Rocktopus. Rock Worm [https://i.imgur.com/vTcbLP8.jpeg]

A piece of burning rag, — I wanted to finish talking to Yurik as soon as possible because Ulya was waiting for me. The young man wouldn't let me go. Grabbing my hand, he came close to me and asked me in a pitiful voice,

- You will save Lyon, won’t you? You won’t leave my brother in trouble, will you? I’ll do anything you want.

As he spoke, I turned around and looked at Ulia. The girl was stroking the pendant glittering on her chest. Judging by the darkened eyes, she was losing patience. Yurik, following my gaze, said in a low voice,

- This is Lyon’s fiancée. He wanted to single-handedly kill all the worms to win her heart. See how worried she is? She must miss her fiancé. Look, Luko’s coming.

I was feeling a little overwhelmed by the attention I was getting. I wanted to be on my own for a while, to get my thoughts in order, to relive the events of the day. Yeah, I still didn’t know where my little furry was.

- There! Your pet! - the panting young man pointed to his home.

- Oris! - Ulia shouted after me, but instead of answering, I just waved my hand. Tush and his health were more important to me than anything else. I had grown attached to the cute little furry thing, to this living, capricious toy. Even if I had magically gained the ability to understand the thoughts of animals that didn’t speak human language, I still wouldn’t have left him.

The culprit of my worries was sitting at the dining table in front of a pot of porridge, waiting for my return. He was as hungry as I was. And you tell me, please. After all, he could have stuffed his belly to fullness without waiting for me.

We tasted our modest dinner in silence and went to bed. Fluffy spent a long time looking for a comfortable place to sleep, then at my feet, then at my waist. My patience ended when he moved to my headboard. Instead of lying down, he rested his little paws on the top of my head. I slipped him a little to the side. In a minute, he was snuggling against my neck. Not only was he restless, but his little body was warming me very much.

I put him aside again. It was only after the third attempt that the pet curled up in a fuzzy ball and nestled on my belly. I reached out and stroked his fur with my fingers. And then I fell asleep.

In my dream, I was talking to Oceania again. I asked:

- They call you a powerful magician. Is that true?

- Not as people assume. I am not a living being, I am matter living on this planet. I have tremendous life-giving power that can work miracles.

- And you share this power with humans?

- Yes, my power lives in the creative potential of each person, in their ability to see the world not only as it is, but as it could be. I give them this gift because I believe in their ability to make the world a better and more beautiful place.

- You are wise and sensible. I would never have thought of such definitions. I understand your wisdom is based on a deep understanding of the power of fantasy in people’s lives. Can this magic of fantasy shed light on the eternal question of the nature of reality and illusion?

- I realize that you are asking questions that touch the deepest corners of your thinking. You’re doing the right thing. Indeed, fantasy and reality are intertwined in an unbreakable web, creating the ornate pattern of our existence. Fantasy is the key to understanding the multi-dimensional nature of the world we live in; it helps us see not only the visible forms but also the hidden depths. One of our greatest challenges is to teach people to see their fantasies not only as entertainment but as a powerful tool for transforming the world. We must inspire them to see the beauty and harmony in every manifestation of life, to lead them on a path of self-awareness and empathy. And then, immersed in the ocean of fantasy, they can find true happiness and wisdom.

- Oceania, how can your words be reconciled with the existence on this planet of evil dragons that enslave people and take away their children? Creatures that kill people and destroy their homes? Who is responsible for such actions?

- You ask a difficult question. Yet I will try to answer it. In a world where power and evil weave dark ties, the responsibility for such acts lies with those who choose the path of violence and enslavement. Dragons, like humans, have free will and can choose their actions. No one is responsible for their actions, no matter what form they take. Are all dragons evil? Do all creatures seek destruction?

- No, of course not, — I was in a state of confusion because I was getting definitive answers to my questions. With each answer I received, it became clear to me that I could not do without a fight, and if I wanted to help people, I had to act more than decisively. To confirm my own guesses I asked one more tricky question:

- But how can we stand up to these dark forces to bring calm and justice back to this world? If you have such great power, then why don’t you yourself bring order? Why should this function be assigned to me?

