CHAPTER VIII
Early dawn peered through the dark sky like the silvery light of a palelamp carried by an advancing watchman,--and faintly illumined theoutline of a long, high, vastly extending wooden building which, atabout a mile distant from Morgana's "palazzo" ran parallel with thesea-shore. The star-sparkle of electric lamps within showed it to beoccupied--and the murmur of men's voices and tinkle of working toolssuggested that the occupants were busy. The scarcely visible sea madepleasant little kissing murmurs on the lip-edges of the sand, andNature, drowsing in misty space, seemed no more than the formless voidof the traditional beginning of things.
Outside the building which, by its shape, though but dimly definedamong shadows, was easily recognisable as a huge aerodrome, the tallfigure of Giulio Rivardi paced slowly up and down like a sentinel onguard. He, whose Marquisate was inherited from many noble Sicilianhouses renowned in Caesar's day, apparently found as much satisfactionin this occupation as any warrior of a Roman Legion might haveexperienced in guarding the tent of his Emperor,--and every now andthen he lifted his eyes to the sky with a sense of impatience at theslowness of the sun's rising. In his mind he reviewed the whole chapterof events which during the past three years had made him the paidvassal of a rich woman's fancy--his entire time taken up, and all theresources of his inventive and artistic nature (which wereexceptionally great) drawn upon for the purpose of carrying out designswhich at first seemed freakish and impossible, but which laterastonished him by the extraordinary scientific acumen they displayed,as well as by their adaptability to the forces of nature. Then, themoney!--the immense sums which this strange creature, Morgana Royal,had entrusted to him!--and with it all, the keen, business aptitude shehad displayed, knowing to a centime how much she had spent, thoughthere seemed no limit to how much she yet intended to spend! He lookedback to the time he had first seen her, when on visiting Sicilyapparently as an American tourist only, she had taken a fancy to aruined "palazzo" once an emperor's delight, but crumbling slowly awayamong its glorious gardens, and had purchased the whole thing then andthere. Her guide to the ruins at that period had been Don Aloysius, alearned priest, famous for his archaeological knowledge--and it wasthrough Don Aloysius that he, the Marchese Rivardi, had obtained thecommission to restore to something of its pristine grace and beauty thepalace of ancient days. And now everything was done, or nearly done;but much more than the "palazzo" had been undertaken and completed, forthe lady of many millions had commanded an air-ship to be built for herown personal use and private pleasure with an aerodrome for its safekeeping and anchorage. This airship was the crux of the whole business,for the men employed to build it were confident that it would neverfly, and laughed with one another as they worked to carry out a woman'sidea and a woman's design. How could it fly without an engine?--theyvery sensibly demanded,--for engine there was none! However, they werepaid punctually and most royally for their labours; and when, despitetheir ominous predictions, the ship was released on her trial trip,manipulated by Giulio Rivardi, who ascended in her alone, sailing theship with an ease and celerity hitherto unprecedented, they were morescared than enthusiastic. Surely some devil was in it!--for how couldthe thing fly without any apparent force to propel it? How was it thatits enormous wings spread out on either side as by self-volition andmoved rhythmically like the wings of a bird in full flight? Every manwho had worked at the design was more or less mystified. They had,according to plan and instructions received, "plumed" the airship forelectricity in a new and curious manner, but there was no battery togenerate a current. Two small boxes or chambers, made of somemysterious metal which would not "fuse" under the strongest heat, werefixed, one at either end of the ship;--these had been manufacturedsecretly in another country and sent to Sicily by Morgana herself,--butso far, they contained nothing. They seemed unimportant--they werehardly as large as an ordinary petrol-can holding a gallon. WhenRivardi had made a trial ascent he had inserted in each of these boxesa cylindrical tube made to fit an interior socket as a candle fits intoa candle-stick,--all the workmen watched him, waiting for a revelation,but he made none. He was only particular and precise as to the firmclosing down of the boxes when the tubes were in. And then in a fewminutes the whole machine began to palpitate noiselessly like a livingthing with a beating heart,--and to the amazement and almost fear ofall who witnessed what seemed to be a miracle, the ship sprang up likea bird springing from the ground, and soared free and away into space,its vast white wings cleaving the air with a steady rise and fall ofrhythmic power. Once aloft she sailed in level flight, apparently atperfect ease--and after several rapid "runs," and circlings, descendedslowly and gracefully, landing her pilot without shock or jar. He wasat once surrounded and was asked a thousand questions which it wasevident he could not answer.
