CHAPTER IV
FRIENDSHIP AND TREACHERY
The Sari proved a most erratic craft. She might have done well enoughupon a park lagoon if safely anchored, but upon the bosom of a mightyocean she left much to be desired.
Sailing with the wind she did her best; but in quartering or whenclose-hauled she drifted terribly, as a nautical man might have guessedshe would. We couldn't keep within miles of our course, and ourprogress was pitifully slow.
Instead of making for the island of Anoroc, we bore far to the right,until it became evident that we should have to pass between the tworight-hand islands and attempt to return toward Anoroc from theopposite side.
As we neared the islands Perry was quite overcome by their beauty.When we were directly between two of them he fairly went into raptures;nor could I blame him.
The tropical luxuriance of the foliage that dripped almost to thewater's edge and the vivid colors of the blooms that shot the greenmade a most gorgeous spectacle.
Perry was right in the midst of a flowery panegyric on the wonders ofthe peaceful beauty of the scene when a canoe shot out from the nearestisland. There were a dozen warriors in it; it was quickly followed bya second and third.
Of course we couldn't know the intentions of the strangers, but wecould pretty well guess them.
Perry wanted to man the sweeps and try to get away from them, but Isoon convinced him that any speed of which the Sari was capable wouldbe far too slow to outdistance the swift, though awkward, dugouts ofthe Mezops.
I waited until they were quite close enough to hear me, and then Ihailed them. I told them that we were friends of the Mezops, and thatwe were upon a visit to Ja of Anoroc, to which they replied that theywere at war with Ja, and that if we would wait a minute they'd board usand throw our corpses to the azdyryths.
I warned them that they would get the worst of it if they didn't leaveus alone, but they only shouted in derision and paddled swiftly towardus. It was evident that they were considerably impressed by theappearance and dimensions of our craft, but as these fellows know nofear they were not at all awed.
Seeing that they were determined to give battle, I leaned over the railof the Sari and brought the imperial battle-squadron of the Emperor ofPellucidar into action for the first time in the history of a world.In other and simpler words, I fired my revolver at the nearest canoe.
The effect was magical. A warrior rose from his knees, threw hispaddle aloft, stiffened into rigidity for an instant, and then toppledoverboard.
The others ceased paddling, and, with wide eyes, looked first at me andthen at the battling sea-things which fought for the corpse of theircomrade. To them it must have seemed a miracle that I should be ableto stand at thrice the range of the most powerful javelin-thrower andwith a loud noise and a smudge of smoke slay one of their number withan invisible missile.
But only for an instant were they paralyzed with wonder. Then, withsavage shouts, they fell once more to their paddles and forged rapidlytoward us.
Again and again I fired. At each shot a warrior sank to the bottom ofthe canoe or tumbled overboard.
When the prow of the first craft touched the side of the Sari itcontained only dead and dying men. The other two dugouts wereapproaching rapidly, so I turned my attention toward them.
I think that they must have been commencing to have some doubts--thosewild, naked, red warriors--for when the first man fell in the secondboat, the others stopped paddling and commenced to jabber amongthemselves.
The third boat pulled up alongside the second and its crews joined inthe conference. Taking advantage of the lull in the battle, I calledout to the survivors to return to their shore.
"I have no fight with you," I cried, and then I told them who I was andadded that if they would live in peace they must sooner or later joinforces with me.
"Go back now to your people," I counseled them, "and tell them that youhave seen David I, Emperor of the Federated Kingdoms of Pellucidar, andthat single-handed he has overcome you, just as he intends overcomingthe Mahars and the Sagoths and any other peoples of Pellucidar whothreaten the peace and welfare of his empire."
Slowly they turned the noses of their canoes toward land. It wasevident that they were impressed; yet that they were loath to give upwithout further contesting my claim to naval supremacy was alsoapparent, for some of their number seemed to be exhorting the others toa renewal of the conflict.
However, at last they drew slowly away, and the Sari, which had notdecreased her snail-like speed during this, her first engagement,continued upon her slow, uneven way.
Presently Perry stuck his head up through the hatch and hailed me.
"Have the scoundrels departed?" he asked. "Have you killed them all?"
"Those whom I failed to kill have departed, Perry," I replied.
