CHAPTER XXXIX.
CONCLUSION.
The horrified Fred Ashman saw that the poisoned arrow, aimed at his ownheart had buried itself in the fair arm of Ariel, as she clasped himabout the neck anxious to shield him from harm at the expense of herown life.
She had saved him, but at what a fearful cost! The agonized loverrealized it all, as he tenderly placed her on the rock beside whichthey were standing. Then, like the man who, knowing he has beenfatally struck by the rattlesnake or cobra, turns to stamp the life outof the reptile, before looking after his own wound, he faced about andbrought his rifle to his shoulder. The dusky miscreant cowered low,but he could not save himself, for the bullet which left theWinchester, entering at the skull, ranged through the length of hisbody, and he rolled off the ledge like a rotten log and went down theyawning abyss that afforded a fit sepulture for such as he.
King Haffgo was standing erect, as if defying the white man to fire athim. He had seen the result of the shot and he did not regret it.
"Die the death you deserve!" he called out in English; "for you are notthe daughter of Haffgo!"
Then he turned about and moved along the ledge, while Ashman stood foran instant, with weapon levelled, feeling that the awful occurrence hadabsolved him from the pledge made a short time before.
He was aiming, when a faint voice at his side said:
"No, hurt him not; _I shall get well_!"
Letting the rifle fall from his grasp, he wheeled around as if he hadbeen shot himself.
What did he see?
The brave Ariel had drawn the arrow from her arm, and was sittingerect. In her right hand, was a small earthen bottle such as was incommon use among the Murhapas.
"Great heaven! what does this mean?" demanded her lover, uncertainwhether he was awake or dreaming.
She smiled faintly, and said:
"I feel a little faint, but the danger is past."
"But,--but,"--he added, "the arrow was poisoned!"
"Yes, but the poison has a remedy; it is in _that_," she added, holdingup the bottle; "my parent always carried it; I brought it with me whenI left home."
The overjoyed lover could not repress a shout of joy,--a shout whichpenetrated every portion of the cavern of diamonds, but whose meaning,fortunately for the couple, was not understood by the ears on which itfell.
He knelt beside her, so that the bowlders shut both from the view ofany prowlers who might seek to reach them. He kissed the happy faceagain and again; he called her the sweetest names that ever mortaluttered, and he assured her that they should both live and be happyforever.
In his overflowing bliss, he could not realize that they were stillwalled in on every hand. All that he could know and feel, was, thatshe was spared from a dreadful death,--that she had interposed her ownprecious body to protect him from harm.
Enwrapped in his arms, she was obliged to confess that the bringing ofthe potent remedy was an inspiration, when she stole out of herfather's house, for she never dreamed of the use to which it would beput.
She had forgotten all about it, until the sharp twinge in her armapprised her that she was struck by the fearful missile. Then, as shewas about to swoon, she recalled that she carried the remedy in herbosom.
Drawing it quickly forth, while her lover's face was turned away, shedrank the whole contents, which were sufficient to save the lives ofthree or four persons. Not a drop, however, was left; and she remarkedin her own peculiar manner, that they must be careful not to be struckby any more such missiles, since the remedy was gone, and it would behard to secure more.
With a full realization of the remarkable deliverance of his beloved,Ashman was roused to a stronger resolution than before of making adesperate effort to extricate themselves from their perilous situation,which looked indeed as if without hope.
Rising to his feet, but screening his body as he could, he carefullypeered around the cavern of diamonds. He cautioned Ariel to keep outof sight, for, if it should become know that her life was saved, herfather and his warriors would doubtless make another attempt to reachthem.
Looking in the direction of the opening on the other side, he sawHaffgo pass out, followed the next minute or two by the rest of theMurhapas. To Ashman this was proof that the party had decided towithdraw from the cavern, but would keep watch of the egress to makesure that the white man did not get away by some freak of fortune.
Since they were sure he was caught in a trap from which there was noescape, he had his choice of remaining and starving to death, of comingforth and giving himself up, or of ending it all by precipitatinghimself down the rocks.
A terrible punishment indeed for the white man that had dared to defythe king of the Murhapas, and had been the cause of the death of thebeloved princess!
Ashman was still studying the insoluble problem, when a strange impulseled him to look aloft. It will be remembered that he was near the roofof the cavern, among a mass of bowlders and rocks which touched thedome.
Several times it had seemed to him that a felt a slight, upwarddraught, as though a portion of the air found vent in that direction.When he mentioned it to Ariel she admitted that she had noticed thesame thing, and urged him to investigate.
Leaving his Winchester with her, he began a cautious ascent of therugged stairs. He had about twenty feet to climb, and the greatestcare was necessary. Not until at the very top, did he pass from thesight of the maiden who was attentively watching his movements.
Five minutes later, he let go his hold and dropped, down beside her.His face was flushed and his eyes glowing with excitement.
"Thank heaven!" he exclaimed, greatly agitated; "there is an opening bywhich we can reach the outer world."
"I was sure of it," she replied with a happy smile.
During his brief absence, she had bandaged her arm as best she could bytearing a slip from her dress. The wound bled less than would besupposed, and caused her little pain.
Taking her other hand, Ashman began helping her up among the rocks andbowlders. She needed little aid, however, for she was lighter and moregraceful on her feet than he.
