Mara Marena was standing in the middle of the hall. She stood tall and began to change her appearance. Her hair looked like the sun, it was golden, a light beautiful dress complemented the image of spring. Having taken the form of summer, the color of her hair remained the same golden, and she was even more beautiful. In autumn, she looked like a decrepit old woman in old clothes and a hump on her back, and with the arrival of winter, she turned into a young beautiful woman. Her beauty was fatal. I could not get enough of her. Her hair was decorated with a crown with precious stones; her gaze was stern and proud. She was a great goddess.
The festive hall changed its beauty with her. It all started in spring, despite the time of year there has never been light here. The light was a bonfire on which people burned an effigy of spring. At that moment, Mara wrinkled her face and clenched her hands into fists. This picture ended abruptly.
Then summer came. The picture changed its screensavers the way I had seen it before when I came here and saw the abandoned dwellings of the gods. It was dark enough here for the summer season, and the black sun served as the light. Spring and summer left quickly enough, but autumn was delayed. It was a damp and cold picture. There was a dark and gloomy street in the hall. Gray wooden houses stood in an abandoned state. There was no light in them and the street was illuminated by a lantern. It was drizzling outside, but no one felt it from those present, the rain did not touch them. The trees stood like gnarled guards.
The picture began to slowly change its screensaver. The water began to freeze gradually, turning into icicles. The raindrops turned into flakes of snow and a blizzard began. Mara was coming into her own. The blizzard rose stronger and stronger until it turned into a tornado and abruptly stopped. After the stop, the picture disappeared, and the inhabitants of the hall, all except the gods, were covered with ice. All the servants, devils, trolls and guests in human form. They all turned into ice statues. This picture has already surfaced before my eyes. I remember this moment well. My grandmother was standing in a half-bent state and held a shamans tambourine in her hands. The Winter Palace was fabulously beautiful, as was its owner. Winter frowned. Mara has come into her own.
I finished my story. A doctor came into the room and interrupted him. The doctor was doing his rounds. He said rather sad words for me. My friend should be discharged soon. I had already become attached to him and I did not want to part with him. In addition, after the experience I was afraid to stay in the ward alone. The doctor left the room. There has been no talk about my discharge yet.
Dont be sad. We will meet again, you will see. I took a deep breath in response. How quickly you can get used to a person, I thought. I was sad because so many things happened to me in such a short period, I met a person, now everything is ending, and we will have to part. What a pity. Alternatively, maybe I really dreamed everything and nothing happened. I thought and went out into the corridor.
Where are you going?
Just to walk. Walk to the bathroom, I joked.
Lets go together. My friend never let me go alone, and I did not even think about why. We walked down the corridor, drank coffee, and I continued my story.
The inhabitants of the castle assumed their former forms. Many guests disappeared, turning into splashes of snow. So they got rid of unnecessary guests. Everything took its former form. The ice thawed a little and became much warmer, although no one felt the cold. Mara threw her gaze at my grandmother, and she turned into a young girl. Beautiful enough for her age and position, but no one could compare with Mara. The girl straightened up to her full height and carefully looked in the direction of Mara. No one dared to look her in the eye.
A moment later, the castle disappeared, and we found ourselves in the winter garden. Everything took its former form, only instead of the old woman there was a girl standing and shamanizing by the fire. The guests separated, the trolls and devils separated from the spirits and lived by themselves. Only the chosen guests remained, and this final part of the holiday was for them. They were facing each other and they were separated by fire. Only the chosen guests remained, and this final part of the holiday was dedicated to them. The gods sat invariably, as they sat originally in the castle. Koschei, did not take his eyes off his wife, he admired her beauty. His eyes glittered greedily; his bony fingers fingered the handle of the throne, lined with skulls. Mara looked with her icy eyes at the fire; her gaze was cold and ruthless, and still changed color.
The old girl was still brewing a miraculous drink; it was already the third pot. My friends and I were standing under a tree and continued to watch what was happening.
You should have approached her in the castle. However, it will not work out here. See how it turned out.
I see.
Then she will disappear and that is it.
We need to catch the moment, as soon as the moment succeeds, I will immediately use it.
We all believe in you.
The effect of the drink was beginning to end, and we began to feel cold.
Do you feel the same as me?
You will not believe it, but yes! Same as you.
She is brewing a new potion. If you drink it, then the action will last.
And how will we do it?
Lets hope for a miracle.
The girl continued to cook and shamanize at the same time. In addition, every time the shamanic words intensified, she became older. First, it was a girl, then a girl-woman, then a young woman, and so gradually, she turned back into a poor old woman. She stood hunched over by the fire and continued to brew a potion.
The drink was ready. The old woman poured it into the same wooden cups and distributed it to the servants. They drank and assumed human form. Then the servants carried it to the others. First to souls, then to demons and trolls. Everything went smoothly. I saw how the drink remained in the pot. Fumes were coming from it. After drinking the drink, the Sabbath began. Demons, trolls and souls were having fun. The old woman and the servants stood aside, they could not take part. The fun was in full swing. In addition, I decided that this was a chance and I should take it.
We walked around the tall fir trees, the holiday remained ahead. After walking a little forward, I got as close as possible to the grandmother. The three of us were shaking from the cold. She had her back to us. I plucked up the courage and called her in a low voice. She heard me from the first call, but did not dare to look back. I realized this and waited. She exchanged a glance with one of the servants. This dead man sneaked into our Christmas trees and brought a cup of drink. We drank it one for three, forgetting that we were drinking from the hands of a dead man. The gods were watching the Sabbath and did not notice what was happening. The fire was blazing with a bright flame and we were not visible. The old woman took a few steps back and without turning to face us began a dialogue.
Why are there three of you here?
We do not know ourselves. A friend replied.
Well, he is fine, and what are you doing here? With three, it will be more difficult.
«Dont they know were here?»
I think they know; only the three of you will be more difficult to save.
How to understand?
It means that he died alone and dragged his tail behind him. You should not be here.
And what should I do now?
Rescue drowning people.
The potion began to work, and we felt a surge of strength and stopped feeling cold.
You have been here too long; you have already spent too much time. It is time for you to get back. In addition, in order not to get into the court again, you need to close the passage to the other world. It is an unmarked grave. You need to make it personalized, install an obelisk and a fence. In addition, no more going to the cemetery at this time of year. It is better in spring or summer. This grave has taken away many lonely souls. I will try to send you back. However, this Koschei is a powerful sorcerer. No, matter how he enchanted you.
I looked around. We were in a beautiful garden. It was night all around, snow and a bonfire lit up the clearing. I had no idea where I could go or run away here. Devils and trolls were having fun; this holiday was to their liking. The souls stood aside and watched the fun. They adopted the image of ghosts; probably it was more convenient for them. The celebration was in full swing.
Actually, we came to save you. I said firmly. Grandma could not stand it and looked around.
Have you come to save a dead soul? My place is here. I am already dead. However, you need to run away from here; otherwise you will find yourself in my place.
I have been thinking about it. She did not see our faces and talked to the Christmas trees. Turning away from us, she resumed her former pose.
Do you want to take my place? In addition, where do you want to send me?
In the bright Iriy.
What he wanted. Who will let me in there? In addition, how long have you known about Iriy?
My sister told me. You can get there. You can be saved. You were just stolen by dark forces.
It is. But
Our conversation was interrupted, and she walked away from us.
What are the next steps?
We are waiting for her. We do not have enough support. We need our supporter.
Find supporters in hell. It sounds ridiculous. If this is blurted out there at the top, then we will find supporters elsewhere.
I have been thinking about it too. My grandmother took her place by the fire and began to throw firewood into the fire.
If she throws firewood, then the Sabbath is not over yet.
«It doesnt look like it.
After taking a few steps back, she said she knew the way to another dimension. However, if they think of us, we will stay here forever as servants. We agreed to take the risk.
The three of us began to crawl through the snow in the direction indicated by the grandmother. She assured us that she would catch up with us when they got rid of her and she would not be needed. Our path was as follows: first, we had to disappear from sight. Then go to a certain place, from this place go through a snow tunnel, it was the most dangerous way, then go to another dimension through an ice bridge, this is the threshold of Navi. The bridge should be laid out because winter has come and the water has frozen, this bridge was intended for guests leaving the holiday. On the other side we had to go through the same houses, there we had to go through a green tunnel and go out to an oak tree, and there the grandmother had to take us to our world of the living. After hearing the information, I became unsure of myself. Remembering what I have already been through and I will have to go through it again. The scariest thing for me was that it was all in vain. It was impossible to save my grandmother, and I was responsible for my friends.
