Fifteen Hundred Miles An Hour

Towards night the temperature became much lower, and we were able to get along a little faster; but every mile that we went we found our burdens becoming heavier. Yet we struggled on; nor did we seek a camping-place until we reached the lower slopes of the mountains. Still all was desolation; closer scrutiny only confirmed the opinions formed by a more distant view, for the hills were as sterile and barren as the plain we had crossed.

"Never mind, my friends," said the Doctor, "we have crossed the worst part. Here, amid the mountains, we are sure of more shade, and shall most probably find water, if not on these slopes, surely on the other side."

"Well, Doctor, if we don't find water soon, it will be all over with us," remarked Temple. "I myself don't feel equal to another day like this has been."

"None of us know the compass of our strength, or what we can do, until spurred on by the goads of necessity, Temple," the Doctor answered.

We selected a sheltered nook among the rocks, each smoothing the sand into the semblance of a couch, and there we used the remainder of the water to make our essence, and then stretching our stiff and weary limbs, soon fell asleep.

Not one of us awoke again until the next day was far advanced. The sun was four hours high towards the zenith ere we roused from our slumber. The long sleep had done us good; our heads were easier; our thirst not so intense. We drank the remainder of our wine and water, ate a few biscuits, and then prepared for our onward march. The rocky pass between two rugged mountains lay straight before us, and in single file we went our way. At first the precipitous sides of the mountains nearly met overhead, and the path was little more than a gloomy fissure; but this soon widened out as we ascended, and we eventually found ourselves in a broad valley, with an uninterrupted view for miles.

Our great exertions in walking over the rock-strewn ground soon began to create acute thirst. We had no fluid now of any kind, and only a dozen lozenges were left. These we shared, three to each; and very soon the cravings for moisture triumphed and they were gone. We had nothing whatever now to assuage thirst! We must find water, or die!

Times without number we consulted together as to the propriety of throwing away our arms and ammunition; but still we continued to carry them, first in one hand, then in the other. Then one or the other of us said he could go no farther, and begged the rest to leave him to die in peace. But we cheered and rallied him whose hopes of deliverance were ebbing, as best we could, and still toiled on. Upwards! onwards! filled with all the torments of a raging thirst, we toiled, our feet heavy as though shod with lead; but still no sign of life – the same desolate wilderness, the same hot sun, the same bare rocks and stony way, continuing on and on apparently to eternity! All that livelong day we struggled on beneath a scorching sun. Towards evening we were startled by a shout from Sandy:

"The water! Doctor, the shining water! See, there! There! below ye on the left."

We looked where Sandy pointed, and there – could we trust our eyes? or was it but the fancy of a scorched and sun-disordered brain? – there, about a mile away, was a beautiful pool below the hillside, its shimmering waters glistening like silver in the setting sun! We literally danced for joy, and, nerved to new strength by the sight of the welcome waters, we ran helter-skelter over the rocks and stones towards them. When two hundred yards away we threw down our rifles, and slipped out of the straps that held our burdens, and each raced as for his life to be the first to revel in the feast!

Graham, being by far the strongest, reached the brink first; but instead of kneeling down to quench his thirst, he threw himself to the ground with a piteous groan of despair, saying:

"We are lost! my comrades; we are lost! Unless we can cool our burning tongues with mercury!"

Alas! Graham's words were only too true, for the lake, which must have covered some hundreds of acres of ground, was one thick, fluid mass of quicksilver! We sat down by this costly, yet horrid pool, too overcome with bitter disappointment, and with the exertion of hastening thither, to speak; and not one of us stirred until the sun had set and night approached.

"Doctor," exclaimed Temple at last, in a weak and weary voice, "we can go no further; we had best remain here and die."

