just scared enough to get bold enough to try to grab us. Or rather, her," Chani nodded his head towards the princess.
"We'll see now," she responded.
The clanking of iron-shod boots on stones was heard.
"Maybe we should run?" Chani suggested.
"No way," snorted the brother.
"You yourself said there was nowhere to go," Toril reminded.
"No need to make a fuss," Chani said, not too confidently.
Toril shook her head silently, he shrugged and, looking back, reluctantly stepped out of the alley into the square. Khani and Toril followed.
The guards stopped when they saw them. The rain, which had intensified, pounded the cuirasses and ribbed helmets with a tinny sound. The captain, wiping his face every now and then, tried to see who was in front of him. Finally he saw them and involuntarily backed away, which caused the princess to smile again, but he bumped into the guards and stopped. Finally, having gathered his resolve, he raised his hand and said hoarsely:
- You are under arrest.
"Idiot!" Khani answered calmly.
- What? - the captain didn't understand.
"You're an idiot!" Khani explained patiently. "That's what."
The captain turned purple.
- And I wanted to let you go. We only needed the witch. But now you too are for resisting the authorities, for insulting the authorities, for disobeying, for... And in general. Sit in the basement for a week, come to your senses, learn to respect the guards. Take them!
"Excuse me," Chani asked politely, "what authority have we insulted?"
- Our most merciful and most powerful ruler, the Sea King.
- But even this morning, Acanton was ruled by the City Raad. It was a free city.
The captain, puffing himself up, explained:
— The venerable raad of the free city, not forced by anyone, in accordance with the will of the citizens, expressed in the most respectful petition, has decided to surrender itself under the protection and patronage of the mighty ruler.
"A fitting end to the City of Lions," Chani whispered.
Hani drew his sword demonstratively slowly. The guards who had started to move forward stopped.
- What are you stuck for? - the captain yelled. - There are six of you! Grab them!
But he himself prudently ducked behind the backs of his guards, preferring to direct the battle rather than participate in it. Awkwardly holding out their halberds, just like pitchforks, and shuddering either from fear or from their own boldness, the guards took two more steps.
"Be brave," the captain encouraged. "I'll run to the town hall for reinforcements now, and we'll defeat them."
He pushed the two warriors closest to him forward, and turned and, at a heavy trot, his boots thundering on the stones, rushed across the square. Left without a commander, the guards hesitated. It was scary to go forward, and it was scary to go back. And they made the simplest decision - noisily snorting, they remained standing in place.
"We can't waste time," Chani whispered in the princess's ear. "If the town hall people come running, there will be too many of them. We need to get rid of these people. And quickly."
Toril nodded and took a step forward. The guards took a step back accordingly and pressed themselves even closer to each other. The princess sharply extended her right hand... A black and red glowing ball shot out of the sleeve of her cloak.
Someone screamed, one of the guards went flying head over heels… A moment later the square was empty, only one helmet, clinking, rolled along the cobblestones. It flew into the gutter, swung a couple of times and sank to the bottom with a cheerful gurgle.
"That's it," said Toril. "The road is clear. And everyone is safe," she added especially for Chani.
Chani, running quickly into the room, threw his soaking wet cloak into the corner and brushed the raindrops from his face with his palm.
- Get ready, and quickly, as quickly as possible!
Hani, who had been listening fascinated to Toril's endless story about the voyage of the captains of Tan-Khorez to the distant islands of the South Sea, waved his hand dismissively.
- Why? Look what's going on outside.
- That's exactly it! While this is going on... These cowards decided to hand over the princess to the Sea King.
Toril turned pale.
— They wouldn't dare.
Chani, jumping up to the closet, began to throw fur jackets, raincoats, and travel bags out of it right onto the floor.
- They have already dared. A pack of worthy and respectable citizens, called the magistrate, has gathered in the town hall; howling with fear, they have made the courageous decision to surrender to the mercy of the conqueror, and are now gathering ropes and nets. They intend to catch you like a mad dog.
