Dedicated to Mom. Without you, Mom, none of this would have happened.

On the day when it all started and people became different, it was cold and hungry. The clouds hurried to cover the city of Nailit with their shadows, and the sun wisely decided that it was better not to compete with them and flew away on vacation. Apparently because of the absence of the sun, the clouds began to thicken and cried their tears for two whole days.

Why hungry? Hmm, probably because there are no women in the city – which means there is no economy either. Deserted streets and shops. Children left without mothers, aunts, grandmothers and sisters. The men were now more drunk than usual. No one washed or ironed the clothes. But the most important thing is. That people, even men, will now not be able to fight back against the wave of war that has rolled in.

Two friends were walking down a dark alley. In the distance, the lanterns of the neighboring street gleamed. The walls of the houses were mutilated with inscriptions like «Down with order!» and «Give us back the women!». The first inscription was fifty years old, and the second thirty. Thirty years ago, a tyrant seized the town and took away all the women, girls and girls from there. And the last inscription, as Minko remembered, was written by his father when his aunt was taken away. And then, when Minko and his sister were born, they took his sister, but left his mother. It's not clear why, but still she was here.

«...And he's like, «Oh, I'm afraid of you, Dao! You're the scariest of all the warriors»!.. Hey, Minko, are you even listening to me»? Dao asked his friend.

Minko said nothing. He looked at the inscriptions and thought, thought, thought… Then, as if waking up, the guy shook his head and looked at Dao.

«Yes, I'm listening to you carefully»!

Dao shook his head.

«Minko, your problem is that you don't know how to lie!.. At what point did I stop»? started checking Dao.

«You stopped at how Mizer fell to his knees in front of you and said that he was afraid of you and you were the scariest of all the warriors»... Minko replied. «But somehow, I doubt it. He himself will put anyone on his knees and force prayers to be read to him. So don't bluff»!

Dao snorted.

«It's impossible to talk to you! You don't know how to lie, but you reveal any lies yourself. And by the way, I didn't notice that you have such a good memory», the guy narrowed his eyes.

Minko did not pay attention to this, continuing to examine the inscriptions. Dao didn't like it.

«And Dad says you're an idiot».

Minko did not succumb to the provocation and continued to walk calmly.

«And that you are a secret spy of the tyrant»!

Minko narrowed his eyes, but continued walking.

«And that you are the son of our tyrant»! the last words finished off Minko.

He turned to his friend and asked in an iron voice:

«What do you want to achieve? So, I can turn around and punch you»?

«Well, there's talk of a fight going on! And I already thought that since we are friends, we will not cripple each other», Dao grimaced.

«I'm serious. What do you need»?

«I, imagine, am also serious. Miser himself said that you are the son of a tyrant... no, no, I don't believe it. You are a kind, quiet and calm guy... but... I don't know how to explain it to you...» Dao hesitated.

«Do you feel deep down that you think so too»? Minko voiced his thoughts.

He had been walking and looking at the Dao for a long time. All sorts of inscriptions on the walls didn't bother him much anymore.

«Yes… Don't think about it. Of course, I don't think so… But Mizer gave me a very good argument. Your mother was left in the city. They didn't put him in jail, but left him in jail. This is strange», Dao said softly.

Minko stopped. And in truth! It looks very plausible. In that case, his father is not his father? But he immediately pushed these thoughts away and even shook his head violently to make it more convincing. Black curls very unsuccessfully got into his eyes. Fortunately, the wall has not yet been closely observed.

«No. You're just imagining it. I am sure that I am not the son of this tyrant and villain who turns our life into hell. I'm not like that, I'm completely different…»

But he said it more for himself than for Dao. Confidence in him was shaken and almost fell into the abyss called "Truth". Although such a stupid statement cannot be called true. Well, in some cases, still «can».

Dao quieted down, looking at the uncertain movements of his friend. Minko was speeding up, then slowing down, almost stopping, walking. Blue eyes slid from the inscriptions on the walls to the asphalt, from the asphalt to the sky, and from the sky again to the inscriptions. Here is such a chain!

Dao wanted to come up to make a speech with something comforting for his friend, but nothing sensible came to the guy's mind.

