10
The Forbidden Garden
Lu-don paled. "It is sacrilege," he cried; "for countless ages have thepriests of the Great God offered each night a life to the spirit ofJad-ben-Otho as it returned below the western horizon to its master,and never has the Great God given sign that he was displeased."
"Stop!" commanded Tarzan. "It is the blindness of the priesthood thathas failed to read the messages of their god. Your warriors die beneaththe knives and clubs of the Wazdon; your hunters are taken by JA andJATO; no day goes by but witnesses the deaths of few or many in thevillages of the Ho-don, and one death each day of those that die arethe toll which Jad-ben-Otho has exacted for the lives you take upon theeastern altar. What greater sign of his displeasure could you require,O stupid priest?"
Lu-don was silent. There was raging within him a great conflict betweenhis fear that this indeed might be the son of god and his hope that itwas not, but at last his fear won and he bowed his head. "The son ofJad-ben-Otho has spoken," he said, and turning to one of the lesserpriests: "Remove the bars and return these people from whence theycame."
He thus addressed did as he was bid and as the bars came down theprisoners, now all fully aware of the miracle that had saved them,crowded forward and throwing themselves upon their knees before Tarzanraised their voices in thanksgiving.
Ko-tan was almost as staggered as the high priest by this ruthlessoverturning of an age-old religious rite. "But what," he cried, "may wedo that will be pleasing in the eyes of Jad-ben-Otho?" turning a lookof puzzled apprehension toward the ape-man.
"If you seek to please your god," he replied, "place upon your altarssuch gifts of food and apparel as are most welcome in the city of yourpeople. These things will Jad-ben-Otho bless, when you may distributethem among those of the city who need them most. With such things areyour storerooms filled as I have seen with mine own eyes, and othergifts will be brought when the priests tell the people that in this waythey find favor before their god," and Tarzan turned and signified thathe would leave the temple.
As they were leaving the precincts devoted to the worship of theirdeity, the ape-man noticed a small but rather ornate building thatstood entirely detached from the others as though it had been cut froma little pinnacle of limestone which had stood out from its fellows. Ashis interested glance passed over it he noticed that its door andwindows were barred.
"To what purpose is that building dedicated?" he asked of Lu-don. "Whodo you keep imprisoned there?"
"It is nothing," replied the high priest nervously, "there is no onethere. The place is vacant. Once it was used but not now for manyyears," and he moved on toward the gateway which led back into thepalace. Here he and the priests halted while Tarzan with Ko-tan and hiswarriors passed out from the sacred precincts of the temple grounds.
The one question which Tarzan would have asked he had feared to ask forhe knew that in the hearts of many lay a suspicion as to hisgenuineness, but he determined that before he slept he would put thequestion to Ko-tan, either directly or indirectly--as to whether therewas, or had been recently within the city of A-lur a female of the samerace as his.
As their evening meal was being served to them in the banquet hall ofKo-tan's palace by a part of the army of black slaves upon whoseshoulders fell the burden of all the heavy and menial tasks of thecity, Tarzan noticed that there came to the eyes of one of the slaveswhat was apparently an expression of startled recognition, as he lookedupon the ape-man for the first time in the banquet hall of Ko-tan. Andagain later he saw the fellow whisper to another slave and nod his headin his direction. The ape-man did not recall ever having seen thisWaz-don before and he was at a loss to account for an explanation ofthe fellow's interest in him, and presently the incident was all butforgotten.
Ko-tan was surprised and inwardly disgusted to discover that his godlyguest had no desire to gorge himself upon rich foods and that he wouldnot even so much as taste the villainous brew of the Ho-don. To Tarzanthe banquet was a dismal and tiresome affair, since so great was theinterest of the guests in gorging themselves with food and drink thatthey had no time for conversation, the only vocal sounds being confinedto a continuous grunting which, together with their table mannersreminded Tarzan of a visit he had once made to the famous Berkshireherd of His Grace, the Duke of Westminster at Woodhouse, Chester.
One by one the diners succumbed to the stupefying effects of the liquorwith the result that the grunting gave place to snores, so presentlyTarzan and the slaves were the only conscious creatures in the banquethall.
Rising, the ape-man turned to a tall black who stood behind him. "Iwould sleep," he said, "show me to my apartment."
As the fellow conducted him from the chamber the slave who had shownsurprise earlier in the evening at sight of him, spoke again at lengthto one of his fellows. The latter cast a half-frightened look in thedirection of the departing ape-man. "If you are right," he said, "theyshould reward us with our liberty, but if you are wrong, OJad-ben-Otho, what will be our fate?"
"But I am not wrong!" cried the other.
"Then there is but one to tell this to, for I have heard that he lookedsour when this Dor-ul-Otho was brought to the temple and that while theso-called son of Jad-ben-Otho was there he gave this one every cause tofear and hate him. I mean Lu-don, the high priest."
