Scene 1: The Boy of the Three Rivers
The warmth of the Nodya fire slowly spread through the canvas shelter, pushing back the cold that had settled over the forest.
Outside, the mist continued to drift between the trees, occasionally brushing against the canvas walls like pale shadows. The Grivorns rested near the carriage, while Boris remained nearby, keeping watch over them and the surrounding forest.
Inside the tent, the wounded boy finally stirred.
His fingers moved first.
Then his eyes slowly opened.
For a few moments, he seemed unable to understand where he was. His breathing quickened as unfamiliar faces came into view.
He immediately tried to sit up.
"Easy," Taras said gently.
The boy froze.
His eyes darted around the tent.
Taras was sitting nearby. Ruslan and Andry were beside him, while Yudhir and Varun watched from the other side. Avi was seated slightly farther away, with the strange Mystic Kuna still resting comfortably upon his shoulder.
The boy's eyes immediately fixed upon the creature.
His expression became frightened again.
Avi noticed.
"It's alright. It won't hurt you."
The Kuna simply continued playing with Avi's hair, seemingly completely uninterested in the conversation.
Ruslan smiled faintly.
"It wasn't under any possession when we found it. Avi only stopped it from attacking us."
The boy continued watching the creature for several seconds before slowly relaxing.
Taras handed him a small wooden cup.
"Drink some water first."
The boy hesitated before accepting it with both hands.
He drank slowly.
Taras then offered him some of the remaining dinner.
"Eat. You haven't had anything for quite some time."
The boy began eating cautiously at first, but hunger soon overcame his fear. He finished what was given to him and lowered the bowl.
His breathing had finally become steadier.
The firelight illuminated his face and his clothing more clearly now.
He wore the layered clothing characteristic of the Mansi, suited for traveling through the cold taiga. His outer garment was worn and dirt-stained from his flight through the forest, with fur protecting the collar and edges against the cold. Beneath it were layered cloth garments and fitted lower wear designed for movement through dense woodland.
A decorated belt was wrapped around his waist, while narrow woven patterns ran along parts of his clothing.
Among those patterns was the unmistakable symbol of the Three River Circle—three flowing lines woven together in a simple but distinctive design.
Ruslan had recognized it earlier on the road.
Now there was no doubt.
The boy belonged to the Circle.
After finishing his meal, he looked around at everyone once more.
His voice was quiet.
"Thank you..."
Everyone became silent.
"Thank you for saving me."
Taras gave him a reassuring smile.
"You don't have to thank us. You're safe now."
The boy lowered his gaze for a moment before gathering enough courage to continue.
"My name is Otyr."
He looked toward them.
"I am from the Mansi tribe of the Three River Circle."
Ruslan nodded.
"We figured as much from your clothes."
Otyr's expression became serious again.
"I had to run away from my village."
His small hands tightened around the cup.
"Everyone there was behaving strangely."
Avi listened quietly.
Otyr took a breath.
"It started when I was returning from our usual patrol around the areas near the lake."
He looked toward the canvas wall, as though the forest beyond it was still visible to him.
"I was with two friends. One was from the other Mansi settlements, and the other two were from the other communities of the Circle. Their names were Nay and Icha."
Ruslan leaned forward.
"You three were patrolling near the lake?"
Otyr nodded.
"The lake is restricted territory for all three tribes. But... many people have forgotten why."
His voice became quieter.
"Only the heads of the three tribes still know the reason."
Avi exchanged a brief glance with Yudhir.
Otyr continued.
"We were returning home and were about to separate when something happened."
His expression tightened.
"The animals started attacking each other."
"Animals?" Andry asked.
"Wild creatures. Many of them."
Otyr swallowed.
"They were behaving as if they had gone mad. They attacked one another without reason. Some even turned toward us."
The three boys had been forced to fight.
"We couldn't kill them," Otyr explained. "They were still animals. So we fought them until we subdued them."
Nay and Icha had helped him restrain the beasts.
"Afterward, we dragged them into a cave and sealed the entrance with a large boulder."
Otyr looked down.
"We thought that would keep them contained until we could find a solution."
Avi listened carefully.