But Doctor Hermann made no answer. He was gazing into the lake at our feet in a half-conscious manner, muttering incoherently to himself about "majestic phenomenon" and "wonderful sight," and then he sank back unconscious! The scene now became intensely horrible. Temple sat with pale hollow cheeks, and sunken eyes, his chin resting upon his knees; Sandy was struggling with Graham to reach the lake, swearing he would have water if he killed him in reaching it. But poor Sandy was weak as a child, and Graham in very kindness hurled him to the ground, where he lay like one dead. The only man with any control over himself, or with any strength, was Graham, and he stood amongst his fallen companions, gaunt and haggard, with tears of sympathy for them trickling down his wan, wasted cheeks, and white face turned upwards to the sky.

"Oh, God!" he cried, in words that rattled hoarsely in his parched and burning throat – "Oh, God! give us water, or be merciful and let us quickly die. Oh, Echri!" he panted, "servant of God, if your power admits, hear the voice of him who wears your sacred ring, crying for help in the wilderness, and send him succour. Help! – me – and them – oh, God! – Echri – ring – Volinè;" but the last words became but rattling, meaningless sounds, and he too was overcome with faintness and thirst, and sank down among the rest to die!

A few minutes later, Temple alone remained conscious; but he felt too weak to move, and he sat there in his agony, watching the bright merciless stars come forth one by one, and the distant yellow ball of Earth rise steadily above the mountains, until a drowsiness overcame him, and he mercifully fell into a troubled sleep.

How long he slumbered we shall never know, but he woke trembling with cold, roused from his sleep by the chilly blast that was howling and shrieking round him. The heavens were of an inky blackness, save at irregular intervals, when the blue lightning lit up the banks of cloud for a fleeting moment. The cold wind, evidently charged with moisture, had brought new life upon its wings for Temple, and he felt refreshed. He was still too weak to move, and sat shivering in astonished silence, viewing the progress of the storm. Peal after peal of thunder shook the ground beneath him: flash after flash of lightning glanced along the lake of mercury, and illumined its smooth waveless surface like a mirror. Then a few big heavy drops of rain spattered on the rocks, one of them striking him full on his forehead. A minute or so later, preceded by a warning roar, the tempest broke in all its fury. The rain beat down on the parched ground, wetting him and his companions to the skin, collecting into pools, and flowing in tiny rills and torrents between the rocks, and forming channels across the firmer beds of sand.

The water revived Temple like doses of some magic elixir, and he crawled to the nearest pool and drank his fill of this sweet, refreshing nectar from the sky! Then amidst the tempest strife, and by the lightning's light, he dragged his cold and aching body towards his fallen comrades, his cap full of water, and beginning with Graham, who was lying face downwards, he gently parted his dry cracked lips asunder, and poured a few drops between his teeth. The effect was instantaneous, and he showed signs of returning consciousness; by bathing his forehead, he was soon able to speak.

"Thank you, Mr. Temple," he faintly murmured, "I shall be better now. Whoever expected rain in such a region! But leave me, and lend the poor Doctor some assistance. I am afraid he is in a bad way."

The rain had served Sandy, too, in a remarkable way, and we heard him groping in the darkness, and drinking from his hands, which he filled from one of the numerous pools around us. In half an hour all of us could stand except the Doctor; he was alive, but unable to move or speak. Then the storm ceased, the sky cleared, and a yellow light over the east heralded the sun. Daylight revealed the heaviness of the storm. We were surrounded by pools of sparkling rain-water, resting in the crevices of the rocks, and the mountain sides were furrowed with crystal streams, whose volume was fast becoming less as the sands absorbed them. Sandy, by Graham's direction, crawled off to search for the water-cask and the packs we had thrown away the previous evening. The cask we broke up, and with the wood we made a small fire. By careful management we contrived to heat sufficient water to make half-a-gallon of the meat essence, and a cup of this soon put new life into the Doctor. Poor Rover was almost dead, and lay helpless where he had crouched down by Sandy's side, hours before, and it took all his master's care to bring him round.

By the time we had drunk our soup the sun had risen, and his generous rays – the rays we were but so ready to curse yesterday – soon dried our dripping garments, and warmed our bodies back to more vigorous life. We also dried and oiled our firearms, and packed our knapsacks afresh. But we were all too weak and exhausted to march, and we decided to stay and rest ourselves for a few hours. We had food and water in abundance, and if we could only find some fuel we should want little more. We left the side of the lake, and took up our quarters under the lee of a huge mass of rock, and here we stayed until noon.

