Grand Duke Vladimir, Red Sun, Holy Baptist of Rus', who came to power by pagan law, and then autocratically threw pagan idols into the Dnieper. A sovereign who married a Byzantine princess and received the right to the royal (Caesar) title. Or rather, he won this right not only through the valor of his loyal squad, but also with his own sword. What is known about him, the greatest of the sovereigns of our history, who lived a thousand years ago? Much is known. And not only from domestic chronicles. Vladimir was known to the chroniclers of Europe and Asia, Byzantium and the Arab world. So there is enough information, truthful information, to clearly imagine the image of the sovereign-warrior, the sovereign-builder, who decisively turned to the Truth not only the Rus, but also hundreds of other tribes that lived on the land under his control. Vladimir's father, the great commander Svyatoslav, fought on equal terms with the Byzantine emperor. The Byzantine emperor found himself in debt to Vladimir. And the Grand Duke managed to force the ruler of the largest empire of that time to repay this debt in full. He achieved what was denied even to the Holy Roman Emperor.
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Grand Duke Vladimir, Red Sun, Holy Baptist of Rus', who came to power by pagan law, and then autocratically threw pagan idols into the Dnieper. A sovereign who married a Byzantine princess and received the right to the royal (Caesar) title. Or rather, he won this right not only through the valor of his loyal squad, but also with his own sword. What is known about him, the greatest of the sovereigns of our history, who lived a thousand years ago? Much is known. And not only from domestic chronicles. Vladimir was known to the chroniclers of Europe and Asia, Byzantium and the Arab world. So there is enough information, truthful information, to clearly imagine the image of the sovereign-warrior, the sovereign-builder, who decisively turned to the Truth not only the Rus, but also hundreds of other tribes that lived on the land under his control. Vladimir's father, the great commander Svyatoslav, fought on equal terms with the Byzantine emperor. The Byzantine emperor found himself in debt to Vladimir. And the Grand Duke managed to force the ruler of the largest empire of that time to repay this debt in full. He achieved what was denied even to the Holy Roman Emperor.
Series development A. Saukova
Cover illustration V. Petelina
© Mazin A.V., 2017 © Design. LLC Publishing House E, 2017
Chapter 1
Successful meeting
Kiev-Chernigovsky tract
We drove slowly. There was nothing left until Morov, they would definitely make it before dark.
Ilya and Maliga are ahead. On Ilya there is a new, third gold hryvnia. The first is his own, or rather, given by his father when Ilya became a gridiron. The thinnest. Although this one was called hryvnia, it was good in terms of weight if it was a quarter. The second, a trophy, is heavier, skillfully twisted, with a three-headed dog. Ilya got it back when he was crippled. He took Svardig, the former prince's centurion, and then a robber and thief, from the neck of the man he had killed. It was not easy: the cripple had to kill the Varangian and the prince’s centurion, but God helped: he saved him from a cruel fate and from an evil enemy. Good hryvnia, heavy. Svardig once removed it from the neck of the Svei jarl, and it is not known from whose neck. The Grand Duke's hryvnia is the third. Prince Vladimir presented it to Ilya yesterday. This is a sign: Ilya is now the senior griden of the Kyiv squad. Despite the fact that he did not swear allegiance to Vladimir. But even without that it’s clear: it’s necessary - it will serve, but it’s a hefty gift. This is appropriate to give for excellent heroism in battle, and not for some robber. But this Nightingale is a special robber. And not because it was he who once crippled Ilya, but because, as my father said in Romanian: this is a political matter. Behind the Grand Duke is Christ, behind the Nightingale are the old gods. If none of the people of Prince Nightingale can tame, then it turns out that the old gods are stronger than Christ. That’s why Ilya’s reward is generous. And the robber Nightingale was not simply executed like the taty, but was taken to prison by the Grand Duchess. Although, Ilya thought, they would ask him not about the gods, but about burial sites with loot. Well, this doesn’t concern Ilya anymore. He got his.
Maliga, the foreman, with whom Nightingale was taken and who is now riding along Ilya’s side, also did not go without awards. Ilya himself has already given it to him. That's what dad ordered. He said: “Maliga is your man, encourage him yourself.” New chain mail on Maliga, a new helmet, weighty silver bracelets on his arms. Happy with Maliga. And his wallet got pretty heavy.
And those warriors who were now riding behind the prince also had a fair amount of goods from these six and from those who were wounded. Three heavy ones are now resting in Morov, three lighter ones remain in Kyiv. Ilya did not take them with him. The doctor in Morov is good, but in Kyiv he is better.
Good on the road. Silence. The autumn forest burns golden in the rays of the evening sun...
“The caravan recently passed,” Maliga said, looking at the ground ahead.
- Caravan! – Ilya snorted. – You’ll say the same! Three carts and six footmen.
