The following days blurred into one another. Each morning, I shifted into the wolf and roamed the surrounding area. I had divided the territory into sectors and chose one each day, combing through it in a spiral pattern, increasing the radius as I moved further from the center of the settlement. I ended up with eight sectors—and for eight days, I ran through them. But even this thorough search yielded nothing. The only positive was that I learned a great deal about the lives of these snow people.
Their way of life was communal. For instance, they didn't hunt or gather berries and herbs individually—they did it collectively, bringing everything to a central location. From there, each family took what they needed for sustenance or other purposes. This central hub was located on the next ridge, beyond the central tributary, opposite the elder's dwelling. Women managed everything there: they processed the harvest and distributed it.
Small workshops were also located there: tanning hides, sewing clothes, making pottery. These were also set up in dug-out caves, but larger ones, with awnings over the entrances that further increased the usable space. As far as I could tell, there was no strict accounting or quotas—everyone did what they could and took what they needed. Pure communism.
Stockpiling and hunting were primarily done by men, but women were among the gatherers. Men also sometimes helped butcher large game—if brute strength was required. Though the women here didn't seem weak at all—they were just as large and powerful as their men, likely due to the good climate and life outdoors.
Another interesting feature: the women and children didn't have that unfocused gaze the men did. They looked around quite normally, in a human way.
I was constantly running around as a wolf. Those who encountered me would stop and stare, but showed neither fear nor any other emotion. They all knew exactly who I was, even in this form. At first, I didn't understand why, but Uga provided the answer when he showed up one day.
That day started as usual: in the morning, I ran off to another sector. Returning in the evening, I found dinner already prepared in the dwelling. I ate and went outside. But today, not only was that perpetually fidgety teenage girl sitting on the stones, but Uga was there too, whom I still habitually called by that name. I automatically stepped aside to let her inside, and that's when I saw Uga, sitting motionless on a stone.
"Oh, hello!" I said, genuinely happy to have someone to talk to. I hadn't even tried speaking to the one who brought the food anymore. It wasn't that I lacked company—I was used to solitude—but many questions had piled up, and finally, there was someone to ask.
"What do those words mean? I've often observed this in humans and wanted to know what they say in such situations."
"You mean the greeting? Nothing special. People just greet each other when they meet. Sometimes it's a wish for good health—'hello'. Sometimes it's just a meaningless 'hi'. And for politeness, they ask 'How are you?', 'How's your health?' and so on."
"Why ask about health if you're not really interested?"
"It's customary. Rules of politeness. No one even thinks about it."
"Strange."
"I find it strange that you're always silent and show no interest in each other."
"We don't need to. We know everything about others through the stones. Sometimes we communicate that way too—but not with words, with images."
"Now I understand. Will I be able to communicate with you like that?"
"No. You are not of our tribe. You won't have access to all the stone's capabilities, though many—yes. You will now be able to see the paths that lead to our world. They are up there, at high altitudes. When you approach a place where transition between worlds is possible, you will see a blue trail. You can cross using it. You can also return the same way—when you approach the transition point from the other side, you'll see it just the same and pass into our enclave."
"That's good. And I wanted to ask... about why you look like that? As if at nothing?"
"That's also because of the stones. Through our gaze, we can influence the surrounding world—mostly living objects. But even when we aren't actively influencing, the gaze is physically palpable. So, once we receive the stone, we learn not to look at anything specific. It becomes a habit later."
"But the women and children look normally."
"They don't wear the stones. Only adult men wear the stones. It's not just a convenience, but a great responsibility."
"But you gave one to me. Doesn't that contradict your rules? I'm an outsider."
"It was necessary for you to come here and help us. If you can do this—you will be worthy of this stone, and it will remain with you. If you cannot... it means the tribe will perish. And the stone you have will become just a stone."
"Truly a great responsibility. But if women and children don't wear the stones, how do they know who I am when I'm in wolf form?" "All tribe members feel these stones, even if they don't wear them themselves. When they look at you, they immediately know who you are."
He fell silent, letting me know there were no more questions.
"If the questions are over, then we need to go."
"Where?"
"We found another family... Now on the other side, on the opposite tributary. Also, almost the most remote dwelling," he said, rising from the stone.
"Then let's go. I just need to... gird my loins."
"To do what?"
"Don't worry about it. Just a saying. It means—I'm ready."
Uga said nothing and strode off into the darkness. I followed him.
This time, the dwelling where the murder had taken place was, as Uga said, on the other bank of the central stream. On this side, the outermost dwellings were significantly closer to the conditional center of the settlement—which I considered to be their leader's house. About a third closer: on this side, the settlement's expansion was hindered by the rocky outcrops of the Sangi-Navishta ridge. So we arrived quickly.
As before, the tribe's men had gathered near the dwelling—mostly the same faces. Only now they were all here, and Uga had brought me. The men, as was their custom, sat in a circle—some on stones by the entrance, some directly on the packed earth. Just as silent, with unfocused gazes. I couldn't get used to this sight—it looked eerie, especially given their appearance. But, as they say, when in Rome... And I probably didn't look like a handsome man to them either—rather scrawny in their eyes, and a shapeshifter to boot.
Inspecting the dwelling with the new victims yielded nothing new. Everything was exactly the same as last time. My actions didn't differ either: I walked through the dwelling as a wolf and ran around outside—with the same zero result.
Finishing up, I silently waved my hand to Uga and the others and headed towards the center of the settlement. I didn't stay to watch them pack the corpses and perform the ritual. Though no one said anything, I felt awkward and a sort of guilt over the lack of results. So I went straight to my dwelling, not wanting to be underfoot of the grieving snow people.
I had already eaten dinner, so all that was left was to crash for the night. Usually, I walked around the settlement before bed—both searching for the mysterious spirit and simply out of interest in these beings' lives. But not today. I tried to sit and think for a bit longer, but nothing came to mind. Well, hopefully, the morning brings wiser thoughts. I decided and went to sleep.
A few days later, I finished inspecting all the sectors. Still no results. Now I sat near my temporary dwelling, pondering how to catch this unknown killer.
It had no lair near the settlement—that was almost certain. I simply couldn't have missed it. Either this bastard was so skilled at concealment that it was impossible to find any traces or its den.
I recalled the last murder site—everything was the same, down to the remains of a late meal. I kept coming back to this moment. What if someone had visited? But not an adult—otherwise, the table would have been set in the main hall. So, most likely, adolescents. Sitting with a friend... Or even a young couple in love. They were people, after all, even if snow people. And what does that give us?
I slapped my forehead. What a blithering idiot! It was obvious from the very beginning! I just needed to clarify a couple of points.
I got up and strode towards the elder's dwelling. And yet, Luka had hinted from the start and was somehow sure I'd figure it out immediately. Although he could have just said—people are dying. But what are people to him? Especially since he himself said they weren't quite people. That was just his character—and not only because he was a shapeshifter. Apparently, his long life had shifted his value system far from the conventional. And he didn't consider himself human.
So, for him, the pedagogical moment was more important—for me to figure it out myself. And the lives of individual beings who might die because of his omissions didn't particularly concern him.
But I shouldn't blame Luka entirely. I was just as much at fault—all the answers were literally right in front of my eyes.
