After dinner I rolled a cigaret
and stretched myself at ease
upon a pile of furs before the
doorway, with Ajor's head pillowed
in my lap and a feeling of great
content pervading me. It was
the first time since my plane
had topped the barrier- cliffs
of Caspak that I had felt any
sense of peace or security. My
hand wandered to the velvet cheek
of the girl I had claimed as
mine, and to her luxuriant hair
and the golden fillet which bound
it close to her shapely head.
Her slender fingers groping upward
sought mine and drew them to
her lips, and then I gathered
her in my arms and crushed her
to me, smothering her mouth with
a long, long kiss. It was the
first time that passion had tinged
my intercourse with Ajor. We
were alone, and the hut was ours
until morning.
But now from beyond the palisade
in the direction of the main
gate came the hallooing of men
and the answering calls and queries
of the guard. We listened. Returning
hunters, no doubt. We heard them
enter the village amidst the
barking dogs. I have forgotten
to mention the dogs of Kro-lu.
The village swarmed with them,
gaunt, wolflike creatures that
guarded the herd by day when
it grazed without the palisade,
ten dogs to a cow. By night the
cows were herded in an outer
inclosure roofed against the
onslaughts of the carnivorous
cats; and the dogs, with the
exception of a few, were brought
into the village; these few well-tested
brutes remained with the herd.
During the day they fed plentifully
upon the beasts of prey which
they killed in protection of
the herd, so that their keep
amounted to nothing at all.
Shortly after the commotion
at the gate had subsided, Ajor
and I arose to enter the hut,
and at the same time a warrior
appeared from one of the twisted
alleys which, lying between the
irregularly placed huts and groups
of huts, form the streets of
the Kro-lu village. The fellow
halted before us and addressed
me, saying that Al-tan desired
my presence at his hut. The wording
of the invitation and the manner
of the messenger threw me entirely
off my guard, so cordial was
the one and respectful the other,
and the result was that I went
willingly, telling Ajor that
I would return presently. I had
laid my arms and ammunition aside
as soon as we had taken over
the hut, and I left them with
Ajor now, as I had noticed that
aside from their hunting-knives
the men of Kro-lu bore no weapons
about the village streets. There
was an atmosphere of peace and
security within that village
that I had not hoped to experience
within Caspak, and after what
I had passed through, it must
have cast a numbing spell over
my faculties of judgment and
reason. I had eaten of the lotus-flower
of safety; dangers no longer
threatened for they had ceased
to be.
The messenger led me through
the labyrinthine alleys to an
open plaza near the center of
the village. At one end of this
plaza was a long hut, much the
largest that I had yet seen,
before the door of which were
many warriors. I could see that
the interior was lighted and
that a great number of men were
gathered within. The dogs about
the plaza were as thick as fleas,
and those I approached closely
evinced a strong desire to devour
me, their noses evidently apprising
them of the fact that I was of
an alien race, since they paid
no attention whatever to my companion.
Once inside the council-hut,
for such it appeared to be, I
found a large concourse of warriors
seated, or rather squatted, around
the floor. At one end of the
oval space which the warriors
left down the center of the room
stood Al-tan and another warrior
whom I immediately recognized
as a Galu, and then I saw that
there were many Galus present.
About the walls were a number
of flaming torches stuck in holes
in a clay plaster which evidently
served the purpose of preventing
the inflammable wood and grasses
of which the hut was composed
from being ignited by the flames.
Lying about among the warriors
or wandering restlessly to and
fro were a number of savage dogs.
The warriors eyed me curiously
as I entered, especially the
Galus, and then I was conducted
into the center of the group
and led forward toward Al-tan.
As I advanced I felt one of the
dogs sniffing at my heels, and
of a sudden a great brute leaped
upon my back. As I turned to
thrust it aside before its fangs
found a hold upon me, I beheld
a huge Airedale leaping frantically
about me. The grinning jaws,
the half-closed eyes, the back-laid
ears spoke to me louder than
might the words of man that here
was no savage enemy but a joyous
friend, and then I recognized
him, and fell to one knee and
put my arms about his neck while
he whined and cried with joy.
It was Nobs, dear old Nobs. Bowen
Tyler's Nobs, who had loved me
next to his master.
"Where is the master of this
dog?" I asked, turning toward
Al-tan.
The chieftain
inclined his head toward the
Galu standing
at his side. "He belongs to Du-seen
the Galu," he replied.
