Chapter XIV. The Under-world
That night we slept well and without fear, being quite certain thatafter their previous experience the Orofenans would make no furtherattempts upon us. Indeed our only anxiety was for Tommy, whom we couldnot find when the time came to give him his supper. Bastin, however,seemed to remember having seen him following the Glittering Lady intothe cave. This, of course, was possible, as certainly he had taken anenormous fancy to her and sat himself down as close to her as he couldon every occasion. He even seemed to like the ancient Oro, and was notafraid to jump up and plant his dirty paws upon that terrific person'sgorgeous robe. Moreover Oro liked him, for several times I observed himpat the dog upon the head; as I think I have said, the only human touchthat I had perceived about him. So we gave up searching and calling inthe hope that he was safe with our supernatural friends.
The next morning quite early the Lady Yva appeared alone; no, not alone,for with her came our lost Tommy looking extremely spry and well atease. The faithless little wretch just greeted us in a casual fashionand then went and sat by Yva. In fact when the awkward Bastin managedto stumble over the end of her dress Tommy growled at him and showed histeeth. Moreover the dog was changed. He was blessed with a shiny blackcoat, but now this coat sparkled in the sunlight, like the Lady Yva'shair.
"The Glittering Lady is all very well, but I'm not sure that I carefor a glittering dog. It doesn't look quite natural," said Bastin,contemplating him.
"Why does Tommy shine, Lady?" I asked.
"Because I washed him in certain waters that we have, so that now helooks beautiful and smells sweet," she answered, laughing.
It was true, the dog did smell sweet, which I may add had not alwaysbeen the case with him, especially when there were dead fish about. Alsohe appeared to have been fed, for he turned up his nose at the bits wehad saved for his breakfast.
"He has drunk of the Life-water," explained Yva, "and will want no foodfor two days."
Bickley pricked up his ears at this statement and looked incredulous.
"You do not believe, O Bickley," she said, studying him gravely."Indeed, you believe nothing. You think my father and I tell you manylies. Bastin there, he believes all. Humphrey? He is not sure; he thinksto himself, I will wait and find out whether or no these funny peoplecheat me."
Bickley coloured and made some remark about things which were contraryto experience, also that Tommy in a general way was rather a greedylittle dog.
"You, too, like to eat, Bickley" (this was true, he had an excellentappetite), "but when you have drunk the Life-water you will care muchless."
"I am glad to hear it," interrupted Bastin, "for Bickley wants a lot ofcooking done, and I find it tedious."
"You eat also, Lady," said Bickley.
"Yes, I eat sometimes because I like it, but I can go weeks and noteat, when I have the Life-water. Just now, after so long a sleep, I amhungry. Please give me some of that fruit. No, not the flesh, flesh Ihate."
We handed it to her. She took two plantains, peeled and ate them withextraordinary grace. Indeed she reminded me, I do not know why, of somelovely butterfly drawing its food from a flower.
While she ate she observed us closely; nothing seemed to escape thequick glances of those beautiful eyes. Presently she said:
"What, O Humphrey, is that with which you fasten your neckdress?" andshe pointed to the little gold statue of Osiris that I used as a pin.
I told her that it was a statuette of a god named Osiris and very, veryancient, probably quite five thousand years old, a statement at whichshe smiled a little; also that it came from Egypt.
"Ah!" she answered, "is it so? I asked because we have figures thatare very like to that one, and they also hold in their hands a staffsurmounted by a loop. They are figures of Sleep's brother--Death."
"So is this," I said. "Among the Egyptians Osiris was the god of Death."
She nodded and replied that doubtless the symbol had come down to them.
"One day you shall take me to see this land which you call so very old.Or I will take you, which would be quicker," she added.
We all bowed and said we should be delighted. Even Bastin appearedanxious to revisit Egypt in such company, though when he was thereit seemed to bore him. But what she meant about taking us I could notguess. Nor had we time to ask her, for she went on, watching our facesas she spoke.
"The Lord Oro sends you a message, Strangers. He asks whether it is yourwish to see where we dwell. He adds that you are not to come if you donot desire, or if you fear danger."
