In the arms of Mara

– When I went to bed, I was full of hopes that she would come again, or rather fly in the form of snowflakes. However, my hopes were not fulfilled. In addition, I fell into a deep, deep sleep. In my dream, I dreamed of a clearing, bats dancing by the fire, I wanted to approach them, and I took a decisive step towards them. There was dampness underfoot; the air was heavy because of the large amount of moss. I was able to see these trolls; they looked like little devils with bat wings. These creatures had no heels, and their pointed ears gave a funny look. These creatures were clearly having fun, their squeaking sounded disgusting, the fire was not burning with a natural flame; something had obviously been thrown into it. The appearance of a nasty old woman did not spoil the fun, but rather intensified it. The old woman began to prepare some kind of drink on the fire. She uttered incomprehensible words, poured some mixtures into the pot. The liquid in the pot bubbled, and gave off an unpleasant smell to the whole neighborhood. Along with this smell, the fog began to come. At first, it was a thin puff of smoke, and then the fog began to thicken and turned into thick dark smoke. Because of this smoke, nothing was visible. Taking advantage of this moment, I came closer. Hoping that no one sees me, I stood in front of the fire, trying to look into the pot. The liquid in it looked like red wine. The old woman looked at me and did not say a word. The ritual was over, the fog continued to advance. The little men ran screaming somewhere, and I followed them at a brisk pace, not seeing where I was going. I walked, not knowing what I was stepping on, there was dampness under my feet, and branches of bushes fell into my face. The only thing I looked at was the little infuriates, it seemed to me they knew where to go.

The fog began to clear, and I began to look around. It was no longer a clearing covered with moss, but more like an autumn abandoned forest. All the trees and shrubs were leafless. The sky was not visible, it was not there as such, and there was a black haze. It was a cold autumn, and the air was wet and cold. A cold shiver ran through my body, and I began to shake from the cold. Wet, yellowed leaves rustled underfoot.

I noticed that one of the devils had strayed from his own and stuck in the bush. I decided to help him get out, and squatted down for this. The imp was scared of me, and I felt funny. Barely suppressing a smile, I picked it up, and it turned out to be not so nasty. I continued to shake from the cold, and I held him with trembling hands. The imp tried to escape; I squeezed him even harder and asked: – where am I?

– On the threshold of the Navi world. The imp squeaked in a childish voice.

– Where is everyone going?

– You need to get across the Kalinov Bridge faster. The holiday is coming soon.

– Which one?

– At Mara Madder’s ball. She is coming into her own soon. She holds a celebration in her honor every year. Nevertheless, she has a limited number of guests. If you are not invited, then it is better not to show yourself in her eyes. Run away from here. She will punish you.

The more I was removed from her, the closer I wanted to be to her.

– How do I get to the party? In addition, I squeezed him even harder. This creature was smaller than my palm. He began to beep loudly and attract attention. I let him go and he flew away. All I had to do was not noticeably follow everyone.

The souls of the dead began to join our small company. They were ghosts with light transparent eyes. They flew after the devils, I realized that they were meeting guests and escorting them to the place. I began not to have time to follow these evil spirits, and strengthened my step. Souls continued to fly up and join, but there were not many of them yet. I remembered the words that the bat had squeaked to me that the number of guests was limited.

The flying company made an abrupt stop, and I took a breath. Looking around, we found ourselves on the edge of the forest; there was a large stump in the middle. An old woman stood next to him and poured out the same red drink that was brewed in another clearing. The drink was poured into the skulls, surprisingly it was hot, and everyone who received it stood in a circle. At first, the ghosts got up, as I understood by seniority, they stood in a circle holding the skulls. Then the bats, they rather protected the guests. Thus, a double circle was formed around this stump. I really wanted to drink this drink. I was shaking from the cold, despite walking fast. I felt weakness in my body, I felt my strength leaving me, and I fell into unconsciousness. The sight of this old woman was so terrible, I was afraid to approach her. My mouth was dry and all I wanted was a sip of water.