"You know him?" asked the other slave.
"I have worked in the temple," replied his companion.
"Then go to him at once and tell him, but be sure to exact the promiseof our freedom for the proof."
And so a black Waz-don came to the temple gate and asked to see Lu-don,the high priest, on a matter of great importance, and though the hourwas late Lu-don saw him, and when he had heard his story he promisedhim and his friend not only their freedom but many gifts if they couldprove the correctness of their claims.
And as the slave talked with the high priest in the temple at A-lur thefigure of a man groped its way around the shoulder of Pastar-ul-ved andthe moonlight glistened from the shiny barrel of an Enfield that wasstrapped to the naked back, and brass cartridges shed tiny rays ofreflected light from their polished cases where they hung in thebandoliers across the broad brown shoulders and the lean waist.
Tarzan's guide conducted him to a chamber overlooking the blue lakewhere he found a bed similar to that which he had seen in the villagesof the Waz-don, merely a raised dais of stone upon which was piledgreat quantities of furry pelts. And so he lay down to sleep, thequestion that he most wished to put still unasked and unanswered.
With the coming of a new day he was awake and wandering about thepalace and the palace grounds before there was sign of any of theinmates of the palace other than slaves, or at least he saw no othersat first, though presently he stumbled upon an enclosure which layalmost within the center of the palace grounds surrounded by a wallthat piqued the ape-man's curiosity, since he had determined toinvestigate as fully as possible every part of the palace and itsenvirons.
This place, whatever it might be, was apparently without doors orwindows but that it was at least partially roofless was evidenced bythe sight of the waving branches of a tree which spread above the topof the wall near him. Finding no other method of access, the ape-manuncoiled his rope and throwing it over the branch of the tree where itprojected beyond the wall, was soon climbing with the ease of a monkeyto the summit.
There he found that the wall surrounded an enclosed garden in whichgrew trees and shrubs and flowers in riotous profusion. Withoutwaiting to ascertain whether the garden was empty or contained Ho-don,Waz-don, or wild beasts, Tarzan dropped lightly to the sward on theinside and without further loss of time commenced a systematicinvestigation of the enclosure.
His curiosity was aroused by the very evident fact that the place wasnot for general use, even by those who had free access to other partsof the palace grounds and so there was added to its natural beauties anabsence of mortals which rendered its exploration all the more alluringto Tarzan since it suggested that in such a pl
ace might he hope to comeupon the object of his long and difficult search.
In the garden were tiny artificial streams and little pools of water,flanked by flowering bushes, as though it all had been designed by thecunning hand of some master gardener, so faithfully did it carry outthe beauties and contours of nature upon a miniature scale.
The interior surface of the wall was fashioned to represent the whitecliffs of Pal-ul-don, broken occasionally by small replicas of theverdure-filled gorges of the original.
Filled with admiration and thoroughly enjoying each new surprise whichthe scene offered, Tarzan moved slowly around the garden, and as alwayshe moved silently. Passing through a miniature forest he came presentlyupon a tiny area of flowerstudded sward and at the same time beheldbefore him the first Ho-don female he had seen since entering thepalace. A young and beautiful woman stood in the center of the littleopen space, stroking the head of a bird which she held against hergolden breastplate with one hand. Her profile was presented to theape-man and he saw that by the standards of any land she would havebeen accounted more than lovely.
Seated in the grass at her feet, with her back toward him, was a femaleWaz-don slave. Seeing that she he sought was not there and apprehensivethat an alarm be raised were he discovered by the two women, Tarzanmoved back to hide himself in the foliage, but before he had succeededthe Ho-don girl turned quickly toward him as though apprised of hispresence by that unnamed sense, the manifestations of which are more orless familiar to us all.
At sight of him her eyes registered only her surprise though there wasno expression of terror reflected in them, nor did she scream or evenraise her well-modulated voice as she addressed him.
"Who are you," she asked, "who enters thus boldly the Forbidden Garden?"
At sound of her mistress' voice the slave maiden turned quickly, risingto her feet. "Tarzan-jad-guru!" she exclaimed in tones of mingledastonishment and relief.
"You know him?" cried her mistress turning toward the slave andaffording Tarzan an opportunity to raise a cautioning finger to hislips lest Pan-at-lee further betray him, for it was Pan-at-lee indeedwho stood before him, no less a source of surprise to him than had hispresence been to her.
Thus questioned by her mistress and simultaneously admonished tosilence by Tarzan, Pan-at-lee was momentarily silenced and thenhaltingly she groped for a way to extricate herself from her dilemma."I thought--" she faltered, "but no, I am mistaken--I thought that hewas one whom I had seen before near the Kor-ul-GRYF."
