The Scarlet Banner

by Felix Dahn

  CHAPTER XV

  Heralds, with blasts of the tuba, announced the invitation throughoutthe whole spacious building, and, thanks to the admirable arrangementsand the great number of exits, the arena was very quickly emptied. Thethousands of spectators, amid the music of flute-players, now moved ina stately procession to the neighboring Amphitheatre.

  This was an oval building, the axis of its inner ellipse measuring twohundred and forty feet. The plan resembled that of the Circus, an outerwall in two stories of arches, each story adorned with statues andpillars. Here, too, from the oval arena, the rows of seats ascended insteps divided by vertical walls, separated into triangles by the stairsleading to the exits, or vomitories.

  The host and his most distinguished guests were assigned places in theraised gallery on the podium directly adjoining the arena, formerlyoccupied by the Senators of Carthage.

  The Amphitheatre had a subterranean connection with the adjacent lake.From the grated cellars, concealed by curtains, the mingled cries ofvarious animals greeted the entering spectators. Often the snarls andyells partially died away, and a mighty, ominous howl, or rather roar,rose from the farthest cellar, dominating the voices of the smallerbeasts, which sank into silence, as if from fear.

  "Are you afraid, my little bird?" asked Thrasaric, who was leading hisbride by the hand. "You are trembling."

  "Not of the tiger," she answered.

  When the seats of honor were occupied, Thrasabad again appeared beforethem, and, bowing, said: "The Roman emperors long ago prohibitedcontests between gladiators and fights between animals. But we are notRomans. True, our own kings--especially our present sovereign, KingGelimer--repeated the command--"

  "If he should hear of this!" interrupted Thrasaric, in a tone ofwarning.

  "Pshaw! He is not expected here until tomorrow morning. Even if hereturns sooner--he is now staying in the Capitol; it is two fullleagues distant. The noise of the festival will not reach there for along time; and we shall not tell him to-morrow."

  "And the gladiators?"

  "Nor they either. Dead men do not gossip. We will keep them fightinguntil none are left to betray us."

  "Brother, that is almost too--Roman!"

  "Ah, only the Romans knew how to live; our bear-like ancestors, at theutmost, only how to die. Do you suppose I have studied merely the_verses_ of the Romans? No, I boast of vying with them in theircustoms. Speak, Gundomar; shall we fear King Gelimer?"

  "We Vandal nobles will allow ourselves to be denied nothing that givesus pleasure. Let him try to keep us away from here!"

  "And at my brother's wedding an exception is permitted, nay, required.So I will feast your eyes with old Roman 'hunts' and old Romangladiatorial combats."

  Roars of applause greeted this announcement. Thrasabad disappeared togive his orders.

  "It is easy to say where he obtained the animals," remarked Gundomar."Africa is their breeding-ground. But the gladiators?"

  "He told me the secret," replied Modigisel. "Some are slaves; some areMoors captured in the last expedition. The white sand of the arena willsoon be stained crimson."

  "How I shall rejoice!" panted Astarte, who rarely spoke. Modigisellooked at her with an expression almost of horror.

  "Gladiators!" cried Thrasaric, wrathfully. "Eugenia, do you want to goaway?"

  "I will shut my eyes--and stay. Only let me remain with you! Do notsend me from you--I beseech!"

  The roll of drums was heard, and a cry of astonishment from thousandsof voices filled the Amphitheatre. The arena suddenly divided, movingto the right and left, in two semi-circles which, drawn sideways,disappeared in the walls. Twenty feet below, a second space, coveredwith sand, appeared, and over this poured from every direction, foamingand dashing, a flood of seething water. The bottom was swiftlytransformed into a lake. Then two wide gateways at the right and leftopened, and toward each other swept, fully manned and equipped forbattle, two stately war-ships with lofty masts. These vessels, it istrue, carried no sails, for there was no wind in the walled enclosure,but they were supplied with archers and slingers.

  "Aha! a naumachia! A naval battle! Capital! Glorious!" shouted thespectators.

  "Look, a Byzantine trireme!"

  "And a Vandal corsair ship! How the scarlet flag glows!"