Although feeling weak, we were then determined to try and push on once more. Could we only get out of these desert regions, and enter a more fertile country, all might yet be well. Then we could rest to our heart's desire, and recruit our wasted strength. Feebly we started, tottering under our loads, but thankful to God that our lives had been spared once more, and that the pangs of a burning thirst were gone. Truly all things seemed working in our favour; for had the rain fallen twelve hours later, not one of us would have survived, and our bones would now be bleaching in the sun on that desert waste!

The ground became more even as we crawled along, and by creeping steadily forward we covered nearly twenty miles before sunset. Then the country began to improve, and the distant hills appeared covered with forests to the snow-line. Grasses and weeds peeped here and there among the stones, and a mile further on we saw a few stunted bushes, something like a clump of gorse, on the hillside. Eagerly, and with new-born strength, we now pushed on, striving every nerve to reach some sort of cover before darkness made us halt for the night.

We were not disappointed, and before the short twilight had faded, we found ourselves on the borders of a dense scrub, studded here and there with small trees. Here we camped close to a pool of rain-water, and made a glorious fire of dead branches, with which we cooked our evening meal. Then, stretching our weary limbs on beds of leaves, we rested for the night in comparative comfort and luxury.

We were up early. Thanks to splendid constitutions, the effects of our sufferings in the desert were passing rapidly away, although our pale and haggard faces continued to reflect our recent hardships for many days. The easiest route still led upwards, and after two hours' walking through a region rich with mineral wealth, we came to the borders of a forest on the crest of the hill, and looked down upon a wide and fruitful plain, covered with woods and fields and clusters of trees. Three miles below us was a large city – evidently a great manufacturing centre, for there were furnaces and tall chimney-shafts belching smoke and flame, and we could even hear the distant hum and roar of busy industry! The change from desert, barren wilderness, to fat and fruitful land was startlingly sudden, and for many moments we stood on the crest of the hill, looking at the scene below us in silent amazement! Whilst we were discussing the appearance of this smoke-beleaguered city, and wondering to ourselves what industries its people were engaged in, we were alarmed by cries of terror from a thicket a little way to the left, and almost directly afterwards a man rushed out towards us, pursued by a strange-looking beast, something like a wild boar, only with long-twisted horns growing from its forehead.

Comprehending in a moment the peril the poor fellow was in, Graham without more ado pointed his rifle at the beast and fired, cleverly bringing it down dead. The hunter seemed paralysed with terror at the report of the rifle and its effects, and stood looking at us in amazement.

"We are friends," said the Doctor, with hands held out towards him. "Come without fear and give us greeting. You are safe."

Hearing his own language spoken, the man advanced, saying as he did so:

"Strangers, my heart is full of gratitude for the service ye have rendered. Command me to your bidding, and I obey. I am from Pamax, yonder. My name is Kios – and yours?"

"We are strangers to your country and your world; we come from the star which you call Ramos, which we call Earth; and we come as brothers, in friendship and in peace," answered the Doctor in an assuring voice.

"Are ye, then, the men of Ramos, with whose evil fame all Gathma rings? The men of Ramos who escaped death at the crag Remagaloth? Are ye the slayers of Osa? If so be ye are, I know your story as well as any man in Edos, for we listened to each word of your trial and sentence here in Pamax."

"The same are we; but what know you of our captivity there? Have you any tidings from Edos?" queried Graham, who ill-concealed his impatience to hear any possible news of his beloved.

"Men of Ramos, I can tell ye much; but ye look faint and weary. Follow me, and rest your tired limbs, and I will tell ye all I know."

So saying, the good-natured hunter (for such we judged him to be) turned and beckoned us to follow him, throwing the huge dead beast across his mighty shoulders as he went. He led the way to a camp far in the thicket, where a wood fire was roasting some animal before a cosy tent.

"Enter, men of Ramos; enter, and share a poor man's hospitality."

Gladly we did so, and after taking off our knapsacks, we seated ourselves on some soft skins and listened to his story.