The Ho-don looked first at one and then at the other an expression ofdoubt and questioning in her eyes. "But you have not answered me," shecontinued presently; "who are you?"
"You have not heard then," asked Tarzan, "of the visitor who arrived atyour king's court yesterday?"
"You mean," she exclaimed, "that you are the Dor-ul-Otho?" And now theerstwhile doubting eyes reflected naught but awe.
"I am he," replied Tarzan; "and you?"
"I am O-lo-a, daughter of Ko-tan, the king," she replied.
So this was O-lo-a, for love of whom Ta-den had chosen exile ratherthan priesthood. Tarzan had approached more closely the daintybarbarian princess. "Daughter of Ko-tan," he said, "Jad-ben-Otho ispleased with you and as a mark of his favor he has preserved for youthrough many dangers him whom you love."
"I do not understand," replied the girl but the flush that mounted toher cheek belied her words. "Bu-lat is a guest in the palace of Ko-tan,my father. I do not know that he has faced any danger. It is to Bu-latthat I am betrothed."
"But it is not Bu-lat whom you love," said Tarzan.
Again the flush and the girl half turned her face away. "Have I thendispleased the Great God?" she asked.
"No," replied Tarzan; "as I told you he is well satisfied and for yoursake he has saved Ta-den for you."
"Jad-ben-Otho knows all," whispered the girl, "and his son shares hisgreat knowledge."
"No," Tarzan hastened to correct her lest a reputation for omnisciencemight prove embarrassing. "I know only what Jad-ben-Otho wishes me toknow."
"But tell me," she said, "I shall be reunited with Ta-den? Surely theson of god can read the future."
The ape-man was glad that he had left himself an avenue of escape. "Iknow nothing of the future," he replied, "other than what Jad-ben-Othotells me. But I think you need have no fear for the future if youremain faithful to Ta-den and Ta-den's friends."
"You have seen him?" asked O-lo-a. "Tell me, where is he?"
"Yes," replied Tarzan, "I have seen him. He was with Om-at, the gund ofKor-ul-JA."
"A prisoner of the Waz-don?" interrupted the girl.
"Not a prisoner but an honored guest," replied the ape-man.
"Wait," he exclaimed, raising his face toward the heavens; "do notspeak. I am receiving a message from Jad-ben-Otho, my father."
The two women dropped to their knees, covering their faces with theirhands, stricken with awe at the thought of the awful nearness of theGreat God. Presently Tarzan touched O-lo-a on the shoulder.
"Rise," he said. "Jad-ben-Otho has spoken. He has told me that thisslave girl is from the tribe of Kor-ul-JA, where Ta-den is, and thatshe is betrothed to Om-at, their chief. Her name is Pan-at-lee."
O-lo-a turned questioningly toward Pan-at-lee. The latter nodded, hersimple mind unable to determine whether or not she and her mistresswere the victims of a colossal hoax. "It is even as he says," shewhispered.
O-lo-a fell upon her knees and touched her forehead to Tarzan's feet."Great is the honor that Jad-ben-Otho has done his poor servant," shecried. "Carry to him my poor thanks for the happiness that he hasbrought to O-lo-a."
"It would please my father," said Tarzan, "if you were to causePan-at-lee to be returned in safety to the village of her people."
"What cares Jad-ben-Otho for such as she?" asked O-lo-a, a slight traceof hauteur in her tone.
"There is but one god," replied Tarzan, "and he is the god of theWaz-don as well as of the Ho-don; of the birds and the beasts and theflowers and of everything that grows upon the earth or beneath thewaters. If Pan-at-lee does right she is greater in the eyes ofJad-ben-Otho than would be the daughter of Ko-tan should she do wrong."
It was evident that O-lo-a did not quite understand this interpretationof divine favor, so contrary was it to the teachings of the priesthoodof her people. In one respect only did Tarzan's teachings coincide withher belief--that there was but one god. For the rest she had alwaysbeen taught that he was solely the god of the Ho-don in every sense,other than that other creatures were created by Jad-ben-Otho to servesome useful purpose for the benefit of the Ho-don race. And now to betold by the son of god that she stood no higher in divine esteem thanthe black handmaiden at her side was indeed a shock to her pride, hervanity, and her faith. But who could question the word of Dor-ul-Otho,especially when she had with her own eyes seen him in actual communionwith god in heaven?
"The will of Jad-ben-Otho be done," said O-lo-a meekly, "if it lieswithin my power. But it would be best, O Dor-ul-Otho, to communicateyour father's wish directly to the king."
"Then keep her with you," said Tarzan, "and see that no harm befallsher."
O-lo-a looked ruefully at Pan-at-lee. "She was brought to me butyesterday," she said, "and never have I had slave woman who pleased mebetter. I shall hate to part with her."
