CHAPTER XII
THE MESSENGER
"He is gone," I panted, "and the world hasn't lost much."
"Well, it didn't give him much, did it, poor devil, so don't let'sspeak ill of him," answered Leo, who had thrown himself exhausted to theground. "Perhaps he was all right before they made him mad. At any ratehe had pluck, for I don't want to tackle such another."
"How did you manage it?" I asked.
"Dodged in beneath his sword, closed with him, threw him and smashedhim up over that lump of stone. Sheer strength, that's all. A cruelbusiness, but it was his life or mine, and there you are. It's lucky Ifinished it in time to help you before that oven-mouthed brute tore yourthroat out. Did you ever see such a dog? It looks as large as a youngdonkey. Are you much hurt, Horace?"
"Oh, my forearm is chewed to a pulp, but nothing else, I think. Let usget down to the water; if I can't drink soon I shall faint. Also therest of the pack is somewhere about, fifty or more of them."
"I don't think they will trouble us, they have got the horses, poorbeasts. Wait a minute and I will come."
Then he rose, found the Khan's sword, a beautiful and ancient weapon,and with a single cut of its keen edge, killed the second dog that Ihad wounded, which was still yowling and snarling at us. After this hecollected the two spears and my knife, saying that they might be useful,and without trouble caught the Khan's horse, which stood with hanginghead close by, so tired that even this desperate fight had notfrightened it away.
"Now," he said, "up you go, old fellow. You are not fit to walk anyfarther;" and with his help I climbed into the saddle.
Then slipping the rein over his arm he led the horse, which walkedstiffly, on to the river, that ran within a quarter of a mile ofus, though to me, tortured as I was by pain and half delirious withexhaustion, the journey seemed long enough.
Still we came there somehow, and, forgetting my wounds, I tumbled fromthe horse, threw myself flat and drank and drank, more, I think,than ever I did before. Not in all my life have I tasted anything sodelicious as was that long draught of water. When I had satisfied mythirst, I dipped my head and made shift to jerk my wounded arm into it,for its coolness seemed to still the pain. Presently Leo rose, the waterrunning from his face and beard, and said--"What shall we do now? Theriver seems to be wide, over a hundred yards, and it is low, but theremay be deep water in the middle. Shall we try to cross, in which case wemight drown, or stop where we are till daylight and take our chance ofthe death-hounds?"
"I can't go another foot," I murmured faintly, "much less try to ford anunknown river."
Now, about thirty yards from the shore was an island covered with reedsand grasses.
"Perhaps we could reach that," he said. "Come, get on to my back, and wewill try."
I obeyed with difficulty, and we set out, he feeling his way with thehandle of the spear. The water proved to be quite shallow; indeed, itnever came much above his knees, so that we reached the island withouttrouble. Here Leo laid me down on the soft rushes, and, returning to themainland, brought over the black horse and the remaining weapons, andhaving unsaddled the beast, knee-haltered and turned it loose, whereonit immediately lay down, for it was too spent to feed.
Then he set to work to doctor my wounds. Well it proved for me that thesleeve of my garment was so thick, for even through it the flesh of myforearm was torn to ribbons, moreover a bone seemed to be broken. Leocollected a double handful of some soft wet moss and, having washed thearm, wrapped it round with a handkerchief, over which he laid the moss.Then with a second handkerchief and some strips of linen torn from ourundergarments he fastened a couple of split reeds to serve as roughsplints to the wounded limb. While he was doing this I suppose that Islept or swooned. At any rate, I remember no more.
Sometime during that night Leo had a strange dream, of which he told methe next morning. I suppose that it must have been a dream as certainlyI saw or was aware of nothing. Well, he dreamed--I use his own words asnearly as possible--that again he heard those accursed death-hounds infull cry. Nearer and nearer they came, following our spoor to the edgeof the river--all the pack that had run down the horses. At the water'sbrink they halted and were mute. Then suddenly a puff of wind broughtthe scent of us upon the island to one of them which lifted up its headand uttered a single bay. The rest clustered about it, and all at oncethey made a dash at the water.