He came out on deck and, peering over the side, descried the lone canoefloating a short distance astern with its grim and grisly freight.Farther his eyes wandered to the retreating boats.
"David," said he at last, "this is a notable occasion. It is a greatday in the annals of Pellucidar. We have won a glorious victory.
"Your majesty's navy has routed a fleet of the enemy thrice its ownsize, manned by ten times as many men. Let us give thanks."
I could scarce restrain a smile at Perry's use of the pronoun "we," yetI was glad to share the rejoicing with him as I shall always be glad toshare everything with the dear old fellow.
Perry is the only male coward I have ever known whom I could respectand love. He was not created for fighting; but I think that if theoccasion should ever arise where it became necessary he would give hislife cheerfully for me--yes, I KNOW it.
It took us a long time to work around the islands and draw in close toAnoroc. In the leisure afforded we took turns working on our map, andby means of the compass and a little guesswork we set down theshoreline we had left and the three islands with fair accuracy.
Crossed sabers marked the spot where the first great naval engagementof a world had taken place. In a note-book we jotted down, as had beenour custom, details that would be of historical value later.
Opposite Anoroc we came to anchor quite close to shore. I knew from myprevious experience with the tortuous trails of the island that I couldnever find my way inland to the hidden tree-village of the Mezopchieftain, Ja; so we remained aboard the Sari, firing our expressrifles at intervals to attract the attention of the natives.
After some ten shots had been fired at considerable intervals a body ofcopper-colored warriors appeared upon the shore. They watched us for amoment and then I hailed them, asking the whereabouts of my old friendJa.
They did not reply at once, but stood with their heads together inserious and animated discussion. Continually they turned their eyestoward our strange craft. It was evident that they were greatlypuzzled by our appearance as well as unable to explain the source ofthe loud noises that had attracted their attention to us. At last oneof the warriors addressed us.
"Who are you who seek Ja?" he asked. "What would you of our chief?"
"We are friends," I replied. "I am David. Tell Ja that David, whoselife he once saved from a sithic, has come again to visit him.
"If you will send out a canoe we will come ashore. We cannot bring ourgreat warship closer in."
Again they talked for a considerable time. Then two of them entered acanoe that several dragged from its hiding-place in the jungle andpaddled swiftly toward us.
They were magnificent specimens of manhood. Perry had never seen amember of this red race close to before. In fact, the dead men in thecanoe we had left astern after the battle and the survivors who werepaddling rapidly toward their shore were the first he ever had seen.He had been greatly impressed by their physical beauty and the promiseof superior intelligence which their well-shaped skulls gave.
The two who now paddled out received us into their canoe with dignifiedcourtesy. To my inquiries relative to Ja they explained that he hadnot
been in the village when our signals were heard, but that runnershad been sent out after him and that doubtless he was already upon hisway to the coast.
One of the men remembered me from the occasion of my former visit tothe island; he was extremely agree-able the moment that he came closeenough to recognize me. He said that Ja would be delighted to welcomeme, and that all the tribe of Anoroc knew of me by repute, and hadreceived explicit instructions from their chieftain that if any ofthem should ever come upon me to show me every kindness and attention.
Upon shore we were received with equal honor. While we stoodconversing with our bronze friends a tall warrior leaped suddenly fromthe jungle.
It was Ja. As his eyes fell upon me his face lighted with pleasure.He came quickly forward to greet me after the manner of his tribe.
Toward Perry he was equally hospitable. The old man fell in love withthe savage giant as completely as had I. Ja conducted us along themaze-like trail to his strange village, where he gave over one of thetree-houses for our exclusive use.
Perry was much interested in the unique habitation, which resemblednothing so much as a huge wasp's nest built around the bole of a treewell above the ground.
After we had eaten and rested Ja came to see us with a number of hishead men. They listened attentively to my story, which included anarrative of the events leading to the formation of the federatedkingdoms, the battle with the Mahars, my journey to the outer world,and my return to Pellucidar and search for Sari and my mate.
Ja told me that the Mezops had heard something of the federation andhad been much interested in it. He had even gone so far as to send aparty of warriors toward Sari to investigate the reports, and toarrange for the entrance of Anoroc into the empire in case it appearedthat there was any truth in the rumors that one of the aims of thefederation was the overthrow of the Mahars.