"He belongs to Bowen J. Tyler,
Jr., of Santa Monica," I retorted, "and
I want to know where his master
is."
The Galu shrugged. "The dog
is mine," he said. "He came to
me cor-sva-jo, and he is unlike
any dog in Caspak, being kind
and docile and yet a killer when
aroused. I would not part with
him. I do not know the man of
whom you speak."
So this was
Du-seen! This was the man from
whom Ajor had fled.
I wondered if he knew that she
was here. I wondered if they
had sent for me because of her;
but after they had commenced
to question me, my mind was relieved;
they did not mention Ajor. Their
interest seemed centered upon
the strange world from which
I had come, my journey to Caspak
and my intentions now that I
had arrived. I answered them
frankly as I had nothing to conceal
and assured them that my only
wish was to find my friends and
return to my own country. In
the Galu Du-seen and his warriors
I saw something of the explanation
of the term "golden race" which
is applied to them, for their
ornaments and weapons were either
wholly of beaten gold or heavily
decorated with the precious metal.
They were a very imposing set
of men--tall and straight and
handsome. About their heads were
bands of gold like that which
Ajor wore, and from their left
shoulders depended the leopard-tails
of the Galus. In addition to
the deer-skin tunic which constituted
the major portion of their apparel,
each carried a light blanket
of barbaric yet beautiful design--the
first evidence of weaving I had
seen in Caspak. Ajor had had
no blanket, having lost it during
her flight from the attentions
of Du-seen; nor was she so heavily
incrusted with gold as these
male members of her tribe.
The audience
must have lasted fully an hour
when Al-tan signified
that I might return to my hut.
All the time Nobs had lain quietly
at my feet; but the instant that
I turned to leave, he was up
and after me. Duseen called to
him; but the terrier never even
so much as looked in his direction.
I had almost reached the doorway
leading from the council-hall
when Al-tan rose and called after
me. "Stop!" he shouted. "Stop,
stranger! The beast of Du-seen
the Galu follows you."
"The dog is not Du-seen's," I
replied. "He belongs to my friend,
as I told you, and he prefers
to stay with me until his master
is found." And I turned again
to resume my way. I had taken
but a few steps when I heard
a commotion behind me, and at
the same moment a man leaned
close and whispered "Kazar!" close
to my ear--kazar, the Caspakian
equivalent of beware. It was
To-mar. As he spoke, he turned
quickly away as though loath
to have others see that he knew
me, and at the same instant I
wheeled to discover Du-seen striding
rapidly after me. Al-tan followed
him, and it was evident that
both were angry.
Du-seen, a
weapon half drawn, approached
truculently. "The
beast is mine," he reiterated. "Would
you steal him?"
"He is not yours nor mine," I
replied, "and I am not stealing
him. If he wishes to follow you,
he may; I will not interfere;
but if he wishes to follow me,
he shall; nor shall you prevent." I
turned to Al-tan. "Is not that
fair?" I demanded. "Let the dog
choose his master."
Du-seen, without waiting for
Al-tan's reply, reached for Nobs
and grasped him by the scruff
of the neck. I did not interfere,
for I guessed what would happen;
and it did. With a savage growl
Nobs turned like lightning upon
the Galu, wrenched loose from
his hold and leaped for his throat.
The man stepped back and warded
off the first attack with a heavy
blow of his fist, immediately
drawing his knife with which
to meet the Airedale's return.
And Nobs would have returned,
all right, had not I spoken to
him. In a low voice I called
him to heel. For just an instant
he hesitated, standing there
trembling and with bared fangs,
glaring at his foe; but he was
well trained and had been out
with me quite as much as he had
with Bowen--in fact, I had had
most to do with his early training;
then he walked slowly and very
stiff-legged to his place behind
me.
Du-seen, red with rage, would
have had it out with the two
of us had not Al-tan drawn him
to one side and whispered in
his ear--upon which, with a grunt,
the Galu walked straight back
to the opposite end of the hall,
while Nobs and I continued upon
our way toward the hut and Ajor.
As we passed out into the village
plaza, I saw Chal-az--we were
so close to one another that
I could have reached out and
touched him--and our eyes met;
but though I greeted him pleasantly
and paused to speak to him, he
brushed past me without a sign
of recognition. I was puzzled
at his behavior, and then I recalled
that To-mar, though he had warned
me, had appeared not to wish
to seem friendly with me. I could
not understand their attitude,
and was trying to puzzle out
some sort of explanation, when
the matter was suddenly driven
from my mind by the report of
a firearm. Instantly I broke
into a run, my brain in a whirl
of forebodings, for the only
firearms in the Kro-lu country
were those I had left in the
hut with Ajor.