Leo could see and hear everything. He felt that after all our doom wasnow at hand, and yet, held in the grip of nightmare, if nightmare itwere, he was quite unable to stir or even to cry out to wake and warnme.
Now followed the marvel of this vision. Giving tongue as they came, halfswimming and half plunging, the hounds drew near to the island where weslept. Then, suddenly Leo saw that we were no longer alone. In front ofus, on the brink of the water, stood the figure of a woman clad in somedark garment. He could not describe her face or appearance, for her backwas towards him.
All he knew was that she stood there, like a guard, holding some objectin her raised hand, and that suddenly the advancing hounds caught sightof her. In an instant it was as though they were paralysed by fear--fortheir bays turned to fearful howlings. One or two of those that werenearest to the island seemed to lose their footing and be swept away bythe stream. The rest struggled back to the bank, and fled wildly likewhipped curs.
Then the dark, commanding figure, which in his dream Leo took to be theguardian Spirit of the Mountain, vanished. That it left no footprintsbehind it I can vouch, for in the morning we looked to see.
When, awakened by the sharp pangs in my arm, I opened my eyes again, thedawn was breaking. A thin mist hung over the river and the island, andthrough it I could see Leo sleeping heavily at my side and the shape ofthe black horse, which had risen and was grazing close at hand. I laystill for a while remembering all that we had undergone and wonderingthat I should live to wake, till presently above the murmuring of thewater I heard a sound which terrified me, the sound of voices. I sat upand peered through the reeds, and there upon the bank, looking enormousin the mist, I saw two figures mounted upon horses, those of a woman anda man.
They were pointing to the ground as though they examined spoor in thesand. I heard the man say something about the dogs not daring to enterthe territory of the Mountain, a remark which came back to my mind againafter Leo had told me his dream. Then I remembered how we were placed.
"Wake!" I whispered to Leo. "Wake, we are pursued."
He sprang to his feet, rubbing his eyes and snatching at a spear. Nowthose upon the bank saw him, and a sweet voice spoke through the mist,saying--"Lay down that weapon, my guest, for we are not come to harmyou."
It was the voice of the Khania Atene, and the man with her was the oldShaman Simbri.
"What shall we do now, Horace?" asked Leo with something like a groan,for in the whole world there were no two people whom he less wished tosee.
"Nothing," I answered, "it is for them to play."
"Come to us," called the Khania across the water. "I swear that we meanno harm. Are we not alone?"
"I do not know," answered Leo, "but it seems unlikely. Where we are westop until we are ready to march again."
Atene spoke to Simbri. What she said we could not hear, for shewhispered, but she appeared to be arguing with him and persuading him tosome course of which he strongly disapproved. Then suddenly both ofthem put their horses at the water and rode to us through the shallows.Reaching the island, they dismounted, and we stood staring at eachother. The old man seemed very weary in body and oppressed in mind, butthe Khania was strong and beautiful as ever, nor had passion and fatigueleft any trace upon her inscrutable face. It was she who broke thesilence, saying--"You have ridden fast and far since last we met, myguests, and left an evil token to mark the path you took. Yonder amongthe rocks one lies dead. Say, how came he to his end, who has no woundupon him?"
"By these," answered Leo, stretching out his hands.
"I knew it," she answered, "and I blame you not, for fate
decreed thatdeath for him, and now it is fulfilled. Still, there are those to whomyou must answer for his blood, and I only can protect you from them."
"Or betray me to them," said Leo. "Khania, what do you seek?"
"That answer which you should have given me this twelve hours gone.Remember, before you speak, that I alone can save your life--aye, andwill do it and clothe you with that dead madman's crown and mantle."
"You shall have your answer on yonder Mountain," said Leo, pointing tothe peak above us, "where I seek mine."
She paled a little and replied, "To find that it is death, for, as Ihave told you, the place is guarded by savage folk who know no pity."
"So be it. Then Death is the answer that we seek. Come, Horace, let usgo to meet him."
"I swear to you," she broke in, "that there dwells not the woman of yourdreams. I am that woman, yes, even I, as you are the man of mine."
"Then, lady, prove it yonder upon the Mountain," Leo answered.