"How can I tell!" he replied, to all interrogations. "The secret is thesecret of a woman!"
A woman! Man's pretty toy!--man's patient slave! How should a womanmaster any secret! Engineers and mechanics laughed scornfully andshrugged their shoulders--yet--yet--the great airship stared them inthe face as a thing created,--a thing of such power and possibility asseemed wholly incredible. And now the creator,--the woman--hadarrived,--the woman whose rough designs on paper had been carefullyfollowed and elaborated into actual shape;--and there was a tense stateof expectation among all the workers awaiting her presence. Meanwhilethe lantern-gleam in the sky broadened and the web of mist which veiledthe sea began to lift and Giulio Rivardi, pacing to and fro, haltedevery now and then to look in the direction of a path winding downwardfrom the mainland to the shore, in watchful expectation of seeing anelfin figure, more spiritlike than mortal, floating towards him throughthe dividing vapours of the morning. The words of Don Aloysius hauntedhim strangely, though his common sense sharply rejected the fantasticnotions to which they had given rise. She,--Morgana Royal,--was "notcapable" of love, the priest had implied,--and yet, at times--only attimes,--she seemed eminently lovable. At times,--again, only attimes--he was conscious of a sweeping passion of admiration for herthat well-nigh robbed him of his self-control. But a strong sense ofhonour held him in check--he never forgot that he was her paid employe,and that her wealth was so enormous that any man presuming toopersonally upon her indulgence could hardly be exonerated from ulteriorsordid aims. And while he mused, somewhat vexedly, on all thecircumstances of his position, the light widened in the heavens,showing the very faintest flush of rose in the east as an indication ofthe coming sun. He lifted his eyes....
"At last!" he exclaimed, with relief, as he saw a small gliding shadowamong shadows approaching him,--he figure of Morgana so wrapped in agrey cloak and hood as to almost seem part of the slowly dispersingmists of the morning. She pushed back the hood as she came near,showing a small eager white face in which the eyes glittered with analmost unearthly brightness.
"I have slept till now,"--she said--"Imagine!--all night throughwithout waking! So lazy of me!--but the long rest has done me good andI'm ready for anything! Are you? You look very solemn and morose!--likea warrior in bronze! Anything gone wrong?"
"Not that I am aware of"--he replied--"The men are finishing some smalldetail of ornament. I have only looked in to tell them you are coming."
"And are they pleased?"
"Madama, they are not of a class to be either pleased ordispleased"--he said--"They are instructed to perform certain work, andthey perform it. In all that they have been doing for you, according toyour orders, I truly think they are more curious than interested."
A streak of rose and silver flared through the sky flushing the pallorof Morgana's face as she lifted it towards him, smiling.
"Quite natural!" she said--"No man is ever 'interested' in woman'swork, but he is always 'curious.' Woman is a many-cornered maze--andman is always peeping round one corner or another in the hope todiscover her--but he never does!"
Rivardi gave an almost imperceptible shrug.
"Never?" he queried.
"Never!" she affirmed, emphatically-
-"Don't be sarcastic, amico!--evenin this dim morning light I can see the scornful curve of your upperlip!--you are really very good-looking, you know!--and you imply thesame old Garden of Eden story of man giving away woman as a whollyincomprehensible bad job! Adam flung her back as a reproach to herCreator--'the woman thou gavest me;'--oh, that woman and that apple!But he had to confess 'I did eat.' He always eats,--he eats everythingwoman can give him--he will even eat HER if he gets the chance!" Shelaughed and pointed to the brightening sky. "See? ''Tis almostmorning!' as Shakespeare's Juliet remarked--but I would not 'have theegone'--not unless I go also. Whither shall we fly?"
He looked at her, moved as he often was by a thrill of admiration andwonder.
"It is for you to decide"--he answered--"You know best thepossibilities-and the risks---"
"I know the possibilities perfectly,"--she said--"But I know nothing ofrisks--there are none. This is our safety"--and she drew out from thefolds of her cloak, two small packets of cylindrical form--"Thisemanation of Nature's greatest force will keep us going for a year ifneedful! Oh man!--I do not mean YOU particularly, but mangenerally!--why could you not light on this little, little clue!--whywas it left to a woman! Come!--let us see the White Eagle in itsnest,--it shall spread its wings and soar to-day--we will give it fullliberty!"
The dawn was spreading in threads of gold and silver and blue all overthe heavens, and the sea flushed softly under the deepening light, asshe went towards the aerodrome, he walking slowly by her side.