"There was something strange about them, wasn't there?"
Otyr nodded immediately.
"Yes."
Their bodies had been emitting the same strange energy.
"I could feel it."
His expression showed that remembering it still frightened him.
"It was cold... but it wasn't normal cold. There was a strange icy Zhivava coming from their bodies."
Yudhir's expression sharpened.
"And the mist?"
"It was getting thicker too."
Otyr nodded.
"We realized whatever was happening might not be limited to that area. So we decided to warn our tribes."
The three friends separated and hurried toward their respective villages.
Otyr returned to his own village first.
"At first, everything looked peaceful."
He paused.
"But something felt wrong."
He went directly toward the village head's home to report what had happened.
"He wasn't there."
Otyr's voice became increasingly uneasy.
"Then I noticed the villagers."
They were behaving strangely.
"Everyone was mumbling the same thing."
He looked at the fire.
"They kept saying..."
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"Return back to the Winter."
Nobody interrupted him.
Otyr continued.
"I became frightened and ran home."
He had believed his parents would be safe.
"They were normal."
His mother had even prepared his meal.
"Nyank (bread)... and Porsa (fish meal)."
For a brief moment, his expression softened at the memory.
"She served it to me just like she always did."
Then he took his first bite.
His face changed.
"It was frozen."
Taras frowned.
Otyr stared into the distance.
"The bread was frozen. The fish was frozen. Everything on the table had turned to ice."
He slowly looked behind himself.
"My parents were standing there."
Their faces had initially appeared normal.
Then they smiled.
Not the familiar smiles he knew.
Something unnatural.
And together, they said:
"Everything will return back to winter, our son."
A chill passed through the tent.
Otyr's hands began trembling.
"They tried to grab me."
Outside, the villagers began gathering around the house.
"They were knocking on the walls and doors."
Their voices joined together.
"Return back to the Winter."
Otyr had nowhere to go.
Except through them.
"I used my Zhivava."
Yudhir looked at him carefully.
Otyr was a Sbornik.
His ability allowed him to gather the Zhivava carried within the breath of living beings.
"I stole their breath."
His parents suddenly struggled to breathe.
Their strength drained away as though they had been running without rest.
"They collapsed."
Otyr quickly tied them up and placed them safely inside the house.
"I didn't want to hurt them."
He then heard the villagers trying to break inside.
"So I escaped through the hatch in the roof."
He disappeared into the forest.
The villagers followed.
But the mist had already become thick.
Otyr gathered the escaping breath from his own body, making his presence increasingly difficult to detect.
He moved deeper into the forest.
"They lost me."
For a moment, he had believed he was safe.
Then the Phantom Lynx attacked.
Otyr's expression tightened.
"It came from nowhere."
The predator was fierce, but something was wrong with it too.
"It created copies of itself."
Phantom images of the Lynx appeared around him, making it impossible to determine which one was real.
"I fought it."
Otyr tried to defend himself.
"But it wouldn't stop."
The creature eventually injured him.
And when it did—
That same icy Zhivava entered his body.
Otyr's eyes widened.
"I saw things."
Images began flashing through his mind.
"A white bear..."
A mystical white bear stood drinking from a river.
"Then I saw a spirit."
A towering figure with antlers or moss-covered features appeared, its body intertwined with the trees.
"And then..."
His voice trembled.
"A warrior."
A gigantic Sky-Mountain Warrior, bearing the wings of a raptor, stood where the earth seemed to touch the heavens.
Otyr pressed his hands against his temples.
"My head started spinning."
The visions became overwhelming.
Then everything changed.
He saw the lake.
Standing before it was a ghostly figure.
A person draped in white robes.
A long white beard.
But the face remained hidden.
Around the figure stood the villagers.
And the creatures.
All of them were facing the apparition.
Then they spoke together.
"Return back to the Winter."
Otyr suddenly opened his eyes.
His breathing became rapid.
"I remembered the name."
The others waited.
"It was the name of the ghost the elders used to tell us about when we were children."
His voice dropped.
"They said that if someone lost their way near the lake on a winter night..."
He swallowed.
"...a white ghost would appear."