"There dwells there no woman," Atene went on hurriedly, "nothing dwellsthere. It is the home of fire and--a Voice."
"What voice?"
"The Voice of the Oracle that speaks from the fire. The Voice of aSpirit whom no man has ever seen, or shall see."
"Come, Horace," said Leo, and he moved towards the horse.
"Men," broke in the old Shaman, "would you rush upon your doom? Listen;I have visited yonder haunted place, for it was I who according tocustom brought thither the body of the Khan Atene's father for burial,and I warn you to set no foot within its temples."
"Which your mistress said that we should never reach," I commented, butLeo only answered--"We thank you for your warning," and added, "Horace,watch them while I saddle the horse, lest they do us a mischief."
So I took the spear in my uninjured hand and stood ready. But they madeno attempt to hurt us, only fell back a little and began to talk inhurried whispers. It was evident to me that they were much perturbed.In a few minutes the horse was saddled and Leo assisted me to mount it.Then he said--"We go to accomplish our fate, whatever it may be, butbefore we part, Khania, I thank you for the kindness you have shown us,and pray you to be wise and forget that we have ever been. Through nowill of mine your husband's blood is on my hands, and that alone mustseparate us for ever. We are divided by the doors of death and destiny.Go back to your people, and pardon me if most unwillingly I have broughtyou doubt and trouble. Farewell."
She listened with bowed head, then replied, very sadly--"I thank you foryour gentle words, but, Leo Vincey, we do not part thus easily. You havesummoned me to the Mountain, and even to the Mountain I shall followyou. Aye, and there I will meet its Spirit, as I have always known Imust and as the Shaman here has always known I must. Yes, I will matchmy strength and magic against hers, as it is decreed that I shall do. Tothe victor be that crown for which we have warred for ages."
Then suddenly Atene sprang to her saddle, and turning her horse's headrode it back through the water to the shore, followed by old Simbri, wholifted up his crooked hands as though in woe and fear, muttering as hewent--"You have entered the forbidden river and now, Atene, the day ofdecision is upon us all--upon us and her--that predestined day of ruinand of war."
"What do they mean?" asked Leo of me.
"I don't know," I answered; "but I have no doubt we shall find out soonenough and that it will be something unpleasant. Now for this river."
Before we had struggled through it I thought more than once that the dayof drowning was upon us also, for in places there were deep rapids whichnearly swept us away. But Leo, who waded, leading the Khan's horse bythe bridle, felt his path and supported himself with the spear shaft, sothat in the end we reached the other bank safely.
Beyond it lay a breadth of marshy lands, that doubtless were overflowedwhen the torrent was in flood. Through these we pushed our way as fastas we could, for we feared lest the Khania had gone to fetch her escort,which we thought she might have left behind the rise, and would returnwith it presently to hunt us down. At that time we did not know whatwe learned afterwards, that with its bordering river the soil of theMountain was absolutely sacred and, in practice, inviolable. True, ithad been invaded by the people of Kaloon in several wars, but on eachoccasion their army was destroyed or met with terrible disaster. Littlewonder then they had come to believe that the House of Fire was underthe protection of some unconquerable Spirit.
Leaving the marsh, we reached a bare, rising plain, which led to thefirst slope of the Mountain three or four miles away. Here we expectedevery moment to be attacked by the savages of whom we had heard so much,but no living creature did we see. The place was a desert streaked withveins of rock that once had been molten lava. _I_ do not remember muchelse about it; indeed, the pain in my arm was so sharp that I had noeyes for physical features. At length the rise ended in a bare, broaddonga, quite destitute of vegetation, of which the bottom was buried inlava and a debris of rocks washed down by the rain or melting snows fromslopes above. This donga was bordered on the farther side by a cliff,perhaps fifty feet in height, in which we could see no opening.
Still we descended the place, that was dark and rugged; pervaded,moreover, by an extraordinary gloom, and as we went perceived that itslava floor was sprinkled over with a multitude of white objects. Soon wecame to the first of these and found that it was the skeleton of ahuman being. Here was a veritable Valley of Dead Bones, thousands uponthousands of them; a gigantic graveyard. It seemed as though some greatarmy had perished here.