Sure enough, when they arrived at the top, they came upon a broaderopening than that by which they had entered the cavern. It was hiddenfrom sight by a projecting table of rock, and when they came to passthrough, the outer opening was seen to be so covered by bushes that itnever could have been found except by the accident which first showedAriel the way into the cavern.
But with hearts overflowing with gratitude to heaven, they foundthemselves on the earth again, with the sun shining and the pure air ofheaven fanning their fevered faces.
They had emerged at the crest of the mountainous mass, which covered aportion of the enchanted lake and the cavern of diamonds. Fortunately,too, they were among the woods, where they could not see far in anydirection. This rendered them less liable to discovery by theirenemies in the neighborhood.
Ashman held his position until the two could study their location andgain an idea of the points of the compass. The rising sun helped themto do this, and, by moving carefully about until they gained sight ofthe lake and the Upper Xingu, they soon ascertained in what directionthe Murhapa village lay, and the course necessary to take in order toavoid it.
It was decided to put back in the forest and thread their way throughthe dense wilderness, striking the Xingu at a point below the rapids.There, if they found nothing of their friends, they would manage tosecure a boat in which they could press their flight in the directionof the Amazon.
The forests abounded with wild animals and huge serpents, but theardent lover was admirably armed and confident that he could protecthis beloved from all harm, provided they could escape discovery by theMurhapas and Aryks.
If Haffgo should venture on an approach to the rocks, where thefugitives made their stand, he could not fail to find out theextraordinary manner in which they had eluded him, and he would becertain to organize instant pursuit.
But this was not likely to
take place for a considerable time, thoughthe possibility led Ashman to push forward with all vigor, oftenpausing to listen for sounds of pursuit.
The extreme caution of the lovers led them to trend much further intothe woods than was really necessary, and they were a long time,therefore, in reaching the Xingu.
Neither had eaten food for an unusual while, but they cared nothing forthat. They were too anxious for any thought except that of gettingforward as fast as possible.
As they progressed, startled now and then by the prowling wild beastswhich threatened attack more than once, and by the sight of enormousserpents, some in trees and some on the ground, Fred Ashman's thoughtsnaturally went forward, and he speculated as to what was the result ofthe attack on his friends the preceding night in the village.
He could comprehend the frightful situation in which they were placedby the enmity of the king, and it seemed incredible that any, or atleast all of them, could have extricated themselves from their peril.Gladly would he have risked everything in their defence, but, as hasbeen shown, that was beyond his power at any time.
The young American shrank from firing his gun, through fear of thereport reaching the ears of the Murhapas. If that should take place,it would be sure to excite their suspicions, and prompt aninvestigation which the fugitives dreaded.
Once a jaguar became so threatening, that he leveled his weaponconvinced that he must fire or be attacked, but the snarling beastfinally withdrew, after sneaking behind them for a long distance.
The sun had passed the meridian when the wanderers caught the gleam ofwater among the trees in front. They hastened forward, and a moment'ssurvey of the stream convinced them that they had reached the Xingubeyond all question.
Ashman recognized several features along the banks which he had noticedon his way up the river. Ariel was equally positive, so they dismissedthe question from their minds.
Both were nearly exhausted, for they had had a tiresome tramp, duringall of which they were under a severe mental strain. They felt that,at last, they could sit down and rest themselves before resuming theirjourney.
"The next thing to be done," said Ashman as he imprisoned the hand ofAriel and drew her head upon his shoulder, "is to find some boat inwhich we can float down stream. It will be less work than we had inascending it."
"I suppose," she replied, "that there are people all the way along theriver until you reach the end of it."
"There are; but we found most of them unfriendly long before we struckthe region of the Aryks."
"Are they likely to attack us?" she asked, raising her head and lookingat her lover with an alarmed expression.
"We had little difficulty, so long as we kept in the middle of thestream, and one discharge from our guns was generally enough to drivethem away."
"And for how far does this prevail?"
"Two or three days ought to take us out of the danger. Then it will beplain sailing all the rest of the way. The river is long, but,dearest, we shall be with each other, and it will seem brief."
She parted her lips to make a suitable reply, when a startledexpression came upon her lovely countenance and she whispered:
"They must have followed us through the woods."
"What do you mean?" he asked, grasping his rifle.
"I hear some one moving behind us."
"It is a wild animal----"
He checked himself, for, to his unspeakable amazement, ProfessorGrimcke at that instant stepped to view.
The two men caught sight of each other at the same moment. They staredas if in doubt, and then, with exclamations of delight, clasped hands.
By great good fortune, the lovers had emerged from the forest within astone's throw of the point where Grimcke, Long, Bippo, and Pedros werewaiting with the canoe hidden among the trees.
After this reunion they set out for home.
A few days carried them beyond danger, and in good time the Amazon wasreached. Bippo and Pedros were left at Marcapa, at which port theexplorers secured passage for home, where they arrived in safety. Andin that land, so strange to the beauteous Ariel, daughter of Haffgo,king of the Murhapas, we bid good-by to our friends. But to her,Ashman was all the world; and in the sunshine of their mutual love theydwell to-day, happy, grateful, contented, and envying no one, assured,as they are, that none can be more blessed than they.
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