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Eternal Life;Cursed Gift Epilogue
Michael Gold paused, trying to catch his breath. He seemed to be reliving the terror that had seized him in the mountains of South America.“And Plath is gone?” exclaimed the vicar ruefully.Alas, John, yes. A strange insanity has deprived me of this most valuable relic!- What a pity! What do you think it was?“I have puzzled over this for three hundred years, explaining everything as the revenge of higher powers. It was only three years ago that I read an article in The Sunday Times that I think explains the panic attack that happened to me then. The article said that a certain John Balderston, director of the London Lyric Theater, was preparing a play for staging, where the characters were transported into the past as the action progressed. He wanted to come up with something spectacular so that the audience at that moment felt the psychological tension. And Mr. Balderston turned to his friend, the physicist Robert Wood, for help. He made a pipe, like an organ, but longer and thick
Eternal Life;Cursed Gift 1
The vicar went to the window. The sun was setting behind the edge of the forest, swifts were flying in the air, a beautiful summer evening was coming. Little Alice was sitting on the front lawn, intently twisting the doll's head. But the vicar did not notice this, he stared unseeingly out the window, and before his mind's eye stood a narrow medieval Parisian street and a little boy looking around in confusion. Thoughts rushed through my head: “Is it possible? Could Gold's story be true? What is it - fiction, inflamed imagination of a dying person or ... "The bed creaked behind him, and Dr. Gold's faint voice rang out:- John?The vicar turned slowly.- Yes, Michael?- You must despise me? I took so many lives to save my...The priest looked with pain at the lying man. Even now, power and strength emanated from his heavy body. They had been friends for almost half a century... "No, only twenty years... Who would have thought!" And now Michael Gold is dying, and the vicar does not have
Eternal Life;Cursed Gift 2
The life of little Rene Legrand was simple and pleasant. He adored his father, loved to sit in a corner and watch how he cut gloves from thin dyed leather according to patterns, and then sewed them together on some mysterious device. Rene liked to look at the richly dressed ladies who sometimes appeared in their modest house. The ladies, rustling their skirts, approached the table, on which a lot of multi-colored gloves were laid out, chose the best pair for a long time, argued, laughed. They took away the gloves, giving their father in return copper and even silver coins with a minted profile of the king, and left, each time leaving behind a unique, mysterious aroma. Mysterious music sounded for Rene the words "livre", "denier", "su". “Someday,” he thought, “Genevieve will grow up and become such a beautiful lady, I will marry her and give her all my father's gloves.”He loved little Genevieve as much as his father. And although she was born only four weeks after him, René was accust
Eternal Life;Cursed Gift 3
As soon as Rene turned twelve, Claude sent him to study in a regular company.Rene liked military affairs. Schoolchildren were taught to handle weapons, keep order, and march. In addition to directly military disciplines, the curriculum included athletics, elementary counting, grammar, religion, the history of the crusades and other military campaigns, as well as alchemy and pharmacy.As much as Rene liked his studies, his new comrades did not like him just as much. Most of them came from the lowest strata of society, their conversations were too rude, and their laughter too loud. The ringleader among them was Jacques Tillon, a tall guy a head taller than the rest, with perpetually greasy hair and the same greasy jokes. Rene tried to avoid him.***Jacques' father, Patrick Tillon, was a laborer on the docks of the Seine, a bitter drunk who regularly beat his wife and son. In the short life of Jacques, his father did not beat him except with an ax. At first, the boy tried his best to p
Eternal Life;Cursed Gift 4
But Rene did not remain in debt, he told Philip about his father, about friends, about the house. But most often - about Genevieve.“I really want to meet her,” Philip said once. She must be extraordinary.- Well, let's choose the time and go home together, - Rene was delighted.Philip nodded eagerly.The friendship between Rene and Philip grew stronger day by day. In the classroom they sat on the same bench, during the exercises they always became a couple, and they even moved their beds in the barracks so that it was more convenient to whisper at night, which gave rise to Jacques Tillon's greasy grins. Graceful Philip aroused contempt in him, but he did not dare to say it out loud: being a nobleman, Leroy fenced beautifully.On the Sunday after Mass, René took Philippe to visit his father. Claude joyfully greeted his son's new friend, it was noticeable that Philip fell in love with him. “It was not in vain that I dreamed of sending Rene to a military school,” thought the pleased fat
Eternal Life;Cursed Gift 5
One evening, returning from a walk around Paris, the guys found a terrible sight behind the barracks: Jacques and three other boys tied a dog to a post and threw stones at it, competing in accuracy. The defenseless dog squealed and whined, trying to dodge the stones flying at him. Without hesitation, friends rushed to save the unfortunate animal. Closest to them stood Henri Chrétien, a friend of Jacques. Running up to Henri, Rene rushed at him with his fists. The friends fought so fiercely that their opponents soon fled, despite being outnumbered.The boys untied the beaten dog, and it immediately hobbled away, limping away.Tillon, whom Philip had struck hard on the ear, was furiously thinking how to subdue the hated upstart. “They are always together, that's why they are brave,” he thought contemptuously. - Nothing, the day will come when I will catch him. Let's see if he can be as brave on his own."Philip was inexhaustible in invention.- Rene, have you heard of the Gloomy House?