We all answered that there was nothing we should like better, but Bastinadded that he had already seen the tomb.
"Do you think, Bastin, that we live in a tomb because we slept there fora while, awaiting the advent of you wanderers at the appointed hour?"
"I don't see where else it could be, unless it is further down thatcave," said Bastin. "The top of the mountain would not be convenient asa residence."
"It has not been convenient for many an age, for reasons that I willshow you. Think now, before you come. You have naught to fear from us,and I believe that no harm will happen to you. But you will see manystrange things that will anger Bickley because he cannot understandthem, and perhaps will weary Bastin because his heart turns from whatis wondrous and ancient. Only Humphrey will rejoice in them becausethe doors of his soul are open and he longs--what do you long for,Humphrey?"
"That which I have lost and fear I shall never find again," I answeredboldly.
"I know that you have lost many things--last night, for instance,you lost Tommy, and when he slept with me he told me much about youand--others."
"This is ridiculous," broke in Bastin. "Can a dog talk?"
"Everything can talk, if you understand its language, Bastin. But keep agood heart, Humphrey, for the bold seeker finds in the end. Oh! foolishman, do you not understand that all is yours if you have but the soul toconceive and the will to grasp? All, all, below, between, above! Even Iknow that, I who have so much to learn."
So she spoke and became suddenly magnificent. Her face which had beenbut that of a super-lovely woman, took on grandeur. Her bosom swelled;her presence radiated some subtle power, much as her hair radiatedlight.
In a moment it was gone and she was smiling and jesting.
"Will you come, Strangers, where Tommy was not afraid to go, down tothe Under-world? Or will you stay here in the sun? Perhaps you will dobetter to stay here in the sun, for the Under-world has terrors for weakhearts that were born but yesterday, and feeble feet may stumble in thedark."
"I shall take my electric torch," said Bastin with decision, "and Iadvise you fellows to do the same. I always hated cellars, and thecatacombs at Rome are worse, though full of sacred interest."
Then we started, Tommy frisking on ahead in a most provoking way asthough he were bored by a visit to a strange house and going home, andYva gliding forward with a smile upon her face that was half mystic andhalf mischievous. We passed the remains of the machines, and Bickleyasked her what they were.
"Carriages in which once we travelled through the skies, until we founda better way, and that the uninstructed used till the end," she answeredcarelessly, leaving me wondering what on earth she meant.
We came to the statue and the sepulchre beneath without trouble, for theglint of her hair, and I may add of Tommy's back, were quite sufficientto guide us through the gloom. The crystal coffins were still there, forBastin flashed his torch and we saw them, but the boxes of radium hadgone.
"Let that light die," she said to Bastin. "Humphrey, give me your righthand and give your left to Bickley. Let Bastin cling to him and fearnothing."
We passed to the end of the tomb and stood against what appeared to be arock wall, all close together, as she directed.
"Fear nothing," she said again, but next second I was never more fullof fear in my life, for we were whirling downwards at a speed that wouldhave made an American elevator attendant turn pale.
"Don't choke
me," I heard Bickley say to Bastin, and the latter'smurmured reply of:
"I never could bear these moving staircases and tubelifts. They alwaysmake me feel sick."
I admit that for my part I also felt rather sick and clung tightly tothe hand of the Glittering Lady. She, however, placed her other handupon my shoulder, saying in a low voice:
"Did I not tell you to have no fear?"
Then I felt comforted, for somehow I knew that it was not her desireto harm and much less to destroy me. Also Tommy was seated quite at hisease with his head resting against my leg, and his absence of alarm wasreassuring. The only stoic of the party was Bickley. I have no doubtthat he was quite as frightened as we were, but rather than show it hewould have died.
"I presume this machinery is pneumatic," he began when suddenly andwithout shock, we arrived at the end of our journey. How far we hadfallen I am sure I do not know, but I should judge from the awful speedat which we travelled, that it must have been several thousand feet,probably four or five.