  "And above it, at the mast-head, the golden dragon."

  "The Vandal is attacking! Where are the rowers?"

  "Out of sight. They are working under the deck. But above--look, infront, on the prow, stand the crew with spears and axes uplifted!"

  "See, the Byzantine is going to ram. He is dashing forward withtremendous force."

  "Look at the sharp spur close to the water line!"

  "But the Vandal is turning swiftly. The ship has escaped the shock. Nowthe spears are flying."

  "There! A Roman falls on the deck. He doesn't stir."

  "A second is flung overboard. He is still swimming--"

  "He is throwing his arms out of the water--"

  "There he sinks."

  "The water around him is stained with blood," said Astarte, bendingeagerly forward.

  "Let me go! oh, let me go, and come with me!" pleaded Eugenia.

  "Child, not now; you must stay now. I must see this," repliedThrasaric.

  "Now the Vandal is alongside of the Byzantine."

  "They are leaping across--our men. How their fair locks fly! Victory,victory to the Vandals!"

  "Why, Thrasaric! They are only slaves in disguise."

  "No matter! They bear our flag. Victory, victory to the Vandals! Butlook, there is a terrible hand-to-hand conflict--man to man! How theshields crash! How the axes glitter! Alas! the Vandal leader isfalling! Oh, if I were only on that accursed Roman ship!"

  "There! Another Vandal falls! More Romans are coming up from the lowerdeck. Alas! That is treachery!"

  "The Romans have the superior force. Two more Vandals have fallen."

  "They lured our men on board by stratagem."

  "Brother! Thrasabad! Where are you?"

  "On a boat over yonder, beside the two ships," cried Glauke, full ofterror.

  "It is no use! The Vandals are overpowered; they are leaping into thewater!"

  "The others on the Roman ship are bound."

  "The Romans are throwing fire into our ship. It is burning!"

  "The mast is blazing brightly."

  "The helmsman and rowers are jumping overboard."

  "Where is Thrasabad?"

  Mercury again appeared in the podium.

  "Look you, brother, that is a bad omen," said Thrasaric.

  Thrasabad shrugged his shoulders.

  "The fortune of war. I did not allow myself to interfere. No agreementwas made about the result. Five Romans and twelve Vandals are dead.Away, away with the whole! Vanish, sea!"

  He waved the Hermes staff; the water sank rushing into the depths, withthe corpses it had swallowed. The Roman ship, amply manned and obeyingher helm, succeeded, by rowing powerfully to the right, in passingthrough the gate by which it had entered. The empty, burning, unguidedVandal vessel was drawn into the seething, whirling funnel; it turnedmore and more swiftly on its own axis; the water dashed over the deck,extinguishing the flames as far as it reached them; the mast leanedfarther and farther to the right, still blazing brightly. Suddenly itfell completely over on the right side and disappeared in the abyss.Gurgling, whirling, and foaming, the rest of the water followed.

  "The sea has vanished!" cried Thrasabad. "Let the desert and itsmonsters, warring with each other, appear in its place!"

  And at the height of the former flooring, far above the level ofthe sea, the two halves of the arena, covered with white sand, wereagain pushed together from the right and left. Slaves, clad onlywith aprons--fair-skinned ones, yellow-complexioned Moors, andnegroes--appeared in countless numbers and drew back the curtains whichcovered the gratings of the cages containing the wild animals.

  "We will present to you--" Thrasabad cried amid the b
reathless silence.

  But his voice died away; the terrible roar, which had either ceased orbeen drowned during the tumult of the naval battle, again echoedthrough the Amphitheatre, and a huge tiger leaped with such force andfury from the back of its tolerably long cage against the grating infront that its bars bent outward, splinters of the wood in which theywere imbedded were hurled into the arena.

  "Brother," said Thrasaric, in a low tone, "that cage is too long. Takecare! The animal has too much space to run. And the wooden floor isrotten. Are you afraid, Eugenia?"

  "I am with _you_," the young bride answered quietly. "But I want toknow no more about men fighting--dying. I did not look at them."

  "Only at the end, little sister-in-law, a captive Moor."

