61. The gift of men

"Please don't say it! Don't say it!" Razvan chanted to himself, that particular night when someone poisoned Teveli. Razvan knew there was going to be big trouble before the transparent appeared. He already knew that there was only one person who could help the sick boy. However, just like Etele, he didn't want to be right. However, he could not avoid the doom.

Teveli is his friend and a member of his team, so in the end even if he didn't want to go to the Fene. He had no choice but to do so. Moreover, even the ancestors were constantly against him. First of all, they couldn't get through the journey to the Shadow World quickly, since according to the religion of the hegins, you could only go to the Fene on foot, and those who tried to approach the forbidden place on horseback, according to the ghosips, died of a terrible death.

And secondly, he couldn't tell his team what he knew about the Shadow World. No matter what he wanted to say, the team didn't know that he remembered his past life. So he needed to bite his tongue and not say a word, or to speak only as much as was absolutely necessary.

Finally, one evening during their journey, when the team had already rested and it was Razvan's turn to keep watch. The leader of the Athamanas decided to have a conversation with the transparent following them. The little floating creature eagerly floated closer to him, as it always wanted to be close to the boy.

"First of all, thank you for stabilizing his situation. If it weren't for you, we might not get to the Shadow World." Razvan nodded. "Secondly, are you sure there is no other solution?"

"Sure." The serious answer came from the transparent.

"Can't someone else help?" Razvan snarled.

"There is no one else." The floating creature snapped at him.

"But are you sure?" Razvan insisted.

"Only the daimon king is strong enough to help." The creature said seriously.

"What do you mean? Do you know what they poisoned him with?" The chief of the Athamanas asked surprised.

"Brother." It was only one word, but that one word was enough to make Razvan's gaze harden.

"Are you serious?" Come the harsh question.

"Yes." The transparent answered.

"In that case, we really have to go to the Shadow World." He announced, then turned his back to the transparent with clenched fists and returned to his guard post. After this conversation, the leader of the Athamanas spoke even less. His thoughts were far away somewhere around the Shadow World and poisons.

Then the party arrived beyond the Karrabata, where Razvan quickly realized that something was terribly wrong. Usually, he could feel Etele's presence even if the ghost didn't appear visibly in front of the team, but here at the base of the mountains, he didn't feel the ghost at all, as if it had really disappeared from the face of the earth.

The ghosts attacking the team were hardly a surprise. With the problems surrounding and chasing the team recently, the appearance of the ghosts was almost expected, although it surprised the boy that the ghosts attacked them so wildly, as if they wanted to kill them outright, rather than trying to get them to come back to life. Moreover, even Rahul was injured when he tried to protect Razvan from an insidious ghost.

However, by some miracle, they managed to escape from the ghosts and continue to go to the Fene. There, too, to the third tree, then to the left. Razvan really didn't want to be in this place. After all, he was aware that his grave was here as well as Etele's. However, his team needed a safe place so he needed to go with them. Then Etele couldn't keep his mouth shut and blurted out that they were at his grave.

"I've had enough." The leader of the Athamanas grumbled to himself and clenched his teeth, so hard that it almost hurt. "They are my people. They have a right to know." He tried to convince himself, not for the first time during their trip.

This dilemma has been the boy's constant companion ever since the team left the Vojks teritory. In part, he wanted his team to know that he remembered his past life and what happened after his death. On the other hand, he was worried that his team wouldn't look at him the same way after they found out. He didn't want his friends to disbelieve him. He never told them that, because they never needed to know, and it wasn't important.

Now, however, what was important was what he knew, but he still hesitated, he didn't dare to speak and that's how he got to the point where the team is sitting here on a rock around him, Suk was just starting to prepare the fire needed for the healing potion and that idiot Svihák announced, that this is his grave. That was the last straw. That's when Razvan's resolve broke. The team better not be afraid, they have a right to know they are safe in this place.

"This is his grave. That's mine." He pointed in the direction of the river under which Svihák buried his body.

"I don't want to interfere, Tapló boss, but..." Rahul began, then tapped the boy's forehead. "I think you're still quite alive." The chüvigh boy put his hands on his hips.

"Because I'm alive." Razvan pressed his forehead.

"Then how in hell is your grave the river?" Rahul tilted his head to the side.

"That is the grave of my previous life." The leader of the Athamanas shrugged his shoulders, but this only made Rahul look at him incomprehension.

"What?" He eventually asked.

"That is the grave of my previous life." Razvan repeated the sentence.

"Okay, I always forget that you believe in what my father believed, so the past life part is not strange." Rahul sighed. "But you really shouldn't know where your previous grave is." The boy frowned. "That sounds awfully strange." He shivered. "So how do you know it's your grave?"

"Because of the gift of men." Razvan said seriously.

"Okay, who wants to explain to me what the hell is the gift of men is? The Tapló boss isn't much of a talker now." Rahul looked around the team, but no one looked like they wanted to answer.

"After you die, you have a chance to wish for one thing. And that wish will come true." Razvan finally explained.

"Ah, I see. So I guess you wanted to remember your life, didn't you?" Rahul asked.

"Exactly." The boy nodded.

"Grandpa, what did you wish for?" The chüvigh boy turned curiously towards Etele.

"To haunt my son." The ghost grinned.

"You're an idiot." Rahul rolled his eyes.

"Svihák was never normal, not even in my previous life." Razvan shrugged.

"Svihák?" The traveling boy grimaced.

"That would be me." Etele noted. "That was my nickname, thanks to him." The ghost folded his arms in front of himself.

"Did you know the grandpa?" Rahul asked surprised and ignored his ghost relative, while the head of the Athamana smiled.

"I was his leader and he buried me here." Razvan chuckled, then looked at the team. "So we can relax in this place between the two rivers, we are safe." The boy said with a faint smile on his lips. However, there was one thing that no one knew about, those certain graves under the river flowing to the third trees standing in the Fene... They were empty.