The delegation had met with a party of Sagoths. As there had been atruce between the Mahars and the Mezops for many generations, theycamped with these warriors of the reptiles, from whom they learned thatthe federation had gone to pieces. So the party returned to Anoroc.
When I showed Ja our map and explained its purpose to him, he was muchinterested. The location of Anoroc, the Mountains of the Clouds, theriver, and the strip of seacoast were all familiar to him.
He quickly indicated the position of the inland sea and close besideit, the city of Phutra, where one of the powerful Mahar nations had itsseat. He likewise showed us where Sari should be and carried his owncoast-line as far north and south as it was known to him.
His additions to the map convinced us that Greenwich lay upon the vergeof this same sea, and that it might be reached by water more easilythan by the arduous crossing of the mountains or the dangerous approachthrough Phutra, which lay almost directly in line between Anoroc andGreenwich to the northwest.
If Sari lay upon the same water then the shore-line must bend far backtoward the southwest of Greenwich--an assumption which, by the way, wefound later to be true. Also, Sari was upon a lofty plateau at thesouthern end of a mighty gulf of the Great Ocean.
The location which Ja gave to distant Amoz puzzled us, for it placed itdue north of Greenwich, apparently in mid-ocean. As Ja had never beenso far and knew only of Amoz through hearsay, we thought that he mustbe mistaken; but he was not. Amoz lies directly north of Greenwichacross the mouth of the same gulf as that upon which Sari is.
The sense of direction and location of these primitive Pellucidariansis little short of uncanny, as I have had occasion to remark in thepast. You may take one of them to the uttermost ends of his world, toplaces of which he has never even heard, yet without sun or moon orstars to guide him, without map or compass, he will travel straight forhome in the shortest direction.
Mountains, rivers, and seas may have to be gone around, but never oncedoes his sense of direction fail him--the homing instinct is supreme.
In the same remarkable way they never forget the location of any placeto which they have ever been, and know that of many of which they haveonly heard from others who have visited them.
In short, each Pellucidarian is a walking geography of his own districtand of much of the country contiguous thereto. It always proved of thegreatest aid to Perry and me; nevertheless we were anxious to enlargeour map, for we at least were not endowed with the homing instinct.
After several long councils it was decided that, in order to expeditematters, Perry should return to the prospector with a strong party ofMezops and fetch the freight I had brought from the outer world. Jaand his warriors were much impressed by our firearms, and were alsoanxious to build boats with sails.
As we had arms at the prospector and also books on boat-building wethought that it might prove an excellent idea to start these naturallymaritime people upon the construction of a well built navy of staunchsailing-vessels. I was sure that with definite plans to go by Perrycould oversee the construction of an adequate flotilla.
I warned him, however, not to be too ambitious, and to forget aboutdreadnoughts and armored cruisers for a while and build instead a fewsmall sailing-boats that could be manned by four or five men.
I was to proceed to Sari, and while prosecuting my search for Dianattempt at the same time the rehabilitation of the federation. Perrywas going as far as possible by water, with the chances that the entiretrip might be made in that manner, which proved to be the fact.
With a couple of Mezops as companions I started for Sari. In order toavoid crossing the principal range of the Mountains of the Clouds wetook a route that passed a little way south of Phutra. We had eatenfour times and slept once, and were, as my companions told me, not farfrom the great Mahar city, when we were suddenly confronted by aconsiderable band of Sagoths.
They did not attack us, owing to the peace which exists between theMahars and the Mezops, but I could see that they looked upon me withconsiderable suspicion. My friends told them that I was a strangerfrom a remote country, and as we had previously planned against such acontingency I pretended ignorance of the language which the humanbeings of Pellucidar employ in conversing with the gorilla-likesoldiery of the Mahars.
I noticed, and not without misgivings, that the leader of the Sagothseyed me with an expression that betokened partial recognition. I wassure that he had seen me before during the period of my incarcerationin Phutra and that he was trying to recall my identity.
It worried me not a little. I was extremely thankful when we bade themadieu and continued upon our journey.
Several times during the next few marches I became acutely conscious ofthe sensation of being watched by unseen eyes, but I did not speak ofmy suspicions to my companions. Later I had reason to regret myreticence, for--
Well, this is how it happened:
We had killed an antelope and after eating our fill I had lain down tosleep. The Pellucidarians, who seem seldom if ever to require sleep,joined me in this instance, for we had had a very trying march alongthe northern foothills of the Mountains of the Clouds, and now withtheir bellies filled with meat they seemed ready for slumber.