"Are you so sure?" he said--"Will you not risk your life in thisattempt?"
She stopped abruptly.
"My life? What is it? The life of a midge in the sun! It is no good tome unless I do something with it! I would live for ever if Icould!--here, on this dear little ball of Earth--I do not want a betterheaven. The heaven which the clergy promise us is so remarkablyunattractive! But I run no risk of losing my life or yours in ouraerial adventures; we carry the very essence of vitality with us.Come!--I want to see my flying palace! When I was a small child I usedto feed my fancy on the 'Arabian Nights,' and most dearly did I lovethe story of Aladdin and his palace that was transported through theair. I used to say 'I will have a flying palace myself!' And now I haverealised my dream."
"That remains to be proved"--said Rivardi--"With all our work we maynot have entirely carried out your plan."
"If not, it will HAVE to be carried out"--returned Morgana,tranquilly--"There is no reason, moral or scientific, why it should NOTbe carried out--we have all the forces of Nature on our side."
He was silent, and accompanied her as she walked to the aerodrome andentered it. There were half a dozen or more men within, allworking--but they ceased every movement as they saw her,--while she, onher part, scarcely seemed to note their presence. Her eyes wereuplifted and fixed on a vast, smooth oblong object, like the body of agreat bird with shut wings, which swung from the roof of the aerodromeand swayed lightly to and fro as though impelled by some mysteriousbreathing force. Morgana's swift glance travelled from its one end tothe other with a flash of appreciation, while at the same time shereceived the salutations of all the men who advanced to greet her.
"You have done well, my friends!"--she said, speaking in fluentFrench--"This beautiful creature you have made seems a perfectthing,--from the OUTSIDE. What of the interior?"
A small, dark, intelligent looking man, in evident command of the rest,smiled and shrugged his shoulders.
"Ah, Signora! It is as you commanded!" he answered--"It isbeautiful--like a chrysalis for a butterfly. But a butterfly has theadvantage--it comes to LIFE, to use its wings!"
"Quite true, Monsieur Gaspard!" and Morgana gave him a smile as sunnyas his own. "But what is life? Is it not a composition of manyelements? And should we not learn to combine such elements to vitaliseour 'White Eagle'? It is possible!"
"With God all things are possible!" quoted the Marchese Rivardi--"Butwith man--"
"We are taught that God made man 'in His image. In the image of Godcreated He him.' If this is true, all things should be possible toman"--said Morgana, quietly--"To man,--and to that second thought ofthe Creator--Woman! And we mustn't forget that second thoughts arebest!" She laughed, while the man called Gaspard stared at her andlaughed also for company. "Now let me see how I shall be housed inair!" and with very little assistance she climbed into the greatbird-shaped vessel through an entrance so deftly contrived that it wasscarcely visible,--an entrance which closed almost hermetically whenthe ship was ready to start, air being obtained through other channels.
Once inside it was easy to believe in Fairyland. Not a scrap of anysort of mechanism could be seen. There were two exquisitely furnishedsaloons--one a kind of boudoir or drawing-room where everything thatmoney could buy or luxury suggest as needful or ornamental wascollected and arranged with thoughtful selection and perfect taste. Ashort passage from these apartments led at one end to some small,daintily fitted sleeping-rooms beyond,--at the other was the steeringcabin and accommodation for the pilot and observer. The whole interiorwas lined with what seemed to be a thick rose-coloured silk of asingularly smooth and shining quality, but at a sign from Morgana,Rivardi and Gaspard touched some hidden spring which caused thisinterior covering to roll up completely, thus disclosing a strange andmysterious "installation" beneath. Every inch of wall-space was fittedwith small circular plates of some thin, shining substance, set closetogether so that their edges touched, and in the center of each plateor disc was a tiny white knob resembling the button of an ordinaryelectric bell. There seemed to be at least two or three thousand ofthese discs--seen all together in a close mass they somewhat resembledthe "suckers" on the tentacles of a giant octopus. Morgana, seatingherself in an easy chair of the richly carpeted "drawing-room" of her"air palace," studied every line, turn and configuration of thisextraordinary arrangement with a keenly observant and criticising eye.The Marchese Rivardi and Gaspard watched her expression anxiously.
"You are satisfied?" asked Rivardi, at last--"It is as you planned?"
She turned towards Gaspard with a smile.
