NIGHT - I. Rin (best large ereader txt) 📗

 

 

The girl quickly went down the stairs into the corridor and went out of the palace.

 

“Hey, servants!” shouted Angelica. “Bring my horse up, immediately! I’m leaving!”

 

The goblins were hovering around Angelica because they had seen that the girl came with Prince Edward and he was a highly reputable in the Kingdom of Night. A minute later a small lackey brought her horse by the bridle. Lica got in the saddle and said:

 

“Tell the Prince Edward, that due to certain circumstances I had to go to the witch Margo urgently. And give on my behalf apologize to father of His Majesty, as I was not able to do it personally.”

 

With these words, Angelica pulled the reins and rode along the curves streets of the Goblins City towards the mountains.

 

The girl was wandering through the narrow streets for a long time, when finally a goblin showed her the way outside. Lica was riding on the road in the moonlight and a storm of hard feelings was deep inside her.

 

“Why did he do this?” Angelica thought. “I was sincere with him! Why he didn’t believe me?! Why he made suffer four people - himself, me, the prince and the princess!”

 

She had a terrible headache from all these thoughts. She did not remember how she got to the cave of the witch. Elsa was waiting her at the entrance.

 

“Angelica, you look so sad!” exclaimed the goblin woman. “What happened? Where is Prince Edward?”

 

“I am all right,” Lica brushed. “I’m very tired and want to sleep! Please, take my horse.”

 

Elsa took the reins, and Angelica went to the hall, where she used to sleep. Neither the witch nor her brother was there, so she took a pillow and lay down on the sofa. After five minutes, she fell asleep.

 

Lica woke up because someone was shaking her shoulder.

 

She opened her eyes and saw Margo, bending over her.

 

“Angelica, wake up! You have been sleeping for about ten hours. I can’t wait anymore, tell me everything! Why were you back so soon? Why you didn’t tell us that you came back?”

 

“Oh, Margo! I felt terrible yesterday!” Lica said honestly. “What’s the matter? What happened?”

 

She sat down on the sofa, remembering the conversation with Swein; she buried her face in hands and burst into tears.

 

“You were right, Margo!” said Angelica sobbing. “My fans are running away from me like cockroaches.”

 

“So, take it easy! Drink water and then tell me everything!” said the witch.

 

She walked to the table, took a glass of water and gave it to Lica. The girl took a couple of sips, put the glass on the table and calming down a little, said:

 

 “The Goblins’ King has chosen his future wife! Ironically, she is the former fiancée of the prince, for whom Edward sacrificed his soul, getting a potion. Moreover, the Prince Night, apparently, still loves his ex-girlfriend. At the end, I was left with nothing!

 

Angelica burst into tears again.

 

“Take it easy!” Margo patted her on the shoulder. “It’s life! Remember, I warned you.”

 

“But how could he do that!” exclaimed Lica.

 

“Who? The Prince or the King?”

 

“Both of them!” Angelica burst into tears.

 

“Well, my dear, I’m sorry! But male harems do not exist yet!” laughed the witch.

 

Then she hugged her and said:

 

“Enough, calm down! Get them both out of your mind!” “I really want to... But how?”

 

“How? How you can swallow your pride? I think you can! You have one more - the Prince of Vampires!”

 

“Very funny!”

 

Margo became serious and said:

 

“Honestly, another problem worries me now – the war! Huron and I were reading magic books for all night. Only in the Book of Destiny, could we find the spells that would help us to fight against the evil. We have never used them and we do not know how effective they are! Therefore, I want to aware you that the battle will be deadly dangerous for everybody who takes part.”

 

“But what’s about Swein? He has to stay alive in order to fulfill his destiny!”

 

“Exactly! That’s what I was thinking about...”

 

“Maybe we will try to convince the King not to take part in the war personally?!”

 

“It is impossible! You know Swein! I have better idea... We will go with them and keep an eye on him!”

 

Angelica nearly choked of surprise.

 

“And how do you imagine that?” she asked with a hoarse voice. “Swein, could you give me your sword or you will cut yourself! Swein, stay away from the monsters, they can bite you!”

 

 The witch laughed again.

 

“Well, come on, don’t turn geese into swans!” she said. “You will be a side of the battle and Swein, I think, will be with you, remember he was eager to protect you last time when you and Prince were going to look for Huron. He won’t be able to let you to be in danger!”

 

“I think after the ball, not only will he avoid being with me, but he won’t want to see me again.”

“What happened after the ball?”

 

“Well,” shrugged Lica her shoulders, “if to make a long story short – we parted like ships that pass in the night!”

The witch carefully looked at her and said:

 

“Actually, the Goblins’ King belongs to the type of those men who never gives up. I am sure that you are down now but not out. Well, what do you think of my idea to go to the battle?” “Good as I have no choice,” the girl sighed.