"And take them into the lake."
The tent became silent.
Otyr looked toward the canvas wall.
"The Circle's patrols always dismissed those stories."
He shook his head.
"They said it was only something old people told children to frighten them."
His eyes filled with fear.
"But now..."
He couldn't finish the sentence.
The Phantom Lynx had disappeared.
Yet Otyr had no intention of waiting around to discover what had happened to it.
He ran.
Through the mist.
Through the forest.
Until eventually he reached the travelers' road.
And there—
He saw the carriage.
He had barely managed to reach it before his strength finally left him.
Otyr's eyes lowered.
"That is all I remember before waking up here."
Nobody spoke for several moments.
The fire crackled softly between them.
Avi remained completely silent.
His mind returned to the whisper he had heard outside.
Come to me... and release me.
And for the first time, the strange icy Zhivava, the possessed creatures, the villagers, and the name Karachun no longer felt like separate incidents.
They were pieces of the same mystery.
And somewhere beyond the mist, the forbidden lake was waiting.
Scene 2: The Unseen Summoning
The decision was made before everyone retired for the night.
They would remain at the travelers' camp until morning. Once the sun rose, they would venture into the forest with Otyr and investigate what had happened to his village while also searching for Nay and Icha. If the strange occurrences around the lake were spreading, they could not simply continue toward Novgorod and leave the Circle to deal with it alone.
For the time being, however, there was nothing more they could do.
The night had completely swallowed the forest.
Beyond the canvas walls of the tent, there was almost no trace of the world they had traveled through during the day. The trees stood as dark silhouettes behind the thick mist, while the moon appeared only as a pale, distorted glow high above them. Its light barely managed to pass through the fog, leaving the forest in a strange mixture of darkness and silver.
The Grivorns had settled beside the carriage, their large bodies resting after the day's journey. Occasionally, one of them shifted in its sleep, the faint clinking of its harness disturbing the otherwise complete silence.
Inside the tent, everyone had fallen asleep.
Taras rested near Otyr, keeping the injured boy close enough to monitor him through the night. Ruslan and Andry slept nearby, while Yudhir and Varun had finally succumbed to exhaustion after the long journey.
Even the Mystic Kuna had curled up beside Avi.
Everyone was asleep.
Everyone except him.
Avi lay still, staring into the darkness above.
His eyes were closed, yet sleep refused to come.
Every time he began drifting away, the same words returned.
Come to me...
A pause.
...and release me.
Avi opened his eyes.
The words had become impossible to ignore.
He turned onto his side and tried to force himself back to sleep, but the uneasiness inside his chest only grew stronger.
Who was saying that?
And more importantly—
What did they want me to release?
He had already heard the whisper once in the forest.
Then there was the strange icy Zhivava inside the Mystic Kuna.
The visions Otyr had described.
The possessed creatures.
The villagers are repeating the same words.
And finally—
Karachun.
Avi closed his eyes again.
Maybe I'm thinking too much.
But the moment he did, the whisper returned.
Come to me... and release me.
His eyes snapped open.
Avi suddenly sat upright, breathing heavily.
Sweat trickled down his forehead despite the cold.
For several seconds, he simply remained there, trying to steady his breathing.
The Mystic Kuna beside him stirred at the sudden movement. It lifted its head sleepily and looked at Avi.
Avi wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"I'm fine."
The Kuna blinked at him.
It seemed unconvinced.
Avi glanced around.
Everyone was still sleeping.
He didn't want to wake them over what might simply have been a nightmare. But the feeling in his chest refused to disappear.
I should ask Boris.
He was probably still keeping watch outside.
Avi carefully rose from his place, making sure not to disturb anyone.
The Kuna watched him leave.
For a moment, it simply stared after him.
Then, despite its obvious sleepiness, it climbed to its feet and followed.
Avi stepped outside the tent.
The cold immediately touched his face.
The mist had become even thicker.
He looked down and noticed the Kuna approaching him.
"You're coming too?"
The creature gave no answer, obviously.
Instead, it climbed onto him with familiar ease and settled upon his shoulder before wrapping itself around his head and holding onto his hair.
Avi sighed.
