Guard yourself, Leo,guard yourself
At any rate, Leo, why should she not still be sufficiently under its influence to cause her, without any fault or seeking of her own, to fallmadly in love at first sight with a man whom, after all, she has alwaysloved?The argument seems sound enough, Horace, and if so i am sorry forthe Khania, who hasn t much choice in the matter-been forced into it, soto speak.Yes, but meanwhile your foot is in a trap again. Guard yourself, Leo,guard yourself. I belleve that this is a trial sent to you, and doubtlessthere will be more to follow But i believe also that it would be better foryou to die than to make any mistakeI know it well, he answered " and you need not be afraid.
whateverthis Khania may have been to me in the past-if she was anything atall-that story is done with. I seek Ayesha, and Ayesha alone and venusherself shall not tempt me from her.Then we began to speak with hope and fear of that mysterious Heseawho had sent the letter from the Mountain, commanding the shamanSimbri to meet us: the priestess or spirit whom he declared was mightyfrom of old "and had"servants in the earth and airPresently the prow of our barge bumped against the bank of the river,and looking round I saw that Simbri had left the boat in which he sat andwas preparing to enter ours. This he did, and, placing himself gravely ona seat in front of us, explained that nightfall was coming on, and hewished to give us his company and protection through the darkAnd to see that we do not give him the slip in it, "muttered LeoThen the drivers whipped up their ponies, and we went on againLook behind you, said Simbrl presently, and you will see the citywhere you wll sleep to-night.We turned ourselves, and there, about ten miles away perceived aflat-roofed town of considerable, though not of very great size. Its posttion was good, for it was set upon a large island that stood a hundredfeet or more above the level of the plain, the river dividing into twobranches at the foot of it, and, as we discovered afterwards, unitingagain beyondThe vast mound upon which this city was bullt had the appearance ofbeing artificial, but very possibly the soll whereof it was formed hadbeen washed up in past ages during times of flood, so that from a mud-bank in the centre of the broad river it grew by degrees to its presentproportions. With the exception of a columned and towered edifice thatcrowned the city and seemed to be encircled by gardens, we could see nogreat buildings in the place
How is the city named?" asked Leo of simbriKaloon, he answered, as was all this land even when my fore- fath-ers, the conquerors, marched across the mountains and took it more thantwo thousand years ago. They kept the ancient title, but the territory ofthe Mountain they called Hes, because they said that the loop upon yon-der ptk was the symbol of a goddess of this name whom their generalworshippedPriestesses still live there, do they not?" said Leo, trying in his turn toextract the truth"Yes, and priests also. The College of them was established by the con-s,who subdued all the land. Or rather, it took the place of anotherCollege of those who fashioned the Sanctuary and the Temple, whosegod was the fire in the Mountain, as it is that of the people of Kaloon to-Then who is worshipped there now?The goddess hes, it is said but we know little of the matter. forbetween us and the Mountain folk there has been enmity for ages. Theykill us and we kill them, for they are jealous of their shrine, which nonemay visit save by permission, to consult the Oracle and to make prayeror offering in times of calamity, when a Khan dies, or the waters of theriver sink and the crops fail, or when ashes fall and earthquakes shakethe land, or great sickness comes. Otherwise, unless they attack us, weleave them alone, for though every man is trained to arms, and can fightif need be, we are a peaceful folk, who cultivate the soil from generationto generation and thus grow rich. Look round you. Is it not a scene ofEver stood up in the boat and gazed about us at the pastoral prospect.Everywhere appeared herds of cattle feeding upon meadow lands, ortroops of mules and horses, or square fields sown with corn and outlinedby trees. Village folk, also, clad in long, grey gowns, were labouring onthe land, or, their day s toil finished driving their beasts homewardsalong roads built upon the banks of the irrigation dykes, towards thehamlets that were placed on rising knolls amidst tall poplar grovesIn its sharp contrast with the arid deserts and fearful mountainsamongst which we had wandered for so many years, this country struckus as most charming, and indeed, seen by the red light of the sinking sunon that spring day, even as beautiful with the same kind of beauty whichis to be found in holland. one could understand too that these landown-ers and peasant-farmers would by choice be men of peace, and what atemptation their wealth must offer to the hungry, half-savage tribes ofthe mountains
Also it was easy to guess when the survivors of Alexander's legionsunder thelr Egyptian general burst through the iron band of snow-cladhills and saw this sweet country, with its homes, its herds, and its ripening grass, that they must have cried with one voice, We will march andfight and toll no more. Here we wlll sit us down to live and die. Thusdoubtless they did, taking them wives from among the women of thepeople of the land which they had conquered--perhaps after a singlebattleNow as the lght faded the wreaths of smoke which hung over thedistant Fire-mountain began to glow luridly Redder and more angry didthey become while the darkness gathered, till at length they seemed to becharged with pulsing sheets of flame propelled from the womb of thevolcano, which threw piercing beams of light through the eye of the giant loop that crowned its brow. Far, far fled those beams, making abright path across the land, and striking the white crests of the borderingwall of mountains. High in the air ran that path, over the dim roofs of thecity of Kaloon, over the river, yes, stralght above us, over the mountains,and doubtless-though there we could not follow them-across thedesert to that high eminence on its farther side where we had lain bathedin thelr radiance. It was a wondrous and most impressive sight, one toothat filled our companions with fear, for the steersmen in our boats andthe drivers on the towing -path groaned aloud and began to utter pray-ers. What do they say? "asked Leo of SimbrlThey say, lord, that the Spirit of the Mountain is angry, and passesdown yonder flying light that is called the Road of Hes to work someevil to our land. Therefore they pray her not to destroy themThen does that lght not always shine thus? he asked agat6,Nay, but seldom. Once about three months ago, and now to-night,ut before that not for years. Let us pray that it portends no misfortuneto Kaloon and its inhabitantsFor some minutes this fearsome illumination continued, then it ceaseds suddenly as it had begun, and there remained of it only the dull glowabove the crest of the peak.
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