Chapter Seventeen
The Nome King
The Kingdom of the Nomes does not border on the Nonestic Ocean, fromwhich it is separated by the Kingdom of Rinkitink and the Country ofthe Wheelers, which is a part of the Land of Ev. Rinkitink's country isseparated from the country of the Nomes by a row of high and steepmountains, from which it extends to the sea. The Country of theWheelers is a sandy waste that is open on one side to the NonesticOcean and on the other side has no barrier to separate it from the NomeCountry, therefore it was on the coast of the Wheelers that King Coslanded--in a spot quite deserted by any of the curious inhabitants ofthat country.
The Nome Country is very large in extent, and is only separated fromthe Land of Oz, on its eastern borders, by a Deadly Desert that can notbe crossed by mortals, unless they are aided by the fairies or by magic.
The nomes are a numerous and mischievous people, living in undergroundcaverns of wide extent, connected one with another by arches andpassages. The word "nome" means "one who knows," and these people areso called because they know where all the gold and silver and preciousstones are hidden in the earth--a knowledge that no other livingcreatures share with them. The nomes are busy people, constantlydigging up gold in one place and taking it to another place, where theysecretly bury it, and perhaps this is the reason they alone know whereto find it. The nomes were ruled, at the time of which I write, by aKing named Kaliko.
King Gos had expected to be pursued by Inga in his magic boat, so hemade all the haste possible, urging his forty rowers to their bestefforts night and day. To his joy he was not overtaken but landed onthe sandy beach of the Wheelers on the morning of the eighth day.
The forty rowers were left with the boat, while Queen Cor and King Cos,with their royal prisoners, who were still chained, began the journeyto the Nome King.
It was not long before they passed the sands and reached the rockycountry belonging to the nomes, but they were still a long way from theentrance to the underground caverns in which lived the Nome King. Therewas a dim path, winding between stones and boulders, over which thewalking was quite difficult, especially as the path led up hills thatwere small mountains, and then down steep and abrupt slopes where anymisstep might mean a broken leg. Therefore it was the second day oftheir journey before they climbed halfway up a rugged mountain andfound themselves at the entrance of the Nome King's caverns.
On their arrival, the entrance seemed free and unguarded, but Gos andCor had been there before, and they were too wise to attempt to enterwithout announcing themselves, for the passage to the caves was full oftraps and pitfalls. So King Gos stood still and shouted, and in aninstant they were surrounded by a group of crooked nomes, who seemed tohave sprung from the ground.
One of these had very long ears and was called The Long-Eared Hearer.He said: "I heard you coming early this morning."
Another had eyes that looked in different directions at the same timeand were curiously bright and penetrating. He could look over a hill oraround a corner and was called The Lookout. Said he: "I saw you comingyesterday."
"Then," said King Gos, "perhaps King Kaliko is expecting us."
"It is true," replied another nome, who wore a gold collar around hisneck and carried a bunch of golden keys. "The mighty Nome King expectsyou, and bids you follow me to his presence."
With this he led the way into the caverns and Gos and Cor followed,dragging their weary prisoners with them, for poor King Kitticut andhis gentle Queen had been obliged to carry, all through the tediousjourney, the bags of gold and jewels which were to bribe the Nome Kingto accept them as slaves.
Through several long passages the guide led them and at last theyentered a small cavern which was beautifully decorated and set withrare jewels that flashed from every part of the wall, floor andceiling. This was a waiting-room for visitors, and there their guideleft them while he went to inform King Kaliko of their arrival.
Before long they were ushered into a great domed chamber, cut from thesolid rock and so magnificent that all of them--the King and Queen ofPingaree and the King and Queen of Regos and Coregos--drew long breathsof astonishment and opened their eyes as wide as they could.
In an ivory throne sat a little round man who had a pointed beard andhair that rose to a tall curl on top of his head. He was dressed insilken robes, richly embroidered, which had large buttons of cutrubies. On his head was a diamond crown and in his hand he held agolden sceptre with a big jeweled ball at one end of it. This wasKaliko, the King and ruler of all the nomes. He nodded pleasantlyenough to his visitors and said in a cheery voice:
"Well, Your Majesties, what can I do for you?"
"It is my desire," answered King Gos, respectfully, "to place in yourcare two prisoners, whom you now see before you. They must be carefullyguarded, to prevent them from escaping, for they have the cunning offoxes and are not to be trusted. In return for the favor I am askingyou to grant, I have brought Your Majesty valuable presents of gold andprecious gems."
He then commanded Kitticut and Garee to lay before the Nome King thebags of gold and jewels, and they obeyed, being helpless.