“The carts, however, are heavy,” Maliga noted. - One of the wheels is wobbling. Maybe it was broken, or maybe the pin fell out...
Ilya took a closer look.
“It’s broken,” he decided. “If there was a pin, they would have already corrected it, but since they are going, it means there is no spare one.” They hope to reach Morov with this.
- Wow! – Ilya suddenly exclaimed. - Why did they rush?
I immediately understood why.
Blood on the ground. Covered with dust, but still noticeable.
- Maliga, look! - Ilya ordered, taking out a bow prepared for battle. On the way, Ilya did not drop the bowstring from his horns.
The foreman dismounted and picked with his finger:
- Fresh! And the body was dragged into the bushes! Darling, look...
- No need! – Ilya stopped the boy. - After!
And he sent the Dove into a gallop, pulling arrows out of its body.
The ride didn't last long.
The convoy was stopped. Blood and other visible traces could easily be seen on the road. And the fragments of the wheel, which were thrown onto the side of the road, and the deep track of the wheels leading into the forest.
Maliga dismounted again. He sniffed a branch that had been broken off and somehow put back in place.
– But they passed just recently! – he said joyfully.
Ilya smiled joyfully.
- We made it through successfully! - he said. - God loves us!
The vigilantes chattered cheerfully.
- Quiet! – Maliga growled. -They may be close. Forward!
In the forest, the trail became more obvious: they didn’t really hide it here, and how can you hide a trail from the carts that are being dragged through the bushes?
And here is the ravine. Familiar habit!
- Fire up, look! - Ilya ordered.
- Shall we not fall behind? – Maliga became worried.
- Nope. They are full. There are women in bologna. They won't go quickly.
It was already a bit dark in the forest, but in addition to hoof prints, one could also see traces of pedestrians. Moreover, these pedestrians did not really know how to walk through the forest. But this little heel is definitely a woman’s... No, with such servants the robbers will not be able to speed up.
Vozgar, a seasoned griden from the Krivichi, went down into the ravine.
- The carts are here! – he shouted from below. - One without a wheel. And more dead. I see three. Stripped down to their underwear. Killed by arrows. Search further?
- After! Get out! Trot!
It was getting dark quickly. I had to slow down. Ilya was sure that the Dove would find somewhere to step in the dark, but he was not accustomed to following the trail. Still not a dog...
- Rozneg! Go first! - Maliga commanded. “A guy sees in the dark like a lynx,” he explained.
Ilya did not argue. Rozneg is young, still a boy. But from natural Varangians. Properly trained.
And in the dark he really saw like a cat. The line of vigilantes immediately moved faster.
They were lucky again. When it got so dark that even Rozneg could not see anything, the horses began to walk cautiously. And then it started to smell like smoke. Bonfire.
“Dismount,” Ilya commanded. - Maliga, take care of the horses for now, and I’ll run and have a look.
- Understood. Rozneg, Vozgar - with the prince!
Ilya wanted to protest, but realized that Maliga was right. And not only because he wants to cover for Ilya. If they find the robbers, then someone will have to inform the others, and someone will have to stay and watch.
Yes, Ilya doesn’t have enough military experience yet. Although experience, as Boguslav once said, is a gainable thing. The main thing is to survive while you gain it.
Bonfire. It is skillfully arranged: two long dry trunks burn crosswise under the canopy of a centuries-old spruce, so that the smoke is lost in the crown, and so is the light. You won’t notice it from a distance, but the Russians were lucky: they were close.
There are seven people around the fire. They look like hunters. What was surprising: the eldest seemed to be a woman. Tall, broad-shouldered, in men's clothing, but still impossible to confuse with a man: too much flesh in her bosom.
Nearby is a mountain of luggage and harness. And a little further away there are seven tied up: four men and three women. Two are very young.
A little to the side are hobbled horses. At least two dozen.
“Six is not much,” thought Ilya. “The three of us can take it easily.”
Yes, he would have taken one: those thugs near the fire only had cutlasses and a couple of axes stuck in the trunks. The rest: bows, tools with arrows - ten steps away, away from the fire. Until they reach...
- Let's take it! – Ilya whispered excitedly to Rozneg and Vozgar. - Cover up!
He put his bow in his beam, straightened up, took his swords out of their sheaths and leisurely walked out into the clearing lit by the fire.
Big mistake on his part.
To justify Ilya, one could say that he has been too lucky lately. This instilled false confidence: they say, it is enough for him, the prince and the eldest grid, to appear in all his glory - and the stunned enemy will immediately fall over backwards in horror.
Ilya was saved from instant death by good armor and the fact that the shooter did not hit him in the face, but decided that he would be able to pierce the chain mail.
