CHAPTER XXII.
ARIEL THE BEAUTIFUL.
It will be understood that during the interview described, the threewhite men stood near the front entrance to the royal apartment withtheir faces turned toward King Haffgo.
In this position each made good use of his eyes and Fred Ashman's, fromsome cause or other, continually wandered to the draped curtains at theright of the ruler, between which he must pass when entering or leavingthat part of his residence.
It was while his gaze was used on these curtains that he saw themgently agitated in a way which left no doubt that some person on theother side was the cause.
By and by he discerned part of a dainty hand, and the next minutebecame aware that a pair of the most beautifully lustrous eyes on whichhe had ever gazed was peering into the apartment.
"_It is Ariel_," was his instant thought, "and she as listening to thewords that we are speaking."
The thought had hardly found shape, when one eye, a part of a lovelyface and the top of the head were discerned, as the owner, giving reinto her curiosity, ventured upon a little further view of the visitors.
Then, as if conscious of her breach of etiquette, she withdrew, like aflash, from view altogether.
But he knew it was only for a brief interval, and sure enough, the eyesspeedily appeared at another portion of the curtains, where thebeauteous princess must have believed she was not observed, for shelooked steadily at the faces of the visitors, with a depth of interestthat it was vain for her to attempt to conceal.
The heart of Fred Ashman gave a flutter, when he realized that themidnight orbs were fastened upon _him_, and, evidently studying hiscountenance with more interest than those of his companions.
Feeling a peculiar boldness, because of the strange situation in whichhe was placed, he deliberately smiled at the unknown one.
She could not have vanished more suddenly had she been snatched away bythe hand of some ogre.
A pang shot through Fred's heart, as he felt that he had driven awaythe enchantress by his own forwardness. He reproached himself bitterlyfor having overreached himself.
But while he was lamenting, he once more discovered the eyes, rivallingthe diamonds in the crown of her royal father, slyly viewing him fromthe other side of the curtain. This time the fair one took care thatno part of her countenance was visible, and the young man was equallyguarded for the time, not to betray his sweet knowledge of the other'sscrutiny.
It was at this juncture, that King Haffgo addressed some pointedquestions to Ashman who was forced to withdraw his gaze from themarvellously attractive sight, and fasten it upon the rugged andwrinkled countenance of the king of the Murhapas.
But those eyes were in his field of vision, and, even while speaking tothe potentate, his glance continually wandered to the orbs whichattracted him as the lodestone draws the magnet.
But alas! the American forgot a fact of the first importance: the eyesof the father were as observant as those of his only child. He saw thefurtive glances at the curtains, and a slight rustling at his righthand told him that his beloved Ariel, with the curiosity of her sex,was playing the eavesdropper.
The indulgent father would have cared nothing for this, had he notdiscovered the extraordinary interest which one of his three callersmanifested in his child. In that moment, the distrust which he felt ofthe strange race was turned to violent hatred toward one of itsmembers, because of his unpardonable insolence in daring to return thegaze with a smile.
The king suddenly leaned the javelin in his hand against the chair inwhich he was sitting, and partly rose from his seat as if about todescend from the throne. Instead of doing so, he leaned slightly toone side, and, with a quick movement, seized one of the curtains andsnatched it aside.
The act, which was like the flitting of a bird's wing, caused Ariel,his daughter, to stand forth fully revealed!
If the white men had been dazzled by the amazing collection of diamondson the brow of the king, it may be said that they were now blinded forthe moment by the vision of loveliness which burst upon them, like theunexpected emergence of the sun from behind a dark cloud.
Before the princess could rally from her bewilderment, her fathersharply commanded her to advance. She knew that that affectionateparent could be stern and cruel as well as loving and affectionate, andwith her eyes bent modestly on the floor she stepped forward and stoodbeside him.
Her hair, instead of being auburn like her parent's, was as black asthe raven's wing. It hung in luxuriant wavy masses below her waist,being gathered by a white clasp of burnished silver at the back of theneck, without which it would have enveloped all the upper part of herbody in its fleecy veil.
Her gown of spotless white, composed of native cloth, as fine as satin,was without any ornament. It was encircled at the waist by a goldengirdle, falling in folds which concealed the rest of the figure,leaving only one Cinderella-like foot to twinkle from the front, like ajewel of rare beauty.
But no eye could fail to see that the slight girlish figure was ofravishing perfection. The waist was slender, the partly revealed armswere as delicate as lilies, the tiny hands with their tapering fingerswere like those of a fairy, while the countenance was one of thefairest that ever sun shone on.
The contour was such as Rubens delighted to place on canvas, and thatMichael Angelo loved to carve from the snowy marble. The Grecian nose,the small mouth, the white teeth, unstained like those of hercountrymen and countrywomen, the wealth of hair, the lustrous, soulfuleyes, the sea-shell-like tint of the cheeks, all these fell upon thestartled vision of the explorers with such overpowering suddenness thatfor the moment they believed they were dreaming, or that some trick ofmagic revealed to them a picture which had no reality.
"Look upon the white men!" commanded the king speaking in English, andwith a sternness which left disobedience out of the question; "look, Isay, for never will come the opportunity to see them again."
