Linus looked at Vail with a look full of denial... and kept staring at him, unable to believe what he'd heard. He looked him up and down without a word.
"You, Vail... you're putting our lives on the line..."
Then Linus fell silent all at once, and laughed in despair, saying:
"Ah, yes... as though they weren't already."
And after a moment, he added:
"So, dear Vail, do you grasp what might come after you for this decision of yours??? Do you know how to do it??? Don't let anyone know a thing..."
Then Linus turned in the opposite direction from Vail, and said to himself:
As if he'd even dare...
In that moment, Linus and Vail parted. And that is something that rarely happens in truth, for you would always have seen these two together, even in the strangest and worst of times.
Days passed as though they were quarreling... well, not really, since Vail simply didn't show up during that time.
Linus wandered the village alone, when an elderly man stopped him, a youth his own age beside him. The old man addressed him gently:
"Hey there, young Linus — where's your other half???"
Then he laughed merrily.
Linus was stunned by his words, and froze in place for a few seconds before quickly shifting his stance, saying:
"Oh, Vail... heh... actually, I haven't seen him for a while. Maybe he went out, or got sick, or something."
The old man smiled at him, and said:
"Hahaha — then how about spending some time with my troublesome grandson, Darrel? He's a quiet boy, as you know, and nobody ever talks to him."
Linus smiled an easy smile at him, and remembered that Darrel's father had done what Vail had done... he'd joined those men too, and fled.
But I've also heard he was killed. Well — that makes sense, he's a man with nothing but passion... so... oh, what a rude fool I am — he almost heard my voice...
The boy called Darrel grew irritated, and turned away angrily without a word. Linus looked at him, puzzled. And in the midst of that, Vail cut in, calling out from a distance:
"Hey, Linus, look at this—"
And suddenly the two of them were struck by the situation, and then Vail fell silent and didn't finish.
Linus smiled at him, and said:
"Oh, Vail — you're late! Hurry up, to that place we agreed on."
Vail looked at him in bewilderment. And the moment he grasped the situation, and saw Linus nodding to him, he tried to play along:
"Oh — yes, right, right! Let's go — I'm late — sorry."
And Vail and Linus went on their way quickly, as though they were truly in a hurry.
Darrel watched them from a distance, and gave them a look of strange hatred, while the grandfather felt what his grandson felt... but he too cast a strange look at Vail from afar...
Vail and Linus stopped at their usual place. Linus said to him in rebuke:
"You didn't do what I think you did, did you??? And you come in noisily to announce it to me, right??? Please — tell me you found a girl or something."
Vail said not a word. He only tilted his head, as though letting him down, and showed him a gleaming sword.
Linus stepped back several paces, and began scolding him, pacing back and forth near him, while Vail only listened, with no reply and no argument.
After Linus had emptied everything he had, he realized it had already happened and there was nothing else to be done. All he could do was warn Vail of the consequences of what he'd done — that he was exposing himself and others to death. Vail tried to argue, but remembered that arguing was useless: the very same words would be repeated, and no one would reach a result.
Then Linus sighed a little, and said in a quiet voice:
"Alright — tell me, what did you reap, then???"
And here Vail looked as though he'd been waiting for that question, and began eagerly:
"Well, where do I begin? Raids, clashes, training, camps, hard, disciplined men. I swear they're the strongest and bravest I've ever seen! No wonder they're a threat to SI. You won't believe me, but their numbers are in the hundreds at least, and there's more and more!!! And there are strange weapons with them too — you're forbidden even to go near them! And also..."
And here Linus cut him off, and said:
"Oh, dear Vail, I don't mean to cut your enthusiasm short, but I asked you: what did you reap??? And you tell me a few hundred??? What do you do with them??? Maybe we outnumber them??? Dear Vail, it's all the same — it's a foregone conclusion. You don't grasp the size and power of SI — they're everywhere!!!"
Linus stopped a moment, then went on:
"Haven't you heard about the fall of the Kingdom of Arkin some time ago??? The place that held out for so many years??? Their first line of defense??? The hardened men said to be impossible to push through??? Even that terrifying, merciless knight, or whoever he was??? They all perished, and guess who did it??? An ancient kingdom and a great power like that??? Oh, what a coincidence!!! They're the very same ones you're hoping, with a few little gangs, to destroy!!!"
Then he lowered his voice:
"You know something, dear Vail? I don't mean to discourage you further, but I'm still thinking about your last words: that I'm alive only because someone was too lazy to search for me. So... I'm sorry."
It seemed that each word he said tore down something of Vail's spirit and enthusiasm, and it did. Then he said in a despairing voice:
"You're right... I was a fool, truly. I went and did something absurd... what was I thinking??? Did my enthusiasm really carry me away??? I have to stop them now!!!"
Linus was taken aback, shock coming over his face, and he said in a loud voice:
"Vail — what do you mean???"
Vail said, turning slowly:
"I asked some of them to protect the village, just in case... and they're on their way here."
Linus seized Vail, and screamed:
"What did you do?!"