Oran\u017eov\u00e1 obloha nad \u00d3nyxom pomaly str\u00e1ca farbu, temnie, akoby v predzvesti smutn\u00e9ho obdobia. Mesto pod \u0160t\u00edtom sa u\u017e dlh\u00e9 roky te\u0161\u00ed blahobytu pod veden\u00edm Arcim\u00e1ga a jeho piatich det\u00ed. Arcim\u00e1g m\u00fadro rozdelil svojim potomkom vplyv v meste, ka\u017ed\u00e9mu pod\u013ea jeho predpokladov a schopnost\u00ed. Nik z \u013eudu sa nep\u00fdta ako to, \u017ee Arcim\u00e1g a jeho deti nestarn\u00fa, a odkia\u013e m\u00e1 deti, ke\u010f ho nikto nevidel so \u017eenou. Nie je to potrebn\u00e9 a ani u\u017eito\u010dn\u00e9. Arcim\u00e1g je proste m\u00e1g, a ako tak\u00fd m\u00e1 priam povinnos\u0165 by\u0165 zahalen\u00fd r\u00fa\u0161kom tajomstva. Ve\u010f sa zaober\u00e1, ako jedin\u00fd \u017eij\u00faci \u010dlovek, m\u00e1giou, a to v\u017edy len a len pre dobro \u00d3nyxu. Predsa kedysi prad\u00e1vno umiestnil nad mesto \u0160t\u00edt chr\u00e1niaci ho pred nebezpe\u010denstvami pustiny, ktor\u00e1 sa rozprestiera v\u0161ade okolo. Tak na\u010do by sa niekto staral do jeho z\u00e1le\u017eitost\u00ed?!
\nV \u00d3nyxe je to u\u017e raz tak – ak chce\u0161 pre\u017ei\u0165, mus\u00ed\u0161 prilo\u017ei\u0165 ruku k dielu a nepcha\u0165 nos do toho, do \u010doho \u0165a ni\u010d. V opa\u010dnom pr\u00edpade je tu takmer 98,86% \u0161anca, \u017ee na ten nos dostane\u0161 kolok, pe\u010diatku, trikr\u00e1t podpis a zaradia ho do arch\u00edvu pod p\u00edsmeno N. A daj\u00fa ti za\u0148 plati\u0165 da\u0148, plus \u00faradn\u00e9 trovy. Veru, v meste je pomaly viac byrokratov ako kuch\u00e1rov. Arcim\u00e1g a jeho alchymisti dr\u017eia nad v\u0161etk\u00fdm podrobn\u00fd dozor. Ka\u017ed\u00fd k\u00fasok artefaktu, ka\u017ed\u00e1 nov\u00e1 kniha, ka\u017ed\u00fd me\u010d \u010do ukuje kov\u00e1\u010d, prosto v\u0161etko \u010do sa vyrob\u00ed v meste alebo dones\u00fa lovci spoza \u0160t\u00edtu, v\u0161etko mus\u00ed by\u0165 riadne zaregistrovan\u00e9, pr\u00edpadne presk\u00faman\u00e9 a archivovan\u00e9. \u013dudia si u\u017e \u017eivot bez \u00faradov, ani nevedia predstavi\u0165.
\nAle ako to u\u017e b\u00fdva, nane\u0161\u0165astie sa v\u017edy objav\u00ed minim\u00e1lne jeden rozumn\u00fd \u010dlovek, ktor\u00fd si povie \u201ePravidl\u00e1 s\u00fa na to, aby sa poru\u0161ovali!\u201c alebo \u201eAj byrokratovi sa \u0165a\u017eko odol\u00e1va prosbe povedanej p\u00e4s\u0165ou.\u201c A v\u010faka tomu v meste u\u017e roky funguje \u010dierny trh, kde sa d\u00e1 zohna\u0165 ve\u013ea zauj\u00edmav\u00fdch vec\u00ed, samozrejme za spravodliv\u00fa cenu osloboden\u00fa od dan\u00ed. Pravda\u017ee len v pr\u00edpade, \u017ee sa chcete pusti\u0165 do sporu s Arcim\u00e1gom, jeho potomkami, alchymistami a ma\u0161in\u00e9riou mestskej gardy.<\/p>\n
Ka\u017ed\u00fd rok sa po\u010destn\u00ed obyvatelia \u00d3nyxu te\u0161ia na Ve\u013ek\u00fd karneval. Aj dnes sa pripravuj\u00fa, samozrejme po\u010das pracovn\u00e9ho vo\u013ena. Najlep\u0161ie \u0161aty, \u0161perky, slamu povy\u0165ahova\u0165 z top\u00e1nok, nech je v\u0161etko tip-top. V\u0161etci sa te\u0161ia na ten jedine\u010dn\u00fd ve\u010der z\u00e1bavy a osl\u00e1v, kedy sa spolu s ostatn\u00fdmi ob\u010danmi vyber\u00fa na p\u00fa\u0165 mestom. Rok \u010do rok sa tento had opit\u00fdch hl\u00e1v zastav\u00ed pred ka\u017ed\u00fdm v\u00fdznamn\u00fdm domom v \u00d3nyxe, vyvol\u00e1vaj\u00fac meno v\u00e1\u017een\u00e9ho obyvate\u013ea a poz\u00fdvaj\u00fac ho k bujarej z\u00e1bave. Dav sa nakoniec zastav\u00ed pred pal\u00e1com Arcim\u00e1ga a vypo\u010duje si jeho nudn\u00fd pr\u00edhovor o stave mesta. Potom sa pokra\u010duje v z\u00e1bave a\u017e k\u00fdm aj t\u00fdch najodolnej\u0161\u00edch neskol\u00ed spolo\u010densk\u00e1 \u00fanava.