Indeed, we found afterwards that this was the case, for on one of thoseoccasions in the far past when the people of Kaloon had attacked theMountain tribes, they were trapped and slaughtered in this gully,leaving their bones as a warning and a token. Among these sad skeletonswe wandered disconsolately, seeking a path up the opposing cliff, andfinding none, until at length we came to a halt, not knowing which wayto turn. Then it was that we met with our first strange experience onthe Mountain.
The gulf and its mouldering relics depressed us, so that for awhilewe were silent, and, to tell the truth, somewhat afraid. Yes, eventhe horse seemed afraid, for it snorted a little, hung its head andshivered. Close by us lay a pile of bones, the remains evidently of anumber of wretched creatures that, dead or living, had been hurled downfrom the cliff above, and on the top of the pile was a little huddledheap, which we took for more bones.
"Unless we can find a way out of this accursed charnel-house beforelong, I think that we shall add to its company," I said, staring roundme.
As the words left my lips it seemed to me that from the corner of my eyeI saw the heap on the top of the bones stir. I looked round. Yes, itwas stirring. It rose, it stood up, a human figure, apparently that ofa woman--but of this I could not be sure--wrapped from head to foot inwhite and wearing a hanging veil over its face, or rather a mask withcut eye-holes. It advanced towards us while we stared at it, till thehorse, catching sight of the thing, shied violently and nearly threw me.When at a distance of about ten paces it paused and beckoned with itshand, that was also swathed in white like the arm of a mummy.
"What the devil are you?" shouted Leo, and his voice echoed drearilyamong those naked rocks. But the creature did not answer, it onlycontinued to beckon.
Leo walked up to it to assure himself that we were not the victims ofsome hallucination. As he came it glided back to its heap of bones andstood there like a ghost of one dead arisen from amidst these grinningevidences of death, or rather a swathed corpse, for that is what itresembled. Leo followed with the intention of touching it to assurehimself of its reality, whereon it lifted its white-wrapped arm andstruck him lightly on the breast. Then as he recoiled it pointed withits hand, first upwards as though to the Peak or the sky, and next atthe wall of rock which faced us.
He returned to me saying, "What shall we do?"
"Follow, I suppose. It may be a messenger from above," and I noddedtoward the mountain crest.
"From below, more likely," Leo muttered, "for I don't like the look
ofthis guide."
Still he motioned with his hand to the creature to proceed. Apparentlyit understood, for it turned to the left and began to pick its wayamongst the stones and skeletons swiftly and without noise. We followedfor several hundred yards till it reached a shallow cleft in the rock.This cleft we had seen already, but as it appeared to end at a depth ofabout thirty feet, we passed on. The figure entered here and vanished.
"It must be a shadow," said Leo doubtfully.
"Nonsense," I answered, "shadows don't strike one. Go on."
So he led the horse up the cleft, to find that at the end it turnedsharply to the right and that the form was standing there awaiting us.Forward it went again and we after it down a little gorge that grew evergloomier till it terminated in what might have been a cave, or a gallerycut in the rock.
Here our guide came back to us apparently with the intention of takingthe horse by the bridle, but at this nearer sight of it the brutesnorted and reared up, so that it almost fell backwards upon me. Asit found its feet again the figure struck it on the head in the samepassionless, inhuman way that it had struck Leo, whereon the horsetrembled and burst into a sweat as though with fear, making no furtherattempt to escape or to disobey. Then it took one side of the bridlein its swathed hand and, Leo clinging to the other, we plunged into thetunnel.
Our position was not pleasant, for we knew not whither we were being ledby this horrible conductor, and suspected that it might be to meet ourdeaths in the darkness. Moreover, I guessed that the path was narrow andbordered by some gulf, for as we went I heard stones fall, apparently toa considerable depth, while the poor horse lifted its feet gingerly andsnorted in abject fear. At length we saw daylight, and never was I moreglad of its advent, although it showed us that there _was_ a gulf on ourright, and that the path we travelled could not measure more than tenfeet in width.
