But Kanaima could not have political reasons, he was still too young for that and had too little knowledge of this business. Katthike stroked her beard. Kanaima was his unloved son. He was crippled, but he wasn't stupid. He had certainly understood what the appointment of Setna as heir to the throne meant to him. Katthike hit her forehead with the palm of her hand. Naturally! It was amazing! He was almost proud of Kanaima. Unscrupulous little devil! This calculating callousness. And that at his tender age. Remarkable! But unfortunately also dangerous. Dangerous for Setna. The heir to the throne had to be protected at all costs, so demanded not only his own plans, but also the prophecy of the oracle. What were the words like? “Protect one son well, Katthike, because he is the son of fate! He will decide the future for your people; Then the light of Askhar will be united with the lights of this world. ”Katthike had to admit that this was obviously not sufficiently the case
A few days later, a small group of tourists left the palace. Kanaima said goodbye to his sister without shame amid a flood of tears and secretly swore that one day he would take revenge on his father for all that he had done to him and Laika.The king stood by the small group and looked at him distantly. Not a word of farewell came from his self-righteous lips. Fortunately, Setna wasn't there. With all her heart Kanaima wished the plague to both of them. He turned silently away and got on his horse.When the little escort, consisting of servants, soldiers and pack horses, was finally out of sight of the heavily fortified royal castle and the big city took them into its crowded streets, Kanaima suddenly felt relieved. He was outside, for the first time really away from the palace, which was overflowing with the venom of the snakes that he sheltered. Kanaima took a deep breath. He had to be strong now. At some point he would return here and settle accounts with all the r
And so it was that every third day of his free time, Raen would go to the temple right after school. And since this was the limit of the exception granted by the clan council, he then had to do his work for the community like all the other children of the chorten. But that didn't matter much to Raen. Even if this meant that he was less able to be with Hereke, he soon enjoyed going to the temple, where he had made a new friend - in fact there were two. And gradually the laughter returned to his face.Although he had often been to the temple with his parents before, it was only now that the deep, solemn calm that radiated the sanctuary was revealed to him, and he could not escape the mysterious power that magically lured him there. Even at school in the morning, he was looking forward to going to the temple in the afternoon. On the way home he sang especially happily. When he arrived at the chorten, he separated from the other children, who were still busy making appointments t
Loenka was very impressed by the boy's talent, who at the age of seven was already able to do what an adult could only do after many months of practice. Unnoticed, he eyed Raen's relaxed face. The priest was curious to see how long it would take to learn the next stages of immersion. If the boy could handle it that quickly, he would have to inform the high priest about it. That would be so extraordinary that it was advisable to consult about it! But for the time being Loenka wanted to watch Raens progress in peace and not just hang it up, after all, he was a very young student who could still change a lot.The sojourn in the temple and training his mind did indeed give Raen some relief. The blood horse did not disappear from his dreams, but due to its recurring presence it had soon become a kind of reliable and loyal companion, which Raen even began to miss when he did not come. He had long since lost his fear and could slee
Unfortunately he caught us before we could let it go. I would have liked to have seen a lot more funny faces like that! ”Both boys looked at the horse that was tied up in the middle of the barn and was painted bright red."Maybe we should have written something on it!" They laughed out loud and could hardly calm down.In the chorten, the wooden elements of the buildings were being repainted and Raen had taken out a bucket of red paint. Then he persuaded Hereke to bring a white horse into the barn and paint it. The animal had patiently let it go, and it had been fun using the brushes to spread the paint on the fur. And finally, the horse of Raen's dreams had stood before them as if it had emerged straight out of it. Looking faithful, the bloodhorse hadn't looked threatening in any way, but rather a bit funny. And Raen had felt like he was finally meeting an old friend.“The next time we'll take green, then my father won't find it again in the pasture
Ah ha." Loenka thought about it. Actually, the thought of a red horse amused him, and he would have loved to see it. But all of this had a very serious background. He saw Raen's eyes close again.“I think we'll let the exercises stay better for today. You are completely slain. Go home, eat and go to sleep. Just come back tomorrow morning. ”“ Yes, thank you, Hyaunset Loenka. See you tomorrow. ”Raen got up, bowed to the priest and the statue and left the temple.It was now dark outside, and Raen hurried to get inside the north tower through the freezing cold. Exhausted, he climbed the stairs to the seventh floor. Actually, he should have reported in the kitchen downstairs, where most of the children were at this time of the day. Because it was the job of the younger ones to help the men and women of the house, the Parta Al Tena, with the preparation of the evening supper. But he was dog tired, wasn't even hungry anymore and just wanted to
His father waved his hand, whose face now also looked very tired. “Forget the word, Raen. The best thing is, you really go to bed now. ”Raen nodded, but he didn't like it at all that his father wanted to end the conversation like that. Why did he never get reasonable answers to his questions? He looked a lot at the light sword that was still lying on the floor next to his father, and stayed there pensively.Suddenly his hand shot out in the direction of the blade, but Roman reacted with lightning speed. He grabbed Raen's arm and stopped him just above the steel. With the other hand, he quickly pushed the sword out of Raen's reach, and it struck the wall and made a bright, metallic sound."Don't!" He shouted angrily. His voice hit Raen like a slap.He looked at his father with wide eyes, and was shocked again when he saw his horrified expression on his face.“You mustn't touch it! No way! Do you understand? It's bad for you! &rdqu
Raen's eighth birthday was the day he had longed for the most, because now he could finally learn to ride. Roman insisted on teaching Raen's first attempts at riding on his own horse, later Henendra the riding master would take over.Raen loved his father's horse and it was the greatest thing for him to sit on its back and look at the world from there. Up here he felt perfectly safe. After a short time he was able to trot alone through the snow, the horse obediently on the reins. Overjoyed he beamed all over his face. Roman was also delighted to see how well the boy got on with the big horse. Apparently he had good skills in dealing with animals.Kaeisan, Great Helper, that was the name of Roman's black stallion, always appeared in Raen's dreams. Everything else was gone, including the blood horse. There was only him and the black horse. Sitting lightly in the saddle, Raen galloped across the fields in his dreams; the dusty streets flew under Kaeisan's swift hooves, an
Finally, the warriors who had come down from the forbidden Upper Sanctuary received the blessing from the Hyaunset suer. Raen knew that they had undergone a zhangha ceremony in the upper temple room during the past hours. Unfortunately, his father hadn't told him exactly what was going on there. Roman came over to them. His eyes shimmered glassy from the effects of the intoxication from the Zhangha herb, and he shielded them from the bright sunlight with one hand. Raen looked up at him and he smiled.In the courtyard of the chorten, which in the meantime had been prepared for the big feast, the people mingled again, and people took their places in small, colorful groups on the mats. Everyone had brought their eating and drinking bowl and put it in front of them. The whole courtyard was filled with lively chatter and laughter, and the children's corner surpassed the adults in terms of cheerful exuberance. Then the fragrant food was served by the men and women of the house. For