Eternal Life;Cursed Gift 6
Philip was actively stomping upstairs, looking for a place to tie a rope. He pulled back the bolt and lifted the hatch. The basement is a little brighter.- Grab a candle, - Rene shouted.- Yes.Finally, the preparations were completed, grabbing the rope, Philip squeezed through the hatch and began to slowly descend. In a few moments his feet touched the hard floor. Pulling two candles out of his bag, he lit them and handed one to Rene.- Be careful, watch your feet.The flickering flame of candles lit up a huge basement, obviously larger than the house itself. The damp, stale air made it hard to breathe.“Wow, look, it looks like the knights were training here.Indeed, the floor was littered with broken pieces of swords and halberds, a rotten straw man for training stood in the corner, next to it was a weapon rack. Cautiously stepping, friends moved in different directions. Rene walked along the wall, looking with curiosity at everything that caught his eye, afraid to miss any little
Eternal Life;Cursed Gift 7
It was already dark outside, and with difficulty they found the overgrown path that led to the road to the abbey. When they reached the gate, they sat down on the ground and, having caught their breath, they held a meeting.- What do we do?- Don't know. There is no point in going to the city. It is dangerous to walk at night, and the city gates are closed until dawn.Looking around his dusty camisole, Philip suggested:- Let's ask for an overnight stay here. The monks are kind people, they will not refuse. Let's say we got lost in the woods.- And the box? Let's open it first, shall we?- It's dark.Rene nodded at the bag.- Candles.They again went into the forest, Philip sat on a stump and tried to open the box. She was locked up. The mechanism, spoiled by time and basement dampness, did not work. It took them quite a long time to break the lock. Finally, something clicked, the boys froze in anticipation.Philip swallowed nervously and opened the lid with a trembling hand. The flic
Latest Chapter
- Eternal Life;Cursed Gift
Epilogue
Michael Gold paused, trying to catch his breath. He seemed to be reliving the terror that had seized him in the mountains of South America.“And Plath is gone?” exclaimed the vicar ruefully.Alas, John, yes. A strange insanity has deprived me of this most valuable relic!- What a pity! What do you think it was?“I have puzzled over this for three hundred years, explaining everything as the revenge of higher powers. It was only three years ago that I read an article in The Sunday Times that I think explains the panic attack that happened to me then. The article said that a certain John Balderston, director of the London Lyric Theater, was preparing a play for staging, where the characters were transported into the past as the action progressed. He wanted to come up with something spectacular so that the audience at that moment felt the psychological tension. And Mr. Balderston turned to his friend, the physicist Robert Wood, for help. He made a pipe, like an organ, but longer and thick
- Eternal Life;Cursed Gift
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Gold wearily rubbed his face with his hands.“Those days are hard for me to remember, John. Then I committed one of the most shameful acts of my entire life. But I swear I'll be completely honest about everything.'I have no doubt, my friend,' nodded the vicar. - Few people could speak so frankly about themselves, not only good, but also bad.— So, we got into a small pirogue and sailed up the river. Usually, for the construction of boats, the Indians took a tree with a wide trunk and burned out the middle. But this boat turned out to be wicker and very light. The current here was weak, so Anka and Yakumama rowed tirelessly.About five hours later we landed on the shore, and I saw a path cut through the jungle, as wide as I had ever seen in these places. It turned out that the Indians dragged boats along it to another river, which they called the Serpent, and the Europeans - Madre de Dios. Even such a light pirogue as ours was not easy to drag, but we managed and by the evening reache
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On one of the days of the Month of Seva, Apu Uma sent for Istvan. He hurried to the leader and found him in great agitation. Forgetting to offer mate to the guest, the Indian said:“Our scouts have spotted a white party, Amauta. They go through the jungle towards Antavara.The priest's heart jumped with joy, but at the same moment he thought - if the Europeans capture the village, they will also learn about the mines. No, this cannot be allowed.- How is it - "go"? After all, the selva is impassable.- How do we go? Cut through the road with knives and axes.— How many of them?The chief frowned and drew seven parallel lines on the dirt floor. Thirty-five people, Isstvan realized."And when will they get to us?"- In two or three days. We need to organize protection.“No,” the priest said thoughtfully. “We have to set up an ambush. Then, firstly, they will not find the village, and secondly, thanks to a surprise attack, we will have an advantage.After thinking for a moment, Apu Uma n
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The Indians made a noise, and Istvan could not believe his ears. What nonsense? This is impossible! But no, he saw the living dead with his own eyes!"But the corpses didn't disappear until the third night," he muttered.The sorcerer chuckled and nodded again.— Yes, but here they bury in the wall. Apparently, in the ground they deteriorate faster. At first I did not know this and could not understand why they did not turn into nzambi. The first two had to be killed, their minds barely affected. Then I realized that here the body was lying in the wall and tried to pick it up later. This is how I determined from experience that it is best to raise the "dead" on the third night.- Can they be cured somehow? Return to normal life?- Of course not.How long do they exist in this state?- Who is like. If you feed them on time, then some of them last for four or five years.“Now tell me, why can’t they be killed?”- Why, maybe. They just don't feel pain and follow orders as long as they can