Now we were out of the tunnel, that evidently had saved us a widedetour, and standing for the first time upon the actual slope of theMountain, which stretched upwards for a great number of miles till itreached the snow-line above. Here also we saw evidences of human life,for the ground was cultivated in patches and herds of mountain sheep andcattle were visible in the distance.
Presently we entered a gully, following a rough path that led along theedge of a raging torrent. It was a desolate place, half a mile wideor more, having hundreds of fantastic lava boulders strewn about itsslopes. Before we had gone a mile I heard a shrill whistle, and suddenlyfrom behind these boulders sprang a number of men, quite fifty of them.All we could note at the time was that they were brawny, savage-lookingfellows, for the most part red haired and bearded, although theircomplexions were rather dark, who wore cloaks of white goat skins andcarried spears and shields. I should imagine that they were not unlikethe ancient Picts and Scots as they appeared to the invading Romans. Atus they came uttering their shrill, whistling cries, evidently with theintention of spearing us on the spot.
"Now for it," said Leo, drawing his sword, for escape was impossible;they were all round us. "Good-bye, Horace."
"Good-bye," I answered rather faintly, understanding what the Khania andthe old Shaman had meant when they said that we should be killed beforewe ascended the first slope of the Mountain.
Meanwhile our ghastly-looking guide had slipped behind a great boulder,and even then it occurred to me that her part in the tragedy beingplayed, she, if it were a woman at all, was withdrawing herself whilewe met our miserable fate. But here I did her injustice, for she had, Isuppose, come to save us from this very fate which without her presencewe must most certainly have suffered. When the savages were within a fewyards suddenly she appeared on the top of the boulder, looking like asecond Witch of Endor, and stretched out her arm. Not a word did shespeak, only stretched out her draped arm, but the effect was remarkableand instantaneous.
At the sight of her down on to their faces went those wild men, everyone of them, as though a lightning stroke had in an instant swept themout of existence. Then she let her arm fall and beckoned, whereon agreat fellow who, I suppose, was the leader of the band, rose and crepttowards her with bowed head, submissive as a beaten dog. To him shemade signs, pointing to us, pointing to the far-off Peak, crossing anduncrossing her white-wrapped arms, but so far as I could hear, speakingno word. It was evident that the chief understood her, however, forhe said something in a guttural language. Then he uttered his shrillwhistle, whereon the band rose and departed thence at full speed,this way and the other, so that in another minute they had vanished asquickly as they came.
Now our guide motioned to us to proceed, and led the way upward ascalmly as though nothing had happened.
For over _two_ hours we went on thus till our path brought us from theravine on to a grassy declivity, across which it wound its way. Here, toour astonishment, we found a fire burning, and hanging above the firean earthenware pot, which was on the boil, although we could see no mantending it. The figure signalled to me to dismount, pointing to the potin token that we were to eat the food which doubtless she had orderedthe wild men to prepare for us, and very glad was _I_ to obey her.Provision had been made for the horse also, for near the fire lay agreat bundle of green forage.
While Leo off-saddled the beast and spread the provender for it, takingwith me a spare earthen vessel that lay ready, I went to the edge of thetorrent to drink and steep my wounded arm in its ice-cold stream. Thisrelieved it greatly, though by now I was sure from various symptomsthat the brute Master's fangs had fortunately only broken or injured thesmall bone, a discovery for which I was thankful enough. Having finishedattending to it as well as I was able, I filled the jar with water.
On my way back a thought struck me, and going to where our mysteriousguide stood still as Lot's wife after she had been turned into a pillarof salt, I offered it to her, hoping that she would unveil her face anddrink. Then for the first time she showed some sign of being human,or so I thought, for it seemed to me that she bowed ever so littlein acknowledgment of the courtesy. If so--and I may have beenmistaken--this was all, for the next instant she turned her back on meto show that it was declined. So she would not, or for aught Iknew, could not drink. Neither would she eat, for when Leo tried herafterwards with food she refused it in like fashion.
