"So, is anyone interested in what a ghost army is like?" Tame asked, leading the living towards the interior of Szelevu.
"I am!" Citar immediately said enthusiastically.
"I am curious too." Wandi agreed.
"Actually, I don't think any of us have ever heard of such a thing, so we are listening with curiosity." Razvan took over, which managed to get the others to stop agreeing and just listen.
" Let's just say we are really rare. I don't know of any other like it." Tame thought for a moment, then shrugged. "So our troops have been stationed towards this direction for quite some time. We have two units of gutas, three swordsmen, two spearmen, a wraith, four archers, one and a half or two units of hungry ghosts." The ghost began to count on his hands.
"What do you mean one and a half or two? So how many now?" Kamu grimaced.
"That depends on how many of them feel like being here. They are our wildest troops and also the most unreliable. If they feel like fighting, they are the best you can find, but if they don't, they won't take up arms for the sake of the nature spirits." Tame rolled his eyes at the ghost.
"Nature spirits?" Teveli snatched the part of the dead man's explanation that sounded most exciting to him.
"Yes, that, nature spirits." The ghost shrugged.
"What are nature spirits?" The Tele boy asked curiously.
"The embodiments of the elements of the world, because of whom the world works correctly and in balance." The ghost smiled faintly.
"And what..." The youngest Teike boy was about to start another question, but Suk stood behind him and covered his friend's mouth with both hands.
"Sorry Tev, but I know what you're like when you're excited. Once you start asking questions, you won't be able to stop until tomorrow." The boy in the yellow dress sighed.
"The Zovárd is right about that, Tev. I once saw you questioning a wise woman, the poor woman aged at least two years." Benkó shivered. "Hey, why now?" The boy's eyes widened when a sword blade appeared in front of his throat. At this, Teveli pulled Suk's hand from his mouth and spoke grumpily.
"Keep insulting me and I'll show you what it's like when I catch you." The Tele boy folded his arms in front of him.
"Wow! Do you see what I see? Tev has become mad. Who are you and what did you do to my friend?" Achilleus blinked, but all he achieved was to make Teveli roll his eyes and hide his sword.
"If you've finished your little argument, we can move on, we'll be there soon." Tame suddenly spoke, thanks to which he stopped another wave of quarreling.
As Etele's right hand said, the small group soon reached the camp of the ghost army. Basically, the place was exactly like an average yurt village, only instead of living people, it was inhabited by ghosts. The further they went between the yurts, the more often the ghosts greeted Tame and Etele, as if they really welcomed their leaders.
"Here we are! This is the heart of the camp, the big campfire." Tame stepped next to the fire and stretched out his hands towards it, as if despite being a ghost, he could really feel the warmth of the flames. "You can safely look around the camp, if you want. I have a little business to take with the Boss now. Then the danovud lady can take you to your flying cows." Tame chuckled.
"How long will it take?" Kamu asked.
"Don't worry about that, we'll find you later." The ghost smiled.
"Then follow me, boys! We'll look around!" Suk shouted as he set off and half of the Athamanas followed him.
"You dirt brain, blink over there! That looks interesting!" Benkó pointed in one direction.
"What could it be?" Llyr also stepped next to him.
"So, are we going to see the jumping thing, or are you staying here?" Achilleus asked, but he had already hurried in the right direction, followed by his two companions.
"Come on, idiot hegin! I'll show you something!" Physalis Alkekengi grabbed Tele Tete's wrist and before the older Tele could say anything, she had already dragged him somewhere.
"Hey, Kamu, look over there! They're dueling! How about we show them what a real duel is like?" Ajtony grinned when he saw the dueling ghosts next to one of the yurts.
"Rahul, you'd like to acc..." Razvan started to ask, when Tame stopped him.
"As a matter of fact, I wanted to ask the young Koál to come with us. Maybe the Boss will be more enthusiastic, or just more useful." The ghost working as his right hand looked at Etele with piercing eyes.
"Then what if I went with you too? Svihák might do even better if I'm there." The leader of the Athamanas smiled and put his hands behind his back.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. We'll be quick and efficient. You don't have to worry. You'd better go with the other ghost king, it wouldn't be good if they scared everyone. Of all of you, you're the only one I think can keep him in check. I'd be in your favour if you did this for me. I feel like I could trust you." Tame said in a honeyed voice and although the smile on Razvan's face disappeared more and more after each word of the ghost, he still sighed heavily in the end.
"I understand." He said slowly, then nodded. "I'll go and guarantee that Kamu and Ajtony won't make half your army useless, Svihák." He glanced at his former táltos, then slowly set off after the Isháns of the Immortal Mist, leaving the Koál relatives alone with Tame.
"You knocked him down nicely, I have to admit." Etele stated, nodding and folding his arms in front of him and puckering his lower lip forward.
"I find it strange that he gave in. With how upset he's been in the past few days." Rahul began and looked at Razvan with piercing eyes. "He simply gave in its suspicious." He noted.
"Now this is a problem? Until now the problem was that he was always breathing down your neck, and now it's that he's not?" Etele grimaced and spread his arms as he turned to his relative.
"I'm not saying it's a problem, you smart ass." Rahul rolled his eyes. "I'm saying it's strange, but I'm sure he has his reasons." He finally sighed and shrugged, then turned to the ghost's relative's subordinate. "So where are we going now?" He asked the question, causing the ghost dressed in strange clothes to smile.
"To the central yurt, of course. The team leaders gather there, and all orders to our soldiers go from there." Tame explained as he extended his right arm. "That way please!" He chuckled.
"You don't have to be so cocky, Tame." Etele snorted, then almost stormed past the ghost into the yurt.
"Don't worry about him, he's just grumpy." Rahul smiled. "He'll be fine." He left it at that, as he entered the yurt, followed by Tame.