"Very good," said King Kaliko, nodding approval, for like all the nomeshe loved treasures of gold and jewels. "But who are the prisoners youhave brought here, and why do you place them in my charge instead ofguarding them, yourself? They seem gentle enough, I'm sure."
"The prisoners," returned King Gos, "are the King and Queen ofPingaree, a small island north of here. They are very evil people andcame to our islands of Regos and Coregos to conquer them and slay ourpoor people. Also they intended to plunder us of all our riches, but bygood fortune we were able to defeat and capture them. However, theyhave a son who is a terrible wizard and who by magic art is trying tofind this awful King and Queen of Pingaree, and to set them free, thatthey may continue their wicked deeds. Therefore, as we have no magic todefend ourselves with, we have brought the prisoners to you for safekeeping."
"Your Majesty," spoke up King Kitticut, addressing the Nome King withgreat indignation, "do not believe this tale, I implore you. It is alla lie!"
"I know it," said Kaliko. "I consider it a clever lie, though, becauseit is woven without a thread of truth. However, that is none of mybusiness. The fact remains that my good friend King Gos wishes to putyou in my underground caverns, so that you will be unable to escape.And why should I not please him in this little matter? Gos is a mightyKing and a great warrior, while your island of Pingaree is desolatedand your people scattered. In my heart, King Kitticut, I sympathizewith you, but as a matter of business policy we powerful Kings muststand together and trample the weaker ones under our feet."
King Kitticut was surprised to find the King of the nomes so candid andso well informed, and he tried to argue that he and his gentle wife didnot deserve their cruel fate and that it would be wiser for Kaliko toside with them than with the evil King of Regos. But Kaliko only shookhis head and smiled, saying:
"The fact that you are a prisoner, my poor Kitticut, is evidence thatyou are weaker than King Cos, and I prefer to deal with the strong. Bythe way," he added, turning to the King of Regos, "have these prisonersany connection with the Land of Oz?"
"Why do you ask?" said Gos.
"Because I dare not offend the Oz people," was the reply. "I am verypowerful, as you know, but Ozma of Oz is far more powerful than I;therefore, if this King and Queen of Pingaree happened to be underOzma's protection, I would have nothing to do with them."
"I assure Your Majesty that the prisoners have nothing to do with theOz people," Gos hastened to say. And Kitticut, being questioned,admitted that this was true.
"But how about that wizard you mentioned?" asked the Nome King.
"Oh, he is merely a boy; but he is very ferocious and obstinate and heis assisted by a little fat sorcerer called Rinkitink and a talkinggoat."
"Oho! A talking goat, do you say? That certainly sounds like magic; andit also sounds like the Land of Oz, where all the animals talk," saidKaliko, with a doubt
ful expression.
But King Gos assured him the talking goat had never been to Oz.
"As for Rinkitink, whom you call a sorcerer," continued the Nome King,"he is a neighbor of mine, you must know, but as we are cut off fromeach other by high mountains beneath which a powerful river runs, Ihave never yet met King Rinkitink. But I have heard of him, and fromall reports he is a jolly rogue, and perfectly harmless. However, inspite of your false statements and misrepresentations, I will earn thetreasure you have brought me, by keeping your prisoners safe in mycaverns.
"Make them work," advised Queen Cor. "They are rather delicate, and tomake them work will make them suffer delightfully."
"I'll do as I please about that," said the Nome King sternly. "Becontent that I agree to keep them safe."
The bargain being thus made and concluded, Kaliko first examined thegold and jewels and then sent it away to his royal storehouse, whichwas well filled with like treasure. Next the captives were sent away incharge of the nome with the golden collar and keys, whose name wasKlik, and he escorted them to a small cavern and gave them a goodsupper.
"I shall lock your door," said Klik, "so there is no need of yourwearing those heavy chains any longer." He therefore removed the chainsand left King Kitticut and his Queen alone. This was the first timesince the Northmen had carried them away from Pingaree that the goodKing and Queen had been alone together and free of all bonds, and asthey embraced lovingly and mingled their tears over their sad fate theywere also grateful that they had passed from the control of theheartless King Gos into the more considerate care of King Kaliko. Theywere still captives but they believed they would be happier in theunderground caverns of the nomes than in Regos and Coregos.
Meantime, in the King's royal cavern a great feast had been spread.King Gos and Queen Cor, having triumphed in their plot, were so wellpleased that they held high revelry with the jolly Nome King until alate hour that night. And the next morning, having cautioned Kaliko notto release the prisoners under any consideration without their orders,the King and Queen of Regos and Coregos left the caverns of the nomesto return to the shore of the ocean where they had left their boat.
Rinkitink in Oz Page 17