Frost finally struck when Arseny was in Zagorye. It was a hard frost: less than a week passed before it had frozen the Sheksna River over with a thin but solid ice. Arseny now continued his travels along the frozen surface of the Sheksna. His feet sometimes slipped, sometimes got caught on reeds frozen in the ice, but it was still easier to walk along the river than along roadlessness.
And so he arrived in the large village of Ivachevo, a wealthy village that lived off fishing. In Ivachevo there stood a large stone church named for Andrew the First-Called, who was a fisherman before his apostlehood. The smell of nets and salted fish blended with the smell of decaying bodies in the houses of Ivachevo. The pestilence had arrived long ago, as in all the river villages that took in boatmen and travelers.
Arseny, who grew up far from watery expanses, sensed the river’s presence with every hour. The Sheksna was not large, but the depth of its flowing water radiated a certain unusual energy of motion, even under the ice. This force was new in Arseny’s life and it made him uneasy. It awakened in him the thought of pilgrimage.
Spring found Arseny in Ivachevo. The frosty weather, which had made the pestilence a bit less ferocious, had given way to thaw. Arseny expended all his strength on thwarting a second wave of the pestilence scourge. He prescribed that the residents of Ivachevo eat ground sulfur in egg yolk, drinking it down with an extract of rosehip juice. He ordered them not to eat pork or drink any milk or wine on the days they took the remedy. In the afternoons, Arseny went around to patients’ houses and at night he prayed they be bestowed with health and also that the illness not spread.
When Arseny found himself on the banks of the Sheksna, he thought about how the river’s ice would soon begin melting. He needed to cross the river to another village before the onset of warm days. He was already planning to head out on that journey when a sledge arrived in Ivachevo one morning over the ice of the Sheksna. Someone among Ivachevo’s residents called the sledge “princely” upon seeing its beauty. This turned out to be the truth. The sledge had been sent from Belozersk by Prince Mikhail. And it had been sent for Arseny.
For me? asked Arseny. He was surprised when they told him of the sledge’s arrival.
For you, confirmed those who had come from Belozersk. Pestilence’s sores have come to bear on the princess and her doughter. Your renown is great, O Arseny, in the Land of the White Lakes. Show thy doctorly wisdom and thou shall be esteemed by the prince.
I await rewarde from only our Savioure Jesus Christ, answered Arseny, and why need I esteem from the prince?
Turning aside, he said to Ustina:
I shall see, my love, what I can do for these people. The disease will not become easier simply because they belong to a princely line. Nor more severe, either, that is true.
With those words, Arseny boarded the decorated sledge. The seat was covered with down pillows that lent their softness to the body with the emphatic readiness of expensive items. They wrapped Arseny in a coverlet and he felt awkward before the residents of Ivachevo who gazed at him. Never before had he ridden in such a sledge. And he had not imagined the passage could be so comfortable. Or the motion so fast.
The runners moved along the ice with a quiet, crystal-clear sound and the water responded to them from its depths like a heavy bell. Blowing snow swirled behind the runners in well-worn ruts. Frightened fish scattered every which way under the ice. Whenever there were bends in the Sheksna, the forest changed to villages.
There was a shorter route to Belozersk, too. It was not as convenient as the river route and it went through villages that flashed by, one after another. But the travelers did not know if it had been cleared. They were in a hurry and so decided not to risk anything, knowing the river route to be quick and reliable. Perhaps they did not want to ride into those villages because the pestilence raged there. They had (the sledge driver looked sternly at Arseny) plenty of pestilence in Belozersk.
The icy expanse began to broaden after the sun had lost its brightness. As he looked around, Arseny realized that now there was only a riverbank to the left. Instead of a right riverbank, endless versts of ice extended as far as the eyes could see. This was Beloozero, White Lake. The lake’s ice turned out to be flatter than the river ice and the ride quickened. When it was already completely dark, the lake gradually changed to city. Belozersk, the principal city in the princedom, greeted them.
The sledge glided through dark streets. Arseny had never before seen such long streets and such tall buildings. He could judge the tallness of the buildings by the glow in upper-storey windows. People were already waiting when they pulled up to the prince’s residence. Arseny was plucked from the sledge and quickly led along the staircase to the second floor. After racing through two half-darkened rooms, they ended up in a third. It was brightly lit, and a person stood there. This was Prince Mikhail.
I have hearde thou art a wise doctor, said the prince. He came closer to Arseny and began speaking quietly, almost directly into his ear. From above, for he was tall. My wife and daughter, they took ill last night, do you understand? The doctors here can do nothing. Nothing. Even treating teeth...
That is obvious, said Arseny. You have fetid breath.
Help my dear ones, O Arseny. I think that you can.
Why do you think so? Arseny asked. A rather large number of those I have treated died.
The prince sat down on a massive carved chair. When he was sitting, a bald spot was visible on the top of his head. He looked at Arseny, twisting his head unnaturally.
Because you yourself did not die. They told me you went through many plague villages and did not die. In that I see your blessedness.
Arseny was silent.
The prince brought him to the female half of the residence. Arseny stopped the prince when they arrived at the room where the ill lay.
I will go further by myself.
He bent his head and entered.
Two beds stood side by side. A young woman lay on one (she was much younger than the prince) and a girl of six lay on the other. The girl was unconscious. The princess nodded weakly to Arseny. He went first to the child and took her by the wrist. Then he touched her forehead.
What wilt thou saye, O Arseny? asked the princess.
Thou knowest my name, said Arseny, surprised.
He sat down on her bed. Even in the room’s duskiness, it was apparent the princess had blue eyes. Her eyes must sparkle with a heavenly blueness in the sun, thought Arseny. The Lord has such a color. He carefully lifted her head from the pillow and felt her neck.
What wilt thou saye? she repeated.
Pray, O princess, and the Lord will show his mercy.
Arseny went out and closed the door behind him. The prince silently approached him. He looked away.
You saw them?
I saw them, said Arseny. They are gravely ill but life is not leaving them. With the Lord’s help, I think they will feel better by morning.
The prince laid his head on Arseny’s shoulder. Arseny felt tears on his neck.
Arseny returned to the ill and remained with them until morning. He watched as life battled with death and he understood he needed to help life. He treated the pestilent sores of mother and child. He gave them much to drink because water washes what is foul from the body. He held their heads over the wooden tub when they vomited. Most important, he released his vitalizing strength into them when he felt they did not have enough of their own.