Suddenly the horse stopped and turned to Katerina. The girls also had to stop. While the girls looked at each other, the horse knelt in front of Katerina. Olga quickly understood the horse's hint. While Katya was thinking, Olga pushed her friend towards the handsome white man. Without allowing Katerina to come to her senses, Olga helped her friend perch on the animal.
“Olya,” Katya whispered in fear, “what about you?” I don't want to be alone. Get on the horse too. What if, while we are driving, she bucks and throws me out. But I don’t know anything here! Girlfriend, come with me?
- Of course, I want it too, but it’s unlikely that the horse will agree with our decision. This is your totem.
- Well, let's at least try! Olechka, please!
- OK then. Let's try!
Olga resolutely approached the horse to also sit behind Katya. A friend even extended her hand. However, the horse did not agree with her friends' decision. Sensing a catch, the horse suddenly stood up on all fours. And then she snorted and rushed off right away.
Katya shouted something, but Olga didn’t hear what exactly.
The girl knew that her friend would be fine. The horse will take her to the first pillar, and will be with her until she, Olga, comes to this place.
After the first pillar is passed, you will need to be careful. After the first pillar, the Burial Grounder disclaims all responsibility. And by the way, the power of the totem also does not extend beyond the first pillar.
Olga straightened her backpack and bag for artifacts, which hung separately, and calmly walked off the road. She decided to get to the first pillar by a roundabout, shorter route. On both sides of the road there was a space overgrown with small daisies; this space ended with a small undergrowth. The undergrowth accordingly gave way to dense forest. Olga knew one thing for sure: here, in the Cemetery, what the human eye sees is not always the truth. It may well be that there was no forest here three years ago. Perhaps there was an administrative center or a residential area here. The transformation that occurred with this land changed all the stackers' ideas about the real and the present. But Olga also admitted the idea that there had been a forest here before. Therefore, all that was required of her now was to walk very carefully and watch her step. Suddenly Olga became alert, voices were heard in the distance, then the voices turned into screams and abuse. It was bad, very bad. Olga was alone, and the voices she heard were male. So far there was only one way out - to hide behind the widest tree that Olga could find now. The voices came almost close. Olga did not see the speakers, but heard their voices.
“What the hell?” the male voice, sounding in a raised voice, was thin and rattled unpleasantly.
“Shut up.” The screaming man received this advice from two men at once.
“Say thank you,” a fourth voice broke into the conversation, “that here, in the Burying Ground, it is forbidden to commit murders.” Otherwise we would just kill you. You have to be such a little rat to steal from your own people.
“I didn’t steal it,” the man with a high-pitched voice squealed again, “I suppose they planted it for me, and now you’re mocking me.”
“Okay,” one of the men spoke again after a pause, “when we pass the checkpoint, then we’ll talk.”
“I don’t want to go with you!” the high-voiced man shouted again, “I am a free man, and I can go wherever I want.” I was unlucky on this trip. Therefore, I will probably return back to the Cemetery.
“Go,” the man who spoke last unexpectedly calmly agreed. “Well, you really are a free person.”
“Victor,” a voice that had not sounded before intervened in the conversation, “don’t do this, don’t send him back alone!” You know it's dangerous!
-Why are you contacting me? It's his decision, I don't force him!
-Because you are the eldest in our group! You have more walking skills and more experience!
-Well, listen, Edya, they stood up for you here! You've been forgiven! And who? The one you stole from! What we are going to do? You can, of course, come with us, but all the same, when we return home, you will have to answer for theft.
-Yes, fuck you! A team of psychos and outcasts! - shouted the high-voiced man, who was probably Edey.
- Well, you! - several voices were heard.
Someone ran past Olga. The girl pressed herself against the tree trunk as tightly as possible.
“Bastards,” shouted the one who had just rushed past the girl, “I don’t need your help and I don’t need forgiveness either!” I remember the road, I’ll come back, I’ll find the artifact we were looking for - a stone star, then you’ll find out!
It was quiet for a while, then the man who asked for Edya said:
- He must be returned! Victor, he must be returned!
“Even if I wanted...” the man, who was called Victor, cleared his throat, “I won’t get him back.” You know, people who return the way they came from the Burial Ground... In general, he may now be in that part of the Burial Ground that we have not even heard of. Anywhere in the Burying Ground!
-I can't go home alone. Ed is a distant relative on my sister's husband's side. His mother really asked my sister for me to take him with me. I'll go after him.
- Thatwhere you won't come home. You will look for him in the Burial Ground forever. Are you ready for this?
-I... I don't know.
-Sashka, well, that’s enough, let’s go home, we’ve already stayed here too long, in these ruins. Oops! Look! How come I haven't seen this before now? Probably, there used to be a complex here - a kindergarten and a school.
“School named after Pyotr Basov,” another male voice was heard.
-What? - Victor asked
- It is written, here, on the sign that this school was named after Pyotr Basov. I wonder who this is? What did he do that got the school named after him?
“But I’m not interested,” Victor’s voice sounded irritated, “that’s it, enough talk.” Get up and go! Alexander, this applies to you too! Come on, the Boneyard sometimes lets out people who don't behave normally! Let's go, maybe we'll go through the checkpoint, and Edya will already be home. Is everyone ready? Well, go ahead!
Nobody objected to Victor, and soon the male voices moved away.
Olga had difficulty peeling herself away from the tree. She was afraid to make sudden movements, but she could no longer stand still. Walking around the tree on all sides, she tried to find the place where the men stood. Of course, she was not interested in the men’s parking lot, she was interested in the view that the men saw from their place. One of the men mentioned that he could see a school and a kindergarten. Olga quickly found the place where the men were discussing their business ten minutes ago; it was not difficult; the grass where they were standing was trampled. However, no school or kindergarten was visible from this place. Olga took several steps to the right and left, then tried to go around this place in a circle, but the result was still the same. Everywhere you looked there was only forest.