Odi, take his head clean off, full force! Come on! It's the oldest trick in the book! No reason to drag it out!
Our operator closed his eyes, gripped the handle with both hands, gave it a small test swing in the air — and then… whoa. Straight down. Full power. Dead on target. How the hell did he do that?! Didn't even miss. Where did that level of professionalism come from?
The neck cracked, and the head parted with it instantly, rolling across the stage to a mix of horrified howls and delighted laughter. The crowd surrendered to the shared madness; many had already been pulled fully into the unreality of what was happening.
The body jerked convulsively, and I honestly thought it might start running like a headless chicken. No — that didn't happen. Something else did.
The stage beneath the master flared with neon light, and he took several steps toward the skull. Carefully picking it up, he raised it above his own head like a trophy. The pseudo-severed head in the bat mask looked downright awesome — hypnotic.
— The offering is accepted. And a return gift has been granted. — he waved his hand carelessly. The stage beneath the fallen body ignited — and, predictably, it stood back up. Naturally, with its head back on its shoulders.
Where's my sad little flute or any other instrument? I yawned and only then realized how brutally hungry I was. I'd been running around on an empty stomach all day. Just a couple of chocolate bars Odile had brought along.
Speaking of which — he wasn't surprised by the resurrection either. Not in the slightest. He simply placed the weapon at his feet. Ada said sharply:
— I need to get out. There's no air in here. And this place disgusts me.
I followed her, feeling that it really was time to bail. Beckoning to the operator, we turned on our phones and walked through the dark corridor toward the exit.
Bright daylight scorched my eyes, and I blinked in surprise. I'd almost forgotten that the time of day hadn't really changed — it had just drifted closer to evening.
— So? What did you think? — I asked Adelgunda.
— There's something to learn from them. Even if I don't like their methods. — she replied thoughtfully.
— Exactly! They're excellent tricksters, though not without flaws, of course. — I hurried to add, since praising anyone so openly wasn't really in my nature.
Odi emerged into the light too, along with a few other visitors — but unlike them, he looked crushed. The others were chirping excitedly, happily discussing the show, while the man of mystery stared at the ground and headed toward the road to call a taxi.
We caught up with him, and Adelgunda gently suggested he let it go. That it was over. That we were all together again, close by — the usual therapeutic sweetness. It didn't work. He remained grimly silent.
Just as he stayed silent the entire way back to our hotel.
Ada tried to draw at least a word out of him, but he stubbornly refused to speak. I didn't meddle — my head was buzzing from fatigue and heat. Odi's quirks could be dealt with later. After a proper dinner and some quality time sprawled on a hotel bed under air conditioning.
Which turned out to be a hundred-percent lie I told myself.
Even after we'd eaten all the food we'd brought to the room, and Ada nearly choked on an olive pit — I did absolutely nothing.
I just flopped onto the bed, launched a mobile game, and started shooting cute little monsters. Oh, and I took a shower too — just to look vaguely decent again.
Odile sat by the wall with his eyes closed and didn't touch the food at all.
Fine. Whatever. He'd come around later and tell us what was gnawing at him. Why pry into someone else's soul? I've got enough of my own "inner demons." Or whatever they call that crap in TV shows.
Adelgunda suggested we go out for some air, enjoy the evening, but I objected, saying I was tired. And as a parting note, I reminded Odile that we still had to visit the temple — to make sure the guide carried out his task properly. He didn't react at all.
Okay. Message received.
A moment later, I fell asleep. And another moment after that, I was mercilessly jolted awake by someone's forceful shoves into my back.
— Hey! Who's there? Knock it off!
— NoWay, get up! Now!
Still half-asleep, I recognized Ada's voice and sat up on the bed. My temples were pounding, and my mouth was bone-dry. Looking out the window, I saw that night had already fallen.
— What happened?
She was sitting on my bed with a look of alarm I had never seen on her face before. Breathing a little unevenly, she pulled herself together and explained more calmly:
— Odi is gone.