An arrow that hit him in the back pushed Ilya forward... And the second arrow hit him in the stomach. Hurt! But the chain mail came to the rescue here too. But the armor certainly wouldn’t have protected him from an ax thrown at his face, but Ilya saw the throw and dodged. And the robber who threw the ax also withdrew the arrow, crouched and fell into the fire, raising a column of sparks. And he screamed wildly.
Ilya jumped forward, jumping over the log on which the robbers were sitting, grabbed the first one he came across, shielded himself with him and the log from the shooters hidden in the darkness, and roared:
- Grid!!! Here!!!
Another arrow whistled. A blow - and the robber, whom Ilya had grabbed, groaned and stopped fluttering.
That's all. The tramp of several pairs of feet, immediately lost in the forest. The crying of captive girls, the crackling of a fire, the stench of burnt meat...
“Why are you, prince, so... sloppy,” Maliga reproached. - You would have waited for us... What if they killed you?
Ilya remained silent. Gloomy. Maliga is right about everything. He became arrogant, Ilya Sergeich. Out of greed for glory, I decided to defeat all my enemies alone.
And he got what he deserved. Maliga is right: it’s fortunate that they didn’t kill him.
The result of the fight was not pleasing. Three robbers - to death. There were no wounded to interrogate. The prisoners, however, were released and the loot taken from the caravan was taken away. But the rest of the thieves were mediocrely missed. Including grandma. But this woman is not just anyone, but Nightingale’s beloved younger wife named Khvor. The prisoners said: she fought equally with her husbands and personally hacked to death a merchant with an axe.
And where to look for this Ailment now?
True, Maliga had an idea: to set a couple of robber horses free. Suddenly they will lead you to housing.
We tried it in the morning... It didn't work. The horses didn't go anywhere. And there were no human traces left. The dads left. Because of Ilya’s carelessness and impudence. Oh, shame!
Alexander Mazin
Varangian. Gold of the Old Gods
Series development A. Saukova
Cover illustration V. Petelina
© Mazin A.V., 2017 © Design. LLC Publishing House E, 2017
Successful meeting
Kiev-Chernigovsky tract
We drove slowly. There was nothing left until Morov, they would definitely make it before dark.
Ilya and Maliga are ahead. On Ilya there is a new, third gold hryvnia. The first is his own, or rather, given by his father when Ilya became a gridiron. The thinnest. Although this one was called a hryvnia, it weighed well if it was a quarter. The second, a trophy, is heavier, skillfully twisted, with a three-headed dog. Ilya got it back when he was crippled. He took Svardig, the former prince's centurion, and then a robber and thief, from the neck of the man he had killed. It was not easy: the cripple had to kill the Varangian and the prince’s centurion, but God helped: he saved him from a cruel fate and from an evil enemy. Good hryvnia, heavy. Svardig once removed it from the neck of the Svei jarl, and it is not known from whose neck. The Grand Duke's hryvnia is the third. Prince Vladimir presented it to Ilya yesterday. This is a sign: Ilya is now the senior griden of the Kyiv squad. Despite the fact that he did not swear allegiance to Vladimir. But even without that it’s clear: it’s necessary - it will serve, but it’s a hefty gift. This is appropriate to give for excellent heroism in battle, and not for some robber. But this Nightingale is a special robber. And not because it was he who once crippled Ilya, but because, as my father said in Romanian: this is a political matter. Behind the Grand Duke is Christ, behind the Nightingale are the old gods. If none of the people of Prince Nightingale can tame, then it turns out that the old gods are stronger than Christ. That’s why Ilya’s reward is generous. And the robber Nightingale was not simply executed like the taty, but was taken to prison by the Grand Duchess. Although, Ilya thought, they would ask him not about the gods, but about burial sites with loot. Well, this doesn’t concern Ilya anymore. He got his.
Maliga, the foreman, with whom Nightingale was taken and who is now riding along Ilya’s side, also did not go without awards. Ilya himself has already given it to him. That's what dad ordered. He said: “Maliga is your man, encourage him yourself.” New chain mail on Maliga, a new helmet, weighty silver bracelets on his arms. Happy with Maliga. And his wallet got pretty heavy.
And those warriors who were now riding behind the prince also had a fair amount of goods from these six and from those who were wounded. Three heavy ones are now resting in Morov, three lighter ones remain in Kyiv. Ilya did not take them with him. The doctor in Morov is good, but in Kyiv he is better.
Good on the road. Silence. The autumn forest burns golden in the rays of the evening sun...
“The caravan recently passed,” Maliga said, looking at the ground ahead.
- Caravan! – Ilya snorted. – You’ll say the same! Three carts and six footmen.
“The carts, however, are heavy,” Maliga noted. - One of the wheels is wobbling. Maybe it was broken, or maybe the pin fell out...
Ilya took a closer look.
“It’s broken,” he decided. “If there was a pin, they would have already corrected it, but since they are going, it means there is no spare one.” They hope to reach Morov with this.