"What do YOU think about it?" she queried--"You are an expert in modernscientific work--you understand many of the secrets of naturalforce--what do YOU think?"
"Madama, I think as I have always thought!--a body without soul!"
"What IS soul?" she said--"Is it not breath?--the breath of life? Is itnot said that God 'made man of the dust of the ground and breathed intohis nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul!' And whatis the breath of life? Is it not composed of such elements as are inthe universe and which we may all discover if we will, and use to ouradvantage? You cannot deny this! Come, Marchese!--and you, MonsieurGaspard! Call to them below to set this Eagle free; we will fly intothe sunrise for an hour or two,--no farther, as we are not provisioned."
"Madama!" stammered Gaspard--"I am not prepared--"
"You are frightened, my friend!" and Morgana smiled, laying her littlewhite hand soothingly on his arm--"But if I tell you there is no causefor fear, will you not believe me? Do you not think I love my own life?Oh yes, I love it so much that I seek to prolong it, not risk it bysudden loss. Nor would I risk YOUR life--or HIS!" and she lookedtowards Rivardi--"HE is not frightened--he will come with me wherever Igo! Now, Monsieur Gaspard, see! Here is our breath of life!" And sheheld up before his eyes the two cylindrically shaped packages she hadpreviously shown to Rivardi--"The Marchese has already had someexperience of it"--here she unfastened the wrappings of the packages,and took out two tubes made of some metallic substance which shone likepurest polished gold--"I will fix these in myself--will you open thelower end chamber first, please?"
Silently the two men obeyed her gesture and opened the smallcompartment fixed at what might be called the hull end of the air-ship.The interior was seen to be lined with the same round discs whichcovered the walls of the vessel, every disc closely touching itsneighbour. With extreme caution and delicacy Morgana set one of thetubes she held upright in the socket
made to receive it, and as she didthis, fine sharp, needle like flashes of light broke from it in acomplete circle, filling the whole receptacle with vibrating rays whichinstantly ran round each disc, and glittered in and out among them likea stream of quicksilver. As soon as this manifestation occurred,Morgana beckoned to her two assistants to shut the compartment. Theydid so with scarcely an effort, yet it closed down with a silent forceand tenacity that suggested some enormous outward pressure, yetpressure there seemed none. And now a sudden throbbing movementpulsated through the vessel--its huge folded wings stirred.
"Quick! Tell them below to lose no time! Open the shed and let herrise!--when the contact is once established there will not be half asecond to spare!"
Hurriedly the man Gaspard, though obviously terrified, shouted thenecessary orders, while Morgana went to the other end of the ship whereRivardi opened for her the second compartment into which she fixed thesecond tube. Once again the circular flashes broke out, but this timedirectly the compartment was closed down, the shining stream of lightwas seen to run rapidly and completely round the interior of thevessel, touching every disc that lined the walls as with the sparklingpoint of a jewel. The wings of the ship palpitated as with life andbegan to spread open....
"Let her go!" cried Morgana--"Away to your place, pilot!" and she waveda commanding hand as Rivardi sprang to the steering gear--"Hold herfast! ... Keep her steady! Straight towards the sun-rise!"
As she spoke, a wonderful thing happened--every disc that lined theinterior of the ship started throbbing like a pulse,--every littlewhite knob in the centre of each disc vibrated with an extraordinaryrapidity of motion which dazzled the eyes like the glittering ofswiftly falling snow, and Gaspard, obeying Morgana's sign, drew down atonce all the rose silk covering which completely hid the strangemechanism from view. There was absolutely no noise in this intensevibration,--and there was no start or jar, or any kind of difficulty,when the air-ship, released from bondage, suddenly rose, and like anactual living bird sprang through the vast opening gateway of theaerodrome and as it sprang, spread out its wings as though by its ownvolition. In one moment, it soared straight upright, far far intospace, and the men who were left behind stood staring amazedly afterit, themselves looking no more than tiny black pin-heads downbelow,--then, with a slow diving grace it righted itself as it were,and as if it had of its own will selected the particular current of airon which to sail. It travelled with a steady swiftness in absolutesilence,--its great wings moved up and down with a noiseless power andrhythm for which there seemed no possible explanation,--and Morganaturned her face, now delicately flushed with triumph, on the pale andalmost breathless Gaspard, smiling as she looked at him, her eyesquestioning his. He seemed stricken dumb with astonishment,--his lipsmoved, but no word issued from them.
