DR. SILEX.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXV, Issue 205, 27 August 1904, Page 14

DR. SILEX.

By HARRIS BURLAND. Author oi- "Dacobra," and "The Unspeakable Thing."

, CHAPTER X.\A 11. AVT-ANCHES. ' There was much to be thought of before we struck camp that night. Half of our force pursued the flying enemy, and driving them out of the Nitril valley, established themselves in n. strong position on the rising ground beyond the lake. Here they constructed rude walls of boulders, and ctnplaeed the guns under the direct inn of Captain Thorlassen. The remainder of us saw to the wounded nnd buried the dead. Among the latter were 2n of our own men and 10 knights. Both sides had suffered severely in the cr.nlesl. and as we searched the long dark shore and white road with our torches we found them Thickly strewn with bodies. Some of these were even f in the water, and one or two lay with r their hands gripping at each other's throats. When our task was ended, we proceeded on mir way. emerged from the great rock-enclosed hollow, and rejoined our companions on the further hills. It was like coming into the fresh air from a room of sickness to stand on the hills , once more, and leave that dark pit of i Water behind us. j We passed nn undisturbed night, and when the tall pillars of flame once more shot up from the earth and flooded the surrounding country with light, we started our final day's march for the capital. Sir Thule de Brie told us lhat the last harrier of hills lay before us, and that he did not expect any more opposition until we reached the walls of the city itself. As far as I could judge from the distance we had travelled, and the. observations I made that night by the stars, ive were within a few miles of the Pole, itself, and if that was the. case, the goal of our original mission van in all probability within the very walls of tho eaptal. How surprised the savants and explorers of Europe wouhi have been to know that the busy feet of men trod daily past the place which was deemed to either the open sea or a desolate expnuse of snow-covered ice. We toiled up the Tarrgc of hills before us. and they were more rugged and precipitous than any I had yet seen in the country. Their lower slopes, indeed, were fertile and cultivated, but their Buminits were great heaps of rock, divided by long gaps into different spurs and eminences. The road itself yvas in excellent order, but ran up and down like a switchback, making the advance of an army, with all its impedimenta of gun? and yvagon.s. a. slow and laborious business. Traces of those who had fled before us were abimdaut: the drops and splashes of blood upon the stones, the broken lancets, the pieces of heavy armour flung reckJessly to one. side, and here and tliere the bodies of dead and dying men. told us how terribly we had dealt yvith our adversaries, and how swift, and anxious had been their flight. After four hours 'of ascent and descent, along a path which took us higher after every dip and rise, the front, of the column began to slowly climb a long slope, that stood out against the sky. and then began to disappear from vie%v. A few minutes later 1 reached the summit myself, and a wonderful sight spread itself out before my eyes. Three miles away and six hundred feet, beneath us lay the great city of Avranehes. _\ot indeed seen, as a fair city should be for the first time, in golden sunlight, or with its walls and towers silvered by the moon, but yet so wonderfully il ruminated that it seemed like some fair palace from the Arabian Nights. It. was indeed a. fitting borne for the Ving of a. country tha-t, had been plunged in civil war for nearly eight centuries. It, was built in Ihe fork of a broad river, which sprung from a hundred streams in the hills. The valley itself wats like a deep basin, six miles iv diameter, and entirely surrounded with Irills. To the east it narrowed and sloped up steeply to the mountains. To the. west the river had cut itself a deep and narrow ravine through a great wall of rock, and poured through this to n. long plain which bordered on the Frozen Sea. The walls which surrounded the town eeemed nearly a hundred feet in height. aud rose sbr-er from the waters of the. river. Every eighty yards or so they jutted out, into escarpments anel flanking towers, and even at this distance T could see that tbey yvere pierced yvith countless casements and loopholes Within lay the houses of the city, divided into concentric circles by line after line of yvaJls and towers, and in the centre of all. on a rocky eminence, lay a great, castle, long and