The Man in the Iron Mask

  Chapter XLVIII. The Grotto.

  In spite of the sort of divination which was the remarkable side ofthe character of Aramis, the event, subject to the risks of things overwhich uncertainty presides, did not fall out exactly as the bishop ofVannes had foreseen. Biscarrat, better mounted than his companions,arrived first at the opening of the grotto, and comprehended thatfox and hounds were one and all engulfed in it. Only, struck by thatsuperstitious terror which every dark and subterraneous way naturallyimpresses upon the mind of man, he stopped at the outside of the grotto,and waited till his companions should have assembled round him.

  "Well!" asked the young men, coming up, out of breath, and unable tounderstand the meaning of this inaction.

  "Well! I cannot hear the dogs; they and the fox must all be lost in thisinfernal cavern."

  "They were too close up," said one of the guards, "to have lost scentall at once. Besides, we should hear them from one side or another. Theymust, as Biscarrat says, be in this grotto."

  "But then," said one of the young men, "why don't they give tongue?"

  "It is strange!" muttered another.

  "Well, but," said a fourth, "let us go into this grotto. Does it happento be forbidden we should enter it?"

  "No," replied Biscarrat. "Only, as it looks as dark as a wolf's mouth,we might break our necks in it."

  "Witness the dogs," said a guard, "who seem to have broken theirs."

  "What the devil can have become of them?" asked the young men in chorus.And every master called his dog by his name, whistled to him in hisfavorite mode, without a single one replying to either call or whistle.

  "It is perhaps an enchanted grotto," said Biscarrat; "let us see." And,jumping from his horse, he made a step into the grotto.

  "Stop! stop! I will accompany you," said one of the guards, on seeingBiscarrat disappear in the shades of the cavern's mouth.

  "No," replied Biscarrat, "there must be something extraordinary in theplace--don't let us risk ourselves all at once. If in ten minutes you donot hear of me, you can come in, but not all at once."

  "Be it so," said the young man, who, besides, did not imagine thatBiscarrat ran much risk in the enterprise, "we will wait for you." Andwithout dismounting from their horses, they formed a circle round thegrotto.

  Biscarrat entered then alone, and advanced through the darkness tillhe came in contact with the muzzle of Porthos's musket. The resistancewhich his chest met with astonished him; he naturally raised his handand laid hold of the icy barrel. At the same instant, Yves lifted aknife against the young man, which was about to fall upon him withall force of a Breton's arm, when the iron wrist of Porthos stopped ithalf-way. Then, like low muttering thunder, his voice growled in thedarkness, "I will not have him killed!"

  Biscarrat found himself between a protection and a threat, the onealmost as terrible as the other. However brave the young man mightbe, he could not prevent a cry escaping him, which Aramis immediatelysuppressed by placing a handkerchief over his mouth. "Monsieur deBiscarrat," said he, in a low voice, "we mean you no harm, and you mustknow that if you have recognized us; but, at the first word, the firstgroan, the first whisper, we shall be forced to kill you as we havekilled your dogs."

  "Yes, I recognize you, gentlemen," said the officer, in a low voice."But why are you here--what are you doing, here? Unfortunate men! Ithought you were in the fort."

  "And you, monsieur, you were to obtain conditions for us, I think?"

  "I did all I was able, messieurs, but--"

  "But what?"

  "But there are positive orders."

  "To kill us?"

  Biscarrat made no reply. It would have cost him too much to speak of thecord to gentlemen. Aramis understood the silence of the prisoner.

  "Monsieur Biscarrat," said he, "you would be already dead if we had notregard for your youth and our ancient association with your father; butyou may yet escape from the place by swearing that you will not tellyour companions what you have seen."

  "I will not only swear that I will not speak of it," said Biscarrat,"but I still further swear that I will do everything in the world toprevent my companions from setting foot in the grotto."

  "Biscarrat! Biscarrat!" cried several voices from the outside, cominglike a whirlwind into the cave.

  "Reply," said Aramis.

  "Here I am!" cried Biscarrat.

  "Now, begone; we depend on your loyalty." And he left his hold of theyoung man, who hastily returned towards the light.

  "Biscarrat! Biscarrat!" cried the voices, still nearer. And the shadowsof several human forms projected into the interior of the grotto.Biscarrat rushed to meet his friends in order to stop them, and met themjust as they were adventuring into the cave. Aramis and Porthos listenedwith the intense attention of men whose life depends upon a breath ofair.

  "Oh! oh!" exclaimed one of the guards, as he came to the light, "howpale you are!"

  "Pale!" cried another; "you ought to say corpse-color."

  "I!" said the young man, endeavoring to collect his faculties.

  "In the name of Heaven! what has happened?" exclaimed all the voices.

  "You have not a drop of blood in your veins, my poor friend," said oneof them, laughing.