- My power lies not only in transforming the world but also in inspiring others to take action. I see in every person the potential to make a difference in the world. That is why I give them the magic of imagination. We must unite in pursuing goodness and wisdom. Encourage the power of kindness, compassion, and justice. Always remember that there is a light in each of us that can overcome the darkness. We can use our imagination and the power of magic to create a world where everyone can live. You should not forget that I am not a living being. I am just a life-giving matter that can turn your fantasy into reality.

I ran out of questions, though I realized I didn’t understand everything. Magic in this country is not like circus tricks. Having pulled a rabbit out of a hat, I’m not sure that somewhere backstage there isn’t a boa constrictor crawling out of another hat.

Oceania was in no hurry to leave me this time. Apparently, she realized she hadn’t answered all my questions. I felt like a small, silly child, and she saw through me, and read all my doubts about my worthiness.

- You think you’re incapable of helping people. But I’m not. I see the potential in you. You direct all your thoughts toward creation, not destruction. You already have a powerful force within you. Your faith in your own strength and your desire for goodness and justice can do wonders. I will be there to support you and guide you in the right direction. Embrace the unknown on this journey, for with our unity, we can conquer unimaginable peaks.

I wanted to stretch my arms to Oceania, but I scratched my nose. It was morning, and my nose itched because the fluffy guy was on my neck and his fur was touching my face. I removed it from me, the sleepy little critter curled up in a ball. A tiny, tiny creature. I reached out to pet it and I heard it:

- Don't touch me! Let me sleep well!

Oceania said I had powerful powers. Pouring water from a flask into a cup, I said,

- Capulus! Coffee!

The cup of brewed coffee stood before me, filled with the aroma of the promise of a new day. The steam rising above the hot drink in a fluffy cloud invited me to plunge into a world of warmth and comfort. I could not believe my own eyes. In the middle of the cup, like a heart, pulsed dark liquid, promising to give me a boost of energy for the whole day. I brought the cup to my mouth, impatiently took a sip and immediately spit it out. It was the worst drink I had ever tasted. If my mighty power continues to reproduce my desires, I don’t know what I’ll get out of it.

While I was creating ersatz-coffee, in the plaza, the daily training began. I took my customary place behind Yurik, carefully repeating all his movements. The exercises were copies of what we’d done the day before, without being new. If I understood correctly, they were the basis of a martial dance created by the fight for life.

As I swung, blocking and deflecting invisible blows, I looked out for Ulia. Maybe tonight, we could enjoy a conversation. Yurik said that Ulia is his brother’s fiancée. Should I rush to save my rival? On the other hand, if Lyon has decided to become famous, then the beauty is not entirely his. Which means I have a chance to compete for her attention. But where is she?

After training Elfric introduced me to a gray-bearded man whose face was decorated with an ugly scar. My future trainer’s appearance was stern. Targon spoke in jerky, jagged phrases, which made my soul even more fearful. After a few lessons, however, I learned that my stern teacher was a kind-hearted man. He explained in detail the best way to hold a sword. How to strike with one or two hands. He was equally thorough about the art of defense.

In such lessons, I was all attention, nothing could distract me. Not even Ulia. She watched me from afar, hesitating to come closer. Alone or with her friends. Sometimes she was talking to one of the teenagers. And sometimes with Grim or Luco. On such days I was especially angry, and instead of harmless blows, I rewarded Targon with blatant slaps. We practiced with wooden swords to avoid injury.

Targon praised me unashamedly. Sometimes my teacher would invite one of the villagers and offer to have a practice fight with me.

My first training sessions were clumsy, but knowing my character, I didn’t stop. My bruised arms and strained leg muscles ached from the intensive training.

The often repeated exercises, the practice paid off. If on the first day, I got beaten and lost, then after a few days, few of the village fighters could withstand my onslaught and resist my blows. And when I knocked Targon’s sword out of my hands, he raised his hands.