I made my way with a heavy heart. I did not want to leave her. I could not even hug my grandmother. My friends understood the reason for my sadness and tried to comfort me.
Dont be sad, she promised to catch up with us, so she will catch up. It was the only consolation, and it warmed my soul in this icy world.
The gods were too busy celebrating. Mara was having fun playing with the blizzard. Koschei sculpted skull figures out of snow, respectively, not by himself, but with the help of magic. He was amused by it, and he was carried away with it. This was the most favorable period for escape. The old gods were thinking about something of their own and focused on the fire. They were not interested in the holiday, and they were bored watching the dancing evil spirits, ghosts joined this evil spirits and the heat began. The ghost servants stood further away from the fire, and made a circle of fencing, thereby emphasizing their insignificance.
The snow tunnel actually turned out to be the most difficult. We walked through it like a maze. It has been a long way. Coming out of it, it seemed to us that we had not been walking for so long. We reached the bridge and waited for my grandmother.
It seems to me that we need to run across as soon as possible.
Me too.
I do not. I will be waiting for her. I am only here for her.
If she finds out about it, you will not live.
I do not care.
Lets go together, one of the friends suggested to the other.
I think we should go together. If we wait, the bridge may melt, and we will not get to the other side in any way, unless Mara herself carries us. Your grandmother can disappear and reappear. She will find us that is a fact. Let us go together. I hesitated, but an inner voice told me to go, and I went.
We ran across the bridge and looked back. The view was even more beautiful than before. Winter has come into its own and the ice has strengthened. Now nothing was falling, everything was covered with ice. The bridge was paved and it was not scary to walk on it as we walked for the first time. He was strong and handsome. I was a little sad that I did not watch the holiday to the end, and I wonder how it will end.
My friends were walking from side to side and waiting for further action. Then we had to go and pass four houses.
Who remembers how to walk, I jokingly asked.
I remember. We looked around and saw our ghost friend. We were so happy to see him that we wanted to hug him, forgetting that he was a ghost.
«Youll have that opportunity soon,» he said jokingly. I was looking forward to seeing this soul in the flesh.
We followed the flying package, accelerating our pace each time. I looked around, remembering the places I had walked once. With the arrival of winter, everything has changed, I thought.
It is not with the arrival of winter. These are still the halls of Mara. When we come to the world of Navi, everything is different there.
Yes, but everything has become much more beautiful. The Spirit said nothing, and we quickened our pace. I fell silent, and so did my neighbor. Silence reigned in the ward. Next will be the most interesting.
I get it. So let us smoke and take a break. I am tired. For the first time in all this time, my neighbor said that he was tired. It seemed strange to me, but I did not argue, and we went out. On time after lunch sleep, he asked how I would get home.
Will you fly alone? Or will your sister come for you?
Of course. I will fly alone.
Will your friends accompany you?
Yes. Of course they do. Nothing has changed. It is all over and the danger is over. My friend sighed heavily, and I continued the story.
We approached the houses and Koshcheis house stood in front of us. Nothing has changed; it is as if we never left. We tried to leave as soon as possible. His house was very creepy. Each time the places became scarier, and the more we moved away from the snow palaces, the more the horror and dampness overtook us. When I reached Velezs house, I breathed a sigh of relief.
The hardest part was over. I remembered the path we had left to go, and it seemed easy to me. It was a green tunnel and we were waiting for a meeting with grandma. Passing by the house, I tried to look into the windows, out of curiosity, hoping to see something interesting. It was impossible, the house was so protected that it was simply impossible to look through these windows.
When we reached the tunnel, we stopped and looked at the way we had done. It was a long way that was left behind. I felt uneasy, and began to shake with excitement. I felt the danger, and began to doubt that I would see my grandmother again. I took the first step and dived into the tunnel, followed by the footsteps of friends. There was a deathly silence. No one said a word. I looked at our friend the ghost; he was hiding his eyes from me all the time. Although he had nothing but his eyes. I wanted to ask what was wrong, but I knew he already knew what I was thinking.