"I suppose I can't stop you anymore."
The Kuna quietly rested against him.
Avi began walking toward the carriage.
The camp was eerily quiet.
He expected to see Boris sitting nearby, keeping watch over the Grivorns as he had been doing earlier.
But there was no one there.
Avi stopped.
His eyes moved toward the carriage.
The three Grivorns were asleep.
Their breathing was slow and steady.
Their harnesses remained attached.
But Boris was nowhere to be seen.
Avi frowned.
"Boris?"
No answer.
He walked around the carriage.
Nothing.
He checked beneath it.
Nothing.
He looked inside.
Still nothing.
Avi stepped back and looked around the camp.
"Boris?"
Silence.
His expression gradually became serious.
He wouldn't just leave his post.
Avi searched around the carriage again, checking behind the wheels and nearby trees.
There was still no sign of him.
The Grivorns remained asleep as if nothing unusual had happened.
Avi's uneasiness deepened.
Where did he go?
Then—
ROOOAAAR!
A deep, distant howl suddenly echoed through the forest.
Avi froze.
The sound wasn't far away.
Before he could react, another noise followed.
CLANG!
The sharp sound of metal striking against something echoed through the trees.
Avi's eyes widened.
Iron?
The Kuna raised its head from his shoulder.
Another metallic clash rang through the mist.
Avi immediately turned toward the sound.
Without waking the others, he rushed into the forest.
The mist swallowed him almost immediately.
And somewhere ahead—
Another roar echoed through the darkness.
Scene 3: Phantoms of the Forest
Avi was already deep within the forest when he finally realized that something was wrong.
The mist had grown considerably thicker since he had left the camp, slowly swallowing the trees around him until the familiar forest road had completely disappeared from sight. The moonlight barely managed to penetrate the dense fog, leaving only faint silver patches between the branches. Behind him, the path he had followed was no longer visible, and even the faint glow from the camp had vanished completely.
More concerning was the silence.
The clashing of Boris's Iron Gauntlets had stopped.
Avi stood still for a moment, listening carefully. He had been following the sound for some time, but now there was nothing left to follow. No metal striking metal. No roar from a beast. Not even the movement of the forest could be heard clearly through the mist.
Something had happened to Boris.
Avi glanced at the Mystic Kuna perched on his shoulder. The little creature had followed him despite his earlier instructions to stay with the others, and now it looked toward the mist with visible unease.
"You need to go back," Avi said quietly. "Wake the others and tell them Boris is missing. They need to know that I'm looking for him."
The Kuna immediately became reluctant. It looked toward the direction of the camp and then back at Avi, as though refusing to leave him alone in the forest.
Avi gave it a reassuring look.
"I'll be fine. Go."
After a brief hesitation, the Kuna finally jumped from his shoulder onto a nearby branch. It moved from one branch to another, making its way back toward the camp while repeatedly glancing over its shoulder at Avi.
Once the creature disappeared into the mist, Avi turned around and continued deeper into the forest.
Despite being alone in an unfamiliar forest at night, his calm nature kept fear from overwhelming him. His senses had become considerably sharper after the battle with Simargl, and he relied upon them now more than ever. He could feel the cold air against his skin, hear the faint movement of branches around him, and sense the strange presence lingering within the mist.
Avi slowly raised his hand.
Cold Zhivava gathered around his palm.
The energy condensed into a familiar shape until a smaller icy sword materialized in his grasp, its pale surface reflecting what little moonlight reached through the trees.
He tightened his grip and continued forward, prepared for whatever the forest might throw at him.
Behind him, the mist continued to thicken.
Back at the camp, the Mystic Kuna suddenly appeared through the fog.
It landed near the entrance of the tent and immediately began growling and moving around frantically. The sound disturbed the sleeping group, and Yudhir was the first to wake.
He opened his eyes and immediately noticed the creature's distressed state.
"What happened?"
Andry stirred beside him, followed by Ruslan and Taras. Varun and Otyr woke last, still groggy from their sleep.
The warm glow of the Nodya continued to illuminate the inside of the tent, but the Kuna's frantic movements quickly erased whatever remained of the peaceful atmosphere.