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The Incas got up early. Not finding Istvan, they were alarmed. When he, half-dead from fatigue and experienced horror, dragged himself to the gate, he was greeted with a joyful uproar. Sampa Anka grabbed him under the armpits and helped him to the hut.“What happened to you, white brother? he kept asking. - Where have you been?"I'm sorry, Anka," Isstvan whispered, sinking onto the couch. “I’ll tell you everything, but right now I don’t have the strength.”He slept for almost a day and woke up cheerful, completely recovered from the shock of the night. Hardly waiting for the morning, Istvan went to Apu Uma and told about everything that he had to endure.Sampa Anka, who sat silently beside him, stared in horror at the priest, while the chief shook his head grimly.“You broke my ban, Amauta,” he said when Istvan finished his story.“Sorry, Great Leader, but I couldn’t help but watch your people die.“I understand that you were guided by a kind and brave heart. But what have you achieve
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The next morning, having somewhat calmed down, they again retired to the hut.- Understand, spirits are not like that at all! Istvan admonished his friend. “They were real flesh and blood people. There must be some other explanation.“Okay,” he nodded obediently, “then explain to me what the secret is.”“That is what we must find out. Tell everything you know about them.Sampa Anka shrugged.- There is nothing to tell. Ordinary guys.What could unite them?- Nothing. Only that they all died.- When exactly?The young man frowned as he remembered.“Well… Vira eight moons ago. Llapi four moons earlier. The other two, it seems, shortly before your arrival.This information did not give Isstvan anything, but he stubbornly bombarded Anka with questions, trying to find at least some thread.Did any of them get sick?- It seems not.- So all four died according to the prediction of the sorcerer?After thinking, Sampa Anka nodded confidently."And their bodies disappeared on the third night?"
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Returning to his room, Istvan was lost in thought. Let's say the evil Aya Naya really kills the Indians, but how and why? However, the methods may be different, for example, to send damage. For what purpose does he do this? And, most importantly, why do corpses disappear? Perhaps the spirit of the deceased raises his body and takes him somewhere? No, what nonsense!Isstvan's mind was in confusion. But he was a man of action, and therefore he soon questioned the leader and his son about all the details. It turned out that the bodies disappear on the third night after the funeral.When an old man died two weeks later at the other end of the village, Istvan decided to follow his grave.“This is unreasonable, brother,” Apu Uma admonished him, “and very dangerous. Only Viracocha knows what happens when the body disappears. Suddenly all living things around perish?“Believe me, Great Leader, I will find out the truth,” Isstvan replied grimly. “I don’t want an incomprehensible curse weighing
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Listening to the leader, Istvan could not recover from amazement. So the Templars were in the West Indies long before Señor Columbus?“The Order was rich,” he reflected, “and could well equip an expedition to search for new lands. The Templars sailed here and found huge reserves of silver and gold. So that's where the legends about the untold wealth of the order came from! Some came to rule the Incas, others left, taking away priceless treasures on ships. And then what? They returned forever ... Probably, it was under Philip the Handsome, who banned the order and arrested everyone he could find. But many Templars escaped and lived here until their deaths. Why didn't they leave offspring? Posing as gods? Of course, they were monks! They could not have intercourse with women and remained faithful to their vow even in such conditions. How many times have I broken my vow of chastity? Eh..."This discovery shocked Istvan. All his knowledge of the history of the conquest of the West Indies
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Religion occupied a huge place in the life of the tribe. Everywhere in the village and beyond there were so-called waki - sacred things and places. Uakoy could be anything - a bunch of stones stacked in a special way, a rock, a hill, a stream, a spring, an idol carved from wood, like standing on a kurikancha. The Indians carefully looked after all the Huacas. A special place of worship was Nayakuna Pirka - a long stone wall built to the east of the village, which consisted of separate cavities. In them, the inhabitants of the village buried the dead, closing each niche with a wooden door.As Istvan mastered Quechua, he learned more and more about the views of the Indians.“There are three worlds around us,” said Sampa Anka, “underground, earthly and divine. The underworld, Uku Pacha, is ruled by the ferocious god of death, Supai. All dead, unborn babies, some snakes, worms and seeds live there. In the earthly world, Kai Pacha, we are people, but also animals, birds, plants and ghosts.