That she was in danger I could
not but fear, as she was now
something of an adept in the
handling of both the pistol and
rifle, a fact which largely eliminated
the chance that the shot had
come from an accidentally discharged
firearm. When I left the hut,
I had felt that she and I were
safe among friends; no thought
of danger was in my mind; but
since my audience with Al-tan,
the presence and bearing of Duseen
and the strange attitude of both
To-mar and Chal-az had each contributed
toward arousing my suspicions,
and now I ran along the narrow,
winding alleys of the Kro-lu
village with my heart fairly
in my mouth.
I am endowed with an excellent
sense of direction, which has
been greatly perfected by the
years I have spent in the mountains
and upon the plains and deserts
of my native state, so that it
was with little or no difficulty
that I found my way back to the
hut in which I had left Ajor.
As I entered the doorway, I called
her name aloud. There was no
response. I drew a box of matches
from my pocket and struck a light
and as the flame flared up, a
half-dozen brawny warriors leaped
upon me from as many directions;
but even in the brief instant
that the flare lasted, I saw
that Ajor was not within the
hut, and that my arms and ammunition
had been removed.
As the six men leaped upon
me, an angry growl burst from
behind them. I had forgotten
Nobs. Like a demon of hate he
sprang among those Kro-lu fighting-men,
tearing, rending, ripping with
his long tusks and his mighty
jaws. They had me down in an
instant, and it goes without
saying that the six of them could
have kept me there had it not
been for Nobs; but while I was
struggling to throw them off,
Nobs was springing first upon
one and then upon another of
them until they were so put to
it to preserve their hides and
their lives from him that they
could give me only a small part
of their attention. One of them
was assiduously attempting to
strike me on the head with his
stone hatchet; but I caught his
arm and at the same time turned
over upon my belly, after which
it took but an instant to get
my feet under me and rise suddenly.
As I did so, I kept a grip
upon the man's arm, carrying
it over one shoulder. Then I
leaned suddenly forward and hurled
my antagonist over my head to
a hasty fall at the opposite
side of the hut. In the dim light
of the interior I saw that Nobs
had already accounted for one
of the others--one who lay very
quiet upon the floor--while the
four remaining upon their feet
were striking at him with knives
and hatchets.
Running to one side of the
man I had just put out of the
fighting, I seized his hatchet
and knife, and in another moment
was in the thick of the argument.
I was no match for these savage
warriors with their own weapons
and would soon have gone down
to ignominious defeat and death
had it not been for Nobs, who
alone was a match for the four
of them. I never saw any creature
so quick upon its feet as was
that great Airedale, nor such
frightful ferocity as he manifested
in his attacks. It was as much
the latter as the former which
contributed to the undoing of
our enemies, who, accustomed
though they were to the ferocity
of terrible creatures, seemed
awed by the sight of this strange
beast from another world battling
at the side of his equally strange
master. Yet they were no cowards,
and only by teamwork did Nobs
and I overcome them at last.
We would rush for a man, simultaneously,
and as Nobs leaped for him upon
one side, I would strike at his
head with the stone hatchet from
the other.
As the last man went down,
I heard the running of many feet
approaching us from the direction
of the plaza. To be captured
now would mean death; yet I could
not attempt to leave the village
without first ascertaining the
whereabouts of Ajor and releasing
her if she were held a captive.
That I could escape the village
I was not at all sure; but of
one thing I was positive; that
it would do neither Ajor nor
myself any service to remain
where I was and be captured;
so with Nobs, bloody but happy,
following at heel, I turned down
the first alley and slunk away
in the direction of the northern
end of the village.
Friendless and alone, hunted
through the dark labyrinths of
this savage community, I seldom
have felt more helpless than
at that moment; yet far transcending
any fear which I may have felt
for my own safety was my concern
for that of Ajor. What fate had
befallen her? Where was she,
and in whose power? That I should
live to learn the answers to
these queries I doubted; but
that I should face death gladly
in the attempt--of that I was
certain. And why? With all my
concern for the welfare of my
friends who had accompanied me
to Caprona, and of my best friend
of all, Bowen J. Tyler, Jr.,
I never yet had experienced the
almost paralyzing fear for the
safety of any other creature
which now threw me alternately
into a fever of despair and into
a cold sweat of apprehension
as my mind dwelt upon the fate
on one bit of half-savage femininity
of whose very existence even
I had not dreamed a few short
weeks before.