\nA tento ve\u010der by ani Arcim\u00e1gov pr\u00edhovor nemusel by\u0165 tak\u00fd nudn\u00fd, ke\u010f\u017ee ho u\u017e takmer mesiac nikto nevidel a to m\u00f4\u017ee znamena\u0165 len to, \u017ee pripravuje nie\u010do bombastick\u00e9!<\/p>\n
Len dve postavy uprostred lesa ne\u010faleko od \u0160t\u00edtu nevyzeraj\u00fa, \u017ee by sa pripravovali. Jedna sed\u00ed, chrbtom sa opiera o kme\u0148 stromu a potichu chr\u00e1pe, druh\u00e1 nerv\u00f3zne pre\u0161\u013eapuje pri dvoch takmer pr\u00e1zdnych vreciach slamy. Toho spiaceho jeho zn\u00e1my oslovuj\u00fa J a toho nerv\u00f3zneho M. Obaja s\u00fa odet\u00ed v jednoduch\u00fdch \u013eanov\u00fdch \u0161at\u00e1ch s kapuc\u0148ami na hlav\u00e1ch.
\nM sa zah\u013ead\u00ed na oblohu, potom na J-a, pokr\u00fati hlavou, akoby ho stra\u0161ne mrzelo \u010do sa chyst\u00e1 urobi\u0165 a kopne do svojho spolo\u010dn\u00edka.
\n\u201eVst\u00e1vaj, u\u017e zapad\u00e1 slnko, o chv\u00ed\u013eu s\u00fa tu!\u201c zavr\u010d\u00ed v o\u010dak\u00e1van\u00ed \u010fal\u0161ej z m\u00fadrost\u00ed, ktor\u00fdmi sa J nakazil v kni\u017enici, kde narazil na dielo d\u00e1vneho u\u010denca Murphyho.
\n\u201eAj z ni\u010dnerobenia sa d\u00e1 by\u0165 na smr\u0165 unaven\u00fd.\u201c zaz\u00edva J, postav\u00ed sa a vezme do r\u00fak jedno z vriec.
\nM iba z\u00farivo zag\u00e1ni a e\u0161te chv\u00ed\u013eu spolu \u010dakaj\u00fa.
\nZ lesa sa vynoria traja mu\u017ei. Na dvoch je zrejm\u00e9, \u017ee s\u00fa to lovci, za\u0161pinen\u00e9 \u0161aty, divok\u00e9 v\u00fdrazy, me\u010de , ale tret\u00ed vyzer\u00e1 akoby sem na t\u00fato pa\u0161er\u00e1cku sch\u00f4dzu zabl\u00fadil nejak\u00fd \u0161tamgast z jednej z miestnych kr\u010diem. M vytiahne me\u0161ec a bez pozdravu ho hod\u00ed jedn\u00e9mu z lovcov. T\u00ed si zlo\u017eia z pliec kapsy a vylo\u017eia ich obsah na zem. Sam\u00e9 za\u0161pinen\u00e9 haraburdy, povedal by si nestrann\u00fd pozorovate\u013e, ale v\u0161etci piati mu\u017ei vedia, \u017ee tie artefakty m\u00f4\u017eu ma\u0165 ohromn\u00fa hodnotu.
\n\u201eKto nestav\u00ed, nem\u00f4\u017ee vyhra\u0165.\u201c povie J s \u00fasmevom a za\u010dne naklada\u0165 artefakty do vriec a zakr\u00fdva\u0165 ich slamou.