low built, like some, animal eroiirhing to srn-' ll^The, tvhole city blazed with tail enlujnnns of blue-white flame, and coruscated with thoussinds of smaller lights. I-'roin the top of the. hill we could sec yvith a telescope black specks moving to and fro in the glare, and couid catch the glint and flash of steel. As fortune yvould have i-t. the whole column halted a few seconds after I had caught my first glimpse of the town, and I was enabled to survey the whole scene with silent, admiration. Never was a place so well adapted and fortified to hold an insecure throne. For the days of modern artillery, it yvas too near the commanding hills, but j estimated that it. yvas just out of range of the strongest mangonel, rientifiilly stocked with provision- it would be almost, impregnable. We halted for an-hour, and Count Guy of Marmorcl and Sir Thule de Brie, rede round and round the columns deep in consultation. Then Captain Thorlassen was summoned, and a few minuies laler 1 saw two fifteen-pounders being brought into position, and men carrying cartridjres from the waggons. W'c yvere going to try the range of our a rlillery. Then there was a report, and the eyes of all were tixed on the town. The shell burst a hundred yards short of the castle, and we could sec the .moke of it. drifting across one of the great fires, and men running hither and thither in confusion. The gunnersighted llie weapon afresh, and the next shot struck one of the. towers of the castle. That was sufficient. We could not afford to throw away more cartridges on experiments. Ammunition •waa none too plentiful, and we had to reserve it for large bodies of men, where , every shot would account for at least twenty dead. After a brief discussion between tbe leaders of the expedition, it was resolved to make the place, in which we had | halted the base of our future operations, j the city, aud also the «W to Saneta Maria. There was a ____\___*.*_- and our *°»ging par-, **h covets* by J**'

practically the whole .alley at their mercy. Before evening came, and the great fires died out along the valley and -Jills, we had marked out the site of our encampment. It was chosen with skill on a flat tableland, with precipitous sides; .nd one of the great fires burned in the niidr.t. All night long large bodies of men toiled incessantly; bearing boulders and baskets of earth, and when the fires mre more flashed out acros. the country „ rampart three feet high had grown up all round the encampment; nnd before darkness came again it had raised itself as high as a. tall man's head, and nir guns bristled out through the entrenchments, like tvatch-dogs with open jaws. It was clear to mc that Count Tiny meditated a long siege. Subsequent consultation with Sir Thule de Krie showed that this was the lolicy they had decided on. Count Guy's taste lo leave Saneta Maria had be..] justified. We had struck a blow before :he enemy had had time to I'ortiiy tlie ■oad to the capital, and had struck tne :>low home. Now let we . .1 1 :-he heights overhargi'tg lie tow:: 11. •alley, haste was unacecssmy, and p.-., lably inexpedient. We couid wat.cn t.ic ' own from our lofty em..ience. bwoup j lown on foraging parties, hold the j dace in a state of siege, and bide our Jme. For three days we waited, and no sign j •ame from the city beneath us. We fired in occasional shot to remind the in- j inbitants that we yvere still close mough to make ourselves unpleasant, •olleeted all the provisions we could from truall villages and hamlets, and yvatched -he town day and night. Then 011 the-third day we saw a gate jpen in the walls nearest to us. and a small procession file across the narrow bridge which crossed the In an nstaut the gun. were turned upon it. Hid if Sir Thule de. Brie had not come lp to the ramparts, the cavalcade would lave had a very sorry advance across the plain. He looked through Captain ThorlasJen's telescope, and abruptly told the uen to wait. "A herald," he said to mc. "The king might have saved himself the trouble, lie is not likely to bring a message ot concilia tion." An hour later the herald himself .r----•ived. a tall, broad-shouldered man with fair hair and a long beard. He yvas :hid iv armour covered with n gorgeous surtont of silk, emblazoned with the royal arms. He bore no weapon thai T could sec, though he may have had one 'oncealcd about h\> prison. In front of liiui rode two knights with white pen110ns fluttering from their lances, and aebind him six squires, beating his lance, 1. shield, sword, and various emblems .ppertaining to his office. He rode with quiet dignity up the