Yudhir looked around the tent.
"Avi?"
He immediately realized that Avi was nowhere to be seen.
The Kuna hurried toward the entrance and began making frantic gestures. It pointed toward the forest, then toward the direction of the carriage, before turning back toward them and growling.
The others stared at it in confusion.
"What is it trying to tell us?" Ruslan asked.
Otyr watched the Kuna more carefully than the others. Having already spent some time with the creature, he seemed to understand its gestures better.
"I think... it's trying to tell us that Avi went looking for someone."
"Boris," Yudhir said immediately.
Otyr nodded.
"The man who was guarding the carriage... he disappeared. Avi went looking for him."
Andry's expression changed.
"Uncle Boris disappeared?"
Before anyone could answer, Taras stood up.
"I'll check the carriage."
He stepped outside into the mist.
Andry watched his father leave, an uneasy feeling settling inside him. His father's disappearance from the tent was suddenly much more frightening than it should have been.
Then—
A scream came from the direction of the carriage.
"Father!"
Andry and Ruslan immediately rushed outside.
They ran toward the carriage, their footsteps muffled by the damp forest floor and the thickening mist. But when they reached the place where Taras should have been, they found nothing.
The Grivorns were still there, restless and agitated beside the carriage.
Their father was gone.
Ruslan stared at the empty space in disbelief.
"Dad...?"
His voice trembled.
He looked around desperately, hoping to find some sign that Taras had simply moved away from the carriage, but there was nothing.
Then something caught his eye.
Half-sunken into the soil was a small metallic object.
Ruslan slowly crouched down and picked it up.
His father's pocket watch.
His hands began to tremble.
He sank onto his knees, clutching the watch tightly as tears filled his eyes.
Andry stood beside him, unable to comprehend how their father could have disappeared so suddenly. The fear quickly transformed into anger, and his fists clenched.
"Who did this?"
His voice shook with rage.
"If someone has harmed even a hair on Father's head..."
He slammed his fist into the bark of the tree beside him.
The impact echoed through the mist.
Then something moved between the trees.
Andry's eyes immediately caught a faint, ghastly glow in the distance. It resembled the shape of a raptor, its glowing form moving deeper into the forest before disappearing among the trees.
Without thinking, Andry ran after it.
"Andry!"
Ruslan remained on his knees for a moment, still clutching his father's pocket watch. When he finally realized what his brother was doing, he quickly stood and ran after him.
But the mist had already begun swallowing Andry's figure.
"Wait!"
Ruslan pushed forward, but by the time he reached the place where his brother had disappeared, there was nothing there.
Andry was gone.
Ruslan looked into the darkness of the forest, his heart pounding.
He tightened his grip around his father's pocket watch and stepped into the mist.
The deeper Ruslan went, the more difficult it became to see.
The trees seemed to stretch endlessly in every direction, their silhouettes barely visible through the thick fog. He kept moving despite the poor visibility, desperately searching for any sign of his brother.
After walking for some distance, something pale appeared ahead.
Ruslan stopped.
A strange white glow slowly emerged from the mist.
A bear.
Its body seemed almost mystical, glowing faintly against the darkness of the forest. It stood at a distance for only a moment before disappearing into the mist.
Ruslan stared in confusion.
Then the bear appeared again farther ahead.
It disappeared once more.
Then it appeared again.
Ruslan remembered Otyr's story.
The white bear...
He looked at the creature carefully.
It didn't seem hostile.
Instead, it appeared to be leading him somewhere.
"I should follow this bear," Ruslan whispered to himself. "It seems to be guiding me."
The bear disappeared again.
Ruslan followed.
The mist closed around him as he ventured deeper into the forest.
Back at the camp, only Yudhir, Varun, and Otyr remained.
Yudhir stood near the entrance of the tent, staring into the forest.
Boris was gone.
Taras was gone.
Andry and Ruslan had now disappeared as well.
His thoughts immediately connected everything.
One by one...
He looked toward Otyr.
The little boy was visibly frightened, his body trembling as he stared toward the mist.
"This is Karachun," Otyr whispered.
Yudhir's expression hardened.
