And the new Mistress looked, turning her Black and Terrible face on the resurrected ones, but the giants, geese-swans, did not move, only with shaved foreheads touched the damp earth. They asked, and Elena could not refuse them. She came up, ringing with gold bracelets, and put a crown on her silver hair, laying braids under it. A ray of ardent sun fell on gold, and the crown shone with such fire, as if the light itself was burning on the forehead of Elena the Beautiful.

And then the giants rose from their knees, obedient to her will, and moved back.

***

The Queen herself, scouring around, next to the battlefield, like a forest beast, found a weapon for herself – a large sickle made of forged copper, with the sharpest edge. Changed the small handle to the shaft from the spear. Twisted in her hands, yes, and as if the wind moaned, but withered. The girl received a heavy and terrible weapon in her hands. And with which it was possible to chop and prick! But, isn’t she the only one to do? She needed helpers, but not advisers, but only faithful servants…

And so, she noticed a huge mound of fresh earth. This hill grew up as if by itself, and strangers covered it from above even with turf. It was the place in which the finders buried their ten thousand dead. They failed to hide from me, Elena thought. Like a wound, her blue lips opened in an angry smile. She was not going to lure or hustle the power of the Gods to lure, she did not need it. After all, it was she herself who was this force. She just raised her hands above her, palms forward. The sleeves of the shirt jumped out of the bracelets, fell to the very shoulders, and now her hands were black, like her face. She put her eyelids together, felt her heart beating, as if the blood in her veins was fluttering and rushing outward, almost boiling. She opened her eyes, and the earth on the hill, as if alive, climbed out of it, animated by the power of the Queen of the Dead. Strong hands threw aside the soil, hard and hard, which had not seen rain for a long time, breaking through their passages outside. But these inanimate, swarming in the ground, like ants, climbed out of their anthill to give glory to the Underground Princess. They were no longer people, but only dead bodies taken by her power to serve a terrible service. It was in front of her lively strangers, who have now become her invincible army.

– Stand before me! – Elena the Beautiful ordered inanimate in a heavy, low voice.

And they stood in front of her, standing in a dense crowd. How the wall lined up, from inanimate bodies, stinking and terrible. But, it was her army, a source of power and strength. For everyone knows that power relies only on military power, and more on nothing.

“Pick up a oak tree!

And each of the dead was now armed. Elena traveled around these warriors obedient to her will. Now she had the Power, and there was no one to match her.

– Forward!

The dead jumped up according to her Word, and according to her Word they took different clubs with weapons, which the elders brought. She was pleased with this, but, it should have been hurried, every minute was dear.

She sensed herself, the path along which the huge rati of strangers walked. Neither traces of red tape nor clods of earth, knocked out by the hooves of horses, disappeared from her eyes. And the Dead followed her tirelessly, obeying only the movement of the hands of the Mistress, as if they were children’s dolls, with ropes tied to them. Stubbornly walked, in front of them. We climbed through hills and ravines, through hummocks and gully. And hung over this army, as if sewn, a whole cloud of gray crows, who read the earth with their croak. And the sun went down, hid behind gray clouds, as if he did not want to look at all this. But, Elena was in a hurry, led her dry trot, and the Dead Host did not think to lag behind.

This army did not need sleep or food. They did not need warmth or a comfortable overnight stay. And Elena herself no longer wanted to eat or sleep, but saw at night, no worse than during the day. And exactly – it was not just a girl – but the Underground Princess herself appeared in all the splendor of her fame. For only she, and her bright brother obey the Dead – after all, Elena the Beautiful rules the dead in the Baking Kingdom.

And she led her army to Oum, who was besieged by strangers. The dead do not need rest, and in the darkness they see them as in the afternoon, and Elena came to the city in just half a day instead of three days.

And the army of strangers stood next to Oum, smashed a huge parking lot, fenced with drags and carts. Black smoke rose above their yurts. She heard someone else’s guttural speech, and saw the soldiers who stood guard.

Elena gave herself to see, and noticed how they chased her. With a dozen warriors on low horses. They could not catch up with the Hornet, but she put her plow on the ground and hid in the bushes, watching. The chase approached, and the riders examined the forest. The queen intercepted the handle of the weapon, taking it more comfortable, and rushed at them, like an angry bear. Two managed to shoot at her from the bows, but only she even saw these arrows, and easily dodged. In two strikes, she beheaded both shooters. The blood hit the thick grass with a stream, the bodies still fought in convulsions, and the Queen again chopped and pricked. Strangers tried to defend themselves, but their movements seemed to her terribly slow, sluggish. Three more were killed. The rest tried to surround her, threw darts at her. Where is there! Next to Elena, a dozen shafts were already sticking out of the ground, and not a single tip even touched the clothes of a girl, already almost completely covered with someone else’s blood.