\nLovci len k\u00fdvnu hlavou na pozdrav a nechaj\u00fa toho tretieho s pa\u0161er\u00e1kmi. J ani M sa nep\u00fdtaj\u00fa ako pre\u0161li okolo gardy, ktor\u00e1 str\u00e1\u017ei jedin\u00fd priechod v \u0160t\u00edte, nepotrebuj\u00fa a nechc\u00fa to vedie\u0165. Azda to vie ten nezn\u00e1my, ale z jeho ml\u010danlivej tv\u00e1re a odmietav\u00e9ho v\u00fdrazu vidia, \u017ee s n\u00edm ve\u013ea z\u00e1bavy nebude.
\n\u201eVybrali ste dobr\u00fa noc, po\u010das Karnevalu m\u00e1 ka\u017ed\u00fd alibi.\u201c prehod\u00ed M a zavrie vrece.
\n\u201eUhm, p\u00f4jdeme?\u201c odvrkne nezn\u00e1my a vykro\u010d\u00ed smerom k mestu. J a M sa teda ml\u010dky vyber\u00fa za n\u00edm. <\/p>\n
Nejak\u00fd \u010das v tichu kr\u00e1\u010daj\u00fa, zatia\u013e \u010do na svet pad\u00e1 tma. Zrazu J zastane a vyd\u00fdchne \u00fanavou. Jeho vrece hrkotaj\u00fac dopadne na zem. Z ne\u010falek\u00e9ho stromu odlet\u00ed vystra\u0161en\u00e1 sojka.
\n\u201eM, poviem ti, bu\u010f n\u00e1m toho nalo\u017eili dnes prive\u013ea, alebo na m\u0148a u\u017e dolieha to pitie. Pot\u00edm sa jak tak\u00fd v\u00f4l a v \u00fastach m\u00e1m tie\u017e riadne vyschnut\u00e9.\u201c
\n\u201eJa ti hovor\u00edm, \u017ee sa raz prechlast\u00e1\u0161 do hrobu, ale m\u00e1\u0161 pravdu. Mohli s nami posla\u0165 e\u0161te jedn\u00e9ho. Ale to by ho museli zaplati\u0165 a vie\u0161, ak\u00ed s\u00fa t\u00ed hore dr\u017egro\u0161i.\u201c Zasmeje sa M, zlo\u017e\u00ed vrece na zem, a utrie si z \u010dela pot.
\nPozr\u00fa sp\u00fdtavo na svojho spolo\u010dn\u00edka, \u010di by im n\u00e1hodou nechcel pom\u00f4c\u0165 a vtedy si uvedomia, \u017ee \u010dosi nie je v poriadku. Cel\u00fd bled\u00fd sa trasie ako v k\u0155\u010di, s o\u010dami na\u0161iroko otvoren\u00fdmi akoby bol v nejakom tranze. Odrazu padne na zem a listy pod n\u00edm za\u010dn\u00fa sy\u010da\u0165 a dymi\u0165.
\n\u201e\u010co do \u010derta….\u201c chce poveda\u0165 M, ale vetu ani nestihne dokon\u010di\u0165 … a vybuchne na tis\u00edce mal\u00fdch roz\u017eeraven\u00fdch k\u00faskov.
\nK\u00fdm J-a postihne podobn\u00fd osud a lesom sa rozliahne tresk e\u0161te jedn\u00e9ho v\u00fdbuchu, stihne si e\u0161te spomen\u00fa\u0165 na svojho ob\u013e\u00faben\u00e9ho u\u010denca a jeho zamyslenie nad \u017eivotom a smr\u0165ou:
\n\u201eLep\u0161\u00ed hrozn\u00fd koniec, ako hr\u00f4zy bez konca\u201c … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Oran\u017eov\u00e1 obloha nad \u00d3nyxom pomaly str\u00e1ca farbu, temnie, akoby v predzvesti smutn\u00e9ho obdobia. Mesto pod \u0160t\u00edtom sa u\u017e dlh\u00e9 roky te\u0161\u00ed blahobytu pod veden\u00edm Arcim\u00e1ga a jeho piatich det\u00ed. Arcim\u00e1g m\u00fadro rozdelil svojim potomkom vplyv v meste, ka\u017ed\u00e9mu pod\u013ea jeho predpokladov a schopnost\u00ed. Nik z \u013eudu sa nep\u00fdta ako to, \u017ee Arcim\u00e1g a jeho deti […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-rocnik-2013"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1196"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1196\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1285,"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1196\/revisions\/1285"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/dobrofanth.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}