What was this hold she had
upon me? Was I bewitched, that
my mind refused to function sanely,
and that judgment and reason
were dethroned by some mad sentiment
which I steadfastly refused to
believe was love? I had never
been in love. I was not in love
now--the very thought was preposterous.
How could I, Thomas Billings,
the right-hand man of the late
Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., one of America's
foremost captains of industry
and the greatest man in California,
be in love with a--a--the word
stuck in my throat; yet by my
own American standards Ajor could
be nothing else; at home, for
all her beauty, for all her delicately
tinted skin, little Ajor by her
apparel, by the habits and customs
and manners of her people, by
her life, would have been classed
a squaw. Tom Billings in love
with a squaw! I shuddered at
the thought.
And then there came to my mind,
in a sudden, brilliant flash
upon the screen of recollection
the picture of Ajor as I had
last seen her, and I lived again
the delicious moment in which
we had clung to one another,
lips smothering lips, as I left
her to go to the council hall
of Al-tan; and I could have kicked
myself for the snob and the cad
that my thoughts had proven me--me,
who had always prided myself
that I was neither the one nor
the other!
These things ran through my
mind as Nobs and I made our way
through the dark village, the
voices and footsteps of those
who sought us still in our ears.
These and many other things,
nor could I escape the incontrovertible
fact that the little figure round
which my recollections and my
hopes entwined themselves was
that of Ajor--beloved barbarian!
My reveries were broken in upon
by a hoarse whisper from the
black interior of a hut past
which we were making our way.
My name was called in a low voice,
and a man stepped out beside
me as I halted with raised knife.
It was Chal-az.
"Quick!" he warned. "In
here! It is my hut, and they
will not
search it."
I hesitated,
recalled his attitude of a
few minutes before; and
as though he had read my thoughts,
he said quickly: "I could not
speak to you in the plaza without
danger of arousing suspicions
which would prevent me aiding
you later, for word had gone
out that Al-tan had turned against
you and would destroy you--this
was after Du-seen the Galu arrived."
I followed him into the hut,
and with Nobs at our heels we
passed through several chambers
into a remote and windowless
apartment where a small lamp
sputtered in its unequal battle
with the inky darkness. A hole
in the roof permitted the smoke
from burning oil egress; yet
the atmosphere was far from lucid.
Here Chal-az motioned me to a
seat upon a furry hide spread
upon the earthen floor.
"I am your friend," he said. "You
saved my life; and I am no ingrate
as is the batu Al-tan. I will
serve you, and there are others
here who will serve you against
Al-tan and this renegade Galu,
Du-seen."
"But where is Ajor?" I
asked, for I cared little for
my own
safety while she was in danger.
"Ajor is safe, too," he answered. "We
learned the designs of Al-tan
and Du-seen. The latter, learning
that Ajor was here, demanded
her; and Al-tan promised that
he should have her; but when
the warriors went to get her
To-mar went with them. Ajor tried
to defend herself. She killed
one of the warriors, and then
To-mar picked her up in his arms
when the others had taken her
weapons from her. He told the
others to look after the wounded
man, who was really already dead,
and to seize you upon your return,
and that he, To-mar, would bear
Ajor to Al-tan; but instead of
bearing her to Al-tan, he took
her to his own hut, where she
now is with So-al, To-mar's she.
It all happened very quickly.
To-mar and I were in the council-hut
when Du-seen attempted to take
the dog from you. I was seeking
To-mar for this work. He ran
out immediately and accompanied
the warriors to your hut while
I remained to watch what went
on within the council-hut and
to aid you if you needed aid.
What has happened since you know."
I thanked him for his loyalty
and then asked him to take me
to Ajor; but he said that it
could not be done, as the village
streets were filled with searchers.
In fact, we could hear them passing
to and fro among the huts, making
inquiries, and at last Chal-az
thought it best to go to the
doorway of his dwelling, which
consisted of many huts joined
together, lest they enter and
search.
Chal-az was absent for a long
time--several hours which seemed
an eternity to me. All sounds
of pursuit had long since ceased,
and I was becoming uneasy because
of his protracted absence when
I heard him returning through
the other apartments of his dwelling.
He was perturbed when he entered
that in which I awaited him,
and I saw a worried expression
upon his face.
"What is wrong?" I asked. "Have
they found Ajor?"