He walked over and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.
"You don't need to be so afraid. I'll stay here with you until this is over."
Otyr looked at him but remained silent.
Varun had also fallen into deep thought.
His mind wandered toward Rusalka.
I wonder how she's doing.
He couldn't help wondering what she would have done if she were here. The atmosphere around them had become increasingly tense, and he could see that Otyr was struggling to control his fear.
Varun decided that allowing the boy to remain trapped in fear would only make things worse.
"Hey, Otyr."
The boy looked toward him.
"You shouldn't think we're going to lose so easily. We've already been through things far worse than this."
Varun began telling him about the battle of Pskov.
He told him how they had come together during the crisis, how they had travelled into Simargl's realm and faced his trials, and how they had proved themselves worthy before the Guardian. He told him about their battle for Pskov, the confrontation with the Novgorod soldiers and their fight against the tree giant.
Then he spoke about Andry's journey to Novgorod, the reunions and sacrifices that had taken place there, and finally Ruslan's speech before the people of Pskov.
Otyr listened intently.
With every story, the fear in his expression slowly gave way to fascination. For a brief moment, the frightening forest seemed far away.
Yudhir listened quietly as Varun spoke, and both he and Varun couldn't help but notice something familiar in the little Mansi boy.
Otyr reminded them of Ruslan.
Perhaps it was the fear he was trying to hide, or perhaps it was the determination that remained beneath it.
Whatever the reason, the two exchanged a brief glance.
They had already lost enough people tonight.
They would bring everyone back.
Eventually, exhaustion overcame Otyr. After talking with Yudhir and Varun for some time, the little boy finally fell asleep.
Varun looked toward Yudhir.
"I'll stay awake and keep watch tonight."
Yudhir nodded.
"Fine. But if you sense anything dangerous, wake me immediately."
"I will."
Yudhir settled down beside Otyr, and before long, both of them had fallen asleep.
Varun remained sitting near the Nodya, watching the flames slowly burn through the thick logs.
His thoughts once again returned to Rusalka.
What would she have done in this situation?
The warmth of the fire gradually began to draw him into a sleepy state. His eyes grew heavy, but he tried to remain focused on the forest.
Then he heard something.
A whisper.
"Varun..."
His eyes opened.
He looked around.
The camp remained silent.
Yudhir and Otyr were still asleep.
Then the voice came again.
"Varun..."
It sounded like Avi.
Varun rubbed his eyes and slowly stood.
He couldn't tell whether he was awake or dreaming anymore.
The voice came from the forest.
"Avi?"
Without waking Yudhir, Varun walked toward the entrance of the tent.
He stepped outside.
The mist was still there, covering the forest in a pale, ghostly veil.
And then he saw it.
The same figure he had noticed when they had first entered the forest.
A humanoid shape stood silently among the trees. Enormous antlers rose above its head, while moss and vines covered portions of its body. Its form appeared almost intertwined with the surrounding trees, as though the forest itself had taken a humanoid shape and was standing there, watching him.
Varun stared at it.
This time, he didn't want to miss the chance.
He ran toward the forest.
The mist swallowed him.
Morning slowly arrived.
Thin rays of sunlight entered through the canvas of the tent, illuminating the remains of the Nodya.
Yudhir stirred and slowly opened his eyes.
Otyr woke beside him.
For a few moments, everything seemed normal.
Then Yudhir noticed the empty space beside the fire.
"Varun?"
There was no answer.
Yudhir immediately stood and looked around the camp.
The carriage was still there.
The Grivorns were still there.
But Varun was nowhere to be found.
Yudhir's heart sank.
He looked toward the forest, now covered in the fading remnants of the mist.
Boris.
Taras.
Andry.
Ruslan.
Varun.
One after another, they had disappeared.
For a moment, Yudhir felt completely lost.
Then he noticed Otyr looking at him.
The little boy's eyes were frightened, but there was still hope in them.
Yudhir walked over and sat beside him. He placed his hand gently on Otyr's shoulder and looked toward the forest.
His fear remained, but his determination was stronger.
"We will find everyone," he said firmly.
He looked at Otyr.
"I promise."