It was then that Ariel raised her eyes, and turned them toward thetrio, gazing at no one in particular--for she knew her parent wasclosely studying her--but seeming to fix them upon some one milesbehind them.
Grimcke, Long and Ashman again bowed their heads almost to the ground,and, feeling that the interview was over, began withdrawing.
Like the vassals leaving the presence of their sovereign, they did sowalking backward, with their faces toward the throne, and making a lowobeisance with each step.
The king looked steadily at them, without inclining his head or makingthe slightest acknowledgment of the salutation. Had not Fred Ashmanbeen mad with the intoxication of his new, overwhelming passion, hewould have observed that which was noticed by Grimcke and Long: theKing was watching him.
The young American hardly raised his gaze from the floor, until in hisretreat, he found himself at the entrance, by which all three had comein to the apartment. His companions had made their final obeisance anddisappeared, while he was left with Ziffak standing near the middle ofthe apartment, his pose such that he could glance at his royal relativeor at him without shifting his body.
It now became Fred's duty to assume the perpendicular, in order toeffect a graceful withdrawal.
As he came upright once more, he looked straight into the countenanceof the scowling king. Then--he could not help it---his eyes flashed inthe face of the blushing Ariel, who was gazing fixedly at him, and hesmiled and saluted her.
It was a daring thing to do, with the eyes of the king and the headchieftain upon him. He never understood how it was that it was done.The salutation might have been forgiven, but that smile was an offenselike smiting King Haffgo's countenance with the back of the open hand.
But wonder of wonders! the ruby lips of the radiant beauty parted foran instant in the faintest possible smile which lit up her countenancelike a burst of sunshine. Ashman noticed not the diamond bracelet andnecklace, which flashed in all their prismatic beauty, but knew onlythat she had returned the smile of recognition. For that boon he wouldhave ris
ked life a thousand times over.
Both Ziffak and the king were looking at the white man at the moment;but, as if suspicion had entered the brain of the infuriated monarch,he quickly shifted his head and glared at his daughter.
The movement was like the dart of a serpent, but that shadowy smile onthe face of Ariel had passed, as the lightning flash cleaves themidnight, leaving the darkness deeper than before.
The king saw it not, and well for his child that so it was; for, muchas he cherished her, he would have smitten her to the earth had hedreamed that she ventured on such a response to the impudence of thewhite man, whose very life was his own only through the sufferance ofKing Haffgo.
Not until Fred Ashman found himself in the air on the outside of theplace did he realize what he had done. He feared that he had committeda fatal indiscretion, but when he asked, himself whether he wouldrecall it if he could, his heart said "No."
The afternoon was drawing to a close, and there was a sensible coolnessin the air. The natives who had remained standing round the front ofthe palace, when the explorers first went inside, had grown tired ofwaiting and, scattered in different directions. The Murhapa villagewore its usual appearance, so in contrast with what met the eyes of ourfriends when they first saw it.
The Professor and the New Englander were waiting near the door forAshman to join them. As he came out, the former shook his head, with alaugh, as an intimation that the young man in the ardor of his interesthad made a mistake.
Fred admitted that possibly he had forgotten himself, but added that itwas now too late to recall what had been done, and he was not sure thathe would do so, if the opportunity were given.
"At any rate," said he, "we are promised safe treatment for a couple ofdays, provided we don't stray off or misbehave ourselves. Our visitcan't amount to anything after all, since we must start for homewhenever King Haffgo gives his command."
"A good deal may take place in two days," said the Professorsignificantly.
"And a good deal _after_ five days," was the more significant remark ofJared Long.
It was evident from these declarations that Grimcke and Long had inmind the same thought; which came to Ashman himself, when the ruler ofthe Murhapas made known to his guests that they must take theirdeparture within such a brief period.
While no one of the three would have dared to signify dissent, yet theywere not the men to come so many hundred miles, forcing their waythrough endless dangers to turn about and retrace their steps at thecommand of a savage who looked upon himself as king, simply because hewas able to lord it over a horde of barbarians.
It was no place to discuss their plans, in front of the "palace,"especially as the natives were beginning to gather around them again,and among them it was certain was more than one who understood theEnglish tongue "as she is spoke."
They were waiting for the coming of Ziffak, who was still within. Hewas their chaperon, and without his guidance, they did not dare to movefrom the spot.
"Hark!" suddenly exclaimed the Professor, raising his hand as a signalfor the whispering to cease.
The sound of voices was heard inside. They recognized the tones ofZiffak, to which they had become accustomed since the previous night.Those of King Haffgo were also distinguishable, and there could be nodoubt to whom the low silvery accents heard only occasionally belonged.
The alarming feature of it all was, that the king was in anunmistakably angry mood. He not only talked fast but he talked loud,sure evidence of his excited feelings. It sounded as if Ziffak wasstriving to placate him, but his royal brother grew more savage eachmoment.
The words of all were uttered in the Murhapa tongue, so that thelisteners could form no idea of their meaning. Had they been able todo so, it is safe to say that they would have been in anything but acomfortable frame of mind.