"No," he replied; "but
Ajor has gone. She learned
that you
had escaped them and was told
that you had left the village,
believing that she had escaped
too. So-al could not detain her.
She made her way out over the
top of the palisade, armed with
only her knife."
"Then I must go," I
said, rising. Nobs rose and
shook himself.
He had been dead asleep when
I spoke.
"Yes," agreed Chal-az, "you
must go at once. It is almost
dawn. Du-seen leaves at daylight
to search for her." He leaned
close to my ear and whispered: "There
are many to follow and help you.
Al-tan has agreed to aid Du-seen
against the Galus of Jor; but
there are many of us who have
combined to rise against Al-tan
and prevent this ruthless desecration
of the laws and customs of the
Kro-lu and of Caspak. We will
rise as Luata has ordained that
we shall rise, and only thus.
No batu may win to the estate
of a Galu by treachery and force
of arms while Chal-az lives and
may wield a heavy blow and a
sharp spear with true Kro-lus
at his back!"
"I hope that I may live to
aid you," I replied. "If I had
my weapons and my ammunition,
I could do much. Do you know
where they are?" "No," he said, "they
have disappeared." And then: "Wait!
You cannot go forth half armed,
and garbed as you are. You are
going into the Galu country,
and you must go as a Galu. Come!" And
without waiting for a reply,
he led me into another apartment,
or to be more explicit, another
of the several huts which formed
his cellular dwelling.
Here was a
pile of skins, weapons, and
ornaments. "Remove your strange
apparel," said Chal-az, "and
I will fit you out as a true
Galu. I have slain several of
them in the raids of my early
days as a Kro-lu, and here are
their trappings."
I saw the wisdom of his suggestion,
and as my clothes were by now
so ragged as to but half conceal
my nakedness, I had no regrets
in laying them aside. Stripped
to the skin, I donned the red-deerskin
tunic, the leopard-tail, the
golden fillet, armlets and leg-ornaments
of a Galu, with the belt, scabbard
and knife, the shield, spear,
bow and arrow and the long rope
which I learned now for the first
time is the distinctive weapon
of the Galu warrior. It is a
rawhide rope, not dissimilar
to those of the Western plains
and cow-camps of my youth. The
honda is a golden oval and accurate
weight for the throwing of the
noose. This heavy honda, Chal-az
explained, is used as a weapon,
being thrown with great force
and accuracy at an enemy and
then coiled in for another cast.
In hunting and in battle, they
use both the noose and the honda.
If several warriors surround
a single foeman or quarry, they
rope it with the noose from several
sides; but a single warrior against
a lone antagonist will attempt
to brain his foe with the metal
oval.
I could not have been more
pleased with any weapon, short
of a rifle, which he could have
found for me, since I have been
adept with the rope from early
childhood; but I must confess
that I was less favorably inclined
toward my apparel. In so far
as the sensation was concerned,
I might as well have been entirely
naked, so short and light was
the tunic. When I asked Chal-az
for the Caspakian name for rope,
he told me ga, and for the first
time I understood the derivation
of the word Galu, which means
ropeman.
Entirely outfitted I would
not have known myself, so strange
was my garb and my armament.
Upon my back were slung my bow,
arrows, shield, and short spear;
from the center of my girdle
depended my knife; at my right
hip was my stone hatchet; and
at my left hung the coils of
my long rope. By reaching my
right hand over my left shoulder,
I could seize the spear or arrows;
my left hand could find my bow
over my right shoulder, while
a veritable contortionist-act
was necessary to place my shield
in front of me and upon my left
arm. The shield, long and oval,
is utilized more as back-armor
than as a defense against frontal
attack, for the close-set armlets
of gold upon the left forearm
are principally depended upon
to ward off knife, spear, hatchet,
or arrow from in front; but against
the greater carnivora and the
attacks of several human antagonists,
the shield is utilized to its
best advantage and carried by
loops upon the left arm.
Fully equipped,
except for a blanket, I followed
Chal-az
from his domicile into the dark
and deserted alleys of Kro-lu.
Silently we crept along, Nobs
silent at heel, toward the nearest
portion of the palisade. Here
Chal-az bade me farewell, telling
me that he hoped to see me soon
among the Galus, as he felt that "the
call soon would come" to him.
I thanked him for his loyal assistance
and promised that whether I reached
the Galu country or not, I should
always stand ready to repay his
kindness to me, and that he could
count on me in the revolution
against Al-tan.
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