j _nl.v approach to our camp, and Count I Citiy of Marmorcl and Sir Thule de Brie, surrounded by all their knights, received him in full sight of the whole army. He approached Count Guy, and bowing coldly, handed him a parchment scroll. The latter ran his eye over it and scowled. '•I will read your message, rto my knights. Sir Herald," he said sharply.; "They will answer you." and he whis- , percd a few words to a squire at his ■ skle. "The message is to Count Guy of Marmorel," said the herald abruptly. •"The voice of Count Guy of Mar- | raorel is the voice of his followers," replied the Count. "The answer shall come 1 from the.tu. Knights and men-at-arms, this is the message of our lord the king." •• 'To Count Guy of Marmorcl, sorTowful greeting. Though the heart, igrieved that so distinguished a subject has, in a tit of te.npo.ary madness, thought lit to take arms against his master, and league, himself with the enemies of his country, yet bearing in mind his great services in the past, and a loyal devotion, yvhich we had deemed proof against the sorceries of a woman's eyes. we. of our clemency, are willing to grant a free pardon to him and all men of this kingdom, if the yvoman calling herself Trincess Thora of Asturnia. and her alien followers, arc delivered into our hands.' That, is the message, my knights and soldiers. What answer have you to make to so fair a proposition?" The knights were contemptuously -ilent. but the men-at-arms laughed with anger and derision. "You have your answer. Sir Herald." -J do not take it from churl*. I came to Count Guy of Marmorcl, and he must answer mc." "Look round you then." cried Count Guy of Marmorcl. "and see what answer I am able to give you." The herald glanced beyond the lines of kni,_hi-, aud my own eyes followed his looks. Every gun and maxim had been swung round from its embrazure. and was turned to a eommou centre-point-blank on the herald. Count Guy. his knights, and all the. maws of common soldiers. Beside each piece of artillery stood a knot of our sailors, alert for action. They could have hlotvn the whole eroyvd of us into a heap of mangled flesh in five minutes. "Shall we bind them now. Sir. Herald," the fount continued, "and dcliyer them into your hands, or shall we await their consent ?'' "I do nol understand you. Count Guv," the heriill answered haughtily. "What ir- this foolery? Hate you no plain answer to a plain question?" "It is certain that you do not understand." the knight said drily. "But I will make things clear to you. You do not understand that we ure in the power of these men. and that if I were to agree 1o the proposition of your king, they would sweep you and mc and every living soul lhai stands about us into a bloody heap of corpses, and spatter our dead bodies on lhe rock as men crush insect- with their hand.-." "1 have heard of these weapons. Count (luy." he answered coldly, "aud it may be as you say. Ant I to understand that your answer is 'No?' " "That most certainly must be. my answer. It grieves mc to give it, but it is enforced on mc." 'And your answer might have been different, if you had been your own master?" The herald said, with a touch of sarcasm in his voice. "It might have been different.'" Count Gny replied grimly, "under different circumstances." The herald smiled. "Then I yvill deliver you this message from the king To you, Count Guy, to you, Sir Thule de Brie, and to you, men of Asturnia. I The king will give your possessions to

those who have perved him loyally, and will decorate the walls of his ritie with your bodies before another month has passed.'' Sir Thule de Brie moved forward. ' TelJ your king from me,'' he answered, "that before a month has passed he will have no walls to decorate, and that those who have served him loyally will be where earthly possessions will interest them but little." The herald wheeled his horse round sharply, and. followed by his escort, rode swiftly across the rocky tableland, and disappeared from view. When he had pone Count Guy of Marmorcl broke into a hearty laugh. •'What think you of that, my master?'' he said. "Was it not a jest! Methinks he will carry back a wholesome fear of the strange weapons in his mind, and perchance some false hopes in his her.rt." 'I would rather yon had spoken your mind plainly,'' replied Sir Thule de Brie. -But I took the liberty of speaking it for you." "Sir Thule de Brie," he answered quietly, "you ere a brave mon, but not versed i- ._*»'-".-aft which makes the fortunes «•* .