However, the momentary confusion had already passed, and Toril's lips twisted into a smile.
- Well, we'll see about that. We'll see what happens to the one who decides to do it.
"Yes," confirmed Khani. "We'll see."
- Fools! Where did I put my flask? Ah, here it is, found. - Chani turned, his eyes flashing. - Do you really think, Princess, that I will let you do something to them? Yes, they are wrong, yes, they are cowards, they want to commit a vile act. But can they be blamed? And besides, this is my home town, and I will not allow... We must leave.
- Run away? - Toril did not understand. - From a gang of shopkeepers? Never! My honor does not allow me to do that. I will teach them such a lesson that they will swear off it forever...
"Don't even think about it!" Chani interrupted her.
"So maybe you can help them?" the princess asked sarcastically. "It's easy and simple to tie me up."
"No need," Chani said wearily. "They'll thank us later, but for now we have to go."
"Will there be?" Toril asked sarcastically.
"They will," Chani confirmed confidently. "And the main thing is that your magic won't help you. The dragon is here, the very same one with ten wings."
"It can't be," Toril was taken aback.
- Maybe, maybe. I saw it myself. Get dressed quickly, - Chani threw her the cloak.
- Every minute counts! By the time they get ready, by the time they quarrel, by the time they make peace, by the time they decide... We can go far, if only we don't hesitate.
"So that's why they became bold," Toril said, not hearing him.
- Like it or not, we must hurry!
"What's the hurry?" asked Khani.
"We have only one way now – through the Western Gate and forward to the Misty Mountains," Chani explained, feverishly pulling on his jacket. "It is quite clear that the sea route is not for us."
- What about our boat?
Chani, without answering, grabbed his travel bag, picked up the princess's bag and rushed to the door. Toril followed him. After thinking for a moment and still continuing to grumble, Khani hurriedly dressed and, looking sadly at the dinner cooling on the table, moved after them.
Suddenly, Chani burst through the door, almost knocking him off his feet.
- I almost forgot! And you're also good, you didn't remind me!
- About what?
— What kind of journey can there be without reliable weapons?
Khani blinked in confusion, thinking sadly that his brother was right again. After all, it was he, Khani, who had collected an excellent collection of the most varied swords, daggers, broadswords, yataghans, shields, hanging on the walls of the room. True, they were all old, slightly rusty, dented and bent in some places, but they had once been truly formidable weapons! Khani spared no time or effort to bring the old junk, as Chani contemptuously spoke of this collection, into a decent appearance.
Chani, after a moment's hesitation, tore two small gladius swords from the wall and threw one at Hani.
However, Toril, who had entered, deftly intercepted the sword and, taking it out of its sheath, gently ran her finger along the blade, which sparkled with some strange yellowish shine, completely unlike the usual steel color. She carefully examined the simple black handle, decorated with a small seven-pointed star, laid out of colorless, nondescript stones, reminiscent of glass.
"Where did you get this?" she asked Chani.
He shrugged.
- I have no idea. My brother found it somewhere, probably at some dump. That's where you find useless iron.
- Why are you taking it?
Chani hesitated.
"There's less rust on them," he finally answered.
- And you don't know if this is a good weapon?
- From where? What, did I try it or something?
"Indeed," the princess said quietly to herself. "And it would be stupid to think… No, just a copy… A bad fake. How long are you going to dig around there?" she added unexpectedly.
"I'm ready," Chani straightened up.
"Then let's go." Toril, without noticing it, began to command again.
They pulled their cloaks tighter around them and slipped out into the street. As if happy about this, the wind suddenly appeared from somewhere, throwing a fine water spray into their faces. It settled on their clothes in tiny silver balls, making it seem as if their cloaks were rapidly turning grey. However, they remained dry; if you ran your finger across them even once, a black, damp streak would immediately form.