Meanwhile he had taken the pot off the fire, and as soon as its contentsgrew cool enough we fell on them eagerly, for we were starving. Afterwe had eaten and drunk, Leo re-dressed my arm as best he could and werested awhile. Indeed, I think that, being very tired, we began to doze,for I was awakened by a shadow falling on us and looked up to see ourcorpse-like guide standing close by and pointing first to the sun, thenat the horse, as though to show us that we had far to travel. So wesaddled up and went on again somewhat refreshed, for at least we were nolonger ravenous.
All the rest of that day we journeyed on up the grassy slopes, seeing noman, although occasionally we heard the wild whistle which told us thatwe were being watched by the Mountain savages. By sundown the characterof the country had changed, for the grass was replaced with rocks,amongst which grew stunted firs. We had left the lower slopes and werebeginning to climb the Mountain itself.
The sun sank and we went on through the twilight. The twilight diedand we went on through the dark, our path lit only by the stars and thefaint radiance of the glowing pillar of smoke above the Peak, whichwas reflected on to us from the mighty mantle of its snows. Forward wetoiled, whilst a few paces ahead of us walked our unwearying guide. Ifshe had seemed weird and inhuman before, now she appeared a very ghost,as, clad in her graveyard white, upon which the faint light shimmered,never speaking, never looking back, she glided on noiselessly betweenthe black rocks and the twisted, dark-green firs and junipers.
Soon we lost all count of the road. We turned this way and turned thatway, we passed an open patch and through the shadows of a grove, till atlength as the moon rose we entered a ravine, and following a paththat ran down it, came to a place which is best described as a largeamphitheatre cut by the hand of natur
e out of the rock of the Mountain.Evidently it was chosen as a place of defence, for its entrance wasnarrow and tortuous, built up at the end also, so that only one personcould pass its gateway at a time. Within an open space and at itsfarther side stood low, stone houses built against the rock. In frontof these houses, the moonlight shining full upon them, were gatheredseveral hundred men and women arranged in a semicircle and in alternatecompanies, who appeared to be engaged in the celebration of some rite.
It was wild enough. In front of them, and in the exact centre of thesemi-circle, stood a gigantic, red-bearded man, who was naked exceptfor a skin girdle about his loins. He was swinging himself backwardsand forwards, his hands resting upon his hips, and as he swung, shoutingsomething like "_Ho, haha, ho!_" When he bent towards the audience itbent towards him, and every time he straightened himself it echoed hisfinal shout of "_Ho!_" in a volume of sound that made the precipicesring. Nor was this all, for perched upon his hairy head, with archedback and waving tail, stood a great white cat.
Anything stranger, and indeed more fantastic than the general effect ofthis scene, lit by the bright moonlight and set in that wild arena, itwas never my lot to witness. The red-haired, half-naked men and women,the gigantic priest, the mystical white cat, that, gripping hisscalp with its claws, waved its tail and seemed to take a part in theperformance; the unholy chant and its volleying chorus, all helped tomake it extraordinarily impressive. This struck us the more, perhaps,because at the time we could not in the least guess its significance,though we imagined that it must be preliminary to some sacrifice oroffering. It was like the fragment of a nightmare preserved by theawakened senses in all its mad, meaningless reality.
Now round the open space where these savages were celebrating theirworship, or whatever it might be, ran a rough stone wall about six feetin height, in which wall was a gateway. Towards this we advanced quiteunseen, for upon our side of the wall grew many stunted pines. Throughthese pines our guide led us, till in the thickest of them, somefew yards from the open gateway and a little to the right of it, shemotioned to us to stop.
Then she went to a low place in the wall and stood there as though shewere considering the scene beyond. It seemed to us, indeed, that shesaw what she had not expected and was thereby perplexed or angered.Presently she appeared to make up her mind, for again she motioned tous to remain where we were, enjoining silence upon us by placing herswathed hand upon the mask that hid her face. Next moment she was gone.How she went, or whither, I cannot say; all we knew was that she was nolonger there.
"What shall we do now?" whispered Leo to me.
"Stay where we are till she comes back again or something happens," Ianswered.