“It’s a demon! You have to run! ‘one of the strangers shouted.

“Not a demon, but a Sovereign. Elena shouted in response, And run late. This is my Earth, and I will kill you all, all to the last!

She saw these riders staring in horror at her black, furious face, as hands trembled, barely holding the reins of snoring horses. Her blue lips opened in a grin, and she jumped forward. She beat quickly and accurately, depriving the heads of two, and three blows of the shaft, threw to the ground. She tied the fallen with belts, strongly and mercilessly. They lay without feelings, rolled their eyes to the sky. It was necessary to scare, strongly scare the prisoners.

Elena did not think long. She took her knife, hanging on her belt, another belt, and with a quick blow struck one of the severed heads. Cutting the belt through the wound, she smoothed the skin of a dead face with smooth fast fingers, slightly scratching the dark skin of someone else with her long black nails. And then, nails became like blades of sharp knives. I tried, she played with this creepy tool, bringing her fingers together and spreading, and was pleased. And the dead head opened its eyes, and the lips curled up in a terrible smile, so that the tongue fell out. Both heads were still on the belt, and then the Queen put this monstrous band around her neck.

“Now don’t be silent,” Elena whispered.

The awakening of those left to live was not merciful. A couple of blows to each under the ribs with the strong foot of the Queen forced them to their feet.

– I won’t pull long. How many warriors have come?

– Our army is more than grains of sand in the Great Desert! chuckled the oldest of the warriors.

– There is no time to joke, – said the Queen, sparkling with her icy eyes, – to answer quickly!

– The great leader Takrat brought the allied army to these lands. And we will win! – said grinning, the youngest, – and I will not take you to my yurt even with my younger wife!

– Come on, – Elena said calmly, almost in syllables, – I didn’t get stuffed.

Then, calmly, without haste, so that this warrior would feel, she began to tear off his hand. She would never have offended a frog before, but here… The man shouted terribly, trying to escape. Yes, it would be easier to get out of under a twenty-pound stone than to free herself from her hands. She unscrewed and turned until the elbow joint came off with a nasty crunch, and then the skin burst. She was holding someone else’s hand with which blood was dripping, and suddenly, with this hand, she hit the face of the oldest of the soldiers with a swing.

– Speak, otherwise I’ll tear off your head like that!

Streams of blood flowed from the forehead and nose, and it was clear that the person was trembling. Deprived of his hand, he lay on the ground, and screamed in pain, frantically tucking his legs under him.

– You’re strong… You’ll still get an answer. There are twenty thousand soldiers in Takrat’s army, and sixty thousand in the wagon train. He decided to move here to these rich lands.

Elena appreciated the words of the warrior, and the fact that he did not ask for mercy. She recognized her strength and power, and knew how to penetrate anyone. Life and Death are what Power gives and what subjugates anyone. The queen scoffed at her thoughts. But, it was necessary to do…

She grabbed him lying on the ground, pulled off the remnants of his shirt, leaving him naked to the waist. Then, taking her time, she put her severed hand to the bloodied cult. I looked into the eyes of this man, and he could not lower his own for fear. It was done…

Strangers, not believing their eyes, looked at the unprecedented. Yes, you have seen this to cut off your hand. Well, to tear – so the bear tears… But what would put his hand back, and it seemed to grow back? They did not believe what had happened, even their wide-open eyes. Both touched the hand of a comrade, himself.

– And now get out to yourself, – said Elena Beautiful sharply.

All three bowed uncertainly, falling to their knees and rising quickly. They caught their horses, got on horseback, and trotted to the parking lot, sometimes looking back at the Queen.

Elena knew people, and understood how they feel now. She showed her power and power over them, and most of all, that she can Everything. Having released the prisoners, she was sure that now all the finders would only talk about such a miracle, about a cure, about a hand increased by unknown witchcraft.

But, a little she doubted herself. And the fly flying around her head was so annoying. Buzzed and buzzed. But, literally, one movement of her long right fingernails, knives, and it’s over. I saw how the fly was dissected by its black nails, and only a few small remnants, and silver wings fell into the grass. The queen looked thoughtfully at her hands, at her nails and knives. And I thought suddenly:

“Or maybe it was necessary to tear off this head, and not the hand? For clarity… But no, I would have died right away, I would not feel pain. And here, perhaps, he will realize, learn to understand someone else’s pain. Only, their Takrat will kill them all one. What would be less said…”

She ran to her haired waiting mistress. The hornet immediately pulled his face to her hands, expecting to receive a treat. And he was not mistaken, the rye cracker was in his rough tongue. The moose was rather sad, and Elena was again on the back of her favorite. Nearby, so stood her Dead army, which no one could defeat.

Now, read, the strangers were already defeated, it remained only to drive their remains into the ground.