 

“You always knew how to make the right decisions!” Margo smiled.

“When am I leaving?”

 

“Take your time! First, we will wait to hear from Swein and Edward then send a messenger to the Prince of vampires and only after that we will start the war.”

“We? Are you going with us?”

 

“Of course, I am! I cannot let you go without me! This is because the Night Kingdom is in danger!”

“You are right,” nodded Angelica. “And who will go to the Prince of Vampires?”

“Huron! He is immortal, vampires won’t hurt him; and why are you asking, did you want to go?”

“No! I’d rather ask to send someone else, or I will do some-thing stupid and then regret about it for all my life.”

“Good girl!”

 

“Margo, I would like put on my hiking clothes and give you the dress and tiara back. Thank you very much for everything!”

“Elsa will help you,” said the witch, and clapped her hands.

 

A minute later the goblin woman appeared in the hall.

 

Madam asked her to help the girl to change clothes and the maid took Lica with her. They came into the dressing room where Elsa lit candles and helped Angelica to take the ball gown off. Then she put on her own clothes, sighed and said:

 

“Thank you, Elsa! The dress chosen by you, had a raving success, but not me.”

“Forget about it, let’s have dinner,” smiled the goblin woman. They went out into the hall and the maid started setting the table. They spent the whole day in household chores and waiting in vain. No news from Swein or Prince Night.

 

“What happened?” Lica was worried.

 

“Calm down, the night is yet but young!” Margo grinned. “The men should discuss everything carefully!”

However, neither today nor the next day there was news.

 

Only a few days later a messenger from Swein came.

 

“In two days, the army of the Goblins’ King is going to meet the army of the Prince Edward. His Majesty asked me to tell you that the two armies will be waiting for the Prince of Vampires at the arrangement place,” said the messenger.

 

“It means that Huron has to set off today,” muttered the witch. She thanked the messenger and immediately began preparations for the march. Huron, who these days almost never left Margo’s room, also began to get ready for the journey. He took a large backpack and began to put there strange, in the opinion of Angelica, things. He put some powders, rocks, plants, bottles and many other odd things.

 

“Why did you take so many of them?” asked the girl, pointing to the bag.

“The spells against the old evil are very complex,” said the sorcerer. “There are three stages to seal the evil in the abyss forever! With the last spell, I will put the seal on the gates connecting this and the other side with my soul. That is why I have to take so many things with me!”

 

For a few hours, Huron was walking up and down the cave, checking everything. Finally, he took his bag and said:

 

“Well, I am ready to go to the Prince of Vampires. Wish me luck, and I will meet you at the arrangement place in three days.”

 

Margo hugged her brother, Angelica wished Huron Godspeed with all her heart. The sorcerer went out of the cave, mounted his horse and started out.

 

Three days passed quickly. On the fourth day, Margo ordered Elsa to ride horses. She took her hiking bag, came to Lica’s room and said:

 

“Get ready, we are leaving in an hour!”

 

The girl immediately put on her hiking clothes, took the sword, Swein gave her, and walked out of the cave. The witch was already sitting in the saddle.

 

“Hurry up!” Margo said. “If we want to get to the exact en-chanted path, we need to hurry!”

 

Angelica nodded and climbed into the saddle. The witch pulled the reins and rushed forward. Lica followed her. They were going for a long time as Margo suddenly turned off the road.

 

“But the last time the path leading to the Ghosts’ Fields wasn’t here!” cried the girl.

 

“Now they are constantly changing their position. Therefore, we must be on the lookout not to get lost!”

 

Suddenly a thick fog enveloped them. The witch put a finger to her lips, indicating Angelica to be silent. The girl nodded.

 

They were going forward, not sure where the enchanted path was leading them, but suddenly the fog began to dissipate and they heard the neighing of horses in front. Lica and Margo were in a valley, covered with tall grass. A lot of people were a far. Some of them were on horseback, some on foot...

 

“It looks like we got to the right place!” the witch was relieved. “We are on the Ghosts’ Fields, but only from the other side of the Sleepy Lake. This is the army ahead.”

 

“Then we need to go to the opposite side of the field. The meeting place is there!” Angelica said.

 

The rider spurred their horses and let them into a gallop to get their as soon as possible.

The beginning of the battle

 

When they came closer, Lica was very surprised to see a large number of soldiers. There were people and goblins all together... The vampires were a little further. Lica had never attended a military exercise, the more she had never taken part in a large scale battle. She knew about war from movies. Therefore, everything that was happening now seemed unreal to the girl. She looked at the war-riors’ weapons with interest. All of them, without exception, had swords; some of them also had bows and arrows, the goblins had something looked like a stick or a club, studded with spikes. The vampires had long pikes and spears tied to their horses’ saddles.

 

Shortly ahead they saw the familiar spreading tree, under which Angelica immediately