So there being nothing else to be done, we stayed, hoping that thehorse would not betray us by neighing, or that we might not be otherwisediscovered, since we were certain that if so we should be in danger ofdeath. Very soon, however, we forgot the anxieties of our own positionin the study of the wild scene before us, which now began to develop afearful interest.
It would seem that what has been described was but preliminary to thedrama itself, and that this drama was the trial of certain people fortheir lives. This we could guess, for after awhile the incantationceased and the crowd in front of the big man with the cat upon his headopened out, while behind him a column of smoke rose into the air, asthough light had been set to some sunk furnace.
Into the space that had thus been cleared were now led seven persons,whose hands were tied behind them. They were of both sexes and includedan old man and a woman with a tall and handsome figure, who appearedto be quite young, scarcely more than a girl indeed. These seven wereranged in a line where they stood, clearly in great fear, for the oldman fell upon his knees and one of the women began to sob. Thus theywere left awhile, perhaps to allow the fire behind them to burn up,which it soon did with great fierceness, throwing a vivid light uponevery detail of the spectacle.
Now all was ready, and a man brought a wooden tray to the red-beardedpriest, who was seated on a stool, the white cat upon his knees, whitherwe had seen it leap from his head a little while before. He took thetray by its handles and at a word from him the cat jumped on to it andsat there. Then amidst the most intense silence he rose and uttered someprayer, apparently to the cat, which sat facing him. This done he turnedthe tray round so that the creature's back was now towards him, and,advancing to the line of prisoners, began to walk up and down in frontof them, which he did several times, at each turn drawing a littlenearer.
Holding out the tray, he presented it at the face of the prisoner on theleft, whereon the cat rose, arched its back and began to lift its pawsup and down. Presently he moved to the next prisoner and held it beforehim awhile, and so on till he came to the fifth, that young woman ofwhom I have spoken. Now the cat grew very angry, for in the death-likestillness we could hear it spitting and growling. At length it seemedto lift its paws and strike the girl upon the face, whereon she screamedaloud, a terrible scream. Then all the audience broke out into a shout,a single word, which we understood, for we had heard one very like itused by the people of the Plain. It was "Witch! Witch! _Witch!_"
Executioners who were waiting for the victim to be chosen in this ordealby cat, rushed forward and seizing the girl began to drag her towardsthe fire. The prisoner who was standing by her and whom we rightlyguessed to be her husband, tried to protect her, but his arms beingbound, poor fellow, he could do nothing. One of the executioners knockedhim down with a stick. For a moment his wife escaped and threw herselfupon him, but the brutes lifted her up again, haling her towards thefire, whilst all the audience shouted wildly.
"I can't stand this," said Leo, "it's murder--coldblooded murder," andhe drew his sword.
"Best leave the beasts alone," I answered doubtfully, though my ownblood was boiling in my veins.
Whether he heard or not I do not know, for the next thing I saw was Leorushing through the gate waving the Khan's sword and shouting at thetop of his voice. Then I struck my heels into the ribs of the horse andfollowed after him. In ten seconds we were among them. As we came thesavages fell back this way and that, staring at us amazed, for at firstI think they took us for apparitions. Thus Leo on foot and I gallopingafter him, we came to the place.
The executioners and their victim were near the fire now--a very greatfire of resinous pine logs built in a pit that measured about eight feetacross. Close to it sat the priest upon his stool, watching the scenewith a cruel smile, and rewarding the cat with little gobbets of rawmeat, that he took from a leathern pouch at his side, occupations inwhich he was so deeply engaged that he never saw us until we were righton to him.
Shouting, "Leave her alone, you blackguards," Leo rushed at theexecutioners, and with a single blow of his sword severed the arm of oneof them who gripped the woman by the nape of the neck.
With a yell of pain and rage the man sprang back and stood waving thestump towards the people and staring at it wildly. In the confusion thatfollowed I saw the victim slip from the hands of her astonished would-bemurderers and run into the darkness, where she vanished. Also I sawthe witch-doctor spring up, still holding the tray on which the cat wassitting, and heard him begin to shout a perfect torrent of furious abuseat Leo, who in reply waved his sword and cursed him roundly in Englishand many other languages.