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- Perhaps there is still something to teach you. Only I have given you all my knowledge. As of today, you know and can do all the same things I do. And even a little more. I would never have thought that you could knock an opponent down with a simple slash or knock a weapon out of his hands with the flat side of a sword.

I think he knew all that. The art of swordsmanship is as old as the world. Targon was just flattering me to keep my confidence up.

The Rocktopus have attacked the village again. Not on the village itself, but in the mine where they were extracting combustible stone. Of the ten men who went underground, three escaped. No one knew the fate of the rest.

Elfric ordered everyone to get ready, so the village was preparing. Torches were being prepared, a flammable mixture, a black, oily substance. I sniffed it, and rubbed it between my fingers. The liquid had the characteristics of oil.

I wanted to talk to Elfric, to share my thoughts with him. The leader was sitting on the roof of a built hut, stacking bundles of brushwood to replace the roof. When Elfric saw me, he gave me a friendly wave. I signaled I wanted to talk to him. A moment later, the leader came down to the house and came out to meet me.

- Elfric, I think I know why the roctopuses are attacking the people of your village.

- Speak, I’m listening, — the leader prepared to listen.

- Roktopus attack you when the work begins in the mines where they extract combustible stone.

- We kind of know that ourselves. We don’t know why these days.

- They don't want your men chopping coal in the mine.

Elfric looked at me. His face expressed an extreme surprise. I smiled at him.

- I counted the moments of the attacks and compared them with the miners going into the mines. The worms attack in the days when the miners start extracting the combustible stone.

- Son, — the leader said, — do you think we’re dumber than your roctopuses?

Elfric did not speak but shouted. I had never seen him so furious.

- You don't think we've been able to analyze the events? Or are you saying we’re careless and complacent fools? I’m not interested in the days of the attack, I’m interested in the reasons!

- They don't want your men cutting coal in this place. That's what's pissing them off. Maybe we should look for another place for the mine.

- Don’t piss me off, son! I believe you had better judgment than this. Everything you’re saying, we know. We can’t build a mine anywhere else. This is the closest to the surface of the earth and it’s only a hundred paces from the village.

There, — he waved his hand, — there are rocks growing out of the ground. Over there is a stream that flows into the Great Lake.

- There’s got to be a reason. Maybe the worms have a sacred place there. And people violate the boundaries of the place, destroy it.

- There’s only combustible rock. Nothing else. Rocktopus don’t make their burrows in stone. Not one burrow, no matter how much we work there. And they attack exclusively from the corridors we cut through. They just hate humans because we live here. Or they’re being controlled by someone.

That was the end of the conversation. Elfric climbed to the roof again, and I moved toward the guard post. Luko and his new partner were on duty there today. When he saw me, he smiled, signaling that he couldn’t speak. Since the mass attack on the village, I have been relieved of duty.

- Luco, let me keep watch, — I offered my help. The young man was surprised:

- Why?

- You will rest, replace me later.

- But it’s my shift now, I can’t leave. Then Ardan will come. Then we'll be replaced by Grim.

- Forget it, - I realized my offer looked stupid. - Which way is the entrance to the mine?

Luko pointed in my direction, keeping his ear on the listening tube.

- Do you want to go for a walk, — I asked the fluffy one sitting on my shoulder. He was mumbling, chewing something, and answering me with his mouth full of goodies.

The mine was a hundred and ten paces from the entrance to the village and was a huge pit with wide steps hollowed out in the ground.

Around the entrance lay a light, almost airy dust of stone. Taking my sword out of its sheath, I cautiously began to descend. Right at the entrance were baskets used for transporting coal. Dry timbers, prepared for wall reinforcement, were stacked neatly in the wide passage. Many wooden wedges, and heavy wooden sledgehammers. A few half-burned torches.

The farther I got from the entrance, the darker the corridor became. Sometimes fine dust fell from the ceiling, sometimes small pebbles.

I wanted to turn on my night vision, but then I remembered I hadn’t come up with a spell for it. So I said:

- Oculong! Long Eye!

A thin thread grew from my hand. I explored the empty corridors. I found a place where miners worked. Tools were thrown on the ground, overturned water jugs, and some rags. Elfric stated that an unexpected attack had occurred on the miners.