- leader. I have led the king to suppose that I am in your power, and thnt our force is divided in opinion. He will act accordingly, and so play into our h_nds." And with these words he rode hack to hi=s t?nt, while Sir i'htilc do Brie watched hi -.1 with a faint .mil. rpein his face. * rt _ * • Two : '.-i.+'-s posse' ; • ' "c were still r,-, n .V,p I . ~1l i'.e t.-i .. '.'" -. w l't :', . -••'! •■ 'ie '''.'.' ' .... '- . !•'» I : r< l ■ .' -1 i'< ■ ' - ' ■ ''>'• vrpri t._ ,- ■. ■ e-.- wr .--.''■•' '• ' : 'ie: , to keep if from frc->-:'- ■;. It -.- >ve<ryi work, and 1 began to thin'c i might last for years. I was. iniloed, informed j thef Count Our had relied on a revolt i in the city itself, and had h—ed that j the gates would have been opened from within. But in this he had be-n disappointed. The place was watched day nnd night through n large telescope, and there had not been tlie slightest sign of an unusual disiurbance. We were not, however, idle during this period of waiting. Day after daytwo thousand of our men toiled in the valley below, nnd drove long entrenchments and parallels across the plain, till they were withim bowshot of the city itself. The enemy made several sorties to stop the work, "hut a couple of maxims entrenched behind the higher earthenworks, and a few shells from our fif-teen-pounders on the hill, turned the scale in our favour, nnd only on two occasions .lid they fight our men hand to hand. As each clay parsed. Count Guy of Marmorel's face grew more stern and dark, and T think, indeed, he spent very little time by the side of the Princess, lie passed ' hour after hour looking through some cmbrazuro. motionless and drop in thought, occasionally studying a complete and accurate plan of the city, hut addressing no one. and curtly answering any who cnnic to him en busi-po-s eonneited with the army. And every cven:".g he and Sir Thule de Brie and his chief knights would meet in consultation and discuss new schemes to take lhe capital. It was now evident that wo could not •ffe-tuftlly blockade the city. Our force was too small, and would have been most langerously weakened if we had divided it. It would have been equally foolhardy lo attempt to storm the place, and vacate un irrmregnnble position. There were at least _5.00. troops within the walls, and n third of that number could have, held them against us. We lived in hope that the enemy would leave their stronghold and £ivo battle to us ou the plain, but no device or ruse on our part, could draw them out to a pitched battle. We continuously sent out small parties of men in the hope that some attempt would be made to cut them off, but the king, who was the first swordsman in the kingdom, knew the strength of his position, and restrained himself from meeting us in open fight. The old Asturnian proverb was a true one: „"'Who holds Avranehes is king of Asturnia." It must not be supposed that Count Guy was idly waiting his chance, and taking no further stops to bring the tottering throne of King Charles the Red to its fall. East and west and south and north his messengers were stirring up rebellion. They were enthusiastically iceeived hy the common people; but in most cases the knight" and their followers refused t<> commit themselves, and in one or two instances liung the envoy to the nearest tree. The death roll of Count Guy's secret sendee was a long one. No less than thirty-five men had made their way into the city itself, to approach those knights j who were known to be disaffected to the king, but not a man returned, nor was there any sign that the message had been delivered. The only gleam of hope came from the Northern rrovinee. The chief city. St.. Brieue, had openly declared for the Princess Thora, and a force of five thousand men was slowly making its way J through the great forests to our assistance. On .January 4th the thermometer had fallen to :?dcg.. though in the camp itself, and near the great fires, it was not unpleasantly cold. 1 shall remember that day well, for after a long conflict in my mind, I myself decided the fate of Avranehes. It was nearly seven o r clock. and in * few minute, the whole land would be plunged in darkness. I stood alone by one of the embrazures, and, leaning upon a fifteen-pounder, gazed idly on the glittering town, .ly thoughts were not of the happiest, aud 1 know that however long the siege might he, it would be only a respitp for mc. 