"Everything seems steady now," remarked Bastin, "so I suppose thisluggage lift has stopped. The odd thing is that I can't see anythingof it. There ought to be a shaft, but we seem to be standing on a levelfloor."
"The odd thing is," said Bickley, "that we can see at all. Where thedevil does the light come from thousands of feet underground?"
"I don't know," answered Bastin, "unless there is natural gas here, as Iam told there is at a town called Medicine Hat in Canada."
"Natural gas be blowed," said Bickley. "It is more like moonlightmagnified ten times."
So it was. The whole place was filled with a soft radiance, equal tothat of the sun at noon, but gentler and without heat.
"Where does it come from?" I whispered to Yva.
"Oh!" she replied, as I thought evasively. "It is the light of theUnder-world which we know how to use. The earth is full of light, whichis not wonderful, is it, seeing that its heart is fire? Now look aboutyou."
I looked and leant on her harder than ever, since amazement made meweak. We were in some vast place whereof the roof seemed almost as faroff as the sky at night. At least all that I could make out was a dimand distant arch which might have been one of cloud. For the rest, inevery direction stretched vastness, illuminated far as the eye couldreach by the soft light of which I have spoken, that is, probably forseveral miles. But this vastness was not empty. On the contrary it wasoccupied by a great city. There were streets much wider than Piccadilly,all bordered by houses, though these, I observed, were roofless, veryfine houses, some of them, built of white stone or marble. There wereroadways and pavements worn by the passage of feet. There, farther on,were market-places or public squares, and there, lastly, was a hugecentral enclosure one or two hundred acres in extent, which was filledwith majestic buildings that looked like palaces, or town-halls; and, inthe midst of them all, a vast temple with courts and a central dome. Forhere, notwithstanding the lack of necessity, its builders seemed to haveadhered to the Over-world tradition, and had roofed their fane.
And now came the terror. All of this enormous city was dead. Had itstood upon the moon it could not have been more dead. None paced itsstreets; none looked from its window-places. None trafficked in itsmarkets, none worshipped in its temple. Swept, garnished, lighted,practically untouched by the hand of Time, here where no rains fell andno winds blew, it was yet a howling wilderness. For what wilderness isthere to equal that which once has been the busy haunt of men? Letthose who have stood among the buried cities of Central Asia, or ofAnarajapura in Ceylon, or even amid the ruins of Salamis on the coastof Cyprus, answer the question. But here was something infinitely moreawful. A huge human haunt in the bowels of the earth utterly devoid ofhuman beings, and yet as perfect as on the day when these ceased to be.
"I do not care for underground localities," remarked Bastin, his gruffvoice echoing strangely in that terrible silence, "but it does seem apity that all these fine buildings should be wasted. I suppose theirinhabitants left them in search of fresh air."
"Why did they leave them?" I asked of Yva.
"Because death took them," she answered solemnly. "Even those who live athousand years die at last, and if they have no children, with them diesthe race."
"Then were you the last of your people?" I asked.
"Inquire of my father," she replied, and led the way through the massivearch of a great building.
It led into a walled courtyard in the centre of which was a plain cupolaof marble with a gate of some pale metal that looked like platinum mixedwith gold. This gate stood open. Within it was the statue of a womanbeautifully executed in white marble and set in a niche of some blackstone. The figure was draped as though to conceal the shape, and theface was stern and majestic rather than beautiful. The eyes of thestatue were cunningly made of some enamel which gave them a strange andlifelike appearance. They stared upwards as though looking away from theearth and its concerns. The arms were outstretched. In the right handwas a cup of black marble, in the left a similar cup of white marble.From each of these cups trickled a thin stream of sparkling water, whichtwo streams met and mingled at a distance of about three feet beneaththe cups. Then they fell into a metal basin which, although it must havebeen quite a foot thick, was cut right through by their constant impact,and apparently vanished down some pipe beneath. Out of this metal basinTommy, who gambolled into the place ahead of us, began to drink in agreedy and demonstrative fashion.
"The Life-water?" I said, looking at our guide.