- Do you hear anything? - I inquired of Fluffy. My pet, who was hugging my neck, mumbled:

- There’s no one around.

Long Eye surveyed all the nearby corridors and found the opening through which the worms had approached the humans. It was about a yard in diameter. Not big and not small. I could only move through it on all fours, which was uncomfortable. If I moved forward, I wouldn’t be able to turn around when I encountered the roctopus. It would be difficult for me to move backward. How will I be able to fight in such a cramped space? It would be difficult to swing a sword here, and the fire wouldn’t help much. I’d suffocate from the fumes and smoke.

Fluffy came down to the ground and looked at the tracks left by the worms. The slime had already dried up and had taken on a strange yellowish-green color. Something like this I had seen when the roctopuses had attacked the village. It was roctopus blood. Perhaps the charcoal hurt the worm's skin.

I looked at Fluffy. The little beast could squeeze into any hole. I'd like to shrink down to a certain size and become a little person. Wouldn't mind eating a piece of the mushroom Alice ate before going down the rabbit hole.

A sudden pain shot through my entire body. I felt like I'd been shoved into a shredder. I thought one of the roctopuses had attacked me, leaping out of the ambush. But there was no one in the empty hole but me and my little companion. The long eye disappeared into my palm.

My arms twisted at the joints so that they cracked. I fell to the ground and convulsed. Perhaps it was a fit of epilepsy, something I had never experienced before. But I was conscious, and I felt the pain with every cell in my body. It lasted about ten minutes, maybe more. I did not time it. However, when the pain was gone, I saw I was something like a spider. Four jointed legs and two arms. Now I could fit in the hole made by the worm. Neither vertical walls nor ceilings were an obstacle for me. I could crawl in any direction.

Fluffy, seeing my new appearance, at first wanted to run away from me. I called out to him in a quiet voice,

- Touche, it’s me, Oris.

The animal approached me, sniffed me with his little ticklish nose, and touched me with his paws. Relief washed over him as he confidently mounted my back, eager to resume his extraordinary voyage. I had to hide the sword I’d inherited from Lyon under the empty baskets. In one of the baskets, I stowed my clothes...

- You turned into a cockroach? - Nikos smiled. - I always knew there was something wrong with you.

This time his joke seemed harmless. I continued to tell the story:

- Instead of my skin, I was covered with some scales. They served as clothing and armor at the same time. After wandering down the corridor and getting used to my new body, I climbed into the hole. Even though I could see perfectly well in the dark, the long eye released from my palm was doing some preliminary reconnaissance. It surveyed turns, some dumps, and holes. We navigated by the dried slime left behind by worms.

Very often we came across forks, but to avoid getting lost I kept to the right side of the endless tunnel. The burrow led us to a dead end, the way was blocked by a rock, a monolithic wall. The worms failed to overcome the natural obstacle, widened the burrow, and turned back.

So did we. Fluffy, lulled by my smooth walking and the darkness of the burrow, dozed off and almost fell off my back. I thought his drowsy state would last for the rest of the trip. We returned to one of the forks and entered another burrow.

- How do they find landmarks? By smell? By special markings that only they understand?

Fluffy pressed against me, breathing more often than usual.

- Do you feel something? - I asked him. He might not have answered, there were muffled thumps coming from somewhere in the depths. Maybe we had come out to the mine again?

I smelled a foul odor, the way rocktopus smelled. A long eye reached forward and saw the first worms. One lay motionless, the other was examining it with its tentacles. It was most likely a guard post, but who could the worms be afraid of?

Trying to move as quietly as possible, we went around the sentries, barely squeezing above them under the ceiling. It seemed to me that Fluffy’s fur even touched the worm, frozen in anticipation.

I realized that his fur had touched not just his body, but the stinging hairs growing on the back of the roctopus. Fortunately, they appeared harmless, causing us no harm.

As we got farther away from the guard post, I smelled odors that were hard to identify. It smelled like sulfur, ammonia, burning rock.