'When that proud city fell, the Princess would be crowned Queen of Asturnia, and become the bride of Count Guy of Marmorcl. And as J gazed, the flaring lights reflected on the frost -bound river began to fascinate tne; and if seemed to my inia jgination that the city was held fast in i the coils <>f a long white snake. I fedIlowed the silvery line to where it disappeared in a black wall of rock, and I could not get the idea out of my head that the tall mass of walls and towers and blazing lights was being strangled in the grip of that thin vrhite. reptile. Then, as I looked, a sudden thought struck mc, and, starting to an upright position, T. looked sharply round the valley, and I felt a cold chill at my heart, for the horror of the thing I had imagined was inconceivable. The great tires died out, but for a whole hour 1 stood looking on the smaller lights that twinkled in the city. I was fighting a great struggle with myself. So long as Avranehes held its own, the Princess Thora would be free, and yet so long would the desire of her heart remain unaccomplished. Love and jealousy and hatred of Count Guy of Marmorcl warred fiercely with my wish to give her the greatest happiness of all— I the crenm of her kingdom. But in tha end my better self conquered. She had of her own free will chosen her part, knowing the price she had to pay. It was uot for mc, her most loving subject, to do aught but further her wishes. I left the battlements, and made my way

to the tent of Count Guy of Marmorcl, feeling that I wa. about to sign the death warrant of my own happiness, and that I carried the doom of a great city in my hands. CHAPTEE XXVIII. THE GORGE OF THE FASQUEKELLE- \\ ben 1 had gained admission to Count Guy's tent through a double line of soldiers, 1 found myself in the presence of the whole council of war. Count Guy and Sir Thule de Brie sat at each end of a long oaken tabic, and at either side of them were Captain Thorlassen, tlie Lord of Maruiontie.r. Sir Hugh de la Perche, Sir Gascon de Varaville, and Lord Fulk of Brabancon. A large oil lamp flared from the centre pole of the tent, and the table was strewn with parchment and maps of the city and surrounding country. It yvas evident that there had been a heated discussion r>n some matter. There was a dark flush on Count Guy's face, and Sir Thule de Brie's eyebrows * were knitted ominously together. The others looked sullen and discontented, as though they were sick of the yvholc business. It was apparent that, my entrance, was hailed as a relief from a somewhat awkward situation, and Captain Thorlassen smiled at mc. "Well, sir," said Count. Guy sharply, "I trust your news warrants this inter- j ruption of our business." I "It docs, Count Guy of IvlarmoreT," I answered, "if you are still of a mind to capture Avranehes, and place the l'rin-l--,s TiiO-'ii on the throne of Asturnia." i_o:d Fulk of Brabancon laughed and 1..- d v.c!-. 'iiii : ,l.v at Sir Hugh de La. ..,,..,- , hi.. l',,\ _d and lingci cd one or '..in .caps <n the table. 1 guc-sed tli.it i. , v.vrd had gone home, and that one, :\l h-.-ist, of those present had been advo- ; eating .be abandonment of the siege. "Proceed. ' Sir Thule de Brie said j quietly. "We are of ciie_ mind in this ', matter, but Charles the Red. of Asturnia. thinks differently, aud his opinion seems likclv to prevail." "T have that to lay before you, my lords," I continued, "which may overrule the king's voice in this matter, aud leave you alone to decide the fate of Avranehes." Sir Thule motioned mc to a seat at the table, and easting my eyes over the various plans, 1 selected one which showed the whole valley of the Pasquerelle, and pulled it towards mc. _ "Kindly state your business," Coun. Guy said, sharply. "If there is anything in what you have to say." 1 took the map. and smoothing it out before mc, went straight to the point. "I understand." I said, "that the river Fa_rjue.relle enters the valley down a long slope of hills, and leaves it through a single opening in a. sheer wall of rock." "That is so." answered Sir Thule de Brie. 'T also understand that the circular ba.sin in which the city of Avranehes i lie. is about six miles in diameier. aivl that there is no opening in the circle of hills except the ravine I have mentioned, or, ;it any rale, no ope.in? until the ground has risen at least two hundred feet above ihe level nf the sea." 