  "Messieurs, it is serious," said another, "he is going to faint; doesany one of you happen to have any salts?" And they all laughed.

  This hail of jests fell round Biscarrat's ears like musket-balls in a_melee_. He recovered himself amidst a deluge of interrogations.

  "What do you suppose I have seen?" asked he. "I was too hot when Ientered the grotto, and I have been struck with a chill. That is all."

  "But the dogs, the dogs; have you seen them again--did you see anythingof them--do you know anything about them?"

  "I suppose they have got out some other way."

  "Messieurs," said one of the young men, "there is in that which is goingon, in the paleness and silence of our friend, a mystery which Biscarratwill not, or cannot reveal. Only, and this is certain, Biscarrat hasseen something in the grotto. Well, for my part, I am very curious tosee what it is, even if it is the devil! To the grotto! messieurs, tothe grotto!"

  "To the grotto!" repeated all the voices. And the echo of the caverncarried like a menace to Porthos and Aramis, "To the grotto! to thegrotto!"

  Biscarrat threw himself before his companions. "Messieurs! messieurs!"cried he, "in the name of Heaven! do not go in!"

  "Why, what is there so terrific in the cavern?" asked several at once."Come, speak, Biscarrat."

  "Decidedly, it is the devil he has seen," repeated he who had beforeadvanced that hypothesis.

  "Well," said another, "if he has seen him, he need not be selfish; hemay as well let us have a look at him in turn."

  "Messieurs! messieurs! I beseech you," urged Biscarrat.

  "Nonsense! Let us pass!"

  "Messieurs, I implore you not to enter!"

  "Why, you went in yourself."

  Then one of the officers, who--of a riper age than the others--had tillthis time remained behind, and had said nothing, advanced. "Messieurs,"said he, with a calmness which contrasted with the animation of theyoung men, "there is in there some person, or something, that is notthe devil; but which, whatever it may be, has had sufficient power tosilence our dogs. We must discover who this some one is, or what thissomething is."

  Biscarrat made a last effort to stop his friends, but it was useless. Invain he threw himself before the rashest; in vain he clung to the rocksto bar the passage; the crowd of young men rushed into the cave, in thesteps of the officer who had spoken last, but who had sprung in first,sword in hand, to face the unknown danger. Biscarrat, repulsed byhis friends, unable to accompany them, without passing in the eyesof Porthos and Aramis for a traitor and a perjurer, with painfullyattentive ear and unconsciously supplicating hands leaned against therough side of a rock which he thought must be exposed to the fire of themusketeers. As to the guards, they penetrated further and further,with exclamations that grew fainte
r as they advanced. All at once, adischarge of musketry, growling like thunder, exploded in the entrailsof the vault. Two or three balls were flattened against the rock onwhich Biscarrat was leaning. At the same instant, cries, shrieks,imprecations burst forth, and the little troop of gentlemenreappeared--some pale, some bleeding--all enveloped in a cloud ofsmoke, which the outer air seemed to suck from the depths of the cavern."Biscarrat! Biscarrat!" cried the fugitives, "you knew there was anambuscade in that cavern, and you did not warn us! Biscarrat, you arethe cause that four of us are murdered men! Woe be to you, Biscarrat!"

  "You are the cause of my being wounded unto death," said one of theyoung men, letting a gush of scarlet life-blood vomit in his palm, andspattering it into Biscarrat's livid face. "My blood be on your head!"And he rolled in agony at the feet of the young man.

  "But, at least, tell us who is there?" cried several furious voices.

  Biscarrat remained silent. "Tell us, or die!" cried the wounded man,raising himself upon one knee, and lifting towards his companion anarm bearing a useless sword. Biscarrat rushed towards him, opening hisbreast for the blow, but the wounded man fell back not to rise again,uttering a groan which was his last. Biscarrat, with hair on end,haggard eyes, and bewildered head, advanced towards the interior ofthe cavern, saying, "You are right. Death to me, who have allowed mycomrades to be assassinated. I am a worthless wretch!" And throwing awayhis sword, for he wished to die without defending himself, he rushedhead foremost into the cavern. The others followed him. The elevenwho remained out of sixteen imitated his example; but they did not gofurther than the first. A second discharge laid five upon the icy sand;and as it was impossible to see whence this murderous thunder issued,the others fell back with a terror that can be better imagined thandescribed. But, far from flying, as the others had done, Biscarratremained safe and sound, seated on a fragment of rock, and waited. Therewere only six gentlemen left.

  "Seriously," said one of the survivors, "is it the devil?"

  "_Ma foi!_ it is much worse," said another.

  "Ask Biscarrat, he knows."

  "Where is Biscarrat?" The young men looked round them, and saw thatBiscarrat did not answer.

  "He is dead!" said two or three voices.

