The Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko, Sergei Luk'ianenko Page A
Authors: Sergei Lukyanenko, Sergei Luk'ianenko
Tags: Fiction, General, Fantasy, Thrillers, Vampires, Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945), General & Literary Fiction, Occult, Fantasy fiction; Russian, Science fiction; Russian
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"We have no right to let him go over to the Dark Side; the balance inMoscow would completely collapse."
Okay, kid, you're right on the very edge.
That was more terrifying than any inexperienced vampire.
Boris Ignatievich was entitled to have the boy taken out.
"Don't be afraid," I said, not moving from the spot. "Don't be afraid. I'm your friend and I won't do you any harm."
The boy crawled as far as the corner and froze there, never once taking his eyes off me. He clearly Page 62
didn't understand that he'd shifted into the Twilight. It looked to him as if the room had suddenly turned dark, a sudden silence had fallen, and I'd appeared out of nowhere…
"Don't be afraid," I repeated. "My name's Anton. What's your name?" He didn't say anything. He kept gulping, over and over again. Then he pressed his hand against his neck, felt for the chain, and seemed to calm down a bit.
"I'm not a vampire," I said.
"Who are you?" the boy yelled. It was a good thing that piercing shriek couldn't be heard in the everyday world.
"Anton. A Night Watch agent."
His eyes opened wide, as if he were in pain.
"It's my job to protect people against vampires and all sorts of vermin."
"You're lying…"
"Why?"
He shrugged. Good. He was trying to assess his actions so far and explain his reasons. That meant the fear hadn't completely paralyzed his mind.
"What's your name?" I asked again. I could have influenced the boy and removed his fear. But that would have been an intervention, and a forbidden one.
"Egor…"
"A good name. My name's Anton. Do you understand? I'm Anton Sergeevich Gorodetsky. A Night Watch agent. Yesterday I killed a vampire who was attacking you."
"Just one?"
Excellent. Now we had the makings of a conversation.
"Yes. The girl-vampire got away. They're searching for her now. Don't be afraid, I'm here to guard you… to destroy the vampire."
"Why is everything so gray?" Egor suddenly asked.
Good boy. That's really good thinking.
"I'll explain. Only first let's agree that I'm not your enemy. All right?"
"We'll see."
He held on to his absurd little chain, as if it could save him from anything. Oh, kid, if only everything in this world were that easy. Silver won't save you, or poplar wood, or the holy cross. It's life against death, Page 63
love against hate… and power against power, because power has no moral categories. That's how simple it is. In the last couple of years I've come to realize that.
"Egor," I said, walking slowly across to him. "Listen, I want to tell you something."
"Stop!"
He shouted the command as sharply as if he were holding a weapon in his hands. I sighed and stopped.
"All right. Now listen. Apart from the ordinary world that the human eye can see, there is also a shadow world, the Twilight world."
He thought. Despite his fear—and he was terribly afraid, I could feel the waves of his suffocating horror washing over me—the boy was trying to understand. There are some people who are paralyzed by fear. And there are some it only makes stronger.
I was really hoping he would be one of the second kind.
"A parallel world?"
There, now he was bringing in science fiction. But never mind, it didn't matter. Names are nothing more than sounds.
"Yes, and only people with supernatural powers can enter that world."
"Vampires?"
"Not only. There are werewolves, witches, black magicians… white magicians, healers, seers."
"And they all really exist?"
He was soaking wet. His hair was clumped together; his sweatshirt was clinging to his body; beads of sweat were rolling down his cheeks. But still the boy never took his eyes off me and was getting ready to thwart me. As if he really had the power to do it.
"Yes, Egor. Sometimes people appear who can enter the Twilight world. They take the side of either Good or Evil. Light or Darkness. They are the Others. That's what we call each other, the Others."
"Are you an Other?"
"Yes, and so are you."
"Why?"
"You're in the Twilight world
"We have no right to let him go over to the Dark Side; the balance inMoscow would completely collapse."
Okay, kid, you're right on the very edge.
That was more terrifying than any inexperienced vampire.
Boris Ignatievich was entitled to have the boy taken out.
"Don't be afraid," I said, not moving from the spot. "Don't be afraid. I'm your friend and I won't do you any harm."
The boy crawled as far as the corner and froze there, never once taking his eyes off me. He clearly Page 62
didn't understand that he'd shifted into the Twilight. It looked to him as if the room had suddenly turned dark, a sudden silence had fallen, and I'd appeared out of nowhere…
"Don't be afraid," I repeated. "My name's Anton. What's your name?" He didn't say anything. He kept gulping, over and over again. Then he pressed his hand against his neck, felt for the chain, and seemed to calm down a bit.
"I'm not a vampire," I said.
"Who are you?" the boy yelled. It was a good thing that piercing shriek couldn't be heard in the everyday world.
"Anton. A Night Watch agent."
His eyes opened wide, as if he were in pain.
"It's my job to protect people against vampires and all sorts of vermin."
"You're lying…"
"Why?"
He shrugged. Good. He was trying to assess his actions so far and explain his reasons. That meant the fear hadn't completely paralyzed his mind.
"What's your name?" I asked again. I could have influenced the boy and removed his fear. But that would have been an intervention, and a forbidden one.
"Egor…"
"A good name. My name's Anton. Do you understand? I'm Anton Sergeevich Gorodetsky. A Night Watch agent. Yesterday I killed a vampire who was attacking you."
"Just one?"
Excellent. Now we had the makings of a conversation.
"Yes. The girl-vampire got away. They're searching for her now. Don't be afraid, I'm here to guard you… to destroy the vampire."
"Why is everything so gray?" Egor suddenly asked.
Good boy. That's really good thinking.
"I'll explain. Only first let's agree that I'm not your enemy. All right?"
"We'll see."
He held on to his absurd little chain, as if it could save him from anything. Oh, kid, if only everything in this world were that easy. Silver won't save you, or poplar wood, or the holy cross. It's life against death, Page 63
love against hate… and power against power, because power has no moral categories. That's how simple it is. In the last couple of years I've come to realize that.
"Egor," I said, walking slowly across to him. "Listen, I want to tell you something."
"Stop!"
He shouted the command as sharply as if he were holding a weapon in his hands. I sighed and stopped.
"All right. Now listen. Apart from the ordinary world that the human eye can see, there is also a shadow world, the Twilight world."
He thought. Despite his fear—and he was terribly afraid, I could feel the waves of his suffocating horror washing over me—the boy was trying to understand. There are some people who are paralyzed by fear. And there are some it only makes stronger.
I was really hoping he would be one of the second kind.
"A parallel world?"
There, now he was bringing in science fiction. But never mind, it didn't matter. Names are nothing more than sounds.
"Yes, and only people with supernatural powers can enter that world."
"Vampires?"
"Not only. There are werewolves, witches, black magicians… white magicians, healers, seers."
"And they all really exist?"
He was soaking wet. His hair was clumped together; his sweatshirt was clinging to his body; beads of sweat were rolling down his cheeks. But still the boy never took his eyes off me and was getting ready to thwart me. As if he really had the power to do it.
"Yes, Egor. Sometimes people appear who can enter the Twilight world. They take the side of either Good or Evil. Light or Darkness. They are the Others. That's what we call each other, the Others."
"Are you an Other?"
"Yes, and so are you."
"Why?"
"You're in the Twilight world
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