"First, I would ask ye how ye came hither. Edos is many days' journey hence for they who needs must travel by stealth or on foot; Remagaloth is yet further. I heard that ye escaped into the sky in a carriage of cunning workmanship. Came ye hence in that?"

"You speak quite truly, Kios," said Graham; "we escaped in the carriage that bore us from Earth to Gathma; but it conveyed us to a desert region which for days we had to cross on foot, nearly perishing of heat and thirst on the way."

"The barren ground of which ye speak is the desert Chados, and I marvel much to learn that ye have crossed it and yet do live! Ye are now in the woods called Theloth, the sole right and privilege of hunting therein being conferred on me by the King. I supply the palace at Edos with wild meat and herbs, and I came from the city but yesterday."

"Then the distance cannot, surely, be so far," exclaimed Temple.

"We travel quickly in Gathma," Kios answered, "and I know full well ye could not have come by the same means as I – "

"So you left Edos so recently? Then do you know aught of – ?" said Graham in eagerness.

But Kios, with upraised finger, said, "Interrupt me not. I will tell ye all I know, but I must speak in mine own way.

"The news of your miraculous escape from death," continued Kios, "is on every tongue, both in Edos and throughout civilised Gathma; and, moreover, it is said that Echri with his wondrous arts did save ye, for one of ye did wear a sacred ring of his upon your finger. Ah! that is the same – all men of Edos know it well," said Kios, as Graham held out his hand on which the curious talisman glittered. "The King and his ministers are wrath enough; but there are those who say his royal anger is not so bitter as it seemeth, and that Volinè, his daughter, hath softened his heart toward ye. Yet, in this, I only repeat the gossip of the streets of Edos, and know not its truth. A prince, by name Perodii, fans the King's smouldering wrath by taunts, and what, methinks, are probably falsehoods concerning ye. No man in all Edos, save the King, is so powerful as he, nor is there a bigger blackguard within its walls. Be warned against him, for his soul is full of evil, and he seeks your ruin. At his instigation, troops are searching the country through to find ye; and if ye be taken captive once more, no mercy will be shown ye if Perodii can prevent it. I hate this Perodii with a deadly bitter hatred, for he ruined my only child! Curse him!"

"Know you aught of Volinè, the King's daughter; or of Kaosp, a worthy commander of the troops in Edos?" asked Graham anxiously.

"Of Volinè I have no tidings; of Kaosp I know nought but ill. He lies in prison, thrown there, some say, for treason to the King; yet others have it that Perodii's lying tongue hath forged his fetters."

"We are exceedingly grateful for the news you have told us," said the Doctor warmly, "and your tidings will prove a great service to us. But we would ask you for further information about the city below us – Pamax, I think you call it. Is it safe for us to venture therein?"

"No; ye go there at peril of your liberty and lives. Know ye not that Pamax doth great trade with Edos; the King's troops are even there now in quest of ye. Pamax is a city of rough working-people, where dirt and squalour are as plentiful as gold and splendour in Edos. The people that dwell in Pamax are cunning workers in metals; the hills around us are honeycombed with their mines. Electric ways radiate from this city in all directions, to convey its merchandise to every part of Gathma. It is a wondrous city, and its men are clever artificers; yet they are low of mind, and would, in their stupid ignorance, hand ye over to the guards at once. But four days' journey hence is the bright and noble city of Helmath, full of scientific and highly-cultured people, a great centre of knowledge, and a lofty seat of learning. Thither bend your steps; for those therein may welcome ye and plead your cause with the King. Tarry with me here for a day or so, as my guests. Revive your wasted strength, and rest your wearied bodies with me. I promise ye safety in the woods of Theloth, and will send ye on your way to Helmath with light and hopeful hearts."

We consulted together for a moment, and then unanimously decided to accept the kind invitation Kios had so generously offered us. We needed rest, we sought safety; and here we could obtain both, for a few days at least. We had already unbounded confidence in this open-hearted hunter, and felt that our safety was doubly assured through his bitter hatred of Perodii.