The inhabitants of the clearing continued their journey, first the besyat, followed by the dead souls. There were more than a hundred of them. The old woman was the last to set off. All the guests and their escorts took the skulls with them. The old woman left her medicine here, and I was waiting for her to leave. As soon as she left, I ran up to the stump. There was a surprisingly hot drink left in the pot. Despite the terrible smell, I took a big sip. Immediately after drinking, I felt strong, and the cold left me. All I needed was to catch up with my own. I already considered them my own, despite the fact that I am a living person; I was in the other world. I completely forgot that at any moment, I could return to the world of the living, and to my surprise, I did not want to do that at all. These devils became my friends, even though they did not know about it. If I had told anyone at work about this, I would have been immediately sent to a mental hospital. I did not think about it, the only thing I thought about was how to get to the holiday.

I did not notice how I ran to the right place at the right time. I did not feel any pain or fatigue, I did not want to sleep or eat. For a minute, I thought I was a ghost too. The number of guests increased, and the speed of the hike decreased. The most real magic rose before my eyes. The dead trees that had shed their leaves and prepared for winter came to life and bowed their gnarled branches in front of the guests. Snakes and lizards crawled under their feet, bowing their heads before the flying souls of the dead. The foliage that had fallen under his feet was fluttering, although there was no wind here initially. We slowly continued to walk; I still tried not to be noticed, although it is hardly possible if in this otherworldly world the dead nature comes to life.

The procession is over. We stopped at the riverbank. A bridge was thrown across the river. The river, as well as the bridge, were of large size. Looking around, I saw around me many living, or rather dead creatures. These are the souls of people, also animals, birds, trees. Everyone froze and stood motionless. I was afraid to move, but I tried to see what was happening on the other side. I remembered my sister’s words about Mara Marena, as well as my late grandmother, who spoke about the Kalinov Bridge, the Currant River. – Madder’s possessions lie beyond the black Currant River, separating Reality and Nav. The Kalinov Bridge is spanned across this river, which is guarded by a Three-Headed Snake.

I remembered these words, and began to understand where I am. The guests separated. On my right hand stood the dead souls who accompanied the devils. All the evil spirits are on my left. These are all the same devils, goblins, kikimores, mermaids, trolls, as well as the dark spirits of the Slavic pantheon. I hid behind a tree, hoping that no one could see me. No one paid attention to me, everyone was looking at the bridge. I looked back and saw a huge number of ghosts. For some reason, no one accompanied these souls, and they stayed away. There were few animals; I could not understand what they were doing here. I also noticed the Kalinov Bridge. The crowd of people became animated and began to slowly move forward. The procession was led by souls accompanied by evil spirits. It was very slow. I did not know who to go with or how to get there. I decided to go the very last, I wanted to see this ceremony, how and what would happen. I completely forgot about the fear, and about the fact that I am not an invited guest here.

I climbed a tree and watched what was happening. The crowd slowly moved forward. The deceased souls formed pairs with the same devils, a large column was formed, and they held a skull in their hands. The view from above was terrifying. The fog began to come again, and because of it it became worse to see. I saw everything. As the souls walked across the bridge, a three-headed Serpent met them at the other end of the bridge, and they disappeared somewhere, but I could not see where. The column gradually advanced, and it became smaller. I started to feel cold, and I got chills.

When the last souls had passed and the bridge was empty, a strange man came out on the bridge and descended to this shore. He looked like a hermit, his image fully corresponded to a human, and at the same time, he was somewhat similar to a goblin. Having examined his image closer, I saw in this man a noble elder. I wonder who he is. In addition, what is he doing in this place?

– This is the god Veles. I shuddered. One of the ghosts was talking to me. They could move through the air, but I did not know they could talk. These ghosts were asexual, they looked like transparent cellophane bags, and they had no legs, hair, shapes. Judging by the voice, a man was talking to me. The ghost approached me, and stayed close.

When Velez came closer, the trolls parted, and the animals bowed their heads. Velez said something to them in an incomprehensible language and the animals went back. Then Velez slowly left. In addition, behind him, the trolls began to march.

– This is the guardian god of the forest. He is also the master of the kingdom of Navi, along with Mara Marena, Chernobog and Koshchei, the husband of Mara Marena. This is their underground world. Veles thanked the dead animals for helping him protect the forest and its inhabitants. The animals returned to the world of Reality, only anew. If you want to go to Mara’s ball, then you need to go with the trolls. After they pass, the road will be closed. She will not let anyone else in.

– How do you know?

– We come here every year to honor the great goddess, but alas, we are not allowed access. All these souls once angered her very much, and she does not invite us to her holiday. All souls of former sorcerers, magicians and sorcerers who, when they tried to establish contact with her, were very angry. She also does not like lazy people, and those who once did not keep their promise. She severely punishes these people.

