The Great White Queen: A Tale of Treasure and Treason

by William Le Queux

  CHAPTER XVIII.

  THE MYSTERIOUS REALM.

  SO unsteady was the ladder, straining and springing at every step I took,that I was compelled to grip its wet cords with all the strength of whichI was capable. It swayed to and fro fearfully, and more than once Idreaded that I should lose my hold and fall backwards to earth.

  Omar above me, lithe and active as a cat, climbed on, chaffing me for mytardy progress, and now and then halting and mischievously shaking theladder to increase my fear. The higher I ascended the more strongly blewthe wind, until it whistled in the thin ropes and blew through my scantyclothing, chilling my bones. My hands and feet were bruised and sore fromthe previous day's descent, nevertheless I thought not of pain, only ofperil. The climb was long and tedious. Even Omar, who had commenced byrunning up like a squirrel in his eagerness to gain the land from whichhe had so long been absent, was soon compelled to pause and steadyhimself, or he would assuredly have been jerked from his insecureposition.

  The ten men plodding up after us seemed to be keeping step, causing theladder to spring fearfully each time they ascended the next rung. Omar,himself fearing disaster, at last called to them, but jabbering amongthemselves in the highest spirits, each eager to set foot in the land ofmystery, they took no heed of their guide's instructions.

  "You fools!" he cried angrily. "Climb slowly and with care. Don't jumpso. We're not on a spring-board."

  Useless. We still went up and down like a ball at the end of a piece ofelastic.

  "Do you hear?" he shrieked in the Dagomba tongue, halting and lookingdown at the string of grinning blacks. "Halt!"

  This sudden stoppage attracted their attention, and in mid-air he soundlyrated them for their folly, instructing them how to ascend, and declaringthat if they continued their hilarious progress a fearful disaster mustensue. These words immediately had the desired effect, for which Iconfess I was very thankful, as I had feared every moment that we shouldbe dashed into the valley, and now as we went forward again the ladderwas much steadier.

  From far below we could hear the distant shouts of Kona and our excitedcompanions encouraging us and urging us on, for they were all impatienceto follow us. Now and then the great grey vultures, having gorgedthemselves to their full upon the corpses in the valley, circled aroundus as if ready to tear us from our perilous position, and more than onceI saw Omar raise his arm to beat them off. We were, I suppose, passingnear their nests and thus aroused their ire.

  Looking up, I saw that we were slowly approaching the beetling portion ofthe enormous rock, but had yet a long distance to climb. Steadily,however, we all ascended, each grasping the wet slippery cords tightly toprevent being blown off by the high gusty wind, and even when we gainedthe jutting rock believing we had attained the summit, we found ourselvesstill fully two hundred feet from where Babila could be seen peeringover awaiting us.

  The ladder laying upon the face of the cliff at this point was mucheasier of ascent, for the weight of the portion below me prevented itfrom swaying, and by scrambling up with increased haste I soon foundmyself immediately behind Omar.

  Then continuing steadily, now and then being compelled to bend backwardsin a most perilous position in order to negotiate a projecting piece ofrock, we together climbed up to the edge of the fearful precipice, eachbeing lent a willing hand by Babila as we swarmed upon our knees to wherehe stood.

  "Welcome, O Prince," the old man exclaimed, salaaming when Omar stoodbefore him. "Welcome to thy white friend from beyond the great blackwater."

  In an instant from a thousand throats rose cries of adulation, andlooking around I saw that drawn up before us was a great concourse offighting-men. Some were mounted on magnificent chargers, others were onfoot, and among them were many silken banners each bearing the samedevice, a black vampire bat with wings outspread upon a crimson ground.Each soldier was similarly attired to Babila, with white embroidered robeand girdle, and each carried a rifle and a long curved sword.

  Babila was evidently a great man in the estimation of all others, forwhatever he did the soldiers imitated. In appearance they had theadvantage of all coloured and most white races. As a rule they seemedvery tall, well set up, with well-formed limbs covered with an almostwhite skin, the texture of which would excite envy in the heart of many aEuropean beauty. The features had nothing in common with the coarse negrotype which prevailed in the forest and over the grass-lands, but ratherinclined towards a Semitic type. Thick lips were the exception, not therule, and a broad flat nose was also a rarity. The only sign of barbaritywas in the hair which, when the head was not clean shaven, was allowed togrow straight out in every direction, giving a very wild appearance toits owner. The hair of some, however, seemed to be softer, for it hungdown to the nape of the neck in long, closely-curled ringlets. The women,a few of whom were watching us curiously, were all comely, and, attiredin long white robes of a more elaborate pattern than the men, had theirhair enclosed in a dark blue fillet, a difference in the disposition ofthe latter distinguishing between a married and an unmarried woman.