She nodded and asked in her turn:
"What is the statue and what does it signify, Humphrey?"
I hesitated, but Bastin answered:
"Just a rather ugly woman who hid up her figure because it was bad.Probably she was a relation of the artist who wished to have herlikeness done and sat for nothing."
"The goddess of Health," suggested Bickley. "Her proportions areperfect; a robust, a thoroughly normal woman."
"Now, Humphrey," said Yva.
I stared at the work and had not an idea. Then it flashed on me withsuch suddenness and certainty that I am convinced the answer to theriddle was passed to me from her and did not originate in my own mind.
"It seems quite easy," I said in a superior tone. "The figure symbolisesLife and is draped because we only see the face of Life, the rest ishidden. The arms are bare because Life is real and active. One cup isblack and one is white because Life brings both good and evil gifts;that is why the streams mingle, to be lost beneath in the darkness ofdeath. The features are stern and even terrifying rather than lovely,because such is the aspect of Life. The eyes look upward and far awayfrom present things, because the real life is not here."
"Of course one may say anything," said Bastin, "but I don't understandall that."
"Imagination goes a long way," broke in Bickley, who was vexed that hehad not thought of this interpretation himself. But Yva said:
"I begin to think that you are quite clever, Humphrey. I wonder whencethe truth came to you, for such is the meaning of the figure and thecups. Had I told it to you myself, it could not have been better said,"and she glanced at me out of the corners of her eyes. "Now, Strangers,will you drink? Once that gate was guarded, and only at a great price oras a great reward were certain of the Highest Blood given the freedom ofthis fountain which might touch no common lips. Indeed it was one of thecauses of our last war, for all the world which was, desired this waterwhich now is lapped by a stranger's hound."
"I suppose there is nothing medicinal in it?" said Bastin. "Once when Iwas very thirsty, I made a mistake and drank three tumblers of somethingof the sort in the dark, thinking that it was Apollinaris, and I don'twant to do it again."
"Just the sort of thing you would do," said Bickley. "But, Lady Yva,what are the properties of this water?"
"It is very health-giving," she answered, "and if drunk continually, notless than once each thirty days, it wards off sickness, lessens hungerand postpones death for many, many years. That is why those of
the HighBlood endured so long and became the rulers of the world, and that, asI have said, is the greatest of the reasons why the peoples who dwelt inthe ancient outer countries and never wished to die, made war upon them,to win this secret fountain. Have no fear, O Bastin, for see, I willpledge you in this water."
Then she lifted a strange-looking, shallow, metal cup whereof thehandles were formed of twisted serpents, that lay in the basin, filledit from the trickling stream, bowed to us and drank. But as she drank Inoted with a thrill of joy that her eyes were fixed on mine as thoughit were me she pledged and me alone. Again she filled the cup with thesparkling water, for it did sparkle, like that French liqueur in whichare mingled little flakes of gold, and handed it to me.
I bowed to her and drank. I suppose the fluid was water, but to me ittasted more like strong champagne, dashed with Chateau Yquem. It wasdelicious. More, its effects were distinctly peculiar. Something quickand subtle ran through my veins; something that for a few momentsseemed to burn away the obscureness which blurs our thought. I beganto understand several problems that had puzzled me, and then lost theirexplanations in the midst of light, inner light, I mean. Moreover, of asudden it seemed to me as though a window had been opened in the heartof that Glittering Lady who stood beside me. At least I knew that it wasfull of wonderful knowledge, wonderful memories and wonderful hopes, andthat in the latter two of these I had some part; what part I could nottell. Also I knew that my heart was open to her and that she saw in itsomething which caused her to marvel and to sigh.
In a few seconds, thirty perhaps, all this was gone. Nothing remainedexcept that I felt extremely strong and well, happier, too, than I hadbeen for years. Mutely I asked her for more of the water, but she shookher head and, taking the cup from me, filled it again and gave it toBickley, who drank. He flushed, seemed to lose the self-control whichwas his very strong characteristic, and said in a rather thick voice:
"Curious! but I do not think at this moment there is any operation thathas ever been attempted which I could not tackle single-handed and withsuccess."