  "Where did you get him?" asked Modigisel.

  "Hired, like most of the others, from a slave-dealer. But this one issentenced to death."

  "Why?"

  "He strangled his master, who was going to have him flogged. He is ahandsome, slender fellow, but very obstinate; he will name neither histribe nor his father. The brother and heir of the murdered man offeredhim to me cheap for the naumachia, and if he survived--for the tiger.He could not be induced, no matter how many blows he received, to fightin the naval battle. His master was obliged to bind him hand and footbehind the scenes. Well, he will probably be compelled to fight when hestands fully armed in the arena, and we let loose the tiger; it hasbeen kept fasting for two days."

  "Oh, Thrasaric, my husband! My first entreaty--"

  "I cannot help you, little bird! I promised to let him rule withoutinterference to-day; and one's word must be kept, even though it shouldlead to folly and crime."

  "Yes," whispered Modigisel, bending forward. "One's word must be kept.When shall we throw the dice?"

  Thrasaric sprang up in fury.

  "I will kill you--"

  "That will be useless. Astarte knows it. Keep your word! I advise youto do it. Or to-morrow all the Vandal nobles shall know what your honorand faith are worth."

  "Never! I will sooner kill the child with my own hands."

  "That would be as dishonorable as if I should slay the horse from envy.Keep your word, Thrasaric; you can do nothing else."

  Then a glance from Eugenia rested on Modigisel. She could not haveunderstood anything; but he was silent.

  "But when you have her," Astarte murmured under her breath to hercompanion, "you will set me wholly free?"

  "I don't know yet," he growled. "It doesn't look as if I should winher."

  "Set me free!" Astarte repeated earnestly.

  It was meant for an entreaty, but the tone conveyed so sinister athreat that the nobleman gazed wonderingly into her black eyes, inwhose depths lurked an expression which made him afraid to say no. Heevaded an answer by asking rudely: "What is there in the giant thatattracts you as a magnet draws iron?"

  "Strength," said Astarte, impressively. "He could wrap you around hisleft arm with his right hand."

  "_I_ was strong enough, too," replied the Vandal, gloomily. "Africa andAstarte would suck the marrow out of a Hercules."

  The whispering was interrupted by Thrasabad, who now, the tiger beingsilent, addressed the audience: "We will have brought out to fightbefore you six African bears from the Atlas, with six buffaloes fromthe mountain Valley of Aurasia! a hippopotamus from the Nile, and arhinoceros; an elephant and three leopards, a powerful tiger--do youhear him? Silence, Hasdrubal, till you are summoned--with a man in fullarmour, who has been condemned to death."

  "Aha! Good! That will be splendid!" ran through the Amphitheatre.

  "And lastly,--as I hope Hasdrubal will be the victor,--the tiger willfight all the survivors of the other conflicts, and a pack of twelveBritish dogs."

  Loud shouts of delight rang through the building.

  "I thank you!" replied the director of the festival. "But we cannotlive by gratitude alone. Your Mercury also desires nectar and ambrosia.Before we witness any more battles, let us enjoy a light luncheon, somecool wine, and a graceful dance. What say you, my friends? Come, fairGlauke!"

  Without waiting for an answer--he seemed to be tolerably sure of it,and it came in the form of still more vehement applause--he again wavedhis staff. The heavy stone walls, separating the podium and the higherrows of seats from the arena and the lower rows, sank and weretransformed into sloping stone steps that led down to the arena, intowhich at the same time invisible hands lifted long tables, hung withcostly draperies and set with magnificent jugs, vessels, and goblets ofgold and silver, and large shallow dishes filled with choice fruit andsweet cakes. In the centre of the arena rose an altar, its three stepsthickly garlanded with wreaths of flowers, the top crowned by a figureclosely wrapped in white cloths. From the sides of the building ahundred Satyrs and Bacchantes flocked in, who instantly began apantomimic dance of pursuit and flight, whose rhythm was accompaniedby the noisy, stirring music of cymbals and tympans from the open,wing-like sides of the Amphitheatre. Enraged by the uproar, more andmore furiously roared the Hyrcanian tiger.