Then of a sudden the cat upon the tray, infuriated, I suppose, by thenoise and the interruption of its meal, sprang straight at Leo's face.He appeared to catch it in mid-air with his left hand and with all hisstrength dashed it to the ground, where it lay writhing and screeching.Then, as though by an afterthought, he stooped, picked the devilishcreature up again and hurled it into the heart of the fire, for he wasmad with rage and knew not what he did.
At the sight of that awful sacrilege--for such it was to them whoworshipped this beast--a gasp of horror rose from the spectators,followed by a howl of execration. Then like a wave of the sea theyrushed at us. I saw Leo cut one man down, and next instant I was off thehorse and bei
ng dragged towards the furnace. At the edge of it I met Leoin like plight, but fighting furiously, for his strength was great andthey were half afraid of him.
"Why couldn't you leave the cat alone?" I shouted at him in idioticremonstrance, for my brain had gone, and all I knew was that we wereabout to be thrown into the fiery pit. Already I was over it; I feltthe flames singe my hair and saw its red caverns awaiting me, when of asudden the brutal hands that held me were unloosed and I fell backwardsto the ground, where I lay staring upwards.
This was what I saw. Standing in front of the fire, her draped formquivering as though with rage, was our ghostly-looking guide, whopointed with her hand at the gigantic, red-headed witch-doctor. But shewas no longer alone, for with her were a score or more of men clad inwhite robes and armed with swords; black-eyed, ascetic-looking men, withclean-shaved heads and faces, for their scalps shone in the firelight.
At the sight of them terror had seized that multitude which, mad asgoaded bulls but a few seconds before, now fled in every direction likesheep frightened by a wolf. The leader of the white-robed priests, a manwith a gentle face, which when at rest was clothed in a perpetual smile,was addressing the medicine-man, and I understood something of his talk.
"Dog," he said in effect, speaking in a smooth, measured voice that yetwas terrible, "accursed dog, beast-worshipper, what were you about to doto the guests of the mighty Mother of the Mountain? Is it for this thatyou and your idolatries have been spared so long? Answer, if you haveanything to say. Answer quickly, for your time is short."
With a groan of fear the great fellow flung himself upon his knees, notto the head-priest who questioned him, but before the quivering shape ofour guide, and to her put up half-articulate prayers for mercy.
"Cease," said the high-priest, "she is the Minister who judges and theSword that strikes. I am the Ears and the Voice. Speak and tellme--were you about to cast those men, whom you were commanded to receivehospitably, into yonder fire because they saved the victim of yourdevilries and killed the imp you cherished? Nay, I saw it all. Know thatit was but a trap set to catch you, who have been allowed to live toolong."
But still the wretch writhed before the draped form and howled formercy.
"Messenger," said the high-priest, "with thee the power goes. Declarethy decree."
Then our guide lifted her hand slowly and pointed to the fire. At oncethe man turned ghastly white, groaned and fell back, as I think, quitedead, slain by his own terror.
Now many of the people had fled, but some remained, and to thesethe priest called in cold tones, bidding them approach. They obeyed,creeping towards him.
"Look," he said, pointing to the man, "look and tremble at the justiceof Hes the Mother. Aye, and be sure that as it is with him, so shall itbe with every one of you who dares to defy her and to practise sorceryand murder. Lift up that dead dog who was your chief."
Some of them crept forward and did his bidding.
"Now, cast him into the bed which he had made ready for his victims."
Staggering forward to the edge of the flaming pit, they obeyed, and thegreat body fell with a crash amongst the burning boughs and vanishedthere.
"Listen, you people," said the priest, "and learn that this man deservedhis dreadful doom. Know you why he purposed to kill that woman whom thestrangers saved? Because his familiar marked her as a witch, you think.I tell you it was not so. It was because she being fair, he wouldhave taken her from her husband, as he had taken many another, and sherefused him. But the Eye saw, the Voice spoke, and the Messenger didjudgment. He is caught in his own snare, and so shall you be, every oneof you who dares to think evil in his heart or to do it with his hands.
"Such is the just decree of the Hesea, spoken by her from her throneamidst the fires of the Mountain."