– And who are the souls who left accompanied?

– These are the guests of honor. These ones were able to establish contact with her. These souls were very lucky. She always patronized them. My chills were getting worse, and it was getting harder for me. If you once had a problem with her, then it is better to appease her, otherwise you will not be able to. The ghost fell silent and looked at me with kind sad eyes.

– Why did you come up to me?

– I can see right through you. I am a former magician. I also know another secret, but I do not know whether to tell it to you or not.

– If you have started, then tell me.

– That old woman who shamanila by the fire, whom you saw for the first time. It is your grandmother. Mara made her house cleaner, she, she…

Then my dream ended and I woke up. I fell silent. My story is over. My interlocutor listened to me attentively, without interrupting. I was always alarmed by the fact that my interlocutor was looking at me very carefully. He wanted to say something and was silent. The strangest thing was that he believed me. Does he really believe that too? I did not doze off for long. After dinner, we walked down the corridor with him and got ready for bed. As soon as we lay down in bed, Vova asked me to continue my story.

I woke up sweating and shaking violently. To my surprise, I immediately got my bearings where I was, and immediately remembered about the plane ticket. I realized that I was in hell; I was transported from hell to hell. My hell was that I needed to get there urgently, and I did not know how. Friends came into the room and brought me good news. It turns out that I had a fever all night, and they called an ambulance for me. The doctor gave me an injection, and I slept until morning. They handed over my ticket without me, and they decided to keep me until my recovery. That was the best news for me.

I called my sister and told her everything. Everything is as it was. To my surprise, she believed me, and together we thought about how I could get there. There was very little time left. As soon as the trolls cross the bridge, there will be no access, and I will not be able to get to the holiday. My sister told me that Mara would celebrate the holiday in her ice palaces.

– What is the reason for this holiday?

– Mara Madder is a sign of winter; it comes into its own on 25 November. Her time is winter. In addition, her rights end with the arrival of spring, when they burn the effigy of winter. She is afraid of the sun. Today is the day of winter; it comes into its own.

– What do you and I need to do to help our grandmother?

– I do not know myself. Can somehow appease her. To perform the rite.

– I think I also made her angry at something. In addition, I, too, will have to be punished. Only I am still alive.

– Don’t worry, brother, I will think of something. Keep me posted on everything that is going on. I mentally said goodbye to my sister and came to my friends in the kitchen.

I drank a cup of coffee, the fever increased. The clock showed exactly seven in the morning. I calculated the time zone. My thoughts were in hell. I wonder if there is a time zone there, and what is the countdown there.

– What are you thinking about?

– How can he think of anything in this state? Let us give him medicine instead.

– What is it?

– What the doctor ordered while you were sleeping.

A friend brought me medicine, and I drank it. I have not eaten for more than a day, and I did not feel like it. I wanted to smoke, but I did not have the strength to go out on the balcony or the landing. My friend took a step to meet me, and opened the window.

– Smoke. He said. In addition, he got a cigarette for himself and me. A friend sitting over a cup of coffee laughed at us.

– That is what your grandmother’s fairy tales have brought you to. They even started smoking indoors. Are you not afraid that the Snow Queen will fly in here now and take you away! I was standing, and subconsciously waiting for this moment when she would fly through the window. I needed it. We finished our cigarettes in silence, the medicine began to take effect, and a friend went to the window to close it. As soon as he closed it and we sat down at the table, the kitchen began to be covered with ice. Despite the open door to the corridor, only the kitchen room was covered with ice. Ice covered everything: curtains, windows, chandelier, and every little thing that was in this room. It happened quickly enough; I was already ready for it and was not particularly afraid. My two friends had a hard time, and I was afraid for them and their lives, too. The ice continued to crackle, and its thickness reached a large size.

– What the hell! My friend dropped the cup from his hands, and it froze in the air along with the spilled liquid. I noticed one of them had a trembling lower lip. However, I could not say a word to them. For a moment everything froze, we all froze, an abyss opened up in front of us and we fell into it. We landed in a clearing where I once drank a miraculous drink. The pot was empty. Looking around, I did not see anyone. I was looking for the inhabitants of this world to continue my journey. I completely forgot about my friends, but I should have thought about them.

– Where are we? What is happening? Listen, you are at home here! Explain.

– We are in hell with you! I said joyfully!

– What?