Finally, the same street appeared. So, to say "paranormal". The guys had to temporarily forget about the differences. Minko and Dao found themselves on the street where vigilance and powerful fists decide everything. Unfortunately, the guys didn't have powerful fists. But there is plenty of vigilance.

Minko and Dao began to slowly make their way through the crowd. In the literal sense of the word. Dao went first as the tallest and most bulky in the shoulders. And from behind, grabbing a friend by the sleeve, Minko slid through the crowd like a silent snake. The crowd looked back at them, not understanding where they were in such a hurry. However, all this «crowd» were men, so there was no special scandal. Their nerdy friend from the class called this crowd «guys who seem to have had a drink», and the best bar on the street «a money-dragger». Some would argue with the first name, but the guy was completely right about the second one. In the «Find Yourself» bar, a simple wine was worth a lot of money! But beer there cost 5-10 ksons (about 50-100 rubles). As soon as the men of the whole district found out about it, signs were even put up in the bar «No more than a hundred visitors in the bar»! But there were definitely not a hundred people crammed there, but all five hundred…

It was to this bar that Minko and Dao were heading now. They knew the owner personally, so there were no problems. And this time the owner met them with a bottle in his hands.

This cute, chubby-cheeked old man was, however, lively and did not get into his pocket for a word. He was wearing a colored knitted vest today, very strangely, but still combined with a «parrot» shirt and thin pants. In his hands, old man was carrying them a bottle of non-alcoholic beer. He noticed them from afar and waved a thin hand with gold bracelets.

Minko perked up. He was the first to hug the old man, so tightly that he turned blue from the pressure. Then the old man pulled the bottle of Dao.

«Glad to see you, Minko and Dao! It's been a while since you've visited us. I thought something had happened. But I am glad to welcome you again»! the old man smiled.

«And I'm glad to see you too, Abram»! Dao did not remain in debt.

He hugged the old man even harder, and the friends proceeded to the bar. Abram remained standing near the entrance. It was still blue, but it was gradually becoming a normal color. His vest was even shaking with heartbeats. Abram is not eternal!

The guys went into the bar. And immediately plunged into the stuffiness, the smell of beer and fighting. It was stifling as in the desert. Although the air conditioners were working. Minko suspected that they were simply cheated with these air conditioners. The smell of beer was crazy. Men in an embrace with homeless people and gypsies drank beer and sang songs and hymns. Meanwhile, curious pickpockets were rummaging through bags and pockets. Sometimes they take a bag of gold that you wanted to drink and... they take it and drink it themselves. Some kind of cycle. Fights took place here every hour and usually ended in two ways. Either one will beat the other or one of the familiar brawlers will call for a drink.

The guys themselves didn't like it terribly. Dao was called to battle every minute, so a bottle of non-alcoholic beer was completely given to Minko. And Minko didn't like the beer itself here. It was somehow sour, with mustard bubbles. Sometimes he even wondered how adults drink it at all. But he adored non-alcoholic. This beer was fresh, cold and most importantly, it was served with a piece of sugar. Minko adored such a pitch. So, it's not surprising that Dao was left with nothing.

The guys were unlucky today. They stumbled upon Mizer. This tall, muscular and lobbyish jock looked suspiciously at them and was very surprised when they sat down next to each other. While Dao was opening a bottle and trying to pour beer into a glass, Minko turned to the still surprised Mizer.

«Why did you open your mouth»?

Mizer closed his mouth.

«I didn't expect you two to join me. I thought you should be afraid of me», Mizer said in a high voice.

Minko raised his eyebrows questioningly. There was a sound behind his shoulder.

Chponk!

The bottle opened, which was announced by the victorious rattle of Dao.

«We are not vindictive. At least I am. You haven't done anything to me, so I don't see any reason to be hostile with you», Minko continued as if nothing had happened.

«And I see! I almost beat your best friend to death, took away his bag of money, forced him to worship at my feet… And here it is!? There is no reason for enmity!? I don't understand why you have a brain in your head»? Mizer got angry and slammed his huge fist on the table. The bottle of Dao jumped up and almost spilled all the beer on the floor.

«Hey, you have to be careful, Mizer! I understand perfectly well that you don't care about us, to put it mildly, but the poor, unhappy bottle didn't do anything to you»! Dao's displeased voice was heard.

Minko and Mizer sighed. Scanty from the surging memories, and Minko from the stupidity of the words of Dao.