Then he was silent, and Bastin's turn came. He drank rather noisily,after his fashion, and began:
"My dear young lady, I think the time has come when I should expound toyou--" Here he broke off and commenced singing very badly, for his voicewas somewhat raucous:
From Greenland's icy mountains, From India's coral strand, Where Afric's sunny fountains Roll down their golden sand.
Ceasing from melody, he added:
"I determined that I would drink nothing intoxicating while I was onthis island that I might be a shining light in a dark place, and nowI fear that quite unwittingly I have broken what I look upon as apromise."
Then he, too, grew silent.
"Come," said Yva, "my father, the Lord Oro, awaits you."
We crossed the court of the Water of Life and mounted steps that ledto a wide and impressive portico, Tommy frisking ahead of us in amost excited way for a dog of his experience. Evidently the water hadproduced its effect upon him as well as upon his masters. This porticowas in a solemn style of architecture which I cannot describe, becauseit differed from any other that I know. It was not Egyptian and notGreek, although its solidity reminded me of the former, and the beautyand grace of some of the columns, of the latter. The profuseness andrather grotesque character of the carvings suggested the ruins of Mexicoand Yucatan, and the enormous size of the blocks of stone, those of Peruand Baalbec. In short, all the known forms of ancient architecturemight have found their inspiration here, and the general effect wastremendous.
"The palace of the King," said Yva, "whereof we approach the greathall."
We entered through mighty metal doors, one of which stood ajar, intoa vestibule which from certain indications I gathered had once been aguard, or perhaps an assembly-room. It was about forty feet deep by ahundred wide. Thence she led us through a smaller door into the hallitself. It was a vast place without columns, for there was no roof tosupport. The walls of marble or limestone were sculptured like those ofEgyptian temples, apparently with battle scenes, though of this I am notsure for I did not go near to them. Except for a broad avenue along themiddle, up which we walked, the area was filled with marble benches thatwould, I presume, have accommodated several thousand people. But theywere empty--empty, and oh! the loneliness of it all.
Far away at the head of the hall was a dais enclosed, and, as it were,roofed in by a towering structure that mingled grace and majesty to awonderful degree. It was modelled on the pattern of a huge shell. Thebase of the shell was the platform; behind were the ribs, and above, theoverhanging lip of the shell. On this platform was a throne of silverymetal. It was supported on the arched coils of snakes, whereof the tailsformed the back and the heads the arms of the throne.
On this throne, arrayed in gorgeous robes, sat the Lord Oro, his whitebeard flowing over them, and a jewelled cap upon his head. In front ofhim was a low table on which lay graven sheets of metal, and among thema large ball of crystal.
There he sat, solemn and silent in the midst of this awful solitude,looking in very truth like a god, as we conceive such a being to appear.Small as he was in that huge expanse of buildings, he seemed yet todominate it, in a sense to fill the emptiness which was accentuatedby his presence. I know that the sight of him filled me with true fearwhich it had never done in the light of day, not even when he arosefrom his crystal coffin. Now for the first time I felt as though Iwere really in the presence of a Being Supernatural. Doubtless thesurroundings heightened this impression. What were these mighty edificesin the bowels of the world? Whence came this wondrous, all-pervading andtranslucent light, whereof we could see no origin? Whither had vanishedthose who had reared and inhabited them? How did it happen that of themall, this man, if he were a man; and this lovely woman at my side, who,if I might trust my senses and instincts, was certainly a woman, alonesurvived of their departed multitudes?
The thing was crushing. I looked at Bickley for encouragement, butgot none, for he only shook his head. Even Bastin, now that the firsteffects of the Life-water had departed, seemed overwhelmed, and mutteredsomething about the halls of Hades.
Only the little dog Tommy remained quite cheerful. He trotted down thehall, jumped on to the dais and sat himself comfortably at the feet ofits occupant.
"I greet you," Oro said in his slow, resonant voice. "Daughter, leadthese strangers to me; I would speak with them."