"You believe me now, do you not?" she said--"We have nothing further todo but to steer. The force we use re-creates itself as it works--itcannot become exhausted. To slow down and descend to earth one needonly open the compartments at either end--then the vibration grows lessand less, and like a living creature the 'White Eagle' sinks gently torest. You see there is no cause for fear!"
While she yet spoke, the light of the newly risen sun bathed her in itsgolden glory, the long dazzling beams filtering through mysteriousapertures inserted cunningly in the roof of the vessel and minglingwith the roseate hues of the silken sheathing that covered its walls.So fired with light she looked ethereal--a very spirit of air or offlame; and Rivardi, just able to see her from his steering place, beganto think there was some truth an the strange words of DonAloysius--"Sometimes in this wonderful world of ours beings are bornwho are neither man nor woman and who partake of a nature that is notso much human as elemental--or, might not one almost say atmospheric?"
At the moment Morgana seemed truly "atmospheric"--a small creature sofine and fair as to almost suggest an evanescent form about to meltaway in mist. Some sudden thrill of superstitious fear moved Gaspard tomake the sign of the cross and mutter an "Ave,"--Morgana heard him andsmiled kindly.
"I am not an evil spirit, my friend!" she said--"You need not exorciseme! I am nothing but a student with a little more imagination than iscommon, and in the moving force which carries our ship along I am onlyusing a substance which, as our scientists explain, 'has an exceptionalcapacity for receiving the waves of energy emanating from the sun andgiving them off.' On the 'giving off' of those waves we move--it is allnatural and easy, and, like every power existent in the universe, ismeant for our comprehension and use. You cannot say you feel any senseof danger?--we are sailing with greater steadiness than any ship atsea--there is scarcely any consciousness of movement--and withoutlooking out and down, we should not realise we are so far from earth.Indeed we are going too far now--we do not realize our speed."
"Too far!" said Gaspard, nervously--"Madama, if we go too far we mayalso go too high--we may not be able to breathe!..."
She laughed.
"That is a very remote possibility!" she said--"The waves of energywhich bear us along are concerned in our own life-supply,--they makeour air to breathe--our heat to warm. All the same it is time wereturned--we are not provisioned."
She called to Rivardi, and he, with the slightest turn of the wheel,altered the direction in which the air-ship moved, so that it travelledback again on the route by which it had commenced its flight. Soon,very soon, the dainty plot of earth, looking no more than a gayflower-bed, where Morgana's palazzo was situated, appeared below--andthen, acting on instructions, Gaspard opened the compartments at eitherend of the vessel. The vibrating rays within dwindled by slowdegrees--their light became less and less intense--their vibration lesspowerful,--till very gradually with a perfectly beautiful motionexpressing absolute grace and lightness the vessel descended towardsthe aerodrome it had lately left, and all the men who were waiting forits return gave a simultaneous shout of astonishment and admiration, asit sank slowly towards them, folding its wings as it came with thequiet ease of a nesting-bird flying home. So admirably was the distancemeasured between itself and the great shed of its local habitation,that it glided into place as though it had eyes to see its exactwhereabouts, and came to a standstill within a few seconds of itsarrival. Morgana descended, and her two companions followed. The othermen stood silent, visibly inquisitive yet afraid to express theircuriosity. Morgana's eyes flashed over them all with a bright,half-laughing tolerance.
"I thank you, my friends!" she said--"You have done well the work Ientrusted you to do under the guidance of the Marchese Rivardi, and youcan now judge for yourselves the result It mystifies you I can see! Youthink it is a kind of 'black magic'? Not so!--unless all our modernscience is 'black magic' as well, born of the influence of those evilspirits who, as we are told in tradition, descended in rebellion fromheaven and lived with the daughters of men! From these strange loverssprang a race of giants,--symbolical I think of the birth of thesciences, which mingle in their composition the active elements of goodand evil. You have built this airship of mine on lines which have neverbefore been attempted;--you have given it wings which are plumed likethe wings of a bird, not with quills, but with channels many andminute, to carry the runlets of the 'emanation' from the substance heldin the containers at either end of the vessel,--its easy flighttherefore should not surprise you. Briefly--we have filled a piece ofmechanism with the composition or essence of Life!--that is the onlyanswer I can give to your enquiring looks!--let it be enough!"
"But, Madama"--ventured Gaspard--"that composition or essence ofLife!--what is it?"
There was an instant's silence. Every man's head craned forward eagerlyto hear the reply. Morgana smiled strangely.
"That," she said--"is MY secret!"