- Wow! – Ilya suddenly exclaimed. - Why did they rush?
I immediately understood why.
Blood on the ground. Covered with dust, but still noticeable.
- Maliga, look! - Ilya ordered, taking out a bow prepared for battle. On the way, Ilya did not drop the bowstring from his horns.
The foreman dismounted and picked with his finger:
- Fresh! And the body was dragged into the bushes! Darling, look...
- No need! – Ilya stopped the boy. - After!
And he sent the Dove into a gallop, pulling arrows out of its body.
The ride didn't last long.
The convoy was stopped. Blood and other visible traces could easily be seen on the road. And the fragments of the wheel, which were thrown onto the side of the road, and the deep track of the wheels leading into the forest.
Maliga dismounted again. He sniffed a branch that had been broken off and somehow put back in place.
– But they passed just recently! – he said joyfully.
Ilya smiled joyfully.
- We made it through successfully! - he said. - God loves us!
The vigilantes chattered cheerfully.
- Quiet! – Maliga growled. -They may be close. Forward!
In the forest, the trail became more obvious: they didn’t really hide it here, and how can you hide a trail from the carts that are being dragged through the bushes?
And here is the ravine. Familiar habit!
- Fire up, look! - Ilya ordered.
- Shall we not fall behind? – Maliga became worried.
- Nope. They are full. There are women in bologna. They won't go quickly.
It was already a bit dark in the forest, but in addition to hoof prints, one could also see traces of pedestrians. Moreover, these pedestrians did not really know how to walk through the forest. But this little heel is definitely a woman’s... No, with such servants the robbers will not be able to speed up.
Vozgar, a seasoned griden from the Krivichi, went down into the ravine.
- The carts are here! – he shouted from below. - One without a wheel. And more dead. I see three. Stripped down to their underwear. Killed by arrows. Search further?
- After! Get out! Trot!
It was getting dark quickly. I had to slow down. Ilya was sure that the Dove would find somewhere to step in the dark, but he was not accustomed to following the trail. Still not a dog...
- Rozneg! Go first! - Maliga commanded. “A guy sees in the dark like a lynx,” he explained.
Ilya did not argue. Rozneg is young, still a boy. But from natural Varangians. Properly trained.
And in the dark he really saw like a cat. The line of vigilantes immediately moved faster.
They were lucky again. When it got so dark that even Rozneg could not see anything, the horses began to walk cautiously. And then it started to smell like smoke. Bonfire.
“Dismount,” Ilya commanded. - Maliga, take care of the horses for now, and I’ll run and have a look.
- Understood. Rozneg, Vozgar - with the prince!
Ilya wanted to protest, but realized that Maliga was right. And not only because he wants to cover for Ilya. If they find the robbers, then someone will have to inform the others, and someone will have to stay and watch.
Yes, Ilya doesn’t have enough military experience yet. Although experience, as Boguslav once said, is a gainable thing. The main thing is to survive while you gain it.
Bonfire. It is skillfully arranged: two long dry trunks burn crosswise under the canopy of a centuries-old spruce, so that the smoke is lost in the crown, and so is the light. You won’t notice it from a distance, but the Russians were lucky: they were close.
There are seven people around the fire. They look like hunters. What was surprising: the eldest seemed to be a woman. Tall, broad-shouldered, in men's clothing, but still impossible to confuse with a man: too much flesh in her bosom.
Nearby is a mountain of luggage and harness. And a little further away there are seven tied up: four men and three women. Two are very young.
A little to the side are hobbled horses. At least two dozen.
“Six is not much,” thought Ilya. “The three of us can take it easily.”
Gold of the Old Gods - description and summary, author Mazin Alexander, read for free online on the website of the electronic library ParaKnig.me
Grand Duke Vladimir, Red Sun, Holy Baptist of Rus', who came to power by pagan law, and then autocratically threw pagan idols into the Dnieper. A sovereign who married a Byzantine princess and received the right to the royal (Caesar) title. Or rather, he won this right not only through the valor of his loyal squad, but also with his own sword. What is known about him, the greatest of the sovereigns of our history, who lived a thousand years ago? Much is known. And not only from domestic chronicles. Vladimir was known to the chroniclers of Europe and Asia, Byzantium and the Arab world. So there is enough information, truthful information, to clearly imagine the image of the sovereign-warrior, the sovereign-builder, who decisively turned to the Truth not only the Rus, but also hundreds of other tribes that lived on the land under his control. Vladimir's father, the great commander Svyatoslav, fought on equal terms with the Byzantine emperor. The Byzantine emperor found himself in debt to Vladimir. And the Grand Duke managed to force the ruler of the largest empire of that time to repay this debt in full. He achieved what was denied even to the Holy Roman Emperor.