  "Oh! no!" replied another, "I saw him through the smoke, sitting quietlyon a rock. He is in the cavern; he is waiting for us."

  "He must know who are there."

  "And how should he know them?"

  "He was taken prisoner by the rebels."

  "That is true. Well! let us call him, and learn from him whom we haveto deal with." And all voices shouted, "Biscarrat! Biscarrat!" ButBiscarrat did not answer.

  "Good!" said the officer who had shown so much coolness in the affair."We have no longer any need of him; here are reinforcements coming."

  In fact, a company of guards, left in the rear by their officers, whomthe ardor of the chase had carried away--from seventy-five to eightymen--arrived in good order, led by their captain and the firstlieutenant. The five officers hastened to meet their soldiers; and, inlanguage the eloquence of which may be easily imagined, they related theadventure, and asked for aid. The captain interrupted them. "Where areyour companions?" demanded he.

  "Dead!"

  "But there were sixteen of you!"

  "Ten are dead. Biscarrat is in the cavern, and we are five."

  "Biscarrat is a prisoner?"

  "Probably."

  "No, for here he is--look." In fact, Biscarrat appeared at the openingof the grotto.

  "He is making a sign to come on," said the officer. "Come on!"

  "Come on!" cried all the troop. And they advanced to meet Biscarrat.

  "Monsieur," said the captain, addressing Biscarrat, "I am assured thatyou know who the men are in that grotto, and who make such a desperatedefense. In the king's name I command you to declare what you know."

  "Captain," said Biscarrat, "you have no need to command me. My word hasbeen restored to me this very instant; and I came in the name of thesemen."

  "To tell me who they are?"

  "To tell you they are determined to defend themselves to the death,unless you grant them satisfactory terms."

  "How many are there of them, then?"

  "There are two," said Biscarrat.

  "There are two--and want to impose conditions upon us?"

  "There are two, and they have already killed ten of our men."

  "What sort of people are they--giants?"

  "Worse than that. Do you remember the history of the BastionSaint-Gervais, captain?"

  "Yes; where four musketeers held out against an army."

  "Well, these are two of those same musketeers."

  "And their names?"

  "At that period they were called Porthos and Aramis. Now they are styledM. d'Herblay and M. du Vallon."

  "And what interest have they in all this?"

  "It is they who were holding Bell-Isle for M. Fouquet."

  A murmur ran through the ranks of the soldiers on hearing the two words"Porthos and Aramis." "The musketeers! the musketeers!" repeated they.And among all these brave men, the idea that they were going to have astruggle against two of the oldest glories of the French army, made ashiver, half enthusiasm, two-thirds terror, run through them. In fact,those four names--D'Artagnan, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis--were veneratedamong all who wore a sword; as, in antiquity, the names of Hercules,Theseus, Castor, and Pollux were venerated.

  "Two men--and they have killed ten in two discharges! It is impossible,Monsieur Biscarrat!"

  "Eh! captain," replied the latter, "I do not tell you that they havenot with them two or three men, as the musketeers of the BastionSaint-Gervais had two or three lackeys; but, believe me, captain, Ihave seen these men, I have been taken prisoner by them--I know theythemselves alone are all-sufficient to destroy an army."

  "That we shall see," said the captain, "and that in a moment, too.Gentlemen, attention!"

  At this reply, no one stirred, and all prepared to obey. Biscarrat alonerisked a last attempt.

  "Monsieur," said he, in a low voice, "be persuaded by me; let us passon our way. Those two men, those two lions you are going to attack, willdefend themselves to the death. They have already killed ten of our men;they will kill double the number, and end by killing themselves ratherthan surrender. What shall we gain by fighting them?"

  "We shall gain the consciousness, monsieur, of not having allowed eightyof the king's guards to retire before two rebels. If I listened toyour advice, monsieur, I should be a dishonored man; and by dishonoringmyself I should dishonor the army. Forward, my men!"

  And he marched first as far as the opening of the grotto. There hehalted. The object of this halt was to give Biscarrat and his companionstime to describe to him the interior of the grotto. Then, when hebelieved he had a sufficient acquaintance with the place, he divided hiscompany into three bodies, which were to enter successively, keeping upa sustained fire in all directions. No doubt, in this attack they wouldlose five more, perhaps ten; but, certainly, they must end by taking therebels, since there was no issue; and, at any rate, two men could notkill eighty.

  "Captain," said Biscarrat, "I beg to be allowed to march at the head ofthe first platoon."

  "So be it," replied the captain; "you have all the honor. I make you apresent of it."

  "Thanks!" replied the young man, with all the firmness of his race.

  "Take your sword, then."

  "I shall go as I am, captain," said Biscarrat, "for I do not go to kill,I go to be killed."

  And placing himself at the head of the first platoon, with headuncovered and arms crossed,--"March, gentlemen," said he.