Рахат Ягшимырадов – A Lucid Dream. The Wrath of Havra (страница 1)

Рахат Ягшимырадов

A Lucid Dream. The Wrath of Havra

The Beautiful Stranger

A lot of time had passed since Ruslan had regained his sight. Rimma had married Ibrahim, but despite that, Ruslan was happy. On that fateful day, he had not only begun to see again, but had also found the most precious person in his life — his mother, Maya, who gave him the strength to keep going.

Days went by one after another. Ruslan grew older and wiser, while Maya, on the contrary, aged and weakened. Her eyesight was fading, getting worse with each passing day. Old age is no joy. It pained Ruslan to watch his mother gradually lose her vision, but there was nothing he could do. Nature was taking its course, and all that was left was to accept it.

After regaining his vision, Ruslan began having strange dreams. In one of them, he met a girl he didn’t know. She was so beautiful that his heart ached with wonder. Her image captivated him, awakening feelings he couldn’t explain. The dream repeated every night, and Ruslan became more and more attached to the mysterious beauty.

But one night, something changed. In the same dream, filled with tenderness and awe, he suddenly began to strangle her. Waking up drenched in cold sweat, he couldn’t believe what he had done. The dream returned the next few nights, but it never went any further. Each time, the moment his hands touched her neck, he would wake up in fear and panic.

Who was she? Why did he want to kill her? These questions haunted him. He thought about her day and night — her image wouldn't leave him, even when he was awake.

One day, lost in thought, Ruslan didn’t notice when he bumped into some passersby. It was only when he heard their voices that he came back to his senses:

“Excuse me! Please, forgive me!”

But to his amazement, the people he had bumped into also began apologizing. Ruslan looked closely at their faces… Their features seemed familiar! His heart started racing. Rimma. Ibrahim. They didn’t recognize him! They just kept walking. Ruslan froze, then gathered his courage and called out:

“Rimma?”

The couple stopped and turned around. It really was them. Confusion showed in their eyes.

“You don’t recognize me?” Ruslan smiled. “It’s me — Ruslan!”

The woman squinted at him, furrowing her brow as if trying to recall something long forgotten. Then her eyes suddenly widened and she gasped:

“Ruslan! How could I not recognize you!”

They started talking, and Rimma and Ibrahim invited him to their home nearby. Ruslan gladly accepted the invitation. Over a cup of tea, the conversation continued.

“It’s so cozy here. Have you lived here long?” Ruslan asked.

“Yes, this is Ibrahim’s house. We moved in after the wedding,” Rimma replied. “And how about you? How is Aunt Maya?”

“She’s well, thank you,” Ruslan nodded. “Guys, have I really changed that much that you didn’t recognize me right away?”

Rimma and Ibrahim exchanged glances and hesitated.

“No, no, not at all,” Rimma quickly said, “it’s just that we… we have problems with our vision.”

“What do you mean?” Ruslan frowned. “Your eyesight’s gotten worse?”

Ibrahim sighed heavily.

“We’re going blind, Ruslan.”

“What?” His heart clenched. “But you’re still young! I don’t remember either of you having vision problems!”

“We don’t understand it ourselves,” Rimma shook her head. “It all happened so suddenly…”

A chill ran down Ruslan’s spine. His face turned pale. He suddenly felt nauseous and, making an excuse about urgent matters, quickly left.

Back at home, he locked himself in his room. His thoughts were racing, tangling into a terrifying suspicion. His mother, Rimma, Ibrahim… they were all losing their sight. And he… he had regained his. And that had happened after the three of them had made a wish on that fateful day. Coincidence? Ruslan swallowed hard. No, there were no coincidences like that. Could his gift of sight be a curse for those he loved?

The pounding of blood in his temples, ragged breathing, sticky fear. He couldn’t think about anything else.

His mother’s voice brought him back to reality:

“Ruslan, dinner’s ready!”

“Coming, Mom,” he replied, forcing himself to leave the room.

At dinner, Ruslan watched Maya closely. He felt that she was getting weaker with each passing day. His heart ached, but he tried to hide it, not wanting to worry her. Despite having no appetite, he forced himself to finish his meal.