"But there are others," said Tarzan.
"Yes," replied O-lo-a, "there are others, but there is only onePan-at-lee."
"Many slaves are brought to the city?" asked Tarzan.
"Yes," she replied.
"And many strangers come from other lands?" he asked.
She shook her head negatively. "Only the Ho-don from the other side ofthe Valley of Jad-ben-Otho," she replied, "and they are not strangers."
"Am I then the first stranger to enter the gates of A-lur?" he asked.
"Can it be," she parried, "that the son of Jad-ben-Otho need question apoor ignorant mortal like O-lo-a?"
"As I told you before," replie
d Tarzan, "Jad-ben-Otho alone isall-knowing."
"Then if he wished you to know this thing," retorted O-lo-a quickly,"you would know it."
Inwardly the ape-man smiled that this little heathen's astutenessshould beat him at his own game, yet in a measure her evasion of thequestion might be an answer to it. "There have been other strangershere then recently?" he persisted.
"I cannot tell you what I do not know," she replied. "Always is thepalace of Ko-tan filled with rumors, but how much fact and how muchfancy how may a woman of the palace know?"
"There has been such a rumor then?" he asked.
"It was only rumor that reached the Forbidden Garden," she replied.
"It described, perhaps, a woman of another race?" As he put thequestion and awaited her answer he thought that his heart ceased tobeat, so grave to him was the issue at stake.
The girl hesitated before replying, and then. "No," she said, "I cannotspeak of this thing, for if it be of sufficient importance to elicitthe interest of the gods then indeed would I be subject to the wrath ofmy father should I discuss it."
"In the name of Jad-ben-Otho I command you to speak," said Tarzan. "Inthe name of Jad-ben-Otho in whose hands lies the fate of Ta-den!"
The girl paled. "Have mercy!" she cried, "and for the sake of Ta-den Iwill tell you all that I know."
"Tell what?" demanded a stern voice from the shrubbery behind them. Thethree turned to see the figure of Ko-tan emerging from the foliage. Anangry scowl distorted his kingly features but at sight of Tarzan itgave place to an expression of surprise not unmixed with fear."Dor-ul-Otho!" he exclaimed, "I did not know that it was you," andthen, raising his head and squaring his shoulders he said, "but thereare places where even the son of the Great God may not walk and this,the Forbidden Garden of Ko-tan, is one."
It was a challenge but despite the king's bold front there was a noteof apology in it, indicating that in his superstitious mind thereflourished the inherent fear of man for his Maker. "Come, Dor-ul-Otho,"he continued, "I do not know all this foolish child has said to you butwhatever you would know Ko-tan, the king, will tell you. O-lo-a, go toyour quarters immediately," and he pointed with stern finger toward theopposite end of the garden.
The princess, followed by Pan-at-lee, turned at once and left them.
"We will go this way," said Ko-tan and preceding, led Tarzan in anotherdirection. Close to that part of the wall which they approached Tarzanperceived a grotto in the miniature cliff into the interior of whichKo-tan led him, and down a rocky stairway to a gloomy corridor theopposite end of which opened into the palace proper. Two armed warriorsstood at this entrance to the Forbidden Garden, evidencing howjealously were the sacred precincts of the place guarded.
In silence Ko-tan led the way back to his own quarters in the palace. Alarge chamber just outside the room toward which Ko-tan was leading hisguest was filled with chiefs and warriors awaiting the pleasure oftheir ruler. As the two entered, an aisle was formed for them thelength of the chamber, down which they passed in silence.
Close to the farther door and half hidden by the warriors who stoodbefore him was Lu-don, the high priest. Tarzan glimpsed him but brieflybut in that short period he was aware of a cunning and malevolentexpression upon the cruel countenance that he was subconsciously awareboded him no good, and then with Ko-tan he passed into the adjoiningroom and the hangings dropped.
At the same moment the hideous headdress of an under priest appeared inthe entrance of the outer chamber. Its owner, pausing for a moment,glanced quickly around the interior and then having located him whom hesought moved rapidly in the direction of Lu-don. There was a whisperedconversation which was terminated by the high priest.
"Return immediately to the quarters of the princess," he said, "and seethat the slave is sent to me at the temple at once." The under priestturned and departed upon his mission while Lu-don also left theapartment and directed his footsteps toward the sacred enclosure overwhich he ruled.
A half-hour later a warrior was ushered into the presence of Ko-tan."Lu-don, the high priest, desires the presence of Ko-tan, the king, inthe temple," he announced, "and it is his wish that he come alone."
Ko-tan nodded to indicate that he accepted the command which even theking must obey. "I will return presently, Dor-ul-Otho," he said toTarzan, "and in the meantime my warriors and my slaves are yours tocommand."