Аннотация: MMMCDXLIV. Akinfiy Popov. A comic historical story about a science fiction writer from a village near Moscow. - February 11, 2024.
Akinfiy Popov. A comic historical story about a science fiction writer from a village near Moscow.
Akinfiy came from church late at night. He asked his wife if the cattle were fed already, looked at the children and sat down under a luchina [a thin burning splinter of wood that gives light] to write fantastic works.
Light Figures from the Upper World descended to Earth during the barbarian invasion. With their help, the inhabitants of the Roman Empire created settlements in the Lagoon. The time will come when the Republic of Venice will arise in place of these villages.
Akinfiy shuddered. Wild terrible screams were heard from the street.
A sounds of horses' hooves. A loud crying. Oprichniks [oprichnik - a member of the Oprichnina, a special bodyguard corps] paid a visit to the members of the local elite.
Akinfiy shook his head, trying to get rid of the these impressions. He imagined the Mediterranean Sea, as well as the inhabitants of the decaying Roman Empire, who had moved from their villas and palaces to fishing huts and engaged in fishing.
Akinfiy loved to fish. His yard overlooked the river, in which, in the deepest places, there were always excellent fish. The village near Moscow, where Akinfiy lived, was located not far from a huge ancient glorious monastery, to which the noble people of Rus' regularly transferred a huge valuables for religious needs. There was a trade route nearby. Akinfiy, too, was receiving a small benefits from all these advantages.
The morning. It's time to "go to work", to church.
The priest treated Akinfiy well. Akinfiy's father was a priest, and the local priest knew about it. The local priest and the Akinfiy's father even know each other (their wives are relatives, distant).
Periodically, Akinfiy gave the priest and the local intelligentsia - clerks, zemstvo officials and tsar's servants - to read own literary works. They were reading, shook their heads in surprise, and were speaking out nothing bad (Akinfiy, at their request, quickly and easily was teaching their children to read and to write).
The priest periodically asked:
- Are you writing?
- Yes, I'm writing, Father.
- Write, son.
The middle of the day.
Akinfiy quickly pulled a net with fish out of the river, took it home. His wife will cook the fish. The children looked cheerful and healthy. Akinfiy stroked their heads.
Loud crying was heard. A group of local people started their march to participate the Livonian War.
Akinfiy hurried to the church.
He need to confess today.
At the end of the confession, the priest asked Akinfiy:
- What would you ask the Figures from the Light World if you met them?
- I would ask that there be fewer victims during the The Mongol-Tatar invasion. If they had foreseen the misfortunes, if they gone to inaccessible lands, to forest, swampy areas, then there would have been fewer victims.
The priest said, "Good!" and he fell deep into thought about something.
The evening.
Akinfiy is going to go home. A Light Figures from the Upper World, with the disintegrating Roman Empire, a former inhabitants of country palaces and charming villas who became fishermen and settled in the Lagoon are waiting for him.
- Wait a little, son, - Akinfiy hears the priest's voice.
Akinfiy approaches the boss.
- I was on a pilgrimage recently, - the priest said, - I met a visionary, a Holy Man there. He said that the Time of Troubles would come soon, there would be years of famine, and wars would continue. My eldest son will soon be ordained a priest and will go South. Our Orthodox people are mastering the land there. Ermak is heading to the Siberian Lands. My son can take your eldest son with him. He will ask in favour of your son. They will accept your son in ranks of a free people.
- But ... a governmental search? the Government Wanted List?
- "Popov" or "Ponomarev" are essentially the same thing. The clerk will write in the documents.
- Thank you, Father. I agree. I'll tell my senior son.
- Well, go home.
Akinfiy headed home. The Mediterranean Sea, a Figures from the Light World, the future inhabitants of the Venetian Republic were waiting for him.
Suddenly there were a sounds of horses' hooves and a wild, terrible screams. Just in case, Akinfiy went into a peasant's house for a while: "Hello, I twisted my leg. I'll sitting with you for a while, I'll rest, and I will go home."
The peasant family surrounded Akinfiy and began to treat him with kvass.
February 11, 2024 06:42
Translation from Russian into English: February 11, 2024 09:16
Владимир Владимирович Залесский ' Акинфий Попов. Шуточный исторический рассказ о писателе-фантасте из подмосковной деревни '.
{3473. Акинфий Попов. Шуточный исторический рассказ о писателе-фантасте из подмосковной деревни. - 11 февраля 2024 г.
MMMCDXLIV. Akinfiy Popov. A comic historical story about a science fiction writer from a village near Moscow. - February 11, 2024.
Vladimir Zalessky Internet-bibliotheca. Интернет-библиотека Владимира Залесского. }