Chani walked ahead, hugging the walls of houses, turning into the narrowest and darkest alleys and generally trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. Toril watched him with a puzzled grimace. Suddenly, Chani, turning the corner, darted back, so unexpectedly that he ran into the princess. He hissed:
— Looks like we're in trouble.
"What is it?" Toril asked.
— Guards.
- And that's all?
- That's enough to keep us from getting to the Western Gate. And by the time we get to any of the others, it'll be too late.
An evil light flashed in Toril's eyes, she straightened up abruptly, and it seemed to Hani that she was about to draw the sword she didn't have. Or that something else would happen, but something terrible too. And he said quickly:
- They wouldn't dare.
"They will dare, and how," Chani objected sourly, looking around in confusion.
- You yourself said that they are too cowardly.
- That's exactly it.
"I don't understand," Hani shrugged.
"They were just scared enough to get bold enough to try to grab us. Or rather, her," Chani nodded his head towards the princess.
"We'll see now," she responded.
The clanking of iron-shod boots on stones was heard.
"Maybe we should run?" Chani suggested.
"No way," snorted the brother.
"You yourself said there was nowhere to go," Toril reminded.
"No need to make a fuss," Chani said, not too confidently.
Toril shook her head silently, he shrugged and, looking back, reluctantly stepped out of the alley into the square. Khani and Toril followed.
The guards stopped when they saw them. The rain, which had intensified, pounded the cuirasses and ribbed helmets with a tinny sound. The captain, wiping his face every now and then, tried to see who was in front of him. Finally he saw them and involuntarily backed away, which caused the princess to smile again, but he bumped into the guards and stopped. Finally, having gathered his resolve, he raised his hand and said hoarsely:
- You are under arrest.
"Idiot!" Khani answered calmly.
- What? - the captain didn't understand.
"You're an idiot!" Khani explained patiently. "That's what."
The captain turned purple.
- And I wanted to let you go. We only needed the witch. But now you too are for resisting the authorities, for insulting the authorities, for disobeying, for... And in general. Sit in the basement for a week, come to your senses, learn to respect the guards. Take them!
"Excuse me," Chani asked politely, "what authority have we insulted?"
- Our most merciful and most powerful ruler, the Sea King.
- But even this morning, Acanton was ruled by the City Raad. It was a free city.
The captain, puffing himself up, explained:
— The venerable raad of the free city, not forced by anyone, in accordance with the will of the citizens, expressed in the most respectful petition, has decided to surrender itself under the protection and patronage of the mighty ruler.
"A fitting end to the City of Lions," Chani whispered.
Hani drew his sword demonstratively slowly. The guards who had started to move forward stopped.
- What are you stuck for? - the captain yelled. - There are six of you! Grab them!
But he himself prudently ducked behind the backs of his guards, preferring to direct the battle rather than participate in it. Awkwardly holding out their halberds, just like pitchforks, and shuddering either from fear or from their own boldness, the guards took two more steps.
"Be brave," the captain encouraged. "I'll run to the town hall for reinforcements now, and we'll defeat them."
He pushed the two warriors closest to him forward, and turned and, at a heavy trot, his boots thundering on the stones, rushed across the square. Left without a commander, the guards hesitated. It was scary to go forward, and it was scary to go back. And they made the simplest decision - noisily snorting, they remained standing in place.
"We can't waste time," Chani whispered in the princess's ear. "If the town hall people come running, there will be too many of them. We need to get rid of these people. And quickly."
Toril nodded and took a step forward. The guards took a step back accordingly and pressed themselves even closer to each other. The princess sharply extended her right hand... A black and red glowing ball shot out of the sleeve of her cloak.
Someone screamed, one of the guards went flying head over heels… A moment later the square was empty, only one helmet, clinking, rolled along the cobblestones. It flew into the gutter, swung a couple of times and sank to the bottom with a cheerful gurgle.
"That's it," said Toril. "The road is clear. And everyone is safe," she added especially for Chani.