«I understand you Mizer. You don't want to talk to us. I don't make friends. If you don't want – as you want! Dao, pour it for me too! I want a beer too»! Minko turned to his friend.

Dao spilled some on the table in surprise.

Mizer became sad. Now he was offered friendship, and he refused... and why? Yes, because.... And by the way, why?

«Holy shit, Minko! I'm all wet now»! Dao muttered.

Minko just spread his hands guiltily. Like, «It's not my fault, it's the hand itself».

«I know you, Minko»! Dao grumbled and went to the toilet.

Well, more precisely, went to look for a toilet, because finding a toilet here is how to pass a super-complex quest.

Minko smiled after his friend and carefully poured the rest into his glass.

«So, we found out the truth! Dao is a hidden clean. That's secretive»! Minko said to himself, pleased.

Suddenly Minko was pushed from behind. Minko turned around; it was a man. Also, a jock and terribly similar to a Mizer. He roughly grabbed Minko by the collar and lifted her over the chair.

«Hey, baby! Shake the money out here»! the jock ordered in a menacing voice and began to shake Minko.

Minko didn't like it. He began to shake even faster. Then he couldn't stand it and drove the pitching into the nose with all his might. He howled in pain and released Minko. The guy wasn't going to stop there. He punched him in the stomach and a second later the jock lay covered in blood and barely breathing.

«You're the one who brought the money here! I also found a hero! If you are so brave - go and kill the tyrant»! Minko told him.

Mizer stared at Minko. A quiet and modest guy – and here you have what a strong one!

Dao, who came out of the toilet clean and as new, looked at his friend dumbfounded. What's he doing there! The whole bar was looking at him. Even the old man owner looked out from behind the front door.

Minko frowned. He didn't particularly like attention. The guy grabbed Dao by the sleeve and pulled him to the exit. Fortunately, Dao is a smart guy, and it didn't take long to rock him. Friends quickly retreated from the bar. After them, that jock yelled something very bad and he used very scary words, so it's better to just take it and keep quiet in a rag.

When the friends went outside, it became much fresher and colder. Probably that's why many people prefer not to enter from the bar at all. On the street in the evening, you can turn into an icicle or an icicle, since it's usually winter in the evening, so at least wrap yourself in a fur coat. But in the morning and afternoon - the heat is like in the desert. For their own happiness (and for the happiness of their ears and hands), the guys went outside when autumn usually comes. And it's cold and hot.

«Minko…You know I'm in shock. And you know why I'm shocked… Can you say anything in your defense»? Dao asked in a police voice.

«I can. This guy was shaking money out of me. In the literal sense of the word. He shook me, demanding to give him the money, and I made a small remark to him with my foot in the forehead and my fist in the stomach. This was purely self-defense». Minko replied.

«Okaaaaay. I'll pretend like I believed that a quiet and skinny guy has the strength to knock out a jock», Dao snorted. «Are we coming to you now»?

«Yeah. Mom promised to build us something for dinner. You can join us. Mom won't mind».

Dao sighed and agreed.

«Eh, you're lucky, of course… You have a mom. Who loves and appreciates you… And my father is always drinking and smoking. And he doesn't give a damn about me anyway… Where's my mom? What's wrong with her? Isn't she dead already? And in general - how does she feel and is she ill with anything? I have a thousand questions», Dao said.

Minko sighed again and turned onto his street. Then he stepped onto the asphalt and... crashed into his own mother. A blonde woman in a gray coat was scared. No, not like that. She was in shock and couldn't utter a word.

Minko was worried.

«Mom. What happened? Why are you here? You're supposed to be at home...», the woman put her hand over his mouth.

«The guards came to us. They… They... they killed your father...», the woman whispered the last sentence as if inanimate.

Minko shuddered and lowered his eyes. No... no... no! He couldn't have died. Because of some guards. The world that had been built so diligently for many years collapsed and disappeared. Minko's eyes darkened.

«I'm being chased. You and Dao need to hide. And the sooner the better».

«But», Dao began.

«Not what, but! Now! You need to find the gate and run out of the city! They won't look for you there»!

«What about you»?

«If I'm going to die for my own child. Then I will do it, no matter what»! Minko's mom said and pushed them.

The guys turned to each other.

Then they looked ahead and ran with all their might.