"You want Enriki to have them?" Lis asked looking straight at Squint-Eye; his gaze was very serious, without a shadow of his usual slyness.

"I want him to live!"

"Live?!"

"But you live! Nikto does, too, and many others."

"You want to destroy him, he will never be like before!" Lis lowered his yellow eyes that didn't seem sly any more.

"Lis, if you could get through it, why don't you believe that Enriki will? Just one time, and he'll have hope to survive. It's his last hope!"

"It is not hope, and Enriki would never agree to it! He will become a living dead, what can be more hopeless?"

"What a pity that he cannot make his own choice now," Vil shook his head.

"That is why we'll have to make it," Squint-Eye said firmly.

"I know Enriki, he would prefer to die, and I'm prepared to lose him." Lis was implacable.

"Shall we vote?" Tol asked.

"Yes," Squint-Eye sighed. "I can imagine, Lis, what you had to go through but we need it."

"No, you can't imagine," Lis said very quietly.

"Just one injection, and Enriki will live?" Tol looked at them. "Is it for sure?"

"For sure, don't doubt," Squint-Eye said. "Why do you think the Unclean addict their human slaves to the 'water'?"

Tol was silent.

"At first a man becomes very strong and sturdy, he can work day and night, without food or rest. Then the downfall comes, and the Unclean inject him more 'water', and do it as many times as he can bear. But we are not going to do it to Enriki, we'll inject it to him just once."

"And it will save him?"

"You can ask Lis if you don't believe me, but I don't hide anything from you, I'm telling the truth."

Tol looked at Lis questioningly, and Lis nodded at him silently.

"And when the downfall comes – he won't die, will he?" Tol still was in doubt.

"When the downfall comes, he'll be strong enough to survive it on usual restorers or strong alcohol, and that's all."

"Then I'm for it," Tol decided at last. "The main thing is for Enriki to live, and we'll help him to quit the drugs!"

"Well said," Squint-Eye smiled.

"Help Nikto or Squint-Eye to quit, and Squint-Eye doesn't even use 'water', just normal restorers, as he calls them," Lis shook his head.

"But you did quit? If Squint-Eye tells the truth and you used 'water' – you did quit?"

"You're a fool," Lis said bitterly.

"Can I vote?" Vil asked gingerly.

"Yes. Don't ask silly questions. Since Orel made you his, you're one of us."

"I'm against 'black water'," Vil said. "It's a sin, and Enriki will never be able to go to gods. We cannot take this opportunity away from him. He was lethally wounded in a battle, and the gods wait for him in heaven. Although I love Enriki very much and he is very dear to me… It is because he always treated me kindly, we should pray for him and let gods decide whether to let him stay with us or not. I also was lethally wounded," Vil glanced at Lis quickly – Lis sat frozen, like a stone figure, "but I survived without 'black water'. It was gods' will! Listen to me, they saved me…"

"They?" Squint-Eye asked ironically. "Maybe, someone just the opposite?"

"I will pray for Enriki," Vil said and lowered his head.

"So, we can't decide anything," Tol summarized. "Two against two. We need to ask Arel and Nikto."

"Orel said he doesn't care and won't participate in anything." Squint-Eye lit a cigarette.

"Did he say exactly something like that?" Vil asked doubtfully.

"Noo," Squint-Eye drawled, smirking. "He said much worse, cursed me all over, and Enriki, too, by the way. He thinks we are to blame for everything. Me, Enriki and you."

"If Orel doesn't want to," Tol said, "let's leave him alone. Then we need to ask Nikto."

"No!" Lis got up abruptly. "It will mean his choice will be decisive!"

"Don't jerk so, Lis," Squint-Eye sat in the armchair and looked at him with narrowed eyes.

"I don't understand, Lis, do you want to take away his right to vote?" Tol was exasperated. "He is one of us!"

"Lis, perhaps Nikto will support us," Vil said.

"Yeah right," Lis laughed mirthlessly.

"I'm against deciding it without Nikto," Tol continued. "Besides, he has some experience in it."

"I'm also against deciding without Nikto," Vil added. "We cannot decide for him."

"But we can decide for Enriki, right?" Lis shouted. 'I'm against the 'water' and Nikto there!"

"Then we'll never come to anything," Tol got angry. "I'm going to bring Nikto and, maybe, Orel will come, too."

"I hope they're fucking each other and won't come," Squint-Eye hissed. "I'm sure, Lis, sooner or later you and I would come to an agreement."

"No, we wouldn’t! But it doesn't matter, everything will be as the Devil wants!" Lis fell into the armchair and unclasped the foxtail hair clip, letting his wavy reddish hair fall over his shoulders. He looked tired.

For a while they sat silently and waited for Tol and Nikto. Suddenly Lis raised his head.

"I've changed my mind. I'm for it. Squint-Eye, do it!"

"What?!" Squint-Eye didn't understand.

"Do what you wanted to! Do it now and let's be done with it!"

Squint-Eye didn't ask anything, got up quickly taking a small black bottle out of his secret pocket.

"You cannot!" Vil screamed seeing Squint-Eye's preparations. "Lis, what's going on?"

"Shut up, we're tired of you!" Lis got up and punched Vil's jaw. Vil didn't expect it, waved his hands losing balance – and another immediate blow made him fall on the floor. The third blow – a shattering kick of an iron-heeled boot – followed, and Vil lost consciousness.

Squint-Eye didn't even look back.

"I don't want him to interfere at the most important moment," Lis explained.

Squint-Eye walked up to Enriki and without a moment of hesitation, the way only he could do it – it was his special talent – quickly and calmly injected him 'black water'.

It was all they had time to do.

When Tol and Nikto entered the room, they understood everything at once.

"I've changed my mind, Tol," Lis said calmly; his eyes glittered again.

"What a shit you are!" Tol was infuriated. "You did it on purpose, just not to let Nikto vote!"

"What if I agreed with you, Lis?" Nikto asked. He stood in the doorway, leaning against the doorjamb, stood and looked at Lis. And Lis looked at him, at his face crossed by a scar, a scar that disfigured him so much, at his tousled fair hair.

"I don't want to trust you," Lis whispered.

"Why? You and I, we both went through it, we know…"

"I don't know anything!" Lis screamed.

"And who knows? The first and the best warrior of the Red – Sigmer?"

Lis started back.

"You're a traitor, Lis! A traitor!" Vil got up from the floor heavily. "You betrayed Enriki! I hate you! I don't know what kind of a man you were when you were called Sigmer but I know that now, when you're called Atley Alis, you're a real shit!"

* * *

Thick shining candles lit the room pleasantly making it warm and cozy. Obeying this soft play of shadows, the furs with animal heads didn't just bare their teeth but smiled. Leaning over an unconscious slave, Orel said: