Descendants of the Scythians - Страница 30

“I protest!” Artem called indignantly from his post at the entrance. “That must not be allowed to happen!”

“I hold the same view, but it’s a good thing we’ve been forewarned. Varkan says that the old soothsayer is an extremely wily and treacherous person. But this also makes it likely that he will want to use us for his own ends. The Scythians, you see, take us for some kind of wizards or sorcerers. Especially Artem…”

“Rrrright, Fm a very powerful magician!’’ the young man said in a voice affecting imperious dignity.

“Yes, Yarkan says that you, Artem, have produced a very strong impression on the Scythians. Diana, our dear poskina, has also wrought havoc… To make it short and sweet, Varkan says that the confrontation has only just begun. The main thing is to let the Scythians calm down a little, then it’ll be easier to deal with them. Now they’re too excited… Ah, there’s one thing we’ve got to ask Varkan about!”

Dmitro Borisovich began speaking to Varkan, choosing his words painstakingly. Nevertheless, it was obvious that he had gained somewhat in fluency. Varkan listened to him, his head bent attentively.

“Dmitro Borisovich, ask him who that stoop-shouldered Scythian is. He’s been making eyes at Lida all the time,” Arlem requested from his post at the entrance.

“All righ, I will.”

After the archeologist had worded his questions, Varkan started explaining, and, evidently, it was a rather complicated story, since Dmitro Borisovich had to interrupt him more often than before, asking him to repeat this or that phrase.

Suddenly, Artem coughed loudly, signaling a warning to his friends. Varkan immediately disappeared under the felt, and Ivan Semenovich even reclined on it, pretending to be resting.

Two Scythians, daggers hanging from their belts, entered the kibitka. They carried in two large wooden plates with big hunks of boiled meat on them. On top of the meat was some bread. A third Scythian came in carrying an earthen jug. They put the food on the floor silently, some distance away from the captives, and then left without uttering a word.

As soon as they had gone out, Varkan flipped the felt off his head. He said something that disturbed Dmitro Borisovich. The archeologist shook his head as though not quite believing what he had heard, adjusted his eyeglasses in an abrupt gesture, and said:

“The thing is, my friends… Artem! Varkan asks you not to neglect your duties at the entrance! So, as I was saying, the thing is that according to Varkan, the misshapen Scythian you wanted to know about is Skolot’s son!”

“You don’t say!” everybody exclaimed in disbelief.

“Yes, that’s right, Skolot’s son. And his name is Hartak.,He was a sickly child, born a cripple. His disabilities prevented him from becoming a warrior like all the other Scythians of high rank; neither could he be an adequate hunter. It’s probably this disability that has turned him into such a wicked man, since he was envious of anyone who was physically fit and could distinguish himself in all those things from which Hartak was barred. Now he’s anxious lest, after Skolot’s death, he should fail to succeed his father as the chieftain, because of his physical deformity. The fact is that the Scythians are accustomed to having chieftains who exhibit great valor, intrepidity and physical strength. Besides, Skolot himself is not very fond of Hartak, mostly because his son associates with Dorbatay the soothsayer.”

“A very likable pair they are indeed!” Artem remarked ironically.

“The relations between Skolot and Dorbatay have also been going from bad to worse for quite some time now. In fact, they are half-brothers by their father. Skolot, as the elder son of the former chieftain, inherited the chieftaincy by right of primogeniture. Dorbatay has never been able to reconcile himself to this fact. Ivan Semenovich, do you remember that when we were drinking the oksugala, I suggested that Dorbatay might have been effeminate in his youth? In point of fact, he was a handsome man.”

“That disgusting old creature?” Artem said indignantly.