'You are correct," Count. Guy said, quickly, with a gleam of intelligence in his dark eyes. "The river." I continued, "is, 1 believe, a large one. Could anyone give mc some idea of its tvidih and depth?'" "it is about one hundred feet in width and forty feet in depth where it crosses the plain." aswered Count Guy. '•Nearer the ravine it narrows ami deepen*. It i.s fed by all the streams in these hills, and is it--rlf th= runjunction of the only three rivers in the country." "Good," I replied. "Well, suppose ii were possible to effectually close the ravine so that no water could pas* through it, or. at any late, so that only a small portion of the river could find an outlet. What would be the result?" "The valley would in time be flooded," said Lord Fulk of Brabancon, yvith a laugh, "and Avranehes would be more impregnable, than before. VW cannot swim to the walls with our swords in our teeth." "And yet." I answered slowly, giving effect, to every word, "if the flood continued to rise, the water would reach tbe top of the walls themselves: and if if still continued, the whale citywould 'ie beneath the surface of a great lake." For a few seconds no one spoke. The contemplation of so gigantic a catastrophe as the overwhelming of a whole cily in one watery grave was too tre mendous even for these stern warriors. The)' were accustomed to see hundred slaughtered in the heat of battle. But this thing was different—a deed calmly calculated and carried out in eo'v blood, and a wiping-out of a tenth oi the nation. Then Count Guy laughed loudly, and rose to his feet yvith an exultant lnr>v in his face. "By my faith, sir." he cried, "for a man of peace, you have pretty ideas of life and death." "I have only oue idea in niy mind," I replied angrily, "and that is to set the Princess Thora on the throne of As turnia. For myself, I would not see a man die cither for or against her. if it could be avoided. But where -.he is concerned, neither my own life, nor those of her enemies, nor even yours. Count Guy of Marmorcl, are aught but straws in the wind." "You are right." said Sir Thnle. de Brie; "and it ii possible that by this plan many lives may be saved. * Tire king may capitulst. before the water is up to his an'.des." "I only jested," Count Guy said hastily; "I know that you do not seek yr,ur own advantage in this matter." and he looked at mc with so much meaning in bis eyes tJwt 1 flushed- and bit my iips with shame. "Is it possible to till up the ravine in less than a. year!" asked __r Hugh de La Perche. "The rock is hard as steel. There is no earth near the summit of the gorge." "I yvill undertake to do jt iv tyvo weeks," I replied, "yvith five hundred men. We have powers nt our disposal that you know little of. Sir Hugh. We could .send half of one of those hills toppling into the valley, if we wished to do so." Count Guy . mi Jed grimly. He rememWed how Ihe preat gates of his castle had been blown-in like bits of paper. "\ou have not seen the ravine yet," said Captain Thorlassen. "I would' not promise to do it in so short » time. How long yvould the valley take to fill?" I took out a piece of paper and a pencil, and made some rough and hurried calculations. "The water should be one hundred feet deep in three months," I replied. "Of course, this is only an estimate. I have no exact measurements; I don't know the late at which the stream runs, nor can 1 yet tell how much tvater yvill escape." "The yvater yvill freeze, of course." said Sir Thule de Brie, "and it will be possible for our troops to advance over the ice. It will be about two feet thick." 'T had that in my mind, Sir Thule de Brie,'' I answ_red. "The barrier should

be raised to such a height as to bring the water within a foot of the top of the walls. It yvill not be hard to make the calculation with our inslrt-uents. If tlie king refuses to give in. we can raise it higher. If he capitulates, his troops can leave the city and deliver up their arms under the shadow of our guns." "And when we are in possession of the city?"' someone asked."We can blast the barrier to pieces, Irt the water out of the valley, and remain with the key of Asturnia in our hands." "A yvell-thought-out plan." said Count f.uy of Marmorcl. holding out hi* hand to mc. "What say you, my lords and knights. Is not this gentleman deserving of our thanks?" "Aye. aye,"' they cried one by one, rising and pressing round mc to grasp my hand. I responded but coldly to the warmth of their enthusiasm. "You owe mc no thanks." I said ; moving towarels lhe door, "we all have the ,iime interests at stake, and—and at heart." "When Avranehes falls," said Count ftuy, his gre.it form Ix»weri_g over mc like i shadow, "you shall not be forgotten; nnd when the Princess is crowned Queen of Asturnia you shall have your reward."' 1 looked him straight in the eyes, and, turning sharply on my heel without a word, left tbe room. I had done a night's work that the whole yvorld could not compensate mc for. Perchance, too. the deaths of ten thousand fellow-men would oc laid at the door of my soul. (To be continued next Wednesday.)