When I awoke it was with a start to find a couple of huge Sagothsastride me. They pinioned my arms and legs, and later chained mywrists behind my back. Then they let me up.
I saw my companions; the brave fellows lay dead where they had slept,javelined to death without a chance at self-defense.
I was furious. I threatened the Sagoth leader with all sorts of direreprisals; but when he heard me speak the hybrid language that is themedium of communication between his kind and the human race of theinner world he only grinned, as much as to say, "I thought so!"
They had not taken my revolvers or ammunition away from me because theydid not know what they were; but my heavy rifle I had lost. Theysimply left it where it had lain beside me.
So low in the scale of intelligence are they, that they had notsufficient interest in this strange object even to fetch it along withthem.
I knew from the direction of our march tha
t they were taking me toPhutra. Once there I did not need much of an imagination to picturewhat my fate would be. It was the arena and a wild thag or fierce taragfor me--unless the Mahars elected to take me to the pits.
In that case my end would be no more certain, though infinitely morehorrible and painful, for in the pits I should be subjected to cruelvivisection. From what I had once seen of their methods in the pits ofPhutra I knew them to be the opposite of merciful, whereas in the arenaI should be quickly despatched by some savage beast.
Arrived at the underground city, I was taken immediately before a slimyMahar. When the creature had received the report of the Sagoth itscold eyes glistened with malice and hatred as they were turnedbalefully upon me.
I knew then that my identity had been guessed. With a show ofexcitement that I had never before seen evinced by a member of thedominant race of Pellucidar, the Mahar hustled me away, heavilyguarded, through the main avenue of the city to one of the principalbuildings.
Here we were ushered into a great hall where presently many Maharsgathered.
In utter silence they conversed, for they have no oral speech sincethey are without auditory nerves. Their method of communication Perryhas likened to the projection of a sixth sense into a fourth dimension,where it becomes cognizable to the sixth sense of their audience.
Be that as it may, however, it was evident that I was the subject ofdiscussion, and from the hateful looks bestowed upon me not aparticularly pleasant subject.
How long I waited for their decision I do not know, but it must havebeen a very long time. Finally one of the Sagoths addressed me. Hewas acting as interpreter for his masters.
"The Mahars will spare your life," he said, "and release you on onecondition."
"And what is that condition?" I asked, though I could guess its terms.
"That you return to them that which you stole from the pits of Phutrawhen you killed the four Mahars and escaped," he replied.
I had thought that that would be it. The great secret upon whichdepended the continuance of the Mahar race was safely hid where onlyDian and I knew.
I ventured to imagine that they would have given me much more than myliberty to have it safely in their keeping again; but after that--what?
Would they keep their promises?
I doubted it. With the secret of artificial propagation once more intheir hands their numbers would soon be made so to overrun the world ofPellucidar that there could be no hope for the eventual supremacy ofthe human race, the cause for which I so devoutly hoped, for which Ihad consecrated my life, and for which I was not willing to give mylife.
Yes! In that moment as I stood before the heartless tribunal I feltthat my life would be a very little thing to give could it save to thehuman race of Pellucidar the chance to come into its own by insuringthe eventual extinction of the hated, powerful Mahars.
"Come!" exclaimed the Sagoths. "The mighty Mahars await your reply."
"You may say to them," I answered, "that I shall not tell them wherethe great secret is hid."
When this had been translated to them there was a great beating ofreptilian wings, gaping of sharp-fanged jaws, and hideous hissing. Ithought that they were about to fall upon me on the spot, and so I laidmy hands upon my revolvers; but at length they became more quiet andpresently transmitted some command to my Sagoth guard, the chief ofwhich laid a heavy hand upon my arm and pushed me roughly before himfrom the audience-chamber.
They took me to the pits, where I lay carefully guarded. I was surethat I was to be taken to the vivisection laboratory, and it requiredall my courage to fortify myself against the terrors of so fearful adeath. In Pellucidar, where there is no time, death-agonies may endurefor eternities.
Accordingly, I had to steel myself against an endless doom, which nowstared me in the face!