After dinner, they went outside to get some fresh air. The conversation naturally turned to the past, the hardships they had endured, and the dreams they still hoped to fulfill.

When they returned to the house, Ruslan tucked his mother into bed. He, however, couldn't fall asleep for a long time. Thoughts came and went like images in a kaleidoscope. He tossed and turned until, finally, he sank into a restless, uneasy sleep...

And again, the same dream haunted him. In terror, he woke up, drenched in cold sweat. His heart raced so fast it felt like it would tear his chest apart. He could hardly breathe, as if the air was suffocating him.

He got up and went out onto the balcony. After a while, calming down, Ruslan tried to reason — this dream, which had been chasing him relentlessly, wasn’t random. But who was this stranger? Why was she haunting his dreams, and why did he want to kill her? What did it all mean? Was it some kind of premonition? Unable to find any answers, Ruslan became more and more tangled in his thoughts but came to the conclusion that it was somehow connected to the strange troubles his friends and mother were facing. A feeling of inexplicable guilt gripped him, but he firmly decided to solve the mysteries life had presented to him. Now he knew where to start. He had to find the girl from his dreams.

After making that decision, he actually felt a little lighter. To avoid upsetting his mother, he told her that he was going away with friends for a few days. Maya didn’t object. She wanted Ruslan to get away for a while, so she packed him everything he might need for the journey. Early the next morning, Maya saw him to the door and said:

“Son, I recently found this ring in the closet. It belonged to your father. It’s made of silver. Your father always believed this ring brought good luck. You’re going away for a while, so wear it. I hope it brings you luck.”

“Thank you so much, Mom. It’s beautiful,” said Ruslan, and after a hug, he said goodbye.

So, with his mother’s blessing, Ruslan set off on his journey. He didn’t know where to go, but something inside him guided him. He walked through the forest near their home. The long road tired him, and he decided to rest and have a snack. As he looked for a quiet spot, he thought he heard someone shouting. He followed the sound and saw... cows. It was them mooing.

Ruslan thought that if there were cows in the forest, there must be a village nearby, so he walked down the path. Soon, he spotted the village and felt relieved.

On the road, he met a shepherd. His name was Oktam. Oktam was of medium height, with black eyes, and very thin. After greeting each other, they started talking. Oktam asked where Ruslan was headed and why. Ruslan didn’t want anyone to know his intentions, so he decided not to tell the truth:

“I’m looking for a beautiful girl.”

“A girl!?” Oktam exclaimed in surprise. “What kind of girl? What’s her name and why do you need her?” he bombarded Ruslan with questions.

“Well, it might sound ridiculous, but I don’t even know her name,” Ruslan replied.

“So you’re looking for a girl you don’t even know!? Yeah, that does sound a bit strange,” Oktam said in surprise.

“It’s just that recently I saw this girl at a celebration. Then she started appearing in my dreams, and when I woke up, I realized that my life has no meaning without her. So now I’m looking for her all over the world,” Ruslan lied.

Ruslan’s story surprised Oktam a bit, but after getting to know him better, Oktam felt sympathy for him. Oktam offered his help and even invited Ruslan to stay at his house until he found the mysterious girl. Oktam left the cows in the forest, led Ruslan to his home, and introduced him to his parents. Oktam was the only child in his family, so his parents were very fond of him. They didn’t object to Ruslan staying with them.

That evening, during dinner, they talked more, and this brought them closer. Oktam promised Ruslan he would help him with the search. After dinner, Oktam’s mother made a bed for Ruslan next to her son. Ruslan was so exhausted that as soon as his head hit the pillow, he fell asleep...

Duzhda and Duzhdam

The next morning, Oktam woke Ruslan. They had breakfast and then left the house to take a walk around the village. Ruslan observed the buildings with interest, but he was particularly drawn to a house at the edge of the village. It was a large, beautiful house with a tall fence. Inside the grounds, exotic trees and flowers grew, birds sang, and fountains bubbled.

“What a beautiful house, whose is it?” Ruslan asked.

“That’s the house of the richest man in our village,” Oktam replied. “They say he’s got money to burn. But despite his wealth, he’s very unhappy.”