“Well, senescence does not exactly improve one’s looks,” the archeologist said with a bitter smile. “Dorbatay was really a handsome man as Varkan tells me, and we can surmise that his beauty was somewhat effeminate. His androgynous looks could have been the reason he entered the priesthood. It is extremely likely that in this way, he hoped to put himself into a position of solid opposition to the hereditary chieftain Skolot… It seems he has managed to do that, though such an opposition is unnatural, judging from what we know about the ancient Scythians from the available sources.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, it’s rather a complicated story and I don’t think it’s the right time to go into the details, but briefly, it’s like this. With the Scythians, whose social relations were not as advanced as, say, in Egypt, for a state to emerge, the power wielded by the chieftain was always stronger than that of the priests. The Scythian chieftains tried to use the rather primitive religious beliefs that existed among their people for their own ends. But in our case, Dorbatay seems to have proved craftier than Skolot. He has managed to get all the priestesses under his thumb. At first, he was just an ordinary priest. The only two things that distinguished him from others were his being an androgynous male and the brother of Skolot. Then he maneuvered until he finally became the high priest, the soothsayer, thus achieving complete authority over the priestesses. Wily and unscrupulous as he is, he has gained considerable control over the gullible Scythians.”

“We’ve already had a chance to see how easily they can be swayed!”

“Without Skolot’s knowledge, he’s surrounded himself with henchmen chosen from among the tall, strong androgynous-looking young men. Besides, he has some backing among the warriors, too. Now, a great enmity has developed between the two groupings — Skolot’s and Dorbatay’s. Most important — in the present situation — is the fact that the rich and the nobles have joined in the struggle — and now they are vying for power, too. That’s what I’ve understood from Varkan’s explanations. We have been seized by Dorbatay’s faction with the support of the Scythian poor who are mortally afraid of thunderstorms. I think that thunderstorms and lightning in a cave like this — if it is a cave — can be disastrous. We’re the victims of religious tenets manipulated by the crafty Dorbatay and his supporters to suit their ends…”

“Hm… it does sound very complicated,” Ivan Semenovich said pensively.

“Why did Skolot treat us better then, even trying to defend us against Dorbatay?” asked Lida, quite nonplussed by what she had heard; in her imagination, Skolot had already acquired the status of a friendly, likable person, who was in stiff opposition to the perfidious, malevolent soothsayer.

Dmitro Borisovich shrugged his shoulders:

“I suspect that Skolot would like to use us for his ends exactly the way Dorbatay wants to. But at the very start, when we first made our appearance here, we found ourselves in opposition to Dorbatay, thanks to Artem’s fervent defense of the captives. It’s understandable that our magnanimous gesture played into Skolot’s hands and the chieftain thought it would be advantageous to have us on his side. Dorbatay was also quick to realize that we could be an asset in his plans and moved to seize us… and he’s succeeded as you can well see.”

“So,” Artem said, “we’re tools to be used in the interests of this or that faction, right? But what if I categorically refuse to be reduced to the role of a tool and will never accept this role, what then?”

“Not only you, Artem, but none of us here would wish to accept it,” Ivan Semenovich replied instead of the archeologist. “Unfortunately, wishing is not enough in our present circumstances. We can’t do much as long as we are held here like this. So, the first thing we must do, it’s to free ourselves. Do you agree?”

“Yes, of course.”

“And to achieve this, we must use every means at our disposal. Dmitro Borisovich, there’s one thing which is not quite clear to me. What is the role of Varkan in all this? We must adopt a general line of behavior, be it as captives or free people. It does not become us to stand passively waiting to see which faction — Dorbatay’s or Skolot’s — gets the upper hand in their attempts to use us to strengthen their power.”

“Yes, you’re absolutely right, Ivan Semenovich,” Artem chimed in.

“As far as Varkan is concerned, he says he is here on orders from Skolot and on his own initiative, too,” said the archeologist after talking again to the young Scythian.

“Oh, on his own initiative too? What does that mean? Does he represent another faction fighting for power?” Ivan Semenovich asked.

“Again, it’s a rather complicated story,” Dmitro Borisovich replied, pulling his beard pensively. “You see, Skolot’s power and support lie with his warriors; similarly, those of Dorbatay lie in his numerous priesthood. But there are all sorts of people among Skolot’s supporters, including quite a few highborn young men. But there are also those who have only their personal valor to distinguish them. Skolot wants such stalwarts among his supporters, and that’s why he willingly enlists fearless young men — mostly skilled hunters — into his force, even if they are not so wellborn. Varkan is one of them. The fact that Dorbatay keeps the Scythians down…”