  A great tent of yellow silk had been erected near, presumably for ouraccommodation. Over it waved the hideous-looking vampire bat, and as ledby Babila with frequent prostrations we entered it, I asked Omar themeaning of the sable device.

  "It is the royal mark of the Sanoms, the same as the lion and the unicornis the crest of your great Queen. The black vampire is the guardianfetish of our throne."

  On entering, Omar walked to a raised dais whereon two stools were placed,and taking one invited me to the other. Then, while awaiting the arrivalof our companions, food was brought to us, and we ate and drank to ourfull, Babila himself attending to our wants personally. Neither were ourcompanions forgotten, for they were arranged around the tent, andsquatting upon their haunches ate and jabbered to their hearts' content.

  It was highly amusing to watch the interest with which the nativesregarded the stolid soldiers of Mo, who stood in long lines, motionlessas statues. They went close up to them, examined them from head to foot,drew the sword from its sheath, handled it and tried its edge with agrunt of satisfaction. Then they would replace it, finger theaccoutrements, examine carefully what they thought might be gold, and atlast, folding their arms, would stand silent, awe-stricken at the wholeeffect of the unknown race.

  The denizens of this mysterious country, however, seemed to regard ournatives with supercilious disdain. Probably their contempt had beenengendered by the fact that certain tribes had on several occasionsattempted an invasion, and they had from their formidable heights simplyswept them out of existence as easily as a fly may be crushed with thefinger. When looking at the handsome women, the enormous mouths of theDagombas would widen into broad grins which, intended to convey anexpression of delight, in reality rendered them hideous.

  For three hours we remained in the tent, sheltered from the sun's glaringheat, while parties of a dozen of our followers continued to arrive. Itwas Omar's intention to enter the capital with the whole of our faithfulband, otherwise he would have started immediately we had gained thesummit. Babila urged him to do so, but he expressed a desire that Konaand his heroic blacks should accompany us.

  At last the whole of the party had gained the top of the rock and hadrefreshed themselves after their toil and peril; the rope ladder with itshidden electric wires had been hauled up, and, headed by men blowing loudblasts upon great horns of ivory and gold, we all moved forward, a mostimposing and magnificent cavalcade.

  Both Omar and myself had been mounted on fine milk-white horses with gaytrappings of silver and royal blue, while behind us came Kona with a veryunsteady seat upon a long raw-boned stallion. He was evidently not usedto horses, and the way he clutched at the mane each time his animaltrotted convulsed both his men and the soldiers in the vicinity withlaughter.

  A shady march of two days in a north-westerly direction up the bank of ababbling stream brought us to higher land. The journey was uneventful,the country being devoid of both game and people. We
saw old traces ofhabitation, it is true, but the people seemed to have been driven away orkilled, leaving only the empty stone-built houses. From the hill on theside of which we pitched our camp a marvellous view was obtainable. Tothe north a black forest extended as far as the eye could reach, brokenonly by three small hills that served as landmarks. To the west rolledsome giant snow-capped mountains, while the range whereon we stood was alow, stone-covered stretch of round-topped hills, flanked by thick mimosajungle and filled with rhinoceros. Wherever we went, we found traces ofthem, their feeding ground being apparently restricted to a very smallarea. Never having been hunted, they probably found no reason to leavesuch excellent pasture, and it was little wonder that Kona and his menwere anxious to remain behind and commit havoc amongst them.

  On the third day we encamped near a most extraordinary place. It was asmall valley about thirty-five feet below the surrounding ground, lookinglike the dry bed of a stream, and was about a mile in circumference.

  "Come, I want to show you Zomara's Wrath," Omar said, and dismounting wewent together towards it, notwithstanding the loud cries of warning thatarose on every side. A dog--a lean, hungry, strange-looking brute, whoaccompanied the troops--bounded after us, and as we approached the placeI noticed a suffocating smell, and was attacked by nausea and giddiness.A belt of this foetid atmosphere surrounded the valley. We, however,passed through it, and in purer air, with hands still over my nose andmouth, was permitted to view the awful spectacle--for it was awful.

  The entire bed of the valley seemed like one solid rock, but scatteredover the barren floor were skeletons of men, wild hogs, deer, rhinoceros,lions, and all kinds of birds and smaller animals. I could discover nohole or crevice in any place whence the poisonous fumes were emitted. Iwas anxious to reach the bottom of the valley, if possible, but mysuggestion was at once negatived by my companion, who said:

  "To go further is certain death. Come, let us return quickly, or we maybe overpowered. This is one of the natural wonders of our land."

  I determined, however, to see what the fumes smelled like, and, greatlyto Omar's horror, started to descend. The dog was with me, and as soon ashe saw me step over the side of the bank he rushed down ahead of me.

  I endeavoured to call him back, but too late. As soon as the animalreached the rocky bed below he fell upon his side.

  He continued to breathe a few moments only, then expired.